T/TlT TP\TF \JUUKJ\j loOQ a*. AU]M; HENDERSON, LOS ANdLS, CALIF. STARTINC FOR THK DKSK.KT, ASSOI/AX. A WINTER JOURNEY To the Western Islands, Madeira, Gibraltar, Italy, Egypt, The Holy Land, Turkey and Greece. APOLOGIA TT is the purpose of this unpretentious little diary to offer in very sketchy form or outline the experiences of two Americans traveling from the United States to the Holy Land and vicinity and return. The writers have no lessons moral, social or economic to point from the results ; they speak of the world "with thankfulness as they find it in their daily orhit. The Artificer of the Universe still is in full charge, and He doeth all things well. From the finite point of view, the world may seem to he at sixes and sevens, hut may not this inconclusive conjecture result from restricted observa- tion of the entire plan rather than from faults inherent in the plan itself? Experience seems to confirm that " whatever is, is right, and that " whatever happens in life, from the greatest to the least, happens of necessity ;" and the postulate that "it is better to fall with many bruises trying to fly, than to creep forever unhurt," finds many ardent believers. CLARA BIDDLE DAVIS, SEYMOUR DAVIS. " MENDERS ON, LOS ANGELES, CALIF. 1S2<1<162 Of. A WINTER JOURNEY January Ninth, 1909. E are now two hundred miles on our way towards the Promised Land. MVe left Philadelphia yesterday, passing the night at the Manhattan Hotel, New YorK/O NA' e were early awake and on our way to the pier, hut hy no means the first to arrive. There was a wait of some two hours hefore sailing, and, after hestowmg our haggage, and arranging for seats in the dining salon, we comfort- ahly settled down to enjoy the variegated appearance of the crowd of passengers and the friends who had come to see them off. As the hour for sailing approached the " Cedric a large and comfortable sea hoat of 21,000 tons became so densely packed -with enthusiastic trav- elers that it was with great difficulty we were able to move about & Kind friends had not forgotten us, as our stateroom decked with exquisite American .Beauties testified, not to speak of pabulum for the sweet-tooth, and the ever-gladdening letters and telegrams of bon "voyage and good wishes. Have you ever made an ocean voyage ? Then you know something of the high heart A WINTER JOURNEY beats and exhiliration that accompany last good byes as the whistle blows for visitors to go ashore. After muck waving of handkerchiefs and puffing of tug boats the good skip " Cedric finally was beaded toward tbe open sea, and tben we bad more time to look about us and study tbe people witb whom we were to make tbe voyage, and, according to tbe dictates of fancy, decide who of tbem will be pleasurable to know^VTbe pas- senger capacity of tbe " Cedric is filled to its limit of four bundred First Class ; and probably a thousand boxes and baskets of flowers and fruit bear testimony of tbe loving good wisbes of relatives and friends left behind. This profusion of fruit and flowers means several days display on dining tables and in otber parts of tbe smp of rare and beautiful exotics-O January Tentb. E bad first cboice of sittings in tbe dining salon, but as popular preference seems to extend to tbe second table, with its lazier bours, we chose tbat of tbe Captain, directly in tbe center of tbe salon and tbe cynosure of general attention. \Ve are a select few, and Clara is tbe only member of tbe fair sex in tbe A WINTER JOURNEY group, which includes Mr. Thomas Clark, artist and sculptor of New York city, en route for Genoa to meet his family. Three hardy antiques from far away Flint, Minnesota, together with several other interesting personalities, including the well-known lecturer, Mr. Dwight Elmendorf, -who has traveled the Big Pond so often that he can " splice the main trace and " hox the compass with neatness and dispatch. Fine -weather prevailed all day. Sea smooth^* January Eleventh. nHE day -was devoted to reading up " Egypt for profitable instruction. Have hecome acquainted with some very agreeable and interesting fellow voy- agers, including the Stewarts, of Philadelphia, the Dil- lenhacks, Mrs. Herring, and the Fields of St. Paul, not to forget Mr. and Mrs. Van Winkle, of Newark, New Jersey. 8 A WINTER JOURNEY January Twelfth. 2V NOTHER perfect Jay, spent in playing games on deck, varied with reading and in swapping with some of our newly made acquaintances the stories of our lives. Isn t it wonderful now many persons there are with castles, and yachts and automobiles at home ? January Thirteenth. nO-DAY was very much like yesterday ; passed in the warm energizing sun and invigorating sea air. So far the voyage has proved ideal. \Ve wish our dear ones at home could realize for themselves its delights. \Ve are taking the southern passage, and though only four days out find spring clothing comfortable. January Fourteenth. PIME between meals to-day was largely devoted to trading favorite stories, pet jokes and puzzles. Here are some new to us : " The animals in the zoolog- ical garden decided to attend the theatre, hut upon ar- riving at the box office found only one dollar seats re- maining, consequently of the number present only the frog -with his green hack, the goose -with her hill and the lamb -with its four quarters were admitted. A WINTER JOURNEY "A little toy who with his mother a lady of plethoric avoidupois was visiting in Florida, received a present of a small hut lively alligator, -which he prized ahove all other possessions, so much so that one night he cov- ertly took it to hed with him. \Vaking up during the night and missing it, he in turn awoke his mother with the admonition to * Be careful not to roll over on the alligator, mama <" "A gentleman returning to Scotland for a second sea- son s shooting, on meeting his former guide, remarked that he was not wearing the cap with ear tahs as for- merly, to which Sandy replied that since the accident he had worn no ear coverings. On being' asked to de- scrihe the accident, Sandy said : \Vell you see, sir, a gentleman that was here last season told me I might take a drink out of his flask, and I never heard him, so since that accident I keep my ears free. " One hot summer noonday a farmer returning from the field for dinner observed a loaded hay wagon over- turned on the roadway in front of his gate and a lanky hoy trying to right it. The farmer suggested that the hoy suspend labor and come in to dinner, out he replied, *Pa might not like it. He won't mind, said the farmer. JO A WINTER JOURNEY Come in. Still persisting that k Pa might not like it,' the toy accepted the offered hospitality and did full justice to the meal. After dinner was over the farmer said he was curious to know why " Pa might not like it,' to which the boy innocently answered, " Cause pa is under the hay. \Ve expect to see land to-morrow. January Fifteenth. TPON coming on deck the eye was greeted with a charming view of the beautiful island of Flores (flowers), one of the \Vestern Islands, which soon, however, was left astern, together with Fayal and Pico. By ten a. m. we were in the harbor of Ponta Delgada, the principal city of the island of San Miguel, in fact, the principal city of the entire group. Prospects for a pleasant day -were discouraging. Considerable mist with rain was in evidence, but on the sun forcing a break for a few minutes, we decided to risk a trip ashore, and going down the stairway over the ship s side, made flying leaps into the bobbing little native rowboats alongside. The oarsmen were good, but STKKKT SCKNE I'oN I A I)KI.<;.\1).\, SAN MlCl Kl., A/.ORKS. A WINTER JOURNEY \\ against so rough a sea they made slow headway to- wards the quay ; we were fortunate, however, in get- ting a line from a passing tow boat, which expedited our passage to the haven where we would he. The trip was a disappointment, however, in that Jupiter Pluviua decided to give us a good wetting. 1 \iVe took refuge in several shops and also visited the church into which Christopher Columhus after discovering the New AA^orld went with the purpose of fulfilling a vow made during a great storm, hut the modest governor of the island prevented its consummation 3* The islands had teen set- tled for only some sixty years -when the large capote of dark blue cloth now in such general use became the fea- ture of the women s costume. \Ve thought of buying one for masquerade parties, hut, to our surprise, found the cheapest quality to cost $30. The cloth is imported from England, and is quite expensive ; we therefore contented ourselves with purchasing a small terra cotta model of the costume and a few pictorial post cards*"* Our stay on shore was brief ; in fact we were glad to return to steam heat and dry garments. The rills of rainwater importantly increased the barter's rills of revenue, for it was to mm our clothing went to be J2 A WINTER JOURNEY pressed at the modest(?) honorarium of six shillings per garment. \Vith her nose pointing toward Madeira the good ship " Cedric " steamed away from the Azores at 5 p. m., and once more we settled down to ship routine. January Sixteenth. ITH the passage of time we are getting hetter ac- quainted with our fellow voyagers, and so we hear mysterious rumors about men on hoard who are said to he card sharps and gamhlers. If there are such men on the ship they look wonderfully like the average traveler, which prohahly accounts for the ease with which the unwary are duped. Sinning of all kinds is said to he pleasant at first, and probably the sin of gambling is no exception to the general rule. Have been reading up Madeira. ^We are due to land on that island to- morrow. January Seventeenth. ["'HE news has just reached us of the disaster to the " Republic " a ship of this line and feel prone to congratulate ourselves that -we left on the " Cedric instead of a week later. Madeira Harbor offers a A WINTER JOURNEY J3 beautiful vista. A^e are surrounded by small boats from which native boy* dive for coins in tbe icy water. Although it is Sunday, tbe " Cedric's " decks bave been converted into lace bazaars, where tbe natives expose for sale tbeir band-embroidered linens. AVe again go ashore, this time in tenders, having purchased tickets from agents -who came on board for the purpose. The tickets cost two dollars and fifty cents each, and entitle the holder to see the sights, including dinner. \Ve landed at a splendid pier, seemingly a combination of recreation and esplanade for all nations. A short walk to the nearest street introduced us to the bullock cart, or carro de bois, as it is known locally ; an anti- quated model of Spanish cabriolet placed on wooden runners and drawn by two bullocks led by leather thongs threaded through the tips of their horns. It re- quires two men to navigate this sled-carriage ; one to direct the motive power and one to manipulate the grease bag -which from time to time is placed under the runners to lessen friction with the pavement of small cobble stones that have been rubbed smooth as glass. In this vehicle we rode through the interesting streets J4 A WINTER JOURNEY of Funchal to the cog railway that takes its course 10,000 feet up the mountain at the back of the city. It was here we drank our first glass of Madeira wine. The mountain ascent took us through orange groves and rose gardens with grape vines covering white pergolas, leaving the town and harbor at our feet. At the sum- mit we left the train, whence we were luxuriously carried in swinging hammocks, suspended on poles, by two men to a hotel situate among beautiful tropical garden* and magnificent gorges, where our luncheon consisted of real Portugese cooking, supplemented by more Madeira wine. Returning we descended the mountain in wicker coasters with seats for two, placed on sled-runners and guided by two men. The descent took us through streets lined with white villas enclosed by high stone walls, festooned with the wonderful pur- ple Bougainvillea, looking over which mothers and chil- dren smiled at us in our holiday enjoyment and show- ered us with gardenias and roses. The five mile de- scent was covered in eight minutes and was novel in the extreme, and most interesting as a specimen of original methods adapted to local conditions. Taking an anti- quated tram car we rode on to the Madeira House and COASTING WITHOUT SNOW, FUNCHAL, MADEIRA. A WINTER JOURNEY J5 snops to buy embroidery and chairs ana a souvenir bottle of Madeira wine. Here, on the street, we met an old friend of Jamaica days, Mr. Randolph Berens, of London, who gave us a pleasurable surprise -when he announced that he too would hear us company to Cairo. January Eighteenth. yV BEAUTIFUL day indeed; a day of sunshine and calm. The steward served on deck every one with white paper lace boats filled with home-made butterscotch, and it was good! Every day there is a service of bonbons en surprise. January Nineteenth. SSING T angiers early this morning brought to mind others days in other years spent there so pleas- urahly. By ten a. m. we were viewing the first of the ancient wonders, the African promontory of ancient Ahyla and the European Gibraltar, " Pillars of Her- cules. The well-known sign of our dollar ($) is ex- plained as representing the Pillars of Hercules united hy a scroll. Thackary says of the rock of Gibraltar, *" It is the very image of an enormous lion crouched he- 16 A WINTER JOURNEY tween the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. ' At eleven a. m. \ve -were strolling through the Moorish market, and found that our limited knowledge of Moorish as expressed in the brief salutation: " Gif Koonsy" was smilingly answered with the "Lev as " or yore. \V^e sauntered along leisurely spectators of the half Spanish half English street scenes, all unchanged from the visit of seven years previous. Conditions evolutionize rap- idly in some portions of the world while in others change is slow indeed, and seems to he like the change of decay. Rememhering the hotels of Gibraltar from former unfavorable experience, we were loath to im- peril digestion, till Clara solved the problem by suggest- ing a picnic luncheon a la Boheme, where each selected his preferential tidbit and bought it at the delicatessen shop. Oh, such a lark! After assembling our com- bined purchases we hurried on to the English Gardens, then in fullness of bloom, and selecting a charming viewpoint on the stone resting place overlooking the beautiful blue Mediterranean with its ships riding at anchor, we began to produce our gustatory treasurers. 1 his improvised menu snowed sweet butter rolls, fresh and warm; a pat of new butter; a bottle of Spanish GIBRALTAR'S HIGHEST PKAK. A WINTER JOURNEY 17 olives ; a dainty packet or cola tongue ; slice or fresh Chedder cheese ; bottle of Spanish wine ; a tempting assortment of French patisserie, and lots of tangerines, with stems and green leaves still attache d'^AiVe ate like growing children, and yet there was enough remain- ing to furnish a meal to a beggar woman and child who were passing. Oh, the wretched beggars of Europe ! Thank God for our own great and free land, where it is possible for every one to be self-supporting. Pos- sessed of a comfortable feeling of satisfaction and peace with all the world, we hired one of those queer vehicles known as the Gibraltar cabriolet, and drove to Europa Point, next crossing neutral ground into Spanish terri- tory. Here -we saw the odd feature of a maze of barbed wire fencing, installed to preclude the smuggling of tobacco by trained dogs from Gibraltar into Spain<* On our way hack to the " Cedric " we stopped at Benoliel s shop for a souvenir of this great rock fortress commanding ingress to the Mediterranean. 18 A WINTER JOURNEY January Twentieth. E cruised all clay in eight of the Spanish Main, between the .Balearic Islands ana mainland. \Vithout glasses we could plainly see the -white fishing villages, with their high background of green hills, dotted along the coasts* As yet every day has been ideally warm, with a smooth sea. To-night the decks were festooned with colored electric lights and flags of all nations. Young and old were enlivened with music and dancing, concluding with refreshments. January Twenty-first. Vk S we proceed toward Genoa it grows colder. ^lany of our passengers, including Colonel and Mrs. Dillenhack, Mrs. Herring, Mr. Clark and Mr. Fields, will disembark there. As our -wireless Marconi ser- vice on hoard the " Cedric picked up some communi- cations sent out hy the cruising fleet of American hat- tleships returning from the trip around the world, we hoped to witness that unique spectacle, hut although nearby we missed them altogether. STATUE OF COLUMBUS, GENOA. A WINTER JOURNEY January Twenty-second. nHE harbor of Genoa is well named the Knee of Italy. \Ve went ashore at the early hour of nine a. m., and our first act was to change English into Italian money. \Vliile one does not spend so much of it in Italy as in some countries, still everywhere money constitutes the passepartout. After following Shaks- peare's injunction to " put money in thy purse, we strolled through the streets in leisurely dolce far niente mood, enjoying the shop windows, Seymour finally de- ciding to investigate the subject of fur lined overcoats. After concluding the purchase of one we lunched at the caf Europa, where we saw the last of our unpopular fellow-passenger, Mr. Sanderson, of Philadelphia; he of Harrisburg Capitol fame, convoyed by his wife, maid and valet-<"Before returning to our ocean house boat (the " Cedric,' ) -we passed two hours profitably seeing Genoa from an open carriage. 20 A WINTER JOURNEY January Twenty-tkird. R good skip took on many new passengers at Genoa, including Mrs. Mcllvaine, of Pkiladel- pkia, and ner daughter, \vkom \ve Lad tke pleasure of meeting in Nineteen Hundred and Seven in Bermuda*!* Tke young Baron and Baroness de Rothgcmld, of Paris, bride and groom, are exciting a great deal of in- terest on board. \Vliat a continuous turning of tke wkeel of fortune life is \ To-day -we passed close to memorable Corsica and Elka. Seymour tries to per- suade Clara to remain in Italy until autumn, wken ke will come for ker, but Madame seems to be unfavorable to sudden decisions*? 