by G. A. Henty
Chapter 17: The Capture Of The Temple.
Although abhorring the general conduct of Simon and John ofGischala, and believing that conditions could be made with theRomans which would save the Temple, John still retained thehope--cherished by every Jew--that God would yet, himself, saveJerusalem, as in the old times. He was conscious that the peoplehad forfeited all right to expect his aid; that, by theirwickedness and forgetfulness of him--and more especially by thefrightful scenes which had desecrated the city and Temple, duringthe last four years--they must have angered God beyond all hope offorgiveness. Still, the punishment which had been inflicted wasalready so terrible that he, like others, hoped that God's angermight yet relent, as it had done in old times, and that a remnantmight yet be spared.
But above all, their hope lay in the belief that the Temple was theactual abode of the Lord; and that, though he might suffer thewhole people to perish for their sins, he would yet protect, at thelast, his own sanctuary. Surely, John thought, as he stood on theroof of the Temple, this glorious building can never be meant to bedestroyed.
The Temple occupied a square, six hundred feet every way. The loftyrock on which it stood had been cased with solid masonry, so thatit rose perpendicularly from the plain. On the top of this massivefoundation was built a strong and lofty wall, round the whole area.Within this wall was a spacious double cloister, fifty-two and onehalf feet broad, supported by one hundred and sixty-two columns. Onthe south side the cloister was one hundred and five feetwide--being a triple cloister--and was here called the King'sCloister. Within the area surrounded by the cloisters was an opencourt, paved with marble; this was the Court of the Gentiles, andwas separated from the second court--that of the Jews--by a stonerailing, five feet high.
An ascent of fourteen steps led to a terrace, seventeen and onehalf feet wide, beyond which rose the wall of the inner court. Thiswall was seventy feet high on the outside, forty-four feet on theinside. Round the inner court was another range of cloisters. Therewere ten gates into the inner court. The doors of nine of thesegateways were fifty-two and one half feet high, and half thatbreadth. The gateways rose to the height of seventy feet. Thetenth, usually called the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, was largerthan the rest; the gateway being eighty-seven and one half feet inheight, the doors seventy feet. In the centre of the inner courtwas the Temple, itself. The great porch was one hundred andseventy-five feet in width, the gateway tower one hundred andthirty-two feet high and forty-three feet wide, and through it wasseen the Beautiful Gate. The Temple itself was built of whitemarble, and the roof was covered with sharp golden spikes.
Now that it was evident that on the side of the Temple, alone,could the enemy make an attack, the division between Simon and Johnof Gischala's men was no longer kept up. All gathered for thedefence of the Temple. The Jews kept up a vigilant watch, for theRomans could assemble in great force in Antonia, unseen by them;and could advance, under cover, by the cloisters which flanked theplatform connecting Antonia with the Temple, on either side. Theinterval between Antonia and the Temple was but three hundred feet.The cloisters were considered to form part of the Temple, and theJews were therefore reluctant to destroy them, although theygreatly facilitated the attack of the Romans.
Finding that his offers were all rejected, Titus spent seven daysin the destruction of a large portion of Antonia, and then preparedfor a night attack. As the whole army could not make the assault,thirty men were picked from each hundred. Tribunes were appointedover each thousand, Cerealis being chosen to command the whole.Titus himself mounted a watchtower in Antonia, in order that hemight see and reward each act of bravery.
The assault began between two and three o'clock in the morning. TheJews were on the watch and, as soon as the massive columns movedforward, the cries of the guards gave the alarm; and the Jews,sleeping in and around the Temple, seized their arms and rusheddown to the defence. For a time, the Romans had the advantage. Theweight of their close formation enabled them to press forwardagainst the most obstinate resistance and, even in the darkness,there was no fear of mistaking friend for foe; while the Jews,fighting in small parties, often mistook each other for enemies,and as many fell by the swords of their friends as by those of theenemy. The loss was all the greater, since the troops of John ofGischala and Simon had no common password and, coming suddenly uponeach other, often fought desperately before they discovered theirmistake; but as daylight began to break, these mistakes became lessfrequent. The presence and example of their leaders animated theJews to the greatest exertions, while the knowledge that Titus waswatching them inspired the Romans with even more than their usualcourage and obstinacy. For nine hours, the conflict raged; and thenthe Romans, unable to make the slightest impression upon theresistance of the Jews, fell back again into Antonia.
