Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1885-09-11
TOWARD THE SUNRISE.
Eastern Customs and Peculiarities-The
Mohanmedan Professionalism News
papers, Etc.
TREBIzOND, August, 1855.


papers, Etc.
TREBIzoND, August, 1885.
To the Editor of the Free Press and Times:
Twenty-Five years ago, Ramazan, the
Mohammedan month of fasting, began in
February and ended in March. AS the
Mohammedan year is shorter by about
eleven days than the Julian year, this
month has been slowly creeping back
through the months of winter, of autumn
and of summer, until, this year, it began
in June and ended in July Thus the
Mohammedan year has gained eight
months in twenty-five years. That is,
each thirty-three years of our calendar
counts thirty four in the Mohammedan
calendar. The Ilegira occurred in \. ID.
622, 1903 years ago, but the Mohammedan
reckoning gives nearly 1903 years-a gain,
during this period, of forty years.
The fast of RamaZan consists in alb
staining from all food or drink between
the hours of sunrise and sunset each day.
Nor may one smoke cigarette, and many
cOnstrue the fast so rigdly that they will
not even smell flower. During the
short days of the year this fast Is com
paratiNely easy to carry, but while it is
as now, passing the longest days of the
year, 1t Is very severe. Those who have
little to do can manage to tide the days
along, but the poor who must work each
day if they would have bread to eat, find
the fast no trllling burden. Many times
while riding along the road | have been
hailed by laborerS in the field and asked
how long it was to sunset. They are sui.
ferng more from thirst than from hunger
Hunger may be slightly appeased by
drawing the girdle little tighter, but no
external treatment can assuage the paugs
of thirst.
At sunset a cannon is fired, and you
may then see each one Fastening to salts
fy his great craving. One lights his Gig
arctic, another drinks II cup of water,
another begins to satisfy his hunger,
which for sixteen hours has grown more
and more ravenous. During the night
there is no restriction as to the quantity
or kind of food or drink. Some two
hours before sunrise another gun is fired
(tO the great annoyance of those that
have no interest in the fast and the faith
full rise to prepare the morning meal that
is to carry them through the many long
hot hours of another day of abstinence.
Children under seven years of age and
travellers are free from the laws of the
fast. If the joys of Heaven can he pur-
chased by bodily torment, certainly the
Moslems stand Il good chance of reaching
Paradise.
After Ramazan comes Bairam, rs Easter
/ follows Lent. This Is entered in with the
! firing of guns, which is kept up for three
days at each OF the five hours of PRAYER
Ihal Is at dawn, ut noon, i'll the middle
OF the afternoon, at sunset, and one and
and one han hours after sunset, guns are
/ discharged twenty or twenty-five times
| All the minarcts and many of the houses
/ ana pubic buildings are illuminated
! rockets and other fireworks are sci off
/ the Muslcm population come out in then
best clothes, visits are made back and
forth, and the public parks are filled with
gally dressed people enjoying various
sports and games. Then after the strain
OF the fast, and the relaxation of the les
tiNal, the people settle down to their or
binary course of life.
The extreme Inconvenience of the Mo
hammedan reckoning in all transaction,
with Christians led Sultan MahmOud
some fifty years ago to fix IL financial veal
beginning with March |, o. :, or Marci
49, y. =, the months corresponding t,
those Of the Julian year. There are
therefore, two MOhammedan dates, tn,
financial year 1901 having commenced last
/ March, while the religious year 1903 will
commence next October This was IA con
cessiun to Christian methods which,
lear, the present government would b,
/ glad to undo.
/ During the late operations in the Sou
dan the government forbade the news
papers of Turkey publishing any new
from that quarter, The reason for thi,
would seem to have been fear lest h,
people hearing of the successes of til,
Mahdi, should be led to acknowledge hin
Is khalltl, or succesSor of the prophet. :,
during The most exciting events of tn,
late campaign the people could get II,
news until papers arrived from abroad
And the free circulation of printed mat
ter from abroad the government is nov
trying To interrupt. The Tu..i . post
offices are obliged to pass over 10 the cen
sOrship all suspected books and pamph
lets. Lately the government has request
ed the foreign embassies to direct thei
postoilices to do so also. but this reques
mas not been granted.
Let me mention an incident to llustrat,
the inconvenience of these foreign post
offices. \ man was passing some book.
through the custom house in Con
stantlnople AS usual they were frs
submitted to the censorship. AL
were returned as harmless eX
cept Neander's Church History. which
was condemned and ordered to be de
stroyed. The man protested, and SAID h
should insist on the payment of the value
OF the book if it were destroyed Thu
led the censor to agree to "A compromise
lie consented TO return the book if i
should be sent out of the country. Thi
was agreed to, but the censor, to maxi
sure that the incendiary book really 90
out OF the country, sent man to see tina
1t was actually delivered on board al
English steamer consigned to parties II
Liverpool, In due time the book cam,
back TO Turkey III the English mail bag
ana Is now dong It's reasonable work OF
Turkish soil
y few days ago IA gentleman visitec
Cohstantinople, having in his possession
copy OF brief history of the Ottoman
Empire, published by the London Relig
ious Tract society. The book was imme
diately conliscated. a friend of this gen
tleman who had copy of the same book
lelt obliged to send 1t out of the countr,
by the French post If these toreigi
Offices were suppressed or at all restricted
we should have poor chance indeed.
Last year the Eastern ErprcSS, pub
llshed in ConstantinOple, endeavored b,
well meant and judcious comments anc
CRITICISMS to have some influence in bring
ing about reforms. But although it,
suggestions were buried in prOfusion o
professions of confidence in the intelli
gence and enlightened views of the GOV
eminent still the paper fell under the dis
laNor OF the censorship and was suspend
Ell Tor some SIX months. When the pape
started again, it submitted its articles I,
the censorship in proof and when tn