The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-04-15

sultan's youHger children. The balance
of the harenl was. made up of 'odalisks,"
who, in turn were. subdivided into the
s.ikbals," or faSoxites, and the "geuzdes,"
or "eyed ones. 'ss
Every 'odalisk' who was favored by
the sultan's attentions received an allow.
ance of money, suite of apartments, and
a retinue of servants in proportion to hel
status.
All slaves possessing a fair share OF
beauty were carefully 1aned, from the
time they entered the harem, in deport-
ment, dancing, music and the arts of the
toilette; they were instructed in the Mos
lem religion and in daily. prayers, and
some were taught reading and writing for
secretarial work. Discipline was strict,
and continued disobedience meant corpo-
raj punishment by the eunuchs.
The harem, as everyone knows, was
guarded by body of eunuchs, both black
and white The white eunuchs guarded
the outer gates of the harem, and were
never permitted to approach the women's
apartments.
The black eunuchs could enter the gar
dens and chambers of the harem at will.
Their chief, usually called the "kislar
aghasi," or master of the maidens, but
whose true title was darius skadet aga,"
or chief of the abode of felicity, was APP
pointed for life and was an official of high
Importance. So A
In the ordinary Turkish household, how
ever, conditions are vastly different from
those that obtained in Abdul Hamid's or
Mehmed's famous harems.t The "selam-
lik,' or mems quarters, where. the master
of the house receives his requests, is
on the ground floor, while the "harem-
lik," or women's section, Usually is on the
second floor. the key to which. is kept
by the master, or Ei7endi. The hGremGk
has a separate entrance, courtyard and
garden, while its windows are guarded
by lattices pierced with circular holes so
that the, women may look out without
being seen.
The presence of a. second wife in the
ordinary Turkish household is an excep-
ton, and is usually dues to, tlseHfact that
the first wife has borne mo children.
While the harem system is wholly in
consistent with any high rtleafs of woman
hood, still reports OF depravIty and of
the vapid idleness of the hareIn women
have been grossly exaggerated, As a mat
ter of fact, the standard Of conduct is
usually very strict, and a very high de-
gree of mutual consideration exists. Even
before the recent liberal forward move
ment of feminism in Turkey, women of :
the harem frequently took drives into the
country and visited the shops and public
baths, although always closely yelled.
But, while the Turkish woman to-day
really has ceased to be the harem slave
she was in former days, she still has a
long, hard fight ahead of her to change
from her present social status, to the COM
plete freedom and equality with men adj
vocated by some of the Angora leaders.
At present, besides Madame Renal, only
one other prominent woman enjoys these
privileges in Turkey. She is Halideh Edib
Hanum, wife of Angora's deputy in Con-
stantinople, and a graduate of the Amer
lean Girls College in the latter city
1t will be extremely Interesting to
watch the brave fight. that these two
courageous Turkish women and the
powerful kemal are making for the COM
plete emancipation of Turkish ,woman'sind
and the total abolition of the traditional
and ancient harem