the result of extreme hospitality, but this is not the case; I was
surprised at hearing of the system on which it is conducted. A peasant,
for instance, will often buy two sheep, two hundredweight of flour, and
butter in proportion; these things forming always the chief articles of
a feast prepared for the lower orders in Egypt. He will then add
different kinds of fruit according to the season, and abundance of
tobacco and coffee; and for the amusement of his visitors, he engages
singers, and sometimes dancing-girls. To effect this, he will borrow
money, and his next step will be to invite all his relations, and all
his friends and acquaintance. These feel obliged to accept the
invitation; and no one joins the party without a present in his hand:
therefore, at the conclusion of the feast, the bridegroom is often
rather a gainer by the festivities than otherwise. In every instance his
friends enable him to repay those from whom he has borrowed. Real
hospitality has no part in the affair whatever. Ostentation alone
actuates the bridegroom in making his preparations.
On the morning after his marriage he is generally accompanied by his
friends into the country, or to a garden, where they feast together, and
are usually entertained by dancing and songs. The expense of this _fete
champetre_, in like manner, seldom falls heavily upon the bridegroom.
The Egyptians have an especial passion for gardens and water. Even
stagnant water, if sweet, they consider a luxury: running water, however
dirty, they hold to be extremely luxurious; and when, during the
inundation, the canal of Cairo is full, all the houses on its banks are
occupied by persons who sit in their leisure hours smoking by its muddy
waters: but the height of their enjoyment consists in sitting by a
fountain—this they esteem Paradise.
How much I wish we had the comfort of occasional showers in Egypt:
however, one of my boys amuses me often by supplying this desideratum by
watering their garden from an upper projecting window; employing for
this purpose a large watering-pot with an ample rose, whence many a
refreshing shower falls before the lower windows, washing the thick dust
from a mulberry-tree, and really giving an agreeable idea of coolness.
This same mulberry-tree was an object of great admiration to a man who
described our present house to us before we saw it: he said, after
stating the accommodation which the house afforded, “And there is a
_tree_ in the court!” Having forgotten what sort of tree it was, he
blessed the Prophet (as these people do when they want to brush up their
memory), and then said, “It is a vine.”
This sultry day I can write no more; and if able to forget the heat, the
poor little sparrows would remind me that it is indeed oppressive, for
they are flying in and out of our windows with their beaks wide open.
They do not seem calculated to bear this intense heat; and they
congregate round their food and water on the terrace, looking so
pitiable during a hot wind, that we should like to transport them to
England. There, however, I am afraid they would not tenant the houses so
fearlessly of harm as they do in Egypt. Here is no wanton cruelty: a
great deal of apathy with regard to suffering is apparent in the
character of the people; but I do not think the Arabs, in general, ever
inflict an intentional injury.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
LETTER XVIII.
July, 1843.
MY DEAR FRIEND,
Since I remarked to you the general cheerfulness which reigns in the
hareems I had then seen, I have visited one belonging to a Turkish
grandee, which offers a sad exception, and touchingly exhibits a picture
of family love and blighted happiness. The old and beloved master of
this hareem is under a cloud; he is suffering the displeasure of the
Pasha, and is confined in the state prison. I received a most kind
welcome from the ladies of his family. I remarked with regret the
depression which weighed down the spirits of all who composed it, and I
was shocked to hear from the chief lady that she also was a prisoner,
having orders not to quit her house.
She was attired in a kind of morning-dress, of white, embroidered with
black; but wore a splendid kind of crown.[35] This was composed of
diamonds, set in gold, forming flowers, &c.,—the whole being of a convex
shape, circular, and about six inches in diameter. It was worn upon the
crown of the head, attached to the cap round which the headkerchief was
wound, and had a very rich appearance, the diamonds being so near
together, that the interstices only served, like the red gold in which
the stones were set, to heighten their brilliancy. At a little distance,
the crown seemed like one heap of diamonds.
Footnote 35:
In Arabic a “Kurs.”
