The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-05-02

from Oph1r IN addition to gold. great
plenty of almug trees sno precious
stones" DR.. Peters tried TO reconcile that
narrative with his discovery. and sue
ceeded to his own satisfaction. He found
traces Of diamonds, and the "almug
wood" he assumes to be a species OF
sandalwood plentiful in that region.
When DR.. Peters struck out for ctvilf
cation, after establishing station at
King Solomon's mines. he took with him
King Maco1nbe's fayorite brother, and
the pair recently appeared in London.
The explorer is making preparations 10
return early in the summer, equipped for
more exhaustive examination of the
gold mines. and, also of the traces which
he found of diamonds.
This is how DR.. Peters expresses the
theory ne has formed about the move
ments of King Solomon's men:
THE ancient conauerors heard ar the
mouth of the Zambesi Of rich anuvial
gold I'D river, and sailed up to the east
ern entrance of the Laputa, beyond which
rapids made navigation difficult. They
then proceeded overland. and found
under the very walls of the fortihcadons
(ruins of which we have discoyered), al
luvial and also reef gold.
'aThey then settled for a considerable
period, and afterward migrated 10 the
west toward the Ruenye. They eventu-
ally settled in the cool climate of In
vanga, conquered all the districts west
and southwest as far as the Sanyate
river and Tad. and built a great empire
along the Zambesi and Sabi rivers.
This ancient Sabaean empire probably
lasted for thousands of years. Its exist
ence was well known among the Semitic
nations, and 1t is interesting to note that
Ophir is always mentioned in the Old
Testament, without any explanation as
to It's locality.
II have seen enough to be assured that
all the products of the ancient Ophir are
to be found on the Zambesi.
las a result of my investigation, the
Arabian and Indian theories regarding
Ophir fall to pieces. and 1 claim unhesi-
taungly to have located this year the
Golden Ophir of King Solomon and King
Hiram"
| Many learned books have been written
about the land of Ophir, whose products
enabled Solomon to make gold in Jerusa-
lem "as pleuteous as stones" Oh.
Chronicles, l., 16)
Many travellers have sought IL, many
scholars have disputed about its where
abouts. Sir Walter Raleigh, in his His
tory of the World" placed Ophir in one
OF the Molacca islands. The learned
Arias Montanus was equally sure that it
was in Peru. Bruce. the famous traveller.
said it should be looked for on the east
| coast of Africa-just where DR.. Peters
has found it-and was supported by the
historians Robertson and Huet.
The claim of India was advocated by
Vitringa and Roland and that of Arabia
by Michaelis, Niebuhe. Gossellin and
Vincent-all scholarly writers or travellers.
Sir o. Emerson Tenant adopted the opin-
ion that Malacca was the scene of King
Solomon's gold mining.
The Ophir of the Bible became the FL
Dorado of the Middle Ages, and many
brave life was sacrificed in the effort to
reach it.
The story Of King Solomon's mines. as
told in the Scriptures, is as follows:
l. Kings. tx, 26-And King Solomon
which is beside Eloth, on the shore Of the
hed sea, IN the ldnd OF EdoIn.
q. And Hiram sent in the navy his
servants, shlpmen that had knowledge of
the sea, with the servants of Solomon.
2S And they came to Ophir, and fetched
from thence gold 400 talents, and brought
1t to King Solomon.
1. Kings, X, 11.-And the navy also of
Hiram that brought gold from Ophir,
brought in from Ophir great plenty of
almug trees and precious stones.
A. Now the weight of gold that came
to Solomon in one year was six hundred
three score and six talents of gold.
II. Chronicles, ill.,. 15.--And King Solo
mon made 2)O targets of beaten gold;
600 shekels of beaten gold went to the
target
16 And 300 shields made he of beaten
gold; 300 shekels of gold went to the
shield. And the king put them in the
house of the forest of Lebanon
% And King Solomon passed all the
kings of the earth In riches and wisdom.