ide came in, and put his hawk upon her perch,
then took his place. They gave us sherbet, coffee, and abundant
compliments: we talked of hawking in England, and English ladies riding
to the sport. London, and the Queen on the throne were discussed; also
Jerusalem, where the Bek had never been. On the whole the reception was
satisfactory. Pity that the people were afraid of cholera; they did not
exhibit the virtue of resignation to Divine predestination any more than
our Sooni-Moslems of the south had done.

Our tents were in a sunny situation, but still we had in them a rest for
Sunday afternoon.

At sunset the Bek sent me a present of grapes, those that were purple
were of large size.

Starlight night, but no dew; jackals were howling in troops, sometimes
very close to us. An armed nominal quarantine was placed over us during
the night--ridiculous enough after a pretty free intercourse of the
people all day.

The morning very cool. A poor Maronite priest from 'Ain Nebel came to me
in his black robes and dark blue turban, and, leaning on his staff, gave
a lamentable account of persecutions suffered by the four or five
Christian villages about there, and imploring English help on their
behalf. Alas! nothing could be done for him, only the case of the
servant of the governor of Tibneen shooting a poor Christian, while on
compulsory work at the lime-kilns, got inquiry made into it at Bayroot.
On asking his name, and writing it down, the miserable man said to the
secretary, "Tell the consul that I have already written his name on my
heart."

Hitherto our journey had been entirely novel--there is no record
published of any traveller passing through that country, from the
Leontes, its northern boundary, before that date. Going forwards, we
passed through pretty green lanes along the sides of hills. From the
crest of a hill, whence the view was very extensive, we had _Yaroon_ on
the right, and beyond it the ruined convent of St George. I afterwards
learned that the church there exhibits proof of great size and
magnificence.

By the roadside was a huge undecorated sarcophagus, in excellent
preservation, standing on a raised platform of masonry; single and alone
in a wide expanse, no village or remnant of human works near it. The
masonry in front had been wilfully damaged, enough to make the
sarcophagus lean, but not to fall, and the ponderous cover was removed
from its place--total length, eight feet by five,