Imatges de pàgina
PDF
EPUB

Landy mould; and I have never seen in any place the ground fa caft up by moles as in thefe plains. There was fcarce a yard's length between each mole hill. This is an advantageous circum→ ftance for all forts of felf-fown wild plants; therefore entire plains were covered with buphthalmum foliis oblongis dentatis : or oxeye, with oblong dentated leaves; which made them much yellower than our Swedish meadows are in the month of June, from the caltha paluftris and ranunculus, or marfh-marygoldand crowfoot. In other places the fields were white with a fort of matricaria, or feverfew. In three places, we had fine vales abounding with olive-trees. Cranes, the inhabitants of uncultivated countries, were here to be found in great numbers. At four o'clock we came to Rama, and alighted at the fine convent, which, if we except Jerufalem, is the best in the Holy Land.'

Here, on the 7th, in the afternoon, he was waited on by the Monk who was appointed to attend him ; and who conducted him to the places they fhew for those which Chrift, by his fufferings, death, and burial, has immortalized in memory.' A famous temple now adorns the spot which was called Golgotha, or the place of Skulls. The Europeans, fays the Dr. imagine this is a hill, or sifing ground; it is quite the contrary, a vale, or deep ground.'. At the entry of this temple, they found three Turkish officers, placed here to receive the tribute levied on pious travellers, and alfo to keep the peace, by preventing the quarrels which might arife among Chriftians of various denominations, who pay their devotions here: a neceflary precaution, derived, no doubt, from the juft idea the Turks have formed of the fort of people they generally have here to do with.

We must not think of fwelling this article with a detail of the many holy relicks, and facred fpots of ground fhewn to our traveller, at this grand fountain of Romifh fuperftition; towards gratifying the curiofity of our readers, however, we shall mention fome of the most genuine remains and appearances of things and places mentioned in the fcriptures of the old and new. teftament.

Paffing through one of the town gates, our Author came immediately on the holy mount Sion, fo famous in the days of David. It is now a defart, flat and level; occupied by the Chrif tians, for a burial place :-I botanized, fays he, on the dry and poor Sion, and found fome common plants there, viz. Allium pallens, veronenfe; betonica officinalis; bifcutella didyma; trifolium, globofum, tomentofum, refupinatum; ephedra diftachia.'

The Jews, it feems are ftill very numerous in this their an cient Emporium; our Author reckons about 20,000 Jewish inbabitants, befides Turks and Chriftians: fo that Jerufalem is fill a great and populous city: though in no respect equal.

to its former opulent ftate. The greateft part of the Jews re fiding here now, are poor, as they have no opportunity of trafficking; for, fays our Author, without traffick, they cannot thrive in any part of the world. They have no other income here,' fays he, than what they get from the Pilgrims of their nation, who come far and wide from all places to pay their re spects to the feat of their fore-fathers. Their Rabbi has large revenues from his brethren throughout the whole world, of which the Turks draw the greateft part; for Jews as well as Chriftians must conftantly bring their offerings to their altars, if they will kifs their holy places in peace.'

In an excurfion to Jericho, Dr. H. fays they came to a rifing ground, whence the original fituation of Judea may be seen; which, he fays, is the fame as it hath been from time immemorial; though many divines contend, that Judea hath undergone a change, or according to their manner of fpeaking, hath been transformed fince the death of Chrift. Judea is a country full of hills and vales, and as fuch it has been defcribed both in the Old and New Teftament; where it is always called a hilly land, and is every where famous for its mountains. The hills are all of a moderate height, uneven, and are not of any mathematical figure, like many others, which are either of a conic, hemifpheric, or fome other fuch form. At first, and nearest to Jerufalem, they confift of a very hard limestone, which approaches, to the nature of a flint, of a whitish colour, or pretty near a pale yellow. They afterwards, and nearer the Dead Sea, confift of a more loose limeftone, fometimes white, and fometimes greyish; between which are layers of a reddish micaceous ftone, or faxum purum micaceum. Near Jerufalem grow different forts of plants on thefe hills, efpecially ceratonia, carobtree; myrtus, myrtle; and teberinthus, turpentine-tree; but farther towards Jericho, they are bare and barren. The vales, like the hills, are not fruitful, but deferted and uncultivated, being full of pebbles, and without vegetables; nevertheless, the earth confifts of a good red mould, and would amply reward the husbandman's toil. In the beginning they are fomewhat narrow, but become wider nearer Jordan. These interchanges of hills and vales, make the roads in Judea as dangerous as in any place whatever; and they could not be travelled with any but Arabian horfes, which are ufed to go upon fuch ftony roads as feem impaffable, and perform it with great fagacity. I have had fuch proofs of this as I fhould fcarce believe, if I had not feen it myself, efpecially on the journey from Jericho to the Dead Sea: but though thefe creatures are used to trot in the hills, they will blunder unlefs they be well governed. This I faw by thofe on which the Monks rid, who were but indifferent riders, and therefore their horfes feemed to have forgot the expertness and fafety with

[merged small][ocr errors][merged small][ocr errors][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][ocr errors]
[merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small]

Th

vauk berde Esua lo, & it such

New the mup of

are inch new be acat Caritas irved, 11-cined them wife: zerefore defarts

min e me pravici e Christians for engt fra meir prayers in folię aced by e Coptite Monks in convents in the defarts; and e, Greeks preferve the ancient er ivisters in Mount Sinai, Saba, St. Elias, the Eall. I went as far up on this terrible asprudence would permit, but ventured not berfest, my fervant to bring what natural