Finding that, in hand-to-hand conflict, his soldiers could not overcomethe Jews, Titus ordered the erection of small embankments--two on theplatform between the cloisters, the other two outside the cloister walls.But the work proceeded slowly, owing to the difficulty of procuring wood.The Jews, as usual, hindered the work as much as possible, with showersof missiles; and attempted to create a diversion, by a sortie and attackupon the camp of the Tenth Legion, on the Mount of Olives. This, however,was repulsed by the Romans, without great difficulty.
As the cloisters leading to Antonia afforded great assistance tothe Romans, in their attacks, the Jews set fire to the end of thecloisters touching the Temple wall; and a length of from twenty tothirty feet of each cloister was destroyed. The Romans destroyed afurther portion, so as to afford more room for the men at work uponthe embankments. The action of the Jews was, to a certain extent, anecessity; but it depressed the spirits of the inhabitants, forthere was a prophecy: "When square the walls, the Temple falls!"Hitherto, Antonia and the connecting cloisters had been consideredas forming part of the Temple, and had given it an irregular form;but the destruction of these cloisters left the Temple standing amassive square.
The embankments presently rose above the height of the wall, and itwas evident that this would soon be taken. The Jews retired from theroof of the cloister facing the embankment, as if despairing offurther resistance; but they had previously stored great quantitiesof combustibles in the space between the cedar roof of the cloistersand the upper platform. The Romans on the embankment--seeing that theJews had retired--without waiting for orders ran down and, plantingladders, scaled the wall.
The Jews set up cries, as if of despair; and the Romans poured upon to the wall until a great mass of men were collected on the roofof the cloister. Then, on a sudden, flames shot up in alldirections beneath their feet, and they found themselves envelopedin a sea of fire. Many were burned, or smothered by the smoke. Somestabbed themselves with their swords. Some leaped down into theouter court, and were there killed by the Jews. Many jumped downoutside the walls, and were picked up dead or with broken limbs.Others ran along upon the top of the walls, until they were shotdown by the Jewish missiles.
But one man seems to have escaped. A soldier named Artorius,standing on the wall, shouted to the Romans below, "Whoever catchesme shall be my heir."
A soldier ran forward to accept the terms. Artorius jumped downupon him; killing him by his fall, but himself escaping unhurt.
The fire extended along the whole of the western cloister; and thenorthern cloister was, next day, burned by the Romans and, thus, onthe west and north sides the inner Temple was now exposed to theinvader.
All this time, famine had been continuing its work. The fightingmen were so weakened that they had scarcely strength to drag theirlimbs along, or to hold their weapons; while horrible tales aretold of the sufferings of such of the inhabitants who stillsurvived--one woman, maddened by despair, cooking and eating herown infant. Occasionally a baggage animal or a Roman cavalry horsestrayed near the walls, when a crowd of famishing wretches wouldpour out, kill and devour it. Titus, however, cut off even thisoccasional supply; by ordering a soldier, whose horse had thusfallen into the hands
of the Jews, to be put to death for hiscarelessness.
John's band had been greatly diminished in number, in the two daysthey had been fighting opposite Antonia. The stores they hadbrought to the city were now exhausted; although, for a long time,only the smallest amount had been issued, daily, to eke out thehandful of grain still served out to each of the fighting men. Afew only had, in their sufferings, refused to obey the orders ofJohn and their officers, and had joined the bands of Simon and Johnof Gischala in the revolting cruelties which they practised, toextort food from the inhabitants. These had not been allowed torejoin the band; which was now reduced to a little over fiftystern, gaunt, and famine-worn figures--but still unshaken in theirdetermination to fight to the end.
