Before word processors and personal computers became widespread, writing was usually done by hand. Therefore, essays and theses were generally written on manuscript paper. Among the most widespread was manuscript paper with a 400-character square with 20 characters × 20 lines per line. The rules for submitting entries for the Literary Award used to state something like “no more than 100 pages of 400-character manuscript paper.” Such expressions are still used today. In English, the length of text is not counted by the number of letters, but, rather by the number of words. Which means, both the word “a”（1 alphabetical letter）and the word “Japanese” (8 alphabetical letters) are counted as one word. Therefore, the length of the line of text depends on the number of words used. However, in Japanese, not only hiragana , katakana , and kanji , but also punctuation marks and spaces can be counted as a single character, making it easier to match the assigned number of characters. Also, Japanese is based on one character per sound, which results in a regular, constant rhythm of speech. Haiku , the world’s shortest form of poetry, is expressed in 17 syllables of 5, 7, and 5, a rhythm that sounds pleasant. For example, there is a haiku by YOSA Buson; “na.no.ha.na.ya tsu.ki.ha.hi.ga.shi.ni hi.ha.ni.shi.ni ” (Rape blossoms, moon in the east, sun in the west). Similarly, tanka is a 31 syllable rhymed verse of 5, 7, 5, 7, and 7 syllables. For example, there is a tanka by YOSANO Akiko that goes like this; “na.ni.to.na.ku ki.mi.ni.ma.ta.ru. ru ko.ko.chi.shi.te i.de.shi.ha.na.no.no yu.u.zu.ki.yo. ka.na ” (Somehow I felt that you were waiting for me, so I went out to the field where the flowers were blooming, and there was a moonlit night at dusk). ( From June issue, 2022 / 2022年6月号より）