The general’s apology duly arrived, bearing so many official seals Beijing Map that Doris used it as a travel pass on her next journey. People were so awed Beijing Map by the seals that they didn’t dare stop her. I admired her spirit. Most of us as children have played the game Grandmother’s Footsteps, trying to creep up on the grandmother’ without being seen to move. Now I was in China, I hoped that in some way Doris’s spirit could see me as I set out to follow her footsteps on a short journey in a north-westerly direction starting from where the Western Hills rise out of the flat alluvial plain. On the near side of the mountains the paths are well-maintained because the area has become known as a beauty spot and is nowadays within easy reach of Beijing by modem transport.
Theresa, now 16, was quickly turning into a lovely young woman, something that did not go unnoticed by her Uncle Philip. Teasing and light flirtations moved the two in a direction that was forbidden.
Philip’s wife was the first to notice the unnecessary and unseemly attention Philip was pouring on Theresa. Though he denied it, Nellie knew the signs. She vehemently voiced her disgust at their sinful actions and couldn’t understand what possessed him.
It is likely she blamed Theresa for her husband’s deviance. In turn-of-the-century America, it was believed the woman was the seducer or temptress and the man the victim.
