A Village Exhibition in Bishtafin

The Village Welfare Society, headed by Mrs. Anissa Rawda Najjar, held a small exhibition of the handiwork and produce of the Manasif villages, where the society has been at work for three years — in Bishtafin, Deir Kousheh, al-Kniseh, and Ammiq. There were samples of Arab weaving, crochet and needle work and embroidery, and then the collection for which the society's center there is noted: preserves of fruits and vegetables — quince, string beans, tomato juice, artichoke, and so on. There were also animal products, such as silkworm cocoons and rabbits, which found a ready sale.

The exhibition was held at the request of a group of American ladies, who asked to visit one of the society's centers and become acquainted with village work. There they met with the warmest welcome and hospitality, and bought a great many of the products. After Bishtafin they visited Deir Kousheh and al-Kniseh, where the school — housed in two tents, set up after the earthquake to teach household management and to wipe out illiteracy — is directed by Miss Alice Maalouf. The children performed the national anthem and zajal songs. What caught my attention was their failure to keep the tune, which moves me to lay this problem before our musicians: would it not please them to donate a single day to teaching these dear little ones the national anthem on some instrument — which would be the first musical instrument these remote villages had ever seen?

The society's president introduced Miss Suad Wakim of the Lebanese Household Management League, who spoke to them about building and furnishing homes economically and artistically, having brought models with her for that purpose. Her talk on this subject was well chosen, especially as all the houses of this district were built by the Directorate of Reconstruction on the occasion of the earthquake. The mukhtar of the village thanked her, and the poet of al-Kniseh, Mr. Raji Ashqouni, thanked the society. The society's president seized the occasion and drew from the villagers a promise to build a household-management school by volunteer labor — and they promised with enthusiasm.