Chapter 13 "Esther" Summary

Esther is a pale and serious black girl. She has beautiful features, but lacks an inner glow to light them up. She is generally uninterested in men.

Esther is nine years old when King Barlo falls into a religious trance. Barlo falls to his knees at the Spitoon and is initially ignored by the white men who continue spitting their tobacco juice at him. Looking up at the sky with his lips and nose twitching, Barlo begins to attract attention. The people gather around, realizing that he is in a trance. Several hours pass and the town prepares for Barlo to speak.

At six o'clock, the sun disappears behind a cloud, and Barlo starts to speak. When he describes talking to Jesus, the crowd murmurs in prayer and excitement. Barlo explains, in a broken and distant monologue, that he...