This was written with a trembling hand, but still bearing nice traits, and when it reached Cicada, and she saw that he had not yet forgotten past events, and the scarf he had carried away, she was partly amused and partly pleased. It was about this time that the daughter of Iyo-no-Kami was engaged to a certain Kurando Shioshio, and he was her frequent visitor. Genji heard of this, and without any intention of rivalry, sent her the following by Kokimi:-- "Like the green reed that grows on high By river's brink, our love has been, And still my wandering thoughts will fly Back to that quickly passing scene." She was a little flattered by it, and gave Kokimi a reply, as follows:-- "The slender reed that feels the wind That faintly stirs its humble leaf, Feels that too late it breathes its mind, And only wakes, a useless grief." Now the departure of Iyo-no-Kami was fixed for the beginning of October. Genji sent several parting presents to his wife, and in addition to these some others, consisting of beautiful combs, fans, _nusa_,[60] and the scarf he had carried away, along with the following, privately through Kokimi:-- "I kept this pretty souvenir In hopes of meeting you again, I send it back with many a tear, Since now, alas! such hope is vain." There were many other minute details, which I shall pass over as uninteresting to the reader. Genji's official messenger returned, but her reply about the scarf was sent through Kokimi:-- "When I behold the summer wings Cicada like, I cast aside; Back to my heart fond memory springs, And on my eyes, a rising tide." The day of the departure happened to be the commencement of the winter season. An October shower fell lightly, and the sky looked gloomy. Genji stood gazing upon it and hummed:-- "Sad and weary Autumn hours, Summer joys now past away, Both departing, dark the hours, Whither speeding, who can say?" All these intrigues were safely kept in strict privacy, and to have boldly written all particulars concerning them is to me a matter of pain. So at first I intended to omit them, but had I done so my history would have become like a fiction, and the censure I should expect would be that I had done so intentionally, because my hero was the son of an Emperor; but, on the other hand, if I am accused of too much loquacity, I cannot help it. FOOTNOTES: [Footnote 52: Name of an ecclesiastical office.] [Footnote 53: Sasinuki is a sort of loose trousers, and properly worn by men only, hence some commentators conclude, the attendant here mentioned to mean a boy, others contend, this garment was worn by females also when they rode.] [Footnote 54: A mythological repulsive deity who took part in the building of a bridge at the command of a powerful magician.] [Footnote 55: A popular superstition in China and Japan believes foxes to have mysterious powers over men.]