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THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF ILLINOIS 
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 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN 
 
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THE 
 
 BIBLE EXPOSITOR. 
 
 CONFIRMATIONS OF THE TRUTH 
 
 OF 
 
 THE HOLY SCRIPTURES; 
 
 FROM THE 
 
 OBSERVATIONS OF RECENT TRAVELLERS, 
 
 ILLUSTRATING 
 
 THE MANNERS, CUSTOMS, AND PLACES REFERRED TO 
 IN THE BIBLE. 
 
 PUBLISHED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE SOCIETY FOR THE 
 PROMOTION OF CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE. 
 
 NEW-YORK: 
 
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 PHILADELPHIA: 
 
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 MDCCCXLIV, 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2016 
 
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 'QYl 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 The Holy Scriptures contain many passages full 
 of importance and beauty, but not generally under- 
 stood, because they contain allusions to manners and 
 customs, familiar indeed to those to whom they were 
 originally addressed, but imperfectly known to us. 
 
 In order to obviate this difficulty, this volume is 
 now presented to the public, consisting of extracts 
 from the narratives of travellers who have recorded 
 the customs of the Oriental nations ; from whom we 
 learn that some usages were retained among them 
 to this day, such as existed in the times when the 
 Scriptures were written, and that their manners are, 
 in many instances, little changed since the patri- 
 
IV 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 archal times. Such of the extracts as are taken from 
 Harmer’s Observations, are given in an abridged 
 form, and intermixed with others, selected from more 
 recent publications ; and the compiler of this volume 
 trusts that it may be the means, under God’s provi- 
 dence, of leading unlearned readers to a more gen- 
 eral acquaintance with Eastern customs ; and assist- 
 ing them to a clearer perception of the propriety 
 and beauty of the illustrations so often drawn from 
 them, in the Bible. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 Hospitality of the Eastern Nations — Tents — Abraham’s Tent 
 — Gideon’s Oak — Striking the Tents — Customs in dismissing 
 Guests 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Houses — Hangings for Houses — Housetops — Roofs — Walls 
 
 — Gates and Locks — Thresholds — Pavements — Untemper- 
 ed Mortar — House-breaking — Stables — House of the Dead 
 
 — Tombs — Temple of Dagon — Tower of Mahanaim (2 Sam., 
 xviii.) — Oratories — Kneeling on the Sea-shore 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Custom of Women fetching Water — Of offering Water to Trav- 
 ellers — Water-carriers — Manner of Washing : the Hands: 
 the Feet — Fuel — Young Men and Children taken to carry 
 Wood — U tensils — Mills — Millstones — Kneading-troughs — 
 Lamps — Waterpots — Leathern Bottles — Horns — Divans — 
 Beds— Seats — Baking — Churning — Straining Wine — Pro- 
 visions, and Manner of Eating — Men and Women eat sep- 
 arately — Invitations — Feasts — Persian Feasts — Egyptian 
 Feast — Repasts on the Sea-shore — Feast of Tabernacles — 
 The Passover — Weddings — Jewish Wedding — Marriage 
 Ceremonies — Births — Manner of announcing them — Cere- 
 monies attendant on them — Manner of carrying Chil- 
 dren 
 
VI 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Page 
 
 Method of honoring Distinguished Persons — Sending Deputa- 
 tions — Riding — On the Royal Horse — Sending Portions from 
 the Tables of Great Men — Fixing a Spear wherever a Person 
 of Consequence reposes — Marks of respect — Kissing the 
 Feet, Knees, Robe, Beard, Hand, Ground — Concealing the 
 Feet — Holding the Feet — Putting off the Shoes — Dismount- 
 ing — Tokens of Friendship — White Stone — Presents — Mark 
 of Agreement — Customary Salutations - 87 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Presents — To Friends and Relations — Great Men — Public 
 Dancers 105 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Dress — Flowing Garments — Hyke — Tunic — Party Colored 
 Garments — Arab Cloak — Wedding Garment — Face-Veil — 
 Ornaments — Painting the Eyes — Shaving the Beard — Horns 
 — Splendor of the Eastern Dresses .... 109 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Various Methods of Writing — Written Mountains — Writing- 
 Tables — Ancient Books — Manner of Reading — Drawing on 
 Tiles — Signet-ring — Sealing — Sacrifices sealed in Egypt 126 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Customs relating to the Dead — Assemblies of Mourners — 
 Mourning Women — Mournful Music — Tumultuous Grief of 
 the Mourners — Signs of Grief — Uncovering the Head and 
 Feet — Covering the Lips — Funeral Feasts — Idolatrous Cut- 
 tings of the Flesh — Baldness between the Eyes — Forty Days’ 
 Mourning 136 
 
CONTENTS; 
 
 Vll 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Method of Travelling — March of the Israelites — Arab Travel- 
 ing — Guides — Running Footmen — Manner of Riding — 
 Messengers — Highways — Standards - 145 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Agriculture — Ploughshares — Dove-houses for Manure — Pigeon 
 Houses in Egypt — Method of Watering — Gathering and 
 Winnowing Corn — Threshing Corn — Use of Oxen thereto — 
 
 Hay and Oats — Tares — Mustard-seed — Gardens — Water- 
 ing Gardens — Grafting — Vineyards — Vines — Wine-presses 
 — Apples 155 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Markets — Streets for Trades — Taskmasters — Method of hi- 
 ring Laborers — Agreements — W eighing Money — Tax-gath- 
 erers — Courts of Justice — Laws — Curious Mode of De- 
 cision 171 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Flocks and Herds — Sheep and Shepherds — Sheep-folds - 184 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Wells — Fountains, and Drawing Water — Pools of Solomon — 
 Mountainous Pastures — Pits — Deserts — Mirage - - 191 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Natural History — Lions — Arabian Horse — Wild Asses — 
 White Asses — Dogs — Crocodiles — Storks — Hunting Part- 
 ridges — Cock-crowing — Serpents — Scorpions — Mice — Lo- 
 custs — Flies — Locust-tree — Salt 210 
 
viii 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 5 
 
 Climate — Effect of Moonlight — Heat and Cold — Frost and 
 Snow — Hail-Storms — Wet Seasons — Rain — Signs of Rain 
 — Dry Summer — The Simoon — Waterspouts — Whirlwinds 239 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Modern Tartars — Predatory Character of the Arabs — Their 
 Mode of Dwelling and of Flight — Bedouin Encampment — 
 Arabs 257 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Account of the Rechabites 270 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Miscellaneous Observations — Leprosy — Eastern Potters — 
 Smiting on the Mouth — Significant Actions much used in 
 the East — Token of Enmity — Stones Erected as Memorials 
 
 — Eastern Games — Maternal Influence — Shrines — Spoils 
 suspended in Sacred Places — Sacrifices offered to Idols in 
 High Places — Religious Marks — Religious Custom in Judea 
 
 — In China and Persia — Roman Soldiers — Military Subordi- 
 nation among the Romans — Barbarous Custom in Warfare — 
 
 Hiding Treasures 273 
 
 Appendix 290 
 
 General Index - 310 
 
 Index of Texts Illustrated - 
 
 316 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 Hospitality of the Eastern Nations — Tents — Abraham’s Tent— 
 Gideon’s Oak — Striking the tents (Isaiah xxxvii. 12) — Cus- 
 toms in Dismissing Guests. 
 
 TENTS— HOSPITALITY. 
 
 Genesis xviii. 1-11. 
 
 Abraham “ sat in the tent-door in the heat of the 
 day. And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three 
 men stood by him : and when he saw them, he ran to 
 meet them from the tent-door, and bowed himself 
 toward the ground, and said, My Lord, if now I have 
 found favor in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, 
 from thy servant : Let a little water, I pray you, be 
 fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under 
 the tree : And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and com- 
 fort ye your hearts ; after that ye shall pass on. . . . 
 
 1 
 
2 
 
 TENTS HOSPITALITY* 
 
 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said* 
 Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead 
 it, and make cakes upon the hearth. And Abraham ran 
 unto the herd, and fetched a calf tender and good, and 
 gave it unto a young man : and he hasted to dress it 
 And he took butter and milk, and the calf which he had 
 dressed, and set it before them, and he stood by them 
 under the tree, and they did eat. And they said unto 
 him, Where is Sarah thy wife ? And he said, Behold, 
 in the tent. And he said, I will certainly return unto 
 thee according to the time of life ; and lo, Sarah thy 
 wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent- 
 door, which was behind him.” 
 
 The reception met with by an English traveller (Mr. 
 Buckingham) in Mesopotamia, from the sheikh (or lord) 
 of a Turcoman tent, strongly reminds us of the Scripture 
 account of Abraham’s hospitality, as well as illustrates 
 the patriarchal manner of life, — the “ dwelling in tents.” 
 
 Mr. Buckingham was on his way to Orfah, the “ Ur” 
 of the Bible, and was travelling over a plain which was 
 under the direction of the Sheikh, who pitched his tent 
 at different periods near all his villages successively. 
 “ When we alighted at his tent-door,” writes Mr. B., 
 “ our horses were taken from us by his son, a young 
 man well dressed. His father was sitting beneath the 
 awning in front of the tent itself, and rose up to receive 
 us, exchanging the salute of welcome, and not seating 
 himself till all his guests were accommodated. The tent 
 occupied a space of about thirty feet square, and was 
 formed by one large awning, supported by twenty-four 
 small poles, in four rows of six each, the end of the 
 awning being drawn out by cords fastened to pegs in 
 the ground — (See Isaiah liv. 2.) Half of this square 
 was open in front and at the sides, having two rows of 
 poles, clear, and the third row was closed by a reeded 
 part ition, behind which was the apartment for the females, 
 surrounded entirely by the same kind of matting. The 
 
TENTS HOSPITALITY. 
 
 3 
 
 sheikh was a fine-looking old man of eighty, with a 
 long beard of silvery white. Some of our fellow-travellers 
 seeing us, stopped as they passed, alighted likewise, and 
 took their seats without invitation, all being received 
 with the same welcome salute, until the party amounted 
 to twenty-six in number. While we were talking, a 
 meal was preparing for us within ; and soon afterward, 
 warm cakes baked on the hearth , cream, honey, butter, 
 raisins, curds, and wheat boiled in milk, were served to 
 the company. Neither the sheikh, nor any of his 
 family partook with us, but stood around to wait on 
 their guests, though some beggars and slaves were 
 among those who sat down to eat. The reception we 
 met with was exactly like the picture of the most ancient 
 manners of which we have any particular account — (See 
 Gen. xvii.) The form of Abraham’s tent seems to have 
 been exactly like the one in which we sat ; for in both 
 there was a shaded open front, in which he could sit in 
 the heat of the day, and yet be seen far off ; and the 
 apartment of the females where Sarah was, within the 
 tent, was immediately behind this, in which she prepared 
 the meal for the guests, and listened to them.” — See 
 Buckingham’s Travels. 
 
 Herodotus says, “ In remote times, the families even 
 of kings had but little money ; and it was the business 
 of the queen herself to cook for her husband.” — Book 
 viii. cxxxvii. 
 
 A traveller writes : — ■“ A sheikh, who has the com- 
 mand of 500 horse, does not disdain to saddle and bridle 
 his own, nor to give him barley and chopped straw. In 
 his tent his wife makes the coffee, kneads the dough, and 
 superintends the dressing of his victuals ; his daughter 
 and kinswomen wash the linen, and go with pitchers on 
 their heads, and veils over their faces, to draw water 
 from fountains. These manners agree precisely with the 
 descriptions in Homer, and the history of Abraham in 
 Genesis.” 
 
 The Grecian poets, Homer and Hesiod, do not speak 
 
4 
 
 ARAB HOSPITALITY. 
 
 of gold and silver money ; they express the value of 
 things, by saying they are worth so many oxen or sheep. 
 They estimated the riches of a man by the number of 
 his flocks, and that of a country by the abundance of its 
 pastures and the quantity of its metals. These observa- 
 tions throw great light upon the patriarchal history. 
 The patriarchs occupied the rank of chiefs, or princes ; 
 their substance consisted in their flocks and herds ; and 
 in the occupations and duties of the families of the Tur- 
 coman and Bedouin chiefs of modern times, we have an 
 exact transcript of their domestic manners. 
 
 Abraham’s rank in the country he lived in was that 
 of a prince, or emir ; and a traveller in the East, who 
 visited the camp of the great emir, found the same hos- 
 pitality which we read that Abraham showed ; and that, 
 both among those Arabs who live in the camp, as he 
 did, and also in the villages which depend upon them, 
 and are under their direction. The following account 
 relates to the villages :■ — 
 
 “ When strangers enter a village, where they know 
 nobody, they inquire for the menzil (the place destined 
 for the reception of strangers), and desire to speak with 
 the sheikh (an Eastern officer), who is as the lord of it, 
 or at least represents his person, and the body of the 
 community. After saluting him they signify their want 
 of a dinner, or of supping and lodging in the village: 
 The sheikh says they are welcome , and that they could 
 not do him a greater pleasure. He then marches at the 
 head of the strangers, and conducts them to the menzil, 
 where also they may alight at once, if the sheikh is 
 not at home, and ask for everything they want. But 
 they seldom have occasion for all this ; for as soon as the 
 people of the village see any strangers coming \\\sy inform 
 the sheikh of it, who goes to meet them, accompanied by 
 some peasants, or by some of his servants ; and hav- 
 ing saluted them, asks if they would dine in the village, 
 or whether they choose to stay the whole night there. 
 If they answer they would only eat a morsel and go 
 
ARAB HOSPITALITY. 
 
 5 
 
 forward, and they choose to stay under some tree a little 
 out of the village, the sheikh goes or sends his people 
 into the village, to cause a collation to be brought ; and 
 in a little time they return with eggs, butter , curds , honey, 
 olives, fruit — fresh or dried, according to the season, 
 when they have not time to cook any meat.” But if it 
 is evening, and the strangers would lodge in the village, 
 the women belonging to the sheikh’s house, having ob- 
 served the number of the guests, never fail to cause 
 fowls , sheep , lambs , or a calf to be killed , according 
 to the quantity of meat which will be wanted for the 
 entertainment of the guests, and of those that are to 
 bear them company ; and quickly make it into soup , roast 
 it , and form out of it many other dishes , which they send 
 to the menzil by the sheikh’s servants, in wooden bowls, 
 which they place on a great round straw mat that usu- 
 ally serves them for a table. These being set in order, 
 with many others, in which are eggs, cheese, fruit, 
 salad, sour curdled milk , &c., the sheikh begs of the 
 strangers to sit round the mat, he himself sitting with 
 them, together with the other peasants of fashion be- 
 longing to the village, in order to do them honor. They 
 make no use of knives at table, the meat being all cut 
 into little bits.” 
 
 Abraham! s waiting himself upon his guests was in- 
 tended to show his extreme reverence for them. The 
 Christians in the East often wait themselves upon guests 
 of superior rank ; but, otherwise, they sit down, and are 
 served by their sons or kinsmen. — See La Roque's Ac- 
 count of the Journey of d’Arvieux, in Voyage dans Pal - 
 estine ; Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 81-83. 
 
 Judges vi. 11-19. 
 
 “And there came an angel of the Lord, and sat 
 under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained 
 unto Joash the Abi-ezrite : and his son Gideon threshed 
 wheat .... And the angel of the Lord appeared unto 
 him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee - .. „ 
 
 1 * 
 
6 
 
 ARAB HOSPITALITY. 
 
 And [Gideon] said unto him, Depart not hence , I pray 
 thee, until I come unto thee , and bring forth my pres- 
 ent, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry 
 until thou come again . And Gideon went in, and made 
 ready a kid , and unleavened cakes of an ephah of 
 flour : the flesh he put in a basket , and he put the broth 
 in a pot , and brought it out unto him under the oak 9 
 and presented it.” 
 
 The conduct of Gideon perfectly agrees with the 
 present Arab customs, and is explained by them. Dr. 
 Shaw observes in his travels, “ Beside a bowl of milk, 
 and a basket of figs, raisins, or dates, which upon our 
 arrival were presented to us to stay our appetite, the 
 master of the tent fetched us from his flock , according 
 to the number of our company, a kid or a goat, a lamb 
 or a sheep, half of which was immediately seethed by 
 his wife, and served up with cuscacoe ; the rest was 
 made kab-ab , — that is, cut to pieces and roasted, — which 
 we reserved for our breakfast or dinner next day .” (See 
 Dr. Shaw’s Preface.) Probably Gideon presented some 
 slight refreshment to his heavenly guest, and desired 
 him to stay till he could procure something more sub- 
 stantial. He then killed a kid , seethed a part of it, and, 
 when ready, brought the stewed meat (or broth) in a pot 
 with cakes of bread; and the other part, the kab-ab , 
 in a basket, for the stranger to carry with him, for some 
 after-repast in his journey. At the present time, the 
 Arabs, as well those who live in houses as those who 
 dwell in tents, leave their guests under a tree, and bring 
 their repasts out to them. — Harmer’s Observations, vol. 
 ii., pp. 88, 89. 
 
 ARAB HOSPITALITY. 
 
 ‘ We found a camp of Bedouins,” writes Mr. Madden, 
 “who were of the same tribe as our guides, and with 
 ^hem we remained for the night. We did not wait for 
 
ARAB HOSPITALITY. 
 
 7 
 
 an invitation into a tent : we entered the first we met, 
 and found a welcome. 
 
 “ An Arab woman, who was spinning goat’s wool in 
 the interior, gave us the salutation of peace, bid us 
 sit down, and removed her two children to the next 
 tent. I purchased a lamb for dinner, which she roasted 
 entire, thrusting a long piece of wood through it, and 
 turning it over a brisk fire of chopped straw and camels’ 
 dung : two little Arabs performed the office of turn- 
 spits. The savory odor of my lamb spread through 
 
 the whole encampment : I was presently surrounded by 
 at least a score of Bedouins. I invited their sheikh and 
 four of their chief men to dinner ; and with these, and 
 my two Bedouin guides, I sat down to my repast. It 
 consisted of a large wooden bowl of boiled rice, in the 
 centre of which was placed the roasted lamb. I saw the 
 eyes of my guests sparkle with pleasure as they surveyed 
 
8 
 
 ARAB HOSPITALITY. 
 
 he trencher. They all took their long knives out of 
 their girdles, and deposited them in a circle on the 
 ground ; the sheikh then said grace. In a moment there 
 were five-and-thirty or forty fingers plunged into the 
 pilau, (see Matt. xxvi. 23,) and speedily as many into 
 the lamb ; but all the hurry prevented not the sheikh from 
 politely picking out the choicest bits, (see John xiii. 
 25-27,) and presenting them to me with his greasy 
 fingers. After dinner we sat smoking till ten o’clock. 
 Stories were related, and I sang an Arab song, which I 
 learned in Upper Egypt, — a favorite air of theirs, — and 
 never were people more delighted. The old sheikh act- 
 ually besought me to remain with him, promising to give 
 me his best Arab horse if I would do so. I was delight- 
 ed with their simplicity and hospitality. 
 
 “The Bedouins seldom remain above one month in one 
 spot ; they wander about the deserts from well to well. 
 When their flocks have eaten up what little verdure 
 there is in one place, they strike their tents, and set out 
 for another.” — Madden's Travels , vol. ii., pp. 185-187, 
 189, 191. 
 
 HOSPITALITY OF THE WANDERING TRIBES IN 
 PERSIA, Etc. 
 
 “We came,” writes Mr. Morier, “ to a small plain, 
 covered with the black tents and cattle of the Eelauts. 
 (Wandering tribes, whose possessions consist of flocks, 
 herds, and camels, and who resemble the Turcomans in 
 their mode of life, dwelling in tents, and removing from 
 place to place according to the seasons, and want of 
 pasturage.) Here we had a view of Mount Ararat. 
 We went to the largest tent in the plain, and there 
 enjoyed an opportunity of learning that the hospitality 
 of these people is not exaggerated. As soon as it was 
 announced at the tent that strangers were coming, every- 
 thing was in motion : some carried our horses to the 
 best pastures, others spread carpets for us ; one was 
 
HOSPITALITY OF WANDERING TRIBES. 
 
 9 
 
 despatched to the flock to bring a fat lamb, the women 
 immediately made preparation for cooking, and we had 
 not sat long before two large dishes of stewed lamb, with 
 several basins of yaourt, were placed before us. The 
 senior of the tribe, an old man, (by his own account, 
 indeed, more than eighty-five years of age,) dressed in 
 his best clothes, came out to us, and welcomed us to his 
 tent with such kindness, yet with such respect, that his 
 sincerity could not be mistaken. He was still full of 
 aciivity and fire, although he had lost all his teeth, and 
 his beard was as white as the snow on the venerable 
 mountain near his tent. The simplicity of his manners, 
 and the interesting scenery around, reminded me, in the 
 strongest colors, of the life of the patriarchs ; and more 
 immediately of him whose history is inseparable from 
 the mountains of Ararat.” — Morier's Journey through 
 Persia , Armenia , fyc., in 1808 and 1809, pp. 308, 309. 
 
 TENTS. 
 
 Isaiah xxxviii. 12. 
 
 “ Mine age is departed, and is removed from me as a 
 shepherd’s tent.” Or rather, as some more expressively 
 translate the verse. “ My habitation [that is, my life] is 
 departed from me, rolled up as a shepherd’s tent.” The 
 comparison of this life to dwelling in a tent is familiar to 
 the writers both of the Old and New Testaments. The 
 passage alludes to the custom usual among the Eastern 
 nations of striking and rolling up their tents upon the 
 eve of departure. 
 
 In the well-watered parts of the country between the 
 Euphrates and the Tigris, there are still several tribes 
 who support themselves by their horses, their buffaloes, 
 their cows, and by agriculture. Their remove their 
 habitations from country to country, according as they 
 want lands to till, or pasturage ; it is for this reason we 
 sometimes find whole villages, where, the day before, 
 there was not a single hut. 
 
10 
 
 TENTS. 
 
 The Bedouins of the desert remove their tents as 
 suddenly. “ There is something very melancholy,” says 
 a recent traveller, “ in our morning Sittings. The tent- 
 pins are plucked up, and, in a few minutes, a dozen holes, 
 a heap or two of ashes, and the marks of the camels’ 
 knees in the sand, soon to be obliterated, are the only 
 traces left of what has been for a while our home. There 
 are a thousand allusions to this primitive mansion in 
 Scripture, almost unintelligible till familiarity with the 
 tent, the camel, and the desert, explains them. I never 
 drive in a tent-pin without thinking of Jael and Sisera.” 
 After reading this, what a depth of meaning we discover 
 in the lamentation of Hezekiah, when he says that his 
 age is removed, like one of these tents, in an instant, 
 and no lasting trace of it remains . — Lord Lindsay's 
 Travels , i. 305. 
 
 MUSIC USED BEFORE JOURNEYS. 
 
 Genesis xxxi. 27. 
 
 “ Wherefore didst thou flee away secretly, and steal 
 away from me ; and didst not tell me, that I might have 
 sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, with tabret, 
 and with harp V* 
 
 1 Samuel xviii. 6, 7. 
 
 “ And the woman came out to meet King Saul, with 
 tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of music. And 
 the woman answered one another as they played, and 
 said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten 
 thousands.” 
 
 Colossians iii. 16 ; Ephesians v. 19. 
 
 “ Teaching and admonishing one another in psalms 
 and hymns, and spiritual songs ; singing with grace in 
 your hearts to the Lord.” 
 
 In their longer journeys the Eastern people take leave 
 of their relations and friends with music. Laban, there- 
 
MUSIC USED BEFORE JOURNEYS. 
 
 11 
 
 fore, complains, Why didst thou prevent me from 
 taking leave of my daughters, going such a journey, 
 with all due solemnity, according to the custom of my 
 country ? These Eastern songs are frequently extem- 
 poraneous. Some travellers, in 1751, were attended by 
 a guard of Arab horsemen, and, when the business of 
 the day was over, these latter sat down in a circle, and, 
 while drinking coffee, one of the company amused the 
 others with an extempore song or story. Such were the 
 songs of the Israelitish women, when they answered each 
 other on the tabret ; and in consequence of this Eastern 
 custom, St. Paul, exhorts Christians that their songs 
 should be spiritual , that with their voice they should 
 praise the Lord , and admonish and comfort each other. 
 — Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 194-196. 
 
 St. Paul speaks of psalms, hymns, and songs, in both 
 places, alluding to the three kinds of psalms in use among 
 the Hebrews. 
 
12 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 ■Houses — Hangings for Houses — Housetops — Roofs — Walls — 
 Gates and Locks — Thresholds — Pavements — Untempered Mor- 
 tar — Housebreaking — Stables — House of the Dead — Tombs — 
 Temple of Dagon — Tower of Mahanaim (2 Sam. xviii.) — Ora- 
 tories — Kneeling on the Sea-shore. 
 
 HOUSES. 
 
 2 Kings iv. 10. 
 
 “ Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the 
 wall ; . . . . and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that 
 he shall turn in thither.” 
 
 2 Kings ix. 2. 
 
 “ Go in, and carry him to a chamber, in a chamber,” 
 (marg. reading) : or, into the most private chamber. 
 
 Matthew xxiv. 17. 
 
 “ Let him which is on the house-top not come down 
 to take anything out of his house.” 
 
 Acts xx. 8, 9. 
 
 li And there were many lights in the upper chamber, 
 where they were gathered together. And there sat in a 
 window a certain young man named Eutychus, being 
 fallen into a deep sleep : and as Paul was long preach- 
 ing, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the 
 third loft and was taken up dead.” 
 
 To most of the Eastern houses there is a smaller one 
 annexed, which sometimes rises one story higher than 
 the house ; at other times, it consists of one or two 
 rooms only, and a terrace ; while others that are built 
 over the porch or gateway, (see 2 Sam. xviii. 33,) have, 
 except the ground-floor, all the conveniences that belong 
 to the house, properly so called. There is a door of 
 communication from them into the gallery of the house, 
 -beside another door which opens immediately from a 
 
HOUSES. 
 
 13 
 
 private staircase down into the porch or street, without 
 giving the least disturbance to the house. So that he 
 which was on the housetop might run down immediately 
 without going into his house.* In these back-houses, 
 as we may call them, strangers are usually lodged and 
 entertained ; and the men also are wont to retire there, 
 from the hurry and noise of their families, for medita- 
 tion or diversion. The upper chamber where Tabitha 
 was laid (Acts ix. 37), and where Eutychus also fell 
 down from the third loft (Acts xx. 8, 9, &c.), were so 
 many back-houses or private apartments.” To one of 
 these our Lord retired, to eat the passover with his> dis- 
 ciples. — See Dr. Shaw’s Travels , pp. 280, 281. 
 
 Jowett describes his residence at Haivali in Greece, 
 as illustrating this passage ; and it is descriptive of the 
 generality of eastern houses. The ground floor was 
 used as a store. The first floor consisted of an humble 
 suite of rooms for daily use. On the upper floor the 
 rooms were large and elegant ; the windows in front 
 projected and overhung the street; round the room, and 
 particularly in the windows, was a raised step or divan, 
 for the more distinguished guests ; and when the com- 
 pany was numerous, they placed cushions for a second 
 row of persons. Thus Eutychus would be on a level 
 with the open window, and might easily fail out. He 
 also notices the great plenty of oil in that neighborhood, 
 which would enable them to have many lamps, and the 
 heat would increase the drowsiness of the youth, and 
 account for the window being open. — See note on this 
 verse in Henry and Scott’s Commentary. 
 
 HANGINGS OF NEEDLEWORK. 
 
 Exodus xxvi. 36. 
 
 “ Thou shalt make a hanging for the door of the 
 tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined 
 linen wrought with needlework.” 
 
 * At the time of an earthquake at Aleppo, Mr. Barker ran into 
 the street when he felt the shock, without going through the house. 
 
 2 
 
14 
 
 HANGINGS OF NEEDLEWORK. 
 
 Mr. Morier, while travelling in Persia, passed several 
 encampments of the Eelauts (or wandering tribes). He 
 writes : “ We stopped to examine the tent of the chief 
 of the family, at one of these encampments. It was 
 composed of a wooden frame of circular lath, which was 
 fixed on the ground, and then covered over with large 
 felts, that were fastened down by a cord (Isaiah liv. 2), 
 ornamented by tassels of various colors. A curtain, 
 curiously worked by the women with coarse needlework 
 of various colors, was suspended over the door. In the 
 king of Persia’s tents, magnificent hangings of needle- 
 work are suspended, as well as on the doors of the great 
 mosques in Turkey.” — Morier* s Second Journey through 
 Persia , tyc., p. 251. 
 
15 
 
 HOUSETOPS. 
 
 Acts x. 9. 
 
 “ Peter went up upon the housetop to pray.” 
 
 Luke v. 19. 
 
 “ They went up upon the housetop, and let him down 
 through the tiling with his couch, into the midst before 
 Jesus.” 
 
 Deut. xxii. 8. 
 
 “ When thou buildest a new house, then thou shalt 
 make a battlement for thy roof, that thou bring not blood 
 upon thine house, if any man fall from thence.” 
 
 The tops of the Eastern houses are always flat, and 
 covered with plaster or terrace. These terraces or 
 roofs are used for many family purposes — drying linen 
 or flax (Josh. ii. 6, &c.), and in the summer time for sleep- 
 ing on (2 Sam. xi. 2). Here, too, the Eastern people 
 enjoy the evening air, and converse (Luke xii. 3). Here, 
 too, they sometimes pray, and here the booths were made 
 for the feast of tabernacles. The roofs are generally 
 surrounded by a parapet or wall breast-high ; but instead 
 of this, some terraces are guarded with balustrades only, 
 or latticed work. Of the same kind, probably, was the 
 lattice through which Ahaziah fell (2 Kings i. 2). This 
 incident proves the necessity of the law for the forma- 
 tion of battlements for the roof, which God graciously 
 gave from Mount Sinai, which furnishes a beautiful 
 example of his paternal care and goodness. These 
 battlements are the low walls or parapets before men- 
 tioned. 
 
 The Eastern houses (as in Bagdad) consist of ranges 
 cf apartments opening into a court within the building ; 
 the rooms underground are occupied when the heat is 
 intense : and from these, in the cool of the evening, the 
 families go up on the terraces. The houses are not 
 nearly so high as ours, and several families inhabit fre- 
 
16 
 
 HOUSETOPS 
 
 quently one house. Two and three stories high is about 
 the height of the houses, at least some are as high as 
 this. There are also galleries round the court. In 
 these courts, on occasion of a feast, or when many 
 persons met together, it was usual for them to be enter- 
 tained — the courts being covered with mats and carpets, 
 and an awning stretched overhead to keep out sun or 
 
 rain. It was probably here that our Lord often taught 
 his disciples, and those who came to hear him ; and here, 
 many think the man sick of the palsy was brought to 
 him, being let down from the housetop into the midst of 
 those who were in the court, the covering being removed ; 
 for the word translated tiling, or roof, means also a cover- 
 ing. But if, as others think, the sick man was let down 
 through the roof of the house into a room where Jesus 
 was, this, also, would have been easily done. A mis 
 sionary in the East, the Rev. J. Hartley, writes in his 
 travels : “ When I lived at jEgina, I used to look up 
 
HOUSETOPS. 
 
 17 
 
 not unfrequently at the roof above my head, and con- 
 template how easily the whole transaction might take 
 place. The roof was made in the following manner : 
 a layer of reeds of a large species was placed upon the 
 rafters ; on these a quantity of heather was strewed ; on 
 the heather earth was deposited, and beaten down into a 
 solid mass. Now, what difficulty would there be in 
 removing first the earth, next the heather, and then 'the 
 reeds ; nor would the difficulty be increased, if the earth 
 had a pavement of tiling laid upon it. No inconvenience 
 could result to the persons in the house, from the removal 
 of the tiles and earth, for the heather and reeds would 
 stop anything that might otherwise fall down, aud would 
 be removed last of all.” — See Hartley's Researches in 
 Greece . 
 
 Isaiah xxii. 1. 
 
 “ What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up 
 to the housetops V ' 
 
 Matthew xxiv. 17. 
 
 “ Let him which is on the housetop not come down.” 
 
 Isaiah is here describing the state of a city on a 
 sudden alarm. Mr. Hartley says, “ It is customary in 
 Turkey, on every alarm of fire, for all persons instantly 
 to go to the top of the house, in order from that height 
 to discover the direction in which the fire has made its 
 appearance. Very frequently the cry 4 Fire !’ startles 
 the sleeping inhabitants of a town from their slumbers, 
 and gives a practical illustration of the scriptural lan- 
 guage, ‘ Why art thou wholly gone up to the house- 
 tops V ”■ — Hartley's Greece. 
 
 Matthew x. 27. 
 
 M What ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the 
 housetops.” 
 
 The expression, “ that preach ye upon the house- 
 tops,” appears nothing unnatural to those who daily see 
 these houses. They are low and flat-roofed, and would 
 
 2 * 
 
18 
 
 HOUSETOPS. 
 
 give an opportunity to speak to many on the house and 
 many in the court below. — Jowetfs Researches. 
 
 Eusebius, in his Church History (ii. 23), tells us, that 
 the Pharisees who had a design . upon the life of St. 
 James, the brother of our Lord, and bishop of Jerusalem, 
 persuaded him to preach to the people when assembled 
 at the passover, from the battlements of the temple ; 
 alluding to this custom of proclaiming from the house- 
 top whatever was to be made known far and wide. 
 
 EASTERN ROOFS. 
 
 Psalm cxxix. 6. 
 
 “ Let them be as the grass upon the housetops, which 
 withereth afore it groweth up. 
 
 The following passage occurs in Jowett's Christian 
 Researches , in his Journal of a Visit to Syria and the 
 Holy Land : “ October 8th. This evening the season 
 
EASTERN ROOFS. 
 
 19 
 
 broke. Thunder, and lightning, and rain, came from 
 the west. The whole prospect became dreary and 
 cheerless. In the morning of this day, — not an hour 
 too soon, — the master of the house had laid in a stock 
 of earth ; which was carried up, and spread evenly 
 upon the roof of the house, which is flat. The whole 
 roof is thus formed of mere earth, laid on and rolled 
 hard and flat, — not, as in Malta, of a composition which 
 is smooth and impenetrable, and thus receives the rain- 
 water, and carries it off into the tanks under the house. 
 There is no want of flowing water in this mountainous 
 country, as there is in Malta. On the top of every 
 house is a large stone roller, for the purpose of harden- 
 ing and flattening this layer of rude soil, so that the 
 rain may not penetrate : but upon this surface, as may 
 be supposed, grass and weeds grow freely. It is to such 
 grass that the Psalmist alludes, as useless and bad, ‘ Let 
 them be as the grass upon the house-tops, which wither- 
 eth afore it groweth up.’ ” — See Rev. W. Jowetfs Chris - 
 tian Researches , and Journal of a Visit to Syria and the 
 Holy Land. 
 
 WALLS. 
 
 Deuteronomy i. 28. 
 
 “ The cities are great and walled up to heaven.’ 5 
 
 If they raised up anciently the walls of their cities so 
 high as not to be liable to be scaled, they thought them 
 safe ; the same simple contrivance is to this day suffi- 
 cient to guard places from the Arabs, who live in the 
 very wilderness in which Israel wandered when the spies 
 discouraged them by saying, “ The cities are walled up 
 to heaven,” — and who are a nation more inured to war- 
 like enterprises than the Israelites were. 
 
 “ The great monastery at Mount Sinai,” Thevenot says, 
 
 “ is well built of good freestone, with very high smooth 
 walls. On the east side there is a window, by which 
 those that were within drew up pilgrims into the monas- 
 
20 
 
 WALLS. 
 
 tery with a basket, which they let down by a rope 
 that runs in a pulley, to be seen above at the window, 
 and the pilgrims went into it one after another. [In 
 
 something of this way St. Paul must have been let down 
 the walls of Damascus, which were low.] These walls 
 are so high that they cannot be scaled, and without 
 cannon the place cannot be taken .” — See Harmer's Ob- 
 servations, vol. i., pp. 390, 391. 
 
 GATES— LOCKS. 
 
 Acts xii. 10. 
 
 “ When they were past the first and the second ward, 
 they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city.” 
 
 Vain would have been the precaution of building 
 their walls high, unless the gates had been well secured 
 
GATES LOCKS. 
 
 21 
 
 also. One of the means whereby they secure them now 
 is the plating them over with thick iron. Algiers has 
 five gates ; and some of these have two, some three 
 gates within them, and some of them plated all over with 
 thick iron. After this manner the place where St. Peter 
 was imprisoned seems to have been secured. 
 
 Their locks and keys are often only of wood. The 
 keys of the city-gates of Grand Cairo are bits of timber, 
 with little pieces of wire, that lift up other pieces of wire 
 which are in the lock, and enter into certain little holes , 
 out of which the ends of wire that are in the key having 
 thrust them, the gate is opened. But, without the key, 
 a little soft paste upon the end of one’s finger will do the 
 matter quite as well. The ease with which these locks 
 are opened without a key, puts us in mind of the words 
 (Canticles v. 4), “ My beloved put in his hand by the 
 hols” &c. ; he attempted to open the door by putting in 
 his finger at the key-hole, but could not. u Then I was 
 greatly moved ; I rose up to open to my beloved and, 
 as in verse 1 he had said “ I have gathered myrrh/’ so, 
 
22 
 
 GATES LOCKS. 
 
 having tried to open the door with a hand filled with this 
 precious gum, the spouse, when she went to the door, 
 found that her fingers gathered it up from the handles 
 of the lock : in the language of poetry, “ her hand drop- 
 ped myrrh, her fingers sweet-smelling myrrh.” (Verse 5.) 
 
 * — See Harmer's Observations , vol. i., pp. 392-396. 
 
 Ezekiel xliv. 2, 3. 
 
 “ This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and 
 no man shall enter in by it ; because the Lord, the God 
 of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. 
 It is for the prince.” 
 
 It is a common custom in Persia, when a great man 
 has built a palace, that he treats the king and his 
 grandees in it for several days : then the great gate of 
 it is open : but, when these festivities are over, they shut 
 it up, never more to be opened . — Sir J. Chardin ; Ha?'- 
 mer's Observations , vol ii., pp. 475, 476. 
 
 THRESHOLDS. 
 
 Ezekiel xliii. 8. 
 
 “ In their setting of their threshold by my thresholds^ 
 and their post by my posts, .... they have even de- 
 filed my holy name.” 
 
 The threshold is the place where honor is more par- 
 ticularly paid to the living and the dead in some parts 
 of the East. The Persians prostrate themselves on the 
 threshold of their sacred tombs ; and princes also are 
 thus honored. 
 
 The posts of the temple of God appear to have been 
 honorable places ; for near one of them, in the taber- 
 nacle, Eli, the high-priest, sat (1 Sam, i. 9). When 
 the idolatrous temples, therefore, were set up, the idol- 
 priests may have been seen seated by the posts, in imita- 
 tion and mockery of the high-priests of Jehovah. — 
 Harmer's Observations , vol. ii. 496-499. 
 
23 
 
 PAVEMENTS. 
 
 Exodcjs xxiv. 10. 
 
 " And they saw the God of Israel : and there was 
 under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire 
 stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.” 
 
 Polished marble was not used in the days of Moses 
 for pavements. He refers to the most splendid floors 
 which Egypt then knew, and which were formed of 
 painted tiles (or bricks). These tiles were the color 
 of blue (the sapphire stone being blue) in the pavement 
 Moses saw. And Le Bruyn tells us, that the mosque 
 at Jerusalem is almost all covered over with green and 
 blue bricks, which are glazed ; so that, when the sun 
 shines the eye is perfectly dazzled. But as these bricks 
 are not transparent, Moses, in order to describe the 
 pavement under the feet of the God of Israel with due 
 majesty, represents it as like the floors of painted tile he 
 had seen, but transparent as the body of heaven. — See 
 Le Bruyn , tom. ii. ; Harmer's Observations , vol. i., pp. 
 359-361. 
 
 UNTEMPERED MORTAR. 
 
 Ezekiel xiii. 11. 
 
 “ Say unto them which daub it with untempered mor- 
 tar, that it shall fall : there shall be an overflowing 
 shower ; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall ; and a 
 stormy wind shall rend it.” 
 
 The Eastern walls, and even the great houses, are in 
 some places built only of mud or clay, formed into the 
 shape of bricks, and dried in the sun. These materials 
 make the streets dusty when there is wind, and dirty 
 when there is rain. (Zech. ix. 3.) 
 
 A traveller has taken notice of the mouldering down 
 of some Eastern buildings upon a shower of rain, as an 
 illustration of the untempered mortar of which Ezekiel 
 speaks. “ The rains cause the walls to fall, which are* 
 built of clay, the mortar plastering dissolving. This 
 plaster hinders the water from penetrating the bricks ; 
 
24 
 
 UNTEMPERED MORTAR. 
 
 but when the plastering has been soaked with wet, the 
 wind cracks it, and occasions the rain in some succeed- 
 ing shower to get between, and dissolve everything.” 
 This account explains also the reason of the breaches 
 and clefts mentioned by the prophet Amos (vi. 11 ; Isa. 
 xxx. 13). Still many buildings are made of stone; as 
 they were in the days of Moses in the land of Canaan. 
 (Lev. xiv. 40). The Eastern mortar is very durable, 
 and is composed of one part of sand, two of wood-asAes, 
 and three of lime, which is beaten for three days and 
 nights with mallets, after being well mixed together. In 
 some countries this mortar is trodden , which Malachi 
 alludes to in ch. iv. 3. — See Harmer's Observations , vol. 
 i., pp. 349-353. 
 
 MANNER OF BREAKING INTO EASTERN HOUSES. 
 
 Matthew xxiv. 43. 
 
 “ But know this, that if the good-man of the house 
 had known in what watch the thief would come, he would 
 have watched, and would not have suffered his house to 
 be broken up” (or, to be dug through). 
 
 In entering premises by burglary, the Easterns do not 
 break through doors or windows, for these are not easily 
 accessible, but they make their way through the walls. 
 The words “ break through,” and “ broken up,” properly 
 mean, to “ dig through.” The Eastern houses are not 
 in general built like ours, of burnt bricks or stone, but 
 of dried clay ; or, if of bricks, they are merely hardened 
 in the sun, but not burnt ; and it was the manner of 
 house-robbers to enter them by perforating the walls. 
 It has been particularly remarked, that the Arabians, 
 Egyptians, and inhabitants of Damascus, still build of 
 mud, and slime, and unburnt brick, and that their walls 
 are of great thickness . — Weekly Visiter. 
 
 • STABLES. 
 
 Luke ii. 7. 
 
 “ And she brought forth her first-born son, and 
 
STABLES. 
 
 25 
 
 wrapped him in swaddling-clothes, and laid him in a 
 manger ; because there was no room for them in the inn.” 
 Mangers, such as we have in England, are not 
 known in the East, where there is no hay ; but in their 
 stables , which word is meant in this passage rather than 
 manger , are stone-troughs, or holes of stone, in which 
 they lay the fodder, and which are large enough to lay a 
 child in. In one of these the blessed Jesus was laid, 
 because there was no room for him in the inn. — Dr, 
 Russell ; Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., p. 202, note. 
 
 HOUSE OF THE DEAD. 
 
 1 Samuel xxv. 1. 
 
 “ And Samuel died ; and all the Israelites were gath- 
 ered together, and lamented him, and buried him in his 
 house at Ram ah.” 
 
 3 
 
26 
 
 HOUSE OF THE DEAD. 
 
 1 Kings ii. 34. 
 
 • J So Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, went up, and fell 
 upon him, and slew him ; and he was buried in his own 
 house in the wilderness.” 
 
 Job xxx. 23. 
 
 “For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, and 
 to the house appointed for all living.” 
 
 “ While walking out, one evening, a few fields’ dis- 
 tance from Deir el Kamr (on Mount Lebanon), with 
 the son of my host, to see a detached garden belonging 
 to his father, he pointed out to me, near it, a small solid 
 stone building, apparently a house, very solemnly adding, 
 ‘ The sepulchre of our family.’ It had neither door nor 
 window. He then directed my attention to a consider- 
 able number of similar buildings at a distance, which, 
 to the eye, are exactly like houses, but which are, in 
 fact, family mansions for the dead. They have a most 
 melancholy appearance, which made him shudder as he 
 explained their use. They seem, by their dead walls, 
 which must be opened at each several interment of the 
 members of a family, to say, ‘ This is an unkindly house, 
 to which visiters do not willingly throng — but one by 
 one, they will be forced to enter, and none who enter 
 come out again.’ Perhaps this custom, which prevails 
 particularly at Deir el Kamr, and in the lonely neigh- 
 boring parts of the mountain, may have been of great 
 antiquity, and may serve to explain some Scripture 
 phrases. The prophet Samuel was buried in his house 
 at Ramah — it would hardly be in his dwelling-house. 
 Joab was buried in his own house in the wilderness. 
 This is the house appointed for all living.” — Jowett's Re- 
 searches. 
 
 EASTERN TOMBS. 
 
 Matthew xxiii. 27, 29. 
 
 “ Wo unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites ! 
 for ye are like unto whited sepulchres [washed over 
 
EASTERN TOMBS 
 
 27 
 
 with white lime] which indeed appear beautiful outward, 
 but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all un- 
 cleanness 
 
 “Wo unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites ! 
 because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish 
 the sepulchres of the righteous ” 
 
 If we except a few persons, who are buried within the 
 precincts of some sanctuary, the rest are carried out at 
 a small distance from their cities and villages, where a 
 great extent of ground is allotted for that purpose. Each 
 family has a particular portion of it, walled in like a 
 
28 
 
 EASTERN TOMBS. 
 
 garden, where the bones of their ancestors have remained 
 undisturbed for many generations. For in these enclo- 
 sures the graves are all distinct and separate, having 
 each of them a stone placed upright, both at the head 
 and feet, inscribed with the name of the person who lies 
 interred there ; while the intermediate space is either 
 planted with flowers, bordered round with stone, or paved 
 all over with tiles. The graves of the principal citizens 
 are further distinguished by some square chambers or 
 cupolas that are built over them. Now, as all these dif- 
 ferent sorts of tombs and sepulchres, with the very walls 
 likewise of the enclosures, are constantly kept clean, 
 whitewashed and beautified, they continue to this day to 
 be an excellent comment upon that expression of our 
 Savior, where he mentions the garnishing of the sepul- 
 chres, and again where he compares the scribes, Phari- 
 sees, and hypocrites, to whited sepulchres, which indeed 
 appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead 
 men’s bones, and all uncleanness. For the space of 
 two or three months after any person is interred, the 
 female relations go once a week to weep over the grave. 
 — See Dr. Shaw's Travels , p. 285. 
 
 JEWISH SEPULCHRES. 
 
 Mark v. 2-5. 
 
 u And when Jesus was come out of the ship, imme- 
 diately there met him out of the tombs a man with an 
 unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs ; 
 .... and always, night and day, he was in the mount- 
 ains, and in the tombs, crying and cutting himself with 
 stones.” 
 
 Speaking of the Mount of Judgment, directly oppo- 
 site Jerusalem, Mr. Carne writes : “ The most interest- 
 ing portion of this hill is where its rocks descend precipi- 
 tously into the valley of Hinnom. All these rocks are 
 hewn into sepulchres of various forms and sizes. No 
 
JEWISH SEPULCHRES. 
 
 29 
 
 doubt they were the tombs of the ancient Jews, and are in 
 general cut with considerable care and skill. They are 
 often the resting-place of the benighted passenger. Somf 
 of them open into inner apartments, and are provided 
 
 with small windows or apertures cut in the rock. There 
 is none of the sadness or darkness of the tomb ; but, in 
 many, so elevated and picturesque is the situation, that a 
 traveller may pass hours here with a book in his hand, 
 while valley and hill are beneath and around him. Be- 
 fore the door of one large sepulchre stood a tree on the 
 brink of the rock : the sun was going down on Olivet on 
 the right, and the resting-place of the dead commanded 
 a sweeter scene than any of the abodes of the living. 
 Many of the tombs have flights of steps leading up to 
 them.” — Carrie's Eastern Letters , pp. 292, 293. 
 
 Matthew xxvii. 59, 60. 
 
 “ And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped 
 3* 
 
30 
 
 JEWISH SEPULCHRES. 
 
 it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, 
 which he had hewn out in the rock : and he rolled a great 
 stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.” 
 
 John xix. 41, 42. 
 
 “ Now in the place where Jesus was crucified, there 
 was a garden, and in the garden a new sepulchre : . . . 
 there laid they Jesus.” 
 
 Dr. Clarke, during his -visit to Jerusalem, writes 
 thus : “ Having quitted the city by what is called Sion 
 Gate, we descended into a dingle or trench, called To- 
 
 phet or Gehinnom As we reached the bottom of 
 
 this narrow dale, sloping toward the Yalley of Jehosha- 
 phat, we observed upon the sides of the opposite mount- 
 ain (which appears to be the same called by Sandys the 
 Hill of Offence*), facing Mount Sion, a number of excava- 
 tions in the rock. We rode toward them, their situation 
 being very little elevated above the bottom of the dingle, 
 upon its southern side. When we arrived. . . . alighting 
 from our horses, we found we should have ample em- 
 ployment in their examination. They were all of the 
 same kind of workmanship, exhibiting a series of subter- 
 ranean chambers, hewn with marvellous art, each con- 
 taining one or many repositories for the dead, like cisterns 
 carved in the rock upon the sides of those chambers.! 
 The doors were so low, that, to look into any one of 
 them, it was necessary to stoop, and, in some instances, 
 to creep upon our hands and knees ; these doors were also 
 grooved for the reception of immense stones, once squared 
 and fitted to the grooves, by way of closing the entrances. 
 Of such a nature were, indisputably, the tombs of the 
 sons of Heth, of the kings of Israel, of Lazarus, and of 
 Christ. The cemeteries of the ancients were universally 
 excluded from the precincts of their cities The 
 
 * The same as the Mount of Judgment. 
 
 f In the writings of the prophets frequent allusions occur to 
 similar places of burial : thus, Isaiah xiv. 15,18; Ezekiel xxxii , 
 23, &c. 
 
JEWISH SEPULCHRES. 
 
 31 
 
 sepulchres we are now describing bear, in their very 
 nature, satisfactory proof of their being situate out of the 
 ancient city, as they are now out of the modern. The 
 sepulchres themselves are, according to the ancient cus- 
 tom, stationed in the midst of gardens. From all these 
 circumstances, are we not authorized to look here for the 
 sepulchre of Joseph of Arimathea, who, as a pious Jew, 
 necessarily had his burying-place in the cemetery of his 
 countrymen, among the graves of his forefathers ? The 
 Jews are remarkable for their rigid adherence to this 
 custom. They adorned their burial-places with trees 
 and gardens ; and the tomb of this Jew is accordingly 
 described as being in 4 a garden,’ 4 in the place where our 
 Savior was crucified.’ (John xix. 41.) It is, moreover, 
 worthy of observation, that everyone of the Evangelists 
 (and among them he that 4 saw it,’ and 4 bear record’) 
 affirm, that the place of crucifixion was 4 the place of a 
 scull ;’ that is to say, a public cemetery,* 4 called in the 
 Hebrew Golgotha,’ without the city, and very near to 
 one of its gates. St. Luke calls it 4 Calvary,’ which has 
 the same signification. It may, therefore, be surmised, 
 that upon the opposite summit, now called Mount Sion, 
 without the walls, the crucifixion of the Messiah was 
 actually accomplished. Perhaps some evidences that we 
 obtained may farther illustrate this most interesting sub- 
 ject. Upon all the sepulchres at the base of this mount 
 (which, as 4 the place of a scull,’ we have the authority 
 of Scripture for calling either Calvary or Golgotha wheth- 
 er it be the place of crucifixion or not) there are inscrip- 
 tions in Hebrew and in Greek. The Hebrew inscriptions 
 are the most effaced : of these it is difficult to make any 
 tolerable copy. The Greek inscriptions are brief and 
 legible ; they consist of immense letters, deeply carved 
 in the face of the rock, either over the door, or by the 
 side, of the sepulchres 
 
 * Not necessarily a public cemetery ; more probably a place of 
 execution, as the best writers think. Some suppose it to be called 
 the place of a scull, from its resemblance to a human scull. 
 
32 
 
 JEWISH SEPULCHRES. 
 
 “ Having entered by the door of this sepulchre, we 
 found a spacious chamber cut in the rock, connected with 
 a series of other subterraneous apartments, and con- 
 taining an extensive range of receptacles for the dead. 
 Opposite to the entrance, but lower down in the rock, a 
 second and a similar aperture led to another chamber 
 beyond the first. When we had penetrated to the ex- 
 tremity of this second chamber, we could proceed no 
 farther, owing to the rubbish which obstructed our pas- 
 sage. It was evident that we had not reached the re- 
 motest part of these caverns. There were others with 
 similar Greek inscriptions, and one which particularly 
 attracted our notice, from its extraordinary coincidence 
 with all the circumstances connected with the history of 
 our Savior’s tomb. The large stone that once closed its 
 mouth, had been, perhaps for ages, rolled away. Stoop- 
 ing down to look into it, we observed within a fair sep- 
 ulchre, containing a repository upon one side only, for a 
 single body ; whereas, in most of the others, there were 
 two, and in many of them, more than two. It is placed 
 exactly opposite to the hill which is now called Mount 
 Sion. As we viewed this sepulchre, and read upon the 
 spot the description given of the coming of Mary Mag- 
 dalene and the disciples, in the morning (John xx.), it 
 was difficult to divest the mind of the probability that 
 here might have been the identical tomb of Jesus Christ ; 
 and that up the steep which led to it, after descending 
 from the gate of the city, the disciples strove together, 
 when 4 John did outrun Peter, and came first to the 
 sepulchre’ ” (John xx. 4). — Clarke's Travels , vol. iv., 
 pp. 321-328. 
 
 TEMPLE OF DAGON. 
 
 Judges xvi. 27-30. 
 
 “ And there were upon the roof about three thousand 
 men and women. .... And Samson took hold of the 
 two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on 
 
TEMPLE OF DAGON, 
 
 33 
 
 which it was borne up And he bowed himself 
 
 with all his might, and the house fell.” 
 
 “ Samson must have been in a court or area below ; 
 and consequently the temple will be of the same kind 
 with the ancient sacred enclosures, which were only sur- 
 rounded either in part, or on all sides, with some plain 
 or cloistered buildings. Several palaces ( doutwanas , as 
 the courts of justice are called in these countries), are 
 built in this fashion. On their public festivals and re- 
 joicings, the roofs of these cloisters are crowded with 
 spectators, while a great quantity of sand is strewed upon 
 the area for the wrestlers to fall upon. I have often seen 
 numbers of people diverted in this manner on the roof 
 of the dey’s palace at Algiers ; which, like many oth- 
 ers, has an advanced cloister over against the gate of 
 the palace, like a long pent-house, supported by one or 
 two contiguous pillars in the front or centre. In such 
 open structures as these, in the midst of their guards and 
 counsellors, are the pachas, kadees, and other great 
 officers, assembled to distribute justice, and transact the 
 public affairs of their provinces. Here, likewise, they 
 have their public entertainments, as the lords and others 
 of the Philistines had in the house of Dagon. If in this 
 last, there was a structure of this kind, the pulling down 
 of the front or centre pillars only, which supported it, 
 would be attended with the like catastrophe that hap- 
 pened to the Philistines.” — Dr. Shaw ; Harmer’s Ob- 
 servations , vol. i., pp. 319, 320. 
 
 TOWER AT MAH AN AIM. 
 
 2 Samuel xviii. 24-33 ; xix. 8. 
 
 “ And David sat between the two gates : and the 
 watchmen went up to the roof over the gate unto the 
 wall, and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a 
 
 man running alone And the watchman cried 
 
 and told the king And the watchman saw an- 
 
 other man running, and the* watchman called unto the 
 
34 
 
 TOWER AT MAHANAIM. 
 
 porter, and said, Behold another man running alone. 
 
 And the king said, He also bringeth tidings 
 
 And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the king, All is 
 
 well And, behold, Cushi came And 
 
 the king said unto Cushi, Is the young man Absalom 
 safe ? And Cushi answered, The enemies of my lord 
 
 the king, be as that young man is And the 
 
 king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over 
 the gate and wept : and as he went, thus he said, O my 
 
 son Absalom ! &c Then the king arose, and sat 
 
 in the gate. And they told unto all the people, saying, 
 Behold, the king doth sit in the gate ; and all the people 
 came before the king.” 
 
 There is an account of an old castle at Tunbridge, in 
 Kent, which may serve to explain the way in which the 
 
TOWER AT MAHANAIM. 
 
 35 
 
 tower of entrance in which King David sat at Mahanaim, 
 was built. 
 
 In this castle there is a noble room over the gateway, 
 having two fine large windows. After the first gate 
 (which is of enormous size), is the tower entrance, there 
 is a pair of strong gates, and a few feet farther, another 
 pair of strong gates, and between these two pairs of 
 gates are two small doorways, one on each side, which 
 lead to two rooms, one on each side of the gateway. T wo 
 more rooms are over these, and above them the grand 
 state-room, to which they ascended by staircases, to 
 which they went through the lower rooms ; and from the 
 state-room, staircases led to the leads, or open top of 
 the building. 
 
 Now, in looking at the account given us in 2 Samuel 
 xviii. and xix. we see the tower of entrance into Maha- 
 naim furnished, like the castle at Tunbridge, with two 
 pairs of gates, the one at a distance from the other, the 
 king sitting between them, not, we may justly believe, 
 in the passage itself, so as to block up the way, or at all 
 incommode those who might be passing, but in a room 
 by the side of the way. We find a watchman on the top 
 of the tower, made, without doubt, commodious for that 
 purpose, by the staircases communicating with each other 
 from the bottom to the top, as the English castle was 
 flat, and covered with lead for the purpose of descrying 
 at a distance those who were coming, as well as wound- 
 ing assailants. We find the observations made by the 
 watchman were not communicated by him immediately 
 to the king, but by the warder at the outer gate ; and 
 that there was a communication between this lower room, 
 in which David first sat, and the upper room over the 
 gateway, for by that means he retired to give vent to 
 his sorrow. See a paper written by Mr. King , in the 
 Archceologia. Harmer's Observations , vcd. i., pp. 41 6-* 
 420 . 
 
36 
 
 ORATORIES. 
 
 Acts xvi. 13. 
 
 “ And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a 
 river-side, where prayer was wont to be made ” 
 
 Acts xxi. 5. 
 
 “ And we kneeled down on the shore, and prayed.” 
 
 It was the custom of the Jews to have their oratories, 
 or places of prayer, by the river-side ; and to such a 
 place the first of these verses probably alludes. In the 
 second, Paul and his companions appear simply to have 
 kneeled upon the shore ; and this, as a practice, is by no 
 means uncommon in the East. “ Just after sunset 
 (writes a traveller in Egypt), when the last and loveliest 
 hues are cast over the silent Egyptian scenery — or more 
 often when the moon has spread her brilliant light on 
 the river and shore, the Turks and Arabs come to the 
 water’s edge, and heedless of the traveller beside them, 
 spread their cloak on the bank, and are for some time 
 entirely absorbed in their devotions.” — Carne's Eastern 
 Letters , pp. 127, 128. 
 
 The more ordinary posture at prayer among the Jews 
 was standing ; but in their confessions, supplications, and 
 deprecations, and in times of mourning and affliction, 
 they fell down upon their knees, and bowed their faces 
 to the ground. The great sorrow which affected the 
 Ephesian elders at their parting with St. Paul is expressly 
 related, Acts xx. 36-38. The Tyrian disciples, doubt- 
 less, were not less deeply affected; for the Holy Spirit 
 had made known to them the difficulties and dangers he 
 was to undergo at Jerusalem. The sea-shore was 
 esteemed by the Jews a place most pure, and, therefore, 
 proper to offer up their prayers and thanksgivings to 
 Almighty God. Philo tells us that the Jews of Alex- 
 andria, when Flaccus, the governor of Egypt, who had 
 been their great enemy, was arrested by order of the 
 Emperor Caius, not being able to assemble at their syna- 
 
ORATORIES. 37 
 
 gogues, which had been taken from them, crowded out 
 at the gates of the city early in the morning, went to the 
 neighboring shores, and standing in a most pure place, 
 with one accord lifted up their voices in praising God! 
 Tertullian says, that the Jews, in his time, when they 
 kept their great fast, left their synagogues, and on every 
 shore sent forth their prayers to Heaven. And in an- 
 other place, among the ceremonies used by the Jews, he 
 mentions the prayers they made upon the shores. And 
 long before Tertullian’s time there was a decree made at 
 Halicarnassus in favor of the Jews, which, among other 
 privileges, allows them to say their prayers near the 
 shore, according to the custom of the country. — Sisco* 
 on the Acts , pp. 250-252. 
 
38 - 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Custom of Women fetching Watei — Of offering Water to trav-^ 
 ellers — Water-Carriers — Manner of Washing : the Hands ; the 
 Feet — Fuel — Young Men and Children taken to carry Wood — 
 
 Utensils — Mills — Mill-stones — Kneading-Troughs — Lamps 
 
 Waterpots — Leathern Bottles — Horns — Divans — Beds — Seats 
 — Baking— Churning — Straining Wine — Provisions, and Man- 
 ner of Eating — Men and Women eat separately — Invitations — 
 Feasts — Persian Feasts — Egyptian Feast — Repast on the Sea- 
 shore — Feasts of Tabernacles — The Passover — Weddings — 
 Jewish Wedding — Marriage Ceremonies — Births — Manner of 
 Announcing them — Ceremonies attendant on them — Manner of 
 carrying Children. 
 
 WATER DRAWN BY WOMEN. 
 
 1 Samuel ix. 11. 
 
 “ And as they went up the hill to the city, they found 
 young maidens going out to draw water” 
 
 Genesis xxiv. 11-22. 
 
 “ And he made his camels to kneel down without the 
 city, by a w~ell of water, at the time of the evening, even 
 the time that women go out to draw water. And he 
 said, Behold, I stand here by the well of water ; and the 
 daughters of the men of the city come out to draw 
 water. . . . And it came to pass, that, behold Rebekah 
 came out ; and the damsel w r as very fair to look upon, a ; 
 virgin. . . . And the man took a golden ear-ring of half 
 a shekel weight , and two bracelets for her hands of ten 
 shekels weight of gold ” 
 
 It is the business of the women in the East to fetch 
 water .. This they do in the cool of the mornings and 
 
WATER DRAWN BY WOMEN. 
 
 39 
 
 evenings , at which times great numbers of females are 
 seen going together on this employment. It is princi- 
 pally the girls who draw water, though they generally 
 have with them one or more grown persons ; and some- 
 times the married women go out, tying their sucking 
 children behind them. When thus engaged, the Eastern 
 women are much adorned ; sometimes with trinkets of 
 very great value it was not, therefore, strange in the 
 servant to put ornaments on Rebecca, when she came 
 forth to draw water. — Dr . Shaw ; Dr. Russell ; Sir J. 
 Chardin . 
 
 John iv, 7.. 
 
 “ There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water. * 
 
 There is one set of images and delightful illustra- 
 tions, meeting the eye at every turn in India, which I 
 
40 WATER DRAWN BY WOMEN. 
 
 have never seen any person so insensible as not to attend 
 to with unaffected interest. I allude to those numerous 
 every-day customs of the East so often mentioned in the 
 Scriptures, and with which our minds have become famil- 
 iar from earliest infancy. Before visiting Eastern coun- 
 tries, we almost fancy that because the events related in 
 the Bible have passed away and become matter of history, 
 so also must the customs have disappeared which served 
 as familiar illustrations between man and man, or between 
 our Savior and those whom it was the object of his 
 mission to impress with his doctrine. We are apt to be 
 startled, therefore, when we find ourselves actually sur- 
 rounded by scenes almost identical with those described 
 in the Bible. Be all this as it may, I could never see 
 a Hindoo female sitting by the steps of a well in India, 
 with her arm thrown wearily over the unfilled water-pot, 
 without thinking of the beautiful story of the woman of 
 Samaria ; the association being, perhaps, helped by the 
 recollection of a picture,* in which the figures and the 
 scenery are represented quite in the Eastern style, such 
 as I was now beholding it for the first time . — Basil 
 Hallos Fragments of Voyages and Travels , vol. iii., pp. 
 23-25. 
 
 HINDOO CUSTOM OF OFFERING WATER TO 
 TRAVELLERS. 
 
 Mark ix. 41. 
 
 “ For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink 
 in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say 
 unto you, he shall not lose his reward.” 
 
 In India the Hindoos go sometimes a great way to 
 fetch water, and then boil it that it may not be hurtful 
 to travellers who are hot ; and after this, stand from 
 morning till night in some great road where there is 
 neither pit nor rivulet, and offer it in honor of their 
 
 The Woman of Samaria ; by an Italian artist. 
 
HINDOO CUSTOM OF OFFERING WATER, 
 
 41 
 
 gods to be drunk by the passengers. This necessary 
 work of charity in these hot countries seems to have 
 been practised among the more pious and humane Jews ; 
 and our Lord assures them, that if they do this in his 
 name, they shall not lose their reward. — Dr. A. Clarke. 
 
 WATER-CARRIERS. 
 
