“IN MEDITERRANEAN LANDS “ Grwtee of fjk 5 r ^ 0 f ani ’ 1895 By S. R. STODDARD GLENS FALLS, N. Y. (f)u6ft0$eb 8g ffle $uf0or MDCCCXCVI PHo tog. HH . 31 CfrT I23C, Copyright 1896, by S. R. Stoddard. PRESS OP A V. HAIGHT. POUGHKEEPSIE, N. Y. THE J. PAUL GETTY CENTER LIBRARY CONTENTS. (■ Subject Headings of Chapters and Illustrations.) THE START — page i. “ Where Shepherds Watch their Flocks" , Frontispiece; Icy New York , Pier 14, 1 ; The Start , 2; Liberty , j ; The Pilot Leaves us, 4. THE STORM — page 5. The Engineer Talks, 3 ; Old Ocean's Tribute, 6 ; The Midshipmite, 7 / In the Heart of the Storm, 8; The Yeasty Sea, //. THE DEVIL’S ISLANDS— page 12. Willing Hands, 12 ; St. George s, ij ; Native Bermudians, 14; Easter Lilies, 15; Sawing Stone, 16; The Devil' s Hole, 17 ; The Fries l arid at Sea, 18. THE LONG RUN— page 19. Ocean Waves, ig ; The Foretop Watch, 20; “ Tangled," 20 ; The Stew- ard's Family , 20; “ Chinns," 21 ; Getting on his Sea Legs, 21 ; “ The Blue and the Grey, 21 ; The Friesland Band, 22 ; The Affable Purser, 22; Chet , 2j ; “ And Clark Smiled 23 ; Ring Toss, 24 ; ShuffleBoard, 24. GIBRALTAR— page 25. Gibraltar at Night, 23 ; The Rock of Gibraltar from the Neutral Grounds, 26; Under the Friesland's Bow , 2g ; Street in Gibraltar, 30; The Moorish Las tie, 31; A Glimpse from the Fortress, 32; Spanish Sentinel, 32 ; In Spanishtown, 33. CONTENTS. MALAGA— page 35. Malaga from the Sea, 33 ; “ A Neat Paper Box," 33 ; Transfer to the landing barge, 36 ; In a Spanish Balcony, 37 ; Spanish Gentleman, 38 ; Spanish Beggprs, 39 ; Street in Malaga , 40; Spanish goats, 40; A Charcoal fire, 40; Malaga from the Citadel, 41 ; Spanish Ladies, 41 ; A Roadside House, 42. GRANADA AND THE ALHAMBRA — page 43. Spanish Women, 44 ; Railroading — driving a bargain, 43 ; The Spanish Gipsy, 46 ; A Window, 47 ; The A lhambra, from the city, 49 ; The Lions Fountain, 30 ; Court of the Lions, 32. ALGIERS— page 55. The Incline Facing the Quay, 34; Native Boatman, 33 ; Woman of Algiers, 36; Street, 36; zEsculapius a-Donkey-back, 37 ; A well-to-do Native, 57 ; A Street in Old Algiers, 38 ; Fruit dealer, 39 ; “ The Painted Woman," 60 ; A Medusa Face, 61; A Mohammedan at Prayers, 61 ; Wearers of the Coffee Sack, 62. HISTORY OF FOUR DAYS— page 63. New fersey day on shipboard, 64 THE NILE DELTA— page 65. Pompey' s Pillar , 63 ; Villages of The Nile Delta, 67; An Irrigating Canal, 66 ; A Sakieh, 68 ; A Shadoof, 68. CAIRO — page 69. Obelisk of Heliopolis, 69 ; Egyptian Woman and Child, 70 ; Water Carrier, 7 / / A Soldier of the Army of Occupation , 7 /; A Porter, 72 ; A Sheik, 73 ; A Street in Cairo , 74; A Street Sprinkler , 73 ; “ Meditation," 73 ; Native Ko-ro-za and veil, 76; A Low-class Woman, 76 ; An Egyp- tian Boot-black , 76; A Donkey boy, 77 ; Dining Pavilion, 77 ; Teaching Egypt's Young Ideas to Shoot, 78; Latticed Balconies, 79 ; The Alabaster Mosque, So ; Tombs of the Caliphs, 81 ; A Moslem Cemetery, 81 ; The Market Place, 82; The Citadel and “ Charley S3; “ Three of a Kind," SetiL, Tot limes II., Raineses II., 84; The Snake charmer, S3; Na- tive, and Camel loaded with Alfalfa, 86. A Nile Boat. CONTENTS. THE PYRAMIDS— page 87. Egyptian Buffalo and wagon , 87 ; The Pyramids from the distance , 87; Cheops The Great , 88; Climbing the Pyramids, qi ; Second Pyramid from top of Cheops, qo : A camel train, g2 ; Entrance to King's Chamber , q4. THE SPHINX— page 97. The Fair Fr ies lander , 97; “ Old Glory" at the Pyramids, q8 ; Temple *- of the Sphinx , 99 ; The Sphinx, 100. Natives of Palestine. THE RIVER NILE— page 104. Nile Boats, 104 ; A Dahabeah , 105 ; A Sakieh, 106 ; A IV ater-gate , 106 ; A Mud Village, 107. OLD MEMPHIS AND SAKKARA— page 108. The landing at Bedrashcn, 107 ; Donkey Persuaders, 108; Aids to Mounting, 108 ; Water-carriers, ioq ; Bedrashcn, loq ; Ruins of Ancient Memphis, no ; Statue of Raineses II., in ; Egyptian Plowman, 112 ; A Bedouin Encampment, 112 ; Sakkdra, iij ; “ Her Lord and Master uj; An Autocrat, uj ; Camel and young, 114 ; Step Pyramid, 114; Ruins at Sakkdra, 115; Mast aba of Ti, nj; A crippled Beggar creeping on the sands, uj ; Port Said — Latent Energy, 116 ; Lightening the Fries- land, 116. JOPPA — page 1 1 7. An Exciting transfer, nq; The "Fiirst Bismarck," 1/8; Among the Breakers , 120; Market Scene, 122 ; House of Simon the Tanner, 127; Terraced Hillsides, 125 ; “ The Transfiguration 126. JERUSALEM — page 127. Women with water-jars, ijo ; A Modern Philistine , iji ; A Goatskin churn , tj4 ; Moslem women in street costume, ijj ; Young Arabs, ijy ; A Syrian woman and child, ij 6 ; The Greek Patriarch of ferusalem, 1777; Blind Beggars, ijy ; Lepers, ij 8 ; Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives — Panoramic view, 140-141 ; Jaffa Gate, 142 ; A Street in Jerusa- lem, 14J ; The Money changer, 144 ; House of Dives, 145 ; Church of the xi CONTENTS. A Street in Jerusalem. Holy Sepulchre, 146; The Angel's Chapel , 148; Stairway at the Holy Sepulchre , 130 ; The Mosque of Omar, 132; “Dome of the Rock,” 134; Wailing place of the Jews, 136. ROUND ABOUT JERUSALEM— page 157. King Solomon' s Quarries, Entrance , 757 ; St. Stephen's Gate, 138 ; Da - mascus Gate, 138 ; The New Golgot ha, 734 ; “ 7 he Stone that was Rolled Away," 160 ; Tombs of the Kings , Vestibule, 161 ; Valley of Hinnom, 162; Silwan (Siloam), 162; Tomb of Absalom , 163 ; The Mount of Ol- ives, 164 ; Ancient Olive tree in the Garden of Gethsemane , 166 ; Fran- ciscan Monk , 166 ; Pilgrims at station in the Garden of Gethsemane, 163; Where the Disciples slept, 167 ; Tombs of the Prophets, Entrance, 167 ; Church of the Lord's Prayer, 16S ; Place of the Ascension, 16S ; Bethany, i6q ; Bethlehem of Judea, 17 1 ; Grotto of the Nativity, 170. FROM JERUSALEM TO JERICHO— page 173. David Jammel , Dragoman, 172; A Native Sheik, 173 ; A Horse-wo- man, 178 ; Good Samaritan Inn, 180 ; “Trilby,” 180 ; Russian Pilgrims, 181 ; Brook Cherith , 182; Valley of the Jordan, 1S4; Making Mud Bricks, 187 ; Native hut at Jericho , 1S7 ; Jordan Hotel , 188 ; Jericho Camp, iSq ; A pproaching the Dead Sea, igo ; Shores of the Dead Sea, igi ; The River Jordan, igj. THE SAMARITAN BROTHERHOOD— page 195. The Samaritan Brotherhood, ig6 ; Mount Tabor, ig8 ; A Modern Jacob, 200; “ Saladin," 201. THE GALILEE SECTION— page 203. Sea of Galilee, 202 ; A Threshing-floor, 203. NORTHERN PALESTINE— page 207. Caifa from Mount Carmel, 208 ; Unwinding the Cocoons, 21 1 ; Silk Weaving, 21 1 ; Cedars of Lebanon, 272. ASIA MINOR — page 214. In Smyrna, 213 ; Ruins at Ephesis, 277 ; The Citadel 0)i the Hill, 217 ; “ Where Storks build their nests," 218 ; Nature's Forces, 220. A t Bey rout. CONTENTS. ATHENS — page 221. One of the King's guards , 221 ; Piraeus, 222; Funeral a la mode, 225; A Native Albanian, 225 ; Prison of Socrates, 22b ; Columns of the Temple of fupiter, 226; Theatre of Bacchus, 227 ; Theatre of Herod, 227 ; The Acropolis, 228 ; Mars Hill , 229. CONSTANTINOPLE AND THE TURK— page 231. In the Dardanelles, 233 ; Stamboul and the Golden Horn , 236 ; Gal at a from Stamboul, 237 ; Street dogs, 238 ; Off his beat, 239 ; Street car, 239; “ A Bearer of Burdens," 240 ; A Drink offering , 141; Mosque of St. Sophia , 242 ; “ The Queen of the Haremf 246 ; Preparing for his Devo- tions, 247 ; At Prayer, 249. NAPLES — page 251. Naples, 230 ; The Singing girls, 232; Spaghetti, 233 ; An Italian Team, 233 ; lt The Milk train 236 ; The Padre, 237 ; Italian Soldier, 237. MOUNT VESUVIUS— page 258. A Peasant Woman, 238; Inverted for Centisimos, 239 ; The Lava Beds, 239; The Inclined Railway, 260; Nearing the Summit, 26c ; The Crater, 262 ; Down in the Crater, 263 ; The Guide, 263 ; Road down the mountain, 264. HERCULANEUM AND POMPEII— page 265. A Street in Pompeii, 266 ; House ( uncovered in 1893), 268 ; Street Step- ping Stones, 269; A Theatre, 269; Stone Watering-trough, 270; The Outer Walls, 27 1 ; A Roman hat -rack, 272 ; Plaster cast of Man, 273 ; Plaster cast of Wo/nan, 273 : The Skeleton of the Stone Dormitory, 274. ROME — -page 277. St. Peter's, 27b ; Arch of Constantine, 278 ; The Lecturer, 280 ; The Tiber, The Castle of St. Angelo, 28 1 ; The Coliseum, 282 ; Interior of St. Peter's, 284; 11 The Laocoon," 290; "‘The River Nile," 292 ; The Monk who wouldn't be Photographed, 294 ; A Niche of Honor, 294 ; Cappuccini Cemetery , 293 ; St. Paul' s-outside-the-walls, 29b ; The Cloisters of St. Paul’s, 297 ; Interior of the Coliseum, 298 ; The Roman Forum, 299; A Columbarium, with Ashes Two thousand Romans. CONTENTS. “ The Dying Gaul," joo ; St. Bambino , 301; The Appian Aqueduct, 303 ; The Keeper of the Keys, 304 ; A bit of the Palace of the Ccesars, 303. FLORENCE — page 306. Basilica of Leaning Town of Pisa, 306; A Roman Stronghold, 306; Florence , 307 ; Constantine. The covered bridge, 308; Palazzo Vecchio, 308; The Cathedral , 30Q; The Campenile , 3og. VENICE— page 31 1. Night on the Grand Canal, 310; The Rialto Bridge, 314; The Bridge of Sighs, 318; The Lace-maker , 31Q; The Doges' Palace, 317; St. Mark' s, 316 ; L he Doves of St. Mark , 3/3. SWITZERLAND, PARIS AND BEYOND— page 320. Among the Alps, 322; Lake Lugano, 321; Lucerne, 324; Art, 323; Basle and the German Rhine, 323. Grand Opera House, 326; The Latin Quarter, 326; The Morgue , 323 ; Under the Bridges, 327 ; At Versailles, 327 ; London Towers, 327. OUR FRIENDS ON SHIPBOARD— page 329. The Manager and his Lieutenants , 329 ; The Representative from Florida, 330; The Solid South, 331 ; The G. A. R., 331 ; The Doctors, 332; The Clergymen, 332; Fellow passengers — portraits and list of names, 333. GENERAL INDEX— page 344. THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND, THE START. Wednesday , February 6, 1895. N EW YORK is icy and drear. Like sharp needles the piercing wind cuts and stings. “The coldest day of many a year” says everyone as the Red Star liner “Friesland,” with long continued straining finally breaks the fetters of ice in which she has been bound and, butted by a pair of sturdy, puffing tugs, backs slowly out into the frozen stream. Like brilliant Autumn leaves, starry flags are waving on ship and shore and white handkerchiefs flutter as snowflakes in the winter’s air. “Good bye, good bye,” goes out from the straining throats of a thousand friends who have THE START. braved the Arctic cold of the bleak, wind-swept pier that they might see the pilgrims off, and “goodbye” is shouted back from the crowded decks. “Good bye friends. Good bye, dear shivering old New York. Good bye all. Sorry are we to leave you in the dreary North but the time has come to part and we are off for Summer seas.” The great ship swings slowly around ; the swiftly turning screw kicks the water into foam at her stern ; she parts the ice floe with her sharp bow, and gathering headway stands for the open sea. Clark’s Mediterranean cruise has begun. From the water goes up volumes of steam as from a sea of smoking lava. The piers along the city front are half hidden by drifting fog. Spires and sky-climbing blocks float in billowy clouds, now appearing in bursts of frosty sun-shine, now blotted out and lost. Liberty— unlovely under the garish light of day and a thing of beauty only when night makes her gracious mission plain — shivers as we pass, lifting her naked arm and quenched torch high up into the pitiless air, as in dumb protest against her useless martyrdom. The frowning forts are passed, the white gates of the harbor open and close behind, and at last we are on the broad Atlantic. Then the pilot goes down 3 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. the uncertain, swinging ladder to the icy boat that has waited out there to take him off, and with his going the last link that binds us to the shore is broken. Around us, the writhing water steams in the frosty air as a seething caldron, sending up white mists like the smoke of a burning prairie. Incoming craft are sheeted with crystal, their bows hang heavy with glittering diamond fringe, their spars are as icicles, their cordage like spun glass in the sun-shine. Sluggishly they sink to the hollows of the seas and slowly gather to the oncoming wave. The hand of the Ice King is heavy upon them, but we are light of heart, for we are bound for lands where birds are singing and fragrant flowers ever bloom; where Poetry and Art go hand in hand; where Chivalry and Faith had birth, and History began. THE STORM. Thursday , February j, 1895. M ORNING, and the air is no longer wintry. For twenty hours we have been moving steadily southward, yet while we have left the frost behind the weather is not altogether satisfying. The wind is full of moisture and at times fitful. At noon comes a dash of rain followed by stronger blasts. Now the waves come up out of the south and doff their white caps to us and the Friesland — staid old Friesland that she seemed, and on her good behavior when in town where she lay beside her dock as steady as a rock — becomes kittenish out here and bridles like a young girl, welcoming the playful advances of the gay white waves with many a bow and courtesy, swinging jauntily from side to side and bobbing up and down in anything but a dignified way, so that many who are novices in the art of sailing begin to wear a troubled look. As the day wanes wild Boreas changes his pleasant pipings to notes of fiendish glee and rushes with wild shrieks and shrill whistlings through the straining cordage. Then Old Neptune, tyrant that he is, clasps the big ship in his arms and flings her like 5 fj THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. a leaf on the rushing stream. He tosses her up on high and throws her down into the depths ; he stands her on edge ; he plunges her sharp nose into the big waves ; he holds her down and pours tons of water over her shuddering stern ; he rolls her over on her side until her taper yards drag through the foam, for he is King and she but a plaything in his hands. And they that are on board hasten to pay tribute. Many who have taken possession of their steamer chairs, and their places out on the upper deck, keep them all through the day, fearing to move. Locomotion has perils aside from the danger of bruised heads and broken bones. With coming dark- ness the gale increases. The ship labors heavily against the pounding seas that send clouds of spray, and sometimes consid- erable masses of water, over the decks, until at last the most determinedly uncer- tain are constrained to go below however much they may fear the result. The at- tempt usually precip- itates matters. Many are in condition to welcome death, for they are certain that the hand of the fell destroyer is already heavy upon them. Between decks also the pilgrims are not happy. At midnight 6 Tribute. Ah! Then came the rolls That uplifted our soles, And all that we valued took wings ; While the midshipmite. Like an angel of light. Brought comfort, and crackers, and things. THE STORM. a monster sea comes over the bows and rushes along the upper deck, carrying with it settees supposed to have been bolted fast; wrenching from their fastenings boats lashed in their places on a level with the bridge and, uncovering a hatch which has been insecurely battened down, pours a flood into the cabin, followed by other waves which sweep at intervals along overhead to find unguarded openings through which the water goes so that many state-rooms are flooded and their occupants driven out to seek drier quarters elsewhere. Great seas which do not go over strike with mighty force against the sounding sides and the ship careens at times so that she seems literally on beams end. Small articles play tag about the state- rooms, trunks race wildly across from side to side, life-preservers, boxes, bags and bundles unattached hop about like kernels of corn in a hot popper, while occupants of bunks are tumbled unceremoniously out, to make unexpected calls on their neigh- bors across the way. Fear adds a distressing element to the situation; many do not undress all through the night. The public saloons are steaming with an aggregation of uneasy numbers who are in doubt whether it were better to go down, if go down they must, on deck, or under cover like rats in a trap. Below in the public spaces are congregated clumps of timid ones who, like masses of swarming bees, cling together in frantic fear, thinking that every plunge the vessel makes may be her last, but holding firmly to the “ united-we-stand divided- we-fall ” idea, although in fact visibly and often, demonstrating the exception. It is too moist even for jokes to crack, although dismal attempts are occasionally made in that direction and while there are more than two score of clergymen on board, temporarily out of a job, even they bring little consolation, and 9 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. amateurs who feel the need take a hand at prayer on their own account. Uncertainty as to actual danger adds another element of fear. It