Chapter VI: Part 6

The judicial systems applicable solely to Egyptians are supervised by the ministry of justice, to which has been attached since 1890 a British judicial adviser. Two systems of laws are administered:--(1) the _Mehkemehs_, (2) the Native Tribunals. The _mehkemehs_, or courts of the cadis, judge in all matters of personal status, such as marriage, inheritance and guardianship, and are guided in their decisions by the code of laws founded on the Koran. The grand cadi, who must belong to the sect of the _Hanifis_, sits at Cairo, and is aided by a council of _Ulema_ or learned men. This council consists of the sheikh or religious chief of each of the four orthodox sects, the sheikh of the mosque of Azhar, who is of the sect of the _Shafi'is_, the chief (_nakib_) of the _Sherifs_, or descendants of Mahomet, and others. The cadis are chosen from among the students at the Azhar university. (In the same manner, in matters of personal law, Copts and other non-Moslem Egyptians are, in general, subject to the jurisdiction of their own religious chiefs.)

For other than the purposes indicated, the native judicial system, both civil and criminal, was superseded in 1884 by tribunals administering a jurisprudence modelled on that of the French code. It is, in the words of Lord Cromer, "in many respects ill adapted to meet the special needs of the country" (_Egypt_, No. 1, 1904, p. 33). The system was, on the advice of an Anglo-Indian official (Sir John Scott), modified and simplified in 1891, but its essential character remained unaltered. In 1904, however, more important modifications were introduced. Save on points of law, the right of appeal in criminal cases was abolished, and assize courts, whose judgments were final, established. At the same time the penal code was thoroughly revised, so that the Egyptian judges were "for the first time provided with a sound working code" (Ibid. p. 49). The native courts have both native and foreign judges. There are courts of summary jurisdiction presided over by one judge, central tribunals (or courts of first instance) with three judges, and a court of appeal at Cairo. A committee of judicial surveillance watches the working of the courts of first instance and the summary courts, and endeavours, by letters and discussions, to maintain purity and sound law. There is a _procureur-general_, who, with other duties, is entrusted with criminal prosecutions. His representatives are attached to each tribunal, and form the _parquet_ under whose orders the police act in bringing criminals to justice. In the _markak_ (district) tribunals, created in 1904 and presided over by magistrates with jurisdiction in cases of misdemeanour, the prosecution is, however, conducted directly by the police. Special Children's Courts have been established for the trial of juvenile offenders.

The police service, which has been subject to frequent modification, was in 1895 put under the orders of the ministry of the interior, to which a British adviser and British inspectors are attached. The provincial police is under the direction of the local authorities, the _mudirs_ or governors of provinces, and the _mamurs_ or district officials; to the _omdas_, or village head-men, who are responsible for the good order of the villages, a limited criminal jurisdiction has been entrusted.

_Religion._--The great majority of the inhabitants are Mahommedans. In 1907 the Moslems numbered over ten millions, or 91.8% of the entire population. The Christians in the same year numbered 880,000, or 8% of the population. Of these the Coptic Orthodox church had some 667,000 adherents. Among other churches represented were the Greek Orthodox, the Armenian, Syrian and Maronite, the Roman Catholic and various Protestant bodies. The last-named numbered 37,000 (including 24,000 Copts). There were in 1907 over 38,000 Jews in Egypt.

The Mahommedans are Sunnites, professing the creed commonly termed "orthodox," and are principally of the persuasion of the _Shafi'is_, whose celebrated founder, the imam ash-Shafi'i, is buried in the great southern cemetery of Cairo. Many of them are, however, _Hanifis_ (to which persuasion the Turks chiefly belong), and in parts of Lower, and almost universally in Upper, Egypt, _Malikis_. Among the Moslems the _Sheikh-el-Islam_, appointed by the khedive from among the _Ulema_ (learned class), exercises the highest religious and, in certain subjects, judicial authority. There is also a grand cadi, nominated by the sultan of Turkey from among the _Ulema_ of Stamboul. Valuable property is held by the Moslems in trust for the promotion of religion and for charitable purposes, and is known as the Wakfs administration. The revenue derived is over L250,000 yearly.

The Coptic organization includes in Egypt three metropolitans and twelve bishops, under the headship of the patriarch of Alexandria. The minor orders are arch-priests, priests, archdeacons, deacons, readers and monks (see COPTS: _Coptic Church_).

_Education._--Two different systems of education exist, one founded on native lines, the other European in character. Both systems are more or less fully controlled by the ministry of public instruction. The government has primary, secondary and technical schools, training colleges for teachers, and schools of agriculture, engineering, law, medicine and veterinary science. The government system, which dates back to a period before the British occupation, is designed to provide, in the main, a European education. In the primary schools Arabic is the medium of instruction, the use of English for that purpose being confined to lessons in that language itself. The school of law is divided into English and French sections according to the language in which the students study law. Besides the government primary and secondary schools, there are many other schools in the large towns owned by the Moslems, Copts, Hebrews, and by various missionary societies, and in which the education is on the same lines. A movement initiated among the leading Moslems led in 1908 to the establishment as a private enterprise of a national Egyptian university devoted to scientific, literary and philosophical studies. Political and religious subjects are excluded from the curriculum and no discrimination in regard to race or religion is allowed.

