The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1913-12-16

which a been blessed by a priest.
against III forehead of the bride. He
then mixes up a chew OF betel nut for
her and throws it down at her 9
She pretends not to notice it but one
Of her friends picks it up and gives it
to her, and later on she chews IT in
secret. After this comes a wedding
feast and then the family of the
groom leaves and the husband and
wife start married life. The wife has
but few rights which her husband is
bound to respect. but he has to live
with her, and if he stays away more
than three months at a time she can
demand a divorce.
The Mohammedans of the Philip
pines number about 250,0 900 and they
are just about one-thousandth part OF
the Mohammedan population Of the
world. Few people have any idea of
the extent of this religion. There are
about 250,00O,000 followers of the
prophet. Mohammedanism is the
principal faith in a great part of Asia
and Of Africa, and it has millions Of
adherents in Europe. There are
100000 MOhammedans in Austria
Hungary and almost 1900, 900 in
Russia Roumania has 80, 900 and
the Balkan states, which have been
creating SO much trouble lately, have
almost three-quarters of a million.
There are 100000 followers Of the
prophet in European Turkey, and in
all Europe there are about as many
Mohammedans as Jews, or between
5000 900 and 100000
China is generally looked upon as a
COnfucian and Buddhistic country.
Nevertheless there are soTnething like
2O,OO0,O0O MOhanmedanS in the re-
public and its dependencies, and there
are 100000 Mohammedans who
live north Of the Yangtse river. Many
Of the people in Mongolia are Mo-
hammedans, and there are 200, 900
Mohammedans in Pekin. During a
trip which l once made to the great
wall OF China I had a muleteer who
was a MOhamTnedan. He got down
on his knees five times a day to say
his y He always prayed fac
ing the southwest, where Mecca lay,
and he bowed again and again every
time the sun rose and set. There are
Mohammedan mosques in many Of the
Chinese cities.
The most of the Malay are Mo
ha~mmedanS, and there are millions
who Oliow the prophet in Java ana IN
the other islands Of the Dutch East
Indies. AS to India, it has more Mo
hammedans than there are people in
the whole German empire. 1t has far
AhA anu tIClC 4 CeI-
tain provinces in which the Mo-
hammedans are the controlling class.
The largest and most beautiful mos
ques in the world are at Delhi and
Agra, in northern India. The big
mosque is at Delhi. not far from the
place where the new government
buildings of the British capital are
to be erected. This mosque covers
acres. 1t took 5000 men, working
six years, to build it, and it has as
4 many steps as the Capitol at Wash
ington. | shall never forget my visit
to It. and how | was there shown a
relic which was pointed out as the
most precious object in all Hindus-
tan. / was made to take off my shoes
before l could see the relic and in
my stocking feet / was led through
corridor after corridor until / came
to a great chest Which contained a
nest Of locked boxes. These were
opened one after another, and at the
last, in a little glass casket, on a green
velvet cushion, was displayed ( hair
which l was ssure came from Mo
hammed's mustache. The hair was az
red az that Of my own head, and the
1 priest told me that Mohammed haG
2 red hair and a red beard. It is FOL
I this reason that many Mohammedan!
I dye their hair and whiskers a brigh'
! red. They want to pass their wa,
into heaven by having boards Of tn
same color as Mohammed. Indeed, i
seemed to me that I was treated will
e respect in the mosque in account O
the red color Of my own mustache.
The most beautiful mosque in tn
world is the Tai Mahal, at Agra. l
was built by the same man who erect
s ed the Jamma Musiid, the mosqu
have just described. The Tai Maha
8 is not SO large. but 1t was far NOR
s costly end its wonderful workmanshi,
is still the admiration OF the world
n The building stands upon a mosai
platform of black and white marbl
covering about two acres, at the COZ
ners Of which are high marbel tower
i n which the MOhamrnedan priest
stand morning and evening and shou
out the calls to prayer. The mosQu
. itself, which is also a tomb, is c
d the purest white marble, ending in
bubble-like dome hat seems to floa
D, in the air Over it. It's doors are c
a lace-work of the purest white marbl,
le and the interior contains enough {