and camels and other animals for his brother, which at first
Esau did not wish to take, but he accepted it at last and then the
brothers separated, Esau going to the hilly country of Seir, while
Jacob continued his journey.

[Illustration: Esau's anger was all gone.]

Jacob halted for a while at a place called Succoth, where he built a
house for himself and stables for his cattle. Then he went to Shechem
and bought some land near the city for "an hundred pieces of silver."
In the time of his grandfather Abraham money was weighed, not counted,
but now it was in the shape of rude coins with the figures of lambs
stamped upon them.

After a while God told Jacob to go to Bethel, where, on his first night
from home, he had vowed to give Him a tenth part of all his
possessions, and to build an altar there. His way to Bethel lay
through a hostile country, but God protected him as He had promised;
and at last Jacob reached the pillar which he had set up, and there he
built the altar and worshipped God.

Jacob's mother had died during his long absence from home and now her
old nurse, Deborah, died, so in memory of the great love mother and son
had for each other he buried Rebekah's faithful servant under an
oak-tree and called it "the oak of tears."

[Illustration: The tomb of Rachel near Bethlehem.]

From Bethel Jacob now set out for Hebron, but on the way, just before
they came to Bethlehem--the little village where Jesus was born many
years afterwards--his beloved Rachel died, leaving him his twelfth and
last son, whom he called Benjamin. Rachel was buried where she died
and a pillar was placed above her grave. Then Jacob went on to see his
father, who was then living at Abraham's favorite dwelling-place at the
"Oaks of Mamre," and there Isaac died, "being old and full of days: and
his sons Esau and Jacob buried him."

[Illustration: Isaac died, being old and full of days.]

After their father's death Esau and Jacob parted with the best of
feeling because they were so rich in flocks and herds and servants that
the land could not sustain two such large tribes. Jacob continued to
live quietly at Hebron as the head of his family, in touch with
everything that went on, but leaving the actual work to be done by
others. He had a great number of servants and his ten older sons were
in charge of his vast flocks and herds.

Joseph was his especial favorite among his sons, and Jacob showed his
preference in ways that