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CHAP. I.] BUYING AND SELLING. 15
the mosque, on the Friday, to join in the noon-
prayers of that day.—The apartments above the
shops have been described in the Introduction.
Buying and selling are here very tiresome processes to persons unaccustomed to such modes of
bargaining. When a shopkeeper is asked the price
of any of his goods, he generally demands more
than he expects to receive ; the customer declares
the price exorbitant, and offers about half or two-
thirds of the sum first-named ; the price thus bidden
is, of course, rejected : but the shopkeeper lowers
his demand; and then the customer, in his turn,
bids somewhat higher than before: thus they usually go on until they meet about half-way between
the sum first demanded and that first offered, and so
the bargain is concluded. But I believe that most
of the tradesmen are, by European travellers, unjustly blamed for thus acting; since I have ascertained that many an Egyptian shopkeeper will sell
an article for a profit of one per cent., and even less.
When a person would make any but a trifling purchase, having found the article that exactly suits him,
he generally makes up his mind for a long altercation : he mounts upon the mastab'ah of the shop,
seats himself at his ease, fills and lights his pipe,
and then the contest of words commences, and lasts
often half an hour, or even more. Sometimes the
shopkeeper, or the customer, interrupts the bargaining by introducing some irrelevant topic of
conversation, as if the one had determined to abate
his demand no further, or the other to bid no
higher : then again the haggling is continued. The
| Title | An account of the manners and customs of the modern Egyptians - 2 |
| Creator | Lane, Edward William |
| Publisher | C. Knight and Co. |
| Place of Publication | London |
| Date | 1842 |
| Language | eng |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Title | 00000027 |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Transcript | CHAP. I.] BUYING AND SELLING. 15 the mosque, on the Friday, to join in the noon- prayers of that day.—The apartments above the shops have been described in the Introduction. Buying and selling are here very tiresome processes to persons unaccustomed to such modes of bargaining. When a shopkeeper is asked the price of any of his goods, he generally demands more than he expects to receive ; the customer declares the price exorbitant, and offers about half or two- thirds of the sum first-named ; the price thus bidden is, of course, rejected : but the shopkeeper lowers his demand; and then the customer, in his turn, bids somewhat higher than before: thus they usually go on until they meet about half-way between the sum first demanded and that first offered, and so the bargain is concluded. But I believe that most of the tradesmen are, by European travellers, unjustly blamed for thus acting; since I have ascertained that many an Egyptian shopkeeper will sell an article for a profit of one per cent., and even less. When a person would make any but a trifling purchase, having found the article that exactly suits him, he generally makes up his mind for a long altercation : he mounts upon the mastab'ah of the shop, seats himself at his ease, fills and lights his pipe, and then the contest of words commences, and lasts often half an hour, or even more. Sometimes the shopkeeper, or the customer, interrupts the bargaining by introducing some irrelevant topic of conversation, as if the one had determined to abate his demand no further, or the other to bid no higher : then again the haggling is continued. The |
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