THE FLIGHT INTO EGYPT.
Another visit was paid to the Church of the Nativity on the following morning, and then the party took a stroll through the streets of Bethlehem while the tents and baggage were being packed for removal to the next camping-ground. A little before noon they started for a ride to the Convent of Mar Saba, halting for a few moments to look at the well for whose waters King David longed when he was in the Cave of Adullum.
They stopped at the Grotto of the Shepherds, the place where the keepers of the flocks were told of the coming of Christ. Frank and Fred thought it a little singular that the shepherds should have been watching in a grotto when their flocks would naturally be above-ground, and they ought to be near their flocks. The Doctor said this was the spot where tradition asserted that the shepherds were told of the coming of Christ; there was a church and monastery there for several centuries, and it was not until the time of the Crusades that any mention was made of a grotto. The authorities are pretty fairly agreed as to the locality, and it is hardly worth our while to make any objections.
The custodian of the place brought the key, and they descended the steps leading to the cavern. The place is fitted up as a chapel, and contains a dozen or more paintings and several fragments of ancient mosaics. There are a few broken columns and other remains of the old church, but, aside from its historical interest, the place is by no means remarkable.
The ride from the grotto to Mar Saba was through a rough region, and in some places the road wound along steep hill-sides, where a false step might have thrown horse and rider hundreds of feet to the bottom of a ravine. In the valleys, and on many of the slopes, there were fields and gardens, but the greater part of the country was a scene of desolation. The guide said they were coming into the region of the Bedouins, but would be in no danger until after passing Mar Saba. Even there they were entirely safe, as an escort had been engaged who would meetthem at the convent, and accompany them the rest of the journey till they returned to Jerusalem.
AN ARAB ENCAMPMENT.
Turning a sharp bend in the road they came suddenly upon an encampment of Bedouins. There were half a dozen tents, none of them more than four or five feet high, and anything but comfortable to live in. Frank thought their own camp was much to be preferred to the home of these wandering Arabs, and he wondered how the natives managed to pass their lives there. The Doctor explained that the Bedouins were shepherds, and consequently were obliged to move with their flocks in search of pasturage; for many centuries they had been wanderers over the land, and refused to live in villages, and, as they had never known the comforts of civilization, they did not miss anything.
A dozen half-naked children rushed from the tents, and shouted "hadji! hadji!" (pilgrims! pilgrims!)—several dogs barked, and there was a good deal of commotion in the camp. Some of the children came to the path in front of the travellers, and demanded backsheesh with an insolent air; nobody paid any attention (or money) to them, and as none of the party wished to stop among these ill-tempered nomads, the camp was soon left behind. The most dignified of the Bedouins was an old man, apparently the sheik or chief, who sat in front of the tents as immovable as a statue. He was holding his pipe with the bowl resting onthe ground and riveted his eyes on the travellers, evidently meditating whether it was worth his while to demand tribute.
A BEDOUIN SHEIK.
Frank took a rapid note of the appearance of the sheik, so that he might know him again: "A large cloak of gray material, with the sleeves and skirt of a white caftan showing beneath it—cloak fastened at the neck by a clasp and cord with red tassels, a beard white as snow and not closely trimmed, and a head-dress of acafeeah, or Syrian kerchief, held in place by cords of twisted camel's-hair. A face browned by exposure and its natural hue, and a pair of eyes so keen that they might pierce a hole through a blanket." Such was the Bedouin sheik that our friends encountered.
One of the boys asked the Doctor if this was a part of the race of Arabs that made it unsafe for travellers to go through their country.
"Yes," answered the Doctor. "I do not know that this particular camp indulges in robbery, but the chances are that it does. The Bedouins of Syria and Palestine have their own notions about the rules of life, and with the most of them robbery is not incompatible with honesty."
The boys laughed at this idea, and then the Doctor explained his meaning.
MODERN BEDOUINS OF MOUNT SINAI.
"You are aware," said he, "that among the Indians of our Western plains it is perfectly legitimate and honorable to steal horses; we might come nearer home and say that many respectable men in New York and other cities do not think they have done anything wrong when they persuade their friends to buy the stocks or other property that they wish to sell. The rules of honesty vary in different parts of the world, and the standard of one country or people will not always answer for another.
