specially called attention, accounts for the diffusion of some poisons through the body and for that rapid action of certain poisonous substances which so many experimenters have endeavoured, but not successfully, to explain; further, he suggests that in some instances poisonous products of decomposition generated within the body itself, in disease, may be diffused through the nervous ether, and that the sudden collapse of nervous function, which is often seen in acute disease, may be due to this cause. Finally, there may be conditions of disease in which there is unnatural tension of the nervous atmosphere, followed by disturbance of muscular motion, convulsion, or cerebral pressure, leading to apoplectic insensibility.

We have sketched out thus briefly the leading points of this theory of a nervous atmosphere or ether produced, during life, within and by the living organism, as a theory calculated to give rise to much discussion and device of new experiment.

THE

ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATION

HE statistics of modern astronomical observation would, we suspect, be very curious, if it were possible to get at them. A report showing the gradual increase in the number of telescopes manufactured during the last fifty years would be very interesting; and so would be a table comprising at once the advance in their dimensions and the diminution in their cost. The result would, we believe, be such as at first sight to cause great surprise among those unacquainted with the subject, or those whose recollection does not go back to days when five nches was as extraordinary an aperture for an objectglass, as double that size is now. But the value of these, as of other tabular statistics, would suffer material abatement, if they were applied to establish any other conclusions than those to which they directly lead. For instance they would probably be fallacious, if considered as inferring a proportionate increase in the number of important observations. In order to bring out such a result, we require, so to speak, another factor, and a very essential one-a corresponding increase in the number of competent observers. This, we fear, may not have been commensurate with the advance of optical means: at least, except upon the supposition of some such deficiency, it is difficult to understand what becomes of the multitude of really good object-glasses which are annually produced, not only in England, but in Germany and America. A large proportion of these, we are led to think, must be purchased to be looked at, and not looked through or handled as mere toys for the amusement of people who do not know what to do with themselves in an idle evening. This was not so much the case in the early days of telescopemanufacture. The greatest master of figuring specula in his own time was also the greatest proficient in using them it is needless to add the name of Sir William Herschel. And so the finest reflectors in Germany were placed at the same period in the hands of the leader of all accurate selenographical investigation, J. H. Schröter. These were "the right men in the right place." Even then, it may be said, many noble reflectors went, no one knows where, the greater part of them long before this time useless from tarnish, or, still more mortifying to think upon, ruined by unskilful repolishing. Still, admitting this, the disappearance of powerful instruments does not seem to have been so remarkable in those days as it is now, and the quantity of really valuable observations appears to have been greater in the end of the last and the early part of the present century, in proportion to the means of observing.

This is not a very encouraging view of the present state f this branch of astronomy. But, if well founded, as we

believe it to be, we might expect that there would be some assignable reasons for it; and, in fact, several are sufficiently obvious. One certainly is, that the process of discovery is not, generally speaking, renewable. What has been once detected is usually placed on record, in bar of all future claims. So it has been in the science of music; a man might arise among us with the fervid genius of Handel, but he could not write the Hallelujah Chorus over again; and doubtless the spirit of Mendelssohn must have been cramped by the impossibility of employing many of the noblest and most impressive subjects which had been anticipated by his predecessors. And so it has been in the researches of geography. The enterprising explorer has now to go much farther in pursuit of "fresh woods and pastures new," and every Alpine season is so rapidly narrowing the number of summits untrodden by the foot of man, that the excitement of a first ascent will soon have to be sought in remoter regions. Thus in astronomy, though it cannot be said that there are no worlds left to conquer, yet all the larger and more conspicuous features of the heavenly bodies have been long ago so fully noted and recorded, that what remains for exploration is chiefly of that delicate character which, without being the less interesting from its minuteness, is less accessible, for that reason, to the possessors of ordinary instruments. And on this account many a student who might well have risen from the ranks in the earlier days of scientific campaigning, is now compelled to remain in comparative obscurity-a mere spectator, when he might well have taken his place among the discoverers of fifty years ago.

