Balustrades, Balusters, and How to Preserve Them

Balustrades, Balusters, and How to Preserve Them A baluster has come to be known as any vertical brace (often a decorative post) between an upper and lower horizontal railing. The purposes of the baluster  (pronounced BAL-us-ter) include safety, support, and beauty. Staircases and porches often have rails of balusters called balustrades.   A balustrade is a row of repeating balusters, similar to a colonnade being a row of columns. What we call a balustrade today is historically a decorative extension of the Classical Greek colonnade on a smaller scale. The invention of the balustrade is generally thought to be a feature of Renaissance architecture. One example is the balustrade of the 16th century Basilica St. Peters at the Vatican. Todays balusters are constructed of wood, stone, concrete, plaster, cast iron or other metal, glass, and plastics. Balusters can be rectangular or turned (i.e., shaped on a lathe). Today any decorative patterned grille or cutout (patterned after the Roman lattice) between railings are referred to as balusters. Balusters as architectural details are found in homes, mansions, and public buildings, inside and outside. The Baluster Shape: Balustrade (pronounced BAL-us-trade) has come to mean any series of vertical bracings between rails, including spindles and simple posts. The word itself reveals a certain design intention. Baluster is really a shape, coming from the Greek and Latin words for a wild pomegranate flower. Pomegranates are ancient fruits indigenous to the Mediterranean, Middle East, India, and Asia, which is why you find the baluster shape in these areas of the world. Having hundreds of seeds, pomegranates also have long been symbols of fertility, so when ancient civilizations decorated their architecture with objects from nature (e.g., the top of a Corinthian column is decorated with acanthus leaves), the shapely baluster was a good decorative choice. What we call the baluster shape was depicted in pottery and jugs and wall carving in many parts of the world from the earliest civilizations- the potters wheel was invented around 3,500 BC, so wheel-turned shapely water jugs and baluster vases were more easily produced- but the baluster was not used in architecture until thousands of years later, during the Renaissance. After the Middle Ages, from roughly 1300 until 1600, a new interest in Classical design was reborn, including the baluster design. Architects like Vignola, Michelangelo, and Palladio incorporated the baluster design into Renaissance architecture, and today balusters and balustrades are considered the architectural detail itself. In fact, our common word banister is a corruption or mispronunciation of baluster. Preservation of Balustrades: Exterior balustrades are obviously more susceptible to decay and deterioration than interior balustrades. Proper design, manufacturing, installation, and regular maintenance are keys to their preservation. The US General Services Administration (GSA) defines balustrade by its components, consisting of the handrail, footrail and balusters. The handrail and footrail are joined at the ends to a column or post.   The balusters are vertical members that connect the rails. Wooden balustrades are subject to deterioration for a number of reasons, including exposed end grain from the manufacturing process and butt joints that are prone to moisture. Regular inspection and maintenance of a well-designed balustrade are the keys to continued care and preservation. A wooden balustrade in proper condition is rigid and free from decay, the GSA reminds us. It is designed with sloping surfaces to repel water and has properly caulked, tight joints. Exterior cast stone (i.e., concrete) balusters will have moisture problems if not designed and installed properly and if not routinely inspected. Balusters come in many shapes and sizes, and the quality of construction and thickness of the balusters neck may affect its integrity. The variables involved in manufacture are considerable, and it is wise to use a firm with experience in ornamental and custom work rather than a precast concrete firm which manufactures stock structural items, suggests preservationist Richard Pieper. The Case for Preservation: So, why preserve balustrades in public buildings or on your own home? Why not just cover them up, encase them in metal or plastic and protect them from environmental hazards? Balustrades and railings are not only practical and safety features, write preservationist John Leeke and architectural historian Aleca Sullivan, they typically are highly visible decorative elements. Unfortunately, balustrades and balusters are frequently altered, covered, removed or completely replaced even though in most cases they can be repaired in a cost-effective manner. Routine cleaning, patching, and painting will preserve all kinds of balustrades. Replacement should be a last resort only. To preserve historic fabric, the repair of old balustrades and railings is always the preferred approach, Leeke and Sullivan remind us. A broken baluster usually is one in need of repair, not replacement. Sources: Baluster, Illustrated Architecture Dictionary, Buffalo Architecture and History; Classical Comments: Balusters by Calder Loth, Senior Architectural Historian for the Virginia Department of Historic Resources; Securing An Exterior Wooden Balustrade, U.S. General Services Administration, November 5, 2014; Removing And Replacing Deteriorated Cast Stone Balusters, U.S. General Services Administration, December 23, 2014; Preserving Historic Wood Porches by Aleca Sullivan and John Leeke, National Park Service, October 2006; The Maintenance, Repair and Replacement of Historic Cast Stone by Richard Pieper, National Park Service, September 2001 [accessed December 18, 2016]

Conflict Between Research and Ethics Paper Essay

Conflict Between Research and Ethics Paper - Essay Example Thirty years have passed since the completion of Tuskegee Syphilis Study, however, the society is still horrified with the unethical treatment of minorities group under this study. Recently, President Bush has addressed the public with the speech in which he has apologized for the actions of medical professionals for shifting the health dangers to specific minority groups. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study was conducted for forty years (1932-1972) with 400 poor and illiterate African Americans became part of it. This study has arisen many debates in society with the majority labeling it as unethical. First, the study was conducted without the proper care to its subjects and has resulted in the changes in how the patients are protected if they participated in medical researches. Second, not a single person has given an informed consent and was not informed about the diagnosis. These people who have agreed to participate were told that they have bad blood and are able to receive the free treatment (Gray, 1998). It is hardly possible for the similar situation to occur today because the research participants are not only protected by ethics, but by the law as well. Not a single study will start if the participants have not given the informed consent and are aware about all possible outcomes and side effects of acquired disease and treatment procedure. Of course, it is not always possible to predict all possible effects of the tested treatments and their impact on the human body (the medical research is conducted in the struggle to find out the more effective treatment), however, it is possible to predict some of the effects and the participants should be informed about them. