Show strange superstitions surround borei foreign ti wash days to americans there much romance in in wash day it rolls around regularly and necessarily without any particular fuss to people in many foreign lands however where wash day happens once a year or so the business of soaping and rinsing and drying is a real event that is closely linked with the traditions of the past among certain tribes even the day of the week has a special significance thus tuesdays and fridays are unlucky for washing says the mohammedan from maiocco morocco tuesdays wash will shrink he claims and the waste water from fridays laundry may hurt the jinn when poured into the drain saturday is a bad time too for clothes washed on that day will soon become soiled of course a good moroccan must attend to his own laundry some other day in the week tor for according to tradition he who does not wash his clothes write his bis own letters or slaughter his own animals is an object of mourning before his own death among some moroccan tribes washing is taboo at times of mourning it is believed that serious consequences will result if anyone in the village uses henna antimony walnut root or soap for several days after a death the nearest relatives of the deceased must refrain from washing their clothes from 15 days to a year depending upon the law of the community the nearest female relative must abstain from washing her face or clothing until the period of mourning is past her neighbors then bathe her wash her clothes and make her presentable again in revolutionary pro pre russia the peasant housewife who attempted to cleanse her linen at whitsuntide de deliberately libera tely invited bad luck at this holy time the water sprites were supposed to have sat in the forest asking for linen to be washed and woe to the offender |