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Article FBEEMASONRY ILLUSTRATED. ← Page 12 of 16 →
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Fbeemasonry Illustrated.
Count of Tripoli threw everything into confusion , and , save a few , all were slaughtered ; the king , the Master of the Templars , and a few Knights felling into the hands of Saladin > Tiberias fell , and the Moslems next attacked the Templars ' - castle on Mount Tabor , putting the entire garrison to the sword . Saladin then marched for Jerusalem , laying waste all the country on his route
He first proceeded to Ascalon , which , there being no possibility of successfully defending , the inhabitants agreed to surrender , on receiving a promise from Saladin that he would set at liberty the king and the Master of the Temple , which was agreed to . The fortress of Gaza , likewise belonging to the Templars , after a short resistance , also fell . ; Bethlehem was abandoned ; and as Saladin was present , no cruelties took place there .
Bethlehem-Ephrata , as it is called by the prophet Micah—a place of high antiquity , it having been a city in the time of Boaz , the great grandfather of David—is about six miles to the south of Jerusalem . The town covers the ridge of a hill ; and the most conspicuous object is a monastery erected over the cave of the Nativity . The ground
of the valley in the front is divided into small enclosures , planted here and there with olive and fig trees . The soil is said to be the best in all these districts ; but , as is the case everywhere else undei ; the present rule , cultivation is wanting . All travellers agree that it is now a poor village ; but , as Dr . Eiehardson says , " it : is the birthplace of David and David ' s Lord , which is praise sufficient for any
village on earth . " When the bells of the churches of Jerusalem were tolling to vespers on a summer ' s eve , the vast array of the Moslem covered every eminence that surrounded the holy city of David , At sunrise the clash of arms and the roll of the drum roused the terrified
inhabitants ; the women put up their hands to Heaven , and the men rushed to the battlements . The slaughter in the recent conflicts had been so terrific , that of the thousands of brave warriors the Templars had hitherto assembled , but a miserably few Knights , with some serving brethren , alone remained . Despite the disparity of numbers , the defenders for fifteen days
successiully resisted the attack , baladin s powerful engines , however , on the 16 th of October , threw down an angle of the northern wall . In the morning the Moslems commenced the assault , and then the inhabitants sent to implore mercy . Saladin refused to hear them , and declared he would take the city as the Franks had obtained it—sword in hand . The few Templars and Hospitallers that remained manned the breach , repulsed the besiegers , and threw
clown the standards of Mahomet that had been planted on the walls . Messengers were then sent to Saladin to say that if lie refused to treat , the defenders would burn the temple or mosque ot Omar , and massacre all the Moslem prisoners . This defiant missive ! brought Saladin to terms , and he was put in possession of the city . A ransom was to be paid for every one ; and the Templars and Hospitallers parted with all their money and valuables to redeem their
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Fbeemasonry Illustrated.
Count of Tripoli threw everything into confusion , and , save a few , all were slaughtered ; the king , the Master of the Templars , and a few Knights felling into the hands of Saladin > Tiberias fell , and the Moslems next attacked the Templars ' - castle on Mount Tabor , putting the entire garrison to the sword . Saladin then marched for Jerusalem , laying waste all the country on his route
He first proceeded to Ascalon , which , there being no possibility of successfully defending , the inhabitants agreed to surrender , on receiving a promise from Saladin that he would set at liberty the king and the Master of the Temple , which was agreed to . The fortress of Gaza , likewise belonging to the Templars , after a short resistance , also fell . ; Bethlehem was abandoned ; and as Saladin was present , no cruelties took place there .
Bethlehem-Ephrata , as it is called by the prophet Micah—a place of high antiquity , it having been a city in the time of Boaz , the great grandfather of David—is about six miles to the south of Jerusalem . The town covers the ridge of a hill ; and the most conspicuous object is a monastery erected over the cave of the Nativity . The ground
of the valley in the front is divided into small enclosures , planted here and there with olive and fig trees . The soil is said to be the best in all these districts ; but , as is the case everywhere else undei ; the present rule , cultivation is wanting . All travellers agree that it is now a poor village ; but , as Dr . Eiehardson says , " it : is the birthplace of David and David ' s Lord , which is praise sufficient for any
village on earth . " When the bells of the churches of Jerusalem were tolling to vespers on a summer ' s eve , the vast array of the Moslem covered every eminence that surrounded the holy city of David , At sunrise the clash of arms and the roll of the drum roused the terrified
inhabitants ; the women put up their hands to Heaven , and the men rushed to the battlements . The slaughter in the recent conflicts had been so terrific , that of the thousands of brave warriors the Templars had hitherto assembled , but a miserably few Knights , with some serving brethren , alone remained . Despite the disparity of numbers , the defenders for fifteen days
successiully resisted the attack , baladin s powerful engines , however , on the 16 th of October , threw down an angle of the northern wall . In the morning the Moslems commenced the assault , and then the inhabitants sent to implore mercy . Saladin refused to hear them , and declared he would take the city as the Franks had obtained it—sword in hand . The few Templars and Hospitallers that remained manned the breach , repulsed the besiegers , and threw
clown the standards of Mahomet that had been planted on the walls . Messengers were then sent to Saladin to say that if lie refused to treat , the defenders would burn the temple or mosque ot Omar , and massacre all the Moslem prisoners . This defiant missive ! brought Saladin to terms , and he was put in possession of the city . A ransom was to be paid for every one ; and the Templars and Hospitallers parted with all their money and valuables to redeem their