 As the water of the wells of Cairo in Egypt is slightly 
 brackish, numerous “ sackckas” (carriers or sellers 
 of water) obtain their livelihood by supplying its inhab- 
 itants with water from the Nile. It is conveyed in skins 
 by camels and asses, and sometimes, when the distance 
 is small, by the “ sackcka” himself. The water-skins of 
 the camel are a pair of wide bags of ox-hide ; the ass 
 bears a goat-skin ; so also does the carrier, if he have no 
 ass. The general cry of the water-carrier is, “ Oh may 
 God compensate me /” Whenever this cry is heard, it 
 4 * 
 
42 
 
 WATER-CARRIERS. 
 
 is known that a sackcka is passing. There are also 
 other water-carriers who supply passengers in the streets 
 with water. The goat-skin of a sackcka of this sort has 
 a long brass spout, and he pours the water into a brass 
 cup for any one who would drink. There is a more 
 numerous class, who follow the same occupation, bearing 
 upon their backs a vessel of porous gray earth which 
 cools the water. Many of these, and some of the sack- 
 ckas who carry the goat-skin, are found at the scenes of 
 religious festivals, and are often paid by visiters to the 
 tomb of a saint, on such occasions, to distribute the 
 water which they carry to passengers — a cupful to who- 
 ever desires. This work of charity is performed for 
 the sake of the saint. The carriers thus employed are 
 generally allowed to fill their vessels at a public fountain, 
 as they exact nothing from the passengers whom they 
 supply. When employed to distribute water to a pas- 
 senger in the streets, they generally chant a short cry, 
 inviting the thirsty to partake of the charity offered 
 them in the name of God , and praying that paradise and 
 pardon may be the lot of him who affords the charitable 
 gift. — See Modern Egyptians by Mr. Lane , vol. ii., pp. 
 15 - 18 . 
 
 MANNER OF WASHING. 
 
 John xiii. 10. 
 
 “ He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, 
 but is clean every whit.” 
 
 He that is washed all over already (that is, by baptism) 
 needs no more washing, save only for his feet, which by 
 daily treading, that is, conversing on this earth, become 
 soiled, and need continual cleansing. The washing all 
 over was the ceremony of initiation in use among the 
 Jews, and was never repeated. — See Dr. Hammond on 
 the place. 
 
 During my residence at Burmah, I was often reminded, 
 while sitting in their houses in the dusk of the evening, 
 
MANNER OF WASHING'. 
 
 43 
 
 of our Savior’s remark in John xiii. 10. The men hav- 
 ing finished their labor, bathe and clean themselves at 
 the river or tank ; but walking up with wet feet defiles 
 them again, so that they cannot with propriety come and 
 take their place on the mat or bed. Taking up some 
 water, therefore, in a cocoa-nut dipper, out of a large 
 jar which stands at the door of every house, they easily 
 rinse their feet, as they stand on the step, and are “ clean 
 every whit.” — Rev . H. MalcorrHs Travels. 
 
 MODE OF WASHING THE HANDS. 
 
 2 Kings iii. 11. 
 
 “ Here is Elisha, the son of Shaphat, which poured 
 water on the hands of Elijah.” 
 
 The Oriental mode of washing is universally different 
 to that practised in tlxe West. Nowhere i& water pre- 
 
44 
 
 WASHING THE HANDS. 
 
 viously poured into a basin ; but the servant pours water 
 from a pitcher upon the hands of his master. The cus- 
 tom of washing hands before dinner prevails also to this 
 day. The servant goes round to all the guests, with a 
 pitcher, and a vessel to receive the water falling from 
 the hands, and performs the office here attributed to Eli- 
 sha. The same service is repeated after the repast is 
 ended. — Hartley's Researches. 
 
 WASHING THE FEET. 
 
 Luke vii. 44. 
 
 “ And Jesus said unto Simon, I entered into thine 
 house, thou gavest me no water for my feet.” 
 
 1 Timothy y. 10. 
 
 “ If she have lodged strangers ; if she have washed 
 the saints’ feet.” (See also Genesis xviii. 4.) 
 
 In the East, where only sandals are worn on the feet, 
 and where the heat and dust render walking painful, to 
 wash the feet on entering any dwelling, is the greatest 
 
WASHING THE FEET. 
 
 45 
 
 luxury ; and consequently, water is one of the first 
 things presented to a guest. The following passage is 
 from the journal of Mr. Jowett : — 
 
 “ October 1st. — Went with Mr. Lewis to Dein el 
 Kamr, which may be called the capital of Mount Leba- 
 non. The journey took us nine very hot and tedious 
 hours. We arrived at sunset. We had a letter to a 
 very respectable man in the town, and had an enthu- 
 siastic welcome from his family. Before supper, the 
 master of the house directed the servant to bring in a 
 large brass pan, full of warm water, in which, for the 
 first, and indeed the only time that I ever experienced 
 such attention, he illustrated the ancient custom of wash- 
 ing the feet of strangers, and no compliment could have 
 been more seasonable.” — Jowett’ s He searches. 
 
 FLOWERS USED AS FUEL IN THE EAST. 
 
 Matthew vi. 28-30. 
 
 “ Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow ; 
 they toil not neither do they spin .... 
 
 “ Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, 
 which to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, 
 shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith V r 
 
 The Burmans use very little fuel, and this is of a 
 light kind, often the stalks of flowers ; reminding me of 
 the remark of our Savior, in Matt. vi. 30. — Rev. H. Mai - 
 corn’s Travels in Southeastern Asia. 
 
 YOUNG MEN AND CHILDREN TAKEN TO CARRY 
 WOOD. 
 
 Lamentations v. 13. 
 
 “ They took the young men to grind, and the children 
 fell under the wood.” 
 
 Mr. Jowett, in his journal, observes, “ My servant 
 directed my attention to a common circumstance, which 
 
46 
 
 CHILDREN TAKEN TO CARRY WOOD. 
 
 aptly enough illustrates a verse of Scripture. It was & 
 family returning from their work in the field, bringing 
 home wood for fuel. Several of them were young girls ; 
 the youngest a child not above four years of age, which 
 the others were continually scolding for not keeping up 
 with them, although it was manifestly struggling under 
 a very disproportionate share of the family burthen. 
 This might explain the latter clause of the 1 3th verse of 
 Lamentations v. : 1 The children fell under the wood !’ ” 
 * — Jowett's Researches . 
 
 ARAB UTENSILS. 
 
 Mr. Madden thus describes the furniture of an Arab 
 camp. It consists of few and simple articles, of the 
 same kind as have always been used by the dwellers in 
 tents : — *- 
 
 “ A couple of copper boilers, two small grinding- 
 stones, a leather bag to churn milk in, some water-skins, 
 a wooden bowl, a goblet or two of tin or horn, a mat, 
 and sometimes a coffee-pot, are all the earthly posses- 
 sions of a Bedouin — beside his cattle and his firearms.” 
 
 Madden's Travels , voh ii., p. 192. 
 
 EASTERN MILLS. 
 
 Matthew xxiv. 41. 
 
 “Two women shall be grinding at the mill, the one 
 shall be taken, and the other left.” 
 
 “ These words convey scarcely any meaning to Euro- 
 pean readers. But in India where we see constantly 
 two female millers, sitting cross-legged on the ground, 
 turning by one handle the upper of two small stones, we 
 are at once struck with the force of the illustration used 
 to explain the uncertainty which should prevail at the 
 destruction of the city. It is difficult, on looking at two 
 persons so engaged, to conceive a situation in which it 
 
EASTERN MILLS. 
 
 47 
 
 would be less easy to remove the one without interfering 
 with the other ; and this point was admirably enforced 
 by reference to a custom with which every listener in 
 those countries must have been quite familiar. A whole 
 quarto of commentaries on the above verse could not 
 have impressed my mind with a tenth part of the con- 
 viction which flashed upon me when I first saw two 
 women actually ‘ grinding at the mill all unconscious 
 of the cause of my admiration, and as yet ignorant, alas ! 
 of the sublime lessons, to enforce and explain which 
 their humble task was referred to.” — See Captain Ba- 
 sil HalVs Fragments of Voyages and Travels , vol. iii., 
 pp. 25, 26. 
 
 MILL-STONES. 
 
 Luke xvii. 2. 
 
 “It were better for him that a millstone were hanged 
 about his neck, and he cast into the sea.” 
 
48 
 
 MILLSTONES. 
 
 To one who connects this passage with the idea of 
 the large millstones employed in our country, there 
 must appear something unnatural in the allusion. To 
 attach such a millstone to the neck would be to termi- 
 nate life by another mode of death than by casting into 
 the sea. There is here an evident allusion to the mill- 
 stones employed in the East, which are called hand- 
 mills. These consist of an upper and nether millstone, 
 both flat and round, playing into each other, and not 
 more than a foot in diameter. The upper stone is turned 
 round by two persons, one sitting on one side, one on 
 the other — “ two women grinding at the mill.” The 
 corn thus ground between the stones escapes in the form 
 of flour, through a hole in the lower stone. In order to 
 sink a person in the sea, nothing could be more suitable 
 than to attach a millstone of this kind to his neck. — 
 See Hartley's Researches. 
 
 Jeremiah xxv. 10, 11. 
 
 “ I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the 
 voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the 
 voice of the bride, the sound of millstones, and the light 
 of the candle. And this whole land shall be a desola- 
 tion.” (See Rev. xviii. 22.) 
 
 The Eastern people grind their corn at break of day, 
 and those that grind, sing, so that the cheerful noise of 
 the women singing is heard throughout the land. In 
 the East, when no millstones, and the voices of those 
 that grind, are heard, it must be a dreary solitude indeed. 
 This employment is esteemed the lowest in the house,, 
 and is always assigned to the female slaves. (See Exodus 
 xi. 5.) The Hindoo women, those who are widows, 
 perform the task, divested of every ornament, with their 
 heads shaved, and degraded to almost a state of servi- 
 tude. “ Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin 
 daughter of Babylon ! Sit on the ground, for thou shalt 
 no more be called tender and delicate. Take the mill- 
 stones , and grind meal ." — Isaiah xlvii. 1, 2. 
 
MILLSTONES. 
 
 49 
 
 These millstones being so necessary to prepare the 
 daily food of every family, the Israelites were forbidden 
 to take the upper or nether millstone to pledge — for “ he 
 taketh a man’s life to pledge.” (See Deut. xxiv. 6.) — Sir 
 John Chardin's MSS. See Harmer's Observations , vol. 
 i., pp. 495-499. 
 
 KNEADING-TROUGHS. 
 
 Exodus xii. 34. 
 
 “ And the people took their dough before it was 
 leavened, their kneading-troughs being bound up in their 
 clothes upon their shoulders.” 
 
 The Arabs still use small wooden bowls for kneading 
 the unleavened cakes which they prepare for strangers, 
 in the very desert through which Israel journeyed ; and 
 nothing could be more convenient for them than such 
 vessels. Among their other kitchen-furniture, they have 
 also a round leather coverlid, which they lay on the 
 ground, and which serves them to eat from. It has rings 
 round it, by which it is drawn together with a chain, that 
 has a hook to it to hang it up by, either to the side of 
 the camel, or in the house. This draws it together, and 
 sometimes they carry in it their meal made into dough, 
 and in this manner they bring it full of bread, and, when 
 the repast is over, carry it away at once with all that is 
 left. — Dr. Shaw's and Dr. Pococke's Travels. See Har- 
 mer , vol. iv., pp. 367-369. 
 
 LAMPS. 
 
 Job xxi. 17. (xviii. 5, 6.) 
 
 “ How oft is the candle of the wicked put out, and 
 how oft cometh their destruction upon them.” 
 
 The having a great number of lights is esteemed a 
 sign of prosperity and joy in the East. 
 
 In Egypt they burn lamps in all the inhabited apart- 
 ments of a house, all the night long ; and the poorest 
 5 
 
50 
 
 LAMPS. 
 
 people would rather retrench part of their food than 
 neglect it. Thus, when God promised to give David a 
 lamp always in Jerusalem, it means that his house should 
 never become desolate, but that some of his posterity 
 
 should always be kings in Zion ; for destruction, and the 
 putting out of their lamps, or other lights, were terms 
 which meant one and the same thing. (See Jer. xxv. 10, 
 11.) “ The light of the righteous rejoiceth, but the lamp 
 
 of the wicked shall be put out.” (Prov. xiii. 9.) — Har- 
 med s Observations, vol. i., pp. 386-389. 
 
 WATERPOTS OF CANA. 
 
 John ii. 6. 
 
 “ And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after 
 the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two 
 or three firkins apiece.” 
 
WATERPOTS OF CANA. 
 
 51 
 
 <£ We proceeded to Cana,” writes Mr. Carne, “ by a 
 narrow and rocky path over the mountains. This village 
 contains two or three hundred inhabitants, and is pleas- 
 antly situated on a small eminence in a valley. The 
 ruins of the house are still shown where the miracle of 
 turning water into wine was performed. The same 
 kind of stone waterpots are certainly in use in the village. 
 We saw several of the women bearing them on their 
 heads as they returned from the well.” — Carrie's Eastern 
 Letters , p. 253. 
 
 “ While I was sitting by the well of Cana,” writes 
 Mr. Wilson, “ a striking fact occurred. Six females, 
 having their faces veiled, came down to the well, each 
 carrying on her head a pot for the purpose of being 
 filled with water, which evinced how much the customs 
 of old are observed here at this day. These vessels are 
 formed of clay, hardened by the heat of the sun, and are 
 of a globular shape, and large at the mouth ; not unlike 
 
52 
 
 WATERPOTS OF CANA. 
 
 the bottles used in our country for holding vitriol, but 
 not so large. Many of them have handles attached to the 
 sides ; and it was a wonderful coincidence with Scripture, 
 that the ves-sels appeared to contain much about the same 
 quantity as those which the Evangelist informs us were 
 employed at the celebration of the marriage which was 
 honored by the Savior’s presence, viz., three firkins, or 
 about twelve gallons each .” — Rae Wilson's Travels 
 
 LEATHERN BOTTLES. 
 
 Joshua ix. 4. 
 
 “ Wine-bottles, old, and rent, and bound up.” 
 
 The bottles in which the Arabs keep liquors are made 1 
 of goat-skins, in which water, milk, &c., keep fresher 
 than in other vessels. When the goat is killed, they cut 
 off its feet and head, and draw it in this manner out of 
 the skin. They afterward sew up the places where the 
 legs- were cut off, and the tail ; and when it is filled, they 
 tie it about the neck. These nations, and the country 
 people of Persia, never go a journey without a small 
 leather bottle of water hanging by their side like a scrip. 
 The large bottles are made of the skins of goats, the 
 smaller ones of those of kids. (See Gen. xxi. 14.) 
 
 The tents of the Arabs are extremely smoky, since 
 they make fires in them ; so that a traveller, who was 
 obliged to pass a night in a hut of reeds in the middle 
 of which was a fire, to boil a kettle of meat that hung 
 over it, and to bake some bread among the ashes, speaks 
 of the smoke as intolerable, there being no way for it to 
 escape but by the door of the hut. How black would a 
 goat-skin bottle become in such a tent as this ! beside 
 being also shrivelled and dried up. The Psalmist, there- 
 fore, when wasted with sorrow, exclaims, “ I am become 
 like a bottle in the smoke !” Probably, too, he meant 
 thus to signify his meanness and degradation ; for, after 
 living with those who used vessels of gold and silver, in 
 
LEATHERN BOTTLES. 
 
 53 
 
 Saul’s palace, he was obliged to live as the wild Arabs, 
 and to drink like them out of a smoked leather bottle. 
 These bottles, when rent, were mended by putting in a 
 new piece, or by gathering up the piece, or by inserting 
 a flat bit of wood. — Harmer's Observations , vol. i., pp. 
 282-287. 
 
 HORNS. 
 
 1 Kings i. 39. 
 
 “ And Zadoc the priest took a horn of oil out of 
 the tabernacle and anointed Solomon.” (See 1 Samuel 
 xvi. 13.) 
 
 The Eastern people frequently used horns for keeping 
 liquors in, and also for drinking out of ; and- the same 
 custom still prevails in other countries where the arts 
 are little known. At first, the hollow horns of animals 
 were thus used ; but, afterward, vessels shaped like horns 
 •5* 
 
54 
 
 HORNS. 
 
 were made of different metals, and much ornamented 
 with precious stones. Horns were employed for sacred 
 purposes : that with which Solomon was anointed was 
 kept in the sanctuary. There is now, in the cathedral 
 of York, a horn presented to it by one of our early 
 princes : it has a chain, which is fastened to it in two 
 places, by which it might be hung up : and if the horns 
 in the East were thus furnished, perhaps Isaiah alludes 
 to them among other things, when he speaks of drinking- 
 vessels being hung up. (Isai. xxii. 24 .) — See Harmer's 
 Observations, vol. ii., pp. 134, 135. 
 
 DIVANS. 
 
 Esther vii. 8. 
 
 “ Hainan wasfallenupon the bed whereon Esther was.’* 
 Amos iii. 12. 
 
 “ Thus saith the Lord, As the shepherd taketh out of 
 the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear, so 
 shall the children of Israel be taken out that dwell in 
 Samaria in the corner of a bed, and in Damascus in a 
 couch.” 
 
 A divan is a part of a room raised above the floor, 
 spread well with a carpet in winter, and in the summer 
 with mats : along the sides are thick mattresses, covered 
 with scarlet cloth, and large bolsters are set against the 
 walls to lean on. Upon these divans, which are large, 
 and with which all their rooms are furnished, they sit, 
 eat, and sleep. (See 1 Samuel xxviii. 23 ; Amos vi. 4 ; 
 Esther i. 6, vii. 8.) The corner of these is the most 
 honorable place, in which all great persons sit. These 
 divans are the same with what are translated beds in 
 several passages of Scripture. In the corner of one of 
 them Queen Esther was seated ; and when Hainan rose 
 to go up to her to beg for his life, he could not reach 
 her to kiss the hem of her robe, or perform any other 
 act of submission, without going upon the divan, which 
 
DIVANS. 
 
 55 
 
 accordingly he did, and which a traveller mentions hav- 
 ing seen persons do. 
 
 , The prophet Amos, in the verse quoted above, seems 
 to allude to the circumstance of the corner being the 
 honorable place ; and the couch may mean the mattress 
 placed upon it, covered, perhaps, with damask, from 
 Damascus. 
 
 The words of Amos may be understood as meaning, 
 that as a shepherd saves a small portion of a sheep, or a 
 goat, out of the jaws of a lion ; so, though the rest of the 
 country shall be miserably destroyed, they shall escape 
 that sit (or dwell) in Samaria, the royal city, in the 
 corner of the divan, on the damask mattress. 
 
 The stately bed on which Aholibah is represented as 
 sitting (Ezek. xxiii. 41), seems to mean the floor of an 
 idol temple : for on the floors of such places (Amos 
 ii. 8), they used to lie down on clothes or carpets, and 
 the going up to them by steps, made them very like the 
 Eastern divans. — See Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., 
 pp. 356-360. 
 
 EASTERN BEDS. 
 
 Mark ii. 11. 
 
 “ Arise ! and take up thy bed, and go thy way into 
 thine house.” 
 
 On the morning after my arrival at Bombay, I got up 
 with the first blush of the dawn, and hastily drawing on 
 my clothes, proceeded alone greedily in search of adven- 
 tures. I had not gone far before I saw a native sleeping 
 on a mat spread in the little verandah extending along 
 the front of his house, which was made of basket work 
 plastered over with mud. He was wrapped up in a long 
 web of white linen, or white cotton cloth, called, I think, 
 his cummerbund, or waist-cloth. As soon as the first 
 rays of the sun peeped into his rude sleeping-chamber, 
 he “ arose, took up his bed, and went into his house.” 
 I saw immediately an explanation of this expression, 
 which, with slight variations, occurs frequently in the 
 
56 
 
 EASTERN BEDS. 
 
 Bible, in connexion with several of the most striking and 
 impressive of Christ’s miracles, particularly with that of 
 the man sick of the palsy. My friend the Hindoo got 
 on his feet, cast the long folds of his wrapper over his 
 
 shoulder, stooped down, and having rolled up his mat, 
 which was all the bed he required, he walked into the 
 house with it, and then proceeded to the nearest tank to 
 perform his morning ablutions. — Capt. Basil HalVs 
 Fragments of Voyages and Travels, vol. iii., pp. 26, 27. 
 
 STONES USED AS SEATS AT FEASTS, Etc. 
 
 Genesis xxxi. 46. 
 
 “ And Jacob said unto his brethren, Gather stones ; 
 and they took stones, and made a heap ; and they did 
 eat there upon the heap.” 
 
 A traveller visiting an Arabian prince relates, the 
 following occurrences : “ I had gone from my lodgings 
 
STONES USED AS SEATS AT FEASTS, ETC. 57 
 
 indisposed, and by standing so long, found myself so 
 faint, that I was obliged to quit the room. I found 
 near the door some of the principal officers of the court, 
 who were sitting upon stones, in a scattered way, in the 
 shade. Among them was the master of the house, with 
 whom I had some acquaintance before. He immediately 
 gave me his place, and applied himself to draw together 
 stones into a heap, to build himself a new seat.” 
 
 Many countries furnish stones so flat as not to be un- 
 easy ; and they are used in the East in preference to sit- 
 ting on the ground, on account of the burning sands, or 
 (as in Jacob’s case probably) on account of the damp- 
 ness of the earth. The heap upon which Jacob and his 
 brethren ate their feast of reconciliation, was meant 
 to be a memorial of their renewed friendship ; and to 
 this day, heaps of stones which have been used for me- 
 morials, are found in these countries, as well as some 
 intended for sea-marks. There is one heap on a rock 
 in the Red sea, placed there to warn sailors of the 
 danger of the place. — Niebuhr's Travels ; Harmer's Ob- 
 servations , vol. ii., pp. 36-38. 
 
 BAKING. 
 
 Genesis xviii. 6. 
 
 “ And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, 
 and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine 
 meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.” 
 Leviticus ii. 4-7. 
 
 “ And if thou bring an oblation of a meat-offering 
 baken in the oven [or a meat-offering of the oven], it 
 shall be an unleavened cake of fine flour mingled with oil, 
 or unleavened wafers anointed with oil. And if thy 
 oblation be a meat-offering baken in a pan [or plate], it 
 shall be of fine flour, unleavened, mingled with oil. . . 
 .... And if thy oblation be a meat-offering baken in 
 the frying pan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.” 
 
 The Eastern people still make bread upon the hearth. 
 When it is ready for baking, they sweep a comer of the 
 
58 
 
 BAKING. 
 
 hearth, lay the bread there, cover it with hot ashes and 
 embers, and turn it in a quarter of an hour. This mode 
 of baking is in use among the Arabs, and is frequently 
 mentioned by travellers, the bread or cakes being very 
 good. The oven mentioned in Levit. ii. 4, is probably of 
 the same kind used by the Arabs for making their best 
 sort of bread. “ They make,” says D’Arvieux, “ a fire 
 in a great stone pitcher , and when heated, mix meal and 
 water, which they apply with the hollow of their hands 
 to the outside, and this soft paste spreading itself upon 
 it, is baked in an instant, and the bread comes off as thin 
 as our wafers .” Another way of baking, which is a very 
 easy one, the bread being as thin as a skin, and soon 
 prepared, is on a copper or iron plate, the same as the 
 pan or plate mentioned in Levit. ii. 5. And a fourth 
 way is laying the bread in a shallow earthen vessel, 
 like a frying-pan, and which serves for frying as well as 
 baking. This is called a tajen, and is most likely the 
 same with the frying-pan spoken of in Levit. ii. 7. 
 
 These modes of baking being common among those 
 who live in tents, as the Israelites did, it is very likely 
 that the latter prepared the meat-offerings in their own 
 tent's, and then brought them to present them to the Lord. 
 — See Harmer’s Observations , vol. i., pp. 476-481. 
 
 CHURNING. 
 
 Job xxix. 6. 
 
 “ I washed my steps with butter.” 
 
 In churning, when large quantities of butter are need- 
 ed, it is not unusual for men to tread on skins of cream, 
 in order to separate the butter from its more watery part, 
 with expedition. 
 
 We are told that the priests at Magnesia anoint their 
 feet with fresh butter ; and that the king of Abyssinia 
 anoints his head with it daily. 
 
 The Arabs churn in leathern bottles. Jael opened a 
 bottle of milk for Sisera (Jud. iv. 19), having probably 
 
CHURNING. 
 
 59 
 
 just churned, she poured out the contents of her bottle 
 into one of the best dishes she had, and gave it to her 
 guest. — Dr. Chandler’s Travels ; Harmer’s Observations ; 
 Burder’s Oriental Customs . 
 
 STRAINING WINE. 
 
 Matthew xxiii. 24. 
 
 “ Which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.” 
 
 This clause should be translated, “ Strain out the gnat 
 and swallow greedily the camel.” In the East, gnats are 
 very apt to fall into wine, if it be not carefully covered ; 
 and passing the liquor through a strainer , that no gnat, 
 or part of one, might remain, became a proverb, for ex- 
 actness about little matters. 
 
 The proverb would be very striking to a Jewish ear, 
 as the camel was the largest animal with which they 
 were familiar. 
 
 PROVISIONS, AND MANNER OF EATING. 
 
 Matthew xxvi. 23. 
 
 “He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the 
 same shall betray me.” 
 
 John xiii. 25-27. 
 
 “He then, lying on Jesus’s breast, saith unto him, 
 Lord, who is it ? Jesus answered, He it is to whom I 
 shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he 
 had dipped it, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of 
 Simon.” 
 
 To witness the daily family habits, in the house in 
 which I lived at Deir el Kamr (a town on Mount Leba- 
 non), forcibly reminded me of Scripture scenes. The 
 absence of the females at our meals has been already 
 noticed. There is another custom, by no means agree- 
 able to a European, to which, however, that I might 
 not seem unfriendly, I would willingly have endeavored 
 to submit, but it was impossible to learn it in the short 
 space of a twenty days’ visit. There are set on the table, 
 
eo 
 
 PROVISIONS, AND 
 
 in the evening, two or three messes of stewed meat, 
 vegetables, and sour milk. To me, the privilege of a 
 knife and spoon, and plate, was granted ; but the rest 
 all helped themselves immediately from the dish — in 
 which it was no uncommon thing to see the hands of 
 more than five Arabs at one time. Their bread, which 
 is extremely thin, tearing and folding up like a sheet of 
 
 paper, is used for the purpose of rolling together a large 
 mouthful, or sopping up the fluid and vegetables. When 
 the master of the house found in the dish any dainty 
 morsel, he took it out and applied it to my mouth. This 
 was true Syrian courtesy and hospitality ; and, had I 
 been sufficiently well bred, my mouth would have opened 
 to receive it. On my pointing to the plate, however, he 
 had the goodness to deposite the choice morsel there. 
 I would not have noticed so trivial a circumstance, if it 
 did not exactly illustrate what the Evangelist records of 
 the Last Supper : “ He that dippeth his hand with me 
 
MANNER OF EATING. 
 
 61 
 
 in the dish, the same shall betray me.” From this it 
 may be inferred that Judas sat near to our Lord — per 
 haps on one side next to him. St. John, who was leaning 
 on Jesus’ bosom, describes the fact, with an additional 
 circumstance — upon his asking “ Lord, who is it ?” 
 Jesus answered, “ He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, 
 when I have dipped it.” And when he had dipped the 
 sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. 
 And after the sop, Satan entered into him . — Jowetfs 
 CJuistian Researches. 
 
 The Egyptians are very hospitable in inviting stran- 
 gers to eat with them. The tray, if the party be numer- 
 ous, is placed in the middle of the room, and they sit 
 round it with one knee on the ground, and the other 
 (the right) raised ; and, in this manner, as many as 
 twelve may sit around a tray three feet wide. Each 
 person tucks up the hanging end of his sleeve. Before 
 he begins to eat, he says, “ In the name of God.’ v * 
 This is said in a low, but audible voice, by the master 
 of the house first ; and is both a grace and an invi- 
 tation to partake of the meal. The master of the 
 house first begins to eat, and the guests follow his 
 example. Neither knives nor forks are used, but the 
 thumb and two fingers of the right hand serve instead ; 
 but spoons are served for soup or rice, and both hands 
 may be used in particular cases. When there are se veral 
 dishes upon the tray, each person takes of any that he 
 likes, or of every one in succession ; when only one dish 
 is placed on the tray at a time, each takes from it a few 
 mouthfuls, and it is quickly removed to make place for 
 another. (Matt. xxvi. 23.) To pick out a delicate morsel, 
 and hand it to a friend, is esteemed polite. This manner 
 of eating with the fingers is more delicate than may be 
 imagined by those who have not witnessed it. Each 
 person breaks off a small piece of bread, dips it in the 
 dish, and then conveys it to his mouth, together with a 
 
 * In allusion to a similar custom, St. Paul may have exhorted 
 Christians to do all things in the name of the Lord Jesus. 
 
 6 
 
62 PROVISIONS, AND MANNER OF EATING. 
 
 small portion of the meat, or other contents of the dish ; 
 or he merely sops his morsel of bread in the dish. (See 
 Ruth ii. 14 ; John xiii. 26.) The piece of bread is gen- 
 erally doubled together, so as to enclose the morsel of 
 meat, &c., and only the thumb and the first and second 
 fingers are commonly used. — Lane’s Modern Egyptians , 
 vol. L, pp. 177-179. 
 
 MEN AND WOMEN EAT SEPARATELY IN THE EAST. 
 
 Genesis xviii. 6-10. 
 
 “ And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, 
 and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine 
 meal, knead it, and make cakes on the hearth. . . . And 
 he took butter and milk, and the calf which he had 
 dressed, and set it before them. . . . And they said unto 
 him, Where is Sarah thy Wife ? And he said, Behold 
 in the tent. And Sarah heard it in the tent-door, which 
 was behind him.” 
 
 Genesis xxvii. 14-18. 
 
 “ And he went, and fetched, and brought them” [the 
 kids] “ to his mother : and his mother made savory 
 
 meat And she gave the savory meat, and the 
 
 bread which she had prepared, into the hands of her son 
 Jacob, and he came to his father.” 
 
 When we had finished our meals, in the family in 
 which I resided at Deir el Kamr, and were risen, the 
 mother, daughter, and daughter-in-law, who had been 
 waiting at the door, came in, and partook of what 
 remained. Thus it is in Syria, and thus it has been, 
 probably, ever since Abraham, a Syrian ready to perish, 
 traversed these regions, dwelling in tents ; when Sarah, 
 having prepared an entertainment for three divine stran- 
 gers, did not present it, that being Abraham’s office, but 
 stood at the tent-door which w r as behind him. So Re- 
 bekah prepared a repast for her husband, and sent it in by 
 the hand of Jacob. — Jewett's researches in Syria . fyc. 
 
63 
 
 INVITATIONS. 
 
 Proverbs ix. 2-5. 
 
 “ Wisdom hath killed her beasts ; she hath mingled 
 her wine ; she hath also furnished her table. She hath 
 sent forth her maidens : she crieth upon the highest places 
 of the city , Whoso is simple let him turn in hither : as 
 for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, 
 Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I 
 have mingled.” 
 
 There was an ancient Eastern custom of sending 
 invitations to feasts by females, who delivered them 
 publicly. This singular custom was witnessed by a 
 traveller in Egypt, who gives the following account of 
 it. He says, he saw a number of women , who went 
 about inviting people to a banquet, in a curious and, 
 without doubt, very ancient manner. They were about 
 ten or twelve, covered with black veils, as is customary 
 in that country. Four eunuchs walked before them; 
 after them, and beside them, were Moors with walking- 
 staves. As they went along, they all joined in making 
 a noise , the sound of which was so peculiar, that no 
 idea could be given of it to those who had never heard 
 it. It was shrill, but had a particular quavering, which 
 had been learned by long practice. This story illustrates 
 the meaning of Solomon, when he says, “ She hath sent 
 forth her maidens , she crieth upon the highest places of 
 the city .” — Hasselquist : Harmer's Observations , voi. ii., 
 pp. 15, 16. 
 
 Zechariah iii. 10. 
 
 “ In that day, saith the Lord of Hosts, shall ye call 
 every man his neighbor, under the vine and under the 
 fig-tree 
 
 The Eastern people frequently form parties of pleas- 
 ure, and repose under the trees in warm weather, eating 
 and drinking there ; and they also invite passengers to 
 partake with them in their repast. Thus, Dr. Chandler, 
 
64 
 
 INVITATIONS. 
 
 in his Travels , tells us that a Greek at Philadelphia sent 
 them a small earthern vessel full of choice wine ; and that 
 some families, who were sitting beneath some trees , in- 
 vited them to alight, and 'partake of their refreshments. 
 
 The taking their repasts thus in public expressed safety 
 and pleasure ; and the calling to passengers to partake 
 with them, a spirit of friendliness and generosity. A 
 state very contrary to that in which Israel had some 
 little time before found themselves ; “ Son of man,” 
 said God to Ezekiel, “ I will break the staff of bread in 
 Jerusalem ; and they shall eat bread by weight, and with 
 care, and they shall drink water by measure, and with 
 astonishment. They shall eat their bread with careful- 
 ness, and drink their water with astonishment, that her 
 land may be desolate from all that is therein, because of 
 the violence of all them that dwell therein.” (Ezek. iv. 
 16, 17 ; xii. 18, 19.) — Chandler's Travels in Asia Minor ; 
 Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 24-26. 
 
 PERSIAN FEASTS. 
 
 Luke xiv. 7-12. 
 
 “ And he put forth a parable to those which were 
 bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief 
 rooms [places at table] ; saying unto them, When thou 
 art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the 
 highest room, lest a more honorable man than thou be 
 bidden of him ; and he that bade him and thee come and 
 say to thee, Give this man place ; and thou begin with 
 shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art 
 bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room ; that when 
 he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, 
 go up higher ; then shalt thou have worship in the pres- 
 ence of them that sit at meat with thee. For whosoever 
 exalteth himself shall be abased ; and he that humbleth 
 himself shall be exalted.” 
 
 When Mr. Morier was in Persia, himself and his 
 friends were invited to an entertainment by one of the 
 
PERSIAN FEAST. 
 
 65 
 
 chief men of the state. He writes, “ On the day ap- 
 pointed, as is usual in Persia, a messenger came to us 
 about five o’clock in the evening to bid us to the feast. 
 I might make use of scriptural language to commence 
 my narration : ‘ A certain man made a great supper, 
 and bade many : and sent his servant at supper-time to 
 say to them that were bidden, Come ; for all things are 
 now ready.’ (Luke xiv. 16, 17.) The difficulty which 
 infidels have made to the passage, of which this is the 
 commencement, arises from the apparent harshness of 
 asking people to an entertainment, and giving them no 
 option, — by punishing them, in fact, for their refusal. 
 Whereas all the guests to whom, when the supper was 
 ready, the servant was sent, had already accepted the 
 invitation, and were, therefore, already pledged to appear 
 at the feast, at the hour when they might be summoned. 
 They were not taken unprepared, and could not, in con- 
 sistency or decency, plead any prior engagement. On 
 alighting at the house, we were conducted through mean 
 and obscure passages to a small square court, surrounded 
 by apartments, which were the habitation of the women, 
 who had been dislodged on the occasion ; and as we 
 entered into a low room, we there found our host waiting 
 for us, with about a dozen more of his friends. The 
 ambassador (from England, whom Mr. Morier accom- 
 panied) was placed in the corner of honor,* near the 
 window, and the host next to him, on his left hand. The 
 other guests were arranged around the room, according 
 to their respective ranks ; among whom was an old 
 man, a descendant of one of the ancient royal families 
 of Persia, who took his seat next to the host. Although 
 needy, and without power, he is always treated with the 
 greatest respect. (See 2 Sam. ix. 1-7.) He receives a 
 daily allowance from the king, which makes his case 
 resemble that of Jehoiachim, ‘ for his allowance was a 
 continual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate, 
 .... all the days of his life.’ (2 Kings xxv. 30.) This 
 * See page 52. 
 
 6 * 
 
66 
 
 PERSIAN FEAST. 
 
 treatment is in the true spirit of Eastern hospitality. 
 Giving to this person a high rank in society is illustra- 
 tive of the precedence given to Jehoiachim, by setting 
 ‘ his throne above the throne of the kings that were with 
 him in Babylon’ (2 xxv. 28).” 
 
 When a Persian enters an assembly, after having left 
 his shoes without, he makes the usual salutation of 
 “ Peace be unto you,” which is addressed to the whole 
 assembly, as it were saluting the house (Matt. x. 12) ; 
 and then measuring with his eye the degree of rank to 
 which he holds himself entitled, he straightway wedges 
 himself into the line of guests, without offering any 
 apology for the general disturbance which he produces. 
 It may be conceived that, among a vain people, the dis- 
 putes which arise on matters of precedence are numer- 
 ous ; and it was easy to observe, by the countenances of 
 those present, when any one had taken a higher seat 
 than that to which he was entitled. The Persian scribes 
 are remarkable for their arrogance in this respect ; and 
 they will bring to mind the caution that our Savior gave to 
 the Jews against their scribes, whom among other things 
 he characterizes as loving “ the uppermost rooms at 
 feasts.” (Mark xii. 39.) The master of the entertainment 
 has, however, the privilege of placing any one as high in 
 the ranks of the assembly as he may choose, and we saw 
 an instance of it on this occasion ; for, when the assem- 
 bly was nearly full, the governor of Kashan, a man of 
 humble mien though of considerable rank, came in, and 
 had seated himself at the lowest place, when the host, 
 after having testified his particular attentions to him by 
 numerous expressions of welcome, pointed with his hand 
 to an upper seat in the assembly, to which he desired 
 him to move, which he accordingly did. What a strong 
 analogy is here between the manners of the Jews and 
 those of the Persians ! (See Luke xiv.) — Morier's Sec- 
 ond Journey through Persia , pp. 142-144. 
 
PERSIAN FEAST. 
 
 67 
 
 Isaiah v. 11. 
 
 i4 Wo unto them that rise up early in the morning, 
 that they may follow strong drink ; that continue until 
 night, till wine inflame them.” 
 
 “ On the 15th of April, 1813,” says Morier, 44 return- 
 ing from a morning ride, about seven o’clock, I saw, at 
 about forty yards from the road-side, a party of well- 
 dressed Persians seated on a carpet close to a rising 
 ground in the plain, with a* small stream of water, near 
 a field of rising corn, flowing before them, and surrounded 
 by their servants and horses. As I passed, they sent a 
 lad to me with a message to the following purpose : 4 The 
 khan sends his compliments, says, be happy and requests 
 you will join his party.’ At the same time the whole 
 company halloed out to me as loud as they could, 4 Be 
 happy, be happy !’ I afterward learned that this party 
 was given by a yuzbashee, or a colonel of the king’s 
 troops, and that they were in the height of enjoyment 
 when I passed, for they were ail apparently much intoxi- 
 cated. We one day met a party in one of the king’s 
 pleasure-houses nearly under similar circumstances; and 
 we found that the Persians, when they commit a debauch, 
 arise betimes, and esteem the morning as the best time 
 for beginning to drink wine, by which means they carry 
 on their excess until night. This contrast with our own 
 manners will, perhaps, give fresh force to the passage in 
 Isaiah v. 11, 4 Wo unto them,’ &c.” — Morier' s Second 
 Journey , p. 189. 
 
 EGYPTIAN FEASTS. 
 
 Luke xiv. 13. 
 
 44 When thou makest a feast, call the poor, the 
 maimed, the lame, the blind.” 
 
 Pococke speaks of the admission of the poor to the 
 tables of the rich. Speaking of an Egyptian entertain- 
 ment, he says : 44 The custom was for every one, when 
 he had done, to get up, wash his hands, take a draught 
 
68 
 
 EGYPTIAN FEASTS. 
 
 of water, and so in a continued succession till the poor 
 came in, and ate up all : for the Arabs never set any- 
 thing by which is brought to table. When they kill a 
 sheep they dress it, and call in their neighbors and the 
 poor, and finish everything.” — Pococke’s Travels ; see 
 HarmePs Observations , vol. ii., p. 416. 
 
 REPASTS ON THE SEASHORE. 
 
 John xxi. 3-13. 
 
 “ They went forth, and entered into a ship. . . When 
 the morning was now come , Jesus stood on the shore 
 . . . (and) saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat ? 
 They answered him, No. And he said unto them, Cast 
 the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. 
 .... As soon as they were come to land , they saw a fire 
 of coals there , and fish laid thereon , and bread. Jesus 
 saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now 
 
 caught Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. 
 
 . . . . (He) cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, 
 and fish likewise.” 
 
 The Greeks and Syrians, and those who dwell in. 
 Syria, whether Turks, Moors, or Arabs, are wont , not 
 unfrequently , to eat a repast on the seashore ; and when 
 the Eastern fishermen are disposed to eat, they do not 
 generally (as those of the same class among ourselves 
 do) dress their fish on board their vessels, but are wont 
 to land , and eat it on shore , and that early , as well as 
 late in the day. These circumstances are confirmed by 
 the following story of what happened to a traveller, 
 named Doubdan, during a short voyage from St. Jean 
 d’Acre to Sidon. The narrative is given by himself ; 
 and it throws much light upon the history which St. 
 John gives us of the interview between our Lord and 
 his disciples on the shore of the sea of Galilee. 
 
 The substance of Doubdan’s account is this : “ He and 
 his companions hired a fishing-boat to take them to Sidon, 
 but through the insolence of the seamen, who would 
 
REPASTS ON THE SEASHORE. 
 
 69 
 
 not row, they got no farther than Tyre that night. In 
 the morning, finding themselves at the mercy of four or 
 five fishermen, who did nothing but cast their nets into 
 the sea, they employed a poor Jew, who was with them 
 in the boat, and who could speak a little of the language 
 used by the fishermen, to call upon them to push for- 
 ward to Sidon. But they only cast their nets into the 
 sea, to 'procure themselves a dinner. Then they landed to 
 dress and eat their fish , after which they slept for more 
 than two hours, while Doubdan and his friends were 
 broiling with the scorching sun and heated rocks. Be- 
 ing put out again to sea, upon a promise of more pay, 
 they took up their oars and rowed briskly for four or five 
 miles, in order to reach Sidon that same day. They 
 then grew tired ; and being inclined to return to their 
 fishing, they put Doubdan and his companions on shore , 
 where there was a very large and deep cavern , and began 
 to cook some small fish with some rice ; and then, with- 
 out speaking one word to Doubdan, carried all on board 
 the bark, and went away toward the place whence 
 they came, so that they lost sight of them in a few mo- 
 ments. This unexpected accident extremely astonished 
 them; and, what was worse, there were many Turks, 
 Moors, and Arabs, in this caverns ; of whom some were 
 reclining on the sand, enjoying the fresh air ; some were 
 dressing provisions among the rocks ; others were 
 smoking ; notwithstanding the apparent danger of the 
 fall of great pieces of the rocks, which frequently hap- 
 pened ; but it is common for them to retire hither, on 
 account of a spring of fine water, which glides along 
 here, and is extremely cool. — Doubdan’s Voyage de la 
 Terre Sainte ; HarmeVs Observations , vol. ii. pp. 27-35. 
 
 FEAST OF TABERNACLES, 
 
 John vii. 37-39. 
 
 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus 
 stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come 
 
70 
 
 FEAST OF TABERNACLES. 
 
 unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the 
 Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of 
 living water.” 
 
 Our Lord here alludes to the custom of pouring out 
 water in a solemn manner at the Feast of Tabernacles, 
 to solicit the blessing of the autumnal rains for the ap- 
 proaching seed-time ; they being of so great consequence 
 after the drought of an Eastern summer. This custom 
 appears to have been first practised by the Jews after 
 their return from captivity in Babylon. It was then 
 that the prophet Zechariah said, “ It shall come to pass, 
 that every one that is left of all the nations which came 
 against Jerusalem, shall even go up from year to year 
 to worship the King, the Lord of Hosts, and to keep the 
 Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whoso will 
 
 not come up, upon then shall be no rain.” (See 
 
 Zechariah xiv. 16, 17.) It is therefore probable that the 
 Jews derived this rite from the Persians, and other nations 
 among whom they had dwelt in their captivity. The 
 ancient Persians kept a feast, the name of which (Abri- 
 zan), means the pouring out of water , which was prepar- 
 atory to the descent of the autumnal rains. It is, there- 
 fore, very likely that the returning Jews might think of 
 adding some memorial of Jehovah’s being the Giver of 
 rain to their ancient feast, which was to be celebrated 
 about the same time with the Persian festival. — See 
 Harmer’s Observations , vol. i., pp. 83-90. 
 
 THE PASSOVER. 
 
 Exodus xii. 18. 
 
 “ In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the 
 month, at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the 
 one-and-twentieth day of the month at even.” 
 
 Verse 15. 
 
 “ Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread ; even the 
 first day shall ye put away leaven out of your houses : 
 
THE PASSOVER. 
 
 71 
 
 for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day 
 until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from 
 Israel.” 
 
 Verse 8. 
 
 “ They shall eat the flesh (of the lamb) in that night, 
 roast with fire, and unleavened bread, and with bitter 
 herbs they shall eat it.” 
 
 Verse 11. 
 
 “ And thus shall ye eat it ; with your loins girded, 
 your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand.” 
 
 Verse 22. 
 
 “ Ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the 
 blood that is in the basin.” 
 
 Verses 26, 27. 
 
 “ And it shall come to pass, when your children shall 
 say unto you, What mean ye by this service ? that ye 
 shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s passover, who 
 passed over the houses of the children of Israel in 
 Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our 
 houses.” 
 
 Verse 24. 
 
 “ Ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee 
 and to thy sons for ever.” 
 
 Matthew xxvi. 23. 
 
 “ He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the 
 same shall betray me.” 
 
 Luke xxii. 17, 20. 
 
 “ He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take 
 this, and divide it among yourselves. 
 
 “ Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup 
 is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.” 
 
 John vi. 49-51. 
 
 “ Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and 
 ajre dead. This is the bread which cometh down from 
 
72 
 
 THE PASSOVER. 
 
 heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am 
 the living bread which came down from heaven. If any 
 man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever ; and the 
 bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for 
 the life of the world.” 
 
 The passover is kept, as all readers of Scripture know, 
 on the fourteenth day of the first month. I shall say 
 nothing of its original institution, nor of the manner in 
 which it is appointed to be kept in the land of Judea, but 
 shall simply remind my Christian friends that it consisted 
 of two parts, the paschal lamb and the unleavened bread. 
 No sacrifices being allowed out of the land, the disper- 
 sion of the Jews has necessarily caused an alteration in 
 the mode of this part of the commemoration ; but as there 
 is no occasion to make any change in any other part, we 
 may suppose that, in other respects, it is celebrated now 
 in the same way it has always been ; there is, at least, 
 strong reason to believe, from the narrative in the Gos- 
 pels, that in the days when our Lord Jesus Christ partook 
 of it. the mode was the same as that at present in use. 
 
 In order to make some of the customs I shall mention' 
 more easily understood, I must inform my readers that 
 the word homitz has a wider signification than is gener- 
 ally attached to that of leaven , by which it is rendered 
 in the English Bible. Homitz signifies the fermentation 
 of corn in any shape, and applies to beer, and to all 
 spirituous liquors distilled from corn. While, therefore, 
 there are four days in passover week on which business 
 may be done, being, as it were, only half-holydays, a 
 distiller or brewer must suspend his business during the 
 whole time. And I must do my brethren the justice to 
 say, that they do not attempt to evade the strictness of 
 the command, to put away all leaven, by any ingenious 
 shift, but fulfil it to the very letter. I know an instance 
 of a person in trade who had several casks of spirits sent 
 to him, which arrived during the time of the passover ; 
 had they come a few days sooner, they would have been 
 
THE PASSOVER. 
 
 73 
 
 lodged in some place apart from his house until the feast 
 was over ; but, during its continuation, he did not think 
 it right to meddle with them ; and, after hesitating a little 
 time what to do, he at length poured the whole out into 
 the street. About the time of harvest, the pious Jews, 
 who keep a watchful eye over their less scrupulous 
 brethren, go often into the fields to watch the first ripe 
 wheat ; and no expense is spared to get in a sufficient 
 quantity as quickly as possible, wherewith to bake the 
 unleavened bread the ensuing spring. This is carefully 
 kept in a dry place, lest any moisture should fall upon it, 
 and cause fermentation. About three months before 
 Easter, the Jews in different towns have a mill, for which 
 the Gentile proprietors generally make them pay a large 
 sum of money. They take a whole week to clean it, so 
 that the least mark of the old flour is not to be seen. 
 When the time of the feast draws near, a baker’s oven 
 is also hired ; which must be heated several times before 
 they consider that the “ old leaven is purged out.” The 
 poor Jews and Jewesses are then employed in kneading 
 and rolling out the cakes as quickly as they can ; so that 
 the whole operation must not exceed ten minutes. If 
 there are not poor Jews enough in the place to do the 
 whole work, the richer ones share in this pious labor. 
 The night before the passover, the master of the family 
 searches the house with candles, removing every crumb 
 of bread that may be lying about ; blessing the Lord who 
 hath commanded his people to put away leaven. The 
 day before the feast begins, all the first-born males 
 among the Jews fast, in commemoration of God’s 
 goodness in sparing them when he smote all the first- 
 born of the Egyptians ; and, before sunset, they assemble 
 in the synagogue for prayer. The prayers at this season 
 are peculiary interesting ; for, while praise is given to 
 God for the Egyptian deliverance, prayer is offered for 
 the still greater deliverance that is to take place at the 
 time of the Messiah : “ Lord deliver u^,” say they, “ from 
 the hands of our enemies, and gather us from the four 
 7 
 
74 
 
 THE PASSOVER. 
 
 corners of the earth, through the Messiah, the Son of 
 David, our Righteousness.” The solemn evening having 
 come, the master of the house, on their return from the 
 synagogue, sits down at the head of the table, the whole 
 family, including the Jewish servants, being assembled 
 round it. On the table are placed three plates ; one 
 contains three passover-cakes, another horse-radish and 
 bitter herbs, and a third a bone of lamb, or a small piece 
 of roast meat, and a roasted egg ; the last two are in 
 commemoration of the paschal lamb, and the offering that 
 accompanied it. The three cakes are put in a napkin ; 
 one at the top, one in the middle, and one at the bottom. 
 Beside these three plates, there are other two dishes ; 
 one containing vinegar or salt and water, the other a 
 mixture of various ingredients worked up to the con- 
 sistence of lime, in remembrance of the lime in which 
 our fathers worked in Egypt. Each individual at table 
 is provided with a glass, or small cup, for wine, which is 
 filled four times in the course of the service. Among 
 the older and more devout Jews, it is customary for the 
 master of the family to sit exactly in the manner pre- 
 scribed in Exodus, with his loins girt, his staff in his 
 hand, and shoes on his feet, just as if he had gone out of 
 Egypt yesterday. 
 
 The service commences by the repetition of several 
 blessings ; and then they drink the first cup of wine, 
 called the wine of the sanctification. The master of the 
 house then dips some of the bitter herbs in vinegar, and 
 gives a small portion to each one at table. He then 
 breaks the middle cake, leaves one half in the dish, and 
 hides the other until after supper. The Jews do not 
 profess to know with certainty what this hidden part 
 signifies ; but the common belief is, that it is in commem- 
 oration of the hidden manna ; and in this opinion I am 
 disposed to join, for reasons that I shall hereafter state. 
 They then lay hold of the dish containing the passover 
 cakes, and the bitter herbs, and say : “ Lo ! this is as 
 the bread of affliction, which our ancestors ate in the 
 
THE PASSOVER. 
 
 75 
 
 land of Egypt ; let all those who are hungry come and 
 eat thereof, and all who are needy come and celebrate 
 our passover. At this time we are here ; next year we 
 hope to be in the land of Israel. Now we are servants ; 
 next year we hope to be free children.’’ 
 
 The youngest in the company then ask : “ Where- 
 fore is this night distinguished from all other nights V 9 
 To which the whole of the others reply : “ Because we 
 were slaves unto Pharoah in Egypt, and the Lord our 
 God brought us out thence, with a mighty hand and an 
 outstretched arm.” 
 
 They then proceed to rehearse God’s mighty acts ol 
 deliverance toward our fathers ; the head of the family 
 reading or repeating, the rest making responses. When 
 this is finished, the unleavened bread is shown to all, as 
 a mark of their freedom, and a portion of it is received 
 and eaten by each. They again eat bitter herbs, dipped 
 in the mixture that represents the lime. This concludes 
 the first and greater part of the service. Supper is then 
 put on table, and is a meal of social rejoicing. The 
 union of domestic enjoyment with religious services, was 
 in the Jewish religion, the appointment of God himself; 
 and it is probably only those who have experienced it, 
 who can fully understand the wisdom of the Divine 
 legislator, in thus connecting the highest act of which 
 man is capable, that of worshipping God, with the purest 
 and holiest of natural affections. 
 
 The supper being ended, two large cups are filled with 
 wine. One of these is taken by the master of the house, 
 and a blessing pronounced. This blessing refers very 
 distinctly to the time of Messiah’s reign : “ Oh most 
 merciful ! make us to inherit the day when all shall be 
 sabbath ; and we shall rest in life for ever : Oh most 
 merciful ! cause us to be inheritors of the day when all 
 shall be good : Oh most merciful ! make us worthy to 
 see the days of the Messiah, and life in the world to 
 come : May He who exalte th the salvation of his king, 
 and showeth mercy to his anointed, to David and his 
 
76 
 
 THE PASSOVER. 
 
 seed for evermore, who causes peace to exist in the 
 heavens, cause his peace to be upon us, and upon all 
 Israel. — Amen.” This is in strict harmony with the 
 prayer of our Lord : “ Thy kingdom come ! thy will 
 be done on earth as it is in heaven.” After this bles- 
 sing, the head of the family gives the cup to all those 
 sitting around. He then brings forth the hidden cake, 
 and distributes a piece to each. The second cup of 
 wine, called Elijah’s cup, is then placed before him, the 
 door is opened, and a solemn pause of expectation 
 ensues. It is at this moment that the Jews expect the 
 coming of Elijah will take place, to announce the glad 
 tidings that the Messiah is at hand. Well do I remem- 
 ber the interest with which, when I was a boy, I looked 
 toward the door, hoping that Elijah might really enter , 
 for notwithstanding the disappointment year after year, 
 his arrival is still confidently expected. Of this cup of 
 Elijah no one partakes, but it is looked upon as sanctified. 
 The ceremony concludes by singing the hymn of, “ Lord, 
 build thy temple speedily at the end of which, the 
 head of the family says : “ This year we are here ; may 
 we be next year in Jerusalem.” 
 
 I would make a few remarks on this feast, as viewed 
 in connexion with the first institution of our Lord’s 
 Supper. The passover has been celebrated by the Jews, 
 without intermission, since the Babylonish captivity ; and 
 as we are not a people given to adopt modern innova- 
 tions of any sort, it is probable the mode has never been 
 changed, in any other way than by the addition, or sub- 
 stitution, of different prayers, suited to the state of dis- 
 persion, which are to be met with in all the various 
 services, as well as allusions to the sayings of certain 
 eminent men, the date of which is of course not difficult 
 to ascertain. It is, therefore, most probable, that our 
 Lord and his disciples, in all the ceremonial part, com- 
 memorated it in the same manner as we now do. The 
 custom of dipping the bitter herbs, seems to accord with 
 Christ’s words : “ He that dippeth with me in the dish,” 
 
THE PASSOVER. 
 
 77 
 
 “ He to whom I shall give a sop when I have dipped it.” 
 In reading the narratives of the four Evangelists, we mu3t 
 remember, they were written by Jews, and that those for 
 whom they were first written, were either Jews, or the 
 disciples of Jews ; none of them, therefore, enter into 
 any detailed account of the services of that evening, but 
 simply allude to them as matters well known. We are 
 not, therefore, to be surprised that the two cups are not 
 mentioned in all the narratives ; but to regard the narra- 
 tive of them by St. Luke as sufficient evidence that they 
 were used. In chap. xxii. 17, it is said : He took the 
 
 cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it 
 among yourselves and in verse 20, “ Likewise also the 
 cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament 
 in my blood.” The breaking of the bread being men- 
 tioned in connexion with this cup, gives every reason to 
 suppose that it was the hidden cake which our Lord used 
 for this purpose, and which I have already said is gener- 
 ally considered commemorative of the hidden manna. It 
 is very probable that this was introduced during the time 
 of the second Temple ; the pot with the manna not being 
 there. Our Lord said to them at a former period : 
 “ Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are 
 dead ; he that eateth of me shall never die. The 
 bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for 
 the life of the world.” 
 
 It seems very appropriate, to take that which was used 
 as an emblem of the hidden manna, to represent that 
 broken body, given for the life and nourishment of the 
 world, as the manna was given to the children of Israel. 
 — See A Brief Sketch of the Present State and Future 
 Expectations of the Jews , by Ridley H. Herschell , pp, 
 54 - 65 . 
 
 JEWISH WEDDING. 
 
 Luke i. 26 , 27 . 
 
 “ And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent 
 from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a 
 
 
78 
 
 JEWISH WEDDING. 
 
 virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the 
 house of David ; and the virgin’s name was Mary.” 
 
 Matthew xlv. 6. 
 
 “ And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold ! 
 the bridegroom cometh ; go ye out to meet him.” 
 
 Psalm xlv. 9, 13, 14, 15. 
 
 “ Upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of 
 Ophir. The king’s daughter is all glorious within ; her 
 clothing is of wrought gold. She shall be brought unto 
 the king in raiment of needle-work : the virgins her 
 companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee. 
 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought : they 
 shall enter into the king’s palace.” 
 
 Revelation xix. 7-9. 
 
 “ Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to 
 Him : for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his 
 wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted 
 that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white. 
 .... And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they 
 which are called unto the marriage-supper of the Lamb.” 
 
 Matthew ix. 15. 
 
 “ And Jesus said unto them, can the children of the 
 bride-chamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with 
 them ? But the days will come, when the bridegroom 
 shall be taken from them and then they shall fast.” 
 
 The ceremonies attending a Jewish marriage illus- 
 trate many important parts of Scripture — especially those 
 referring to the union between Christ and the church. 
 In ancient times the ceremony of betrothing was the 
 solemn engagement by which two persons were united 
 for life ; and this, in the Talmud, is directed to take 
 place at least twelve months before the parties live 
 together. Thus, Mary, the mother of our Lord, was “ a 
 virgin, espoused to a man whose name was Joseph,” yet 
 would have been treated as an adulteress had she formed 
 a connexion with any other man. In process of time, 
 
JEWISH WEDDING. 
 
 79 
 
 this law became less strictly observed ; and, although the 
 betrothing still takes place some time before the mar- 
 riage (in many cases two or three years previous, if the 
 parties are young), yet it is not now done by giving a 
 ring, but by a written agreement. This contract, if not 
 dissolved by mutual consent, is so far binding, as to in 
 volve the party breaking it in a pecuniary penalty. 
 
 The night before the celebration of the marriage is 
 called the “ watch-night,” and is kept as such by the 
 family of the bride, and the maidens who attend her on 
 the occasion. If the bridegroom’s residence be at a dis- 
 tance from that of the bride, he usually arrives some 
 time in the course of this night, or very early in the 
 morning. The bridemaids watch anxiously for his ar- 
 rival, and as soon as they are apprized of his approach 
 by the joyful shout set up by some of the members of 
 the family, who have been on the look-out to catch the 
 first glimpse of him, “ The bridegroom cometh !” they 
 go forth to meet him. The precision with which this 
 answers to the parable in the twenty-fifth chapter of 
 Matthew’s Gospel, scarcely requires pointing out. 
 
 The bride and bridegroom do not meet at his arrival ; 
 each being engaged apart until the afternoon of the mar- 
 riage-day. The morning is observed as a fast by both, 
 and each should spend a great part of it in devotion — he 
 with his male friends ; she with her parents and bride- 
 maids. A due time before the hour fixed for the cere- 
 mony, the bride begins “ to make herself ready”— 
 decking herself in the most splendid attire that her 
 means enable her to procure. Glittering jewels, the 
 “ golden embroidery,” and “ raiment of needle-work,” 
 mentioned in the forty-fifth Psalm, are by no means con- 
 fined to those Avho are really opulent ; but the utmost 
 efforts are made by the friends of every bride to render 
 her wedding garments as splendid as possible. She and 
 her bridemaids are usually dressed in white. The hair 
 of the bride is cut off with much ceremony, and a veil 
 placed upon her head ; while her mother and other ma 
 
80 
 
 JEWISH WEDDING. 
 
 Irons give her exhortations suitable to the first assump* 
 tion of this mark of being in subjection. 
 
 The huppo is a canopy supported on four posts, large 
 enough to admit under it the bride and bridegroom, with 
 their special attendants, and the nearest relatives of the 
 parties. This is usually erected in a garden, where there 
 is one ; but, in towns, is sometimes to be seen in the pub- 
 lic street or square. When all things are ready, the bride- 
 groom, accompanied by his friends, first repairs to the 
 huppo, where he is joined by the bride, closely veiled, 
 and led by her bridemaids and female relatives. The 
 rabbi reads the contract of marriage, and then gives 
 them an exhortation ; the company sing a hymn, and the 
 ceremony concludes by the bridegroom placing a plain 
 gold ring on the fore-finger of the bride’s left hand, say- 
 ing, “ Behold, thou art set apart to me with this ring, ac- 
 cording to the laws of Moses and Israel.” 
 
 The whole party then return to the house, the newly- 
 married pair walking first, arm-in-arm. As soon as 
 they arrive, they sit down to breakfast together, both 
 having fasted until that time. A short time after this, 
 the chief feast, or what may be called the marriage- 
 supper, takes place, which is a very joyful scene. The 
 bridegroom sits at the head of the table, with his bride 
 at his right hand. In former times it was usual to con- 
 tinue the festivities for seven days ; but this custom is 
 now very rare, and confined to a few of the wealthy 
 families. 
 
 I may here mention a custom which throws light on 
 our Lord’s words in Matthew ix. 15. Beside the ap- 
 pointed fasts of the Jewish church, voluntary fasts are 
 kept by those who are, or wish to be thought, particu- 
 larly pious. Many, like the Pharisee, fast twice in the 
 week ; namely, on the second and fifth days — our Mon- 
 day and Thursday. It would be considered very wrong, 
 in those who are in the habit of observing such fasts, to 
 omit them for frivolous reasons ; but if they are invited 
 to a marriage, they are specially exempted from the 
 
JEWISH WEDDING. 
 
 81 
 
 observance of them. Hence our Lord refers to the im- 
 propriety of fasting in the presence of the bridegroom, 
 as to a custom well known among the Jews. 
 
 When a Jew reads, that “ the marriage of the lamb 
 is come, and his wife hath made herself ready,” he is 
 forcibly reminded of the song, with which he has been 
 accustomed from his youth to commence every sabbath : 
 “ Go forth, my beloved, to meet the bride.” By the bride 
 is meant the congregation or assembly of Israel, which 
 conveys precisely a similar idea to a Jew that the words 
 “ the church ” do to a Christian. It is on the sabbath 
 of blessedness, in the days of the Messiah, that this 
 meeting between him and his bride is to take place ; and 
 the weekly sabbath, on which this song is sung, he re- 
 gards as the type of that “ rest that remaineth for the 
 people of God .” — HerschelVs Sketch of the Jews , pp. 
 92-97. 
 
 Canticles ii. 9. 
 
 “ My beloved is like a roe, or a young hart : behold, 
 he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the 
 window, showing himself through the lattice.” 
 
 The Rev. Pliny Fisk, the missionary to Palestine, in 
 the description of a Jewish wedding which he had wit- 
 nessed, writes, “ At the opposite end of the court was a 
 kind of gallery where the bride was making prepara- 
 tions for the ceremony, and in front of which hung 
 stripes of different colored paper, red, pale red, and 
 yellow, some of them covered with gold leaf. Now and 
 then the bride showed herself through the lattice, or 
 wooden net-work, which stood in front of the gallery. 
 It reminded us of Solomon’s Song : £ My beloved look- 
 eth forth at the windows, showing himself through the 
 lattice .’ ” 
 
 MARRIAGE CEREMONIES. 
 
 Judges xiv. 1-13. 
 
 “ And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a 
 woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines* 
 
82 
 
 MARRIAGE CEREMONIES. 
 
 And he came up and told his father and his mother, and 
 said, . . . Get her for me to wife ... So his father went 
 down unto the woman : and Samson made there a feast, 
 for so used the young men to do. And it came to pass, 
 wdien they saw him, that they brought thirty compan- 
 ions to be with him. And Samson said unto them, I 
 will now put forth a riddle unto you ; if you can certainly 
 declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and find 
 it out, then I will give you thirty sheets, and thirty 
 change of garments.” 
 
 Mr. Jowett gives the following account of a mar- 
 riage among the Christians in Deir el Kamr, a town on 
 Mount Lebanon. It took place in the evening : “ Three 
 priests assisted in performing it. A multitude of men 
 and boys set off with lights in their hands, an hour after 
 sunset, from the house of the bridegroom (leaving the 
 bridegroom in his father’s house), to that of the bride. 
 After waiting nearly half an hour, the bride came out, 
 attended by her female friends, and the procession began 
 — the men going first, and after them the women, with 
 the bride in their front. On their coming near the 
 church they halted, while the bridegroom proceeded first 
 into the church, with his father and companions, in 
 number certainly more than thirty, to be ready to receive 
 his bride. After this, the bride and her party entered by 
 the door and apartment belonging to the women. Both 
 then stood together in the middle of the church before a 
 lighted desk, the bride being covered. An incessant 
 noise and tumult, which no authority of the priests 
 could appease, prevailed throughout the ceremony, which 
 lasted nearly half an hour. The whole being ended, the 
 friend of the bridegroom, standing behind him, lifted him 
 up in his hands like a child, shouting at the same time 
 for joy. This, however, as well as the tumult, was a 
 mark that the parties were of the lower rank.” 
 
