The captain and pilots told me, that this was the place where the Ifraelites entered the fea, and the rains were thofe of a convent (I fuppofe built on the fpot in commemoration of the fact); they added that there was good water there. There is here a strong current, which fets to the oppofite fhore, about fouth eaft; it forms by its ftrength a whirlpool, where failors faid fhips were loft, if forced into it, for want of wind, by the current. This pool is about fix miles northward of Cape Karon. del; and just below this pool there is a fand, a flat ifland at low water, which runs eaft and weft about three miles. This fand, I fuppofe, is thrown up by the force of the current; and the fame current, by the refiftance it meets with from this bank, being forced back into the cavity made by this excavation, forms the whirlpool. This pool is called Birque Pharaone, the well or pool of Pharoah; and here they affirm his hoft was deftroyed. I fhall fay more, of this as I travel back by land. We came to an anchor in fifteen fathom water, within a mile and a half of the shore, to the fouthward of this fand, and in the Birque Karondel, to the northward of the cape; here the eastern shore is already mountainous, which, near this place, was a fandy beach: the Egyptian thore, from Suez to Badeah, is likewife rocky and steep; fo no entering upon the golf from that fhore, but at Badeah or Suez. It is high water always when the moon is at her meridian height, and it ebbs fix hours. At Suez, it flows fix feet; the fpring tides are nine, and in the variable VOL. X. months from the beginning of November to the end of April, fometimes twelve. From the be ginning of May to the beginning of October, a northerly wind ge nerally rifes and goes down with the fun; it is often very strong, This wind never fails in thefe months, unless there be fome violent ftorm; the rest of the year the winds are variable, and when they blow hard at S. and S. S. E. thefe winds fet up the fea through the narrow ftraight of Babel Mandel, and up this gulph through its mouth, between Gebel El Zait, on the weft fide of this fea, and the fouthermoft point of the bay of Tor, on the eaft fide of this western branch of this fea, where it is not above twelve or fourteen miles over. I fuppofe fuch a wind, hindering the water from going out, caufes this extraordinary encreafe in the fpring tides. We fee the fame thing happen with thefame winds at Venice, both gulphs running nearly in the fame direction. The Egyptian, weftern, or Thebaic fhore, from Badeah fouthward, · to oppofite Tor, on the eastern fhore, is all mountainous and fteep; and at Elim, the norther mott point of the bay of Tor, ends the ridge of mountains, which begin on the eastern shore. of this western branch at Karondel. I fay nothing of Elim, or Tor, or the marine productions of this gulf, as this paper is intended to give an account of Sharme, Menah El Dzahab, Kadesh Barnea, the flone which Mofes ftruck twice, and the infcriptions. I, however, muft fay, that, from this place, mount Sinai, properly called, cannot be feen; but only the ridge or group of mountains in which it is, and which altogether form that part of this tongue of land called in general mount Sinai. The garden of the monks of mount Sinai at Elim renders in dates, &c. 20,000 piaftres per ann. or £2,500. ftriking. I examined the lips of its mouths, and found that no chiffel had ever worked there; the channel is plainly worn by only the courfe of water, and the bare in. fpection of it is fufficient to convince any one it is not the work of man. Amongst the inna. merable cracks in rocks, which I have feen in this, as well as other parts of the world, I never met with any like this, except that at Jerufalem, and the two which are in the rock Mofes ftruck twice, of which hereafter. We from thence croffed the plain, in about eight hours, and entered the mountains of Sinai. They are of granite of different colours. At the entrance of the narrow breach, through which we paffed, I faw, on a large loofe granite ftone, an infcription in unknown characters, given, I think, by Dr. Pocock, bishop of Offory; I had enquired of the captain however, as the Ifraelites had no and the two pilots of our ship, writing, that we know of, when about Sharme and Dzahab, on the they paffed here, I did not western shore of the eaftern branch think it of confequence enough of the Red-fea; they told me that to ftop for; The Arabs told me, they were often forced up the it was relative to a battle fought Elanitic golf, the eaftern branch here between Arabs; and indeed of the Red-fea; and generally went I cannot fee what point of hiftory to Sharme, and fometimes as high it can illuftrate; befides, there as Dzahab; that they generally are not above five or fix words. ran from Cape Mahomet, the We arrived at the convent of fouthermoft part of the peninfula, Mount Sinai, after the ufual dif. between thofe two golfs, to Sharme ficulties mentioned by other tra. in fix hours, because they always vellers, were received as ufual, made as much more way as they and faw the ufual places, of commonly do, they very feldom which, however, I fhall give the going there but in a storm: They plans as well as elevations, which generally run four knots, fo this I took. I muft fay, that the monks makes forty-eight miles, which were far from owning to me, that brings it to the northward of Tor. they had ever meddled with the Tor is in lat. 27. 