"Plundering travellers or tribes weaker than his own has been the practice of the Bedouin from time immemorial. He considers it perfectly legitimate, and points with pride to the property he has stolen, provided he is in no danger of being seized for the theft.
"He is always ready to be bought off, provided he can make more in that way than by stealing. Sometimes the government lays a heavy hand on him, and compels him to abandon his practices; but as these people can always flee to the deserts, where regular troops cannot follow, it is very difficult to conquer them. Some of the tribes have never been subdued, but live in perfect independence far away from the cities and towns.
"The Bedouin has the single virtue of hospitality, and a stranger who has been received in his tent is entirely safe so long as he remains there. The Bedouin will protect him and his property, and instances of violation of the rules of hospitality are very rare. But it sometimes happens that he will find out what road his guest intends to travel, and then send his friends forward, or even go himself, to rob and perhaps murder the man who was the night before sleeping safely in his tent. There is a superstition among many of the Arab tribes that if they eat salt with a stranger they are forbidden to harm him afterward; from this comes the remark you often hear about two persons having eaten salt together, and therefore they must be friends.
"The Arabs in this part of Palestine," Doctor Bronson continued, "were formerly very bold robbers, and committed many outrages. They have been severely chastised on several occasions, but their evil practices have never been quite broken up. They claim to own the country, and therefore insist on their right to levy toll or tribute from everybody passing through it. This would not be so bad if the amount of toll was uniform,but their practice has been to take everything the traveller possesses, even to his clothing and sometimes his life.
"Of late years the business has been systematized, and the Bedouins have made a compromise with the government, so that any traveller can have a safe-conduct through their country by paying for it. A sheik of the tribe with several of his followers lives in Jerusalem; they are kept there as hostages for the good behavior of their brethren in the Valley of the Jordan, and before one of them can leave the city another must come there to take his place. In case a traveller under escort is robbed, the sheik must make good his loss.
SCENE IN THE WILDERNESS.
"The price of a safe-conduct to the Jordan and Dead Sea has been fixed at five francs for each person of a party, and the guides and servants are not to be counted.
"When we came to Jerusalem, Ali went to the sheik and paid him thirty francs—five francs for each of us—for the safe-conduct for the party. An escort of one or two men will meet us at Mar Saba, and go with us the rest of the way. He is responsible for our safety, and his presence with us indicates that we have paid the proper black-mail, and are therefore not to be molested.
AN ARAB GUARD IN PALESTINE.
"Formerly it was necessary to engage a dozen or more of these fellows to act as a guard. It was really another and more expensive form of black-mail, as the men were of no actual use, and would run away if attacked, leaving the traveller to his fate. It made no difference to them whether he was killed or not; and as they had usually received a part of their pay in advance, it was not worth their while to stay and take the risk of being killed in his defence.
"A great deal of nonsense has been written about the noble character of the Bedouin Arabs, their bravery, scrupulous honor, and other commendable qualities. Of course there are exceptions, and it would be strange indeed if a people numbering many thousands should all be rascals. But, taken as a whole, the Bedouins are a race of thieves, and their few redeeming traits are not sufficient to offset their bad qualities."
MAR SABA (FROM THOMSON'S "THE LAND AND THE BOOK").
It was some time before sunset when they reached the Convent of Mar Saba, and found their tents pitched a few hundred yards from the walls of the building. Seen from the outside the edifice is more like a fortress than a religious establishment, as it has a series of bastions and towers, and its walls are thick enough to stand a long siege from anything except artillery.
Doctor Bronson told the boys that the monastery was founded in the fifth century by St. Sabas, or Saba, and is therefore among the oldest buildings of the kind in the East. It has an exposed position in the wilderness, and has been captured several times and plundered, the last occasion being about fifty years ago. In the seventh century it was taken by the Persians, and all the inmates were massacred; but the more modern captors have been satisfied with robbery, and sometimes the sale of the monks as slaves.
