Just before reaching D'Mimas we met William Eddy of New York State, a minister in connection with the American mission. On learning our intentions, he kindly proposed to return to D'Mimas, that he might be with us during our stay; his presence and kind care contributed largely to our comfort. Here we visited another school and met several of the brethren socially. The subject of education, and especially the education of women, was freely discussed. We endeavored to show them that no people can be happy or prosperous while woman holds a degraded position among them, and that it is in vain to look for great men where good and virtuous mothers are not to be found. As we press onward what a view opens before us! One short hour farther we stand upon a rocky knoll near the ancient town of Abel, where Joab claimed Sheba the son of Bichri as a condition of peace. Looking eastward, toward our right are the hills of the ancient Bashan, thickly dotted with oaks,those emblems of strength; toward the left Hermon lifts his head to heaven in solemn and solitary majesty. Not far are the sites where stood Laish, Dan, and Cæsarea Philippi of the Scriptures, which we hope to visit before nightfall, and all around on either hand we have spread out before us one of the great battlefields of the Bible. We spent a short time in the town distributing a few Arabic books, and met with, as far as we could learn, the only school-teacher, who told us he had under his instruction fourteen boys. We tried to give him encouragement in the work, and gave him a copy of the Psalms.
Soon after mid-day we reached Tell-el-Kady, "the hill of the judge," the Dan of Scripture. Two things are here worthy of special notice: the fountain of the Jordan and the site of the ancient city of Dan. The Tell is cup-shaped, and bears evidence of being an extinct crater. On an island of rocks in size little more than sufficient to accommodate our party, and beneath the wide-spreading branches of an ancient oak, we took our humble mid-day meal. We had scarcely begun to satisfy our own appetites when a mounted Arab, armed to the teeth, rode up and asked for food, to whom we gladly gave a portion, for, once fed from our store, he becomes an ally, not a foe. Perhaps I ought here to add that on our way to this place from Abel we were accosted by an armed Arab, who demanded "backsheesh" as I rode abreast of him: feeling that we owed him naught but love and good-will, we gave him no money, and were suffered to pass without further molestation. The ruin of the ancient city of Dan is very complete; a few broken walls, fallenstones, and pieces of pottery are all that are left to tell of a people long since passed away.
The story of Dan is soon told. Originally an agricultural colony of the Phœnicians, called Lessem or Laish, it was captured by six hundred Danites from the towns of Zorah and Eshtaol. The capture of Laish by the Danites in the north was the fulfilment of Moses's prophetic blessing to the tribe: "Dan is a lion's whelp; he shall leap from Bashan." Deut. xxxiii. 22.
Another hour's ride brought us to Banias, standing amid the ruins of the ancient Cæsarea Philippi. The modern village is inhabited by some one hundred persons of the Moslem faith, who live in wretched ignorance and poverty. We lodged at the house of the sheik; a room was assigned us and mats spread. There we stretched our weary limbs, but, as the sequel proved, not so much to sleep as to contemplate upon the fact that we had nearly reached the base of Hermon and the site of Cæsarea Philippi, and upon the record that our Lord, after healing the blind man at Bethsaida, "came into the coast of Cæsarea Philippi"—that not far from this place He made that striking appeal to His disciples: "Whom say ye that I am?" and soon after, taking three of His disciples, "He went up into a mountain, and was transfigured before them." Yes,
"I tread where the Twelve in their wayfaring trod,I stand where they stood with the Chosen of God—Where His message was heard and His lessons were taught,Where the blind were restored and the healing was wrought."
"I tread where the Twelve in their wayfaring trod,I stand where they stood with the Chosen of God—Where His message was heard and His lessons were taught,Where the blind were restored and the healing was wrought."
"I tread where the Twelve in their wayfaring trod,
I stand where they stood with the Chosen of God—
Where His message was heard and His lessons were taught,
Where the blind were restored and the healing was wrought."
The next morning, before leaving, we conversed with a son of the sheik, himself a husband and father, upon the importance of education. He acknowledgedhis own inability to read, and further said that the children were all needed by their parents to work; and as to woman, her business was to care for the house and meet the wants of men, and if she did not do this well she must be beaten to make her do it. Such is the state of civilization where once stood a great and prosperous city, whose architectural ruins attest the fact that its citizens must have been men of skill and taste. Again in the saddle, we turned our course northward. Near noon we ascended a high elevation, where our dragoman halted and called out, "Look! look!" Facing southward, we looked and saw Hermon on our left standing in majestic greatness, and beyond, far to the south, the waters of the Sea of Galilee. Mid the glare of a noonday sun the little sea seems a molten mass of silvery hue. We have within the scope of our vision a mountain whose name is accepted as a word of beauty, a valley of great natural fertility, and the arena of mighty deeds done by men whose record is found in the "Book of books," and whose God is the Lord. Here young Jordan springs into life and links its destiny with the waters of Merom, and onward the eye stretches to that now placid sheet where in a dark and stormy night the chosen band were troubled, and where a compassionate Saviour allayed their fears.
We dined at Rasheiyet,[8]at the house of a native Protestant minister, where we were kindly entertained. He accompanied us to the school of the American mission. We were pleased with what we saw, moreespecially with the students' knowledge of scriptural history. Several hours more brought us to Hasbeiya; we lodged at the school-house and had our mats spread upon the seats, thus extemporizing a bedstead. Next morning about twenty of the girls came in to meet us, and also two of the female teachers. We spoke of the way of life and salvation, with such words of encouragement as we found in our hearts. A ride of several hours brought us to Rasheyyá el-Wady. We lodged at the house of one Moses, the first person of the place who embraced Protestant views.
