Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1893-03-30
FROM JAFFA TO JERUSALEM
The Opening OF the First Railroad Built
in Palestine

Consul Selah Merrill at Jerusalem has
sent 10 the State Department an &C
count of the opening of the railroad
from Jaffa to Jerusalem, says a Wash
ingron special to the st. Louis Globe,
Democrat. The event was celebrated
on the part of the Mohammedans by
an address from an imam, one Of the
priests OF high rank in Jerusalem, after
which three sheep We're slaughtered
on the platform of the station as 4
kind of propitiatory sacrifice; and on
the part of the company it was celebrat-
ed by 4 dinner given in the evening
under tents at the Jerusalem station
! Djela1 PaSha, aide-de-camp to the Sui
! tan, was present from COnStantinOple
| to represent the Sultan in the opening
! exercises. NJ. Collas, the president OF
/ the road, and several eminent engineers
! from Paris. were also present. likewise
! the Governor of Jerusalem and PalcS-
! tine, together with the civil and mill
! tary authorities and the members of
the diplomatic and consular corps. One
hundred and fifty guests sat down Al
the tables and enjoyed 4 fine dinner,
/ but the speech-nlaking was confined
to Il few remarks by the Governor, with
! a brief response from the Sultan's re-
preventative, and q few words by the
French Consul General on behalf of
/ the consular corps. A toast to the Sui
tan was drunk, and the lurking band
played the different national airs as
represented by the guests The greatest
popular interest was manifested in this
event. and for the first time in its his
tory Jerusalem showed Il little of the
life and hustle which characterize ci-
ties in the Western world.
The road just completed, the first
ever built in Palestine and Syria, is q
little over fifty-three miles long, thirty
miles OF which are on the plain land
and the remaining twenty-three on the
mountains. There are no tunnels on
the road, the builders prefelTing to 60
around bluffs that might be tmneled
rather than to bore t9.T.t- hem. The
wooden ties brought from = rance cost
80 cents a piece. The road has five
engines, all made in Philadelphia, and
the cars, (which were made in the north
I'Of France, open ut the ends, with 4
passage running lengthways through
them, and there are compartments di
brought from Cardiff and from Belgium
and POO tons are required Il day.
Between Jaffa and Jerusalem, not in
Guiding these, there are five stations
For the station in Jerusalem, which is
one mile from the city, a little more
than eight and a half acres of land
We're purchased at 4 very high price
not less than S25,OOO-land which tllii.
ty years ago was sold for 81 per acre
The men who did most Of the stone
work - blasting through hills, lying
walls to support entertainments, and
cutting stone for stations and bridges
were from Bethlehem and the nearest
neighbOring village to it, called Belt
Jala, men whose ancestors have been
stone-cuttels from ancient times. The
Arabs on the plain received 30 to 81
cents per day, the Egyptians and 9th
erS 40 to so cents per day. while the
men who could work in stone received
20 cents to 81 per day. The company
erected barracks along the line of the
road where laborers could sleep free
Of charge, but they provided their own
food. Twice week physicians passed
along the line Of the road wherever
there were workmen to render and
medical assistance that might be re-
quired.
The time between Jerusalem and Jaf
ia is three and one fourth hours down
and three and onehaf hours coming up
and the fare is $3.50 first class and
ST for the second class.