When this lady referred to her heart’s trouble, tears rolled down her
cheeks; and I do not think there was one lady or slave present whose
eyes were not suffused with tears; one especially interested me, for she
was quite unlike any Eastern I have seen, having the complexion and the
auburn hair and eyes of the pretty Irish. She manifested by the
expression of her countenance more distress than her companions. I
imagined she was one of her master’s wives; for she was attended by her
nurse carrying her child (an exquisite little cherub) and several
slaves. She did not, however, sit on the divan by “Hánum,” or the chief
lady.
The mothers here exceedingly fear the evil or envious eye; and it is
quite necessary, when an infant or young child appears, to exclaim,
“Máshálláh,” and to refrain from remarking its appearance; it is also
important to invoke for it the protection and blessing of God; and
having done so by repeating the expressive phrases used on such
occasions in Eastern countries by Christians as well as Muslims, the
parents are happy that their children have been introduced to the notice
of those who put their trust in God.
The apartments of this hareem are situated in a large garden; and the
interior decorations are like those of most Turkish palaces in this
country. The walls are painted in compartments, and adorned with
ill-executed landscapes, representing villas and pleasure-grounds.
I once told you that in all the hareems I had seen, the chief lady was
the only wife: I can no longer make such a boast; but look and wonder,
as an Englishwoman, how harmony can exist where the affection of the
husband is shared by —— I do not like to say how many wives.
Hareem-gardens are never agreeable places of resort in or near a town;
for the walls are so high that there is no free circulation of air, and
the trellises for the support of vines over the walks are really roofs,
necessary certainly at noon-day under a nearly vertical sun, but
excluding the only refreshing morning and evening air.
I was surprised, during my second visit to the hareem of Habeeb Effendi,
to find the ladies (whom I had not seen for a long time on account of
the late plague) immersed in politics, and painfully anxious on account
of the difference of opinion which has arisen between the Emperor of
Russia and their cousin the Sultán. They earnestly inquired whether
England would espouse the cause of Turkey, and were in some measure
comforted by a reference to the friendship which England had so warmly
manifested for the young Sultán, and the active measures which our
government had adopted for the re-establishment of his rule in Syria. I
find the feeling very strong in favour of England in the hareems; and I
conclude that I hear general opinions echoed there. I judge not only
from the remarks I hear, but from the honourable manner in which I am
treated; and the reception, entertainment, and farewell I experience are
in every respect highly flattering.
I told you of the great politeness that was shown me on the occasion of
my first visit to the royal ladies I have just mentioned. On my second
visit to them I was almost perplexed by the honour with which they
distinguished me; for the chief lady resigned her own place, and seated
herself below me. I was obliged to comply with her desire; but did so
with much reluctance.
I saw nothing that I need describe, in the way of dress or ornament, on
this occasion, excepting the girdle of the elder daughter. This was a
broad band, of some dull material of a pale-gray colour, embroidered
with small white beads, which composed an Arabic sentence, and having a
most splendid diamond clasp, in the form of two shells, somewhat wider
than the belt. There was another visitor present, who by her title and
appearance I saw to be a lady of very high rank; and if the Turks, as
some people say, admire fat women, she must be considered a prodigious
beauty. I have seldom, if ever, seen a larger person.
One of the most beautiful women I have seen in Egypt is the wife of a
celebrated poet. I love to look on a pretty face, and hers is especially
sweet. Her manners, too, are charming; her welcome on my introduction
was particularly cordial, and her request that I would pay her a long
visit was made with evident sincerity of kindness. With the exception of
her diamond crown, her dress was simple, and her whole demeanour free
from affectation; I should imagine her character is a source of cheerful
contentment to her husband and her children. You will forgive my
national pride and prejudice when I say she reminded me of an
Englishwoman.
The house of this lady’s family is of the old Arab description, and is
situated on the margin of a lake in the outskirts of the city,
surrounded by excellent and very picturesque houses, having on the
ground-floors, courts roofed with trellises, supported by pillars, and
other fanciful wood-work, and covered with jasmines and vines. In these
the male inhabitants spend their pastime or idle hours, looking on the
water. The upper floors are furnished with meshrebeeyehs (the projecting
windows I have described to you) overlooking the lake.