Next day, 1st of 12th mo., held a meeting at the school-house. I felt strengthened, as I trust, to preach "Christ, and Him crucified," as the only way of life and salvation. On the following day at an early hour we passed out of the town by the light of a lantern. At half-past oneP. M.we began to ascend Lebanon. At one place near the top we found our path literally strewed with fossils (bivalves); some of these we collected to take home with us. After a journey of nearly fifteen hours we reached Shumlan, our mountain-home, and were glad to find our companions in comfortable health, and I trust a feeling of thankfulness was felt to our heavenly Father for His protecting care so mercifully granted during our separation. Very sincerely, thy friend,
Eli Jones.
We give below some extracts from letters written to theFriends' Reviewby Ellen Clare Miller, giving a definite account of the number and working of the schools in Beirut and Lebanon for the education ofthe young sons and daughters of Syria. E. and S. Jones have visited the greater number of them, and found many different kinds of laborers—Americans, English, Scotch, and Syrian—all doing a good work for the land:
"Most of those among the natives who are true Christians, and who are exerting a good influence upon the people here, refer gratefully to the American missionaries as those who were instrumental in bringing them to the truth. The American mission has stations at many places among the mountains, most of which have been visited by Eli Jones and A. L. Fox; and besides those in the north of Syria, which we shall not see, they have three in Sidon and its neighborhood under the care of W. Eddy, which we hope soon to visit. The Syrian Protestant college of which Dr. Bliss is president is an institution where Druses, Maronites, Greeks, Armenians, and Protestants together receive a literary, scientific, and medical training under Protestant influence. E. and S. Jones visited this college last week, when they met twenty-eight of the young men, whom they were invited to address. Eli Jones set before them clearly and forcibly the great power of individual influence possessed by each student, the influence their institution must exert on the land, the measure it was of the power of the country, as no stream can rise higher than its source, and as the fountain is the stream will be. Sybil Jones, as an American mother who knew much of such institutions in her own land, affectionately urged them to work perseveringly and prayerfully in their studies, that each one might leave theworld better for his having been in it. It was a very interesting visit; the young men, a fine, intellectual-looking company, listened with great attention, and afterward gathered round the Friends to express their thanks for their kind interest in them.
"There is a large girls' school in Beirut, under the immediate care of a Syrian and his wife, but superintended by the wife of Dr. Bliss, Dr. Thompson's wife, and other ladies. This we have visited more than once, when E. and S. Jones have spoken to the children."
"Besides the school at Shumlan, which is under the care of the English Society for Promoting Female Education in the East, the schools supported by England are all in the hands of Elizabeth Bowen Thompson, whose work is a very extensive one. Her schools are at present twelve in number—five at villages in the mountains—all (with the exception of one recently opened at Ainzabatté, where an English young lady is stationed) taught by natives who have been trained by E. B. Thompson herself. Her work here began in 1860, when the fearful struggle between the Druses, Maronites, and Mohammedans made so many widows and orphans. These Elizabeth Thompson gathered around her at Beirut, providing for and educating them. Since then the field has gradually opened before her, until she has now seven day-schools in Beirut and its immediate neighborhood, and a normal training-school of upward of sixty boarders. All of these E. and S. J. have visited, many of them frequently."
"There are many daughters of Jews and Mohammedansamong E. B. Thompson's scholars, and it is very interesting to hear these little girls singing Christian hymns with the others and repeating and listening to passages predicting the coming of the Messiah alike of the Jew and the Christian, and testifying of Jesus as the Christ. E. and S. Jones had a very interesting meeting with about forty of the native teachers and others connected with these British schools. There is a large girls' school, with an orphanage, under the care of the Prussian deaconesses, similar to the one we visited at Smyrna. Here Sybil Jones had an interesting time with the sisters and the children. She also visited the hospital, an establishment in beautiful order, under the care of four of the sisterhood, where, in a large house finely situated near the seashore, the very poor are kindly nursed and cared for. A school for Jewish children, conducted by missionaries sent out by the Jews' society in Scotland, has lately been established in Beirut. To this also the Friends paid a visit, which was spoken of by teachers as very helpful."
"We left the terraced sides of Lebanon on the last day of the year, returning to the region of the palm, orange, and prickly pear. The weather has this month been very fine, though broken now and then by one of the fierce, sudden winter storms with their rushing rain and violent thunder and lightning. This wild climate suits Sybil Jones remarkably well; she has been better since returning to Beirut than she remembers to have been before, and she enjoys the riding on donkey-back. Eli Jones is better than when we first landed in Syria, though the bracing air of the mountainssuits him better than this more relaxing temperature. We have visited most of the missionaries. Friends and their principles were almost unknown here, but we have been most kindly received, and we hope way has been made for others of our Society who may come to this country. E. and S. Jones one day visited the Beirut prison, into which they were admitted without hesitation, and where they had the pleasure of speaking to about forty poor creatures, and of pointing them to Him who alone has power to break our spiritual fetters."
Below we give extracts from a letter of Eli Jones to theFriends' Review, written from Jaffa in Palestine:
"2d mo. 17th, 1868.E. C. Miller's health appearing not quite equal to a long journey, and finding it not possible to obtain more than three seats in the diligence for Damascus on the 25th of 1st mo., it was arranged that our young friend should 'stay by the stuff' in Beirut while the other members of our party went forward. Accordingly, at the early hour of two o'clockA. M.we arose, breakfasted at half-past two, and at three took conveyance for the station, and at four precisely, with shawls, wraps, sandwiches, etc., were nicely packed in the coupée of the diligence."
"Our ride increased in interest as the young day grew upon us, and by the time the sun had thrown his full blaze of light athwart the western slope of Lebanon the objects seen through the transparent atmosphere of this land presented a most delightful view. Our course was sufficiently tortuous to enable us at times to look down upon Beirut and its surroundingolive- and mulberry-orchards, stately palms, and suburban villages, while beyond lay the Great Sea, dotted here and there with the sail of many a merchant-ship, and then again Sunnin, the highest western point of Lebanon, snow-capped, stood majestically before us clad in the changing hues of early morning."
