The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1923-10-16
ROMANCE OF
EAST SEEN
IN LETTER
Mrs. Kerr Tells of Visit to
King Hiran's Tomb and
Methods of Travel

MStItOuS VI 1A0SCA
e. Something Of the romance ant
Stauty OF ancient Tyre and Sidon OF
( ghe far east is contained in letter
= sgom Alma b. Kerr, Near East Re
lief Workereat Beirut, Syria to Mrs
Alfled Zuger.7s The letter follows:
II am going to tell you something
about trip ! made yesterday which
WIS one of the most interesting trips
| have ever made. We have with us
young boy, a-master scout who has
worked in the Orphanages this sum
mer, prior to going into the interior
of Turkey to Tarsus to work in the
school there. He is Mason and
: has been eager to make this trip up
to Tyre and to King Hiram's tomb.
I'VE arose very early-at four
and hurriedly did all the necessary
Saturday toll, my work being the
bathing of 1900 children, with moth
erly advice to some large boys, etc.
% by great rushing we were able to
start for Tyre at ten. 1t is about
thirty miles to Tyre, but we did not
get there until or later, as we had
three punctures enroute. The ride
down is lovely along the shore of
the blue sea, passing frequently
little coffee houses, where alone veg
citation abounds, and more often
passing berowins and camel trains,
on the hot and dusty road, seeming
ly quite immune to the terrible heat.
We saw along the. road as we neared
Tyre the remains of the ancient
aquaduct built by the Romans, which
carried water from Solomon's pools
to Tyre and the, once rick valley.
The water is still carried into the
city this way, but theSland on this
side of Tyre is no longer watered
and is therefore vast. Tyre always
fascinates one
The ride out Of the peninsula,
remembering the history Of how
Alexander the Great destroyed hun
dFeds and hundreds Of homes, and
threw them into the sea filling in
tbs space between the island of Tyre
and the coast, with these and all
kinds of rocks brought in by
his army, taking over seven months
90 do so, and ut last building a main
way out TO the sea which has widen
ed, since then to half a mile There
are also hundreds of balbed wire
ENGAGEMENTS put up three years
ago when the Arabs attacked the
city. And oh the hundreds OF cam
els! The Arabs! rs xa.sN
We drove to the Kahn and bar
gained for three riding horses, as
there is no auto road out to the
-otab. If excavations We're made IN
Tyre II Is certain that they would
end the ancient city under the SAND
All that is visible now, are the gran
tic column along the ancient har-
Dor, and the granite columned GENE
terry which have been found at burial
of The Moslems in the sand.
"A Frenchman excavated build
ing under the sand, but now almost
recovered by the Crusaders here III
Sidon. In the public square~are
several marble Sarc opAagus which
&re used for The watering of the ami
nais from the Khan. We drove oui
as far as our car would take us
found the horses we had hired await
ing for us here.
But not only the three, but si1
had been sent out so we had on
choice. l took small Arab mare
and she was wonderful We were d,
I'D IN one who looked lik,
thoroughbred, but who could scarcely
Du. III spite Oh Tie y,..
of horses We made some progres
over the plains and soon began I.
Limb. The horses are very sur.
footed, so that they pick their wa.
by instinct as it were over the rock.
OF the mountains or hills. We met
great many camels. All of tn,
people whom we met there were Nit
ualian. They eyed US, curiously, il
not suspicously as we rode along. We
were entertained by various fables
as to the wonderful antiquities dug
up around here. One village we
passed is called Ain Bal. This means
the eyes Of Bal, the ancient God.
History says that this was a place
sacred to Baal in ancient days. Sew
eral years ago poor shepherd was
herding in this valley and he dis
covered cave or tomb which he en-
tered and found a large earthen jar
full Of gold. He became wild with
JOY and struggled SO to carry this
home with him without arousing the
curiosity of others that it took him
AZ hours to go mile or more. The
next day he died of Joy with the jar