Green willow and other Japanese fairy tales . g since, their lived in Yedo a gentleman ofgood lineage and very honest conversation. Hiswife was a gentle and loving lady. To his secretgrief, she bore him no sons. But a daughter she didgive him, whom they called OYone, which, beinginterpreted, is Rice in the ear. Each of themloved this child more than life, and guarded her asthe apple of their eye. And the child grew upred and white, and long-eyed, straight and slenderas the green bamboo. When OYone was twelve years old, her motherdrooped with the fall of the year, sickened, andpined, and ere th
Green willow and other Japanese fairy tales . g since, their lived in Yedo a gentleman ofgood lineage and very honest conversation. Hiswife was a gentle and loving lady. To his secretgrief, she bore him no sons. But a daughter she didgive him, whom they called OYone, which, beinginterpreted, is Rice in the ear. Each of themloved this child more than life, and guarded her asthe apple of their eye. And the child grew upred and white, and long-eyed, straight and slenderas the green bamboo. When OYone was twelve years old, her motherdrooped with the fall of the year, sickened, andpined, and ere the red had faded from the leaves ofthe maples she was dead and shrouded and laid inthe earth. The husband was wild in his cried aloud, he beat his breast, he lay upon theground and refused comfort, and for days he neitherbroke his fast nor slept. The child was quitesilent. Time passed by. The man perforce went abouthis business. The snows of winter fell and coveredhis wifes grave. The beaten pathway from his 10 THE FLUTE Face page 10. ii THE FLUTE house to the dwelling of the dead was snow also,undisturbed save for the faint prints of a childssandalled feet. In the spring-time he girded up hisrobe and went forth to see the cherry blossom,making merry enough, and writing a poem upongilded paper, which he hung to a cherry-treebranch to flutter in the wind. The poem was inpraise of the spring and of sake. Later, he plantedthe orange lily of forgetfulness, and thought of hiswife no more. But the child remembered. Before the year was out he brought a new bridehome, a woman with a fair face and a black the man, poor fool, was happy, and commendedhis child to her, and believed that all was well. Now because her father loved OYone, herstepmother hated her with a jealous and deadlyhatred, and every day she dealt cruelly by the child,whose gentle ways and patience only angered herthe more. But because of her fathers presence shedid not dare to do OYone any great ill ; t
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