Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1888-07-20
A WEDDING In TIE DESERT.
The Brides Lack of ESthusiasm-Horse-
manship-At the Feast.

The Brides Lack of ESthusiasm-Horse-
manship-At the Feast.
had the good fortune to see grand Arab
wedding. The caid hal planned the mar
riage Of his daughter to 8 sheik-frankly one
of the uglies5 men | had ever seen-who was
already the possessor of four wives. From
what whispers could be heard from the mys-
FERROUS recesses of the harem, the bride was
lovely girl of A. her repugnance having de-
layed the marriage some ten days. After
the ceremaay, while the bride was being con-
veyed to the bridegroom's home in a sort of
lhowdah Of brocaded silk her cries and lamen-
tations could plainly be heard above the din
of the pistols and matchlocks and the voices
of some thirty maidens, who, surrounding
the camel that bore her, gave utterance to a
strange noise made by tapping the mouth
with the open hand while crying out, the
effect produced being somewhat like the cry
of an Indian.
These maidens had on this occasion yash-
maks made mostly of light green gauze stud
ded with golden stars, which partly concealed
the faces of some of the loveliest women and
girls. Their eyes, indeed, equaled those of
the gazelle, but seemed to have mournful
vacancy and to be anything but windows of
the soul. Arab etiquette prevented me from
advancing too near. What with the en-
broidery, the gold and the colored garments,
lit made up whole of a bizarre but most
striking effect. On went the procession to
make tour on the desert, surrounded by the
frenzied band OF relatives, while the mar
riage feast-kids and sheep roasted whole
was being cooked. On their return prepara-
Itions were being made for what I had so
much longed to see, the celebrated ''fantasie
iarabe."
Imagine about forty Arabs, superbly
mounted and armed, casting aside the bur-
moose of every day to appear in their holiday
Jackets of every hue and texture imaginable:
horse housings of velvet and gold, with tas-
sels and embroidery everywhere; the heels of
their long red leather boots decked with the
Arab spur, five inches long, which is really
only an ornament; flashing arms, a long gun,
two long carved daggers a brace Of pistols
attached to cord round the neck, SO that
they can be flung over the shoulder after be-
Hng discharged, long sword, damaskened
with gold, fastened to the saddle bow-in
such gulse they career headlong at a great
burst of speed, the rein held loosely by the
Little finger, using gun, pistols and sword in
turn, in mimic warfare. Cries of defiance
arise from the men, and loud appreciation
from the women, as some skillful cavalier
performs some more daring feat than any Of |
his comrades, till finally, amid a whirlwind |
OF dust, horses and men, half mad with ex- |
citement, stop by degrees from the sheer VIC |
lence of their exertions.
(. AT the feast was placed beside the caid. |
who looked approvingly at me as squatted |
down cross legged and followed the others in
tearing, strip by strip, the meat from the |
steaming animal. As bonnie bouche my
host crammed his hand down the animals
throat, tearing out the tongue and sharing
1T with me. After sundry dishes, highly
spiced with pirnento and pepper, there came
the CONSCIOUS, the great national dish that is
eaten every day. 1t is taken by the hand
land thrown into the mouth. We finished
with dates, sweetmeats and coffee of deli
cious flavor. Their manner Of preparing the
beverage is, after roasting the berry and
beating it into powder, to put it into tin
pot with water enough for one; after being
made to boil, it is served, grounds and ali,
but the aroma is perfection.-E. P. Sangui-
netti in Harper's Magazine. {