IX

There is a saying in Persia: "When cousins marry they are never happy." And yet, as a rule, marriages are within the religious sects. If a Christian--Christians in Persia are of the ancient Nestorian faith--should marry a Mohammedan woman, he would be compelled to renounce his religion for the Mohammedan, as the ruling class would not allow it to be otherwise. Christian parents, on the other hand, would not give their consent to the union of their daughter with a worshipper of Islam. Occasionally, however, attractive Nestorian girls are captured and carried off, and compelled to accept the Mohammedan religion, and married to a Persian or a Turk. Generally, girls marry within their own villages, since each neighborhood is, as a rule, a community uninfluenced and unvisited by people from other communities. Persia is no exception to the ordinary Oriental rule, that marriage contracts are made by the parents--the children accepting with unquestioning obedience the conditions that have been prepared for them.

A young man, being where isolation of the sexes does not prevail, may, however, and often does, show unmistakably his preference for the girl of his liking; and since the communities are often small, isolated marriages of those who have known and loved one another from infancy are not infrequent. The wise parent finds out if the two young people are really in love, though both will often vehemently deny what is plainly true, and tries to arrange matters in accordance with the eternal fitness of things. The girl in question, however, is never consulted in the matter. All girls are supposed to marry, and a youth who remains long single is considered of all creatures the most miserable. As is general throughout the East, Persian girls are ready for conjugal life at twelve years of age, certainly at the age of fifteen. Betrothal often takes place as early as infancy. Parents will sometimes undertake to cement, or at least to express, their strong friendship by engaging their infants, one to another. These two, growing up with the understanding that they are finally to be husband and wife, often become ardent lovers, and the match is a happy one.

When a young man has become of age, which in many cases is very early in life, especially among the rich classes, the parents will send two or three male friends to act as mediators, who will go to the house of the girl in question and ask her parents for her hand. After some deliberation, with apparently great reluctance, the request is granted. To seal the contract, one of the mediators rises and kisses the hand of the father. The contracting parties return to their homes and report their success to the parents of the young man. In accordance with the affirmative report, his parents, within a few days, meet the parents of the girl and conclude the arrangements for the wedding.

The first in the order of preparation is the buying of the wedding clothes for the bride; for these the father of the prospective bridegroom pays. The father must make presents to the members of the girl's family and to her friends. The chief officers of the town must also be remembered. After this the parties make ready for the marriage. While the bride is engaged in preparing for the wedding, there are feasts and revels at the houses of both the bride and the groom. Provision for these sumptuous feasts is made by the groom's father. This feasting lasts from three to six days. The predominating features in it are music and dancing, in a style peculiar to Persian life and custom. Mirthful song is provided by professional singers, to the great delight of those present. After two or three days of incessant preparation on the part of the girl, and of festivity on the part of the ever mirthful guests, the men and the boys, following a leader, go to bring the bride home. As soon as the gay company has arrived, a feast is in readiness for them. A dance in the house or in the yard follows. Meantime, the bride is being prepared to take her journey to her future home. At last it is announced that she is ready, and the musicians play a doleful tune, while the girl kisses her parents good-bye; and bidding adieu to all the friends of her childhood, she is soon mounted on the horse which is to carry her. At that moment the musicians change their mournful tune to one more lively, and off the whole company marches with the bride to her destination. At the arrival of the bride, which is reported by a young man, all the people of the community emerge from their huts and come out to witness the festive scene. After some ceremony, the bride dismounts before the house of the most prominent man in the town, into which she is escorted, and there she is received and entertained with honor.

That night again the town in general enjoys hilarious feasting and mirth, especially in the house of the groom. The next day the musicians go to the different parts of the town where the guests are being entertained, and summon them to the enjoyment of another feast. As soon as this is over, they accompany the groom, led by the music and dancers, to the place where the bride is being entertained; and thence, if they be Catholic Christians, they at once proceed to the church, where the priest performs the marriage rite. The husband and wife are now ready to be escorted to their future home, which is the birthplace of the groom. The rest of that day is spent in conversation and feasting. The female friends of the groom look, for the first time, upon the unveiled bride; and they examine the embroidered work, which the girl has made with her own hands, and which constitutes a part of the bridal equipment. The day being over, the friends depart and the bride and groom are launched on their new life.

The women of the Persian seraglio are more closely confined, if possible, than the women of the Hindoo or of the Turkish harems. In ancient days it was customary to put the women who entered the royal harem under a strict regimen or course of preparation. A glimpse of this purifying process is given in the Hebrew Book of Esther, the author of which shows minute acquaintance with Persian life and customs. "Now when every maid's turn was come, ... after that she had been twelve months, according to the manner of the women (for so were the days of their purification accomplished, to wit: six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with sweet odors, and with other things for the purifying of the women), then thus came every maiden unto the king; whatsoever she desired was given her to go with her out of the house of the women unto the king's house."

The custom of strict seclusion and oversight of the women, introduced by the ancient kings to guard better a pure lineage and to exhibit greater state, has had large influence in Persia, except among the nomadic peoples. The arrangements of the house for obtaining privacy for women are usually the same throughout the land. The first apartment of the house is for the use of men; the second or interior apartment, called the "anteroom," is for the women, and no men are allowed to intrude into the "harem" or "forbidden place"; else the voice of the eunuchs, or guardians, will be quickly heard crying out: "Women--away," and every face in the harem will be at once veiled from the sight of the intruder.

