Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1910-05-24
FROM REV. T. B. +. FISHER.
A Very Interesting Letter From the
Holy Land.
JERUSALEM. MAY l, 1910.

ana Wish Tor The hour or worship to-
gether and the friendly greetings. /
hope all is well with you, / know the
sorrow that has come to some and /
am sad with it. But for the most the
usual course of things runs on happily
l trust. My trip so far has been very
satisfactory. We were blessed with
unusually cool weather in Egypt
where donkey riding over miles of
sand is not SO pleasant in the usual
heat even when the genial. donkey
boy calls you "Good Mr.. American
with that affectionate tone which
comes with "bakshish" prospects.
From Alexandria to Assouan, our
interest was divided between the
strange customs of the living and
those of the long time dead, pictured
on the old tombs and temple walls.
Some striking similarities and some
hopeful contrasts. The Kings and the
Priests had the best of it then, the
people are beginning to have some
thing now
OF course we took photos or bought
pictures of everything. 1t becomes a
most tyrannical habit, but they may
be of interest in our old age. Coming
up to Port Said we rode for miles by
the Suez Canal, and strange to say,
saw not one vessel on the canal, it must
have been poor day for shipping.
We enjoyed dreamy moonlight
ride across the Mediterranean to
Jaffa, and in the morning found
forty thieves in boats ready and i'm
patient to take us to shore. 1t is a
rough and dangerous coast but by
virtue of much profane shouting we
were finally landed and after few
hours took train for Jerusalem.
They have this train for those who
want to investigate the scenery, those
in hurry, walk. And now we are in
Jerusalem, the center of Palestine,
the Holy Land. And SO many things
crowd upon me to be told, but they
must wait. But let me say this, the
travellers that write-and may never
join their preyaricating company y-tell
tales of desolation and dir6. Well, if
they were ever true they are not true
now and at this season of the year
Jerusalem is, on the whole, the clean
est and most attractive city we have
seen in the East so far, and beautiful
indeed for situation, on all the hills
around the bright green of growing
grass or grain blending with the dull
er shade Of innumerable olive orchards,
backed by terrace walls of light gray
stone or lined with cropping ledge,
yes, beautiful country. But, o, the
pity of it, that wonderful race that
produced a David, Solomon, an Amos,
an Isaiah, jeremiah; yes, even Jesus
Himself, that great race is displaced
by the half civilized Arab and savage
Bedouin. 1t makes me mad all the
time to see them here, and | am 60
ing to say SO, even it does stir up in
ternational complications. But enough
of this. We start Tuesday morning
by horseback, north thru Samaria to
Nazareth and of that later.
BY the way, we have been hearing
all along of certain American citi-
zen by the name of Roosevelt who has
gone thru this section something like
cyclone. You may have noticed
about it in the American papers.
Perhaps you would like to see how
the papers here speak of it, I'll copy
you a bit. This is from The Egypt
ian Gazette of Tuesday, April 28th,
published in Alexandria, entitled:
''MR. RoosEvELTs MISSION.
"a lengthy special telegram which
we published yesterday announces
that Mr.. Roosevelt has been lecturing
the French on racial suicide in mag
nifcent harangue at the Sarbonne,
while the previous week he had been
astonishing the Viennese by the ex-
uberence of his energy.n
In telegram from Vienna to the
Times of yesterday, the following
quotation is taken from the descrip-
tion:
"When he appears the windows
shake for three miles around. 1t is
to be understood that he gets on the
nerves of the finer spirits for his
whole being is made to affect the
masses. He has the gift, nay the
genius of being sensational"
Another writer admires Mr.. Roose-
velt's powers of withstanding the
wear and tear of his own greatness,
and quotes with approval the dictum
that Mr.. Roosevelt has probably never
been compelled TO make voyage of
discovery into his own interior.
1t is impossible to deny TO the vital
ity of Mr. Roosevelt gasp of admir-
alton. Bounding out of the solitude
of Uganda he has enlightened Egypt
and astonished Rome. His track
across the earth is marked with con-
troyersy. Hardly has the telegraph
ceased to tick with the news that his
speeches in Cairo had set the nation
alist's Illuminating, than fresh mes
sages tell the tale of his encounter
with the Pope. Now proclaiming the
beauty of docility TO subject people,
week later ne is winning the COM
mendation of protestant America for
upholding the dignity of Methodism
in the very stronghold of Papacy, and
now he is iecturing the French on
their sterility. There is in it all an
assurance, self absorption, that ex-
tort reluctant homage Over what
dreams of the future, over what tra-
ditions of the past has he not tr&mpled
in his rapid passage Hating for a