Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-03-21
pERylsHEs OF TIE EAST.
Holy Mendicants of Persia-Loathsolno
 Beggars of India and China.

The most interesting class of mendicants in Persia, and probably in the whole world, are the dervishes. These weird members of the mendcant fraternity are met with all over Persia, on the roads, in the villages and the cities. Their usual dress is the skin of some wild animal. preferably tiger skin, thrown careessly about their shoulders, and a pair of white cotton pantalettes. If the dervish cannot obtain tiger skin, he will, as the next best choice, secure the skin Of leopard or panther, or even the hide of deer or an- telope. In addition to this striking make up he carries huge spiked club or small battle ax, and an aims holder made from an oblong gourd shell or the outer shell of a cocoanut. Thus fantastically and even ferociously ar rayed, the dervish stalks through the thronged bazars of Persian city, shouting out, 'Hakk, yah hakkr' and thrusting his aims holder right and left among the people.
 The dervishes are regarded as holy mendi- cants by the common people, and spend the greater portion of their lives in wandering about from one distant Central Asian city to another. They might, perhaps, aptly be compared to the wandering friars of Eng land and Europe 800 years ago. Everybody regards it as lucky, as well as meritorious, to give aims to the dervishes. The average Persian gives a tenth part of his Income away in aims to beggars, the greater part of which goes to able bodied men and dervishes who are we'll able to work for their own living.
 In India begging is discouraged as far as possible by the British authorities, and meas ures of relief similar to those in vogue among western nations have been introduced. Among a teeming population of POO, 900 GOO Orientals, however, any sweeping change in such time honored profession as mendicancy is question of time, and not to be easily ef- fected Beggary is far from being so com- mon as it is either in Turkey or Persia. There is a recognized mendicant caste in India, known as faquirs. The faquirs are regarded as eminently holy, and subsst upon the char ity of the people. Like the Persian der wishes, they wander about all over the coun- try, spending most of their lives making long pilgrimages to various holy shrines. The Indian faquir is loathsome looking creat- ure, with long black hair matted about his head and shoulders with an accumulation of filth. and he generally plasters his body with mud. His sole raiment is calico waist clout, and his face is fantastically streaked with red paint.
 As might be expected, the most abominable specimens of the mendicant fraternity are to be found in China. The loathsome appear ance of the Chinese professional beggar is beyond the powers of description. All sorts of horrible deformities are voluntarily en- dured to work upon the sympathy of the people. Eyes are blinded, faces mutilated, and limbs twisted. All that is done in the way of mutilation by the authorities of Per- sia in the punishment of criminalsis is inflicted by Chinese mendicants upon their own off spring as tricks of their profession. Horribly misshaped victims of this atrocious custom are encountered at the gates of Chinese cities and in the estreets.-Thomas Stevens in Inter Ocean