The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-19
49,
in An EGYPTIAN HAREM.
A Traveller Tells What May he Seen
There.
From Good Words.


There.
From Good Words
The harem in which we spent a couple
of days stood few miles out of Cairo. in
the center of a large, wal-surrouadeI
garden, planted with date palms. olive
trees. orange. with melon and gou1d beds
running among them. On arriving at the
harem garden, we were admitted into its
paradise of shade and rest by heavy
doorway and a venerable old potentate
who had headed our procession on an ass
and at this juncture our bodyguard ADAM
doned us, remaining without the walls
while We were left to make our way alone
toward the group Of women whom we saw
approaching by the stone-hagged walk that
led to the house. They We're evidently the
wives of our friend whose invitation TO
visit his harem had given us an opporiuu-
lily of satisfying in a slight degree the in
| terest we had long felt as to private life
in Eastern countries.
These ladies We're dressed i'm loose gowns
of figured cotton red and yellow shoes
without heels and scarfs of all colors
Some of the younger ones Were handsome
being not much browner in the face than
those of Spanish origin, while their mar
velously erect figures gave them an APP
pearance of great dignity. One of the la
dies present, Mira by name Ga niece of the
Turks, who had been born i'm CONSTANT
nople, was mucn more highly educated
than the others, and able TO talk French
and when preliminary greetings We're ov ar
we followed her and our new friends
through an archway into a square court
from whence we proceeded On a tour of
inspection through many large rooms on
the ground floor, all Of which were empty
except the innermost chamber
On seeing our interest in their customs
they became very friendly, and al owed us
to examine their Ornaments-generall lily
necklets made of gold zequins strung to-
gether, and bracelets worn much larger
and heavier than ii is ordinary to see in
our country. Mira, our Interpreter told
us she was engaged 10 be married TO her
cousin Arten, her unclcs son, and showed
us a ring that he had given her II was
a large. dull-red stone in the shape Of a
cartouche, worn by her on the first finger
and il bore the inscription, written in Per-
sian characters, There IS a flower in the
garden of Arten, and her name is MIRA. d"
Some of the other icwc.s were intended
10 keep off the influence of demons and
night monsters, as a remedy against dis
case, curses, sorc3ry and vengeance. A
young lady, daushter-n-.aw of the pasha's
insisted on our retaining an amulet of hers
as a present 1t was a small piece of shiny
second finger extended if TO bless, and
its special property was 10 keep off the
evil eye. We were sorry by accepting ID 10
expose our friend TO any risk in depriving
her of the benefit of its protection, al
though glad 10 receive so curious an ex-
ample of a superstition almost too absurd
to believe possible. They are a strange
mixture of credulity and devoutness,
though one would have both to understand
their language and live with them before
being able to know how far these super
stitions emanate from their convictions. or
arise simply from ong-descended habits.
As hour after hour Of the afternoon
passed in conversation, sightseeing. ana
undisturDed starvation, our joy may be
imagined when, shortly before shutdown.
we were requested to condescend to wash
our hands In preparation for the princi-
pal meal of the day. We entered a room
with taps round the wall: this whole
apartment was the bath house, for the
water fell from the pines straight to the
floor, and the fashionable harem-wav
of dressing for dinner was TO remove ali
clothes, and sit. stand, or lie under a
spout Of running water II was a lengthy
business, as, in addition TO their own
ablutions two or three dozen children
had to be caught and scrubbed. though
this operation after their capture was
attended with less difficulty than az first