 Seven days afterward, Mr. Jowett writes : “ I have 
 in view two of the houses where, last Sunday, marriages 
 
MARRIAGE CEREMONIES. 
 
 83 
 
 took place. The courtyards and the tops of the houses, 
 are again crowded with guests. The continuance of the 
 feasting illustrates Judges xiv. 12.” — See Jowett's Re- 
 searches in Syria , <^c., pp. 87, 88, 95. 
 
 Matthew xxv. 10. 
 
 “ And the door was shut.” 
 
 “ At a marriage, the procession of which I saw some 
 years ago, the bridegroom came from a distance, and the 
 bride lived at Serampore, to which place the bridegroom 
 was to come by water. After waiting two or three hours, 
 at length, near midnight, it was announced as if in the 
 very words of Scripture, ‘ Behold ! the bridegroom com- 
 eth ; go ye out to meet him !’ All the persons employed, 
 now lighted their lamps, and ran with them in their 
 hands to fill up their stations in the procession : some 
 of them had lost their lights, and were unprepared, but 
 it was then too late to seek them ; and the cavalcade 
 moved forward to the house of the bride, at which place, 
 the company entered a large and splendidly illuminated 
 area before the house, covered with an awning, where a 
 great multitude of friends, dressed in their best apparel, 
 were seated upon mats. The bridegroom was carried in 
 the arms of a friend, and placed on a superb seat in the 
 midst of the company, where he sat a short time, and 
 then went into the house, the door of which was imme- 
 diately shut, and guarded by keepers. I and others ex- 
 postulated with the doorkeepers, hut in vain'' — Ward's 
 View of the Hindoos . 
 
 MANNER OF ANNOUNCING THE BIRTH OF A 
 
 SON IN PERSIA. 
 
 Jeremiah xx. 15. 
 
 “ Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, 
 saying, A man-child is born unto thee ; making him very 
 glad.” 
 
 The Persians look upon a son as a blessing, and its 
 birth is announced with great ceremony to the father. 
 
84 
 
 BIRTH OF A SON IN PERSIA. 
 
 Some confidential servant is usually the first to get the 
 information, when he runs in great haste to his master, 
 and says* “ Good news !” by which he secures to him- 
 self a gift, which generally follows the announcement. 
 
 Among the common people, the man who brings the 
 tidings frequently seizes on the cap or shawl, or any 
 such article, belonging to the father, as a security for 
 the present to which he holds himself entitled. 
 
 When the ambassador of Persia was there, in 1811, a 
 dervish, who was considered a cunning man, assured 
 him he would have a son, and even before the birth of 
 the child (who proved to be a daughter), demanded a pres- 
 ent, as the price of his divination. When it is recol- 
 lected that there are no rejoicings on the birth of a 
 daughter, but that, on the contrary, every one is back- 
 ward to inform the father of it, as they were forward on 
 the birth of the son, the whole force of the passage in 
 Jeremiah will be felt ; and it will appear they were in- 
 formed of the event by men, as they are at the present 
 day. — Morier's Second Journey through Persia , fyc., pp. 
 103, 104. 
 
 CEREMONIES AFTER THE BIRTH OF A CHILD 
 
 AMONG THE PERSIANS. WEANING— FEAST— AND 
 
 “BRINGERS UP OF CHILDREN .’ 5 
 
 1 Samuel i. 11. 
 
 “ And she [Hannah], vowed avow, and said, 0, Lord 
 of Hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of 
 thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine 
 handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man 
 child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of 
 his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.” 
 
 The Persians adopt certain ceremonies about shaving 
 the head. It frequently happens, after the birth of a son* 
 that if the parent be in distress, or the child be sick, 
 or that there be any other cause of grief, the mother 
 makes a vow that no razor shall come upon the child’s 
 
PERSIAN CEREMONIES AFTER A BIRTH. 
 
 85 
 
 head for a certain portion of time, and sometimes for all 
 his life. If the child recover, and the cause of grief be 
 removed, and if the vow be but for a time, so that the 
 mother’s vow be fulfilled, then she shaves his head at 
 the end of the time prescribed, makes a small entertain- 
 ment, collects money and other things from her relations 
 and friends, which are sent as offerings to a mosque, 
 and are there consecrated. We may compare this with 
 the law of the Nazarites. (Numbers vi.) The person 
 who was separated to God’s service let his hair grow, 
 and abstained from wine and other usual indulgences. 
 This was done sometimes during life, and sometimes 
 during certain periods only; after the latter offerings 
 were made to the Lord. 
 
 Hannah’s vow was one of gratitude, an expression of 
 thankfulness ; but more usually in Scripture the unshaven 
 head is an expression of grief, and a vow to such an 
 effect an act of penitential humiliation. 
 
 Genesis xxi. 8. 
 
 “ And the child grew, and was weaned : and Abraham 
 made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.” 
 
 Among the Persians boys are weaned at two years 
 and two months, girls at two years. On the day that 
 the child is to be weaned they carry it to the mosque, 
 (in the same manner, perhaps, that Hannah took Samuel 
 to the house of the Lord, when she had weaned him 
 1 Sam. i. 29), and, after having performed certain acts 
 of devotion, they return home, and collecting their 
 friends and relations, they give a feast, of which they 
 make the child also partake. The coincidence with 
 Scripture is here remarkable. See Gen. xxi. 8. 
 
 2 Kings x. 5, 
 
 “ And the bringers-up of the children sent to Jehu. . .” 
 
 The rich hire a wet-nurse for their children. If a 
 bov, the father appoints a steady man from the age of 
 
 ' S 
 
86 
 
 PERSIAN CEREMONIES AFTER A BIRTH, 
 
 two years to be his “ laleh,” who I conjecture must 
 stand in the same capacity as the “ bringers-up of chil- 
 dren” mentioned in 2 Kings x. 5 ; but if it be a daugh~ 
 ter, she has a woman called “ gees sefeed,” or white 
 head attached to her for the same purpose as the 
 “ laleh.” — Morier r s Second Journey through Persia , 4*c., 
 pp. 107, 109, 110. 
 
 MANNER OF CARRYING CHILDREN. 
 
 Isaiah xlix. 22. 
 
 “ Thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.” 
 The young children of both sexes are usually carried 
 by their mothers and nurses, not in the arms, but on the 
 shoulder, seated astride, and sometimes, for a short dis- 
 tance, on the hip. — Lane's Modern- Egyptians , vol. i. ?J 
 p. 58. 
 
87 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Method of honoring Distinguished Persons — Sending Deputations 
 — Riding — On the Royal Horse — Sending Portions from the Ta- 
 bles of Great Men — Fixing a Spear wherever a Person of Con- 
 sequence Reposes — Marks of Respect — Kissing the Feet, Knees, 
 Robe, Beard, Hand, Ground — Concealing the Feet — Holding 
 the Feet — Putting off the Shoes — Dismounting — Tokens of 
 Friendship — White Stone — Presents — Mark of Agreement — 
 Customary Salutations. 
 
 DEPUTATIONS OF HONORABLE MEN, A MARK OF 
 GREAT ESTEEM IN PERSIA. 
 
 Numbers xxii. 15. 
 
 “ And Balak sent yet again princes, more and more 
 honorable than they.” 
 
 When the English ambassador to Persia drew near 
 Ispahan, he was met by the confidential officer of the 
 governor of Ispahan, by a learned man of the city, and 
 by several other men of respectability. These deputa- 
 tions are called openers of the way, and are one of the 
 principal modes among the Persians of doing honor to 
 their guests. The more distinguished the persons sent, 
 and the greater the distance to which they go, so much 
 more considerable is the honor. On the day of the 
 entry of the embassy into Ispahan, it was first met by 
 the youngest son of the second vizier of Persia, a boy 
 of about thirteen years of age, who received the am- 
 bassador with all the ease of an old courtier, making 
 the usual compliments of, “ You are welcome ; you have 
 done us honor ; are your spirits good ? how is your 
 health ? you have no ailing ?” Men of consequence in 
 the city at different intervals presented themselves ; and 
 at length two of the brothers of the vizier paid their 
 
88 
 
 DEPUTATIONS OF HONORABLE MEN. 
 
 respects to the ambassador. At length the governor in 
 person came out a mile from the city, to meet him. 
 This succession of personages, whose rank increased as 
 we approached the city, may bring to mind the “ princes, 
 more and more honorable,” which Balak sent to Bala- 
 am. — Moneys Second Journey through Persia , fyc., pp. 
 127-129. 
 
 RIDING A TOKEN OF HIGH RANK. 
 
 Ecclesiastes x. 7. 
 
 “ I have seen servants upon horses, and princes 
 walking as servants upon the earth.” 
 
 To walk about on foot, is an act of very great humil- 
 ity in Persian estimation. Walking is a part of the ser- 
 vice exacted from servants, multitudes of whom are 
 always attached to a prince and a man of consequence 
 in the East. Many are kept exclusively for that pur- 
 pose : when a great man goes abroad he is mounted on 
 a horse, while his servants surround him, one bearing 
 his pipe, another his shoes, another his cloak, a fourth 
 his saddle-cloth, and so on, the number increasing with 
 the dignity of the master. — Moneys Second Journey 
 through Persia , c^c., p. 166 . 
 
 , RIDING ON THE ROYAL HORSE. 
 
 Esther vi. 7-9. 
 
 “ For the man whom the king delighteth to honor, let 
 the royal apparel be brought which the king useth to 
 wear, and the horse that the king rideth upon, and the 
 crown-royal which is set upon his head ; and let this 
 apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the 
 king’s most noble princes, that they may array the man 
 withal whom the king delighteth to honor, and bring him 
 on horseback through the street of the city, and proclaim 
 before him, Thus shall it be done to the man whom the 
 king delighteth to honor.” 
 
RIDING ON THE ROYAL HORSE. 
 
 89 
 
 The following account of the manner in which a 
 person is treated in Africa upon his turning Mahome- 
 tan, singularly agrees with the honors here mentioned : 
 “ Such a person is to get on horseback, on a stately 
 
 steed, with a rich saddle and fine trappings — he is 
 also richly habited, and has a turban on his head — but 
 nothing of this is to be called his own. The horse, 
 with him on his back, is led all round the city, which 
 he is several hours in doing. He is attended with drums, 
 and other music, and twenty or thirty stewards, who are 
 under the sergeants. These march in order on each 
 side of the horse, with naked swords in their hands. 
 The crier goes before, with a loud voice giving thanks 
 for the proselyte that is made.” — Pitt’s Account of the 
 Religion and Manners of the Mahometans. See Har - 
 suer’s Observations , vol ii., pp., 305-397. 
 
 8 * 
 
90 
 
 PORTIONS SENT FROM THE TABLES OF 
 GREAT MEN. 
 
 Genesis xliii. 34. 
 
 “ And he took and sent messes unto them from before 
 him : but Benjamin’s mess was live times so much as 
 any of theirs.” 
 
 It is still regarded as a distinction of value to have 
 any portion from the table of a monarch, or of a great 
 man. When a celebrated traveller dined in the pres- 
 ence of an Eastern sovereign, he was thought to be 
 greatly honored, because the king tore off a handful of 
 meat from the joint and sent it to him. A Dutch am- 
 bassador, in similar circumstances, mentions it as a mark 
 of great honor that some bones of mutton, with half the 
 meat gnawed off them were sent him from the table of 
 the emperor. Sir J. Chardin observes that the great 
 men are always served by themselves, in the feasts that 
 are made for them ; and with great profusion, their part 
 of each kind of provision being always double, treble, 
 or a larger proportion of each kind of meat. It is also 
 a mark of distinction for a guest to have many different 
 dishes set before him. Joseph, therefore, probably sent 
 his favorite brother many different kinds of meat, there 
 being enough of each dish to serve him for a meal, had 
 he chosen to partake solely of it. — Harmer's Observa- 
 tions , vol. ii., pp. 102, 99, note. 
 
 FIXING A SPEAR BESIDE A GREAT MAN. 
 
 1 Samuel xxii. 6 . 
 
 . . . . “ Now Saul abode in Gibeah under a tree in Ra- 
 mah [margin, under a grove in a high place], having his 
 spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing 
 about him.” 
 
FIXING A SPEAR BESIDE A GREAT MAN. 
 
 91 
 
 When Dr. Pococke was travelling in company with 
 an Eastern governor of distinction, they passed one 
 night in a grove of palm-trees. 
 
 On another occasion he speaks of visiting the lieu- 
 tenant of another governor, and finding him sitting on 
 a carpet and cushions, which were laid on a height , with 
 the standard beside him. The words of the sacred 
 
 historian, “ his spear m his handf may be translated 
 “ at his hand,” i. e ., beside him ; and it is certain, that 
 when a long pike is carried before a company of Arabs, 
 it is a mark that a prince is among them ; and when he 
 alights, and the horses are fastened, the pike is fixed. — 
 Dr. Pococke’s Description of the East . See Har- 
 per’s Observations , vol. ii., pp. 433-435, 
 
92 
 
 FIXING A SPEAR BESIDE A GREAT MAN. 
 
 1 Samuel xxvi. 7. 
 
 . . “ And, behold, Saul lay sleeping within the 
 trench, and his spear stuck in the ground at his bolster , 
 but Abner and the people lay round about him.” 
 
 Mr. Morier saw a Persian governor reposing him- 
 self after the fatigue of a long journey, being extended 
 under a shed fast asleep on the ground, with a spear 
 stuck at his bolster-head, which now, as in the days of 
 Saul, marks the spot where a man of consequence re- 
 poses. — Morier* s Second Journey through Persia , tyc., 
 p. 115. 
 
 MARKS OF RESPECT, KISSING THE FEET, KNEES, 
 ROBE, BEARD, Etc. 
 
 Matthew xviii. 26-29. 
 
 “ The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped 
 
 him And his fellow-servant fell down at his feet, 
 
 and besought him.” — See Luke viii. 41 ; Mark vii. 25. 
 
 Luke v. 8. 
 
 . . . . “ He fell down at Jesus’s knee,” 
 
 Luke viii. 44. 
 
 . . . . “ (She) touched the border of his garment.” — 
 Zech. viii. 23. 
 
 Luke vii. 45. 
 
 “ Thou gavest me no kiss.” 
 
 2 Samuel xx. 9. 
 
 “ And, Joab, took Amasa by the beard with the right 
 hand, to kiss him.” 
 
 Genesis xxxiii. 4. 
 
 “ And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and 
 fell on his neck, and kissed him : and they wept.” 
 
MARKS OF RESPECT. 
 
 93 
 
 Genesis xlv. 14. 
 
 “ And he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck, and 
 wept ; and Benjamin wept upon his neck.” — See Acts 
 xx. 37 ; Luke xv. 20. 
 
 Inferiors among the Arabs, out of deference and 
 respect, kiss the feet, the knees, or the garments of 
 their superiors — and the women that wait on the Arab 
 princesses sometimes kiss the border of their robe. An 
 
 Eastern traveller who attended an English consul on a 
 visit to the chief of Tripoli, says that the two interpreters 
 of the consul kissed the chief’s garment, and put it to 
 their foreheads. To kiss the hand of a superior is like- 
 wise a mark of reverence — as is also kissing the beard, 
 as Joab did. 
 
94 
 
 MARKS OF RESPECT, 
 
 More intimate relations, and those of equal age and 
 dignity, mutually kiss the hand, head, or shoulder. “ It 
 was interesting,” observes a traveller, speaking of the 
 friendly tribes of Arabs, “ to see their meeting in the 
 desert : from their wandering habit of life, and their 
 frequent and distant journeys, they seldom meet ; but 
 when they do, the pressing of the hand to the heart, 
 the kiss on the cheek, the passionate exclamations and 
 gestures of joy, prove the sincerity and fervor of their 
 feelings.” — See Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp 
 325-327, 345-347 ; and Game's Eastern Letters , p 
 206. 
 
 KISSING THE HAND. 
 
 Job xxxi. 26, 27. 
 
 “ If I beheld the sun when it shined, or the moon 
 walking in brightness, and my heart hath been secretly 
 enticed, or my mouth hath kissed my hand.” 
 
 Sometimes in the East, when an inferior comes to 
 pay his respects to a superior, he takes the superior’s 
 hand, and kisses it, putting it afterward to his forehead. 
 In their religious worship, the Mahometans begin 
 with bringing their two thumbs together, and kissing 
 them three times, and at every kiss touching their fore- 
 heads with their thumbs. When they cannot kiss the 
 hand of a superior, they kiss their own, and put it to 
 their foreheads. 
 
 They venerate an unseen being whom they cannot 
 touch, in much the same manner ; and the ancient 
 idolators also thus worshipped beings they could not 
 touch. It is to this that Job refers, If my mouth 
 hath kissed my hand,” in worship of the host of heaven. 
 — Pitt's Account of the Mahometans. See Harmer's 
 Observations , vol. ii., pp. 339, 340. 
 
 This mode of paying adoration, by kissing the hand is 
 mentioned and described by Pliny. — Nat. Hist., xxviii. 2. 
 
KISSING THE GROUND. 
 
 95 
 
 KISSING THE GROUND. 
 
 Psalm lxxii. 9. 
 
 “ They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before 
 him ; and his enemies shall lick the dust.” 
 
 Isaiah xlix. 23. 
 
 “ Kings shall be thy nursing-fathers, and their queens 
 thy nursing-mothers : they shall bow down to thee with 
 their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy 
 feet.” 
 
 It is usual among the Persians to pay homage to 
 their sovereign by kissing the earth, or touching it with 
 their foreheads ; and when one prince has been con- 
 quered by another, the same custom is observed, as a 
 
96 
 
 KISSING THE GROUND. 
 
 token of submission and vassalage. An Eastern prince 
 who had been conquered, one day threw himself on the 
 ground, and kissed the prints that his victorious enemy’s 
 horse had made there, repeating some verses in Persian 
 to this effect, “ While I shall have the happiness to 
 kiss the dust of your feet, I shall think that fortune fa- 
 vors me,” &c. 
 
 Thus we read in the Psalms that even the wild Arabs, 
 whom the greatest earthly conquerors could never tame, 
 shall bow before the Lord of glory ; yea, they shall 
 become his vassals, and his enemies shall lick the dust, 
 — See Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 335-338 
 
 CONCEALING THE FEET. 
 
 Isaiah vi. 2. 
 
 “ Above it stood the seraphims : each one had six 
 wings ; with twain he covered his face, and with twain 
 he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.” 
 
 “ When a person sits down in the East,” writes Sir 
 J. Chardin, “ it is a great mark of respect to conceal 
 his feet, and to look down on the ground. When the 
 sovereign shows himself in China and Japan, every one 
 casts his looks on the earth, and no one is permitted to 
 look on the king.” 
 
 HOLDING THE FEET. 
 
 Matthew xxviii. 9. 
 
 “ They came and held him by the feet, and worship- 
 ped him.” 
 
 “ Exactly this kind of reverence may be seen daily 
 among the Hindoos. A Hindoo disciple, meeting his 
 religious guide in the public street, prostrates himself 
 before him, and rubs the dust of his feet on his forehead 
 and breast.” — Ward's View of the Hindoos. 
 
97 
 
 PUTTING OFF THE SHOES. 
 
 Psalm lx. 8. 
 
 w Over Edom will I cast out my shoe.” 
 
 Exodus iii. 5. 
 
 “ Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place 
 whereon thou standest is holy ground.” 
 
 The casting off the shoe in ancient times, in the East, 
 was a sign of dominion. To put off their shoes, was a 
 mark of reverence. Maundrell was obliged, in some 
 cases where he visited private individuals, to comply 
 with this custom. Another traveller says, that, at the 
 doors of an Indian pagoda, as many slippers and sandals 
 are seen as there are hats hanging up in our churches. 
 
 9 
 
98 
 
 PUTTING OFF THE SHOES. 
 
 The Egyptians, also, do not permit any one to enter 
 their temples with shoes on, because shoes being made 
 of the skin of dead animals are regarded as polluting 
 them ; and the Turks always leave their shoes at the 
 entrance of their mosques. 
 
 DISMOUNTING. 
 
 Genesis xxiv. 64. 
 
 “ And when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel.” 
 1 Samuel xxv. 23. 
 
 “ And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and light- 
 ed off the ass.” (See 2 Kings v. 21 ; Judges i. 14.) 
 
 The alighting of those that ride, is considered in 
 the East as an expression of deep respect. Niebuhr 
 observes, that meeting an Arab lady riding on a camel, 
 accompanied by one domestic, she, in order to testify 
 her respect for the sheiks who were with him, rode out 
 of the path, then alighted, and passed by them on foot. 
 Dr. Chandler writes, “ We met a Turk, a person of 
 distinction, as appeared by his turban. Our janizary 
 and Armenians respectfully alighted, and made him a 
 profound obeisance, the former kissing the rim of his 
 garment.” — Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp, 324, 
 351, 352. 
 
 TOKEN OF FRIENDSHIP. 
 
 Revelation ii. 17. 
 
 “ To him that overcometh will I give .... a white 
 stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no 
 man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” 
 
 Revelation xix. 12. 
 
 “ On his head were many crowns ; and he had a name 
 written, that no man knew, but he himself.” 
 
 The following is from the Rev. H. BlunVs Lectures 
 See pages 94, 95. 
 
TOKEN OF FRIENDSHIP. 
 
 99 
 
 on the Seven Churches : — “ In primitive times, when 
 travelling was rendered difficult by the want of places 
 of public entertainment, hospitality was exercised by 
 private individuals to a very great extent. Persons who 
 had partaken of this hospitality, and those who practised 
 it, frequently contracted habits of regard and friendship 
 for each other ; and it became a well-established custom, 
 both among the Greeks and Romans, to provide their 
 guests with some particular mark, which was handed 
 down from father to son, and insured hospitality and 
 kind treatment wherever it was presented. This mark 
 was usually a small stone or pebble, cut in half, and 
 upon the halves of which, the host and the guest mu- 
 tually inscribed their names, and then interchanged them 
 with each other. The production of this stone was 
 quite sufficient to insure friendship for themselves or 
 their descendants, whenever they travelled again in the 
 same direction ; while it is evident, that these stones 
 required to be privately kept, and the name written 
 upon them carefully concealed, lest others should obtain 
 the privileges, instead of him for whom they were 
 intended. How natural, then, is the allusion to this 
 custom in the words, ‘ I will give to him to eat of the 
 hidden manna and having done so, having recognised 
 him as my guest, my friend, I will give him a white 
 stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no 
 man knoweth saving he that receiveth it ; a pledge of 
 my friendship, sacred and inviolable, known only to 
 himself.” 
 
 More probable however, is the explanation of the 
 celebrated Dr. Hammond : “ In popular judicatures, or 
 elections in Greece, it was the custom to give the votes 
 by stones. These were either white, or black ; the white 
 was a token of absolution or approbation, — the black of 
 condemnation or rejection. In the public games, also, 
 these stones were used ; the victor’s reward being as- 
 signed to him by a white stone, whereon was inscribed 
 his name, and the value of the prize. 
 
100 
 
 TOKEN OF FRIENDSHIP. 
 
 So to him who shall be found in Christ at his coming, 
 washed in his blood, and clothed in his righteousness, 
 having run the heavenly race, and fought the good fight 
 of faith, and overcome by the blood of the Lamb, and 
 by the word of his testimony, will Christ give a “ white 
 stone” (in token of justification, acceptance, and ap- 
 proval) ; the name written thereon, and the excellence of 
 the reward, being known only to him who receives it. 
 
 “ In chapter xix., the victory of Christ himself over the 
 kingdoms of the earth is associated with the same idea 
 of the white stone ; for he is first said to have “ many 
 crowns” on his head (each a token of his victory over 
 some one kingdom), and then to have a name written 
 that no man knew but he himself ; that is, a white stone, 
 the token of his victory, and whereby he is to receive 
 his reward, viz., to be “ King of Kings, and Lord of 
 Lords,” (v. 16.) Paraphrase and Annotations on the New 
 Testament , pp. 876, 877. 
 
 PRESENTS OF GARMENTS, Etc., A MARK OF 
 
 GREAT FAVOR. 
 
 Samuel xviii. 4. 
 
 “ And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was 
 upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even 
 to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.” 
 
 Esther vi. 7-9. 
 
 “ For the man whom the king delighteth to honor, 
 let the royal apparel be brought which the king useth to 
 wear, .... that they may array the man withal whom 
 the king delighteth to honor.” 
 
 When a treaty between Russia and Persia was con- 
 cluded, some years since, in the commencement, accord- 
 ing to the usual form, the ranks of the two principal 
 persons who were deputed to arrange it had to be spe- 
 cified. The Russian general was found to have more 
 titles than the Persian plenipotentiary, who was there- 
 
PRESENTS OF GARMENTS. 
 
 101 
 
 fore at a loss how to make himself appear of equal 
 importance with the other negotiator ; but at length, 
 recollecting that, previous to his departure for the place 
 of conference, his sovereign had honored him by a 
 present of one of his own swords, and of a dagger set 
 with precious stones, to wear which is a peculiar dis- 
 tinction in Persia, and besides, had clothed him with one 
 of his own shawl-robes, a distinction of still greater 
 value, he therefore designated himself as “ Endowed 
 with the special gifts of the monarch, lord of the dagger 
 set in jewels, of the sword adorned with gems, and of 
 the shawl- co at already worn .” 
 
 It will be remembered that the bestowing of dresses 
 as a mark of honor among Eastern nations, is one of 
 the most ancient customs recorded both in sacred and 
 profane history. We may learn how great was the 
 distinction of giving a coat already worn , by what is said 
 of Jonathan’s love for David, as well as from the history 
 of Mordecai. — Morier’s Second Journey through Persia , 
 Sfc., pp. 299, 300. See Chap. Y. 
 
 MARK OF AGREEMENT. 
 
 Proverbs xi. 21. 
 
 “ Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be 
 unpunished.” 
 
 The expression, “ Though hand join in hand,” is in the 
 original, hand to hand, which also agrees with the custom 
 actually prevailing in Syria. When persons in the East 
 greet each other, they touch their right hands respect- 
 ively, and then raise them up to their lips and forehead. 
 This is the universal Eastern courtesy, and is used also 
 in token of friendship and agreement. The sense there- 
 fore is, “ Though hand meet hand,” intimating, that heart 
 assents to heart in the perpetration of wickedness, yet 
 shall not the wicked go unpunished. — Jowett's Researches 
 in Syria , tfc., p. 281. 
 
 9 ' 
 
102 
 
 SALUTATIONS. 
 
 SALUTATIONS. 
 
 Psalm cxxix. 8. 
 
 “ Neither do they which go by say, The blessing of 
 the Lord be upon you ; we bless you in the name of the 
 Lord.” 
 
 u We wish you good luck in the name of the Lord.”® 
 
 Nothing could better express the contemptuous 
 neglect which David there describes as falling upon the 
 wicked, than these words. This is, indeed, the land of 
 good wishes and overflowing compliments. Every 
 passer-by has his “ God bless you !” Conversation is 
 sometimes among strangers made up of a very large 
 proportion of these phrases ; for example, — “ Good 
 morning.” Answer, “ May your day be enriched !” 
 “ By seeing you.” “ You have enlightened the house 
 by your presence.” “ Are you happy ?” “ Happy, 
 
 and you also?” “ Happy.” “You are comfortable, I 
 am comfortable ;” meaning, <£ I am comfortable, if you 
 are.” These sentences are often repeated ; and, after 
 any pause, it is usual to turn to your neighbor, and 
 resume these courtesies many times. In the southern 
 half of Palestine, I subsequently found the ordinary 
 salutations between persons on the road, to be literally, 
 “ Good luck ;” to which the person saluted replies, 
 “ May God give you good luck !” — JowetVs Researches 
 in Syria , c^c., pp. 89, 90. 
 
 John xx. 19. 
 
 ££ Then .... came Jesus and stood in the midst, 
 and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.” 
 
 John xiv. 27. 
 
 “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you : 
 not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” 
 
 * Prayer-book version* 
 
SALUTATIONS. 
 
 103 
 
 2 Kings iv. 29. 
 
 “ Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take 
 my staff in thine hand, and go thy way : if thou meet 
 any man, salute him not ; and if any salute thee, answer 
 him not again : and lay my staff upon the face of the 
 child.” 
 
 Luke x. 4. 
 
 “ Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes : and salute 
 no man by the way.” 
 
 The common Eastern salutation is, “ Peace be with 
 you ;” the speaker laying his right hand upon his heart. 
 The answer is, “ With you be peace.” Aged people 
 are inclined to add, “ And the mercy and blessing of 
 God.” A traveller in the desert* writes : “ Through 
 all the route we had met few passengers. One or two 
 caravans, or a lonely wanderer with his camel, had 
 passed at times, and given us the usual salute of ‘ Peace 
 be unto you !’ Our blessed Lord, therefore, gave the 
 usual salutation to his disciples ; and since the saluta- 
 tions of the world in general are too apt to be mere forms, 
 he adds, that he gave them a real , and not a fleeting 
 blessing, ‘Not as the world giveth give I unto you.’ ” 
 
 The Mahometans of Egypt and Syria never salute 
 a Christian with “ Peace be with you ;” they content 
 themselves with saying, “ Good-day to you,” or “Friend, 
 how do you do ?” and of this the Christians are perhaps 
 themselves the cause ; for a traveller relates, that the 
 Greek merchants did not seem at all pleased with his 
 saluting Mahometans in the Mahometan manner. In 
 the like spirit the Roman catholics of some provinces 
 of Germany never address the protestants that live 
 among them with the form common among themselves, 
 namely, “ Jesus Christ be praised ;” and when such 
 a thing happens by mistake, the protestants never re- 
 turn it after the manner in use among Roman catho- 
 lics, “ For ever and ever, Amen!” After this, the words 
 
 * Mr. Came. See his “ Letters,” p. 180. 
 
104 
 
 SALUTATIONS. 
 
 of our Lord in Matthew v. 47, need no further com- 
 mentary. The Jews would not address the wonted 
 greeting to either heathens or publicans ; the publicans 
 would use it to their countrymen who were publicans, 
 but not to heathens. 
 
 The Eastern salutations often took up much time. 
 In Egypt the common people reciprocally clap each 
 other’s hands when they meet, twenty or thirty times 
 together, saying, “ How do you do ?” “ I wish you good 
 health and then ask many friendly questions about 
 each other’s family, &c., mentioning the names of the 
 children. Elisha, therefore, who was anxious for the 
 immediate recovery of the Shunamite’s son, bade Ge- 
 hazi not to tarry to salute those he met. When our Sav- 
 ior gave his disciples the same command, he may have 
 meant that they should not delay the work on which 
 they were sent. — Niebuhr ; and Maillet's Description de 
 V Egypt ; see Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 319— 
 323. 
 
105 
 
 CHAPTER Y. 
 
 Presents — to Friends and Relations — Great Men — Public 
 Dancers. 
 
 PRESENTS. 
 
 1 Samuel ix. 7. 
 
 “ But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man ? 
 for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a 
 present to bring to the man of God : what have we ?” 
 
 Presenting gifts is one of the most general cus- 
 toms in the East ; they are pledges of mutual friend- 
 ship, so that the son of Sirach says, “ Be ashamed of 
 scorning to give and take and so essential are they to 
 civil intercourse, however small in value, that a travel- 
 ler mentions that when he consented to convey a poor 
 sick man to the place of his destination, the poor crea- 
 ture presented him with a dirty cloth, containing about 
 ten dates ! 
 
 All great men expect a present from an inferior who 
 visits them, as a token of respect ; whether it be a 
 flower, or whether it be an orange, something you must 
 bring. Princes often present sums of money in return 
 for gifts, to ambassadors, or strangers of distinction, as 
 Joseph did to Benjamin. (Gen. xlv. 22.) Silver and 
 gold, raiment of various kinds, are common offerings to 
 those eminent for learning and piety. Such gifts 
 Naaman had prepared for Elisha. (2 Kings v. 5.) An 
 Eastern poet of the ninth century, had so many presents 
 given him, that he was possessed of a hundred com- 
 plete suits of clothes, two hundred shirts, and five hun- 
 dred turbans ! As the Eastern fashions never alter. 
 
106 
 
 PRESENTS. 
 
 it is customary to make immense collections of furniture 
 and clothes, which are heaped up in wardrobes, as mud 
 is heaped up in the streets (Job xxvii. 16), for mortar in 
 building. Vessels for eating and drinking are still pre- 
 sented along with provisions, as in David’s time (2 Sam. 
 xvii. 28, 29), and princes still expect to be furnished 
 with provisions in time of need, as Barzillai and others 
 supplied David at Mahanaim ; and as such assistance 
 is a token of respect, and acknowledgment of the prince’s 
 authority, so to refuse it would be as great an insult now, 
 as it was in Saul’s and Gideon’s days. (1 Sam. x. 27 ; 
 Judges viii. 5, 8, 16, 17.) 
 
 The visits of friends and relations are often from 
 three to eight days in duration, and the whole family 
 often go together ; they therefore send before them pres- 
 ents of food suited to their rank and number. The wife 
 of Jeroboam acted something in this way when she went 
 to visit Abijah. (See 1 Kings xiv. 3.) 
 
 Horses are frequently offered as presents to great 
 men : and probably asses (which are still much used in 
 Persia) were formerly ; thus Samuel (xii. 3), and Moses 
 (Numbers xvi. 15), ask of the people of Israel, whose 
 ass they had taken, that is, for riding on. Presents are 
 sometimes very expensive in the East, and are accom- 
 panied with great pomp and parade ; those gifts which 
 are carried to the house of a bridegroom, and which 
 might be borne by one horse, are laid upon four or five, 
 and jewels which one plate would hold, are placed in 
 fifteen. Alluding to this, we read in Judges iii. 18, of 
 making an end of offering the present, and of a number 
 of people that bare it, and thus the presents Benhadad 
 sent to Elisha were borne by forty camels. Presents 
 sent to powerful princes are often regarded as a kind of 
 tribute, and acknowledgment of subjection, as in Psalm 
 lxxii. 10. The rich clothes of some of the Turkish 
 officers of Tripoli, and those of their wives, are com- 
 monly given them by those that have causes depending 
 upon them, to induce them to be favorable to their 
 
PRESENTS. 
 
 107 
 
 cause, and thus Amos complains (ii. 6), that the Jewish 
 judges were so corrupt that a little silver, and even so 
 mean a piece of finery as shoes (the wooden sandals, 
 perhaps, worn by Eastern ladies, and which are a very 
 trifling article), would make them pervert the judgment 
 of the poor and righteous ; and in chapter viii. 6, he 
 represents the rich as defrauding the poor, for they knew 
 that if those poor complained, they could carry their 
 point against them for silver, and even for a pair of 
 shoes. — See Bruce's and MaundrelV s Travels , and Har- 
 mer's Observations , vol. ii. pp. 514, 519, 290, 297, 298- 
 300, 302-304, 295, 296, 314, 304-309. 
 
 The kings of Persia have great wardrobes, where 
 there are always many hundreds of habits ready, de- 
 signed for presents, and sorted. They pay great atten- 
 tion to the quality or merit of those to whom these vest- 
 ments or habits are given ; those that are given to the 
 great men have as much difference as there is between 
 the degrees of honor they possess in the state. — Sir J . 
 Chardin ; Harmer’s Observations , vol. ii., p. 382. 
 
 The presents sent by Cambyses, king of Persia, to 
 the Ethiopian sovereign, consisted of a purple vest, a 
 gold chain for the neck, bracelets, an alabaster-box of 
 perfumes (see St. Mark xiv. 3), and a cask of wine. — • 
 Herodotus , bk. iii., 20. 
 
 PRESENTS GIVEN TO PUBLIC DANCERS. 
 
 Matthew xiv. 7. 
 
 “ He promised with an oath to give her whatsoever 
 she would ask.” 
 
 In the East it is customary for public dancers at 
 festivals in great houses, to solicit from the company 
 they have been entertaining, such rewards as the spec- 
 tators may choose to bestow. These usually are small 
 
i 08 
 
 PRESENTS GIVEN TO PUBLIC DA.NCERS. 
 
 pieces of money which the donor sticks on the face of 
 the performer. A favorite dancer will have her face 
 covered with such presents. The silver charger is char- 
 acteristic in this history of the beheading of John. By 
 an ancient custom in Persia, the queen had a right, on 
 the king’s birth-day, to demand of him any favor that 
 she thought proper. 
 
109 
 
 CHAPTER YI. 
 
 Dress — Flowing Garments — Hyke — Tunic — Party-Colored Gar- 
 ments — Arab Cloak — Wedding Garment — Face-Veil — Orna- 
 ments — Painting the eyes — Shaving the Beard — Horns — Splen- 
 dor of the Eastern Dresses. 
 
 DRESS— FLOWING GARMENTS. 
 
 Isaiah lii. 2, 10. 
 
 “ Shake thyself from the dust ; arise, and sit down, 
 O Jerusalem.” 
 
 “ The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes 
 of all the nations ; and all the ends of the earth shall 
 see the salvation of our God.” 
 
 The use of the Oriental dress (writes Mr. Jowett), 
 which I now wear, brings to the mind various Scripture 
 illustrations, of which I will onlv mention two. The 
 10 
 
110 
 
 DRESS FLOWING GARMENTS* 
 
 figure, “ The Lord hath made bare his holy arm,” is 
 most lively ; for the loose sleeve of the Arab shirt, as 
 well as that of the outer garment, leaves the arm so 
 completely free, that in an instant the left hand passing 
 up the right arm makes it bare ; and this is done when 
 a person, a soldier for example, is about to strike with 
 the sword, in order to give his right arm full play. 
 The image represents Jehovah as suddenly prepared to 
 inflict some tremendous yet righteous judgment, so ef- 
 fectual, that all the ends of the world shall see the sal- 
 vation of God. 
 
 The other point illustrated occurs in the second verse 
 of the same chapter (Isaiah lii.), where the sense of the 
 last expression is, to an Oriental, extremely natural. 
 “ Shake thyself from the dust ; arise, and sit down, O 
 Jerusalem !” It is no uncommon thing to see an indi- 
 vidual, or a group of persons, even when very well 
 dressed, sitting with their feet drawm under them, upon 
 the bare earth, passing whole hours in idle conversation ; 
 people in Europe would require a chair, but the natives 
 here prefer the ground. A person of rank in the East 
 often sits down upon the ground, with his attendants 
 about him. In the heat of summer it is pleasant to see 
 them while away their time in this manner under the 
 shade of a tree. Richly-adorned females, as well as 
 men, may be often seen thus amusing themselves. As 
 may naturally be expected, with whatever care, at first 
 sitting down, they choose their place, yet the flowing 
 dress by degrees gathers up the dust. As this occurs, 
 they, from time to time, arise, adjust themselves, shake 
 off the dust, and then sit down again. The captive 
 daughter of Zion, therefore, brought down to the dust 
 of suffering and oppression, is commanded to arise and 
 shake herself from that dust, and with grace, and dignity, 
 and composure, and security, to sit down, to take, as it 
 were, again her seat and her rank amid the company of 
 the nations of the earth, which had before afflicted, and 
 trampled on her. — See Jowetfs Christian Researches , pp. 
 282 , 283 . 
 
Ill 
 
 THE HYKE, OR UPPER GARMENT. 
 
 Deuteronomy xxiv. 13. 
 
 “ In any case thou shalt deliver him the pledge again 
 when the sun goeth down, that he may sleep in his own 
 raiment, and bless thee.” 
 
 The raiment here referred to was most likely the 
 same as the hyke of the Arabs, a long kind of blanket, 
 resembling a highland plaid, generally about six yards 
 in length, and five or six feet broad, in which they often 
 carry provisions, as well as wrap themselves in, in the 
 day, and sleep in at night, it being their only substitute 
 for a bed. The nights, indeed, being cold in the Holy 
 Land, render such a garment necessary ; and therefore 
 God mercifully ordered it to be restored to the poor 
 man, before the going down of the sun announced the 
 hour of repose. — Shaw's Travels , pp. 289, 290. 
 
 Exodus xii. 11. 
 
 “ And thus shall ye eat it ; with your loins girded , 
 your shoes on your feet , and your staff in your hand ; and 
 ye shall eat it in haste." (See whole chapter.) 
 
 Luke xii. 35-37. 
 
 “ Let your loins he girded about , and ye your- 
 selves like unto men that wait for their lord, that 
 
 when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him 
 immediately. Blessed are those servants, who the Lord 
 when he cometh shall find watching : verily I say unto 
 you, that he shall gird himself and make them to sit 
 down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.” 
 
 The dress of the Eastern people is a long loose vest, 
 reaching down to the calf of the leg. 
 
 Such a garment is troublesome to the wearers, when 
 engaged in active pursuits ; they therefore fasten it upon 
 the loins with a girdle, which goes three or four times 
 
112 
 
 THE HYKE OR UPPER GARMENT. 
 
 round them ; and when they are travelling , or otherwise 
 diligently occupied, they tuck up the fore parts of the 
 vest into the girdle, and so fasten them. And this is, 
 probably, what is more particularly meant by “ girding 
 the loins for the knee being unburthened by the vest, 
 walking is more commodious, and therefore the Israel- 
 ites, who were to eat the passover in haste, preparatory 
 to leaving Egypt, were ordered to have their loins gird- 
 ed, ready for their journey. Their shoes, too, were to 
 be on their feet, for the same purpose (generally, the 
 Eastern people put them off before meals), and their 
 staffs (with which in the East it is common to travel 
 on foot), in their hands. In like manner Christ’s serv- 
 ants are not to be careless and inactive, but to be dili- 
 gent, and watchful, ready to meet him. — Sir J. Char - 
 din’s MSS. See Harmer’s Observations , vol. ii., pp. 
 210 , 211 . 
 
 TUNICS. 
 
 John xiii. 4. 
 
 “ He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments.” 
 1 Samuel xix. 23. 
 
 “ (He) lay down naked all that day and all that night.” 
 (See Mark xiv. 51 ; Matthew xxi. 8 ; John xxi. 7 ; Acts 
 xii. 8.) 
 
 These hykes were often thrown aside by the wear- 
 ers, for convenience. Under them were worn a sort of 
 cloak, called Burnoose, made of one piece, strait about 
 the neck, and wide below like a cloak. Of this kind, 
 probably, was the coat of our Savior, which was woven 
 without a seam. The expressions, laying aside the gar- 
 ments, and being naked, mean the putting off of the 
 hykes and burnooses, and merely wearing the tunic, or 
 close-bodied frock ; and it was their hykes that the peo- 
 ple spread before our Lord, when he entered Jerusalem. 
 — Shaw’s Travels , pp. 290-292. 
 
TUNICS. 
 
 113 
 
 Luke vi. 38. 
 
 * c Give, and it shall be given unto you ; good measure, 
 pressed down, and shaken together, shall men give into 
 your bosom.” 
 
 Almost all ancient nations, and particularly those 
 of the East, wore long, wide, and loose garments ; and 
 when about to carry away anything that their hands 
 could not contain, they used a fold in the bosom of their 
 robe, nearly in the same way that women in England 
 use their aprons. An old Greek writer* relates a story 
 of a man named Alcmaeon, who, having been promised 
 by the rich king Croesus, that he should have as much 
 gold as he could carry about his body at once, put on a 
 very wide tunic, leaving a great space in the bosom, and 
 also the widest buskins he could procure. Being con- 
 ducted into the treasury, he stuffed first the buskins, 
 and then his whole bosom , with money, and having 
 afterward loaded his hair, and filled his mouth with the 
 same, walked out of the treasury, his appearance scarcely 
 retaining that of a human form. The story illustrates 
 the use of the word bosom . — See Harmer's Observations, 
 vol. i., pp. 66, 67. 
 
 PARTY-COLORED GARMENTS. 
 
 2 Samuel xiii. 18. 
 
 “ And she had a garment of divers colors upon her : 
 for with such robes were the king’s daughters that were 
 virgins apparelled.” 
 
 Genesis xxxvii. 3 
 
 “ Now Israel loved Joseph, and he made him a 
 
 coat of many colors.” 
 
 Judges v. 30. 
 
 “ To Sisera a prey of divers colors, a prey of divers 
 colors of needlework, of divers colors of needlework 
 
 * Herodotus, vi. 125. 
 
 10 * 
 
114 
 
 PARTY-COLORED GARMENTS. 
 
 on both sides, meet for the necks of them that take the 
 spoil ?” 
 
 Party-colored garments were esteemed a mark of 
 honor in the East. They wear there shirts of linen, 
 cotton, or gauze under their tunics. The sleeves of 
 their shirts are wide and open, and those of the women 
 particularly are oftentimes of the richest gauze, adorned 
 with different colored ribands, sewed to each other. 
 
 The Eastern warriors, also, though rough in their 
 manners, are often gorgeously dressed. The Eastern 
 ladies pass their time at their looms, embroidering veils 
 and robes ; and these last, which answer to our cloaks, 
 sit very straight about the neck. Such a one the wife 
 of Sisera alludes to, as fit for the neck of her husband, 
 whom she expected to return in triumph. — See Har- 
 mer's Observations , vol ii., pp. 385, 386, 387. 
 
 ARAB CLOAK. 
 
 John xix. 23. 
 
 “ Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, 
 took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier 
 a part : and also his coat : now the coat was without 
 seam, woven from the top throughout.” 
 
 The Arabs wear a cloak of very coarse and heavy 
 cameFs-hair cloth, almost universally decorated with 
 black and white stripes, passing vertically down the back: 
 this is of one square piece, with holes for the arms. It 
 has a seam down the back. Made without this seam, 
 it is considered of greater value. Here, then, perhaps, 
 we behold the form and materials of our Savior’s gar- 
 ment, for which the soldier cast lots ; being “ without 
 seam, woven from the top throughout.” It was the most 
 ancient dress of the inhabitants of this country. — Dr. 
 Clarke's Travels , vol. iv., p. 158. 
 
FACE-VEIL. 
 
 115 
 
 FACE-VEIL. 
 
 Genesis xxiv. 65. 
 
 c ‘ She took a veil, and covered herself.” 
 
 The face-veil is a long strip of white muslin, con- 
 cealing the whole of the face except the eyes, and 
 reaching nearly to the feet. It is suspended at the top 
 
 by a narrow band, which passes up the forehead, and 
 which is sewed, as are also the two upper corners of the 
 veil, to a band that is tied round the head. The veil is 
 of very remote antiquity.— Lane’.? Modern Egyptians , 
 vol. i., pp. 51-53. 
 
 WEDDING-GARMENT. 
 
 Matthew xxii. 11, 12. 
 
 “ And when the king came in to see the guests, he 
 saw there a man which had not on a wedding-garment ; 
 and he saith unto him, Friend, how earnest thou in 
 hither not having a wedding-garment V 9 
 
116 
 
 WEDDING-GARMENT. 
 
 Among the Romans, the master of the house often 
 piqued himself upon furnishing his guests with magnifi- 
 cent habits. They consisted of a kind of loose mantles. 
 Martial reproaches Luscus with having more than once 
 carried off two from the house where he had supped. 
 It was also customary in the East to changes their robes 
 at feasts. The master of the house gave one to each of 
 his guests ; none were to appear without it. Thus, in 
 the parable of the marriage-feast, the guest who had it 
 not was driven out by order of the king. — See D'Arnefs 
 Life of the Romans , p. 118 ; Dr. Clarke's Travels , voL 
 iv., pp. 66, 67. 
 
 ORNAMENTS. 
 
 Isaiah iii. 16. 
 
 “ The daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with 
 stretched-forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and 
 mincing [tripping] as they go, and making a tinkling 
 with their feet.’ (Ver. 18.) 
 
 Isaiah iii. 21. 
 
 “ The rings, and nose-jewels.” 
 
 Exodus xxxii. 2 ; Ezekiel xvi. 12. 
 
 “ The golden ear-rings.” 
 
 In Persia, Arabia, and other hot countries, where the 
 people commonly wear no stockings, and only walk in 
 shoes, they have rings about their ankles, which are full 
 of little bells. Children and young girls take a partic- 
 ular pleasure in giving them motion, and therefore walk 
 quickly. — Sir J. Chardin ; Harmer's Observations , vol. 
 iv., p. 305, note. 
 
 “ In almost all the East,” a traveller* tells us, “ the 
 women wear rings in their noses, in the left nostril, 
 which is bored low down in the middle. These rings 
 are of gold, and have commonly two pearls and one 
 ruby between, placed in the ring. I never saw a girl 
 or young woman, in Arabia or Persia, who did not wear 
 
 * Sir J. Chardin. 
 
ORNAMENTS. 
 
 117 
 
 a ring after this manner in her nostril.” Where rings 
 for the face are mentioned in Scripture, this ornament 
 is probably often meant, as in Ezek. xvi. 12 (marg.) ; 
 
 Gen. xxiv. 22. The women also wear ear-rings, of which 
 some are immensely large. They are made of several 
 kinds of metal, horn, or wood, according to the rank of 
 their owners. — Harmer's Observations , vol. iv., pp. 
 311, 314. 
 
 Genesis xxiv. 22, 
 
 “ And it came to pass, as the camels had done drink- 
 ing, that the man took a golden ear-ring of half a shekel 
 weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels 
 weight of gold.” 
 
 Judges viii. 26. 
 
 “ And the weight of the golden ear-rings that he re- 
 quested was a thousand and seven hundred shekels of 
 gold ; beside ornaments, and collars , and purple raiment 
 that was on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains 
 that were about their camels’ necks.” 
 
|18 
 
 ORNAMENTS. 
 
 The ornaments given to Rebecca appear to us of enor- 
 mous weight, ten shekels being about five ounces. But 
 rings and bracelets as heavy, or even much heavier, are 
 worn through all Asia. The women sometimes have 
 their arms, from their wrist to the elbow, covered with 
 such like ornaments, those of the poor being made of 
 glass or horn . — Sir J. Chardin ; Harmer’s Observations , 
 vol. iv., pp. 420, 421. 
 
 When Cambyses sent bracelets and a chain of gold 
 among his presents to the prince of Ethiopia, the latter, 
 on hearing the nature of those ornaments described, and 
 conceiving them to be chains, laughed, and remarked 
 that the Ethiopians possessed much stronger. For 
 according to the reports received by Herodotus, criminals 
 in Ethiopia were confined by chains of gold ; brass being 
 the rarest of all metals in that country. The weight of the 
 ancient bracelets seems to justify his sentiment. It was 
 evidently an ornament of dignity. By the Roman generals 
 bracelets were given to their soldiers as a reward of 
 bravery, and the same among the Persians. The brace- 
 let of Saul was brought to David by the Amalekite : and 
 small chains were also in the remotest times worn round 
 the neck, not only by women, but also by the men. These 
 were probably the collars mentioned in Judges : and we 
 are expressly told by Herodotus, that when Mardonius, 
 the general of Xerxes, was selecting his army, he chose 
 the greater part of those Persians who wore collars and 
 bracelets * evidently signifying that those were men of 
 merit and distinction. 
 
 People of consequence to this day decorate their ani- 
 mals with chains in Egypt. 
 
 PAINTING THE EYES. 
 
 2 Kings ix. 30. 
 
 “ And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard 
 of it ; and she painted her face [her eyes], and tired her 
 head, and looked out at a window.” 
 
 Bk. viii. 113. See Ch. IV. and V. 
 
PAINTING THE EYES. 
 
 119 
 
 Ezekiel xxiii. 40. 
 
 “Ye have sent for men to come from far, unto whom 
 a messenger was sent ; and lo, they came : for whom 
 thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes, and deckedst 
 thyself with ornaments.” 
 
 There is a practice universal among the females ol 
 the higher and middle classes (in Egypt), and very 
 common among those of the lower orders, which is that 
 of blackening the edge of the eyelids, both above and 
 below the eye, with a black powder called kohhl. This 
 is composed of the smoke-black produced by burning a 
 kind of liban, an aromatic resin. It is also produced by 
 burning the shells of almonds. These two kinds are 
 used merely for ornament ; but there are several used 
 for their real or supposed medical properties. The 
 kohhl is applied with a small probe of wood, ivory, or 
 silver, tapering toward the end, but blunt. This is 
 moistened sometimes with rose-water, then dipped in the 
 powder, and drawn along the edges of the eyelids'. It 
 is thought to give a very soft expression to the eye, the 
 size of which it in appearance enlarges. To which cir- 
 cumstance, probably, Jeremiah refers, when he writes, 
 “ Though thou rentest thy face [or, thine eyes ] with 
 painting,” ch. iv. 30. — See Lane's Modern Egyptians , 
 vol. i., pp. 41-43. 
 
 A singular custom is observable both among Moorish 
 and Arab females — that of ornamenting the face between 
 the eyes with clusters of bluish spots, or other small 
 devices, and which, being stained, become permanent. 
 The chin is also spotted in a similar manner, and a 
 narrow blue line extends from the point of it, and is 
 continued down the throat. The eyelashes, eyebrows, 
 and also the tips and extremities of the eyelids, are 
 colored black. The soles, and sometimes other parts 
 of the feet as high as the ankles, the palms of the hands, 
 and the nails, are died of a yellowish red with the leaves 
 of a plant called henna, the leaf of which somewhat re* 
 
120 
 
 PAINTING THE EYES. 
 
 sembles the myrtle, and is dried for the purposes above 
 mentioned. The back of the hand is also often colored 
 and ornamented in this way with different devices. On 
 holydays they paint their cheeks of a red-brick color, a 
 narrow red line being also drawn down the temples. 
 
 SHAVING THE BEARD. 
 
 2 Samuel x. 4. 
 
 “ Hanun took David’s servants, and shaved off the 
 one-half of their beards.” 
 
 “ This punishment has frequently been practised in 
 modern times, but not so often as the shaving the whole 
 of the beard.” — Modern Egyptians , vol. i., p. 32, note. 
 
 The beard is held in high respect, and greatly valued 
 in the East : the possessor considers it as his greatest 
 ornament ; often swears by it ; and, in matters of great 
 importance, pledges it ; and nothing can be more secure 
 than such a pledge, for its owner will redeem it at the 
 hazard of his life. The beard was never cut off but in 
 mourning , or as a sign of slavery. It is customary to 
 shave the Ottoman princes, as a mark of their subjection 
 to the reigning emperor. The beard is a mark of author- 
 ity and liberty among the Mahometans. The Per- 
 sians, who clip the beard and shave above the jaw, are 
 reputed heretics. They who serve in the seraglios have 
 their beards shaven, as a sign of servitude ; nor do they 
 suffer them to grow till the sultan has set them at liberty. 
 Among the Arabians, it is more infamous for any one 
 to appear with his beard cut off, than among us to be 
 publicly whipped or branded ; and many would prefer 
 death to such a punishment . — Note in the Treasury 
 Bible. 
 
 Herodotus mentions that one of the kings of Egypt 
 (Rhampsenitus or Rhameses) constructed a stone edifice, 
 connected with his palace by a wall, for the security of 
 his riches. The architect whom he employed disposed 
 
SHAVING THE BEARD. 
 
 121 
 
 one of the stones in such a manner that two persons, 
 or even one, might remove it from its place. In this 
 building, when completed, the king deposited his riches. 
 Some time afterward, finding his end approaching, the 
 artist informed his two sons of the device which he had 
 used in building the treasury, and explained the particular 
 situation and dimensions of the stone by which they 
 might become the managers of the king’s riches. The 
 sons were not long in visiting the building and remov- 
 ing the stone, and carried away during the night a large 
 sum of money. This was frequently repeated, to the as- 
 tonishment of the king, who saw his treasures materially 
 diminished, while the seals of the doors remained un- 
 broken, and every entrance was properly secured. He, 
 therefore, ordered traps to be placed round the ves- 
 sels which contained his wealth. The robbers came as 
 before, but one of them proceeding directly toward the 
 vessels, was caught in the snare, and calling to his 
 brother, entreated him to cut off his head instantly, as 
 the only means of preventing detection and his own 
 loss of life. This the other did ; and replacing the 
 stone, returned with his brother’s head. As soon as 
 it was light, the king entered the apartment, and was 
 still more amazed to see the body without a head, and 
 no appearance of anything having been disturbed. He 
 commanded the body to be hung from the wall, and 
 placing guards around it, directed them to seize any one 
 who exhibited sorrow at the sight of it. The mother of 
 the young man, exasperated at this exposure of her son, 
 threatened his brother with discovering the whole of the 
 robbery, if he did not rescue the dead body. He there- 
 fore drove some asses, loaded with flasks of wine, near 
 the place, and secretly removing the pegs from the mouth 
 of two or three of the skins, the wine ran about, and he 
 pretended the greatest distress. The guards immediately 
 ran to catch the wine in vessels for themselves, while 
 they attempted to pacify the owner, who at first seemed 
 much enraged, but gradually listened to them, and affect- 
 *11 
 
122 
 
 SHAVING THE EEAKD. 
 
 ing to be pleased with the conversation of one of them, 
 gave them a flask of wine and they sat down to drink. 
 The young man produced a second flask, and the guards 
 soon became drunk and fell asleep, when he took down 
 under the advantage of the night, the body of his brother, 
 and in derision shaved the right cheeks of the guards . — 
 Herodotus , bk. ii., 121. 
 
 HORNS. 
 
 Psalm lxxv. 5, 10. 
 
 “ Lift not up your horn on high : speak not with a 
 stiff neck. . . . All the horns of the wicked will I cut 
 off but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.” — 
 (See Ps. xcii. 10 ; Lament, ii. 3 ; Luke i. 69.) 
 
 The word horn is so frequently used in Scripture 
 as to make it evident that much meaning is attached to 
 it ; but at that meaning we cannot arrive, without some 
 acquaintance with the manner in which horns were used 
 in the East. Horns were worn by persons in authority. 
 The head-dress of the governors of the provinces of 
 Abyssinia consists of a large broad fillet bound upon the 
 forehead, and tied behind the head. In the middle of 
 this is a horn, or a conical piece of silver gilt, about four 
 inches long, much in the shape of our common candle 
 extinguishers. This is called a horn ; and is only worn 
 at reviews, or parades after victory. The crooked man- 
 ner in which they hold the neck, when this ornament is 
 on their forehead, for fear it should fall forward, explains 
 what David calls “ speaking with a stiff neck it would 
 be difficult, with anything so heavy on the head, not to 
 hold it in a stiff and consequential manner. William Penn 
 thus relates his first interview with the American Indians, 
 when he purchased the land for his province of Pennsyl- 
 vania : “ One of the chiefs,” says he, “ put on his head 
 a kind of chaplet in which appeared a small horn. This 
 was an emblem of kingly power ; and whenever the chief, 
 who had a right to wear it, put it on, it was understood 
 
HORNS. 
 
 123 
 
 that the place was made sacred, and the persons of all 
 present inviolable. Upon putting on this horn, the In- 
 dians threw down their bows and arrows, and seated 
 themselves round their chiefs, in the form of a half- 
 moon, upon the ground. The chiefs then announced to 
 William Penn, by means of an interpreter, that the 
 nations were ready to hear him.” The horn, then, was 
 an emblem of kingly power. Thus Daniel and St. John 
 represent powerful kingdoms under the image of horns. 
 (See Dan. vii. 7 ; Rev. xiii. 1,11.) It expresses strength 
 and majesty : so, when the false prophets described the 
 strength of Ahab’s army, one of them “ made him horns 
 of iron” (1 Kings xxii. 11), signifying that the enemy 
 should flee before Israel, as before a strong and horned 
 animal. Christ also is called “ the horn of our salva- 
 tion that is, He is our king, in whom is all our 
 strength, and who has also “ become our salvation.” 
 
 SPLENDOR OF THE EASTERN DRESSES. 
 
 I Peter iii. 3. 
 
 “ Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning 
 of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of put- 
 ting on of apparel.” 
 
 Whatever other fashions may have changed in the 
 East — and yet we may truly believe that very few have 
 varied — there is one still stationary, the sight of which 
 carries us back to the remotest Scripture antiquity : 
 I mean the fashion of splendid dresses. I had a full 
 specimen of it this evening, in the lady of the house. 
 She produced from her wardrobe, at least ten heavy 
 outer-garments, coats of many colors, embroidered and 
 spangled with gold and silver flowers. I was weary 
 with her showing them at which she seemed sur- 
 prised. There are some of them as old as the date of 
 her marriage — some still older. They are only worn on 
 great festivals, as Christmas Easter, &c., when she sits 
 
124 
 
 SPLENDOR OF THE EASTERN DRESSES. 
 
 in state to receive her friends, and hands coffee and a 
 pipe to them. It is curious, however, to see how her 
 splendid dresses are contrasted with her humble daily 
 occupations : for, in the ordinary duties of the house, 
 she is to be found sweeping out the kitchen, boiling the 
 
 pot, &c. ; and she eats her meals when her husband and 
 his friends have finished, sitting on the ground with her 
 children and servants, at the parlor-door ; and such, 
 generally, is the condition of females in Eastern coun- 
 tries. She wears an infinity of braids, which hang down 
 all the length of her back, and terminate in gold sequins ; 
 which, together with those she wears on her head, may 
 be worth from five to ten pounds sterling. The advice 
 of St. Peter is quite forgotten in this land. The orna- 
 ment of a meek and quiet spirit appears to be very little 
 known ; but the adorning of plaiting the hair, and of 
 wearing of gold, and of putting on of apparel, is most 
 studiously retained . — Jowetfs Researches , pp. 97, 98. 
 
SPLENDOR OF THE EASTERN DRESSES. 125 
 
 1 Timothy ii. 9. 
 
 “ In like manner also, that women adorn themselves 
 in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety ; 
 not with broidered hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly 
 array.” 
 
 The costume of the Barbary Jewesses, is splendid in 
 the highest degree. Their robes, which fold over, and 
 are girt round by a silk sash worked in gold , are usu- 
 ally of superfine scarlet or green cloth, richly embroi- 
 dered with gold. On holydays, they wear splendid ear- 
 rings, and a magnificent tiara of pearls , emeralds, and 
 other precious stones, with numerous rings on their fin- 
 gers. The trinkets that are there worn by a young 
 Jewess of the middle classes, amount frequently in value 
 to more than a hundred pounds. 
 
 11 * 
 
126 
 
 CHAPTER VIL 
 
 Various Methods of Writing — Written Mountains — Writing 
 
 Tables — Ancient Boohs — Manner of Reading — Drawing on 
 
 Tiles — Signet-rings — Sealing — Sacrifices Sealed in Egypt. 
 
 WRITING BOOKS. 
 
 Job xix. 23, 24. 
 
 “ Oh that my words were now written ! Oh that they 
 were printed [written] in a book ! That they were graven 
 with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever !” 
 
 Jeremiah xvii. 13. 
 
 “ They that depart from me shall be written in the 
 earth.” (See also Psalm lxix. 28.) 
 
 John viii. 6. 
 
 “ Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on 
 the ground.” 
 
 In Barbary, children are taught to write on smooth 
 thin boards, daubed over with whiting, which may be 
 wiped off or renewed at pleasure ; and in India, children 
 write their lesson with their fingers on the ground, the 
 pavement being for that purpose strewed all over with 
 very fine sand. When the pavement is full, they put 
 the writings out, and, if necessary, strew new sand from 
 a little heap before them. Thus, Jeremiah says, that 
 they who depart from the Lord shall be written in the 
 earth, — as soon be blotted out and forgotten, as the wri- 
 ting of a child upon the sand. 
 
 In Arabia (where Job lived), some writings are found 
 engraved in the natural rock. Near Sinai, are some 
 mountains called the Written Mountains ; engraved with 
 a pointed instrument in ancient, and now unknown 
 characters. Some other inscriptions in the wilderness 
 are stained, or painted in the rock ; and this staining 
 
WRITING BOOKS. 
 
 127 
 
 sinks some depth into the stone, and is extremely dura- 
 ble. And this may be the graving with lead (as our 
 translation renders it), to which Job refers. “ Oh !” 
 he exclaims, “ that my words were written !” — not upon 
 sand, but in a book ; yet since that too is liable to injury, 
 let them be graven with an iron pen, or stained, in the 
 rock for ever ! — Harmer's Observations , vol, iii., pp. 122> 
 123, note ; 59, 64-66. 
 
 WRITING-TABLES. 
 
 Habakkuk ii. 2. 
 
 “ Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that 
 he may run that readeth it.” 
 
 In this verse, there is an allusion to an eastern prac- 
 
128 
 
 WRITING-TABLES. 
 
 tice. Writing-tables were used in very ancient times in 
 the East. They were made of wood, consisted of two, 
 three, or five leaves, and were covered with wax ; on 
 this, impressions were easily made ; they lasted long, 
 and were very legible. It was also a custom among the 
 Romans, for the public affairs of every year to be com- 
 mitted to writing by the liigh-priest, and published on a 
 table. Such tables were exposed to public view, so that 
 the people might have an opportunity of becoming 
 acquainted with their contents. It was usual, moreover, 
 to suspend laws approved and recorded on tables of 
 brass in their market-places and temples, that they might 
 be seen and read ; yea, that he who ran might read them. 
 — Extracted from the Weekly Visitor . 
 
 ANCIENT BOOKS. 
 
 Ezekiel ii. 9, 10. 
 
 “ And when I looked, behold, a hand was sent unto 
 me ; and lo, a roll of a book was therein ; and he 
 spread it before me ; and it was written within and with- 
 out ; and there was written therein lamentations, and 
 mourning, and wo.” (See also Ezra vi. 2 ; Isaiah viii. 
 I; xxxiv. 4; Rev. vi. 14.) 
 
