The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1917-09-24
A STRANGE PEOPLE
Red Heads Of Asiatic Turkey
Last Of the BaaI Worshiners.
HAVE SOME QUEER CUSTOMS.
All Males Wear Red Caps and Around
Their Threats Red knotted Cords and
Allow Their Wives to Beat Them-All
Babies Are Sailed When Born.

Allow Their Wives to Beat Them-All |
Babies Are Saited When Born.
Strange people are the Red Heads OF |
Asiatic Turkey. They are the last Of |
the Baal worshipers. The men wear
red caps; hence their name Red Heads
They also wear red knotted cords
around their necks. The cord is put
on during babyhood and is never re-
moved. 1t is inferred with the body
after death. They shave their heads
except for a patch on the top, and
here they allow the hair to grow long
and plait 1t into pigtails, which hang
about their ears. They are tall, wiry
fellows, with enormous appetites for
both food and drink.
The women, who do not veil them
selves and who dress simply In loose
fitting garments, are thin and spare,
but wonderfully strong. In their
homes they wear brooches as well as
skirts. There IS no wife beating among
the Red Heads, but plenty Of husband
beating. The husbands take their fire.
quent chastisements meekly and pa
tiently They employ themselves, both
the women and the men, in agriculture
and theft. They produce couple Of
crops, tobacco and durra. The rest Of
their time Is given up to looting the
Turks crops and cattle
t. tl.o anhptnr ~ ovn,.xy x,fltoOo fhopa
Is a small circle rallied of, and in this
space there Is planted the special reli-
gious emblem, an evergreen oak. No
one except tho father priest of the vii
lage enters The Enclosed ground, which
is decorated with small flags, strings
| of coins and bright oolored beads.
| Around and about the circle the Red
Heads celebrate the only religious fes-
tival known u them. 1.-THE gathering of
| the :.cw MOI" which takes placescv-
cry month. Directly new moon makes
It's appearance the people are called
| together by lay priest beating bar
rel shaped drum stuck end up on the
ground.
Fires are lit, the cooking utensils
placed thereon and the sheep killed by
the priest, who sprinkles a little OF
the animals blood ON the oak. and the
carcasses fayed aud cut up into joints
and the latter cooked over the fires,
before which millet aud wheat cakes
are by this time baking on huge flags.
In the meantime tables ON trcstlcs are
| set up and laid with wooden plates,
horn spoons and steel knives and forks,
| and sooa the fcas;ing begins. The
women wait on Tie men. who gorge
steadily for nbout an hour and then.
while their wives and daughters are
clearing up the little they have left, In
dulge in dancing, drinking and general
merriment.
No religious formality marks the
feast, no blessing or benedictiOn or
grace Indeed, not at birth or burial
or marriage do these survivors Of the
ancient Baal worshlpers employ any
formula or observe anything in the ma
turc Of a religious ceremony. They
have no Bible. no prayer book. no lit
urgy. no place OF worship. Their one
aud only sanctuary is the sacred tree
Enclosure. their only religious symbol
, the evergreen oak.
When baby is born II is warmly
clothed. placed on large wooden plat
, ter and taken TO the priest, who, In
= front OF the sacred tree. strips 1t and
salts IT, Probably this accounts for the
few Red Heads that now survive, II be
ing said that their numbers have dwil'
+ died to mere seven or eight thousand
For the service the priest is always
given a shoulder from the sheep which
IL Is usual to XIII OH such occasions and
which forms the principal item In the
birth feast. Other duties that the priest
!. has to carry out are the cutting o.
three horizontal cuts with dagger
, Just above the level OF the eyebrows OF
the forehead. of the dead and the set
. Ting OF all disputes.
/. When n couple becomes engaged The
. woman spends most OF her time cook
}. Ing dainty and tasty dishes and trot
!. ting round with them to her lover:
J. home, followed by her father with win'
and spirits. Breach OF promise is al
most unknown. for the youth who jilt'
has his throat cut. An erring husband
IL hanged on some remote tree by th'
rcd cord no wears round his neck, arc
the body Is left as n warning 10 others
: An crring wife mysteriously disappears
= and no questions are asked. A maj
who deserts his wife also is hanged
. while the woman who deserts her hus
Band Is compelled TO return TO him.
: There IL n secret ceremony Of inltia
tlon which every Red Head IL compelle,
TO undergo on attaining his seventeenth
y birthday. II involves sccluslon for sew
l. on days and going without food an'
drink for three days. At the termna
L ton ot this preliminary test the you'll
Ia taught certain passwords and grip
BY which he may recognize his breth
ren. and u red circle Is tattoocd on hi
: breast. The strange people live OF
terms Of friendship with the whole o
their nclghbors. with the exception o
, the Turks, whom they hate and trea
) | n.lat.... Mill, Ii