Of
Beasts Intended For Food, The Sheep Is The Only Common One In This Part
Of Al-Hijaz.
There are three distinct breeds.
The larger animal comes
from Nijd and the Anizah Badawin, who drive a flourishing trade; the
smaller is a native of the country. Both are the common Arab species,
of a tawny colour, with a long fat tail. Occasionally one meets with
what at Aden is called the Berberah sheep, a totally different
beast,—white, with a black broad face, a dew-lap, and a short fat tail,
that looks as if twisted up into a knot: it was doubtless introduced by
the Persians. Cows are rare at Al-Madinah. Beef throughout the East is
considered an unwholesome food, and the Badawi will not drink cow’s milk,
preferring that of the camel, the ewe, and the goat. The flesh of the
latter animal is scarcely ever eaten in the city, except by the poorest
classes.
The manners of the Madani are graver and somewhat more pompous than
those of any Arabs with whom I ever mixed. This they appear to have
borrowed from their rulers, the Turks. But their austerity and
ceremoniousness are skin-deep. In intimacy or in anger the garb of
politeness is thrown off, and the screaming Arab voice, the voluble,
copious, and emphatic abuse, and the mania for gesticulation, return in
all their deformity. They are great talkers as the following little
trait shows. When a man is opposed to more than his match in disputing
or bargaining, instead of patiently saying to himself, S’il crache il est
mort, he interrupts the adversary with a Sall’ ala Mohammed,—Bless the
Prophet. Every good Moslem is obliged to obey such requisition by
responding, Allahumma
[p.18] salli alayh,—O Allah bless him! But the Madani curtails the phrase
to “A’n,[FN#30]” supposing it to be an equivalent, and proceeds in his
loquacity. Then perhaps the baffled opponent will shout out Wahhid,
i.e., “Attest the unity of the Deity”; when, instead of employing the usual
religious phrases to assert that dogma, he will briefly ejaculate “Al,” and
hurry on with the course of conversation. As it may be supposed, these
wars of words frequently end in violent quarrels; for, to do the Madani
justice, they are always ready to fight. The desperate old feud between
the “Juwwa,” and the “Barra,”—the town and the suburbs—has been put down with the
greatest difficulty. The boys, indeed, still keep it up, turning out in
bodies and making determined onslaughts with sticks and stones.[FN#31]
It is not to be believed that in a town garrisoned by Turkish troops,
full of travelled traders, and which supports itself by plundering
Hajis, the primitive virtues of the Arab could exist. The Meccans, a
dark people, say of the Madani, that their hearts are black as their
skins are white.[FN#32] This is, of course, exaggerated; but it is not
too
[p.19] much to assert that pride, pugnacity, a peculiar point of honour
and a vindictiveness of wonderful force and patience, are the only
characteristic traits of Arab character which the citizens of
Al-Madinah habitually display. Here you meet with scant remains of the
chivalry of the Desert. A man will abuse his guest, even though he will
not dine without him, and would protect him bravely against an enemy.
And words often pass lightly between individuals which suffice to cause
a blood feud amongst Badawin. The outward appearance of decorum is
conspicuous amongst the Madani. There are no places where Corinthians
dwell, as at Meccah, Cairo, and Jeddah. Adultery, if detected, would be
punished by lapidation according to the rigour of the Koranic
law[FN#33]; and simple immorality by religious stripes, or, if of
repeated occurrence, by expulsion from the city. But scandals seldom
occur, and the women, I am told, behave with great decency.[FN#34]
Abroad, they have the usual Moslem
[p.20]pleasures of marriage, lyings-in, circumcision feasts, holy
isitations, and funerals. At home, they employ themselves with domestic
matters, and especially in scolding “Hasinah” and “Za’afaran.” In this occupation
they surpass even the notable English housekeeper of the middle orders
of society—the latter being confined to “knagging” at her slavey, whereas the
Arab lady is allowed an unbounded extent of vocabulary. At Shaykh Hamid’s
house, however, I cannot accuse the women of
“Swearing into strong shudders
The immortal gods who heard them.”
They abused the black girls with unction, but without any violent
expletives. At Meccah, however, the old lady in whose house I was
living would, when excited by the melancholy temperament of her eldest
son and his irregular hours of eating, scold him in the grossest terms,
not unfrequently ridiculous in the extreme. For instance, one of her
assertions was that he—the son—was the offspring of an immoral mother;
which assertion, one might suppose, reflected not indirectly upon
herself. So in Egypt I have frequently heard a father, when reproving
his boy, address him by “O dog, son of a dog!” and “O spawn of an Infidel—of a
Jew—of a Christian!” Amongst the men of Al-Madinah I remarked a
considerable share of hypocrisy. Their mouths were as full of religious
salutations, exclamations, and hackneyed quotations from the Koran, as
of indecency and vile abuse—a point in which they resemble the Persians.
As before
[p.21] observed, they preserve their reputation as the sons of a holy
city by praying only in public. At Constantinople they are by no means
remarkable for sobriety. Intoxicating liquors, especially Araki, are
made in Al-Madinah, only by the Turks: the citizens seldom indulge in
this way at home, as detection by smell is imminent among a people of
water-bibbers. During the whole time of my stay I had to content myself
with a single bottle of Cognac, coloured and scented to resemble
medicine. The Madani are, like the Meccans, a curious mixture of
generosity and meanness, of profuseness and penuriousness.
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