"Kind master, the gold would be of no use to us; and you will probably
have need of it during your long, cold journey. Here we buy nothing; and we
could not spend so much money upon ourselves, even if we wished... As for
the girl, we have already bestowed her as a free gift;-- she belongs to
you: therefore it is not necessary to ask our leave to take her away.
Already she has told us that she hopes to accompany you, and to remain your
servant for as long as you may be willing to endure her presence. We are
only too happy to know that you deign to accept her; and we pray that you
will not trouble yourself on our account. In this place we could not
provide her with proper clothing,-- much less with a dowry. Moreover, being
old, we should in any event have to separate from her before long.
Therefore it is very fortunate that you should be willing to take her with
you now."



It was in vain that Tomotada tried to persuade the old people to accept a
present: he found that they cared nothing for money. But he saw that they
were really anxious to trust their daughter's fate to his hands; and he
therefore decided to take her with him. So he placed her upon his horse,
and bade the old folks farewell for the time being, with many sincere
expressions of gratitude.


"honored Sir," the father made answer, "it is we, and not you, who have
reason for gratitude. We are sure that you will be kind to our girl; and we
have no fears for her sake."...