"Reached the summit near ten, and after another hour's ride of almost flying speed we looked down upon the great valley of Buka'a or Cœle-Syria, bounded on the east by the Anti-Lebanon, clothed in its snowy vesture, while far to our right Hermon, the imperial monarch of Syrian mountains, was seen, in its appearance fully justifying the appellation sometimes applied to it—that of a silver breastplate."
"Just as the darkness of night shut out from our view the fertile valley in which Damascus stood, our last relay of animals was attached to the carriage, consisting of six white horses; and fine specimens they were. A little farther on our attention was arrested by the sound of water on our right, and we were told that it was the Barada River, the Abana of Scripture. 'Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel?' The remainder of our journey lay along the fertile valley of this ancient river. It may, with the strictest propriety, be termed a 'river of Damascus,' as it divides the city into two parts and furnishes a liberal supply of water to many of its inhabitants. We found comfortable quarters at the Dimitris' hotel. The proprietor, a Greek, speaks broken English and strives to make the stay of his guests as agreeable as circumstances will admit.
"26th.Sent our certificates to the missionaries for their perusal. At 12M.attended the prayer-meeting of the few persons here who speak English. After some singing and prayers, and a rather long theological discussion, liberty was given to others to speak. My dear Sybil availed herself of the opportunity to express the feelings which lay with weight upon her heart. This was done briefly, when she knelt in earnest supplication on behalf of those present and for the spread of the glorious gospel of God our Saviour."
"The next day visited two of the schools under the care of the missionaries; strove to encourage teachers and pupils to act well their part. Then went to the home of one of the Bible-women employed by E. B. Thompson to go from house to house and teach such women as desire to read the Bible."
"During our stay in the city we had frequently at our morning readings of the Holy Scriptures the company of the Bible-women and a few others, when our hearts were made glad in the Lord."... "A few weeks previous to the abdication of Louis Philippe the French obtained a foothold in Algeria, after a lengthened struggle of fifteen years or more, when Abdel-Kader, the sultan of the Arabs and one of the most remarkable men of his nation, was induced to surrender to the power of the French, on the condition that he might be allowed to retire to a Mohammedan country as a stipendiary exile."... "He is a follower of Mohammed, the founder of Islamism, and has shown his devotion to the teachings of the Koran by a pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina and by a lifelong adherence tothe religion of his fathers. In 1860 thousands of Christians in the Lebanon and in Damascus were massacred in cold blood, instigated by the deadly hate of the followers of the false Prophet, while hundreds of others, men, women, and children, fled from their pursuers and took refuge in the house and about the premises of Abdel-Kader, who in the exercise of the influence his position gives him, and from the promptings of a kind heart, aided by his trusty followers, shielded the helpless ones from the fury and fanaticism of his co-religionists. Once the mob approached his house and demanded with frantic yells that the Christians within it should be delivered up to them. He, accompanied by a strong body of his followers, went out to confront the yelling crowd. 'Wretches!' he exclaimed, 'is this the way you honor your prophet? May his curse be upon you! Shame on you! shame! You will yet live to repent. You think you may do as you like with the Christians, but the day of retribution will come. The Franks will yet come and turn your mosques into churches. Not a Christian will I give up.They are my brothers.' The mob withdrew."... "Abdel-Kader[9]was at length enabled to repose. He had rescuedfifteen thousand soulsbelonging to the Eastern churches from death, and worse than death, by his fearless courage, his unwearied activity, and his catholic-minded zeal. All the representatives of the Christian powers then residing at Damascus, without one single exception, had owed their lives to him. Strange and unparalleled destiny! An Arab had thrown his guardian ægis over the outragedmajesty of Europe. A descendant of the Prophet had sheltered and protected the (professed) Spouse of Christ. The day previous to our leaving Damascus it seemed right to seek an interview with this noble exile, and from a full heart, in my own name and in behalf of my country and fellow-professors, thank him for his kind and humane interposition, by which, under Providence, so many fellow-beings were rescued from an untimely and a cruel death. Passing up the street upon which the house of the great chief stands, and having Abou Ibrahim for a guide (who, by the way, claims descent from Aaron), we observed Abdel-Kader enter the gateway just before we reached it, where he was standing when we arrived. Our guide having addressed him, he kindly noticed A. L. Fox and myself, and, cordially beckoning us to follow him, led us to a simple reception-room, where, being seated, we had an opportunity of saying what lay nearest to our hearts, and enjoyed the pleasure of feeling that it was kindly taken.[10]While in Damascus we were in the 'street called Straight,' and visited the place indicated by tradition as the house of Judas, where the blind Saul of Tarsus lodged. We were shown the house of Ananias, who was sent to cure the penitent of hisblindness, and the place in the wall where the disciples took him by night and let him down in a basket. I am not surprised that the Christian traveller feels some misgivings as to the identity of these places when he remembers that the evidence is mainly traditional. There is, however, scarcely room to doubt that the modern city occupies the site of the Damascus of Scripture, and that the 'street called Straight' is the identical one entered by Saul on that memorable day that gave to the Gentile world a great apostle and to the Christian Church one of its brightest luminaries."... "The conversion of Paul was one of the most momentous events of Scripture history. The fiery zeal of Saul the persecutor was not extinguished—it was sanctified."...
