perous city and a bishop's see in the early Christian era, but speedily came to ruin after the Saracen invasion.

The visitor will see that the prophecies of Jeremiah and Ezekiel are here completely fulfilled. "I will cause an alarm of war to be heard in Rabbah of the Ammonites, and it shall be a desolate heap" (Jer. xliv. 2). "I will make Rabbah a stable for camels, and the Ammonites a couching-place for flocks" (Ezek. xxv. 5).

From Rabbath Ammon to Jerash, by the course of the river Jabbok, is a two days' journey, the camp having to be fixed according to circumstances.

The Jabbok, now called the Wady Z'urka, is a stream by which the mountain range of Gilead is intersected from west to east. It flows along a deep ravine, receiving numerous tributaries, and reaches the Jordan about half-way between the Dead Sea and the Lake of Gennesaret. Anciently it was the boundary of the territory of the children of Ammon (Numb. xxi. 24; Deut. ii. 37, iii. 16). When Sihon, king of the Amorites, drove the Moabites to the south, and the Ammonites further to the north and east, the latter settled on the eastern plain, and amongst the defiles of Gilead round the sources and upper branches of the Jabbok. On the southern bank of the Jabbok occurred the meeting between Jacob and Esau recorded in Gen. xxxii. 22. Beside this stream also Jacob wrestled with the Angel, and received his name of Israel. The western portion of this river was at one period the boundary between the kingdoms of Og and Sihon.

Jerash (anciently Gerasa) shows the finest and most extensive ruins in the district "beyond Jordan." They are in the form of an irregular square, each side being a mile in length, and are situated on both sides of a valley running from north to south across a high undulating plain.

Across the centre of the city runs a long colonnade, terminating in the Forum. The masses of masonry and numerous columns-remains of temples, and theatres, and palaces-form a very striking and picturesque view.

The following are amongst the principal objects of interest in Gerasa. The Great Theatre; the Forum, over 300 ft. in diameter, with fifty-seven out of its hundred columns standing; the principal street, lined with magnificent, though now dilapidated colonnades; the South Temple, once one of the finest buildings in the city, though only one column now stands erect; the Temple of the Sun, of which the grand gateway, the façade, and many of the columns of the interior are in good preservation. Besides the above, remains of various other temples, baths, theatres, etc., will interest the spectator. In the valley some way beyond the Northern Gate, are the remains of the once beautiful episcopal city of Gerasa.

The foundation of Gerasa is of uncertain date. Its capture by Alexander Jannæus, in 85 B.C., is noticed by Josephus. Under the Antonines (138—180 A.D.), the city became renowned for its architectural splendour. It was the principal city of the Roman district of Decapolis, and remained an important place during the Christian period. There are no Muslim remains.

From Gerasa to Es-Salt is a charming ride. The scenery of the mountain of Gilead is rich and park-like, and the vegetation abundant. The ruins on the hills add to the picturesque aspect of the country.

The first part of the ride is among quiet valleys, with olive groves and corn-fields-forests clothing the mountain ridges above. The ruined villages of Dibbin and Hemta are passed; the oak covered summits of Jebel Ajlûn are seen to the right. The ravine of the Wady Z'urka, or Jab

bok (p. 455), is crossed, and then a wooded ridge beyond which is a romantic glen with the ruins of 'Alakûn above. Passing on by the ruined villages of Sihan,' Allan, the village of Zi is reached on the summit of the western shoulder of Mount Gilead. Looking back from this point, there is a fine view of the Belka heights, and the Wady Z’urka. In front the prospect is very extensive, embracing the Jordan Valley, the Hills of Judæa, and the mountains of Moab. Hence the traveller descends to the Castle of Es-Salt.

Es-Salt is the ancient Ramoth Gilead. The city stands on two sides of a lofty hill crowned by a citadel, Some of the walls of a more ancient citadel are visible, dating far back into the Jewish period. There are some five or six thousand inhabitants, of whom one-fifth are Christians, with four pastors of the Greek Church, two of the Latin, and one of the English.

