For the first time, possibly, since his marriage, he faced the assembled kinsfolk with the calm demeanor2 of one who had seized, and intended to retain, the authority properly invested in him as head of the house of Saito. His should be the voice heard! His the decision that must prevail!
In the minds of most men—Japanese men, at least—who have married at the dictates3 of their parents, there is always some little cherished chamber4 to which, despite the passing years, memory returns with loving, loitering step. So with Lord Ichigo. Now, with the fate of his beloved child in his hands, the father looked back upon his own life, and it was no reflection upon his excellent and virtuous5 wife that he did so with just a shade of vague regret.
The impetuous Gonji’s passionate6 words had not been spoken to deaf ears. Lord Saito Ichigo was determined to keep his promise to his son, whatever the result; for well he knew of the upheaval8 in his household which would be sure to follow.
There was, of course, Ohano to think of. Her case was not as difficult as it seemed, he pointed9 out to the assembled relatives. An orphan10, one of a family already allied11 by marriage to the Saitos, they had taken her into their house at an early age. They already regarded her as a daughter. As for a daughter, they would seek, outside their own family, for a worthy12 and suitable husband for the maiden13. In fact, it was better that Ohano should marry another than Lord Gonji, since the latter had always looked upon her as a sister, and a union between them was, to him, repugnant. That, indeed, Ichigo himself had thought at first, but he had desired to please “the honorable interior” (his wife) and the many relatives of his honorable wife.
Thus he disposed of this matter briefly14, and, although the relatives looked at each other with startled glances, they had nothing to say. Something in the fixed15 attitude of the one they had hitherto somewhat contemptuously regarded as weak and yielding claimed now their respectful attention.
To approach the matter of the marriage of a Saito with a public geisha required not alone tact16, but bravery. Hardly had the father of Gonji mentioned the matter when a storm of dissent17 arose. To a man—to say nothing of the countless18 unseen female relatives arrayed even more bitterly against her—the exalted19 kinsmen20 resented even the suggestion of such a union. So the Lord Ichigo approached the subject by wary21 paths.
In the first place, he pointed out boldly, the assembled ones were not actually of the Saito blood, but relatives by marriage only; and, while their counsel and advice were respectfully and gratefully solicited22, even their united verdict could not finally stand out against the legal head of the house. This bold statement at the outset met a silence more eloquent23 of resentment24 than any storm of words.
It was imperative25, as all had agreed, continued Lord Ichigo, that the son and heir of the house of Saito should make an early marriage. He was the last of the line. The glorious and heroic ancestors demanded descendants. It was a sacred duty to keep alive the illustrious seed.
Lord Ichigo launched into a detailed26 recital27 here of the notable deeds of his ancestors, but was stopped abruptly28 by the sarcastic29 comment of Takedo Isami, who quoted the ancient proverb, “There is no seed to a great man!” meaning none could inherit his greatness.
This cut off Ichigo’s oratory30; and, hurt and disturbed at the quotation31 as a reflection upon his own shortcomings, he brought up squarely before them the main issue.
These were the days of enlightenment, when the iron-clad ships of war sailed the seas as far as the great Western lands; when the Japanese had accepted the best of the ways of the West; when the spirit of the New Japan permeated32 every nook and corner of the empire. There was one Western privilege which the men of New Japan were now demanding, and desired above all things. That they must have: the right to love!
Now, “love” is not a very proper word, according to the Japanese notion of polite speech. Hence the attitude of the relatives. Nor did the frigid33 atmosphere melt in the slightest before the flow of fervid34 eloquence35 that the father of Gonji brought to the defense36 of this reprehensible37 weakness.
Takedo Isami, who seemed to have assumed the position of leader and dictator among the relatives, arose slowly to his feet, and, thrusting out a pugnacious38 chin, asked for the right to speak. He was short, dark, with the face of a fighter and the body of a dwarf39.
Admitting the right of man to love, he said it was better to hide this weakness, and, by all means, fight its insidious40 effort to enter the household. Only men of low morals married for love. Duty was so beautiful a thing that it brought its own reward. The proper kind of love—the lofty and the pure—declared the uncle of Ohano, came always after marriage, and sanctified the union. That the last of a great race, in whose keeping the ancestors had confidently placed the family honor, should contemplate41 a union of mere42 love and passion with a notorious and public geisha was a gratuitous43 and cruel insult not alone to his many living relatives—and they of his mother’s side were equally of his blood—but to the ancestors.
As the uncle of Ohano reseated himself a low murmur44 of approbation45 broke out from the circle. Gloomy looks were turned toward Ichigo, whose face had become curiously46 fixed. Far from weakening his resolve, his pride had been stung to the quick. Nothing, he told himself inwardly, would cause him to retreat from the position he had taken. He looked Takedo Isami squarely in the eye ere he spoke7.
