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The Seaforth News, 1953-02-19, Page 2Fled From Harem To Monastery.... For over live years, from 1362, Mrs. Anna Leonowens, a young Englishwoman, served as gover- ness to the children of Klee Monglcut of Siam kind made a elose study of court and harem We there. One day she saw a strikingly aeautiful girl of fifteen lying prostrate on a marble pavement among offerings placed there for the king by nobles, princes and merchants anxious for royal .favour. Two women crouched to either side, waiting to present her to him. Her lips were betel -dyed a deep crimson, her dark eye- brows outlined, and she wore enormous gold chains. Bashful - - - Innocent Afterwards, when the girl had joined the harem, Anna Leon - Owens saw her frequently, once crying bitterly as the head wife reproved her: "What shall I do with this Tuptim?" she asked, "The moment she comes into the Icing's presence she goes down upon her knees, appearing so very bashful and innocent that he is enraptured at the sight, and declares she is the most fascinat- ing of women. Now she says she 3s', ill and cannot wait upon the king, while the physicians declare there is nothing the matter with Bier." Soon after this little Tuptin (Pomegranate") came to Mrs. Leonowens' school to learn to write her name in English, also "IChoon P'hra Balat." Asked whose name this was, she cast down her eyes and said: "It Is the name of the favourite disciple of the high priest, Chow Khoon Bah; he lives at the temple of Rajah Bah ditt Sang, and some- times preaches to us in the palace." Gates were Bolted One day, a year later, Tuptim was missing, though the palace gates were always bolted, with Amazons on guard. The king offered a reward of twenty caties (about fifeen hundred dollars), and she was found in the mon- astery attached to this temple and flung into a palace dungeon. Her slave girl, Phim, begged Mrs. Leonowens to try to save her life. Anna Leonowens — who tells Tuptim's touching story so vivid- ly in "Siamese Harem Life," pub- lished in 1873 and now reprinted with Rupert Forrest's superb drawings—went to the great pil- lared hall with dungeon trap- doors in the floor, guarded by a dozen Amazons in the dim light of lanterns. But the Great Mother of War, who was in charge, said she could not see Tuptim with- out an order from the king. She next saw Tuptim at the trial . and how piteous she looked ! Her hair and even her eye- brows were shaved off, her bare feet heavily fettered, her hands manacled. Her Amazon guards laid before the court the priest's garments in which she'd been arrested, and a small amulet in the yellow silk envelope on which was the name "Khoon P'hra Balat" in English. "The Guilt is Mine" Severely examined by the chief judge, Tuptim said: "Khoon P'hra Balat has not sinned. All the guilt ie mine !" In the still nights, when she prostrated herself in prayer before the high priest, the thought of escaping would often elistract her. As it seemed the will of the Lord that she should, she dressed herself as a priest, shaved ere her hair and eyebrows, and when the priests came to the palace slipped out and joined the procession as it passed to receive the royal alms. She begged the high priest to let her be his disciple and live in his monastery. "Whose disciple art thou, my son?" he asked, thinking her a youth in the priest's dress. At which she began to weep, not wishing to deceive him, The priest then turned to Balat and bade him take the youth under his charge and instruct him faithfully in the doctrines of Buddha, Balat took her to his cell, not recognizing the Tuptim he'd known in his boyhood, who had once been his betrothed wife and on whose account, when he lost her, he entered the monastery to forget his sorrow in study and devotion. She only wanted to be near him, she pleaded, for it made her quiet and happy listening to his teaching. But on Sunday morning two priests came to the cell to see him. She had overslept and was dressing when she heard a low chuckling laugh, turned and saw them, and felt degraded for ever. Just then Balat and his other disciples returned from their mornipg aeblutions. She crawled to hiaatfeelaaconfessed she was Tuptil'`11.I3erted back as if the earth -dad tafaked: "Alas ! Tup- tim, thfa'u' hast committed a great sift," !)*'Irvin:,. "But fear not, We are inioaoettt; and for the sake of thegreat•love thou hast shown me, I am ready to suffer even unto death for thee." Horror in Court When the judge ordered her to say who had brought her the priest's dress, she replied vehe- mently: "I will not 1" "Strip her and give her thirty blows !" he shouted. A litter was brought in on which lay the mutilated Balat, who had undergone torture in an attempt to make him confess. They put him beside Tuptim, hoping the sight of her under torture would wring a confession; and the girl, stripped to the waist, was flogged. On scaffolds in the open space heforb her window, Anna Leon- owens saw Tuptim and Balat publicly tortured, their necks in strangling levers, before the royal party and a vast crowd. She saw the priest's eyes, full of love and grief, turn toward Tuptim then the rabble hurling abuse at her as the judgment was pro- nounced ... and Tuptim's agoniz- ed cry: "I have not sinned, nor has the priest, my lord Balat, sinned. The sacred Buddha in heaven knows all the guilt was mine. I knew that I was a wo- man—but he did not !" Tragic End Anna Leonowens could bear to look no more. It was Phim, the slave girl whose life had been saved by her mistress's silence— for she it was who brought the priest's dress and helped