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study was the continuation of the Oslo Study (1928) with the only difference that Oslo study was retrospective - the health professionals have studied the patients who have already contracted syphilis and remained untreated for some time, while under Tuskegee study was prospective - the health professionals could observe and study the patients (nothing could be done therapeutically). Eventually the study has become the longest experiment on human beings in the medical history in the result of which 74 individuals have remained alive, 28 males have died directly because of syphilis, 100 died because of complications, 40 wives have been infected and 19 children were born with syphilis (Jones, 1993). It is obvious that the initial goal to benefit the society was not accomplished and the primary objective of all health professionals - do not harm - has been rudely violated. Dozens of healthy people have been infected intentionally and the harm made to their health and future lives cannot be underestimated. In the further investigation of the conducted research, many interesting details have become known to public. For example, in order to ensure that the patients will show up for the expected diagnosis, all of them have received the misleading letter promising the special free treatment. In addition, all of the participants had to undergo autopsy after death even though nothing was said about this requirement in the beginning. As the result, many of the patients did not receive the treatment they needed - health professionals just observed the fatal progression of the diseases - in other words, doctors observed whether their patients

The influence of senior management involvement on the effectiveness of Essay

The influence of senior management involvement on the effectiveness of management training in selected Saudi Arabia (KSA) SMEs - Essay Example pany programs in order to ensure a higher level of success for the organization as a whole, as well as develop the attitudes and behaviours of the staff members (Alliger et al., 1997). However, previous researchers have only focused on the process of achieving organizational success, without emphasizing on the participation levels of the employees, let alone the participation and involvement of the senior management. This study is of significance because first and foremost, the labour force in Saudi Arabia is comprised of 55 percent of small and medium enterprises (or SMEs). What is even more significant is that for such companies, the involvement of senior managers in development activities and programs is more as compared to larger companies and companies in the public sector. However, due to the company’s size, organizational structures and developmental programs are not as formal as they should be, hence the need for senior management intervention (Storrey, 2004). This stu dy has shown that there are a number of benefits to be achieved from a higher level of involvement of senior managers in training programs. According to Mazzorol (2003), when employees observe the active participation of their managers, they are more empowered and motivated to be open to change. At the same time, the managers themselves are also able to have the opportunity to communicate more with their subordinates and gain feedback which would be beneficial for the company’s overall development. Isaac et al. (2001) further states that by being involved, senior managers have the chance to encourage and motivate their employees to improve their attitudes and behaviours with regards to work and accomplishing tasks. One problem with training programs is that there is a risk that the trainees will not learn anything. When this happens, the company would have wasted its finances, time and effort in order to implement such programs. Thus, by being actively involved in these progr ams, managers

The Impact of the Cloud on Mobile Devices Research Paper - 1

The Impact of the Cloud on Mobile Devices - Research Paper Example It will first provide a conceptual analysis of the issues surrounding the application, its application target market as well as reasons for its popularity and development. Introduction When addressing the issue of the impact of cloud on mobile devices, there are two terms, which are inseparable: cloud computing and mobile cloud computing. Cloud computing is a form of computing which offers animatedly scalable resources are as a virtualized service. It permits the service providers as well as other consumers to alter their computing capability with regard to the quantity and quality required form a particular task at a specific time. There are three major requirements that accompany cloud computing namely thin clients, grid computing, and utility computing. In most cases, cloud computing expose the users to computing systems through internet interfaces to use services for instance search engines, online stores and web-based email (Marinelli, 2009). Cloud Computing encompasses both the programs offered as services in the internet and the hardware and software applications in the processors that offer those services. Computer experts refer to the range of services and applications offered by cloud computing as Software as a Service (SaaS). On the other hand, cloud is the processing hardware and software that offers these services and applications. ... On the other hand, mobile cloud computing is an application in which both the data storage and the data processing occur outside of the mobile device. There are various contemporary examples of cloud computing applications including Google Maps, mobile Gmail, and some direction-finding applications. Nonetheless, most of the data storage and processing of contemporary applications still occur inside the mobile devices as opposed to occurring in the cloud. However, this trend is gradually changing and eventually all the applications will soon occur in the cloud (Perez, 2009). In the case of conservative cloud computing systems, they often occur on collections of servers. Consequently, there are enormous amounts of data placed on these collections through stratums of virtualization depicting the execution of elevated jobs to process this data and bring helpful results. This is however, very different when it comes to mobile-cloud computing, where the origin and processing of data occurs on mobile devices (Marinelli, 2009). The world technology is experiencing new forms of innovations, which is greatly affecting many organizations as well as their technology suppliers. In this regard mobile cloud, computing is emerging as a source of these innovations, which are transforming the global business industry in a great way. In addition, this innovation packs the power to alter businesses of all sizes as well as the economies that control their development. In this view, cloud computing is a subcontract of business and information technology functionality that bears the nimble economies of 21st century (Saugatuck Technology Inc., 2008). Several opinions assert that the conversion of old information technology will not offer the best mobile cloud computing services,

