Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-03-03
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JUpAS'S MONEY.

JUpAs's MONEY.
What Is Known of the Thirty Pieces
of Silver.
Tradition and legend supply a long
history Of the thirty pieces Of silver
paid to Judas for the betrayal of
Christ, of one of which Mark Fisher
of this city thinks he was robbed re-
Gently, says the New York Sun. A
series of traditions would carry 1t
back to the time of Terah, father Of
Abraham; for his hands, We are told,
fashioned and made the thirty pieces
Of silver which were kept intact from
that time until they were used as the
purchase money for the potter's field,
or field of blood"
Terah having made them, Abraham
took them with him when he left Chal-
dea, and used them as part Of the pur-
chase money for the cave Of Machpe-
lah. They appear next in the hands
Of the Ishmaelites, who paid them to
Joseph's brethren when they sold him
into bondage.
AS the Biblical version Of the story
says that only twenty pieces Of silver
was the price paid for Joseph, we
must conclude, in order to keep the
thirty pieces intact, either that the
other ten were paid with them for
some other purchase, or accept the
statement made by a writer In the
fourteenth century that For thrift
pens they sold that childe."
However, this may be, tradition says
that these same pieces Of silver came
into the possession Of Joseph himself
when his brethren went down into
Egypt to buy corn. On the death OF
Jacob they found their way into the
royal treasury of Sheba, where JOS
eph sent them to pay for spices to en-
balm his father.
Here they remained, undisturbed. for
long period Of years, in fact until
the Queen of Sheba made her wonder
full visit to King Solomon, when they
figured among the gifts presented by
the Queen to the ruler whose fame
had reused her curiosity.
From Jerusalem they found their
way back to Arabia. This was In the
reign of Rehoboam, when the King or
Egypt having despoiled the temple,
gave them to the King Of Arabia, his
ally, as part of his share Of the plum
der.
Again they rest, this time until the
birth of Christ. when Melchior, one OF
the wise men, brought them from Ara
bia and placed them at the feet of the
infant Saviour as part Of his Offering.
During the hurried flight into Egypt,
they were in the keeping Of the Virgin
Mary, but when closely pursued by the
soldiers of Herod she stopped to in
quire her way Of man who was SOW
ing corn and in her haste and confu-
sion she dropped them.
Scarcely were the Holy Family out
of sight when the corn the man had
been sowing miraculously sprang up
and grew. Almost Immediately Her
DDS soldiers appeared and inquired Of
the sower If he had seen the infant
Saviour and his parents The man re-
piled that no one had passed that way
since his corn was sown, and the SOL
diers, considering further pursuit In
that direction useless, turned back and
gave up the search.
The money was found by shepherd,
who kept it intact for years. Then,
being afflicted by a disease that was
pronounced incurable, he applied to
the Saviour for help and was healed.
Out of gratitude he presented the
money as an offering at the high altar.
and soon afterward it was used to pay
Judas for his act Of treachery.
Various reasons have been given to
explain why Judas exacted just that
amount. One Is that he believed him.
self cheated out Of so much, through
the use of the box Of ointment, for If
it had been sold for three hundred
pence he would have appropriated a
tenth. Again, 1t Is said that Judas,
having been sent by Christ on Holy
Thursday with that amount of money
to make ready the Last Supper fell
asleep by the wayside and was robbed.
In the midst Of his distress PLATE APP
peared, and being tempted he agreed
to betray his Master for the amount Of
money Of which he had been robbed.
When smitten by remorse he cast
down the pieces Of silver in the Tenn
Pile" and the priests, believing 1t not
lawful-being the price Of blood-to
return them to the treasury, purchased
with them the potter's field, the field
Of blood" This field was long sup
posed to be possessed Of unusual pow
ers. among them that Of rapidly de-
composing bodies buried in 1t, so that
large quantities of the earth were car
ried away. The Pisan Crusaders took
some of the earth with them for the
Campo Santo in Pisa, and the En-
press Helena had some of 1t taken to
Rome. Portions of it are still shown
in various parts Of Europe where 1t
is said to have been preserved.
One tradition says that only half OF
the thirty pieces Of silver were used
as purchase money for the field OF
blood" the others being given as
bribe to the pliers who guarded the
sepulchre, that they might say that
the body Of our Lord had been stolen.
Here, according to tradition, all trace
Of them was lost.