When I Was a Boy IN Palestine --Li*;'* ^ IVl IJ U O i\ u . l\/iL. C L. L/ iUHHtiitHniniMiilllUliiiiilil* WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE CHILDREN OF OTHER LANDS BOOKS Four Volumes With Characteristic Illustrations and Cover Designs i2mo Cloth Bach Volume, net, $.60 postpaid, $.68 There are many books about the children of other countries, but no other group like this, with each volume written by one who has lived the foreign child life de- scribed, and learned from subsequent experience in this country how to tell it in a way attractive to American children and in fact to Americans of any age. WHEN I WAS A BOY IN CHINA By Yan Phou Lee WHEN I WAS A GIRL IN ITALY By Marietta Ambrosi WHEN I WAS A BOY IN JAPAN By Sakae Shioya WHEN I WAS A BOY IN GREECE By George Demetrios LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO. BOSTON WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE BY MOUSA J. KALEEL ILLUSTRATED FROM PHOTOGRAPHS BOSTON LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO. '^r^ .^^' ^.-' Published, March, 1914 Copyright, 1914, by Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co. All Bights Reserved When I Was a Boy in Palestine Berwick & Smith Co. Norwood, Mass., U. S. A. TO MY PARENTS 5iriud anD ilbitiam Bbu^^fcaleel 4281Gt> PUBLISHEES' PEEFACE We have a great deal of interest in tlie personality behind each one of the *' Chil- dren of Other Lands Books/' but never more than in that of the stalwart young man who has placed in our hands this straightforward account of his boyhood in the Holy Land. Mousa J. Kaleel was born at Ram Allah, ten miles from Jerusalem, a little more than twenty years ago. An older brother, Jacob, had received and much appreciated some instruction in an English school, and when Professor Elihu Grrant, now of Smith College, opened an American training school in his native village, Jacob inter- ceded for his younger brothers until he secured admission for Mousa. Professor Grant's experiences were ex- tremely interesting. He found his stu- 3 4 . P^BLiSMmS' PREFACE dents quick at learning the Bible, which was written near their homes and was their country's literature. He taught them the dignity of labor, and to have respect for useful knowledge and its exer- cise in any worthy form. The boys proved responsive to moral training, and organ- ized a society under an Arabic name that meant the '' Against-Things-Harmful So- ciety. ' ' They had to discipline one another in a form of student government, and worked off many rough edges in matters of conduct and character. After this Jacob came to the TJnited States, and found means with which to send for his ambitious brother. Mousa was placed in a preparatory school and taught to earn money for self-support. He later entered Haverf ord College, where he proved himself a good student, besides entering zealously into the activities of college. He played a good game of foot- ball, and was the strongest man there. Hard study in a language not originally PUBLISHERS' PREFACE 5 his own, however, told upon his eyesight, and it was felt best that temporarily, at least, he should engage in business. He is of the type that America can absorb with profit, and will be heard from. LoTHROP, Lee & Shepaed Company. Boston, February, 1914. CONTENTS PAOX CHAPTER I: My Boyhood . . . . 11 CHAPTER II: Boys and Girls at Home . 18 CHAPTER III: My Games and Playthings 29 CHAPTER IV: My Home, and the Customs I Knew 35 CHAPTER V: At School in Palestine . 49 CHAPTER VI: A Visit to Jerusalem . . 66 CHAPTER VII: A Wedding in Palestine . 82 CHAPTER VIII: Plant Life op the Holy Land 90 CHAPTER IX: My Race and My Mother Tongue 95 CHAPTER X: The Rulers of Palestine . 112 CHAPTER XI: The Religions in Palestine 121 CHAPTER XII: Reminders of Bible Times 136 CHAPTER XIII: My Impressions of Amer- ica 148 ILLUSTRATIONS MousA J. Kaleel Frontispiece facing page Ram Allah 12 Cousins on the Way to School ... 20 Syrian Blindman's Buff 32 A Village Oven 36 The Boy's Day for a Bath .... 42 Chums in the American School ... 50 A Palestine Woman's Morning Work . . 58 From Ram Allah to Jerusalem . . . 74 A Typical Christian Family of Palestine . 122 At an American School in Palestine . . 128 Harvesters 140 Boy in Palestine WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE CHAPTER I MY BOYHOOD It is not so very long since I was a boy in Palestine. I was born in Ram Allah, Pal- estine, in the year 1892. I left my home country at the age of sixteen to come to the United States. You can easily see, there- fore, that I spent only my boyhood in this old-world land. My birth was welcome news to my fa- ther, and the woman who told it received as reward a large silver coin. In most Oriental countries, particularly in Pales- tine, a boy is always prized more than a girl ; and the minute the boy-baby is born, a mad scramble is started by the women 11 12 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE attendants to reach the father first and thus win the prize money. The natural di- vision of the people into clans causes this desire for boy children. Boys grow into men, who not only strengthen the tribe, but also increase the earning capacity of the family ; while girls marry after attain- ing maturity, and become members of their husbands ' tribes and families. Arab chiefs in the past have been known to bury their baby daughters alive at birth, fearing that in the future they might be captured by the enemy, and thus their fathers be dis- graced. Although this relic of savagery has long been abolished, to this day a father who has only female children is con- sidered, by himself and others, a most unfortunate man. After hearing the news of my birth, my father had to furnish refreshments to all who were present. The men guests were served the usual coffee, while women and children were given candy and cucumbers, the latter being in season at the time. k MY BOYHOOD 13 No doctor attends the birth of a baby in Palestine. A nurse, usually a very old and experienced woman, is called, and she takes full command. Her absolute control continues until the mother