Ramleh

“ The walls of fine stone houses are enclosed in wretched hovels of mud. Here and there an ornate Cufic or Arabic inscription is left, telling of Moslem conquerors and munificent Caliphs; but the bazaars are deserted, and starved dogs and helpless lepers meet the eye on every side.
Many attempts have been made to identify Ramleh with some ancient site. Thus the learned Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela regarded it as the birthplace of Samuel, while Christians have supposed it to be Arimathæa or Ramoth Lehi. But, against all such views, the testimony of historians, both Moslem and Christian, is decisive. ”

“ In Crusading history the town, which was then walled, plays a conspicuous part, and under the early successors of Saladin it rose to considerable importance; but the site, which is, as its name indicates, “sandy,” is not a natural one for a great city, and the water-supply is entirely artificial, from wells and huge tanks having Cufic inscriptions on their sides. Picturesque as is the scene, especially from among the palms on the east, Ramleh is nevertheless a modern place, when compared with the high antiquity of sites near to it. ”

“ By the time the muleteers were roused, and our horses were in readiness for the journey, the sun had risen, and we hastened away. The market-places were already busy with buyers and sellers. The gardens of Ramleh are extensive and fertile; the date-palm, especially, flourishes there. The soil is sandy. ”

“ THE TOWER OF RAMLEH (FROM THOMSON'S "THE LAND AND THE BOOK") .
The principal sight of Ramleh is the Tower, which is visible for quite a distance, and forms a conspicuous landmark. Its history is not definitely known, but it is supposed to have been originally the tower of a Christian church. The church was destroyed by the Moslems, and the tower left standing, in order that it might serve as the minaret of the mosque erected on the site of the Christian edifice. The Tower is about a hundred feet high altogether, and its summit can be reached by means of steps in the interior. ”

“ When Omar was told of the ambush and Amru’s escape by taking another road, he said, ‘Verily, Amru is a lucky fellow.’
[323] Ramleh was not founded till the eighth century. The place was previously named Rama (Arimathea) , near which Ramleh was built; but tradition, by anticipation, always calls it Ramleh.
Gaza, according to some, was captured in the first invasion, two years before. The following places are mentioned as now reduced:—Sebastia (on the way from Cæsarea to Nablûs, where is the tomb of John the son of Zacharias) ; Beit-Jibrîn (or Beth Gabara) ; Yabna ”

“ Wady Ramleh, or Rummel (as it is sometimes pronounced, which signifies, in Arabic, sandy river, or sandy valley) , is a small, but constant stream of pure water, which finds its way across the desert from the mountains to the southward. The bed of the stream is much below the surface of the soil; and judging from its width, and the steep banks which confine it, we should conclude that at the periods when the freshes come down from the mountains, Wady Ramleh may be swelled into a considerable body of water. ”

“ My little Syrian maid was with me, and she was very ill. Jaffa was a rough place for landing, but we accomplished it after some little difficulty. It is a pretty, fez-shaped town on the hillside.
We remained twenty-four hours in Jaffa, and then rode on to Ramleh. The gardens around this town were exceedingly beautiful, groves of orange trees, citrons and pomegranates. We soon entered the Plain of Sharon. The whole road was green and pretty. The country was a beautiful carpet of wild flowers. We reached Ramleh early, and I went at once to the Franciscan Monastery. ”

“ Like Ramleh, Lydda is surrounded by extensive olive-groves, and seems a pleasant spot. The road from Jaffa to Jerusalem is not one of the best in the world, but it is the best in Palestine. It is repaired when there is a prospect of the visit of some foreign prince or potentate. ”

“ Some miles beyond, the road, at the time the infantry advance was made, had degenerated into a cart-track from the battering it had received from Turkish traffic.
About ten miles from Ramleh was Latron, a malaria-haunted swamp in the rainy season and a plague-spot of flies in summer, and from here onwards the road became increasingly difficult and dismal. You could see the imprint of the oppressor in the very land itself, for though there are a few [215] patches of cultivation, the greater part of the countryside is abandoned to a stony barrenness. ”

