The Washington herald., 1908-07-26

OF moral sentiment; hence a divorce may
follow any whim or excitement Of fem
per; and the market Is always supplied
with material for hIllnE any vacant niche
IN the household P0lygany is the Mill
stone which hangs about the neck OF
progress n Turkey Turkish women are
iliterate- and there IS. properly speaking.
no home circle From thu earliest period
potygar1y and cOncubinage were firmly
established through all phases Of OH
entail society.
The very lie and pe-petuitv Of aTohana-
mechanism is based upon pOlygamy. Each
oeiiever Is allowed 10 have four wives
ana as many slaves IS he can afford On
account Of the expense OF keeping I'd an
es~aDllsh-ne nert-that Is. hareun. eoufva-
lent 70 keeping a coach IN Ch-istendonl-
many. even OF the wealthy. solace them
selves for the deprivation Of what the
Koran allows by rile purchase Of scores
OF female servants, Of al ases and com
piexloos. One Of the anomalies Of Mo
naInnedan countries IS the low estimate
N which women are held by the masses
1hey are but neniaIs OF the lowest or
DER; even their lives ere al the mercy Of
tHose who ought 70 be their protectors
Secrets of the Harem.
Woman In Turkey Is an article Of trade
L
and sold without being consulted. Yet
she is not as wretched as might be sup
posed, for she Is ignorant Of her condi-
ton She lives and dies without knowing
the wrong she is suffering. OF the fnte-
rlor arrangements Of the harem but 1T
tie Is known. as they are risoFousIy Sc
cluded- The word ''hareul'' means con-
cealed, as seraglio is 70 lock I'D. The
seraglio, or royal harem, IS the most
prominent object on the European side Of
the Bosphor1s. 8Iohammed II was the
originator Of this imperial seclusion. A
first consideration was to have every
inch OF it so secured that no vulgar eve
could possibly profane the females by
seeing them. Al the buildings are ineie-
CANT; rather uncOuth externally, havi1g
every window thoroughly protected by
ane lattice work Every lady has her
own cooks, food, and culinary apparatus.
Here they 1--we in perfect seclusion. know
ng and dreaming nothing Of the great
world around them The Kadine. who
bears the first prince. has pre-eminence
n the harera, but none OF them are called /
wives.
Ladies never appear IN the streets, Of
,ouTse, unveiled. and women OF distinc-
ion are rarely seen in the streets. only
women OF low extraction are ever seen IN |
ne streets, and even these are veiled, /
'ery reserved in their manner, and rarely 4
peak to any one Although slavery il /
Universal in the Ottoman empire, of both 4
blacks and whites, yet slaves are treated 4
Fltn Kindness and approach to equality
elsewhere, and among the Nus 4
alone Is the distinction Of color
intiTsly o5literated
One wonders what the Turks did be-
ore tobacco and coffee were discovered.
SSIes are as abundant II Constantinopls 4
8 beer shops are IN New York, begrimed
y smoke, where coffee, black. thIcS.
rrong, without cream OF sugar, is served
lp IN cups scarcely larger than an egg
up II IS a common act Of politeness
nong the Mussuinans 20 invite every
'ody Tbo visits them 10 smoke. and It Is
onsidered indecoTous 10 refuse The
oriental poets caH tobacco, conee. opium.
nd vine the four elements Of the world
enjoyment, the four cushions Of the
ola OF pleasure"
4 frank and reckless gayety is never TO
e seen among the Turks. Dances. public
ports, and noisy anusements are rigidly