Besides the conspicuous citadel, there is little in Es-Salt to notice. An old Mosque in ruins, and some rock grottoes are of some interest. Here at Ramoth Gilead, Ahab, and Jehoshaphat fought with Syria, and here Ahab received his death wound as prophesied by Micaiah, the son of Imlah. It was here that Jehu was anointed by the prophet, and entered on his task as the executioner of Divine vengeance on the house of Ahab. Then as now it was a strong and well nigh impregnable fortress, and around its walls many of the most memorable battles of Gilead had been fought.

According to some authorities Ramoth Gilead was identical with Ramoth Mizpeh, mentioned in Joshua xiii. 26, "while again there is every reason to believe it occupied the spot on which Jacob had made his covenant with Laban." Ramoth Gilead was the " city of refuge" for the tribe of Dan (Deut. iv, 43; Josh. xx. 8; xxi. 38). In 2 Kings viii. 22, and in Chron. xxii. 6, the town is spoken of as Ramah.

The Turkish Government maintain a garrison in the citadel of Es-Salt, for the preservation of order in the surrounding districts. Respecting this policy Mr. Tristram writes as follows:

"Es-Salt shows what may be done by securing a settled government, even though it be a Turkish one. When I visited Es-Salt eight years ago, it was much in the same state as Kerak is now, and life and property were insecure in the whole of Gilead. The difficulties to travellers were as great as in Southern Moab, and extravagant black-mail was levied by all the petty sheikhs. Now that the Pasha of Damascus has placed a garrison there, the fellaheen are better off, trade has quadrupled, and the country is as safe for Europeans as Western Palestine. With a garrison at Kerak* and the Beni Sukk'r conciliated, as at present, the Imperial Government could hold the coast of the Dead Sea as easily as it holds the Lebanon."

From Es-Salt to Jericho is a nine hours' journey. The chief interest centres in Nimrim, the ancient Beth Nimrah, an Amorite city, which was rebuilt by the tribe of Gad (Numb. xxii. 36; Joshua xiii. 27). There are now only heaps of ruins to be seen. In Isa. xv. 6, the prophet drclares "The waters of Nimrim shall be desolate; for the hay is withered away; the grass faileth; there is no green thing." From Nimrim a ford is reached across the Jordan, and then the Western plain is traversed through Khirbet-esSumrah and Khirbet Nuwaimeh to Jericho.

Jericho (see p. 233).

* Dr. Tristram adds in a footnote, "While these sheets are in the press (March, 1873) we learn that the Turks have thrown a garrison into Kerak."

Extended Tour in Moab.

For Itinerary, see p. 26.

Instead of returning from Jerash (or Gerasa, p. 455) to Es-Salt and Jericho, the traveller may proceed northward to the Lake of Gennesaret.

The first stage is from Jerash to Wady Yâbis, a ride through varied and beautiful scenery of hills and dales, and woods and pastures. The route is by Sûf, with some broken columns and sepulchral caves. Two or three milestones are seen belonging to the ancient Roman road from Pella to Gerasa. Crossing a ridge and threading a narrow valley in sight of the Kul'at-er-Rubud, Fermeh, and 'Ajlun are successively reached. From the latter place the adjacent mountain range and the surrounding province are named.

It is worth while to make a détour to the old Saracenic Kul'at-er-Rubud, (" Castle of Rubud "). It is a characteristic edifice, and commands a splendid view of the valley of the Jordan from the Dead Sea to the Lake of Gennesaret. Beyond the valley are seen Hermon, Lebanon, the hills of Galilee, Tabor, the Plain of Esdraelon, and the mountains of Southern Palestine.

In the Wady Yabis, on its southern bank, are some ruins considered to represent Jabesh Gilead, whose inhabitants were visited with swift retribution for not joining in the war against the Benjamites (Judges xxi. 8). It was the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead who were thanked by David for removing the bones of Saul and Jonathan from the battlefield of Gilboa. Saul had previously aided the city in time of extremity when Nahash, King of the Amorites, was about to mutilate the inhabitants.

From Wady Yâbis is a two hours' journey to Pella, captured by Antiochus the Great in 218 B.C., afterwards