file which includes the original illustrations4 ,see #bicad-;h4htm or #bicad-;h4zip3 7https3_/_/www4gutenberg4org_/cache_/epu b_/#bicad_/pg#bicad-;images4html7 or 7https3_/_/www4gutenberg4org_/files_/#bi cad_/bicad-;h4zip7 ,transcriber's note3 ,text enclosed between plus signs was in bold face in the original 7example3 bold74 ,the oe-ligature is represented by oe4 ,a few typographical errors have been corrected2 they are listed at the end of the text4 ,,out-,,of-,,doors ,,in ,,the ,,holy ,,land 99 99 99 99 99 ,,books ,,by ,,henry ,,van ,,dyke ,,published ,,by ,,charles ,,scribner',s ,,sons ,,the ,,ruling ,,passion4 ,illustrated in color4 #a4ej ,,the ,,blue ,,flower4 ,illustrated in color4 #a4ej 99 99 99 99 99 ,,outdoors ,,in ,,the ,,holy ,,land4 ,illustrated in color net #a4ej ,,days ,,off4 ,illustrated in color4 #a4ej ,,little ,,rivers4 ,illustrated in color4 #a4ej ,,fisherman',s ,,luck4 ,illustrated in color4 #a4ej 99 99 99 99 99 ,,the ,,builders1 ,,and ,,other ,,poems4 #a4jj ,,music1 ,,and ,,other ,,poems4 net #a4jj ,,the ,,toiling ,,of ,,felix1 ,,and ,,other ,,poems4 #a4jj 99 99 99 99 99 ,illustration3 ,the ,gate of ,david1 ,jerusalem4 ,,out-,,of-,,doors ,,in ,,the ,,holy ,,land ,impressions of ,travel in ,body and ,spirit by ,,henry ,,van ,,dyke ,illustrated ,new ,york ,charles ,scribner's ,sons ,,mdccccviii ,copyright1 #aijh1 by ,charles ,scribner's ,sons ,published ,november1 #aijh ,to ,,howard ,,crosby ,,butler ,,master ,,of ,,merwick ,,professor ,,of ,,art ,,and ,,arch,,ology ,,who ,,was ,a ,,friend ,,to ,,this ,,journey ,,this ,,book ,,is ,,dedicated ,,by ,,his ,,friend ,,the ,,author ,,preface ,for a long time1 in the hopefulness and confidence of youth1 ,i dreamed of going to ,palestine4 ,but that dream was denied1 for want of money and leisure4 ,then1 for a long time1 in the hardening strain of early manhood1 ,i was afraid to go to ,palestine1 lest the journey should prove a disenchantment1 and some of my religious beliefs be rudely shaken1 perhaps destroyed4 ,but that fear was removed by a little voyage to the gates of death1 where it was made clear to me that no belief is worth keeping unless it can bear the touch of reality4 ,in that year of pain and sorrow1 through a full surrender to the ,divine ,will1 the hopefulness and confidence of youth came back to me4 ,since then it has been possible once more to wake in the morning with the feeling that the day might bring something new and wonderful and welcome1 and to travel into the future with a whole and happy heart4 ,this is what ,i call growing younger2 though the years increase1 yet the burden of them is lessened1 and the fear that life will some day lead into an empty prison-house has been cast out by the incoming of the ,perfect ,love4 ,so it came to pass that when a friend offered me1 at last1 the opportunity of going to ,palestine if ,i would give him my impressions of travel for his magazine1 ,i was glad to go4 ,partly because there was a piece of work1--a drama whose scene lies in ,damascus and among the mountains of ,samaria1--that ,i wanted to finish there2 partly because of the expectancy that on such a journey any of the days might indeed bring something new and wonderful and welcome2 but most of all because ,i greatly desired to live for a little while in the country of ,jesus1 hoping to learn more of the meaning of ,his life in the land where it was spent1 and lost1 and forever saved4 ,here1 then1 you have the history of this little book1 reader3 and if it pleases you to look further into its pages1 you can see for yourself how far my dreams and hopes were realised4 ,it is the record of a long journey in the spirit and a short voyage in the body4 ,if you find here impressions that are lighter1 mingled with those that are deeper1 that is because life itself is really woven of such contrasted threads4 ,even on a pilgrimage small adventures happen4 ,of the elders of ,israel on ,sinai it is written1 ,they saw ,god and did eat and drink2 and the ,apostle ,paul was not too much engrossed with his mission to send for the cloak and books and parchments that he left behind at ,troas4 ,if what you read here makes you wish to go to the ,holy ,land1 ,i shall be glad2 and if you go in the right way1 you surely will not be disappointed4 ,but there are two things in the book which ,i would not have you miss4 ,the first is the new conviction1--new at least to me1--that ,christianity is an out-of-doors religion4 ,from the birth in the grotto at ,bethlehem 7where ,joseph and ,mary took refuge because there was no room for them in the inn7 to the crowning death on the hill of ,calvary outside the city wall1 all of its important events took place out-of-doors4 ,except the discourse in the upper chamber at ,jerusalem1 all of its great words1 from the sermon on the mount to the last commission to the disciples1 were spoken in the open air4 ,how shall we understand it unless we carry it under the free sky and interpret it in the companionship of nature8 ,the second thing that ,i would have you find here is the deepened sense that ,jesus ,himself is the great1 the imperishable miracle4 ,his words are spirit and life4 ,his character is the revelation of the ,perfect ,love4 ,this was the something new and wonderful and welcome that came to me in ,palestine3 a simpler1 clearer1 surer view of the human life of ,god4 ,,henry ,,van ,,dyke4 ,avalon1 ,june #aj1 #aijh4 ,,contents ,i4 ,travellers' ,joy #a ,,ii4 ,going up to ,jerusalem #bc ,,iii4 ,the ,gates of ,zion #de ,,iv4 ,mizpah and the ,mount of ,olives #fg ,v4 ,an ,excursion to ,bethlehem and ,hebron #hc ,,vi4 ,the ,temple and the ,sepulchre #aje ,,vii4 ,jericho and ,jordan #abe ,,viii4 ,a ,journey to ,jerash #aea ,,ix4 ,the ,mountains of ,samaria #aia ,x4 ,galilee and the ,lake #bag ,,xi4 ,the ,springs of ,jordan #bei ,,xii4 ,the ,road to ,damascus #bia ,,illustrations ,the ,gate of ,david1 ,jerusalem ,frontispiece ,jaffa ,facing page #ad ,the port where ,king ,solomon landed his cedar beams from ,lebanon for the building of the ,temple ,the ,tall ,tower of the ,forty ,martyrs at ,ramleh #bh ,a ,street in ,jerusalem #fj ,a ,street in ,bethlehem #hf ,the ,market-place1 ,bethlehem #ij ,great ,monastery of ,st4 ,george #acf ,ruins of ,jerash1 ,looking ,west #ahd ,propyloeum and ,temple terrace ,the ,virgin's ,fountain1 ,nazareth #bcb ,the ,approach to ,bniys #bgf ,bridge ,over the ,river ,ltn #bhb ,a ,small ,bazaar in ,damascus #caf ,i ,,travellers' ,,joy ,i ,,invitation ,who would not go to ,palestine8 ,to look upon that little stage where the drama of humanity has centred in such unforgetable scenes2 to trace the rugged paths and ancient highways along which so many heroic and pathetic figures have travelled2 above all1 to see with the eyes as well as with the heart ,those holy fields ,over whose acres walked those blessed feet ,which1 nineteen hundred years ago1 were nail'd ,for our advantage on the bitter cross-- for the sake of these things who would not travel far and endure many hardships8 ,it is easy to find ,palestine4 ,it lies in the south-east corner of the ,mediterranean coast1 where the sea in the midst of the nations1 makes a great elbow between ,asia ,minor and ,egypt4 ,a tiny land1 about a hundred and fifty miles long and sixty miles wide1 stretching in a fourfold band from the foot of snowy ,hermon and the ,lebanons to the fulvous crags of ,sinai3 a green strip of fertile plain beside the sea1 a blue strip of lofty and broken highlands1 a gray-and-yellow strip of sunken river-valley1 a purple strip of high mountains rolling away to the ,arabian desert4 ,there are a dozen lines of steamships to carry you thither2 a score of well-equipped agencies to conduct you on what they call a de luxe religious expedition to ,palestine4 ,but how to find the ,holy ,land--ah1 that is another question4 ,fierce and mighty nations1 hundreds of human tribes1 have trampled through that coveted corner of the earth1 contending for its possession3 and the fury of their fighting has swept the fields as with fire4 ,temples and palaces have vanished like tents from the hillside4 ,the ploughshare of havoc has been driven through the gardens of luxury4 ,cities have risen and crumbled upon the ruins of older cities4 ,crust after crust of pious legend has formed over the deep valleys2 and tradition has set up its altars upon every high hill and under every green tree4 ,the rival claims of sacred places are fiercely disputed by churchmen and scholars4 ,it is a poor prophet that has but one birthplace and one tomb4 ,and now1 to complete the confusion1 the hurried1 nervous1 comfort-loving spirit of modern curiosity has broken into ,palestine1 with railways from ,jaffa to ,jerusalem1 from ,mount ,carmel to the ,sea of ,galilee1 from ,beirt to ,damascus1--with macadamized roads to ,shechem and ,nazareth and ,tiberias1--with hotels at all the principal points of interest1--and with every facility for doing ,palestine in ten days1 without getting away from the market-reports1 the gossip of the table d'hte1 and all that queer little complex of distracting habits which we call civilization4 ,but the ,holy ,land which ,i desire to see can be found only by escaping from these things4 ,i want to get away from them2 to return into the long past1 which is also the hidden present1 and to lose myself a little there1 to the end that ,i may find myself again4 ,i want to make acquaintance with the soul of that land where so much that is strange and memorable and for ever beautiful has come to pass3 to walk quietly and humbly1 without much disputation or talk1 in fellowship with the spirit that haunts those hills and vales1 under the influence of that deep and lucent sky4 ,i want to feel that ineffable charm which breathes from its mountains1 meadows and streams3 that charm which made the children of ,israel in the desert long for it as a land flowing with milk and honey2 and the great ,prince ,joseph in ,egypt require an oath of his brethren that they would lay his bones in the quiet vale of ,shechem where he had fed his father's sheep2 and the daughters of ,jacob beside the rivers of ,babylon mingle tears with their music when they remembered ,zion4 ,there was something in that land1 surely1 some personal and indefinable spirit of place1 which was known and loved by prophet and psalmist1 and most of all by ,him who spread ,his table on the green grass1 and taught ,his disciples while they walked the narrow paths waist-deep in rustling wheat1 and spoke ,his messages of love from a little boat rocking on the lake1 and found ,his asylum of prayer high on the mountainside1 and kept ,his parting-hour with ,his friends in the moon-silvered quiet of the garden of olives4 ,that spirit of place1 that soul of the ,holy ,land1 is what ,i fain would meet on my pilgrimage1--for the sake of ,him who interprets it in love4 ,and ,i know well where to find it1--out-of-doors4 ,i will not sleep under a roof in ,palestine1 but nightly pitch my wandering tent beside some fountain1 in some grove or garden1 on some vacant threshing-floor1 beneath the ,syrian stars4 ,i will not join myself to any company of labelled tourists hurrying with much discussion on their appointed itinerary1 but take into fellowship three tried and trusty comrades1 that we may enjoy solitude together4 ,i will not seek to make any archological discovery1 nor to prove any theological theory1 but simply to ride through the highlands of ,judea1 and the valley of ,jordan1 and the mountains of ,gilead1 and the rich plains of ,samaria1 and the grassy hills of ,galilee1 looking upon the faces and the ways of the common folk1 the labours of the husbandman in the field1 the vigils of the shepherd on the hillside1 the games of the children in the market-place1 and reaping ,the harvest of a quiet eye ,that broods and sleeps on his own heart4 ,four things1 ,i know1 are unchanged amid all the changes that have passed over the troubled and bewildered land4 ,the cities have sunken into dust3 the trees of the forest have fallen3 the nations have dissolved4 ,but the mountains keep their immutable outline3 the liquid stars shine with the same light1 move on the same pathways3 and between the mountains and the stars1 two other changeless things1 frail and imperishable1--the flowers that flood the earth in every springtide1 and the human heart where hopes and longings and affections and desires blossom immortally4 ,chiefly of these things1 and of ,him who gave them a new meaning1 ,i will speak to you1 reader1 if you care to go with me out-of-doors in the ,holy ,land4 ,,ii ,,moving ,,pictures ,of the voyage1 made with all the swiftness and directness of one who seeks the shortest distance between two points1 little remains in memory except a few moving pictures1 vivid and half-real1 as in a kinematograph4 ,first comes a long1 swift ship1 the ,deutschland1 quivering and rolling over the dull ,march waves of the ,atlantic4 ,then the morning sunlight streams on the jagged rocks of the ,lizard1 where two wrecked steamships are hanging1 and on the green headlands and gray fortresses of ,plymouth4 ,then a soft1 rosy sunset over the mole1 the dingy houses1 the tiled roofs1 the cliffs1 the misty-budded trees of ,cherbourg4 ,then ,paris at two in the morning3 the lower quarters still stirring with somnambulistic life1 the lines of lights twinkling placidly on the empty boulevards4 ,then a whirl through the ,bois in a motor-car1 a breakfast at ,versailles with a merry little party of friends1 a lazy walk through miles of picture-galleries without a guide-book or a care4 ,then the night express for ,italy1 a glimpse of the ,alps at sunrise1 snow all around us1 the thick darkness of the ,mount ,cenis tunnel1 the bright sunshine of ,italian spring1 terraced hillsides1 clipped and pollarded trees1 waking vineyards and gardens1 ,turin1 ,genoa1 ,rome1 arches of ruined aqueducts1 snow upon the ,southern ,apennines1 the blooming fields of ,capua1 umbrella-pines and silvery poplars1 and at last1 from my balcony at the hotel1 the glorious curving panorama of the bay of ,naples1 ,vesuvius without a cloud1 and ,capri like an azure lion couchant on the broad shield of the sea4 ,so ends the first series of films1 ten days from home4 99 99 99 99 99 ,after an intermission of twenty-four hours1 the second series begins on the white ship ,oceana1 an immense yacht1 ploughing through the tranquil1 sapphire ,mediterranean1 with ten passengers on board1 and the band playing three times a day just as usual4 ,then comes the low line of the ,african coast1 the lighthouse of ,alexandria1 the top of ,pompey's ,pillar showing over the white1 modern city4 ,half a dozen little rowboats meet us1 well out at sea1 buffeted and tossed by the waves3 they are fishing3 see6 one of the men has a strike1 he pulls in his trolling-line1 hand over hand1 very slowly1 it seems1 as the steamship rushes by4 ,i lean over the side1 run to the stern of the ship to watch1--hurrah1 he pulls in a silvery fish nearly three feet long4 ,good luck to you1 my ,egyptian brother of the angle6 ,now a glimpse of the crowded1 busy harbour of ,alexandria1 7recalling memories of fourteen years ago17 and a leisurely trans-shipment to the little ,khedivial steamer1 ,prince ,abbas1 with her ,scotch officers1 ,italian stewards1 ,maltese doctor1 ,turkish sailors1 and freight-handlers who come from whatever places it has pleased ,heaven they should be born in4 ,the freight is variegated1 and the third-class passengers are a motley crowd4 ,a glance at the forward main-deck shows ,egyptians in white cotton1 and ,turks in the red fez1 and ,arabs in white and brown1 and coal-black ,soudanese1 and nondescript ,levantines1 and ,russians in fur coats and lamb's-wool caps1 and ,greeks in blue embroidered jackets1 and women in baggy trousers and black veils1 and babies1 and cats1 and parrots4 ,here is a tall1 venerable grandfather1 with spectacles and a long gray beard1 dressed in a black robe with a hood and a yellow scarf2 grave1 patriarchal1 imperturbable3 his little granddaughter1 a pretty elf of a child1 with flower-like face and shining eyes1 dances hither and yon among the chaos of freight and luggage2 but as the chill of evening descends she takes shelter between his knees1 under the folds of his long robe1 and1 while he feeds her with bread and sweetmeats1 keeps up a running comment of remarks and laughter at all around her1 and the unspeakable solemnity of old ,father ,abraham's face is lit up1 now and then1 with the flicker of a resistless smile4 ,here are two bronzed ,arabs of the desert1 in striped burnoose and white kaftan1 stretched out for the night upon their rugs of many colours4 ,between them lies their latest purchase1 a brand-new patent carpet-sweeper1 made in ,ohio1 and going1 who knows where among the hills of ,bashan4 ,a child dies in the night1 on the voyage2 in the morning1 at anchor in the mouth of the ,suez ,canal1 we hear the carpenter hammering together a little pine coffin4 ,all day ,sunday the indescribable traffic of ,port ,sad passes around us2 ships of all nations coming and going2 a big ,german ,lloyd boat just home from ,india crowded with troops in khki1 band playing1 flags flying2 huge dredgers1 sombre1 oxlike-looking things1 with lines of incredibly dirty men in fluttering rags running up the gang-planks with bags of coal on their backs2 rowboats shuttling to and fro between the ships and the huddled1 transient1 modern town1 which is made up of curiosity shops1 hotels1 business houses and dens of iniquity2 a row of ,egyptian sail boats1 with high prows1 low sides1 long lateen yards1 ranged along the entrance to the canal4 ,at sunset we steam past the big statue of ,ferdinand de ,lesseps1 standing far out on the break-water and pointing back with a dramatic gesture to his world-transforming ditch4 ,then we go dancing over the yellow waves into the full moonlight toward ,palestine4 99 99 99 99 99 ,in the early morning ,i clamber on deck into a thunderstorm3 wild west wind1 rolling billows1 flying gusts of rain1 low clouds hanging over the sand-hills of the coast3 a harbourless shore1 far as eye can see1 a land that makes no concession to the ocean with bay or inlet1 but cries1 ,hitherto shalt thou come1 but no farther2 and here shall thy proud waves be stayed4 ,there are the flat-roofed houses1 and the orange groves1 and the minaret1 and the lighthouse of ,jaffa1 crowning its rounded hill of rock4 ,we are tossing at anchor a mile from the shore4 ,will the boats come out to meet us in this storm1 or must we go on to ,haif1 fifty miles beyond8 ,rumour says that the police have refused to permit the boats to put out4 ,but look1 here they come1 half a dozen open whale-boats1 each manned by a dozen lusty1 bare-legged1 brown rowers1 buffeting their way between the scattered rocks1 leaping high on the crested waves4 ,the chiefs of the crews scramble on board the steamer1 identify the passengers consigned to the different tourist-agencies1 sort out the baggage and lower it into the boats4 99 99 99 99 99 ,illustration3 ,jaffa4 ,the port where ,king ,solomon landed his cedar beams from ,lebanon for the building of the ,temple4 ,my tickets1 thus far1 have been provided by the great ,cook1 and ,i fall to the charge of his head boatman1 a dusky demon of energy4 ,a slippery climb down the swaying ladder1 a leap into the arms of two sturdy rowers1 a stumble over the wet thwarts1 and ,i find myself in the stern sheets of the boat4 ,a young ,dutchman follows with stolid suddenness4 ,two ,italian gentlemen1 weeping1 refuse to descend more than half-way1 climb back1 and are carried on to ,haif4 ,a ,german lady with a parrot in a cage comes next1 and her anxiety for the parrot makes her forget to be afraid4 ,then comes a little ,polish lady1 evidently a bride2 she shuts her eyes tight and drops into the boat1 pale1 silent1 resolved that she will not scream3 her husband follows1 equally pale1 and she clings indifferently to his hand and to mine1 her eyes still shut1 a pretty image of white courage4 ,the boat pushes off2 the rowers smite the waves with their long oars and sing ,halli--yallah--yah hallah2 the steersman high in the stern shouts unintelligible 7and1 ,i fear1 profane7 directions2 we are swept along on the tops of the waves1 between the foaming rocks1 drenched by spray and flying showers3 at last we bump alongside the little quay1 and climb out on the wet1 gliddery stones4 ,the kinematograph pictures are ended1 for ,i am in ,palestine1 on the first of ,april1 just fifteen days from home4 ,,iii ,,rendezvous ,will my friends be here to meet me1 ,i wonder8 ,this is the question which presses upon me more closely than anything else1 ,i must confess1 as ,i set foot for the first time upon the sacred soil of ,palestine4 ,i know that this is not as it should be4 ,all the conventions of travel require the pilgrim to experience a strange curiosity and excitement1 a profound emotion1 a supreme anguish1 as an ,italian writer describes it1 in approaching this land long dreamed about1 long waited for1 and almost despaired of4 ,but the conventions of travel do not always correspond to the realities of the heart4 ,your first sight of a place may not be your first perception of it3 that may come afterward1 in some quiet1 unexpected moment4 ,emotions do not follow a time-table2 and ,i propose to tell no lies in this book4 ,my strongest feeling as ,i enter ,jaffa is the desire to know whether my chosen comrades have come to the rendezvous at the appointed time1 to begin our long ride together4 ,it is a remote and uncertain combination1 ,i grant you4 ,the ,patriarch1 a tall1 slender youth of seventy years1 whose home is beside the ,golden ,gate of ,california1 was wandering among the ruins of ,sicily when ,i last heard from him4 ,the ,pastor and his wife1 the ,lady of ,walla ,walla1 who live on the shores of ,puget ,sound1 were riding camels across the peninsula of ,sinai and steamboating up the ,nile4 ,have the letters1 the cablegrams that were sent to them been safely delivered8 ,have the hundreds of unknown elements upon which our combination depended been working secretly together for its success8 ,has our proposal been according to the supreme disposal1 and have all the roads been kept clear by which we were hastening from three continents to meet on the first day of ,april at the ,hotel du ,parc in ,jaffa8 ,yes1 here are my three friends1 in the quaint little garden of the hotel1 with its purple-flowering vines of ,bougainvillea1 fragrant orange-trees1 drooping palms1 and long-tailed cockatoos drowsing on their perches4 ,when people really know each other an unfamiliar meeting-place lends a singular intimacy and joy to the meeting4 ,there is a surprise in it1 no matter how long and carefully it has been planned4 ,there are a thousand things to talk of1 but at first nothing will come except the wonder of getting together4 ,the sight of the desired faces1 unchanged beneath their new coats of tan1 is a happy assurance that personality is not a dream4 ,the touch of warm hands is a sudden proof that friendship is a reality4 ,presently it begins to dawn upon us that there is something wonderful in the place of our conjunction1 and we realise dimly1--very dimly1 ,i am sure1 and yet with a certain vague emotion of reverence1--where we are4 ,we came yesterday1 says the ,lady1 and in the afternoon we went to see the ,house of ,simon the ,tanner1 where they say the ,apostle ,peter lodged4 ,did it look like the real house8 ,ah1 she answers smilingly1 how do ,i know8 ,they say there are two of them4 ,but what do ,i care8 ,it is certain that we are here4 ,and ,i think that ,st4 ,peter was here once1 too1 whether the house he lived in is standing yet1 or not4 ,yes1 that is reasonably certain2 and this is the place where he had his strange vision of a religion meant for all sorts and conditions of men4 ,it is certain1 also1 that this is the port where ,solomon landed his beams of cedar from ,lebanon for the building of the ,temple1 and that the ,emperor ,vespasian sacked the town1 and that ,richard ,lionheart planted the banner of the crusade upon its citadel4 ,but how far away and dreamlike it all seems1 on this spring morning1 when the wind is tossing the fronds of the palm-trees1 and the gleams of sunshine are flying across the garden1 and the last clouds of the broken thunderstorm are racing westward through the blue toward the highlands of ,judea4 ,here is our new friend1 the dragoman ,george ,cavalcanty1 known as ,telhami1 the ,bethlehemite1 standing beside us in the shelter of the orange-trees3 a trim1 alert figure1 in his belted suit of khki and his riding-boots of brown leather4 ,is everything ready for the journey1 ,george8 ,everything is prepared1 according to the instructions you sent from ,avalon4 ,the tents are pitched a little beyond ,latrn1 twenty miles away4 ,the horses are waiting at ,ramleh4 ,after you have had your mid-day breakfast1 we will drive there in carriages1 and get into the saddle1 and ride to our own camp before the night falls4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,the ,,distant ,,road ,happy is the man that seeth the face of a friend in a far country3 ,the darkness of his heart is melted in the rising of an inward joy4 ,it is like the sound of music heard long ago and half forgotten3 ,it is like the coming back of birds to a wood that winter hath made bare4 ,i knew not the sweetness of the fountain till ,i found it flowing in the desert3 ,nor the value of a friend till the meeting in a lonely land4 ,the multitude of mankind had bewildered me and oppressed me3 ,and ,i said to ,god1 ,why hast thou made the world so wide8 ,but when my friend came the wideness of the world had no more terror3 ,because we were glad together among men who knew us not4 ,i was slowly reading a book that was written in a strange language3 ,and suddenly ,i came upon a page in mine own familiar tongue4 ,this was the heart of my friend that quietly understood me3 ,the open heart whose meaning was clear without a word4 ,o my ,god whose love followeth all thy pilgrims and strangers3 ,i praise thee for the comfort of comrades on a distant road4 ,,ii ,,going ,,up ,,to ,,jerusalem ,i ,,the ,,excellency ,,of ,,sharon ,you understand that what we had before us in this first stage of our journey was a very simple proposition4 ,the distance from ,jaffa to ,jerusalem is fifty miles by railway and forty miles by carriage-road4 ,thousands of pilgrims and tourists travel it every year2 and most of them now go by the train in about four hours1 with advertised stoppages of three minutes at ,lydda1 eight minutes at ,ramleh1 ten minutes at ,sejed1 and unadvertised delays at the convenience of the engine4 ,but we did not wish to get our earliest glimpse of ,palestine from a car-window1 nor to begin our travels in a mechanical way4 ,the first taste of a journey often flavours it to the very end4 ,the old highroad1 which is now much less frequented than formerly1 is very fair as far as ,ramleh2 and beyond that it is still navigable for vehicles1 though somewhat broken and billowy4 ,our plan1 therefore1 was to drive the first ten miles1 where the road was flat and uninteresting1 and then ride the rest of the way4 ,this would enable us to avoid the advertised rapidity and the uncertain delays of the railway1 and bring us quietly through the hills1 about the close of the second day1 to the gates of ,jerusalem4 ,the two victorias rattled through the streets of ,jaffa1 past the low1 flat-topped ,oriental houses1 the queer little open shops1 the orange-groves in full bloom1 the palm-trees waving their plumes over garden-walls1 and rolled out upon the broad highroad across the fertile1 gently undulating ,plain of ,sharon4 ,on each side were the neat1 well-cultivated fields and vegetable-gardens of the ,german colonists belonging to the sect of the ,templers4 ,they are a people of antique theology and modern agriculture4 ,believing that the real ,christianity is to be found in the ,old ,testament rather than in the ,new1 they propose to begin the social and religious reformation of the world by a return to the programme of the ,minor ,prophets4 ,but meantime they conduct their farming operations in a very profitable way4 ,their grain-fields1 their fruit-orchards1 their vegetable-gardens are trim and orderly1 and they make an excellent wine1 which they call ,the ,treasure of ,zion4 ,their effect upon the landscape1 however1 is conventional4 ,but in spite of the presence and prosperity of the ,templers1 the spirit of the scene through which we passed was essentially ,oriental4 ,the straggling hedges of enormous cactus1 the rows of plumy eucalyptus-trees1 the budding figs and mulberries1 gave it a semi-tropical touch and along the highway we encountered fragments of the leisurely1 dishevelled1 dignified ,east3 grotesque camels1 pensive donkeys carrying incredible loads1 flocks of fat-tailed sheep and lop-eared goats1 bronzed peasants in flowing garments1 and white-robed women with veiled faces4 ,beneath the tall tower of the forty martyrs at ,ramleh 7,mohammedan or ,christian1 their names are forgotten7 we left the carriages1 loaded our luggage on the three pack-mules1 mounted our saddle-horses1 and rode on across the plain1 one of the fruitful gardens and historic battle-fields of the world4 ,here the hosts of the ,israelites and the ,philistines1 the ,egyptians and the ,romans1 the ,persians and the ,arabs1 the ,crusaders and the ,saracens1 have marched and contended4 ,but as we passed through the sun-showers and rain-showers of an ,april afternoon1 all was tranquillity and beauty on every side4 ,the rolling fields were embroidered with innumerable flowers4 ,the narcissus1 the rose of ,sharon1 had faded4 ,but the little blue lilies-of-the-valley were there1 and the pink and saffron mallows1 and the yellow and white daisies1 and the violet and snow of the drooping cyclamen1 and the gold of the genesta1 and the orange-red of the pimpernel1 and1 most beautiful of all1 the glowing scarlet of the numberless anemones4 ,wide acres of young wheat and barley glistened in the light1 as the wind-waves rippled through their short1 silken blades4 ,there were few trees1 except now and then an olive-orchard or a round-topped carob with its withered pods4 ,illustration3 ,the ,tall ,tower of the ,forty ,martyrs at ,ramleh4 ,the highlands of ,judea lay stretched out along the eastern horizon1 a line of azure and amethystine heights1 changing colour and seeming almost to breathe and move as the cloud shadows fleeted over them1 and reaching away northward and southward as far as eye could see4 ,rugged and treeless1 save for a clump of oaks or terebinths planted here or there around some ,mohammedan saint's tomb1 they would have seemed forbidding but that their slopes were clothed with the tender herbage of spring1 their outlines varied with deep valleys and blue gorges1 and all their mighty bulwarks jewelled right royally with the opalescence of sunset4 ,in a hollow of the green plain to the left we could see the white houses and the yellow church tower of ,lydda1 the supposed burial-place of ,saint ,george of ,cappadocia1 who killed the dragon and became the patron saint of ,england4 ,on a conical hill to the right shone the tents of the ,scotch explorer who is excavating the ancient city of ,gezer1 which was the dowry of ,pharaoh's daughter when she married ,king ,solomon4 ,city1 did ,i say8 ,at least four cities are packed one upon another in that grassy mound1 the oldest going back to the flint age2 and yet if you should examine their site and measure their ruins1 you would feel sure that none of them could ever have amounted to anything more than what we should call a poor little town4 ,it came upon us gently but irresistibly that afternoon1 as we rode easily across the land of the ,philistines in a few hours1 that we had never really read the ,old ,testament as it ought to be read1--as a book written in an ,oriental atmosphere1 filled with the glamour1 the imagery1 the magniloquence of the ,east4 ,unconsciously we had been reading it as if it were a collection of documents produced in ,heidelberg1 ,germany1 or in ,boston1 ,massachusetts3 precise1 literal1 scientific4 ,we had been imagining the ,philistines as a mighty nation1 and their land as a vast territory filled with splendid cities and ruled by powerful monarchs4 ,we had been trying to understand and interpret the stories of their conflict with ,israel as if they had been written by a ,western war-correspondent1 careful to verify all his statistics and meticulous in the exact description of all his events4 ,this view of things melted from us with a gradual surprise as we realised that the more deeply we entered into the poetry1 the closer we should come to the truth1 of the narrative4 ,its moral and religious meaning is firm and steadfast as the mountains round about ,jerusalem2 but even as those mountains rose before us glorified1 uplifted1 and bejewelled by the vague splendours of the sunset1 so the form of the history was enlarged and its colours irradiated by the figurative spirit of the ,east4 ,there at our feet1 bathed in the beauty of the evening air1 lay the ,valley of ,aijalon1 where ,joshua fought with the five kings of the ,amorites1 and broke them and chased them4 ,the kings were head-men of scattered villages1 chiefs of fierce and ragged tribes4 ,but the fighting was hard1 and as ,joshua led his wild clansmen down upon them from the ascent of ,beth-horon1 he feared the day might be too short to win the victory4 ,so he cheered the hearts of his men with an old war-song from the ,book of ,jasher4 ,sun1 stand thou still upon ,gibeon2 ,and thou1 moon1 in the ,valley of ,aijalon4 ,and the sun stood still1 and the moon stayed1 ,until the nation had avenged themselves of their enemies4 ,does any one suppose that this is intended to teach us that the sun moves and that on this day his course was arrested8 ,must we believe that the whole solar system was dislocated for the sake of this battle8 ,to understand the story thus is to misunderstand its vital spirit4 ,it is poetry1 imagination1 heroism4 ,by the new courage that came into the hearts of ,israel with their leader's song1 the ,lord shortened the conflict to fit the day1 and the sunset and the moonrise saw the ,valley of ,aijalon swept clean of ,israel's foes4 ,as we passed through the wretched1 mud-built village of ,latrn 7said to be the birthplace of the ,penitent ,thief71 a dozen long-robed ,arabs were earnestly discussing some question of municipal interest in the grassy market-place4 ,they were as grave as the storks1 in their solemn plumage of black and white1 which were parading philosophically along the edge of a marsh to our right4 ,a couple of jackals slunk furtively across the road ahead of us in the dusk4 ,a kafila of long-necked camels undulated over the plain4 ,the shadows fell more heavily over cactus-hedge and olive-orchard as we turned down the hill4 ,in the valley night had come4 ,the large1 trembling stars were strewn through the vault above us1 and rested on the dim ridges of the mountains1 and shone reflected in the puddles of the long road like fallen jewels4 ,the lights of ,latrn1 if it had any1 were already out of sight behind us4 ,our horses were weary and began to stumble4 ,where was the camp8 ,look1 there is a light1 bobbing along the road toward us4 ,it is ,youssouf1 our faithful major-domo1 come out with a lantern to meet us4 ,a few rods farther through the mud1 and we turn a corner beside an acacia hedge and the ruined arch of an ancient well4 ,there1 in a little field of flowers1 close to the tiniest of brooks1 our tents are waiting for us with open doors4 ,the candles are burning on the table4 ,the rugs are spread and the beds are made4 ,the dinner-table is laid for four1 and there is a bright bunch of flowers in the middle of it4 ,we have seen the excellency of ,sharon and the moon is shining for us on the ,valley of ,aijalon4 ,,ii ,,the ,,strength ,,of ,,the ,,hills ,it is no hardship to rise early in camp4 ,at the windows of a house the daylight often knocks as an unwelcome messenger1 rousing the sleeper with a sudden call4 ,but through the roof and the sides of a tent it enters gently and irresistibly1 embracing you with soft arms1 laying rosy touches on your eyelids2 and while your dream fades you know that you are awake and it is already day4 ,as we lift the canvas curtains and come out of our pavilions1 the sun is just topping the eastern hills1 and all the field around us glittering with immense drops of dew4 ,on the top of the ruined arch beside the camp our ,arab watchman1 hired from the village of ,latrn as we passed1 is still perched motionless1 wrapped in his flowing rags1 holding his long gun across his knees4 ,salm 'aleikum1 y ghafr6 ,i say1 and though my ,arabic is doubtless astonishingly bad1 he knows my meaning2 for he answers gravely1 ',aleikum essalm6--,and with you be peace6 ,it is indeed a peaceful day in which our journey to ,jerusalem is completed4 ,leaving the tents and impedimenta in charge of ,youssouf and ,shukari the cook1 and the muleteers1 we are in the saddle by seven o'clock1 and riding into the narrow entrance of the ,wdi ',ali4 ,it is a long1 steep valley leading into the heart of the hills4 ,the sides are ribbed with rocks1 among which the cyclamens grow in profusion4 ,a few olives are scattered along the bottom of the vale1 and at the tomb of the ,imm ',ali there is a grove of large trees4 ,at the summit of the pass we rest for half an hour1 to give our horses a breathing-space1 and to refresh our eyes with the glorious view westward over the tumbled country of the ,shephelah1 the opalescent ,plain of ,sharon1 the sand-hills of the coast1 and the broad blue of the ,mediterranean4 ,northward and southward and eastward the rocky summits and ridges of ,judea roll away4 ,now we understand what the ,psalmist means by ascribing the strength of the hills to ,jehovah2 and a new light comes into the song3 ,as the mountains are round about ,jerusalem1 ,so ,jehovah is round about his people4 ,these natural walls and terraces of gray limestone have the air of antique fortifications and watch-towers of the border4 ,they are truly munitions of rocks4 ,chariots and horsemen could find no field for their manoeuvres in this broken and perpendicular country4 ,entangled in these deep and winding valleys by which they must climb up from the plain1 the invaders would be at the mercy of the light infantry of the highlands1 who would roll great stones upon them as they passed through the narrow defiles1 and break their ranks by fierce and sudden downward rushes as they toiled panting up the steep hillsides4 ,it was this strength of the hills that the children of ,israel used for the defence of ,jerusalem1 and by this they were able to resist and defy the ,philistines1 whom they could never wholly conquer4 ,yonder on the hillside1 as we ride onward1 we see a reminder of that old tribal warfare between the people of the highlands and the people of the plains4 ,that gray village1 perched upon a rocky ridge above thick olive-orchards and a deliciously green