St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-04-25
A FAIR EGYPTIAN BRIDE.
Almond Eyed, Rosy Checked
Supple, and Graceful of Form.

supple, ana graceful OF Form.
Hartford Courant.
1t was in the Barrage, the famous
bridge or double weir. the eastern part
spanning the Damietta and the western
the Rosetta branch of the Nile. 1t was
there that the late khedive built a lovely
palace and still more lovely garden.
which he, perhaps. graced with his
presence once in his life and left to de-
cay, just as all Egyptians have done
since the world begun, never renewing,
never reviving. but building, as a child
would build a toy house, to pull down
and begin another. An American en-
gineer, one of the half-doZen retained
in office, has charge of the bridge, and
it is he who walks under the shadow of
the palms and gathers the wild roses
and eats the golden oranges that, whether
or not, blossom and bear fruit in the de-
serted garden.
1t was from the balcony of his house,
part of the old palace. looking out OF
the beautiful, blooming country, the
green fields, the lovely, mysterious
river, that we saw a cavalcade approach
ing, and heard the sound of the lutte and
pipe. ut is fantasia" exclaimed our
host; fantasia meaning any fete or
fiesta. Down the long white road they
came, procession of horSemen on white
Arabian SteedS, the last man dressed in
handSomeSt raiment and bearing him.
self with the proud air of one upon
whom all eyes are fixed. Next to him
strobe a grO0med and caparSOned
camel, with rich blanket and an en-
brodered saddle, and after this another
camel with even more gorgeous trap
pings, who bore rich palanQuin. cur
tanned on every side with gold and Grim
son hangingS. Within sat the bride.
Following the bride were three other
camelS, on which were seated yelled
women. and then came train carrying
household furniture. bedding, stutfS,
chests, pots and pans, and ali the vari-
Gus appurtenanceS essential to house
keeping and furnishing in all Oriental
country.
1t was the brides coming to the hus-
bands house, the last day of the we'd
ding. and the conclusion of the seven
days feasting. III few hours he
would for the first time lift the yell and
see whether indeed what his mother
had told him is true; whether she is
Acknowledged and roSy-cheeked and sup
pie of limb and graceful of form:
whether she has a voice like The cooling
of dove. and is learned in the making
of bread and dakkah, for not one
glmpSe or her race, not one word from
her lips, has ever been vouchsafed him.
Poor fellow, Do those brilliant cur
tains shroud loneliness or deformity?
Has the mother been won over by the
pile of stuffs and the earrings and brace
lets to fancy beauty where there are
only riches? 1t has happened so in other
lands. But the bride-have | no pity
ing words for the bride, who is also sup
posed to be ignorant of the lineaments
of her husband? The bride is woman;
there are windows, though latticed win
dONs. in her house in the village over
the plain. and the brown eyes were
never darkened. when. yelled and
shrouded. she went to the mosque or
well. We may be sure the bride has
seen him many day and oft. and loved
or hated him after the fashion of
women, who, heaven be praised, do not
need a century of contemplation to
make up their mind whether they like
thing or not.