Education on native lines is given in _kuttabs_ and in the Azhar
university in Cairo. _Kuttabs_ are schools attached to mosques, found
in every village and in every quarter of the larger towns. In these
schools the instruction given before the British occupation was very
slight. All pupils were taught to recite portions of the Koran, and a
proportion of the scholars learnt to read and write Arabic and a
little simple arithmetic. Those pupils who succeeded in committing to
memory the whole of the Koran were regarded as _fiki_ (learned in
Mahommedan law), and as such escaped liability to military
conscription. The government has improved the education given in the
_kuttabs_, and numbers of them have been taken under the direct
control of the ministry of public instruction. In these latter schools
an excellent elementary secular education is given, in addition to the
instruction in the Koran, to which half the school hours are devoted.
The number of pupils in 1905 was over 12,000 boys and 2000 girls.
Grants-in-aid are given to other schools where a sufficiently good
standard of instruction is maintained. No grant is made to any
_kuttab_ where any language other than Arabic is taught. In all there
are over 10,000 kuttabs, attended by some 250,000 scholars. The number
of pupils in private schools under government inspection was in 1898,
the first year of the grant-in-aid system, 7536; in 1900, 12,315; in
1905, 145,691. The number of girls in attendance rose from 598 in 1898
to 997 in 1900 and 9611 in 1905. The Copts have about 1000 primary
schools, in which the teaching of Coptic is compulsory, a few
industrial schools, and one college for higher instruction.

Cairo holds a prominent place as a seat of Moslem learning, and its
university, the Azhar, is considered the first of the eastern world.
Its professors teach "grammatical inflexion and syntax, rhetoric,
versification, logic, theology, the exposition of the Koran, the
traditions of the Prophet, the complete science of jurisprudence, or
rather of religious, moral, civil and criminal law, which is chiefly
founded on the Koran and the traditions, together with arithmetic as
far as it is useful in matters of law. Lectures are also given on
algebra and on the calculations of the Mahommedan calendar, the times
of prayer, &c." (E. W. Lane, _Modern Egyptians_). The students come
from all parts of the Mahommedan world. They number about 8000, of
whom some 2000 are resident. The students pay no fees, and the
professors receive no salaries. The latter maintain themselves by
private teaching and by copying manuscripts, and the former in the
same manner, or by reciting the Koran. To meet the demand for better
qualified judges for the Moslem courts a training college for cadis
was established in 1907. Besides the subjects taught at the Azhar
university, instruction is given in literature, mathematics and
physical science. The necessity for a reorganization of the Azhar
system itself being also recognized by the high Moslem dignitaries in
Egypt, a law was passed in 1907 creating a superior board of control
under the presidency of the Sheikh el-Azhar to supervise the
proceedings of the university and other similar establishments. This
attempt to reform the Azhar met, however, with so much opposition that
in 1909 it was, for the time, abandoned.

In 1907, of the sedentary Egyptian population over seven years of age,
some 12% of the Moslems could read and write, female literacy having
increased 50% since 1897; of the foreign population over seven years
of age 75% could read and write. Of the Coptic community about 50% can
read and write.

_Literature and the Press._--Since the British occupation there has
been a marked renaissance of Arabic learning and literature in Egypt.
Societies formed for the encouragement of Arabic literature have
brought to light important texts bearing on Mahommedan history,
antiquities and religion. Numbers of magazines and reviews are
published in Arabic which cater both for the needs of the moment and
the advancement of learning. Side by side with these literary organs
there exists a vernacular press largely devoted to nationalist
propaganda. Prominent among these papers is _Al Lewa_ (_The
Standard_), founded in 1900. Other papers of a similar character are
_Al Omma_, _Al Moayad_ and _Al Gerida_. The _Mokattam_ represents the
views of the more enlightened and conservative section of the native
population. In Cairo and Alexandria there are also published several
newspapers in English and French.

AUTHORITIES.--(a) General descriptions, geography, travel, &c.:
_Description de l'Egypte_, 10 folio vols. and atlas of 10 vols.
(Paris, 1809-1822), compiled by the scientific commission sent to
Egypt by Bonaparte; Clot Bey, _Apercu general sur l'Egypte_, 2 vols.
(Paris, 1840); Boinet Bey, _Dictionnaire geographique de l'Egypte_
(Cairo, 1899); Murray's and Baedeker's handbooks and _Guide Joanne_;
G. Ebers, _Egypt, Descriptive, Historical and Picturesque_, translated
from the German edition of 1879 by Clara Bell, new edition, 2 vols.
(London, 1887); Sir Gardiner Wilkinson, _Modern Egypt and Thebes_ (2
vols., London, 1843); Lady Duff Gordon, _Letters from Egypt_, complete
edition (London, 1902), an invaluable account of social conditions in
the period 1862-1869; A. B. Edwards, _A Thousand Miles up the Nile_
(2nd edition, London, n.d. [1889]); _Pharaohs, Fellahs and Explorers_
(London, 1892); H. W. Mardon, _Geography of Egypt ..._ (London, 1902),
an excellent elementary text-book; D. G. Hogarth, _The Nearer East_
(London, 1902), contains brief but suggestive chapters on Egypt; S.
Lane Poole, _Egypt_ (London, 1881); A. B. de Guerville, _New Egypt_,
translated from the French (London, 1905); R. T. Kelly, _Egypt Painted
and Described_ (London, 1902). The best maps are those of the Survey
Department, Cairo, on the scale of 1:50000 (1.3 in. to the mile).

(b) Administration: Sir John Bowring's _Report on Egypt ..._ to Lord
Palmerston (London, 1840) shows the system obtaining at that period.
For the study of the state of Egypt at the time of the British
occupation, 1882, and the development of the country since, the most
valuable documents[5] are:

I. _Official._--The _Reports on the Finances, Administration and
Condition of Egypt_, issued yearly since 1892 (the reports 1888-1891
were exclusively financial). Up to 1906 the reports were by Lord
Cromer (Sir Evelyn Baring). They clearly picture the progress of the
country. The following reports are specially valuable as exhibiting
the difficulties which at the outset confronted the British
administrators:--_Correspondence respecting the Reorganization of
Egypt_ (1883); _Reports by Mr Villiers Stuart respecting
Reorganization of Egypt_ (1883 and 1895); _Despatch from Lord Dufferin
forwarding the Decree constituting the New Political Institutions of
Egypt_ (1883); _Reports on the State of Egypt and the Progress of
Administrative Reforms_ (1885); _Reports by Sir H. D. Wolff on the
Administration of Egypt_ (1887). Annual returns are published in Cairo
in English or French by the various ministries, and British consular
reports on the trade of Egypt and of Alexandria and of the tonnage and
shipping of the Suez Canal are also issued yearly.

