The story of the Egyptian slave- 
 woman, Hagar, and her son, Ishmael, 
 is more or less familiar ; how the wom- 
 an was despised by Sarah, and how 
 Abraham sent her and the young boy 
 out to wander in the wilderness. In 
 the 21st chapter of Genesis we read 
 this piteous account, coupled with the 
 promise, "I will make him a great 
 nation." When almost perishing from 
 thirst this lonely mother turned her 
 
 I 
 
back upon her child, lest she should 
 see him die, when, lo ! she discovered 
 a well. The Arabs believe this was 
 their sacred well, Zemzem, and that 
 the precincts of the Kaaba, or "house 
 of God," at Mecca, are the scene of 
 Hagar's crucial experience. This Egyp- 
 tian mother took an Egyptian wife for 
 her son, Ishmael, and from them has 
 descended the Arab race, a race than 
 whom there is none more picturesque 
 and pathetic. Ishmael had twelve 
 sons— princes — who were the leaders 
 of tribes, and built towns and castles. 
 Their hands have ever been "against 
 every man"; and, although Jews and 
 Christians traded in the land and trav- 
 ersed it on the way to Egypt, little of 
 their religions had penetrated the 
 pagan darkness of Arabia, when Mo- 
 hammed came upon the scene, about 
 600 A. D. 
 
 Before the time of Mohammed the 
 freedom and legal status of woman 
 was superior to what it has been ever 
 since. The immorality and sensuality 
 of Islam has brought women to a 
 lower plane than any other faith in 
 the world. It is recorded that Mo- 
 hammed had thirteen wives. His first 
 wife, Khadijah, was a widow when he 
 was married to her. She was a wom- 
 an of wealth and character, and her 
 strong influence seems to have kept 
 him from taking any other wives in 
 her lifetime. But two months after 
 her death he married another widow. 
 
Soon afterward he was betrothed to 
 Ayesha, a child of seven years, and 
 married to her when she was only ten. 
 She was his favorite wife, and it is per- 
 haps due to his jealousy of her that he 
 instituted the custom of the veiling 
 and seclusion of women. Following 
 Mohammed's example in the case of 
 Ayesha, his followers often marry 
 young girls of seven or nine. A veiled 
 girl is a most appealing little figure. 
 
 Arabia is on a fearfully low plane 
 of morality. Polygamy is common; 
 slavery and concubinage are practiced 
 everywhere. A man may easily divorce 
 his wife for many reasons, or rather 
 without reason. A few steps from the 
 Kaaba, the great central place of wor- 
 ship in Mecca, is the slave-market, 
 where human beings are bid for; men, 
 women, and oftener young girls. 
 
 Students have found that Moham- 
 medan literature is disgustingly inde- 
 cent; educated Moslem men read the 
 lives of the prophet, ^which recount his 
 immoral doings, and take him as their 
 standard of morality. The women are 
 not usually taught to read, but the lan- 
 guage of the harem is frequently in- 
 decent. Only the old and wrinkled 
 women ever appear in the main part 
 of the mosque ; women are expected to 
 enter only a small, separate apartment. 
 High-bred women seldom appear on 
 the streets. Merchants bring their 
 wares to the homes, and the women 
 do their buying there. The rich Ori- 
 
 3 
 
ental fabrics and brilliant gems can 
 scarcely compensate for the lack of 
 fresh air and sunshine, of which they 
 are deprived by custom. And no race 
 can be strong in virtue and truth while 
 its women are shut away from contact 
 with air and sunlight. 
 
 The lower classes of women are seen 
 on the street, but so much veiled that 
 one cannot be distinguished from an- 
 other. In the Koran there is a chapter 
 which deals with the legal status of 
 women; it is very significant that the 
 title of this chapter is "The Cow." 
 This well describes the position of 
 women in the Moslem world. Slave, 
 drudge, cow ; any name that is low and 
 degraded suits for a woman. 
 
 The Arabs are a very superstitious 
 people ; and much of the medical prac- 
 tice among them to-day rests wholly 
 on superstition. Cautery and burning 
 the skin with a red-hot iron are prac- 
 ticed, even with infants. In Eastern 
 Arabia blind women act as midwives; 
 nothing of surgery is known. Bad- 
 smelling mixtures are burned near the 
 sick person to drive away the devil. 
 Amulets are worn by all ages and 
 classes to protect themselves from 
 what is known as the evil eye. Often 
 amulets are even put on animals and 
 inanimate things. Tree-worship and 
 stone-worship still exist in many parts 
 of Arabia. These are relics of the an- 
 cient idolatry. 
 
 Arabia has long been neglected as a 
 
 4 
 
mission field; it would seem as if 
 Christianity had overlooked her near- 
 est neighbors, her next of kin. No 
 women in the world are so burdened 
 and oppressed as the Moslem women ; 
 sad and sorrowful as are their counte- 
 nances, their hearts must be even sad- 
 der. Their own religion never can 
 bring any joy into the women's lives, 
 it debases them inherently, and by de- 
 grading the women makes each gene- 
 ration of men lower and more cruel 
 than the last. The Arab loves his 
 camel far more than his wife, and will 
 sell his daughter for less than his be- 
 loved animal, which he makes more 
 of a companion than any woman of his 
 family. 
 
 Only a few missionaries are at work 
 in Arabia up to the present time ; about 
 thirty for a population of 8,000,000 
 people. These missionaries reside near 
 the coast, and not one has been able 
 to see his way clear to start inland 
 work. Arabia is responding to the 
 awakening that is taking place all 
 over Asia. These Moslem sisters have 
 suffered so long and so piteously. Can 
 we not hear their cry and turn our 
 eyes to this land that lies mostly with- 
 in a thousand miles of the birthplace 
 of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of women? 
 
"ARABIA THE LOVED." 
 
 J. G. LANSING. 
 
 There's a land since long neglected, 
 There's a people still rejected, 
 
 But of truth and grace elected, 
 In His love for them. 
 
 Softer than their night wind's fleeting, 
 Richer than their starry tenting, 
 
 Stronger than their sands protecting, 
 Is His love for them. 
 
 To the host of Islam's leading, 
 To the slave in bondage bleeding. 
 
 To the desert dweller pleading. 
 Bring His love to them. 
 
 Through the promise on God's pages. 
 Through His work in history's stage 
 
 Through the cross that crowns the age 
 Show His love to them. 
 
 With the prayer that still availeth, 
 With the power that prevaileth, 
 
 With the love that never faileth, 
 Tell His love to them. 
 
 Till the desert's sons now aliens, 
 Till its tribes and their dominions. 
 
 Till Arabia's raptured millions, 
 Praise His love of them. 
 
 — From Neglected Arabia. 
 
 IJnarft nf Jforpign JlisHtottH 
 JSffarmpi Olljurrlj in t\)t l&nitth &tatpa 
 Jfiftpfullf an& 2Jarf S>Uetts 
 pi}tla&eiiJl|ta, ^a. 
 
 Oriental Women Series j.