Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1882-08-05
AN EGYPTIAN CITY.
The Scene of the Late Outrages-The
City of Tantah.

Tantah, the scene of the latest Egyp-
tian massacres, scarcely less fiendish in
their cruelty than those of Alexandria,
is the capital of the Gorbeeyeh provinces
in the Delta. The city is 81 miles uorth
of Cairo, on the Cairo and Alexandria
Railroad, and is the third city in Egypt.
Its population is variously estimated at
from 10000 to 100000 souls. In the
military operations doubtless soon to
follow, Tantah will become an important
strategical point, and rallying centre
for the adherents of Arab, for this
unique city is the capital of religious
fanaticism in Lower Egypt. It's situa-
tlon in about the middle of the Delta
renders it easily accessible to those who
go there on the triennial religious pill
grimages to celebrate the birthplace of
great Moslem,saint, the Seyyid Ahmad
El-Bedawee. The greatest of these festi-
walls, which is near the end of the
Christian year, attracts more pilgrims
than any other in Egypt, and in this re-
spect is second only to the pilgrimage
to mecca. They are characterized by
debauchery, crime and riot, and exceed
in this respect the revelrles of Bubastis
and Canopus. Few Christians ever attend
the. mammoth gathering known among
the Franks as the "Tantah Fair" because
of the danger attending intercourse with
fanatics maddened with the potent Araki,
beverage brewed from rice. The
Herald correspondent visited one of
these great religious mobs, which, in
fine, is nothing more than Mohamme-
dan camp meeting, and being in Chris
tlan garb, without even the fez, he was
everywhere regarded with scowls of
hatred, gestures of defiance and words
of menace. 1t was singular spectacle
to be in the midst of one of those huge
assemblies, numbering as high as 3O0,-
600 souls, coming from every part of
Syria, Arabia, even India and Northern
Africa, and particularly at night by
their rude camp fires, beating on the
tom-tom, singing rude negro and Egyp-
tian chants, telling fortunes, with the
bowling dervishes sending forth the
most hideous and r-rending howls
while whirling in their maddening tes-
timony of fealty to the Moslem God. 1t
can be imagined that when sometimes
100000 strangers have thus gathered
on the plain of Tantah, with water by
no means plenty and with the modern
Egyptian by no means disposed to use
1t, that cleanliness would not be a pre-
vailing virtue. In fact, it is doubtful if
any camp city was ever the theatre of SO
much general and personal filth, with
all of its consequences, as the chief pill
grimage in honor of the patron saint of
Tantah.
As consequence epidemic and con-
tagious fevers spread NIL over the Delta
provinces are carried by rail to Cairo,
Alexandria and Suez, and large NOR
tality ensues, for the modern Egyptian
and the Bedouin are the most helpless
of mortals when sick. Members of their
medical profession would scarcely be
allowed to treat swine in America and
the natives have great reluctance, on
account of religious scruples, to being
treated by a Christian. The Herald
correspondent, however, on the occasion
of one of the great feasts, was careful to
have with him his medicine chest-not
an insignificant affair either, for ii was
prepared by DR.. Grant, the English
physician to the Khedive, with elaborate
instructions. This was a companion in
travel as much for self-protection as it
was to obtain a useful popularity among
the natives for medical science-a very
easily acquired reputation in Egypt. 1t
was discovered in endeavoring to treat
many of the ordinary Affections engen-
dered by such close and filthy COM
munion that they were temporarily
cured only to recur. 1t is this Moham-
medan business of pilgrimages which
gives rise and has caused, time out of
mind, the great pestilences sweeping
over the earth from the neighborhoods
Of Medina, Mecca, Tantah and other
holy cities, eventually following the
water courses and routes of travel and
sending the messenger of death to the
capitals of Western Europe as in ''the
Black Death" which made so much
havoc in Paris in 1S4S.