 The ancient books did not resemble ours. They 
 were written upon long sheets of linen, leather, papyrus 
 (a kind of paper made from the thin skin which covered 
 a sort of bulrush called papyrus, which grew in Egypt), 
 or parchment, and each end was fastened to a piece of 
 wood, round which the book was rolled. The manner 
 of reading in it was by gradually unrolling it, rolling up 
 the part read, and opening more. Dr. Buchanan found 
 an old copy of the law in India, written on a roll of 
 leather about fifteen feet long ; but some of these rolls 
 were as much as a hundred feet in length.* The Rev. 
 J. Hartley, in his travels in Greece, gives the following 
 
 ♦Specimens of these leather and papyrus rolls are in the British 
 Museum. 
 
ANCIENT BOOKS. 
 
 129 
 
 account of two rolls he found there in a monastery. He 
 alludes to Ezek. ii. 9, 10, and then says : “In the mon- 
 astery I observed two very beautiful rolls of this de- 
 scription ; they contained the Liturgy of St. Chrysostom, 
 and that attributed by the Greeks to St. James. You 
 begin to read by unrolling, and you continue to read and 
 unroll, till at last you arrive at the stick to which the 
 roll is fastened : then you turn the parchment round, 
 and continue to read on the other side, rolling it gradu- 
 ally up till you complete the Liturgy.” Thus it was 
 written within and without. The parchment and linen 
 were very apt to decay, if kept in moist places. Jere- 
 miah therefore ordered Baruch to place the writings 
 mentioned in chap, xxxii, 14, in an earthen vessel, that 
 they might continue many days.* — Hartley's Re- 
 searches in Greece and the Levant , pp. 215, 216. 
 
 BOOKS. 
 
 Revelation v. 1. 
 
 “ And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the 
 throne a book written within and on the back side, 
 sealed with seven seals.” 
 
 Books, as is generally known, are usually written on 
 palm-leaf, with an iron pen or style. The leaf is pre- 
 pared with care, and of good books the edges are gilded. 
 Some have the margins illuminated, and gilded with 
 considerable elegance. The book is defended by thin 
 slabs of wood, more or less ornamented. Sometimes 
 thin leaves of ivory are used, and occasionally gilded 
 sheet iron. For common books, a thick black paper is 
 used, which is written upon with a pencil of steatite. 
 The writing may be removed with the hand, as from a 
 slate, and such books last a long time. They are in 
 one piece of several yards long, and folded like a fan. 
 They can, of course, be used on both sides ; and every 
 
 *We learn the same fact from the Egyptian papyri in the 
 British Museum. 
 
130 
 
 MANNER OF READING. 
 
 portion may be sealed up by itself, thus furnishing a 
 good idea of the book mentioned in Revelation v. 1, 
 which was 44 written within and on the back side, sealed 
 with seven seals .” — Travels in South-Eastern Asia , bv 
 the Rev. H. Malcom. 
 
 MANNER OF READING. 
 
 Acts viii. 27-30. 
 
 “ A man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority 
 under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the 
 charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem 
 for to worship, was returning ; and sitting in his chariot, 
 read Esaias the prophet. .... And Philip ran thither 
 to him, and heard him read ” 
 
 “ Their way of reading aloud brings to my mind 
 some remarks which I have often made on the customs 
 of the Levant. Generally speaking, people in these 
 countries seem not to understand a book till they have 
 made it vocal. They usually go on reading aloud, with 
 a kind of singing voice, moving their heads and bodies 
 in time, and making a monotonous cadence at regular 
 intervals ; thus giving emphasis, although not such as 
 would please an English ear. Very often they seem to 
 read without perceiving the sense ; and to be pleased 
 with themselves, merely because they can go through 
 the mechanical act of reading in any way. They run 
 over a full period as if they had no perception of it, and 
 stop in the middle of a sentence, wherever they happen 
 to want to take breath:. On one occasion, when I was 
 showing some persons from an English book how we 
 read, inartificially and naturally, they laughed, and said, 
 
 4 You are not reading, you are talking.’ I might retort 
 upon an Oriental reader, 4 You are not reading, you are 
 chanting. 5 I can very well understand how it was that 
 Philip would hear at what passage in Isaiah the Ethio 
 pian eunuch was reading, before he was invited to come 
 up and sit with him in the chariot. The eunuch, though 
 
DRAWING ON TILES. 
 
 131 
 
 probably reading to himself, and not particularly design- 
 ing to be heard by his attendants, would read loud 
 enough to be understood by a person at some distance.” 
 — Jowetfs Researches , pp. 120, 121. 
 
 DRAWING ON TILES. 
 
 Ezekiel iv. 1. 
 
 “ Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it 
 before thee, and portray upon it the city even Jeru- 
 salem.” 
 
 There are on the island of Elephantina, singular 
 memorials of the Roman troops which have been quar- 
 tered there. Many broken red pieces of earthenware, 
 shreds of the potsherd, are found, which appears to have 
 served as tickets to the soldiers, assigning them their 
 portion of corn. The name of the Emperor Antoninus 
 was found on some of them. They are written in Greek, 
 and in black, in a running hand, very similar to that 
 which is used in a Greek letter at this day.* They are 
 in small pieces, about half the size of a man’s hand, and 
 each one appears complete, though it is difficult to deci- 
 pher them. This seems to illustrate the command to 
 Ezekiel (ch. iv. 1). He probably drew his picture of 
 Jerusalem upon some such piece of red earthenware as 
 these of the Roman soldiers. — Rev. S. S. Wilson's 
 Media. 
 
 SIGNET-RING. 
 
 Genesis xli. 41, 42. 
 
 “ And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee 
 over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh took off his 
 ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand.” 
 
 *Many of these potsherds, with Greek inscriptions, being gene- 
 rally receipts for corn, &c., are in the British Museum : they 
 were brought from Egypt, and are very common in Nubia. 
 
132 
 
 SIGNET-RING. 
 
 Ezekiel ix. 2, 4. 
 
 “ One man among them was clothed with linen, with 
 a writer’s inkhorn by his side : . . . and the Lord said 
 unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the 
 midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads 
 of the men that sigh, and, that cry for all the abomina- 
 tions that be done in the midst thereof.” 
 
 Revelation vii. 3. 
 
 “ Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, 
 till we have sealed the servants of our God in their 
 foreheads.” 
 
 On the little finger of the right hand is worn a seal- 
 ring, which is generally of silver, with a cornelian, or 
 other stone, upon which is engraved the wearer’s name : 
 the name is accompanied by the words, “ his servant” 
 
 (signifying, the servant, or worshipper of God), and 
 often by other words expressive of the person’s trust in 
 God, &c. The seal-ring is used for sealing letters and 
 other writings, and its impression is considered more 
 
SIGNET-RING. 
 
 133 
 
 valid than the sign manual. (Therefore, giving the ring 
 to another person is the utmost mark of confidence.) 
 A little ink is dabbed upon it with one of the fingers, 
 and it is pressed upon the paper ; the person who uses 
 it having first touched his tongue with another finger, 
 and moistened the place in the paper which is to be 
 stamped. Almost every person who can afford it has a 
 seal-ring, even though he be a servant. The regular 
 scribes, literary men, and many others, wear a silver, 
 brass, or copper case, with receptacles for ink and pens, 
 stuck in the girdle. Some have, in the place of this, a 
 case-knife. — Lane's Modern Egyptians , vol. i., pp. 35, 
 36. 
 
 The use of such instruments for signature is recorded 
 in the books of Moses, seventeen hundred years before 
 the Christian era, and the practice has continued in 
 Eastern countries, with little variation, to the present 
 day. The signets of the Turks are of this description : 
 the Romans, Greeks, and Egyptians, had the same cus- 
 tom. In the thirty-eighth chapter of Genesis we read 
 that Tamar demanded the signet of Judah ; and above 
 three thousand years have passed since the great law- 
 giver of the Jews* was directed to engrave the names 
 of the children of Israel upon onyx-stones, “ like the 
 engravings of a signet,” to be set in ouches of gold, for 
 the shoulders of the ephod. That the signet was of 
 stone set in metal, in the time of Moses, is also evident 
 from this passage of sacred history : “ With the engra- 
 vings of a signet shalt thou engrave the two stones ; thou 
 shalt make them to be set in ouches of gold.” Signets 
 without stones, and entirely of metal, did not come into 
 use until the time of Claudius Cesar. f 
 
 * Exodus xxviii. 9, 10, 11. 
 
 f According to Philo, beside the common use of a ring, it was 
 worn by the kings of Egypt as a sign of betrothing the state over 
 which they ruled. There maybe some reference to this in the 
 instance of Pharaoh, above mentioned, as in this. 
 
 12 
 
134 
 
 SEALING WITH CLAY. 
 
 SEALING WITH CLAY. 
 
 Job xxxviii. 14. 
 
 “ It is turned as clay to the seal.” 
 
 The birds pillage the granary of Joseph, where some 
 of the corn of Egypt is deposited, extremely, for it is 
 quite uncovered at the top, there being little or no rain 
 in that country. The doors, however, are kept carefully 
 sealed, but not with wax. The inspectors put their seal 
 upon a handful of clay , with which they cover the lock 
 of the door. — Harmer's Observations , vol. iv., pp. 376, 
 377. 
 
 But official letters, and especially those connected with 
 the affairs of the temples in Egypt, were of papyrus, and 
 the seal is always formed of mud or clay, much resem- 
 bling our common bread-seals. They may be seen in 
 the British Museum ; and as papyrus was used even, 
 before the Trojan war, it is probable that Job rather re- 
 fers to this custom. 
 
 SACRIFICES SEALED IN EGYPT. 
 
 John vi. 27. 
 
 “ Him hath God the Father sealed .” 
 
 It was usual among the nations about Judea to set a 
 seal upon the victim deemed proper for sacrifice. The 
 Egyptians offer white bulls in sacrifice to one of their 
 gods. If on one of these animals they find even a black 
 hair they deem him unclean. But if he be found without 
 blemish, the priest signifies it by binding a label to his 
 horns, then, applying wax, seals it with his ring, and the 
 beast is led away ; for to sacrifice one not thus sealed 
 would be punished with death. The bull, thus sealed, is 
 brought to the altar, and afterward its head is cut off, 
 and sometimes thrown into the river, with the curse, 
 that “ if there be any evil hanging over the land of 
 Egypt, it may be poured on that heady 
 
SACRIFICES SEALED IN EGYPT. 
 
 135 
 
 So God, infinite in holiness and justice, found Jesus 
 Christ to be a lamb without blemish and without spot, 
 and therefore sealed him, and laid upon him the iniquity 
 of us all. If the blood of bulls , and of goats, and the 
 ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth, 
 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through 
 the Eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, 
 purge your consciences from dead works to serve the 
 living God ! — See Harmer's Observations , vol. i., pp 
 68, 69. 
 
136 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Customs relating to the Dead — Assemblies of Mourners — Mourn- 
 ing Women — Mournful Music — Tumultuous Grief of the 
 Mourners — Signs of Grief — Uncovering the Head and Feet — 
 Covering the Lips — Funeral Feasts — Idolatrous cuttings of the 
 Flesh — Baldness between the Eyes — Forty Days 5 Mourning. 
 
 ASSEMBLIES OF MOURNERS. 
 
 Exodus xxxiii. 4. 
 
 “ And when the people heard these evil tidings, they 
 mourned ; and no man did put on him his ornaments.” — 
 (See ver. 5, 6.) 
 
 Psalm Ivi. 8. 
 
 “ Put thou my tears into thy bottle.” 
 
 Luke xxiii. 48. 
 
 “ And all the people that came together to that sight, 
 beholding the things which were done, smote their 
 breasts, and returned.” — (Luke xviii. 13.) 
 
 Among further particulars respecting the mourning 
 lor “ Hossein,”* Mr. Morier says, that on entering a large 
 assembly of Persians, “ we found them clad in dark- 
 colored clothes, which, accompanied with their black 
 caps, their black beards, and their dismal faces, really 
 looked as if they were afflicting their souls. We observed 
 that ‘ no man did put on his ornaments .’ They neither 
 wore their daggers nor any part of their dress which they 
 look upon as ornamental. A priest without, surrounded 
 by the populace, read a part of the tragic history of 
 
 * Hossein was the grandson of Mahomet, and was by the Persians 
 believed to be the rightful calif: he was, however, rejected by 
 the majority of the followers of Mahomet, and was slain by the 
 troops of his rival. The Persians mourn for him annually. 
 
ASSEMBLIES OF MOURNERS. 
 
 137 
 
 Hossein, which soon produced a great effect upon the 
 audience. Most of them appeared to cry very unaffect- 
 edly. In some of these mournful assemblies, it is the 
 custom for the priest to go about to each person at the 
 height of his grief, with a piece of cotton in his hand, 
 with which he carefully collects the falling tears, and 
 which he then squeezes into a bottle, preserving them 
 with the greatest caution. This practically illustrates 
 that passage in the Psalms, ‘ Put my tears into thy 
 bottle.’ Some Persians believe that in the agony of 
 death, when all medicines have failed, a drop of tears, so 
 collected, put into the mouth of a dying man, has been 
 known to revive him ; and it is for such use that they 
 are collected.” .... 
 
 “ In front of the palace a circle of the king’s own tribe 
 were standing barefooted, and beating their breasts in 
 cadence to the chanting of one who stood in the centre, 
 and with whom they now and then joined their voices in 
 chorus. Smiting the breast is a universal act through- 
 out the mourning ; and the breast is made bare for that 
 purpose, by unbuttoning the top of the shirt.” — Morier’s 
 Second Journey , c^c., pp. 178, 179. 
 
 MOURNING WOMEN. 
 
 Jeremiah ix. 17-19. 
 
 “ Consider ye, and call for the mourning women, that 
 they may come ; and send for cunning women, that they 
 may come : and let them make haste, and take up a wail- 
 ing for us, that our eyes may run down with tears, and 
 our eyelids gush out with waters.” — (See Amos v. 16.) 
 
 1 Kings viii. 30. 
 
 “ And they mourned over him, saying, Alas ! my 
 brother !” 
 
 Jeremiah xxii. 18. 
 
 “ They shall not lament for him, saying, Ah, my 
 brother ! or, Ah, sister ! they shall not lament for him, 
 saying. Ah, Lord ! or, Ah, his glorv !” 
 
 12 * 
 
138 
 
 MOURNING WOMEN. 
 
 On the occasion of a death in the East, the women of 
 the family break out into the most violent lamentations, 
 crying out, “ Oh, my master ! O, camel of the house ! 
 O ! my misfortune !” &c., in which they are often joined 
 by the females of the neighborhood, who come to the 
 house of mourning, and unite with the inmates in theif 
 
 wailings.* But there are certain individuals who make 
 it their business to weep for the dead, and who offer then 
 services on all such occasions “ for a consideration ; n 
 depending on such exertions for their livelihood. That 
 is to say, there are women who may be hired to attend on 
 the corpse, and to aid the mourners in bewailing the 
 death of their friend, which they do with the most violent 
 gesticulations, weeping, shrieking, rending their clothes, 
 and by other means intimating an intensity of sorrow 
 (which it is needless to say they cannot feel), for the 
 
 Lane’s Modern Egyptians , vol. ii., p. 286. 
 
MOURNING WOMEN. 
 
 139 
 
 loss their employers have sustained. The Jewish doc- 
 tors inform us that this practice was so common that the 
 poorest man in Israel, when his wife died, would hire 
 at least one mourning woman. 
 
 The root of this singular custom appears to be, that 
 the eastern nations require manifestations of strong feel- 
 ing to be marked and exaggerated. Hence their emo- 
 tions, particularly those of grief, have a most violent 
 expression ; and still unsatisfied with their own sorrow, 
 which they thought yielded too little honor to the dead, 
 they made an art of mourning, and employed in it women 
 of shrill voices, copious of tears, and skilful in lamenta- 
 tions and in praises of the departed. When a person in 
 a family died, it was usual for the female relatives to 
 seat themselves on the ground in a separate apartment, 
 in a circle, in the centre of which sat the wife, daugh- 
 ter, or other nearest relative,- and thus, assisted by the 
 mourning women, conducted their loud and piercing 
 lamentations. At intervals the mourning women took 
 the leading part, on a signal from the chief mourner, and 
 then the real mourners remained comparatively silent, 
 but attested their grief by sobs, by beating their faces, 
 tearing their hair, and sometimes wounding themselves 
 with their nails, joining also aloud in the lamenting cho- 
 rus of the hired mourners. In Egypt, each woman 
 brings with her a tambourine, beating it, and exclaiming 
 several times, “ Alas for him !” and the female relations 
 and friends of the deceased, with dishevelled hair, and 
 sometimes with rent clothes, cry in like manner, u Alas 
 for him!” Among the Romans similar usages obtained. 
 Mourners were placed at the dead man’s door, who, by 
 their bare breasts, which they often smote, their mourn- 
 ful plaints, and profuse tears, sought to move the minds 
 of the spectators to admiration of the departed, and com- 
 passion for his friends. And thus the prophet says, 
 “ Call for the cunning women, that they may come ; and 
 let them make haste and take up a wailing for us, that 
 our eyes may rur down with tears, and our eyelids gush 
 
140 
 
 MOURNING WOMEN. 
 
 out with waters.” The same custom is still retained 
 among the Irish at their funeral feasts or wakes. 
 
 MOURNFUL MUSIC— TUMULTUOUS GRIEF OF THE 
 
 MOURNERS— SIGNS OF GRIEF— UNCOVERING THE 
 
 HEAD AND FEET— COVERING THE LIPS— FUNER- 
 AL FEASTS. 
 
 Matthew ix. 23. 
 
 “ Jesus came into the ruler’s house, and saw the min- 
 strels and the people making a noise.” 
 
 Genesis xlv. 2. 
 
 *' ‘ And he wept aloud : and the Egyptians and the 
 house of Pharaoh heard.” 
 
 Job i. 20. 
 
 “ Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved 
 his head.” 
 
 Ezekiel xxiv. 17. 
 
 “ Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind 
 the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes 
 upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the 
 bread of men.” — (See Levit. xiii. 45 ; Jer. xvi. 5-8.) 
 
 Singing and music of a mournful kind are much used 
 in the East on solemn occasions. We read in the Scrip- 
 tures of singing men and singing women, who were par- 
 ticularly skilled in vocal performances ; and in Egypt, 
 even now, women who play on tabors, and sing mournful 
 airs to the sound of that instrument, are called in to be- 
 wail the dead. The death of any person is sure to be 
 accompanied with great noise and tumult. The con- 
 course in places where people lie dead is incredible. 
 Everybody runs thither — the poor and the rich. Sir J. 
 Chardin says (with reference particularly to the passage 
 in Gen. xlv. 2, on the house of Pharaoh hearing Joseph 
 when he wept), that the sentiments of joy or of grief 
 among the eastern nations are properly transports, un- 
 governed and excessive. “ When any one returns from 
 
MOURNFUL MUSIC. 
 
 141 
 
 tt long journey, or dies, his family burst into cries that 
 may be heard twenty doors off ; and this is renewed at 
 different times, and continues many days, according to 
 the vigor of the passion. Especially are these cries 
 long in the case of death, and frightful. I was lodged, 
 in the year 1676, at Ispahan, near the royal square 
 The mistress of the next house to mine died at the time. 
 The moment she expired, all the family, to the number 
 of twenty-five or thirty people, set up such a furious cry 
 that I was quite startled, and was above two hours be- 
 fore I could recover myself. (This happened in the 
 middle of the night, when Sir John was in bed, and he 
 imagined that his own servants were actually murdered.) 
 These cries continue a long time, then cease all at once. 
 They begin again as suddenly, at daybreak, and in con- 
 cert. It is this suddenness which is so terrifytng, to- 
 gether with a greater shrillness and loudness than one 
 can easily imagine.” 
 
 Ezekiel was directed to bind the tire of his head upon 
 him. To uncover the head was a sign of mourning. In 
 the days of Job, no covering beside the hair seems to 
 have been worn : therefore, in the time of his affliction, 
 he merely shaved his head ; but in the days of Ezekiel, 
 turbans, such as are now common in the East, were 
 probably used, and these were cast aside in time of 
 mourning. 
 
 Put on thy shoes upon thy feet . — In Barbary, the rela- 
 tions of the deceased, for seven days after the interment, 
 stir not abroad ; or if, by some extraordinary occasion, 
 they are forced to go out of doors, it is without shoes — 
 which is a token with them that they have lost a dear 
 friend. 
 
 Cover % not thy lips . — The Jews in Barbary, when re- 
 turning from the grave in which they have deposited a 
 friend, go to the house of the deceased, where one as 
 chief mourner receives them, with his jaws tied up with 
 a linen cloth, after the same manner that they bind up 
 the dead ; and thus muffled, the mourner goes for seven 
 
142 
 
 MOURNFUL MUSIC. 
 
 days, during which time the rest of his friends came 
 twice every four-and-twenty hours to pray with him. 
 The Jewish law directed the leper, who was in truth as 
 one dead (Leviticus xiii. 45), to put a similar covering 
 upon his lips. 
 
 And eat not the bread of men. This alludes to the 
 funeral feasts made in these countries, when provisions 
 were sent to the house of the deceased, by the neigh- 
 bors, friends, or relations, and where the word comfort- 
 ing is employed, it is in reference to these feasts. Of 
 this bread of other men, Ezekiel was not to partake, as 
 was usual in times of mourning. The instructions given 
 to him appear to run thus : “ Thou shalt not cry out 
 with the vehement noises common in thy country ; thou 
 shall not weep with bitter sobbings, nor even suffer tears 
 to start. On the contrary, be silent and assume none of 
 the usual forms of mourning. Wear thy turban and 
 thy shoes, muffle not up thy face, and eat not the bread 
 prepared by the humane for the afflicted.” — Harmer's 
 Observations , vol. iii., pp. 2, 34, note ; 16-18, 10-14, 
 8 - 10 . 
 
 IDOLATROUS CUTTINGS OF THE FLESH— BALDNESS 
 BETWEEN THE EYES. 
 
 Leviticus xix. 28. 
 
 “ Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the 
 dead A 
 
 Deuteronomy xiv. 1. 
 
 “ Ye are the children of the Lord your God : ye shall 
 not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your 
 eyes for the dead.” 
 
 1 Kings xviii. 28. 
 
 “ And they cried aloud and cut themselves, after their 
 manner, with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed 
 out upon them.” — (See also Jeremiah xvi. 6.) 
 
 Mr. Morier witnessed the celebration which takes 
 place annually in Persia, of the death of Hossein, grand- 
 
IDOLATROUS CUTTINGS OF THE FLESH. 
 
 143 
 
 son of Mahomet, who was slain. The commemoration 
 of this event awakens the strongest passions of the Per- 
 sians, entertaining, as they do, the highest veneration 
 for the person of Hosseiri. “ I have seen the most 
 violent of them, as they vociferated, ‘Ya Hossein !’ walk 
 about the streets almost naked, with only their loins 
 covered, and their bodies streaming with blood, by the 
 voluntary cuts which they have given to themselves, 
 either as acts of love, anguish, or mortification. Such 
 must have been the cuttings of which we read in Holy 
 Writ, which were forbidden to the Israelites by Moses ; 
 and these extravagances, I conjecture, must resemble 
 the practices of the priests of Baal. (1 Kings xviii.”) — 
 Moneys Second Journey into Persia , pp. 176, 177. 
 
 It is still usual among idolatrous nations for mourners 
 to cut themselves in a very dreadful manner, with stones 
 or other instruments ; and similar barbarities were also 
 used in the worship of their gods, as we learn from the 
 conduct of the priests of Baal. But in order to under- 
 stand how making a space bald between the eyes could 
 be an expression of grief, we must know something of the 
 eastern ideas of beauty. Black hair is most esteemed 
 among the Persians, as well on the head, as on the eye- 
 brows, and in the beard. They think the largest and 
 thickest eyebrows the most beautiful, especially when 
 they are of such a size as to touch one another. The 
 Arab women have the most beautiful eyebrows of this 
 sort. The Persian women, when they have them not 
 of this color, tinge and rub them with black, to make 
 them the larger. They also make a black spot in the 
 lower part of the forehead, a little below the eyebrows. 
 When, therefore, they were in trouble, they disfigured 
 themselves by taking away this ornament, and making 
 a space bald between their eyes. There was also, 
 doubtless, something peculiarly connected with idolatry 
 in this custom, since it is forbidden, while shaving the 
 head is allowed. — Sir J. Chardin : see Harmer* s Obser - 
 nations , vol. iii., pp. 14, 15. 
 
144 
 
 FORTY DAYS’ MOURNING. 
 
 FORTY DAYS 5 MOURNING. 
 
 Genesis 1. 3. 
 
 “ And forty days were fulfilled for him [Jacob] ; for 
 so are fulfilled the days of those which are embalmed.” 
 
 Toward the close of the first Thursday after a fu- 
 neral in Egypt, the women of the family of the deceased 
 again commence a wailing in their house, accompanied 
 bv some of their female friends. On the Friday morn- 
 ing the women repair to the tomb. The same ceremo- 
 nies are repeated on the same days of the next two 
 weeks, and again on the Thursday and Friday, which 
 complete, or next follow, the first period of forty days 
 after the funeral. (See Genesis 1. 3.) — Lane's Modern 
 Egyptians , vol. ii., p. 306. 
 
145 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Method of Travelling — March of the Israelites — Arab Trav- 
 elling — Guides — Running Footmen — Manner of Riding — 
 
 Messengers — Highways — Standards. 
 
 MARCH OF THE ISRAELITES. 
 
 Numbers x. 12-27. 
 
 “ And the children of Israel took their journey out of 
 
 the wilderness of Sinai In the first place went the 
 
 standard of the camp of the children of Judah , accord- 
 ing to their armies ; and over his host was Nahshon the 
 son of Amminadab.” — (See Numbers vii., where Nahshon 
 and the other captains of the host are called princes.) 
 
 Numbers ii. 2. 
 
 “ Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by 
 his own standard .” 
 
 Numbers x. 2, 5. 
 
 “ Make thee two trumpets of silver, .... that thou 
 may e st use them for .... the journeying of the camps . 
 When ye blow an alarm, then the camps that lie on the 
 east parts shall go forward” &c. 
 
 Numbers ix, 21. 
 
 “ And so it was, when the clouds abode from even 
 unto the morning, and that the cloud was taken up in 
 the morning , then they journeyed ; whether it was by 
 day or by night that the cloud was taken up, they jour- 
 neyed.” 
 
 The annual travelling of those great bodies of people 
 that go in pilgrimage to Mecca* through the desert, may 
 
 * The city of Mecca, in Arabia, was the birth-place of the false 
 prophet Mahomet, and his followers go in great multitudes there 
 annually. 
 
 13 
 
146 
 
 MARCH OF THE ISRAELITES. 
 
 serve in a striking manner, to illustrate the travelling of 
 the children of Israel through those very deserts. 
 
 We learn, from the book of Numbers, that the Isra- 
 elites journeyed in companies, — each company having 
 a prince over it, and an ensign or standard by which it 
 was distinguished, and near which it encamped ; that 
 the signal for the moving of the hosts was the blowing 
 of a trumpet, and that they travelled by night as well as 
 by day. .Now the account which a traveller has given 
 us of the order observed in the journey of the caravan 
 in which he was, from Mecca, exactly agrees with all 
 these circumstances. 
 
 “ The first day we set out,” writes this gentleman, “ it 
 was without any order at all, all hurly-burly (the Isra- 
 elites also went out at first in haste) ; but the next day 
 every one labored to get forward ; and, in order to it, 
 there was many times much quarrelling. But after every 
 one had taken his place in the caravan, they orderly and 
 peaceably kept the same place till they came to Grand 
 Cairo. They travel four camels in a breast, which are 
 all tied one after the other, like as in teams. The whole 
 body is called a caravan, which is divided in several 
 companies, each of which has its name, and consists, 
 it may be, of several thousand camels ; and they move, 
 one company after another, like distinct troops. In the 
 head of each company is some great gentleman, or offi- 
 cer, who is carried in a thing like a horse-litter. Were 
 it not for this order, you may guess what confusion 
 would prevail among such a vast multitude. ” 
 
 Here we find an officer over a company, as a prince 
 was over a tribe, among the Israelites. 
 
 Each company of the pilgrims had, moreover, a pole, 
 upon which lights were carried during the night. These 
 lights “ are somewhat like iron stoves, into which they 
 put short dry wood, which some of the camels are loaded 
 with. It is carried in great sacks, which have a hole 
 near the bottom, where the servants take it out as they 
 see the fires need a recruit. Every company has one of 
 
MARCH OF THE ISRAELITES. 
 
 147 
 
 these poles belonging to it, some of which have ten, some 
 twelve, of these lights- on their tops, or more or less ; and 
 they are likewise of different figures as well as numbers ; 
 one perhaps, oval- way, like a gate, another triangular, 
 or like N or M, &c.; so that every one knows by them 
 his respective company. They are carried in the front, 
 and set up in the place where the caravan is to pitch, 
 before that comes up, at some distance from one another. 
 They are also carried by day, not lighted : but yet by 
 the figure and number of them, the pilgrims are directed 
 to what company they belong, and without such direc- 
 tions it would be impossible to preserve order.” 
 
 Here we find the same arrangement as among the 
 Israelites ; and as they also travelled by night, their 
 standards were probably of the same sort as those here 
 described, which would serve them alike day or night. 
 The traveller before alluded to gives us further partic* 
 
148 
 
 MARCH OF THE ISRAELITES. 
 
 ulars regarding the Mecca caravan. “ Every morn- 
 ing,” he says, “ they pitch their tents, and rest several 
 hours. When the camels are unloaded, the owners drive 
 them to water and give them their provender. As soon 
 as our tents were pitched, my business was to make a 
 little fire, and get a pot of coffee.” .... “We lay down 
 to sleep. Between eleven and twelve we boiled some- 
 thing for dinner, and, having dined, lay down again till 
 about four, when the trumpet was sounded , which gave 
 notice to every one to take down their tents, pack up 
 their things, and load their camels, in order to proceed 
 in their journey.” 
 
 Thus we see that more than three thousand years have 
 made no alteration in the signal used for decamping. 
 The pilgrims to Mecca, and the Israelites of old, both 
 moved at the sound of the trumpet. 
 
 The night is the chief time for performing these jour- 
 neys, on account of the heat by day. But sometimes 
 the mornings are cold before the sun is up, and likewise 
 in the day there are often refreshing breezes. 
 
 God, therefore, most mercifully directed the march of 
 his people according to the season or the temperature of 
 the air ; for sometimes he took up the cloud in the 
 morning, and sometimes at night, as best might suit 
 their comfort; for “ He knew whereof they were made, 
 and he remembered that they were but dust.” — Pitt's 
 Account of the Religion and Manners of the Mahom- 
 metans ; Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 265— 268, 
 272, 273. 
 
 ARAB TRAVELLING. 
 
 Genesis xxxii. 
 
 The manner in which the Arabs travel affords a 
 striking illustration of the way in which Jacob jour- 
 neyed. Mr. Parsons, who travelled in the East a few 
 years ago, thus described it : — 
 
 “ First went the shepherds and goatherds, with the 
 
ARAB TRAVELLING. 
 
 149 
 
 sheep and goats in regular flocks. Then followed the 
 camels and asses, with the tents and furniture. Next 
 came the old men, and the women with the boys and 
 girls on foot. The little children were carried by the 
 women, and the elder children carried the lambs and 
 kids. Last of all came the masters of the families. 
 Between each family there was a space of a hundred 
 yards or more ; so that they did not mix or get confused 
 with each other. 
 
 GUIDES. 
 
 Numbers x. 31. 
 
 “ And he said, Leave us not, I pray thee : forasmuch 
 as thou knowest how we are to encamp in the wilder- 
 ness, and thou mayest be to us instead of eyes.” 
 
 The importance of a guide in traversing these deserts 
 must be evident. Mr. Bruce informs us that a hybeer 
 is a guide, from the Arabic word hubbar — to inform, 
 instruct, or direct ; because they are used to do this 
 office to the caravans travelling through the desert in all 
 its directions, whether to Egypt and back again, the 
 coast of the Red sea, or the countries of Soudan, and 
 the western extremities of Africa. They are men of 
 great consideration — knowing perfectly the situation 
 and properties of all kinds of water to be met with on the 
 route, the distance of wells, whether occupied by enemies 
 or not, and if so, the way to avoid them with the least 
 inconvenience. It is also necessary for them to know 
 the places occupied by the simooms, and the seasons of 
 their blowing in these parts of the desert ; likewise 
 those occupied by moving sands. In addition to this 
 they must be acquainted with those places where fuel is 
 to be met with — travellers having suffered severely from 
 the want of this necessary article. 
 
 The hybeer generally belongs to some powerful tribe 
 of Arabs (inhabiting the deserts), whose assistance he 
 makes use of to help and protect his caravans ; and hand- 
 T3* 
 
150 GUIDES RUNNING FOOTMEN. 
 
 some rewards are always in his power to distribute on 
 such occasions. So Moses might well beg the company 
 of Hobab, who was the prince of a clan, that he might 
 apply to him from time to time for conductors to those 
 small parties he should have occasion to send forth from 
 the main body to different places. (See Numb, xiii., 
 xx., xxxi.) Now that the Arabs in these deserts are 
 every where without government, the trade between Abys- 
 sinia and Cairo given over, and that between Soudan and 
 the metropolis much diminished, the importance of the 
 office of hybeer and its consideration is fallen in propor- 
 tion, and with these the safe-conduct. — See Bruce’s 
 Travels; Harmer's Observations, w ol. ii., pp. 279* 282. 
 
 RUNNING FOOTMEN. 
 
 1 Kings xviii. 46. 
 
 “ And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah : and he 
 girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance 
 of Jezreel.” 
 
MANNER OF RIDING. MESSENGERS. 
 
 151 
 
 “ The incident of Elijah running before the chariot of 
 Ahab has been continually brought to my recollection 
 wherever I have been in India, by the following custom. 
 Men of distinction have servants running before, and 
 at the least, two always run beside the carriage. Even 
 persons on horseback are never without one of these 
 runners. It is astonishing how long these men, accus- 
 tomed to the business from childhood, can endure. The 
 rider never slacks his pace on their account, and they 
 keep up during the whole drive.” — Rev. H. Malcom. 
 
 MANNER OF RIDING.. 
 
 2 Kings iv. 24. 
 
 “ Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, 
 Drive, and go forward ; slack not thy riding for me, ex- 
 cept I bid thee.” 
 
 It is usual in the East for persons, when riding, to be 
 attended by a servant on foot, who drives the animal. 
 In Egypt, the husband leads his wife’s ass. If she has 
 a servant, he goes on one side ; but the ass-driver goads 
 on the beast, and when he is to turn, directs his head 
 with a pole. — Dr. Pococke's Description of Egypt .— See 
 Harmer’s Observations , vol. ii., p. 209. 
 
 MESSENGERS. 
 
 Job ix. 25. 
 
 “ My days are swifter than a post.” 
 
 The common pace of travelling in these countries is 
 very slow. In the country of Job, a camel would travel 
 at little more than two miles an hour : for these animals 
 perpetually nibble everything they find proper for food, 
 as they pass along. But those who carried messages in 
 haste, moved very differently, and their haste appeared 
 the greater by contrast. The runners, or posts, as we 
 translate the word, sometimes ride dromedaries — a re- 
 
152 
 
 MESSENGERS. 
 
 markably swift sort of camel, which outruns the swiffest 
 horses. Even the runners on foot move with great speed 
 in Barbary. With what energy, then, might Job say, 
 “ My days are swifter than a post instead of moving 
 slowly like a caravan, they have disappeared with the 
 swiftness of a messenger mounted on a dromedary. — 
 Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 196, 197. 
 
 The Persian messengers travel with a velocity which 
 nothing human can equal. It is thus accomplished : 
 As many days as are required to go from one place to 
 another, so many men and horses are regularly stationed 
 along the road, allowing a man and a horse for each 
 day. Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor darkness, 
 are permitted to obstruct their speed. The first, mes- 
 senger delivers his business to the second, the second 
 to the third, &c. — Herodotus , bk. viii., ch. xcviii. 
 
 The regularity and swiftness of the Roman posts were 
 
MESSENGERS. 
 
 153 
 
 admirable. Gibbon writes : “ The advantage of receiv- 
 ing the earliest intelligence, and of conveying their or- 
 ders with celerity, induced the emperors to establish 
 throughout their extensive dominions the regular institu- 
 tions of posts. Houses were everywhere erected, at 
 the distance only of five or six miles. Each of them was 
 constantly provided with forty horses ; and, by the help 
 of these relays, it was easy to travel a hundred miles in 
 a day, along the Roman roads. ” In the time of Theo- 
 dosius, Cesarius, a magistrate of high rank, went post 
 from Antioch to Constantinople. He began his journey 
 at night, was in Cappadocia [one hundred and sixty-five 
 miles from Antioch] the ensuing evening, and arrived at 
 Constantinople the sixth day about noon. The whole 
 distance was seven hundred and twenty-five Roman, or 
 six hundred and sixty-five English miles. 
 
 HIGHWAYS— STANDARDS. 
 
 Isaiah lxii. 10. 
 
 “ Go through, go through the gates ; prepare you the 
 way of the people ; cast up, cast up the highway ; gather 
 out the stones ; lift up a standard for the people.” 
 
 In any part where the land is marshy (as about Baby- 
 lon), it is necessary to make highways, or causeways , 
 previous to travelling. It is equally desirable to have 
 marks for the direction of travellers through the deserts. 
 For this purpose, heaps of stones have been piled up in 
 remote places : which is probably what is meant by 
 “ gather out the stones or, as it might be rendered, 
 “ throw ye up heaps of stones.” Thus Irwin, passing 
 through the deserts on the eastern side of the Nile, tells 
 us that, “ after leaving a certain valley, their road lay 
 over level ground. As it would be next to an impossi- 
 bility to find the way over these stony fiats, where the 
 heavy foot of a camel leaves no impression, the different 
 bands of Arabs have heaped up stones at unequal dis- 
 
154 
 
 HIGHWAYS STANDARDS. 
 
 tances, for their direction through this desert, Y? e have 
 derived great assistance from them in this respect.” 
 
 By “ lifting up a standard,” may be understood almost 
 any sign, as the word is very general in its signification. 
 Irwin takes notice of its having been customary to light 
 up fires on the mountains within view of a town on the 
 Red sea, in which he then was, to give notice of the 
 approach of the caravans. These signals are of use on 
 various accounts, more particularly in order that the 
 caravans may be met with assistance. — Harmer's Ob~ 
 servations , vol. ii., pp. 283-287. 
 
155 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Agriculture — Ploughshares — Dove-houses for Manure — Pigeon- 
 houses in Egypt — Method of Watering — Gathering and Win- 
 nowing Corn — Threshing Corn — Use of Oxen thereto — Hay 
 and Oats — Tares — Mustard-Seed — Gardens — Watering Gar- 
 dens — Grafting — Vineyards — Vines — Wine-presses — Apples. 
 
 PLOUGHSHARES. 
 
 Isaiah ii. 4. 
 
 “ They shall beat their swords into ploughshares . . . ; 
 neither shall they learn war any more.” 
 
 In Egypt, they plough with two oxen. The plough is 
 remarkably light, and has only one handle, which the 
 ploughman holds with one hand, and carries a long stick 
 in the other. — Richardson's Travels. 
 
 In Persia, it is for the most part drawn by one ox on- 
 ly, and not unfrequently even by an ass, although it is 
 more ponderous than in Palestine. — See Isaiah xxxii, 
 20. — Morier .. 
 
156 
 
 PLOUGHSHARES. 
 
 With such an imperfect instrument, the Syrian hus- 
 bandman can do little more than scratch the surface of 
 the field, or clear away the stones or weeds that en- 
 cumber it, and prevent the seed from reaching the soil. 
 The ploughshare is a piece of iron, broad, but not 
 large, which tips the end of the shaft. So much does it 
 resemble the short-sword used by the ancient warriors, 
 that it may with veiy little trouble be converted into 
 that deadly weapon. In allusion to this, the prophet 
 Joel summons the nations to leave their peaceful em- 
 ployments in the cultivated field, and buckle on their 
 armor. 
 
 “I obtained,” writes an Eastern traveller, “ a model 
 of a plough at Nazareth. It is differently constructed 
 from that used in Britain. It is not moved upon wheels. 
 The share, which is small, scarcely grazes the earth ; 
 and it has only one handle, or shaft, with a small piece 
 of wood across the top, for the husbandman to guide it, 
 resembling the head of a staff, or the handle of a spade. 
 The man holds this in his right hand, and carries a long 
 stick in his left, with which he goads the oxen. The 
 whole machine is made so extremely light that a person 
 might with facility carry it in his arms. The share is 
 covered with a piece of broad iron, pointed at the end, 
 so as it might be converted into a weapon of warfare. 
 In all probability it is to this peculiarity that one of the 
 prophets refers, where he calls on the nations to relin- 
 quish rural occupations, and convert their ploughs into 
 instruments of battle .” — Rae Wilson’s Travels in the 
 Holy Land , vol. i., p. 401. 
 
 DOVE-HOUSES. 
 
 Isaiah lx. 8. 
 
 - “ Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves 
 to their windows ?” 
 
DOVE-HOUSES. 
 
 157 
 
 2 Kings vi. 25. 
 
 “ The fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung [was sold] 
 for five pieces of silver.” 
 
 In the environs of the city of Ispahan, in Persia, a^ 
 many pigeon-houses, erected at a distance from habit* 
 tions, for the sole purpose of collecting pigeon’s dung for 
 manure. They are large round towers, rather broader 
 at the bottom than the top, and crowned by conical 
 spiracles, through which the pigeons descend. Their 
 interior resembles a honey-comb, pierced with a thou- 
 sand holes ; each of which forms a snug retreat for a 
 nest. More care appears to have been bestowed upon 
 their outside, than upon that of the generality of the 
 dwelling-houses (the exteriors of which are little stud- 
 ied) ; for they are painted and ornamented. The extra- 
 ordinary flights of pigeons which I have seen alight 
 upon one of these buildings afford, perhaps, a good 
 illustration for the passage in Isaiah : “ Who are these 
 that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows ?” 
 Their great numbers, and the compactness of their mass, 
 literally look like a cloud at a distance, and obscure the 
 sun in their passage. The dung of pigeons is the dear- 
 est manure that the Persians use ; and as they apply it 
 almost entirely for the rearing of melons, it is probably 
 on that account that the melons of Ispahan are so much 
 finer than those of other cities. The revenue of a pi- 
 geon-house is about one hundred tomauns per annum ; 
 and the great value of this dung, which rears a fruit 
 that is indispensable to the existence of the natives 
 during the great heats of summer, will probably throw 
 light upon that passage of Scripture, when, in the fam- 
 ine of Samaria, the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung 
 was sold for five pieces of silver. (2 Kings vi. 25.) — * 
 Morier’s Second Journey through Persia , tyc.j pp. 140* 
 141. 
 
 14 
 
158 
 
 DOVE-HOUSES-. 
 
 PIGEON-HOUSES IN EGYPT. 
 
 Psalm lxviii. 13. 
 
 u Though ye have lien among the pots, yet shall ye 
 be as the wings of a dove, covered with silver, and her 
 feathers with yellow gold.” 
 
 In many villages (in Egypt), large pigeon-houses, of a 
 square form, but with the walls slightly inclining inward, 
 or of the form of a sugar-loaf, are constructed upon the 
 roofs of the huts, with crude bricks, pottery, and mud. 
 
 The earthern pots used in the construction of these 
 pigeon-houses, are of an oval form, with a wide mouth, 
 which is placed outward, and a small hole at the other 
 end. Each pair of pigeons occupies a separate pot. — 
 Lane's Modern Egyptians , vol. i., p. 24, note. 
 
 METHOD OF WATERING. 
 
 Deuteronomy xi. 10, 11. 
 
 “ The land whither thou goest in to possess it, is not 
 as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where 
 thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot, as 
 a garden of herbs : but the land whither ye go to pos- 
 sess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water 
 of the rain of heaven.” 
 
 In Egypt there is no rain, and though the river Nile 
 waters the country by overflowing its banks, still im- 
 mense labor was required to conduct the waters of this 
 river to many parts. Large canals had to be dug, bricks, 
 &c., to be prepared for lining them ; and for this reason, 
 in Exodus i. 14, hard bondage in bricks and mortar is 
 joined with other labors of the field. It must, therefore, 
 have been glad tidings to the Israelites, that in the coun- 
 try whither they were going, no such services would be 
 required ; for that Canaan drank of the rain of heaven, 
 and nothing but the gardens of herbs would require to 
 be watered by art. 
 
METHOD OF WATERING. 
 
 159 
 
 The words “ wateredst it with thy foot” are curious, 
 but are easily explained. In Egypt, such vegetables as 
 require more moisture than the inundation of the Nile 
 affords them, are refreshed by water drawn out of the 
 river by instruments, and lodged in large cisterns. When 
 their melons, sugar-canes, &c., want water, they strike 
 out the plugs that are at the bottom of the cisterns ; and 
 the water gushing out is conducted to the rills in which 
 the plantations are, by the gardener, who is always ready, 
 as occasion requires, to stop and divert the torrent, by 
 turning the earth against it with his foot, and opening, at 
 the same time, a new trench to receive it. — Harmed s 
 Observations , vol. i., pp. 93-96. 
 
 METHOD OF GATHERING CORN. 
 
 Psalm cxxix. 6. 
 
 “ Let them be as the grass upon the housetops, which 
 withereth afore it groweth up.” — ( Be plucked up) : pray- 
 er-book version. 
 
 The following extract from MaundrelVs Travels is an 
 illustration of this verse. He writes : “ All that occur- 
 red to us new, in this day’s travel, was a particular way 
 used by the country people in gathering their corn ; it 
 being now harvest-time. They plucked it up by handfuls 
 from the roots, leaving the most fruitful fields as barren 
 as if nothing had ever grown on them. This was their 
 practice in all places of the East that I have seen ; and 
 the reason is, that they may lose none of their straw, 
 which is generally very short, and necessary for the 
 sustenance of their cattle ; no hay here being made. I 
 mention this, because it seems to give light to that ex- 
 pression of the Psalmist, ‘ which withereth before it be 
 plucked up where there seems to be a manifest allu- 
 sion to this custom. There is, indeed, mention of a 
 mower in the next verse ; but then it is such a mower 
 cis fills not his hands,; which confirms, rather than 
 
160 
 
 METHOD OF GATHERING CORN. 
 
 weakens the preceding interpretation.” — MaundrelVs 
 Journey from Aleppo to Jerusalem , p. 144. 
 
 WINNOWING CORN. 
 
 Ruth iii. 2. 
 
 Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the thresh- 
 ing-floor.” 
 
 The manner of winnowing corn in warm climates, is 
 to throw it up in the air when the wind is brisk. The 
 grain then falls, and the wind carries away the husk. 
 
 In Palestine, as in other countries bordering on the sea,- 
 a breeze usually springs up from the sea every evening ; 
 and this explains why barley should be winnowed at 
 night . — Calmet. 
 
 It is not many years since this was the usual method 
 
THRESHING CORN. 
 
 161 
 
 of winnowing in the west of England, and is probably 
 not yet entirely laid aside. 
 
 THRESHING CORN. 
 
 Proverbs xx. 26. 
 
 “ A wise king scattereth the wicked, and bringeth the 
 wheel over them.” 
 
 In Egypt, the use of the flail is unknown. To sepa- 
 rate the grain from the straw, the inhabitants prepare, 
 with a mixture of earth, &c., spacious floors, well beat, 
 and very clean. The rice is spread thereon, in thick 
 layers. They have then a sort of cart, formed of two 
 pieces of wood joined together by two cross-pieces. It 
 is almost in the shape of sledges which serve for the 
 conveyance of burdens in the streets of our cities. Be- 
 tween the longer sides of this sledge are fixed, trans- 
 versely, three rows of small wheels, made of solid iron, 
 and narrowed off toward their circumference. On the 
 forepart is a wide and high seat, upon which a man sits, 
 driving two oxen harnessed to the machine. The whole 
 moves on slowly, and always in a circular direction, 
 over every part of the heap of rice, until there remains 
 no more grain in the straw. When it is thus beat, it is 
 spread in the air to be dried. Several men walk abreast, 
 to turn it over, each of whom, with his foot, makes a 
 furrow in the layer of grain ; so that in a few moments 
 the whole mass is moved, and that part which was un- 
 derneath is again exposed to the air. — Sonnini : Har- 
 med s Observations , vol. iv., pp. 134, 135. 
 
 Thus the wheel is the instrument of crushing the 
 grain, and causing it to be separated. So does a wise 
 king bring the power of the law upon the wicked, 
 crushes their conspiracies, defeats their projects, and 
 gains an entire victory over their secret and malicious 
 designs. 
 
 14 * 
 
162 
 
 OXEN. 
 
 OXEN. 
 
 Deuteronomy xxv. 4. 
 
 “ Thou shalt. not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out 
 the corn.” 
 
 The following extract from the journal of the Rev. 
 M. Hill bears upon this passage, which is quoted by St. 
 Paul in his first epistle to the Corinthians : 
 
 “ November 27, 1826. — Left Berhampore, and arrived 
 at Doulta. The country on every side exhibited the 
 pleasing scenes of industry. Some persons were pre- 
 paring the ground by digging, and others by ploughing 
 
 with oxen, for a future crop. Others were cutting their 
 harvest of rice, and others treading out their grain , 
 after the manner described in Scripture. At one place 
 
OXEN. 
 
 163 
 
 l noticed two sets of oxen, four abreast, the one set fol- 
 lowing the other in a circle, and which as they trod out 
 the grain, continued eating. I inquired of the men why 
 they permitted the oxen to eat ? They replied, ‘ It is 
 contrary to our shasters (holy books) to muzzle the ox 
 that treadeth out the corn? " 
 
 In Greece, horses are employed to tread out the corn, 
 as was sometimes the case in Judea (Isaiah xxviii. 28) : 
 and with regard to them, the law is observed which 
 Moses gave to the Jews concerning oxen. (Deut. xxv. 
 41.) Hence they find means, in the progress of their 
 labor, to partake pretty largely both of the straw and of 
 the grain. — Hartley's Researches , p. 366. 
 
 HAY AND OATS NOT USED IN THE EAST. 
 
 1 Kings iv, 28. 
 
 (They brought) “ barley also and straw for the horses. 
 
 Neither hay nor oats are known to the Turks ; nor 
 has any nation in the East ever used them for their 
 horses. — Walpole's MSS. Journal; Note, Clarke's 
 Travels , vol. iii., p. 234. 
 
 TARES. 
 
 Matthew xiii. 25. 
 
 “ His enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat.” 
 See the whole parable. 
 
 “ The following incident,” observes Mr. Wilson, 
 “ tends, I think, to explain a parable of our Lord in 
 Matt, xiii.: — 
 
 “ The wife of religious ministers is styled in Greece 
 Mrs. Priestess. On one occasion I observed Mrs. 
 Priestess and her children, during my stay in their 
 house, appear very much indisposed, and inquired the 
 reason. 4 Sir,’ said she, 6 we have eaten some zizania? 
 This is the word translated - tares in the Gospel of St. 
 
164 
 
 TARES. 
 
 Matthew. They had unwittingly eaten this deleterious 
 grain as genuine corn, and I observed that headache and 
 sickness were the result.” 
 
 This zizania is considered to be the plant called darnel , 
 well known to the people of Aleppo. It grows among 
 corn : the reapers do not separate the plant, but, after 
 threshing, they reject the seeds by means of a fan or 
 seive. So in the parable the plant is described as grow- 
 ing among corn : the reapers do not separate it, — both 
 grow together until the harvest. According to Johnson, 
 darnel is the first of hurtful weeds. Its leaves resemble 
 those of wheat or barley, but spring up rougher. The 
 grains having scarcely any husk, are easily scattered 
 among the corn where it grows. — Rev. S. S. Wilson's 
 Travels. 
 
 MUSTARD. 
 
 Matthew xiii. 31, 32. 
 
 “ The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mus- 
 tard-seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field : 
 which indeed is the least of all seeds : but when it is 
 grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a 
 tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the 
 branches thereof.” 
 
 A traveller* in the East informs us that the 
 mustard plant thrives so mightily in Chili, that it is as 
 big as a man’s arm, and so high and thick that it looks 
 like a tree. “ I have travelled many leagues,” he writes, 
 “ through groves which were taller than horse and man, 
 and the birds build their nests in them, as the Gospel 
 mentions. 
 
 GARDENS. 
 
 Isaiah lviii. 11. 
 
 “ Thou shalt be like a watered garden.” 
 
 “ The town of Tayf,” writes an Eastern traveller, “is 
 * Ovalle. 
 
GARDENS. 
 
 165 
 
 celebrated all over Arabia for its beautiful gardens. 
 They are watered by wells and rivulets , which descend 
 from the mountains. Numerous fruit-trees are found 
 in them, grapes of a very large size and exquisite fla- 
 vor, and abundance of roses. The gardens of Koba 
 are equally beautiful. They spread over a space of four 
 or five miles in circuit, and form a most fertile and agree- 
 able spot. All kinds of fruit-trees (with the exception 
 of apple and pear, neither of which, I believe., grow in 
 Arabia) are seen in the gardens, which are all enclosed 
 by walls, and watered by numerous wells. Lemon and 
 orange-trees, pomegranates, vines, peach, apricot, fig- 
 trees, and palm-trees, form thick groves ; and many sick 
 persons are carried there to enjoy the shade.” 
 
 Of the garden of Roda, Lord Lindsay says, It is 
 indeed a lovely spot. One walk, with borders of myrtle, 
 particularly charmed me, leading between rows of 
 orange-trees in full bearing to a fountain surrounded by 
 cypress-trees. Rosemary edges the walk like box in 
 England, and roses bloom in profusion, and gorgeous 
 butterflies were flitting about in every direction. Little 
 canals for irrigation are conducted all over the garden, 
 some of them of hewn stone, others merely dug in the 
 earth ; and the water is transferred from one into the 
 other by opening or damming it with the foot, as in 
 Moses’s time,” — See Lord Lindsay's Letters from the 
 Holy Landi fyc? vel. i., p. 56. 
 
 WATERING GARDENS. 
 
 Ecclesiastes xii. 6. 
 
 “ Or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the 
 wheel broken at the cistern.” 
 
 At Smyrna, and in many other places, water is pro- 
 cured for irrigating gardens in the following manner. 
 A large wheel is fixed over the mouth of the well in a 
 vertical position. A number of pitchers are attached to 
 the wheel, in such a manner that, by means of its revo- 
 
166 
 
 WATERING GARDENS. 
 
 lution, which is effected by a horse, they are continually 
 descending and filling, and ascending and discharging 
 themselves. — Hartley's Researches in Greece , <fyc., pp. 
 213, 214. 
 
 GRAFTING. 
 
 Romans xi. 17,24. 
 
 “ And if some of the branches be broken off, and 
 thou, being a wild olive-tree, wert graffed in among 
 them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of 
 
 the olive-tree If thou wert cut out of the olive- 
 
 tree, which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary 
 to nature into a good olive-tree.” 
 
 John xv. 2. 
 
 “ Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh 
 away : and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth 
 it, that it may bring forth more fruit.” 
 
 “ In the Morea,” writes Mr. Hartley, in his Re- 
 searches, “ I had my attention directed to the practice 
 of grafting the olive-trees, to which St. Paul alludes. 
 My friend showed me a few wild olives ; but by far the 
 greater number are such as have been grafted. He 
 informs me that it is the universal practice in Greece to 
 graft from a good tree\ipon the wild olive. I also noticed 
 the manner in which the vine is cut or purged. Only 
 two or three of the principal sprouts are permitted to 
 grow up from the root ; the rest are cut off ; and this 
 practice is often called by the Greeks cleaning .” It may 
 be added that the word translated severity , in Romans 
 xi. 22, properly denotes excision , cutting off \ as the gar- 
 dener cuts off, with a pruning-knife, dead boughs or lux- 
 uriant stems. — Hartley's Researches , 8pc., p. 314. 
 
 VINEYARDS. 
 
 Psalm lxxx. 13. 
 
 “ The bear out of the wood doth waste it, and the 
 wild beast of the field doth devour it.” 
 
VINEYARDS. 167 
 
 B 
 
 “ My friend, the Rev. Mr. Leeves, was proceeding in 
 the dusk of the evening from Constantinople to Therapia. 
 Passing through a vineyard, he observed an animal of 
 large size rushing from among the vines, crossing the 
 road, and taking to flight with great precipitation. His 
 Greek companion, who was riding first, exclaimed, ‘Wild 
 boar ! wild boar !’ and it really proved a wild boar, who 
 was retreating from the vineyards to the woods. ‘ What 
 has the wild boar to do in the vineyard V inquired Mr. 
 Leeves. ‘ Oh,’ said the Greek, ‘ ’tis the custom of the 
 wild boars to frequent the vineyards, and to devour the 
 grapes.’ — And it is astonishing what havoc a wild boar 
 is capable of making. What with eating, and what with 
 trampling under foot, he will destroy an immense quan- 
 tity of grapes.” — Rev. J. Hartley's Researches in Greece 
 the Levant , p. 212. 
 
168 
 
 VINES. 
 
 VINES. 
 
 Genesis xlix. 22. 
 
 “ Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by 
 a well ; whose branches run over the wall.” 
 
 The vineyards in Persia are generally enclosed by 
 high walls. The Persian vine-dressers do all in their 
 power to make the vine run up the wall, and curl over 
 on the other side, which they do by tying stones to the 
 extremity of the tendril. May not this illustrate that 
 beautiful image used in Genesis lxix. 22. “ Joseph is 
 
 a fruitful bough,” &c. The vine, particularly in Turkey 
 and Greece, is frequently made to entwine on trellises, 
 around a well , where in the heat of the day, whole fam- 
 ilies collect themselves, and sit under the shade. — Mo- 
 rier's Second Journey through Persia , fyc., p. 232. 
 
 Psalms cxxviii. 3. 
 
 “ Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of 
 thy house : thy children like olive-plants round about thy 
 table.” 
 
 “ It is very common,” says Dr. Russell, “ to cover 
 the stairs leading to the upper apartments of the harem 
 with the vines. And they have often a lattice- work of 
 wood raised against the dead walls (see prayer-book 
 version of the psalm), for a vine or other shrub to crawl 
 upon. 
 
 WINE-PRESSES. 
 
 Matthew xxi. 3. 
 
 “ There was a certain householder, which planted a 
 vineyard, and digged a wine-press in it.” 
 
 The wine-presses in Persia are formed by making 
 (digging) hollow places in the ground, lined with mason’s 
 work. — Harmcr's Observations , vol. ii., p. 152. 
 
WINE-PRESSES. 
 
 169 
 
 While traveling in the Morea, Mr. Hartley observes, 
 u wine-presses are still to be met with in the vineyards.” 
 — Hartley's Researches , tf-c., p. 360. 
 
 CITRON TREE— APPLES. 
 
 Canticles ii. 3, 5. 
 
 “ As the apple-tree among the trees of the w r ood, so 
 is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his 
 shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to 
 my taste. . . . Stay me with flagons, comfort me with 
 apples .” 
 
 Canticles vii. 8. 
 
 “ The smell of thy nose like apples.” 
 
 Proverbs xxv. 11. 
 
 “ A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures 
 [or baskets] of silver.” 
 
 The fruit which we call apples, are in Judea both 
 rare and of a very poor kind. But the tree now called 
 in the East the citron exactly agrees with the descrip- 
 tion given in Scripture of that which has been rendered 
 in our translation “ apple- tree.” 
 
 Citron-trees are very noble, being large, and their 
 leaves very beautiful, always continuing upon the tree, 
 of an exquisite smell, and affording a most delightful 
 shade. “I sat down under his shadow with great delight.” 
 (Canticles ii. 3.) The orange-tree is so like the citron 
 that a common observer can hardly distinguish between 
 them when they are not in fruit — and even the color of 
 the latter is the same in both, viz., that of gold. Thus 
 a traveller, describing the palace of a prince, on the 
 coast of Syria, prefers the orange-g arden to everything 
 else, the walks being shaded with orange-trees of alarge 
 spreading kind, and gilded with fruit. 
 
 The fragrancy of the citron-fruit is admirable, and their 
 peel is as reviving as their juice is refreshing. We are 
 15 
 
170 
 
 CITRON TREE APPLES. 
 
 told of an Arabian who was in a great measure brought 
 to himself, when overcome by wine, with thq help of 
 citrons and coffee. “ His fruit was sweet to my taste. 
 Stay me with flagons [with wine, that is, that was given 
 to those who were faint], comfort me with citrons,” 
 which are so refreshing.* The first-fruits were carried 
 to the Temple at Jerusalem in silver baskets ; and Solo- 
 mon represents a word fitly spoken as being beautiful as 
 golden citrons shining through the net-work of silver 
 baskets. 
 
 * Harmer’s Observations, vol. ii., pp. 157-161. 
 
171 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Markets — Streets for Trades — Taskmasters — Method of hiring 
 Laborers — Agreements — W eighing Money — Tax-gatherers — 
 Courts of Justice — Laws — Curious Mode of Decision. 
 
 MARKETS. 
 
 2 Kings vii. 1. 
 
 “ Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the Lord ; 
 Thus saith the Lord, To-morrow about this time shall 
 a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two 
 measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.” 
 
 Mr. Morier observes : “ In our rides we usually went 
 out of the town [Teheran, in Persia], at the gate lead- 
 ing to the village of Shah Abdul Azum, where a market 
 was held every morning, particularly of horses, mules, 
 asses, and camels. At about sunrise, the owners of the 
 animals assemble, and exhibit them for sale. But be- 
 sides, here were sellers of all sorts of goods, in tempo- 
 rary shops and tents ; and this, perhaps, will explain the 
 custom alluded to in 2 Kings vii., of the sale of barley 
 and flour in the gate of Samaria.” — Morier 1 s Second Jour- 
 ney through Persia , c^c., p. 190. 
 
 STREETS APPROPRIATED TO PARTICULAR TRADES 
 IN THE EAST. 
 
 Jeremiah xxxvii. 21. 
 
 “ Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they 
 should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, 
 and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out 
 of the bakers 1 street 11 
 
172 
 
 STREETS FOR TRADES. 
 
 The great thoroughfare streets of Cairo generally 
 have a row of shops along each side ; commonly a por- 
 tion of a street, or a whole street, contains chiefly, or 
 solely, shops appropriated to one particular trade, and is 
 
 called the “ market ” of that trade. Thus a part of the 
 principal streets of the city is called the market of the 
 sellers of copper wares ; another part is called the mar- 
 ket of the jewellers, &c .—Lane's Modern Egyptians. 
 
 TASKMASTERS. 
 
 Exodus v. 
 
 Mr. Morier thus describes the building of a fort in 
 
TASKMASTERS. 
 
 173 
 
 Persia: “We found about one hundred peasants at work 
 upon it. The walls are made with sun-burnt bricks, with 
 a previous foundation of common stone, and the arch- 
 ways of the gates of bricks baked in a kiln. The bricks 
 baked in the sun are composed of earth dug from pits in 
 the vicinity, which is mixed up with straw, and then, 
 from the form in which they have been cast, are ar- 
 ranged on a flat spot in rows, where the sun hardens 
 them. This style of building is called the ‘ kah-gil,’ or 
 straw and clay. The peasants who were at work had been, 
 as usual, collected by force, and were superintended by 
 several of the king’s officers, who, with hard words, and 
 sometimes harder blows, hastened them in their opera- 
 tions. Their fate resembled that of the Israelites, who 
 no doubt were employed in the same manner in build- 
 ings for Pharaoh, and with the same sort of materials. 
 Their bricks were mixed up with straw ; they had to 
 make a certain quantity daily ; and their taskmasters 
 treated them cruelly if their task was not accomplished. 
 The complaints which they made were natural, and 
 resembled the language used frequently on similar occa- 
 sions by the oppressed in Persia. ‘ There is no straw 
 given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick; 
 and, behold, thy servants are beaten ; but the fault is in 
 thine own people.’ Part of the laborers were occupied 
 in treading mortar, part in bringing clay, and several 
 were employed at the brick-kilns, which had been erected 
 in the immediate vicinity of the building, for baking the 
 bricks.” — Morier’s Second Journey through Persia, tfc., 
 pp. 199, 200. 
 
 Exodus i. 8-14 ; v. 13, 14. 
 
 “ Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which 
 knew not Joseph. And he said unto his people, Behold, 
 the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier 
 than we : Come on, let us deal wisely with them .... 
 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict 
 them with their burdens And the Egyptians 
 
 15 * 
 
174 
 
 TASKMASTERS. 
 
 made the children of Israel to serve with rigor : and 
 they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in mor- 
 tar, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the 
 field. n 
 
 “ And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil 
 your works, your daily tasks . . And the officers of the 
 children of Israel, which Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set 
 over them, were beaten.” 
 
 The present pacha (or governor) of Egypt is a man 
 of talent, power, and wisdom, and has done much to 
 improve his country. At the same time he exercises 
 great tyranny in the way in which he compels the ser- 
 vices of his people. u We cannot be insensible,” ob- 
 serves a recent traveller in Egypt, “ to the cries of suf- 
 fering raised by the children, women, and old blind men 
 and cripples, who are condemned under the terrors of 
 the club, to the severest labor, without being implicated 
 in any crime, save that of having been born in this land 
 of oppression !” 
 