"I am a woman" is frequently given and regarded as an ample reason why a modern Persian girl need not learn to read. Every city or town has its school for boys, but there are no schools for girls (unless they be mission schools), since it is commonly believed that it is a prudent policy to keep the female sex satisfied with their present position in the economy of life. The wealthier parents may, however, sometimes employ private tutors for their girls. The deep-seated line that marks a woman as different from a man appears even in the method of capital punishment meted out to women. While a man who is to be executed will have his jugular vein cut, be nailed to a wall, or be blown from a cannon's mouth, a woman will be sentenced to have her head shaved, her face blackened, to take a bareback ride upon a donkey along the public highway, and finally to be beaten to death in a bag. Or she may be stripped of all clothing and placed in a bag full of cats, which will soon scratch or bite the unfortunate victim to death.

Domestic peace does not always hover like a white dove over Persian homes. Even among the Nestorians, the ancient Christian sect, it is very common for the husband to assert his lordship over his spouse by giving her an occasional flogging. The women expect this as one of the conditions of their position. The failure of this method of emphasizing the husband's authority, however, would appear from the testimony that "the number of women who revere their husbands is as small as the list of husbands who do not beat their wives."

In this land of the ancient Magi it is not strange that there should be many superstitions connected with marriages and engagements. Sometimes it is manifest that the husband does not love his wife. If this be the case, the wife or her mother may consult a magician. He will write for her a charm. This is to be sewed into some designated part of her daily apparel; a like charm is prepared for direct effect upon the husband, and this must be secretly sewed into his clothing. The hoped-for result of these charms is the renewal of conjugal affection. Another charm, which is highly regarded, directs the wife to cut off a few hairs from both her own and her husband's head, to burn them together and from their ashes make a potion which the husband is to be caused, clandestinely, to drink. Some magicians will direct that the love prescription be placed under the hinge of the door of the house, so that as the door is constantly opened and shut, the husband's love will as constantly grow toward his spouse. Sterility is uniformly regarded as a misfortune, if not a curse. Incantations and charms are frequently employed to induce fecundity. The Persian women and Orientals generally have innumerable superstitions. For example, when a hen is heard to crow, it is regarded either as a good or a bad omen. To ascertain exactly which it may be, the crowing hen is blindfolded and carried to the top of the flat roof. She is then dropped through the open window into the centre of the room below. If the hen turns toward the corner of the house, it is considered a good omen, and all is well. If on the other hand, she starts toward the door, it is regarded as portending evil, and the hen is killed at once. This odd custom suggests another, somewhat similar, once in vogue in Persia. Suppose a woman has lost a piece of money, and she suspects that some disloyal neighbor, she does not know whom, has taken it. To prevent a public trial and to spare the innocent the disgrace that may come upon those wrongly suspected, all the neighbors agree that at a certain time every man and woman of the vicinage shall go, one after the other, to the dwelling from which the money was stolen, and in passing, each person shall throw a handful of dirt into the window of the person whose money has been lost. One goes and returns to his own house, and then another, till all have thrown in a handful. When the last one has deposited the dirt he has brought, the owner goes in and finds in the midst of the total deposit the lost treasure; for the guilty party, fearing that he will at length be detected and suffer punishment, and knowing that he cannot be detected if he throws the money down into the house along with his handful of dirt, avails himself of this means of escape from the charge which he fears.

There are no women who have a harder, and apparently a happier, life than do the women of the Kurds. The men of the tribe deny that women are possessed of souls. A woman must not, therefore, be present where a man is at prayer. If she should touch him while performing this hallowed duty, it is thought that she might get the benefit of the prayer. Indeed, it is believed that if she touch him, she obtains his soul. Should a woman be seen approaching, the man at prayer may rise, go out from the prayer circle, take his gun and shoot the woman, and then piously return to his devotions.

The Kurdish women are very dark in complexion and picturesque in their apparel. They use paints and other cosmetics in abundance, to please the eye of their husbands. Their day of toil is a long one, for, after finishing their household duties, they are expected to hasten to the fields to tend the flocks, or to gather fuel for the winter. At night they return with large packs upon their shoulders, enough for two donkeys to carry. They may be seen spinning and singing on their way to and fro, as though their lot were the happiest in the world. Little thinking of the ordinary ailments of women, they trudge along over the fields or the mountain heights; and frequently a Kurdish woman may be seen returning home in the evening, happy, with her huge bundle of sticks for the fire, and with the infant to which she has given birth during the day! A Kurd usually thinks more of his steed than of his wife, who may sometimes be compelled to vacate her place in the dwelling to make room for the horse.

Any account of Persian women is incomplete without some reference to woman in the native poetry of the Persians. No poetry of the East has been so generally admired, translated, and read as the Persian. In it woman finds a large place. And yet, it cannot be said that she is presented always in the light of the brightest ideals of virtuous womanhood.

The Persian poet Hafiz is said once to have been asked by the philosopher Zenda what he was good for, and he replied: "Of what use is a flower?" "A flower is good to smell," said the philosopher. "And I am good to smell it," said the poet. Too often woman is shown as the plaything of man's passion and fancy. Yet the virtue of heroic womanhood in the early days is presented with great force and beauty.

The Persian poets, in the treatment of love, leave little place for reflection, still less for practical considerations. It is spontaneous love, "love at first sight," which they deem alone worthy of their song. "Love at first sight and of the most enthusiastic kind is the passion described in all Persian poems, as if a whole life of love were condensed into one moment. It is all wild and rapturous; it has nothing of the rational cast. A casual glance from an unknown beauty often affords the subject of a poem." These words well sum up the Persian poets' most common attitude toward love and the female graces. The following lines written concerning the beauty of the daughter of Gureng King of Zabulistan, are typical:

"So graceful in her movements and so sweet,Her very look plucked from the breast of ageThe root of sorrow;--her wine-sipping lipsAnd mouth like sugar, cheeks all dimpled overWith smiles and glowing as the summer rose--Won every heart."

