El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-04-11

Ships That Pass
A Short story.

@HE was just a dancing girl, that
and no more-yet a kindly IovabIe
~ heart beat tenderly in her breast.
She was a Hindoo Of the Kathak
caste-the caste Of the professional
musicians. Her father had long since
been laid TO rest.
known She died when the Lotus
flower" was born into the world.
And now the Lotus flower had lost
her casTe-if not in deed. certainly in
thought-for she Lad committed the
objectionable SIN of falling in love
with one of an alien religion
He was the mueZZin that called the
faithful TO prayers from the summit
of the old Jain temple, the temple By
tbe Kasi railway station in the north
eru quarter OF the city
Oft times she had laid awake At mid
night in her room, the little lattice
window wide open 20 catch the echoes
of his magnificent bass EOic, as the
.-AIlahs. Allahs' echoed yet again in
the narrow streets to be caught NJ and
repeated by the others.
And because she had been taught
from infancy that the love of an alien
was a thing rot to thought OF, anu
because she, after many heartburnings,
realized the futlity OF Offering her
love 10 a man who was welded 10 his
religion. she one morning threaded
her way TO the Palhoad Chat, through
men, women and children Stunning
themselves on the steps, down 70 the
riverside
Out in midstream two vulJures were
gOrEing on a corpse that DODbed Up
and down in an eddy Of the river. At
intervals, when they were not feeding
off their. IOathsOme food, they would
rush at one another with Outstretched
wings and hOrrid sounds Presently
the form and its grim attendants shot
away from the eddy and drifted on,
ever on, to the sea
uHa Ina IN n=Hr
OF saffron and gold in the east. and
Tire world seemed very fair to the
laid who stood waist deep in the
hCiv water by the bank
she stood still waiting for the sign
doing. Tor she had seen others sucked
under. Now the water-the holy
water of Mother Gauges that purgeS
all sins-was up to her bosom And,
oh the shame Of it! Allah, Allah,
Allah was ringing in her ears She
took up the water in the palms Of her
little hands and poured II upon her
head 20 free herself from the pollution
OF this sin Of thought.
surely she thought, ''t-ese holy
waters viii drive away all thoughts OF
love for a man Of another creed
She stood STILL waiting for the sigh
Of absOlutiOn, and as she waited those
grim leviathans who with snap OF jaws
and flash Of sinuOus. Scaly body, take
their toll OF human LIE from the
bathers in the Ganges gathered to the
the water, the flash Of one brown. wet
arm in the air and the little dancing
girl disappeared from sight to make
meat Tor the crOcOdileS-
Up above in the sunlight the DOms
went on with their burial rites the
bathers gazed stolidly at one another
and the stream Of life on the Chat
ebbed ana flowed as it viii TO etern-
ity-
Yes. and the day in and day out
the tall man with the flowing black
beard whom the little dancing girl
loved with an unhOIy love proclaimed
that There is no God but Allah, and
the NOhammed IS MS prophet" To
east, west north and south rolled out
the sadly beautiful chant unmindfUl
Of the tragedy.
He doesn't know OF the sacrifice OF
the HindOO girl TO HindOO- tradition;
but perhaps Buddha and MOhammed
! viii in their wisdom, put their heads
together and settle the question when
the owner Of the bass voice has gone
the way OF all clay