caused an enormous increase in the cost of the necessaries of life.

"Jerusalem has few manufactories, and no exports, except what is carried away by the pilgrims. The manufacture of soap is one of the principal. For this there are nine establishments, which appear to have been long in existence. The mounds of ashes, which they have thrown out at some distance from the city on the north, have almost the appearance of natural hills. At Easter large quantities of perfumed soap are said to be sold to the pilgrims. Oil of sesame is made to a

considerable extent; for this there are nine presses. There is also a large tannery for leather, just by the eastern entrance to the court before the Church of the Sepulchre. All these establishments are private property, not controlled by the government; and are in the hands of the Muslims.

"The chief articles manufactured by the Christians, both here and at Bethlehem, are rosaries, crucifixes, models of the Holy Sepulchre, and the like, carved in olive-wood, the fruit of the Dom-palm said to be brought from Mecca, mother of pearl, or sometimes in the species of black shining stone found near the Dead Sea." Vol. II. pp. 95, 96.

After spending several weeks in investigating the antiquities of the Holy City, Dr. R. and his companion entered upon a series of excursions to explore the surrounding region. This might seem unnecessary in a part of the country so often visited; but it was, if possible, the more needful on that account, as great confusion and discrepancy prevail among the books of travels referring to the regions which they were now to investigate. To show the pains which had been taken to turn these excursions to the best account, we need only state that Mr. Smith had begun as early as 1834 to collect the native names of places in those parts which they hoped to visit. These names, being derived from the Arabs and corrected according to the best Arabic orthography, suggested many analogies to the Hebrew, and tended to the discovery or verification of many ancient sites. The value of these lists and the labor of their compilation may be inferred from the fact that they contain some 4000 names, filling eighty-five pages of the appendix.

The Muslim population, being separated from the Christian ecclesiastics both by religion and the want of a common language, have generally retained the ancient names, instead of

receiving those imposed by pilgrims. Hence the proper course, and that which Robinson and Smith pursued, was to rely almost entirely on the information of the Arabs, in connection with such hints as are furnished by the Scriptures, by the earlier writers on Palestine, and by their own observation. Acting on these principles, they made their first excursion into a region N. E. from Jerusalem, which seems to have been neglected by all foreign travellers. They were here rewarded by results of great value to biblical geography. They were able to trace out scenes and places associated with the names of Abraham and Jacob, of Samuel and Saul, of Jonathan and David, etc., and to tread almost in their very footsteps. It is impossible for the intelligent reader of the Bible to follow these travellers over the track by which the army of Sennacherib approached Jerusalem, without having a deeper impression of the truth of Bible history, and a more vivid perception of its eloquence and power. Here they found "poor Anathoth" in a very different position from that assigned it by the monks; and also Gibeah of Saul, and Ramah, the home of Samuel. They descended into "the passage of Michmash," beyond which Rab-Shakeh "laid up his carriages," and over which he could not well have brought them (1 Sam. 13: 23, Is. 10: 28, 29); and passed by the two sharp rocks, Bozez and Seneh, over against Michmash and Gibeah, where Jonathan and his armor-bearer went up against the Philistines. They saw also the "Rock Rimmon," the conical hill to which the remnant of the Benjamites fled from the slaughter at Gibeah (Josh. 20: 45); and the longlost Bethel, with its mountain on the east, where Abraham first pitched his tent in Palestine, and where Jacob slept and dreamed of angels (Gen. 12: 8, 28: 10-19). A few miles distant they found el-Jib on a ridge, and Yâlo near a noble valley, answering to Gibeon and the vale of Ajalon, where Joshua

*

* He is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron; at Michmash he hath laid up his carriages: they are gone over the passage; they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah is afraid; Gibeah of Saul is fled. Lift up thy voice, O daughter of Gallim: cause it to be heard unto Laish, O poor Anathoth. Madmenah is removed; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee. As yet shall he remain at Nob that day: he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem. Is. 10: 28-32.

commanded the sun and moon to stand still, while he chased the five kings towards the plain.

A second excursion of our travellers was to 'Ain-Jidy (Engedi) and the Dead Sea. In a single cluster on this route, they recovered-by the correspondence of the Arabic names with the Hebrew, in the very region required by the sacred narrative-the sites of no less than nine of the towns and mountains of Judah, nearly every one of which have remained unrecognized since the days of Jerome.

It is an interesting fact, and one that confirms the accuracy of the Scripture history, even in its minutest allusions, that Dr. R. found in existence customs which seem to annihilate thirty centuries of time, and bring the days of David and our own together. We subjoin a few specimens from the many with which this work abounds.