"So graceful in her movements and so sweet,

Her very look plucked from the breast of age

The root of sorrow;--her wine-sipping lips

And mouth like sugar, cheeks all dimpled over

With smiles and glowing as the summer rose--

Won every heart."

These words, too, were said of a damsel who had won fame as a warrior in her father's army, and her skill, valor, and judgment had made enemies fall at her feet. Indeed, one of the most romantic portions of theShahnamahof Firdausi are the passages describing the meeting of the gallant King Jamshid with the beautiful daughter of Gureng, whose father had given her permission to marry, provided only it should be spontaneous love which should guide her in the choice:

"It must be love and love aloneThat binds thee to another's throne,In this thy father has no voice--Thine the election, thine the choice."

"It must be love and love alone

That binds thee to another's throne,

In this thy father has no voice--

Thine the election, thine the choice."

One day, as by chance, the handsome young King Jamshid arrived at the city, a fatigued stranger, and was not permitted by the keepers to pass through King Gureng's rose garden. Weary, Jamshid sat down at the gate, under a shade tree. The damsel sees him, and at once falls in love with his manly form and demeanor. She brings him wine, by which he may be refreshed, and pours out her tender soul to him. Presently a dove and his cooing mate alight upon a bough above their heads. The damsel asks which of the birds her bow and arrow must bring to the ground. Jamshid replies: "Where a man is, a woman's aid is not required; give me the bow."

"However brave a woman may appear,Whatever strength of arms she may possess,She is but half a man."

"However brave a woman may appear,

Whatever strength of arms she may possess,

She is but half a man."

Blushing, the girl gives over the weapon, and Jamshid says: "Now for the wager. If I hit the female, shall the lady whom I most admire in this company be mine?" The damsel, her heart bounding with throbs of love, assents. Jamshid drew the string and struck the female bird so skilfully that both wings were transfixed with the body. The male bird flew away, but presently returned and perched itself again upon the bough as if unwilling to leave its stricken mate. The damsel grasped the bow and arrow, and said: "The male bird has returned to his former place; if my aim be successful shall the man whom I choose in this company be my husband?"

Just then the aged nurse of the princess appears, and recognizes in King Jamshid him whom the oracles had predicted would be the young girl's spouse.

"... happy tidings, blissful to her heart,Increased the ardor of her love for him."

"... happy tidings, blissful to her heart,

Increased the ardor of her love for him."

They are married. And the story of her father's displeasure and of his treachery toward Jamshid, the latter's betrayal and death, the young wife's inconsolable grief and sad self-slaughter move before the reader in a most thrilling fashion. This Persian poem, setting forth the romantic side of female character, is one of the greatest pieces of literature ever written.

The Persian romances delight in making the women do most of the loving and the courting. The heroines are the first to feel passion and the most rapturous in expressing it. They, however, like Saiawush in theShahnamah, are fond of coyness until they have determined to yield to the force of love. But when the love of a Persian woman has once gone out, the Persian poets usually depict it as strong and steadfast to the end. It speaks like that of Manijeh, the unfortunate Byzun:

"Can I be faithless then to thee,The choice of this fond heart of mine,Why sought I bonds when I was free,But to be thine, forever thine?"

"Can I be faithless then to thee,

The choice of this fond heart of mine,

Why sought I bonds when I was free,

But to be thine, forever thine?"

Even the best poets, such as Firdausi, who was called the "poet of Paradise," Persia's great national poet, often present woman's charms in lines highly overdrawn. Such these are concerning the Princess Rudabah:

"Screened from public viewHer countenance is brilliant as the sun;From head to foot her lovely form is fairAs polished ivory. Like the spring, her cheekPresents a radiant bloom--in stature tall,And o'er her silvery brightness, richly flowDark musky ringlets clustering to her feet."

"Screened from public view

Her countenance is brilliant as the sun;

From head to foot her lovely form is fair

As polished ivory. Like the spring, her cheek

Presents a radiant bloom--in stature tall,

And o'er her silvery brightness, richly flow

Dark musky ringlets clustering to her feet."

Khakani, considered the most learned of Persia's lyric poets, wrote some beautiful verses in which womanly charms find place. Such is his poemThe Unknown Beauty, in which occur the lines:

"I saw thy form of waving grace!I heard thy soft and gentle sighs;I gazed on that enchanting face,And looked in thy narcissus eyes;Oh! by the hopes thy smiles allowed,Bright soul-inspirer, who art thou?"

"I saw thy form of waving grace!

I heard thy soft and gentle sighs;

I gazed on that enchanting face,

And looked in thy narcissus eyes;

Oh! by the hopes thy smiles allowed,

Bright soul-inspirer, who art thou?"

The great price placed upon womanly beauty is clearly discerned in such writers as Sadi, who died about A. D. 1292. In hisGulistan, or "Rose Garden," he tells the story of a doctor of laws who had a daughter. She was so extremely ugly that she reached the age of womanhood long before anyone wished her in marriage, although her fortune and dowry were large--for "Damask or brocade but add to deformity, when put upon a bride void of symmetry," says Sadi. Finally, to avoid perpetual maidenhood, the girl was given in wedlock to a blind man. Very soon a physician who could restore sight to the blind happened to come that way. "Why do you not get him to prescribe for your son-in-law?" the father was asked. "Because," said he, "I am afraid he may recover his sight and repudiate my daughter--for the husband of an ugly woman ought to be blind."

Few poets have written more of love and womanly grace than did Hafiz, who died in A. D. 1388. In theDiwan, which has been compared to a story of pearls, Hafiz says:

"To me love's echo is the sweetest soundOf all that 'neath the circling roundHath staved."

