The Mountaineer. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1859-1861, 1860-02-11
n SALT LAKE CITY. SATURDAY. FEBRUARY IL, 1860.

was now in-the valley where Abraham
dwell with his family and flocks, AND
now on the summit of the mountain
where the sun was stopped in its course
al the command of Joshua 10 prolone III.
battle which was to result in the victory
of the people of Israel. il, W, ,s,...l III
" was weary journey through a sac
and mouTnful land, relieved BY an occa
sional rest under the shade Of Il rock 81
lof a solitary olive tree, for Jerusalem
seemed TO be a myth--eyer promised bui
unattainable- when We, reached at last
at o'clock, the summit Of hill higher
than all that We had passed. and fighl
before me on the rocky plain, at the dis.
tance of . mile, stood the Holy City
II was not the ancient Jerusalem, moi
q vast metropolis. not even q medimya
| city like Rome, but modern built town
of small circuit, fnclosed with 4 graceful
military wall, and snrmounted with d
citadel. towers, stecples, and monuments
beautiful To look upon, but disappointing
all the conceits had formed in regard 70
its aspects. & IA s. b, III
JERusALEM, Sept. &c, 1859. Il
NJ On Saturday morning (24th We had
coffee and eggs at our hotel at q o clock,
and, after vigorous activity had been ex-
ercised, we mounted for an excursion
into the eastern part OF Palestine. "A
CANVASS is an officer Of the Turkish army,
armed, and bearing a silver stick, assign
ed TO any consullor other favored person
BY the Government, for his protection,
and to assure his safety on the high
ways. Behold our military array as we
passed through the Damascus gate OF
Jerusalem at sunrise. Two Cavasses
commanding the faithful, with their ass.
les, horses and loaded camels, to turn to
theright or left. or TO halt until We passed,
which they obeyed, while they won
dered who they were that were thus hon
Iored by the Sultan; amnleteer with his
mules loaded with the provisions for the
jotuney---a boy with d donkey equally
loaded, andibearing our double. barreIled
tfills--pny 'eouFiers my ec0ntparfons Hnti
myself; and then in the rear six marines
.of the United States Navy, armed with
short swords and reviewers. slfhe Turk,
ish gate of Jerusalem opened promptly
sfor the procession The Turkish guard
were already under dIillon the plain, and
q buglc. blast that went forth from tile
height Of Mount Zion was respondedeto
in exquisite echo by another Turkish bn-
gle amid the tombs of the ancient kings
of Jerusalem. Nearly four thousand
years old is Jerusalem. HI She has seen
many daysof triumph and Of glory, and
has endured many long seasons Of humili-
atoms and disgrace. But none that
were more cherries than her present
degradation, it seems to me--trodden to
the earth by the fierce Arab Of the des-
ert, while the outside world respects only
her past, and is Indifferent to the future.
( We made our way around the south
eastern corner of the walls, and then
turned to the westward and descended
Mount Moriah by a winding camei.road,
having the Mosque Of Omar which
stands on the site of the ancient Temple,
and the Beautiful Gate, directly at our
side. We descended into the Valley of
Jehosophat, and crossed the brook Ke-
dron. We could seesbefore us It's winding
course underneath the tonbs of hundreds
OF generations, until it reaches the Pool
Of Sloan, now not only without healing
waters, but almost without water at all.
We rose on the southern side OF Hebron,
and stood upon thejdecliyity looking over
the wall into the Garden of Gethsemane,
with, its few relies of olive trees, and,
after o pause for the contemplation Of the
scene, j resumed my way, and assembled
! The side Of the Mount Of Olives Is an
easy grade, and it towers SO high as to
overlook the Mount Moriali and most OF
the city, Olive trees grace the declivity,
and .'the site Of the TRANSPORTATION is
now covered with a monastery. 9r The
features Of the country around. the Holy
City are bold and distinct. / wondered,
as / looked down into the vale Of Gehen-.
ma or Tophet, that l had not recognized
these scenes without guide. The hill
sides are covered with tombs Of every age
and every nation, from those closed yes
terday until you get back to the period
of early antiquity. Indeed those who
live at Jerusalem speak as if antiquity
was only of yesterday. Centuries Of
history are brought into near review by
the habit Of studying antiquities with the
aid Of tradition, I was reused from
meditations on the peryerseness Of man.
which always rejects instructions the
most benevolent, and persecutes most
bitterly those who come TO avert its evils,
by finding that had quite lost sight Of
the Holy City, and was pursuing my way
talong arOugh road towards Bethany the
village OF Mary and Martha and Laza'
rus An hour and n half hro1,oht ms 1,