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Agile Concepts: A New
Software Development
Paradigm
2nd edition

© 2020 Pritam Dey & bookboon.com

ISBN 978-87-403-3568-2

Contents
Table of Figures

Acknowledgement

1 Introduction to Agile
1.1 What is Agile?
1.2 Agile Manifesto
1.3 Agile Values
1.4 Agile Principles
1.5 HISTORY OF AGILE
1.6 Agile in 2020s

2 Agile Thinking
2.1 Waterfall Approach
 2.2 Waterfall vs. Agile

3 Benefits of Agile

4 Generic Agile Process

5 Common Agile Roles

6 Common Agile Techniques

6.1 Stories and backlog refinement
6.2 Agile Planning
6.3 Agile Testing
6.4 TFD (Test First Development)
6.5 TDD (Test Driven Development)
6.6 ATDD (Acceptance Test Driven Development)
6.7 BDD (Behaviour Driven Development)
6.8 Specification by Example

7 Common Agile Practices

7.1 Short feedback loops
7.2 Face-to-face communication
7.3 Daily stand-ups
7.4 Show and tell
7.5 Retrospectives
7.6 Emergent Documentation
7.7 Visual Boards
7.8 Sustainable pace
7.9 Focus on quality
 7.10 Refactoring
7.11 Continuous Integration
7.12 Automated Builds
7.13 Code Review and Peer Review

8 Major Agile Frameworks

8.1 Extreme Programming (XP)
8.2 Scrum
8.3 Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM)
8.4 Crystal Methodology
8.5 Feature Driven Development (FDD)
8.6 Lean Software Development
8.7 Adaptive Software Development
8.8 Agile Project Management
8.9 Kanban
8.10 Lean
8.11 Scaled Agile Framework® 5.0

9 DevOps and Agile

10 Using Agile Practices in Enterprise Architecture

11 Agile in a Nutshell

12 Glossary

13 References
Table of Figures
Figure 1: Waterfall Model 24
Figure 2: Generic Agile Process 28
Figure 3: Agile Stories Breakdown 35
Figure 4: Agile Planning – 1 37
Figure 5: Agile Planning – 2 38
Figure 6: Agile Testing Quadrants 40
Figure 7: Test Driven Development 41
Figure 8: Daily Standup 45
Figure 9: Sample Burndown Chart 48
Figure 10: Release Burnup 49
Figure 11: Waterfall Model 53
Figure 12: Predictive vs. Adaptive 54
Figure 13: Extreme Programming Project 57
Figure 14: XP Process 58
Figure 15: Scrum 59
Figure 16: Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM) 61
Figure 17: Adaptive Software Development 67
Figure 18: SAFe 5.0 Overview 72
Figure 19: Essential SAFe 73
Figure 20: Large Solution SAFe 73
Figure 21: SAFe – Portfolio SAFe 74
Figure 22: Full SAFe 74
Figure 23: Waterfall vs. Agile vs. DevOps 75
Figure 24: Agile DevOps 76
Figure 25: Agile in a Nutshell 79
Acknowledgement
This eBook is a compilation of various Agile framework, thoughts
and concepts summarized and put together in an easily readable and
digestible format. My deep gratitude goes to the Agile pioneers in
the industry, framework-provider organizations, and colleagues
whom I have worked with in the Agile discipline. The intent of this
eBook is to explain Agile concepts in a nutshell and propagate the
adoption of Agile. It is not my intent to introduce materials as my
own creation. I am, as always, indebted to the industry from which I
learned so much. As far as possible, I have tried to cite the source of
my references. Any omission is purely unintentional and accidental.
1 Introduction to Agile
1.1 What is Agile?
Agile is the ability to create and respond to change to succeed in an
uncertain and turbulent environment.

Agile software development is more than frameworks such as Scrum,

Extreme Programming or Feature-Driven Development (FDD).

Agile software development is more than practices such as pair

programming, test-driven development, stand-ups, planning sessions
and sprints.

Agile Software Development is an umbrella term for a set of methods

and practices based on the values and principles expressed in the
Agile Manifesto. Solutions evolve through collaboration between self-
organizing, cross-functional teams utilizing the appropriate practices
for their context.(Source: www.agilealliance.org)

1.2 Agile Manifesto

In early 2001, a group of seventeen independent-minded software
practitioners – called The Agile Alliance – met to define Agile and
outline the development and delivery of Agile frameworks. They were
motivated to create an Agile framework that would allow quick
design, development and delivery of software. The industry until then
(and still is) were struggling with extremely slow software delivery
and the associated processes and methodologies. The initial workings
of the Agile Alliance let to the first-ever creation of The Manifesto of
the Agile Alliance. Even though the manifesto says, ‘The Manifesto for
Agile Software Development’, the Agile values and principles can
easily be applied to many types of product development.

The Manifesto of the Agile Alliance: Manifesto for

Agile Software Development

We are uncovering better ways of developing software by

doing it and helping others do it. Through this work we
have come to value

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

Responding to change over following a plan

That is, while there is value in the items on the right,

we value the items on the left more.

The following 12 principles are based on the

Agile Manifesto:

1. Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and

continuous delivery of valuable software.
 2. Welcome changing requirements, even late in development. Agile
processes harness change for the customer’s competitive
advantage.

3. Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks to a

couple of months, with a preference to the shorter timescale.

4. Business people and developers must work together daily

throughout the project.

5. Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the

environment and support they need and trust them to get the job
done.

6. The most efficient and effective method of conveying information

to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation.

7. Working software is the primary measure of progress.

8. Agile processes promote sustainable development. The sponsors,

developers, and users should be able to maintain a constant pace
indefinitely.

9. Continuous attention to technical excellence and good design

enhances agility.

10. Simplicity – the art of maximizing the amount of work not done –
is essential.

11. The best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from

self-organizing teams.

12. At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more

effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.
1.3 Agile Values
The four Agile Manifesto statements or values are described briefly
below:

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

People are the most important asset of any organization and key
ingredient of any successful endeavor. The most common trilogy
familiar to the industry is People, Process, and Technology (or
Tools). Of these three, the most important is the People.
Processes and tools may only take us that far and are not
sufficient to save a project from failure. What is needed is a team
of strong players and diverse skills. People understand better
what value they can deliver to the customer; hence they are the
best suited to leverage the processes and tools to realize that
value.

The key aspect of people is the ability to work collaboratively with

others. A strong team member may not be an expert in his/her
field. But what matter is the ability to work well with others,
communicating and interacting with them in a transparent
manner. Building the right team is more important than building
the environment with processes and tools.

Therefore, in Agile, individuals and interactions are valued more

than processes and tools.

Working software over comprehensive documentation

Every software product comes with supporting documentation
(e.g. technical user guide). Unfortunately, sometimes more
emphasis is provided to writing comprehensive documentation
than on coding working software. Customers derive value from a
product that meets their needs rather than a well-driven
document. It’s better to have a working software product but a
poor supporting documentation.

While a fit-for-purpose documentation is key (software without

documentation is a disaster), the focus should be on writing
working code. If the purpose of documentation is for better
knowledge transfer among team members, what better ways to
achieve this than writing a code that is human-readable and help
from the team. Agile, therefore, stresses more on writing code
that provides value through regular visible incremental delivery of
the working product. Agile also stresses highly on human-to-
human interaction which is considered the most efficient way to
transfer knowledge of the product being built.

Documentation is important but it needs to be short and salient; it

must be human- readable that can efficiently describe the system,
its highest-level structures, and rational for the design decisions
taken.