“ It is the beauty of abundance and richness as well as of vivid colour.
“At Rosetta dense crowds of natives awaited us and some police were detailed to escort us through the town. I heard some of the women of our party wishing they could pick the blue tiles off the minarets, but for my part I prefer them under their lovely sky and sunshine, rather than ornamenting mantelpieces in a Kensington fog. A little musharabieh lattice is still left here in the windows and has not yet been taken to grace the British drawing-rooms of Ramleh. ”

“ From Carmol to the Wady Sheriah, where the Philistine country ended, is a distance of about one hundred miles, which gives the length of the region in question. Its breadth between the shore and the highland varies from about twenty-five miles, in the south, between Gaza and the hills of Dan, to three miles, or less, in the north, between Dor and the border of Manasseh. Its area is probably from 1400 to 1500 square miles, This low strip is along its whole course divided into two parallel belts or bands-the first a flat sandy tract along the shore, the Ramleh of the modern Arabs ”

“ Lastly, we entered the vast olive grounds belonging to Ramlah, and found our tents (which had been sent on by another road) just as the Moeddin in the minaret was calling to sunset prayers.
I am never weary of the scenery about Ramlah; we have there the most picturesque Orientalism of all Palestine—a warm climate, numerous waving palm-trees, with the large reservoir for cattle drinking, all gilded in brilliant sunlight, together with the busy voices of a considerable population. ”

“ I shaved and went to the bath, and repaired to the shop of Ahzab. My brother's steward was not there, whereat I rejoiced, and arrayed myself in the most splendid suit that I could find, and having perfumed myself with essences and sweet scents, I summoned a boy and said:
"Go thou and bring here a porter. Order him to carry yon large chest to the house of the Walî, near the Mosque of Ibn-Mizheh, and ask for the lady Jullanar who hath purchased this box and a number of things which are in it. See that he be a strong man, for the box is very heavy." ”

“ The midday heat in the valley was so great that a halt became imperative. They camped at the edge of a dense jungle where banks of rotten vegetation, sun-dried upon the top, lay heaped about the bamboo stems. None but a madman would have chosen to tarry in such a spot; and Major Fayne’s servants went about their work with many a furtive glance at their master. Ramsa Lal’s velvety eyes showed a great compassion, but Moreen offered no protest. ”

“ It was in this vast and beautiful hall that Radames, a gallant soldier and favourite of the Egyptian court, met Ramphis, the High Priest, on the day when the Oracle, Isis, was to choose the general of the army.
Isis had already spoken, and Ramphis knew it, but he did not tell Radames. Together they spoke of Radames's loyal wish to serve his people, either as a great general or as a soldier. He was too modest to think that Isis would choose him, out of all the worthy men of the army, to lead the hosts of Egypt. ”

“ Fatimah, that mother of calamities, has betrayed me, and I dare not return! I am an outcast; for although I was stolen from the Sheikh Ismail without my consent, how can I hope for his forgiveness?”
Such a flood of sorrows and confidences overwhelmed me, and I placed a silent but deathless curse upon the lapis armlet which had brought me to this pass. Mizmûna sobbed upon my shoulder.
“Yûssuf has planned your ruin as well as mine,” she said brokenly. “For it was he who denounced you to the Magician.” (As “the Magician” Abû Tabâh was known and feared throughout Lower Egypt.) ”

“ O Allah! this is some snare that Ismail hath set for my feet! Who art thou? who art thou?”
But because of the excess of the loveliness of the speaker, from whom I could not remove my eyes, and because as I stood in that perfumed apartment it seemed to me that I was no longer a real man, but a figment of some Efreet’s dream, I found myself incapable of both speech and action.
Yet I was speedily to know that the Fates, which had thrust me into that saloon—nay, which had brought me across the desert to that secret oasis—were not yet wearied of their sport. ”

“ Abu Tabah shrugged his shoulders.
"The house of Yussuf Bey has been watched," he replied; "therefore my agents have failed me and must be punished."
"They are guiltless. It was humanly impossible to perceive my entrance to the house," I declared truthfully.
Abu Tabah smiled into my face.
"So it was you who carried the sacred burko of the Seyyideh Nefiseh," he said; "and to-night Ali Mohammed brought you the reward for your perilous journey. ”

