Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-12-27
The JeMesses Of Tnnis

&c wish AlAC IN uulS II S0mel0lnG quite
novel to most of US. Everything about
1t Is original. singular, fantastic; and my
own astonlshment at 1t all causes much
establishment to the Europeans of Tunis.
However, when 1 questioned my Euro
pean friends closely / find that during
the first year of their sojourn here they
were quite as much astonished as l am
now, and that they only became accus-
toned to the sight of the Jewesses and
their strange existence here, after con-
siderable lapse of time.
Yesterday being Saturday, the Sab.
bath, was able to see all the Jewry of
Tunis In procession.
1t was half-past eight o'clock. The
military officers who come to Tunis from
the French camps at Manouba, Fernand,
Carthage and elsewhere, were dining at
the Grand Hotel" 1t was worth while
to see the admiration of the Jewesses
passing before the lighted windows of
the restaurant. They walked along
looking like big German dolls in groups
of four or five. A Jew, father, brother,
or Observation-Disclosures accompanied them.
Between one and two hundred little
troops OF this sort passed by.
There were women of thirty, twenty
and sixteen years old, and girls of from
ten to twelve years, all dressed in pink,
green, yellow or blue silk, with pointed
caps, heavy lace ruffs about their full
necks, their golden leggings about their
legs, their plump cheeks and big eyes,
their pantaloons and gilded slippers
dazzling and astonishing the French
officers, almost as much as they them
selves were astOnished at the sight of the
French.
Such is the lamentable ignorance of
this Jewish population, that both the
women and men imagine we have lust
conquered all Africa, and have come to
deliver them from the infamous subiec-
ton In which they are kept by the Mus
sulmans.
The little girls who accompany their
mothers or sisters upon these Sabbath
pIomenades are generally very pretty
They have not had the time to become
fattened and deformed through the
stupid custom of examining them with
fattening food previous to marriage.
They have beautiful black melancholy
eyes. Their skin is slightly olivaceous,
their complexion without healthy color,
their hair black as jet. Their toilet is
very simple, a close-ftting pair of
drawers and little shirt of pink or
jonquil silk. Their department in
spite of this bayadere costume is very
modest and humble, without affecta-
ton.
\
One of the most curious examples of
the infantile credulity of these Jewesses
always comes back to my mind when
speak of them.
1t was only recently one of my &C.
quaintances, an old resident of Tunis.
conceived the idea of plotting a newly
arrived relative-a French Captain of
artillery-through the labyrinths of the
Jewish quarter.
This promenade is an astonishing ex-
perience. Whether taken by day or by
night, it always astounds a European.
At the latticed windows of every little
house appears a multitude of faces with
curved noses Men. women and children
all crowd to the windows to see the
Frenchmen passing by.
In the tOrtuous by-streets of Oriental
cities 1t is no easy matter to walk three
abreast When even two men walk to-
gether they seem like an escort following
some one in advance
My friend and his Captain thus pro.
ceeded through the narrow streets and
alleys of the Jewish quarter. Imme-
diately they appeared hosts of boys and
girls, old men with white boards and fat
matrOns in wrappers of silk and shot
gold stuffs, rushed into the streets to kiss
the hands and the coat hens of the ar
tillery officer. At first ne was simply
surprised, then charmed with the novelty
of the situation; for among the multi
tude swarming about him there were
two or three exceedingly pretty women
who gszed upon him with inexpressible
tenderness. They pulled him by his
wide pantaloOns and laced coat in the
effort to induce him to enter their houses,
Everybody was struggling to obtain
possession of him-to make him accept
hospitality
At first he resisted. But his obliging
cicerOne having declared in Arabic that
the officer was none other than the En-
perOr of the French in person, the en-
thusiasm changed into a positive deliri-
UNI. At least three hundred Jewesses
thronged about the Captain. Husbands
pushed their wives forward through the
press that he might kiss them and finally
Jew of high importance, who spoke
louder than the rest, and was evidently
rich parsonage, took the Captain by the
hand, pushed the crowd aside, and
brought the French officer into his
house, which happened to be imme
mediately opposite the scene of the &C.
currence.
There our two Frenchmen finally
found an opportunity to sit down. The
famlly-consisting of the father, mother,
two young girls and little boy, delight
| eddy surrounded them, and actually went
on their knees, the better to study the
eyes, nose and mOustache of the false
Emperor.
The father made an address in the
Arabic tongue to the young officer, who
replied very gravely through the medium
of his cicerone, who could not avoid
laughing like fool. But this boisterous
merriment did not intimldate the I'M
fortunate Jews. Proud of having the
Emperor of the French for a guest,
they overwhelmed him with car
esses. The mother kissed his hands I'M
ceasinglY.
One of the young girls looked at him
so lovingly that the Captain kissed her,
which gave much pleasure to all present
more especially to the young girl, and
also to the Captain.
Suddenly the officer smiled most
diabolical smile. A farcical idea had
suddenly occurred to him. Having
heard it said that among the Jews a
couple are always considered betrothed
when they kiss each other while pro-
nouncing a certain sacramental word,
the Captain kissed the young Jewess
again very lovingly, whispering in her
ear the sacramental word aforesaid.
Tableaul
The young girl turned pale and fell
fainting into the mothers arms. The
father pressed the soldier to his heart.
the other daughter flung her arms about
his neck; the little boy climbed upon his
back; the mother cried with delight
willis sprinkling water upon her daugh-
ter's face, who also wept tears of Joy
upon coming 10 herself. The officer saw
that he had gone too far, and regretted
his folly; but it was too late. The
betrothal was strictly formal in all its
details.
He and his friend took leave of his
future father-in-law and future wife.
Thus it happens that young Rachel still
remains the courageous, resigned, and
patient betrOthed of the Emperor of the
French.
The young girl will indeed wait long
e. Il E~s1