The Romans now pushed on a bank, from the western wall across thesmouldering ruins of the cloister and inner court; and a batteringram began to play against the inner Temple but, after six days'efforts, and bringing up their heaviest battering ram, the Romansgave it up in despair; for the huge stones which formed the masonryof the wall defied even the ponderous machines which the Romansbrought to play against it. An embankment, from the northern side,was also carried across the outer court to the foot of the mosteasterly of the four northern gates of the inner Temple.
Still anxious to save the Temple itself, and its cloisters ifpossible, Titus would not resort to the use of fire; but orderedhis men to force the gate, with crowbars and levers. After greatefforts, a few of the stones of the threshold were removed; but thegates, supported by the massive walls and the props behind, defiedall their efforts.
Titus now ordered his soldiers to carry the walls by storm. Ladderswere brought up; and the soldiers, eager for revenge upon the foewho had so long baffled and humiliated them, sprang to the assaultwith shouts of exultation. The Jews offered no resistance, untilthe Romans reached the top of the wall but, as they leaped down onto the roof of the cloister, they threw themselves upon them.Numbers were slain, as they stepped off the ladders on to the wall;and many of the ladders were hurled backward, crushing the soldierscrowded upon them on the pavement beneath.
Then Titus ordered the standards of the legions to be carried up,thinking that the soldiers would rally round these, the emblems ofmilitary honour. The Jews, however, permitted the standards andnumbers of the legionaries to ascend on to the roof of thecloisters; and then again fell upon them, with such fury that theRomans were overpowered, the standards were taken, and theirdefenders killed. Not one of the Romans who had mounted the wallretired from it.
Titus could no longer resist the appeals of his infuriated soldierswho, maddened by the losses they had suffered, and the disgrace ofthe loss of the standards, could not understand why this loss wasentailed upon them--when such an easy way of destroying the gate,and entering the Temple, was in their power. Most reluctantly,Titus gave the permission they clamoured for, and allowed histroops to set fire to the gate. The dry woodwork caught liketinder, and the flames mounted instantly. The silver plates whichcovered the woodwork melted, and ran down in streams; and the fireat once communicated with the cloisters inside the wall.
Appalled at the sight of the inner court in flames, the Jews stooddespairing; while the shouts of triumph of the Romans rose high inthe air. During the rest of the day, and all through the night, theconflagration continued and extended all round the cloisters. Thusthe Temple, itself, was surrounded by a ring of fire.
The next day, the 4th of August, Titus called a council of hisgenerals, to deliberate on the fate of the Temple. There werepresent, besides Titus, Tiberias Alexander, the second in command;the commanders of the Fifth, Tenth, and Fifteenth Legions; Fronto,the commander of the Alexandrian troops; and Marcus AntoniusJulianus, the procurator of Judea.
Some were for levelling the Temple to the ground. Others advisedthat, if abandoned by the Jews, it might be preserved; but ifdefended as a citadel, it ought to be destroyed. Titus listened tothe opinions of the others; and then declared his own--which wasthat, whatever the use the Jews made of it, it ought to bepreserved. Alexander, Cerealis, and Fronto went over to the opinionof Titus; and therefore, by a majority of one, it was agreed thatthe Temple should be spared, however fiercely the Jews mightresist. Orders were given to prevent the fire spreading to theTemple, and to clear the ground for an assault against it.
The 5th of August broke. It was on that day that the Temple ofSolomon had been burned, by Nebuchadnezzar; but the courage of theJews was not depressed by the omen. The brief pause had enabledthem to recover from the despair which they had felt, in seeing theinner cloister in flames; and at eight o'clock in the morning,sallying from the Eastern Gate, they rushed down upon the Romans.The latter formed in close order and, covered by their shields,received the onslaught calmly. But so desperately did the Jewsfight, and in such numbers did they pour out from the Temple, thatthe Romans had begun to give way; when Titus arrived, with greatreinforcements. But even then, it was not until one o'clock thatthe Jews were driven back, again, into the walls of the innerTemple.
