adapted for a fortress; it lies about a Roman mile and a half from the ruins of Beit Jibrîn, that is, within the second mile, though certainly not two miles distant. Nowhere else in the vicinity could we find or hear of any trace of ruins.'

Somewhere in the vicinity of Eleutheropolis lay also the village of Moresheth, the birth-place of the prophet Micah. The name Moresheth-Gath under which it once occurs, seems to imply that it was near to Gath; Eusebius and Jerome place it eastward of Eleutheropolis; and the latter writer in another place remarks, that it was still a small village near that city. In the journey of Paula, Jerome again speaks of the village in connexion with the fountain of Samson, as having formerly contained the sepulchre of Micah, where was now a church. This latter circumstance seems not improbably to refer to the ruined church of Santa Hanneh, twenty minutes S. S. E. of Beit Jibrîn, close by which are the ruined foundations of a village, which may or may not be ancient. In this case Jerome would appear either to have confounded Maresha and Moresheth; or else the one lay perhaps upon the hill, and the other in the valley north, between the church and the excavated sepulchres. That they were two distinct places, appears, partly from the difference of the names, which come from different roots; and partly from the fact, that the prophet Micah mentions them together. More difficult is it to account in any case for the epithet Gath.

1) Benjamin of Tudela places Maresha at Beit Jibrin itself; Itin. par Baratier p. 101. "Sed ejus auctoritas tanti non est," is the remark of Reland, p. 890.

2) Mic. i. 1. Jer. xxvi. 18. Moresheth-Gath, Mic. i. 14.

3) Onomast. art. Morasthi. Hieron. Comm. in Mic. Prol. "Ad Michaeam de Morasthi, qui usque

hodie juxta Eleutheropolin urbem Palaestinae, haud grandis est viculus."

4) Ep. 86, ad Eustoch. Epitaph. Paulae, p. 677. ed. Mart. "Ut refocillatus videam Morasthim, sepulchrum quondam Michaeae prophetae, nunc Ecclesiam."

5) Mic. i. 14, 15.

It appears from history, that during or soon after the Jewish exile, the Edomites spread themselves throughout the South of Judea, which they continued to occupy, and which consequently is included under the name of Idumea by Josephus and later writers. Judas Maccabaeus captured from them Hebron, Marissa, and Ashdod; and John Hyrcanus, after taking Adora and Marissa, compelled the Idumean inhabitants of the whole region to conform to the laws and customs of the Jews. Jerome also in speaking of the Idumeans, calls them Horites, and makes them dwell within the borders of Eleutheropolis. Now we know, that the original inhabitants of Idumea proper were actually Horites, that is, Troglodytes, "dwellers in caverns," or under ground; who, although dispossessed by the Edomites, continued to live among the latter, and apparently became with them one people.3 It is for this reason, probably, that Jerome thus calls the whole nation Horites; adopting however a different signification of the word, "the free," in order (by a Rabbinic conceit) to make out a Hebrew etymology for the later name Eleutheropolis. Yet it is also possible, that the Edomites were called Horites in Palestine in the original acceptation of the word; for Jerome also asserts, that Idumea, or the whole southern region from Eleutheropolis to Petra and Ailah, was full of habitations in caves; the inhabitants using subterranean dwellings on account of the great heat."-Does not this language suggest the idea, that

1) Joseph. Antiq. XII. 8. 6. XIII. 9. 1. Comp. 1 Macc. v. 6568. Josephus speaks expressly of Hebron as in Idumea; B. J. IV. 9. 7. He says too that Idumea was round about Gaza; c. Apion. II. 9.

2) “In finibus est ΕλευθεροπόLeos, ubi ante habitaverant Horraei, qui interpretantur liberi, unde

ipsa urbs postea sortita vocabulum est;" Comm. in Obad. vs. 1.

3) Gen. xiv. 6. Deut. ii. 12, 22. Gen. xxxvi. 20, 21.

4) See at the close of Note XXXII, end of the Volume.

5) Comm. in Obad. vs. 5, 6, "Omnis australis regio Idumaeorum de Eleutheropoli usque ad Petram et Ailam (haec est posses

Jerome is here alluding in part to the singular excavations which we discovered near Deir Dubbân, and which were so particularly numerous around Beit Jibrîn or Eleutheropolis? May we perhaps suppose, that the Idumeans brought with them their habits of life, and preferred to excavate for themselves here dwellings under ground in the soft limestone rock? It did not indeed occur to us at the time, that possibly this had been the object of these caverns; but it might well have been the case; for they were all dry, and in general well lighted. We needed candles only in exploring those on the south side of the Tell near Beit Jibrîn; and even these may not improbably have once received light by openings now filled up.-I do not wish to be considered as here advancing an hypothesis; but merely as bringing forward a suggestion, which may deserve consideration.'

