36 CEDARS OF LEBANON. Hiram to supply him with cedars from Lebanon, for the building of the Temple. The mountain was then before me, and appeared to be distant only two or three miles ; and I thought that the timber must, if brought in a direct line to the sea, have passed within a hundred yards of our dwelling. But alas! where are the cedars of Lebanon now? I have been told that only three or four cedar trees remain; so that, as Isaiah declared, the hand of the Lord has been "Upon all the cedars of Lebanon that are lifted up, And upon all the high mountains." The timber used for building the episcopal church on Mount Sion, came from distant lands: a cargo of which arrived at Beyroot this day, and had to be again shipped for Jaffa, thence to be carried on the backs of camels to Jerusalem, This being the Lord's day, I was favoured by hearing Mr. Winbolt preach in a room in his own house, which he had fitted up with benches and a pulpit. The con gregation consisted of about 14 or 15. Mr. Nicolay son, of Jerusalem, was present; being on his way to Constantinople, for the purpose of obtaining an interview with the Sultan, relative to an order which had been issued by him, a short time before, causing the building of the church to cease. 6th. This day engaged in packing up; and getting all things ready for our voyage. 7th.-Having a few things to purchase, I took Nicalo with me, and had another ramble through the narrow streets of Beyroot. In the afternoon, I wandered into the country, through many a lovely mulberry, fig, and grape garden. The foot roads intersected one another, in all directions, and no one seemed to consider that a trespass was committed by me: nor did I wonder at this, for the finest grapes I ever beheld were sold at one farthing per lb; and other fruits were equally cheap. In my wandering, I came to a great mound or, I may say, mountain of sand, upon which there was scarcely PROPHECY FULFILLED-ARAB PLOUGH. 37 any sign of vegetation, except that on the top grew a large tree; under which, I sat down, and had an extensive view all round. I could not help thinking that the Lord had commissioned the sun, rain, and wind, to desolate this once 66 glory of all lands": for I saw that the sands of the sea were swept in upon the plains, by the power of the wind; so that while the sun and rain are effecting the Lord's will, in desolating the mountains, the wind is made the instrument of burying these fertile plains in sand. Truly the word of God by Moses has been literally fulfilled-" Then shall the land enjoy her Sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate, and ye be in your enemies' land; even THEN shall the land rest, and enjoy her Sabbaths. As long as it lieth desolate it shall rest; because it did not rest in your Sabbaths, when ye dwelt upon it." On my way home, I stopped to examine an Arab plough; it was such a contrivance as I should not have taken for a plough, as it is not intended to turn over the furrow, but merely to ripple and loosen the earth. It has only one handle, which the ploughman grasps with one hand, while with the other he goads on the oxen, by a long sharp-pointed stick: it has no coulter, nor ploughcords, nor swindletree, nor plough chains; but the beam goes on as far as the shoulders of the oxen, being that distance from the ground. Instead of a treaptree, a piece of wood goes across the necks of the oxen, which is held fast to each by a girthing, or wooded band, and to this piece of wood the plough beam is fastened. The plough is very slender and light, having no iron about it, but a small piece which answers for a sock. It is a common thing to see the ploughman going to or returning from the field, walking behind his oxen, with his plough over his shoulder; and as I never saw a plough left in the field at night, I am led to believe, that they are always taken home, for fear of being stolen. 8th.This day, I again visited the Turkish burying ground; the graves are made secure from the ravages of the dogs, but are not plastered so neatly as those in Egypt. Green twigs and flowers were strewed over 38 COOKS' SHOPS-START FOR JAFFA. them, and from their freshness it appeared evident that they are frequently renewed. The friends of the deceased, when they bring these flowers to strew upon the grave, kneel down and repeat some prayers, such as the Roman Catholics do in Ireland and other countries. Dogs, who could not claim a master, were lying or lounging about, in all directions: they seem very harmless, and the only objection I had to them, was the never-ceasing barking they kept up during the night. 9th.