FROM JERUSALEM TO NABULUS.—HISTORIC PLACES ON THE ROUTE.
During the night after the incidents described in our last chapter the storm cleared away, and the sky at sunrise was without a cloud. Everybody had slept well and recovered from the fatigue of the journey, and the exposure to rain and snow. Frank and Fred were quite ready to make a fresh start, and laughed over the troubles of the previous day as the merest trifle in the world.
THE HOTEL-KEEPER.
Doctor Bronson had a long conference with the dragoman and the keeper of the hotel, together with the American consul, who happened to be stopping in the house. It resulted in an announcement that the party would start the following morning for Damascus.
Of course the decision gave great delight to the youths. The Doctor made the following explanation of the plan for the new journey:
"Ali tells me that the heavy storm we have just passed through will be in our favor, as there is a good prospect of fair weather to follow it for a week or ten days. It is not the right season for the 'long route,' as the ride from Jerusalem to Damascus is called, and the majority of travellers at this time of year prefer the 'short route.'
"Perhaps I may as well say here that if we followed the latter we would return to Jaffa and take steamer for Beyroot. There we land, and proceed by carriage-road to Damascus, and when we have done with that famous city we go back to Beyroot the way we came, and are through with Syria. I had thought of taking the short route, but as we are now well accustomed to the ways of travel, and have proved our abilities to endure the severities of a winter storm, I am inclined to the long one. Our American companions have left the whole arrangements in my hands, and I have decided that we will go through to Damascus by the overland way."
Frank asked how much time they would take on the journey.
"The ordinary time consumed in it," the Doctor answered, "is seventeen days; it may be extended as much as we choose, since we hire the dragoman by the day, and he is to provide us with everything; and it may be shortened three or four days. I have arranged that he is to get us through in fourteen or fifteen days, and he will do so if we are not delayed by storms or accidents.
"The best time of the year for this journey is in spring, between 'the early and the latter rain' which the Bible mentions. The country is then in its best condition, the climate is delightful, and the chance of fine weather far better than now. But as we cannot suit the season to ourselves we will run the risk; with stout hearts and plenty of water-proof clothing we ought to go through without difficulty."[8]
The afternoon was devoted to making a few purchases of articles likely to be needed on the journey, the completion of letters, and a few sights that had not been made during the first visit to the city. Doctor Bronson engaged a trusty man, who was recommended by the consul, to go to Jaffa and take the baggage of the party to Beyroot, where he would deliver it to the proprietor of the hotel to await their arrival. This was thought to be safer than ordering it sent forward as ordinary freight, and trusting to the agents of the steamer to deliver it. Steamship agents in the Levant are not worthy of the fullest confidence, as the writer of this book can bear witness. Travellers are advised to look carefully after their own affairs, and be wary of the oleaginous tongues of those from whom they purchase tickets.
As soon as the arrangements had been completed Ali disappeared from the hotel, and was not again seen till evening. He was busy with his preparations for the journey, as it was necessary for him to hire additional horses, and secure a stock of provisions sufficient to carry them through to Damascus with what he could purchase on the route. The pack-train, with the tents and provisions, was sent away in advance. The party had a long ride before it for the next day, and before nine o'clock everybody was in bed.
SCENE ON THE OVERLAND ROUTE FROM JERUSALEM.
They were off by daybreak, leaving the city by the Damascus Gate, which we have already seen in their company. They passed near the tombs of the kings, and descended into the Valley of the Brook Kedron, which is here much smaller than where they crossed it at Mar Saba. They met a few natives on their way to the city, with trains of donkeys laden with vegetables and grain for sale in the markets of Jerusalem, and in one place they were crowded against a rough wall by a line of camels that kept the road to themselves in the manner for which those animals are famous. The road, though used for centuries, is impassable for wheeled vehicles, and the beasts of burden that traverse it follow in the footsteps of those who preceded them ages and ages ago.
In several places the route was over rocky ridges, where all the earth had been swept or washed away, leaving the ledges entirely bare. Frank observed that the feet of the camels had worn broad holes in the rock; the Doctor recalled to him the proverb hitherto quoted, that a continual dropping will wear away stone, and said the feet of the camels had dropped for hundreds of years in the same places, so that it was no wonder the stones were worn away.
From Jerusalem to Nabulus is a ride of eleven hours; it is customary for travellers to pass the night at Bireh or Ramallah, as the majority of tourists are unwilling to make the entire journey in a single day. But our party had tested its ability to endure fatigue, and determined without hesitation to reach Nabulus before night if possible. It was for this reason that an early start was made, and the halts along the road were few and short.
