imprisoned in Damascus a short time for some tricks he had been playing there. The pasha wished to cut off his head, but a strong remonstrance from the merchants of Aleppo and Bagdad, setting forth the disastrous consequences which would attend the execution of this man, by rousing the vengeance of the Arabs, procured his release; and, instead of losing his head, he was dismissed with a present of a robe and some backsheeish.

Requiring a little rest on our return from Tadmor, we remained at Homs till the 7th February, on which day we set out and travelled for about seven hours, passing over rich plains, and rounding the point of a mountain which we took to be the end of AntiLebanon. The next day we proceeded for nine hours through a mountainous country. On the 9th, after journeying for seven hours, we stopped at a khan in a plain, around which the mountains were barren, uninteresting, and partly covered with snow.

February 10.-Leaving this place we again entered a hilly country, when, on arriving at the brow of a descent, the extensive and beautiful plain of Damascus opened on our view, with the town surrounded by woods, amidst which were several villages. The land was highly cultivated; to the eastward the plain extends as far as the eye can reach; in other directions it is bounded by hills, Lebanon rising conspicuous above them all. In about two hours we reached the plain, and in five more arrived at the convent of the Terra Sancta in Damascus. For the last three hours of our journey, the road was extremely beautiful, passing through rich olive groves, and gardens inclosed by walls of sun-burnt brick, and surrounded and irrigated by streams of

water, partly natural and partly conducted by art.

February 17.-Not having slept on a bed, or with our clothes off, since we left Aleppo, thirty-eight days ago, we now fully appreciated the luxury of good beds. Our time since the 10th has been occupied in writing letters, and in visiting different parts of the town, such as the place of the Vision of St. Paul outside the eastern gate; the place where he was let down the wall in a basket; the house of Ananias; the street called Straight, &c., alluded to in the Acts of the Apostles. The Turkish name for Damascus is Shum, or Shem, and the friars of the convent think it was originally founded by Shem, the son of Noah; the earliest information we have of this place is in the time of Abraham.*

We purpose proceeding to the Holy Land in a few days by Panias, near to which place is the source of the Jordan; thence crossing the bridge of Jacob, we shall go to Nazareth, Tiberias, Nablous, Jericho, and Jerusalem. In consequence of a letter from Mr. Barker, we have received great assistance from Monsieur Chaboceau, physician to the pasha of this place, and through his good offices have got another firman for the pashalic, and a letter to the governor of Jerusalem, from whom we hope to get guides to conduct us to Mount Sinai. Whether we succeed or not in getting to Mount Sinai, we shall return by Jerusalem to Acre, and then embark for Cyprus, whence we shall proceed to the coast of Asia Minor, beginning by Tarsus, which will conduct us to Smyrna, the site of Troy, and finally to Constantinople.

* Genesis xiv. 15.

On the 23d Feb. we quitted Damascus, and passing over a slight eminence entered a plain, through which runs a fine stream, but being destitute of wood, it has less beauty than the country around Damascus, though the soil is rich. About four in the afternoon, we stopped at the khan of the village of Sasa. Hitherto we had followed the road from Damascus to Jacob's Bridge, at that part of the Jordan which lies between the lakes Houle and Tiberias.

February 24. We passed to the westward for Panias. The first part of the road led through a fine plain, watered by a pretty, winding rivulet, with numerous tributary streams, and many old ruined mills; we then began to ascend over very rugged and rocky ground, quite void of vegetation; in some places there were traces of an ancient paved way, probably the Roman road leading from Damascus to Cæsarea Philippi; as we ascended we had the highest part of Djebail Sheikh (Anti. Lebanon), on our right; we found the snow, occasionally, of considerable depth, and it was with difficulty we got our horses through it. The road now became gradually less stony, and we saw flocks of goats browsing on a rich herbage, in places from which the stones had been cleared away and piled up in great heaps. The shrubs gradually increased in number, size, and beauty, and we presently descended into a very rich little plain immediately at the foot of Djebail Sheikh. There is a conspicuous tomb in this valley, and a rivulet, which appears to take its source at the foot of the mountains, passes along the

western side of the plain in a southerly direction, its course then turns more to the westward, and rushing in a very picturesque manner, through a deep chasm, overhung by shrubs of various descriptions, joins the Jordan at Panias; it is marked in Arrowsmith's chart as the real source of the Jordan, but the fountains at Panias, which are by far the most copious, though not the most distant from the Dead Sea, where the river terminates, are generally considered to be the source; an opinion in which both of us agree. From this plain we ascended up the southern side of Djebail Sheikh, and after passing a very small village about one o'clock, we saw on our left, close to us, a very picturesque lake, of little more than a mile in circumference, apparently perfectly circular, and surrounded by sloping hills richly wooded. The singularity of this lake is, that it has no apparent supply or discharge; its waters appeared perfectly still, though clear and limpid; a great many wild-fowl were swimming in it. This lake has been remarked only by Burckhardt and Seetzen, other travellers who have gone from Damascus to Panias having taken the route by Raschia and Hasbeya; Arrowsmith's map notices it by the name of the Birket-el Ram, on the authority of Seetzen. Josephus mentions it under the name of "Phiala" (a cup), in allusion to its shape. It was supposed by the ancients to be the real source of the Jordan; Josephus states, that they threw straw into the lake, which came out at the apparent source at Panias. A short distance from Phiala, we crossed a stream which

