734 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. VOL. XXXIV. 
Dated 5509 A. M. (1749 A. D.). The contracting parties are Joseph 
and Rebekah. Height, 2 feet 92 inches; width, 254 inches. (Cat. 
No. 3680, U.S.N.M.) Se 
Lent by Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. 
143. Marriage Contrracr.—Written on parchment. The margins 
are richly decorated; of the writing only a few traces are left, which, 
however, exhibit fine workmanship. Height, 204 inches; width, 184 
inches. 
Lent by Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. 
144. Burian Prayrers.—Manuscript written on parchment. The 
prayers, which are recited at the cemetery at the open grave, are 
expressive of submission to God’s will and include the kaddish or 
“holy,” that is, a doxology, acknowledging God’s holiness and great- 
ness. The fraddish is repeated at every service during the first year 
of mourning and on the anniversaries of the death. It is believed by 
many Jews that the recital of the kaddish benefits the deceased. 
Measurements, 2 feet 2 inches by 9 inches. (Cat. No. 158354, 
U.S.N.M.) 
Gift of Mr. David Sulzberger. 
V. MISCELLANEOUS. 
145. Costume or A Rapa in MowamMMEDAN CountRIES.—Consist- 
ing of trousers, inner robe of striped silk reaching below the knees 
and held by a girdle round the waist, outer coat of cloth, with short, 
ample sleeves, shawl, shoes with goloshes, and headgear of red felt, 
around which a piece of gray silk is twisted lke a turban. When 
the Jews first settled in Mohammedan countries they were compelled 
by a decree to wear a dress different from that of the Mohammedans. 
At present the decree has been suspended, but many of the Jews con- 
tinue to wear a distinctive costume. It is chiefly marked in the color 
of the turban. That of the Mohammedans is of white muslin or 
cashmere, while the Jews wear black, blue, gray, or light-brown tur- 
bans and generally dull-colored dresses. (Cat. No. 154761, U.S.N.M.) 
146. ICNIFE WITH ITS SHEATH, USED FOR SLAUGHTERING OF ANIMALS.— 
The killing of animals, that is mammals and birds, for food is per- 
formed by cutting through the windpipe and gullet, with a perfectly 
sharp and smooth knife called halaf, by a swift motion forward and 
backward across the throat of the animal. The act of slaughtering is 
called shehitah, and the person performing it is called shohet. He 
must be qualified by knowledge and skill. The knife must be thor- 
oughly examined by him before and after the killing, and if it be 
found to have a notch (pegimah), the animal killed with it is ritu- 
ally unfit for fool (terefah). The shehitah is followed by the bed- 
kah, i. e., examination, first of the throat of the animal to ascertain 
whether the windpipe and gullet are cut through according to the 
