THE BATH AMONG THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS.
"The bath of to-day is much like that of thousands of years ago, as can be seen by the pictures on the walls of the tombs. The bath is the favorite resort of the women, and many of them spend the whole day there, or at least a large part of it. The baths for women are much more numerous than those for men; many of them are set apart on different days of the week for different religious sects, and sometimes families or parties of friends hire the bath for themselves, so that they shall not be disturbed by others.
"Doctor Bronson says a good deal of nonsense has been written by travellers concerning the baths of the East. He says better and more comfortable bathing establishments may be found in Paris, London, or New York than in Constantinople or Cairo, and the number is increasing every year.
"The Oriental bath is recommended for a good many things besides cleanliness, although the latter is the great consideration. It will cure colds and slight touches of rheumatism, is excellent for many maladies of the skin, improves the digestion, and has often restored invalids whom medicine had failed to benefit. Doctor Bronson has a friend in New York who suffers occasionally from gout, and whenever he feels it coming upon him he goes straight to a Turkish bath, and, as he says, 'boils it out.' One should be very careful, after taking a bath, not to go too soon into the open air, for fear of catching cold."
While on their way from the bath to the hotel the youths encountered a procession, and naturally asked the guide what it was.
"That is a wedding," was the reply; "somebody is going to be married, and this is part of the ceremony."
It occurred to Frank on the instant that his sister and Miss Effie might be interested in the subject of weddings, and here would be an opportunity to write something to please them. Accordingly, he made note of all he saw in the procession, interrogated the guide, and even took a peep within the pages of "The Modern Egyptians," to assure himself that he had made no mistake. As there may be others besides Mary and Effie who want to know the matrimonial customs of Egypt, we will make an extract from Frank's account:
"The procession that we saw was composed of the family and friends of the bride on their way to the bath, where they would remain several hours. There were four musicians in front, and right behind them were six of the married friends of the bride, walking in couples; behind these were several young girls, and all the party had their faces covered with long veils that reached nearly to the ground. The married women wore robes of black material, but the girls were in striped or white shawls, so that it was easy to know at a glance whether one of them was married or single.
"Of course you want to know how the bride looked. She was close behind the young girls, but I can't describe her appearance, as she walked under a canopy of pink silk, supported on four poles, carried by as many men. It was like a small tent, and opened in front; the other sides were completely closed, so that our only view of the bride was just a glimpse through the opening of the canopy. Even if we had more than a glimpse of her, it would have done no good, as she was wrapped from head to foot in a red cashmere shawl, and whether she was seventeen or seventy years old we could not say. The guide said she had a pasteboard crown on her head, and the shawl was hung over it so as to conceal her face and all the jewellery she wore. Of course she could not see anything, and so a couple of women were walking inside the canopy, and just behind her, to tell her how to keep pace with the rest of the procession.