Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1890-01-31
CORRESPONDENCE.
TWO YANKEES ABROAD.
SECOND PART.---PALESTINE.
FROM JAFFA TO JERUSALEM.

| centre OF SHARON pam. we nave lelJ early
in order TO travel with the sun, as the wind
is somewhat cold.
The plain of Sharon extends from the sea
to the hills Of Judma and Samaria from
Jaifa to Mount Carmel. Its soil is poor
often bare Ramleh is surrounded with
olive orchards, wheat fields and pastures
The road, generally fair is in some place,
abomnable then our driver goes over the
fields Apart from some dust the ride j,
pleasant We overtake bands Of Russian
pilgrims going to Jerusalem for Easter the
poorest on foot the others in rough car
riages or ON donkeys Many appear like
people in good circumstances the women
are coarser than the men some have a
| very pinched look all must have the means
to undertake such pilgrimage by sea from
Odessa to Port Said, hence to Jaffa A
consular kavass or guard accompanies them.
Russia looks carefully after her children.
We find little hotel, kept 10y a German,
very clean if plain. Ramleh is said to have
1000 inhabitants it does not look so large.
1t was fortified place in Crusader times.
rounded by cloisters in ruins The view is
most extensive but presents nothing Of in
terest outside of historical associations. At
our feet is cemetery full of women aud
children. Although not a Friday, they
come there TO gossip, bring food and water:
it is their club The children play over the
tombs, roll themselves ia the sand. aud have
a good time The streets and surroundings
are duplicate Of Algeria, soil, aspect,
plants people men lounge before coffee
halls eating raw salad and smoking mar
gilehs.
In mosque, formerly church built by
the Crusaders and dedicated to St John,
the Mussulmans have adopted the legend
! Here is the room occupied by John, a mar
row cell in the wall and the pulpit from
which he preached Imagine John, the be
| loved, preaching from a high pulpit with a
white surplice All that is well worth half
"A franc, especially as we have not been
obliged to remove our boots, "A man remov-
! ing the mating, allowing US TO walk on the
stony pavement Along a wall were five
lepers deformed and repulsive There is
a hospital for them they refuse TO enter
| it they prefer sun liberty and begging
| Mother has dug into her big trunk and
| travels now with big Bible, which gave her
! 81 years ago. She is amazed that cannot an.
| swer her one or more thousand questions
read to her the first verse of the second
chapter Of the Song Of Solomon, 81 am the
| rose of Sharon " Solomon was "A
poet and Norman there is not a wild
rose in the whole plain; writers argue over
| the flower: but as the other day we drove
along hedge of roses, did not Solomon
mean simply II am like a rose in Sharon e
Mother claims that such IA book ought not 10
be in the Bible You can argue the point
As you are all married people you may read
the beloved's song.
Jerusalem. april After Ramleh the
road continues across the plain for two
hours till it reaches the foot hills. Right
and left, on heights, are mud villages, hov
els whose roofs are covered with earth and
grass. We meet with a profusion OF wild
| flowers. many may be the rose Of Sharon,
pink mallows, white rock roses withou,
perfume. From a hilltop We overlook the
valley Of Ajalon, where sun and moon
| stood still for Joshua Joshua Xl Further
on a village in which was born the peniteut
thief, at least 50 says the legend and once
for all, take my statements with big grain
of salt; warrant nothing; We come to the re
| gion Of legends and Biblical disputes am
| too ignorant 10 settle them, too much Of a
| Thomas TO believe them. not enough Of "A
| Mark Twain 10 reject and laugh at every
thing what is possible am willing to ac
cept
Up aud down. At places the road is
| very bad, very hilly, then as good a Cen
| tral Park road. We reach the door of the
hills, half way INN kept 10y jew. the
shopping place Of well-driled tourists \
| hurricane has arisen from the southeast
we are glad TO find refuge in the house while
the gusts of wind blow clouds of dust To
the lunch brought with us we add beer and
coffee, supplied 10y the inn, which is com
paratively clean. In case Of necessity it
would not be great hardship to stop here.
| \ gentleman, who, with his family went
over the same road two months earlier, was
caught in big snow storm they lost their
way and suffered much Now, in April,
everything is green till we reach the stony
hills These stones, at least, are authentic,
and existed in Davids time. Their slopes
were terraced and planted with olive trees,
cut or burned IN war times they have
been re planted on the most fertile spots,
| hollows and valleys. We reach a village
/
| from the Hebrews it is Kirjath jearim.
jeremiah was born here, also.
At Ain Dilb lain .fountainl we overtake a
Turk, with his half-dozen females all on
donkeys, he on horseback, journeying to
wards Jerusalem also booth under W hich
a Christian gives water and sells coffee and
syrups Further on, in the midst of olive,
| fig and other trees. the village where lived
| Zacharias and Elizabeth. where John the
| Baptist was born, where Mary visited.
At some distance, on the highest
hilltop, 26j0 feet above the sea, the Mizpah
of the Bible where Saul was made king
| At the bottom of valley, on a brook
which must have water some time, since
there is bridge, we stop to give oats to
our horses before a last pull of an hour and
a half We are in the ancient Emmaus,
| but as ten places claim TO be the Emnaus of
Luke XIV, it is more than doubtful this
one is too near Jerusalem Well, we climb
and climb by zigzag roads, muse deeply
over the Roman legions, the Crusaders who
have passed over this road, over the posi-
bilities of Jesus and John treading these
! same paths.
1t is ) O'Clock when we reach Jerusalem.
Its approach is filed with newly built
houses like the suburbs of an European
!
of Russian pilgrims. 1t has become quite
hot mother is weary carriages cannot
enter the city we stop outside the Jaffa
! gate pater goes to explore and find about
! quarters he crosses moat, a bridge, a
gate he is in a mediRval walled city, as
you find scores in Europe. At Cook Is of
| fee he finds a batch of letters a room is
| expecting them he returns with legion
! of porters hackshshes the driver, and
soon we are settled in the Hotel de la Med
iterranee, of which we have heard so much
evil that we are surprised To find it as clean
as it is It is a queer agglomeration of
! buildings many rooms have only holes for
windows, are like cellars our room has
two windows we are blessed with light
and sun The dining hall is an old fash
ioned vaulted, long room, ceiling adorned
with vine trellises at one end of the hall
the sun rises over river and ruins, at the
other end full moon shines over "a lake
We eat literally under our vine tree. We
are crammed the hotel is full, and Jerusa
lem also, with pilgrims like ourselves We
number dozen Americans we spend the
evening renewing our acquaintance with
people we have met many times during our
journey.
Aprii The mosque Of Omar is going
to be closed for ten days, Mussulmans are
going 10 celebrate Mosess festival 50 we
hurry to start for what was Moriah Solo
mons temple, Herod's temple, Jesus's tenn
pie the site is there, the surrounding hills
are there an old Jewish dragoman guides
us, kavass with his big sword protects us
and carries the obligatory permit, Our no
bel is on almost the highest point of the
city, and we go down to the mosque oI
Omar, enter its immense court by one o.
its eight gates, and we look. The "sacreC
ground occupies 30 acres. In the centre
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