dangers with the terrors of his armament. The dragoman had paid his

master, but that counted as nothing--if you hire a man to sneeze for you,

here, and another man chooses to help him, you have got to pay both.

They do nothing whatever without pay. How it must have surprised these

people to hear the way of salvation offered to them "without money and

without price." If the manners, the people or the customs of this

country have changed since the Saviour's time, the figures and metaphors

of the Bible are not the evidences to prove it by.

We entered the great Latin Convent which is built over the traditional

dwelling-place of the Holy Family. We went down a flight of fifteen

steps below the ground level, and stood in a small chapel tricked out

with tapestry hangings, silver lamps, and oil paintings. A spot marked

by a cross, in the marble floor, under the altar, was exhibited as the

place made forever holy by the feet of the Virgin when she stood up to

receive the message of the angel. So simple, so unpretending a locality,

to be the scene of so mighty an event! The very scene of the

Annunciation--an event which has been commemorated by splendid shrines

and august temples all over the civilized world, and one which the

princes of art have made it their loftiest ambition to picture worthily

on their canvas; a spot whose history is familiar to the very children of

every house, and city, and obscure hamlet of the furthest lands of

Christendom; a spot which myriads of men would toil across the breadth of

a world to see, would consider it a priceless privilege to look upon.

It was easy to think these thoughts. But it was not easy to bring myself

up to the magnitude of the situation. I could sit off several thousand

597

The Innocents Abroad