Human Resources Management In Organisational Context Business Essay

Human Resources Management In Organisational Context Business Essay Each organisation has a unique external environment that has a unique impact on the organisation (Capon, 2009, p7). Furthermore Jain et al (2010) state that organisational success is down to the adaptability of a company in the external environment. The STEEPLE model of external analysis will be used in conjunction with critically appraising the company named Hilton. The worldwide hotel chain shall be analysed using the model and the essay shall conclude with recommendations for Hilton to utilise. The aim of this essay is to critically evaluate the external analysis of the case study organisation. The structure is as follows: A brief background to the organisation; defining what is meant by STEEPLE and how it is utilised; look at each part of the model and relate how this may affect the business and finally to come to a conclusion as to what the main problem areas for the company are. What is meant by the STEEPLE model? A STEEPLE analysis can be used to analyse a firms current and future environment (Worthington, 1946, p7). A STEEPLE analysis is an examination of the external market (Campbell et al, 2005). A STEEPLE analysis breaks down the external analysis into six different categories: Socio/Cultural, Technological, Economic, Environmental, Political; Legal and Ethics (Campbell et al, 2005; Harrison, 2010; Jain et al, 2008; Kew et al, 2008; and Worthington, 1946). All of the named categories will have a different effect on the external environment of a particular company. The first part of the STEEPLE analysis is Socio/Cultural, this will be critically evaluated in the next section. Socio/Cultural The Socio/Cultural aspect examines the demographic trends, income distribution, social mobility, lifestyle, attitudes to work and leisure and levels of education (Kew et al, 2010). Some of the Socio/Cultural components will affect Hilton. Demographics according to Farnham (1990, p43) is The statistical study of populations through census returns, records of birth, deaths and marriages and other means. Traynor (2008, p1) finds that Britain will overtake Germany and France to become the biggest country in the EU in 50 years time. The Local Government Association seconds this by finding that the rate of births has fallen dramatically however people are living for longer (Local Government Association, 2010). This may effect the Hilton company because due to people living longer, they will need to take into consideration that there will be an increase in people who are retired. This may mean that people will not have the same income as when they were working and they may have to reduce th e cost of their rooms. On a more positive note for the company, people will have more time to spend on leisure activities. If the company decides to invest money into upgrading the leisure facilities, people may decide to come and spend their time and money there. As found by Vierich et al (1991), consumers in the future are likely to be specific in their requirements and will be less tolerant of providers that impede their leisure process indicating that if a hotel chain does not have a good leisure facility they may choose to spend their money elsewhere. The Socio/Cultural is an aspect that Hilton shall need to be careful of, the management will need to decide what price the rooms are in order to remain competitive. The next section of the STEEPLE model is Technological. How this affects the organisation will be discussed in the following section. Technological The Technological factors in the STEEPLE model critically evaluates the use of techonology available and the effect it will have on the organisation (Johnson, 2008). Kew et al, (2010, p6) state that Technological factors looks at: Research and Development; new inventions; speed of technology and developments of systems Aksu (2002, p94) states that Websites have become important sources of advertisement. This is true as more people get the internet, the information available to them becomed unlimited, this can therefore be linked to development of systems part as the internet is ever changing for the better. Hilton will need to be careful that there website sells the hotel to the customer. Law et al (2005) found that increased Technology meant that customers has a better expereince, booking rooms will be faster, check-in will be quicker and problems will be solved quicker all adding to the customers experience. Although the Technological side does not affect the company in many ways i t still has an impact on what Hilton do. The third part of the STEEPLE model critically appraises the Economic factors affecting the organisation. Economic The Economical factors evaluates the economy and how it may affect the organisation. It uses the economic factors such as supply and demand, inflation and the overall economical impact to the company (Sloman, 2010). It is a known fact that the recession has caused many companies lots of pressure to perform more efficiently (Townsend, 1983). The recession will have a major impact on the company. The company will have to cut costs in order to survive. Staff themselves cost money (Torrington et al, 2008). Supply and demand has the theory that as demand increases, supply increases, but as demand falls, supply falls (Henderson, 2008). The laws of supply and demand will ultimatley affect the organisation in the fact that if people have a demand for wanting hotel rooms or a certain product that Hilton sells, the supply must increase. If people no longer want the product or service the supply must change in order for the company to make money. Another factor affectingh the organisation is th e fact that the exchange rates vary daily. This will affect the companies asset prices. For example, if a company has debts in a foreign country, it may work in their favour to wait until the exchange rate is low, therefore costing less.****Need some quotes on where I got this from?