discharges itself into the larger one which we first met with; the latter we followed for a considerable distance, and then mounting up the hill to the S. W. saw the town of Panias, the great Saracenie castle near it, the plain of the Jordan as far as the lake Houle, and the mountains on the other side of the plain, forming altogether a fine coup d'œil. As we descended towards Panias the country became extremely beautiful; great quantities of wild flowers, and a variety of shrubs just budding, combined with the rich verdure of the grass, corn, and beans, showed us all at once the beauties of spring, and conducted us into a climate quite different from that of Damascus, or of the country which we had passed through since we left that city. About 5 P. M. we entered Panias, crossing a causeway constructed over the rivulet, which as before stated flows from the foot of Djebail Sheikh. The river here rushes over the rocks in a very picturesque manner, its banks are covered with shrubs, and there are the ruins of ancient walls, but whether Saracenic or not I cannot say. The present town of Panias is small, the ground it stands on is of a triangular form, inclosed by the Jordan on one side, the rivulet on the other, and the mountain at the back. The situation being thus compressed, it is evident that the ancient Panias, afterwards Cæsarea Philippi, could not have been of great extent. Josephus, in his "Jewish Antiquities," mentions a temple built by Herod, but we could discover no trace of it. The apparent source of the Jordan is in a cave at the foot of a precipice, in the sides of which are several niches with Greek inscriptions.

The neighbourhood of Panias is very beautiful, richly wooded, and abounds in game; we devoted a part of the morning of the 25th to shooting, but had poor sport, though we saw plenty of partridges, wild ducks, snipe, &c. Having been directed to follow the Jorda to the lake Houle, we left Panias at 11 o'clock, and took that route. The beautifully wooded country did not continue for more than two miles, and we then entered into open rich plains. We

found the ground very marshy: after wandering about to find fords over the numerous streams which water the plain, we crossed the Jordan itself; but the country on the other side was as full of marshes and swamps as that we had left, and in several places we nearly lost the horses; at last we succeeded in reaching the road to Safot, which runs at the foot of the hills on the other side of the plain, and to have reached which, we ought, in the first instance, to have passed round the north end of the valley. In conse quence of the loss of time in these bogs, we got no further on our journey this evening than a village by the side of a hill, near the N. W. end of lake Houle; the banks of which are low, the hills not approaching it in any part.

February 26.-We ascended from this point to Safot. The plain which we had quitted was literally covered with wild geese, ducks, widgeon, snipe, and water-fowl of every description. There is a village at the foot of the steep ascent to Safot, in which are a few Roman ruins. As we ascended, the lakes of Houle and Tiberias opened to us with much grandeur, and part of the plain of the Jordan being also visible, added to the beauty of the scene. The country in the mountains is, for the most part, cultivated. Safot is beautifully situated; the castle stands by itself on a small hill, at the foot of which is the town, which looks like four distinct villages. The approach is very fine, and the country abounds in olives, vines, and almond trees, which are now in blossom. The lake of Tiberias is visible from some parts of Safot, which, from its elevated situation, Maundrell thinks is the city alluded to by our Saviour.* Its ancient name appears in Arrowsmith's map as Japhet. We were detained here by rainy weather, until the afternoon of the 28th, when we started for Tiberias, but only reached an old ruined khan, about two miles to the north of the village of Madjdala by the lake's side. Here we were dreadfully bitten by a

*"A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid." Matt. v. 14.

species of vermin, which attacks both men and camels in this country; it was red, and soft like a maggot. In the morning we found ourselves studded all over with deep crimson spots, from which it would appear that there is much venom in the bite of this disgusting animal. A traveller in these countries, however much the thought may shock him at first, must make up his mind to be constantly covered with lice and fleas; we kill every day from ten to twenty of these gentry, which are always to be found on every mat or cushion used in the country. These nauseous visitors seldom get into the head, but crawl about your shirt and clothes. Every native you see is covered with them, and if you ask why they have such a plentiful store, while we are comparatively so little attacked, they tell you "it is the curse of God on them." The other day I cut my foot, and our Arab Seys (who has accompanied us all the way from Yaffa), and is a very cleanly person, washing himself constantly, tore off a small piece of the sleeve of his shirt to apply to the wound; the piece was about three inches long, by two wide, and before using it, I killed on it three lice and two fleas ! This will speak more strongly than all I can say on the subject. Bugs are also very plentiful; in Egypt our rooms were full of them. March 1.-The greater part of our road this day was a descent, passing through a beautiful and wild country covered with shrubs of various descriptions, and occasionally crossing valleys and rivulets. About four miles from Safot there is a picturesque cliff, the sides of which are perforated with a great number of caves, at present inhabited by goatherds; we supposed them to be ancient sepulchres, as indeed did other travellers who, from their ruined appearance, have not thought them worthy of examination; but Mr. Bankes, who leaves nothing unexplored, inspected them, and pronounces them to be only natural cavities. About eight o'clock we reached Tiberias, having travelled for two hours along the side of the lake. More pains appear to have been taken to

