In
fact, it often costs more than the wine of the country.
"A water-carrier brings us up every morning a skin bag of water (it is
made of skins sewn together, with a small outlet at the top); for it we
pay twopence, which is equal to more than a shilling in London. The
water that he brings he pours into a large earthern jar, which keeps it
cool, and to it is attached over the mouth of the jar a sieve which is
made of thick unbleached calico: if this were not done, hundreds of
little red worms would get into the jar, because the water in Palestine
is full of them. A law was made by the Jews that to drink water that had
not been passed through a sieve was a sin; and, as little children are
taught not to commit any sin, they do not drink any water that has not
been passed through a sieve; owing to this, many illnesses are prevented
among the Jews that are rampant among the Arabs and others.
"The Jews are also very careful about their water for ordinary use, yet
they really employ it more plentifully than we do in London when used in
connection with laws of health as laid down in the Shulchan Aruch (a
book of laws). For example, as soon as you step out of your bed, you
pour water over your hands, wash your face, gargle your throat, and rub
your teeth with a clean finger and rinse your mouth. No one would think
of moving out of the room without doing this. I know among the very
orthodox Jews in London they do the same thing, but the average Jew does
not do it, and here it is done by everyone--even a baby is taught to do
it the same way.
Pages:
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28