THE DAMASCUS GATE.
"We thought the Damascus Gate was very picturesque when we looked at it from the outside, and Doctor Bronson said it was considered the finest of all the gates of Jerusalem. Its Arab name is Bab-el-Amud, or Gate of the Column, and it is constructed so that it can be easily defended against an enemy. It was built about three hundred years ago, and is supposed to stand on the foundations of one of the ancient gates, and there is a story that a stream of water may sometimes be heard flowing beneath it.
"There was quite a group of people outside of the Damascus Gate, some on foot, some on horses, and others on camels. A peddler of cakes and other edible things had set up his shop at the side of the road, and was engaged in weighing out his merchandise to those who wanted it. Instead of Fairbanks's scales he used the old-fashioned balances; he was not at all in a hurry, and as soon as his customers were gone he sat down in the shadow of a little shelter he had erected, and was evidently resting from his labors. A dog that had been sitting a little distance away embraced the opportunity, and made off with one of the cakes before the owner could interfere to stop him. The dogs of Jerusalem are quite as bad as those of Cairo, and ready to steal whenever there is the least chance of doing so.
"We will take a leap through the air from the Damascus Gate to Mount Zion, which we started out to see. We went to the Armenian monastery, which is also called the House of Caiaphas, and saw the stone which was said to have been rolled away from the door of the Holy Sepulchre, the spot where Peter stood when he denied his Master, and the yard where the cock crew at the time of the denial. The monks also showed us the prison of Christ, and other points of interest. Doctor Bronson says the most of these things are on very poor authority, but, of course, we gave no indication of any doubt concerning them while we were inside the monastery.
"Continuing our walk on Mount Zion, we came to a building inhabited by a lot of insolent Arabs, who demanded backsheesh before they would permit us to enter. They showed us an upper room which is said to have been the scene of the Last Supper, and the traditions concerning it are on better authority than those of the Armenian monastery. The tomb of David is under this building, but is not shown to visitors; the coffin is supposed to be in a deep vault under the foundations, but no one is permitted to go there.
"There is a story that a wealthy Jew came here once and wanted to say his prayers at the tomb of David. The monks, who then had possession of the place, refused permission for him to do so, and as he went away he vowed he would be revenged on them. The next year he came back with an order from the Sultan expelling the monks and giving the place to the Moslems, and they have had it ever since. The Jew said his prayers at the tomb, and then the vault was closed to everybody.
"We saw several other points of interest here, and then returned to the hotel. Our next excursion was along the Street of David to Mount Moriah, to see the site of Solomon's Temple and what remains of it. Down to quite recently no Christians were allowed to visit the Haram, or Sacred Enclosure on Mount Moriah, where the temple once stood, and which is now occupied by the Mosques of Omar and El-Aksa. Even now it is generally necessary to be accompanied by a policeman, or a janizary from the Consulate of your country, to protect you from insult. We had a janizary from the American Consulate, and experienced no difficulty in seeing what we wished to, though we were obliged to give quite an amount of backsheesh to get along.