Therefore, in Agile, working software is given more focus than

comprehensive documentation.
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
An effective product is built when there is a close and regular
collaboration between the customer and supplier. Imagine building
your long-cherished dream home. You do all the groundwork to
identify an experienced builder. You negotiate with him to create a
contract that specified your requirements, schedule, and cost.
Both parties sign the contract; you leave it up to him to complete
the work and go for a multi-month world tour hoping that your
dream home will be ready by the time you are back. Months pass
and it’s time to visit your new home. Horror of horrors. You are
shocked to see that the home is not only incomplete; the design
is way-off than what you specified, the cost has escalated beyond
your budget, and the schedule has gone way beyond what has
been agreed upon in the contract. What is even more amusing is
that the builder is blaming you for everything; he would take none
of the responsibility for the fiasco. At that moment, you are not
even sure when the home will be ready and handed over to you.
Sounds familiar?

This is typically what happens with software development too. Too

many software development projects fail mainly for the reasons
outlined above.

Successful projects involve customer feedback on a regular and

frequent basis. Customers collaborate closely with the
development team, providing frequent feedback on their work
along the journey. Customer is aware what is being developed,
the developers are aware of the customer requirements. There is
minimum surprise on customer acceptance test criteria or
requirement changes.

It is not that contracts are not negotiated and created. In Agile,

the contracts are written to govern the way customers and
suppliers would collaborate for a mutually satisfactory conclusion.
Agile contract concentrates on enabling inspection and adaptation
of the product, prioritization and collaboration between all
stakeholders.

Therefore, in Agile, customer collaboration is given more

weightage than contract negotiation.
Responding to change over following a plan

A successful organization is one that can respond to change faster

than its competitors. Similarly, a successful software project is one
that can respond to change better.

Often, we create a plan hoping that it will stand the test of time.
But the ground reality is that no plan is intelligent enough to
consider the future. Things change every moment. And therefore,
to execute on a plan that is undergoing invisible changes means
setting up ourselves for failure.

A software project plan is also like above; it cannot be planned far

ahead into the future. Things are always likely to change.
Conditions in the marketplace change, business strategy changes,
software requirements change. The people and cost of things
changes; due to unforeseen events, the schedule may change.
Therefore, it is almost impossible to deliver an effective software
product if change mechanism is not built into it.

A better planning strategy is one where the plan is created around

uncertainty, tentativeness, and best guess. We know for certain
what is going to happen in the next two weeks; we guess what
may happen tentatively in the next 2–8 weeks; and we may take
a guess what might happen beyond 8 weeks. Project
requirements and functionality also follow the same visibility path.
We certainly know what requirements are in the next 2–4 weeks;
we roughly know the requirements for the next three months; and
we barely know the requirements 12 months out.

Therefore, Agile believes that up-front project plans are not

commitment plans; it is understood that the plans are merely
forecast best guesses based on experience and facts; and change
is inevitable as the project develops.

Incremental software development based on a short-term detailed

plan is a better ingredient for success. Hence in Agile,
program/projects plans are defined at a high-level keeping in
mind that the plans are expected to change.

Agile recommends that a plan is built with the understanding that

it is flexible and ready to adapt to change in business or technical
environment.

Therefore, in Agile, responding to change is a better plan than

following an inflexible plan.
1.4 Agile Principles
Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early
and continuous delivery of valuable software.

Instead of Big Bang approach, Agile focuses on delivering

incremental value to customer by delivering software product in a
frequent, consistent, regular, and incremental manner. Agile refutes
the myth that the more functionality is packaged in the product, the
higher the quality of the product will be. On the contrary, Agile
believes that the quality of the product is inversely proportional to the
level of functionality. The less functional the initial delivery is, the
higher the quality in the final product.

As a corollary, Agile also believes that the more frequent the

deliveries, the higher the final quality. This will eventually lead to a
more satisfied and involved customer. It is likely to make them more
likely to accept the product being delivered. And if something is
amiss, they would eagerly report on changes they want addressed.

Welcome changing requirements, even late in development.

Agile processes harness change for the customer’s
competitive advantage.

Agile team encourages and embraces changes if the changes are

requested regularly and in increments. The team views changes to
requirements as healthy because they appreciate the fact that the
business team (product owner) has gained more knowledge about
conditions in the market that led to the changes. Note that Agile
focuses on collaboration between customer and development team.
And addressing changes effectively and delivering incremental value
to customer are key outcome of such collaboration.

In Agile delivery, the business requirements are broken down into

smaller features or components that can be well understood, defined,
designed, tested, and delivered. The team keeps the architecture of
the software flexible so that when changes are addressed, the impact
to the product is minimal.

This approach significantly reduces the risk of the poor quality of the
product being delivered.

Deliver working software frequently, from a couple of weeks

to a couple of months, with a preference to the shorter
timescale.

Agile frameworks focus on delivering working software, early (after

first few weeks) and regularly (every few weeks) that satisfies the
customer’s needs.

A key metric that is used is ‘cost of delay.’ This means the cost to the
business of not completing a requested functionality or product
feature. This allows customer to identify the opportunity cost of
requirements. The most valuable product features may not make the
best economic decision. With this metric, customers can understand
the cost of delaying the implementation of one feature over another.

Business and developers must work together daily

throughout the project. Collaboration is a key Agile principle. Agile
encourages face-to-face communication and frequent interaction
between the customer, developers, and stakeholders using a
language that is easy for all to understand. The intent is to eliminate
all surprises and ambiguities. Software project needs constant
monitoring and guidance, and collaboration provides that.

Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the

environment and support they need and trust them to get
the job done.

Agile considers the team of right people most important factors of

successful software delivery. The other factors such as process,
environment, management, and ambience are considered secondary
and therefore these factors are built around the requirements of the
team.

Agile believes in empowering the team so that it stays motivated and

productive. If the team members can trust one another, Agile can be
successful.

The most efficient and effective method of conveying

information to and within a development team is face-to-
face conversation.

In Agile, the default mode of communication is face-to-face

conversation. The usage of emails and other non-human mode of
communication is kept limited. Even if situations where the teams are
distributed geographically, virtual collaboration or co-location is
encouraged. Written communication is not able to convey everything;
it is prone to misunderstanding. A lot of communication happens
through body language and visual cues. Hence Agile stresses the
importance of face-to-face communication. Agile team members (the
typical size of the team is anywhere between 3 to 10 people)
members meets together every day for 10–15 minutes. This huddle is
called daily standup which we will discuss more in later sections.

Working software is the primary measure of progress.

The main objective of Agile is to deliver incremental value to

customer frequently and regularly. In Agile, project success is
measured by the amount of software that is delivered and meets the
customer’s needs. The progress is not measured by the lines of code
written, time spent, completed phases of the project, or the value of
documentation produced. Progress is truly measured by the number
of working functionalities that is delivered.

Agile processes promote sustainable development. The

sponsors, developers, and users should be able to maintain a
constant pace indefinitely.

Agile believes in running a marathon than short sprints. The Agile

team tries to sustain the momentum of project delivery till the final
working software product is delivered. Agile teams work at a
sustainable pace so that things such a burnout, demotivation, people
leaving unexpectedly, unrealistic schedule, or human stresses are
minimized. A healthy sustainable pace minimizes the risk of ‘technical
debt’ in a product. Technical debt is “a concept in programming that
reflects the extra development work that arises when code that is
easy to implement in the short run is used instead of applying the
best overall solution.” (Source: www.techopedia.com). Sustainable
development ensures that technical debt is best avoided, and quality
working product is delivered regularly.

