The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1868-08-23
Translated for Every Saturday from the Daa.im-

In the year B. C. the people OF Palestine and
syria awaited with feverish suspense the issue Of
stenible tragedy. Marianne, the beloved and
noble wife of Herod, descended from the royal
house of the Msccsbees. had already fallen VIC
tim TO his gloomy suspicions. lnsdious intrguers
had then succeeded in rendering him distrustful
of the two sons which his bssey sssassinated con
sort had borne 10 him Alexander and Aristobuus,
who were the joy and pride Of the people, aud
whom their enemies now accused of being intent
on numbering their father. Herod bad inundated
9 tribunal at Berytos so much that the judges had
passed sentence Of death on the two Young men
without seeing or bearing them. Everybody
asked if father really could cause his own sons,
and, moreover two sons so noble, and doubtless
entirely innocent, to be executed. We place our
selves in the midst of that time of anxious sns.
pense, and uDToll the picture Of day IN Jerusa-
lem as it was at that period.
1t is working day 10 Siudn the month answer
ing to our June. The starlight night of the cloud
lees sky has given place TO the twilight which
sets in very early, and lasts long time. The two
squads of the Temple guard. bearing torches.
have met in front of the cell where the bread
Offering of the high-priest is baked, and shouted
to one another that everything is in readiness.
The priests who were allowed TO sleep last night,
have risen, ba,hed and donned their off ;ia robes
In The square cell, one half Of which was used IS
hall where the Syhedium used to meet, the Off
ces Of the dswning day have been allotted. The
brass basin, which was under water all night
long. has teen drawn no, and the priests have
washed their hands and feet in il. Suddenly the
fret morning bells resOund over the city lyilg be-
lew; priests blow their trumpets, whose ringing
notice, owing to the Stiffness of the morning, are
audible throughout the upper and lower, the old
aid new city.
The Leyites, in obedience to the orders Of the
captain of the gate keepers open all the gates of
the Temple. The preparations for the morning
service, the most import ant feature of which was
the daily sacrifice If a lamb, begin. The
altar If the burnt-oferng is cleaned the bill
lets of wood piled up on the emoers grad
uslly catch FIRE; the musicians fetch their instru
ments, and take them out of their cases; the
guards are relieved and the Levites and priests
who were on duty yesterday are dismissed. All
this is done by torchlight. Meanwhile the captain
sttentively looEs tor the break of day. He sends
few priests to the roof of the Temple. When
the morning sky has grown light enough that He
bTon. lying southeast of Jerusalem 10 the noun
taiDs, can be discerned, they shout out, "Barka1
ad ChebrOnn e. IL is light as tar as Hebron "
and in moment are heard the following shouts:
Priests, TO your service! Levites to your pulpit
lsTaelites, to your stsndp' The last shout was
destined for the Representatives of the whole peO
pie, who served for week as assistants at the
offerings, and passed the night at the Temple.
Meanwhile the people in the city and its envi.
rons begin likewise 10 stir. Military signals re-
sound at Antonio castle. Underneath the cedSrs
of the Mount OF Olives open the booths of Beth
Hini. In Temple street, running from the place
IL front Of the castle along the western wall of
Mount MOriah. we see cattie-dealers and bro
keIs hurTiedy precede the visitors OF the
Temple to the Temple Bazaar in the court
yard of the hesthens. those who wish to attend
the morning service repair from the upper city
by the Xystus gate, from the new city by the
market gate, and by Their routes to the ascent of
Mount Morah. The largest crowd is to be seen
on the bridge connecting the Xystus terrace with
the district Of the Temple. Here and there a
person stands still and looks on the left, toward
the magnifcentstruc of the theater, or toward
the TYrOpoeOn on the other side, or down tbs
gorge OF the cheese makers, in order to breathe,
instead of the city air. the country air waited
over from the balmy district of the diaries.
