(4) Freedom and Employments. Women ap pear to have enjoyed considerably more freedom among the Jews than is now allowed them in western Asia, although in other respects their con dition and employments seem to have been not dissimilar. The employments of the women were very various, and sufficiently engrossing. In the earlier, or patriarchal state of society, the daugh ters of men of substance tended their fathers' flocks (Gen. xxix :9; Exod. :16). In ordinary circumstances, the first labor of the day was to grind corn and bake bread, as already noticed. The other cares of the family occupied the rest of the day. The women of the peasantry and of the poor consumed much time in collecting fuel, and in going to the wells for water. The wells were usually outside the towns, and the labor of drawing water from them was by no means con fined to poor women. This was usually, but not always, the labor of the evening; and the water was carried in earthen vessels borne upon the shoulder (Gen. xxiv:15-2o; John iv:7, 28). Working with the needle also occupied mucl. of their time, as it would seem that not only their own clothes but those of the men were made by the women. Some of the needlework was very fine, and much valued (Exod. xxvi :36; xxviii :39; Judg. v :3o; Ps. xlv :W. The women appear to have spun the yarn for all the cloth that was in use (Exod. xxxv :25; Prov. xxxi :19) ; and much of the weaving seems also to have been executed by them (Judg. xvi :13, 14; Prov. xxxi :22). The tapestries, for bed-coverings, mentioned in the last-cited text, were probably produced in the loom, and appear to have been much valued (Prov. vii:16).
(5) Dress. We have no certain information re garding the dress of the women among the poorer classes; but it was probably coarse and simple, and not materially different from that which we now see among the Bedouin women, and the female peasantry of Syria. This consists of drawers, and a long and loose gown of coarse blue linen, with some ornamental bordering wrought with the needle, in another color, about the neck and bosom. The head is covered with a kind of tur ban, connected with which, behind, is a veil, which covers the neck, back, and bosom (see VEIL). We may presume, with still greater certainty, that women of superior condition wore, over their inner dress, a frock or tunic like that of the men, but more closely fitting the person, with a girdle formed by an unfolded kerchief. Their head dress was a kind of turban, with different sorts of veils and wrappers used under various circum stances. The hair was worn long, and. as now, was braided into numerous tresses, with trinkets and ribands (1 Cor. xi:15; I Tim. ii :9; 1 Pet. iii :3). \Vith the headdress the principal orna ments appear to have been connected, such as a jewel for the forehead, and rows of pearls (Cant. i :to: Ezek. xvi :12). Earrings were also worn (ls. iii :2o; Ezek. xvi :12), as well as a nose jewel, consisting, no doubt, as now, either of a ring inserted in the cartilage of the nose, or an ornament like a button attached to it. The nose jewel was of gold or silver, and sometimes set with jewels (Gen. xxiv :47; Is. iii:21). Brace lets were also generally worn (Is. iii :19; Ezek. xvi:11), and anklets, which, as now, were proba bly more like fetters than ornaments (Is. iii:n5,
2o). The Jewish women possessed the art of staining their eyelids black, for effect and expres sion (2 Kings ix:3o; Jer. iv :3o; Ezek. and it is more than probable that they had the present practice of staining the nails, and the palms of their hands and soles of their feet, of an iron-rust color, by means of a paste made from the plant called henna (Lawsonia incrnits). This plant appears to be mentioned in Cant. i:14, and its present use is probably referred to in Dent. xxi :12.
The customs concerning marriage, and the cir cumstances which the relation of wife and mother involved, have been described in the article MAR RIAGE.
(6) The Family. The Israelites eagerly de sired children, and especially sons. Hence the messenger who first brought to the father the news that a son was born was was well rewarded (Job iii:3; Jer. xx :15). The event was cele brated with music ; and the father, when the child was presented to him, pressed it to his bosom, by which act he was understood to acknowledge it as his own. On the eighth day from the birth the child was circumcised (Gen. xvii:to); at which time also a name was given to it (Luke i:59)• The firstborn son was highly esteemed, and had many distinguishing privileges. He had a double portion of the estate (Deut. xxi:17) ; he exer cised a sort of parental authority over his younger brothers (Gen. xxv :23, etc.; xxvii :29; Exod. xii : 29; 2 Chron. xxi :3) ; and before the institution of the Levitical priesthood he acted as the priest of the family (Num. iii:12, 13 ; Viii :18). The pa triarchs exercised the power of taking these priv ileges from the firstborn, and giving them to any other son, or of distributing them among differ ent sons; but this practice was overruled by the Mosaical law (Dent. (7) Relations of Mother and Child. The child continued about three years at the breast of the mother, and a great festival was given at the weaning (Gen. xxi:8; I Sam. i :22-24). He remained two years longer in charge of the women; after which he was taken under the especial care of the father, with a view to his proper training (Dent. vi:2o-25 ; xi:19). It ap pears that those who wished for their sons better instruction than they were themselves able or will ing to give, employed a private teacher, or else sent them to a priest or Levite, who had perhaps several others under his care. The principal ob ject was that they should he well acquainted with the law of Moses; and reading and writing were taught in subservience to this leading object.
The authority of a father was very great among the Israelites, and extended not only to his sons, but to his grandsons—indeed to all who were de scended from him. His power had no recognized limit, and even if he put his son or grandson to death, there was, at first, no law by which he could be brought to account (Gen. xxi:t4; xxxviii:24)• But Moses circumscribed this power by ordering that when a father judged his son worthy of death, he should bring him before the public tri bunals. If, however, he had struck or cursed his father or mother, or was refractory or disobe dient, he was still liable to capital punishment (Exod. xxi :15, 17 ; Lev. xx :9; Deut. xxi :18-21).
WOOL (wool). See SHEEP.