VJv Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/aroundpyramidsbeOOward AROUND THE PYRAMIDS: BEING A TOUR IN THE HOLY LAND, AND, INCIDENTALLY, THROUGH SEVERAL EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, AND PORTIONS OF AFRICA, DURING THE TEARS 1859-60. BY AARON WARD. NEW YORK: Carleton , Publisher , 413 Broadway . (LATE RUDD A CARLETON.) M DCCC LX1Y. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1863, By AARON WARD, In the Clerk’s Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York. V TO MY OLD AND VALUED FRIEND, GENERAL GEORGE P. MORRIS, THE ESTEEMED AND WELL KNOWN LYRIC POET OF AMERICA, THIS VOLUME 3 * sp titf u 1 1 2 iBt&Uatifc Contents page CHAPTER I. The Departure 13 CHAPTER n. The Voyage ' 17 CHAPTER m. Newfoundland 20 CHAPTER IY. Ireland 25 CHAPTER V. London from St. Paul’s 32 CHAPTER VI. Westminster Abbey 36 CHAPTER VH. National and Royal Academy 39 CHAPTER VIII. Ramble through Hampton Court 41 CHAPTER IX. England in the Olden Time 45 CHAPTER X. Goodwood Races 47 CHAPTER XI. Hyde Park and a Review 61 CHAPTER xrr. London to Ostend 54 Vlll CONTENTS. Cities of Belgium PAGE CHAPTER XIII. CHAPTER XIV. From Ostend to Bruges 66 CHAPTER XV. City of Ghent Marseilles to Malta CHAPTER XVI. Malta CHAPTER XVII. Alexandria in Egypt. . CHAPTER XVIII. Cairo CHAPTER XIX. Heliopolis CHAPTER XX. Memphis CHAPTER XXI. Suez CHAPTER XXII. Alexandria to Gazza ... CHAPTER XXin. Askelon to Joppa CHAPTER XXIV. Joppa to Jerusalem .... CHAPTER XXV. Jerusalem CHAPTER XXVI. Jerusalem CHAPTER XXVII. Jerusalem CHAPTER XXVIII. Jerusalem..... . ... CHAPTER XXIX. Jerusalem CHAPTER XXX. CONTENTS. IX PAGE CHAPTER XXXI. Jerusalem 151 CHAPTER XXXn. Jerusalem 155 CHAPTER XXXIII. Jerusalem 167 CHAPTER XXXIV. Jerusalem 160 CHAPTER XXXV. Jerusalem 168 CHAPTER XXXVI. Bethlehem 168 CHAPTER XXXVII. Prom Jerusalem to Sechem 173 CHAPTER XXXVIII. Plain of Moreh 179 CHAPTER XXXIX. Samaria 183 CHAPTER XL. Bedouins ...... 187 CHAPTER XLI. Mount Tabor 191 CHAPTER XLII. Nazareth...... 194 CHAPTER XLIII. Sea of Tiberias 198 CHAPTER XLIV. Town of Acre 209 CHAPTER XLV. Route to Tyre 213 CHAPTER XL VI. Tyre 216 CHAPTER XL VII. Journey to Sidon 220 CHAPTER XL VIII. Old Sidon 224 X CONTENTS. PAGB CHAPTER XLIX. Ashmanezer’s Sarcophagus 228 CHAPTER L. From Sidon to Beirout 233 CHAPTER LI. In Beirout 238 CHAPTER LII. Excursion to Dog River 241 CHAPTER Lin. From Beirout to Tripoli 246 CHAPTER LIV. From Tripoli to Latakia 260 CHAPTER LV. Alexandretta and Tarsus 254 CHAPTER LVI. Rhodes and Scio 260 CHAPTER LVn. Smyrna 266 CHAPTER LVIII. From Smyrna to Constantinople 271 CHAPTER LIX. Constantinople 276 CHAPTER LX. Athens and Its Ruins 291 CHAPTER LXI. Athens and Its Ruins 297 CHAPTER LXII. Athens to Marseilles 302 Introduction To those of his countrymen who may contemplate a tour through the East, the writer of this volume deems it probable that he may impart such information to them in regard to the route to be followed, the proper season of the year for visiting certain localities, and the means and facilities best adapted for the successful prosecution of an extended tour, as will prove both interesting and serviceable. He refers his readers, who may desire information in regard to the expense of a tour in the East, to the note at the close of the volume. Few persons undertake a distant journey without previously seeking to make themselves familiar, by examining maps and books relating to* the country through which they propose to pass, and selecting the routes they may deem the most worthy of be- ing followed. This is, indeed, the proper mode to adopt ; and with this view, the author of the present work made it his study for months prior to his leaving home, carefully to peruse all books relative to the East whioh the Astor Library, in New York, as well as his own private collection, and those of his friends, afford- ed him. With the aid of excellent charts and surveys, in addi- tion to the information he derived from books, he was able to lay out his entire journey, and in many cases to fix correctly XU INTRODUCTION. upon the very days he would be at certain points in his tour. This enabled him to systematically carry out his plans with a degree of precision, and the slightest loss of time, rarely attained by travellers. Having long had an earnest desire to visit the Red Sea and Suez, he decided in 1859, as soon as he learned that the railroad from Alexandria to Suez was opened to the travelling public, to do so. The aversion he entertained to journeying across the desert on the backs of camels, because of their disagreeable gait, had heretofore induced him to postpone this interesting and most desirable tour. The following account of his travels may, perhaps, possess additional interest to some of his readers, from the fact that the letters composing it were written at the principal points in his journey ; and with the intention of describing these interesting localities, so that his course might be traced upon a map without difficulty, from his departure from New York, until his return from the Holy Land to Marseilles, where the description of the journey ends. These letters were addressed to his family at home, and were not intended for publication ; but as those por- tions of them which appeared in the Evening Post and Home Journal have been extensively republished in other literary pa- pers throughout this country, the author on this account thinks that the whole may possess sufficient interest to warrant their being collected and published in this small volume. Sing Sing, N. Y., Jannary, 1863. Around the Pyramids. \ CHAPTER I. THE DEPARTURE. Departure — Farewell — The Pilot Rising Gale -Neversink— Horace— Ear- ly and Later Navigation— Casting the Log— Taking the Meridian— The View— The Banks. At half-past eleven o’clock, a. m., on March 31st, 1859, accompanied by my daughter, I repaired to the propeller Circassian, lying at pier number thirty-seven Hudson River, New York, where we met many dear and valued friends, who were awaiting our arrival, in order to bid us farewell. This painful ceremony, not unmixed with a subdued pleasure, was closed at twelve o’clock at noon. Many of our friends, how- ever, remained on the wharf while the steamer was getting under way, waving their handkerchiefs occa- sionally, in token of their esteem and regard, until we lost sight of each other. The pilot, on coming on board, assumed the entire command and control of the vessel, until we had gone some miles out to sea, when he departed, in a small yawl for the pilot-boat which was in the offing, waiting his coming to convey him back to the har- bor. Shortly after his departure, we passed the steamer 14 THE DEPARTURE. Alps, from Liverpool, bound to New York. The wind was then blowing what landsmen would call a gale ; but, as it was favorable, every sail was set, and we bowled along at the rate of fifteen knots an hour. The sea presented a grand but terrific appear- ance during that, and for several succeeding days. We lost sight, some time before sunset, of our na- tive land, endeared to us bv many sweet and hal- lowed associations ; and, as the night came on, sped, with flowing sails, on our course. The highlands in New Jersey, called Neversink, well known to Amer- ican mariners, and endeared to them because their bold fronts are the last their eyes fall on when leav- ing, and the first that greet them on returning to their native land, so that with them they always asso- ciate their fondest thoughts of home and the hopes of a safe return, finally sank below the horison. As several of my own family reside in the above-named patriotic State, I gazed upon the fading land with feelings similar to those which filled the breasts of the sailors on our noble vessel. As the land disappeared from sight, the following words of Horace in regard to traversing the sea with ships, rose to my mind : — “ His heart must needs have been bound with oak and triple brass, who first committed his frail bark to the tempestuous sea/’ When one embarks for the first time upon the ocean, he naturally is Hd to reflect bn the advance- ment of nautical science, from the time when the canoe and raft constituted the only craft of the sail- lor ; the narrow precincts of a river, a lake, or the border of the sea, the bounds of his watery empire ; and the adventurous rover deemed himself lost if he drifted out of sight of land. A voyage in the early days of navigation was a momentous and painful undertaking. When the time appointed for the sailing of a vessel arrived, the THE DEPARTURE. 15 gods were solemnly invoked and propitiated by nu- merous sacrifices ; the friends and countrymen who thronged the shore, fervently joined in prayer for the adventurers’ deliverance from danger, and commend- ed them to the presiding deities of the winds and the waves. Now, by the assistance of the compass, the log, and sextant, the chronometer, the quadrant and local charts, the commander of one of the noble pack- ets or steamers of the present day — which vessels are superior in all respects to those of any former period — departs on a voyage across the Atlantic or Pacific witli comparative confidence in the successful prose- cution of his voyage, being able, at all times, without reference to the course, or distance sailed, the capri- cious winds, or stealthy currents, to determine, with entire accuracy, his precise position on the high seas. Scientific men coincide in saying that it is vain to speculate concerning the laws which regulate mag- netic attraction. We know the effect of the pheno- mena, but all beyond baffles the search of science. The log, of which I had heard much, but knew so little of before I had an opportunity of seeing it prac- tically employed, I found to be simply a long cord, having a piece of wood attached to one end, called the chip. This is of a quadrangular form, and slung at the corner with a line, and loaded at the circum- ference. When cast overboard, the chip remains erect and stationary, and drags the line off as fast as the sliip passes through the water. This line is di- vided into knots, representing miles or minutes of a degree, to which they have the same proportion as the log-glass does to an hour. The log-glass is filled with sand to run through in thirty seconds ; the length of a knot is fifty-one feet, the first bearing the same proportion to an hour as the last is to a mile. The log-reel, upon which the line is wound, being held by one of the sailors, the officer places himself on the 16 THE DEPARTURE. taffrail, while a third person holds the glass, the chip being prepared so that the peg, fastening it in a per- pendicular direction, will draw out when the reel is stopped, and allow it to be easily drawn in. Then, having gathered sufficient line in his hands, he throws it so far to leeward that it will not be affected by the eddies which follow in the wake of the vessel. The slack line, which allows the chip to fall astern, now runs off, and the instant the white rag, which marks the termination, passes through the hand of the officer, he cries, “Turn,” when, immediately, the one holding the glass turns it over. The officer continues to reel out the line until the sand in the glass runs out, when the person holding it exclaims, “Stop.” Then the line is grasped, and the number of knots that have passed off mark the speed of the ship per hour, which number, multiplied by the hours sailed, gives the measure of the run. It afforded me much pleasure not only to see the casting of the log, but to observe the officers obtain the meridian altitude of the sun through the sextant, the verge of which luminary precisely at twelve o’clock, is brought, by the reflection of the mirror, so that its lower limb sweeps the horizen, or dips, appa- rently, into the water. When this is observed the sun has just passed the meridian, and the altitude marked by the index, is immediately read off and noted. The navigator, by following certain rules laid down, will then find no difficulty in deciding from these observations the latitude he is in. A daily and accurate knowledge ot which is to the mariner of our day a desideratum of easy attainment, and enables him, at any time, to point out on the chart the exact place his ship occupies. April 3 d . — The wind is still blowing a perfect gale. The sailors admit that the waves are rolling high; but say they have seen them higher. Our THE VOYAGE. IT strongly built iron steamer, however, rides gracefully over them, regardless of their threatening and frightful appearance. There is no sail of any description to be seen. The view of an apparently shoreless sea is grand and imposing. By holding to the railing I am able to walk the deck, notwithstanding the vessel is rolling and pitching at a frightful rate, nor have I been afflicted with sea-sickness in the slightest degree. The captain has jnst made his reckoning and in- forms me that we are in latitude forty-two degrees north, and nearly on the meridian of fifty degrees west longitude, which brings us on the south edge of the banks of Newfoundland, upwards of one thousand miles from New York. The banks extend from forty to fifty degrees north latitude, forming, as it were, a bar at the mouth of the great oceanic river, known as the Gulf Stream. The depth of the water on the banks varies from fifteen to sixty fathoms. The winds upon them during the summer are moderate, and the water smooth ; but they are then covered by perpet- ual fog. In July, August and September, codfish are taken in large quantities, and constitute a rich harvest for the honest and industrious fishermen of the United States engaged in the business. CHAPTER II. THE VOYAGE. Snow Storm.— Cape Clear. — Icebergs —Distinguished Passengers. — Father Point. April 4 th. — The wind abated last night and changed to the northeast, bringing with it a heavy snow storm, which prevented the captain from taking his observ- ations ; consequently he was unable to ascertain. 18 THE VOYAGE. with certainty, the precise situation of the steamer. Feeling concerned, however, lest, owing to the storm, lie might meet with an accident, he remained on deck himself, keeping watch. At about ten o’clock, in the evening, he discovered that we were Tunning to • ward the land, and were within three-quarters of a mile of it. Thereupon he instantly ordered the course of the steamer to be changed seaward ; and, after running several miles from the shore, he laid the steamer to until day break. Our escape from ship- wreck upon an inhospitable coast was altogether pro- vidential. We discovered, in the morning, that the point of land we had escaped was within fourteen miles of CapeH'&ee, and that our vessel was lying to, during the night, within a mile of an iceberg. This berg, the captain estimated, was about three acres in ex- tent, and rose at least fifty feet above the surface of the water. It was, to me, a grand and somewhat startling sight to behold so vast a body of ice directly * in our course. Various and beautiful must be the icebergs of the northern ocean, and when hundreds of them are ob- served floating at one time within view, I can con- ceive of no grander or more sublime sight. And when one of those huge masses topples, the scene must be fraught with interest and terror. Onward it it comes, marching solemnly and stately over the swell- ing waves : anon it pauses in its onward course, its alabaster towers and peaks tremble and vibrate for a moment ere they break apart, and with a roar and crash like thunder, sink into the bosom of the ocean. The morning of the fifth was mild and pleasant — • the storm having ceased. At an early hour we passed around the headland of CapeRac^ and run, in a northerly direction, at no great distance from the coast, which is bounded by mountains rising from the THE VOYAGE. 19 shore, to a height exceeding eight hundred feet. Here we observed many icebergs, each one of them cover- ing a much larger surface of water, and rising to a far greater height than the one we met in the morn- ing. The sight of them was truly magnificent and really worth a voyage across the Atlantic to see. The day being exceedingly pleasant, induced most of the seasick passengers to come on deck. Having been confined to their rooms during the passage, it deprived us of the pleasure of making their acquaint ance until this time. I found that several of them occupied distinguished positions in society. Among the number were the Honorable and Venerable Dean Canfield, of Nassau, New Providence, one ot* the Ba- hama Islands, on his way to Dublin, for his family. The Reverend William Reddjq Reverend E. Cooney, and Mr. Stafford, director of the Regispolis Institu- tion at Kingston, Canada West, my good friend and former host, Mr. Burroughs, late of the Irving House, New- York, and several ladieS. We had on board the steamer nineteen first, and twenty-nine second class passengers, with one hundred in the ste rage. Cap- tain Ilalpin is a fearless officer, and one of the best traits in his character is, that he is always to be found at his post. Thus far I can, with truth, declare, that the route I have marked out to pursue is a most desirable one, as it enables the tourist to see the city of St. Johns, in Newfoundland, the South-west part of Ireland; the city of Dublin, and, if he choose, he may, with very little delay, visit the Killarney lakes, the city of Cork, which has one of the most beautiful harbors in the kingdom, and listen to the bells of Shandon, of which Father Prout, sings so quaintly and touchingly : “ With deep affection and recollection , I often think of those Suandon bells, Whose sounds so wild would, in the days of childhood, Fling round my cradle their magic spells. 20 NEWFOUNDLAND. “ On this I ponder whereier I wander, And thus grow fonder, sweet Cork of thee, With thy bells of Shandon, that sound so grand on The pleasant waters of the river Lee.” The charming river Shannon, is one of the most fashionable places of resort in that country. All these spots may be visited by a tourist, on his way to London, with very little, if any, extra expense. CHAPTER III. NEW FOUNDLAND. St Johns— Its Government — Public Buildings -Bishop Mulloch— Cod Fish- ery — Galway teamers — French Fishermen — Commissioner Kent — Eu r oute — Divine Service. At two o’clock, p. m., of the fifth, we entered the bay of St. Johns, which extends from the sea about four miles, and is one ,mile in width. It is a pic- turesque harbor, and contains much grand scenery, being surrounded by mountains which rise from five to eight hundred feet above tide water. The city it- self is pleasantly situated on the southern slope of a high hill, on the northern side of the harbor, and commands a noble view of the bay and the opposite mountains. It was burnt to the ground in 1846, since which time it has been rebuilt, chiefly with brick and stone. It contains a population of upwards of thirty thousand inhabitants, and its financial affairs, as well as those of the province of Newfoundland, of which it is the capital, are managed with great econ- omy and ability. Its government is entirely in the hands of the Governor and the Legislature, conse- quently the city has neither mayor nor commonalty ; and, what is worthy of remark, its inhabitants are exempt from taxation of every description, except indirect ones imposed by the government on imported NEWFOUNDLAND. 21 articles. The police of the city, the poor and the in- sane, and also the public schools, are all supported out of the public treasury. Each religious denomina- tion receives its equal part of the school fund, in ac- cordance with the number of children connected with it — Catholics and Protestants both sharing alike in its distribution ; but the schools are kept separate. Great attention, indeed, is paid by the inhabitants to educa- cation in all its phases. An extensive Catholic college is in process of erec- tion ; one wing is already completed, and when the building is finished it will rank among the first insti- tutions of its kind in the British provinces. The Gov- ernment House is a handsome structure, and is well adapted for the purpose for which it was erected. The bishop’s palace, the cathedral, and the other ec- clesiastical edifices of the different denominations, are all deserving of the particular attention of the tourist. The cathedral is a large and nob«e edifice, one hundred and twenty by one hundred and fifty feet in extent. The Convent of the Presentation and the Convent of Mercy are both spacious built tings. The Right Reverend Bishop Mulloch, the present incumbent, is much beloved and esteemed by his people, and is a man of high attainments ana Chris- tian worth. The palace contains a choice collection of paintings, and there are several fine pictures and statuary in the cathedral. Among the latter the most noticeable are the “ Dead Christ,” by Hogan, au Irish artist, and a group representing St. John baptising our Saviour. The territorial government of Newfoundland em- braces not only the island itself, but all those adja- cent, and the coast of Labrador, from the eastern ex- tremity of Hudson’s bay strait to a line drawn north and south from Anse, on the coast, to fifty -two dep^ea north latitude. 22 NEWFOUNDLAND. The government, by a royal grant, is placed in the hands of a Governor and Executive Council, which must not exceed fifteen members, the whole number to be appointed by the crown. All the public officers are members of the legislature. The householders and freeholders are entitled to elect, every fourth year thirty additional members of the Assembly, which compose the lower house. The Governor has the power to appoint all judges and commissioners of Oyer and Terminer as also justices of the peace, with power to suspend them upon sufficient cause. He also possesses the veto privilege, and the power to adjourn and prorogue the Legislature. The laboring population are mostly engaged in fishing ; the larger part of them have acquired a com- petence, and many amassed handsome fortunes by their industry and honesty in their hazarduous pur- suit. The chief desire of their able and efficient Governor, the Honorable Alexander Banordman, is to find employment for them during the winter sea- son. Their sealing business commences on the first of March. These men, so hardy and daring, are the best sailors in the world, for they enter fearlessly with their vessels into extensive fields of ice in the northern sea, where the seals are usually to be found among the floating cakes. The sealers have been, f am told, particularly successful in their voyages this apring, many of them having already returned into port with rich cargoes. Codfishing, another branch of their business, commences about the middle of May, and ends in October. These fish are taken in large quan- tities on the banks of Newfoundland and off the coast of Labrador. Salmon fishing commences about the middle of April. The Legislature of the provinces is now in session, and an act has recently been passed by that honor- ab'e body, in support of the existing Galway line ol NEWFOUNDLAND. 23 steamers, increasing the annual amount of the appro- priation for its benefit to eight thousand five hundred pounds. This act met with opposition in both branch- es ; but was carried by handsome majorities. The company is engaged in constructing five new steam- ers of the largest class, to be placed on this route, This line deserves encouragement, and when it is bet- ter known to the travelling ancL business public, it will doubtless receive its full proportion of passengers and freight. As its terminus is at Hew York, that city is particularly interested in its success. The people of this province, very naturally, are anxious in regard to the termination of the fishery question, now pending between Great Britain and France. The French have for a long time been in the habit of affixing large fish-hooks, properly baited, to ropes extending for miles in every direction on the banks, which are retained in their places by anchors, and upheld on the surface of the water by buoys. This manner of fishing, it is alleged, destroys a large number of fish ; and the right so to take them is de- nied by the province. There are, doubtless, other points of difference involved in this question to be settled between the high contracting powers. The Honorable John Kent, of St. Johns, was ap- pointed, some time ago, Colonial Commissioner on this subject. He left St. Johns in the steamer Pacific, early in March, for England, and was attended to the wharf, on his departure, by a large concourse of peo- ple, who heartily cheered him on taking leave, thus evincing their regard for him and the interest they took in his mission. He and his friends were received on board in a becoming manner. The captain had prepared an entertainment for them, and the occasion was one which called forth patriotic toasts and speeches, and showed the great interest felt by the 24 NEWFOUNDLAND. people of the province for a speedy, just and equita- ble settlement of the question at issue. We left St. Johns on the sixth of April, at foui o’clock, p. m., with a fair wind, and under a full press of sail, and within three hours thereafter lost sight of land, with every prospect before us of making a short and uninterrupted passage ; but, at ten o’clock at night, we run into a held of floating ice, which covered - the sea as far as the eye could reach, with here and there an open space, which had the appearance of a lake. No other than a sailing vessel or a prop>ell<>r could have made its way through it, ahd even with us the advance was both slow and hazardous. It was twelve hours before we were free from this floe, and though the danger was not, perhaps imminent, yet the appearance was frightful. I was told by one of the assistant officers, who had been previously for twenty years engaged in the seal fishery, that he had repeatedly passed through similar fields in the arctic seas, without any accident, and though we were not altogether free from danger, lie did not doubt but he would carry our strongly built iron propellor safely through the field : — which he fortunately did, much to the joy and relief of those on board. On Sunday, the tenth of April, divine service, which was attended by all the passengers, including many from the steerage, was held' on the after deck. The Honorable and Venerable Dean Canfield lead the service of the Established Church of England, and afterwards delivered an eloquent and comprehensive sermon, on the transfiguration of our blessed Lord and Saviour on Mount Tabor, which was listened to with deep attention by all present. IRELAND. 25 CHAPTER IY. IRELAND. S/ght of Land— The Pilot— Steam-tug Galway Station Houses -The Coun- try- Turf Land — Herds and Flocks — Linen — Dwellings of Farmers - Greshinan Hotel— Dublin— View of the City Botanical Garden -Pros- pect Cemetery Bay of Dublin— Public Buildings — Society— Holy-Head — Suspension Bridge— Arrival in London. Our passage, after we had cleared the ice, was more like a pleasure excursion upon an inland lake, than a voyage across the broad Atlantic. Day after day went pleasantly by in sunshine, soft airs were wafted around us, and brilliant starlight nights looked down upon us. On the thirteenth of April, the cap- tain informed us that we should make land before night; and even while he was imparting to me this agreeable intelligence, the lookout discovered a pilot- boat in the distance. This fact was soon known throughout tlu vessel, and most of the passengers as- sembled on deck to witness the interesting and some- what exciting spectacle of receiving the pilot. All eyes were directed toward a small black vessel, with a raking mast, a main-sail and two jibs, swiftly ap- proaching us. When within a short distance of us we laid to, while a yawl, as black as the pilot-boat itself, was launched from its deck, and the pilot, fol- lowed by one of the sailors, stepped into it, and was rowed to the side of our vessel. The mate threw a rope, which the pilot seized. “Don’t hurry yourself, pilot,” said our captain, u you have time enough yet.” “ Aye, aye,” he replied, swinging himself up the side of the steamer, and immediately a hearty jack-tar from the Emerald isle stood before us. He was as cordially received by all the passengers as though 3 26 IRELAND. they had been acquainted with him for years, and he to their great delight, distributed among them a num- ber of newspapers of late dates. “ This vessel, sir,” the captain said, addressing the pilot, is now under your command.” The steamer was soon under weigh again, under her usual head of steam, with all her sails set to catch the favoring breeze, and sped along at the rate of twelve knots an hour towards its destined port. Be- fore sunset we obtained a full view of the shore ; but we reached our place of anchorage at too late an hour to enable us to land that night, so we quietly remain- ed in our berth until the next morning, when we disembarked and were conveyed to Galway in a steam-tug, through a severe hail storm. We were detained, however, unfortunately, upwards of an hour on board this uncomfortable craft, in consequence of the depth of water, at that time of the tide, not being sufficient to float her to the wharf. Galway is a small, but exceedingly pleasant and agreeable town. Its harbor is defended by a strong fort; and its foreign commerce and inland traffic are considerable — the latter being much facilitated by means ot the Lough and Cervil. This borough has also a great trade in kelp, and a profitable salmon fishery. There is a very beautiful park in the centre of the town, and a large public house, built after the most approved model, by the railroad company. Here we were served with everything that the inclination could wish for and the appetite desire. After ram- bling through this beautiful town, viewing its noble streets and buildings, we departed, at one o’clock, p.m., by railway, for Dublin. The station houses at Gal- way, and all along the line of the road, are beautiful and commodious structures, being built of stone, in the best style of architecture. Around the station houses shrubbery and hardy flowers have been IRELAND. 27 planted, many of which were in bloom. Among them I nrtficed the Persian lilac, the flowering currant, and other similar plants, all of which attract the at- tention and admiration of travellers. The aspect of the country, for several miles from Galway, is by no means inviting,- for a large portion of it is literally covered with stones, and the farmers have, in order to clear their land for cultivation, built immense stone walls, and here and there throughout their fields have piled huge pyramids of stones, which both serve to mark their own industry and the im- provement they have made in their property. After leaving this stony region we came to the turf- land, where they cut and dry the peat for fuel. It is largely employed in this part of Ireland for that pur- pose, and when charred, or scorched to a black coal it burns more slowly and gently, and will bear, with- out being extinguished, a trreater diminution of the quantity of air, with which it is supplied, than any of the other solid fuels. In 1809 the commissioners appointed to inquire into the nature and extent of Irish bogs, estimated them at two millions eight hundred and thirty thou- sand English acres, of which the larger portion lay between a line drawn from Wicklow Head to Gal- way, and another drawn from HowathHead to Sligo. The greater part of this immense bog is capable of being drained. It is fortunate, I think, for the people of Ireland, especially the poorer class, that they have these turf-lands from which to provide themselves with a cheap, excellent, and abundant supply of fuel, for there is a remarkable deficiency of wood and forest land in the country : at least such appeared to me to be the case so far as I. could observe on the route we travelled. After leaving these turf-lands we found the country under a high state of cultivation. Sheep, cattle and 28 IRELAND. swine are raised in great numbers, of which, a large portion are exported. The grass in the fields, §ven at this season, was green, and cattle and sheep were to be seen grazing in every direction. This is owing to the climate being in general more temperate than in other countries situated in the same degree of lati- tude. The heat of summer is less oppressive, and the cold of winder not so severe. It is also much more inclined to moisture — even when there is no rain the air is usually so moist as to show its effect in the dampness which gathers on the houses and even upon the furniture within. The soil is, generally a fertile loam, on a rocky substratum. This neighborhood is particularly noted for its dairy farms, which produce an excellent quality of butter. Indeed this article is the chief production of the country, and the butter trade forms a prominent feature in its business. I was surprised to find that the manufacture of linen, which has been of great importance to Ireland, not only in a commercial but in a moral point of view, is a domestic employment: the spinners and weavers being, as a general rule, peasants, who add to the manufacturing of linen on their own looms set up in their cottages, the care and cultivation of a few acres of ground. The dwellings of the farmers throughout the coun- try are very much alike in their character, and are usually one story in height, with thatched roofs. The land in the vicinity of Dublin rents for thirty dollars an acre, and sells for four thousand. We reached the city of Dublin shortly before sun- set, and engaged apartments at the Gresham Hotel, where we were made very comfortable by our host, and enjoyed a quiet night’s rest. We devoted all our time during our sojourn here to visiting friends and examining such objects as we were advised were de- serving of consideration. IRELAND. 29 Tie city is exceedingly beautiful, and contains be- tween two hundred and fifty and three hundred thou- sand inhabitants. Sackville is the most fashionable street. It runs north and south, and is over one hun- dred and sixty feet in width. In this street, a short distance north of the river LifFey, is a tasteful monu- ment, erected to Lord Nelson, the hero of Trafalgar, which towers above everything else in the city. From its top a fine view rf the town and surrounding coun- try may be obtained. On the south, within six miles of the boundary of the place, the Dublin range of mountains rises between fifteen hundred and two thousand feet above the level of tide-water. These mountains contribute greatly to the beauty of the landscape on that side of the city. Dublin, I was informed, is rapidly extending in that direction. The river LifFey runs in an easterly course, and divides the city into two parts, connected by seven stone bridges, which like those of London and Paris, are graceful structures, and attract attention, both on ac- count of their lightness and strength. On the north- west of the city the Phoenix Park is situated. It covers seventeen hundred and fifty acres of land, and is handsomely laid out in roads and walks. Two large columns rise in its central part, one is erected to the Duke of Wellington, and the other sustains on its summit a Phoenix. The Lord Lieutenant’s mansion, a large and beautiful structure ; also the dwellings of his private secretaries, occupy conspicuous situations wi tliiu its boundary. On the north of the city lies Prospect Cemetery, adjoining which is the Royal Botanic Garden. These grounds are laid out with great taste. The numerous and expensive monuments of the rural cemetery arise amidst beautiful forest trees and many varieties of hardy shrubbery, planted by the loving and sorrowing friends of those whose remains here rest. Like our 30 IRELAND. own Greenwood, it is much resorted to, and a walk through its winding and carefully kept gravelled paths incites feelings of a subdued and mournful cha- racter. On the east the eye embraces in one view the large and commodious Bay of Dublin, dotted at all times with vessels going to and from the great Metropolis. The bay is at least thirty-live miles In circumference from headland to headland, and about ten miles across in its widest part. Within its limits the government is constructing an immense breakwater at Kingston. Several beautiful villages line the shore between that place and the city, and are connected by a railroad from the town, passing through them, rendering them easy of access, and, indeed, constituting them a part of the metropolis. The view of the shore, seen from anj^ point on the bay, is extremely line. The houses of the city, with the exception of the principal pub- lic edifices, are general^ constructed of brick, and are from three to five stories in height. In the old part of the town the streets are irregularly laid out, though few cities of its size can boast of a greater number of magnificent structures. The Castle, which was completed and flanked with towers, in 1213, is siiuated near the centre of the town, and is the seat of government. The Castle Chapel, recently rebuilt, is an exquisite specimen of Gothic architecture. The other public edifices are the Commercial Buildings, the Corn Exchange, the Custom House, the Stamp Office, the National Bank, the Post Office, and Tri- nity College, which last is of Portland stone, and of the Corinthian order. It is situated in the midst of a park, of twenty-six acres, handsomely ornamented with trees and shrubbery. There are also the Koyal Barracks, St. Patrick’s Law Courts, and the Cathedral, in which latter editice the remains of the celebrated Dean Swift now repose. IRELAND. 31 The citizens of Dublin have e ver been distinguished for their hospitality to strangers. The social circles of the educated and higher class will compare favor- ably with those of the society of London or Paris, and I think that the refinement and elegance of man- ner which characterizes their ladies is not surpassed anywhere in the world. We left Dublin for London, on the sixteenth inst., at ten o’clock, a.m., in a line steamer, by the way of Iloly-IIead, a seaport town of Wales, and the largest on the island of Anglesey, where we arrived at one o’clock, p.m. It is a place of considerable importance, and has been so since it first became the great point of communication to the Irish capital, and a rendez vo us of the mail packets. The town consists chiefly of a long street, with de tached and straggling buildings, and is two hundred and seventy-eight miles from London. The harbor was formerly very unsafe ; but the government is constructing an extensive breakwater, which is now so far completed as to allow vessels to land or sail at all times of the tide. After dinner, which we took on shore, we resumed our journey, passing through Bangor, Conway, Ryle, and Holiwell, which last place takes its name from the famous well at Winfred, concerning which many fables and superstitions have prevailed. We also passed through the large manufacturing town of Ches- ter. I ought hot to omit to state that I passed over the very first suspension bridge ever constructed. It was built across the Menai channel, which separates the Island of Anglesy from the Main. There were, beside, several tunnels on the route, and one iron trunk bridge. We arrived in London early in the evening of the same day, completing our journey of three hundred and forty miles in between thirteen and fourteen hours. 32 LONDON FROM ST. PAUL’S. CHAPTER Y. LONDON FROM ST. PAUL’S. Yauxhall Bridge -Westminster Abbey — St, Paul’s Cathedral— The Paris -The Docks— The Post Office -The ower— Temple Bar -Origin of Lon- don— Library of St. Paul’s — Form of St. Paul’s— Monuments. I took my first view of London from Yauxhall Bridge. From this point Westminster and Waterloo Bridges are in full view, and are objects of peculiar- attraction, on account of their architectural beauty. The Hew Parliament House, which is not surpassed in magnificence or size by any similar edifice in Eu- rope, is here seen to great advantage It stands upon an elevated position, on the banks of the Thames. Westminster Abbey and Somerset House, as also an extensive view of London, embracing St. Paul’s Ca- thedral, which towers above everything else, is ob- tained from this point. I gazed upon these interest- ing objects till night hid them from my sight, when I drove through the new road which runs along the ri- ver, and thence through Margaret, Parliament and White-Hall streets, to Trafalgar Square, where stand, in bold relief, a beautiful monument to Lord Nelson, a handsome equestrian statue of King George the Fourth, and a statue to Sir Charles Napier. Besides these there are two tasteful fountains, throwing up large volumes of water for the comfort and amuse- ment of Queen Yictoria and her loyal subjects. This fine square, with the chaste and classical edifice, the National Gallery, which forms its western side, pro- mises to be one of the noblest ornaments of the city. At an early hour the following morning I repaired LONDON FROM 8T. PAUL’S. 33 to St. Paul’s Cathedral, from the iron gallery of which, at the base of the lantern, I had a perfet bird’s eye view of London and its environs, stretching out on both sides of the Thames. The buildings on the Middlesex shore follow the natural bend of the river, and rise, somewhat ainphitheatrically, from east to west; and on the Surrey side, following the seg- ment of the circle, as formed by the river, penetrate southward to an extent varying from one to five or six miles. From this gallery } r ou have a fine view of St. James’s Palace, and Buckingham Palace, the re- sidence of the queen ; also of Green, St. James, Hyde and Begent’s Parks, and Kensington Gardens, the en- trance to which is through Hyde Park. These parks all lie on the west side of London, and are laid out with great taste. They contain upwards of fifteen hundred acres of land, and are surrounded by magni- ficent public and private edifices. In addition to the above-named parks, are Grosvenor Square, in the centre of which is a gilt equestrian statue of George the First ; Bussell Square, where a life-size statue of Francis, Duke of Bedford, is seen ; Bloomsbury, in which stands a statue of Charles James Fox ; Caven- dish, containing an equestrian statue of William, Duke of Cumberland ; Soho, wherein is a statue of Charles the Second ; St. James’s, Queen’s, and Port- land, each of which is ornamented by a statue. I looked down from my position on the portion of this metropolis which extends from London Bridge to Dipford — a distance of four miles: the river presents an increasing succession of vessels of all burdens and from all nations, moored on either side of the shore, and engaged in being loaded or unloaded. A fine view is also had from this gallery of the various docks which lie east of the Tower, on the north side of the river, namely St Katherine, London, East and West India. These docks are excavated at great 2 * 34: LONDON FKOM ST. PAUL’S. depths, walled up with brick and cut-stone, and laid in water cement. They are surrounded by extensive tire-proof warehouses, and communicate with the ri- ver by canals and locks. They will contain upwards of one thousand vessels of the larger class, besides smaller craft. The commerce of London is so exten- sive that it would be impossible to carry it on with- out these docks, for the river does not exceed a quar- ter of a mile in width. The Post-office, by the grandeur and beauty of its architecture, makes an impression upon all who visit it. The Bank of England, which covers eight acres of ground, the new Exchange, the Custom-House, the Tower, the Inns of Court, the churches and theatres. - are all seen from St. Pa il’s to great advantage, and are structures of beauty, deserving particular atten- tion, The ancient wall of the city, commenced at the ri- ver, on the Middlesex side, near the Tower, and after winding around, returned to the river, a little below Waterloo Bridge, and then followed the same to the Tower, from whence it started. Temple Bar gate, which was rebuilt in 1670, is the only gate now re- maining of the Corinthian order. It consists of a large central arch, with a smaller one on each side, for foot-passengers. On state occasions the gate is closed against the official agents of royalty. Permis- sion to enter the city is tlieu asked in the queen’s name, of the Lord Mayor, who issues a special order to that effect, and then accompanies the royal escort to its destination. The heads of malefactors who had been executed were formerly exhibited on this gate. In looking upon this great city, one is naturally led to inquire into its early history. This is shrouded in obscurity ; but London certainly was a stronghold of the. Britons before the Christian era. Its Roman de- signation marks it as the capital of a province. Ta- 35 LONDON FKOM ST. PAUL’S. citus speaks of Londinum or Colonia. Augustus al- ludes to it as a commercial mart of considerable ce- lebrity in a. d. 61. It was, subsequently — in a. tx 193 — noted as a large and wealthy city. In descending from the position I occupied in the gallery, I passed through the library. This room contains a fine collection of ecclesiastical works and manuscripts. The floor is curiously inlaid with small, square pieces of oak, to the number of two thousand three hundred and seventy-six. St. Paul’s is situated on elevated ground nearly in the centre of the metro- polis. It presents a majestic and classical appear- ance, and is a lasting memorial of the genius of the great architect, Sir Christopher Wren. The form of the ground plan represents a cross. The erection of the building occupied thirty-five years, and cost seven and a half millions of dollars. The principal entrance looks westward, on Ludgate Hill, and is adorned with a beautiful portico, consisting of twelve Cor- inthian pillars below, and above eight composite ones, in pairs, supporting a triangular pediment — on the entablature of which is represented the conversion of St. Paul, sculptured in low-relief, and on the apex of the pediment is a classical figure of the same apostle, as also one of St. James. Along the summit of the front are similar statues of the Evangelists. In front of the portico is a statue of Queen Anne in her robes of state, holding in one hand the emblem of royalty. There are many gems of sculpture in this cathedral, as monuments to the brave and talented. I examined with interest those erected to the learned Dr. John- son, Howard (the philanthropist,) Sir Joshua .Rey- nolds, Lords Kelson and Cornwallis, Captain John Cook, Lords Heathfield and Collingwood, General Packenham, (who fell in the battle of New Orleans,) and many others, including an equestrian monument to Sir Ralph Abercrombie, who is represented in the WESTMINSTER ABBEY. .16 act of falling from liis horse, but is caught and sup- ported by an attendant Highlander. The city now embraces in its circumference upwards of forty miles, and contains a population exceeding two millions. It is, doubtless, the largest, as it surely is the most magnificent, city in the world. CHAPTER YI. WESTMINSTER ABBEY. Westminster Abbey — Its Early History — The North Transept— Dooms-Day Book — Jacob's Pillow— The Tombs in the Abbey — The Poet’s Comer- Monuments — Pitt— Newton— Money Well fpent. After devoting all the time I could spare to an examination of the numerous objects of interest in and around St. Paul’s Cathedral, I drove to West- minster Abbey. Sebert, King of Essex, is regarded as the founder of this building, which was commenced A. d. 605. His remains were here deposited. Edward the Con lessor, however, improved it, and spared no cost in making it the most magnificent church, of the Style of Gothic architecture, that had ever been erec- ted in his .dominions. It was dedicated in 1065, and in the following 3 7 e#rhis remains were interred there, with great pomp, and it has since received the remains of many of his successors. Every sovereign of En- gland, since 1065, has been crowned in this edifice, except Edward the Fifth. The coronation chair is kept very carefully, and is an object of great curiosity. This structure was the first one in the form of a cross built in England. Henry the Third rebuilt the east- ern portion in a style of great magnificence, and, in 1503, Henry the Seventh added the .chape), which, for elegance and richness of ornament, may challenge competition with the most famous in the world. WESTMINSTER ABBEY. 37 The front elevation of the north transept of the Abbey presents an example of that elegant, yet fanci- ful display, which belongs solely to this style of archi- tecture. Its imposing effect is derived from its im- mense buttress, its elevated pinnacles, and its Rose or St. Catherine wheel-window, which forms a circle of thirty-two feet in diameter. The Dooms-Day Book, compiled in the eleventh century, and written on vel- lum, is deposited in the Cloisters Chapel House. The far-famed stone, brought from Scotland by Edward the First, is carefully preserved in this edifice. Many traditions are connected with it. The old legends affirm that it formed Jacob’s pillow on the memorable night when he saw the vision of a ladder reaching to heaven. Sir James Ware states that it was brought into Ireland by a colony of the Tuatlia de Danans, and that it had the property of issuing sounds resem- bling thunder. It is said that Fergus, first King of Scotland, brought it with him from Ireland, and was crowned upon it 330 years before Christ. The principal attraction of Westminster Abbey to its visitors, is the numerous tombs it contains. Here lie the mouldering remains of kings, queens, nobles, statesmen, warriors, orators, poets and all the most il lustrious persons in England’s history. A description of the various monuments in the . \bbey fills many volumes ; indeed, a large work with illustrations may be found in several of the public libraries in the United Slates. The tomb of Henry the Seventh, and his wife Elizabeth, is deserving of particular notice. It was erected at vast expense, by Pietro Lonego, and the figures are of cast copper, once resplendent with gilding; the pedestal, of black marble, variously or- namented : altogether forming a magniticent monu- ment. Among others is one to Mary, Queen of Scots, one to the Countess of Richmond, and one to Queen Elizabeth. In the Chapel of Edward the Confessor 38 WESTMINSTER ABBEY. stands the venerable shrine to St. Edward, much de- faced by time. There is, in the Chapel of St. John and St. Michael, a remarkably fine monument to the memory of the Lady Nightingale. In “The Poets’ Corner,” are monuments erected to Chaucer, Dryden, Cowley, Ben Jonson, Spenser, Milton, Butler, Gray, Prior, and others. The one erected to Shakspeare is exceedingly chaste and appropriate. The attitude, shape, carriage and dress of the figure, are finely ex- ecuted. On the pedestal are the heads of Henry the Fifth, Richard the Third, and Elizabeth — personages ably described in his plays. The scroll exhibits his lines from the “ Tempest,” on the mutability of hu- man affairs. Over the great west door is a monument to Wil- liam Pitt, who is represented in his robes of state. On one side appears History recording the acts of his administration, while on the other Anarchy lies chained at his feet. At the entrance of the choir is a monument to Sir Isaac Newton. He is represented in a recumbent position, resting his arm on four folios, ai)d pointing to a scroll supported by cherubims Above is a globe projecting from a pyramid. On the globe sits the figure of Astronomy, with her book closed. Beneath is a bas-relief whereon are designed the various labors in which he employed his time. The whole is rich in thought and execution. Beauti- ful structures of the above described character are found wherever you go in and about London ; and, in my judgment money has been well expended in this way ; for these things serve to keep alive in the breasts of Englishmen the invaluable services of those whose names they commemorate. NATIONAL AND ROYAL ACADEMY. 39 CHAPTER VII. NATIONAL AND ROYAL ACADEMY. Establishment of the National Gallery — Its Location — Pictures — Sehastiano’s Lazarus — Its Anatomical Correctness. Most of die governments upon the continent have, for centuries, appropriated large sums of money for the erection of stately and extensive edifices for the reception of the works of the old masters and others, whilst Great Britain was without an institution of this character down to the 22d of June, 1822. Its estab- lishment at that time was owing to the following cir- cumstance: Isaac Angerstein, one of the most con- spicuous and liberal merchants of London, collected, during his life, an extensive gallery of pictures by ancient and modern artists. He was aided in the collection of them by Sir Thomas Lawrence. After his death they were advertised for sale, when the Earl of Liverpool, then first Lord of the Treasury, brought the matter before Parliament, and the sum of fifty-seven thousand pounds sterling was appropri- ated for their purchase : since which time many other pictures have been added to this collection. In 1832 the sum of fifty thousand pounds sterling was voted by Parliament for the erection of the National Gal- lery, and three years after a further sum appropriated to be applied to the same object. The site of this building is, perhaps, the finest that could have been selected in the metropolis. It fronts on Trafalgar Square, commanding a view of the square itself, of the monument erected to Lord Nel- son, and the broad vista of Parliament and White Hail streets. The building consists of a centre and 4:0 NATIONAL AND ROYAL ACADEMY. two wings, the length being four hundred and sixteen feet, and its greatest breadth fifty-six. The main feature of the building is the central portico, adorned with Corinthian columns. The National Gallery occupies the western wing and the Royal Academy the eastern. In this edifice are several pictures by Raphael, Titian, Paul Veronese, Poussin, Rubens, Rembrandt, VanDyck, DiVinci, Salvator, Murillo, besides many others. It is seldom that persons are favorably impressed with pictures at first sight, ow- ing to a want of capacity fully to appreciate their merit ; but these works were so far superior in every respect to any pictures I had ever seen before, that I was particularly struck with their excellence. Pic- tures must be studied as attentively as books before they can be thoroughly understood, or the principles of art so established in the mind as to render works which are truly beautiful the object of admiration. One of the most important pictures in this collection is the “ Lazarus,” by Sebastiano del Piombo. It is declared to be the second best picture in the world ; the artist received some assistance from Michael Angelo, who, being jealous of Raphael, encouraged Sebastiano to undertake the work, in competition of his rival’s celebrated picture of the ‘‘Transfigura- tion.” It is supposed that Michael Angelo, who had a profound knowledge of anatomical details of the human frame, executed the design and groupings of the figures. The body of Lazarus displays this know- ledge in a wonderful degree — the play of the muscles in action, and the precision with which they are de- fined, are extraordinary. This picture cost the gov- ernment ten thousand pounds sterling, and many of the others in the gallery cost from three to live thou- sand pounds sterling each. No one should visit Lon- don without devoting one day, at least, to viewing the pictures in these exhibition rooms. RAMBLE THROUGH HAMPTON COURT. 