**** The Economical side of the external analysis model is arguabbly very important. There are other factors however used in the STEEPLE model, the next part is Environemtnal and this will be discussed in the next section. Environmental Over the last decade or so the environment has been an important part of every day life. Scientists have found that our world is slowly getting warmer and this is known as global warming (Global Warming, 2010). Delworth et al, (2000) find that globa warming is due human-induced increase of greenhouse gasses. Every human being and also organisation therefore has a part to play in saving the environment. The councils around Scotland have recently introduced bins that are to be used for recycling, this is therefore there part to play in saving the environment. Although one organisation changing their ways will not have that big an impact on the environment, every little helps. Hilton must be careful that they look after the environment. It is clear therefore that environmental factors are an important extrernal factor that impacts upon a company. There are laws being passed everyday by different countries to stop the ever growing amount of pollution going into the atmosphere. The enviro nmental issue is a growing concern for companies and therefore is an important factor for companies around the world to remember when scanning the external environment. Now that the Environmental issues affecting the companies have been raised, the model being utilised throughout this essay states that the next part of the political environment and how that affects organisations such as Hilton. Political Political parties all have different agendas. How these agendas will affect organisations will differ between the parties in power. At the present, there is a coalition government in place and they have changed things within the country already. Depending on who is in parliament at the time will affect different companies. If for instance a green party is in place, they will be tough on climate change. If the labour government comes back into power, things may change that will help employees and their families. However the coalition government at the present time will have different opinions on how the country should be ran. A part of the conservative party manifesto was to increase support for enterprise and have a fairer and more balanced economy (Conservatives, 2010); where as the liberal democrat side of the government believe in tax efficient investment vehichles to provide seed captial for start up businesses (Libdems, 2010). It is clear therefore that different governments in place may affect organisations greatly, therefore becoming a very important part of the case studies external environment. The next part of the model critically analyses the Legal aspect of the environment and suggests how this may affect organisations throughout different countries. Legal The Legal part of the external analysis for any company is an important one that must be kept up to date, some laws change daily and this is done by the House of Lords in London. The Legal environment is a very important aspect that must not be overlooked, the company must do things legally and have stick to protocol when carrying out a procedure such as disciplinary actions or maybe be faced with a fine issued by employment tribunals. The European Union (EU) also has a part to play with the legal aspects of the external environment. The EU issue directives, which must be in place in all member states or a fine and/or penalty, will be issued. An example of an EU directive that may affect Hilton was issued in 2009 to make it easier for companies to sell their services across all of the member states (BIS, 2010). This is just an example directive, there may be many more for the organisation to consider. One must remember that in multi-national organisations such as Hilton, the laws in each land will be different and it is important that the Human Resources strategy takes this into account. From directives and laws in place such as the ones mentioned, it is clear that the legal environment is a minefield for organisations and one that if not careful can be costly to organisations. Rushton (2010) find that employment tribunals have risen by 56% in the last year. It is clear therefore that the Legal aspect of the STEEPLE model is an important factor for the external environment. Organisations must be careful and mindful of the ever-changing laws. The final part of the STEEPLE model is ethics and how that affects the external analysis. Ethics The ethical factor of the external analysis critically evaluates how socially responsible a company is. A new buzz word for socially responsible is CSR also known as Corporate Social Responsibility. How socially responsible a company is now a deciding point for most customers. For example, people may not choose to shop in the shop Primark after it was found that they get their clothes made in poor countries where people work for low wages and in poor conditions. Thankfully, Primark have invested in the Ethical Trading Initative meaning that they are taking a pro-active role in how ethical the company is (Primark, 2010). How a company treats their staff therefore is a factor organisations across the globe must be careful off. Conclusion Having utilised the STEEPLE model to analyse the external market of Hilton, it can be concluded that there are certain main factors that affect the organisation and therefore recommendations can be drawn: If as the Local Government Association (2010) finds, the population is living older, Hilton may need to watch their prices for rooms to keep at a competitive rate. A quick search on the company website gives an average price of  £104 per room, for one night (Hilton, 2010) This is expensive considering it does not include breakfast especially compared to other hotels such as the travel lodge. The organisation will need to keep in touch with increasing technological advancements as Law et al, (2005) found that customers will be impressed by these advancements as it means that processes can be done quicker and more smoothly. The economical factors of the external analysis are difficult to manipulate and change. The government have all control over the economy and Hilton must know what is happening regarding prices and interest rates. The organisation must be wary that the environment is now a large factor in deciding strategic movements that organisations such as Hilton make. Hilton must be careful not to make too much pollution and recycle as much as possible. The government policies will change every time a new party comes into power. It is important that multinational organisations such as Hilton understand that there are different governments in different countries and they must keep this in mind when making decisions. The Legal aspect of the external analysis model has indicated that there are many new laws brought in and some of them may have a direct or indirect affect on the organisation. Finally the ethical aspect is one that affects all companies in todays society. How socially responsible a company is will affect the amount of people that buy there. Therefore in general using an external analysis framework makes organisations such as Hilton more aware of the potential dangers in the market in which they operate and therefore is an invaluable tool to use (Farnham, 2010).