Paffing throu immediately on th David. It is now tians, for a burial p poor Sion, and found pallens, veronenfe; betonic globofum, tomfom, reful The Jew

cient E

hilft & gathered what plants and inof the latter I found a very curious and I had time enough to view the mountain when we broke up at nine o'clock, and and travelled over a part of rely defart and that afford

ltivated,

babitan

hrift's

of.F!

ted

cha

me,

with divers fine trees, viz. falix fafsaf, lonicera affinis floribus. coccineis; and amongst the reft, fome fig trees, which grew there wild. We continued our journey over a vale of this plain, in which the Arabians had fown barley for their horfes: and this was the only cultivated fpot of ground I had feen between Jerufalem and Jericho, a country of a good day's journey in extent. We came towards noon to Jericho, or two ftones caft from the place where they fhew fome remains in memory of this famous town. At this time there is not the leaft building, except the walls of an old houfe, which the Monks, who are apt to fanetify every thing, have called the houfe of Zacchæus, who, as they fay, climbed up in a Sycamore tree, growing on this road, to fee Chrift. But the Chriftians of the Eaft fay that he climbed up in a different kind of tree, which now grows common here, and of whofe fruit the Arabs exprefs an oil, which the pilgrims purchase under the name of Zacchæus's oil. The Grecian text plainly calls it Sycomorus; which in the Swedish translation, and by Luther is erroneoufly called a mulberry tree. The Sycamore does not grows near this place at prefent, but is to be found in other parts of Judea nearer the fea; and might have been planted here when the country was inhabited and cultivated. We returned in the afternoon to our tents; and after dinner I walked out to fearch for natural curiofities around Jericho, efpecially near the rivulet that runs acrofs the plain. The famous Afclepias gigantea of Judea, and the tree whofe flowers refemble a honeyfuckle, and hath thick leaves, were the moft remarkable plants I found.

We broke up from Jericho directly after midnight, to go to Jordan. We travelled over the remaining part of the plain of Jericho, and therefore had a good road. We came before daybreak to the fhore of Jordan, three leagues from the Dead Sea. Here mafs was read by feven priefts. I obferved the different breadths of Jordan. Here it was about eight paces over, the fhores perpendicular, fix feet high, the water deep, muddy, ra ther warm than cold, and much inferior in goodness to the Nile. On the fhores, grew rhamnus, vitex agnus caftus, a willow of which pilgrims make ftaffs. We travelled hence to the Dead Sea, accompanied by an Arabian Prince. The plain reached to the fea, and was three leagues long, level, with fome fmall rifing grounds difperfed in different places; between which were narrow vales, uncultivated and barren. The foil is a greyifh fandy clay, fo loofe that our horfes often funk up to the knees in it. The whole furface of the earth was covered with falt, in the fam manner as in Egypt. The foil therefore was Egyptian, be as fruitful if it were tilled; and, withsubt h the time of the Ifraelites. tity of willow at its mouth.

[graphic]

confined of the fame clay as the large plain over which we had paffed. In feveral places were perpendicular ftrata formed of a reddish brittle earth; which, without doubt, will in time become flate, inclosed in limestone, fuch as is to be found in the different parts of Judea nearest the Dead Sea. The ftones on the fhore were all quartz, of different colours and fizes. We followed the whole length of the fea fhore. Here I found quartz ftones in the form of a flate, which is one of the rareft natural curiofities I got in my travels. If it was burnt, it smelt like bitumen; which proves that it had its origin from it, like all the flate of this country. We took another road to our encampment, and followed the foot of that mountain, which at this time divides Arabia Petræa from the Holy Land; and was formerly the boundaries of the Ifraelites who lived on this, and the other fide of Jordan. A Lichen covered in feveral places the clay ground in this large plain, which was fomewhat strange in an open defart. There grew in feveral places of this defart, the tamarisk tree; reaumuria; a kind of the Arabian kali, and a labiated flower of Linnæus; clafs of Didynamia; this had a foetid fmell, and is called bafel by the Arabs, which fignifies a leek. I found but one fhrub of the mimofa nilotica, of true acafia; which has been brought hither by birds from Arabia, its proper and native conntry. In a place near the foot of this mountain, is a river that has its fhore covered with reed, which does not grow near the Dead Sea. We saw on the top of a mountain, the Greek convent St. Saba, famous in former time; and where, in the first ages of Chriftianity, 4000 Monks were maintained, who lived there in caves. The Greeks continue to make pilgrimages hither, and haye Monks fent hither as a punishment for fome tranfgreffions. As we continued our journey, I found the partridge of Arabia, or the Holy Land, which hath never been before defcribed; and I think it alone worth a journey to the Dead Sea. Thefe birds are undoubtedly the quails of the Ifraelites.?

Bethlehem is a large village, fituated on a high ground; the houfes ruined; and the inhabitants a crew of lawlefs Arabs, part Chriftians, and part Mahometans. Here he visited what they fhew as the place where Chrift was born. It was a cave ander ground, to which they defcended by fome fteps; and over it is a very fine church. Here is alfo another church, and a convent; by the Monks of which, our Author was well received and in return for their civility, the Doctor did them a piece of fervice, in the way of his profeffion, of which they tood in great need. Thefe Monks of Bethlehem, were, "it feen,s almoft caten up with the fcurvy, owing to their confined manner of living, (fhut up within their walls, for fear of the Arabs) and eating so much falt-fifh, on their numerous holidays.

વિ

Scurvy

« AnteriorContinua »