is well enough to have the care of her child, and woe be- fall the poor individual who tries to pass a suggestion or make a comment while the nurse is performing her duty! No pow- der, but red soil, and often salt, is used on the baby. If, upon arrival, the baby is weak and inactive, its nose is rubbed with a strong onion, and the sneeze of life usu- ally responds. My grandmother used to say that I would never have lived, if it had not been for the quickening perfumes of the onion. When I was strong enough for it, I was baptized. This was done, according to custom, by immersing me three successive times in cold water prepared with oil and blessed by the priest. I was not drowned, so the priest delivered me to my god- father, whose duty it was to watch over 14 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE me while a boy and guard my spiritual life, and, when I became a man, to induce me to join the church of my baptism, thus giving back to the church the charge re- ceived from it. Baptism is a time for celebration. It was then I became a distinct individual with a name. They called me ** Mousa," which means *' saved from the bulrushes." The practice of using Biblical names is very common among the Christians in Pal- estine. In many cases the name of a boy suggests the name of a newly born brother. I know of a family where all of Christ's twelve disciples, with the exception of Judas, are represented in name. This is due to the common belief that these saints will watch over their namesakes. The celebrations consisted, as most of our celebrations do, in eating and singing, or rather shouting, the men enjoying the former and the women reveling in the latter. Both, however, joined in making gifts, which consisted mostly of hand-made MY BOYHOOD 16 baby clothes. This was my only celebra- tion and the last sign of my popularity. Henceforth I was either a noisy baby or a mischievous child. As a baby, that is, during the years before I started going to school, I had many playthings. There was a large, nicely painted, hollow rubber ball, which I valued greatly because it came from Jerusalem. Then I had a little pistol, a home-made reed whistle, and marbles. My most valued plaything was a horse I tried to make of wood and clay, which never was strong enough for my weight. Another thing I enjoyed was the hammock-like swing. When I cried, my mother swung me in it to dizziness and sleep, which nat- urally made me stop crying. This swing- ing is usually the cure for crying, but I often cried to get it. My first recollection is of a lullaby song which my mother used to sing to me. Among other things the song contained a simile likening my eyes to those of a gazelle. I had never seen 16 WHEN I WA8 A BOY IN PALESTINE a gazelle, but I did see a horse with large, clear eyes, so, not wishing to take a chance on the brightness of the unknown, I made my mother substitute the horse for the gazelle. Another early recollection is being stung by a scorpion. I was playing building a house, when the poisonous thing bit me on the toe. The pain was terrible. My fa- ther wanted to take me to a doctor, but my old grandmother scoffed at the idea. She brought a ring which had magic in it, and placed it on the painful toe. I could tell by the moving of her lips that she was repeating some sayings, and in a short time the pain stopped. My first trial was great. I had a baby brother, and he usurped my pla^rthings, one by one. He began with the most dear, the swing, and later on he took the rest. I was not as dejected as you might think, for I had already begun to find interesting things outside the house and in the garden. I had grown to an appreciation of punish- MY BOYHOOD 17 ment, and had to do my dodging to keep away from school. I was not very suc- cessful, however, for I had an older brother who was faithful to his task of seeing me go through the trials and tribu- lations that he had had to go through when he was young. He was ten years older than I, and there was no feeling of com- radeship between us, so I bitterly resented his seemingly uncalled-for diligence. CHAPTER II BOYS AND GIKLS AT HOME "That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; That our daughters may be as corner-stones, pol- ished after the similitude of a palace." Psalms, cxliv : 12. This is an old, old saying, but it still de- scribes the ideal child of Palestine, The period of boyhood or girlhood is shorter in Palestine than in the United States, but often merry. Children are the rulers of most houses in the country villages. If they are well, they run in and out in all kinds of weather, barefooted and bare- headed. If they are not well, not over- much attention is paid to them at first, ex- cept to bring them dainties to eat. If the illness turns out to be genuine, however, all the medical help within reach is sum- 18 BOYS AND GIRLS AT HOME 19 moned, but if, as usually happens to be the case, dread of the schoolmaster's stick is at the bottom, they soon recover when their mothers take them to school and make matters all right with the teacher. The poorer children are seldom both- ered with more than one garment, except sometimes a skull-cap. If the parents can afford it, they provide a little cloth cap embroidered with colored silk and with a few bangles of blue beads sewed on the front. The beads serve the purpose of protecting the child against what is called the * * Ayen, ' ' or eye. The tradition is that God will take the choicest boys, especially if they are admired by onlookers, so the blue beads are provided to counteract any wicked looks the child may encounter. To protect the child against evil spirits, his guardians provide him with a small leather purse that has some texts from the Bible or the Koran, as the case may be, written on it. As the boy grows older, he may be given a jacket to wear over the 20 \YEEN I ^YAS A BOY IN PALESTINE little shirt. The girls have a little shawl to wrap around their shoulders and a row of coins on their head-dresses. When very little, boys and girls play together in the streets and around the ovens, sometimes even on