We passed many camels. Some were loaded with white building stone slung in a network of rope on each side of their humps. They were carrying the stone to Jerusalem. Others were ridden by women and men. I saw one with two veiled women clad all in black on its back and two boxes below them, each box holding a baby.
Another party was composed of Samaritan women on their way to a Moslem festival. They were red haired and as straight as royal palm trees. They carried their baggage in bundles on top of their heads and walked single file. Behind them were women from Lebanon walking barefooted and singing in Arabic. They were tattooed on lips, chin, and cheeks, and their bare heads were frowsy and dusty. They were clad in long cotton gowns embroidered with red. Only a few were good looking and all seemed prematurely old.
When a Palestinian was asked why he did not use horses for ploughing he said: “They walk too fast; I would have to hurry to keep up”
But the Jewish colonists have lost no time in adopting modern farm machinery on their lands, with most gratifying results
The sheep that was lost is found by the roadside, and the shepherd is all smiles. At night, several shepherds will gather their sheep in one place. In the morning each calls to his own charges, who know his voice and will always come to him
I am now living in my tents outside this old town of Shechem. My camp faces Mount Ebal, and above me is Gerizim, the holy hill of the Samaritans. It is very near the spot where the laws of Moses were read by Joshua to the assembled Children of Israel. The country is in the shape of a great amphitheatre of which the hills form the walls. These hills are, it is said, a natural sounding board, so that one can talk on one mountain and be heard on the other, and for this reason the place was chosen for reading the laws.