41 CHAPTER VIII. RAMBLE THROUGH HAMPTON COURT. Richmond — Thomson, the Poet — Cardinal Wolsey — Henry VIT — Victoria’s Residences— Hampton Court — Portraits— Raffalle’s Cartoons — The Cham- bers — The Tapestry — View from the Palace— The Park — Return to London. I drove to-day to Hampton Court, and stopped on the way at the village of Richmond, situated on the Surrey side of the Thames, nine miles from London, w ich is a place of much resort for the fashionable people of the great metropolis. Many noble residences stud the hill and the surrounding country, and a fine stone bridge crosses the river at this point. The village it- self is adorned with a grand park, containing upward of twenty-five hundred acres, affording delightful walks and drives to its visitors. Thomson, the poet, resided here, and at his death was buried in the parish church : the spot where he lies is marked by a brass tablet, with an inscription to his memory, erected by the Earl of Buear. The drive from Richmond to Hampton Court is one of in- terest. The palace at this place was erected by Car- dinal Wolsey. It is in the form of a parallelogram, and is a magnificent structure. Although Wolsey was then in the height of his power, we are informed by historians that he did not escape the envy of the people nor the lash of the satirist. Skelton, and other writers of that period, published some severe articles against him ; and when the palace was finished it excited great envy at court— so much so, that King Henry the Eighth, in 1525, questioned the cardinal as to his intention in building a mansion that far sur- passed all of the royal places in England. To which 42 RAMBLE THROUGH HAMPTON COURT. Wolsey, with great presence of mind, replied : — That he was only trying to construct a residence worthy of so great a monarch, and that Hampton Court Palace was the property of King Henry the Eighth. This palace became the private residence of King Henry, and during his reign scenes of festivity were here exhibited exceeding anything of the kind that had ever before taken place. It was used as the re- sidence of the several royal families from that period to the reign of George the Third. Queen Victoria lias never made it her residence. She has several royal palaces at her disposal, namely : — Buckingham Palace, her city residence, on which about three mil- lions of dollars have been expended in its construction, is magnificent, and its furniture is the most costly that modern art can produce ; Windsor Castle, situ- ated a few miles above Hampton Court, her favorite country residence, is the largest, if not the most handsomely finished, palace in her kingdom. Be- sides these she has St. James Palace, and Brighton, which, as well as the others, ^refurnished and kept in repair at the public expense. The palace at Hampton Court is now celebrated chiefly on account of the numerous paintings, num- bering more than one thousand which it contains. Among them are to be seen all the royal physiogno- mies and full-length portraits of the ladies of the court of the several periods. These paintings were executed by the most distinguished artists. Here also are portraits of England’s celebrated men, embracing officers of the army and navy, statesmen, artists, poets, and men of science. My chief object in visit ing this ancient palace was to see the cartoons of Haf- falle, which are the noblest works of art? ever pro- duced by man. The history of these designs, subse- quent to their completion, is extraordinary. Battalia was engaged by Leo X. to design this series of sub* RAMBLE THROUGH HAMPTON COURT. 43 jects, taken from the life of our Saviour and the Acts of the Apostles, as patterns for tapestry to decorate the papal palace. Barnard Yan Orloy was employed to superintend' the weaving after the designs; and it is somewhat surprising that when the tapestry was completed the cartoons were not reclaimed or sent back to Rome ; they were thrown aside by Yan Or loy, as of no value, and left to moulder and decay among the lumber of the manufactory. From this they were, on the recommendation of the distinguished artist Rubens, purchased by Charles I., and brought to England, where they remained for a long time in neglect. Charles II. sent them to be copied in tapes try, and while in the manufactory they met with nt better attention than when at Brussels,, and were, in- deed, considerably damaged. William Cook, an ar- tist of much merit, under whose charge they were, repaired and restored them to their original appear- ance, and King William III. fitted up the present gal- lery for their reception.. There were twenty -five cartoons in all, executed by Raffalle, of which seven are now here, viz : — “ Paul Preaching at Athens;” “The Death of Ananias;” “Elymas the Sorcerer struck with Blindness ;” “Christ Delivering the Keys to Peter;” “The Sacrifice of Lystra;” “The Apostles Healing in the Temple,” and “The Miraculous Draught of Fishes.” These have been engraved by several distinguished artists. The grand chamber is a magnificent room, and con- tains muskets, helmets, swords, etc., disposed in various figures upon the wall, and all in the finest order. From this apartment we passed through the king’s first and second presence chambers, audience- room, and dining-hall, into King William the Thircf’s bed- chamber, which contains the state bed of Queen Charlotte, covered with rich and beautifully embroid- ered needlework. 44 RAMBLE THROUGH HAMPTON COURT. We visited the great Gothic Hall, designed by Wolsey, and finished by Henry the Eighth, when Anna Boleyn was in the height of favor. It was used as a theatre during the reigns of Queen Eliza- beth and Janies the First; and there is a tradition that some of Shakspeare’s plays were first acted in this hall. The walls of this room are hun^ with ta- pestry, in eight compartments: the subject is the story of Abraham. The view from this palace — embracing as it does the public grounds, the fine park with its avenue of elms, reaching in a straight line to the banks of the Tiiames and Kingston, the various private gardens, the maze and the wilderness, — is euchautingly beautiful. The trees in the wilderness were planted l>y King William the Third, with a view of hiding the irregularities in the northern side of the palace. There were thou- sands of well-dressed persons of both sexes wander- ing through the grounds, enjoying this charming pro- menade. Children were running about and playing, delighted with the opportunity thus afforded them of recreation. I returned to London before sunset, by a small steamboat, and had an excellent view of the numer- ous country seats situated on the banks of the Thames. In passing Richmond by water, the view of it was so pleasing that nothing could induce me to leave the deck until I lost sight of it in the distance. ENGLAND IN THE OLDEN TIME. 45 CHAPTER IX. ENGLAND IN THE OLDEN TIME. The Old and New World— England's Illustrious Men— Its Agriculture, Climate and Productions -Its Manufactures in King .1 aines the Ist’s time--Com- merce of the Country — James II.— Woolen Cloths. I have already been more than repaid for the time I have devoted in my visit to this country. Centu- ries ag>, my ancestors resided here, from whence they emigrated to the Hew World, then a desolate wilderness, and the abode of savages. I have ex- amined with interest the improvements that have been made here during centuries, and the changes which have been effected from time to time, in the cultiva- tion of the soil, the building of towns and cities, the construction of highways, bridges, railroads, canals, and other facilities for the transportation of the pro- duce of the country. I have observed with satisfaction that the greatest attention has been bestowed by the government in the advancement of the agricultural, manufacturing, and commercial interests of this country, and that it honors the host of illustrious men, eminently distin- guished for their learning, their wisdom, their scient- ific attainments, and their devotion to the sacred cause of religion who were born here. Limited as this country is in point of territory, it has become under the hand of the agriculturist, the garden of the world. The climate is rather rigorous and ungenial, and subject to sudden and frequent changes. Its atmosphere, at times cold and damp, is not, however, liable to great extremes of either heat or cold. Its mines and quarries afford a constant sup* 46 ENGLAND IN THE OLDEN TIME. ply of valuable productions. Iron, tin, and coal are found in great abundance, and although the mines have been worked for centuries, they still seem inex- haustible. The manufactures, which are very large, have chiefly contributed to the nation’s wealth and power. It is curious to look into the history of their rise and pro- gress, and the wonderful increase of the country’s commerce. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth the state of the English manufactures was very low. The queen, who was sensible how much the defence of the kingdom depended on its naval power, was desirous of encouraging commerce and navigation, but the monopolies granted under her reign tended to extin- guish all domestic industry, which is in a great mea- sure the foundation of a foreign trade. A catalogue of the manufactures of the kingdom, in the reign of King James I., a. d., 1625, would ap- pear contemptible in comparison with those which flourish among them at present. Most of the elabor- ate and curious arts were only cultivated abroad — principally in Italy. Nine-tenths of the commerce of England then consisted in woolen goods. Most of the cloth was exported in an unfinished state, and dyed and dressed by the Dutch, who gained seven hundred thousand pounds a year by this alone. In so lir tie credit was the fine English cloth among the English people, that the king was obliged to seek ex- pedients to cause the people of fashion to wear it. The manufacture of fine linen was totally unknown among them, and the silk manufacture had no footing, liy the king’s direction mulberry-trees were planted, and the silk worm introduced, but the climate seemed unfavorable to. the success of this project. The commerce of the country having become greatly embarrassed by the grants to exclusive companies, as already remarked, the system was finally broken up, GOODWOOD RACES. 47 and it was soon found that the manufactures were thereby placed on a much better footing. In the reign of James II., 1689, several manufactures of brass, iron, silk, glass, and paper were established. The Duke of Buckingham introduced from Yenice the manufacture of glass and crystal. It was about this time that the dyeing of woolen cloth was intro- duced. This was at the period when the low countries were threatened with a French conquest, and many of the manufacturers, apprehending total ruin, emi- grated to England with their operatives. Among the most eminent was Mr. Brown, a man of great wealth, and the most extensive manufacturer of Flanders. The government was induced to encourage such emi- gration, which step, together with the increase of ils commerce, has placed England in the front rank among the manufacturing nations of the earth, and, consequently, greatly added to her wealth and power. CHAPTER X. GOODWOOD RACES. South Downs Chichester— The Race Course— Enthusiasm of the Spectators —The Stand— Noblemen and Gipsies -Gamblers and Jagglers — Roman Encampment -Beautiful View- On the Road. I left London with a pleasant party, for the pur- pose of attending the u Goodwood” races, at Chiches- ter. We started on the day preceeding the races, passing on our way through that district of country called the South Downs, from whence come the cele- brated breed of sheep of that name, distinguished by their black nose and feet. Their wool is of a super- ior quality, as regards fineness and length ; and, it is said, the yield is much greater than that of the ordi GOODWOOD RACES. 48 nary sheep. The morning fallowing our arrival we passed in examining the old church at Chichester, which was erected in the year 1100. Afterward we were conveyed to the race course, which is located on the estate of the Duke of Richmond. The course is about one hundred and fifty feet above tide water, and appeared to me to have been prepared at great expense, for it is cut down about ten feet, leaving a ridge of ground of that height, extending on one side of the course, of at least three quarters of a mile long, with a wood coming up to its edge, which affords a comfortable and desirable shade for the spectators. Under the stately trees were several tents and small huts, placed on wheels, in order to he moved from place to place with little trouble. In these a variety of articles were vended by the occu- pants. Below the ridge, and between it and the race course is a level plain extending the length of the ridge, and about one hundred and twenty -five feet in width, which was occupied by carriages of all de- scriptions, filled with well-dressed people of both sexes. Beyond this, and separated from it by a light fence, is the course itself, at least two hundred feet wide. At the extreme end of the track there is a low hill, around which tiie course runs, and high enough . to conceai the horses from the spectators. This is a capital idea, and adds greatly to the interest of the race ; for, w l \en the horses start from the stand, every eye is fixed upon them, until they pass behind the hill, when, for a short time, the spectators are left in doubt as to the progress of their favorites. Upon the horses gaining the straight course again, and coming once more in sight, great is the shouting and wonderful the excitement which ensues. Cries of the red is ahead, the yellow has fallen back, or the blue is gaining, in allusion to the colors worn by the riders, liii the air on every side, and similar cries are kept GOODWOOD RACES. 49 \ up, the spectators growing wild with pleasurable ex- citement, until the horses reach the winning post from whence they started. The stand itself is a large, well built stone mansion, capable of accommodating two thousand persons. There is a beautiful saloon within it, fitted up for the ladies, from the windows of which a fine view of the course is obtained. There were many thousands of spectators present on this occasion, including all ranks and classes, from tiie nobility down to the wandering gipsies. I had a favorable opportunity of viewing the titled aristo- cracy as they drove up to the stand in their state car- riages, drawn by well groomed horses. Their drivers and outriders were clad in liveries of various kinds. The ladies were richly attired, and the gentlemen also had not failed in their attention to the toilette. My friend, who was acquainted with the most of the dis- tinguished persons present, pointed them out to me by name, as they alighted from their carriages. After the greater part of them had assembled we passed through the saloon, obtaining another and more agree- able view of all present. As soon as the first heat was run the course was instantly filled by the crowd, some to examine the horses, and others to witness the feats of jugglers, or those engaged in ground and lofty tumbling, which performances, usual on like occasions, were being en- acted. Nor were a goodly number of thimble-rig- gers, with their associates, lacking in the assembly. In walking around the course, it seemed to me that all were enjoying themselves, and found great delight in this exciting and, I think I may add, rational amusement. During the day I visited the remains of an old Ro- man encampment, situated on a hill side, overlooking the race ground, and within a short distance of it. 3 50 GOODWOOD RACES. From this elevation the view is magnificent, embra- cing a district of country many miles in circuit, ex- tending on the south as far as the British Channel ; and on the southwest to the arm of the sea — separa- ting the Isle of Wight from the main land — and in- cluding the greater part of the island itself. The numerous parks, many of them enclosed with hedge fences ; the noble edifices and towns which are within sight, tend to make up a grand and impos- ing picture. Turning from this beautiful view to the race course itself, I gazed, with pleasure, upon the thousands assembled there, all of whom were attired in their richest costumes, and many of them, mem- bers of the most distinguished families of the land. The scene was one of such magnitude that it would have defied the skill of the most noted artist to have given a correct picture of it. On the last day of the races we left the course some time before sundown, for London. We found the highways, for several miles, lined with the coun- try people, who gathered by the roadside to obtain a view ot the nobility and gentry as they passed along in their splendid carriages. Whenever any person of marked distinction went by, the people cheered, and exhibited other evidences of their gratification. Many of the wealthy and titled, as they rode by threw money upon the ground for the children to scramble after, thus seeking to evince their apprecia- tion of the enthusiasm with which they were greeted. All classes seemed to be more or less excited by the great races which had just taken place. I was parti- cularly struck by the deference and respect which the people paid to those holding official and noble positions. It was altogether a grand display, and I cannot decide which most to admire, the orderly be- havior of the masses on the race course, or the enthu- siasm of the sturdy farmers and laborers, with their HYDE PARK AND A REVIEW. 51 families, who waited on the road side for hours to witness and greet the returning thousands who went b J- CHAPTER XI. HYDE PARK AND A REVIEW. The Frequenters of the Park — Their Enjoyments — A Reminiscence — A Review — 1843 and 1840 — The Iron Duke — On the Field and in Parliament — Thurlow Weed — The Duke’s Monument in St. Paul’s. In one of my rambles about London I visited Hyde Park on a bright and beautiful day, and mingled with the throng of gay visitors who tilled that fashionable place of resort. The animated mid constantly chang- ing assemblage was made up of thousands of persons of both sexes, congregated in pursuit, of pleasure and healthful exercise. The tout ensemble presented was of the most brilliant description. Some of the com- pany were reclining in their luxurious carriages, sur- rounded by servants in livery ; others were mounted on the full blooded horses of the country, and still others were leisurely wandering through the finely gravelled walks, exclusively devoted to the use of pe- destrians. All alike appeared equally happy and de- lighted with the opportunity of breathing the pure air of this delightful season. Such occasions are calculated to render most joyous all who participate in them, and restore the drooping spirits of the unfor- tunate, and cause them for a while to forget the sor- row and troubles of life. I do not believe that there is a place in any part of the world where a more brilliant spectacle of a similar character can be seen. While meditating upon the great display of wealth, beauty, and rank which was observable around me in this very charming Park, which has long been the 52 II Y DIC PARK AND A REVIEW. pride and admiration of the metropolis, it brought to my mind the remembrance of a military parade and review of the Cold Stream Guards, which I witnessed in company with my valued companion in arms, John Peck, Esq., of the city of New York, in the same place in 1843, when on a former visit to London. The Iron Duke, the great Wellington himself, re- viewed the regiment. He was accompanied by the Xing of Hanover, the Duke of Cambridge, and many other distinguished personages. The daughter of the Duke of Cambridge rode beside the Duke of Wel- lington, mounted on a beautiful horse, perfectly bro- ken and full blooded. I was the more interested in witnessing this review than I otherwise would have been, for the reason that 1 was present, in 1840, on the Plains of Abraham, in Canada, with Henry Van Der Lyn, Esq., of Oxford, N. Y., a lawyer of much eminence aud an old and esteemed friend of many years’ standing, and with whom I have made many journeys through the United States, when this same regiment was reviewed. The occasion was the cele- bration of the anniversary of the battle of Waterloo, where Wellington achieved a victory over the great- est general of his day, and gained for himself a dis- tinguished reputation for courageous valor and mili- tary skill. It was, too, this very regiment, headed by Gdonel McDonald, its brave commander, that covered itself with glory on that ever momentous day. As the great Duke and his party, after the review, moved through the Park on a slow walk, the thou- sands of spectators who lined the route on each side, cheered the hero at every step, until he reached the gate of his own residence. At that period there was no man in England more honored and respected than that gallant chieftain, and none who so well deserved the laurel wreath of HYDE PARK AND A REVIEW. 53 glory or the honest song of praise. As a soldier he was unrivalled, as a statesman he had but few equals, and as an English nobleman there was none truer- hearted, or who was a greater favorite with liis coun- trymen. I was fortunate in being present a few days after the review, in the House of Lords, when the Duke made a capital speech upon the then absorbing ques- tion of the day, which was being agitated by the Irish repealers. He was followed by Lord Brougham, Lord Palmerston and others. Shortly after the debate closed, I had the pleasure of meeting in the lobby of the House Mr. Thurlow Weed, the distinguished edi- tor of the Albany Evening Journal, who had been listening to the same debate, seated at a short distance from the place I occupied. Our meeting was most cordial, and exceedingly agreeable to me. Wellington’s noble form will never again be seen by me, as it was on that bright day in June, eighteen years ago, when he reviewed the troops in the Park, nor his voice heard as it was on that other occasion within the walls of the House of Lords. His mortal remains now lie entombed under a beautiful and costly monument, erected by his country, in the cript of 6t. Paul’s Church. I visited his tomb a few days since, and learned, with no little satisfaction, that few strangers came to London, who failed to pay a similar mark of respect to the memory ot' the illustrious dead. Not only does his own land, and the world at large, venerate his name for his goodness, but they regard him as the most successful warrior of his time, and one of the noblest spirits, for whom his country has ever been called upon to mourn. 64 LONDON TO OSTEND. CHAPTER XII. LONDON TO OSTEND. The Ostend Steamer- Running Into Harbor— Ostend— Early History The Fortress- Bathing House— Casino -Light House -Bird’s Eye Views — Mountain Girdle — Harvest — Its Population - Going to Labor — Early Morning — Its Boundaries — Battle field -Waterloo— The Government — Senators. I left London for Ostend, in a fine steamer. The average time occupied in maldng the passage, is fifteen hours, seven of which are taken up in descending the Thames. The weather was remarkably pleasant when we started, and we had every prospect of an agreeable voyage ; but before nightfall, the wind had increased to a gale, and the waves rolled high. Our vessel pitched about at a frightful rate, and most of the pas- sengers complained of sea-sickness. I had the good fortune not to be affected by it in the slightest degree ; consequently I was in a condition calmly to view the storm, and I was particularly struck with the grandeur of the scene. It was the first time I had seen the ocean in its angry mood. The aspect of the sea pre- * sented one sheet of white foam ; the waters were thrown and dashed about in every direction by the violence of the winds. At times, the waves were tossed against our noble vessel, so as to cause every part of her to tremble like an aspen leaf. The temp- est was so severe, that doubts were entertained whe- ther the captain would be able to run his vessel into the harbor of Ostend that night ; but he proved him- self to be a skilful mariner*^ and between one and two o’clock that night we reached the harbor in perfect safety. Ostend is a strongly fortified, and well-built town # LONDON TO OSTEND. 55 situated in Belgium, on the northern or German Ocean. It is celebrated for the siege it sustained for three years, commencing in 1601 , against the whole Spanish pow T er. It finally capitulated on honorable terms to the Spanish forces. Fifty thousand men of the besieged, and eighty thousand Spaniards, are said to have fallen during this memorable siege. The bombardment, when the wind was from the north- west, was often heard in London. The fortress fronts the ocean, and now that the Bel- gians are under no apprehension of war, they have constructed upon the top of these ramparts a splendid promenade. There is a fine view of the city and ocean from this beautiful walk. There is an exten- sive beach in front of the city, admirably adapted for sea-bathing. I observed a number of small bathing- houses upon wheels, which are drawn by horses some distance from the shore, and there left until the ba- thing party are desirous, of returning. This town ranks high as a watering place, and is much resorted to during the summer months. It is now crowded with strangers of distinction from every part of the continent. An extensive bathing-house has been es- tablished close to the sea-shore, and there is a fine casino within the town, which is used as an assembly or club-room. It contains a handsome ball-room ; beneath this there are reading apartments, provided with newspapers from all parts of the world ; also coffee and billiard saloons. This ancient city con- tains between fifteen and twenty thousand inhabitants. On the morning after my arrival, I ascended to the top of a lighthouse, situated near the harbor, from which I had a bird’s eye view of the city, the harbor, and the surrounding country ; also an extensive view of the canal which connects it with the cities of Bruges and Ghent, and of the Belgian and Prussian Pail- road, which extends from this city to Cologne on the 56 LONDON TO OSTEND. Rhine. I was deeply impressed with the level aspect of the country. The whole of the eastern continent to the north of ihe great mountain girdle extends in a vast plain, unbroken, except by the Ural Mountains, to the North Pacific Ocean. It embraces the north- ern part of France, Belgium, northern Germany, Den- mark, and Russia, and consists in many places of ex- tended plains and sandy deserts. This country is un- der a very high state of cultivation, and during the harvest season the newly reaped grain stands in shocks in every direction. But that which struck me as being the most remarkable feature in its aspect, is the fact that there are no fences of any sort to be seen, nor is there, apparently, anything to mark the division lines between the farmers, and but few dwellings upon the highways, or anywhere about the country, excepting here and there a posthouse for the exchange of horses engaged in the transportation of the mails ; but in the northern and eastern provinces the population is so dense, that it has the appearance, in many places, of one vast continuous village. The population, how- ever, throughout Europe, particularly upon the con- tinent, is chiefly confined to walled and other towns ; these being esteemed in this country, which has been so often overrun in time of war by their enemies, as the only places of security. As I had taken my position on the lighthouse at an early hour in the morning, 1 saw the farmers, with their wives and children — for both male and female labor on the lands in this country — leave the cities for their respective farms, as soon as the gates of the town were thrown open ; in some instances, with a cow harnessed to their cart. Their cattle, sheep, and swine are usually kept under their dwellings; the sheep, bearing the respective marks of their owners, are driven on the highway and common grounds every moruing, and returned again in the evening, by a LONDON TO 03TEND. 57 shepherd, who is employed for this purpose by the fanners for some small consideration per week. At the time I first reached the top of the lighthouse, there was not a moving thing to be seen on the nu- merous farms surrounding the town ; but in a short time they were covered with life and animation, and everywhere was to be heard the shrill whistle or the merry song of the laborers. The farms contain but few acres ; every inch of which, however, is culti- vated like a garden. Belgium is bounded on the north by Holland, on the west by the Atlantic, on the east by Frussia, and on the south by France. It is composed of the former Austrian Netherlands, or the Walloon provinces, and the inhabitants are JDutch, Germans, Belgians — that is, the Walloons — and Flemings who belong to the Greco Latin stock, and speak a French dialect. The Belgian provinces, of which there are eight in num- ber, were united with the Dutch provinces under the Spanish dominions in 1518. In 1717, they were re- ceded to Austria, and were then called the Austrian Netherlands ; and at the close of the last century, they were incorporated with France, but in 1815 they were separated from that kingdom, and united with the Dutch provinces, to form the kingdom of the Ne- therlands. In 1830, the Belgians seceded from the Netherland monarchy, and declared themselves an in- dependent state, and in 1831 elected a king for tlSm- selves. This country has for centuries been the great battle- field of Europe. It is covered with places remarkable in history as the scenes of great victories and defeats, and none more remarkable than that of Waterloo. The Belgians, according to the testimony of Caesar, were the most valiant of the Germans, and particu- larly that portion which resided on the northern Iron- tier of Germany. They were at that p>eriod called the 3 * 8 LONDON TO OSTEND. Celtic tribes, and a collection of Germans of their country then extended from the Atlantic to the Rhine. From time to time, until the period of Caesar, the German nations pushed forward beyond the Rhine, forcibly expelling the Celts, and partly uniting with them ; and from this union sprang a mixed nation which, in language as well as manners, resembled the Germans more than the Celts. The government of this kingdom is a constitutional monarchy. The legislative power is exercised collectively by the king, the Chamber of the Representatives, and the Senate. The initiate pertains to each of the three branches of the legislative power; nevertheless, every law relating to the revenue and expenditure of the kingdom, or to ihe contingent of the army, must be first voted by the Chamber of Representatives. The constitutional powers of the king are hereditary in direct and natural legitimate descent from male to male, by order of primogeniture, to the perpetual ex- clusion of females and their descendants. The king appoints and dismisses his ministers, confers rank in the army, and has the power of granting letters of nobility, without the power of annexing thereto any privilege. He commands the army, declares war, and makes peace, and sometimes promulgates the law,s. The Chambers assemble by their own right, at the city of Brussels, on the second Tuesday of Novem- ber in each year, unless convene^ earlier by the king. The Chamber of Representatives is composed of dep- uties, elected in proportion of one to every forty -five thousand inhabitants, for the term of four years, one- half elected every two years. They are chosen by those citizens who pay a direct tax of not less than twenty florins. The members of the Senate are elected by the same electors, for eight years, consisting of one-half of the number of deputies, one-half cnosen * THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. 59 every fourth year. A senator must be of the age of forty years, and worth one thousand florins. The judges are appointed by the king for life. Religious liberty, freedom of the press, liberty of instruction, personal liberty, and the right of petitioning the king, are secured to the people. CHAPTER XIII. THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. The Canals— Southern Provinces — Productions — Cattle and Horses — Decay and Fall — Ruins of Antwerp — Revival of Trade — Its Danger — Old Cities — Public Buildings — Picture Galleries — Rubens — St. Bavon — Notre Dame— St. Gudule — Basilicas — Leo X., etc. The canals in this country are numerous; not less so, perhaps, than those of Holland. I will only men- tion the great Northern Canal, which stretches from Neuss, on the Rhine, in Prussia, by Yanloo, on the Meuse, to Antwerp, on the river Scheldt, and which connects, by means of the Scheldt, the Lonne and Bruges canals, Ghent and Bruges ; the Ostend and .Dunkirk canals, reaching the sea at different points; and the Brussels and the Louvain canals. These canals afford every facility for the transportation of merchandise and agricultural products to and from all sections of this beautiful country. The southern provinces, that is, Namur, Hainault, Liege and Limburg, have long, been distinguished for their rich mines of iron, lead and copper, their exten- sive beds of fossil, coal, calamine, and sulphur, and their fine quarries of marble and limestone. These mines and quarries have been worked for centuries, and still seem to be inexhaustible. The manufactures in these provinces are among the most important in 60 THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. Europe, and furnish everything that pertains to the wants and conveniences of life ; those of cloth at Verviers, of linen in Liege, of iace and gold stuff in West Flanders, of hats in South Brabant, of cara- bines in Hainault, are extensive, and give profitable employment to thousands of persons. The numerous iron establishments and brandy distilleries in Liege and South Brabant, put in circulation many millions of dollars annually. The provinces of South Brabant, East and West Flanders, are under a high state of cultivation : per- haps there is no district of country, of the same ex- tent, in the world, that surpasses this in that respect. They produce flax and hemp of superior quality, and much more than a sufficient supply of excellent wheat for their own consumption, large quantities of which are annually exported to England and Spain. Fruit and vegetables exist in abundance almost every- where throughout the country, and bulbous roots of every description are raised in great perfection. The provinces of Limburg and Liege have ever been distinguished for their fine breed of horned cat- tle and horses. The forests of the Ardennes, extend- ing from France through the provinces of Hainault, Namur, Luxemburg, is the only wood-land that exists in the kingdom. This kingdom in the fourteenth century enjojmd the greater part of the commerce of the world: the principal commercial places at that time were Antwerp, Bruges, Ostend, and Ghent. The decay and fall of the prosperity of the king- dom, and with it its commerce, is to be traced, among other things, to the tyranny of the cruel Alva, to the establishment of the Inquisition, and the persecutions occasioned by it. These calamities drove upwards of one hundred thousand of its inhabitants to seek an asylum elsewhere ; among whom were its most weal- thy merchants and skilful mechanics and manufactur THE CUTES OF BELGIUM. Cl ers. To this persecution England is chiefly indebted for her silk, woollen and other manufactures, which were introduced by Flemish refugees from Antwerp in the reign of Elizabeth and James II. Another blow to the prosperity of the commerce of the king- dom was the memorable seige of Antwerp, oi four- teen months, in 1585, which ended in its capture by the Duke of Parma : one of the most memorable ex- ploits of warfare of that period, whether we consider the strength of the place, the bold and fearless resist- ance offered by its citizens, who yielded at last only when starved out by famine, or the political conse- quences resulting from it. After this came the loss of the navigation of the Scheldt, which fell into the hands of the Dutch at the union of the seven united provinces, and the subse- quent closing of the river by the Peace of Westpha- lia, in 1684. This last calamity completed the com- mercial ruin of Antwerp, and, indeed, the whole kingdom. Since then the rise of manufacturing establishments in Great Britain, owing in a great measure to their decline in Belgium, has enabled England to command the commerce of the world, and now her gigantic naval force gives her, so to speak, a power over the commerce of the world, which no other nation excepting that of 'the United States pos- sesses. The opening of the trade of the Scheldt, bv the treaty of peace of 1795, and the exertions of the French government to promote the commerce of this kingdom, at the expense of that of Holland, have re- vived in some measure its trade. The treaty of Paris and Vienna placed the commercial rights of the northern and southern Netherlands on an equal foot- ing. These and other causes, among which may be recorded the trade which is gradually increasing with 62 THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. the United States, may augment the commerce of the kingdom to its former extent. Ilovv long this kingdom will enjoy an independent government, no one can at this day predict with any degree of certainty. The French people regard the existing frontiers as an encroachment on the national limits of France ; they view the government of Bel- gium, Baden, Bavaria, and the Rhenish provinces, somewhat in the light of usurpers, and I have no doubt they cherish the hope that the old boundaries of France will at no distant day be restored. Such an event, unless the European powers interfere, will eventually happen, and this beautiful kingdom be annexed to France. If this should happen, the mon- uments erected by England and other nations of Europe on the battle-held at Waterloo, to perpetuate their victory over Napoleon, will be destroyed, for they have ever been an eyesore to the French. The fine old cities of Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, Brussels, Namur, Louvain, and Liege, are filled with objects calculated to interest and delight a traveller; and no one having leisure should pass through Bel- gium, without giving himself, at least, sufficient time to examine their exceeding richness in all that can gratify the eye of the refined, or awaken the enthusi- asm of the antiquarian. The picturesqueness of the gothic architecture, as displayed in the structure of their public and private edifices — the latter being richly decorated with vari- ous ornaments, with a fantastic variety of gable-ends, rising step-wise many stories high — arrests the stran- ger’s attention at every turn, and at once amuses and delights him. The municipal structures which are founded in the cities and towns will compare favorably with the ecclesiastical edifices in point of taste, elegance and magnificence ; they are in fact civic palaces, destined THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. 63 either for the residences of the chief magistrates, for the meeting of guilds and corporations of merchants and trades, for the assemblies of municipal govern- inent ; or, as courts of justice. The academies of painting, and picture galleries in these cities contain the best works of the Flemish ar- tists, and are not elsewdiere to be found equally ex- cellent J. Yan Eyck is esteemed the founder or this school of painters, which flourished from 1370 to 1445, and among his followers are Quintin Matsys, Rembrandt, and Francis Floris ; the last-named was called the “ Flemish Raphael.” But the works of Rubens — who was the founder of another school of painters — and the portraits by Yan Dyke, give the highest celebrity to these fine collections. The famous picture, by Rubens, of the u Crucifix- ion of Christ between the two Thieves,” is in the gal- lery at Antwerp This is said to be, and no doubt is, one of his most carefully finished pictures both as re- gards composition and coloring. In the cities on the Continent, travellers usually employ a resident by the day, called a commissioner, to point out such objects as are worthy of notice, and these men invariably make it a point to conduct you, in the first place, to the principal ecclesiastical edifices, which are chiefly constructed in the gothic style, and are buildings of great taste and elegance. The St. Sanseux, in Bruges, is a magnificent cathe- dral, erected 1359, and is the handsomest church in that city. The Cathedral of St. Bavon, at Ghent, founded in the year 994, although somewhat heavy externally, is the richest church of that town in its internal proportions and decorations. The walls are lined with black marble, the balustrades with white variegated marble, and the gates of the chapel are brass. The Cathedral of Ffotre Dame at Antwerp, is one of the largest churches and finished specimens 64 THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. of gothic architecture in the kingdom. # It was com- menced in the middle of the thirteenth century: its dimensions are five hundred feet long, by two hun- dred and fifty feet wide, and its spire four hundred and fifty feet in height. The great attraction in this church is the celebrated master- piece of Rubens, “ The Descent from the Cross.” The Cathedral of St. Grudule, in Brussels., is the finest church in that city. It is a handsome gothic edifice, and was finished in the year 1273. It is re- markable for the beautifully painted glass in its win- dows, especially that executed by Roger Yander Weyde. These windows are considered by good jud- ges as among the finest in the world. The statues of the twelve apostles, and the carved pulpit represent- ing Adam and Eve driven out of Paradise, attract the attention of all who visit this magnificent church. I have only taken notice of the principal churches in these cities ; they are filled with many more well de- serving of careful examination. In looking at these splendid and costly edifices, one is naturally led to inquire when the extravagance of erecting edifices of this character was first introduced. Prior to the commencement of the third century, the early Christians were obliged to worship in private houses, in the open air, or in secret places, because they were not acknowledged by the state until that period : they could not, consequently, venture to give more publicity to the service, or to build churches for their accommodation. The earliest Christian churches are assigned to the reign of Alexander Severus. The change from private buildings set apart for that pur- pose, to a public one, may have been at an earlier period. Since the fourth century the churches have become large and magnificent buildings. Of this character were those erected by Constantine, and more particularly by Theodosius and Justinian. Many THE CITIES OF BELGIUM. 65 pagan and heathen temples were early converted into churches; but they were not altogether suited to the worship or ceremonials of Christianity. The basilicas which were erected in many towns, and at every imperial residence, as places for holding courts and transacting the public b isiness, were the iirst editices used for worshiping in by the Christians. Constantine granted to them the use of the Basilica, which stood at Borne on the spot where the Cathedral of St. John de Lateran now stands : hence the churches in many part of Europe are called basilicas to this day. In the middle ages many splendid editices for the performance of divine service were constructed which for loftiness and grandeur have never been sur- passed. Some of the most splendid of these are St. Peter’s, at Bonie, Milan Cathedral, St.. Paul’s, at Borne, St. Paul’s, at London, St. Petrorrior, at Bol- ogna, Florence Cathedral, Antwerp Cathedral, St. So- phia’s, at Constantinople, St. John Lateran, Notre Dame, at Paris, Pisa Cathedral, St. Stephen, at Vien- na, St. Donna, and St. Peter’s, at Bologna, Cathedral of Suma, and St. Mark’s, at Venice. St. Peter’s, at Borne, which stands upon the spot hallowed by his martyrdom, is built with the materials of Nero’s Cir- cus — where were enacted scenes of sanguinary pleas- ures in the persecutions of the Christians — and cost upwards of fifty millions of crowns : a sum exceeding the cost of the construction of all the churches of the United States, of every denomination. The tax imposed upon the Catholics in Germany, and else- where, to be applied to the completion of St. Peter’s, was one of the causes which leh to the Reformation. The princes and people of Germany not only com- plained against the exorbitant taxes raised in this way, but they were exasperated against tin* Church, and complained against the pope tor raising sums for this object by the sale of indulgences, which were FROM OSTEND TO BRUGES. f)G then granted even without repentance: as it was said, the easy absolution from the deepest guilt, and relief from temporal penance and external punishment, for a pecuniary consideration, were so alluriug to the people, that large sums through this source, were brought into the treasury of Leo X., who seemed to think that he was placed at the head of the church merely to employ its side revenues in gratifying princely tastes. CHAPTER XIV. FROM OSTEND TO BRUGES. Canals- The Hansa— First Diet— The Hanseatic League — Bruges— Van Eyck — Golden Fleece— Hotel de Ville— Lace an:l Linen -Public Edifices — South- ey’s Lines— Trade with thi8 Country — Climate— Historical Interest. I travelled from Ostend to Bruges by railroad, which now takes the place of all other channels of conveyance. This city, which is the capital of Vest Flanders, is situated about six miles from the sea. Six canals concentrate here, rendering it the centre of an extensive commerce. The principal ones are those which lead to Slnys and Ostend ; on the latter vessels of three hundred tons can come up to Bruges. This city, at a very early period, was an important member of the Hanseatic confederacy, called, by way of eminence, the Ilansa , which, in the old Teutonic dialect, signified a league for mutual defence. It was formed in the middie of the thirteenth century, in order to protect the commerce and trade of the coun- try against pirates. The sea and land at that time lit- erally swarmed with them. The numerous kingdoms, principalities, and other governments, into which Eu- rope was then cut up and divided, having totally ne* FROM OSTEND TO BRUGES. 67 glected to provide for its protection, obliged the mem- bers of the confederacy to make some provision them- selves therefor. In 1268, the first diet was held under the confeder- ation at the city of Lubeck, and thereafter regular meetings took place every three years. There, too, the archives of the league were kept. The number of the Hauseatic towns belonging to this league va- ned ; the largest number was eighty-five. Four great factories, or depots , were established by the league — one at London, one at Noogried, one at Bergen, and the other at Bruges The Hanseatic cities obtained under this confeder- ation great importance, although the body was never formally acknowledged by the empire. The charters, however, which were granted by several of the Eu- ropean sovereigns, gave firmness to the whole, and in the year 1364, an act of confederation was drawn up in due form in the city of Cologne. In the fourteenth century, this confederation, or league, attained every- where a high political importance, and gave rise to the development of that commercial policy which has since become intimately connected with all political relations. The object of this league was declared to be — to protect the people forming it, and their com- merce from pillage, to maintain, increase, and ex- tend, if possible, the rights and immunities received from the European sovereigns; and to provide for the security of the commerce on the Baltic and North Seas. In the country under its immediate influence, it constructed canals, and introduced a uniform sys- tem of weights and measures. The last diet of this remarkable league was held at Lubeck in the year 16 -0, when the confederation was dissolved; but this dissolution did not take place until the sovereigns of Europe had learned the advantage of trade to their own estates, and not until they had turned their attem 68 FROM OSTEND TO BRUGES. tion to the formation of a naval force of their own for the protection of the commerce of the world, thereby rendering it no longer necessary for the con- federation to keep up one for its own protection. The rise and progress of Bruges to the high posi- tion it once occupied, was greatly promoted by this confederation or league. Bruges was a rich and powerful city when Antwerp and Ghent were only in their infancy and the commerce of the world, during this period, concentrated in this beautiful city. It was also called the great work-shop of all nations. Factories, or privileged companies of merchants, from seventeen kingdoms, were settled here, and twenty foreign ministers had hotels within its walls. It was long the residence of the Counts of Flanders, and it reached the height of its splendor in the first part of the fifteenth century, when the Duke of Burgundy lixed his court here. It is a city of considerable extent, and the size and splendor of its public and private edifices give evi- dence of its former wealth and prosperity. It was here that Maximilian was seized and confined in 1487-8, by his unruly subjects, who became irritated at some infringement of their rights. Here, in the ancient cathedral of St. Donatus, re- pose the mortal remains of the celebrated painter John Van Eyck, and here the famous order <>f the Golden Fleece was established by Philip the Good, in the establishment of which he paid a just compli- ment, symb dically, to the skill of the weavers, who, by the perfection to which they had brought the manu- facture of wool, had mainly contributed to the rapid advancement and prosperity of the city. I examined the holy sepulchre in tiie Jerusalem chapel, which is said to be a fao simile of the inter- ior of the tomb at Jerusalem. Its founder made sev- FROM OSTEJSTD TO BRUGES. 69 rral visits to tlie holy land in order to perfect the re- semblance. Being desirous of taking a view of the city and sur- rounding country, I ascended the tower attached to the Hotel de Ville , situated on the great square. There are four hundred and two steps of easy ascent leading to the top. The bird’s-eye view from this eleva- tion is enchanting. The whole city lies before you, with its numerous canals and wharves, and with an unbounded view of the surrounding country. In as- cending the tower to obtain this extensive and beau- tiful view, one is naturally attracted by the chime of bells it contains, and led to examine them particu- larly. This chime is conceded to be the finest in Eu- rope, and is played four times in every hour. The machinery consists of an enormous brass cylinder, act- ing like the ban-el of an organ and setting in motion the keys of the instrument ; but on Sundays the chime is played by a musician, or salaried professor, usually the organist of the church, who performs upon it by touching the keys, as one does those of a piano. The airs, I am told, are usually change 1 every year. There are forty-eight bells attached to this celebrated chime. Tl ie building of this tower was begun in 1292. The foundation stones are placed more than thirty feet deep. There was formerly a magnificent spire above the tower, but on the twenty-fifth January, 1493, it was set on tire by lightning, and all the exterior was destroyed. On the thirtieth of April, 1741, it having been previously rebuilt, it was again destroyed by fire, and all the bells were melted, since which, it has not been replaced. The chief articles now manufactured in Bruges, are lace and linen. The city also exports much grain, and when the English ports are open, immense quan- tities are shipped. 70 FROM OSTEND TO BRUGES. The Academy of Paintings, the public library, the numerous Gothic, public aird ecclesiastical edifices, the Hospital of St. John, the ancient palace of the Counts of Flanders, the palace of Justice, the con- vent of Bregune Nuns, and the ancient and inimitable carvings in wood in several of the public edifices — ■ are all particularly deserving of notice. This ancient and beautiful city, which has so much historically to attract the attention and admiration of the traveller, no doubt contained in its brightest days several hundred thousand inhabitants, but it is now reduced to sixty thousand, several thousand of whom are paupers. The following lines of Southey elo- quently describe its former grandeur and present des- olation : — “ Fair city, worthy of her ancient fame ; The season of her splendor is gone by, Yet everywhere its monuments remain — Temples which rear their stately heads on high, Canals that intersect the fertile plain, Wide streets and squares, with many a court and hall Spacious and undefaced, but ancient all. ******* When I may read of tilts in days of old, And tournays graced by chieftains of renown, Fair dames, grave citizens, and warriors bold, If Fancy would portray some stately town, Which for such pomp tit theatre would be, Fair Bruges, I shall then remember thee.” It is impossible for language to give a more gra- phic and correct description of this fine old town, than is given in the above lines. It is melancholy to look back upon this ancient city in its present ap- parently deserted condition, still I think I can see a determination among the citizens to restore it to its former grandeur. The trade which is opening with the United States, will aid in restoring the manufac- tories to their former usefulness, and greatly contrb bute to its already increasing wealth and population. The climate is temperate and salubrious, and the living 'much cheaper than in England. Its contiguity THE CITY OF GHENT. 71 to numerous other cities and watering-places, the pleasant drives around and about the country, the great desire of its inhabitants to show every attention and civility to strangers, besides its being filled with places of historical interest, render it a desirable place of residence for persons of leisure during the summer months. CHAPTER XV. THE CITY OF GHENT. Ghent- Grand Canal — Time of Charles the Vth.- Harvest-Fields— Treaty of Ghent — England our Mot >er— Policy of the United States — The University —Counts of Flanders- Trades Unions -Brewer of Ghent— Philip Van Artevaldt -Dudeburg — Charles the Vth — Duke of Alva -The Boulevards — Exhibition. The city of Ghent is the capital of the province of East Flanders — formerly of the whole Country of Flanders, and at an earlier period, of the Austrian part of that country. ^ It is situated at the confluence of the river Scheldt with the Lys. These rivers and the canals which pass through the city in every di- rection, divide the town into twenty-six islands, con- nected bv eighty fine bridges. It contains a popula- tion of upwards of a hundred thousand inhabitants. Vessels drawing eighteen feet of water, find no diffi- culty in entering the basin under the walls of the town, where they discharge and receive their car- goes. The grand canal, which communicates with the sea, enters the Scheldt at Tenereuse. This canal gives the city all the advantages of a seaport. In the time of Charles the Fifth, the city contained thirty-five thou- sand houses, and one hundred and seventy-five thou- sand inhabitants, and was then, doubtless, a larger city than Paris ; for that Emperor used, sportively. 72 CITY OF GHENT. to say that lie could put all Paris in his glove, ( ganf .) The circumference of its walls, at the present day, is between seven and eight miles. In travelling from Bruges to Ghent, 1 was favored with a bright and beautiful day. It was the lattei part of Apr d, and the farmers were everywhere en- gaged in their cultured fields, and were, no doubt, hoping they might be the recipients of abundant crops. It seems to me that there is not iti Europe, or in any part of the world, a more beautiful, fertile, or richer country than that lying between these two an- cient towns. Here the fields, when they are well cul- tivated, yield all that the owners or occupants can hope or wish for, and the highly cultivated and beau- tiful gardens, every where to be seen on the route, at once astonish and delight the traveller. I passed over the route traversed by Caesar, at the head of his bril- liant army, when on his way to invade England and where Maximillian the Great, and the Emperor Ha poleon, with other eminent warriors, marched and countermarched their forces for the bloody contest. Now the din of war is no longer heard, but instead thereof, the farmers and their families are engaged in peaceful and agricultural pursuits. While musing on what was passing before me, and occasionally thinking of the thrilling and bloody his- tory of the country, some one exclaimed Ghent !” I turned my eyes in the direction pointed out, and saw the spires of the city rising against the sky in the distance, and glittering like burnished spears in the sunshine. This tine town is particularly interest- ing to an American, for the war of 181:4 between Great Britain and the United States, was terminated here on the twenty-fourth of December, 1814, by the treaty of Ghent, entered into by Messrs. J. Q. Adams, Albert Gallatin, and Henry Olay, commis- sioners oil the part of the United Stales, aiid by Lord THE CITY OF GHE'ST. 73 Garabier, and Messrs. Henry Gonlbnrn and William Adams, commissioners on the part of Great Britain. 