Nazareth, Feb. 18.—There is a low range of hills, about five hundred
feet above the sea-level, half-way between Haifa and Nazareth. It is
beautifully timbered with oak-trees, and cut up into the most charming
valleys. Running almost due north and south, it divides the plain of
Esdraelon from that of Acre. Its southern extremity, terminating
abruptly, forms a small gorge with the Carmel range, through which the
Kishon forces its way to the sea. It was during a heavy rain-storm a
week ago that I approached the ford of this river from Haifa. It was not
without trepidation, for the stream had been so swollen by recent rains
that communication with the interior had been interrupted. It was
doubtful whether the passage of this river, which almost dries up in
summer, would not involve a ducking. I therefore prudently requested my
companion to precede me into the yellow, swirling stream, and although
the water came up to our saddle-bags, the horses managed to get across
without losing their footing. Then we galloped into the oak-woods. The
sun broke out from behind the clouds, and we determined to prosecute our
search for certain caves, of the existence of which we had heard, and
which, owing to the state of the weather, we had almost decided to
abandon.
Leaving the high-road to Nazareth to the right, we followed a path for
about half an hour which took us to the village of Sheik Abreik. It was
a miserable collection of mud hovels, in the muddiest of which dwelt the
sheik. After much palaver and promises of abundant backsheesh we got him
to admit the existence of the caverns of which we were in search, and
persuaded him to be our guide to them. The first was called by the Arabs
“The Cave of Hell.” Its entrance seemed to justify the ill-omened
appellation. It was a steep, sloping tunnel into the bowels of the
earth, just large enough to admit the passage of a man's body. To slide
into this feet foremost after a heavy rain involved a coating of mud
from top to toe. After going down a few yards we found a chamber in
which we could stand erect. Here we lighted our candle and looked about
us. We found that it was the first of a series of similar chambers
opening one into another. Each contained loculi, hewn out of the solid
rock. The entrances to these chambers were arched. The pilasters on each
side of the entrance were in some cases ornamented with rude sculptures
and decorated with designs in a yellow pigment. These were in the form
of curves, scrolls, and circles, and were carried over the roof. Each
chamber was about ten feet long by six feet wide, and on an average
contained three tombs or loculi, one across the chamber, facing the
entrance, and one on each side. There do not seem ever to have been lids
to these stone receptacles for the corpses.
The bodies were embalmed, wrapped in cloths, as we read in Scriptural
accounts of burials, notably in that of our Saviour. “Each in his narrow
cell forever laid,” they remained undisturbed until rude hands, ages
afterwards, “rolled away the stone from the mouth of the cave” and
rifled the contents.
Some of the entrances to the chambers had been completely filled up. In
such cases the partition wall of rock had been broken through. Some of
the chambers were larger than others, and there were two tiers of
loculi. In order to get from one chamber to another it was often
necessary to drag yourself along at full length upon the ground. In one
case the roof had been broken through into a chamber above, and this
probably led to more.
I had not time fully to explore this most curious and interesting spot.
Examinations of this sort in the middle of a long day's ride are very
fatiguing. The effort of scrambling about on all fours, or after the
fashion of the serpent, is very great, and makes you very dirty. In the
absence of a string you are haunted by the idea of not being able to
find your way back, to say nothing of the chance of sticking in one of
these narrow passages. Altogether, I entered about fifteen different
chambers, and doubtless the others did not differ in any important
particulars. I am afraid, however, that I was not the first to discover
them, but that this honour rests with Captain Conder, Royal Engineers,
of the Palestine Exploration Fund. The sheik told us he had once before
guided a foreigner to this locality, and on the next cave we visited we
found the letters R. E. scratched in red paint on the rock, which under
these circumstances can only mean Royal Engineers.
