to present his bride with one of silver, or silver tinsel. A veil is thrown over the smaller extremity of this head-dress, which descends nearly to the feet, and is drawn over the face when the wearer quits the seclusion of her home.

Tyre, once the "Queen of Nations," was formerly celebrated for the renowned purple dye, which is often mentioned by ancient writers, particularly by Homer and Virgil, who generally arrayed their heroes in vests and tunics of Tyrian purple, sometimes plain, at others ornamented. We read in the "Æneid" of

"The vests embroidered of the Tyrian dye;"

and, in another part,

"Then two fair vests, of wondrous work and cost,

Of purple woven, and with gold emboss'd,
For ornament the Trojan hero brought,

Which with her hand Sidonian Dido wrought."

This queen, so celebrated in olden time for being the supposed foundatress of the renowned city of Carthage, appears to have possessed the talents of her countrywomen in the use of the needle; for Virgil often alludes to her skill; and probably the scarf she presented to Æneas was the work of her own fair fingers. Her dress is thus described :

"The queen at length appears: on either hand
The brawny guards in martial order stand.

A flower'd cymarr, with golden fringe, she wore;
And at her back a golden quiver bore:
Her flowing hair a golden caul restrains;
A golden clasp the Tyrian robe sustains."

THE TOILETTE IN ARABIA.

CHAPTER XLVII.

E learn from various writers, both sacred and profane, that the ancient inhabitants of this sweet-scented land were the most commercial and civilized of the world; and "Araby the blessed" is honourably mentioned by Ptolemy, Strabo, and even Eratosthenes.

"Beautiful are the maids that glide

On summer eves through Yemen's dales,
And bright the glancing looks they hide.
Beneath their litter's roseate veils ;
And brides as delicate, as fair,

As the white jasmine flowers they wear,
Hath Yemen in her blissful clime,

Who, lull'd in cool kiosk or bower,

Before their mirrors count the time,

And grow still lovelier every hour."-MOORE.

*Arabia Felix.

The costume of the Arabs, like that of most Eastern nations, consists of long robes, large trousers, an embroidered leathern girdle, and generally some weapon of defence, either a sword, knife, or dagger. There is, however, a great variety in their dresses. Notwithstanding the heat of the climate, the men wear a most preposterous head-dress, frequently fifteen linen, cloth, or cotton caps, one over the other, the upper one being gorgeously embroidered in gold, and a sentence from the Koran worked upon it. Not satisfied with this curious coiffure, they add to it by wrapping round the outer cap a large piece of muslin, ornamented at the ends with silk and golden fringes, which stream loosely upon their shoulders.

Of so much importance is the coiffure with this people, that, though when at home they perhaps allow their heads to feel the luxury of coolness and lightness, by laying aside twelve or thirteen of the caps, still, when on any visit of importance or ceremony, they dare not appear without the proper number. Writers on Arabian manners even assert, that those who wish to pass for men of learning shew their pretensions to that distinction by the size and weight of their coiffure.

It has been suggested that these extraordinary wrappings may be necessary to secure the wearer from the intense heat of the sun. This opinion is the more probable, as in ancient Egyptian monuments the same head-dresses are frequently seen.

The common dress of the Arabs is very simple. It generally consists of a large white, or white and blue, shirt; and over this they sometimes wear a garment like a great-coat without sleeves: in the

province of Lachsa, in particular, this robe is worn by both men and women. The lower orders merely gird

a piece of linen about their loins, and throw another piece over the shoulders; but never wear less than two or three caps, and have neither shoes nor stockings. In the mountains, where the climate is colder, they have sheep-skin garments.

Persons of the middle class have sandals instead of shoes; they are single soles, or thin pieces of wood, fastened to the feet with leathern thongs. Richer people wear slippers, and the women always use the latter covering for the feet. In several parts of Arabia the men do not wear drawers; but these last, with the addition of a shirt, always form the female dress. At Hedsjas, as in Egypt, they veil their faces with a piece of linen, leaving only the eyes uncovered. In Yemen the veil is much larger, and covers the face, so that even the eyes are not discernible. At Sana and Mokha the women wear a transparent gauze veil, embroidered in gold. They are very fond of rings on their fingers, arms, wrists, and ears; they stain their nails red, and their hands and feet of a brownish yellow, with the juice of a plant called el henne; they also paint all round the eyelids, and even the eyelashes themselves, with kochhel, which renders them quite black. Men even sometimes imitate this fashion, but it is considered effeminate.

The women of Yemen make black punctures on the face, which they consider improves their beauty. Fashion shews its influence in this country most particularly in the manner of wearing the hair and beard. In the states of Sana all men, whatever their rank, shave their heads; in other parts of Yemen it is the

universal custom to knot the hair up behind, and wrap it in a handkerchief. Caps and turbans are not in use here. In the mountain districts the hair is left long and loose, and is bound with small cords.

There is one universal fashion respecting beards -they are never touched, but are allowed to grow to their full length; the moustaches only are sometimes shortened. In Arabia the men's beards are always quite black; sometimes, when

whitened by age, they dye them red, but it is a fashion not much admired or followed.

We learn from Niebuhr that, in Arabia, the Bedouins, or wandering Arabs, wear only a white robe, bound round the waist with a leathern girdle, which is very broad, and made with one large, and several small clasps. In both winter and summer they have a large goat-skin cloak, striped in black

and white. On their heads they have only a red cap, surrounded with a piece of cloth of the same colour, or mixed with white.

The princes also wear the same dress; their cloak only is different, being almost always black. Their drawers are of linen, and reach to the lower part of the leg. They wear slippers when at home, and half-boots for riding. The labourers wear sandals.

The dress of Arabs of distinction in Yemen consists of a pair of wide cotton drawers, with a shirt over them. The cutlass is suspended to a broad girdle,