Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1920-08-19

Little Town Of Bethlehem More Ac-
cesslbIe-The Only Jew Resident of
the Place 10 q Doetor-Is a chris-
tIan Town.
Bethlehem is still occupied enemy
territory. The white, limestone town
in Palestine. which is holy to half
billion Christians. is passing Its hfth
consecutive war year without pill
grims.
Formerly the slopes Of Kharrubeh,
under the fortress wall Of the Church
of the Holy Nativity, glittered nightly
with camp fires Of hundreds Of Rus
slams. But Turkeys entry into the war
in 1914 put such sudden end to the
piAgrimages of the Russians that few
Of them are still stranded in Bethle-
hem. The Crescent and Star, with
which Sellm the Grim hewed his way
into Palestine in 1918, was hauled
down from the Turkish serai In Beth
lehem when the British army occupied
1t in 1918. Pending the dictation OF
peace to Turkey, Bethlehem is admin
istered by the British army, and sn0
civilian is permitted to enter it with
out British military permission, Clare
Price writes in Land and Water don-
don).
Town More Accessible Now.
Before the war, Palestine was moi
some, sealed up Turkish place. off the
trade routes, difficult to get at and
more difficult to get about in after one
got there. Two military secrets, how
ever. were revealed when the armis-
tice with Turkey was proclaimed, In
1918. One was the completion by the
British army of the Palestine military
railway. The other was the compile
ton by the enemy of the stupendous
Taurus tunnels in the Chemin de Fer
Imperial Ottoman de Bagdad. Taken
together, these two projects have
opened new windows and doorways
into Palestine, so that the winds OF
the world may blow through and any
body who has the railway fare may
walk in and see for himself.
The first civilians to reach Bethle-
Iltlll dltSI Tic L III hiSll pCutC 10 SiS"S'
will see a single line of old Turkish
trench zigzagging like a white hair
across the far side Of the Rahib val
ley to the south. They will see plenty
of British soldiers, whose prospect of
rehabilitation Is remote, and little
groups of British officers on leave,
guided by the same dragomans who
three years ago were guiding German
officers on leave at Bethlehem. And
If they have not visited Bethlehem
before, 1t may not occur to them how
miraculousiy the place has been
scrubbed and secured and white
washed.
One Jew In Bethlehem.
The ancient rock hewn cistern
known throughout the world as Da-
vid's Well, and the small, domed Mos
lem burying place known as Rachels
tomb. appeared in 1919 exactly as
they appeared when the last Of the
tourists fingered the last of the Bae-
dekers before them In 1914. The
Church Of the Holy Nativity stands at
the eastern end of the town as stark
and whitish gray as it stood before 1t
witnessed the most important event in
its $500 years of life-the powerful
impact of the west on the Ottoman
empire. The sound Of expiring en-
pires comes dim with distance into
the gold and jeweled silence inside the
Church of the Holy Nativity.
to yhric To
is the most Christian town In southern
Palestine In q country inhabited by
$4,000 Moslems, $4,000 Jews and g.
600 Christians, Bethlehem's population
consists Of 1000 Christians and a
remnant Of MosIems, whose number
does not exceed 500. Just now third
element has been added to its popula-
ton. climbed back and forth through
its steep, narrow, slippery streets for
an hour without seeing any Of those
meek, fur hated figures one passes
so continually in the Jaffa road at
Jerusalem. Then 1 stopped random
British soldier.
II see no Jews here" / said.
"No, sir"
"Are there any Jews in Bethlehem"
"Yes, sir"
"How many?"
"One,. SIR"
'sHow long has he been here?"
"Three weeks, sir"
Only Jew ls a Doctor.
He is a doctor, with the six pointed
star of Zionism on his khaki sleeve,
who was brought to Bethlehem by
the deputy military governor. Bethle-
hem and Nazareth heretofore have not
admitted Jews to their population.
stood one morning recently in an
upstairs window of the old Turkish
serai, which overloOks the quiet, color
full hubbub Of the market place. It
was Sunday morning and the market
place was vivid with the broad
warmth, the white glare and the poppy
colors Of Palestine. Little groups
squatted on the pavements, with their
skins of sour milk, their sheets of ma
tive bread and their panniers of lambs
tails on the fiagstones before them.
Goats and fat tailed sheep, herded to-
gether by Bedouin shepherds, lay along
the edges Of the spacious scene. Far
over to the left, In the shade cast by
the lofty wall of the Church Of the
Holy Nativity, camels lay chewing
their cuds, their legs folded up beneath
them like a jackknife, their bells
breaking into heavy tinkle as they
gulped.
Through the squatting groups and
The herds tho ununilad woman Of Rafh-