The men of Palestine are very strong and carry amazing loads on their backs. Both men and women think little of walking twenty miles a day. Many are too poor to keep even a donkey
Impenetrable hedges of giant cactus bushes intermingled with thorn are often used as fences to separate land holdings. One seldom sees a man carrying a water jar, for that is “women’s work” in the Holy Land
This American was probably facetious, but his questions are not unlike those of many of the tourists whose ignorance and superstition surpass belief. Many of them credit the most extravagant stories of every guide, and go about kissing spots which they imagine to be hallowed by their connection with the Bible, but of whose authenticity no one knows.
There is one thing I must not forget about Jaffa, and that is that here was born the modern sewing bee, I might almost say the Woman’s Missionary Society. You have all heard of Dorcas, the queen of the needle, who was raised from the dead by St. Peter. She was noted for the garments she had made for the poor, and at her funeral the people gathered round and showed specimens of the needlework she had sewed and hemmed and stitched for them.
Dorcas lived two or three miles outside Jaffa on a hill which has a commanding view of the country for miles around. It overlooks the sea and land, including thousands of acres of orange groves and gardens containing all kinds of fruits. The site of her house is now occupied by a Russian Greek Catholic Church and a tomb has been erected over her grave hard by.
I drove out to the place in a carriage, winding my way in and out through orange groves and up the hill to the church. Here I met a Russian priest, who was acquiring merit by guarding the bones of the saint in whose honour prayers are said daily. It was with him that I visited the tomb. It is of stone and is roofed by a dome, the whole being covered with plaster. There is a door at the front, and by descending several steps one can see the piece of mosaic which covers the spot where Dorcas lies. There are catacombs to the right and left containing the bones of saints, and over the whole rise magnificent trees.