Page:Eminent Authors of Contemporary Japan, volume 2.pdf/70

54 * been here, my dear.
 * Wife.—(makes no reply.)
 * Husband.—After all, the sea is nothing more than a huge salt-water bath, and by sitting in a bath-tub of cold water you can get just about the same sensation.
 * Wife.—But there must be a very different feeling when bathing in the sea … a feeling of expanse!
 * Husband.—Just exactly the same as in a tub. You can expand your limbs in a tub as well as in the sea. If you shut your eyes tight, and imagine the glorious blue sky above you, there is no difference!
 * Wife.—But how could I possibly feel the waves that roll in one after the other and break on the beach after they have passed?
 * Husband.—Oh, as far as that goes, you can get the swaying movement of the waves, if you rock youyour [sic] body to and fro. After all, it is rather adventurous to swim in the sea. Every year two or three cases of drowning are reported from each seaside resort, and also when you are learning to dive, it is very easy to lose your gold-rimmed glasses like Mr. Kawakami did … And wasn’t it Mrs. Kaneda who lost her pearl ring while bathing?
 * Wife.—I heard that it was only an imitation.
 * Husband.—It doesn’t matter whether it was imitation or not! Anyhow, lots of people get their toes cut badly by shells or broken glass … and saltwater gets into your ears and damages the eardrums!
 * Wife.—Again, it is merely a case of sour grapes with