Sacramento daily record-union., 1884-06-14

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We pass round Jezreel on the north side
tvvo or three miles close up under NOUN
GiIboa. and there at its base, rom peileatn
a high perpendicular blum OF rocks pouis
f,r+S a qreat stream, which spreads out IN
an ohIong pond, called the pool OF Gideon.
n was here where Gideon Is supposed 10
have tested his men by the direction OF the
ord and where the three hundred VINO
we're to take part in the battle with the
Midianites Tapped water, as DOG lap
peth. | rode across the pool, seeing the
stones at every step through the transparent
cool water. and when the water came up TO |
my horses breast, threw some OF II up 10 |
nv mouth with quick movement OF my |
hand, like the tapping OF dog, as 1 sup
posed the three hundred with Gideon lap
ped it. Here we dismounted and spread
our lunch While we rested, some lying
on the grass, some going to the outi1owlnS
stream below the pool and taking paIh'
some wandering up the sides OF Gllpoa lor
rare flowers. black goats came down the
mountain and frisked and nipped the spurs
of grass and flowers on the edge OF the pre-
cipice above the pool, long strings OF small
black Syrian cattle came winding down the
mountain sides attended by their herders,
to wade one by one out into the pool ana
drink. and then to gaze at the strangers
the herders gathered about us and showed
us their guns and crooks, and looked at our
curious knives, and when our repast was
over gratefully accepted the fragments OF
chicken and bread that were left, ana olled
their herder's sticks with the oil In the sar-
dine boxes.
AMONG THE sHUNEMITEs.
From here we passed to Shunem, another
town built on a mound-like hill, rising on
all sides abruptly out OF the Plain OF rs
| draelon. We entered it, and went zigZag
| through its irregular streets, as Elisha must
| have done of old, when he turned into the
house of. the Shunemite, whose son was
raised to life by that miracle which may
well symbolize to US that the best help TO
those who need to be elevated, comes by
adapting ones self to them, as Elisha raised
this son by putting 81 his mouth upon his
mouth, his eyes upon his eyes and his
| hands upon his hands" q Kings iy., 34)
| We shall always remember our greeting III
| Shunem. In other places we had been
greeted by the barking of dogs, and by the
| Cry of backsheeSh from men, women and
| children. But here we were greeted by
| having the air full of swarming bees There
were no hives in sight, nc place for them,
apparently, to come from or go to, except
| the unattractive stone or dirt walls or roofs
of the houses or Enclosures. 1t seemed un-
avoidable that they would pitch upon the
sweaty horses or the still more nervous
riders. But fortunately we escaped with
no serious trouble through the dark buzzing
cloud of tormentors. After leaving Shu-
mem we passed up over the western end OF
| Little Hermon, which runs out as a pro-
montory into the Plain of Esdraelon.
When on this, nearly the whole valley, with
its regular fields in different stages of cult
vation, all in the rich beauty of spring lay
beneath our eye. like rich many-cclored
carpet on the floor of this magnificent
parlor of Syria, with the walls of noun
tains frescoed in different shades of green
and gray, and its ceiling in blue.
TREADING ON SACRED GROUNDS.
Passing round the western point of Lit
tie Hermon on its northern flank, we come
to Main, poor desolate village, the only
interest in which to a modern traveller Is
the fact that il was the scene of one of the
miracles of Jesus. As we stood on the
crowning point of the town and looked
down on the fiat Roof of the houses below,
we saw some women drying wheat which
had been wet in the rain turning it in the
warm sun and fresh air 1t was vivid re-
production to our eyes of the scenes of early
times. But we must tread reverently This
region is a soil fertile of evidences that
death is not a finaGty. Here, somewhere
Christ met the funeral procession bearing
the widows son to his burial and raised
him up to life. Back yonder Elisha called
back the son of the Shunemite from the re-
gions of the dead Just across the valley
, there, at the upper end, at Endor, Saul was
struck down to the ground at the sight anC
the rebuke of Samuel appearing before him
from the-other world. And up yonder
4 U1,l. J.,
scene of the TRANSPORTATION of Christ.
THE CITY OF NAZARETH.
Directly across the northern part of the
plain of Esdraelon, leaving Mt. Tabor in its
solitary glory on our right, and Endor al
the extreme northern end of the valley
we begin the sharp ascent of the high
bluff at the west, in basin of which, fal
up, we see the nesting and apparently in
accessible town of Nazareth. In some way
turning right and left, our horses find a
path up, up, the rocks, and in some way,
bv dint of clinging to the pommels and the
horses names, we manage to keep on our
saddles At length, at an elevation OF
l 500 feet above the plain, with a semi
circle of high hills still back of it, we reach
the home of the childhood and youth OF
Jesus. Yet strange to say, inaccessible as
il seems from this quarter, perched where
only eagles would be supposed to build
their nests, il is quite a large and thriving
town of 5000 or 10000 inhabitants. There
is little TO be said about it, The glory that
rises from il and broods over il is of the
distant past and is invisible-seen by the
inner eye-and cannot be put on paper. II
gladdens and inspires the spirit that is
present, but must be passed over in regret
full silence that 50 much can be felt SO
little communicated. Omitting this whole
ideal region and dropping down into out
ward experiences, on arriving at Nazareth
we spread out our mattresses and bedding
and clothes-the first opportunity to dry
them since the storm-and arranged TO
pass the night and spend the Sabbath fol-
lowing. Here we find schools and churches
and an active missionary work, mostly
under the direction of the English Church
Missionary Society.
BIBLE IN BIBLE LANDS.
After attending church in the morning,
in the afternoon two of US take our Bible
and climb to the top of the high hill back
of the town, and standing there and look
ing eastward, beneath US lies the beautiful,
charming, yarigated plain of Esdraelon
At the far north, Mount Hermon; close by
northeast of US, the inverted bowl-shaped
Tabor; directly in front, the end of Little
| Hermon; to the right of that, and farther
away, Mount Gilboa still farther east, the
long range of the mountains of Gilead
across the Jordan; southeast of us the
mountains of Samaria; and at the right
and south of Us, Mount Carmel, stretching
from the plain to the sea and turning
round and looking west we can see dis
tinctly the blue expanse marking the Medi-
terranean. Here, we are confident, we
stand in the steps where Jesus once stood,
and our eyes sweep over the same grand
sights as once gladdened his. There we
sit down and read in the Bible the accounts
of his life in connection with Nazareth
PALM SUNDAY ~ NAZARETH.
This is the day celebrated by the Greel,