From visits I turn to visitors; to tell you that a most unwelcome guest
made his appearance yesterday. Between the blind and glass of a window
in the room where we usually sit, I discovered a large snake, more than
a yard and a half long. It was outside the window; but directly it saw
me through the glass, it raised its head, and protruded its black forked
tongue. It was of a light-brown colour, and down the centre of its back
its scales were of a bright yellowish hue. It was in such a situation
that it was scarcely possible to catch it, and indeed my brother was the
only man in the house who would attempt to do so; for our servants were
so overcome by superstitious dread, that they would not approach the
intruder, and one of the men dared not even look at it: we were
therefore unwilling he should touch it, and persuaded him to send for a
snake-charmer.
There was a considerable difficulty in finding at such a moment, a man
of this profession, although Cairo abounds with them. At length a poor
old man arrived, who was nearly blind, and mistook a towel (which was
pressed between the sashes to prevent the creature entering) for the
object of my dread. He addressed it with much courtesy, saying “O
Blessed!” several times, which expressed an invitation: to this,
however, the snake turned a deaf ear; and twining itself dexterously
through the trellis blind, it curled into a window in the court, and was
entirely lost. We certainly would rather it had been found, although
assured it could only be, from our description, a harmless house-snake.
You have doubtless read many accounts of the feats of Eastern
snake-charmers, and wondered at their skill. Very lately, a friend of
ours witnessed an instance of the fascination, or rather attraction,
possessed by one of these people. He was in the house of an acquaintance
when the charmer arrived, who, after a little whistling, and other
absurd preliminaries, invoked the snake thus: “I conjure thee, by our
Lord Suleymán” (that is, Solomon, the son of David), “who ruled over
mankind and the Ján” (or Genii); “if thou be obedient, come to me; and
if thou be disobedient, do not hurt me!” After a short pause, a snake
descended from a crevice in the wall of the room, and approached the
man, who secured it. No other snake appearing, it was decided that the
house was cleared, and our friend requested the snake-charmer to
accompany him to his own house. He did so, and invoked the snakes in the
same words. The invocation was attended by the same result: a snake
descended, and in the same manner resigned itself to the
serpent-charmer.
With regard to the serpent still in our house, let us say, with the
Muslims, we are thankful it is not a scorpion. Their philosophy is a
lesson to us.
Several poor neighbours have lately been stung by scorpions: we sent
them some carbonate of ammonia to apply to the wounds, and it was the
means of producing the happiest results.
Cairo, with its many ruined houses, affords innumerable nests for
noxious reptiles; and the progress of its decay has lately been so
rapid, that at last a proclamation has been issued by the Pasha for
extensive alterations and repairs throughout the city. The houses are to
be whitewashed within and without; those who inhabit ruined houses are
to repair or sell them; and uninhabited dwellings are to be pulled down
for the purpose of forming squares and gardens; meshrebeeyehs are
forbidden, and mastabahs are to be removed. Cairo, therefore, will no
longer be an Arab city, and will no longer possess those peculiarities
which render it so picturesque and attractive. The deep shade in the
narrow streets, increased by the projecting windows—the picturesque
tradesman, sitting with one friend or more before his shop, enjoying the
space afforded by his mastabah—these will be no more; and while I cannot
but acknowledge the great necessity for repairing the city, and removing
the ruins which threaten the destruction of passengers, I should have
liked those features retained which are essentially characteristic—which
help, as it were, to group the people, and form such admirable
accessories to pictures.
I must add to this letter an account of a shameful and very ridiculous
imposition which was practised upon us a fortnight ago. A poor old man
who had for some time filled the situation of doorkeeper to our quarter,
had long been ill, and had been assisted by several gentlemen in
procuring some necessary comforts. One day my brother received a letter
from the Sheykh of the quarter, telling him that poor Mohammad the
doorkeeper had received mercy at the sixth hour of the preceding night,
and expressing a hope that he would give them the price of his shroud.
My brother, accordingly, sent one of his servants to the house of
Mohammad, where he found his body laid out, a washer of the dead
attending, and his wife apparently in great distress on account of her
loss. She returned the most grateful acknowledgments for the bounty
which was sent to aid in enabling her to bury her poor husband; and
after a while the affair passed from our recollection (we never having
seen the poor man), or if remembered, it was only to inquire who would
supply his place.