II. _Non-official._--Lord Cromer, _Modern Egypt_ (2 vols., 1908), an
authoritative record; Alfred (Lord) Milner, _England in Egypt_, first
published in 1892, the story being brought up to 1904 in the 11th
edition; Sir A. Colvin, _The Making of Modern Egypt_ (1906); J. Ward,
_Pyramids and Progress_ (1900); A. S. White, _The Expansion of Egypt_
(1899); and F. W. Fuller, _Egypt and the Hinterland_ (1901). See also
the works cited in _History_, last section.

(c) Law: H. Lamba, _De l'evolution de la condition juridique des
Europeens en Egypte_ (Paris, 1896); J. H. Scott, _The Law affecting
Foreigners in Egypt ..._ (Edinburgh, 1907); _The Egyptian Codes_
(London, 1892).

(d) Irrigation, agriculture, geology, &c.: _Despatch from Sir Evelyn
Baring enclosing Report on the Condition of the Agricultural
Population in Egypt_ (1888); _Notes on Egyptian Crops_ (Cairo, 1896);
Yacub Artin Bey, _La Propriete fonciere en Egypte_ (Bulak, 1885);
_Report on Perennial Irrigation and Flood Protection for Egypt_, 1
vol. and atlas (Cairo, 1894). The reports (_Egypt_, No. 2, 1901, and
_Egypt_, No. 2, 1904), by Sir William Garstin on irrigation projects
on the Upper Nile are very valuable records--notably the 1904 report.
W. Willcocks, _Egyptian Irrigation_ (2nd ed., 1899); H. G. Lyons, _The
Physiography of the River Nile and its Basin_ (Cairo, 1906); Leigh
Canney, _The Meteorology of Egypt and its Influence on Disease_
(1897). Annual meteorological reports are issued by the Public Works
Department, Cairo. The same department issues special irrigation
reports. See for geology Carl von Zittel, _Beitrage zur Geologie und
Palaontologie der libyschen Wuste_ (Cassel, 1883); _Reports of the
Geological Survey of Egypt_ (Cairo, 1900, et seq.).

(e) Natural history, anthropology, &c.: F. Pruner, _Agyptens
Naturgeschichte und Anthropologie_ (Erlangen, 1848); R. Hartmann,
_Naturgeschichtliche Skizze der Nillander_ (Berlin, 1866); Captain G.
E. Shelley, _Birds of Egypt_ (London, 1872). (F. R. C.)

_Inhabitants._

The population enumerated at the census taken in April 1907 was 11,189,978. In these figures nomad Arabs or Bedouins, estimated to number 97,381, are not included. The total population was thus returned at 11,287,359, or some 16% more than in 1897 when the inhabitants numbered 9,734,405. The figures for 1897 compared with 6,813,919 in 1882, an increase of 43.5% in fifteen years. Thus, during the first twenty-five years of the British occupation of the country the population increased by nearly 4,500,000. In 1800 the French estimated the population at no more than 2,460,000; the census of 1846 gave the figures at 4,476,440. From that year to 1882 the average annual increase was 1.25%. If the desert regions be excluded, the population of Egypt is extremely dense, being about 939 per sq. m. This figure may be compared with that of Belgium, the most densely populated country in Europe, 589 per sq. m., and with that of Bengal, 586 per sq. m. In parts of Menufia, a Delta province, the density rises to 1352 per sq. m., and in the Kena province of Upper Egypt to 1308.

The population is generally divisible into--

1. The fellahin or peasantry and the native townsmen.
2. The Bedouins or nomad Arabs of the desert.
3. The Nuba, Nubians or Berberin, inhabitants of the Nile valley
between Assuan and Dongola.
4. Foreigners.

The first of these divisions includes both the Moslem and Coptic inhabitants. The Bedouins, or the Arabs of the desert, are of two different classes: first, Arabic-speaking tribes who range the deserts as far south as 26 deg. N.; secondly, the tribes inhabiting the desert from Kosseir to Suakin, namely the Hadendoa, Bisharin and the Ababda tribes. This group speak a language of their own, and are probably descendants of the Blemmyes, who occupied these parts in ancient times (see ARABS; BEDOUINS; HADENDOA; BISHARIN; &c.). The Nubas are of mixed negro and Arab blood. They are mainly agriculturists, though some are keen traders (see NUBIA).

Foreigners number over 150,000 and form 1-1/2% of the total population. They are chiefly Greeks--of whom the majority live in Alexandria--Italians, British and French. Syrians and Levantines are numerous, and there is a colony of Persians. The Turkish element is not numerically strong--a few thousands only--but holds a high social position.

Of the total population, about 20% is urban. In addition to the 97,000 pure nomads, there are half a million Bedouins described as "semi-sedentaries," i.e. tent-dwelling Arabs, usually encamped in those parts of the desert adjoining the cultivated land. The rural classes are mainly engaged in agriculture, which occupies over 62% of the adults. The professional and trading classes form about 10% of the whole population, but 50% of the foreigners are engaged in trade. Of the total population the males exceed the females by some 46,000.

Physical characteristics of the Egyptians.

