The Just City Read Online Free PDF Page B

All of the sleeping houses have their own flower or herb.” Her Greek was strange, extremely precise but with odd hesitations as if she sometimes had to think to remember a word. Most disconcertingly she pronounced her V as B. “Each sleeping house sleeps seven people—either girls or boys, never mixed. Now I will teach you about hygiene.”
    She opened the other door, which led to the most amazing room I had ever seen. The marble floor and walls were striped black and white, and at the far end of the room the floor dipped into a trench with gratings underneath it. Above that were metal nozzles projecting from the wall. Maia shrugged out of her kiton and stood naked before us. She pressed a metal switch in the wall and water began to jet from the nozzles. “This is a wash-fountain,” she explained. “It is to cleanse you. Come on.”
    We moved forward hesitantly. The water was cold, pleasant on a hot afternoon. “Take soap,” Maia instructed, showing us another switch and putting her hand underneath a jet that provided a single gush of liquid soap when she pressed it. I had never encountered soap before. It felt strange on my palm. Maia showed us how to wash with the soap and how it lathered up in the water, she showed us how to wash our hair under the jets. “There is no shortage of water, but you should not be wasteful of the soap,” she said.
    â€œIt smells of hyssop,” said the girl who had noticed the hyssop outside.
    Then Maia showed us the four cubicles at the other end of the room, each of which contained a latrine-fountain—a marble seat, with a lever to pull to summon water to carry away our wastes. “There are four latrine-fountains for the seven of you. Be reasonable in taking turns,” she said. “Tomorrow I will teach you how to clean yourselves with oil and a scraper.”
    I was becoming numb with marvels when she led us back into the bedroom. “There is a bed here for each of you.” She turned to the dark-skinned girl. “What is your name?”
    â€œThey said I was to be called Andromeda,” she said.
    â€œThat’s a wonderful name,” Maia said, enthusiastically. “Andromeda, because you spoke first and noticed the hyssop, for now you will be the watcher for Hyssop house. You will have this bed by the door, and you will come for me if you need me—I will show you where I live. You will be in charge of the house when I am not here, and you will take note and answer for the conduct of the others. The rest of you choose beds now.”
    We looked at each other. We had been splashing comfortably together in the wash-fountain, but now we were shy. I took a hesitant step towards a bed, in the inner corner. The other girls sorted themselves out with no squabbling—though two girls ran for the other corner bed, the girl who got there second retreated and took the next bed. “Now open your chests,” Maia said. We did so. Inside were two undyed blankets, one linen and one wool. “Dry yourselves on one.” I took out the wool blanket and dried myself. “Now put that one on the bed to dry. Take out the other.” She picked up her kiton and shook it. “This is how you wear it.” She demonstrated. It was much harder than it looked, especially making the folds. It took some of us a long time to develop the skill of tucking it in—a thing that is second nature now, but was difficult that first day. Maia gave each of us a leather belt and a plain iron pin to fasten our kitons. “These will change,” she said, but did not explain further.
    â€œThe other blanket is your cloak,” she said, and showed us how to fold the cloaks. “You won’t need it before winter. They are also your blankets and towels, as you have seen.”
    â€œThey are ours?” one of the girls asked, touching the pin. “Ours to keep?”
    â€œYours to use,” Maia said.
    â€œWho is