URASHIMA The fisher boy of Japanese folklore, he married a sea maidenand lived in a palace beneath the waves, but wishing to see his parents again, hedecided to return to the land of his birth. His wife gave him a casket which if unopened would ensure his safe return to her. Dismayed to learn that centuries had passed since he had left, however, Urashima opened the casket, and at once apuff of white smoke arose from it and drifted away across the sea, followed by a coldwind that shook the boy and turned him instantly to an ancient man, then acorpse.