valley1 is the ancient ,kirjath-,jearim1 where the ,ark of ,jehovah was hidden for twenty years1 after the ,philistines had sent back this perilous trophy of their victory over the sons of ,eli1 being terrified by the pestilence and disaster that followed its possession4 ,the men of ,beth-shemesh1 to whom it was first returned1 were afraid to keep it1 because they also had been smitten with death when they dared to peep into this dreadful box4 ,but the men of ,kirjath-,jearim were at once bolder and wiser1 so they came and fetched up the ,ark of ,jehovah1 and brought it into the house of ,abinadab in the hill1 and set apart ,eleazar1 his son1 to keep the ,ark of ,jehovah4 ,what strange vigils in that little hilltop cottage where the young man watches over this precious1 dangerous1 gilded coffer1 while ,saul is winning and losing his kingdom in a turmoil of blood and sorrow and madness1 forgetful of ,israel's covenant with the ,most ,high6 ,at last comes ,king ,david1 from his newly won stronghold of ,zion1 seeking eagerly for this lost symbol of the people's faith4 ,lo1 we heard of it at ,ephratah2 we found it in the field of the wood4 ,so the gray stone cottage on the hilltop gave up its sacred treasure1 and ,david carried it away with festal music and dancing4 ,but was ,eleazar glad1 ,i wonder1 or sorry1 that his long vigil was ended8 ,to part from a care is sometimes like losing a friend4 ,i confess that it is difficult to make these ancient stories of peril and adventure1 7or even the modern history of ,abu ,ghsh the robber-chief of this village a hundred years ago71 seem real to us to-day4 ,everything around us is so safe and tranquil1 and1 in spite of its novelty1 so familiar4 ,the road descends steeply with long curves and windings into the ,wdi ,beit ,hanna4 ,we meet and greet many travellers1 on horseback1 in carriages and afoot1 natives and pilgrims1 ,german colonists1 ,french priests1 ,italian monks1 ,english tourists and explorers4 ,it is a pleasant game to guess from an approaching pilgrim's looks whether you should salute him with ,guten ,morgen1 or ,buon' ,giorno1 or ,bon jour1 m'sieur4 ,the country people answer your salutation with a pretty phrase3 ,nehrak sad umubrak--,may your day be happy and blessed4 ,at ,kalniyeh1 in the bottom of the valley1 there is a prosperous settlement of ,german ,jews2 and the gardens and orchards are flourishing4 ,there is also a little wayside inn1 a rude stone building1 with a terrace around it2 and there1 with apricots and plums blossoming beside us1 we eat our lunch al fresco1 and watch our long pack-train1 with the camp and baggage1 come winding down the hill and go tinkling past us toward ,jerusalem4 ,the place is very friendly2 we are in no haste to leave it4 ,a few miles to the southward1 sheltered in the lap of a rounding hill1 we can see the tall cypress-trees and quiet gardens of ',ain ,karm1 the village where ,john the ,baptist was born4 ,it has a singular air of attraction1 seen from a distance1 and one of the sweetest stories in the world is associated with it4 ,for it was there that the young bride ,mary visited her older cousin ,elizabeth1--you remember the exquisite picture of the ,visitation by ,albertinelli in the ,uffizi at ,florence1--and the joy of coming motherhood in these two women's hearts spoke from each to each like a bell and its echo4 ,would the birth of ,jesus1 the character of ,jesus1 have been possible unless there had been the virginal and expectant soul of such a woman as ,mary1 ready to welcome ,his coming with her song8 ,my soul doth magnify the ,lord1 and my spirit hath rejoiced in ,god my ,saviour4 ,does not the advent of a higher manhood always wait for the hope and longing of a nobler womanhood8 ,the chiming of the bells of ,st4 ,john floats faintly and silverly across the valley as we leave the shelter of the wayside rest-house and mount for the last stage of our upward journey4 ,the road ascends steeply4 ,nestled in the ravine to our left is the grizzled and dilapidated village of ,lift1 a town with an evil reputation4 ,these people sold all their land1 says ,george the dragoman1 twenty years ago1 sold all the fields1 gardens1 olive-groves4 ,now they are dirty and lazy in that village1--all thieves6 ,over the crest of the hill the red-tiled roofs of the first houses of ,jerusalem are beginning to appear4 ,they are houses of mercy1 it seems3 one an asylum for the insane1 the other a home for the aged poor4 ,passing them1 we come upon schools and hospital buildings and other evidences of the charity of the ,rothschilds toward their own people4 ,all around us are villas and consulates1 and rows of freshly built houses for ,jewish colonists4 ,this is not at all the way that we had imagined to ourselves the first sight of the ,holy ,city4 ,all here is half-,european1 unromantic1 not very picturesque4 ,it may not be the ,new ,jerusalem1 but it is certainly a modern ,jerusalem4 ,here1 in these comfortably commonplace dwellings1 is almost half the present population of the city2 and rows of new houses are rising on every side4 ,but look down the southward-sloping road4 ,there is the sight that you have imagined and longed to see3 the brown battlements1 the white-washed houses1 the flat roofs1 the slender minarets1 the many-coloured domes of the ancient city of ,david1 and ,solomon1 and ,hezekiah1 and ,herod1 and ,omar1 and ,godfrey1 and ,saladin1--but never of ,christ4 ,that great black dome is the ,church of the ,holy ,sepulchre4 ,the one beyond it is the ,mosque of ,omar4 ,those golden bulbs and pinnacles beyond the city are the ,greek ,church of ,saint ,mary ,magdalen on the side of the ,mount of ,olives2 and on the top of the lofty ridge rises the great pointed tower of the ,russians from which a huge bell booms out a deep-toned note of welcome4 ,on every side we see the hospices and convents and churches and palaces of the different sects of ,christendom4 ,the streets are full of people and carriages and beasts of burden4 ,the dust rises around us4 ,we are tired with the trab1 trab1 trab of our horses' feet upon the hard highroad4 ,let us not go into the confusion of the city1 but ride quietly down to the left into a great olive-grove1 outside the ,damascus ,gate4 ,here our white tents are pitched among the trees1 with the dear flag of our home flying over them4 ,here we shall find leisure and peace to unite our hearts1 and bring our thoughts into tranquil harmony1 before we go into the bewildering city4 ,here the big stars will look kindly down upon us through the silvery leaves1 and the sounds of human turmoil and contention will not trouble us4 ,the distant booming of the bell on the ,mount of ,olives will mark the night-hours for us1 and the long-drawn plaintive call of the muezzin from the minaret of the little mosque at the edge of the grove will wake us to the sunrise4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,the ,,welcome ,,tent ,this is the thanksgiving of the weary3 ,the song of him that is ready to rest4 ,it is good to be glad when the day is declining3 ,and the setting of the sun is like a word of peace4 ,the stars look kindly on the close of a journey3 ,the tent says welcome when the day's march is done4 ,for now is the time of the laying down of burdens3 ,and the cool hour cometh to them that have borne the heat4 ,i have rejoiced greatly in labour and adventure3 ,my heart hath been enlarged in the spending of my strength4 ,now it is all gone yet ,i am not impoverished3 ,for thus only may ,i inherit the treasure of repose4 ,blessed be the ,lord that teacheth my hands to unclose and my fingers to loosen3 ,he also giveth comfort to the feet that are washed from the dust of the way4 ,blessed be the ,lord that maketh my meat at nightfall savoury3 ,and filleth my evening cup with the wine of good cheer4 ,blessed be the ,lord that maketh me happy to be quiet3 ,even as a child that cometh softly to his mother's lap4 ,o ,god thou faintest not neither is thy strength worn away with labour3 ,but it is good for us to be weary that we may obtain thy gift of rest4 ,,iii ,,the ,,gates ,,of ,,zion ,i ,a ,,city ,,that ,,is ,,set ,,on ,a ,,hill ,out of the medley of our first impressions of ,jerusalem one fact emerges like an island from the sea3 it is a city that is lifted up4 ,no river2 no harbour2 no encircling groves and gardens2 a site so lonely and so lofty that it breathes the very spirit of isolation and proud self-reliance4 ,beautiful in elevation1 the joy of the whole earth ,is ,mount ,zion1 on the sides of the north ,the city of the great ,king4 ,thus sang the ,hebrew poet2 and his song1 like all true poetry1 has the accuracy of the clearest vision4 ,for this is precisely the one beauty that crowns ,jerusalem3 the beauty of a high place and all that belongs to it3 clear sky1 refreshing air1 a fine outlook1 and that indefinable sense of exultation that comes into the heart of man when he climbs a little nearer to the stars4 ,twenty-five hundred feet above the level of the sea is not a great height2 but ,i can think of no other ancient and world-famous city that stands as high4 ,along the mountainous plateau of ,judea1 between the sea-coast plain of ,philistia and the sunken valley of the ,jordan1 there is a line of sacred sites1--,bersheba1 ,hebron1 ,bethlehem1 ,bethel1 ,shiloh1 ,shechem4 ,each of them marks the place where a town grew up around an altar4 ,the central link in this chain of shrine-cities is ,jerusalem4 ,her form and outline1 her relation to the landscape and to the land1 are unchanged from the days of her greatest glory4 ,the splendours of her ,temple and her palaces1 the glitter of her armies1 the rich colour and glow of her abounding wealth1 have vanished4 ,but though her garments are frayed and weather-worn1 though she is an impoverished and dusty queen1 she still keeps her proud position and bearing2 and as you approach her by the ancient road along the ridges of ,judea you see substantially what ,sennacherib1 and ,nebuchadnezzar1 and the ,roman ,titus must have seen4 ,the sides of the north slope gently down to the huge gray wall of the city1 with its many towers and gates4 ,within those bulwarks1 which are thirty-eight feet high and two and a half miles in circumference1 ,jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together1 covering with her huddled houses and crooked1 narrow streets1 the two or three rounded hills and shallow depressions in which the northern plateau terminates4 ,south and east and west1 the valley of the ,brook ,kidron and the ,valley of ,himmon surround the city wall with a dry moat three or four hundred feet deep4 ,imagine the knuckles of a clenched fist1 extended toward the south3 that is the site of ,jerusalem1 impregnable1 7at least in ancient warfare71 from all sides except the north1 where the wrist joins it to the higher tableland4 ,this northern approach1 open to ,assyria1 and ,babylon1 and ,damascus1 and ,persia1 and ,greece1 and ,rome1 has always been the weak point of ,jerusalem4 ,she was no unassailable fortress of natural strength1 but a city lifted up1 a lofty shrine1 whose refuge and salvation were in ,jehovah1--in the faith1 the loyalty1 the courage which flowed into the heart of her people from their religion4 ,when these failed1 she fell4 ,jerusalem is no longer1 and never again will be1 the capital of an earthly kingdom4 ,but she is still one of the high places of the world1 exalted in the imagination and the memory of ,jews and ,christians and ,mohammedans1 a metropolis of infinite human hopes and longings and devotions4 ,hither come the innumerable companies of foot-weary pilgrims1 climbing the steep roads from the sea-coast1 from the ,jordan1 from ,bethlehem1--pilgrims who seek the place of the ,crucifixion1 pilgrims who would weep beside the walls of their vanished ,temple1 pilgrims who desire to pray where ,mohammed prayed4 ,century after century these human throngs have assembled from far countries and toiled upward to this open1 lofty plateau1 where the ancient city rests upon the top of the closed hand1 and where the ever-changing winds from the desert and the sea sweep and shift over the rocky hilltops1 the mute1 gray battlements1 and the domes crowned with the cross1 the crescent1 and the star4 ,the wind bloweth where it will1 and thou hearest the voice thereof1 but knowest not whence it cometh1 nor whither it goeth2 so is every one that is born of the ,spirit4 ,the mystery of the heart of mankind1 the spiritual airs that breathe through it1 the desires and aspirations that impel men in their journeyings1 the common hopes that bind them together in companies1 the fears and hatreds that array them in warring hosts1--there is no place in the world to-day where you can feel all this so deeply1 so inevitably1 so overwhelmingly1 as at the ,gates of ,zion4 ,it is a feeling of confusion1 at first3 a bewildering sense of something vast and old and secret1 speaking many tongues1 taking many forms1 yet never fully revealing its source and its meaning4 ,the ,jews1 ,mohammedans1 and ,christians who flock to those gates are alike in their sincerity1 in their devotion1 in the spirit of sacrifice that leads them on their pilgrimage4 ,among them all there are hypocrites and bigots1 doubtless1 but there are also earnest and devout souls1 seeking something that is higher than themselves1 a city set upon a hill4 ,why do they not understand one another8 ,why do they fight and curse one another8 ,do they not all come to humble themselves1 to pray1 to seek the light8 ,dark walls that embrace so many tear-stained1 blood-stained1 holy and dishonoured shrines6 ,and you1 narrow and gloomy gates1 through whose portals so many myriads of mankind have passed with their swords1 their staves1 their burdens and their palm-branches6 ,what songs of triumph you have heard1 what yells of battle-rage1 what moanings of despair1 what murmurs of hopes and gratitude1 what cries of anguish1 what bursts of careless1 happy laughter1--all borne upon the wind that bloweth where it will across these bare and rugged heights4 ,we will not seek to enter yet into the mysteries that you hide4 ,we will tarry here for a while in the open sunlight1 where the cool breeze of ,april stirs the olive-groves outside the ,damascus ,gate4 ,we will tranquillize our thoughts1--perhaps we may even find them growing clearer and surer1--among the simple cares and pleasures that belong to the life of every day2 the life which must have food when it is hungry1 and rest when it is weary1 and a shelter from the storm and the night2 the life of those who are all strangers and sojourners upon the earth1 and whose richest houses and strongest cities are1 after all1 but a little longer-lasting tents and camps4 ,,ii ,,the ,,camp ,,in ,,the ,,olive-,,grove ,the place of our encampment is peaceful and friendly1 without being remote or secluded4 ,the grove is large and free from all undergrowth3 the trunks of the ancient olive-trees are gnarled and massive1 the foliage soft and tremulous4 ,the corner that ,george has chosen for us is raised above the road by a kind of terrace1 so that it is not too easily accessible to the curious passer-by4 ,across the road we see a gray stone wall1 and above it the roof of the ,anglican ,bishop's house1 and the schools1 from which a sound of shrill young voices shouting in play or chanting in unison rises at intervals through the day4 ,the ground on which we stand is slightly furrowed with the little ridges of last year's ploughing3 but it has not yet been broken this spring1 and it is covered with millions of infinitesimal flowers1 blue and purple and yellow and white1 like tiny pansies run wild4 ,the four tents1 each circular and about fifteen feet in diameter1 are arranged in a crescent4 ,the one nearest to the road is for the kitchen and service2 there ,shukari1 our ,maronite chef1 in his white cap and apron1 turns out an admirable six-course dinner on a portable charcoal range not three feet square4 ,around the door of this tent there is much coming and going3 edibles of all kinds are brought for sale2 visitors squat in sociable conversation2 curious children hang about1 watching the proceedings1 or waiting for the favours which a good cook can bestow4 ,the next tent is the dining-room2 the huge wooden chests of the canteen1 full of glass and china and table-linen and new ,britannia-ware1 which shines like silver1 are placed one on each side of the entrance2 behind the central tent-pole stands the dining-table1 with two chairs at the back and one at each end1 so that we can all enjoy the view through the open door4 ,the tent is lofty and lined with many-coloured cotton cloth1 arranged in elaborate patterns1 scarlet and green and yellow and blue4 ,when the four candles are lighted on the well-spread table1 and ,youssouf the ,greek1 in his embroidered jacket and baggy blue breeches1 comes in to serve the dinner1 it is quite an ,oriental scene4 ,his assistant1 ,little ,youssouf1 the ,copt1 squats outside of the tent1 at one side of the door1 to wash up the dishes and polish the ,britannia-ware4 ,the two other tents are of the same pattern and the same gaudy colours within3 each of them contains two little iron bedsteads1 two ,turkish rugs1 two washstands1 one dressing-table1 and such baggage as we had imagined necessary for our comfort1 piled around the tent-pole1--this by way of precaution1 lest some misguided hand should be tempted to slip under the canvas at night and abstract an unconsidered trifle lying near the edge of the tent4 ,of our own men ,i must say that we never had a suspicion1 either of their honesty or of their good-humour4 ,not only the four who had most immediately to do with us1 but also the two chief muleteers1 ,mohammed ',ali and ,mosa1 and the songful boy1 ,mohammed el ,nsan1 who warbled an interminable ,arabian ditty all day long1 and ,fris and the two other assistants1 were models of fidelity and willing service4 ,they did not quarrel 7except once1 over the division of the mule-loads1 in the mountains of ,gilead72 they got us into no difficulties and subjected us to no blackmail from humbugging ,bedouin chiefs4 ,they are of a picturesque motley in costume and of a bewildering variety in creed--,anglican1 ,catholic1 ,coptic1 ,maronite1 ,greek1 ,mohammedan1 and one of whom the others say that he belongs to no religion1 but sings beautiful ,persian songs4 ,yet1 so far as we are concerned1 they all do the things they ought to do and leave undone the things they ought not to do1 and their way with us is peace4 ,much of this1 no doubt1 is due to the wisdom1 tact1 and firmness of ,george the ,bethlehemite1 the best of dragomans4 ,we have many visitors at the camp1 but none unwelcome4 ,the ,american ,consul1 a genial scholar who knows ,palestine by heart and has made valuable contributions to the archology of ,jerusalem1 comes with his wife to dine with us in the open air4 ,george's gentle wife and his two bright little boys1 ,howard and ,robert1 are with us often4 ,missionaries come to tell us of their labours and trials4 ,an ,arab hunter1 with his long flintlock musket1 brings us beautiful gray partridges which he has shot among the near-by hills4 ,the stable-master comes day after day with strings of horses galloping through the grove2 for our first mounts were not to our liking1 and we are determined not to start on our longer ride until we have found steeds that suit us4 ,peasants from the country round about bring all sorts of things to sell--vegetables1 and lambs1 and pigeons1 and old coins1 and embroidered caps4 ,there are two men ploughing in a vineyard behind the camp1 beyond the edge of the grove4 ,the plough is a crooked stick of wood which scratches the surface of the earth4 ,the vines are lying flat on the ground1 still leafless1 closely pruned3 they look like big black snakes4 ,women of the city1 dressed in black and blue silks1 with black mantles over their heads1 come out in the afternoon to picnic among the trees4 ,they sit in little circles on the grass1 smoking cigarettes and eating sweetmeats4 ,if they see us looking at them they draw the corners of their mantles across the lower part of their faces2 but when they think themselves unobserved they drop their veils and regard us curiously with lustrous brown eyes4 ,one morning a procession of rustic women and girls1 singing with shrill voices1 pass the camp on their way to the city to buy the bride's clothes for a wedding4 ,at nightfall they return singing yet more loudly1 and accompanied by men and boys firing guns into the air and shouting4 ,another day a crowd of villagers go by4 ,their old ,sheikh rides in the midst of them1 with his white-and-gold turban1 his long gray beard1 his flowing robes of rich silk4 ,he is mounted on a splendid white ,arab horse1 with arched neck and flaunting tail2 and a beautiful1 gaily dressed little boy rides behind him with both arms clasped around the old man's waist4 ,they are going up to the city for the ,mohammedan rite of circumcision4 ,later in the day a ,jewish funeral comes hurrying through the grove3 some twenty or thirty men in flat caps trimmed with fur and gabardines of cotton velvet1 purple1 or yellow1 or pink1 chanting psalms as they march1 with the body of the dead man wrapped in linen cloth and carried on a rude bier on their shoulders4 ,they seem in haste1 7because the hour is late and the burial must be made before sunset71 perhaps a little indifferent1 or almost joyful4 ,certainly there is no sign of grief in their looks or their voices2 for among them it is counted a fortunate thing to die in the ,holy ,city and to be buried on the southern slope of the ,valley of ,jehoshaphat1 where ,gabriel is to blow his trumpet for the resurrection4 ,,iii ,,in ,,the ,,streets ,,of ,,jerusalem ,outside the gates we ride1 for the roads which encircle the city wall and lead off to the north and south and east and west1 are fairly broad and smooth4 ,but within the gates we walk1 for the streets are narrow1 steep and slippery1 and to attempt them on horseback is to travel with an anxious mind4 ,through the ,jaffa ,gate1 indeed1 you may easily ride1 or even drive in your carriage3 not through the gateway itself1 which is a close and crooked alley1 but through the great gap in the wall beside it1 made for the ,german ,emperor to pass through at the time of his famous imperial scouting-expedition in ,syria in #ahih4 ,thus following the track of the great ,william you come to the entrance of the ,grand ,new ,hotel1 among curiosity-shops and tourist-agencies1 where a multitude of bootblacks assure you that you need a shine1 and valets de place press their services upon you1 and ingratiating young merchants try to allure you into their establishments to purchase photographs or embroidered scarves or olive-wood souvenirs of the ,holy ,land4 ,illustration3 ,a ,street in ,jerusalem4 ,come over to ,cook's office1 where we get our letters1 and stand for a while on the little terrace with the iron railing1 looking at the motley crowd which fills the place in front of the citadel4 ,groups of blue-robed peasant women sit on the curbstone1 selling firewood and grass and vegetables4 ,their faces are bare and brown1 wrinkled with the sun and the wind4 ,turkish soldiers in dark-green uniform1 ,greek priests in black robes and stove-pipe hats1 ,bedouins in flowing cloaks of brown and white1 pale-faced ,jews with velvet gabardines and curly ear-locks1 ,moslem women in many-coloured silken garments and half-transparent veils1 ,british tourists with cork helmets and white umbrellas1 camels1 donkeys1 goats1 and sheep1 jostle together in picturesque confusion4 ,there is a water-carrier with his shiny1 dripping1 bulbous goat-skin on his shoulders4 ,there is an ,arab of the wilderness with a young gazelle in his arms4 ,now let us go down the greasy1 gliddery steps of ,david ,street1 between the diminutive dusky shops with open fronts where all kinds of queer things to eat and to wear are sold1 and all sorts of craftsmen are at work making shoes1 and tin pans1 and copper pots1 and wooden seats1 and little tables1 and clothes of strange pattern4 ,a turn to the left brings us into ,christian ,street and the ,new ,bazaar of the ,greeks1 with its modern stores4 ,a turn to the right and a long descent under dark archways and through dirty1 shadowy alleys brings us to the ,place of ,lamentations1 beside the ancient foundation wall of the ,temple1 where the ,jews come in the afternoon of ,fridays and festival-days to lean their heads against the huge stones and murmur forth their wailings over the downfall of ,jerusalem4 ,for the majesty that is departed1 cries the leader1 and the others answer3 ,we sit in solitude and mourn4 ,we pray ,thee have mercy on ,zion1 cries the leader1 and the others answer3 ,gather the children of ,jerusalem4 ,with most of them it seems a perfunctory mourning2 but there are two or three old men with the tears running down their faces as they kiss the smooth-worn stones4 ,we enter convents and churches1 mosques and tombs4 ,we trace the course of the traditional ,via ,dolorosa1 and try to reconstruct in our imagination the probable path of that grievous journey from the judgment-hall of injustice to the ,calvary of cruelty--a path which now lies buried far below the present level of the city4 ,one impression deepens in my mind with every hour3 this was never ,christ's city4 ,the confusion1 the shallow curiosity1 the self-interest1 the clashing prejudices1 the inaccessibility of the idle and busy multitudes were the same in ,his day that they are now4 ,it was not here that ,jesus found the men and women who believed in ,him and loved ,him1 but in the quiet villages1 among the green fields1 by the peaceful lake-shores4 ,and it is not here that we shall find the clearest traces1 the most intimate visions of ,him1 but away in the big out-of-doors1 where the sky opens free above us1 and the landscapes roll away to far horizons4 ,as we loiter about the city1 now alone1 now under the discreet and unhampering escort of the ,bethlehemite2 watching the ,mussulmans at their dinner in some dingy little restaurant1 where kitchen1 store-room and banquet-hall are all in the same apartment1 level and open to the street2 pausing to bargain with an impassive ,arab for a leather belt or with an ingratiating ,greek for a string of amber beads2 looking in through the unshuttered windows of the ,jewish houses where the families are gathered in festal array for the household rites of ,passover week2 turning over the chaplets1 and rosaries1 and anklets1 and bracelets of coloured glass and mother-of-pearl1 and variegated stones1 and curious beans and seed-pods in the baskets of the street-vendors around the ,church of the ,holy ,sepulchre2 stepping back into an archway to avoid a bag-footed camel1 or a gaily caparisoned horse1 or a heavy-laden donkey passing through a narrow street2 exchanging a smile and an unintelligible friendly jest with a sweet-faced1 careless child2 listening to long disputes between buyers and sellers in that resounding ,arab tongue which seems full of tragic indignation and wrath1 while the eyes of the handsome brown ,bedouins who use it remain unsearchable in their ,oriental languor and pride2 ,jerusalem becomes to us more and more a symbol and epitome of that which is changeless and transient1 capricious and inevitable1 necessary and insignificant1 interesting and unsatisfying1 in the unfinished tragi-comedy of human life4 ,there are times when it fascinates us with its whirling charm4 ,there are other times when we are glad to ride away from it1 to seek communion with the great spirit of some antique prophet1 or to find the consoling presence of ,him who spake the words of the eternal life4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,great ,,cities ,how wonderful are the cities that man hath builded3 ,their walls are compacted of heavy stones1 ,and their lofty towers rise above the tree-tops4 ,rome1 ,jerusalem1 ,cairo1 ,damascus1-- ,venice1 ,constantinople1 ,moscow1 ,pekin1-- ,london1 ,new ,york1 ,berlin1 ,paris1 ,vienna1-- ,these are the names of mighty enchantments3 ,they have called to the ends of the earth1 ,they have secretly summoned an host of servants4 ,they shine from far sitting beside great waters3 ,they are proudly enthroned upon high hills1 ,they spread out their splendour along the rivers4 ,yet are they all the work of small patient fingers3 ,their strength is in the hand of man1 ,he hath woven his flesh and blood into their glory4 ,the cities are scattered over the world like ant-hills3 ,every one of them is full of trouble and toil1 ,and their makers run to and fro within them4 ,abundance of riches is laid up in their store-houses3 ,yet they are tormented with the fear of want1 ,the cry of the poor in their streets is exceeding bitter4 ,their inhabitants are driven by blind perturbations3 ,they whirl sadly in the fever of haste1 ,seeking they know not what1 they pursue it fiercely4 ,the air is heavy-laden with their breathing3 ,the sound of their coming and going is never still1 ,even in the night ,i hear them whispering and crying4 ,beside every ant-hill ,i behold a monster crouching3 ,this is the ant-lion ,death1 ,he thrusteth forth his tongue and the people perish4 ,o ,god of wisdom thou hast made the country3 ,why hast thou suffered man to make the town8 ,then ,god answered1 ,surely ,i am the maker of man3 ,and in the heart of man ,i have set the city4 ,,iv ,,mizpah ,,and ,,the ,,mount ,,of ,,olives ,i ,,the ,,judgment-,,seat ,,of ,,samuel ,mizpah of ,benjamin stands to the northwest3 the sharpest peak in the ,judean range1 crowned with a ragged1 dusty village and a small mosque4 ,we rode to it one morning over the steepest1 stoniest bridle-paths that we had ever seen4 ,the country was bleak and rocky1 a skeleton of landscape2 but between the stones and down the precipitous hillsides and along the hot gorges1 the incredible multitude of spring flowers were abloom4 ,it was a stiff scramble up the conical hill to the little hamlet at the top1 built out of and among ruins4 ,the mosque1 evidently an old ,christian church remodelled1 was bare1 but fairly clean1 cool1 and tranquil4 ,we peered through a grated window1 tied with many-coloured scraps of rags by the ,mohammedan pilgrims1 into a whitewashed room containing a huge sarcophagus said to be the tomb of ,samuel4 ,then we climbed the minaret and lingered on the tiny railed balcony1 feeding on the view4 ,the peak on which we stood was isolated by deep ravines from the other hills of desolate gray and scanty green4 ,beyond the western range lay the ,valley of ,aijalon1 and beyond that the rich ,plain of ,sharon with iridescent hues of green and blue and silver1 and beyond that the yellow line of the sand-dunes broken by the white spot of ,jaffa1 and beyond that the azure breadth of the ,mediterranean4 ,northward1 at our feet1 on the summit of a lower conical hill1 ringed with gray rock1 lay the village of ,el-,jib1 the ancient ,geba of ,benjamin1 one of the cities which ,joshua gave to the ,levites4 ,this was the place from which ,jonathan and his armour-bearer set out1 without ,saul's knowledge1 on their daring1 perilous scouting expedition against the ,philistines4 ,what fighting there was in olden days over that tumbled country of hills and gorges1 stretching away north to the blue mountains of ,samaria and the summits of ,ebal and ,gerizim on the horizon6 ,there on the rocky backbone of ,benjamin and ,ephraim1 was ,ramallah 7where we had spent ,sunday in the sweet orderliness of the ,friends' ,mission ,school71 and ,beroth1 and ,bethel1 and ,gilgal1 and ,shiloh4 ,eastward1 behind the hills1 we could trace the long1 vast trench of the ,jordan valley running due north and south1 filled with thin violet haze and terminating in a glint of the ,dead ,sea4 ,beyond that deep line of division rose the mountains of ,gilead and ,moab1 a lofty1 unbroken barrier4 ,to the south-east we could see the red roofs of the new ,jerusalem1 and a few domes and minarets of the ancient city4 ,beyond them1 in the south1 was the truncated cone of the ,frank ,mountain1 where the crusaders made their last stand against the ,saracens2 and the hills around ,bethlehem2 and a glimpse1 nearer at hand1 of the tall cypresses and peaceful gardens of ',ain ,karm4 ,this terrestrial paradise of vision encircled us with jewel-hues and clear1 exquisite outlines4 ,below us were the flat roofs of ,nebi ,samwl1 with a dog barking on every roof2 the filthy courtyards and dark doorways1 with a woman in one of them making bread2 the ruined archways and broken cisterns with a pool of green water stagnating in one corner2 peasants ploughing their stony little fields1 and a string of donkeys winding up the steep path to the hill4 ,here1 centuries ago1 ,samuel called all ,israel to ,mizpah1 and offered sacrifice before ,jehovah1 and judged the people4 ,here he inspired them with new courage and sent them down to discomfit the ,philistines4 ,hither he came as judge and ruler of ,israel1 making his annual circuit between ,gilgal and ,bethel and ,mizpah4 ,here he assembled the tribes again1 when they were tired of his rule1 and gave them a ,king according to their desire1 even the tall warrior ,saul1 the son of ,kish4 ,do the bones of the prophet rest here or at ,ramah8 ,i do not know4 ,but here1 on this commanding peak1 he began and ended his judgeship2 from this aerie he looked forth upon the inheritance of the turbulent sons of ,jacob2 and here1 if you like1 today1 a pale1 clever young ,mohammedan will show you what he calls the coffin of ,samuel4 ,,ii ,,the ,,hill ,,that ,,jesus ,,loved ,we had seen from ,mizpah the sharp ridge of the ,mount of ,olives1 rising beyond ,jerusalem4 ,our road thither from the camp led us around the city1 past the ,damascus ,gate1 and the royal grottoes1 and ,herod's ,gate1 and the ,tower of the ,storks1 and ,st4 ,stephen's ,gate1 down into the ,valley of the ,brook ,kidron4 ,here1 on the west1 rises the precipitous ,temple ,hill crowned with the wall of the city1 and on the east the long ridge of ,olivet4 ,there are several buildings on the side of the steep hill1 marking supposed holy places or sacred events--the ,church of the ,tomb of the ,virgin1 the ,latin ,chapel of the ,agony1 the ,greek ,church of ,st4 ,mary ,magdalen4 ,on top of the ridge are the ,russian ,buildings1 with the ,chapel of the ,ascension1 and the ,latin ,buildings1 with the ,church of the ,creed1 the ,church of the ,paternoster1 and a ,carmelite ,nunnery4 ,among the walls of these inclosures we wound our way1 and at last tied our horses outside of the ,russian garden4 ,we climbed the two hundred and fourteen steps of the lofty ,belvidere ,tower1 and found ourselves in possession of one of the great views of the world4 ,there is ,jerusalem1 across the ,kidron1 spread out like a raised map below us4 ,the mountains of ,judah roll away north and south and east and west--the clean-cut pinnacle of ,mizpah1 the lofty plain of ,repham1 the dark hills toward ,hebron1 the rounded top of ,scopus where ,titus camped with his ,roman legions1 the flattened peak of ,frank ,mountain4 ,bethlehem is not visible2 but there is the tiny village of ,bethphage1 and the first roof of ,bethany peeping over the ridge1 and the ,inn of the ,good ,samaritan in a red cut of the long serpentine road to ,jericho4 ,the dark range of ,gilead and ,moab seems like a huge wall of lapis-lazuli beyond the furrowed1 wrinkled1 yellowish clay-hills and the wide gray trench of the ,jordan ,valley1 wherein the river marks its crooked path with a line of deep green4 ,the hundreds of ridges that slope steeply down to that immense depression are touched with a thousand hues of amethystine light1 and the ravines between them filled with a thousand tones of azure shadow4 ,at the end of the valley glitter the blue waters of the ,dead ,sea1 fifteen miles away1 four thousand feet below us1 yet seeming so near that we almost expect to hear the sound of its waves on the rocky shores of the ,wilderness of ,tekoa4 ,on this mount ,jesus of ,nazareth often walked with ,his disciples4 ,on this widespread landscape ,his eyes rested as ,he spoke divinely of the invisible kingdom of peace and love and joy that shall never pass away4 ,over this walled city1 sleeping in the sunshine1 full of earthly dreams and disappointments1 battlemented hearts and whited sepulchres of the spirit1 ,he wept1 and cried3 ,o ,jerusalem1 how often would ,i have gathered thy children together even as a hen gathereth her own brood under her wings1 and ye would not6 ,,iii ,,the ,,garden ,,of ,,gethsemane ,come down1 now1 from the mount of vision to the grove of olive-trees1 the ,garden of ,gethsemane1 where ,jesus used to take refuge with ,his friends4 ,it lies on the eastern slope of ,olivet1 not far above the ,valley of ,kidron1 over against that city-gate which was called the ,beautiful1 or the ,golden1 but which is now walled up4 ,the grove probably belonged to some friend of ,jesus or of one of ,his disciples1 who permitted them to make use of it for their quiet meetings4 ,at that time1 no doubt1 the whole hillside was covered with olive-trees1 but most of these have now disappeared4 ,the eight aged trees that still cling to life in ,gethsemane have been inclosed with a low wall and an iron railing1 and the little garden that blooms around them is cared for by ,franciscan monks from ,italy4 ,the gentle1 friendly ,fra ,giovanni1 in bare sandaled feet1 coarse brown robe1 and broad-brimmed straw hat1 is walking among the flowers4 ,he opens the gate for us and courteously invites us in1 telling us in broken ,french that we may pick what flowers we like4 ,presently ,i fall into discourse with him in broken ,italian1 telling him of my visit years ago to the cradle of his ,order at ,assisi1 and to its most beautiful shrine at ,la ,verna1 high above the ,val d',arno4 ,his old eyes soften into youthful brightness as he speaks of ,italy4 ,it was most beautiful1 he said1 bellisima6 ,but he is happier here1 caring for this garden1 it is most holy1 santissima6 ,the bronzed ,mohammedan gardener1 silent1 patient1 absorbed in his task1 moves with his watering-pot among the beds1 quietly refreshing the thirsty blossoms4 ,there are wall-flowers1 stocks1 pansies1 baby's breath1 pinks1 anemones of all colours1 rosemary1 rue1 poppies--all sorts of sweet old-fashioned flowers4 ,among them stand the scattered venerable trees1 with enormous trunks1 wrinkled and contorted1 eaten away by age1 patched and built up with stones1 protected and tended with pious care1 as if they were very old people whose life must be tenderly nursed and sheltered4 ,their boles hardly seem to be of wood2 so dark1 so twisted1 so furrowed are they1 of an aspect so enduring that they appear to be cast in bronze or carved out of black granite4 ,above each of them spreads a crown of fresh foliage1 delicate1 abundant1 shimmering softly in the sunlight and the breeze1 with silken turnings of the under side of the innumerable leaves4 ,in the centre of the garden is a kind of open flower house with a fountain of flowing water1 erected in memory