Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1886-06-18

Tevfik Pasha's joke,

|. new YORK Mail and Express.
Tevfik Pasha, Turkish Minister at
Washington, is not q turbaned Turk.
but all the same a Mohammedan from
way back. He is short in stature,
somewhat stopped from age, has re-:
treating forehead, blue eyes, and gray
whiskers. A writer for the Mail and
Express had a pleasant chat with him
and managed to extract g. little ORR
entail joke, the third one he has relat-
ed since he became a diplomat
"The war between Turkey and
Greece?" he queried, in response to
question. Il don't know anyt hing
about it only what see in the pa pers.
nave no idea what Greece wants, and
as haven't even any private advices
on the subject. must ask to be excused
from discussing the outlook.
IL suppose you know all about the
harem. For it seems the duty OF ev-
cry European who travels in Turkey
to write about the harem, and ignore
the real progress OF the country. Half
OF these writer's, though, don't know
what harem is. 1t may mean Mad
anne so and so, or Mesdames so and
so, and that is ALL"
SIS it not place where a husband
keeps his wives?'
"A husband keeps his wife or wives
in his house, as rule, or in separate
establishment. The Mohammedan
religion permits only four wives, and
those under certain conditions, regu-
lated by the Khoranic laws. Il the
first wife objects the husband can not
bring a second wife under the same
roof, indeed, he cannot marry anoth-
er at all unless he is amply able to
keep separate establishment. The
law gives the right to have her hus-
band dragged before the courts if he
violates that rule, and he is dealt with
accordingly. Plural wives are not uni
versal among the Turks. I haven't A.
single friend in Constantinople, and
have a good many, who has more
than one wife. I am told that in Ash
attic Turkey the custom OF plural
wives among the peasantry is very
common. The first wife, who works
in the field with her husband, urges
him to marry a second, third, and
frequently fourth wife, in order to
have more assistance in tilling the
farm. These women, too, are great
company for each other, and help TO
Tighten the common daily burdens.
at is the belief among the Moham-
medans that if early prayers are said
forty mornings in succession at the
mosque before any one else arrives,
the person SO doing shall have good
luck and prosperity. There was
poor man in Constantinople who was
the picture Of bad luck and IMPROVE
dence. Every morning early he re-
paired to the great Mosque OF St.
Sophia and invariably found some
one ahead Of him, thus breaking the
charm. One morning, as usual, he
discovered the earlier devotee, and, as
he proved to be the same one all the
time, he thus spoke: MY friend, lam
poor, and need good luck. For many
mornings I have come hither to pray,
each time earlier than before. Give
me q chance, tell me how you get here
earlier than every day To which
the early devotee replied Ihave two
wives. When awake in the morning
one brings me my slippers, the other
my ablution bowl, and by these wives
attending to my wants together am
enabled to be off earlier for prayers
than if had only one WIFE The poor
man resolved to profit by the advice.
He got him another wife, and in a. few
day discovered the real secret of the
early devotee, viz, the war between
the two women made very early morn
ing prayers at the mosque q blessing"