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=                         Hasegawa_Takejiro                          =
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                            Introduction
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was an innovative Japanese publisher specializing in books in European
languages on Japanese subjects. He employed leading foreign residents
as translators and noted Japanese artists as illustrators, and became
a leading purveyor of export books and publications for foreign
residents in Japan.


                             Beginnings
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Hasegawa's earliest known books were published under the "Kobunsha"
imprint in the mid-1880s but around 1889 he began publishing under the
names "T. Hasegawa" and "Hasegawa & Co." Early publications
included a monochrome woodcut illustrated Hokusai collection and a two
volume 'Writings of Buddha' (Kobunsha, 1884).

Many of Hasegawa's early books were in the form of 'chirimen-bon'
(ちりめん本) or crêpe paper books.


                     Japanese Fairy Tale Series
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In 1885, Hasegawa published the first six volumes of his Japanese
Fairy Tale Series, employing American Presbyterian missionary Rev.
David Thomson as translator. As the series proved profitable, Hasegawa
added other translators beginning with James Curtis Hepburn for the
seventh volume, including Basil Hall Chamberlain, Lafcadio Hearn, and
Chamberlain's friend Kate James, wife of his Imperial Japanese Naval
Academy colleague, Thomas H. James. The books were illustrated by
Kobayashi Eitaku until his death in 1890, and by various other artists
afterwards.

By 1903, the series reached 28 volumes in two series. Most of the
stories were based on well-known Japanese folk tales, but some of the
later books, including several by Lafcadio Hearn, are thought to have
been invented rather than translated, or perhaps combine elements of
several folk tales. The books continued to be reprinted, sometimes
with variant titles, for several decades.

Number !! Title(s) !! Japanese name !! Translator !! Publication
align="center"|1        align="center"|'Little Peachling'       'Momotaro'
align="center"|'Momotaro'       align="center"| David Thomson
align="center"|1885
align="center"|2        align="center"|'Tongue-Cut Sparrow'     'Tongue Cut
Sparrow'        align="center"|'Shita-kiri suzume'      align="center"| David
Thomson align="center"|1885
align="center"|3        align="center"|'Battle of the Monkey and the Crab'
'Battle of the Monkey & Crab'       align="center"|'Saru kani gassen'
align="center"| David Thomson   align="center"|1885
align="center"|4        align="center"|'The Old Man Who Made the Dead Trees
Blossom'        'Hanasaki Jiji' align="center"|'Hanasaki jiji'
align="center"| David Thomson   align="center"|1885
align="center"|5        align="center"|'Kachi-Kachi Mountain'   'Kachi-Kachi
Yama'   align="center"|'Kachi-kachi Yama'       align="center"| David Thomson
align="center"| 1885
align="center"|6        align="center"|'The Mouse's Wedding'    'Nedzumi no
Yome-Iri'       align="center"|'Nezumi no Yomeiri'      align="center"| David
Thomson align="center"| 1885
align="center"|7        align="center"|'The Old Man and the Devils'     'The Old
Man & the Devils'   align="center"|'Kobutori'       align="center"|James
Curtis Hepburn  align="center"|1886
align="center"|8        align="center"|'Urashima, The Fisher-Boy'
'Urashima', 'The Fisher-Boy Urashima'   align="center"|'Urashima Taro'
align="center"|Basil Hall Chamberlain   align="center"|1886
align="center"|9        align="center"|'The Serpent With Eight Heads'
'Yamata No Orochi'      align="center"|'Yamata no orochi'
align="center"|Basil Hall Chamberlain   align="center"|1886
align="center"|10       align="center"|'The Matsuyama Mirror'   'Matsuyama
Kagami' align="center"|'Matsuyama kagami'       align="center"|Mrs. T.H.
(Kate) James    align="center"|1886
align="center"|11       align="center"|'The Hare of Inaba'
align="center"|'Inaba no shirousagi'    align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate)
James   align="center"|1886
align="center"|12       align="center"|'The Cub's Triumph'      'Kitsune no
Tegara' align="center"|'Kitsune no tegara'      align="center"|Mrs. T.H.
(Kate) James    align="center"|1886
align="center"|13       align="center"|'The Silly Jelly-Fish'
align="center"|'Kurage honenashi'       align="center"|Basil Hall
Chamberlain     align="center"|1887
align="center"|14       align="center"|'The Princes Fire-Flash and
Fire-Fade'      align="center"|'Tamanoi'        align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate)
James   align="center"|1887
align="center"|15       align="center"|'My Lord Bag-O'Rice'
align="center"|'Tawara no Toda' align="center"|Basil Hall Chamberlain
align="center"|1887
align="center"|16       align="center"|'The Wooden Bowl'
align="center"|'Hachi kazuki'   align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|1887
align="center"|16*      align="center"|'Wonderful Tea Kettle'
align="center"|'Bunbuku chagama'        align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|1896
align="center"|17       align="center"|'Schippeitaro'
align="center"|'Shippeitaro'    align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|1888
align="center"|18       align="center"|'The Ogre's Arm'
align="center"|'Rashomon'       align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|1889
align="center"|19       align="center"|'The Ogres of Oyeyama'
align="center"|'Oeyama' align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|?
align="center"|20       align="center"|'The Enchanted Waterfall'
align="center"|'Ko wa shimizu'  align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|?
align="center"|21       align="center"|'Three Reflections'
align="center"|'Ama saiban'     align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|1894
align="center"|22       align="center"|'The Flowers of Remembrance and
Forgetfulness'  align="center"  align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|1894
align="center"|23       align="center"|'The Boy Who Drew Cats'
align="center"|'Eneko to nezumi'        align="center"|Lafcadio Hearn
align="center"|1898
align="center"|24       align="center"|'The Old Woman Who Lost Her
Dumpling'       align="center"  align="center"|Lafcadio Hearn
align="center"|1902
align="center"|25       align="center"|'Chin Chin Kobakama'
align="center"|'Chiichii kobakama'      align="center"|Lafcadio Hearn
align="center"|1903
align="center"|2-1      align="center"|'The Goblin Spider'      align="center"
align="center"|Lafcadio Hearn   align="center"|1902?
align="center"|2-2      align="center"|'The Wonderful Mallet'
align="center"  align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James
align="center"|1899
align="center"|2-3      align="center"|'The Broken Images'      align="center"
align="center"|Mrs. T.H. (Kate) James   align="center"|1903
align="center"| -       align="center"|'Princess Splendor: The Woodcutter's
Daughter'       'Princess Splendor, Japanese Fairy Tale'
align="center"|'Taketori monogatari'    align="center"| Edward Rothesay
Miller  align="center"| 1889
align="center"|-        align="center"|'The Fountain of Youth'
align="center"  align="center"|Lafcadio Hearn   align="center"|1922

