The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-10-23


in, including a dispatch case that
she had noticed he guarded care
fully.
One of the nomads appeared
and put kettle Of water on the
fire. Others crowded in and stared
at Lynn with all the curiosity of
cat and none of the friendliness
Of a human being They failed to
respond TO her smile, their fat
faces and slant eyes void Of ex-
preston.
Temu arranged a car cushion.
She took of her coat and hat and
dropped down. They don't seem
to know I'm an incarnate god
dess," she told him plaintively.
He laughed. Perhaps you'll be
bothered less If they don't. They'd
want you to tell their fortunes.
It's your clothing that astonishes
them-yoUr hat and your little
shoes and gloves" He drove the
natives out but they soon crept
in again.
Aren't there any women?"
Lynn asked
About half are women. Both
sexes dress very much alike. Look
closely and you will see a differ
ence in their faces. And the mar
ried women wear no sasheS." Il
was woman, Lynn knew, who
was making the tea.
Tenu sat down beside Lynn,
opened the English picnic basket,
and gave the woman two porce-
lain cups. She examined them
Wonderingly. Her l tiv s
crowded round and fingered the
china. Temu took the cups back
and wiped them with clean nap
kin from the lunch box, then held
them himself while the woman
poured the tea.
The chief Squatting near Temu,
produced his own bowl of copper
from inside his sheepskin gar
ment.
Temu swallowed his tea at one
draught and watched Lynn, side
long, as she tasted hers cautiously.
The brew was bitter with salt
and oily with butter.
What IS this, an emetic?" she
asked.
He laughed and assured her she
would eventually get used to
MOngOl tea and even come to
like it.
Mysterious Letter
WITH the chief as their guest
. w they ate what was left Of the
noon lunch, chicken sandwiches,
nuts. cakes, cheesesdried fruits,
and ripe olives. Lynn fed the kit
ten bread and gave it a drink Of
bottled water.
Well have camepS milk for it
tomorrow" said Temu.
The MOngOl women lowered
round with irrepressible curiosity
accepting samples OF the strange
foreign food.
"Ofer one Of them ripe olive"
Temu suggested.
Lynn gave the olive to a young
woman. The girl licked the fruit
cautiously. II had the good, salty
taste Of Mongol tea. Then she bit
into It and gave a whoop Of sur
prise and fell backward when her
teeth struck the seed stone. This
little incident broke the ice and
the people began to smile and
laugh.
One woman. examining Temu's
despatch case behind him, man
aged somehow to open the case
and spill the contents. Lynn no
ticed that most Of the papers were
written in Monaghan script, SO
different from that Of the Chinese.
Suddenly. as Temu turned, she
spied an envelope addressed in
her bother's handwriting TO be
Prince of Shani Lun.
With an exclamation Temu
reached for the papers and put
them back in the case. He ordered
the natives out and had the low
door fastened SO they could not
return without some difficulty.
The men finished their meal,
Temu taking the dispatch case as
they left Later, the chiefs wife
came in TO stay with Lynn.
Determined to leave some con-
spiciOus article that might be OBJ
served by chance traveller, Lynn
finally decided on her mono
grammed hand mirror. She gave
IL to the woman, making signs to
hide the gift until after she had
left Then, composing herself on
the fur rug, she tried TO sleep.
But she was excited over the
envelope bearing Dicks writing
and lay a long time gazing at the
Pickering butter lamps on the
family altar before the image OF
Buddha.
If only she could obtain pos
session Of that envelopel
When Temu called her before
dawn. she had thought Of no way
to obtain II.
We'll have breakfast with the
Duchess" he said. following her
into the car and closing the door.
They were of.
Lynn glanced at him with eyes
heavy from lack OF sleep. They
had changed places today and the
profile view Of his face without
the scar seemed 70 make him a
different man. The indications of
possible white blood were more
evident. He turned and smiled as
if he might know what was IN her
mind. She felt confused and said
hastily:
Tell me about the Duchess"
You're to call her Gersing,"
he said. She's a grand little lady,
the widow of three brothers, one
Of whom gave her a son. She has
travelled thousands of miles over
the plains, hills, and deserts of