"To me love's echo is the sweetest sound

Of all that 'neath the circling round

Hath staved."

A story is told of Hafiz and Tamerlane, which is doubtless apocryphal. Coming upon the poet one day, Tamerlane said: "Art thou not the insolent versemonger who didst offer my two great cities Samarkand and Bokhara for the black mole upon thy lady's cheek?" "It is true," replied Hafiz, with much calmness; "and indeed, my munificence has been so great throughout my life that it has left me destitute; so, hereafter I shall be dependent on thy generosity for a livelihood." This apt reply of Hafiz is said to have so pleased the conqueror that he sent the poet away with a present.

It may be said, as a rule, that the Persian poets emphasize almost exclusively woman's physical charms. "Women, wine, and song" are, in truth, the chief burden of the poems. The sensuous side of love is most frequently disclosed. There are, however, some exceptions to this general rule, as may be discovered in passages from the writings of Jami. While it is the beauty of the unmarried woman which most frequently and most naturally holds place in Persian song, yet the married life is not forgotten. Firdausi, in his account of the beautiful Rudabah, says of wedlock:

"For marriage is a contract sealed by Heaven--How happy is the warrior's lot amidstHis smiling children."

"For marriage is a contract sealed by Heaven--

How happy is the warrior's lot amidst

His smiling children."

And Firdausi makes Kitabun say:

"A mother's counsel is a golden treasure."

Examples of the recognition of love that is deep and full of meaning are not wanting among the Persian poets.

Nizami, Persia's first great romantic poet, who lived in the twelfth century of our era, wrote nothing better than his romance of Bedouin love, the story of Laili and Majnun, which has been happily termed theRomeo and Julietof the East. "France," says a recent writer, "has its Abelard and Eloise, Italy its Petrarch and Laura, Persia and Arabia have their pure pathetic romance." Many see in the story of Laili and Majnun an allegorical or spiritual interpretation. At least, it illustrates the stress which the Persian poets put upon a true, undying devotion, and the Orientals consider it the very personification of faithful love.

The higher ideals are often found in the dramatic literature. Many consider Jami's celebratedYusuf and Zulaikha, a dramatic poem modelled after Firdausi, to be the finest poem in the Persian language. Sir William Jones pronounces it "the finest poem he ever read." It gives account of Yusuf--the Israelite Joseph--and Zulaikha, Potiphar's wife. In this is disclosed how the human soul attains the love for the highest beauty and goodness only when it has suffered and has been thoroughly regenerated, purified, as was the life of Zulaikha. The poet, seeing the emptiness of mere beauty, reaches the inevitable conclusion that

"He who gives his heart to a lovely formMay look for no rest--but a life of stormIf the gold of union be still his quest,With fond vain dream, love deludes his breast."

"He who gives his heart to a lovely form

May look for no rest--but a life of storm

If the gold of union be still his quest,

With fond vain dream, love deludes his breast."

TheDabistanwas first brought to public notice by that enthusiastic Orientalist of more than a century ago--Sir William Jones. In it there is a dissertation on the "Hundred Gates of Paradise," in which occur directions for entering the place of blessedness. Sons and daughters are to be given in early marriage. Milk must be given to a child as soon as the mother gives it birth. Directions are given to women in sickness and in childbearing. Implicit obedience to husbands is strictly enjoined, and warning is carefully given against the woman of unchaste life.

The Zend-Avesta, as well as the great body of Persian poetry, has preserved much of the ancient life and flavor of Iran. There is scarcely any feature in the literature of the religion of Zoroaster, which holds a more emphatic place than that which enjoins purity of life. Domestic virtues are accorded high place in these teachings. Says the Zend-Avesta: "Purity is the best of all things; purity is the fairest of all things, even as thou hast said, O righteous Zarathushtra,--Purity is, next to life, the greatest good." Zoroaster inquires of Ormuzd which is the second best place, when earth feels most happy? To which Ormuzd makes reply: "It is the place whereon one of the faithful erects a house with a priest within, with cattle, with a wife and with children and good herds within, and wherein afterward the cattle continue to thrive, virtue to thrive, fodder to thrive, the dog to thrive, the wife to thrive, the child to thrive, the fire to thrive, and every blessing of life to thrive."

Woman's conservatism has already been referred to in these pages. There is probably no people in the world, certainly no branch of the widely scattered Semitic family, among whom ancient ideals and customs have been more persistent than among the Arabians. Indeed, Arabia occupies a unique position in the world's history. From her territory there probably went out the different branches of the Semitic people, a part of the human family which is second to none in its influence upon the course of history. For one of its branches, the Assyro-Babylonian, probably developed the earliest civilization which has come down to us; another was the most powerful of all ancient faiths, the Hebrew, while two other historic religions, the Christian and the Mohammedan, had their origin in Semitic soil.

Arabia is truly a land of mystery; but for this very reason the interest in her people is yet the keener. She has but few ancient monuments written upon tablets of stone and hardened clay--in palaces and ancient temples--as have Egypt and Assyria. Her records are in legend, story, tradition, and the persistent customs of her people. With the exception of the influence of the birth and the death of a culture which awakened the world and helped to scatter the Dark Ages, and of the rise of Mohammed, there have been few changes in this remarkable land.

Two forces stand out as most potential in the shaping of the Arab woman's character. These may be summed up in the words, the desert and the cult; the latter being in some sense the product of the former. To these may possibly be added a third. That is the war spirit, without which the lord as well as the lady of the Arabian peninsula would have written out for themselves a far different, and perhaps a far less romantic history. For there were those who, even like Khaled, spurn the love of a noble maiden from his "pride of the passion of war." Even love making, which holds an important place in Arabic literature, gives way to what was regarded as the noblest of all occupations, the making of war.