The Coptic inhabitants are described in the article COPTS, and the
rural population under FELLAH. It remains here to describe
characteristics and customs common to the Moslem Egyptians and
particularly to those of the cities. In some respects the manner of
life of the natives has been modified by contact with Europeans, and
what follows depicts in general the habits of the people where little
affected by western culture. With regard to physical characteristics
the Egyptians are of full average height (the men are mostly 5 ft. 8
in. or 5 ft. 9 in), and both sexes are remarkably well proportioned
and of strong physique. The Cairenes and the inhabitants of Lower
Egypt generally have a clear complexion and soft skin of a light
yellowish colour; those of Middle Egypt have a tawny skin, and the
dwellers in Upper Egypt a deep bronze or brown complexion. The face of
the men is of a fine oval, forehead prominent but seldom high,
straight nose, eyes deep set, black and brilliant, mouth well formed,
but with rather full lips, regular teeth beautifully made, and beard
usually black and curly but scanty. Moustaches are worn, while the
head is shaved save for a small tuft (called _shusheh_) upon the
crown. As to the women, "from the age of about fourteen to that of
eighteen or twenty, they are generally models of beauty in body and
limbs; and in countenance most of them are pleasing, and many
exceedingly lovely; but soon after they have attained their perfect
growth, they rapidly decline." There are few Egyptian women over forty
who retain either good looks or good figures. "The forms of womanhood
begin to develop themselves about the ninth and tenth year: at the
age of fifteen or sixteen they generally attain their highest degree
of perfection. With regard to their complexions, the same remarks
apply to them as to the men, with only this difference, that their
faces, being generally veiled when they go abroad, are not quite so
much tanned as those of the men. They are characterized, like the men,
by a fine oval countenance, though in some instances it is rather
broad. The eyes, with very few exceptions, are black, large and of a
long almond-form, with long and beautiful lashes, and an exquisitely
soft, bewitching expression--eyes more beautiful can hardly be
conceived: their charming effect is much heightened by the concealment
of the other features (however pleasing the latter may be), and is
rendered still more striking by a practice universal among the females
of the higher and middle classes, and very common among those of the
lower orders, which is that of blackening the edge of the eyelids both
above and below the eye, with a black powder called 'kohl'" (Lane,
_Modern Egyptians_). Both sexes, but especially the women, tattoo
several parts of the person, and the women stain their hands and feet
with the red dye of the henna.

Dress and social life.

The dress of the men of the upper and middle classes who have not
adopted European clothing--a practice increasingly common--consists of
cotton drawers, and a cotton or silk shirt with very wide sleeves.
Above these are generally worn a waistcoat without sleeves, and a long
vest of silk, called kaftan, which has hanging sleeves, and reaches
nearly to the ankles. The kaftan is confined by the girdle, which is a
silk scarf, or cashmere or other woollen shawl. Over all is worn a
long cloth robe, the gibbeh (or jibbeh) somewhat resembling the kaftan
in shape, but having shorter sleeves, and being open in front. The
dress of the lower orders is the shirt and drawers, and waistcoat,
with an outer shirt of blue cotton or brown woollen stuff; some wear a
kaftan. The head-dress is the red cloth fez or tarbush round which a
turban is usually worn. Men who have otherwise adopted European
costume retain the tarbush. Many professions and religions, &c., are
distinguished by the shape and colour of the turban, and various
classes, and particularly servants, are marked by the form and colour
of their shoes; but the poor go usually barefoot. Many ladies of the
upper classes now dress in European style, with certain modifications,
such as the head-veil. Those who retain native costume wear a very
full pair of silk trousers, bright coloured stockings (usually pink),
and a close-fitting vest with hanging sleeves and skirts, open down
the front and at the sides, and long enough to turn up and fasten into
the girdle, which is generally a cashmere shawl; a cloth jacket,
richly embroidered with gold, and having short sleeves, is commonly
worn over the vest. The hair in front is combed down over the forehead
and cut across in a straight line; behind it is divided into very many
small plaits, which hang down the back, and are lengthened by silken
cords, and often adorned with gold coins and ornaments. A small
tarbush is worn on the back of the head, sometimes having a plate of
gold fixed on the crown, and a handkerchief is tastefully bound round
the temples. The women of the lower orders have trousers of printed or
dyed cotton, and a close waistcoat. All wear the long and elegant
head-veil. This is a simple "breadth" of muslin, which passes over the
head and hangs down behind, one side, being drawn forward over the
face in the presence of a man. A lady's veil is of white muslin,
embroidered at the ends in gold and colours; that of a person of the
lower class is simply dyed blue. In going abroad the ladies wear above
their indoor dress a loose robe of coloured silk without sleeves, and
nearly open at the sides, and above it a large enveloping piece of
black silk, which is brought over the head, and gathered round the
person by the arms and hands on each side. A face-veil entirely
conceals the features, except the eyes; it is a long and narrow piece
of thick white muslin, reaching to a little below the knees. The women
of the lower orders have the same out-door dress of different
materials and colour. Ladies use slippers of yellow morocco, and
abroad, inner boots of the same material, above which they wear, in
either case, thick shoes, having only toes. The poor wear red shoes,
very like those of the men. The women, especially in Upper Egypt, not
infrequently wear nose-rings.

Children, though often neglected, are not unkindly treated, and
reverence for their parents and the aged is early inculcated. They are
also well grounded in the leading doctrines of Islam. Boys are
circumcised at the age of five or six years, when the boy is paraded,
generally with a bridal procession, on a gaily caparisoned horse and
dressed in woman's clothes. Most parents send their boys to school
where a knowledge of reading and writing Arabic--the common tongue of
the Egyptians--is obtainable, and from the closing years of the 19th
century a great desire for the education of girls has arisen (see S
_Education_).

It is deemed disreputable for a young man not to marry when he has
attained a sufficient age; there are, therefore, few unmarried men.
Girls, in like manner, marry very young, some at ten years of age, and
few remain single beyond the age of sixteen; they are generally very
prolific. The bridegroom never sees his future wife before the wedding
night, a custom rendered more tolerable than it otherwise might be by
the facility of divorce. A dowry is always given, and a simple
marriage ceremony performed by a _fiki_ (a schoolmaster, or one who
recites the Koran, properly one learned in _fiqh_, Mahommedan law) in
the presence of two witnesses. The bridal of a virgin is attended with
great festivity and rejoicing, a grandee's wedding sometimes
continuing eleven days and nights. On the last day, which should be
that terminating with the eve of Friday, or of Monday, the bride is
taken in procession to the bridegroom's house, accompanied by her
female friends, and a band of musicians, jugglers, wrestlers, &c. As
before stated, a boy about to be circumcised joins in such a
procession, or, frequently, a succession of such boys. Though allowed
by his religion four wives, most Egyptians are monogamists. A man may,
however, possess any number of concubines, who, though objects of
jealousy to the legal wife, are tolerated by her in consideration of
her superior position and power over them, a power which she often
uses with great tyranny; but certain privileges are possessed by
concubines, especially if they have borne sons to their master. A
divorce is rendered obligatory by the simple words "Thou art
divorced." Repudiation may take place twice without being final, but
if the husband repeats thrice "Thou art divorced" the separation is
absolute. In that case the dowry must be returned to the wife.

