ls; and they generally
have them, for the Mohammedans scarcely exist throughout "the mountain,"
as the whole range is popularly termed from Tarabulus to Saida.

The higher we ascended, the more we obtained of a brisk breeze playing
and sighing musically among the noble pines, and the ground was clothed
with heather and fragrant herbs. Still onwards, "excelsior," the pines
were more straight and lofty; there were patches of wild myrtle on the
ground, some in white blossom; and we looked down upon the flat roofs of
villages below, an appearance so strange to us after the round domes of
the south country.

About noon we overtook the luggage, and the servant-boy of the muleteer
swore that his head had turned gray since we left him, four hours ago, by
reason of the bodily labour and anguish of mind that he had suffered on
so fearful a road. He was incessantly calling upon God by epithets out
of the Koran, as "O thou Father of bounty!" "O thou knower of former
things!" mingled with curses hurled at the mule, or prayers that her back
might be strengthened: being a Jerusalemite, he had not been accustomed
to travelling of that description. This youth was nicknamed by his
fellows as _Abu Tabanjah_, "the father of a pistol," from his carrying a
single pistol in his girdle: it being unusual for persons in his
employment to carry any belligerent weapons.

Next came the descent to _Jezzeen_, over a slippery road, with purple
crocuses in blossom at intervals.

Jezzeen is romantically situated among broken rocks, with a stream of
water, called the _Zaid_, bordered by a profusion of sycamore, (_i.e._,
what is called so in England, a variety of the plane-tree,) walnut, and
aspen trees. We halted beneath a spreading walnut-tree, whose leaves had
already begun to change colour.

The inhabitants are Greek Catholic, Maronite, and a few Mutawaleh. Here
we had to get another guide for an hour or two forwards--a task not
easily accomplished--and he assured us that the road before us was far
worse than that we had already traversed--he would on no account go the
whole day's journey with us.

Forwards.--Thin white clouds were resting upon the peaks high above us,
the vine terraces and poplars were succeeded by whitish-gray rocks and
olive-trees, till we issued upon a comparative level of confused chaos of
rugged rocks pitched and hurled about in the most fantastic combinations,
rendering the road almost impassable for our cattle. Da