roofs. By the time they are six, however, they separate and play with their own kind and choose different games. The boys become wild in their play, while the girls begin to help around the home. Here is an impression of the children in Palestine, given by an early traveller. ** From earliest infancy they are brought up in utter ignorance; they are never children; the merry laughter and sports of European childhood are here quite unknown. At three years they are little men and women with wonderful aplomb. Tiny tots scarcely able to toddle may be seen gathering khobbayzeh (wild mallows) for the evening meal, and, when they have filled the skirts of their one wee Cousins on the "Way to School. The twisted cloth girdle and the long tunic are often worn by both men and women, the sleeves only being cut differently. The little girl has already begun to wear the feminine head-dress of coins mentioned on page 20. BOYS AND GIRLS AT HOME 21 garment, will trot home as sedately as though the cares of life were already press- ing heavily on their shoulders. I have sel- dom in this country heard a genuine laugh from man, woman, or child; the great struggle for existence seems to have crushed all but fictitious mirth. * * The fellaheen boys very rarely the girls take charge of the flocks and herds till they are old enough to consider them- selves men; thus exposed to all weathers they are as hardy as their charge, but if one is attacked by sickness, one is as little cared for as the other, and chronic coughs, fevers, rheumatism, and ophthalmia are the consequent results." Further on he concludes : '* The fellaheen (peasants) are all in all the worst type of humanity that I have come across in the East." Or in other words, the world. I am almost tempted to charge the writer of the passage with writing for dramatic / 22 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE effect, but I will not. He may be sincere. A tourist who sees one child doing a certain thing concludes that all children in Pal- estine do likewise. It is not an uncommon thing, however, to find a whole family ruled by the whims of a little child, and loving fathers cannot stand against the crying of their children. So tender are they in their love that they often do even ridiculous things to please their children, such as letting them ride on their backs. A traveller through Palestine may see a tiny girl helping her mother in her play by gathering greens, or a boy living with his father's flocks when they go up in the mountains for the summer. It is a case of preference and enjoyment rather than of slavish labor. As for the peasants being the worst people in the East, the writer of the passage may have had some per- sonal experience with a band of brigands. Later on in his work he fears that his sketch *' will seem over-colored," and cites, as an added proof of the depravity BOYS AND GIRLS AT HOME 23 of the people, an incident of being abused in ^' the most scurrilous language " by the children ! Boys in Palestine, I must admit, are fighters, and are taught by their parents to fight. This is justified by the internal conditions of the country, caused by a very slack and weak government. The boy must grow into a man who has a good aim with his gun, and who can hurl a stone a great distance with accuracy. It is a semi- primitive land, and men have to live ac- cordingly to get along in it. The people are good at heart and often blessed with the keenest brains in the world; all they need is some gentle leadership that will be willing to come down to their ranks, even below, if need be, and lift them up grad- ually. It is natural that they should resent any '* Khawaja '^ (an upper-class for- eigner) trying to make a curiosity of them, continually shooting at them with clicking cameras, and asking insolent and prying questions about their sanctuaries. Many 24 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE of the tourists who visit Palestine do so from a desire to study the religious cus- toms of the people from a scientific point of view, and they thoughtlessly offend the people by apparently making light of what are very sacred things. The lowliest peas- ant in Palestine is vain, and the tiniest boy can throw a stone. With these as acknowl- edged facts let the missionary and inves- tigator work. The children spend wintry evenings lis- tening to tales, usually by the grand- mother, but sometimes by the mother. The stories are mostly all like the ** Ara- bian Nights." The success of the story does not always depend upon thrilling events, but a great deal upon the method of the story-teller. A well-told story is punc- tuated with wishes and exclamations. It is begun by wishing the well-being of the hearers and the home. When a death is related, the teller prays God to preserve her hearers from death, and when the hero attains happiness, she wishes happiness BOYS AND GIRLS AT HOME 25 for her listeners. Often, to collect his thoughts, the story-teller begins a digres- sion by saying, *^ May peace remain with you,'' continuing to gain time by adding other good things, ** and health and strength and wealth," etc. Thus are the happy evenings spent in winter around a great fireplace filled with crackling, oily olive logs. If it rains hard, and the wind blows fiercely, the children chant a little juvenile song, beginning thus : "Umtree wazadee Baitna adeedee." It is addressed to nature, and means, " Eain and increase, our house is made of iron." Those who do not farm usually say, ** Umtree ala ayn Khazzan kumheh," which means *^ Rain to the spite of him who stores his grain (wheat)." This is a sort of vindictive expression against the man who hoards his grain, an- ticipating a scarcity of rain, which is sure to cause higher prices. It shows that 26 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE human nature is the same the world over, and that '* corners '' in wheat are not any- more popular in Palestine than in the United States. The following story is sometimes told to boys to check their foolhardiness and warn them against foolish pride, and to induce obedience