The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-04-30
THE FELLAHEEN OF THE NILE.
Egypt's TilIers of the Soil and Their
 Unkempt and SOrdid Lives.

THE FELLAHEEN OF THE NILE. Egypt's TilIers of the Soil and Their
 Unkempt and SOrdid Lives.
 Mrs. Sara Keables Hunt, in The New
 York Observer.
 The literal meaning of the word fell lah is "tiller of the ground" though the term has come to signify all the poorer class of Arabs whether in city or country, and while 1t Is applied to those poorer people, living in towns. who understand nothing of farming. 1t Is also bestowed on all interested in agriculture whether they be owners or laborers. Fellaheen is the plural for fellah, and fellaha the feminine form. There is little difference between the rich and poor fallaheen. The rich fellah may have larger house than his poorer neighbor, but still 1t is fashioned of mud and is no cleaner or more att tractive in appearance. The wealthy fellah buys bold ornaments for his wife, while the poorer fellaha adorns herself with brass or silver. The abode of the rich may have additional apart ment, and the lady of the house may sometimes deck herself gorgeously in an embroidered vest at the great fes- ttvalS but their wretched abode is dirty and disorderly. swarming with vermin. suffocating in the hot season, and piled with dust and rubbish continually.
 the hut nf ,s tba noorsr feiiab on" The door Is so small and low that the owner of the mansion must needs bow his head to enter and there are no windows, so that 1t is not at all surprising that the Inmates prefer the broad outside to the dark, miserable interior, often sleeping out of doors and sitting all day In the sunshine: Why the B.. fellaheen s, should diminutive plan is beyond comprehen- sion, for there seems to be plenty or room and no apparent reason for such close quarters, and still another won- der Is their utter disregard of all rules of cleanliness. The climate is such that greater care and labor are required to promote neatness and remove dust than in northern countries, Imagine, then, into what state small window less room can come, where the whole family is crowded within the crumbling walls built of sun dried mud and no attempt is made to remove fleas. dust and rubbish of every description. It is amazing how the little fellah baby grows amid all the filth and reaches a strong, vigorous manhood. Probably those infants only live who possess na- turally a strong constitution, able to fight their way through their wretched surroundings into light and air-for many children die under two years of age. owing to their miserable condition and the ignorance and neglect of their childish mothers,
 just as wretched condition, if not worse. occupying mud houses. two or more families congregating together in |. or in some ruined building nearly fallen to pieces, yet interesting to the trav- eler. because of It's remnants of ex- quisite carving and elaborate lattice work, made in some long since de- parted day of Egyptian glory. while un- der the dust and dirt that lies around may be seen fragments of mosaic Arab never repairs anything which fate has stamped with decay Visit. for ex- ample. the beautiful old Moorish mosques in Cairo. where the birds are building their nests in the quaint arch ways, and f1uttering undis.urbed amid the delicate but broken carvings of a vanduished age.
 to occupy their time? How do they pass the long. sunny hours on the banks of the Nile? They are generally awake early in the morning, and astir as soon as daylight begins to appear, notwtth- standing their natural laziness. As the fellaha wears the same clothes in the day time which she does at night, it takes very brief perior for her to ar range her toilet Sometimes she makes ridiculous attempt at sweeping-- takes a bunch o ftwlgs, and, squatting amid the dirt, feebly essays clear ance. After awhile the family assem- bles to partake of breakfast, sitting on the floor around dish which contains | boiled beans and oil or a kind of stew. After this is over the fellah goes to his work in the fields. and his wife not hay ing any household duties to perform, such as washing dishes, making beds, cts, visits her neighbors, and a~great amount of gossip and chatter ensue. If there Is such an unlucky indfviduaf as baby in this promising family, 1t is often rolled fin a bundle of rags and and there left to its slumbers and the flies which swarm around 1t in delight ed numbers.
 The only time when the feIlaha IS s making Then all is hustle and confu- sion. picking and cleaning the corn, going to the mill, sitting the flour, mix ing the small flat loaves in the mud oven Another duty is going to the Nile for water. Clad in a dark blue mantle. the national garb for centuries. the women lift their jars to their heads. and go down to the rivers brink and fill them. From every village on the Nile there is a path leading directly to the waters edge and this is traversed. morning and evening, but more espe- cially in the evening. by long files Of women. The "ballas" jar. as 1t is call ed, is washed fin the stream and then filled. A hollow pad Is worn upon the head on which the jar rests, and so, having helped each other to lift the heavy weight to its place. they wend ing up the steep incline. without even touching the jar with their hands, chat ting and laughing and apparently never giving a thought to their bur dens.
 The evening comes and the family is united at the principal meal of the day A large amount of bread is brok- en into a huge bowl, boiling water Is poured on this. and a handful of lem tils scattered in and the whole Is then stirred with a wooden spoon. They all sit in a circle. each holding an onion or bunch of lettuce in their left hand. while with the right they dip their fin gers in the bowl. alternately taking. mouthful of porridge and bite of the onion or lettuce This is believed to be the same kind of food as that for which Esau sold his birthright cen turies ago. the same as that which fed the pyramid builders described by He rodotus, and 1t is 'the invariable meal of the fellaheen. varied only with beans and lupins.
 The feIIaheen are kind hearted and generous with their food and passer- by is always invited to join them in the repast Even the smallest children possess this unselfsh trait. and always aha nI4aok nF fnn6 nrfVan th6nl