The old woman removed to another house a few days after; and a
maid-servant of ours, on passing by chance her new dwelling, was
surprised to the last degree to see the late doorkeeper sitting within
its threshold. “What,” exclaimed she, “my uncle Mohammad alive, and
well!” “Praise be to God,” he answered, “I am well, and have lived on
the bounty of your master, the Efendee; but, by your life, my daughter,
do not tell him that I am alive.” The old man, I should here tell you,
is no relation of the maid’s; this being one of the usual modes of
address among the lower orders. The maid promised his existence should
continue a secret; but she found on her return home it was impossible to
keep her word, and the quarrel which ensued between her and the servant
who conveyed the money for the shroud (both believing their own eyes)
was as violent as that between Hároon Er-Rasheed and his wife Zubeydeh,
or rather that between their two emissaries, on the subject of
Abu-l-Hasan the wag.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
LETTER XIX.
September, 1843.
MY DEAR FRIEND,
In describing to you the honourable reception and elegant entertainment
I experienced in the Pasha’s hareem, I cannot be too minute.
The chief residence of his ladies is the Kasr-ed-Dubárah, a fine house
situated on the west of Cairo, on the eastern bank of the Nile, and
justly their favourite retreat. After riding through the plantations of
Ibraheem Pasha, which almost surround the palace, we arrived at the
great gates of the Kasr, through which we entered a long road within the
high walls covered with trellis closely interwoven with vines. At the
end of this we dismounted, and walked on a beautiful pavement of marble
through several paths, until we arrived at the curtain of the hareem.
This being raised, we were immediately received by a young wife of
Mohammad ’Alee, who addressed my friend Mrs. Sieder in the most
affectionate terms, and gave us both a most cordial welcome. In a moment
a crowd of ladies assembled round us, vying with each other in paying us
polite attention; and having disrobed me, they followed us (the wife of
the viceroy with us leading the way) to the grand saloon.
This is a very splendid room, paved with marble, as indeed are all the
passages, and, I imagine, all the apartments on the ground-floor; but as
several are entirely covered with matting, I cannot assert this to be
the case. The pavement in the saloon is simply white marble, the purest
and best laid I have seen in the East. The ceiling (which is divided
into four distinct oblong compartments) is painted admirably in stripes
of dark and light blue, radiating from gilded centres, from each of
which hang splendid chandeliers containing innumerable wax-lights. The
corners and cornices are richly decorated. The pavement under the two
centre compartments is not matted, but the two ends, to the right and
left on entering, are covered with fine matting, and fitted with crimson
divans.
The windows are furnished with white muslin curtains edged with coloured
fringe, some pink and some blue. All the looking-glasses (of which there
are perhaps six in the saloon) are furnished with festoons and curtains
of pink and blue gauze. There is one table with a cover of pink crape
embroidered in stripes of gold, and having upon it a large glass case of
stuffed birds.[36] On either side of the door are fanciful stands for
large square glass lanterns, composed of pillars, round which are twined
artificial flowers. The windows are European in form, and the hareem
blinds are composed of tasteful ironwork; I can scarcely say filigree,
the pattern is too bold. The entire interior decorations are in light
and summer taste, and the saloon charmingly cool.
Footnote 36:
These were taken from the United States, where they were prepared and
set up.—ED.
We crossed to an apartment on the opposite side, where the same lady
placed us on the divan and seated herself by our side. This room is
entirely covered with matting, and furnished with most luxurious divans,
extending round three sides, not raised (as is usual) on a frame about a
foot or more in height, but entirely of cotton, forming mattresses two
feet in thickness, placed on the ground. These are covered with very gay
chintz, as are also the cushions which incline against the walls; and at
the right and left upper corners are distinct square cushions, covered
with white muslin embroidered with black braid, and each having back
cushions to correspond. Above all these there is a row of small
cushions, covered with white muslin and embroidered with black,
corresponding in pattern with the corner seats. The curtains resemble
those in the saloon.
Here we received coffee, which was handed to us by the chief lady of the
household, the treasurer, a particularly lady-like person, to whom it
was handed by a lady who bore it on a silver salver, attended by several
others; one carrying the little coffee-pot in a silver vessel, suspended
by chains, and also used as a censer, containing burning charcoal. The
whole group was most picturesque, and many of the ladies were fair,
young, and beautiful.
