cept the three letters--[Greek text]. These letters were nine inches
in length.

Nigh to this, again, was a square building of rabbeted stones, equal to
almost the largest in the walls of Jerusalem.

All down the hill, descending to our camp, were fragments of columns and
of decorated friezes of temples, that had evidently been rolled or had
slidden down from their places.

Upon various walls of dilapidated edifices I observed the curious marks,
slightly scratched, which almost resemble alphabetical characters, but
are not; and which have, wherever met with and wherever noticed, which is
but seldom, puzzled travellers, however learned, to decipher. I copied
the following:--

[Picture: Bedaween Arab token 1]

And from the shaft of a column still erect, half way down the hill, I
copied the following:--

[Picture: Bedaween Arab token 2]

I have since learned that they are the tokens of the Bedaween Arabs, by
which one tribe is distinguished from another. In common parlance they
are called the _Ausam_ (plural of Wasam) of the several tribes. {33}

In a valley to the north of us, leading westwards from the main valley,
we found a beautiful mausoleum tomb,--a building, not an excavation in
rock,--containing six sarcophagi, or ornamented stone coffins, ranged
upon ledges of masonry, along three sides of the chamber. These were
very large, and all of the same pattern--the lids remaining upon some of
them, but shifted aside. Beautiful sculptured embellishments were upon
the inside walls and over the portal outside, but no inscriptions to
indicate the period or persons to whom they belonged. Inside, however,
were rudely scratched the modern Arab tribe-signs, showing that persons
of such tribes had visited there; so that Europeans are not the only
travellers who help to disfigure ancient monuments by scribbling. Along
this western valley were several other such mausoleums. Thence we
mounted on a different side to the summit of that hill from which I have
here begun my description of edifices--upon a gentle sloping road,
evidently of artificial cutting, quite feasible for ascent of chariots.

Near the square (possible) church before mentioned, (though I should say
that our party were not all convinced of its being a church,) is a
prodigiously large cistern, of good masonry. From the top of the strong
walls of the building--while some Arab boys below me were reaching birds'