"Paul the missionary retained all his former energy, boldness, and determination. In Damascus he first preached 'Christ crucified;' then he went into Arabia, then to Antioch, then through Asia Minor; then he passed the Hellespont to Greece; and then he went a prisoner to Rome, where he preached the gospel though chained to a heathen soldier. The apostle Paul occupies the first place among the New-Testament worthies."... "Damascus is as old as history itself. It has survived generations of cities that have risen up in succession around it and have passed away. While they all lie in ruins, Damascus retains the freshness and vigor of youth."... "Outside of the eastern gate of the city is a leper hospital, which to this day is supposed by the inhabitants to occupy the site of Naaman's house."... "There are in the city about thirty thousand Christians, ten thousand Jews, one hundredthousand Mohammedans, and of Protestant Christians less than one hundred, all counted."
"On the 31st of the month we returned to Beirut by diligence. During our stay of five days at Damascus snow had fallen upon the mountains, but not so as materially to retard our progress until we had nearly reached the summit of Lebanon, when, being furnished with a train of twelve animals and four outriders, aided by a strong force of men, we proceeded without much detention, arriving at our comfortable quarters in good time."... "We anticipate leaving in a few days for Jerusalem, should the weather permit and the health of our party prove equal to the effort."... "With love to all who love the truth as it is in Jesus Christ,
"Eli Jones."
The following are extracts from a letter from Ellen Clare Miller, written a few days after the return of Eli Jones and A. L. Fox from Damascus:
"Eli Jones had a meeting at Beirut with some of the young Syrian men of the town, which, though it was a stormy night, was well attended and an interesting time. On First day, the 9th, he had a very good meeting in a suburb of the town at the house of one of the principal men in the neighborhood."... "It was a very interesting group, upward of one hundred being present, some of the turbaned old men leaning forward on their staves with their eyes fixed on Eli Jones while, after the reading of the twelfth of Ecclesiastes from the Arabic Bible, he addressed them through the aid of our kind interpreter, Maalim Saleem,seeking to bring all before him, old and young, to enter into the service of Him whom he had from his youth proved to be a good Master."
"On the 7th, Sybil Jones had a meeting with the women connected with E. M. Thompson's school, at which she spoke to them for about an hour of our need of a Saviour."... "Many of these women have learned to read, and they are very anxious that a school should be opened for them where they may be taught to read and sew by a native teacher."... "She visited also some of the poor women at their own homes and the Bible-women employed by E. M. Thompson, all of whom seemed very ready to receive a visit from one having their best interests at heart, and to listen gladly to the word spoken."... "On Second day evening a meeting was held by Eli and Sybil Jones with the Arabic-speaking congregation at Beirut, who readily responded to the invitation to meet them. Eli Jones addressed them from the words, 'The law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.'"... "Sybil Jones followed, urging the necessity of a heart-changing repentance."... "Sybil Jones paid interesting visits to some of the harems at Beirut, the first time we had been inside any of those 'gilded cages,' where the poor women, without the resource of books, for they cannot read, or of work, for they cannot sew, talk, sleep, dream, and smoke life away, without the variety of walking out, for they cannot be trusted abroad, and unable to look out into the world except through a lattice. We went under the care of E. M. Thompson, who obtains ready access."... "We were driven as near the first houseas the carriage could be taken, but on alighting had to ascend a steep, rough, narrow road, crossing a watercourse here and there, then a branch road of steps, then another torrent-path. The roads of ill-governed Syria are deplorable indeed. At last we reached the door of a large but unpretending-looking house, or rather group of houses, for one opened out of another. Here lived four families, related to each other, of the first rank in Beirut, the grandmothers, the wives of the house, girls, and children, in the flowing dress of the East, sitting on the floor by the ashes of the braziers or crouching on the divan, all but the youngest smoking the unfailing nargileh with its long flexible tube. They received us most cordially and affectionately, and seated us by their sides, and through the medium of one of E. M. Thompson's native teachers Sybil Jones spoke to them, and also E. M. Thompson; but it was very difficult to secure the attention of the company for any length of time; they could not refrain from laughing and chatting together. Poor creatures! some of them looked almost devoid of intellect with the long pipe-tubes in their mouths; others were very pretty and seemed quite to appreciate the loss they sustained by being uneducated. Some of the highest Mohammedan families are very anxious that E. M. Thompson should open a school for their elder girls, where they would send them if no man was allowed to look upon them. The desire for education is waking up among them in a remarkable manner."... "The ladies are all waited upon by dark, white-teethed African female slaves in scanty clothing. Sherbet, coffee, and sweetmeats were handed round, and it isan insult to decline partaking, however many houses we may have visited."... "Poor creatures! we could not but desire that the true light might enter their dwellings and shine into their hearts."
"We sailed from Beirut on the 12th, and came down the coast in the night, passing in the darkness Sidon, Tyre, Mount Carmel, and Cæsarea. After a rather stormy passage we anchored next morning before Jaffa, which rises up from the sea on a round hill, at each side of which is a sandy bay."... "It is difficult by description to give much idea of Jaffa with its steep, narrow, dirty, and muddy lanes, and street-stairs which climb up the hill among the old, dilapidated houses crowded irregularly together."... "Jaffa is very ancient, and, notwithstanding its extreme dirtiness, an interesting place."... "The most interesting place to visit in the town itself is the supposed—and, indeed, well-authenticated—site of the house of Simon the tanner, which stands by the sea-side, rising up above the town-wall. The building now standing is not supposed to be the very one in which Peter lodged, but to have been built on the spot where it stood. In the courtyard is a very ancient well which helps to identify the place, and beside it is a large stone trough of undoubted antiquity, probably used to soak hides in, and partly covered by a large flat stone like a currier's table."
"There is mission-work going on at Jaffa; P. Metzler, a German educated at the Basle institution, carries on a mill, with part of the profits of which he supports a girls' day-school."... "Eli Jones with A. L. Fox visited this school the other day, when hespoke to and examined the children, with whose intelligence and answers he was much pleased."
