The L'Anse sentinel., 1923-11-16
Was aWord
in Season
By MARTHA WILLIAMS

To-day the garden is an odalIsque
wearing all her Jewels" Sarah said to
fthe minister, who answered with cold
ireproof: II am, sorry to hear your
mothers daughter name such word ;
you shouldn't even know that such
'such creatures exist"
He meant 70 be crushing, but Sarah
laughed softly. answering nothing be,
-yond the laugh. Which moved her
dcaller to say solemnly: "If you spoke
I'm ignorance, please look In the die
! Itionary before using that word again
at least in mixed company"
"OdalisQue, you meant Maybe you'd
Deter look It up" Sarah flung back
with spirit, her color rising. Rev.
Aaron Linton also grew red.
II know what IL means-perfectly,"
he said.
! Then please to tell me-" Sarah said
audaciously. 81 think know already,
but am willing to be instructed"
This IL shameful-shameful /" the
minister interrupted.
Sarah went on unheeding: '1The
odalisque, the woman Of the zenana,
ds brought up to believe that her rea-
son for being Is to charm, to enthrall,
to influence her lord and master. love
and serve him, bear his children and
keep faithful to him only so long as
they both do live. Maybe she doesn't
salways live up to that straight creed
but how about ourselves3 Divorces
are plentier than blackberries. Some
dimes after a peculiarly disgusting
case I've wondered II the sack and
sea- wasn't really better for morality
and family happiness"
II won't listen to such stuff |" from
the angry minister. Anyway, you
are all wrong. An odalisque Is a dane
Ing woman. almost nude, and opium
drunk, who makes herself the most
revoltingly sensual spectacle for the
captivation Of bloodthirsty barba-
rians."
How do you know?" Sarah asked
;placidly.
"From books-and men who have
seen them" the minister flung at her
.curtly.
"It Is likely you are thinking of
Nautch dancers" Sarah said reflec-
lively. 1T seems unlikely that the
most daring or most favored travel
rng scribe would be permitted to see
favorites of the sultans, or even those
OF high dignitaries, thus delightlng
their lords"
young women should be forbidden
to know such thlngs-much less speak
OF them," Linton said-by this he was
giassy-eyed with. rage.
"Why, Mr.. Linton! How else would
I'VE ever get up enthusiasm for mission
work. Sarah tantalized. you know
It Is the heather horrors that we cap
dtallze-if we didn't, where would the
fun come from-also the money!
''Truly 1t is enough to stir Christian
souls-the thought Of women paradlng
and posturing for the favor of sensual
tyrantsr Linton said angrily. Sarah
chuckled. "Do you reckon It's so very
different from the way women act
say when the minister comes to a tea
hghtY she asked demurely. ~Of
course you rather expect itnow, when
you have to make new choice-but
I remember even before you were freq
how you were surrounded-you must
surely have a splendid digestion, or
else all the cakes and pies, and salads
and things you had to taste and Judge
between, would have made you dys-
,peptic."
IT recall nothing Of the Sort" Lin
ton said stifiy. Maybe not-but !
do. I remember, too, how you liked
it-actually you purred under 1t some
times. knew all along why you didn't
like me. never asked your opinion
sof my fruit cake any more than Of
my morals"-this with a roguish smile
tremendously upsetting. 1t quite top
Ipled the cleric from his pedestal OF
aausterity. He reached for her hand,
saying as he caught II. Sarah-Sally-
tdarlingi You-you quite misunder-.
,stand. don't like you--bm It's be-
cause I love you % hard"
"Cat's foot!' snapped Sarah. snatch
ing away her hand and springing up
right, placing herself defensively be-
hind a tall chair. From this coign Of
vantage she went on, her voice cool
and deadly: "You must be trying to
trap me-pretending to make love all
son q sudden this way. I'm not full
sister to Solomon, but do know a
little too much for that And even
though am rising thirty. alone and
none too we'll off, I'd be, disgusted, not
Ifiattered, even II you meant what you
say" :,
h"I do mean 1t. Honest totGod do"
Linton cried, making as II he would
akneel. Sarah lifted the chair threat
,eningIy. None of thatw she said.
1"This has gone far enough heap
stoo far, Indeed. Your hats handy by
take It and vanish"
'gI won't-until you hear me-" LIN
{oif said obstlnately. "You don't know
how much I need you: Think OF 1t
Six children and every other woman
An the congregation at me to tell me
what and how to do for 'em. You've
never said word-that's partly why
III come asking you. It's sinful