The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-11-01

called in Arabic Muristan, which name
| the whole area has since borne. The
| knights Of ST John afterward established
| themselves in Rhodes, and later i'm Malta.
whence they were finally driven by Napo-
leon. But they have never ceased to exist.
! though the reformation divided the order.
/ The successors of those in Malta, who are
I called the Knights of Malta, and are Ro-
/ man Catholics, are found to-day in the
/ house Of the order and a hospital south
| of Jerusalem. at Santur, little more than
/ halfway to Bethlehem.
/ The Protestant representatives of the
| order fourished in Prussia and were rich
/ in landed possessions until during the Ma
| poleonic wars these possessions were seiZ-
/ ed by the Prussian government Later the
4 order was restored by Frederick William
/ of Prussia. In its modern form it is de-
! voted TO deeds of mercy supporting many
/ hospitals and homes for the aged. 1t has
| a small, but well-conducted hospice in Je
| rusalem, and will probably build a spacious
one ON this very site, upon which the or
/ der was founded. The mem bership or
the German order is confined to Princes
and the nobility. The English order bear
! ing the same name includes all classes,
and numbers women as wei as men in its
ranks. An ophthalmic hospital in Jerusa-
lem is under the banner Of this English
order.
/ Alter SdldAilti : Q6at0 lle DulpIlHBS u
the Murstan were neglected and became
mere ruins, and part of the land was sown
| with barley Finally, the western half
came into the possession of the Greek pa
| triarch by whom the ruins of the Church
of st. John Baptist have been recently I'M
| covered
As in recent Years, German Protestant
! interests have increased in the Holy Land,
j the Emperor William turned his eye upon
| this eastern half of the former site of the
knights of St. John. But ii was impossi-
| bic to acquire it by purchase, for 1t was
'wakf'--i. e., inalienable ecclesiastical
| property, and only obtainable by the will
of the Sultan. All efforts to secure IL
failed until a favorable opportunity to
bring forward a request for it occurred on
the occasion of the opening of the Suez
canal, when the then Crown Prince Fred
erick visited Jerusalem.
The request was granted, and the Sui
tan presented the plot of ground to King
| William on Nov. 7. 1868, in proof of his
| friendly feeling toward the crown of Prus-
| STA. Thus, after an Interval of 200 years
| this birthplace of the order of ST. John
came again into Christian possession, and
viii before long again be in part appro-
! priated to its ancient and honorable use
| as a Christian hospice. The hosplce is to
be erected to the south of the coister
upon the arches that enclose to this day
the vast subterranean chambers, one be-
| meath another, that have existed from the
| time of Constantine. The refectory of the
cloister was fitted up as a place OF wor-
ship, and in July, 1871, was opened with
| 200 sittings.
In digging down in order to lay the walls
of the new church on the old foundations
it was found that only one pillar rested
on the rock bed, the rest being built or
| debris. Hence followed one year and g
nail OF anxious and expensive labor
which added 100000 marks TO the estimated
cost Of the building, shafts having to be
sunk to a depth of ten to fourteen me.
ters
1t was the cherished wish of the Emper.
or William I, while he was as vet only
King of Prussia, to bring about a unior
of the chief branches of The churches o.
the Reformation. His brother and roya
predecessor on tie throne had succeeded
in launching a plan for the Lutheran
| Church and the Church of England &
administer Jointly a bshopric of Jerusa
lem. This was in 1871. The Lutheran pas
tors nominated were to receive ordination
at the hands of the Archbishop of Can
terbury.
Alexander, Jewish proseiyte. named b.
England, was the first bishop After threi
years he was succeeded by the well-lSnowI
Bishop Cobalt, who was German and VIII,
he'd the Office until 1881 Fierce conten
tons then arose between the German ant
English sections of the Jerusalem Protest
ant community, and the multiplication o
vexed questions made agreement impossi
BILE. Not long after Bishop Gobats dealt
the International agreement for a join
bishopric was abrogated. The German
half of the investment fund went to swell
the sums gathered from all the evangeli
cal churches In Germany for the buldin;
of the new church. The Emperor Will
Jams dream of united Professionalism join
ing hands in cordial work in the Hol.
Land was at an end.
The experiment was followed by the at
| tempt to give the world an example o
Christian union by joining in co-operatio
the various German evangelical enter
prises Of Palestine, and giving them an
the churches of Germany, a visible cente
and ralying point in this new "Churc
of the Redeemer." The dedication is fixe
for Oct 81, the anniversary of the date o
which Luther nailed his theses on tn
church door at Wiltenburg. On the sam
date five years ago, the cornerstone wa
laid with much pomp and ceremony.
Within the cornerstone was placed
document written by the present Emperor
eloquentIy rehearsing the main facts cor
nected with the acquisition of the ground
extollng the desire of his royal grand
father to accomplish this that Is only not
possible" plainly suggesting the parable
of King David who was not permitted {
build the temple. and of Solomon, VIII
was); acknowledging 'the gift of the SUI
tan of this place consecrated by histories
memories of a knightly order. now newl
arisen to fulfil its ancient traditions b
works Of Christian love-" and declaring
''shal stand as a monument of the fait
opened to evangelical Christendom throug
the reformers, and as a visible witness I
the unity of faith in which the evangel
cal churches of Germany are bound wit
each other and all outside"
-Omaha-You Eastern people are so IN
neighborly! My aunt lived seven years /
New York and when she died they had
get in district messenger boys for pal
hnare 81 LIE.