Titus, having seen his troops victorious, retired to his tent; andthe soldiers continued their work of clearing the platform, andextinguishing the smouldering fire of the cloisters. Suddenly theJewish bands burst out again, and another deadly strugglecommenced. Then one of the Roman soldiers, seizing a burning brandfrom the cloisters, hurled it into the window of one of the sidechambers that inclosed the Temple on the north.
In the furious struggle that was going on, none noticed the action;and it was not until the flames were seen, rushing out of thewindow, that the Jews perceived what had happened. With a cry ofanguish, they discontinued the conflict, and rushed back to try andextinguish the flames. But the woodwork, dried by the intense heatof the August sun, was ripe for burning and, in spite of the mostdesperate efforts, the fire spread rapidly.
The news that the Temple was on fire reached Titus and, startingup, accompanied by his bodyguard of spearmen--commanded byLiberatus--he hastened to the spot. His officers followed him and,as the news spread, the whole of the Roman legionaries rushed, withone accord, to the spot. Titus pushed forward into the first courtof the inner Temple--the Court of the Women--and then into theinner court and, by shouts and gestures, implored his own soldiers,and the Jews alike, to assist in subduing the flames.
But the clamour and din drowned his voice. The legionaries, pouringin after him, added to the confusion. So great was the crowd thatmany of the soldiers were crushed to death; while many fell amongthe ruins of the still smouldering cloisters, and were eithersmothered or burned. Those who reached the sanctuary paid noattention to the remonstrances, commands, or even threats of Titus;but shouted to those in front of them to complete the work ofdestruction.
Titus pressed forward, with his guards, to the vestibule; and thenentered, first the Holy, and then the Holy of Holies. After oneglance at the beauty and magnificence of the marvellous shrine, herushed back and again implored his soldiers to exert themselves tosave it; and ordered Liberatus to strike down any who disobeyed.But the soldiers were now altogether beyond control, and were madwith triumph, fury, and hate. One of the bodyguard, as Titus leftthe sanctuary, seized a brand and applied it to the woodwork. Theflames leaped up, and soon the whole Temple was wrapped in fire.
The soldiers spread through the building, snatching at the goldenornaments and vessels, and slaying all they met--unarmed men,priests in their robes, women and children. Many of the Jews threwthemselves into the flames. Some of the priests found their way onto the broad wall of the inner Temple; where they remained, untilcompelled by famine to come down, when they were all executed. Sixthousand of the populace took refuge on the roof of the RoyalCloister, along the south side of the outer Temple. The Romans setfire to this, and every soul upon it perished.
As soon as they felt that their efforts to extinguish the fire werevain, and that the Temple was indeed lost, John of Gischala, Simon,and John called their men together and, issuing out, fell with thefury of desperation upon the dense ranks of the Roman soldiers inthe
inner court and, in spite of their resistance, cut their waythrough to the outer court; and gained the bridge leading from thesouthwest corner, across the Valley of the Tyropceon, to the uppercity; and were therefore, for a time, in safety.
John, bewildered, exhausted, and heartbroken from the terribleevents of the past few days, staggered back to his house, and threwhimself on his couch; and lay there for a long time, crushed by theseverity of the blow. Until now he had hoped that Titus would, inthe end, spare the Temple; but he recognized, now, that it was theobstinacy of the Jews that had brought about its destruction.
"It was God's will that it should perish," he said, to himself;"and Titus could no more save it than I could do."
After some hours, he roused himself and descended to the room nowoccupied by the remnant of the band. Jonas and ten others, alone,were gathered there. Some had thrown themselves down on the ground.Some sat in attitudes of utter dejection. Several were bleedingfrom wounds received in the desperate fight of the morning. Otherswere badly burned in the desperate efforts they had made toextinguish the flames. Exhausted by want of food, worn out by theirexertions, filled with despair at the failure of their last hopes,the members of the little band scarce looked up when their leaderentered.
