The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1850-05-11
OTTAWA, ILL.,, SATURDAY, MAY II, 1850.

yer the plains Of Rephaim, famed in Scripture
story 10 Bethlehem, six miles distant The VII
laSe Is situated on hill side, and looks very prct.
" IN the distance. Passing n cava!cadc Of priests
ana monks, entered the place, and was at once
struck by ITS superior appearance The houses
were oi hewn stone and two stories high, the
streets were regular and clean, the population
good looking and well clad, and comfort and thrift
were apparent everywhere. The chi ldrcn We're
The pretticSt have since left the Christian
villages OF Labanon. The people are Catholics.
ana chiefly support themselves by carving rep.
reSentatIons of Scripture characters and scenes ON
shells procured from the Red Sea This thcv do
with no little artistic skill proceeded at once
to the Church Of the Nativity, which claims to
cover the identical spot where our Savior was
born. il Is large aud magnificent hasilica, built
by the Empress Helena, in the earliest Christian
ages. and i now jointly occupied by the Roman
ta'hohc, Greek, and Armenian monks 1t is
hoary with years and most venerable in appear.
ance, and as lookhd on It's pictures of Saints and
;daftyfS am with age, and on lis pavements deep
Wof" Oy Inc dusty feet ct weary pilgrims who
Tor fifteen centuries have been cominS here from
aiar to bend in gratitude and love over the spot
where their Redcemcr war born. in solemn revcr.
cncc, could not but feel that the v.ry air was
, -acred monk soon conducted me down to the
place OF the Nativity. Descending a long narrow
hight of steps, found myself in a splendid sub
terranoan rccc-s paved with marble anl drarcried
with silk and ornamcntcd with richaltar and all
the appenlagcs of Catholic worship On one
side was a smi-circular niche cncascd with mar
bic, encompasses with splendid lamps. and con
tanning Latin inscription sgniyIug that here Je-
sus was born. The mongcr itsclf is among the
relics preserved ut Rome. Although caves are
sometimes used even at this day in Palestine as
stables for horses yet this was evidently to deep
and lnconvcnient ever to have served for such n
purpose, and ] am rather inclined to consider this
rs rather an absurd instance Of the strange pro-
pen,ty Of the ancient monks to locate all the no
" places under ground. Yet st. Jerome express.
ly ahrmS that this was the place of the Nativity,
and his authority is not without wcight At the
distance Of few yards was the cell where st
jerome passed the last year of his life and wrote
most of his works. 1t was a cold dimly lighted
stone apartment just suited for an ascctc life
Adjoining It was little dark cave where he died
places, and with no little interest did | associate
them with the memory Of the great Christian Fa-
thcr Not far distant was an excavation in the
rock, the narrow entrance into which was closely
grated with bars of iron. This was told, and
picture aboyei it confirmed the story was the p,rcc
where the lnnoccnts, murdered by Uerod were
buried was glad when got out once more
under the same broad blue sky that once sparxled
with the star of the East" and was careciiug
among the hills that once rcsoundel with the
songs Of the ANGELS