So you'd better be careful."
"Do you mean that my Madam in Tokyo is behaving badly?"
"No, your Madam is all right."
"That makes me feel safe. Then about what shall I be careful?"
"Yours is all right. Though yours is all right......."
"Where is one not all right?"
"Rather many right in this town. You know the daughter of the Toyamas?
"No, I do not."
"You don't know her yet? She is the most beautiful girl about here. She
is so beautiful that the teachers in the school call her Madonna. You
haven't heard that?
"Ah, the Madonna! I thought it was the name of a geisha."
"No, Sir. Madonna is a foreign word and means a beautiful girl,
doesn't it?"
"That may be. I'm surprised."
"Probably the name was given by the teacher of drawing."
"Was it the work of Clown?"
"No, it was given by Professor Yoshikawa."
"Is that Madonna not all right?"
"That Madonna-san is a Madonna not all right."
"What a bore! We haven't any decent woman among those with nicknames
from old days. I should suppose the Madonna is not all right."
"Exactly. We have had awful women such as O-Matsu the Devil or Ohyaku
the Dakki.
"Does the Madonna belong to that ring?"
"That Madonna-san, you know, was engaged to Professor Koga,--who brought
you here,--yes, was promised to him.
Pages:
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123