Mitsu Highway

"In mild day in spring
I can see the road of Matsunawa
That have twisted a little"
(Shiki)

Shiki said ;
"Houses with low roof, cramped town and lonely road of Matsunawa (...) are all to be longing for."
Every time when Shiki go up to Tokyo or come home to Matsuyama, he often got on a rickshaw between Mitsu and Matsuyama. The road of Matsunawa was the pine-tree-lined road of Nawate near by "Koromo-yama" that Shiki viewed on the rickshaw. This Haiku was the work in the spring of 1895 (Meiji 28).
This Haiku was composed by Shiki on the Mitsu Highway on his way of that he returned to his country home, Matsuyama, from Hiroshima on March 15th, when he went to the front of Shino-Japanese War as a war correspondent.
At that time, he was not in so good health, and decided to went China being ready to die and came back to visit his father's grave.
The expression of "in mild day in spring" appeared in this Haiku, but he was keenly touched by the feelings not to come back alive at heart, and he showed the love to his country home in this Haiku.
Matsunawate was the road that lead to the front of Itsukushima Shrine from the Mitsukuchi, the exit to the Castle Town, via Koromo-yama, Yamanishi and SanbonYanagi.