 The following circumstance is related by an eye- 
 witness, and is a lively comment upon the narrative of 
 the sacred historian : — 
 
 “ Having ridden out early one morning, in the neigh- 
 borhood of Alexandria,” this gentleman writes, “ we 
 suddenly heard the sounds of music from without, and 
 perceived it was the pacha himself, with his guard, who 
 had just arrived from Cairo. He was on foot, and 
 stood on the lofty bank of a new canal he was making, 
 earnestly observing the innumerable workmen beneath. 
 The bed of the canal below presented a novel specta- 
 cle, being filled with vast numbers of Arabs of various 
 colors, toiling in the intense heat of the day, while 
 their Egyptian taskmasters, with whips in their hands, 
 watched the progress of their labor. It was a just and 
 lively representation of the children of Israel, forced 
 to toil by their oppressive masters of old. The wages 
 allowed these unfortunate people, who had been obliged 
 
TASKMASTERS. 
 
 175 
 
 to quit their homes and families in Upper Egypt, to toil 
 about this work, were only a penny a day and a ration 
 of bread. Yet such is the buoyancy of spirits of the 
 Arabs, that they go through their heavy toil with gayety 
 and cheerfulness.” — Carrie's Eastern Letters , pp. 71, 72 
 
 MODE OF HIRING LABORERS. 
 
 Matthew xx. 3, 6, 7. 
 
 “ He went out about the third hour, and saw others 
 [laborers] standing idle in the market-place ...... 
 
 And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found 
 others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand 
 ye here all the day idle ? They say unto him, Because 
 no man hath hired us.” — (See whole parable.) 
 
 The most conspicuous building in Hamadam (in Per- 
 sia), is a large mosque, now falling into decay, and be- 
 fore it a square, which serves as a market-place. Here 
 
176 
 
 MODE OF HIRING LABORERS. 
 
 we observed, every morning before the sun rose, that a 
 numerous body of peasants were collected, with spades 
 in their hands, waiting, as they informed us, to be hired 
 for the day to work in the surrounding fields. This 
 custom, which I have never seen in any other part of 
 Asia, forcibly struck us as a most happy illustration of 
 our Savior’s parable of the laborers in the vineyard, in 
 the twentieth chapter of Matthew ; particularly when 
 passing by the same place late in the day, we still found 
 “ others standing idle,” and remembered his words, 
 “ Why stand ye here all the day idle ?” as most appli- 
 cable to their situation ; for, in putting the very same 
 question to them, they answered us, “ Because no man 
 hath hired us.” — Morier's Second Journey through Per- 
 sia , p. 265. 
 
 MANNER OF EXPRESSING CONSENT AND AGREE- 
 MENT IN THE EAST. 
 
 Matthew vi. 3. 
 
 “ When thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know 
 what thy right hand doeth.” 
 
 Proverbs vi. 13. 
 
 “ He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his 
 feet, he teacheth with his fingers.” 
 
 Mr. Jowett thus describes a common Eastern cus- 
 tom, on the occasion of his parting from a Samaritan 
 priest : 
 
 “ The manner,” writes this gentleman, “ in which the 
 priest desired me, on parting, to express our mutual 
 goodwill, was by an action than which there is not one 
 more common in all the Levant. He put the forefinger 
 of his right hand parallel to that of his left, and then 
 rapidly rubbed them together, while I was expected to 
 do the same, repeating the words ‘ Right, right,’ or, in 
 common acceptation, ‘ Together, together.’ ” 
 
MANNER OF EXPRESSING AGREEMENT. 
 
 177 
 
 It is in this manner that persons express their consent, 
 on all occasions, on concluding a bargain, on engaging to 
 bear one another company, and on every kind of friendly 
 agreement, or good understanding. May not this serve 
 to explain the phrase in Matthew vi. 3, “ Let not thy left 
 hand know what thy right hand doeth that is, let not 
 thy heart consent to its own good thoughts with a sinful 
 self-applause. So much is said in the Old Testament, 
 of speaking with the eyes, hands, and even feet, that it 
 is scarcely understood by Englishmen. They should 
 see the expressive and innumerable gesticulations of 
 foreigners, when they converse. Many a question is 
 answered, and many a significant remark conveyed, by 
 even children, who learn this language much sooner 
 than their mother-tongue. Perhaps the expression of 
 Solomon, that the wicked man speaketh with his feet , 
 may appear more natural when it is considered that the 
 mode of sitting on the ground in the East brings the 
 feet into view, nearly in the same direct line as the 
 hands ; the whole body crouching down together, and 
 the hands, in fact, often resting upon the feet. — Jowetfs 
 Christian Researches in Syria , pp. 283, 284. 
 
 Genesis xxiii. 10, 11. — (See whole chapter.) 
 
 “ And Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham, . . . 
 saying, Nay, my lord, hear me : the field give I thee, 
 and the cave that is therein I give it thee.” 
 
 The peasants in Egypt will often say, when a person 
 asks the price of anything which they have for sale, 
 “ Receive it as a present,” as Ephron did to Abraham, 
 when the latter expressed his wish to purchase the field 
 and cave of Machpelah. This answer having become a 
 common form of speech, they know that advantage will 
 not b^ taken of it ; and when desired again to name the 
 pr? >e they wifi do so. — Lane's Modern Egyptians . 
 
178 
 
 WEIGHING MONEY. 
 
 WEIGHING MONEY. 
 
 Genesis xxiii. 16. 
 
 “ And Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which 
 he had named in the audience of the sons of Heth, four 
 hundred shekels of silver, current money with the mer- 
 chant.” 
 
 Ezra viii. 25. 
 
 “ And weighed unto them the silver, and the gold.” 
 
 “ Burmah has no coinage. Silver and lead pass in 
 fragments of all sizes ; and the amount of every trans- 
 
 action is regularly weighed out as was done by the an- 
 cients.” — Rev. H. Malcom’s Travels. 
 
TAX-GATHERERS. 
 
 179 
 
 TAX-GATHERERS. 
 
 Matthew ix. 9. 
 
 “ And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a 
 man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom ; 
 and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose and 
 followed him.” 
 
 Any person may see this ancient custom exemplified 
 to this day, at the gate of Smyrna. The collector of 
 customs sits there in the house allotted him, and re- 
 ceives the money which is due from various persons 
 and commodities entering into the city. The exactions, 
 and rude behavior of these men are just in character 
 with the conduct of the publicans mentioned in the New 
 Testament. — Hartley's Researches , pp. 216, 217. 
 
 In Persia, Mr. Morier met with “a station of rahdars, 
 or toll-gatherers, appointed to levy a toll upon caravans 
 of merchants, and who, in general, exercise their office 
 with so much brutality and extortion, as to be execrated 
 by all travellers. The police of the highways is confi- 
 ded to them, and whenever any goods are stolen, they 
 are meant to be the instruments of restitution ; but, when 
 they are put to the test, are found to be inefficient : none 
 but a man in power can hope to recover what he has 
 once lost. They afford but little protection to the road, 
 their stations being placed at too wide intervals to be 
 able to communicate quickly ; but they generally are 
 perfectly acquainted with the state of the country, and 
 are probably leagured with the thieves themselves, and 
 can thus, if they choose, discover their haunts. Their 
 insolence to travellers is unparalleled : the collections of 
 the toll are farmed, consequently extortion ensues ; and 
 as most of the rahdars receive no other emolument than 
 what they can exact over and above the prescribed dues 
 from the traveller, their insolence is accounted for, and 
 a cause sufficiently powerful is given for their insolence 
 
180 
 
 TAX-GATHERERS. 
 
 on the one hand, and the detestation in which they are 
 held on the other. ‘ Bajgah’ means 4 the place of trib- 
 ute.’ It may also be rendered 4 the receipt of custom 
 and perhaps it was from a place like this that our Sav- 
 ior called Matthew to follow him ; because Matthew 
 appears, from the third verse of the tenth chapter, to 
 have been a publican ; and publicans, who, in the elev- 
 enth verse of the ninth chapter, are classed with sin- 
 ners, appear to have been held in the same odium as 
 are the rahdars of Persia. It also explains why Mat- 
 thew, who was seated at the receipt of custom, is after- 
 ward called a publican ; and shows that, in the choice 
 of his disciples, our Savior took them not only from 
 the poorest and humblest class of men, but also from 
 those who, from their particular situation in life, were 
 hated by all ranks. Matthew, as a toll-gatherer, must, 
 like the rahdars, have been a man known to all ranks 
 of people, and detested on account of his profession. 
 When he was seen having ‘ power against unclean spir- 
 its,’ with power to ‘ heal all manner of sickness and 
 disease,’ and following one like our Savior, his life, 
 when compared with what he formerly was, must have 
 been a constant miracle. 
 
 “ The parable of the Pharisee and publican (Luke 
 xviii. 10-14) will be more clearly understood by what 
 has been mentioned. Our Savior, in bringing these 
 two characters together, appears to have chosen them 
 as making the strongest contrast between what, in the 
 public estimation, were the extremes of excellence and 
 villany. The sect of the Pharisees was the most pow- 
 erful among the Jews ; and, from what has been said 
 of the rahdars, it may perhaps be explained why the 
 Pharisee should make ‘ extortioners’ and the ‘ unjust’ 
 almost synonymous terms with 4 publicans ;’ because we 
 have seen that, from the peculiar office of the rahdar, 
 he is almost an extortioner by profession.” — Morier's 
 Second Journey through Persia , pp. 69-71. 
 
181 
 
 COURTS OF JUSTICE. 
 
 Luke xvi. 5-8. 
 
 “ So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto 
 him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto 
 my lord ? And he said, A hundred measures of oil. 
 And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down 
 quickly, and write fifty. Then said he to another. And 
 how much owest thou ? And he said, A hundred 
 measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy 
 bill, and write fourscore.” 
 
 Our Lord here probably alluded to a custom which 
 still prevails in the Asiatic countries, as is evident from 
 the following account taken from Captain Hadly’s Hm- 
 doostan Dialogues. A person thus addresses the captain. 
 “ Your sirkar’s deputy, while his master was gone to 
 Calcutta, established a court of justice ; having searched 
 16 
 
182 
 
 COURTS OF JUSTICE. 
 
 for a good many debtors and their creditors, he learned 
 the account of their bonds. He then made an agree- 
 ment with them to get the bonds out of the bondsmen’s 
 hands for half the debt, if they would give him one 
 fourth. Thus every debtor for one hundred rupees, 
 having given fifty to the creditor, and twenty-five to this 
 knave, got his bond for seventy-five rupees. Having 
 seized and flogged one hundred and twenty-five bond- 
 holders, he has in this manner determined their loans, 
 and he has done this business in your name.” — Captain 
 Madly 1 s Hindoostan Dialogues . 
 
 EASTERN LAWS. 
 
 Exodus xxi. 24. 
 
 “ Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.” See Matt. v. 38. 
 
 Mr. L., an English merchant, had some years ago an 
 affray with some Moors, who insulted him as he was one 
 day returning from shooting. In the course of the 
 scuffle, which originated in Mr. L.’s dog attacking a 
 donkey belonging to the party, the merchant accidentally 
 knocked out two teeth from an old woman, who hap- 
 pened to be in the way. Complaint was immediately 
 made to the governor of Mogadore, who was obliged to 
 take the gentleman into custody, to protect him from 
 the anger of the mob. He was eventually sent to the 
 sultan who was then on the throne of Morocco, a prince 
 unusually mild for a sovereign of Morocco. Such is the 
 strictures with which the law on this head is observed, 
 that he was sentenced to have two of his teeth taken 
 out, which was accordingly done. As a mark of especial 
 favor, he was allowed to choose which two teeth he 
 would have condemned. — See Notes to Brookes * 
 Sketches in Spain and Morocco. 
 
183 
 
 CURIOUS MODE OF DECISION. 
 
 1 Kings iii. 24-27. 
 
 “ And the king said, Bring me a sword. . . . Divide 
 the living child in two, and give half to the one, and 
 half to the other. Then spake the women whose the 
 living child was, .... and she said, O my lord, give 
 
 her the living child, and in nowise slay it Then 
 
 the king answered and said, Give her the living child, 
 and in nowise slay it : she is the mother thereof.” 
 
 Such a mode of decision as this which Solomon 
 adopted was not unknown in the East. 
 
 Ariophanes, king of Thrace, being appointed to arbi- 
 trate between three young men, each claiming to be the 
 son of the Cimmerians, discovered the real son by 
 desiring each to shoot an arrow into the dead body of 
 him they called their father. Two of the claimants 
 obeyed without hesitation, but the third refused ; upon 
 which the arbitrator judged him to be the genuine prince. 
 — Fisher’s Historic Illustrations of the Bible. 
 
184 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Flocks and Herds — Sheep and Shepherds — Sheep-folds. 
 
 FLOCKS AND HERDS. 
 
 Genesis xiii. 
 
 “ And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, 
 and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south. 
 And Abram was very rich in cattle, .... and Lot also 
 .... had flocks, and herds, and tents. And the land 
 was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together : 
 
 for their substance was great And there was a 
 
 strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle, and the 
 
 herdmen of Lot’s cattle And Lot lifted up his 
 
 eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well 
 
FLOCKS AND HERDS. 
 
 185 
 
 watered everywhere Then Lot chose him all the 
 
 plain of Jordan, .... and pitched his tent toward Sod- 
 om Then Abram removed his tent, and came and 
 
 dwelt in the plain of Mamre.” 
 
 Genesis xxxii. 7. 
 
 “ And he [Jacob] divided the people that was with 
 him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two 
 bands. 
 
 Genesis xxxvii. 12-17. 
 
 <f And his brethren went to feed their fathers flock in 
 Shechem. And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy 
 brethren feed the flock in Shechem 1 . . . . Go, I pray 
 thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well 
 
 with the flocks So he sent him out of the vale 
 
 of Hebron, and he came to Shechem. And a certain 
 man .... asked him, saying, What seekest thou ? 
 And he said, I seek my brethren : tell me, I pray thee, 
 where they feed their flocks. And the man said, They 
 are departed hence ; for I heard them say, Let us go to 
 Dothan.” 
 
 The manner of life which is here described is still 
 followed in the East. “ This day,” writes a traveller, 
 “ we passed two or three villages, and had not advanced 
 far, when we beheld the plain before us covered with 
 an immense multitude of Arabs, with their flocks and 
 camels. They had come from plains far distant — 
 from the extensive tracts which extend toward Baby- 
 lon and Bagdad, the pastures being scanty, or else par- 
 tially exhausted this season. They had journeyed hither 
 with all their flocks and herds, for the sake of the supe- 
 rior pasturage the Syrian plains afford. Their tents 
 were spread over an immense space of ground before 
 us, those of the sheikh being distinguished by their su- 
 perior size. Groups of camels were standing in some 
 parts, and groups of their masters beside them, and 
 herds of cattle, and goats, and horses were dispersed 
 
186 
 
 FLOCKS AND HERDS. 
 
 over all the plain, mingled with parties of Arabs, w T ho 
 watched and attended them. 
 
 “ We came insight of an Arab camp pitched near a 
 rivulet of water, in the midst of the plain, and flocks of 
 cattle were feeding on the rich pasture. The large tent 
 of the sheikh was conspicuous in the midst, and we 
 resolved to trust to their hospitality. Having passed the 
 line of tents, we stopped at the door of the chief, and 
 alighting from our horses, entered. The Arabs gave us 
 a kind and friendly reception. We sat down on the 
 floor, and in about half an hour a repast was brought of 
 boiled rice, cakes of bread, and fresh butter. These 
 people are altogether a different race from the Bedouins 
 of the Desert : they are rather more civilized and peace- 
 able, having settled with their flocks and herds in one of 
 the rich and wild plains of Syria, they decamp and 
 wander to another in search of fresh pasture. Their 
 encampments and journeyings probably present a vivid 
 picture of those of the patriarchs, who, with their flocks 
 and herdsmen, and camels, went on their journeys until 
 they pitched their tents in a place that had water, and 
 was rich in pasture.” — See Appendix to Carrie's Letters , 
 and the Letters , p, 369. 
 
 SHEEP AND SHEPHERDS. 
 
 John x. 3-5. 
 
 “ The sheep hear his voice, and he calleth his own 
 sheep by name, and leadeth them out. 
 
 “ And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth 
 before them, and the sheep follow him : for they know 
 his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will 
 flee from him ; for they know not the voice of strangers.” 
 
 The Rev. John Hartley, who has travelled as a mis- 
 sionary in Greece, records in his Journal the following 
 interesting illustration of our Savior’s words : “ Hav- 
 ing had my attention directed last night to the words in 
 
SHEEf^ and shepherds. 187 
 
 n n 
 
 John x. 3, I asked my man if it was usual in Greece to 
 give names to sheep. He informed me that it was, and 
 that the sheep obeyed the shepherd when he called them 
 by their names. This morning I had an opportunity of 
 verifying the truth of this remark. Passing by a flock 
 of sheep, I asked the shepherd the same question which 
 I put to my servant, and he gave me the same answer. 
 I then bade him to call one of his sheep. He did so ; 
 and it instantly left its pasturage and its companions, and 
 ran up to the hand of the shepherd, with signs of pleas- 
 ure, and with a prompt obedience, which I had never 
 before observed in any other animal. The shepherd 
 told me that many of his sheep are still wild : that they 
 had not yet learned their names, but that by teaching 
 they would all learn them. The others, which knew 
 their names, he called tame.” 
 
 In Eastern countries the sheep are never driven, as 
 with us, but led by the shepherd ; and it is literally true 
 
188 
 
 SHEEP AND SHEPHERDS. 
 
 of them, that none but their accustomed leader will they 
 follow. “ A stranger will they not follow ; for they 
 know not the voice of strangers.” A young Persian of 
 rank proved this. He learned the names of a particular 
 flock of sheep, and then, putting on the dress of their 
 shepherd, went and called them ; but not one of them 
 would follow him, so well could they distinguish between 
 his (the stranger’s) voice, and that of their own shep- 
 herd. — Rev. J. Hartley's Researches in Greece and the 
 Levant, pip. 307, 308. 
 
 Jeremiah xxxiii. 13. 
 
 k< In the cities of the mountains . shall the 
 
 flocks pass again under the hands of him that telleth 
 them.” 
 
 In Greece, the shepherds count their flocks, by ad- 
 mitting them one by one into a pen. This is the custom 
 to which Jeremiah alludes (xxxiii. 13) Ibrahim Pacha 
 counted the Greeks who surrendered to him at Navarino, 
 in the same manner. — Hartley's Researches , p. 364. 
 
 Matthew xxv. 32. 
 
 “ He shall separate them one from another, as a 
 shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats.” 
 
 “ So entirely in these hot climates (viz., Burmah, 
 Pegu, &c.), do sheep lose their distinctive features, that, 
 in seeing them mixed with goats, I never could tell them 
 apart. They are never white, as with us, and their 
 wool degenerates into hair. May not this illustrate, ‘ He 
 shall separate them one from the other, as a shepherd 
 divideth the sheep from the goats’ ? Though an unac- 
 customed eye could not discern the difference, the shep- 
 herd knows each perfectly. 
 
 “ So, though in this world hypocrites mingle with 
 God’s people, and resemble them, the ‘ Great Shepherd’ 
 instantly detects them, and at the appointed time will 
 
SHEPHERDS. 
 
 189 
 
 unerringly divide them.” — Rev . H. MalcorrHs Travels in 
 Southeastern Asia. 
 
 SHEPHERDS. 
 
 1 Corinthians, ix, 7*. 
 
 “ Who feedeth my flock, and eateth not of the milk 
 of the flock ?” 
 
 The wages of the shepherds in the East do not con- 
 sist of ready money, but in a part of the milk of the 
 flocks which they tend. The shepherds in Modern 
 Greece are poor Albanians, who feed the cattle, and live 
 in huts built of rushes ; they have a tenth part of the 
 milk and of the lambs, which is their whole wages. 
 The cattle belong to the Turks. — Weekly Visiter. 
 
 CHIEF SHEPHERD. 
 
 1 Peter v. 2, 4. 
 
 “ Feed the flock of God which is among you ; . . and 
 when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive 
 a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” 
 
 In Spain, where many Eastern customs are preserved 
 from the Moors, they have, to this day, over each flock 
 of sheep, a chief shepherd. “ Ten thousand compose 
 a flock, which is divided into ten tribes. One man has 
 the conduct of all. He must be the owner of four or 
 five hundred sheep ; strong, active, vigilant, intelligent 
 in pasture, in the weather, and in the diseases of the 
 sheep. He has absolute dominion over fifty shepherds 
 and fifty dogs, five of each to a tribe. He chooses them, 
 he chastises them, or discharges them at will. He is 
 the preepositas , or chief shepherd of the whole flock.” 
 
 How beautiful, after reading this, appears the title 
 given by the x\postle to Jesus Christ — the Chief Shep- 
 herd of the Church of God. He is the owner of many 
 sheep, whom he has purchased with his own blood — he 
 
190 
 
 CHIEF SHEPHERD. 
 
 has all power in heaven and in earth — his activity never 
 wearies — his watchful eye never slumbers nor sleeps — 
 the spirit of wisdom and understanding rests upon him 
 without measure — and he is the Great Physician, who 
 alone can heal. He is the Head over all things to his 
 church, and it is he who alone chooses, guides, and di- 
 rects those his under-shepherds, to whom he has given 
 it in charge to feed his flock until such time as he shall 
 return to gather them into one fold, under one shepherd 
 — even himself. — See Burdens Oriental Customs . 
 
 SHEEP-FOLDS. 
 
 John x. 1. 
 
 “ He that entereth not by the door into the sheep-fold, 
 but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and 
 a robber.” 
 
 In Persia the shepherds frequently drive their flocks 
 into caverns at night, and enclose them by heaping up 
 walls of loose stones ; but the more common sheep-fold 
 was an enclosure in the manner of a building, and con- 
 structed of stone and hurdles, or fenced with reeds. It 
 had a large door, or entrance, for admitting the flock, 
 which was closed with hurdles ; and this entrance is 
 still used in the East. 
 
191 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Wells — Fountains, and drawing Water — Pools of Solomon — 
 Mountainous Pastures — Pastures — Pits — Deserts — Mirage. 
 
 WELLS. 
 
 Psalm lxxxiv. 5-7. 
 
 “ Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee ; in 
 whose heart are the ways of them. Who passing through 
 the valley of Baca make it a well ; the rain also jilleth the 
 pools . 
 
 “ They go from strength to strength , every one of 
 them in Zion appeareth before God.” 
 
 In consequence of the distress which is felt by trav- 
 ellers in the East for want of water, wells are frequently 
 made expressly for them ; and more especially for those 
 who travel for devotional purposes. 
 
 Thus the Mahometans have dug wells in the deserts 
 for those who travel to Mecca, their sacred city, to stop 
 at, and drink ; the scarcity of water being sometimes so 
 great during the pilgrimage, that a small skin of water 
 is sold for one shilling , a large price among the Arabs. 
 These wells are often made at regular distances, so as 
 to form stations, and they are repeatedly mentioned by 
 a great Eastern traveller. The following are some of 
 the passages in his work which relate to them : — 
 
 “ After three hours’ march we entered a hilly coun- 
 try, where a coffee-hut stands near a well. We con- 
 tinued in a broad and winding valley among these hills, 
 some sandy, and some rocky, and at the end of five and a 
 half hours, stopped for a short time at the well called — — . 
 
 “We passed a large tank , built of stones, which in 
 
192 
 
 WEXLS. 
 
 the time of the pilgrimage is filled with water from the 
 canal. An historian says, there were formerly sixteen 
 wells between the city of Muna and Mecca. 
 
 “ We entered upon sandy ground in a valley , where 
 are some wells. 
 
 “ We passed a cluster of huts, with wells of very 
 good water. It being a cloudy and dark night, we lost 
 our way in following the windings of a valley , and being 
 unable to regain the right road, we lay down on the 
 sand, and slept till day-break.” The same writer, 
 speaking of the road pursued by the pilgrims from Syria, 
 says, “ At every watering-place are a small castle and 
 a large tank at which the camels water. Water is 
 plentiful on the route ; the stations are nowhere more 
 distant than eleven or twelve hours’ march ; and ; in 
 winter, pools of rain water are frequently found.” In 
 another place he writes, “We passed a ruined building 
 where a well , now filled up, formerly supplied the pas- 
 sengers with water. The plain is here overgrown with 
 some trees and thick shrubs. We continued to cross it 
 till six hours, where it closes, and the road begins to 
 ascend slightly through a broad woody valley. Here is 
 situated a large deep well , lined with stone, with a spring 
 of good water in the bottom. This is a station of the 
 pilgrimage. 
 
 “ Here are many tanks, cased with stone, constructed 
 to supply the pilgrims with water.” 
 
 These extracts may also serve as comments upon 
 David’s words in the eighty-fourth Psalm. The valley 
 of Baca is very likely the same with that of Rephaim 
 (see 2 Sam. v. 22-24), in which were large shrubs, 
 rendered, in our translation, mulberry-trees, but which 
 the Arabs still call Baca. This valley, lying west of 
 Jerusalem, the pious Israelites, journeying thither, had 
 to pass. Here, therefore, they had made them wells , to 
 facilitate their progress. God also sent them rain from 
 heaven, which filled the pools , and thus they were 
 enabled to go on from strength to strength ■, from one 
 
WELLS. 
 
 193 
 
 place of refreshment to another, till before the God of 
 gods they every one of them appeared in Zion.— See 
 Earmer's Observations, vol. ii„ pp. 181, 182 ; Burch- 
 kardt's Travels . 
 
 Genesis xxvi. 15. 
 
 “ For all the wells which his father’s servants had 
 digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philis- 
 tines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.” 
 
 17 
 
WELLS. 
 
 j 94 
 
 In those countries, a well of water was so great an 
 acquisition, that there could be no surer way than that 
 taken by the Philistines of injuring new settlers, or 
 revenging themselves on their enemies. In the tenth 
 century, this act of hostility was actually practised 
 against the pilgrims to Mecca ; all the pits which had 
 been dug for their benefit being filled up with sand by 
 one of their enemies. — Mariner's Observations , vol. iii., 
 p. 431. 
 
 Genesis xxix. 2, 3. 
 
 “ And he looked, and behold a well in the field .... 
 and a great stone was upon the well’s mouth. And 
 thither were all the flocks gathered : and they rolled the 
 stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and 
 put the stone again upon the well’s mouth in his place.” 
 
 Canticles iv. 12. 
 
 “ A spring shut up, a fountain sealed.” — (See the ar- 
 ticle on the “ Pools of Solomon,” pp. 198-200.) 
 
 In Arabia, and other places, it is usual, Sir J. Char- 
 din informs us, to close and cover up the wells of water, 
 lest the sand, which is put into motion by the winds 
 there, like the water of a pond, should fill them, and 
 quite stop them up. Wells and cisterns are also some- 
 times locked up ; and some person is so far the propri- 
 etor, that no one dares to open the well but in his pres- 
 ence. Probably, therefore, Rachel was mistress of the 
 well to which Jacob came, since it was opened when 
 she appeared. (Verse 8-10.) — Harmer’s Observations , 
 vol. i., pp. 263-265. 
 
 WELLS, AND DRAWING OF WATER.- 
 John iv. 10, 11. 
 
 “ Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest 
 the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give 
 
WELLS, AND DRAWING OF WATER. 195 
 
 me to drink, thou wouldest have asked of him, and he 
 would have given thee living water. The woman saith 
 unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with , and the 
 well is deep : from whence, then, hast thou that living 
 water ?” 
 
 There are many wells and cisterns in Judea ; the first 
 of which are supplied with water by springs, the latter 
 by rain. It is probable that the place to which the wo- 
 man of Samaria repaired, was a reservoir of rain-water ; 
 since our Lord seems to oppose its waters to living wa- 
 ter, which he would give her. The Eastern wells have 
 oftentimes no implements for drawing of water, but what 
 those bring with them that come thither ; so that travel- 
 lers in those dry countries are often obliged to carry 
 lines and buckets on their journeys, and great leather bot- 
 tles to refill from time to time. A traveller from Egypt 
 to Jerusalem, says he did not forget “ leather buckets to 
 draw water withy And another speaks of the well at 
 Bethlehem, as “ a good rich cistern, deep and wide ; 
 for which reason “ the people that go to dip water are 
 provided with small leather buckets and a line and 
 these are also carried by the merchants that go through 
 great deserts into far countries. 
 
 “ Coming to a well,” writes Mr. Hartley, “ without 
 possessing the means of obtaining water, we were forci- 
 bly reminded of our Lord’s situation near Sychar — ‘ Sir, 
 thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.’ ” 
 — Hartley's Researches , p. 281. 
 
 Therefore, when the woman of Samaria heard Jesus 
 speak of giving living water , and seeing him without 
 anything to draw with, though the well was deep , she 
 asked with astonishment, “ From whence, then, hast 
 thou that living water ?” for she understood not that he 
 spake of the Spirit, which they that believed on him 
 should receive. — See Harmer's Observations , vol. ii., pp. 
 180, 181, 182, note. 
 
196 WELLS, AND DRAWING OF WATER. 
 
 Genesis xxiv. 16-20. 
 
 “ And she [Rebecca] went down to the well, and filled 
 her pitcher, and came up. And the servant ran to meet 
 her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water 
 of thy pitcher. And she said, Drink, my lord : and she 
 hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and 
 
 gave him drink And she said, I will draw water 
 
 for thy camels also, until they have done drinking ; and 
 she hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough , and 
 ran again unto the well to draw water, and drew for all 
 his camels” 
 
 Reservoirs of rain-water in the Indies, have often a 
 flight of steps down to the water ; that as the water 
 diminishes, people may still take it up with their hands. 
 The reservoirs of some Syrian fountains are also fur- 
 nished in the same manner. This explains Rebecca’s 
 going down to the well. We have already seen that 
 many of the Eastern wells have no conveniences to 
 draw water with, but others are supplied with troughs , 
 and other contrivances for watering cattle. The fol- 
 lowing story is quite a comment upon the history of 
 Rebecca’s courtesy to her stranger guest. It is related 
 by an Eastern traveller : — 
 
 About five in the evening, the latter end of December, 
 upon entering u the town of Nazareth,” this gentleman 
 informs us, “ we saw two women filling their pitchers 
 with water, at a fountain, and about twelve others wait- 
 ing for the same purpose, wdiom we desired to pour some 
 water into a trough which stood hard by, that our horses 
 might drink. We had scarcely made the request, before 
 they instantly complied, and filled the trough ; and the 
 others waited with the greatest patience.” Upon return- 
 ing them thanks, one of them, with very great modesty, 
 replied, “ We consider kindness and hospitality to stran- 
 gers as an essential part of our duty.” — See Harmer's 
 Observations , vol. ii., p. 182, note ; 190, 191 ; 257, 
 note. 
 
WELLS, AND DRAWING OF WATER. ] 97 
 
 At the well of Cana, one of the women who had come 
 there to draw water, “ lowered her pitcher into the well, 
 and offered me water to drink ,” — Rae Wilson's Traveh s 
 vol. ii., p, 4. 
 
 FOUNTAINS. 
 
 Judges xv, 17-19. 
 
 u And .... he cast away the jaw-bone out of his 
 hand, and called that place Ramath-lehi [Marg., the 
 casting away of the jaw-bone]. And he was sore 
 athirst, and called on the Lord, and said, Thou hast 
 given this great deliverance into the hand of thy ser- 
 vant : and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the 
 hand of the uncircumcised ? But God clave a hollow 
 place that was in the jaw \i. e ., in Lehi], and there came 
 water thereout ; and when he had drunk, his spirit came 
 again, and he revived : wherefore he called the name 
 17* 
 
198 
 
 FOUNTAINS. 
 
 thereof En-hakkore [i. e. 7 the well of him that cried]* 
 which is in Lehi unto this day.” 
 
 Samson having slain the Philistines with the jaw-bone 
 of an ass, the place where the exploit was performed 
 was called Lehi (or the jaw-bone), in remembrance of 
 it ; and in this same place God clave the earth, or rock, 
 in the end of a hollow place, or grotto, whence flowed 
 a stream to slake the warrior’s thirst. The traveller 
 Doubdan, in one day, met with two such places as are 
 here described. 
 
 On Easter Monday, April 1, 1652, he set out with 
 about twenty others, to visit the neighborhood of Jeru- 
 salem. They went the same road the two disciples are 
 supposed to have taken. (Luke xxiv.) In the place 
 where our Lord is imagined to have met them, a con- 
 vent was afterward built, of which only some pieces of 
 the walls, vaults, and arches remain, with a great cistern 
 full of water, derived partly from rain, but more partic- 
 ularly from a most beautiful and transparent fountain , a 
 little above it, which breaks out in the further end of the 
 grotto , naturally hollowed out in the hard rock , and which 
 is overhung with small trees. The water of this spring 
 running by a channel into the cistern, afterward turned 
 a mill that was just by it, and thence flowed into the 
 torrent-bed of the valley, whence David collected his 
 five smooth stones. The same day they came to an- 
 other fountain, hollowed out in the heart of a mighty 
 rock, shaded over by trees, where they stayed and dined, 
 sitting on the grass in the shade. (Doubdan’ s Voyage 
 de la Terre Sainte.) — See Harmer’s Observations , vol. iv.> 
 pp. 272-275. 
 
 THE POOLS OF SOLOMON. 
 Ecclesiastes ii. 4-6. 
 
 “ I made me great works ; I made me gar- 
 dens and orchards, [and] pools of water.” 
 
THE POOLS OF SOLOMON. 
 
 199 
 
 Canticles iv. 12. 
 
 “ A garden enclosed is my sister, my spouse ; a spring 
 shut up, a fountain sealed.” 
 
 The celebrated reservoirs, known to modern travellers 
 under the name of the Pools of Solomon, are situated 
 between Hebron and Bethlehem, in a most secluded spot 
 upon a sloping hill, in the midst of mountains. They 
 have been thus recently described : “ These large, 
 
 strong, noble structures, in a land where every work of 
 art has been hurried to destruction, remain now almost 
 as perfect as when they were built. There are three 
 of them about four hundred and eighty, six hundred, and 
 six hundred and sixty feet in length, and two hundred 
 and eighty in breadth, and of different altitudes ; the 
 water from the first running into the second, and from the 
 second into the third ; at about a hundred yards’ distance 
 is the spring which supplies the reservoirs — as the 
 monks say, the sealed fountain referred to in Canticles 
 iv. 12. The water from these reservoirs is conveyed to 
 Jerusalem by a small aqueduct — a round earthen pipe, 
 about ten inches in diameter, which follows all the sin- 
 uosities of the ground, being sometimes above the surface 
 and sometimes under. There is every reason to believe 
 that these pools have existed from the date assigned to 
 them ; and that this was the site of one of King Solo- 
 mon’s houses of pleasure, where he made himself 4 gar- 
 dens, and orchards, and pools of water.’ As I walked 
 along the bank, or stood on the margin, it seemed almost 
 the wild suggestion of a dream to imagine that the wisest 
 of men had looked into the same pool, had strolled along 
 the same bank, and stood on the very same steps. It 
 was like annihilating all the intervals of time and space. 
 Solomon and all his glory are departed ; and little could 
 even his wisdom have foreseen that, long after he should 
 be laid in the dust, and his kingdom passed into the 
 hands of strangers, a traveller from a land* he never 
 
 ♦America.. 
 
200 
 
 THE POOLS OF SOLOMON. 
 
 dreamed of, would be looking upon his works, and mur- 
 muring to himself the words of the Preacher, ‘ "V anity 
 of vanities, all is vanity.’ ” — Incidents of Travel, vol. ii., 
 pp. 167, 168 
 
 “ These fountains are three in number, of a quad- 
 rangular form, cut out of the native rock in a manner 
 altogether most astonishing : one being raised above 
 the other, as it were a flight of steps, and so disposed 
 that the water in the uppermost flows into the second, 
 and from that into the third. The spring from which 
 they are supplied is at a short distance, and from its 
 being shut up or secured, is considered to be that alluded 
 to in Cant. iv. 12.* 
 
 “ Although the circumstances of these fountains being 
 secured, does not, in itself, appear very particular, yet 
 it may be considered illustrative of the meaning of the 
 purity of a fountain sealed or shut in, which is a com- 
 mon practice in this country, to keep them free from 
 pollution. (See p. 194.) 
 
 “ The place is still secured by a door, and it is so con- 
 trived that the water flows under it by a small subterra- 
 neous canal on the way to Bethlehem and Jerusalem. 
 
 “ Below these cisterns, and above half a mile, is a deep 
 valley, enclosed on each side by lofty mountains, repre- 
 sented to be the situation where the pleasure gardens of 
 the monarch were laid out, watered by rills, which at 
 times descend from their heights, stored with a variety 
 of plants ; and cultivated, as he says, with fruits of all 
 kinds. This might be supposed, from a person of his 
 curiosity and knowledge of natural history, an example 
 followed by the kings of Israel and Judah. At the 
 same time, on viewing the local situation of these pools 
 and gardens, it struck me as abundantly evident, that 
 
 ♦This seems the more probable, from the idea of the fountain 
 being associated with that of a garden, in this passage ( cc a garden 
 enclosed is my sister, my spouse, a spring shut up, a fountain 
 sealed”), for it will appear from the sequel, that the Pools of 
 Solomon were constructed for the supply of his gardens. 
 
THE POOLS OF SOLOMON. 
 
 201 
 
 the former had been made for the express purpose of 
 watering the latter, without which they would have been 
 deprived of their proper nourishment to promote vege- 
 tation. Indeed, in this warm region, a bountiful supply 
 of water was indispensable. This leads to an observa- 
 tion that we are told in the Sacred Writings, a river 
 supplied water for the garden of Eden. (Gen. ii. 10.) 
 The church is also represented as the paradise of Christ, 
 whose spirit is a spring in it to refresh the souls of 
 believers.” — Rae Wilson 1 s Travels , vol. i., pp. 267- 
 269. 
 
 It seems highly probable, from the whole passage in 
 Canticles iv. 12-16, that Solomon, while contemplating 
 the loveliness of the gardens before him, and the purity 
 of the fountains which supplied them, employed these 
 external objects as emblems of the beauty, fruitfulness, 
 and purity of the church of Christ. 
 
 MOUNTAINOUS PASTURES. 
 
 Isaiah xlix. 9-11. 
 
 “ Their pastures shall be in all high places. They 
 shall not hunger nor thirst ; neither shall the heat nor 
 sun smite them : for he that hath mercy on them shall 
 lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide 
 them.” 
 
 A fine region which comprehends good pasturage 
 and plenty of water, is held in great estimation by the 
 Persian shepherds : and they carry their flocks to the 
 highest parts of the mountains, where these blessings 
 may be found in abundance. This perhaps, will give 
 fresh force to the promises made by the prophet Isaiah, 
 (xlix.) — Morier . 
 
 PITS. 
 
 Proverbs xxii. 14. 
 
 “ The mouth of strange women is a deep pit ; he that 
 is abhorred of the lord shall fall therein.” 
 
202 
 
 PITS. 
 
 Proverbs xxiii. 27. 
 
 u A whore is a deep ditch ; and a strange woman is 
 a narrow pit.” 
 
 There are some dangerous passes in the East, though 
 generally the country is open. A traveller thus describes 
 one of them : “ Sometimes the road led us under the 
 
 shade of thick trees ; sometimes through narrow valleys, 
 watered with fresh murmuring torrents ; and then for a 
 good while together upon a brink of a precipice. And 
 in all places it treated us with the prospect of plants 
 and flowers. Having spent about two hours in this man- 
 ner, we descended into a low valley ; at the bottom of 
 which is a fissure into the earth, of a great depth , but 
 withal so narrow , that it is not discernible to the eye till 
 you arrive just upon it, though to the ear notice is given 
 of it at a great distance, by reason of the noise of a 
 stream running down into it from the hills. We could 
 not guess it to be less than thirty yards deep. But it is 
 so narrow , that a small arch, not four yards over, lands 
 you on its other side.” May not Solomon refer to such 
 a place as this ? The flowery pleasures which abound- 
 ed where this fatal pit was, makes the allusion still 
 more striking. How agreeable to sense the path that 
 led to the chamber of death ! — Harmer's Observations , 
 vol. ii., pp. 220, 221. 
 
 DESERTS. 
 
 Isaiah xli. 18, 19. 
 
 “ .... I will make the wilderness a pool of water, 
 and the dry land springs of water. I will plant in the 
 wilderness the cedar, the shittah-tree, and the myrtle, 
 and the oil tree ; I will set in the desert the fir-tree, and 
 the pine, and the box-tree together.” 
 
 Isaiah xliv. 3, 4. 
 
 “ I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods 
 upon the dry ground : I will pour my spirit upon thy 
 
DESERTS. 
 
 203 
 
 seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring : and they 
 shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the 
 water-courses.” 
 
 Isaiah xxxv. 7. 
 
 “ And the parched ground shall become a pool, and 
 the thirsty land springs of water : in the habitation of 
 dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and 
 rushes.” See also xlix. 10. 
 
 Revelation vii. 17. 
 
 “ The Lamb .... shall lead them unto living fount- 
 ains of waters.” See also Psalm xxiii. 2. 
 
 Isaiah xxxii. 2. 
 
 “ And a man shall be . , . . as rivers of water in a 
 dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.” 
 
 Those only who are acquainted with the peculiarities 
 of Eastern scenery, who have passed through sandy 
 deserts exposed to burning suns, parched with thirst, 
 yet unable to obtain a drop of water to assuage it, 
 wearied with the constant glare upon the barren sands, 
 yet looking in vain for some green spot on which to rest 
 the eye, or for some friendly tree, or overhanging rock 
 beneath which they might find temporary shelter and 
 relief, — those only who have experienced all this, can 
 fully estimate the force and beauty of the many passages 
 in Scripture where the metaphors of water and shade 
 are employed. 
 
 w A man who has never toiled through burning deserts 
 can have little idea of the rapture with which a group 
 of trees, or a bright spot of verdure is beheld ; or of 
 the deep luxury of feeling, excited by again moving 
 among cottages, and fountains, and cool retreats.” 
 
 “ Returning from the pyramids of Saccara,” writes a 
 traveller, “ over a path of soft sand, we were parched 
 with thirst, and would have given anything for a draught 
 of water, when* unexpectedly, as if dropped from the 
 clouds, a man approached us bearing an immense water- 
 
204 
 
 DESERTS. 
 
 melon, which we received as manna from heaven. He 
 had his lonely dwelling and little garden at some dis- 
 tance, and had purposely crossed our way with this 
 melon, knowing he should be well paid for it.” 
 
 The same gentleman going toward Jericho, says : 
 “We entered on a tract of soft sand ; ascending a sand- 
 hill that overlooked the plain, we saw Jericho, contrary 
 to our hopes, at a great distance, and the level tract we 
 must pass to arrive at it, was exposed to a sultry sun, 
 without a single tree to afford us a temporary shade. 
 The simile of the shadow of a great rock in a weary 
 land, was never more strongly felt.” In another pas- 
 sage he writes (he was then in Egypt) : “ Fatigued 
 with heat and thirst, we came to a few cottages in a 
 palm-wood, and stopped to drink of a fountain of deli- 
 cious water. In a northern climate, no idea can be 
 formed of the exquisite luxury of drinking in Egypt. 
 Little appetite for food is felt ; but when, after crossing 
 the burning sands, you reach the rich line of woods on 
 the brink of the Nile, and pluck the fresh limes, and 
 mingle their juice with the soft river water, — one then 
 perceives the beauty and force of those similes in Scrip- 
 ture, where the sweetest emotions of the heart are com- 
 pared to the assuaging of thirst in a sultry land.” — See 
 Game’s Eastern Letters , pp. 143, 162, 197. 
 
 Isaiah xxix. 8. 
 
 “ It shall even be as when a hungry man dreameth, 
 and, behold, he eateth ; but he awaketh, and his soul is 
 empty ; or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, 
 he drinketh ; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, 
 and his soul hath appetite : so shall the multitude of all 
 the nations be, that fight against Mount Zion.” 
 
 Psalm cvii. 4, 5. 
 
 “ They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way ; 
 they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, 
 their soul fainted in them.” 
 
DESERTS. 
 
 205 
 
 Baumgarten thus describes the distress felt by him- 
 self and his companions from want of food and water, 
 while in the deserts. He writes : “ Travelling all that 
 day and night, without eating, resting, or sleeping, we 
 could not avoid falling off our camels, while we were 
 half-sleeping, half-waking. A thousand strange dreams 
 and fancies came into our heads, while hungry and 
 thirsty, and we sat nodding on our camels. We thought 
 we saw somebody reaching us victuals and drink, and 
 putting out our hands to take it, and stretching ourselves 
 to overtake it when it seemed to draw back, we tumbled 
 off our camels, and by a severe fall found it a dream and 
 illusion.” — See note 8, in Lord Lindsay's Letters , vol. i. 
 
 Deuteronomy viii. 15. 
 
 “ Who led thee through that great and terrible wil- 
 derness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions,* 
 and drought , where there was no water ; who brought 
 thee forth water out of the rock of flint” 
 
 Speaking in general of a desert, there are few springs 
 of water, some of them at the distance of four, six, and 
 eight days’ journey from one another, and not all of sweet 
 water ; on the contrary, it is generally salt or bitter, so 
 that if the thirsty traveller drinks of it, it increases his 
 thirst, and he suffers more than before ; but when the 
 dreadful calamity happens that the next well, which is so 
 anxiously sought for, is found dry, the misery of such a 
 situation cannot well be described. The camels, which 
 afford the only means of escape, are so thirsty that they 
 cannot proceed to another well ; and if the travellers kill 
 them to extract the little liquid which remains in their 
 stomachs, they themselves cannot advance any farther. 
 The situation must be dreadful. .... Many perish vic- 
 tims of the most horrible thirst. It is then that the value 
 
 of a cup of water is really felt If the master has 
 
 none, the servant will not give it to him, for very few 
 
 * See pages 224-226. 
 
 18 
 
236 
 
 DESERTS. 
 
 are the instances where a man will voluntarily lose his 
 life to save that of another, particularly in a caravan in 
 the desert, where people are strangers to each other. 
 What a situation for a man, though a rich one, perhaps 
 the owner of all the caravans ! He is dying for a cup 
 of water — no one gives it to him — he offers all he pos- 
 sesses — no one hears him — they are all dying — though 
 by walking a few hours farther they might be saved ; 
 the camels are lying down, and cannot be made to rise ; 
 no one has strength to walk, only he that has a glass of 
 that precious liquid, lives to walk a mile farther, and 
 perhaps dies too To be thirsty in a desert with- 
 
 out water, exposed to the burning sun, without shelter, 
 and no hopes of finding either, is the most terrible situa- 
 tion that a man can be placed in ; and I believe, one 
 of the greatest sufferings that a human being can en- 
 dure ; — the eyes grow inflamed, the lips and tongue 
 swell, a hollow sound is heard in the ears, which brings 
 on deafness ; and the brains appear to grow thick and in- 
 flamed, — all these feelings arise from the want of a little 
 water.* In the midst of all this misery, the deceitful 
 mirages appear before the traveller at no great distance, 
 
 something like a lake or river of clear fresh water 
 
 If a traveller is not undeceived, he hastens his pace to 
 reach it sooner ; the more he advances toward it, the 
 more it goes from him, till at last it vanishes entirely, 
 and the deluded passenger often asks where is the water 
 he saw at no great distance ; he can scarcely believe 
 that he was so deceived — he protests that he saw the 
 waves running before the wind, and the reflection of the 
 high rocks in the water. If any one falls sick on the 
 road, there is no alternative, he must endure the fatigue 
 of travelling on a camel, which is troublesome even to 
 healthy people, or he must be left behind on the sand, 
 without any assistance, and remain so till he dies. No 
 one remains with him — not even his old and faithful 
 servant — no one will stay and die with him ; all pity his 
 * Pages 208, 209, 
 
DESERTS. 
 
 207 
 
 fate, but no one will be his companion. Why not stop 
 the whole caravan till he is better, or do what they can 
 for the best till he dies ? No, this delay cannot be ; it 
 would put all in danger of perishing of thirst if they do 
 not reach the next well in such a time ; besides, they all 
 are different parties generally of merchants or travellers, 
 who will not even wait a few hours to save the life of an 
 individual, whether they know him or not. — Belzonls 
 Travels , p. 341-343. 
 
 Jeremiah ii. 6. 
 
 “ Neither said they, Where is the Lord that brought 
 us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the 
 wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, 
 through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, 
 through a land that no man passed through, and where 
 no man dwelt ?” 
 
 A traveller in the wilderness writes in one place : 
 “ The path winded around the side of the mountain, and 
 to our left, a horrid chasm , some hundred fathoms deep, 
 presented itself to our view. It is surprising no accident 
 befell the loaded camels.” Again he says : “ On each 
 side of us were perpendicular steeps some hundred 
 fathoms deep. On every part is a wild confusion of 
 hanging precipices, disjointed rocks, and hideous chasms. 
 Omnipotent Father ! to thee we trust for our deliver- 
 ance from the perils that surround us. It was through 
 this wilderness thou didst lead thy chosen people. It 
 was here thou didst manifest thy signal protection, in 
 snatching them from the jaws of destruction which 
 opened upon every side.” In the next page, the same 
 writer continues: “We came suddenly upon a dread- 
 ful chasm in the road, about three hundred yards long, 
 one hundred wide, and as many deep ; and in the middle 
 of the gulf a single column of stone raises its head to the 
 surface of the earth.” — Harmed s Observations , vol. iv., 
 pp. 117, 118. 
 
208 
 
 DESERTS. 
 
 Deuteronomy xxxii. 10. 
 
 “ He found him in a desert land, and in the waste, 
 howling wilderness ; he led him about, he instructed 
 him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.” 
 
 Needful, indeed, was such guidance, in the wilder- 
 ness through which Israel passed. A very few passages 
 from travellers will prove this. “We ascended [writes 
 one of these] by the side of a mountain. The path was 
 narrow and perpendicular, and much resembled a ladder. 
 To make it worse, ... an ignorant guide led us astray. 
 Here we found ourselves in a pretty situation ! We were 
 obliged to gain the heights, in order to recover the road ; 
 in performing which, we drove our poor camels up such 
 steeps, as we had the greatest difficulty to climb after 
 them. We were under the necessity of leaving them 
 to themselves ; as the danger of leading them through 
 places where the least false step would have precip- 
 itated both man and beast to the unfathomable abyss be- 
 low, was too critical to hazard.” How precious, in such 
 a situation, the instruction and care of the “ Keeper of 
 Israel !”• — Harmer's Observations , vol. iv., 124, 125. 
 
 THE MIRAGE. 
 
 Isaiah xxxv. 7. 
 
 “ And the parched ground shall become a pool.” 
 
 Bishop Lowth translates this clause thus : “ And 
 the glowing sand shall become a pool.” In his note on 
 the passage, he says : “ The word is Arabic, as well as 
 Hebrew ; but it means the same in both languages, 
 namely, the glowing sandy plain, which, in the hot 
 countries, at a distance, has the appearance of water. 
 It sometimes tempts thirsty travellers out of their way, 
 but deceives them when they come near, either going 
 forward, for it always appears at the same distance, or 
 it quite vanishes.” Dr. Clarke, in his travels, has given 
 a very lively view of this wonderful appearance. He 
 writes : “We arrived at the wretched solitary village of 
 
THE MIRAGE. 
 
 209 
 
 Utko, near the muddy shore of the lake of that name. 
 .... Here we procured asses for all our party, and 
 setting out for Rosetta, began to recross the desert, ap- 
 pearing like an ocean of sand, but flatter and firmer, as 
 to its surface, than before. The Arabs, uttering their 
 harsh guttural language, ran chattering by the side of 
 our asses, until some of them called out ‘ Raschid’ 
 (Rosetta), and we perceived its domes and turrets, ap- 
 parently upon the opposite side of an immense lake or 
 sea, that covered all the intervening space between us 
 and the city. Not having in my own mind, at the time, 
 any doubt as to the certainty of its being water, and see- 
 ing the tall minarets and buildings of Rosetta, with all 
 its groves of dates and sycamores, as perfectly reflected 
 by it as by a mirror, insomuch that even the minutest 
 detail of the architecture, and the trees, might have been 
 thence delineated, I applied to the Arabs to be informed 
 in what manner we were to pass the water. Our inter- 
 preter, although a Greek, and therefore likely to have 
 been informed of such a spectacle, was as fully convinced 
 as any of us, that we were drawing near to the water’s 
 edge, and became indignant when the Arabs maintained 
 that within an hour we should reach Rosetta, by crossing 
 the sands in -the direct line we then pursued, and that 
 there was no water. 4 What !’ said he, giving way to 
 his impatience, ‘ do you suppose me an idiot, to be per- 
 suaded contrary to the evidence of my senses V The 
 Arabs, smiling, soon pacified him, and completely aston- 
 ished the whole party, by desiring us to look back at 
 the desert we had already passed, where we beheld a pre- 
 cisely similar appearance. It was, in fact, the mirage — 
 a prodigy to which every one of us were then strangers, 
 although it afterward became more familiar.” 
 
 Isaiah therefore declares, that in those happy days of 
 which he was speaking, there should be no more this decep- 
 tion to distress the thirsty wanderer — in that time when 
 the wilderness and the solitary place should be glad, the 
 glowing sand also should really become a pool of water, 
 18 * 
 
210 
 
 CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 Natural History — Lions — Arabian Horse — Wild Asses — White 
 Asses— Dogs — Crocodiles — Storks — Hunting Partridges — Cock- 
 crowing — Serpents — Scorpions — Mice — Locusts — Flies — Lo- 
 cust-trees — Salt. 
 
 LIONS. 
 
 Amos iii. 
 
 “ The lion hath roared who will not fear V 
 
 The roaring of a lion in quest of his prey, resembles 
 the sound of distant thunder, and being re-echoed by the 
 rocks and mountains, appals the whole race of animals, 
 and puts them instantly to flight ; but he frequently 
 varies his voice into a hideous scream or yell. “ When 
 the lion roars, the beasts of the field can do nothing but 
 -Quake ; they are afraid to lie still in their dens, lest he 
 
LIONS. 
 
 211 
 
 spring upon them, and equally afraid to run, lest, in at- 
 tempting to escape, they should take the direction in 
 which he is prowling, and throw themselves into the 
 jaws of their adversary.” — Voyage to the Cape of Good 
 Hope. 
 
 Ezekiel xix. 6-8. 
 
 “ [He] became a young lion, and learned to catch 
 the prey. . . . Then the nations set against him. . . . 
 and spread their net over him : he was taken in their 
 pit.” (See also Psalm ix. 15.) 
 
 Fire is what the lions are most afraid of ; yet, not- 
 withstanding all the precaution of the Arabs in this re- 
 spect — notwithstanding the barking of their dogs, and 
 their own repeated cries and exclamations during the 
 night, when they are suspected to be upon the prey, — 
 it frequently happens that these ravenous beasts, out- 
 braving all these terrors, will leap into the midst of the 
 place where the cattle are enclosed, and drag thence 
 a sheep or a goat. If these ravages are repeated, then 
 the Arabs dig a pit where they are observed to enter, and 
 covering it over slightly with reeds, or small branches 
 of trees, they frequently decoy and catch them. The 
 flesh of the lion is in great esteem, having no small 
 affinity with veal, both in color, taste, and flavor.— 
 Shaw's Travels , p. 245. 
 
 ARABIAN HORSE. 
 
 Job xxxix. 19-25. 
 
 “ Hast thou given the horse strength ? Hast thou 
 clothed his neck with thunder ? Canst thou make him 
 afraid as a grasshopper ? The glory of his nostrils is 
 terrible. He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his 
 strength : he goeth on to meet the armed men. He 
 mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted ; neither turneth 
 he back from the sword. The quiver rattleth against 
 
212 
 
 ARABIAN HORSE. 
 
 him, the glittering spear and the shield. He swallow- 
 eth the ground with fierceness and rage : neither be- 
 lieveth he that it is the sound of the trumpet. He saith 
 among the trumpets, ha, ha ; and he smelleth the battle 
 afar off, the thunder of the captains, and the shouting.” 
 
 The Arabian horses are justly esteemed for their re- 
 markable hardiness, swiftness, and beauty. Mr. Ste- 
 phens says of one of them, the property of the sheikh 
 of the tribe of Arabs he was then with : “ The sheikh’s 
 was an extraordinary animal. The saddle had not been 
 off her back for thirty days ; and the sheikh, himself a 
 most restless creature, would dash off suddenly a dozen 
 times a day, on a full run across the valley, up the sides 
 of a mountain, round and round our caravan, with his 
 long spear poised in the air, and his dress streaming in 
 the wind ; and when he returned and brought her to a 
 walk at my side, the beautiful animal would snort and 
 paw the ground, as if proud of what she had done, and 
 anxious for another course. I could almost imagine I 
 saw the ancient war-horse of Idumea so finely described 
 by Job . — Incidents of Travel , vol. ii., pp. 118, 119. 
 
 WILD ASS. 
 
 Jeremiah ii. 24. 
 
 “ [Thou art] a wild ass used to the wilderness, that 
 snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure.” 
 
 Jeremiah xiv. 6. 
 
 “ And the wild asses did stand in the high places ; 
 they snuffed up the wind like dragons ; their eyes did 
 fail, because there was no grass.” 
 
 When travelling in Persia, Mr. Morier writes: 
 “ On the desert, .... in the gray of the morning, we 
 gave chase to two wild asses, which had so much the 
 speed of our horses, that when they had got at some 
 
WILD ASS. 
 
 213 
 
 distance they stood still and looked behind at us, snort- 
 ing with their noses in the air, as if in contempt of our 
 endeavors to catch them. The Persians sometimes 
 succeed in killing them, but not without great dexterity 
 and knowledge of their haunts. To effect this, they 
 place relays of horsemen and dogs upon the track 
 which they are known to pursue, and then hunt them 
 
 toward the relays, when the fresh dogs and horses are 
 started upon the half-exhausted animal. This animal is 
 common to the whole of Persia, although its proper soil 
 is Arabia. It is of a light mouse-color, with a dark 
 streak over its shoulders and down its back. The head 
 is large, but it is much more light and lively than the 
 common ass, in its gait. It is of a most obstinate na- 
 ture, and seems to be extremely refractory under any 
 restraint The wildness and love of liberty which char- 
 
214 
 
 WILD ASS. 
 
 acterize this animal, are beautifully described by the 
 prophet Jeremiah : ‘ A wild ass used to the wilderness, 
 that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure’ (ch. ii. 24), 
 and again in ch. xiv. 6, when their image is allied to all 
 the horrors of a parched desert.” — Moneys Second Jour- 
 ney through Persia , fyc., pp. 200-202. 
 
 WHITE ASSES. 
 
 Judges v. 10. 
 
 “ Speak, ye that ride on white asses, ye that sit in 
 judgment.” 
 
 White asses come from Arabia. Their scarcity 
 makes them valuable, and gives them consequence. Mr. 
 Morier says, that in Ispahan, in Persia, “ The mollahs, 
 or men of the law, are generally to be seen riding about 
 on mules ; and they also account it a dignity,. and suited 
 to their character, to ride on white asses ; which is a 
 striking illustration of what we read in Judges v. 10.” — 
 Morier' s Second Journey through Persia , p. 136. 
 
 DOGS. 
 
 Psalm lix. 14, 15. 
 
 And at evening let them return ; and let them make 
 a noise like a dog, and go round about the city. Let 
 them wander up and down for meat, and grudge if they 
 be not satisfied.” 
 
 By the Jewish law, the dog was an unclean animal, 
 and much despised. Dogs were very numerous in the 
 cities of the Jews. They were not shut up in their 
 houses or courts, but wandered up and down, seeking* 
 food. They sometimes made great howlings, especially 
 when oppressed by hunger. — Calmet ... 
 
 4 
 
DOGS. 
 
 215 
 
 The Turks reckon a dog an unclean creature, and 
 therefore drive him from their houses. These animals 
 belong not among them to any particular owners, but 
 rather guard the streets and districts than any house, 
 living on the refuse that is thrown abroad — Russell . 
 
 The words, “ At evening let them return,” alludes to 
 the return of the dogs into the city, after their wander- 
 ing in the suburbs and other places in quest of prey. 
 
 In very ancient times, dogs were looked upon as sa- 
 cred ; and Herodotus says, that on the death of a dog 
 in Egypt, the people shaved their heads, and that the 
 females were buried in consecrated chests when they 
 die. “ It was, perhaps, to prevent the Israelites from 
 retaining any notion of this kind, that no dog was suf- 
 fered to come within the precincts of their temple at 
 Jerusalem.” — Bryant. 
 
 By the ancient Jews, dogs were regarded in a disa- 
 greeable light. “ Am I a dog ?” said the Philistine to 
 David. “ What, is thy servant a dog ?” said Hazael, &c. 
 At the present day, the people in the East avoid with 
 care touching this animal in the streets ; and, indeed, it 
 may be remarked, that in most countries and languages 
 the word “ dog” is a term of contempt. 
 
 CROCODILES. 
 
 Job vii. 12. 
 
 “ Am I a sea, or a whale, that thou settest a watch 
 over me ?” 
 
 The river Nile, in its inundations, is sometimes dan- 
 gerous, and requires to be watched, lest its waters should 
 carry away villages — as has been the case. Of one of 
 the greatest of these inundations ever known, an eye- 
 witness has left the following history : — 
 
 The Egyptians generally erect fences of earth and 
 reeds, and mounds also, around their villages, to protect 
 
216 
 
 CROCODILES. 
 
 them from the waters ; but on this occasion, all was vain. 
 “ Their cottages, built of earth, could not stand one in- 
 stant against the current ; and no sooner did the water 
 reach them, than it levelled them with the ground. 
 The rapid stream carried off all that was before it — men, 
 women, and children, cattle, corn, everything — was 
 washed away in an instant, and left the place where 
 the village stood, without anything to indicate that there 
 had ever been a house on the spot. Egypt appeared 
 to be in the midst of a vast lake containing various 
 
 islands The village of Agalta was four feet 
 
 below the water, and the poor people were on watch 
 day and night round their fences : if they should be 
 broken down, all was lost. We offered to take one with 
 us, but he could not leave the place he was ordered to 
 guard. 
 
CROCODILES. 
 
 217 
 
 u We saw several villages in great danger of being 
 destroyed. The rapid stream had carried away the 
 fences, and their unfortunate inhabitants were obliged 
 to escape to higher grounds, where it was possible, with 
 what they could save from the water. The distress of 
 these people was great. Some crossed the water on 
 pieces of wood — some on cows — and others with reeds 
 tied up in large bundles. The small spots of high 
 ground that stood above the water, formed so many 
 sanctuaries, and were crowded with people and beasts. 
 The scanty stock of provisions they could save, was the 
 only subsistence they could expect. In some parts the 
 water had left scarcely any dry ground, and no relief 
 could be hoped for till four-and-twenty days had elapsed. 
 The chiefs of the country did everything they could to 
 assist the villagers with their little boats ; but they were 
 so small in proportion to what was wanted, that they 
 could not relieve the greater part. It was distressing to 
 behold these poor creatures in such a situation. To ap- 
 proach them with our little boat would have been dan- 
 gerous both to them and to us ; for so many would enter 
 it at once, that the boat would sink, and we along with 
 them .” — BelzonVs Travels. 
 
 The word translated whale , in this passage, probably 
 means a crocodile. This creature is extremely dan- 
 gerous, being known to carry off even men on the 
 borders of the Nile, and in some parts their numbers 
 are so great, that they sometimes stop small troops of 
 travellers. The Egyptians therefore watch them with 
 great attention, in order to secure and slay them. Deep 
 ditches are dug along the river, into which the crocodile 
 may fall. Some bait them — others hide themselves in 
 the places which they know to be frequented by this 
 creature, and lay snares for him. Some are even bold 
 enough to fix the dart in him while he sleeps. One of 
 the inhabitants of Upper Egypt took one of them in 
 the following novel and singular manner : “ He placed 
 a very young boy in the spot where the day before a 
 19 
 
218 
 
 CROCODILES. 
 
 crocodile had devoured a girl of fifteen, belonging to 
 the governor of the place, who had promised a reward 
 to any one who should bring him the animal dead or 
 alive. The man at the same time concealed himself 
 very near the child, holding a large board in his hand ; 
 as soon as he perceived the crocodile had advanced near 
 the child, he pushed his board into the open mouth of 
 the creature, upon which his sharp teeth, which cross 
 each other, entered into this board with such violence, 
 that he could not disengage them, so that it was impos- 
 sible for him after that to open his mouth.” 
 
 The man secured him, and gained the reward. 
 
 The crocodile is possessed of extraordinary force. 
 
 “ A few days ago,” writes a traveller, “ they brought 
 me one alive, a foot and a half long only. He was 
 secured by a cord. I caused his snout to be set free, 
 and he immediately turned to bite him that held him ; 
 but he only seized on his own tail, into which his teeth 
 entered so far, that it was necessary to make use of an 
 iron instrument to open his mouth. This creature might 
 be no more than a fortnight old. What might one of 
 twenty or more feet do ? I last year saw* one of twelve 
 feet, which had eaten nothing for thirty-five days, having 
 his mouth muzzled all that time. With one stroke of 
 his tail, he threw down five or six men, and a bale of 
 coffee, with perfect ease.” — Maillet. See Harmer's Ob- 
 servations , vol. iii., pp. 514-517. 
 
 Job xli. 
 
