The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-04-18

owned by Franciscan Monks. The identi-
 cal olive tree under which Christ prayed for the cup to pass from Him was shown
 us. Best posted authorities agree that
 olive trees frequently live that long. This particular tree was certainly the oldest one We saw in Palestine We then went to the tomb of Mary, Christ's mother. This place is also marked by a Catholic church. At the entrance I saw the most horrible sight l ever expect to see. A dozen or more lepers were gathered there, and with the most piteous and heart rending cries they begged of us money for bread. l saw one whose nose and both eyes were gone. One with foot al most eaten off, hanging by a thread One woman with both hands gone to the wrist, holding up her stumps imploring for help. It seems there is no law to take them away and as the disease can not be contracted by mere contact the authorities allow them to sit there and beg.
 The wailing place of the Jews was in- teresting. At a certain spot of the city walls, near the temple of Solomon, every Friday at o'clock, the Jews gather and sit or stand for hours reading their Jew ish prayer books and kissing the stones of the wall and weep and wall because of the destruction of the temple and the downfall of Jerusalem. The Mount of
 Olives was also visited Here Catholic
 church marks the spot where Christ taught his disciples the Lords prayer On | the walls of this church could be seen the l Lords prayer in every language known to man.
 | On the road to Jericho we passed the | cave on the brook Cherith where Elijah | was fed by the ravens. Over this cave there is a Catholic monastery and the l weary and foot-sore pilgrims going to the l Jordan found the latch string on the out side for them.
 At Bethany we saw the reputed home of Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and
 Martha. The house of Simon, the leper
 was also pointed out, where Mary anoint- ed Jesus feet with oil and wiped them with her hair The quarres of Solomon were seen. These quarries extend far un- der the site of the present city We saw the Food of Bethesda, Pools of Solomon
 and so many more places of Biblical in- terest that I could not mention all in a short letter.
 | A word as to the country at the present | day. It is a land entirely devoid of fuel 1 Fortunately the people need little, as 1t is | rarely ever cold. No forests or trees oi | any kind are to be found. Olives, figs 1 dates, oranges, lemons walnuts and many other fruits are raised. Wheat and oats l are good crops l saw an OK and donkey and camel and OK often harnessed up tc a wooden blow, cultivating the land. | The tax collector always goes armed
 carrying a large sword, a rifle and re- 1 volver.
 l On our journey to Jericho, which wat | through the mountains, we were escorted | by a Beduin soldier on horseback, who 1 was armed to the teeth. It is not con.
 sidered safe to make these trips unless
 well armed, as robberies are frequent. l Palestine is under Turkish rule. No one however, wants Turkish money, ant | French money is almost the universa medium used The Austrians and Ger.
 mans each have postal department, anG l letters os importance are not risked In the | Turkish post While the place is extreme | ly dirty, the oriental life on the street: | is of great interest. Camels and donkeys
 are used in carrying the burdens.
 Palestine has been visited by almost | every nation on earth. It is the lode
 star of every Christian. Strange to say
 however. out of the many places marked l by cathedrals and churches only one wa. | protestant and that was erected ovel | some spot of minor importance by the | German Emperor. Another fact wortf | considering-the Holy Sepulchre and al
 other places of sacred interest are still 1T | the hands of the Turks. A Turkisl
 mosque covers the spot where the great
 est temple ever known to man was built | Turkish soldiers stand guard over tn,
 Savior's tomb to keep Christians iron flying at each others throats, and Turkisi police watch over and guard the Chris
 tians who come to worship over the toml
 of Savior they themselves deny.
 We go from Palestine to Port Said
 where we see the famous Suez canal, anC
 from there back to Alexandria, then tt Smyrna and Constantinope, and iron
 there to Greece and Italy.
 W. B. REYNOLDS.
 Jerusalem, March 20, 1909.