「知の巨人」渡部昇一〈しょういち〉9

 
（９）渡部昇一と井上ひさし
    井上ひさし（一九三四～二〇一〇、山形県東置賜郡小松町中小松（現・川西町）生まれ、小説家、劇作家、放送作家）が上智大学の学生時代、当時大学の図書館で働いていた渡部昇一に腹を立てて悪さをしかけたという話があります。
　井上ひさしの『本の運命』（新潮文庫、2000）に次のように記されています。
 
　「もちろん大学には図書館がありました。釜石で感激してますから、ここも通いつめた。ところが、この上智大学図書館がひどかった。
　夜八時まで開いているんですけど、借りた本はそれまでに必ず返さなければいけない。返さないとバツ印がついて、次から借りられなくなる。ところが、こっちもアルバイトの都合やなんかで、そう時間通りにはいかない。遅れまいと必死で走っていくんですが、館員に厳格な人がいて、一秒でも過ぎると返却を受け付けてくれないんです。「これ受け取ってくれないと次の本借りられないんだ」って言うと、「いや、だめだ、規則だから」の一点張りで、融通が利かないんですね。八時ちょうどに鎧戸を下ろしはじめるので、下に足を突っ込んで何とか隙間から本を返そうとするんですが、逆に足を蹴飛ばされたり──（笑）。
　この館員に怒ってる学生がたくさんいたんです。そこで、みんなで「よし、あいつに一度、泡を吹かしてやろう」と相談一決、大学図書館が一番大事にしている本を盗んでしまおうということになった。」（井上ひさし『本の運命』PP.113～114）
 
　井上ひさしは友人たちと、渡部昇一が当番のときに、ガラスケースに入っていた貴重書を盗み出し、神田で売り払って、その頃流行していた「なんでも十円寿司」で腹いっぱい食べました。「後で彼はすごく叱られたという噂を聞いて、溜飲を下げましたが、後日談を言いますと、彼はのちに有名な評論家になられました（笑）」（『本の運命』P.115）というのです。
 

９

 
(9) Shoichi Watanabe and Hisashi Inoue
　　　Hisashi Inoue (born 1934-2010, Nakakomatsu, Komatsu-machi, Higashiokitama-gun, Yamagata Prefecture (currently Kawanishi-machi), novelist, playwright, and broadcaster) was a student at Sophia University when he worked in the university library. There is a story that he got angry with Shoichi Watanabe, who was working for them and they started doing something wrong with him.
　　　In Hisashi Inoue's ``The Fate of Books'' (Shincho Bunko, 2000), it is written as follows:
 
　　``Of course, the university had a library. I was so impressed with Kamaishi that I decided to come here as well. However, this Sophia University library was terrible. It's open until 8 pm, but you must return any books you borrow by then. If you don't return it, it will be marked with a cross and you won't be able to borrow it again. However, due to my part-time job and other reasons, I can't always be on time. I run as hard as I can to avoid being late, but there is a very strict staff member who won't accept my return if I wait even a second. If you say, ``If you don't accept this, I won't be able to borrow the next book,'' they will say, ``No, no, it's the rule,'' and they won't be flexible. The shutters start to come down at exactly 8 o'clock, so I try to put my foot under the door and return the book through the gap, but my foot gets kicked off (lol).
　　　There were a lot of students who were angry at this staff member. So we all said, ``Alright, Ai. Let's blow some bubbles once in a while.'' We decided to steal the book that the university library cherishes the most. ” (Hisashi Inoue “The Fate of Books” pp.113-114)
 
           When his friends and Shoichi Watanabe were on duty, Hisashi Inoue stole rare books from a glass case, sold them in Kanda, and ate his fill of ``anything 10 yen sushi'' that was popular at the time. ``Later, I heard rumors that he had been scolded a lot, so I gave up, but in hindsight, he later became a famous critic (lol).'' "Destiny" p. 115).     (To be continued)