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things reached the ears of the Empress-mother, who was greatly irritated
by them. She said:  The only thing a man who has offended the Court
should do is to keep himself as quiet as possible. It is most unpardonable
that such a man should haughtily cause scandal to the Court from his
humble dwelling. Does he intend to imitate the treacherous example of one
who made a deer pass for a horse?110 Those who intrigue with such a man
are equally blamable. These spiteful remarks once more put a stop to the
correspondence.
Meanwhile, at Suma, the autumn passed away and winter succeeded,
with all its dreariness of scene, and with occasional falls of snow. Genji
often spent the evening in playing upon the Kin, being accompanied by
Koremitz s flute and the singing of Yoshikiyo. It was on one of these
evenings that the story of a young Chinese Court lady, who had been sent
to the frozen land of barbarians, occurred to Genji s mind. He thought
what a great trial it would be if one were obliged to send away one whom
he loved, like the lady in the tale, and as he reflected on this, with some
melancholy feelings, it appeared to him as vividly as if it were only an
event of yesterday, and he hummed:
109
When Sugawara, before referred to, arrived at Akashi, on his way to exile, the
village postmaster expressed his surprise. Thereupon Sugawara gave him a stanza,
which he composed:
 Oh, master, be not surprised to see
This change in my estate, for so
Once to bloom and once to fade
Is spring and autumn s usual lot.
110
In Chinese history it is recounted that a certain artful intriguer made a fool of his
Sovereign by bringing a deer to the Court and presenting it before the Emperor,
declaring it to be a horse. All the courtiers, induced by his great influence, agreed with
him in calling it a horse, to the Emperor s great astonishment and bewilderment.
175
Tale of Genji
 The sound of the piper s distant strain
Broke on her dreams in the frozen eve.
He then tried to sleep, but could not do so, and as he lay the distant
cry of Chidori reached his ears.111 He hummed again as he heard them:
 Although on lonely couch I lie
Without a mate, yet still so near,
At dawn the cries of Chidori,
With their fond mates,  tis sweet to hear.
Having washed his hands, he spent some time in reading a Kiô (Sutra), and
in this manner the winter-time passed away.
Towards the end of February the young cherry-trees which Genji had
planted in his garden blossomed, and this brought to his memory the well-
known cherry-tree in the Southern Palace, and the fête in which he had
taken part. The noble countenance of the late ex-Emperor, and that of the
present one, the then Heir-apparent, which had struck him much at that
time, returned to his recollection with the scene where he had read out his
poem.
 While on the lordly crowd I muse,
Which haunts the Royal festive hours,
The day has come when I ve put on
The crown of fairest cherry flowers.
While thus meditating on the past, strange to say, Tô-no-Chiûjiô,
Genji s brother-in-law, came from the capital to see the Prince. He had been
now made Saishiô (privy councillor). Having, therefore, more
responsibility, he had to be more cautious in dealing with the public. He
had, however, a personal sympathy with Genji, and thus came to see him,
at the risk of offending the Court.
The first thing which struck his eyes was not the natural beauty of the
scenery, but the style of Genji s residence, which showed the novelty of
111
The coast along by Suma is celebrated for Chidori, a small sea-bird that always flies
in large flocks. Their cries are considered very plaintive, and are often spoken of by
poets.
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Exile at Suma
pure Chinese fashion. The enclosure was surrounded by  a trellis-work of
bamboo, with  stone steps, and  pillars of pine-tree. 112
He entered, and the pleasure of Genji and Tô-no-Chiûjiô was
immense, so much so that they shed tears. The style of the Prince s dress
next attracted the attention of Tô-no-Chiûjiô. He was habited in a plain,
simple country style, the coat being of an unforbidden color, a dull yellow,
the trousers of a subdued green.
The furniture was all of a temporary nature, with Go and Sugorok
playing boards, as well as one for the game of Dagi. He noticed some
articles for the services of religion, showing that Genji was wont to indulge
in devotional exercises. The visitor told Genji many things on the subject of
affairs in the capital, which he had been longing to impart to him for many
months past; telling him also how the grandfather of his boy always
delighted in playing with him, and giving him many more interesting
details.
Several fishermen came with the fish which they had caught. Genji
called them in and made them show their spoils. He also led them to talk of
their lives spent on the sea, and each in his own peculiar local dialect gave
him a narration of his joys and sorrows. He then dismissed them with the
gift of some stuff to make them clothing. All this was quite a novelty to the
eyes of Tô-no-Chiûjiô, who also saw the stable in which he obtained a
glimpse of some horses. The attendants at the time were feeding them.
Dinner was presently served, at which the dishes were necessarily simple,
yet tasteful. In the evening they did not retire to rest early, but spent their
time in continuing their conversation and in composing verses.
Although Tô-no-Chiûjiô had, in coming, risked the displeasure of the [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]