,
but had spent three years at Jerusalem and Jericho. He was well
acquainted with the country, and we could depend upon what he told us.
Add to all this the fact that he went around with us without charge, and
it will be seen that we were well favored. On this Monday morning we
started out to take a walk to Bethany, the old home of that blessed
family composed of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. We passed the Church of
the Holy Sepulcher, walked along the street called the Via Dolorosa, and
saw several of the "stations" Jesus is supposed to have passed on the
way to the execution on Calvary. We passed the traditional site of the
"house of the rich man," the "house of the poor man," and the Temple
Area. After passing the Church of St. Anne, we went out of the city
through St. Stephen's gate, and saw the Birket Sitti Mariam, or Pool
of Lady Mary, one hundred feet long, eighty-five feet wide, and once
twenty-seven and a half feet deep. It is supposed that Stephen was led
through the gate now bearing his name and stoned at a point not far
distant. Going down the hill a few rods, we came to the Church of St.
Mary, a building for the most part underground. It is entered by a
stairway nineteen feet wide at the top, and having forty-seven steps
leading to the floor thirty-five feet below. We went down, and in
the poorly lighted place we found some priests and others singing or
chanting, crossing themselves, kissing a rock, and so on. This church
probably gets its name from the tradition that the mother of Jesus was
buried here. Just outside the church is a cavern that is claimed by some
to be the place of Christ's agony, and by others, who may have given the
matter more thought, it is supposed to be an old cistern, or place for
storing olive oil or grain. Perhaps I would do well to mention here that
tradition has been in operation a long time, and the stories she has
woven are numerous indeed, but often no confidence can be placed in
them. I desire to speak of things of this kind in such a way as not to
mislead my readers. It was near this church that I saw lepers for the
first time. The valley of the Kidron is the low ground lying between
Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives. The water flows here only in the wet
part of the year. Crossing this valley and starting up the slope of the
Mount of Olives, we soon come to a plot of ground inclosed by a high
stone wall, with a low, narrow gateway on the upper side. This place is
of great intere