liteness, fond of conversation,
shrewd in their remarks, and their language is both correct and refined.
This, at first, was an enigma to me, considering that their lives are
spent in seclusion, and that their education was not conducted on European
principles; the mystery, however, has passed away upon an intimate
acquaintance with the domestic habits of the people. The men with whom
genteel women converse, are generally well educated, and from the
naturally inquisitive disposition of the females, not a word escapes the
lips of a father, husband, or brother, without an inquiry as to its
meaning, which having once ascertained, is never forgotten, because their
attention is not diverted by a variety of pursuits, or vain amusements.
The women look up to the opinions of their male relatives with the same
respect as children of other climes are accustomed to regard their tutor
or governess,--considering every word pronounced as worthy of imitation,
and every sentiment expressed, as a guide to their own. Thus the habit of
speaking correctly is so familiar to the females of Mussulmaun society,
that even women servants, long accustomed to serve in zeenahnahs, may be
readily distinguished by their language from the same class of people in
attendance on European ladies.

P.S. All good Mussulmauns are expected to wear their beards, by command of
the Prophet; so says my informant, who is of 'the faith', and wears his
beard, in accordance with the injunction of his Lawgiver. In modern times,
however, the Mussulmauns have seen fit to modify the strict letter of the
law, and we perceive generally, mustachios only reserved on the upper lip.
This ornament is trained with the nicest care amongst the fashionable
young men of the present day, and made to creep over the lip at each
corner of the mouth with curling points; well-trained mustachios being
with them much esteemed.

The religious Mussulmauns become more scrupulous as they advance in
knowledge of their faith, when they allow their beards to grow and their
heads to be shaven; if the hair turns white--while to look well is an
object of interest--a dye is resorted to, composed of mayndhie and indigo,
which restores its youthful appearance, and the beard retains its black
glossy hue for about six weeks, when the process of dyeing is again made
the business of a convenient hour.[25] The vanities of the world ceasing
to charm (the heart being fixed on more important subjects), the bear