The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1906-07-31


brcws Have Me- for Centuries f
Bcmoan the Fate Of Jcrusalcm-
Hills Around Bcthlahem Where tii
shepherds Watclied-TWo-Thirds o
Jcrusalem's Population JcwiSi-N
Street Cars, No Book Stores and Blu
One Hebrew Newspaper in the Hol,
City-Mountcd Guards Patrol tn
Road from Jerusalem to Jericho
Dead sea Contains Five Times u.
Much salt as Ocean-NIr. Rryai
Finds by Experiment That One Can
not Sink i'm Its Waters-Illc Jordan
Appears Like II Creek Swollen Will
Iiain-It's Valley Might BE Mad,
as Fruitful as That of tn
Nilc-Tlic Land of Ruth. Elijah an,
Job-Significance of Bible Passage.
Made Palmer by Il Visit to the HpI,
Land.
Copyright, 1906, by Joseph y. Bow,es
copyright in Great Britain
Ali. Rights Rcservcd.)
Athens, May 1S.-We were agreea-
bly, surprised in Jerusalem and Judca
but disappointed to learn how few
Protestant Christians visit this city,
which may, without improperly, bt
styled the Christians mecca.
POSSIBLY the Wretchcd harbOr at
Joppa, if harbor it may be called
may brighten some away, for when
the weather is bad passengers are
often carried by, and yet it does seem
that there should be more than 4,000
IL year from the rich and numerous
churches of Europe and America.
More than 10000 pilgrims visit the
M~ohamedan's Mecca each year, al
though the Mohammedans are poor
and the journey is difficult. Port Said
is only 1876 miles from Joppa and Al
~eNandria less than 300 miles, and more
than $4,000 persons d~iSembarked at
these ports last year.
Making a liberal allowance for
Egyptians returning from Europe,
for immigrants from Europe to Egypt
and for invalids visiting Cairo in
search OF health, it is still true that
many times as many go to the Nile as
travel to Jerusalem, and OF the less
than 1000 tourists who visit the Holy
City less than 900 continue their
journey to Nazareth the Sea of
Galilee. The number which | men
ton does not include the creek cath
olics or the Roman Catholics, but it
is an outside estimate of the number
of Protestant Christians. The rail-
roads which are building and the
carriage roads in process of con-
struction will make travel easier and
may increase the number in the fu-
ture. but it is difficult to explain or
to understand why so nan V come
near to, and yet passed by without
seeing, the places made familiar to
the Christian world by the books of
the Old and New Testament.
We landed at Joppa when the
weather was fair, but were detained
a half day that they might "de-ratify
the ship" as the Turkish authorities
describe rat-killing upon the ship
n custom inaugurated after the rat
had been convicted of carrying bu-
bonic plague. Joppa is on the edge
of the Plain of Sharon and, as an
at a reasonable depth. the city is u
garden. Orange trees thrive there and
the fruit is excellent. Two places of
interest are shown, the home of Tabi-
tina and the house of Simon the tan
ner, the latter immOrtalized by the
vision which taught Peter the univer-
salty of Christ's mission.
The railroad to Jerusalem crosses
the valley of Sharon, which at this
season of the year is exceedingly at
tractive. The crops are growing, the
fellaheen are at work in the fields and
everywhere the wild flowers bloom.
The rose of Sharon had many rivals,
IL the pldlll ioohCu III oltcil lIilC 90
it does now. The principal station on
the plain is Ramleh, through which
conquering armies marched for ages
From time immemOrial Palestine has
been a prize of war. n it was
not itself the object of conquest, its
occupation was necessary to the &C
quiring or holding of other territory.
The Persians. the Egyptians, the Par
thians. the, Scythians. the Greeks, the
Romans and the Turks have all over
run this country-not to speak of the
numerous wars of the Israelites and
the expeditions of the Crusaders.
From Alexander the Great and
Caesar to Napoleon. no W~orld-con-
quering general overlooked Palestine
and yet out Of Palestine came the
Prince of Peace.
South of Sharon lies the plain of
Phillistia, a narrow strip of land be-
tween the hills of Judea and the sea,
a small region and yet it supported a
people who warred for centuries with
the children of Israel. 1t was at
GAIA, one of the chief cities on this
plain, that Samson pulled down the
pillars of the building and died with
those who made sport of him.
Leaving the low country, the rail-
road begins the ascent of the Judean
hills through the Wady es Surar. and
as one is carried up the t%ortuous
touISt Ol III l wv NdlItS lie bSSlilS
to understand why Jerusalem was
considered a citadel. The hills rise to
a height of about $500 feet and are
So inaccessible that a small number
dwelling on top could easily defend
themselves against a much larger
force. The narrow limits of Judea
impress one, hemmed in on the west
by ,Phillistia, on the south by the des-
ert and on the east by the deep
chasm of the Dead Sea. Its history
WAS developed in a territory scarcely
larger han a Nebraska county.
AS We approach the summit the
vineyards appeared and the olive
groves became more numerous. Jeru-
salem is beautifully located. No
wonder its rebuilding and r~epopulating
is the dream of the devout Jews, many
of whom come from distant corners
of the earth to spend their last days
within it's precincts. The present
walls of the city are only a few hun