Tuptim escape—who came at dusk to say that the pair had suffered death by burning outside the moat and wall enclosing the cemetery, and some of the common people had been deeply affected by their courage. Every seventh day Phim put fresh flowers and fragrant tapers where they had suffered, believ- ing their souls still haunted the spot at twilight. Later, the king told Mrs, Leonowens that he had had a dream in which they ap- peared to him and convinced him of their innocence, so he would have a monument erected to their memory at the spot—two tall obelisks each inscribed: "Suns may set and rise again, but the pure and brave Balat and Tuptim will never more return to this earth." And there, by the ceme- tery, the obelisks still stand. French Flu-Chaser—Actress Janine Moreau uses the inhalator pro- vided by the flu -conscious manager of a Parisian theatre as Monique Artur waifs her turn to use the machine, The inhalator Was installed in an effort to keep the cast from coming :'own wllh influenza, which is sweeping France, Washable Woolens Delight Eye and I ocketboo ...n.. <« .....v. .zap.., .a a ,e .. ..ab ... Decorative snap closing is used on Wing sleeves by designer Caral Caldwell. Flannel blouse un- iataps and opens Hat for ease in washing and pressing. Skirt and Jacket are of aanforlan flannel. .fid"At EDNA. MUSS N this age of miracle fab - ries, women are beginning to expect a truly remarkable performance from nearly any fashion they buy. In 'Wool- ens, it's the washable wools that are m a k in g fashion news. These new soap -and -water san- forlan woolens will not shrink out of their original fit and therefore, need no blocking or stretching. The wool will not mat or felt, washes easier and faster, looks softer and has a more "downy" feel after washing. All of this means greater con- venience and less work for the lady of the house. It also means a saving in dry cleaning bills and this, of course, is reflected in the budget. Washable woolens are now done in stripes, checks, plaids and in both dark and pastel solid colors. They're sold by the yard for home sewers or in ready-to-wear fash- ions, many of the latter are ideally suited to the active life of a house- wife. One New York sportswear house has done a whole group of jer- seys In blouses and skirts that are dressy but simple enough for home washing. Blouses are coordinated with accordion pleated, pleated, or,unpressed pleated skirts. Hip -buggy middy eaeket Is used to top a tulip - flared skirt in this interesting design. Fabric le sanforlan wool Bennet, and is eornpleteiy wash- able. Above all it will not shrink out of fit. Jaye Andrews Here's a real old-timer, folks— a recipe that's supposed to have been handed down from early pioneer days. But its flavor and tempting qualities haven't aged in the slightest, and you'll find it well worth the time spent in making it. ° ° a CHOCOLATE APPLESAUCE CAKE 1 cup sugar le cup shortening 1 egg, slightly beaten 1 cup thick sweetened apple- sauce 1 cup sour milk 21 cups sifted flour 3 tablespoons cocoa 2 teaspoons nutmeg ?y teaspoon cloves 1 teaspoon cinnamon 2 teaspoons soda la teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon vanilla ee cup chopped walnuts ?$ cup raisins (soak in hhot water. 15 minutes) Cream shortening and sugar and add applesauce. Sift a small amount of flour over nuts and raisins. Sift dry ingredients to- gether and add to sugar -shorten- ing mixture alternately with the sour milk. Add vanilla, nuts and raisins. Pour into greased layer tins or a 9x13 loaf pan. Bake at 350° F. for 40 minutes. When cake is cool, ice with the follow- ing frosting. FROSTING FOR CHOCOLATE APPLESAUCE CAKE 2 cups confectioners' sugar 3 tablespoons butter 2 teaspoons vanilla 3 tablespoons cream ail teaspoon salt Mix thoroughly and spread over cake. (Add more sugar or cream is necessary for right con- sistency). Here's a recipe which is easy to make, inexpensive and gives you the sort of cookies that you'll be happy to serve. MY OLD-FASHIONED COOKIES 1 cup lard or vegetable shortening 2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed 6 cups sifted flour 2 tablespoons baking powdlet' 1 tablespoon vanilla teaspoon salt 1 cup milk 2 eggs Cream shortening, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy, Beat in eggs, one at a time. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt and add alternately with milk to sugar mixture. Dough should be soft and is easier to handle if chilled for an hour or more. Rol] about la inch thick and cut withh large round cutter. Sprinkle with sugar and bake light brown at 375° F. A band of frosting around the edges, sprinkled with coconut may be added if desired if your family likes "Johnny- cake" and other good things made with corn meal, they'll surely en- joy this— CORN CAKE 4 tablespoons floor (very full) 3 tablespoons corn teal (very full) 2 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon butter 1 egg, beaten 1 teaspoon soda 2 teaspoons create of tartar 1 teaspoon salt 1 eup mfik Cream butter and add sugar gradually, add, milk and egg al- iernately wit)- the mime and sifted die* ingredients. Pour in shallow, buttered pan and bake for 20 minter. Gocd candy recipes are never amiss, especially at this time of year, and I can highly recant - mead these two. ORANGE WALNUTS pound shelled walnuts 1 cup sugar ?e cup boiling water Pinch cream of tartar ?a teaspoon vanilla Grated rind of 1 orange Combine water and sugar and cook to soft ball stage. Add cream of tartar and beat until stiff. Add vanilla and grated orange rind. Stir in nuts. Spread on waxed pa- per. Pull apart, Keep in