Eliza Roxcy Snow

“ We found the arrangements completed for our travel- ing expedition two sleeping tents, a separate one for the ladies, a kitchen tent with cook stove, a saloon or dining tent, iron bedsteads, mattresses, clean white sheets, abundance of bedding, carpets and camp stools. We were provided with good horses, saddles, an efficient dragoman, plenty of servants and preparations to serve three meals per day, under the super- vision of an experienced cook.
Jaffa is considered the oldest seaport in world; it has a population of about five thousand, principally Arabs, Greeks and Mohammedans. ”

“ In passing over the mountains of Judea, we sometimes saw enclosed patches of cultivated ground near their camps, and many flocks of sheep and goats feeding in the glens and upon the adjacent mountains. Tourists are not safe in traveling through their country unless accompanied by some of their own people.
We stopped to lunch in an olive orchard, a short distance from Bethlehem, an enclosure called "The Shepherds' Field," where the shepherds watched their flocks by night, when the angels appeared to them announcing the grand and glorious event of our Savior's incarna- tion. ”

“ This convent belongs to the Greek Church. The monks are required to observe the most rigid rules of abstinence and fasting, never allowed to eat flesh, and strictly enjoined to allow no woman to enter their presence or cross the threshold of their establishment. A small, peaceful tribe of Arabs, residing in adjacent glens, are employed by these friars to convey their food and clothing from Jerusalem. ”

“ We slowly and thoughtfully wind our way down the hill, passing the Russian buildings and othe r prominent establishments, until we reach the city and enter our encamp- ment.
After remaining one day at Jerusalem, according to programme, Feb- ruary 22d, we struck our tents, resumed our saddles, and started on an excursion of three days to Solomon's Pools, Bethlehem, Convent of Mar Saba, the Dead Sea, the Jordan, returning by the way of Bethany to Jeru- salem. ”

“ It contains twenty-six per cent, of saline matter, which is sufficient to render it fatal to animal life. It is as transparent as the water of the Mediterranean. Its specific gravity is so great that the human body will not sink, and eggs float when two-thirds immersed. ”

“ Before leaving Bethlehem it was considered policy to employ a Bedouin sheik, as security against these barbarians, who inhabit the moun- tains through which we were to pass. These Bedouins chiefly live in tents, their flocks and herds constituting their principal means of support. ”

“ Battlefield of David and Goliath. Rose of Sharon. Mount Zion. Mount of Olives. Jerusalem.- - Rachel's Tomb. Solomon's Pools. Church of the Nativity. Mudio of St. Jerome. Shepherds' field. Jordan River. Dead Sea.
JERUSALEM, FEBRUARY 26TH, 1873. Editor Deseret Neivs:
Saturday evening, the 22d inst., we steamed out from Port Said, and the following morning anchored within a half mile of Jaffa, the first sea- port of Palestine. In boisterous weather and rough seas, landing is diffi- cult and dangerous frequently impossible, occasioning much annoyance and great expense to tourists. ”