Elaborate ceremonies are observed at funerals. Immediately on death
the corpse is turned towards Mecca, and the women of the household,
assisted by hired mourners, commence their peculiar wailing, while
fikis recite portions of the Koran. The funeral takes place on the day
of the death, if that happen in the morning; otherwise on the next
day. The corpse, having been washed and shrouded, is placed in an open
bier, covered with a cashmere shawl, in the case of a man; or in a
closed bier, having a post in front, on which are placed feminine
ornaments, in that of a woman or child. The funeral procession is
headed by a number of poor, and generally blind, men, chanting the
profession of the faith, followed by male friends of the deceased, and
a party of schoolboys, also chanting, generally from a poem
descriptive of the state of the soul after death. Then follows the
bier, borne on the shoulders of friends, who are relieved by the
passers-by, such an act being deemed highly meritorious. Behind come
the women relatives and the hired wailers. On the way to the cemetery
the corpse is generally carried to some revered mosque. Here the
funeral service is performed by the imam, and the procession then
proceeds to the tomb. In the burials of the rich, water and bread are
distributed to the poor at the grave; and sometimes a buffalo or
several buffaloes are slaughtered there, and the flesh given away. The
tomb is a vault, surmounted by an oblong stone monument, with a stele
at the head and feet; and a cupola, supported by four walls, covers
the whole in the case of sheikhs' tombs and those of the wealthy.
During the night following the interment, called the Night of
Desolation, or that of Solitude, the soul being believed to remain
with the body that one night, fikis are engaged at the house of the
deceased to recite various portions of the Koran, and, commonly, to
repeat the first clause of the profession of the faith, "There is no
God but God," three thousand times. The women alone put on mourning
attire, by dyeing their veils, shirts, &c., dark blue, with indigo;
and they stain their hands, and smear the walls, with the same colour.
Everything in the house is also turned upside down. The latter customs
are not, however, observed on the death of an old man. At certain
periods after the burial, a khatmeh, or recitation of the whole of the
Koran, is performed, and the tomb is visited by the women relations
and friends of the deceased. The women of the peasants of Upper Egypt
perform strange dances, &c., at funerals, which are regarded partly as
relics of ancient Egyptian customs.

The harem system of appointing separate apartments to the women, and
secluding them from the gaze of men, is observed in Egypt as in other
Moslem countries, but less strictly. The women of an Egyptian
household in which old customs are maintained never sit in the
presence of the master, but attend him at his meals, and are treated
in every respect as inferiors. The mother, however, forms a remarkable
exception to this rule; in rare instances, also, a wife becomes a
companion to her husband. On the other hand, if a pair of women's
shoes are placed outside the door of the harem apartments, they are
understood to signify that female visitors are within, and a man is
sometimes thus excluded from the upper portion of his own house for
many days. Ladies of the upper or middle classes lead a life of
extreme inactivity, spending their time at the bath, which is the
general place of gossip, or in receiving visits, embroidering, and the
like, and in absolute _dolce far niente_. Both sexes are given to
licentiousness.

The principal meals are breakfast, about an hour after sunrise;
dinner, or the mid-day meal, at noon; and supper, which is the chief
meal of the day, a little after sunset. Pastry, sweetmeats and fruit
are highly esteemed. Coffee is taken at all hours, and is, with a
pipe, presented at least once to each guest. Tobacco is the great
luxury of the men of all classes in Egypt, who begin and end the day
with it, and generally smoke all day with little intermission. Many
women, also, especially among the rich, adopt the habit. The smoking
of hashish, though illegal, is indulged in by considerable numbers of
people. Men who can afford to keep a horse, mule or ass are very
seldom seen to walk. Ladies ride asses and sit astride. The poorer
classes cannot fully observe the harem system, but the women are in
general carefully veiled. Some of them keep small shops, and all fetch
water, make fuel, and cook for their households. Domestic slavery
lingers but is moribund. The majority of the slaves are negresses
employed in household duties.

In social intercourse the Egyptians observe many forms of salutation
and much etiquette; they are very affable, and readily enter into
conversation with strangers. Their courtesy and dignity of manner are
very striking, and are combined with ease and a fluency of discourse.
They have a remarkable quickness of apprehension, a ready wit, a
retentive memory, combined, however, with religious pride and
hypocrisy, and a disregard for the truth. Their common discourse is
full of asseverations and expressions respecting sacred things. They
entertain reverence for their Prophet; and the Koran is treated with
the utmost respect--never, for example, being placed in a low
situation--and this is the case with everything they esteem holy. They
are fatalists, and bear calamities with surprising resignation. Their
filial piety and respect for the aged have been mentioned, and
benevolence and charity are conspicuous in their character. Humanity
to animals is another virtue, and cruelty is openly discountenanced in
the streets. Their affability, cheerfulness and hospitality are
remarkable, as well as frugality and temperance in food and drink, and
honesty in the payment of debt. Their cupidity is mitigated by
generosity; their natural indolence by the necessity, especially among
the peasantry, to work hard to gain a livelihood. Egyptians, however,
are as a rule suspicious of all not of their own creed and country.
Murders and other grave crimes are rare, but petty larcenies are very
common.