6 January Twenty-fourtk. PHE bay of Naples is ** a tking of beauty and a joy forever." So rick in inspirational power. At tke present time Vesuvius is as calm as a sleeping baby, but ok \ wkat potentiality for destruction lurks beneatk tkat quiet exterior \ Distant Capri and Sorrento are featured beneatk tke deep blue of tke sea and tke azure of tke sky witk tke brilliant wkite of Naples as a setting. Sunday seems to be religiously observed *3* Notking on A WINTER JOURNEY 2J sale but picture postals. Nothing to do but to drive aimlessly about the city and lunch at the Gambrmus. There we bad our same old table in tbe same old place. "Nothing changed or older," not even tbe hunchback " Good Luck Boy, who came to greet us. After tbe usual Italian luncbeon we strolled in tbe sunshine along tbe esplanade and sea -wall and around by tbe Aqua- rium up to tbe bigb and narrow streets where tbe natives live in tbe terraced -walls of tbe winding roads. Tbe care of tbe bead and hair, however, is performed in a sitting posture on tbe curbstones^ January Twenty~f iftb. TN another two days we shall be due in tbe land of the Pharaohs. \Ve are all disappointed tbat tbe steamer s course is not tbrougb tbe Straits of Messina (other-wise Scylla and Charybdis), for we should very much like to see tbe scene of tbe recent earthquake at Messina and R.eggio, but -we shall get a view of tbe southern coast line of Sicily, where tbe Carthageman invaders landed centuries ago. Mount Etna will be visible in the distance, as also tbe island of Malta. 22 A WINTER JOURNEY January Twenty-sixth. OMILING nature is here with another beautiful day. To borrow language from Mark Twain, " we got up, washed and -went to bed again." January Twenty-seventh. last Jay on the good ship " Cedric." ^Wc have had a most restful voyage, hut all the same will welcome the change to life ashore. January Twenty-eighth. 1LJER.E we are at Alexandria, Egypt. Arrived at eight a. m., after having travelled Five Thousand Seven Hundred and Sixty-six nautical miles. \VKen we came on deck the island of Pharos was in the rear but still in sight. It -was on the island of Pharos, you know, that there stood the second of the Seven \Von- ders of the world ; a lighthouse some six hundred feet in heighth. It was here that our friend Hugh Rimmgton, July Eleventh and Twelfth, 1882, took part in the bombardment of the city by the English war ships. The usual swarm of native porters and boatmen were on the look out for us, the red fez, white tarbush PO.MPEY'S PILLAR, ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT. A WINTER JOURNEY 23 and loose-flowing galabiyeh reminding us that we had progressed into the Orient. Steam lighter service put us ashore in three-quarters or an hour, and the Cus- toms Officers -were expeditious in their work. Their method of examination rather excited our sense of humor. The inspectors seemed to he guided more par- ticularly by the appearance of the baggage, selecting for examination such trunks as offered some special feature of attraction. Our suspense, however, was brief ; all the baggage was finally passed, and we found that we had to wait an hour and a half before departure of the train for Cairo. Taking advantage of the delay, we drove to Pompey s Pillar and to the Catacombs. It was from Alexandria that the obelisks erected in London and New York were obtained. It was here that St. Mark preached, and here also is the burial place of Alexander the Great. The ride to Cairo through the delta of lower Egypt was replete with interest; the irrigated green fields of bercime, camels galore, the huffalo cows and native villages of sun-baked mud huts massed together and surrounded by date palms and mud walls, each in turn offered the traveller its quota of interest. On some of the houses -were curiously rep- 24 A WINTER JOURNEY resented what seemed to be crude drawings by the youthful Arab, out on asking for explanation we were told that they were the houses of Mohammedans who had made pilgrimage to Mecca. Such pilgrims were privileged to pictorially present on the house front the salient features of the journey to the sacred city, and these features were portrayed after the pilgrim s own manner and skill, hence the introduction of the pink locomotive, the yellow ship and green camel. The luncheon served in the dining car -was a misfit failure, so -we fell hack on fresh dates, wine and oranges instead. After a ride of three hours we found our- selves -within the environments of the City of the Caliphs and the home of the Arabian Nights Cairo. \Ve had engaged rooms from the agent of Shepheard s Hotel at Alexandria, but arrived in Cairo only to find that no reservation for us had been made and that Shepheard s was overcrowded; they, however, sent us in their carriage to another of their hotels the Ghizerah Palace which we found to be beautiful but quite in the suburbs, so we directed the driver to the Hotel Savoy, a hostelry Mr. Berens had been patronizing for twenty -five years, and which -we found to be the best A WINTER JOURNEY 25 and most select in Cairo- Next appeared two boys on horseback, clothed in white robes covered -with blood, representing Hasan and Hosein, folio-wed by a mob of yelling men with shaven heads and naked to the waist, who slapped their breasts till the street echoed and re-echoed the sickening sound. Then came two lines of about one hundred priests, robed in -white, -with shaven heads, -walking side-ways and facing one another. A. reader who walked in the center recounted the murder of the grandchildren of Mohammed, -who, -when they -were found, showed forty gashes, all inflicted by the Pretender. Each fanatic bore a curved sword, -with -which from time to time he smote his head, causing the blood to flow down over face and white gown, -while attendants -with towels kept his eyes 38 A WINTER JOURNEY free. This particular Persian sect repeat the disgusting ceremony on every Ashura anniversary. After tne pro- cession carriages were called, and Mr. Berens' coach- man. All, a typical Egyptian, drove standing, wkile snouting "Riglak ya Khawageh Ejfendi! " (take care of your feet, sir), at the top of his voice to clear the way. Upon arrival at the Savoy we were agreeahly surprised to find a heautifully decorated table, -with covers laid for fourteen, at which Mr. \Vild had a delicious table d hote luncheon served to the party. \Vhile discussing the evening s unique entertainment a message was handed us from Mr. and Mrs. Van \Vinkle asking that we join them on a trip up the Nile, hut the fact 10 our time is lim- ited -while theirs seems most elastic. A WINTER JOURNEY 39 February Second. E decided to go by train de luxe to Luxor this afternoon, getting our tickets for Assouan at Cooks. \Ve left our trunks with the hotel porter and travel in light marching order, taking only a grip and small trunk that we purchased at Bryan (y Davies, Cairo. Vv hile Clara was " folding her tents Seymour improved the shining hour by "quietly stealing away' to the museum, and there purchased a small box of wheat grains that were removed from a mummy-case five thousand years old. One of our great Americans, the Hon. \Villiam Jen- nings Bryan, in his beautiful lecture on '" Immortality," touchingly alludes to these anciently deposited wheat grains, so we were the more desirous of securing some. After luncheon we basked in the sunshine on the open terrace in front of the hotel, diverting ourselves watching street fakirs, acrobats in tights, snake charmers with their snakes and scorpions, jugglers with small chicks just hatched, and an old Soudanese HoocKee Coochee dancer playing a tom-tom and wearing a ballet akirt with dried bean pods strung round it like a sort of 40 A WINTER JOURNEY fringe. This his snaking body rattled rhythmically. Attached to the top of his skull cap was a string two feet long, ending in a pompon, which he kept whirling in a circle hy the motion of his head. Street fakirs eager to perform their special stunts, whenever an audi- ence can he attracted, haunt the terraces of all the hotels. Shepheard s is their headquarters, for here tourists are continually arriving and departing. To leave the protection of the hotel terrace is to run the gauntlet of all sorts and conditions of vendors. Acrobats simply whirl down the avenue in front of you ; you are importuned with offers of scarabs of every size and every color, offers of laces, fake mummies and great bunches of roses and violets. The dragoman dogs your heels trying to get possession of your time and a dollar and a half per day. The streets of Cairo are indeed a hodge-podge of all sorts and conditions, and the contrasts presented are alike amusing and bewildering. The European element, the English, Greek, Italian and French, appear everywhere in blend with the oriental. Egyptian women veiled in the yashmak, Bedouins from the desert stalking about with lordly airs; Coptic; effen- dies in fez and funeral coat, and donkey boys scream- OUT FOR A RIDE, CAIRO. A WINTER JOURNEY 4J ing their wares. The clattering hoofs of a cavalry guard informs us that the Khedive is passing. Running footmen or sais with hare hrown legs and emhroidered jackets, carrying wands of authority, clear the way for a Pasha's or Ambassador s carriage. In the midst of this active throng a camel train laden -with rough huilding stone slung in network sacks moves noiselessly into the foreground contending for place -with English dog carts driven hy East Indian hoys -with -white turhans and hare legs. Camels never seem to relax their expression of quiet superiority, not even -when nihhling at the he- flowered Parisian honnets on the heads of ladies seated in luxurious victorias in front of them, or engaged in curiously watching a fleeting limousine hearing a harem to shop. The fellaheen on his long cart is seen bringing vegetables to market, accompanied hy his four rotund -wives dressed and veiled in black -with their chattering children. Scribes sit at street corners to write for the illiterate. Incense burning is one of the curious street trades^"For the fraction of a penny the burner with his swinging brass brazier will fumigate shop or clothing, but probably the most important street trade is that of -water carrier. Of -water carriers there are several grades or 42 A WINTER JOURNEY classes. The " Sakka " who dispenses unfiltcred Nile water from the goat skin pursues a most laborious call- ing for minimum compensation, and his appearance be- speaks an object for pity. At six p. m., we left Cairo for Upper Egypt. Mr. Berens came to the station to say good-bye, and, as the \Vebsters are on tne same train, we shall probably have much of their pleasurable society during tne trip up tne Nile. \Ve have a luxu- rious apartment to ourselves, and greatly to our satis- faction the porter is an English speaking Maltese. Tbe train includes an excellent dining car. February Third. yV RRIVED at Luxor at eight a. m., where -we were persuaded to stop off and go on to Assouan later, so, arranging for a " stop over, ' we took carriage for tne \Vinter Palace Hotel, where we were assigned a large, airy, well furnished double room, including bath and a private balcony overlooking the Nile and the ancient site of Thebes. Quickly despatching our breakfast, we engaged Mohammed (a popular name hereabouts, and one of the several recommended to parents by the prophet himself) for our dragoman, secured government tickets of admission to the Nile temples, and, taking a TKMPLE OK SETHOS I. THKBKS. A WINTER JOURNEY 43 dahahiyeh, crossed the river to our waiting donkeys, thence over the desert to Thebes, stopping first at the Temple of Sethos I, where for a few piasters the Arabs offered us the mummified human hands and feet as well as hawks and goats that had teen recently excavated. Mohammed explained the hieroglyphics on the walls of the Temple. In due time we found our- selves riding through the Valley of Death towards the Tomhs of the Kings. These consisted of tunneled chambers enclosed hy highly illuminated walls extend- ing hundreds of feet into the solid rock. Of the thirty- four tombs, we limited our curiosity to entering hut two those of Rameses VI and Amenophis II, the latter still lying in his sarcophagus. After watching Mr. Theodore Davis excavating men searching for other tombs, we took a three-quarter hour ride around the mountain to the rest house, passing during our ride native houses -with their strange, large, mud-huilt safety cradles shaped not unlike a champagne glass. Into these the children are placed at night to assure their safety from scorpions and rattlesnakes. \Ve had a most ex- cellent luncheon at the rest house, sent in hampers from the hotel, and here we saw a large party of Cook 44 A WINTER JOURNEY tourists wKo were being most uncomfortably hurried about. After a good rest we moved on to the Temple of Deir-el-Bahri, next to the Ramesseum and the Colossi of Memnon, arriving after a time at the hotel quite ready for a hot bath and siesta. After our fable d'hote dinner we strolled by moonlight through the flower garden and on to the small shops, not omitting to inspect the " Egypt," an attractive Nile steamer then moored to the wharf . To work off surplus energy we took a double carriage and visited hy moonlight the wonderful Egyptian rums of K.arnak. The majesty of that night, that scene, was supernatural, something never to he forgotten, as the moon s rays spread their golden light over those marvelous columns and over that vat area covered with colossal ruins February Fourth. GEYMOUR'S birthday comes ushered in together with a had cold. Too " hutch hoonlight and night air. After a late breakfast we visited the Tem- ple of Luxor and the private museum or an English gentleman. The Luxor temple contains a curious "birth A WINTER JOURNEY 45 chamber," with hieroglyphics depicting a story or similar prophesy to that of the Christian Annunciation ana birth Three Thousand B. C. February Fifth. PHIS morning we bade Mahommed Abdulla good bye, called a carriage, had our baggage placed in front with the driver and proceeded for Karnak again. \Ve felt that we ought to see the temple by daylight, and were rewarded for our second trip by the discovery that previously we had missed the Sacred Lake, the Nilometer, the Scarab Column and the Avenue of the Sphinxes, all very much worth whileO-Ten a. m. saw us aboard the train for Assouan, ready to be drawn by a Bald-win locomotive. This ride is really very in- structive, showing the desert on one side, and on the other side the fertile farms on the banks of the Nile furnish an insight into local agriculture. Arrived at Assouan in the afternoon at half-past four o clock, and stopped at the Grand Hotel, where we were given a fine large room facing the Nile and overlooking Ele- phantine Island. \Ve concluded the day chatting with the Arab bazaar people, having discarded our straw hats for Bedouin tarbuahes. 46 A WINTER JOURNEY February Sixth. | HIS clay has furnished a continuation of joyoui surprises. \Ve engaged a Copt dragoman, Joseph by name, for six shilling's per diem, and took the nine a. m. train for Philae, the center of worship of the Goddess lais, a naif hour s ride from Assouan, where a gaudily painted tutti-frutti looking boat manned -with Nubian oarsmen rowed us to the submerged Temple of Philae where we spent an hour exploring the ruins of this famous but rapidly crepitating pile. \Ve now are within a few miles of the Tropic of Cancer and as far south as -we shall go. The boatman took us on to the Barrage, where we emptied our pockets of backsheesh in favor of the four rowers, the captain and pilot. The construction of the dam is an imposing piece of engi- neering -work of which the people may justly be proud. If it were not for the river Nile Egypt -would be bar- ren and uninhabitable for lack of rain. Early in the month of June the Nile begins to rise, and reaches its maximum depth of water twenty-three feet during the first week of September. The present dam fur- nishes the necessary -water supply during the month* of May, June and July. Construction is under way to TKMJ-LK OF PHILAE. A WINTER JOURNEY 47 increase the depth or water to twenty-eight feetj* Egypt has been happily named tne '" Gift of tne Nile" for without tne river Nile there could be no Egypt as we see Egypt to-day. A. second boat with eight rowers was in waiting to take us through the rapids of the First Cataract and thence on to Assouan, passing en route villas, ancient ruins and the private dahahiyeh of the Princess Henry of Battenberg. As they rowed the men beguiled the time with native songs to the accom- paniment of a hoy with a tom-tom; afterwards we bought the tom-tom as a souvenir curiosity. Our ap- petite was in fine condition for luncheon at the hotel, following which Joseph brought us three camels, which, with much indisposition and groaning, sank upon their knees and permitted us to mount. These animals are well styled " ships of the desert," for certainly they rolled and pitched much more than did our steady, re- liable, " Cedric <<"Swaymg from side to side through the village streets we made for the desert and the granite quarries which supplied the stone for the colossal tem- ples and statues along the Nile. The ancient tool marks of the stone-cutters are visible still, and a partially executed obelisk can be seen lying attached to the mother 48 A WINTER JOURNEY rock in tne natural state. Our return took us through the Bedouin Cemetery, the camps of the Bishareens, and through the narrow, covered street of the bazaars, where we called out to the shop keepers, "Marhaba- el- Arab," and " Salaam-alak /" February Seventh. TDEFORE leaving Assouan this morning -we made a fare-well inspection of the shops, patted the camels and donkeys we found in the street stalls, although they insisted on nibbling at Clara s large hoquet of roses and rose geraniums, the parting gift of Joseph. Going to Luxor there -were, beside ourselves, five in the compartment an Englishman (ever ubiquitous) two " Cedric " passengers, a Russian from Odessa and his little son Vladimir, who spoke pretty English. To beguile the time we played geographical games, in which the elder Russian joined. Arriving at Luxor at five p. m., we had an hour in which to walk about the town before the next train left for Cairo. The Khe- dive