The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1890-12-10

earth and heard q voice saying unto
him: Saul SAUL Why persecutest
thou Me?' and he said: who art Thou,
Lord2' And the Lord said; 4 am Jesus
whom thou persecutest"
But we can not stop longer on this
road for we shall see this unhorsed
equestrian later in Damascus, toward
which his horses head is turned and at
which we must ourselves arrive before
night The evening is near at hand, and
as We leave snowy Hermon behind US
and approach the shadow of two hun
dred minarets and domes, we cut through
circumference Of many miles Of garden
which embower the city. So luxuriant
are these gardens, so opulent in colors,
so luscious OF fruits, 80 glittering with
fountains. 80 rich with bowers and
kiosks that the Mohammedan heaven
was fashioned after what are to be seen
here of bloom and fruitage Here in
Damascus at the right season are cher
ries, and mulberries and apricots, and
almonds, and pistachios, and pomegran-
ates, and pears, and apples, and plums,
and citrons, and all the richness Of the
round worlds pomology. No wonder
that Julian called this city EYE Of the
East" and that the poets Of Syria have
styled 1t "the luster on the neck Of
doves" and historians said: 1T Is the
golden clasp which couples the two
sides of the world together"
Many travellers express disappoint-
ment with Damascus, but tho trouble is
they have carried on their minds from
boyhood the book which dazzles so many
young people-the Arabian Nights
and they come into Damascus looking
for Aladdin's lamp, and Aladdin's ring,
and the genii which appeared by rub
bing them. But as / havo never read
the arabian Nights" such stuff not
being allowed around our house in my
boyhood, and nothing lighter in the way
Of reading than "Baxter's Saints" "Ev.
erlasting Rest" and d'Aubigny's His
tory OF the Reformation" Damascus ap-
peared to me as sacred and secular his.
tory have presented 1t, and so the city
was not disappointment but with few
exceptions surprise.
Under my window tonight in tho
hotel at Damascus hear the perpetual
ripple and rush Of the river Abana. All,
the secret is out! Now know why all
this fora, and fruit and why every
thing is so green, and the plain one
great emerald. The river ALBANIA! And,
not far of, the river Pharpar, which our
horses waded through to-day! Thank
the rivers, or rather the God who mado
the riverl Deserts TO the north, deserts
to the south, deserts to the east, deserts
to the west, but here paradise. And
as the rivers Gihon and Pison, and Hid.
dekel, and Euphrates made tho other
paradise, Abana and Pharpar make this
Damascus paradise. That is what
made General Naaman OF this city OF
Damascus so mad when he was told for
the cure OF his leprosy to 60 and wash
in tho River Jordan. The River Jordan
is much Of the year a muddy stream,
and IL is never so clear as this river
Abana, that hear rumbling under my
window tonight nor as the River Phar.
phar that We crossed to-day. They are
as clear as though they had boen sieved
through some especial sieve OF the
mountains General Naaman had great
and patriotic pride in these two ri ers
OF his own country, and when Elisha,
tho 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 do
who live on the magnificent Hudson
would feel II told that we must go and
wash in the muddy Thames, or as Il
those who live on tho transparent Rhine
were told that they must 90 and wash
in the muddy Tiber. So General Naa
man cried out with voice as loud a:
ever he had used in commanding his
troops, tutoring those memorable
words, which every minister OF the
gospel sooner or later takes for his text
"Are not Abana and Pharpar, riverI
OF Damascus, better than the waters o.
Israel? May not wash in them and
be clean?" Thank God we live In
land with plenty Of rivers, ant
that they bless all our Atlantic coas
and all our Pacific coast, and roticulats
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 tinklinl
Of the bell OF those who sell water, car
realize what IL is to have this divine
/ beverage in abundance. Wafer rum
bling over the rocks turning the mill
wheel, saturating the roots OF the corn
dripping from the buckets, filling tht
pitchers OF the household, rolling
through the fonts or baptistrles Of hol,
ordinance, filing the reservoirs ofcities
inviting the cattle TO come down ant
slack their thirst and tho birds OF HEAVIER
to dip their wing, ascending in robe O.
! mist and falling again in benediction o
. shower-water, living water God-giveI
water.
We are awakened in the morning Il
! Damascus by the song OF those who hav'
different styles OF food to sell. 1t is no
street cry as In London or New York
but o weird and long drawn-out sol
compared with which buzz-saw is must
cal. II makes you inopportunel.
, waken, and will not let you sleep again
But TO those who understand the exac
, meaning OF the song, 1t becomes quit
tolerable, for they sing: God is th
nourisher, buy my bread" God 1
. the nourisher, buy my milk" "Go
/ is the nourisher, buy my fruit
As you look out OF the window
! you see tho Mohammodans, who ar
in largo majority in the city, at prayer
, And II it were put TO vote who shoull
, be king OF all the earth, fifteen thousan'
: in that city would say Christ, but on
a hundred and thirty thousand would 50,