Damascus--The desert--Military
escort--Heliopolis or Balbeck--Stupendous ruins--Continuation of our
voyage through the desert--The plague--The Lebanon range--Cedar-
trees--Druses and Maronites--Importunate beggars--Thievish
propensities of the Arabs.

July 4th.

Damascus is one of the most ancient cities of the East, but yet we
see no ruins; a proof that no grand buildings ever existed here, and
that therefore the houses, as they became old and useless, were
replaced by new ones.

To-day we visited the seat of all the riches--the great bazaar. It
is mostly covered in, but only with beams and straw mats. On both
sides are rows of wooden booths, containing all kinds of articles,
but a great preponderance of eatables, which are sold at an
extraordinarily cheap rate. We found the "mish-mish" particularly
good.

As in Constantinople, the rarest and most costly of the wares are
not exposed for sale, but must be sought for in closed store-houses.
The booths look like inferior hucksters' shops, and each merchant is
seen sitting in the midst of his goods. We passed hastily through
the bazaar, in order soon to reach the great mosque, situate in the
midst of it. As we were forbidden, however, not only to enter the
mosque, but even the courtyard, we were obliged to content ourselves
with wondering at the immense portals, and stealing furtive glances
at the interior of the open space beyond. This mosque was
originally a Christian church; and a legend tells that St. George
was decapitated here.

The khan, also situate in the midst of the bazaar, is peculiarly
fine, and is said to be the best in all the East. The high and
boldly-arched portal is covered with marble, and enriched with
beautiful sculptures. The interior forms a vast rotunda, surrounded
by galleries, divided from each other, and furnished with writing-
tables for the use of the merchants. Below in the hall the bales
and chests are piled up, and at the side are apartments for
travelling dealers. The greater portion of the floor and the walls
is covered with marble.

Altogether, marble seems to be much sought after at Damascus. Every
thing that passes for beautiful or valuable is either entirely
composed of this stone, or at least is inlaid with it. Thus a
pretty fountain in a little square near the bazaar is of marble; and
a coffee-house opposite the fountain, the largest and most
frequented of any in Damascus, is ornamented with a few small marble