Daily American organ. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1856, 1855-12-28
WHOLE NO. 356.
From Life Illustrated.
HaTcm OF tho sultan.


The Sultan's harem Is within the enclosure Of the
palace, and communicates with IL by two gilt gates
These gates are watched day and night by blacks,
and not their superior dare cross the threshold
unless by the express command of,the monarch.
Of all the Osmans, the Sultan Is the one who
can complain of inequality Of condition. At once
above and beneath all Others he alone is deprived
Of the right to contract lawful marriage. Tho
law allows four wives to every true believer who
can support them, gives him wife, but only COR
cubines, and when people speak to him they al
ways call him The son or the slave woman"
This practice dates from the day of Ibraham !,
In l647. Up to that time the Turkish Sultan could
contract lawful marriage. Several cases are re-
corded In which the brides were Christians. A
tradition has long gained credencc in Europe that
the mother of the conqueror Of Constantinople was
princess of French descent, the betrothed Of the
Greek Emperor John Paleo'ogus. After the yes
sci on which the princess was, had been taken by
Admiral Sarudshi Pasha, Murad IT. who was then
regning Sultan, gave the Pasha all the treasures
which she bore for her dowry, and placed the
princess herself In his haren,. Enchanted by her
genius and her grace, after a time he married tho
captive, and had by her one son, Mahommed IT, 81
Y The mother of Mahmoud, also, who died in 1916,
was, am told, a French woman of American de-
scent, born In Nantes. The name Of her family
was given me, but have lost it how. She was
scarcely two years old, so the story went, when
tured by corsair and taken to Algers, where
they died. The little girl was bought by slave
merchant and In her fourteenth year had become
a dazzling beauty. The Dey then bought her Of
the slave merchant for handsome sum Of money,
and presented her to the Sultan Abdul Hamed.
She was soon raised to the rank Of cadine, and
gave to the world the Sultan Mahmoud.
\ The women of the harem are divided, according
to the nature of their employment into five classes
The highest are called cadines, word derived
from chotun which Is applied to all Turkish ladies
of rank. They are by name the beloved" of the
Sultan, and enjoy all the privileges which were for
merly possessed by the Sultans. The number is
limited by law to seven.
Once within the harem, the cadines and the
Others of the Sultan are known no longer by their
names, but by numbers They are called Chatun-
gberindshee, Chatuneekindsbe &c., or, in English
Mrs. One, Mrs. Two, &C. Mrs One Ia said to be
tall, and to have most inexpensive countenancc
She gave the pasha his first successor, which, ac-
icording to law, gives her the rank of an empress
Mrs. Two was, In the year 1910, when the eldest
son of Abdul Mejid was born, little blond of lus-
cous loveliness, lively sprightly, and wide awake.
Mrs. Three is beautiful Circassian, who has borne
only princess. Mrs. Four Is a perfect beauty,
but childless Mrs. Five is a blue-eyed brunette
Mrs. Six, an enchanting blond, purchased in Salo-
MICA Mrs. Seven, q very simple Circassan beauty,
but with face radiant as the moon and eyes like
they were told me; cannot vouch for them.
ah After ss sss suns aa9E Il te & eiaRs 9 e r. group
of from fifty to sixty planets, designated by the
the name of Odaipg, odasuues devoted to the
private service of the Sultan; most OF them bear
the name and title Of their political function. So
there is a superintendent of the table, superin-
tendent Of the wardrobe &c. The Sultan is at
tended by female domestics alone They serve
him at table, bathc him, clothe him, take his boots
of, keep the flies away while he is asleep, and
watch at his pillow during his siestas OTHERS per
form more evinced offices, and share with the ca
dimes the favor Of their master But the favorite
slave is not on this account separated from ber
companions. She merely receives the title ikboi,
darling, and Il is not until she becomes pregnant
that she rises TO the rank ofa cadine.
The title of Sultana belongs only 10 the daugh-
ter or sister Of the Grand Segnior. His mother
has the title Waldo Sultan or Sultan-mother, and
takes after him the first rank In the realm.
The number Of odalisques Is not limited, either
by law or custom. The taste or humor Of the Sui.
tan Is the only rule Murad w. had more than
800, by whom he had 130 children. But since
Mahmoud /, sultans have been much more tempe
rate In this respect either out Of considerations Of
economy, or respect to popular opinion which Is
more powerful In Turkey than is generally sup
posed. Next TO the odAlisques comes the ustas,
whose business il Ia TO the Sultanmothert the
cadines and their children after them come the mo-
vices, and finally the common slaves, the menials
OF the Seraglio.
The Ave distinct classes compose personnel Of
from three TO four hundred women, principally ma
tives of the Cherkess country and from other por-
tions Of the Caucasus. Most Of them know Deitli-
er their family or the place Of their birth those
who are not designated by their functions, receive
name for some peculiarly or personal charm,
as Hayat, the fe-giver Safavi, the dispenser Of
Joy; Dibeste, the heart-bnder; Noo1 saba, the
light Of the morning Gubahar, the rose OF spring.
All except the cadnes are subject TO a general
stewardess Of the house hold, whom the Sultan
generally selects from among the oldest Of his "a
yorites and who bears, as the token OF command,
a sceptre set with silver plato.
Sultan Mabmoud had in his harem young slave,
for whom be entertained serious passion. Her
dame was Zeincb (Zenobia.) For her he neglect
ed all the cadines, although he took care to see
her only secretly either from the fear Of exciting
the envy of her rivals, to spare himself the vex
alton Of repinings and complaints. Zeineb on
her part, kept her good fortune secret, contrary
to the customs Of her companions. At last one Of
the cadines, who had for long time supposed
that herself was tho favorite Of Sultan Mahmohd,
discovered the secret OF the two lovers Wound
ed even more In her pride than in her tenderness,
she FIRST overwhelmed the poor slave with abusf,
and then, as her rage increased, ordered the er-
nuchs TO seize and whip her. But Zeineb retreattd
step, raised her head proudly, and said to them,
q Touch me not; bear Sultan under my heart
And forthwith they all prostrated themselves be-
fore her and kissed the hem Of her garment The
cadne, whose rage transcribed all bounds, caught
up kettle Of boiling water and dashed II into the
face of her rival
| At this moment the Sultan, who had been
alarmed by the noise, came in. Zeinb, trembling
and with fearful eyes, threw herself at his feet.
He raised her. The immediate consequence is un-
known but some weeks later Zeinib died at the
birth Of a daughter for whom tho father cherished