enegro.
Locked in the train, we awaited the medical examination, and sat
feeling self-consciously healthy. At last the Greek doctor opened the
door, glanced at a knapsack, and vanished. We were certified healthy.
It was a beautiful dark blue night when we arrived at Salonika. Crowds
of people were dining at little tables which filled the streets off the
quay, in spite of the awful smells which came up from the harbour.
It is impossible to sleep late in Salonika. Soon after dawn children
possess the town--bootblacks, paper-sellers, perambulating drapers'
shops; all children crying their wares noisily. The only commodity that
the children don't peddle is undertaken by mules laden with glass
fronted cases hanging on each side and which are filled with meat.
We breakfasted in the street, revelling in the early morning and shooing
away the children, who never gave us a moment's grace. In self-defence
we had our boots blacked, for the ambulating bootblack molests no longer
the owner of a well-polished pair of boots. It is queer to walk about in
a town where one-third of the population is only pecuniarily interested
in the momentary appearance of feet and never look at a face, like the
man with the muckrake with eyes glued on life as it is led two inches
from the ground.
When we had finished searching for disinfectors and dentists we
wandered up the hill through the romantic streets. Jan sketched busily,
but toothache had rather sapped Jo's industry, and she generally found
some large stone to sit on, whence to contemplate.
An old woman's face, peering round the doorway, discovered her sitting
on the doorstep, a Greek dustman gazing stupidly at her.
In two minutes they were talking hard. The old woman was a Bulgarian,
but they were able to understand each other. What Jo told the old woman
was translated to the dustman, and when Jan came up they were introduced
each to the other, the dustman with his broom bowing to the ground like
some old-time court usher.
Once a Greek woman offered a chair to Jo. She was much embarrassed, as
the only Greek words she had picked up were "How much?" and "Yet
another;" and as both seemed unsuitable she tried to put her gratitude
into the width of her smile.
We scrambled on ever afterwards through streets which were more like
cliff climbs than roads. The sun grew red till all Salonika lay at our
feet a maze of magenta shadow. We sat down in an old Turkish cemetery,
where we cou
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