Goldsboro semi-weekly argus., 1909-08-04

how anyone can make his existenc
by tilling the soil here; by nature
should be rich, as the soil has bee
fertilized by the blood of people fo
| the last thirty centuries-and VIII
knows how many more? Men hav
| killed each other here in the name O
/ all the gods. Here war has bee1
waged in the name of the Assyrian
Philistine, and Egyptian deities; non
less in the name of the Great Jehoval
and the gentle Nazarene; and for
thousand years in the name of Allah
This soil has been drenched with th'
| blood of millions of men and womel
for religions sake, and yet it is still
sterile; perhaps it still rests under
the curse.
We are anxious to get a sight of Je
rusalem but our train does no
emerge from mountain gorges unit
we are fairly on top of the plateau
My heart beats a little faster as oul
train stops and across the Valley o1
Hinnom we catch sight of the Citadel
of Zion.
Jerusalem proper is not a large
city, as people would naturally imag-
inc it to be. The present city wall
which is said to cover even a larger
area than in the days of King David
hardly covers as much ground as
Goldsboro, as the circumference of
the wall measures but about two and
ho1 Of ha
ern city, or the new Jerusalem, if this
term does not sound irreverent lies
outside the walls. To describe the
city within the limits of letter would
be difficult. l will therefore only give
a short sketch.
AS we approach it from the station
we are but short distance from the
Jaffa Gate, which we enter, crossing
the Valley of Hinnom and over the
dam of the Pool of Hezekiah. We
pass by the Tower of David as we en-
ter the gate, which forms a corner of
Zion (the upper part of the city,.
This is at present occupied by garri-
son of Turkish soldiers and much Of
the remainder is known as the Arme
nian quarter. The other parts of the
city are occupied by Jews, Christians
and Mohammedans. In point of num-
berS the Jews are in the ascendancy.
The entire population of the city is
estimated at $4,000. The streets are
very narrow and dirty. The principal
business street, on which most of the
=!
Street. This is about twelve feet
wide, and most of the other streets
are narrower. With the exception of
an open plaza near the Jaffa Gate
no team can drive through the city.
The houses are generally low with fiat
1oofs, but many of them go far into
the ground, no doubt to lower former
for it is conceded that
much of the ancient city lay some
forty feet or more below the present
The poverty and squalor to be found
here is heartrending. Notwithstand-
ing the fact that a great deal of mon
ey is being sent here from all parts
Of the world to be distributed among
the poor, it either misses it's proper
perhaps both. In walking through
these narrow lanes called streets one
has to be very careful to keep from
falling or stumbling; they are ter
raced at irregular intervals, and on
account of their crowded condition
one can see only a little distance
ahead; besides, you often have to
halt to make room for donkeys and
camels, which, with their loads fill up
the entire width.
Arriving in the city on Friday even
ing our first visit was to the wailing
wall of the Jews, as this was our only
opportunity to witness the prayers
and ceremonies which occur every
Friday evening. Quite large num-
Der of them gather here to bemoan
the destruction of the Temple and the
Jewish commonwealth and pray for
their restoration. This wall forms
part of the Temple enclosure, but is
on the outside of it and within the
city. The orthodox Jews never come
within the Temple area for fear they
may tread on the spot where the Holy
of Holes was located.
There are so many interesting
places that carry ones thoughts
back to Bible history to be seen in
and around Jerusalem that we have
to employ the short time we have here
to the best advantage in sightseeing
and only try to see such as appeals to
us as most interesting.
We visit the Tmple area 1t is To-
Gated in the southwestern part of the
city. Two of it's outer walls form par1
of the city walls. This area covers
thirty-six acres and is paved with
large fiagstones. Near the center o
this space is a raised plateau which il
reached by flights of stone stairs an6
| covers nearly one-fourth of the Tenn
| pie area. In the center of this spac,
and supposed to be on the spot wher,
Solomon's Temple stood, stands tn,
Mosque of Omar 1t is an octagona
| building, with a large dome in tn
centre, rising to height of lis feet
The interior, with it's variegated col
ored marble columns, its beautiful