BY BABEL'S STREAM.
The farewell view of the Holy City was taken from the side of the Hill of Scopus, which was reached by ascending from the Valley of the Kedron. Its domes and minarets stood out clear and distinct under the deep-blue sky of Palestine, and every member of the party was reluctant to turn away his eyes from the place which is sacred in the thoughts of every Christian, and familiar to his ears since he first heard the stories of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection of the Saviour of mankind. Frank called to mind the words of the Israelite by Babel's stream: "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth."
From the crest of Scopus they looked down upon a broad plain or plateau, where the first view seemed to be one of desolation. Limestone rocks were spread in ridges, one beyond the other, until they appeared to leave but little space for arable land. Close observation showed that between every ridge and its neighbor there was a strip of soil which might be made productive with a little care and industry, and the sides of the hills and valleys were terraced till they sometimes resembled a series of broad steps.
"This land is full of promise," one of the boys remarked.
"Yes," responded the Doctor, "and by cultivation it can be made to answer the scriptural description. The Land of Promise was a land of 'vines, and fig-trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil-olive, and honey,' as we read in the eighth chapter of Deuteronomy.
THE GRAPES OF ESHCOL.
"Observe what this land might be rather than what it is. The fig-tree and the olive would grow and bear fruit in the spaces between the ridges of rock, and the vines might clamber up the sides of the terraces, and be as luxuriant as they were in the days when the spies visited Eshcol, and brought back the famous grapes described in the Bible and represented in the books of our infancy."
Fred asked if such grapes were found at present, and where Eshcol was supposed to be.
HEBRON.
"There is some doubt on that score," was the reply, "but it is generally believed that the Brook of Eshcol was in the neighborhood of Hebron. There are extensive vineyards at Hebron, and their grapes are larger and finer than in most places in the Holy Land. The clusters are often very long, but nobody in these modern days has ever seen them so large that it would require the strength of two men to carry one of them.
"The Bible does not say that it required their strength to carry this burden. Read the passage in Numbers xiii. 23, and you will find it says, they 'cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs.' Remember that a bunch of grapes cannot be carried in a sack like pomegranates and figs, but must be suspended, so as to preserve the fruit from injury. The spies had a long way to travel, and there was no other mode of transporting the fruit of the vines of Eshcol than the one described."
The guide called attention to the village of Shafut, a little distance from the route, and said it was supposed by some to occupy the site of the ancient Mizpeh. A little farther along on the other side of the road was a rounded hill, which has been identified by some writers as the site of Nob, mentioned several times in the Old Testament. Beyond it is Tuliel-el-Ful (Hill of Beans), where once stood Gibeah, the scene of several important incidents described in Judges, Samuel, and other books of the Bible. Doctor Bronson said it was quite probable that the meeting of David and Jonathan took place in the valley between these two points, and the scriptural account certainly carries out his theory.
They passed Er-Ram, which corresponds to the Ramah of Benjamin (1 Kings xv. 17), and was formerly a populous city, but is now a miserable village. As they rode along, one of the boys recalled the murder of the descendants of Saul, and the devotion of Rizpah, who spread sack-cloth on the rocks, and watched by the bodies of her sons all through the summer days to prevent their being devoured by birds.
"Yes," responded Fred; "and don't you remember the picture we saw at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia representing the scene?"
Frank remembered it perfectly, and said the painting and the engravings that have been made of it would now have a renewed interest for him since he had looked upon the spot where the incident happened.
As they passed Ramah, Fred referred to the passage in the Book of Judges where Deborah is said to have dwelt under a palm-tree "between Ramah and Bethel, in Mount Ephraim." Very naturally he asked if they were near Bethel.
"We are not far from it," answered the Doctor, "though it is not on our road. The village of Betin, the ancient Bethel, is a couple of miles from our route, and can be reached most easily from Bireh. There is nothing of consequence to be seen there, and it is only for its historic associations that the place is worth visiting. It is a village of three to four hundred inhabitants, and they are no better than the average of the people we have thus far met.
"There is another biblical site, too, a little off our road," the Doctor continued; "I refer to Seilun, the ancient Shiloh.
"In spite of the completeness of its description the site of Shiloh was unknown for centuries, and was only identified in the last forty years. It is described in the Book of Judges as being 'on the north side of Bethel, on the east of the highway that goeth up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.' Exactly in such a position there is a mass of ruins covering a considerable extent, and it is now agreed by biblical students that they are the ruins of Shiloh.