Continuous attention to technical excellence and good

design enhances agility. Agile teams focus on technical excellence
and good design from the start. There are no corner-cutting or quick
fixes. If any major or minor problem is identified in the code or
product, the team addresses them right away. There are no
procrastinating things to tomorrow. The Agile team tries to write
clean code, build the right products in the right order. All Agile team
members are committed to the highest quality code so that technical
debt is minimized. They believe that high quality code enhances
agility and saves time in the future by avoiding additional efforts in
fixing any sub-standard work.

Simplicity – the art of maximizing the amount of work not

done – is essential. Agile teams do not believe in big-bang
approach; they keep things simple. The team members practice
simplicity by focusing on existing requirements and concentrating on
delivery value that is fit-for-purpose and meets customer needs. They
don’t think too much into the future because they know that changes
are inevitable to happen. They focus on delivering highest-quality
work in the most effective way possible.

The best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge

from self-organizing teams.

An Agile team is a self-organizing team with the right delivery

environment and organization culture. The team members are
mature individuals, and they know best how to share responsibilities
that create a healthy working environment for high-quality work.
They work on all aspects of the projects together and chart the best
way forward to achieve the desired goal (i.e. working software
product).

At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become

more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior
accordingly.

An Agile team devotes sufficient time for retrospection. At regular

intervals, they assess what elements of their approach have worked,
what elements of the environment have changed, and what they
must improve upon to remain agile. In other words, this approach is
called continuous improvement.

1.5 HISTORY OF AGILE

1.6 Agile in 2020s
Can the Agile Manifesto stand the test of time? This is the most
important question that everyone is asking. Is the history of Agile
complete or is there more to come?

The Agile concept has come a long way over the past several years,
taking its place as a firmly established set of software development
methodologies. Yet Agile continues to evolve and mature, as
experience leads to improvements, refinements, and new uses. The
following are some of the trends expected to be seen in 2020s:

Design and development teams will collaborate more at the

initiation of a project. Development will inform design, and vice
versa.
Development resources from large enterprises will be more
outsourced. In turn, this will initiate a rise of more start-up shops
or smaller-scale dev agencies or businesses. This will apply not
only to developers, but to anyone with specialized expertise.
In the coming years, Scrum will be applied to large-scale
enterprise initiatives, not just design and development teams.
Feedback and feedback loops are now more important than ever
and will reshape the way enterprises do business.
Infusing human data and business data into the way we work and
how we make decisions will be more imperative.
Increased focus on agility at scale, as well as better ways of
integrating business delivery into engineering teams.
Organizational alignment and structural changes to make Agile
practice more effective within the organization.
While historically Agile followed traditional approach where all
physical developments was carried out in-house, there is now an
increased drive to externalize/outsource more development
capabilities using Agile.
Agile moving toward more formal structures, such as Scaled Agile
Framework SAFe 5.0. SAFe 5.0’s focus on business agility requires
that business and technology leaders be in sync with development
and IT operations. Business and management leaders will look to
utilize lean and Agile practices to ensure that the enterprise
remains competitive and innovative.
The idea of extending Agile from individual Scrum teams to large-
scale programs is really gathering steam.
The expansion of Agile practices into non-IT business
departments will accelerate. We will hear terms such as Agile
Engineering, Agile Human Resources, Agile Marketing, among
others.
A closer integration between Agile and DevOps. DevOps is the
idea of creating a continuous loop of delivery in which new
software can go to market at any time and is always ready for
production. DevOps is the latest iteration of the idea that high
quality products should be delivered to users as quickly as
possible and then improved upon on a regular basis. While it’s
easy to think of DevOps as a new approach that will bring Agile to
an end, so far this has proven not to be the case. Currently, we
see teams embracing Agile and DevOps hand-in-hand, and we
can likely expect this trend to continue for the next several years.
We will also see a closer integration between Agile practices and
Enterprise Architecture – an area traditionally considered very
waterfall in its delivery. The Open Group is working on
establishing guidelines for using Agile practices in Enterprise
Architecture.
2 Agile Thinking
“Ultimately, Agile is a mindset informed by the values
contained in the Agile Manifesto and the 12 Principles
behind the Agile Manifesto. Those values and principles
provide guidance on how to create and respond to change
and how to deal with uncertainty.”

– (Source: www.agilealliance.org)

Before we get into the details of Agile, it is extremely important to

get into the mindset of an Agile practitioner and understand the
thinking behind Agile. Every endeavor in life involves the mechanics
of doing it, and the mood (or thought process) associated with it.
Similarly, in Agile journey it is paramount to understand what Agile
thinking is, and what should be the mindset of an Agile specialist.

The first and foremost thing about Agile Thinking is that Agile is not
only about doing something. It is not a packaged solution that we
buy to solve something. Indeed, it is about ‘being’ Agile in all aspects
of software development & delivery. It is not only about
understanding ‘how’ we are doing Agile; it is more about ‘why’ we are
doing Agile. The ‘how’ aspect of Agile is accomplished by the
numerous tools & processes, practices, principles, and values that
Agile framework provides. It is about creating a culture of Agile
mindset.

The following are some of the aspects of Agile thinking:

Agile practitioners consider that the knowledge world is dynamic
and variable. Things are hardly ever constant. Change is going to
happen no matter what. Hence an Agile practitioner expects
unexpected changes to happen and is prepared to handle them.
He is comfortable working in an environment of uncertainty and
volatility.
It is rare that IT environments will be simple and predictable.
Since IT is strongly associated with business by being its close
enabler, any change in business environment is going to impact IT
as well. IT environments typically tend to be complex; there is
uncertainty in terms of technology variation and requirements.
IT is not like a civil engineering field where there is a fixed defined
outcome and a defined process. For instance, building a bridge
does not see much variation. Once the construction is started as
per the requirements and design, there is little variability in design
or construction techniques. Before the construction is started, the
requirements, analysis, design, construction, and delivery are
planned and finalized. This is an example of Waterfall model that
we will discuss later. On the contrary, IT projects hardly follows
this rigid path.
The best mindset to have during Agile is to apply an empirical
approach. Learn and apply learning as you go along. You build
small increments, get it reviewed and tested by the product
owners, get feedback, apply feedback, and release the product to
the end user. Once this first cycle is complete, start with the next
iteration and build on what you have already delivered. It is
important to experiment, observe and understand the results, and
then adapt processes to achieve the best results. Therefore,
empirical mindset is an important agile thinking concept.
The empirical approach, which is learning through experience,
consists of three main pillars – Transparency, Inspection, and
Adaption. Transparency means that the process of developing
the product must be easily visible to everyone involved in the
project. Inspection requires that the product being created is
inspected at regular intervals so that any unexpected variance can
be detected and corrected. Adaption requires that the process
be adjusted to minimize the unexpected and unacceptable
variances.
Agile thinking derives a lot of its concepts from Toyota Production
System (TPS). Per Wikipedia, Toyota Motor Corporation published
an ‘official’ description of TPS for the first time in 1992; this
booklet was revised in 1998. In the foreword, it is said: “The TPS
is a framework for conserving resources by eliminating waste.
People who participate in the system learn to identify
expenditures of material, effort and time that do not generate
value for customers and furthermore we have, avoid a ‘how-to’
approach. The booklet is not a manual. Rather it is an overview of
the concepts, that underlie our production system. It is a
reminder that lasting gains in productivity and quality are possible
whenever and wherever management and employees are united
in a commitment to positive change”. TPS is grounded on two
main conceptual pillars:
Just-in-time: “Making only what is needed, only when it
is needed, and only in the amount that is needed”
 Jidoka: – (Auto-nomation) meaning “Automation with a
human touch”
Agile too adheres to TPS concepts of just-in-time by releasing
software products in small increments based on defined
needs/requirements; Agile places more emphasis on human-to-
human communication and less on documentation.
Agile thinking follows a product development lifecycle. The
lifecycle of a product spans from commissioning and
decommissioning. The journey between these two ends are
accomplished through small delivery phases based on specific set
of requirements (or backlog of stories as called in product
development world). Typically, the features or functionalities are
created as story cards that are added as product backlog. The
backlog exists throughout the product development lifecycle. The
stories are prioritized by the product owners based on how
coarse-grained or fine-grained the stories are, and taking into
consideration the aspects of time, cost, and quality.
Agile follows the ‘time-boxing’ concept. According to Peter
Measey’s and Radtac’s book – Agile Foundations, “Time-boxing
divides the delivery of increments of the product into short,
manageable time periods (called sprints or iterations) of days or
weeks, and varies, based on priority, the functionality to be
delivered within these time-boxes.”
Finally, a key aspect of Agile thinking is that it gives more
importance to Time, Cost, and Quality of software product
delivery rather than to the features/functionalities. Agile considers
Time, Cost and Quality fixed elements whereas features/
 functionalities as dynamic elements. This variable aspect of
features is demonstrated by the Agile process where the features
are released in increments. On the other hand, the traditional
Waterfall model believes in features being fixed element, and
time, cost, and quality to be variable elements. This restructuring
of time, cost, quality, and features works better in Agile projects
because business expect software delivery to be on time, within
the cost boundaries, and of right quality. They are not too
concerned whether all features are implemented or not if there is
a backlog of their requirements as long as they have the
transparency that the development team will release them in
subsequent iterations.

