THE FELLAHEEN.
The Fellaheen, or aboriginal peasants, mostly of Philistine or Phœnician descent, fear the Bedaween as much as the passing traveller does. They frequently carry for defence either a rather artistic looking kind of battle-axe (probably a remnant of Crusader times), a knob-stick something like a Zulu war-club, or a rusty old musket and knife—they sometimes do a bit of pillage and murder on their own account; one unfortunately occurred while we were in the country, and a young friend of ours was cruelly murdered by them a few years ago near Nazareth in an oak forest we had recently passed through. His murderers were discovered and thrown into prison and kept there without trial, and their non-execution created an impression here that to murder an Englishman is the same as to murder a native, and simply to pay as blood-money a part of the plunder back if the crime is found out. It may interest our readers to know how capital punishment is carried out in this country. First of all the public crier cries, “Who will behead so-and-so for (say) five napoleons?” Some poor needy wretch undertakes the horrid office. On one occasion the man, an amateur, lost his nerve, and butchered his victim; we will not relate the circumstances. Before the execution takes place, the chief officer at the execution cries out, “Who will buy this man’s soul?” and an auction goes on for it. If a sufficient sum of money is bid to satisfy the murdered man’s relations (and they generally will accept blood-money in satisfaction), then the culprit is not executed, but sent to prison nominally for life; but he generally gets out after ten or fifteen years. At Jerusalem, criminals are generally executed outside the Jaffa Gate, where probably, and not on the site of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, our Saviour was crucified. In the case of Arabs, especially, it is usual to carry them to the place of execution on a donkey—a high born Bedawi thinking it the greatest disgrace to ride that homely and patient animal which he generally keeps for the women and children. Recently a Bedawi brigand was executed outside Jerusalem, he was a villain, but a plucky fellow; his last words were “Loose my hands and give me a sword, and with all your guards I will not be hung to-day.” He was given the rope; he placed one end round his neck and tied the other to a tree, stood on the donkey, kicked it aside and was his own executioner. This soul was put up for auction, but there was not a bid; not even the most merciful Mahommedan could make an offer for the life of a man who had sent so many souls to death without even offering them at auction. As if the country were not unsafe enough, the Sublime Porte banished to Palestine some time since, thousands of the Circassian cut-throats, who committed the Bulgarian atrocities. A few nice tales could be told about them—they are likely however to die out, as the natives are against them, and they do not all die natural deaths, but often meet the fate they are so ready to deal out to others.
A few remarks about the general tenure of land in Palestine may be interesting. It is somewhat similar to the ancient land settlement of England before the days of feudal tenure. Each village has so much pasture, tillage or woodland belonging to it as common property; this is year by year allotted to individual heads of families, in quantity according to the number of the family. The allotments are divided from each other only by rows or heaps of stones, which, as they can be easily moved, explains the reason of the Levitical curse against him who removed his neighbour’s land mark. The land is not of course highly cultivated, as the tenure of it is so uncertain, no tenant being absolutely sure of the same land the next year. Tithes are taken by the government, the tax gatherers come down at harvest time, when the grain is heaped upon the threshing floor, and seize what they consider their share of the produce. A similar summary procedure is adopted with the flocks and herds of sheep, camels and goats. A communistic land tenure is not here at least an unmixed blessing; but it is not altogether unsuitable for a primitive and not very settled people.