"You know, dear Milly, that, though we too were taught to do as they here, yet the hurry and scurry of going to school and the busy life in London have made us forget to practise these religious laws. We, however, felt very uncomfortable and ashamed of ourselves, and made up our minds to get into the habit of doing it--that is to remember to thank our Creator for every blessing we receive, including food--so that it should become a matter-of-course. "Now I must tell you about our water-supply, for the scarcity of water struck us, very much, coming from London; for here every drop is precious and is used for several things, as every drop has to be bought, and money amongst our Jerusalem brethren is very scarce. In fact, it often costs more than the wine of the country. "A water-carrier brings us up every morning a skin bag of water (it is made of skins sewn together, with a small outlet at the top); for it we pay twopence, which is equal to more than a shilling in London. The water that he brings he pours into a large earthern jar, which keeps it cool, and to it is attached over the mouth of the jar a sieve which is made of thick unbleached calico: if this were not done, hundreds of little red worms would get into the jar, because the water in Palestine is full of them. A law was made by the Jews that to drink water that had not been passed through a sieve was a sin; and, as little children are taught not to commit any sin, they do not drink any water that has not been passed through a sieve; owing to this, many illnesses are prevented among the Jews that are rampant among the Arabs and others. "The Jews are also very careful about their water for ordinary use, yet they really employ it more plentifully than we do in London when used in connection with laws of health as laid down in the Shulchan Aruch (a book of laws). For example, as soon as you step out of your bed, you pour water over your hands, wash your face, gargle your throat, and rub your teeth with a clean finger and rinse your mouth. No one would think of moving out of the room without doing this. I know among the very orthodox Jews in London they do the same thing, but the average Jew does not do it, and here it is done by everyone--even a baby is taught to do it the same way. "Later in the day, or when the men go to Synagogue, and we have finished with our household duties, we have the regular soap-and-water wash. Then again, everytime we have a meal we have to wash our hands and repeat a blessing; and, as this is done at various other times in a large family, it takes a good deal of water, but as it is used for cleaning purposes we need not stint ourselves. This law is especially valuable here, for it is very hot, and, if we were not very clean and especially careful about cleansing our eyes and mouths and throat, we should run the risk of catching a great many diseases which are quite common in the Holy Land at present.