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g ii JERICHO Have you heard of the eicay- I '( If ' WMttrT -fc ' 1 . , 1 -'
:& away out here on the edge of the Jor- I ; ' ? UOl 1 , , 1 V L V ',v 'Vi. I
VKrK dan? They have discovered the alte of ' LM j ,! R?L r BiVC --
$Vi old Jericho, and are digging up th. ; 5 VJ- L TKg f7'
rouhua's trumpet. The place is Just about " " jJ,tm'M .
fourteen miles from Jerusalem aa the crow files. It Ilea
on a little plateau, right under the mountain upon
which It la said our Lord was tempted by the devil and
promised the world. It Is about three miles from
the present town of Jericho, where I am stopping,
and within easy access of it by foot, horse or car
riage.' I have spent a day with the excavators. There
are 300 peasant men and women ' digging up the
ruins and the Austrlans have laid down a railway to
carry; the dirt outside the walls. They are using
steel cars, pushed by hand. They are finding all
aorta of relics and are unearthing new historical facts.
The work began about three years figo under the
Austrian ministry of education and the uncovering
of the mounds showed the remains of a great fortress
city, which was undoubtedly the Jericho of Canaan.
This Ilea on a' plateau, surrounded by great walls,
iome of which are of stone. It had inner walls and
a citadel and was flanked with strong towers. The
heart of the city waa about 1,200 feet long and C25
feet wide.
The Houses of Old Jericho.
Many of the houses have been unearthed. I have
walked through streets which were In use when
Moses and the Israelites were wandering in the
wilderness and have tramped up and down staircases
of clay which were built hundreds of years before
Christ. In one of the buildings, which is supposed
to have been made 2,700 years ago, there was found
an uncovered court yard. The house seems to have
been abandoned during a fire and for some reason or
other It waa left In a better condition than most of
the otbera. It. contained a red sandstone mill for
meal grinding and water vessels of various shapes.
It had platea and Jugs and also lamps and iron ves
sels with handles of deer horn.
In going through the ruins I tramped over bush
els of pottery broken in pieces. I saw water nv
chipped and cracked. They had play corks as bix as
a tomato, with a hole through the center. There
are hundreds of these corks lying on the ground.
There are also, stone mortars which were used for
grain grinding, and the remains of amphorae, or
huge Jars with , necks and side handles, which were
buried in the earth and kept to hold wine or grain.
The most of the pottery is covered with a white
glace, and some of it has vertical stripes of yellow
painted upon It. ,
Aa to the buildings the atone walls are built with
out angles, the cracks being filled in with smaller
stones. The wprk was done with tools of bronze,
and that some of it dates back beyond history. The
heart of the rlty is on an egg-shaped plateau Just
above the plain of the Jordan. So far about $8,000
has been expended on the work.
A Magnificent City.
It is difficult in wandering through these ruins
of mud, brick and rough stone to realize that Jericho
was a magnificent city. The one of Joshua was not
so in our sense of the word, although It covered a
large area and was thickly populated. There ere no
remnants of great marble columns and it is said that
that Jericho had disappeared long before Christ came
and that another had taken Its place situated In this
same Jordan valley. The Jericho of Christ had a
theater, a circus and a university. It ranked with
Jerusalem aa one of the important places in rales
tine. It was surrounded by irrigated gardens and
waa known aa the rlty of palms. It hud grown up
in Roman times and Mark Antony thought so much
of it that he gave it as a present to Cleopatra, who
collected quite a revenue from the balsam groves
near there which furnished the gum of commerce.
Cotton waa raised here at that time and this region
was then a winter resort for Jerusalem. Herod the
Great had palaces in Jericho and it U baid that he
died here, although be was burled somewhere near
Hebroa.
We know that our Kavlor came to Jericho, sud
here Ue healed the blind. He did not stay In the
city, but dwelt outside in the hiuse of Zaccheus, who
waa a collector of tava for tbe Roman governmeut.
and therefore not populsr with the Jews. I refer to
Caocheua the dwarf. He was ao short be feared he
THE
the Walls of Jericho, Joshua's
would not e able to e tbe Christ orer tbo heads of
the crowd, and, as you remember from the verse in
the old primer:
Zaccheus he,
Did climb a tree,
Ills Lord" to Bee.
City of Joshua and Rahab.
. These old ruins represent not the city of Christ's
time, but the one of Joshua and Rahab. You remem
ber Rahab, the fair lady who was not so good as she
should be, who lived upon the walla of Jericho, and
who hid Joshua's spies under the stalks of flax which
she had stored up on her roof. She told them of the
terror which prevailed in the city over the possible
Invasion of Joshua and made them promise to save
her when Jericho wae taken. The spies arranged
with her that she should tie some red thread to the
bara of her window, when her house would be spared.
