Summary : Chapter 30
The jurors leave the courtroom to deliberate. Some people
file out of the courtroom, while others remain, since the power
outage on the island leaves them with nowhere else to stay that
is warm and dry. Nels remarks to Ishmael how much he liked and respected
his father, Arthur Chambers. Ishmael sees Hatsue on his way out
the door, and she again asks Ishmael to defend Kabuo in the San
Piedro Review, calling it “[his] father’s newspaper.” Ishmael points
out that he runs the newspaper now and that if Hatsue wishes to
talk to him about what he prints in it, she will find him at his
mother’s house.
Meanwhile, the jurors deliberate. They are unable to
reach a verdict that evening because one of the jurors, a local
boat builder named Alexander Van Ness, doubts that Kabuo committed
premeditated murder. All the other jurors are frustrated, since
they strongly believe Kabuo is guilty but are unable to persuade
Van Ness to change his mind. With the lone juror preventing the
delivery of a verdict, the jury adjourns for the evening.
Summary: Chapter 31
Ishmael sits in his father’s study that evening, surrounded
by the books his father once read. He remembers his father telling
him that an enemy on the island was an enemy for life, which makes
the islanders careful toward others’ feelings but also makes them
somewhat brooding and reserved. Ishmael also remembers his father
taking him to the Strawberry Festival as a boy. Arthur Chambers
told Mr. Fukida, an old Japanese farmer, that he had high hopes
for his son. Mr. Fukida replied, “We wish good fortune for him,
too. We believe his heart is strong, like his father’s. Your son
is very good boy.”
Ishmael leaves his father’s study and goes to his old
room, where he rereads the rejection letter from Hatsue. She wrote
that because Ishmael had a big heart, she was certain he would do
“great things.” Ishmael realizes that he has disappointed Hatsue
and has failed to live up to her expectations. He gets up, leaves
his mother’s house, and walks to the cedar tree. Ishmael then decides
to go to the Imadas’ home and tell them about the records he found
at the lighthouse that prove Kabuo’s innocence.
Summary: Chapter 32
At the Imadas’ home, Ishmael shows Hatsue the evidence
he has found. Hatsue is grateful and kisses Ishmael on the cheek
just before he leaves. She tells him she will always remember his
goodness and urges him to leave the past behind and move on with
his life.
Early the next morning, Ishmael wakes to his mother telling
him that Hatsue is downstairs. Hatsue recalls that Kabuo testified
that Carl had tied a lantern to his mast because he had no electricity
to power the lights on his boat. Hatsue reasons that if the lantern
is still tied to the mast, it proves that Carl’s batteries had gone
dead. Hatsue and Ishmael take the lighthouse radio transcript to
Art Moran, who agrees to look at Carl’s boat again.