Why the Whitechapel Murders Attracted so Much Attention Essay -- Papers

Why the Whitechapel Murders Attracted so Much Attention In this question I will be studying the various reasons why the Whitechapel murders attracted so much attention in 1888. This will focus on the Ripper victims and their own personal backgrounds, the murders and the similarities including the fact that they became more increasingly violent, the extensive press coverage due to the brutal murders as well as the increased press coverage on anti-Semitism and finally I will write about the actions of the mile end vigilance committee. My focus will turn to the 5 main ripper victims Mary Ann Nicholls (Polly), Annie Chapman, Elizabeth stride, Catherine Eddows and mary Kelly. There are many similarities between these five victims which link them to be the most believable ripper victims. The most initial similarity between all 5 women was that they were all prostitutes working in the same area all of the prostitutes were all of the same age of around 45 apart from one named Mary Kelly as she was aged around 25.the serial killers spree began on august 31st 1888 with the murder of a middle aged prostitute named Mary Ann Nicholls called Polly by some. As with all the victims she was a very heavy drinker. Polly had five children and had separated from her husband Mary Ann at the time was living in a house at 13 millers' court. The ripper's second victim was again an (47 year old) prostitute named Annie Chapman. Also a mother and like all the prostitutes she was a heavy drinker, she again was separated from her husand.she prostituted in order to pay for her drinking habit, Annie's appearance was not the best for a 47 year old as she had a... ...y was received on the 17th September 1888 stating that giving a reward would do more harm then good and rejected his offer. Having examined the evidence there was several factors which linked together attracted nation wide attention to the white chapel murders such the brutality of the murders themselves also due to the similarities and differences off all the prostitutes. But I think the real factors which the attracted the nation wide attention was of the three letter which were printed in the newspapers as they contained plisit information about the murders themselves and the startling letter which contained a piece of human kidney, which was said in the letter that that excrement's were fried and eaten. So in conclusion I think that the sickness of the mind of jack the ripper grabbed the world wide attention.

Poem and Short Story Essay

Mill of the Gods (Estrella Alfon) Among us who lived in Espeleta – that street that I love, about whose people I keep telling tales – among us, I say, there was one named Martha, and she was the daughter of Pio and Engracia. To all of us, life must seem like a road given us to travel, and it is up to Fate, that convenient blunderer, whether, that road be broad and unwinding, or whether it shall be a tortuous lane, its path a hard and twisted mat of dust and stones. And each road, whether lane or avenue, shall have its own landmarks, that only the traveller soul shall recognize and remember, and remembering, continue the journey again. To Martha, the gods gave this for a first memory: a first scar. She was a girl of twelve, and in every way she was but a child. A rather dull child, who always lagged behind the others of her age, whether in study or in play. Life had been so far a question of staying more years in a grade than the others, of being told she would have to apply herself a little harder if she didn’t want the infants catching up with her. But that was so dismal thing. She had gotten a little bit used to being always behind. To always being the biggest girl in her class. Even in play there was some part of her that never managed to take too great a part – she was so content if they always made her â€Å"it† in a game of tag, if only they would let her play. And when she had dolls, she was eager to lend them to other girls, if they would only include her in the fascinating games she could not play alone. This was she, then. Her hair hung in pigtails each side of her face, and already it irked a little to have her dresses too short. She could not help in her mother’s kitchen, and could be trusted to keep her room clean, but she was not ready for the thing her mother told her one night when she was awakened from sleep. It was a sleep untroubled by dreams, then all of a sudden there was an uproar in the house, and she could hear her mother’s frenzied sobbing, and it was not sobbing that held as much of sorrow as it did of anger. She lay still for a while, thinking perhaps she was dreaming, until she could hear her father’s grunted answers to the half – understood things her mother was mouthing at him. Then there were sounds that was clearly the sound of two bodies struggling in terrible fury with each other. She stood up, and like a child, cried into the night. Mother? She wailed the word, in her panic finding a little relief in her own wailing, Mother? And she heard her mother’s voice call her, panting out, saying, Martha, come quickly, come into this room! Martha got up and stood at the door of the room, hesitating about opening it, until her mother, the part of a terrible grasp, said Martha! So Martha pushed in the door, and found her mother and her father locked in an embrace n which both of them struggled and panted and had almost no breath left for words. Martha stood wide – eyed and frightened, not knowing what to do, just standing there, even though she had seen what it was they struggled for. A kitchen knife, blade held upwards in her mother’s hand. Her arms were pinioned to her sides by her husband, but her wild eyes, the frenzy with which she stamped her feet on his feet, and kicked him in