The seconds wear their dresses of ceremony when the criminal is a man given in charge by the Government:  when he is one of their own clan, they need only wear the trousers of the Samurai.  In old days it is said that they were dressed in the same way as the principal; and some authorities assert that at the hara-kiri of a nobleman of high rank the seconds should wear white clothes, and that the handle of the sword should be wrapped in white silk.  If the execution takes place in the house, they should partially tuck up their trousers; if in the garden, they should tuck them up entirely.

The seconds should address the principal, and say, “Sir, we have been appointed to act as your seconds; we pray you to set your mind at rest,” and so forth; but this must depend upon the rank of the criminal.  At this time, too, if the principal has any last wish to express, the second should receive it, and should treat him with every consideration in order to relieve his anxiety.  If the second has been selected by the principal on account of old friendship between them, or if the latter, during the time that he has been in charge, has begged some special retainer of the palace to act as his second in the event of his being condemned to death, the person so selected should thank the principal for choosing so unworthy a person, and promise to beg his lord to allow him to act as second:  so he should answer, and comfort him, and having reported the matter to his lord, should act as second.  He should take that opportunity to borrow his principal’s sword in some such terms as the following:  “As I am to have the honour of being your second, I would fain borrow your sword for the occasion.  It may be a consolation to you to perish by your own sword, with which you are familiar.”  If, however, the principal declines, and prefers to be executed with the second’s sword, his wish must be complied with.  If the second should make an awkward cut with his own sword, it is a disgrace to him; therefore he should borrow some one else’s sword, so that the blame may rest with the sword, and not with the swordsman.  Although this is the rule, and although every Samurai should wear a sword fit to cut off a man’s head, still if the principal has begged to be executed with the second’s own sword, it must be done as he desires.

It is probable that the condemned man will inquire of his second about the arrangements which have been made:  he must attend therefore to rendering himself capable of answering all such questions.  Once upon a time, when the condemned man inquired of his second whether his head would be cut off at the moment when he received the tray with the dirk upon it, “No,” replied the second; “at the moment when you stab yourself with the dirk your head will be cut off.”  At the execution of one Sano, he told his second that, when he had stabbed himself in the belly, he would utter a cry; and begged him to be cool when he cut off his head.  The second replied that he would