"My friends," he said, "listen to me, if but for the last time. We,at least, have nothing to reproach ourselves with. We have foughtfor the Temple, to the last; and if we failed to save it, it isbecause it was the will of God that it should perish. At any rate,our duty is done. God has not given us our lives, and preservedthem through so many fights, that we should throw them away. It isour duty, now, to save our lives, if we can. Now that the Templehas fallen, we are called upon to do no more fighting.
"Let the bands of John of Gischala, and Simon, fight to the last.They are as wild beasts, inclosed in the snare of the hunter; andthey merit a thousand deaths, for it is they who have broughtJerusalem to this pass, they who have robbed and murdered thepopulation, they who have destroyed the granaries which would haveenabled the city to exist for years, they who refused the terms bywhich the Temple might have been saved, they who have caused itsdestruction in spite of the efforts of Titus to preserve it. Theyare the authors of all this ruin and woe. They have lived as wildbeasts, so let them die!
"But there is no reason why we should die with them, for theirguilt is not upon our heads. We have done our duty in fighting forthe Temple, and have robbed and injured none. Therefore, I say, letus save our lives."
"Would you surrender to the Romans?" one of the band asked,indignantly. "Do you, whom we have followed, counsel us to becometraitors?"
"It is not treachery to surrender, when one can no longer resist,"John said, quietly. "But I am not thinking of surrendering. I amthinking of passing out of the city, into the country around.
"But first, let us eat. I see you look surprised but, although thestore we brought hither is long since exhausted, there is still alast reserve. I bought it, with all the money that I had with me,from one of Simon's men, upon the day when we came hither from thelower town. He had gained it, doubtless, in wanton robbery for, atthat time, the fighting men had plenty of food; but as it was his,I bought it, thinking that the time might come when one meal mightmean life to many of us. I have never touched it, but it remainswhere I hid it, in my chamber. I will fetch it, now."
John ascended to his chamber, and brought down a bag containingabout fifteen pounds of flour.
"Let us make bread of this," he said. "It will give us each a goodmeal, now; and there will be enough left to provide food for each,during the first day's journey."
The exhausted men seemed inspired with new life, at the sight ofthe food. No thought of asking how they were to pass through theRoman lines occurred to them. The idea of satisfying their hungeroverpowered all other feelings.
The door was closed to keep out intruders. Dough was made, and afire kindled with pieces of wood dry as tinder, so that no smokeshould attract the eye of those who were constantly on the lookoutfor such a sign that some family were engaged in cooking. The flatdough cakes were placed over the glowing embers, the whole havingbeen divided into twenty-four portions. Some of the men wouldhardly wait until their portions were baked; but John urged uponthem that, were they to eat it in a half-cooked state, theconsequences might be very serious, after their prolonged fast.Still, none of them could resist breaking off little pieces, tostay their craving.
"Let us eat slowly," John said, when the food was ready. "The moreslowly we eat, the further it will go. When it is eaten, we willtake a sleep for four hours, to regain our strength. There is nofear of our being called upon to aid in the defence. The Romansmust be as exhausted as we are; and they will need thought, andpreparation, before they attack our last stronghold, which is farstronger than any they have yet taken. If we had food, we couldhold Mount Zion against them for months."
As soon as the meal was over, all lay down to sleep. None had askedany question as to how their escape was to be effected. Theunexpected meal, which John's forethought had prepared for them,had revived all their confidence in him; and they were ready tofollow him, wherever he might take them.
It was night when John called them to awake, but the glare of thevast pile of the burning Temple lit up every object. The brightnessalmost equalled that of day.
"It is time," John said, as the men rose to their feet and graspedtheir arms. "I trust that we shall have no occasion to use weapons;but we will carry them so that, if we should fall into the hands ofthe Romans, we may fall fighting, and not die by the torments thatthey inflict upon those who fall into their hands. If I couldobtain a hearing, so as to be brought before Titus, he might giveus our lives; but I will not trust to that. In the first place,they would cut us down like hunted animals, did they come upon us;and in the second, I would not, now, owe my life to the clemency ofthe Romans."