RUSSIAN PILGRIMS IN THE HOLY LAND.
Ali had obtained a permit to visit the monastery from the Greek Superior at Jerusalem. He told the travellers that they must stop when forty or fifty feet from the gate, and wait till the letter had been presented. A dozen monks came to the top of the walls and surveyed the party, while the letter was attached to a string and drawn up. The permit proved to be all right, and a small door was opened by which one after another the strangers were taken inside. No Arab is ever admitted under any pretence, and consequently Ali remained outside while the party was conducted through the place by one of the brethren who spoke French.
They saw the cavern where St. Saba lived on friendly terms with a lion, the tomb where he was buried, the church, the bones of the monks killed by the Persians, and the rooms occupied by the brethren, and also by pilgrims from the Jordan on their way to Jerusalem. A tall palm-tree bends over the summit of the roof of one of the towers. It is said to have been planted by St. Saba in person, but, whether this be so or not, the tree is certainly of very great age.
There are about sixty monks in the convent, the most of them Russians, and all adherents of the Greek Church. They eat nothing but vegetables, and fast often, and the result is they are thin and feeble.When not engaged at their devotions they employ their time in carving ornaments, crosses, and the like, from olive-wood and mother-of-pearl, which are sold to visitors or sent to Jerusalem. No woman is ever permitted to cross the threshold of Mar Saba, not even to escape the terrible storms which ravage the country at certain seasons. Harriet Martineau, Ida Pfeiffer, and other lady travellers tell how they were denied admission, and slept in a tower near the monastery, or in their tents in camp. The accommodations of the tower are very limited, and it is entered by a door which must be reached by a rope-ladder, since it is about twenty feet from the ground.
ROAD TO THE DEAD SEA.
As our friends completed their visit they gave a couple of francs to the brother who had conducted them through the place. The other brethren had spread their wares on the floor of the court-yard, and were waiting for the chance of selling something; but nobody wished to buy. As they gave the money to the monk he asked if it was for himself or the convent. When they said it was for himself he repeated the question in a loud voice, so that his companions could hear it and the answer which followed. Another franc was then added "for the convent," and immediately each of the monks gathered his possessions from the floor, and disappeared into an inner room. The strangers were shown through the little door, and, after a short stroll among the desolate surroundings of the convent, they returned to their camp.
The dragoman roused the party before daylight, and by the time the hills were fairly lighted up they were off for the Dead Sea.
They descended to the Valley of the Kedron, which is overlooked by the towers of Mar Saba, and ascended the stream for a short distance to a suitable crossing-place, when they turned to the eastward.
Another encampment of Bedouins was passed, and then another; the road lay among hills wilder and more desolate, if possible, than that of the day before, and in some places it was so rocky as to be really dangerous. On two or three occasions horses fell with their riders, but fortunately without doing any serious injury. Frank had his foot jammed very hard against a rock around which he was passing, and the thickness of his boot barely saved him from injury. Not a year passes without accidents of more or less severity in this part of the way, and our friends heard afterward of broken legs and arms among the tourists of the preceding year. The guides and tourist agencies take great pains to conceal these occurrences, and it is only through the consuls or other disinterested persons, apart from the victims and their friends, that accidents are ever heard of.
They descended rapidly, and it was apparent to all that the Dead Sea was far below the level of Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
THE DEAD SEA FROM THE NORTH.
Suddenly they came to a break in the hills, and before them lay the Dead Sea, its surface smooth as glass, and reflecting the rays of the sun with dazzling distinctness. On the opposite side were hills as steep as those they were descending, and away to the left was the Valley of the Jordan, with the famous river winding through it in numberless curves and zigzags that were shown by the trees fringing its banks. They were looking on the waste of waters that covers the buried cities of the plain. It seemed close at their feet; but as they proceeded they found how deceptive was their vision, as it was yet a long ride before its banks were reached.
The boys were eager to stand upon the shores of this wonderful body of water, and as they rode along Frank refreshed his own memory and that of his cousin by repeating the information he had stored up concerning it.