was expected at Luxor next morning to open the new barrage, hence all the stations along the route were decorated with branches of palms and the red Turkish flag with its accompanying white star and THE GREAT Conn OK KAMK.SK.S II, LTXOR. A WINTER JOURNEY 49 crescent. Around many poles reel and white cloth was twisted, in appearance not unlike some kinds of stick candy or a barber s pole. A pavilion had been erected on the platform at Luxor station and furnished with regal looking chairs. This pavilion was enclosed on three sides and covered with a roof decorated with Turkish hangings in red with blue and white applique figures. The floor was covered with oriental rugs, and crystal chandeliers suspended from the ceiling lent brilliance to the scene. The dinner and breakfast sup- plied in our dining car left much to be desired. February Eighth. ARA S birthday. AiVe arrived so early this morning that lethargic Cairo was not yet astir, and at the Savoy Hotel the maids were still cleaning the premises. After getting settled in our apartment we renewed activities by taking a carriage to Shepheard's, and to Cooks for mail. \Ve surmise that folks at home are under the impression that " globe trotters" when on terra firma have little time to spare for reading, hence the paucity of mail matter. To-day we are going to drive to the favorite resort of Cairo folk, the island of 50 A WINTER JOURNEY Gezirek. Here a long avenue of lebbek trees furnishes a fashionable promenade, while games or golf, tennis, cricket and polo, together with the races, are a constant source of attraction. \Ve will remain at the Gezireh Palace Hotel for luncheon. This is the old palace of Ismail Pasha, erected to furnish hospitality to the royal guests invited to the opening of the Suez Canal, and stands in the center of an estate of heautiful, culti- vated, gardens. The drive to it is delightful to hoth eye and sense. There we discussed a fine course luncheon, and there had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Mcllvaine and her daughter, who are guests. Mrs. Mcllvame showed us the royal apartments reserved for the Empress Eugenie. As our watchword seems to he Onward, we visited the museum, taking a last look at the upper rooms and the impressive collection of royal mummies, vases, sarcophagi and jewels there. Contem- plation of these mummies (showing their respective cast of features and the natural hair surrounding the base of the head), whose souls are fled these twenty or more centu- ries, gives food for thought, and inspires strange feelings. Here universal helief is that at the Resurrection hody and soul will reunite, and carved in stone, surmounting A WINTER JOURNEY 5J five immense sarcophagi, fitting one inside the other like a nest of boxes, -we saw the " K.a or spirit-likeness of tne deceased. vv e found tne Arab museum equally interesting, out more particularly in tne line of embroid- eries, mushrabiyeh and other examples of Arabian art. The library adjoins, and contains a valuable and unique collection of band -illuminated Korans, also oil portraits of all the Khedives. \Ve dined -with Mr. Berens in tne Savoy cafe to-night, at which function he courte- ously presented us a book on Egypt. Tne evening closed witk good-byes to the Stewarts, who are leaving to-morrow for tne Nile trip. Clara was in one of her industrious moods, and gratified it by packing till two a. m., Seymour meanwhile enjoying the peaceful sleep of either tbe just or the consciousless. Three of the trunks go to-morrow to Naples to relieve us of large baggage on our trip through Palestine, Turkey and Greece. 52 A WINTER JOURNEY February Ninth. M nIRED nature s sweet restorer balmy sleep " sealed our eyelids this morning, and -we overslept. To make up lost time we breakfasted on tbe terrace of the Continental Hotel, secured tickets to Jerusalem, took a last look at tbe sbops and wound up witb a most unsatisfactory luncbeon at Shepheard's. Afterwards we visited El Azhar, tbe famous Arab university. Tbe foreign students pay no fee and are allowed rations of food. Tbe building is used to a certain extent as a Mosque, but does not preserve tbe regular Mosque plan, baving been remodeled and added to several times. It bas six minarets and a spacious court cover- ing tbree tbousand six bundred square yards, witb one bundred and forty columns and numerous side chambers, devoted to lectures, libraries and laboratories. Tbe court was filled witb individual groups of about tbirty students around eacb professor. Tbey were sitting crossed-legged on tbe floor, cbanting tbeir lessons witb a swaying motion of tbe body. A class of small children studying from cards selected passages from tbe Koran, was of special interest. Next we visited tbe Mosque of Sultan Hasan, built in tbe fourteenth ARAB STUDENTS AT EL AX.AR. A WINTER JOURNEY 53 century, one of the most important mosques of any age, and tne most characteristic of tne Madrasah style. Seen from without tne walls seem higher even than the accredited one hundred and thirteen feet. They are built of cut stone from the Pyramids, and windows relieve the monotony of hare surface. On account of the great span of four arches, the interior gives one the impression of immense size. In the center of the tomh- chamher is the Turbeh of its founder. The court-yard, like that of all the mosques we visited, contains an artis- tic fountain for purposes of ablution. Such fountains usually are surrounded hy low, stone, stools, fronting the running -water where -worshippers wash face and hands hefore prayers. In the desert the faithful are permitted to use sand for religious ablution. It is said that Sultan Hasan -was so delighted -with this edifice that he or- dered the architect s hands cut off lest he should dupli- cate this success. \Vnen -we returned to the hotel Mr. Berens invited us to drive -with him, hut Seymour pre- ferred to nap, so Clara and Mr. Berens, -with faithful AJi in charge of the reins, made a trip to the museum of prehistoric bodies, the maintenance of -which Mrs. 54 A WINTER JOURNEY Leland Stanford ao handsomely endowed. TKere Clara was presented with a lock of hair and piece of linen from a mummy dating Eight Thousand B.C. February Tenth. PHIS morning we stopped at a delicatessen shop, where we had a famously good hamper of luncheon put up, including a lot of French dainties seldom in evidence at home, afterwards driving on to the Ameri- can Consulate for inspection of passport before proceed- ing further upon Turkish territory. The assistant consul informed us that owing to a formality omitted when taking out the American passport we would have to acquire a new one under Egyptian auspices. Secur- ing the necessary printed form, we drove to the govern- ment office, where, after many explanations, gesticula- tions and the payment of twelve and one-half piasters, or sixty-two cents, -we -were handed a formidable looking document, the entire literature of -which was Arabic. AiVith much regret we left Cairo for Port Said at Eleven a. in., promising ourselves to some day return for a long sojourn. \Ve were fortunate in getting a commodious and comfortable train compart- A WINTER JOURNEY 55 ment all to ourselves. Passing through this beautiful and fertile delta of the Nile and this land of Goshen, -we -were reminded that it -was of this country Pharaoh spoke when he said to Joseph : "And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt he near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks and thy herds and all that thou hast." Next we passed through Ismailia and along the west hank of the Suez Canal all the way to Port Said, the desert on our right and Lake Menzaleh on the left, with its great growth of reeds, and hence no end of wild fowl. The huilding of the canal impoverished Egypt, and was the direct cause of the protectorate of England. It required ten years at forced lahor and one hundred million dollars were expended on the work; a large portion of the excavated sand -was carried on the hare hacks and hands of the fellaheen. It must have heen through this tract of country that the Holy Family entered Egypt. Port Said named after Said Pasha (spoken of as "the wickedest place in the world") was reached at three p.m., whence, without loss of time, we took carriage to the steamship office of the Russian line and requisitioned a stateroom to Jaffa, reaching the 56 A WINTER JOURNEY steamer hy rowhoat from the quay. The steamer is small and malodorous. Besides ourselves there is but one first cabin passenger a large, oleaginous, Russian professor, with a distinctive odor. The entire crew is Russian, including " Mourik," the yellow purp, hut, wonder of wonders, the captain is Japanese. Not one of the ship s staff speaks English, and were it not for recourse to 'Clara s French, -we would he in a had way. The captain is very affable and chats -with deep interest on subjects American*^ He agreeahly changed us to a cabin nearer midship. As we passed out of the harhor we had a good view of the monument erected hy France at the northern entrance to the Suez Canal in honor of its distinguished builder and promoter, Ferdinand de Lesseps, and equally a monument to the inestimable benefits conferred on the world at large hy the French nation through the successful completion of this world- necessary project, jt Dinner consisted of quite an elaborate table d hote with -wine and vodka, the menu being in- scribed in Russian. The professor was quite amused at Clara's one Russian phrase, -which sounds like " )~u vas noo bloo" At six a. m. to-morrow we shall have reached Jonah s old swmming pool the harhor of Jaffa. SI/EZ CANAL. A WINTER JOURNEY 57 February Eleventh. f"** RIEF and sorrow ! Jaffa Las no harbor ! therefore we could not land this morning, and now at mid- day are still rolling at anchor. The day is indeed heautiful, hut high surf prevents the boatmen from coming out to fetch us ashore. The captain fears he may have to take us on to Haifa, in which case we shall miss seeing the land made great by such a law giver as Moses, such a prophet as Elijah, such a " sweet singer of Israel" as David and such a sage as Solomon. To profitably employ the tedious period of waiting we read the one hundred and seventh Psalm, following it with a study of the types of humanity represented on the open steerage deck below Russians from the Cau- casus in gaily trimmed high boots, padded, purple, heavily braided cloth suits and large, silver, pear-shaped buttons. Shirts consist of red calico a la Mother Hubbard. Then to the eye appeared Turks in red fezzes and zou- ave trousers, smoking the national narghile, turbaned Be- douins with -wistful countenances, anxiously peering at the shore with its boatmen running up and down eager for a chance to launch their transports, but the waves and sprays are dashing high over the harbor rocks. 58 A WINTER JOURNEY making landing at present quite impossible. Jaffa -was an ancient Phoenician colony in the land of the Philis- tines, ana mythical lore relates that it was to these reefs Andromeda was chained to he devoured hy a sea mon- ster, in proof of which the chains and the monster's hones were in evidence as recently as the Middle Ages. From the days of King Solomon Jaffa has heen the seaport of Jerusalem, and it was to Jaffa on floats that Hiram, King of Tyre, sent the timhers of Lebanon with -which to build King Solomon s Temple. In his "Innocence Abroad Mark Twain makes reference to meeting at this place members of the Adams fiasco, and tells how they were assisted to Alexandria. It seems that we are doomed to remain here another night at anchor. Seymour largely devoted the day to sleeping, Clara, on the other hand, improved the opportunity to sandpaper her French with the Captain, who has prom- ised to hold the steamer at Jaffa until to-morrow noon in the hope meanwhile of favorable weather to land J* JOFFA FROM THE STEAMER. A WINTER JOURNEY 59 February Twelfth. AST night was one to he remembered. Our steamer at anchor rolled and pitched and pitched and rolled incessantly. \Vith each pitch our baggage -would slide along the floor and under our berths, to return, like the tide, when the ship rolled. This condition of affairs was not conducive to sleep and rest, nor were we cour- ageous enough to leave our berths for fear of being violently thrown down, so there was nothing for it but to lie still and listen for the boatmen s voices in the hope of their drawing nearer, which would be a sign of our being taken off at dawn. Just at this juncture the stewardess announced that the doctor had come aboard to make the usual passenger inspection. Soon the porters take our grips and we are off and away in a boat manned by a score of stout oarsmen, the burden of whose song, in tune -with the stroke, is "Halli yallah yah-hallah" On reaching the landing pier -we found some four hundred Russian pilgrims -waiting to go on board the steamer -we had just left. It is the ardent desire of all devout members of the Orthodox Church of Russia, known as the Greek Catholic Church, to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Every year 60 A WINTER JOURNEY some twenty thousand of these people cross from Odessa to Jaffa or Haifa, and remain as long as their scanty funds permit. Although these pilgrims are met with during the whole year, Christmas and Easter seasons are most favored by them, and it is at these periods that the great processions are held. The cost of trans- portation from Odessa to Jaffa and back is something less than Twenty Dollars. This sum does not include food, and is merely for deck passage, each family bring- ing their own bedding and cooking utensils. The scene on the crowded -wharf is one of indescribable confusion. But the hardships the pilgrims endure, the poor and scanty food combined with stress of weather, utterly fail to quell their limitless enthusiasm. It was for this oppor- tunity that they laboriously saved their Kopecks. The four hours before Jerusalem train time we employed in driving about town, stopping first at the Jerusalem Hotel, where we met the proprietor, who enjoys the rather odd name of Hardeggs. This egg is far from hard-y, however, as one could readily see from his age and feeble condition. In addition to running a hotel, he represents the American Consulate. The rooms of this hotel are all labeled with Biblical names and ex- A WINTER JOURNEY 6J planatory texts. For example, our room was designated '" Tabitha, ' coupled -with a quotation in English and German reading: "Now there was at Joppa (Jaffa) a certain disciple named " Tabitha ' (or Dorcas), full of good works and alms-giving, which she did. The other rooms on our hall are named Reuben, Ephraim, Judah, Dan, Benjamin, while the general salon bears the name ** Israel. After securing seats to Jerusalem we employed a dragoman to show us over Jaffa. He took us to the house of Simon the Tanner, where -we climhed to the roof and stood where the apostle saw the vision. \V e saw also the rock tomb of that Dorcas who was raised by Peter. Passing by miles of orange groves, we stopped at one of them and in exchange for backsheesh -were allowed to cut as many oranges as -we could carry away. Along the road and in the suburbs sugar cane was offered for sale. It is cut in sections and eaten as food. The Arab loves it as much as does the Southern negro. During this ride a number of things of curious interest were pointed out ; for instance, the tree that hears the kind of husks on which the Prodigal Son fed ; in fact some natural object -with Scriptural hearing attracted the eye and attention at every turn. The 62 A WINTER JOURNEY women or Jaffa cover the entire race with flowered silks. After luncheon at Hardens (not necessarily a Lard eggs luncheon), we took carriage to trie railway station, and on trie train found that our fellow passengers comprised a Cairo Danker, and his Hotel Faust drago- man, who pointed out the Cave of Sampson and the plains of Sharon. The "hilly country of Judea is the birthplace of John the Baptist, where Mary visited her elder cousin Elizabeth, which recalls that remarka- ble picture, "Visitation, by Albertinelli, in the TJffizi Gallery at Florence. Here the Host of Israel, the Philistines, Egyptians, Romans, Persians, Arabs, the Crusaders and Saracens have camped and contended, and here the visitor the better comprehends the Psalmist s as- cription of " the Strength of the Hills" to Jehovah : "As the mountains are around about Jerusalem so Jehovah is around about his people. The children at the station simply showered upon us bunches of gay wild flowers. Our dragoman, Matthew Gelat, met us at the Jerusalem station; the city of David and Solomon and Hezekiah, Herod, Omar and Saladin. It is well Matthew was there to help in our rescue from the teeming mob of hotel porters. Taking us to our carriage, we rode, as do all STRKF.T SCKXK, JOFKA. A WINTER JOURNEY 63 who come from the sea, and as doubtless Godfrey de Bouillon and the Crusaders did, to tne Jaffa Gate, be- side which stands the citadel and Tower lof David<<" Through the old wall there is a new opening and pas- sageway to the Grand New Hotel, originally made for the German Emperor. Accommodations reserved for us at the hotel -were quite satisfactory, and the remaining two hours before dark we devoted to sight seeing. As it was Friday we first stopped to observe the Jews at the ^Vailing \Vall. This curious aggregation of indi- viduals meet at the ancient wall of the temple to celebrate the miseries of life, after-ward repairing to their synagogues. ^&7e found the Place of Lamentation crowded. Old men and maidens ; young men and old women; the Polish Jew, with long straggling curl lock in front of ears, and fur cap, predominating-oThe women dress in black, and their lamentations truly are unearthly. \Vith their bodies swaying to and fro the old men read or chant from the Hebrew Psalter or Book of Jeremiah, *" For the walls that are overthrown ; " For the palace that lies desolate ; " For our majesty that is departed." After each line all chant in response : " ^7e sit in solitude and mourn." These wailintfs are uttered for 64 A WINTER JOURNEY the deliverance or Zion ana for the return of joy to JerusalemJ*Next we visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, descending