The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1890-07-09
TOOK A TURKISH BATH.
A Novce,s VIEWS OF THE MYs-
reRles OF THE INSTITUTION.

y.,oa Him. Froze Him, steamed
Him. Drowned Him, Beat la" ana
r,, n,hbed His Bruises with OIL.
H., II. WA. Clean and Hungry
Tho man who had never taken Turkish
- ia the reason he had tarried so long
90 because he did not want TO expose
himself to the scorn Of the attendants, VINO
,,orid discover at once By his mistakes
that he was hovice But II ms friend
,vonld promise 10 steer him against the
,or,e he said. and instruct him, so that he
would not expose his ignorance, ne would
GO willingly rrcGgh. a man behind desk
at the door took Sl.25 of his money ana
cave him a ticket, a rubber ring with Two
Ievs attached and an envelope, His guide
ran HE hand through thc rutbcr ring rs
tboroh II were a bracelet. put his watch and
monev in the envelope, wrote his name on
n and gave it to the clerk and then started
of with the green ticket 4I4r.
The heavy curtains behind led INTO
dsrkened. ornately furnished and warmly
heated hall, with doors opening into 1t on
every side and doors opening out on an
oriental balcony that ran around 1t. 1t
was Uttered with q great many leather
sofas. on which were stretched a halt dozen
men I'm different attitudes OF repose or ex-
haustion. They were wrapped III long
white cloths.
THE WARM ROOM.
The attendant unlocked one oil the doors
onenina into the hall and showed a dress
inc room. into which the novice disap-
nesred TO come forth clothed in long ana
LIGHT stir Of linen and his rubber bangle
His guide led the way before him dow1
stairs through a barber shop and down al
inclined place heavily carpeted. IL was
very silent and very dark.
At the foot Of the inclined and carpeted
nlane the debutant stepped into. a big
marble. pasly colored and tiled hall, with
a deep tank Of green water sunk III the
center and surrounded by brass rails lie
saw all this dimly through a mist Of steam
that brought the perspiration to the sur
face OF his skin ,rith rush ard made him
gasp and feel dizzy. He was quite sure
that he would faint if he did not get back
10 the fresh air, or be seized with nausea,
or fall over, or stihe, or do something
eoually foolish and he tried TO hear what
his guide was saying and failed.
His guide seemed as much at home IN the
atmosphere of the place as though he were
on Broadway, and led him around to a row
of steamer chairs that were hot 10 the
touch. The debutant was still afraid to
breathe. and painted and glared around him
helpessly, while his head seemed to be
splitting in different parts, and his ears
were ringing and tlngling. DO you want
10 90 into fhe warm room on stay here! he
heard his guide ask politely.
"Intothe whst-the warm roomy gasped
the victim. Great Scott! what do you call
thisf" he asked pointing pathetically at
the redness Of his skin and the streaming
Precipitation,
ooh, this isn't anything" said the guide,
jumping up and stalking off into a smaller
marble lined room filed with hot, dry
steam. This is the Russian bath, shout
ed the guide; for the novice still found 1t
difficult to understand.
T-am-going- to-haye-a-fit" gasp
ed the novice. "I-want-tO-get-out."
The man who had been there before
pulled the chain of a shower bath and told
the novice to put his head uIrler it. The
water that fell was gratefully cold and the
novice held his head in the waterfall and
breathed freely and long. This made him
feel better, and when he stepped back into
the warm room again II did not seem so bad
lie lay down in the steamer chair and
watched the heat wash away about three
pounds of him with a novel and delighted
interest. Then his guide took up the line
of march and signifed that he was TO fol
low fat attendant with biceps like prize
fighter. who led him into a room with a
marble slab in it and a shower bath. There
was no one to direct him now his friend
was locked up with another determined
looking prize fighter in the next room, and
the novice felt very nervous and inclined
to give the whole thing up and 20 home.
IN THE PUGILIsT's HANDS.
But his own particular pugilist decided
the matter for him by pressing him down
ON the marble slab like a sacrillcial otler
ing on an altar and began pounding him
with a wet catcher's glove. He alternated
this treatment by rubbing the bather's
skin the wrong way with his closed fist,
and hitting each particular muscle rap
with the palm Of his hand The only sat
isfaction the novice had was IN listening
TO the whacks the other prize fighter was
giving his guide in the next room. He felt
that he was in part avenged. When his
own body had been reduced to pulp the
attendant lathered him over with a'soapy
substance that got in his eyes and mouth
and made him blind and i'll. The attend
ant removed this with hard brush, which
he passed over the novice's body as deli
cately as a sailor swabs up the deck OF a
man-of-war. Then he stood him up under
a shower bath and dropped a ton OF ice
water over his nervous system.
The attendant gave him about five min
utes 10 recover in the tank, around which
he swan or floated heavily with the con
viction that he was so clean that the very
sunshine would show darkly on his face.
Then he was dried off and laid out again
on another slab covered with leather, and
the pugilst had little more fun with him,
and kneaded and thumped and pounded
him and rubbed alcohol over him, and then
v-rapped him I'm cool white winding sheet
and led him upstairs TO one Of the leather
covered sofas. where he was enycloped in
another light covering and allowed TO go
TO sleep after he had tipped the prize fighter
for having reduced him to helpless sem
blance Of a man. The principal thing that
seemed benefited by this initiation was his
appetite for that night he sat down to a
fat, large, expensive dinner and asked for
1.-TWO goes OF soup."-New York Evening
Sun.