"It is the lowest body of water in the world," said he; "I mean it is nearer the centre of the earth than any other. It is 1310 feet below the surface of the Mediterranean, and 3697 feet lower than Jerusalem, and it has been sounded in a good many places, and found to be of an average depth of 1000 feet."
"I have heard all that," replied Fred, "and more too. It is supposed to cover what was once a plain, and, according to tradition and the Bible, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are under its waters. Theywere destroyed for the wickedness of their inhabitants, and the only one of them who was saved was Lot."
MAP OF THE DEAD SEA.
"You are right," responded Frank; "and the name of the sea in Arabic isBahr Lut, or 'Lot's Lake.' Its other names have been the Salt Sea, the Sea of Asphalt, the Eastern Sea, and the Dead Sea. It is forty-six miles long, and about ten broad at its widest part."
Farther conversation was prevented by a kicking-match among the horses, causing a commotion that lasted several minutes. As soon as it was ended the ride was resumed, and they reached a sloping stretch of ground between the hills and the water. There was an Arab encampment not far from the shore, and the swarthy Bedouins formed a picturesque addition to the scene.
The boys were agreeably disappointed to find the shore of the Dead Sea the reverse of desolate; it is true there was not a great deal of vegetation, and the little that existed was not of a useful kind. Nevertheless, where they had expected nothing would grow, they found plenty of bushes and reeds, which continued up to within a hundred feet or so of the water's edge.
They halted and dismounted close to the shore, and Ali brought a cup of water for the travellers to taste. They found it exceedingly bitter, and one of the boys asked the Doctor the cause of this remarkable flavor.
"The water," said he, "is intensely salt, containing twenty-six per cent. of solid matter, which is four per cent. more than Great Salt Lake in Utah. Lake Elton, in Russia, is said to contain thirty per cent., and if so, it surpasses the Dead Sea, and is the only lake that does.
"The solid elements in the water of the Dead Sea are principally chloride of sodium (common salt) and chloride of magnesium, and there is more of the latter than the former. It is the magnesium that gives the bitter taste; and the next ingredient is chloride of calcium, which gives it an oily feeling that you will perceive when you bathe in it. There are half a dozen other ingredients, but they are so small in quantity that it is not worth while to mention them."
The eyes of the boys brightened at the suggestion of a bath in the Dead Sea, and they immediately consulted Ali on the subject. The dragoman said it was easy enough, as they were in no danger of drowning, and could make a dressing, or, rather, an undressing room of the bushes a little farther along the shore, where they would not be disturbed by the Arabs.
The vote for a bath was carried almost unanimously. The Doctor was the only one who declined the experiment, and, as he had been there before, he had no curiosity to satisfy.
"Be very careful not to get the water in your eyes," he said to the youths, as they entered the sea. "It will not do any serious harm, but will make them smart and burn very disagreeably for hours."
They heeded his injunction, and limped over the flinty stones, which threatened to cut their feet at every step. Once in the water they experienced a novel sensation; no effort was needed to keep them above the surface, and they floated very much as corks are seen to float in a basin of ordinary water. Ali tossed an egg to them, and it floated with fully a third of its bulk exposed. They could not get their feet more than a few inches below the surface, and they found it more difficult to swim than they had supposed, in consequence of the great buoyancy of the water. They could paddle around with the greatest ease, but swimming was another affair.
A few minutes of the bath was enough by way of experiment. There was a great sputtering when Frank happened to get some of the water in his mouth. Fred laughed at his cousin's mishap, but immediately wished he had not done so. While in the midst of an audible smile he unexpectedly rolled over, and caught more of the bitter waters than he had bargained for. As soon as he could speak he suggested that he had had bath enough, and, Frank agreeing with him, they returned to the shore. The rest of the party were there already, and acting on the advice of Ali they dried themselves speedily and vigorously with the towels he held in readiness.
Unless removed immediately, the water is apt to cause a prickling and burning sensation which continues several hours. It is sure to leave an oily feeling that is disagreeable but not painful, and does not usually disappear until a fresh-water bath is taken. This may be had in the Jordan, and is taken by most travellers if time and circumstances permit.