of a young ,american girl4 ,at each corner a pair of slender cypresses lift their black-green spires against the blanched azure of the sky4 ,it is a place of refuge1 of ineffable tranquillity1 of unforgetful tenderness4 ,the inclosure does not offend4 ,how else could this sacred shrine of the out-of-doors be preserved8 ,and what more fitting guardian for it than the ,order of that loving ,saint ,francis1 who called the sun and the moon his brother and his sister and preached to a joyous congregation of birds as his little brothers of the air8 ,the flowers do not offend4 ,their antique fragrance1 gracious order1 familiar looks1 are a symbol of what faithful memory does with the sorrows and sufferings of those who have loved us best--she treasures and transmutes them into something beautiful1 she grows her sweetest flowers in the ground that tears have made holy4 ,it is here1 in this quaint and carefully tended garden1 this precious place which has been saved alike from the oblivious trampling of the crowd and from the needless imprisonment of four walls and a roof1 it is here in the open air1 in the calm glow of the afternoon1 under the shadow of ,mount ,zion1 that we find for the first time that which we have come so far to seek1--the soul of the ,holy ,land1 the inward sense of the real presence of ,jesus4 ,it is as clear and vivid as any outward experience4 ,why should ,i not speak of it as simply and candidly8 ,nothing that we have yet seen in ,palestine1 no vision of wide-spread landscape1 no sight of ancient ruin or famous building or treasured relic1 comes as close to our hearts as this little garden sleeping in the sun4 ,nothing that we have read from our ,bibles in the new light of this journey has been for us so suddenly illumined1 so deeply and tenderly brought home to us1 as the story of ,gethsemane4 ,here1 indeed1 in the moonlit shadow of these olives--if not of these very branches1 yet of others sprung from the same immemorial stems--was endured the deepest suffering ever borne for man1 the most profound sorrow of the greatest ,soul that loved all human souls4 ,it was not in the temptation in the wilderness1 as ,milton imagined1 that the crisis of the ,divine life was enacted and ,paradise was regained4 ,it was in the agony in the garden4 ,here the love of life wrestled in the heart of ,jesus with the purpose of sacrifice1 and the anguish of that wrestling wrung the drops of blood from ,him like sweat4 ,here1 for the only time1 ,he found the cup of sorrow and shame too bitter1 and prayed the ,father to take it from ,his lips if it were possible--possible without breaking faith1 without surrendering love4 ,for that ,he would not do1 though ,his soul was exceeding sorrowful1 even unto death4 ,here ,he learned the frailty of human friendship1 the narrowness and dulness and coldness of the very hearts for whom ,he had done and suffered most1 who could not even watch with ,him one hour4 ,what infinite sense of the poverty and feebleness of mankind1 the inveteracy of selfishness1 the uncertainty of human impulses and aspirations and promises2 what poignant questioning of the necessity1 the utility of self-immolation must have tortured the soul of ,jesus in that hour6 ,it was ,his black hour4 ,none can imagine the depth of that darkness but those who have themselves passed through some of its outer shadows1 in the times when love seems vain1 and sacrifice futile1 and friendship meaningless1 and life a failure1 and death intolerable4 ,jesus met the spirit of despair in the ,garden of ,gethsemane2 and after that meeting1 the cross had no terrors for ,him1 because ,he had already endured them2 the grave no fear1 because ,he had already conquered it4 ,how calm and gentle was the voice with which ,he wakened ,his disciples1 how firm the step with which ,he went to meet ,judas6 ,the bitterness of death was behind ,him in the shadow of the olive-trees4 ,the peace of ,heaven shone above ,him in the silent stars4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,surrender ,mine enemies have prevailed against me1 ,o ,god3 ,thou hast led me deep into their ambush4 ,they surround me with a hedge of spears3 ,and the sword in my hand is broken4 ,my friends also have forsaken my side3 ,from a safe place they look upon me with pity4 ,my heart is like water poured upon the ground3 ,i have come alone to the place of surrender4 ,to thee1 to thee only will ,i give up my sword3 ,the sword which was broken in thy service4 ,thou hast required me to suffer for thy cause3 ,by my defeat thy will is victorious4 ,o my ,king show me thy face shining in the dark3 ,while ,i drink the loving-cup of death to thy glory4 ,v ,,an ,,excursion ,,to ,,bethlehem ,,and ,,hebron ,i ,,bethlehem ,a sparkling morning followed a showery night1 and all the little red and white and yellow flowers were lifting glad faces to the sun as we took the highroad to ,bethlehem4 ,leaving the ,jaffa ,gate on the left1 we crossed the head of the deep ,valley of ,hinnom1 below the dirty ,pool of the ,sultan1 and rode up the hill on the opposite side of the vale4 ,there was much rubbish and filth around us1 and the sight of the ,ophthalmic ,hospital of the ,english ,knights of ,saint ,john1 standing in the beauty of cleanness and order beside the road1 did our eyes good4 ,blindness is one of the common afflictions of the people of ,palestine4 ,neglect and ignorance and dirt and the plague of crawling flies spread the germs of disease from eye to eye1 and the people submit to it with pathetic and irritating fatalism4 ,it is hard to persuade these poor souls that the will of ,allah or ,jehovah in this matter ought not to be accepted until after it has been questioned4 ,but the light of true and humane religion is spreading a little4 ,we rejoiced to see the reception-room of the hospital filled with all sorts and conditions of men1 women and children waiting for the good physicians who save and restore sight in the name of ,jesus4 ,to the right1 a little below us1 lay the ugly railway station2 before us1 rising gently southward1 extended the elevated ,plain of ,repham where ,david smote the host of the ,philistines after he had heard the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry-trees4 ,the red soil was cultivated in little farms and gardens4 ,the almond-trees were in leaf2 the hawthorn in blossom2 the fig-trees were putting forth their tender green4 ,illustration3 ,a ,street in ,bethlehem4 ,a slowly ascending road brought us to the hill of ,mr ,elys1 and the so-called ,well of the ,magi4 ,here the legend says the ,wise ,men halted after they had left ,jerusalem1 and the star reappeared to guide them on to ,bethlehem4 ,certain it is that they must have taken this road2 and certain it is that both ,bethlehem and ,jerusalem1 hidden from each other by the rising ground1 are clearly visible to one who stands in the saddle of this hill4 ,there were fine views down the valleys to the east1 with blue glimpses of the ,dead ,sea at the end of them4 ,the supposed tomb of ,rachel1 a dingy little building with a white dome1 interested us less than the broad lake of olive-orchards around the distant village of ,beit ,jl1 and the green fields1 pastures and gardens encircling the double hill of ,bethlehem1 the ancient ,house of ,bread4 ,there was an aspect of fertility and friendliness about the place that seemed in harmony with its name and its poetic memories4 ,in a walled kitchen-garden at the entrance of the town was ,david's ,well4 ,we felt no assurance1 of course1 as we looked down into it1 that this was the veritable place4 ,but at all events it served to bring back to us one of the prettiest bits of romance in the ,old ,testament4 ,when the bold son of ,jesse had become a chieftain of outlaws and was besieged by the ,philistines in the stronghold of ,adullam1 his heart grew thirsty for a draught from his father's well1 whose sweetness he had known as a boy4 ,and when his three mighty men went up secretly at the risk of their lives1 and broke through the host of their enemies1 and brought their captain a vessel of this water1 he would not drink thereof1 but poured it out unto ,jehovah4 ,there was a division of opinion in our party in regard to this act4 ,it was sheer foolishness1 said the ,patriarch1 to waste anything that had cost so much to get4 ,what must the three mighty men have thought when they saw that for which they had risked their lives poured out upon the ground8 ,ah1 no1 said the ,lady4 ,it was the highest gratitude1 because it was touched with poetry4 ,it was the best compliment that ,david could have given to his friends4 ,some gifts are too precious to be received in any other way than this4 ,and in my heart ,i knew that she was right4 ,riding through the narrow streets of the town1 which is inhabited almost entirely by ,christians1 we noted the tranquil good looks of the women1 a distinct type1 rather short of stature1 round-faced1 placid and kind of aspect4 ,not a few of them had blue eyes4 ,they wore dark-blue skirts1 dark-red jackets1 and a white veil over their heads1 but not over their faces4 ,under the veil the married women wore a peculiar cap of stiff1 embroidered black cloth1 about six inches high1 and across the front of this cap was strung their dowry of gold or silver coins4 ,such a dress1 no doubt1 was worn by the ,virgin ,mary1 and such tranquil1 friendly looks1 ,i think1 were hers1 but touched with a rarer light of beauty shining from a secret source within4 ,a crowd of little boys and girls just released from school for their recess shouted and laughed and chased one another1 pausing for a moment in round-eyed wonder when ,i pointed my camera at them4 ,donkeys and camels and sheep made our passage through the town slow1 and gave us occasion to look to our horses' footing4 ,at one corner a great white sow ran out of an alley-way1 followed by a twinkling litter of pink pigs4 ,in the market-place we left our horses in the shadow of the monastery wall and entered1 by a low door1 the lofty1 bare ,church of the ,nativity4 ,the long rows of immense marble pillars had some faded remains of painting on them4 ,there were a few battered fragments of mosaic in the clerestory1 dimly glittering4 ,but the general effect of the whitewashed walls1 the ancient brown beams and rafters of the roof1 the large1 empty space1 was one of extreme simplicity4 ,when we came into the choir and apse we found ourselves in the midst of complexity4 ,the ownership of the different altars with their gilt ornaments1 of the swinging lamps1 of the separate doorways of the ,greeks and the ,armenians and the ,latins1 was bewildering4 ,dark1 winding steps1 slippery with the drippings from many candles1 led us down into the ,grotto of the ,nativity4 ,it was a cavern perhaps forty feet long and ten feet wide1 lit by thirty pendent lamps 7,greek1 ,armenian and ,latin73 marble floor and walls hung with draperies2 a silver star in the pavement before the altar to mark the spot where ,christ was born2 a marble manger in the corner to mark the cradle in which ,christ was laid2 a never-ceasing stream of poor pilgrims1 who come kneeling1 and kissing the star and the stones and the altar for ,christ's sake4 ,illustration3 ,the ,market-place1 ,bethlehem4 ,we paused for a while1 after we had come up1 to ask ourselves whether what we had seen was in any way credible4 ,yes1 credible1 but not convincing4 ,no doubt the ancient ,khn of ,bethlehem must have been somewhere near this spot1 in the vicinity of the market-place of the town4 ,no doubt it was the custom1 when there were natural hollows or artificial grottos in the rock near such an inn1 to use them as shelters and stalls for the cattle4 ,it is quite possible1 it is even probable1 that this may have been one of the shallow caverns used for such a purpose4 ,if so1 there is no reason to deny that this may be the place of the wondrous birth1 where1 as the old ,french ,noel has it3 ,dieu parmy les pastoreaux1 ,sous la crche des toreaux1 ,dans les champs a voulu naistre2 ,et non parmy les arroys ,des grands princes et des roys1-- ,lui des plus grands roys le maistre4 ,but to the eye1 at least1 there is no reminder of the scene of the ,nativity in this close and stifling chapel1 hung with costly silks and embroideries1 glittering with rich lamps1 filled with the smoke of incense and waxen tapers4 ,and to the heart there is little suggestion of the lonely night when ,joseph found a humble refuge here for his young bride to wait in darkness1 pain and hope for her hour to come4 ,in the church above1 the ,latins and ,armenians and ,greeks guard their privileges and prerogatives jealously4 ,there have been fights here about the driving of a nail1 the hanging of a picture1 the sweeping of a bit of the floor4 ,the ,crimean ,war began in a quarrel between the ,greeks and the ,latins1 and a mob-struggle in the ,church of the ,nativity4 ,underneath the floor1 to the north of the ,grotto of the ,nativity1 is the cave in which ,saint ,jerome lived peaceably for many years1 translating the ,bible into ,latin4 ,that was better than fighting4 ,,ii ,,on ,,the ,,road ,,to ,,hebron ,we ate our lunch at ,bethlehem in a curiosity-shop4 ,the table was spread at the back of the room by the open window4 ,all around us were hanging innumerable chaplets and rosaries of mother-of-pearl1 of carnelian1 of carved olive-stones1 of glass beads2 trinkets and souvenirs of all imaginable kinds1 tiny sheep-bells and inlaid boxes and carved fans filled the cases and cabinets4 ,through the window came the noise of people busy at ,bethlehem's chief industry1 the cutting and polishing of mother-of-pearl for mementoes4 ,the jingling bells of our pack-train1 passing the open door1 reminded us that our camp was to be pitched miles away on the road to ,hebron4 ,we called for the horses and rode on through the town4 ,very beautiful and peaceful was the view from the southern hill1 looking down upon the pastures of ,bethlehem where shepherds watched their flocks by night1 and the field of ,boaz where ,ruth followed the reapers among the corn4 ,down dale and up hill we journeyed2 bright green of almond-trees1 dark green of carob-trees1 snowy blossoms of apricot-trees1 rosy blossoms of peach-trees1 argent verdure of olive-trees1 adorning the valleys4 ,then out over the wilder1 rockier heights2 and past the great empty ,pools of ,solomon1 lying at the head of the ,wdi ,arts1 watched by a square ruined castle2 and up the winding road and along the lofty flower-sprinkled ridges2 and at last we came to our tents1 pitched in the wide1 green ,wdi el-',arrb1 beside the bridge4 ,springs gushed out of the hillside here and ran down in a little laughing brook through lawns full of tiny pink and white daisies1 and broad fields of tangled weeds and flowers1 red anemones1 blue iris1 purple mallows1 scarlet adonis1 with here and there a strip of cultivated ground shimmering with silky leeks or dotted with young cucumbers4 ,there was a broken aqueduct cut in the rock at the side of the valley1 and the brook slipped by a large ruined reservoir4 ,george1 said ,i to the ,bethlehemite1 as he sat meditating on the edge of the dry pool1 what do you think of this valley8 ,i think1 said ,george1 that if ,i had a few thousand dollars to buy the land1 with all this runaway water ,i could make it blossom like a peach-tree4 ,the cold1 green sunset behind the western hills darkened into night4 ,the air grew chilly1 dropping nearly to the point of frost4 ,we missed the blazing camp-fire of the ,canadian forests1 and went to bed early1 tucking in the hot-water bags at our feet and piling on the blankets and rugs4 ,all through the night we could hear the passers-by shouting and singing along the ,hebron road4 ,there was one unknown traveller whose high-pitched1 quavering ,arab song rose far away1 and grew louder as he approached1 and passed us in a whirlwind of lugubrious music1 and tapered slowly off into distance and silence--a chant a mile long4 ,the morning broke through flying clouds1 with a bitter1 wet1 west wind rasping the bleak highlands4 ,there were spiteful showers with intervals of mocking sunshine2 it was a mischievous and prankish bit of weather1 no day for riding4 ,but the ,lady was indomitable1 so we left the ,patriarch in his tent1 wrapped ourselves in garments of mackintosh and took the road again4 ,the country1 at first1 was wild and barren1 a wilderness of rocks and thorn bushes and stunted scrub oaks4 ,now and then a ,greek partridge1 in its beautiful plumage of fawn-gray1 marked with red and black about the head1 clucked like a hen on the stony hillside1 or whirred away in low1 straight flight over the bushes4 ,flocks of black and brown goats1 with pendulous ears1 skipped up and down the steep ridges1 standing up on their hind legs to browse the foliage of the little oak shrubs1 or showing themselves off in a butting-match on top of a big rock4 ,marching on the highroad they seemed sedate1 despondent1 pattering along soberly with flapping ears4 ,in the midst of one flock ,i saw a fierce-looking tattered pastor tenderly carrying a little black kid in his bosom--as tenderly as if it were a lamb4 ,it seemed like an illustration of a picture that ,i saw long ago in the ,catacombs1 in which the infant church of ,christ silently expressed the richness of her love1 the breadth of her hope3 ,on those walls subterranean1 where she hid ,her head 'mid ignominy1 death and tombs1 ,she her ,good ,shepherd's hasty image drew-- ,and on ,his shoulders1 not a lamb1 a kid4 ,as we drew nearer to ,hebron the region appeared more fertile1 and the landscape smiled a little under the gleams of wintry sunshine4 ,there were many vineyards2 in most of them the vines trailed along the ground1 but in some they were propped up on sticks1 like old men leaning on crutches4 ,almond and apricot-trees flourished4 ,the mulberries1 the olives1 the sycamores were abundant4 ,peasants were ploughing the fields with their crooked sticks shod with a long iron point4 ,when a man puts his hand to such a plough he dares not look back1 else it will surely go aside4 ,it makes a scratch1 not a furrow4 7,i saw a man in the hospital at ,nazareth who had his thigh pierced clear through by one of these dagger-like iron plough points47 ,children were gathering roots and thorn branches for firewood4 ,women were carrying huge bundles on their heads4 ,donkey-boys were urging their heavy-laden animals along the road1 and cameleers led their deliberate strings of ungainly beasts by a rope or a light chain reaching from one nodding head to another4 ,a camel's load never looks as large as a donkey's1 but no doubt he often finds it heavy1 and he always looks displeased with it4 ,there is something about the droop of a camel's lower lip which seems to express unalterable disgust with the universe4 ,but the rest of the world around ,hebron appeared to be reasonably happy4 ,in spite of weather and poverty and hard work the ploughmen sang in the fields1 the children skipped and whistled at their tasks1 the passers-by on the road shouted greetings to the labourers in the gardens and vineyards4 ,somewhere round about here is supposed to lie the ,valley of ,eshcol from which the ,hebrew spies brought back the monstrous bunch of grapes1 a cluster that reached from the height of a man's shoulder to the ground4 ,,iii ,,the ,,tenting-,,ground ,,of ,,abraham ,hebron lies three thousand feet above the sea1 and is one of the ancient market-places and shrines of the world4 ,from time immemorial it has been a holy town1 a busy town1 and a turbulent town4 ,the ,hittites and the ,amorites dwelt here1 and ,abraham1 a nomadic shepherd whose tents followed his flocks over the land of ,canaan1 bought here his only piece of real estate1 the field and cave of ,machpelah4 ,he bought it for a tomb1--even a nomad wishes to rest quietly in death1--and here he and his wife ,sarah1 and his children ,isaac and ,rebekah1 and his grandchildren ,jacob and ,leah were buried4 ,the modern town has about twenty thousand inhabitants1 chiefly ,mohammedans of a fanatical temper1 and is incredibly dirty4 ,we passed the muddy pool by which ,king ,david1 when he was reigning here1 hanged the murderers of ,ishbosheth4 ,we climbed the crooked streets to the ,mosque which covers the supposed site of the cave of ,machpelah4 ,but we did not see the tomb of ,abraham1 for no infidel is allowed to pass beyond the seventh step in the flight of stairs which leads up to the doorway4 ,as we went down through the narrow1 dark1 crowded ,bazaar a violent storm of hail broke over the city1 pelting into the little open shops and covering the streets half an inch deep with snowy sand and pebbles of ice4 ,the tempest was a rude joke1 which seemed to surprise the surly crowd into a good humour4 ,we laughed with the ,moslems as we took shelter together from our common misery under a stone archway4 ,after the storm had passed we ate our midday meal on a housetop1 which a friend of the dragoman put at our disposal1 and rode out in the afternoon to the ,oak of ,abraham on the hill of ,mamre4 ,the tree is an immense1 battered veteran1 with a trunk ten feet in diameter1 and wide-flung1 knotted arms which still bear a few leaves and acorns4 ,it has been inclosed with a railing1 patched up with masonry1 partially protected by a roof4 ,the ,russian monks who live near by have given it pious care1 yet its inevitable end is surely near4 ,the death of a great sheltering tree has a kind of dumb pathos4 ,it seems like the passing away of something beneficent and helpless1 something that was able to shield others but not itself4 ,on this hill1 under the oaks of ,mamre1 ,abraham's tents were pitched many a year1 and here he entertained the three angels unawares1 and ,sarah made pancakes for them1 and listened behind the tent-flap while they were talking with her husband1 and laughed at what they said4 ,this may not be the very tree that flung its shadow over the tent1 but no doubt it is a son or a grandson of that tree1 and the acorns that still fall from it may be the seeds of other oaks to shelter future generations of pilgrims2 and so throughout the world1 the ancient covenant of friendship is unbroken1 and man remains a grateful lover of the big1 kind trees4 ,we got home to our camp in the green meadow of the springs late in the afternoon1 and on the third day we rode back to ,jerusalem1 and pitched the tents in a new place1 on a hill opposite the ,jaffa ,gate1 with a splendid view of the ,valley of ,hinnom1 the ,tower of ,david1 and the western wall of the city4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,friendly ,,trees ,i will sing of the bounty of the big trees1 ,they are the green tents of the ,almighty1 ,he hath set them up for comfort and for shelter4 ,their cords hath he knotted in the earth1 ,he hath driven their stakes securely1 ,their roots take hold of the rocks like iron4 ,he sendeth into their bodies the sap of life1 ,they lift themselves lightly towards the heavens4 ,they rejoice in the broadening of their branches4 ,their leaves drink in the sunlight and the air1 ,they talk softly together when the breeze bloweth1 ,their shadow in the noonday is full of coolness4 ,the tall palm-trees of the plain are rich in fruit1 ,while the fruit ripeneth the flower unfoldeth1 ,the beauty of their crown is renewed on high forever4 ,the cedars of ,lebanon are fed by the snow1 ,afar on the mountain they grow like giants1 ,in their layers of shade a thousand years are sighing4 ,how fair are the trees that befriend the home of man1 ,the oak1 and the terebinth1 and the sycamore1 ,the fruitful fig-tree and the silvery olive4 ,in them the ,lord is loving to his little birds1-- ,the linnets and the finches and the nightingales1-- ,they people his pavilions with nests and with music4 ,the cattle are very glad of a great tree1 ,they chew the cud beneath it while the sun is burning1 ,there also the panting sheep lie down around their shepherd4 ,he that planteth a tree is a servant of ,god1 ,he provideth a kindness for many generations1 ,and faces that he hath not seen shall bless him4 ,lord1 when my spirit shall return to thee1 ,at the foot of a friendly tree let my body be buried1 ,that this dust may rise and rejoice among the branches4 ,,vi ,,the ,,temple ,,and ,,the ,,sepulchre ,i ,,the ,,dome ,,of ,,the ,,rock ,there is an upward impulse in man that draws him to a hilltop for his place of devotion and sanctuary of ascending thoughts4 ,the purer air1 the wider outlook1 the sense of freedom and elevation1 help to release his spirit from the weight that bends his forehead to the dust4 ,a traveller in ,palestine1 if he had wings1 could easily pass through the whole land by short flights from the summit of one holy hill to another1 and look down from a series of mountain-altars upon the wrinkled map of sacred history without once descending into the valley or toiling over the plain4 ,but since there are no wings provided in the human outfit1 our journey from shrine to shrine must follow the common way of men1--which is also a symbol1--the path of up-and-down1 and many windings1 and weary steps4 ,the oldest of the shrines of ,jerusalem is the threshing-floor of ,araunah the ,jebusite1 which ,david bought from him in order that it might be made the site of the ,temple of ,jehovah4 ,no doubt the ,king knew of the traditions which connected the place with ancient and famous rites of worship4 ,but ,i think he was moved also by the commanding beauty of the situation1 on the very summit of ,mount ,moriah1 looking down into the deep ,valley of the ,kidron4 ,our way to this venerable and sacred hill leads through the crooked duskiness of ,david ,street1 and across the half-filled depression of the ,tyropoeon ,valley which divides the city1 and up through the dim1 deserted ,bazaar of the ,cotton ,merchants1 and so through the central western gate of the ,haram-esh-,sherf1 the ,noble ,sanctuary4 ,this is a great inclosure1 clean1 spacious1 airy1 a place of refuge from the foul confusion of the city streets4 ,the wall that shuts us in is almost a mile long1 and within this open space1 which makes an immediate effect of breadth and tranquil order1 are some of the most sacred buildings of ,islam and some of the most significant landmarks of ,christianity4 ,slender and graceful arcades are outlined against the clear1 blue sky3 little domes are poised over praying-places and fountains of ablution3 wide and easy flights of steps lead from one level to another1 in this park of prayer4 ,at the southern end1 beyond the tall cypresses and the plashing fountain fed from ,solomon's ,pools1 stands the long ,mosque el-,aksa3 to ,mohammedans1 the place to which ,allah brought their prophet from ,mecca in one night2 to ,christians1 the ,basilica which the ,emperor ,justinian erected in honor of the ,virgin ,mary4 ,at the northern end rises the ancient wall of the ,castle of ,antonia1 from whose steps ,saint ,paul1 protected by the ,roman captain1 spoke his defence to the ,jerusalem mob4 ,the steps1 hewn partly in the solid rock1 are still visible2 but the site of the castle is occupied by the ,turkish barracks1 beside which the tallest minaret of the ,haram lifts its covered gallery high above the corner of the great wall4 ,yonder to the east is the ,golden ,gate1 above the steep ,valley of ,jehoshaphat4 ,it is closed with great stones2 because the ,moslem tradition says that some ,friday a ,christian conqueror will enter ,jerusalem by that gate4 ,not far away we see the column in the wall from which the ,mohammedans believe a slender rope1 or perhaps a naked sword1 will be stretched1 in the judgment day1 to the ,mount of ,olives opposite4 ,this1 according to them1 will be the bridge over which all human souls must walk1 while ,christ sits at one end1 ,mohammed at the other1 watching and judging4 ,the righteous1 upheld by angels1 will pass safely2 the wicked1 heavy with unbalanced sins1 will fall4 ,dominating all these wide-spread relics and shrines1 in the centre of the inclosure1 on a raised platform approached through delicate arcades1 stands the great ,dome of the ,rock1 built by ,abd-el-,melik in #fhh ,a4,d41 on the site of the ,jewish ,temple4 ,the exterior of the vast octagon1 with its lower half cased in marble and its upper half incrusted with ,persian tiles of blue and green1 its broad1 round lantern and swelling black dome surmounted by a glittering crescent1 is bathed in full sunlight2 serene1 proud1 eloquent of a certain splendid simplicity4 ,within1 the light filters dimly through windows of stained glass and falls on marble columns1 bronzed beams1 mosaic walls1 screens of wrought iron and carved wood4 ,we walk as if through an interlaced forest and undergrowth of rich entangled colours4 ,it all seems visionary1 unreal1 fantastic1 until we climb the bench by the end of the inner screen and look upon the ,rock over which the ,dome is built4 ,this is the real thing1--a plain gray limestone rock1 level and fairly smooth1 the unchanged summit of ,mount ,moriah4 ,here the priest-king ,melchizedek offered sacrifice4 ,here ,abraham1 in the cruel fervour of his faith1 was about to slay his only son ,isaac because he thought it would please ,jehovah4 ,here ,araunah the ,jebusite threshed his corn on the smooth rock and winnowed it in the winds of the hilltop1 until ,king ,david stepped over from ,mount ,zion1 and bought the threshing-floor and the oxen of him for fifty shekels of silver1 and built in this place an altar to the ,lord4 ,here ,solomon erected his splendid ,temple and the ,chaldeans burned it4 ,here ,zerubbabel built the second ,temple after the return of the ,jews from exile1 and ,antiochus ,epiphanes desecrated it1 and ,herod burned part of it and pulled down the rest4 ,here ,herod built the third ,temple1 larger and more magnificent than the first1 and the soldiers of the ,emperor ,titus burned it4 ,here the ,emperor ,hadrian built a temple to ,jupiter and himself1 and some one1 perhaps the ,christians1 burned it4 ,here ,mohammed came to pray1 declaring that one prayer here was worth a thousand elsewhere4 ,here the ,caliph ,omar built a little wooden mosque1 and the ,caliph ,abd-el-,melik replaced it with this great one of marble1 and the ,crusaders changed it into a ,christian temple1 and ,saladin changed it back again into a mosque4 ,this ,haram-esh-,sherf is the second holiest place in the ,moslem world4 ,hither come the ,mohammedan pilgrims by thousands1 for the sake of ,mohammed4 ,hither come the ,christian pilgrims by thousands1 for the sake of ,him who said3 ,neither in this mountain nor in ,jerusalem shall ye worship the ,father4 ,hither the ,jewish pilgrims never come1 for fear their feet may unwittingly tread upon the ,holy of ,holies1 and defile it2 but they creep outside of the great inclosure1 in the gloomy trench beside the foundation stones of the wall1 mourning and lamenting for the majesty that is departed and the ,temple that is ground to powder4 ,but amid all these changes and perturbations1 here stands the good old limestone rock1 the threshing-floor of ,araunah1 the capstone of the hill1 waiting for the sun to shine and the dews to fall on it once more1 as they did when the foundations of the earth were laid4 ,the legend says that you can hear the waters of the flood roaring in an abyss underneath the rock4 ,i laid my ear against the rugged stone and listened4 ,what sound8 ,was it the voice of turbulent centuries and the lapsing tides of men8 ,,ii ,,golgotha ,we ought to go again to the ,church of the ,holy ,sepulchre1 said the ,lady in a voice of dutiful reminder1 we have not half seen it4 ,so we went down to the heart of ,jerusalem and entered the labyrinthine shrine4 ,the motley crowd in the paved quadrangle in front of the double-arched doorway were buying and selling1 bickering and chaffering and chattering as usual4 ,within the portal1 on a slightly raised platform to the left1 the ,turkish guardians of the holy places and keepers of the peace between ,christians were seated among their rugs and cushions1 impassive1 indolent1 dignified1 drinking their coffee or smoking their tobacco1 conversing gravely or counting the amber beads of their comboloios4 ,the ,sultan owns the ,holy ,sepulchre2 but he is a liberal host and permits all factions of ,christendom to visit it and celebrate their rites in turn1 provided only they do not beat or kill one another in their devotions4 ,we saw his silent sentinels of tolerance scattered in every part of the vast1 confused edifice4 ,the interior was dim and shadowy4 ,opposite the entrance was the ,stone of ,unction1 a marble slab on which it is said the body of ,christ was anointed when it was taken down from the cross4 ,pilgrim after pilgrim came kneeling to this stone1 and bending to kiss it1 beneath the ,latin1 ,greek1 ,armenian and ,coptic lamps which hang above it by silver chains4 ,the ,chapel of the ,crucifixion was on our right1 above us1 in the second story of the church4 ,we climbed the steep flight of stairs and stood in a little room1 close1 obscure1 crowded with lamps and icons and candelabra1 incrusted with ornaments of gold and silver1 full of strange odours and glimmerings of mystic light4 ,there1 they told us1 in front of that rich altar was the silver star which marked the place in the rock where the ,holy ,cross stood4 ,and on either side of it were the sockets which received the crosses of the two thieves4 ,and a few feet away1 covered by a brass slide1 was the cleft in the rock which was made by the earthquake4 ,it was lined with slabs of reddish marble and looked nearly a foot deep4 ,priests in black robes and tall1 cylindrical hats1 and others with brown robes1 rope girdles and tonsured heads1 were coming and going around us4 ,pilgrims were climbing and descending the stairs1 kneeling and murmuring unintelligible devotions1 kissing the star and the cleft in the rock and the icons4 ,underneath us1 though we were supposed to stand on the hill called ,golgotha1 were the offices of the ,greek clergy and the ,chapel of ,adam4 ,we went around from chapel to chapel2 into the opulent ,greek cathedral where they show the ,centre of the ,world2 into the bare little ,chapel of the ,syrians where they show the tombs of ,nicodemus and ,joseph of ,arimatha2 into the ,chapel of the ,apparition where the ,franciscans say that ,christ appeared to ,his mother after the resurrection4 ,there was sweet singing in this chapel and a fragrant smell of incense4 ,we went into the ,chapel of ,saint ,helena1 underground1 which belongs to the ,greeks2 into the ,chapel of the ,parting of the ,raiment which belongs to the ,armenians4 ,we were impartial in our visitation1 but we did not have time to see the ,abyssinian ,chapel1 the ,coptic ,chapel of ,saint ,michael1 nor the ,church of ,abraham where the ,anglicans are allowed to celebrate the eucharist twice a month4 ,the centre of all this maze of creeds1 ceremonies and devotions is the ,chapel of the ,holy ,sepulchre1 a little edifice of precious marbles1 carved and gilded1 standing beneath the great dome of the church1 in the middle of a rotunda surrounded by marble pillars4 ,we bought and lighted our waxen tapers and waited for a lull in the stream of pilgrims to enter the shrine4 ,first we stood in the vestibule with its tall candelabra2 then in the ,angels' ,chapel1 with its fifteen swinging lamps1 making darkness visible2 then1 stooping through a low doorway1 we came into the tiny chamber1 six feet square1 which is said to contain the rock-hewn tomb in which the ,saviour of the ,world was buried4 ,mass is celebrated here daily by different ,christian sects4 ,pilgrims1 rich and poor1 come hither from all parts of the habitable globe4 ,they kneel beneath the three-and-forty pendent lamps of gold and silver4 ,they kiss the worn slab of marble which covers the tombstone1 some of them smiling with joy1 some of them weeping bitterly1 some of them with quiet1 business-like devotion as if they were performing a duty4 ,the priest of their faith blesses them1 sprinkles the relics which they lay on the altar with holy water1 and one by one the pilgrims retire backward through the low portal4 ,i saw a ,russian peasant1 sad-eyed1 wrinkled1 bent with many sorrows1 lay his cheek silently on the tombstone with a look on his face as if he were a child leaning against his mother's breast4 ,i saw a little barefoot boy of ,jerusalem1 with big1 serious eyes1 come quickly in1 and try to kiss the stone2 but it was too high for him1 so he kissed his hand and laid it upon the altar4 ,i saw a young nun1 hardly more than a girl1 slender1 pale1 dark-eyed1 with a noble ,italian face1 shaken with sobs1 the tears running down her cheeks1 as she bent to touch her lips to the resting-place of the ,friend of ,sinners4 ,this1 then1 is the way in which the craving for penitence1 for reverence1 for devotion1 for some utterance of the nameless thirst and passion of the soul leads these pilgrims4 ,this is the form in which the divine mystery of sacrificial sorrow and death appeals to them1 speaks to their hearts and comforts them4 ,could any ,christian of whatever creed1 could any son of woman with a heart to feel the trouble and longing of humanity1 turn his back upon that altar8 ,must ,i not go away from that mysterious little room as the others had gone1 with my face toward the stone of remembrance1 stooping through the lowly door8 ,and yet--and yet in my deepest heart ,i was thirsty for the open air1 the blue sky1 the pure sunlight1 the tranquillity of large and silent spaces4 ,the ,lady went with me across the crowded quadrangle into the cool1 clean1 quiet ,german ,church of the ,redeemer4 ,we climbed to the top of the lofty bell tower4 ,jerusalem lay at our feet1 with its network of streets and lanes1 archways and convent walls1 domes small and great--the black ,dome of the ,rock in the centre of its wide inclosure1 the red dome and the green dome of the ,jewish synagogues on ,mount ,zion1 the seven gilded domes of the ,russian ,church of ,saint ,mary ,magdalen1 a hundred tiny domes of dwelling-houses1 and right in front of us the yellow dome of the ,greek ,centre of the ,world and the black dome of the ,holy ,sepulchre4 ,the quadrangle was still full of people buying and selling1 but the murmur of their voices was faint and far away1 less loud than the twittering of the thousands of swallows that soared and circled1 with glistening of innumerable blue-black wings and soft sheen of white breasts1 in the tender light of sunset above the faade of the gray old church4 ,westward the long ridge of ,olivet was bathed in the rays of the declining sun4 ,northward1 beyond the city-gate1 the light fell softly on a little rocky hill1 shaped like a skull1 the ancient place of stoning for those whom the cruel city had despised and rejected and cast out4 ,at the foot of that eminence there is a quiet garden and a tomb hewn in the rock4 ,rosemary and rue grow there1 roses and lilies2 birds sing among the trees4 ,is not that little rounded hill1 still touched with the free light of heaven1 still commanding a clear outlook over the city to the ,mount of ,olives--is