airtight tin. MAPLE FUDGE 3 cups light brown eager 1 cup granulated sugar ?i cup light corn syrup 1 cup milk , cup butter Nuts, if desired Combine sugars, syrup, milk and butter and cook to soft ball stage; beat until consistency to pour. Add nuts just before pour- ing. When almost cold, cut into squares. Makes about 2 pounds. When All Europe Was Really Scared The usual list of anniversaries of notable events falling in the year 1953 contains one unusual item. This year, a line reads, is the 500th anniversary of the fall of Constantinople—an event which shocked and frightened all Western Europe as much as any event since then. Yet the effect was largely symbolical. The Turks, Seljuks and Otto- mans had been undermining the old Eastern Roman Empire for four centuries. The Ottomans held most of Asia Minor, both sides of the straits, and were firmly established in the Balkans, The city founded by Constantine the Great which had withstood all attacks for 1,100 years, ex- cept that of the piratical Fourth Crusaders in the year 1204, had imposed Roman law, spread Hel- lenic culture and its own form of religion over a vast part at Eur- ope and Asia, collapsed in a single day under the assault of the huge polyglot army of Sul- tan Mohammed II, called the Conqueror. The date was May 29, 1453. Gibbon tells the story as the tragic last act ot a great drama which began: "In the scconcl cen- tury of the Christian era' the Empire of Rome comprehended the fairest part of the earth and the most civilized portion ot mankind," By the middle of the fifteenth century the last of the Caesars was making a hopeless stand in his beleaguered capital. "Amidst these multitudes the Emperor (Constantine KI), who accomplished aIl. the duties of a general and a soldier. was long seen and finally lost; ° " " his mournful exclamation was heard, 'Cannot there be found a Chris- tian to cut off my head?' and his last fear was thet of falling alive into the hands of the infi- dels. The prudent despair of Constantine cast away the pur- ple: amidst the tumult he fell by an unknown hand, and his body was burled under a mountain of the slain. After his death resist- ance and order were no more." The shock of the fall of Con-' stantinoplc to Western Europe, one can easily imagine, was much greater than the shock caused by the Russian Com- munist' coup d'etat in Czechoslo- vakia in 1948. Both events, how- ever, illustrate the recurrent crises which pressure from the vast heartland of Eurasia have brought upon the peninsula known as Western Europe over the last twelve centuries. In a long backward look, Arnold J. Toynbee in the current issue of Foreign Affairs recalls that Eur- ope's present feeling of being under siege from the East is one that she has experienced three tunes before in the years since the fall of the Roman Empire. Arabs, Mongols and Turks, each in their own expansive era, have thrown the Continent on the defensive. Since the Turks were turned back from the walls of Vienna in 1683 Western Europe has been able to take the offensive. In this brief modern period West- ern civilization has been carried around the world. This modern period is the only one we are intimately acquainted with. Memory of old struggles when the West was on the defensive has quite died out, to be revived only by history books. Hence the amazement and sense of un- reality when along about the Ides of March, A. D. 1946, the West found itself confronted by another offensive from the East from a totally unexpected source, viz., the Russia of Peter the Great, of -the reforming Czars, and an ally of the First and Sec- ond World Wars. Communist Russia has some- thing of each of the three great forces which have assailed the West since the fall of the Ro- man Empire in the West. Like the fanatical Arabs it has a faith that it feels bound to impose on the world by fire and sword, or by "purges" and prison camps. Having virtually annexed China, Moscow now rules almost the same vast domain as the Great Khans of the Mongols. Like the conquering Ottoman Turks it hascreated a system that must be continually expanding and on the offensive. The Turks, after taking Constantinople 500 years ago, pressed on to swallow the Balkans and Hungary — as the Russians have done in our time. The Turks reached the outskirts of Vienna — where the Russians lord it over the Austrians today But there the Turks were stop- ped and their decline began. We cannot say the same of the Rus- sians. For five hundred years Con- stantinople has been Istanbul, It is no longer a capital. Its superb position for commerce means little, since trade with Black Sea ports has dwindled. It is still the guardian of the narrow strait bbetween Europe and Asia and it has a definite place in the defensive strategy of the West against the offensive of the East — a place which Emperor Con- stantine, its founder, or Su:tan Mohammed II, its conqueror, never dreamed of. —From The New Yo=k. Times. Happy Hattitude. — American comedienne June Richmond is tickled with the feathered heoit- gear which she wears as the star of the Casino de Paris floor show, in Paris. Mathematical "Oarae"-AL—Connie Hodgson, above, dropped a one, and made an error of a trillion while trying to compete with General Electric's new computer, "Oarac." She mut,`tplie' 8,645,392,175 by itself, iri nine minutes. Oarac did the job In Four one -thousandths of a second, "Oarac" stands for "Office of Air Research Automatic Computer," and the 1400 -tube machine will be used by the Air Force's Research and Develop. trent Command. Try the problem. The correct answeir Y 74,742, 805,859,551,230,625.