LYNCH'S EXPEDITION TO THE DEAD SEA.
During the bath Ali had spread out the mid-day lunch, and it was eaten with a hearty relish. The Doctor embraced the opportunity to say it was not until 1837 that anybody discovered the Dead Sea to be lower than the Mediterranean. Some English surveyors ascertained it, and the matter attracted so much attention that ten years later an American expedition was sent to survey the Jordan and the Dead Sea; it was commanded by Lieutenant Lynch, of the United States Navy, and was thoroughly equipped for its work.
LYNCH'S LEVELLING PARTY.
"Lieutenant Lynch," said the Doctor, "landed at the Bay of Acre in March, 1848, carried his boats on trucks drawn by camels over the mountains of Lebanon, and launched them in the Lake of Gennesaret. From this lake the party descended the Jordan to the Dead Sea, spent three weeks in a survey of that body of water, and then 'levelled' the route to the Mediterranean, in order to settle the question of the relative heights. They found that no fish or living thing belongs to the water of the Dead Sea, and all fish from the Mediterranean or the ocean die very soon after beingplaced in it. Ducks swim in the water without injury, but it is fatal to them to be plunged beneath it. As it contains nothing for them to eat, they have no inducement to dive.
THE CAVERN OF USDUM.
"At the southern end of the Dead Sea is the Mountain of Usdum, which contains a cavern three or four hundred feet deep, in which there are deposits of salt. There are other salt deposits in the neighborhood, and it is believed that the Dead Sea derives its saltness from the dissolving of these deposits, and also from the substances brought down by the River Jordan."
"Every lake without any outlet is salt, is it not?" Fred asked.
"Certainly," replied the Doctor; "it is a rule of nature that has no exception. All water from springs, brooks, and rivers contains salt gathered from the earth, and sometimes the quantity is considerable. It is the slight amount of salt that makes water palatable; if you taste of pure distilled water you will find it 'flat,' and its purity is what makes it so.
"The salt brought down from the land gradually accumulates; the water passes off by evaporation, but the salt remains. As time goes on the saltness of the water increases, so the scientific men tell us, and perhaps millions of years hence the ocean may be as strongly impregnated as the Dead Sea. Who can tell?"
REEDS AND RUSHES ON THE JORDAN.
It was a ride of less than two hours from the Dead Sea to the Jordan; the ground was level and the horses in good spirits, so that the whole party indulged in the luxury of a gallop. The course of the Jordan was indicated by trees and great masses of reeds, but the stream was so completely concealed by them that its waters were not revealed until rein was drawn at the bathing-place of the pilgrims.
The boys could hardly restrain their impatience to reach the waters of the river that is so intimately connected with the history of Christianity.Of course they made immediate preparations for a bath, according to the custom of the great majority of visitors; the water was so cold that they remained in it only a few minutes, and were glad to resume their clothing and make a calm study of the scene.
"The river at this point," wrote Frank in his journal, "is about a hundred feet wide, and flows with a current so swift that we could hardly stand against it. We waded and swum to the other side; swimming was preferable to wading, as the bottom is composed of sharp stones, which are very disagreeable to walk upon. The guide said the stream was swollen by recent rains, and at least a foot deeper than at its ordinary stage.
"There is a ford at this bathing-place, and another higher up. Caravans and single travellers going from the east to the west bank, orvice versa, usually pass by one of these fords, and sometimes a large party may be seen here. It is not safe to venture on the other side without a strong guard, as the Arabs are far worse than those between here and Jerusalem, probably because they are not under so much restraint by the government.
AN ARAB SKIRMISH IN THE LAND OF MOAB.
"Several explorations have been attempted of the Land of Moab, as the country east of the Jordan is called, but only a few of them have succeeded. In most instances parties have been compelled to return just after crossing the border, and before they had accomplished anything of what they went to see. The Arabs are treacherous, and often violate their promises after they have received heavy backsheesh to permit travellers to go on without disturbance. If you want to know more of this region we advise you to read 'The Land of Moab,' by H. B. Tristram, one of the few travellers who has explored it. Another interesting work on this subject is 'The Desert of the Exodus,' by E. H. Palmer, and don't forget 'The Land and the Book,' which we have already mentioned.