The lady of the Pasha then proposed our returning to the saloon, that
she might conduct us to the widow of Toosoon Pasha, and to the daughter
of Mohammad ’Alee Pasha, who were sitting at the upper corner. I found
the former lady seated on a cushion on the ground, next to the
right-hand corner, and the daughter of the Viceroy took the seat of
honour, which was also a cushion placed on the ground. Numerous ladies
and slaves were in attendance; all standing in a line before the edge of
the mat.
We were soon joined by another wife of the Pasha, the mother of Mohammad
’Alee Bey (a boy about nine years of age); her designation is “The lady,
the mother of Mohammad ’Alee Bey.”
It would be a breach of etiquette, and contrary to hareem laws, were I
to describe _particularly_ the persons of the wives of the Pasha, or any
lady after distinguishing her by her name or her situation in a family;
but I may in _general_ terms express my admiration of the two ladies I
have seen, and I think they are the _only_ wives of the viceroy. Both
are young—the one is a dignified and handsome person, and the other
especially gentle and very lovely.
Soon after noon, dinner was announced; and the widow of Toosoon Pasha
led the way to a room adjoining the saloon, where a most elegant dinner
was arranged, on a very large round silver tray, placed on a stool, and
surrounded by cushions. The passages we passed were occupied by
innumerable black female slaves, and some eunuchs, dressed in all the
variety of gay Eastern costume, and forming a curious contrast and most
picturesque background to the ladies and white slaves who surrounded and
accompanied us. On either side of the door several ladies, each with an
embroidered napkin hung on her right arm, held silver ewers and basins
that we might wash our hands before advancing to the table.
No one was admitted to the table but the widow of Toosoon Pasha, the
daughter of Mohammad ’Alee Pasha, the mother of Mohammad ’Alee Bey, with
ourselves, and a lady of great importance in the East, the foster-mother
of ’Abbás Pasha.[37] The place of the younger wife was vacant.
Footnote 37:
’Abbás Pasha is the reputed successor to the Páshálik.
The tray was covered with small silver dishes filled with various
creams, jellies, &c., and most tastefully garnished with exquisite
flowers. In the centre was a forequarter of lamb, on piláv. I was truly
glad, on this occasion especially, that my home-habits had been Eastern;
had the case been otherwise, a joint of meat to be eaten without knife
or fork would have been a formidable object; for, under any
circumstances, I should not have anticipated that the widow of Toosoon
Pasha, who is also the mother of ’Abbás Pasha, and who, being the
eldest, was the most honoured at table, would have distinguished me as
she did, by passing to me, with her own fingers, almost every morsel
that I ate during dinner. The mother of Mohammad ’Alee Bey in the same
manner distinguished Mrs. Sieder.
The lamb was succeeded by stew; the stew by vegetables; the vegetables
by savoury cream, &c., composing an innumerable variety; and each was
removed, and its place filled, when perhaps only tasted. Sweet dishes,
most delicately prepared, succeeded these in rapid succession; and, with
one exception, all were in silver dishes. Ladies attended close to our
divan with fly-whisks; behind them about thirty formed a semicircle of
gaily-dressed, and, in many cases, beautiful women and girls; and those
near the door held large silver trays, on which the black slaves who
stood without placed the dishes, that the table might be constantly
replenished.
Black female slaves in the houses of the great are not permitted to
enter an apartment where are visitors; but black eunuchs, when
favourites with their masters, are constantly to be found in the very
centre of a high hareem.
In presenting the morsels to me, the widow of Toosoon Pasha constantly
said, “In the name of God;” and these words are always said by the
Muslims before eating or drinking. “Praise be to God” is the grace after
either.
There is one particularly agreeable custom observed after dinner in the
East; each person is at liberty to leave the table when satisfied. To a
European it is really a relief to do so, the dishes are so numerous,
varied, and rich.
There is much grace in the manners of the ladies of the East even in the
most trifling actions: it was pretty to observe the elegance with which
the silver ewers and basins were held for us when we left the tray. We
were succeeded at the table by the highest ladies of the household; and
I imagine others, according to their rank, dined after these, until all
had taken their meal.