It passed, the blue
sky reappeared, and lo! the clear light streamed upon her marble palaces
and clustered houses, and was reflected from the golden roofs of the
Temple. So calm and peaceful did the glorious city look that none would
have deemed indeed that she was already nothing but a slaughter-house,
where factions fought furiously, and day by day hundreds of Jews
perished beneath the knives of their own brethren.
Caleb gave the word to break their camp, and with bodies shivering in
the cold and spirits terrified by fear, they marched across the rugged
hills towards the Joppa gate, noting as they passed into the valley
that the country had been desolated, for but little corn sprang in the
fields, and that was trodden down, while of flocks and herds they saw
none. Reaching the gate they found it shut, and there were challenged by
soldiers, wild-looking men with ferocious faces of the army of Simon of
Gerasa that held the Lower City.
"Who are you and what is your business?" these asked.
Caleb set out his rank and titles, and as these did not seem to satisfy
them Benoni explained that the rest of them were fugitives from Tyre,
where there had been a great slaughter of the Jews.
"Fugitives always have money; best kill them," said the captain of the
gate.
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