The next cave was a much more comfortable one to examine, though not
nearly so interesting. You could walk about it comfortably, but there
was no ornamentation. The chambers were larger, but there were only five
or six of them. The stone coffins had, in many instances, been
completely destroyed, but the massive stone columns, or rather blocks,
of living rock which supported the roof were finer than those in the
“Cave of Hell.” Perhaps it owed its more dilapidated condition to the
largeness of its entry, and its proximity to another huge cave which had
evidently in crusading times been converted into a Christian place of
worship. According to a rough measurement obtained by pacing it, the
nave was seventy feet by thirty, the apse eighteen by twenty-one, and
two apse-shaped transepts about twenty by eighteen; but these were very
much filled with rubbish. The height of the cave was about thirty feet.
The whole formed a subterranean church, which, in its perfect condition,
when entered from the hillside, must have presented a very imposing
appearance. On the slope of the hill, not far from this cave, was the
carved pedestal of a granite column, and near it a handsome stone
sarcophagus.
Instead of going back to the Nazareth road after finishing our
examination of this interesting spot, we made for a hill on the summit
of which we saw some large blocks of stone betokening ruins. Here we
came upon a native excavation, evidently very recent. Indeed, we heard
later that it had only been abandoned the week before. The natives
occasionally find an unopened tomb, and dig into it for treasure. It was
useless to attempt to disabuse their minds of the idea that we were
treasure-hunters. On asking them what they had found, they said, some
red glass bottles, which they had broken to discover what they
contained. They had also found three jars, one containing ashes, one
earth, and one was empty. These they had also smashed. It was enough to
make one's mouth water to hear of the destruction of these curiosities
so very recently. I implored them if they found any more not to break
them, but to bring them to me. They laughed, and promised to do so,
saying, at the same time, “They are so very old that they are not worth
anything.” This cave was evidently an important one, but the natives,
finding nothing but the glass and the jars, had blocked up the entrance
again, and I had to put off the examination of it to some future time.
On the top of the hill there were several sarcophagi, some coffins hewn
out of the living rock on the surface, with the stone lid at the side.
At one place I saw a huge stone lid about eight feet long, two feet six
inches broad at its base, and the same in height, but coming up to a
ridge, which was evidently still covering the mortal remains which had
originally been placed beneath it. The position of this I have also
marked, and propose, at some future time, to remove it by gunpowder and
see what is below.
Had it not been necessary to push on in order to reach Nazareth before
night, I would have lingered longer at these ruins, which are called
Zebda by the natives. They are worthy of a full examination. The whole
rocky summit of the hill is evidently honeycombed with cave tombs, many
of which had not yet been opened. One of these, some miles farther on
towards Nazareth, especially attracted my attention. A huge circular
stone about two feet in diameter had been rolled into the carved stone
entrance to the cave, and become tightly wedged. All the efforts of the
natives to remove it, and the marks of such efforts were visible, had
evidently been unavailing. It needed a very small charge of dynamite to
remove the obstacle which had so successfully resisted the barbarian
ingenuity of ages. This I had arranged to do, but on the day fixed for
the purpose persistent rain disappointed me. However, it is a treat in
store.
The first entrance into one of these old Jewish tomb-caverns will be an
exciting episode, but there is an amount of suspicion and jealousy on
the part of the natives which will render prudence and circumspection
necessary if any attempt of this sort is to be carried out with success.
The whole plain of Esdraelon, on the verge of which this ruin is
situated, as well as part of the hills behind, is now all owned by one
rich firm of Syrian bankers, who draw an annual income of about $200,000
a year from it. They own practically about five thousand human beings as
well, who form the population of thirty villages, which are in their
hands. I found no more potent talisman in inducing the natives to comply
with my request; than to mention the name of “Sursuk,” and imply that I
had the honour of his acquaintance. No despot exercises a more
autocratic power over the liberties or the lives of his subjects than
does this millionaire landed proprietor, who continues annually to add
to his territory till the whole of Galilee seems in danger of falling
into his hands. This part of the country, however, is at present
beginning to attract the attention of foreigners, and it is to be hoped
that before long he may find rivals in the field who will do more to
improve the condition of the peasantry, and introduce methods of
agriculture which may make them more independent of the money-lenders
who now make their profit by sucking their very life-blood.