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Japan, like the tropical world, has its goblin trees. Both are believed to have the power of haunting. 'Enoki ga bakeru, the izumo saying is.
But in almost every Shinto, and also in many Buddhist, temple grounds, is planted the tree called enoki which is sacred to him, and in which he is supposed by the peasantry to dwell; for they pray before the enoki always to Kojin. And there is usually a small shrine placed before the tree, and a little torii also.
The tree spectre seldom speaks, and seldom ventures to go very far away from its tree. If approached, it immediately shrinks back into the trunk or the foliage. It is said that if either an old yanagi or a young enoki be cut blood will flow from the gash. When such trees are very young it is not believed that they have supernatural habits, but they become more dangerous the older they grow.
But the pride of the collection were the conifers and evergreens trees which have Japanese and Latin names only, the hinoki, the enoki, the sasaki, the keyaki, the maki, the surgi and the kusunoki all trees of the dark funereal families of fir and laurel, which the birds avoid, and whose deep winter green in the summer turns to rust.
Although said to be a bakemono-ki, the enoki sometimes receives highest religious honours; for the spirit of the god Kojin, to whom old dolls are dedicated, is supposed to dwell within certain very ancient enoki trees, and before these are placed shrines whereat people make prayers. The second garden, on the north side, is my favourite, It contains no large growths.
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