Islam, Turkey, and Armenia, and How They Happened/Chapter XXI
CHAPTER XXI.
TURKISH COMMON SCHOOLS.
1. A Visit to a Turkish Common School. The first thing which will attract the visitor's attention is the noise produced in a Turkish school, because every pupil must study his lesson with a loud voice. The exterior appearance of the building, which is generally attached to a mosque, has nothing worthy to be called a school house—a single small room, with very low and narrow windows, if at all. During the cold weather these windows are covered with paper or white thin cotton cloth instead of glass, and in the hot seasons they are left open to the burning sun without any shades, unless it be the coats of the students sitting in front of them. There is no chair or desk, or anything like tables. All the children are sitting flat on the floor, on coarse mats or bare boards, which have never seen washing. The teacher is also sitting on the floor, on a small hard cushion, and a little one-foot-high box before him for his table. All the boys (for no girl is allowed in this school) keep small turbaned fezes on their heads, but their shoes or wooden slippers are left at the front door. All the pupils are repeating their lessons in a loud voice, which is stimulated every six or seven minutes by the coarse howling of the long-bearded, large-turbaned and wide, loose-robed man, whom for convenience we shall call Hoja effendi, the lord teacher. These frequent howlings are generally accompanied with a hard stroke of a four-foot-long heavy stick upon the floor its full length; and often with vulgar words.
We can never expect to see anything like maps, black-boards or other school furniture, but only a dirty and badly torn pamphlet in each pupil's hand, in which are some extracts from the Koran in the Arabic language, which the Turkish children do not understand. No geography, arithmetic, natural or unnatural science; and no writing, class system or programme; but beginning from the right hand of the teacher each pupil must come separately and kneel down before him on the bare floor, and after a solemn denunciation of "Satan the Instigator," and recognition of "the name of Allah, the most merciful," must repeat his lesson with a louder voice and chanting tone, all the time swinging the body to and fro. As an approval of the recitation the teacher will simply say "Hum!" two or three times in every line, or sometimes for every single word, even for every syllable if the pupil is spelling. After one or two hundred shut-mouthed "hums!" and an uncertain number of scornful corrections, the so-called lesson comes to its end and the next pupil is called. Of the disapproval or complimentary words that pour out from the mouth of the Haja effendi, the following are comparatively milder ones: "Donkey," "Donkey-headed," "Frozen-brain," "Stiff-skulled," "Lazy donkey," "Blind hog," "Lame dog," "Crippled bear," according to the bodily defects of the children; "My lamb," "Crazy kid," "Sly fox," "My lion," "Black lion," "Black calf," "My son," "My father," "My brother." In ten minutes he may call the same boy "Donkey" and "My brother," according to the demand of the circumstances.
2. The Piety of the Hoja Effendi. Let us not forget to say that our "lord teacher" has also the charge of the muezzin crier, and the leadership in public prayer of the mosque. It is about noon; the children are very tired of sitting and crying their lessons since the sunrise, also feel very hungry for food and for mischief. The approach of the "noon-bread," as they call it, makes them very uncontrollable. The teacher cries with a loud voice and says, "You hog-pigs! you begin to dig the ground again. You are almost perished by hunger, Allah may grant me to see you all perished in one day. No more patience, impatient dogs! Bring the copper pitcher, let me have my ablution for noon-prayer, and then I will send you away; you better had gone to 'jehenem' (hell)! You made my head swell by causing me to speak so much this morning; may your heads be swelled like pumpkins and boiled in the kettle! Bring that pitcher to me." In spite of the insulting tone of this habitual lecture the pupils run eagerly to fill the pitcher with cold water and bring it to the teacher. The teacher cries, "Ah! you will break it; that is a heritage to me from my grand-father; may Allah have mercy on his soul! Be careful, whosoever breaks that pitcher, by my religion and faith, I will surely crush his skull. You black-face Satans, you are in a hurry, not because you love me, but because you are dying to slip away one minute earlier; may Allah grant that you may be paralyzed in your houses and be unable to come here again. Bring the pitcher this side. * * * 'I seek refuge by Allah from Satan the accursed' (don't disturb my mind children, if I rehearse wrong the sin will be upon your necks), * * * 'in the name of Allah, the most merciful' (Ahmet, open the doors of the mosque)." * * * By this solemn ceremony, mixed with prayer and remarks to the children, the pious teacher finishes his sacred washing, and turns again to the children: "Now I will send you to 'noon-bread,' but I have some special notices: first, do not forget to bring portions to your teacher of what good dishes you may have at your table; bring also any kind of fruits, your aunt (teacher's wife) is not very well, and she will like to have some fruits. And the next thing I am going to order you is that you must keep still in your houses and not disturb your mothers. You see that small bird up that tree? It always brings me news what mischief you do in your houses and tells it secretly to my ear. Now I can tell you all what you did last evening, but for this time I will forgive you, and watch your conduct for the next time; you have to come back very soon and sweep the mosque for to-morrow, which is holy Friday you know. Look here, I am spitting upon the ground, and you be sure to be back before it dries; go now and keep in your mind what I have said."
