may then show her
incapability, and her occasional actions may be done in such an
unbecoming manner that both good and bad are equally displeasing. Are
not all these against us men?--Remember, however, that there are some
who may not be very agreeable at ordinary times, yet who flash
occasionally upon us with a potent and almost irresistible charm."

Thus Sama-no-Kami, though eloquent, not having come to one point or
another, remained thoughtful for some minutes, and again resumed:--

"After all, as I have once observed, I can only make this suggestion:
That we should not too much consider either birth or beauty, but
select one who is gentle and tranquil, and consider her to be best
suited for our last haven of rest. If, in addition, she is of fair
position, and is blessed with sweetness of temper, we should be
delighted with her, and not trouble ourselves to search or notice any
trifling deficiency. And the more so as, if her conscience is clear
and pure, calmness and serenity of features can naturally be looked
for.

"There are women who are too diffident, and too reserved, and carry
their generosity to such an extent as to pretend not to be aware even
of such annoyances as afford them just grounds of complaint. A time
arrives when their sorrows and anxieties become greater than they can
bear. Even then, however, they cannot resort to plain speaking, and
complain. But, instead thereof, they will fly away to some remote
retreat among the mountain hamlets, or to some secluded spot by the
seaside, leaving behind them some painful letter or despairing verses,
and making themselves mere sad memories of the past. Often when a boy
I heard such stories read by ladies, and the sad pathos of them even
caused my tears to flow; but now I can only declare such deeds to be
acts of mere folly. For what does it all amount to? Simply to this:
That the woman, in spite of the pain which it causes her, and
discarding a heart which may be still lingering towards her, takes to
flight, regardless of the feelings of others--of the anguish, and of
the anxiety, which those who are dearest to her suffer with her. Nay,
this act of folly may even be committed simply to test the sincerity
of her lover's affection for her. What pitiable subtlety!

"Worse than this, the woman thus led astray, perhaps by ill advice,
may even be beguiled into more serious errors. In the depth of her
despairing melancholy she will become a nun. Her conscience, whe