The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1913-02-07

Jew seized the chain, having first
handed the Moslem his staff, inside
which he had placed the money in
question, and swore he had paid the
debt. To the establishment OF the on
lockers the chain then rose to its
present height.
The principal building, the Mosque
Of Omar, is highly praised by many
great authorities. Professor Lewis
says: 1T is undoubtedly one Of the
most beautiful buildings in existence.
Mr.. Ferguson, speaking as an archi'
tect, says: The one thing | was least
| prepared for was the extreme beauty
Of the interior of the building ] re-
member perfectly the effect Of the
Tai Mahal and the other great i'm.
perial tombs of Agra and Delhi, and
am tolerably familiar with most of the
tombs and tomb-like buildings in
other countries. But, as far as |
know, the Dome OF the Rock sur
passes them all. There is an elegance
of proportion, and an appropriateness
Of detail which does not exist in any
other building I am acquainted with.
Its mosaics are complete and beauti-
full in design, and its painted gla-
though comparatively modern (six.
teenth century,, is more beautiful
than any in this country. These, com
bined with the mystery Of the great
Rock, occupying the whole floor of
the sanctuary, make up a whole, as
far as ! know, unrivaled in the world"
Before entering the building shoes
must be removed or covered with
slippers.
No sound disturbs the solemn still
ness which reigns around, even the
football Of the Moslem worshiper is
noiseless; no organ peals forth har
monious notes; no white-robed choirs |
chant the praises of the Almighty and !
Eternal God, who of old shed forth |
the brightness of his glory, the great |
ness of his majesty, and the tender /
ness Of his love on this spot
All is still, and the stiffness seems
to attach itself to the visitor; as a
whisper sounds so loud the voice is |
used as little as possible, and then !
soft and low A dim religious light !
pervades the building, and a feeling
Of awe and of reverence steals slowly |
DER the astonished and wondering
traveller. When the sun glints through !
the colored windows, of so many va
ried shapes that no two are alike, and
yet all are in perfect harmony, their
marvellous beauties amaze the behold
er. AS the sunbeams linger on their
beauty they shed their brightness on
the mosaics and tiles of the dim in
terror the gilded cornices, friezes and
capitals. The exquisite beauty Of the
decorations gradually appears and the
more one becomes accustomed to the
light the more one fingers under the
Dome and the greater grows the ad-
miration.
The Moslem pilgrim feels not the
spell Of the beauty of the building
He has come to Worship his thoughts
are fixed on the great rock in the
middle space, which rises from one
foot to five feet above the marble
pavement. A hole leads to cave be-
meath. This cave is about six feet
nigh and foored with white marble,
below which the Moslems think is the
Well of Spirits, and in order to prove
his the attendant stamps with his
'oot and hollow sound is heard. The
ioor was only made, so the Moslems
say, to prevent gossiplng women from
speaking to the departed.
The rock is believed to be one of
he rocks of Paradise; and 1t stands
IN a palm tree, beneath which flows
me Of the streams Of Paradise. This
'ock is the center of the world, and
IN the day of resurrection the Angel
srafil will stand upon 1t to blow the
asst trumpet 1t is also eighteen miles
learer heaven than any other place
n the world, and beneath it is the