-Had another look through the market this day: I saw a few cooks' shops, but they were far from being clean and comfortable. Soup, made of the coarsest meat, with goats' heads and sheep's bones, &c., and coffee, were the staple commodities. The soup is kept hot over a small charcoal fire; and when a customer comes in for "thin broth," the top is gently removed; but if the purchaser prefers that which is more substantial, the shopkeeper puts his fist down to the bottom, and brings up what he can grasp, which he squeezes between his palms, and then lays it upon a wooden plate. The purchaser then, without a knife, fork, or spoon, takes it in his hands and eats it. On my return, I made another excursion through the burying ground. Observing an old man with a long beard, talking very fast over a grave, and three women and a child repeating after him, I drew nearer to them but they made signs for me to keep off; nor would they permit me to advance nearer than twenty yards. FROM BEYROOT TO MY LEAVING JAFFA. 10th.-There had been much thunder and rain for the last three days, and this morning the tops of two of the mountains were covered with snow. We got on board the Turkish schooner, and there beheld a scene which beggared all description! The deck was completely covered with passengers and luggage, all wedged together; SCENE ON BOARD THE SCHOONER. 39 and scarcely could we find a vacant place even to stand. Mr. Manning was so disgusted, that, taking Nicalo with him, he went on shore, declaring that he would not sail with such a dirty set of ragamuffins. Had we been so unfortunate as not to have secured the little cabin to ourselves, I certainly should have followed Mr. Manning; but as it was, I thought it would not do to stay any longer at Beyroot, having been there eighteen days already. Mr. M., finding that it was his best plan to proceed with me, returned, and submitted to necessity. We got our beds on the cabin floor, and when we knelt upon them, our shoulders touched the deck. The area of the cabin was six feet square! The wind was fair, but the night cold; still, as Mr. Manning thought that the place was too small and close for us to lie in at once, we agreed that I should take the bed till twelve o'clock, and Mr. M. to take possession of it from that hour. 11th. The morning was most delightful, and when daylight appeared, we were opposite Sidon, and only about half-a-mile from it. It seemed to be well built, and, like Beyroot, it looked clean and neat at a distance. I have described the passengers before; but among the Jews I expected to have found one whom I had seen at Mr. Winbolt's, but in this I was mistaken. He had come from Smyrna, bearing a letter of introduction to Mr. Winbolt; which letter stated, that he was going to Jerusalem, to be baptized by the bishop, and that he had money enough to take him thither. But he told us that he had fallen into the sea, when coming to Beyroot, and all his money had fallen out of his pocket. His tale greatly excited the sympathy of Mr. and Mrs. Winbolt, who proposed that a subscription should be made up for him I offered to pay his passage to Jaffa, as my share. A sum of money was soon collected and given him. Not seeing him on board this morning, I was led to suspect that his motives were not of the best: indeed, I said so to Mr. Winbolt before I left Beyroot. The Jews placed themselves on the left side of the vessel, thus securing to themselves the side most favourable for a view of the 40 JEWISH PASSENGERS-TYRE. land; and, while reading their bibles, they would lift their eyes, and cast many a longing, languid look towards the land of their forefathers; and often have I seen the big tear-drop stand in their panting eyes, or seen it roll down their expressive faces! Oh that their eyes were opened to perceive the things which make for their peace, for now have they long been hid from their eyes! Mr. Manning was the only gentleman that was able to speak to them. The entire number on deck was from 45 to 50, and, with the exception of two or three Italians and ourselves, were of the poorest class. They were all badly clothed, dirty, and by no means free from vermin. The sailors were very much incommoded in the performance of their duty; for nearly every step they gave was upon a leg or an arm; which, as was natural, elicited a scream from the sufferers. My friend, Mr. Manning, being a very particular gentleman, felt greatly distressed at his situation, and many a sigh escaped his lips. After leaving Sidon, we saw many small villages on the sides, and even on the summits of the mountains. 12th. This morning before it was quite light, Nicalo called out to us from the deck, that we had just passed Tyre. I felt sorry that I had not had the opportunity of seeing it; however, in a short time he called out again, to say that the breeze being against the vessel the captain had turned the ship round, and she was now making towards the port of Tyre. This was joyful news to me; especially when I found it was true, for in less than an hour we were on shore. The first thing we did was to inquire for the English Consul. On arriving at his residence, we were told that he was at prayers, and would not be at home for two hours. We next asked for the convent: and we were there shown into a large, damp, dirty room, without an article of furniture, but a few old mats on the floor; after that we were shown into another, not a whit better; and being told that we must provide ourselves with victuals, we went back to the vessel and breakfasted there. We thought every |