Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1907-07-06

When falls the Colosseum, Rome shall
fail.
And when Rome falls. with it shall fall
the world"
ON THE SITE OF OLD THYSDRUS.
doubt not the citizens OF northern
Africa thought the same of El-Djem.
But who can now tell us anything of
the people who sat IN this mighty play
house? We know only that there was
great town here in the time OF imperial
Rome. 1t WAS called Thysdrus, and II
must have been of enormous size 10
have required a theater like this. Dur
Ing the third century 1t was one of the
richest cities OF northern Africa, and
the capital OF thickly populated coun-
try. There were other great cities near
by; about eight miles away was one
which had also thenter, and which
still shows the remains of vast cisterns
built for It's water supply,
Thysdrus remained great UP to about
the time of the Arab Invasion, but the
people about We're then governed by a
Berber queen known as Kahena. The
country was so rich that 1t was at
tackled again and again, and Kahena,
thinking the matter over, came to the
conclusion that the wealth OF her peo-
pie was the cause OF the numerous in
vasions. and that If they destroyed
alone, She therenpon called her noun
tain tribes together and ordered them
TO cut down the orchards and level the
towns. This was done all over the coup-
try, vast territories being reduced from
riches to poverty, II had. however. the
reverse effect OF what she intended
The people who had lost their property
sided with the invaders. and Kahena
was defeated. Her last stand was made
In the amphitheater of El-Djem, and its
battered walls still show the effects OF
that siege.
Since then It has been robbed by the
generations which followed. 1t has
been quarry for both Arabs and
Christians. and Of late the French have
uncovered its mosacs and carried them
off to their museums. Today they are
making EFFORTS to protect what is left.
l found parts OF the ruins shut off by
doors and wire fences, and masons
were at work here and there repairing
the damages of the vandals.
RUINS OF NORTH AFRICA.
The day will come when northern
Africa Will be thronged with tourists
and others studying the historic re-
mains of Its past. The most of the
ruins here have. until now. been al
lowed to remnin as they We're, while
those OF Italy. Greece and Egypt have
the world, There are acres OF mosaics
to be seen In the museums OF Tunisia
which will compare in beauty with
any in Italy. The arena OF this great
amphitheater was one solid mosaic.
1t is now part of the wonderful col
lection in the bey's palace. In the city
of Tunis. There are other mosaics
almost as wonderful In the museum
of Sousse, and others of great value
In the Carthage museum.
Sousse has recently excayated a
cemetery which dates back to the time
of the Carthaginians. In It are tombs
which We're built when Hannibal was
alive, and I fingered the bone dust
of some of these ancient heroes as /
looked ut the urns which contained
their remains.
Even more wonderful are the cata-
combs Of Sousse. now for the first
time being exposed to the light of
modern times 1 had never heard
of them until came here. You will
not find them mentioned in the books