VILLAGE LIFE IN THE HOLY LAND 



281 



if short a smaller one is used, the edge 

 being quite dull ; so that it does not cut, 

 but simply uproots the grain. Sheepskin 

 aprons and a large glove are often worn 

 by the men harvesters ; but the women, 

 who are doing the very same work as the 

 men, are provided with neither. 



Destitute women and girls are allowed 

 to follow the reapers and glean the fallen 

 ears, which they tie into neat little bun- 

 dles, dropping them on the ground as 

 they go along, and these they gather up 

 every evening and beat out the grain with 

 a stick, just as Ruth did of old in the 

 fields of Bethlehem.* 



During the reaping period what the 

 Bible calls "parched corn" is made in 

 almost every field. Some wheat not fully 

 ripe is cut down and set on fire, the straw 

 only being consumed. The roasted heads 

 are rubbed between the hands and the 

 chaff winnowed out in the wind. With- 

 out further preparation, this roasted 

 wheat forms one of the common articles 

 of diet of the reapers. Undoubtedly such 

 was the "parched corn" which Boaz 

 reached to Ruth.f 



the: threshing-floor 



A large flat rock in the mountainous 

 country or a hard piece of ground on the 

 plains is selected for the threshing-floor, 

 and this, up to the present time, bears the 

 Biblical name joren. Here all the grain 

 is gathered. 



We read that Jacob, after his dream at 

 Bethel, promised to God one-tenth of all 

 he should receive. J Later, when this 

 land was possessed by the Israelites, they 

 were enjoined to give a tenth of their 

 produce to the Levites.§ We also find 

 Samuel telling Israel what they could ex- 

 pect if they were determined to have a 

 king to reign over them, saying: "He 

 [the king] will take the tenth of your 

 seed, and of your vineyards, . . . and 

 he will take the tenth of your sheep." f 



Nor does this custom ever seem to 

 have ceased, for the tithe is still collected. 

 There are numerous mosques, schools, 

 and other religious institutions which re- 

 ceive it from specified properties on which 



* Ruth 2: 17. 



t Ruth 2: 14; 1 Sam. 17: 17 and 25: 18. 



% Gen. 28 : 22. 



§ Lev. 27 : 30. 



f 1 Sam. 8: 15, 17. 



it is charged, and from all other tillable 

 land it is collected by the government, 

 the right of exacting these taxes from 

 each village being farmed out to the high- 

 est bidder. 



The sheaves are brought to the thresh- 

 ing floor on the backs of camels, mules, 

 and donkeys, and in big bundles on the 

 heads of the women, and are stacked up 

 in the requisite number of piles. One 

 of these is first chosen by the tax col- 

 lector and has to be separately trodden 

 out and the grain delivered to him before 

 the rest of the work begins. 



Threshing by the primitive methods 

 employed is the most tiresome task of 

 all the fellah's round of toil. In many 

 places it is done entirely by treading out 

 beneath the feet of the animals, which 

 are tied together abreast and driven 

 round and round over the spread-out 

 grain (see page 272). 



The mules and horses are provided 

 with flat sheet-iron shoes for all kinds of 

 work, and the cattle, just as the thresh- 

 ing season begins, are specially shod. On 

 each half of the cloven hoof a small iron 

 shoe is nailed, and this not only facili- 

 tates the work of separating the grain, 

 but prevents the animal from becoming 

 lame. 



HOW THE GRAIN IS WINNOWED 



In the simple treading-out process the 

 animals are driven around slowly over 

 the grain, while the men, with wooden 

 forks, keep stirring it up. When thor- 

 oughly threshed, the straw has been 

 chopped up into short bruised bits and all 

 is then heaped up. 



To separate the grain, "the fan," which 

 is a wooden fork, is used, the farmer 

 waiting until the wind is blowing hard 

 enough without being violent. Such con- 

 ditions are best found in the evenings or 

 during moonlight nights. The winnower 

 tosses up the trampled grain into the air r 

 and, being heavier than the straw, it falls 

 into a heap by itself, while the fine straw 

 separates into a neat pile a little distance 

 away. The dust and very fine particles 

 are completely blown away. This refuse 

 is called ur by the Arabs, the original 

 Hebrew name. 



A sieve is now employed, and through 

 this the grain is passed to take out the 



