se that of Martha, were in a prominent part of this
street.

One of these streets was very near to the Temple, and began at the
gate which was called Probatica. The pool of Probatica was close to
this gate on the right hand side, and in this pool the sheep were
washed for the first time, before being taken to the Temple; while the
second and more solemn washing took place in the pool of Bethsaida,
which is near the south entrance to the Temple. The second of the
above-mentioned streets contained a house belonging to St. Anna, the
mother of the Blessed Virgin, which she usually inhabited when she came
up to Jerusalem with her family to offer sacrifice in the Temple. I
believe it was in this house that the espousals of St. Joseph and the
Blessed Virgin were celebrated.

The forum, as I have already explained, was built on higher ground
than the neighbouring streets, and the aqueducts which ran through
these streets flowed into the Probatica pool. On Mount Sion, directly
opposite to the old castle of King David, stood a building very similar
to the forum, while to the south-east might be seen the Cenacle, and a
little towards the north the tribunals of Annas and Caiphas. King David's
castle was a deserted fortress, filled with courts, empty rooms, and
stables, generally let to travellers. It had long been in this state of
ruin, certainly before the time of our Lord's nativity. I saw the Magi
with their numerous retinue enter it before going into Jerusalem.

When in meditation I behold the ruins of old castles and temples,
see their neglected and forlorn state, and reflect on the uses to which
they are now put, so different from the intentions of those who raised
them, my mind always reverts to the events of our own days, when so
many of the beautiful edifices erected by our pious and zealous
ancestors are either destroyed, defaced, or used for worldly, if not
wicked purposes. The little church of our convent, in which our Lord
deigned to dwell, notwithstanding our unworthiness, and which was to me
a paradise upon earth, is now without either roof or windows, and all
the monuments are effaced or carried away. Our beloved convent, too,
what will be done with it in a short time? That convent, where I was
more happy in my little cell with my broken chair, than a king could be
on his throne, for from its window I beheld that part of the church
which contained the Blessed Sacrament. In a few years, perhaps, no one
will know t