Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-16

ends, and her little world is henceforth cir
cumscribed by the four walls of her home,
which is sometimes pleasant and sometimes
otherwise. And yet the men think their
system infinitely preferable to ours. Gas a
rule our women don't work as yours do;
they only sit at home and do nothing" our
dragoman said to us; while another drago-
man, who had lived in England, and was
quite English in his language and appear
ance, told us that he had heard that in
America the women ruled the men, and
when assured that this was so, he very
grayely remarked, 81 think that is very
narsty;" a sentiment warmly applauded by
the male portion of our party!
| This dragoman was very proud and very
fond of his wife, for whom he had given EGO,
and whom he liked at first sight She was
fair-haired and blue-eyed, and, with the ex-
ception OF her veil, dressed much like Amer
leans. She has pretty home, with Nubian
slave to wait upon her, and no troublesome
mother-in-law to worry and annoy her, so
that her lot is cast in pleasant places. But
where there is one like her there are many
more whose lives are in the shadow where
no sunlight falls, and where, year by year,
the burden presses more and more heavily,
until at 3O and even before, they are so old
and haggish in appearance that wearing a
veil to hide their faces seems but mockery,
for surely no man could care to look upon
it. Indeed, the story is told of saucy
American that he gave woman a franc to
uncover her face, and then instantly offered
her two to cover it again
FAMOUS DANCING GIRLS.
The dancing girls OF Luxor are so famous
that when at Luxor we had an opportunity
to see them, our party at once availed them
selves of it and started for the show en-
masse, the ladies little doubtful as to the
Proprlety of the thing, and the gentlemen
with their opera glasses as if expecting a
ballet. But it was nothing of the sort, and
could hardly be called dance at all. There
were only four girls, and with an old
woman who attended them they were SIT
ting on the floor when we entered the room.
Their dresses were long and loose like
Mother Hubbards, and their steps slow and
measured like the dismal music of the
string band and castanets to which they
kept time. The strange part of it was the
violent contortions of their bodies so won
derful as to excite our suspicious of some
electrical machine under their gowns But
we were convinced to the contrary and told
that the weird, serpent-like motions were
the result Of long and patient train
ing, as was the skill to balance lighted can
dies in bottles on their heads while bowing
to each other and rolling over and over on
the floor from one end of the room to the
other.
The wealthy Egyptians frequently hire
these girls to entertain their guests when
giving series of entertainments, and some
times keep them for days. But the dance is
rather monotonous, and should not care to
see it repeated. The costumes of the girls
were simple and plain, although, as a rule,
Egyptian women are fond of dress and Jew
elry, and one handsome, dark-eyed slave
girl whom saw in Assouan was gorgeous
in velvet and lace, with heavy gold brace
lets and earrings and chains, and silver
bands around her ankles, as badge of her
condition. These anklets New York lady
bought of the woman's master, who seemed
very proud of his beautiful chattel.
WELL DRESSED WOMEN.
Silk is much worn by even the middle
classes and it is not uncommon in Cairo to
meet women riding upon donkeys Just as the
men ride, with their black silk mantles
drawn over their heads, their short silk
skirts entirely covering the donkey, and
both filled with wind and reminding one of
small inflated balloon. They are always
attended by one or Two boys or men, and are
very different from the poor, ragged, slip
shod woman carrying her baby with one
hand, and with the other holding basket
on her head and still managing to keep her |
dirty cotton veil, with its fastening, which
can only liken to a corkscrew, across her
nose, while her sad eyes look drearily at
you as if asking why she is so fettered and
you SO free.
But there is hope in the future for the |
poor Mohammedan women. The influx of |
English and Americans into Egypt is doing |
much to enlighten and educate, while the |
schools in Cairo and on the Nile are doing |
more, and long before those ibright-eyed 4
little girls, who. with their water jars, fol- |
lowed us so many weary miles across the |
burning sands, shall have grown into |
wretched old womanhood, / trust the year
of jubilee will have come and the Egyptian |
women stand as free as their fairer, happier
sisters MARY J. HOLMES.