In summary, Agile is a journey, not a destination. The best results

can be derived out of Agile practice when the team and the
organization get into the right Agile mindset. Keep the values and
principles in mind when you do this. Let your context guide which
frameworks, practices, and techniques you adopt to collaborate with
your team and to deliver value to your customers.

2.1 Waterfall Approach

Before we get further into the Agile approach, it is important to
understand what led to Agile in the first place. In the early days of
the IT industry, software development followed a sequential
development process. In 1970, Dr. Winston W. Royce wrote an article
titled Managing the development of large software systems that
described the first formal description of the waterfall model. Note
that Royce did not use the term Waterfall in his article. Rather he
presented his model as an example of a flawed, non-working model.

In 1985, the United States Department of Defense captured this

approach in DOD-STD- 2167A, their standards for working with
software development contractors, which stated that “the contractor
shall implement a software development cycle that includes the
following six phases: Preliminary Design, Detailed Design, Coding and
Unit Testing, Integration, and Testing”. (source: Wikipedia – Waterfall
model).

As stated above, the Waterfall model contains the following

sequential phases:

1. Requirements: capturing product/software requirements

2. Analysis/Specifications: preparing models, schemas, and

business rules

3. Design: designing software architecture

4. Coding: writing software code and unit testing it

5. Testing: conducting systematic testing of the overall solution to

capture bugs and defects using a pre-defined test plan

6. Release: releasing the final software product to the end user

7. Operations: includes ongoing installation, migration, support,

and maintenance of completed software
 Figure 1: Waterfall Model

The phases above are considered sequential because it is expected

that one completes a phase before moving on to the next.

The Waterfall model originated in the manufacturing and construction

industries that are highly-structured physical environments. Due to
lack of formal software development methodologies at the time, the
hardware-oriented Waterfall model was adapted for software
development.

The key arguments supporting Waterfall approach are:

 If more effort is spent early in the initial phases of analyzing and
designing to understand the requirements better, better would be
the quality of the solution/ product being implemented.
Higher quality means fewer errors at later stages, thereby
reducing costs.
From a scheduling standpoint, Waterfall adopters usually spend
30–40% of the time in the first two phases (Requirements and
Analysis), 30–40% of the time in coding, and rest in testing and
operations.
The key mode of communication is via documentation. The idea
is, if any team member leaves the project, no knowledge is lost,
and the next team member can get up to speed through the
documentation.
Waterfall is suited to environments where requirements and scope
are fixed, technology variance is less, and the expected change is
minimal.
Waterfall supports predictability through detailed delivery phases
that are usually signed off as milestones.

The Waterfall model has its own set of drawbacks too, as noted
below:

It is assumed that customers exactly know what their

requirements are. Unfortunately, this is hardly the case.
Requirements change; this leads to redesign, redevelopment,
retesting. All these lead to increased costs.
If requirements change but the delivery schedule is not adjusted,
the quality is impacted because all work and re-work needs to be
 completed within the timeframe. For example, testing time may
get shortened, design and architectures may be short-changed,
corners may be cut – all to meet the final delivery date.
Architects are hardly aware of the future difficulties while
implementing the final software would be or how the technology
landscape would turn out. In such a case, it would be
counterproductive to persist with a design that may not account
for newly discovered constraints, requirements, or challenges.
Waterfall does not work very well in dynamic IT environment
where variability is high, and cost of change is not prohibitive.
Waterfall fails to consider the inherent uncertainty and variability
in knowledge- based industry such as software industry.
In summary, Waterfall model curtails agility by resisting change.

Therefore, advocates of Agile software development argue that the

waterfall model is ineffective when it comes to software development
due to high variability involved.

2.2 Waterfall vs. Agile

The key differences between Agile and Waterfall are:
3 Benefits of Agile
The key benefits of Agile approach are:

Rapid delivery of software product: Agile helps in delivering

early value to a project by regularly, and frequently, releasing
software code in small units of features that satisfies the product
owner needs.
Iterative approach: Releasing software code in small units of
functionality gives the benefit of an iterative approach.
Fail fast: Releasing software code in small units of functionality
helps in receiving quick feedback from the customer. So, if things
do not work as expected, they can be fixed fast. This means
failing fast and correcting the course.
High responsiveness to change: Since detailed planning of
the project is done in small phases or increments, the project is
little impacted due to change to business requirements.
Better management of risk: Risk is managed better by
focusing on implementation of small units of functionality and by
keeping the attention on the immediate and next release.
Higher business value: Since functionalities are defined by the
business and software is released in small chunks of functionality,
the customer or product owner can release higher business value
functionalities quickly.
Higher quality: Because of small iteration, the development
effort and time is planned better. Development work does not get
accumulated at the end; there is no borrowing of time from other
areas such as from testing phase. This prevents in any short-
cuts; thereby leading to higher quality of the final product.
Transparency: The whole Agile process is completely
transparent. The product owner oversees the functionalities
being implemented gradually in phases; the developers can get
quick feedback from the product owner and derive satisfaction
from the fact that the accepted functionality is valuable to the
business.
Collective ownership: Agile emphasizes collective ownership of
work. The team determines the pace of the project and adjusts
the pace that is sustainable for the full course. Therefore, Agile
team is highly effective since the team members can take
ownership, demonstrate great teamwork spirit by collaborating
with others, and working in consensus mode.
Better stress management: Since Agile is built around
sustainable pace and collective ownership spirit, the team can
manage its time and stress better in the long run. Because
development effort is tied to small units of functionalities, the
project schedule and cost is planned in a realistic manner. This
avoids any last minute or last mile over-effort. Team knows what
is going to be released in the current release and next release.
Therefore, they can manage their personal time better. This
prevents any burnout and needless stress.
4 Generic Agile Process

