Year: 1867

A correspondent of the StGts Gazstts
thus describes q funeral near Jericho:


Our, tents are pitched near the vii
lage burial. place, and just as We arrive
natives are engaged in committing one
of their number to his mother dust
We dismount and draw near to witness
the ceremonies of an Arab funeral
Two men are digging the grave, and
probably twenty others standing
around giving directions, sometimes in
loud and almost queruleus voice; q
little way off the crops lies wrapped up
in white muslin shroud, tied at the
head and feet and not far from this
sit probably fifty women on the ground.
some bemoaning in loud voice, while
others seem to be comforting them
Occasionally ten or q dozen of the
younger women form riag and dance
around another-probahly sister Of the
deceased-uttering meanwhile dolor-
Gus song.


In the digging of the grave, we no.
tice no less than six human skulls,
with corresponding number of other
bones of the body, thrown out among
the dirt at the side of the grave.


When all is ready, several men pick
up the body and carry. it to the grave,
in which they lay it upon its side, with
face turned toward Mecca. Stones afe
then fitted in around and above the
body, some mortar and dirt thrown in
upon the stones, then the bones which
had been taken out, and finally every
man present, with his hand or foot,
scrapes in some dirt until the hole is
filed up. Stones are set at the head
and foot, upon which one of the men
pours little powder, and rubs it with
spittle and his finger until q black
mark is left upon each. The signi6-
canoe Of this We do not understand,
though 1t doubtless means something.
The men keep up sort of chant while
all this Is being done, andGin eoncla-
sion, all the men approseh and salute
t6oof the men present, probably BROTH
ers Of the deceased, by pressing their
own foreheads against those Of the
brothers, twice in succession. The
women, during the burial, continue
seated on the ground. some distance
| of, and at no time approach the grave.
One old woman, however, the mother
of the deceased, whed the men. are
gone sway, erSwied upon her hands
and knees to the foot of the crave, and
with uplifted hands and streaming
eyes, bemoaned the loss Of her darling
boy. This IS the saddest sight Of the
whole proceeding, and could not but
bring tears to our eyes. Misersbly poor
and degraded ss she Is, she still loved
her boy, and bemoaned his loss with
all of mothers love. a


While Standing near the grave a.
the grave diggers are doing their work.
some ask US for buekshessh and others
for tobacco We give Of both--of the
latter all we have in cur poaoh, and
think nothing more of it ; but when
We get back to our tents and feel in
our side coat pocket for our rubber
tobacco-pouch and handkerchief, find
them both missing. Not content with
what We had given them, these rsscals
had stolen both our tobacco-peuch and
handkerchief while We were standing
among than at the grave side-thus
illustrating in our own case what Christ
had said Of the man vino went down
to Jericho and fell among thieFes.-
Our conclusions are that. the Jerichoi-
ans of to-day aresno better than they
were in the days of our Savior; and
perhaps they are even worse, since it
is not reported of that man that he
was attending a funeral at the time he
was robbed. f -