The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-06-06

Nine tenths Of the boys wear their red
tarbOOshes, or fezes, in the true Oriental
fashion, indoors and out -Four hundred
of them in a schOOlroOm having every
other appearance Of a school in Kansas
City presents a striking spectacle. The
boys are nearly all dressed in the con-
ventional European costume, save for the
red tarbOOsh. The girls, on the other
side of the red curtain, are dressed in
every conceivable variety OF costume
known to twenty centuries of the motley
East. from the simple one-piece slip OF
the ancients 70 a copy Of the latest Pa
risian mode for young girls. They are
not yelled in school, and there isn't the
slightest objection, apparently, to for
eigners and men teachers seeing their
faces.
There are fewer Mohammedans among
the girls than among the boys, the preJu-
dice against the education Of women be
ing stronger in the ranks Of Islam. But
in the past few years the MOhammedan
girls have been coming in stronger force
and the Americans have succeeded in in
ducing many wealthy MOslems to send
I their daughters to boarding school This
is probably the most radical departure
in custom forced by the American tnVa-
sion Of Egypt.
There are many teachers and native
workers in the employ of the mission
who devote their time to the harems,
going from one house TO another, teach
/ ing the women Of the harem to read
and, Of course, giving them the Bible
and other Christian literature. The wO-
men do not desire emancipation from the
haTem. a life which would be worse than
death to an American woman, but they
are interested in the education which
| gives them q stronger hold upon their
/ husbands. For that reason the harem
work is quite prosperous
/ Very few converts 20 Christianity come
| from the body Of Islam. The American
mission ministers have baptized about LOO
| MOslems in the past few years but the
D -N= T.nH~ rN1H ism
/ is the only eastern religion which has
| not yielded to the efforts Of evangelical
/ Christian missionaries to any marked eX-
/ tent.
Among the Copts and other religious
! bodies the church work of the American
/ mission has succeeded wonderfully. There
/ are GO organized Presbyterian missions
| and pa preaching stations. There are
/ 10000 native members of Pres yterian
! churches. and IS native ordained minis
| tiers. The native PresbyteTians c0ntribu-
/ ted $4,000 last year to the support OF
/ the mission work. The church work has
] been much more successful in upper
| Egypt than in the delta. Many wealthy
men in upper Egypt have allied them
/ selves with the missions. ana there is
| one native Presbyterian millionaire who
I makes liberal donations each year &c
/ both church and educational work. With
| I'm q few years the Presbyterian church
i'm Egypt will be entirely self-suppOTt-
ing
The medical work OF the mission is the
/ cause Of bringing many people into
touch with the educational and religious
departments Five hospitals are main
tanned in various parts Of the country
/ trained physicians and nurses are iT
l charge. visits are made to the home!
and villages, and free clinics are held
for the trea tmeut OF the milder diseases
The national curse of Egypt is oPthalmia
/ and the American hospitals make a spe
cialty of treating sore eyes. The Mos
lem women are so much in fear Of tn,
/ evil eye that they will not wash thei1
[ babies faces, or brush off the flies fol
fear the children will become so beau
tiful that they will attract the evil eye
/ Therefore half the people in the stree
have but one eye each. and the totally
blind are legion.
The women physicians and nurses ar,
taking the gospel Of sanitation INTO tn,
harems. where a man physician nigh
not enter. and where every Illness hal
been treated only according to the die
tates of some ancient superstition. Ant
all the time these medical missiOnaTie
are urging the people to wash the chill
drens faces. and warning them Of tn
dangers Of dirt 1t seems a hopeless ia 81
To attempt to divorce these people from
sgualor and filth, but the effort is be
ing bravely made by these devoted Amer
leans
YounE boys from the American school
ara preferred in employment by busi
, ness men. and young girls from tn
American schools are eagerly sought 70
wives Men from the American cOlleg
/ find ready employment with the govern
ment or in professional capacities. Egyp
recognizes the good done by the Ameri
! can mission In its treatment of the alumni
of the American schools. Americans. o
whatever faith or religious belief. can
not fail to be proud Of the truly Ameri
can accomplishments Of this mission
r Copyright 1902, by Frederick J. Haskin
{ OmOrrOW-TWeutist tn Century Egypt
VIII. The Waters Of the Nile.