One of Ogai Mori’s famous short stories is “Takasebune”.  It is a story of a conversation between a man named Kisuke who killed his younger brother and Shobei Hada, who is a police escort, in a boat going down the Takase River to banish from Kyoto.  Many people misinterpret the Takase boat and the Takase river.  In other words, there is the Takase River that connects central Kyoto and Fushimi in the south, and because it is a boat that passes through it, it is interpreted as a Takase boat.  Instead, once upon a time there was a Takasebune that connects ports all over the country, and Takasebune to the canal that connects central Kyoto and Fushimi was brought in.  It is true that this canal came to be called the Takase River because it is the river that the Takase boat passes through.  It’s a misunderstanding that was born because Ogai’s “Takasebune” became famous.

森鴎外の有名な短編小説に『高瀬舟』というのがあります。京都の罪人を遠島に送るために高瀬川を下る舟の中で、弟を殺した喜助という男と、護送役の同心である羽田庄兵衛が交わす会話の物語りです。この高瀬舟と高瀬川のことを多くの人が間違った解釈をしています。つまり、京都中心部と南の伏見を結ぶ高瀬川があって、そこを通う舟だから高瀬舟という解釈です。そうではなくて、昔々全国に港港を結ぶ高瀬舟があって、その高瀬舟を京都中心部と伏見を結ぶ運河に持ってきた。その高瀬舟が通う川という事でこの運河のことをいつしか高瀬川と呼ぶようになった言うのが真実です。鴎外の『高瀬舟』が有名になったが故に生まれた誤解ですね。