| Show FROM THE missionary FIELDS letter from nazareth haifa palestine may 17 1898 1 J the country around the ancient city 31 1 of jerusalem is a hard looking land go whichever way you will and the country shows great volcanic boulders strewed thickly over the ground here and there a field or basin may be found fit for cultivation but the majority of the hills of judea are covered fc with these great boulders and even solid cliffs the first impressions that ay A 9 western person obtains of this coun f try is that it is none too good for the ial mise raible arabs who inhabit it they live hard and their nature seems to have become as unimpressionable as the rocks of the hills this view of the situation will do for those who have no interest in the land beyond seeing it and visiting its shrines and then returning to what seems to them a better and more favored country but there is another side to this important question all who believe iq in the bible know that it was once a choice land and much blessed of the lord and indications are that it was about as stony then as now the land must bave possessed some interesting and peculiar features or abraham and isaac and jacob would not have felt L BO 80 pleased with the gift gif t the lord be stow stowed ed on an them moses the man of L god was so eager to see the land that kte ie went on mt nebo where the lord showed him the whole land surely did great riches in its J XICO ry the land possess climate which is so perfect that most fr all kinds of grain and many fruits do well here just how many varieties esthey tS they ey had we do not know but they had i several eral of which their grapes enormous 0 ous needing two men to carry one bunch r it Is not the purpose to treat in this ti T 4 i article of the past as much as of the present there is an effort among the utter latter day saints to understand just what the lord intends to do about settling the land of palestine and what are the present prospects of livelihood here the first and great question orn t with us is then has the time come when the lord settles this question through the proper authorities the other part of it will be made combar fat dively easy nevertheless it is pleas i ant to know that there are f hoys going on all the time many 4 years ago the prophet joseph smith sent apostle orson hyde to Al dedicate the land for the gathering a of the H house ouse of israel After afterwards i president aident brigham young sent liis his counselor george A smith and apostle lorenzo snow and others to visit the land and it was again dedicated and blessed since that day there has been L a gradual tendency among many jews bahto 0 return to this land they are how prevented Ver by the turkish govern ment from coming in in large numbers ft aufice they are not increasing very fast ind and still 11 things considered it is J probably fast enough as they buy land and get here anyhow on the plan of jehae t e ever back shish V f besides the jews there is a hardy haidy T band of germans known as the tem g trie society who have felt it their fluty duty to help build up the waste places their jao clety is now crumbling for the want of proper leadership and laws necessary to carry out such an important work their young men seeing no tu fu 1 tum W here leave for germany and america ca leaving the widows and many lg an old maid behind to pine away in loneliness sap joo atter ater what may be the mista mistakes kes t of e people we are not here to ir ar I 1 ajr ald them tor for such but rather to toy by their air example and do better when our turn comes and we ought to do better we have a very wide experience in colonization we have the only solid and durable organization on earth the revealed plan from heaven with its promise of its remaining with us then why not do better when god gives his sanction and we exert our will and talent influenced by his holy spirit 0 one of the great points made by these germans is the possibility of turning the barren wastes into a fruitful vineyard or field they may not have become rich but they have lived and most of those who came for a purpose have remained and in the face of all opposition have made beautiful homes at jerusalem they bought in some property just south of the city below the elbow of the gihon and hinmon on a small plan they at once set about building fine houses and planting trees and treating the country a la alamani Al amanz in some respects it was all right in others it was not and those who were not too set in their ways had to change at jaffa they located on the sand banks of the mediterranean where they started orange groves and lemon groves the place was not healthy but they improved it by planting the cyprus and the eucalyptus and other trees they are very methodical in i n their work hence their places are all in good order and are a very good example for the arabs here in haifa they have made a little paradise of the north slope of mt carmal they have laid out a colony the main street of which runs nearly north and south on either side they have built very nice residences shade trees both useful and ornamental are flourishing up and down the street and around the gardens so that the he colony looks like a garden and is visited daily by the arabs from haifa proper the colony being to them a park