to fathers: A young tiger who had heard about the ability of men, though he had never seen a man, felt so eager in his strength to have a combat that he told his father he wanted to go out and find a man and have a fight with him. The father tiger, advising against such an undertaking, said: ** Even I, who am older and stronger than you, should not think of seeking a fight with a man, for I cannot prevail against him." But the young, proud tiger, not heeding his father's advice, went to seek a man. He journeyed until he came to a road much frequented by travellers, and lay down under a tree to await the foe. While wait- BOYS AND GIRLS AT HOME 27 ing there, lie saw a camel running down the road, although loaded heavily. The camel was running away from his master. The young, inexperienced tiger got up, and said to the camel : ** Are you a man? *^ ' * I am not a man, but am running away from one, because he loads such heavy burdens on me, ' ' replied the camel. The young tiger thought to himself: '* How strong must the man be if he causes so much distress and fear in this great creature. ' ' Next passed a horse, and the tiger thought, '^ Maybe this is the man,'' but received a negative reply to his question as he had from the camel. Then came along a weak little donkey, loaded with wood and driven by a man. The tiger asked his question of the man : ** Are you a manf " " Yes," the man answered. Then the tiger said, ** I have come to have a fight with you." 28 WEEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE ^^ All right," said the man, ** but I am not quite ready now. May I tie you with my rope to the tree until I come back? *' The tiger allowed the man to tie him, which the man did very securely. Then he cut a strong, thick club from the tree, and began to beat the tiger with it. ** Oh, please let me go! " the tiger cried out in pain. ** I'll never try to fight with a man again." So the man let him go, and the young tiger went to his father and told his ex- perience. CHAPTER III MY GAMES AND PLAYTHINGS The thing that I wanted to own after I began to go out-doors was a sling, ** mikla," for throwing stones. It con- sists of a woven, palm-like receptacle into which the stone is put. To both ends of this are attached strong cords, and in the end of one of the cords is a loop large enough to slip over a finger. First the boy puts a stone into the '* pan " of the sling, and then slips his finger into the loop. Grasping both cords in his hands, he swings the ** mikla " violently over his head, just as they throw the hammer in athletic meets in this country. Then he lets one cord loose, and away goes the stone, whizzing like a bullet. By practice 29 30 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE a true aim may be developed. You prob- ably remember that David killed Groliath with one of these slings. Another one of our pastimes was a game played with pegs of wood very much like the American game ^' Peggy/' in which one strikes a double-pointed peg on one end with a stick, and tries to gain ground over an opponent. A similar game is played upon a soft, spongy spot of ground with longer pegs sharpened on one end only. It is something like *^ Stick-knife." The object is to drive the peg by a throw into the soft space in the ground in such a way as to dislodge an opponent's pegs, previously thrown, and to make your peg stick in the same place. When this is done, a peg is gained. The boys hoard these pegs to help with the cooking of ** Bar- bara,'' the principal dish served at the feast of Saint Barbara, and named, as you see, in her honor. It is plain boiled wheat sweetened with sugar and mixed with pom- egranate seeds. This feast is the first one MY GAMES AND PLAYTHINGS 31 after Christmas, and it helps to make the winter enjoyable. The game most enjoyed by ns boys was *^ Alam/' which is very similar to the American game of *^ Eoll the bat.'' The boys divide into two even teams. A flip of the coin decides who shall take the field and who shall bat. When the two sides have taken their places, the first player at the bat sets np a stone marker (alam). He starts the play by saying, '* Hadoor," which means ** ready," and then begins batting the ball in a series of different ways, first overhand, then underhand, now facing his opponents, now turning his back to them. The last of the series is the one I best remember. In it the player drops the ball and kicks it. The team that takes the field scatters to various points of vantage. If the ball is caught '* on the fly," the batter is out, otherwise the first boy to get the ball takes aim at the stone marker, saying '* Dustur " (*' By your leave "), and makes the throw, trying to 32 WEEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE upset the stone. If he succeeds, the batter is out, and his side takes the field. This is continued until one team runs up the whole series, and so is victorious. Another lively game we played was '' Deeb,'' or '' .Wolf.^' First we formed a circle by joining hands, and played we were the sheep. Then we danced round and round while one boy outside the circle, who called himself '^ wolf," kept trying to snatch one of the sheep. Whenever a boy in the dancing circle came anywhere near the hovering wolf, he let fly his heels, like a mule, to prevent capture. As sheep after sheep was snatched successfully by the wolf, the circle grew smaller, until but one was left, who had to be the wolf of the next game. For our most common playgrounds we had the threshing-floors, and often the vineyards and gardens. We played many games of other countries, such as marbles, ** Duck-on-the-rock, " '* See-saw," swing- ing, " Blindman's Buff," '' Leap-frog," ^ _ MY GAMES AND PLAYTHINGS 33 and ** Hide-and-seek.'' A variation of the last named was ** Khurrak/' For this game the whole town and surrounding country was our field. The boys were divided into two teams. One team prom- ised to remain at a certain place, usually a door, which would be the goal. The other team went off to hide. When a stated time was up, the guarding team divided itself into parties to