Genji soon fell into
profound slumber, in which he was speedily joined by Kokimi.

Some days passed away and Kokimi returned to his sister, who, on
seeing him, chided him severely, saying:--

"Though I managed with some difficulty, we must not forget what people
might say of us, _your_ officiousness is most unpardonable. Do you
know what the Prince himself will think of your childish trick?"

Thus was poor Kokimi, on the one hand, reproached by Genji for not
doing enough, and on the other by his sister for being too officious!
was he not in a very happy position! Yet, notwithstanding her words,
he ventured to draw from his dress the paper he had picked up in
Genji's apartment, and offered it to her. The lady hesitated a moment,
though somewhat inclined to read it, holding it in her hand for some
little time, undecided. At length she ventured to throw her eyes over
its contents. At once the loss of her scarf floated upon her mind as
she read, and, taking up her pen, wrote on part of the paper where
Genji had written his verses, the words of a song:--

"Amidst dark shadows of the tree,
Cicada's wing with dew is wet,
So in mine eyes unknown to thee,
Spring sweet tears of fond regret."

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 51: Ji and Koh are the names of certain positions in the
game of "Go."]

CHAPTER IV

EVENING GLORY

It happened that when Genji was driving about in the Rokjio quarter,
he was informed that his old nurse, Daini, was ill, and had become a
nun. Her residence was in Gojio. He wished to visit her, and drove to
the house. The main gate was closed, so that his carriage could not
drive up; therefore, he sent in a servant to call out Koremitz, a son
of the nurse.

Meantime, while awaiting him, he looked round on the deserted terrace.
He noticed close by a small and rather dilapidated dwelling, with a
wooden fence round a newly-made enclosure. The upper part, for eight
or ten yards in length, was surrounded by a trellis-work, over which
some white reed blinds--rude, but new--were thrown. Through these
blinds the indistinct outline of some fair heads were faintly
delineated, and the owners were evidently peeping down the roadway
from their retreat. "Ah," thought Genji, "they can never be so tall as
to look over the blind. They must be standing on something within. But
whose residence is it? What sort of people are they?" His equipage was
strictly private and unostentatious. There were,