The amusements of the people are generally not of a violent kind,
being in keeping with their sedentary habits and the heat of the
climate. The bath is a favourite resort of both sexes and all classes.
They are acquainted with chess, draughts, backgammon, and other games,
among which is one peculiar to themselves, called Mankalah, and played
with cowries. Notwithstanding its condemnation by Mahomet, music is
the most favourite recreation of the people; the songs of the boatmen,
the religious chants, and the cries in the streets are all musical.
There are male and female musical performers; the former are both
instrumental and vocal, the latter (called _'Almeh_, pl. _'Awalim_)
generally vocal. The 'Awalim are, as their name ("learned") implies,
generally accomplished women, and should not be confounded with the
Ghawazi, or dancing-girls. There are many kinds of musical
instruments. The music, vocal and instrumental, is generally of little
compass, and in the minor key; it is therefore plaintive, and strikes
a European ear as somewhat monotonous, though often possessing a
simple beauty, and the charm of antiquity, for there is little doubt
that the favourite airs have been handed down from remote ages. The
Ghawazi (sing. Ghazia) form a separate class, very similar to the
gipsies. They intermarry among themselves only, and their women are
professional dancers. Their performances are often objectionable and
are so regarded by many Egyptians. They dance in public, at fairs and
religious festivals, and at private festivities, but, it is said, not
in respectable houses. Mehemet Ali banished them to Esna, in Upper
Egypt; and the few that remained in Cairo called themselves 'Awalim,
to avoid punishment. Many of the dancing-girls of Cairo to-day are
neither 'Awalim nor Ghawazi, but women of the very lowest class whose
performances are both ungraceful and indecent. A most objectionable
class of male dancers also exists, who imitate the dances of the
Ghawazi, and dress in a kind of nondescript female attire. Not the
least curious of the public performances are those of the
serpent-charmers, who are generally Rifa'ia (Saadia) dervishes. Their
power over serpents has been doubted, yet their performances remain
unexplained; they, however, always extract the fangs of venomous
serpents. Jugglers, rope-dancers and farce-players must also be
mentioned. In the principal coffee-shops of Cairo are to be found
reciters of romances, surrounded by interested audiences.

Public festivals.

The periodical public festivals are exceedingly interesting, but many
of the remarkable observances connected with them are passing away.
The first ten days of the Mahommedan year are held to be blessed, and
especially the tenth; and many curious practices are observed on these
days, particularly by the women. The tenth day, being the anniversary
of the martyrdom of Hosain, the son of Ali and grandson of the
Prophet, the mosque of the Hasanen at Cairo is thronged to excess,
mostly by women. In the evening a procession goes to the mosque, the
principal figure being a white horse with white trappings, upon which
is seated a small boy, the horse and the lad, who represents Hosain,
being smeared with blood. From the mosque the procession goes to a
private house, where a mullah recites the story of the martyrdom.
Following the order of the lunar year, the next festival is that of
the Return of the Pilgrims, which is the occasion of great rejoicing,
many having friends or relatives in the caravan. The Mahmal, a kind of
covered litter, first originated by Queen Sheger-ed-Dur, is brought
into the city in procession, though not with as much pomp as when it
leaves with the pilgrims. These and other processions have lost much
of their effect since the extinction of the Mamelukes, and the gradual
disuse of gorgeous dress for the retainers of the officers of state. A
regiment of regular infantry makes but a sorry substitute for the
splendid cavalcade of former times. The Birth of the Prophet (Molid
en-Nebi), which is celebrated in the beginning of the third month, is
the greatest festival of the whole year. For nine days and nights
Cairo has more the aspect of a fair than of a city keeping a religious
festival. The chief ceremonies take place in some large open spot
round which are erected the tents of the khedive, of great state
officials, and of the dervishes. Next in time, and also in importance,
is the Molid El-Hasanen, commemorative of the birth of Hosain, and
lasting fifteen days and nights; and at the same time is kept the
Molid of al-Salih Ayyub, the last sovereign but two of the Ayyubite
dynasty. In the seventh month occur the Molid of the sayyida Zenab,
and the commemoration of the Miarag, or the Prophet's miraculous
journey to heaven. Early in the eighth month (Sha'ban), the Molid of
the imam Shafi'i is observed; and the night of the middle of that
month has its peculiar customs, being held by the Moslems to be that
on which the fate of all living is decided for the ensuing year. Then
follows Ramadan, the month of abstinence, a severe trial to the
faithful; and the Lesser Festival (Al-'id as-saghir), which commences
Shawwal, is hailed by them with delight. A few days after, the Kiswa,
or new covering for the Ka'ba at Mecca, is taken in procession from
the citadel, where it is always manufactured, to the mosque of the
Hasanen to be completed; and, later, the caravan of pilgrims departs,
when the grand procession of the Mahmal takes place. On the tenth day
of the last month of the year the Great Festival (Al-'id al-kabir), or
that of the Sacrifice (commemorating the willingness of Ibrahim to
slay his son Ismail--according to the Arab legend), closes the
calendar. The Lesser and Great Festivals are those known in Turkish as
the Bairam (q.v.).

