could never have entertained a thought, if Judea, which he had seen and examined with his own eyes, had appeared to him such a barrer and wretched country, as it is said to have been by some, who neither have seen that country, nor examined the matter with care and attention. Our author aiso produces a variety of other facts to show, that Judea, after all that it had suffered from the desolation of war, both in antient and later times, still remained, at the period in question, fertile, rich, and populous. This is the idea which the writers of the time, Pagan and Christian, as well as Jewish, have given of Palestine. Antoninus Martyr, a citizen of Placentia, who, in the sixth century, travelled to Palestine, and composed an account of his voyage, which is still exa tant, says, that the canton of Nazareth was not inferior to Egypt in corn and fruits, and that though the territory of that city was not very extensive, it abounded in wine, and oil, and excellent honey. The country about Jericho appeared to him still more fertile. He saw mount Tabor, which he represents as surrounded with cities; and he observed in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, vine-yards, great plantations of fruit, trees, and, through the whole country, a considerable number of hospitals, monasteries, and beautiful edifices. Our learned abbé in concluding his work, acknowledges, that: the opulence and fertility of Judea might begin to diminish towards the middle of the period treated of in his second memoir; but he does not think that any argument can be drawn from hence, against its having been, at the commencement of this period, in a flourishing state; and much less can any proof be brought from hence, that in preceding periods, under the kings, or under the administration of Moses, the country of Palestine was a barren and uncultivated district.

Besides, it ought to be considered, that it was then inhabited by an industrious pecple, who knew how to improve every inch of their land, and had made even the most desert and barren places to yield some kind of productions, by proper care and manure; so that the very rocks, which now appear quite bare and naked, were made to produce corn, pulse, or pasture, being, by the industry of the old inhabitants, covered with mould, which, through the laziness of the succeeding proprietors, has been since washed off with rains and storms. We may add, that the kings themselves were not above encouraging all kind of agriculture, both by precept and example, and, above all, that they had the divine blessing promised to their honest endeavours and industry; whereas, it is now, and hath been long since, inhabited by a poor, lazy, and indolent people, groaning under an intolerable servitude, and all manner of discouragements, by which. their aversion to labour and agriculture, farther than what barely serves to supply their present wants, is become, in a manner, natural and invincible. We may farther observe, with the judicious Mr. Maundrel, that there is no forming an idea of its antient flourishing state, when under the influence of heaven, from what it is now under a visible eurse. And if we had not several concurring testimonies, from profaue authors, who have extolled the fecundity of Palestine; that single one of Julian the apostate, a sworn enemy to Jews and Christians, as well as to all the sacred writings, would be more than sufficient to prove it, v ho frequently makes mention, in his epistles, of the perpetuity, as well as excellence and great abundance, of its fruits and product. The visible effects of God's anger, which this country has felt, not only under Titus, Vespasian, but much more since that emperor's time; in the inundations of the northern barba-. rians, of the Saracens, and of the more cruel and destructive Christians during the holy war, and in the oppression it now feels under the Turkish voke, may be easily supposed: to be more than sufficient to have wrought the dismal change we are speaking of, and to have reduced the far greater part into a mere desert.

Nevertheless, if we may credit those who have viewed it in this deleful condition, they will tell us, there are, still, such visible sigus of its natural richness and fertility,

as plainly show, that the bare want of culture is the principal, if not the only cause, of its present poverty and barrenness. We shall hint, as a fair proof of this, what a learu

ed traveller hath written of it from his own observations.

"The Holy Land," says Dr. Shaw, "were it as well peopled and cultivated, as in former times, would still be more fruitful than the very best part of the coast of Syria and Phenice; for the soil is generally much richer, and, all things considered, yields a preferable crop. Thus the cotton that is gathered in the plains of Pmah, Esdrælon, and Zebulun, is in greater esteem than what is cultivated near Sidon and Tripoli. Neither is it possible, that pulse, wheat, or any sort of grain, to be more excellent than what is sold at Jerusalem. The barrenness, or scarcity, which some authors may either ignorantly or maliciously complain of, doth not proceed from the incapacity or natural unfruitfulness of the country, but from the want of inhabitants, and the great aversion there is to labour and industry in those few who possess it. There are, besides, such perpetual discords and depredations among the petty princes who share this fine country, that, allowing it was better peopled, yet there would be small encouragement to sow, when it was uncertain who should gather in the harvest. Otherwise the land is a good land, and still capable of affording its neighbours the like supplies of corn and oil, which it is known to have done in the time of Solomon."

