DAVID AND HIS THREE BRAVE SOLDIERS
Once when David was fighting against the Philistines the little town of Beth-lehem was in the hands of the enemy. David had a great longing for a drink of the cool water of the well which was near the gate of the town. It seemed to him that he would be perfectly happy if he could taste that water which he used to enjoy so much when he was a boy. He wanted it so much that he spoke out loud and said, "Oh, that one would give me a drink of the water of the well of Beth-lehem which is near the gate!"
Some of his men overheard him as he said this to himself, and three of his brave soldiers left the cave where they were hiding, and broke through the enemy's lines and brought back a drink of the water to David. But when David saw them all bleeding from the wounds which they had received, he would not drink the water which they brought, because it had cost so much in the blood of his men.
So he poured it out upon the ground as an offering to God of something very sacred and precious, and as a way of showing his friends that he prized their love more than the water for which he longed.
HEBRON
From an old photograph in the possession of the Springfield Public Library, and used by kind permission.
It was here that perhaps the oldest city in Palestine was built. The picture shows the character of the country, the hills and valleys with the towns showing white on the hillsides or nestling in the valleys.
