The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1881-08-11
The Dead Sea.

OuT nICeruOOn marc0 over the bleak,
tfeeless and brown mountains of the
wilderness was inexpressibly tiresome
until we came in sight of the Dead Sea.
1t lay 1000 feet below us-a mirror of
silver, set among the violet mountains
of Moab. More precipitous descents
over rocks and sand brought us, by
shutdown, to the two towers of the most
unique monastery on the globe. The
famous convent of Mar Saba is worth q
journey to Palestine. For thirteen CEN
turtles that wonderful structure has
hung against the walls of the deep, aw.
full gorge of the Kidron. Itisa colossal
swallows nest of stone, built to the
height of three hundred feet against the
precipice, and inhabited by sixty monks
Of the Greek Church-genuine Mani
cheans, and followers of St. Saba and
St. John of Damascus. No woman's
foot has ever entered the convent walls.
Instead of womeu's society they make
love to the birds, who come and feed
off the monks hands. Every evening
they toss meat down to the wild jackals
in the gorge below. At sunset I
climbed over the extraordinary building
was shown into the rather handsome
church, and into the chapel or cave of
st. Nicholas, which contains the ghast-
~ skulls of the monks who were
slaughtered by Chosroes and his Per-
sian soldiers-and gazed down into the
awful ravine beneath the convent walls.
Some monks in black gowns were
perched as watchmen on the lofty tow
ers; others wandered over the stone
pavement in sort of aimless vacuity.
What an attempt to live in an exhausted
receiver!
The monks gave US hospitable well
come, sold us canes and wood work, and
furnished us lodgings on the divans of
two large stone parlors. One of the re.
ligious duties of the brotherhood is to
keep vigils, and through the night bells
were ringing and Changing to call them
in to their devotions. The vermin in
the lodging-rooms have learned to keep
up their vigils also; and as the result
our party-with one exception-had a
sleepless night. have such talent
for sleeping, and like Pat "pay atten-
ton to it, so closely, that was able to
defy even the fleas and mosquitoes of
Mar Saba BY daylight the next morn
ing we heard the great iron door of the
convent clang behind US like the gate
of Bunyan's "Doubting Castle" and
for five hours we made q toilsome de-
cent of the desolate cliffs of the shore
of the Dead Sea. That much maligned
sea has weird and wonderful beauty.
We took a bath in its cool, clear
waters, and detected no difference
from bath at Coney Island, except
that the water has such density that we
floated on it like pine shingles. No fish
from the salt ocean can live in it; but
it is very attractive to the eve on hot
MONDAY. A scorching ride we had
across the barren plain of the sacred
Jordan-which disappointed me sadly.
At the place were the Jsraelites crossed
and our Lord was baptized it was about
one hundred and twenty feet wide; it
flows rapidly and in a turbid current of
light stone color. In size and appear
ance it is the perfect counterpart OF the
Muskingum, a few miles above Zanes-
vile. Its useless waters ought to be
turned off to irrigate its barren valley,
which might be changed into q garden.
For beauty the Jordan will not compare
with Elijah's brook Cherith, whose
bright, sparkling stream went flowing
past our lodging place al Jericho. We
lodged over night in Greek convent
Every smalD, and rode next morning to
see the ruins of the town made famous
by Joshua, Elijah, Zacche,ls and the
restoration of Bartimeus to sight.
Squalid Arabs haunt the sacred spot
1neo. Cmyler, IN the Nes0 York Evas-
gelist.