hy a flight of steps from the street to a paved court, and entering through its only door, the others being walled up the hetter to protect and defend the huilding from raids hy Arah rohhers. On a raised platform level with the eyes, to the left as you enter, sits a turhaned Moslem crossed-legged on a pile of oriental rugs, smoking his " hubble-bubble," with a live coal on the tobacco. He is the guardian of the Holy Shrine. The next ohject of interest is the Stone of Unction a large red and yellowish marhle slah enclosed within a railing and embellished with suspended massive silver lamps. It was on this stone that the hody of Christ was laid hefore burial in the tomh of Joseph. Next we passed under the dome of the Sepulchre itself. The dome is hlue, spangled with golden stars. A canopy near hy of reddish marhle. old and worn, perforated with large holes, is employed in the Holy-Fire-Miracle, the monopoly of which is enjoyed hy the Greeks. \Vith lighted waxen tapers we entered the tomh itself, proceeding hy way of the vestibule. Angels Chapel, and a low doorway into a CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE, JERUSALEM. A WINTER JOURNEY 65 compartment not over six feet square. A marble slat covers the tomb proper, and this slab is used as an altar by the different creeds which perform their rites there, each having its respective time for services. Upon this slab pilgrims shower kisses, and lay upon it relics to be blessed and sprinkled with holy water by the respective priests. Visitors are permitted to walk up and down the various stairways and to view the weird altars, illumined by candle light, of the several creeds Greek, Latin, Armenian, Copt and Jacobite. The Greeks and the Latins possesss respectively the largest room space, the former in particular making display of shrines, pictures and jewels, -while the latter are more conspicu- ous for religious ceremonial and service. \Ve were shown the tombs of Nicodemus and Joseph of Arima- thea, also the place of the Crucifixion, the Rent Rock, the spot where after the Resurrection Mary saw the Apparition, the Altar of St. Helena, and the place where under her guidance the Cross was found. She was commissioned by her son. Emperor Constantine, that ardent convert to Christianity, to seek out with patient perseverance all the holy sites ; and to her untiring labors we owe their identification to this day. 66 A WINTER JOURNEY The hypercritical may be disposed to captiously object to the accuracy or these locations, and perhaps -with some degree of pardonable claim to superior judgment, but, as for me ana mine, we are quite satisfied to accept Bible history, confirmed as it is by the supreme test of time. \Ve left some hundreds of Russian pil- grims in the act of chanting fervently, pilgrims who -wall remain all night at the foot of the Altar of Calvary. Following now our guide through a maze of narrow streets, over ground once familiarly trod by prophet and saint, we reached our quaint, old-fashioned hostelry, with its wood fires crackling hospitably, and, by the way, roots of olive trees make a very attractive and serviceable fire. Our chambermaid, " Mary, u a tall, gaunt male Armenian, in the seer and yellow leaf, and one of his first daily duties 10 to appear early in the morning and build a fire in our toy stove. An interesting sight at dinner to-mght was some fifty per- sons from the four corners of the earth assembled at one long table dining table d'hote. A WINTER JOURNEY 67 February Thirteenth. yV T ten o'clock this morning our dragoman brought small donkeys to the hotel door for us to ride around outside the walls of Jerusalem. Starting from the Jaffa Gate, we passed by the New Gate, the Damascus Gate, Herod s Gate (Crusaders Camp), St. Stephen a Gate, through which St. Stephen was stoned out of the city, and the Golden Gate, through -which Christ made triumphal entry on Palm Sunday. For centuries this gate has been walled up -with great stones, because Mos- lem chronicles foretold that on some Friday a Christian conqueror would enter Jerusalem through it. The accu- mulated debris of ages has assisted in completely covering up the steps which formerly led to it. From this point we look down on the Valley of Jehosaphat and upon the tombs of Zacharias and Absalom. In this valley, and on the side of the hill leading up to Olivet, is the Garden of Gethsemane, sorrounded by a high Avail and lemon trees. Though not spacious, the garden is well kept and contains flower beds and very old looking olive trees descendant products, perhaps, of nineteen hundred years agone whose branches that now put forth their green foliage in due season may in turn 68 A WINTER JOURNEY become the tree trunks or the future, recalling to com- ing generations of humanity the story of that " agony and bloody sweat. ' The center of the garden contains an open flower house ana a fountain erected to the memory of an American girl. The priest-intendant gave us a variety of flower seeds, for which he would accept only a few coins for garden maintenance "pour le jardin" so he said. Near by is the place of the betrayal by Judas Iscanot, the grotto of the agony, and the tomb of the Virgin Mary at which lepers sit all day and beg. As we approached the nearest of these wretched creatures extended a fingerless palm on which we placed money, but having only hollow sockets in place of eyes, she handed the money to her neighbor, -who, being sightless also, passed it on to one in whose flesh- less face there lingered the remnant of an eye. She lifted the coin to her degenerate optic to examine its value, and depositing it in a recess of her fluttering rags a low wail of thanks passed down the line, and bony arms -were stretched out in gratitude. Further on the traveler enters the Valley of Hinnom, passing the Pool of Siloam, the Brook in Kedron, the Jewish burial LKPKRS BKGCING FOR BACKSHF.ESH. A WINTER JOURNEY 69 ground, the fountain of the Virgin Ma'ry, Mount Ophal, site of King David s Palace, Mulberry Tree of the Prophet Zacchanah, Job's \Vell, and Potters Field ; the last purchased -with the Thirty Pieces of Silver returned hy Judas. Here also it was that Judas hanged himself. Beyond the walls the vista is majestic and magnificent ; a panorama of mountains and valleys, of " high hills and low vales. In the afternoon we visited hy carriage the Mount of Olives, and M^atthieu pointed out Mtaunt Scopus, from which point Titus in the year seventy A. D. bombarded Jerusalem ; the Palace of the Persian King Caspar I, the Rock of the Ascension, referred to in Luke 24, and which reads : "And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands and blessed them. And it came to pass that while he blessed them he -was parted from them and carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. \Ve visited next the new cloister for nuns, -where our Lord taught his disciples to pray. On tile tablets in the interior court of the cloister the Lord's Prayer is presented in thirty-three languages. On our -way back 70 A WINTER JOURNEY to tke kotel we stopped at tke Tombs of tke Kings prepared for them tut never occcupied tke New- Garden Tomt and Calvary at Golgotha, " the place of a skull." Thus was an entire day passed. A WINTER JOURNEY 7J February Fourteenth. E shall be leaving for Jericho early this forenoon. In a comfortable Victoria, with a good natured old black driver from Hebron on the box, Matthieu, the dragoman, beside him, our fruit and bottles of French Evian water bestowed in saddle bags, and with our escort and pro- tector a .Bedouin uniformed in white riding on horse- back alongside our carriage, we depart across the moun- tains towards Jericho. The Bedouin is a member of a robber tribe, whose Sheik follows this method of collecting backsheesh from visitors to Jericho. His word is his bond, and once given is absolute. The Turkish Government found itself unequal to the task of his elimination, so he plies his trade unmolested, and returns good service for the reasonable sums exacted. Bethany is the first village met with on the journey, some four miles distant from Jerusalem. The name Bethany means " house of dates, the Arabic equiva- lent of which is " Lazarus. Here we were shown the tomb of Lazarus, the house of his sisters, Mary and Martha, -where he was raised from the dead, and 72 A WINTER JOURNEY the home of Simon the Leper. The roads are covered with broken stone, and except on tke mountain sides, where shepherds feed their flock, very little vegetation is evident. Some of the shepherds play on pipes of reed quite like the interesting days of Pan. Parallel with us runs the old Roman road, worn down to tke native rocks, and still showing the ancient chariot ruts. Over this road Christ must Lave journeyed, as in those days it was the only pass between Jerusalem and Jericho. The present new road was prepared and built in antici- pation of the visit of the German Emperor MVilhelm II. The Brook Cherith, where Elisha was fed by a tribe of Arabs called the Ravens, is situated between two lofty mountain gorges. As we draw near to the Promised Land the outlines of the village of Jericho were visible across the intervening fertile plains. Stop- ping at the Bellevue Motel, Jericho, and disposing of our baggage, we took luncheon and rested for three hours before renewing at two p. m. our journey to the Dead Sea and River Jordan. The Dead Sea marks the terminus of our travel eastwardJ*It is beyond the province of tongue or pen to describe the utter desola- tion in which that salt-hearing country, thirteen hundred GREEK MONASTERY PRISON, WHERE ELISHA WAS FED BY THE ARABS. A WINTER JOURNEY 73 feet below the level of tKe tideless Mediterranean and stretching between Jericho and the Dead Sea, is shrouded. The Dead Sea itself is dead indeed, heavy, unruffled and clear. Our cunosty as to its depth was limited to a wading party. Near by is the site of Sodom and Gomorrah. For abandoned, lonely, wretchedness, the stretch along the Dead Sea and the Jordan will equal or excel anything in historyO The River Jordan is a narrow, muddy stream, smoth- ered in reeds, brush and pampas grass. A boatman rowed us down to the ford, the legendary place of the baptism of Jesus and John, -where we, like all other pilgrims, filled a goodly number of bottles -with Jordan water for future ceremonies of baptism. Those con- fiding souls -who wrote " On Jordan s stormy banks I stand " and " I will rest my weary feet by the crystal waters sweet, ' could never have been on the spot, and were drawing upon their imagination for their facts^* Five o'clock in the evening saw us again at our hotel, and, after bathing and leaving a call for seven o clock dinner, took a refreshing nap of some two hours. At this house the beds and service are good. After dinner Clara superintended Matthieu in the very neces- 74 A WINTER JOURNEY sary -work of boiling and filtering the Jordan -water. This hotel Las capacity for fifty guests, but at present we are the only patrons, and find the house a little too roomy. During the evening we had listened to the landlord's candle light tales of grewsome murders in the nearby ravines until it became impossible for Clara to go to sleep. "We barred the window with table and chair, and our dragoman relieved the situation by sleep- ing in front of the door for protection against untoward visitors. WOMEN WASHING CLOTHES NEAR JERICHO. A WINTER JOURNEY 75 February Fifteenth. E took our departure from Jericho (which, by the way, exists at the lowest level helow that of the sea of any inhabited town in the world), at half-past eight o clock this morning, stopping first at the excavations by the Germans at old Jericho. From this point the Mount of Temptation is in plain view. A lunch hamper was put up for us at the Jericho hotel, and this we discussed -with a fine appetite at the Good Samaritan Inn, situate ahout mid- way to Jerusalem. After we had lunched wisely and well the dragoman, fortified in the last instance by the black driver, assimilated the fragments. Remarkable to relate, the black man kept unusually sober to-day. On this hot and lonely drive we passed many pilgrims on their way to and from the Sacred River. Those of Russian stock are the most devout. In fact, rather than run the risk of missing a Sacred Pool of water, they dip themselves in many that are only horse ponds. There are several formalities to be observed before one bathes in the Jordan. First of all one must go to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and Of- 76 A WINTER JOURNEY make their shrouds. This is done after kissing in deep reverence what is probably the most sacred relic known to their faith the Stone of Unction. The Russian places shirt linen on it and cuts two lengths the exact size of the stone. These he dips in the river Jordan, and in time they constitute his burial shroud ; but firstly the garment does service as a bathing smt^As the pil- grims come into view of the stream excitement grows intense. Crossing themselves with much fervor, the stronger taking the lead, all rush forward, disrobing as they go, and immerse in its waters. There are many aged, bait and blind among them who need assistance at kindly hands, and the general tears of joy over the attain- ment of their life-goal furnisb a pathetic spectacle The river banks contain no bathing sheds and the trees are too sparse to afford protection, but publicity is no de- terrent of the wild plunging of the pilgrims into this rather treacherous stream. Jordan mud enjoys viscosity peculiarly its own, and yet its inclination to stick to the skin is ignored by its patrons. To the \Vestern mind the river Jordan is far from being an ideal bathing place. Thousands of years before, Naaman the Syrian balked at committing hw body to its turbid waters, pre- ai. A WINTER JOURNEY 77 ferring the more limpid streams of Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus. \Ve found ourselves in full sym- pathy -with Naaman s preference. AAHien his bath is concluded the pilgrim fills with Jordan water a tin vessel fashioned out of petroleum cans brought from Batoum, and sold hy the Jews who hang about the hospice, which vessel of water is blessed by the priest and goes -with the pilgrim hack to Russia, where it is held in holy and sacred reverence until finally the last drop is used or else goes up to heaven hy evaporation. ^V^e have been told that at Christmas and Easter seasons Jerusalem offers aspects uniquely impressive, for not only do thousands of Russian pilgrims present themselves for obeisance and worship, but pilgrims from divers other countries also. Undoubtedly Jerusalem is the sacred earth-home of a number of nations. To the Jew it is the city of his hopes and dreams the pivot-point of religion to the Romanist and Protestant equally -with the Greek Catholic it is sacred in tradi- tion and history; while even the Mohammedan views Christ in the celestial light of a man-god, and in his thoughts gives him precedence over Moses and Abraham. The Holy Land is less a rendezvous for tourists than 78 A WINTER JOURNEY a gathering place for the formally devout-oOne of the most eccentric pilgrims that ever trod its narrow lanes was either a Britisher or an American it is not definitely known which. Clad only in a white linen shirt, this grotesque character used to climb the steep ** Hills that lie around Jerusalem carrying a wooden cross. His eccentricity was respected, and everywhere he received consideration. The oriental singularly possesses an almost reverence for the mentally deranged, a sort of sympathetic awe not comprehensible by the occidental. In the case cited, the populace instead of avoiding the man or seeking his incarceration, fed him. Me declared himself to be the " Shadow of Christ. The cross which he so laboriously carried about -with him in life now marks his grave. Returning to our hotel in Jerusalem at half -past three, and Clara deciding to put addresses on some picture postals and take a siesta, Seymour, with MattKieu, drove to the house of Caiaphus at Mount Zion, where Peter denied Christ, thence to the " Cenaculum, a rambling building erected over the house of the Last Supper, which St. Helena discovered and enclosed in a chapel ; then to the un- doubted tomb of David, and next to the door to which RUSSIAN PILGRIMS BATHING IN THE JORDAN. A WINTER JOURNEY 79 Peter came and knocked, and which was opened hy the little maiden Rhoda, -who \vent running to announce Peter's release from prison. February Sixteenth. TN order to see the Mosque of Omar one must first procure a permit from the Consul of his country. Our dragoman attended to this duty, and this morning when starting for Mount Moriah we found ourselves under escort of a Kavass from the Consulate and a Turkish soldier. This Mosque occupies a famous site indeed, By Moslems it is esteemed in sanctity second only to Mecca. It is El Harem the Sacred in Moslem opinion the second holiest ground in the world, within which horder the Jew may never venture lest he set foot within the Holy of Holies. Second Chronicles, third chapter, relates, and Josephus confirms, that here Solomon erected the Temple. This rock, on the sum- mit of Mount Moriah is sacred ; a precious place, for the purchase of which David paid fifty shekels of silver. Surmounting the rock stands in physical and historic grandeur its mosque, well named " The Dome of the Rock. It -was upon this rock that Abraham prepared 80 A WINTER JOURNEY to sacrifice his only son Isaac, and tkere too the high priest, Melchicedek offered sacrifice ; there also Aran- nah the Jabusite threshed his corn. According to the Talmud this rock covers the mouth of an ahyss in which the -waters of the flood still roar. Jacoh is said to have anointed it, and it was esteemed the center of the world, the spot upon which stood the Ark of the Covenant at the destruction of Jerusalem. Jeremiah is said to have concealed the Ark beneath the rock. AA^ith gaze fas- tened upon the last footprints of Mohammed before his ascension and upon the prints of the hands of the angel who kept hack the rock from following him, we slip and slide in our shoe-covering of slippers round the railed enclosure. The cave underneath the rock shows the altars where David, Solomon, Abraham and Elijah prayed, and where