The honorable Takedo Isami’s remarks, he declared, were a reflection upon his own, since they concerned one whom the ancestors and the Lord Saito Gonji deemed worthy to honor. Moreover, it was both vain and reprehensible to cast a stone at a profession honored by all intelligent Japanese. It was of established knowledge that often the geishas were recruited from the noblest families in Japan. It was absurd to regard them with disdain47, as apparently48 had latterly become the fashion. There was no great event in the history of the nation since feudal49 times wherein the geisha had not played her part nobly. The greatest of sacrifices she had made for her country and the Mikado. There were instances, too famous to need repeating, of the most exquisite50 martyrdom. The Emperor, the nobility, the priests—all delighted to do her honor. Only the ignorant assumed to despise her. She was in reality the darling and the pride of the entire nation. One would as soon dream of being without the flowers and the birds, and all the other joyous51 things of life, as the geisha. Who was it, then, dared to reflect upon the most charming of Japanese institutions?
Up sprang Takedo Isami, his hand raised, his dark face flushed with fury, despite the restraint he sought to exercise upon his features. His voice was under control, and he spoke with incisive52 bitterness.
His honorable kinsman53, he loudly declared, wished but to confuse the issue. No one denied the virtues54 of the geisha; also the undoubted fact that many of them came from the impoverished55 families of the samourai. Nevertheless, charming and desirable as she was, she had not been educated to be the mother of a great race. Her lithe56, twisting, dancing little body was not meant to bear children. Her light, frivolous57 mind was ill-fitted to instruct one’s sons and daughters. Society had set her in her proper place. It was against all precedents58 to take her from her sphere. One did not desire as a mate through life a creature of mere beauty, any more than one would care to take one’s daily bowl of rice from a fragile work of art which would shatter at the mere contact of the sturdy chop-sticks against it.
Such a storm of dissent and discussion now arose that it was impossible for the father of Gonji to hear his own voice, and indeed all seemed to make an effort to drown it. So he summoned servants, and coolly bade them put the amado (outside sliding walls) in place, lest the unseemly noise of wordy strife59 be heard by some passing neighbor—for the Japanese esteem60 it a disgrace to engage in controversy61. Then, when the doors were in place, Lord Saito Ichigo gravely bowed to the assembled relatives, and, taking his son by the arm, bade them good night, advising that they argue the matter among themselves, without his unnecessary presence.
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1
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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demeanor
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| n.行为；风度 | |
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dictates
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| n.命令，规定，要求( dictate的名词复数 )v.大声讲或读( dictate的第三人称单数 )；口授；支配；摆布 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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virtuous
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| adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的 | |
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passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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7
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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8
upheaval
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| n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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orphan
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| n.孤儿；adj.无父母的 | |
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allied
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| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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maiden
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| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
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briefly
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| adv.简单地，简短地 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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tact
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| n.机敏，圆滑，得体 | |
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dissent
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| n./v.不同意，持异议 | |
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countless
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| adj.无数的，多得不计其数的 | |
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exalted
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| adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的 | |
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kinsmen
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| n.家属，亲属( kinsman的名词复数 ) | |
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wary
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| adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的 | |
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solicited
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| v.恳求( solicit的过去式和过去分词 )；（指娼妇）拉客；索求；征求 | |
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eloquent
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| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
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resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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imperative
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| n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的 | |
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detailed
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| adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的 | |
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recital
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| n.朗诵，独奏会，独唱会 | |
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abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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sarcastic
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| adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的 | |
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30
oratory
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| n.演讲术；词藻华丽的言辞 | |
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quotation
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| n.引文，引语，语录；报价，牌价，行情 | |
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32
permeated
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| 弥漫( permeate的过去式和过去分词 )； 遍布； 渗入； 渗透 | |
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33
frigid
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| adj.寒冷的，凛冽的；冷淡的；拘禁的 | |
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34
fervid
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| adj.热情的；炽热的 | |
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35
eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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36
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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37
reprehensible
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| adj.该受责备的 | |
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38
pugnacious
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| adj.好斗的 | |
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39
dwarf
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| n.矮子，侏儒，矮小的动植物；vt.使…矮小 | |
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40
insidious
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| adj.阴险的，隐匿的，暗中为害的，（疾病）不知不觉之间加剧 | |
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41
contemplate
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| vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视 | |
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42
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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43
gratuitous
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| adj.无偿的，免费的；无缘无故的，不必要的 | |
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44
murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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45
approbation
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| n.称赞；认可 | |
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46
curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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47
disdain
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| n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑 | |
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48
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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49
feudal
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| adj.封建的，封地的，领地的 | |
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50
exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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51
joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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52
incisive
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| adj.敏锐的，机敏的，锋利的，切入的 | |
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53
kinsman
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| n.男亲属 | |
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54
virtues
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| 美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处 | |
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55
impoverished
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| adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化 | |
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56
lithe
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| adj.(指人、身体)柔软的，易弯的 | |
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57
frivolous
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| adj.轻薄的；轻率的 | |
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58
precedents
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| 引用单元； 范例( precedent的名词复数 )； 先前出现的事例； 前例； 先例 | |
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59
strife
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| n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争 | |
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60
esteem
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| n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作 | |
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61
controversy
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| n.争论，辩论，争吵 | |
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