New-York tribune., 1899-03-12
WEIRD CHORISTERS.

When everything was ready the music began.
All Arab music is strange to European ears. but
the IsaWfyah has a system of religious inhar-
mOny Of it's own. in which the peculiar nasal
diScOris Of Arab music are exaggerated 10
an exaSperating pitch while the rhythm is
as complex and as frenzed as the dance which
il accompanies. The singers and musicians
were mostly elderly men in whom the youthful
ecstases Of self-immOation had given place to
soberer and maturer joys The tambOurine was
the only instrument and as they piaye all sang
words from the writings Of sid ben lsa. | call
II singing. but the tense and painful expressions
% these elders. the corners of their mouths
drawn down. the eyes screwed up to mere
sts and heads strained upward resembled that
/ Of Of fierce animals serenading the moon
i'm the desert rather than church choir The
only exception the holy man sitting just
opposite To US. IN whose face beatified with the
religious exercise. was reflected the light ot
heavenly vision. unmarre for him by the fict
that his private life like that Of some European
saints was rot entirely free from reproach
Meanwhile the tambourines ratified incessantly
with dull wooden sourd the ictus of the
rhvt thm was marked by the holy mans lifting
his tambOurine above his head with "A sudden
jerk ard giving il violent thuinp from below,
while he gazed uD at it as though It's dirty
parchment covered imminent paradise
As he music grew faster and more orgiaStic
the dancers became more and more violent
Standing shoulder to shOul Ter in a close-pa1ked
lire each grasped his nei"hbors hand held
rgidlv down against the thigh. The basis Of
the dance. which continued with scarcely any
iutermsson for the whole two hours Of the
i
line Of dancers the bodies being kept straight
and sif and OILY the heads wagging Imply
from sido 10 side with the movement. In the
contro Of thn live stOo the leader. the elected
president Of the sect. n handsome finely built
youth Of about twenty. who had been engaged
all day in making our hosts new cropuet- ground
rIc 4 was who marked the changes iu the dance
by leaving the line. spinnr% round on his heels
ard clapping his hands above his head At a
icn from him the whole line would bend their
bodies forward till their heads nearly touched
The ground with scarce a moments pause i'm the
interminahle jig
As the music rose to a crescendO. and the
rhythm became more frantic and involved. the
ia ucers got vsihly more excited and less con-
sciOus of their surroundings their eyes taking
pn fixed and vacant expression. Then the
leader Of the dance applied what seemed 70 be
the most effective and eliminating intOXicant;
at each ictus in the dance all the heads were
strained forward and every one gave deep
staccatO groan. like the roar Of a wild beast
while the blood rushed to the head. and the
muscles Of the neck We're strung like ropes un-
der the strain. 1t was not long before this pro-
duced the results for which all were waiting
\ man Of about thirty. wiry and thin with
small head. tore himself from the lire Of dancers
ard rushed up to one Of the two stewards stand
ing in the open space. The steward unwound
his turban and held him for a moment In a fra
tcrnal embrace With his turhan the man
seemed to have doffed most Of his humanity: his
small face. almost covered with black hair; his
hristling whskers his blue shaVen scalp with
the little pigtah of black hair Tapping behind
al every movement; above all, the lips stretched
across his large white teeth. ike those of a
snarlng dog. all gave the impression Of some