The Preaching Tours and Missionary Labours of George Müller (of Bristol)Müller, Susannah Grace Sanger
Religion
The Preaching Tours and Missionary Labours of George Müller (of Bristol)
Müller, Susannah Grace Sanger
Müller, George, 1805-1898
Before our departure from Haipha, we intended to visit Nazareth; but as
there was no carriage road even _tolerably_ good, and as riding on
horseback for nearly 40 miles would have been objectionable, serious
difficulties were in the way. We desired to engage a Russian waggon, and
did our utmost to obtain one, but the Brook Kishon (through which our
route lay) being swollen from the recent heavy rains, and as the
adjacent country was partially under water, its owner refused to let us
have it, because the journey was impracticable. Though Haipha possessed
attractions of its own, there were discomforts also connected with our
visit; for the hotel accommodation was inferior and uncomfortable. Our
apartment for instance had a rough, dusty, uneven stone floor, without
any carpet; and even in cold, rainy weather, as it possessed neither
fireplace nor stove, no fire could be had. The room too, from being
scantily furnished, was comfortless in appearance; and though the
sleeping accommodation was clean it was hard and uninviting. The meals,
however, were good, and for wholesome, nourishing food we felt most
thankful; but let no one visit small towns or villages in the Holy Land,
and expect to find that they contain European comforts. The English
clergyman at Nazareth (who had resided there for a considerable time)
informed us, that throughout the winter he had one constant series of
"domestic miseries" to contend with. Through the flat roof of his house,
the rain leaked in, fuel was scarce and expensive, provisions were dear
and not easily obtained, meat was tough and of inferior quality, and
often little besides goats' flesh could be procured. He remarked also
that visitors to the Holy Land, who frequent the best hotels at Jaffa
and Jerusalem, and carry their comforts about with them, can form no
conception of the real poverty of the country, and of the degraded
condition of the _native_ population, as seen in the little towns and
villages of the interior. As far as the hotels at Haipha, however, are
concerned, they must be superior to the inn accommodation in some parts
of _Asia Minor_, which, according to the guide books, is "_execrable_."
On the afternoon of Feb. 20th we left Haipha, in an open waggon; and,
after alighting on the sea shore, were carried on the shoulders of Arabs
across some shallow water to a boat, which conveyed us to a large
Austrian steamer bound for Beyrout, Syria. At half-past 8 p.m. the
vessel sailed; at 7 o'clock the next morning we reached our destination
(where a most unpleasant rough landing in a small boat awaited us), and
were afterwards conducted by a guide to the Hôtel de l'Orient, at a
short distance only from the landing place.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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