White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1931-06-04

going miles to see. Baalbek's ruins
are second only to Athens Acropolis
Palestine holds no surviving Crusader
castle to equal Kalat ell Hush into
whose banquet halls, keeps and bat
tlemented towers the Arabs have
moved like hermit crabs. Damascus,
an overgrown oasis on the edge OF
the desert, still lives and breathes the
atmosphere of the Arabian Nights,
while not far to the west new sum-
mer colony develops on the cool
heights under the shade Of the cedars
of Lebanon. American visitors are
always interested In Beyrouth because
the college on the promontory over
looking the Mediterranean that has
educated many of the modern Near
East leaders Of every creed is an
American college.
Syria still has the lure Of the I'M
known; unknown religions, undiscov-
cred cities Of the past, uneXplored
Crusader castles, unexcavated for
tresses, secret societies, and little
known races.
Damascus, where the expedition
stopped for several days en- route to
Bagdad, is located in southwestern
Syria. It was old in the days of Abra-
ham. When Babylon and Nineveh
were hamlets, Damascus was queen
city Of the East. 1t is still city OF
Importance, but the advent Of the rail
way has crippled the caravan trade.
Steamships on the Red sea transport
Mecca pilgrims as far as .Jidda whence
they can easily reach Mecca. For
North African Moslems this obviates
the overland voyage from which
Damascus was the starting point, and
the city suffers consequent loss In
| pilgrim trade.
The bazaars of Damascus, more eel
| ebrated even than those Of Cairo or
| Algiers, reflect the change brought by
| modern transportation. Prints from
| Manchester, machinery from Birming
| ham and talking machines from the
| United States now crowd the market.
| In Damascus each street is devoted to
| some special trade and all the shops
on that thoroughfare sell one type Of
| article.
Bazaars of Damascus.
The silk bazaar has wide scope
| in it's merchandise as its products
run from lengths Of silk and harem
wells to kaffiyehs, the flowing head
| dress of the Bedouins. The shoe ba-
| zaar has boots Of goatskin dyed red
and yellow with heels Of canelhide.
| Wooden sandals are inlaid with
| mother of pearl for wealthy women
customers Curiously enough the
| famed Damascus blades are found in
| the Greek bazaar. They are rarity
now. and it is fitting that they should
| be found in a bazaar devoted to an
| tiouities. However, the Damascene is
| a willy merchant and gullible tourists
sometimes purchase antiques" i'm
ported from Germany, and "oriental
art" from Birmingham.
The old clothes bazaar is also
/ known as the louise market and this
| appcllation reveals it's consequent neg
lect by tourists 1t is always a center
of activity for the people of Damascus
and Arab and Jew haggle over the
| comparative worth of hand-me-down
| burnooscs and kaffiyehs and occidental
| business suits.
The vendors Of food and drink are
| not limited to one bazaar They stroll
| through the streets crying their wares
| One may buy Turkish Delight, ia
| NOUS sweetmeat, lemonade, raisin wa
| ter. pstachio nuts, pomegranates and
| licorice water The vendors cry to
| heaven that Allah will bless their Gus
| toners. A swectmcat vender declares
| that his wares will make young wom-
| en- beautiful. A drink-seller avows
| that his lemonade will cheer a down.
cast heart. Other claims equally ex-
| travagant are assigned their wares
| by the itinerant merchants. Most fire.
(, ouently is heard the cry. "Ya rezzak T."
which is translated, "Oh God, send to
me customer"
| A commercial center Of Damascus
| is the Derb-el- Mustakim, the Street
| Called Straight, made famous by Saul
| Of Tarsus. Here in former days
walked emirs Of Araby, khans from
Bokhara and Tunisian beys. Along its
sides are Arabian cafes Of which the
city possesses the most numerous and
| largest in the East. The Damascene
imam in the street" may be found
putting his narghile and slipping cof
| fee or cinnamon in the cafe. He will
| sit cross-legged on bench playing
| backgammon or listening for hours to
q professional story teller.
Despite modern improvements and
| transportation methods, Damascus Ii