How I Spent My Five Week's Leave.

Solomon , led astray by his wives , gave way to idolatry . " There stood Her temple on the offensive mountain , built By that uxorious king , whose heart , though large , Beguil'd by fair idolatresses , fell To idols foul " Paradise Lost .

We then proceed with Bro . Lieut . Warren , R . E ., to visit the excavations which he has been making For the " Palestine Exploration Fund , " and most interesting we find them . From the number of times Jerusalem has been destroyed and rebuilt ,

vast quantities of debris have accumulated , ancl ancient Jerusalem lies far beneath the surface . I have been told , that persons in Jerusalem building houses , have found the foundations give way from arches below falling in , and that digging

down 40 ft , or more , they still find debris ; this I can believe , for the explorations in the Tyropean valley show that the soil has risen there from 60 to 90 ft ., and close to the old hospital of the Knights of St . John , the soil is known to have

risen 25 ft . in the last ten years . The people carry all ashes or other rubbish to the nearest vacant spot , or throw it over the city walls , so any hollow soon gets filled up . We first enter the excavations near the Jews' wailing place , and divesting ourselves of coats , hats , and all unnecessary encumbrances , we take each a pilgrim's taper , and

follow our gallant Sapper . We have to creep along underground passages like drains , where sometimes we can scarcely crawl . In several places one can scarcely squeeze the body through , and then to find oneself all at once in a high

arched chamber ; we are nearly suffocated too , with the smell from the drainage of the modern city above . We are now among the arches and ruins of the period of Herod , and come at length to a long passage which he made , to connect his

palace with the Haram area ; this passage was always suspected to be hereabouts , but to Bro . Warren is , I believe , due , the honour of having discovered it . We next enter a most curious chamber , which has been called the Masonic Hall .

It has six pillars round the sides , and" one pedestal or pillar stands by itself near the centre . It would be worth while to clear out this chamber , which is at present filled up with earth and rubbish , so that only the capitals of the pillars are visible as

we creep in , under the roof . We now leave this excavation and go to the Jews' wailing place . Some sort of worshi p is going on , and the crowd

of Jews assembled make some sort of responses . After the service , one sees them kissing and weeping over the massive stones of which the Haram wall is composed , some of which are from 10 to 20 ft . long , and shew the ancient Jewish bevelled

edges . This is not the regular day of wailing ( Friday ); however a few Jews are to be seen , thus mourning over their dishonoured sanctuary , to the site of which , this is the- nearest permitted approach . One is reminded of the words of the Psalmist .

" O God the heathen are come into Thine inheritance : Thy holy temple have they defiled ; They have laid Jerusalem on heaps . We are hecome a reproach to our neighbours , a scorn and derision to them that are round about us . How long Lord ? Wilt Thou be angry for ever ? Shall Thy jealousy burn like fire ? " Psalm lxxix . 1 . 4 , 5 .

Something after this model must it be that these poor oppressed outcasts lament over the departed glories of their nation , country and temple , where they once were blest with the constant presence of the Almighty . Truly may they

exclaim " Ichabod , thy glory is departed . We now go on with Bro . Warren to see the excavations he has made in the Tyropean valley among the remains of Solomon ' s bridge , by which he crossed the valley from his palace on Zion , to the temple

on Moriah ; one can imagine how necessary this bridge must have been , when the valley was some 90 ft . deeper than it now is . Here , we descend a shaft some 70 ft . deep , being let down in a sort of swing chair by a rope ancl pulley ; we then creep

along a gallery and come on one of the piers of the bridge , and a little further find ourselves on the enormous stones of which the arch was

constructed ; these are shaped like the key-stone of an arch , and are specially interesting as having formed a portion of that causeway which so amazed the Queen of Sheba by its magnificence , that there was " no more spirit in her , " ancl along

which the Kings and Princes of Israel were wont to go , to pay their vows unto the Lord at the temple . This discovery of Lieut . Warren's completely justifies the hypothesis of Dr . Robinson , who discovered the remains of the commencement of an

arch ,, from the Haram wall , and at once declared it to be the beginning of the bridge to Zion . From the curve of these single stones he calculated the diameter of the arch , to be 41 ft ., and excavation shows he was right within 6 in . ! Our best thanks are due to Mr . Warren , for the