"I am going to explain what our senior may be speculating about in the result now."
Tsubune goes forward to the latter explanation of his document.

"First of all, about Kanematsu Auditorium. It should probably not be finished only by saying its construction style is Romanesque."
The pictures comparing it with Yasuda Auditorium of Tokyo University in Gothic-style are circulated among them.One is outstanding, while another is short and simple.
"Next, we considered that the monsters living in Kanematsu Auditorium could be classified into three types. The monsters on the facade are the Four Gods. They are not seen at any other places of the auditorium. On the other hand, the monsters around the outer walls are the animals in European and Romanesque style. It is clear according to Ms. Fukami's illustrated book."
Eriko nods to him.
"The inside of the auditorium is crowded with the monsters and ghosts created by Chuta Itoh called as 'Chuta Original'."
This time several tens of pictures taken by Tsubune are arranged on the rectangular table.
"These three kinds of monsters seem to be arranged with meticulous care to harmonize with each other in the Romanesque-style building."
Tsubune now talks rather boldly and Suga senior is satisfied with it.
"Mr. Suga has had more confidence that the Four-God Statues on the facade themselves contain the school history since its birth. That is: Great ambition during the period of infancy, the repetition of critical moments, the strenuous efforts of professors, students and Josuikai, ... All of them kept to themselves the idea of self-reliance and the resistance to the Government clinging to National schools from the beginning. One of the peaks was Shinyu Case, during which there was such a public opinion that they were lawless bunches on the one hand, but this case let the Government approve the academic status of Commercial education. Just an aside, the cohesion of the whole school including professors and alumni through this case seems to have become a jealousy from the other National schools."
Borrowed words, after all? His expression is not natural here. Tsubune takes a deep breath to hide his embarassment.
"Suga senior regards the school history like this as being condensed into the Four-God Statues up on the facade."
His speech has come to "What the Four-God Statues is" at last.

"Dating back to the year Meiji 18 (1885), ten years after the birth of the Commercial Law Institute, the origin of the school, our Tokyo Commercial School merged with Tokyo School of Foreign Studies (TSFS), now the university Mari-san graduated from, and made a fresh start. The new school badge made then is this Mercury of a stick with a bird wing on it and tangled by two snakes."
Young Mari cuts into his speech here.
"Though the name of the school badge is Mercury, the commercial God in Roman mythology, the design is the stick the god holds in his left hand, do you say so? This story may be also found in the history of my alma mater."
She would probably like to say that her university must have once shared this school badge.

Then immediately Suga elderly cuts in.
"We are now in the passage of the relationship between Mercury and Gembu of Four Gods. The badge is said to have been proposed jointly by a teacher from Belgium and a vice-principal in the year of its merger with TSFS. The name of Mercury is the commercial God in Roman mythology as Mari-san says. All of you may have seen the sculpture on the 3rd floor in Josuikai-kan Hall, which is it. Mercury is Hermes in Greek mythology and Mercurius in the Laten language. The badge is what was designed from the stick held by Mercury's hand. The stick Kerukeion called Caduceus in Greek mythology is with a bird wing fluttering on top wound by two snakes around. It is said that snakes show wisdom and a wing means the flight into the Five Continents."
Junior Tsubune thoughtfully indicates the pictures of Mercury are the sticks of Kerukeion.

The elderly senior adds further more.
"On the other hand, Gembu of Four Gods is a god in China and is in charge of the north in the direction. It is mostly drawn like a snake fighting a turtle with long legs, winding its shell."

"Then who connected this Gembu to that Mercury? We cannot identify it at all now, but at least someone might have thought of the Gembu of this kind with a turtle and a snake fighting through the image of the two snakes coiling around the stick, and have got to connect it to the Four-God Statues. Who named it Gembu, one of the Four-God Statues? I believe it was named by the alumni members of the boat club. They named their group Shishin-kai (Four-God Party) themselves. They must have strongly persuaded the school executives. This Shishin-kai has been a strong supporter throughout since it started.

The senior, fond of making a detour, points to a certain place in the document toward Tsubune, considering that the junior explained about the relationship between Mercury and Gembu for now.
He seems to be sure how the school name came.
The speaker has been caught off guard and comes to himself. He reads the part the senior has pointed out.
"It was over 20 years since the completion of Kanematsu Auditorium with Four-God Statues, ..."

Since the school moved its head office to Kanda-Hitotsubashi in the result of the merger with TSFS, Hitotsubashi became its proud nickname. After it moved to Kunitachi, too, it respected this name, and then after the war, when it restarted as a new university, it named itself as Hitotsubashi University, changed from Tokyo Commercial College. However, this school name was not adopted so smoothly. The people involved remember well even now that it competed with another candidate "University of Society and Science" at that time.

The temporary speaker, probably considering he played a safe role about the detour, sips tea and gets back to the topic of the school badge.
"The two snakes coiling around the stick were compared to Gembu of a turtle and a snake, and Suzaku, Byakko and Seiryu were added, and finally the idea of Shishin (Four Gods) in the Chinese legend was thought up."

