"Trodden down By all in turn, Pagan, and Frank, and Tartar,- As with a curse. Thus art thou doomed to lie, Palestine is now distributed into pashaliks. That of Acre or Akka extends from Djebail nearly to Jaffa; that of Gaza comprehends Jaffa and the adjacent plains; and these two being now united, all the coast is under the jurisdiction of the Pasha of Acre. Jerusalem, Hebron, Nablous, Tiberias, and, in fact, the greater part of Palestine, are included in the pashalic of Damascus, now held in conjunction with that of Aleppo, which renders the present pasha, in effect, the viceroy of Syria. Though both pashas continue to be dutiful subjects of the Grand Seignior in appearance, and annually transmit considerable sums to Constantinople to ensure the yearly renewal of their office, they are to be considered as tributaries, rather than subjects of the Porte; and it is supposed to be the religious supremacy of the sultan, as caliph and vicar of Mahommed, more than any apprehension of his power, which prevents them from declaring themselves independent. The reverence shewn for the firmauns of the porte throughout Syria, attests the strong hold which the sultan maintains, in this character, on the Turkish population. The pashas of Egypt and Bagdad are attached to the Turkish sovereign by the same ecclesiastical tie, which alone has kept the ill-compacted and feeble empire from crumbling to ruin. The present mixed population of Palestine consists of Turks, Syrians, Bedouin Arabs, Jews, Latin, Greek, and Armenian Christians, Copts, and Druses. In western Palestine, especially on the coast, the inhabitants are stated by Burckhardt to bear generally more resemblance to the natives of Egypt than to those of northern Syria; while, towards the east of Palestine, especially in the villages about Nablous, Jerusalem, and Hebron, they are evidently of the true Syrian stock in features, though not in language. The Syrian physiognomy assumes, however, a cast of features characteristically different in the Aleppine, the Turkman, the native of Mount Libanus, the Damascene, the inhabitant of the sea-coast from Beirout to Acre, and the Bedouin.* Dr. Richardson, on entering the country from Egypt, was struck at the change of physiognomy, as well as of costume, observable even at El Arisch, which is in the pashalic of Egypt: the people are much fairer, as well as cleaner and better dressed. The Turks, in Palestine, as elsewhere throughout the empire, occupy all the civil and military posts. Greeks form a very numerous part of the population. A considerable number of monks, of different churches and orders, still reside in the Holy Land: there is, indeed, scarcely a town of any consequence which does not contain at least one convent. The country districts are, to a great extent, filled with nomadic Arabs. The true Arab is always an inhabitant of the desert; a name given to any solitude, whether barren or fertile, and sometimes applied to extensive pasture-lands. The moveables of a whole family seldom exceed a camel's load. Nothing can be simpler in construction than their tents. Three upright sticks, driven into the ground, * Burckhardt's Travels in Syria, p. 340. with one laid across the top, form the frame-work, and a large brown cloth, made of goat's or camel's hair, woven by their women, the covering. The manner in which they secure their animals is equally simple. Two sticks are driven into the ground, between which a rope is stretched and fastened at each end; to this rope the asses and mules are all attached by the feet; the horses also, but apart from the asses; the camels are seldom secured at all. The dress of this people in the Holy Land consists of a blue shirt or tunic, descending below the knees, the legs and feet being exposed; or the latter are sometimes covered with the ancient cothurnus, or buskin. Over this is worn a cloak of very coarse and heavy camel's hair cloth, (the sackcloth of the Scriptures,) consisting of one square piece, with holes for the arms, but having a seam down the back. This appears to have been the dress of John the Baptist, as well as of the ancient prophets. The cloak (or hyke) is almost universally decorated with black and white stripes, passing vertically down the back. The head-dress is a small turban, resembling a coarse handkerchief bound across the temples, one corner of which generally hangs down, and is often fringed with strings in knots, by way of ornament. The usual weapons of the Arab are, a lance, a poniard, an iron mace, a battle-axe, and, sometimes, a matchlock gun. The usual veil worn by all the females in Syria, except the Jewesses, is a large white handkerchief or shawl,† which covers the head and face, and falls over the shoulders. It is astonishing, remarks Dr. Richardson, Matt. iii. 4. Zech. xiii. 4. A red veil is worn by unmarried women and by brides; it is the mark of virginity. what a light and cheerful air this costume imparts, compared with the dull funereal drapery of the Egyptian dames. In the dress of the pastoral Arabs, we probably have preserved the most faithful representation of the ancient Jewish costume. The tunic is evidently the inner garment or XiTWV of the New Testament, while the hyke or cloak corresponds to the outer garment or ιματιον. The usual size of the hyke is six yards long, and from five to six broad; and as the Arabs sleep in their raiment, as the Israelites did of old,* it serves as a bed or blanket at night. The toga of the Romans, and the plaid of the Highlanders of Scotland, are garments of the same kind. The habits of the Bedouin natives have probably undergone as little change as their costume. "Abra ham," remarks Dr. Richardson," was a Bedouin ; and I never saw a fine venerable-looking shiekh busied among his flocks and herds, that it did not remind me of the holy patriarch himself." The Turks wear what we consider as the woman's dress, except that both sexes wear large drawers made of fine linen or stuff. They, in return, say that the Franks go naked, referring to our tight clothes, fitted to the shape. This is an ancient prejudice in the East, and the manner of speaking throws light on many passages in the New Testament, in which being naked means nothing more than stripped to the tunic. The Turkish dress, though a restraint on activity, is, however, so much more seemly and becoming to the figure than the European habit, that English travellers have confessed that they felt half naked when mixing with orientals, before they had assumed the dress of the country; or, as one gentle * Deut. xxiv. 13. man expressed it, like a monkey among men. Under the tunic is worn a shift of linen, cotton, or gauze. The turban is much more becoming than the hat, which, as the mark of a Frank, is the abhorrence of the Turk. Blue is the colour appointed for the turban of a Christian; white is the privilege of a Moslem; green is the distinguishing badge of the descendants of the prophet. For a Christian to assume the white turban would, in many places, endanger his life; and were any one to presume to wear a green turban without being able to prove his title to it, he would be put to death. Lady Hester Stanhope, however, whose usual residence is at Mar Elias, in Mount Lebanon, is said to have assumed with impunity the sacred and forbidden colour. Mr. Jolliffe gives the following minute description of his Turkish equipment. "The most important part of the dress resembles very large trowsers, tied round the waist with a running girdle; the texture is of cloth, linen, or silk, agreeably to the fancy of the wearer..... ... Next to these is the kombos, a sort of tunic with long sleeves, and descending almost to the ancles; it is fastened by a rich belt or sash, called zennar, in which pistols and other weapons, gaily ornamented, are carried. The daraben is a short riding vest, worn occasionally over the tunic, instead of the cloak called beniss, which is commonly of some light fabric, and of a lively colour. But by far the most graceful ornament is the bornos (or burnoose),* a long, white, flowing robe, composed of silk and camel's hair, and bordered with silk fringe. Nothing *The burnoose is worn in Barbary and Egypt, but not in Palestine, where they wear the black abba. The Turkish costume varies in different countries, and undergoes seemingly a change of name. The kombos is the same as the caftan. |