A fierce assent was given by his followers.
"Now," John went on, "let each take his piece of bread, and put itin his bosom. Leave your bucklers and javelins behind you, but takeyour swords.
"Jonas, bring a brand from the fire.
"Now, let us be off."
None of those with him, except Jonas, had the least idea where hewas going; but he had instructed the lad in the secret of the pitand, one day, had taken him down the passages to the aqueduct.
"You and I found safety before, Jonas, together, and I trust may doso again; but should anything happen to me, you will now have themeans of escape."
"If you die, I will die with you, master," Jonas said.
And indeed, in the fights he had always kept close to John,following every movement, and ready to dash forward when his leaderwas attacked by more than one enemy; springing upon them like awildcat, and burying his knife in their throats. It was to hiswatchful protection and ready aid that John owed it that he hadpassed through so many combats, comparatively unharmed.
"Not so, Jonas," he said, in answer to the lad's declaration thathe would die with him. "It would be no satisfaction to me that youshould share my fate, but a great one to know that you would getaway safely. If I fall, I charge you to pass out by thisunderground way; and to carry to my father, and mother, and Mary,the news that I have fallen, fighting to the last, in the defenceof the Temple. Tell them that I thought of them to the end, andthat I sent you to them to be with them; and to be to my father andmother a son, until they shall find for Mary a husband who may fillmy place, and be the stay of their old age. My father will treatyou as an adopted son, for my sake; and will bestow upon you aportion of his lands.
"You have been as a brother to me, Jonas; and I pray you, promiseme to carry out my wishes."
Jonas had reluctantly given the pledge but, from that hour untilJohn had declared that he would fight no more, Jonas had been moodyand silent. Now, however, as he walked behind his friend, his facewas full of satisfaction. There was no chance, now, that he wouldhave to take home the news of his leader's death. Whatever befellthem, they would share together.
T
hey soon reached the door of the house in which the pit wassituated. It was entered, and the door closed behind them. Thelamps were then lit. John led the way to the cellar, and bade themen remove the boards.
"I will go first, with one of the lamps," he said. "Do you, Jonas,take the other, and come last in the line.
"Keep close together, so that the light may be sufficient for allto see."
Strengthened by the meal, and by their confidence in John's promiseto lead them through the Romans, the band felt like new men; andfollowed John with their usual light, active gait, as he led theway. Not a word was spoken, till they reached the hole leading intothe aqueduct.
"This is the Conduit of King Hezekiah," John said. "When we emergeat the other end, we shall be beyond the Roman lines."
Exclamations of satisfaction burst from the men. Each had beenwondering, as he walked, where their leader was taking them. Allknew that the ground beneath Jerusalem was honeycombed by caves andpassages; but that their leader could not intend to hide there wasevident, for they had but one meal with them. But that any of thesepassages should debouch beyond the Roman lines had not occurred tothem.
Each had thought that the passages they were following wouldprobably lead out, at the foot of the wall, into the Valley ofHinnom or of Jehoshaphat; and that John intended to creep with themup to the foot of the Roman wall, and to trust to activity andspeed to climb it, and make their way through the guard placedthere to cut off fugitives. But none had even hoped that they wouldbe able to pass the wall of circumvallation without a struggle.
An hour's walking brought them to the chamber over the springs.
"Now," John said, "we will rest for half an hour, before we sallyout. Let each man eat half the food he has brought with him. Therest he must keep till tomorrow, for we shall have to travel manymiles before we can reach a spot that the Romans have not laiddesolate, and where we may procure food.
"I trust," he went on, "that we shall be altogether unnoticed. Thesentries may be on the alert, on their wall, for they will think itlikely that many may be trying to escape from the city; but allsave those on duty will be either asleep after their toils, orfeasting in honour of their success. The fact, too, of the greatglare of light over Jerusalem will render the darkness moreintense, when they look in the other direction.