is impossible to learn exactly what has happened or what is being done to avert disaster. The screw has stopped its revolutions — an uncommon thing at sea— two or three times. “Disabled,” some one says. “To ease the pounding of the great waves against her bow ” is explained semi-officially. “ Mutiny in the fire-room ” is a current report, and it is whis- pered that an officer has been stationed at the entrance to the shaft by which the fire-room is reached, with instructions to brain the first man who attempts to leave his post. “ The worst storm the ship ever passed through ” said the captain later. Accidents were common. A deck steward received injuries which shelved him for several days. As a result of a sudden lurch of the vessel early in the evening of the storm, a group of twenty or more in their steamer chairs got away in a bunch a la toboggan down the slippery deck to the rail, where the leaders found themselves at the bottom of a promiscuous heap of struggling humanity. When the pile was sorted it was dis- covered that several had been damaged to a greater or less extent. Mr. Edwin Palmer, of Albany, had serious injury done to his face, but stuck pluckily by his party to the end of the cruise, shedding by degrees and in different parts of the world the bandages in which he appeared the day after the storm. Mr. H. M. Taber, of New York, had a broken leg when resurrected from the crush, and as a result was carried ashore on arrival at the Bermudas, where he remained until near the close of March, returning thence to his home. At latest reports he was in a fair way to almost complete recovery. Subse- 10 THE STORM. quently Mr. William A. Wilson, of Kansas City, had his arm broken and suffered most excruciating anguish from being un- able to use it during the rest of the voyage (as he personally explained) with so many charming widows on board. Aside from the above no accident worthy of note was known to have happened to any member of the party on the trip. The storm was a notable experience. No one complained that the voyage so far was monotonous. It was full of sensa- tions of various kinds, and new sensations were a blessing to many. It was also satisfying in a certain sense, for we all felt that the Friesland had proven herself good for almost any kind of weather that might be expected on the trip. THE BERMUDAS. Saturday , February g. T HE DEVIL’S ISLANDS, is what the old Spaniards called the little group which is known to us as the Ber- mudas, for — were they not known to be inhabited in those days by demons and vampires and dragons of horrid mould, as vouched for by certain venturesome sailor-men who had risked their lives there among the sharp-toothed coral reefs which guard them round about ? Later, pirates made their homes there when they were not engaged in cutting throats or looting rich merchantmen, and during the late rebellion block- ade runners found welcome and assistance in their ports, over which then, as now, the British flag waved. The distance from New York is about 675 miles in a south- easterly direction; the time required to get there, according to schedule, about forty-eight hours, but the storm had delayed us so that it was Friday evening when the lights of the islands were sighted, and we lay at anchor outside the entrance to St. George’s Harbor all night. Saturday morning all went ashore in tugs. The sea was still running high and although we were in 12 Willing Hands. THE BERMUDAS. the lee of the main island, the commotion was considerable and the transfer from the big to the little ship attended with some little risk. But experienced hands were there to render necessary assistance, particularly if the need was emphasized by a pretty face, and there being so many pretty faces in evidence, notwithstanding the rough experience up to this time, the willing hands above mentioned were kept very busy while the transfer was going on. The run to land and up through St. George’s inlet to the old town of that name was delightful. Green as the green on the peacock’s neck are the surrounding waters; dark green and olive the shores and semi-tropic trees; white as snow the lines of box-like houses along the water’s edge and against the t e r - raced hillside. At the landing we were met by a del- egation of native citizens with axes to grind, and made welcome about the town. Hardly had we exhausted interest in the quaint, curious things of the place when — the news of our arrival having been wired to Hamilton, twelve miles away — there came in twos, in threes, in squads, in caravans, the flower of the Hamilton liveries, and with wild dash and shout; with beaming face and whip in hand these black Jehus of the sea corraled our people and carried them, willing captives, away out over the gleaming white roads that stretched through garden lands and lines of flowering trees. 13 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. There are, it is said, three hundred and sixty-five islands in the group, including the tiny ones scattered ■ about in the lagoons and bays of the larger islands. They are of coraline, or shell, formation so far as visible, built by the coral insect, upon the apex of a submarine mountain which rises abruptly from a depth of nearly three miles. Around the islands are coral reefs still in process of construction by their curious artificers. Well defined circles, visible at low water — miniature “atolls” — are to be found at different points. Windy are they — these islands lying out in the Atlantic ocean five hundred miles from the mainland — the red cedar, which is the native tree, growing in exposed positions, telling the story of the prevailing west wind in long branches stretching east- ward and the shorter ones, curling in upon themselves on the west. The fragrant oleander grows freely. It is the favorite hedge and wind-break along the roads. The principal fruits are the banana, which flourishes thriftily in protected positions, and the paw-paw, which hangs in clusters at the base of the outspreading branches of its tall tree-stem. The native population is about 15,000. Sixty per cent, are black. In addition may be reckoned a force of 2,000 British soldiers stationed at the garrisons on the main island. The blacks are of a superior order, polite, fairly well edu- cated and in voice and accent quite English you know. It would be doing the black an injustice to say that he is dissatisfied with his position and con- dition here. He has equal rights on the islands with his white brother. He has all the school advantages the islands afford, takes great interest in 14 ‘V ONIONS AND LILIES. their management and monopolizes the public schools to such an extent that the white boy and girl are generally sent abroad for education when the means of the family permit. The black here, as elsewhere, is not wildly ambitious. He will not, knowingly, shorten his life by hard labor. He cultivates the land in little patches; he drives the carriages and does the necessary laborer’s work ; he comes into town on a long, spring- less cart with little wheels and a little donkey between the heavy shafts — he and his wife and his pickaninnies and his poultry and his vegetables. The little satisfies him. But if there are no very wealthy people here, there are also none in extreme poverty. There are beggars in plenty, but not of an offensive kind. The young darkies are!]beggars from the cradle, but they ask from principle and their gain is spent for luxuries. The ground produces abundantly and will yield from three to four crops in rotation in a year. Irish potatoes are due the first of February; sweet potatoes follow on the same land — the latter nearly white and tasting more like the ordinary potato than the sweet potato of the Carolinas. Then come beets, turnips, carrots and other roots common to the North. But the chief of all fruits, the thing above all others on which they base their hopes of prosperity, is the potent, all-absorbing, ever fra- grant onion. Time dates locally from the great onion year, to which the patriotic Bermudian refers with a pride which the Fourth of July can hardly evoke from the av- erage Yankee 15 Easter Lilies. THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. abroad. Property is reckoned not in bonds or acres but in onions, and prosperity by the crate. Other crops yield hand- somely, but nothing can win the native from his first love. An odor as of sanctity hangs about the esculent root which the visitor may mistake for something else but the native — never. With him it is the onion forever. The onion is cultivated in little patches by the roadside; among the trees on the slopes; never in large fields, for the reason, perhaps, that there are few large fields there. What soil there is is found in pockets in the rocks that have been filled, or in places where the rock has weathered and become soil. Flowers grow everywhere. The Easter lily of the Bermudas is noted in both hemispheres. The roads are the best I have ever seen — hard and smooth- just the kind for cyclists. The ridges are cut through, to make the way practically level, and a single horse easily draws a carriage with four people. The drivers drive like J ehus, and, contrary to the custom of the United States, turn to the left in meeting. The houses are all of stone, ordinarily one-story in height. The material is dug from within the foundation walls, the cellar furnishing the blocks from which the house is made. It is cut out by means of long single -handled saws — in blocks for the side walls, in slabs for the roof. When first exposed the rock is white as snow, and quite soft. With exposure to light and air it becomes darker and quite hard. The houses are all white- washed, the rock furnishing admirable lime also. It is said that whitewashing renders the houses much cooler in the warm weather, but the glare is somewhat trying under the bright sun. All the dwellings that I saw looked clean and neat, and many of them had flowers on their walls or in beds about the doors. THE DEVILS HOLE. There are no wells on the island. Water for drinking is caught when it rains, from roofs or from slopes inclosed and swept clean for that purpose, and kept in cisterns. The inhab- itants bury their dead, four deep, in graves cut in the soft rock. They are cemented tight to be opened again when the space is needed. There are caves here which were submarine grottoes before the coral works rose above the surface. “The Devil’s Hole ” is an opening of unknown depth full of water, and said to have an underground connection with the ocean. On inquiry we were told that the devil wasn’t in but a Sombre Shade in a ragged shawl, which we took to be his wife, showed us around in con- sideration for an English shilling each. The “hole” was ragged and rocky and swarming with big fish, averaging from two to three feet in length. Out of the green water they poked their noses stretching wide their red mouths to about the size of a pint cup saying plainly as in spoken word, “please feed us” — which we did with bread pro- cured at a little shed near by, and at which they snapped ravenously, their teeth coming together like animated steel traps, while they crowded and jostled and quar- reled with each other; in their eager haste, jumping at times a full half-length out of the water to get at the coveted morsel. 17 ' *U-*. - - :*** ... . _ •*#-*' 5 ‘ Like Mountains streaked with Snow. T X i THE LONG RUN. H E waves that follow us when we sail away from the Windy Islands Saturday evening are like mountains streaked with snow. Sunday, the wind still blows strong and the water is lumpy — waves outrunning the ship and running high — but the day is delightful with mixed sunshine and shower, and a large pro- portion of the party find their way out on deck. Religious services are held in the morning. In the evening a service of song is held out on deck, and a sacred concert given by the ship’s Belgian orchestra in the saloon, during which “After the Ball ” is rendered among other gems in good United States style. 19 ST A TISTICAL. ‘ Chums. already with the have beens in the lead.) There are a number of lively youngsters on deck who have stood the buffeting better than their elders, but it is noticed that the great majority of the passengers wear gray hair and wear it well, for the nature of the cruise has brought together intellectual men and women much above the average. Thirty-two states are represented. Pennsylvania sends 74, New Jersey has second place with sixty-two to her credit, New York follows with 53, Ohio with 38, Massachusetts 37, Illinois 29, Connecticut 27, Indiana 17, Michigan 10, Kentucky 9, Min- nesota 9, District of Columbia 7, Mississippi 6, Nebraska, New Hampshire and Missouri 5 each, Colorado, Maryland and Georgia 4 each, Virginia 3, Vermont, Rhode Island and Cali- fornia 2 each, while West Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, Mon- tana, Kansas and Washington send 1 each. Canada is repre- sented by three. Everybody is getting on famously, learning who every other body is, where they came from, etc. At first many were recognized as in primitive times by notable pecu- liarities. There were the ‘ ‘ Plaid Man,” the “Thermometer Man,” “The Big Consul,” the “Long Dominie,” the “Widow’s Mite,” etc. Congenial spirits soon grav- itate to allotted centres. The ‘ ‘ Blue and the Gray ” shake hands ; the “Solid South ’’and the “Grand Army” are as one family. Cler- gymen of the many protestant Getting on His Sea Legs. “ The Blue and The Gray.” THE FRIESLAND. denominations and fathers of the Romish Church lie down together and a little child might lead them. It called for 17 1 officers and crew to take care of the ship and its passengers. The captain had little intercourse with the pas- sengers, giving his attention, as was perhaps right, very much to the management of his ship. The affable purser made hosts The Friesland of friends and many a sea-sick mortal was glad to greet his Band. pleasant face in his daily rounds. The steward — man of sub- stance — on him we relied and not in vain, for, to feed us on the trip he laid in at New York upward of 480,000 pounds of eata- bles and drinkables. There are 31,000 pounds of fresh, and 4.000 pounds of corned beef. 232 beeves yield up their tongues and eighty-four ox-tails get into the soup. There are 4,100 pounds of veal, 11,000 pounds of mutton, 4,100 pounds of fresh pork. Other items are, 190 turkeys, 2,800 fowl, 1,000 ducks, 2.000 pigeons, 2,000 squab, 2,000 quarts of fresh milk, 13,000 dozen eggs, 2,070 pounds of butter, and 2,500 pounds of cheese of various brands — a strong array, and some of it mitey good. There are 500 pounds of tea, 5,000 pounds of coffee, 20 barrels of pilot bread, 12 barrels of Blue Point oysters, 1,200 pounds of grapes, 30 tons of potatoes, and 2,000 pounds of Span- ish onions. These last go into almost everything but the ice cream. Breakfast and lunch are as it happens — first come, first served — but dinner is a fixed festival of august proportions and inflexible flow. It takes from one to one and one-half hours to go 22 The Purser. m 1 DIPLOMACY. through with the programme of ten courses. As the number of passengers is about double the seating capacity of the tables in both saloons, the party is divided into sections, one following the other at meals, each sitting having its compensating advantages, for if the first table becomes over proud its attention is called to the fact that it is obliged to eat at a horribly unfashionable hour, while those who follow can linger at table in the enjoy- ment of after-dinner amenities as long as ever they like. Of course there was dissatisfaction on board. In the success of the undertaking was developed its most objectional feature, for every available room and bunk was occupied ; would-be passengers gladly taking accommodations which, if not all that heart could desire, were the best that could be had and as such acceptable. This over-crowded condition of the ship made it impossible for the willing but over- worked stewards to render such service as the passen- gers had good reason to expect. Add the distressing experience of the storm and it is not to be wondered at that, under the torture of sea-sickness and incon- venience generally, some kicked — and kicked hard. It was but natural. It did no harm. In these after days when “ A?id the raw edge of temporary discomfort has become softened by Clark the glow of delightful retrospection one wonders Smiled.'' what there was at the time to cause such an ebul- lition. And through it all the manager, wise beyond his years, saw past the jagged present to the mellow future, and in the face of threatened annihilation just smiled and smiled, and soothed 23 “Chet." CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. with promises to adjust all grievances, and to smooth out every wrinkle in the crumpled rose leaves of the time — in a day or two. Meantime the ship’s company did not waste coal in a vain attempt to make up lost time in the run from con- tinent to continent. Two or three ships were sighted in the passage across but not the promised land of the Azores — those mountain peaks of submerged Atlantis which we so longed to see — for we were due on the other side and still losing. We were moving steadily, however, burning about 1 1 2 tons of coal and going on an average 360 miles every day. Every day at noon the ship’s clock was set ahead to accord with meridian time, and those who would be correct must turn the hands of their watches around from twenty to twenty-five minutes, according to the distance made. Thus the days passed more rapidly than we had thought possible, bringing many a pleasant thing to be remembered. Pennsylvania day was celebrated with becoming ceremonies. Lectures, concerts, balls, kept young and old, grave and gay, fully engaged. Euchre and whist, back -gammon and chess, in smoking-room and cabin ; shuffle-board and ring- toss on the after-deck, letter writing everywhere — the week passes almost before we know it, and with feelings of intense, if subdued, excitement at the thought of stepping on solid land once more, and of the news that may be waiting us, we are watch- ing at the going down of the Sunday’s sun for the distant shore. Later we greet with joy the bright lights that mark on either hand the ancient Pillars of Hercules. At midnight we pass through the gates of the wide East that open before us and the misty Land of Childhood’s Dreams is ours to go in and possess. 