Figure 2: Generic Agile Process

a. The Product Owner (usually the Customer) provides a list of

desired features of the product that are compiled into a Product
Backlog. Based on the input from the team, the items in the
Product Backlog are prioritized and reprioritized at the start of
every sprint. These features form the high-level requirements of
the project. Most items are expressed in the form of a “user
story.”

b. The team collaboratively selects user stories from the product

backlog they can commit to delivering. A high-level design is
 developed, and a sprint backlog is created. The tasks are
identified, estimated and self-assigned.

c. The team performs planning at different levels (release and/or

iteration/sprint).

d. The delivery team gets equipped with Agile technical practices to

be able to deliver the project successfully.

e. Stand-ups are performed daily (usually at the start of the day) for
about 15 mins.

f. Visual boards are used to monitor the status of the

iteration/sprint.

g. RAID log is created where risks, issues, assumptions, and

dependencies are added to and monitored.

h. ‘Show and tell’ meetings are held at the end of a sprint, iteration
or release for the team to demonstrate to the stakeholders all
user stories completed during the iteration/sprint; feedback is
sought from the stakeholders about the product being delivered.

i. Sprint retrospective is conducted to discuss what went wrong,

what did not go well and what needs to be done differently next
time.

j. The Agile Lead facilitates and enables the Agile process and
coaches the team.
5 Common Agile Roles
Agile is incomplete without the contribution of the people involved in
it. People are the fuel that keeps the engine of Agile running. Agile
comes with its own sets of key roles that are critical to Agile delivery.
At a high level, the key roles in an Agile delivery are: The
Customer, the Agile Lead, the Agile Team, and the
Stakeholders. While some of these roles expect specific skill sets,
the Agile approach hopes that team members can play other roles
beyond their skillsets. In other words, the team members may be
‘specialized generalists.’ Beside these four roles, there may be other
contributors to the Agile delivery.

Let us discuss each of these Agile roles in detail.

The Customer: In Agile delivery, ‘customer’ refers to the person

who owns the product being built, who makes decisions about
what product will be built, and what work will be done in what
order to build the product. The customer understands the vision
and business rationale behind why the product is being built.

The customer also defines what stories are to be delivered,

decides the order of the stories on the backlog, and signs off
stories when they are done at the end of each iteration/sprint or
release.
A commonly used mnemonic for remembering the key criteria of
a good customer is DARKA, which stands for:

(D)esire: The customer should have a keen desire to see the

product being built as per the vision. He should be excited about
the product.

(A)uthority: The customer should have the authority to make

decisions about the product and its delivery and enforce them.
The Agile team must have a clear understanding of the level of
authority the customer has, and who to approach if decisions
beyond the authority of the customer is needed.

(R)esponsibility: The customer is responsible for defining what

the team will deliver and in which order.

(K)knowledge: The customer must be knowledgeable about

the product being delivered; he should know where to find the
information in a timely manner.

(A)availability: The customer must be available at critical

juncture of the project to take key decisions.

The Agile Team: The Agile team is typically responsible for:

Deciding how to do the work. This involves refining
stories with the customer and then dividing them into
tasks.
Defining the time frame of the work. This involves
estimating the effort needed to complete each task.
 Deciding who does the work, examining the progress of
the work, and deciding how to best organize themselves
to deliver the product.
Delivering the product.
Specialized generalists: A specialized generalist, in an Agile
team, is someone who has a specialist skill (like programming)
and is also aware of what other team members are doing in the
project. Having specialized skills in the team fosters better
communication, collaboration, and teamwork. Typical specialist
skills found in an Agile team are:
Business knowledge
Architectural skills
Analytical skills
Design skills
Coding skills
Testing skills

Self-organizing teams: Agile teams are self-organizing teams

because they have the authority to decide how work gets done,
who does it, and how long it should take. Self-organizing teams
can take initiative, focus on team contributions, concentrate on
solutions, cooperate with each other, innovate for better ways of
working, finding ways to deliver better solution, manage
constraints, and take measures to manage any contingencies and
emergencies.
Self-organizing teams lead to faster decision making, higher
motivation, increased brain power, and increased levels of
initiative and continuous improvement.

Feature teams: An Agile feature team is usually structured as

feature team because it enables delivery of features from the
backlog. The Agile feature team concentrates on delivering value-
added features to the customer.

Component teams: Component teams come into play when it

is not possible for feature teams to delivery features to the
customer as the delivery cycle may require one or more
components to be delivered first. Components teams are
responsible for producing components that can be combined with
other components from other teams and integrated together into
a feature.

Core and support teams: An Agile team may be broken up

into core and support teams. This can be typically seen in large
and complex projects. The core team is focused on delivering
across the value chain; support teams provide support to core
teams to do things right first time. Example of areas where
support team enable the core team are architectural support,
user interface support, or research support.
The Agile Lead: The Agile lead is mainly responsible for
enabling the team to self-organize and continually improve. The
Agile lead understands the overall delivery cycle, understands the
team, their skills, and their mode of working. The Agile lead does
not command and control the team; he or she rather facilitates
and enables the team to self-organize. An Agile lead removes
impediments that block a task from being executed or a feature
being delivered.

Workshop facilitator: The Agile Lead sometimes puts on the

hat of an Agile facilitator to facilitate the delivery of Agile
framework and activities through workshops. This needs
coordination, planning, and structuring of the workshops. Since a
facilitator needs to be independent from the people attending the
workshops, it is advisable that the facilitator be from a different
team.

Process facilitator: The Agile Lead also helps in the

organization, program, project, and team to define the Agile
process and operating model. The Agile Lead ensures that Agile
processes are being followed, the Agile activities are respected,
and the sizing of the stories are correct. The Agile Lead also
works closely with the team to identify any scope for Agile
process improvement.

Coach or trainer: The Agile Lead also plays the role of coach or
trainer to propagate the knowledge of Agile principles, processes,
and practices to the team. If there is a new practice or process
that needs to be implemented, the Agile Lead acts as enabler to
help the team implement them.
Another random document with
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also wished to let you first enjoy the pleasure and triumph that await
you at home; and I half hoped and half wished that before long he
would meet his just doom at other hands. I have erred grievously in
believing that the Fates which govern the world would allow such a
just vengeance to remain unfulfilled by him who evidently was
designed to execute it. The signal way in which the divine will has
been declared in this instance proves to me also that I need have no
fear for the result. I die happy in this consciousness; and now,
Sennoske, although I am of inferior rank, I know you will show me
the last and greatest mark of friendship which one samurai can show
to another.”
As he spoke he released the grip of his hands, the ghastly wound
opened wide, and he fell partly forward, with life evidently very nearly
extinct. Sennoske did not hesitate, for to withhold his hand now
would have been cruel as well as contrary to all law and usage.
Taking Yamagawa’s sword and grasping it firmly in both hands, with
a muttered blessing which the other seemed to understand and
acknowledge by a last flicker illuminating his face, his young master
made one sweeping downward stroke. The head rolled on the
ground, and a life of patient, unselfish, and sacrificing devotion came
to a sad but an honorable end.

STATE SWORD AND HEAD-DRESS.

