The Delta independent., 1919-01-10
THE AMERICAN RED CROSS
IN THE HOLY LAND
CBy John Huston Finley

to Palestine.
/ reached Jerusalem late one Sat
urday afternoon. on foot. over the
myself to approach and enter the
Holy City in a car that had not been
as yet hallowed tas thousands of
Fords and other cars have been, by
their Red Cross markings and min
istrations.) but by the following
Tuesday this. our first car. had been
consecrated to such service, and !
rode out to Bethany, accompanying
one of our doctors in his visits to
refugees from the Jordan Valley
the first specific work of the Ameri-
can Red Cross in Palestine.
We found on our arrival. however,
that these particular refugees had
been sent little way out from Beth
any. and while the doctor was get
ting his directions ! found time to
enter a little field few steps be-
yond the wall at the roadside to see
a winnowing scene such as doubtless
might have been witnesser two thou
sand years ago in that very same
iitih hith uito Up oh
the cliff and back in the fields. to-
ward Jerusalem. some distance from
the Jericho road. where the army
lorries and ambulances We're flying
back and forth attended by gray
clouds of dust, the refugees had been
sent. And so il was that | climbed
up thru the narrow streets to that
now forsaken part of the village to
which the Master came at the end
of some of His harrassed days in
Jerusalem. near the place. perhaps.
where Martha met Him after the
death OF her brother Lazarus. for He
had not yet come into the village"
Not far away were the broken walls
of the one-time house of Lazarus.
and a few steps from the house the
tomb itself. deep in the earth. where.
according to tradition, Lazarus was
laid and whence he came forth, as
we could see when lighted by can
dies from the deep grotto.
After stopping for a moment at
the ruins of the reputed house of
Simon the Leper to look out over
Bethany to the Dead Sea, a narrow
stretch of which could be seen. l
passed through a field filled with
olive trees. under whose shadows
boys were herding goats and soon
caught sight of large modern build,
ing from which could hear the min
gled voices Of men. women and chill
dren.
As I approached ! saw out on the
bare hill in the sun. a group seated
in circle. one of their number
playing on an improvised instrument
of one string-the poet who sang of
the deeds of his Incompatible chief
tain. The medley of noise and mis-
cry from the house near by seemed
not to distrub his quiet rhapsodies.
Here in the abandoned monastery,
from which the Turks had driven
out the former occupants, We're gath
cred hundred or more refugees
from Salt and the country about
great stalwart men in picturesque
garb. usually marked with color wo-
men OF stately hearing who had faces
of fine profile. but marred, according
to our standards OF beauty. by the
blue tattoo on the cheek or chin.
and children who would all have
been beautiful II they had not. most
of them, had half or wholly blinded
eyes. All of these hpd to leave
their anchestral dwelling places and
rich fields off toward the Mountains
of Moab. which could be seen upon
the horizcn-had had to leave them
at almost moments notice with
only what they could catch up and
miserable in their idleness and sick
ness and. as imagine. nostalgia.
housed promiscuously as in great
cheerless tenement house which had
been left by the enemy without n
fragment of furniture or with orna-
ment The English military author,
tiles have given food and have i'm.
provised shelter for these refugees.
and so kept them from absolute star
walton and exposure. II Is the OPP
portunity OF America, thru the Red
Cross to supplement these barest ne
cessities by helping to minister to
the sick and especially needy of
those who were living peacefully in
wars track and who fed to the
English for protection. II was with
smch motive that the Red Cross doc.
tor. representing America. was there,
going from room to room In that
great caravansera. examining men.
women and children "sick of divers
diseases" and telling the muktar