The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1883-02-08
Turkish Harem Life.

| the women. This division exists in
the palaces of the sultan as well as in
the houses of the simple artisan. In
public carriages, tramwayS or trains
women have their reserved places.
protected by curtain from the gaze
of the people. The thousands of wo-
men who are in the haremS of the
sultan and of the princes of the impe-
rial family are all slaves. There is
not a single rich or well-to-do family
in Turkey that does not possess Il GER
tain number of women and girl slaves.
There are black and white slaves; the
| former from central Africa and MI
bia; the latter are CircasSians, sold by
| their parents. This latter commerce
is altogether free. AS to the COM
MERGE of the negreSses, it is under the
surveillance of the different cOnsulates
and more especially of that of England.
The white slaves were formerly
| bought in Georgia and CircaSSa. Rus
| STA, since she has conquered Circassia.
has prohibited this commerce: but
many families have emigrated to Tur-
key, and they bring up several young
girls to sell them as slaves. There are
no longer public markets for slaves.
|
rs formerly at the bazaar, but there
are houses known by the authorities
| where they are exposed for sale.
| Children of some years old are sold by
! Circassian families; the price varies
according to the beauty of the chill
dren, from some hundreds to thou
sands of pastries. In an ordinary
| time girls of fifteen or sixteen, and
| h. FIN
| about Il hundred thousand pastries,
over thousand pounds. The ugly
women are employed for domestic
work, while those who are pretty are
taught to sing, dance and write,
The question OF slavery is well IN
derstood by the different embassies at
Constantinople. Ambassadors wives
visit the haTems of the sultan, or pa
shas and beys. They pass whole
day there sometimes, breakfasting
and dining in the harems, being wait
ed upon by slaves. Often on the very
day that their wives are visiting the
harems, the ambassadors send in a
protest against slavery, having noted
the arrival of ship full of black
slaves from Africa. AS to the hun
dredS of thousands of white slaves
who make up the harems, nothing is
said of these. This slavery is one Of
the sources of the decline of Turkey
The law authorizes every Turk TO
marry four wives, and to have as
many concubines as his purse will al
low him. The sultans, having re-
nounced political marriages with
Christians and with daughters of
their subjects, only live with
slaves. Those slaves who become
mothers are raised to the rank of
cadine, but never to the rank of wife,
for the sultan does not marry. In his
/ quality of khalife, he is too much
above Il slave TO contract a marriage
| with her. Abdul Hamid has four ca
dimes. Besides, the Sultan Abdul
Hamid has, according TO custom, for
his attendants, forty young girls
chosen from among the most beauti-
fui. They dress aud undreSs him and
accompany him To the battr; the e.
dine who diSpleiseS most is depOsed.
| These bridesmaids bear the name Of
''oda-lisqueS, or "Odaleuk" in Turkish.
Those that become favorites with the
sultan are called 'ikbal." The other
| slaves of the palace perform all inte-
rior duty; some are trained to dance
and form a corps de ballet; others to
sing, who are kept for that purpose
only. Cooking is generally performed
by men in Turkey, at the palace as
well us in private houses the cooks are
for the most part Armeniahs. The
| Sultan Abdul Hamid is too fond of
the harem, like his brother the ex-
Sultan MOur3d, and Ike his father,
I - Naf. 4
As to the princess of Tie imperial
! family, custom gives then the power
Of choosing their ON husbands
! They often go out an carriages, aud
walk ont; they - IS have every OppOT-
tunity of sci .,ng husband, who is
| generally leaking, yonng "bey' OF
good family. Very often the youth
learns his fate when it is decided that
he is to marry princess. When the
princess has selected some one she in
forms the mother of the sultan, and
the latter informs her son. The
young "bey" is not always pleased, but
he must pretend to be so; if he shows
any signs of displeaSure he is exiled
and his family ruined. From the
very moment that a young man is Sc
lected by princess, his life cannot be
called his own. He is raised to high
rank, in the army generally, as Turk
ish princess have weakness for uni
forms; but he must be very careful in
his behavior, for all his actions are
noticed up to his marriage,
which takes place several
months, sometimes two years,
afterwards. A young man of seven
teen was chosen by a princess, and he
was made general of division. Three
days after he paid too much attention
to a young girl, and for having done
so he was degraded. He left the eoun-
try and lived in Paris. On his return
to Constantinople he was so badly re-
ceived by every one that he started for
Egypt, and would not now return to
COnstantinople for worlds.
The gardens of the harems are pro-
tected by walls raised to great
height. The doors of the harem, as
well as those of the selamilk, are never
locked. In the daytime no beds are to
be seen; they are only got ready at
night. The bed is most simple-a
mattress laid on the floor, and two
sheets and a pillow. The next morn
ing these things are placed in room
on purpose; there are no cupboards of
any sort. The general aspect of the
harem is triste, there being nothing to
relieve the eye. The sons of pashas.
beys and effendis marry young. Liv-
ing in the harem in their infancy.
when they are fourteen years old they
demand an odalisque, who is, gener-
ally speaking, slave from the harem
of their father. The young girl at
once is freed from all want, dressed in
the choicest of dresses, and, should
she later on give birth to child, she
becomes a "hamoum." If, on the con-
trary, she has no child, she is sold
again at a loss to the original owner.
The young man takes another slave,
and continues doing so till he be-
comes father. The wife of pasha
has the title of hamoum effendi. Her
authority in the harem is great, al
most absolute. The master of a
house, pasha, hey or effendl, and his
ceildren are, like the sultan, served by
slaves, who attend them while they
take their baths. and render all man.
ner of other service.
The child of slave has share in
the fortune of its father. Infanticide
IS no way punished in Turkey, though
there are thousands of cases in the
country. Out of twenty marriages in
Turkey fourteen are made with slaves
and the other six with free daughters
of Mussulmans. 1t is somewhat rare
| to find hamoum who is able to read
well; they. for the most part. know