24 Shuffle-board. GIBRALTAR. February 18, 1895. L IKE a crouching lion in black silhouette against a sky lu- minous with bright stars, rises the great rock of Gib- raltar as we look upon it first in the morning while it is yet night. In straight lines along the water front, and tier on tier at intervals against its black bulk higher up, sparkling lights marks the town that lies in terraced lines along its base. With the gray of the slow coming dawn the black shadow separates into masses, the masses into form and outline, and with the coming of the sun, sea-wall and battlement, ancient tower and structure of the later day stand revealed. And this is Gibraltar! The world’s mightiest citadel! The key to the gateway of the Mediterranean ! A great mountain peak, or rather a series of peaks, it rises sheer from the sea. East, south and west the water comes up against the cliffs, which are unscalable almost as the sides of an iceberg. At its north- ern end, which is the head of the crouching lion, vertical cliffs a thousand feet in height overlook a narrow strip of marshy land, connecting it with Spanish soil. Honeycombed with galleries and pierced with port-holes, out of which the mouths of cannons point; with massive sea- 25 GIBRALTAR. walls, behind which the heaviest of guns lie; its summit a resting place for other guns of mighty mould, that may be sighted by range-finders at the lower level and fired by elec- tricity ; garrisoned with a force of such stuff as forms the British soldier and with provisions to last indefinitely — Gibraltar is beyond question the one impregnable fortress of the world. Above the terraced town you get glimpses of cavernous openings into the mountain, masked perhaps but only partially, by young trees and growing bushes. Farther away along in the side of the black rock which faces Spain, lines of openings, indicating the course of tiers of galleries within, ascend gradually as they follow the fluted contour of the mighty cliff. What the rock really contains the public is not allowed to know. Few in authority even know it all. The governor may know, but minor officers have little knowledge of parts except those over which they have command, the other sections being closed to them as to the outside world. Possibly the outside world is encouraged to believe in the existence of grim secrets, of ter- rible engines of destruction hidden in the bowels of the mountain, and of deadly mines beneath the innocent looking surface— and perhaps these exist mainly in the imagination. But there is evidence to convince anyone that no projectile has yet been invented capable of demolishing it, or earthly power to force an entrance when garrisoned by determined men. The ending of the four years’ siege, where the English successfully resisted all the force the Spanish government could bring against them, could have but one natural and to-be-expected ending. Back of British occupancy at intervals through a thousand changing years, Phoenician and Moor, Moor and Spaniard and later Spaniard against Spaniard, struggled 27 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. for its possession. It was during this later strife, in 1704, that Britain, with true British determination to see fair play, took a hand and, pending the contest, became stake-holder and referee. The question of ownership never was settled to the entire sat- isfaction of the Man in Possession, and he felt obliged finally to declare the mill off and the purse and gate-money confiscated as proper compensation for his services — which seemed an emi- nently satisfactory solution of the problem. The question of rightful ownership is a question no more. It is held by virtue of British nerve, which knows a good thing when it sees it, and of British bull-dog tenacity, which never loosens its grip while a tooth remains to hold on with. With nine points of law in its favor who shall question the remaining one point ? No nation exists to-day which could so well be trusted to combine necessary force with common justice in holding a check over the quarrelsome little nationalities of the East as this same big, sturdy, assertive chap who believes in fair play always and only takes possession of your property when he is fully satisfied that he can administer its affairs better than you can yourself. It would unquestionably be an improvement if he should add still others to his dependencies in the East, where civilization has gone to seed ; where it is established policy to spoil the stranger that is within the gates, and where religion makes a virtue of crimes at which true civilization stands aghast. We had been called in the morning before daylight that we might get the earliest view possible of the famous rock, and also that we might make an early landing for the day on shore. With daylight came a fleet of native boats, scrubby looking craft, with venders of fruit and notions, swarthy of face, pic- turesque of dress, wildly gesticulating, and clamorous and dis- 28 GIBRALTAR. cordant of cry as were the noisy gulls which wheeled and circled around to pounce ravenously on whatever might be cast overboard. Finally we go ashore and are duly inspected by officers in charge at the water gate. To western eyes the sights are interesting. There are twenty thousand inhabitants here it is said. You would hardly think that the town could give place for half that number, but you find that parts are solidly built, that the streets are narrow and the dwellings, where glimpses can be had, are like bee- hives, swarming with many occu- pants. The streets are alive with color of a mixed population bent on traffic. Here is the Jew with black robe and skull-cap, Turks with baggy trowsers and brilliant fez, Moors with flowing robe and snow white scarf of many folds wound picturesquely about their heads, black-browed Spanish and blacker Ethiopian, and English soldiers everywhere swinging through the streets in twos and threes, in tight-fitting red coats and shiny boots. The English soldier gives color and brilliancy to every scene — troops of cavalry with jingling sabers, companies of artillery, guards going and coming, or perhaps, off duty and in holiday attire bound for the cricket-field or in parties to engage in some other of the many athletic games in which the true Britain takes 29 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. delight. It costs England $5,000,000 annually it is said to run the town and fortress. Through the market place we go beset by venders of fruit and curios, by would-be guides and noisy cabmen, by traders — Moor and Turk, Jew and Gentile — then we melt away and are distrib- uted about the town, deeply interested in scenes which are all new and strange. The bazaars and shops along the way are not imposing in size but are rich in color ; their owners solicit- ous, but not apt to make mistakes to their own detriment when making change for the visitor who may not be quite clear as to the relative value of English, French, Spanish and American moneys. Trades and professions seem oddly mixed. “Barber and tooth-puller” is a common sign indicating a union of pro- fessions not common in the west, and suggesting the necessity of making your wants clearly understood whenever you may have occasion to drop into one of their uncomfortable chairs. A sharp young Turk works up a thriving business by offering “ Amereken o-r-r-in-giz-z-z, fresh from Ne-jork,” at 2 for 5 cents, and many patriotic Americans buy heavily when common cut-throat natives are offering others just as good at two for a cent. The last I saw of this Turkish Yankee was at the dock where he was sell- ing “Amereken figs, fresh from Ne-jork.” The streets are narrow and crooked but exceptionally clean. They straggle about in an aimless sort of way, which I after- ward found to be common to old Moorish towns; here running along the side of the hill on a line with the roofs of the - GIBRALTAR. r4*. buildings ranged along the street below, now making a dash up some acclivity with a grade like an old fashioned Dutch roof. Through the residence portion of the town, particularly in the old Moorish quarters, the dwellings present blank walls with narrow door- ways and high windows to the street, or are surrounded by high stone walls, the tops of which are ragged with broken glass set in cement. The Moorish Castle, built A. D. 7 1 1, is a prominent show feature of the town, but the great interest of the visitor centres in the works that are in the great rock itself. Preliminary in- spection and registering at the guard-room were necessary before we were permitted to enter, then a heavy gate was unlocked to admit us and made secure after we entered and, convoyed by a sturdy young soldier, we penetrated into the galleries as far as we were permitted to go. What years of convict toil these tunnels represent ! They are commonly about eight feet wide and from eight to twelve high, with an ascending grade up or down which horses can be driven and artillery transported when necessary. The way twists about to the right and left, fol- lowing the contour of the cliff’s face, broadening at intervals into considerable chambers in which are heavy cannon and am- munition, and from which port-holes look out on town and frontier and open sea. A closed gate finally barred our way, but from an opening in a projecting angle we marked the tun- nel’s course in ascending lines of port-holes far above. Down- 31 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. ward — we could only guess at the distance — half a thousand feet perhaps, the rock dropped sheer. On the plain at its base a sham-battle was taking- place. We could see the little puffs of white smoke, then, after quite an inter- val, hear faintly the rattle of the discharge. The men were pigmies, the horses capering mites. In another field a game of cricket was in progress; in still another foot-ball, judging from the rush and scramble, and the quick massing and melting of the human atoms. Splendid fellows physically are these British soldier boys and clean and fresh and manly withal. Beyond the line of sports and battle ran a line of sentry boxes across the half-mile of land from shore to shore ; between which, like clock-work, paced red-coated men. A half-mile beyond, across the marshy flat which is the neutral ground, in parallel lines is another row of boxes and along back and forth between these paced men of more sombre hue. England and Spain watch each other here. Tommies and dons stamp up and down in sight of each other as tommies and dons have done, day and night, for more than a hundred years — the tommies coolly insolent, the dons fiercely threatening. 32 SPA NISH TO WN. In Spanishtown. Threatening Gibraltar! A June-bug hurling fierce defiance at the Sphinx ! Spanishtown is over beyond the line of Spanish sentries. At night when the north gate is closed it is not considered safe to venture out across the flat — you may be mistaken for a smuggler and a shot follow the quick chal- lenge before you have time to ex- plain — but a broad road stretches across from the town to Spanish territory, and in the day time your right to go is not questioned. A motley crowd goes back and forth along the way — carriages and foot- men, lines of donkeys bringing huge paniers of vegetables for the town supply or struggling under great bundles of hay for the garrison cattle. The difference between Gibraltar under the English and this border town under Spanish rule is notable and not to the credit of the latter. It is a picture of squalor and decay. Thrift and cleanliness seems unknown. Its buildings are generally of but one story and built of adobe. The streets are lowest in the middle, and the sanitary arrangements of the town seem to consist of throwing the town’s refuse into the streets and allowing it to float off — when it rains. It swarms with beggars, but has a bull-ring and Sunday sports for the amusement of its people, who seem hardly able to get their bread to say nothing of butter. In justice to Spain, however, I must say that there were other towns seen later which did not seem so utterly low, and some that would be a credit to any country. 33 THE CRUISE OE THE FRIESLAND. Catalina bay has been overlooked. It is on British territory, just around the shoulder of the North cliffs, where the level land ends in a pocket of the mountain. A little circling- beach is here, and upward from it, a thousand feet in height, in one un- broken slope, is a bank of white, unstable sand. Thrown upon the shore by the waves, it has been swept upward by the wind to where it now lies against the black rock. Around the bit of beach — in uncertain possession because of threatened avalanche — lies the little fishing village of Catalina. Clumsy boats are on the beach, with nets drying on reels or spread out on the sand. A single street leads along the water front. A little church stands at the head of the only lateral street which is about a hundred feet in length. A gaudily painted image of the Virgin and Child is in a niche over the door; within, lights are burning before shrines ; horribly realistic Christs are nailed to painted crosses, and weeping Marys and highly colored cherubs are here resting on highly improbable clouds. Along the streets are chickens and goats and children, and pretty black-eyed Spanish girls and horrible old women. Back to the ship again, to learn that when the captain on ar- rival “dropped anchor” — he dropped it literally, and with it a great number of fathoms of chain, valued at about $2,000, alto- gether, which it is rumored he must regain in some way if it takes a week to do it. We are in uncertainty as to the carrying out of the programme laid down for the morrow but finally turn in with the understanding that our watchful Paul will call us in time for any event that may need attention. Half dreaming, later we realize that the screw is throbbing and that we are moving through the water once more. Malaga from the Sea. MALAGA. Tuesday , February i
