30 THE JAPANESE FLORAL CALENDAR. 



delicate-colored flowers on stuffs, lacquer, inlaid ivories, and in 

 mother-of-pearl" ; but "the metal-worker, too, twists its graceful 

 leaves into delightful patterns for his pierced sword-guards." 



From a pretty crepe booklet on The Japanese Months, we learn 

 the following folk-lore item: 



"There used to be a custom of hanging beneath the eaves, on 

 the 5th day of the 5th month (o. s.), bunches of sweet-flag (shobu) 

 and mugwort, and of putting the former into the hot water of the 

 public baths, so that bathers carry away with them its agreeable 

 odor. The sweet-flag is also steeped in sake, which, flavored in this 

 way, is drunk on the 5th day of the 5th month, the plant in ques- 

 tion being commonly believed to be efficacious in the prevention of 

 disease." 



Piggott adds the following points: "Probably the same super- 

 stition led to the common custom of planting beds of iris along the 

 ridges of the thatched cottages in the country. In days gone by, 

 boys wore wreaths of iris leaves, and made ropes of them to dance 

 with and beat the ground to frighten away the demons from their 

 festival." 



A famous Japanese poetess, by the name of Kaga no Chiyo, 

 wrote the following pretty little poem : 



"Water was the painter, 

 Water again was the eraser, 

 Of the beautiful fleur-de-lis." 



To illustrate the brevity of Japanese poetry, the original is 



added here: 



Midzuga kaki 



Midzuga keshikeri 

 Kakitsubata." 



We append two more poems concerning the iris, as translated 

 by a young Japanese teacher of English: 



"The iris, grown between my house and the neigbor's, 



Is just burnishing in its deepest color and glory; 

 I wish that some one would come to see it, 



Before it withers away and returns to the dust." 



"On my journey far away from home 



My heart flies to the beloved left at home, 

 Who has been as indispensable to me 



As the soft cloth that I put on constantly." 



The last poem is, in the. original, an acrostic which spells out 

 kakitsubata. It is for that reason only that it was selected. This 

 style of poem is quite prevalent in Japanese literature. 