Womanhood, in the so-called "time of ignorance,"--the days before Islam wrought so marked a change in the life of Arabia,--enjoyed a freedom and strength which spoke of the open air and the far-stretching plains. As she followed the fortunes of her nomad chief, the woman was indelibly writing her history. It is in religious ideals too that woman must always find the key to her standing and influence among any people.

Among the early Arabs the female idea held no small place in their religious beliefs and practices, and this is true of the early Semites generally. This is specially noteworthy, however, as Robertson Smith has pointed out, in the olden Arabic cult. Gods and goddesses went in pairs, and the goddess was usually the more important divinity. The jinn, which held so conspicuous a place, were regarded as feminine. In the Minæan pantheon, Wadd and Nikrah, "Love" and "Hate," female divinities, played an important rôle in the religious life of this branch of the Arabic people. Wherever the female divinity is prominent, woman enjoys considerable privilege and influence in religion, and this was true in ancient Arabia.

The people believed in an inferior order of divine beings--emanations, secondary spirits--compared to angels by some Mussulman writers. These beings were of the female sex and known asBenat Allah(daughters of Allah). Mohammed in the Koran, however, strongly condemned this earlier belief as not consonant with the unity of God, which is a doctrine so emphatically preached in the religion of Islam. Each tribe not only had itsKahin, or "diviner" (Hebrew,Kohen, "priest"), but itsArrafa, or "sorceress."

Woman's sphere in the olden days of Arabia was no mean one. Arabic women have from time immemorial shown themselves, on occasion, to possess a courage and hardihood unsurpassed in history. Arabia has had her Amazons. In prehistoric times, armed heroines of invincible bravery have left their record in the myths of this ancient people. And in the days of authentic history, women have fought valiantly to advance the cause for which their husbands and brothers waged war so fiercely.

The high place held by women in the ancient wars of Araby still survives in the thrilling custom of having some courageous woman accompany an Arab force into the battle. The maiden is mounted upon the back of a blackened camel, and placed in the front of the line as it makes its onslaught upon the enemy. As the fighting men press forward to the battle she sings verses of encouragement to her compatriots, and insults are flung from her lips against the opposing force. It is around this young woman and her camel that the fiercest battle rages. Should she be so unfortunate as to be killed or captured, the calamity is unspeakable and the rout utter. But should her friends be victorious, it is she who heads the triumphal march.

As we might expect, the spirit of chivalry is not lacking in Arabic song and story. In the romance ofAntar, the story of the hero's love for Ibla, "fair as the full moon," and the account of her rescue, breathe the spirit of genuine romance. Antar does not hesitate to strike down the man who has "failed in respect to Arab women." TheArabian Nights, though in less degree, has also preserved to us evidences of ancient chivalry and romance.

Hagar, of whose sad life the Hebrew narratives give us record, though herself called an Egyptian woman, became ancestress of an Arab clan and plays some part in Arabian tradition. She was the ancestress of the restless, roving Ishmaelites--a typical Arabian tribe. Mohammed, in explaining the preservation of an ancient idolatrous custom of visiting in religious pilgrimages the hills of Safa and Marwa, where once were worshipped two idols, one representing a man and the other a woman, says, in the Koran, that it was between these two eminences that Hagar wandered, distracted, running from one to the other, till the angel showed her the miraculous spring which saved her boy's life.

Indeed, the Arab legend says that when Hagar and Ishmael were driven from Abraham's tent at Sarah's behest, she was conducted far into the desert, at the place where Mecca now stands. When her provisions are exhausted, laying the boy down, she runs to and fro in despair. In his thirst and suffering, Ishmael strikes his head against the earth, and a spring of sparkling water gushes out. Some members of an Arab tribe, thirsty, and seeking their lost camels, come, guided by birds, to the spot, seeking to quench their thirst. Never having known water to spring in that locality before, they received Hagar and Ishmael with especial reverence, and bade them take up their permanent abode with them, lest because of their departure the spring might dry up. To Ishmael was given in marriage one of their maidens, Amara, daughter of Saïd. This is but one of the many instances of the overlapping of Hebraic and Arabic legends.

Many are the stories told by the Arabs concerning the famous Queen of Sheba, who herself was an Arabian woman. She belonged to that southern branch of the family known as the Sabeans. Her fame has gone into many legends, both Arabic and Hebrew. Her visit to King Solomon of Israel furnishes the basis of most of these. As a lover of wisdom, or the philosophy of practical life, she was drawn to the ruler of the Hebrews, whose reputation had extended far and wide. Solomon proved especially successful in answering her favorite riddles and in untying for her the most knotty questions. Among the many Talmudic legends is this interesting one. The queen took groups of small boys and girls, dressed them precisely alike, and demanded of Solomon that he distinguish the boys from the girls. The king commanded that they all wash their hands. The boys washed only to the wrists; the girls rolled up their sleeves and bathed to their elbows. Thus the secret was disclosed. The Mohammedan legends concerning this remarkable queen are full and minute. Having with her own hand slain the reigning king, she herself, being of royal lineage, was proclaimed queen, and "protectress of her sex." She reigned with great wisdom and prudence, and administered justice throughout her kingdom. According to these Arabian legends, the Queen of Sheba, who was called Balkis, became one of Solomon's wives, though he allowed her to continue her beneficent reign over her own people.

