not describe a course of less than one hundred and fifty miles. Burckhardt says that it now bears different names in the various divisions of its course: Dhan near its source; Ordan lower down, near the Sea of Galilee; and Sherya between that lake and the Dead Sea.

"The Plain of Jordan."- As now understood, the valley or plain of Jordan, through which the river flows, is applied to that part between the lake of Houle and the Dead Sea; but as understood in the text, it must have comprehended that part of the valley which the Dead Sea now occupies. From the accounts of different travellers, it seems to vary in breadth from four to ten or twelve miles in different parts. It is now in most parts a parched desert, but with many spots covered with a luxuriant growth of wild herbage and grass. Its level is lower, and the temperature consequently higher, than in most other parts of Syria. The heat is concentrated by the rocky mountains on each side, which also prevent the air from being cooled by the westerly winds in summer. This valley is divided into two distinct levels: the upper, or general level of the plain; and the lower, which is about forty feet below it. The preceding statement refers to the former; the latter varies in breadth from a mile to a furlong, and is partially covered with trees and luxuriant verdure, which give it an appearance striking in contrast with the sandy slopes of the higher level. The river flows through the middle of this lower valley, in a bed the banks of which are fourteen or fifteen feet high when the river is at the lowest. The banks are thickly beset by tamarisks, willow, oleander, and other shrubs, which conceal the stream from view until it is approached very nearly. These thickets, with those of the lower plain, once afforded cover to lions and other beasts of prey, which, when driven from their shelter by the periodical overflow of the river, gave much alarm to the inhabitants of the valley (see Jeremiah xlix. 19). Besides this passage, there are others (Josh. iii. 15; 1 Chron. xii. 15.) in which an overflow of the Jordan is mentioned, occasioned doubtless by the periodical rains or the melting of the snows on Lebanon. The river seems then to have overflowed its inner banks to a considerable extent about the commencement of spring. Modern travellers who have visited it at that season, have not noticed such an inundation: whence we may infer that the stream of the Jordan has diminished, or that it has worn itself a deeper channel. It has much perplexed inquirers to determine what became of the waters of the Jordan previously to the formation of the Dead Sea. This difficulty seems to have been resolved by Burckhardt, who, in his Travels in Syria and the Holy Land,' considers that the valley or plain of the Jordan is continued, under the names of El Ghor and El Araba, to the Gulf of Akaba; demonstrating that the river discharged its waters into the eastern gulf of the Red Sea, until its course was interrupted by the great event which the nineteenth chapter of Genesis records.

"Like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar."-This has perplexed some commentators, because Zoar seems to be mentioned as in Egypt, when, in fact, it was one of the cities of the plain of Jordan. Dr. Boothroyd has transposed the clauses so as to give what is generally allowed to be the right sense of the verse-thus, " And Lot raised his eyes, and beheld that the whole plain of the Jordan, all the way to Zoar (Jehovah not having then destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah), was everywhere well watered, like the garden of Jehovah, or as the land of Egypt."

18. "Plain of Mamre."-The note on chap. xii. 6, applies here; the word translated "plain" being the same in both places. No doubt a tree is meant here. Mamre is the name of the person who is described in verse 13 of the next chapter as an Amorite, one of three brothers who were friends of Abraham, and confederates with him in his expedition against the four kings. Dr. Boothroyd, whose renderings of passages which the authorized version leaves doubtful or

obscure are generally regarded with high respect, thus translates-"dwelt at the turpentine-tree of Mamre, an Amorite, which was by Hebron." Sozomen, the ecclesiastical historian, says the tree still existed in the time of Constantine, at the distance of six miles from Hebron, and was famous for pilgrimages and for a great fair to which the concourse gave occasion. Opinions were at that time divided as to the antiquity of the tree; some thought it as old as the creation, and that it was the same under which Abram entertained the angels; while others supposed that it grew from a staff which one of the angels left in the ground. But Jews and Christians concurred in regarding it with such extraordinary superstition, that Constantine wrote to direct Eusebius, Bishop of Cæsarea in Palestine, to put a stop to the grosser forms of the idolatrous worship it received, and to throw down the altar which had been erected before it. The emperor, however, directed a church to be built, in which the regular offices of religion might be performed. Sanutus states that the trunk of the terebinth tree was still in being in his time (about 1300), and that the pilgrims carried it away in pieces, to which great virtues were ascribed. Sozomen also speaks of a well dug by Abram, and of certain cottages built by him. The Spanish Jew, Benjamin of Tudela, who was there about the middle of the twelfth century, says: "In the very field of Duplicitie [Machpelah], the monuments of the ancient house of our father Abraham are yet extant and to be seene, and a fountayne springeth out before it, and no man may build an house there, for the reverence of Abraham." (Purchas.) These ruins, which are still shown to travellers as the "house of Abraham," seem in fact to be the remains of a small convent. Moreover, the pilgrims and travellers seem to have forgotten that Abram was a dweller in tents, and does not appear to have ever had a house in Canaan.

