During The Whole Of Yesterday We Had Been Much
Oppressed By Heat, Which Was Never Lessened By The Slightest Breeze;
In
the Belka mountains, on the contrary, we were refreshed by cool winds,
and every where found a grateful shade
Of fine oak and wild pistachio
trees, with a scenery more like that of Europe than any I had yet seen
in Syria. In three quarters of an hour from Meysera we passed a spring.
I was told that in the valley of the Zerka, at about one hour above its
issue from the mountains into the plain, are several hills, called
Telloul el Dahab (Arabic) (the Hills of Gold), so called, as the Arabs
affirm, from their containing a gold mine. In one hour and a quarter we
passed the ruined place called El Herath (Arabic). The Arabs cultivate
here several fields of Dhourra and cucumbers. My companions seeing no
keepers in the neighbouring wood carried off more than a quintal of
cucumbers. About one hour to the S.E. of Herath are the ruined places
called Allan (Arabic), and Syhhan (Arabic). At the end of two hours we
reached the foot of the mountain called Djebel Djelaad and Djebel
Djelaoud (Arabic), the Gilead of the Scriptures, which runs from east to
west, and is about two hours and a half in length. Upon it are the
ruined towns of Djelaad and Djelaoud. We ascended the western extremity
of the mountain, and then reached the lofty mountain called Djebel Osha,
whose summit overtops the whole of the Belka. In three hours and a
quarter from Meysera we passed near the top of Mount Osha (Arabic), our
general direction being still S.S.E. The forest here grows thicker; it
consists of oak, Bouttom, and Balout (Arabic) trees. The Keykab is also
very common. In three hours and three quarters we descended the southern
side of the mountain, near the tomb of Osha, and reached Szalt (Arabic),
four hours and a half distant from Meysera. Near the tomb of Osha was an
encampment of about sixty tents
SZALT
[p.349] of the tribe of Abad (Arabic); they had lately been robbed of
almost all their cattle by the Beni Szakher, and were reduced to such
misery that they could not afford to give us a little sour milk which we
begged of them. They were still at war with the Beni Szakher, and were
in hopes of recovering a part of their property; but as they were too
weak to act openly, they had encamped, for protection, in the
neighbourhood of their friends the inhabitants of Szalt. They intended
to make from hence some plundering excursions against their enemies, for
they had now hardly any thing more to lose in continuing at war with
them. I alighted at Szalt at the house of one of my companions, where I
was hospitably entertained during the whole of my stay at this place.
The town of Szalt is situated on the declivity of a hill, crowned by a
castle, and is surrounded on all sides by steep mountains. It is the
only inhabited place in the province of Belka, and its inhabitants are
quite independent. The Pashas of Damascus have several times endeavoured
in vain to subdue them. Abdulla Pasha, the late governor, besieged the
town for three months, without success. The population consists of about
four hundred Musulman and eighty Christian families of the Greek church,
who live in perfect amity and equality together: the Musulmans are
composed of three tribes, the Beni Kerad (Arabic), the Owamele (Arabic),
and the Kteyshat (Arabic), each of which has its separate quarter in the
town; the principal Sheikhs, at present two in number, live in the
castle; but they have no other authority over the rest than such as a
Bedouin Sheikh exercises over his tribe. The castle was almost wholly
rebuilt by the famous Dhaher el Omar,[See the history of Sheikh Dhaher,
the predecessor of Djezzar Pasha in the government of Akka, in Volney.
Voyage en Egypte et en Syrie, vol. ii. chap. 25. Ed.] who resided here
several years. He obtained possession by the assistance of the weakest
of the two parties into which the place
AIN DJEDOUR
[p.350] was divided, but he was finally driven out by the united efforts
of both parties.
The castle is well built, has a few old guns, and is surrounded by a
wide ditch. In the midst of the town is a fine spring, to which there is
a secret subterraneous passage from the castle, still made use of in
times of siege. In a narrow valley about ten minutes walk from the town,
is another spring called Ain Djedour (Arabic), the waters of both serve
to irrigate the gardens and orchards which lie along the valley.
Opposite to Ain Djedour is a spacious sepulchral cave cut in the rock,
which the people affirm to have been a church. In the town, an old
mosque is the only object that presents itself to the antiquary. The
Christians have a small church, dedicated to the Virgin, where divine
service is performed by two priests, who each receive annually from
their community about £4. They are not very rigid observers either of
their prayers or fasts; and although it was now the time of Lent with
the Greeks, I daily saw the most respectable Christians eating flesh and
butter.
The greater part of the population of Szalt is agricultural, a few are
weavers, and there are about twenty shops, which sell on commission for
the merchants of Nazareth, Damascus, Nablous, and Jerusalem, and furnish
the Bedouins with articles of dress and furniture. The prices are at
least fifty per cent. higher than at Damascus. The culture consists of
wheat and barley, the superfluous produce of which is sold to the
Bedouins; vast quantities of grapes are also grown, which are dried and
sold at Jerusalem. The arable fields are at least eight miles distant
from Szalt, in the low grounds of the neighbouring mountains, where they
take advantage of the winter torrents.
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