She then let them down by a cord through the win
dow, and they escaped and reported to Joshua. That
waa a good day's work for Rahab. The promise of
the spies waa carried out by the Israelites and Rahab
was not only preserved, but she married one of the
princes of Judah, a man named Salmon, and thereby
became one of the most famous women of the ances
tral tree of' the Israelites. She was the mother of
Boaz, who was the husband of Ruth, and King David
was one of her great-grandchildren. On the next
step of her genealogical ladder we find King Solomon,
and away down the centuries comes the name of
Joseph, the husband of Mary, and of the family of
Christ. In the first chapter of Matthew you will find
the generations from Abraham to the birth of our
Savior, and in them are mentioned the names of only
foui- women, namely, Thamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bath
ehfcba, the mother of Solomon, who had been the wife
of Uriah
At the Fountain of Elisha.
Rislit under old Jericho where these people are
working is the fountain of Ellsha, which the prophet
made sweet by throwing salt Into it. It is not-far
from the spot where he was mocked by the children
who cried after him, "Go up, thou bald head."
"Thereupon," says the Scriptures, "the prophet
turned and cursed them in the name of the Lord.
And there came forth two she bears out of the woods
and tare forty, and two children of them."
It is said that the place where Elijah was carried
up in a whirlwind to Heaven waa not far from Jericho
and on my way down here from Jerusalem I saw the
cave in which that prophet Is said to have been fed
by ravens. It ia in the Wady Kelt, a great dry, rocky
canyon with walls many feet high. The cave is a
few miles from Jericho, half way up the side of the
gorge, and Is partly hidden by a monastery which the
Greeks have built at that place.
In the Wilderness of Judea.
But let me tell you how I came down to Jericho.
The way from Jerusalem through the wilderness of
Judea, one of the roughest and stoniest lands of the
world. There la but little green to be seen and the
glare is intense. The dust of the road is of lime
stone and chalk, and it is to thick that it gets into
your eyes, mouth and nostrils. The road ia the chief
highway from the Jordan to the Holy City, and it is
traveled by thousands. The traffic was even greater
In the time of Christ, for the Jordan valley was then
covered w it U irrigated farms and the rich men of
Jerusalem had their winter homes here.
I left Jerusalem in a curriage, going out through
the Damascus gate, crossing the valley of Jehottophat
and skirting the Garden of Gethstmane at the foot of
the Mount of Olives. A little farther on we passed
a slaughter house, in which all the animals eaten in
Jerusalem are killed, and then, mounting the hills,
came to the village of Bethany.
My carriage was an easy victoria drawn by three
Arabian horses and the coachman was a Syrian Jehu,
with hair as red and a face as fair as my own. I had
a Turkish soldier with me to keep off the robbers. He
OMAIIA SUNDAY BEE: DECEMBER 11,
was furnished by the government of Jerusalem at a
cost of $3, and is under the direct command of the
eheik here at Jericho. Tbla BOldler carries a gun and
Bword, and be goes ahead, nominally to clear the road.
Every party I met on the way had similar soldiers,
and this Included the Russian pilgrims as well as
hunters from Jerusalem on their way for game in the
lands beyond the Jordan.
At the Tomb of Lazarus.
I stopped at Bethany to look at Lazarus' tomb,
and as I did so was reminded of what Mark Twain
Bald, namely, "That he would, rather sleep in the
tomb than in any other bouse in the place." The
Bethany of today is a dirty, ragged village of forty
or fifty stone huts inhabited perhaps by 300 people.'
The houses stand on the Bide of a bill, being built one
over the other. The people are small farmers who
have patches of stony land and little orchards of olives
and figs. They have cows and make butter for Jeru
salem. They are all Mohammedans and all beggars
crying for backsheesh.
Entering the town, I took: a look at the tomb. It
is a sort of cavern cut out of limestone and entered
by steep steps. It belongs to the Franciscan monks,
and they often say mass there.
The house of Mary and Martha, in which Christ
stopped, is said to have been In an lnclosure which is
now full of brambles and wild cactus. There is no
building left, although the guides point out a pile of
stones which they Bay was once a part of the wall.
