which induce me, on the whole, to fix upon Neby Samwîl as the probable site of that place.1

We remained here half an hour; and then at halfpast 11 o'clock descended, and regaining the road, proceeded across the high level tract. In fifteen minutes we were opposite Sha'fât, a small village five minutes on the right, where the remains of an old wall are visible; and at five minutes past noon, we came upon the brow of Scopus, overlooking the Valley of Jehoshaphat and Jerusalem beyond. The view of the city from this spot is celebrated; here Titus first beheld it and admired the magnificence of its temple.2 The distance of this spot from the Damascus Gate is about twenty or twenty-five minutes.

We now turned to the left along the ridge, having continually fine views of the city, and searching everywhere for ruins which might be regarded as the site of Nob. We came at 12h 20′ to the 'Anâta road. Our search was without fruit; and afterwards in returning from Bethany, I traversed the ridge from the church of the Ascension northwards to the same spot, with the like ill-success.3 We now turned directly towards Jerusalem; and as we descended the Mount of Olives, the Khatîb sent off one of his men with the musket of the tribe along the side of the hill, not caring to have it seen within the city. We reached St. Stephen's Gate at 12h 40'; having lost about twenty minutes by the detour. Our friends we were happy to find all well; although the city was still filled with alarm.

Thus through the kind providence of God we had been preserved during a most interesting journey, through what has ever been considered the worst and

1) See above, p. 144.-From the Tell, er-Râm bore N. 10° E. Neby Samwil, N. 70° W. Jerusalem, S. 10° W.

2) See above, Vol. I. p. 407. 3) See more on Nob above, pp. 149, 150.

most dangerous part of all Palestine, as the retreat of robbers and outlaws ever since the most ancient times. Yet under the care of our Sheikh of the Ta'âmirah and his four men, we had not suffered the slightest let or hindrance; nor felt the slightest degree of insecurity, more than in Jerusalem itself. The Khatîb had fulfilled his pledge, and had given us entire satisfaction. We were able to dismiss him likewise satisfied; and parted from him not without feelings of respect, and also of regret, at the idea of meeting him no more.1

With the two Mukârîyeh (drivers, muleteers) we had less reason to be satisfied. They were lazy and careless; as well as utterly indifferent to the welfare and accommodation of those, whom they had undertaken to serve. We of course had nothing to do with their subsistence; yet they took nothing with them, and contrived to spunge their meals out of us and our guides. Knowing the stern law of Bedawîn hospitality, that whoever is present at a meal must be invited to partake, whether there be little or much, they were impudent enough always to put themselves in the way of the guides, and thus deprive them of a part of their slender pittance. Indeed, the Mukârîyeh of Jerusalem are notorious for their insolence and bad faith; and we determined, so far as possible, to have nothing more to do with them.

1) I learn that the Missionaries have since kept up an acquaintance with Sheikh Muhammed, and have visited his people. He too has

shown himself faithful, and also grateful for various slight services, which they were able to do in his behalf.

SECTION XI.

FROM JERUSALEM TO GAZA AND HEBRON.

On returning from our eight days' excursion to the Dead Sea and Jordan, we found the plague slowly increasing in Jerusalem, and the alarm becoming more deep and general. The superior health-officer of the coast, from Beirût, had arrived; and there was reason to suppose that the city would soon be shut up, either by drawing a cordon of troops around it, or by closing the gates. The object of such a measure, in the true style of oriental despotism, is to hinder the spread of the plague among the villages, by cutting off all communication, and preventing the egress of persons from the city; the inhabitants of the latter being in this manner left, not only to suffer the actual horrors of the plague, but to see them aggravated among a population thus pent up in misery and filth, without fresh air, and without the ordinary supplies of fresh provisions from the country. Some of the other evils attendant on such a state of things, have already been alluded to.1

It had been our intention to remain some days in Jerusalem; and we had planned a short excursion to Bethany and St. Saba; and thence by way of the Frank Mountain and Bethlehem to St. John's in the Desert and Sôba. But the circumstances above detailed induced us to change our plan, and depart as

1) See above, Vol. I. p. 368.

soon as possible on a longer journey, before the rumour of the closing of the city should be spread abroad, and prevent perhaps our entrance into the larger towns. We therefore now stopped at Jerusalem but a single day, and took our departure for Gaza and Hebron; intending to make an excursion from the latter place to Wady Mûsa. We chose the direct route to Gaza through the mountains, instead of the usual one by Ramleh, as being less travelled and less known; and one of our main objects in doing so, was to search for the site of the long lost Eleutheropolis. Our departure was well timed; for the gates were closed the very next day, and the city remained shut up until July.

This journey was undertaken by Mr. Smith and myself alone; our companion preferring to remain in the city, and take his risk of a quarantine; which might be necessary in order to join us afterwards on our journey northwards. We left our trunks and extra baggage also in Jerusalem, although we knew there might be difficulty in obtaining them again; but we regarded them as safer in the hands of our friends than elsewhere; and the worst that could happen would be a quarantine in charge of our fellow-traveller. The part of the country to which we were going, was known to be comparatively safe; though stories of robbery were not wanting. We engaged only a single guide, a Christian from Beit Jâla, who had often travelled the route, and proved to be well acquainted with the country. Instead of the insolent Mukârîyeh of Jerusalem, we now hired muleteers from Lifta, a village in the great Wady Beit Hanîna; where every peasant keeps his mule and usually accompanies it. They brought us four mules and one horse, with a man for each; we paying 15 or 16 Piastres a day for each animal, according to good behaviour; and half price VOL. II.

41

for the days we should lie by; the men receiving nothing extra, and furnishing themselves. Thus with our two servants and guide, we mustered in all ten men, and felt ourselves secure against all ordinary thieves or plunderers.

Thursday, May 17th. We bade adieu to our friends, and left the Yâfa gate at five minutes before 8 o'clock; taking the Bethlehem road which we had before travelled. The single horse in our party was by a sort of tacit consent allotted to me; but its gait was so hard, and the animal required withal so much urging, that I was glad the next day to exchange it for one of the mules, and was decidedly a gainer.

The proper Gaza road passes down in or near Wady el-Werd; but we made a circuit by the village of Beit Jâla in order to accommodate our guide. We reached Mâr Elyâs in an hour; and leaving the tomb of Rachel at 9 o'clock, and crossing Wady Ahmed through the olive-groves, we ascended along the southern side of Beit Jâla, and stopped near its upper part at 10 o'clock. We did not enter the village, but waited among the olive-trees, until our guide had taken leave of his family and again joined us; bringing with him a half-starved donkey, not much larger than a rat.

Beit Jâla is closely built on the eastern declivity of a high hill, and is inhabited solely by Christians. The tradition formerly was current, that no Muhammedan could live in it more than two years. Our guide, in the course of our journey, gave us much information respecting this his native village; the sum of which here follows. Beit Jâla belongs to the Tekîyeh,2 a charitable establishment in Jerusalem, near the

1) This tradition is mentioned in A. D. 1496 in the Journey of Alexander, Palatine of the Rhine; Reissb. des h. Landes p. 75. So too Doubdan p. 170. Maundrell

Ap. 2. Pococke Descr. of the East, p. 45. fol.

II.

2) I suppose this to be the Hospital of Helena, so called by the Franks.