Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1886-10-08
THE HOLY LAND.
u Chat With Missionary Who Was Ii JerusalsH
Fifty-Tno Years Axo. S,

From the Detroit Free Press. ri is#zzs
81 a reporter iors the Free Press met
the Rev. VIM. Thomson ut the home
OF his daughter, Mrs. F. K. alker,
No. 843 Jeffere on avenue. Mr.. Thorn
son j, one Of the oldest Of American
missionaries to the Holy Land now
living, having gone to Jerusalem in
1884 for the American Board Of Com
missioners for Foreign Missions. The
gentleman is Of large. and well proper
toned figure, and considering his adj
yanced age he is remarkably well. pre-
served, physically as we'll as mentally.
Eyes, / am pretty we'll acquainted
with Jerusalem" said Mr.. Thomson,
"and with the whole of Palestine,
which, while it was once the center Of
civilization and progress: is now a very
INSIGNIFICANT province ola very insight
icant EMPIRE ..~a.z D. II /
"How large q city was Jerusalem
when you first went there?" Il. i +. /. 5=.t
Il went to that city first 6fty-two
years ago and then there was hardly
a house outside Of the city walls while
the city gates were closed each even
ing and no person could get. out or in
until morning. Il think it contained
about Ia, 900 inhabitants" g
"Of course the city has no growth
except in age?" Y Ill.,. =. E
eyes, it has q moderate growth.
presume the city now counts 10000
inhabitants, and all the old restric-
tions about the city's walls and the
closing OF the city gates are removed"
"What is there to attract new set
tiers and who are they?"
''They are mostly Jews and most of
them who come are old people who
seek the city of their fathers, to die
and be buried there. Now there are q
great many houses, and some OF them
fine modern dwellings, on the west
side ofthe city outside OF the old walls.
The houses are pretty intellectually,
and they are in most instances we'll
furnished. When they die they are
buried there, and the whole side OF
Mount Olivet is fairly paved with the
graves of buried Jews"
"Paved?"
eyes. You know the Hebrews do
not mark the graves of tn cir dead with
monuments and upright headstones
us we do. They place small slab or
stone appropriately carved, fat-wise
upon the graves. That's why I say
the side OF Mount Olivet is paved"
lis the city itself at all moderniz.
3D."
Eyes. considerably. Inside the walls
or in the old city, not many changes
have been made in the buildings, but
the streets are kept cleaner, the ma
tive inhabitants are more clearly
and hospitable and show more enter
prise: Why, just think Of it, the
streets Of Jerusalem are lighted at
night time by Oil from the Pennsylva-
nlA oil wells. There are two or three
hotels there kept by Germans, and
as l tell you, outside the walls the
new residences of Hebrews who have
located there make the landscape
look quite modern and pleasing.
Then there are Russian and Armenian
converts there-not one building-but
splendid systems Of buildings we'll
worth visiting"
How about the roadways in that
vicinity?"
"They are poor enough now, but
they are superb compared with the
roads when l first went there. The
country is very mountainous, and it
is under the rule of the Turkish Gov
eminent. That tells the whole story,
for Turkey was born to retard all
progress and kill all prosperity.
When went there it was difficult
matter to reach Jerusalem on mule
or donkey back, or even on foot. Now
there is a sort of carriage road from
Jaffa to Jerusalem-about forty miles
over which a small vehicle, kind
of stage or omnibus, carries visitors. "
GLOW do all the tourists and pill
grims get to the Holy City,"
"Most of the pilgrims come in the
spring of the year, either on foot or
on mules and donkeys. The European
and American visitors generally get
there by way of Jaffa and the carriage
road speak Of. But that class is
only drop in the bucket. The crowd
comes in the spring OF the year, as
say, and they come chiefly from Rus
STA and European Turkey. They come
by the hundreds"
"How are they accommodated in
the two or three small hottest" -
'The pilgrims are accommodated
in the converts and bring tents with
them and camp out in the olive Or
chards roundabout. That's why they
come when they do, for at that season
of the year it is simply delightful in
the open air, day or night"
us there anything to make Jeru-
salem a very large city,"
Nothing, except as point of most
unique historical interest. It has no
manufactures except the manufacture
of relics from wood from the Mount of
Olives and mother-of-pearl taken from
the Red Sea. These are made quite
extensively, and they are very readily
sold at good prices to, Russian pill
grims."
"There is no agriculture?"
Nothing tospeak OF, though there
might I've, as the country is q limestone
country. At Hebron there is a glass
manufactory where they make finger
rings and other ornaments Of glass.
There is some little traffic in wool and
olives, but outside Of these things the
products of the country are very
small. The harvest is the coming of the
pilgrims each spring." st. . 4:
1.-THE Tees for pointing out objects
of interest to visitors must amount
to considerable? i. .s..s.. 5is55
Not 50 very much, but enough to
help the natives to live" .$ss*@ 6 Z
II suppose they authenticate all the
points ofinterest, relics, etc7"
well, the geographical points like
the Mount Of Olives, Bethlehem. Beth
any, Hebron, etc. are established as
to authenticity, beyond question.
There can be no doubt that the great
Mosque Of Omar is built on the site 81