On the way to Bethany I was shown the site of the
fig tree which was cursed by the Savior and from then
on never bore fruit. There are many fig trees found
in most parts of the Holy Land. I was on the road
to Bethany that Christ mounted the colt which car-
Kernels of Gold
Nebraska Jumped from fifth to fourth place this
year among the leading corn-producing states. The
total corn crop of- hls state is given a value of
$109,308,648, for 207,948,000 bushels. The crop of
1909 amounted to 194,060,000 bushels. There was,
on November 1, a difference of 10 cents a bushel in
price against this year's corn. At that date last year
the price was 62.2 centa a bushel, this year 62.6 cents
a bushel.
Illinois still leads in corn production, with 413,
751,000 bushels the largest in the history of the
state. The total value of the crop was $217,633,000.
That is about double the farm value of all the to
bacco raised in the United States in one year.
Iowa is the second corn state this year, as it was
in 1909. The Hawkeye crop of 1910 amounted to
343,979,000 bushels, worth $180,932,954. Its crop
An Oversight
Scene A crowded railway carriage.
Bald-headed, Pompous Old Man (addressing pas
sengers) Talk about tbe poor in England; it's their
own fault. Now, Just look at me, I am a eelf-mado
man, and proud to say so. I started with nothing
but brains, and look at me now.
Stuttering Man In Corner (who ia seen endeavoring
to speak) What d-d-do you call yourself a sel-sel-self-made
man?
Pompoua Old Man Yes, air a self-made man.
Can you contradict me?
Stuttering Man Oh, n-n-uo. Only I thought that
if you were a sel-sel-self-made man, w hy the d-d-dickens
didn't you-you-you put some hair on your head?
Collapse of bald-headed, pompous old mau. Tit-Bits.
1910.
Tied him on his triumphant march to Jerusalem.-
Shortly after I left Bethany I saw a curious sight
by the roadside. This was a man leaning backward
over a great gray boulder and rubbing himself vio
lently upon it. There were some stones on top of the
rock and I observed that the man added another stone
to the pile, and that he kissed the rock as be left. I
asked my guide the secret of his actions. He replied:
"That stone is called the father of rocks, and it is said
to be a sure cure for lumbago and backache. The
people here think that anyone so afflicted will be
cured if he can rub his sore spot against it. I am
told that those who believe in the cure can rub them
selves into a state of good health.
The Good Samaritan Inn.
A littia farther on I stopped for a bottle of ginger
pop and a cracker at the Good Samaritan Inn, which
stands on the traditional site where lay the man who
fell among thieves, when the Pharisee passed him by
on the other side. It is right on the road about half
way from Jerusalem to Jericho. There was a crowd
in the inn while I waited, and among them a Syrian
peasant, who had been robbed by a party of Bedouins.
The man was covered with wounds and was crying
and Bobbing as he told how he had been attacked, and
the money which he had just received from the sale
of some sheep stolen from him. This country is very
unsafe and no one who has money dares travel alone.
All the way to the Jordan I have met little caravans
on their way to Jerusalem, In every party there
were some men with guns on their backs. The guns
were often old-fashioned flintlock muskets. I passed
some donkey trains ta'.ntg bags of charcoal from be
yond the Jordan, and a caravan of camels, each of
which bore two great .bags of wheat slung over his
back. The drivers of both donkeys and camels were
;
in Story of Corn
last year amounted to 289,800,000 bushels. The in
crease waa about 63,000,000 bushels.
Missouri retained third position, the 1910 crop
amounting to 270,994,000 bushels as compared with
213,840,000 in 1909. The 1910 crop is worth $142,
542,844. The increase amounted to nearly 57,000,
000 bushels.
Indiana, which was fourth in 1909, took Ne
braska'a former position and dropped to fifth place
in 1910, with a crop of 201,845,000 bushels, as com
pared with 196,520,000 ia 1909. The value of the
1910 crop is $106,270,470.
These are the five states which raised more than
200,000,000 bushels each, and more than $100,000,
000 worth of the yellow grain. The others in the
100,000,000-bushcl class are:
Texas (sixth). 181.093,000; eighth in 1909, with
122,250,000 bushels.
Kansas (seventh), 169,328,000 bushels; sixth in
1909, with 154,225,000 buBhels.
Ohio (eighth), 143,855,000 bushels; seventh in
1909, with 153,062,000 bushels.
Kentucky (ninth), 104,075,000 bushels; ninth in
1909. with 103,472,000 bushels.
Tennessee (tenth), 96,296,000 bushels; eleventh
in 1909, with 78,650,000 buHhels.
Oklahoma (eleventh), 92,352,000 bushels; tenth
in 1909, with 101,150,000 bushels.
