Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1909-07-14
SEA OF GALILEE.
BANKS OF FAMOUS SHEET OF
WATER ARE DEsoLATE.
THE SCENERY AND TRADITIONS OF IT'S
BEAUTIFUL sHoREs--LAaE rs $50
FEET BELOW SEA LEVEL.

BEAUTIFUL sHOREs--LAaE IS $50
FEET BELOW SEA LEVEL.
The descent from Nazareth to the Sea of
Galilee is very rapid, writes William E.
Curtis. That village lies at an altitude of
about LOO feet above the Mediterranean,
and the hills around it are from 2, 900 to 4, 900
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 natural trench washed
out by the River Jordan at some remote
period Of geological history. 1t is curl
our formation OF nature.
As the carriage descends along the
rough road, which in wet weather is al
most impossible, we pass from spring to
summer. Travellers who visit the Sea OF
Galilee later than April must expect OPP.
pressive heat, and the contrast between
lake basin and the pure and exhilarating
ozone of the hill country around Naza-
reth is keenly felt by people who are SEN
sitive to climatic changes. The vegeta-
tion becomes 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 direc-
ton. 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 Cen
nesaret is his delight" 1t resembles the
lochs Of Scotland, and its resemblance to
the lakes OF northern Italy is often pointed
out, although the foliage is more scanty
and by no means so beautiful, and the
villas and towns cannot be compared for
moment.
The lake is encircled by 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 vol
canic agencies appear frequently, and on
the southern banks are the famous hot
baths Of Herod, who utilized q group Of
suIphurous springs and built and fitted in
great luxury, in imitation Of the Romans,
a collection of lighthouses that have never
been surpassed in the East. The water Of
the springs has a bitter and nauseous
taste, and smells like antiqusted eggs, but
emid all the wrecks Of fortune with which
the locality is strewn, they still minister
to the ills Of humanity with great relief.
Rheumatism, govt and other diseases can
be cured by using them, and invalids
come here from all parts Of Syria. The
springs were famous throughout the
ancient world, but the present accomma-
dations cannot be recommended. The
lighthouses are dirty and inconvenient,
and the surroundings are repulsive. There
is Protestant hospital and 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 Hum
mon now. The springs are four IN num-
Der. The water has a normal temperature
OF 144 degrees Fahrenheit, and its chief
properties, as shown by analysis, are car
Donate of lime, muriatic salts and chloride
of magnesium. There is cave in the hill
upon which an old castle stands, which is
supposed to be connected by subterranean
passages with the springs, for it has a
high temperature and is continually filled
with steam. Persons afflicted with govt
or rheumatism receive almost immediate
relief by sitting in this cave and sui mit-
ting to the continuous and profuse per-
spiration which its high temperature ex-
cites.
Down in this pit, in the days Of the cru
saders, the ambition of christendom was
scorched to the heart. Tempted by treach-
cry, the knights of the cross attacked
Saladin. The dust and heat were intense,
for there had been long drought and the
earth was parched. The Arabs set fire to
the trees and shrubbery. The knights
choked in their armor. The foot soldiers,
blinded by smoke and dust, were trampled
down by the Bedouins. Although they
fought sun, fire, heat and sword with ter
rible desperation, their defeat was utter
The entire force was annihilated, and
nearly every man who escaped death was
captured and taken into the desert as a
slave.
Above the beach, around the lake, is a
succession of grassy slopes and rocky cliffs
with groups of oleanders, whose blossoms
are more brilliant than can be found else
where. At the head of the lake the en-
trance to the River Jordan is marked by a
rich green plain. The river comes down
through rocky gorges with succession OF
foaming rapids, passes through jungle OF
luxuriant oleanders and then bursts into
the clear waters OF Galilee. A group Of
five palms and clump of thorn trees
marks its mouth. On the south, where
the Jordan leaves the lake, it enters a
muddy plain and silently cuts its way
through the banks gathering clay and
other earth in solution until it becomes
very turbid. Upon the eastern side OF the
lake the desert sands come almost to the
water. Vegetation and fertility is found
almost exclusively upon the western side,
and it has always been so. 1t is believed
that the soil of the eastern shores is just