The Rathdrum tribune. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1903-1963, 1924-08-08


II Adam and Eve returned to ou
spinning sphere they could step Int
an American automobile and commute
between the Garden Of Eden ant
paradise on EARTH"
This is no mere figure of speech, be
cause Christians place Eden In the
Euphrates valley near Babylon, while
Mohammedans consider Damascus
paradise of the EARTH and now Da-
maseus and Bagdad, just over the way
from Babylon, have been linked by O
passenger transport using motor cars
''Madc in the United States"
The station-caller for the new rub
ber-tlred caravan is likely candidate
for conductor on the Magic Carpet.
Before the sun peeps over Mt. Carmel
rhe head gasoline sbeik pokes his head
in tile door Of the best hotel at Haifa,
Jerlisaem's Mediterranean port, and
probably shouts in stentorian train
caller tones:
''All aboard for Bagdad! Stops made
al Sidon, Tyre, Beirut, Mt. Lebanon
Pass. Damascus, Ramadi, and points
y,
arrive AT Bagdad noon Monday"
If ii Is not the Magic Carpet, 1t GER
tainly Is near approach to that long
sung mode of transportation. Even
in 1914 Haifa WAS almost a month
from Bagdad by overland travel, and
three weeks Of that month had to be
spent in tedious. racklng camel-travel.
But the hotel entrance discloses no
planes only threa sleek American
motor cars purrlng like great cats, and
a view Of the blue Mediterranean.
y These three motor cars travelling
twice week between Haifa, Damas-
Gus and Bagdad are the latest jolt to
the changing and changed East. 1t
means that products Of American me-
chanical genius have conquered what
Is probably the oldest trade route
known to man, the sandy waste be-
tween the Holy Land and the rich |
valley of the twin rivers Tigris and |
Euphrates. where Babylon raised her |
mighty towers.
Less than twenty years ago ances-
ors Of these motor cars which cover
90 miles Of desert in two days and
/ half, were snapped up by New York
portsmen II they could chug around
half-mile board track without STOP
ing. What wonder that the shuttle
Dotted eamels, masters Of this desert
rail for more than 5000 years, elevate
heir noses in painful disgust when
kron (Ohio) tires throw sand in their
yes.
Motoring Through Historic Land.
London is brought within 10 days Of
agdad by the new transport which
'w carries mall as well as passengers
rayelers can connect with the service /
HIaifa by train from Alexandria OF $
zip directly to the port of Beirut and I
lin the caravan there. The motor r
IRIS. In addition TO three expert chauf- I
urs, carry motor mechanic and t
so. on reaching the true desert, an I
rab skilled In politics as well as +
avel. Leaving Haifa, on the Bay Of f
ire OF Crusader fame. the cars de-
end directly to the sand beach. This
lords one of the finest motor roads ia
e world SO closely do the cars hug a
e shore that waves often lap the .
reels. -
Before reaching Tyre, Gibraltar of X
E ancient world. and Sidon, Its one n
ne New York, the swift cars must r,
IN inland to evade dunes. But .;
rfect pike awaits them, for Allenby's 81,
cken-wire road stretches before the Fl
florists. When the English fought r.
/, Turks in Palestine they found that
'saic wire mesh would support n,
yer in the sand. and 1t Is this same
r road which the passenger trans ra
t uses IN
'yre, and Sidon. whose destruction In
akiel most aptly phophesied and ga
Ich Jesus declared were but little mi
ter than wicked Sodom, look inno- ri:
I enough today. Like Los Angeles or
San Francisco, these two ports II
RED on An ancient feud for suprem- pa
Today Sldon Is the largest. 1t tn,
orts thousands of cases of oranges 10,
tons Of olives from the fruitful tn,
Ian plain. Ancient Sidonese ex- del
ted BEAUTIFUL purple dye from the
HIrranean shellfish but the copy "A
I laws were loose in Solomon's da