The Portland daily press., 1867-11-19
Miscellany.
Mari. Twnin in rnle.,,,.e

Mark Twain writes to the Tribune from
Ceserea Phllllpi, Palestine, the following |
graphic description of the lower classes who |
throng public places in that country
THE PEOPLE THE DISCIPLES KNEW.
inns morning, during breakfast, the usual
assemblage of squalid humanity sat patiently |
Without the charmed circle OF the camp end
waited for such crumbs as pity might 6estow
upon their misery. There were Old and
young, brown-sknned and yellow. Some Of
the men were tall and staiwarf Tor one sees
nowhere such splendid looking men as here |
in the eastl but all the women and children I
looked worn and sad, and distressed with hun
ger. They reminded me much of Indians.
did these people. They had but little cloth |
ing, but such as they had was tancilu in char |
acter and fantastic in its arrangement |
Amy little absurd gewgaw OF limerick thew
had they disposed OF in such a way al to
make 1t attract attention most readily. they
sat IN silence, and with tireless patience
watched out every motion with that vile mn
complaining p6liteness which is SO tluly In
dian, and which makes a man so nervous and
uncomfortable and savage that he wants TO
exterminate the whole tribe.
These people about us had other pecuIiari
ties, which have noticed in the noble red
man, too; they carried passengers in their
hair, they were infested with heas and the
dirt had caked on them till il amounted 10
bark.
The little children were In piliabIe eondi-
tion-they all had sore eyes, and were other
wise afflicted in various WAYS They say
that hardly native child in all the East
is free from sore eyes, and that thousands OF
them go blind of one eye or both every wear.
l think this must be so, for | see plenty of
blind people every day, and l don't remem
Der seeing any children that hadn't sore eyes.
And would you believe that any American
70 os4 IL. --.sAl -.
in her arms, and let thousand flies roost
upon Its eyes all that time undisturbed? |
see that every day. 1t makes my flesh creep.
Yesterday we met woman riding on a little
jackass, and she had child in her arms
honestly, Thought the child had goggles on
as we approached, and | wondered how the
mother could afford so much style. But
when we drew near we saw that the goggles
were noth1ng but camp-meeting OF flies
assembled around each of the cbiid's eyes
and at the same time there was a detachment
prospecting its nose. The flies were happy.
and the child was contented and so the
mother did not interfere
As soon as the tribe found out that we had J
a doctor in our crowd, they began to flock in
from all quarters. DIR. D.. in the charity Of
his nature, had taken child from woman
that sat near by, and put some sort of a wasl,
upon its diseased eyes. That woman went
OIL and started the whole cation. and Won
ought to have seen them swarm! The lame. I
Inc halt, the blind, the leprous-all the dis
tempers that are bred OF dirt and iniquity,
were represented in the congress i'm ten min
utes, and still they camel Every woman that
had sick baby brought it along, and every
woman that hadn't borrowed one What rev
erent and what worshipping looks they bent
upon that dread, mysterious power the doc
tor!
They watched him take his phials out they
watched him measure the particles of white
powder; they watched him add drops OF one
precious liquid, and drops of another. thew
lost not the slightest movement; their ewes
were rlveted upon him with a fascination
that nothing could distract | believe they
Thought ne was gifted like god When each
individual got his portion of medicine. his
eyes were radiant with joy, notwithstanding
they are by nature thankless and impassiye
face-and upon his face was written the un.
questioning Iaitn mat nothing on earth could
prevent the patient from getting well now.
Shiist knew how to preach to these simple,
chhf lsh, ignorant, supeTstitiOus, disease-tor-
tured vagabonds; he healed the sick. They
nocked to our poor human doctor this morn.
ing when the fame of what he had done tn
the SICK child went abroad in the land. and
they worshiped him with their eyes wh,le
tney knew not as yet whether there was
virtue IN bis simpies or not The ances
Tors OF these-people precisely like them in
color, dress, manners, customes. Ignorance
slmpficity--focked in vast multitudes after
Shrlst, and when they saw him make the at-
nlcted whole with a word, ii is no wonder |
Ihey Worshiped him. No wonder his deeds !
were lhe talk OF the nation; no wonder the
multltudes that followed were so great that
at one ume-3O miles from bere-they had |
10 let SICK man down through the roof he |
cause no approach could be made TO the door. !
no wonder The audience was SO great at Gal
lllee that he had to preach from a shin lemov-
eu little distance from the shore: no wonder
ma a. even III tne desert places about Bethsada
5UO0 invaded his solitude and he had to feed
them by amiracle OF else see them suffer for
thelr contdng faith and devotion; no wonder
wnen lhere was great commotion IN n citv
III those DAYS, one neignbor explained 1t to an
other in words to this effect:
Ihey say that Jesus of Nazareth Is come
ne healed the sick. liza man would have
him come to Palestine and do likewise.
wen, as was saying, the doctor distributed
medicine as long as he had any to distribute. |
and his reputation is mighty in Gallilee this
Gay. Among his patients was the child of the |
ohieKs dauShter--for even this poor, ragged |
hahdtuil OF sores and sin has its royal Shiek- |
poor OLD devil that looked as il he would be |
more at home in poor house than in tbe |
chief ma9istracy ofthis tribe ofhopeless. shirt
less savages. The princess-I mean the Sbiel,'s
da9ghter-was only IS or IA years old. and
mad very sweet face and pretty one. She
' was the only Syrian female we have seen vet
VINO was nottso sinfully ugly that she couldn't !
e,nne alter ten o'clock Saturday night with
OUT breaking the Sabbath. Her child was a
haro lot, though--there wasn't enough of if |
70 make pie, and the poor little thing look
Gu 80 pleadrngly up at all who came near il |
tas II 1t had an idea that now was its chance |
vi neVerl, that we were filed with compassion |
Whlch was genuine and not nut on