55. Cape Maprint of the foot of Mahomet's homet thirty miles fouthward, lat. camel. I examined it narrowly, 27. 25. Sharme forty-eight miles and no chiffel has abfolutely ever nearly N. lat. 28. 13. confequently touched it, for the coat of the about E. N. of Sinai. The port granite is entire and unbroke in is pretty large, furrounded with every part; and every body knows high mountains, the entrance very that if the coat of lefs hard ftones narrow, and the water deep quite than granite is once deftroyed, it to the rocks, which are fo very nevér returns. It is a moft curious fteep, that a ftone dropt from the lufus naturæ, and the Mahometans fummit falls into the bafon. No turn it to their ufe. wind can be felt here; they don't Meribah is indeed furprisingly caft anchor, but faften their cables to fame, fo the distance is about eighty miles. I enquired of them all about the rains; they told me there were confiderable ones about half way to Dzahab, about forty miles from Sinai; but I should think Kadesh must have been much nearer to Jerufalem. I would wil. lingly have gone to thefe places; but as the four clans of Arabs, which inhabit this promontory, were then at war one with the other, I could get no conductor. In andther journey I hope to be more lucky, for this is all hearfay, however, combining the whole together, and comparing it with what we collect from feripture, I think we may well conclude Sharme to be Midian, and Meenah El Dzahab to be Eziongeber: what the interjacent ruins are I cannot con'jecture; but I believe I have found Kadesh Barnea to be elfewhere. I think it cannot be here, for the Ifraelites were on the borders of the Holy Land, or Land of Promife, when they were ordered back; and when they were topped by the Moabites, they are faid to have been brought up from Kadesh Barnea; and I meet with no place in facred writing, or any ancient geographer, neither Strabo nor any other, th draw the line of divifion between this promon tory and the Land of Promife fo low down; nor could they do it, as thefe ruins are within almost feventy miles of the extremity of it. There are two roads from mount Sinai to Jerufalem, the one through Pharan, the other by the way of Dzahab : hat through Pharan is eleven days journey: two to Pharan; three to a ftation of the Mecca pilgrims called Scheich Ali; one and a half to to the rocks. There is good watef; fome habitations are found on the fides of the mountains, and a pretty large village at top: this feems to anfwer the idea of Neft-Ken. Dzahab lies as high again up the golf, fo forty-eight miles more, or in lat. 29. This port is confiderably larger than the former, and very good, but not fo clofely furrounded with mountains; it is, however, very fase. There is a well of great antiquity with very good water; very confiderable ruins are found, and they fay, there was a great city formerly, but no inhabitants now, except an Arabian camp of 2000 men. There is a road from it to Jerufalem, formerly much frequented. Thus far the captain and pilots. I enquired from the monks, as well as Arabs, about thefe places, as well as about the ruins, fuppofed by my learned friend, the bishop of Offory, to be Kadesh Barnea; the former could only tell me, they had not received any fish from thence in many years, that it was two eafy days journey off, but the road was mountainous; fo one may fuppofe the diftance lefs than forty miles. The Arabs agreed as to the road; but they faid, it was once a large place, where their prince lived, whofe daughter Mofes married; that Mofes was afterwards their prince, and the greatest of all prophets. Thefe Arabs place Mofes the first, Salomon the fe. cond, Mahomet the third, Chrift the fourth, and then the prophets of the bible. As to Dzahab, the monks only knew the distance to be four days journey, and that there was a road from it to Jerufalem The Arabs told me the 1 fome confiderable ruins; all this to the northward; from thence four and fomething more to JeTufalem, by way of Hebron, leav. Ing the Afphaltic lake on the right hand to the fouth-eaft ward. The other way is longer, on account of the road being more mountainous; that too paffes the fame ruins, and alfo Scheich Ali. I enquired about this, when I was at ferufalem, and received the very fame account, with this addition, that fuch Mahometans, as went from Jerufalem to Mecca, went that way, to join the Cairo caravan at Scheich Ali. This feems to be a fituation oppofite to Kadesh Barnea, at the line drawn by all the geographers; it is without mount Sinai (taken for this whole tract) and juft before the Moabites, as the children of Ifrael paffed by mount Hor, now Acaba, leaving the Af. phaltic lake on their left hand, to the north west. The tradition too of the Arabs is, that they paffed this way; therefore, I think, Kadesh Barnea must be near this fpot. There are here confiderable ruins; and I know of no city that ever was here, for