"Mr. Tristram tells in his book how narrowly he escaped being robbed, and perhaps murdered, by one of the tribes that roam over the country. It often happens that there is a quarrel between two tribes, and when any parties from one encounter the other there is certain to be bloodshed. If strangers happen to be under the escort of the defeated party they must share its fate, and consequently it is not an easy matter to select a guard that can carry you through safely.
"When Mr. Tristram's party started from Hebron there were two tribes from which it was necessary to choose an escort, or rather to whom to pay black-mail. The choice fell upon the Jehalin tribe, and, after a good deal of negotiation, a contract was made and signed with them.
"Hardly had they entered the Land of Moab when they met a large band of the Beni Atiyeh, a tribe with a very bad reputation, and the number was so great that it was nonsense to think of fighting them. The dragoman went forward to parley with them, and was stripped of his outer garments, satchel, money-bag, and belt, before he could speak a word; the sheik of the escort went at the same time and with better success, as he managed to get the ear of the chief of the Atiyeh. Two or three of the men of the escort who ventured to the front were knocked down, and for a little while there was a good prospect of a very serious result to the travellers.
"It turned out that the Beni Atiyeh were on good terms with the Jehalin, and on the payment of a heavy backsheesh they allowed the party to go on. It would have been far otherwise if Mr. Tristram had chosen his escort from the other tribe that offered its services, as there was a bitter quarrel between it and the Beni Atiyeh, and there would have been no chance of an escape. No mercy would have been shown to the travellers, and possibly the Arabs would have justified their cruelty by referring to the old adage, 'A man is known by the company he keeps.'
BATHING-PLACE OF THE PILGRIMS (FROM THOMSON'S "THE LAND AND THE BOOK").
"You must know there are two bathing-places on the Jordan; one is visited by the Latins and the other by the Greeks, and each Church claims that its bathing-place is the spot where Christ was baptized by John. Mr. Thomson thinks that neither is correct, and that the scene of the baptism was considerably farther up the river than any of the present sites. He argues that, according to the historical record, Christ came from Galilee, and was baptized by John, and then returned to Galilee; the road from Galilee reaches the Jordan much farther north than the present bathing-places, and though it is possible he came to this point it is hardly probable.
SOURCE OF THE JORDAN.
"The bank of the river is fringed with willow, tamarisk, and other trees and bushes, and there are several pretty spots here for forming a camp. We wanted to stay here for the night, but our guide had sent the tents by a short route from Mar Saba to the neighborhood of the ancient Jericho, and after a halt of an hour or so we mounted our horses and rode away from the river.
"Doctor Bronson says it is quite probable that the passage of the Jordan by the Israelites, described in Joshua iii. and iv., occurred at the bathing-place we have visited, or certainly not far from it. According to the biblical account they passed the river 'right against Jericho,' and this expression is supposed to mean that they crossed the Jordan at the point nearest to that city.
PASSAGE OF THE ISRAELITES.
"During our halt one of our party read the account of this interesting event while the rest listened. It was not at all difficult for us to imagine the scene when the Israelites came down from their camp in the hills of Moab, and took their position on the banks of the Jordan. Here they halted for the night, and on the next day, when all was ready, the ark of the covenant, borne on the shoulders of the priests, was advanced to the edge of the river; as the feet of the bearers touched the water it receded, and in a few minutes the bed of the stream was dry. Then the ark was carried to the middle of the channel, and it remained there in charge of the priests till the whole host had gone over.
"When the last of the procession had passed, Joshua called to the priests to bring the ark from the bed of the river, and they did so. The waters at once resumed their course, and the Jordan flowed on as before. Of course the monuments of stones which were erected by the Israelites to commemorate their crossing disappeared hundreds of years ago, and we have only the geographical localities to guide us; but, as we heard the description of the event, and looked around us, we felt certain that the spot where the Israelites crossed over Jordan, after their escape from Egypt, and their wanderings in the wilderness, could not be far away.