1 sincerely hope and trust that this treaty will endure forever. There is no reason why the two govern- ments should ever be involved in another war with each other, but every reason why they should culti- vate and encourage only friendly relations. There never ought to be any real ground of quarrel with Great Bri tain. The interests of the two countries are identical, their language, their moral principles, and their religion are the same. They have a common lit- erature. The libraries in the United States are tilled with the works of their best writers — Shakspeare, Milton, Bacon, Pope, Addison, Scott, Byron, and a long array of other illustrious names which adorn the literature of England. The same old Saxon laws shed their light upon both countries. Their writers on j u- risprudence — Bacon, Blackstone, and a host of others — are as familiar to the members of that learned pro- fession in America as in England. The works of their painters and artists are to be met with, not only in the mansions of our wealthy merchants and others in the cities on the seaboard, but in the log cabins of our citizens in the remotest parts of the country ; and, above all, the same blood flows in their veins. The largest portion of the people of the United States look upon England as their father-land. To England the commerce and commercial system of the United States are of vital interest : for its people are the largest foreign consumers of their products and man- ufactures, and the most profitable employers of their accumulated capital. The falling off, at any time, of Americau consumption of the products of England will be severely felt not only in England but in the whole of Europe. Half of the manufacturing popu- lation of Europe that is engaged in manufacturing goods for exportation, is supported by the labor re- 4 74 THE CITY OF GHENT. quisite for the American market. It is so in the silk districts in France, in the cotton and woollen districts in England, and with the woollen districts in Ger- many. Such an event would reduce the manufactur- ing people who depend on an American market, al- most to a state of want ; and it would ultimately be felt by the higher classes, and in the high seats of financial and political power. The goods, wares, and merchandise manufactured and exported to the United States, are vended in every city, town, hamlet and village within its extensive limits. Hundreds of millions are expended by the people of the United States in the purchase of these articles, and so long as these countries remain at peace with each other these expenditures will be yearly increased, instead of diminished. It is, and long has been, and I trust ever will be, the policy of the gov- ernment of the United States to remain at peace with all the world. This government lias no desire for conquest. Ho effort has been made to wrest from Great Britain her provinces of Upper and Lower Ca- nada, or any of her possessions adjoining the United States, since the war of 1812, and none will ever be made. It is a very grave question whether these pro- vinces would be admitted into the Union in case their people should at any time achieve their own indepen- dence, and ask to be admitted. The slave question, which has been so long agitated, would operate against ?uhe admission of such an extensive free territory as is embraced within the limits of these provinces. Be- sides, it is the interest of the United States to extend its limits to the Pacific, and no*doubt remains but that a large portion, if not the whole of Mexico will ulti- mately be annexed to the United States, if it can be effected by purchase and voluntary cession, as will also the island of Cuba. I will not, however, dwell on this subject longer; THE CITY OF GHENT. 75 for if seems to me that the wise and sagacious states- men of both countries will avoid in future, so far as it can be done with honor, all causes which might lead to hostilities. But to return to the city itself. The character of the ecclesiastical, municipal, public, and private edi- fices are not unlike those of Bruges. The University is a very handsome, modern structure, with a chaste and beautiful Corinthian portico, built on the site of a college of the Jesuits. It was founded by William King of Holland, in 1820. The Marche au Vendredi or Market Square, is surrounded by ancient houses ; and is named from the day on which the market i$> held in it. The ceremonies of the inauguration of the Counts of Flanders were celebrated on this spot. Here, also, was the rendezcous of the “ Trades Unions ” of the middle ages, whenever a real or supposed breach of the privileges of their guilds or corporations on the part of their rulers excited those turbulent spirits to rebellion. Here their standards were planted, around which they rallied in arms. On this spot Jacques Van Artevaldt, a descendant of one of the noblest families of Flanders — but called the Brewer of Ghent, because he had enrolled him- self in the corporation of brewers, to flatter the popu- lar vanity by ranking himself among the people as the head of his partisans, chiefly weavers — encoun- tered the opposite faction of fullers, in a civic broil, with such blood-thirsty fury, that fifteen hundred persons were slain by their fellow citizens, and their bodies left on the square. it was on this plain, forty years after, that his son, Philip Van Artevaldt, was selected as Protector of Ghent, and received in a. d. 1381, the oath of fidelity by his townsmen, when called upon to lead them against their oppressor, Louis de Mall. It was in the Square, at a later period, under the Duke of Alva, 76 THE CITY OF GHENT. that the fire of the Inquisition was lighted. Many thousands perished during these religious persecu- tions, and the best and most industrious citizens of Ghent were dispersed through this cause over other lands, while a fatal blow at her commercial prosperity was the result of it. In the Place Pharulde, near the Marche aux Pois- son, still stands the old turretted gateway called the Oudeburg, a relic of the castie of the Counts of Flan- ders, built by Bauldwin Bias de Fai in 863. The small portion that remains of the building, consisting of an old archway or turret, is now incorporated in a cotton factory. It is much visited on account of its being one of the oldest existing buildings in Belgium. The Emperor Charles V., was born in Ghent. Hav- ing been driven from the city by the turbulence and sedition of his subjects, he suddenly arrived before and surrounded it with a large army. Messengers were despatched to sue for his forgiveness ; but, without granting conditions, he demanded instant admittance within its walls ; then, posting guards at the gaes, he proceeded to take measures for chas- tising its inhabitants. It was while deliberating on the punishment to be indicted, that the infamous Duke of Alva suggested the annihilation of all within the city. Charles, how- ever, was satisfied with a cruel but less sweeping retribution. Fourteen of the ringleaders were be- headed, others were banished, and their goods for- feited. The city was declared guilty of sedition, and, in consequence, the magistrates, and principal citi- zens, the chief of the guilds, and of the corporation of weavers, were compelled to present themselves before Charles in black gowns, with bare heads and feet, halters about their necks, and on their knees to ask pardon of him for their transgressions. He exacted as a further penalty, that magistrates should THE CITY OF GHENT. 77 never appear in public without the halter. This, which was intended as a badge of infamy, was after- ward converted into a decoration. The rope, in the course of years, became a rich silken cord, and was worn around the neck as an ornament. These histori- cal sketches, and others which might be given, add much to the interest a traveller feels for this ancient and beautiful town. One of the principal promenades of the city, is by the side of the canal, cut in 1758, to unite the Lys and Bruges canals together. It is lined with double avenues of trees, rendering it in the heat of summer a delightful resort for its citizens. The Boulevards around the town, which o-ccupy the site where its an- cient ramparts once stood, are also fashionable and agreeable walks, and at the place of arms, which lies within the town, a military band usually plays on summer evenings, which calls together the elite of the city. Ghent, although fallen from its high position, and sunk both in population and extent of manufactures below what it was, is, nevertheless, the Belgic Man- chester. In 1804, while united to France, it was ranked by Napoleon as the third manufacturing town in his dominions. It is now a place of much com- merce, and I observed while there, among the vessels which were loading and unloading at its wharves, jne from New Orleans. I attended a public exhibition of the manufactures, which attracted the attention of its distinguished citizens, as well as a large number from every part of the kingdom. It was one of the finest I had seen in Europe, and gave assurance that their manufactured goods would compare favorably with that of any other country. After having visited most of the cities and points of interest in this country, including the once great 78 FROM MARSEILLES TO MALTA. commercial city of Antwerp, which at one time enjoyed the commerce of the world, we pursued our journey to Paris, by the way of the beautiful city of Brussels, and from thence to Marseilles. CHAPTER XVI. FROM MARSEILLES TO MALTA. Hotel l’Empereur— The Old and New Town — View of the City — Its Trade- French Troops — Courtesy of a French Colonel — The Voyage in the Medit- erranean — Sardinia— Corsica — Sicily — Neapolitan Prison. At Marseilles we engaged rooms at the Hotel l’Empereur, a large and fashionable establishment, well tilled at the time with guests from every quar- ter of the globe. This tine old town, which dates its origin to at least six hundred years before Christ, was founded by the Phocians, and was, during the early period of its existence, a republic. It was styled the Athens of Gaul by Cicero, and the mistress of the sciences by Pliny. After its capture by Julius Caesar, and when under the dominion of the Romans, it rivalled Alex- andria and Constantinople in commerce, and it still is the commercial seaport town of France. Its pre- sent population is three hundred thousand. The old town is chieliy composed of narrow, steep, and wind- ing streets. The new city is, however, laid out in wide thoroughfares, with several agreeable promen- ades and squares, well filled with forest and orna- mental trees. The cathedral of St. Victor is one of the oldest in France, having been built in the second century, and is remarkable for its crypt, in which, tradition asserts, several of the early Christians, when persecuted, found a safe refuge. The view of the city, as seen from a hill on the FROM MARSEILLES TO MALTA. 79 east, is picturesque and commanding. A large am- phi theatrical plain, enclosed with high mountains, surrounds it on the land side. The plain itself is adorned with numerous beautiful country residences and farm houses, and is tastefully planted with olives and evergreen. Numerous villages rise in every di- rection, and add much to the beauty and variety of the landscape. The city commands considerable commerce with all parts of the world, particularly with Italy, Spain, the Barbary States, and the Levant. One quarter of the entire cotton, in bales, imported by France, is brought into this city. It is at this day, as it was of yore, distinguished for its many institutions of learn- ing on liberal foundations. During the time we were in this city, comprising several days, in which we were awaiting the sailing of the steamer for Alexandria, and which we passed in a most agreeable manner, it was one vast camp, being filled with soldiers destined for the war in Italy. We availed ourselves of the opportunity thus presented of attending several dress parades, and in visiting the encampments within the city and its neighborhood. The fine bands of music which played the national airs of France, and also other pieces, on these occasions, contributed greatly to the gratifica- tion of the numerous visitors. We embarked in the steamer Elora, Captain Rob- erts, on the twenty-eighth of April, for Alexandria. The vessel is an iron propeller, belonging to the Pen- insular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. The crew are all English, and under a perfect state of discipline. Everything is kept in perfect order. We went on board the steamer at nine o’clock, a. m. ? but were prevented from sailing at the hour named ? by.ap unexpected military order, until after the em- barkation of the French army for Genoa. I was my. 80 FROM MARSEILLES TO MALTA. self pleased at the delay, as it gave me an opportunity of witnessing this fine military display. The outer, or new harbor, where the embarkation took place, and where our vessel was lying at anchor, is protected by a grand breakwater, with a fine walk upon its top, and steps of easy ascent leading to it from the wharf in front, which also forms a part of the great work. The wharf is of considerable width, and extends from the shore on the north side to the extreme southern end of the breakwater. The Cap* tain tendered us, together with a few of the other passengers, a yawl, which conveyed us to the break- water, on the top of which we walked while the troops were marched from their encampment, by regiments, to the wharf. We had a perfect bird’s-eye view of this military display from our elevated posi- tion. The horses were taken on board with great ease and rapidity. The dragoons, after dismounting, held the horses by the bridle, while a wide band was placed under the body of the animals and secured ; the next instant they were raised from the ground and hoisted on board the vessel. Their struggles lasted only for a moment, when they gave themselves up unresistingly to the power which controlled their actions, and remained perfectly quiescent while sway- ing in the air, and until set down upon the deck of the vessel. In tiiis manner an entire regiment of dragoons was taken on board in an almost incredible short space of time. We returned to our steamer before the troops had all embarked ; and as we came down on the wharf the Colonel of an infantry regi- ment courteously directed its ranks to be opened, through which we p ssed, and were soon on board our vessel, in a short time thereafter the French steamers, crowded witli soldiers, began to move from the harbor, passing near by, thus yielding us another opportunity of seeing the troops on their way to the FROM MARSEILLES TO MALTA. 81 Beat of war. The inspiring and soul-stirring music, which rose from the bands on the various vessels as they swept past, } 7 ielded additional interest, to the scene. The officers and men all seemed in high spirits, although little enthusiasm was manifested by the people on shore. This apparent indifference on the part of the populace at the departure of the soldiers is attributed, as I vras informed, to an appre- hension of the citizens that the war will have a disas- trous effect on their commerce ; besides, it is said that Louis Napoleon was never very highly esteemed by the inhabitants of Marseilles. The scene which I had witnessed was, to ine, brilliant and imposing, and believing that France is in the right, I wished the army success with all my heart. We left the harbor at five o’clock, p. m., and on every side of us the sea was covered with steamers and other craft, loaded down to the water’s edge with troops, horses, provisions and munitions of war of every description. We are having a most delightful voyage. The wind is favorable, and we are making, as the captain reports, thirteen knots an hour. We sailed this day through the straits of Bonifacio, between Sardinia and Corsica, both islands being in full view, and also passed through a narrow passage separating a cluster of Sardinian islands from the main land. Some of the islands were inhabited and cultivated, and others Duly barren clumps of rocks. We were for a short time in the midst of these islands, which rose on every side of us, so that the sea had the appearance of being a river or lake. In sailing over these ancient and classic waters, which have been the scene of many thrilling histori- cal events, where millions of lives have been lost in numerous brilliant naval combats, one’s mind is tilled with pleasing and yet melancholy reflections. Whilst 4 * 82 FKOM MARSEIL T ES TO MALTA. I am writing, the cry of the seamen on deck proclaims that Sicily is in sight. Indeed, we no sooner lost sight of one island than we come within that of ano- ther. For one hundred and twenty miles we sailed along the coast of Sardinia — the mountains rising from the sea-sliore, several hundred feet in height. There was apparently but one level space to be seen, sufficiently large for a town, on that part of the island, which was occupied by a small vil- lage. The large towns are situated on the opposite or southern side of the island. We sailed about one hundred and eighty miles along the coast of Sicily, and within view of Marsala, Givgenti, and Palma. They are all handsome towns. We passed, on our way Mantione, a small island, rising to the height of five hundred feet above tide water, and upon the sum- mit of one of its most inaccessible and barren clumps of rocks, at the height of one hundred feet from the level of the sea, stands the castle or prison, of which much has been said and written, where the Neapoli- tan government confines its prisoners charged with high offences. Entrance to the prison is had only through a cove, accessible by small boats, from whence steps cut in the rock lead up to doors ; and when once the bolts are turned upon a prisoner all hopes ot* his escape are at an end. A short distance to the east of this strong prison at the base of the mountain, is a small village, con- taining from twenty to thirty houses. This is the only spot on the entire island at all capable of culti vation. MALTA. 83 CHAPTER XVII. MALTA. Harbor of Malta — John de la Y alette— streets — Palace — Library— E.' ly History — St. Paul’s Shipwreck — Productions — Character of the Maltese- - Cathedral of St. John — Crusaders— Knights of Malta— Battle of Acre- Treaty of Amicus. We arrived at Malta at an early hour in the morn- ing of the first of May. The approach to the city of Valetta, its capital, is exceedingly picturesque and beautiful. The fortifications, close to which vessels entering the harbor must pass, are impregnable, and sufficiently formidable to annihilate* the most power- ful naval force that could be sent against it. There are two harbors, separated from each other by a nar- row neck of land, containing about five hundred and fifty acres, on which the city is built, consequently the town is almost surrounded by water. The har- bor possesses great advantages, and the shores are so bold that a line of battle ships might lie close beside them. The first stone of this beautiful city was laid by the Grand Master John de la Valette, in a. d. 1566. Tiie streets intersect each other at right angles, and the town being built on an elevation most of the trans- verse streets are constructed with flight of steps from the wharves. The houses are low, rarely exceeding two stories in height, are built of the stone found on the island, and are provided with window balconies and flat terraced roofs. The city is supplied with wa- ter from extensive cisterns, and by meaus of an aque- duct. The streets are wide and well paved. The pa- * This was written before Erricsson had given us the Monitor. 84 MALTA. lace occupied by the Governor was formerly the resi- dence of the Grand Master of the Order of Malta, and is a large, quadrangular building, containing a spacious court yard in the centre. There is a library of forty thousand volumes, that belonged to the Knights, in a g«>od state of preservation, which is worthy of attention, not only for its antiquity, but on account of the many scarce and valuable works it contains. The hotels are most of them large and handsome buildings, and are all well kept. We were supplied, while at Malta, with fresh vegetables and excellent fruit for which the island is justly celebra- ted. At the period the Knights took possession of the island, according to the account of their historians, there was only one town upon it, this was called Cetta Naleble, now Cetta Viehia, styled by them a miser- able, half deserted place. The entire population of the island at that time was le6S than twelve thousand, and these, as they said, were poor and wretched, owing to the barrenness of the soil. If such were its con- dition at that period, there must have been a great falling off in its prosperity, for Diodorus Siculus states that, in his day, it was furnished with several harbors, that the inhabitants were very rich, and pos- sessed the knowledge of many of the useful arts. Among the artificers were excellent weavers of fine linen, the houses were stately and beautiful, and the inhabitants came from Phoenicia, which had ever been famous for the extent and active nature of its commerce. Hence it is said by those who hold that when Paul was shipwrecked, at the time he was sent pri- soner to home, that this occurred on the island of Me- lita, now known as Melida, in the Adriatic sea, and not Malta, for the inhabitants of that island answered to the description of the barbarous people,” among whom he fell, while those of Malta, according’ to Diodorus Siculus were uuder a high state of civilizu- MALTA. 85 lion at that period. Moreover, they urge that St. Paul “fell into a place where two seas met,” which they maintain must have been Melida, for that island js washed by the Adriatic on one side and the Medi- terranean on the other ; while Malta lies in the mid- dle of the latter sea. But, notwithstanding all that has been said ,pro and con , on this subject, the mass of evidence seems to be in favor of the island of Malta. For many centuries the Bay of St. Paul, in the island of Malta, has been regarded as the place where that event occurred. We sailed insight of the Bay, and but a short distance from it. There is here ft small river or creek entering the sea, and upon the h or th point of land which crowns the bay, the Knights of St. John erected a church, called St. Paul’s, to commemorate that event. The island was granted to the knights by Charles the Fifth, when they were ex- pelled from Rhodes, and it was held by them from 1530 to 1798. The western part of the island has little land ca- pable of cultivation; but it abounds with odoriferous plants, and has extensive salt works. The eastern portion, which is by far the largest, is very fertile, and produces great quantities of cotton, lemons, oranges, almonds and grapes. This island is subject, to the sirocco — a south-east wind which is very op- pressive, and enervating in its character. We were, however, favored with mild weather while we were in its neighborhood — the thermometer standing at about 75 degrees. The Maltese sustain the reputation of an honest, in- dustrious, and frugal race of men. They have always preserved their original character, which sufficiently proves their descent, and at the same time shows they have mixed very little with any ot the various people who have at times governed the country. The popu- lation comprises Jews, Maltese, Greeks, Turks, lta- 86 MALTA. lians, arid English. The common people speak the Arabic, but the higher classes, especially those which reside in the city, the Italian and English languages. The town has the reputation of being a gay and in- teresting place. Its commercial activity, and its cen- tral situation in the Mediterranean, combine to make it a place of resort for all nations. The Cathedral of St. John, which occupies a con- spicuous position in the city, is a vast, but remarkably plain and unostentatious appearing editice. Within it is a spacious oblong aria, on each side of which are aisles, with especial altars or chapels of the different nations composing the order, adorned with paintings and sculpture. The pavement is richly emblazoned in mosaic with the armorial bearings of the Knights of St. John. This celebrated order had its origin in the hospital of St. John, which was erected in Jeru- salem iu 1018 , through the pious care of some Italian merchants, for the entertainment of poor and sick pil- grims. The fraternal love and devotedness with which they tended on those who required their assistance, led to the endowment of the hospital, with rich man- ors, in every part of Europe, and at the time the Christians captured Jerusalem, many of the Crusaders entered the order, and it became a regular incorpor- ated monastic society, with obligatory laws and regu- lations, and branch establishments in different parts of the world. Military duties, at an early period, were added to their peaceful vocations, and their mi- litary exploits, wealth and influence, soon placed them in the front ranks of Christendom. The order bears the various titles of Knights Hospitallers of St. John, Knights of Rhodes, and Knights of Malta. The lirst they acquired while at Jerusalem, the second du- ring their sojourn in Rhodes, and the third when they went to Malta. From the time of the origin of the order down to the period of their defeat at Acre, ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. 87 where the survivors — a mere handful of the. gallant band that went into battle, only seven in number — retired, covered with wounds and glory, from the smoking ruins of that ill-fated city, their last strong- hold in Palestine, their history in that land was one of untiring exertion and unsurpassed bravery. The defense of Malta by them in 1565, under their Grandmaster, La Yalette, was not less celebrated than that of Rhodes. This noble battle was the last of their military achievements, for they surrendered to Napoleon in 1793, almost without striking a blow. The treaty of Amiens contemplated the restoration of the order ; but war broke out afresh, and the treaty of Paris, in 1814, ceded Malta, with its dependencies, to the British crown. Since then only the shadow of the order has lingered upon the earth. CHAPTER XYIII. ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. Arrival at Alexandria— Egyptian Darkness -Pompey’s Pillar— Island of Pha- ros— Its Lighthouse— The Harbour -Strabo’s Description of the City — Its Four Gates -Its Commerce- Feast Day— Pilgrims— Amusements — Night -Ancient Queens— Aqueduct -Cleopatra's Needle — Antiquarian Research _ Ruins— Catacombs— Sepulchres— Present City— Courteous Treatment. In resuming onr voyage, after our visit to the beau- tiful island of Malta, our sailing course for the re- mainder of the distance was one point south of east. We arrived at Alexandria after a pleasant and agree- able trip. Most of the passengers on board were bound for the East Indies, and, as we proposed to stop at Alexandria, we took leave of them with much re- gret, wishing them all health, happiness, and a speedy return to their families and friends. Our passage from Marsailles to Alexandria occu- 88 ALEXANDRIA. IN EGYPT. pied six days ; but the harbor being a difficult one to enter after sundown, and our captain being unwilling to encounter their “ Egyptian darkness,” which is truly intense, the anchors were cast for the night. We made our way into the harbor at an early hour the following morning. I went upon deck as I heard the sailors moving, and gazed in every direction upon the shore, in hopes to catch a view of Pompey’s Pil- lar, as do many travellers when first they look upon this oriental city. I had been led to believe that the famous pillar stood beside the sea-shore; but such is not the case. It is situated within the limits of the old city, and consequently the summit of it only can be seen towering above the dwellings which surround the harbor. I next directed my attention to the island of Pharos, where the ancient kings of Egypt had planted their military colony to protect the coast against the inroads of the Greek pirates, and where, also, the celebrated light-house stood, which was considered one of the wonders of the world. It was five hundred feet in height. Pharos has for centuries, 6ince the construc- tion of that edifice, been used to express the word light-house, and it is even now significant of light in the English language. The channel between the city and the island is upward of a mile in width. The island itself is of an oblong form, and performs the part of a breakwater to the harbor. The causeway which the ancients erected centuries ago, in order to connect the island with the city 7 , is now filled up, and has become a solid mass of earth and stone. It di- vides the harbor into two parts. Before the construc- tion of this embankment, vessels entering port from the southwest side could pass out on the northeast, and vice versa j but now a vessel lying in the north- western harbor bound on a northeasterly voyage, must first sail around the island in order to reach that part ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. 89 of the Mediterranean called the Egyptian sea, through which its course lies. We entered the southwestern harbor, which is not only very capacious, but a perfectly secure port. It was tilled with vessels from all parts of the world, e asily distinguishable from each other by their na- lional flags, which were all unfurled to the hreeze, in consequence of the day being the great Ramadan feast, called the “ Breaking of the Fast.” Strabo, in describing this city, as it existed in his day, says, two seas wash its sides, the one on the north being called the Egyptian, and that on the south known as Lake Mereotes, which is six hundred miles in circumference. The city was, as he states, in the form of a Macedonian mantle, of which the two largest sides were bathed with the waves of the sea on the one side and with those of the lake on the other. The entire town was intersected by two spa- cious streets, through which chariots freely passed. Thereby the historian conveys the idea that the other streets were too narrow for that purpose. The streets ran at right angles with each other, and were of great width, and the point of their intersection formed a great square. In this open space Pompey’s Pillar stands, three-quarters of a mile from the sea-shore, and a like distance from the lake. At each of the ex- tremitiesof these streets stood the four principal gates of the city ; the Canopia on the east side, the hlicro- polis on the southwest, and the Sun and the Moon, at the end of the streets running from the sea to the lake. Ships lying in the harbor on the lake side could be seen from the harbor on the sea shore, and vice versa . The port on the lake, according to our above quoted authority, was more commodious and far richer than the beautiful harbor formed by the Isle of Pharos. This was owing to the circumstance that the commerce 90 ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. of the whole of Egypt with the East Indies passed over the lake. It is well known that the East India trade, at all times, enriched those who carried it on. This was the chief fountain of the costly treasures which Solomon amassed, and which enabled him to build the magnificent temple at Jerusalem. It made wealthy the Tyrians, who enjoyed this trade beyond that of any other nation on the globe. When the Ptolomies had made themselves masters of Egypt they soon drew die whole of this trade into their own king- dom, by building Berinice and other ports on the Red Sea, and establishing their chief mart at this empori- um. All the traffic which the western world then had with Persia, India, Arabia, and the eastern coast of Africa, was wholly transacted through this great lake, thereby enriching Alexandria, and rendering it the wealthiest city in the world. At length the route by the way of the Cape of Good Hope was discovered and opened. The eastern commerce was then, for a century, engrossed by the Portuguese, and the period of their rule was appropriately termed the golden age of Portugal, and Lisbon was styled the India of ^Northern Europe. This trade is now no longer a mon- opoly belonging to any one company or nation ; but is open to the entire world. But as the railroad is now completed between Alexandria a;id Suez, owing to the enterprise and capital of Great Britain, this trade, or a very large part of it, may once more find its way through this ancient city. W e were fortunate in arriving at Alexandria on the day of its great May festival, which, this year, was celebrated with more than usual oriental magnificence. Its incoming was announced the evening previous by a discharge of cannon from all the fortifications and armed vessels in the harbor, just before we had cast anchor. !Not far distant from the city was an encampment ALEXANDRIA. IN EGYPT. 91 of soldiers, with tents of various colors, and marques for the Pasha and persons of distinction, of unequalled splendor. The Arabic burying ground, and the sub- urbs of the city, were thronged with pilgrims on their way to Mecca ; but who had halted for the purpose of participating in the festival. Persons of all ages, sexes, and conditions, dressed in their richest costumes, and which to us seemed ex- ceedingly fantastic, were moving to and fro — some toward the military encampment and others toward the Arabian burying grounds to visit the pilgrims who there encamped. Some on donkeys and some in or- dinary wagons, without bodies, seated back to back, with their feet hanging down outside. There were a few elegant carriages ; but by far the larger part of the population was on foot. A dress military parade formed part of the exercises, and the troops marched through the great square to the parade ground. We rode through the city, or that portion of it where the streets were sufficiently wide to permit the passage of a carriage, in order to examine the site of the ancient gates, palaces, etc. The people were collected in great numbers at various points on the route, witness- ing the remarkable legerdemain tricks or feats of jug- glers, which seemed to delight them exceedingly, borne of the strollers performed on the tight rope, others recited fables and stories tro vast crowds, not unlike those related in the “ Arabian Nights.” These eastern jugglers are particularly distinguished for their extraordinary feats, of which some of the most famous are swallowing swords, catching sharp knives thrown into the air, and cutting off, apparently, an arm from a living person and restoring it so that it is quite as good as a new one ought to be. This optical illusion is one of the most remarkable feats 1 ever witnessed. Everything, so far as i could ascertain, passed off pleasantly. There was no disorderly con- 92 ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. duct, no drunkenness in the streets ; but all the people appeared happy, and rejoiced that their sovereign per- mitted them thus to enjoy this great festival. As soon as night came the streets were instantly quiet, for no person is then allowed to be abroad with- out a pass, and even then he must bear with him a lighted lamp. The cry of the watchmen, “ Whaka ,” —all’s well — is heard every quarter of an hour dur- ing the night. In our rambles through the city and its surround- ings we could discern but few marks of the magnifi- cence which belonged to it when it was the great city of the conqueror of Asia, the emporium of the east, and the chosen theatre of the luxurious Queens of Rome and Egypt. There are no traces remaining of its grand temples, and other ornamental edifices ; al- though some parts of the old wall of the city are still standing, flanked with large towers, at the distance of two hundred paces from each other, with smaller intermediate ones. The reservoir, vaulted with much skill, and extending under the city, is almost entire. This great work was constructed upwards of two thou- sand years ago, and the arches are at this day so per feet that I have no doubt they will stand for two thou- sand years to come. Csesar, in speaking of this work in his Commentaries, says : — u The city is almost quite hollow underneath,- occasioned by the many aqueducts to the Nile that furnish private houses with water : where, being received in cisterns, is settled by de- grees, and becomes perfectly clear. This is preserved for the use of the master and his family ; for, the water of the Nile being extremely muddy, is apt to breed many distempers. The common people, how- ever, are forced to content themselves with it, for there is not a single spring in the city/’ buch w T as the condition of the aqueduct in his day, as we have it from under his own hand. The site of ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. 93 Caesar’s palace is pointed out, and a part of the wall still remaining. There is, however, nothing left of Cleopatra’s palace, which fronted the northeast har- bor. Here are the two obelisks, called Cleopatra’s needles ; they are of Egyptian marble, and covered with hieroglyphics. These, according to tradition, were brought either from ileliopoles or Thebes, to adorn the entrance of the palace of the Ptolomies. One of them is still standing, the other, which is pros- trate, was given to the British Government, by the Viceroy of Egypt; but it has not, as yet, been re- moved to London. These are each a single stone, and are about sixty feet in height by seven feet square at the base. We visited Pompey’s Piliar several times. It stands upon a pedestal twelve feet high. The shaft is round, and about ninety feet in length. It is surmounted by a beautiful Corinthian capital, which adds ten feet more to its altitude. The foundation is beginning to give way, and unless this is repaired there is danger of its falling at no distant day. Mr. Salt, a distinguished antiquarian writer, seeks to prove that it was erected by Psamaticus, one of the sovereigns of Egypt, and long before Pompey’s days. If such were tiie case it must have been removed either from the city of Heliopoles, or some other one of the cities in Egypt, for Psamaticus reigned four hundred and one years before the Christian era, and sixty nine before the city of Alexandria was built. This order of architecture was invented by Callimac- hus of Corinth, five hundred and forty years before Christ, consequently the column might have been erected by that sovereign in some other city, but not on the spot where it now stands The earliest authen- ticated structure of this order, now standing, how- ever, is the monument at Athens, to the memory ol Sy sc rates, 335 b.g. 94 : ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. On each side of what is represented by the citizens of tli is ancient town to have been one of the princi- pal streets, are still to be seen overthrown columns, the ruins of a magnificent colonade which extended between the gates of the Sun and the Moon, and was regarded as the most beautiful and imposing orna- ment of the place. The remains of the mighty city is discernable for miles, and may be traced, in every direction, by heaps of bricks and mortar, mingled with broken marble shafts, and elaborately carved capitals. Most of this desolation is attributed to the effects of the fatal earthquake which swallowed fifty thousand of its inhabitants, and threw down the loftiest of their edifices. The sight of these vast ruins produces on the mind of the beholder reflections of a melancholy and suggestive character. Was the event a judgment sent by Heaven upon its people for their wickedness ? and if so, are the inhabitants of my own country ex- empt from a similar punishment, whether it comes in the form of an earthquake, a famine, or a war? I could not but ask myself this question while gazing around me, and while I felt that our nation had not, for the eighty years of its existence, lived sinless ; yet I could earnestly pray that my beloved land might never be overthrown and destroyed, either by natural causes, outward violence, or civil strife. In passing over and amidst the ruins of this once noble city the tourists vainly ask of the citizens who now fill its thoroughfares, to point out the sites of its great libraries and colleges for which, in earlier days, it was so highly distinguished, but, alas! even the memory of them is unknown to the present inhab- itants. The catacombs are most extensive; but they present nothing very remarkable excepting their arched roofs. . Some of those situated near the sea- shore are exposed -to view, and although they have been built for ages are yet in good condition. The ALEXANDRIA IN EGYPT. 95 original entrance to the catacombs lias not been dis- covered. The present passage into them opens to- wards the sea, and at no great distance from the beach. The Bedouins residing near, it not within them, furn- ished us with lights, and conducted us through such of the chambers as were accessible; but most ot them are choked up with sand, and the only way to effect an entrance is on one’s hands and knees. There- fore we did not attempt to explore them. We examined, within the walls of the city, and at no great distance from Pompey’s Pillar, extensive sub- terranean excavations which were no doubt, the former sepulchres of the distinguished among the ancient in- habitants; but which are now used as small mosques. It is said by some that it was here the body of Al- exander the Great was deposited when it was brought from Babylon, by one of the largest and most magnifi- cent funeral corteges ever known. The sarcophagus which once contained the body of this renowned war- rior is now in the British Museum. Dr. Clarke, a celebrated oriental traveller and antiquarian, who has given much attention to investigating this subject, entertains no doubt of the identity of this sarcophagus. . The present city is pleasantly situated, being built partly upon the island of Pharos, and partly on the great embankment which connects the island with the old town, as also on the site of the latter town itself, which faces and surrounds the north-w T estern harbor. The great square is situated on the embankment. One of the largest and most gorgeously furnished of the Pasha’s palaces stands, in full view, upon the island fronting the harbor on the left side as you enter it The grounds surrounding the edifice are under a high state of cultivation. Many of the hotels are on the square. The Peninsular and Oriental Hotel cov- ers several acres of ground, and has a large court- yard in the centre. The hotel is not, however, in good 90 CAIRO. repair, tut it is well kept, and we were received by its proprietors with much kindness. We attended during our stay here, divine service held in an Episcopal Church, in company with sever- al distinguished British officers and other strangers* who were on their way to the East Indies. W e were much indebted to the courtesy and kindness of Mr. A. St. John Fossman, of the Bank of Egypt, and his accomplished wife, during our sojourn here, for idaking our visit agreeable. We passed several days in a most pleasing manner, and our friends did all in their power to cause us to feel quite at home. CHAPTER XIX. CAIRO. Railroad to Cairo— The Nile— Farming— Lower Orders— Upper Ten— Dwell- ings — Climate — Foundation of the City — The Present Town— A Police Regulation Quarter — Hotels — Bazaars Mt. Mokettain - Joseph’s Well — Palace of the Pasha — Emier Bey — Saladin — Mahomed Ali. •'% We left Alexandria at an early hour in the morn- ing by railroad, and reached Cairo, a distance of two hundred and fifty miles, some time before sunset of the same day. We travelled for miles along the shore of Lake Merotes, and at no great distance from the canal which connects the Nile with Alexan- dria. The railroad bridge over the Nile is not yet finished, and we were consequently, obliged to cro-s the river in a ferry boat, during the hottest part of the day, the thermometer standing at ninety -five de- grees in the shade. We fell the heat most oppres- sively when descending and ascending the river banks, in passing to and from the boat. An excellent din- ner, got up in true English sty le, and accompanied with CAIRO. 97 claret and ice, was provided in the station-house, for the passengers. It was served by both Egyptian and English servants. At this point I drank the waters of the Nile for the first time in my life. I observed when we conrinued on oar journey, that the farmers everywhere along our route were engaged in harvesting their crops. The wheat was threshe i on the ground, for there are no barns in the country, by horses which were tied together and driven round and round over the grain, in some instances drawing a rude sled, made rough at the bottom, in which the driver was seated. The Egyptians depend entirely upon the river for fertilizing the soil : rain being of very rare occurrence in Egypt, except in that part of it in the neighborhood of the Mediterranean, sea. As the seasons are rarely variable in their character, the farmers may make their arrangements with the utmost precision regard- ing the time of planting and gathering their crops. Their duties are laborious when, as sometimes hap- pens, it becomes necessary to irrigate their crops by raising water from the streams, otherwise they are quite light, for, as their land is not fen (fed, they have no fences to make and keep in repair, nor are they obliged to toil during summer in cutting wood for winter fuel, since the weather is always mild, and little fire is re- quired. Neither are they obliged, as are the farm- ers with us, to work a portion of time on the high- ways, since there are none in the country to require their services. The lower order of the Egyptian Arabs are de- scribed as a quiet, inoffensive people, with many good qualities. They are certainly more active in tlieir agricultural pursuits than we should be led to expect from the habits of the larger class of them, residing in towns, and from the circumstance that they do not own the laud they cultivate. The poorer sort seldom o 98 CAIRO. can afford to eat animal food ; but subsist chiefly on rice, dates, gourds, melons and milk. Wine is pro- hibited to every believer of the Prophet Mahomet. Their costume is remarkably simple. They wear a pair of drawers and a long, full shirt or gown of blue linen or cotton, or brown woolen, open from the neck nearly to the waist, with wide flowing sleeves. Over this gown some wear a white or red woolen girdle wound around the waist, and upon the head a turban, formed from a w’hite, red or yellow w r oolen shawl ; but many of the people are so poor as to be obliged to wear the skirt without drawers. Those who are able add to their personal attire red or yellow mo- rocco sheepskin shoes or slippers ; but the larger pro- portion go without any. The dwellings, except those belonging.to the higher class of the people, consist of only one room, built with mud, and containing but little furniture. The better houses have a low sofa, called a divan, extending around the sides of the apartment. When taking their meals they seat them- selves on mats, placed upon the floor, surrounding low tables. The climate, during the greater part of the year, is, I am assured by the inhabitants, salubri- ous. The exhalations rising from the soil, however, after the period of the inundations in the latter part of autumn, make the country less healthy than it is during the other portions of the year. For a period of fifty days, called El-Kum-’aseeny, commencing in April, and lasting throughout the month of May, hot, sultry winds occasionally prevail for three days toge- ther. These winds seldom cause the thermometer to rise above ninety-five degrees in lower Egypt, or one hundred and five degrees in the upper country ; yet, while they prevail the heat is exceedingly oppres- sive. We journeyed between Alexandria and Cairo during one of these heated terms. The country is also subject during the spring and CAIRO. 99 summer months to hot winds, called the simoom which are still more oppressive than the former, al- though they are of short duration, seldom lasting at any one time longer than one quarter of an hour. This wind generally arises in the southwest, and is accompanied with clouds of dust and sand. The thermometer, during the winter season never sinks below fifty degrees, and rarely rises above sixty. During the night, the French troops, under Napoleon, found the air so chilly as to make a fire in their tents , necessary. Cairo is undoubtedly the largest Arab city of the present day. The natives regard it as standing with- out an equal, and as being the mother of the world. It is certainly not an ancient city, for it was founded in A. D. 969, by the First Caleph of the Fatimite dynasty, and Salaflin, about two hundred years after- ward, built the ramparts around it. This is the only place where a complete knowledge of the most civil- ized Arabs can be obtained. They are a fine looking body of men, and those who have not been exposed to the sun have a sallow appearance ; but possess a clear complexion — the others are of a darker and coarser hue. The houses in the city are well built of stone, but their external appearance on the street is exceedingly gloomy in consequence of their being without front windows, the interiors being lighted from windows which open into the back courts or quadrangles. The streets are narrow, which serves to protect the inhabitants from the full effect of the meridian sun, and the more effectually to accomplish th^s a slight canopy is extended across the street from house top to house top. Most of the streets are provided with gates, which are closed as soon as the darkness of the night comes. A canal, fifteen to twenty feet wide, runs through the city, supplied with water from the Nile. There are several hundred 4 100 CAIRO. mosques in the city of Cairo, a few of which arc splendid editices, adorned with antique columns of rare beauty brought from Heliopolis and Memphis. In the Frank part of the town carriages can pass free- ly ; but most of the streets are only wide enough to admit the passage of persons in single file on horse- back. This city is surrounded by a wall, with nume- rous turrets. The gates of the various entrances are clo-ed at night, and no one is permitted in the streets after dark without he has a pass, and then not unless he carries a lighted lamp. The police regulations are very stringent, and the punishment for a viola- tion of the law is exemplary and summary. The town is divided into several quarters, among which the larger and most populous are the Jewish, the Frank, and the Copt. The population, which is nearly three hundred thousand, is*divided into Mos- lems, Egyptians, Christians, Turks, Syrians, Greeks, Armenians, Franks and Copts. The latter are re- garded as the direct descendants of the true Egyp- tians, and possess a sallow complexion. There are several large and expensively constructed palaces, and a number of hotels— -the latter are situ- ated on the public square. The Shepherd Hotel covers several acres of ground, and is admirably kept. We put up at this grand caravansary while we so- journed in this city, and received every attention from the obliging host and hostess, whose gracious and agreeable manners are admirably adapted to give satisfaction to their guests. The bazaars of the city are fashionable places of resort for strangers and citizens. They are not, how- ever, on as grand a scale as those at Constantinople. The display of goods at these establishments are of the richest characters, and a brisk and profitable trade is carried on here by the merchants, many of whom have amassed large fortunes. Some of the GAIKO. 101 shops are tastefully arranged, but all are exceedingly small. Mount Mokettam lies to the east of the city, and runs along the course of the Nile from Cairo to Up- per Egypt : sometimes receding from the river, leav- ing a plain three miles in width, and at other points opposing its barren rocks to the stream. Upon its northern extremity, directly east of the city, stands the citadel or castle, the exterior of which is three miles in circumference. Here once stood an ancient city. The road leading to it is hewn out of the solid rock, and is of easy ascent. There are several re- mains of this ancient city still existing. A number of red granite pillars, each formed from one piece, are pointed out as being the identical columns which supported the roof of Joseph’s Hall, which is said to have once stood on this hill. Near by is Joseph’s well, which is two hundred and seventy feet in depth. The palace and well are supposed to have been con- structed under the direction of Joseph himself. Among the modern edifices is a palace of the Pasha, and one of the largest, most superb and richest mosques of Cairo, built of oriental alabaster. It stands on the north side of a large square, ornamented with a foun- tain in the centre. It was from this citadel that Emir Bey escaped, during the massacre of the Mamelukes, under the order of Mahotnmed Ali, by leaping his horse through a gap in the walls. In examining the spot it seems incredible that any one should have had the temerity to have attempted such a leap ; but certain death awaited him within, and he doubtless considered it wiser to risk perishing by seeking to escape, than to be inhumanly butchered by remain- ing, as were his companions in arms. The walk along the ramparts is one of the finest that can be con- ceived, commanding, as it does, the most extensive prospect in Egypt. It embraces a view of the site 102 HELIOPOLI8. of the city of Memphis, the Pyramids, the great plain of the Nile, where Napoleon fought the battle of the Pyramids, leaving three thousand of the enemy slain on the field. There is also a view of Heliopolis, and its celebrated obelisk, still standing on the south side of the river, of the Cemetery of the Mamelukes, of the several palaces surrounding Cairo, of the city itself, with its pinnacles and towers, lying spread out at the base of the citadel like a map, and an ex- tensive view of the river both above and below the city, winding its way towards the sea. Saladin, in his day, occupied a palace on this hill, and in removing the rubbish of the old city he dis- covered and opened the well of Joseph, which had been covered up for centuries. Mahomed Ali spends a part of his time in this palace, but he usually re- sides at Shoubra, where he built a splendid palace, and planted a garden, after the European fashion. The interior of the palace is richly furnished. CHAPTER XX. HELIOPOLIS. Bite of the City — Its Antiquities— Its Ancient Grandeur — Its Origin — Our Sa- viour — Plato — Its Learning — Joseph and Mary — The Fountain of the Sun. The site of the ancient, city of Heliopolis is about five miles from the citadel of Cairo, and I think the city formerly extended to, and included the citadel itself within its limits. We rode over the ground where this renowned city once stood, which, in its day, was one of the most extensive and richly adorned of any in Egypt. Tt was called Beth-shemesh by Je- remiah, the prophet, and known as On, the city of the HELIOPOLIS. 