. The pathways and abiding places of our Lord;. e. We, therefore, soon left the hallowed spot, andascended to the top of the convent to enjoy the fresh air and the beautiful pros-pect around Bethlehem. Beneath us lay the fertile valley embosomed amongthe hills, and as we looked towards the north in the direction of Jerusalem, wehad upon our right the mountains of En-gedi rising above the Dead Sea. We now hastened our return to Jerusalem, in order that we might reach thecity before the gates were closed at sunset. Thursday, April 12th. — While at Bethlehem we had intended to visit thepools of S
. The pathways and abiding places of our Lord;. e. We, therefore, soon left the hallowed spot, andascended to the top of the convent to enjoy the fresh air and the beautiful pros-pect around Bethlehem. Beneath us lay the fertile valley embosomed amongthe hills, and as we looked towards the north in the direction of Jerusalem, wehad upon our right the mountains of En-gedi rising above the Dead Sea. We now hastened our return to Jerusalem, in order that we might reach thecity before the gates were closed at sunset. Thursday, April 12th. — While at Bethlehem we had intended to visit thepools of Solomon, which are a few miles beyond, on the road to Hebron. Thispurpose we were to-day enabled to accomplish. Our host, Mr. Mooshallum, aconverted Jew, and a person of great respectability, who has arranged a housein Jerusalem for the accommodation of travellers, offered to be our guide. Theroad towards Bethlehem, as far as the Greek convent of Elijah, was the same asthat of yesterday. The convent is on an eminence, upon the left hand, com-. f THE POOLS OF SOLOMON. 133 manding an extensive prospect. We turned aside for a moment to see it, andwere shown the only relic belonging to this religions establishment, namely, astone near the monastery overshadowed by a wide-spreading tree. This stone,according to the monkish tradition, was the bed of the prophet! We now left the usual road to Bethlehem, and took a right-hand pathdirectly by the small dome-covered Mohammedan Oratory, erected over the spotalready described as the site of Eachels tomb. Three miles more of a veryrough road brought us to the remarkable objects of our visit, when we were indeedamply repaid for our uncomfortable ride. Here, in a secluded valley, sur-rounded by hills, were the pools which Solomon constructed for the purpose ofsupplying Jerusalem and his intervening gardens with water. The reservoirsare three in number, one rising above the other, so that the overflow falls intothe lowest, and from that an aq
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