In all of the Jewish weddings the girl brings a dowry, the amount of the dot being mentioned in the contract of marriage. This contract is always signed in the presence of the rabbi, and the wedding ceremony takes place under a tent in the court of the synagogue. Before marriage the orthodox bride is shaved from her head to her feet, after which her head is always kept covered. At the ceremony and after it they have music, with drums, cymbals, and harps; and many of the old-fashioned customs of Bible times are observed. The Jews marry young, and a girl is an old maid at twenty. The Mohammedans of the villages usually take wives in their early teens, marriages at twelve years being not uncommon. This is the case only with the girls. The men are usually older, and it is customary for mature men to marry young girls and to add to their harems as the first wives grow older. In such cases the groom pays money to the father of the bride. This is the reverse of the Jewish marriages, where the money goes to the groom. The price for a Moslem wife ranges from one hundred dollars upward, according to the financial condition of the contracting parties. The contracts are made by the older people of the family. If there is a father he decides upon the marriage. If the father is dead the eldest brother may act, or in some cases the mother. The customs as to the right of the family to dictate the marriage are rigid. The other day a peasant living near Jerusalem had a sister who ran away with her lover and married him. This was after the family had objected to the match. The peasant took a revolver and went after the bridal couple. He caught up with his brother-in-law in Jerusalem and shot him dead on the street. When arrested he justified the crime and he is now imprisoned awaiting trial. I am told he will get off with a slight punishment, as he has acted within his rights according to the Koran. Among the city Mohammedans the bridegroom makes a present of a dowry sufficient to enable his bride to purchase her trousseau and household furniture. He may give her six or eight hundred dollars, the greater part of which will be paid to her nearest male relative before the wedding takes place. On the other hand, he and that relative may buy the outfit together, making items of the various things and their cost. Often the whole dowry is not paid at once, 25 or 30 per cent. being left until after the wedding. This is not demanded except in case of divorce, and it is considered a premium that will insure good treatment from the husband. The bride seldom even sees the groom before the wedding, and the couple never meet until that time. The investigations of both families are carried on by the fathers and mothers independent of the real parties to the marriage.