"While the Friends were in Damascus I was present at a native wedding, where the honored guests were each furnished with a taper to hold; which had a great interest as a remnant of the going forth with lamps to meet the bridegroom alluded to in the parable of the Ten Virgins. New light too has been thrown on the expression 'heaping coals of fire on his head' by finding that it is customary for the baker when he clears his oven at night to give away the living embers to those who will accept the kindness; and we have met persons in the evening carrying these coals away on their heads in large open braziers. It is remarkable how little the customs of the people have changed within the last two or three thousand years."
After the above letter was written the Friends went from Jaffa to Jerusalem, thence to Marseilles, having held many meetings and interviews with teachers and scholars in the schools, which are doing a great work toward causing the light of day to dawn upon unfortunate Syria. The following extracts from a letter written by Eli Jones to theFriends' Reviewfrom London will state clearly the reasons for their leaving Palestine sooner than was expected: "We are again in this great city, and comfortably quartered at the house of our very kind friends Stafford and Hannah S. Allen, where we are seeking rest and a renewal of strength for further service for our good Master. For more than two months past my dear Sybil has been suffering from an attack of disease, leaving her at timesvery weak; consequently, we were unable to accomplish fully what we had in view in the Orient, leaving several places in Palestine and in Egypt that we might hasten the time of embarkation at Alexandria in order to bear our invalid to a more favorable climate, as the only thing likely to facilitate a cure. The voyage, with the use of remedies prescribed by the physician on shipboard, arrested the disorder for a time, and we hoped the cure might prove permanent; but the journey by train from Marseilles to Nismes proved too much for the strength of our charge, and the disorder rallied with fresh force and continued for some time, but again yielded to skilful treatment and nursing by our dear friend Lydia Majolier, whose kindness and sympathy, with those of our much-loved friends in the south of France, greatly cheered all our party. Near noon of the 8th we took the train for Paris, and thence to London by way of Boulogne, where we arrived after a journey of thirty-three hours' continuance. Dear S. bore the journey admirably, and we now entertain the hope that a few days of quiet and rest may be of great use, so that we may be able to proceed to Dublin in season for the yearly meeting. Our long sojourn in the East has not been without its trials. Sometimes they seemed to us peculiar, and when we attempted to look into the future it seemed doubtful if not dark. Still, that kind Hand always stretched out to save has gently led the way and shielded us from harm. Blessed be the name of the Lord!"... "A. L. Fox left us last evening for his home, where we now fancy him in the society of wife and child, father and mother, brothers and sisters, to whom he is tenderly attached andby whom he is greatly beloved. Dear E. C. Miller intends to remain until Second or Third day of next week before she leaves to join the home-circle, by whom she will receive a warm welcome, but saddened by the thought that one dear sister waits not on earth to welcome the coming one, but in another and higher scene of existence."
The cause for which the two Friends came to England before fully accomplishing their work in Syria was the extreme feebleness of Sybil Jones. A change and partial rest seemed imperative.
They soon began to labor in Cornwall, and they were gratified to find "Quakerism still vital" in this place where George Fox had sowed the seed exactly two centuries before. Considerable time was spent and much edifying work done at Falmouth, where they were pleased to find so many Friends of high literary and scientific attainments. The small meetings of the neighboring villages received new life from the earnest words and encouraging advice of the travellers.
One of their letters describes the visit to a meeting at Come-to-Good in the parish of Kea:
"Here is a meeting-house belonging to Friends built more than two hundred years ago. It has a most primitive appearance. The walls are of stone, the abutments of the same material; the roof is thatched with straw. It is in a rural and retired spot. Only one Friend, and he of more than fourscore years, resides in the neighborhood; but the many grassymounds that press about the door tell of generations that have passed away. The meeting here was one of great interest, and one to which we recur with unfeigned pleasure. He who, we doubt not, has from time to time met his servants here and at that altar of 'unhewn stones,' was now present to bless the waiting ones. In this humble structure George Fox proclaimed the good news with his wonted zeal and with all the energy of a reformer."
In the same letter Eli Jones writes with great feeling:
"A little farther on we reach the Land's End. Here it stands, a bold promontory, with granite fingers pointing toward the New World. As I climb these mighty bulwarks that have successfully defied the power of Old Ocean through every change of time, and look out upon the unstable waters toward the setting sun, what thoughts of kindred and country fill my breast! Lord of life, great Spirit in the centre of all worlds, bless thou them!"
For more than two months they dwelt at Plymouth, during which time Sybil Jones gained strength rapidly, although she was in a very critical condition. A Friend from that city writes of their message there: "I believe there are many in this part of the country who will have reason to bless God in eternity for the visit and gospel labors of Eli and Sybil Jones." Members who had never before opened their lips in public bore testimony that they desired to be on the Lord's side.
The southern part of England was faithfully travelled over, and the joys of a "life hid with Christ inGod" proclaimed to the people, who everywhere received the messengers and the message gladly. The various meetings of Ireland were again attended. A warm reception was given to the American workers, who were already well known there from their previous efforts, and an earnest and loving spirit seemed to pervade many hearts. As this year (1868) was closing, Eli Jones, with a heart full of love to God for his immeasurable blessings, wrote to one of his friends in the land which he so loved:
"As we turn to other households and to our country, and to other countries and peoples, we see everywhere evidences of the superintending care of Him in whom we live and move and have our being. And are we not reminded by divers tokens for good that light is advancing? And may we not accept as true the words of the poet:
'Upon the great dial-plate of agesThe light advanced no more recedes'?
'Upon the great dial-plate of agesThe light advanced no more recedes'?
'Upon the great dial-plate of ages
The light advanced no more recedes'?