"Hebron."-Some suppose that the place is mentioned by this name as that by which it was best known when Moses wrote, while others conclude that the name "Hebron" was not given to the place till after the death of Moses, and that, where it occurs in his writings, it was interpolated by Ezra for the sake of elucidation. It is called Mamre elsewhere (chap. xxiii. 19, and xxxv. 27). It was also known in the time of Abram as Kirjath-arba (chap. xxiii. 2), or the city of Arba (chap. xxxv. 27); "which Arba," says Joshua (xiv. 15), "was a great man among the Anakims ;" and was indeed the father of Anak, from whom that peopletook their name (Josh. xv. 13). The Rabbins, giving a rendering, which has no support from other texts, to Josh. xiv. 15, make the name Kirjath-arba to mean "the city of four; one of which was Adam, who lies here among the Anakims." Arba means "four" in Hebrew, and Adam denotes "a man." This name it derived, according to them, because the four illustrious men, Adam, Abram, Isaac, and Jacob, were buried there, as also the four distinguished women, Eve, Sarah, Rebekah, and Leah. All these persons were certainly buried there; except Adam and Eve, whose place of interment is nowhere mentioned. Whoever built the city, it must have been one of the most ancient in the world. Egypt was one of the first countries settled after the Deluge, and its inhabitants made much boast of the antiquity of their cities; yet we are informed in Num. xiii. 22, that Hebron was built seven years before Zoan, or Tanis, the ancient capital of Lower Egypt. At the conquest of Palestine by the Israelites Hebron was possessed by the Anakims, and was taken by Caleb, whose possession it became, being in the allotment of the tribe of Judah. It was afterwards assigned to the Levites, and became a city of refuge. David kept his court there in the first seven years of his reign, before Jerusalem was taken. Afterwards Absalom raised the standard of rebellion in Hebron. During the Babylonish captivity, the Edomites appropriated Hebron when they invaded the south of Judah, and it became the capital of a district which continued to be called Idumæa long after the territory of the Edomites had been incorporated with Judæa. Wells thinks it became the site of a bishopric in the early times of Christianity, and it was certainly made such when the Crusaders conquered Palestine. Hebron is now merely a village, called Habroun and Khalyl, situated about 27 miles south of Jerusalem, eastward of a chain of hills which intersects the country from north to south. It stands on the slope of an eminence, at the summit of which are some mis-shapen ruins of an ancient castle. It has some small manufactures of cotton, soap, glass-lamps, and trinkets, which render it the most important place of the district. It is rather a neat town, with unusually high houses; but the streets are narrow and winding. The adjoining district, which is no doubt "the valley of Hebron," is an oblong hollow, or valley, diversified with rocky hillocks, groves of fir, and some plantations of vines and olive trees.

CHAPTER XIV.

1 The battle of four kings against five. 11 Lot is taken prisoner: 14 Abram rescueth him. 18 Melchizedek blesseth Abram. 20 Abram giveth him tithe: 22 The rest of the spoil, his partners having had their portions, he restoreth to the king of Sodom.

AND it came to pass, in the days of Amraphel

5 And in the fourteenth year came Chedorlaomer, and the kings that were with him, and smote the Rephaims in Ashteroth Karnaim, and the Zuzims in Ham, and the Emims in Shaveh Kiriathaim,

2

6 And the Horites in their mount Seir, unto El-paran, which is by the wilderness. 7 And they returned and came to En

king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Che-mishpat, which is Kadesh, and smote all the dorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of

nations;

2 That these made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, which is Zoar.

3 All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea.

4 Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

1 Or, the plain of Kiriathaim,

country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites that dwelt in Hazezon-tamar.

