South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-12-29

Turks by the British forces is likely
to reveal to the modern civilized world
for the first time the most interesting sacred
relics in existence.
Chief interest centres in the mysterious
chambers, tunnels, caves, tombs and treasures
concealed beneath the Mosque of Omar, also
known as ''the Dome of the Rock" This
building stands upon the site of King Solo
mons Temple and the rock beneath it was
revered by prehistoric peoples even before the
Hebrews arrived in Jerusalem.
So long as Jerusalem was under Moslem
domination it was absolutely impossible for
any one to secure a permit to excavate at the
Holy City, for it was just as holy to the Mos
lem as to jew and Christian, and especially
did they guard the secrets of the site of Solo
mons Temple which had been built over with
a mighty mosque The huge rock in the cen
ire of the mosque was guarded by high iron
grill so that no alien hand might touch or
foot profane it.
Why this stone, which is sixty feet square
and now stands some five feet above the sur
rounding earth, was so highly revered by
ancient nations is one Of the many puzzles
which the spade of the excavatOr may reveal
once it Is permitted 70 dig down underneath
the rock into the tunnels and chambers which
are known to be there.
The rock is known as the ''Sakhrah" Il
was the highest point of the mountain on
which King Solomon built his temple The
rebuilding of the temple by Zerubbabel was
upon the same site, and it was enlarged under
Herod the Great. On the west the area was
increased by banking up the earth, supported
by enormous walls of stone There Is a
PERCEPTIONS descent from the Sakhrah of 200
feet to the valley In which the west Haram
wall was built The descent en- the south and
east is only about twenty feet from the level
of the rock itself All scholars agree that the
temple proper covered the rock, and in the
sacred book called Mishnah completed in the
second century, containing statements by
rabbis who had witnessed the destruction of
the temple In the year 20 A. d. is a descrip-
ton Of the awful Day of AtOnement when
once a year-the High Priest III fear and
trembling, entered the Holy of Holes where
there was no longer any Ark when the
Ark was removed a stone was there, since the
days of the first prophets that is of David
and it wes called the Foundation it was
three fingers above the ground, and on it he
put the censor"
The Sakhrah is very peculiar rock, hav
ing steps cut in If on the west side as though
20 form the base of a wall There is a cave
beneath il on the east with shaft through
It's roof to the surf4ee It is also said to have
another excavation below the floor of the cave
The Moslems have accepted the Jewish tradi-
ton and speak of the Sakhrah as the founda-
ton of the world, rock of paradise suspend
ed over the abyss where souls dwell till the
judgment.
The former temple was Of vast extent. for
there were many courts besides the building
which covered this stone
There is little doubt in the minds of those
who have studied the ground that there are
numerous tunnels and chambers under the
great rock The ancient chronicler, Josephus,
speaks Of a search made there by John Hyr-
canus for treasure (134 B. c. He opened
tombs supposed to be those of earlier Kings
Of Israel.
Wicked Herod, too, searched the tombs for
treasure but he did not come 10 the collins
of the kings themselves, for their bodies were