103 priest, whose daughter Joseph married, (Gen. xli.45,) and by Septuagent identified with Aven (Ezekiel, xxx. 17,) and called Heliopolis, the city of the Sun, by Herodotus. There are several granite pillars lying upon the ground which are said, to have belonged to the temple of Re, celebrated in history as one of the - most magnificent temples in the world. It was adorned in front by order of Sesostris and Ramises, with an extensive avenue of phoenixes and sacred obelisks. This once great city is now a crumbled mass of ruins, buried in the sands of the desert, which have en- croached upon it, leaving nothing of its princely gran- deur except a single lofty obelisk, which is still stand- ing, and on which we gazed as did the patriarch Jo- seph, when he first arrived in the city, three thousand seven hundred and forty-five years ago. The height of this obelisk is sixty-seven feet, and its breadth six feet. It is a solid column of red granite, and is cov- ered with hieroglyphics which record the name of Osirtasen the First, who is regarded by the learned to be that Pharaoh whose dream Joseph interpreted. . The origin of this once great metropolis, as like- wise that of the citadel at Cairo, is lost in obscurity. This was the chief seat of learning in Egypt, and the priests and sheiks, during the flourishing ages of the Egyptian monarchy, here acquired and taught the ele- ments of knowledge and the higher branches, within the precincts of its temples. Cambysis, King of Per- sia, waged a sacrilegious war on this city, burning the temples, despoiling the palaces, and destroying the most precious monuments of antiquity. At the period when Strabo, the historian, resided in this city, soon after the death of our Saviour, the apartments were shown where Plato labored to learn the philosophy of Egypt, and where he, no doubt, obtained all the knowledge he possessed of the im- mortality of the soul. 104 HELIOPOLIS. Egfpt has ever been regarded as the cradle of science, and even during the most flourishing period of the Grecian Republic, no Greek was considered truly learned .until he had sojourned a certain period on the banks of the Nile, and particularly within the limits of Heliopolis. It was at Heliopolis that tradition asserts that Jo- seph and Mary rested with our Saviour on their es- cape from Herod. Here yet stands the sycamore tree, or some portion of its huge trunk, whose wide spread- ing branches afforded them a shelter from the meii- dian sun ; and near by is the spring of pure water where they satisfied their thirst after their journey across the desert. We drank the water of this cele- brated spring, and rested, for a while, in the shadow of this ancient tree. Thousands of names are written on its trunk in every language and character of which we have any knowledge. The spring, the placid waters of which once re- flected the countenance of our Saviour, is called even at this day the fountain of the Sun. Most readers have heard the story related by Dyony- sius, in one of his letters to a friend : it seems he was at this ancient city on the day of the crucifixion of our Saviour, when a strange darkness of the hea- vens, not unlike an eclipse of the Sun occurred, upon which he turned to a friend near him and exclaimed : “ either the Deity is suffering, or lie is sympathising with the sufferer.” If this statement be true it is certainly one of the most wonderful testimonies re- corded of this remarkable event. MEMPHIS. 105 CHAPTER XXI. MEMPHIS. Antiquity of this City— Its Great Extent — The Pyramids — Cheops- Its Cham- her.? — Around the Pyramids— Purpose of their Construction— Astronomi- cal Observation -Tombs— Migration of Souls -The Sphynx. We visited the site of the no less ancient city of Memphis, called Noph by Jeremiah — xBi., 19. The foundations of which stretch beyond the limits of au- thentic history. The attempt made by Nebuchadnezer to destroy even the vestiges, and totally obliterate every trace of it, by removing the stones and mater- ials of which it was built, aided by the destroying hand which Time has since laid upon it, is most com- plete, since no relics of its former magnificence now occupy the ground on which it once stood. To this purport we may consult EzekieD&ix., 19, and also Je- remiah xlvi., 19. But we learn from Edrisi, an old writer who visited the city in the twelfth century, that its ruins then extended to the distance of half a day’s journey in any one direction from its centre. If this statement be true — and we have no reason to doubt it — the north side of the city must have reached a point near to the Pyramids of Djizett, consequently Memphis approached to a line nearly opposite the ci- tadel at Cairo, as it is less than half a day’s journey from the Pyramids to the centre of the site of the city, as ascertained by Denon in his researches when he accompanied Napoleon into Egypt. In Strabo’s time, although the city was in ruins, it was a populous city, second only to Alexandria. In visiting the Pyramids at Memphis we crossed 5* MEMPHIS. „he river at old Cairo, at an early hour m the morn- ing, accompanied by a dragoman and muleteers, with a sufficient number of donkeys, and a sufficient supply of provisions to last us through the day. We also carried wax candles to enable us to examine the rooms in the interior of the pyramids. These pyramids are situated on a platform of rocks or mountain ridge, about one hundred and fifty feet above the plain, and seven miles from the river. In times of flood the waters of the Nile cover these extensive plains, and come up to the base of the ridge. While crossing the plains the Bedouins, who reside near the pyramids, and lay claim to them, met us while we were yet two miles distant from the mountain ridge. Those who reached us first we employed as guides. The number of laborers who are constantly at work under the charge of persons in the pursuit of antiquities in un- covering tombs, establishes beyond a doubt the fact which has long been maintained, that a vast cemetery, if not for all classes, at least for the distinguished dead of the cities of Memphis and Heliopolis, extended to the north and south of these pyramids as far as the eye can reach. Many of the tombs are uncovered, disclosing several apartments highly ornamented, , with rich carvings and paintings. The number of pyramids scattered over Egypt is very great; but the most remarkable are those de- scribed by Herodotus, situated opposite Cairo, at JJjizett. They are still regarded as the finest monu- k ments of this class in Egypt. We visited the Pyra- mid of Cheops, the largest of the three. A number of Bedouins, whom we had hired, led the way. The entrance to it, as well as to each of them, is on its northern side. We descended for a considerable dis- tance at an angle of about twenty-six degrees, and from thence we ascended, with much trouble, to the first apartment. The rooms we examined were of the MEMPHIS. 107 following dimensions : — The one called the Queen’s Chamber, which is the first in order, is thirty-seven feet two inches long, by seventeen feet two inches wide. Then comes a chamber, attainable by a simi- lar passage, thirty feet by seventeen, and twenty feet high. This is known as the King’s Chamber, and is lined all around with highly polished granite slabs. At the western extremity of the room stands the sarcophagus, without a lid, which once contained the remains of Cheops, but which now is entirely empty. It is seven feet six inches long, three feet, three inches wide, and three feet deep. There is a third room, still higher in the body of the pyramids, which was discovered by Mr. Davidson, the British Consul. This apartment is four feet longer than the one below it, the width being, however, the same. Davidson also discovered the well which is cut through the solid rock to the level of the Kile. The only way one can fully realize the gigantic size of this great pyramid is to recollect that it cov- ers an area of eleven acres of ground — it being seven hundred and fifty feet long on each of its sides at the base, and rising to a height of four hundred and eighty feet. The learned who have given their attention to these stupendous monuments, maintain that the priests, in their construction of them, availed them- selves of the means thus afforded to connect their sacred duties with their favorite studies, and com- bined the sentiment of piety with the sublime con- ceptions of astronomy. Among the benefits, they allege, which this union has conferred upon poster- ity, is that of having fixed with precision the faces of the pyramids, which enables us to know that the poles of the earth have not been changed. For the pyramids still present their four sides correctly to the 108 MEMPHIS. four points of tlie compass, as they did when first erected. The scholars also maintain that these structures were formerly used to correct the measurement of time, from the circumstance that the main approaches to them are invariably from the north, and incline downward at an angle of twenty-seven degrees, with the plane of the horizon, which gives a line of direc- tion not far removed from that point in the heavens where the polar star crosses the meridian below the pole. The observation of this, or some other star across the meridian, would give them an accurate measure of siderial time — a matter of the first impor- tance in any age when it is probable no other instru- ments than rude solar gnomous, or expedients still more imperfect, were in use. The observations were probably made by a person standing at the bottom of the first platform, by ranging the eye along the then smooth surface of this entrance. It has, however, been denied by able writers that these ancient structures were erected for astronomi- cal observations; for, if such were their object, they would not have been crowded together in such num- bers near Memphis, but would have been placed in other parts of the kingdom, and especially in Heliop- olis, where the priests were, from the most ancient times, famed for their astronomical knowledge. But others again maintain that they were simply intended as tombs for their kings, and two reasons are given therefor. First, the religious faith of the old Egyp- tians is well known, viz : that the soul leaves the body after death and wanders through those of various ani- mals for purification, and not until after a succession of thousands of years returns back to the same human body, to live again in it. This was reason enough for mighty kings, to erect the pyramids, either to hold back the soul in the body and wholly to escape the MEMPHIS. 109 dread wanderings, or at least to preserve the body from an} 7 corruption until the requickening. On this account the bodies of all Egyptians were embalmed and placed in air-tight catacombs. Second---Policy, viz: The Israelites were forced to perform the hard- est of labor, because their rulers hoped thus to prevent their increase ; but if this was the sole object they had, it seems to me, they might have been employed on some worthier and more useful work, in the build- ing of canals, and other national improvements. The Sphinx, which stands at a short distance from the largest pyramid, is regarded by most travellers as a rival to tlie pyramids themselves. The engrav- ings of the pyramids and this Sphvnx, wdiich are to be met. with in every print-shop, give a very perfect idea of their apf>earauce ; but the magnitude of the Spliynx surprised me. It is, indeed, a gigantic and wonderful work of . art. Its features resemble, in some respects, the Copts of the present clay, thus go- ing far towards proving, if any evidence of that fact were required, that tli^y belong to the ancient Egyp- tian race, which is quite different from the negro- featured race. What the Egyptians signified by this symbolical figure seems not to be exactly known. Some writers think it is the type of womanhood, in which power is engrafted on gentleness and beauty. This is represented by a woman’s face, neck and bosom, connected with the body of a lioness, not in fierce and violent action, but in eternal repose. Dr. Pococke says there is an entrance both in the back and the top of the h ad. The latter, he thinks, might have served the priests in the utterance of oracles. Its dimensions, according to the same writer, are twenty-seven feet above tlie ground, thirty -three feet wide across the breast, and the entire length one hun- dred and thirty feet. Pliny estimated its height, in his day, to be sixty feet. It is, therefore, more than 110 SUEZ. probable that the sands of the desert have, since that period, raised the ground at its base many feet, thus reducing it to its present height. CHAPTER XXII. SUEZ. Departure from Cairo — Barrenness of the Route— Maga — Trade of Suez — Pas- sage of the Red Sea — Authorities Quoted — Diodorus — The Ford — Valley of the Chariots— Robinson’s Opinion — Conclusion. We left Cairo at seven o’clock in the morning, by the railroad which leads over the desert at no great distance irom the route formerly traversed by the caravans. There is no water, nor tree, nor vegetation of any kind to be found on this extensive and dreary plain. It is as barren as the surface of the ocean it- self. The water which is required to supply the engine is carried in iron tanks on cars made for that purpose, from the Hile, and such part of it as is not used is sold to the citizens of Suez, w r ho are destitute of pure water. The only good water which they obtain is brought from the well of Maga, six miles distant. This town is supposed to occupy the site of an an- cient city, by the name of Arsinae. There are no gardens or fields surrounding the city, nor is there a single patch of verdure to be seen anywhere near it. The desert comes up to its very walls. It contains upwards of three thousand inhabitants. Before the commencement of the great railroad which connects the Red Sea with the Mediterranean, Suez was nbt considered an important town ; but the immense trade now centering here from the East Indies, lias SUEZ. Ill / given it a. new impulse, and it will doubtless ere long become a place of great importance. The privilege which the Ottoman Government has granted to England, of using this railroad for the transport of troops, munitions of war, and merchan- dise, to and from their Eastern possessions, will have a tendency to cement more closely the ties which have heretofore bound these nations together, not- withstanding the efforts made by religious fanatics to break up the friendly relations existing between them. They allege that England disregards the “injured innocence of its religion,” by such connections ; and they ask, “ Why should a Christian people concern themselves about the welfare of those Whose rule of guidance in life is the Koran ? For why should those who live under a free constitution desire the mainte' nance of an empire founded in despotism?” But the wise and sagacious statesmen of Great Britain are not likely to inaugurate a crusade against the Mahom- medan religion at this enlightened period, by sugges- tions of this or a like character, more especially since it would end in the loss of this direct route to China and India, which is of inestimable value to that Gov- ernment. The largest class of vessels engaged in the Eastern trade cast their anchors three or four miles from the city, there not being a sufficient depth of water at its wharves to float them. The city stands upon a point of land, with the sea on the east and north sides, and a bay on the south, which is bounded by the moun- tain Jabel Ataka. This mountain extends along the west side of the seashore for twelve miles ; it then curves around to the north West, and terminates in a promontory in the desert, several miles from the sea. The railroad passes around this point, which increases the distance between Cairo and Suez. The great plain in the rear of the city is sufficiently extensive 112 SUEZ. for the encampment of an army of upwards of a mil- lion of soldiers. Whether or not this is the place where the wonderful miracle and fearful act of retri- bution occurred to Pharaoh and his host, must ever remain a doubtful point. The traditionary account, however, of the Arabs fixes it at this place; but learned travellers have, by their ingenious method of reasoning on the subject, rendered it extremely prob- lematical. One thing is quite certain, that it answers well enough to the description given in the Bible. For here was a space large enough for the whole force of the Israelites to have encamped, and here lay be- fore them the sea ; and, on the right, as they faced the sea, rises the Jebel Ataka, “ the frightful and in- terminable mountain.” “Lofty and dark,” with the desert behind them, which opened a way between the mountain and sea for the pursuit of Pharaoh, with an organized military force of six hundred chariots of war ; and, being thus entangled in the land, their de- struction would seem, but for the providence of God, inevitable. The sea is now fordable here, and does not exceed three miles in its widest place ; but whe- ther it was fordable at that period must remain an unsettled question. It is quite probable that the sands of the desert may have filled up the channel to some extent. The tide rises five feet in height, and the east winds are so severe at times that the waters are driven back, and there then exists less difficulty in passing the ford than at ordinary times. It is a remarkable fact that Diodorus, in speaking of the Red iSea, has made one remark, won by of our atten- tion : “ A tradition,” says that historian, “ has been transmitted through the whole nation, from father to son, for many ages, that once an extraordinary ebb dried the sea, so that its bottom was seen ; and that a violent flow immediately after brought back the waters to their former channel.” SUEZ. 113 w It is evident,” Rollin the historian remarks, “ that the miraculous passage of Moses over the Red Sea is here hinted at ; and I make this remark pur- posely to admonish young students, not to slip over, in the perusal of authors, those precious remains of an- tiquity, especially when they bear, like this passage, any relation to religion.” Some maintain that the place where the Israelites passed through the sea was twelve miles below Suez, where there is a chain of mountains that runs from. Cairo to the Red Sea, and on the south side of this chain is a narrow vailey ; but this valley, it is asserted by others, is not wide enough to have contained the camp. From Etham the Israelites, the former declare, might have made their way to this vailey by a circuit around Ataka, through a pass to the mountain west of it; or they may have marched under the cliffs of Mount Ataka, along the sea shore. But the interior route would have led them back to a point no great distance from the Nile, and in the face of the Egyp- tian army. It seems to me very improbable that tiiey would, for this reason, have taken this course. And to have followed the route by the seashore along the beach, if practicable, with so large a force, and so great a number of cattle as they drove, would have been attended with serious difficulty. Those who regard Suez as the place, say it is the very spot to have been most effected by strong east winds. Again, they assert, the road from Ethan, where they turned off to the right, leads directly to this place. And, furthermore, they declare, that the traditions of the Arabs, who have always resided here, locate the passage at the eastern end of Wada el Araba. The Valley of the Chariots, and the Valley •and Mountain of “Pharaoh’s Hosts,” on the opposite shore, derive their names, as the Arabs assert, from 1 u SUEZ. the destruction which fell upon Pharaoh’s army. They say, too, that the depth, of the sea at all other points on the coast would have been too great to have allowed of its division being compared to a wall ; and, moreover, the great width at all other points would have required a longer time for the pas- sage than is given in the Bible. It is not, however, a matter of much moment at this late day, whether or not that wonderful event took place here or twelve miles further south. It is quite certain that the Israelites visited this place on that occasion ; and, if any reliance can be placed in the traditionary ac- counts given by the Arabs, then the weight of evi- dence is in favor of Suez. In conclusion, I would remark, that I have been much pleased with my visit to this interesting local- ity. Indeed, I have been more than repaid for the time I have devoted in my long journey to my visit to this city. This place can now be reached with ease from New York, since the railroad from Alex- andria was completed, in twenty-two days, and that, too, at the small expense for one person of two hun- dred and seventy-live dollars. .In hurrying on to this point in order to reach the extreme southern part of the country, with a view of avoiding the hot wea- ther, the tourist will be obliged to postpone his visit to intermediate places until his return. FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. 115 CHAPTER XXIII. FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. Steamers— Peter Yahoop — American Consul— Our Vessel— Cleopa.ra’s Barge — Our Crew — The Winds — The Weather — Coffee — Pelusium — The Char- acter of the Turks — Edom — Gazza. I was detained in Alexandria, in Egypt, waiting for a conveyance to Palestine. Heretofore there has been great regularity in running the steamers of the various lines on the Mediterranean Sea, for the ac- commodation of tourists, and at no place within its waters more so than at the city of Alexandria ; but the war in Europe, and other causes, have, in some measure, deranged them for the present. The Aus- trian steamers have been withdrawn, and the French line decline to touch at or land passengers at this place, owing to the delay they are subjected to from the quarantine regulations here. Such being the case, I determined to employ a dragoman, with a view either of taking the route by the short desert, or by the sea-coast, in order to enable me to view the mouths of the Xile and sites of the several ancient cities situated on or near the sea-shore. On consult- ing with gentlemen who had long resided at Alex- andria, and in whose judgment I had entire confi- dence, I became satisfied that the route by the sea- coast was decidedly preferable to that of the arid des- ert at this season of the year, and without further hes- itation I concluded a contract with Peter Yahoop, of Syria, a very competent and most faithful man ; he undertaking, on his part, for a consideration agreed upon between us, to furnish myself and daughter 116 FEOM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. with horses properly caparisoned for the convey- ance of ourselves and luggage through the Holy Laud ; to supply us witli provisions and as many courses at breakfast and dinner as I should direct, to- gether witli beds, bedding, china and glass-ware, wa- ter-tilters for purifying the water for use, and all such other articles as are required for a journey of that ex- tent. He also stipulated to furnish us with a cook, a servant, and at least four muleteers, at no time to require us to ride during the heat of the day, and to pay all expenses incurred in removing the baggage, etc., on the route. This contract was executed by us in the presence of the American Consul at the city of Alexandria, who witnessed it under his official seai. A part of the consideration money was paid in ad- vance; the balance to b& paid by a draft on our arri- val at Beyrout in Syria. As the terms of the con- tract rendered it unnecessary for me to take any mon- ey or other valuables with me, I retained but a few sovereigns in my purse, which fact was well known to my employees.. I therefore felt under no apprehen- sion of being disturbed on the route by the wild Bed- ouins, or other persons no less wild, whom, it was said, we should meet everywhere throughout tli p country, on foot, or mounted on fleet and well-bro- ken Arabian horses, armed to the teeth with guns, and immense long lances, which latter they throw while under full speed w’ith much accuracy. The contract being thus definitely settled, I di- rected my dragoman to enter into an agreement with some competent and trusty commander for the voy- age ; and, in pursuance of these instructions, he en- gaged Captain Armahanshent, of Tripoli, the owner and commander of the Malesaaka, a small coasting- vessel, measuring only forty-five feet in length, by twelve feet-in width. As there was no cabin or other accommodations on board, our tent was pitched on the FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. 117 deck of the vessel, everything was arranged in a way to render ns as comfortable as we could be under the circumstances, and, I think, we were quite as much so as Cleopatra was, centuries ago, on the same wa- ters, on her celebrated voyage to meet Antony at Tarsus, in Cilicia, with this difference, however, that her magnificent galley was covered with gold, pro- pelled by purple silken sails and silver oars, and with oarsmen or marines richly and gorgeously appareled ; while our seamen had barely clothing sufficient to cover their persons, and our unpretending vessel had neither gold nor paint upon it, nor otherwise orna- men ted. We embarked on the evening of the sixteenth, and sailed the following morning. The sea being always calm at this season of the year in Egypt, I felt in no wav concerned either in regard to the smallness of our vessel, or of being drenched with the spray of the sea in the event of a storm, as we would inevitably have been, for our tent would have afforded us no protection against it ; but, although our voyage was completed in two or three days’ less time than it would have been, had we taken the route by the desert, it was, nevertheless, an uncommonly long one by the sea — being seven days and seven nights. We were, however, fortunately, favored with fine weather, and with an excellent opportunity of view- ing the entire coast. Our crew and employees con- sisted of six Turks and seven Assyrian Christians, none of whom spoke the English language excepting our dragoman, and he only in broken and very im- perfect sentences ; he, however, spoke the French lan- guage. The winds on the coast of Egypt always blow from the north during the months of May, June, July, and August, which circumstance induced the ancient Egyptians to attribute the rise of the rivers, and the 118 FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. overflowing of the hanks of the Nile, to that cause, as we are informed by Herodotus, the first historian of whom we have any knowledge. The wind blew gently from the north on* the day we sailed from Alexandria, and the thermometer stood at seventy-five degrees, varying but little from that during the whole voyage : the weather was so mild and pleasant that we suffered no inconvenience on ac- count of the heat, or otherwise. We passed the Ro- setta mouth of the Nile, thirty miles distant from Al- exandria, at four o’clock, p. m., of the day of our de- parture. As we left Alexandria our cook entered up- on his duties, and served us at an early hour, with an excellent cup of Mocha coffee, as is the custom of the Turks in the Orient. They drink no spirituous liquor of any sort, but partake of coffee at all hours of the da}L Our coffee was made in the most approved manner, and gave assurance of the excellent qualities of the cook : who had had, I doubt not, much experi- ence, for he proved himself to be the best one I met with in the country. At nine o’clock, a. m., our dejeuner a la fourchette was served, which consisted of excellent tea and an omelette , mutton chops, etc., etc., accompanied with the choicest fruit of the sea- son. At five o’clock, p. m., we sat down to as good a dinner as could be obtained at either Shepherd’s grand hotel at Cairo, or at the Peninsula and Orien- tal Hotel at Alexandria. We were favored with all the delicacies which the country affords ; and I take this opportunity to state that we had no cause of com- plaint for want of good fare or proper attention on the part of our employees during the voyage. We passed the ancient city of Pelusium on the morning of the eighteenth, which gave us an opportunity of examin- ing the other mouth of the Nile, and the site of that once great commercial town, which continued to ad- vance in importance and grandeur until the founda FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. 119 tion of the city of Alexandria was laid. The Isthmus Canal, which is to connect the Red Sea with the Mediterranean, will terminate at no great distance from this point. There is much said for and against this great project, and from what I can learn from the best informed gentlemen with whom I have conversed on the subject, I think it not only practicable, but that it will be completed at no distant day, thereby opening a direct communication from the Atlantic, through the Mediterranean and Red Seas, to the East Indies, with steamers and all other classes of vessels. The wind, during the night, was favorable, and we might have made much greater progress than we did, but our seamen did not feel disposed to keep our ves- sel under way during the night, owing to their indo- lent habits. I find that the Turks will do no more, in the way of labor, than is barely sufficient to obtain for themselves a living, and in a mild climate, such as this, but little labor is required in order to procure enough, even at the small wages they receive for their services, to satisfy their humble wants, more especial- ly as they wear but little clothing, and consume no more fuel than is necessary for their cooking and oth- er culinary purposes. The larger portion of the la- boring classes have no shoes to their feet, and no more clothing than is barely sufficient to cover their persons, and, judging from the careless manner in which they wear that little, there is no danger that their pride of dress will be the cause, of their ruin. While the Turks are naturally indolent, they have strong animal impulses, and when prompted by pas- sion, are as extreme in their activity as they are at other times in their repose. Of this trait in their character I had ocular demonstration this day. It seems that twe? of the seamen had a difficulty, grow- ing out of some slight occurrence between them, and alter the use of violent language on both sides, and 120 FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. vehement and threatening gesticulations, one of them, who had become perfectly infuriated, seized a club and swore he would kijl bis adversary. They were, with much difficulty, separated from each other, and, after a sufficient time had elapsed to allow their pas- sions to subside, under the soothing advice of friends, the sailor who had used the club was observed kneel- ing and praying in the usual manner of the Moham- medans, and that, too, by the side of the very man with whom he had had the controversy. This affair was calculated to shake the confidence we had reposed in our crew, but they were one and all so very kind to us., that I apprehended no danger from them what- ever ; besides, their devotion to theirreligion mi board increased my faith in them. If you can judge of a mail’s honesty of heart by seeingliim at his devotions, then I am satisfied I can place all reliance in these men, for go where you may you will not fail to find them at their devotions, and that, too, wherever they may happen to be at the time of prayer — whether in the mosque or on the highways, in the field or on their vessels. Tin y stand in the first place perfectly erect, with their arms folded on their breasts, and their eyes upturned. After remaining for a short time in this position, they fall upon their knees and bend their bodies forward, and kiss the earth several times : they then rise again to their feet, but soon drop on their knees as at the first, and this they repeat for a stated number of times. I have never heard them prny aioud, but I have no doubt they repeat their prayers to themselves. Our course lay for several days along the drearv desert of Idumaea or Edom. Nothing but sand- mounds are to be met with. There is no vegetation or trees of any sort to be seen. It is a frightful and dreary district of country to look upon, and I feel tiiat we are far better off . sailing along its coast than FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. 121 we should be in passing through it on the backs of camels, at the slow and uncomfortable pace with which these animals move. Our commander and seamen joined in a musical party this evening for our entertainment, and I have no doubt that they belived they were imparting much pleasure to us ; but the truth is, there is no music in the souls of the Turks. They have no music of any sort in their mosques, and I am told they hold in con- tempt all musical professors ; and yet they employ dancing girls to dance in their harems for the amuse- ment of their numerous wives, which affords them, it is said, great pleasure. We reached the ancient city of Gazza, six days after leaving Alexandria, this city acquired imperishable fame from Samson’s great strength and exploits. It is situated two or three miles from the sea, and has now more the appearance of a number of mud vil- lages than that of a regularly built town : the public edifices are constructed of stone, and are weli adapted to the objects for which they are applied. There is an extensive belt of naked, drifting sand, commencing at the sea-shore, and extending within one mile of the town itself, which seems to be advancing nearer and nearer to the city every year, and should it continue to do so for a few years longer, the country will soon be in the same condition it was in St. Luke’s day, when he declared it to be a desert place. This is one of the most ancient cities in the world. Of this there can be no doubt, for we have recorded evideuceof its antiquity in Gen. x. 9. It was occupied by the Cana- an ites long before the Israelites left Egypt. (Deut. ii.) It is also well-established, by the same sacred au- thority, that it was at one time in the possession of the giants, the descendants of Anak, as were the ci- ties of Gath and Aslidod on the same coast, or no great distance from it. Joshua extended his conquest 122 FROM ALEXANDRIA TO GAZZA. to it, but did not subdue this remarkable people. It was, however, subsequently captured by the He- brews. As this city is situated at the commencement of the great desert, and on the line of march of the numer ous armies to and from Egypt, it was always liable to be captured by them, from the reign of Seso9tris to its final overthrow. At one time it was possessed by the Egyptians ; and at another period it was in the pos- session, and regarded as the key of the Assyrians. Cam- byses made it his chief magazine when he marched into Eg) pt with his mighty army. It was captured by Alexander the Great 333 b.c., after a desperate siege of two months, during which all its brave de- fenders perished. It was sacked by Antiochus, and was several times taken from the Syrians by the Mac- cabees. In 634 it was taken by the Moslems, and in 1152 by the Crusaders, who erected a strong fortress on the hill, the command of which was entrusted to the Knight Templars, and in the twelfth century it fell into the hands of the Arabs. No tourist can or ought to pass this interesting town without examining it with attention, and yet no one can visit it without its exciting the most melancholy and painful emotions on account of its bloody history. A detailed descrip- tion thereof would fill many volumes. It now con- tains only fifteen thousand inhabitants. FROM ASKELON TO JOPPA. 123 CHAPTEK XXIY. FROM ASKELON TO JOPPA. Antiquity of Askelon— Its Ruins— Joppa— The Quarantine -Its Regulations — Vision Traditionary — Dr. Barclay — Formation of the Holy Land- Plain ol Sharon— Plain of Jordain— Gardens— Palestine— Model Farm and Industrial Institution for Jewish Converts — Mr. and Mrs. Hershon— P umps —Vie w— Productions . The day following our departure from Gazza we ar- rived at the site of Askelon, fourteen miles from the former place. Along the shore runs a line ot* bold cliffs from one to two miffs in extent, and from fifty to sixty feet in height, within which boundaries stood the nncient city. It now presents a scene of utter de- solation : the sands of the desert are rapidly approach- ing it, and will soon cover it entirely. The old walls of the town are broken down, and thousands of shattered marble and granite columns are spread around in every direction. This city was captured by the Israelites, but only held by them for a short time. Its inhabitants harbored an inveterate, deadly and un- forgiving hatred against the Jews. It was one of the royal cities of the Philistians, and judging from Da- vid’s observation respecting it, was one of the most magnificent cities of the East in his day. His cele- brated remarks in regard to it will be recollected by all who have perused the sacred book, viz., “Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon.’’ (2 Sami. i. 20.) Besides, if we can rely at all upon tradition, it furnished to the Assyrians, at.*a very early period, one of the most distinguished female commanders of armies that the world ever produced, and if she did not build the great city of Nineveh, 1 24 : FROM ASKELON TO JOPI’A. as it is claimed slie did bv some historians, it is cer tain that she contributed materially to its enlargement and adornment. Askelon, in common with its neigh- boring cities, was the scene of many bloody battles. In 1097, soon after the capture of Jerusalem, the Caliph of Cairo advanced from Egypt with a large army, and was joined by the Mussel men of Syria. Godfrey, at the head of his army met these forces on the plains of Askelon, and totally defeated and routed them. The enemy’s loss, found killed on the battle field, was equal to the entire army of the Crusa- ders. The former lost besides upwards of sixty thou- sand on their retreat. The loss of the Crusaders was but slight. The city was captured by Alexander the Great, and also by the Ptolemy 8. The Crusaders, after a siege of two months obtained possession of it, and when abandoned by them, it began to decay. Its total des- truction had been prophesied, and that prophecy is literally fulfilled, for there is nothing remaining but its ruins. We were not permitted to enter the city of Joppa upon our arrival, but were first required to pass in quarantine several days We were landed fronting the quarantine quarters, and carried to the shore on the backs of our seamen. The quarantine building is not kept as neatly as it ought to be, owing to the indolence of the people, and their apparent disregard *>f cleanliness. It is surrounded by a high wall, within which, and next to it, are rooms for the accommoda- tion of its inmates, those who are able to pay for apartments have the best assigned to them. To the poor, jnore indifferent quarters are given. There is a garden adjoining the quarantine, which might be con- verted into a fine promenade, but is far from being attractive as it now exists.' We had the privilege of walking on an extensive beach, embracing fine bath- FROM A8KEL0N TO JOPPA, 125 ing grounds, where those who are partial to sea bath- ing might enjoy the same exceedingly. In walking along the beach I noticed seven or eight small tarn neries, near the edge of the banks, showing that the tanning of skins is still carried on here as in the days of Simon, the tanner. All persons confined within the quarantine grounds, must supply themselves with bed, bedding, and what other articles of furniture they may desire. I am told that travellers can make an arrangement with the hotel proprietors of this place to supply them with all the furniture and provisions they may require at a reasonable rate. My dragoman, however, pitched our tent, which is handsomely lined and tastefully or- namented, in the interior of the ground, and, as we have all the necessary furniture, we suffer no incon- venience. The common people of the country — and the larger portion of those now here from Egypt are of that class — have no furniture in their frail mud huts, and consequently have no need of any here. A loaf of bread and a little water is all they require for the day. The water is supplied them from a well within the enclosure, and the bread is brought to their quarters in large, oval, flat cakes, which are sold at reasonable rates. The day we entered the quarantine grounds was one of the hottest of the season, the ther- mometer rising in our tent, at twelve o’clock, to one hundred and twelve degrees. This was too much for us to endure, and we went into the building, where we remained till evening, when we returned to our tent, and rested well during the night. While here we received many calls from citizens of the United States, who kindly offered to serve us. We could not, in consequence of the stringent quar- antine regulations, invite them into our tent, lest some contagious disease should be imparted to them ; but we were graciously permitted by our attendant, who 126 FROM ASKELON TO JOPPA. stood between ns and our visitors with a staff in hi3 hand, to hold conversation with them. We, however, passed an agreeable half-hour to- gether, and on taking leave they left a file of the latest New-York newspapers, the perusal of which gave us employment for the balance of the day. Joppa is conceded by the most distinguished histo- rians of former days, as well as those of the present, to be one of the most ancient cities of the world. Its biblical and historical associations are of the most stirring character. What remains of it is built on a promontory projecting out in the sea. It was founded by Japhet, the son of Noah, and its foundation was laid before the flood. Pliny entertains this opinion. It is said, that here Noah went into the ark, and accord- ing to the tradition of the country, it is the sepulchre of the second father of mankind. The Greeks place in the neighborhood of this city, the adventure of Perseus’ deliverance of Andromeda. Jerome relates that in his day, the rock and the ring to which Andro- meda was bound, were still pointed out to travellers. Its inhabitants have suffered from time to time more than tongue can tell, from the calamities of war, pestilence, and famine, and, I believe, it has been more than once severely injured by earthquakes. It has often been left with but few inhabitants to narrate the sad stories of its destruction. It was here that Jonah embarked for Tarsus, at the time he was cast into the sea. It was here, too, that Peter restored Dorcas to life, and where he saw the vision. Tradi- tion points out the house in which Dorcas resided, and also the residence of Simon, the tanner. Eight thous- and of its citizens were butchered at the time it was captured by the Komans, and several thousands more, who had taken refuge in the fleet during the siege, perished in the sea in a severe storm which raged with fury many' days. At a much later period, in FROM ASKELON TO JOPPA. 127 1799, twenty -five hundred of its brave defenders de- livered themselves up to Napoleon, on condition that their lives would be spared: but a court-martial, afterwards convened to decide their fate, condemned them to die, and, in pursuance of that sentence, they were shot on the south side of the town, and on the very spot where the quarantine is now situated. This city was the great port or harbor for Jerusalem, but is now only calculated for small coasting vessels. Dr. J. T. Barclay, a resident of Jerusalem, and a gentleman of high attainments, has examined its pre- sent harbor and surrounding country, and has come to the conclusion that at a very early period it cover- ed a large space on the north-east side of the city, which is now firm land. The doctor is here with a view of making some arrangement with respect to supplying the city with pure water, and also to pro- vide for constructing a railroad between it and Jeru- salem. While sailing along the coast cf Egypt and Pales- tine, I observed that the whole of the interior of the Holy Land, commencing from Beersheba, consists of hilly and broken ground divided longitudinally by the Lake of Tiberias, the river Jordan, and the Dead Sea, the whole forming a conspicuous and distinct line throughout the entire length of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee, covering at least three quarters of that coun- try, and dividing the waters that flow east into the river Jordan and the Dead Sea from those that run westward towards the Mediterranean. Jerusalem is situated on one of the highest of these ranges. The mountains on the west side of the Dead Sea rise from one thousand five hundred to two thousand nine hun- dred feet in height ; and, on the eastern shore, to a much greater elevation. The Plain of Sharon lies on the west of the moun- tains, commencing at Gaza, by the sea-coast. It varies 128 FROM ASKELON TO JOPPA. in width from one to twenty five miles, and extends to the Mount Carmel range, which divides the plain of Sharon from that of Esdraelon, called by Josephus the Great Plain. This vast plain, exclusive of three great arms which stretch eastwards toward the valley of Jordan, is in the form of an acute triangle. The Plain of Jordan lies on the banks of the river of that name, and is fifty miles in length, by six to eight in width. These valleys have always been es- teemed the most productive regions in the Holy Land, but the Plain of Sharon is always parched up during the dry season for lack of rain, and no portions of it produce a second crop, excepting such as are kept as gardens and irrigated with water from the wells. In the neighborhood of Joppa, and other towns on the sea-board, there are many portions thus cultivated which yield an abundance of fruit and vegetables of all descriptions. A company consisting of foreign capitalists has been formed to experiment on the best method of cultivating these barren lands. I visited their settlement before leaving Joppa. It is called the “ Palestine model farm and industrial institution for Jewish converts.” Three years have elapsed since the idea was first started by gentlemen in England and elsewhere, of establishing an agricultural settle- ment in this country, in order that converted Israelites might thus obtain an honest livelihood, and at the same time enjoy the advantage of Christian sympathy and fellowship in the land of their fathers. Its founders have liberally contributed to its sup- port, and judging from what was apparent of their labors, I think their object has been successfully ac- complished. Two valuable plantations, with build- ings attached to them, have been advantageously pur- chased, the committee having the establishment in charge, have succeeded in securing as the superinten- dent of it, Mr. Paul Isaac Hershon, a Christian Israel- FROM ASKELON TO JOPPA. 129 ite, who with Mrs. Hershon, an accomplished lady, arrived here in March, 1857. Great ecomony has been observed in its management. The actual am- ount expended up to January last was £228 8s. 8d., only £16 18s. 8d., of which had been expended in England in its organization. This part of the work has been effected without - any paid agency. The money paid out thus far has been applied to the pur- chase of the land, erection of buildings, payment of wages, the expenses attendant upon the cultivation of the farm, purchase of tools, implements, etc. The chief part of the funds has been absorbed in the building expenses, and, as the land requires to be ir- rigated, wells have been sunk, and another large item of the same, was employed for this purpose and also for the placing of the pumps themselves, which were made in England. It is to be regretted that for the outlay required for the purchase of these pumps, the institution has received but little equivalent in the way of benefit accruing from their use. It would have been a large saving of their funds, if they had constructed such pumps as are used by the inhabitants of the country instead of importing English ones. The native pump is very simple in its construction, and with the aid of horses the people manage to supply their grounds with an abundance of water, their pumps are easily repaired, if they get out of order, and no one is so unskilful as to require the assistance of a mechanic to effect it. I was parti- cularly struck with the beauty and healthfulness of the situation, the excellent condition of the garden and orange orchard, and with the capabilities or the arable land' adjoining the latter. The dwell- ing house is situated on elevated ground, and com- mands an extensive view of the Mediterranean sea, the great plain of Sharon, and the city of Joppa, which is distant about two miles. The house is large and 6 * 130 FROM JOPPA TO JERUSALEM. built of stone, and is well calculated for the object for which it is intended. In Mr. Hershon the company possses an able, intelligent, and devoted agent, who seems to thoroughly understand the important duties of his office. The Christian character which he and his wife possess render them in ail especial manner qualified to be at the head of such an establishment. We were most kindly received by them, and were hospitably entertained while there. They served us with refreshments, including some choice black tea, together with such delicacies as their means and the season afforded. The product of this farm is to be em- ployed first towards the support of the inmates; second, to supply the markets of the neighboring country, and third, when it is adapted to the purpose, for exportation. The income from the orange and lemon orchards alone, which produce the choicest kind of fruit, will, I doubt not, prove more than ade- quate for the support of the establishment, and will soon enable the company to declare a dividend upon the capital stock, or greatly to enlarge their establish- ment, which they doubtless desire to do. CHAPTER XXV. FROM JOPPA TO JERUSALEM. Out of Quarantine — Visiting— Dinners — Travelling — My Views Confirmed— Our Cortege — Ramleh — Joseph of Arithmathea — Its Location — Latin Convents — Square Tower — View from its Summit — Historical Associa- tions — Olive Groves— First Sight of Jerusalem — Valley of Elah— David and Goliath — Jerusalem. While we were detained in Quarantine at Joppa, we were called upon by the American and English part of its population, who kindly tendered their services to us, and were indeed exceedingly civil. I felt the FROM JOPPA TO JERUSALEM. 131 obligation so much that, upon being relieved from Quarantine, we returned their calls in person. - We dined by invitation, in company with the American Consul at Jerusalem, who happened to be at that time at Joppa, at Mr. and Mrs. Saunders, who did all in their power to render the entertainment agree- * able. Mr. Saunders is a Baptist Missionary at Joppa, and Mrs. Saundersran accomplished lady. While we were at Mr. Saunders’ I told the party how unhappy our friends at home were in conse- quence of being apprehensive that I had selected for my journey an unpropitious season of the year. They, in reply, assured me that the views I had presented to them, and which I informed them I had learned from the old writers, were correct. They said that die latter part of May, and the whole of June were the healthiest portions of the year in the Holy Land. They further remarked that the Siroco winds, which are so weakening and prejudicial to the health, and destructive to the constitution of the unacclimated, end about the 20th May, and that the north winds prevail through May and June; that I would meet with no rain or other storms; that I would find the whole country parched up for the want of it; and that there was no rain from the latter part of April till the end of September ; and they assured me, fur- ther, that my journey, unless 1 should meet with some accident, would be one of uninterrupted plea- sure ; that it was in fact the best season of the year I could have chosen, I have found this statement to be reliably true in every respect, the thermometer rarely rising above TO degrees, and generally stand- ing at from 65 to TO, and sometimes as low as 55 de- grees. We have not been delayed for a single mo- luent on account of the state of the weather or sick- pess. VVe left for Jerusalem immediately after dinner, 132 FROM JOPPA TO JERUSALEM. and were accompanied by some of the party a short distance on our route, when they took leave of us, wishing us health and happiness. We found our tent pitched for us at Ramleh -on our arrival, four- teen miles from Joppa. Our dragoman had supplied us with seven men, comprising cook, servants and muleteers, and twelve horses for the conveyance of ourselves, tents, provisions and baggage. This may seem almost too many men and horses for the con- veyance of only two persons, but 1 do not see how we could dispense with a single man or horse. The town of Ramleh was first known under its present name a. d., 870. It is supposed to stand on the site of the ancient Arimathea, the birth-place of Joseph, that righteous man whose glory and privi- lege it was to bury our Saviour. It is, nevertheless, not a very ancient city, though it was in a flourishing condition a. d., 1150, as we are informed by Edvise, a distinguished traveller of that day. According to his statement, Jerusalem and Ramleh were, at that period, the two most important cities of Palestine. Ramleh is situated on the great caravan route from Damascus to Egypt; but it now is, like most of the towns and cities of the Holy Land, in ruins, and its population is reduced to less than three thousand souls, composed chiefly of Greeks and Armenians. The houses are mostly built of stone. The Latin Con- vent here is one of the largest in the country. My friend, the American Consul, gave me a letter, which would have secured me a kind and cordial reception within this hospitable establishment ; but I preferred to lodge in my tent, outside of the city, in order to be prepared to resume my journey towards Jeruea- sem at an early hour, in the morning, with a view to avoiding the heat of the noonday sun. The chief object of attraction remaining here, is an ancient square tower, one hundred and thirty feet in FROM JOPPA TO JERUSALEM. 133 height, situated within a few minutes’ walk of the western side of the city, and standing on the most elevated point of land in this vicinity. It is of Sara- cinian architecture, and built of hewn stone. There is no satisfactory account to be found, either of the time when, or the purpose for which it was erected. Most travellers who have given opinions on the sub- ject, think it was originally used as a belfry to one of the earliest Christian churches of the country. There is to be obtained a magnificent view of the city, and surrounding country fr*>m its top, and one possessing great interest to the Christian tourist, from the fact that the scenes it overlooks are many of them holy in their reminiscent character. The Mediterra- nean Sea, with its beautiful coast, lies in full view, and if the ancient cities of Gazza, Askelon, Aslidad, and others no less historically interesting, were stand- ing as of yore, in all their glory and grandeur, they could be observed from this tower. The mountains of Judea, and the great plain of Sharon, stretching from Gaza to Mount Carmel, are also distinctly seen from this elevation, together with the cities of the plain or rather their sites, embracing the town of Lydda, where Peter performed the miracle of making Eneas whole, who had been sick and confined to his bed for eight years, with the palsy. The historical associations of this town, so far as relate to the invasion of the Crusaders, are full of in- terest. it was abandoned by the infidels in 1099, on the approach of the Crusaders, who took possession of it as a conquered town. It was considered a posi- tion of great importance to the Christians during the wars, in consequence of its location between Joppa and Jerusalem. In 1187, after the fatal battle of flatten, sometimes called the battle of Tiberias, waged between Saladin and the Crusaders, the town fell in- to the hands of the former. On the approach of the 13 4 : FROM JOPPA TO JERUSALEM. army led by Richard of England, he of the lion heart, in a. d. 1191, Saladin caused the fortifications of As- kelon to be demolished, and Ramleh, and the other cities of the plain to be razed, before they fell again into the hands of the Christians. From this time it continued in their possession until 1266, when they were finally driven from the country. The only things particularly noticeable in and about Ramleh at this day are the olive groves, and gardens of delicious fruit, which surround the town on all sides, enclosed by impenetrable hedges of prickly pears. These hedges do not, in my opinion, add to the beauty of the gardens ; but at certain seasons of the year, they bear fragrant flowers, and a fruit which is considered very palatable. We left Ramleh at five o’clock in the morning, and arrived at Jerusalem at two the same day, much fa- tigued, but in good spirits. The path — for they have no roads in this country — was intolerably bad from the moment we reached the mountain region. Noth- ing but up and down hill, and such hills as would startle one out of his quiet seat even at the thought of having to cross them. Most of them rise from 800 to 1,000 feet in height, covered with loose stones, so that in going up or down you would say that it were impossible to pass over them in safety ; but the horses of this country are accustomed to these wretched p iths, and we were in no instance unhorsed in conse- quence of their bad state. The journey seemed to me as though it would never end, notwithstanding the whole distance from the sea to Jerusalem does not ex- ceed forty miles. The only spot which we saw to interest us on our route was the valley of Elah, no great distance from the city, where the Philistine army was encamped, on one of those huge mountains, against the army led by Saul on the other, at the time that David killed Go* FROM JOPPA TO JERUSALEM. 