And Volney, in his travels in Egypt and Syria, observes, that though the whole of Palestine is almost an entire level plain, without either river or rivulet in summer, and only watered by the winter torrents, the soil is yet good, and may even be termed fertile; so when the winter rains do not fail, every thing springs up in abundance, and the earth, which is black and fat, retains moisture sufficient for the growth of grain and vegetables during the summer. More doura, sesarum, watermelus, and beans, are sown here, than in any other part of the country. They also raise cotton, barley, and wheat; but though the latter be most esteemed, it is less cultivated, for fear of too much inviting the avarice of the Turkish governors, and the rapacity of the Arabs.

Judea, in its largest sense, was divided into maritime and inland, as well as into mountainous and champaign; and again subdivided into Judea on this side, and Judea beyond Jordan. But the most considerable division is that which was made among the twelve tribes by lot, to prevent all murmuring and discontent among that stubborn peo ple, if these two and a half were seated beyond Jordan, and the rest on this side. The next remarkable division was made by king Solomon, who divided his kingdom into twelve provinces or districts, each under a peculiar officer, and every one of these was to supply the king with provisions in his turn, that is, each for one month in the year, But the most fatal division of all was that obtained under his imprudent son Jeroboam, who became head of this new monarchy, styled the kingdom of Israel, in opposition to that of Judah, the which distinguished the kingdom of Rehoboam. Under the second temple the distinction lasted a considerable time, and as the same bloody hatred and hostilities continued between these two kingdoms, that of Israel took the name of Samaria from its capital. The inhabitants were a mixture of the old Israelites, and of new colonies sent thither by the kings of Assyria after their conquest of it, till they were subdued by the Maccabees, and their metropolis destroyed. Under the Romans it began to be divided into tetrarchies and toparchies; the larger were of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee Upper and Lower; the lesser, those of the Geraritica, Sarona, and others of less bote, all which lay on this side of the Jordan. The rest, on the other side, were of Gilead, Paræa, Gaulonitis, Auranitis, Betaneu, and Decapolis. Josephus mentions another division, in Gabinius's time, into five districts, or, as he styles them, suredria, or councils, agreeable to the Roman manner; these were Jerusalem, Jericho, and Sephoris, on this side Jordan; and Gadaris and Amathus on the other.

Before we proceed to consider the topography of this country, it will be proper to give some account of its principal mountains, seas, rivers, lakes, deserts, plains, &c. We begin with the mountains, of which Lebanon is the most distinguished.

Lebanon is a famous chain of mountains, which serves as a common boundary to Syria and Palestine. They have been distinguished by the names of Libanus and Antilibanus, the former name being derived from the whiteness of the snow with which the tops of these mountains are covered, during the greatest part of the year; and the latter, from the situation of that ridge, which is supposed to run in a sort of parallel apposition to the other. It is computed about one hundred leagues in compass, and hath Mesopotamia on the east, Armenia on the north, Palestine on the scuth, and the Mediterranean on the west. It consists of four ridges of mountains, which rise one above the other; the first of which is very fertile in grain and fruit; the second is barren and rocky, producing nothing but briars and thorns; the third, though still higher, is said to enjoy a constant verdure and spring, the gardens and orchards producing such a variety of fruits, herbs, & that it hath been styled an earthly paradise; this presents a striking contrast to the fourth and highest region, which is utterly uninhabitable by reason of the cold. There are several considerable rivers that have their source on this mountain, viz. the Jordan, Rocham, Nahar-Rossian, and Nahar-Cadicha; the first only of which runs through Palestine, and will be spoken of in its place. Besides these are several others of a lesser stream that run between the valleys, particularly that of Abonali, which flows down into the Romantic valley, so called, because surrounded, on all sides, with high rocks. This river runs with a rapid course and great noise, and is so covered with trees that it is hardly to be seen. These rivers, in coming down from such heights. form several beautiful cascades, like those of the Nile. Some antient fathers, as St. Jerome and Eusebius, have described the Liban and Antilaban as one continued ridge, winding about in the form of an horse-shoe, which begins about three or four leagues from the Mediterranean, a little above Smyrna; and running southward, towards Sidon, began, there, to take an eastern course towards Damascus; bending thence northward, towards Laodicea Cabiosa. The western ridge is what is properly called Libanus, as the eastern is Antilibanus, and the hollow between Colosyria. The worst of this anountain is, that it has mostly been, and is still to this day, a place of retreat and refuge for vast numbers of robbers and other desperate people.