Mohammed declared one prayer ut- tered on this spot to be of greater value in God s sight than a thousand petitions sent up to heaven from any other place. The Mohammedan believes that here -will be sounded the " last trump announcing the Day of Judg- ment, and on this rock will God s Throne be established. In this mosque the beard of the Prophet is preserved, finding resting place in a silver casket. \Ve coaxed MOSQUE OF OMAR, SITE OF KING SOLOMON'S TEMPLE. A WINTER JOURNEY 8f the custodian into selling us one of the glass mosque hanging' lamps. Across the stone -paved square stands the Mosque of Aksa the site of King Solomon's Palace formerly an ancient Christian basilica but now interwoven -with Mohammedan traditions, such as the Most Distant Shrine to which God transported the prophet Mohammed from Mecca in one night. Em- bedded in the wall of the outer court is a black stone, and, according to legend, if with eyes closed one is able to walk from a pillar twenty feet distant straight to the stone he will be saved ; otherwise perdition. Seymour tried and \vas successful, but Clara thinks he peeped. Down some distance under the pavement are the stables a vast area of columns and arches of King Solomon. At the time of the crusades they were used by the Knight Templars as stables, and holes for the halters cut in the corners of the piers can still be seen. Reaching' the plateau again we had pointed out to us a pillar protrud- ing from the opposite wall, below -which in the Valley of Jehosaphat lie thousands of Jewish graves. \Ve were informed that it is upon this pillar that Moham- med will sit when he comes to judge the quick and the dead3* According to Mohammedan legend the ghosts of 82 A WINTER JOURNEY the resurrected will be subjected to the test of walking on a wire cable across the valley to the Mount of Olives, about a mile distant, and only those who suc- cessfully accomplish the feat will be deemed worthy to be saved. Beyond the Golden Gate is the throne of Solomon and the palace of Pontius Pilate, where the latter performed the memorable washing of hands. The Via Dolorosa begins just here, and we visited each station of the cross. The Ecce Homo Arch is the third station, and the Sisters of Zion have built a con- vent, of which the original ancient arch forms the reredos of the altar. Down in the basement we were shown the original Roman pavement and the soldiers guard room, in the stone of which is carved old Roman games. It was from this spot that the Scala Sacra was taken to RomeJ* After luncheon our guide took us in a closed carriage to Bethlehem, six miles distant from Jerusalem. Passing over the upper part of Gihon, the bed of the Kedron stretches its sandy way to the Dead Sea, while to the right, shutting out the Mediterranean, are the mountains of Judah. But for olive trees the fields would be desolate and scant of vegetation. Olive trees do not grow in regular rows like our orchard A WINTER JOURNEY 83 trees, but are twisted out or alignment from sapling to gnarled old tree. People bound to Hebron and Beersheba and to places further south pass us on camel- back, the long Damascus gun and plethoric pouch insurance against desert and danger always in evidence, as also donkeys en route to the city, almost buried under their loads of old olive roots for fuel. Xbe plain of Ephraim spreads across our view. Here David defeated the Philistines and here many associations cluster, among others the Cave of Adullam, described in Samuel as the \Vell of Bethlehem " which is by the gate," for the water of which David was athirsto Passing the field of Boaz -we try to recall that sweet story of the devotion of Ruth and Naomi. The head- dress of Bethlehem women is at once peculiar and picturesque, consisting of a white linen veil trained over a high, stiff pointed cap, across the front of which is strung their dowry of gold and silver coins inviting matrimony. Some of the younger -women are really beautiful, and as we look upon them we are more than once reminded of Raphael s " La Perla and Murillo s AndaJusian -wife, and we hopefully wonder if some of the kingly blood of David, escaping the murderous 84 A WINTER JOURNEY decree of Herod, may not now flow in their veins-0 AX^e viewed the place of the Nativity and the oldest cimrcK in the world, erected in the third century by the mother of Const an tine. Some of its columns were taken from the Temple. Here we saw tne tomb of St. Jerome, who wrote the Vulgate. Our Saviour's birthplace is indicated by a silver star, around which burn sixteen silver lamps. A. recess marks tne place of the -wooden manger, since removed to Rome j*Other historical features, such as the Chapel of St. Jerome and the Chapel of Joseph, at which the angel of the Lord appeared telling him to fly into Egypt, are present. \Vhile we heard not the chanting of the angels, yet on leaving this church we seemed filled with a deep sense of conviction that in this City of David had been born the Messiah our Saviour and our mind reverted to the declaration of Gamaliel : " If it were of man it would come to naught ; but if it -were of God it could not be overthrown." The testimony of the ages i conclusive that is was of God ! The Milk Grotto, some distance beyond the church, offers a few points of interest. Driving back through the town and out into the high road we passed the field in which the Shep- WHERE CHRIST WAS BORN, BETHLEHEM. A WINTER JOURNEY 85 herds heard the Christmas song of the angels ; the tomb of Rachel, and stopped at the Well of the Magi. Among our purchases to-day are two hand-spun linen shrouds, embroidered at neck and hem with Christian crosses. \Ve took them to the Holy Sepulchre and laid them on the tomh of Christ, following which a Greek priest read an impressive service and sprinkled them with Holy \Vater ; a good augury, we hope. February Seventeenth. PO-DAY we settled hills, packed our effects and souvenirs, dispensed hacksheesh and said our good- byes. Matthieu brought us down to Jaffa, -where we are hooked by the steamer " Saghalien," of the Messa- geries Maritimes Line bound from Marseilles for Con- 6 stantmopleoThis steamer proves to be satisfactory in every particular, and the French cooking is indeed a delightful change. Besides ourselves the only first-class passengers are a Mr. Boulan, wife and daughter. They are from Biarritz, in France, where Mr. Boulan is the proprietor of a hotel patronized every season by no less a personage than His Majesty King Ed-ward VII. Mr. Boulan is enthusiastic over the good His Majesty's A WINTER JOURNEY attitude is doing the world at large, and Kis hotel in particular. Our snip is anchored at Haifa {or an afternoon and a night. ^7e did not go ashore, as we could plainly see Mount Carmel from the harbor. It was there that Elijah offered sacrifice before the priests of Baal. Across the bay lies the town of Acre, the principal landing place in Palestine of the Crusaders. There is a direct railroad from Haifa to Damascus and the Sea of Galilee, hut the luxury of the " Saghalien " compared with Oriental steam cars induced us to remain on hoard. February Eighteenth. TF the strong head -wind now blowing would hut die down we could make an agreeable diversion by going ashore at Haifa or Acre, hut the prospect is un- promising. Eight o clock p. m. Our good ship is now steaming north-ward along the coast of Syria (ancient Phoenicia) for Beirut, which, hy the way, is another open roadstead. During the night we shall pass Tyre and Sidon. These ancient cities have lost their power to inspire awe. Familiarity with so many of their kind, coupled with their structures and narrow, dirty MOSLEM WOMEN OF PAI.KSTINE. A WINTER JOURNEY 87 streets tends to lessen the impressiveness of preconceived notions, ana it sometimes happens that our expectation of greatness at last crepitates into a Leap of ruins devoid of any feature of grandeur. February Nineteenth. T_TERE we are at Beirut and encounter our first hit of decidedly squally weather, rain and rough sea. The harhor, or rather roadstead, of Beirut is small, and docking facilities limited, and these are all taken up, besides our steamer is so large as to he obliged to anchor in the offing. Like every port situated at the foot of a mountain, the view, including the busy harbor, is very picturesque. At three o'clock the -weather cleared somewhat and we decided to go ashore. On the arrival of our boat at the stone pier we were met by the " un- speakable Turk, and at the gate used for the first time our passport. Taking a carriage we drove about the city visiting the bazaars, in one of which we bought a carved Koran lectern and an ancient Damascus tile. By this time a driving storm had come up, so we sought friendly shelter in the principal hotel, resigning ourselves to its protection over night, sans baggage and 88 A WINTER JOURNEY sans toothbrushes. As we sat drying our shoes in our apartment our ears were pleasantly greeted 'with the familiar " AiVelcome to our city ! " and on opening the door stood face to face with our old friends the \Veb- sters, whom we thought were already on the other side of the Mediterranean, and, too, the pleasure of our meeting was heightened by the surprise of having them with us as fellow passengers to Constantinople. The weather is once more promising, and wind and wave having subsided sufficiently to make rowboat navigation safe, we went aboard our French steamer, preferring its accommodations to anything we saw on shore. \Ve were fortunate in reaching the ship before another storm of -wind and rain came up, -which lasted all night. February Twentieth. TDEIRUT and a night of horrors. About midnight the storm reached its climax, and as the ship pitched and rolled everything movable or breakable not securely lashed down rolled and crashed with it. This continued throughout the night, and reminded us of Victor Hugo s graphic description of the behavior of a loose cannon on board a ship in a storm. How we regretted A WINTER JOURNEY 89 our haste in coining on board, and wished ourselves safely bestowed in a hostelry on shore. Sliding along the dining room floor were ink bottles, flower pots broken into bits, upset baskets of coal parading -with wine bottles and magazines. The pantry disclosed a mass of wrecked china. By two a. m. it was impos- sible to longer cling to our berths, let alone to sleep, so with difficulty we put on our clothes and waited for the -worst, but as, after a little, conditions tem- porarily mended somewhat, Seymour took his tired frame back to berth and fell asleep ; Clara and the chief engineer meanwhile keeping vigils and discussing the pros and cons of a watery grave. Strange to say our newly-purchased shrouds quite escaped our memory. At about three a. m. the anchor broke, necessitating the ship s putting out to sea, narrowly escaping -wreck on the storm-tossed beach. At daylight -we steamed back into harbor, and, while cargo -was being loaded, availed ourselves of the opportunity to go ashore and purchase the hand-and-foot-made mushrabiyeh by expert Turkish carvers which we had admired the day before. Our course now lies north toward the island of Cyprus and along the southern coast of Asia Minor. Cyprus is at 90 A WINTER JOURNEY present administered by tke English, tkougk paying tribute to Turkey. Saint Paul in kis travels visited Cyprus, and Rickard Coeur de Lion on kis way to Palestine conquered it. ^vVe are spending an ideal week on board tke " Sagkalien ; " tke Captain, Doctor and Purser are our good friends, and every day is passed in agreeable occupation : games, jokes, stories and muncking mar on glaces. Tke menu entirely suits us quite like tke best to be kad in Paris ; stuffed fresk dates, deep red blood oranges, pate-de-fois-gras, patisse- ries, a delicious selection of hors (Poeuvres, tke best of Frenck wines and liquers ad libitum, wkile grouse, venison, snipe and plover are served witk compotes and salads, not to omit ckeeses from every portion of pro- ductive Europe. Live birds and skeep are kept in cages on tke forward deck to be used as wanted. Tkis steamer carries first, second, tkird and fourtk class passengers ; tke last sequestered in tke prow of tke boat witk tke menagerie, and its distinctive Oriental malo- dors, wkere tkey kave literally and Scripturally taken up tkeir beds and curtained off tke harem. Frequently tke men take first class accommodations for tkemselves wkile relegating tkeir wives to fourtk class pens. S. S. " SAGHALIKN," OFF BEIRUT. A WINTER JOURNEY 9J February Twenty-first. nHE sea continues boisterous ana twenty first class passengers tbat came aboard at Beirut are suffering witb mal-de-mer. To-day we snail pass tbrougb Tbe Sporades or Turkisb division of the Grecian Arcbi- pelago, wbicb includes the island of Rbodes, famous for its climate, its early civilization and for one of tbe seven wonders of the world The Colossus of Rnodes which stood at the harbor entrance to tbe city of Rhodes, and not, as popularly supposed, astride tbe barbor. Its composition was entirely bronze and its beigbt one bundred and five feet. \Ve sball pass also tbe island of Kos, noted for its grapes and lettuce, and in particular as being tbe birtbplace of Apelles, tbe greatest of tbe Greek painters, and of Hippocrates, tbe fatber of medical science ; and tbe island of Patmos, empbasized in bistory as tbe place of apostle Paul s captivity. Tbese islands appear in rotation, one after tbe otber. To-morrow we sball land at Samos, an island lying off tbe coast near Epbesus, wbere tbe Temple of Diana anotber of tbe seven -wonders stood. 92 A WINTER JOURNEY February Twenty-second. ASHINGTON'S Birthday. The harbor of Vahty in the island of Samos is a snug pocket -within green Kills towered by snow-clad mountain peaks in the background. \Ve explored tbis clean, white, little Greek village, and for tbe first time saw real Greek costumes. The present administration of tbe island enjoys limited autonomy, wmcb was being abused until a year ago, wben tbe Sultan sent a gunboat to drastically bring tbe administration to a realizing sense of its position. Tbe physical result of tbe bombardment still 10 quite evident. Tbe monks of Samos manufacture a famously good brand of liqueur called " La Samienne, and tbe women of tbe village roll extremely good cigarettes, specimens of botb of wbicb we bave secured to bring borne to our friends who do not absteme. Tbe next island of interest is that of Chios, which, like tbe rest, is beauti- fully garbed in valleys of ricb verdure and peaks capped with snow. A WINTER JOURNEY 93 February Twenty-third. | O react tlie port of Smyrna (Turkey), which city at one time held the interests of the rick Croesus, it was necessary to pass numerous small islands with dangerous sharp rocks projecting out of the sea, and not until we were safely within the confines of the hay did we begin to appreciate the beauties of Smyrna, showing Mount Olympus six thousand feet high, castle- crowned Mount Pagus looking down on the busy, modern city of Smyrna, the birthplace of Homer and of the Seven Churches of Asia, favored beyond the other churches of the Apocalypse. Passports were demanded at the landing stage, and those who had forgotten this important document showed Letters of Credit instead, which to these foreign officials looked quite as impressive and were duly stamped with official approval. \Ve had planned to spend a portion of the day at Ephesus, but as we did not land in time to catch the train, missed the opportunity to see the ruins of still another of the world s wonders, the Temple of Diana at Ephesus, -which was consumed in flames on the night that Alexander the Great was born. \Ve made the round of all the shops, buying bon-bons and rubber 94 A WINTER JOURNEY slices and visiting the Oriental Carpet Store owned by Mr. Hermann de Andria. It was in the muddy streets of Smyrna that we first got a sight of the scavenger dogs of the Orient. February Twenty-fourth. PHIS morning we passed the former Greek Isle of Aivali, which is sheer five hundred feet of rock, from off which the Greek fathers, brothers and hushands drove their women into the sea rather than that they should fall into the hands of the Turks^Next we had a good view of the ancient city of Troy at the mouth of the Hellespont. Shortly afterward we were in the Dardanelles, where all ships must stop to show their customs papers. At the point where Xerxes built his bridge of boats and had the water flogged because the sea destroyed his first attempt at bridge building, the Straits of Dardanelles begins to narrow. Since Xerxes crossed on his bridge of boats Leander swam the Helle- spont to see his beloved Hero, and early in the last cen- tury Lord Byron commemorated the feat by imitation. All day we steamed through the Sea of Marmora, its shores with their background of snow-covered heights A LEVANTINE SAW-MILL, BEIRUT. A WINTER JOURNEY 95 being plainly visible. \Ve spent a comfortable day under cover, close to the bospitality of two porcelain stoves, and -were favored with considerable good music by a traveler representing tbe Victor phonograph, and by young -Georges Murat, of Smyrna, who played tne violin. \Ve diverted ourselves from time to time by stealing approving glances at tne beautiful Circassian wife of a Turkish Effendi. She was heavily veiled, and attended by a retinue of watchful servants, and only lifted her veil in public -when reading or when con- versing -with ladies. The Turk is a great admirer of avoidupois. Turkish women of the higher class take virtually no exercise, and eat such quantities of sweets that they may be said to be fattened like Strassburg geese for the market. How may the uncertain amateur pen attempt when famous authors have written volumes on the surpassing beauties of Constantinople ? This city is built on two Continents, and constitutes the dividing line between Orient and Occident. Its lofty domes and graceful minarets, with its towers and palaces aggregate a city of bewilderment ; but all other views pale into insignificance beside those of the Golden Horn, the point of the triangle that includes Stamboul s famous 96 A WINTER JOURNEY old Seraglio Point with Scutari opposite, which latter hides from the eye till the last moment the sites of Galata and Pera. ^7e stood with gaze fixed on those heights crowned and crowded with the memories of four cen- turies of glory, of poetry, of pleasure, of love, conspiracy and hlood. Disembarking where the Bosphorus flows into the Sea of Marmora on one side and the Golden Horn flows into the same sea on the other, we landed at the Suhlime Porte, a locality representing the controlling power hy which the administration is known, hut as all names of places in Turkey have an inner meaning, so Suhlime Porte means exalted seat of justice. The Bible tells us, justice was administered " at the gate " or " porte. It was Oriental custom. So this gate is known as the gate of justice, par Excellence! In the dusk of six o clock we found this city of one and a half million persons illuminated only hy light from doorway and shop, revealing hordes of hungry yellow wolf dogs in expectant attitude for food, or asleep. A strange dog, one out of hie own bailiwick draws round him, day or night, a howling aggregation of other dogs, all scavengers and fatalists, like the human or inhuman Turk ; they hardly move when carriages roll by, and A WINTER JOURNEY 97 then, usually, when in danger of being run over. The coachmen, though reckless drivers, do their hest to " let sleeping dogs lie. \Ve -were told that some years ago, during a very severe -winter, the wolves of the Balkans hecame so starved that they approached close to the city, whereupon the city dogs forgetting local jealousies, handed together and sallied fouth in hundreds to fight the wolves. They killed so many that the rest fled back in terror to native fastnesses, after which the dogs returned, each pack going off to its own quarter. The Pera Palace Hotel is quite the peer of the hest in Europe. Our large bedroom, divided from a private salon by pretty curtains, is richly furnished in scarlet, while the hed linen is of the finest quality. Three large windows furnish a good view of the city, the Golden Horn, the Sweet AkVaters of Europe and the Bosphorus. Every table and chair in the dining room had been pre- empted in advance, and hy nine o clock dinner parties were at their zenith of pleasurable activity. A. well- known Pasha, prominent in politics, was dining twenty officers of the Sultan a army. Clara especially enjoyed the charming costumes of the ladies. 