handy for a promenade not being a florist I 1 cannot tell you all the different kinds of flowers growing in the flower beds but I 1 see nearly all the varieties commonly grown in pots in our homes in utah I 1 see the oleander growing and blooming richly in the gardens A great number of trees grow without any water except that which is supplied during the rainy season As such the cypress towers up stately the olive the fig the almond the locust of which john the baptist evidently ate not a grasshopper and many evany ornamental trees at home in this oriental country can be seen making this little spot quite attractive this has ben accomplished by energy and faith and they have shown us that they can live and be happy and satisfied they have a soap factory they press olives make a fine grade of oil and soap from pure olives much of their products prodoc ts are sen sent t to the united states export ekpo rt of wheat is good also but coming back to the immediate products of the colony in their gardens may be seen onions potatoes rutabagas corn and other vegetables all growing without rAW rr Bation tion they would probably do better with a little water but as there is no water for irrigation they get along without it on the mountain their industry has made a great showing acres of the hardest looking country ever laid out doors are now converted into beautiful wine laden vineyards it is said the wine industry Is not a paying one but that is owing to the market and not because of the failure of the once barren and parched hills in producing their yield olives grow there fine almonds figs and other kindred fruits get along without the rain the country supplies the essence of success is to understand how to terrace and build the vineyard so that the moisture bated can be kept in the mount the country around jerusalem is being gradually ruined by tb Arabs in this way there being no fuel to speak of the dig out the roots of the brush on the side hills and among the rocks and ami I 1 carry them to the cities to sell thin exposes the soft earth to the heavy rainfall which in its torrent carries carriea it W d down own into the ravines and some of it to the ocean this is damaging to the country the little soil found among the rocks ought to remain in many places it needs being carried up and un undoubtedly it has been carried up to in places even now they make land that way these advantages and mistakes are am all made plain by these germans if they committed the error in buying little land and making the little they bought nice we can benefit from it by seeing what they have done and feel encouraged that we will not tumble into these mistakes that will cause our sons to seek other countries for homo after once located on the promised soil in speaking to the acting dinten dinted states consul in haifa I 1 was told that twixt the people here were but little in debt and that they did moderately well web owing to the call too foro transportation in the country which they furnished it then these people without the direct word of god can do as they have how much better will it not be for those who are led immediately by the guidance of the priesthood jot the son ot of god P F IF letter from haifa haifa syria april 28 IM 1898 As the last few days have been spent in looking over this country on and around mt carmel both to the bouth about the Crock odile river and to tb taft east and northeast of the mt up the kishon and on the plains of jezreel Jeas Jes reel it ft would probably interest the readers ot of the news to know something about the health of the country in general in speaking of the health of tola country we must necessarily touch w P on village life customs a subject which has tw two sides eddes the nicer however being 99 80 small that it takes a great deal of magnifying to see it or a great dealt stretch of imagination to know that tt ft exists really village life in palestine is so filthy that it cannot well be de scribed ascribed with polite language As a vwe rule the people ire are poor and then they have poor ways which also make poor peor people you may read about orientals Orient als bw clad in silks but we dont see it among 19 villagers in palestine ahby do well to 9 get less expensive goods often a poor wretch 1 seen ohp can scarcely cover his nakedness ness the generality of them J being well off when dressed in some good cotton garment with a woolen wrap and what good would silken goods be to them their houses oft te mere huts dirty in thee the extreme on the outside and smoky and poorly arranged arit on the inside the village itse it has no streets it has only narrows crooked lanes with many corners comm and turns each of which furnish a place tor for human convenience either male or female male e children and dogs are excepted they enjoy the open street evely where so that between the animals aahl d humans of a village its nao w comely passages are so filthy that one oae 1 can only pass by picking Us hia wv way ca carefully what need have they ox 0 silben dresses under such circumstanced iven though they could afford them thein and then the dung hills which are found either in some open space in the city or just outside between the last houses of the village in some places the tops of the houses are occupied by the people for private