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He was invited to a great reconciliation feast; which he thus describes, beginning with his walk to Hane by short marches: 'We waited where we overtook Taki, until the main body from Wango came up. They charged past in fine style, looking very well in their holiday dress, each with his left hand full of spears, and one brandished in the right.
And the conventional and pictorial character of the literary form is illustrated again in the lines: Shira-kumo ni Hane uchi-kawashi Tobu kari no Kazu sae miyuru Aki no yo no tsuki! which the same eminent scholar translates: "The moon on an autumn night making visible the very number of the wild-geese that fly past with wings intercrossed in the white clouds."
'I hardly expected that when we came back we should have found the peace still unbroken between Wango and Hane, but it is. Though not very good friends, they are still at peace. Fortunately, good manners allowed me to take it away. Before we left the village, it took two women to carry our provisions. A little boy came back with us, to stay with Taki.
They rushed, brandishing their spears, to within ten or twelve paces of the Wango party, who had joined into a compact body, and so seated themselves as soon as they saw the movement. 'Kara, a Hane man, made his speech, first running forwards and backwards, shaking his spear all the time; and at the end, he took out four strings of Makira money, and gave it to Taki.
Out of a large and very diverse number, I will first select the Spectre of the Brocken. The Brocken is the highest mountain in the picturesque Hartz chain, running through Hanover, being three hundred and thirty feet above the level of the sea. One of the best descriptions of this phenomenon is given by the traveller Hane, who witnessed it on the 23d of May, 1797.
About a quarter-past four, Hane saw in this direction a human figure of enormous dimensions. A gust of wind nearly blowing off his hat at that moment, he raised his hand to secure it, and the colossal figure imitated his action. Hane, noticing this, at once made a stooping movement, and this was also reproduced by the spectre.
I send my heart, and you receive it. What care we now if the posts should fall, if the wires be broken?" And the children sport as usual. They chase one another with screams and laughter; they dance in chorus; they catch dragon-flies and tie them to long strings; they sing burdens of the war, about cutting off Chinese heads: "Chan-chan bozu no Kubi wo hane!"
There was a fine charge of all, except a dozen of the more sedate of the party; they rattled their spears, and ran, and shouted, and jumped, even crossing the stream which was the neutral ground. We halted by the stream for some time; at last some Hane people came to their side; there was a charge again almost up to them, but they took it coolly.
Hane went back across the stream; and Wango went through the same performance, Taki making the speech. He seemed a great orator, and went on until one standing by him said, "That's enough," when he laughed, and gave over. He gave four strings of money, two shorter than the others, and the shortest was returned to him, I don't know why; but in this way the peace was signed.
Pulling aside a curtain of dirty cloth he revealed a worn brass crucifix leaning against the helmet-badge of a long forgotten East India regiment. 'Thus did my father, he said, crossing himself clumsily. The wife and children followed suit. Then all together they struck up the wailing chant that I heard on the hillside Dir hané mard-i-yemen dir To weeree ala gee. I was puzzled no longer.
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