But not all of the worshipers go up to the
temple to say their morning prayers for there are
hundreds OF synagogues IN Jerusalem. The two
aIistOcratc men yoDder, who wear Greek cos
tune and converse 10 Greek, enter the synagogue
u the Alexandrians. The respectable citizen
there. who carries under his arm the prayer cloak
and the teialn wrapped up 10 IL, goes to the syn
agogue of the coppersmiths, where he has rented
a pew, while the lady yonder, with her hair so
carefully arranged by a hair. dresser, and a bou-
quet OF roses IN Der hand, does not want to hide
her beautiful morning toilet behind the wOman's
crate Of q synagogue, but hastens with swing
ing step toward the temple in order to exhibit
herself in the court yard Of the women. The wOr
shippers disperse in the most opposite directions;
most OF them look grave and aDxiOus, aud when
ever two OF them walk side by side and converse
with one another, they look around with visible
tmidity. A venerable old man, with white hair
end long silver beard murmurs, on passing over
the place In front of the theater, - thank thee,
my God, and God of my fathers, that thou hast
assigned me a place among those who sit in the
schools and syDagOgues, and not among those
who prefer visiting the theater aud circus!" His
wife, who walks by his side, or rather a step be.
hind him. says in a low voice, "Amen!" and looks
with fearful eyes to the tower of Marianne on the
eft, murmuring. g. Thou hast happily passed
away; it Is good that thou didst not live 10 see
this day, noble Marianne !"
The sun meanwhile has risen, and the hour Of
tie regular morning prayer, when the sacrifice is
performed at the Temple. is at hand. The Phar.
istee Wonder who has allowed the hour of PRAYER
10 overtske HIM on the street, suddenly slackens
his gait and lays the tefillin with their large cap
sues round bis head. The labOrer, who, with his
basket happens to be in the crown Of fruit tree,
ceases gathering. and performs his morning d.
votioDs in his natural temple amidst the branches
Everybody prays. Only in HerOds palace there
still reigns profound silence. The tyrant is still
asleep, and cOuriiers walk on tptoe. The
people pray, and couple with Their prayers pray.
ers for deiiVerance from the tyrant and for the
preservation of Alexander and Aristobuus, the
noble sons OF the murdered Marianne. Even the
government of a HerOd, however, is not mean
enough not TO have onrits side large number of
hireliDgs and parasites, such as the court-bsker,
the urt-periumer, etc.
After the morning service, and even already be-
fore 1t is over in the Temple and synsgOgues there
Teigns the hveliest hustle on the large market of
the lower new city. But the reader must not mag
inc that this market square with courthouse
in the middle for the court house of Jerusalem lay
on the Xystus terrace; the lower market, on the
contrary, was long and broad street, such as, in
modern cities, we call Broadway or Main street.
Stores, booths and stands lined both sides of the
street. here are for sale fine bread and cakes
made of Ephrainis wheat, which hucksters are
buying TO sell il again at an advance in the more
remote parts of the town; fg-pies and raisin pies
at which poor little girl, who, instead OF ear
rings, wears only wooden pegs in her earlaps,
looks so wstfully; all sorts of fish from Lake
Liberals, which rvet the attention OF those young
students who are on their way to the high-schoOl
founded by Simeon Ben Shetach; all sorts of
tinkets aud ornaments, even false teeth with gold
and silver wire, wherewith they are to be fast.
ened. Here somebody extols his dds, that is to
say, crepe syrup; there another dealer recon.
mends his prime Egyptian lentlls; still another
has caraway seeds for sale and turns his pepper
nil. Wherever there are no buyers to be seen,
the mechanics whose trade permits it have estsb-
lsheo their workshops in the street, and labor so
indusiriously that they even do not interrupt
themselves by rising when a hiNel or another
scribe passes by. Here a shoemaker fsstens the
upper Gather to the sole OF a sandal there tai
Tor adds handsome trimmings to a fine prayer
cloak; and there an armorer hammers the hlt OF
sword made OF Syrian iron. In the more de-
serted and shady by streets, such as Butcher