 “ Canst thou draw out leviathan with a hook ? . . . . 
 Will he speak soft words unto thee ? . . . . Canst thou 
 fill his skin with barbed irons ? . . . . His scales are his 
 pride, shut up together as with a close seal. One is so 
 near to another, that no air can come between them. . . . 
 
 In his neck remaineth strength When he raiseth 
 
 up himself, the mighty are afraid : . . . . Sharp stones 
 are under him : he maketh the deep to boil like 
 
 a pot : he maketh the sea like a pot of ointment. He 
 
CROCODILES. 
 
 219 
 
 maketh a path to shine after him ; one would think the 
 deep to be hoary. Upon earth there is not his like, who 
 is made without fear.” (See whole chapter.) 
 
 This description of the leviathan, or crocodile, ex- 
 actly agrees with our accounts of that terrible creature.. 
 It devours fishing-tackle ; two hooks were found in one, 
 which it had swallowed. Its length is about twenty feet, 
 its breadth five ; it has the largest mouth of all monsters. 
 It has near eighty sharp, strong, massy teeth — its voice 
 is terrific — a loud, hollow growling — and it is furnished 
 with a coat so scaly and callous as to resist the force of 
 a musket-ball in every part, except under the belly. Its 
 voracity and strength are enormous — it is very fleet in 
 swimming — attacks mankind and the largest animals 
 with the most daring impetuosity — nothing that it once 
 seizes can escape, — for, shaking its prey to pieces, it 
 swallows it without mastication. So hard and impene- 
 trable are the scales of the crocodile, that splinters of 
 flint, sharp stones, are the same to him as the softest 
 reeds. When he dives to the bottom, the agitation of 
 the water may justly be compared to liquor boiling in a 
 caldron ; and his body being strongly impregnated with 
 the scent of musk, the water is affected by it to a con- 
 siderable distance ; by his rapid passage through the 
 water he makes it white with foam, in Job’s expressive 
 language, “ one would think the deep to be hoary.” By 
 his tail he caused the waves to sparkle like a train of 
 light. There is no creature among terrestrial animals 
 so thoroughly dangerous, so exceedingly strong, so dif- 
 ficult to be wounded or slain, and perhaps there is no 
 creature so totally destitute of fear . — Notes upon the 
 forty-first chapter of Job, in the Treasury Bible . 
 
220 
 
 STORKS. 
 
 STORKS. 
 
 Jeremiah viii. 7. 
 
 u Yea, the stork in the heavens knowethher appointed 
 
 tunes But my people know not the judgment of 
 
 the Lord.” 
 
 Dr. Shaw saw the stork, returning in such numbers 
 near to, or over the Holy Land, as could not but attract 
 his notice, when he was on the coast of that country. 
 fc ‘I saw,” he writes, “ in the middle of April, 1722 
 (our ship then lying at anchor under Mount Carmel), 
 three flights of storks, some of which were more open 
 and scattered, with larger intervals between them ; oth- 
 ers were closer and more compact, as in the flights of 
 crows and other birds each of which took up more than 
 three hours in passing by us, extending itself, at the same 
 time, more than half a mile in breadth. They were 
 then leaving Egypt (where the canals and ponds that 
 are annually left by the Nile, were become dry), and 
 directed themselves toward the northeast.” The ex- 
 pression, stork in the heaven , points out the manner in 
 which this bird flies in its passage, whereas many birds 
 come and go in a more private and concealed manner. 
 Dr. Shaw's Travels , p. 428 ; see Harmer's Observations , 
 vol. iii., pp. 327, 328. 
 
 HUNTING PARTRIDGES. 
 
 1 Samuel xxvi. 20. 
 
 “ Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth 
 before the face of the Lord : for the king of Israel is 
 come out to seek a flea, as when one doth hunt a par- 
 tridge in the mountains.” 
 
 The Arabs have the following method of catching 
 partridges. Observing that they become languid and 
 
HUNTING PARTRIDGES. 
 
 221 
 
 fatigued after they have been hastily put up twice or 
 thrice, they immediately run in upon them, and knock 
 them down with their bludgeons. It was precisely in 
 this manner Saul hunted David ; coming hastily upon 
 him, and putting him up from time to time, in hopes he 
 should at length, by frequent repetitions of it, be able to 
 destroy him. — Harmer’s Observations , vol. ii., pp. 75, 76. 
 
 COCK-CROWING IN THE EAST. 
 
 Mark xiv. 30. 
 
 “ In this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt 
 deny me thrice.” (See also ch. xiii. 35.) 
 
 “ It has been often remarked, in illustration of Scrip- 
 ture, that in the Eastern countries the cocks crow in the 
 night ; but the regularity with which they keep what 
 may be called the watches, has not been, perhaps, suffi- 
 ciently noticed. I will, however, confine myself to one, 
 and that is between eleven and twelve o’clock. I have 
 often heard the cocks of Smyrna crowing in full chorus 
 at that time, and with scarcely the variation of a minute. 
 Th e second cock-crowing is between one and two o’clock. 
 Therefore, when our Lord says, ‘ In this night, before 
 the cock crow twice? the allusion was clearly to these 
 seasons. In fact, this was altogether so novel to me at 
 my first arrival in Smyrna, that I could calculate the 
 hours of the night with as much precision, by what I 
 termed my alectrometer, as by my watch.” — ArundeVs 
 Discoveries in Asia Minor . 
 
 SERPENTS. 
 
 Psalm lviii. 4, 5. 
 
 “ They are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear ; 
 which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, charm- 
 ing never so wisely.” 
 
 19 * 
 
222 
 
 SERPENTS. 
 
 In these words there is an evident allusion to a com- 
 mon practice in the East. The cobra de capella, or 
 hooded snake, is a large and beautiful serpent, but one 
 of the most venomous. It has the power of contracting 
 or enlarging its hood, the centre of which is marked in 
 black and white, like a pair of spectacles, on which 
 account it is called the spectacle snake. Of this kind 
 are the dancing snakes, which are carried in baskets 
 through Hindoostan, and procure a maintenance for a 
 set of people who play a few simple notes on the flute, 
 with which the snakes seem much delighted, and keep 
 time by a graceful motion of the head, erecting about 
 half their length from the ground, and following the 
 music with gentle curves. “ Among my drawings,” 
 writes an Eastern traveller, “ is that of a cobra de ca- 
 pella, which danced for an hour on the table, while I 
 painted it ; during which time I frequently handled it, to 
 observe the beauty of the spots, and especially the spec- 
 tacles on the hood, not doubting but that its venomous 
 fangs had been previously extracted. But the next 
 morning, my upper servant came to me in great haste, 
 and desired that I would instantly retire and praise God 
 for my good fortune. Not understanding his meaning, 
 I told him that I had already performed my devotions. 
 He then informed me, that, while purchasing some fruit, 
 he observed the man who had been with me on the pre- 
 ceding evening, entertaining the country people with his 
 dancing snakes : they, according to their usual custom, 
 sat on the ground around him ; when, either from the 
 music stopping too suddenly, or from some other cause 
 irritating the vicious reptile, which I had so often 
 handled, it darted at the throat of a young woman, and 
 inflicted a wound of which she died in about a half an 
 hour.” 
 
 In No. 65 of the Penny Magazine (for April, 1833), 
 is the following narrative, communicated to the writer 
 by a gentleman of high station in the Honorable Com- 
 pany’s Civil Service at Madras. 
 
SERPENTS. 
 
 223 
 
 “ One morning as I sat at breakfast, I heard a loud 
 noise and shouting among my palankeen-bearers. On 
 inquiry, I learned that they had seen a large hooded 
 snake, and were trying to kill it. I immediately went 
 out, and saw the snake climbing up a very high green 
 mound, whence it escaped into a hole in an old wall 
 of an ancient fortification ; the men were armed with 
 their sticks, which they always carry in their hands, 
 and had attempted in vain to kill the reptile, which had 
 eluded their pursuit, and in this hole he had coiled him- 
 self up secure, while we could see his bright eyes 
 shining. I had often desired to ascertain the truth of 
 the report, as to the effect of music upon snakes : I 
 therefore inquired for a snake-catcher. I was told there 
 was no person of the kind in the village : but after a 
 little inquiry, I heard there was one in a village distant 
 three miles. I accordingly sent for him, keeping a 
 strict watch over the snake, which never attempted to 
 escape while we, his enemies, were in sight. About an 
 hour elapsed when my messenger returned, bringing a 
 snake-catcher. This man wore no covering on his head, 
 nor any on his person, excepting a small piece of cloth 
 round his loins ; he had in his hands two baskets, one 
 containing tame snakes, one empty ; these and his musi- 
 cal pipe were the only things he had with him. I made 
 the snake-catcher leave his two baskets on the ground at 
 some distance, while he ascended the mound with his 
 pipe alone. He began to play : at the sound of music 
 the snake came gradually and slowly out of his hole. 
 When he was entirely within reach, the snake-catcher 
 seized him dexterously by the tail, and held him thus at 
 arm’s length ; while the snake, enraged, darted his head 
 in all directions but in vain : thus suspended, he has not 
 the power to round himself so as to seize hold of his 
 tormentor. He exhausted himself in vain exertions; 
 when the snake-catcher descended the bank, dropped 
 him into the empty basket, and closed the lid ; he then 
 d)egan to play, and after a short time, raising the lid of 
 
224 
 
 SERPENTS. 
 
 the basket, the snake darted about wildly, and attempted 
 to escape ; the lid was shut down again quickly, the 
 music always playing. This was repeated two or three 
 times ; and in a very short interval, the lid being raised, 
 the snake sat on his tail, opened his hood and danced 
 quite as quietly as the tame snakes in the other basket ; 
 nor did he again attempt an escape. This, having wit- 
 nessed with my own eyes, I can assert as a fact.” 
 
 Amos v. 19. 
 
 “ As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met 
 him ; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the 
 wall, and a serpent bit him.” 
 
 “ Ammadeddulat, who reigned in Persia in the 
 tenth century, and was a most generous prince, found 
 himself reduced to great difficulties, when fortune, which 
 had raised him from a very low state (for he was 
 nothing more than a son of a fisherman), undertook to 
 
 maintain him For walking one day in one of the 
 
 rooms of his palace, which had been before that time 
 the residence of Jacout, his enemy, he perceived a ser- 
 pent, which put his head out of a chink in the wall. 
 Upon which he immediately ordered that the place 
 should be searched, and the serpent killed. In opening 
 the wall there, they found a secret place, in which they 
 could not discover the serpent, but a treasure which was 
 lodged in several coffers.”. . . . 
 
 This story is in the collection from Eastern writers, 
 made by M. d’Herbelot. A traveller also mentions 
 being alarmed at a person’s being stung by a scorpion 
 concealed in a hole of the house-wall. — Harmer's Obser- 
 vations , vol. i., pp. 331, 332. 
 
 SCORPIONS IN THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 Deuteronomy viii. 15. 
 
 “ Wherein were fiery serpents and scorpions.” 
 
SCORPIONS IN THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 225 
 
 u We entered into Wady Araba,” writes Laborde, 
 the plain of Elath and of Ezion Gaba, the scriptural 
 route of the Red sea. When the Israelites were de- 
 feated by the Amalekites and the Cananeans, and refused 
 admission into the country of the Edomites, they de- 
 scended into Wady Araba, in order to turn Idumea. On 
 arriving in this valley, their sufferings were still farther 
 augmented by the multitude of serpents which assailed 
 them. The fact thus recorded in Scripture, is fully con- 
 firmed by the report of the Arabs, and by the vast num- 
 bers of those reptiles which we found two leagues to the 
 east of this place.” When near a forest in the desert, 
 the same traveller thus describes the bite of the scor- 
 pion, the burning effect of which accounts for the term 
 “ fiery serpent” 
 
 “ A little black boy, belonging to the governor, who 
 was running about, set up the most inhuman cries : he 
 was stung by a scorpion which he had trod upon. He 
 must have suffered excessive pain ; for although of a 
 race which bears everything with remarkable patience. 
 
226 
 
 SCORPIONS IN THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 he rolled on the ground, grinding his teeth, and foaming 
 at the mouth. We knew of no remedy by which we 
 could afford him relief. The people put a bandage on 
 the wound, which produced little effect. After three 
 long quarters of an hour of suffering, he complained less, 
 but could make no use of his foot, which was very much 
 inflamed. Our friends, who had been used to accidents 
 of this kind, looked upon it as an ordinary affair, but 
 advised us at the same time to be on our guard, as the 
 serpents abounded in these walls.” — See Amos v. 19. — 
 Laborde’s Mount Sinai and Petra , p. 122. 
 
 MICE. 
 
 1 Samuel vi. 5. 
 
 “ Wherefore ye shall make images .... of your 
 mice, that mar the land ; and ye shall give glory unto 
 the God of Israel ; peradventure he will lighten his 
 hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off 
 your land.” 
 
 This terrible scourge was not peculiar to Palestine. 
 An historian* mentions, that so vast a multitude of mice 
 sometimes invaded Spain in ancient times, that they 
 produced a destructive pestilence ; and in Cantabria, 
 the Romans, by setting a price upon a certain measure 
 of these animals, escaped with difficulty from the same 
 calamity ; while in other parts of Italy the number of 
 field-mice was so great, that some of the inhabitants 
 were forced to leave the country. About the beginning 
 of the 12th century, swarms of locusts and mice during 
 four successive years, so completely ravaged that land, 
 as to cause almost a total failure of the necessaries of 
 life. So great and general was the distress of the 
 people, that a kind of penitential council was held in 
 the year 1120, for the reformation of manners, and to 
 
 * Strabo. 
 
MICE. 
 
 227 
 
 invoke the mercy of the Almighty, who had been pro- 
 voked by their sins to inflict upon them such terrible 
 judgments. 
 
 LOCUSTS. 
 
 Matthew iii. 
 
 “ His meat was locusts and wild honey. 
 
 “The southeast* wind,” writes a traveller, “ constantly 
 brought with it innumerable flights of locusts, but those 
 which fell on this occasion, we were informed, were not 
 of the predatory sort. They were three inches long 
 from the head to the extremity of the wing, and their 
 body and head of a bright yellow. The locusts which 
 destroys vegetation is of a larger kind, and of a deep 
 
 red. As soon as the wind had subsided, the plain of 
 Bushire was covered by a great number of its poorer 
 inhabitants, men, women, and children, who came out 
 to gather locusts, which they eat. They also dry and 
 salt them, and afterward sell them in the bazars as 
 the food of the lowest peasantry. When boiled, the 
 yellow ones turn red, and eat like stale or decayed 
 shrimps. The locustsf and wild honey, which St. John 
 
 * Exodus x. 13. 
 
 f The locust was a clean meat. (Levit. xi. 22.) 
 
228 
 
 LOCUSTS. 
 
 ate in the wilderness, are, perhaps, particularly men- 
 tioned to show that he fared like the poorest of men, 
 and not as a wild man, as some might interpret. In- 
 deed, the general appearance of St. John, clothed with 
 camel’s hair (or skin), with a leathern girdle about his 
 loins, and living a life of the greatest self-denial, was 
 that of the older Jewish prophets (Zach. xiii. 4), and 
 such was the dress of Elijah, the hairy man, with a 
 girdle about his loins, described in 2 Kings i. 8. — Mo- 
 neys Second Journey through Persia , fyc ., p. 44. 
 
 A French traveller, who passed Egypt on his way 
 from the upper country and the Red sea, assures me, 
 the Arabs make a sort of bread of the locusts. They 
 dry them, grind them to a powder ; then mix this powder 
 with water, and make small round cakes, which serve 
 for bread, when that necessary article is scarce. — Mad - 
 den's Travels. 
 
 Jeremiah li. 14. 
 
 “ Surely I will fill thee with men, as with caterpillars, 
 and they shall lift up a shout against thee.” 
 
 Nahum iii. 17. 
 
 “ Thy crowned are as the locusts, and thy captains as 
 the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in 
 the cold day, but when the sun ariseth they flee away, 
 and their place is not known where they are.” 
 
 While at Shiraz, Mr. Morier records that, “ On the 
 11th of June, while seated in our tents about noon, we 
 heard a very unusual noise, that sounded like the rushing 
 of a great wind at a distance. On looking up we per- 
 ceived an immense cloud, here and there semi-trans- 
 parent, in other parts quite black, that spread itself all 
 over the sky, and at intervals shadowed the sun. This 
 we soon found to be locusts, whole swarms of them 
 falling about us ; but their passage was but momentary, 
 for a fresh wind from the southwest, which had brought 
 them to us, so completely drove them forward, that not 
 
LOCUSTS. 
 
 229 
 
 a vestige of them was to be seen two hours after. The 
 locusts which we saw at Bushire were like those which 
 Dr. Shaw saw in Barbary, with legs and body of a 
 bright yellow, and the wings spotted brown. These 
 were larger and of a red color, and I should suppose 
 are the real predatory locust, one of the Egyptian 
 plagues ; they are also the great grasshopper mentioned 
 by the prophet Nahum, no doubt in contradistinction to 
 the lesser. As soon as they appeared, the gardeners 
 and husbandmen made loud shouts , to prevent their 
 settling on their grounds. The strength and agility of 
 these animals make me suppose that this was their first 
 flight, and that they could not have come from any great 
 distance. The Persians said they came from the Ger- 
 mesir (or 4 the hot,’ being a hot and desert tract of land 
 in Persia), which is likely enough, as that was the di- 
 rection whence the wind blew. They seemed to be 
 impelled by one common instinct, and moved in one 
 body, which had the appearance of being organized by a 
 leader. All was dry in the plain of Shiraz, the same 
 instinct seemed to propel them forward to countries of 
 more vegetation, and with a small slant of the wind to 
 the westward they would get into the mountains of 
 Louristan, where the corn was not ripe : and where, as 
 the prophet Joel says (i. 3), after comparing them to a 
 great army, 4 they had the land of Eden before them. 5 
 Their strength must be very great, if we consider what 
 immense journeys they have been known to make. They 
 came from Africa to Italy — they have been known in 
 Scotland, and have been seen in the island of Mada- 
 gascar, the nearest point of which, from Mosambique 
 on the continent, is one hundred and twenty leagues. 
 
 44 1 have had opportunities [continues Mr. Morier], 
 from time to time to make observations on the locust, par- 
 ticularly at Smyrna, where, in 1800 they committed 
 great depredations. About the middle of April the 
 hedges and ridges of the fields began to swarm with 
 young locusts, which then wore a black appearance, had 
 20 
 
230 
 
 LOCUSTS. 
 
 no wings, and were quite harmless. About the middle 
 of May they had increased triple the size, were of a 
 gray cindery color, and had incipient wings about half 
 an inch long. They still continued to be harmless ; but 
 at the end of June they had grown to their full size, 
 which was three and a half inches in length ; the legs, 
 head, and extremities, red ; the body a pale color, tend- 
 ing to red. They appear to be created for a scourge ; 
 since to strength incredible for so small a creature, they 
 add saw-like teeth, admirably calculated to ‘ eat up all 
 the herbs in the land, and devour the fruit of the ground.’ 
 They remained on the face of the country during the 
 months of July and August, sometimes taking their 
 flight in vast clouds, and impelled by a strong wind, 
 were either lost in the sea, or were driven into other 
 countries. It was during their stay that they showed 
 themselves to be the real plague described in Exodus. 
 They seemed to march in regular battalions, crawling 
 over everything that lay in their passage, in one straight 
 front. They entered the inmost recesses of the houses, 
 were found in every corner, stuck to our clothes, and 
 infested our food. The locusts lay their eggs in the 
 autumn, which they do frequently before they take their 
 flight. Sometimes they deposite them in countries 
 where they alight after their flight. The husbandman 
 and vine-dressers knew whether eggs had been depos- 
 ited by them, and were most active in discovering them. 
 Sometimes k would happen that none had been depos- 
 ited at one village while they were found at the next, 
 and they calculated their harvests and vintages accord- 
 ingly. The operation of the female locust in laying 
 her eggs, is highly interesting. She chooses a piece 
 of light earth, well protected by a bush or hedge, 
 where she makes a hole for herself, so deep that her 
 head just appears above it. She here deposites an ob- 
 long substance, exactly the shape of her own body, 
 which contains a considerable number of eggs, arranged 
 in neat order, in rows against each other, w r hich remain 
 
LOCUSTS. 
 
 231 
 
 buried in the ground most carefully, and artificially pro- 
 tected from the cold of winter. When that is over, 
 several male locusts surround and kill her. The eggs 
 are brought into life by the heat of the sun. If the 
 heats commence early, the locusts early gain strength ; 
 and it is then that their depredations are most feared, 
 because they commence them before the corn has had 
 time to ripen, and they attack the stem when it is still 
 
 tender I conjecture that ‘ camping in the hedges 
 
 in the cold day’ may be explained by the eggs being de- 
 posited during the winter ; and ‘ when the sun ariseth 
 they flee away,’ may also be illustrated by the flying away 
 of the insect as soon as it has felt the sun’s influence.” — 
 Morier's Second Journey into Persia , pp. 98-101. 
 
 Nothing could be more accurate than this description 
 of the grasshoppers. I observed this appearance on a 
 journey from Constantinople to Smyrna by land. Early 
 in the morning, the locusts were seen congregating in 
 the bushes by the road side, in a close mass ; which it 
 would be difficult to describe in better words than 
 “ camping in the hedges.” They appeared to be assem- 
 bled with all the precision of military tactics. But when 
 the sun arose they fled away, and their place was not 
 known where they were. — Rev. J. Hartley's Researches , 
 
 p. 216. 
 
 Joel i. 4, 12. 
 
 “ That which the palmer- worm hath left, hath the lo- 
 cust eaten.” 
 
 “ The vine is dried up, and the fig-tree languisheth ; 
 the pomegranate-tree, the palm-tree also, and the apple- 
 tree, even all the trees in the field, are withered.” — See 
 Exodus x. 12-15. 
 
 Joel ii. 2-7, 9, 10. 
 
 “ A day of darkness, and of gloominess, a day of 
 clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread 
 upon the mountains : a great people and a strong ; . . . 
 the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and 
 
232 
 
 LOCUSTS. 
 
 behind them a desolate wilderness ; yea, and nothing 
 shall escape them. The appearance of them is as the 
 appearance of horses ; and as horsemen so shall they 
 run. Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mount- 
 ains shall they leap ; like the noise of a flame of fire 
 that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in 
 battle array. Before their face the people shall be much 
 pained ; all faces shall gather blackness. They shall run 
 like mighty men ; they shall climb the wall like men of 
 war ; and they shall march every one on his ways, and 
 
 they shall not break their ranks They shall run 
 
 to and fro in the city ; they shall run upon the wall ; 
 they shall climb up upon the houses ; they shall enter in 
 
 at the windows like a thief. The sun and the 
 
 moon shall be dark.” 
 
 Revelation ix. 7, 10. 
 
 “ And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses 
 
 prepared unto battle ; and they had tails like unto 
 
 scorpions.” 
 
 The ravages of the locust on the fields of the Tar- 
 tas, is thus described : “ Clouds of locusts frequently 
 alight on their plains ; and giving the preference to their 
 fields of millet, ravage them in an instant. Their ap- 
 proach darkens the horizon , and so enormous is their 
 multitude, it hides the light of the sun. When the hus- 
 bandmen are sufficiently numerous, they sometimes divert 
 the storm, by their agitation and their cries ; but when 
 they fail, the locusts alight on their fields, and there 
 form a bed of six or seven inches thick. To the noise 
 of their flight succeeds that of their devouring activity ; 
 it resembles the rattling of hail-stones , but its conse- 
 quences are infinitely more destructive. Fire itself eats 
 not so fast ; nor is there a vestige of vegetation to be 
 found, when they again take their flight, and go else- 
 where to produce like disasters.” — See Harmer's Ob- 
 servations , vol. iii., p. 305. 
 
 In Barbary, in the month of June, the locusts are no 
 
LOCUSTS. 
 
 233 
 
 sooner hatched than they collect themselves into com - 
 pact bodies , each a furlong or more square ; and marching 
 directly after they are come to life, making their way 
 toward the sea, and let nothing escape them eating up 
 everything that is green or juicy ; not only the lesser 
 vegetables, but the vine likewise, the fig-tree, the pome- 
 granate, the palm, and the apple-tree, even all the trees 
 of the field. 
 
 “ The quantity of these insects is incredible to all 
 who have not themselves witnessed their astonishing 
 numbers ; the whole earth is covered with them for the 
 space of several leagues. The noise they make in 
 browsing on the trees and herbage may be heard at a 
 great distance, and resembles that of an army in secret. 
 Wherever their myriads spread, the verdure disappears ; 
 trees and plants, stripped of their leaves and reduced to 
 their naked boughs and stems, cause the dreary image 
 of winter to succeed in an instant to the rich scenery 
 of spring. When these clouds of locusts take their 
 flight, the heavens may literally be said to be obscured 
 by them. 
 
 “ In their progress,” says Dr. Shaw, “ they kept their 
 ranks like men-of-war ; climbing over every tree or wall 
 that was in their way. Nay they entered into our very 
 houses and bed-chambers, like so many thieves. Every 
 effort of the inhabitants to stop them was unavailing ; 
 the trenches they had dug were quickly filled up, and 
 the fires they had kindled extinguished, by infinite 
 swarms succeeding each other.” — Notes on Joel ii. in 
 the Treasury Bible. 
 
 The direction the locusts take in their flight varies ; 
 the prophet who under the similitude of these insects 
 described the approach of the Chaldean army, speaks 
 of them as coming from the north , ch. ii. 20. Of the 
 dreadful effluvia produced by the dead bodies of the 
 locusts, we can form no idea. “ I have often seen,” 
 writes a traveller,* “ the shores of the Pontus Euxinus 
 
 * The Baron de Tott. See his Memoirs. 
 
 20 * 
 
234 
 
 LOCUSTS. 
 
 covered with their dried remains, in such multitudes, 
 that one could not walk along the strand without sink- 
 ing half-leg deep into a bed of these skinny skeletons. 
 Curious to know the true cause of their destruction, I 
 sought the moment of observation, and was a witness 
 of their ruin by a storm, which overtook them so near 
 the shore, that their bodies were cast upon the land, 
 while yet entire. This produced an infection so great 
 that it was several days before they could be approached. 
 Harmer's Observations , vol iii., pp. 305, 306. 
 
 The form of the locusts is in the Book of Revelation 
 compared to that of horses and likewise with the figures 
 of lions and scorpions. A remarkable illustration of 
 this comparison is found in Neibuhr’s description of 
 Arabia. “ I heard,” he observes, “ a particular com- 
 parison of the locust with other animals, from an Arab 
 of the desert, in the neighborhood of Bassorah. As 
 the description of the dreadful locusts in the Revelation 
 did not occur to me, I at first considered it as a conceit 
 of the Bedouin, and paid no attention to it, till another 
 made the same similitude at Bagdad. It is the following : 
 he compared the head of the locust with the head of a 
 horse ; the breast with that of a lion, the feet with those 
 of a camel, the body with that of a serpent, and the tail 
 with that of a scorpion.” — Niebuhr's Description de 
 VArabie. 
 
 The reason why the approach of the swarms of the 
 locusts is compared with the morning spread upon the 
 mountains, is pointed out in the following passage of 
 Francis Alvarez, a Portuguese monk, in his travels 
 through Abyssinia. 
 
 “ The day before the arrival of the locusts, we could 
 presume they were coming, from a yellow reflection in 
 the air, which proceeded from their yellow wings. As 
 soon as this reflection appeared, nobody doubted that an 
 immense swarms of locusts was approaching.” On 
 another occasion the same writer observes, that he saw 
 “ this phenomenon so strong, that the ground assumed a 
 
LOCUSTS. 
 
 235 
 
 yellow tinge from the reflection. The day after there 
 came a swarm of locusts, which according to what we 
 heard afterward, covered the country for an extent of 
 four-and-twenty Portuguese miles.” — Rosemuller . 
 
 LOCUSTS IN BARBARY. 
 
 Dr. Shaw gives the following account of the locusts 
 which he saw in Barbary in 1724 and 1725. 
 
 They were much bigger than our common grass- 
 hoppers, having brown spotted wings, with legs and 
 bodies of a bright yellow. Their first appearance was 
 toward the latter end of March, the wind having been 
 for some time southerly ; and in the middle of April 
 their numbers were so vastly increased, that in the heat 
 of the day they formed themselves into large bodies, 
 appeared like a succession of clouds, and darkened the 
 sun. About the middle of May, each of these bodies 
 began gradually to disappear, retiring into plains to 
 deposite their eggs. Accordingly in the month following 
 their young broods began gradually to make their ap- 
 pearance, and it was surprising to observe that no sooner 
 were any of them hatched, than they immediately col- 
 lected themselves together, each of them forming a 
 compact body of several hundred yards square, which 
 marching afterward directly forward, climbed over 
 trees, walls, and houses, eat up every plant in their way, 
 and let nothing escape them. The inhabitants, to stop 
 their progress, made trenches all over their fields and 
 gardens, and filled them with water ; or else placing in a 
 row great quantities of heath, stubble and such like 
 combustible matter, they set them on fire upon the 
 approach of the locusts ; but all this was to no purpose ; 
 for the trenches were quickly filled up, and the fires put 
 out by infinite swarms succeeding one another, while 
 the front seemed regardless of danger, and the rear 
 passed on so close that a retreat was impossible. A day 
 
236 
 
 LOCUSTS IN BAREARY. 
 
 or two after one of these bodies was in motion, others 
 were already hatched to glean after them ; gnawing off 
 the young branches, and the very bark of such trees as 
 had escaped before with the loss only of their fruit and 
 foliage. So justly has the inspired writer compared 
 them to a great army, and observed that the land is as 
 the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a 
 desolate wilderness. 
 
 Having in this manner lived nearly a month upon the 
 ruin and destruction of everything green and juicy, they 
 arrived at their full growth, and threw off their worm- 
 like state by casting their skins ; to prepare themselves 
 for the change, they clung by their hinder feet to some 
 bush, twig, or corner of a stone ; when immediately by 
 an undulating motion used upon the occasion, their 
 heads would first appear, and soon after the rest of their 
 bodies. 
 
 The whole transformation was performed in seven or 
 eight minutes, after which they lay for a short time in a 
 languishing condition ; but as soon as the sun and air 
 had hardened their wings, and dried up the moisture 
 that remained upon them after the casting of their 
 sloughs, they returned again to their former voracity, 
 with an addition both of strength and agility. But they 
 continued not long in this state before they were entirely 
 dispersed, as their parents had been before, after the 
 laying of their eggs ; and as the direction of the marches 
 and flights of them both was always to the northward, 
 it is probable they perished in the sea ; a grave which, 
 according to these people, they have only in common 
 with other winged creatures. 
 
 These insects, sprinkled with salt and fried, are in 
 taste not unlike the river cray-fish. The Jews were 
 allowed to eat them, and it was upon these that John 
 the Baptist fed in the wilderness. — Dr. Shaw’s Travels , 
 p. 256. 
 
FLIES. 
 
 237 
 
 FLIES. 
 
 2 Kings i. 2. 
 
 “ Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron.” 
 
 The name Baal-zebub signifies, Lord of the fly ; and 
 to this idol the property of driving away flies was attrib- 
 uted. Flies in some parts are extremely destructive. 
 The army of Richard the First, when in the Holy Land 
 rather near Hebron, “ were assailed by a most minute 
 kind of fly, flying about like sparks. With these the 
 whole neighboring region round about was filled. 
 These most wretchedly infested the pilgrims, piercing 
 with great smartness the hands, necks, throats, fore- 
 heads, and faces, and every part of the body that was 
 uncovered ; a most violent burning tumor following the 
 punctures made by them, so that all that they stung 
 looked like lepers. They could hardly guard themselves 
 from this most troublesome vexation, by covering their 
 heads and necks with veils. — See Harmer's Observa- 
 tions , vol. iii., p. 310. 
 
 LOCUST-TREE. 
 
 Luke xv. 16. 
 
 And he would fain have filled his belly with the 
 husks that the swine did eat.” 
 
 The locust-tree is a bushy, wide-spreading evergreen, 
 which attains the size of a forest-tree, and produces a 
 pod resembling a gigantic kidney-bean. This is of a 
 sweet flavor, and when dressed by the Moors makes a 
 dish by no means unpleasant to the taste. It is, how- 
 ever, both in Barbary and Spain, more generally used 
 for feeding cattle. These pods are supposed to be 
 alluded to in the parable of the prodigal son, “ the husks 
 that the swine did eat.” — See Brooke's Travels in 
 Spain , $$c. 
 
238 
 
 SALT, 
 
 d 
 
 SALT. 
 
 Mark ix. 50. 
 
 “ Have salt in yourselves.” 
 
 In the interior countries of Africa the greatest luxury 
 is salt : a child there sucks a piece of rock-salt as if it 
 were sugar. The poorer classes of the inhabitants are, 
 however, so very rarely indulged with this precious 
 article that to say a man eats salt with his food, is the 
 same as saying he is a rich man. The long use of 
 vegetable food creates so painful a longing for salt, that 
 no words can sufficiently describe it. — Park's Travels. 
 
239 
 
 CHAPTER XY. 
 
 Climate — Effect of Moonlight — Heat and Cold — Frost and Snow 
 
 — Hail-Storms — Wet Seasons — Rains — Signs of Rain — Dry 
 
 Summer — The Simoom — W ater-Spouts — Whirlwinds. 
 
 MOONLIGHT. 
 
 Psalm cxxi. 6. 
 
 “ The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon 
 by night.” 
 
 The burning heat of the sun in Eastern climates is 
 well known ; but the injurious effect of moonlight is not 
 so generally thought of. 
 
 Moonlight in the East is peculiarly clear and lovely. 
 A traveller in Egypt says : “ It is delightful to rise by 
 night and walk there in the brilliant moonlight, which 
 has the appearance of a tranquil and beautiful day — 
 you can see to read with perfect ease.” Speaking of his 
 voyage down the Nile, the same gentleman remarks : 
 “ Nothing could be more lovely than to glide along at 
 night in the calm, cloudless moonlight — amid such 
 scenery it was difficult to close one’s eyes in sleep.” 
 But delightful as it is, it is most prejudicial to those 
 who venture to repose in the open air, without covering 
 their faces. Thus the same traveller continues : “ The 
 effect of the moonlight on the eyes in this country is 
 singularly injurious ; the natives tell you, as I found 
 they also afterward did in Arabia, always to cover your 
 eyes when you sleep in the open air. The moon here 
 really strikes and affects the sight, more than the sun, 
 when you sleep exposed to it ; a fact of which I had a 
 very unpleasant proof one night, and took care to guard 
 against afterward. Indeed the sight of a person who 
 
240 
 
 MOONLIGHT. 
 
 should sleep with his face exposed at night would soon 
 be utterly impaired or destroyed.” — Carrie's Eastern 
 Letters, pp. 77-83. 
 
 HEAT AND COLD. 
 
 Genesis xxxi. 40. 
 
 “ In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost 
 oy night.” 
 
 The spring and summer nights are so cold in the 
 Holy Land, that fires are occasionally necessary, even 
 in May : which accounts for the people who went to 
 Gethsemane to apprehend our Lord, making a fire of 
 coals at the time of the passover, earlier in the year 
 than May. A traveller mentions sitting by a fire in a 
 little ruined building somewhere in Galilee, on the night 
 of May 8th ; and in May, June, and even July, furred 
 garments are frequently worn in the evenings by trav- 
 ellers in the East. It is also very common for days 
 intensely hot, to be followed by as cold nights. Mr. 
 Biddulph, chaplain to the English factory at Aleppo, 
 expressed surprise at finding the weather so warm at 
 Jerusalem, at the same time of the year that he was 
 there, when those who had been out in the night to seize 
 our Lord wanted a fire. It seemed strange to him that 
 Peter should have crept to the fire, when he could not 
 endure the heat of the sun. But after being there a 
 few days, and feeling the changes from heat to cold 
 which constantly occur, his wonder ceased. Another 
 traveller, passing through Mesopotamia (where Jacob 
 was), found the heat so oppressive, that though he wore 
 upon his head a great black handkerchief, after the 
 manner of Eastern travellers, yet his forehead was so 
 scorched as to swell exceedingly, and the skin came off. 
 His hands, too, were continually scorched. Another 
 records that, having travelled in Arabia and Mesopo- 
 tamia, both in winter and summer, he had found the 
 
HEAT AND COLD. 
 
 241 
 
 truth of what the patriarch said, that in the day he was 
 scorched with heat, and stiffened with cold in the night. 
 — See Harmer's Observations , vol. i., pp. 125, note, 
 131-134, 181 ; and Appendix to Came 9 s Eastern Let- 
 ters . 
 
 FROST AND SNOW. 
 
 Psalm cxlvii. 16, 17. 
 
 “ He giveth snow like wool, he scattereth the hoar- 
 frost like ashes ; he casteth forth his ice like morsels : 
 who can stand before his cold V 9 See Ezra x. 9 ; Matt, 
 xxiv. 20. 
 
 The frost and snow are in some winters very severe 
 in Jerusalem, and other parts of Judea, and rain and 
 snow fall sometimes in great quantities. When King 
 Richard was approaching Jerusalem with his army in 
 the winter (during his war against the Saracens), we 
 read that “ Most heavy rains fell, and the air was very 
 severe, so that very many of their beasts perished ; that 
 the rains, storms of hail, and winds, were so vehement, 
 that the stakes of their tents were torn up, and carried 
 to a distance ; and that by the extremity of the cold and 
 wet their horses perished, and the greater part of their 
 food was spoiled.” The snow in some Eastern countries 
 falls in flakes as big as walnuts, and in the mountainous 
 districts of Arabia by the Dead sea, there have been 
 dreadful storms of hail, snow, and rain, and also quan- 
 tities of ice, so that David might well say, “ he giveth 
 his snow like wool, he scattereth the hoar-frost like 
 ashes ; he casteth forth his ice like morsels : who can 
 stand before his cold V 9 
 
 In an ancient account of the defeat of some Turkish 
 troops in the neighborhood of Askalon, during the 
 winter, it is said, “ They for haste threw away their 
 armor and cloths, but so sunk under the cold, with 
 21 
 
242 
 
 FROST AND SNOW. 
 
 want of food, tediousness of the ways, and greatness of 
 the fatigue, that they were daily taken captives in the 
 woods, mountains, and wilderness, and sometimes threw 
 themselves in the way of their enemies, rather than 
 perish through cold and want."” What a striking com- 
 ment upon our Savior’s words : “ Pray ye that your 
 flight be not in the winter /”■ — Harmer’s Observations, 
 vol. L, pp. 111-114, note, 119, 120. 
 
 Ezekiel xxxiii. 30. 
 
 “ The children of thy people still are talking against 
 thee [rather concerning thee] by the walls, and in the 
 doors of the houses.” 
 
 Severe, however, as the cold is in these countries, 
 yet even in the depth of winter when the sun is out, 
 and there is no wind, it is always warm in the open air, 
 and the people enjoy it ; the Coptics spending their holy- 
 days in sauntering about, sitting under walls in winter, 
 and under shady trees in summer ; while the better sort 
 of Eastern houses have porches or gateways, with 
 benches on each side, where the master of the family 
 receives visits, and transacts business ; and as it was 
 winter, the tenth month, answering to the latter end of 
 December, when the Israelites talked about Ezekiel, 
 they sat under the wall for the benefit of the sun, 
 rather than under trees to avoid its heat ; while the 
 richer among them sat in their porches, or gateways, in 
 one of which an English traveller found a distinguished 
 person sitting (in Egypt), the 29th or 30th of December. 
 — Harmer’s Observations, vol. i., pp. 120-122. 
 
 HAIL-STORMS. 
 
 Exodus ix. 23-25. 
 
 “ And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven ; 
 and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran 
 
HAIL-STORMS. 
 
 243 
 
 along the ground : and the Lord rained hail upon the 
 land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire mingled 
 with the hail, very grievous .... And the hail smote 
 throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the 
 field, both man and beast : and the hail smote every herb 
 of the field, and brake every tree of the field. See 
 Psalm cv. 32 ; Ixxviii. 47, 48. 
 
 Joshua x. 11. 
 
 “ The Lord cast down great stories from heaven upon 
 them unto Azekah, and they died ; they were more 
 which died with hail-stones, than they whom the children 
 of Israel slew with the sword.” 
 
 “ On the 8th of February,” says Sir R. Wilson, in 
 his History of the Expedition to Egypt , “ commenced 
 the most violent thunder and hailstorm ever remem- 
 bered, and which continued two days and nights inter- 
 
244 
 
 HAIL-STORMS. 
 
 mittingly. The hail, or rather the ice-stones, were as 
 big as large walnuts.” 
 
 Diodorus Siculus mentions a storm of hail which 
 happened at Rhodes in the spring of the year 316 
 before Christ, when the hailstones were upward of a 
 pound in weight, and the houses were thrown down by 
 the weight of them. — Note, Dr. Clarke’s Travels , vol. 
 iii., p. 347. 
 
 WET SEASONS. 
 
 Job xxix. 2, 4, 19, 20. 
 
 “ Oh that I were as in months past, as in the days 
 when God preserved me ; as I was in the days of my 
 youth! (rather of my winter). My root was spread 
 out by the waters, and the dew lay all night upon my 
 branch ; my glory was fresh in me.” 
 
 The Hebrew word which is here rendered winter , 
 seems rather to mean, the wet season ; for as the sum- 
 mers of the Holy Land are perfectly dry, its winters 
 are wet. Job refers to the days of his moist time , not 
 to the days of his disgrace, the days in which he was 
 stripped of his ornaments, as an herb of its leaves and 
 flowers in winter but when he was like a plant in the 
 latter part of the rainy season (before the violent heats 
 and drought of summer scorched and burnt up every- 
 thing), green and flourishing. — Harmer’s Observations , 
 vol. i., p. 107. 
 
 RAINS. 
 
 Luke vi. 49. 
 
 i 
 
 “ But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man 
 that without a foundation built a house upon the earth 
 against which the stream did beat vehemently, and im- 
 mediately it fell ; and the ruin of that house was great.” 
 
RAINS. 
 
 245 
 
 Though the returns of rain in the Holy Land are 
 not extremely frequent, yet when it does rain, the water 
 is wont to pour down with great violence three or four 
 days and nights together, enough to drown the whole 
 country. Such violent rains, in a hilly country espe- 
 cially, like Judea, must occasion inundations very dan- 
 gerous to buildings that happen to be placed within their 
 reach, by washing away the soil from under them, and 
 occasioning their fall. The violent rains at Aleppo in 
 Syria often wash down stone-walls ; and in the Cas- 
 tr avan mountains, a hamlet with fig- garden, &c., was 
 suddenly removed to a great distance. Maundrell 
 actually saw the tracts of several torrents, down the 
 side of the hills of the Holy Land. He also describes 
 that country as extremely hilly, but as covered fre- 
 quently with a thin coat of earth, circumstances which 
 complete the illustration of our Savior’s words, and 
 teach us how to understand building on the sand, or 
 loose soil ; and the wise man’s digging down to the 
 rock, before he laid his foundation. — Harmer's Obser- 
 vations, vol. i., pp. 137-140. 
 
 EARLY AND LATTER RAINS. 
 
 Joel ii. 23. 
 
 “ Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in 
 the Lord your God ; for he hath given you the former 
 rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you 
 the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain.” 
 
 Proverbs xvi. 15. 
 
 “ [The king’s favor] is as a cloud of the latter rain.” 
 Deuteronomy xi. 13, 14. 
 
 “ And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken dili- 
 gently unto my commandments, . . , . that I will give 
 you the rain of your land in his due season, the first 
 rain, and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy 
 ciorn, and thy wine, and thine oiL” 
 
 21 * 
 
246 
 
 EARLY AND LATTER RAINS. 
 
 Hosea vi. 3. 
 
 “He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and 
 former rain unto the earth.” 
 
 Amos iv. 7, 8. 
 
 “ Also I have withholden the rain from you when 
 there were yet three months to the harvest : and I caused 
 it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon 
 another city. One piece was rained upon, and the piece 
 whereupon it rained not withered. So two or three 
 cities wandered unto one city, to drink water, but they 
 were not satisfied.” 
 
 Where the rain falls as it does with us, there is no 
 notion of early and latter rains ; but nothing is more 
 natural than this distinction in such a country as Pales- 
 tine, where the summer’s drought is terminated by heavy 
 showers, continuing some days ; after which there is an 
 interval of fine weather, and then showers fall again ; 
 and these probably are the latter rains mentioned in 
 Scripture. The early ox former rains in the Holy Land 
 fall about the middle of October, or the beginning of 
 November. The seed-time, the latter rains in April. If 
 the latter rains fall in the middle of April (says Dr. 
 Shaw), the crop is reckoned secure. 
 
 Beside the rains of April, there are also those oi 
 the beginning of February, and to these latter the proph- 
 et Amos appears to allude. From them are derived the 
 hopes of a plentiful year, for “ It is an observation,” 
 writes Dr. Shaw, “ at or near Jerusalem, that provided 
 a moderate quantity of snow, or rain, falls in the begin- 
 ning of February* and the fountains overflow a little 
 afterward, there is the prospect of a fruitful and plen- 
 tiful year : the inhabitants making, upon these occasions, 
 the like rejoicings with the Egyptians upon the cutting 
 of the Nile.” 
 
 The harvest at Aleppo in Syria follows in three 
 months after these rains of February, the withholding 
 
EARLY AND LATTER RAINS. 
 
 247 
 
 of which the prophet speaks of as a signal judgment ; 
 and he declares further, that the rain was suspended 
 not only to punish them with want of bread, but with 
 thirst also ; for in these countries, excepting a few 
 fountains, they have only cistern water, so that if God 
 in anger suspended the rains, there was more danger of 
 perishing by thirst, than by famine. On the other hand, 
 God promises to give the former and the latter rains to 
 his obedient children, as the greatest of temporal bles- 
 sings, “ that ye may gather in your corn, and your wine, 
 and your oil ; that ye may eat and be full.” (Deut. 
 xi. 14.) He even likens the blessings of his grace to 
 this blessing of his providence, assuring his people that 
 if they would seek his face, he would come unto them 
 as the “ latter and former rain unto the earth” — Harmer's 
 Observations, vol. i., pp. 140-150. 
 
 SIGNS OF RAIN. 
 
 2 Kings iii. 17. 
 
 “Ye shall not see wind , neither shall ye see rain.” 
 
 1 Kings xviii. 45. 
 
 “ The heaven was black with clouds and wind, and 
 there was a great rain.” 
 
 Proverbs xxv. 14. 
 
 “ Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift [pretends 
 he will bestow a gift and does not do so] is like clouds 
 and winds without rain.” 
 
 Psalm cxxxv. 7 ; Jeremiah x. 13. 
 
 “ He causeth the vapors [clouds] to ascend from the 
 ends of the earth ; he maketh lightnings for the rain ; 
 he bringeth the wind out of his treasuries . When he 
 
 uttereth his voice, there is a multitude * of waters in 
 the heavens ” 
 
 * Or noise, see margin . 
 
248 
 
 SIGNS OF RAIN. 
 
 1 Kings xviii. 44, 45. 
 
 “And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he 
 said, Behold there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, 
 like a man’s hand. And he said, ‘ Go up, say unto 
 Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the 
 rain stop thee not.’ And it came to pass in the mean- 
 time, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, 
 and there was a great rain.” 
 
 Rain in the East is often preceded by squalls of 
 wind, which take up such quantities of sand from the 
 desert as quite darken the sky. In the city of Aleppo, 
 in Syria, seldom a night passes during the month of 
 September, without much lightning in the northwest 
 quarter ; but not attended with thunder. When this 
 lightning appears in the west, or southwest, it is accom- 
 panied with thunder, and is a sure sign of approaching 
 rain. Thus does God make lightnings for the rain ; 
 the squalls of wind bring on these refreshing showers ; 
 and are therefore called precious things of the treasuries 
 of God ; and when he thunders, it is the noise of waters 
 in the heavens. With respect to the cloud Elijah saw, 
 it is mentioned by Mr. Bruce in his Travels , when he 
 says : “ Every morning about nine, a small cloud, not 
 above four feet broad, appears in the East, whirling 
 violently round, as if upon an axis ; but when arrived 
 nearly over head, it first abates its motion, then loses its 
 form, and extends itself greatly, and seems to call up 
 vapors from all opposite quarters. These clouds having 
 attained nearly the same height, rush against each other 
 with great violence, and put me always in mind of Elijah 
 foretelling rain on Mount Carmel.” 
 
 A clergyman in Suffolk “ saw a cloud like a marts 
 hand , on a high hill at Beachborough, in Kent, and im- 
 mediately a violent shower followed.” 
 
 Dr. Adam Clarke writes, “ I have often seen this 
 repeated several times a day in the English channel. 
 A cloud, about the size of a man's hand , first appeared ; 
 
SIGNS OF RAIN. 
 
 249 
 
 this gradually increased till the whole heavens were 
 robed in black , and a dreadful storm, ensued. When all 
 again seemed comparatively clear, the appearance of the 
 hand-like cloud was the sure forerunner of another 
 storm.” — Harmed s Observations , vol. i., pp. 160, 173, 
 174; 101, note. 
 
 Ecclesiastes xi. 4. 
 
 “He that observeth the wind shall not sow, and he 
 that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.” 
 
 Ploughing and sowing were sometimes practised in 
 the East in expectation of rain. It was therefore natural 
 for the laborer to wait till he saw the signs of its 
 approach, particularly the blowing of the wind that was 
 wont to bring it. — Harmer's Observations , vol. i., p. 
 97. 
 
 DRY SUMMERS. 
 
 Psalm xxxii. 4. 
 
 “ My moisture is turned into the drought of summer.” 
 
 In England and in its neighboring countries it is 
 common for rain to fall in all months of the year. But 
 in the East, rain indiscriminately in the winter months, 
 and none at all in the summer, is what is most usual. 
 In Judea, thunder and lightning, which generally occur 
 with us in summer, happen in winter ; when also the 
 rains, after they begin to fall, pour down for three or 
 four days and nights together as vehemently as if they 
 would drown the country. On the other hand, in 
 summer it hardly ever rains, and it is to the withered 
 appearance which nature then wears, that David refers 
 when he says, “ My moisture is turned into the drought 
 of summer.” — See Harmer's Observations , vol i., p. 
 75. 
 
250 
 
 THE SIMOOM. 
 
 THE SIMOOM. 
 
 Isaiah xxi. 1. 
 
 “ As whirlwinds in the south pass through ; so it com- 
 eth from the desert, from a terrible land.” 
 
 Proverbs i. 27. 
 
 “ When your destruction cometh as a whirlwind.” 
 Isaiah xxxvii. 36. 
 
 “ The angel [messenger or agent] of the Lord went 
 forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hun- 
 dred and fourscore and five thousand.” 
 
 Whirlwinds usually arise from the south, and the 
 more southern countries in the East are most liable to 
 them. A traveller, giving an account of the danger 
 there is of losing one’s way in the deserts between 
 Egypt and Nubia, writes, “ It is infinitely greater when 
 the south wind blows.” It dries up the goat-skins filled 
 with water, stifles on the spot those who breathe in it ; 
 so that to guard against its defects, they are obliged to 
 throw themselves on the ground instantly, with their 
 face close to the burning sands, and to cover their heads 
 with some cloth or carpet, lest they should breathe the 
 wind, and perish. 
 
 Sometimes, too, it raises up large quantities of sand 
 with a whirling motion, which darkening the eye, renders 
 it impossible for the guides to perceive the way, so that 
 whole caravans have been buried beneath it. The 
 camels alone give notice of its approach, by making a 
 noise, and burying their mouth and nostrils in the 
 sand, and whoever imitates them escapes destruction. 
 Mr. Bruce thus describes this pestilential wind, which 
 is called “the simoom.” “We had no sooner got into 
 the plains, than w^e felt great symptoms of the simoom, 
 and about a quarter before twelve, our prisoner first, 
 and then Idris, called out ‘ The simoom ! the simoom !’ 
 
THE SIMOOM, 
 
 251 
 
 My curiosity made me look behind me ; about due south , 
 a little to the east, I saw the colored haze as before. 
 It seemed now to be rather less compressed, and to have 
 with it a shade of blue : the edges of it were like a very 
 
 thin smoke. We all fell on our faces, and the simoom 
 passed, with a gentle ruffling wind. It continued to blow 
 thus till nearly three o’clock : so that we were all taken 
 ill that night, and strength was hardly left us to load 
 
252 
 
 THE SIMOOM. 
 
 the camels and arrange the baggage.” The army of 
 Sennacherib was doubtless destroyed by such a pesti- 
 lential wind. It is often instantaneously fatal, and the 
 word “ angel’ 1 is expressly called in the original in verse 
 7, a blast , or wind. — Harmer’s Observations , vol. i., pp. 
 152-165 ; Bruce’s Travels. 
 
 2 Kings xix. 26. 
 
 “ They were .... as corn blasted before it be grown 
 up.” 
 
 Psalm ciii. 16. 
 
 “ The wind passeth over it [the grass] and it is gone.” 
 
 We remained encamped at Bushire (writes Morier), 
 until the 27th of March, during which time we expe- 
 rienced one of the discomforts of a tented life, in a gale 
 of wind that blew from the southward and eastward, 
 with such violence, that three of our largest tents were 
 levelled with the ground. The wind brought with it 
 such hot currents of air, that we thought it might be 
 the precursor of the “ samoun” (simoom) ; but upon 
 inquiry, we found that the autumn was generally the 
 season for that wind. The “ sam” wind commits great 
 ravages in this district, and is hurtful to vegetation. It 
 blows at night, from about midnight to sunrise, and 
 comes in a hot blast, and is afterward succeeded by a 
 cold one. About six years ago there was a “ sam” 
 during the summer months, which so totally burnt up 
 all the corn, then near its maturity, that no animal 
 would eat a blade of it, or touch any of its grain. The 
 image of corn blasted before it be grown up, used by 
 the sacred historian, was most probably taken from a 
 cause similar to what has just been stated, and the 
 allusion is also perhaps to the pestilential wind, when 
 the prophet says in [the same chapter] “ I will send a 
 
THE SIMOOM. 
 
 253 
 
 blast upon him. In the Psalms, we read of the wind 
 that passeth over the grass, and it is gone. — See Mv- 
 r lev's Second Journey through Persia , fyc., pp. 42, 43- 
 
 WATER-SPOUTS. 
 
 Psalm xlii. 7. 
 
 “ Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy water- 
 spouts ; all thy waves and thy billows have gone over 
 me.” 
 
 The following is an account of the first water-spout 
 seen by the Spaniards on the coast of America : — 
 
 “ The sea ran in mountain-waves, covered with foam. 
 For a day and a night the heavens glowed like a furnace, 
 with incessant flashes of lightning : while the loud claps 
 of thunder were often mistaken by the mariners for 
 signal guns of distress from their foundering companions. 
 During the whole time there was such a deluge of rain, 
 that the seamen were almost overwhelmed. In the 
 midst of this wild tumult of the elements, they beheld a 
 new object of alarm. The ocean in one place became 
 strangely agitated ; the water was whirled up into a kind 
 of pyramid, or cone, while a livid cloud tapering to a 
 point, bent down to meet it. Joining together, they 
 formed a column, which rapidly approached the ships, 
 spinning along the surface of the deep, and drawing up 
 the waters with a rushing sound. The water-spout 
 passed close by the ships without injuring them. — Life 
 of Columbus. 
 
 On the afternoon of June 21, 1702, about two o'clock, 
 at Hatfield, no wind stirring below, though it was some- 
 what great in the air, the clouds began to be much 
 agitated and driven together ; on which they became very 
 black, and were very visibly hurried round, whence 
 there proceeded a most audible whirling noise, like that 
 of a mill. After a while a long tube or spout came 
 22 
 
254 
 
 WATER-SPOUTS 
 
 down from the centre of the congregated clouds, in 
 which was a swift spiral motion like that of a screw, 
 when it is in motion. It proceeded slowly from west 
 to northeast, broke down a great oak-tree or two, 
 frightened the weeders out of the field, and made others 
 lie down flat, to avoid being whirled about and killed, as 
 they saw several jackdaws had been, which were sudden- 
 ly snatched up, carried out of sight, and then thrown a 
 great way off among the corn. At length it passed 
 
 over the town of Hatfield to the great terror of the 
 inhabitants, filling the whole air with the thatch it took 
 off from some of the houses ; then touching on a corner 
 of the church, it tore up several sheets of lead, and 
 rolled them together in a strange manner ; soon after 
 which, it dissolved and vanished, without doing any 
 further mischief. — Clarke's Readings in Philosophy. 
 
WHIRLWINDS, 
 
 255 
 
 WHIRLWINDS. 
 
 Isaiah xl. 24. 
 
 “ The whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.” 
 Isaiah xvii. 13. 
 
 “ God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, 
 and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before 
 the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.” 
 
 Psalm lxxxiii. 14. 
 
 “ Oh, my God, make them like a wheel ; as the stubble 
 before the wind.” 
 
 “ While we were encamped at the village of Has- 
 sanabad,” writes Mr. Morier, “ a violent wind arose 
 
256 
 
 WHIRLWINDS. 
 
 from the eastward. It prevailed from the morning to 
 about two o’clock, P. M., when it changed about to the 
 westward. At the time of the change, whirlwinds were 
 to be seen in different parts of the plain, sweeping along 
 the country in different directions, in a manner that was 
 quite frightful to behold. They carried away in their 
 vortex, sand, branches, and the stubble of the fields, * 
 and really appeared to make a communication between 
 the earth and the clouds. The correctness of the 
 imagery used by the prophet Isaiah, when he alludes to 
 this phenomenon, is very striking to the Eastern travel- 
 ler ; and when we read in the Psalms, 4 Make them like 
 a wheel, as the stubble before the wind this also is 
 happily illustrated by the rotary action of the whirlwind, 
 which frequently impels a bit of stubble over a waste, 
 just like a wheel set in rapid motion.” — Moneys Second 
 Journey through Persia , c^-c., p. 202. 
 
257 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Modern Tartars — Predatory Character of the Arabs — their 
 Mode of dwelling and of flight — Bedouin Encampment — 
 Arabs. 
 
 TARTARS. 
 
 Habakkuk i. 8. 
 
 “ Their horses also are swifter than the leopards and 
 are more fierce than the evening wolves ; and their 
 horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen 
 shall come from far ; they shall fly as the eagle that 
 hasteth to eat.” 
 
 T he manner in which the modern Tartars pillage and 
 destroy, may illustrate these words, which are descrip- 
 tive of the devastations of the Chaldeans. 
 
 22 * 
 
258 
 
 TARTARS. 
 
 “ It was decided,” writes one who was present in the 
 Tartar army on a particular occasion, “that one third 
 of the army should pass the river at midnight, divide 
 into several columns, subdivide successively, and thus 
 overspread New Servia, burn the villages, com, and 
 fodder, and carry off the inhabitants and cattle. The 
 rest of the army marched until it came to the beaten 
 track in the snow, made by the detachment. This we 
 followed until we arrived at the place where it divided 
 into seven branches, to the left of which we constantly 
 kept, observing never to mingle or confuse ourselves 
 with any of the subdivisions, which we successively 
 found, and some of which were only small paths, traced 
 by one or two horsemen. 
 
 “ Flocks were found, frozen to death, on the plain : and 
 twenty columns of smoke, already rising in the horizon, 
 completed the horrors of the scene, and announced the 
 fires which laid waste New Servia. The care, the 
 patience, the extreme activity, with which the Tartars 
 preserve their booty, are scarcely credible. All re- 
 searches after the inhabitants of Adjemka were useless, 
 until the second day, when at the moment of departure, 
 the ricks of corn and forage which concealed the poor 
 people were set on fire. Then it was that they came 
 and cast themselves into the arms of their enemies to 
 escape the flames which devoured their harvests and 
 their homes. The order to burn Adjemka was executed 
 so suddenly, and the blaze caught the thatched houses 
 with so much violence and rapidity, that we ourselves, 
 at leaving it, were obliged to pass through the flames. 
 The atmosphere was loaded with ashes ; and the vapor 
 of melted snow, which, after having darkened the sun for 
 a time, united and formed a gray snow, that crackled 
 between our teeth. A hundred and fifty villages, burnt 
 in like manner, sent forth their ashes twenty leagues 
 into Poland.” 
 
 Since then the Chaldeans resembled in their destructive 
 marches these Tartars, well might the prophet describe 
 
TARTARS 
 
 259 
 
 them as a “ bitter and hasty [or swift] nation, which 
 shall march through the breadth of the land as “ ter- 
 rible and dreadful “ supping up [consuming] as the 
 east wind, and gathering the captivity [captives] as the 
 sand.” Well might he “ tremble” at their coming, and 
 express the devastation which should follow by “ the 
 flocks being cut off from the fold, and there being no 
 herd in the stalls.” See Habakkuk i. 6-9 ; iii. 16-18. — - 
 Baron de Totfs Memoirs ; see Harmer's Observations , 
 vol. iii., pp. 414-418. 
 
 DEPREDATIONS OF THE ARABS. 
 
 Proverbs xvii. 19. 
 
 “ He that exalteth his gate seeketh destruction.” 
 
 Here is an evident allusion to the attacks made by 
 the Arabs, who are accustomed, when they find the 
 doorways large enough, to ride into the houses of those 
 whom they mean to plunder. To hinder them from so 
 doing, a traveller tells us, that the door of the house in 
 which the French merchants lived at Rama, was not 
 three feet high, and that all the doorways in the town 
 are equally low. Another, referring to his entrance into 
 a monastery near Jerusalem, says : “ The passage is so 
 low that it will scarcely admit a horse ; and it is shut by 
 a gate of iron strongly secured in the inside. As soon 
 as we entered, it was again made fast with various bolts 
 and bars of iron ; a precaution extremely necessary in a 
 desert place, exposed to the incursions of the Arabs.” 
 To this oppressive practice, which is not confined to the 
 Arabs, Zephaniah refers ch. i., 8, 9 : “I will punish the 
 princes, and all such as are clothed with strange 
 apparel” (which does not belong to them), and adds 
 that “ in the same day he will punish all those that leap 
 on the threshold, which fill their master’s houses with 
 
260 
 
 DEPREDATIONS OF THE ARABS. 
 
 violence and deceit,” which passage may be thus ex- 
 plained : “ I will punish those who wear the apparel 
 which by violence and deceit their servants have brought 
 them.” — Thevenot ; Harmer's Observations , vol. i., pp. 
 217-220. 
 
 Jeremiah iii. 2. 
 
 “ In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian 
 in the wilderness.” 
 
 The Arabs wait for caravans with the most violent 
 avidity, looking about them on all sides, raising them- 
 selves up on their horses, running here and there to see 
 if they cannot perceive any smoke, or dust, or tracks on 
 the ground, or any other marks of people passing along. 
 — Sir J. Chardin ; Harmer's Observations , vol. i., p 
 217. 
 
 THEIR MODE OF DWELLING, Etc. 
 
 Jeremiah xlix. 8, 30; 
 
 “ Flee ye, turn back, dwell deep, O inhabitants of 
 Dedan. Flee, get you far off, dwell deep, O ye inhab- 
 itants of Hazor.” 
 
 This dwelling deep refers probably to the customs of 
 the Arabs, who plunge far into the deserts on the 
 approach of an enemy, as well as to their sometimes 
 dwelling in grottoes during the winter. 
 
 The people of Hazor and Dedan evidently lived in 
 tents, like the Bedouin Arabs ; for they are described 
 (at least the inhabitants of Hazor) as a “ nation that 
 dwelleth without care, which have neither gates nor bars, 
 which dwell alone” (see v. 31). The prophet there- 
 fore bids them to flee into the deserts, and dwell deep 
 therein for security. Of one tribe of Arabs in par- 
 ticular, it is observed by Niebuhr, that when the pacha 
 of Bagdad sends troops against them, they retire, as 
 soon as they receive the intelligence, to the bottom of 
 
THEIR MODE OF DWELLING, ETC. 
 
 261 
 
 the desert , whither their pursuers dare not follow them. 
 And Mr. Savary, in speaking of the wandering Arabs, 
 says : “ Always on their guard against tyranny, on the 
 least discontent that is given them, they pack up their 
 tents, lade their camels with them, ravage the flat 
 country, and, laden with plunder, plunge into the burn- 
 ing sands, whither none can pursue them, and where 
 they alone dare dwell. — Harmer's Observations , vol. i., 
 pp. 222-225. 
 
 Isaiah lxiii. 13, 14. 
 
 “ That led them through the deep, as a horse in the 
 wilderness, that they should not stumble. As a beast 
 goeth down into the valley, the spirit of the Lord 
 caused him to rest : so didst thou lead thy people, to 
 make thyself a glorious name.” 
 
 The word horse, here signifies not a single horse, 
 
262 
 
 THEIR MANNER OF FLIGHT. 
 
 but cavalry ; and the allusion is to the Arab horses, who 
 are remarkable for their swiftness in carrying their 
 masters out of the reach of their pursuers in the wil- 
 derness. 
 
 The great emir of Mount Carmel had a horse which he 
 would not have parted with for five thousand crowns, it 
 having carried him three days and three nights together, 
 without eating or drinking, and by this means delivered 
 him out of the hands of those that pursued after him. 
 
 The words, “ beast goeth down into the valley,” may 
 be rendered “ as the herd goeth down,” &c. When the 
 Arabs of Barbary want to lie concealed, they choose 
 woods and valleys to live in ; and La Roque informs us, 
 that the Arabs, upon any alarm decamp in two hours’ 
 time, with their herds, flocks, and families, and plunge 
 into the deserts. Here they choose some retired vale 
 in which to remain secure. 
 
