The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1864-01-14
BABYLON.

enshrouds the once mighty Babylonish en-
pire:
BABYLON.
In the distance, high above the plains loom
ed a great mound of earth. On both sides of
ua lay what looked like long parallel ranges
Of hills. These lines are pronounced to be the
remains OF these canals that once conducted
the waters Of the Euphrates over the length
and breadth of the ancient Babylonia What
mighty canals must they have been. that
still showed, under the roll Of centuries, such
substantial traces No not so much as drop
Of water-no, not even a drop Of heavens
peary dew, ever glisteps where once large
ships must have nayigated. Those mighty
banks that carried fertility to every corner II
the ancient kingdom are now mere useless,
sightless mounds. No morning mist, moist
enln2 the thirsty earth, ever hangs over them.
No rain clouds ever shadow them, temperiug
the rays Of a fierce daily-returning sun The
end Of her that ''dwelt upon many waters"
had been brought about only too surely The
awful prophecies had been fulfilled, and desc
latI0n IN all It's nakedness, in all it's dreari-
ness, was around us After riding some two
hours we arrived at the foot of the great
mound we had seen III the distance In the
morning We dis mounted and scrambled.
to the top,for We had even arrived at the ru-
ms OF Babylon and this great mound Of e9 rth
We were on was the grave Of the golden city
| believe from the summit raised some
hundred feet above the plain, the walls of the
ancient city may be traced but hot wind
driving burning sand and the impaips bic dust
OF ages INTO the pours Of the skin. made eve
ry effort to open an eye 50 terribly painful,
that we gave up the idea III despair of either
tracing walls, or indeed, Of looking about us
anywhere. | remember seeing, away to the
west, lines Of willows and asilver thread wind
ing away into the distance and nearer some
unslightIy bare mounds, looking as if voIcan-
ic fire had been at work underneath the SMOOTH
surface Of the plain, and had thrown these
mounds up in the spirit of pure mischief That
silver thread was our first glimpse of the wa
tiers of the Euphrates, and the mounds all that
remains Of the once beautiful hanging gardens
Of Babylon; at least, 50 the coniectures Of
IEen Of research has accounted for them. But
so completely have the prophecies been fulfill
ed-so completely has the ''uame and rem
nant been cut off, of all pertaining to tha
once mighty city, that even the great hill on
which we We're standing is only by coniect-
ure supposed to be the ruin Of some great
building or royal palace that stood within
the wals-possibly the palace Of Semiramis
We descended from the great mound, and
made for these lesser mounds which are SUP
posed to be the sites Of the hanging gardens
Of NitrOcris and Semiran1is In one spot
the only thing we saw i'll the shape Of build
ing III a state Of ruin-was mass of vitriG-
ed brick work, piercing the old soil and de
brls Of centuries angle upward 1he bricks
were square, Of large size tead beautiful make;
the angles Of some clear and sharp, as if the
brick had left the kiln yesterday, instead Of
twice two thousand years ago. Turning into
little hollow way between the mounds we
came suddenly upon the colossal stone lion
Time, with his leaden hand bad knocked away
at all sharp angles Of the statue. The features
of the lion are completely obIiterated as are al
SO those Of the PROSTATE form that lies 80 help
less-so utterly and wholly human, beneath
the appraised form of the king Of the beasts.
The group represents Itself to the eye ow-
ing to the war Of old Time much in the ap-
pearance Of those vast blocks OF Carrara mar
bic which the bold chisel of Michael Angelo
struck into, and then at the point that the
shapeless marble had begun to assume the
merest ''abaz2o" Of the great scuIptor's idea,
the block was suddenly abandoned and left
IL a wonder and puzzle to future ages, 50
does this group of the lion and tie man now
bear an unfinished, uuwrought appearance
but you cannot look at it a moment and not
instantly avow the majesty and grandeur Of
the idea that once lay there so nightly en-
bodied This dark colored colossal statue,
which may once have stood under the gorge
GUS roof of a temple, and before which the
queeuly Seniramis-proud and Supremacy
beautltul-may once have bowed, stands now
canopled by the grandeSt Of all canOpies, GER
talnIy-high heaven-but never noticed save
by the desert wind that sweeps moaning over
it, and the jacIais that yelp around, as they
hold high reyel over the bones of some camel
who has been so good as to die in the vicinity
a SAND STORM.
About an hour before sunset we were stand
ing on the bridge of boats looking down up
on the Euphratcs rolling its dark turbid tide
below us. The Heaven above as without a
a cloud but, suddeny,in the course of few
minutes, as it appeared we became aware that
the western sky was becoming strangely oh
Bcure, and as we looked in the direction of the
sun, we saw his rays We're waxing dim by
reason of vast lurid cloud that was surging
up from the western horizon at pace that
was terrific to behold. There was sudden
rush of feet across the bridge.-for the peo-
in all directions, hoping to find shelter from |
the deluge which they supposed would, in
very short time, be pouring down upon the !
town from out of the midst Of the omiuous
pillar Of cloud that was building up so randi
ly and with such magic speed in the west.
We hurried home for we saw plainly that |
the storm would be upon us in few minutes
The appearance of this driving cloud from our
yerandah was grand in the extreme We now !
were convinced that a sand storm, and that one
OF 10 ordinary kind, was about to burst upon
lis in all its fury-tor the cloud. now that we |
came to look at it, and into it, evidently held |
no rain III its lurid depths. The dark shades !
OF 1t were OF the deepest purple aud the edges. |
as 1t came boiling up from the westward, were
tinted with the most glorious gold. Every in |
slant, as the light played over the surface, we !
beheld coIors varying from brilliant orange
to the deep dark sombre tones of red and |
purple. Birds of all descriptions, scream
ing wildly, some by soaring high into the vet
clear vault OF heaven to avoid the sand
laden atmosphere that was surging toward
us III a way that was wondrous to behold l.
In less than fifteen minutes from the time
we first observed it, the fiery breath Of the
storm was upon us. First came the moan of
a rushing mighty wind, as it swept anrrilv
py' there were few date trees in the gar /
den below. Their sturdy leaves were for an
instant II strongly agitated the next moment =
they we're torn away with a crash, and then =
! along to the leeward as are the light
iI;, ol oeecn before an autumnaI breeze.
LHesIouI trees themselves to and fro. then bent
down,and bowed humblv befora tia 80
Of the gale. 4 few seconds mora ~ ', .t
town was plunged into utter midui,,bt - r,''
ness, Though two Of us were STANDING Mi /
in yard Of each other, out on the ver7rdlt, {
il was impossible to trace even outline Of tL5
hgurer so impenetrable was the gloom. Tbers
was feeling that some kind of fine sand was
every sense Of the body. There y
was peculiar taste in the atmosnhere. and \