The women of old Arabia, the dames of the desert, were comparatively free, as their open-air life would naturally suggest. The Arabian poets, in drawing the ancient life, so portray it. In the romance ofAntar, already mentioned, are found many delightful episodes, in which the woman appears as the loving friend, partner, and counsellor of her husband. These carry us back to the heroic age of Arabia. The custom which permitted infanticide in case of female children seems in marked contrast with the high place of woman in early Arabic literature. This cruel custom is the motive of one of the most attractive of the early romances, that ofKhaled and Djaida. The latter, when a babe, that she might not be known as a girl, was called by her mother by the name Djonder, and given a prolonged feast such as is accorded only to boys at their birth. About the same time, the chief of the tribe--and uncle to Djonder--had born to him a son, who was called Khaled. The cousins grew up, both learned in the arts of war, and both made for themselves names for their high courage. Djonder was taught to ride and to fight, as though she were a man, and the very name of Djonder became a terror to his foes. Khaled heard of his cousin's exploits and rushed to see him, that he might witness his skill at arms. But his father, being at enmity with Zahir, his own brother and father of Djonder, would not permit Khaled to know Djonder. At length the desire of Khaled was realized. He was strangely enamored of his cousin, whom, however, he thought to be a young man like himself. Djonder, too, fell desperately in love with the valiant Khaled. The latter chooses the field and war instead of love, however, and leaves Djonder in tears. Later, by the fortunes of war, they meet on the field of battle in single combat. Djonder has so concealed her identity that Khaled does not know with whom he fights. After a long contest of marvellous prowess, neither is victor. Djonder reveals herself. The old love returns. It is Djonder now who resists the importunity of Khaled's love. After testing him by several difficult and dangerous exploits, she becomes his wife.

Of music and poetry the Arabs from the most ancient days have been passionately fond. The nomad life tends to develop both poetry and song. The most ancient bards in all lands were wanderers. David, "the sweet singer of Israel," was a shepherd lad. Hesiod heard the call of the Muses while leading his flock at Mount Helicon. Caedmon, England's earliest poet, was watching his herd when the call came to sing. The Arab bard sings freely of his camel, the antelope, the wild ass, the gazelle, of his sword, his bow and arrows, of wine, and, above all, of his ladylove.

In the famous literary collection known as theMuallakat, made by Hammad about A. D. 777, seven of the best poems of the early Arabs are brought together. Those that most fitly set forth the love of woman are the poems of Imr-al-kais and Antar. Sa'id ibn Judi, the true representative of Arabian knighthood, must not be forgotten as the poet most loved by the fair sex. The flavor of these lyrics may be discovered in the brief poem of Antar uponA Fair Lady, "whose glittering pearls and ruby lips enslaved the poet's heart:

"Such an odor from her breathComes toward me, harbinger of her approach;Or like an untouched meadow, where the rainHath fallen freshly on the fragrant herbsThat carpet all its pure untrodden soil."

"Such an odor from her breath

Comes toward me, harbinger of her approach;

Or like an untouched meadow, where the rain

Hath fallen freshly on the fragrant herbs

That carpet all its pure untrodden soil."

For variety of gifts and force of character there is no Arabian woman who is comparable in fame to Zenobia. By birth she was a Palmyrene, and without doubt, of Arab blood. The descriptions of her personal beauty tell of her black, flashing eyes, her pearly teeth, and the grace of her form and carriage. Her bodily strength and commanding manners gave her influence over all with whom she came in contact. As wife of Odenathus, King of Palmyra, she contributed much to her husband's success and power. She was a woman of rare native qualities as well as of extraordinary accomplishments. She was a linguist, being familiar with the Coptic, the Syriac, and the Latin languages. She was skilled in the arts of war, and gifted with remarkable political insight and sagacity. After her husband's death she ruled as Queen of Palmyra, and personally conducted successful conquests, causing the nations around to tremble before her; and even Rome itself found her no mean antagonist in arms. The high spirit of the queen would not permit her to account herself a vassal even to the imperial city on the Tiber. She had won Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, and parts of Asia Minor to her sovereignty, but in the contest with Rome she was defeated, though many Romans had joined her army. The battles of Antioch and Emesa were lost. Zenobia fled to the Persians, but was captured. Those near her were put to death, but Zenobia graced the triumph of Aurelian, the victorious general who led her into the Roman capital in A. D. 271. For years she resided there with gracious dignity and unconquered pride. She was essentially a woman of affairs and as queen was mistress of every situation, giving all to know, "I am queen, and while I live I will reign." As wife she is said to have declined to cohabit with her husband, except so far as was necessary to the raising up of an heir to the throne of Palmyra. The brilliancy of her court was scarcely ever surpassed by any queen, while her personal charms and almost marvellous achievements rendered her one of the most remarkable, if not the greatest woman of ancient times.

In the days of Mohammed a new influence is brought to bear upon Arab life, and therefore upon female character. Mohammed's relation to woman might be of itself lengthened into an interesting chapter. Abdullah, Mohammed's father, was married to a woman of noble parentage, named Aminah. She was a woman of sensitive, nervous temperament, and her son doubtless inherited from his mother qualities which made his subsequent religious ecstasies both physically and mentally possible. Aminah is reported to have been miraculously free from the pangs of childbirth when her son first saw the light. For several months she nursed the infant, but sorrow is said to have soon dried up the fountain of her breast, and Halimah, a woman of marked fidelity to her charge, became Mohammed's foster-mother. Akahin, or sorcerer, is said once to have met Halimah with the boy. "Kill this child," said he; "kill this child." But Halimah, snatching up the child, made away in haste. The sorcerer saw in the boy an enemy of the ancient idolatrous faith.

