The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1907-06-22
NEW WOMAN IN TURKEY r: I.
WANTS FREEDOM AND
UNLIMITED HUSBANDS
Story of a Woman Who Forced Her Husbaod to Take
Second Wife Because She Loved Him.
BY PERCY L1NDON-HowARD..

When Demetra Vaka Brown first
told me of the great happiness OF the
women of the Turkish harem, in their
belief that man was made for many
wives, she spoke casually of the new
woman" of Turkey, and at once the
conviction came that therein might be
found the keynote to the true condi-
tons existing under the flag of the
"Sick Man Of Europe For the exls-
tence of the new woman" can carry
with it but one thought existence
of discomfort. 1t seemed certain that
inquiry must reveal the secret misery
and longing of a veritable multitude
whose hearts are sore and WOUNDED
and whose lives are blasted by this
pernicious social custom Of the Turk.
Surely human nature could not be SO
widely different in parts of the earth;
surely, despite environment, despite
the growth of a belief accepted as a
matter of course and implanted gen
erations and generations ago, there
still must exist in Turkey women who
are moved by the same passions, the
same love as their American and Eng
lish sisters. 1t could not be that the
sting of jealousy is utterly uprooted,
that the desire for sole possession OF
a single love is utterly unknown. For
there must be young women and old
women and pretty women and homely
women, and women that be good by
hot IN fp0Y
choice.
It seems discredible that nus
bands love could be equally divided
between four wives. One at least
must find the greater favor-and that
this should not bring about misery and
longing for a happier life appeared
utterly preposterous.
Some idea of Mrs. Browns right TO
a hearing on this subject Of Turkey
may be gathered first from the follow
ing facts:
First, she comes from an old Greek
family. Then she was born in Turkey
on the largest island of the Propontis.
Her entire childhood was passed IN
Turkey, where she had many friends
among the Turkish girls, and saw
much of the life of the harem. More
over, her mingling was among the
best and most intellectual class, her
father being in the government en-
ploy. Her first visit to America was
at the age of eighteen, when she
sought the ''land Of the free to es-
cape the necessity of a distasteful
marriage. Mrs. Brown has just re-
turned from visiting Turkey whose ia
miliar domestic customs she observed
with new eyes in the light of her
American experience.
The charming conversationalist had
scarcely finished her explanation OF
the extreme happiness of the wives of
the harem, when questioned her
about the new woman" development.
"Tell me now of this new woman"
I said, "for the spirit of REFORM so.
called or real, must have appeared in
Turkey"
"Yes," said Mrs. Brown, there is
new woman and she is just as fool
ish in Turkey as she is in America.
First, she is the child of the French
yellow backed novel. She will tell you
she longs for freedom, that she
threshes out her soul as a bird beats
it's wings against the bars of it's cage.
But her ideas of freedom are comical.
Her freedom is something entirely diff
ferent from the freedom as it is known
in America. She wishes to be like the
European women; and in the same
breath she will tell you no European
woman is good, as the Turks under
stand goodness. 'Ah,' said one to me,
why shall ] not be free in America?
Then I can find a husband in the
park. l shall walk much. I shall
choose a very handsome man, too, and
then I shall go along further and
the freedom of travel When I ex-