The interwoven story of a dog, the University and various peopleHachiko and UTokyo
Of all the dogs that have some kind of association with the University of Tokyo, Hachiko has to be the most famous. Statues of the loyal dog have been erected in Tokyo’s Shibuya City as well as in the city of Odate in Akita Prefecture and in the Hisai area of Mie Prefecture. He has also been immortalized in film, with movies telling the story of his life made in Japan, the United States and China. Hachiko has thus been internationally renowned; however, the same could not be said for his owner. Hachiko was born in 1923 and died in 1935. This year (2023) thus marks the 100th anniversary of his birth. In the following, we share new stories about Hachiko and UTokyo that we have heard from related parties — stories that began on the 80th anniversary of the dog’s passing.
- In celebration of the 100th anniversary of Hachiko’s birth
- https://hachi100.visitakita.com/top/en/top/
Read part 1 here
Hachiko and UTokyo (part 1)3.
True cause of Hachiko’s death revealed 75 years later
Kazuyuki Uchida
Professor, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences
Interpersonal ties spark reinvestigation
Sometime before dawn on March 8, 1935, Hachiko’s dead body was found on the south side of Shibuya Station. The carcass was transported to the pathology and bacteriology laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture of Tokyo Imperial University in Komaba (presently UTokyo’s Laboratory of Veterinary Pathology) and a pathological autopsy to determine cause of death was carried out that afternoon. It was concluded that Hachiko died by dirofilariasis, a parasitic infection of roundworms that although rare today was fatal to many dogs at that time.
The body of Hachiko was stuffed and put on display at the National Museum of Nature and Science, and his internal organs (lungs, heart, esophagus, liver and spleen) that had been removed during the autopsy were preserved in formalin as laboratory specimens. Since 2006, the specimens had been exhibited along with a bust of Professor Ueno at the Agricultural and Life Sciences Museum. A few years after that, in 2010, a researcher at UTokyo who wanted to examine the dog’s DNA contacted Professor Kazuyuki Uchida, then an associate professor at the Laboratory of Veterinary Pathology.
“Project Professor Manabu Watanabe at the Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, whom I had taught at the University of Miyazaki, contacted me, wanting to compare Hachiko’s genes with those of present-day Akita dogs as part of his research into canine genomes. Actually, in the necropsy record, Hachiko was simply listed as a ‘Japanese dog.’”
In order to conduct the research, slices of the organ tissues were required. Professor Hiroyuki Nakayama, who was then leading the Laboratory, decided to use the opportunity to create pathology specimens. In 1935, when Hachiko died, microscopic observation was not generally conducted and no causal factors other than dirofilariasis had been identified as contributing to Hachiko’s death. But multiple lumps could be observed in the dog’s lungs and heart, which had attracted Professor Nakayama’s notice.
Hachiko’s demise brought on by heartworms and cancer
Professor Nakayama passed his specimens on to Professor Uchida, who observed the lung and heart tissue with a microscope and found that Hachiko had possibly suffered from lung carcinosarcoma with metastasis to the heart.
“Many of the tumor cells were spindle-shaped, which is a typical morphological feature of carcinosarcoma. Although it is impossible to make detailed examinations of the genes and cells as the specimens have been preserved in formalin for 75 years, Hachiko seemed to have carcinosarcoma, which has morphological and biological characteristics both of the epithelial and mesenchymal cells,” says Professor Uchida.
The pathologic observations revealed that there were over 30 Dirofilariae in the heart, meaning that Hachiko was suffering from severe dirofilariasis. In addition, the malignant tumors in his lungs would have made his later years quite painful.
Back when he was working as an assistant at the Laboratory, Professor Uchida had one time been reprimanded by Professor Nakayama for leaving Hachiko’s internal organs outside the dissection room for disposal. These days he is interested in the fact that different dog breeds typically suffer from different diseases, with research indicating that genetic differences could make some breeds more susceptible to certain disorders. Bulldogs, for example, tend to suffer from brain tumors, while pugs have a gene for autoimmune encephalitis. The breed of dog is therefore an important indicator in veterinary medicine.
“We also identified the gene that often leads to neuroaxonal dystrophy in papillons,” says Professor Uchida. “Moving beyond Hachiko, I would like to make research achievements that attract public attention.”
4.
The story of Hachiko and UTokyo grows over time
Masaru Mizoguchi
Professor, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences
Volunteering to make stickers promoting the statue
Faculty of Agriculture Professor Masaru Mizoguchi has been promoting the statue of Hachiko and Professor Ueno in his spare time. Now at the International Agro-Informatics Laboratory, Professor Mizoguchi, like Professor Yoshida (see part 1), studied at the laboratory that emerged out of the seminar taught by Professor Ueno. He first became interested in Hachiko when he was a third-year student at UTokyo.
