of &f JMdS
!
Th Wall and Roof of r.djf.
(trap! fcr tha National Oaocraphla
ei.ir. Waahiulva, 0. C.I
NKDJKK, a desert city weit of
Ilia K'Hlirutes Id Iraq, la a
nit of aecondsry Mecca lu
Ilia Muliaiumdao world. It li
Hi anmiul pllgrimag place fur tlia
Slilss, tlia "dissenters" of Islam, Just
mi Mocra la a goal of pilgrims among
Ilia orlhoiloi Muhanimednua.
It la Ova days y mula or caml
caravan from Itngdad to Nedjef, and
la th eroul f ul centuries tlnce tun
dhlss founded Nedjef on tli snot
where a nephew of tli Prophet Mo
lisinnied wst alaln It la estimated
that over 2A,O)O,U00 Moslems htvt
mad tli pllgrltnsgt to tlili tnysterl
out dewrt city of gulden domes, fab
ulou treasuree, and weird rltea.
Thousand of devotees from th
Blila hordes of India, Tenia aud Tur
knstsn Rock through Ilagdsd acb jer,
bringing with them llielr muunulAed
dead Mlted and dried for burial In
th holy ground about th mystic city.
Ily minel caravan and winding mula
train th patient pilgrim oiak th
long nisirb; many from dlittntit Tur
kestan art a whole year making th
rouud trip. To help IsnJIe th throng
that poura through Iligdad each aprlng
and autumn, enterprising Usgdsd
Jews bar establlihed an "arauanah,
or tin ft lint, from llagdid to Kernels,
tli half-way town on th desert rout
lo Nedjef. Kroro Kerbela on tli way
leada through th dreary and monoto
nous desert a rolling aea of gray sand,
th margin of lb great wart that
tweept Arabia from Kerbela and Ned
jef to Mecca, Aden, and tha lied aea.
Aa on approaches Nedjef be aeea
Drat the great gold dome of Its mosque,
burning In tli aun raya; then, tlia
high, frowning walla that aurround
th aacred city. It la a gorgcona spec
tacle, mlragcllk virion, aa of a
mighty city floating m th air. Th
high, rharp walla abut It off abruptly
from tha desert, and It aeema a
Nghty thing apart from th tur
rounding aea of eand.
Nedjef la freak city. Not green
thing a plant, shrub, or trea lives
within Ita dry, hot limits. It la built
on a high plain of soft sandstone. Th
Harrow, crooked streets, In many place
mere passages thre or four feet wide,
wind about Ilk Jungle path. In tha
Arab quarter th mud plastered bouses
ar all two stories high and, odd a It
sounds, hsv no window facing tha
afreet Only a wooden door, maul re
and boll-etudded, but so low that ona
must sloop to enter, open to th
atreet
Cellars Ar Refugee From tha Heat
Ona of th atraig featurea of tbla
atrang city la Ua cellars. In summer
tha Derr heat drive tht panting peo
pU deep down Into th earth, Ilk rata
In t hole. Itenealn every bous la
cellar, burrowed mlnellb to amnilng
depths; on. It la aU, reachea an as
toun.".ngly low level, being mora than
100 feet Mow th atreet Down Into
then damp, dark bolea th Shins fie
when th scorching desert air alulet
above and lniiorted Ucrman thermom
eter aland at 1.10 degreea Fahrenheit.
Soire of th cellara (serdabs) ar ar
ranged In a tier o, evils or rooms, on
Mow th other; th upper room I
used In th first hot month, th fain
tly going lower down aa the heat In
crease. Bo many of ther vast underground
retreats hav been dug that th ei
cavuti'd mulerliil, carried from the city
on donkey' buck and dumped on th
desert outside, form a great hill over
100 feet high, from th top of which a
fin view of the city may be had. It
Is said that many of these serdnbs are
connected by ineuna of underground
corridors, and that criminals, who
a norm In Nedjef, easily elude crplure
by pusHlng through these tunnel from
bous to bouse, finally emerging at a
point In tha city reuiot from their
plac of disappearance.
