ARABIA.
Have you ever heard of the Arabs? They are people with brown skin and dark eyes. They live in a country called Arabia. It is a very warm country. There is never any snow in Arabia. A great part of it is covered with sand. For miles and miles you would see nothing but sand. Often the sand is so hot that you could not walk on it in your bare feet. Those great tracts of sand are called deserts.
[Illustration: Arabs.]
In many parts of Arabia water is very scarce. It rains very seldom, and in some places there are no rivers. The people get water out of wells. They carry the water, in bottles made of leather. Glass bottles would not do. The heat is so great that it would go through the glass. Tins would make the water warm. But the leather bottles keep the water cool.
[Illustration: Arab Water Carrier.]
Some of the Arabs live in towns. They have walls around their towns. At some parts of the walls there are towers. Both walls and towers are made of earth.
In every large town they have an open market place with shops around it. In most of the shops they sell food. In a few of the shops they sell cotton cloth and other dry goods. Many of the shops are kept by women.
The streets are swept every day. Every family sweeps the street in front of its own door.
The houses in the towns are made of stone. They have flat mud roofs and small windows. The Arabs have no chairs or beds in their houses. They sit on mats or carpets spread on the floor. They also sleep on mats.
The chief room in an Arab house is the coffee room. It is a large room with a furnace or fireplace at one end of it for making coffee.
Many of the Arabs live in tents. They move about from place to place. Sometimes they cross the desert to come to the towns. They must often cross it to find water and grass for their horses and camels and sheep.
[Illustration: Arabs and Tent.]
The camel is very useful to the Arabs. Perhaps you have seen a camel. It is much larger than a horse. It has a great hump on its back. It has large feet with broad, flat soles; and it can walk or run over the sand without sinking.
The camel can carry a very heavy load. It gives milk which is good to drink. Its hair is made into cloth. Its flesh is good meat. It can bear thirst and heat far better than a horse can. It can travel and carry a load in the desert for three or four days without drinking. This makes it very useful to the Arabs.
[Illustration: A Camel.]
But the Arabs have horses also. They are the finest horses in the world. An Arab is very proud of his horse. He loves him almost as much as he loves his children.
Did you ever hear the story that is told of Hassan and his horse? Hassan was an Arab who had a horse which he loved very much. And the horse loved Hassan very much.
One day Hassan was riding on his horse in the desert with some other Arabs. They were met by a party of men called Turks, who made them prisoners. The Turks tied the feet of Hassan and his friends with leather straps. They tied the horses also. They planned to carry them off next morning.
During the night Hassan heard his horse neighing. He crept up to him and said in a low voice: "What will become of you, my poor horse? You will not be happy with these Turks. Go home to my tent. Tell my wife that she will never see me again. Lick the hands of my children with your tongue, as a token of my love."
He then bit off with his teeth the cords that tied the horse, and set him free. The horse looked at his master for a minute or two. Then he caught him with his teeth by the belt and ran off with him into the desert. On and on across the sand he ran. He never stopped until he had laid Hassan down beside his wife and children. Then, worn out with his long run, he dropped dead at his master's feet.
All the people around wept when they heard the story. Arab poets made songs about Hassan and his horse.
The Arabs do not eat very much. Their chief meal is supper. They have supper in the evening. They are very fond of coffee. Did you ever hear of Mocha coffee? It comes from Mocha, a town in Arabia. Most of the Arabs take their coffee without sugar or milk.
They always make their bread in thin cakes. Then they bake the bread on hot iron plates or in an open oven. They also have ground wheat cooked with a little butter. Arabs who are rich have mutton or camel's flesh, and also rice. All eat vegetables and fruits of various kinds.
There are many kinds of fruit in Arabia. But the greatest and best of all is the date. This grows on the date-palm tree. The date palm grows very high. The Arabs are very proud of it. Every part of it is of use to them. Its fruit is the chief food of many of the people. You have seen and perhaps you have eaten dried dates. They are not nearly so sweet or so good as the fruit when taken off the tree. The trunk of the date palm is good for making furniture. Its leaves make roofs for houses. Parts of its branches make firewood. From some parts of the tree cords and ropes are made.
The Arabs do not wear very many clothes. They do not need heavy clothes, because the weather in Arabia is almost always very warm. The men wear long light dresses like shirts. They have a belt, or girdle, around the waist. They wear a handkerchief on the head. This is tied around with a band or string. On their feet they wear sandals. Do you know what a sandal is? It is a shoe with only a sole, and straps going across the foot and round the ankle. The Arab women also wear a long shirt. Over it they have a large, wide piece of blue cloth. This blue cloth covers them from head to foot.
[Illustration: Arab Woman and Child.]
[Illustration: An Arab Sandal.]
But what about the Arab boys and girls? What do they wear? Most of the boys run around without shoes or stockings. But some of them wear little red shoes turned up at the toes, and others wear small sandals. They also wear loose trousers and jackets and little red caps. The girls commonly wear cotton dresses that are made very plain. Sometimes they have veils over their heads. In the country places the girls do not wear veils.
[Illustration: Arab Girl with Veil.]
Only the boys go to school. Before they enter the school they must take off their sandals. They have no seats in their schools. They all sit on the floor. Their lessons are not like your lessons. They have only one book. It is called the Koran. The Koran is the Arab Bible. The Arab boys must learn the Koran by heart. At school, they all shout out together when they are learning their lessons.
[Illustration: A School in Arabia.]
But the Arab boys learn many things at home. They learn to read and to write. They also have plenty of time to play. They play ball. They fly kites. They ride ponies. Often they play with old guns and swords. Thus they learn to be soldiers.
The Arab girls do not go to school. But they do not play very much. They must help their mothers do the work at home. The mothers grind corn to make bread. They spin and weave cloth for clothes. They grind the corn with two flat stones. One of these stones is placed on top of the other. There is a hole in the middle of the upper stone. They pour the corn into this hole. The upper stone is then turned round by a handle. So the corn is ground between the two stones. The girls often have to turn the stone around. They must also take care of the baby. They help to carry home water from the well. They carry the water in earthen jars.
[Illustration: Arabs Grinding Corn.]
You will say, then, that the Arab girls have a hard time. But they do not work always. They have some time for play. They have very funny dolls. Would you not laugh if some one gave you two sticks joined like a cross, and told you it was a doll? That is the kind of doll the Arab girls have. And they are very fond of their dolls. They dress them, and take great care of them.
The Arabs are very fond of tales and stories. Perhaps you have heard of a book called the "Arabian Nights." It is full of wonderful stories about kings and giants and witches, and other strange things. This book came from Arabia. When you are older you will read the "Arabian Nights." In it you will learn many more things about Arabia and the Arabs.