135 liath with his sling and stone in the valley lying be- tween the two armies. After leaving this thrilling spot our head muleteer soon called out in a loud voice, “ Jerusalem, Jerusalem!” which was repeated by one and all with great joy, for it ended our painful labors of that day. As soon as we reached the summit of the hill whence this view was obtained, we halted for some time and gazed upon this memorable city, which is distant four and a half miles, with no hill or other object to obstruct one’s view. This scene called to my mind the following lines from Paradise Re- gained : “ The Holy City lifted high her towers, And higher yet the glorious temple reared, The pile far off appearing like a mount Of alabaster topped with golden spires.” We became so much excited while gazing for the first time on the Holy City that it was long before we were sufficiently composed to permit us to resume our journey. The path runs over a great plain to the Joppa gate. When, however, we were fairly under way again, we quickened our speed, and soon en- tered the city at the Jaffa gate, and were conducted through narrow streets, where a carriage never en- tered, and where none ever can, for they are barely wide enough for one to pass on horseback in single file, and the paving stones are worn so smoothly that no horse unaccustomed to them could keep his feet for a single moment. We were so much fatigued that we went to bed immediately, and after resting ourselves were conducted through and around the city, to most of the points of interest, which we vis- ited time and again under the most favorable cir- cumstances, for we were accompanied by our assis- tant consul and other gentlemen of distinction, who were at home on every subject and who made us ac- quainted with everything in and about that Holy (Jity. 136 JERUSALEM. CHAPTER XXYI. JERUSALEM Site of Jerusalem — Convenience of Access — Necessary Arrangements — Anti- quity of the Holy City— Change of Its Name— Its Grandeur, Beauty, and Riches— I)r. Barclay — View from the Mediterranean Hotel— .The Four Hills— Mount Zion— David and the Royal Residences of his Successors — The House where the Redeemer celebrated His Passover- The Crusaders, etc. , etc. I thank heaven that my life has been spared to vi- sit this “ venerable city, the joy of many generations, and at this day mournfully interesting for its sacred associations.” Jerusalem occupies an irregular pro- montory, in the midst of masses of rocks, crags, and hills; yet no one can enter this city, renowned in the history of the Jewish nation and of the world, and celebrated in sacred song, without feeling the occa- sion to be one of the most memorable in his life, and an event never to be eradicated from his memory. I know of no more desirable place on earth for a travel- ler to visit. And now that there are several lines of steamers running to the ancient seaport of Joppa, from England, France, Italy, Austria, etc., a visit to Jerusalem is no longer attended with serious inconve- nience or danger. During the months of April, May, and June the weather here is usually mild and pleas- ant, the rainy season is over, and the inhabitants deem this the healthiest portion of the year. An Ameri- can traveller, furnished with a bill of credit on the well-known house of Duncan, Sherman & Co., of New York, will meet with no difficulty in supplying himself with current funds in any part of the civil- ized world. Until recently, travellers from the United JERUSALEM. 137 States were obliged to make their arrangements for funds either in London or Paris, which sometimes subjected them to serious inconvenience. Now, how- ever, all difficulties of this nature are removed. Jerusalem is conceded by the learned as well as by antiquarians, to be one of the most ancient cities in the world. In the days of Abraham, the patriarch, it was known by the name of Salem, for it is written in Genesis fourteen — that on the return of Abraham from the pursuit and overthrow of the enemies of the Sodomites, Melchisedek, King of Salem, brought forth to Abraham bread and wine. Its name was changed to Jerusalem at an early period ; since, be- fore Joshua crossed the Jordan with the Israelites, it was distinguished by this name, and in the list of thirty-one cities conquered by him, Jerusalem is men- tioned. It was esteemed by Moses as one of the most important cities in Palestine. Jeremiah, in his day, called it the “ Admirable City,” and David styled it “The most glorious and most illustrious city of the earth.” Such was its grandeur, even before the temple was built by Solomon, or the city otherwise adorned by him. He, however, made it in his time the seat of the refinements and arts. Its beauty, its riches, and its wise men attracted to it, at that period, the learned and distinguished of all nations. It would require volumes to impart an accurate description of it, and all the historical associations therewith connected. My purpose is briefly to speak ot‘ such objects as seem to deserve particular notice. For more extended accounts, 1 recommend the valu- able work on Jerusalem by Dr. J. T. Barclay, an American, who now resides there, and has for many years made it liis home. As soon as I had recovered from the fatigue of my journey, I ascended to the roof of the Mediterranean Hotel, which is situated in one of the most elevated 138 JERUSALEM. portions of the city, from whence I obtained an ex- tensive view. The four hills are still traced which secured to Jerusalem its most remarkable features. These are Mounts Zion, Moriah, Acra, and Bezetha. The several valleys which divide the one from the other serve to mark the different quarters of the city. Mount Zion, so familiar to ail readers of sacred his- tory, extends a considerable distance on the southwest side of the city, and rises from lift.y to one hundred feet higher than either of the other eminences; con- sequently, every part of it is seen to advantage from the spot I occupied. dSTo one can look on it for the lirst time without being moved almost to tears by the recollection of the mournful and thrilling events which transpired there centuries ago. Here was David’s house and the royal residences of his successors. Here, too, stands the celebrated fortress of David, a part of which is the famous tower of Hippicus. On this hill, also, stood the house of Caiaphas, the high priest, and here now stands the Church of St. James, said to have been erected where the apostle James was buried. Here are pointed out, even at this day, the tombs of David and Solomon, and near to them stood the house in which our Sa- viour celebrated his last passover. No part of the ancient wall which embraced this hill, as described by Josephus, was standing at the time of the capture of the city and the destruction of upward of seventy thousand of its infidel inhabitants by Godfrey, at the head of the Crusaders, on the fifteenth of July, a. d., 10J9. The walls then only embraced, as we learn from the historians of that day, Mounts Moriah, Bezetha and Acra. Now only a part of Zion’s hill is embraced within the present walls. • JERUSALEM. 139 CHAPTER XXVII. JERUSALEM. Mount Moriah— Valley of the Cheesemongers— Mosque of Omar — El Haram— Abraham and Isaac — The Guide — Herod’s Palace — The Church of Flage- letia— Pool of Hezekiah — Mount Calvary — Helena, the Mother of Constan- tine — Bishop Eusebius — King Agrippa — Emperor Adrian — Empress Eu- dixia— The Crusaders — Our Lord’s place of Sepulchre. Mount Moriah occupies the south-eastern portion of Jerusalem, and is separated from Mount Zion by theTyropseon Valley, (also known by the unhistorical name of the Valley of the Cheesemongers,) which extends in a southerly direction through the city. These two mounts were, at an early period, united by a bridge of several arches, crossing the valley; the bridge is no longer standing, but the base of one of the arches is still pointed out, and is an object of especial interest to all tourists. Mount Moriah, with its far famethMosque of Omar, lies much below that part of the city where I dwelt ; so that the whole of the grounds within the enclosure were spread out like a map before me. The mosque is not so much a single edifice as a collection of build mgs. Its proper appellation is Ei Haram, which signi- fies, in the Turkish language, a temple — a place con- secrated by the presence of divinity. The Mussul- mans, we are told, recognize only two temples as especially holy, namely, this one and the mosque at Mecca. This of Omar occupies the site o*f the ancient temple. The historians describe this temple as hav- ing measured one thousand five hundred and sixty- nine feet in length, by nine hundred and thirty-eight 140 JERUSALEM. * feet in breadtli. The El Hararn forms a court or closed area, and is entered by nine gates — of which five are on the west side, one on the north-west, and three on the north side. Mount Moriah is celebrated as having been regarded by the Jewish Rabbis as the identical spot on which Abraham offered, as a sacri- fice, his son Isaac. In turning from the southern to the northern sec- tion of the city, my guide, a learned Armenian, well acquainted with its topography, pointed out the val- ley traversing the city from the south-west to east north east, extending to the St. Stephen’s or eastern gate, forming the two eminences or hills of Acra and Bezetha, lying to the North of Zion and Mariah. On Bezetha once stood the palace of Herod, and at no great distance from its sire is the Church of Flagele- tia, erected on the spot where our Saviour underwent the ignominious punishment of stripes. Mount Acra is situated on the north-west side of the city, and in- cludes within its limits the ancient pool of Hezekiah, which is now filled with water. On this hill is sit- uated all that remains of the palace of the Knights of St. John, and also what tradition recognizes as Mount Calvary, on the site of which stands the Church of the Holy Sepulchre — beyond all doubt the most interesting object in Jerusalem. I gazed long and attentively upon it, and my mind was naturally drawn to consider the questions of which so much has been said and written : Hid the second wall of the city, as described by Josephus, embrace the site of this church? From what I have read in regard to this subject, I have long entertained the opinion that it did not ; and my belief in this is strengthened by my visit here, and the assurances of my learned friend, who has long been an inhabitant of Jerusalem, whose opinions accord with mine in every respect. I have even believed that Helena, the aged and pious mo- JERUSALEM. 141 Cher of Constantine, could not have been deceived by those persons who pointed out the site, on her visit to Jerusalem ; for it was less than three centuries from the time of the crucifixion to the date of the inaugu- ration of the church by the illustrious Bishop Euse- bius, in the presence of thousands of Christians, who had come from all parts of the western and eastern world to witness the interesting ceremony, and to listen to the panegyric of the Saviour from the mouth of one of the most holv and learned men. Besides, it should be recollected, that in order to keep that thrill- ing event alive in the minds of that generation it w<>uld have required only four persons, each of the age of seventy-five years, throilg; i whom it may have been handed down to their respective descendants. Again, I would further remark that the walls of the city which now embrace it, may have formed a por- tion of the third wall, erected by King Agrippa some ten years after the crucifixion ; or, this church may may have been enclosed within the walls when they were rebuilt by Adrian, a. d. 130 ; or, when they were rebuilt by the Empress Eudixia, a. d. 437. Again, let it be borne in mind that the walls of the city were battered down and rebuilt several times, with many alterations, during the eighty-eight years it was held under the Crusaders, and it may have veen erected by them in order to protect the sacred edifice ; for during the whole of that eventful era peace seldom dwelt within the enclosure. The walls were surrounded the greater part of that period by numerous hostile nations, and Jerusalem was in a constant state of siege. There is a vast body of evi- dence to prove that the spot on which that edifice now stands is really that which was consecrated by the burial of our Lord. 142 JERUSALEM. CHAPTER XXVIII. JERUSALEM. Identity of the Holy Sepulchre— The Early Writers’ Views — Adrian’s Sacri- legious Act — Jupiter and Venus — In Sixty Years — Elliot Quoted — The Truth Satisfactorily Established — Dr. Robinson’s Opinions — The King of Persia— Taking of the Holy City — Sufferings of Christians— Mahomet and his Followers — Desperate Siege — Terms of the Capitulation — Account of Peter the Hermit — Indignation of the Western Christians The best argument I have met with on the subject treated of in my last chapter, is given by Mr. Elliot. If there be a difficulty, he sa} T s, in believing the identity of the reputed site of the holy sepulchre, some minds find it equally difficult to disbelieve it. On the one hand it is urged that since the crucifixion the site of the city itself is forgotten ; but at any rate the real place of sepulchre was outside the walls, whereas the one here named as such, never could have been thus located. To this objection it is answered : first, that the testimony of Eusebius, Jerome, Cyril, Theodoret, and other early writers, coincides with the tradition ; secondly, that Adrian, who reigned in the beginning of the second century, erected a statue of Jupiter, on the side of the sepulchre, and another of Venus on Calvary, in order to desecrate those places, held sacred by the Christians. That these statues existed until the days of Constantine, whose mother, Helena, substituted, for that of Jupiter, a church which, though subsequently destroyed, was rebuilt within forty years, and never doubted to have stood on the foundation of the present structure. The advocates of the authenticity of the tradition further urge that the trace, if lost at all, must have been during the JERUSALEM. 143 sixty years which intervened between the destruction of the city by Titus, and the erection of Adrian’s statues ; which is highly improbable, since the sepul- chre was pre-eminently venerated and much resorted to by the early Christians — a fact established by the attempt to (Jesecrate it. “ These facts,” says Elliot, “ can scarcely be set aside by the scoff of the sceptic, or the doubt of the too timid inquirer. But when the circumstances of the early Christians are considered, the frequent en- deavors of the Jews to disprove the Messiah’s resur- rection, and the pertinence with which his disciples maintained it; their hopes of future happiness based thereon ; their boldness even unto death, and their great zeal, rising superior to all worldly considera- tions — it seems hard ly possible that, within the period of a single generation, the scenes of that great event should be forgotten ; that men who endangered life to attest the resurrection of the Lord, honoring above every other the spot where it occurred, and having that place within their reach, should have suffered its identity to become doubtful.” The latest and most ingenious writer on the other side is Ur. Kobiuson, whose argument is familiar to the student of the Holy Land. But he has been ably answered by the iiev. G. Williams, whose impressions are all on the side of that belief which leaves us in the quiet enjoyment of our old associations. But as it is not in the power of man, by any argument he may use, to prevent scepticism on the subject of religion or matters relating to it, it is not to be wondered at that unbelief exists in relation to a subject of so much interest as the above. As regards the present Church of the Holy Sepulchre, I would remark that the engravings representing its exterior and interior, everywhere to be met with, are, so far as I am able to 144 JERUSALEM. judge, after a careful examination of the church itself, perfectly correct. This celebrated edifice remained without injury from the time of its inauguration until a. d. 614, a period of nearly three centuries; and during the whole of that time, pious pilgrims to tin* Holy Land were uninterrupted, notwithstanding the world was then ravaged by the Goths, the Huns, and the Van- dals ; but at this period the King of Persia, at the head of a powerful army, having invaded and con- quered Egypt, Syria, and Palestine, attacked Jerusa- lem, which fell into the hands of the worshipp rs of lire — the inveterate enemies of the Christians. All who survived that terrible conflict were taken from the Holy City, and led into captivity. The church itself was burnt to the ground ; out the Emperor, Heraclius, after ten years of reverses, triumphed over his enemies, and brought back to Jerusalem the Christians whose chains he had broken, and in a. d. 6^8 lie rebuilt the church on its former foundation. A few years previous to this event Mahomet had introduced his religion; and such was the political state of the east at that time, that no obstacle seemed to arise to deter its progress, which, from its birth, showed itself every where with lire and sword. With this new religion a new empire arose under the armed doctrines of Mahomet. Arabia, Persia 2 and Syria, were soon conquered by his tro-*ps, and Jerusalem it- self was besieged in the year 636 by the great mili- tary commander, Omar, Second Caliph of the Mus- sulmans, and after a desperate siege of four months, in which the Christians performed prodigies- of valor, they were obliged to surrender the city and submit to a capitulation, the terms of which were as follows : The inhabitants shall retain their lives, their property and churches, but they shall build no new churches, nor place crosses upon those which they already JERUSALEM. 145 have : they shall not ring the bells : they shall con- vert no one from Mahometanism : they shall neither bear arms, nor sell wine: they shall remain faithful to the Caliph, and regularly pay their taxes. Their sufferings under the iron rule of the Mussul- mans were such as to excite the sympathies of the Christians throughout the world, and as time lolled on, their condition, instead of being improved, became more and more deplorable. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, so much venerated by them, was seriously injured by the followers of Mahomet, and the Chris- tians themselves were finally driven from their homes, insulted in their churches, and compelled to wear a leathern girdle around their necks as a badge of their servitude. The thrilling account of their sufferings, which Peter the Hermit gave to the western Chris- tians, on his return from a visit to Palestine, aroused that spirit of indignation against the infidels which continued for upward of two centuries, and which in- duced millions of the western Christians to march to the relief of their brothers in the faith. CHAPTER XXIX. JERUSALEM. Church of the Holy Sepulchre— Wittman’s description— Stone of Unction- Singular Cleft— The Angels’ Chapel— The Grating— Chapel of St. Helena — Proof of Christ’s Divinity — Via Dolorosa — Verronica, the Pious Woman — Simon — The Prae tori urn, etc. Although the church of the Holy Sepulchre was much injured during these troublesome times, it nev- ertheless remained standing for one thousand two hundred and eighty years, and, indeed, until 1808 , 7 146 JEEUSALEM. when it was utterly destroyed by fire — there being nothing saved from the ravages of the flames but the tomb itself and its ornaments. It was, however, soon rebuilt in all its ancient grandeur, and there is every reason to believe that in its reconstruction it has un- dergone no material alteration. It stands now as it did when first visited by the pilgrims who were ready to shed their blood to deliver it from the hands of the infidels. Sands’ description of it, as it appeared upward of two centuries ago, when he visited it, and, also, that by William Wittman, who was at Jerusalem in 1799 — nine years only before it was destroyed by fire — would answer, so far as I can judge, of the present ed- ifice, Wittman’s description reads thus: — “On en- tering the church, the stone of unction presents it- self, where our Saviour was embalmed by Joseph and Hicodemus, to the right of which is the ascent to Mount Calvary by twelve steps, where is seen the hole in which the cross was placed, and where is a cleft in the mountain, occasioned by the earthquake after our Saviour’s death. From the place of cruci- fixion you descend to the holy sepulchre, where forty lamps are constantly kept burning. Before the en- trance to the tomb is the angel’s chapel, a little larger than the sepulchre. Here sat the angel who, after the resurrection of our Lord, appeared to the holy women. On leaving the chapel, at the distance of a few paces, is the place where the Lord, after he had risen, was seen by Mary Magdalene. Hear by is the church where our Lord made his first appearance to the holy mother after the resurrection. On the right of the great altar is a place closed from sight by a screen or grating, within which is a part of the col- umn to which he was bound and scourged ; on the left is a portion of the holy cross, and near it is the spot where it was found. By a descent of twenty- JERUSALEM. 147 nine steps yon reach the chapel of St. Helena, huilt upon the place where she stood when the cross was discovered. Under the mount of Calvary is the chapel of Adam. Behind the holy sepulchre is the monu- ment of Joseph of Ariinathea, who obtained of Pilate the body of Jesus.” Some of the objects spoken of in the above account were destroyed or changed in ap- pearance by the fire ; but I think, after a careful ex- amination of the church itself, Mr. Wittman’s des- scription of it, as it was previous to the lire, is cor- rect, and satisfactorily describes it as it exists at the present day. In regard to the rents in the rock, it may be inter- esting to remark that, in Fleming’s “ Christiology,” it is stated a learned traveller, who had long been a student of nature, after examining them carefully, said he was sure they were never produced by an or- dinary earthquake ; since in such an event the rock is split according to the veins, and where it is weakest. But it is quite otherwise here, for they are broken across the veins, in a strange, and supernatural man- ner. He pronounced this tc^)e a standing testimony of a miraculous power by which God gives proof to this day of the divinity of Christ. On leaving the church of the Holy Sepulchre, I took the Via Doloro- sa — the road along which our Saviour passed on his way to Calvary, and which is marked by so many ten- der memorials of his patience and suffering. I passed the gate of judgment — or all that remains of it — through which, under the Jewish reign, criminals formerly passed to judgment. “ Here,” said my guide, “ is where our Lord and Saviour entered on the open path to Calvary, and which is only eight hundred paces from the house of Pilate. Here,” he continued, as we advanced, “ is the place where Yerronica dwelt, the pious woman who, seeing our Lord and Saviour covered with blood, 148 JERUSALEM which streamed from his wounded brow, gave him a napkin, and was rewarded with a miraculous impres- sion of his countenance on the cloth.” “ There,” he said, “is the spot where stood the crowd of weeping women to whom He said, 4 Weep not for me, ye daughters of Israel. 5 And here,” he added, stopping at the corner of the street leading from the Damascus gate, “is the place where Simon, a Cyrenian, who passed by, was compelled to bear the cross. • We next came to the spot where the mother of our Lord met him on his way to Calvary ; and then the palace of Pilate, within which was the judgment seat wliere our Lord was given into the hands of the Jews to be crucified, and was by them carried into the Prge- torium — a hall within the same edifice — where they bound him to the column and put a crown of thorns on his head, saying, “ Hail, king of the Jews !” My guide next pointed out the place where he was scourged, and, also, all that remained of the arch where Pilate stood when he pronounced tl^e memorable words, “ Behold the man !” I saw, too, the place where he is said to have fallen under the weight of the cross. Here we carefully examined the hole, still remaining in the foundation walls of the building, where, it is believed, the cross rested at the time he fell with it. From here we proceeded to the pool of Bethesda, now entirely dry. It was at this pool where, it is written in the Scriptures, “ a certain man was there which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case he saitli unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? _ The impotent man answered him, Sir, 1 have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. Jesus saith unto him, Iiise, take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately JERUSALEM. 149 the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked.” After examining this pool and reflecting upon the wonderful aud miraculous cure effected thus by our Saviour, we proceeded to St. Stephen’s gate. CHAPTER XXX. JERUSALEM. Birthplace of the Virgin Mary -St. Stephen’s Martyrdom— Damascus Gate— Wailing-Place— Golden Gate of the Temple— The Jews’ Quarter — The He- brews’ position in Palestine— Division of the City — Place of Lepers. Near St. Stephen’s Gate is pointed out a mosque, where it is said the Virgin Mary was born, and just without the Gate is the spot where St. Stephen was stoned by the Jews, not far distant from the cistern into which his body was afterward thrown. After ex- amining these localities, with much interest, I passed outside of the walls to the Damascus Gate, which presents the most perfect and beautiful specimens of Syrian architecture anywhere to be found. Leaving the Gate, I walked through the Via Dol- orosa, and from thence to the wailing-place of the Jews, on Mount Moriah. This is esteemed by the Hebrews the most sacred place within the limits of Jerusalem, on account of its vicinity to the u Holy of Holies.” Here large numbers of them repair daily to wail and to pray ; and on Fridays the number is much greater than on other days. The people face the wall, which they believe to be a part of the ori- ginal wall of the temple. On the day I visited the place, there were many assembled — both males and 150 JERUSALEM. females : some were reading their prayers, in an un- dertone, while others were devoutly praying, or read- ing their prayers aloud, exclaiming, with broken sobs, f Capernaum, Chorazin, ana Beth- saida, the scenes of so many hallowed associations, are no longer standing, and even the knowledge of the sites they occupied, passed from the memory of men more than a thousand years ago, so that the prophecy of our Lord, as regarded their future fate, has been literally fulfilled. The waters of the sea of Tiberias are clear and sweet, and abound with many excellent varieties of fish. Those of which we partook while there, taken by out dragoman and muleteers, resembled in their form and general appearance those represented in the inimitable cartoon by Raphael of the “ Miraculous SEA OF TIBERIAS. 201 Draught of Fishes.” It is gratifying to know, as an evidence of the care observed by this great master, that in his picture he has truthfully depicted the very fish found in this sea. During my stay here I bathed in its placid water and walked upon its ever- memorable shores. The distance in a direct line from this to the Dead Sea, is sixty miles ; but, fol- lowing the winding course of the Jordan, it is up- wards of two hundred. The channel of the river is deeply embedded between opposing mountains, run- ning nearly parallel, at a distance of three or four miles from each other, and which in some instances, present perpendicular cliffs, and in others, precipitous banks, rising irregularly as they recede to the high- lands of the central chain of Palestine. The bed of the river varies from seven ty^ve to one hundred feet in width. Although nothing is said in ancient annals respect- ing the city of Tiberias, until the latter part of the Jewish history ; yet it was universally believed by the Jews themselves, that a fortified city existed on the same spot, in the remote ages, by the name of Rak-kath, being the city referred to by Joshua, 19 chap. 25 verse. We learn from Josephus “ that soon after the fo un- iat ion of Tiberias was laid, it increased rapidly in splendour and prosperity, and that it became at last tlie^chief city, not only of Galilee, but of the whole land of Israel.” It was regarded by the learned men of that period as the most advantageous situation which they could choose for the establishment of schools and societies, for both of which it was parti- cularly distinguished. It was rendered famous by the great Sanhedrim, and it is conceded by the best scholars of ancient lore, that the Jerusalem Talmud was compiled at this place by one of its inhabitants, named Rabbi Juda II ak Kadosh, about the close of 9 * 202 SEA OF TIBERIAS. the second century. The talmud of Babylon, being commentaries, etc, by succeeding Rabbis, was col- lected by Ben Eliezer, about the sixth century. These two books contain the doctrine of the religion and morality of the Jews. St. Jerome, one of the early fathers of the Christian church, was so well satisfied that it was the most learned city of his day, that he resided there for some time in order to obtain a tho- rough knowledge of the Hebrew language. It was the chief city in the district under the command of Josephus, and through his zeal and military skill, it Was placed in a perfect state of defense. This city retained its eminence as a place of learning through the entire interval between the decline of the Roman power and the victories of Omar. The mineral waters of Tiberiashave long been re- cognised for their mecncinal qualities. They were much esteemed and frequented in former times. Pli- ny speaks of the place as being “ healthful for its warm waters,” and Josephus say6 that they were much frequented in his days. These baths are situa- ted two or three miles south of the present city on the sea shore ; but the ground lying between them and the city is covered with fragments of columns and foundations of buildings, the probability is, and indeed the fact is almost incontrovertible, that the ancient city extended to, if it did not embrace within it, these baths. The old bath house is in a state of decay, but just above it is !an arched reservoir, in which the water from the spring is first collected and allowed to cool to the proper temperature for the use of the new baths erected by Ibrahim Pasha. The water, when flowing from the spring, is of the tem- perature of 144 degrees Fahrenheit, and is altogether too hot to allow a person to place his hand in it with any comfort. From an elevated position near the bath there is a SEA. OF TIBERIAS. 203 fine prospect of the northern shores of the sea, where it is supposed Capernaum once stood, and above it are seen the hills of Saphet, and still further in the distance the snow-clad summit of Mount Herinon, glittering in the rays of the sun, and towering above every other feature of the landscape. The entrance of the, Jordan from this point is also plainly discern- ible. Tiberias is the only ancient city remaining on the borders of these waters, and even the greater portion of it was reduced to a heap of ruins by the earthquake of 1837, when upwards of a thousand of its inhabi- tants were destroyed. The rocks in the neighborhood of the town are of limestone, and the whole region is volcanic, as is also the larger part of Syria. The walls surrounding the city, together with six or seven of its battlements, are still standing, but in a shattered con- dition. We encamped within the northern square of the town, and during our passage through its streets and lanes, had a perfect view of the small tenements of its inhabitants, which are built on the ruins of the old town. It is melancholy to observe the wretched state and condition to which its citizens are now re- duced. The truth is the lands are held by the gov- ernment, the people have no interest in the soil they cultivate, and therefore take no pains to improve it. They sleep at this season of the year on the tops of their small houses. I have often witnessed the sight of the father and mother, with their children of va- rious ages, clustered like files around a dish of food placed in their midst, at nightfall, on their house-top, appeasing their appetites. The meal, if it can thus be called, being finished, the family would then lie down in a circle for the night. The population of Tiberias numbers about two thousand, and consists Ciiiefiy of Greeks and Jews. 204 SEA OF TIBERIAS. This remarkable sea, limited as it is in size, was once the scene of a bloody naval battle, which occur- red soon after Vespasian had captured the city of Torichoea, which was situated south of Tiberias at, the foot of the mountains on the west side of the sea. Now there is not a ship, nor vessel upon these waters, but then it upheld two hostile fleets. The following account of the engagement between these vessels is given by Josephus, who was doubtless an eye wit- ness of the same : “The inhabitants of Torichoea had a great many ships gotten ready upon the lake, that in case they were beaten at land by the Romans they might retire to them ; accordingly when the city was taken, they sailed as far as they possibly could from the Romans. Whereupon Vespasian commanded that vessels should be fitted up in order to pursue them. When the vessels were gotten ready Vespa- sian put on ship-board as many of his forces as he thought sufficient to be too hard for these that were upon the lake, and set sail after them. Now those which were driven into the Lake could neither fly to the land, where all was in their enemies’ hand, and in war against them ; nor could they tight upon the level sea, for their ships were small and fitted only for piracy. They were too weak to tight with Vespa- sian’s vessels, and the mariners, that were in them, were so few that they were afraid to come near the Romans, who attacked them in great numbers. How- ever, as they sailed round about the vessels, they threw stones at the Romans when they were a good ways off, or came closer and fought them, yet did they receive the greatest harm themselves in both cases. As for the stones they threw at the Romans, they only made a sound, one after another, for they threw them against such as were in their armoui, while the Roman darts could reach the Jews them- selves ; and when they ventured to come near the SEA OF TIBERIAS. 205 Homans they became sufferers themselves before they could do any harm to the others, and were drowned, they and their vessels together. As for those that endeavored to come to an actual fight, the R->raans run many of them through with their long poles. Sometimes the Romans leaped into their ships with swords in their hands and slew them ; and for such as were drowning in the sea, if they lifted their heads above the water they were either killed by the darts, or caught by the vessels. But of the desperate case they were in, they attempted to swim to their enemies, the Romans cut off either their heads or their hands, and indeed they were destroyed after various man- ners every where, till the rest being put to flight were forced to get upon the land, while the vessels encom- passed them about on the sea ; but as many of those were repulsed when they were getting ashore, they were killed by the darts upon the Lake, and the Ro- mans leaped out of their vessels, and discharged a great many more "Upon the land. One might then see the Lake all bloody, and full of dead bodies, for not one of them escaped. A very sad sight there was on the following days over that country; for the shores were full of shipwrecks and of dead bodies all swollen, and as the dead bodies were inflamed by the sun, and putrefied they corrupted the air, insomuch that their misery was not only the object of commis- eration to the Jews but to those that hated them, and had been the authors of that misery. The number of slain was six thousand five hundred.” In resuming our journey after a most interesting visit to this historical sea, we ascended the mountains from the city of Tiberias, by a bridle path filled with loose* stones. We stopped at several points on our way up, in order to obtain different views of the sea and surrounding country. The prospect from the summit is grand and full of interest. The sea and 206 SEA OF TIBERIAS. town of Tiberias were in full view, lying at least one thousand feet beneath us. To the south-east the val- ley of the Jordan is distinctly seen, and to the south- west Mount Tabor is observable rising majestically before the sight. We examined on our route from the Tiberias to the Mediterranean Sea, the place where our Saviour led, with two fishes and five loaves of bread, the five thou- sand — a large ring fastened to a rock marks that sa- cred spot. We also passed the Mount where our Lord delivered his serin m. This last place is about equi-distant between Tiberias and the site of Caperna- um. It is an isolated hill of less than fifty feet in height, so that the great concourse of people standing upon it^ sides, and the plain around it, could see and hear every word uttered by our Saviour on that mem- orable occasion, without difficulty. We likewise passed on our way over the field where the celebrated battle between the forces of Saladin and the Crusa- ders was fought, in the year 1187’, which battle de- cided the fate of Jerusalem, and spread terror and de- vastation over the whole land. On this occa-ion the Christians fought most valiantly, and the Knights of the Temple, and St. John, performed prodigies of valor, rallying around the true cross until the last. Ivaymand opened a way through the enemy for himself and forces, and fled to Tripoli. No other Christians escaped. Our route lay over an extensive plain or valley, north of the valley of Esdraelon, and separated from it by one of the ranges of the mountains of Galilee. Mo unf Tabor, which towers above them all, is seen from the usual travelled route, and attracts the atten- tion and admiration of the tourist at every step he takes over this great plain. This valley is a part of the territory alloted to Zebulon, stad is situated north of Isacliar, west of the Jordan and Sea of Galilee, and SEA OF TIBERIAS. 207 east of the southern portion of Asher. Tiberias, Magdala, Capernaum, Cana, and Nazareth are all lo- calities in Zebulon of deep interest. This plain or val- ley, which has its beginning in the hills of Safed, is called in Joshua, 19th chapter, 14th and 27th verses, Ziphth-ak-el : it is now known as El Buthrof, and lies at least thirty miles north of Samaria. Many modern travellers, however, call it Dothan, and locate the spot where Joseph was sold by his brethren to the Islnnaelites at the Khan Jubb Yusuf, south-east of Satia, where there is, to this day, a pit. But the learned Eusebius, and Jerome, who travelled over this country centuries ago, place it, as Dr. Robertson says, ‘‘rightly,” at twelve miles north of the city of Sti maria, and just in that situation the name of Dothan si ill exists in the mouths of the common people. It is not very probable that Joseph’s brethren would have removed their flocks so far from Shechem, for it is written in Genesis, 37th chapter, that Jacob sent Joseph to Sliechemiu pursuit of his brethren. When a certain man found him wandering in the fields; and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou? and he said, To seek my brethren ; tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks. And the man said, They are parted hence ; for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and found them in Dothan. Notwithstanding the changes which have taken p.ace from time to time in the names of places in the Hoiy Land, yet it seems to me to be quite clear that at that day this great plain was known by the name of Jeptliah el ; and not by that of Dothan. Besides, Joseph was sold to the Islmiaelites, who were on their way from Gilead to Egypt, as we read in Genesis xxxvii. 25. The most direct route from that place, and the one they would naturally have pursued, was by the great caravan route to Egypt, by the way of 208 8EA OF TIBERIAS. Bamleh, whicli led through Dothan, named by Euse- bius, and Jerome, and also by Dr. Bobertson, twelve miles from Samaria, and not by the northern route, for that would have taken them in a circuit, at least fifty miles out of their direct road. After leaving the Sea of Tiberias, we continued our route toward the Mediterranean, passing through a succession of broad valleys, of many miles in extent, and running in a westerly direction. In one of the valleys heretofore mentioned, and within two miles of Cana, a spot is pointed out as being the field where Jesus went on the Sabbath day through the coi n, and his disciples were an hungered, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat ” — which occasion gave rise to the memorable reply of our Saviour to tiie Pharisees. After leaving this vale we followed the river, or brook, el Maleic , upon the banks of which were sev- eral small grist-mills, to its confluence with the Kison, so fatal to the army of Sisera. “ They fought from heaven, the stars in their course fought against Sisera, the river Kison swept them awav. (Judges : chap, v., 10-25.) It was also on its banks, in the year 906 b. c., that the false prophets of Baal were destroyed by Elijah. The sacred account of which reads : “ And Elijah said unto them, take the prophets of Baal : let not one of them escape ; and they took them, and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kison and slew them there.” (1 Kings: chap, xviii., 40.) We followed the Kison to its confluence with the Mediterranean, near the village of Haifa. The dis- * tance from the Sea of Galilee to the Mediterranean, by the route we travelled, is fifty miles, which we accomplished with ease in two days. TOWN OF ACRE. 209 CHAPTER XLIY. TOWN OF ACRE. Mount Carmel— Convent— Acre— Its Early Days— Saladin’s Army— Crusa* ders—Christian Knights— Bonaparte— Napier— Situation of the City— Its Cotton Trade— Jordan— Route to Jerusalem. We passed a day most agreeably at the convent of Elias, on Mount Carmel, where the air is always cool and refreshing. We were kindly and hospitably en- tertained by the good monks, who are ever ready to welcome strangers, without regard to race or creed. This noble convent consists of a square block of build- ings, covering a number of acres, and is several stories in height. It is furnished in good taste. The chapel is richly ornamented, and most of the apartments are adorned with fine engravings. There is also a large library, well stored with choice books. Our party reached Acre, from the interior of Gali- lee, in safety ; and, no'withstanding I have been deep- ly interested in every step I have taken in the Holy Land, yet I must confess I feel rejoiced to stand once more upon the shores of the Mediterranean. This old town of Acre, or Ptolemais, now in ruins, once so dis- tinguished for its beauty and commerce, derives its two fold appellation, it is said, from the circumstance that it was founded by twin brothers, Aeon and Ptole- mais, and its present name St. Jean d 1 Acre, was ac- quired from its having become the seat of the Knights of St. John, after Jerusalem had been taken hy Saladin. In early times it was one of the chief cities of the Phoenicians. Here that powerful and polished nation flourished 210 TOWN OF ACRE. for centuries. Asher, to whom it was afterward assigned by Joshua, “ did not drive out the inhabitants of Aeho ; but the Asherites dwelt among the Canaan- ites, the inhabitants of the land.” (Judges i. 31.) In a. p. 1104, it was captured from the Saracens by Baldwin, the first Christian king of Jerusalem, and it was afterwards held by the Crusaders, at different times, as their chief commercial town, and gathering place of the Pilgrims for nearly two centuries: during which time its port was crowded by both French and Italian fleets, and hence it became more closely con- nected with Europe than any other of the Syrian cities. In the year 1187, soon after the decisive victory over the Christians at Tiberias, it surrendered to Saladinjf army without a struggle; but it was not des- tined to remain long in his possession, for within the short period ot* five years thereafter, King Richard, the lion-hearted, of England, and Philip of France at die head of the German troops, with the aid of a well- appointed naval force, recaptured it, after a siege of three years, in which the Crusaders shed more blood than ought to have sufficed for the conquest of the whole of Asia. There were upwards of one hundred skirmishes and nine fiercely contested battles around and before its walls. Several flourishing armies were nearly annihilated during this siege ; but their place was constantly supplied with fresh troops from the west. The^ loss in kided exceeded three hundred thousand. 'The Crusaders after the victory, retained the possession of the city until the year 1291, when the Saracens again besieged it with an army of over three hundred thousand men. The armies fought during the siege with fury, and the Christians, headed by the Knights of St. John and Knights Templars, bravely defended every inch of ground. There was not a street that did not be- TOWN OF ACEE. 211 come a scene of carnage. A battle was fought for every place, and the Saracens, on entering the city, literally walked over the dead as upon a bridge. This sanguinary struggle ended in the total overthrow of the Crusaders, and their expulsion from the Holy Land forever — all those who could not effect their escape were either murdered or imprisoned for life. The history of the city for centuries thereafter, and particularly after it fell into the hands of the Turks, is involved in obscurity. In the year seventeen hundred and ninety-nine 5 while France was involved in war with Egypt and Syria, it was besieged for sixty-one days by the French troops, under the command of Bonaparte, who was repulsed by the Syrians, with the assistance ot the British commander, with great loss. In the year eighteen hundred and forty, the British fleet, under the command of Commodore Napier, in order to restore the Ottoman power in Palestine against the revolt of the Pasha of Egypt, from the dominion of the grand seigneur, bombarded the town and left ijt in ruins, from which state it has never re- covered. The bloody and thrilling history of this ill-fated city tills many volumes. It has been, at various times, seized by many a rude hand, and its inhabit- ants carried into foreign lands and enslaved by its conquerors. The ashes of many of the warriors and nobility of Europe, who took an active part in the re- ligious wars of the Crusaders, now mingle with the dust of the ancient city. The place itself is pleasantly situated on a point of land projecting into the sea, with a beautiful bay on the south side, commencing at the village of Haifa, at the base of Mount Carmel, and curving gracefully around from that place to its port. It is surrounded on the land side by one of the most fertile plains iu 212 TOWN OF ACRE. the country, extending in length by the sea shore twenty-two miles, and varying in widtli from one to fifteen. The view of the distant mountains which bound this great plain on its north, east and south sides, and the numerous broken arches of its ancient aqueduct, still standing, with several artilicial mounds rising at different points on the plain, and within a short distance of the city, add greatly to the beauty of its much admired scenery. The rugged promon- tory of Kasen-Naaket dropping abruptly into the sea at the north — the low running hills of Galilee lying at the east, and the bold bluff of Mount Carmel jut- ting majestically into the Mediterranean on the south — add greatly to the charm of the picture. Mount Carmel, so much distinguished for its bibli- cal associations, rises eighteen hundred feet in height, almost perpendicularly from the shore, leaving only a narrow pathway around its base. This noble head- land is the first that greets the wearied mariner with a cheerful welcome, on his return “ to the haven ■where he would be and it is at this day as much his admiration as of old it was that of the inspired bard. The city of Acre formerly enjoyed no inconsidera- ble degree of mercantile activity, and it is even now distinguished as the chief port of the Syrian cotton trade; but, judging from what came under my own observation while there, 1 should say that its foreign trade cannot be very extensive, for there were not then more than twenty vessels of all classes in its harbor. Its natural advantages, however, exceed most of the other cities in Syria, in consequence of its open and direct communication with the river Jordan, by a narrow vale running along the base of Mount Car- mel, and connecting the valley of Acre with the plain of Esdraelon. ROUTE TO TYRE. 213 I would remark, in conclusion, that the central and usually travelled road from Acre to Jerusalem, by the way of Shechem, follows this vale to the plain of Esdraelon, and thence to Gilboa — as also do the two eastern routes by the way of the Jordan and Jericho, one of the roads running along the eastern, and the other on the western side of the Jordan. The two western routes to Jerusalem follow the sea-shore to Mount Carmel, from whence one of them still contin- ues along the coast to Coesaria and Joppa, and the other pursues the eastern boundary of the vallej 7 of Sharon, by the way of Lydda. The distance to the h«>ly city by these several routes varies from one hun- dred to one hundred and forty miles. CHAPTER XLY ROUTE TO TYRE. St. Jean d’Acre — Route to Tyre — Bridle-Path — Syrian Ladder — Caverns in the Rock — The Trojan War. We left St. Jean d’Acre late in the afternoon of a day in June for Tyre, and, as the distance between the two cities is only thirty-five miles, it may be reached in a day ; but in order to render the journey less fatiguing, we only travelled about twelve miles during the afternoon, and encamped for the night at the base of the mountain, which bounds the plain of Acre on the north. We pursued the line of the an- cient paved way over the plain, numerous traces of which are still visible on the route ; but the road has not been used for wheeled carriages for centuries past, so that the present inhabitants, who have, no doubt, just cause of c unplaint against the govern- 214 ROUTE TO TVRE. merit on account of the exorbitant taxes levied upon them, cnn find no fault with their road assessments, for, judging from what I could see, their highways are never repaired. As the interior trade of the country is carried on here, as it is everv where else in the east, by caravans, expensive roads are unne- cessary, and their construction has long since been abandoned. Our route lay at no great distance from the coast, and we were either within sight of the sea during the whole afrernoon, or within hearing of the roar of its mighty surges. On the south side of the travelled way, for some extent, are to be seen hun- dreds of arches, which support the ancient aqueduct of Acre. Upon the western declivities of the moun- tains of Galilee several rural villages and ancient ruins lie in full view, presenting to the tourist a pic- turesque and pleasing scene. We resumed our journey on the following morn- ing, and passed over the rugged cliff of Mount Rasen "Naahat, and numerous other mountain ridges, follow- ing each other in succession, and jutting out into the sea. The bridle-path over them was no better than those we had met on our journey through Judea and Samaria, and one is at a loss to conceive how the vast armies of antiquity ever made their way across them with their heavy engines of war. The probability is, indeed, that their arms, provisions, and munitions of war, with their sick and disabled troops, were con- veyed along the sea-coast by their fleets. We know that Alexander the Great was thus attended, and such must have been the case with the warriors be- fore his day, when moving down the coast of Asia Minor and Syria, as far, at least, as the plains of Acre. From thence no. difficulty exists, in the way of march- ing an army over the plains of Acre and Sharon, and thence through the desert of the Nile. The mountain ridges between Acre and Tyre are ROUTE TO TYRE. 215 fifteen miles in extent, over which we travelled in one day, ending with the Tyrian Ladder — as it is call- ed — one of the most difficult and dangerous passes on the whole route. It appeared to me, on the first view I obtained of it, like a narrow seam, or crack, in the side of the mouutain, not wide enough to admit of a person’s passing through it on foot ; but as we ap- proached it nearer, I found it to be a dug-way, cut into the side of a perpendicular cliff through solid rock, and gradually rising to a point at least three hundred feet above the sea. Numerous large caverns are worn into the rock beneath the bed of the road, by the ceaseless dashings of the surge for ages against it, making the road almost a continuous arched way for several miles. It is fearful to look upon, and were it not that the road is sunk into the rock, so as to leave a protecting wall on the outer side, few persons would be found possessing nerve sufficient to pass over it on foot, much less on horseback as we did. Before descending the hill, we halted for some time at its northern terminus, where we gazed for the first time upon Tyre, with its beautiful bay on the south side. Upon the wfide beach the ancient mari- ners of Tyre, before harbors were constructed, drew their coasting vessels, in order to protect them from injury agaipst the fierce tempests of this boisterous sea. And this was the usual practice of the Phoeni- cians, as well as that of all the other maritime nations at that period. The mighty fleet of the Grecians was thus secured on the Phrygian shores during the ten years of the Trojan war, as appears from the follow- ing lines by Homer, respecting Ulysses’ return after delivering Chryseis to her father. I give them in Pope’s translation : — “ Till now the Grecian camp appeared in view, Far on the beach they haul their bark to land ; (The crooked keel divides the yellow sand ;) Then part, where stretched along the winding bay The ships and tents in mingled prospect lay.” CHAPTER XL VI. TYRE. View of Tyre— Cadmus— Dido -Strabo - Its Situation— Its Founding - Hero- dotus— The Daughter of Sidon Memorable Siege— Its Downfall— Ras el Ain— King Hiram— Phoenicia. Thic view of the city of Tyre and the surrounding country, from the elevated position we occupied, is surpassingly beautiful. The plain of Tyre is not so large as that of Acre; but the site of the old town, which was confined to the main-iand, is admirably calculated for a large city, since there are no obsta- cles in the way of its extension either along the sea- shore or into the interior. After having enjoyed this magnificent view for some time, we descended the hill, and pursued our journey along the coast, until we arrived at this once mighty city. The gates of the town being open, we passed through its narrow streets, followed by a large number of its curious cit- izens, who seemed much pleased with our cavalcade. We encamped in a field, under cultivation, fronting the sea, and within the walls of the city. On this field once stood the richest and fairest portion of this great emporium. Tiiis city has for centuries pjist occupied so much space in the records of ancient and modern history, that, on this account alone, it is one of the most desirable places in the Old World for a traveller to visit. It was from this town that Cadmus, fifteen hundred years before Christ, led his colony to Greece. He carried with him an alphabet, and intro- duced into that country the first ideas of civilization. From this place, too, Dido, nine hundred years be- fore Christ, conducted a colony to Carthage, and TYRE. 217 founded that once great city. Tliis was long before Rome was built. It was from this nation that most of the islands in the Mediterranean Sea were first peopled, as were Spain, Portugal, and Ireland. Strabo, the historian, represents Tyre as having planted five hundred cities along the shores of the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coasts. Its situation is very beautiful. It stands now on a point of land, projecting into the sea, which, at this day, has the appearance of being the work of nature, but was formed by Alexander the Great with the ruins of the old town, at the time the city was cap- tured by him after seven months’ siege. Here, and everywhere on the land side, as well as on the sea- shore, are to be seen broken columns, of the finest marble, furnishing the most satisfactory evidence of its former graudeur. The city still retains its original name, while the numerous colonies and towns it founded have disap- peared, and no one can point out, at this day, with any degree of certainty, their boundaries or sites. The traditionary account of its antiquity, is, that its foundation was laid by Tyrus, the seventh sou of Ja- piiet, within a few years after the Deluge. Herodo- tus, the historian, who visited it in person upward of four hundred years before Christ, says : “ Prom my very great desire to obtain information respecting Hercules, I made a voyage to Tyre, where is a tem- ple of Hercules, held in great veneration. Among the various offerings, I saw two pillars — one was of the finest gold, the other of emerald of extraordinary splendor. I asked the priests how long the temple had been erected, but found they differed from the Greeks. This editice, as they affirmed, had been standing since the first building of the city, twenty- three hundred years ago.” The prophet Isaiah, eight hundred years before 218 TYRE. Christ, called it the daughter of Sidon. And Joshua, when he divided the land among the children of Israel, in the year 1540 b. c., spoke of it as “ the strong city.” Consequently, its foundation must have been laid a long while before his day, and it was co-existent with (if not of an age before) Baby- lon. Besides, all accounts agree in ascribing the origin of navigation to its inhabitants, and of its be- ing the earliest and greatest commercial city of anti- quity', alike distinguished for its commerce, its manu- factures, its skill in the arts and sciences, and its immense wealth. For centuries it enjoyed the trade of the then known world, and by it was raised to the sovereignty of the seas. Her merchants were rich and powerful princes, “ who had heaped up silver as dust, and line gold as the mire of the city.” The memorable siege which this city successfully sustained for five years against the well disciplined forces of the powerful Assyrian nation, in the year '719 b. o., shows the strength of its position and its inexhaustible resources at that day. In 572 b. c., when it was conquered by the Babylonians, its noble defence for a period of upward of thirteen years, is without a parallel either in ancient or modern history, so far as regards the length of the seige, or the bra- very and obstinacy with which it was resisted by the Tyrians, who, without surrendering, finally retired, with most of their effects, to the island, leaving the enemy in possession of their town in ruins. The downfall and permanent destruction of this renowned city, remarkably exemplifies the fulfilment of the prophecy in a greater degree than the annals of the world exhibit — for the only vestiges of the old town remaining are a small portion of the wall by the sea-shore, and a part of its aqueduct. 