8 And there went out the king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, and the king of Admah, and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, (the same is Zoar;) and they joined battle with them in the vale of Siddim;

9 With Chedorlaomer the king of Elam, and with Tidal king of nations, and Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings with five.

2 Or, the plain of Paran.

10 And the vale of Siddim was full of slime-pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and fell there; and they that remained fled to the mountain.

11 And they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and went their way.

12 And they took Lot, Abram's brother's son, (who dwelt in Sodom,) and his goods, and departed.

13 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram.

3

14 And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.

15 And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.

16 And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people. 17¶And the king of Sodom went out to

meet him, (after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him,) at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king's dale.

6

18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine; and he was the priest of the most high God.

19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:

20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

8

7

21 And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.

22 And Åbram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,

23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoe-latchet, and that I will not take anything that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:

24 Save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men which went with me, Aner, Eschol, and Mamre ; let them take their portion.

3 Or, led forth. 4 Or, instructed. 5 2 Sam. 18. 18. 6 Heb. 7. 1. 7 Heb. 7. 4. 8 Heb. souls.

Verse 1. "Amraphel," &c.—If it were not for the names of Shinar and Elam, (the former describing a territory between the Euphrates and Tigris, and the other, one beyond the Tigris,) there could be no hesitation in considering that the four kings of this verse were no greater than their antagonists-namely, petty chiefs of a town and surrounding district. This supposition is confirmed by the smallness of the force, under Abram, by which they were afterwards defeated. It is far more likely that these were towns happening to bear the names of Shinar and Elam, than that the kings of Persia (Elam), of Babylon (Shinar), and of Arabia (Ellasar), and the other, should think a league necessary against five monarchs whose united territory must have been surpassed by most English counties. We shall, however, give the usual explanations.

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Amraphel, king of Shinur."-Shuckford thinks that Amraphel was Chedorlaomer's deputy at Babylon in Shinar. "Elam."-Without thinking that the country elsewhere bearing this name is really intended here, we may mention that the name Elam is that which the Old Testament gives to Persia before the time of Daniel, who first uses the latter name. This name Elam is from the son of Shem; who is presumed to have settled in the district afterwards called by his name by both sacred and profane authors, the latter calling it Elymais. This district, from which the rest of Persia is supposed to have been colonized by the descendants of Elam, seems to have extended from the mountains of Louristan in Persia to the Persian Gulf; and would appear, largely taken, to have included Susiana, for Daniel describes Susa as being in the province of Elam.

"Ellasar."-This kingdom has been generally sought for in Arabia, but Mr. Bryant finds it in Assyria.

"Tidal, king of nations" (melech-goim).—This indeterminate expression has occasioned some perplexity to commentators. The majority incline to the opinion that his dominion lay in Upper Galilee, which was in after-times called "Galilee of the Gentiles" (or Galilee of the nations), on account of the mixed population by which it was inhabited. But as it is very doubtful that Upper Galilee was thus characterised at so early a period, it is safer to render Goim as a proper name, and to confess we know nothing about the situation of Tidal's kingdom.

2. "Made war," &c.-This earliest account of an act of warfare is very remarkable, and its difficulties will be best elucidated by a reference to existing practices among the Arab tribes. It is indeed by no means unlikely, that although we have supposed the invading kings such monarchs as the kings of the plain are ascertained to have been, they were in fact nomade chiefs, or sheikhs, inhabiting the country between Canaan and the Euphrates, and some of them perhaps beyond that river. The expedition has the whole appearance of an Arab incursion. Their apparently rapid sweep, like a whirlwind, over the countries indicated-their return with captives and spoil-and the ultimate night-surprise and easy overthrow by Abram and his friends,-are all circumstances strikingly analogous to Arab usages on both sides. That their force was not numerous is evident from the circumstance that the petty kings of the plain ventured to give them battle or their return flushed with success, and from the small body by which they were defeated. There are few sheikhs of the present time who can bring more than 300 horsemen into action; and if we suppose each of the four "kings” brought such a number of men, lightly armed, and unencumbered with baggage, we have probably the highest estimate that can be allowed in the present instance. They were probably mounted on camels, and few things are more common in our own day than to hear of Arabs or Turcomans, in even much smaller numbers, traversing extensive deserts, scouring the country beyond, sacking villages, menacing and even entering large towns in the night, all with astonishing rapidity, and

scale.

returning laden with captives and spoil. The affair has the appearance altogether of a Turcoman chappow on a large "Sodom-Gomorrah—Admah—Zeboiim-Bela." These are the five "cities of the plain" which were afterwards doomed to destruction for their iniquity, and all destroyed with the exception of Bela, which was saved to afford a place of refuge to Lot. Sodom and Gomorrah are always so mentioned as to appear the principal of the five, and Bela was probably the least important. It seems from this text that the part of the valley of Jordan occupied by these cities and their territories, and which now forms the bed of the Dead Sea, was then called the vale of Siddim. For observations on the overthrow of these cities, and on the Dead Sea, see the notes on chap. xix.