not that the true ,golgotha1 where ,christ was lifted up8 ,as we were thinking of this we saw a man come out on the roof of the ,greek ,centre of the ,world1 and climb by a ladder up the side of the huge dome4 ,he went slowly and carefully1 yet with confidence1 as if the task were familiar4 ,he carried a lantern in one hand4 ,he was going to the top of the dome to light up the great cross for the night4 ,we spoke no word1 but each knew the thought that was in the other's heart4 ,wherever the crucifixion took place1 it was surely in the open air1 beneath the wide sky1 and the cross that stood on ,golgotha has become the light at the centre of the world's night4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,the ,,unseen ,,altar ,man the maker of cities is also a builder of altars3 ,among his habitations he setteth tables for his god4 ,he bringeth the beauty of the rocks to enrich them3 ,marble and alabaster1 porphyry1 jasper and jade4 ,he cometh with costly gifts to offer an oblation3 ,he would buy favour with the fairest of his flock4 ,around the many altars ,i hear strange music arising3 ,loud lamentations and shouting and singing and sighs4 ,i perceive also the pain and terror of their sacrifices3 ,i see the white marble wet with tears and with blood4 ,then ,i said1 ,these are the altars of ignorance3 ,yet they are built by thy children1 ,o ,god1 who know thee not4 ,surely thou wilt have pity upon them and lead them3 ,hast thou not prepared for them a table of peace8 ,then the ,lord mercifully sent his angel forth to lead me3 ,he led me through the temples1 the holy place that is hidden4 ,lo1 there are multitudes kneeling in the silence of the spirit3 ,they are kneeling at the unseen altar of the lowly heart4 ,here is plentiful forgiveness for the souls that are forgiving3 ,and the joy of life is given unto all who long to give4 ,here a ,father's hand upholdeth all who bear each other's burdens3 ,and the benediction falleth upon all who pray in love4 ,surely this is the altar where the penitent find pardon3 ,and the priest who hath blessed it forever is the ,holy ,one of ,god4 ,,vii ,,jericho ,,and ,,jordan ,i ,,going ,,down ,,to ,,jericho ,in the memory of every visitor to ,jerusalem the excursion to ,jericho is a vivid point4 ,for this is the one trip which everybody makes1 and it is a convention of the route to regard it as a perilous and exciting adventure4 ,perhaps it is partly this flavour of a not-too-dangerous danger1 this shivering charm of a hazard to be taken without too much risk1 that attracts the average tourist1 prudently romantic1 to make the journey to the lowest inhabited town in the world4 ,jericho has always had an ill name4 ,weak walls1 weak hearts1 weak morals were its early marks4 ,sweltering on the rich plain of the lower ,jordan1 eight hundred feet below the sea1 at the entrance of the two chief passes into the ,judean highlands1 it was too indolent or cowardly to maintain its own importance4 ,stanley called it the key of ,palestine2 but it was only a latch which any bold invader could lift4 ,the people of ,jericho were famous for light fingers and lively feet1 great robbers and runners-away4 ,joshua blotted the city out with a curse2 five centuries later ,hiel the ,bethelite rebuilt it with the bloody sacrifice of his two sons4 ,antony gave it to ,cleopatra1 and ,herod bought it from her for a winter palace1 where he died4 ,nothing fine or brave1 so far as ,i can remember1 is written of any of its inhabitants1 except the good deed of ,rahab1 a harlot1 and the honest conduct of ,zacchus1 a publican4 ,to this day1 at the tables d'hte of ,jerusalem the name of ,jericho stirs up a little whirlwind of bad stories and warnings4 ,last night we were dining with friends at one of the hotels1 and the usual topic came up for discussion4 ,imagine what followed4 ,that ,jericho road is positively frightful1 says a ,british female tourist in lace cap1 lilac ribbons and a maroon poplin dress1 the heat is most extr'ordinary6 ,no food fit to eat at the hotel1 grumbles her husband1 a rosy1 bald-headed man in plaid knickerbockers1 no bottled beer2 beastly little hole6 ,a voyage of the most fatiguing1 of the most perilous1 ,i assure you1 says a little ,frenchman with a forked beard4 ,but ,i rejoice myself of the adventure1 of the romance accomplished4 ,i want to know1 piped a lady in a green shirt-waist from ,andover1 ,mass41 is there really and truly any danger8 ,i guess not for us1 answers the dominating voice of the conductor of her party4 ,there's always a bunch of robbers on that road1 but ,i have hired the biggest man of the bunch to take care of us4 ,just wait till you see that dandy ,sheikh in his best clothes2 he looks like a museum of old weapons4 ,have you heard1 interposed a lady-like clergyman on the other side of the table1 with gold-rimmed spectacles gleaming above his high1 black waistcoat1 what happened on the ,jericho road1 week before last8 ,an ,english gentleman1 of very good family1 imprudently taking a short cut1 became separated from his companions4 ,the ,bedouins fell upon him1 beat him quite painfully1 deprived him of his watch and several necessary garments1 and left him prostrate upon the earth1 in an embarrassingly denuded condition4 ,just fancy6 ,was it not perfectly shocking8 7,the clergyman's voice was full of delicious horror47 ,but1 after all1 he resumed with a beaming smile1 it was most scriptural1 you know1 quite like a ,providential confirmation of ,holy ,writ6 ,most unpleasant for the ,englishman1 growls the man in knickerbockers4 ,but what can you expect under this rotten ,turkish government8 ,i know a story about ,jericho1 begins a gentleman from ,colorado1 with a hay-coloured moustache and a droop in his left eyelid--and then follows a series of tales about that ill-reputed town and the road thither1 which leave the lady in the lace cap gasping1 and the man with the forked beard visibly swelling with pride at having made the journey1 and the little woman in the green shirt-waist quivering with exquisite fears and mentally clinging with both arms to the personal conductor of her party1 who looks becomingly virile1 and exchanges a surreptitious wink with the gentleman from ,colorado4 ,of course1 ,i am not willing to make an affidavit to the correctness of every word in this conversation2 but ,i can testify that it fairly represents the ,jericho-motif as you may hear it played almost any night in the ,jerusalem hotels4 ,it sounded to us partly like an echo of ancient legends kept alive by dragomans and officials for purposes of revenue1 and partly like an outcrop of the hysterical habit in people who travel in flocks and do nothing without much palaver4 ,in our quiet camp1 ,george the ,bethlehemite assured us that the sheikhs were humbugs1 and an escort of soldiers a nuisance4 ,so we placidly made our preparations to ride on the morrow1 with no other safeguards than our friendly dispositions and a couple of excellent ,american revolvers4 ,but it was no brief ,ausflug to ,jericho and return that we had before us3 it was the beginning of a long and steady ride1 weeks in the saddle1 from six to nine hours a day4 ,imagine us then1 morning after morning1 mounting somewhere between six and eight o'clock1 according to the weather and the length of the journey1 and jingling out of camp1 followed at a discreet distance by ,youssouf on his white pony with the luncheon1 and ,paris on his tiny donkey1 ,tiddly-winks4 ,about noon1 sometimes a little earlier1 sometimes a little later1 the white pony catches up with us1 and the tent and the rugs are spread for the midday meal and the siesta4 ,it may be in our dreams1 or while the ,lady is reading from some pleasant book1 or while the smoke of the afternoon pipe of peace is ascending1 that we hear the musical bells of our long baggage-train go by us on the way to our night-quarters4 ,the evening ride is always shorter than the morning1 sometimes only an hour or two in the saddle2 and at the end of it there is the surprise of a new camp ground1 the comfortable tents1 the refreshing bath tub1 the quiet dinner by sunset-glow or candle-light4 ,then a bit of friendly talk over the walnuts and the ,treasure of ,zion2 a cup of fragrant ,turkish coffee2 and ,george enters the door of the tent to report on the condition of things in general1 and to discuss the plan of the next day's journey4 ,,ii ,,the ,,good ,,samaritan',s ,,road ,it is strange how every day1 no matter in what mood of merry jesting or practical modernity we set out1 an hour of riding in the open air brings us back to the mystical charm of the ,holy ,land and beneath the spell of its memories and dreams4 ,the wild hillsides1 the flowers of the field1 the shimmering olive-groves1 the brown villages1 the crumbling ruins1 the deep-blue sky1 subdue us to themselves and speak to us rememberable things4 ,we pass down the ,valley of the ,brook ,kidron1 where no water ever flows2 and through the crowd of beggars and loiterers and pilgrims at the crossroads2 and up over the shoulder of the ,mount of ,olives1 past the wide-spread ,jewish burying-ground1 where we take our last look at the towers and domes and minarets and walls of ,jerusalem4 ,the road descends gently1 on the other side of the hill1 to ,bethany1 a disconsolate group of hovels4 ,the sweet home of ,mary and ,martha is gone4 ,it is a waste of time to look at the uncertain ruins which are shown here as sacred sites4 ,look rather at the broad landscape eastward and southward1 the luminous blue sky1 the joyful little flowers on the rocky slopes1--these are unchanged4 ,not far beyond ,bethany1 the road begins to drop1 with great windings1 into a deep1 desolate valley1 crowded with pilgrims afoot and on donkey-back and in ramshackle carriages1--,russians and ,greeks returning from their sacred bath in the ,jordan4 ,here and there1 at first1 we can see a shepherd with his flock upon the haggard hillside4 ,as for the grass1 it grew as scant as hair ,in leprosy4 ,once the ,patriarch and ,i1 scrambling on foot down a short-cut1 think we see a ,bedouin waiting for us behind a rock1 with his long gun over his shoulder2 but it turns out to be only a brown little peasant girl1 ragged and smiling1 watching her score of lop-eared goats4 ,as the valley descends the landscape becomes more and more arid and stricken4 ,the heat broods over it like a disease4 ,i think ,i never saw ,such starved1 ignoble nature2 nothing throve2 ,for flowers--as well expect a cedar grove6 ,we might be on the way with ,childe ,roland to the ,dark ,tower4 ,but instead we come1 about noon1 through a savage glen beset with blood-red rocks and honeycombed with black caves on the other side of the ravine1 to the so-called ,inn of the ,good ,samaritan4 ,the local colour of the parable surrounds us4 ,here is a fitting scene for such a drama of lawless violence1 cowardly piety1 and unconventional mercy4 ,in these caverns robbers could hide securely4 ,on this wild road their victim might lie and bleed to death4 ,by these paths across the glen the priest and the ,levite could pass by on the other side1 discreetly turning their heads away from any interruption to their selfish duties4 ,and in some such wayside khn as this1 standing like a lonely fortress among the sun-baked hills1 the friendly half-heathen from ,samaria could safely leave the stranger whom he had rescued1 provided he paid at least a part of his lodging in advance4 ,we eat our luncheon in one of the three big1 disorderly rooms of the inn1 and go on1 in the cool of the afternoon1 toward ,jericho4 ,the road still descends steeply1 among ragged and wrinkled hills4 ,on our left we look down into the ,wdi el-,kelt1 a gloomy gorge five or six hundred feet deep1 with a stream of living water singing between its prison walls4 ,tradition calls this the ,brook ,cherith1 where ,elijah hid himself from ,ahab1 and was fed by ,arabs of a tribe called the ,ravens4 ,but the prophet's hiding-place was certainly on the other side of the ,jordan1 and this ,wdi is probably the ,valley of ,achor1 spoken of in the ,book of ,joshua4 ,on the opposite side of the caon1 half-way down the face of the precipice1 clings the monastery of ,saint ,george1 one of the pious penitentiaries to which the ,greek ,church assigns unruly and criminal monks4 ,illustration3 ,great ,monastery of ,st4 ,george4 ,as we emerge from the narrow valley a great view opens before us3 to the right1 the blue waters of the ,dead ,sea1 like a mirror of burnished steel2 in front1 the immense plain of the ,jordan1 with the dark-green ribbon of the river-jungle winding through its length and the purple mountains of ,gilead and ,moab towering beyond it2 to the left1 the furrowed gray and yellow ridges and peaks of the northern wilderness of ,judea1 the wild country into which ,jesus retired alone after the baptism by ,john in the ,jordan4 ,one of these peaks1 the ,quarantana1 is supposed to be the high mountain from which the ,tempter showed ,jesus the kingdoms of the world4 ,in the foreground of that view1 sweeping from the snowy summits of ,hermon in the north1 past the ,greek cities of ,pella and ,scythopolis1 down the vast valley with its wealth of palms and balsams1 must have stood the ,roman city of ,jericho1 with its imperial farms and the palaces1 baths and theatres of ,herod the ,great1--a visible image of what ,christ might have won for ,himself if ,he had yielded to the temptation and turned from the pathway of spiritual light to follow the shadows of earthly power and glory4 ,herod's ,jericho has vanished2 there is nothing left of it but the outline of one of the great pools which he built to irrigate his gardens4 ,the modern ,jericho is an unhappy little adobe village1 lying a mile or so farther to the east4 ,a mile to the north1 near a copious fountain of pure water1 called the ,sultan's ,spring1 is the site of the oldest ,jericho1 which ,joshua conquered and ,hiel rebuilt4 ,the spring1 which is probably the same that ,elisha cleansed with salt 7,,ii ,kings ii3 #ai-bb71 sends forth a merry stream to turn a mill and irrigate a group of gardens full of oranges1 figs1 bananas1 grapes1 feathery bamboos and rosy oleanders4 ,but the ancient city is buried under a great mound of earth1 which the ,german ,palstina-,verein is now excavating4 ,as we come up to the mound ,i pull out my little camera and prepare to take a picture of the hundred or so dusty ,arabs--men1 women and children--who are at work in the trenches4 ,a ,german gelehrter in a very excited state rushes up to me and calls upon me to halt1 in the name of the ,emperor4 ,the taking of pictures by persons not imperially authorised is streng verboten4 ,he is evidently prepared to be abusive1 if not actually violent1 until ,i assure him1 in the best ,german that ,i can command1 that ,i have no political or archological intentions1 and that if the photographing of his picturesque work-people to him displeasing is1 ,i will my camera immediately in its pocket put4 ,this mollifies him1 and he politely shows us what he is doing4 ,a number of ruined houses1 and a sort of central temple1 with a rude flight of steps leading up to it1 have been discovered4 ,a portion of what seems to be the city-wall has just been laid bare4 ,if there are any inscriptions or relics of any value they are kept secret2 but there is plenty of broken pottery of a common kind4 ,it is all very poor and beggarly looking2 no carving nor even any hewn stones4 ,the buildings seem to be of rubble1 and the walls of ,jericho are little better than the stone fences on a ,connecticut farm4 ,no wonder they fell down at the blast of ,joshua's rams' horns and the rush of his fierce tribesmen4 ,we ride past the gardens and through the shady lanes to our camp1 on the outskirts of the modern village4 ,the air is heavy and languid1 full of relaxing influence1 an air of sloth and luxury1 seeming to belong to some strange region below the level of human duty and effort as far as it is below the level of the sea4 ,the fragrance of the orange-blossoms1 like a subtle incense of indulgence1 floats on the evening breeze4 ,veiled figures pass us in the lanes1 showing lustrous eyes4 ,a sound of ,oriental music and laughter and clapping hands comes from one of the houses in an inclosure hedged with acacia-trees4 ,we sit in the door of our tent at sundown and dream of the vanished palm-groves1 the gardens of ,cleopatra1 the palaces of ,herod1 the soft1 ignoble history of that region of fertility and indolence1 rich in harvests1 poor in manhood4 ,then it seems as if some one were saying1 ,i will lift up mine eyes unto the hills1 from whence cometh my help4 ,there they stand1 all about us3 eastward1 the great purple ranges of ,gad and ,reuben1 from which ,elijah the ,tishbite descended to rebuke and warn ,israel2 westward1 against the saffron sky1 the ridges and peaks of ,judea1 among which ,amos and ,jeremiah saw their lofty visions2 northward1 the clear-cut pinnacle of ,sartoba1 and far away beyond it the dim outlines of the ,galilean hills from which ,jesus of ,nazareth came down to open blind eyes and to shepherd wandering souls4 ,with the fading of the sunset glow a deep blue comes upon all the mountains1 a blue which strangely seems to grow paler as the sky above them darkens1 sinking down upon them through infinite gradations of azure into something mysterious and indescribable1 not a color1 not a shadow1 not a light1 but a secret hyaline illumination which transforms them into aerial battlements and ramparts1 on whose edge the great stars rest and flame1 the watch-fires of the ,eternal4 ,,iii ,,passing ,,over ,,jordan ,i have often wondered why the ,jordan1 which plays such an important part in the history of the ,hebrews1 receives so little honour and praise in their literature4 ,sentimental travellers and poets of other races have woven a good deal of florid prose and verse about the name of this river4 ,there is no doubt that it is the chief stream of ,palestine1 the only one1 in fact1 that deserves to be called a river4 ,yet the ,bible has no song of loving pride for the ,jordan2 no tender and beautiful words to describe it2 no record of the longing of exiled ,jews to return to the banks of their own river and hear again the voice of its waters4 ,at this strange silence ,i have wondered much1 not knowing the reason of it4 ,now ,i know4 ,the ,jordan is not a little river to be loved3 it is a barrier to be passed over4 ,from its beginning in the marshes of ,huleh to its end in the ,dead ,sea1 7excepting only the lovely interval of the ,lake of ,galilee71 this river offers nothing to man but danger and difficulty1 perplexity and trouble4 ,fierce and sullen and intractable1 it flows through a long depression1 at the bottom of which it has dug for itself a still deeper crooked ditch1 along the ,eastern border of ,galilee and ,samaria and ,judea1 as if it wished to cut them off completely4 ,there are no pleasant places along its course1 no breezy forelands where a man might build a house with a fair outlook over flowing water1 no rich and tranquil coves where the cattle would love to graze1 or stand knee-deep in the quiet stream4 ,there is no sense of leisure1 of refreshment1 of kind companionship and friendly music about the ,jordan4 ,it is in a hurry and a secret rage4 ,yet there is something powerful1 self-reliant1 inevitable about it4 ,in thousands of years it has changed less than any river in the world4 ,it is a flowing1 everlasting symbol of division1 of separation3 a river of solemn meetings and partings like that of ,elijah and ,elisha1 of ,jesus and ,john the ,baptist3 a type of the narrow stream of death4 ,it seems to say to man1 ,cross me if you will1 if you can2 and then go your way4 ,the road that leads us from ,jericho toward the river is pleasant enough1 at first1 for the early sunlight is gentle and caressing1 and there is a cool breeze moving across the plain4 ,it is hard to believe that we are eight hundred feet below the sea this morning1 and still travelling downward4 ,the lush fields of barley1 watered by many channels from the brook ,kelt1 are waving and glistening around us4 ,quails are running along the edge of the road1 appearing and disappearing among the thick grain-stalks4 ,the bulbuls warble from the thorn-bushes1 and a crested hoopoo croons in a jujube-tree4 ,larks are on the wing1 scattering music4 ,we are on the upper edge of that great belt of sunken land between the mountains of ,gilead and the mountains of ,ephraim and ,judah1 which reaches from the ,lake of ,galilee to the ,dead ,sea1 and which the ,arabs call ,el-,ghr1 the ,rift4 ,it is a huge trench1 from three to fourteen miles wide1 sinking from six hundred feet below the level of the ,mediterranean1 at the northern end1 to thirteen hundred feet below1 at the southern end4 ,the surface is fairly level1 sloping gently from each side toward the middle1 and the soil is of an inexhaustible fertility1 yielding abundant crops wherever it is patiently irrigated from the streams which flow out of the mountains east and west1 but elsewhere lying baked and arid under the heavy1 close1 feverous air4 ,no strong race has ever inhabited this trench as a home2 no great cities have ever grown here1 and its civilization1 such as it had1 was a hot-bed product1 soon ripe and quickly rotten4 ,we have passed beyond the region of greenness already2 the little water-brooks have ceased to gleam through the grain3 the wild grasses and weeds have a parched and yellow look3 the freshness of the early morning has vanished1 and we are descending through a desolate land of sour and leprous hills of clay and marl1 eroded by the floods into fantastic shapes1 furrowed and scarred and scabbed with mineral refuse4 ,the gullies are steep and narrow3 the heat settles on them like a curse4 ,through this battered and crippled region1 the centre of the ,jordan ,valley1 runs the ,jordan ,bed1 twisting like a big green serpent4 ,a dense half-tropical jungle1 haunted by wild beasts and poisonous reptiles and insects1 conceals1 almost at every point1 the down-rushing1 swirling1 yellow flood4 ,it has torn and desolated its own shores with sudden spates4 ,the feet of the pilgrims who bathe in it sink into the mud as they wade out waist-deep1 and if they venture beyond the shelter of the bank the whirling eddies threaten to sweep them away4 ,the fords are treacherous1 with shifting bottom and changing currents4 ,the poets and prophets of the ,old ,testament give us a true idea of this uninhabitable and unlovable river-bed when they speak of the pride of ,jordan1 the swellings of ,jordan1 where the lion hides among the reeds in his secret lair1 a refuge of lies1 which the overflowing scourge shall sweep away4 ,no1 it was not because the ,jordan was beautiful that ,john the ,baptist chose it as the scene of his preaching and ministry1 but because it was wild and rude1 an emblem of violent and sudden change1 of irrevocable parting1 of death itself1 and because in its one gift of copious and unfailing water1 he found the necessary element for his deep baptism of repentance1 in which the sinful past of the crowd who followed him was to be symbolically immersed and buried and washed away4 ,at the place where we reach the water there is an open bit of ground2 a miserable hovel gives shelter to two or three ,turkish soldiers2 an ungainly latticed bridge1 stilted on piles of wood1 straddles the river with a single span4 ,the toll is three piastres1 7about twelve cents17 for a man and horse4 ,the only place from which ,i can take a photograph of the river is the bridge itself1 so ,i thrust the camera through one of the diamond-shaped openings on the lattice-work and try to make a truthful record of the lower ,jordan at its best4 ,imagine the dull green of the tangled thickets1 the ragged clumps of reeds and water-grasses1 the sombre and silent flow of the fulvous water sliding and curling down out of the jungle1 and the implacable fervour of the pallid1 searching sunlight heightening every touch of ugliness and desolation1 and you will understand why the ,hebrew poets sang no praise of the ,jordan1 and why ,naaman the ,syrian thought scorn of it when he remembered the lovely and fruitful rivers of ,damascus4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,rivers ,the rivers of ,god are full of water3 ,they are wonderful in the renewal of their strength3 ,he poureth them out from a hidden fountain4 ,they are born among the hills in the high places3 ,their cradle is in the bosom of the rocks3 ,the mountain is their mother and the forest is their father4 ,they are nourished among the long grasses3 ,they receive the tribute of a thousand springs3 ,the rain and the snow are a heritage for them4 ,they are glad to be gone from their birthplace3 ,with a joyful noise they hasten away3 ,they are going forever and never departed4 ,the courses of the rivers are all appointed3 ,they roar loudly but they follow the road3 ,the finger of ,god hath marked their pathway4 ,the rivers of ,damascus rejoice among their gardens3 ,the great river of ,egypt is proud of his ships3 ,the ,jordan is lost in the ,lake of ,bitterness4 ,surely the ,lord guideth them every one in his wisdom3 ,in the end he gathereth all their drops on high3 ,he sendeth them forth again in the clouds of mercy4 ,o my ,god1 my life runneth away like a river3 ,guide me1 ,i beseech thee1 in a pathway of good3 ,let me flow in blessing to my rest in thee4 ,,viii ,a ,,journey ,,to ,,jerash ,i ,,through ,,the ,,land ,,of ,,gilead ,i never heard of ,jerash until my friend the ,archologist told me about it1 one night when we were sitting beside my study fire at ,avalon4 ,it is the site of the old city of ,gerasa1 said he4 ,the most satisfactory ruins that ,i have ever seen4 ,there was something suggestive and potent in that phrase1 satisfactory ruins4 ,for what is it that weaves the charm of ruins8 ,what do we ask of them to make their magic complete and satisfying8 ,there must be an element of picturesqueness1 certainly1 to take the eye with pleasure in the contrast between the frailty of man's works and the imperishable loveliness of nature4 ,there must also be an element of age2 for new ruins are painful1 disquieting1 intolerable2 they speak of violence and disorder2 it is not until the bloom of antiquity gathers upon them that the relics of vast and splendid edifices attract us and subdue us with a spell1 breathing tranquillity and noble thoughts4 ,there must also be an element of magnificence in decay1 of symmetry broken but not destroyed1 a touch of delicate art and workmanship1 to quicken the imagination and evoke the ghost of beauty haunting her ancient habitations4 ,and beyond these things ,i think there must be two more qualities in a ruin that satisfies us3 a clear connection with the greatness and glory of the past1 with some fine human achievement1 with some heroism of men dead and gone2 and last of all1 a spirit of mystery1 the secret of some unexplained catastrophe1 the lost link of a story never to be fully told4 ,this1 or something like it1 was what the ,archologist's phrase seemed to promise me as we watched the glowing embers on the hearth of ,avalon4 ,and it is this promise that has drawn me1 with my three friends1 on this ,april day into the ,land of ,gilead1 riding to ,jerash4 ,the grotesque and rickety bridge by which we have crossed the ,jordan soon disappears behind us1 as we trot along the winding bridle-path through the river-jungle1 in the stifling heat4 ,coming out on the open plain1 which rises gently toward the east1 we startle great flocks of storks into the air1 and they swing away in languid circles1 dappling the blaze of morning with their black-tipped wings4 ,grotesque1 ungainly1 gothic birds1 they do not seem to belong to the ,orient1 but rather to have drifted hither out of some quaint1 familiar fairy tale of the ,north2 and indeed they are only transient visitors here1 and will soon be on their way to build their nests on the roofs of ,german villages and clapper their long1 yellow bills over the joy of houses full of little children4 ,the rains of spring have spread a thin bloom of green over the plain4 ,tender herbs and light grasses partly veil the gray and stony ground4 ,there is a month of scattered feeding for the flocks and herds4 ,away to the south1 where the foot-hills begin to roll up suddenly from the ,jordan1 we can see a black line of ,bedouin tents quivering through the heat4 ,now the trail divides1 and we take the northern fork1 turning soon into the open mouth of the ,wdi ,shab1 a broad1 grassy valley between high and treeless hills4 ,the watercourse that winds down the middle of it is dry3 nothing but a tumbled bed of gray rocks1--the bare bones of a little river4 ,but as we ascend slowly the flowers increase2 wild hollyhocks1 and morning-glories1 and clumps of blue anchusa1 and scarlet adonis1 and tall wands of white asphodel4 ,the morning grows hotter and hotter as we plod along4 ,presently we come up with three mounted ,arabs1 riding leisurely4 ,salutations are exchanged with gravity4 ,then the ,arabs whisper something to each other and spur away at a great pace ahead of us--laughing4 ,why did they laugh8 ,ah1 now we know4 ,for here is a lofty cliff on one side of the valley1 hanging over just far enough to make a strip of cool shade at its base1 with ferns and deep grass and a glimmer of dripping water4 ,and here our wise ,arabs are sitting at their ease to eat their mid-day meal under the shadow of a great rock in a weary land4 ,vainly we search the valley for another rock like that4 ,it is the only one2 and the ,arabs laughed because they knew it4 ,we must content ourselves with this little hill where a few hawthorn bushes offer us tiny islets of shade1 beset with thorns1 and separated by straits of intolerable glare4 ,here we eat a little1 but without comfort2 and sleep a little1 but without refreshment2 and talk a little1 but restlessly4 ,as soon as we dare1 we get into the saddle again and toil up through the valley1 now narrowing into a rugged gorge1 crammed with ardent heat4 ,the sprinkling of trees and bushes1 the multitude of flowers1 assure us that there must be moisture underground1 along the bed of the stream2 but above ground there is not a drop1 and not a breath of wind to break the dead calm of the smothering air4 ,why did we come into this heat-trap8 ,but presently the ravine leads us1 by steep stairs of rock1 up to a high1 green table-land4 ,a heavenly breeze from the west is blowing here4 ,the fields are full of flowers--red anemones1 white and yellow daisies1 pink flax1 little blue bell-flowers--a hundred kinds4 ,one knoll is covered with cyclamens2 another with splendid purple iris1 immense blossoms1 so dark that they look almost black against the grass2 but hold them up to the sun and you will see the imperial colour4 ,we have never found such wild flowers1 not even on the ,plain of ,sharon2 the hills around ,jerusalem were but sparsely adorned in comparison with these highlands of bloom4 ,and here are oak-trees1 broad-limbed and friendly1 clothed in glistening green4 ,let us rest for a while in this cool shade and forget the misery of the blazing noon4 ,below us lies the gray ,jordan valley and the steel-blue mirror of the ,dead ,sea2 and across that gulf we see the furrowed mountains of ,judea and ,samaria1 and far to the north the peaks of ,galilee4 ,around us is the ,land of ,gilead1 a rolling hill-country1 with long ridges and broad summits1 a rounded land1 a verdurous land1 a land of rich pasturage4 ,there are deep valleys that cut into it and divide it up4 ,but the main bulk of it is lifted high in the air1 and spread out nobly to the visitations of the wind4 ,and see--far away there1 to the south1 across the ,wdi ,nimrn1 a mountainside covered with wild trees1 a real woodland1 almost a forest6 ,now we must travel on1 for it is still a long way to our night-quarters at ,es ,salt4 ,we pass several ,bedouin camps1 the only kind of villages in this part of the world4 ,the tents of goat's-hair are swarming with life4 ,a score of ragged ,arab boys are playing hockey on the green with an old donkey's hoof for a ball4 ,they yell with refreshing vigour1 just like universal human boys4 ,the trail grows steeper and more rocky1 ascending apparently impossible places1 and winding perilously along the cliffs above little vineyards and cultivated fields where men are ploughing4 ,travel and traffic increase along this rude path1 which is the only highway3 evidently we are coming near to some place of importance4 ,but where is ,es ,salt8 ,for nine hours we have been in the saddle1 riding steadily toward that mysterious metropolis of the ,belka1 the only living city in the ,land of ,gilead2 and yet there is no trace of it in sight4 ,have we missed the trail8 ,the mule-train with our tents and baggage passed us in the valley while we were sweltering under the hawthorns4 ,it seems as if it must have vanished into the pastoral wilderness and left us travelling an endless road to nowhere4 ,at last we top a rugged ridge and look down upon the solution of the mystery4 ,es ,salt is a city that can be hid2 for it is not set upon a hill1 but tucked away in a valley that curves around three sides of a rocky eminence1 and is sheltered from the view by higher ranges4 ,who can tell how this city came here1 hidden in this hollow place almost three thousand feet above the sea8 ,who was its founder8 ,what was its ancient name8 ,it is a place without traditions1 without antiquities1 without a shrine of any kind2 just a living town1 thriving and prospering in its own dirty and dishevelled way1 in the midst of a country of nomads1 growing in the last twenty years from six thousand to fifteen thousand inhabitants1 driving a busy trade with the surrounding country1 exporting famous raisins and dye-stuff made from sumach1 the seat of the ,turkish ,government of the ,belka1 with a garrison and a telegraph office--decidedly a thriving town of to-day2 yet without a road by which a carriage can approach it2 and old1 unmistakably old6 ,the castle that crowns the eminence in the centre is a ruin of unknown date4 ,the copious spring that gushes from the castle-hill must have invited men for many centuries to build their habitations around it4 ,the gray houses seem to have slipped and settled down into the curving valley1 and to have crowded one another up the opposite slopes1 as if hundreds of generations had found here a hiding-place and a city of refuge4 ,we ride through a ,mohammedan graveyard--unfenced1 broken1 neglected--and down a steep1 rain-gulleyed hillside1 into the filthy1 narrow street4 ,the people all have an ,arab look1 a touch of the wildness of the desert in their eyes and their free bearing4 ,there are many fine figures and handsome faces1 some with auburn hair and a reddish hue showing through the bronze of their cheeks4 ,they stare at us with undisguised curiosity and wonder1 as if we came from a strange world4 ,the swarthy merchants in the doors of their little shops1 the half-veiled women in the lanes1 the groups of idlers at the corners of the streets1 watch us with a gaze which seems almost defiant4 ,evidently tourists are a rarity here--perhaps an intrusion to be resented4 ,we inquire whether our baggage-train has been seen1 where our camp is pitched4 ,no one knows1 no one cares2 until at last a ragged1 smiling urchin1 one of those blessed1 ubiquitous boys who always know everything that happens in a town1 offers to guide us4 ,he trots ahead1 full of importance1 dodging through the narrow alleys1 making the complete circuit of the castle-hill and leading us to the upper end of the eastern valley4 ,here1 among a few olive-trees beside the road1 our white tents are standing1 so close to an encampment of wandering gypsies that the tent-ropes cross4 ,directly opposite rises a quarter of the town1 tier upon tier of flat-roofed houses1 every roof-top covered with people4 ,a wild-looking crowd of visitors have gathered in the road4 ,two soldiers1 with the appearance of partially reformed brigands1 are acting as our guard1 and keeping the inquisitive spectators at a respectful distance4 ,our mules and donkeys and horses are munching their supper in a row1 tethered to a long rope in front of the tents4 ,shukari1 the cook1 in his white cap and apron1 is gravely intent upon the operation of his little charcoal range4 ,youssouf1 the major-domo1 is setting the table with flowers and lighted candles in the dining-tent4 ,after a while he comes to the door of our sleeping-tents to inform us1 with due ceremony1 that dinner is served2 and we sit down to our repast in the midst of the swarming ,edomites and the wandering ,zingari as peacefully and properly as if we were dining at the ,savoy4 ,the night darkens around us4 ,lights twinkle1 one above another1 up the steep hillside of houses2 above them are the tranquil stars1 the lit windows of unknown habitations2 and on the hill-top one great planet burns in liquid flame4 ,the crowd melts away1 chattering down the road2 it forms again1 from another quarter1 and again dissolves4 ,meaningless shouts and cries and songs resound from the hidden city4 ,in the gypsy camp beside us insomnia reigns4 ,a little forge is clinking and clanking4 ,donkeys raise their antiphonal lament4 ,dogs salute the stars in chorus4 ,first a leader1 far away1 lifts a wailing1 howling1 shrieking note2 then the mysterious unrest that torments the bosom of ,oriental dogdom breaks loose in a hundred1 a thousand answering voices1 swelling into a yapping1 growling1 barking1 yelling discord4 ,a sudden silence cuts the tumult short1 until once more the unknown misery1 7or is it the secret joy71 of the canine heart bursts out in long-drawn dissonance4 ,from the road and from the tents of the gypsies various human voices are sounding close around us all the night4 ,through our confused dreams and broken sleep we strangely seem to catch fragments of familiar speech1 phrases of ,english or ,french or ,german4 ,then1 waking and listening1 we hear men muttering and disputing1 women complaining or soothing their babies1 children quarrelling or calling to each other1 in ,arabic1 or ,romany--not a word that we can understand--voices that tell us only that we are in a strange land1 and very far away from home1 camping in the heart of a wild city4 ,,ii ,,over ,,the ,,brook ,,jabbok ,after such a night the morning is welcome1 as it breaks over the eastern hill behind us1 with rosy light creeping slowly down the opposite slope of houses4 ,before the sunbeams have fairly reached the bottom of the valley we are in the saddle1 ready to leave ,es ,salt without further exploration4 ,there is a general monotony about this riding through ,palestine which yet leaves room for a particular variety of the most entrancing kind4 ,every day is like every other in its main outline1 but the details are infinitely uncertain--always there is something new1 some touch of a distinct and memorable charm4 ,to-day it is the sense of being in the country of the nomads1 the tent-dwellers1 the masters of innumerable flocks and herds1 