purposes at night now take all this and ask the question about health and wealth and the question will soon find an answer the land was cursed and the people suffer an indolent race is occupying the land and they are satisfied with existing conditions these conditions are fearful we have wondered that people could live under such circumstances often they have but one spring or perhaps none but have a cistern built in a proper place out of town here they go and bring water for all purposes but they do not care to protect this water the women wade right into the water wash their feet and their jars and then dip up the water to drink or fill their jars we have seen young men in swimming in such places and people dome along and carry the water home for house use of course the country is unhealthy anoche and the people are poor if they then are unfortunate enough to live where the water is naturally bad or where the air la more or less lesa poisoned by some nearby swamp then the people die off from froin fever or some other contagious dise disease alse these causes and the facts that the swamps and low places are never drained trees never planted and no steps taken to improve all tend to mke the whole country more or lego unhealthy the plains of sharon are nearly houseless people live in the hilb hift the valley of jezreel and the and jordan just the same these theme are the best farming districts in PA palestine Jestine these lands are exceedingly rioh rih much of it being a reddish loam were once highly cult cultivated ived they sustained life and were not poisonous fever centers and they can of course be made so again and will undoubtedly in course of time when the zord lord will return the proper people but his people could not and would not try to endure under such circumstances they wet would soon bams by his blessings change affA tro the mountains are however more mere healthy but the mode of life in a mountain Is much more laborious than on the gladne the hills will of course have to be settled first and they furnish excellent vin vals aid ove and fig groves the country lias has a blessing in wet the early and V later rains being good so that the low I 1 places are now too wet and we have 1 been puzzled to know how some of these fine lands could be properly drained at reasonable expense so BO that chev might be productive and useful it an oan nevertheless be done it is a matter of time great care will wilL have bave to be exercised in selecting tb tte proper stoper places to build on to be begin gin with the germans have proved that the low country about jaffa can be redeemed with care can and that by planting the cypress the eucalyptus an and dother other health producing trees the taw t influences be largely overcome strict cleanliness about the person about the house and town does its part clean water as pure as ble mixed with lemon which do well hez or mixed with a little pure hoewe ade wine or the quenching 1 of able thirst with a good sweet juicy will also promote health proper food in its own season or in a word to word wora of wisdom ewh god has provided in nature will gradually overcome these theme fatal effects upon man here hem and then beyond allot this when the blessings of god 1 renan wording according to the prayers of alfr servants ts holding his holy priest who pray holdal y kb hm in m mighty gaty then wilt 1 t the proper ar e efforts fro of tie au successful fol to the r restoration est on of this blessed land to its promised glory often the filth can be scented a long way oft off and if man cannot be pleased with its present condition how can that lord be pleased with it who gave the house of israel one of the strictest code of laws relating to purification ever given to man many obstacles are seen in making a livelihood he rebut the germans and the jews who are here have shown this one fact that the land is habitable and in some instances good livings are obtained by economy A great deal of unselfishness must be exhibited one german saying I 1 may not be an israelite but god has said shall build thy walls now I 1 wish to be one of them scores have come with that feeling in their hearts an dhave and have succeeded where they have failed it is through other causes such as drink and extravagance but those who come in faith and who retained their first love odthe of the cause that they espoused have succeeded and are today an encouragement to the saints who know more who have a higher aim and directed more clearly and certain by that god who cares for all his children and who fulfills all his promises I 1 we are all well and send love and greeting to all our friends P F F HINTZE in alabama deer springs ala may 31 1898 we take pleasure in sending you a copy of the minutes of the semiannual semi annual conference of the deer springs branch of the church of jesus christ of lat ter day saints it was held may and 1898 at deer springs cov 1 l ington county ala in the grove of brother john nichols Nichol fl there were present of the elders from zion president D H thomas j elders P F W andrus ezra P monson I 1 J HM elville david and james C stover beside some of the local priesthood meeting was held at 10 a m and 2 p m each day saturday forenoon the subject of repentance was dwelt dwek upon by elder J H melville elder F W |
