The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-11-23

|
 of light and air are narrow slits higI
 up in the walls, glazed windows being
 considered inventions of the devil
 through which to cast Evil Eyes ant
 other perilous things upon true believ.
 CTS. The bed of husband and wife iS
 placed at one end of the long room
 and at the other end sort of raised
 couch or platform is provided for the
 children's sleeping place; the space be-
 tween being tolerably we'll filled up Witf
 the milestone for grinding corn, the
 brazier or clay pot for cooking with
 charcoal, various culinary utensils
 gourds for holding water and goats
 milk, sacks of corn, dogs, fowls and
 perhaps pet lion or leopard, There is
 also big snake or two about the
 premises, kept as we do cats, to subdue
 the domestic plaques of rats, mice and
 reaches. To be sure his snakeship en-
 dangers the lives of the chickens. and
 Is unpleasantly prone to pre-empt the
 sleeping quarters of the family on chill
 ly nights; but his presence is thought
 to be indispensable in every well-regu-
 lated househoul. Notwithstanding
 these primitive arrangements, there is somehow pleasing air of the eternal 1 fitness about the menange-even an | appearance of decorative finish, the
 latter probably borrowed from the 1 bright colored moulding, and the beau tifully shaped pottery suspended from ! the walls. Nowhere in homes of this which We know as a table and seldom pIo;, squats on its heels around a huge pot, | or platter of stew, placed in the middle | of the floor, and fingers-more or less | dirty-do duty as knives and forks It | is about the same way in Moorish res- taurants, except that they are so small you cannot get inside to sit on the floor, but must stand outside, in mud, or rain, or scorching sunshine, and reach over the head of the passing crowd to the counter" on which is placed your eggs, bread, small bits of meat roasted on stick over charcoal, coffee and asses milk. Once in great while, if food of a liquid nature is to be eaten, you may secure the momenta- ry loan of wooden ladle or brass spoon; but as a rule the ten servants" according to the Koran dingers), with which Allah has provided you, must suffice. There are still humber cook ing places in which those economically inclined may dine. You go to market and buy eggs, meat, whatever you de- sire, and take them raw to the cook shops, where they are prepared for a pittance.
 e oynruhOdxy ic beverage in which most Mohamme- dans delight yet, strange to say, the Moors of Morocco prefer tea. This is the way they make it: The dried leaves are first washed-think of that my tea-loving friends of the north,- and then a great quantity of crude brown sugar is put into the ground or clay pot. Then luke-warm water is turned on, and the final result is about as nasty syrup as l ever tasted. One would naturally suppose that people so excessively particular about favors, and so skilled since time out of mind in distilling essences, would wish to retain the delicate tea-flavor. Strange to say, it is just that--the aro- ma and taste of the tea--to which they ODJGSl anu ldhC CALL liOuDit to destroy. At d swell Moorish din- ner of the highest class, there are reg ular courses of tea, impregnated with various fiavors, as we serve wines in America. First comes a course of plain green tea, so be-sugared that the Chinaman who grew it would never recognize his own herb. In the second course, perhaps spearmint is intro duced-a horrible decoction; then an infusion of tea and iron wood, bitter as gall. Then tea favored strongly with lemon, or verbena; then combined with citron, or some other fruit; and more rarely-as a most expensive luxury, too costly for every day--a little ambergris is scrap ped into the tea and can be seen , floating upon the surface like greasy green paint. While drinking the tea, you are expected to make loud smack | ing of the lips, to indicate your appre citation of the luxury; to omit which | custom, or to be faint-hearted in it, would sorely grieve, if not insult your | Each course of tea is taken eparately-that is, without any kind of food; and the effect upon the
 
 which are eight or ten courses of strong decoctions of tea, can be better imag- ned than described. The household snake is liable to be as many times multiplied as though you had been in- 1ulging in Carolina tangle-foot.
 Another odd thing in the City of Mo 'occo is the superstition of the people. Moors, Arabs, Jews and negroes ap- pear to be equally afflicted by it, noth- ng but charms and amuets galore' af- 'ording them any comfort or safety. Among a thousand dark beliefs in the power of evil, mysterious in their ori- gin and senseess as those entertained ,y the lowest African tribes, they as- rbe a fatal power to the numbers nine lnd five-as some of us fear the num- ,er thirteen. Even in the heat of bar ,aining, a Moor will never say five" le gets around the dangerous word by aying -four and one" He shrinks also rom saying anything about death in but uses flowers substi- utes, such as Allah hath withdrawn lis soul into paradise" If he wishes o give his neighbor mortal offence, he aints the semblance of five fingers yer his door; and however rudely the atal symbol may be drawn, 1t is re- arded with staring eyeballs and chat oripor taatb cJIra and aWfIil hDO- l