It was not till the rich widow of Mecca, Khadijah, came into Mohammed's life that he began to make himself felt in the world. Wishing someone to attend to some business affairs for her, Khadijah secured Mohammed's services. So well did he execute his task that the rich widow became enamored of the young man. She asked him for his hand. At twenty-five years of age, Mohammed married the woman who was destined to influence his life so powerfully, she being at least fifteen years his senior. It was not long before Mohammed turned his thoughts toward religion and set himself to the task of reforming the religious ideas and practices of his people. With what result the world knows.

It is Mohammed's attitude toward woman and his teachings concerning her that most concern us here. His love for Khadijah, his first wife, was pure and constant; and his mother he always honored with a most devoted spirit. It is with reference to Mohammed's personal bearing toward the female sex that he has received the most scathing criticisms. How many times he was married subsequently to his wedding with Khadijah is a matter of dispute; but there were probably no less than fourteen other wives, besides the widow of Mecca. Since Mohammed allowed his faithful followers but four wives, it was necessary to explain why he himself should have exceeded that meagre number. The prophet was ready with his reply, that while men generally were to have no more than four, a special revelation to himself had given him the right to go beyond that number.

Among those whom Mohammed espoused was his child wife Ayesha, who lived long after the death of the prophet and took an active part in shaping the political history of Islam immediately after Mohammed's demise. She fostered a burning dislike toward Ali, Mohammed's son-in-law, to whom the prophet had given his daughter Fatima. Because of Ayesha's intrigues Ali was unable to succeed Mohammed as kalif. Abubekr, Omar, and Othman in turn held sway. But at length Ali was victorious, taking Ayesha a prisoner and becoming the fourth of the line of the kalifate. Ayesha in personal daring belonged to the heroic type of Arabian womanhood. In the battle of the Camel, A. D. 656, she actually led the charge. Ali, like his distinguished father-in-law, considered himself an exception to the ordinary rule which accorded but four wives to the faithful, having married eight others besides his loved Fatima.

Among the kalifs there was none whose court was more magnificent than that of Haroun al Raschid. So greatly did he dazzle the eyes of his generation by his brilliancy, that his name became associated with many romances. The account of the wives and favorites of Haroun borrow a halo from their association with his illustrious name. TheThousand and One Nightsare replete with the romantic adventures of the days of this brilliant kalif. But the actual life of the women of the Arabian peninsula cannot be accurately gauged by the appearance they made in the stories of romantic adventure.

Mohammed's attitude to woman has, of course, been the decisive religious influence in shaping the history of woman's life among the followers of Islam since his day. The Mohammedans have a legend that when Adam and Eve sinned, God commanded that their lives should be purified by both the culprits standing naked in the river Jordan for forty days. Adam obeyed, and so became comparatively pure again; but Eve refused to be thus washed, and, of course, her standing before God has been relatively lower ever since.

The Mohammedan woman does not worship upon an equality with the man. Not that the prophet positively forbade the female sex from public attendance upon worship at the mosque, but he counselled that they should make their prayers in private. In some parts of the wide territory under the prophet's power, neither women nor young boys are allowed to enter the mosque at the time of prayer. At other places women may come, but must place themselves apart from men, and always behind them. "The Moslems are of the opinion," says Sale, "that the presence of females inspired a different kind of devotion from that which is requisite in a place dedicated to the worship of God," and adds that very few women among the Arabs in Egypt even pray at home.

The Koran has much to say of woman. One lengthysurais taken up almost entirely by this theme. The ancient doctrine of woman's creation from the man is accepted, and probably was derived from contact with the Jews, the influence of which contact is marked throughout Mohammed's teachings. Honor "for the woman who has borne you" is frequently taught; justice and kindness toward female orphans is repeatedly enjoined. Women should be given freely their just dowries, and should not be omitted from the rights of inheritance; but a son may receive as much as two daughters. The prohibited degrees for marriage are most carefully laid down. Accusing a chaste woman of adultery is regarded as one of the seven grievous sins. The prophet counsels that husband and wife adjust their disputes amicably between themselves, "for a reconciliation is better than a separation." Thus one after another, in a manner altogether lacking in order or in systematic treatment, Mohammed gives forth his commands concerning women. Matters of marriage, divorce, dower, chastity, and the like are frequently before the prophet's mind; but his precepts, while making concessions to human weakness, are far higher than his example. The teachings of Mohammed, even at their best, placed woman on a distinctly lower plane than man, rendered her a subservient tool on the earth and painted a heaven where man's sensuality was to be gratified to the limits of his capacity for enjoyment.

The Arabs, while sensual in their nature, have some strict laws concerning chastity. If a woman be guilty of lewdness, she is summarily put to death by her nearest relative. Unless this be done the family will lose all social recognition and civil rights. If it appears that she has been forced to the crime, the ravisher must flee or pay the penalty with his life, or if not, the life of those next of kin is in danger. If the malefactor be caught at once he is slain by the relatives of the woman. If not he may escape death through negotiations by which "the price of blood" is paid for the woman as if she had been killed. Sometimes arrangements of marriage are effected, but even then "the price of virginity" must be paid to the girl's parents.

The method by which a family purifies itself of the unchastity of a daughter is horrible enough. The family of the young woman assembles in some public place; the sheiks and leading men are present in considerable number. Some close relative stands with sword in hand, and says: "My honor and that of my family shall be purified this day by means of this sword which I hold in my hands." The guilty woman is then led out, laid upon the ground, and her head severed from her body at the hands of her father, brother, or some next of kin. The executioner then walks dignifiedly about the bleeding form three times, passing between the head and the trunk of the body, saying at each circuit: "Lo! thus our honor is left unstained." All dip their handkerchiefs in the blood of the culprit and take their leave, without any show of emotion. The body is left unburied, or is hacked to pieces by the woman's relatives and cast into a ditch.