The next in dignity for height is mount Hermon, which, like Lebanon, appears capped with snow, and was once famed for an ancient temple held in great veneration, and much resorted to by the superstitious heathens from all the neighbouring countries; and, in the Psalms, it is celebrated for its refreshing dews, which descended on the adjoining one of Sion. St. Jerome tells us, that its snow was carried away to Tyre, Sidon, &c. to be mixed with the drink of the inhabitants; and that the Chaldees and Samaritans style it the mount of snow.

Mount Tabor has its name from the Hebrew, Thabur, which signifies the navel, on account of its eminent form, and rising, as it were, from a plain; and it is admired for its beauty, regularity, fertility, and constant verdure. It is supposed to be here that our Lord was transfigured.

Carmel stands on the skirts of the sea, and is the most remarkable head of land in all that coast. It extends, eastward, from the sea, as far as the plain of Jezreel, lately mentioned; and from the bay of its name quite to Cæsarea, on the south. It seems to have been so called on account of its fertility. Carmel is the name of the mountain, and of a city built on it, and of an heathen deity worshipped in it, but without either temple or statue; though some temple there must have been on it, since Iamblichus tells us, this place was the favourite retreat of Pythagoras, who spent a good deal of

fime in the temple without any person with him. But what had rendered it most celebrated and revered, both by Jews and Christians, is, its having been the residence of Elijah, who is supposed to have lived in a cave, which is there shewn, before he was taken up into heaven; as it was also the scene where that great prophet, by calling for a miraculous fire from heaven, which consumed the divine sacrince, convinced the Israelites of their folly, in halting between their God and Baal. On which account, the Christians began, from the earliest ages, to shew a more than ordinary veneration for it ; and both the mountain and cave of Elias, as well as the place where they tell his garden, are visited and reverenced, not only by Christians and Jews, but by the very Mohammedans.

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The mount of Olives stands about a mile distant from Jerusalem, and commands the prospect of the whole city, from which it is parted by the brook Kidron, and the valley of Jehoshaphat. It is not a single hill, but, rather, part of a long ridge with three (or, according to Mr. Pocock, four) heads or summits, extending from north to south, the middlemost of which is that from the top of which our Saviour ascended up into heaven, and which, it is pretended, still wears the print of his foot.

Mount Calvary, alias Golgotha, is held in the greatest veneration, on account of our Saviour's crucifixion upon it. It had those two names, probably, from its roundness, or resemblance to an human scull, and stood, antiently, without the walls of the city, it being the place where the criminals used to be put to death according to the Mosaic law. But Constantine the Great, after his conversion, caused it to be inclosed within the new walls, and erected a magnificent church over it; and it has continued a place of as great veneration among the Christians, as ever the temple was among the Jews.

Mount Moriah, on which the famous temple of Solomon was built, stands southcast of Calvary, having Millo on the west, so called, from the filling up of that deep valley, in order to raise it to a level with the rest.

Mount Gihon stood west of Jerusalem, and at a smaller distance than Calvary, viz about two furlongs distance from Bethlehem's gate. It was here that Solomon was, by his father's express command, anointed king, by the prophet Nathan, and Zadok the high-priest. There was a celebrated pool of that name upon it, whose water king Hezekiah caused to be brought, by an aqueduct, into the city. It is still a stately pool. one hundred and six paces long, and sixty-seven broad, lined with a wall of plaster, and well stored with water. We shall conclude this description of the mountains with observing, that those in the kingdom of Judah mostly stand southward of it, towards the land of Edom, but those of the kingdom of Israel are interspersed within it. There are, also, many other mountains of inferior note.

