a city of Judah, generally cal led Bethlehim of Judah, or Bethlehem Ephratah, to distinguish it from another Bethlehem in Zebulun. Neither eminent for the number, nor the wealth of its inhabitants, it became famous by being the birth place of the royal Psalmist, hence emphatically named the city of David; but still more so, by being chosen by Providence to give birth to the Saviour of the world. For that reason, though now reduced to the size of a village, it has always been regarded as a place of high renown ; and at present can boast of a convent of the Latins, another of the Greeks, and a third of the Armenians. But its chief ornament is a magnificent chu--h, erected by the pious Empress Helena, over the place where the Saviour was born ; to which a great number of pilgrims annually resort. It is built in the form of a cross, and the top of it commands a fine view of the surrounding country. The roof is of cedar, covered with lead, and support ed by four rows of lofty pillars, ten in a row, and each formed of one entire piece of white marble. The walls were overlaid with the same beautiful stone, but it is said that the Turks have carried it away to adorn their mosques. The upper ends of the cross terminate in three semicircles, in each of which there is an altar. Over the chancel is a large cupola, of which the outside is covered with lead, and the inside adorned with beautiful Mosaic workman ship. Here also is a cave, or grotto, hollowed out of a chalky rock, which is highly reverenced on account of a tradition, that in it the Virgin Mary hid herself and her child from the wrath of Herod, for some time before she and Joseph fled with him into Egypt. On the west side of the town there is a well, called the lVell of David, on account of his extreme desire to drink the water of it ; (2 Sam. xxiii. 15.) but it now resembles a cistern more than a well, being sup. plied only with rain water. About two furlongs be yond it, are still to be seen the remains of au old aqueduct, said to have been the work of Solomon, for the purpose of conveying the water from Solo mon's pools to Jerusalem. It runs the whole way along the surface of the Found, and is composed of coarse marble stones, united together with a cement which has become even harder than the stones them selves. For the greater security, these were covered
with smaller stones mixed with a strong mortar, so that the whole work seems to have possessed a du rability sufficient to withstand the ravages of time. But this strong aqueduct, which at an immense la bour and expense had been carried five or six leagues, has been so completely destroyed by the.Turks, that only a few scattered fragments of it remain.
For an account of the present state of Bethlehem, we shall transcribe the short description which is given of it by Volney. " This village, situated two leagues south-east of Jerusalem, is seated on an emi nence, in a country full of hills and vallies, and might be rendered- very agreeable. The soil is the best in all these districts : fruits, vines, olives, and sesamum, succeed here extremely well ; but cultivation is want ing. They reckon about 600 men in this village ca pable of bearing arms upon occasion ; and this often occurs, sometimes to resist the Pacha, sometimes to make war with the adjoining villages, and sometimes in consequence of intestine dissensions. Of these 600 men, about 100 are Latin Christians, who have a vicar dependent on the great convent of Jerusalem. Formerly their whole trade consisted in the manufac ture of beads, but the reverend fathers, not being able to find a sale for all they could furnish, have resumed the cultivation of their lands. They make a white wine, which justifies the former celebrity of the wines of Judea, but it has the bad property of being very heady. The necessity of uniting for their common defence prevails over their religious differences, and makes the Christians live here in tolerable harmony with the Mahometans, their fellow-citizens. Both are of the party Yamani, which, in opposition to that , called Kaisi, divides all Palestine into two factions, perpetually at variance. The courage of these pea sants, which has been frequently tried, has rendered them formidable through all that country." See Vol ney's Travels, vol. ii. p. 322. Maundrell's Journey to Aleppo, p. 132. Browne's Travels in Af•ica, p. 363. Ant. Univ. Hist. vol. ii. p. 477. Calmct's Dict. (A. F.)