whose wealth goes wandering from pasture to pasture1 bleating and lowing and browsing and multiplying over the open moorland beneath the blue sky4 ,this is the prevailing impression of this day3 and the symbol of it is the thin1 quavering music of the pastoral pipe1 following us wherever we go1 drifting tremulously and plaintively down from some rock on the hillside1 or floating up softly from some hidden valley1 where a brown shepherd or goatherd is minding his flock with music4 ,what quaint and rustic melodies are these6 ,wild and unfamiliar to our ears2 yet doubtless the same wandering airs that were played by the sons and servants of ,jacob when he returned from his twenty years of profitable exile in ,haran with his rich wages of sheep and goats and cattle and wives and maid-servants1 the fruit of his hard labour and shrewd bargaining with his father-in-law ,laban1 and passed cautiously through ,gilead on his way to the ,promised ,land4 ,on the highland to the east of ,es ,salt we see a fine herd of horses1 brood-mares and foals4 ,a little farther on1 we come to a muddy pond or tank at which a drove of asses are drinking4 ,a steep and winding path1 full of loose stones1 leads us down into a grassy1 oval plain1 a great cup of green1 eight or ten miles long and five or six miles wide1 rimmed with bare hills from five to eight hundred feet high4 ,this1 we conjecture1 is the fertile basin of ,el ,buchaia1 or ,bekaa4 ,bedouin farmers are ploughing the rich1 reddish soil4 ,their black tent-villages are tucked away against the feet of the surrounding hills4 ,the broad plain itself is without sign of human dwelling1 except that near each focus of the ellipse there is a pile of shattered ruins with a crumbling1 solitary tower1 where a shepherd sits piping to his lop-eared flock4 ,in one place we pass through a breeding-herd of camels1 browsing on the short grass4 ,the old ones are in the process of the spring moulting2 their thick1 matted hair is peeling off in large flakes1 like fragments of a ragged1 moth-eaten coat4 ,the young ones are covered with pearl-gray wool1 soft and almost downy1 like gigantic goslings with four legs4 7,what is the word for a young camel1 ,i wonder2 is it camelet or camelot87 ,but young and old have a family resemblance of ugliness4 ,the camel is the most ungainly and stupid of ,god's useful beasts--an awkward necessity--the humpbacked ship of the desert4 ,the ,arabs have a story which runs thus3 ,what did ,allah say when ,he had finished making the camel8 ,he couldn't say anything2 ,he just looked at the camel1 and laughed1 and laughed6 ,but in spite of his ridiculous appearance the camel seems satisfied with himself2 in fact there is an expression of supreme contempt in his face when he droops his pendulous lower lip and wrinkles his nose1 which has led the ,arabs to tell another story about him3 ,why does the camel despise his master8 ,because man knows only the ninety-nine common names of ,allah2 but the hundredth name1 the wonderful name1 the beautiful name1 is a secret revealed to the camel alone4 ,therefore he scorns the whole race of men4 ,the cattle that feed around the edges of this peaceful plain are small and nimble1 as if they were used to long1 rough journeys4 ,the prevailing colour is black1 or rusty brown4 ,they are evidently of a degenerate and played-out stock4 ,even the heifers are used for ploughing1 and they look but little larger than the donkeys which are often yoked beside them4 ,they come around the grassy knoll when our luncheon-tent is pitched1 and stare at us very much as the people stared in ,es ,salt4 ,in the afternoon we pass over the rim of the broad vale and descend a narrower ravine1 where oaks and terebinths1 laurels and balsams1 pistachios and almonds are growing4 ,the grass springs thick and lush1 tall weeds and trailing vines appear1 a murmur of flowing water is heard under the tangled herbage at the bottom of the wdi4 ,presently we are following a bright little brook1 crossing and recrossing it as it leads us toward our camp-ground4 ,there are the tents1 standing in a line on the flowery bank of the brook1 across the water from the trail4 ,a few steps lower down there is a well-built stone basin with a copious spring gushing into it from the hillside under an arched roof4 ,here the people of the village1 7which is somewhere near us on the mountain1 but out of sight71 come to fill their pitchers and water-skins1 and to let their cattle and donkeys drink4 ,all through the late afternoon they are coming and going1 plashing through the shallow ford below us1 enjoying the cool1 clear water1 disappearing along the foot-paths that lead among the hills4 ,these are very different cattle from the herds we saw among the ,bedouins a couple of hours ago2 fine large creatures1 well bred and well fed1 some cream-coloured1 some red1 some belted with white4 ,and these men who follow them1 on foot or on horseback1 truculent looking fellows with blue eyes and light hair and broad faces1 clad in long1 close-fitting tunics1 with belts around their waists and small black caps of fur1 some of them with high boots--who are they8 ,they are some of the ,circassian immigrants who were driven out of ,russia by the ,czar after the ,russo-,turkish ,war of #ahgg1 and deported again after the ,bulgarian atrocities1 and whom the ,turkish ,government has colonized through eastern ,palestine on land given by the ,sultan4 ,nobody really knows to whom the land belongs1 ,i suppose2 but the ,bedouins have had the habit1 for many centuries1 of claiming and using it as they pleased for their roaming flocks and herds4 ,now these northern invaders are taking and holding the most fertile places1 the best springs1 the fields that are well watered through the year4 ,therefore the ,arab hates the ,circassian1 though he be of the same religion1 far more than he hates the ,christian1 almost as much as he hates the ,turk4 ,but the ,circassian can take care of himself2 he is a fierce and hardy fighter2 and in his rude way he understands how to make farming and stock-raising pay4 ,indeed1 this ,land of ,gilead is a region in which twenty times the present population1 if they were industrious and intelligent and had good government1 might prosper4 ,no wonder that the tribe of ,gad and ,reuben and the half-tribe of ,manasseh1 on the way to ,canaan1 when they saw the land of ,jazer and the land of ,gilead1 that1 behold1 the place was a place for cattle1 7,numbers xxxii7 fell in love with it1 and besought ,moses that they might have their inheritance there1 and not westward of the ,jordan4 ,no wonder that they recrossed the river after they had helped ,joshua to conquer the ,canaanites1 and settled in this high country1 so much fairer and more fertile than ,judea1 or even than ,samaria4 ,it was here1 in #ahhj1 that ,laurence ,oliphant1 the gifted ,english traveller and mystic1 proposed to establish his fine scheme for the beginning of the restoration of the ,jews to ,palestine4 ,a territory extending from the brook of ,jabbok on the north to the brook of ,arnon on the south1 from the ,jordan ,valley on the west to the ,arabian desert on the east2 railways running up from the sea at ,haif1 and down from ,damascus1 and southward to the ,gulf of ,akabah1 and across to ,ismailia on the ,suez ,canal2 a government of local autonomy guaranteed and protected by the ,sublime ,porte2 sufficient capital supplied by the ,jewish bankers of ,london and ,paris and ,berlin and ,vienna2 and the outcasts of ,israel gathered from all the countries where they are oppressed1 to dwell together in peace and plenty1 tending sheep and cattle1 raising fruit and grain1 pressing out wine and oil1 and supplying the world with the balm of ,gilead--such was ,oliphant's beautiful dream4 ,but it did not come true2 because ,russia did not like it1 because ,turkey was afraid of it1 because the rest of ,europe did not care for it1--and perhaps because the ,jews themselves were not generally enthusiastic over it4 ,perhaps the majority of them would rather stay where they are4 ,perhaps they do not yearn passionately for ,palestine and the simple life4 ,but it is not of these things that we are thinking1 ,i must confess1 as the ruddy sun slowly drops toward the heights of ,pennel1 and we stroll out in the evening glow1 along the edge of the wild ravine into which our little stream plunges1 and look down into the deep1 grand valley of the ,brook ,jabbok4 ,yonder1 on the other side of the great gulf of heliotrope shadow1 stretches the long bulk of the ,jebel ,ajln1 shaggy with oak-trees4 ,it was somewhere on the slopes of that wooded mountain that one of the most tragic battles of the world was fought4 ,for there the army of ,absalom went out to meet the army of his father ,david4 ,and the battle was spread over the face of all the country1 and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured4 ,it was there that the young man ,absalom rode furiously upon his mule1 and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great oak1 and his head caught hold of the oak1 and he was taken up between heaven and earth4 ,and a man came and told ,joab1 the captain of ,david's host1 ,behold ,i saw ,absalom hanging in the midst of an oak4 ,then ,joab made haste2 and he took three darts in his hand1 and thrust them through the heart of ,absalom while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak4 ,and when the news came to ,david1 sitting in the gate of the city of ,mahanaim1 he went up into the chamber over the gate and wept bitterly1 crying1 ,would ,i had died for thee1 ,o ,absalom1 my son6 7,,ii ,samuel xviii47 ,to remember a story like that is to feel the pathos with which man has touched the face of nature4 ,but there is another story1 more mystical1 more beautiful1 which belongs to the scene upon which we are looking4 ,down in the purple valley1 where the smooth meadows spread so fair1 and the little river curves and gleams through the thickets of oleander1 somewhere along that flashing stream is the place where ,jacob sent his wives and his children1 his servants and his cattle1 across the water in the darkness1 and there remained all night long alone1 for there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day4 ,who was this man with whom the patriarch contended at midnight1 and to whom he cried1 ,i will not let thee go except thou bless me8 ,on the morrow ,jacob was to meet his fierce and powerful brother ,esau1 whom he had wronged and outwitted1 from whom he had stolen the birthright blessing twenty years before4 ,was it the prospect of this dreaded meeting that brought upon ,jacob the night of lonely struggle by the ,brook ,jabbok8 ,was it the promise of reconciliation with his brother that made him say at dawn1 ,i have seen ,god face to face1 and my life is saved8 ,was it the unexpected friendliness and gentleness of that brother in the encounter of the morning that inspired ,jacob's cry1 ,i have seen thy face as one seeth the face of ,god1 and thou wast pleased with me8 ,yes1 that is what the old story means1 in its ,oriental imagery4 ,the midnight wrestling is the pressure of human enmity and strife4 ,the morning peace is the assurance of human forgiveness and love4 ,the face of ,god seen in the face of human kindness--that is the sunrise vision of the ,brook ,jabbok4 ,such are the thoughts with which we fall asleep in our tents beside the murmuring brook of ,er ,rumman4 ,early the next morning we go down1 and down1 and down1 by ledge and terrace and grassy slope1 into the ,vale of ,jabbok4 ,it is sixty miles long1 beginning on the edge of the mountain of ,moab1 and curving eastward1 northward1 westward1 south-westward1 between ,gilead and ,ajln1 until it opens into the ,jordan ,valley4 ,here is the famous little river1 a swift1 singing current of gray-blue water--,nahr ez-,zerka blue river1 the ,arabs call it--dashing and swirling merrily between the thickets of willows and tamaracks and oleanders that border it4 ,the ford is rather deep1 for the spring flood is on2 but our horses splash through gaily1 scattering the water around them in showers which glitter in the sunshine4 ,is this the brook beside which a man once met ,god8 ,yes--and by many another brook too4 ,,iii ,,the ,,ruins ,,of ,,gerasa ,we are coming now into the region of the ,decapolis1 the ,greek cities which sprang up along the eastern border of ,palestine after the conquests of ,alexander the ,great4 ,they were trading cities1 undoubtedly1 situated on the great roads which led from the east across the desert to the ,jordan ,valley1 and so1 converging upon the ,plain of ,esdraelon1 to the ,mediterranean ,sea and to ,greece and ,italy4 ,their wealth tempted the ,jewish princes of the ,hasmonean line to conquer and plunder them2 but the ,roman general ,pompey restored their civic liberties1 ,b4,c4 #fe1 and caused them to be rebuilt and strengthened4 ,by the beginning of the ,christian era1 they were once more rich and flourishing1 and a league was formed of ten municipalities1 with certain rights of communal and local government1 under the protection and suzerainty of the ,roman ,empire4 ,the ten cities which originally composed this confederacy for mutual defence and the development of their trade1 were ,scythopolis1 ,hippos1 ,damascus1 ,gadara1 ,raphana1 ,kanatha1 ,pella1 ,dion1 ,philadelphia and ,gerasa4 ,their money was stamped with the image of ,csar4 ,their soldiers followed the ,imperial eagles4 ,their traditions1 their arts1 their literature were ,greek4 ,but their strength and their new prosperity were ,roman4 ,here in this narrow wdi through which we are climbing up from the ,vale of ,jabbok we find the traces of the presence of the ,romans in the fragments of a paved military road and an aqueduct4 ,presently we surmount a rocky hill and look down into the broad1 shallow basin of ,jerash4 ,gently sloping1 rock-strewn hills surround it2 through the centre flows a stream1 with banks bordered by trees2 a water-fall is flashing opposite to us2 on a cluster of rounded knolls about the middle of the valley1 on the west bank of the stream1 are spread the vast1 incredible1 complete ruins of the ancient city of ,gerasa4 ,they rise like a dream in the desolation of the wilderness1 columns and arches and vaults and amphitheatres and temples1 suddenly appearing in the bare and lonely landscape as if by enchantment4 ,how came these monuments of splendour and permanence into this country of simplicity and transience1 this land of shifting shepherds and drovers1 this empire of the black tent1 this immemorial region that has slept away the centuries under the spell of the pastoral pipe8 ,what magical music of another kind1 strong1 stately and sonorous1 music of brazen trumpets and shawms1 of silver harps and cymbals1 evoked this proud and potent city on the border of the desert1 and maintained for centuries1 amid the sweeping1 turbulent floods of untamable tribes of rebels and robbers1 this lofty landmark of the glory that was ,greece ,and the grandeur that was ,rome8 ,what sudden storm of discord and disaster shook it all down again1 loosened the sinews of majesty and power1 stripped away the garments of beauty and luxury1 dissolved the lovely body of living joy1 and left this skeleton of dead splendour diffused upon the solitary ground8 ,who can solve these mysteries8 ,it is all unaccountable1 unbelievable1--the ghost of the dream of a dream1--yet here it is1 surrounded by the green hills1 flooded with the frank light of noon1 neighboured by a dirty1 noisy little village of ,arabs and ,circassians on the east bank of the stream1 and with real goats and lean1 black cattle grazing between the carved columns and under the broken architraves of ,gerasa the ,golden4 ,let us go up into the wrecked city4 ,this triumphal arch1 with its three gates and its lofty ,corinthian columns1 stands outside of the city walls3 a structure which has no other use or meaning than the expression of ,imperial pride3 thus the ,roman conquerors adorn and approach their vassal-town4 ,behind the arch a broad1 paved road leads to the southern gate1 perhaps a thousand feet away4 ,beside the road1 between the arch and the gate1 lie two buildings of curious interest4 ,the first is a great pool of stone1 seven hundred feet long by three hundred feet wide4 ,this is the ,naumachia1 which is filled with water by conduits from the neighbouring stream1 in order that the ,greeks may hold their mimic naval combats and regattas here in the desert1 for they are always at heart a seafaring people4 ,beyond the pool there is a ,circus1 with four rows of stone seats and an oval arena1 for wild-beast shows and gladiatorial combats4 ,the city walls have almost entirely disappeared and the ,south ,gate is in ruins4 ,entering and turning to the left1 we ascend a little hill and find the ,temple 7perhaps dedicated to ,artemis71 and close beside it the great ,south ,theatre4 ,there is hardly a break in the semicircular stone benches1 thirty-two rows of seats rising tier above tier1 divided into an upper and a lower section by a broader row of boxes or stalls1 richly carved1 and reserved1 no doubt1 for magnates of the city and persons of importance4 ,the stage1 over a hundred feet wide1 is backed by a straight wall adorned with ,corinthian columns and decorated niches4 ,the theatre faces due north2 and the spectator sitting here1 if the play wearies him1 can lift his eyes and look off beyond the proscenium over the length and breadth of ,gerasa4 ,but he looked upon the city1 every side1 ,far and wide1 ,all the mountains topped with temples1 all the glades ,colonnades1 ,all the causeys1 bridges1 aqueducts1--and then1 ,all the men6 ,in the hollow northward from this theatre is the ,forum1 or the ,market-place1 or the ,hippodrome--,i cannot tell what it is1 but a splendid oval of ,ionic pillars incloses an open space of more than three hundred feet in length and two hundred and fifty feet in width1 where the ,gerasenes may barter or bicker or bet1 as they will4 ,from the ,forum to the ,north ,gate runs the main street1 more than half a mile long1 lined with a double row of columns1 from twenty to thirty feet high1 with smooth shafts and acanthus capitals4 ,at the intersection of the cross-streets there are tetrapylons1 with domes1 and pedestals for statues4 ,the pavement of the roadway is worn into ruts by the chariot wheels4 ,under the arcades behind the columns run the sidewalks for foot-passengers4 ,turn to the right from the main street and you come to the ,public ,baths1 an immense building like a palace1 supplied with hot and cold water1 adorned with marble and mosaic4 ,on the left lies the ,tribuna1 with its richly decorated faade and its fountain of flowing water4 ,a few yards farther north is the ,propylum of the ,great ,temple2 a superb gateway1 decorated with columns and garlands and shell niches1 opening to a wide flight of steps by which we ascend to the temple-area1 a terrace nearly twice the size of ,madison ,square ,garden1 surrounded by two hundred and sixty columns1 and standing clear above the level of the encircling city4 ,the ,temple of the ,sun rises at the western end of this terrace1 facing the dawn4 ,the huge columns of the portico1 forty-five feet high and five feet in diameter1 with rich ,corinthian capitals1 are of rosy-yellow limestone1 which seems to be saturated with the sunshine of a thousand years4 ,behind them are the walls of the ,cella1 or inner shrine1 with its vaulted apse for the image of the god1 and its secret stairs and passages in the rear wall for the coming and going of the priests1 and the ascent to the roof for the first salutation of the sunrise over the eastern hills4 ,spreading our cloth between two pillars of the portico we celebrate the feast of noontide1 and looking out over the wrecked magnificence of the city we try to reconstruct the past4 ,illustration3 ,ruins of ,jerash1 ,looking ,west4 ,propylum and ,temple terrace4 ,it was in the days of ,antoninus ,pius and ,marcus ,aurelius1 in the latter part of the second century after ,christ1 that these temples and palaces and theatres were rising4 ,those were the palmy days of ,grco-,roman civilisation in ,syria2 then the shops along the ,colonnade were filled with rich goods1 the ,forum listened to the voice of world-famous orators and teachers1 and proud lords and ladies assembled in the ,naumachia to watch the sham battles of the miniature galleys4 ,a little later the new religion of ,christianity found a foothold here1 7see1 these are the ruined outlines of a ,christian church below us to the south1 and the foundation of a great ,basilica71 and by the fifth century the pagan worship was dying out1 and the ,bishop of ,gerasa had a seat in the ,council of ,chalcedon4 ,it was no longer with the comparative merits of ,stoicism and ,epicureanism and ,neo-,platonism1 or with the rival literary fame of their own ,ariston and ,kerykos as against ,meleager and ,menippus and ,theodorus of ,gadara1 that the ,gerasenes concerned themselves4 ,they were busy now with the controversies about ,homoiousia and ,homousia1 with the rivalry of the ,eutychians and the ,nestorians1 with the conflicting1 not to say combative1 claims of such saints as ,dioscurus of ,alexandria and ,theodoret of ,cyrus4 ,but trade continued brisk1 and the city was as rich and as proud as ever4 ,in the seventh century an ,arabian chronicler named it among the great towns of ,palestine1 and a poet praised its fertile territory and its copious spring4 ,then what happened8 ,earthquake1 pestilence1 conflagration1 pillage1 devastation--who knows8 ,a ,mohammedan writer of the thirteenth century merely mentions it as a great city of ruins2 and so it lay1 deserted and forgotten1 until a ,german traveller visited it in #ahjf2 and so it lies to-day1 with all its dwellings and its walls shattered and dissolved beside its flowing stream in the centre of its green valley1 and only the relics of its temples1 its theatres1 its colonnades1 and its triumphal arch remaining to tell us how brave and rich and gay it was in the days of old4 ,do you believe it8 ,does it seem at all real or possible to you8 ,look up at this tall pillar above us4 ,see how the wild marjoram has thrust its roots between the joints and hangs like the hyssop that springeth out of the wall4 ,see how the weather has worn deep holes and crevices in the topmost drum1 and how the sparrows have made their nests there4 ,lean your back against the pillar2 feel it vibrate like a reed shaken with the wind2 watch that huge capital of acanthus leaves swaying slowly to and fro and trembling upon its stalk as a flower of the field4 99 99 99 99 99 ,all the afternoon and all the next morning we wander through the ruins1 taking photographs1 deciphering inscriptions1 discovering new points of view to survey the city4 ,we sit on the arch of the old ,roman bridge which spans the stream1 and look down into the valley filled with gardens and orchards2 tall poplars shiver in the breeze2 peaches1 plums1 and cherries are in bloom2 almonds clad in pale-green foliage2 figs putting forth their verdant shoots2 pomegranates covered with ruddy young leaves4 ,we go up to see the beautiful spring which bursts from the hillside above the town and supplies it with water4 ,then we go back again to roam aimlessly and dreamily1 like folk bewitched1 among the tumbled heaps of hewn stones1 the broken capitals1 and the tall1 rosy columns1 soaked with sunbeams4 ,the ,arabs of ,jerash have a bad reputation as robbers and extortionists2 and in truth they are rather a dangerous-looking lot of fellows1 with bold1 handsome brown faces and inscrutable dark eyes4 ,but although we have paid no tribute to them1 they do not molest us4 ,they seem to regard us with a contemptuous pity1 as harmless idiots who loaf among the fallen stones and do not even attempt to make excavations4 ,our camp is in the inclosure of the ,north ,theatre1 a smaller building than that which stands beside the ,south ,gate1 but large enough to hold an audience of two or three thousand4 ,the semicircle of seats is still unbroken2 the arrangements of the stage1 the stairways1 the entries of the building can all be easily traced4 ,there were gay times in the city when these two theatres were filled with people4 ,what comedies of ,plautus or ,terence or ,aristophanes or ,menander2 what tragedies of ,seneca1 or of the seven dramatists of ,alexandria who were called the ,pleias1 were presented here8 ,look up along those lofty tiers of seats in the pale1 clear starlight4 ,can you see no shadowy figures sitting there1 hear no light whisper of ghostly laughter1 no thin ripple of clapping hands8 ,what flash of wit amuses them1 what nobly tragic word or action stirs them to applause8 ,what problem of their own life1 what reflection of their own heart1 does the stage reveal to them8 ,we shall never know4 ,the play at ,gerasa is ended4 ,a ,,psalm ,,among ,,the ,,ruins ,the lizard rested on the rock while ,i sat among the ruins2 ,and the pride of man was like a vision of the night4 ,lo1 the lords of the city have disappeared into darkness2 ,the ancient wilderness hath swallowed up all their work4 ,there is nothing left of the city but a heap of fragments2 ,the bones of a carcass that a wild beast hath devoured4 ,behold the desert waiteth hungrily for man's dwellings2 ,surely the tide of desolation returneth upon his toil4 ,all that he hath painfully lifted up is shaken down in a moment2 ,the memory of his glory is buried beneath the billows of sand4 ,then a voice said1 ,look again upon the ruins2 ,these broken arches have taught generations to build4 ,moreover the name of this city shall be remembered2 ,here a poor man spoke a word that shall not die4 ,this is the glory that is stronger than the desert2 ,for ,god hath given eternity to the thought of man4 ,,ix ,,the ,,mountains ,,of ,,samaria ,i ,,jordan ,,ferry ,look down from these tranquil heights of ,jebel ,osha1 above the noiseful1 squalid little city of ,es ,salt1 and you see what ,moses saw when he climbed ,mount ,pisgah and looked upon the ,promised ,land which he was never to enter4 ,could we but climb where ,moses stood1 ,and view the landscape o'er1 ,not ,jordan's stream1 nor death's cold flood1 ,should fright us from the shore4 ,pisgah was probably a few miles south of the place where we are now standing1 but the main features of the view are the same4 ,these broad mountain-shoulders1 falling steeply away to the west1 clad in the emerald robe of early spring2 this immense gulf at our feet1 four thousand feet below us1 a huge trough of gray and yellow1 through which the dark-green ribbon of the ,jordan jungle1 touched with a few silvery gleams of water1 winds to the blue basin of the ,dead ,sea2 those scarred and wrinkled hills rising on the other side1 the knotted brow of ,quarantana1 the sharp cone of ,sartoba1 the distant peak of ,mizpeh1 the long line of ,judean1 ,samarian1 and ,galilean summits1 ,olivet1 and ,ebal1 and ,gerizim1 and ,gilboa1 and ,tabor1 rolling away to the northward1 growing ever fairer with the promise of fertile valleys between them and rich plains beyond them1 and fading at last into the azure vagueness of the highlands round the ,lake of ,galilee4 ,why does that country toward which we are looking and travelling seem to us so much more familiar and real1 so much more a part of the actual world1 than this region of forgotten ,greek and ,roman glory1 from which we are returning like those who awake from sleep8 ,the ruined splendours of ,jerash fade behind us like a dream4 ,samaria and ,galilee1 crowded with memories and associations which have been woven into our minds by the wonderful ,bible story1 draw us to them with the convincing touch of reality4 ,yet even while we recognise this strange difference between our feelings toward the ,holy ,land and those toward other parts of the ancient world1 we know that it is not altogether true4 ,gerasa was as really a part of ,god's big world as ,shechem or ,jezreel or ,sychar4 ,it stood in ,his sight1 and ,he must have regarded the human souls that lived there4 ,he must have cared for them1 and watched over them1 and judged them equitably1 dividing the just from the unjust1 the children of love from the children of hate1 even as ,he did with men on the other side of the ,jordan1 even as ,he does with all men everywhere to-day4 ,if faith in a ,god who is the ,father and ,lord of all mankind means anything it means this3 equal care1 equal justice1 equal mercy for all the world4 ,gerasa has been forgotten of men1 but ,god never forgot it4 ,what1 then1 is the difference8 ,just this3 in the little land between the ,jordan and the sea1 things came to pass which have a more enduring significance than the wars and splendours1 the wealth and culture of the ,decapolis4 ,conflicts were fought there in which the eternal issues of good and evil were clearly manifest4 ,ideas were worked out there which have a permanent value to the spiritual life of man4 ,revelations were made there which have become the guiding stars of succeeding generations4 ,this is why that country of the ,bible seems more real to us3 because its history is more significant1 because it is ,divinely inspired with a meaning for our faith and hope4 ,do you agree with this8 ,i do not know4 ,but at least if you were with us on this glorious morning1 riding down from the heights of ,jebel ,osha you would feel the vivid beauty1 the subduing grandeur of the scene4 ,you would rejoice in the life-renewing air that blows softly around us and invites us to breathe deep1--in the pure morning faces of the flowers opening among the rocks1--in the light waving of silken grasses along the slopes by which we steeply descend4 ,there is a young ,gileadite running beside us1 a fine fellow about eighteen years old1 with his white robe girded up about his loins1 leaving his brown legs bare4 ,his head-dress is encircled with the black 'agl of camel's hair like a rustic crown4 ,a long gun is slung over his back2 a wicked-looking curved knife with a brass sheath sticks in his belt2 his silver powder-horn and leather bullet-pouch hang at his waist4 ,he strides along with a free1 noble step1 or springs lightly from rock to rock like a gazelle4 ,his story is a short one1 and simple1--if true4 ,his younger brother has run away from the family tent among the pastures of ,gilead1 seeking his fortune in the wide world4 ,and now this elder brother has come out to look for the prodigal1 at ,nabls1 at ,jaffa1 at ,jerusalem1--,allah knows how far the quest may lead6 ,but he is afraid of robbers if he crosses the ,jordan ,valley alone4 ,may he keep company with us and make the perilous transit under our august protection8 ,yes1 surely1 my brown son of ,esau2 and we will not inquire too closely whether you are really running after your brother or running away yourself4 ,there may be a thousand robbers concealed along the river-bed1 but we can see none of them4 ,the valley is heat and emptiness4 ,even the jackal that slinks across the trail in front of us1 droops and drags his tail in visible exhaustion4 ,his lolling1 red tongue is a signal of distress4 ,in a climate like this one expects nothing from man or beast4 ,life degenerates1 shrivels1 stifles2 and in the glaring open spaces a sullen madness lurks invisible4 ,we are coming to the ancient fording-place of the river1 called ,adamah1 where an event once happened which was of great consequence to the ,israelites and which has often been misunderstood4 ,they were encamped on the east side1 opposite ,jericho1 nearly thirty miles below this point1 waiting for their first opportunity to cross the ,jordan4 ,then1 says the record1 the waters which came down from above stopped1 and were piled up in a heap1 a great way off1 at ,adam1 444 and the people passed over right against ,jericho4 7,joshua iii3 #ad-af47 ,look at these great clay-banks overhanging the river1 and you will understand what it was that opened a dry path for ,israel into ,canaan4 ,one of these huge masses of clay was undermined1 and slipped1 and fell across the river1 heaping up the waters behind a temporary natural dam1 and cutting off the supply of the lower stream4 ,it may have taken three or four days for the river to carve its way through or around that obstruction1 and meantime any one could march across to ,jericho without wetting his feet4 ,i have seen precisely the same thing happen on a salmon river in ,canada quite as large as the ,jordan4 ,the river is more open at this place1 and there is a curious six-cornered ferry-boat1 pulled to and fro with ropes by a half-dozen bare-legged ,arabs4 ,if it had been a ,new ,england river1 the practical ,western mind would have built a long boat with a flat board at each side1 and rigged a couple of running wheels on a single rope4 ,then the ferryman would have had nothing to do but let the stern of his craft swing down at an angle with the stream1 and the swift current would have pushed him from one side to the other at his will4 ,but these ,orientals have been running their ferry in their own way1 no doubt1 for many centuries2 and who are we to break in upon their laborious indolence with new ideas8 ,it is enough that they bring us over safely1 with our cattle and our stuff1 in several bands1 with much tugging at the ropes and shouting and singing4 ,we look in vain on the shore of the ,jordan for a pleasant place to eat our luncheon4 ,the big trees stand with their feet in the river1 and the smaller shrubs are scraggly and spiny4 ,at last we find a little patch of shade on a steep bank above the yellow stream1 and here we make ourselves as comfortable as we can1 with the thermometer at #aaj1 and the hungry gnats and mosquitoes swarming around us4 ,early in the afternoon we desperately resolve to brave the sun1 and ride up from the river-bed into the open plain on the west4 ,here we catch our first clear view of ,mount ,hermon1 with its mantle of glistening snow1 hanging like a cloud on the northern horizon1 ninety miles away1 beyond the ,lake of ,galilee and the ,waters of ,merom2 a vision of distance and coolness and grandeur4 ,the fields1 watered by the full streams descending from the ,wdi ,frah1 are green with wheat and barley4 ,along our path are balsam-trees and thorny jujubes1 from whose branches we pluck the sweet1 insipid fruit as we ride beneath them4 ,herds of cattle are pasturing on the plain1 and long rows of black ,bedouin tents are stretched at the foot of the mountains4 ,we cross a dozen murmuring watercourses embowered in the dark1 glistening foliage of the oleanders glowing with great soft flames of rosy bloom4 ,at the ,seri on the hill which watches over this ,jiftlk1 or domain of the ,sultan1 there are some ,turkish soldiers saddling their horses for an expedition2 perhaps to collect taxes or to chase robbers4 ,the peasants are returning1 by the paths among the cornfields1 to their huts4 ,the lines of camp-fires begin to gleam from the transient ,bedouin villages4 ,our white tents are pitched in a flowery meadow1 beside a low-voiced stream1 and as we fall asleep the night air is trembling with the shrill1 innumerable brek-ek-ek-cox-cox of the frog chorus4 ,,ii ,,mount ,,ephraim ,,and ,,jacob',s ,,well ,samaria is a mountain land1 but its characteristic features1 as distinguished from ,judea1 are the easiness of approach through open gateways among the hills1 and the fertility of the broad vales and level plains which lie between them4 ,the ,kingdom of ,israel1 in its brief season of prosperity1 was richer1 more luxurious1 and weaker than the ,kingdom of ,judah4 ,the poet ,isaiah touched the keynote of the northern kingdom when he sang of the crown of pride of the drunkards of ,ephraim1 and the fading flower of his glorious beauty which is on the head of the fat valley4 7,isaiah xxviii3 #a-f47 ,we turn aside from the open but roundabout way of the well-tilled ,wdi ,frah and take a shorter1 steeper path toward ,shechem1 through a deep1 narrow mountain gorge4 ,the day is hot and hazy1 for the ,sherkyeh is blowing from the desert across the ,jordan ,valley3 the breath of ,jehovah's displeasure with ,his people1 a dry wind of the high places of the wilderness toward the daughter of my people1 neither to fan nor to cleanse4 ,at times the walls of rock come so close together that we have to wind through a passage not more than ten feet wide4 ,the air is parched as in an oven4 ,our horses scramble wearily up the stony gallery and the rough stairways4 ,one of our company faints under the fervent heat1 and falls from his horse4 ,but fortunately no bones are broken2 a half-hour's rest in the shadow of a great rock revives him and we ride on4 ,the wonderful flowers are blooming wherever they can find a foothold among the stones4 ,now and then we cross the mouth of some little lonely side-valley1 full of mignonette and cyclamens and tall spires of pink hollyhock4 ,under the huge1 dark sides of ,eagle's ,crag--bare and rugged as ,ben ,nevis--we pass into the fruitful plain of ,makhna1 where the silken grainfields rustle far and wide1 and the rich olive-orchards on the hill-slopes offer us a shelter for our midday meal and siesta4 ,mount ,ebal and ,mount ,gerizim now rise before us in their naked bulk2 and1 as we mount toward the valley which lies between them1 we stay for a while to rest at ,jacob's ,well4 ,there is a mystery about this ancient cistern on the side of the mountain4 ,why was it dug here1 a hundred feet deep1 although there are springs and streams of living water flowing down the valley1 close at hand8 ,whence came the tradition of the ,samaritans that ,jacob gave them this well1 although the ,old ,testament says nothing about it8 ,why did the ,samaritan woman1 in ,jesus' time1 come hither to draw water when there was a brook1 not fifty yards away1 which she must cross to get to the well8 ,who can tell8 ,certainly there must have been some use and reason for such a well1 else the men of long ago would never have toiled to make it4 ,perhaps the people of ,sychar had some superstition about its water which made them prefer it4 ,or perhaps the stream was owned and used for other purposes1 while the water of the well was free4 ,it makes no difference whether a solution of the problem is ever found4 ,its very existence adds to the touch of truth in the narrative of ,st4 ,john's ,gospel4 ,certainly this well was here in ,jesus' day1 close beside the road which ,he would be most likely to take in going from ,jerusalem to ,galilee4 ,here ,he sat1 alone and weary1 while the disciples went on to the village to buy food4 ,and here1 while ,he waited and thirsted1 ,he spoke to an unknown1 unfriendly1 unhappy woman the words which have been a spring of living water to the weary and fevered heart of the world3 ,god is a spirit1 and they that worship ,him must worship ,him in spirit and in truth4 ,,iii ,,nabl,s ,,and ,,sebaste ,about a mile from ,jacob's ,well1 the city of ,nabls lies in the hollow between ,mount ,gerizim on the south and ,mount ,ebal on the north4 ,the side of ,gerizim is precipitous and jagged2 ,ebal rises more smoothly1 but very steeply1 and is covered