 Thus had God led his people in safety through the 
 Red sea, and preserved them from the pursuit of 
 Pharaoh, even as the horse in the wilderness bear their 
 riders far from their enemies ; and even, so as a herd 
 rests in safety in the valley w’herein it is sheltered from 
 all fear of intruders, so had the Lord made Israel to rest 
 beneath the shadow of his wings. — See Harmer’s Obser- 
 vations , vol. i., pp. 229-237. 
 
 BEDOUIN ENCAMPMENT. 
 
 On his road to Gaza, Mr. Stephens mentions having 
 come to a Bedouin encampment in one of the “ most 
 singular and interesting spots” he had ever seen. “ We 
 were climbing,” he writes, “ up the side of a mountain, 
 and saw on a little point on the very summit the figure 
 of an Arab, kneeling in evening prayer. He had 
 finished his devotions, and was sitting on the rock when 
 we approached, and found that he had literally been 
 praying on his house-top, for his habitation was in the 
 
BEDOUIN ENCAMPMENT. 
 
 263 
 
 rock beneath. Like almost every old man one meets in 
 the East, he looked exactly the patriarch of the imagin- 
 ation, and precisely as we would paint Abraham, Isaac, 
 or Jacob. He rose as we approached, and gave us the 
 usual Bedouin invitation to stop and pass the night with 
 him ; and, leading us a few paces to the brink of the 
 mountain, he showed us in the valley below the village 
 of his tribe. 
 
 The valley began at the foot of the elevation on 
 which we stood, and lay between ranges of broken and 
 overhanging rocks, a smooth and beautiful table of 
 green, for perhaps a quarter of a mile, and beyond that 
 distance broke off and expanded into an extensive 
 meadow. The whole of this valley, down to the mead- 
 ow, was filled with flocks of sheep and goats ; and, for 
 the first time since I left the banks of the Nile, I saw a 
 
 herd of cows But where were the dwellings of 
 
 the pastors, the tents in which dwelt the shepherds of 
 these flocks and herds ? In Egypt I had seen the Arabs 
 living in tombs, and among the ruins of temples ; in 
 the desert I had seen them dwelling in tents ; but I had 
 never yet seen them making their habitations in the 
 rude crevices of the rocks. Such, however, were their 
 habitations here. The rocks in many places were over- 
 hanging ; in others there were chasms or fissures ; and 
 wherever there was anything that could afford a partial 
 protection from the weather on one side, a low, rough, 
 circular wall of stone was built in front of it, and 
 formed the abode of a large family. Within the small 
 enclosure in front, the women were sitting winnowing 
 or grinding grain, or rather pounding and rubbing it 
 between two stones, in the same primitive manner prac- 
 tised of old, in the days of the patriarchs. We de- 
 scended and pitched our tents in the middle of the 
 valley. The habitations m the crevices of the rocks, 
 bad as they would be considered anywhere else, I found 
 much more comfortable than most of the huts of the 
 Egyptians on the banks of the Nile, or the rude tents 
 
264 
 
 BEDOUIN ENCAMPMENT. 
 
 of the Bedouins. It was not sheer poverty that drove 
 these shepherds to take shelter in the rocks, for they 
 were a tribe more than three hundred strong, and had 
 flocks and herds such as are seldom seen among the 
 Bedouins ; and they were far better clad, and had the 
 
 appearance of being better fed than my companions 
 
 In the evening the men and women* came up, one after 
 another, with their crooks in their hands, and their 
 well-trained dogs, driving before them their several 
 flocks. Some entered the little enclosures before their 
 rude habitations ; but many destitute of even this 
 miserable shelter, slept outside in the open valley, with 
 their flocks around them, and their dogs by their side. 
 .... In the evening we seated ourselves round a large 
 bowl of cracked corn and milk, so thick as to be taken 
 with the hands, unaided by a spoon or ladle, followed 
 by smoking stewed kid ; and after this exercise of hos- 
 pitality to the strangers, some withdrew to their rocky 
 dwellings, others laid themselves down around the fire, 
 and I retired to my tent. All night I heard from every 
 part of the valley the lowing of cattle, the bleating of 
 lambs and goats, and the loud barking of the watch-dog 
 Early in the morning, while the stars were yet in the 
 sky, I was up and out of my tent. The flocks were 
 still quiet, and the shepherds and shepherdesses were 
 still sleeping with the bare earth for their bed, and the 
 canopy of heaven their only covering. One after the 
 other they awoke ; and as the day was breaking, they 
 were milking the cows and goats, and at broad daylight 
 they were again moving, with their crooks and dogs, to 
 the pasture-ground at the foot of the valley . — Incidents 
 of Travel , vol. ii., pp. 127-132. 
 
 ARABS. 
 
 In his account of his journey to Mount Sinai, the 
 same traveller writes : “ We were moving along a broad 
 
 * See Genesis xxix. 1-10. 
 
ARABS. 
 
 265 
 
 valley bounded by ranges of lofty and crumbling 
 mountains, forming an immense rocky rampart on each 
 side of us ; and rocky and barren as these mountains 
 seemed, on their tops were gardens which produced 
 oranges, dates, and figs, in great abundance. Here, on 
 heights almost inaccessible to any but the children of 
 the desert, the Bedouin pitches his tent, pastures his 
 sheep and goats, and gains the slender subsistence 
 necessary for himself and his family ; and often, looking 
 up the bare side of the mountain, we could see on its 
 summit’s edge the wild figure of a half-naked Arab, 
 with his long matchlock gun in his hand, watching the 
 movement of our little caravan. Sometimes, too, a 
 woman was seen stealing across the valley, not a trav- 
 eller or a passer-by, but a dweller in the land where no 
 smoke curled from the domestic hearth, and no sign of a 
 
 habitation was perceptible Not far from the track 
 
 we saw, hanging on a thorn-bush, the black cloth of a 
 Bedouin’s tent, with the pole-ropes, pegs, and everything 
 necessary to convert it into a habitation for a family. It 
 had been there six months ; the owner had gone to a new 
 pasture-ground, and there it had hung, and there it would 
 hang, sacred and untouched, until he returned to claim it. 
 4 It belongs to one of our tribe, and cursed be the hand 
 that touches it’ is the feeling of every Bedouin. Un- 
 counted gold might be exposed in the same way ; and 
 the poorest Bedouin, though a robber by birth and 
 profession, would pass by, and touch it not. On the 
 very summit of the mountain, apparently ensconced 
 behind it as a wall, his body not more than half visible, 
 a Bedouin was looking down upon us ; and one of my 
 party, who had long kept his face turned that way, told 
 me that there was the tent of his father. I talked with 
 him about his kindred and his mountain home, not ex- 
 pecting, however, to discover anything of extraordinary 
 interest or novelty. The sons of Ishmael have ever 
 been the same inhabitants of the desert, despising the 
 dwellers uuder a roof, wanderers and wild men from 
 23 
 
266 
 
 ARABS. 
 
 their birth, with their hands against every man, and 
 every man’s hand against them. £ There is blood be- 
 tween us,’ says the Bedouin, when he meets in the desert 
 one of a tribe, by some individual of which an ancestor 
 of his own was killed, perhaps a hundred years before. 
 And then they draw their swords, and a new account of 
 blood is opened, to be handed down as a legacy to their 
 children. £ The desert is ours’ (says the Bedouin to 
 the stranger whom he meets travelling through his 
 wild domain), £ and every man who passes over it must 
 pay us tribute.’ These principal and distinguishing 
 traits of the Bedouin character have long been known ; 
 but as I expected to see them in their tents, and be 
 thrown among different tribes, claiming friendship from 
 those who were enemies to each other, I was curious to 
 know the details of their lives and habits ; and I listened 
 with exceeding interest while the young Bedouin, with 
 his eyes constantly fixed upon it, told me that for more 
 than four hundred years the tent of his fathers had 
 been in that mountain. Wild and unsettled, robbers 
 and plunderers as they are, they have laws which are 
 as sacred as our own ; and the tent, and the garden, and 
 the little pasture-ground, are transmitted from father to 
 son for centuries. I have probably forgotten more than 
 half of our conversation ; but I remember he told me 
 that all the sons shared equally ; that the daughters 
 took nothing ; that the children lived together ; that if 
 any of the brothers got married, the property must be 
 divided ; that the sisters must remain with the brothers 
 until they (the sisters) are married. I asked him, if 
 the brothers did not choose to keep a sister with them, 
 what became of her ; but he did not understand me. I 
 repeated the question, but still he did not comprehend 
 it, and looked to his companions for an explanation. 
 And when, at last, the meaning of my question became 
 apparent to his mind, he answered, with a look of 
 wonder, £ It is impossible — she is his own blood.’ I 
 pressed my question again and again, in various forms* 
 
ARABS. 
 
 267 
 
 but it was so strange an idea, that to the last he did 
 not fully comprehend it, and his answer was still the 
 same, 4 It is impossible — she is his own blood.’ The 
 Bedouin seldom marries more than one wife. 
 
 44 They are essentially a pastoral people — their only 
 riches are their flocks and herds, their home is in the 
 wide desert, and they have no local attachment ; to-day 
 they pitch their tents among the mountains, to-morrow 
 in the plain ; and wherever they plant themselves for 
 the time, all that they have on earth — wife, children, 
 and friends, are immediately around them. In fact, 
 the life of a Bedouin, his appearance and habits, are 
 precisely the same as those of the patriarchs of old. 
 Abraham, himself, the first of the patriarchs, was a 
 Bedouin, and four thousand years have not made the 
 slightest alteration in the character and habits of this 
 extraordinary people. Read of the patriarchs in the 
 Bible, and it is the best description you can have of 
 pastoral life in the East at the present day.* 
 
 44 Among the barren and desolate mountains, there is 
 frequently a small space of ground, near some fountain 
 or deposite of water, known only to the Arabs, capable 
 of producing a scanty crop of grass to pasture a few 
 camels, and a small flock of sheep or goats. There the 
 Bedouin pitches his tent, and remains until the scanty 
 product is consumed ; and then packs up his household 
 goods, and seeks another pasture ground .” — Incidents 
 of Travel , vol. i., 265-267, 269 ; ii. 7. 
 
 The history of the Arabs, writes Mr. Keith, so opposite 
 in many respects to that of the Jews, but as a singular as 
 theirs, was concisely and clearly foretold. It was prophe- 
 sied concerning Ishmael : 44 He will be a wild man ; his 
 hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand will 
 be against him : and he shall dwell in the presence of all 
 his brethren. I will make him fruitful, and multiply 
 him exceedingly, and I will make him a great nation,” 
 
 See Chapter I. 
 
268 
 
 ARABS. 
 
 The fate of Ishmael is here identified with that of his 
 descendants ; and the same character is common to them 
 both. The historical evidence of the fact, the universal 
 tradition, and constant boast of the Arabs themselves, 
 their language, and the preservation for many ages of 
 an original rite, derived from him as their predecessor, 
 confirm the truth of their descent from Ishmael. The 
 body of their nation has escaped the yoke of the most 
 powerful monarchies, and the conquerors of many other 
 people, could never achieve the conquest of Arabia. 
 The Arabs subsist to this day in the prophesied and 
 primitive wildness of their race, hostile to all, as even 
 the unbelieving Gibbon writes, “ armed against man- 
 kind.” Plundering is their profession. Their alliance 
 is never courted, and can never be obtained ; and all 
 that the Turks or Persians, or any of their neighbors, 
 can stipulate for from them, is a partial and purchased 
 forbearance. Even the British, who have established a 
 residence in almost every country, have entered the 
 territories of the descendants of Ishmael to accomplish 
 only the premeditated destruction of a fort, and to retire. 
 They have continued wild or uncivilized, and have 
 retained their habits of hostility toward all the rest of 
 the human race, though they possessed for three hun- 
 dred years countries the most opposite in their nature 
 from the mountains of Arabia. The greatest part of 
 the temperate zone was included within the limits of the 
 Arabian conquests ; and their empire extended from 
 India to the Atlantic, and embraced a wider range of 
 territory than ever was possessed by the Romans, those 
 boasted masters of the world. The period of their 
 conquest and dominion was sufficient, under such cir- 
 cumstances, to have changed the manners of any people ; 
 but whether in the land of Shinar, or in the valleys of 
 Spain, on the banks of the Tigris or the Tagus, in Araby 
 the blessed, or Araby the barren, the posterity of Ishmael 
 have ever retained their prophetic character ; they have 
 remained under every change of condition, a wild 
 
ARABS. 
 
 269 
 
 people ; their hand has still been against every man, and 
 every man’s hand against them. The following is the 
 natural reflection of Sir R. K. Porter, on examining 
 the peculiarities of an Arab tribe : * On the smallest 
 computation, such must have been the manners of those 
 people for more than three thousand years, thus in all 
 things verifying the prediction given of Ishmael at his 
 birth And that an acute and active people, sur- 
 
 rounded for ages by polished and luxurious nations, 
 should from their earliest to their latest times, be still 
 found a wild people, dwelling in the presence of all their 
 brethren (as we may call these nations) unsubdued and 
 unchangeable, is, indeed, a standing miracle, — one of 
 those mysterious facts which establish the truth of proph- 
 ecy.’ ” — See Keith on the Prophecies , pp. 320-323. 
 
 23 
 
270 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 ACCOUNT OF THE RECHABITES. 
 
 Jeremiah xxxv. 5-8, 18, 19. 
 u And I set before the sons of the house of the 
 Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto 
 them, Drink ye wine. But they said, We will drink no 
 wine : for Jonadab, the son of Rechab, our father 
 (2 Kings x. 15), commanded us saying, Ye shall drink 
 no wine, neither ye nor your sons for ever : neither 
 shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, 
 nor have any : but all your days ye shall dwell in tents ; 
 that ye may live many days in the land where ye be 
 strangers. Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab, 
 the son of Rechab, our father, in all that he hath 
 charged us 
 
 “ And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechab- 
 ites, Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel. 
 Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab 
 your father, and kept all his precepts, and done accord- 
 ing unto all that he hath commanded you ; therefore 
 thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, Jonadab 
 the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before 
 me for ever.’’ 
 
 T he following account of the Rechabites is given by 
 the Rev. Joseph Wolff, missionary to the Jews : — 
 
 “ On my arrival at Julooha, I saw Jews wandering 
 about among the Arabs, and believing them to be 
 Rechabites on account of their wandering about in the 
 desert, I asked them the question, they answered, 4 No ; 
 but here is one who comes from the deserts of Mecca. 
 I saw a man standing before me, with the wild look and 
 dress of an Arab, holding his horse’s bridle in his hand, 
 
ACCOUNT OF THE RECHABITES. 
 
 271 
 
 I showed him the Bible, both in Hebrew and Arabic, 
 he read both languages, and was rejoiced to see the 
 Bible ; he was not acquainted with the New Testament. 
 After having proclaimed to him the tidings of salvation, 
 and made him a present of the Hebrew and Arabic 
 bibles and testaments, I asked him, ‘ Whose descendant 
 are you V Mousa (this was his name) said with a loud 
 voice, ‘ Come, and I will show you he then opened 
 
 the Bibie at the thirty-fifth chapter of Jeremiah, and 
 began to read from the fifth to the eleventh verse. I 
 asked ‘Where do you live?’ Referring to Genesis 
 x. 27, he replied, ‘ At Hadoram, now called Samar by 
 the Arabs, at Usal, now called Sanaa by the Arabs, and 
 [Gen. x. 30] at Mesha, now called Mecca, in the deserts 
 around those places. We drink no wine, and plant no 
 vineyard, and sow no seed, and live in tents as Jonadab 
 our father commanded us ; Hobab, the son of Jethro, 
 was our father too ; come to us, you will still find sixty 
 
272 
 
 ACCOUNT OF THE RECHABITES. 
 
 thousand in number, and you see thus the prophecy has 
 been fulfilled, “ Therefore thus saith the Lord of Hosts, 
 the God of Israel, Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not 
 want a man to stand before me for ever.” ’ 
 
 “ Saying this Mousa mounted his horse and galloped 
 off, leaving me more convinced than ever of the truth 
 of the Scriptures. 
 
 “ The Rechabites are descendants of Midian, son of 
 Abraham by Keturah ; and the example of the father 
 of the faithful seems to have been handed down through 
 Hobab and Rechab, through many generations, as it is 
 written, ‘ I know him, that he will command his children 
 and his household after him, and they shall keep the 
 way of the Lord to do justice and judgment.’ ” 
 
 “Recent discoveries,” observes Mr. Keith, “have 
 brought to light the miraculous preservation and exist- 
 ence, as a distinct people, of a less numerous, but not 
 less interesting race [than the Arabs] ‘ a plant which 
 grew up under the mighty cedar of Israel, but was 
 destined to flourish when that proud tree was levelled 
 to the earth.’ 4 Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God 
 of Israel, Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a 
 man to stand before me for ever*’ The Rechabites still 
 exist a £ distinct, and easily distinguishable’ people. 
 They boast of their descent from Rechab, profess pure 
 Judaism, and all know Hebrew. The account given of 
 them by Benjamin of Tudela, in the twelfth century, 
 has very recently been confirmed by Mr. Wolfl’; and, 
 as he witnessed, and heard from an intrepid ‘ Rechabite 
 cavalier,’ there is not a man wanting to stand up as a 
 son of Rechab.” — See Wolff’s Journal (1828), vol. ii. , 
 pp. 276, 331-336. Keith on the Prophecies, pp. 348, 350.. 
 
273 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Miscellaneous Observations — Leprosy — Eastern Potters — Smi- 
 ting on the Mouth — Significant Actions much used in the 
 East — Token of Enmity — Stones erected as memorials — 
 Eastern Games — Maternal Influence — Shrines — Spoils sus- 
 pended in Sacred places — Sacrifices offered to Idols in High 
 Places — Religious Marks — Religious Custom in Judea — in 
 China and Persia — Roman Soldiers — Military Subordina- 
 tion among the Romans — Barbarous Custom in Warfare — 
 Hiding Treasures. 
 
 LEPROSY. 
 
 Leviticus xiii. 46. 
 
 “ All the days wherein the plague shall be in him 
 . . . . [the leper] he shall dwell alone” 
 
 Mr. Carne, when in Cyprus writes, “ Near the foot 
 of the hill, in a most lonely spot, and in a wretched 
 cottage, lived a family of lepers. These unfortunate 
 people were avoided by all the other inhabitants, who 
 dreaded to come near their dwelling. The disease was 
 hereditary, for every one of their numerous family was 
 afflicted with it. Some of them stood at the door, and 
 looked the pictures of sadness and solitude. They 
 would be starved, did not some of the people who lived 
 in the plain bring food occasionally, and place it at a 
 short distance from the cottage. 
 
 “ So great is the horror entertained of this disease, 
 that the Mosaic law is fulfilled to the letter, of shutting 
 them out from all society, without the hope of ever re 
 turning to it.” — Game's Letters , pp. 465-466. 
 
274 
 
 LEPROSY. 
 
 2 Kings y. 27. 
 
 “ And he went out from his presence a leper as white 
 as snow.” 
 
 Mr. Caunter when in India, gives the following 
 account of a leper with whom he met. “ One evening, 
 as I was strolling along the seashore, I saw such an 
 extraordinary object before me, that I could not take my 
 eyes off it. A man was coming toward me, whose only 
 clothing [like that of all the lower orders of India] was 
 a piece of cloth wrapped round the body from the waist 
 downward. His skin was perfectly white, and it seemed 
 glazed as if seared with a hot iron. His head was un- 
 covered, and his hair, which was of precisely the same 
 color as the skin, hung down in long strips upon his 
 lean and withered shoulders. His eyes, except the 
 eyeballs, were of a dull murky red, and he kept them 
 fixed on the ground, as if it were painful to him to look 
 up, which I found to be the case. He walked slowly 
 and feebly, and he was so frightfully thin, that he seemed 
 to stand before me a living skeleton. He did not at first 
 venture to come within several yards of me ; I moved 
 toward him, but he * walked further from me, beseech- 
 ing me to give the smallest trifle to a miserable man, to 
 save him from starving to death, as he was an object of 
 universal scorn, and an outcast from his home and 
 friends. He told me not to come near a polluted crea- 
 ture, for whom no one felt pity. He told me he had 
 during many years, suffered dreadfully from the leprosy, 
 and though he was now cured, it had left upon him 
 these marks of pollution, which would prevent his ever 
 being allowed to go near his fellow-creatures again. 
 The color of his skin was changed to a corpse-like 
 white, and none could mistake that he had been a leper.” 
 75. 
 
EASTERN POTTERS. 
 
 275 
 
 EASTERN POTTERS. 
 
 Jeremiah xviii. 1-6. 
 
 “ The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, 
 saying, Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and 
 there will I cause thee to hear my words. Then I went 
 
 down to the potter’s house, and behold, he wrought a 
 work on the wheels ; and the vessel that he made of 
 clay was marred in the hand of the potter ; so he made 
 it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to 
 make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, 
 saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this 
 potter ? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the 
 potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of 
 Israel.” 
 
276 
 
 EASTERN POTTERS. 
 
 “ I hardly ever,” writes Captain Basil Hall,* “ passed 
 a Hindoo’s hut, before which a swarthy turbaned inhab- 
 itant of the East was whirling round the potter’s wheel, 
 without having my thoughts carried back to some of 
 those beautiful narrations of Scripture, which fasten 
 themselves so early and so firmly on our minds. I had 
 once the good fortune, as I must ever consider it, to see 
 a workman accidently break the pot, which had cost 
 him no small trouble to fashion. He immediately col- 
 lected the fragments, dabbed the clay together again, 
 and with the industry of an ant, set about the recon- 
 struction of his vessel. As the whole process recalled 
 an illustration I remembered to have seen used some- 
 where in the Old Testament, I set about hunting for 
 the passage, and was delighted to find what I had just 
 witnessed described in Jeremiah xviii.” 
 
 SMITING ON THE MOUTH. 
 
 Acts xxiii. 2. 
 
 “ And the high-priest Ananias commanded them that 
 stood by him to smite him on the mouth.” 
 
 Among Eastern nations, the shoe is always con- 
 sidered as vile, and to be smitten with it, is the last act 
 of ignominy. An Eastern governor, wishing to extort 
 money from two of his subjects, demanded a large sum 
 of them in tribute. They answered the king, that all 
 that was due had been sent ; when the latter, enraged 
 at their refusal, commanded them to be beaten, which 
 was done accordingly ; and whenever they attempted to 
 say anything in their own defence, they were smitten 
 on the mouth with a shoe, the heel of which was shod 
 w ith iron. — Morier’s Second Journey through Persia, 
 pp. 94, 95. 
 
 See Fragments of Voyages , $c. 
 
SIGNIFICANT ACTIONS MUCH USED. 
 
 27? 
 
 SIGNIFICANT ACTIONS MUCH USED IN THE EAST. 
 
 Job xxix. 10. 
 
 “ The princes refrained talking, and laid their hand 
 on their mouth.” 
 
 When the Eastern people wish to be silent, they 
 place their hand upon their mouth to express their 
 intentions by actions, and their sentiments by attitude. 
 Many instances of this practice are to be found. “ On 
 our taking possession of Rosetta,” writes Monsieur 
 Denon, “ at an entertainment which was given, a young 
 Greek came up to me, kissed my shoulder, and with his 
 finger on his lips, without uttering a single syllable, 
 slipped privately into my hand a nosegay which he had 
 brought me. This simple demonstration completely un- 
 folded all his sensations, and was expressive of his 
 political situation, his fears, and his hopes.” — Denorts 
 Travels m Egypt. 
 
 TOKEN OF ENMITY. 
 
 2 Kings iii. 19. 
 
 Ye shall mar every good piece of land with stones.” 
 
 ^ Ecclesiastes iii. 5. 
 
 “ A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather 
 stones together.” 
 
 It is a frequent practice in Arabia, for persons to 
 place stones on the ground of those with whom they 
 are at variance, as a warning, that any one who dares to 
 till that field shall be slam by them. The Israelites, 
 having conquered Moab, probably placed such stones in 
 their best grounds, thus interdicting them from tilling 
 them. The royal preacher’s words may signify, in 
 accordance with this ancient custom, “ There is a time 
 M 
 
278 
 
 TOKEN OF ENMITY. 
 
 to give to nations with whom we have been at war, the 
 sign of reconciliation, by removing the stones from their 
 fields ; and a time when we must still leave, or place 
 them there, as tokens of displeasure.” — Harmer* s Obser- 
 vations , vol. iv., pp. 392-394. 
 
 STONES ERECTED AS MEMORIALS IN THE EAST. 
 
 Genesis xxviii. 18-22. 
 
 “ And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took 
 the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up 
 for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. . . , . 
 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, if God will be with 
 me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give 
 me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come 
 again to my father’s house in peace ; then shall the Lord 
 be my God: and this stone, which I have set for a pillar* 
 shall be God’s house, and of all that thou shall give me, 
 I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” 
 
 Mr. Morier thus illustrates the preceding passage ; 
 he was ascending the rock of Istakhar, in Persia : — 
 
 “We ascended on the northwest side, winding round 
 the foot of the rock, and making our way through 
 narrow and intricate paths. I remarked that our old 
 guide every here and there placed a stone on a con- 
 spicuous bit of rock, or two stones one upon the other, at 
 the same time uttering some words, which I learned were 
 a prayer for our safe return. This explained to me 
 what I had frequently seen before in the East, and 
 particularly on the high road leading to a great town, 
 whence the town is first seen, and where the Eastern 
 traveller sets up his stone accompanied by a devout 
 exclamation, as it were, in token of his safe arrival. 
 The action of our guide appears to illustrate the vow 
 which Jacob made when he travelled to Padan-aram, in 
 token of which he placed a stone and set it up for a 
 
STONES ERECTED AS MEMORIALS 
 
 279 
 
 pillar. — In seeing a stone on the road placed in this 
 position, or one stone upon another, it implies that some 
 traveller has there made a vow, or a thanksgiving. 
 Nothing is so natural in a journey over a dreary country 
 as for a solitary traveller to set himself down fatigued, 
 and to make the vow that Jacob did. 4 If God be with 
 me, and keep me in this way that I go, so that I reach 
 my father’s house in peace,’ then will I give so much in 
 charity ; or again, that on first seeing the place which 
 he has toiled so long to reach, the traveller should sit 
 down and make a thanksgiving, in both cases setting up 
 a stone as a memorial.” — Morier’s Second Journey 
 through Persia, Armenia, and Asia Minor, p. 84. 
 
 7 ( 
 
280 
 
 EASTERN GAMES. 
 
 EASTERN GAMES. 
 
 2 Timothy iv. 7. 
 
 u I have fought a good fight ; I have finished my 
 course.” 
 
 “ From Megara,” writes Mr. Wilson, the missionary 
 to Greece, “ we set off at daylight for Corinth. On 
 the road we skirted the Corinthian gulf, a most de- 
 lightful walk. At the head of the waters we occasionally 
 obtained, as we turned a projecting angle of the coast, 
 a splendid view of the towering citadel, high in the air, 
 yet black and frowning. We crossed the isthmus of 
 Corinth about noon. This, could one fail to recollect ? 
 was the sight of some of those celebrated games so often 
 alluded to by St. Paul. In his epistle to Timothy is a 
 most elegant and endearing reference to these contests 
 of the ancient Greeks. ‘ I have fought the good fight 
 — I have finished my course — I have kept the faith : 
 henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteous- 
 ness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me 
 at that day : and not to me only, but unto all them also 
 that love his appearing.’ The ‘ course’ was now 
 mapped out at my feet. Around this thousands used to 
 congregate to witness the dexterity of the wrestler, or 
 the velocity of the racer ; and the judges sat by to 
 award the prize to victors. How interesting is the allu- 
 sion to these facts made by St. Paul, in addressing the 
 infant church of Christ, 4 Wherefore seeing that we 
 also,’ not these candidates, but we professors, ‘ are en- 
 compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let 
 us lay aside every weight,’ everything that might encum- 
 ber us in our course, ‘ and run with patience the race 
 set before us.’ And in another place, this zealous 
 apostle addresses the very men, who in other ages as- 
 sembled where my feet now stood, in beautiful allusion 
 to these ancient contests. ‘ So run, that ye may obtain,’ 
 
EASTERN GAMES. 
 
 281 
 
 obtain the crown of glory.” How animating the motives 
 here held out to the Christian ! Those who have already 
 finished their course are represented as witnesses, a 
 cloud of witnesses, around ours. They anxiously 
 watch our progress, they long for our success ; they 
 await the time when we shall gain the victory, for ‘ they, 
 without us, cannot be made perfect.’ Well then, may 
 each say 
 
 Awake, my soul ! stretch every nerve, 
 
 And press with vigor on. 
 
 The Grecian wrestlers and racers exerted themselves 
 to obtain a corruptible crown, (corruptible, indeed, for 
 it was of laurel or parsley!) but we,' an incorruptible. 
 And wo unto us, if we exhibit less energy than they ! 
 So run we then, not as uncertainly ; so fight we, not as 
 one that beateth the air ! — Rev. S. S. Wilsoris Malta , fyc. 
 
 MATERNAL INFLUENCE. 
 
 1 Samuel xx. 30. 
 
 “ Then Saul’s anger was kindled against Jonathan, 
 and he said unto him, Thou son of the perverse rebel- 
 ious woman.” 
 
 When the Eastern people are angry with any one, 
 they abuse and vilify his parents. Saul did not intend 
 to reproach his wife personally, but to intimate his wrath 
 against her son. This treatment is acutely felt by the 
 children. In every Eastern family, the great object of 
 respect and devotion is the mother. Witness the fa- 
 miliar expression, “ Pull my father’s beard, but do not 
 speak ill of my mother.” In Africa, maternal affection 
 is always conspicuous, and creates a correspondent return 
 of tenderness in the child. “ Strike me,” said a travel- 
 ler’s servant to his master, “ but do not curse my mother 
 Urqucharfs Spirit of the East ; and Note on this passage 
 in Treasury Bible . 
 
 24 * 
 
282 
 
 SHRINES. 
 
 SHRINES. 
 
 Acts xix. 24. 
 
 “ A certain man, named Demetrius,* a silversmith, 
 which made silver shrines for Diana, brought no small 
 gain unto the craftsmen.” 
 
 “ I remember once entering a church in the island 
 of Cefalonia,” writes the Rev. S. S. Wilson, “ seated on 
 a hill overhanging the sea. To this church poor 
 mariners often resort after storms. L remarked there 
 what I had often seen also in papal churches in Malta ; 
 over the shrine of some favorite saint were ranged a 
 number of arms, legs, eyes, pictures of ships in danger, 
 and so forth, some in white wax, some in silver, and 
 some in gold. What are these ? I asked. These are 
 oblations of gratitude, placed on the wrong altar. The 
 offerers have been at the point of death in sickness, or 
 have suffered under some local disease, or in fine, have 
 been in a storm ; and in their distress, have made vows 
 to the saint, which they fulfilled by presenting these 
 limbs and rude paintings ” — Rev. S . S. Wilson's Malta . 
 
 SPOILS SUSPENDED IN SACRED PLACES. 
 
 2 Samuel viii. 7-11. 
 
 “ And David took the shields of gold which were on 
 the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jeru- 
 salem ; . . . . which King David did dedicate unto the 
 Lord, with the silver and gold .... of all nations which 
 he subdued.” 
 
 When the Tegeans on one occasion conquered the 
 Lacedaemonians, who had attacked them with such an 
 assurance of victory, that they had brought with them 
 fetters to bind the prisoners with, they placed these very 
 
SPOILS SUSPENDED IN SACRED PLACES. 
 
 283 
 
 fetters upon the Lacedaemonian captives, and sent them 
 to work in their fields. These very chains, Herodotus 
 records, were preserved in his remembrance, hung round 
 the temple of the goddess Minerva.* This custom of 
 suspending in sacred buildings the spoils taken from an 
 enemy, was begun in the most barbarous ages, and at 
 the present day continued. It is usual among the 
 moderns to suspend in churches the colors taken from 
 the enemy. 
 
 SACRIFICES OFFERED TO IDOLS IN HIGH 
 PLACES. 
 
 Deuteronony xii. 2, 3. 
 
 “ Ye shall utterly destroy all the places wherein the 
 nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon 
 the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every 
 green tree.” 
 
 It appears to have been from the first, the custom of 
 the heathen idolaters, to offer their sacrifices to their 
 gods on the tops of hills and mountains, and in groves 
 and shady places (see verse 3). 
 
 The Israelites were therefore commanded, not to offer 
 their burnt-offerings in every place they saw , but to 
 offer them only in the place the Lord should choose 
 (verse 13, 14). The ancient Persians offered, from the 
 summits of the highest mountains, sacrifices to Jove, 
 distinguishing by that appellation all the expanse of the 
 firmament. (Herodotus bk. I., ch. cxxxi.) 
 
 The temples where the heathens went to consult their 
 oracles, were also for the most part built in mountainous., 
 places. 
 
 * Book I., lxvi 
 
284 
 
 RELIGIOUS MARKS. 
 
 RELIGIOUS MARKS. 
 
 Deuteronomy xxxii. 5. 
 
 “ Their spot is not the spot of his children.” 
 
 “ One of the most striking peculiarities in Madras is 
 the universality with which the men and women, old and 
 young, bear upon their foreheads, arms, &c., the marks 
 peculiar to their religion. Some have a red or blue 
 spot on their forehead ; others, blue, red, white, or 
 yellow perpendicular lines ; others horizontal lines. 
 Some, in addition to these, have ashes or clay rubbed in 
 lines on their arms. I could not help recurring con- 
 tinually to that text in Deuteronomy, ‘ Their spot is 
 not the spot of his children.’ The allusion is, doubtless, 
 to a similar custom.” — Rev. H. Malcom's Travels. 
 
 RELIGIOUS CUSTOM IN JUDEA. 
 
 Luke ii. 42. 
 
 “ And when he [Jesus] was twelve years old, they 
 went up to Jerusalem.” 
 
 The Jew boys, when they enter their thirteenth 
 year, go through the following ceremony, the poorer 
 classes in private, the richer Jews in the synagogue. 
 I had the opportunity of witnessing one of these. The 
 boy, who was the son of a rabbi, appeared in the syna- 
 gogue, well dressed, with the ten commandments fast- 
 ened on his forehead in a small leathern bag, and the 
 same also on his left arm. The morning service was 
 then read. After this, the lad advanced to the altar, 
 and offered up a prayer to the Almighty, in permitting 
 him to attain that age which is here considered as the 
 commencement of manhood. A religious discourse 
 was then delivered by him for nearly an hour. — Note to 
 Brooke's Travels in Spain and Morocco . 
 
RELIGIOUS CUSTOM IN CHINA AND PERSIA. 285 
 
 RELIGIOUS CUSTOM IN CHINA AND PERSIA. 
 
 Leviticus xi. 33. 
 
 “ And every earthen vessel, whereinto any of them 
 falleth, whatsoever is in it shall be unclean ; and ye shall 
 break it.” 
 
 It was usual in ancient times, and is still the custom 
 in China, Persia, and many other countries, for each 
 guest to have a little table for himself, upon which dishes 
 are placed separately for him. In India many persons 
 never eat out of the same dish as others, believing it 
 would be sinful to do so, and thinking their dishes, &c., 
 to be polluted and spoiled if touched by persons of 
 another religion, they break them. Dr. Clark found a 
 similar custom among the Turks, He was one night 
 entertained very kindly by a Turk and his family ; after 
 leaving the place, the next morning Dr. Clark returned 
 for a book he had left behind, when he found his kind 
 host and all the family employed in breaking and 
 throwing away the earthenware plates and dishes, from 
 which his guests had eaten, and purifying the other 
 utensils and articles of furniture by passing them through 
 fire or water. 
 
 ROMAN SOLDIERS. 
 
 2 Timothy ii. 3. 
 
 “ Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier 
 of Jesus Christ.” 
 
 What hardship a Roman soldier endured, the follow- 
 ing passage in Josephus will evince. It forms a striking 
 commentary upon his text. “ When they march, v 
 writes the historian, “ out of their encampment, they 
 advance in silence, and in great decorum, each man 
 keeping his proper rank, just as in a battle. Their in- 
 
286 
 
 ROMAN SOLDIERS. 
 
 famry is armed with breast-plates and helmets, and 
 they carry a sword on each side. The sword they wear 
 on their left side is by far the longest, for that on the 
 right is not above a span’s length. That select body 
 of infantry, which forms part of the general’s life-guards, 
 is armed with lances and bucklers ; but the rest of the 
 phalanx have a spear and a long shield, beside which 
 they bear a saw and a basket, a spade, and a hatchet ; 
 they also carry with them a cord, a sickle, a chain, and 
 provisions for three days, so that a Roman foot soldier 
 is but very little different from a beast of burden.” — 
 Josephus. 
 
 MILITARY SUBORDINATION AMONG THE ROMANS. 
 
 Matthew viii. 9. 
 
 “ I am a man under authority, having soldiers under 
 me, and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth ; and to 
 another, Come, and he cometh ; and to my servant, Do 
 this, and he doeth it.” 
 
 The strictest subordination and obedience were ex- 
 acted of every Roman soldier. The Roman infantry 
 were divided into three principal classes, each of which 
 was composed of thirty companies, and each company 
 contained two hundred men. Over every company were 
 placed two centurions (one to each hundred), who were, 
 however, very far from being equal in rank and honor, 
 though possessing the same office. Two of the classes 
 were esteemed more honorable than the other, and had 
 their centurions elected first ; and these took precedency 
 of the centurions of the remaining class, who were 
 elected last . The humble centurion of the Gospel 
 appears to have been of the inferior order. He was a 
 man “ under authority,” of other centurions, and had 
 none under him but the hundred men, who appear to 
 
MILITARY SUBORDINATION. 
 
 287 
 
 have been in a state of the strictest military subordina- 
 tion, as well as of loving subjection to him. 
 
 Even in the present day we may find the same sub- 
 ordination, exemplified in the East. A captive chief, 
 who was marching to the British headquarters, on being 
 asked concerning the motives that induced him to quit 
 his native land, and enter into the service of the rajah 
 of Nepal (as he had done), replied in the following very 
 impressive manner : “ My master sent me. • He says to 
 his people, to one, Go you to Ghurwall ; to another, 
 Go you to Cashmire, or to any distant part. My lord, 
 thy slave obeys ; it is done. None ever inquires into the 
 reason of an order of the rajah.” — Dr. A , Clarke ; 
 Fraser's Notes. 
 
 BARBAROUS CUSTOM IN EASTERN WARFARE. 
 
 2 Kings x. 8 
 
 “ And there came a messenger and told him [Jehu], 
 saying, They have brought the heads of the king’s sons ; 
 and he said, Lay ye them in two heaps at the entering 
 in of the gate until the morning.” 
 
 Mr. Morier, in an account he gives of a treaty of 
 peace between two armies, one of Russians, and the 
 other of Persians, says, “ One of the articles was, that 
 their [the Russian’s] heads were not to be cut off ; an 
 act which in Persian and Turkish warfare is a common 
 custom. During this fight ten tomauns were given for 
 every head of the enemy that was brought to the prince 
 [of Persia ]; and it has been known to occur, after the 
 combat was over, that prisoners have been put to death 
 in cold blood, in order that the heads, which are imme- 
 diately despatched to the king, and deposited in heaps 
 at the palace-gate, might make a more considerable show. 
 Such barbarities make us shudder in England, but they 
 only tend to show how little the manners of Asia have 
 changed since the remotest times.”— Morier' s Second 
 Journey through Persia, <^c„ p. 186. 
 
288 
 
 HIDING TREASURES. 
 
 HIDING TREASURES. 
 
 Matthew xxv. 18 . 
 
 “ But he that had received one [talent] went and 
 digged in the earth, and hid his Lord’s money.” 
 
 The practice of hiding treasures, is one of almost 
 daily occurrence in the East. In the year 1813, the 
 pacha of Egypt demanded fifteen thousand purses from 
 those who kept the money of the country. Twelve 
 hundred'purses were required from an old man named 
 Felteos, who had been a chief financier in former times. 
 He refused to pay this, alleging his poverty, but at last 
 he offered to give two hundred purses. The pacha sent 
 for him, threatened, and seeing him obstinate, ordered 
 him to be beaten. After receiving five hundred strokes, 
 and being nearly half dead, he declared he would pay no 
 more than two hundred purses. The governor thought 
 he was telling the truth, but his son Ibrahim Pacha, 
 who was present, said he was sure the man had more 
 money. Felteos, therefore received three hundred 
 additional strokes, after which he confessed that he was 
 possessed of the sum demanded, and promised to pay 
 it. He was then permitted to return home ; and at the 
 end of a fortnight, being so much recovered as to be 
 able to walk about, commissioners were sent to his house 
 by the pacha, laborers were called, and Felteos de- 
 scended with them to a lower room in his house, at the 
 bottom of which they removed a large stone which 
 closed up a small passage, containing a vaulted niche, 
 where two iron chests were deposited. On opening 
 these, two thousand purses were found, twelve hundred 
 of which the pacha took, and left the remainder to the 
 owner, who died three months after, not in consequence 
 of the blows he had received, but of grief for the loss 
 of his money. Had he been able to remove the treas- 
 ure secretly, he would probably have done so, had not 
 
HIDING TREASURES. 
 
 289 
 
 a guard been posted in his house immediately on his 
 promising to pay. The pacha, conceiving that the 
 money was concealed in some secret spot, according 
 to a practice general in the East. — Burckhardt's 
 Travels. 
 
 25 
 
290 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 HOSPITALITY. Chap. I. 
 
 A traveller mentions that while in the desert, near 
 Sinai, anticipating not meeting for days with a living crea- 
 ture, himself and his attendants were suddenly cheered by 
 seeing an Arab woman pass before them, and, overtaking 
 her, she recognised in one of his companions a friend of her 
 tribe, and, in the same spirit, and almost in the same words 
 which would have been used by her ancestors four thousand 
 years ago, she asked them to her tent (not far from the 
 road, but completely hidden from view), and promised 
 them a lamb or a kid for supper. “ Her husband was 
 stretched on the ground in front of his tent, and welcomed 
 us with an air and manner that belonged to the desert, but 
 which a king on his throne could not have excelled. He 
 was the imbodied personification of all my conceptions of 
 a patriarch : a large loose frock, a striped handkerchief on 
 his head, bare legs, sandals on his feet, and a long white 
 
 beard Almost immediately after we were seated, he 
 
 took his shepherd’s crook, and, assisted by his son, selected 
 a lamb from the flock for the evening meal ” — Inci- 
 
 dents of Travel , vol. ii., pp. 7, 8. 
 
 CARAVANSARIES. Chap. I. 
 
 Jeremiah ix., 2. 
 
 “ 0 that I had in the wilderness a lodging-place of way- 
 faring men, that I might leave my people, and go from 
 them.” 
 
 The prophet here clearly alludes to those solitary khans 
 or lodging-places for travellers, which are often at equal 
 distances, in Turkey, between large towns. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 291 
 
 The places of accommodation for travellers in the East, 
 are properly three — caravansaries, khans, and menzils. 
 The first are buildings designed to afford shelter to trav- 
 ellers in deserts, and other remote situations ; khans are 
 similar buildings in a town ; and menzil is a word of rather 
 indefinite application, but seems generally to denote the 
 house of the persons who are accustomed to accommodate 
 travellers in places where there is no khan or caravansary. 
 The superior class of caravansaries appear very striking 
 objects to the stranger, who takes them for palaces, for- 
 tresses, or castles; but this first impression wears off on a 
 nearer approach, when it is seen that no enclosed buildings 
 rise above the level of the enclosing wall. This wall is 
 generally upward of twenty feet high, and it sometimes 
 extends one hundred yards on each side of the square which 
 it encloses. It is strongly built of fine brick-work, com- 
 monly based on stone, and is ornamented at the top. In 
 the centre of the front wall is the entrance, a tall and 
 spacious archway, over which are sometimes chambers 
 crowned with superb domes. These form the places of 
 honor. On each side, under the arched roof of the 
 portico, are the keeper’s rooms, and shops, where the com- 
 modities most required by travellers are sold. Passing 
 through this archway, the spectator perceives a sort of 
 piazza extending on every side of the interior of the quad- 
 rangle, leaving a spacious area in the middle. Arched 
 recesses in the wall now appear to be apartments, divided 
 from each other by walls, open in front, neatly paved, and 
 sometimes possessing a fire-place, while compartments cut 
 out in the thick wall serve as cupboards. A small door 
 conducts to an inner room, seldom resorted to, of an oblong 
 shape, receiving its only light from a chimney opposite the 
 door, and having also a range of cupboards, about three 
 feet from the floor. In the middle of each of the three 
 sides of the building, is an apartment much more spacious 
 and lofty than any other, and not divided into two rooms. 
 These are used as places where the different inmates resort, 
 to smoke, converse, or tell tales. The stables of the cara- 
 vansary extend along a covered lane, between the back 
 wall of the apartments, and the outermost wall of the 
 building; and along this wall there extends, within the 
 stable, another series of cell-like apartments, for servants 
 and poor people. But the spacious central court-yard is 
 
292 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 always used as a stable when the weather is fair. In the 
 centre of the court is an elevated platform of masonry, the 
 roof of a subterraneous chamber, a most refreshing retreat 
 during the great mid-day heats. Sometimes the place of 
 this platform is occupied by the parapet of the deep well 
 or reservoir from which the caravansary is supplied with 
 water. At the angles of the square, flights of steps conduct 
 to the flat roof of the building, resorted to in the cool of 
 the evening. The traveller brings his bedding, culinary 
 utensils, and some articles of provision, with him. Few 
 caravansaries, however, are thus complete, and many are 
 suffered to fall into decay. 
 
 The largest number of them in Persia have been built 
 by wealthy individuals wishing to perpetuate their names, 
 or as acts of charity designed to purchase future rewards. 
 Many are of royal origin, and very ancient. — See Penny 
 Magazine , No. 166. 
 
 SEPULCHRES OF THE KINGS OF JUDAH. Chap. II. 
 
 2 Kings ix., 28. 
 
 u And his servants carried him [Ahaziah, king of Judah] 
 in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his sepulchre 
 with his fathers in the city of David.” 
 
 2 Kings xxiii., 30. 
 
 “ And his servants carried him [Josiah] in a chariot dead 
 from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried 
 him in his own sepulchre.” 
 
 The tombs of the kings [of Judah] are above half a mile 
 from the wall of Jerusalem. In the midst of a hollow, 
 rocky, and adorned with a few trees, is the entrance ; you 
 then find a large apartment, above fifty feet long, at the 
 side of which a low door (surmounted by a beautiful frieze) 
 leads into a series of small chambers, in the walls of which 
 are several deep recesses, hewn out of the rock, of the size 
 of the human body. There are six or seven of these low 
 and dark apartments, one or two of which are adorned 
 with vine-leaves and clusters of grapes. Many parts of the 
 stone coffins, beautifully ornamented, are strewed on the 
 floor; and it should seem that some hand of ravage had 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 293 
 
 broken them to pieces, with the view of finding something 
 valuable within. The sepulchres of the judges, so called, 
 are situated in a wild spot about two miles from the city. 
 They bear much resemblance to those of the kings, but are 
 not so handsome or spacious. — Carrie's Letters, p. 294. 
 
 EASTERN ROOFS. Chap. II. 
 
 Proverbs xxvii., 15. 
 
 A continual dropping in a very rainy day, and a conten- 
 tious woman, are alike.” 
 
 The following is a passage from the Rev. J. Hartley’s 
 Journals; he was then visiting the Apocalyptic churches. 
 
 April 21. — “ Last night we retired to rest in what appeared 
 one of the best rooms which we have occupied during the 
 journey ; but, at midnight, we were roused by the rain 
 pouring through the roof, and 1 found it necessary to rise 
 and dress. In flat-roofed houses this is a frequent occur- 
 rence. I discover in this adventure an illustration of Prov- 
 xxvii., 15. The Septuagint has it, 4 Drops of rain in a 
 wintry day drive a man out of his house ; and just so a railing 
 woman.' The Vulgate speaks expressly of the roof through 
 which the water passeth. I was literally driven out of the 
 house by the rain descending through the roof; and sought 
 for shelter in the corridor, which was better protected.” — 
 Hartley's Researches , pp. 283, 284. 
 
 NAILS IN EASTERN WALLS. Chap. IL 
 Ezra ix., S. 
 
 “ And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from 
 the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to 
 give us a nail* in his holy place , that our God may lighten 
 our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage.” 
 
 Isaiah xxii., 23. 
 
 444 And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place 
 
 a pin : that is, a constant and sure abode. See margin. 
 
 25* 
 
294 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 and they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father’s 
 house ” see Zech. x. 4. 
 
 Speaking of the houses at Damascus, Mr. Wilson says" 
 u In building, the plan is to fix nails or pins of wood in 
 the walls while still soft, to suspend such domestic articles 
 as are required, since, consisting altogether of clay, they 
 are too frail to permit of the operation of a hammer.” — Rae 
 Wilson’s Travels , vol. ii., p. 118. 
 
 'It is evidently to this custom that the sacred writers refer 
 in the texts quoted above, making it expressive of security 
 and perpetuity. For Ezra, after speaking of the afflictions 
 of his people, and representing them as delivered to cap- 
 tivity, and the sword, in strange lands, where they wan- 
 dered defenceless, having no secure dwelling, nor place of 
 refuge, adds, “ And now for a little space grace hath been 
 showed from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to 
 escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place’’ thus re- 
 storing them to their own land, to the city and the house 
 which he had chosen to put his name there, giving them 
 once again a constant and sure abode in his holy mountain, 
 and temple. 
 
 And in like manner, Isaiah, when prophesying in the 
 name of the Lord concerning the honors which should be 
 conferred upon Eliakim (chap, xxii.), declares that he 
 shall be fastened as a nail in a sure place , thus signifying 
 his security, and that upon him shall hang all the glory of 
 his father’s house. 
 
 The words “ sure place,” are very expressive, for usually 
 the walls of the Eastern houses are most insecure. Of those 
 at Damascus, Mr. Wilson observes, that they are built of 
 the most perishable materials, namely, bricks, not dried by 
 fire, but by the heat of the sun ; and that in summer they 
 crack and crumble with the heat, creating a most offensive 
 dust, especially when rain is followed by wind; while, 
 during wet weather, the slough arising from them renders 
 the streets almost impassable. — Se Rae Wilson’s Travels , 
 yoL ii., pp. 117-119. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 295 
 
 GREEK FUNERALS. Chap. VIII. 
 
 Luke vii. 12-15. 
 
 “ Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, 
 there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his 
 mother, and she was a widow : and much people of the city 
 was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had com- 
 passion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he came 
 and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. 
 And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he 
 that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he deliv- 
 ered him to his mother.” 
 
 In describing the funeral rites, &c., of the Greeks, Mr. 
 Hartley writes : “ Very frequently, while you are silently 
 
 engaged in your apartment, the stillness of a Turkish town, 
 where no rumbling of wheels is ever heard, is interrupted 
 by the distant sound of the funeral chant of the Greek 
 priests. As the voices grow more loud, you hasten to the 
 window to behold the procession. The priests move first, 
 bearing their burning tapers, and by their dark and flowing 
 robes give an idea of mourning in harmony with the occa- 
 sion. The corpse is always exhibited to full view. It is 
 placed upon a bier, which is borne aloft upon the shoulders, 
 and is dressed in the best and gayest garments possessed by 
 the deceased. I have sometimes seen a young female, who 
 had departed in the bloom of life and beauty, adorned 
 rather as a bride to meet the bridegroom , than as one who 
 was to be the tenant of the chamber of corruption. The 
 young man at Nain, who was restored to life by the com- 
 mand of our Savior, was doubtless carried on a bier of this 
 kind. When our Lord intimated the design of interposing 
 in his favor, they that bare him stood still. And when the 
 miraculous energy was exerted, he that was dead sat up , 
 and began to speak . (Luke vii. 15.) 
 
 “ The closing part of the Greek burial-service, commen- 
 cing with the words, 4 Come, and impart the last embrace,’ 
 is very affecting. The friends of the departed press forward 
 from every part of the church, and kiss his cold and pallid 
 lips, and weep over him. It is considered a very peculiar 
 mark of disrespect to neglect this last office of affection.” — 
 Bartley's Researches , pp. 107, 108. 
 
296 
 
 CONTENTS, 
 
 SITTING, A POSTURE OF MOURNING IN THE EAST, 
 Chap. VIII. 
 
 Lamentations ii. 10. 
 
 “ The elders of the daughter of Zion sit upon the ground* 
 
 and keep silence : the virgins of Jerusalem hang 
 
 down their heads to the ground.” 
 
 Matthew xxvii. 61. 
 
 “ And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary* 
 sitting over against the sepulchre.” See also John xi., 31,35. 
 
 Sitting is, among the Jews, the posture expressive of 
 grief. After the decease of a parent, the children sit for 
 seven days, on very low stools, without shoes, as mourners 
 for the dead.* 
 
 Mr. Wilson speaks of finding a crowd of women, “ sitting 
 around a recently dug grave (at Bethlehem), lamenting the 
 loss of a native of the village, whose body was laid in it. 
 Many of them hung down their heads upon their breasts ; 
 others were wringing their hands, and wept bitterly, look- 
 ing at the same time into the grave.” .... 
 
 “Revelation seems to warrant the conclusion, that the 
 posture of these women, sitting on the ground, and going 
 through a scene expressive of grief, is a very ancient custom, 
 since we find this exhibition corresponds with that made 
 by the children of Israel after the destruction of Jerusalem.’* 
 (Lam. ii. 10.) 
 
 “ The Jews lamented their dispersion in a similar posture. 
 
 * By the rivers of Babylon there we sat down; yea , we wept r 
 when we remembered Zion.* In reference to these, one of 
 the prophets alludes to the desolation of Judea, on account 
 of sin. ‘She being desolate, shall sit upon the ground/ 
 (Isaiah iii. 26.) And, it may be added, as a very striking 
 fact, that Judea is symbolically represented on Roman 
 medals by the figure of a female, in a sitting posture, at 
 the foot of a palm-tree, with her head bent, as if she were 
 letting fall her tears upon the ground. The legend is, 
 ‘Judsea Capta.’ ”f — Rae Wilson’s Travels , vol i., pp. 275 
 —277. 
 
 * See a work entitled, Both one in Christ , by A. M. Myers, p. 62. 
 t This coin was struck by Vespasian, on the capture of Jerusalem.. 
 The palm-tree is an emblem of Judea, the woman of Jerusalem. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 297 
 
 Mr. Came (in pp. 332 and 333 of his Letters) writes: 
 “ A female, with part of her robe drawn over her head, or 
 veiled, was seen seated by the tombs of her relations on the 
 summit of Mount Moriah, or along its sides, just beneath 
 the walls.” 
 
 PLOUGHING. Chap. X. 
 
 Psalm cxxix. 3. 
 
 “ The ploughers ploughed upon my back ; they made long 
 their furrows.” 
 
 On his road to Jerusalem, Mr. Wilson remarks, “The 
 husbandmen with ploughs in a state of patriarchal rude- 
 ness, were tilling the soil ; and what is singular, they 
 strewed the surface of the field with seeds, and then 
 ploughed them in. The peasants engaged in this culti- 
 vation were, in general, armed ; but whether this was the 
 usage of the country, or to defend them from being robbed 
 of their corn, I could not ascertain. One thing, however, 
 we know, is, that it was common for seed to be stolen, as 
 we may find by referring to the inspired page. (1 Sam. 
 xxiii. 1; Job. v. 5; Psalm cxxvi. 6.) The furrows are 
 made in a direct line , and an allusion to this appears to be 
 involved in the complaint of the royal Psalmist. (Psalm 
 cxxix. 3.”) 
 
 Speaking of the land about Ephesus, the same traveller 
 writes, “ The penetration of the plough into the land is 
 very shallow, and the furrows are long.” — Rae Wilson's 
 Travels , vol. i., p. 185 ; ii., p. 217. 
 
 THE OX-GOAD. Chap. X. 
 
 Judges iii. 31. 
 
 “ And after him was Shamgar, the son of Anath, which 
 slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox-goad : 
 and he also delivered Israel.” 
 
 The goad used in Palestine and Syria, for driving oxen 
 while ploughing, is of “ extraordinary length, sharp at one 
 
298 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 end for driving the cattle, and at the other is a kind of 
 spade for cleansing the plough from the weeds and mud 
 that retard its motion, so that such goad is necessary to 
 avoid the encumbrance of two instruments.” — Rae Wilson's 
 Travels , vol. ii., p. 157. 
 
 Mr. Maundrell describes this implement, which he says 
 he found “about eight feet long; and at the bigger end 
 about six inches in circumference, armed at the lesser end 
 with a sharp prickle for driving the oxen ; and at the other 
 end with a small paddle of iron, strong, and massive, for 
 cleansing the plough from the clay.”— Maundrell's Travels . 
 
 “ It was, no doubt, this latter part of the instrument which 
 Shangar used as a battle-axe, and thus killed so many of 
 his enemies.” — Hartley's Researches , p. 309. 
 
 WINNOWING. Chap. X. 
 
 Isaiah xxx. 24. 
 
 “ The oxen likewise, and the young asses that ear the 
 ground, shall eat clean provender which hath been win- 
 nowed with the shovel and with the fan.” 
 
 Mr. Hartley observes, “ I see the Greeks frequently win- 
 nowing with the shovel." — Hartley's Researches , p. 366. 
 
 PITS FOR CORN. Chap X. 
 
 Jeremiah xli. 8. 
 
 “We have treasures in the field, of wheat, and of barley, 
 and of oil, and of honey.” 
 
 These “ treasures in the field” were doubtless laid up in 
 subterranean pits, similar to the mattamores in Barbary, in 
 which, Dr. Shaw informs us, they deposite the grain when 
 winnowed ; two or three hundred of them being sometimes 
 together, and the smallest holding four hundred bushels. 
 The same mode of keeping corn prevails in Syria and the 
 Holy Land. — Note on this passage in Treasury Bible ... 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 299 
 
 GRASS. Chap. X. 
 
 Isaiah xl. 6, 7. 
 
 “All flesh is grass, and all the godliness thereof is as the 
 flower of the field : the grass withereth, the flower fadeth : 
 because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it : surely the 
 people is grass.’ 5 
 
 “ The very affecting images of Scripture, which compare 
 the short-lived existence of man to the decay of the vege- 
 table creation, are scarcely understood in this country. The 
 verdure is perpetual in England. It is difficult to discover 
 a time when it can be said, The grass withereth. But let 
 the traveller visit the beautiful plain of Smyrna, or any 
 other part of the East, in the month of May, and revisit it 
 toward the end of June, and he will perceive the force and 
 beauty of these allusions. In May, an appearance of fresh 
 verdure and of rich luxuriance everywhere meets the eye ; 
 the face of nature is adorned with a carpet of flowers and 
 herbage, of the most elegant kind. But a month or six 
 weeks subsequently, how changed is the entire scene ! 
 The beauty is gone ; the grass is withered ; the flower is 
 faded ; a brown and dusty desert has taken place of a de- 
 licious garden. It is, doubtless, to this rapid transformation 
 of nature that the Scriptures compare the fate of man. 55 — 
 Hartley's Researches , pp. 214, 215. 
 
 THE VINE. Chap. X. 
 
 There is no one set of images more frequently employed 
 in Scripture, to signify various conditions of prosperity or 
 adversity, or to typify spiritual blessings, than those derived 
 from the vine, and its mode of cultivation in the East. 
 
 A time of peace and tranquillity is represented by “ every 
 man’s dwelling safely under his vine , and under his fig- 
 tree 55 (1 Kings iv. 25; Micah iv. 4; Zech. iii. 10), plenty 
 and prosperity are typified by the “ mountains dropping 
 down sweet wine. 55 (Joel iii. 18; Amos ix. 13.) The tem- 
 poral blessedness of Judah is figured by his “binding his 
 foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine ; 
 he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the 
 
300 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 blood of grapes ; his eyes shall be red with wine, and his 
 teeth white with milk.” (Gen. xlix. 11, 12.) 
 
 The chosen people of Jehovah are styled “a noble vine,” 
 ,(Jer. ii. 21), and “ The vineyard of the Lord of Hosts” (Isaiah 
 v. 7), under this latter title of a vineyard, both the Jewish 
 and Gentile churches are signified (Matt. xxi. 33-41) ; and 
 with the time of the vintage, are associated “ singing and 
 shouting,” the tokens of gladness. (Isaiah xvi. 10.) Our 
 blessed Savior makes choice of the emblem of a vine, and 
 its fruitful branches, to represent his own person, and his 
 union with believers. “I am the true vine, ye are the 
 branches; herein is my father glorified, that ye bear much 
 fruit.” (John xv. 1, 5, 8.) 
 
 On the other hand, when reproved for their sins and spir- 
 itual barrenness, the chosen people are called, “ an empty 
 vine” (Hosea x. 1), “ the degenerate plant of a strange vine” 
 (Jer. ii. 21), bringing forth only “wild grapes” (Isaiah v. 2). 
 In the beautiful lamentation for Moab, in Isaiah xvi., the 
 vine of Sibmah is said to languish ; “ and gladness is taken 
 away, and joy out of the plentiful field ; and in the vineyards 
 there shall be no singing, neither shall there be shouting: 
 the treaders shall tread out no wine in their presses ,* I have 
 made their vintage shouting to cease.” While the terrible 
 judgments of the Messiah upon impenitent sinners are fig- 
 ured in these awful words, “ I have trodden the wine-press 
 alone; and of the people there was none with me; for I 
 will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my 
 fury.” (Isaiah lxiii. 3.) 
 
 So abundant were the vines in Palestine, and so much did 
 they constitute the riches of the people, that it was requisite 
 to have express laws made respecting the conduct of the in- 
 habitants with regard to the vineyards. 
 
 Thus, persons who were passing might enter another 
 man’s vineyard and eat, but might not carry away any of 
 his grapes: and when these had been gathered, what fell, 
 or was left behind on the vine, was to belong to the “ stran- 
 ger, the fatherless, and the widow.”* (Deut. xxiii. 24 ; 
 xxiv. 21 ; Levit. xix. 10.) 
 
 The vines of Palestine are still peculiarly fine, bearing 
 grapes of an extraordinary size. An Italian traveller (Dan- 
 dini) says that the grapes of Mount Libanus are as large as 
 prunes,! and Doubdan writes that in the country about 
 
 * See also p. 306. f Harmer’s Observations, vol. iv., p. 8, 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 301 
 
 Bethlehem, he found a most delightful valley, full not only 
 of aromatic herbs and rose-bushes, but planted with vines, 
 which he supposed were of the choicest kind ; and that it 
 was indeed the valley of Eschol, whence the spies carried 
 that prodigious bunch of grapes to Moses, of which we 
 read in the book of Numbers (ch. xiii. 23). “It is true,” 
 says this traveller, “ I have seen no such bunches of grapes, 
 not having been here in the vintage, but the monks assured 
 me that they still find here some that weigh ten or twelve 
 pounds.” — Harmer's Observations , vol. iii., p. 285. 
 
 Laborde, speaking of the vines of Idumea, writes, “ The 
 vines of this country, of the fruit of which we saw some 
 specimens, account for the enormous grapes which the spies 
 sent out by Moses, brought back from the places they had 
 visited.” — ( Travels , p. 203, 204.) 
 
 Mr. Jowett speaks of passing “some well-cultivated 
 vineyards near Jerusalem, the produce of which furnishes 
 that city with excellent wines. Along the sides of these 
 hills, also, we continually see flocks and herds : the sheep 
 and goats in the immediate vicinity of the city have a 
 very picturesque appearance, as they are slowly driven 
 into Jerusalem just before sunset, after which the gates 
 are shut ; and from their milk a great part of the support 
 of the inhabitants is derived. Thus, when this seemingly 
 unpromising soil was cultivated in perfection, it would 
 answer exactly to the promise given to the tribe of Judah, 
 “Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto 
 the choice vine ; he washed his garments in wine, and his 
 clothes in the blood of grapes ; his eyes shall be red with 
 wine, and his teeth white with milk.” — Jowett' s Researches , 
 pp. 259, 260. 
 
 There is a kind of wild vine which grows near the high- 
 ways and hedges of Judea, which has a small grape that 
 is black when ripe, and is the wild grape to which the 
 prophet compares the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men 
 of Judah. (Isaiah v. 2.) These are also the grapes to 
 which another prophet refers, when he predicts the ap- 
 proaching judgment on that rebellious people. (Ezek. xviii. 
 2.) — Rae Wilson's Travels, vol. i., p. 237. 
 
 The vineyards produce different kinds of grapes, which 
 are white, black, and red. To the juice of the last frequent 
 references are made in the Scriptures ; and, with striking 
 propriety, an inspired writer calls it, the pure blood of the 
 26 
 
302 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 grape. (Deut. xxxii. 14; Isaiah Ixiii. 2.) — Rae Wilson's 
 Travels , vol. i., p. 237. 
 
 The wines of Lebanon are still celebrated. Le Bruyn 
 speaks of their being the finest in the world, so that we 
 can understand why the prophet Hosea should have derived 
 a comparison from them, when he says (ch. xiv. 7), “ The 
 scent thereof,” rather, the “ memorial ,” as it is rendered in 
 the margin, “ shall be as the wine of Lebanon .” — Harmer's 
 Observations , vol. iii., pp. 286-290. 
 
