Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1864-01-21
ALegend Of the Cross.

An ancient legend, giving the history of
the tree from which the cross wss made,
runs as follows:
-Four hundred and thirty-tw6 years dftcr
his expulsion from PaIndise; Adam had
titled the ground in the valley Of Hebron;
when he felt his end approaching, and de-
termined to send his son Seth to the gates
of Paradise, to demand from their keeper.
" the angel called Cherubim," the oil Of
mercy that had been promised tt Adam
when he was driven from the Garden,
Seth accordinnly set forth, finding his
way by the footprints Of Adam and Eve,
upon which no grass had grown since they
had passed from Paradise to Hebron: The
angel, after hearing the message, ordered
Seth to look beyond the gate into the gar
den, and to tell him what he saw. He be-
held place of inexrressible delight and
beauty, with four great rivers proceeding
from fountain in the centre and, rising
from the edge of the fountain, an enori
nous tree with wide spreading branchesi
but without either bark or leavcsi He
was ordered to look a second time; when
he saw serpent twisted around the tree,
and third time when the tree had raised
itself to Heaven, and bore on its summit
a child wrapped in glittcring vestments:
It was this child, said the angcl, who
would give to Adam the oil of mercy wheIt
the due time should come. Meanwhile
the angel gave Seth three seeds frOln the
fruit Of the tree of which Adam had caten:,
These were to be placed in the mouth Of
Adam before his burial; and three trees
would spring from them, cedar, a cy-
press and pine. The trees were SYM
bolical of the Holy Trinity, not only by
their number, but by the virtue which be-
longed to each separately.
1t happened as the angel had foretold:
The trees were hardly foot above the
ground in the days Of Abraham. Noses
to whom their true nature was revealed;
took them up carefully; carried them with
him during the years OF wandering ii the
desert, and then planted them in mystic
rious valley named Comfrafor (comfort,.
consolation y from Comfrafort; David
was directed to bring them to Jerusalem,
He planted them close to fountain and
within thirty years they had grown to-
gether so as TO form a single tree of Won
derful beauty, under the shade of which
David composed his psalms, and wcpt for
his sins. In spite of its beauty, Solomon
cut it down in order to complete his tcm-
pie; for which single beam was wanted,
of size such as no other tree could furn=
ish. But in fitting the beam to its place.
it was found, after repeated trials, either
too long or too shroti and the marvel was
accepted as u sign that It was not to be so
employed.
The miraculous bSani, however, was
reyerently preserved In the tcmplcs X
certain woman one day named Maxhninai
leaned against it when her clothes caught
fire; and she cried out in spirit Oh pro-
phecy, "Jesus Christ, Thou Son Of God;
help me!'' The Jews, when they heard
her cry; took her for mad and chased her
from the city-the first martyr, says the
legend, for Jesus Christ.
Thus fd. the more usua Nersion:-An-
other, which has been followed in a strik-
ing Provencial narration, quoted by NJ:
Fauriel, asserts that when the tree, was
found to be too short for the temple, It
was flung aside into d certain marsh,
where it served as a bridge. But when
the Queen of Sheba came to Jerusalem to
hear the wisdom of Solomon, when she
was about to cross the bridge. she saw in
vision how the Savior of the world
was to be suspended on that tree, and SO
would not walk over it, but forthwith
adored ir. 1t was afterwards, as all the
versions agree, OIL the spot where the pool
of Bethlehem was afterward made; so
that it was not only the descetit Of the an
gel, but the virtues of the buried wood,
which gave its healing qualities to the
water. The Jews took it to make the
cross of our Lord.
Such is the remarkable legend which
has at least the interest of being widely
spread, and as having been generally re-
ceiyed as authentic. 1t would be no easy
matter to trace the steps of its formation,
or to mark the period Of its first introduce
ton to Europe. The footprints of Adam
which left the ground bare arc still point
ed out on the summit of Mount Geizim.