"Now that I have told you what it was, perhaps you can say why Shiloh was famous?"
"I'll try," Fred responded, and after a pause of some minutes he was ready to reply. He let his horse fall out of the line while thinking on the subject, and it is just possible he glanced into the guide-book he carried in his satchel. We may remark, by-the-way, that every traveller in the Holy Land has his guide-book in readiness, and if his memory is at fault at any time he has a good authority to refer to. It saves a vast amount of 'reading up;' and you sometimes find a man who makes a pretence of great learning, when the fact is he has been drawing freely from the portable authority in his possession.
"Shiloh was the place where the tabernacle of the Lord was first set up permanently in Canaan," said Fred, "and the Israelites came here to receive their shares of the promised land. The infant Samuel was dedicated here to the Lord by his mother, and it was at Shiloh where Eli dropped dead when he heard his sons had been killed in battle. There was a festival here in honor of the ark. It was held every year; and once while the maidens were dancing at this festival the Benjamites rushed in suddenly and carried off two hundred of them. There were several other incidents of less importance in the history of Shiloh, and it seems to have been destroyed long before the beginning of the Christian era."
"I know where you found all that," Frank whispered; "and you ought to be very grateful to the man who hunted it out for you: 'Murray's Guide,' page 312."
"Quite right," replied Fred, "but some of it runs over on page 313."
With this candid acknowledgment of a fact which many persons seek to conceal, or even do worse about, they changed the subject of conversation. The author has in his possession a book of travels by a prominent member of the Church, in which there are numerous pages and paragraphs taken bodily from other works, and especially from guide-books. Its writer even goes so far as to say that all measurements given in his book were made by himself, and can be relied upon. It is observable that he agrees exactly with the guide-book, even in two or three instances where the latter is known to be at fault; and yet that man would probably refuse to tell a falsehood for a dollar!
STREET SCENE IN BIREH.
Our friends halted an hour at Bireh, the ancient Beeroth, to rest their horses and partake of a much desired and well earned dinner. It was spread on the table of a little inn close to the entrance of the village, and the most of the materials composing it had been brought from Jerusalem in the saddle-bags of the dragoman. Bireh is on the summit of a ridge, and had been in sight for some time before the party drew rein at its gates. It is a considerable village, with a population of seven or eight hundred, nearly all of whom are Moslems. There are the ruins of a church which was built by the Knights Templar when the Crusaders held Jerusalem. Parts of the walls and roof are standing, and not far off is a khan which is supposed to have been a Christian hospice when the knights lived here.
A NATIVE GROUP AT A FOUNTAIN.
During the halt a hasty visit was paid to the church, and also to the khan, and a glance was taken among the ruins that lay scattered about. Close to their halting-place was a mosque of much later date than the church, and there were groups of women and girls around a fountain which the mosque protects. The Doctor remarked that Beeroth was one of the four cities of the Gibeonites whose people made a covenant with the Israelites through false representations, and became hewers of wood and drawers of water for the conquerors of the land.
On the road again, after saying farewell to Bireh, the travellers had a ride of little more than an hour to Ain Yebrud. They passed many orchards of fig and olive trees, and found the country more productive in appearance, at least, than nearer Jerusalem. The road now descended into a narrow and wild valley, with steep cliffs rising above on either side, and with numerous terraces which were formerly cultivated, but are now of little use.
Suddenly at a bend in the road they came to a spring which flowed from the side of a cliff. The cool appearance of the water brought them to a halt, and they dismounted. Frank asked the name of the place.
"This is Ain el-Haramiyeh," the guide answered.
"Which means?"
"The Robbers' Spring."
"It has borne this name for centuries," said Doctor Bronson, "and very properly too. This valley has long been considered a dangerous place, and we do not wish to remain long at the spring. Hardly a year passes without a robbery in this vicinity, and not infrequently the plundered traveller is killed if he offers any resistance."
Having satisfied their thirst, the party resumed their saddles and rode on. At the very next bend in the road they met half a dozen Arabs, who demanded backsheesh in a surly tone, and laid their hands menacingly on the long guns they were carrying. No attention was paid to their wishes, and in a few minutes they were left out of sight.