look for the other team. The object was to get to the goal without being seen by the guarding team. We usually played the game in the dark, and we did a great deal of running. One of the games we used to play in the vineyards was to take a cap and hide it under some rock, and then go looking for it. We also used to fly kites. Another game we played often was what we called ** Germany." The boys divided into two teams, each taking the end of a rectangular field like a football field. Each team lined up in the middle of the opposite ends of the field. Ten yards from each end was 34 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE an imaginary line known as the captives' line. When they were ready to play, one boy would run in the direction of his op- ponents, until he came near the captives' line. Then he was pursued. If he was overtaken and touched, he became a pris- oner; if not, one of his side chased his pursuer back. This play was kept up until all of one team were captured. Some of the modern games, such as foot- ball, are played as they are played in England, and the boys of Palestine, who possess a very keen sense of rivalry and competition, are becoming proficient play- ers even at these foreign games. Many times a team of picked Englishmen is forced to taste defeat at the hands of a native team in such games as cricket and football. CHAPTEE IV Houses in Palestine are usually built en- tirely of square stones. These houses are from seven to twelve meters (nine to four- teen yards) square, and generally of the same height. In other words, they are perfect cubes. A house is divided inside into two apartments, a lower and an up- per one; in the lower one the chickens and other pets of the family stay, in the upper one live the people. The door is large, and is bordered by the most massive of the stones ; the long one over the door extends even further than from one side of the door to the other. Each house has from one to three windows. These are very much like the door, only a little smaller. They have strong iron bars across them to keep out burglars, but 35 36 ^YEEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE these bars are rather far apart, so that many times when I have found the door closed, I have gone through the window. The most conspicuous piece of furniture in the house is the van, a large store-box made out of hardened clay. In it may be found the provisions of the family, for the most part grain and dried fruits, such as figs and raisins. In one of the corners of the apartment is a large jar for drink- ing-water with a cover and a dipper, all made of the same material, baked clay. The people take much pride in these jars, and many fantastic and grotesque designs may be seen painted on them. In another comer of the house is another jar of the same size as the water jar, but older- looking and a bit heavier. In this the olive oil is stored. The rest of the furniture consists of a large mat on the floor and many mat- tresses and quilts that are neatly folded and placed on boxes. Near these is the mill, a simple contrivance for grinding MY HOME 37 wheat. It is made of two flat, circular stones with a hole in the center of the top one. This hole fits over an iron bar which is fixed in the lower stone, and which serves as the axis for the grinding. The sound of the grinding is very weird and serves as an accompaniment to the sing- ing of the women grinders. Grinding is quite an institution, and may be heard as early as four o'clock in the morning. It is while grinding that the women mourn their dead, or other past troubles, or sing of future hopes and successes. These songs are inspiring to both men and women, but to boys and girls they have a soothing effect, and the monotonous con- stancy of the sound drowns all the world with its noises, and promotes peaceful and prolonged sleep. In a two-room house, one room serves as the kitchen and the women's apartment, and the other as the place for entertain- ment, where the men sit, eat, and chat to- gether. It is in this room that the cere- 38 WEEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE mony of drinking coffee is held. The men sit cross-legged upon the floor, while the owner of the house and his wife prepare the coffee. This is usually the method in the presence of guests. They roast green coffee berries in a long-handled iron ladle over coals burning in a clay brazier. Then they put the roasted berries into a wooden mortar, and pound them with a long stick that resembles a baseball bat. The man who does the pounding must have, besides the manual skill, a fine sense of music. He usually makes tunes resembling those ob- tainable from a drum. The odor of the coffee is very pleasant. When the man has ground it quite fine, his wife puts it in a tin pot with a long handle. Wealthy families generally use pots of brass. The coffee is allowed to cook over the brazier until it boils up in the pot sev- eral times, before it is ready to be served. It is not strained. Coffee is served in tiny cups (^* fin- jan '^)y of which there are usually no more MY HOME 39 than two in the family. The cups have no handles, and are not washed after each man drinks. Sugar is not commonly used, except for boys, cream or milk never. The order of serving is to begin with the oldest man in the company and so on down to the youngest, and then the host. This order is adhered to most rigidly. After coffee comes good-natured talk on general matters that savor of comfort and good- will. There is a tradition that a full cup of coffee is a sign of enmity, so the cups are not filled, and a small pot is enough for a surprising number. The coffee, how- ever, is the most delicious of beverages, and the usual noisy sip with which it is drawn into the mouth is a sign of the drinker's satisfaction with the quality. So you see that coffee-drinking for the men serves the same purpose that grinding does for women. It gives them a very enviable poise. When eating, most of the country people sit in a squatting posture on the floor 40 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE around a common disli, which is usually very large and carved out of a log. Hands and spoon are hoth used. If the meal is eaten out-of-doors, passers-by are usually invited. It never happens that anybody present with the family at meal-time does not partake of the meal. In fact, he is almost forced to eat, and a refusal on his part is taken as a sign of coolness toward the family. The first meal of the day is a light one, and is not eaten until the middle of the forenoon. It is very informal, and each member may eat whenever he or she is ready. Olives, olive oil, preserved fruits, and bread make up the breakfast of most families. In season, however, grapes and figs, with the sparkling dew still on them, are served daily. Fresh grapes may be had at all hours of the day for the picking, as the vineyards are seldom far away. Each family owns its vineyard, and most families own orchards of fig and other fruit trees. The second meal is served MY HOME 41 at noon or a little after, but tlie evening meal is the heartiest, because there is usu- ally something cooked. Meat is a luxury seldom enjoyed, proving that it is not essential. Early in the morning the head of the family and the other male members go to work. The women do the household work, while the children do the ** run- ning " for the family. By this I mean running errands and doing other light work, such as carrying food to men work- ing at a distance. In the summer time, after harvesting and storing the grain, the vineyard season begins. The children spend most of their time in the vineyards, sleeping at night in little booths on top of the guard-houses. Many times I have slept under the blue sky, which is much more beautiful in Palestine than any sky elsewhere, because it is clearer and seems to have more stars. One can watch them- moving. There are old men who, even though illiterate, can tell the time of night 42 WEEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE very closely by watching the positions of the stars, and who can call many of them by name. In the morning we used to find the bed-clothing soaked with dew. The grapes, of course, are all the more deli- cious when covered with dew, and many times when I woke in the morning did I reach after them. The children spend the day playing games and eating grapes, and where there are fig trees, they set little traps for birds. These traps are very simple. First they bore a hole about five inches from one end of a stick; then they make the stick firm, tying it to a branch, while through the hole they pass a loop of string, tying one end of it to a bent bough. Finally they put a small twig whittled like a pencil into the hole, securely enough to hold the string which is looped over it, but not enough to stand any weight. On the top end of this whittled stick they place an open red fig, which is usually an irresistible attraction for birds. The bird wants the ^g, and as The Boy's Day for a Bath. Tlie Oriental does not like to remain in a tub of water, and so water is poured over the sitting bather. Water is so scarce that bathing is an expensive luxury. MY HOME 43 all the otlier near-by twigs liave been cut away, there is no other place on which to stand except the prepared twig. The bird's weight pushes down the twig, and the loop attached to the bent bough encir- cles its tiny feet. As many as five birds may be caught in one trap in a day. Having no pictures or books, we boys had to do something for a diversion from the rest of our games. Old folk, wanting something to do, stir up an argument, and talk. We followed their example. We started arguments, only instead of talking we acted. Many a time we gathered our forces, all the boys in the neighboring vineyards, and proceeded to make war against boys in other neighborhoods. Our arms were oak clubs, smooth and worn with use, a few picked stones, and a sling. Thus armed we attacked. Our first act was to start a disagreement by willfully trespassing, and taking grapes from their vineyards. They naturally resented our intrusion, and failing to get an excuse for 44 WHEN I WA8 A BOY IN PALESTINE our action, combat would ensue. First came a hand-to-hand, or rather, a fist-to- face affair, which continued until one side began to get the better of it. Then some of the defeated side would draw off a little and begin throwing stones. Their sure aims soon would begin to tell, and the boys on the offensive would disperse, and take up stone-throwing, both with the hand and with the slings, thus covering their retreat and preventing annihilation. We fought with stones as you do with snowballs, and very seldom inflicted any more damage with our weapons. One of the games we used to play in the heat of the day, when we naturally were more inclined to rest, was what we called ** Missrameh.'' There could be any num- ber of contestants. The loose soil was smoothed and a circle marked on it, vary- ing in size with the number of those wish- ing to play, then holes about four inches in diameter were dug in the circle. These were divided evenly among the players, MY HOME 45 not less, however, than three holes to each. To begin with, seven grapes were placed in each hole. The game started by a player taking all the grapes out of one of the holes, and putting one grape each in the other holes successively. Whenever the last grape was placed where there were an even number of grapes below seven, he took them as his gain. This was done until all players but one were out of grapes. This one, of course, is winner. The game, except that it encourages mental calcula- tion, seems a dull one, and I fail to under- stand how we could play it for hours. Sometimes we broke up in a fight when some one was caught at crooked dealing. The boys dread winters in Palestine, short as they are, for then they have to go to school. This is the only drawback to winter, however, because it is as short as may be reasonably expected. '* First rain '' falls in the middle of November, but the ^' wet " season does not really begin until near Christmas, and continues until 46 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE March. Eain falls only occasionally, and many pleasant snnny days are enjoyed, even in January. Eoughly speaking we have about twenty-five inches of rainfall a season. In some seasons we have a few inches of snow. The boys take advantage of this by going up on house-tops and test- ing the accuracy of their aims with snow- balls. Although short-lived, for the sun melts the snow in a few hours, it is great sport. The rest of the year, that is, from March to November, is summer, during which we have no rain, generally speaking. Some days of summer are hot, but the nights are all cool and refreshing. April and May are the most delightful months of the year and are well adapted for travel- ling and sightseeing. Everything is bud- ding, and flowers are at their best. Har- vest begins with spring, and then follows the fruit season. After the fruit season, or, rather, during the latter part of it, comes the time to gather in the olives. MY HOME 47 Men climb the trees and beat the olives from the branches with long sticks, while women and children gather them off the ground. When it comes from the tree, the olive has a milky juice of a peculiar bitter flavor, so to make olives fit to eat, they pickle them in a strong solution of salt, in which they must remain for several months to take away the bitter taste. The best and ripest of the olives are picked to be treated with this solution for home use ; the rest are taken to the press in order to extract the oil. The olives are first placed in a large, round stone receptacle with a flat bottom, on which runs a large stone roller. This roller has a double re- volving motion ; it turns upon its own axis and also around a central pivot. A mule usually does the turning. The crushed mass is then carried to the press in coarse baskets. There the juice is put in hot water. The oil comes to the surface, and the impurities are suspended in the water. An olive tree is of much value, for it 48 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE takes from ten to fifteen years to bring it to a fruit-bearing state. Olive oil is mucli used in Palestine for cooking and lighting; sometimes it is used to dress wounds. After having stored his crops, the peas- ant of Palestine is now ready for another winter. CHAPTER V AT SCHOOL IN PALESTINE Like other Oriental countries, my home, Palestine, has remained intellectually stag- nant for centuries. We Arabians pride ourselves on a great and glorious past, a rich literature, and a most beautiful lan- guage. But not more than ten per cent, of the men are able to read or write. There is no such blessing as the school systems that may be found in Western countries, more especially in the United States. The government in Mohammedan villages runs schools for the purpose of teaching the boys to read the Koran. The teacher is the '* khatib," which means orator, who, besides his school duties, con- ducts prayer for the village, and acts as 49 50 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE care-taker of tlie mosques and other hal- lowed places. He writes all the contracts and letters of the village, in fact he does about everything but effective teaching. Christians never attend these schools. The Church Missionary Society, an Eng- lish organization, attends to the education of the Christians, and it has established small schools to be carried on under its care in most of the Christian places in Palestine. These schools have stimulated interest in learning among the boys. In 1901 the Friends of New England opened a Boys' Training Home in Ram Allah, my native town. Mr. Elihu Grant (now Professor of Biblical Literature at Smith College, Northampton, Massachu- setts) and his wife were the teachers for the first four years. I was one of the boys who entered at the beginning, and in 1906 I was graduated, one of a class of three. Girls seldom have any schooling, and in 1838 it is recorded that my home town had only one school for boys, where five or six Chums in the American School. The teachers try to keep them in the attractive native costume, but the boys like to get into jackets and trousers. AT SCHOOL IN PALESTINE 51 boys were considered educated when they could read Arabic. To-day things are de- cidedly changed: all the different sects have schools, which are usually very jeal- ous of one another, but they serve their purpose. There are now over ten schools in my home village of about ^ve thousand inhabitants. Among them are two board- ing-schools, one for boys, and the other for girls. This girls' school breaks all precedents, and is considered the finest of its kind in the country. You see I was not in a position to escape schooling. I was taken to school for short periods when I was very young, but I never learned anything until after I was eight years old. Before that I did not go fre- quently enough, and when I did go, I paid no attention, and no attention was paid to me if I kept quiet. At the age of eight I became interested in the easy arithmetical problems, and I reported, unfortunately for myself, as you shall see later, daily improvements and changes of lessons to 52 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE my father. These changes meant prog- ress, for the teacher never allowed a boy to pass over a lesson without first master- ing what was supposed to be taught by it. Let me first picture the school-room. We enter. One-half of the room is filled with long benches on which the boys are seated. The more advanced ones sit in the rear, because they are supposed to keep better order, and need not be in the im- mediate neighborhood of the teacher. One class is usually reciting. The boys stand in a semicircle round the teacher, with the brightest boys on one end and the dullest on the other. First one boy reads and is corrected, and then another. Those who know their lessons are allowed to sit down, while the others have to undergo punish- ment. Kneeling in the corner is considered getting out of it easily, for usually the teacher inflicts other penalties. He keeps a few small and pliant sticks with which he hits