The most distinguished plains are two; that which is commonly called the plain of Jordan, otherwise, the wilderness of Jordan, that is comparatively barren with some other of the inore delightful parts of it, of which we may have farther occasion to speak. The other is styled the great plain of Esdraelon, or great plain and valley of Jezreel, the fields of Esdrela, and the plain of Legion, the first of which names it had from the capital city Jezreel, or Esdrelon, and reached from Scythopolis to mount Carmel. Mr. Reland thinks this great plain to have reached partly into Galilee, and partly into Samaria. Besides these two, which are the most remarkable plains in all Palestine, we may add, that the whole coast, from mount Carmel down to the southermost borders of it, towards Idumea, is, altogether, a plain, level ground, excepting here and there some small and gentle hills, or sandy heaps This great extent, however, was not all known, or called by the same name, after the second temple; for the northern part of it, from Joppa to Cæsarea, and no further, was called Sharon, Saron, or Sarona; and was

very fertile in pasture grounds, in which, Mr. Reland thinks, the Gadites fed then numerous herds and flocks, and bred such vast quantities of cattle. The southern part of it was called Sephelah, or the plain, and extended westward and southward of Eleutheropolis, which name was given still, in Eusebius and St. Jerome's time, to all that tract. The plain of Jericho, though rather a part of the great plain, properly so called, is likewise much celebrated in scripture, for its fine palm-trees, its balm-shrub, as well as for its famed rose and rose-tree, with which the whole plain was said to be almost covered; and several wonderful virtues are, without any foundation, attributed to it, by authors, and by the inhabitants of those plains one of them, however, is certain, viz. that it is incorruptible; and being kept some little while in water, will blow, and appear in full bloom, and being taken out, it closes up again, and this it will do at any season of the year.

We find a great many deserts and wildernesses in this country, mentioned in the saered books, by which, however, must not be understood places quite barren, destitute, or uninhabited, there being several of them which had cities and villages, rich, and well peopled, and few cities there were here that had not some desert, according to the scripture idiom, belonging to it, for the feeding of their cattle; so that the word commonly meant no more than a land or tract, that bore neither corn, wine, or oil, but was left to its spontaneous production. Accordingly we find in the desert of Judah, where he Baptist preached, no less than six cities, besides the villages belonging to them, to wit, Bethabara, Middin, Secacah, Nibshan, the city of Salt, and that of Engaddi.

To these we may add some woods or forests, mentioned also in holy writ, such as, particularly, those of Hareth, in the tribe of Judah, to which David withdrew from Saul; of Ephraim, where Absalom received the due reward of his unnatural rebellion, (this stood on the other side Jordan, not far from Mahanaim, where David abode while the battle was fought ;) that of Lebanon, where Solomon built a stately palace, so called, in all probability, on account of the many stately trees that shaded it; the forest of Bethel, supposed to have stood near the city of that name, whence the two she bears came, and devoured the children who msulted the prophet Elisha. Others of less note we pass over, to come to the seas, lakes, and rivers, of the country.

We begin with the seas, of which there are commonly reckoned five; viz. the Mediterranean, called, by the sacred writers, the Great sea. 2. The Dead sea, or lake of Sodom. 3. The sea of Tiberias. 4. The Samachonite sea, or lake. And 5. The sea of Jazer; which last was but a small lake near the city of that name: so that only the first of them deserved the name of sea, and this they distinguished, not only with the title of Great, but of Salt sea, sea of the Philistines, and also the Hinder sea, or sea behind one, from its situation with respect to the land. The Dead sea, called also, from its situation, the East sea, the Salt sea, the sea of Sodom, the sea of the desert, and sea of the plain, by the sacred writings,; and by other authors, the Asphaltite lake, on account of the vast quantities of that bituminous drug, which are thrown up by its waves, and thence, by the wind, towards the shore. Josephus assures us, it rises in lumps, as big as an ox without its head. Some are even larger, and others smaller, and in great request among physicians and embalmers. Many things have been said and written of this famous, or, if they were true, rather infamous lake; such as, that it arose from the submersion of the vale of Siddim, where once stood, as is commonly reported, the three cities which perished in the miraculous conflagration, with those of Sodom and Gomorrah, for their unnatural and detestable wickedness; en which account, this lake hath been looked upon as a lasting monument of the just judgment of God, to deter mankind from such abominations. Hence, it is added, that the waters of the lake are so impregnated with salt, sulphur, and other bituminous stuff,