“In a class given by Professor Hajime Takenaka, who was the fifth professor of the Laboratory of Land Environmental Engineering, I learned that Hachiko might only have been at Shibuya Station because someone there was feeding him yakitori. This is when I became interested in the story. For me, it didn’t ring true that a dog would wait for its master at the station every day. The story that it was there just for the yakitori made more sense.”
Even when he was still a student, Professor Mizoguchi thought that the nougyou doboku (the agricultural engineering department) might be able to use Hachiko to drum up some publicity. But he didn’t pursue the idea because he was busy with track and field club. When he joined the Faculty as a researcher, however, and heard about Professor Ichinose’s plans (see part 1), he thought that the time had come for him to step forward as an alumnus, and he thus became a member of Professor Ichinose’s “Group for erecting a statue of Hachiko and Professor Hidesaburo Ueno at UTokyo” (Statue Group). After the decision to erect the statue was made, Professor Mizoguchi started creating stickers to give out as souvenirs to anyone who came to see the statue. The stickers, which feature both dog and master, depict Hachiko as the puppy he was when the two were together. The items became so popular that starting in September 2015, stickers featuring silhouettes of Hachiko and Professor Ueno against seasonal backgrounds were printed at a rate of 2,000 per month for distribution at the entrance to the Faculty of Agriculture, the No-seimon Gate.
“The background changes depending on the season: cherry blossoms in spring, sunflowers in summer, red leaves in fall and snow in winter,” says Professor Mizoguchi. “Moreover, during the entrance examination period, we make special ‘good luck’ stickers for the students taking the exam. We were unable to distribute these for around three years due to COVID-19, but some people seem to have still been collecting them for fun. We have released about 50 different designs.”
The plans of faculty members receive support from former staff
At the unveiling ceremony held for the statue, coffee, cookies and stationery goods were distributed to participants thanks to the efforts of Tomiko Saito, a former staff member of the Faculty of Agriculture who also wanted to do something to support the Statue Group. After quickly obtaining the approval of Professor Shiozawa, Ms. Saito launched the Hachiko & Dr. Ueno Project with her former colleague Yasuko Niwa, a secretary at the International Agro-Informatics Laboratory. Although they had initially planned to implement the project only on the day of the ceremony, they decided to keep it going it due to popular demand. So far, they have sold their products on special days, such as during the May Festival or when an event is being held at Yayoi Auditorium. They also stock them at the liquor store opposite the No-seimon Gate. With the encouragement and support of Professor Mizoguchi, who was formerly in charge of the Faculty’s public relations, they have also been selling their goods at the Agricultural and Life Sciences Museum on the eighth day of each month since 2018 (except during COVID-19). A portion of each sale has been donated to the Faculty for the purchase of air conditioners and other equipment for the Museum, as well as for providing students with financial support.
As advisor to the Hachiko & Dr. Ueno Project, Professor Mizoguchi has distributed Hachiko calendars at the UTokyo CO-OP cafeterias and Hachiko paper fans at the University’s Open Day events, and has also sold Hachiko apples featuring a silhouette of the statue (produced by a farmer in Aomori Prefecture who cooperates with the professor in his research activities). He is currently working on “Hachiko ramen,” to be served at the CO-OP cafeterias in and after November (2023).
“For the ramen, we will use fish cakes imprinted with a silhouette of the statue, and yakitori, which Hachiko himself reportedly loved. Professor Ueno was born in Mie Prefecture and founded the department of agricultural engineering at Mie University, and so we’re hoping that the ramen can also be served there.”
In 1984, at the suggestion of students of the Faculty of Agriculture, an event was organized in which the bust of Professor Ueno was brought to Shibuya to “meet” the Hachiko statue installed there. This year, which marks the centennial of Hachiko’s birth, a group of current students are conducting similar activities. On Saturday, November 4, 2023, to celebrate the anniversary, a lecture meeting* will be held in Building No. 1 of the Faculty of Agriculture. The story of Hachiko and UTokyo thus continues to grow and be celebrated in new ways.
* At the lecture meeting, speeches will be given by Professor Ichinose, Professor Uchida, Professor Mizoguchi and Professor Yukari Takeuchi, as well as by Emeritus Professor Mariko Hasegawa of the Graduate University for Advanced Studies.