The two series of fairy tale books were also packaged into various
types of sets. In 1922 an additional Lafcadio Hearn title, 'The
Fountain of Youth' was added, and a five volume Hearn set was sold.
'Princess Splendor: The Woodcutter's Daughter', a translation of
'Taketori monogatari' by American missionary Edward Rothesay Miller,
was presumably excluded from the series because of its greater length.
A three volume series of Aino Fairy Tales translated by Basil Hall
Chamberlain, consisting of 'The Hunter in Fairy-Land', 'The Birds'
Party', and 'The Man Who Lost His Wife', was also issued in 1887.

Many of the fairy tale books appeared in other European language
translations, including French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and
Swedish.


                         Other publications
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Besides the popular fairy tale books, Hasegawa produced other books
for Japan's tourist trade and foreign community. Many, like his
illustrated calendars with humorous verses, were of an ephemeral
nature. There were also translations of Japanese poetry, including the
three volume series, 'Sword and Blossom: Poems from Japan' translated
by Charlotte Peake and Kimura Shotaro (1907-1910), collections of
prints by famous artists such as Hiroshige and Hokusai, and
illustrated books on Japanese life and customs, such as 'Japanese
Pictures of Japanese Life' (1895), 'Japanese Topsyturvydom' by Mrs.
E.S. Patton (1896), and 'The Favorite Flowers of Japan', with text by
Mary E. Unger and illustrations by Mishima Shoso (1901).


                             References
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;Citations

;Bibliography

* Riccardo, Franci (2008) 'Takejiro Hasegawa e le fiabe giapponesi del
Museo Stibbert', Livorno,
*


                           External links
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*[https://hasegawanightscenes.com/ Hasegawa's Night Scenes series of
woodblock prints]
*[https://mokuhankan.com/fonts/ The Hasegawa Typeface] History and
downloadable version of his font
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_6WpacAb1M Video about Hasegawa's
crepe books] by David Bull (30 mins)


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