I heard the sound of a tabor several yards away, and the swirl of a flute, and the clapping of hands.

I went in that direction.

"Marcus," I said, pleased, finding him in the crowd there.

"Women are dancing," he said.

"Superb," I said.

"The camp is in a holiday mood," I said.

"Yes," he said.

A fellow tore off the tunic of a slave girl and thrust her out, into the circle.

"Aii!" cried men.

The female danced.

"That one is pretty," said Marcus. He referred to a redhead, thrust into the circle.

There were now some four or five girls in the circle. ; One wore a sign that said, "I am for sale."

Two more girls entered the circle.

"Look," said Marcus. ; He referred to a new girl, joining the others in the circle. ; She wore ropes and performed on her kneels, her sides, her back and stomach.

"She is very good," said Marcus.

"Yes," I said.

The dance in the circle, as one might have gathered, was not the stately dance of free maidens. ; Even in which, of course, the maidens, though scarcely admitting this even to themselves, experience something of that stimulatory voluptuousness of movement, but slave dance, that form of dance, in its thousands of variations, ; in which a female may excitingly and beautifully, marvelously and fulfillingly, express the depths and profundities of her nature. ; In such dance the woman moves as a female, and shows herself as a female, in all her excitingness and beauty. ; It is no wonder that women love such dance, in which dance they are so desirable and beautiful, and in which dance they feel so free, so sexual, so much a slave.

Another woman entered the circle. ; She, to, was excellent.

Another girl, a slim blonde, was thrust into the circle. ; Her master, arms folded, regarded her. She lifted her chained wrists above her head, palms facing outwards, this, because of the linkage of the manacles, tightening it, bringing the backs of her hands closely together. ; She faced her Master. ; Desperate was she to please him. ; There was a placatory aspect to her dance. It seemed she wished to divert his wrath.

"Ahh," said Marcus. "Look!"

He was indicating the slim blonde, she with the chained wrists, whose dance before her Master seemed clearly placatory in nature. ; She had perhaps begged to be permitted to appear before him in the dancing circle, that she might attempt to please him. ; He had perhaps acquiesced. I recalled he had thrust her into the circle, perhaps in this generously according her, thought perhaps with some impatience, and misgivings, this chance to make amends for some perhaps unintentional, minuscule transgression. ; Perhaps his paga had not been heated to the right temperature. ; Women look well in collars.

The blonde was on her knees, extending her hands to her Master, piteously, all this with the music in her arms, her shoulders, her head and hair, her belly.

Her Master seized her from the circle then and hurried her from the light, her head down, held by the hair, at his left hip. ; This is a common leading position for female slaves being conducted short distances. ; As the master holds her hair in the left hand, it leaves his right hand, commonly the sword hand, free.

Another woman was thrust into the circle.

I thought the blonde had very successfully managed to divert the Master's wrath., assuming that was what she was up to. ; The only whip she need fear now, muchly, at nay rate, would seem to be the "whip of the furs." To be sure, she might be given a stroke or two, if only to remind her that she was slave.