If this be so, let us bind on our armor, and as the newborn year takes its place as the successor of those that are past, and after it shall have done its full measure of service in the long line of years shall give place to others, who we hope may be blessed in their deed and doing far beyond their progenitors.
"On the closing day of the last year I stood with my fellow-travellers upon the western slope of Mount Lebanon, and there reviewed the past and looked prayerfully forward to the incoming year—a year whose history will soon be complete. And what a history! and what a work has been accomplished!—workin which millions have been actors. The citizens of the two great English-speaking nations, Great Britain and the United States, have with unprecedented unanimity at their late elections declared in favor of religious liberty and of political equality. In Spain multitudes seem only waiting to claim for themselves and their countrymen these inalienable rights of all men.
"Even in Turkey, where the teachings of the Koran and the False Prophet have dominated so long, see we not bright rays of light here and there amid the darkness? I think we do. The Christian woman with her firman from the sultan is diligently instituting schools where the children of the Jew, the Christian, and the Mohammedan are taughtnottheKoran, but thepagewritten by inspiration of God.
"If we turn to Madagascar, that far-off island of the sea, we observe much with which to fill a large page in the history of the year just closing. A queen has reached the throne who looks approvingly upon the workers among her pagan subjects, while thousands press about those who tell the good news of salvation by Jesus Christ, and hear them gladly; while Liberia, India, China, and Japan can each furnish a page that shall tell of light advancing and declare to the world that 'God is love' and the 'Father of us all.'"
As the winter passed and Sybil Jones felt new strength come from her partial rest in Great Britain, while her husband continually carried on the work, sometimes alone, sometimes with her help, they each began to feel that there was more work to be done in the East, though neither had spoken to the other inregard to it. The 22d of 2d mo., their prospect having become definite, with the full approval of English Friends they once more embarked for Syria. They spent nearly a week in the south of France, revisiting their many friends there and encouraging them all to continue on in their lives of service to the Master. The meetings were very large, sometimes fully five hundred being present, and they found their work done sixteen years before had left a lasting impression.
After a delightful voyage over the blue waters of the Mediterranean they came to Alexandria, where there were many opportunities offered for spreading the news of the way of life through the Saviour. Here and at Cairo there were many who gladly listened to the great truths which they were inspired to preach. There, where Napoleon had told his soldiers that forty centuries looked down upon them from the heights of the Pyramids, these missionaries of love labored to point their hearers to the Ancient of Days, whose habitation is from eternity and which standeth sure. The different mission-schools of Northern Egypt were visited and helped in various ways.
Of this work Ellen Clare Miller, again their companion, writes:
"The visit to Egypt was altogether of remarkable interest, there being, especially among the native Christians at Alexandria, an interesting and open field for the spread ofspiritual Christianity, and an earnest longing in the minds of some after a closeracquaintance with the teaching of the Holy Spirit and His appearing in the soul."
The 16th of 4th mo. they came to the end of their journey, and camped outside the city of Jerusalem. At once they began the work of visiting schools and holding little meetings for all who wished to hear the gospel, not only in Jerusalem, but in all the surrounding villages. As these laborers rose before the groups gathered round them on the very spots where the works of our Master were wrought and where his words were spoken, with the scenes of the greatest historic events stretching out before them, a new power seemed to fill them, and their souls were stirred for the salvation and upbuilding of the people of this Holy Land. No class of its inhabitants was neglected; even the lepers were recipients of their message. Eli Jones visited the community of these unfortunate beings, and tried to induce them to come to the hospital prepared for them, telling them also of Him who came into this world to deliver us from even a worse disease than leprosy.
A letter from Eli Jones, written from Burkin, will suffice to give the reader an idea of their travels and a description of some of the places visited. Among others he speaks of Ramallah, where the mission-school was begun during their visit there. The letter was written for theFriends' Review:
"Tented near this little town, the time of day something past 'high noon' and the heat at 94° in the shade, I take the time to jot down a few thoughts, or perhaps I should say facts, for the perusal of my North American correspondents. Since I last wrote thee we have passed through portions of the ancient country of Egypt, have looked with feelings of admiration and wonder upon her pyramids and hieroglyphics, theformer standing out to-day in all their primeval strength to tell of thegreatness, or perhaps more correctly of thefolly, of their builders, and the latter as we saw them upon the lasting rock apparently as clearly defined as when fresh from the hand of the recorder.
"The Nile, emphatically 'the river of Egypt,' still flows onward to the sea, and in its season annually waters the country, giving abundant fertility to the soil, which if cultivated with skill and care would make the adopted country of Joseph again the granary of the world. We had a very pleasant sail upon this wonderful river, embarking near the spot where floated the ark of bulrushes containing the Hebrew child who in the fulness of time became the leader and deliverer of Israel from their long bondage in the land of the Pharaohs. At the time of our visit the river was spanned by a bridge of boats, thrown across by order of the viceroy on the occasion of the marriage of some members of his family: this circumstance gave us a carriage-ride for several miles where otherwise we must have had recourse to donkeys as a mode of conveyance.
"A canal has been constructed extending from the Nile near Cairo to Suez upon the Red Sea; these places are also connected by the railroad; much of the way this runs parallel to the canal. On our way to the latter place we followed the iron horse for five or six hours across the desert of sand which must needs be passed, and which is enlivened only by the moving sails upon the canal, the untiring steeds that bore us on, and those tell-tale wires which, as with lovingarms, are embracing not only the seas and fertile lands, but also the desert wilds. An highway (Isa. xi. 16)ishere, and shall notthisdesert yet blossom as a rose? To our party the Red Sea was an object of much interest: as we sailed out upon it we beheld at our right the mountains through whose defiles the Lord's people are supposed to have passed on their approach to the water's edge, where, notwithstanding the hot pursuit of their enemies, they were to hear the assuring language: 'Fear ye not; stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will show to you to-day; for the Egyptians which ye have seen to-day, ye shall see them again no more for ever;' and on our left was the gently-sloping strand where they made their exit from their watery way, and where we subsequently landed, some of our party going a little way into the interior to drink of the waters at the 'well of Moses,' which remaineth unto this day. Let the God of Israel be magnified, and let not His wonderful works be forgotten by the children of men.