In th heart of Nedjef, 111 great
dome lslble for mile on th sur
rounding desert, stands the magnifi
cent mosque of Abba, the shrine that
draws the teeming throng from all
tha Middle Bunt
Turning ,froin the natlv quarter,
the visitor come to the long straight
biisiuir lending to th mosque, 11 Is
atruik with tli difference In tha looks
of Hi Nedjef people and th crowds
at Kerliola. Mirny uncouth, swagger
ing desert wen are among thrift, their
long hnlr, f tided drc, and camel
sticks, or ovcrsuoply of guns and side
anus, marking them a from th wild
places. There la a spirit of crude,
barhurlo prlinltivenesa In th crowd
that surges past Th little touches
of oi lde tnfluenc on aeea at Dug
dad, Ilk an occasional European bat
or an Imported overcoat are all lack
ing at Nedjef. Her Is old Arabia In
original binding.
Btsutlss of th Mosqu.
Th mosque la com upon suddenly,
for th crowded bazaar atreet ends In
an open pi as before this daixJIng
structure.
In amazement on gazea on Ita won
derful fnrade; golden tile and fancy
silver work rls abov and about the
great portal, and across th wld en
trance I bung giant chain of brass,
worn smooth and shiny from contact
with the millions f turbsns, tar
booHiea, and keffeyeha which bare
brushed under It In centuries gon by.
Thla chain la so bung thst all who
enter th mosqu must bow.
Through this open gat can be seen
til bas of th great mosque Itself.
Th great gold tiles which cover tha
dome also run to th very baa of th
mosqu. Aud on th Insld of th
wall about Hie court ar more gold
tile. Abov the outer portal, too, on
tli outride, are sprawling Arabic
character 20 lucbca high, seemingly
cut from sheets of gold. Whst must
this barbaric splendor hsv cost I
Tb cost of th wooderful temple
Itself Is but a bsgatelle compsred with
th valu of th treasure In Ita vault
For agea, be It known, Indian prince,
shahs, and noble of the Shla fa I lb
hsve mad precious gift to tlila tem
pi at Nedjef, pouring Into It a price
less stream of Jewels, gold, and plate.
The looting of tbe Nedjef mosque bas
been a favorite dream of eoldlert In
the Middle East The true enormity
of th tressur at Nedjef was only
brought to light leu than genera
lion ago when tba ahsb of Persia
msde the hahj and th pent-up wealth
waa revealed to bla royal gaz by Ita
sealoua official keeper, tbe "KUitdar."
Dut no Cbrlrtlan baa ever teen tbe
Inner glories of th great mosqu of
Abbaa at Nedjef, Th contrast be
tween two fall be Is striking; a Mos
lem walking Into a Christian church
Is made welcome; t Chrlstlsn who
walked Into tlie Moslem mosque at
Nedjef would be aluln aa a defller;
yet both claim th same Oodt
More human bodies ar burled In
the plain outside the walls of Nedjef,
It it ald, tbsn In any other one spot
on earth. Myriads of fancy tombs,
terminating at tbe top In little blue
tiled domes, rls from th plain. And
all th million of pilgrims wbe hsv
com In agea past with corpses for
burial have also broMght money to
spend. The richer the man ho brings
tbe body, tba greater tbe toll taken
Burial There la Costly.
Burial rites within view of the great
mosque bring blgb price. Tag la
laid on every corpse Imported from
India, Persia, etc. Many bodies ar
smuggled In. It la told of ona astuto
rerslira pilgrim that be divided bis
grandfathers akcleton and aent It In
separate parrels by mall to aave
freight and tax.
When a dentb caravan reachea tha
outsklrta of Nedjef, they unpack thelf
grewsome baggage and prepare the
various bodies for burlul. Th crude
methods of embalming or mummify
lug would expose Nedjef to disease
were It not for the dry desert air. Th
very few folk of Nedjef who work for
a living muk money manufacturing
fancy shrouds, stamped with Koranlu
sentiments, for th burial of corpses
brought In by the pilgrims.