1 give what Ezekiel, in the twenty-sixth chapter and fourth verse, says respecting it: u And they shall destroy the walls TYRE. 219 of Tyrus, and break down her towers : I will also scrape her dust from her , and make her like the top of the rock” Such was, indeed, its fate ; for Alexander the Great used the materials of the old town to build the moles, in order to connect the island with the main-land, and in doing so, literally scraped the site of the old city of everything but its rocks. All that remains of its ancient aqueduct, -called at this day Ras el Ain , is situated at the extreme southern limits of the site of the old town, five miles from the present city. The water, which still flows from its several reservoirs, is now used to drive three grist-mills, standing near the sea-shore. The founda- tion of the present city differs but little from the old town, for King Hiram, in his time, built a causeway to thd* temple, which stood on the island, in order to connect it with the city. This proves that it formed a part of the city upward of one thousand years before Christ. It was, however, greatly enlarged at the pe- riod of the destruction of old Tyre. Its ramparts and walls were reconstructed, and rendered, as its inhab- itants believed, impregnable, until it was sacked by Alexander the Great, when eight thousand of its citi- zens were crucified on the beach, and thirty thousand sold into bondage, for no other reason than their no- ble defence of the city. The only ancient structure remaining in the pres- ent Tyre, is the walls, without a roof, of the old church which Eusebius describes in his narrative. It was built of hewn stone, both within and without, and was, no doubt, the first Christian church erected in Phoenicia. The commerce of the city, after the lapse of several centuries, and particularly about the time it was captured by the Crusaders, somewhat revived ; but its trade has been declining ever since, and its once capacious harbor, protected by two huge piers, 220 JOURNEY TO SIDON. extending some distance into the sea, is now tilled up with rubbish and rendered difficult of access. I counted but twelve vessels in all within its limits. The hundreds of craft which in ancient times had there been safely havened, had disappeared with the city’s old renown and grandeur. Its population has declined with its commerce, and it now contains less than five thousand souls, nor is there any prospect of an increase under the existing feeble government. Into this lamentable condition has this famous city, once the queen of the seas, become reduced. Her robes trail in the dust — her crown has fallen from her brow. CHAPTER XL VII. JOURNEY TO SIDON. Mohammedan Ladies — Leontes, the River of Waters — Along the Sea-Shore— Sarepta— Sojourn at a Khan — Verifying an Old Adage— Cattle of the Coun- try— Price of Produce— Goats vs. Cows— Plain of Sidon— Private Gardens — Narrow Streets— Slippers — Adieu to the Ladies. Having devoted all the time we had to spare to examining the ruins of Tyre, and its surroundings, we resumed our journey in companv with a party of Tyrians, among which were two Mohammedan ladies, mounted on fine Arabian horses, the saddles of which were covered with cushions, so as to enhble them to ride at ease, after the fashion of our sex. Their feet were not, however, sustained by the stirrups, but hung loosely by the horses’ sides, displaying to advan- tage their dainty red slippers, richly embroidered with silk and gold. Their faces, as is the custom of the country, were veiled with gauze ; but, as they were obliged to remove them now and then, to ena- ble them to guide their spirited and well-groomed JOURNEY TO SIDON. 221 horses, we were on such occasion favored with a glance from their bright and sparkling eyes. Their courteous, gracious, and gentle manners; their refinement and noble bearing — gave assurance of* their pure lineage, and convinced us that they be- longed to the elite of the land. Their presence con- tributed greatly to our enjoyment, on our journey to Sidon. Our route, for the distance of five miles, was over the plain of Tyre, which extends on the north to the Leontes, the river of waters, as it is called, and which we crossed on a stone bridge of several arches, built centuries ago, and still in good condition. Here we halted, and the ladies availed themselves of the op- portunity thus presented, to gather the choice fiowers which grow by the borders of the stream. This fine sheet of water takes its rise in Baal beck, and I fully expected to find an ancient road extending along its banks, to the far east, by the way of Damascus ; but no highway was ever built there, owing, doubtless, to the difficulty of constructing one across the Lebanon Mountains, the only course it could follow. The usual route, from Tyre to Damascus and the east, passes over these mountains several miles south of the river. On leaving the Leontes we travelled near the sea- shore for eight or ten miles, and, for a part of the way, along the beach, sometimes passing through the waves as they rolled upon the shore. This was par- ticularly the case as we rode opposite to the ancient city of Sarepta, formerly called Zarephath. This town is remarkable for its connection with the history of Elijah, the prophet, as recorded in the First Book of Kings, the seventeenth chapter. The modbrn city is situated on a mountain ridge, fronting the Mediterra- nean. It was formerly a place of considerable impor- tance, but now consists of a few poor houses in a very 222 JOURNEY TO SIDON. dilapidated condition. The ruins of the old town line the shore for a long distance, and its foundations have lately been dug up and carried to Beirout, to be em- ployed in the construction of modern edifices. Tra- dition points out the spot where the prophet Elijah is said to have met the poor woman gathering sticks. We halted four miles from Sarepta, for our lunch, at a khan, or house of refreshment, standing at no great distance from the sea-shore, and near a fountain of pure water. Here coffee was served, in small cups, to all who desired it. The building itself is one story high, with two rooms, and an open space between them without a floor; but all are covered by the same roof. The rooms contained no furniture of any kind, and we were obliged to adopt, on this occasion, the plan recommended in the old adage, viz. : “In Crete act as a Cretan or, as we say, “ At Rome do as the Romans do. 5 ' In conforming to this, we seated our- selves, in the Oriental fashion, on cushions which our dragoman spread on the floor for our use. We encountered, at this place, large droves of sheep, goats, and cattle, of the finest breeds of the country, which were being driven from the interior to the sea-shore to be watered. The shepherds and herdsmen who accompanied them were a quiet and orderly set of men, and answered our numerous ques- tions about their cattle, their value, and the prices of the commodities of the country, with much civility and intelligence. The value of a milch cow, they informed us, varied from twelve to twenty dollars. Donkeys and mules could be bought for from twelve to forty dollars, and riding-horses, such as are in com- mon use, for from forty to eighty. A horse and mule- teer may be hired for sixty cents per day — the owner to provide forage. Eggs sell for six cents a dozen ; chickens bring from twelve to twenty cents per pair, and all other produce in like proportions Their JOURNEY TO SIDON. 223 sheep yield wool in abundance: but of a coarse qual- ity, and large quantities of it are sent to this country. Their goats supply the inhabitants with milk, which, they think, is much richer, and of a far better flavor, than that of cows. It requires but little to keep them, and when the pasture is in a seared condition, they are to be seen feeding every where on the de- clivities of the mountain ridges, and in places where cows never venture. For this and other reasons, the farmers regard them as the most valuable portion of their stock. At three o’clock, p.m., we resumed our journey, and soon entered on the broad plain of Sidon. We passed several comfortable, but not expensive, private resi- dences, situated on the plain, with gardens surround- ing them, which abounded in fruits. Prominent among them were apricots, oranges, almonds, palms, and pomegranates. Bordering the way were the ruins of ancient edifices, and fragments of columns, the ghost-like representatives of old Sidon, constantly reminding us that we were passing over the site of a once great commercial emporium. We arrived in the city some time before sundown, the distance from Tyre being only twenty-five miles. We rode through the streets in single file, the drago- man leading the way, as they are too narrow to per- mit of two riding abreast These narrow thorough- fares are peculiarly characteristic of the oriental cities. Some of the streets through which we passed were, in part, covered over at the top, as is customary in this country, in order to protect the inhabitants from the scorching summer sun. In many places rooms were built on arches thrown across the street; openings, however, are left at intervals to admit the light and air. Our Tyrian travelling companions entered the town a few moments after us. They had been detained, a 224 OLD SIDON. t short distance from the city, by reason of one of the Indies having lost her elegant and costly slipper, which had fallen from her foot and dropped upon the road. One of the servants, having been sent back to find it, soon returned with it. Here we separated from them, and, in bidding us farewell, as they kissed our hands — which is usual when taking leave of their superiors, or those to whom they wished to pay marked respect — they wished us health, happiness, and a safe return to our friends, bowing in the most gracious manner, and waving their hands adieu. CHAPTER XL VIII. OLD SIDON. Rev. Mr. Eddy— Harbor of Sidon— Old Castle — Situation of the City — Its In- habitants— Its Early OUeatness— Conquered by the Persians— Its Destruc- tion — King Louis of France — Its Former Manufactures— Its Ruins— Mis- sionary Residence — Pleasant Acquaintances — An Evening in Sidon. We were presented to his excellency the gover- nor of this city, (Sidon,) by the Rev. W. W. Eddy, an American missionary here. This Christian gen- tleman is much esteemed and respected by all in authority, as well as by the citizens generally. He accompanied us to the most interesting parts of the town, pointing out everything worthy of our atten- tion. We visited the harbors and the remains of the old breakwater, formed by nature and art combined, which once made this a safe and commodious haven for vessels. We noticed the arched bridge which con- nects the main-land with the old castle (Zor) built over rocks before the city. It is now in ruins, having been destroyed by the English government in the war with Ibrahaui Pacha. We afterward examined an- OLD SIDON. 225 ther old castle on the hill, which, as its present form indicates, must have been rebuilt by King Louis of France, while the city was in his possession. Si don is situated on grounds rising rapidly from the sea-shore to tne plain lying east of its present walls. It formerly extended to the lower ridge of the Leba- non Mountains, (which is one mile from its present eastern gate,) and many miles along the sea-shore. It is now, however, reduced to much narrower limits, and does not exceed a mile in length on the coast, or a half mile in width. It contains ten thousand in- habitants, seven thousand of which are Mahorame- dans, three hundred Jews, and the rest nominal Chris- tians of various sects. There are no fraternal feelings existing between the different denominations ; but, on the contrary, the bitterest animosity prevails among them. The city was founded by Si don, the son of Canaan. Moses, in the tenth chapter of Genesis, called it the first-born of Canaan. Joshua refers to it as the great city, and Homer mentions it as being distinguished above all other cities for its manufactures. The city of Tyre, notwithstanding it was under its sway for several centuries, did not refuse, even in its brightest days, to honor it as the parent of its own grandeur. From the position and importance of this ancient city as a commercial town, it was exposed to frequent as- saults from rival nations, and suffered greatly at dif- ferent periods of its existence ; but the severest cal- amity which ever befell it, was in the year 350 b. c., when Oclius, with an army of nearly four hundred thousand men, invaded Phoenicia, on his way to Egypt, when, through the treachery of Mentor, the commander of its military and naval forces, and of Tennis, King of Sidon, the city fell into the hands of the Persians. When the Sidonians discovered that they had been betrayed by their king, they shut 226 OLD 8IDON. themselves and their wives and children within their houses, which they then set on fire, and all of them perished in the flames. Everything of value, includ- ing the archives of the city, its records, and all that related to its ancient history and literature, as well as its treasures, were totally destroyed. The wealth, which its citizens had for ages been ac- cumulating, the splendor of the city’s adornments, and the pride of its princes and merchants — all van- ished at the approach of the conqueror. There was no tiling left to satisfy his inordinate thirst for gain but the ashes of the city. Even from these, however, which contained the melted silver and gold of its in- habitants, he realized a large amount of money. It may be, and probably is, owing to this calamity, that no remnants of their writings are preserved to us, which can throw any light upon their customs and manners. The city was soon afterwards rebuilt in part; but its inhabitants not being in a condition to defend themselves against aggression, it was surren- dered to Alexander the Great without a struggle. The sufferings of the city, during the war of the Crusaders, were no less severe ; for while King Louis of France was absent from his command, on a visit to Tyre, it was attacked by its enemies, and all the Christians within its walls were put to the sword. Their dead bodies remained exposed, without burial, until the city was recaptured by the king.* The manufacturing of silk, linen, and glass, for which the town has ever been distinguished, is still canied on here to a limited extent, while the beauti- ful purple dye, invented by its citizens at an early day, is still in use by its present inhabitants ; but notwithstanding the apparently active stir of business within its walls, the broken columns and fragments of ancient buildings, which are to be seen wherever one may roam, either within the city or its surround- OLD SIDON. 227 ings are constantly reminding the tourist of its for- mer grandeur, which, in contrasting it with its pre- sent fallen condition, produces on his mind feelings of the most painful character. Formerly its harbor was sufficiently commodious to admit vessels of great burden ; but it is now, and lias been for ages, so filled up with ruins and drifting sands, as to allow only the smallest craft to approach the city. We accepted the kind invitation of the Rev. Mr. and Mrs. Eddy, and dwelt with them while we re- mained in Sidon. Their residence is in one of the largest of the private dwellings within the city. Il contains numerous apartments, including a chapel for Protestant worship, and a commodious school-room. It has, beside, a large court within its centre. It was built two or three hundred years ago by a pasha for his private residence, and was elaborately finished and expensively adorned, in accordance with his lux- urious taste. It adjoins the eastern wall of the town, and there is a fine view from its roof of the city and surrounding country. While we were at their hospitable mansion, we met with the Rev. S. H. Calhoun, from the state of Massachusetts, now a missionary and a resident of Abeih, on Mount Lebanon, about twenty miles from Sidon. He is a professor in an institute of learning at the former place, and from his long residence in the country, has acquired a perfect mastery of the language, and become intimately acquainted with its inhabitants. He and his associates in the missionary cause, among whom are a number of learned and dis- tinguished divines, are doing much good for the en- lightenment and regeneration of Syria. My personal acquaintance with some of Mr. and Mrs. Eddy’s friends, and with two of Mr. Calhoun’s brothers, (one of whom represented the state of Massachusetts, in part, in Congress for several years, and the other had 228 OLD STDON. occupied the office of President of the Kansas Con vention, which framed the Lecompton Constitution,) led to many inquiries from them respecting their relatives and friends at home, so that we passed our evening in old Sidon most happily, in talking over matters relating to our beloved country, and the nu- merous friends we had left behind us. CHAPTER XLIX. ashmanazer’s sarcophagus. Remarkable Discovery of Sarcophagus— Its Dimensions— Inscriptions on it— Introduction of Letters— Josepus’ time — Root of Languages — Dr. Thom- son— Mr. Salt’s Opinion— The Father of History —Moses — Plato— The Spot where the Sarcophagus was found— Mr. Eddy In concluding my observations on this ancient and interesting city (Sidon), I would remark that it was here, in the year 1857, that the celebrated sarcophagus was discovered, which is now in the Louvre, in Paris. I examined it when in that city, when on my way to the east. It is four feet high and seven in length. It is constructed of blue-black basalts, exceedingly hard, and highly polished. The upper end of it is wrought into a human figure, and bears an inscrip- tion upon it of twenty two long lines, in the Phoeni- cian language, resembling the Hebrew. The writing is in a perfect state of preservation, and as easy to decipher as in the day it was engraved. The inscrip- tion has been translated by several distinguished lin guists, and although the versions differ somewhat, yet, it is said, they are in substance the same. As its length forbids my introducing it in this letter, I have prepared the following condensed sketch of it : “I am Ashmanazer, King of the Sidonians, son of ASHMAN AZEr’s SARCOPHAGUS. 229 Tibnith, King of the Sidonians, and my mother, Im- miastoreth, Priestess to Astarte, onr sovereign qneen, daughter of A smunazer. The heavenly powers have established me on the throne, and bestowed on me P<>r and Joppa, and ample corn lands, which are at the root of I)an. My prohibition upon every royal person, and upon every man, not to open my sepul- chre, and not to seek with me treasures, for there are no treasures with me, nor to take away this sarcoph- agus ; and if any one shall do so, he shall have no funeral with the dead, nor be buried in a sepulchre, nor leave behind him a son or any posterity, and the holy gods, with the king that shall rule over him, shall cut off that royal person, or that man whomso- soever he may he, and he shall be accursed among the living under the sun ; because I am to be pitied, snatched away in the fourteenth year of my reign, before my time, like the flowing of a river.” I regard this as the most remarbable literary dis- covery of the age, since from the inscription on it, in the Phoenician language, resembling the old Hebrew, (the letters being nearly the same), it establishes the important fact, that long before the reign of King Ili rom (1050 n. c.) letters had been used in writing by the Phoenicians. This was several hundred years before they had been thus employed by the Greeks, for the Greeks themselves admit that they had no writers earlier than Homer. It is well to remember that the Greeks entertained the opinion that they were the most ancient nation in Europe ; yet even they consider themselves as of yesterday when com- pared with the Egyptians and Phoenicians. Their prejudices, however, as well as those of other nations, were so great as regards the Jews, whose country adjoined that of the Phoenicians, that they could not be induced to believe Josephus’s account of the an- 230 ashmanazer’s sarcophagus. tiquity of the Jewish nation, which is to be found in his learned, excellent, and useful work. The answer of Apion, of Alexandria, denying the antiquity of the Jews, and maintaining that they left Egypt only nine hundred years before Christ, drew from Josephus his celebrated reply, wherein he pro- duces undeniable proof of die truth of his former statement, by copious extracts from Phoenician, Egyptian, and Babylonian writers. It is, however, to be regretted that the sources from which he drew his evidence have long since been lost to the world, and all that now remain of them are comprised in these extracts. If this sarcophagus had been discov- ered in Josephus’s time, it might have enabled him to have shown still more conclusively, not only that the Jews and Phoenicians wrote and spoke the same language, but that the latter had a knowledge of the phonetic art long before the reign of King Hiram, who, as he states, corresponded with King Solomon of Jerusalem respecting the building of the Temple. This was at a period at least one hundred and fifty years prior to the time that Apion asserts the He- brews left Egypt for the Holy Land. Again, this inscription would have been no less ser- viceable to Bochart and Akerblad, distinguished as Oriental scholars and linguists, in support of their opinions that the Phoenician and Hebrew languages were anciently the same The honor of first intro- ducing the art of writing with letters no doubt belongs either to the Hebrews or the Phoenicians. The char- acters used were the same as those employed b} r the Samaritans, and were used, also, by the Jews before the Babylonish captivity. The English government has long been in posses- sion of the Arundelian and Parian marbles, which contain inscriptions upon them of the principal events in Grecian, and particularly in Athenian history, go- ashman azer’s sarcophagus. 231 ing back to a very early period ; but their authenti- city has been called in question. There are, also, to be found in the British Museum many specimens of hieroglyphics, but none of a written composition where letters are used, of an earlier period than that of the inscription on King Asmunazer’s sarcophagus Mr. Salt, a learned traveller and antiquarian, made some discoveries which establish the fact that phone- tic characters were in use in Egypt more than seven hundred years before the Christian era, and that pho- netic symbols can be traced back fifteen and six- teen hundred years before Christ, thus showing that they were known during the days of Moses ; but whether or not these characters were used by him in Writing the Pentateuch is beyond the reach of prooi Indeed many sceptical writers would have the world be lieve that the great law-giver did not write these books himself, but that they were compiled by Ezra long after the death of the former. To me it is clear that the ten commandments and the laws were presented to the Jews for their government while on their march from Egypt to the promised land. Their eudeavor, also, to establish the falsity of the Mosaic account of thecrea- tion of the world, is alike unworthy of attention. They allege that it is here the father of history, Herodotus, who visited Egypt 450 years before the Christian era, came, and that the priests, who were the most learned men in that country, informed him that that kingdom had then existed for upwards of twenty thousand years. But let it be recollected that Moses was edu- cated for the duties of the priesthood himself, and could, and doubtless did, as a disciple of this order, attain a knowledge of all the arts and learning which this privileged class carefully conferred on their fol- lowers, and, therefore, his statement is much more re- liable than the traditionary account of Herodotus, obtained from the priests upwards of eleven centuries 232 ashmanazer’s sarcophagus. after the time of Moses. His historical account ot Egypt would have received no favor among the Jews had he recorded it incorrectly, as it must have been well known at the period wherein he wrote to all the inhabitants. Plato relates that during the reign of King Thamus of Egypt, his secretary, Thotli, laid be- fore him the invention ofletters, which he had discov- ered, of the alphabet ; but the King, who was appre- hensive that if they were introduced, hieroglyphics would be superseded, therefore objected to their be- ing used during his reign. The Rev. Dr. Thomson, author of .a work entitled, “The Land and the Book,” who was in Sidou in 1857- when this sarcophagus was discovered, gives the follow- ing account of the event : “ Our city was startled out ot her ordinary quietude by the report that an extraordi nary sarcophagus had been discovered, with a long in scription in unknown characters upon the lid. All Si don flocked to see it, and I among the rest, but with ex- pectations very different. I had been disappointed too frequently to place much reliance in. native reports. Judge, therefore, of my surprise and delight to lind that this unknown character was Phoenician. I at once became as deeply excited as the gold-diggers or treasure hunters.” The public is much indebted to this learned divine for the translation of this inscription, and of giving publicity to it in his valuable volumes. This transla- tion was approved by Chevalier Bunsen and Profes- sor Dietrich, distinguished linguists. Previous to my departure from Sidon, Mr. Eddy pointed out to me the very spot from whence this sarcophagus had been removed. FROM 8IDON TO BEIROUT. 233 CHAPTER L. FROM SIDON TO BEIROUT. Coast of Phoenicia— The Lebanon Mountains— Last View of Sidon— Khan of the Prophet Jonah— Remarkable Columns— Tomb of Jonah— Promontory — ' ruses— Swampy Land— First View of Reirout— Its Harbor -Plantations — Country Residences— Commercial Prosperity— Its Early History — Mor monism. The month of July being near at hand, when it is unsafe for persons unacclimated to remain in the coun- try, we took leave of our hospitable friends, Mr. and Mrs. Eddy, and hastened on our journey toward Bei- rout, our road still continuing along the coast of Phoe- nicia. This ancient country is confined within very narrow limits. It commences on the south, at Mount Carmel, and extends along the sea-shore for upward of one hundred miles, and from thence it penetrates into the interior to the summit of Mount Lebanon, which is only a few miles from the Mediterranean. The coasts of Tyre and Sidon occupy the greater part thereof, and are the most populous. Limited, how- ever, as Phoenicia now is, and ever has been, in point of territory, it exercised, before its decline, for cen- turies a controlling influence over the surrounding nations ; but which is now prostrated through the ar- bitrarv rule of the feeble, though despotic, Ottoman government. As we journeyed along the coast I noticed that the Lebanon Mountains, at some points receded from, and at others advanced toward, the sea, from whence they rise gradually to the regions of perpetual snow 234 : FROM SIDON TO BEIROUT. and ice ; the rocky shore, at the base of these stupen- dous mountains, bordered one side of our path, and the stormy sea the other. The coastline curves from the city toward the north-west, for a distance of five miles, at which point the mountain juts into the sea, and, in passing over this headland we had, from its summit, a commanding view of Sidon. Here we halted, as thousands had, doubtless, done before us, in order to take our last view of this once renowned city, now crumbled into ruins. Continuing our journey, we passed, about ten miles from this promontory, the river Damoras ; or, as it was anciently called, the Tamyras. Here, again, as in so man}' other parts of this old land, the traveller is reminded of some of the most remarkable incidents recorded in sacred and profane history, for it was on the banks of this stream that Antiochus the Great en- countered the forces of Ptolemy, and gained one of his most important victories. Three or four miles from this river we halted at the celebrated Khan of the Prophet Jonah , situated near the sea shore, and . facing an extensive and beautiful beach entirely free of rocks and stones, upon which, as the inhabitants in the vicinity religiously believe and maintain, the holy prophet, as we read in the sacred writings, was cast by the monster of the deep. The Syrians, how- ever, whose right to dispute this matter none will question, claim that this notable event occurred at the head of the great bay of Iskanderan, near the di- viding line of Asia Minor and Syria, and where now stand two or more columns, erected, as they say, to commemorate this event ; the opponents of this con- tend that these columns were raised, and used, for piers for a gate at the boundary line between the two countries, at which point all travellers were required, at that early day, to produce their passports before they were allowed to proceed on their journey. FROM SIDON TO BEIROUT. 235 The tomb of Jonah is near the Khan. It contains rooms for the accommodation of the monks who have it in charge, and for the pilgrims who frequent it. These last are chiefiy Mussulmen and Druses. zlfter we had rested and were sufficiently recover- ed from the fatigue of our morning’s ride, we re- sumed our journey. For live miles our road lay along this beautiful beach, when our course was ar- rested by a promontory of land projecting into the sea ; here we left the shore and pursued a northerly course over an extensive plain. On the southerly de- clivity of the mountains, bounding this plain on the north, are to be seen rhe village of Suchfort, and oth- er rural towns, belonging to the Druses. This re- markable race possesses a large tract of mountain re- gion, extending from Contraven to Carmel. The population exceeds one hundred and eighty thousand, of which fifty thousand are able to bear arms. The male inhabitants, however, who can carr/* guns, are at all times armed cap-a-pie, prepared for any emer- gency of a hostile character. These people derive their name from one of their religious teachers. Their sacred books, which were concealed in the earth,* contain doctrines which prove the selfish policy of t:ieir author, and are disgraceful to humanity. Their peculiar religious tenets, concerning which they main- tain great secrecy, are said, by those who have been enabled to investigate them, to be a union of those held by the Sadducees, the Samaritans, and the Ma- hommedans. While the Druses submit to the author- ities of the Ottoman government, they also owe, and yield, allegiance to a sovereign of their own. The low and marshy plain over which we passed, formerly rendered Beirout very unhealthy ; but in * In this respect the Mormons of Utah may he said to have followed in their footsteps, as Joe Smith, the Prophet, declared that the Book of Mormon which is their Bible, was found by him concealed in the earth. 236 FROM SIDON TO BEIROCJT. pursuing our course toward the city, which was hid den from our view by an intervening hill of gentle elevation, we came upon an extensive forest of pine- trees, planted many years ago, between the city and the swamp, in order to intercept the miasma which arose from the latter. Before this forest was planted, the unsheltered town was perpetually a prey to pesti- lence, occasioned by the poisonous vapor which was wafted to it from the marsh. When the pine grove, however, reached a certain height, the progress of the miasma was intercepted, and the rays of the sun dispersed it, before its pernicious blight could reach the city. Beirout is now deemed one of the most healthy and desirable places for residence in Syria. Our first view of the place was obtained from the summit of the hill that rises on its eastern side. From this point the city, within its walls and ramparts, was spread out like a map before us. It descends by irre- gular winding terraces two hundred feet to the sea- shore. The streets are narrow ; but the houses are built of stone, neatly constructed, and their interiors convenient in arrangement. The harbor is far from being a secure one — most of the larger class of vessels lie in front of the town at anchor. The sea is here very boisterous at certain seasons of the year, and the wrecks of many vessels are seen as you approach the town, either from the north or south, lying rotting on the beach. The vieu of the city itself, the numerous plantations of mulberry and olive trees, the rich orchards in its environs, the harbor, with the numerous crafts at anchor, the ocean, whitened with the sails of vessels going and coming, the glassy bay of St. George on the north, the moun- tains standing like sentinels on the north-east, their green sides dotted with the rural villages of the Dru- ses, the great plain, rich in grain and flocks, stretch- ing out to the southeast, and, lastly, the Lebanon FRCM 8ID0N TO BEIROUT. 237 Mountains, with tlieir summits crowned with ice and snow, towering into the heavens, all combine to render the scene impressive and one of an absorbing interest. The country residences in the immediate vicinity possess an air of comfort, and, in some instances, ele- gance and refine lent. But the narrow roads, and the fences, formed of the pricklv pear grown to a con id- crable height, which surround the grounds, do not make a favorable impression on the minds of persons accustomed to the wide, smooth roads, neatly kept hedges and well-built fences, which are characteristic of private residences in England and America. There is much commercial activity at this place; vessels from all climes may be seen at the wharves during the day, engaged in loading or unloading. I noticed in the harbor a fine American vessel, belong- ing to Boston, which had recently discharged a load of lumber, from the State of Maine, which cargo met with a ready and profitable sale. The history of Bcirout is involved in much obscu- rity ; but that portion of it which is regarded as au- thentic affords interesting proof of the power a com- mercial town, favored by position and other natural advantages, possesses, to rise in spite of almost every calamity which may be turned against it. During this town’s long career, it has been repeatedly sacked and plundered, and its inhabitants put to the sword ; and in a. d. 5 5 L , it was totally destroyed by an earth- quake. On that terrible occasion its colleges, churches, temples, theatres, and all other public and private buildings, together with a multitude of its inhabitants, were overwhelmed in its ruins. No sooner, however, were other people settled within its wal Is than prosperity returned to it. It is doubtful whether it wa.s a place of any consequence during the early days of the Jewish nation ; but in the reign of Augustus, it rose to the rank of a Hunan colony, and 238 IN BEIROUT. had become unusually distinguished in the first ages of Christianity for its schools of learning, which flour- ished here for centuries, after their decline in other more noted localities. Many of the most accom- plished scholars of those times, in law and philoso- phy, were educated at these institutions. It was here that Saladin was declared sovereign of the Syrian provinces, of which this city was the capitol, and here, too, he was crowned. CHAPTER LI. IN BEIROUT. Herod's Sons— Arab Newspaper— nadikat el Acbbar— Consul Johnson— Rev. Mr. Dixon— Bellevue Hotel— CofTee Saloons— Story Tellers. It was in Beirout that the celebrated council, or assembly, of one hundred and fifty assessors or judges, for the trial of Herod’s sons, on charges cruelly pre- ferred against them bj T their father, was convened by permission of Caesar. Here, too, their sentence of death was pronounced, which was afterward carried out by strangling them at a spot near Sidon. Notwithstanding the numerous calamities which have at various times overtaken this ill-fated town by wars, pestilence, earthquakes, and famines, it still oc- cupies a high position among important ea-tern cities. It contains a population of thirty -five thousand inhab- itants, and much attention is paid, at this time, to educating its youth, by the American missionaries re- siding here. The New Testament has by them been translated into the language of the country, and copies of the same disseminated among the people. An IN BET ROUT. 23S Arabic newspaper, printed on a fair sized sheet, ig published here every Saturday, at six dollars a year. It was established, with the consent of the Sultan, at the beginning of 1858, and is called Hadikat Ei Achbar , which means in English the Garden of News. It is solely a private enterprise, the Govern- ment having nothing to do with it. The editor is Chalel el Chari, a native writer, and a poet of fine culture and ability. He is the author of a volume oi Arabic poems, which have given him much reputa- tion among iiis people. The contents of his journal are made up of loreign and domestic news, miscella- neous items, paragraphs of wit and sentiment, topics of trade, and advertisements. The miscellany pre- sents a great variety of subjects, including literary, scientific, industrial, and moral essays, as well as long serial tales, continued from number to number. Consuls from all parts of the world are accredited here, and it gives me much satisfaction to state that the United States is ably represented by I. Augustus Johnson. He and his accomplished consort leave undone nothing which it is in their power to accom- plish to add to the security, comfort, and happiness of their countrymen while travelling through or sojourn- ing in this land. Mrs. Johnson is an excellent lin- guist, and a ready writer. Some of her published works on the Holy Land may be found in many of the public and private libraries in the United States. Our country is much indebted to Mr. Johnson for ob- taining the final verdict and decree against the Arabs who committed the gross outrage on the ladies of the family of the Hev. Mr. Dixon, and murdered his son- in-law, at Joppa, in 1859. The sentence was death on the criminal who committed the murder, imprison- ment for life, at Constantinople, of his four accom- plices, and indemnity, in the amount of twenty-live hundred dollars, to the family of Mr. Dixon and the widow of his son-in-law. If these offenders had not 240 IN BEIROUT. been punished for this flagrant act, it would have been unsafe for Americans to have travelled through the country thenceforth. We resided, while we remained in Beirout, at the j Belle Vue Hotel , situated just outside the walls of the city, and near the sea-shore. It is a most de- lightful spot — the heat of summer being tempered by cool sea-breezes. The luxurious uir of tranquility which surrounds it is apt to tempt a weary wanderer from the Holy Land to linger longer here than the time he has to spare will admit. It is with satisfaction I am able to state, that we were made to feel ourselves quite at home through the courtesy and attention of lt*s popular and efficient proprietor. We availed ourselves of the opportunity presented to us while at Beirout, to visit all its public institu- tions, and places of amusement and interest. The chief recreation of the inhabitants, and which seems to afford them the most pleasure, is to be found at their coffee saloons, where they go to hear stories and fables, told to them by men who evince much tact and talent in relating them. It is not un frequently the case that these professional story-tellers have the power of moving, by the character of their narratives, their hearers to laughter or tears. Often, too, when they reach the most exciting point in their story, when their hearers’ feelings are wrought to the high- est pitch, they break off their tale abruptly, declaring they have no time to tinisli it then, but will conclude it on the following day. This wily proceeding on their part is calculated to induce the hearers to re- turn at the appointed time, and, perhaps, bring with them a friend or two. In this way the business of the saloon is increased and its patrons secured. It is thus that, in alLthe cities and towns throughout this eastern country, the men spend their leisure hours. Their women are confined to the harenft, and are not allowed to participate in these amusements. EXCURSION TO DOG RIVER. Ml CHAPTER LII. EXCURSION TO DOG RIVER. Image Carved from the Rock— St. George and the Dragon— Lycus of the An- cients— Dangerous Pass— Emblems— Egyptian and Assyrian Tablets--Stone Bridge-Aqueduct— Pic nic— Cyprus Vine— General Morris’ Song, “ My Mother’s Bible ’’—Ottoman Troops. Several parties were made up for ns by the resi- dents of the city while we were with them ; and, on one occasion, a riding company of eight or ten ladies and gentlemen was got up for an excursion to Dog River — which derives its name from the image of a dog being carved out of the solid rock at that place — eight or ten miles from the city, and a very popu- lar wort for residents and strangers visiting the town. We passed, on our way thither, the spot where it is alleged that St. George, the holy knight, killed the dragon. The scene of this mythical event, according to other ancient legends, took place in Cappadocia, and was performed by a prince of that country, who delivered, by his achievement, Aja, the king’s favor- ite daughter, from the fangs of the dragon which had attacked her. But this legend is more likely to have originated here, since it arose during the time of the Crusaders, whose favorite battle-grounds were in this locality. Indeed, the ancient Christian emperors bore upon their shields the figure of the knight, typical of Christianity, slaying the dragon, which represented Mussul maoism or heathenism. The great bay which lies in front of the spot where the dragon was killed, 11 EXCURSION TO DOG RIVER. 242 has for centuries been called by the name of St. George. As we passed along the beach, we saw, within a space of five miles, the hulls of seven large vessels that had been wrecked in some of the violent tem- pests which visit this boisterous coast. In the vicinity of Dog River— the Lycns of the an- cients — our course along the beach was arrested by a precipitous and rocky promontory jutting into the sea. It was over this headland that a road had been cut through the rocks at an early day, which was subsequently enlarged and improved by the Romans when this country was one of their provinces. At present, there are only slight traces left of the old road ; but several granite columns, which were used as mile stcnes, still remain. The path itself is barely wide enough to pass over on horseback in single file. The ladies of our party here dismounted and walked the remainder of the way, deeming it unsafe to pro- ceed farther with horses. It was over this road that the Egyptians, Phoenicians, Persians, Assyrians, Bab- ylonians, Greeks, and Romans marched and counter- marched their innumerable hosts for a period of four thousand years. Carved on the smooth face of the rocks bordering this highway, are several Egyptian and Assyrian em- blems, and a Latin inscription, nearly in a perfect state, which proves conclusively that the road wus built in the reign of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, surnamed the stoic philosopher, who was crowned emperor in the year 121 a.d., and who died at Sirmium in 180. There are three Egyptian and six Assyrian tablets cut in these rocks, each of a differeent size and shape, but all large enough to contain figures the size of life. One of the Egyptian emblems is square at the ends and ornamented with a corni ce ; another is square EXCURSION TO DOG RIVER. 243 at the top and corniced, within which a small figure can be discovered ; and the third, which is in a toler- able state of preservation, contains a figure with the right hand elevated and the left crossing its breast. Of the Assyrian tablets, one is very much defaced, two are in a measure preserved ; two others, which are rounded at the top and set, as within frames, re- tain their original appearance. In one of these a fig- ure is quite distinct, with an arm raised, and the right hand grasping at something which is too indis- tinct to be satisfactorily decided upon as to its char- acter. The remaining Assyrian tablet has a figure, robed in a long dre^s, with a curled and pleated beard, and a conical cap on its head. This is similar to the figures contained in the monuments in Nine- veh. The Egyptian tablets were, no doubt, made in the time of Sesostris, for Herodotus says that “ Sesostris, according to the account of the priests, on his return from his conquests on the Red Sea, led a mighty army by land through Asia, and into Europe, reducing and subduing all the nations which he met on his march. He erected columns in the conquered countries, on which lie inscribed his name and that of his nation, and how the countries had been conquered by the force of his arms.’’ He further says : — “The greater part of these pillars which Sesostris erected in places which he conquered, are no longer to be found; some of them I myself saw in Palestine and Syria, v’th in- scriptions which I have before mentioned.” There is a slight appearance of hieroglyphic characters up m these tablets ; but they are not now sufficiently dis- tinct to be deciphered, as they were at the time He- rodotus saw them. After we had examined with much attention these interesting relics of a past age, we descended the hill to a stone bridge of three arches, which was appar- 244 EXCURSION TO DOG RIVER. ently as fresh and fair as on the day of its erection, centuries ago. It may have been used, when first constructed, for wheel carriages ; but that it has not for many years been thus employed is evident from the fact that there are no vehicles in the country. Our attention was next called to an ancient aque- duct, built, I have no doubt, at the same time the road and bridge were constructed, and which is still in a good state of preservation. The only use to which the water that now flows in it is applied, is to drive several small grist-mills near the sea shore. Our party, after having examined carefully these interesting antiquities, enjoyed a pic-nic entertain- ment on the banks of the river, in full view of the Mediterranean. Here we were served, by the atten- dants who accompanied us for this purpose from Beirout, with all the delicacies which the country af- fords, including several choice native wines; as also some from the island of Cyprus. The latter is much appreciated here, and has a classical reputation abroad. During the entertainment, one. of the ladies favored the party with the ballad of “ My Mother’s Bible,” written by our best and noblest lyric poet, General George P. Morris, whose numerous songs and ballads have found sweet singers in every quar- ter of the globe. This ballad, so touching in its char- acter, and suggestive of home scenes, was received with swelling hearts and moist eyes by many of those who heard it. Upon its conclusion, we rose from our seats and drank the health of its distinguished author in a flowing bumper. We encountered, on our return to Beirout, a large body of Ottoman troops, clad in a uniform not un- like that of European troops. Their baggage and provisions were carried on the backs of camels. I observed, as we rode along, several of the camels struggling in the quicksands on the beach, into which FROM BETROUT TO TRIPOLI. 245 they had sunk under their heavy burdens, and from which they were obliged to be drawn by the soldiers. The officers, very civilly, ordered their troops to make way for us as our party passed them on the march, and testified their approbation at the ease and skill with which our ladies guided their spirited and well- trained Arabians. CHAPTER LIII. FROM BEIROUT TO TRIPOLI. Departure from Beirout- Captain Passeragoroff— Honors Paid tJs by an Ame- rican Vessel— Stars and Stripes— Passengers— Lebanon Mountains— Rus sian Steamers — Tripoli — Fortifications— Orchards— Druses and Maronites— Land of Promise. We left our comfortable hotel at Beirout on the eighteenth of June, at five o’clock p. m., accompanied by our host, for the Russian steamer Pallas, under the command of Captain Passeragoroff, bound for Constantinople. The steamer was to sail at seven o’clock the same evening; but, owing to the necessary repairing of a leak in the boiler, which had fortu- nately been discovered prior to the time of starting, we did not leave until one o’clock the following day. As our steamer turned her course seaward, the captain of a fine American vessel from Boston, whom I had met at the office of the •United States Consu- late at Beirout, and whose bark lay at anchor near our steamer, lowered, or dipped, the American flag several times in compliment to us, and in order to bid us adieu. Our attention was directed to this pro- ceeding by the captain of the steamer, whereupon my daughter and myselt went aft, and waved our handkerchiefs in return for the honor paid to us. It seemed to me, that at no time in the course of 246 FROM BEIROUT TO TRIPOLI. my life, had the sight of the Stars and Stripes of my country ever had so cheering an effect on my spirits, as when, on that occasion, they rose and fell before my eyes, their beauty undimmed, their number un- broken. It caused me to feel that even in that re- mote part of the Old World, I was still under the protection of my beloved country. I had seen that flag borne aloft in the smoke of battle, and watched its unfolding in the breeze of peace ; but never had my heart before so warmed at the sight of it. This compliment was afterward often referred to by the other passengers in the course of conversation as a pleasing incident. Among the few first-class cabin passengers on board of the steamer, was a Russian princess, a most accom- plished and elegant lady; a pasha of one of the prov- inces of the Ottoman empire; and four learned pro- fessors, who had been sent out by their respective governments for scientific purposes, and in search of ancient manuscripts. We passed our time most hap- pily, in this reiined and agreeable society, during our long voyage, the passengers all speaking the French languag * fluently Besides these passengers, the second cabin and the steerage contained a large number; while, on the quarter-deck, were between twenty and thirty fami- lies of Mussulmans — some of them with two wives, and others with many more. The faces of the wives, and even the black maid-servants, were shrouded with thin veils. These people reclined in rows on the deck upon their matting and cushions, and. covered themselves with blankets, which sufficiently kept from them the night dews. They lay with their feet rest- ing against the sides of the* vessel, and their heads toward the centre of the deck. None of them entered into either cabin, but remained on the outside both night and day. FROM BEIROUT TO TRIPOLI. 