Page:The Dial (Volume 68).djvu/60

42 romantic to them. Thus, for a few moments, I was a Chinese patriarch, and then a powerful shogun in glittering gown with a tiny wife to follow me and obey. Every one paid me the respect due a superior. My friend was a valiant samurai dressed in weighty armour. He depicted a departure for war, the scene between himself and his sweetheart, their marriage, and the sad moments of parting. They acted as though born to it; not, however, without a conscious show of ridicule.

Saké began to flow and all became cheerful. Even the old woman, the proprietor's wife, imbibed freely at her guests' expense. She was soon quite gay and avowed most emphatically that she loved me. Her old husband finally came in and good-naturedly picked her up and carried her out of the room. His kindliness completely whitewashed her helpless coarseness.

The eighty per cent. geisha of the previous party was present. Her name—that is, her geisha name—was Tamosabura. She was dark-complexioned and left herself so, for she did not paint. Tamosabura was twenty-five, and admitted it. She was the most intelligent and had the finest character, but hid it. And when I was just about to forget that she was a geisha, she would make some suggestive remark, which made me wish men did not have to be made "happy" and girls subjected to a training in subtleties to achieve it for them.

She affected a great liking for me, but I am sure she didn't even dislike me—a red devil of a foreigner. She pretended to be happy, but she was not sad. She was slightly curious about me, yet mocked me. I struggled with Japanese to learn a language, the value of the usage of which was a vague possibility to me wrapped in a mantle of promise. She learned a few English words and showed her contempt for the language by using them to amuse the illiterate and the simple-minded.

She rose to go. It was half past ten but she said she had to keep another engagement. To put away her samisen (the Japanese guitar which has no music in it) the others came to her assistance. My attention was called to this. It was a show of courtesy to which she, as a superior, was entitled. And with more sweep and motion than is common with most Japanese women, she slipped out of the door.

Things fell flat after that, though we did not leave till one in the