rigues, and the throne itself
liable to fall a prey to a doubtful or contested
succession"[76]--contested by the progeny of the various rivals crowded
into the royal harem. From the palace downward polygamy and servile
concubinage lower the moral tone, loosen the ties of domestic life, and
hopelessly depress the people.

[Sidenote: The veil.]
Nor is the veil, albeit under the circumstances a necessary precaution,
less detrimental, though in a different way, to the interests of Moslem
society. This strange custom owes its origin to the Prophet's jealous
temperament. It is forbidden in the Koran for women to appear unveiled
before any member of the other sex with the exception of certain near
relatives of specified propinquity.[77] And this law, coupled with other
restrictions of the kind, has led to the imposition of the _boorka_ or
_purdah_ (the dress which conceals the person and the veil) and to the
greater or less seclusion of the harem and zenana.

[Sidenote: Society vitiated by the withdrawal of the female sex.
Mohammedan society, thus truncated, incapable of progress.
The defects of Mohammedan society.]
This ordinance and the practices flowing from it must survive, more or
less, so long as the Koran remains the rule of faith. It may appear at
first sight a mere negative evil, a social custom comparatively
harmless; but in truth it has a more debilitating effect upon the Moslem
race perhaps than any thing else, for by it _woman is totally withdrawn
from her proper place in the social circle_. She may, indeed, in the
comparatively laxer license of some lands be seen flitting along the
streets or driving in her carriage; but even so it is like one belonging
to another world, veiled, shrouded, and cut off from intercourse with
those around her. Free only in the retirement of her own secluded
apartments, she is altogether shut out from her legitimate sphere in the
duties and enjoyments of life. But the blight on the sex itself from
this unnatural regulation, sad as it is, must be regarded as a minor
evil. The mischief extends beyond her. The tone and framework of society
as it came from the Maker's hands are altered, damaged, and
deteriorated. From the veil there flows this double injury. The bright,
refining, softening influence of woman is withdrawn from the outer
world, and social life, wanting the gracious influences of the female
sex, becomes, as we see throughout Moslem lands, forced, hard,
unnatural, and moro