The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-04-20

| the capacity of the pool. If in the tim
| Of Josephus as the latter declares. il re
! quired six days TO I'll the pool and the 81
| phoa could exhaust it in one we have th
conditions 70 sustain his statement.
| river running only on the seventh day. I
on the other hand it required six days q
draw off the water We have the condi
! tons Tor the phenomenon mentioned %.
I Pliny
was not able 10 a1d this extrsordinar.
/ river. nor does anybody Of whom 7 havt
inquired here in Damascus know any
1 thing about il; neither the consul nor III,
guides at the hotels. nor other person.
who are familiar with the country.
| The Greeks formerly called this par
/ Of SYRIA PhoeHicia. the land Of palms.
| because those trees were iovlier and nor,
numerous here than any where elsein IN.
east. The palm has been accepted BY al
the eastern nations as the highest I've
Of grace and beauty. The columns Of the
temples erected IN Egypt in the Gays 81
the Pharaohs, and afterward III Greece. in
Palmyra. Babylon Nineveh, and then in
Rome. were modelled in imitation Of the
trunk Of the palm, and the mostbeautiful
Of the daughters of Israel were named
after the tree. The daughter Of David
I'D the daughter OF Absolom were called
"ramar." which is synonym for palm.
and the name is stiU common among the
women Of Syria You viii find palm
branches used extensively in al the deco
rations Of ali the Egyptians and the an
cient artists, Of the east, and they were
held as emhlerns of honor among the He
brews as the laurel among the Romans
and Greeks. For that reason the people
spread palm branches in the path Of the
Savior when he made his triumphal entry
into Jerusal en-.
The olive also is q beautiful tree, and
better than the palm, because it is modest
useful and enduring. It's shade is deep
and grateful. while the palm casts none
The fruit of the olive is the mainstay Of
the people. indispensable to the poorer
classes of the community The farmer
and the laborer leave their homes in the
morning with no other provision than
loaf of bread and package Of picked
olives wrapped up in leaves That is their
daily dinner. and it satisfies them The
oil of the olive is d substitute for butter
OF almost every dish while until recently
il was the chief Illuminating power of tho
eastern communities Kerosene is rapid
81 replacing il. owing TO the cheap price
At which it is sold The entirer supply
Of soap used in Syria is made of olive oil
The tree has very slow growth. IT
bears no berries for seven years. and the
crop scarcely pays for the gathering until
the tree IS ten years old. but if viii con
tinue II weld abndanuy flor centuries,
TO extreme old age, and requires but little
care So long as there is . mere fragment
of The trunk remaining green shoots viii
burst ont ana yield oily berries. There
are knobs or large warts on the body Of
the trees. If you viii cut one Of them of.
plant 1T in good soil, give itplenty of wa
Ter and sunshine, IL VIII strike out roots
and grow Large trees in "a good season
VIII Weld from fifteen to twenty bushels
Of olives. which are good for ten or.
twelve gallons of oil. The OH is made Dr.
the olives under hydraulic pres
sure.
There is an ancient custom under Uhiclz
the olive groves around Damascus ar
the trees being stripped by thieves. Bu
ON certain date the governor. or Sons
issues a proclamation war
Gin an owners Of olive trees int they must
pick their fruit for after a certain dat,-
it becomes public property. If farmc
has his crop only half gathered VIII ID
that date arrives the public VIII gather
it for him
The train approaches Damascus through
q narrow valley, almost q gorge at tbe
bottom Of which Is "A roaring stream
known nowadays as the Barada. but for
merly the ALBANIA. ii is the pride of the
spring. which summer and winter gushee
out of the rocks AT tho rate Of several
hundred gallons a minute. and goes
over its rocky bed. foaming and
roaring as if rejoicing TO reach the sun
shine after confinement in some subterra-
mean reservoir. Since the days of Naa.
man the leper this stream has been fam.
ous. You VIII remember that ne was
great captainof Damascus and the Bible |
SAYS 'he was also mighty man in valor.
cut he was a Ieper. At the earnest solicit
ation of "a servant Of his family. "alittle
'aptive maid out of the land OF Israel"
he went TO Samaria 10 find the prophet
Elisha and be cured. He took with him |
ZEN talents OF silver. COCO pieces of gold. |
.en changes of raimeut ard a letter of in |
reduction from the king Of Damascus to |
'ehorsm the king of Israel But Elisha /
merely told him 20 go wash seven times |
n Jordan. Naaman was indignant AZ !
What he considered contemptuous treat
nent. and exclaimed Are not ALBANIA and /
'harpar, rivers of Damascus. better than I
III the waters OF Israel? So he turned /
ma went away in a rage But YOU win !
emember that he dipped in Jordan seven /
ines ala the same. as the prophet told |
lim. and when Elisha refused to receive |
blessing as Naamau called his gift /
they CAL IT b3kshceSh now-the great |
older asked flor two mules burden IF
arth7 to build an altar OF Damascus. so
hat he might make sacrifices TO Elisha's
500
Tho house Of Naaman IS still pointed
.ut % tourists. 1t is one OF the most pic
uresque ana ancient structures in Da-
1ascus and quite appropriately is used
or 4 leper hospital
don't wonder thar Naaman was dis
usted, for any one who has seen both
orian ana ALBANIA would naturally feel
he same way. ALBANIA is a clear. Good.
ryStal stream. Jordan is turEid and
muddy ALBANIA $ powerful current drives
umerous mills. which we cansee from
he windows 81 the railway train. and the
atrauccs ar SD n them are surrounded
7ith groups of mules. donkeys and cam
IS. which have brought little 'osds ~
rain % he ground as tn the olden tirre
etween antiguated mmstones revolving
non a wooden axle some of them ar.