H.E. Bates Companion

The fifth of six brief newspaper "Tales of Tahiti." The narrator describes an unusual boat trip and a boisterous fellow passenger, whose easy laughter and camaraderie belie her sadness in love and life. Elements of the story are included in Bates's account of his travels in Tahiti in the third volume of his autobiography (World in Ripeness, 138-140). In the Evening Standard (October 21, 1955, with title "The Laughing Princess"), Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal and Other Stories/The Enchantress and Other Stories (1961).