Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume II.djvu/470

 450 BEDOUINS April 18, 1812. The building has been much enlarged, and now covers 14 acres and accom- modates about 600 patients. The annual in- come is nearly 30,000, and the expenditure over -20,000. The wretched management of the first hospital led in 1771 to the prohibition of the brutal exhibition of maniacs, whose treatment furnished materials for Hogarth's picture of a madhouse in his " Rake s Pro- gress." Patients partly cured were permitted to go at large, and were called Bedlam beg- gars, or Tom-o'-Bedlams. The mismanagement continued, though in a far less degree, till 1815, since which time improvements have been gradually introduced. BEDOUINS (Arab. Bedawi, pi. Bedwdn, dwell- er in the desert), the nomadic tribes of Arabia, Irak, and the eastern and southeastern parts of Syria. They live in tribes of from 200 to 20,- 000 or 30,000 men, moving from place to place as the exigencies of their flocks and herds re- Bedooln Arabs. quire. From the earliest ages they have led a pastoral life, dwelling in tents and rearing cattle, with which they supplied the cities, go- ing out on plundering excursions or spending their leisure time in horse-racing, athletic sports, story-telling, and, since the introduc- tion of tobacco, in smoking. All domestic labor except milking and spinning is left to the women and slaves; the arable land is culti- vated by the neighboring peasantry, who re- ceive one third of the produce and are main- tained at the expense of the proprietor during their stay, as a reward for their service. The women also perform the part of hairdressers to their husbands in curling their locks. The tending of the flocks is left to the boys and girls. The Bedouin considers agriculture beneath his dignity; he despises alike all labor and engage- ments in commerce, proud of his liberty and genealogy, which he traces back to Mohammed, Ishmael, or Joktan. He is fierce and warlike, not out of patriotism, for he has no country, jut for the sake of plunder. The Bedouins are passionately fond of poetry ; nearly every tribe
 * ias a poet, who recites the deeds of their

tieroes and adventures of lovers, accompany- ing his songs with the rabala, a kind of one- stringed fiddle. They are among the most expert riders in the world, and are greatly attached to their horses. Their diet is simple, consisting of the flesh and milk of their herds, rice, and coffee. They dislike sleeping in build- ings, and when obliged to visit the towns for the sale of their cattle, wool, and grain, their stay there is as brief as possible. The Be- douins are of middle size, spare and sinewy, capable of enduring great fatigue and exposure to the fiery sun and hot winds of the desert. In complexion they are dark brown, have reg- ular features, with deep-set, piercing, and intel- ligent eyes. Their clothing, especially during predatory excursions, is often reduced to a single cotton shirt bound round the waist with a leathern girdle, into which the Bedouin sticks his arms with a pipe and lighting apparatus. The wealthy Bedouin or the sheikh wears over his shirt a long gown, often of scarlet cloth, with the usual arms, pistols and short dagger, in his girdle, while a silver-mounted sword is swung across his shoulder, and a flowing mantle of cashmere covers the whole. The head dress consists of a keffiye or shawl of wool or silk interwoven with gold lace, with fringes of the same material, folded cornerwise and tied round the head with a cord. He wears clumsy boots of red or yellow leather. The Bedouins prac- tise polygamy and hold slaves. They are igno- rant, superstitious, fierce, revengeful, and of depraved morals. Their greatest virtue is hos- pitality to their guests ; but even this is ques- tionable, and the sanctity of the asylum (dakMT) has often been violated. Instances, however, are not rare of magnanimous conduct, where the dakhil has been faithfully observed even at great danger to the protector. Unlike the Turkomans or other robbers in civnized coun- tries, the Bedouin is averse to shedding blood, and will have recourse to extreme measures only when others have failed. This may he partly attributed to their fear of causing a blood feud. The Bedouins have no criminal code except for murder, when the blood feud is rigidly enforced, and the murderer and some- times one of his relations is liable to be killed at any moment >by the survivors of the victim. But even here a compensation can be made and accepted. (See BLOOD MONEY ) The gen- eral government of Arabia is patriarchal, each tribe having its sheikh or chief. The sheikh- ship is hereditary, the next oldest, whether son or brother, succeeding. The sheikh leads the men to battle, represents the tribe, and acts as arbitrator in differences which may arise between them. The Bedouins seem never to