Often, however, it is possible to save the young girl's life. Someone who is sufficiently kindly disposed toward her steps forward at the critical moment when she is being led forth to death and intercedes to save her life. This protector approaches the girl and says to her: "Wilt thou repent of thy fall? If so, I will defend thee." She replies affirmatively: "I will give thee the right to cut my throat if I commit this crime again." The man is then required to strip off his clothing in the presence of the multitude, declare that he has never seen this woman commit any crime, that it must therefore be the power of an evil spirit that took possession of her; "I therefore redeem her," says he. Then the whole scene changes from one of tragic solemnity to one of intense joy. The girl returns to the bosom of her family, reinstated; and no one thereafter has the right to cast any reflections upon her past life.

Pierrotti, in hisCustoms and Traditions of Palestine, tells of a scene witnessed by him when architect-engineer to Surraya Pasha, of Jerusalem. During a visit to Hebron in company with some Armenian gentlemen, he found the whole community stirred. A youth of eighteen had met in the fields a girl of fifteen, who was betrothed, and had tried to kiss her without her consent. She told her parents of the young man's misconduct. The families belonged to different clans or districts, and so were enemies. Efforts on the part of the boy's parents, through the sheiks of the two communities, were unavailing, though the father entreated earnestly for his son, and even promised to give up all he had as a ransom for his life. The girl's father demanded the boy's blood as propitiation for the wrong. And so, in the presence of an assembled crowd, the parent drew his sword and struck off his child's head, without a tear, saying: "Thus wipe I away every stain from my family." Overcome, he then instantly swooned away. His friends restored him to life, but his reason had fled. A clan war at once commenced, and those who had demanded the youth's destruction were slain in the strife.

Concerning the slaying of a woman, there are certain customs which sound strange to the Western ear, but are in keeping with the general law of "the price of blood" which prevailed among the ancient Hebrews, though in a somewhat modified form. If a man should be so unfortunate as to kill a woman, the members of the family that is wronged seek revenge, just as is the case should a man be slain, but "the price of blood" is never so high in case of the woman, it being about two thousand piastres, or about eighty dollars. This sum goes largely to the relatives of the woman. If the woman be married, the husband's damage is measured at eight hundred piastres and a silk dress. Should the murdered woman be pregnant, the slayer is amerced as if he had killed two. If the offspring would have been a boy, it is as though a woman and a man were slain, and "the price of blood" is so measured. If it would have been a daughter, the smaller price is charged, the father receiving the full price for the child and his eight hundred piastres for the murdered wife. Should it be a maiden, however, who has been slain, arrangement is often made whereby a sister of the slayer is given by her family to the brother of the slain as his wife; or if this arrangement is not feasible, the price of a woman is paid as first described.

A very curious custom exists among the Arabs in connection with the ancient "law of asylum." They recognize the right of sanctuary for those upon whom summary vengeance may be taken for some blood crime. But flight is often exceedingly dangerous because of the possibility of ambuscade along the way; and even when a village which owes protection to a fugitive undertakes to give him safe escort, the defenders may be overcome and the offender slain. Under such circumstances, it is customary to give him over to the escort of two women, who are his defenders. For it is a point of honor among Arabs not to attack or harm anybody or anything that has been placed under the protection of a woman.

That the modern Arab sometimes, however, has great confidence in the power of his wives, over others at least, may be illustrated by an amusing incident told by Loftus. During his researches his party was attacked by a company of Arabs, on account of which some of the assaulting party had been seized and lodged in prison. One of the chief sheiks of the country came to make friends with the explorer and to entreat for the release of the culprits. This was refused. Later a coup was conceived. Loftus looked out and saw the sheik's harem, in most radiant costumes, approaching the tent in single file, led by the sheik and a black eunuch. Thus the Arab hoped to appeal to Occidental chivalry through the prayers of the masked beauties who surrounded the tent, declaring they would not raise the siege till the occupant yielded to their entreaties.

The rich Mohammedan ladies are far less industrious than the poorer classes. Entering the harem at the tender age of twelve to fourteen years, the young woman is condemned to a life of sloth and sensuality. There is little opportunity for self-improvement or for enjoyments of a high order. They eat, drink, gossip, suckle their young, quarrel, plot, and eke out a miserable existence--always under the control of their masters.

The country women have greater freedom and far more influence with their husbands than do the women of the harem. Polygamy among the former class is rare, and hence the women are more highly regarded than those of the city. The peasant woman is industrious, engaged in some useful employment about the house or in the field. She buys and sells and gets gain for her husband and her home, and often is highly esteemed by him; but he will not let you know it, if he can avoid doing so. In public he always assumes the attitude of superiority. If but one can ride, it is the man and the children who sit upon the beast; the woman walks along at the side, carrying a bundle on her head or a baby at her breast--sometimes jogging along with both. If Arab and wife must both walk with burdens, the man carries the lighter load. And the woman must prepare the meal at the journey's end, while her lord reposes--and smokes. Excavators in the East have frequently found Arab girls who desired work, and with their baskets they would for hours carry out the earth with endurance apparently equal to that of the men.

The Arab girls, as a rule, grow up in ignorance. It is not thought worth while to educate the daughter; and, indeed, it is regarded by many as destructive of the best order of society to give woman any opportunity which may cause her to desire to usurp the power which heaven has placed in the hands of men. There is, accordingly, little enlightened housekeeping, little to stimulate a woman's mind, little opportunity here for "the hand that rocks the cradle" to move the world. Sons grow up with little respect for their mothers, for there is nothing to make it otherwise. The husband, should he wish to divorce himself from his wife, simply orders her to leave his house, and his will is law. Civil government takes no cognizance of matrimonial affairs, and religious authority allows the husband to do much as he may see fit in his own house.

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