The rise of the Nile is naturally the occasion of annual customs, some
of which are doubtless relics of antiquity; these are observed
according to the Coptic calendar. The commencement of the rise is
commemorated on the night of the 11th of Bauna, the 17th of June,
called that of the Drop (Lelet-en-Nukta), because a miraculous drop is
then supposed to fall and cause the swelling of the river. The real
rise begins at Cairo about the summer solstice, or a few days later,
and early in July a crier in each district of the city begins to go
his daily rounds, announcing, in a quaint chant, the increase of water
in the nilometer of the island of Roda. When the river has risen 20 or
21 ft., he proclaims the Wefa en-Nil, "Completion" or "Abundance of
the Nile." On the following day the dam which closed the canal of
Cairo was cut with much ceremony. The canal having been filled up in
1897 the ceremony has been much modified, but a brief description of
what used to take place may be given. A pillar of earth before the dam
is called the "Bride of the Nile," and Arab historians relate that
this was substituted, at the Moslem conquest, for a virgin whom it was
the custom annually to sacrifice, to ensure a plentiful inundation. A
large boat, gaily decked out, representing that in which the victim
used to be conveyed, was anchored near, and a gun on board fired every
quarter of an hour during the night. Rockets and other fireworks were
also let off, but the best, strangely, after daybreak. The governor of
Cairo attended the ceremony, with the cadi and others, and gave the
signal for the cutting of the dam. As soon as sufficient water had
entered, boats ascended the canal to the city. The crier continues his
daily rounds, with his former chant, excepting on the Coptic New
Year's Day, when the cry of the Wefa is repeated, until the Salib, or
Discovery of the Cross, the 26th or 27th of September, at which
period, the river having attained its greatest height, he concludes
his annual employment with another chant, and presents to each house
some limes and other fruit, and dry lumps of Nile mud.

The period of the hot winds, called the khamsin, that is, "the
fifties," is calculated from the day after the Coptic Easter, and
terminates on the day of Pentecost, and the Moslems observe the
Wednesday preceding this period, called "Job's Wednesday," as well as
its first day, when many go into the country from Cairo, "to smell the
air." This day is hence called Shem en-Nesim, or "the smelling of the
zephyr." The Ulema observe the same custom on the first three days of
the spring quarter.

Tombs of saints abound, one or more being found in every town and
village; and no traveller up the Nile can fail to remark how every
prominent hill has the sepulchre of its patron saint. The great saints
of Egypt are the imam Ash-Shafi'i, founder of the persuasion called
after him, the sayyid Ahmad al-Baidawi, and the sayyid Ibrahim
Ed-Desuki, both of whom were founders of orders of dervishes.
Al-Baidawi, who lived in the 13th century A.D., is buried at the town
of Tanta, in the Delta, and his tomb attracts many thousands of
visitors at each of the three festivals held yearly in his honour;
Ed-Desuki is also much revered, and his festivals draw together, in
like manner, great crowds to his birthplace, the town of Desuk. But,
besides the graves of her native saints, Egypt boasts of those of
several members of the Prophet's family, the tomb of the sayyida
Zeyneb, daughter of 'Ali, that of the sayyida Sekeina, daughter of
Hosain, and that of the sayyida Nefisa, great-granddaughter of Hasan,
all of which are held in high veneration. The mosque of the Hasanen
(or that of the "two Hasans") is the most reverenced shrine in the
country, and is believed to contain the head of Hosain. Many orders of
Dervishes live in Egypt, the following being the most celebrated:--(1)
the Rifa'ia, and their sects the 'Ilwania and Saadia; (2) the Qadiria
(Kahiria), or howling dervishes; (3) the Ahmedia, or followers of the
sayyid Ahmad al-Baidawi, and their sects the Beyumia (known by their
long hair), Shinnawia, Sharawia and many others; and (4) the Baramia,
or followers of the sayyid Ibrahim Ed-Desuki. These are all presided
over by a direct descendant of the caliph Abu Bekr, called the Sheikh
El-Bekri. The Saadia are famous for charming and eating live serpents,
&c., and the 'Ilwania for eating fire, glass, &c. The Egyptians firmly
believe in the efficacy of charms, a belief associated with that in
an omnipresent and over-ruling providence. Thus the doors of houses
are inscribed with sentences from the Koran, or the like, to preserve
from the evil eye, or avert the dangers of an unlucky threshold;
similar inscriptions may be observed over most shops, while almost
every one carries some charm about his person. The so-called sciences
of magic, astrology and alchemy still flourish.

AUTHORITIES.--The standard authority for the Moslem Egyptians is E. W.
Lane's _Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians_, first published
in 1836. The best edition is that of 1860, edited, with additions, by
E. S. Poole. See also B. Saint-John, _Village Life in Egypt_ (2 vols.,
1852); S. Lane Poole, _Social Life in Egypt_ (1884); P. Arminjon,
_L'Enseignement, la doctrine, el la vie dans les universites
musulmanes d'Egypte_ (Paris, 1907). For the language see J. S.
Willmore, _The Spoken Arabic of Egypt_ (2nd ed., London, 1905); Spitta
Bey, _Grammatik des arabischen Vulgardialektes von Agypten, Contes
arabes modernes_ (Leiden, 1883). For statistical information consult
the reports on the censuses of 1897 and 1907, published by the
Ministry of the Interior, Cairo, in 1898 and 1909.
(E. S. P.; S. L.-P.; F. R. C.)

_Finance._

The important part which the financial arrangements have played in the political and social history of Egypt since the accession of Ismail Pasha in 1863 is shown in the section _History_ of this article. Here it is proposed to trace the steps by which Egypt, after having been brought to a state of bankruptcy, passed through a period of great stress, and finally attained prosperity and a large measure of financial autonomy.

In 1862 the foreign debt of Egypt stood at L3,292,000. With the accession of Ismail (q.v.) there followed a period of wild extravagance and reckless borrowing accompanied by the extortion of every piastre possible from the fellahin. The real state of affairs was disclosed in the report of Mr Stephen Cave, a well-known banker, who was sent by the British government in December 1875 to inquire into the situation. The Cave report showed that Egypt suffered from "the ignorance, dishonesty, waste and extravagance of the East" and from "the vast expense caused by hasty and inconsiderate endeavours to adopt the civilization of the West." The debtor and creditor account of the state from 1864 to 1875 showed receipts amounting to L148,215,000. Of this sum over L94,000,000 had been obtained from revenue and nearly L4,000,000 by the sale of the khedive's shares in the Suez Canal to Great Britain. The rest was credited to: loans L31,713,000, floating debt L18,243,000. The cash which reached the Egyptian treasury from the loans and floating debt was far less than the nominal amount of such loans, none of which cost the Egyptian government less than 12% per annum. When the expenditure during the same period was examined the extraordinary fact was disclosed that the sum raised by revenue was only three millions less than that spent on administration, tribute and public works, including a sum of L10,500,000, described as "expenses of questionable utility or policy." The whole proceeds of the loans and floating debt had been absorbed in payment of interest and sinking funds, with the exception of L16,000,000 debited to the Suez Canal. In other words, Egypt was burdened with a debt of L91,000,000--funded or floating--for which she had no return, for even from the Suez Canal she derived no revenue, owing to the sale of the khedive's shares.