Another reason why tools have multiplied without a corresponding increase of good work, may be this, that looking upon the observer and his instrument as a complex apparatus, the improvement of the intelligent has not kept pace with that of the material part. In fact, it is impossible that it should. The eye is but what it was when David learned humility from considering God's heavens, the work of His fingers, the moon and the stars which He hath ordained; the intellect, though more developed and cultivated, is not more strong and piercing than it was in the days of Hipparchus ; man does much more with his brain, but he has no more brain to do it with, than his uncivilised ancestors; and observers may, and will be, collectively multiplied without being individually improved. Every man that has eyes does not know how to use them; or, not failing in this respect, he may lack other requisites: he may not know what to look for, or where to find it; or he may be deficient in his handling of the faithful pencil or the expressive pen. And so it comes to pass that the capacities of instruments may be much in advance of the abilities of those who use them.

Besides all this, there is a physical obstacle of an entirely different character, which must not be forgotten; the unimprovable constitution of our own atmosphere. This will ever be a sore subject for the zealous observer, especially among ourselves. If even Secchi finds fault with the glorious Roman heavens, what have we not to regret in our own murky, and fuzzy, and restless skies? Who that has read the most graphic as well as instructive writings of Sir J. Herschel is likely to forget his complaints of "twitching, twirling, wrinkling, and horrible moulding?" and who that has had much actual experience of observatory work will not endorse all this with a very lively fellowfeeling? The nights may easily be numbered, during a long season, in which the defects of the atmosphere do not overlie those of the instrument, and when the observer has not rather to wish that he could see all that his telescope could show him, than to long for greater power or light, to be expended in making atmospheric disturbances yet more conspicuous and prejudicial. The only way to obviate this grievous hindrance is to get above it; and no man has yet done this except Professor Piazzi Smyth in

his most successful" Experiment"; it was said, indeed, that the French observers were about to follow his example, and to plant their instruments on the Pic du Midi de Bigorre; but we have never heard whether the idea has been carried into execution. And, however striking may be the advantage of such a plan, it must ever be confined to a favoured few.

We have dwelt at some length on a view of the present state of astronomical observation, which, though rather unfavourable, we believe to be substantially true. But it is not to be inferred that this is its sole aspect. There are, as usual, two sides to the shield; and much is to be said that is of an opposite tendency. If, for instance, we have asserted that for some time past observers have not multiplied in proportion to the means of observation, this is but a relative statement; the absolute fact is that at no former period has there been so numerous, or so zealous, or on the whole so competent a band of astronomical students. And of this we have a very pleasing evidence in the recent formation of an astronomical society expressly devoted to physical observation, to which we cordially wish success. If again it is probable that not many of the great discoveries are left within the reach of ordinary instruments, it should not be forgotten that many telescopes of very superior character are now housed in private observatories; and that for them investigations are still reserved, whose delicacy is no bar to their importance, and which may be undertaken with a hope of success no longer chargeable with extravagance. Great cabinets may be unlocked by little keys. Minute researches may give the clue to discoveries of the broadest extent and deepest interest. The changes of the lunar surface, the internal motion of starry clusters; the parallax and fixity of nebulæ ; the planetary attendants on the brighter stars, these are mere specimens of the magnificent arcana, whose solution may not be denied to human energy and perseverance. We may remember, too, that if the telescope and the micrometer should be found unequal to the task, we have yet a new and most powerful method of investigation, the results of which are equally important and surprising-spectrum-analysis. The revelations of this beautiful invention may be said to be only beginning, and no man can foresee their end. What has already been done would have appeared as improbable as the reveries of Kepler, had it been predicted fifty years ago; and who shall say what may be the result of fifty years more of patient and energetic application? And what might not Kepler have said and done, had such an instrument of research been placed in his hands? We may suppose how his fervid imagination would have exulted in the prospects, and with what confident joy he would have repeated the memorable words which characterise one of his lofty aspirations, " Plus ultra est."

NOTES

IT is stated that the Astronomer Royal is to have the honour of a K. C. B. conferred upon him in recognition of his services in respect to the International Exhibition. We trust this rumour is not strictly correct; for unless it is to be generally understood that services are to be rewarded in the inverse ratio of their value, it is simply grotesque and unbecoming of the Government to ignore all the Astronomer Royal's services to Science, and all his unpaid services to the State in connection with subjects more important to the nation than all the exhibitions which ever have been or ever will be.

