“Elizabeth Moody, age nineteen and very beautiful, accompanied her Uncle, Dr. Walter C. Lowdermilk and family on an official trip for the United States government, using their personal car and paying their own expenses, to study old Roman lands for the benefit of the US soil conservation service, and American farmers to find out what could be [learned] of the agricultural successes and failures of the past.” – Forward to Lowdermilk’s niece’s diary
Now, the conclusion to The Problem with Ben Saada:
February 2, Thursday—Off in the morning to the souks to take the cashmere shawl to be wrapped with the other things, and also to have my picture taken in an Arabian costume in native atmosphere.
The costume Aunt Inez and I got requires a shirt to be worn between the brassiere top and baggy pants, and since I possessed nary a one, he [Saada] gave me a modern costume to wear. It was of beautiful metallic cloth, but I do not like it as well as ours.
Then he took my picture on the Bey’s bed and up on the terrace with the beautiful old tiles as the background and the old towers of the neighboring minarets. After lunch at our hotel Billy, Westher and I returned to the souks where Billy bought a box, beautifully inlaid—but still a useless thing for a fellow.
After dinner Mr. Saada took the rest of us into the poorer quarter to see their life. It was fete night and should have been very colorful, but the rain of the evening had stopped all gaiety. Little ragged children were curled up sleeping in the shelter of the eaves, and beggars squatted near doorways, but other than these pitiful few, the streets were empty and deserted.
Once when driving by a street, and Negro appeared but when she was asked to dance for us she refused and no amount of pleading could persuade her. We all were Mr. Saada’s guests at the one nightclub of the best standing and danced for a couple of hours and then to bed.
February 3, Friday—We were all invited to Mr. Saada’s for a couscous lunch and it was a delicious one too. Upstairs away from the din of the streets, seated on soft rugs in an Oriental Arabian atmosphere, we ate to our heart’s content of chicken couscous (prepared by Mrs. Sato’s mother) and candy, fruit and coffee to finish off the feast.
Uncle had left on an important appointment. I had decided to change my cashmere shawl, since Mother had one of Grandma Moody’s put away for me, for a native woven wool couch cover.
Mr. Saada told the others to sit down and then took me in another room where he shocked me by saying he loved me and was going to divorce all his wives for me. Aunt Inez felt “something in her bones” and so came in just the nick of time. Smelled a lot of perfume. Mr. Saada gave me some and a pair of slippers.
Back to the hotel soon after 5. He appeared on the scene about an hour later with a couple of records of native dances and the pictures taken the day before which were quite good. We had a good long talk with my telling him not to divorce his wives and with him telling me that someday I would love him and come to Tunis—OH YEAH!!! During dinner he returned this time with a box of candy for the trip.
Took a bath and then to bed. What a day!!
Nullius in Verba 