 Sweet wines are those most esteemed in the East, being 
 more full and rich, and capable of being kept (Luke v. 39) ; 
 and these were anciently appropriated to the use of mon- 
 archs and persons of rank. “ Royal wine in abundance, 
 according to the state of the king” (Esther i. 7), which 
 words, by the ancient Eastern translators of the Septuagint, 
 are rendered “much and sweet wines, such as the king 
 himself drank.” It is probable that the word translated 
 new wine, in loel iii. IS, and in Acts ii. 13, should be sweet , 
 or full, rich, strong wine. — See Harmer's Observations , vol. 
 ii., pp. 146-149. 
 
 This fact may explain the conduct of the military who 
 attended the crucifixion of the Lord of G-lory, as it was 
 most likely in derision of his claim to royal authority that 
 they offered him vinegar, or wine in a state of strong 
 acidity, instead of good or generous wine. — Rae Wilson's 
 Travels , vol. i., p. 237. 
 
 The leaves first appear on the vine about the beginning of 
 March. The grape ripens toward the latter end of July ; 
 and when surrounded with Arabs, Judea, through fear of 
 them, became obliged to hurry on the vintage, but the wine 
 made in this manner could not be sweet wine. The grapes 
 hanging low on the trees makes the wine much richer and 
 sweeter ; and thus Amos, in the ninth chapter and thirteenth 
 verse of his prophecy, writes, “Behold, the days come, 
 saith the Lord, that the ploughman shall overtake the 
 reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed ; 
 and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills 
 shall melt ;” that is, the days shall come, when the grapes 
 shall not be gathered, as they were wont before to be, in a 
 state of immaturity, for fear of Arabs, or other destroying 
 nations; but they shall be suffered to hang even till the time 
 of ploughing, so perfect shall be the security of those times. 
 
 We find that in a province of Egypt, which is surrounded 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 303 
 
 with Arabs, who frequently make excursions into it, espe- 
 cially in the season in which fruits, which it produces in 
 great abundance, begin to ripen, the inhabitants are obliged 
 to gather them unripe, and send them to Cairo ; and the 
 wine of that province has in consequence degenerated, 
 though once remarkable for its excellence. This adds fresh 
 force to the promise, that the time of treading grapes should 
 be delayed till they should be in such perfection that “ the 
 mountains should drop sweet wine.” 
 
 The vintage of Aleppo* lasts from the 15th of September 
 to the same day of November, and nothing is more common 
 there, than this running of the vintage and sowing-season 
 into one, the latter beginning toward the close of October, 
 and lasting all November; and thus the treader of grapes 
 would continually overtake, or meet, with him that soweth 
 seed. — Harmer's Observations , vol. iii., pp. 211-214. 
 
 The grapes were trodden (Isaiah lxiii, 3; xvi. 10), with 
 the feetf to make the wine. Dr. Chandler thus describes 
 the beginning of the vintage he saw in Greece. “ The 
 black grapes [were] spread on the ground in beds, exposed 
 to the sun to dry for raisins : while, in another part, the 
 juice was expressed for wine ; a man, with feet and legs 
 bare, treading the fruit in a kind of cistern, with a hole or 
 vent near the bottom, and a vessel beneath it to receive the 
 liquor. — Harmer's Observations , vol. iii., p. 274. 
 
 The tame cattle are very fond of vine-leaves, and are 
 permitted to eat them in the autumn ; for about Smyrna, 
 Dr. Chandler remarked that the leaves were stripped by the 
 camels and herds of goats, who are admitted to browse 
 after the vintage. This explains why Moses, by a direct 
 law, forbade a man’s causing another’s vineyard to be eaten, 
 by putting in his beast. (Exodus xxii. 5.) — Harmer's Ob- 
 servations, vol. iii., 281, 282. 
 
 The fox of Palestine is a. great destroyer of grapes, as of 
 old. (Cant. ii. 15.) — Rae Wilson's Travels , vol. i., p. 394, 
 note. 
 
 * The vegetable productions of Judea and Aleppo are nearly com 
 temporary.— Harmer's Observations , i., 213. 
 
 f Olives were in like manner trodden to express the oil. 
 
304 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 BELLS WORN BY HORSES. Chap. XIV. 
 
 Zechariah xiv. 20. 
 
 “ In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses. 
 Holiness unto the Lord.” 
 
 The charger which the English consul at Damietta rode 
 on, a remarkably fine spirited animal, had a bell hung 
 round his neck, which brings us to observe that in the 
 early ages bells appear to have been a symbol of victory or 
 dominion. Thus, as horses were employed in war, and 
 distinguished for strength, stateliness, and courage, these 
 kind of tinkling cymbals became part of their martial fur- 
 niture. The Jewish warrior adorned his animal with the 
 same ornaments which the prophet foretells shall in future 
 be consecrated to the service of God . — Rae Wilson's Travels , 
 vol. i., p. 145. 
 
 THE ARABIAN CAMEL. Chap. XIV. 
 
 Jeremiah ii. 23. 
 
 “ Thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways.” 
 
 Over the arid and thirsty deserts of Asia and Africa, the 
 camel affords to man the only means of intercourse between 
 one country and another. The camel has been created with 
 an especial adaptation to the regions wherein it has con- 
 tributed to the comfort, and even to the very existence, of 
 man, from the earliest ages. It is formed to endure the 
 severest hardships; its feet are made to tread lightly upon 
 a dry and shifting soil; its nostrils have the capacity of 
 closing, so as to shut out the driving sand, when the whirl- 
 wind scatters it over the desert; it is provided with a 
 peculiar apparatus for retaining water in its stomach, so 
 that it can march from well to well without great incon- 
 venience, although they be several hundred miles apart. 
 And thus, when a company of Eastern merchants cross 
 from Aleppo to Bussora, over a plain of sand which offers 
 no refreshment, the whole journey being eight hundred 
 miles, the camel of the heavy caravan moves cheerfully 
 along, with a burden of six or seven hundred weight, a $ 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 305 
 
 the rate of twenty miles a day ; while those of greater speed, 
 that carry a man without much other load, go forward at 
 double that pace and daily distance. Patient under his 
 duties, he kneels down at the command of his driver, and 
 rises up cheerfully with his load ; he requires no whip or 
 spur during his monotonous march ; but, like many other 
 animals, he feels an evident pleasure in musical sounds ; and 
 therefore, when fatigue comes upon him, the driver sings 
 some cheering snatch of his Arabian melodies, and the 
 delighted creature toils forward with a brisker step, till the 
 hour of rest arrives, when he again kneels down to have 
 his load removed for a little while ; and if the stock of food 
 be not exhausted, he is further rewarded with a few mouth- 
 fuls of the cake of barley, which he carries for the suste- 
 nance of his master and himself. Under a burning sun, 
 upon an arid soil, enduring great fatigue, and seldom com- 
 pletely slaking his thirst, more than once during a progress 
 of several hundred miles, the camel is patient, and appa- 
 rently happy. He ordinarily lives to a great age, and is 
 seldom visited by any disease. 
 
 Camels are of two species ; that with one hump is usually 
 called the dromedary — these are used for riding. The 
 camel of the heavy caravan, the baggage-camel, may be 
 compared to the dray-horse ; the dromedary to the hunter, 
 and in some instances, to the race-horse. Messengers on 
 dromedaries, according to Burckhardt, have gone in eight 
 days the same journey he has been twenty-two days accom- 
 plishing, and there is an account of a swift dromedary 
 recorded, who carried his rider from Mogadore to Morocco, 
 the distance of one hundred miles, starting at dawn of day, 
 and returning to Mogadore the same night, after the gates 
 were shut. 
 
 The average load of the heavy, or slow-going camel, is 
 from five hundred to six hundred pounds ; sometimes it 
 carries large panniers, filled with heavy goods ; sometimes 
 bales are strapped on his back, fastened with cordage made 
 of the palm-tree, or with leathern thongs; and sometimes 
 two or more, will bear a sort of litter, in which women and 
 children ride with considerable ease. The expense of main- 
 taining these valuable creatures is remarkably little ; a cake 
 of barley, a few dates, or a handful of beans, will suffice, 
 in addition to the hard and prickly shrubs which they find 
 in every district but the very wildest of the desert. They 
 26 * 
 
306 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 are particularly fond of those vegetable productions which 
 other animals would never touch, such as plants which are 
 like spears and daggers, in comparison with the needles of 
 the thistle, and which often pierce the incautious traveller’s 
 boot. He might wish such thorns eradicated from the 
 earth, if he did not behold the camel contentedly browsing 
 upon them ; for he thus learns that Providence has made 
 nothing in vain. Their teeth are peculiarly adapted for 
 such a diet. Differing from all other ruminating tribes, 
 they have two strong cutting teeth in the upper jaw ; and 
 of the six grinding teeth, one on each side, in the same 
 jaw, has a crooked form : their canine teeth, of which they 
 have two in each jaw, are very strong ; and in the lower 
 jaw the two external cutting teeth have a pointed form, 
 and the foremost of the grinders is also pointed, and crooked. 
 They are thus provided with a most formidable apparatus 
 for cutting and tearing the hardest vegetable substance. 
 But the camel is, at the same time, organized so as to graze 
 upon the finest herbage, and browse upon the most delicate 
 leaves ; for his upper lip being divided, he is enabled to nip 
 off the tender shoots, and turn them into his mouth with 
 the greatest facility. Whether the sustenance, therefore, 
 which he finds, be of the coarsest or the softest kind, he is 
 equally prepared to be satisfied with, and to enjoy it. — See 
 Fenny Magazine , No. 63. 
 
 GREEK PRONUNCIATION. Chap. XVIII. 
 
 Judges xii. 6. 
 
 “ Then said they unto him, Say now Shibboleth ; and 
 he said, Sibboleth : for he could not frame to pronounce it 
 right.” 
 
 The Greeks have not the sound sh in their language; 
 hence they are liable to be detected, like the Ephraimites. 
 I was struck with this circumstance in learning Turkish 
 from a Greek tutor. Pasha, he pronounced Pasa ; Shimdi, 
 he called Simdi ; Dervish , Dervis , &c. ; Shibboleth he would, 
 of course, pronounce Sibboleth , — Hartley's Researches , pp. 
 210 , 211 . 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 307 
 
 HONORS PAID BY THE BURMESE TO GAUDAMA 
 
 Chap. XVIII. 
 
 Hosea ii. 8. 
 
 “ She did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and 
 oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared 
 for Baal.” 
 
 In describing the worship paid by the Burmese to their 
 god, Gaudama (whose celebrated pagoda, or temple, is near 
 the city of Rangoon, situated on a small hill, surrounded by 
 many smaller pagodas), Mr. Malcom writes : “ I visited 
 
 the pagoda frequently, about sunrise, as it is the only di- 
 rection in which one can ride. There were always twenty- 
 five or thirty worshippers scattered up and down, and on 
 the regular worship-days, several hundred. They come and 
 go during the cool of the morning, remaining about fifteen 
 minutes, and amounting, as I was told, on the whole to 
 two or three thousand. Every one brings a present ; often 
 a bunch of flowers, or only a few green twigs, plucked on 
 the way ; but generally the nicest eatables ready cooked, 
 beautiful bunches of flowers, articles of raiment, &c. The 
 amount of offerings here is very great. Stone vases, some 
 of which will hold fifty or sixty gallons, stand round the 
 pagoda, into which the devotees carefully lay their leafy 
 plates of rice, plantains, cakes, &c. As these are succes- 
 sively filled, appointed persons from among the pagoda 
 slaves* empty them into their vessels, assorting the various 
 kinds. The beautiful flowers remain all night, and are 
 swept out in the morning. The reproof of Jehovah to 
 Israel by the prophet, often came strongly to my mind, as 
 these crowds passed on with their beautiful flowers, and 
 the finest of the fruits of the earth: — ‘She did not know 
 that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her 
 silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal.’ How 
 boundless the goodness and forbearance of God ! ‘ Will a 
 
 man rob God V Yet these rob him of tithes and offerings 
 bestowed on their senseless images, and take his fruits of 
 the earth to do honor to the things his soul abhors.” — Mai - 
 corn's Travels in Southeastern Asia , vol. i., p. 81. 
 
 * There are in the vicinity of the hill, a hundred and fifty families 
 of “ Slaves of the Pagoda,” who are not allowed to marry, except 
 among themselves. 
 
308 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 OATHS IN JUDEA. Chap. XVIII. 
 
 Matthew v. 36. 
 
 “Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou 
 canst not make one hair white or black. 55 
 
 Mr. Jowett writes, that on one occasion, when leaving 
 Jerusalem, his guide “laid both hands upon his turban, to 
 assure me, with their usual oath, ‘ Upon my head, 5 that he 
 would serve me faithfully. This is the commonest oath of 
 the country, 4 On my head. 5 ’ Another most common oath 
 with the Arabs is W’ Allah ; an appeal to the Sacred Name. 
 The remark, an oath for confirmation is an end of all strife 
 (to men, Hebrews vi. 16), is often curiously exemplified 
 by the Arabs, in their most common transactions. After 
 wrangling a long time, with a vehemence and a pertinacity, 
 which seem to shut out all hope of conciliation, they will, 
 (if suffered by the traveller to take their own time), sud- 
 denly come to terms: their chief, who has watched the 
 furious debate, and in good part fomented it, marks the 
 auspicious moment, clenches the question, gives the signal 
 W’ Allah, and at once all is settled; every man proceeds 
 to his post, whether it be loading or unloading animals, or 
 setting off on a journey, &c. The man, who a minute 
 before defied and insulted the traveller to his face, will then 
 come smiling and fawning about him. It is best, on these 
 occasions, not to contend ; neither to rage, nor laugh with 
 them. (Prov. xkix. 9.) — Jowett’ s Researches in Syria, 6fC. y 
 p. 269, note. 
 
 SHRINES. Chap. XVIII. 
 
 Acts xix. 24. 
 
 “ A certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, which 
 made silver shrines for Diana, brought no small gain unto 
 the craftsmen.” 
 
 The false goddess Diana was worshipped in Asia Minor, 
 and throughout the then known world, and a most mag- 
 nificent temple was erected to her at Ephesus. The word 
 which we translate shrines, is in the Greek, temples . It 
 was the custom with the Greeks and other heathen nations 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 309 
 
 to make little models of a temple, and place a small image 
 therein, in order to carry with them when they travelled or 
 went to war, as also for their private devotion at home; 
 and indeed, the making such temples continues to be the 
 custom in some of the heathen nations to this day. A very 
 curious one of this sort I have seen brought here from the 
 East Indies. — See Biscoe on the Acts , pp. 274-276. 
 
 Mr. Jowett speaks of seeing, among other like articles of 
 sale, brought to Jerusalem from a manufactory at Beth- 
 lehem, a model in wood, inlaid with ivory, of the chapel 
 built over the Holy Sepulchre. “ Of the various trinkets 
 which they showed, no one served better than this to il- 
 lustrate the expression translated in our English version, 
 ‘Silver shrines for Diana; 5 the original means, ‘Silver mod- 
 els of the temple of Diana. 5 Whether made very small, or 
 entirely wrought in silver, or, if larger, inlaid or washed 
 with silver, is of little moment. In all the Levant, and in 
 Roman Catholic countries, the Pagan traffic, so inimitably 
 described by the prophet Isaiah (xl. 19, 20 ; xli. 6, 7 ; xliv. 
 12-17 ; xlvi. 6), continues in full activity, 55 — Jowett's Re - 
 searches , pp. 264, 265. 
 
GENERAL INDEX. 
 
 drabs. Their hospitality, i., 6-8 — Appendix, 291 — Depreda- 
 tions, xvi., 259, 260 — Characteristic features, 264-267— 
 Singular history of the Arabs a fulfilment of prophecy, 
 267-269 — their mode of dwelling and of flight, xvi., 
 260-262 — Arab tents, i., 9, 10; iii., 52 — Encampments 
 and journeyings, xvi., 262-264, see Flocks and Herds — - 
 Arab utensils, iii., 46, 49, 52, 53 — manner of baking and 
 churning, iii., 57-59 — Arab travelling, ix., 148, 149 — 
 Arab guides, see Guides — Arab cloak, vi., 114 — Extem- 
 pore songs and tales, i., 1 1 — salutations, iv., 94 
 Agreement , mark of, iv., 101 — manner of expressing it, xi., 176, 
 177 
 
 Assemblies of mourners, viii., 136, 137 
 Agriculture , x., 155-171 
 Apples , x., 169, 170 
 
 Ass — wild ass, xiv., 212-214 — white ass, 214 
 Actions , significant, much used in the East, xviii., 277 
 Bottles , leathern, iii., 52, 53 
 Beds, iii., 55, 56 
 Baking , iii., 57, 58 
 
 Birth — manner of announcing it — ceremonies after it — See Chil- 
 dren 
 
 Beard — kissing it a mark of respect, iv., 93 — shaving the beard, 
 vi., 120-122 
 
 Books (ancient) vii., 128-130 
 Baldness a sign of grief, viii., 141, 143 
 Corner of a divan, the place of honor, iii., 54, 55 
 Churning , iii., 58, 59 
 
 Children — manner of announcing the birth of a son in Persia, 
 iii., 83, 84 — ceremonies after it, 84, 85 — “ bringers up of 
 children, 55 85, 86 — manner of carrying children, 86 
 Customs relating to the dead , viii., 136-145 
 
 Com — method of gathering, winnowing, and threshing it, x., 
 159-162 — Appendix, 299 — see Pits 
 Courts of justice, xi., 181, 182 
 Curious mode of decision , xi., 183 
 Crocodiles — method of catching them, xiv., 215-219 
 Cock-crowing in the East , xiv., 221 
 Citron-tree , x., 169, 170 
 
INDEX. 
 
 311 
 
 Climate — heat and cold, xv., 240, 241 — frost and snow, 242, 243 
 — wet seasons, 244 — dry summers, 249 — See also Hail - 
 storms and Rains 
 
 Caravansaries — Appendix, 29 1 -293 
 Camel , Arabian — Appendix, 305-307 
 Divans , iii., 54, 55 
 
 Deputations of great men a mark of honor, iv., 87, 88 
 Dress, vi., 109-126 — splendor of the Eastern dresses, 123-125 
 Drawing on tiles, vii., 131 
 Deserts , xiii., 202-208 
 Dogs, xiv., 214, 215 
 
 Eating, manner of — men and women eat separately, iii., 59-62 — 
 portions sent from the tables of great men a mark of hon- 
 or, iv., 96 — see Repasts 
 Eyes, painting the, vi., 118-120 
 Enmity, token of, xviii., 277, 278 
 Flowers used as fuel , iii., 45 
 
 Feasts — invitations to them, iii., 63, 64 — Persian feast, 64-67 — 
 Egyptian feast, 67, 68 — feast of tabernacles, 69, 70 — 
 weaning feast, 85 — funeral feasts, viii., 142 — see Passover 
 Friendship, token of, iv., 98-100 — see Garments 
 Feet — kissing the feet, iv., 92, 93 — concealing, and holding the 
 feet, 96 — uncovering the feet, viii., 141 — Appendix, 297 — • 
 see Respect- 
 
 Footmen (running), ix., 150, 151 
 Flocks and herds, xii., 184-186 
 Folds, see Sheep 
 Fountains, xiii., 197, 198 
 Flies, xiv., 237 
 Frost, see Climate 
 
 Funerals — Appendix, 296 — see Feasts 
 Fox of Palestine, Appendix, 304 
 Guests , customs in dismissing, i., 10, 1 1 
 Gates, ii., 20-22 
 
 Garments — presents of them a mark of favor, iv., 100, 101 — 
 flowing garments, vi., 109, 110 — party-colored garments, 
 113, 114 — wedding-garment, 115, 116 
 Gardens, x., 164 — watering gardens, 165, 166 
 Guides — their importance, ix., 149, 150 
 Grafting, x., 166 
 
 Grief, signs of — see Customs relating to the Dead 
 Games, Eastern, xviii., 280, 281 
 Grass, Appendix, 300 
 
 Grapes, laws concerning them — their size — different kinds of 
 grapes — time of their ripening — vintage — treading of 
 grapes— Appendix, 301, 304 
 
312 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Hospitality of the Eastern nations, i., 1-9 — xiii., J 96 — see Ap- 
 pendix, 291 
 
 Houses , Eastern, ii., 12, 13 — hangings for houses, 13, 14 — house- 
 tops, 15-18 — house-breaking, 24 — house of the dead, 25, 
 26 — dove-houses, x., 156-158 — see also Roofs 
 Horns used as drinking-vessels, and for sacred purposes, iii., 53, 
 54 — worn as ornaments and tokens of authority, vi., 122, 
 123 
 
 Honoring distinguished persons , several ways of, iv., 87-92 — see 
 Corner and Presents 
 
 Honors paid to Guadama — Appendix, 308 
 
 Hand — kissing it a mark of respect and affection, iv., 93, 94 
 
 Hyke , or upper garment , vi., Ill, 112 
 
 Head s uncovering the — see Grief 
 
 Highways , ix., 153 
 
 Hay not used in the East, 10., 163 
 
 Herds , see Flocks 
 
 Horse , Arabian, xiv., 211, 212 — xvi., 262 
 Horses ornamented with bells — Appendix, 305 
 Hunting , see Partridges 
 Hailstorms , xv., 242-244 
 Hiding treasures — see Treasures 
 Invitations to feasts, &c., iii., 63, 64 
 Idolatrous cuttings of the flesh, viii., 142, 143 
 Israelites , see March 
 Influence , maternal, xviii., 281 
 Kneeling on the sea-shore, ii., 36, 37 
 Kneading-troughs, iii., 49 
 
 Kissing — the feet, knees, robe, beard, &c., methods of salutation 
 and marks of respect, iv., 92-94 — kissing the hand a sign 
 of adoration, 94— kissing the ground a token of subjec- 
 tion, iv., 95, 96 
 
 Locks , the kind used in the East, ii., 20-22 
 
 Lamps , iii., 49, 50 
 
 Lips , covering the — see Grief 
 
 Laborers , mode of hiring, xi., 175, 176 
 
 Laws , Eastern, xi., 182 
 
 Lions , xiv., 210, 211 
 
 Locusts , xiv., 227-236 
 
 Locust-tree , xiv., 237 
 
 Leprosy , xviii., 273, 274 
 
 Music used before journeys, i., 10, 11 — mournful music used on 
 solemn occasions, viii., 140 
 Mortar , Eastern, ii., 23, 24 
 Mills , millstones, iii., 46-49 
 Marriage ceremonies, iii., 81-83 
 
INDEX. 
 
 313 
 
 Mountains (written) — see Writing 
 
 Mourning women — tumultuous grief of the mourners, viii., 
 137-141 — forty days mourning, 144 — see also Assemblies , 
 and Music 
 
 March of the Israelites , ix., 145-148 
 Messengers , ix., 151-153 
 Mustard-seed , x., 164 
 Markets , xi., 171, 172 
 Money -weighing , xi., 178 
 Mountainous pastures — see Pastures 
 Mirage , xiii., 208, 209 
 Mice , xivx, 226, 227 
 
 Moonlight prejudicial in the East, xv., 239, 240 
 Mouth , smiting on the, xviii, 276 
 Marks , religious, xviii., 284 
 
 Noise and tumult frequent on occasions of the death of any per- 
 son in the East, viii., 138-141 
 Nails fixed in Eastern walls — Appendix, 294, 295 
 Oak , Gideon’s, i., 5, 6 
 Oratories , ii., 36, 37 
 Ornaments , vi., 116-118 
 
 Oxen used in treading out grain, x., 162, 163 — ox-goad — Appen- 
 dix, 298, 299 
 Oaths — Appendix, 309 
 Pavements , Eastern, ii., 23 
 Provisions , see Eating 
 Passover , iii., 70-77 
 
 Presents to friends and relations — great men — public dancers, 
 v., 105-108 — see also Garments 
 Painting the eyes — see Eyes 
 
 Ploughshares , x., 155, 156 — ploughing — Appendix, 298 
 
 Pigeon- houses — see Dove-houses 
 
 Pools of Solomon, xiii., 198-201 
 
 Pits , xiii., 201, 202 — pits for corn — Appendix, 299 
 
 Partridges , hunting, xiv., 220, 221 
 
 Potters , Eastern, xviii., 275, 276 
 
 Pronunciation (Greek) — Appendix, 307 
 
 Roofs, Eastern, ii., 18, 19 — Appendix, 294 
 
 Repasts on the sea-shore, iii., 68, 69 
 
 Riding — on the royal horse, iv., 88, 89 — manner of riding, ix., 151 
 Respect, marks of, iv., 92-98 
 Reading, manner of, vii., 130, 131 
 Ring, signet, vii., 131, 133 
 
 Rains — early and latter raihs — signs of rain, xv., 244-249 
 Rechabites , xvii., 270-273 
 
 Religious customs in Judea, China, and Persia, xviii., 284, 285 
 
 27 
 
314 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Roman soldiers — military subordination among the Romans, xviii., 
 285, 286 
 
 Slables , ii., 24, 25 
 
 Sepulchres , Jewish, ii,, 28-32 — sepulchres of the kings of Judah 
 — of the judges — Appendix, 293, 294 — see Tombs 
 Seats , stones used as, iii., 56, 57 
 
 Shoes — putting off the shoes a mark of respect, iv., 97, 98 
 Salutations , iv., 102-104 — see Arabs 
 Sealing with clay, vii., 134 
 
 Sacrifices sealed in Egypt, vii., 134* 135 — offered to idols in high 
 places, xviii., 283 
 Standards, ix., 153, 154 
 
 Streets appropriated to particular trades, xi., 171, 172 
 
 Sheep and shepherds — sheep-folds, xiL, 186-190 
 
 Storks, xiv., 220 
 
 Serpents, xiv., 221-224 
 
 Scorpions, xiv., 224-226 
 
 Salt, xiv., 238 
 
 Snow — see Climate 
 
 Seasons — see Climate 
 
 Simoom, xv., 250-253 
 
 Stones erected as memorials, xviii., 278, 279 — white stone, iv., 
 98-100 — see Seats 
 
 Shrines, xviii., 282 — Appendix, 309, 310 
 Spoils suspended in sacred places, xviii., 282, 283 
 Soldiers — see Roman soldiers 
 
 Sitting, a posture of mourning in the East — Appendix, 297, 298 
 — see Customs relating to the Dead 
 Tents , Abraham’s, i., 1-3 — striking the tents, 9, 10 — hangings 
 for tents, ii., 13, 14 
 Thresholds, ii., 22 
 Tombs , Eastern, ii., 26-28 
 Temple of Dagon, ii., 32, 33 
 Tower of Mahanaim, ii., 33-35 
 
 Tiles, drawing on — see Drawing — used for pavements — see Pave- 
 ment's 
 
 Travelling, ix., 145-155 
 Threshing — see Corn 
 Tares, x., 163, 164 
 Trades — see Streets 
 Taskmasters, xi., 172-175 
 Tax-gatherers, xi., 179, 180 
 Tartars, xvi., 257-259 
 
 Treasures — method of hiding them, xviii., 288, 289 
 Veil-f ace, vi., 115 
 
 Vines and Vineyards, x., 166, 167, 168 — Appendix, 300-304 
 
INDEX. 
 
 315 
 
 Walls , Eastern, ii., 19, 20 
 
 Water — drawn by women, iii., 38-40, 41 ; xiii., 196 — implements 
 for drawing it, xiii., 195 — offered to travellers, iii., 40, 41 
 — water-carriers, 41, 42 
 Water-pots of Cana, iii., 50-52 
 
 Watering , method of, x., 158, 159 — watering gardens, 165, 166 
 Washing, manner of — the hands — feet, iii., 42-45 
 Wood- young men and children taken to carry, iii., 45, 46 
 Wines — Appendix, 303, 304 — wine-presses, x., 168, 169 — Ap- 
 pendix, 304 — straining wine, iii., 59 
 Wedding , Jewish, iii., 77-81 
 
 Writing, various methods of — written mountains — writing tables, 
 vii., 126-128 
 Wells, xiii., 191-197 
 Water-spouts, xv., 253, 254 
 Whirlwinds , xv., 255, 256 
 
 Warfare , barbarous custom in Eastern, xviii., 287 
 
INDEX OF TEXTS ILLUSTRATED 
 
 
 GENESIS. 
 
 
 xxvi. 36 
 
 .. .. Page 13, 14 
 
 xiii, 1-end . 
 
 
 
 Page 184-186 
 
 xxxii. 2 
 
 116,117 
 
 xviii. 1-11 
 
 . . 
 
 
 
 1-5 
 
 xxxiii. 4 
 
 136,137 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 
 . 44,45 
 
 
 
 6 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 
 
 57, 58 
 
 
 LEVITICUS. 
 
 6-10 .. 
 
 
 
 
 .. 62 
 
 ii. 4-7 .. 
 
 57, 58 
 
 xxi. 8 . . 
 
 
 
 
 85 
 
 xi. 33 
 
 .. 285 
 
 14 .. 
 
 
 
 
 . 52 
 
 xiii. 45 
 
 140-142 
 
 xxiii. 10, 11 
 
 
 
 
 177 
 
 46 
 
 273 
 
 16 .. 
 
 
 .. 
 
 
 .. 178 
 
 xiv. 40 
 
 24 
 
 xxiv. 11-22 
 
 
 
 
 38, 39 
 
 xix. 10 
 
 ..301 
 
 16-20 
 
 
 
 
 . 196,197 
 
 28 
 
 142,143 
 
 22 
 
 
 
 
 117, 118 
 
 
 
 64 . . 
 
 
 
 
 .. 98 
 
 
 NUMBERS. 
 
 65 
 
 
 
 
 115 
 
 ii. 2 
 
 145-148 
 
 xxvi. 15 . . 
 
 
 
 
 . 193, 194 
 
 VI. 
 
 85 
 
 xxvii. 14-18 
 
 . . 
 
 
 
 62 
 
 ix. 21 
 
 145-148 
 
 xxviii. 18-22 
 
 
 
 
 .. 278,279 
 
 x. 2, 5, 12,27 .. .. 145-148 
 
 xxix. 2, 3 
 
 .. 
 
 
 
 194 
 
 — 31 
 
 149,150 
 
 xxxi. 27 . , 
 
 
 
 
 . 10,11 
 
 xiii. 23 
 
 302 
 
 ■ 40 
 
 
 
 
 240, 241 
 
 xvi. 15 
 
 106 
 
 46 .. 
 
 
 . . 
 
 
 .. 56,57 
 
 xxii. 15 
 
 87, 88 
 
 xxxii. . . 
 
 
 
 
 148, 149 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 
 .. 185,186 
 
 
 DEUTERONOMY. 
 
 xxxiii. 4 
 
 
 
 
 93, 94 
 
 i. 28 
 
 19,20 
 
 xxxvii. 3 . . 
 
 
 
 
 . 113,114 
 
 viii. 15 
 
 205-226, 207, 224 
 
 12-17 
 
 
 
 
 185, 186 
 
 xi. 10, 11 
 
 .. .. .. 158,159 
 
 xli. 41, 42 
 
 
 
 
 . 131-133 
 
 — 13, 14 
 
 245-247 
 
 xliii. 34 
 
 . . 
 
 
 
 90 
 
 xii. 2, 3 
 
 283 
 
 xlv. 2 
 
 
 . , 
 
 
 . 140-142 
 
 xiv. 1 .. 
 
 142,143 
 
 14 
 
 . . 
 
 
 
 93, 94 
 
 xxii. 8 
 
 15-17 
 
 22 .. 
 
 
 
 
 . 105 
 
 xxiii. 24 
 
 301 
 
 xlix. 22 
 
 .. 
 
 
 
 168 
 
 xxiv. 6 
 
 49 
 
 1. 3 
 
 
 
 
 . 144 
 
 13 
 
 .. .. Ill 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 21 
 
 301 
 
 
 EXODUS. 
 
 
 xxv. 4 . . 
 
 162,163 
 
 i. 8-14 .. 
 
 
 
 
 173-175 
 
 xxxii. 5 
 
 284 
 
 iii. 5 
 
 
 
 
 . 97,98 
 
 10 
 
 208 
 
 V. 
 
 
 
 
 172-175 
 
 14 
 
 303 
 
 13, 14 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 . 173-175 
 
 
 
 ix. 23-25 
 
 . . 
 
 
 .. 
 
 242-244 
 
 
 JOSHUA. 
 
 x. 12-15 .. 
 
 
 , . 
 
 . 
 
 . 231-235 
 
 ii. 6 
 
 15 
 
 xi. 5 
 
 
 
 
 48 
 
 ix. 4 
 
 52,53 
 
 xii. 8-27 . . 
 
 
 ,, 
 
 
 . 70-77 
 
 x. 11 . . 
 
 243, 244 
 
 11 
 
 
 
 
 111,112 
 
 
 
 34 .. 
 
 
 . . 
 
 
 . 49 
 
 
 JUDGES. 
 
 xxi. 24 
 
 ,, 
 
 
 .. 
 
 182 
 
 i. 14 
 
 98 
 
 xxii. 5 
 
 
 , , 
 
 , 
 
 . 304 
 
 iii. 18 .. 
 
 .. .. 106 
 
 xxiv. 10 
 
 .. 
 
 
 .. 
 
 23 
 
 — 31 
 
 298,299 
 
INDEX OF TEXTS ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 317 
 
 iv. 19 . . . . Page 58, 59 1 
 
 
 2 KINGS. 
 
 
 v. 10 
 
 . 214 
 
 i. 2 
 
 .. Page 15 
 
 — 30 
 
 113-, 114 1 
 
 iii. 11 . . 
 
 , , . . 
 
 43,44 
 
 vi. 11-19 .. 
 
 . 5,6 
 
 — 17 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 247,249 
 
 viii.5, 8, 16, 17 .. 
 
 106 
 
 — 19 .. 
 
 , . „ 
 
 277, 278 
 .. 12,13 
 
 26 .. 
 
 . 117,118 
 
 iv. 10 
 
 .. 
 
 xii. 6 . . 
 
 307 
 
 — 24 .. 
 
 .. ,, 
 
 151 
 
 xiv. 1-13 
 
 . 81-83 
 
 — 29 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 103,104 
 
 XV. 17-19 .. 
 
 197, 198 
 
 v. 5 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 105 
 
 xvi. 27-30 
 
 . 32,33 
 
 — 21 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 98 
 
 
 
 — 27 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 274 
 
 RUTH. 
 
 
 vi. 25 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 157 
 
 ii. 14 
 
 iii. 2 
 
 62 
 
 . 160,161 
 
 vii. 1 .. 
 
 ix. 2 
 — 28 .. 
 
 
 171 
 
 .. 12,13 
 293, 294 
 
 
 
 — 30 
 
 ’ 
 
 .. 118-120 
 
 1 SAMUEL. 
 
 22 
 
 x. 5 
 
 
 85, 86 
 
 i. 9 
 
 -8 
 
 
 .. 287 
 
 -11 
 
 .. 84,85 
 
 xix. 26 . . 
 
 
 252, 253 
 
 - 29 
 
 85 
 
 xxiii. 30 .. 
 
 
 .. 295,296 
 
 vi. 5 .. 
 
 . 226,227 
 
 xxv. 28 
 
 
 66 
 
 ix. 7 
 
 105-107 
 
 30 .. 
 
 
 .. 65 
 
 — 11 
 
 .. 38,39 
 
 
 x. 27 
 
 106 
 
 
 EZRA. 
 
 
 xvi. 13 .. 
 
 .. 53,54 
 
 vi. 2 . . . 
 
 
 128, 129 
 
 xviii. 4 
 
 100, 101 
 
 viii. 16 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 178 
 
 6,7 .. 
 
 .. 10, 11 
 
 ix. 8 . . 
 
 . . 
 
 294, 295 
 
 xix. 24 
 
 112 
 
 x. 9 
 
 
 .. 241,242 
 
 XX. 30 
 
 .. 281 
 
 
 
 
 xxii. 6 . . 
 
 90, 91 
 
 
 ESTHER. 
 
 
 xxv. 23 
 
 .. 98 
 
 i. 6 
 
 , , 
 
 .. 54 
 
 xxvi. 7 
 
 92 
 
 -7 
 
 
 303 
 
 20 
 
 .. 220,221 
 
 vi. 7-9 .. 
 
 .. 88, 
 
 89, 100, 101 
 
 xxviii. 23 
 
 54 
 
 vii. 8 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 54, 55 
 
 2 SAMUEL. 
 
 
 
 JOB. 
 
 
 viii.7-11 .. 
 
 .. 282,283 
 
 i. 20 
 
 .. 140-142 
 
 ix. 1-7.. 
 
 65 
 
 vii. 12 . . 
 
 
 215-218 
 
 x. 4 
 
 .. 120-122 
 
 ix. 25 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 151,153 
 
 xi. 2 . . 
 
 15 
 
 xviii. 5, 6 
 
 . • . . 
 
 49, 50 
 
 xiii. 18 
 
 .. 113,114 
 
 xix. 23, 24 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 126,127 
 
 xvii. 28, 29 
 
 106 
 
 xxi. 17 . . 
 
 
 49, 50 
 
 xviii. 24-33 
 
 .. 33-35 
 
 xxvii. 16 . . 
 
 
 .. 106 
 
 33 
 
 12 
 
 xxix. 6 
 
 .. 
 
 58, 59 
 
 xix. 8 
 
 .. 33-35 
 
 10 .. 
 
 
 .. 277 
 
 xx. 9 . . 
 
 92-94 
 
 2. 4, 19, 20 
 
 244 
 
 xxv. 1 
 
 .. 25,26 
 
 xxx. 23 . . 
 
 
 .. 26 
 
 
 
 xxxi. 26, 27 
 
 . . 
 
 94 
 
 1 KINGS. 
 
 
 xxxviii. 14 
 
 
 .. 134 
 
 i. 39 
 
 53, 54 
 
 xxxix. 19, 25 
 
 
 211,212 
 
 ii. 34 
 
 .. 26 
 
 xli. 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 218,219 
 
 iii. 24-27 
 
 183 
 
 
 
 iv. 25 
 
 .. 300 
 
 
 PSALMS. 
 
 
 — 28 
 
 163 
 
 ix. 15 . . 
 
 ,, ,, 
 
 211 
 
 xiii. 30 .. 
 
 .. 137-140 
 
 xxxii. 4 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 249 
 
 xiv. 3 .. 
 
 106 
 
 xiii. 7 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 253, 254 
 
 xviii. 28 . . 
 
 .. 142,143 
 
 xiv. 9, 13, 14, 
 
 , 15 .. 
 
 .. 78-81 
 
 45 
 
 247-249 
 
 lvi. 8 . . 
 
 ,, 
 
 136, 137 
 
 —.46 .. 
 
 .. 150,151 
 
 lviii. 4, 5 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 221-224 
 
 xxii. 11 .. 
 
 123 
 
 lix. 14, 15 
 
 .. 
 
 214, 215 
 
 27 * 
 
318 
 
 INDEX OF TEXTS ILLUSTRATED, 
 
 lx. 8 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 Pa^e 97, 98 
 
 vi. 2 
 
 
 . . 
 
 Page 96 
 
 lxviii. 13 .. 
 
 „ . 
 
 158 
 
 viii. 1 . . 
 
 
 
 
 128, 129 
 
 Jxix. 28 
 
 
 126,127 
 
 xvi. 10 
 
 
 # . 
 
 , m 
 
 301 
 
 lxxii. 9 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 95,96 
 
 xvii. 13 
 
 , , 
 
 
 
 255, 256 
 
 10 
 
 
 .. 106 
 
 xxi. 1 
 
 
 
 . , 
 
 250, 252 
 
 (xxv. 5, 10 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 122,123 
 
 xxii. 1 . . 
 
 . . 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 lxxviii. 47, 48 
 
 
 243 
 
 23 .. 
 
 
 
 
 294, 295 
 
 lxxx. 13 .. 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 166,167 
 
 xxviii. 28 
 
 
 
 
 163 
 
 lxxxiii. 13 
 
 
 .. 255,256 
 
 xxix. 8 
 
 
 
 , . 
 
 204, 205 
 
 lxxxiv. 5-7 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 191-193 
 
 xxx. 13 
 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 xcii. 10 
 
 
 122,123 
 
 24 
 
 
 ,, 
 
 . , 
 
 299 
 
 ciii. 16 
 
 , , 
 
 .. 252,253 
 
 xxxii. 2 
 
 , . 
 
 
 
 203, 204 
 
 cv. 32 .. 
 
 
 .. 243 
 
 20 .. 
 
 
 , , 
 
 , . 
 
 155 
 
 cvii. 4, 5 . . 
 
 , , 
 
 .. 204.205 
 
 xxxiv. 4 
 
 
 
 
 128, 129 
 
 exxi. 6 . . 
 
 
 .. 239; 240 
 
 xxxv. 7 . . 
 
 
 
 203,204 
 
 , 208, 209 
 
 c.xxviii. 3 . . 
 
 , . 
 
 .. 168 
 
 xxxvii. 36 
 
 , . 
 
 
 
 250, 252 
 
 cxxix. 3 
 
 
 298 
 
 xxxviii. 12 
 
 
 
 
 9, 10 
 
 6 
 
 
 18, 19, 159, 160 
 
 xl. 6, 7 
 
 , . 
 
 
 
 300 
 
 8 .. 
 
 
 102 
 
 — 24 
 
 
 , , 
 
 . . 
 
 255, 256 
 
 cxxxv. 7 . . 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 247-249 
 
 xli. 18, 19 
 
 , . 
 
 
 
 202-204 
 
 cxlvii. 16, 17 
 
 
 241,242 
 
 xiiv. 3,4 . . 
 
 
 , . 
 
 .. 
 
 202-204 
 
 
 
 
 xlvii. 1, 2 
 
 # . 
 
 
 
 48 
 
 PROVERBS.- 
 
 xlix. 9, 11 
 
 
 ,, 
 
 . , 
 
 201 
 
 i. 27 
 
 , , 
 
 .. 250-252 
 
 10 
 
 ## 
 
 
 
 203 
 
 vi. 13 .. 
 
 
 176, 177 
 
 22 .. 
 
 
 , , 
 
 
 86 
 
 ix. 2-5 . . 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 63 
 
 23 
 
 , . 
 
 
 
 95, 96 
 
 xi. 21 .. 
 
 
 101 
 
 Iii. 2, 10 .. 
 
 
 . . 
 
 . . 
 
 109, 110 
 
 xiii. 9 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 50 
 
 liv. 3 . . 
 
 . , 
 
 
 
 2,14 
 
 xvi. 15 . . 
 
 
 245-247 
 
 lviii. 11 
 
 
 ,, 
 
 
 164, 165 
 
 xvii. 19 
 
 , , 
 
 .. 259,260 
 
 lx. 8 .. 
 
 , . 
 
 
 
 156, 157 
 
 xx. 26 . . 
 
 
 161 
 
 Ixii. 10 .. 
 
 
 . , 
 
 , . 
 
 153, 154 
 
 xxii. 14 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 201.202 
 
 Ixiii. 2 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 
 
 303 
 
 xxiii. 27 
 
 
 202 
 
 13, 14 
 
 
 . . 
 
 ,, 
 
 261,262 
 
 xxv. 11 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 169,170 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 
 .. 247-249 
 
 
 JEREMIAH. 
 
 
 xxvii. 15 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 296 
 
 ii. 6 
 
 
 . . 
 
 . . 
 
 207 
 
 
 
 
 — 21 .. 
 
 , , 
 
 
 
 301 
 
 ECCLESIASTES. 
 
 — 23 
 
 
 
 
 305-307 
 
 ii. 4*6 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 198-201 
 
 — 24 .. 
 
 
 
 
 212-214 
 
 iii. 5 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 277,278 
 
 iii. 2 
 
 
 
 , , 
 
 260 
 
 x. 7 
 
 
 .. 88 
 
 iv. 30 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 
 
 119 
 
 xi. 4 
 
 ,, 
 
 249 
 
 viii. 7 
 
 
 , . 
 
 , . 
 
 220 
 
 xii. 6 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 165,166 
 
 ix. 2 .. 
 
 , , 
 
 
 
 291-293 
 
 
 
 
 x. 13. 
 
 
 
 , , 
 
 247-249 
 
 CANTICLES. 
 
 — 17-19 
 
 ,, 
 
 
 
 137-140 
 
 ii. 3-5 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 159,170 
 
 xiv. 6 .. 
 
 
 
 .. 
 
 212-214 
 
 — 9 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 81 
 
 xvi. 5-8 
 
 , . 
 
 
 
 140-142 
 
 — 15 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 304 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 , . 
 
 142, 143 
 
 iv. 12 .. 
 
 ,, 
 
 194, 199-201 
 
 xvii. 13 
 
 . . 
 
 
 
 126, 127 
 
 v. 4 .. 
 
 „ 
 
 .. 21,22 
 
 xviii. 1-6 .. 
 
 
 
 . , 
 
 275, 276 
 
 vii. 8 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 169,170 
 
 xx. 15 
 
 
 
 
 83, 84 
 
 
 
 
 xxii. 18 .. 
 
 
 .. 
 
 , . 
 
 137-140 
 
 
 ISAIAH. 
 
 
 xxv. 10, 11 
 
 
 
 
 48, 50 
 
 ii. 4 
 
 ,, 
 
 155,156 
 
 xxxii. 14 .. 
 
 
 , , 
 
 # , 
 
 129 
 
 iii. 16. 18 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 116 
 
 xxxiii. 13 
 
 ,, 
 
 
 
 188 
 
 — 21' .. 
 
 .. 
 
 116,117 
 
 xxxv. 5-8, 18 
 
 1, 19 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 
 
 270-272 
 
 — 26 
 
 
 .. 297 
 
 xxxvii. 21 
 
 
 
 
 171, 172 
 
 v. 2 
 
 ,, 
 
 .. 301,302 
 
 xli. 8 
 
 
 ,, 
 
 ,, 
 
 299 
 
 -7 
 
 
 .. 301 
 
 xlix. 8, 30 
 
 , # 
 
 
 
 260, 261 
 
 -11 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 67 
 
 li. 14 
 
 
 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 228-231 
 
INDEX OF TEXTS ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 319 
 
 LAMENTATIONS. 
 
 ii. 3 .. 
 
 Page 122, 123 
 
 — 10 
 
 
 .. 297 
 
 v. 13 .. 
 
 EZEKIEL. 
 
 45, 46 
 
 ii. 9, 10 
 
 
 128, 129 
 
 iv. 1. 
 
 . . 
 
 . 131 
 
 — 16, 17 
 
 
 64 
 
 ix. 2-4 
 
 
 . 132,133 
 
 xii. 18, 19 
 
 
 64 
 
 xiii. 11 
 
 . 
 
 23,24 
 
 xvi. 12 
 
 .. 
 
 116,117 
 
 xviii. 2 
 
 . • • 
 
 . 302 
 
 xix. 6-8 
 
 . . 
 
 211 
 
 xxiii. 41 . , 
 
 . . . 
 
 . 55 
 
 xxiv. 17 
 
 ,, 
 
 140-142 
 
 xxxiii. 30 . 
 
 . 
 
 . 242 
 
 xliii. 8 . . 
 
 DANIEL. 
 
 22 
 
 vii.7 
 
 HOSEA 
 
 . 123 
 
 ii. 8 
 
 
 308 
 
 vi. 3 
 
 . .. . 
 
 . 246,247 
 
 x. 1 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 301 
 
 xiv.7 
 
 . 
 
 . 303 
 
 i. 4, 12 
 
 JOEL. 
 
 231-235 
 
 ii. 2-7, 9, 10 
 
 ... 
 
 .. 231-235 
 
 — 23 .. 
 
 • . . . 
 
 245-247 
 
 iii. 18 
 
 •• 
 
 .. 300 
 
 ii. 6 
 
 AMOS. 
 
 107 
 
 — 8 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 55 
 
 iii. 8 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 210,211 
 
 — 12 
 
 . , 
 
 .. 54,55 
 
 iv. 7, 8 
 
 • • . . 
 
 246, 247 
 
 v. 16 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 137-140 
 
 — 19 .. 
 
 ,, 
 
 224 
 
 vi. 4 
 
 . . 
 
 .. 54 
 
 — 11 .. 
 
 . . . , 
 
 24 
 
 viii. 6 
 
 , . 
 
 .. 107 
 
 ix. 13 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 300 
 
 iv. 4 . • 
 
 MICAH. 
 
 .. 300 
 
 iii. 17 .. 
 
 NAHUM. 
 
 228-231 
 
 i.8 
 
 — 6-9 .. 
 
 4i. 2 
 
 iii. 16-18 
 
 257-259 
 
 259 
 
 127, 128 
 259 
 
 ZEPHANIAH. 
 
 i.8, 9 .. .. Page 259, 260 
 
 ZECHARIAH. 
 
 iii. 10 .. 
 
 
 , . 
 
 63, 64, 300 
 
 ix. 3 
 
 
 
 .. 23 
 
 x. 4 
 
 , . 
 
 . , 
 
 295 
 
 xiv. ’6, 17 
 
 
 
 .. 70 
 
 20 
 
 MALACHI. 
 
 305 
 
 iv. 3 
 
 MATTHEW. 
 
 .. 24 
 
 iii. 4 
 
 
 . , 
 
 227, 228 
 
 v. 36 
 
 
 
 309 
 
 vi. 3 . . 
 
 
 
 176, 177 
 
 - 28-30 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 
 .. 45 
 
 viii. 9 . . 
 
 
 
 286, 287 
 
 ix. 9 
 
 . . 
 
 
 .. 179, 181 
 
 — 15 .. 
 
 
 , . 
 
 78-81 
 
 — 23 
 
 . . 
 
 
 .. 140-142 
 
 x. 12 .. 
 
 
 . . 
 
 66 
 
 — 27 
 
 . , 
 
 
 . 17-18 
 
 xiii. 25 
 
 
 
 163, 164 
 
 31, 32 
 
 . . 
 
 
 . 164 
 
 xiv.7 .. 
 
 
 . , 
 
 107 
 
 xviii. 26-29 
 
 
 
 . 92-94 
 
 xx. 3, 6, 7 
 
 
 . . 
 
 175, 176 
 
 xxi. 8 
 
 . . 
 
 
 112 
 
 17 
 
 
 
 12, 13, 17 
 
 33 .. 
 
 
 
 .. 168,169 
 
 33-41 
 
 
 .. 
 
 303 
 
 xxii. 11, 12 
 
 
 
 . 115,116 
 
 17, 20 
 
 
 
 77 
 
 24 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 
 . 54 
 
 xxiii. 24 
 
 
 
 59 
 
 27, 29 
 
 
 
 .. 26-28 
 
 xxiv. 17 
 
 
 . . 
 
 17 
 
 20 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 
 .. 241,242 
 
 41 
 
 
 
 46, 47 
 
 43 .. 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 xxv. 6 . . 
 
 
 . . 
 
 78-81 
 
 10 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 
 83 
 
 18 
 
 
 
 288, 289 
 
 32 .. 
 
 . , 
 
 
 . . 188, 189 
 
 xxvi. 23 
 
 . . 8, 59-62 
 
 , 74, 76, 77 
 
 xxvii. 59, 60 
 
 
 
 .. 29-32 
 
 61 
 
 
 . . 
 
 299 
 
 xxviii. 9 . , 
 
 MARK. 
 
 
 .. 96 
 
 ii. 11 .. 
 
 
 
 55, 56 
 
 v. 2-5 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 
 .. 28,29 
 
 ix. 41 .. 
 
 
 . . 
 
 40,41 
 
 — 50 
 
 . . 
 
 
 .. 238 
 
 xii. 39 . . 
 
 
 .. 
 
 66 
 
 xiii. 35 
 
 .. . 
 
 
 .. 221 
 
 xiv. 3 . . 
 
 
 . . 
 
 107 
 
 30 .. 
 
 ,, 
 
 
 .. 221 
 
 51 
 
 
 .. 
 
 112 
 
 HABAKKUK. 
 
320 
 
 INDEX OF TEXTS ILLUSTRATED, 
 
 LUKE. 
 
 i. 26, 27 
 
 . 
 
 .. Page 77-81 
 
 — 69 
 
 
 . . 
 
 . 122, 123 
 
 ii.7 .. 
 
 
 
 24,25 
 
 — 42 
 
 
 t> . 
 
 . 284 
 
 v. 8 
 
 
 
 92-94 
 
 — 19 
 
 
 
 .. 15-17 
 
 vi. 38 .. 
 
 
 
 113 
 
 — 49 
 
 
 
 . 244,245 
 
 vii. 12-15 
 
 
 
 296 
 
 44 .. 
 
 
 
 44,45 
 
 45 
 
 
 
 92-94 
 
 viii. 44 
 
 
 
 92-94 
 
 x. 4 .. 
 
 
 
 103, 104 
 
 xii. 3 • » 
 
 
 
 15 
 
 35-37 
 
 
 
 111,112 
 
 xiv. 7-12 » . 
 
 
 *• . 
 
 64-66 
 
 16, 17 
 
 
 
 65 
 
 xv. 13 .. 
 
 
 
 67,68 
 
 — 16 .. 
 
 
 
 237 
 
 — 20 
 
 
 
 93,94 
 
 xvi. 5, 8 
 
 
 
 181, 182 
 
 xvii. 2 
 
 
 .. 
 
 . 47,48 
 
 xviii. 10-14 
 
 
 
 180 
 
 13 .. 
 
 
 
 . 136 
 
 xxii. 17-20 
 
 
 
 71-77 
 
 xxiii. 48 . . 
 
 JOHN. 
 
 . 136,137 
 
 ii. 6 
 
 
 
 50-52 
 
 iv. 7 
 
 
 
 . 39,40 
 
 — 10, 11 
 
 
 
 194, 195 
 
 vi. 27 
 
 
 
 . 134,135 
 
 — 49-51 
 
 
 
 71-77 
 
 vii. 37-39 . . 
 
 
 
 . 69,70 
 
 viii. 6 . . 
 
 
 
 126, 127 
 
 x. 1 
 
 
 
 . 190 
 
 -3-5 .. 
 
 
 
 186-188 
 
 xiii. 4 
 
 
 .. 
 
 . 112 
 
 10 
 
 
 
 42, 43 
 
 25-27 
 
 
 
 . 59-62 
 
 xiv. 27 . . 
 
 
 
 102-104 
 
 xv. 1, 5, 8 .. 
 
 
 .. 
 
 . 301 
 
 — 2 .. 
 
 
 
 166 
 
 xix. 23 
 
 
 
 . 114 
 
 41, 42 
 
 
 . , 
 
 30-32 
 
 xx. 19 
 
 
 
 . 102-104 
 
 xxi. 3-13 
 
 
 . , 
 
 68, 69 
 
 7 
 
 
 .. 
 
 . 112 
 
 
 ACTS. 
 
 
 viii. 27-30 
 
 .. Page 130,131 
 
 ix. 37 
 
 , . ... 
 
 13 
 
 x. 9 .. 
 
 . . 
 
 15-17 
 
 xii. 8 
 
 . . 
 
 112 
 
 10 
 
 .. 
 
 20-22 
 
 xvi. 13 
 
 , . 
 
 36, 37 
 
 xix. 24 . . 
 
 282, 
 
 , 309, 310 
 
 xx. 8, 9 
 
 . , 
 
 12, 13 
 
 — 36-38 
 
 
 36 
 
 — 37 
 
 .. 
 
 93,94 
 
 xxi. 5 . . 
 
 .. 
 
 36,37 
 
 xxiii. 2 
 
 ROMANS. 
 
 276 
 
 xi. 17-24 
 
 
 166 
 
 1 CORINTHIANS. 
 
 
 ix. 7 
 
 EPHESIANS. 
 
 189 
 
 v. 19 .. 
 
 COLOSSIANS. 
 
 10,11 
 
 iii. 16 
 
 1 TIMOTHY 
 
 10,11 
 
 ii. 9 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 125 
 
 v. 10 
 
 2 TIMOTHY. 
 
 44,45 
 
 ii. 3 
 
 . , 
 
 285, 286 
 
 iv. 7 
 
 HEBREWS. 
 
 280, 281 
 
 vi. 16 . . 
 
 1 PETER. 
 
 309 
 
 iii. 3 
 
 . . . , 
 
 123, 124 
 
 v. 2, 4 .. 
 
 REVELATION. 
 
 189, 190 
 
 ii. 17 
 
 . , . . .. 
 
 98-100 
 
 v. 1 .. 
 
 .. 
 
 129, 130 
 
 vi. 14 
 
 
 128, 129 
 
 vii. 3 . . 
 
 • * •• 
 
 132,133 
 
 — 17 
 
 . , . , . . 
 
 203, 204 
 
 ix. 7 .. 
 
 . . . . 
 
 232, 235 
 
 xiii. 1, 11 
 
 , . .. . , 
 
 123 
 
 xviii. 22 
 
 • • • • 
 
 48 
 
 xix. 7-9 
 
 .. ,, ,, 
 
 78-81 
 
 12 
 
 .. 
 
 98-100 
 
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 Adam, a Sacred Drama, from the Italian of Battista Andreini, 
 with a Memoir of the Author, by the Rev. Henry Stebbing, A.M. 
 Two elegantly printed volumes, 400 pages each, 16mo., with 
 beautiful frontispieces. $1 75. 
 
 This is the only complete American edition. 
 
 Morality never found in genius a more devoted advocate than Cowper, nor 
 has moral wisdom, in its plain and severe precepts, been ever more success- 
 fully combined with the delicate spirit, of poetry, than in his works. He 
 was endowed with all the powers which a poet could want who was to be the 
 moralist of the world — the reprover, but not the satirist, of men — the teacher 
 of simple truths, which were to be rendered gracious without endangering 
 their simplicity. 
 
 BURNS’ COMPLETE POETICAL 
 WORKS. 
 
 The complete Poetical Works of Robert Burns, with Explanatory 
 and Glossarial Notes, and a Life of the Author, by James Cur- 
 rie, M.D. 1 vol. 16mo. $1 25. 
 
 This is the most complete edition which has been published, and contains 
 the whole of the poetry comprised in the edition lately edited by Cunningham, 
 as well as some additional pieces ; and such notes have been added as are cal- 
 culated to illustrate the manners and customs of Scotland, so as to render the 
 whole more intelligible to the English reader. 
 
 “ No poet, with the exception of Shakspeare, ever possessed the power ol 
 exciting the most varied and discordant emotions with such rapid transitions.” 
 — Sir W. Scott. 
 
 MILTON’S COMPLETE POETICAL 
 WORKS. 
 
 The complete Poetical Works of John Milton, with Explanatory 
 Notes and a Life of the Author, by the Rev. Henry Stebbing, 
 A.M. Beautifully illustrated. 1 vol. 16mo. $1 25. 
 
 The Latin and Italian Poems are included in this edition. 
 
 Mr. Stebbing’s notes will be found very useful in elucidating the learned 
 allusions with which the text abounds, and they are also valuable for the 
 correct appreciation with which the writer directs attention to the beau- 
 ties of the author. 
 
 SCOTT’S POETICAL WORKS. 
 
 The Poetical Works of Sir Walter Scott, Bart. — Containing Lay 
 of the Last Minstrel, Marmion, Lady of the Lake, Don Rode- 
 rick, Rokeby, Ballads. Lyrics, and Songs, with a Life of the 
 Author. Uniform with Cowper, Burns, &c. 1 vol. 16mo Si 25. 
 
 “ Wal-ter Scott is the most popular of all the poets of the present day, and de- 
 servedly so. He describes that which is most easily and generally understood 
 with more vivacity and effect than any other writer. His style is clear, flowir g 
 and transparent ; his sentiments, of which his style is an easy and natural me 
 ilium, are common to him with his readers.” — Hazlitt. 
 
D. Appleton Co.'s Catalogue of Valuable Works. 16 
 
 A LIBRARY FOR MY YOUNG COUNTRYMEN. 
 
 This Library is confided to the editorial care of one of the most successful 
 writers of the day, and commends itself as presenting to the readers of this 
 country a collection of books, chiefly confined to American subjects of his- 
 torical interest. 
 
 The following volumes are now ready , price 37£ cents each. 
 
 THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF HENRY HUDSON. By the author 
 of “Uncle Philip,” “Virginia,” &c. 
 
 ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH; Founder of Virginia. By 
 the author of “ Henry Hudson,” &c. 
 
 DAWN1NGS OP GENIUS. By Anne Pratt, author of “Flowers and their 
 
 LIFE° AND ADVENTURES OF HERMAN CORTES. By the author of 
 the “ Adventures of Captain John Smith,” &c. 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF DANIEL BOONE, the Kentucky Rifleman. By 
 the author of “ Henry Hudson,” &c. 
 
 EU* Several other volumes are in immediate preparation. 
 
 EVENINGS WITH THE CHRONICLERS ; 
 
 Or Uncle Rupert’s Tales of Chivalry. By R. M. Evans. With many Illus- 
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 “ This would havo been a volume after our own hearts, while we were younger, and it is scarcely 
 less so now when we are somewhat older.” — Cour. Sf Enq. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF JOAN OF ARC. 
 
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 four elegant Illustrations. 1 vol. 16mo. Extra gilt. $0 75. 
 
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 that history has preserved to us.” — Albany Advertiser. 
 
 ' SPRING, SUMMER, AUTUMN, AND WINTER. 
 
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 A beautiful volume, with nearly fifty plates. 2 vols. square, handsomely 
 bound. $0 50 each. 
 
 THE YOUNG ISLANDERS. 
 
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 illustrated. 75 cents. This fascinating and elegantly illustrated volume 
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 tal work, “ Robinson Crusoe.” 
 
 KEIGHTLEY’S MYTHOLOGY FOR SCHOOLS. 
 
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 By Thomas Keightley. Numerous wood-cut Illustrations. 1 vol. 18mo. 
 half bound. 44 cents. 
 
 IIAZEN’S SYMBOLICAL SPELLING BOOK. 
 
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 Schools, and pronounced to be one of the best works published. 
 
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6 D. Appleton if Co.'s Catalogue of Valuable Works. 
 
 SCRIPTURE AND GEOLOGY. 
 
 On the Relation between the Holy Scriptures and some parts of Geologicsi 
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 “ The volume consists of eight lectures, to which are appended seventy 
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 eighth is the peroration of the whole disquisition. 
 
 WORKS BY THE REV. DR. SPRAGUE. 
 
 TRUE AND FALSE RELIGION. 
 
 Lectures illustrating the Contrast between True Christianity and various- 
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 LETTERS TO A DAUGHTER 
 
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 and enlarged. 1 vol. 12mo. 75 cents. 
 
 LECTURES TO YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
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 whole circle of the periodical press of this country, and the fact, that they 
 have each passed through several editions in England, sufficiently attests the 
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 SPIRITUAL CHRISTIANITY. 
 
 Lectures on Spiritual Christianity. By Isaac Taylor, author of “ Spiritual 
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 “ This work is the production of one of the most gifted and accomplished 
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 that it will be read with great interest by those who read to find materials 
 for thought, and that it is destined to exert a most important influence, espe- 
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 truth and piety .” — Albany Evening Journal. 
 
D. Appleton <£• Co.’s Catalogue of Valuable Works. 
 
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 THE TRUE CHRISTIAN. 
 
 By the Rev. John Angell James. With an Introduction by the Rev. Wm. 
 
 Adams. 1 vol. 18mo $0 50. 
 
 “ We opine that the publishers of this volume made an accurate calculation when they 
 labelled these 4 Addresses '—stereotyped ; for they are among the choice effusions which 
 already have so highly benefited Christian society from the noble heart and richly- 
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 gation, and are offered as monthly epistles for a year, being twelve in number, and are thus 
 entitled: ‘Increased Holiness of the Church; Spirituality of Mind: Heavenly Minded- 
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 Christian Obligations ; Life of Faith; Influence of elder Christians; Spirit of Prayer ; Pri- 
 vate Prayer, and Self-Examination.’ ” — Christian Intelligencer. 
 
 THE YOUNG- MAN FROM HOME. 
 
 In a series of Letters, especially directed for the Moral Advancement of Youth. 
 
 By the Rev. John Angell James. Tenth edition. 1 vol. 18mo. 37£ cts. 
 
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 influence of vice.” — Albany Advertiser. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN PROFESSOR, 
 
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 “ The author remarks in this excellent volume: 4 When I look into the New Testament 
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 Christians are, I am painfully affected by observing the dissimilarity ; and m my jealousy for 
 the honour of the Christian profession, have made this effort, perhaps a feeble one, and cer- 
 tainly an anxious one, to remove its blemishes, to restore its impaired beauty, and thus raise 
 its reputation.’ ” 
 
 THE ANXIOUS ENQUIRER AFTER SALVATION 
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 religious community. 
 
 HAPPINESS, ITS NATURE AND SOURCES. 
 
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 to the uever-failing source of all good.” — Evange>ist. 
 
 THE WIDOW DIRECTED 
 
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 CR U DEN’S CONCORDANCE. 
 
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 THE POLYMICRIAN NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 Numerous References, Maps, &c. 1 vol. 18mo. 50 cents 
 
 THE SACRED CHOIR: 
 
 A COLLECTION OF CHURCH MUSIC: 
 
 Consisting of Selections from the most distinguished authors, among whom 
 are the names of IIaydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Pergolessi, &c. &c. 
 with several pieces of Music by the author ; also a Progressive Elementary 
 System of Instruction for Pupils. By George Kingsley, author of the So- 
 cial Choir, &c. &c. Fourth edition $0 75 
 
)' ' . • 
 
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA 
 220 B47 C001 
 
 Bible expositor : confirmations of the t