They passed the branch of the road that leads to Shiloh; the boys were desirous of visiting the place, but the Doctor told them they could not well spare the time, and besides there was very little to be seen. "There is a heap of ruins," said he, "and the hills in the neighborhood are such masses of broken rocks that it is not easy to move about among them. Travellers frequently miss their way among the rocks, and besides you would be liable to a good deal of annoyance from the natives. They are insolent in their demands for backsheesh, and flourish knives and guns in a very disagreeable way. If you show the least desire to conciliate them they increase their rudeness, and sometimes they resort to actual violence. So we won't go to Shiloh."
BEASTS OF BURDEN.
Ascending and descending from valley to ridge, and from ridge to valley, passing among terraces and through little orchards of fig and olive trees, winding among fields which are planted with corn in summer, looking now and then on flocks of goats carefully tended by their keepers as they fed on the hill-sides, meeting or passing little groups of natives, who eyed them longingly or suspiciously, and were suspiciously eyed in return, the party continued on its way. Frank and Fred thought it was not a good sign that all the men they met were armed, some with guns, some with pistols or knives, and many with all three weapons together. They asked the Doctor about it, and he thus explained the matter:
"I think I have told you before about the existence of blood-feuds not only in this country but in various parts of the world. We have them in America among our native Indian races; they exist in France and Italy, especially in the latter, where they are known as 'the vendetta.'"
"I remember them," said Fred, "but perhaps Frank doesn't know."
"In this part of the Holy Land there are blood-feuds that have lasted hundreds of years. A man of one tribe or family has been killed by a man of another—the losing party proceeds to take revenge by killing a person of the offending one, then the latter takes its revenge, and so the fight goes on. These feuds exist between tribes, villages, or families, and are perpetuated through centuries. Every man goes armed, because he fears to be killed by some avenger of blood, and he is constantly on the lookout both to slay and to prevent being slain."
"Why don't they come to a sensible arrangement among themselves, and put an end to the quarrelling?" one of the boys asked.
"It is a matter of religion with them," said the Doctor, "and also of family pride. Doubtless you could get one tribe to make an end of its feuds if another would do so first; but the great difficulty is to find the one who will be the first to act. These blood-feuds may be said to be commanded by the Koran, and they existed in the time of the Old Testament. In fact, they were so numerous that the children of Israel appointed six cities where any person who had killed another 'unawares and unwittingly' might take refuge from the avenger of blood. These cities are named in the twentieth chapter of Joshua, and there is a fuller account of the customs of the time in this matter of blood revenge in the nineteenth chapter of Deuteronomy. We are approaching one of the cities of refuge, and shall spend the night there. Nabulus is the ancient Shechem, which was one of the six places to which I just referred."
ROOF OF A HOUSE IN NABULUS.
They were on the crest of a ridge looking down upon a plain bounded on its farthest side by a broken chain of mountains. In an opening between two mountains the guide indicated the position of Nabulus, and far to the north was Mount Hermon; Gerizim and Ebal were the two mountains between which lay Nabulus, and the rays of the declining sun bathed them with golden light of that peculiar richness rarely seen away from the tropics. The hills around the plain were terraced with orchards of olive-trees, while the broad stretch of level ground had every indication of fertility. Taken as a whole, the scene was one of the prettiest that our friends had looked upon since leaving Egypt.
"We are in the land of Ephraim," said the Doctor, "and you can realize how much Ephraim was blessed in comparison with Judah and Benjamin. The soil is more fertile, and the inhabitants have an easier life of it than in the neighboring districts: what was true of it in the days of the patriarchs is true at present. Ephraim is indeed blessed with 'the good things of the ancient mountains.'"
As they descended to the plain and crossed it in the direction of Nabulus there was a manifest impatience on the part of the youths. The guide had told them they were coming to Jacob's Well, and their curiosity was roused to its highest point.
They found a cistern about ten feet square hewn in the solid rock; the recent rains had partly filled it, but the guide said it was generally dry in summer. Its depth is about eighty feet, but was formerly much greater. A church was built over it at the time of the Crusades, but it is now in ruins, and a considerable part of the material is supposed to have fallen into the well.
Night was approaching. The lengthening shadows warned our friends not to tarry long on their way; but they rested while Doctor Bronson read in his clear, impressive voice the fourth chapter of John, containing the beautiful story of Jesus at the well of Jacob, and his conversation with the woman of Samaria.
A ride of less than half an hour brought them to the walls of Nabulus; the white tents ready to receive them on the camping-ground outside the town were a welcome sight.
THE WOMAN OF SAMARIA.