217 We reached Tripoli, in Syria, the evening of the same day we left Beirout. The Lebanon Mountains rise precipitately from the shore for nearly the who ! e distance, and their towering summits, covered with ice and snow, form a grand and imposing feature of the scene) y. The road, or rather bridle-path, between Beirout and Tripoli passes along the beach, and over occasional spurs of the mountain where it projects into the sea. The Russian line of steamers stop at all the towns on the coast of Syria and Asia Minor, in order to take in and discharge passengers and freight. For this, and other reasons which might be named, this route is preferred by all tourists who desire to view this classical coast and the numerous ancient cities on its line, the greater portion of which are now, however, in ruins. The captain of our vessel extended every indulgence to his passengers to enable them to exam- ine, at the various stopping places, such objects as are deserving of consideration. The Russian and Prus- sian Consuls, wherever we stopped, united with the captain in extending civilities to us which we proba- bly would not have received had we taken any other line. Tripoli, anciently Tripolis, is the capital of a pacha- lic ot the same name, in Syria, and is distant from Damascus seventy-live miles, and from Beirout forty miles. It is situated on both sides of the river Kadi- sha, at the foot of the branches of the Lebanon Mountains, and on the edge of a small triangular plain, which extends between them and the sea. In its vicinity are numerous orchards of kmons, oranges, apricots, and apples, and the plain is covered with mulberry-trees, which support the silk worms — the E roduction of silk being the staple of Tripoli. The ouses are of stone, and are large and convenient. The landing-place is two miles from the city, where 248 FROM BEIROUT TO TRIPOLI. there is a small town called El Mina. There is no harbor, but a roadstead, defended from the action of the sea by islands. The country in the immedate vicinity of the city is strown witli ruins. The town was destroyed by the Mussnlmen in 1289, after a siege of thirty-five da vs. The victorious army entered the city, fire and sword in hand, and seven thousand Christians fell under the arm of the conqueror, while all the women and children were carried away into slavery. Not only was the popu- lation exterminated, but the sultan gave orders to burn and demolish the city ; and the ruins at this present time show how faithfully his commands were executed. The rich and gorgeous palaces and public edifices, for which the place was distinguished, with its numerous silk manufactories, where upward of four thousand looms were in daily operation, and which were famed for producing the finest and rich- est kind of silk fabrics, were also broken up and. totally destroved. The towers and lortitications which surrounded the town on all sides, and which were deemed impregnable, met with a like disastrous fate ; for there now is only one dilapidated fortress remain- ing, and that was built by Count Raymond in the twelfth century. It is now all that remains for the defence of the place. The population of this once large and flourishing commercial and manufacturing town is reduced to sixteen thousand souls, and these are composed of various nations ; but Greeks and Turks form the bulk of the inhabitants, as they do of most of the cities of Syria. The only tribes which can be consid- ered as peculiar to Syria are the tenants of the heights of Lebanon, the most remarkable of which are the Druses and Maronites. These tribes often engage in cruel wars with each other on account of their reli- gion. The language of the whole country is Arabic, FROM BEIROUT TO TRIPOLI. 249 but the soldiers and civil officers of the government speak that of Turkey. I am told that no traces of the ancient Syriac language remain in the country. It was on the sea-coast., and in the interior, that the Assyrians, Jews, Greeks, Parthians, Egyptians, Romans, Saracens, Crusaders and Turks, struggled at different periods for possession of the country. Here Ninns, Semiramis, Sesostris, Alexander the Great, Pompey, Antony, Caesar, Titus, Aurelian, Godfrey of Bouillon, Richard Coeur de Lion, Saladin, Napoleon, Mahomet Ali, and others, in turn, led powerful armies against the Syrians, whose territory extended from the Tarsus Mountains on' the north to Arabia Petraea on the south, and to the Euphrates and Great Arabian Desert on the east. The southern portion of this country was the Scripture “land of promise,” the home of the Israelites and the cradle of Christianity. It was this once beautiful region, with the numerous commercial towns on the sea- board and the wealthy cities of Damascus, Baalbec, Palmyra, and Antioch, that excited the cupidity of these warriors, and led them to overrun the land with their armies, and after devastating it with fire and sword, to leave it in ruins; in which condition, at this present time, it still remains. Such are the sad results which wars have produced on this ancient and once powerful country ; and such, in short, will ever be the result upon all states and kingdoms where wars sweep over the land. That my country may be preserved from such a fate shall be my prayer through life. 11 * 250 FROM TRIPOLI TO LATAKIA. CHAPTER LIV. FROM TRIPOLI TO LATAKIA. Fertility of Syria— Hospitable Greek— Cyprus— A Greek See— View from the City — Entertainment by the Russian Consul — Also by the Prussian Con- sul — A Charming Feast — Loaves for Plates — Farewell Antioch — Selucia— The Apostles. The country of Syria, at this day, is as capable as it ever was of producing the large crops for which it was once famous. All that is necessary to effect this result, and to encourage the laboring classes, is a stable government. Its valleys are most fertile, and will yield, when cultivated, an abundant supply of grain, tobacco, cotton, and fruits of all kinds. We received, during our stay in Tripoli, an invita- tion to an entertainment given by a wealthy Greek. Ilis wife presided in a most gracious manner, and evinced, by her bearing, that she was not only a highly educated and accomplished lady, but possess- ing refined and elegant tastes. AYe were served with all the delicacies which the East affords, and which are usually offered to guests on such occasions. Two of her children attired in the Grecian costume, were presented to us, and were told that we were strangers from a far distant land. They were permitted to re- main in the room with 11s, and behaved in a most charming mannei. AYhen our vessel had received on board its cargo, we immediately sailed for Latakia. Our course lay between the island of Cyprus and the main-land, and for a part of the way that beautiful and classic isle was in full view. FROM TRIPOLI TO LATAKIA. 251 As soon as the steamer cast anchor in the harbor at Latakia, the freight to be landed was removed into lighters, which came along-side for that purpose. The passengers availed themselves of the opportunity thus presented to visit the city and neighboring coun- try. Latakia, anciently Laodicea, # is a seaport town of Syria, one hundred miles north of Tripoli, and sev^ enty south of Antiochus. It is a Greek bishop See, and is situated at the base of a small promontory, projecting into the Mediterranean. The town is at least two miles from the harbor. Tobacco is raised here to a large extent, and is, indeed, the staple com- modity. The place is subject to violent earthquakes; one, in 1796, destroyed a great part of the town and two thousand of its inhabitants were killed. In 1822 another overthrew a third part of the buildings. Tne view, from the city, of the sea and surrounding coun- try, is very beautiful. The buildings are chiefly of stone, and are well constructed. Sparkling fountains are to be met with in the better class of buildings, diffusing a refreshing coolness throughout the apart- ments. - The mode of living of the inhabitants is in keeping with the style of their dwellings, and they possess the manners of those accustomed to the ele- gances and refinements of social life. We received while here an invitation to an enter- tainment at the Russian Consul’s. Horses were sent to the wharf for us, and we were welcomed to the elegant mansion of the Consul in a most cordial man- ner. Here we met the Bishop of the See, the Amer- ican Consul, and a large number of fashionable peo- ple. A dejeuntr 4 la fourchette, in the Oriental style, was served to the guests. We also received, while in Latakia, an invitation to visit the gardens of the Prussian. Consul, whose wife, a Greek lady, possesses most captivating and lovely manners. We left the city shortly after breakfast with a com- 252 ER0M TRIPOLI TO LATAKIA. pany of about sixty ladies and gentlemen, for tbe re- sidence of the consul. A fine Arabian horse, richly caparisoned, and well broken to the saddle, had been set apart for my own use, so that I enjoyed the ride exceedingly. The country vilUof the consul was four miles from the city, and the road the entire distance perfectly smooth and level. Every gentleman was attended by a serving-man, who ran by the horse’s In aid, and the ladies were each furnished with two. The grounds of the consul were handsomely and tastefully laid out, and the basin of a noble fountain was constantly kept filled with water, which is used to irrigate the garden ; without which assistance no- thing will grow in this climate, owing to the scarcity of rain. The consul has devoted much time and labor to the cultivation and embellishment of the grounds surrounding his beautiful mansion. We were conducted through his extensive orchards, the trees of which were loaded with fruits of many varie- ties, and of the choicest kinds, which we plucked at pleasure. While we were occupied in rambling about, preparations were made by skilful cooks, brought from the city for the purpose, for a grand feast. Two fattened wethers were slaughtered and roasted whole; game and fowl of every description, prepared in a variety of ways, with other dishes, were also served. A table was placed beneath the wide-spreading branches of several olive-trees, standing close together, in order to protect the company from the heat of the mid- day sun ; orange leaves were scattered over the table instead of a cloth ; plates, knives, and silver forks were provided for the European part of the company, and rural benches for seats. To these seats we were conducted with great ceremony, while the natives sat upon the ground in a line with the table. The bread, which is of an excellent quality, not only served them for food, but also supplied the place of plates. The FROM TRIPOLI TO LATAKIA, 253 bread consisted of round cakes, at least a foot in di- ameter, and readily lield the food placed upon it. About sixty persons sat down to this entertain- ment, each having a servant near by to attend to iiis wants. The mutton seemed to be superior to any I had ever before eaten, which may have been owing either to the manner it was cooked, or to the rare appetite which my ride had given me. We were also served with various delicacies of the country, and some excellent wines. There was such genuine hospitality extended to us on this occasion, that I never enjoyed an entertainment of a like character more in my life. An hour before sundown, our horses were brought to us, and we were escorted tc the harbor by the entire company, who, in taking leave of us, wished us health and happiness, and a safe return to our re- spective countries. Late that night we resumed our voyage, passing the celebrated river Orontes, at its confluence with the sea, about ten o’clock, a. m., of the following day. It is on the banks of this river, twenty miles from its mouth that the ancient city of Antioch is situated, once greater and richer than Rome itself, and which was called the Queen of the East ; but often over- thrown by earthquakes, and, finally, in 1269, levelled to the ground by the Mamelukes. It was founded by Antigonus, a Macedonian, and a general in the army of Alexander the Great. It was captured by Seieucus in 301 b. c., and rebuilt by him with great magnificence. In one day one hundred thousand ot its people were slain by the Jews, one hundred and forty-fiveyears before Christ. It was long celebrated as being one of the first cities of the East. It is fre- quently mentioned in the New Testament, and the name of Christians was first given to the disciples of our Saviour in this city. Its population is now less than twenty thousand. 254 : ALEXANDRETTA AND TAR9US. We soon came in view of the city of Selucia, or all that remains of it. It was five miles north of the Orontes. This was the port of Antioch, as was. Ostia of Home. A rocky eminence, the termination of a range of hills called the Pieria, forms a picturesque site for the town, and overlooks the harbor. Here at Seleucia, “ in the midst of unsympathizing sailors, the two missionary apostles, with their younger compan- ions, stepped on board the vessel which was to convey them to Salamis.” With a fair wind, a few hours would enable them to run from Selucia to Salamis. The companions of Paul, in this tour, were John, Mark, the Evangelist, and Barnabas, who was a native of Cyprus, whither they were bound. CHAPTER LY. ALEXANDRETTA AND TARSUS. Seaport of Aleppo— Issus— Alexander the Great— Battle with the Persians — Colton’s Atlas — Mersin — River Cyduus — Tomb of Sardanapulas — Tarsus — Cleopatra — Her Visit to Antony — Mountain Passes. We arrived at Alexandretta, situated on the Isken- derun, formerly called Issus Bay, on the following morning. This is the seaport of Aleppo, and the nearest point from the sea-coast to the Euphrates, be- ing distant from the latter only seventy miles, which may be travelled with ease in three days. It is a small town, but is interesting, however, on account of its being within sight of the great battle-field of Issus, where Alexander the Great, with an army of only thirty thousand men, totally defeated the Per- sians, six hundred thousand strong, commanded by Darius. According to PJutarch the loss of the Per- ALEXANDRETTA AND TARSUS. 255 sians was one hundred thousand foot, and ten thou- sand horsemen. This battle occurred in 333 b. c. While Alexander was at Tarsus, he detailed a gen- eral with a part of his army to seize the pass of Syria, in order to secure it for his march. This pass is at the head of the bay, and lies between the foot of the Taurus Mountains and the sea. It is so very narrow, that a small body of disciplined troops could hold it against any number of undisciplined, particularly such as composed the Persian army. At the north of the pass lies the country of Cilicia, and at the south Syria. The battle-ground was barely wide enough for a small army to act and move ; so that, although Alex- ander had room enough to manoeuvre his entire army, the Persians had not space for the twentieth part of their forces. This circumstance placed, in some measure, the two armies on an equality. The battle- ground lay near the city of Issus. The right of Al- exander’s army rested beside the mountains, and the left on the sea shore. I was glad to have an opportunity, while our ves- sel was taking in freight, to make myself acquainted with the position and form of this great battle-held, so celebrated in the world’s history. The result of this victory for Alexander was to open the way for Jiis unparalleled success with the nations of the East which so rapidly followed this event. The steamer, having received its complement of freight and passengers, started on its voyage early in the afternoon. Our course lay toward the south, passing down this great arm of the sea, or bay, which is over fifty miles in extent. The bay is correctly laid down on the charts we had on board ; but those I had examined in the United States are far from be- ing correct in this respect. Mr. Colton’s Atlas, how- ever, contains a map of it nearer the truth than any 256 ALEXANDRETTA AND TARSUS. other 1 had seen. Cilicia lies on the right as we sailed down the bay, and Syria, which we were about to leave, on the left. The sea being calm, and the weather exceedingly pleasant, we passed most of our time on deck, examining everything we could discover upon the shores on both sides. There were on board the steamer several intelligent merchants from Aleppo, who were on their way to London on a trading voy- age. From these gentlemen I derived much valuable information respecting their beautiful country. We did not reach the end of the bay until after ten o’clock p. m., which late hour deprived us of the view of the promontory around which we sailed into the open sea again. Soon after breakfast, on the follow- ing morning, our steamer reached the harbor of the city of Mersin, in Cilicia. It is a small town, situated on the coast, and is the seaport of all that remains of Tarsus. The site of that ancient city is within five miles of this port, and can be seen distinctly from the deck of passing vessels. Its situation is enchautingly beautiful. It lies at the foot of a range of mountains, projecting into the great plain which forms a part of the Taurus chain. The plain stretches out several miles on the east, south, and west sides of the city, and nothing rises to intercept the view of it from the port. The celebrated river Cydnus, which runs through Tarsus, winds its way across these plains to the sea. Tarsus is said by Strabo to have been founded by Sardanapalus ; and we are also informed by Rollin, that when Alexander the Great passed at the head of his army through Anchiala, the tomb of Sardanapa- lus was then to be seen in that city, bearing this in- scription : — “ Sardanapalus built Anchiala and Tarsus in one day : Go, passenger, eat, drink and rejoice, for the rest is nothing.” Tarsus was afterward adorned by numerous mag ALEXANDRETTA AND TARSUS. 257 nificent temples, as well as with a gymnasium and theatre. Its inhabitants enjoyed the privilege of Ro- man citizens, and the city rose to great distinction, and uecame so celebrated for learning and refine- ment, that it was deemed the rival of Athens, Anti- och, and Alexandria, not only in wealth and grand- eur, but in the arts and sciences. It is venerated as having been the birthplace of St. Paul. Here, too, he was educated at its celebrated institutions, and bee one the most learned man of his day, if not the most learned the world ever produced. It was here that Alexander the Great came near losing his life by bathing, when over-heated, in the cold water of the Gy dnus. Here, too, it was that Cleopatra visited An- tony after the battle of Philippi, in all the pomp and pageantry of the oriental fashion. She was then but twenty-live years of age, and, as the historians of the day inform us, combined, with extraordinary beauty, great wit and the highest elegance of manner. She appeared on that occasion in a magnificently decor- ated barge, which, as Shakespeare says : — “ Like a burnished throne, Burned on the water : the poop was beaten gold : Purple the sails, and so perfumed that The winds were lovesick with them: the oars were silver ; Which to the tune of llutes kept stroke, and made The water, which they beat, to follow faster. As amorous of their strokes. For her own person It beggared all description : she did lie In her pavillion, (cloth of gold, of tissue,) O’er-picturing that Venus, where we see, The fancy outwork nature : on each side her Stood pretty dimpled boys, like smiling Cupids, With diverse-colored fans, whose wind did seem To glow the delicate cheeks which they did cool, And what they undid, did. Her gentlewomen, like the Nereids, So many mermaids, tended her i’ the eyes, And made their bends adornings : at the helm A seeming mermaid steers ; the silken tackle Swell with the touches of those flower-soft hands, That yarely frame the office. From the barge A strange invisible perfume hits the sense Of the adjacent wharves.” 158 JERUSALEM. semane, Siloam, and Kedron. The northern part of it is called Jehoshaphat, and the southern portion Kedron. All travellers visit this valley with great interest. It varies in width from four to six hundred fe$t. The widest part is at the southern extremity where lie the king’s gardens. Tradition informs us that these gardens were laid out with much taste, and covered with groves and flowering shrubs ; but at present only a few old trees remain of all its former magnificence. These gardens were irrigated by the waters of the pool of Siloam, as related in the third chapter of Kehemiah, thus showing that this pool is of a very ancient date, and that the entrance to it from the city of David was by a private stairway. The walls of the city have undergone great changes since that period, but this celebrated pool still re- mains, at. the junction of the Hinnom with the Kedron valley, at the foot of the Mount of Ophel. It was of the fountain of Siloam that our Saviour said, addressing the man who had been blind from his birth, “ Go, wash in the pool of Siloam from whence he returned with his sight restored. Here, too, stood the tower of Siloam, which, falling, killed eighteen men. It was near this pool, when Jesus was told of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with liis sacrifices, he made use of these memorable words : — “Suppose ye, that these Galileans were sinners above all Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell ye nay; but except ye repent, ye shall all like- wise perish.” It is impossible for any one to visit so- venerated a shrine without feelings of the deepest emotion. I ascended the hill of Ophel, on one occasion, from, this pool ; there is no regular pathway, but as, the ac- cent is a gentle one, the distance being about siixteen. hundred feet, I experienced no difficulty in- making my way. The thermometer, I found, ob* reaching th& JERUSALEM. 159 top, stood at eighty-five degrees. From this point I obtained several fine views of the valley and the sur- rounding country. But to return to the narrative of my walk up the celebrated valley. On proceeding a short distance beyond the pool, I came to the Mount of Corruption, Scandal, or Offence, situated on the southern slope of the Mount of Olives.. It was here that Solomon, in his old age, became as ingloriously distinguished for his effeminacy and folly as in his youth he was re- nowned for his wisdom. Here he built a high place for Chemoh, the abomination of Moab and Moloch, of the children of Ammon, and likewise for all his wives, who burnt incense and sacrifices unto their strange gods. This place is now the site of Siloam, doubtless called so in consequence of its being situated opposite the fountain of that name. Sometimes, however, it is called the Sepulchral village. I think, myself, it might, with propriety, still be called the Place of Abomination, for its present inhabitants are nor, es- teemed the most honest in Judea. The sepulchres cut in the solid rock at this spot are now used as pla- ces of abode by the villagers. I passed on foot with much difficulty through this village, in descending, on one occasion, the Mount of Olives. There is no regular street or path through it. Its dwellings rise step-wise on the side of the mountain, which, in some places, is quite precipitous. After leaving this village, I passed up the valley to the Fountain of the Yirgin, or King’s Pool, situated on the eastern side of the hill of Ophel, below the south-east angle of the walls of the city. There are some persons who maintain that it is the pool of Be- thesda, because of its being an intermittent fountain, rising and falling at irregular intervals, which they say were indicative of the u troubling of the waters. 5 ’ These waters, though slightly saline, are constantly 260 RHODES AND SCIO. CHAPTER LYI. RHODES AND SCIO. City of Rhodes— Its Former Greatness — Seat of Ancient Wars — Sieges it has Undergone — JEgean Sea — Disconsolate Artemisia — Mausolus — Temple of Diana— Isle of Chios — Greek and Turkman — Marco Bozzaris — Halleck’a Noble Tribute — Scio. The ancient city of Rhodes still stands on the same site where it was first founded, four hundred and eight years before the birth of Christ. It is pleasantly sit- uated on the northern point of the island of the same name, opposite Asia Minor, and within fifteen miles of its shores. The town itself is strongly fortified with three walls, and is considered, by military men, impregnable. The island is guarded along its entire coast by mountains, which rise abruptly from the sea-shore to a great height, and the only plateau of land which borders upon the sea, so far as I could discover, is on the north side, and upon which the city is built. The largest portion of the present town lies outside of the walls, and is connected by scattered resiliences, with several handsome villages, on its eastern side, which Dang, apparently, upon the side of the mountain. The view which we obtained from the deck of our vessel, as we were nearing the port, of the villages, the city itself, with its turreted walls, and the sur- rounding country, was exceedingly beautiful. For several centuries this city was celebrated for the extent of its commerce and its powerful naval force, which gave her the command of the seas. Her authority was respected by all nations, and her rnari- RHODES AND SCIO. 261 time code was universally approved and used as au- thority in deciding marine disputes among most of the surrounding nations, and this now forms the basis of the maritime regulations winch govern the whole of modern Europe. At the period when Rome was the acknowledged mistress of the world, Rhodes was one of its provinces, and during the war of the Cru- sades it became particularly distinguished. After the Christians were driven from Palestine, the Knights Hospitallers took up their residence for a short period at Cyprus, where they planned the at- tack upon this island, and, under the command of their Grand Master, they successfully carried out their purpose. For two centuries thereafter, viz. : from 1310 to 1525, it remained the head-quarters of the order, from whence went forth armies which car- ried death and destruction to the infidels. Twice the knights, unaided, bore the shock of an attack from the entire forces of the Turkish empire. At the first siege, the Turks were signally defeated, their loss amounting lo nine thousand killed and thirty thou- sand wounded. In 1522, when the Sultan Solyman besiege ! it in person at the head of an army of up- ward of two hundred and fifty thousand men, it was defended by Villiers de l’Isle Adam, supported by only six hundred knights, four thousand five hundred men-at-arms, and a corps of volunteer militia, with a devotedness and bravery commensurate with the is- sue at stake. They fought with an ardor bordering on enthusiasm; even the women joined in the battle. They successfully repelled every assault, and it was not until the fortifications were nearly demolished, and the ammunition and stores exhausted, that the brave knights accepted the terms of honorable capitulation which the Tmks were glad to offer them. This victory cost the Mahommedans ..one hundred thousand men left dead upon the field of combat. 262 RHODES AND SCIO. The knights who remained after the battle, accom- panied by four thousand Rhodeans, departed soon afterward from this place, and founded for themselves and their subjects a new home on the island of Malta. The place where once stood the great brazen col- ossus, which in its day was esteemed one of the seven wonders of the world, was pointed out to me ; but there are no traces now remaining of it. After leaving Rhodes, we sailed along the coast of the beautiful island of Cos, one of theSporades group, lying west of the promontory of Doris, and renowned as the birthplace of Apelles, the great artist, and Hip- pocrates, the celebrated physician. From thence we continued our voyage through the charming group of the Cyclade islands, in the H^gean Sea, which sur- rounds, as with a girdle, the isle of Delphos, and pass- ed between the island of Patmos, celebrated in sacred history as having been the place of exile of St. John, and the city of Halicarnassus on the continent, once the residence of the kings of Caria. It was in this city that the disconsolate Artemesia, three hundred and three years before Christ, erected a monument, to celebrate the memory of her deceased husband Mausolus, whom she tenderly loved, which, as regard- ed architectural beauty and magniiicence, was so far superior to any ever before erected, as to be included among the seven wonders of the age. This costly pile was called Mausoleum, in honor of her deceased lord, and by that name are all costly tombs known even at the present day. Here, too, the celebrated historian, Herodotus, was born, and Dionysius and Heraclitus, i remained gazing upon the site of this interesting city until the promontory of Doris intercepted my view of it. We continued our course between the island of Samos and the ancient city of Ephesus, once the com- mercial emporium of Asia Minor. Here stood the RHODES A. NT) SCIO. 263 temple of Diana, which, for ages, was constantly thronged with devotees from all parts of the world ; but now the streets of this once renowned city, for- merly crowded with the worshippers of the goddess Diana, and afterward, when the city became the head of the Apostolic Church in Asia, filled by pilgrims from every part of Christendom, are laid waste and turned up by the ploughshares of Ottoman serfs ; nor is there a single Christian church or an ancient struc- ture remaining to testify to its former grandeur and magnificence. We stopped at the island of Chios.* the Scio of to- day. Its population in 1822, before the dreadful mas- sacre of its inhabitants by the Turks, exceeded one hundred and fifty thousand souls ; and it was, at that date, one of the best cultivated and most flourishing islands in the Archipelago. We were favored with an invitation to visit the ruined villages which were destroyed by the Turks during that memorable war. These commence at a short distance from the port, and extend, with small space between each, for up- ward of ten miles from the city. We had an agree- able ride to that point on horseback, and stopped at various places on the road to examine the ruins scat- tered around. The dwellings were undoubtedly large and gorgeously finished, and well calculated for the entertainment of guests, for which hospitable trait the inhabitants were especially distinguished. The grounds, in many instances, are still surrounded by high stone walls, which enclosed the dwelling, and isolated it, to some extent, from its neighbor. At least thirty thousand out of the seventy thousand Creeks who were put to the sword, or carried into captivity, or sold for slaves, during that cruel war, resided in these ill-fated villages. The dilapidated condition of these once flourishing suburbs are calculated to excite the most melancholy 264 RHODES AND 8CIO. feelings in the breasts of tourists ; for it is impossibly to dismiss from one’s mind the recollection which his torv reveals of the terrible slaughter its peaceful in- habitants were subjected to on that occasion. It was to me a source of some interest to know that there are still living on those islands those who re- member with gratitude the arrival of the American vessels, loaded with provisions for the suffering poor, sent as a gratuity to the nation by the United States Government, during the struggle of the Greeks for liberty. 1 recalled to mind, as I stood amidst the ruin wrought by the Moslem hordes, the memory of a brave and valiant Greek, who, it is said, dwelt for a time in one of these now desolated villas, and whose name has gone down to posterity, blazoned in history, and embalmed in song. I repeated, with no little emotion, the following lines, written by one of our no- blest bards, Fitz-Greene llalleck, upon the death of Marco Bozzaris, the Greek chieftain, whose home was once here : Bozzaris ! with the storied brave Greece nurtured in her glory 's time, Rest thee I there is no prouder grave, Even in her own proud dime. She wore no funeral weeds for thee, Nor bade the dark hearse wave its plume, Like torn branch from death's leader tree, In sorrow's pomp and pageantry, The heartless luxury of the tomb : But she remembers thee as one Long loved, and .or a season gone ; For thee her poet’s lyre is wreathed, Her marble wrought, her music breathed ; For thee she rings the birthday bells ; For thee her babes lirst lisping tells ; For thine her evening prayer is said * At palace couch and cottage bed ; Her soldier, closing with the foe. Gives for thy sake a deadlier blow ; H is plighted maiden, when she fears For him. the joy of her young years. Thinks of thy fate, and checks her tears ; And site, the mother of thy boys, Though in her eye and faded cheek Is read the grief she will not speak, The memory of her buried joys, RHODES AND SOIO. 2G5 And even she who gave thee birth- Will, by their pilgrim-circled hearth, Talk of thy doom without a sigh , For thou art Freedom’s now, and Fame’s ; One of the few, the immortal names, That were not born to die. We were graciously and hospitably entertained at one of the beautiful mansions which was saved from destruction at that terrible period by a superb Greek lady, distinguished for her polished manners and in- tellectual attainments. I considered her to be a fair representative of the ancient Sciotes, who were cele- brated for their great personal beauty and winning ways. The entertainment prepared for us embraced all the delicacies the island afforded, including some of its choice wines, for which it has been long justly celebrated. It is said that the inhabitants of Scio were the lirst to cultivate the vine for the purpose of wine-making, it being taught to them by Oneopan, the son of Bacchus, and by them communicated to the rest of mankind. After spending the afternoon in a most agreeable manner, we took leave of this amiable lady and her charming family, and returned to the port. At one of the best saloons in the town we were served with some choice coffee, and received every attention from an obliging host. Soon afterward, we embarked and departed from this island, once called, “ The Flower of the Levant,” and at another period entitled, “The Paradise of the Archipelago.” 12 266 SMYRNA. CHAPTER LVII. SMYRNA. Arrival at Smyrna— Episcopal Church— Dancing Dervishes— Their Services — Form of Prayer — Shakers — Bay — Homer’s Birth-place — Ruined Castle- Mi *ed Races — Greek Costume — Harems — Bazaars — Railroad — Taurus Mountains. Our course from Scio was toward the ancient city of Smyrna, which place we reached on the following morning. It was on the Sabbath-day we arrived in the city, and we availed ourselves of the opportunity presented of attending divine service in the morning at the Episcopal church. There was a large and attentive congregation present, composed chiefly of Europeans and Americans. The sermon, an eloquent and impressive one, was pronounced in the English language. In the afternoon, we attended a meeting of dancing dervishes. Attached to their place of worship is a large sitting-room, with cushioned seats around the sides of the apartment, to which we were conducted to await the opening of the meeting; and while there, we were served, as is the custom, by attendants be- longing to the church, with coflee, at the expense of the congregation. As soon as the church was opened, we were invited into it, and given seats in the north gallery, although the members of the church were not provided with such accommodations. The chief sheik, or priest, first entered, and advan- ced to the alcove at the east end of the church, where he remained standing for a short time with his face toward the east. He then dropped upon his knees, SMYRNA. 267 bending bis body forward and kissing the floor seve- ral times in succession. Immediately after this the members entered, each bearing a richly dressed and ornamented sheepskin in his hands, on which they knelt in rows from north to south across the church, with their faces toward the priest. Their form of prayer is very much like that of the Mohammedans. The congregation remained for some time in prayer, each repeating them to himself. They then rose to their feet, and while removing their sheepskins, the sheik and three of the officers kneeled upon the floor, in the middle of the church, two on the north and two on the south side, fronting each other, with a sufficiently open space between them to allow the members who came late to pass to the altar, where they offered up their prayers, and then knelt to the sheik in order to kiss his hand. If this privi- lege is extended to them, they are forgiven for arriv- ing late ; but if not, they must atone for their offence in another way. The congregation, in the mean time, arranged themselves near their priest in the form of a half moon, and commenced singing, howling occasionally, and bending their bodies gracefully first to one side and then to the other, keeping time with the music. After this, all the members joined hands around four of the principal officers of the church, the shiek hav- ing previously resumed his place at the altar. They again commenced singing and dancing around the persons within the circle,- and it seemed to me that the longer they could dance, and the louder they could shout, c ‘ Ya-lia, or ya-allali, 5 ’ the greater is the merit. The dance continued on this occasion until they were apparently exhausted, when first one and then another would leave the room, and put on his coat, for they danced in their shirt sleeves, and finally 268 SMYRNA. the service was concluded and the congregation dis- missed. This service resembles, in some respects, that of the Shakers of our country, with this difference, how ever, that the latter is attended by both sexes, who take part in it, while women are excluded from join- ing in the exercises of the former. They are, how- ever, allowed to go into the gailery, on the south side of the church, which is separated from the open building by a lattice-work — thus they are enabled to look down upon the congregation, while they them- selves cannot be seen from below. My daughter sat at my side during the services, and was treated witn entire respect. Candor compels me to say that I saw nothing in the deportment of any of the members of the congregation that would lead me to believe they were not wholly sincere in their worship. The meei- ing closed early in the afternoon ; and on leaving the church, which stands on the most elevated point in the north-eastern part of the city, we were surprised with the grandeur of the view before us. The exten- sive bay, the harbor crowded with vessels from every part of the world, lying at short distances from the wharves, and the city itself filling the space which sloped gradually between us and the water — pre- sented a combination of effects surpassingly beau- tiful. This town is of great antiquity ; but like the an- cient kingdom of Lydia, of which it once formed a portion, its early history is little better than a fable. The whole of Asia Minor is full of historical associa- tions. More than twenty different dynasties have succeeded each other, and after flourishing for a pe- riod, have disappeared, leaving scarcely a trace be- hind. Homer, who is claimed as having been born here, has rendered, in his song, this country, and everything relating to it, forever memorable. SMYRNA. 269 Old, however, as this cit} r undoubtedly is, the only ancient work of art remaining in it is the ruiu of a castle on the summit of an eminence at the north- eastern part of the city. From this point a command- ing view of the town and the surrounding country can be obtained, which will well repay a traveller for his labor in visiting it. The city rises several hundred feet above tide water. The streets, like those of ah oriental towns, are extremely narrow, and carriages are seldom seen in them. Its population exceeds two hundred thousand, and is composed of Turks, Greeks, Jews, Armenians, and a few Europeans. There are numerous mosques and churches within the limits of the city, and one large and exceedingly beautiful synagogue. This city has for centuries been the most important as regards the trade of the Levant of any of those in the east, and is the residence of the con- suls of all commercial nations. The trade is carried on both by vessels and caravans from Asia Minor, Syria, and Bagdad. The town has the reputation of being exceedingly healthy ; yet it has been repeat- edly ravaged by plagues, and also several times de- stroyed by earthquakes. Its exports are cotton, fruits, opium, rhubarb, drugs, oil, madder, Turkey carpets, wool, wax, etc. Smyrna is not inappropriately termed the Paris of the Levant. There is much refinement in its society, and the women are beautiful. The Greek costume is graceful, and gives to the ladies an air of elegance. They are usually to be seen in the morning, seated on the piazzas at the rear of their dwellings, with the street doors open, and surrounded by a prolusion ot flowers, the cultivation of which gives them pleasura- ble employment. They seem to be quite as willing to be gazed on, as they apparently are to see all that is passing in the streets of this gay metropolis. The Turkish ladies have no privileges of this nature accot v 270 SMYRNA. ded to them. They are confined to their harems, and if thgy look out at all upon the moving throng which fills the streets below them, they can only do so through grated windows. The bazaars attract all classes of citizens and stran- gers at certain hours of the day ; and the casinos or club-houses are also pleasant places for travellers to visit. I received an invitation while in Smyrna to make an excursion into the interior, by the railroad now constructing at this place. This road will, no doubt, before many years elapse, be completed to the Euphrates, if, indeed, it be not extended still farther. It is now in running order for a distance of sixty miles. Mr. Thomas Burt, the engineer of our vessel, had also been invited ; but we, unfortunately, did not reach the station in time, the cars having left only a few moments before we arrived. This was much to my regret, for 1 had a great desire to travel over a portion of the interior of this interesting country, and the cars would have taken us to within a few miles of the ancient city of Sardis. This railroad is con- structed under the direction of English engineers and Irish laborers. It will, I doubt not, add much to the business of the old city when completed. The Taurus mountains, which begin at Lydia, run the whole length of Asia, and assume different names among the different nations through whose country they pass.. This range of mountains cuts off all com- munication from the interior with the sea, except by difficult and dangerous passes, so that the greater part of the produce of this rich and fertile country must either find its way to this port by the Black Sea, or by caravans. The moment this road is opened its entire distance, a new impulse will be given to the industry of the country. FROM SMYRNA TO CONSTANTINOPLE. 271 CHAPTER LYIII. FROM SMYRNA TO CONSTANTINOPLE. Departure from Smyrna — Mitylene — Choice 'Wines — Sappho— The Lesbians— Trojan Coast— Mt. Ida — Old Troy— Agamemnon— Grecian Fleet— Tomb of Achilles — Dardanelles — Xerxes — Leander and Byron — Arrival at Con stantinople— Hotel D’Angleterre. The captain, having taken in his freight, summon- ed his passengers on board, and we were soon under way, sailing down this charming bay, which is fully sixty miles in length. I remained on deck until we had passed the headland of Fokai, and turned our course toward the island of Mitylene, one of the gems of these western waters. As a place of learning, this island once rivalled Athens and Rhodes. We reach- ed it early in the afternoon, and on arriving in the city, I was honored with an invitation to spend the evening at the Russian Consul’s. His elegant man- sion is pleasantly situated on the promontory near the fortress, which fronts the great bay of Adramyt- tium. There are several picturesque and beautiful villages hanging upon the declivities of the mountains south of the city, adding greatly to the pleasing fea- tures of the landscape. After partaking of some of the choicest wines of the island, which the citizens claim to be far superior to that of any produced in other countries, we walked through both towns, com- mencing with the Grecian city which lies by the sea- shore, on the north of the promontory, and then through the Turkish town, which is situated on the south side by the port. We visited the bazaars, and, indeed, every locality of interest in both cit es, and were much pleased with the display of rich goods 272 FROM SMYRNA TO CONSTANTINOPLE. which the merchants took pleasure in exhibiting to ns. This celebrated island has given birth to many illustrious persons, among whom are included Arion and Alcaeus, lyric poets, Lysander, and Sappho, the mother of the Grecian lyre. The poems of the latter are characterized by great delicacy of sentiment and poetical inspiration, and embrace some of the finest specimens of ancient sonnets which have descended to us. The following verses are in the best vein of Sappho’s muse : Blest as the immortal gods is he, The youth that fondly sits by thee, And hears and sees thee all the while Softly speak and sweetly smile. ’Twas this deprived my soul of rest And raised such tumult in my breast ; For while I gazed, in transport tost. My breath was gone, my voice was lost. My bosom glowed ; the subtle flame Ran quick through all my vital frame ; O'er my dim eyes a darkness hung, My ears with hollow murmuring rung. In dewy damps my limbs were chilled ; My blood with gentle horrors thrilled ; My feeble pulse forgot to play — I fainted, sunk, and died away. All of the productions of these writers have heen lost to the world except a few examples of Sappho’s lyre. The Lesbians were particularly celebrated among the ancients for their skill in music. The mount from which Sappho, when slighted by her countrymen, cast l^rseif into the sea, was pointed out to us, while sailing along the coast. Homer speaks of this island under the name of Lesbos, and as being well inhabited in his day. We resumed our voyage early in the evening, bound for the Trojan coast, which we reached at nine the next morning. The captain ran his vessel as near FROM SMYRNA TO CONSTANTINOPLE. 273 to the shore as was safe for him to do, and sailed be- tween it and the island of Tenedos. He very kindly placed the chart of the coast before me, and imparted to me all the information he possessed in relation to that classic region. There stood, not nine miles distant, Mount Ida, in bold relief before us, and at its base old Troy once reclined. In examining the coast, as we sailed along, for a beach upon which the Greek navy may have been drawn, I could discover nothing but high banks, which also formed the characteristic of the shores for some distance beyond Tenedos. Our attention was attracted first to the main land, and its extensive plains, then to Tenedos, which once asserted the claim to the honor of having given birth to Aga- memnon. There is nothing to be seen upon this isl- and but a poor wretched town of five thousand inhab- itants. The country presented a barren appearance, and there was not a single tree or shrub to be seen upon it. But its present condition is a matter of little consequence, for it will ever be distinguished as the island b.ehind which the Greeks concealed their forces at the time of the Trojan war, until the wooden horse had obtained entrance into the city, as we learn in the Odyssey, and from Yirgil. It was no great distance from this island, as we advanced along our journey, that I observed a beach sufficiently capacious to have accommodated the Grecian fleet, and it may have been here that the boats were drawn up. The country be- tween the sea-shore and Mount Ida, and between it and the Dardanelles, is an extensive plain. It was here that the Greek and Trojan armies marched and countermarched, and here, and under the Avails of Troy, and on the sea-coast, they engaged in their san- guinary conflict, so eloquently described by the great lyric poet of ancient times. As we continued on our course along this ever me- morable coast,- we came in sight of the tumuli, said 12 * 274 FKOM SMYRNA TO CONSTANTINOPLE. to be tomb of Achilles. It required no one to point it out to me, for it stood in full view from our vessel, and, after examining it, no one can doubt its great antiquity. My undivided attention was given to examining every point of interest on the coast of Troy and the surrounding country, until we arrived at the -mouth of the Dardanelles, where we were obliged to wait until a permit was obtained, allowing us to proceed on our voyage up this ancient river. The British Consul of Gallipoli came on board at this point, and, being familiar with every locality on the main, lie kindly pointed out to me the very spot where Xerxes constructed the bridge of boats, and the point from whence Leander and Byron swam across the river from Abydos to Sestos. The place where it is said the bridge was built is admirably cal- culated for the passage of a large army into Europe. There is an extensive opening, or plain, at this point, on the European side, through which troops could march into the country, or enable them to encamp on the banks of the river ; while just above it, the shores are high, presenting serious difficulties in the way of moving an army. I remained on deck during the whole day, while we sailed up this renowned river, and did not go below until it was so dark that I could no longer see the shores. Our vessel stopped some time at Gallipoli, on our voyage up. This line town is interesting to all trav- ellers as having been the first place in Europe where the Turks acquired that dominion which they so rap- idly extended, and which became so disastrous in its consequences. We arrived at Constantinople the following morn- ing ; and some time before we reached this great city, some one on board, who evidently was under great excitement, cried aloud, u Constantinople ! behold FROM SMYRNA TO CONSTANTINOPLE. 275 Constantinople !” much to the amusement of the more self-possessed passengers. When I hastened on deck, Stamboul and Pera, in Europe, and Scutari, in Asia, were in full view. The former and latter are the residences of the natives — Pera being appointed for the occupancy of strangers, or Franks, as all foreigners are indiscriminately termed. The city, as viewed from the deck of our vessel, seemed to me to have been appropriately styled by the poet, “ Queen of the Morn —Sultana of the East !” W e sailed near to its walls, along the coast of the Marmora, and cast anchor in the far- famed Golden Horn. After taking leave of our num- erous friends on board, some of whom were bound to Odessa in Russia, we landed within the enclosure of the custom-house, where, to our surprise, we were not detained by the officials searching our baggage, but al- lowed to proceed up a narrow paved street to the summit of the Pera mount, which is at. least four hundred feet high, and thence to the Hotel d’ Angle- terre, one of the best public houses in the place. We were given a fine suite of apartments, where I intend- ed to remain quiet for a few days, until I had recov- ered from the fatigue, of my long voyage. But His Excellency, James Williams, resident minister from the United States, who is accredited here, honored us with a call in the afternoon, and requested ris-to make him a visit at his summer house. We left on the fol- lowing morning in a steamer for his hospitable man- sion, where we were most cordially welcomed by Mr. and Mrs, Williams. The village of Buyukdereis the summer residence of the diplomatic corps accredited at the Court, which circumstance renders the place one of the most fashionable in the vicinity of Con- stantinople. It is situated about two miles from the Black Sea, which is in full view. The shore of the 276 CONSTANTINOPLE. Bosphorus, on the European side, is lined with a suc- cession of handsome villages extending from Con- stantinople. CHAPTER LIX. CONSTANTINOPLE. First View of Constantinople — Deceptive in its Character — Mosques — Grand Seraglio — Royal Mint — Remains of Antiquity — Spiral Column of Brass— Constantine's Palace — Marcian Column— Founding of the City— Popula- tion- Fountains— Dams— Croton vs. Belgrade— Ancient Cisterns— Bazaars -Police Regulations -Healthfulness of the ity — Baths — The Sultan — His Dominions— European Ministers— Native Newspapers — Suburbs — Sweet Waters — Mr. Williams — O^-Carts— Four-in-hands— On Cushions -Sultanas —Amusements— Military Honors— Fourth of July— Patriotism— Speeches — Prophetic Words. The first view of Constantinople, which I obtained from the deck of the vessel as we approached the city standing in bold relief on its several hills, in the form of an amphitheatre, gave me high expectations of its grandeur. Its picturesque beauty and oriental adorn- ments, with its gorgeous palaces, and the graceful minarets of its mosques, attract the notice of all trav- ellers they come near it from a distance, and natu- rally impress them with the idea that in its beauty it stands unrivalled among the cities of the world. On entering its precincts, however, although one is grat- ified with every thing that meets his eye, neverthe- less, his high expectations of its grandeur will, in some respects, be disappointed. The streets are nar- row, and those running up the hills from the seashore or river, are steep, ill paved and difficult of ascent. The dwellings are chiefly of wood, painted red, and are low, unsightly structures. The mosques, of which there are several hundreds, (with the exception of Achmet, Sultan Mehemet, and St. Sophia,) will not excite notice. It is, however, due to candor to state CONSTANTINOPLE. 277 that the glowing descriptions given by travellers of the architectural beauty of the two former mosques, and the historical associations connected with the last, are by no means exaggerated or undeserved. They are rich and beautiful edifices, and cannot fail to attract the attention and admiration of all tourists. The grand seraglio is surrounded by a wall, sur- mounted by square towers toward the sea, and is three miles in circumference. It occupies the entire site of the ancient city of Byzantium. This palace now affords a place of dignified retirement for the Suita- nee’s of deceased monarchs, and of seclusion for the male members of the royal family. The Royal Mint stands within this enclosure. From its lower garden there is a view of the most charming description over- looking Princess Island, the Sea of Marmora, ancTan extensive region of Asia. The horizon being bound- ed by the Giant Mountain on the one side and the snowy summit of Olympus on the other. The Grand Mosque of Achmet stands on one side of the great oblong square, called the Hippodrome, formerly the course for chariot races, as its name im- ports, located on the summit of Stainboul. The few remains of antiquity within the limits of the city, are chiefly found in this square. In its cen- tre rises an obelisk of granite, sixty-five feet high, which came originally from Thebes.'* At no great dis- tance from it is a pyramidical column one hundred feet in height, formerly covered with brass, which was brought from Rhodes. A spiral column of brass, called the serpentine, eleven feet high, covered with entwining bronze serpents, whose heads formerly sup- ported the golden tripod, consecrated to Apollo, af- ter the defeat of Xerxes, occupies a conspicuous place in the square, and is especially deserving of notice for the reason that it once stood in the celebrated Temple of Delphi. 278 CONSTANTINOPLE. On the south side of the square stands all that re- mains of Constantine’s palace ; and at a short distance from his forum is a porphyry column of the Doric or- der, brought from Rome by Constantine himself. Besides these relics of ancient grandeur, there stands, on one of the hills, the Marcian column, fifty- two feet high, in an excellent state of preservation. Fine en- gravings have, however, been executed of these relics, and may be obtained of any of the print sellers in the country. They give a correct idea of those remarka- ble curiosities. The Turks destroyed all the ancient buildings of the Greeks and Romans, and availed themselves of their materials for the construction of their own pub- lic edifices — consequently all that remains of the an- tiquities of the city itself are presented to the eye under entirely different forms and constructions, in their mosques and other buildings. Some of the im- perial mosques have no less than six minarets, form- ing a striking and pleasing feature in their architect- ural arrangement. The superb works of art I have enumerated are of great antiquity, and lend, by their presence, a lustre and renown to this vast commercial emporium. This city was founded within a century after the building of Rome, and was captured by that nation as early as ld3 b. c. It now forms, in my opinion, the richest, and by far the most important part of the Ottoman Kmpire. It contains, including its suburbs — the neighboring towns lying on the Bosphorus — a popu- lation of upwards of one million of people. Its natu- ral advantages, and its situation as a commercial town, surpass, beyond all question, that of any other city in the Old World. The architectural proportions of the Turkish fount- ains, which are, comparatively speaking, modern structures, are exceedingly chaste and beautiful, CONSTANTINOPLE. 