with plantations of thornless cactus1 7,opuntia cochinillifera71 cultivated for the sake of the cochineal insects which live upon the plant and from which a red dye is made4 ,the valley is well watered1 and is about a quarter of a mile wide4 ,a little east of the city there are two natural bays or amphitheatres opposite to each other in the mountains4 ,here the tribes of ,israel may have been gathered while the priests chanted the curses of the law from ,ebal and the blessings from ,gerizim4 7,joshua viii3 #cj-ce47 ,the cliffs were sounding-boards and sent the loud voices of blessing and cursing out over the multitude so that all could hear4 ,it seems as if it were mainly the echo of the cursing of ,ebal that greets us as we ride around the fierce little ,mohammedan city of ,nabls on ,friday afternoon1 passing through the open and dilapidated cemeteries where the veiled women are walking and gossiping away their holiday4 ,the looks of the inhabitants are surly and hostile4 ,the children shout mocking ditties at us1 reviling the ,nazarenes4 ,we will not ask our dragoman to translate the words that we catch now and then2 it is easy to guess that they are not fit to print4 ,our camp is close beside a cemetery1 near the eastern gate of the town4 ,the spectators who watch us from a distance while we dine are numerous2 and no doubt they are passing unfavourable criticisms on our table manners1 and on the ,frankish custom of permitting one unveiled lady to travel with three husbands4 ,the population of ,nabls is about twenty-five thousand4 ,it has a ,turkish governor1 a garrison1 several soap factories1 and a million dogs which howl all night4 ,at half-past six the next morning we set out on foot to climb ,mount ,ebal1 which is three thousand feet high4 ,the view from the rocky summit sweeps over all ,palestine1 from snowy ,hermon to the mountains round about ,jerusalem1 from ,carmel to ,nebo1 from the sapphire expanse of the ,mediterranean to the violet valley of the ,jordan and the garnet wall of ,moab and ,gilead beyond4 ,for us the view is veiled in mystery by the haze of the south wind4 ,the ranges and peaks far away fade into cloudlike shadows4 ,the depths below us seem to sink unfathomably4 ,nabls is buried in the gulf4 ,on the summit of ,gerizim1 a ,mohammedan wli1 shining like a flake of mica1 marks the plateau where the ,samaritan ,temple stood4 ,hilltop towns1 ,asret1 ,tallza1 ,yasd1 emerge like islands from the misty sea4 ,in that great shadowy hollow to the west lie the ruins of the city of ,samaria1 which ,csar ,augustus renamed ,sebaste1 in honour of his wife ,augusta4 ,if she could see the village of ,sebastiyeh now she would not be proud of her namesake town4 ,it is there that we are going to make our midday camp4 ,king ,omri acted as a wise man when he moved the capital of ,israel from ,shechem1 an indefensible site1 commanded by overhanging mountains and approached by two easy vales1 to ,shomron1 the watch-hill which stands in the centre of the broad ,vale of ,barley4 ,as we ride across the smiling corn-fields toward the isolated eminence1 we see its strength as well as its beauty4 ,it rises steeply from the valley to a height of more than three hundred feet4 ,the encircling mountains are too far away to dominate it under the ancient conditions of warfare without cannons1 and a good wall must have made it1 as its name implied1 an impregnable stronghold1 watching over a region of immense fertility4 ,what pomps and splendours1 what revels and massacres1 what joys of victory and horrors of defeat1 that round hill rising from the ,vale of ,barley has seen4 ,now there is nothing left of its crown of pride1 but the broken pillars of the marble colonnade a mile long with which ,herod the ,great girdled the hill1 and a few indistinguishable ruins of the temple which he built in honour of the divine ,augustus and of the hippodrome which he erected for the people4 ,we climb the terraces and ride through the olive-groves and ploughed fields where the street of columns once ran4 ,a few of them are standing upright2 others leaning or fallen1 half sunken in the ground2 fragments of others built into the stone walls which divide the fields4 ,there are many hewn and carven stones imbedded in the miserable little modern village which crouches on the north end of the hill1 and the mosque into which the ,crusaders' ,church of ,saint ,john has been transformed is said to contain the tombs of ,elisha1 ,obadiah and ,john the ,baptist4 ,this rumour does not concern us deeply and we will leave its truth uninvestigated4 ,let us tie our horses among ,herod's pillars1 and spread the rugs for our noontide rest by the ruined south gate of the city4 ,at our feet lies the wide1 level1 green valley where the mighty host of ,ben-hadad1 ,king of ,damascus1 once besieged the starving city and waited for its surrender4 7,,ii ,kings vii47 ,there in the twilight of long ago a panic terror whispered through the camp1 and the ,syrians rose and fled1 leaving their tents and their gear behind them4 ,and there four nameless lepers of ,israel1 wandering in their despair1 found the vast encampment deserted1 and entered in1 and ate and drank1 and picked up gold and silver1 until their conscience smote them4 ,then they climbed up to this gate with the good news that the enemy had vanished1 and the city was saved4 ,,iv ,d,,th,n ,,and ,,the ,,goodness ,,of ,,the ,,samaritan ,over the steep mountains that fence ,samaria to the north1 down through terraced vales abloom with hawthorns and blood-red poppies1 across hill-circled plains where the long1 silvery wind-waves roll over the sea of grain from shore to shore1 past little gray towns sleeping on the sunny heights1 by paths that lead us near flowing springs where the village girls fill their pitchers1 and down stony slopes where the goatherds in bright-coloured raiment tend their flocks1 and over broad1 moist fields where the path has been obliterated by the plough1 and around the edge of marshes where the storks rise heavily on long flapping wings1 we come galloping at sunset to our camp beside the little green hill of ,dthn4 ,behind it are the mountains1 swelling and softly rounded like breasts4 ,it was among them that the servant of ,elisha saw the vision of horses and chariots of fire protecting his master4 7,,ii ,kings vi3 #ad-ai47 ,north and east of ,dthn the plain extends smooth and gently sloping1 full of young harvest4 ,there the chariot of ,naaman rolled when he came down from ,damascus to be healed by the prophet of ,israel4 7,,ii ,kings v3 #i47 ,on top of the hill is a spreading terebinth-tree1 with some traces of excavation and rude ruins beneath it4 ,there ,joseph's envious brethren cast him into one of the dry pits1 from which they drew him up again to sell him to a caravan of merchants1 winding across the plain on their way from ,midian into ,egypt4 7,genesis xxxvii47 ,truly1 many and wonderful things came to pass of old around this little green hill4 ,and now1 at the foot of it1 there is a well-watered garden1 with figs1 oranges1 almonds1 vines1 and tall1 trembling poplars1 surrounded by a hedge of prickly pear4 ,outside of the hedge a big1 round spring of crystal water is flowing steadily over the rim of its basin of stones4 ,there the flocks and herds are gathered1 morning and evening1 to drink4 ,there the children of the tiny hamlet on the hillside come to paddle their feet in the running stream4 ,there a caravan of ,greek pilgrims1 on their way from ,damascus to ,jerusalem for ,easter1 halt in front of our camp1 to refresh themselves with a draught of the cool water4 ,as we watch them from our tents there is a sudden commotion among them1 a cry of pain1 and then voices of dismay4 ,george and two or three of our men run out to see what is the matter1 and come hurrying back to get some cotton cloth and oil and wine4 ,one of the pilgrims1 an old woman of seventy1 has fallen from her horse on the sharp stones beside the spring1 breaking her wrist and cutting her head4 ,i do not know whether the way in which they bound up that poor old stranger's wounds was surgically wise1 but ,i know that it was humanly kind and tender4 ,i do not know which of our various churches were represented among her helpers1 but there must have been at least three1 and the muleteer from ,bagdad who had no religion but sang beautiful ,persian songs was also there1 and ready to help with the others4 ,and so the parable which lighted our dusty way going down to ,jericho is interpreted in our pleasant camp at ,dthn4 ,the paths of the ,creeds are many and winding2 they cross and diverge2 but on all of them the ,good ,samaritan is welcome1 and ,i think he travels to a happy place4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,the ,,helpers ,the ways of the world are full of haste and turmoil3 ,i will sing of the tribe of helpers who travel in peace4 ,he that turneth from the road to rescue another1 ,turneth toward his goal3 ,he shall arrive in due time by the foot-path of mercy1 ,god will be his guide4 ,he that taketh up the burden of the fainting1 ,lighteneth his own load3 ,the ,almighty will put his arms underneath him1 ,he shall lean upon the ,lord4 ,he that speaketh comfortable words to mourners1 ,healeth his own heart3 ,in his time of grief they will return to remembrance1 ,god will use them for balm4 ,he that careth for the sick and wounded1 ,watcheth not alone3 ,there are three in the darkness together1 ,and the third is the ,lord4 ,blessed is the way of the helpers3 ,the companions of the ,christ4 ,x ,,galilee ,,and ,,the ,,lake ,i ,,the ,,plain ,,of ,,esdraelon ,going from ,samaria into ,galilee is like passing from the ,old ,testament into the ,new4 ,there is indeed little difference in the outward landscape3 the same bare lines of rolling mountains1 green and gray near by1 blue or purple far away2 the same fertile valleys and emerald plains embosomed among the hills2 the same orchards of olive-trees1 not quite so large1 nor so many1 but always softening and shading the outlook with their touches of silvery verdure4 ,it is the spirit of the landscape that changes2 the inward view2 the atmosphere of memories and associations through which we travel4 ,we have been riding with fierce warriors and proud kings and fiery prophets of ,israel1 passing the sites of royal splendour and fields of ancient havoc1 retracing the warpaths of the ,twelve ,tribes4 ,but when we enter ,galilee the keynote of our thoughts is modulated into peace4 ,issachar and ,zebulon and ,asher and ,naphtali have left no trace or message for us on the plains and hills where they once lived and fought4 ,we journey with ,jesus of ,nazareth1 the friend of publicans and sinners1 the shepherd of the lost sheep1 the human embodiment of the ,divine ,love4 ,this transition in our journey is marked outwardly by the crossing of the great ,plain of ,esdraelon1 which we enter by the gateway of ,jenn4 ,there are a few palm-trees lending a little grace to the disconsolate village1 and the ,turkish captain of the military post1 a grizzled veteran of ,plevna1 invites us into the guard-room to drink coffee with him1 while we wait for a dilatory telegraph operator to send a message4 ,then we push out upon the green sea to a brown island3 the village of ,zer'n1 the ancient ,jezreel4 ,the wretched hamlet of adobe huts1 with mud beehives plastered against the walls1 stands on the lowest bench of the foothills of ,mount ,gilboa1 opposite the equally wretched hamlet of ,slem in a corresponding position at the base of a mountain called ,little ,hermon4 ,the widespread1 opulent view is haunted with old stories of battle1 murder and sudden death4 ,down to the east we see the line of brighter green creeping out from the flanks of ,mount ,gilboa1 marking the spring where ,gideon sifted his band of warriors for the night-attack on the camp of ,midian4 7,judges vii3 #d-bc47 ,under the brow of the hill are the ancient wine-presses1 cut in the rock1 which belonged to the vineyard of ,naboth1 whom ,jezebel assassinated4 7,i ,kings xxi3 #a-af47 ,from some window of her favourite palace on this eminence1 that hard1 old1 painted queen looked down the broad valley of ,jezreel1 and saw ,jehu in his chariot driving furiously from ,gilead to bring vengeance upon her4 ,on those dark ridges to the south the brave ,jonathan was slain by the ,philistines and the desperate ,saul fell upon his own sword4 7,i ,samuel xxxi3 #a-f47 ,through that open valley1 which slopes so gently down to the ,jordan at ,bethshan1 the hordes of ,midian and the hosts of ,damascus marched against ,israel4 ,by the pass of ,jenn1 ,holofernes led his army in triumph until he met ,judith of ,bethulia and lost his head4 ,yonder in the corner to the northward1 at the base of ,mount ,tabor1 ,deborah and ,barak gathered the tribes against the ,canaanites under ,sisera4 7,judges iv3 #d-bb47 ,away to the westward1 in the notch of ,megiddo1 ,pharaoh-,necho's archers pierced ,king ,josiah1 and there was great mourning for him in ,hadad-rimmon4 7,,ii ,chronicles xxxv3 #bd-be2 ,zechariah xii3 #aa47 ,farther still1 where the mountain spurs of ,galilee approach the long ridge of ,carmel1 ,elijah put the priests of ,baal to death by the ,brook ,kishon4 7,i ,kings xviii3 #bj-dj47 ,all over that great prairie1 which makes a broad break between the highlands of ,galilee and the highlands of ,samaria and ,judea1 and opens an easy pathway rising no more than three hundred feet between the ,jordan and the ,mediterranean--all over that fertile1 blooming area and around the edges of it are sown the legends ,of old1 unhappy1 far-off things ,and battles long ago4 ,but on this bright ,april day when we enter the plain of ,armageddon1 everything is tranquil and joyous4 ,the fields are full of rustling wheat1 and bearded barley1 and blue-green stalks of beans1 and feathery kirsenneh1 camel-provender4 ,the peasants in their gay-coloured clothing are ploughing the rich1 red-brown soil for the late crop of doura4 ,the newly built railway from ,haif to ,damascus lies like a yellow string across the prairie from west to east2 and from north to south a single file of two hundred camels1 with merchandise for ,egypt1 undulate along the ancient road of the caravans1 turning their ungainly heads to look at the puffing engine which creeps toward them from the distance4 ,larks singing in the air1 storks parading beside the watercourses1 falcons poising overhead1 poppies and pink gladioluses and blue corn-cockles blooming through the grain1--a little village on a swell of rising ground1 built for their farm hands by the rich ,greeks who have bought the land and brought it under cultivation1--an air so pure and soft that it is like a caress1--all seems to speak a language of peace and promise1 as if one of the old prophets were telling of the day when ,jehovah shall have compassion on ,his people ,israel and restore them4 ,they that dwell under ,his shadow shall return2 they shall revive as the grain1 and blossom as the vine3 the scent thereof shall be as the wine of ,lebanon4 ,it is1 indeed1 not impossible that wise methods of colonization1 better agriculture and gardening1 the development of fruit-orchards and vineyards1 and above all1 more rational government and equitable taxation may one day give back to ,palestine something of her old prosperity and population4 ,if the ,jews really want it no doubt they can have it4 ,their rich men have the money and the influence2 and there are enough of their poorer folk scattered through ,europe to make any land blossom like the rose1 if they have the will and the patience for the slow toil of the husbandman and the vine-dresser and the shepherd and the herdsman4 ,but the proud kingdom of ,david and ,solomon will never be restored2 not even the tributary kingdom of ,herod4 ,for the land will never again stand at the crossroads1 the four-corners of the civilized world4 ,the ,suez ,canal to the south1 and the railways through the ,lebanon and ,asia ,minor to the north1 have settled that4 ,they have left ,palestine in a corner1 off the main-travelled roads4 ,the best that she can hope for is a restoration to quiet fruitfulness1 to placid and humble industry1 to olive-crowned and vine-girdled felicity1 never again to power4 ,and if that lowly re-coronation comes to her1 it will not be on the stony heights around ,jerusalem3 it will be in the ,plain of ,sharon1 in the outgoings of ,mount ,ephraim1 in the green pastures of ,gilead1 in the lovely region of ,galilee of the ,gentiles4 ,it will not be by the sword of ,gideon nor by the sceptre of ,solomon1 but by the sign of peace on earth and good-will among men4 ,with thoughts like these we make our way across the verdurous inland sea of ,esdraelon1 out of the ,old ,testament into the ,new4 ,landmarks of the country of the ,gospel begin to appear3 the wooded dome of ,mount ,tabor1 the little village of ,nain where ,jesus restored the widow's only son4 7,luke vii3 #aa-af47 ,but these lie far to our right4 ,the beacon which guides us is a glimpse of white walls and red roofs1 high on a shoulder of the ,galilean hills3 the outlying houses of ,nazareth1 where the boy ,jesus dwelt with ,his parents after their return from the flight into ,egypt1 and was obedient to them1 and grew in wisdom and stature1 and in favour with ,god and men4 ,,ii ,,their ,,own ,,city ,,nazareth ,our camp in ,nazareth is on a terrace among the olive-trees1 on the eastern side of a small valley1 facing the ,mohammedan quarter of the town4 ,this is distinctly the most attractive little city that we have seen in ,palestine4 ,the houses are spread out over a wider area than is usual in the ,east1 covering three sides of a gentle depression high on the side of the ,jebel es-,sikh1 and creeping up the hill-slopes as if to seek a larger view and a purer air4 ,some of them have gardens1 fair white walls1 red-tiled roofs1 balconies of stone or wrought iron4 ,even in the more closely built portion of the town the streets seem cleaner1 the bazaars lighter and less malodorous1 the interior courtyards into which we glance in passing more neat and homelike4 ,many of the doorways and living-rooms of the humbler houses are freshly whitewashed with a light-blue tint which gives them an immaculate air of cleanliness4 ,the ,nazarene women are generally good looking1 and free and dignified in their bearing4 ,the children1 fairer in complexion than is common in ,syria1 are almost all charming with the beauty of youth1 and among them are some very lovely faces of boys and girls4 ,i do not mean to say that ,nazareth appears to us an earthly paradise2 only that it shines by contrast with places like ,hebron and ,jericho and ,nabls1 even with ,bethlehem1 and that we find here far less of human squalor and misery to sadden us with thoughts of ,what man has made of man4 ,the population of the town is about eleven or twelve thousand1 a quarter of them ,mussulmans1 and the rest ,christians of various sects1 including two or three hundred ,protestants4 ,the people used to have rather a bad reputation for turbulence2 but we see no signs of it1 either in the appearance of the city or in the demeanour of the inhabitants4 ,the children and the townsfolk whom we meet in the streets1 and of whom we ask our way now and then1 are civil and friendly4 ,the man who comes to the camp to sell us antique coins and lovely vases of iridescent glass dug from the tombs of ,tyre and ,sidon1 may be an inveterate humbug1 but his manners are good and his prices are low4 ,the soft-voiced women and lustrous-eyed girls who hang about the ,lady's tent1 persuading her to buy their small embroideries and lace-work and trinkets1 are gentle and ingratiating1 though persistent4 ,i am honestly of the opinion that ,christian mission-schools and hospitals have done a great deal for ,nazareth4 ,we go this morning to visit the schools of the ,english ,church ,missionary ,society1 where ,miss ,newton is conducting an admirable and most successful work for the girls of ,nazareth4 ,she is away on a visit to some of her outlying stations2 but the dark-eyed1 happy-looking ,syrian teacher shows us all the classes4 ,there are five of them1 and every room is full and bright and orderly4 ,on the ,christian side1 the older girls sing a hymn for us1 in their high voices and quaint ,english accent1 about ,jesus stilling the storm on ,galilee1 and the intermediate girls and the tiny co-educated boys and girls in the kindergarten go through various pretty performances4 ,then the teacher leads us across the street to the two ,moslem classes1 and we cannot tell the difference between them and the ,christian children1 except that now the singing of ,jesus loves me and the recitation of ,the ,lord is my ,shepherd are in ,arabic4 ,there is one blind girl who recites most perfectly and eagerly4 ,another girl of about ten years carries her baby-brother in her arms4 ,two little laggards1 7they were among the group at our camp early in the morning71 arrive late1 weeping out their excuses to the teacher4 ,she hears them with a kind1 humorous look on her face1 gives them a soft rebuke and a task1 and sends them to their seats1 their tears suddenly transformed to smiles4 ,from the schools we go to the hospital of the ,british ,medical ,mission1 a little higher up the hill4 ,we find young ,doctor ,scrimgeour1 who has lately come out from ,edinburgh ,university1 and his white-uniformed1 cheerful1 busy nurses1 tasked to the limit of their strength by the pressure of their work1 but cordial and simple in their welcome4 ,as ,i walk with the doctor on his rounds ,i see every ward full1 and all kinds of calamity and suffering waiting for the relief and help of his kind1 skilful knife4 ,here are hernia1 and tuberculous glands1 and cataract1 and stone1 and bone tuberculosis1 and a score of other miseries2 and there1 on the table1 with pale1 dark face and mysterious eyes1 lies a man whose knee has been shattered by a ball from a ,martini rifle in an affray with robbers4 ,was he one of the robbers1 ,i ask1 or one of the robbed8 ,i really don't know1 says the doctor1 but in a few minutes ,i am going to do my best for him4 ,is not this ,christ's work that is still doing in ,christ's town1 this teaching of the children1 this helping of the sick and wounded1 for ,his sake1 and in ,his name8 ,yet there are silly folk who say they do not believe in missions4 ,there are a few so-called sacred places and shrines in ,nazareth--the supposed scene of the ,annunciation2 the traditional ,workshop of ,joseph2 the alleged ,mensa ,christi1 a flat stone which ,he is said to have used as a table when ,he ate with ,his disciples2 and so on4 ,but all these uncertain relics and memorials1 as usual1 are inclosed in chapels1 belit with lamps1 and encircled with ceremonial4 ,the very spring at which the ,virgin ,mary must have often filled her pitcher1 7for it is the only flowing fountain in the town71 now rises beneath the ,greek ,church of ,saint ,gabriel1 and is conducted past the altar in a channel of stone where the pilgrims bathe their eyes and faces4 ,to us1 who are seeking our ,holy ,land out-of-doors1 these shut-in shrines and altared memorials are less significant than what we find in the open1 among the streets and on the surrounding hillsides4 ,the ,virgin's ,fountain1 issuing from the church1 flows into a big1 stone basin under a round arch4 ,here1 as often as we pass1 we see the maidens and the mothers of ,nazareth1 with great earthern vessels poised upon their shapely heads1 coming with merry talk and laughter1 to draw water4 ,even so the mother of ,jesus must have come to this fountain many a time1 perhaps with her wondrous boy running beside her1 clasping her hand or a fold of her bright-coloured garment4 ,perhaps1 when the child was little she carried ,him on her shoulder1 as the women carry their children to-day4 ,passing through a street1 we look into the interior of a carpenter-shop1 with its simple tools1 its little pile of new lumber1 its floor littered with chips and shavings1 and its air full of the pleasant smell of freshly cut wood4 ,there are a few articles of furniture which the carpenter has made3 a couple of chairs1 a table1 a stool3 and he himself1 with his leg stretched out and his piece of wood held firmly by his naked toes1 is working busily at a tiny bed which needs only a pair of rockers to become a cradle4 ,outside the door of the shop a boy of ten or twelve is cutting some boards and slats1 and putting them neatly together4 ,we ask him what he is making4 ,a box1 he answers1 a box for some doves--and then bends his head over his absorbing task4 ,even so ,jesus must have worked at the shop of ,joseph1 the carpenter1 and learned ,his handicraft4 ,illustration3 ,the ,virgin's ,fountain1 ,nazareth4 ,let us walk up1 at eventide1 to the top of the hill behind the town4 ,here is one of the loveliest views in all ,palestine4 ,the sun is setting and the clear-obscure of twilight already rests over the streets and houses1 the minarets and spires1 the slender cypresses and round olive-trees and grotesque hedges of cactus4 ,but on the heights the warm radiance from the west pours its full flood1 lighting up all the flowerets of delicate pink flax and golden chrysanthemum and blue campanula with which the grass is broidered4 ,far and wide that roseate illumination spreads itself2 changing the snowy mantle of distant ,hermon1 the great ,sheikh of ,mountains1 from ermine to flamingo feathers2 making the high hills of ,naphtali and the excellency of ,carmel glow as if with soft1 transfiguring1 inward fire2 touching the little town of ,saffriyeh below us1 where they say that the ,virgin ,mary was born1 and the city of ,safed1 thirty miles away on the lofty shoulder of ,jebel ,jermak2 suffusing the haze that fills the ,valley of the ,jordan1 and the long bulwarks of the ,other-,side1 with hues of mauve and purple2 and bathing the wide expanse of the western sea with indescribable splendours1 over which the flaming sun poises for a moment beneath the edge of a low-hung cloud4 ,on this hilltop1 ,i doubt not1 the boy ,jesus often filled ,his hands with flowers4 ,here ,he could watch the creeping caravans of ,arabian merchants1 and the glittering legions of ,roman soldiers1 and the slow files of ,jewish pilgrims1 coming up from the ,valley of ,jezreel and stretching out across the ,plain of ,esdraelon4 ,hither1 at the evening hour1 ,he came as a youth to find the blessing of wide and tranquil thought4 ,here1 when the burden of manhood pressed upon ,him1 ,he rested after the day's work1 free from that sadness which often touches us in the vision of earth's transient beauty1 because ,he saw far beyond the horizon into the spirit-world1 where there is no night1 nor weariness1 nor sin1 nor death4 ,for nearly thirty years ,he must have lived within sight of this hilltop4 ,and then1 one day1 ,he came back from a journey to the ,jordan and ,jerusalem1 and entered into the little synagogue at the foot of this hill1 and began to preach to ,his townsfolk ,his glad tidings of spiritual liberty and brotherhood and eternal life4 ,but they were filled with scorn and wrath4 ,his words rebuked them1 stung them1 inflamed them with hatred4 ,they laid violent hands on ,him1 and led ,him out to the brow of the hill1--perhaps it was yonder on that steep1 rocky peak to the south of the town1 looking back toward the country of the ,old ,testament1--to cast ,him down headlong4 ,yet ,i think there must have been a few friends and lovers of ,his in that disdainful and ignorant crowd2 for ,he passed through the midst of them unharmed1 and went ,his way to the home of ,peter and ,andrew and ,john and ,philip1 beside the ,sea of ,galilee1 never to come back to ,nazareth4 ,,iii ,a ,,wedding ,,in ,,cana ,,of ,,galilee ,we thought to save a little time on our journey1 and perhaps to spare ourselves a little jolting on the hard high-road1 by sending the saddle-horses ahead with the caravan1 and taking a carriage for the sixteen-mile drive to ,tiberias4 ,when we came to the old sarcophagus which serves as a drinking trough at the spring outside the village of ,cana1 a strange thing befell us4 ,we had halted for a moment to refresh the horses4 ,suddenly there was a sound of furious galloping on the road behind us4 ,a score of cavaliers in ,bedouin dress1 with guns and swords1 came after us in hot haste4 ,the leaders dashed across the open space beside the spring1 wheeled their foaming horses and dashed back again4 ,is this our affair with robbers1 at last8 we asked ,george4 ,he laughed a little4 ,no1 said he1 this is the beginning of a wedding in ,kafr ,kenn4 ,the bridegroom and his friends come over from some other village where they live1 to show off a bit of fantasia to the bride and her friends4 ,they carry her back with them after the marriage4 ,we wait a while and see how they ride4 ,the horses were gayly caparisoned with ribbons and tassels and embroidered saddle-cloths4 ,the riders were handsome1 swarthy fellows with haughty faces4 ,their eyes glanced sideways at us to see whether we were admiring them1 as they shouted their challenges to one another and raced wildly up and down the rock-strewn course1 with their robes flying and their horses' sides bloody with spurring4 ,one of the men was a huge coal-black ,nubian who brandished a naked sword as he rode4 ,others whirled their long muskets in the air and yelled furiously4 ,the riding was cruel1 reckless1 superb2 loose reins and loose stirrups on the headlong gallop2 then the sharp curb brought the horse up suddenly1 the rein on his neck turned him as if on a pivot1 and the pressure of the heel sent him flying back over the course4 ,presently there was a sound of singing and clapping hands behind the high cactus-hedges to our left1 and from a little lane the bridal procession walked up to take the high-road to the village4 ,there were a dozen men in front1 firing guns and shouting1 then came the women1 with light veils of gauze over their faces1 singing shrilly1 and in the midst of them1 in gay attire1 but half-concealed with long1 dark mantles1 the bride and the virgins1 her companions1 in raiment of needlework4 ,as they saw the photographic camera pointed at them they laughed1 and crowded closer together1 and drew the ends of their dark mantles over their heads4 ,so they passed up the road1 their shrill song broken a little by their laughter2 and the company of horsemen1 the bridegroom and his friends1 wheeled into line1 two by two1 and trotted after them into the village4 ,this was all that we saw of the wedding at ,kafr ,kenn--just a vivid1 mysterious flash of human figures1 drawn together by the primal impulse and longing of our common nature1 garbed and ordered by the social customs which make different lands and ages seem strange to each other1 and moving across the narrow stage of ,time into the dimness of that ,arab village1 where ,jesus and ,his mother and ,his disciples were guests at a wedding long ago4 ,,iv ,,tiberias ,it is one of the ironies of fate that the lake which saw the greater part of the ministry of ,jesus1 should take its modern name from a city built by ,herod ,antipas1 and called after one of the most infamous of the ,roman ,emperors1--the ,sea of ,tiberias4 ,our road to this city of decadence leads gradually downward1 through a broad1 sinking moorland1 covered with weeds and wild flowers--rich1 monotonous1 desolate4 ,the broidery of pink flax and yellow chrysanthemums and white marguerites still follows us2 but now the wider stretches of thistles and burdocks and daturas and cockleburs and water-plantains seem to be more important4 ,the landscape saddens around us1 under the deepening haze of the desert-wind1 the sombre ,sherkyeh4 ,there are no golden sunbeams1 no cool cloud-shadows1 only a gray and melancholy illumination growing ever fainter and more nebulous as the day declines1 and the outlines of the hills fade away from the dim1 silent1 forsaken plain through which we move4 ,we are crossing the battlefield where the soldiers of ,napoleon1 under the brave ,junot1 fought desperately against the overwhelming forces of the ,turks4 ,yonder1 away to the left1 in the mysterious haze1 the double ,horns of ,hattin rise like a shadowy exhalation4 ,that is said to be the mountain where ,jesus gathered the multitude around ,him and spoke ,his new beatitudes on the meek1 the merciful1 the peacemakers1 the pure in heart4 ,it is certainly the place where the hosts of the ,crusaders met the army of ,saladin1 in the fierce heat of a ,july day1 seven hundred years ago1 and while the burning grass and weeds and brush flamed around them1 were cut to pieces and trampled and utterly consumed4 ,there the new ,kingdom of ,jerusalem1--the last that was won with the sword1--went down in ruin around the relics of the true cross1 which its soldiers carried as their talisman2 and ,guy de ,lusignan1 their ,king1 was captured4 ,the noble prisoners were invited by ,saladin to his tent1 and he offered them sherbets1 cooled with snow from ,hermon1 to slake their feverish thirst4 ,when they were refreshed1 the conqueror ordered them to be led out and put to the sword1--just yonder at the foot of the ,mount of ,beatitudes4 ,from terrace to terrace of the falling moor we roll along the winding road through the brumous twilight1 until we come within sight of the black1 ruined walls1 the gloomy towers1 the huddled houses of the worn-out city of ,tiberias4 ,she is like an ancient beggar sitting on a rocky cape beside the lake and bathing her feet in the invisible water4 ,the gathering dusk lends a sullen and forlorn aspect to the place4 ,behind us rise the shattered volcanic crags and cliffs of basalt2 before us glimmer pallid and ghostly touches of light from the hidden waves2 a few lamps twinkle here and there in the dormant town4 ,this was the city which ,herod ,antipas built for the capital of his ,province of ,galilee4 ,he laid its foundations in an ancient graveyard1 and stretched its walls three miles along the lake1 adorning it with a palace1 a forum1 a race-course1 and a large synagogue4 ,but to strict ,jews the place was unclean1 because it was defiled with ,roman idols1 and because its builders had polluted themselves by digging up the bones of the dead4 ,herod could get few ,jews to live in his city1 and it became a catch-all for the off-scourings of the land1 people of all creeds and none1 aliens1 mongrels1 soldiers of fortune1 and citizens of the high-road4 ,it was the strongest fortress and probably the richest town of ,galilee in ,christ's day1 but so far as we know ,he never entered it4 ,after the fall of ,jerusalem1 strangely enough1 the ,jews made it their favourite city1 the seat of their ,sanhedrim and the centre of rabbinical learning4 ,here the famous ,rabbis ,jehuda and ,akba and the philosopher ,maimonides taught4 ,here the ,mishna and the ,gemara were written4 ,and here1 to-day1 two-thirds of the five thousand inhabitants are ,jews1 many of them living on the charity of their kindred in ,europe1 and spending their time in the study of the ,talmud while they wait for the ,messiah who shall restore the kingdom to ,israel4 ,you may see their flat fur caps1 dingy gabardines1 long beards and melancholy faces on every street in the drowsy little city1 dreaming 7among fleas and fevers7 of ,i know not what impossible glories to come4 ,you may see1 also1 on the hill near the ,seri1 the splendid ,mission ,hospital of the ,united ,free ,church of ,scotland1 where for twenty-three years ,doctor ,torrance has been ministering to the body and soul of ,tiberias in the name of ,jesus4 ,do you find the building too large and fine1 the lovely garden too beautiful with flowers1 the homes of the doctors1 and teachers1 and helpers of the sick and wounded1 too clean and healthful and orderly8 ,do you say ,to what purpose is this waste8 ,then ,i know not how to measure your ignorance4 ,for you have failed to see that this is the embassy of the only ,king who still cares for the true welfare of this forsaken1 bedraggled1 broken-down ,tiberias4 ,on the evening of our arrival1 however1 all these things are hidden from us in the dusk4 ,we drive past the ruined gate of the city1 a mile along the southern road toward the famous ,hot ,baths4 ,here1 on a little terrace above the lake1 between the road and the black basalt cliffs1 our camp is pitched1 and through the darkness ',we hear the water lapping on the crag1 ,and the long ripple washing in the reeds4' ,in the freshness of the early morning the sunrise pours across the lake into our tents4 ,there is a light1 cool breeze blowing from the north1 rippling the clear1 green water1 7of a hue like the stone called aqua marina71 with a thousand flaws and wrinkles1 which catch the flashing light and reflect the deep blue sky1 and change beneath the shadow of floating clouds to innumerable colours of lapis lazuli1 and violet1 and purple1 and peacock blue4 ,the old comparison of the shape of the lake to a lute1 or a harp1 is not clear to us from the point at which we stand3 for the northwestward sweep of the bay of ,gennesaret1 which reaches a breadth of nearly eight miles from the eastern shore1 is hidden from us by a promontory1 where the dark walls and white houses of ,tiberias slope to the water4 ,but we can see the full length of the lake1 from the depression of the ,jordan ,valley at the southern end1 to the shores of ,bethsaida and ,capernaum at the foot of the northern hills1 beyond which the dazzling whiteness of ,hermon is visible4 ,opposite rise the eastern heights of the ,jauln1 with almost level top and steep flanks1 furrowed by rocky ravines1 descending precipitously to a strip of smooth1 green shore4 ,behind us the mountains are more broken and varied in form1 lifted into sharper peaks and sloped into broader valleys4 ,the whole aspect of the scene is like a view in the ,english ,lake country1 say on ,windermere or ,ullswater2 only there are no forests or thickets to shade and soften it4 ,every edge of the hills is like a silhouette against the sky2 every curve of the shore clear and distinct4 ,of the nine rich cities which once surrounded the lake1 none is left except this ragged old ,tiberias4 ,of the hundreds of fishing boats and passenger vessels which once crossed its waters1 all have vanished except half a dozen little pleasure skiffs kept for the use of tourists4 ,of the armies and caravans which once travelled these shores1 all have passed by into the eternal far-away1 except the motley string of visitors to the ,hot ,springs1 who were coming up to bathe in the medicinal waters in the days of ,joshua when the place was called ,hammath1 and in the time of the ,greeks when it was named ,emmaus1 and who are still trotting along the road in front of our camp toward the big1 white dome and dirty bath-houses of ,hummam4 ,they come from all parts of ,syria1 from ,damascus and the sea-coast1 from ,judea and the ,haurn2 ,greeks and ,arabs and ,turks and ,maronites and ,jews2 on foot1 on donkey-back1 and in litters4 ,now1 it is a cavalcade of ,druses from the ,lebanon1 men1 women and children1 riding on tired