Petra lay more to the eaft; between the Afphaltic lake and the Elanitic golf. To leave no enquiry wanting, I asked the Rabbins of Jerufalem, where they placed Kadesh Barnea; and they faid, thefe ruins. We fet out from mount Sinai by the way of Scheich Salem; and, after we had paffed Mahomet's front, came to the beautiful valley, , mentioned in the journal. I lay there (and hope I have difcovered the manna, but that will be the fubject of another paper) and did not fet out before day-light, that I might not pass the rock which Mofes ftruck twice. I fearched, and enquired of my Arabs, but could neither hear nor fee any thing of it. I faw feveral fhort infcriptions ftained on fome parts of the mountains, the characters being the fame with thofe on mount Sinai, Meribah, &c. given by the bishop of Offory. About four miles before we arived at Pharan, we paffed through a remarkable breach in a rock; each fide of it is perpendicular as a wall, about eighty feet high, and the breach is about forty broad. It is at this breach, I imagine, the Horites were fmote, four miles beyond the prefent ruins of Pharan; for having paffed this breach they could make a ftand, nor could they well be purfued. Here, on the tops of the mountains to our right hand, were ruins of buildings, and one feemed a caftle. From Meribah to near this place, we had always rather defcended; in moft places there is the bed of a ftream, and after rain the water runs; but a little before we came to this breach it winded off towards the weft, for the waters fall into that part of the defart we croffed from Tor. Between this breach and Pharan, there are several springs, and one at Pharan where we encamped; there is the bed of the river men. tioned by the journal, the tradi tional account of which agrees with what is faid by St. Paul, Waters feem to have run from Meribah to within about fix miles of this place; the bed of a stream is here again very plain, and a spring at the upper end of it, which does not yield water enough to make a ftream, the bed then is dry; four valleys terminate here, and form a large area. I enquired about This river is doubted of by Strabo, because dried up to the fource, from the time the Ifraelites en. tered the Land of Promife, and the tradition was then loft. You may fee Strabo's Affyria, edit. Caufaubon, p. 5. 10. towards the bottom. Pardon this bold conjecture; but it coincides and conciliates facred hiftory with antient geograghy. This too feems a proof, that this is really the fecond truck rock. As to the fprings between the breach and Pharan, they certainly did not exift in the time of Mofes; or, if they did, they would have been as nothing to fo many people. about the road to Jerufalem; the people agreed in the distance and ruins. We travelled in the bed of the river through the valley to the north and in about half an hour, the fight and appearance of a large ftone, not unlike Meribah, which lay at fome diftance from the mountain on our right hand, ftruck me; and I alfo obferved, it bad many fmall ftones upon it. The Arabs, when they have any ftone or fpot in veneration, as Mahomet's tone, and the like, after their devotion, lay fome fmooth ftone upon it. I asked what it was; they told me Hager Moufa, the ftone of Mofes. I told them that could not be, for that lay in Rephidim; they faid what was true, but this was Hagar il Chotatain, the ftone of the two ftrokes; that he ftruck it twice, and more water came from it than from Meribah; witness the river. The bed of the river winds to the eastward, about E. S. E. I afked how far it went; they faid this bed ran by Sheich Ali to thofe ruins, and quite away to the fea; fo the river muft have begun here, and not at Pharan, and the bed from Pharan here is only formed (I fuppofe) by winter torrents. If this is the bed of the river mentioned by St. Paul, as I dare fay it is, we have the fecond rock: if it runs to the ruins, as is faid, and there is no reafon to doubt it, they will be pretty plainly thofe of Kadesh Barnea; and if this bed continues in the fame courfe to the fea; as it pro bably does, this probably is the river at Rinocolura, fuppofed, by Eratofthenes, to be formed by the Arabian lakes; because he did not know its miraculous head. We went down a large valley to the weft towards the fea, and paffed the head of a valley, a part of the defert of Sin, which feparates the mountains of Pharan from thofe which run along the coaft, and the fame plain which we had paffed from Tor. We had fcarce entered thefe mountains, and travelled an hour, when after paffing a mountain, where there were vifible marks of an extin guished fubterraneous fire, we faw, on our left hand, a small rock, with fome unknown characters cut on it, not stained upon it, as thofe hitherto met with; and in ten minutes, we entered a valley fix miles broad, running nearly north and fouth, with all the rocks which enclofe it on the weft fide covered with characters. Thefe are what are called Gebel El Macaatab, the written mountains. On examining thefe characters. I was greatly disap pointed, in finding them every where interfperfed with figures of men and beafts, which convinced me they were not written |