A BATH AT DAMASCUS.

Otago Daily Times, 2 October 1865, Page 5

A BATH AT DAMASCUS.

(fhom Jacob's __igiit ; ok a pi_or_-_«_

XO HABEAN—»_ MRS. _EKK )

Before leaving England I had always made up my mind to go to a real Turkish bath; and on Thursday, the 19th of De- • ■ cember, (tbe second day after our arrival in Damascus,) the public baths being on tbat afternoon appropriated to females, ; I went to one in the neighbourhood of our hotel, accompanied by Katinka, Demetri _ wife, as my attendant. The only - sign by which the women's baths are known, is a string stretched across the entrance door, with a piece or two of rag-tied to it; and although the same bath-houses serve at different times for both men and women, yet, on the days on which the sign : is suspended over the door, a man would Booner think of entering a private harem - than of violating the sanctuary of tbe women. I first entered a large hall, in the centre of which was a fountain playing, the water from wbich fell in several jets into n large circular stone basin, about ten feet across, looking deliriously clean and cool. The floor of this room was paved with squares of marble of different colors; and on three sides oi it were recesses containing raised platforms on which were rauged in a row a number of divans end small < bedsteads, with mattrasses and pillows, on i wbich were reclining several ladie?, some j half dressed, some wholly so, but almost all of tbem smoking and sipping rich 1 coffee from the tiny little china cups in i general use in those countries. Some were i smoking long nargilebs, and others < cigarettes, in richly ornamented cigarholders. Many of those ladies bad i gailly dressed little children play- i ing about them on their beds and some i were talking, and others apparently sleep- i ing. Altogether the outer hall presented a very gay appearance, and at the same < time inspired a delicious feeling of dolce/ar nientc Iv a corner of one of the raised ' platforms was a little desk, surmounted by ; a richly gilt canopy, at which sat the superintendent, who rose as we entered nnd came forward to receive us, and to whom my attendant paid the money for my ' bath. I was then conducted down a long stone passage, likewise paved with marble) , along tbe side of which was a cutter, with a running stream of delightfully cool water. At the end of this pa_*-a--'c we were met by a young woman, who superintends tbe dressing-room of the bathers. Sbe spoke a few words with Demttri's wife which I did not understand, and tbea we were immediately shown into another hall, likewise paved with marble, with a stream running across the floor. In this room were a number of small bedsteads and divans, on which were placed tome matting and pillows. This < room, like the other, was filled with women and children dressing and undressing, with many of the former smoking, and the > children phying about tbem. Here the women sit upon the divans and dress ' themselves sitting. I felt rather uneasy at ' seeing many of tbe women and chHdreti partly naked, though they on their side i did not seem in any way abashed at a stranger's entrance amongst them. As I wished to see all over the bath-house before venturing to allow myself to be undressed, I proceeded with the waitingwoman out of this room through a door into another passage, down whicb was running a stream of warm water the steam from wbich prevented nic from seeing very distinctly; but it seemed to me as if a number of women kept running back%vards and forwards down this i passage to the cold room, without shoes or i stockings, and with really nothing on thtm ' but a coloured handkerchief round the wast. From this we passed through seve- ' ral halls without any furniture in them, ' but all warmed by steam, and the floors I covered with a thin slippery film of soapy ] water; and here the women were standing ! about naked, many of tbem wearing high < wooden pattens to keep their feet from the < hot stones, and to prevent them from slip- 1 ping. The heat was gradually getting ' greater as we passed through these rooms, ' until at last we entered the grand hall or ' bath-room. Here I could not stand for < the slipperincss of the soapy water over ] tbe polished marble floor, and was | obliged to be held up by two. women, i one on each side. The clouds of ' steam, joined to the smoke from, all kinds ' of pipes that were being used, prevented 1 mc from seeing, and almost from breath- ' iug. It was well it was so, fjr. it required • no small amount of courage on the part of ' an European lady to enter this room at ■ all; and bad the atmosphere been clear, ' the disgustingly indelicate and immodest 1 scene that would have presented itself ' wonld, I do believe, haye frightened me j away altogether. The hall eontaiued women of all ages and iv all states of ' health, with children of all shapes and mak:s. Some few of the women—and 1 when I dared to examine, I found that. ' tbey were principally the. youngest and by. j far the best looking—showed some smajl amount of modesty by. tying a handkerchief round their bodies. The ugly old bags, who, would haye done best had they covered themselves, up altogether, seemed to possess noS a particle. of shame, but rather to glory in exposing themselves. The hair of all was streaming down their backs. Some were combing out their children's and one another's hair with combs, such as we use to our- horse--' manes; jothers'were scrubi bing themselves or being scrubbed with soap and brushes, whiLj lying flat on the , floor; others sitting on stools; but most lof them smoking while they were undergoing tbe operation of being scrubbed all aver by the women of the baths employed for that purpose. It was a large circular ' hall beautifully paved with polished marble^ the walls being of the same tnaterial, rjx\_ it was lighted by a skylight above. In different parts round the .room were handsomely carved marble basins, sor_e round and others oval, standing about '*'fool from the ground, and being about, a couple of feet wide. Each basin had two taps projecting over it from the Vail, one for hot, the other for cold water, Apofit the floor were many little gnttP vf f or the water to run off. The,whole_>Jiiee t M _ sawitpecuW9& I*?? o*e the* idea, ef aa iwnmae waiti-