horses4 ,now1 it is a procession of ,hebrews walking with a silken canopy over the sacred books of their law4 ,in the morning we visit ,tiberias1 buy some bread and fish in the market1 and go through the ,mission ,hospital1 where one of the gentle nurses binds up a foolish little wound on my wrist4 ,in the afternoon we sail on the southern part of the lake4 ,the boatmen laugh at my fruitless fishing with artificial flies1 and catch a few small fish for us with their nets in the shallow1 muddy places along the shore4 ,the wind is strange and variable1 now sweeping down in violent gusts that bend the long arm of the lateen sail1 now dying away to a dead calm through which we row lazily home4 ,i remember a small purple kingfisher poising in the air over a shoal1 his head bent downward1 his wings vibrating swiftly4 ,he drops like a shot and comes up out of the water with a fish held crosswise in his bill4 ,with measured wing-strokes he flits to the top of a rock to eat his supper1 and a robber-gull flaps after him to take it away4 ,but the industrious kingfisher is too quick to be robbed4 ,he bolts his fish with a single gulp4 ,we eat ours in more leisurely fashion1 by the light of the candles in our peaceful tent4 ,v ,,memories ,,of ,,the ,,lake ,a hundred little points of illumination flash into memory as ,i look back over the hours that we spent beside the ,sea of ,galilee4 ,how should ,i write of them all without being tedious8 ,how1 indeed1 should ,i hope to make them visible or significant in the bare words of description8 ,never have ,i passed richer1 fuller hours2 but most of their wealth was in very little things3 the personal look of a flower growing by the wayside2 the intimate message of a bird's song falling through the sunny air2 the expression of confidence and appeal on the face of a wounded man in the hospital1 when the good physician stood beside his cot2 the shadows of the mountains lengthening across the valleys at sunset2 the laughter of a little child playing with a broken water pitcher2 the bronzed profiles and bold1 free ways of our sunburned rowers2 the sad eyes of an old ,hebrew lifted from the book that he was reading2 the ruffling breezes and sudden squalls that changed the surface of the lake2 the single palm-tree that waved over the mud hovels of ,magdala2 the millions of tiny shells that strewed the beach of ,capernaum and ,bethsaida2 the fertile sweep of the ,plain of ,gennesaret rising from the lake2 and the dark precipices of the ,robbers' ,gorge running back into the western mountains4 ,the written record of these hours is worth little2 but in experience and in memory they have a mystical meaning and beauty1 because they belong to the country where ,jesus walked with ,his fishermen-disciples1 and took the little children in ,his arms1 and healed the sick1 and opened blind eyes to behold ineffable things4 ,every touch that brings that country nearer to us in our humanity and makes it more real1 more simple1 more vivid1 is precious4 ,for the one irreparable loss that could befall us in religion1--a loss that is often threatened by our abstract and theoretical ways of thinking and speaking about ,him1--would be to lose ,jesus out of the lowly and familiar ways of our mortal life4 ,he entered these lowly ways as the ,son of ,man in order to make us sure that we are the children of ,god4 ,therefore ,i am glad of every hour spent by the ,lake of ,galilee4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i remember1 when we came across in our boat to ,tell ,hm1 where the ancient city of ,capernaum stood1 the sun was shining with a fervent heat and the air of the lake1 six hundred and eighty feet below the level of the sea1 was soft and languid4 ,the gray-bearded ,german monk who came to meet us at the landing and admitted us to the inclosure of his little monastery where he was conducting the excavation of the ruins1 wore a cork helmet and spectacles4 ,he had been heated1 even above the ninety degrees ,fahrenheit which the thermometer marked1 by the rudeness of a couple of tourists who had just tried to steal a photograph of his work4 ,he had foiled them by opening their camera and blotting the film with sunlight1 and had then sent them away with fervent words4 ,but as he walked with us among his roses and ,pride of ,india trees1 his spirit cooled within him1 and he showed himself a learned and accomplished man4 ,he told us how he had been working there for two or three years1 keeping records and drawings and photographs of everything that was found2 going back to the ,franciscan convent at ,jerusalem for his short vacation in the heat of mid-summer2 putting his notes in order1 reading and studying1 making ready to write his book on ,capernaum4 ,he showed us the portable miniature railway which he had made2 and the little iron cars to carry away the great piles of rubbish and earth2 and the rich columns1 carved lintels1 marble steps and shell-niches of the splendid building which his workmen had uncovered4 ,the outline was clear and perfect4 ,we could see how the edifice of fine1 white limestone had been erected upon an older foundation of basalt1 and how an earthquake had twisted it and shaken down its pillars4 ,it was undoubtedly a synagogue1 perhaps the very same which the rich ,roman centurion built for the ,jews in ,capernaum 7,luke vii3 #e71 and where ,jesus healed the man who had an unclean spirit4 7,luke iv3 #ca-cg47 ,of all the splendours of that proud city of the lake1 once spreading along a mile of the shore1 nothing remained but these tumbled ruins in a lonely1 fragrant garden1 where the patient father was digging with his ,arab workmen and getting ready to write his book4 ,weh dir1 ,capernaum ,i quoted4 ,the padre nodded his head gravely4 ,ja1 ja1 said he1 es ist buchstblich erfllt6 99 99 99 99 99 ,i remember the cool bath in the lake1 at a point between ,bethsaida and ,capernaum1 where a tangle of briony and honeysuckle made a shelter around a shell-strewn beach1 and the rosy oleanders bloomed beside an inflowing stream4 ,i swam out a little way and floated1 looking up into the deep sky1 while the waves plashed gently and caressingly around my face4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i remember the old ,arab fisherman1 who was camped with his family in a black tent on a meadow where several lively brooks came in 7one of them large enough to turn a mill74 ,i persuaded him by gestures to wade out into the shallow part of the lake and cast his bell-net for fish4 ,he gathered the net in his hand1 and whirled it around his head4 ,the leaden weights around the bottom spread out in a wide circle and splashed into the water4 ,he drew the net toward him by the cord1 the ring of sinkers sweeping the bottom1 and lifted it slowly1 carefully--but no fish6 ,then ,i rigged up my pocket fly-rod with a gossamer leader and two tiny trout-flies1 a ,royal ,coach-man and a ,queen of the ,water1 and began to cast along the crystal pools and rapids of the larger stream4 ,how merrily the fish rose there1 and in the ripples where the brooks ran out into the lake4 ,there were half a dozen different kinds of fish1 but ,i did not know the name of any of them4 ,there was one that looked like a black bass1 and others like white perch and sunfish2 and one kind was very much like a grayling4 ,but they were not really of the salmo family1 ,i knew1 for none of them had the soft fin in front of the tail4 ,how surprised the old fisherman was when he saw the fish jumping at those tiny hooks with feathers2 and how round the eyes of his children were as they looked on2 and how pleased they were with the bakhshsh which they received1 including a couple of baithooks for the eldest boy6 99 99 99 99 99 ,i remember the place where we ate our lunch in a small grove of eucalyptus-trees1 with sweet-smelling yellow acacias blossoming around us4 ,it was near the site which some identify with the ancient ,bethsaida1 but others say that it was farther to the east1 and others again say that ,capernaum was really located here4 ,the whole problem of these lake cities1 where they stood1 how they supported such large populations 7not less than fifteen thousand people in each71 is difficult and may never be solved4 ,but it did not trouble us deeply4 ,we were content to be beside the same waters1 among the same hills1 that ,jesus knew and loved4 ,it was here1 along this shore1 that ,he found ,simon and his brother ,andrew casting their net1 and ,james and his brother ,john mending theirs1 and called them to come with ,him4 ,these fishermen1 with their frank and free hearts unspoiled by the sophistries of the ,pharisees1 with their minds unhampered by social and political ambitions1 followers of a vocation which kept them out of doors and reminded them daily of their dependence on the bounty of ,god1--these children of nature1 and others like them1 were the men whom ,he chose for ,his disciples1 the listeners who had ears to hear ,his marvellous gospel4 ,it was here1 on these pale1 green waves1 that ,he sat in a little boat1 near the shore1 and spoke to the multitude who had gathered to hear ,him4 ,he spoke of the deep and tranquil confidence that man may learn from nature1 from the birds and the flowers4 ,he spoke of the infinite peace of the heart that knows the true meaning of love1 which is giving and blessing1 and the true secret of courage1 which is loyalty to the truth4 ,he spoke of the ,god whom we can trust as a child trusts its father1 and of the ,heaven which waits for all who do good to their fellowmen4 ,he spoke of the wisdom whose fruit is not pride but humility1 of the honour whose crown is not authority but service1 of the purity which is not outward but inward1 and of the joy which lasts forever4 ,he spoke of forgiveness for the guilty1 of compassion for the weak1 of hope for the desperate4 ,he told these poor and lowly folk that their souls were unspeakably precious1 and that ,he had come to save them and make them inheritors of an eternal kingdom4 ,he told them that ,he had brought this message from ,god1 their ,father and ,his ,father4 ,he spoke with the simplicity of one who knows1 with the assurance of one who has seen1 with the certainty and clearness of one for whom doubt does not exist4 ,he offered ,himself1 in ,his stainless purity1 in ,his supreme love1 as the proof and evidence of ,his gospel1 the bread of ,heaven1 the water of life1 the ,saviour of sinners1 the light of the world4 ,come unto ,me1 ,he said1 and ,i will give you rest4 ,this was the heavenly music that came into the world by the ,lake of ,galilee4 ,and its voice has spread through the centuries1 comforting the sorrowful1 restoring the penitent1 cheering the despondent1 and telling all who will believe it1 that our human life is worth living1 because it gives each one of us the opportunity to share in the ,love which is sovereign and immortal4 ,a ,,psalm ,,of ,,the ,,good ,,teacher ,the ,lord is my teacher3 ,i shall not lose the way to wisdom4 ,he leadeth me in the lowly path of learning1 ,he prepareth a lesson for me every day2 ,he findeth the clear fountains of instruction1 ,little by little he showeth me the beauty of the truth4 ,the world is a great book that he hath written1 ,he turneth the leaves for me slowly2 ,they are all inscribed with images and letters1 ,his face poureth light on the pictures and the words4 ,then am ,i glad when ,i perceive his meaning1 ,he taketh me by the hand to the hill-top of vision2 ,in the valley also he walketh beside me1 ,and in the dark places he whispereth to my heart4 ,yea1 though my lesson be hard it is not hopeless1 ,for the ,lord is very patient with his slow scholar2 ,he will wait awhile for my weakness1 ,he will help me to read the truth through tears4 ,surely thou wilt enlighten me daily by joy and by sorrow3 ,and lead me at last1 ,o ,lord1 to the perfect knowledge of thee4 ,,xi ,,the ,,springs ,,of ,,jordan ,i ,,the ,,hill-,,country ,,of ,,naphtali ,naphtali was the northernmost of the tribes of ,israel1 a bold and free highland clan1 inhabiting a country of rugged hills and steep mountainsides1 with fertile vales and little plains between4 ,naphtali is a hind let loose1 said the old song of the ,sons of ,jacob 7,genesis xlix3 #ba72 and as we ride up from the ,lake of ,galilee on our way northward1 we feel the meaning of the poet's words4 ,a people dwelling among these rock-strewn heights1 building their fortress-towns on sharp pinnacles1 and climbing these steep paths to the open fields of tillage or of war1 would be like wild deer in their spirit of liberty1 and they would need to be as nimble and sure-footed4 ,our good little horses are shod with round plates of iron1 and they clatter noisily among the loose stones and slip on the rocky ledges1 as we strike over the hills from ,capernaum1 without a path1 to join the main trail at ,khn ,yubb ,ysuf4 ,we are skirting fields of waving wheat and barley1 but there are no houses to be seen4 ,far and wide the sea of verdure rolls around us1 broken only by ridges of grayish rock and scarped cliffs of reddish basalt4 ,we wade saddle-deep in herbage2 broad-leaved fennel and trembling reeds2 wild asparagus and artichokes2 a hundred kinds of flowering weeds2 acres of last year's thistles1 standing blanched and ghostlike in the summer sunshine4 ,the phantom city of ,safed gleams white from its far-away hilltop1--the latest and perhaps the last of the famous seats of rabbinical learning4 ,it is one of the sacred places of modern ,judaism4 ,no ,hebrew pilgrim fails to visit it4 ,here1 they say1 the ,messiah will one day reveal himself1 and after establishing ,his kingdom1 will set out to conquer the world4 ,but it is not to the city1 shining like a flake of mica from the greenness of the distant mountain1 that our looks and thoughts are turning4 ,it is backward to the lucent sapphire of the ,lake of ,galilee1 upon whose shores our hearts have seen the secret vision1 heard the inward message of the ,man of ,nazareth4 ,ridge after ridge reveals new outlooks toward its tranquil loveliness4 ,turn after turn1 our winding way leads us to what we think must be the parting view4 ,sleeping in still1 forsaken beauty among the sheltering hills1 and open to the cloudless sky which makes its water like a little heaven1 it seems to silently return our farewell looks with pleading for remembrance4 ,now1 after one more round among the inclosing ridges1 another vista opens1 the widest and the most serene of all4 ,farewell1 dear ,lake of ,jesus6 ,our eyes may never rest on thee again2 but surely they will not forget thee4 ,for now1 as often we come to some fair water in the ,western mountains1 or unfold the tent by some lone lakeside in the forests of the ,north1 the lapping of thy waves will murmur through our thoughts2 thy peaceful brightness will arise before us2 we shall see the rose-flush of thy oleanders1 and the waving of thy reeds2 the sweet1 faint smell of thy gold-flowered acacias will return to us from purple orchids and white lilies4 ,let the blessing that is thine go with us everywhere in ,god's great out-of-doors1 and our hearts never lose the comradeship of ,him who made thee holiest among all the waters of the world6 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,khn of ,joseph's ,pit is a ruin2 a huge and broken building deserted by the caravans which used to throng this highway from ,damascus to the cities of the lake1 and to the ports of ,acre and ,joppa1 and to the metropolis of ,egypt4 ,it is hard to realize that this wild moorland path by which we are travelling was once a busy road1 filled with camels1 horses1 chariots1 foot-passengers1 clanking companies of soldiers2 that these crumbling1 cavernous walls1 overgrown with thorny capers and wild marjoram and mandragora1 were once crowded every night with a motley mob of travellers and merchants2 that this pool of muddy water1 gloomily reflecting the ruins1 was once surrounded by flocks and herds and beasts of burden2 that only a few hours to the southward there was once a ring of splendid1 thriving1 bustling towns around the shores of ,galilee1 out of which and into which the multitudes were forever journeying4 ,now they are all gone from the road1 and the vast wayside caravanserai is sleeping into decay--a dormitory for bats and serpents4 ,what is it that makes the wreck of an inn more lonely and forbidding than any other ruin8 ,a few miles more of riding along the flanks of the mountains bring us to a place where we turn a corner suddenly1 and come upon the full view of the upper basin of the ,jordan2 a vast oval green cup1 with the little ,lake of ,huleh lying in it like a blue jewel1 and the giant bulk of ,mount ,hermon towering beyond it1 crowned and cloaked with silver snows4 ,up the steep and slippery village street of ,rosh ,pinnah1 a modern ,jewish colony founded by the ,rothschilds in #ahhb1 we scramble wearily to our camping-ground for the night4 ,above us on a hilltop is the old ,arab village of ,janeh1 brown1 picturesque1 and filthy4 ,around us are the colonists' new houses1 with their red-tiled roofs and white walls4 ,two straight streets running in parallel lines up the hillside are roughly paved with cobble-stones and lined with trees2 mulberries1 white-flowered acacias1 eucalyptus1 feathery pepper-trees1 and rose-bushes4 ,water runs down through pipes from a copious spring on the mountain1 and flows abundantly into every house1 plashing into covered reservoirs and open stone basins for watering the cattle4 ,below us the long avenues of eucalyptus1 the broad vineyards filled with low1 bushy vines1 the immense orchards of pale-green almond-trees1 the smiling wheat-fields1 slope to the lake and encircle its lower end4 ,the children who come to visit our camp on the terrace wear shoes and stockings1 carry school-books in their bags1 and bring us offerings of little bunches of sweet-smelling garden roses and pendulous locust-blooms4 ,we are a thousand years away from the ,khn of ,joseph's ,pit2 but we can still see the old mud village on the height against the sunset1 and the camp-fires gleaming in front of the black ,bedouin tents far below1 along the edge of the marshes4 ,we are perched between the old and the new1 between the nomad and the civilized man1 and the unchanging white head of ,hermon looks down upon us all4 ,in the morning1 on the way down1 ,i stop at the door of a house and fall into talk with an intelligent1 schoolmasterish sort of man1 a ,roumanian1 who speaks a little weird ,german4 ,is the colony prospering8 ,yes1 but not so fast that it makes them giddy4 ,what are they raising8 ,wheat and barley1 a few vegetables1 a great deal of almonds and grapes4 ,good harvests8 ,some years good1 some years bad2 the ,arabs bad every year1 terrible thieves2 but the crops are plentiful most of the time4 ,are the colonists happy1 contented8 ,a thin smile wrinkles around the man's lips as he answers with the statement of a world-wide truth1 ,ach1 ,herr1 der ,ackerbauer ist nie zufrieden4 7,ah1 ,sir1 the farmer is never contented47 ,,ii ,,the ,,waters ,,of ,,merom ,all day we ride along the hills skirting the marshy plain of ,huleh4 ,here the springs and parent streams of ,jordan are gathered1 behind the mountains of ,naphtali and at the foot of ,hermon1 as in a great green basin about the level of the ocean1 for the long1 swift rush down the sunken trench which leads to the deep1 sterile bitterness of the ,dead ,sea4 ,was there ever a river that began so fair and ended in such waste and desolation8 ,here in this broad1 level1 well-watered valley1 along the borders of these vast beds of papyrus and rushes intersected by winding1 hidden streams1 ,joshua and his fierce clans of fighting men met the ,kings of the north with their horses and chariots1 at the waters of ,merom1 in the last great battle for the possession of the ,promised ,land4 ,it was a furious conflict1 the hordes of footmen against the squadrons of horsemen2 but the shrewd command that came from ,joshua decided it3 ,hough their horses and burn their chariots with fire4 ,the ,canaanites and the ,amorites and the ,hittites and the ,hivites were swept from the field1 driven over the western mountains1 and the ,israelites held the ,jordan from ,jericho to ,hermon4 7,joshua xi3#a-ae47 ,the springs that burst from the hills to the left of our path and run down to the sluggish channels of the marsh on our right are abundant and beautiful4 ,here is ',ain ,mellha1 a crystal pool a hundred yards wide1 with wild mint and watercress growing around it1 white and yellow lilies floating on its surface1 and great fish showing themselves in the transparent open spaces among the weeds1 where the water bubbles up from the bottom through dancing hillocks of clean1 white sand and shining pebbles4 ,here is ',ain el-,belta1 a copious stream breaking forth from the rocks beneath a spreading terebinth-tree1 and rippling down with merry rapids toward the jungle of rustling reeds and plumed papyrus4 ,while luncheon is preparing in the shade of the terebinth1 ,i wade into the brook and cast my fly along the ripples4 ,a couple of ragged1 laughing1 bare-legged ,bedouin boys follow close behind me1 watching the new sport with wonder4 ,the fish are here1 as lively and gamesome as brook trout1 plump1 golden-sided fellows ten or twelve inches long4 ,the feathered hooks tempt them1 and they rise freely to the lure4 ,my tattered pages are greatly excited1 and make impromptu pouches in the breast of their robes1 stuffing in the fish until they look quite fat4 ,the catch is enough for a good supper for their whole family1 and a dozen more for a delicious fish-salad at our camp that night4 ,what kind of fish are they8 ,i do not know3 doubtless something ,scriptural and ,oriental4 ,but they taste good2 and so far as there is any record1 they are the first fish ever taken with the artificial fly in the sources of the ,jordan4 ,the plain of ,huleh is full of life4 ,flocks of waterfowl and solemn companies of storks circle over the swamps4 ,the wet meadows are covered with herds of black buffaloes1 wallowing in the ditches1 or staring at us sullenly under their drooping horns4 ,little bunches of horses1 and brood mares followed by their long-legged1 awkward foals1 gallop beside our cavalcade1 whinnying and kicking up their heels in the joy of freedom4 ,flocks of black goats clamber up the rocky hillsides1 following the goatherd who plays upon his rustic pipe quavering and fantastic music1 softened by distance into a wild sweetness4 ,small black cattle with white faces march in long files across the pastures1 or wander through the thickets of bulrushes and papyrus and giant fennel1 appearing and disappearing as the screen of broad leaves and trembling plumes close behind them4 ,a few groups of huts made out of wattled reeds stand beside the sluggish watercourses1 just as they did when ,macgregor in his ,rob ,roy canoe attempted to explore this impenetrable morass forty years ago4 ,along the higher ground are lines of black ,bedouin tents1 arranged in transitory villages4 ,these flitting habitations of the nomads1 who come down from the hills and lofty deserts to fatten their flocks and herds among unfailing pasturage1 are all of one pattern4 ,the low1 flat roof of black goats' hair is lifted by the sticks which support it1 into half a dozen little peaks1 perhaps five or six feet from the ground4 ,between these peaks the cloth sags down1 and is made fast along the edges by intricate and confusing guy-ropes4 ,the tent is shallow1 not more than six feet deep1 and from twelve to thirty feet long1 according to the wealth of the owner and the size of his family1--two things which usually correspond4 ,the sides and the partitions are sometimes made of woven reeds1 like coarse matting4 ,within there is an apartment 7if you can call it so7 for the family1 a pen for the chickens1 and room for dogs1 cats1 calves and other creatures to find shelter4 ,the fireplace of flat stones is in the centre1 and the smoke oozes out through the roof and sides4 ,the ,bedouin men1 in flowing burnous and keffiyeh1 with the 'agl of dark twisted camel's hair like a crown upon their heads1 are almost all handsome3 clean-cut1 haughty faces1 bold in youth and dignified in old age4 ,the women look weatherbeaten and withered beside them4 ,even when you see a fine face in the dark blue mantle or under the white head-dress1 it is almost always disfigured by purplish tattooing around the lips and chin4 ,some of the younger girls are beautiful1 and most of the children are entrancing4 ,they play games in a ring1 with songs and clapping hands2 the boys charge up and down among the tents with wild shouts1 driving a round bone or a donkey's hoof with their shinny-sticks2 the girls chase one another and hide among the bushes in some primeval form of tag or hide-and-seek4 ,a merry little mob pursues us as we ride through each encampment1 with outstretched hands and half-jesting1 half-plaintive cries of ,bakhshsh6 bakhshsh6 ,they do not really expect anything4 ,it is only a part of the game4 ,and when the ,lady holds out her open hand to them and smiles as she repeats1 ,bakhshsh6 bakhshsh6 they take the joke quickly1 and run away1 laughing1 to their sports4 ,at one village1 in the dusk1 there is an open-air wedding3 a row of men dancing2 a ring of women and girls looking on2 musicians playing the shepherd's pipe and the drum2 maidens running beside us to beg a present for the invisible bride3 a rude charcoal sketch of human society1 primitive1 irrepressible1 confident1 encamped for a moment on the shadowy border of the fecund and unconquerable marsh4 ,thus we traverse the strange country of ,bedouinia1 travelling all day in the presence of the ,great ,sheikh of ,mountains1 and sleep at night on the edge of a little village whose name we shall never know4 ,a dozen times we ask ,george for the real name of that place1 and a dozen times he repeats it for us with painstaking courtesy2 it sounds like a compromise between a cough and a sneeze4 ,,iii ,,where ,,jordan ,,rises ,the ,jordan is assembled in the northern end of the basin of ,huleh under a mysterious curtain of tall1 tangled water-plants4 ,into that ancient and impenetrable place of hiding and blending enter many little springs and brooks1 but the main sources of the river are three4 ,the first and the longest is the ,hasbni1 a strong1 foaming stream that comes down with a roar from the western slope of ,hermon4 ,we cross it by the double arch of a dilapidated ,saracen bridge1 looking down upon thickets of oleander1 willow1 tamarisk and woodbine4 ,the second and largest source springs from the rounded hill of ,tel el-,kdi1 the supposed site of the ancient city of ,dan1 the northern border of ,israel4 ,here the wandering1 landless ,danites1 finding a country to their taste1 put the too fortunate inhabitants of ,leshem to the sword and took possession4 ,and here ,king ,jereboam set up one of his idols of the golden calf4 ,there is no vestige of the city1 no trace of the idolatrous shrine1 on the huge mound which rises thirty or forty feet above the plain4 ,but it is thickly covered with trees3 poplars and oaks and wild figs and acacias and wild olives4 ,a pair of enormous veterans1 a valonia oak and a terebinth1 make a broad bower of shade above the tomb of an unknown ,mohammedan saint1 and there we eat our midday meal1 with the murmur of running waters all around us1 a clear rivulet singing at our feet1 and the chant of innumerable birds filling the vault of foliage above our heads4 ,after lunch1 instead of sleeping1 two of us wander into the dense grove that spreads over the mound4 ,tiny streams of water trickle through it3 blackberry-vines and wild grapes are twisted in the undergrowth2 ferns and flowery nettles and mint grow waist-high4 ,the main spring is at the western base of the mound4 ,the water comes bubbling and whirling out from under a screen of wild figs and vines1 forming a pool of palest1 clearest blue1 a hundred feet in diameter4 ,out of this pool the new-born river rushes1 foaming and shouting down the hillside1 through lines of flowering styrax and hawthorn and willows trembling over its wild joy4 ,the third and most impressive of the sources of ,jordan is at ,bniys1 on one of the foothills of ,hermon4 ,our path thither leads us up from ,dan1 through high green meadows1 shaded by oak-trees1 sprinkled with innumerable blossoming shrubs and bushes1 and looking down upon the lower fields blue with lupins and vetches1 or golden with yellow chrysanthemums beneath which the red glow of the clover is dimly burning like a secret fire4 ,presently we come1 by way of a broad1 natural terrace where the white encampment of the ,moslem dead lies gleaming beneath the shade of mighty oaks and terebinths1 and past the friendly olive-grove where our own tents are standing1 to a deep ravine filled to the brim with luxuriant verdure of trees and vines and ferns4 ,into this green cleft a little river1 dancing and singing1 suddenly plunges and disappears1 and from beneath the veil of moist and trembling leaves we hear the sound of its wild joy1 a fracas of leaping1 laughing waters4 ,illustration3 ,the ,approach to ,bniys4 ,an old ,roman bridge spans the stream on the brink of its downward leap4 ,crossing over1 we ride through the ruined gateway of the town of ,bniys1 turn to right and left among its dirty1 narrow streets1 pass into a leafy lane1 and come out in front of a cliff of ruddy limestone1 with niches and shrines carved on its face1 and a huge1 dark cavern gaping in the centre4 ,a tumbled mass of broken rocks lies below the mouth of the cave4 ,from this slope of dbris1 sixty or seventy feet long1 a line of springs gush forth in singing foam4 ,under the shadow of trembling poplars and broad-boughed sycamores1 amid the lush greenery of wild figs and grapes1 bracken and briony and morning-glory1 drooping maidenhair and flower-laden styrax1 the hundred rills swiftly run together and flow away with one impulse1 a full-grown little river4 ,there is an immemorial charm about the place4 ,mysteries of grove and fountain1 of cave and hilltop1 bewitch it with the magic of ,nature's life1 ever springing and passing1 flowering and fading1 basking in the open sunlight and hiding in the secret places of the earth4 ,it is such a place as ,claude ,lorraine might have imagined and painted as the scene of one of his mythical visions of ,arcadia2 such a place as antique fancy might have chosen and decked with altars for the worship of unseen dryads and nymphs1 oreads and naiads4 ,and so1 indeed1 it was chosen1 and so it was decked4 ,here1 in all probability1 was ,baal-,gad1 where the ,canaanites paid their reverence to the waters that spring from underground4 ,here1 certainly1 was ,paneas of the ,greeks1 where the rites of ,pan and all the nymphs were celebrated4 ,here ,herod the ,great built a marble temple to ,augustus the ,tolerant1 on this terrace of rock above the cave4 ,here1 no doubt1 the statue of the ,emperor looked down upon a strange confusion of revelries and wild offerings in honour of the unknown powers of ,nature4 ,all these things have withered1 crumbled1 vanished4 ,there are no more statues1 altars1 priests1 revels and sacrifices at ,bniys--only the fragment of an inscription around one of the votive niches carved on the cliff1 which records the fact that the niche was made by a certain person who at that time was ,priest of ,pan4 ,but the name of this person who wished to be remembered is precisely the part of the carving which is illegible4 ,ironical inscription6 ,still the fountains gush from the rocks1 the poplars tremble in the breeze1 the sweet incense rises from the orange-flowered styrax1 the birds chant the joy of living1 the sunlight and the moonlight fall upon the sparkling waters1 and the liquid starlight drips through the glistening leaves4 ,but the ,priest of ,pan is forgotten1 and all that old interpretation and adoration of ,nature1 sensuous1 passionate1 full of mingled cruelty and ecstasy1 has melted like a mist from her face1 and left her serene and pure and lovely as ever4 ,here at ,paneas1 after the city had been rebuilt by ,philip the ,tetrarch and renamed after him and his ,imperial master1 there came one day a ,peasant of ,galilee who taught ,his disciples to draw near to ,nature1 not with fierce revelry and superstitious awe1 but with tranquil confidence and calm joy4 ,the goatfoot god1 the god of panic1 the great god ,pan1 reigns no more beside the upper springs of ,jordan4 ,the name that we remember here1 the name that makes the message of flowing stream and sheltering tree and singing bird more clear and cool and sweet to our hearts1 is the name of ,jesus of ,nazareth4 ,,iv ,c,,sarea ,,philippi ,yes1 this little ,mohammedan town of ,bniys1 with its twoscore wretched houses built of stones from the ancient ruins and huddled within the broken walls of the citadel1 is the ancient site of ,csarea ,philippi4 ,in the happy days that we spend here1 rejoicing in the most beautiful of all our camps in the ,holy ,land1 and yielding ourselves to the full charm of the out-of-doors more perfectly expressed than we had ever thought to find it in ,palestine1--in this little paradise of friendly trees and fragrant flowers1 at snowy ,hermon's foot1 ,amid the music of his waterfalls1-- the thought of ,jesus is like the presence of a comrade1 while the memories of human grandeur and transience1 of man's long toil1 unceasing conflict1 vain pride and futile despair1 visit us only as flickering ghosts4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we climb to the top of the peaked hill1 a thousand feet above the town1 and explore the great ,crusaders' ,castle of ,subeibeh1 a ruin vaster in extent and nobler in situation than the famous ,schloss of ,heidelberg4 ,it not only crowns but completely covers the summit of the steep ridge with the huge drafted stones of its foundations4 ,the immense round towers1 the double-vaulted gateways1 are still standing4 ,long flights of steps lead down to subterranean reservoirs of water4 ,spacious courtyards1 where the knights and men-at-arms once exercised1 are transformed into vegetable gardens1 and the passageways between the north citadel and the south citadel are travelled by flocks of lop-eared goats4 ,from room to room we clamber by slopes of crumbling stone1 discovering now a guard-chamber with loopholes for the archers1 and now an arched chapel with the plaster intact and faint touches of colour still showing upon it4 ,perched on the high battlements we look across the valley of ,huleh and the springs of ,jordan to ,kal'at ,hnn on the mountains of ,naphtali1 and to ,kal'at esh-,shakf above the gorge of the ,river ,ltn4 ,from these three great fortresses1 in the time of the ,crusaders1 flashed and answered the signal-fires of the chivalry of ,europe fighting for possession of ,palestine4 ,what noble companies of knights and ladies inhabited these castles1 what rich festivals were celebrated within these walls1 what desperate struggles defended them1 until at last the swarthy hordes of ,saracens stormed the gates and poured over the defences and planted the standard of the crescent on the towers and lit the signal-fires of ,islam from citadel to citadel4 ,all the fires have gone out now4 ,the yellow whin blazes upon the hillsides4 ,the wild fig-tree splits the masonry4 ,the scorpion lodges in the deserted chambers4 ,on the fallen stone of the ,crusaders' gate1 where the ,moslem victor has carved his ,arabic inscription1 a green-gray lizard poises motionless1 like a bronze figure on a paper-weight4 99 99 99 99 99 ,illustration3 ,bridge ,over the ,river ,ltn4 ,we pass through the southern entrance of the village of ,bniys1 a massive square portal1 rebuilt by some ,arab ruler1 and go out on the old ,roman bridge which spans the ravine4 ,the aqueduct carried by the bridge is still full of flowing water1 and the drops which fall from it in a fine mist make a little rainbow as the afternoon sun shines through the archway draped with maidenhair fern4 ,on the stone pavement of the bridge we trace the ruts worn two thousand years ago by the chariots of the men who conquered the world4 ,the chariots have all rolled by4 ,on the broken edge of the tower above the gateway sits a ragged ,bedouin boy1 making shrill1 plaintive music with his pipe of reeds4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we repose in front of our tents among the olive-trees at the close of the day4 ,the cool sound of running streams and rustling poplars is on the moving air1 and the orange-golden sunset enchants the orchard with mystical light4 ,all the swift visions of striving ,saracens and ,crusaders1 of conquering ,greeks and ,romans1 fade away from us1 and we see the figure of the ,man of ,nazareth with ,his little company of friends and disciples coming up from ,galilee4 ,it was here that ,jesus retreated with ,his few faithful followers from the opposition of the ,scribes and ,pharisees4 ,this was the northernmost spot of earth ever trodden by ,his feet1 the longest distance from ,jerusalem that ,he ever travelled4 ,here in this exquisite garden of ,nature1 in a region of the ,gentiles1 within sight of the shrines devoted to those ,greek and ,roman rites which were so luxurious and so tolerant1 four of the most beautiful and significant events of ,his life and ministry took place4 ,he asked ,his disciples plainly to tell their secret thought of ,him--whom they believed their ,master to be4 ,and when ,peter answered simply3 ,thou art the ,christ1 the ,son of the living ,god1 ,jesus blessed him for the answer1 and declared that ,he would build ,his church upon that rock4 ,then ,he took ,peter and ,james and ,john with ,him and climbed one of the high and lonely slopes of ,hermon4 ,there ,he was transfigured before them1 ,his face shining like the sun and ,his garments glistening like the snow on the mountain-peaks4 ,but when they begged to stay there with ,him1 ,he led them down to the valley again1 among the sinning and suffering children of men4 ,at the foot of the mount of transfiguration ,he healed the demoniac boy whom his father had brought to the other disciples1 but for whom they had been unable to do anything2 and ,he taught them that the power to help men comes from faith and prayer4 ,and then1 at last1 ,he turned ,his steps from this safe and lovely refuge1 7where ,he might surely have lived in peace1 or from which ,he might have gone out unmolested into the wide ,gentile world71 backward to ,his own country1 ,his own people1 the great1 turbulent1 hard-hearted ,jewish city1 and the fate which was not to be evaded by ,one who loved sinners and came to save them4 ,he went down into ,galilee1 down through ,samaria and ,perea1 down to ,jerusalem1 down to ,gethsemane and to ,golgotha1--fearless1 calm1--sustained and nourished by that secret food which satisfied ,his heart in doing the will of ,god4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it was in the quest of this ,jesus1 in the hope of somehow drawing nearer to ,him1 that we made our pilgrimage to the ,holy ,land4 ,and now1 in