98 A WINTER JOURNEY February Twenty-fifth. PHIS day was profitably spent. In the morning we engaged a Greek dragoman Theodore by name and, selecting a comfortable Victoria, drove to Stamboul, crossing tne splendid new Galata bridge and stopping at tne museum, where there are several rooms rilled with Pboemcian and Grecian art treasures, tne carved white marble Sidon sarcophagus of Alexander the Great alone being wortb the journey to Constantinople. Planted in front of the museum, and seemingly growing there, is a tall date palm tree sculptured in white marble. An old and peculiar Levantine custom is the carrying of " Pastimes beads on a silken cord, the speaker as he talks dropping bead by bead along the cord. This seems to aid conversation, just as elsewhere the fingering of watch chain or eye glasses appears to act as a speech stimulus. \Ve induced the custodian of the museum to part with his personal beads and are bringing them home as a souvenir. Our next visit took us to the mosque of St. Sophia, declared by Fergusson to be the most beautiful, and of the most perfect architecture, of any church as yet erected by Christian peoples. The exterior is painted yellow, as are all ancient basilicas, once Christian but now converted into mosques. In the vicinity are schools, baths, turbehs and soup kitchens ST. SOPHIA MOSQUE, CONSTANTINOPLE A WINTER JOURNEY 99 for the poor, usual in mosque neighborhoods. Each gallery of this marvelous mosque St. Sophia, with its great dome held in high suspension, is capable of accom- modating the populace of a suburb of Constantinople entire. Its green marble columns were presented to Justinian, the founder of the church, by the Magis- trates of Ephesus, and were taken from the Temple of Diana. Other columns -were acquired from temples at Baalbek, Thebes, Athens, Rome and Alexandria. The holy carpet of Mohammed II hangs against the -wall, and the bloody imprint of his hand, -when as conqueror he entered it, is shown in the doorway ; the mark of a hand and five fingers constituting the original tughra, or Sultan s cypher<- Again -we were successful in gaining by purchase one of the mosque swinging lamps. These particular lamps are surmounted by ivory ostrich eggs, the original idea being to thus prevent rats from drinking the lamp oil, for on reaching the slippery ivory surface of the eggs the rats fall to the floor. Next we visited the Ahmed mosque, ad]ommg the ancient Hippodrome, from which the lions of St. Mark at Venice -were taken; the only mosque with six minarets. Of the ancient monuments JOO A WINTER JOURNEY of the Hippodrome only three remain the Obelisk, originally obtained at Heliopolis ; the Serpent Column, once supporting a golden tripod for tne Oracle of Apollo at Delphi, and the Built Column, formerly covered with brass plates, and of which history relates little jf> Near by is the Janissaries Museum of Ancient Turk- ish Costumes arranged on plaster figures historically grouped. Such turbans and garments, such an arsenal of yataghans and pistols, and such bundles of sashes and other tawdry garments were never, not even in French opera buffe, gotten together to burlesque human power and human weakness. Further on stands the Burnt Column, a tall, porphyry shaft, -which, by reason of the many conflagrations through -which it has passed, is now held together by numerous hoops of steel. Chronicles relate that this column was erected by Constantine to signify the substitution of Constantinople for Rome as the capitol of empire. Inside the column foundations were placed a piece of the cross, one of the nails used in the crucifixion, a piece of the bread preserved from the feeding of the five thousand and the palladium of Rome. \Ve drove about the grounds of the old Sera- glio, the buildings of which formerly constituted palaces SITE OF THE ANCIENT HIPPODROME, CONSTANTINOPLE. A WINTER JOURNEY JOJ of the Sultan, tut now are used as barracks. It is said that when making excavations in this neighborhood a huge runnel sloping into the M.armora was uncovered, down which it had been customary to cast, sewn up in sacks, the hapless wives and slaves who had incurred Sultanic wrath. The last Sultan that slept in the old Seraglio was Abdul Aziz. The column of Theodosius, the court of the Janissaries (originally comprising Christian boys who were kidnapped by the Sultan s emissaries, brought up in Islamism and prohibited from marrying, and who, after an attempt at mutiny, were ruthlessly massacred by order of the present Sultan s grandfather), and the plane tree around which they rallied, were pointed out in turn, and concluded our morning s sight seeing. After luncheon at the hotel we drove to the floating bridge that connects Galata with Stamboul. Here is seen the human skin in its several colors and shadings, from the milk white of the Albanian to the ebon black of central Africa. No two persons are garmented alike shawls twisted around the head, savage filets of burnished metals, coronets of rags, striped skirts and vests like harlequins, girdles stuck full of knives that reach up J02 A WINTER JOURNEY under the shoulder, mameluke trousers, togas, trailing sheets, coats trimmed with strips of ermine, garb of monk, vestments of gold lace, men dressed like -women and vice versa, especially the vice. A. variant mosaic of race and religion is here presented. It is in itself interesting and instructive to study the feet of the pass- ing throng, showing the foot covering of the -world from the primitive sandals of Father Adam s family to the delicate bottmes of the Paris helle ; yellow Turkish hahouches, red Armenian, hlue Greek and hlack Jewish shoes ; sandals, great hoots from Turkestan, Albanian gaiters, low cut slippers, gold embroidered shoes, shoes of satin, of twine, of rags and of wood ; a variety so bewildering that while catching a glimpse of one type the eye is distracted by a hundred others. There one sees little Turkish girls dressed in green full trousers and rose color or yellow vests cut like boys , running beside your carriage asking for backsheesh. They are abundantly able to take care of themselves, however, making their -way -with feline agility and henna-tinted hands <"*Camels, horses, sedan chairs, ox carts, casks on wheels, donkeys and mangy dogs file into line bet-ween the crowds of -water carriers -with jars or pig skins of A WINTER JOURNEY J03 water on their backs ; Armenian porters, Syrians, Bul- garians, et al., habited in coarse serge material and wearing caps circled witb fur ; the shining bald pate or tbe tonsured Capucbin friar; pilgrims returning from Mecca, Jesuits and Dervisbes stalking by wearing talis- mans around their necks ; here a eunuch swinging a cravouche of hippopotamus hide and showing the whites of his eyes (otherwise he is ebon black) at a Christian who has the effrontery to let curiosity direct his optics within the carriage of the harem. Of course there is a motley crew of beggars. How they manage to take off and put on their tattered garments is a constant puzzle ; probably they never do remove them, not-withstanding that their religion prescribes one complete and four partial ablutions daily. The present Sultan s old palace by the water s edge is now quite deserted. Landing at Scutari we took carriage up the steep rock-ribbed street to the Howling Dervishes. There visitors form an outer circle within which the dervishes, seated on the floor, sway their bodies to and fro, howling, barking, snapping, jerking the head and body, frothing at the mouth and breathing hard, concluding by chanting the Koran, after which several sick infants are brought from their mother's arms J04 A WINTER JOURNEY by a dervish, who lays them on the floor, face down- ward, in front of tne chief dervish, who with all his weight (fully one hundred ana eighty pounds) steps on them -with both feet. This is supposed to constitute a cure for present and a preventive of future ills. Some of the tables were only a week old. This heroic, or rather barbarous, treatment is applied to persons from tender infancy to full manhood. On our way back we drove through the spacious grounds of the Turkish Cemetery shaded by a forest of cypress trees. All Turks desire to be buried in Asia, as the Koran instructs that re- creant Europe is not naturally the last resting place of the Faithful. The grave stones incline in every direc- tion, and are spread in disorder throughout this dismal forest. The slender Turkish column-shaped headstone is surmounted by a turban carved in marble, the style of fez and turban indicating the rank of the deceased. The graves of the -women are distinguished by narrow- vertical tombstones, showing the carved design of a leaf. The number of offspring is symbolized by the number of flowers extending from the leaf a flower for each child -and is, -we think, a pretty conceit. ^iVe saw very few tombstones minus one or more flowers. Graves CEMETERY, SCTTARI, (CONSTANTINOPLE.) A WINTER JOURNEY JOS surrounded by a wall, with numerous plain slabs capping them, indicate the rank of Pasha, hut the most imposing monument of all is that erected by the Sultan Moham- med II over the spot on which the horse dropped dead after safely bearing a captain bringing news of the fall of Constantinople ^Returning we passed by the Nightingale Hospital of gentle renown, and in the Har- bor, the Maidens 1 ower. Beyond is the British Cem- etery, marked with a fitting column in commemoration of the Crimean heroes, so many of whom found last resting place there. At the landing stage -we were attracted by the ever toothsome "Nougat," "Turkish Delight and pistachio nuts, which to us always offer temptation. Our carriage was in waiting and took us on to Pigeon Mosque, with its thousands of tame pigeons; birds of the prophet. Before returning to the hotel for dinner we stopped awhile at the bazaars to make a selection of coffee cups. The succession of buildings which go to make up the bazaars of Constantinople might be described as an immense stone edifice in the style of Byzantine architecture, irregular in form and surrounded by high gray walls. Light is furnished to the interior of the shops through hundreds of lead J06 A WINTER JOURNEY colored cupolas. An arched doorway through which no noise from -without can penetrate constitutes the prin- cipal entrance. Standing a few feet from this entrance the feeling impresses itself that within these fortresslike walls is the home of solitude and silence, yet, once fairly within, the beholder stands bewildered, for he encounters not one edifice, but a chain or labyrinth of arched streets flanked by sculptured columns and pilasters ; a real city indeed, containing mosques, fountains and cross-ways, with squares as dimly lighted as a forest, into -which no ray of sunlight ever enters, tut through which surging throngs of people daily pass and repass. Every street is a bazaar, and through these dimly lighted thorough- fares camels, horses and carriages are constantly in motion, giving off an almost deafening concatenation of sounds. Each class of goods in the bazaar enjoys its allotted section, and the visitor is beset on every side by Greek, Armenian and Jew -with words, signs and gestures soliciting him to buy, but never by the immobile 1 urk the fatalist, who rests content in his belief that ' ^Vliat is to be, -will be ! Half a score of raucus voices, all in one breath, addressed Seymour as Captain! Monsieur ! Signore ! Eccellenza ! Caballero ! My A GLIMPSE IN THE GRAND BAZAAR, CONSTANTINOPLE. A WINTER JOURNEY 107 Lord ! Kyrie. Your way takes you through towering Leaps of brocades from Bagdad, silks from Broussa, linens from Hindustan, muslins from Bengal, shawls from Madras, cashmeres from India and the van-tinted tissues of Cairo ; but the attractiveness of these articles fades out of significance beside the jewelry display. At the jewelers bazaar old I urks offer to your admiring gaze diamonds from Golconda, sapphires from Ormus, rubies from Gramschid, necklaces of opals and stars of emeralds. After waiting till one turbaned patriarch had finished his pious devotions we presented a ring which we found on a street of Cairo for his examination, and need- less to say our own opinion of this product of the Orien- tal jewelers art -was abundantly confirmed the metal composing it lacking even the doubtful respectability of gold polishj*It is not possible to negotiate a purchase with one person only ; the proprietor is supplemented by his partners, by middlemen, runners, etc., etc., until you find a dozen or more of them at your elbow super- vising the transaction. They begin the negotiation by asking a palpably absurd price. You have already been advised that it is not good business to offer more than a third of the sum demanded, so you follow this advice. JOS A WINTER JOURNEY whereupon the shopkeeper ana his friends drop their arms in feigned dismay or strike their foreheads -with a gesture of despair. A competitor from a near by shop whispers in your ear : " Don t buy; he is a cheat ! \Vhile the purchaser is examining goods the coalition are exchanging signs, winks, nods and whispers. If you speak Greek they speak in Turkish ; if you know Turkish they converse in Armenian, and if you are au fait of Armenian they resort to Italian or Spanish., but by kook or crook they are certain to get the better of you. One curious feature of Constantinople one that the people should for their own interest and protection more seriously consider and remedy is the fire service. ^Vlien a fire occurs in Constantinople the fact is announced by boom of cannon on Galata Tower, the highest eminence in the city ; then flags of different colors are displayed, indicating the place of the conflagration, upon which the primitive fire extinguishers proceed to the scene. On arriving there nothing is done toward putting out the fire until a compensation bargain has been struck -with the property owner and a cash sum in advance agreed upon ; these pourparlers usually A WINTER JOURNEY J09 take up so muck time tkat the property is largely destroyed before any attempt at salvage is made. So muck for tke fire department of one of tke world s ex-great cities. HO A WINTER JOURNEY Fekruary Twenty-sixtk. HIS is Friday, tke day of tke week on wmck tke Sultan regularly attends mosque, tke day known to tke Faitk- ful as " Salamlik. Our dragoman ar- ranged at tke American Consulate for tke necessary permit to attend tkis social function. Being somewhat early, we stopped en route to see tke rug weavers at work. Many of tkese are little girls eigkt or nine years of age, directed ky experienced -weavers in tke manufacture of beautiful silk rugs, tke kind we see exposed for sale at kome at a tkousand dollars apiece and upwards. For tkis patient lakor, occupying as muck time as tkree years in tke making of a single rug, tkese little -weavers receive tke starvation wage of nine cents a day. It seems tkat in every land, according to tke measure of its enligkten- ment, children are more or less imposed upon, and it is a consummation devoutly to ke wisked tkat in our own keloved country tke time is not distant wken stringent laws against child lakor -will ke enacted and enforced. A\^e continue our long ride across tke city toward Yildiz Kiosk, situate on a kigk and thickly wooded kill. A FEI.I.AHINE OK THE NILE. A WINTER JOURNEY \ \ \ It is the site of the Kiosk, built by the grandfather of the present Sultan. The palace was named after a heautiful Circassian favorite, whom the ruler called his ** Yildiz, or star. Yildiz K.IOSK is a glittering mass of -white marble ; the palace of the Imperial Ceremonies called Merassim. No other sovereign in the world is favored with such views from his palace window the Ionian blue of the Bosphorus, and the majestic stretch of emerald parks one huge aquamarine set against the disquieting glitter of bayonets. Yildiz is a fortress that could well stand a siege. The domain is encircled by a great wall, including barracks and a numerous