The Oskaloosa herald., 1918-01-03
LIFE
IN JERUSALEM
unusual CUSTOMS AND PRs,l.
TIcEs oFTHE PEOPLE.
MOTHERS PREFER BOY BABIES
llT o rafle n
Girls are Welcome but the Male is De-
sired. System for Naming Child.
rem. Ancient Practices
In Vogue.

Washington, d. c., Dec. 29. - The
National Geographic Society issued
war geography bulletin today on the
family life of the peasants in the out
skirts of Jerusalem and elsewhere in
the Holy Land, now under the pro-
lection of the British flag since the
capture of the Holy City by General
b. H. E, Allenby. The bulletin, based
On communication to the Society
from John ID. Whiting, says:
'Children in the peasant family of
the Holy Land are always welcome,
girl babies sometimes excepted. The
ather prfdes himself on his boys, and
even the mother prefers them, and,
when questioned as TO the number of
her offspring. she win Invariably say
hat she has five children and two
;rls, or as many as the case may be,
Male Babies Preferred.
= ot to have a boy is great hard
hip to the family and is especially
elt by the mother, for failure to have
son may become the cause of her di-
lorce or her husbands excuse for mar
'ying again. This feeling is hard to un.
Ierstand, since they look. upon girl
IS a profitable possession, for a would
,e husband must pay comparatively
handsome price for her. The boy, on
ne other hand, is greater expense
md his wife and wedding are costly
tffairs. The only explanation is that
heir great aim in life is to perpetuate
he name Of the father.
Women Held Secondary.
ITO be polite the fellah, in speaking
ia pig, dog, donkey, or anything
ut of good taste, invariably says,
Feed annak, BE it far from you So
lso, when a girl or woman is spoken
#, they often say, "Be it far from yor.'
although women are thus looked
lpon as something inferior, still when
hey have become well advanced in
ears and are perhaps the grandmcth-
RS of large families, or have signaliz-
I'd themselves by some special attain
\ nent, they are frequently the object
II respect and reverence of the young
Il r women and Of the men as well.
"The woman may never call her
| .usband by his first name, but % faith
Il of Ahmed or whatever the eldest
on's name may be, which indeed, is
he name by which he is generally
nown. .
Nomenclature. 81 ',r-
"Iri naming the first son it is custo-
4 lery to give him the name OF his
randfather on his fathers side; there
IRE, even before youth is married
/ will often be addressed as the faith
of Ali, or Ali, or Mohammed, or Su-
| { her first born son. The husband,
peakipg of her, especially to men,
i'll never say my wife, or mention
er first name, but will say either
I ne mother Of Ahmed, or my family
he relative in my house. the fort
ldden,' or the daughter of my uncle
he reason for this is that man mar
les his first cousin in preference TO
l nyone else, and in iact she cannot
larry another if he wants her.
i Ancient Practice.
Il when the fellah or peasant child
1 born, its tender skin without being
rashed, is rubbed with olive oil and
Il alt. For seven consecutive days it is
eoiled, and when week old gets its
rst bath and is again oiled, and each
eek until it is forty days old the bath
L ,iman, as the case may be. The first
n aughter is usually named for the
Il randmother, again on the fathers
de.
'-Fhe wife likewise takes the name
Il ; repeated. In some localities they
onsider 1t unsafe to bathe it before
Il is forty days old
n Into the little eyes they put drops
A liquid tar, and when two days old
,egin the periodic application Of Kohl.
rhis is a dye used to blacken the eye
lids Of not only babies, but of women
and sometimes of men.
How old a custom this sailing is
an be seen from EzekiePs reproach-
| III words to Jerusalem: And as for
by nativity. in the day thou vast
orn > 80 thou vast not salted at all,
,or swaddled at aiP."
4