Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1910-12-08
THE TURKISH BATH
A Victims Story of the Real Thing
In Its Native Land.
WELL MAULED AND SCRAPED.
He Was Kneaded, PIucked, Turned
Over and Walked Upon and Then
Scrubbed as Though He Were a
Kitchen Floor.

STEAMBOAT Will from time to time come
on domed buildings Of all sizes which
might be taken for mosques but that
they seem to have no fountains and
no minarets. From some place, such as
the terrace Of the mosque Of Sultan
Sulayman, where their roofs may be
! overlooked, it will be seen that the
| low domes are often of peculiar salm-
on pink color and always covered
with glass bullseyes. These are the
real Turkish baths.
Quite apart from the ceremonial
wash before prayer, Islam, which con-
siders cleanliness not so much next
to godliness as a part of goodness it.
SELF ordainS a periodical scrub all over
And the Turk, unlike the sOdden west
never sits in hot water, but prefers a
hot room, tap and basin as a min
imum and a shampooer and a flesh
glove if he can afford such luxuries.
One enters, as in the west, into the
cooling room, generally a high domed
room with many galleries around,
marble floor and a fountain, and be-
fore going to a private room or, if the
bath is to be done on the cheap, to
a place on the big common sofas one
exchanges dirty boots for slipShOd
heelless slippers. Watch and valua-
bles may be left under the care of the
cooling room attendant, who superin-
tends the process of undressing, winds
q loin cloth around one and throws a
primrose towel over ones shoulders.
Before crossing the floor Of the cool
ing room the slippers are again eX-
changed for wooden clogs, wherein the
novice walks like Agag, delicately, in
fear of a fall, till he learns to imi-
tate the speed of the bath men by
abandoning all attempts to walk and
executing a fast shuttle.
The outer hot room, at about the
temperature of an English shampooing
room, is a very secondary affair. One
stays there for little, still clothed in
the primrose towel, reclining on a dis
tant imitation of bed, drinking cof-
fee and smoking a cigarette, perhaps
watching couple Of shampooers
amusing themselves by a wrestling
bout The customer and the shampoo
er wear the same type of loin cloth,
an elaborate check of red and yellow
that may be seen any day in the
streets on an apron worn by the AL
bantam sellers of chestnuts or sweet
meats
If that cigarette is finished come
into the inner room, heavy with damp
heat, the real bath. The attendant
pulls off the shoulder towel and opens
the door, heavy wooden affair, kept
shut by a counterweight, whose bang
ing is not the least characteristic noise
in the bath. Inside is a large square
domed room. Innumerable bullseyes
in the dome admit the light, which the
whitewashed walls reflect, making a
light and airy effect. On the great
square slab in the middle they have
placed towel and a pillow, and here
one lies, leaving the clogs on the floor.
Round the room, screened from one
another by dwarf walls, are a row Of
marble basins, and here may be seen
all classeS-such is the democracy Of
Islam-from the army officer to the
day labOrer, whose shaved head oddly
suggests a tOnSure. The poorer classes
do not indulge III the luxury of mas
sage. They come for a wash only and
often bring their own soap for econo-
my'S sake. 1t is not uncommon to see
two of them scrubbing one another by
turns
Presently, unbidden, the ShampoOer
mounts the slab and squats beside his
victim. Most of his work consists in
kneading the flesh rather than the
long, heavy strokes of an English mas
Seur. But when the customer is turn
ed on his face the maSSeur becomes
more energetic He plucks the skin
on each side of the spine, walks up
and down on the back and strenuously
gathers up arms and legs into curious
bone breaking knots regardless of the
grunts of the stiff jointed west. A
final super Gordian knot and the clap
ping of his hands show that it is over.
The customer, as soon as he can col
lect limbs which seem to have been
pulled clean off him, adjourns to one Of
the basins and is rubbed with a rough
glove to take off the old skin. Then
the man brings a battered metal bowl
cold bowl, old BATH" is the Turkish
proverb for 1.-The old, old story') with
soap and a lather wisp Of ''lyf' Mecca
palm fiber, and scrubs conscientiously
for some ten minutes, working with
the abandon of a Jealous housemaid on
a floor, forgetful apparently that the
object he is scrubbing is flesh and
blood
Finally he pours warm water from
the bowl to wash away the last of the
soapsuds and, if the bath is large and
up to date one, conducts his we'll scrub
bed victim to cold douche.
Drying takes place in the outer hot
room. sundry loin cloths and towels
are wrapped about the body, small
towel makes turban for the head and
clean clogs are produced for the feet,
which have been dried with great