the shins, and tried to bite him with her teeth, these were more terrible than the glint of that shining blade. It was her father who spoke to her saying urgently, Martha, reach for her knife, take it away. Yet Martha stood there and did not comprehend until her mother spoke, saying No, no; Martha, your father deserves to be killed. Then it was Martha who realized what she was to do, and slowly, hesitantly, she went near them, her fear of both of them in this terrible anger they now presented making her almost too afraid to reach up for the knife. But reach up she did, and with her child’s fingers, put her mother’s away from the weapon. And when she had it in her hands she did not know what to do with it, except look at it. It wasn’t a very sharp knife, but its blade was clean, and its hilt firm. And so she looked at it, until her father said. Throw it out of the window, Martha and without thinking, she went to a window, opened a casement and threw it away. Then her father released her mother, and once her mother had gotten her arms free, she swung back her hand, and wordlessly, slapped him; slapped him once, twice, three times, alternating with her hands, on alternate cheeks, until her father said. That’s enough, Engracia. And saying so, he took her hands in his, led her resisting to the bed, and made her sit down. And Martha was too young to wonder that her father, who was a big man, should have surrendered to the repeated slapping from her mother who was a very small frail woman. Her father said, â€Å"Aren’t you ashamed now Martha has seen? † And immediately her mother screamed to him, â€Å"Ashamed? Me, ashamed? I’ll tell Martha about you! † Her father looked at Martha still standing dumbly by the window out of which she had thrown the knife, and said, â€Å"No, Aciang, she is just a child. † And to her: â€Å"Martha, go back to bed. † But now her mother jumped up from the bed, and clutched at Martha, and brought her to bed with her. And deliberately without looking at Martha’s father, she said, Martha you are not too young to know. And so, the words falling from her lips with a terrible quiet, she told Martha. The words that were strange to her ears, Martha heard them, and listened to them, and looked from her mother to her father, and without knowing it, wetting her cheeks with her tears that fell. And then her mother stopped talking, and looking at her husband, she spat on him, and Martha saw the saliva spatter on the front of the dark shirt he wore. She watched while her father strode over them, and slowly, also deliberately, slapped her mother on the cheek. Martha watched his open palm as he did it, and felt the blow as though it had been she who had been hit. Then her father strode out of the room, saying nothing, leaving them alone. When her father had gone, Martha’s mother began to cry, saying brokenly to Martha, â€Å"It is that woman, that woman! † And making excuses to Martha for her father, saying it was never completely the man’s fault. And Martha listened bewildered, because this was so different from the venomous words her mother had told her while her father was in the room. And then her mother, still weeping, directed her to look for her father and Martha went out of the room. Her father was not in the house. The night was very dark as she peered out of the windows to see is she could find him outside, but he was nowhere. So she went back to her mother, and told her she could not find her father. Her mother cried silently, the tears coursing down her cheeks, and her sobs tearing through her throat. Martha cried with her, and caressed her mother’s back with her hands, but she had no words to offer, nothing to say. When her mother at last was able to talk again, she told Martha to go back to bed. But it wasn’t the child that entered who went out of that room. And yet the terror of that night was not so great because it was only a terror half – understood. It wasn’t until she was eighteen, that the hurt of that night was invested with its full measure. For when she was eighteen, she fell in love. She was a girl of placid appearance, in her eyes the dreaming stolid night of the unawakened. She still was slow to learn, still not prone to brilliance. And when she fell in love she chose the brightest boy of her limited acquaintance to fall in love with. He was slightly older than herself, a little too handsome, a trifle too given to laughter. Espeleta did not like him; he was too different from the other young me n on the street. But Martha loved him. You could see that in the way she looked at him, the way she listened to him. Martha’s pigtails had lengthened. She now wore her braids coiled on the top of her head like a coronet, and it went well with the placid features, the rather full figure. She was easily one of our prettier maidens. It was well that she was not too brilliant. That she did not have any too modern ideas. The air of shyness, the awkward lack of sparkling conversation suited her Madonna – like face and calm. And her seriousness with love was also part of the calm waiting nature. It did not enter her head that there are such things as play, and a game. And a man’s eagerness for sport. And so when she noticed that his attentions seemed to be wandering, even after he had admitted to a lot of people that they were engaged, she asked him, with the eager desperation of the inexperienced, about their marriage. He laughed at her. Laughed gently, teasingly, saying they could not get married for a long time yet; he must repay his parents first for all that they had done for him. He must first be sure to be able to afford the things she deserved. Well turned phrases he said his excuses with. Charming little evasions. And if she did not see through them while he spoke them, his frequent absences, where his visits had been as a