"Before we go on to Jericho let me say something about the famous river we have just visited.
"The Jordan is about a hundred miles long in a direct line, but its course is so crooked that the actual length of the stream is a great deal more; nobody has ever measured it accurately, and therefore I can't say how much it winds about. One authority says it is sixty-four miles in a direct line from the Dead Sea to the Lake of Tiberias, and two hundred miles by the windings of the river. The head-spring of the Hasbany (the parent of the Jordan) is seventeen hundred feet above the level of the Mediterranean; the mouth of the Jordan, where it enters the Dead Sea, is, therefore, about three thousand feet lower than its source, so the Jordan has a great fall for so short a river.
"The Hasbany and several other streams unite in the Lake of Hooleh, and from the outlet of that lake the river is called the Jordan. It has a rapid fall to the Lake of Tiberias; and as it goes out of that lake it begins its tortuous course, which can be surpassed by very few rivers in the world. Between the Lake of Tiberias and the Dead Sea there are twenty-seven cascades or rapids; all of them are so great that it is quite impossible for boats to make the ascent, and it is not byany means safe to attempt to descend them. Lieutenant Lynch started with three boats, one of wood and the others of iron. The wooden boat was bought in the Lake of Tiberias, while the iron ones were brought from the United States. The iron boats were a good deal battered by the thumps they received during the voyage, but the exploring party brought them to the Dead Sea, and used them for completing their work. The wooden boat was ruined, and abandoned before half the journey had been accomplished.
"The Valley of the Jordan is called the 'Ghor' by the natives. The word means a depression or hollow, and the valley may be regarded as a plain sixty miles long, and from five to ten miles wide, enclosed by mountains. The mountains on both sides are very steep, and the Valley of the Jordan is not unlike some of the deep gorges or ravines in our Western States and Territories. It is broader near the Dead Sea than farther up. The land is generally fertile, and capable of supporting a larger population than it contains at present. According to the accounts in the Old Testament, it was far more productive in ancient times than it is to-day. It contains ruins of cities that once were populous, and it is very certain that the land of Canaan has greatly diminished in importance since the children of Israel came to it and settled.
"There were then as now wandering tribes of shepherds, and their customs have changed very little in all the centuries that have passed; but there were more people living in settled places, and the biblical story shows that Jericho was a walled town with gates, which were shut at night. The flax drying on the roof of Rahab's house shows that that plant was cultivated, and the cord by which she let down the spies tells us very plainly that the people understood the art of spinning. We read the Bible very carefully while in the Jordan Valley, and have derived a great many useful hints from it, and much information.
"We wished we could have been here at the time of the annual visit of the pilgrims, which occurs at Easter, and is a curious sight. There are pilgrims here in fair numbers through the whole year, and they all consider it a religious duty to bathe in the Jordan. The great festival is in April, and at that time several thousand pilgrims leave Jerusalem immediately after the close of the Easter festivities and come down to the Plain of Jericho, where they encamp for the night. They come from all parts of Europe, and there is a good representation from Asia as well. You can see many varieties of costume, and hear a jargon of languages that might remind you of the Tower of Babel.
"The camp is a scene of confusion, and long before morning a disorderlyprocession is formed, thousands of torches are waved, and the great crowd presses forward in order to enter the sacred stream at daybreak. Hundreds of people are in the river at the same moment, and not a year passes without some of them being swept away and drowned in the swift current. Men, women, and children are crowded together indiscriminately, and the wonder is that so few accidents occur. The whole ceremony is over in two or three hours, and then the pilgrims turn back from the Jordan and return to Jerusalem.
RECENT ASPECT OF THE PLAIN OF JERICHO.
"Just as we left the Jordan it began to rain, and we had a disagreeable ride to Riha, which some writers consider the site of Gilgal; others think it marks the position of ancient Jericho; but the general opinion is that Jericho was farther to the west. The modern Jericho is a village of fifty or sixty houses, and its inhabitants are a degenerate race of people, who live by a little agriculture and by what they can beg or steal from visitors. We found our tents pitched a little out of the village, and were a good deal annoyed by the natives, who crowded around us and could not be driven away. The children begged for backsheesh, and the men wanted to amuse us with a 'fantasia,' or dance, but we had been told it was a stupid performance, and declined to witness it.