i s Gate. on which water was poured, causing them to expand with an irresistible force and split the rock asunder. There is a tradition among Masons that in these caverns, so deep under the earth that there could not come from them the soimd of ax, hammer or other metal tools, the stones of the Beautiful Temple were cut, squared and numbered, and con- veved thence through some passage now lost to knowledge, direct to the Temple area to be placed in position under the supervision of the widow’s son. Also that here Freemasonry began, and the first rites of the mystic brotherhood were enacted in one of these vaulted chambers when operative Masons alone — and of such only those who had passed through the great ordeal with becoming fortitude — joined in solemn commemoration of the tragedy in which they had themselves taken a part, and which, with its lessons and symbols, was to be enacted in after times in every land, and in almost every 158 THE NEW GOLGOTHA . tongue on the face of the earth. Here the Masons of the Friesland, who from the far West had traveled East to the birth-place of the order, under flaring lights and with the dark approaches duly tiled, joined with their Eastern brethren in the mystic ceremonies of the Mother Lodge. What transpired there is no secret — to those who are entitled to the knowledge. Across the road in a rocky hill is the Grotto of Jeremiah. Here, it is said, the patriarch wrote his Lamentations, and you are impressed with the conviction that if it were as dismal and unwholesome in the days of Jeremiah as now — and particularly if the same octopus was in charge to work his extortionate de- mands on the prophet that he attempts on visitors to-day — you do not wonder that the old gentleman’s writings were of the lamentation order. This low rocky hill, which attracts but little attention from the mass of pilgrims, is called the “New Golgotha,” and among Protestants who have any opinions at all on the subject, is ac- cepted as answering generally the understood requirements of the place of the crucifixion. F rom certain positions it has something the appearance of a flattened skull. As corroborative evidence, the Jew pays his involuntary testimony to the belief that here Christ suffered and was buried, by casting stones at it as he passes, and cursing it because of Him who brought dishonor to the race. Here is the chamber in the rock which answers to the description of the tomb of Joseph of Aramathea, in which no man had laid until they placed there the body of the Crucified. Within, has been found ancient characters, indicating 159 The New Golgotha. THE STONE THA T WAS ROLLED A WA Y. Christian belief in the sacred nature of the place. At the en- trance is the usual receptical for the stone which closes the portal of the rock tomb. At the Tombs of the Kings, with its noble vestibule, its columns and carven cornice, I first saw and understood the nature of the “stone which was rolled away.” My ideas, formed I know not how, were perhaps the ideas of others. I had pictured the stone as a great round boulder, which, by mighty force, could be rolled against the opening, like a cannon ball against a rat-hole. Quite recently I saw in a religious paper a picture of the sealing of the tomb by the chief priests and pharisees, “ lest his disciples come by night and steal him away;” and the sealing was by means of long ropes passed over and around the stone and attached with neat seals at various points against the face of the rock ! In- stead I saw here a rock like a thin mill-stone, standing on edge in a slot cut to receive it, and this stone could be rolled as a wheel in front of the opening or “rolled away ” at will. On the opposite side of the city, outside Zion’s Gate, we visited an imposing pile in possession of the Moslems where, “in a large upper room,” is shown the place of the Last Sup- per. My attempts to photograph the room with my disguised kodak, is betrayed by our guide and brings a howl of protest from the half dozen Moslems who have joined us in the round. We present 161 V estibule at the Tombs of the Kings. THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. The Valley Hinnom. the usual arguments but not with the usual results ; we succeed in overcoming the scruples of all except one, who may be more faithful, or possibly waiting for a higher price, but finally fail. In going out I again come near precipitating a riot and secure a picture of the court where Peter denied his Master, and the place where the cock stood when he crew, to remind the vol- canic disciple of his shame. (In a rival establishment over in the city they show the imprint of the cock’s feet, where they rested on the stone, but here you must accept the fact without the incontrovertible proof of an impression in hard rock.) South you look over into the valley of Hinnom, the horrible place so detested by the Jews, where children were sacri- ficed to Moloch, the Gehenna of the New Testament, which came to signify “ the place of fire ” of the Old. Now it is as delightful a section to look at as can be found any- where about Jerusalem. From the southeast corner of the city wall we look down on the valley of the Kedron and see on the far side a typical Syrian village, with solid, block -like houses of stone, which might be a part of the native rock or an uneven section of some quarry, so much a part of the hill is it. In this native village of Silwan we may behold the “ Siloam ” of old, but few would associate its shadeless cliffs and dry valley bed with “cool Siloam’s shady rills.” The pool of Siloam is itself but a cistern ; its waters, when there, but the 162 Silwan. THE VALLEY OF JEHOSHAPHAT. overflow of other pools higher up or such as may fall on the hillside round about. Along by the walls toward the north and on the slope, are innumerable Moslem graves and monuments. On the opposite slope is the Jewish burying ground, thickly covered over with white tombs and surface graves. Near the bottom of the valley are tombs and monuments cut out of the living rock, among which Absalom’s tomb is the most notable. It is Tomb of A b sal 07 H. Pyramid of Zacharias. nearly fifty feet from base to top. Tradition has it that Absa- lom, having no sons to perpetuate his name, determined to erect a tomb which should ever keep his memory green. He succeeded! The Jews have never forgotten him, nor forgiven his disobedience to his father. They pelt the monument with stones in passing and a hole broken into its face is good evidence of their marksmanship. In the rock back of this 163 GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE. tomb is the tomb of Jehoshaphat. Farther to the east the grotto of St. James, marked by openings guarded by columns, is cut out of the rock. Beyond that is the pyramid of Zacharias, also cut out of the rock, and about thirty feet in height. Around on every side rest the bodies of the waiting dead. Beyond, the land rises into the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives is east of Jerusalem, rising two hundred or more feet higher than the city. On it are a few scattered olive and fig trees, and a number of chapels and religious insti- tutions owned by various denominations and celebrated for their sacred traditions and associations. Through the valley of Jehoshaphat (or Kedron) the waterless bed of the Kedron runs, crossed by white roads leading toward Bethany and Jeri- cho and up the hillside. On the left of the road across the valley, just before it divides to run over the hill, is an enclosure within which lies the traditional “Grotto of the Agony,” its entrance showing as a tunnel at the extreme left. The Garden of Gethsemane is on the right of the road, sur- rounded by a high stone wall. Within are cypress and olive trees. The entrance is through a doorway on the far side, where you must bend low to pass. The garden is about 70 paces in length its longest way. In the northeast corner is a building occupied by the custodian, an old Franciscan monk. At intervals on the inner sides of the walls are the fourteen stations of the church, where pilgrims kneel and kiss the ground in their devotions. An inner fence of pickets encloses the central part, 165 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. where are the cypress and olive trees, with flowers of coarse varieties and brilliant hues. Of the latter the attendant offers you some, fresh picked, and adds a blessing for your con- tribution. Olive oil from the trees of Gethsemane brings a high price, and rosaries made from its olive stones are con- sidered specially sacred and valuable. Some of these trees are very old. One is said to have been living in the time of the Saviour. At present it is but the shell of a big trunk, split and knobby, with a fringe of thin green branches. I desired a pic- ture of this most venerable one, with the monkish gardener, and showed him in panto- mime that I would like him seated on the mass of earth which the spreading roots had gathered in a cone around the base. When he understood, he started back as if the suggestion, even, was sacri- lege, and falling on his knees in- stead, bowed be- fore the tree as if in penitence for some sin commit- ted. It suited me just as well. Ancient Olive Tree in Garden of Gethsemane. PLACE OF THE PE TP A YAL. Just outside the entrance they show the rocks where the disciples slept, “for their eyes were heavy,” while the Master withdrew from them to pray. “And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast and kneeled down and prayed.” The place of the Agony is located in a little grotto which is now a chapel belonging to the Latins. A small court with a high wall on three sides is believed to be the spot where Judas said “ ‘Master, Master,’ and kissed him.” The wall where the traitor kiss was given is defaced and broken by stones that had been thrown against it by pilgrims, testifying in this way their horror of the act. The Tomb of the Virgin is near the “ Grotto of the Agony.” It is a cavern in which are the tombs of Mary and Joseph and of Mary’s parents. Here also are altars belonging to the Greeks, the Armenians, and the Abyssinians and a prayer recess of the Moslems. Well up toward the summit of Olivet are the Tombs of the Prophets. At the surface is seen an uninteresting opening in the rocks. Through this opening you descend into the vesti- bule, and through this still deeper into a circular chamber from which radiate passages like the spokes of a wheel, and like the rim of a wheel with projecting cogs is the outer circle, each cog being a tomb-niche. Near the summit of the mountain is an under ground chapel where the apostles are said to 167 Entrance to the tombs of the Prophets THE FRIESLAND. have drawn up the creed. A little higher is the beautiful “Church of the Lord’s Prayer,” where, according to tradition, Christ taught his disciples to say “Our Father which art in Heaven.” In the walls of the cloisters which sur- round a court of shrubbery and flowers are thirty-two stone tablets, on which the Lord’s Prayer is inscribed in as many different languages. On the summit of the mountain is the Chapel of the Ascen- sion. It is owned by the Moslems and a Moslem stands guard at the door of the court. In the centre of the court is an octag- onal chapel, within which is shown the imprint of a foot in the rock’s surface where, it is said, the Saviour last touched earth. There are times when one cannot believe all that is told, but this struck me as being a genuine foot-print, hand-made and well finished. Near by is a tower which affords a commanding view of the siirrounding country. Over beyond the mountains at the east the gray valley of the Jor- dan is seen with a varying line of green marking the course of the river, and the blue of the Dead Sea apparently near, al- though in fact distant seven to eight hours’ journey. The usual way of computing dis- tances in Syria is by hours rather than miles. 168 Place of the Ascension. BETHANY AND BETHLEHEM. Bethany is over on the east slope of the Mount of Olives. The village is but little better than ruins and the homes of its dwellers are pictures of abject poverty. Here we are shown the foundation walls where, we are told, stood the house of Mary and Martha. Within, were sturdy, uncompromis- ing, unlovely bushes and frail white flowers, perhaps not unfitly emblematical of the sisters who here served the Saviour, each in her own pe- culiar way. Near by were the tomb of Lazarus and the ruins of the house of Simon the Leper. We pass the tomb of Rachel on the way to Bethlehem. A comparatively modern “ wely ” covers the spot where it is generally believed Rachel, the beloved of Jacob, died in giving- birth to Benjamin, “and was buried in the way of Ephrath which is Bethlehem.” The tomb is revered by Moslem, Jew and Christian alike. Bethlehem of Judea is surrounded by terraced hillsides, planted thick with olive trees. It lies at about the same level as Jerusalem and is solidly built with stone, after the fashion of the towns of that region. It contains about 8,000 inhabit- ants and is notoriously dirty. It is also specially noted for its carvings in olive wood and mother of pearl, but of main in- terest as the place of the nativity. The church of the Na- tivity is owned conjointly by Greeks, Latins and Armenians, 169 CHURCH OF THE NA TIVITY. and covers the grotto to which tradition points as the place where the Saviour was born. The prin- cipal entrance is low and mean looking, suggestive of the back door rather than the en- trance to a great church. Enter and the most noticeable objects are the double lines of columns of reddish limestone, each a monolith nearly twenty feet in height, and a general air of rusty magnificence in altar forms and trappings. The grotto, about forty feet long, a dozen wide and ten feet high, is paved and lined with marble. At one end is a recess where lamps are ever burning, belonging to Greeks, Armenians and Latins. In the centre of the recess a silver star let into the pavement indicates the place of the nativity. At one side is the chapel of the Manger in which the child was laid. A wax doll represents the infant Saviour. The genuine manger, which according to tradition was discov- ered by the irrepressible Helena, was carried to Rome. It is not impossible that in this cavern the Saviour was born. Just such caverns are found in many places and not uncommonly used for stables to-day as, presumably, they were in the older times. Caves in the rocks abotit Jerusalem are not the damp, imhealthy places one might expect to find, but every bit as dry as houses built of stone on the surface. They are cooler in summer and in winter warmer with the warmth of mother earth and unquestionably more comfortable to the people who make no provision for artificial heat. FROM JERUSALEM TO JERICHO. I N short trips about Jerusalem a carriage or donkey is most convenient ; for extended journeys through the Holy Land you must go on horseback. There are horses and horses in Palestine. An Arab whom you might consider an object of charity from general appearance, often rides a horse which cost him a hundred pounds, and which could not be bought at any price. He will sell anything else in his possession, including his wife, for a very moderate sum, but his horse is a part of himself. Some of the beasts furnished for travelers do not look as though they were worth twenty-five cents, yet even the most miserable looking beast is somehow capable of wonderful endurance. They are sure-footed generally, and with all their cranky ways seem intuitively to know their rider’s wishes. To one accus- tomed to the Mexican saddle the slippery thing provided here is rather unsatisfactory, and it is some time before you can feel even fairly secure in your position. The bridle is not to be depended on in any way as a support, being simply a means of punishment in shape of that instrument of torture known as the “gag” bit, which with a leverage of its long arm when the rein is drawn taut, presses the iron up into the roof of the horse’s mouth and makes him frantic. After a little, however, 173 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. you come to an understanding with your beast and simply indi- cate your wishes, leaving him his own way of securing the end. You let the reins lie loosely across his neck, pressing them gently against it to the left or right, as you may wish him to turn, or giving the direction by motion of the hand, which he readily obeys. David Jammel, dragoman and contractor, was charged with the duty of conducting our party to the Jordan. Jammel is a Syrian of commanding presence and with gifts which belong to the successful general. He has guided many notable parties in his day and shows interesting testimonials of service. He is royally eastern and a striking figure when decked out in tunic and trousers of purple silk, with streaming silken head covering of solferino and silver ; with black and russet leather trappings, silver trimmed and edged with heavy fringe ; with mighty sabre and arsenal of small arms, and mounted on a beautiful Arabian charger. If you want to go anywhere in Syria, where it is possible to go under any circumstances, all you need do is to write to David Jammel, Jerusalem, stating your wishes and mentioning the number of the party. He will provide horses, carriages, tents, attendants and everything necessary for your comfort or convenience, according to Syrian standards. In addition to the helpers necessary to provide for your needs the party must be accompanied by some member of the tribe through whose territory you may be obliged to pass, not for anything he may do, but to see that the tribute which is exacted by the sheik of the tribe over whose territory you go is duly paid. His presence is a guaranty to bands of his tribe that such right has been secured. Without such presence there i74 THE WA Y OF THE LAND. might be some little danger. With us went two fierce looking Arabs from the land about Jordan and the Dead Sea, armed with murderous weapons. They were threatening looking creatures