The Study Circle
SHULAMITH.(A Jewish Legend.)By DAVID J. GALTER.
CHAPTER I.
AMmonG the mountains of Zion that are covered with flowers of the most fragrant scent, there is a narrow valley filled with lillies. Birds are always present, chirping their melodious song, and together with the lilies, make this valley the most beautiful spot on the whole earth. But not for naught is this place so charming. A tent can be seen standing there in which lives “the beautiful Shulamith,” and it is for her that the lilies bloom every morning and seem to be quarreling with cach other, and say, “Me will Shulamith pluck to-day #9 pin on her breast, for I am the most fra- erant of vou all.”
Morning after morning when Shulamith would go out to moisten her face with the dew upon the lilies, she could hear the birds chirp: “There are no lilies like unto the lilies of our valley, and no maidens more beautiful than the daughters of -Jerusalem, but most charming of all is the beautiful Shulamith.”
At the time of our story, there were many magnificent palaces in Jerusalem, one of which was the royal palace. In this palace there was one room where the floor was of pure white marble, the ceiling all covered with carbundle (sparkling precious stones) and sardonyx, and the walls were pure gold. This was the room of the young King Solomon who later came to be known as the wisest of kings. Although he had all the luxuries that royalty could afford, yet he was often seen leaving his most wonderfully and richly decorated room to walk through the valley of lilies to speak to "the beautiful Shulamith." She too was very glad to see him
and often anxiously awaited his arrival and worried over his delay.
Around Shulamith’s tent was a delightful garden in which grew dates and pomegranates, olives and almonds,—in fac: all those fruits with which our Jerusalem is so blessed. In this garden, Solomon once planted a fig tree and a vine, and embracing his beloved Shulamith, exclaimed: “Dearest! when this fig tree and vine are ripe I shall come and take thce unto my palace where we shall celebrate our wedding.”
They continued their walk for some time and when he was about to leave her he said: "My love, I shall give thee a sign by which thou wilt be able to recognize my coming even before thou seest me, and when some other man doth come knocking at thy door without giving any sign, be thou assured that it will not be I, but some stranger that seeketh admission." The sign that Solomon gave her was a word never before uttered by man. He had first heard it from a dove when he was studying the languages of the various animals and flowers.
When they parted, Solomon gave Shulamith a bundle of myrrh, saying, "A bundle of myrrh art thou unto me, oh thou that resideth in my bosom."
Shulamith gave him a copher-cluster saying, "A copher-cluster hast thou been unto me, dearest Solomon." Then they parted.
Ashmedai, the ruler of Azazel, became jealous of Solomon, for he too loved Shulamith and was anxious to marry her. When he heard how fervent the love of Shulamith was for Solomon he became very angry, and said to himself: "I'll show him, who thinketh himself the wisest of all, that he hath been fooled in thinking that Shulamith really loveth him. I shall