Others turn out prayer brick
("Torba"), which every Shla uses lo
hit dully prayers. These are mad
from holy clay, scooped up from tbe
great cemetery and pressed Into tiny
odd-shaped bricks, and also stamped
with an inscription from the Korsn.
When Shla prays, lis lays this torbj
on the ground, fuces Nedjef, and pros
trates himself, touching bla forehead
against the sacred brick.
In all of thla unnatural city one tees
not a tree or rhrub ; not even a pottod
plant It la a liiry, prisonlike pluce of
somber gray stones and mud-plastered
walls. Itemove It mosqj, Its one
priceless possession, acd Nedjjf, wltb
Us horde who live on those that corns
to pray, would perish from the earth.
In the 1,200 year of Its eventful life,
not on useful article has been manu
factured within It fanatical pre
cincts.
Vet In oil Islam, Shins turn to Ned'
Jvf to soy their prayers. To Nwdjel
very goad man must mak th pil
grimage onct In bla life, and at Ned
Jef b bopea to be burled when b
die.
aUyounvalls
For aleeping room formal
parlori and reception hall
dining room and living room
(or tha library and (or
public buildinga. Properly
applied it won't rub off.
Wrf f to ua or tuk your Jtaltt
far a copy of our ftmm drawing
book for children' ' Th A lahat
tint Horn Color Book" and a
fria color cord.
Writ to na also (or our beau
tiful Irta boak "Artittic
Home Decoration" by our
Home Betterment Expert,
Miia Ruby Brandon, Alabat
ttoa Company. 222 Cirandville
Ave, Grand Rapid, Mich.
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- Interior surfaces piaster, wail
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Making It Short
In a bested Hollywood controvert?
between picture men, one of th pro
ducers present said:
"I can cut thla abort In two words
Ira Possible."
Experience la Ilk a light bung at
tb stern of a ship.
Tb tongue of a woman la her
rword snd she never lets It rust
Mr$. R. Wom Practicing a
Art of Guett Dodging
One Saturday Mrs. It, was leaving
hor borne to go downtown shopping.
Two ladles with suitcases were going
up the walk toward the house of bar
next-door neighbor, Mrs. it hap
pened to see ber neighbor walking
quickly toward tha atreet corner
where the Intended to board a street
can Thinking that tli would be dis
appointed If ah missed the guests
who at that moment were on ber
porch, Mra. It. called to her neigh
bor several timet without making ber
hear.
Finally, by hurrying, the caught op
with her and somewhat breathlessly
delivered tbe news.
"Shut up, you fool I Shut up!" said
her neighbor In an angry tone. "1 taw
them coming, and I was trying to get
away before they taw me. I - had
planned to visit some friends In the
country tomorrow, so I would not
have to get Sunday dinner myself.
You don't think that I Intend to stay
borne and cook for them, do your
Fortunately, the street car arrived
In time.
A Girl Story
Charlie Chaplin told a New Tork
reporter the other day a girl story,
"Girls are more beautiful and more
er practical tban ever," b began.
"A girl named Montmorency tat In
a moonlit California rote garden wltb
a young man named Fetberstonbaugh.
Fetberttonbaugh bent over ber and
aald In a passionate voice:
"'Mlae Montmorency Augusta, If I
may call you so I am not rich la this
world's goods, but '
"Wltb a slight wave of ber cigarette
th silenced dim.
"That will do, Mr. Fetbertton
baugb,' the aald. '.W
Overcrowded Uotcow
More than 70,000 residents of Mot
cow, Itussla, live In houses unequipped
with running wtter and even without
sewerage, at a result of tbe great re
cent growth of the city population.
Last year homes for 100,000 persons
were built but the city Increased by
480,000 in that period.
For Cold i, Crip or Influenza
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