New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-05-22
a RAILROAD IN CANAAN.
FROM MOUNT CARMEL AROUND MOUNT
TABOR TO TIE SEA OF GALlLEE

| year he has been trying TO get PERMISSION ~
| build railroads Palestine. Plan after plan
| has been devised for iron highways to connect
| the Mediterranean coast with the great marts
inland. But all has been in vain until the
present. The Porte has listened cour'eously, with
that gentle patience that is characteristic OF the
| modern Oriental, and then has put the scheme
away into one OF those Diplomatic sepn clreS from
| which there is resurrection what has Islam
| to gain by the building of railroads? Have not
the came-trains beer sufficient hitherto for all
| the greatness of Damascus and Bagdad!
What new tntrcaties or arguments nave now
| prevailed, know rot But some there are. The
Sultan has affixed his signature TO d decree giving
| TO an English capitalist permission to build ana
| operate a railroad from Acre to Damascus The
| company il already formed, and many OF the
| contracts let, and work will be begun at once
| The route has been fully surveyed. 1t has TWO
| terminals on the Mediterranean, at Acre ana al
| IIaifa. the branches from the two uniting at the
| southeast of Mount Carmel. That the road should
start from Acre is bit of poetic justice, for
| that town was the last stronghold OF the
Christians in Pales'iny Mt the end OF the Crusades
| From Mount Carmel the line runs directly down
TO Jczrccl, following, one may readily imagine, the
very track of Elijah the Tishbite. who after tue
| famous Battle Of the Gods on that mountain
| height, giricd up his loins and nn before the
| chariot of King Ahab all the way back to the
capital OF Samaria. Thus it passes to the sonth
| of Nazareth. and Main, and Mount Tabor, to
Rcisan At the latter place 1t turns to the
north and runs up the western bank Of the
Jordan Before reaching the Sea of Galilce, how
ever il crosses the river and strikes of to the
northeast to FL Hanna, Khisfn and Nawa and
thence STRAIGHT on to Damascus The length OF
fine line is 100 miles, all but ten or twelve being
on almost level plains The cost is estimated at
about S9,OOO,000.
Anort from the probability Of this line form
ing in the near future. part Of trunk system eN-
tending 70 the Persian Gulf, or to India, the
promise of prosperity is good. The city OF Damas-
enc with nearly 900 inhabitants, is one of the
chief morts Of trade in all the Fast 1t has count
less factories and warehouses, and is the com
mcrciol centre of regions having population OF
many millions Caravans 90 thithcr from Babylon
and Ninev,h and Ba gdad and all the rich valleys OF
the Tirris and Euphrates, and from Arabia and
Fcypt A considerable share OF this frame VIII
feed the freight wards Of the railroad bnt asie
,ro, this the line runs through country OF enor-
mans wealth IL is q serious error 10 imagine that
these Old World lands are exhausted Basilah' OF
Uouran os il is now called is one OF the most
fertile regions the face oil the giope' ~ P'o-
duccs more than 100000 tons OF gram each year.
an, oxnor,s fullv l25.OOO tons Bashan is. in
decd one of the great granares OF the Eastern
,,orId and il will lend the product OF it's helds
70 swell the traffic OF the railroad rslhe gra'o,
,he country prodnces vast harvests of olives ana
o,bor fruits and silk, wool and cotton, for the
oro,v,b Of which il is especially adapted. Ihere
are also important stone qnarrles, ana mines vi
wells of biturnen petroleum. Az present. "e
foreign commerce of Syria is more than $5oooo'-
ooo = year. Under the stimulus of the railroad
and its increased facilities, this Will donptess DC
much enlarged, until 1t rivals that Of the oiden
Zines when Tyre and Sidon were the greatest
commercial centres Of the world
T,b.re ia another railroad now In course OF con-
truction in Palestine, from Joppa to Jerusalem.
I, will bc one OF the favorite lines OF traVei III
the country but commercially VIII pe OF niue
importance except in 30 far AZ IL supplies iva.
.ar,s Tho traveller on IT. will find it difficult w
no,suode himself that he is not in Germany, for IL
rms through a region LARGELY colonized 1ro" 'tie
FatherIand .oppa itself is German city. All
the business there is done by Germ ans at' Ss
or, Garner one finds the familiar beer-saloop, for
all the world like those OF Munich au" p+'iu
=, =, Rama. or Ramleh There are hundreds OF
rarr,or settlcrs. who dominate the whole place
,rd nc ono opproaches the walls Of Jerusalem IL
col, hc sccs MANY a prosaic-lookng beer-shop, with
a., prmistakably Teutonic name Oh the slgnooard
above the door.
These inroads of civilization suggest, OF course
,lr Jewish question. Will there ever DC al III
,.,,hering Of the Chosen People to their ancient
home? Well. yes. There has oeeh anu 'ieie
IL =, considerable ingathcring A large proper
ton of the German colonists are Jews; ana OF
late many thousands of Russian and Polish Jews
Al, ln InruSa lan ~
NOT far from 10000 and the number of Jews III
tho whole of Palestine must he three times that.
And less than a generation ago. a careful count
showed less than 1000 The old Jewish inhabl-
tants look upon this army Of newcomers win
little favor. They have nothing in common with
them but their religion. Two peoples more I'M
like il is difficult TO imagine.
The old Jewish inhabitants are all Sephardlm
from Spain While the Moslem Caliphs bore sway
in the latter country. tile Jews were tolerated,
even honored At Granada and Toledo, particil- |
larly they were at the head of the universities,
and were leaders Of intellectual and business life |
But when the Moorish dynasty fell, and the Chris
tians rcgained sway the hand Of persecution fell
heavily upon the Jews, and they fled to the do
mains of their former protectors. In Palestine |
they found peace and prosperity; and there their !
descendants live to this day. There are only
few thousands of them. But they are the salt |
of the earth" II is easy to imagine them identical
with the gifted people who made the Kingdom Of
Israel the great nation it was in Davids and |
Solomon's time. They are intelligent industrious.
progressive. Their languages are two. Among |
themselves they speak only pure Spanish. the
tongue that was their ancestors in Andalusa. |
TO their ncishbors they speak Arabic. They have |
nCnc of the cast Of features characteristic of the
Jews of Germany and Russia, and in mind they |
are liberal and optimistic. They spend time |
in lamcntng the departed glories Of Jerusalem, but
give themselves earnestly to the task of making
the best Of their present lot In this they have
succeeded, and they are prosperous. happy, and |
respected.
no element which NJ lat baa