Centennial celebration by students
The UTokyo Students Who Love Hachiko Group
The UTokyo Students Who Love Hachiko Group has been planning and implementing various events to celebrate the centennial of Hachiko’s birth. The group was started by students at the Faculty of Agriculture as a side project that they work on in their own time. On August 5th and 6th, the group had a booth at the Hachi Fes held in Shibuya (see picture), and members also participated in a talk event held as part of the festival. In cooperation with the UTokyo CO-OP, the group is also doing marketing activities for Hachiko ramen and plans to serve yakitori from a booth at the Komaba Festival, to be held from November 24–26, 2023. To get updates on the group’s future activities, follow them on Instagram. (Japanese language only)
Learning about rural villages through a game
“Loyal dog visits rural villages! The adventures of Hachiko and Professor Ueno”
Professor Mizoguchi has developed and released a PC/smartphone game that teaches players about rural villages around Japan. Developed in collaboration with the Rural Development Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the game puts players in the role of Hachiko and Professor Ueno and has them travel around to present-day rural areas where they protect fields from wild animals and remove invasive species from rivers. Try it and see if you can get a high score! http://nosui.circlles.com
The Komaba-Hachiko Story
Written by Takashi Tamura
Associate Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
The portrait of a loyal dog, as depicted in a moral education textbook
It is well known that Hachiko used to wait for Professor Ueno at Shibuya Station. For instance, this was how his behavior was described in Vol. 2 “On wo wasureru na” (“Never forget to show your gratitude”) of the Jinjo Shogaku Shushinsho (“Ordinary Elementary School Textbook for Moral Education”) published on Nov. 22, 1934 (picture on the left):
“The dog walked his master to the station every morning to see him off, and then returned again in the evening to meet him.”
If you dig deeper into the story, though, it starts to seem quite odd. Professor Ueno’s house was located at the back of Shibuya-ku’s Shoto neighborhood, in between the University and Shibuya Station. Did he walk all the way to the station on the opposite side of the University just to catch the train to the Komaba Campus, which was only about a 10-minute walk from where he lived? In fact, Professor Ueno only had Hachiko for about a year in 1924, before the Inokashira railway line even opened. So it seems that he did actually commute to the Faculty of Agriculture at the Komaba Campus on foot, with Hachiko seeing him off and then waiting for him later on at the main gate of the campus. Additionally, in Todai Hachiko Monogatari (“The UTokyo Hachiko Story”; University of Tokyo Press, 2015), it is stated that “Professor Ueno commuted to the University in Komaba on foot, and Hachi also saw him off and waited for him at the University.” This telling of events is corroborated by the testimony of Hirokichi Saito, as recorded in Hachiko Bunkenshu, a collection of documents about Hachiko edited by Masaharu Hayashi (1991). In these documents, Saito is reported as saying: “From horseback, I saw the dog near the front gate of the Faculty of Agriculture.”
Hachiko did not wait for Professor Ueno at the station every day
Professor Ueno did take the train to visit certain facilities, such as the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce’s Agriculture Experiment Station located in the Tokyo neighborhood of Nishigahara. This is reported in the book Shibuya-eki 100-nenshi Chuken Hachiko 50-nen (“The 100-year History of Shibuya Station and the 50th Anniversary of Hachiko’s Passing”; Shibuya Station of National Railways, 1958). But it is not true that Professor Ueno commuted to the University by train. The movie Hachiko Monogatari (1987) nevertheless contains a scene in which Hachiko sees Professor Hidejiro Ueno off at the entrance to Shibuya Station in the morning. Professor Ueno is then shown reading a newspaper on the train and later passing through the University gates. This is not a true depiction. In Hachi: A Dog’s Tale (2009), a remake of the Japanese movie, Hachi’s master, Professor Parker Wilson, also commutes by train, and his canine companion also sees him off and waits for him at the station. The poster for the Japanese version of the movie even features the catchphrase, “You were always waiting for me at the station.” Meanwhile, in an article published in the morning edition of the Asahi Shimbun newspaper dated October 4, 1932, Hirokichi Saito wrote that the dog was seen waiting at the station for his master after Professor Ueno’s death. He made no mention, however, of Hachiko and Professor Ueno going to Shibuya Station and returning home together every day. It thus appears that the report appearing in the aforementioned textbook was a conflation of the two stories — the one about Hachiko seeing Professor Ueno off at the campus gate every morning and the one about him waiting for his master at Shibuya Station after Professor Ueno had passed away.
It is also worth noting that the Main Gate of the Faculty of Agriculture was not located where the Main Gate of the Komaba Campus sits today. According to the “Tokyo Teikoku Daigaku Nougakubu Tatemono Ichi Zu,” a map of Tokyo Imperial University’s Faculty of Agriculture facilities dated April 1, 1922, and to “Tokyo Jisou Maps,” a Japan Map Center app which lets you compare old and new maps, the gate seems to have been located near the spot where the culvert of the Mita irrigation canal crosses, which you would have reached before the Shoto 2-chome intersection if you had walked from the Suiji Gate of the campus in the direction of Shibuya. Also, in the picture postcard shown here, you can see the parapets of a bridge in front of the Main Gate, under which the Mita irrigation canal appears to have run. So maybe this is the spot where Hachiko saw off and waited for Professor Ueno. The road from Komaba to Shibuya is thus more likely to be “Hachiko’s street,” where you can retrace the dog’s footsteps.
Excerpted and reproduced from the College of Arts and Sciences Newsletter Vol. 620 (July 28, 2020)
You can read the full text on this website. (Japanese language only)
