Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1881-12-10

to memorize the last resting place OF he'
whom he won after such romantic
though dilatory, courtship. Seven year.
was nothing "for the love he bore her. u
"And as for me, e,"-how sad the simple
story-"I buried her there, in the way OF
Eprah-the Same is Bethlehem y
Who is the strange man we see sitting
wearily at the arched door of the tomb
What brings this pilgrim here-he of the
grisly beard and long, unkempt hair? lie
is no Arab-no Hebrew. He wears no
bournous of stripes and 10 dark gaber-
dine only plain black garment, dusty,
like his bare feet, with travel. We ask
him, through our Yankee Arab guide, not
altogether injurious at this sad, strange
and lonely warder at the birthplace of
Benoni-"son of my sorrow-Is he, too,
like us, pilgrim to this tomb and shrine
of the elder day? Yes, he is pilgrim,
like us-and from Russia. He is Greek
priest from the VOga, and lives spiritually
upon Jordan's stormy banks, waiting for
the peaceful shore and really upon Jor-
dams arabic banks. waiting for the rains
! to fructify his fields. He owns land here
| about also, and has come hither to make
his new leases. Thus was our illusion of
| the pilgrim at Rachel's tomb dissipated !;
for even here the cause Of the pilgrimage
| was causa lucri. Near by, on the west,
i'll the village of Belt Jala, live the Greek
and Armenian patriarcEs, SO that this is 1.
pious precinct, and land is none the less
valuable because it is not cultivated by
Arabs Or overrun by Bedouins Christians
till it. At this point you may so to Solo
mons pools. They are one of the wonders
of this vicinity aud worthy of minute
description for their beauty, size, history,
and pcrmanency. From them yet waters
flow into the mosque which is built over
the temple. Here is tho "Sealcd FOun-
tain y referred to in Solomon's songs. 1t
is said that these pools were repaired 10y
Pontius PLATE, but that would not make
their waters more agreeable. Maiden hair
ferns abound about them, and swimmers
of an archaeological turn can take plunge
and come up beaded with antiquities. We
had no occasion to study in that fashion,
and were content to see the Arab women
fill their goat skins from one of the open
ings in the a1ueduct.
The hill tops show little villages after
We leave the Hebron road, but none look
rs blithe and prosperous as Bethlehem, as
she sits crescent shaped upon the noun
tain side. How or whence come its vine,
iiS and olive luxuriance l cannot see, cX-
cept that the water comes mysterously
from the pools of Solomon, for is it not
said in EcclcSiastcs Il made me pools Of
water to water Herewith the wood that
bringeth forth the trees p Or perhaps this
white soil hath dews. Certain it is that in
and around Bethlehem something else was
grown in early days than the sheep that
David tended hcrcabOuts, or the lion and
the bear which he fought. Here were
once the fruitful barley fields which Ruth
CLEANED after the reapcrs, when the great
love arose in tho breast of BOaZ, out Of
which grew the stock of Jesse and David
line ever made benign by having as its
pleasant places the vicinity Of Bethlehem,
and its anccstrcss Ruth, and its descendant
Jesus the son of Joseph and Mary! Here
is the source of the kings of Judah and
the worlds Saviour
We halt at the gate Of the town. We
are, owing to impcdiments, compelled to
abandon our carriage. We aro surrounded
by bcvy of Bethlehem girls. Ono is OK
cecdinsly pretty and does not degrade the
neiShbor!.oOi OF Ruth by unsccmly scrcech
ing for aims. She plies Il little pair of PIN
GERS, and turns in and twists upon the
wires olive beads for rosavieS, with i
"pruperty Of easincss,' which Shak- |
employment" meanwhile chatting with !
easy grace. Ny wife buys one and con
tracts for ;.no;i,c: rosary, to ba ,nadc be-
fore We return.
These dozen girls, Of whom & ''Eotlicn
makes IN cxt:avagant picture of coy and |
d:bOaair luyelincSs are vivac;ous and |
some What pretty, and would bc more SO if |
not dirty and sore eyed. They wear little |
close cottage caps, with two or three rows |
Of coi:is tapping closely on each other, |
and in tho sum making quite 4 dOwry.
They jingle merrily when shaken. would |
not dcpreciatc these Christian maidcns, |
for these arc not Of the Moslcm religion,
whatever their blood. But | cannot fail |
to portray ono beautiful woman-a young !
mother. who, be it said revcrently, recalled, |
if not the Madonna. the picture of her by |
Raphael, La Perla iii which the masi |
are Offering gold, frankinccnse, and nyrrh. |
She sat apart upon 4 stone under the shade |
of al arclway. nursing Il babe. Her hair
haG that rich auburn and ethereal iircncss
with which MurriIlo favors his nladonnas,
which a,c likcEcsses, by the way, of his
Andalusian wife wonder il, rc:adven
turc this beautiful Bethlehem mother
might not have in her veins soma OF that
precious blood OF the house and lineage of
David that escaped the murdcrous decree
of l.erod.
Bcthlchem has 1000 people and $50
houses. Many Of the houses arc su5stan-
tial. The streets are ST. narrow that our
guide has to ride ahead and employ people
to move imped;ments out of the way. Ii
is said tho people arc handsome. That
reputation may come from the i,l.idy
cheeks of David, or the graces of Ruth, Or
the pictures Of the Madonna. Oac thing
must he said Of the town, and that is that
if it has any beauty or good in il, it is
Christian, for it is par excellence the
Christian town of Judea. In 1884. after
an insurrection by tho Arabs. Ibrahim
Pasha, then ruler, riddled the MCs.ems
quite worthy Of a descendant of tIerod.
Before purchasing our olive wood, beads
mother Of pearl, and other souvenirs,
where many such arc deftly made By ex-
quisite art, We make our visit to the most
attractive place of Bethlehem. The place
of the Nativity has been often described,
and the church above it, Every object
and person here and hereabOuts has been
the special object of gifted pens and i'm,
passiOned cloquence. Make catalogue
simply Of the names ; and each name will
be set to music like psalm. The anoint
ing Of David by Samuel the family of
Jesse and their cxploits-Joab, Abishai,
and Asahcl; "the city Of David,' rs
Bethlehem is called, or Rchoboam's strong
hold, the habitation of Chimham the
story of Joseph coming from Ga!ilec ont
OF Nazareth in fine, the Incarnation of
the Word here in all its mystcry each ard