Corp de Garde. A second wall surrounds the personal residence of the Sultan in Yildiz Park, as -well as that of his sons, the princes and the Seraglio. The latter is so strictly guarded that Yildiz enjoys the proud boast of being the most moral Seraglio in history! The favorites of the Sultan s harem are Circassian girls, girls of such surpassing beauty as to excite such classifications as " Pearl of the Caliphat," '" The Moon- Formed," and ' v Early Ripening Grapes " (the acme of poetic appellation being " Tears of Mahomet," symbolic of the superb white grape cluster). To call a Turkish woman U2 A WINTER JOURNEY a " Little Bit of Sugar, is to apply to her the sweetest of epithets. The use of rouge, oi Indian ink for tne eyebrows, pencil for eyelashes, or jars of "lip cordial" by tne Y ildiz Seraglio s thousand most beautiful women of the world, is strictly forbidden by the Sultan, who is in fear of concealed poison. The Volide Sultana (step-mother to the Sultan who enjoys the title of " Crown of the Veiled Meads ' ), dominates the Sera- glio. In the gardens without, armed guards are every- where in evidence. Now and then a eunuch (these are red-fezzed negroes) passes into view, and from time to time Mis Mighness, the Great Eunuch of the Imperial Harem also may be seen strutting along. This import- ant personage is an enormous negro, bearing the title of " Dar-us-seadct-us-cherife-aghassy" ("Guard of the Gate of Felicity "). \Vhenever he promenades in the park several servants always accompany him. K.apous- aghassy (Chief of the MVhite Eunuchs), too may make furtive appearance in the garden. These shrewd, sly, sad men have, perhaps, come forth for a stroll near the heliotrope garden, or as message-bearers from the Sultan to the Yersir-dir-bachi Grand Master of the Slaves. Already streets are filled with regiments and El'NtCII (U'ARDINC DOOR OK ROYAI, HAREM. A WINTER JOURNEY U3 their multiplicity of Turkish soldiers, the thirty thou- sand or so of red fezzes giving the impression of red tulip beds. Each regiment has its own hand of music. \Ve slowly forge our -way through them to the enclo- sure near the palace gate, reserved for foreign visitors, where ushers in uniform examine passports and conduct us to a number of expectant friends from the hotel. Every avenue and open square shows four rows deep of mounted soldiers with lances in place a truly gala sight befitting such a gala occasion. At the appointed moment the Mmezzm appears on the balcony of the minaret and calls to prayer " God is great ' (repeated four times); " I bear -witness that there is no God but God (twice repeated); " I bear witness that Moham- med is the apostle of God " (twice repeated); "" Come to prayers ! Come to prayers ! Come to salvation ! Come to salvation ! Come to salvation ! God is great ! There is no other God but God!" ^Vhen the call occurs early in the morning the Muezzin adds : "" Prayer is better than sleep!" The favorite regiment and per- sonal guard of the Sultan, in brilliant green turbans, gives the signal of His Majesty's approach. Now we hear the first notes of the Hamideyeh, the Sultan's U4 A WINTER JOURNEY march. The generals of the army in full dress regalia precede on horseback, followed by Pashas and Minis- ters ; next appear the beautiful carriages of the harem bearing the -wives of the Sultan in brilliant attire but in veiled seclusion, each accompanied by her particular maid slave, while beside each carriage stalwart eunuchs run on foot. The next carriage contains no less a personage than the Sublime Porte, Abdul Hamid II, riding alone, dressed in conventional black clothes and wearing a red fez. Our American magazine and journal cartoonists have very accurately depicted his appearance. As the Sultan steps out of his carriage, in his simple dress the center of this gorgeous pageant, the Muezzin above leans over the gallery of the minaret and utters a concluding cry, addressed to the Sultan, and only employed on such occasions : " Remember there is One greater than thou ! The regiments salute as with one voice : " Long live our Ruler ! As the Sultan disappears within the mosque the soldeirs break ranks and relax from their erstwhile rigidity. Servants in livery dispense in dainty cups most delicious tea and Huntley and Palmer -wafers to the -waiting thousands of soldiers and visitors. The twenty minutes so A WINTER JOURNEY \ 15 pleasantly occupied pass all too soon; the signal for attention is given, and every one is on the gut vive of expectancy. The line is reformed with its generals, pashas, crown prince and younger princelings leading, followed by the harem carriages drawn by the Sultan's favorite steeds led hy richly attired grooms, and lastly followed hy the Suhlime Porte himself, riding with his Grand Vizier, to whom the populace renew devout obeisances, during which the imperial retinue disappears -within the Kiosk gate, hut not hefore we had a good view of Burhaneddin, the Sultan s third son and favorite for the succession, defying thereby the Mohammedan law which specifies that the eldest of the family (the Sultan's brother) naturally becomes heir. The Sultan is annually married at a mosque. The Turkish Empire is winnowed for the most beautiful girl to adorn the palace in the capacity of new wife. Usually the Sultan s mother makes the choice from an eager bevy of beauties assembled from far and wide. The royal marriage laws peculiar to this country make the wife of the Sultan a slave, conformably to the provision that the future ruler must he horn a slave strange, hut true* It was only after leaving Egypt that we learned that the \\6 A WINTER JOURNEY present Khedivah when young had as a slave girl been presented by the Sultan to the present Khedive's father. She was a girl of surpassing beauty, and was given to Prince Abbas as a playmate. They grew up together, and were married after the birth of their first child. From the Yildiz Kiosk we drove to the beautiful Suleiman Mosque, the most splendid in Constantinople, its interior consisting of porcelain tile -work in brilliant blue. ^7e had time to see the mosque of the " ^Vhirling Der- vishes a queer, mediaeval sort of place where visi- tors occupy seats in the upper gallery, and through the arches look down on the incanting fanatics below, who whirl about so rapidly that their green robes together with their snow white .undergarments form a radiance or sort of aureole around their naked feet. On account of the " Salamlik" or visit of the Sultan to the mosque, Friday is the one day of the week on which the hotels make a specialty of serving luncheon until late in the afternoon, even up to four o clock. Clara had accepted an invitation to take tea with Mr. and Mrs. de Andna, at their palatial home in Constantinople, -where she was delightfully entertained, meeting a number of their European friends and relatives. During the afternoon THE SALAMI.IK, YILDIZ KIOSK AT THE LEFT. A WINTER JOURNEY U7 our good friends the peripatetic MVebsters and Seymour drove over to Stamboul to investigate the Cisterns which were built there in the time of Emperor Constant me, and now are used as a resort for silk spinners. The arched roof over the Cisterns is supported by three hundred and thirty-six massive columns thirty-nine feet high showing carved capitals of much artistic merit. On tkeir way back to the botel the MVebsters and Sey- mour were again attracted to the bazaar reservation, and stayed so late bargaining for a five dollar table cover for fifty cents that the lights were extinguished and they were obliged to tip the gate keeper to get out. It is strange but true, the Oriental appreciates and likes most those persons who drive tbe hardest bargains with him. He has only contempt for the soft, plastic individual who pays him his first asking price. \Vhen later in the evening Clara examined our purchase of alleged silk table covers we -were chagrined to find that our man erudition had accepted mercerized cotton, and that they were dear at fifty cents each. At the hotel we met our old friends of Bermuda days, Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong, Jr., -who had just arrived by the "Arabic after a cruise through the Mediterranean. J J8 A WINTER JOURNEY Needless to say, tke reunion was appropriately celebrated at tke Pera Palace with things pleasing to tke palate as well as an interesting exchange of news up to date. \Ve kave tried to keep abreast of our mailing list duly sending picture postals to relatives and friends at kome kut mailing anytking from tkis portion of tke gloke is coupled with some measure of uncertainty inasmuck as one must first decide to what government ke will confide tke protection of kis mail matter, ke- cause tke Austrian, German, Italian, Turkisk, Frenck, Japanese, and we kesitate to guess how many more, post offices operate independently kere, witk separate letter koxes, separate postage stamps and separate letter car- riers, so if tkere kave keen disappointments, censure of tke Davises should ke suspended. February Twenty-seventk. /L FTER emptying our pockets of Turkisk coppers to tke keggars on tke pier, -we steamed away at half- past ten a. m. on tke Austrian Lloyd s S. S. " Baron Beck, bound for Greece. Tke United States ambas- sador, Hon. John G. A. Leishman, visited tke wharf to wish some of his Legation friends bon voyage. One GATE OF THE SEVEN TOWERS. PART OF THE OLD FORTIFICATIONS OF CONSTANTINOPLE. A WINTER JOURNEY \\9 of the party, a girl of fifteen, accompanied by her mother, rather shocked our staid American sense of propriety by smoking cigarettes all day on deck. For Lours we were interested spectators of the slowly receding shores with the imposing minarets and domes of Stamhoul growing fainter and fainter as distance widened. \Ve soon left astern the old fortifications and the Princess Islands, formerly abounding in churches and monasteries, in which latter dethroned royalty and princes of the court out of favor were wont to find asylum. Soon, too, we found ourselves on the Sea of Marmora and out of sight of land, then passing through the Hellespont into the Aegean Sea, and by midnight approaching the Cyclades, our course lying between tbe sacred island of Delos and tbe island of Naxos tbe scene of tbe legend of Ariadne. February Twenty-eigbtb. j HE coast line of Greece is at once majestic, rugged, superb ! Gleaming white marble temples dating back to tbe era of mythology crown its summits. Scene and perspective are imposing and inspiriting, and seem naturally to put on tbe vestment of mystery, bence it 120 A WINTER JOURNEY may be said that the obsessions of the ancient Greeks were not lacking natural inspiration. In due time we anchored in front of the Piraeus, from which point the Acropolis at Athens ana Mount Lycahettus, six miles distant, are clearly visible. In medieval times the Piraeus was, by reason of its marble lion on which Asmund inscribed in runic characters the victory of Haalcon over the Greeks, known as Porto Leone<* Since the seventh century, however, this historic lion has occupied a position in front of the arsenal at Venice. Arriving on Sunday, we were put through the Custom Mouse -without loss of time, and loading our baggage into a landau, began the drive to Athens. On the way there we encountered a Greek funeral procession, with priests in embroidered robes leading, folio-wed in due order by young ecclesiastics bearing large candles and banners. The deceased, clothed in his holiday gar- ments, -with a -wreath of white artificial flowers en- circling his head, his hands crossed upon his breast in each hand an orange is borne on a stretcher, -while the mourners walk alongside. Later, in Athens, -we saw several more funerals ; in one case that of a brother and sister following an ancient custom, the ACROPOLIS OF ATHENS FROM PHALERUM ROAD. A WINTER JOURNEY J2J woman who had prepared tke bodies for burial broke tke china bowl vised for tbe purpose in the gateway prior to the exit of the funeral cortege*?* After a Greek funeral it is customary for relatives ana friends to return to tke kouse for refreskment. Piraeus is con- nected witk Atkens ky tke Pkalerum road, a beautiful avenue witk pepper trees lining kotk sides of tke drive- way. Tkis splendid road -was tke gift of a rick Greek, tke same wko contributed four kundred tkousand dollars to tke restoration in white marble of tke ancient Stadium. Our Isadora Duncan kas a pretty villa near Atkens, where ske practices and teackes Greek dances. Atkens is a clean, well-built city. W'e found tke Hotel Angleterre on tke ** Syntogma" or Place de la Consti- tution very comfortable indeed. ^7c were assigned as a kedroom a grand salon furnished with numerous pieces of statuary, gilt mirror, Frenck clock, wkite markle mantel, divans, desk and otker articles of necessity and luxury, including two excellent keds and a ckeery crackling grate fire *9* John Metaxatos proved to ke an excellent Greek guide. Our first visit under his guid- ance was to tke Temple of tke Olympian Zeus, described ky Aristotle as a work of " despotic grandeur ' and ky J22 A WINTER JOURNEY Livy as " templum unum in terris, inchoatum pro mag- nitudint dei\" and was the second largest Greek temple known. A few of the original one hundred and four Corinthian columns still are standing in the original great, open, space near the center of the city popularly known as "At the Columns, and is a favorite summer evening resort. As the water course of the ancient town at this point flowed into the Illissos, chroniclers naturally recorded it as the spot where the last of the waters of the Deluge finally subsided. A Stylites or pillar hermit dwelt for years on the top of the epistyle, obtaining food by letting down a basket, which was regularly filled -with provisions by the pious and charit- able. Passing through the Arch of Hadrian near by, we took carriage to the ruins under the south side of the Acropolis, beginning with the Theatre of Bacchus (Dionysius); the cradle of Greek dramatic art and the spot on which the master-pieces of Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes were produced, to the de- light of their audiences. The theatre site was well chosen, with its great semicircles of seats tiered above each other facing the sea. The seats of honor consisted of marble, and were located in the front row. Upon them TEMPLE OF OLYMPIAN ZEUS, ATHENS. A WINTER JOURNEY J23 was offically inscribed the owners names two hundred B. C. A centrally located chair of marble beautifully carved was reserved to the priest of Bacchus himself. During tne Roman era a low marble -wall was built around tbe orchestra, either for confinement of the wild beasts that took part in gladiatorial events or for the confinement of water on which to produce miniature naval battles. The fundamental idea of the New York Hippodrome undoubtedly was borrowed from these ancient creations. Next to the theatre and facing south, sheltered from the winds of the north by the Acropolis, is the Temple Sanitarium of that Greek scholar of medicine Aesculapius, who dedicated his altar to Hygeia and other health divinities. A portion of the building was enclosed, -while part of it consisted of an open colonnade where -worshippers also slept. His principal treatment comprised air and water, with pure honey for breakfast. At the back of the stoa or portico is the chalybeate spring, around -which a shrine has been built and -which pilgrim Greeks still visit to drink its water, said to be specially efficacious in cases of stomach disease. \Ve passed between a mass of col- umns in ruins, and the Stoa Eumenia which formed a J24 A WINTER JOURNEY covered colonnade between the Theatre of Dionysius and the Odeon formerly a roofed tkeatre for musical performances built by Herodes Atticus in memory of kis wife Regilla. We drove to tne top of the Pnyx, not fifteen hundred feet in front of the Propylea, the place in ancient Athens -where the people met to delibe- rate and vote on public affairs, thence to Mars Hill (Areopagus), a rocky plateau a short distance below, where St. Paul preached to the Athenians Fifty-four A. D., of which an account is given in the seventeenth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. \Ve were much interested in the ruins of a Christian church dedicated to the Areopagite Paul s first convert in Athens and the caves in the sides of the Acropolis connected with so many stories of Pan ; the Lysistrata of Aris- tophanes, Apollo and Ion. The ancient court of the Areopagus, which exercised supreme jurisdiction in all cases of life and death, held its sittings on this hill. On our -way back we stopped at the prison cave of Socrates in the solid rock of the Hill of the Muses. The best preserved temple in Greece is that of Theseus, the hero of Athens. It is of Doric architecture, surrounded by columns, standing majestic in an open square. It is built A WINTER JOURNEY J25 entirely of Pentelic marble, now weathered to a golden yellow. It is a peripheral hexastyle in antis and stands upon a marble stylobate raised two feet from the ground. ^iVe crossed the dry bed of the Illissos and were shown the place where old Boreas so rudely disturbed Orei- thyea in her botanical studies. \Ve were reminded that here Plato laid the scene of his Phaedros where the talkers rested on the soft turf, listened to the song of the cicadas, the stream flowing at their feet, and enjoyed the fragrance of the plane trees overhead and the refreshing breezes blowing from the sea. The Stadium the scene of the Panathenean games is in- deed interesting. It lies in a natural hollow formed by surrounding hills. Three hundred and thirty-one B. C. Lycurgus formally leveled this space and built a spectators wall around it. In the second century Atticus filled the slopes with rows of marble seats, and in the year Eighteen Hundred and Ninety-six a Greek gentleman named Averhoff emulated the Roman bene- factor Herodes Atticus by renewing the Stadium in marble and by stimulating anew expositions of the an- cient games of Greece. The Stadium constitutes a stretch of dazzling white marble seven hundred feet in J26 A WINTER JOURNEY length and one hundred ana thirty feet wide, with seating capacity for fifty thousand. To-day we saw some runners practicing on the track. The costume of the