The streets are roughly and badly paved with stone，and are tolerably crooked--enough SO to make each street appear to close together constantly and come to an end about a hundred yards ahead of a pilgrim as long as he chooses to walk in it．Projecting from the top of the lower story of many of the houses is a very narrow porch-roof or shed，without supports from below，and I have several times seen cats jump across the street from one shed to the other when they were out calling．The cats could have jumped double the distance without extraordinary exertion．I mention these things to give an idea of how narrow the streets are．Since。a cat can jump across them without the least inconvenience，it is hardly necessary to state that such streets are too narrow for carriages．These vehicles can not navigate the Holy City．
The population of Jerusalem is composed of Moslems，Jews，Greeks，Latins，Armenians，Syrians，Copts，Abyssinians，Greek Catholics．and a handful of Protestants．One hundred of the latter sect are all that dwell now in this birthplace of Christianity．The nice shades of nationalitV comprised in the above list，and the languages spoken by them，arealtogether too numerous to mention．It seems to me that all the races andcolors and tongues of the earth must be represented among the fourteenthousand souls that dwell in Jerusalem．Rags，wretchedness，povertyand dirt，those signs and symbols that indicate the presence of Moslemrule more surely than the crescent-flag itself,abound．Lepers，cripples，the blind，and the idiotic，assail you on every hand，and they know butone word of but one language apparently--the eternal“bucksheesh．’’To see the numbers of maimed，malformed and diseased humanity thatthrong the holy places and obstruct the gates，one might suppose that the ancient days had come again，and that the angel of the Lord was expectedto descend at any moment to stir the waters of Bethesda，Jerusalem ismournful，and dreary，and lifeless．1 would not desire to live here． One naturally goes first to the Holy Sepulchre．It is right in the city，near the western gate；it and the place of the Crucifixion，and，in fact，every other place intimately connected with that tremendous event，areingeniously massed together and covered by one r00卜the dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre． Entering the building，through the midst of the usual assemblage of beggars，one sees on his left a few Turkish guards--for Christians of different sects will not only quarrel，but fight，also，in this sacred place，if allowed to do it．Before you is a marble slab，which covers the Stone of Unction，whereon the Saviour’S body was laid to prepare it for burial．It was found necessary to conceal the real stone it this way in order to saveif from destruction．Pilgrims were too much given to chipping off pieces of it to carry home．Near by is a circular railing which marks the spot where the Virgin stood when the Lord’S body was anointed．
Entering the great Rotunda，we stand before the most sacred locality in Christendom--the grave of Jesus．It is in the centre of the church，and immediately under the great dome．It is enclosed in a sort of little temple of yellow and white stone of fanciful design．Within the little temple is a portion of the very stone which was rolled away from the door of the Sepulchre，and on which the angel was sitting when Mary came thither “at carly dawn．”Stooping low．we enter the vaul卜tIle Sepulchre itself．It is only about six feet by seven，and the stone couch on which the dead Saviour lay extends from end to end of the apartment and occupies half its width．It is covered with a marble slab which has been much wom by the lips of pilgrims．This slab serves as an altar now．Over it hang some fifty gold and silver lamps，which are kept always burning，and the place is otherwise scandalized by trumpery gewgaws and tawdry ornamentation．
All sects of Christians(except Protestants，)have chapels under the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre，and each must keep to itself and not venture upon another’S ground．It has been proven conclusively that they can not worship together around the grave of the Saviour of the World in peace．The chapel of the Syrians is not handsome；that of the Copts is the humblest of them a11．It is nothing but a dismal cavern，roughly hewn in the living rock of the Hill of Calvary．In one side of it two ancient tombs are hewn，which are claimed to be those in which Nicodemus and Joseph of Aramathea were buried．
