STRANGE RACES

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 137, 31 August 1927, Page 6

STRANGE RACES

Persia, and Arabia are both Moham medan countries. You may be * prised to learn that the Persians race akin to ourselves, and sp«ak language which was originally' c* nected With our own. The races Arabia, however, are almost entire, v Semitic tHebrew. or akin to Hebrew) and speak Semitic dialects. Persia, famed for its 'Pire--H-orshi D pers.” and its "Towers of Sii ence (places where the dead are exposed) is probably quite unique in respect *T e ' V f y which its children are clothed, bp to the age of seven or eight a girl is dressed as a little man and a boy as a little woman' r rj., country is a paradise for mothers ana grandmothers, who are devotedly wnr shipped by their children and grans children, and also for servants arl horses, who are treated with remark able kindness. The men in some places wear a cotton shirt and trousers under one or more tunic-like garments, and an outer coat of cloth or camels* hair the latter having wide sleeves, a roll’ collar and false pockets; in other part• a turban and trousers are worn with a broad sash, in which is stuck a dagger or—remarkable contrast—an inkstand' They shave the top of the head, ex' eept a lock which is left growing \o serve as a handle by which the Prophet Mahoinmed may pull them up to Paradise. The combing of the hair of the beard is with them a religious exer cise! The women wear a gav-coloured short jacket, with short, wide kneeskirts, below which are worn most exquisitely embroidered leg-coverings worked by hand. Their outdoor dress is a large blue sheet, and a yard of linen pierced with tiny holes for some way in front, to serve as a veil. Their feet are encased in two great coloured bags, and the entire “get-up” i s such as would prevent even their own husbands from recognising them if thev met in the street. At home, when the face can be seen, ii is heavily smeared with red paint, like the reddened cheeks of the clown in our pantomimes: the neck •is painted with white, and the eyes are surrounded with black. For “beauty-spots” they have tiny stars or sham moles, painted on the skin, and’ even their beautiful long black hair which is never cut, is dyed red with henna, or blue-black with indigo. The women are everywhere fond of massive gold and silver ornaments, and in some parts still wear rings through their noses. The Arab women usually dress their hair in a long plait, which hangs down behind. A remarkable thing is that the Arab maiden will often lead the men of her tribe. Amazon-fashion, in battle, or in their raids on hostile tribes, riding on a blackened camel. An historic example of this was the case of Ayesha, the wife of the Prophet himself, who led the Arab charge at the “Battle of the Camel,” as it was called, in the year <l5O of our era. The wandering tribes of Central Asia, the Tartars (or Tatars, as they should be called), have, in some parts, very generally accepted Mohammedanism, living as they do a simple nomadic life which in many ways resembles that led by the Arabs. The Kirghiz, one of these tribes, carry their tents with them, and hence they have been nicknamed human tortoises. These tents, w'hich are round in shape, like the beli tents of our own soldiers, are said to W'eigh but a few pounds when folded up into a bundle. Hawking, which in the Middle Ages was a favourite sport in England, and which has left permanent traces on our language in such words as “lure” and “mews”, has to this day survived among the Arabs and also among many Central Asian tribes. The Kirghiz hunt foxes with a particular kind of eagle, which is believed to be allied to the “golden” eagle, which has tawny feathers on the back of its neck. It is called the “Bergut,” or “Behrcoot,” and is trained to assist in the capture not only of foxes but of antelopes and even wolves. As a rule, it is carried by a horseman (of course, wearing its hood), but sometimes on a perch between two men, and is regarded as so valuable that one bird is equal in worth to two camels. It should perhaps be explained that this bird, though an eagle, cannot possibly carry off so large and heavy a prey as the animals mentioned; what it does is to retard their flight by fixing upon the victim’s head and flapping its wings in their eyes, until the hunters have time to come up—an action in which the brave bird not infrequently loses its life in the battle with the enemy.