 CHAPTER XI.
“Now for Taka Suke!” cried a younger member of the party,
excitedly. But he said no more, and hung his head abashed; for a
stern glance from his older companions showed him plainly that
many words and loud talk were not only not needed, but even out of
place at this moment. In glancing round the room, Sennoske saw the
servant who had attended him, and who, fascinated by what he had
seen and heard, had remained unnoticed in a corner. He was
summoned, and told to put Yamagawa’s head on one of the platters
lying on the floor, and to precede the young soldier to his enemy’s
room. The poor fellow hardly appreciated the active part assigned to
him in this drama. “I am not used to carrying cut-off heads,” he
stammered; “I shall be certain to commit some breach of etiquette:
so please excuse me.” As he spoke, with his head on the floor,
raising it at every few words to look around in a half-frightened, half-
foolish sort of way, and bringing it down again with a hard thump in
the unconscious excess of his apologetic speech, his appearance
under other circumstances would certainly have been sufficiently
ludicrous. A reiterated command caused him to slide upon his knees
to where the ghastly head lay on the floor; but as he brought his
hands near it, his courage failed him, and he made a precipitate rush
for the door. He was not allowed to leave, however, and a sharp blow
with a scabbard across his shoulders by one of the party, an old
soldier who had little sympathy for such scruples or squeamishness,
caused the physical pain partly to overcome his nervous
sensitiveness. Sennoske, with his usual consideration for the
feelings of others, seeing the state of mind the man was in, himself
gently placed the head on one of the platters; and the servant, with
averted face, then took heart to raise it up and to proceed to the
room of Taka Suke.
The others present followed, but remained slightly in the rear,
having received strict orders from the young soldier not to interfere
or take any active part unless he called upon them. Sennoske felt a
wild, fierce delight at the thought of the struggle before him. Physical
action is always a relief for any great nervous strain, and there are
none but the veriest cravens who will not gladly accept it as a
welcome change, even when accompanied by personal risk and
danger. It is natural for health and strength to look for such an outlet,
and in the time in which Sennoske lived, education and conventional
usage did not repress the play of natural energies. With his physical
powers developed almost to perfection, the young soldier actually
hungered for an opportunity where his harassed feelings might find
vent in valorous deeds. The very thought of a desperate hand-to-
hand struggle did much to restore his coolness and self-possession,
which had been considerably disturbed by the tragic scene through
which he had passed, and by the revelations which his old attendant
had made to him.
As they came to the room where he now knew his mortal enemy to
be, Sennoske opened the sliding door to allow the servant to enter;
then following him, and taking the platter with its ghastly burden out
of his hand, he deposited it gently on the floor, while in a clear, firm,
and perhaps slightly authoritative tone he said: “Here is the head of
my retainer, as you demanded it; I now ask you to return to me my
sword.”
As soon as he entered he saw that he had come not a moment too
soon; for the packed portmanteaus lying about, as well as other
signs, showed that the party was on the eve of departure. Such, in
fact, had been their intention; it was only the knowledge that a
number of Ise samurai had arrived, and a fear that they were
watched and would not in a body be able to decamp with the sword
in their possession without being desperately opposed, that had
caused the delay and a parley, in the midst of which Sennoske came
upon them. All of them, and their leader not the least, were evidently
considerably surprised at the prompt and literal manner in which
Taka Suke’s command had been carried out. The Hōjō chief’s
alternative had been presented, it is true, very largely out of spite
against the man whom he hated, because that man had scorned his
offers and eluded his power; for in striking at Yamagawa he felt he
struck at Mutto and at Mutto’s son. Yet he hardly expected that his
extravagant claim would be acceded to, and under any
circumstances he calculated upon a delay that would enable him to
escape with the sword, which to a man in his position was an
invaluable prize. In the event of his being unable to escape,—a
contingency which the arrival of the Ise men rendered probable,—he
still believed it would be possible to represent Sennoske’s loss of the
sword in such a way as to appeal effectually to the prejudices of the
extremists on the subject of sword-etiquette among the samurai
travellers who had come to the inn. He thereby hoped to create a
diversion and to make the whole affair a subject of negotiation,
during which time he would have possession of the sword; and in the
end he would not be scrupulous in framing excuses and contriving
means for keeping it permanently.
Both his designs, however, were frustrated. The readiness with
which the man had been sacrificed seemed to argue that, after all, in
spite of what his young master had said, no very high value was
attached to his life; at any rate, the head there exposed took away all
excuse for keeping the sword any longer. This poor head now
troubled Taka Suke more than its possessor had ever done in life;
being a man who had seldom been thwarted, he would have given
much to draw the sword and cut the now inoffensive cause of his
disappointment in pieces. Sennoske, who was watching him
narrowly, partly divined what was passing through his mind, and
regained his self-possession more fully as the other showed outward
signs of anger and mortification. He again repeated his demand, but
with a stronger emphasis of authority, which seemed to intimate that
he had means to enforce it; and so Taka Suke, seeing that he could
not possibly frame a valid excuse for retaining the weapon, with a
muttered curse, half handed, half threw it over to his enemy.
Sennoske caught it; and as he found, with his accustomed grasp,
that it was indeed his trusty blade, he felt a shock which caused his
heart to beat almost audibly as it seemed to him, while his brain
seethed and throbbed against his temples with the tumultuous flood
of emotions which agitated it. But this excitement was only
momentary. He had slightly bent his head on receiving the weapon;
but quickly raising it again, he spoke calmly and clearly, with quiet
self-possession: “You have given me back my sword, my beloved
samurai sword; but the mere return of it is not sufficient. A faithful
and dearly cherished life had to be sacrificed to your ‘feelings of
honor,’ as you called them: all your heads must accompany the
return of this sword to satisfy my feelings of honor!” He had drawn
the sword as he concluded, and waited with chivalrous courage for a
second or two, until at least one other blade should be bared.
The combat was not as
unequal as it looked at first
sight. A heavy Japanese
sword, held as it is with
both hands, and not
admitting of any great
celerity of movement when
wielded by an ordinary
man, enables a master of
the art, with quickness and
agility to match, as was
here the case, easily to
keep at bay two, or even
three opponents. Sennoske
had placed himself against
a corner of the room; his
foes were all in front of him,
and the necessity of
requiring considerable
room to wield their
weapons prevented them
from overpowering him by
too many rushing upon him
A FENCING MATCH. at once. Moreover, they
were at a disadvantage.
They had in a vague sort of
way expected a struggle of some kind, but they were not prepared
for this sudden demonstration. The sound of muffled voices and
footsteps in the hall spoke of a reserve force of unknown strength
ready to assist, or if need were to avenge, the young champion.
But by far the most powerful influence was exerted by the flashing
sword before them. It was not like other swords. In the uncertain light
of the flickering candles it gleamed and glistened with a wicked,
reddish sort of color, such as is seen in newly shed blood. It cut
through space with a hissing, seething sound, as if it were going
through waves, not of air, but of water or blood, which parted in
affright before its sharp edge. As it was raised and lowered, it looked
like a phantom snake elongating and contracting itself at will. All the
dark tales about Muramasa, all the sinister import which popular
belief attached to the product of his handicraft, and which was
household lore in Japan, almost found justification in the way that
this blade had caused the death of Yamagawa and had bred the
present struggle.
Great, however, as was the influence of such thoughts and
feelings, they could not altogether paralyze samurai instincts, and in
response to Sennoske’s challenge three blades were drawn almost
immediately. With a motion so light that it implied no effort, the young
soldier’s weapon whizzed through the air, causing the head of one of
his antagonists to roll on the floor, and in its downward sweep
striking a second one under the shoulder, cutting the arm clean off. It
was the work of a few seconds merely; but by this time two more of
the party, among whom was Taka Suke, had unsheathed their
swords.
The Hōjō chief, the only one of the party who was entirely free
from the influence of the superstitious spell which worked upon the
others, leaped forward with a yell of rage as he saw his two
companions fall. As he did so, he stumbled against the platter
containing Yamagawa’s head, and in falling, the point of his sword
pierced his knee through and through, inflicting an extremely painful
wound, and bringing him to the ground with a wail of anguish while
the cry of his onslaught was yet ringing through the room. He lay
there helpless, his fall utterly demoralizing the surviving men-at-
arms. Two of them took no active part whatsoever, one having drawn
his sword without attempting to use it; while the other had not even
done as much, but had remained in his seat gazing upon every
movement of Sennoske’s weapon with a stupid, helpless stare,
evidently the outgrowth of superstitious fears. The remaining two
who still stood opposed to the young champion, dismayed by the
scene before them, wielded their swords mechanically and aimlessly,
and seemed almost to rush upon their own destruction as they were
cut down by Sennoske’s blade. The young man proceeded in his
self-imposed task almost like an executioner carrying out a
sentence, and sparing none. Last of all he turned upon Taka Suke,
who, having drawn the weapon from his leg, lay writhing on the floor
in transports of pain and rage, making wild, ineffectual attempts to
strike his opponent. By this time numbers of the visitors in the house
had hurried to the doors of the room where the tragedy was being
enacted; these had been opened, but the Ise men prevented any
one from entering, and a crowd of faces looked in upon the tragic
spectacle. Kataki-uchi! kataki-uchi! resounded from every side,
causing all within ear-shot to rush to the spot; but the reason being
known, no one would have interfered, even if the Ise men had not
guarded the entrance.
 SENNOSKE FACING HIS ENEMIES.