5. "Rephaims-Zuzims—Emims.”—These would seem to have been people of extraordinary stature inhabiting the country east of the Jordan and Dead Sea. The country of the Rephaims is identified with that of Bashan, the last king of which, Og, so famous for his stature, was dispossessed by the Israelites, when the city of Ashteroth was given to the half-tribe of Manasseh, whose allotment was east of Jordan. The Zuzims and Emíms had been previously dispossessed of their territory by the children of Moab and Ammon, the sons of Lot. The invading chiefs appear to have overrun the eastern bank of the Jordan, from near its source, to the desert south of Canaan, through which they proceeded westward towards the Mediterranean; and, after having made a near approach to that sea, returned, and on their re-ascent through the vale of the Jordan, gave battle to the kings of the plain. This account of their track will be readily understood by reference to any map in which the situations of the early nations of this region are given.

6. "And the Horites in their Mount Seir."-For an account of Mount Seir and the land of Edom, see the note on chap. xxxvi. 9. An illustrative cut we give with the present chapter.

10. "Fled to the mountain."-It is still a common practice in the East for the inhabitants of towns and villages to hasten for safety to the mountains in times of alarm and danger, or at least to send their valuable property away. The moveables of the Asiatics, in camps, villages, and even towns, are astonishingly few compared with those which the refinements of European life render necessary. A few carpets, kettles, and dishes of tinned copper, compose the bulk of their property, which can speedily be packed up, and sent away on the backs of camels or mules, with the women and children mounted on the baggage. In this way a large village or town is in a few hours completely gutted, and the inhabitants, with every stick and rag belonging to them, can place themselves in safety in the mountains. The writer of this note travelled in Koordistan in 1829, following, in one part of the journey, the course which had recently been taken by the Persian troops in their march from Tabreez to Sulimanieh. He came to one large village which had been partíally burnt by the Persians, who had also maltreated the inhabitants, who had afterwards fled to the mountains. The news of this transaction having been carried over-night to the next large village, about 20 miles distant, the Persians, on their arrival there the next day, found it completely deserted by the inhabitants, who had, in the short interval, removed with all their live stock and goods to the mountains. He found it in this condition a fortnight later; the inhabitants being afraid to come back till the soldiers should have returned from their expedition. Burckhardt, in his "Notes on the Bedouins and Wahabys,” p. 337, mentions that, when the Wahabys menaced Damascus in 1810, the inhabitants sent off all their valuable property to the mountains of Lebanon.

13. "The Hebrew."-The word "Hebrew" first occurs here. Opinions are divided as to the origin of the term. The majority incline to the opinion that it comes from the name of Eber, or Heber, the great grandson of Shem, and one of the ancestors of Abram. But as there seems no reason why the name of Eber should in particular be taken as an appellative by Abram, seeing that five generations intervened between him and Eber, we choose rather to recur to the etymology of the word; and finding Eber, y, to be a word implying transition or passage, consider it more probable that the term was first applied or taken by Abram as an epithet to distinguish him as one who had come from beyond the Euphrates. Calmet, and other good authorities, are of this opinion. At any rate the term soon became a patronymic. Joseph, when in Egypt, is repeatedly called "the Hebrew;" he describes himself to Pharaoh as having been "stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews" (chap. xl. 15); and when his brethren go to Egypt they are similarly distinguished as "the Hebrews."

14. "Brother."-Lot was Abram's nephew, but is called here his brother, in conformity with a usage of which we shall meet with frequent instances in our progress through the Scriptures, and which did not confine the application of the term to natural brothers, but extended it to all near kindred.