While Tsubune is arranging his breath, the elderly senior asks Keizo Kawaji.
"What do you think of Four Gods?"
Kawaji just answers back what is in his mind.
"I know it. I noticed your idea in your imaginative story, and I investigated it myself for confirmation, too."
The speaker begins to talk.
"In Meiji 22 (1889), four years after the school badge was created, the the brand-new four boats with Four-God names respectively, appeared on Sumida River. Therefore, concerning when the idea of Four God was thought up, it can well be said during these days."
The senior Suga does not seem to add anything.

"Next is about the four patterns on the facade. Mercury regarded as Gembu is obviously the school badge. The problem is the figures of the other three relieves. When and who made them? Or were they copied from any existing patterns or sculptures? Nobody knows so far, ..."
Tsubune hesitates so as not to say further.
"They are said at least not the works of Chuta Itoh. It is concluded that they have nothing similar with any of his monsters and ghosts and no relationship with his style. Someone presumes they may be the works of Yuji Hori played an active part from Meiji to Showa period."
He gives Suga and Eriko a glance.
"Mr. Hori made several statues even in Kunitachi campus like: Fusajiro Kanematsu (a bust), Eiichi Shibusawa (a bust), Haruo Murase (a bust), Jiro Yano (a statue) and Zensaku Sano (a statue). So, he is closely related with our school. He seems not irrelevant to these kinds of caricature-style designs, and his active period and the construction of Kanematsu Auditorium were around the same time. Therefore I would like to consider him to be their designer, but no evidence so far, ..."
His explanation is obscure at this point, beating around the bush.
This topic was discussed among Suga, Eriko and Tsubune again and again. Tsubune still sticks to the theory of the works of Yuji Hori, but Suga and Eriko reject it.

"Concerning Shishin-kai, ..."
Tsubune turns the stage awkwardly.
"The time the alumni group of the boat club was officially named Shishin-kai in Taisho 8 (1919) 30 years after the own boats were built. It was 7 years before the construction start of Kanematsu Auditorium. At that time Four Gods as the school's symbol must have been shared by the whole school not just by the boat club. The class competition of the whole school had been held on Sumida River from years ago under the name 'Every student has to be a oarsman'. I know the two seniors of you did well, right?"
He hides himself of doing nothing in his school days.
"Tokyo High Commercial (THC) was promoted to Tokyo Commercial College (TCC) in Taisho 9 (1920) the next year of the start of Shisin-kai. The first president Zensaku Sano concurrently held the post of Manager of Boat Club, and TCC won the Inter College Race the same year, first time to defeat Tokyo Imperial University. Seems too good, but the fact."
Tsubune insists it with funny gestures.

"Last but not least, I have to mention the construction of Kanematsu Auditorium."
It seems the long speech has come to the end. Tsubune continues, a little worrying how properly they understand his report with an overlook.
"President Sano accomplished a big job that he approached Dr. Chuta Itoh, an authority of the architectural world, with his plan and had his favor to take on it. The plan is from a commercial college, a lower-ranking school in general, and what's worse, its place is too far west of Metropolitan Tokyo. Nevertheless, why did Dr. Itoh accept it even as a responsible constructor as well as a designer? Was it just because of the desire from his hobby that he thought he could set a lot of monster caricatures of his own? It never seems so. How would you think of it if I said he was impressed with the unique history of the school?"
His talk gets power with his eyes meeting his senior's, and he sighs with relief.
"I think president Sano's sincerity and passion or his such full emotion became one of the doctor's motivations. Dr. Itoh never took any action unless he felt anything impressive. I hear he even tore and threw away the design plan made with effort in case of any trivial difference of opinions. And we must not forget about the support of the two great seniors, Eiichi Shibusawa and Kihachiro Okura. ... That's about all of my report, ..."
Suga elderly is nodding with a tender look. Tsubune, around 25 years junior, adds another words with good expectation.
"The auditorium was built in Romanesque style not because of Dr. Itoh but because he originally desired to put the Four-God Statues on the facade. He devoted all his energies in order to realize the hall of dream with the school history and his own firm idea. I am thinking this way."

"You say 'dream'."
Suga opens his mouth at last.
"Dr. Itoh, as Tubune-kun says, was a man of strong belief and stuck to his opinion even obstinately. So, he did not take on any job unless something major came up. Besides, the documents talk he was too busy especially at that time. Such a person not only took on it but also did every design and commuted all the way far to the site at Kunitachi until the construction was completed. Doesn't it mean he came to leave himself to the history of the school and his own dream?"
He adds looking at his junior pleased with the senior's favorable talk.
"The construction company was decided by a bid to Takenaka Corporation. Takenaka was close to Dr. Itoh in fact. The interior work was done by Matsui Construction Company managed by Kakuhei Matsui, not doing a bid. Moreover, Dr. Itoh made his pupils support this construction. Many of the monsters inside the auditorium were made by himself shaping clay like his talk. The 16 members of the construction committee are just in the document. President Sano was a chair, and the members were Dr. Itoh, executives of Kanematsu Company, professors of the college and Education Ministry. In such a circumstance misunderstandings and quarrels may often happen, however, after completion he himself praised all of them in his construction report saying they did a wonderful team play. He also said that Romanesque Style was an old style but he threw his energy into this style under his true thought ."