May 23d continued. The village of Idhna lies just across the water-shed at the head of the valley we had ascended. Just beyond it, another larger valley, Wady el-Feranj, comes from the S. E. and running by the place towards the N. W. ultimately passes down to Beit Jibrîn, forming with others the broad valley which there comes in on the north side. The present Idhna is a small village, divided into two parts by a short Wady or gully running into Wady elFeranj. Each part has its separate Sheikh with his Kusr or tower; and the inhabitants are divided into two parties, according as they live north or south of the water-course. In all civil broils, the Sheikhs with their followers usually take different sides.

sio Esau) in specubus habitatiunculas habet; et propter nimios calores solis, quia meridiana provincia est, subterraneis tuguriis utitur."

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1) See the account of these various caverns, not less than five different clusters in all, pp, 353, 362, 395-398.

We had alighted at the Kusr of the Sheikh on the north side, a rude square building of stone, two stories high. He was an old man, who welcomed us kindly, and went with us to the top of the hill which overhangs the village on the North, to point out and name the places in sight. According to him, the village once stood upon this hill. It is now cultivated, and covered with young orchards of fig-trees; the ground having been cleared of stones by laying them up in walls. In this way all traces of ancient foundations have been destroyed; but I picked up on the top a handful of marble tesserae, once belonging to ancient Mosaic work.'

Idhna lies near the foot of the mountains, where the steep ascent of the higher ridge begins. Here a village called et-Taiyibeh came in sight, situated on the high ridge above; and the direction of Nŭsib or Beit Nusîb at the foot, was also pointed out, though the place itself was not visible. Beit Ûla lay beyond, also out of sight. These with Nûba and Khârâs form a cluster of villages at the foot of the mountain near Terkûmieh; through which last passes the more travelled road from Beit Jibrîn to Hebron.2

While taking our observations on the hill, we were exceedingly incommoded by a strong S. W. wind, which was blowing with some violence, although we had felt it comparatively little in the vallies. Before going with us, it seems, the hospitable old Sheikh had

1) I am not aware that Idhna (Jedna) can be brought into connexion with any Scriptural name. Reland indeed, forgetting his usual sagacity, finds in it the Ithnan of Josh. xv. 23. But this latter place lay quite at the southern extremity of Judah, towards Edom; comp. vs. 21. Reland Palaest. p. 862. Raumer Pal. p. 205.

2) We took here at Idhna the following bearings of places, all but

one (the last) lying east of the meridian line: Um Burj N. 3° E. Jemrûrah N. 8° E. Ribba N. 10 E. Deir el-Hawa N. 23° E. Khârâs N. 56° E. Nûba N. 60o E. Beit Nusîb nearly N. 62° E. Jedûr N. 62° E. Beit Ummar N. 67° E. Bükkâr N. 70° E. Kusbur N. 73° E. Sŭfa N. 87° E. Taiyibeh S. 80° E. Dawâimeh S. 70° W.

without our knowledge given orders to prepare a breakfast for us; and on our return, the women announced that the bread was baked, and the meal would be ready in a few minutes. Although anxious to get on, we yet waited for some time, rather than disappoint his well-meant though ill-timed hospitality; but as we saw no end to the delay, we at length mounted and moved off. The Sheikh now came running with his bosom full of bread, which he distributed among our muleteers; assuring us that the semen (melted butter) and leben (soured milk) were already poured upon the bread in a bowl for the breakfast; and beseeching us to wait and partake of it. We thought it better to proceed; much to the dissatisfaction of the muleteers, who complained long afterwards, that we had taken them away from a savoury breakfast. We had thus far found it so much against the custom to offer money in return for our entertainment, that we had given it up; and from Gaza to Hebron we did not pay a para, nothing being expected. We were doubtless thought the better of, for not making the attempt.

Leaving Idhna at 9 o'clock, we followed up Wady el-Feranj on a course E. S. E. into the mountains, which here began immediately to rise on our left. The Wady soon became a deep and narrow glen. At 10" 10' we reached a fork of the valley, where on a projection of the right hand mountain stands a ruined tower. A path leads along up the right hand Wady towards the village of Dûra, and another up the left hand branch to Taiyibeh; while our road began immediately to climb the mountain between the two vallies. The ascent was long and steep, but rendered easier by many zigzags. At 10h 50' a village (probably Dûra) appeared S. 10° W. on a distant part of the mountain. We reached the top at 11 o'clock, just by