The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-01-06
THIS IS CHRISTMAS
 EVE FOR THE PILGRIMS TO PALESTINE.

Tonight will be Christmas Eve for the 2O,0O0.0OO adherents of the Greek Catholic or Eastern church. As every Moslern hopes. before he dies, to visit hold Mecca, so it is the ann bition of every. Russian, Greek. and Balkan Christian to spend Christmas in Palestine. Last year, owing to the war, few pilgrims spent the Yuletide season in the Holy Land, but this year 9 great tide of pious pilgrims have swept down upon Jerusalem. The Balkan States will not send many pill grims, as Jerusalem is still Turkish possession, and the Turks have not yet forgiven their late enemies. Be- sides, so many men have been killed in war that the survivors cannot spare the time to make the trip. Among the Russians the situation is different. The Turks have prejudice against the subjects of the Czar, and the pill grins spend much money among the faithful disciples of Mohammed, Last year the Russian government refused to issue passports to persons bound for. Palestine: Usually ten or fifteen thousand Russians visit the Holy Land
 during the Christmas season. but thif year 1t is likely that there will be
 many more.
 Most of the Palestine pilgrims go first to Jerusalem. but on Christmas Eve the exodus to Bethlehem begins. The site of the stable where tradition says Jesus was born is now occupied
 by. a Greek church. AS many pilgrims
 as can get in this 1ow-roofed strl1c- ture spend the entire night there. The
 priests chant through the night, the
 worshippers rise and kneeI and bow their heads in turn. and an air of i'm
 pressive soleminity hangs over the place as the morning of Christmas is
 ushered in. The church holds a for tune in treasures and decorations con
 tributed by pilgrims.
 Jerusalem is thronged with people on Christmas day. which. in the East,
 falls on our January 7th. Russians ually many Greeks, Bu1garians. Serbs.
 Montenegrins and Armenians. Jeru- salem abounds in sacred edifices. rep resenttng all Christian churches and sects, and containing numerous relics.
 There are also many Mohamme medan
 mosques and Jewish synagogues. BrawIs are of frequent occurrence at the Sepulcher and other sacred
 shrines, and, except for the khaki
 clad Turkish and Syrian soldiers who stand constant guard, the Christians
 of the warning sects would frequently
 fly at each others throats. One can not but admire the tolerant song-frofd
 of the stalwart iMoslens who keep
 never manifest any discrimination among the different varieties of Chris :
 tians. Tn separating combatants they are as gentle as possible. but. they. wear an expression of grim determina ton that is very sobering to the s.giaours who have sought to settle theological disputes with their fists. In repose they are cynical, sardonie, and grim1y amused at what appeals, to them as only the grosseat supersti- ton.
 l Of all the beggars in the world, those that flock to Jerusalem on Christmas are the most repulsive. They all pose as Christians. whether they are or not, and seek. by display ing their horrid sores and ulcers, 70 arouse the compassion of the pilgrims It is impossible to believe that hu- man body could become such mass 1 Of filth and dirt and sores. partly. GOV 1 cred with rags and alive with vernlfns until one has seen these Palestine beg gars. The beggars of Constantinople. horrible as they are. are not a cir Icumstance to those of Jerusalem.