Soon after Mr Cave's report appeared (March 1876), default took place on several of the loans. Nearly the whole of the debt, it should be stated, was held in England or France, and at the instance of French financiers the stoppage of payment was followed by a scheme to unify the debt. This scheme included the distribution of a bonus of 25% to holders of treasury bonds. These bonds had then reached a sum exceeding L20,000,000 and were held chiefly by French firms. The unification scheme was elaborated in a khedivial decree of the 7th of May 1876, but was rendered abortive by the opposition of the British bondholders. Its place was taken by another scheme drawn up by Mr (afterwards Lord) Goschen and M. Joubert, who represented the British and French bondholders respectively. The details of this settlement, promulgated by decree of the 17th of November 1876, need not be given, as it was superseded in 1880. One of the securities devised for the benefit of the bondholders in the abortive scheme of May 1876 was retained in the Goschen-Joubert settlement, and being continued in later settlements grew to be one of the most important institutions in Egypt. This security was the establishment of a Treasury of the Public Debt, known by its French title of _Caisse de la Dette_, and commonly spoken of simply as "the Caisse." The duty of this body was to act as receivers of the revenues assigned to the service of the debt. To render their powers effective they were given the right to sue the Egyptian government in the Mixed Tribunals for any breach of engagement to the bondholders.

The Law of Liquidation.

The Goschen-Joubert settlement was accompanied by guarantees against maladministration by the appointment of an Englishman and a Frenchman to superintend the revenue and expenditure--the "Dual Control"; while a commission was appointed in 1878 to investigate the condition of the country. The settlement of 1880 was effected on the basis of the proposals made by this commission, and was embodied in the Law of Liquidation of July 1880--after the deposition of Ismail. For the purposes of the new settlement the loans raised by Ismail on his private estates, those known as the Daira (i.e. "administrations") and Domains loans, were brought into account. By the Law of Liquidation the floating debt was paid off, the whole debt being consolidated into four large loans, upon which the rate of interest was reduced to a figure which it was considered Egypt was able to bear. The Egyptian debt under this composition was:

Privileged debt L22,609,000
Unified debt 58,018,000
Daira Sanieh loan 9,513,000
Domains loan 8,500,000
-----------
L98,640,000

The rate of interest was, on the Privileged debt and Domains loan, 5%; on the Unified debt and Daira loan, 4%. Under this settlement the total annual charges on the country amounted to L4,500,000, about half the then revenue of Egypt. These charges included the services of the Privileged and Unified debts, the tribute to Turkey and the interest on the Suez Canal shares held by Great Britain, but excluded the interest on the Daira and Domains loans, expected to be defrayed by the revenues from the estates on which those loans were secured. The general revenue of Egypt was divided between the bondholders and the government, any surplus on the bondholders' share being devoted to the redemption of the capital.

The 1880 settlement proved little more lasting than that of 1876. After a brief period of prosperity, the Arabi rising, the riots at Alexandria, and the events generally which led to the British occupation of Egypt in 1882, followed by the losses incurred in the Sudan in the effort to prevent it falling into the hands of the Mahdi, brought Egypt once more to the verge of financial disaster. The situation was an anomalous one. While the revenue assigned to the service of the debt was more than sufficient for the payment of interest and the sinking fund was in full operation, the government found that their share of the revenue was altogether inadequate for the expenses of administration, and they were compelled to borrow on short loans at high rate of interest. Moreover, to make good the losses incurred at Alexandria, and to get money to pay the charges arising out of the Sudan War and the Arabi rebellion, a new loan was essential. On the initiative of Great Britain a conference between the representatives of the great powers and Turkey was held in London, and resulted in the signing of a convention in March 1885. The terms agreed upon in this instrument, known as the London Convention, were embodied in a khedivial decree, which, with some modification in detail, remained for twenty years the organic law under which the finances of Egypt were administered.

Provisions of the London Convention.

The principle of dividing the revenue of the country between the Caisse, as representing the bondholders, and the government was maintained by the London Convention. The revenue assigned to the service of the debt, namely, that derived from the railway, telegraphs, port of Alexandria, customs (including tobacco) and from four of the provinces, remained as before. It was recognized, however, that the non-assigned revenue was insufficient to meet the necessary expenses of government, and a scale of administrative expenditure was drawn up. This was originally fixed at LE.5,237,000,[6] but subsequently other items were allowed, and in 1904, the last year in which the system described existed, it was LE.6,300,600. The Caisse was authorized, after payment of the coupons on the debt, to make good out of their balance in hand the difference between the authorized expenditure and the non-assigned revenue. If a surplus remained to the Caisse after making good such deficit the surplus was to be divided equally between the Caisse and the government; the government to be free to spend its share as it pleased, while the Caisse had to devote its share to the reduction of the debt. This limitation of administrative expenditure was the cardinal feature and the leading defect of the convention. Those responsible for this arrangement--the most favourable for Egypt that Great Britain could secure--failed to recognize the complete change likely to result from the British occupation of Egypt, and probably regarded that occupation as temporary. The system devised might have been justifiable as a check on a retrograde government, but was wholly inapplicable to a reforming government and a serious obstacle to the attainment of national prosperity. In practice administrative expenditure always exceeded the amount fixed by the convention. Any excess could, however, only be met out of the half-share of the eventual surplus reached in the manner described. Consequently, in order to meet new expenditure necessitated by the growing wants of a country in process of development, just double the amount of revenue had to be raised.