the erring boys on their hands. This method is usually measured by the num- AT SCHOOL IN PALESTINE 53 ber of mistakes made, one mistake, one blow, and so on. Whenever the teacher wishes to make the punishment more se- vere and humiliating to the boy, he whips his bare feet instead of his hands. Often the teacher inflicts these punishments be- cause of complaints by the mothers. Some- body has to do the punishing, and since most fathers are over-indulgent with their boys, the teachers have to be all the more stern on their part. This whipping is fast being done away with and more humane methods are used. Memories force me to drop the subject. After reading come writing lessons. The boys go up to the teacher and watch him write models for them. They follow the elegance of his motions and try to imitate them, much to the disadvantage of the reed pens that squeak and break at the least pretext. Thus the teacher is kept busy; when not whetting his knife, he is sharpening pens for his imitators. Older boys learn to sharpen their own pens. 54 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE After the writing lesson they have a les- son in poetry. All the boys have to learn a few verses of poetry daily. This used to be my easiest lesson, for the whole school chanted the verses together, and all I had to do was to move my lips. Our lessons consisted chiefly of parables and fables. Very few of us had books, and since most of us were blessed with strong memories, we escaped actually learning anything. I used to be able to recite most of the gospels by heart, but could not read them. One day there was to be a boarding- school opened for boys, and tests were being held. My father, thinking me the scholar of the family, took me for these tests, and to his surprise I could not read the plainest of passages. The examining teacher, who was dividing the aspirants into two classes, pushed me aside into the second class. But my father saved me. He protested at the teacher's action, say- ing that if they did not place me with the first class, they could not have me at all. AT SCHOOL IN PALESTINE 55 Boys who wanted to enter and pay the fees were rather scarce, so not having any alternative, the teacher placed me in the first class for a trial month. Never till that time had I known that school and reading were anything but a foolish imposition on a boy's free nature. Now I was put to it, or rather, it was put to me to ^^ make good," and I resolved to try my best because of my father. The first night found us having our try-outs to determine who was the strongest boy in school. This being established, we were ready for the school year. We began to learn not only Arabic, but English, not only reading, but also writing, and how to work problems in arithmethic. Grammar and many more arduous things followed. I happened to *' make good," and stayed in the class, but it told on my strength, and from one of the strongest boys in school I fell down to seventh. This did not make any difference, however ; I led my classes and at home I was the hero. It certainly 56 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE was a tactical mistake on my part to make such a reputation at the beginning, for I had to maintain the lead, or bear the shame which my father would have to share with me. In the tribal coffee-house it was a subject of continual conversation and argu- ment. This was more vehement as each examination drew near, and everybody was praising his favorite. Our games at school became organized, and we used to take long walks every after- noon after school. While passing through town, we had to march two by two, but out in the open we ran as we pleased. The red-letter day of our school year was pic- nic day. We started early in the morning for some spring out in the woods. We took all our food out with us and spent a most enjoyable day playing games. On these occasions we had many track con- tests, and we also spent some time swing- ing under the huge olive trees. The longest of these trips was the one we took in my second year. We went to AT SCHOOL IN PALESTINE 57 '' Ayn Fara '' in the Wady Fara, a few hours' trip to the northwest of Jerusalem. Leaving Earn Allah as early as ^ve o'clock, we proceeded eastward for about a mile. Here was the much smaller town of El Bereh, lying on the southeast side of a curve in the carriage road which leads south to Jerusalem, nine miles away, and north to Nablus, the Shecem of the Bible. From this town we could see Jerusalem. To our left, north of El Bereh, is a lofty mountain on which there is a high watch- tower commanding a large section of the neighboring country on all sides. On the left side of the road toward the south we saw the pride of the village, one of the finest and strongest water sup- plies for many miles around. A mosque is built on the site. We could see women and girls coming and going, carrying their water jars on their heads, and a little fur- ther in the same direction we caught a glimpse of the old Khan, or inn. This is the inn where Joseph and Mary missed 58 WHEN I WAS A BOY IN PALESTINE Christ on their homeward journey to Naz- areth, and returned back to find him argu- ing with the learned Jewish elders. Every- where we saw reservoirs, and other de- vices, and ruins of Bible times, and to the southeast rose Jebel Ettawil, the long mountain which barred our view of the Eiver Jordan and the Dead Sea. We continued toward the south along our road, which sloped downward gently but steadily. After walking a mile, we got to the ruins of Atara at the foot of Jebel Deborah. On the top of this mountain the prophetess Deborah sat and judged among the tribes of Israel. Following the road for about three more miles, we took a road leading eastward. We were now between two villages : to our right was Er Eam, the Ramah of Samuel, another judge and prophet of Israel; to our left was a smaller village, Jeba, also of Bible fame. Here the road began to sound hollow under the donkey's feet; the sound was noticeable even under our own mi UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LlBRAI^Y *