at the start but near the end of the journey developed into anxious seekers after bakshish worthy of their import- ance, which was of course in addition to the tribute paid by the conductor. “ A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves. ” We landed plump into the midst of the gang at the very outset. Theoretically the chief dragoman is paid in a lump and secures you from all the rest. Practi- cally no such beatific conditions can be hoped for under the system. The fundamental principles on which society in Syria rests is the exacting of tribute — by force if in power, by threat if possible, by abject beggary the other two failing, and the last as a legitimate right which carries with it no sense of ob- ligation. Even Jammel could not rise above existing condi- tions or protect the innocents from the horde of pirates he had let loose on them under the guise of servitors. I am not sure that he tried to. I do not know that he saw in it anything that was not to be expected — it is the way of the land — the average Syrian considers you an oyster, from which it is his duty as well as pleasure to extract the pearl. The persecutions began as soon as we mounted. Horses were slyly goaded into frenzy, and when in proper condition the men would seize them by the heads with much show of bravery and apparently exert every power possible to restrain them. Demands were made for payment for services rendered or imagined ; for doing necessary things, for doing unneces- sary things, and for not doing things that are covertly threat- 175 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. ened. “ Bakshisli ” is demanded with a fierce insistence worthy of a better cause. To give once was to invite more violent demands at the next opportunity, which was not long in com- ing. You gained only temporary relief by paying for the questionable guardianship and personal attendance of the native who had marked you for his special prey. To be sure he fought the others off but that immediately created oppor- tunities for additional demands, so that at times you suspected it was a good-natured farce in which benefits were shared. One member of the party admitted to having disposed of small coin to the amount of over $5.00 to one special attendant on the trip — and it was still some distance back to Jerusalem. Such a barefaced levying of black-mail I never saw equalled anywhere else in my life. My opportunities were presumably the opportunities of others. Results varied according to disposition. My first mount, (brought after a friend had rashly intimated that I knew how to ride), was a tall fellow who seemed hung on wires, with a disposition to start before I was fairly seated. I tried to re- strain him with the reins — -not noticing that they were attached to the extreme ends of the levers of a curb bit — and he went backward. I encouraged him with the riding whip and he bounced up and down, while my camera, which I carried by a strap over my shoulder, thumped me in tender places. He was finally quieted, but I was easily persuaded that this was not the sort of beast to go photographing on however satis- factory his mastery might become under other circumstances. Number Two put his ears back and showed his teeth, but that is a habit many of them get there, and I started. Before I was out of the crowd he began to act funny, and immediately a ARABIAN HORSES. burly son of Belial in a fiery fez and a night-gown had him by the head and was demanding bakshish for some unexplained service, which I found to be no service at all, but a proposition to become my special attendant and I his special prey whether I would or no. I tried to throw more savagery into my ex- pression and to yell louder than he, but it didn’t work. Ordi- nary conversation there is filled with gore and dynamite, and nothing short of a club will convince them that you mean what you say. After a while I satisfied this one that he was wasting his time, and he transferred his attention to another member of the party who was just then emerging from the depths, and succeeded in putting so many kinds of cussedness into the head of the beast he rode as to render it unmanageable, so that its rider finally, in a somewhat sulphurous cloud, threw up his hand and went back for a fresh deal. Later I worked the con- fiding, idiotic, don’t-understand-what-you-mean smile on the bakshish plunderers and found it generally effective. My Number Two had peculiarities, and did not enter heartily into my scheme of photographing from the saddle. He would not agree with me as to the best points of view, objected to being put into desirable positions and developed a tendency to jump whenever I snapped a picture. Descending into the valley of the Kedron a view of much interest presented itself to me, and dropping the reins as usual, I made the exposure. My horse, as usual bolted, but not in the usual way. He added a circular motion and before I knew what was going to happen I found myself flat on the ground among a lot of donkeys and the beast I had been riding, on the opposite side of the road with a turned saddle. Possibly I dropped onto some of the donkeys. I don’t know. They seemed to be all right when I found time to look 177 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. at them and made room for me as for one of their own kind. Anyway I saved my precious camera and no harm was done except some slight damage to my dignity and the clothes I wore. My first thought, naturally, was a wonder if any of my friends were in sight. One was. And he my dearest ! Would he tell? His two hands were clutching firmly at the rim of his saddle; his teeth closed in a deathless grip; his two eyes looked out straight ahead with a far-away expression, like unto that of the Sphinx, and I knew that he was making the supreme effort of his life. Would he see me or might I hope to remain un- noticed among the other donkeys? It all depended on whether or not the beast on which he rode should, in its turnings, head so as to bring me into line. It was a moment of extreme suspense ! then, like the priest and the Levite of old he also passed by on the other side and gave no sign. He has since told me that he saw me, but — ! Possibly we have always done an injustice to the memory of the priest and Levite. The real reason why they did not succor the one who fell among thieves may have been a well grounded fear that they might tumble off if they so much as looked even. A wild Arab came swooping down toward me, mounted on a splendid beast. It was his oppor- tunity — and mine. He caught my horse and at once demanded “bakshish.” It ended in a compromise, he taking my horse and I his for the time being. Number Three was really a beautiful creature. He did not object to my photographing from his back, and a number of opportunities were improved, where the blind beggars sat by the roadside and the lepers had gathered about Gethsemane. By the time I had finished in the valley of the Kedron the last of our party had long since vanished over the hill and, with 178 RA CING BEDO UINS. stories of outrages perpetrated on defenseless stragglers fresh in mind, I felt that it was time an effort was made to overtake them. My attendant offered to relieve me of the camera, which was promptly transferred to his shoulder, and we started. Then my Number Two, on which he was mounted, promptly ran away with him. He saved himself by clinging to the beast’s neck, but the camera went down into the dust of the road, and when I finally picked it up the lens was broken from the box and other damage done, the extent of which could not be known until further investigated. After a time the crestfallen horse- man returned, but I decided to carry the camera myself there- after. While getting into shape for another start a number of Bedouins swept by like a whirlwind and my beast pricked up his ears as though he would like to join them. I had tried him at a gentle trot and had been glad to get him back into a walk; I thought now to see if he had not a better gait. I held the reins loosely and flung my hands upwards as I had seen the others do, with a rising motion in the saddle, which he seemed quickly to understand, and we were off at a pretty sharp clip. Soon we came up with the procession ! we sweep past pilgrims on horseback and in carriages ! past my friend with firm shut teeth and heroic expression; we are up with the vanguard where ride the young men ; we are up with the ambitious leaders ! we lead all at last except one Arab, with whom we go neck and neck for a time, to finally fall behind as we climb the slope where stands the Good Samaritan Inn. It was a good race. Here I tinker my camera into serviceable condition at last, and lunch, but when I go for my peerless Arabian I find him changed into a frowzy, tufted, little sorrel skeleton with a variable gait and a habit of going to sleep immediately you ceased to urge him on, and the most transcendent failure as a 179 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. horse that it was my privilege to ride on the journey, excepting Number Five, which I drew for one of the later stages, when I happened to be late and was forced to take what was left. The Good Samaritan Inn, so called, is simply an inclosure in which is a well (two piasters to the pirate in charge, for a pail of water for your horse), its entrance an arched porch through which we ride and where, on rugs spread over the floor, we sit, Turk-like, and eat our lunch of potted meats, boiled eggs, bread and coffee. Our party is not alone in possession of the “ Inn,” but a small army of Russian pilgrims are here preparing, or eating, their frugal lunch before continuing on their way. We have seen them all along the road in twos, in threes, in dozens, and in long processions, and will continue to see them all the afternoon and the next day. It is estimated that there are over five hundred on the road between Jeru- salem and the Jordan, and on Easter there will be at least five thousand in and about the Holy City. They are a stolid people, heavy of form and motion. The weather is extremely hot and the lightest of summer clothing seems at times a burden, yet these people seem dressed for the coldest of seasons. The men wear heavy cloaks, often lined with sheepskin, wool side in; fur caps and leather boots reaching to the knees. The women have on padded sacks, thick shawls about their 180 Trilby. RUSSIAN PILGRIMS. heads and necks, legs swathed in many wraps and wound with tape or cord. On their feet are traveling shoes of plaited reeds or rope, while their dress-shoes are carried usually strung about their necks. They carry bundles of blankets for bedding and bags of food, with tin or copper dishes for cooking purposes, and tin teapots. Almost every one has a bottle in which, when they return, they will bring water from the holy river. They have come from far away homes in Russia. They were landed at Joppa and are making this pilgrimage to holy places, which must include a visit to the ford of the Jordan where the Saviour was baptized. Each one brings a white garment in which he or she will bathe in the Jordan, and which at death will be their burial robe. To make this pilgrimage is the great life object of many of the Orthodox faith, and is held to give a certain distin- guishing holiness as does a pilgrimage to Mecca to the Moslem. Peculiar credit comes to those who make the toilsome journey on foot. In the ranks are the old and feeble, some seemingly scarce able to drag their weary feet — unlovely atoms of human- ity, yet beautiful in their devotion — toiling painfully along the sun-lit road or stretched in a wavering line over the barren Judean hills. THE HARD ROAD TO JORDAN. And more barren grow the hills as we advance. Up around Jerusalem the dreary waste is relieved by groves of olive trees covering the hillsides and spots of springing wheat wherever a pocket in the rock may give place for a handful of soil, and the roadside glowing red with masses of wild poppies, but here is only the chalky road and scanty grass, thin and dry, growing in tufts upon the hillside along which run innumerable sheep paths, with here and there a flock, guarded by watchful shepherds. The road must at one time have been a fine specimen of Roman work, broad and level, cutting through rocks, and bridg- ing chasms with substantial arches. Now, however, it is gullied by water, portions washed away and the surface covered with loose stone which the easy going horseman goes around or over rather than take the trouble to throw it out of the way. The way is continually downward. On one hand are the spotted cliffs and steep water-worn hillside, on the other deep gulches or “wadys” as the smaller valleys are called here. Away down at the bottom of the one at our side a tiny streamlet be- gins its course. They tell you that it is Brook Cherrith, where the ravens brought food to the prophet Elijah of old. Up the winding path to where we pass, devotees have toiled with full jars of water to stand by the roadside and offer those who come — free to the poor pilgrim, at a price to those who seem able to pay and who venture to touch the not overclean vessel in which it is offered. At last through a notch in the rifted hills we look over into a spreading valley. From where we stand the white road runs zig-zag down until lost in the gullies of the broken bottom land. The whole slope is a succession of water-lined terraces 183 THE VALLEY OF THE JORDAN. and deep gorges. A little way out is an irregular patch of green, within which a cluster of white buildings forms modern Jericho. Farther away a second line of green indicates the course of the Jordan. Centrally, among the mountains on the far side, somewhere, we must look for Nebo, from which Moses looked over into this, the Promised Land, which he was not permitted to enter. At the right, seemingly but a short distance although in fact eight miles away, are the blue waters of the Dead Sea. At the left rises a low square-topped moun- tain from which Satan showed the Saviour “all the kingdoms of the world.” At its foot is a gray terrace where, according to tradition, stood ancient J ericho, whose dwellers no doubt laughed to see the crowd of Israelites marching round and round about her walls, with priests blowing on the rams’ horns in such an absurd manner ! But when on the seventh day the priests blew, and the people shouted, and the walls fell, the laughing was on the other side, for all were destroyed by the sword save she and hers, from whose window hung the scarlet thread. To-day nothing remains but formless ruins and earth and mixed frag- ments of crumbling stone and brick. The cause of the oasis in which stands modern Jericho is re- vealed in a reservoir near old Jericho, which they call Elisha’s Fountain, where it is said the prophet “ cast salt into the waters and healed them.” The people who call the legitimate results of monkeying around the heels of a mule “a Dispensation of Providence,” and see in a fit of indigestion a divine chastening because of original sin, will tell you this land was cursed and rendered barren be- cause of the wickedness of its people! By the exercise of just a little bit of common sense the most casual observer will see 185 THE CRUISE' OF THE FRIESLAND. that all the land needs is water, and, that the blessing wcmld surely follow is demonstrated by the condition of sections where water is applied. When the Israelites complained to Elisha saying “ the water is naught and the land miscarrieth ” they undoubtedly had reference to quantity rather than quality of water, having in mind its effect on the rich lands of Egypt about which their fathers had undoubtedly told them while in the wilderness. Here was a section not unlike the valley of the Nile in its wonderful fertility and they saw that where the water was permitted to soften and moisten it, it re- sponded mightily, producing abundantly of every green thing good for man. As in those days, it is now. This whole valley could with proper irrigation be made one great productive garden spot. The abundant flow of the river Jordan would afford a never failing supply of water. Its rapid descent makes it pos- sible to draw its waters from it at any level needed and carrying them through canals along the valley’s sides distribute" them over its upper terraces, or flood the bed of the Valley at will, until the entire section down to the borders of the Dead Sea laughs with plenty. The reason why this condition does not exist to-day may be looked for in the oppression of the Turk- ish government which exacts from the tiller of the soil a tenth part of all the ground produces, and, to make sure of its share, provides that the crops must not be removed from the fields until passed upon by the official measurer. This agent is sup- posed to be paid for his services