"But if we should be noticed, it is best that we should separate,and scatter in the darkness; each flying for his life, and makinghis way home as best he may. If we are not seen, we will keeptogether. There is no fear of meeting with any Roman bands, when weare once fairly away. The parties getting wood will have beenwarned, by the smoke, of what has taken place; and will havehurried back, to gain their share of the spoil."
At the end of the half hour, John rose to his feet and led the wayalong the passage to the entrance. When he came to the spot whereit was nearly blocked up, he blew out his light, and crawledforward over the rubbish, until he reached the open air. The othersfollowed, until all were beside him. Then he rose to his feet. TheTemple was not visible, but the whole sky seemed on fire aboveJerusalem; and the outline of the three great towers of the Palaceof Herod, and of the buildings of the upper city, stood blackagainst the glare.
There was no sign of life or movement near as, with a quick,noiseless step, the little party stole away. None of them knew morethan the general direction which they had to follow, but the glareof the great fire served as a guide as to their direction and, evenat this distance, made objects on the ground plainly visible; sothat they were enabled to pick their way among the stumps of thefallen plantations and orchards, through gardens, and by ruinedvillas and houses, until they reached the edge of the plateau, andplunged down into the valleys descending to the Dead Sea. Afterwalking for two hours, John called a halt.
"We can walk slowly now," he said, "and avoid the risk of breakingour legs among the rocks. We are safe, here; and had best lie downuntil morning, and then resume our way. There is no fear, whatever,of the Romans sending out parties, for days. They have the uppercity to take, yet, and the work of plunder and division of thespoil to carry out. We can sleep without anxiety."
It was strange, to them all, to lie down to sleep among thestillness of the mountains, after the din and turmoil of the siegewhen, at any moment, they might be called upon to leap up to repelan attack. But few of them went off to sleep, for some time. Thedull feeling of despair, the utter carelessness of life, the desirefor death and the end of trouble which had so long oppressedthem--these had passed away, now that they were free, and in theopen air; and the thoughts of the homes they had never thought tosee again, and of the loved ones who would greet them, on theirreturn, as men who had almost come back from the dead, fell uponthem. They could go back with heads erect, and clear consciences.They had fought, so long as the Temple stood. They had, over andover again, faced the Romans hand to hand, without giving way afoot. They had taken no share in the evil deeds in the city, andhad wronged and plundered no one. They did not return asconquerors, but that was the will of God, and no fault of theirs.
At daybreak they were on their feet again, and now struck off moreto the left; following mountain paths among the hills until, atlast, they came down to the plain, within half a mile of the upperend of the Dead Sea. John here called his companions round him.
"Here, my friends," he said, "I think it were best that weseparated; laying aside our swords and, singly or in pairs, findingthe way back to our homes. We know not in what towns there may beRoman garrisons, or where we may meet parties of their soldierstraversing the country. Alone, we shall attract no attention. Oneman may conceal himself behind a tree, or in the smallest bush; butthe sight of a party, together, would assuredly draw them upon us.Therefore, it were best to separate. Some of you will find itshorter to cross the ford of the Jordan, three miles away; whileothers had best follow this side of the river."
All agreed that this would be the safer plan and, after a shorttalk, each took leave of his leader and comrades, and strode away;until Jonas, alone, remained with John.
"Will you cross the river, John, or follow this side?" Jonas asked.
"I think we had best keep on this side, Jonas. On the other thecountry is hilly, and the villages few. Here, at least, we cangather fruit and corn, as we go, from the deserted gardens andfields; and two days' walking will take us to Tarichea. We cancross there, or take a boat up the lake."
After waiting until the last of their comrades had disappeared fromsight, John and his companion continued their way, keeping abouthalfway between Jericho and the Jordan. They presently bore to theleft, until on the great road running north from Jericho. This theyfollowed until nightfall, rejoicing in the grapes and figs whichthey picked by the roadside where, but a few months since, littlevillages had nestled thickly.
Just before darkness fell they came upon a village which, althoughdeserted, had not been burned--probably owing to some body of Romansoldiers having taken up their post there for a time. They enteredone of the houses, lay down, and were soon fast asleep.