3. A New Pupil Brought to the School. As the Turkish schools have no vacation, no division of terms and no class system, a new pupil may be brought in at any tine. It is afternoon. All the children are in their places and a pile of small bundles near the teacher's seat, and he seems quite delighted with them. A father enters, leading a little boy by the hand, and addresses the teacher: "Peace be unto you, lord teacher." "And peace unto you, haji aga! Let us see what is that?" "What will it be, lord teacher? I brought your slave to pour water on your hand and to turn your shoes." "Allah spare his life; you have done very well." "By Allah, lord teacher, I saw that he was loafing in the streets and I thought if I leave him so he will be a donkey like me." "Allah forbid, haji aga; may your life be preserved safe from the evils of the devil; you are one of the noblest Muslims of our district. Oh! the past days; they are gone! What a noble father you had; may Allah illumine his grave. I can faintly remember your grandfather also; he used to wear, it comes to my mind as a dream, a large green turban, and he always had his long pipe in his hand. He was a pious Mussulman. Allah may perpetuate his posterity. By the way, is you mother still living?" "No, lord teacher, prolonged life for you, she passed five years next winter." "Is that so? Oh! Allah may grant long life to you. *** How many children have you?" "Only this one, your slave, lord teacher?" "What is his name?" "Mustafa, lord teacher." "Oh! that was my grandfather's name; did you steal his name, little boy? Come here and let me see you." The father leads the child by the hand and taking him nearer to the teacher says, "Now, kneel down and kiss the lord teacher's hand." The teacher says "God bless you, my son." The father continues, "Now, lord teacher, his flesh is yours, his bones are mine; whenever he is disobedient and lazy you may punish him as you please; did you hear it?" Certainly; if he is an obedient boy I will love him just like the light of my eye, but if he is disobedient I will beat him as a dog and imprison him in the dark dungeon under this floor and nail his ear to the wall there and leave him to die with hunger and thirst. I am called crazy Haji, and if once my spirit gets up nobody can control me, even the governor cannot prevent me to do what I decide; I kill men under my feet." "That is all right, lord teacher; he is yours, not mine, do to him as you please. *** What will our debt be to you?" "May your good soul be alive, my dear neighbor; 'parents'' and teachers' labors can never be paid enough; may Allah recompense them in the future; still, as a small present for my labors and prayers, I will be content with one cent a week, and five bushels of wheat at harvest time, and several pounds of raisins at fall, and a pair of slippers when your son commences to read the first "juz" (part of the Koran), and a full suit of clothing when he finishes the sacred Koran, by Allah's help." "Very well; sir, all your orders upon my head (I agree), and for the love of Allah, lord teacher, whenever you need something you will let your servant know. I kiss your sacred skirt, lord teacher; take as good care of him as if he was your own son. Good-bye, sir." As soon as he leaves the room the teacher murmurs in a low voice, "You stingy hog, I know what character you are. You promise very easily, but you are not going to fill it. Pay the regular dues and let the extra be a flame to your soul. I knew your cursed father very well; may he not find rest in his grave; he was a man like pieces of nail (useless); are you not the puppy of that dog? But anyhow I have your ears now in my hand. I will make you obliged to pay my wages. Now, boys, to your books; when you see a visitor you leave your work and listen to us like sheep listen to the voice of a flute. Go on! to-morrow is Friday; you have to finish your lessons to-day, else I am not going to send you home to-night. Go on! Read aloud! . . . louder! . . . still louder! . . . that's it."