“ He pointed to the heap of treasure. “Mem Sahib must come also.”
“But—my husband——”
“He must remain,” he said. “It is of his own choosing.”
V
The temple stood in a kind of clearing. Grotesquely horrible figures guarded the time-worn entrance. Moreen drew a deep breath of relief on emerging from the jungle path by which, amid the rustle of retreating snakes, they had come, but shrank back affrighted from the blackness of the ruined doorway. Ramsa Lal stood the lantern upon the stump of a broken pillar, where its faint yellow light was paled by the moon-rays. ”

“ The villages, which are commonly surrounded with olive-trees and sycamores, are for the most part in ruins; exhibiting a melancholy proof that under a bad government even the bounty of Heaven ceases to be a blessing.
The path by which the billy barrier is penetrated is difficult, and in some places dangerous. But before you reach it, turning towards the east, you perceive Rama, or Ramla, the ancient Arimathea, distinguished by its charming situation, and well known as the residence of a Christian community. ”

“ I assured him that I should regard such a proposal with the utmost affection.
"It would be necessary," he continued, "for you to disguise yourself as an aged woman and to visit the harem of a certain wealthy Bey. I have a ring which must be shown to the bowwab at the gate of the harem gardens upon which you would knock three times slowly and then twice rapidly. You would collect the thousand gineh agreed upon and would deliver to a certain lady a sandalwood box, the possession of which endangers my life and has brought about me the hosts of Abu Tabah the magician." ”

“ My surprise increased. “You alarm me,” I said. “Are there rogues in our midst?”
“No,” answered the imám, fixing his melancholy gaze upon my face; “so far as my knowledge bears me, there is but one, yet that one is worse than a host of others.”
“Do you mean that he is here—in the hotel?”
Abû Tabâh shrugged his slim shoulders.
“If I knew his exact whereabouts,” he replied, “there would be no occasion to fear him. All that I know is that he is in Cairo; and since many richly attired women of Europe and America will be here to-morrow night, of a surety Omar Ali Khân will be here also!” ”

“ I was thinking, particularly, of the bow-string.
“Already,” said Abû Tabâh, with his sweet but melancholy smile, “the heart of the Sheikh Ismail inclined toward the damsel, for whom his soul yearned; and has not it been written that he who heals the breach betwixt man and wife shall himself be blessed? Behold the reward of the peace-maker—which I design as a gift to my sister.”
I was unable to speak, but I became aware of a bitter taste upon my palate as, from beneath his robe, the smiling imám took out the armlet of gold and lapis-lazuli! ”

“ But I should not shoot you, as you say; I should introduce you to a gentleman who is very anxious to make your acquaintance—the venerable Sheikh Ismail.”
The effect of this remark greatly exceeded my most sanguine expectations. I think I have never seen a man so pitiably frightened.
“The Sheikh ... Ismail!” gasped Joseph Malaglou. “He is in Cairo?”
“He has generously offered me five thousand pounds for your name and address.”
“Ah, my God!” whispered Malaglou. “Kernaby, you will not betray me to that fiend? You are an Englishman and you will not soil your hands with such a deed!” ”

“ Ramallah, twenty minutes from Beeroth, is professedly a Christian village, occupying a commanding position from which we get a fine view westward down the mountain-sides of Benjamin and Ephraim, and over the broad plain of Sharon to the Mediterranean.
"Toward evening we held a meeting at the Protestant school-room in this town. The crowd of men, women, and children became so dense that nearly every one assumed a standing position, and all seemed very eager to see the strangers, and, as I thought, very curious to hear a woman address a public assembly. ”

“ And no man is at his best arrayed in canvas shoes, very dirty drill trousers, and a pyjama jacket.
As I had anticipated, the village of Méydûm proved to be our destination, and the gait of the magnificent creatures upon which we were mounted was exhausting. I shall always remember that moonlight ride across the desert to the palm groves of Méydûm. I entered the house of the Sheikh with misgivings; for my attire fell short of the ideal to which every representative of protective Britain looks up, but often fails to realize. ”