Page:Tayama Katai and His Novel Entitled Futon (Reece).pdf/253

 It was late in autumn and a cold winterly wind began to blow over the fields. The leaves of the ginko trees in the grove behind the house had turned yellow and looked beautiful against the evening sky. The curled dried leaves that had fallen tumbled with a rustling sound against the fences along the road. The shrill voices of butcher-birds were heard. It was about this time that the love affair between Yoshiko and Tanaka at last began to attract undue attention. Unable to refrain from interfering because of his supervisory duties, Tokio urged her to write her parents back home in detail about her love affair. Tokio also sent a long letter to Yoshiko's father about her affair. Even on this occasion Tokio tried to win Yoshiko's gratitude for himself. Tokio congratulating himself for his heroic sacrifice, took on the role of a "cordial guardian" of their love affair.

Several letters reached Tokio from the Bitchū mountain region.

In January of the next year, Tokio was away on geographical business to the banks of the Tone River that formed the border of the upper region of Musashi. As he had been there from the end of the preceding year, he was worried about things at home--especially Yoshiko; however, he could not neglect his official business to return home. On the second day of the New Year he made a hurried trip to Tokyo. At that time he found his wife and Yoshiko anxiously nursing his second son who had a toothache. Asking his wife how Yoshiko's love affair was going, he heard that their infatuation for each other had further intensified. Tokio also heard that Tanaka could not find a means of living, and not even able to return to his lodgings, he had slept on an all-night streetcar on New Year's eve; his wife had