Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1882-03-22
Jerusalem.


| ooSiSeitS ioK CAIlOIdtlOll, Cullua1
School teachers and artistic friend:
have brought pictures of it for thos,
of us who live in these most remote
corners; Jerusalem, itself, be it re
membered, being in the middle O.
the world" Indeed. such is the
ease of travel now, it is safe to take
it for granted that some one is pres.
ent who has walked the streets o1
Jerusalem, has seen the Jews weep.
ing by its walls, and can describe
| from personal remembrance the
Mosque Of Omar.
This general aspect helps us in
forming an idea of what Jerusalem
was like eighteen hundred and fifty
years ago-of which, 10y misfortune
there is no description. Of the tenn
| pie and its glories as all readers
know, there is a very full descrip-
tou; but the Indifference of the an
clients to the picturesqe. and even to
topography leaves us tn construct
ourselves the Jerusalem of the gos-
pei time. Still the slopes of the
hills are there; the olive trees
and the anemones; and the cycla-
mems, with the rest vf the spring
vegetation is there.
The wood has been DESTROYED
from the country generally by the
ravages of Islam and Islam's wars.
But the neighborhood of a city as
large as Jerusalem was then as now
never heavily wooded. The popu-
tation of the city was then six or
| eight times what it is now. Such q
population requires diligent farming
and market gardening in the neigh
borhood. So it is probable that the
country around had more farm
houses and hamlcts and other evi-
denccs of civilization than it has
now. But, making such allowances
| for changes the traveller of to-day
| has q right to feel that he looks up
on much such landscape as the
traveller coming down from Jerusa-
| lem to Jericho saw in the davs of
! Jesus Christ. 4 New Englander
sometimes catches Il glimpse of a
| bit of landscape III his own region
which reminds him, if the condi-
tions of the sky and climate are
right, OF the rounded hills and
rounded olive trees and closer olive
orchards. have a phot 'graph Of Il
piece Of ''hill country" near Jcrusa-
lem which may be easily mistaken
for home scene in Northern Mid
| dIescX OF Southern New Hampshire
You have only to select bit OF roll
ling country, well covered with or
charis, without New England hous-
eS, forests, evergrecns or pines, but
with n fair share of stone walls. pho
to graph it, and place the picture in
your portfolio, between Il view of
Jatia and the Dead Sea, and even
an experienced pilgrim will take it
| up and say, 'and this is some where
near jerusalem"
The city was built so long ago
that nobody knows when. 1t is on
the crest line of the waters of the
Dead Sea Valley and those which
flow into the Mediterranean. The
hills on which it is built are abrupt
enough to make an admirable for
tress; what has been said of round
ed hills does not apply. to them.
Fortress it WAS in the DAYS of the
Jebusites, when David took it. AT
ter his time it assumed the state and
importance OF capital. And this
was no little state and Importance
when it meant capital to which
the tribes came up twice year" F"
Josephus says-in what is probable
and unintentional exaggeration-
that at the time of the Passover a
million and quarter people assem-
hled in it or in tents around it.
Even if this is not true, it gives an
idea Of what an intelligent man
thought true in the times imIne-
diately after Christ's visits to the
city.
1t is not so much a matter of regret
that we have not the physical pict-
ure of Jerusalem OF that day, as we
have from the Gospels and many
other writings of those times good
| glimpses of social order there, and
of mems habits of life. All this re-
cent diving into the Talmud and
kindred writings, which has taught
something even to superficial read.
ers gives local color for ai,y picture
of gospel times. And all the photo.
graphy in the world would never
| help US to amy knowledge Of Jeru
salem as it was then-thougll we
have perspectives of Herod's temple
and elevations OF Herod's architects
-unlcss we could make real and
moral elevations Of the city. In an
admirable article by Francis Tiffany
he compares this city, the head o