The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-07-07
THE SIGHTS IN TUNIS.
YOUR TYPICAL liUSSOLMAN
LOVES ELEGANT LEISURE.
Beautiful Women Must be Fat-De-
tails of the Wierd Performances OF
pr.s--. c--o1ra Cbarpoars

TUNIs, June 81 thought in Italy there
was a good deal of elegant leisure" as
Howells elegantly expresses it, butt cannot
hold candle to the leisure of an oriental
city. An English Egyptian paper lately
had an article on the decadence of the Mus
SULLIVAN race, 1t gave the reason-a good
ono-that while the European works the
Mussulman squats on his launches and
gives himself up to contemplation.
II is wonderful this contemplative life
led by a great many OF the Arabs One
afternoon, in sketching outside an Arab
cafe. a grave Mussulman squatted cross
legged on a bench alongside OF me and for
three mortal hours did nothing but contem-
plate The Arabs have a word IN their
language which is wanting in ours-che-
masses, those who live by the sun. Along
a sunny wall, when the celestial orb Is not
too hot, you can see dozens OF chemaSses
wrapped up in their bernouses. some prone
on the ground and others cross-legged. You
cannot distinguish face, hands or feet, for
the bernous envelops each completely.
| When sufficiently roasted in the sun they
adjourn to the shade to cool of.
THE WEATHER IN AFRICA.
Ii is getting to be real roasting African
weather. In the morning at O'Clock it is
as hot as at midday in the United States in
the middle Of summer. For two hours at
midday dead silence reigns in the city.
Everybody is taking his siesta. The in
haoitants of Tunis adapt themselves better
to toCrid weather than Europeans or Ameri-
cans and great many Of the juvenile pop
| ulation run around the street in a state OF
primeval nakedneSs and many only bur
| dened with a single overall. If you are
poor in Tunis your tailor's bill does not
amount TO very much.
The Arabs make their bread at home and
take it to the bakers to be baked. Each
loaf bears some Distinguishing ornamental
| ton enabling the owner to identify his
loaves when baked. The interior Of q bake
house Is very picturesque. with the innu-
merable fiat loaves on wooden slabs strew-
| ing the floor, and two Arabs are pitching
| the loaves to the other like SO many bricks,
to be shoveled into the oven by long
handled apparatus. 1he natives bring their
variously-shaped loaves to the bakers on
wooden slab, which they carry on their
heads
Africa is country full of pitfalls for the
uninitiated. l was lately in the habit of
taking an afternoon stroll into the country
outside Tunis and spending the afternoon
sketching. or, If inspired, | would lay down
| under the shade Of a cactus hedge or olive
grove to read and dream. One day, under
the shade of a cactus hedge, | was Mortified
to see an immense sDeckled snake of a
venomous variety coiled among the cactus
a few feet back of my head. l need hardly
say l quickly made noiseless tracks from
the vicinity of my speckled friend. In re-
| lating the fact at dinner / learned l had had
a very narrow escape.
DANGERS AT THE CITY GATES.
Occasionally hon comes as far as the
city gates, not TO mention panthers, wolves
| and other minor animals There are also
myriads OF venemous insects, and the bite Of
the scorpion here causes death in a few
| hours.
The Tunisian girl has no chance of mar
riage unless she tips the scales at200 pounds,
and to that end she commences to fatten
when she is IS years old. She takes aperi-
tives and eats a great deal of sweet stuff,
and leads sedentary life to hasten the proc
ess. Up to Is she is very hand
some, but at 20, ye gods,
what an unwieldy mass of fat she be-
comes She waddles, or rather, undulates,
along the street. Her costume is very
picturesque, especially If she be of the
richer class. They are clothed in fine silks
Of resplendent hues of bright red, yellow
or green, and wear a sort of comical-shaped
hea 1dress, from which depends a loose
white drapery. Turkish trousers and
dainty slippers, the heel of which barely
reaches the middle of the foot, complete the
costume.
In the public squares the negress bread
vendors squat in front of their pile of Pass
over shaped loaves ranged on a broad board
Some of them hide their ebony visages from
the public gaze with black wells, just as the
hours Of the harem do. They wear gar
ments which vie with the rainbow in bright
ness and variety Of color
EXHIBITIONS BY THE SERPENT CHARMERs
| Tho charr7avo ~ he
tribes frequently give exhibitions In the
streets Of Tunis. There are generally about
| a dozen in each band-three or four must
clans, the serpent charmer himself and the
women folk and children. The musician;
squat on the ground and play shrill flutes
and beat drums formed by stretching
pieces of parchment over the bottoms Of
earthenware jars. The serpent oharmel
is usually the most fanaticallookinf
individual conceivable, bareheadeC
and barefooted and wearing Ions
linen overalls, from which issue
attenuated brown spindle shanks Hi
. head is closely shaved, with the exception
, Of a circular spot on the crown, from which
depend mass of ooal-black ringIets The
Arab expects to be pulled into heaven by
, his top-knot. His small eyes are wild
t dark and piercing, as BELTS a charmer o.
a serpents. After collecting sufficient mum
Der OF "karronbus'-copper coins-tht
| music strikes up and the serpent charmeI
/ opens pillow-hke bag lying on the ground
and two or more speckled ser penis issue
! Now and then the music ceases. tn,
, charmer takes whisp of dried grass in hi
3 hand, places some small pebbles in certain
l | positions on the ground, addresses some wilC
words OF incarnation to the tribe, musician
and all, and then turns to the serpents an(
? squats on his launches. The serpents rails,
r their heads viciously, fiatten their nechs Il
an extraordinary width, protrude tAeil
$ faugs and viciously dart at the charmer'
! head, to which he viciously responds H,
! takes one of the serpents by the neck, stare
= at him with his wild fanatical ewes anc
= strikes him against his forehead. The ser
r penis are decorated with glittering coin
{ | which hang from their heads like earrings
( Occasionally one darts out amoug the Grove
3 and creates q panic One French youth O
s the audience Of which | was member one
a day had colossal mastiff by his side, ant
the mastiff, seeing the serpents raise thei
g heads, became excited and darted into tn
Z ring TO gobble them up The char1ner triet
q to charm the mastiff, but the mastiff woul,
( not charm.
g The serpent charmer, on this occasion
| concluded his performance with most dis
t gushing exhibition-nothing less than eatin
one of the serpents alive But such a die
e is as enjoyable TO him as roast beef to a.
Englishman. This exhibition was held il
the Arab quarter of the city, and the au
dlence, who we're almost all natives, were a
interesting as the troupe.
T. NAILED IN A BOX.