As Sennoske looked at the man writhing at his feet, he thought of

his dead mother, of his father’s manhood blighted and seared by foul
machinations, and of his faithful attendant’s untimely death; and a
savage feeling of revengeful joy, utterly foreign to his brave but
gentle nature, took possession of him. He lowered his blade, which
he had raised already, and addressing the other, spoke to him in
words which fell upon his ears like molten lead injected into living
veins. As he called him by name,—by the hated name of Taka Suke,
than which none was more execrated in the country,—the spectators
gave unmistakable signs of satisfaction. “It is small honor, and little
cause for deserving men’s esteem, to fulfil the obligations of kataki-
uchi against you, Taka Suke,” he said, “and it merely becomes a duty
like that of the executioner putting a criminal to death. You have
tyrannized over and trampled upon all in your power, you have,
without compunction, bereft them of possessions, of good name, and
of life, as long as the Hōjō influence gave you authority and means,
and left your victims without redress. Now, when this power no
longer shields you, you have been unable, in spite of the assistance
of six stalwart men-at-arms, to defend yourself against a ‘boy,’ as
you call him. But this ‘boy’ is strengthened and inspired by
something which you lack, and which you think of no value. He fights
in the holy cause of right and of a just retribution. In killing you I
restore to my father his honor and prestige, which you tried to take
from him; and in his name, and in the name of all others whom you
have unjustly accused and condemned, I hereby fulfil—”
“Hold, hold!” interrupted the doomed man. “Let me commit
seppuku. It is a privilege which is granted to the lowest of our class,
and one which by virtue of my rank I claim; I appeal to all within
hearing to see that it is granted to me.” As he spoke, his voice
became almost pleading, and for the first time an unmistakable sign
of fear showed itself together with the sneering malice and the evil
hate of which the face still spoke so strongly. Added to this were the
traces of physical pain; and the whole effect was so repulsive that
those at the doors, many of whom were no strangers to scenes of
death, turned aside, half in disgust, half in dread. As they did so, the
wretched man reiterated his request frantically, without giving time
for a response, shrieking it out at last in an agony of wild terror. This
man, who during his life had been bound by no knightly law, who
while in the fulness of health had remained untouched alike by
feelings of veneration for what others held sacred, and by feelings of
dread for what others feared, now, with death before him, clung
desperately to the thought of dying like a samurai. He had known
scores of men in the flower of their years die in such a way serene
and contented, and probably the thought of this prompted his
demand. He could not feel resigned to death; he clung to life with
fierce desire, with some wild hope of escape, or at least delay, from
the doom which he yet knew to be inevitable.

A FUNERAL.

“Your appeal is in vain,” said Sennoske, not altogether unmoved at

the sight. “Seppuku was designed as a knightly punishment for
samurai whose errors are errors of judgment, but whose deeds are
the deeds of samurai. This does not apply to you, who have ever
had recourse to intrigue, to circumvention and low cunning, rather
than to arbitration by the sword. Men who were opposed to you you
have stabbed in the dark, giving them no opportunity to defend or to
justify themselves; you have even, as in the case of my father,
prevented them from finding relief in an honorable death. The
memory of his wrongs and sufferings stands between us, and steels
my heart against any feelings of pity it might otherwise entertain for
one who has fallen as low as you have.”
As Sennoske spoke, he himself experienced a thrill of unutterable
horror. Without volition of his own he felt the sword in his hand raise
and extend itself so as to oblige him to hold the hilt as firmly as he
could, to prevent it from slipping out of his grasp. Was it merely a
trick of his heated fancy? It seemed to him he was becoming
unconscious. All the incidents of his young life passed before him in
review. One picture however stood out in bold relief: it was that of his
father leaving the presence of Taka Suke utterly prostrate in body
and in mind, with only spirit enough left to pray that, impossible as it
then seemed, he or his descendants might yet be able to carry out
his just vengeance. Sennoske distinctly heard the prayer, and by a
powerful effort roused himself to consciousness. As he did so, and
looked before him, he saw the head of Taka Suke, severed from the
body, lying at his feet, and at the same instant heard a low murmur
of approbation from those who stood around. “I hardly saw your
sword move, so quickly you did it,” said the leader of the Ise men.
“These Muramasas will almost of themselves, I believe, cut off a
man’s head.”
For the first time in his life the young soldier felt faint and weak,
and it required all his strength of mind and will to complete the short
ceremony he had to go through. Taking the head of Yamagawa and
placing it by itself on the raised daïs at one end of the room, he put
the heads of the six retainers of Taka Suke below and in front of it.
As to the head of the Hōjō chief, he placed it by itself, adding a small
piece of paper, on which he wrote in a few words the cause and
purport of this kataki-uchi. Every one who saw it would thereby know
the reason of this vendetta; and the gallant courage with which the
deed had been performed was of itself sufficient to convince the
many spectators of the justness of the cause.
It was long past midnight when Sennoske at last returned to his
room; and after the excitement of the last few hours he found that
sleep was impossible. He and his companions felt it a relief to
remain awake and confer upon the events that had occurred, uniting
them in a general way with that inexhaustible topic of conversation,
kataki-uchi. Toward morning one of the party, wishing that their brave
young leader should have a little rest, proposed that a day’s halt
should be made; and the others, divining his reason, agreed to it.
Sennoske strenuously objected, stating his determination to start
with the dawn. To this the other wilily replied that such a course
would look like flight, and might be called such by any of Taka Suke’s
supporters either still present or liable to arrive in the course of the
day. Every one, including Sennoske, felt that this was a weak
reason; yet it was effectual, as such appeals often are when good
arguments prove unavailing. It was determined, however, at once to
send a courier to the court of Kuwana to carry the documents and
despatches which they had brought with them from Kamakura, and a
younger member of the party immediately volunteered for the
service.