279 These are scattered over the city in every direction, so that yon meet them in whatever course your steps may take you. They are an indispensable requisite to every mosque, as before the Turk prostrates him- self in prayers, he must perform his ablutions. There are about the fountains drinking vessels of copper, filled with cool water for the thirsty passengers ; these are kept clean by men appointed for that purpose. Most of the fountains are built of marble, with elab- orate arabesque ornaments, and Chinese-like roofs, rendering them very beautiful objects. The w T ater which supplies them and the city at large, is brought from five artificial lakes, formed by stone dams, laid in water cement in the most, substantial manner, across the mountain streams in and about the forest of Bel- grade, at a distance of from twelve to fifteen miles. These dams are noble structures, and though they have been standing for centuries, look as fresh and firm as the day they were finished. The water is conveyed from these lakes to the city by subterra- nean aqueducts, built by the Emperor Valeus. There are several tastefully arched bridges on its route, which convey the water across ravines ; and, also, several suterage, or hydraulic pyramids, placed at regular intervals, and ingeniously constructed to over- come the inequalities of the surface of the country between the lakes and the city. I visited some of these lakes, which reminded me of the artificial Cro- ton lake in Westchester county, State of New York, that supplies the great metropolis of the New World with pure and wholesome water. The Croton dam is, in my opinion, a much more scientific work, in every respect, than are either of the dams in the Bel- grade forest. Besides the water is carried from the Croton lake to~New York city, a distance of forty miles on an inclined plane, requiring no hydraulic machinery to overcome the natural inequalities of 280 CONST ANTINOI LE. the land. I have examined carefully all the works of this character on my journey through Europe and Asia, and I think that New York can boast of its aqueduct as being superior to any work of the same kind either of ancient or modern times. There are several .ancient cisterns or reservoirs within the walls of the city, which were always kept full of water, in order to supply the capital in case of a siege; but these the Turks now seem to neglect, for they are no longer employed for the purpose for which they were designed. One of them, however, is still an object of much attraction, to which all trav- ellers are conducted. It is a vast subterranean edi- fice, formed by excavation. Its arched roof is said to be supported by one thousand and one columns. It is of great depth, and access is gained by a long flight of steps under the city itself. The reservoir is capa- ble of containing fourteen millions six hundred thou- sand gallons. There is another cistern, extending under several streets, the roof of which is sustained by three hundred and thirty-six columns. The one built by Constantine is of a later period of construc- tion, and is by no means as extensive as the last named. The bazaars of the city far exceed in splendor those of any other eastern city that came under my obser- vation. Tha narrow streets, in which the bazaars are situated, are covered, apparently under one roof, with numerous domes, which afford them sufticient light in a fair day. The shops or divisions are very small ; each vends one kind of merchandize only, that is to say, at one, cotton goods ; at another linen ; at anoth- er carpeting ; at another cashmere shawls, and so on, almost ad infinitum. There is only one salesman employed at each of the shops. These bazaars are a fashionable lounge, from the opening of the gates in the morning until they are closed in the evening. CONSTANTINOPLE. 281 The police regulations for the city are of the most stringent ch#acter. No person is permitted to travel through the streets after dark, without a pass, and then he must carry a lighted lantern. If he be found without one he is committed to prison. The streets, consequently, at an early hour of the night, are hushed and solitary ; and for want of lamps are in total dark- ness. The police regulations throughout the city, particularly in Stamboul, the Turkish quarter of the town, are vigorously enforced. The situation of the city being, upon hills, not only adds to the beauty of its appearance, but gives salu- brity to its climate, which is pure, temperate and de- lightful. The city requires no extravagant expendi- ture to keep its streets clean, as is the case with most other cities, for every Tain sweeps off all the accumu- lated dirt into the river or sea. Its citizens maintain that it is one of the healthiest cities in the East, and physicians declare that its inhabitants are never known to be afflicted with rheumatism. This they attribute in part to their constant use of bathing es- tablishments. The process of bathing is as follows : Having undressed in an ante-room, a cloth is bound around the loins, and woollen slippers placed on the feet; the bather is then conducted, first, into a mod- erately warm apartment, and, after remaining there a short time, he proceeds to an adjoining chamber, heated to a high degree. Here he is required to lay down on raised planks placed on the floor, where he remains until he falls into a most profuse perspiration, when the attendant commences the operation of sham- pooing, by rubbing the body and limbs thoroughly. This done the bather is placed by the side of a font, and the water thrown over him, when he is at the same time rubbed with a coarse towel. During this process scented soap is profusely used. The body is then carefully enveloped in warm linen, with a tur 2S2 CONSTANTINOPLE. ban for the head, formed of a towel. In this condi- tion he is reconducted into the room fir«t mentioned, and seated in a reclining ottoman. Here he is fiir- nislied with a further supply of warm linen, and in- dulges in lemonade, coffee, etc. When he has recov- ered from the effects of the vapor bath he resumes his own garments again. Twenty-five cents is all that is charged for the bath and the services of the attend- ants. As social society is altogether unknown in the city, excepting in the foreign diplomatic circles, and as there is no theatre or public place of resort within the city, most travellers visit these luxurious baths as they do the club-houses of other cities, in order to enjoy the bath and spend a few hours in these elegant apartments, and also to partake of such refreshments as their taste or inclination may dictate. Formerly the Sultan gave no public audience or entertainment to the diplomatic corps, and at that day it was with much difficulty that the ambassadors •could obtain an interview even on public business ; but they are now frequently invited to dinners at the palace. Besides, he has of late conferred on them and the consulate corps judicial powers throughout his dominion for the trial of their own countrymen ; consequently when a foreigner is charged with having committed any offense against the laws in the grand Sultan’s dominions, instead of subjecting him to a trial for the offence, he is handed over to the minister or consul of his own land for trial. The diplomatic corps, ‘however, are still deprived of all social enjoy- ments, excepting among themselves and their own countrymen who may visit the capital of Turkey. I understand that most of the European ministers at Constantinople are also accredited as ministers at the Court of Athens, in Greece, where they are fa- vored with a refined and charming society, which they CONS'! A.NTINOPLE. 283 enjoy in a high degree ; perhaps the circumstance that they are deprived of such pleasures in Constantino- ple, gives an additional zest to their enjoyment. Con- sequently their lime is divided between the two courts, I am at a loss to see why this privilege is not accorded to the ministers of the United States, more especially since it would not materially add to the expenses of the mission. I find that the Sultan has recently yielded his consent to the publication of one or more newspapers in this city. They are usually printed in four distinct languages, and are to be met with in all the public houses. The suburbs of the city extend along the shores of the Bosphorus to within two miles of the Black Sea. Several gorgeous palaces are to be seen on each bank of the river, as you sail from the Sea of Marmora. There are a number of fine steamers constantly ply- ing between the city and Buyukdere, which stop on their way at various intermediate places. The river is often thronged, especially on festive occasions, with caiques or small boats, that, for neatness and elegance, are excelled only by the matchless gondolas of Ve- nice. Some of the boats represent sea-horses, dol- phins, carriages, and a variety of fanciful forms. The Pasha’s and ambassadors are rowed by ten pair of oars, and their caiques cut through the water at an almost incredible speed. The boats of the ministers are kept at the expense of their respective govern- ments. I had the pleasure of sailing in one of them with our distinguished minister, Mr. Williams, and his family, on several occasions. We attended during a festal day a gathering at the Sweet Waters on the Asiatic shore, near one of the Sultan’s superb palaces. The fountain, from whence flows these sweet waters, stands near the Bosphorus, and is the richest in orn- ament and the most substantial in structure of any I found either in the city or its vicinity. The valley is 284 CONSTANTINOPLE. admirably calculated for an occasion of this charac- ter. It is quite extensive, and, like the parks of Eng- land and France, has drives and walks of several miles in extent. Here we saw sundry expensively gilded carriages, each drawn by a pair of oxen, gau- dily caparisoned and wearing small looking-glasses on their foreheads. Four sultanas were seated in each carriage, guarded by as many eunuchs. Carriages were never patronized by the successors of the Prophet until the present representative as- cended the throne. The Sultan is now occasionally seen riding in an English phaeton, and driving four- in-hand extremely well. There were assembled in the valley many Mahom- edan ladies, who were seated on cushions, ranged in rows, spread under the shade of fine old sycamores, that grew in front of the fountains. Sufficient space was, however, left between the rows and the fountain to permit the free passage of the eunuchs, who sup- plied their ladies with water and a variety of refresh- ments, which are always offered to them on festal occasions. The faces of the ladies were covered with thin gauze ; but through this material their features were easily discernable. Their complexion wore a sickly, pallid hue, produced in a great measure by their manner of life. They were attired in superb dresses of gaudy colors, but well disposed and partic- ularly becoming. Their hair was decked with dia- monds, and curiously plaited into an embroidered piece of gauze around the head. The pure, or sweet water, as they call it, which flowed from this sparkling fountain, rendered the spot selected for their repose refreshingly cool and inviting. The goblets, orna- mented with has -relievos of flowers, which were passed around to them filled with water, brought to my re- ccllection the inimitable ode of Horace, addressed to CONSTANTINOPLE. 285 the Fountain of Baudusia. I give an extract from it, as translated by rare Ben Johnson : “ Fountain, whose waters far surpass The shining face of polished glass, To thee, the goblet, crowned with llowers, Grateful, the rich libation pours: When the fierce dogstar's fervid ray Flames forth, and sets on fire the day, To vagrant flocks that range the field, You a refreshing coolness yield; Or, to the labor- wearied team, Pour forth the freshness of thy stream. Soon shalt thou flow, a noble spring, While in immortal verse I sing The oak, that spreads thy rocks around, From whence thy babbling waters bound.” Our party walked in front of the ladies thus seat- ed. Two of Mr. Williams’s daugl iters preceded us a few steps, one of whom is perfectly beautiful, and yet so modest and retiring in her deportment, that she seemed unconscious of her captivating charms, which were so great as to attract the attention even of the Mahommedan ladies, one of whom beckoned to her, as she was parsing, to approach. Miss Williams, in compliance, knelt by the side of the beautiful Sulta- na, who immediately embraced her in the most affec- tionate manner. It was a beautiful sight to behold, and attracted the attention of thousands of spectators, who all seemed delighted with this pleasing incident. Miss Williams, on taking her leave of the Sultana, bowed most graciously, and she in turn waved her hand with much dignity and grace. We remained for some time at the side of the road to look at the ladies in the carriages as they passed, and then- turned off to enjoy the various amusements which were enacted on every side of us, and in front of the ladies before the fountain. The peculiar char- acter of the amusements, the singular appearance of the booths, the vast crowd with their outre costumes, and the confused mingling of strange tongues which rose above all other sounds, gave one an impression 286 CONSTAVTTNOPLE. of being in the midst of a grand masquerade. Some were performing remarkable feats on the tight rope ; others were engaged in still vaulting and ground and lofty tumbling; others were reciting plays for the amusement of the spectators, and still others were oc- cupied in witnessing exhibitions not unlike that of 44 Punch and Judy,” which are often to be met with iiPthe streets of London and Paris. It was, in fact, a great gala day, and I was highly gratified with all that came under my observation. The crowd was very great, but I witnessed no disorderly conduct among them, and all appeared pleased and happy. We left at an early hour in the afternoon fora sim- ilar exhibition on the European side of the Bospho- rus, about seven or eight miles from Constantinople. Here, too, we found an immense but orderly assem- blage, composed of both sexes, listening to a play performed by three men. The ladies present were veiled and stood on one side, while the men re- mained on the other; and all seemed to enjoy the en- tertainment exceedingly. After the play ended, the people in the immediate vicinity passed to the 44 Punch and Judy” stand, while others gave their attention to various amusements going on here and there of a like character to those we witnessed at the sweet wa- ters. There were no carriages present, although we noticed several gentlemen mounted on superb and spirited Arabian horses. On our return to Mr. Williams’s mansion at Buy- ukdere, and while sailing near the shore, the military at every station turned out on the wharves, formed themselves in line, and saluted, bv presenting arms, the American flag which waved above us. Mr. Wil- liams, in return for the honor conferred, raised his hat, which seemed to gratify the soldiers exceedingly. 1 attended, while at Constantinople, the celebration of our national anniversary with Mr. Williams and CONSTANTINOPLE, 287 family. It was held in a beautiful valley on the A.si^ atic side of the Bosphorus, and at least one hundred American ladies and gentlemen were present. A ta- ble was spread under the shade of the wide-spreading branches of several sycamore trees, the growth of centuries, and which afforded us a refreshing defense against the heat of the noon day sun. Mr. Williams presided, assisted by our worthy dragoman, Mr. Brown. It was more like a pic-nic entertainment than anything I can compare it to, for each family brought with them a goodly supply of provisions. Many of the gentlemen present were missionaries from the United States, who have long been stationed in these regions, and who rank deservedly high as learned divines. Their wives and daughters were no less distinguished for their attainments than for their refinement and charming manners. It was a joyous occasion to us all. A fervent and impressive prayer for our beloved country was offered by one of the missionaries present, the Rev. Mr. Dwight, since deceased, and the American Ambassa- dor and Mr. Brown both delivered eloquent addresses; short and patriotic speeches were also made by others of the assembly, and on being called upon myself I submitted the following remarks: “ She spectacle before me of so many Americans gathered in this beautiful valley, far distant from their beloved coun- try, to celebrate with befitting ceremonies its national anniversary, makes a deep impression on my mind, and one which will never be eradicated so long as life shall last. As one of the humblest of the American citizens present, I thank the great sovereign of this mighty empire, embracing as it does within its limits, portions of Europe, Asia, and Africa, for the privi- lege granted to the citizens of the United States here resident, thus peaceably to assemble with their wives and children on this joyful occasion to celebrate a 288 CONSTANTINOPLE. day which ought ever to be held in remembrance and observance by every true and patriotic American, whether he be at home or abroad. I concur most heartily in the sentiment expressed by our distin- guished resident minister of this Court, in regard to it being the duty of every loyal American to unite with his fellows in their endeavors to preserve the union of the States unimpaired. Dead must that American be to every sentiment of gratitude to the country that gave him birth, and conferred upon him, by its Con- stitution, the right to be secured the full enjoyment of life, liberty and property, if he should at any time be indifferent to the preservation of that Govern- ment, and false to that Constitution, which promises him an equal right with the restof his fellow c'tizens, in its administration : for in a Republic the people are the only acknowledged sovereigns. No nation, however remote from another, can be secure from foreign aggression, since commerce makes rivals of them all, and thus excites national jealousy which oftentimes leads to aggressive acts : but, as it has ever been the policy of our Government to preserve peaceful relations with all the world, we need give ourselves little uneasiness from danger of foreign in- vasion seekit^ its overthrow. But as regards a disso- lution of the Union through domestic dissensions, as was the case with ancient Rome, I confess to have serious fears, still I religiously trust that such a disas- trous calamity will be averted, and the noble ship of Siate ride safely through all storms which may assail it. The causes which led ».o the overthrow of the Roman republic, that mighty Empire which was once termed the mistress of t lie world, do not exist in the United States. Our Republic differs from others, whether of ancient or modern times, in many vital particulars; and especially from that of Rome — for all the powers of that Government were concentrated in the city of CONST A NTINOPLE. 289 Rome. The elections for the choice of their officers were held in the camp of Mars ; the inhabitants of the distant provinces had no voice in their election, nor even in selecting the officers by whom they were governed, and yet they were obliged to provide for the support of the army and navy, sent from Rome to keep them in subjection, and likewise pay tribute to the great Republic. Besides, the governors of the various provinces enriched themselves by the monies extorted from the inhabitants under the guise of taxes, which were made both frequent and exorbitant, insomuch that the people were finally reduced to want. Plow differently constituted our Government is, in this respect, to that of ancient Rome, I have scarcely need to declare : with us a State, however remote its location may be from the seat of General Government, or however short a time it may have been admitted into the Union, enjo} 7 s all the privi- leges accorded to the oldest State in the Republic. Oregon, whose shores are washed by the Pacific, and which lies west of the spot where we now are, and almost within hailing distance of us, has the same rights secured to its citizens as have the States of Virginia and Maryland, within whose lap, as it were, the seat of Government rests. If, moreover, the Government should have occasion to send an army into any one of the far western States to put down an incursion of the Indian tribes which not unfrequently occurs, or to suppress a mob, or servile insurrection, all the expenses are defrayed by tl\e entire Union, and not by the State which has been the speiie of trouble. u It is not, therefore, a matter of wonder, that the citizens of the Roman provinces were always seeking an opportunity to shake oil* their yoke, when we con- sider how oppressed they were, and how little unlike our national Union was their Republic; we may 13 290 CONSTANTINOPLE. rather wonder they submitted as long as they did to their oppressors. As our States have no similar canse of complaint, and as the General Government is always ready ‘to redress any grievances which a sin- gle State may have, it certainly seems to me, that if proper care and fairness is exercised in the guidance of our State affairs, the Union — to build up which our forefathers fought and bled, and the successful ac- complishment of which we have this day assembled to celebrate — may endure forever. “It is, however, a source of deep regret to me, that we are not, as a nation, exempt from all domestic difficulties. We cannot close our eyes to the fact that we possess a few discontented spirits who would gladly behold the dissolution of the Union, its glo- rious galaxy of stars reduced, and its vast boundaries narrowed and cut down. The mass of the people, however, both North and South, if they could be allowed to h ive their way, would courageously op- pose any attempt at disorganization ; but, owing to the numerous false issues that are made on both sides, it is seriously apprehended that, unless our rulers shall exercise a wise and prudent forecast, in their endeavors to avert such a calamity, even many of us now present may live to witness our happy country become the scene of a bloody and fearful war, such as the world, in her darkest hours of terror, has never witnessed. As it was true of the Grecians, centuries ago, that 4 when Greek meets Greek, then comes the tug of war,’ so will it be with the Americans of to-day if ever .civil war arises and they are divided, house- hold against household, brother against brother. Deadly and long, I fear, will be the combat, and what the end will be none can tell. 44 It does not require a prophet to predict that any attempt that may be made — and which has more than once been threatened — by either of the States ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. 291 to secede from the Union, cannot be peaceably- effected, but will end most assuredly in covering our land with the slain bodies of her children, until our once happy and prosperous country becomes reduced to the same ruinous condition of western Asia, which has so often been overrun by cruel and devastating wars, the effects of which are still visible wherever the tourist bends his way. May Heaven, in its infi- nite wisdom and 'mercy, avert from our people a calamity so disastrous in its consequences, is my earnest and devoted prayer. “ Keep us, O God, from civil war, Let brothers not each other slay, But still the rising of the storm, And drive all angry thoughts away.” The whole affair passed off most happily, and before sun down the party left for Constantinople in one of the steamers which ply upon the Bosphorus. I returned to the city with this party, and numerous were the inquiries made by them concerning relatives and friends whom I chanced to know in the United States. Mr. Williams informed me that he was favored with visits once every two weeks from the missiona- ries and other families, and that in their society he and his household derived much pleasure. CHAPTER LX. ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. Lemnian W omen — Ncgropont — Thermopylae — Athens — Ruins — Harbour — Temple of Theseus— Athenian Soldiers — Theseus— Ancient Monuments— Arch of Adrian — Classic Plays. Having made every necessary arrangement for our departure from Constantinople, and engaged our pas- 292 ATHENS AND ITS EUINS. sage on a fine French propeller, plying regularly be- tween Marseilles and this city, stopping at Messina and Athens, in going and returning, we resumed our journey on the afternoon of the sixth of July. Rap- idly we sailed over the Sea of Marmora, down the Dardanelles or Hellespont, along the coast of Troy, and from thence crossing the Archipelago or ^Egean Sea to the island of Euboea, now called Negropont. We passed on our way the island of Lemnos, celebra- ted for two horrible massacr-es that occurred upon it, to wit: the Lemnian women murdering, their hus- bands, and that of the Lemnian or Pelasgi in killing all the children they had by their Athenian wives. These two acts of cruelty gave rise to the proverb of u Lemnian actions,” which has ever since been ap- plied to all barbarous and inhuman acts. The voy- age over these classic waters was made with the deep- est interest. The sea-coast on the right curves around from the Dardanelles to the Euboea, with numerous and exten- sive bays penetrating into the main-land, to a great extent, so that we looked in vain toward the shore in the hope of catching a passing glimpse of Pharsa- lia, Philippi, and other points on the coast no less in- teresting. The first land we made after leaving the Hellespont was the northern extremity of Negropont. Here, on the main-land opposite to this point, and at the foot of the (Eta mountains, is the pass of Thermopylae. The historical recollections connected with this cele- brated island, and especially its chief city, Chalcis, cannot fail of attracting the attention of the voyager to every inch of its coast, as he sails past it on his way to Athens. After passing around the headland of this famous island, and crossing the arm of the sea which separates it from Attica, we rounded the pro- montory of Sunium or Cape Colonna. This latter ap * ATHENS AND ITS EUINS. 293 pellation is derived from some ancient columns that are still standing thereon. Here we obtained our first view of the no less celebrated island of Salamis ; and while sailing up the bay of Egina, or Salamis, we had, from the deck of our vessel, a view of the most charming description of the ancient city of Athens, “ the Mother of Poetry and Wisdom of the World,” and likewise of the plains of Attica, which surround the city on every side. Pausanias, in his day, said that the spear and the crest of the statue of Minerva, in the Acropolis, might be seen from Sunium, which, in a straight line, is thirty miles distant from the city. The view of the ruins from the waters presents a striking contrast to what the city must lmve exhibited in its palmiest clays, when crowned with gorgeous temples and pala- latial editices, and surrounded by turreted walls. The entrance of the Piraeus, one of its ancient harbors, is narrow and winding, being contracted by two promontories; hut when we arrived with- in it I found it to be not only perfectly secure against the storms and tempests of this barbarous sea ; but a capacious and beautiful haven, capable of con- taining three hundred ships. This harbor was, at an early period, surrounded by a city abounding with temples, palaces and magnificent structures. There is, even at this day, a tine town built about if ; and, judging from the number of vessels at its wharves, it must enjoy a proportionable degree of mercantile ac- tivity. The city is situated about live miles east of the port, and, to my surprise, I found the road lead- ing to it perfectly level. I had always entertained the idea that there was quite an ascent between the port and the city ; but this is not the case. The road leads over an extensive plain, and the traveller cannot fail to observe, as he passes along, the remains of the foundation of the walls which were constructed on 294 ATHENS AND ITS "RUINS. both sides of this great highway. These walls were forty feet high, and sufficiently broad on the top to admit of two wagons to pass each other. Some of the enormous stones with which they were constructed are still found bordering the route to the city. The hill on which the Acropolis is situated towers above everything within the former walls of the city, and attracts the attention of the traveller as he ap- proaches it, whether he enters it from the direction of either of the points of the compass. This hill, at the time Cecrops first landed here, in the year 1571 b. c., was, no doubt, sufficiently extensive to contain his small colony, or, if not all, at least such portion of it as he relied upon to defend his people from foreign aggression. The ancients always selected high hills for the site of their towns, in order to prevent them from being battered by enemies On reaching the former site of the city we stopped at the Temple of Theseus, erected upon a small isola- ted elevation. This beautiful temple has been stand- ing two thousand three hundred and twenty-four years, and has always been regarded as one of the most exquisite specimens of ancient Doric architec- ture ever erected. Although somewhat injured by time, yet it may be regarded as being, comparatively speaking, still perfect. The eastern pediment and metopes are adorned with sculpture, as are, likewise, the four on the north and south sides. It has its six columns on either end, and its thirteen on either side, still standing. We entered the temple and examined many of the cnrious and interesting relics — embra- cing broken statues, reliefs and sarcophagi, etc. — for it is now converted into a museum. There are some tablets preserved here on which the ancients recorded the arrival and departure of vessels employed in any important service, together with the names of their commanders, achievements, etc. There are no build- ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. 295 ings, either public or private, standing near it, nor is it within an enclosure. While we were present a battalion of Athenian soldiers were being drilled in front of the temple, by a skilful drill officer, and we witnessed with gratifica- tion the manoeuvres through which he exercised his troops. The Acropolis is within a stone’s-throw of the temple, and towers far above it, as it does, in- deed, above every object near by. The historical ac- count of this temple is not uninteresting. Eight cen- turies after the death of Theseus, the Athenians sud- denly became ashamed of the ingratitude of their ancestors toward this great benefactor, in driving him out of Athens to die by violence in a foreign country. It was represented that his spectre had been seen engaged in fighting against the Medes at Mara- thon ; and Pytliia, the Priestess of Apollo at Delphi, having been consulted, directed the removal of his bones to Athens, -and that he should thenceforth be honored as a hero. Cimon, son of Miltiades, who was sent to Seyms to obtain his remains, brought them to the Pirgeus. The Athenians received them with pro- cessions and sacrifices, and entombed them on a height in the middle of Athens. The present temple, therefore, which was erected over the tomb, was finished about the year 465 b. o. It was unequalled in sanctity, except by the temple of Minerva in the Acropolis. Only a few ancient buildings are now standing, beside the temple of Theseus, which may be con- sidered perfect; of these the monument of Sysicrates, which was built three hundred and thirty-five years b. c., is particularly interesting on account of its being the earliest authentic structure of the Corin- thian order of architecture. There is no access to its interior, and it is only eight feet in diameter, and thirty-four in height. The Temple of the Winds, an- 296 ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. other, is an octagon tower, forty-four feet high, with porticos on the north-east and north-west sides, each upheld by two fluted columns. It was erected one hundred and fifty years before Christ, and has, conse- quently, been standing upward of two thousand years. The tasteful and beautiful archway of Adrian is also standing. This is fifty-six feet in height and twenty feet wide, and is built of white marble, richly orna- mented with sculpture. All tliaX now remains of the grand temple of Jupiter Olympus, the approach to which from the city was through this celebrated arch, are fifteen of its original one hundred and twenty Co- rinthian columns, each sixty feet in height by six feet in diameter at the base. This magnificent tem- ple, which contained the colossal statue of the god in ivory and gold, was the most superb specimen of the Corinthian order of architecture in the world. It was a half mile in circumference, and was said to be nearly equal to the temple of Diana at Ephesus. We passed around the Acropolis in order to obtain a view of it from every side, and to examine particu- larly all that is to be seen of the ancient theatre of Bacchus, and the Odeum, no less remarkable for its antiquity. The former is situated near the eastern extremity of the Acropolis, on the south side. It consists of extensive excavations on the side of the hill beneath the temple of Minerva. Several rows of circular seats, cut in the side of the rocks, are still visible. This grand theatre was built in the year 475 b. c., and was capable of containing thirty thousand spectators. Here the plays of -dEschylus, Sophocles and Euripides, were performed to admiring audiences. The Odeum, or Musical Theatre, was situated beneath the southern wall of the Acropolis, at the western extremity. It was erected by' Pericles, but demo- lished by Mithridates, and rebuilt with so much splen- dor by Herodes Atticus, that, according to Pausanias it surpassed all former buildings in Greece. ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. 297 CHAPTER LXI. ATHENS AND ITS RUINS CONCLUDED. The Odeum — Mount Pnyx — Cell of Socrates — The Acropolis — Temple of Vic- tory— Doric Columns — View of the City— Mars Hill— St. Paul — Ilissus— . The Modern Town- Climate— Rev. Mr. Hill— Palace and Surroundings -- Residence of the Hills — Milton’s Lines. All that now remains of the Odeum is the original excavation in the rock at the base of the hill. This building is said to have been capable of holding eight thousand spectators. There is a line- view of the Acropolis from Mount Pnyx. It was on this mount that Lord Elgin cleared away the earth and discovered the steps which de- fined, more clearly than heretofore known, the posi- tion of the Bema. These steps are still distinctly visible. Here the public assemblies were held. Here Pericles, Alcibiades, and Demosthenes, raised their voices. Here, too, the people were heard who complained of their tyrants. This city was called by the ancients u one of the eyes of Attica, the learned city, the school of the world, the common patroness of Greece.” The cell of Socrates is within a few steps of this forum, which is confined to three rooms, one of which is circular in form and cut out of the solid flint rock. As there is no doubt in regard to it^identity, all tour- ists visit it with the deepest interest and leave it with regret. Every step one takes in and about this an- cient city brings to his mind associations connected with the acts of its truly illustrious citizens. There is not a liill, or a rock, within or near its limits which 13 * 298 ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. has not a name inscribed upon the pages of history. But of all the places in or about Athens, the Acro- polis is the most deserving of attention. It stands in the centre of the city, on an isolated hill, three hundred and fifty feet in height, and one thousand feet long, by five hundred wide. Upon its summit stands the Parthenon or Temple of Minerva. Among the nume- rous public buildings none was more celebrated than this, which, after being burnt by the Persians, was rebuilt by Pericles. Its ruins still exist — a remark- able monument of the heroism and patriotism of the inhabitants* while its architecture displays great abil- ity in the builder. The length of the temple is two hundred and eighty feet, by one hundred in width. Of its once numerous Doric columns, which are six and a half feet in diameter at the base, and thirty-four and a half feet in height, only thirty-two are now stand- ing. The sculpture, of which, there was a great amount, and of the finest description, is all gone, ex- cept three horses’ heads in the corner of the eastern, and in a single group on the western, pediment, sup- posed to be — for the finer parts are obliterated — a Oecrops and his wife. The edifice called the Propy- laea, which was much admired by the Greeks them- selves, is still standing on the western end of the Acropolis and in front of the Parthenon, and while it served, at an early date, as a fortress or citadel, it was designed and used as the grand vestibule to the Parthenon. The approach to it from the west, is by sixty short steps of seventy feet in width, and the portico is sixty-nine and a half feet broad, supported by six Doric coliTmns, each five feet in diameter at the base, and twenty-nine feet in height. The rub* bisli which covered these steps and portico, while the city was held by the Turks, has been removed, and the work is stdl going on about the building. A large number of laborers were employed while we ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. 299 were there, and new and important discoveries were constantly being made. The only buildings now re- maining upon the Acropolis are the Temple of Vic- tory and the Erechtheum, both in ruins. The form- er, whieh was almost entirely destroyed, has had its materials preserved, and its restoration is now being completed. The latter temple was formerly a large building, said to have been the palace an'd residence of Erechtheus, who married the daughter of Cecrops, and it was afterward used as the. residence of the kings of Attica for several centuries. From this temple the sovereigns of Athens could look down on the city, and observe all that was passing within its walls. This temple is regarded as the finest specimen of the Doric order of architecture that exists, and it has defied all human ingenuity to copy it. Six of the celebrated caryatide columns, representing Athenian virgins robed in the Panathenseic costume, support the southern portico. The workmanship displayed on these columns is exquisite. One of these beauti- ful columns was taken to England, and within a few years past a new one has been erected in its place ; but while it resembles the originals, it falls far short of equalling them. The view of the city and surrounding country from the Acropolis is grand beyond description. The Mu- seum Ilill and Mount Pnyx, neither of which much exceed fifty feet in height, stand at the south-west, almost within a stone’s-throw of the Acropolis ; while directly at its western base, and joined to it, is the celebrated Areopagus, called Mars’ Hill, which, with the two above-named, and the Acropolis itself, are the only hills that were within the ancient walls of the city, embracing a circuit of twenty-two miles in extent. It was on the Areopagus hill that the supe- rior council of Areopagus assembled. This high and distinguished tribunal first sat in the open air ; but, 300 ATHENS AND ITS RUINS. we are told, in process of time, a roof of tiles was 6pread over it. The hill or clump of rocks — for it is one mass -of rocks — is so small, that one wonders how a building of any size could ever have been erected upon it. It was here that Paul preached to the Athe- nians, and lie could have been heard distinctly by all who were standing on the sixty steps, the extensive portico of the Propyl sea, on the hill of Mars, and in the valley below. The view from this hill, also em- braces the gulf and island of Salamis on the south, Mount Parnes on the north, Mount HSgiatos on the west, and Mounts Hymettus and Anchesmus on the west. The city itself lies like an outspread map below, and every street and lane is distinctly visible, with the citizens in carriages, on horseback, and on foot, mov- ing in all directions. From there can also be seen the seats of the gymnasium, of Hadrian and of Plato and the very spot where Aristotle taught his disciples on the banks of the Ilissus. The bed of this stream is now dry, and I am told is usually so during the summer months. From this remarkably located hill one can also observe the place where the people assembled on all important occasions. This renowned city, which was left a heap of ruins at the close of the last Greek struggle for independ- ence, is now rapidly assuming a position of import- ance, and will soon present an imposing appearance. The king’s palace is a grand structure of thepenletter marble. It cost, it is said, upward of one million pounds sterling. Among the public builHings which have been erected within a few years past, are the mint, the military hospital, and extensive barracks for the soldiers. There are several line hotels and restaurants wherein the charges are moderate. The language of the court is German. Tiie city is situated in about thirty-eight degrees of north latitude. The climate is remarkably mild, ATHENS .AND ITS KUINS. 301 balmy and salubrious. The heat of summer is tern pered by the cooling sea-breezes, and all visitors, as well as residents, concur in representing it to be re- markably healthy. I visited the Palace and its grounds in company with the Rev. Mr. Hill, an American missionary, who, I am happy to say, is much respected by all in author- ity as web as by every citizen in Athens. In our ramble about the premises, which are tastefully laid out, and cultivated, we noticed an exquisite mosaic floor, with rich borders, which formerly belonged to some ancient edifice, that had been discovered in dig- ging away the earth in order to regulate the grounds* Over it the king has had erected a beautiful summer- house, which will be the means of preserving the floor entire. Mr. and Mrs. Hill extended to us many civilities while we sojourned in Athens. They live in princely style, and in a palatial mansion, within an enclosure tilled with ornamented shrubbery and a variety of choice fruit trees. The mansion is in the form of an oblong square, with a large court in the centre. I was conducted through the various departments of the school under the charge of Mr. Hill and his ac- complished wife, and was greatly delighted with all I witnessed. Mr. Hill’s library occupies one of the largest apartments, and is filled with a weil-selected collection of ancient and modern literature. The school is one of the best institutions of its character in the city. I had long been acquainted with Mrs. Hill. She is the daughter of J. W. Mulligan, Esq., a distinguished barrister, formerly of the city of New- York, whose country-seat was within a short distance of’ my own residence on the Hudson. I am fully ac- quainted with the fact that this good man and excel- lent parent spared no expense in the education of his accomplished daughter. Mrs. Hill is now distin- 302 FROM ATHENS TO MARSEILLES. guished alike for her literary attainments and her re- finement of manners. I trust' that her life and that of her noble husband may long be spared to pursue their present career of usefulness in the field whither their consciences and tastes have led them. I quitted Athens with regret, for my stay there had been one of unalloyed pleasure ; and when wander- ing amidst the ruins of its ancient greatness, I had experienced sublime and solemn feelings. More than once these noble lines by Milton rose to my mind, as I gazed from the Acropolis upon the scene around me : “ Look ! on the AJgean shore a city stands, Built nobly — pure the air and light the soil. Athens ! the eye of Greece, mother of arts And eloquence, native to famous wits, Or hospitable in her sweet recess. City of suburban studious walks and shades ! See there the olive groves of Academe, Plato’s retirement, where the Attic bird Thrills her thick warbled notes the summer long. There, flowery hill Hymettus, with the sound Of bees’ industrious murmur, oft invites To studious musing ; there Ilissus rolls His whispering stream ; within the walls then view The schools ot ancient sages ; his who bred Great Alexander to subdue the world ; Lyceum there, and painted Sylva next.” CHAPTER LXII. FROM ATHENS TO MARSEILLES. Spartevento — Messina— Earthquake — Surface of Sicily— Its Fertility — Scylla and Charybdis— Ulysses— Lapara— Arrival at Marseilles On our voyage from Athens to Marseilles we were favored with mild, pleasant weather. The first land we made afrer leaving Greece was the Cape of Spar- tevento, on the Italian coast. Here the mountains rise to a considerable height, and upon their southern FROM ATHENS TO MARSEILLES. 303 declivities are to be seen several beautiful villages. We sailed in full view of the fine old towns of Mon- tebello and Reggio, and stopped at the city of Mes- sina. Before our anchors were dropped, our noble steamer was surrounded by a great number of row- boats, some of which were employed in bearing pas- sengers to and from the shore, while others were filled with fancy articles that their owners offered for sale. The city of Messina contains eighty thousand in- habitants. It lies at the base of the mountains, and is charmingly situated. Its capacious, safe and beau- tiful harbor was filled with vessels of all classes, fur the town is the centre of an extensive trade carried on between Italy and the Levant. The streets are broad, regularly laid out, and paved with lava. Since the great earthquake of 1783 the houses are not built as high as they were previous to that event; there are, however, several large and elegant private residen- ces, and at least sixty churches, one episcopal bishop’s palace, the royal residence, a number of seminaries for the education of youth, and asylums for the poor and insane. The surface of the island of Sicily is greatly diver- sided by hills and valleys. A chain of mountains ex- tend across the island from east to west, the highest point of which is the volcano of Mount Etna. The country was settled, at a very early period, by the Pnoenicians. Palermo, Messina, and Catina are its most important towns, in a military point of view, and are united by a road along the northern coast. Pa- lermo is its chief town and the seat of government. The island is well watered by numerous streams and rivulets, and has ever been celebrated for its fer- tility, so much so as to have been termed one of the granaries of Rome. Pliny says that it rewarded the husbandman a hundred fold. Its manufactures con- 304 : FROM ATHENS TO MARSEILLES. sist of silk, cotton, linen, and woollen goods, which are confined to the chief towns. This island, as the old poets declare, was once the residence of the Cyclops, and it may have been here where Ulysses, after several of his followers had been destroyed by the giant Polyphemus, escaped from his cave with the rest by the aid of the giant’s sheep. From its exposed situation it suffered greatly from the attacks of the Carthagenians and Romans at dif- ferent periods. It was always regarded as a rich prize of war by all the surrounding nations. The straits of Messina is a beautiful sheet of water, not exceeding in several parts of it more than a width of two miles. The ancients always represented it as being a very dangerous passage on account of its currents and the irregular and violent flowing and ebbing of the sea. This, doubtless, furnished Homer with materials for his remarkable description of Ulysses’ shipwreck between Scylla and Charybdis. There is a small village on the Italian shore which, it is said, marks the position of Scylla, but the exact po- sition of Charybdis, on the opposite shore, is not known to the mariners of the present day. There is no whirlpool or revolving vortex sufficiently hazardous to correspond with the descriptions of this celebrated spot as given by the ancients. Tiie only danger which is now encountered in this strait is, I am told, when the wind and the current are in opposite direc- tions, so that vessels are impelled toward the pointed rocks, supposed to be Charybdis. This may occur during a violent storm, for as there is no island to act as a breakwater before the mouth of the strait, tine waves whirl fiercely around the point of land, and break against the rocks with fury. Our noble ves- sel, however, sailed past, totally regardless of the bad name given to it by the ancients. We passed, on the day we left Messina, the group FROM ATHENS TO MARSEILLES. 305 of Lapari islands. They were formerly known by the name of Eolic, or Vulcanim insula. The former name they received from having been fabled to be the residence of JEolus, King of the Wind, who gave ^to Ulysses, while on his return from Troy, prosperous winds and enclosed adverse ones in a leather bag ; which he placed on board of the vessel of Ulysses. Ilis companions Opening the bag when within sight of land, in search *>f treasures, were driven back again by the violence of the winds into the midst of the ocean. The latter name, quoted above, was de- rived from the volcanic nature of the islands. There are three volcanoes in the group, of which Stromboli is the principal. The tire issuing from this crater was distinctly seen from the deck of our vessel. The whole region about Sicily and Naples is principally volcanic, and the soil is often convulsed by earth- quakes. Even the sea is not exempt from these shocks, for, in 1831, there arose in the midst of the sea a volcanic island, about one mile in circumfer- ence, and over one hundred and fifty feet in height. It disappeared after a few months, but reappeared in the spring of 1832. Lapara, the largest of this group, has a city of the same name. It is especially celebrated for its foun- tain, the waters of which are much frequented by visitors on account of their medicinal properties. W e arrived in Marseilles in safety a few days after our departure from Messina, and I can say that I know of no part of the world where persons of leis- ure can spend the months of April, May, June, and July more to their satisfaction than in visiting the an- cient cities which lie upon these waters. The sea, at this season of the year, is invariably calm, and the w T eather mild and delightful. Those travellers who select the autumn or winter months for this voyage 306 FROM ATHENS TO MARSEILLES. will experience violent storms on the sea, and drench ing rains on the land. There are several fine lines of steamers between Marseilles and Alexandria, in Egypt, and Constanti- nople, which connect with other lines running to Asia Minor, Syria, and Egypt, thus enabling the traveller to pass to Alexandria by one route, and return by the other. APPENDIX. Note First. — As it is not unusual for persons to en quire into the expenses of a journey to Palestine, and as the author of this volume has already received many en- quiries of this nature, he is induced to make the following statement, which covers the travelling expenses of one per- son, so far as regards the fare on steamboats and railroads. As the former conveyance includes board, it will not he dif- ficult for a person desirous of making the tour, to calculate the amount necessary to cover all expenses. The living in England is about the same as it is in this country, in France it is much less, and at the best hotels in Alexandria and Cairo, in Egypt, as well as in Syria, Asia Minor, and Athens in Greece it is $2.50 per day, while at Constantino- ple it is $5. If while travelling tbe tourist requires a pri- vate parlor, and meals in his own apartment, the charges for these are about the same as they are in the United States. The author has given below the rate of fare in the first cabin in steamers, and on the first class cars of railroads. To those who prefer to travel second class — which, it must he remembered, gives them a better opportunity of learn- ing the manners, habits and customs of the great mass of the people through whose country they journey — a consid- erable deduction from the estimate herein given should be made. The fare from New York to Liverpool varies ac- cording to the line of steamers taken. As jfche writer took the route by the way of Ireland — the famous Galway line — he has stated the sum paid by him for a ticket which carried him through to London without additional expense, to wit : ( 307 ) 3C8 APPENDIX. From New York to London by steamers across the Atlantic and Irish channel, and railroad via Gal- way, Dublin and Wales $75 From London to Marseilles, via Calais, Paris and Lyons ......... 40 From Marseilles to Alexandria in Egypt, by an Eng- lish steamer ........ 100 From Alexandria to Suez, via Cairo ... 20 From Suez back to Alexandria .... 20 From Alexandria to Joppa by a coasting vessel, and then through the Holy Land on horseback, with tents, and including meals for self and daughter . 325 From Beirout to Constantinople by a Russian steamer 75 From Constantinople to Marseilles, stopping at Ath- ens in Greece, by a French steamer . . . 100 From Marseilles to London . . . . . 40 From London to New York . . . . .100 $ 895 The traveller may live in the various places wherein he may sojourn for a while, as economically or expensively as he likes ; but these sums must be added to the above- named amount. Again, if he travel alone he may engage his passage in Alexandria for one hundred dollars from there to Constan- tinople, with the privilege of stopping anywhere that the line of steamers touches at on the route. In this way he can halt on his journey at Joppa, and at no great expense visit Jerusalem and all the interesting localites in its vi- cinity, and afterwards resume his journey on the succeed- ing steamer. He can stop again at Beirout, and visit Da- mascus, the ancient cities of Sidon and Tyre on the coast, and several other points of interest, and continue his voy- age to Constantinople on any of the steamers belonging to the same line. Most travellers, however, prefer “ tent-life ” while jour- neying through Palestine, which enables them to visit ev- ery part of that aucient and interesting country. APPENDIX. 309 Note Second. — In the chapter entitled From Alexandria to Gazza, page 119, the author speaks of the probability of the canal across the Isthmus being completed at no distant day. Late advices from Egypt state that the opening of this provisional canal, as far as Lake Timsah, was celebra- ted with appropriate and interesting ceremonies, on the 18th November, 1862. “ At ten o’clock in the morning, ” says a letter writer, “ M. de Lesseps. in the presence of an immense concourse of people, gave the word ‘By com- mand of His Highness Said Pacha, Viceroy of Egypt,’ and the waters of the Mediterranean gushed half way across the isthmus. Dinner was served for a party of three hun- dred and fifty guests ; a Te Deum was performed in the Catholic Church, besides Mahomedan services in the Mosque. The ladies who were present as guests were drawn about in wagons attached to six dromedaries apiece, while the men rode on horseback. The Arabs amused themselves by catching the sea-fish that drifted into the unaccustomed places. In the evening there were fireworks, illuminations, and a ball.” Note Third. — Another explanation besides those related in Chapter XXI, has recently been made to solve the mystery of the construction of the pyramids. The present exponent is Mahomed Bey, a learned Eastern, who states that they were constructed with their present face-angles to receive the direct rays of the star Sirius, which was the Egyptian judge of the dead I . r, ' . s . ■ . . ' . NEW BOOKS And New Editions Recently Issued by CARLETON, PUBLISHER. (Late RUDD * CARLETON,) 413 BROADWAY , NEW YORK . JT.B.— The Publisher, upon receipt of the price in advance,- will send any of the following Books, by mail, postage fbeb, to any part of tho United States. This convenient and very safe mode may be adopted when the neighboring Book- tellers are not supplied with the desired work. State name and address in lull. Les Miserable*. 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