AIN-ES-SULTAN, OR FOUNTAIN OF ELISHA (FROM THOMSON'S "THE LAND AND THE BOOK").
"There is a tower near the village, which is called by some 'The House of Zaccheus,' but the indications are that it was not built till the time of the Crusades, long after Zaccheus was laid in his grave. We did not have time to visit it, nor did we go to the Ain-es-Sultan, or Sultan's Spring, which is also known as the Fountain of Elisha. It is a fine spring, the water rather warm in temperature, as we are told, and varies but little in volume throughout the year. Biblical students who have been here say there can be no doubt it is the very fountain which was healed by the prophet Elisha, and is therefore well entitled to bear his name. There are several aqueducts by which the water was once carried over the plain, and used for irrigating the fields, but they are now so much ruined as to be of little consequence.
"What a night we had in our camp! The rain ceased about sunset, but during the night it came on again, and fell as though a thunder-cloudhad burst above us. It poured and poured, and not only did it rain, but the wind blew like a gale at sea. Fred and I remembered what we had said at Bethlehem the first night we slept in the tents. We concluded we were going to have all the storm we wanted, and more than once wished ourselves safely lodged in a solid house.
"The ground was soaked with water, and became so soft that it would not hold our tent-pegs against the wind. The rain came in through the canvas, the pegs gave way, and about midnight down came the cold and sloppy cloth in our faces.
"We shouted for help, and the dragoman came with his men and managed to fix things up a little, but it was slow and disagreeable work with the heavy rain falling, and the night as black as the inside of an ink-bottle. They had one miserable lantern that did little more than enable us to see the darkness, and by the time they had the tent arranged so that we could crawl under it we were wet nearly to the skin.
"We tried to laugh it off, but 'twas no use trying. We couldn't either of us see the fun of it, and couldn't get to sleep again. There we lay till morning wondering what would happen next.
"The Doctor's tent went down like ours, but he had a thick water-proof coat and a large wrapper of the same material, so that he was not so badly off as we were. He didn't escape, though, nor did any of the others, and when daylight came we all looked as if the best thing would be to wring us out and hang us up to dry. We were a sorry looking breakfast-party, but pulled ourselves together and managed to eat something. Fortunately the rain stopped, but there came a new trouble.
"When we went into camp there was a little brook close by us which we were to cross in the morning. The heavy rain swelled this brook into a small torrent that was absolutely dangerous to ford, as one might easily be swept down with the current and drowned.
"So we went up the bank about a mile, and while the horses were driven through the water our party walked over an old aqueduct which wasn't the safest bridge in the world, but a great deal better than no bridge at all. The channel of the aqueduct was about a foot wide, and the sides eighteen or twenty inches high; the whole structure was at least fifty feet above the torrent that dashed below us like the rapids of Niagara. We walked very carefully, as the least misstep might have sent us tumbling over the side, with an excellent prospect of being killed by the fall or drowned in the roaring water. It is hardly necessary to say we were all heartily glad to be on the safe side of the stream.
"We had a ride of five hours from this bridge to the gates of Jerusalem, and such a five hours we do not care to have again.
"Before the end of the first hour it came on to rain, and by the middle of the second hour the rain had changed to snow. And with the rain and snow there was a high wind, and as we wound among the hills we had it in all directions, now in our faces, and a few minutes later blowing at our backs.
"The guide repeatedly called our attention to places of scriptural or other interest. We tried to look at them, but I fear we were more concerned about the weather than with what lay around us. But we remember among other things that the route from Jerusalem to Jericho has the same character now that it had eighteen centuries ago, and we had an escort to protect us from falling among thieves. We halted a few minutes at the ruined khan which is said to be the site of the inn to which the good Samaritan carried the wounded and plundered traveller whom he found by the way-side.
"The guide told us that a few years ago an English traveller was robbed by the Arabs at this very spot, and the scriptural description willexactly cover his case: 'They stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.'