FROM BETHLEHEM TO MAR SABA AND THE DEAD SEA.
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 meet them 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 on the 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 a cafeeah, 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. They were 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 is Bahr 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 being placed 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?"