Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1890-12-26


The Arabian Nights" and they come into
Damascus looking for Aladdin's lamp and
Aladdins ring and the genii which appeared
by robbing them. But as have never read
The Arabian Nights, such stuff not being
allowed around our house IN my boy hood.
ard nothing lighter in the way of reading
than Bakers Saints Everlasting Rest
and D'Aubigny's History of the Reforma-
ton" Damascus appeared to me as sacred
and secular histories have presented it, and
SO the city was not a disappointment, Tut
with few exceptions surprise.
Under my window TO night in the hotel at
Damascus hear the perpetual ripple and
rush Of the river ALBANIA. Alb, the secret Is
Quit Now / know why all this fora and
fruit, and why everything is so green, and
the pain one green emerald. The river
ALBANIA! And not iar off the river PharpaF,
which our horses waded through to-day!
Thank the rivers. or rather the God who
made the rivers Deserts to the north,
deserts TO the south, deserts the east, deserts
to the west, but here paradise. And as the
rivers Gihon and Pison and Hiddekel and
Euphrates made the other paradise, ALBANIA
and Pharpar MAKE this Damascus a paradise.
That is what made Gen. Naaman of this city
of Damascus so mad when he was told for the
cure of his leprOsy to go and wash IN the river
Jordan. The river Jordan is much of the
year muddy stream and it Is never so
clear as this river ALBANIA that [ hear rum
bling under my windoV tonight nor as the
river Pharpar that we crossed to-day. They
are as clear as though they had been sieved
through some especial sieve of the mount
aims. General Naaman had great and patri-
otto pride in these two rivers of his own coun-
try, and when Elisha the prophet told him
that II he wanted to get rid of his leprOSy
he must go and wash in the Jordan he felt
as we who live on the magnificent. Hudson
would feel If told that we must go and wash
in the muddy Thames or as If those WhOllVe
On the transparent Rhine were told that they
must go and wash in the muddy Ilb3r.
So General Naaman cried out with voice
as loud as ever he had used in commanding
his troops, uttering those memorable words
which every minister of the Gospel sooner or
later takes for his text: Are not ALBANIA and
Pharpar rivers of Damascus, better than the
waters of Israel? May I not wash in them
and be cIean~ Thank God, we live III land
with plenty of rivers, and that they bless all
our Atlantic coast and all our Pacific coast
and reticulate all the continent between the
coasts. Only those who have travelled in the
deserts of Syria, or Egypt, or have in the
oriental cities heard the tinkling Of the bell
of those who sell water can realize what 1t IS
to have this divine beverage in abundance.
Water rumbling over the rocks, turning the
mill wheel, satUrating the roots OF the
corn dripping from the buckets, filling the
pitchers of the household rolling through the
fonts or baptistries Of holy ordinance, nlhng
the reservoirs of cities, inviting the cattle to
come down and Stake their thirst and the
birds of heaven to dip their wing, ascending
in robe of mist and falling again in benedic-
ton OF shower-water, living water, God
given water!
We are awakened in the morning in Da
mascnS hv the song OF those who have
different styles OF food to SELL 1t is not a
street cry as in London or New York, but
a weird and long drawn out solo, COM
1pn6x oI<Rh h1IrXr
1t makes you inopportunely walzen, and
will not let you sleep again. But to those
who understand the exact meaning of the
song it becomes quite tolerable, for they
sing: God is the nourisher, buy my bread
God is the nourisher, buy my milk" God
is the nourisher, buy my fruit" AS you
look out of the window you see the Moham-
medans, who are in large majority in the
city, at prayer. And if il were put to vote
who should be king of all the earth, fifteen
in that city would say Christ, but
one hundred and thirty thousand would say
Looking from the window, you
see on the hOusetOps and on the streets Mo-
at worship. The muezzin, or the
officers of religion who announce the time of
appear high up on the different
minarets or tall towers, and walk around the
minaret inclOsed by railing and cry in a
sad and mumbling way: ''God is great. I
bear witness that there is no God but God.
apostle of God. Come to prayers! Come to
salvation! God is great. There is no other
but God. Prayers are better than Sleep"
Five times a day must the Mohammedan
engage in worship. AS he begins he turns
his face toward the city of Mecca, and I'M
rolls upon the ground a rug which he almost
always carries. With his thumbs touching
the lobes of his ears and holding his face
between his hands, he cries: God is great"
Then folding his hands across his girdle, he
looks down and says: Holiness to Thea,O
God and praise Be- Grad to Ths Sbv GTsat
ness, There is no deity but Thee"
Then the worshiper sits upon his heels then
he touches his nose to the rug, and then his
forehead, these genufectiors accompanied
with the cry, Great is God" Then, raising
the forefinger Of his right hand toward
heaven, he says: II testify there is no deity
but God and [ testify that Mohammed is
the servant of God and the messenger of
God" The prayers close by the worshiper
holding his hands opened upward as if to
take the divine blessing, and then his hands
are rubbed over his face as If to convey the
blessing to his entire body.
There are two or three commendable
things about MonammedaniSm. One is that
its disciples wash before every act of prayer,
and that is five times a day, and there is
a gospel in cleanliness. Another commend.
able thing is they don't care who is looking
AM nothing can stop them in their prayer.
Another thing is that by the order of Mo
manned, and an order oOeyed for
thirteen hundred years, no Moham
me3an touches strong drink. But the
polygamy, the many wifehood of Mohomme
danism, has made that religion toe unutter-
able and everlasting curse of woman, and
when woman sinks the CO sinks. The
proposition recently made in. high ecclesi
asticai places for the reformation of Moham-
mechanism instead OF its obliteration. is like
an attempt to improve a plague or educate
leprosy. There is only one thing that will
LILY 10, =