. The total corn crop of the country this year
amounts to 3,121,381,000 bushels. It is worth
$1,641,846,406. At the 1909 price it would be worth
$1,941,498,982, or nearly $300,000,000 more. Though
the consumer may not be able to see exactly where be
saves that $300,000,000, the farmer can easily see
w here he doesn't get it.
The fact that South Dakota ralBed 56,621,000
bushels of corn In 1910 may be a surprise to manr
who look upon that atate as a wheat and flax state
and too far north for corn.
The corn crop of the entire country, worth $1,641,
846,406, exceeds the combined values of the hay crop,
the. wheat crop and the potato crop by nearly $100,-000,000.
D
Old City
armed. They had come from tbo land of Moab and
Were now going up througo Judea.
The Mount of Olives in 1910. .
I spent several hours on the Mount of Olives be
fore starting on my way to the Jordan. This moun
tain Is 200 feet higher than the hills upon which
Jerusalem stands. It is directly opposite Jerusalem,
being separated from it by the valley of Jehosaphat
or Kendron, and it can be easily reached on horse
back, by carriage or on foot. Thero are good wagon
roads up the Mount of Olives, and most of the holy
places are now visited by carriages.
The Mount of Olives is rapidly changing with the
prosperity which Is coming to Palestine. Its slopes
are now cultivated, the rocks are being picked up and
laid in stone fences, and the cleared spots planted to
crops and to orchards. There were many olive or
chards on this mount In the days of the Savior, and
He came here frequently to get away from the crowds
of the city. . The soil seems fertile and the crops
upon the mountain glow luxuriantly. There are
many green patches of wheat, barley and oats and
here and there are carob trees, on which hung the
pods which furnished the food for the prodigal son
when he ate with the swine.
Among the Carmelite Nuns.
The Mount of Olives Is now spotted with churches
and chanels. It haa monasteries and convents a
great Russian church and several hospices, Including
the one which ia now being built by Augusta, the em
press of Germany. One of the most Interesting of
these institutions is a Carmelite nunnery, which has
been built over tbe spot where tradition says Christ
taught the Lord's Prayer to His disciples. The
church is called "The Church of the Lord's Preyer,"
and it has in Its court tablets inscribed with tbe
' prayer in thirty-two different languages. I visited
the chapel of the nunnery, where prayers go up every
day and night, and every hour of the day all the year
through. The nuns so divide their time that one is
always praying. They kneel behind a screen and are
not to be seen by visitors. This church is one of the
quietest and most solemn of all in tbo Holy Land, and
it is a relief to enter it, coming from the noisy scenes
which take place about the Holy Sepulcher.
The Carmelite nuns are devout. They do not go
out of the nunnery except it be absolutely necessary,
and when they walk in its garden they wear such
heavy veils that they have to hold them out from their
faces to see where they are going. My guide tells
me that each nun digs her own grave and that when
about to die she is dressed in her graveclothes and
laid out In the church in order that she may pass away
there.
The Garden of Gethsemane.
I shall not take you to the Chapel of tbe Ascension
near the nunnery, nor show you the spot In its floor
which looks like a footprint, and is said to be where
the foot of the Savior rested before He ascended to
heaven. The chapel belongs to the Mohammedans
and is let out at times to the Christians. It will be
more Interesting for us to vjslt the Garden of Geth
semane, which lies at the foot of the Mount of Olives,
Just off the Jericho road. It is surrounded by a wall
of yellow limestone, twelve feet in height and about
four feet in thickness. On the outside of It in the
shade of the wall a score of lepers hold out their
hands for alms as we pass. They are dirty and filthy
and the disease has made them disgusting. Borne
have no fingers, some no noses and one holds out a
tin can which is tied to the stump of her wrist, the
hand having dropped off.
The garden goes up the side of the mountain, ft
is almost square, with a width of something like 300
feet. It does not cover two acres and la cut up Into
flower beds, bordered by inverted beer and wine bot
tles. It has eight old olive trees, pansles of all shades
of the rainbow, and other beautiful flowers. There
are also cypress treen. The garden belongs to the
Franciscan monks, who open the. Katu an we knock.
The gate Is a mere hole in tbe wall, so low that all
who enter must stoop. It Is closed by an iron door,
upon which a round, black Iron bar ten Inches ?ong
serves as a knocker.
Just back of tbe entrance to tbe garden is a ledge
of limestone upon which the disciples are said to have
slept during the night of the agony, and perhaps 100
feet farther away stands a column which tradition
says marks the spot where Judas betrayed Christ with
a kiss. Both of these places have been worn smooth
by the Hps of thousands ot pilgrims.
FRANK G. CARPENTER.