habit; his excuses to stay away when once no amount of sending him off could make him stay away; these but made her see. And understand. And then the way neighbours will, they tried to be kind to her. For they could see her heart was breaking and they tried to say sweet things to her, things like her being far too good for him. And then they heard that he had married. Another girl. And they saw her grief, and thought it strange that a girl should grieve over an undeserving lover or so. She lost a little of the plumpness that was one of her charms. And into her eyes crept a hurt look to replace the dreaming. And Espeleta, with all the good people, strove to be even kinder to her. Watched her grief and pitied her. And told her that whatever mistakes she had committed to make her grieve so, to make her suffer so, they understood and forgave. And they did not blame her. But now that she had learned her lesson, she must beware. She knew her own father as much as they knew about him. And it was in the Fates that his sins must be paid for. If not by himself, then by whom but she who was begotten by him? So, didn’t she see? How careful she should be? Because you could, they said it to her gently, kindly, cruelly, because she could if she were careful, turn aside the vengeance of the implacable fates. And she believed them kind although she hated their suspicions. She believed them kind, and so she started, then, to hate her father. And that night long ago came back to her, and she wished she had not thrown that knife away. Espeleta saw Martha turn religious. More religious than Iya Andia and Iya Nesia, who were old and saw death coming close, and wanted to be assured of the easing of the gates of heaven. Espeleta approved. Because Espeleta did not know what she prayed for. Because they saw only the downcast eyes under the light veil, the coil of shining hair as it bowed over the communion rail. Yet Martha’s mother and father still lived together. They never had separated. Even after that night, when she was twelve years old and frightened, and she had called for him and looked for him and not found him. The next day he had come back, and between her mother and him there was a silence. They slept in the same bed, and spent the nights in the same room, and yet Martha and Espeleta knew he had another bed, another chamber. Espeleta praised Martha’s mother for being so patient. After Martha had fallen in love, when she began hating her father truly then also she began despising her mother. You did not know it to look at Martha. For her coil of braided hair was still there, and the shy way of speaking, and the charming awkwardness at conversation. And Martha made up her earlier lack of lustre by shining in her class now. She was eighteen and not through high school yet. But she made up for it by graduating with high honours. Espeleta clapped its hands when she graduated. Gave her flowers. Her mother and father were there, too. And they were proud. And to look at Martha, you would think she was proud too, if a little too shy still. Martha studied nursing. And started having visitors in her mother’s house again. Doctors this time. Older men, to whom her gravity of manner appealed, and the innate good sense that seemed so patient in her quiet demeanour. Espeleta was now rather proud of Martha. She seemed everything a girl should be, and they cited her as an example of what religion could do. Lift you out of the shadow of your inheritance. For look at Martha. See how different she is from what should be her father’s daughter. But what they did not know was that all of these doctors Martha had to choose someone slightly older than the rest. And where the girl of eighteen that she had been almost a child unschooled, now she was a woman wise and wary. Where the other nurses knew this doctor only as someone who did not like their dances as much as the younger ones, who did not speak as lightly, as flippantly of love as the younger ones, Martha knew why he didn’t. Between the two of them there had been, form the very start, a quick lifting of the pulse, an immediate quickening of the breath. From the very start. And where he could have concealed the secrets of life, he chose the very first time they were able to talk to each other, to tell her that he was not free. He had a wife, and whether he loved her or not, whether she was unfaithful to him or not, which she was, there had been the irrevocable ceremony to bind them, to always make his love for any other woman, if he ever fell in love again, something that must be hidden, something that might not see light. She was a woman now, Martha was. Wise and wary. But there is no wisdom, no weariness against love. Not the kind of deep love she knew she bore him. And as even she him, she found within herself the old deep – abiding secret hate. Against her father. Against the laws of man and church. Against the very fates that seemed rejoiced in making her pay for a sin she had not committed. She now learned of bitterness. Because she could not help thinking of that night, long ago, when her mother had sat on the bed, and in deliberate words told her just what kind of a father she had. It had been as though her mother had shifted on to her unwilling, unready shoulders the burden of the sorrows, the goad of the grief. Espeleta, that was so quick to censure, and to condemn; even Espeleta had taken the situation in Martha’s house as something that could not be helped. And as long as there was no open strife, Espeleta made excuses for a thing that, they said, had been designed by Fate. Martha’s father came home. Acted, on the surface, the good husband. And since he was married to Martha’s mother, so must Martha’s mother bear it, and welcome him home again. Because she would rather he came home, then went to the other one, wouldn’t