Juliet signal. [volume] (Juliet [i.e. Joliet], Ill.) 1844-1???, 1847-07-06

him; and from the hills I behold him.
How goodly are thy tents, o Jacob, and
thy tabernacles, o Israel" The plain is
perhaps three miles in width, and looked
little more verdant than that on the
west side ofthe river. looked anxious.
ly along the mountain ridge back of this
PLAIN tor some eminence higher than the
rest, that l could fix upon as the ancient
Pisgab, but in vain. The whole summit
prese nts uniform outline, with scarcely
an indentation. The summit where the
false prophet built his seven altars and
repaired to curse Jacob, and to which
Moses subsequently assembled TO view the
heritage OF his people, was probably some
peak below the general ridge.
The pilgrims reached the river lust at
the dawn of day. and all plunged into it
with as much frantic fanaticism as the
pagan Hindoos do into the Ganges. With
some difficulty | made my way, on nv
horse, up to the bank of the river, where
could obtain full view of the bathers.
There were, perhaps, more than thou
sand in the water at once, men, women.
and Children, apart with little clothing
on them, and the rest entirely naked,
thurstiag themselves and each other under
the muddy flood. Mothers would plunge
their young infants under the water, per.
haps half a dozen times in quick succe s.
sion, until lite was almost extinct. And
men and women, whose feeble and tot.
tering limbs had TO be supported in going
down the steep bank, rushed into the
river with the su2pleness and impetuosity
OF youthful swimmers; and the blind and
the lame seemed to forget their infirmities
In delirlIm of lanaticism. had not sat in
my place three minutes when saw one
OF the thoughtless multitude borne down
the stream by the impetuous current, to
return no more. The frantic crowd cast
momentary glance towards the drown.
ing man, and then resumed their orgies
as before. In a little time another, and
another, shared his fate; and fourth. a
woman, was instantly killed, near the
river, by falling from camel. No efforts
were or could be made by the friends of
the drowned men to recover their bodies.
they must return to camp in an other hour
and thence to Jerusalem on the following
morning, and leave them to be devoured
by the wild beasts when they should
have tloated to the desolate shore of the
Dead Sea.
Leaving this scene of fanaticism and
death, We made our way down through
the dust to the mouth of the river. The
Jordan. at the place of bathing, is, think,
about fifty-five feet wide; the banks are
at least ten feet high, and it runs with an
almost irresistible current. tits skirted
on both sides with trees and small shrubs,
principally willow, deep green and lux
uriant, presenting a delightful contrast
with the frightful desert bordering it. AS
it approaches the sea it becomes some.
what wider; & at the mouth a small delta
has been formed, and it disembogues it.
self through two channels, each perhaps
J eighty feet broad. Some three or four
miles above the mouth of the river, and
| from thence down to the sea, we saw
large quantities of drift wood, thrown out
a quarter Of mile OF more from the
stream, showing that the Jordan still over.
flows IFS banks, as it did in ancient times,
fact that most travellershave questioned.
The plain, over which we rode between
the ford and the sea, was covered with
a fine dust, into which our horses sank at
every step half way to their knees. A
thin crust had been left on the surface by
the la,e rains, and the whole district re.
sembled bed of loose ashes which had
been wetted by a light shower and quick
ly dried in the sun. Not the least trace
of vegetable existence over the wide ex.
panse ofmany miles.