The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1914-12-21
OCCUPIED THE
GARDEN OF EDEN
British Have Captured Adam and
Ewes Old Home in the Vicin-
ity of Basra

Cairo, Dec. 21.-In capturing Bas-
ra just below the mouths of the Tig-
ris and the Euphrates, the British
now have the satisfaction of controll-
ing the spot where God in popularity
supposed to have created Adam.
Basra is also the place from which
the ship of Sindad the Sailor carried
him on his amazing adventures.
From a political point of view Bas-
ra is important because the Germans
intended to end their Bagdad railroad
there. It is the center of the worlds
date trade.
Basra is on the Shatt-Ul-Arab, an
estuary formed of the combined wa
tiers of the Tigris, Euphrates and Ka-
run rivers. The "Sha" empities into
the Persian Gulf.
The British already controlled Fac,
cable station on the gulf. From
here the expedition proceeded to the
Shaft. The beautiful date palms line
the waterway.
The bank on the eastern side forms
one edge of Adagan Island, tradi-
tionally the site of the Garden of Eden
but now Boosting principally the re-
fineries of the Anglo-Persian Oil Com
pany. The oil runs down $50 miles
from the Bakhtiari Mountains of Per-
STA, where crude petroleum gushes
from the ground in abundance.
Another site on the way to Basra
is the home of the powerful Sheik
of Mohammera. The British steam
ers always fire salute when passing
because the Sheik once came to the
rescue of a British ship attacked by
pirates near his home.
South Side of River
Basra itself is on the southern side
of the river. 1t is entirely modern,
the old city of Basra from which Sin
bad the Sailor made his seven voy-
ages, being now good four. miles in
land. Old Basra, now called Zotboir,
was in those days, for Sinbad is not
entirely fictictious character, on the
sea or, at least, on the salt tide that
ebbed and flowed along the Khor Alb
dulla, the chief mouth of the Eu-
pirates. The most CONSPICUOUS build
ings in Basra are the British consul
late, sturdy, verandahed house, that
properly sanbagged, could give good
account of itself against mere rifle
fire, and the Lynch officers almost next
door.
A little further upstream is the
Ashar, creek that extends for some
distance southwark from the river.
it is crowded with boats of all sizes,
from canoes to bungalows, and on
the southeastern side is kind of
promenade between the creek and a
row of tumble-down houses which rep
resent the Piccadilly of Basra.
Away in old Basra there is not much
to see except the minaret of Bash
Ayyan, which is, perhaps $50 years
old, and has picturesque courtyard
Nothing, unfortunately, recalls the
Bassa, of Sinbad any more than mod
ern Bagdad represents the Bagdad OF
the good Caliph Harum- er- Raschid
except the direction of the streets anc
one lump of brick work, which is
alas! fast falling into the Tigris
But the date gardens between Old anC
New Basra have a special interest o.
their own, for it was from the clay be
tween the roots of date palm at Bias
ra that Jehovah gathered clay will
which he fashioned Adam in the Gar
den of Eden. For this reason the de
vout Mohammedan will never abus
his date trees, however, much the.
fail him. for the command in the Ko
ran runs, Respect the date palms
for they are your annts."
Gibbon mentioned "The Christian
of st. John of Basra." These are tn
Sebaeans, a strange race that lives i
the Euphrates, bed, and besides dair
farming, earn livelihood by makin
the one remaining mystery of meta
work in the world. They execut
. beautiful Niello designs in silver, gol
] and black, and would die rather tina
surrender the secret of the workman
ship. They are a quaint folk, if OF
ly because they believe that st. job
the Baptist was the real Messiah, an
worship only him-and the Pole Stal
They keep their doctrines as much
secret as their metallurgy, but ce1
tain tenets are admitted by thel
which link them not only with Chri
: tianity and Gnosticism, but with /
7 lam and Professionalism.