Identifier: farjourne00rihb (find matches)
Title: A far journey
Year: 1914 (1910s)
Authors: Rihbany, Abraham Mitrie, 1869-
Subjects: Rihbany, Abraham Mitrie, 1869-
Publisher: Boston and New York, Houghton Mifflin company
Contributing Library: Princeton Theological Seminary Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Princeton Theological Seminary Library

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
e authority toHft his consecrated hand and bestow a blessingon such an occasion. Where did the teacher gethis authority to perform such a solemn act.?With such a question in mind, I could not bereverent during the prayer. I did not bow myhead or close my eyes; I looked at the prayingteacher with much curiosity as I explained tomyself that the entire performance was a pecu-liarity of Protestantism with which I was notat all concerned. I had come to the school toget knowledge, and nothing else. It was at that supper that for the first timein my life I occupied an elevated seat at thetable. With the exception of a small European-ized minority of them, the Syrians sit on thefloor while eating, and serve the food on lowtables or large trays. But at the Suk-el-Gharbschool long benches were provided for us to siton, and as those *modem conveniences werevery hard and had no support for the back,they did not make a compelling appeal to meto forget the more restful custom of my fathers. ( 122 )
Text Appearing After Image:
< oI ►Jw I A NEW LIGHT The gospel of plain living and high thinking,which the Western world is just beginning todiscover, was well known to our school. Oursupper on that evening, which was a variant ofa well-established routine, consisted of boiledpotatoes, with the peelings on, ripe black olives,bread and salt. With the Orientals in general,dessert does not rise to the dignity of a coursein the plan of the regular meals; it is as irregularin its appearance at the table as a comet is inthe firmament. At long and irregular intervalswe were favored with a dish of sweets, with theevident intention on the part of the schoolauthorities that we would appreciate the favor.We always did. But while our food was plainit was sufficient to keep us in good health andhumor, and only now and then some of us bigboys felt compelled to bribe the cook to meetus at the back kitchen window with additionaland unauthorized rations. Next morning lessons began. Owing to thefact that my schooling had been

Note About Images