“Servants born in his own house.”—The word translated servant generally denotes what we should call a slave. In subsequent passages we shall indeed have occasion to remark on humble friends or disciples performing servile offices and therefore called "servants;" and also on the Jewish slaves whom their own countrymen held in bondage for a limited time, and under defined restrictions. But the mass of the servants mentioned in the Scripture history were absolute and perpetual slaves. They were strangers, either purchased or taken prisoners in war. They and their progeny were regarded as completely the property of their masters, who could exchange or sell them at pleasure, could inflict what punishments they pleased, and even, in some cases, put them to death. Abram's "servants" were manifestly of this description. This form of slavery is still common in the East; and the facts which the book of Genesis brings under our notice show how little Asiatic usages have altered after the lapse of almost four thousand years. The condition of slavery in Mohammedan Asia is, however, unattended, except in very rare instances, with the revolting circumstances which we usually associate with the word. The term "slave" itself is not regarded as one of opprobrium, nor does it convey the idea of a degraded condition. Slaves are generally treated with such kindness and favour, that they commonly become much attached to their masters, and devoted to their interest. They do not till the fields, or work in manufactories. Their employment is almost wholly of a domestic nature, and their labour light. This is particularly the case with those who are purchased young and brought up in the family, and still more with those who, like Abram's, are "born in the house." Few Europeans would do for their hired servants what the Asiatics do for their slaves, or repose such entire confidence in them. Illustrations on this subject will occur as we proceed. Meanwhile it is obvious, that as Abram had among the slaves "born in his house," 318 men fit to bear arms, exclusive of purchased slaves, old men, women, and children, he must have been regarded as a powerful chief by the petty princes among whom he dwelt. Hence, a few chapters on (chap. xxiii. 6), the children of Heth say to him, "My lord, thou art a mighty prince among us."

"Dan."-We learn from Judges xviii. 7, that this place was called Laish until taken by the Danites, who gave it the name by which it is here mentioned. As this event did not occur till long after the death of Moses, who never mentions the old name, that of Dan must have been interpolated by another hand, that the reference might be the

more clearly understood. This and other interpolations of existing for ancient names are supposed to have been made by Ezra, when he revised the Old Testament Scriptures. Being at the northern extremity of Palestine, as Beersheba was at the southern, "from Dan to Beersheba" became a proverbial expression to designate the entire length of the kingdom. It was situated near the sources of the Jordan; and if that river derived its name from the town, the name must also be interpolated in the books of Moses, in the place of some more ancient name not preserved. This is probable enough; but to avoid this conclusion, some writers prefer to derive the name of the river from the verb Jared, "to descend," on account of the full and rapid course of the stream, The town of Dan is commonly identified with the Paneas of heathen writers, the present Banias. This identity does not seem indisputable. We may, however, state that the name was derived from the worship of Pan, to which a cavern, described by Josephus, was here consecrated. The town was greatly enlarged and embellished by the Tetrarch, Herod Philip, who changed its name to Cæsarea, in honour of the Emperor Tiberius, to which the adjunct Philippi was added, to distinguish it from the Cæsarea on the coast. Its name was afterwards changed to Neronias, in compliment to Nero. Banias is situated in a pleasant and fertile neighbourhood, at the base of a mountain called Djebel Heish. It is now merely a village, containing at most 150 houses, chiefly occupied by Turks. The river of Banias rises to the north-east of the village, on approaching which it passes under a good bridge, near which there are some remains of the ancient town. No walls remain, but great quantities of stone and architectural fragments are strewed around. About three miles east by south from the village are the remains of a strong and extensive fortress, called the "Castle of Banias," situated on the summit of a mountain; and to the south of the village there is another ruined fortress of similar construction. Some travellers attribute these castles to the Arabian caliphs, and others to the crusaders, and consider that one of the two (they differ in saying which) probably occupies the site, and includes some of the materials of a temple which Herod the Great erected here in honour of Augustus.

