Page:Insect Literature by Lafcadio Hearn.djvu/290

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But the most celebrated poem in relation to this amusement is of a touching character. It was written by the famous female poet, Chiyo of Kaga, after the death of her little boy:—

The verse is intended to suggest, not to express, the emotion of the mother. She sees children running after dragon-flies, and thinks of her own dead boy who used to join in the sport,—and so finds herself wondering, in presence of the infinite Mystery, what has become or the little soul. Whither has it gone?—in what shadowy play does it now find delight?

Dragon-flies are captured sometimes with nets, sometimes by means of bamboo rods smeared at the 註