"During our brief stay in this part of Egypt we had occasionally the opportunity of observing the progress of the work upon the projected ship-canal across the Isthmus of Suez. Of its ultimate completion and success its projectors are very sanguine, and it is equally clear that for the attainment of that end great engineering skill has been displayed and a large expenditure of money been made, and such a measure of unfaltering perseverance and of unflagging determination to overcome opposing difficulties brought into requisition as have been manifested in few other enterprises undertaken by man.
"On the 6th of the 5th mo. the male members of our party left for Jericho, travelling the very road, we may suppose, upon which the man was journeying who 'fell among thieves, who stripped him of his raiment and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.' We halted near mid-day under the 'shadow of a great rock,' and not far from the spot made ever memorable and dear to the Christian by one of the most beautiful and instructive parables of our blessed Lord—that of the Good Samaritan.
"We found the way rough and in some places difficult, yet there are in several places indications that in the centuries past, perhaps in the days of Roman rule, there was a highway here where the chariots of Jehu and Jabin might have 'rolled harmlessly on.'
"Our tents we located near the modern Jericho, which is supposed to occupy the site of Gilgal, the camping-ground of the host commanded by Joshua, and where he did 'pitch those twelve stones which they took out of Jordan' in commemoration of their miraculous passage through the waters. Almost immediately upon reaching this place we put ourselves in communication with the people. Found the entire population Moslem, not one of whom can read, and the evidences of moral degradation, especially among some of the females, were remarkable. It should be said, however, that when we spoke to them of matters of the highest moment, and read to them from the sacred volume, the majority listened with some approach to respectful attention.
"In the evening the sheik and some twenty or more of the men of the village responded to an invitation tocome to our tent: we read a portion of Scripture and spoke to them of the beneficial effects of education upon a people, and of our individual duties to God. Our remarks were ably seconded by Prof. E. C. Mitchell of Alton, Ill., who kindly united with us in striving to stimulate the inhabitants of Jericho in the way of mental and moral improvement. At the close of the interview they assured us that we were the first persons who had ever offered them a helping hand or spoken to them of a better way than the one they were then pursuing, and added that on the next evening they would tell us whether they would accept our offer to give them a school. At an early hour next morning we were on our way to the Dead Sea, where we enjoyed the luxury of a bath in its bitter and buoyant waters; thence we passed on to the Jordan, to the place where thousands of pilgrims come in commemoration of the passage of the pilgrim band from Egypt under the lead of Joshua, and of the baptism of the world's great Deliverer by John, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled. Here we lunched and duplicated our bath in the Dead Sea: found the current of the river strong and rapid, requiring much care to retain one's position. The water is shoal, but of sufficient depth in places to allow of baptism by immersion.
"On our return to Jericho the sheik kindly engaged to convene some of the people in the town, where we met fifty or sixty persons, and among the number several females, who brought their long pipes and engaged in smoking as they took their seats upon the ground. Their faces and breasts were sadly tattooed,and on the whole they presented a spectacle not easily matched short of the Western wilds of America. It is, however, but justice to this country to say that during my long stay here I have nowhere else seen its like. The motley company were addressed by Prof. Mitchell and others of our party, and we cherish the hope that this labor will not be in vain in the Lord, but that in due time fruit may appear. Soon after reaching our tents several of the men called to say that they wished a school for their children, and if we would send a teacher they would gladly receive him. I hope the means may be found to support a school at this place. The good influence would extend rapidly to the towns around.
"First day, 9th of the month, some of our party at an early hour in the morning were at Bethany, the town of Mary and Martha, where we collected upon the top of a house such persons as we found at liberty, and read the account of the raising to life of Lazarus, as recorded by the evangelist, after which we trust Jesus Christ was preached as the resurrection and the life.
"At half-past twoP. M.of the 11th we left Jerusalem on our journey northward, and soon after reached the top of Mount Scopus, where on our right we enjoyed a delightful view of the Dead Sea, the valley of the Jordan near its mouth, and beyond the mountains of Moab, and, turning to review the ground travelled over, we had Jerusalem full in view; and perhaps from no other point is the city seen to greater advantage than from this, unless it be from Olivet. Tradition tells us that Titus, the Roman invader, selected the top of Scopus for his camping-ground, from which he couldeasily observe much that was transpiring in and around the doomed city.
"We now leave, probably for the last time, the city dear to Jew and Greek, to Moslem and Christian, and especially dear to us who have found an open door to preach there Christ, and Him crucified.
"Some half hour on our way from Scopus we turned aside a little to look upon the village of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, the home of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah. Resuming our course, we soon reached 'Gibeah of Saul.' The place is indicated by little more than a conical hill, which lay to our right. On our left and more distant, capping a high eminence, Mizpah was seen. Farther on Ramah was reached, the home of the good Samuel, 'and Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. And he went from year to year in circuits to Bethel and Gilgal and Mizpah, and judged Israel in all those places. And his return was to Ramah, for there was his house, and there he judged Israel, and then he built an altar unto the Lord.'
"Reaching Ramallah, some three hours from Jerusalem we found our tent in readiness to receive us. The town occupies an elevated position overlooking the distant plain of Sharon. The air was cool and bracing. 12th, visited a boys' school at Ramallah. In the afternoon some of our party visited one at Jifneh, the Gophna of Josephus. 13th, went to Bethel, distant one and a half hours from our encampment.