she? Espeleta cited heavenly rewards. For Martha’s mother. And Martha went to church regularly, and was a good nurse. And still called her father, Father. You have heard that one of course, about the mill of the gods, how they â€Å"grind exceedingly fine, and grind exceedingly slow. † Espeleta hadn’t heard that one, nor had Martha. But Espeleta of course would have a more winded version of it. Anyhow, one day at the hospital, Martha was attendant nurse at an emergency case. A man had been shot. There were three bullets through his chest, but he was still alive. Martha laughed queerly to herself, saying I must be dreaming, I am imagining that man has my father’s face. It was the doctor she loved who was in charge. With a queer dreaming feeling, she raised her eyes to meet his, and was shocked to see him drop his gaze, and over his face steal a twist as of pain, as of pity. They were instantly their efficient selves again, cloaking themselves in the impersonal masks of physician and nurse. It was as if he who lay there beneath their instruments and their probing fingers was any man, the way it could be any man. Not her father. But all while, training and discipline unavailing. Martha said to herself, but it is my father. He died on the table. He never gained consciousness. Martha drew the sheet over his face and form. And watched as they wheeled him out of the room. She still had the instruments to put away and the room to put in order. But this did not take long and when she went out into the corridor, she found her mother weeping beside the shrouded form on the wheeled table. There was a policeman beside her awkwardly trying with gruff words to console the little woman over her loss. Beside the policeman stood also the doctor, who passed an arm around the shoulder of Martha’s mother, saying simply, we tried to save him. Martha joined them, knowing that she should be in tears, yet finding that she had none to shed. It would ease the tightness within her, would loosen the hard knot in her heart to cry. But you cannot summon tears when you feel no grief, and the pain you feel is not of sorrow but of the cruel justness of things. She could not even put her arms around her weeping mother. When the doctor told her that she would be excused from duty the rest of the day, that he would arrange it for her, she did not thank him. She did not say anything for indeed she no longer had any words, nor any emotions that required speech. Or should be given speech. For one cannot say, how right! How just! When one’s father has just died. Her mother and she took a taxi together to accompany the hearse that took her father home. There was a crowd awaiting them. Espeleta in tears. Espeleta crying condolence and opprobrium in the same breath. It was from them – their good neighbours, their kind neighbours – that Martha learned how â€Å"God’s justice had overtaken the sinner. † Colon is not as intimate as Espeleta. For it is a long street and broad street. But where the railroad crosses it, the houses group together in intimate warmth and neighbourly closeness and its families live each other’s lives almost as meddlingly as Espeleta does. And is as avid for scandals as Espeleta is. Among the people in Martha’s house were some from Colon. And it was they who supplied the grimmer details, the more lucid picture. In that other woman’s house – and Martha did not even know the other woman’s name there had existed the stalemate state of affairs that had existed in Martha’s house. Only where in Martha’s house it had been a wife who was patient, in that other woman’s house it had been the husband who had bided his time. And yet the neighbours had thought he had not cared. For indeed he had seemed like a man blind and deaf, and if he raised his voice against his wife, it was not so they could hear it. Yet today, he had come home, after he had said he was going away somewhere. And had come upon Martha’s father in the house, and had, without saying anything, taken out his revolver, and shot at him. Martha heard all these. And thought you know often life seems like an old – fashioned melodrama, guns and all. And yet the gun had not gone off. It had jammed, and Martha’s father had been able to run. And running, even as he seemed far enough from the house to be safe, the gun in the husband’s hand had come right again. The man had gone out in the street, aimed at the fleeing figure. That explained why the bullets had gone in through his back and out through his chest. They said that the street was spattered with blood and where he fell, there was a pool of gory red. The killer had surrendered himself at once. But everyone knew he would not pay with his life he had taken. For the woman was his wife and he had come upon them in his own home. Martha stayed with the kind condolers only a while. She left her mother for them to comfort as best as they could. They would have praises like â€Å"The good God knows best;† they would have words like, â€Å"Your grief is ended, let your other grief commence. † She went to look at her father lying well arranged now in his bier. Already in spite of the manner of his death, there were flowers for him. Death had left no glare in the eyes that the doctor at the hospital had mercifully closed, over the features lingered no evidence of pain. And Martha said, Death was kind to you. In Martha’s room there hung a crucifix. Upon the crossed wood was the agonized Christ, His eyes soft and deep and tender, even in his agony. But as Martha knelt, and lighted her candles, and prayed, in her eyes was no softness, and on her lips no words appealing for pity for him who had died. There was only the glitter of a justice meted out at last, and the thankfulness for a punishment fulfilled. So she gave thanks, very fervent thanks. For now, she hoped, she would cease to pay.