by the government, but he is generally so overworked that unless a most liberal bakshish is forthcoming from the producer, the grain spoils on the ground before he is able to give it attention ! As a result it does not pay to cultivate the ground except perhaps close about the cities, MODERN JERICHO. or in sections beyond the reach of the rate collector by the tribes which, while nominally under the Turkish government are practically independent and yield obedience only to their respective sheiks. And this is why this section lies fallow and the long lines of grain-laden camels from “beyond Jordan ” are seen crossing its fords and going up to Jerusalem or to the sea- port towns of the Mediterranean. Modern Jericho is a collection of miserable mud huts occu- pied by a degenerate set of Arabs — and when you strike a de- generate Arab you are getting pretty well down. The houses are usually of mud bricks and roofed with the same or with brush plastered over with mud. The bricks are mud mixed with straw and dried in the sun and are probably the same as the Israelites made down in Egypt. H ere I saw ‘ ‘ women grinding at the mill.” The mill is usu- ally a flat stone with a shallow depression in it in which the grain is crushed and ground by means of another stone or pestle moved round and round over it by hand. At one of the huts a woman was baking bread on a flat stone laid across other stones and under which a fire was burning. The bread, in shape of a large pancake, was about the color of chocolate and of the consist- ency of moderately tender sole-leather. Three or four healthy looking savages stood restfully around watching the woman and the bread and incidentally trying to negotiate privileges with me. THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. The general depravity of the place is relieved by the presence there of a Greek monastery and hospice where, in the general room, we saw numbers of the Russian pilgrims wrapped in their blankets, lying like lines of sardines along the floor. It has also a couple of alleged modern hotels where some of our party were so unfortunate as to obtain rooms, and brought away with them visible evi- dence that they were not the only occupants of the beds pro- vided. The major portion, however, in whom dwelt no fear of native wild beasts, found delightful quarters in the luxu- rious double-cloth tents which had been brought down from Jerusalem and set up for our use, each tent containing three or more iron bedsteads with fresh, clean clothes, and each su- perbly carpeted with the green plush which nature had there spread out over the ground. At the close of the day we gathered in the big tent for dinner and while we balanced gently on the edges of our respective .seats, feasted and exchanged stories of hazardous adventures, and hairbreadth ’scapes, and struggles with wild steeds — in which we were of course victorious, for none of us would willingly dampen the general ardor or seek to depress our hearers with unimportant details as to the times we had fallen off. And the concensus of opinion crystalized into an axiom then and there may be accepted without question, to the effect 188 NATURAL DEPRA VITY. that a ride from Jerusalem down to Jericho of a hot day on a Jerusalem horse gets one so accustomed to the delights of the saddle that one doesn’t want to sit down on anything else for some time thereafter. Dinner over, we gladly seek our couches and are lulled to sleep by the music of screaming jackalls, barking dogs and braying donkeys. In the morning we rise up early and prepare for Jordan and the Dead Sea. It is the early clergyman that catches the best horse — at least some who got away first were on better beasts than they had the day before. It seemed odd that some who at home would wrestle on their knees all day long, with only slight intermission for meals, to save your soul, actually could not tell the beast they rode the day before from the best one of the pack. I admit that horses are not mentioned in the ten commandments, or if they are included they don’t really belong to the fellow who chances to get a good one, so we can’t hold them there— first come, first pick was the rule observed, and some of our preachers developed into as good judges of horse- flesh as a deacon. I don’t wish to be personal — it would be too sweeping — perhaps it was in the air. And if the air had such an effect on clergymen what could you expect when it tackled a layman? I actually saw a man : good; of unlimited means and undoubted probity, one who delights in addressing inno- cent little children in Sabbath schools — swipe a spoon ! It wasn’t much of a spoon either — -just a little brass affair. And the act seemed all right when he explained later that he was making a collection of souvenirs. I know also where the mate to that spoon went. Possibly it was in the land — you see, it was a low down place anyway — nearly thirteen hundred feet below Jericho Camp. THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. the level of the ocean, and must have been always thus. Even the Chosen People became thugs and cut-throats, according to sacred history, as soon as they struck the country — but to return to the horses. We who were late felt that it did not show a brotherly spirit in those who got up early in the morning and made off with the best ones. It certainly was not dignified. Approaching the Dead Sea. A better way is to leave the matter with your special Arab, who is a thief naturally, and who if properly impressed in ad- vance may be depended on to lead one of the best from some sequestered spot when you appear, and you may mount leisurely and follow the company without the risk of having some envi- THE DEAD SEA. ous person intimate that you got up early to steal your friend’s horse while he slept. I wish I had thought of this earlier. When T found what sort of a beast remained for me that morn- ing I almost resolved to become an early riser. South, over the gullied land we go, its surface becoming more and more sterile as we advance. Even the coarse tufted grass and wirey bushes are left behind at last, and we stand on the shores of the Dead Sea. The scene is one of utter desolation but the morning is so beautiful that we are more impressed with a sense of peace and restfulness, than with any thought that this is a land of death. The water, clear as air almost, breaks in gently lapping wavelets on the crescent beach which, circling to the mountains east and west, slopes gently down to the water’s edge. The worn stones and variegated pebbles run through all the shades of red and yellow to brown and black, their dull splendor under the hot sun changed to a soft flickering radiance where they are covered by the highly refracting water, until finally lost to sight far out in its sapphire depths. On either side, beyond the blue water, rise the gray hills growing fainter and fainter, and finally vanish in a soft haze miles away. Between them stretches the sea, rising with the rotundity of the earth’s surface heavy and dark against the luminous southern sky. Back from the beach is clay and salt and gypsum, soft with water or hard-baked like stone, but barren of life. They tell of the apples of Sodom growing here, which turn to ashes in the mouth, but we looked for them in vain. It has been said that birds who attempt to fly over the water fall down dead, but the natives The Dead Sea. THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. that no living - thing can exist in the Dead Sea, but this also I am prepared to dispute. I, myself, saw several living creatures — among them a Doctor of Divinity — sporting in its crystal shallows. Curiously enough, with all its traditions, facts and figures were not forthcoming until Americans took the matter in hand with the result that a government expedition was sent out by the United States in 1848. This is the lowest habitable spot known on the globe. The surface of the Dead Sea is 1293 feet lower than the level of the Mediterranean ! It is 9 *4 miles wide at its widest point, and is 47 miles long. Soundings have been made to a depth of 1310 feet. It is estimated that 6,000,000 tons of water are poured into it daily yet it has no outlet. The burning atmosphere as of a furnace which at times surrounded us must drink up this enormous amount of water by absorption daily. The human body floats easily. Over 7 % of the bulk of the water is salt in solution, besides which it contains large quantities of the chlorides of magnesium and calcium and large masses of asphalt. The mountains round about often show frost and snow, but neither frost nor snow reach this depression. Its climate is ordinarily such as may be found well down toward the equator. Northeasterly from the head of the Dead Sea we go to Jor- dan, striking it at the ford, where it is believed, the Children of Israel crossed when they came to take possession of the land. “And as they that bear the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bear the ark were dipped in the brim of the water (for Jor- dan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest),” 1 1 That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon a heap very far from the city of Adam, that is beside Zaretan ; and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off : and the people passed over right against Jericho.” 192 “And the priests that bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israel- ites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan.” * * * ■* * ‘ ‘And it came to pass, when the priests that bear the ark of the cov- enant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before.” THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. At this spot, according to tradition, Christ was baptized of John when the heavens were opened and the form of a dove was seen descending “and lo a voice from heaven — saying, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. ” Like as in the days of Joshua the river overflowed “his ” banks sweeping downward in a tawny stream to the Dead Sea. Along its margin on either side, is a belt of tangled woodland, of willow, and slender poplars and mighty reeds. From a sky like copper shines the fierce sun. Sweltering pilgrims hasten to dip head and feet in the water of the stream. Some seek sequestered nooks, glad to bury themselves beneath the waters, finding that what they had thought to do as a sacred privilege has a pleasant amount of earthly comfort in its composition. Among the trees along shore we cut sticks. We gather reeds from the thickets as souvenirs. We fill cans and bottles procured for that purpose, with water of the river which we will carry half way around the globe to distant homes. Finally we turn regretfully, feeling that it was good to be there, and toil across the barren plain above, in the hot afternoon sun, to Jericho, where we spend another night and in the gray of the next morning, climb up out of the valley to the mountain heights of the Holy City. THE SAMARITAN BROTHERHOOD. I DO not crave the earth entire, but among- the regrets of my life is one that I could not be with the “Samaritan Brotherhood ” in its long ride to the north. For pictures thanks are due to Rev. J. G. Hamner, Jr. As for the story — is it not told delightfully by the honored president, Rev. Dr. Brett, in his “ Narrative ?” The soul of the poet speaks in his closing words : “In those sun-filled days and moon-lit nights, over steaming coffee, and amid the smoke of Turkish tobacco, in friendly chat, as we rode side by side, or tender confidences, after we had lifted our souls together in praise and prayer, friendships were formed, and loves enkindled which shall be eternal. It will be a strange coincidence if we twenty-five should ever meet in one place on earth. A common faith and hope, however, give the assurance that, someday, we shall meet in the New Jerusalem, on Canaan’s happy shore, and there, as we recount the experiences, gay and sad, of life’s long pilgrimage, we shall often talk of that blessed week spent to- gether in the ‘ Land of the Book.’ ” From the secretary of the brotherhood comes a sketch of the pilgrimage, just touching a suggestive bit here and there : My dear Mr. Stoddard : Of the various “side-trip” parties from the Friesland none could con- gratulate themselves more heartily on using time and money to advantage 195 9 THE SAMARITAN BROTHERHOOD. 1. Rev.J. Garland Hamner, Jr. 2. Rev. Neivell M. Calhoun. 3. Rev. Calvin A. Hare. 4. T. M. Irvine. 5. W. P. Glover , M. D. 6. Rev. W. T. Thompson , D. D. 7. Rev. John H. Logie. S. Rev. Henry Quigg, D. D. q. Rev. Daniel H. Martin. 10. Rev. Wm. Plmner Jacobs , D. D. 11. Rev. S. C. Caldwell. 12. Henry D. Moore. 13. Rev. J. Garland Hamner, D. D. 14. Henry H. Dawson . 13. Samuel Clark. 16. Rev. Worley Brighton Slutz , D. D. 1 7. Rev. John H. Prugh , D. D. 18. Rev. Alonzo Monk , D. D. iq. Rev. A.J. P. McClure. 20. Rev. William Dallam Morgan. 21. Henry C. Hines. 22. Rev. S. L. Morris, D. D. 23. George P. Smyser . 24. Rev. Cornelius Brett, D. D., Brest. 23. Samuel Jacob. Secy. THE SAMARITAN BROTHERHOOD. than did the “ Samaritan Brotherhood,” consisting of seventeen ministers and eight laymen, who shortened their time in Jerusalem to two days that the remaining five days of their time in the Holy Land might be spent in a horseback ride through Samaria to the Sea of Galilee and thence to meet the ship at Haifa. We started from Jerusalem, Tuesday, March 5th, at 2 r. m., under the guidance of Chaleel E. Awad, dragoman. The pack train, carrying stove, bedding, luggage and provisions, consisted of twenty-six donkeys in charge of Simon Tomeros, cook, and eight or ten muleteers. Clattering out through the Damascus gate, where Saul of Tarsus went forth “ breathing out threatenings and slaughter,” we go, the walls and towers of the City of Zion glorified under the afternoon sun as we look upon them from the hill Scopus. To the west is Nob, where David seized the sword of Goliath ; to the east a little farther is Gibeah. At the base of a hill we pass through Er-Ram (Ramah), and, in the distance, 3,000 feet above the sea, we behold Mizpah of Benjamin. At 6:15 we draw up in the open court of the Latin Hospice at Ram Allah and make it headquarters for the night. The grateful glow of good feeling that comes from rest and a good supper leads the tired riders before rising from their seats to formally organize “ The Samaritan Brotherhood.” A very pleasant visit is paid by members of the party to the Friends’ Mission House, in charge of Mrs, Huldah Layton, of Philadelphia, and her native helpers. At 6:30 next morning all are in their saddles. The first stop is at El- Bireh, notable for the tradition that here was the spot where Joseph and Mary, missing the 12-year old Jesus from the caravan, turned back and “ sought him sorrowing.” A few minutes farther on we leave to the right Bethel, so full of historic associations. Within sight is Ai, and farther on we come to the Robbers' Cave and Spring marked by ruins of Crusader times. We dismount at Shiloh, and inspect the few huts that remain to remind one of the departed glory of the great city that once proudly stood here. At 12 :2o we stop for lunch at the Khan El-Lubban, where the neigh- boring village women have come for water. Lebonah of Judges is in sight. The plain of El-Makhna is reached at 4:30 and the sun is about to set over Mount Ebal as we alight at Jacob’s Well. To the north, perhaps a mile away, is Sychar, and half way between is Joseph’s tomb. The adjoining fields are in wheat, as they were when Jesus sat at the well and spoke of the i97 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. harvest. We pass through the amphitheater between Mounts Ebal and Gerizim and draw up at Nablous, the ancient Shechem, for the night. The first interesting point in the morning is Sebastiyeh, the ancient City of Samaria, against which the prophets uttered the curse of God for its wickedness, and which has had an eventful history. Passing Dothan, where Jacob’s sons fed their flocks, we meet a caravan of camels on their way to Egypt, going the same route that Joseph was carried. We pass where of old there were “ mountains full of chariots and horsemen,” and spend the night at Jenin, the “ fountain of gardens.” In the morning we cross the Kishon by an easy ford. To the northwest is the city of Nazareth, and the outlines of Mount Carmel are visible. The Mount Tabor and the Plain of Esdraelon. broad plain of Esdraelon is dotted with villages and to the east may be seen the peaks of Gilboa, Hermon, and Tabor. The plain of Esdraelon is the battlefield of the ages. In the northeast Mount Tabor rises solitary to about the height of 1,000 feet, and commands the most extensive prospect in the Holy Land. In this immediate neigh- borhood Saul fought with the Philistines, and David continued the