his was a sad defect. Moreover, she was thin,
too thin; and her shoulders drooped too much, as if the dress was too
heavy for them.

"Why am I so anxious to examine and criticise?" thought Genji, but his
curiosity impelled him to continue his examination. Her hair and the
shape of her head were good, in no way inferior to those of others he
liked so well. Her complexion was fair, and her forehead well
developed. The train of her dress, which hung down gracefully, seemed
about a foot too long. If I described everything which she wore I
should become loquacious, but in old stories the dress of the
personages is very often more minutely described than anything else;
so I must, I suppose, do the same. Her vest and skirt dress were
double, and were of light green silk, a little worn, over which was a
robe of dark color. Over all this she wore a mantle of sable of good
quality, only a little too antique in fashion. To all these things,
therefore, he felt no strong objection; but the two things he could
not pass unnoticed were her nose, and her style of movement. She moved
in a stiff and constrained manner, like a master of the ceremonies in
some Court procession, spreading out his arms and looking important.
This afforded him amusement, but still he felt for her. "If I say too
much, pardon me," said Genji, "but you seem apparently friendless. I
should advise you to take interest in one with whom you have made
acquaintance. He will sympathize with you. You are much too reserved.
Why are you so?

The icicle hangs at the gable end,
But melts when the sun is high,
Why does your heart not to me unbend,
And warm to my melting sigh."

A smile passed over the lips of the Princess, but they seemed too
stiff to reply in a similar strain. She said nothing.

The time had now come for Genji to depart. His carriage was drawn up
to the middle gate, which, like everything else that belonged to the
mansion, was in a state of dilapidation. "The spot overgrown with wild
vegetation, spoken of by Sama-no-Kami might be such as this," he
thought. "If one can find a real beauty of elevated character and
obtain her, how delightful would it not be! The spot answers the
description, but the girl does not quite equal the idea; however, I
really pity her, and will look after her. She is a fortunate girl, for
if I were not such a one as I am, I should have little sympathy for
the unfortunate and unfavored. But this is not what I