The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-10-16
NEW LIGHT ON HOLY PLACES
BY FRANK G. CARPENTER.

CAhfEN Ell.
work is that of this exploration fund,
which was founded more than 40 years
ago and is supported by voluntary con-
tributions.
The Palestine exploration fund is not a
religious body, but rather a scientific and
historical one. 1t is now spending about
$4,000 a year on such work, the most of
the sums being collected in amounts of 50
or less from English and Americans all
over the world. The association has
made great discoveries In Jerusalem. 1t
has surveyed and mapped the most of
| Palestine, and has added about ! 30 Bible
| sites to those already known. During my
stay here I have met its secretary, DR..
Percy D. Wheeler and have learned
much concerning it's work.
The Jerusalem Railroad
| But let me tell you something about
the railroad up to Jerusalem. 1t has been
in operation more than Is years, and its
| rates are SO high that 1t ought to pay
well. The cost of our passage is about
cents a mile. Freight rate on coal is 81
per ton, aud all express is proportionately
high. The track is narrow gauge, and
| the cars are much like street cars, with
little racks for baggage along each side
under the roof Each carriage is divided
4 up into compai tments, the sides of which
are walled with windows, SO that one
can see out as he goes. The road has
no tunnels, ana II winds its way in and
out as it rises the hills There are five
stations between Jaffa and Jerusalem at
which the trains stop, and fairly good
| depots at the terminal points.
| The total cost of the railway wal
| $2,000,000 or a little less than $4,000 per
| mile. The road was originated by an
| American, civil engineer named Zim-
| pei who came to Palestine as a speddler
of patent medicine which he called
| sunlight pills." He brought the rail-
way scheme before the Sultan at Con-
stantinople, but failed to get the con-
cession to build it. After his death the
matter was taken up by the French,
who put the road through and now
| own 1t.
This was the first railroad built in
Syria, and 1t is the father of a railroad
system which is now opening up a great
part of the country. One section of the
system is the line which runs from Da-
mascus to Mecca, and connected with 1t
are others which will eventually join the
Holy Land TO the valley of the Euphrates
as well as to Asia Minor and Turkey.
The Hills of Judea
The trip from Jaffa to Jerusalem gives
one a fair idea of the character of Pales-
tine. The coastal plain is typical of the
richest part of the country It's soil is a
chocolate brown, the grass is as green
as that of Egypt, and there are big
orchards of olives and fruits of all kinds.
The roads are carpeted with rich red pop
pies and wild flowers are everywhere.
Climbing the hills is like jumping from
the Nile valley into the desert. There is
nothing but rocks with a sparse vegeta-
ton scattered here and there through
them. The limestone crops out every
where, and in places mountains of stones
have been picked up in clearing the
fields. Such fields are fenced with stone
walls. There are also corrals for the
sheep walled with stone.
A Treeless Land
There are absolutely no bushes or
groves. Palestine is a treeless land There
are no forests of any description and the
only trees are fruit trees, with now and
then a funereal cypress, perhaps, in a
garden. Our consul, Mr.. Wallace, tells
me the country has two groves which the
people call forests. One of these con-
tains 40 scrub oaks. and the other is
not quite so large. He says that few
years ago there was some brush on the
hillside, but that the people have even
dug up the roots and sold them for fuel.
Indeed, fuel is one of the most costly
things in this country. 1t Is so expensive
that 1t is seldom used except for cooking,
and that Notwithstanding the climate is
cold. Wood is so valuable that the older
olive trees are being cut down, and 1t is
feared that the groves will gradually dis
appear. These old trees are often of con-
siderable thickness, but they are only
20 or 80 feet tall and one will supply
but a small amount of firewood. The
olive tree is as hard as the apple tree
and far more knotty and gnarly. It's
wood is heavy and is sold by the ton, the
price now being about Sc for 1000 pounds
The wood Is brought in on the backs of
donkeys and camels and every stick has
to pay a tax before it gets inside the
gates of Jerusalem
A common fuel here is charcoal, which
is made mostly of olive wood. The chief
manufactures of it are at Hebron, about
% miles south of Jerusalem, near the
cave in which Abraham, Isaac and Jacob
are buried, and where tradition says
Adam died Hebron Is about 500 feet
higher than Jerusalem, but it has big