house in England, the females looki like a number of washerwomen, indistinctly seen, moving to aud fro through the clou. a. of steam. I waß co thoroughly shocked aud horrified at seeing so many females together in such a state, and apparently without the least idea of shame about tbem; and thinking that I was about ta be subjected to a similar treatment, that I fairly took to my heels, ruthiug back through all the passages aud rooms __ quickly as I could, in spite of the efforts of the* attendants to detain me; and, to tbeir utter amazement, I at last got out of • the building altogether, and ran borne to our hotel, where I sat down quite faint from the heat end imell of the place I had escaped from. My husband, who waa . naturally surprised to see me back so soon, was anxious to know what was the mat— ; ter. I told him I had not been able to summon courage to remain; for the whole habits of the women there were not what I could conform to ; that I had seeu no figns of a private room, and I was sure I should never be able to take a bath. amongst so many. Katinka now arrived in search of me, and after my husband's explaining the matter to her, (for she diil not understand a word of English, French^, or Italian,) and on her assuring him and me that 1 should have a private room and everything I required, I once more started oft'with her to take my bath. I passed through the outer vestibule and along the passage to the first hall, where I bad to suffer myself to be undressed by the waiting-women, iv the presence of all the ladies wbo were there before me, both*. dressing and undressing. For thin purpose I was made to sit upon a sort of Indians bedstead, where my clothes were dragged, off me, and submitted to the inspection o tbercstoftbe females present, who seemed greatly amused at my crinoline. Had I worn a hoop, it would doubtless have astonished them a great deal more. I then. managed to cover myself with a long flannel dressing-gown before they could succeed in freeine* me from all my garments?*, which I could plainly fee tbey had set tlieir minds on doing; and tben, in spite o t all they could do or say to prevent it, x (dipped on my bathing-clothes. I was now content to resign myself ta my fate. First, I had to submit to have all my hair taken. down and pulled about by most of the women present, although I must confess I could not see anything in it very different; from theirs, which generally is very fine_ In this state I was conducted "through the various balls, till I reached the large bathroom a second time, where I was again, compelled to seek the support of a couple cf women to cro3s the hot, slippery, and greasy floor. Having taken offboth shoes aud stockings, it was the more difficult for mc to keep myself up. After being detained in thi3 bathing-hall some fewminutes by those horrid naked women and children, who wanted sadly to persuade me and evtn tried to force vie, to take off my bath-clothes, I entered a " smal* arched doorway iv one corner of the hall, aud found myself in a little square roam resembling the oue I had just left, only it was not more tban about eight or ten feet in length each way, and with a si__le basin, and its two tips for water. After entering this room a curtain was drawn over the entrance, and two hideous old women, nearly naked, brought a three-legged stool," and placed it neir the stone basin which h*-Id tbe water; and on this I was made to sit down. The heat of tbis room was so great th^t I could hardly bear it, and tho steam so thick that I could see nothing. But this was only the beginning. Before I had time to tell where I was, I was almost suffocated by tyro or three pails of cold water b\" -;- thrown over my head ; after which c:v a couple of pails of saaldiDg hot water, which made me positively leap up and cry out that L sbould be stifled if they put any niQre oyer me. One o the old women then proceeded to soap rey litad and hair, rubbingand scratching the latter in the most unmerciful style, and at such a rate that it was almost more than I could bear; while, the other woman was serving my limbs and ray body mucb after the same fashion. After having been subjected to as much soaping and scratching, as if I had been a perfect sweep, or a blackamaor desirous of being washed white, the hairdresser commenced combing my hair straight down my back, regardless of entanglement or. hurting me, while my other tire women kept pouring buckets ofr hot water over me, and rubbing me with soap, aud scrubbing me with a wisp of some sort of gra.«s; and in this manner my whole body was served until I became • quite exhausted. Last of all, a number of pails of cold water were poured over me, my dressing-gown was brought to me, andI left the bath-room, and returned more dead than, alive to the dressing-room, where I; threw myself on a bed perfectly exhausted. Here I rested a. while, and watched the others dressing. After I was somewhat recovered, my thingwere all: put on for me as I lay ou tbe bed, and.l then proceeded to the outer vestibule, where it is customary to remain for several hours, lounging on the divans, drinking: coffee,, smoking, gossiping, and talking scandal and the news of the-day. I conles. I felt I had had enough of it;, besides which the smoke was to me intolerable. So I was glad enough to leave and get back to the hotel, and enjoy my cup of coffee quietly and free from, smoke in my own. little room. Since my. return to England, I have read Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's famous description of her visit to a publicTurkish bath. FrGta. what is here written it will be seen that, though there is an interval of nearly a century and a half between her visit' and mine, no material change has taken place; the chief difference between our descriptions being that the one is the florid representation of a highly accomplished; imaginative lady, whilst the other ia the plain unvarnished narrative of an unpretending recorder of facta.

The>Eev. Mr Drury was made defendant in a, snit in the Court of Arches, on the prosecution of the Bishop, of Norwich, for ofSciating in a monastery in the diosese of -lor'wich, an unlicensed and unconsecrated. : place. The defendant admitted the charge, but pleaded, tbat he abstained after wanting, and that the monks were in reality a. family dwelling in one house. The Court condemned the defendant iv costs, and admonishod him not to offend again.

The Prince of Wales has instructed General Knollys to discharge from hia service every servant who may receive* and to cease employing every tradesman. who may pay a percentage, or who may make a present of any kind, in co-M-ere**, tion pf his Eoyal ffighncaa's casern*.