HELMET.
 CHAPTER XII.
Mutto, after the departure of Sennoske, continued the same quiet,
uneventful life that he had led for ten years. He was perhaps even a
little more reserved than before, if that were possible, and in spite of
the glorious news arriving day after day frequently making mention of
his son’s gallantry and bold deeds, the gloom on his countenance
seemed to be as firmly fixed as ever. Two or three times he called at
the smith’s, and these were the only occasions when, listening to O
Tetsu’s merry talk, he showed something like interest in passing
events and a partial forgetfulness of the grief which weighed on him.
His duties at the court—now that the number of retainers was limited
—had become more onerous, and he was almost constantly in
attendance. One morning he was there as usual, making a report of
what had occurred, when a courier arrived and was ushered in. This
man, who was almost breathless, with every sign of exhaustion, was
he who had been despatched by Sennoske; and it happened that he
was also the first to bring authentic news of the fall of Kamakura and
of the complete overthrow and annihilation of the Hōjō power.
 NEWS OF THE ARRIVAL OF THE COURIER AT THE COURT.

He delivered his letters, and the joyful tidings at once spread

through the castle and into the town. The Duke, learning that the
courier had himself participated in the fight, ordered refreshments
brought in, of which he caused him to partake while the despatches
were being read. When the reading had been concluded, the rich
wine and generous fare, and still more perhaps the absorbing
attention which was paid to the recital, invigorated the new-comer,
who forthwith gave a graphic account of the battle. From general
outlines he soon passed on to particulars, which he knew would be
welcome, speaking of the way the Ise men had distinguished
themselves, and giving the names of those who had won special
renown. None, however, stood as high as Sennoske, who had saved
the life of Nitta, the commander-in-chief, during the hottest part of the
fray, who seemed invulnerable, and whose exploits had made him
and his sword an object of superstitious terror to the enemy. The
courier went on to speak of the command which had been intrusted
to the young hero, and of the fact that he was now on his way home,
having been detained only temporarily by a difficulty with Nagasaki
no Taka Suke, the noted Hōjō partisan, whom, together with six of
his retainers, he had attacked and killed single-handed.

SERVING REFRESHMENTS.
 When the courier reached this part of the narrative a heavy fall
was heard; and on looking round it was found that Mutto had fainted,
and in falling had struck his head against one of the wooden pillars.
Assistance was immediately rendered him; but although the
contusion was very slight, it was hours before he recovered. Then
his face showed a remarkable change. There was no trace left on it
of bitterness, of gloom, or of dejection, and it bore a look of complete
though subdued content. He now told the secret of his life to the
Duke, who did not stint himself in expressions of sincere and
heartfelt congratulation. To show how very much in earnest he was,
he on the same day made Mutto his hereditary karo,—which was the
highest acknowledgment of his esteem and trust that he could show
him. It was an honor which the recipient for his own sake alone
would have waived, but which for the sake of his son he felt himself
bound to accept.
Two days later Sennoske arrived at Kuwana with his party. His
reception would have turned the head of any one with less modesty
than had fallen to the young warrior’s share. His passion for O Tetsu
also acted as an efficient counter-influence in repressing his vanity.
He could not but feel gratified at the honors shown to him,—honors
such as were seldom accorded to one so young; yet his principal
care being always of her and of what she thought of him, every other
opinion as to his deeds, however flattering it might be, became by
comparison less important and less valuable. The only time when
this feeling was in abeyance was during his interview with his father.
Sennoske had reached the castle a little past noon, and had
immediately been ushered into the presence of the Duke, where he
had been detained for several hours, giving a minute account of the
events of the campaign. With his father, whose altered appearance
filled him with delight, he had been able to exchange only a few
words while being conducted to the reception-hall. When he left
there he was besieged by persons attached to the court, inquiring
after relatives and friends. He was too kind-hearted not to stop, in
spite of his impatience, when with a few words he was able either to
give assurance of an absent dear one’s safety, or to speak of the
bravery and martial spirit of a departed one in such a way that no
samurai wife or mother could look upon the loss otherwise than with
feelings of pride and satisfaction.

JAPANESE ROOM.

It was nearly evening when he found himself alone with his father
in the old house. As the two men stood facing each other, excess of
emotion for a while prevented both from giving vent to their feelings
in words. Mutto finally put his hand on the other’s shoulder, saying in
tones of deep affection: “I owe it to you, my son, that I can again
enjoy this beautiful world, the glorious sun, the fruitful earth, and all
the bright scenes it shows to us. I owe it to you that I am at peace
with myself, and that I can lie down at night thinking of the next day,
not with morose gloom as of a dreary task, but with glad content. I
owe it to you that death has now no terrors for me, and that I can
leave the world without the maddening thought that he who brought
destruction upon my lord and benefactor remains in it, glorying in the
ruin he wrought, and mocking at the samurai who is unable to bring
him to justice. He has perished,—perished by your hands, knowing
that it was a son of mine who slew him; and the name of Numa will
stand in the samurai annals without a blot on its escutcheon, for I
know of no wrong I have committed save this forced omission of my
duty. You have given me back my peace of mind, and with it life,
health, and happy content such as I never again thought to enjoy.”
The tears sprang to Sennoske’s eyes as his father thus addressed
him. The stern, sad man, who had never before unbent himself, and
whom in spite of a deep feeling of awe he had always loved with
intense affection, now for the first time spoke to him with words of
tender emotion. Even the voice was changed; and its sound fell upon
him with a soft, tender cadence, as unlike his father’s former tones
as the expressions which moved him so deeply differed from the
methodical, impressive speeches that he had previously been
accustomed to hear. It was like a change from the northern April
wind, with its sad, moaning sound, to the pleasant May breeze,
stirring grasses and leaves into gentle melody.
“I am indeed blessed and favored by fortune,” the young soldier
replied, “that I have been able to do my simple duty in such a
manner as to cause you to think me worthy thus to be addressed by
you. If this arm could fulfil its task, it was because it acquired skill
from your teaching and was exerted in a righteous cause. From the
way in which I have gained the victory, it must have been ordained
by the Fates which rule this world that I should punish your enemy.”
 Sennoske then gave an account of the whole scene as it occurred;
and in return his father imparted to him all the particulars preceding
his own departure from the province of Mutsu. An hour or two was
thus spent before either of them was aware of the lapse of time, and
then the young man, in reply to the repeated congratulations of his
parent, added: “I was armed, moreover, with a matchless sword, that
of itself would almost be sufficient to give confidence even to a
weakling, and enable him to achieve success. Muramasa’s gift has
indeed been inestimable, and, next to you, my best thanks are due
to him.”
As Sennoske spoke, his mind reverted less to the smith than to
the pretty O Tetsu, and an involuntary tinge of color flushed his
cheek.
Mutto divined the drift of his son’s thoughts, and not unwilling to be
left alone for a while with his own emotion, he replied as if in answer
to an unspoken question: “You certainly owe a great debt of gratitude
to Muramasa, and you ought not to delay thanking him. It would be
an inexcusable negligence and a breach of etiquette, as well as a
sign of ingratitude, not to visit him on the first day of your arrival. You
will of course also see O Tetsu,” he added, with something of a smile
on his face as Sennoske expressed his readiness at once to act
upon the suggestion. “Muramasa and myself have made
arrangements lately; and if you are still of the same mind as regards
the girl, your marriage may take place at once, before you start on
your new mission to Idzu.”
There is no need to picture the meeting of the lovers. This
narrative has been told to little purpose if the reader’s imagination
cannot readily divine the scene. Sennoske was in the first flush of a
healthy, vigorous young manhood, and his intellect, which was of a
very high order both by nature and education, found in his love for O
Tetsu an outlet for its natural craving after something higher and
nobler than the mere physical duties of a soldier. The girl, who had
also inherited health and strength and an ardent, excitable
temperament, had consoled herself for her lonely, companionless life
with thoughts of him who was ever in her mind. With both it was a
great passion pervading every part of their nature, ennobled and
sanctified by the purity and innocence of their lives, and receiving