'Paris of the East'?"
For no valid reason whatever, Damiu."
"Doesn't Shanghai resemble Paris in any respect, Mother?
"To the same extent that your father resembles the Sultan of Sulu, Damiu."
Does that mean that there ie a resemblance, Mother?"
"Goodness no, child! Be careful not to mention the analogy to him. You're certain to have a bad time of it "Then why did they hit on the comparison, Mother?"
"Because Paris has a reputation for wickedness, Damiu."
"Is Shanghai as wicked as all that, Mother?"
"Bar from it, Damiu. It likes to pretend that it is, so that visiting newspaper correspondents can write something peppy for their papers."
"Is Paris, itself, so wicked, "Not in the least, dear. Anyone who has lived in a private Parisian family knows that it is about as exciting as an offer of a drink of water to a confirmed alcoholic.""
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.