Greek soldier is the antithesis of generally ac- cepted military uniforms, and is suggestive of some- thing more hefitting a fancy dress masquerade perform- ance than caparison suited to the sanguinary art of war-oThe Greek regulation uniform comprises a pair of -white cotton tights, a short, very full white hallet skirt showing -well ahove the knee, gaiters -with flowing red silk tassels to match red slippers cut low and orna- mented with large pompons on the upturned toes, a gay colored sash into which are stuck knives and pistols, an emhroidered holero jacket over a -white shirt with voluminous flowing sleeves, and a skull cap of red cloth suspended from the crown of which swings a dark hlue tassel extending helow the shoulders. The costumes of the women are conspicuous for very gay colors and elaborate needlework trimmings. The Greeks appear to he a happy, contented race of people, and in this respect might -well he emulated hy the Occidental-*"* The King's Palace is situate in the heart of the city, surrounded hy heautiful gardens. His Majesty is very GREEK SOLDIER. A WINTER JOURNEY J27 confident of the love of lus subjects, ana rides forth on horseback without escort or attendants. Our hotel, on the opposite side of the square, faces the King s Palace. March First. yk NOTHER -warm day, -with brilliant sunshine, clear air and glorious views of the surrounding mountain panoramas. The quarries of Pentelic marble are plainly visible on one slope, while the blue waters of the bay of Salamis seem hardly ten miles distant. Again we take our guide and carriage for a visit to the place de luxe of history the Acropolis. Ancient Athens was built around the base of this high plateau, upon which stood the glory and pride of the Hellenic world the Pantheon. Originally the Acropolis must have been a hill-fortress like that of Xroy. Its position on a hill and at safe distance from sea attack rendered it ideal, and from its overlooking height enabled it to pro- tect adjacent property, ^^e entered the Acropolis through the Propylaea, which is approached by way of a long flight of steps flanked on either side by ruins of temples, pedestals, and balustrades, and occupying the whole of the western side. This building, famous in J2S A WINTER JOURNEY antiquity as being the greatest production in civil archi- tecture in Athens, was built of Pentelic marble, on the Ionic order. Four Hundred and Thirty-seven B. C. Next adjoining, perched upon a jutting ledge of rock, if the exquisite small temple of Nike, erected in com- memoration of the battle of Platea -which resulted in driving the Persians out of Greece. Here an enchanting panorama is presented to viewJ*It -was here Byron got his inspiration for the third canto of " The Corsair : " " Slow sinks, more lovely ere his race he run Along Morea's hills the setting sun ; Not, as in Northern climes, obscurely bright. But one unclouded blaze of living light ! O er the hush d deep the yellow beam he throws, Glides the green -wave, that trembles as it glows. On old Retina s rock, and Idra s isle. The God of gladness sheds his parting smile ; O er his own religious lingering, loves to shine. Though there his altars are no more divine. Descending fast the mountain shadows kiss Thy glorious gulf, unconquer d Salamis ! Their azure arches through the long expanse THE PROI'YI.AEA, ATHENS. A WINTER JOURNEY J29 More deeply purpled meet his mellowing glance. And tenderest tints, along their summits driven, Mark his gay course, and own the hues of heaven ; Till darkly shaded from the land and deep. Behind his Delphian cliffs he sinks to sleep." It is said that here King Aegens stood in order to catch the first glimpse of the ship returning from Crete with his son Theseus. Unhappily Theseus forgot to display the white sail the agreed emblem of victory over the Minotaur and his aged father interpreting the black sail to mean the death of his son, threw himself headlong from the promontory. Fragments of sculp- tures from the balustrade are on exhibition in the Acropolis Museum, the best known of which is ** Vic- tory Stooping to Tie Her Sandal. ' In the open space between the Propylaea and the Parthenon once stood the great statue of Athena. It was colossal in size, made of bronze by Phidias. During a Turkish in- vasion it was carried to Constantinople and finally destroyed in a riot. As we cross the Acropolis the Parthenon, kk House of the Virgin," dedicated to Minerva the most perfect monument of ancient art J30 A WINTER JOURNEY faces us in majestic ruin. It was dedicated to the virgin goddess Atkena Parthenos, whose statue, placed in tke cella, consisted of -wood, on \vkick tke figure -was modeled out of some plastic material and skeatked witk ivory plates to represent tke nude portion of tke statue, gold keing used for tke drapery. At tke extremes it skows eigkt gigantic columns and at tke sides seventeen a proportion of perfect symmetry. Tke crowning ckarm of tke Partkenon was evidenced in tke sculpture work wkick completed and decorated it, color keing every- wkere freely used, traces of wkick still remain. Of tke metopes on tke Partkenon less tkan kalf remain; some kave found a kome in tke British Museum, some in tke Acropolis Museum, some in tke Museum at Munick and one in tke Louvre. During tke sixtk century after Ckrist tke Partkenon was turned into a Cknstian ckurck, and in tke fifteentk century it kecame a mosque. Tke minaret, kuilt during tke kated Turkisk occu- pation, has keen pulled down jt In tke seventeentk century it was used ky tke Turks as a powder maga- zine, and during tke siege ky tke Venetians was acci- dentally blown up, otkerwise it i* likely tkat it would THE PARTHENON, ATHENS. A WINTER JOURNEY J3J have been preserved in good condition to the present day. TKc ErecKtKeum was the third largest temple, and contained many shrines. The Caryatides porch or Porch of the Maidens consisted of six female figures supporting the entablature, the Lead dresses of tKe figures forming as it were the capitals of the columns. This temple occupies the ancient site on -which tKe strife be- tween Athena and Poseidon for possession of Athens was decided ; recalled Ky tKe olive tree still growing there. A. belvedere projects from a far corner of tKe Acropolis, from which tKe alluring view includes tKe entire city of Athens below, completely girdled Ky mountains, between which glimpses of tKe Klue Aegean Sea, tKe road to Marathon, tKe King s Gardens, and tKe white Stadium gleaming in tKe sun like crystals of cut loaf sugar are Kad, while Keyond, looming in lonely grandeur. Mount Lycabettus bears at tKe dizzy height of eight hundred feet a Greek monastery. To tKe left is tKe green Kill of Plato's Groves of Academus ; nearer to tKe heart of tKe city stands tKe ruins of Hadrian's Market, which must Kave furnished an imposing arcade of Doric columns. Nearby is tKe " Tower of AVinds," from which an oracle formerly directed affairs of mariners. J32 A WINTER JOURNEY Another function of the tower was that of -water clock, a dial cut in the stone floor being regulated by water flowing through grooves. The Monument of Lysicrates, popularly known as the ** Lantern of Dio- genes, and formerly one of an entire street of tripods dating hack to Three Hundred and Thirty-five B. C. of -which present remains constitute the base only is the oldest extant structure of the Corinthian order of architecture. Once it -was used as the library of a Capuchin monastery, and on the occasion of Lord Byron a visit to the Capuchins he occupied it as a study. The ground on which this monument stands is owned by France. After assimilating this feast of sight seeing with our luncheon at the Hotel Angleterre, we spent the afternoon driving leisurely about in an open landau and in visiting the Queen s School for Poor Children and the Museum of Grecian Excavations. Athens is pre-eminently the home of vases of the best period of that art. "We looked in upon a session of Parliament before driving out to the Dipylon a double gateway forming the principal entrance to classic Athens and to the street of tombs outside the Dipylon, the only street of the kind in Greece, -where famous sculptures. THE MONUMENT OF LYSICRATES, ATHENS. A WINTER JOURNEY J33 such as tke Apis Bull, and funeral vases on one of which Charon is depicted approaching the funeral ban- quet to ferry away the soul of the deceased, and the equestrian monument of a young warrior who fell in action at Corinth, Three Hundred and Ninety-four B.C., represented in the act of striking down his adver- sary, offer -wonders to the eyeJ*The well ahove the cemetery is very ancient, and water from that source probably was employed in funeral ceremonies, ^/e visited the Library and the Academy , both of which are modern buildings of inferior architecture. In pass- ing the prison we were surprised at the curious sight of prisoners with their arms thrust through the double grated -windows idly dangling strings of pastime beads at the passers by. J34 A WINTER JOURNEY March Second. HIS morning was passed idling about the shops, Witt, however, an eye single to souvenirs, ana later we successfully re- peated the prandial operation of Laving a hamper of luncheon made up at the delicatessen shop, along with a bottle of Greek wine and some French mineral water. The carriage was ready at eleven o clock, and, after saying good-bye to Mr. Plant a fellow-passenger on the " Cedric," who is kere for a six months cruise on tbe Mediterranean in his private yacbt and tbanking bim for a courteous invitation to join tbe yachting party, we started via tbe Sacred \Vay portions of wbich are cut out of solid rock for Eleusis, whose roadside shrines and fertile valleys adorn tbe distance to tbe Bay of Salamis. Except for its ruins the town of Eleusis is uninteresting. Mere Aeschylus was born. So great an area covered with masses of masonry bear testimony to tbe vast size of tbe temple. Its mystery-rite proba- bly took place around tbe columns in tbe center of tbe ball, while tbe worshippers sat around on tbe 8teps*J*Tne ritual was composed chiefly of a mystery play repre- CORINTH CANAL. A WINTER JOURNEY J35 seating tlie kereafter, tke entire celebration occupying several Jays, including preliminary purification at Athens and a procession thence along tke Sacred \Vay. In tke underground chambers of tke temple it is sup- posed tkat life in Hades -was enacted. From Eleusis we went ky train to Corintk, a skort journey tkrougk well cultivated country. At tke dizzy keigkt of one kundred and sixty feet we passed over tke Corintk Canal, cut tkrougk solid rock. AVe found tke Grand Hotel Bretagne kere to ke one of tke satisfactory features of our trip. Its proprietor enjoys a remark- akle faculty for making friends, and kis manner kespeaks cordial sincerity. Acro-Corintk is tke old walled citadel at tke very summit of a kigk mountain, kalf an kour s drive from tke new town of Conntk< Frequently -we were constrained to exclaim aloud over the heauty of nature's perfect carpet of blue violets. \Vonderful, wonderful nature ! God s own handi- work ! ! For her retreat the Empress of Austria selected a most attractive location, overlooking a tropi- cal garden of rare trees and flowers, nestling in tne heart of which is her Pompenan villa, "Jlfon Repos? Tne statuary and paintings contained in this villa are all suggestive of a wounded spirit. Over the grand stair- way a painting of heroic dimensions shows Achilles before the -walls of Troy dragging tke dead body of MO A WINTER JOURNEY Hector at kis chariot wheels. The patio or open inner court of the villa is surrounded by life-size marble figures of the Muses, with background of columns and foliage of deepest green. Descending to the second terrace one passes through vine-covered lattice into a garden of flowers, palms and cypress trees leading to a circular terrace with surrounding balustrade of marble. In the center of the open space is a huge sculpture in white marble of the wounded Achilles, recumbent, and about to draw the arrow from his heel. Tea tables and seats of marble lend their part to the charming aggregation found in this beautiful villa look- ing directly out on sea and harbor, -with the town of Corfu in the distance and the mountains of Albania visible on the opposite coast. This villa and royal gardens have been acquired by the present German Em- peror, and are visited by him on rare occasions, mean- while the property is under the watchful, all-seeing, overseeing eye of a German intendant. A very self- contained German maid from Berlin showed us through the grounds, hut put her flat foot flatly down on our using the mute and innocent kodak, that harmless instru- ment of retrospective pleasure. By five o clock we had THE GARDEN OF VII.T.A ACHII.I.EON, GORKI- A WINTER JOURNEY gotten back to the steamer ana soon after were steaming across the Adriatic Sea toward the city of Bnndisi in Italy. March Fifth. opening our eyes tkis morning we discovered that our steamer was tied up to a great stone pier in the harbor of Bnndisi. This is the ancient Brindisium of the Romans, and it was from this pier that many of the Crusaders departed for the Holy Land. After usual Custom House formalities we drove to the station to take train for Naples, passing over Via Appia and by the house in which Virgil died. The fertility of southern Italy is shown in its ability to pro- duce several Kinds of crops from the same soil at the same time ; for example, during half a day's observation we passed miles of tall, well-pruned mulberry trees fes- tooned from tree to tree with grape vines, leaving room between for a practically full crop of vegetables and cereals. The hundreds of miles of monotonous groves of olive trees with their gnarled trunks somehow re- minded us of pictures we had seen of the condemned in Dante s Inferno the seeming counterpart^of human J42 A WINTER JOURNEY forms distorted by agony or despair * In some of the groves necessary piers of stone nave been erected for support to the old ana very heavy olive branches. Getting back to Naples seems almost like being at Lome again. Our carriage threaded its way through crowded streets, and from a flower vendor who ran alongside we bought an armful of violets at tbe relatively small cost of one lira or twenty cents, and for tbe fourtb time registered at tbe Hotel Vesuve. After seeing our baggage safely landed in our apartments, we went at once for mail, finding cable messages and letters awaiting us. \Ve bave decided to sail for borne to- morrow. Marcb Sixth. INQUIRY developed tbe fact tbat tbe S. S. " Fin- land" -will sail at five o clock this afternoon. \Ve engaged passage at once, then visited the shops for some necessaries, and later bade regretful adieu to our good friends the \Vebsters, who have been such delightful companions throughout the greater part of our entire journeymgs5*The steamer ** Finland is chartered by the White Star Line to take the place of the ill-fated COLUMN OF THE MARTYRS, NAPLES. A WINTER JOURNEY J43 " Republic," but as she is sailing rather too early for the homeward tide of returning travelers, we find be- side ourselves only three other first class passengers. The " Finland, ' built by Cramps in Philadelphia, is a modern steamer and a model of comfort and cleanliness. Her displacement snows thirteen thousand tons, and makes a much more satisfactory passenger boat than such a leviathan as the " Cedric. Finding at the last mo- ment that the sailing hour had been postponed to seven o clock, -we went ashore again, driving to the Gallena Umberto Primo for a last impression of Naples. ^vVTiile looking in a shop window we saw the ^iVebsters in the act of parting -with their birthright for a mess of water colors, so we postponed that consummation by taking them back to the steamer in our carriage, where we put in the remaining time encouraging the ragged Neapoli- tan urchins on the wharf to dance and sing for coppers. And now, after a last au revoir to the ^Vebsters, and by the light of the full moon rising over Vesuvius, illuminating the bay and silhouetting " Fair Ischia," and the island of Capri against the sky line, we at last shove off from the friendly shore of " Sunny Italy," and occupy our minds -with things practical, such as arrang- 144 A WINTER JOURNEY ing our stateroom quarters for tne trip before us-<"* Owing to tbe small number of first class passengers, we bad quite a varied cLoice of quarters, and finally selected a suite of two large cabins on tne upper deck, furnished with double beds and air mattresses (a startling evolution from tne bunks of earlier sea-going days). Our suite is equipped with all requisites, including writing desks, lounges, reading lamps, etc. Connected with it is an artistic modern bathroom fitted with every up-to-date appurtenance in fact, a sort of plumbers pride. In- cluding tbe Captain and officers, we muster ten in tbe dining salon, but notwithstanding the paucity of numbers the menu is as elaborate and tbe orcbestra as enthusiastic in its ministrations as if tbe ten were ten bundredo Xbe perfect quiet and rest aboard sbip will soon be converted into tbe noisy burly-burly of a large city, for to-mor- row morning, Marcb nineteentb, we sball be due at Greater New York, and a City \Vonderful it is in- deed. Looking backward we find we bave traveled fifteen tbousand miles, tbat seven of tbe ten weeks of our absence bave been spent on board sbip, and tbat our stops bave been made at seaport towns on Portugese, Englub, Spanisb, Italian, Egyptian, Syrian, Turkisb THE BAY OF NAPLES, ITALY. A WINTER JOURNEY J45 and Greek territory. It may be asked, \Vhat experi- ences of your trip nave produced deepest impress ? Our answer is that we are at loss to discriminate. In turn we might inquire. Is the Temple of Karnak more in- spiring than the Acropolis at Athens ?-<"*Gentle reader, you have been generously patient with us in our various and sundry wanderings, and in bidding you farewell we shall only trespass further on your graciousness to the extent of quoting an illuminating verse from the poet Shelley's " Mutability," id est: " The flower that smiles to-day To-morrow dies; All that we wish to stay Tempts and then flies ; \Vhat is this -world's delight? Lightning that mocks the night, Brief even as bright.