the cool of the evening at ,csarea ,philippi1 we ask ourselves whether our desire has been granted1 our hope fulfilled8 ,yes1 more richly1 more wonderfully than we dared to dream4 ,for we have found a new vision of ,christ1 simpler1 clearer1 more satisfying1 in the freedom and reality of ,god's out-of-doors4 ,not through the mists and shadows of an infinite regret1 the sadness of sweet1 faded dreams and hopes that must be resigned1 as ,pierre ,loti saw the phantom of a ,christ whose irrevocable disappearance has left the world darker than ever6 ,not amid strange portents and mysterious rites1 crowned with ,i know not what aureole of traditionary splendours1 founder of elaborate ceremonies and centre of lamplit shrines1 as ,matilde ,serao saw the image of that ,christ whom the legends of men have honoured and obscured6 ,the ,jesus whom we have found is the ,child of ,nazareth playing among the flowers2 the ,man of ,galilee walking beside the lake1 healing the sick1 comforting the sorrowful1 cheering the lonely and despondent2 the well-beloved ,son of ,god transfigured in the sunset glow of snowy ,hermon1 weeping by the sepulchre in ,bethany1 agonizing in the moonlit garden of ,gethsemane1 giving ,his life for those who did not understand ,him1 though they loved ,him1 and for those who did not love ,him because they did not understand ,him1 and rising at last triumphant over death1--such a ,saviour as all men need and as no man could ever have imagined if ,he had not been real4 ,his message has not died away1 nor will it ever die4 ,for confidence and calm joy ,he tells us to turn to ,nature4 ,for love and sacrifice ,he bids us live close to our fellowmen4 ,for comfort and immortal hope ,he asks us to believe in ,him and in our ,father1 ,god4 ,that is all4 ,but the bringing of that heavenly message made the country to which it came the ,holy ,land4 ,and the believing of that message1 to-day1 will lead any child of man into the kingdom of heaven4 ,and the keeping of that faith1 the following of that ,life1 will transfigure any country beneath the blue sky into a holy land4 ,,the ,,psalm ,,of ,a ,,sojourner ,thou hast taken me into the tent of the world1 ,o ,god3 ,beneath thy blue canopy ,i have found shelter3 ,therefore thou wilt not deny me the right of a guest4 ,naked and poor ,i arrived at the door before sunset3 ,thou hast refreshed me with beautiful bowls of milk3 ,as a great chief thou hast set forth food in abundance4 ,i have loved the daily delights of thy dwelling3 ,thy moon and thy stars have lighted me to my bed3 ,in the morning ,i have found joy with thy servants4 ,surely thou wilt not send me away in the darkness8 ,there the enemy ,death is lying in wait for my soul3 ,thou art the host of my life and ,i claim thy protection4 ,then the ,lord of the tent of the world made answer3 ,the right of a guest endureth but for an appointed time3 ,after three days and three nights cometh the day of departure4 ,yet hearken to me since thou fearest the foe in the dark3 ,i will make with thee a new covenant of everlasting hospitality3 ,behold ,i will come unto thee as a stranger and be thy guest4 ,poor and needy will ,i come that thou mayest entertain me3 ,meek and lowly will ,i come that thou mayest find a friend3 ,with mercy and with truth will ,i come to give thee comfort4 ,therefore open the door of thy heart and bid me welcome3 ,in this tent of the world ,i will be thy brother of the bread3 ,and when thou farest forth ,i will be thy companion forever4 ,then my soul rested in the word of the ,lord3 ,and ,i saw that the curtains of the world were shaken1 ,but ,i looked beyond them to the eternal camp-fires of my friend4 ,,xii ,,the ,,road ,,to ,,damascus ,i ,,through ,,the ,,land ,,of ,,the ,,druses ,you may go to ,damascus now by rail1 if you like1 and have a choice between two rival routes1 one under government ownership1 the other built and managed by a corporation4 ,but to us encamped among the silvery olives at ,bniys1 beside the springs of ,jordan1 it seemed a happy circumstance that both railways were so far away that it would have taken longer to reach them than to ride our horses straight into the city4 ,we were delivered from the modern folly of trying to save time by travelling in a conveyance more speedy than picturesque1 and left free to pursue our journey in a leisurely1 independent fashion and by the road that would give us most pleasure4 ,so we chose the longer way1 the northern path around ,mount ,hermon1 through the country of the ,druses1 instead of the more frequented road to the east by ,kafr ,hawar4 ,how delightful is the morning of such a journey6 ,the fresh face of the world bathed in sparkling dew2 the greetings from tent to tent as we four friends make our rendezvous from the far countries of sleep2 the relish of breakfast in the open air2 the stir of the camp in preparation for a flitting2 canvas sinking to the ground1 bales and boxes heaped together1 mule-bells tinkling through the grove1 horses refreshed by their long rest whinnying and nipping at each other in play--all these are charming variations and accompaniments to the old tune of ,boots and ,saddles4 ,the immediate effect of such a setting out for a day's ride is to renew in the heart those vital feelings of delight which make one simply and inexplicably glad to be alive4 ,we are delivered from those morbid questionings and exorbitant demands by which we are so often possessed and plagued as by some strange inward malady4 ,we feel a sense of health and harmony diffused through body and mind as we ride over the beautiful terrace which slopes down from ,bniys to ,tel-el ,kdi4 ,we are glad of the green valonia oaks that spread their shade over us1 and of the blossoming hawthorns that scatter their flower-snow on the hillside4 ,we are glad of the crested larks that rise warbling from the grass1 and of the buntings and chaffinches that make their small merry music in every thicket1 and of the black and white chats that shift their burden of song from stone to stone beside the path1 and of the cuckoo that tells his name to us from far away1 and of the splendid bee-eaters that glitter over us like a flock of winged emeralds as we climb the rocky hill toward the north4 ,we are glad of the broom in golden flower1 and of the pink and white rock-roses1 and of the spicy fragrance of mint and pennyroyal that our horses trample out as they splash through the spring holes and little brooks4 ,we are glad of the long1 wide views westward over the treeless mountains of ,naphtali and the southern ridges of the ,lebanon1 and of the glimpses of the ruined castles of the ,crusaders1 ,kal'at esh-,shakf and ,hnn1 perched like dilapidated eagles on their distant crags4 ,everything seems to us like a personal gift4 ,we have the feeling of ownership for this day of all the world's beauty4 ,we could not explain or justify it to any sad philosopher who might reproach us for unreasoning felicity4 ,we should be defenceless before his arguments and indifferent to his scorn4 ,we should simply ride on into the morning1 reflecting in our hearts something of the brightness of the birds' plumage1 the cheerfulness of the brooks' song1 the undimmed hyaline of the sky1 and so1 perhaps1 fulfilling the ,divine ,intention of ,nature as well as if we chose to becloud our mirror with melancholy thoughts4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we are following up the valley of the longest and highest1 but not the largest1 of the sources of the ,jordan3 the little ,river ,hsbn1 a strong and lovely stream1 which rises somewhere in the northern end of the ,wdi et-,teim1 and flows along the western base of ,mount ,hermon1 receiving the tribute of torrents which burst out in foaming springs far up the ravines1 and are fed underground by the melting of the perpetual snow of the great mountain4 ,now and then we have to cross one of these torrents1 by a rude stone bridge or by wading4 ,all along the way ,hermon looks down upon us from his throne1 nine thousand feet in air4 ,his head is wrapped in a turban of spotless white1 like a ,druse chieftain1 and his snowy winter cloak still hangs down over his shoulders1 though its lower edges are already fringed and its seams opened by the warm suns of ,april4 ,presently we cross a bridge to the west bank of the ,hsbn1 and ride up the delightful vale where poplars and mulberries1 olives1 almonds1 vines and figs1 grow abundantly along the course of the river4 ,there are low weirs across the stream for purposes of irrigation1 and a larger dam supplies a mill with power4 ,to the left is the sharp barren ridge of the ,jebel ez-,zohr separating us from the gorge of the ,river ,ltn4 ,groups of labourers are at work on the watercourses among the groves and gardens4 ,vine-dressers are busy in the vineyards4 ,ploughmen are driving their shallow furrows through the stony fields on the hillside4 ,the little river1 here in its friendliest mood1 winds merrily among the plantations and orchards which it nourishes1 making a cheerful noise over beds of pebbles1 and humming a deeper note where the clear green water plunges over a weir4 ,we have now been in the saddle five hours2 the sun is ardent2 the temperature is above eighty-five degrees in the shade1 and along the bridle-path there is no shade4 ,we are hungry1 thirsty1 and tired4 ,as we cross the river again1 splashing through a ford1 our horses drink eagerly and attempt to lie down in the cool water4 ,we have to use strong persuasion not only with them1 but also with our own spirits1 to pass by the green grass and the sheltering olive-trees on the east bank and push on up the narrow1 rocky defile in which ,hsbeiy is hidden4 ,the bridle-path is partly paved with rough cobblestones1 hard and slippery1 which make the going weariful4 ,the heat presses on us like a burden4 ,things that would have delighted us in the morning now give us no pleasure4 ,we have made the greedy traveller's mistake of measuring our march by the extent of our endurance instead of by the limit of our enjoyment4 ,hsbeiy proves to be a rather thriving and picturesque town built around the steep sides of a bay or opening in the valley4 ,the amphitheatre of hills is terraced with olive-orchards and vineyards4 ,there are also many mulberry-trees cultivated for the silkworms1 and the ever-present figs and almonds are not wanting4 ,the stone houses of the town rise1 on winding paths1 one above the other1 many of them having arched porticoes1 red-tiled roofs1 and green-latticed windows4 ,it is a place of about five thousand population1 now more than half ,christian1 but formerly one of the strongholds and capitals of the mysterious ,druse religion4 ,our tents are pitched at the western end of the town1 on a low terrace where olive-trees are growing4 ,when we arrive we find the camp surrounded and filled with curious1 laughing children4 ,the boys are a little troublesome at first1 but a word from an old man who seems to be in charge brings them to order1 and at least fifty of them1 big and little1 squat in a semicircle on the grass below the terrace1 watching us with their lustrous brown eyes4 ,they look full of fun1 those young ,druses and ,maronites and ,greeks and ,mohammedans1 so ,i try a mild joke on them1 by pretending that they are a class and that ,i am teaching them a lesson4 ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 ,i chant1 and wait for them to repeat after me4 ,they promptly take the lesson out of my hands and recite the entire ,english alphabet in chorus1 winding up with shouts of ,goot mornin'6 ,how you do8 and merry laughter4 ,they are all pupils from the mission schools which have been established since the great ,massacre of #ahfj1 and which are helping1 ,i hope1 to make another forever impossible4 ,one of our objects in coming to ,hsbeiy was to ascend ,mount ,hermon4 ,we send for the ,druse guide and the ,christian guide2 both of them assure us that the adventure is impossible on account of the deep snow1 which has increased during the last fortnight4 ,we can not get within a mile of the summit4 ,the snow will be waist-deep in the hollows4 ,the mountain is inaccessible until ,june4 ,so1 after exchanging visits with the missionaries and seeing something of their good work1 we ride on our way the next morning4 ,,ii ,r,,sheiy ,,and ,,its ,,americanism ,the journey to ,rsheiy is like that of the preceding day1 except that the bridle-paths are rougher and more precipitous1 and the views wider and more splendid4 ,we have crossed the ,hsbn again1 and leaving the ,druses' valley1 the ,wdi et-,teim1 behind us1 have climbed the high table-land to the west4 ,we did not know why ,george ,cavalcanty led us away from the path marked in our ,baedeker1 but we took it for granted that he had some good reason4 ,it is well not to ask a wise dragoman all the questions that you can think of4 ,tell him where you want to go1 and let him show you how to get there4 ,certainly we are not inclined to complain of the longer and steeper route by which he has brought us1 when we sit down at lunch-time among the limestone crags and pinnacles of the wild upland and look abroad upon a landscape which offers the grandeur of immense outlines and vast distances1 the beauty of a crystal clearness in all its infinitely varied forms1 and the enchantment of gemlike colours1 delicate1 translucent1 vivid1 shifting and playing in hues of rose and violet and azure and purple and golden brown and bright green1 as if the bosom of ,mother ,earth were the breast of a dove1 breathing softly in the sunlight4 ,as we climb toward ,rsheiy we find ourselves going back a month or more into early spring4 ,here are the flowers that we saw in the ,plain of ,sharon on the first of ,april1 gorgeous red anemones1 fragrant purple and white cyclamens1 delicate blue irises4 ,the fig-tree is putting forth her tender leaf4 ,the vines1 lying flat on the ground1 are bare and dormant4 ,the springing grain1 a few inches long1 is in its first flush of almost dazzling green4 ,the town1 built in terraces on three sides of a rocky hill1 #d1ajj feet above the sea1 commands an extensive view4 ,hermon is in full sight2 snow-capped ,lebanon and ,anti-,lebanon face each other for forty miles2 and the little lake of ,kafr ,kk makes a spot of blue light in the foreground4 ,we are camped on the threshing-floor1 a level meadow beyond and below the town2 and there the ,rsheiyan gilded youth come riding their blooded horses in the afternoon1 running races over the smooth turf and showing off their horsemanship for our benefit4 ,there is something very attractive about these ,arabian horses as you see them in their own country4 ,they are spirited1 fearless1 sure-footed1 and yet1 as a rule1 so docile that they may be ridden with a halter4 ,they are good for a long journey1 or a swift run1 or a fantasia4 ,the prevailing colour among them is gray1 but you see many bays and sorrels and a few splendid blacks4 ,an ,arabian stallion satisfies the romantic ideal of how a horse ought to look4 ,his arched neck1 small head1 large eyes wide apart1 short body1 round flanks1 delicate pasterns1 and little feet2 the way he tosses his mane and cocks his flowing tail when he is on parade2 the swiftness and spring of his gallop1 the dainty grace of his walk--when you see these things you recognise at once the real1 original horse which the painters used to depict in their ,portraits of ,general ,x on his ,favourite ,charger4 ,i asked ,calvalcanty what one of these fine creatures would cost4 ,a good horse1 two or three hundred dollars2 an extra-good one1 four hundred2 a fancy one1 who knows8 ,we find ,rsheiy full of ,americanism4 ,we walk out to take photographs1 and at almost every street corner some young man who has been in the ,united ,states or ,canada salutes us with3 ,how are you to-day8 ,you fellows come from ,america8 ,what's the news there8 ,is ,bryan elected yet8 ,i voted for ,mc,kinley4 ,i got a store in ,kankakee4 ,i got one in ,jackson1 ,miss4 ,a beautiful dark-eyed girl1 in a dreadful department-store dress1 smiles at us from an open door and says3 ,take my picture8 ,i been at ,america4 ,one talkative and friendly fellow joins us in our walk2 in fact he takes possession of us1 guiding us up the crooked alleys and out on the housetops which command the best views1 and showing us off to his friends1--an old gentleman who is spinning goats' hair for the coarse black tents 7,st4 ,paul's trade71 and two ladies who are grinding corn in a hand-mill1 one pushing and the other pulling4 ,our self-elected guide has spent seven years in ,illinois and ,indiana1 peddling and store-keeping4 ,he has returned to ,rsheiy as a successful adventurer and built a stone house with a red roof and an arched portico4 ,is he going to settle down there for life8 ,i not know1 says he4 ,guess ,i want sell my house now4 ,this country beautiful2 ,i like look at her4 ,but ,america free--good government--good place to live4 ,gee whiz6 ,i go back quick1 you bet4 ,,iii ,,anti-,,lebanon ,,and ,,the ,,river ,,abana ,our path the next day leads up to the east over the ridges of the slight depression which lies between ,mount ,hermon and the rest of the ,anti-,lebanon range4 ,we pass the disconsolate village and lake of ,kafr ,kk4 ,the water which shone so blue in the distance now confesses itself a turbid1 stagnant pool1 locked in among the hills1 and breeding fevers for those who live beside it4 ,the landscape grows wild and sullen as we ascend2 the hills are strewn with shattered fragments of rock1 or worn into battered and fantastic crags2 the bottoms of the ravines are soaked and barren as if the winter floods had just left them4 ,presently we are riding among great snowdrifts4 ,it is the first day of ,may4 ,we walk on the snow1 and pack a basketful on one of the mules1 and pelt each other with snowballs4 ,we have gone back another month in the calendar and are now at the place where winter lingers in the lap of spring4 ,snowdrops1 crocuses1 and little purple grape-hyacinths are blooming at the edge of the drifts4 ,the thorny shrubs and bushes1 and spiny herbs like astragalus and cousinia1 are green-stemmed but leafless1 and the birds that flutter among them are still in the first rapture of vernal bliss1 the gay music that follows mating and precedes nesting4 ,big dove-coloured partridges1 beautifully marked with black and red1 are running among the rocks4 ,we are at the turn of the year1 the surprising season when the tide of light and life and love swiftly begins to rise4 ,from this ,alpine region we descend through two months in half a day4 ,it is mid-,march on a beautiful green plain where herds of horses were feeding around an encampment of black ,bedouin tents2 the beginning of ,april at ,khn ,meitheln1 on the post-road1 where there are springs1 and poplar-groves1 in one of which we eat our lunch1 with lemonade cooled by the snows of ,hermon2 the end of ,april at ,dimas1 where we find our tents pitched upon the threshing-floor1 a levelled terrace of clay looking down upon the flat roofs of the village4 ,our camp is #c1fjj feet above sea-level1 and our morning path follows the telegraph-poles steeply down to the post-road1 and so by a more gradual descent along the hard and dusty turnpike toward ,damascus4 ,the landscape1 at first1 is bare and arid3 rounded reddish mountains1 gray hillsides1 yellowish plains faintly tinged with a thin green4 ,but at ,el-,hmi the road drops into the valley of the ,barad1 the far-famed ,river ,abana1 and we find ourselves in a verdant paradise4 ,tall trees arch above the road2 white balconies gleam through the foliage2 the murmur and the laughter of flowing streams surround us4 ,the railroad and the carriage-road meet and cross each other down the vale4 ,country houses and cafs1 some dingy and dilapidated1 others new and trim1 are half hidden among the groves or perched close beside the highway4 ,poplars and willows1 plane-trees and lindens1 walnuts and mulberries1 apricots and almonds1 twisted fig-trees and climbing roses1 grow joyfully wherever the parcelled water flows in its many channels4 ,above this line1 on the sides of the vale1 everything is bare and brown and dry4 ,but the depth of the valley is an embroidered sash of bloom laid across the sackcloth of the desert4 ,and in the centre of this long verdure runs the parent river1 a flood of clear green2 rushing1 leaping1 curling into white foam2 filling its channel of thirty or forty feet from bank to bank1 and making the silver-leafed willows and poplars1 that stand with their feet in the stream1 tremble with the swiftness of its cool1 strong current4 ,truly ,naaman the ,syrian was right in his boasting to the prophet ,elisha3 ,abana1 the river of ,damascus1 is better than all the waters of ,israel4 ,the vale narrows as we descend along the stream1 until suddenly we pass through a gateway of steep cliffs and emerge upon an open plain beset with mountains on three sides4 ,the river1 parting into seven branches1 goes out to water a hundred and fifty square miles of groves and gardens1 and we follow the road through the labyrinth of rich and luscious green4 ,there are orchards of apricots enclosed with high mud walls2 and open gates through which we catch glimpses of crimson rose-trees and scarlet pomegranates and little fields of wheat glowing with blood-red poppies2 and hedges of white hawthorn and wild brier2 and trees1 trees1 trees1 everywhere embowering us and shutting us in4 ,presently we see1 above the leafy tops1 a sharp-pointed minaret with a golden crescent above it4 ,then we find ourselves again beside the main current of the ,barad1 running swift and merry in a walled channel straight across an open common1 where soldiers are exercising their horses1 and donkeys and geese are feeding1 and children are playing1 and dyers are sprinkling their long strips of blue cotton cloth laid out upon the turf beside the river4 ,the road begins to look like the commencement of a street2 domes and minarets rise before us2 there are glimpses of gray walls and towers1 a few shops and open-air cafs1 a couple of hotel signs4 ,the river dives under a bridge and disappears by a hundred channels beneath the city1 leaving us at the western entrance of ,damascus4 ,,iv ,,the ,,city ,,that ,a ,,little ,,river ,,made ,i cannot tell whether the river1 the gardens1 and the city would have seemed so magical and entrancing if we had come upon them in some other way or seen them in a different setting4 ,you can never detach an experience from its matrix and weigh it alone4 ,comparisons with the environs of ,naples or ,florence visited in an automobile1 or with the suburbs of ,boston seen from a trolley-car1 are futile and unilluminating4 ,the point about the ,barad is that it springs full-born from the barren sides of the ,anti-,lebanon1 swiftly creates a paradise as it runs1 and then disappears absolutely in a wide marsh on the edge of the desert4 ,the point about ,damascus is that she flourishes on a secluded plain1 the ,ghtah1 seventy miles from the sea and twenty-three hundred feet above it1 with no hinterland and no sustaining provinces1 no political leadership1 and no special religious sanctity1 with nothing1 in fact1 to account for her distinction1 her splendour1 her populous vitality1 her self-sufficing charm1 except her mysterious and enduring quality as a mere city1 a hive of men4 ,she is the oldest living city in the world2 no one knows her birthday or her founder's name4 ,she has survived the empires and kingdoms which conquered her1--,nineveh1 ,babylon1 ,samaria1 ,greece1 ,egypt--their capitals are dust1 but ,damascus still blooms like a tree planted by the rivers of water4 ,she has given her name to the reddest of roses1 the sweetest of plums1 the richest of metalwork1 and the most lustrous of silks2 her streets have bubbled and eddied with the currents of the multitudinous folk ,that do inhabit her and make her great4 ,she is the typical city1 pure and simple1 of the ,orient1 as ,new ,york or ,san ,francisco is of the ,occident3 the open port on the edge of the desert1 the trading-booth at the foot of the mountains1 the pavilion in the heart of the blossoming bower1--the wonderful child of a little river and an immemorial ,spirit of ,place4 ,every time we go into the city1 7whether from our tents on the terrace above an ancient and dilapidated pleasure-garden1 or from our red-tiled rooms in the good ,htel d',orient1 to which we had been driven by a plague of sand-flies in the camp71 we step at once into a chapter of the ,arabian ,nights' ,entertainments4 ,it is true1 there are electric lights and there is a trolley-car crawling around the city2 but they no more make it ,western and modern than a bead necklace would change the character of the ,venus of ,milo4 ,the driver of the trolley-car looks like one of ,the ,three ,calenders1 and a gayly dressed little boy beside him blows loudly on an instrument of discord as the machine tranquilly advances through the crowd4 7,a man was run over a few months ago2 his friends waited for the car to come around the next day1 pulled the driver from his perch1 and stuck a number of long knives through him in a truly ,oriental manner47 ,the crowd itself is of the most indescribable and engaging variety and vivacity4 ,the ,turkish soldiers in dark uniform and red fez2 the cheerful1 grinning water-carriers with their dripping1 bulbous goatskins on their backs2 the white-turbaned ,druses with their bold1 clean-cut faces2 the bronzed1 impassive sons of the desert1 with their flowing mantles and bright head-cloths held on by thick1 dark rolls of camel's hair2 the rich merchants in their silken robes of many colours2 the picturesquely ragged beggars2 the ,moslem pilgrims washing their heads and feet1 with much splashing1 at the pools in the marble courtyards of the mosques2 the merry children1 running on errands or playing with the water that gushes from many a spout at the corner of a street or on the wall of a house2 the veiled ,mohammedan women slipping silently through the throng1 or bending over the trinkets or fabrics in some open-fronted shop1 lifting the veil for a moment to show an olive-tinted cheek and a pair of long1 liquid brown eyes2 the bearded ,greek priests in their black robes and cylinder hats2 the ,christian women wrapped in their long white sheets1 but with their pretty faces uncovered1 and a red rose or a white jasmine stuck among their smooth1 shining black tresses2 the seller of lemonade with his gaily decorated glass vessel on his back and his clinking brass cups in his hand1 shouting1 ,a remedy for the heat1--,cheer up your hearts1--,take care of your teeth2 the boy peddling bread1 with an immense tray of thin1 flat loaves on his head1 crying continually to ,allah to send him customers2 the seller of turnip-pickle with a huge pink globe upon his shoulder looking like the inside of a pale watermelon2 the donkeys pattering along between fat burdens of grass or charcoal2 a much-bedizened horseman with embroidered saddle-cloth and glittering bridle1 riding silent and haughty through the crowd as if it did not exist2 a victoria dashing along the street at a trot1 with whip cracking like a pack of firecrackers1 and shouts of1 ,o boy6 ,look out for your back6 your foot6 your side6--all these figures are mingled in a passing show of which we never grow weary4 ,the long bazaars1 covered with a round1 wooden archway rising from the second story of the houses1 are filled with a rich brown hue like a well-coloured meerschaum pipe2 and through this mellow1 brumous atmosphere beams of golden sunlight slant vividly from holes in the roof4 ,an immense number of shops1 small and great1 shelter themselves in these bazaars1 for the most part opening1 without any reserve of a front wall or a door1 in frank invitation to the street4 ,on the earthen pavement1 beaten hard as cement1 camels are kneeling1 while the merchants let down their corded bales and display their ,persian carpets or striped silks4 ,the cook-shops show their wares and their processes1 and send up an appetising smell of lamb kibbs and fried fish and stuffed cucumbers and stewed beans and okra1 and many other dainties preparing on diminutive charcoal grills4 ,in the larger and richer shops1 arranged in semi-,european fashion1 there are splendid rugs1 and embroideries old and new1 and delicately chiselled brasswork1 and furniture of strange patterns lavishly inlaid with mother-of-pearl2 and there ,i go with the ,lady to study the art of bargaining as practised between the trained skill of the ,levant and the native genius of ,walla ,walla1 ,washington4 ,in the smaller and poorer bazaars the high1 arched roofs give place to tattered awnings1 and sometimes to branches of trees2 the brown air changes to an atmosphere of brilliant stripes and patches2 the tiny shops1 7hardly more than open booths71 are packed and festooned with all kinds of goods1 garments and ornaments3 the chafferers conduct their negotiations from the street1 7sidewalk there is none71 or squat beside the proprietor on the little platform of his stall4 ,illustration3 ,a ,small ,bazaar in ,damascus4 ,the custom of massing the various trades and manufactures adds to the picturesque joy of shopping or dawdling in ,damascus4 ,it is like passing through rows of different kinds of strange fruits4 ,there is a region of dangling slippers1 red and yellow1 like cherries2 a little farther on we come to a long trellis of clothes1 limp and pendulous1 like bunches of grapes2 then we pass through a patch of saddles1 plain and coloured1 decorated with all sorts of beads and tinsel1 velvet and morocco1 lying on the ground or hung on wooden supports1 like big1 fantastic melons4 ,in the coppersmiths' bazaar there is an incessant clattering of little hammers upon hollow metal4 ,the goldsmiths sit silent in their pens within a vast1 dim building1 or bend over their miniature furnaces making gold and silver filigree4 ,here are the carpenters using their bare feet in their work almost as deftly as their fingers2 and yonder the dyers festooning their long strips of blue cotton from their windows and balconies4 ,down there1 on the way to the ,great ,mosque1 the booksellers hold together3 a dwindling tribe1 apparently1 for of the thirty or forty shops which were formerly theirs not more than half a dozen remain true to literature3 the rest are full of red and yellow slippers4 ,damascus is more inclined to loafing or to dancing than to reading4 ,it seems to belong to the gay1 smiling1 easy-going ,east of ,scheherazade and ,aladdin1 not to the sombre and reserved ,orient of fierce mystics and fanatical fatalists4 ,yet we feel1 or imagine that we feel1 the hidden presence of passions and possibilities that belong to the tragic side of life underneath this laughing mask of comedy4 ,no longer ago than #ahfj1 in the great ,massacre1 five thousand ,christians perished by fire and shot and dagger in two days2 the streets ran with blood2 the churches were piled with corpses2 hundreds of ,christian women were dragged away to ,moslem harems2 only the brave ,abd-el-,kader1 with his body-guard of dauntless ,algerine veterans1 was able to stay the butchery by flinging himself between the blood-drunken mob and their helpless victims4 ,this was the last wholesale assassination of modern times that a great city has seen1 and prosperous1 pleasure-loving1 insouciant ,damascus seems to have quite forgotten it4 ,yet there are still enough wild ,kurdish shepherds1 and fierce ,bedouins of the desert1 and riffraff of camel-drivers and herdsmen and sturdy beggars and homeless men1 among her three hundred thousand people to make dangerous material if the tiger-madness should break loose again4 ,a gay city is not always a safe city4 ,the ,lady and ,i saw a man stabbed to death at noon1 not fifty feet away from us1 in a street beside the ,ottoman ,bank4 ,nothing is safe until justice and benevolence and tolerance and mutual respect are diffused in the hearts of men4 ,how far this inward change has gone in ,damascus no one can tell4 ,but that some advance has been made1 by real reforms in the ,turkish government1 by the spread of intelligence and the enlightenment of self-interest1 by the sense of next-doorness to ,paris and ,berlin and ,london1 which telegraphs1 railways1 and steamships have produced1 above all by the useful work of missionary hospitals and schools1 and by the humanizing process which has been going on inside of all the creeds1 no careful observer can doubt4 ,i fear that men will still continue to kill each other1 for various causes1 privately and publicly4 ,but thank ,god it is not likely to be done often1 if ever again1 in the name of ,religion6 ,the medley of things seen and half understood has left patterns damascened upon my memory with intricate clearness3 immense droves of camels coming up from the wilderness to be sold in the market2 factories of inlaid woodwork and wrought brasswork in which hundreds of young children1 with beautiful and seeming-merry faces1 are hammering and filing and cutting out the designs traced by the draughtsmen who sit at their desks like schoolmasters2 vast mosques with rows of marble columns1 and floors covered with bright-coloured rugs1 and files of men1 sometimes two hundred in a line1 with a leader in front of them1 making their concerted genuflections toward ,mecca2 costly interiors of private houses which outwardly show bare white-washed walls1 but within welcome the stranger to hospitality of fruits1 coffee1 and sweetmeats1 in stately rooms ornamented with rich tiles and precious marbles1 looking upon arcaded courtyards fragrant with blossoming orange-trees and musical with tinkling fountains2 tombs of ,moslem warriors and saints1--,saladin1 the ,sultan ,beibars1 the ,sheikh ,arsln1 the philosopher ,ibn-el-,arabi1 great fighters now quiet1 and restless thinkers finally satisfied2 public gardens full of rose-bushes1 traversed by clear1 swift streams1 where groups of women sit gossiping in the shade of the trees or in little kiosques1 the ,mohammedans with their light veils not altogether hiding their olive faces and languid eyes1 the ,christians and ,jewesses with bare heads1 heavy necklaces of amber1 flowers behind their ears1 silken dresses of soft and varied shades2 cafs by the river1 where grave and important ,turks pose for hours on red velvet divans1 smoking the successive cigarette or the continuous nargileh4 ,out of these memory-pictures of ,damascus ,i choose three4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,lady and ,i are climbing up from the great ,mosque of the ,ommayyades into the ,minaret of the ,bride1 at the hour of ',asr1 or afternoon prayer4 ,as we tread the worn spiral steps in the darkness we hear1 far above1 the chant of the choir of muezzins1 high-pitched1 long-drawn1 infinitely melancholy1 calling the faithful to their devotions4 ,allah akbar6 ,allah akbar6 ,allah is great6 ,i testify there is no ,god but ,allah1 and ,mohammed is the prophet of ,allah6 ,come to prayer6 ,the plaintive notes float away over the city toward all four quarters of the sky1 and quaver into silence4 ,we come out from the gloom of the staircase into the dazzling light of the balcony which runs around the top of the minaret4 ,for a few moments we can see little2 but when the first bewilderment passes1 we are conscious that all the charm and wonder of ,damascus are spread at our feet4 ,the oval mass of the city lies like a carving of old ivory1 faintly tinged with pink1 on a huge table of malachite4 ,the setting of groves and gardens1 luxuriant1 interminable1 deeply and beautifully green1 covers a circuit of sixty miles4 ,beyond it1 in sharpest contrast1 rise the bare1 fawn-coloured mountains1 savage1 intractable1 desolate2 away to the west1 the snow-crowned bulk of ,hermon2 away to the east1 the low-rolling hills and slumbrous haze of the desert4 ,under these flat roofs and white domes and long black archways of bazaars three hundred thousand folk are swarming4 ,and there1 half emerging from the huddle of decrepit modern buildings and partly hidden by the rounded shed of a bazaar1 is the ruined top of a ,roman arch of triumph1 battered1 proud1 and indomitable4 99 99 99 99 99 ,an hour later we are scrambling up a long1 shaky ladder to the flat roofs of the joiners' bazaar1 built close against the southern wall of the ,mosque4 ,we walk across the roofs and find the ancient south door of the ,mosque1 now filled up with masonry1 and almost completely concealed by the shops above which we are standing4 ,only the entablature is visible1 richly carved with garlands4 ,kneeling down1 we read upon the lintel the ,greek inscription in uncial letters1 cut when the ,mosque was a ,christian church4 ,the ,moslems who are bowing and kneeling and stretching out their hands toward ,mecca among the marble pillars below1 know nothing of this inscription4 ,few even of the ,christian visitors to ,damascus have ever seen it with their own eyes1 for it is difficult to find and read4 ,but there it still endures and waits1 the bravest inscription in the world3 ,thy kingdom1 ,o ,christ1 is a kingdom of all ages1 and ,thy dominion lasts throughout all generations4 99 99 99 99 99 ,from this eloquent and forgotten stone my memory turns to the ,hospital of the ,edinburgh ,medical ,mission4 ,i see the lovely garden full of roses1 columbines1 lilies1 pansies1 sweet-peas1 strawberries just in bloom4 ,i see the poor people coming in a steady stream to the neat1 orderly dispensary2 the sweet1 clean wards with their spotless beds2 the merciful candour and completeness of the operating-room2 the patient1 cheerful1 vigorous1 healing ways of the great ,scotch doctor1 who limps around on his broken leg to minister to the needs of other folk4 ,i see the little group of nurses and physicians gathered on ,sunday evening in the doctor's parlour for an hour of serious1 friendly talk1 hopeful and happy4 ,and there1 amid the murmur of ,abana's rills1 and close to the confused and glittering mystery of the ,orient1 ,i hear the music of a simple hymn3 ,dear ,lord and ,father of mankind1 ,forgive our foolish ways6 ,reclothe us in our rightful mind1 ,in purer lives thy service find1 ,in deeper reverence1 praise4 ,o ,sabbath rest by ,galilee6 ,o calm of hills above1 ,where ,jesus knelt to share with ,thee ,the silence of eternity ,interpreted by love6 ,drop thy still dews of quietness1 ,till all our strivings cease2 ,take from our souls the strain and stress1 ,and let our ordered lives confess ,the beauty of ,thy peace4 99 99 99 99 99 ,corrections made to printed original4 p4 #f1 ',eygpt' corrected to ',egypt'4 p4 #afg1 'is is camelet' corrected to 'is it camelet'4 p4 #ahb1 'acqueducts' corrected to 'aqueducts'4 p4 #aij1 added a period after 'generations to build'4 p4 #bgg1 added a period after 'immemorial charm about the place'4 ,where accented and non-accented versions of the same place-names exist the non-accented were converted to accented3 ,bakhshsh 444444 ,bakhshish ,bniys 44444444 ,baniyas ,haif 4444444444 ,haifa ,ltn 444444444 ,litani and ,litni ,seri 4444444444 ,serai ,nabls 444444444 ,nablus