The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-09-25

away by the carriage road. Just outside
Oh JafTa iaborers are at work filling q long
Tashout made by the heavy winter RAJ rs.
they are mostly natives ROBBED in the for
tuitous rags Of the country Ali arc bare
looted and bare-legged; most of them have
around their heads the kefiyeh. strip of
coaored ciotn, supposed by them 10 be the
measure of their collins, and some wear
besides these only q coarse bag, with two
noses IN II for Their arms. Many wear .
ost OF cloth about the loins, not larger than
Q bandanna, which lady of our party
lacetiousiy alluded to as an overcoat.
They were moving Is deliberately rs II
they were hired by the government and
were paid their wages every century. and
those who we're walking about carried
little packages on their heads.
hat are those men doing?" asked.
Removing earth, /" said the engineer di-
rector. "Bus those men are mostly wo-
men. We hire 300 or 300 women for that
purpose. Wapay each of them 10 cents q
day"
Small wagesa" suggested.
Small SERVICE" he answered. Some
OF them carry, as You see. q mere handful.
Neither the men or women are strong. An
American or Irish or English woman
would do ten times as much as these.
Instead Of toting that tri1ing couffien
they would transport half bushel or
shovel or spade or iron plough or q
wheelbarrow, but they do more than the
women, and they earn 80 cents a day.
Miners get more-natives 3i< francs, 20
cents. Skilled European laborers, masons,
carpenters, bridge builders, etc.. get sla'
The landlord of one of the hotels
whom it is better not to identify more
specificalsy-added to this statement.
"Eberhard had an uphill road in more
senses than ore" he said. "He can't get
much out Of the natives. He brought a
lot of picks and crowbars and six wheel
barrows from France. The workmen, not
hammered them into horseshoes. They
dismantled the wheelbarrowsb by taking of
the wheels for playthings for the children
then they swung four Of the square bodies
under cameis to carry freight in, and the
other two they rugged with lifting handles,
30 that each wheeliess barrow could be car
ried by eight men-two sticks crosswise
and two lengthwise being placed under it.
In this way they transport more or less
dirt-generally less"
The chief tool used here, and probably
throughout Syria, is dwarf hoe about as
big as the palm of the hand, with short
handle to il, ard the natives squat down
and hoe up little heap of sand with this
and then carry IL OF in the dirty little nap
kin on their heads.
1t seems certain that the railroad will
actually be finished in few weeks. The
cars already run, irreguiarly. IN to
Artoref. half way to Jerusalem. The Holy
City and unholy civilization are being
connected with unwonted ties-ties that
bind steel rails together and to the endur.
ing earth. And the sluggish Arabs, be-
coming aware Of the emulation of these
new-fashioned sleepers, rub their eyes and
yawn, with languid resentment in their
hearts. sit up under the cactus bushes and
stare at it.
In . little while the lively conductor
will cry ont, "Chorazin! Chorazin
Change cars for CapernaumW or the bold
| rider of the real chariot of lire will salute
his passengers in the valley of the Jordan
with "All out for Cherith. where Elijah
| was fed by the ravens. Twenty minutes
| for refreshments!"
| The one thing which most astonishe,
| me here is the utterly barren and desolate
| character of the whole country in late
summer. Palestine is cluster of noun
tains, without rivers or wells for irriga
| ton. The tourist travels for days without
| seeing single running stream, or farm
\ or a fence or hedge. or house or hut out
side of the squalid little villages. or hardly
tree or green thing. | wonder ii the
/ Old Testament enumeration OF the popula
| tion is strictly accurate. According Il
| Numbers i:46, not less than 5000 900 Jews
came into Palestine-five times as many
as the present entire population, and &C
| cording to III. Samuel. xxix:9. they hac
increased TO 5000, 000-ten times the pres
| ens population. This would give an aver
| age of 6 o to the square mile-surpassins
that of the most fertile countries of Europe
| But We are told in the Old Testament tina
the Hebrews from seventy-five al
| told, increased to 100000 in abou
| 300 years, which implies that eact