15. “Divided himself against them...by night.”—Probably he divided his forces, so that a simultaneous rush was made upon the camp of the enemy from different quarters. Here again the usages of Arabian warfare assist us. Surprise, by sudden attacks, is their favourite mode of warfare. Some tribes consider it cowardly and disgraceful to make a nightattack on a camp. But this is not the general feeling. When such an attack is resolved upon, the assailants so arrange their march that they may fall upon the camp about an hour before the first dawn, when they are tolerably certain to find the whole camp asleep. With some tribes it is then the custom to rush upon the tents, and knock down the principal tent-poles, thus enveloping the sleepers in their tent-cloths, which renders the victory easy even over superior forces. What greatly facilitates the success of such attacks is the general neglect of posting night-watches and sentinels, even when in the vicinity of an enemy. If an immediate attack is apprehended, all the males of an encampment, or all the soldiers of an expedition, remain watching their fires throughout the night. In the present transaction, we do not read of any men killed on either side. Probably none were. It is astonishing how little blood is shed by the Arabs in their most desperate actions, which more resemble frays among an unorganized rabble than a battle between soldiers. We may hear of a battle lasting a whole day without a man being killed on either side. Burckhardt says: "When fifteen or sixteen men are killed in a skirmish, the circumstance is remembered as an event of great importance for many years by both parties."

"Damascus."-The city is not here mentioned proleptically; for we find it noticed in chap. xv. 2 as the birth-place of Abram's steward Eliezer; and it must therefore have been one of the earliest cities in the world, and is one of the very few that have maintained a flourishing existence in all ages. It is situated in E. long. 36° 25', and N. lat. 33° 27', in the north-west of an extensive and remarkably level plain, which is open eastward beyond the reach of vision, but is bounded in every other direction by mountains, the nearest of which-those of Salehie, to the north-west-are not quite two miles from the city. These hills give rise to the river Barrady, and to various rivulets, which afford the city a most liberal supply of water, and render its district one of the most pleasant and fertile of Western Asia (see note on 2 Kings v. 12). The district, within a circumference of from twenty to twenty-five miles, is thickly covered with wellwatered gardens and orchards, in the midst of which stands the town itself. It thus appears as in a vast wood; and its almost innumerable public buildings, including an extensive citadel and a vast number of mosques, with their domes and minarets, give it a fine appearance as viewed from the neighbouring hills; but on approaching over the level plain, the plantations by which it is environed shroud it entirely from view. Its finest building is a grand mosque, of the Corinthian order, said to have been built as a cathedral church by the Emperor Heraclius. It was dedicated to St. John of Damascus, and is still called the mosque of St. John the Baptist by the Turks, who believe that in the latter days Jesus shall descend thereon, and from its summit require the adhesion of all his followers to the Moslem faith. The city is surrounded by an old wall of sun-dried brick, strengthened with towers; but this wall has fallen to decay, and the town has so greatly extended beyond its limits, that the number of houses without the wall greatly exceeds that within. The houses in the city have flat roofs, while those in the suburbs have domes. Damascus is said to contain five hundred mansions entitled to be called palaces; and the general splendour of its houses is much extolled in the East. But little of this is visible in the streets, which in general present walls of mud or sun-dried brick, which fill the narrow streets with dust in dry weather, and render them perfect quagmires when it rains. The houses themselves are built with the same materials, although stone might be easily obtained from the adjoining mountains. The streets present scarcely any windows, and only low and mean-looking doors; but these often conduct to large interior courts paved with marble, refreshed by gushing fountains, and surrounded by apartments ornamented and furnished in the best and richest oriental taste. The thirsty Arabs from the Desert regard Damascus with rapture, and are never tired of expatiating on the freshness and verdure of its orchards, the variety and richness of its fruits, and, more than all, its numerous streams, and the clearness of its rills and fountains. There is a tradition, that Mohammed, coming to the city, viewed it with great admiration from the mountain Salehie, and then turned away, refusing to approach, with the remark, that there was but one Paradise designed for man, and he was determined that his should not be in this world; but there is no historical foundation for this story. Damascus is about six miles in circumference, and its population is estimated by Mr. Buckingham at 143,000; of whom 90,000 are native Syrian Arabs, 10,000 Turks, 15,000 Jews, and 25,000 Christians. But Dr. Richardson does not estimate the Christian population at more than 12,000. Damascus is the rendezvous of many thousand pilgrims who proceed to Mecca in one great body every year, and many of whom make a considerable stay before the caravan departs, and most of whom unite commercial with religious objects, loading their beasts with the produce of their own countries, which they dispose of on the road, bringing back in the same manner the products of India, received from Jidda, the port of Mecca. This has contributed greatly to the prosperity of Damascus, which is also the emporium of an extensive caravan trade with the ports of the Mediterranean on the west, and with Bagdad on the east. Damascus has obtained fame for some of its manufactures. The fine temper of its sword-blades has long been proverbial. This reputation has, however, of late years much declined; but