The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1908-07-09

;irl wives OF Tnnss Must ne Fat 20
Ne Attractive.


How would you like to dgure OF
our sweetheart by weight and vain
our wife by the pound7 That is tn
.ustom among the Hebrews Of Tunis
The men think a woman beautiful nc
sordine to her much flesh, and a like
ty Jewish girl Of 100 weight or so has
90 trouble In getting a husband. A I.
a maiden approaches the marriage
able age she IL stuffed, much after the
manner Of a strasburg pate-de-foie.
gras goose. These Jewesses have theii
own way Of eating to increase theil
fat and heir own foods for putting OF
flesh. Chief among these viands Ia g.
certain grain which surpasses any
Il 'ng known elsew lere In Its fatten
ing qualities.
The Jewesses Of Tunis have the
homeliest costumes ever seen upo2
women. They wear breeches, both or
the street and at home, and over them
short, loose sacques which fall to tn
waist. Some OF them have their trou-
sers loose about the hips and tight at
the calves an6 others wear them
about even all the way down, loading
them with embroidery Of silver and
gold. Some pairs Of breaches are made
entirely Of gold thread, and some rich
money lenders daughters have pantief
which cost $500 a pair. Such garment;
are reserved for home use and are not
to be seen on the streets. Other girls
have ~pantaloons of velvet loaded witt
bands Of gold and silver, a girl thus
| carrying a whole fortune on her trou-
sers. They all wear jewelry. and or
public occasions they come out in pearls
and diamonds and gold galore.
The Jewish men dress like the
Arabs, but the women do not veil
their faces, and 1t is possible to see
just how they look. The most Of thu
women have what we would call bru.
nette complexions, although there Is
no sign OF the mulatto about them
They have black hair, beautiful eyer
and not infrequently prominent He
brew noses. Some Of them are pretty
but more are not, and with their out
landish costumes the homely ones are
about the ugliest Of their sex.
Some OF these women when they &c
out on the street wrap themselves uI
In cloths, but they are careful not te
hide their breeches. They have or
high gold caps, and the cloths are
| often fastened to these.
The Jewesses m 'ry young. A gooc
fat girl Is often welded at II, and she
becomes a mother at IA o. Is. Mar
riages are usually preceded by a con.
tract, and there is often a forfeit pu'
up as against divorce. II the mar
does not carry out his contract he has
to pay damages, and in the case o.
| divorce he usually gives back half tbs
| property which his wife brought him
A divorced wife always gets an allow
ance.
If his wife has no children the
Tunisian Jew has the right to add 9
second wife to his family, and a dead
mans brother Is expected to marry
his s~ister-in-law, even II he IL mar
ried already. Marriages sometimes oc.
cur between uncies and nieces. and, az
far as possible, families combine II
keep the fortunes in their own clan.
These Jewish marriages are usually
n de by the rabbis, and at the house
Of the bride. Here the rabbi covers
the young couple with a veil and di,
reefs the groom how to put the ring
upon the brides finger.
About a week before the wedding the
public festivities begin, and from that
time on the girl has to 90 through o
lot OF ceremonies without power Of
hindrance, The older ONE Of the
family take hold Of her. They hrs.
put her In a bath, where her body IL
covered with an ointment which, wher
dry, is pulled of, leaving the skin per,
fectly clean and as soft as when sht
was born. Her hair is then anointec
with jet-black pomatum, which gives
1t a gloss, her eyelids are blackenec
and her eyebrows are marked out and
Joined by a thick line OF red paint.
At the same time her finger nails ART
G erred with henna, and ven her TOT
nails are made red.
After marriage the uni become
20 o large extent the servant of he
husband. If he Is poor she cooks tn
meals, and, no matter how well o.
her husband is, she is expected
make his bed and wait upon him. Sh
always eats at the second table, for 4.
The ordinary Jewish household G
runis, there are always two meals, til
arst Of which is for the men.