warfare. Here Pharaoh Necho, of Egypt, won the battle of Megiddo, and King Josiah fell at the hands of his enemies. Here Saladin contended with the valiant Crusaders ; and, in 1799, Napoleon, the Man of Destiny, fought against the flying squadrons of the Turks. Mount Tabor competes with Mount Hermon 19S THE SEA OF GALILEE. for the glory of being the place of the transfiguration. An old church in ruins marks the summit. We pass through Jezreel and Shunem and Old Testament stories are sug- gested on every side. We leave witch-haunted Endor to the east and, crossing a northern spur of Tabor, reach long before sunset, the Horns of Hattin, where the whole of Lake Galilee is visible at a glance. We can never forget the matchless beauty and impressiveness of the view. We descend to Tiberias, spend the night, take a boat ride to where the River Jordan leaves the sea, and after several hours amid the scenes of Christ’s mightiest works go forward to Nazareth, which we reach before twilight, meeting beyond Cana, on the way, the Galilee section of our friends. After a night and a morning at Nazareth, we go over fairly respectable roads to Haifa, arriving on schedule time, to learn of the Friesland’s mishap at Port Said, and in consequence spend twenty-four more enjoyable hours awaiting her arrival. For two days out from Jerusalem the riding was decidedly rough, lead- ing over a mountain path traversing gullies, limestone bowlders, and solid stretches of rock which the horses, single file, managed to get over safely in some miraculous way, but the rest of the trip was easy and a source of constant delight. Palestine is a land of contrasts. Turn to the 29th chapter of Deuter- onomy, read from the 21st to the 2gth verse, and realize that ‘‘ the stranger that shall come from a far land ” finds the prophesy literally fulfilled as to the part there spoken of, while the northern portion might “ blossom as the rose” were the withering curse of Turkish misgovernment lifted from it. An American is impressed with the small area of Palestine and its places of interest. Accustomed as we are to large bodies of water the designation “ sea ” of Galilee is especially deceptive. Its entire length is only thirteen miles and its width does not exceed six. It appears to be merely a widen- ing of the River Jordan, which would be called with us a large-sized creek and which entering the lake at one end leaves it at the other. The lake is 820 feet in depth at its deepest. Its surface is 681 feet below the level of the Mediterranean. The water is fresh and sweet, the bottom and shores peb- bly, and to this day, as in the days of the Apostles, abounds in fish. It is also notorious for sudden and severe storms. The craft in which we had our ride was an open boat propelled with sails and oars, probably the 199 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. “ship” of the times of Christ. On this occasion the crew consisted of five scraggy and half-clothed natives of Tiberias. How different the bleak and barren hills of Judea, cheered here and there by struggling fig and olive orchards or an occasional vineyard, from Sa- maria, with its abundance of flowers, its luxuriant grain-fields, its birds and its beasts, its men and its women. Mental photographs come crowd- ing back as we recall the many incidents of the time. A modern Jacob lies on his native earth, his pillow a stone, dreaming perchance of such stairs as those whereon his ancestor saw A Modern Jacob. “ Angels ascending and descending, bands Of guardians bright, when he from Esau fled To Padan-Aram, in the field of Luz, Dreaming by night under the open sky, And waking cried, ‘ This is the gate of heaven.’ ” We compelled a hawk that was attempt- ing to fly away with a reptile to drop its prey, and found it to be a writhing black- snake five feet in length. We saw numbers of storks, a herd of gazelles bounding away from us, a fox scudding to its hole, lizards, a pet coney at Shunem, domestic sheep, dogs, cattle, donkeys, camels and interest- ing fauna at every turn. We see again the ancient types of plowmen at work, the watch-towers, the shepherds, the “green pastures and still waters,” until old Canaan seems familiar as the well known parts of our own more blessed America. Samuel Jacob. The Rev. Dr. Prugh writes enthusiastically, delightfully, lovingly of the trip : “ The advantage of such an overland trip to the student of Biblical his- tory is incalculable. While Bethlehem and Jerusalem appeal to you with peculiar pathos, superstition has played such an important part in the edi- fices erected over the spots made sacred for all times and all people, and so much filth and wretchedness meets your eye on every hand that there steals over you gradually a feeling of sadness and disappointment. But when 200 THE SAMARITAN BROTHERHOOD. you climb the old hills of Judea and go down into her valleys ; when you ascend the mountains of Samaria and cross her great plains ; when you ride the waters of sweet Galilee, and cross old Jordan, you are conscious you tread the same paths which the Saviour trod, and you look upon the same beautiful scenes. The hills and plains, the sacred lake and river of Palestine, are unchangeable. And as we slept in the village where lived Samuel’s parents, as we passed by Mizpah and visited Bethel, Shiloh and Jacob’s Well, Shechem, Samaria and Shunem, Nain, Nazareth and Caper- naum, Mt. Tabor, Mt. Gilboa, Mt. Hermon, the plains of Jezreel, Esdraelon and Lake Galilee, and recalled anew the sacred history of these places, the Scriptures unfolded themselves to me with new meaning. We had been warned to prepare for rough weather, and friends had as- sured us that six days of continuous horse-back riding would subject us to so much hardship that we would get no pleasure or profit out of the trip. ‘ The Samaritan Brotherhood,’ however, was composed of such genial, com- panionable men, the weather was so much like that of summer time, the places visited were so big with interest, riding a spirited Arab horse was so thoroughly intoxicating, that when we cantered across the end of the plain of Esdraelon, and dashed into the little town, and dismounted at the foot of Mt. Carmel, and I patted 4 Saladin’s ’ arched neck for the last time, I did so with the feeling that those six days in the saddle were among the hap- piest and most thrilling and profitable of my life.” v Jno. H. Prugh. “ The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold , And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold; A nd the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea When the blue wave rolls nightly 071 deep Galilee The Sea of Galilee. The view is taken from a point near where the River Jordan begins its course to the Dead Sea. The buildings on the left are old Roman baths. At the right is Tiberius. THE GALILEE SECTION. A FTER landing the Port Said contingent at Jaffa, the “Friesland” carried the “ Galilee Section ” north to L Haifa and returned to Jaffa once more to pick up the main party which had spent the week at Jerusalem and in going down to Jordan. To Rev. W. A. Robinson, D.D., I am indebted for the following account of the trip from Haifa to the Sea of Galilee : The Galilee section, consisting of twenty-five or more, duly mounted on the fiery Arabian chargers of which the Land of the Prophets boasts, left Haifa, at the foot of the Carmel range, March 8, at about one p. m. Many more horses had been brought down from Nazareth for our use than was needed, but they with their owners formed a part of our cavalcade, and Mr. Clark had to pay for the supernumeraries. The surplus furnished an opportunity for the ladies of the party to suit themselves — if they could — by swapping until at last they settled on the right one. Any unoccupied horse they wanted to try, Mr. Gimel saddled for them, and even then some of them didn’t ride to Galilee “on flowery beds of ease” Among the ladies who were plucky enough to take this trip, were Mrs. Knapp, of Bridge- port, Miss Allen, of New York (who was a famous horsewoman and rode without tiring the day through), Miss Burritt, of Bridgeport, Mrs. Fred. Gallagher, of Cairo, 111., Mrs. and Miss Hedges, of Urbana, O., Mrs. Scud- cler and daughters, Mrs. and Miss Forman, of Jersey City. 203 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. We were a desultory company, and a jolly, stretching out for a mile or two, as carriages, palanquins, donkeys and horses filed through the valley of the Kishon, thence across that famous and mighty (!) river, over hills covered with scrub oaks, past the village of Sisera, where His mother looked through the lattice in a vain waiting for His coming in that fateful long ago, and finally out onto the great plain of Esdraelon, which stretched before us, a very Dolly Varden in the variety of colors which clothed it. The little farms which were tilled by the villagers through whose mud towns we passed every three or four miles were under a high state of culti- vation and presented the appearance of a variety of vast rugs, artistically arranged. It looked indeed as if the Almighty had emptied his paint pot upon the valley. We entered Nazareth by moonlight at about eight o’clock and were quartered quite comfortably at three hotels, where we had a good supper of soup, meat, rice, pigeons, oranges, lemonade and coffee cake. We enjoyed it. .Some of the company did not sleep much that night because others slept so enthusiastically, but, nevertheless, the early morning found us all astir, some to find their way, before breakfast, to Mary’s well, the single well which supplies this quaint town of ten thousand people. Here we found a score or more of women with water jars on their heads, while from all di- rections they were coming and going, stopping a moment, perchance to greet each other and exchange the morning gossip, which answers there in place of the regular morning paper. After breakfast, we went reverently to the Church of the Annunciation, where we were shown the spot where the angel stood, the pillar from whence he came, where Joseph stood and where Mary stood when the annunciation was made. We also went into the little grotto where the Holy Family lived and the cave kitchen where they cooked, and Avent through the stone doorway through which they would naturally pass in going to the well. Thence we went to the Chapel of the Carpenter Shop, to the synagogue where our Lord preached his memorable sermon (?'. e . , the site of the synagogue) and also to the hill from the brow of which his enraged townsmen would have hurled Jesus to his death if he had not conveyed himself away. In the morning we got a fairly early start for Tiberius. The way led over the hill to Cana, where we lunched in the rain. Here, in the midst of the squalid mud village, we visited the church which, it is claimed, is on 204 THE GALILEE SECTION. the spot where Jesus turned the water into wine. In confirmation of this we read over the entrance, “ Nafttae Factae Sunt in Cana Galilee et Erat Mater Jesu Ibi." We also visited another chapel which claims for itself the same honor in a Greek inscription. The ride to Tiberius was through a country dotted with flocks and herds. We saw but two fences, one of stone and one of thorns. Orchards of fig, pomegranate and olive trees A Threshing-Floor. flourished in beauty and fruitfulness at frequent intervals. Imagination and fancy were both busy as the dragoman said, “We are now riding through that cornfield where Jesus and the disciples went when, ‘ being ahungered on the Sabbath, they plucked the ears of corn.’ ” Later, point- ing, our guide said, “ Yonder are the horns of Hatton, from which our Lord delivered the ‘sermon on the mount!’” A pleasant episode about this time was the meeting between our section and the “ Samaritan Brother- hood," which had come from Jerusalem direct on horseback. We halted and talked but a few minutes and then hastened on. About 5 r. m. we caught our first glimpse of “ Blue Galilee,” and an hour later were filing through the narrow streets of the only city on the lake which existed in the times of our Lord, of which there is no mention made of his having visited. 205 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. We were not uncomfortably quartered at the hotels provided for us. We had fish for supper which we had no reason to doubt had been caught from Galilee that morning. A stroll of two miles down the beach brought us to the hot springs and afforded us a view of the ruins of Herod’s Palace. On the shore we gathered quantities of shells. The Feast of Purim followed the day of our arrival, and the night was filled with Fourth of July noises which we were told were made by the shooting of Haman. They gave him “Jesse” sure enough! We were told the King of the Fleas dwelt here but we did not make his acquaintance. The morning was ushered in with thunder, lightning and rain, but nothing daunted, we took boat and rode over rough Galilee to Bethsaida, where we lunched and from which we looked away to the place where Capernaum once stood. We were carried by the brawny boatmen out to the boats, which could not come nearer than 50 or 60 feet of the shore. We landed at Magdala, the reputed home of the Mary who wet the Saviour’s feet with her tears and wiped them with the hairs of her head — a dirty village of 300 people and one palm tree. Here we mounted our prancing steeds, and rode up the steep ascent which headed us again for Nazareth, in a blinding rain storm. After spending the night at Nazareth, we pushed on for Haifa the next morning. Two and a half miles out we halted and Gimel pointed to the Carmel of sacri- fice across the plain of Jezreel, and thence to Jezreel, twelve miles away. To our left, as we faced Carmel was Little Hermon and Tabor; the City of Nain, Endor, Shunem and the Gilboa mounts, where Saul and Jonathan fell. We reached Haifa in time to ride to the top of Mount Carmel, from which we had a wonderful view of the valley and of the sea, over which a rain- bow of matchless beauty and perfection trembled upon the face of a storm, then made our descent, and after an absence of three days and nights found ourselves once again safely aboard the “ Friesland.” W. A. Robinson. NORTHERN PALESTINE. Monday , March nth, 1895. A WEEK and a day after landing at Joppa the Friesland with the main party on board sailed away again, pointing ■ northward. In the middle of the afternoon we dropped anchor in the harbor at Caifa. Caifa comes nearest to having a natural harbor of any place in Palestine. Here Mount Carmel pushes its rocky head out into the sea, protecting a little section of water from the force of the south and west winds. The town displays a reasonable amount of commercial prosperity, and some hopeful signs of refinement in special quarters, which you look for in vain in southern Syria. On the side of Mount Carmel are monkish grottoes, one of which is said to have given shelter to the Holy Family after the return from Egypt. On its summit is a monastery which is the fountain head of the Carmelite order. To Mount Car- mel came Elijah, and the priests of Baal and the people with them, to test the question as to whose god was the true God. The prophets of Baal placed their offerings on the wood of the altar and called on the name of Baal, that he might send fire to consume it. And when they had called from morning until noon in vain, Elijah mocked them, suggesting that possibly 207 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. Baal might be talking, or on a journey, or peradventure sleep- ing, “ and they leaped upon the altar which they had made, and cried aloud and cut themselves after their manner till the blood gushed out upon them. ” And, continuing, they prophe- sied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, and yet “ there was neither voice, nor any to answer nor any that regarded.” And then Elijah prepared the altar of the Lord, and put the wood in order and laid thereon his offering and called the people to pour water over it all. A second and a third time they poured on water, and he prayed the Lord God, “ and the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacri- fice and the wood and the stones and the dust and licked up the water that was in the trench.” And Elijah brought the prophets of Baal down to the brook Kishon and slew every mother’s son of them. And thus endeth the first lesson. And again the prophet stood on the top of Mount Carmel and prayed for rain (for famine threatened the land). And when he had prayed he sent his servant to look out toward the sea. And the man, when he had returned the seventh time, said, “ Behold there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea like a man’s hand. ” And the heavens grew black with clouds and there was a great rain — possibly such as we saw from the moun- tain top, which gathered and broke over us and passing, swept upward along the coast and out to sea, to build a wondrous arch in the clouds which we accepted as a promise of good to come. Here at Caifa, those who came from Joppa by ship and those who had journeyed from Galilee and Samaria by land, met, and once more with a united party the Friesland sailed away out into the night. 