Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-04-13
Marriage in STEAMBOAT.

Without intelligent sympathy at home,
forbidden all amusement and diversion
out of doors, ignorant of boyish sports,
even of riding, probably, the Turkish
lad falls into dissipation. For any kind
of vice he finds liberty enough at Siam
boul. No Christian have l ever met so
bold, even in Imagination, as to draw a
picture of the dark places in that city.
But several of these educated youths
have assured me that the luxurious
temptations of immortality in Stamboul
not Pera nor Galata-are unequaled
in their not inconsiderable experience of
Europe.
The state of society was revealed to
me with rather startling force one day.
l called upon young MahOmedan
whose English education has made him
one of ourselves in all respects saving
that it has not shaken his religious
faith. He held in his arms a lovely
child of two years old or so, who
screamed with passion. A small Cir
cassian boy, fair haired, blue eyed, was
trying to distract her, but the appari-
ton of the ssChelebi' was more success
full.
The children were presently dismissed
to the harem, and my friend observed.
ST dread to think of that boys de-
parture. My baby has the temper of a
little fiend, and only he can manage
herr
Knowing the small Circassian to be a
slave, / asked why he was leaving.
az must send him to Robert College
soon, was the reply, ''and get another
playfellow for the child
Robert College is the American school
where so many middte-class youths are
being educated-wel educated, too,
though perhaps the training is not in all
respects the best. al r. .l3t 80
L said: tThe kindness of your people
toward their slaves is well known to me,
but I did not think it ran so far as to pay
their expenses at college,"
He answered, laughing: "Not as
rule, of course. But my intention is to
marry those two if Ahmet turns out well.
He is clever and well-disposed. The
missionaries will keep him honest, 1
hope"
This was such a novel view of the re-
lations between bondslave and mistress,
that discussed the matter at length
several times.
MY friend told me that such matches,
never rare in Turkey, are now quite
usual. The state Of morals is such in
STEAMBOAT that parents do not willingly
take daughter or son-in-law from
families of their own rank. They dis
trust all the world. 1t has lately be-
come a common thing to choose slave,
boy or girl, to grow up under their eyes.
The first expense averages, perhaps,
forty pounds, and the female child costs
littlea She is taught truthfulness and
virtue, fine sewing, the mysteries of
scoffee-making and filling pipe-the
arts of very simple housewife. A boy
isvastly more expensive, as in this case
he must be sent to school, launched
upon some kind of employment, and
provided for until the parents are salts
fed that he will make their child hap
py. Then the pair are married and. the
ex-slave becomes of member of the
family, though that makes little change
10 him. st
NY Moslem friend is on such terms
with nae that speak of his wife almost
as freely as I should speak of Chris
tian's. Remember that he was brought
up In England and speaks the language
as well as we. MANY readers acquaint-