Weekly Trinity journal., 1869-09-18
Manners and Customs in Palestine and svrt,

|
Society here cannot be estimated by what is
seen among Europeans and Americans. In
America, woman not only holds a position but
the hrst position in society, but here she is moth
ing. Woe be to the wife whose first child is a
daughter They have completely reversed the
order of the old couplet:
"First a daughter and then son
The world is well begun"
A daughter is regarded as calamity to a
household, and even the mother-iu-law in such
| case feels herself at liberty to abuse and NAL
treat the daughter-in law who has dared to bear
| daughter. This is not only unnatural, but it is
very strange to US. A Mohammedan cannot be
more efectually insuted than to have any one
inquire after his wife and daughter He never
speaks respectfully of them. If he has occasion
to speak of his wife as being at home he says,
1t is in the house. 1t is always it, and never
she, or wife. Women, therefore, are evils to be
endured, and the domestic relations are nothing.
Women very seldom well or even decently
clad.
The custom of wearing wells to conceal the
face is only partially practiced in Palestine and
Syria, and is destined to decrease. 1t is Gus
tom quite prevalent among women of any pre-
tentions TO wear loose garment made of white
cotton cloth, coming up over the head and fall
ing down over the body like a sack so that in
walking, as they extend the elbows, they pre-
sent huge appearance. Such thing a. u bon
net or hat is unknown among the articles of fe-
male attire. The costumes of the men vari-
Gus, but none of them designed for conven-
iencc in labor. 1t q matter of some sur
prise to me that men who had come much in
contact with Europeans did not change, but the
secret was revealed in remark by gentleman
of observation, who had been a good while
among them. He said two things were quite
prominent, they are self f-opinionuted and stub
born" The first prevents them from seeing
that anything differing from their own is better
and the second would prevent them from adopt
ing it though they saw it was better The com
mon people are very boorsh and pay little atten-
ton to manners or politeness, but the better
class are very profuse in their manifestations :;
for instance, when persons of the latter class
meet, they generally place the hand on the heart
then on the lips and next on the forehead
After this they grasp hands and kiss each side
of the face. When friends part they 90 through
the same operation, only reversing the order, SO
they grasp hands, kiss, and make the motions af-
ter. This refers to the men, for the women paw
little attention to each other. There is one
other custom prevalent in Damascus and not
much seen anywhere else, that is, smoking to-
bacco among the women. In that city the
women resort to the public gardens and parks
and spend much of their time in gossip. and
smoking what they call " huble-buble," ;" that is
they make the smoke pass through water Our
guide said all women in Damascus smoked-bis
wife smoked, and be wanted to sell her. When
it was suggested that they had better be at home
to get meals and the like for their husbands he
shrugged his shoulders, saying, "they did not
want it, for if they have piece of bread and
litfle OIL it is all they want" They never eat
together.