Courtesan ____(name)____ belonging to the house of ____(name)____.
Her term of engagement having expired, she is to be handed over to her relatives outside the quarter, therefore please allow her to pass through the great gate without fail. (Date)
(Signed) Headman,
To Shirobei, Esq.
Great gate.
But although a woman may be fortunate enough to escape the bitterness of this living death, and succeed in reaching the outside world again, yet she has violated the virtue of chastity, wasted the flower of her youth in vicious living, and as she is unaccustomed to attend to the proper duties of women her future prospects are anything but cheerful and reassuring.
Generally, the term of engagement is supposed to expire when a prostitute reaches the age of 25 years, but as a matter of fact the girls generally remain until they have reached the age of 27.
As for the mi-uke (redemption by a guest), it is a vastly different thing to the nenki-aki (expiry of term of engagement) as it not only relieves a woman from years of disgusting and painful servitude, but it may enable her to attain to a life of comparative ease and luxury. Under these circumstances, mi-uke is earnestly desired by many a prostitute, and although in vulgar novels certain girls are made to decline the offer of mi-uke by some rich guest, because they have lovers to whom they have pledged themselves to marry on the expiration of their term of engagement, such occurrences in real life are extremely rare. Far from dissuading a guest from purchasing her freedom, the average yūjo will positively importune him to take her out if he manifests his intention of doing so. When a guest wishes to redeem a woman for whom he has taken a fancy, and whose affection he desires to obtain, he mentions the matter to the brothel-keeper, who in turn communicates with the girl’s parents, and as, of course, the latter can raise no reasonable objection, the mi-uke is forthwith arranged. The redemption-money (mi-no-shiro-kin), and all the debts of the girl, are paid by the guest, and her contract of service (mi-uri sh�mon = “document-of-the-sale-of-the-body�) is returned. In the proceedings that follow, the brothel-keeper plays the part of a parent to the girl. To her friends sekihan (red rice: rice boiled with red beans) and other food is distributed, while presents of seki-han and katsubushi (smoked bonito) are made to the tea-houses of the Naka-no-ch� to celebrate the occasion. Farewell tips are also given to geisha (singing girls), h� an (jesters), and wakai-mono (men-servants), with whom the guest is acquainted, and a splendid banquet is held in the room where he has so often disported himself. On this occasion, the girl who has been redeemed, and her erstwhile fellow yūjo, assemble, and geisha and h�kan are invited to enliven the dinner. After the feast is over, the couple are escorted by a troop of men and women as far as the �-mon (great gateway), where palanquins (kago) are waiting for them, and amidst a chorus of good-wishes and “sayonara� (good-bye!) enter these conveyances and ride away.
Further, there are two kinds of yūjo, known as “zegen-tsuki� and “zegen-nashi,� or those who were sold by parents direct, and those who are sold through the medium of procurers (zegen). Those who are sold direct by parents (zegen-nashi) are easier and less expensive to redeem, whereas the zegen-tsuki (sold through procurers) are not so, as the zegen often purposely try to increase the debts of such women, or to secretly prolong their term of engagement, thus throwing obstacles in the way of their redemption by a guest.