The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1920-05-29


One evening we, were entertaining
some Of these Mennonite youths in
the parlor in an entirely harmless
and innoeuous manner by playing
classical records on the yictrola and
looking at snapshots and suddenly,
thAre appeared four men whom we
had previously met and they had
dropped in for some music, having
heard the yic.rola. Soon one of them
suggested dancing and at the very
mention, hold and below, up rose the
Mennonite youths enmasse. Indeed
they weren't gcing to even witness
such infamy and iniquity. All this in
such direct contrast with Constan
AMI Russia where one can't begin to
dine until $3.50 and the Movies start
at. II. But the other night, two of the
lads appeared at the door with a
brand new Hudson Super Six and
they asked us to take a spin out on
the Damascus road and we actually
waited for the moon TO rise. And on
Sa urday night, they came around
with a Henry and took US to the
movies in state and fed US French
bon bons, The film was the 7-S79th
reels of a serial of the nature of THE
Perils of Pearline." bet if the
Minnoni G Community back in Penn
syyania ever heard about this our
proteges would be communicated.
Now, we have removed to the Vic
toria Hotel where we can get Turk
ish ba III once a week--a great fea-
turel We are fed entirely on Syrian
food. We are getting maudlin as
the doughboys in the matter Of food
for we spend whole evenings discuss
ing what wonderful cook our mothers
are and all the things we are going to
order the first day we hit Ne'Y York.
It's really one of our chief forms OF
re reation Would you be interested
in hearing what we do have to eat a
la Syrie? Well, every morning for
breakfast we have native bread. very
apt to be sour, treacle, black coffee
and occasionally butter, qnsalted and
made from goats milk Git costs $3.50
per pound at that). Just the same
morning after morning. Then for
dinner we have a real course affair.
First always some form Of p.lapo
(rice) Sometimes 1t is disguised
with hulled corr or pine nuts and on
high days and holidays we have it
favored wi h sour milk, (2r Strange
weird varieties OF fish, served with the
heads and tails on to prove that they
iatH real, spose. 60 a vegetable
as rIce wrapped in cabbage leaves, or
perhaps stuffed eggplant with rice Of
course) or artichokes. (D meat usu-
ally some varie of mutton. (Why
didn't somebody kill that lamb men
toned in the 23rd psalm and save us
from our present misery?) the fay
orite being "kebab" which is small
pieces Ct sheep cooked on reyoly-
ing spit, (5) desert, so far consisting
of oranges, twice a day but such big
fat luscious ones! Sweets only on
Wednesday and Sunday nights. (6)
Turkish coffee.
AS soon as we find center We
hope to remove there and haye Chris.
tian food. We have q place In .pr0}
pect which is to0 good Is be trua-I
hardly dare talk about it. It's a former
British Mission School for Moslem
tgHk which is about TO be Closed for
whit Of lftindSi The house is ideal for
a Service Center With an Immense
open court anntlib center which 7 eHh
\ sse just bursting with recreati6nI ac.
ftfpities. Besides IT has d Hvege able
ana flower garden, orange grove
Playground and basketball court,
Turkish bath and hen house thrown
in. I'm about TO purchase an Arab
ian steed to Keep In the latter and
browse among the orange trees, il
can only determine whether. an
Earnest Workers salary can support
q beast. ~ r'' '''7e ~ XII
II may be something to live Fifteen
, Minutes from Broadway but | think
/ it's heaps more exciting to live "r@c
(, Hours from Tyre and Sidon.~ It's .
. very interesting trip down there, but
I'll save that for my nex Two doc
tors OF the Red Cross who worket
with US in our Refugee efforts OF
: Prod stopped here last week on Their
way home via India and we Wen
! down to see them off on the evening
train to Damascus. If only | had thu
power TO adequately describe tina
train! We started for the station bu
>. found there wasn't any such animal
! so We pulled up alongside of the train
a if so it could be dignified, The on
g CINE was dinky, wheezy little afiai
/ which didn't look as if it could so
|. mile without breaking down. Their
were two, third class coaches and
y baggage car, for Accommodation an
one hour before time TO leave. the
were simply swarming with human
: ". People were ciinging to tn
window frames and perched on tn
roof, a survival of the stronges'
surely. Where the two Docs wer
going to climb on with their /
O pieces of luggage, was beyond Gu
y Imagination, but in true America
Initiative fashion, they wrangled Sc
, ton of the private compartment, of til
! French mail couricrs and hid undo
the baggage car until they shonl
have passed the officials Doroth
and | decided VIC wouldn't take til
evening train for Damascus if "
never got there,
Y Instead of pink swee peas tn
N Easter, we wore orange blossom
Tiny only chanccl which | climbed
u trco and picked myself 1t surely
a glorious sight to see the trees iu'
loaded with golden fruit and at Ii
. same limo covered with fragrant
: waXy flowers During the height
the season, the fragrance OF the bio