"On approaching this place, so noted in Scripture records, we observed the remains of a cistern 314 feet by 217 feet, constructed of massive stones; the southernside is entire, the other sides are more or less ruined. A portion of the enclosure is now used as a threshing-floor. Here also is a fountain at which the cattle of Abraham often drank in former days, and at which the maidens of Sarah were wont to fill their pitchers as the Arab maidens do still.
"The Bethel of to-day is a miserable Moslem village with a low, uneducated population, amongst whom we were unable to find more than one person who could read. He is the one who calls the people to prayers; to him we gave a tract and the Psalms of David in Arabic.
"As we spoke to some of the inhabitants of our great Father in heaven, and of our obligations to serve Him, we were answered with little more than a vacant stare and an expressed wish for backsheesh. What a contrast between these followers of the False Prophet and him who is called the 'father of the faithful,' who here spread his tent and here rendered true homage to the greatI Am!and how unlike the patriarch Jacob, who here, beneath heaven's broad canopy, slept, as many an Arab now sleeps, on the bare ground with a stone for his pillow! Here he dreamed of the ladder which reached from earth to heaven, and on which the angels were ascending and descending, and on awakening was so impressed with the holiness and majesty of Jehovah that he exclaimed,'How dreadful is this place! This is none other than the house of God.' And here the cheering promise was given him: 'In thee and all thyseedshall all the families of the earth be blessed; and behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest.'
"Here Samuel, worthy of double honor, a prophet of God and a judge in Israel, came on his yearly circuit from Gilgal and Mizpah to hold his court and render righteous judgment between brethren; and thitherward turned the steps of Elijah and Elisha while fulfilling their high commission as servants of God.
"And here too came the youthful king Josiah, as foretold by the prophet, and brake down the high-places of Jeroboam, and burned down to the ground the grove that grew up on the hill for the worship of Astarte.
"On our return from Bethel we held a meeting at Beeroth—now called Bireh—with a few Christians and Moslems. Our interpreter read the fifth chapter of Matthew, after which I drew their attention to the teaching of the gospel, dwelling at some length upon the words, 'Therefore whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye even so unto them.' They listened with marked attention to all that was said. On leaving we were told that a few years since a difficulty arose from a very slight cause between two families in the town, and, spreading to others, the spirit of strife and revenge grew higher and higher till in their murderous fury forty-four persons lost their lives, and since then the spirit of revenge had shown itself in other ways. Only the night before our meeting valuable fig trees had been destroyed from the same cause, and we were told that some of the parties concerned were present and heard our words of exhortation.
"Beeroth was one of the four cities of the Gibeonites,whose curious story the name will at once recall. It is also thought to be the halting-place of Joseph and Mary when they found that the child Jesus was not among their friends and kinsfolk of the party. Ramallah, twenty minutes from Beeroth, is professedly a Christian village, occupying a commanding position from which we get a fine view westward down the mountain-sides of Benjamin and Ephraim, and over the broad plain of Sharon to the Mediterranean.
"Toward evening we held a meeting at the Protestant school-room in this town. The crowd of men, women, and children became so dense that nearly every one assumed a standing position, and all seemed very eager to see the strangers, and, as I thought, very curious to hear a woman address a public assembly. My S. J., taking her stand upon a bed in a corner of the room, spoke earnestly and at considerable length upon the way of life and salvation, to which many listened with fixed attention.
"14th.At the request of S. J., a meeting was appointed for females; many responded, and a satisfactory meeting was held. Meantime, the male members of our party called at the Latin convent. Found the monk at its head with a school of eight or ten boys, which he summarily dismissed upon our entering, assigning as a reason that it was time for them to leave, though it was but ten o'clock in the morning. From the answers which he gave to our numerous inquiries we were induced to think that although he and his associates may not do much to enlighten the people around them, yet that as an individual he is really loyal to the Church of which he is a member,and that he considers salvation very unlikely, if not impossible, apart from conformity to its rules and its traditional observances.
"In the evening a meeting was held with males only, in which they were exhorted to prepare to meet their God in peace by repentance toward Him and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and also to a faithful performance of their several duties as husbands, fathers, and brothers, that so the position of women may be elevated in this land and her children prepared for a useful career among men.
"I am closing this sheet at Beirut, the 12th of 6th mo.; and as the mail closes very soon, I have only time to add that our party are in good health and look to turning their faces homeward in a few days.
"Thy loving and sincere friend,
"Eli Jones."
It will not be possible to give the further details of the faithful efforts of this little party to promote the highest earthly and eternal welfare of the inhabitants of this once highly favored land. They visited all the spots made sacred by the steps of Him whom they followed, but they went not to satisfy their desire of beholding: they bore tidings of joy to the sorrowful. They pursued their journey as far north as Beirut, preaching in every city and village, and leaving in many places money behind them for the advancement of education. Wholly devoted as they were to the service of the Lord, with great love for all the human souls where they went, and power being given them to tell the story of a mighty Deliverer, thefruit of work must have been very abundant. We do not need to count those converted in such work for the Lord, and even if we could we should still be unable to estimate the value of the seed thrown broadcast over the land, which may long lie dormant and finally bud into new grain.
On the 22d of 6th mo. Eli and Sybil Jones, with their companions, E. C. Miller, Joseph Pim, Richard Allen, and T. C. Wakefield, sailed from Beirut for the Occident, stopping on their way at Athens, Marseilles, and Geneva, and reaching London the 10th of 7th mo. Soon after their arrival in England the two American Friends embarked for their home. Sybil Jones's work in the Eastern continent was now complete, and she had the great satisfaction of feeling that she had in every particular obeyed the call of Him whom she served.