"In another tent a woman was kneeling and grinding at the hand-mill. These mills are doubtless those of scriptural times; and are similar to the Scottish quern. They consist of two stones about eighteen inches or two feet in diameter, lying one upon the other, with a slight convexity between them, and a hole through the upper to receive the grain. The lower stone is fixed, sometimes in a sort of cement, which rises around it like a bowl and receives the meal as it falls from the stones. The upper stone is turned upon the lower, by means of an upright stick fixed in it as a handle. We afterwards saw many of these mills; and saw only women grinding, sometimes one alone and sometimes two together. The female kneels or sits at her task, and turns the mill with both hands, feeding it occasionally with one. The labor is evidently hard; and the grating sound of the mill is heard at a distance, indicating (like our coffee-mills) the presence of a family and of household life. We heard no song as an accompaniment to the work." Vol. II. pp. 180, 181.

Who can read this extract, without being reminded of our Saviour's prediction (Mat. 24: 41): "Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken and the other left?" The close of this account, also, illustrates the threatened desolation of Jerusalem (Is. 25: 10): "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 the millstones and the light of the candle." So also, Rev. 19: 22.

SECOND SERIES, VOL. VI. NO. II.

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The following extract will recall the shepherds of Bethlehem who were " abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks" (Luke 2: 8), and also the kind offices of Jacob, in rolling the stone from the mouth of the well of Haran (Gen. 29: 8-10).

"None of the houses were now inhabited; all the people being abroad, dwelling in tents or caves, in order to watch their flocks and fields of grain. This is the custom of the peasants in this part of Palestine, during the months of pasturage in spring and until the crops are gathered; while in autumn and winter they inhabit their villages. Cisterns excavated in the solid rock testify also to the antiquity of the site; and the exterior of the rocks is in many places hewn smooth or scarped. Over most

of the cisterns is laid a broad and thick flat stone, with a round hole cut in the middle, forming the mouth of the cistern. This hole we found in many cases covered with a heavy stone, which it would require two or three men to roll away.' II. p. 188.

Again:

Vol.

"Watchmen were stationed in various parts, to prevent cattle and flocks from trespassing upon the grain. The wheat was now ipening; and we had here a beautiful illustration of Scripture. Our Arabs were an hungered,' and going into the fields, they 'plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands.' On being questioned, they said this was an old custom, and no one would speak against it; they were supposed to be hungry, and it was allowed as a charity. We saw this afterwards in repeated instances." Vol. II. p. 192.

Speaking of their visit to Kurmul (Carmel) near Hebron, Dr. Robinson remarks:

"We were here in the midst of scenes memorable of old for the adventures of David, during his wanderings in order to escape from the jealousy of Saul; and we did not fail to peruse here, and with the deepest interest, the chapters of Scripture which record the history of those wanderings and adventures. Ziph and Maon gave their names to the desert on the East, as did also En-gedi; and twice did the inhabitants of Ziph attempt to betray the youthful outlaw to the vengeance of his persecutor. At that time David and his men appear to have been very much in the condition of similar

outlaws at the present day; for 'every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them; and there were with him about four hundred men.' They lurked in these deserts, associating with the herdsmen and shepherds of Nabal and others, and doing them good offices, probably in return for information and supplies obtained through them.

"Hence, when Nabal held his annual sheep-shearing in Carmel, David felt himself entitled to share in the festival; and sent a message recounting his own services, and asking for a present: Wherefore let the young men find favor in thine eyes; for we come in a good day; give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants, and to thy son David.' In all these particulars we were deeply struck with the truth and strength of the biblical descriptions of manners and customs, almost identically the same as they exist at the present day. On such a festive occasion near a town or village, even in our own time, an Arab Sheikh of the neighboring desert would hardly fail to put in a word, either in person or by message; and his message, both in form and substance, would be only the transcript of that of David." Vol. II. pp. 200, 201.

But our limits will not permit us to dwell further on the results of this excursion, nor on those of the subsequent exploration of the region south of the Dead Sea, and of the country of Samson, and the Pentapolis of the Philistines. The readers of the Repository have been apprized of the progress of biblical research in some of those regions, by the account of Burckhardt's journey to Wady Mûsa,* and of Legh's excursion to the same place, as well as the correspondence of Dr. Robinson, published in the Repository for April, 1839.

On the 13th June, the travellers prepared to leave the Holy City. They had now been living for weeks in the exciting consciousness of communion with past ages. Kings, seers and holy men of old seemed to come back to their accustomed haunts, and to expound their own history, giving the circumstances of their acts and sayings with such clearness, that

*See Bib. Repos. Vol. II., July, 1832, pp. 597, etc., and October, 1832, pp. 759, etc.

† See Bib. Repos. October, 1833, pp. 615, etc.