Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1902-05-10
SEA OF GALlLEE.
Tropical Scenery, Writes William E.
Curtis, Surrounds Famous Water.
BANK is NOW DEsoLArE.

feet above the Mediterranean. and the
hills around it are from 1000 to 1000
feet high. while the sacred lake is $50
feet below tide water. Few people
realize that the greater part of our
Lords ministry was performed in a
natural trench washed out by the Riv-
er Jordan at some remote period of
geological history. 1t is a curious for
nation of nature.
AS the carriage descends along the
rough road, which in wet weather is
almost impossible, we pass from spring
to summer. Travellers who visit the
Sea of Galilee later than April must
expect oppressive heat, and the con-
trast between the heavy and humid at
mosphere of the lake basin and the
pure and exhilarating ozone of the
hill country around Nazareth is keenly
felt by people who are sensitive to eli
matte changes. Inc vegetation be-
comes tropical as we approach the
water. Trees which are never seen on
the hills grow in thick jungles and
groups of palms decorate the scene In
every direction. The lake has the shape
of a heart, thirteen miles long and
eight miles wide. A Jewish rabbi once
said: Jehovah hath created many
lakes, but the sea of Gennesaret is his
delight" 1t resembles the lochs of
Scotland, and it's resemblance to the
lakes of northern Italy is often point
ed out, although the foliage is more
scanty and by no means so beautiful.
and the villas and towns cannot be
compared for a moment.
The lake is encircled by a white
strip of beach. At the northern end it
is formed of smooth white sand, shells
and pebbles, and the southern end of
gravel and black and white powders.
Evidences of volcanic agencies appear
frequently, and on the southern banks
are the famous hot baths of Herod,
who utilized a group of sulphurous
springs and built anu fitted in great
luxury. in imitation of the Romans. a
collection of bath houses that have
never been surpassed in the east. The
water of the springs a a bitter and
nauseous taste, and smells like anti
ouated eggs, but amid all the wrecks
of fortune with which the locality is
strewn they still minister to the ills
of humanity with great relief. Rheu-
matism, govt and other diseases can be
1ured by using them and invalids conn
here from all parts of Syria. The
springs were famous throughout the
ancient world, but the present accom-
modations cannot be recommended.
The bath houses are dirty n incon-
ven,ent, and the surroundings are re-
pulsive. There is a Protestant hospi-
tai and a missionary medical station
near by. both of which are supported
by the Free Church of Scotland, and
furnish neat but limited quarters.
The baths were called Hammath In
the Old Testament, but are known as
Hummon now The springs are four in
number. The water has a normal tenn
p~erature of 144 degrees Fahrenheit,
and its chief properties, as shown by
analysis, are carbonate of lime, muir
iatic salts and chloride of magnesium.
There is a ave in the hill upon which
an old castle stands, which is supposed
to be connected by subterranean pas
sages with the springs, for it has a
high temperature and is continually
filled with steam. Persons afflicted
with govt or rheumatism receive al
most immediate relief by sitting in this
cave and submitting to the continuous
and profuse perspiration which its
high temperature exciIes.
Down in this pit, in the days of the
crusaders. the ambition of christen-
dom vas scorched to the heart. Tempt
ed by treachery, the knights of the
cross attacked Saladin. The dust and
heat were intense, for there had been
a long drought and the earth was
parched. The Arabs set fire to the
trees and ~shrubbery. The knights chok-
ed in their armor. The foot soldiers,
blinded by smoke and dust, were tram
pied down by the Bedouins. Although
they fought sun, fire, heat and sword
with terrible desperation, their defeat
was utter. The entire force was ami
hilated, and nearly every man who es-
capped death was captured and taken
into the desert as a slave.
Above the beach, round the lake,
is a succession of grassy slopes and
rocky cliffs with groups of ~oleanders,
whose blossoms are more brilliant
than can be found elsewhere. At the
head of the lake the entrance of the
River Jordan is marked by a rich green
plain. The river ONE down through
rocky gorges with a succession OF
foaming rapids. passes through a jun
gle Of luxuriant o~leanders and then
bursts into the clear waters of Galilee.
A group of five palms and a clump OF
thorn trees mark its mouth. On the
south. where the Jordan leaves the
lake, it enters a muddy plain, and 81
lently cuts its way through the banks
gathering clay and other earth in solu'
ton until ii becomes very turbid. Upon
the eastern side of the lake the desert
sands come almost to the water. Veg
citation and fertility is found almost
exclusively upon the western side, and
il has always been so. 1t is believed
that the soil of the eastern shores is
Just as rich and might be as easily ir
rigated. but through all the centuries
and until recently, it has been exposed
to the forays of the Bedouins, who dc
not hesitate to harvest other mems
fields.
At present there are no farms and
few houses and the only lights to be
seen are the camp fires of the Bedou.
ins.
SPRINGER.
From Springer Stockman.