construct the road where it was very rocky, than in most parts of Syria which we had visited. The modern town of Tiberias is very small; it stands close to the lake of Gennesaret, and is walled round with towers equidistant from each other. At the northern extremity are the remains of the ancient town, which are distinguishable by walls and other ruined buildings, as well as by fragments of columns, some of which are of beautiful red granite. South of the town are the famous hot baths of Tiberius; they consist of three mineral springs. We had no thermometer, but we found the water too hot to admit of the hand being kept in it for more than fifty seconds; we endeavoured to boil an egg in it, but without success, even though we removed the shell. Over the spring is a Turkish bath close to the lake's side, which is much resorted to, particularly by the Jews, who have also a great veneration for a Roman sepulchre, excavated in the cliff near the spot, which they say is the "Tomb of Jacob." Beyond the baths a wall runs from the lake to the mountain's side, which rather perplexed us when we were taking the measurement of the ancient walls of Tiberias; but we are now convinced that the walls of the town did not extend so far to the south, and that this wall was part of the fortifications of Vespasian's camp; indeed, Josephus places the camp in this position. The lake of Tiberias is a fine sheet of water, but the land about it has no striking features, and the scenery is altogether devoid of beauty; but it is interesting from the frequent allusions to it in the Gospels. We were lodged, as Frank travellers usually are, in the small catholic church, which is under the charge of an Arab priest; this they tell you was the house of St. Peter; but after we had been there a few days, we observed that one of the stones of the building had part of an Arabic inscription upon it, inverted, which proves it to be of much more modern origin; Dr. Clarke, however, seems to believe the assertion of the natives. We found the church so full of fleas,

that we preferred a small open court in front of it for our lodging. The natives have a saying, that "the king of the fleas has his court in Tabaria." We here lived on fish, which is most excellent; there is not much variety, but the best sort, and it is the most common, is a species of bream, equal to the finest perch. It is remarkable that there is not, at present, a single boat of any description on the lake; the fish are caught by the casting-net from the beach, a method which must yield a very small quantity compared to what would be obtained with boats. I imagine this to be the reason why fish is so dear, being sold at the same price per pound as meat. It was on this lake that the miraculous draught of fishes took place.* There is a current throughout the whole breadth of the lake; the passage of the Jordan through it is observable by the smoothness of the surface.

March 2.-To-day, Mr. Bankes arrived after having made a complete tour of the Hacuran, and passed round the lake of Tiberias. He proposed that we should join him in a journey, which he contemplates making beyond the Jordan, and round the Dead Sea to Jerusalem; he had expressed a wish to this effect at Aleppo, and had left a letter for us at Damascus to the same purport. We have accordingly resolved to accompany him; we had totally abandoned all idea of making the tour of the Dead Sea, as a hopeless undertaking, notwithstanding we had our poor friend Burckhardt's notes to aid and assist us; Mr. Bankes was, however, resolved to make the attempt alone if we could not have joined him. While he made a short visit to Safot, which he had not yet seen, we determined to inspect Om Keis (the ancient Gadara), in the country of the Gada

renes.

March 4-We quitted Tiberias at eleven, and following the shore of the lake till we came to the site of the ancient Tarichea; forded the Jordan close to the ruins of a Roman bridge, a few hundred yards from the end of

* Luke, v. 4-9.

the lake; thence we passed by the village of Semmack (the Arabic for fish) at the south end of the lake, and turning to the southward, in about half an hour crossed the river Yarmack or Hieromax, a very pretty stream, tributary to the Jordan. There is here a small ancient town, but it contains nothing of interest; the map marks it "Amatha." From this point we ascended the mountains by a very steep road, and before sunset arrived at Om Keis. The natives inhabit the ancient sepulchres. We were very kindly received by the sheikh. The tomb in which we lodged was capable of containing between twenty and thirty people; it was of an oblong form, and the cattle, &c., occupied one end, while the proprietor and his family lived in the other. The walls of the ancient Gadara are easily discernible; within them the pavement of the city is still very perfect; and the traces of the chariot wheels are visible on the stones. remains of a row of columns which lined the main street on either side; two theatres, in tolerable preservation, are within the walls; and without, to the northward, is the Necropolis; the sepulchres, which are all under ground, are hewn out of the rock; the doors are very massive, being cut out of immense blocks of stone; some of these are now standing, and actually turn on their hinges. The hinge is nothing but a part of the stone left projecting at each end, and let into a socket cut in the rock; the face of the doors are cut in the shape of panels. From this place we had a fine view of the lake of Tiberias.

We found the

March 5.-In the morning we descended to the N. E. into the plain of the Yarmack, to visit the thermal springs there; they are not so hot as those of Tiberias. One of them is inclosed by palm-trees, in a very picturesque manner; it is of great depth, and its surface is covered with a species of red moss, somewhat resembling sponge before it has been purified: this the natives told us they apply to their camels when suffering under certain cutaneous disorders. Here are