208 Cat/ a from Mt. Carmel. BEYRO UT. Morning found us anchored off Beyrout. Beyrout impressed me favorably. The towns give indications of being more en- terprising as we proceed northward. They have a cleanliness and thriftiness specially noticeable after our experience in south- ern Palestine. Beyrout shows signs of an advanced civiliza- tion, and although the streets are full of things oriental, has in places much of the appearance of a European town. It has upwards of a hundred thousand inhabitants and is the most im- portant commercial town of Syria. There is a good artificial harbor with stone piers built out to enclose a section of the sea. Twelve Arabic newspapers are published here. The American (Presbyterian) mission in Syria has its headquarters in Beyrout and is a potent factor in the work of civilization on modern lines. Much of the prosperity and refinement of the section is undoubtedly due to the work of this organization. There are also Scottish, British, German, French and Italian missions and charitable institutions and schools here. Its stores are at- tractive and appear to be doing business on legitimate lines, and we actually got a delectable course dinner here at a moderate price. Many fine residences are seen in large tree-shaded grounds or with pretty lawns in front. The principal business appears to be silk culture. The mul- berry is common for shade and ornamental purposes and furn- ishes food for the silk worm. Outside the town are groves of mulberry trees. The trees are of varying sizes, usually from six to eight feet in height. The tops and branches are cut back close to the body, which sends out fresh shoots every year. When they have been stripped of their leaves they are in turn cut off, the result being a big knob at the top of a slender trunk, from which shall spring a mass of new shoots the next following 209 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. season. The silk worm is kept in carefully guarded buildings in racks or on trays, where they are supplied with the fresh leaves and allowed to feed until, in the course of nature, they prepare for the transition from the poor grub to the butterfly state. The moth lays its eggs the latter part of summer, attaching them by a gummy substance to whatever object may be nearest. The worm hatches out the beginning of the next summer, its shape that of a little gray caterpillar, which appears to have no object in life for a time except to eat, and is content to remain where born if food sufficient is supplied. It eats of the mulberry leaf voraciously and increases rapidly in size until it is about three inches in length. At the end of about two months it ceases to eat and begins to spin its cocoon, forming with the spinnerets at its head a continuous double thread from the viscid sub- stance which fills the glands (and which now constitutes a con- siderable part of its body), and winding this thread round and round its lessening form by adding layer after layer to the in- side, until the substance out of which the silken thread is spun is exhausted and the shrunken body lies quiet within. Experts know by touch when the work is done. A little less than a week is taken in the spinning of the cocoon which, when com- pleted, is about an inch in length. If left to itself now it would in two or three weeks eat its way through its covering and come out in its moth form, but the operation would render the silk worthless by cutting the thread, and to prevent this they are subjected to a dry heat, which kills the worm. Having served the purpose of their lives, from man’s point of view, their life is taken and the silken winding sheet which they have spun is unwound from the useless body. 210 SILK CULTURE. In one of the large establishments devoted to that purpose we saw the process of unwinding. Seated at a long table, in a big room, were nearly a hundred girls and women. Deep pans, let into the ta- ble, were filled with water, which was kept at a high temperature by steam pass ing through it, and in these were masses of the cocoons The heat softens the glutinous matter so that the outer ends of the threads are loosened, to be picked up by means of a small bundle of twigs to which they adhere, and gathered in a bunch at the side of the dish. Four of these threads are gathered into one and passed over a glass rod above the operator’s head, then on to a reel which extends the entire length of the table, and kept turning steadily by hand power. As the reel turns the four cocoons from which the thread is unwinding bob and dance about in each pan. When but three cocoons are seen to be in motion, another strand is added deftly to the main thread, and thus continued until all are wound off and appear on the reel a shining mass, seeming like fine wire and yellow as gold. Silk weaving is carried on in the commonest sorts of sheds, in certain quarters bordering on the streets, where boys and men may be seen working at the rudest of looms, from which, Silk Weaving. Unwinding the Cocoons. 21 X THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. however, are turned out remarkably beautiful fabrics. The weaver sits with his feet in a little pit in front of a swinging frame, which contains a series of reeds like a fine-toothed comb. Through this “comb” the warp is strung, the portion nearest the weaver to be wound around a roller as the weaving pro- gresses, the ends of the warp farthest away passing over another roller, or over a number of wheels, up somewhere at the side of the building, held taut by weights suspended on the gathered strands. The shuttles, carrying the filling of various colored silks as the pat- tern demands, are shot swiftly back and forth between the spread warp, by quick motion of the hands, the upper and lower warp quickly reversed by means of the rude harness, operated by treadles in the pit, and the shining threads pressed home by the swinging beam brought quickly against them. Fabrics made of the raw silk, usually striped white and gold, are comparatively inex- pensive and worn by the com- mon people generally. A railroad is being built from Beyrout to Damascus. The 212 Cedars of Lebanon. WESTWARD TURN. valley through which it runs and the enclosing hillsides are like a grove with mulberry trees. The verdant valley and sunny hillsides, the square buildings in warm reds and yellows and the mountain sides were very like an Italian scene in form and color, as we saw it that sunny afternoon in March. Beyond, far away at the north, are the snow-covered heights of Lebanon, from whose sides came the cedars which Hiram, king of Tyre, sent in floats to Joppa for the building of the Temple. At night a reception was tendered the Americans by the Masonic fraternity of Beyrout. It was graciously American in appearance, gorgeous with red, white and blue bunting, and American flags, twined with the colors of the country. The best families of the Syria came to take part, and we understood it was considered a Great Event. A delightful repast was served and a native band, composed half of male and half of female performers, with the Friesland band, furnished music representative of the mixed nations. The dances were ‘ ‘ mixed ” literally of native and American brands, each very interesting to the other and sometimes funny. Conversation between native and visitor was limited somewhat as to words, but smiles passed current and good fellowship was interchangeable and fully understood. Somewhere about midnight we sailed away. We have reached the limit of our journey toward the East. Westward, toward home, lies all the rest. ASIA MINOR. Friday , March 15th, 1895. M ORNING finds us anchored in the bay of Smyrna along with a number of British ironclads, which have pre- sumably dropped in as a suggestion to the Turk that his some what out-of-date manner of converting Armenians to the Mohammedan way of thinking by cutting their throats, may inadvertently be carried a little too far. We had hoped that, not only Britain but even our own, and other nations with powder to burn, would do something more effective than simply stroke the Turkish cat and purr. But then we were only just common private citizens and could hardly be expected to un- derstand affairs of State. Of course, viewed unofficially, it seemed that the Armenians who had been so unfortunate as to have their heads cut off should have some redress, but as they had utterly failed to notify us through the proper channel, we could hardly be expected to take cognizance of unofficial rumors of alleged peculiarities in a Friendly Power. It really made some of us quite provoked, and relations were strained to such an extent that I have no doubt if the Sublime Porte had ap- proached us then and there, it would have been made to feel our serious displeasure. However, as it discreetly kept its distance, and none of the unfortunate creatures came near with 214 SMYRNA. complaints, we in time regained our wonted tranquillity, and were enabled to preserve uninterruptedly pleasant relations with the natives. Americans are unquestionably born diplomats. Smyrna is one of the oldest cities of Asia Minor, and one of the largest. Here is the rush and roar of a great town, with its conflicting interests and trade, in which is a curious blending of European methods with the ways of the Orient. Here the natives wear stockings, suggestive of the colder climate, and heavy shoes, instead of the makeshift slippers seen in Palestine. Along the water front is a broad esplanade with fine buildings on its far side, many of them elegant and imposing structures. The doors and windows are particularly noticeable for their beautiful iron fret-work wrought in graceful and intricate pat- terns. The newer buildings are of marble and of stone, green, gray, and chocolate colored, laid in regular order, or like the blocks in a crazy quilt, of every color, artistically mixed to blend harmoniously, each color outlined in white cement. Back on the hill are round structures of brick and ruined castles crown- ing the heights. Smyrna is associated in my mind — presumably from trade advertisements — with rugs and figs. The former were much in evidence and many of the party indulged their fancy and sunk considerable sums in their purchase. The latter we filled up with. Smyrna has all the thrift and stir of Beyrout but not the easy going ways of the Syrian towns. You are dealing with a sharper civilization, more polished perhaps, but in trade suggestive, some way, of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. The narrower streets in the heart of the old city are covered over with rude, shed-like structures, or with awnings. Its ba- zaars are vast aggregations of many kinds of business, in niches, 215 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. in boxes, and on stands devoted to some specialty in linen or silken fabrics or of metal goods in bronze, and trinkets of gold and silver and brass, each one guarded by one or more watchful attendants, who importune you with tempting offers, which you are assured are ruinous to the dealer but where it is unsafe to offer one-third the amount named unless you are prepared to accept it at that price. Through these narrow streets go little donkeys and great two-humped camels with bales of silk and crates of spices or fruits in bulk, as they have been brought in from far away places. The valley through which we go out of Smyrna on the way to Ephesis is like a garden with vineyards and olive groves and fig trees; with spreading fields of vegetables and springing grain. Farther along it spreads out into a considerable plain, the fields divided by mud embankments or by lines of irrigating ditches. Wild poppies show in patches of bright red, and flowers of yellow, of pink and of purple, in great variety, carpet the uncultivated ground. Across the country go big, noisy, solid-wheeled carts drawn by oxen. Long lines of camels, carrying great bales of goods, are seen coming cityward from the region outside. Flocks of sheep, guarded by herdsmen, appear on plain and hillside when the cultivated land is left behind, and the country generally has an appearance of thrift and prosperity. Even the mud houses of the laborer appear quite comfortable and homelike when compared with the dwell- ings of a like class seen in Southern Syria. At ancient Ephesis, 54 miles from Smyrna, the railroad ends. Ephesis once had a trade greater than any other city in Asia and to its harbor came ships from all the known world. Now the harbor is a swamp, the highest tides only reaching places 216 where in its palmy days came the trading vessels of all lands. Once it had the most magnificent of public buildings and the most wonderful temple the world ever saw, considered then as one of the seven wonders of the world. “Great is Diana of the Ephesians,” cried the people to silence Paul when he preached against their idolatrous worship. To-day the outline of its foundation can not be traced even! You see only an irregular depression in the surface, some portions deeper than others, filled with stagnant water; marble columns, fallen, with here and there perhaps a fragment of some marble capital. The tomb of St. Luke; the church of St. John; the prison of St. Paul — are matters of name rather than of fact. Extensive ruins are there, however, scattered about the hillsides and on the plain. Some are mere masses of brick and stone, others have well preserved walls, with domes and towers of stone, and of bright red, fresh-looking brick, the color of which age does not seem to dull. In the hillside is the cave and the church of the Seven Sleepers. There are extensive ruins along the promon- The Hill Citadel. GREAT IS DIANA OF THE EPHESIANS. tory which juts out into the old harbor and a mediaeval castle crowns a hill, the walls seemingly firm as the hill itself. We moralize over a mass of brick and mortar which at one time formed a portion of a great arch, now being riven asunder by the slow pressure of a growing tree which has sprung from some tiny seed that found lodgment in an unguarded crevice. We wonder of the time that has elapsed since water ran in the channel we trace from far away along the winding hillside to cross over the great arched aqueduct to the citadel. On the tops of these broken arches storks build nests and raise their young, unmolested by the people, who believe the birds in coming bring good luck. And these columns and arches, whose history goes back to the days of Paul, have built into them, with the rougher material, sculptured marble of still older ruins, in quantities that lead one to wonder what mighty buildings could have existed then that should make works of art common as the roughest stone. Backward glancing the mighty past rises. The spreading bay is like changeful silk with its shifting sails and flaunting flags. The plain below throbs with the life of a great city. The hills round about rise in fluffy, vine-covered terraces, on which stand marble villas tipped with bronze and silver and with gold. The summits of the hills are crowned with lordly castles, while like a dream in their midst stands the beautiful temple, serene in its unapproachable splendor. “ Great is Diana of the Ephesians ! ” Look again ! Nature, aggressive, unresting, has reclaimed her own. The space which the ocean once took away is hers once more. She drapes the crumbling ruins with lines of grace 219 THE CRUISE OF THE FRIESLAND. and spreads her carpet of richest verdure across the dead city’s level. The olive and the fig and the vine of the hillside yield up their fruitage ; the sunlit-earth trembles with rich promise to man. And the women who, on bent knees and with faces to the earth, creep in lines across the lowland, plucking out with earth-smeared hands the evil tares from the precious wheat — what think they? Of the vanished glories of Ephesis, or of their own estate in which they exist but as useful animals? And are they thinking — as animals — of that on which they will be fed when their work is done, or of something higher — of their half-brutal loves, which prove them human; of earthy things just touched with things divine — who shall say? Their field seems narrow but, in their narrowed vision, may it not be filled with light ineffable, far more satisfying to them than the whole earth to those who have reached the mountain’s top and standing there but faintly grasp the greater fact that they have only touched the threshold of the great Unknown. ATHENS. Saturday , March 16th , /