IN a Congregation to be held at Oxford on Tuesday, May 23, three forms of statute will be promulgated on the subject of the Second or Final Examination. It is proposed to have one Pass School of a mixed character and six Honour Schools. In the Pass School the examination is to be divided into three groups, as follows:

Group A.—1. One Latin and one Greek author, one at least of which shall be a philosopher or an historian. 2. The outline of Greek and Roman history, with a special period of one or the other, and English composition. Group B.-1. Either English History and a period or subject of English Literature, or a period of Modern European History with Political and Descriptive Geography, together (in each case) with English composition. 2. A Modern Language, either French or German, including composition in the language and a period of its literature. 3. The Elements of Political Economy. 4. A branch of Legal study. Group C.-1. The Elements of Geometry, including Geometrical Trigonometry. 2. The Elements of Mechanics, solid and fluid, treated mathematically. 3. The Elements of Chymistry, with an elementary practical examination. 4. The Elements of Physics, not necessarily treated mathematically. Every candidate is to select two subjects from one of these groups, and one of another of them, and must pass in all three; but may present himself for each of the three subjects in separate Terms. The six Honour Schoo's are to be :-1, Literæ Humaniores; 2, Mathematics; 3, Natural Science; 4, Jurisprudence; 5, Modern History; and 6, Theology. The examination in the Honour School of Liter Humaniores is to include Philology, Ancient History, and Philosophy :-1, In Philology, the Greek and Latin languages; 2, in Ancient History, the histories of ancient Greece and Rome; 3, in Philosophy, Logic, the History of Philosophy, and the outlines of Moral and Political Philosophy, each candidate being required to offer at the least two treatises by ancient authors. Candidates shall be permitted to offer in addition, as special subjects, one or more authors or portions of authors, or departments, or periods falling within or usually studied in connection with any of the stated subjects of this school. For the purpose of this provision philology shall be taken to include textual criticism, the minute critical study of authors or portions of authors, the history of ancient literature, and comparative philology as illustrating the Greek and Latin languages, and ancient history shall be taken to include classical archeology and art, and the law of Greece and Rome.

Ir is with very great pleasure that we print the following intelligence of the safety of Dr. Livingstone :-Despatches were received last week at the Foreign Office from Dr. Kirk, the Acting British Consul at Zanzibar, containing information of the safety of Dr. Livingstone in October last. The doctor was then at Manakoso, helpless, without means, and with few followers. Dr. Kirk had sent him supplies to meet his immediate necessities, which, it was hoped, would shortly reach him.

AT the annual meeting of Convocation of the University of London, held on Tuesday last, Dr. E. A. Parkes was chosen by a very large majority at the head of the list of three graduates, to be submited to Her Majesty for selection therefrom of a member of the Senate in the place of the late Dr. W. A. Miller. At the same meeting a resolution proposed by Dr. Francis T. Bond, that it is expedient to retain Greek in the Matriculation Examination only as an optional subject, was rejected by a small majority.

THE example set by Clifton College in the formation of a botanic garden in connection with the Natural History Society is, we understand, about to be followed at Marlborough, a plot of ground having been granted by the authorities for that purpose. Such a garden will be a valuable adjunct to the herbarium, if such plants are selected as are typical of the principal natural orders, especially of those which are sparingly represented in the British flora.

THE following appointments have been made in consequence of the death of Prof. Miquel :-Dr. N. W. P. Rauwenhoff to be Professor of Botany and Director of the Botanic Garden at Utrecht. Dr. W. F. R. Suringar to be Professor of Botany and Director of the Botanic Garden at Leyden.

THE Botanische Zeitung records the death on March 23 of Dr. Schultz-Schultzenstein, of Berlin, well known as a copious writer on vegetable morphology and physiology.

MR. F. M. BALFOUR, late of Harrow, and Mr. P. H. Car

penter, of the Royal School of Mines and University College, London, have been elected to foundation Scholarships at Trinity College, Cambridge, for proficiency in Natural Science.

WE regret to have to record the death of Mr. James Yates, at his residence at Highgate, on the 7th inst. He was a prominent member of the Royal and Geological Societies, and of late years had been best known as one of the most active advocates of the introduction of the Metric System of Weights and Measures.

THE following gentlemen have been placed in the first class of the annual examination in Natural Sciences in St. John's College, Cambridge (order alphabetical) : -Edmunds, Garrod, Read, Sollas, Yule.

THE annual conversazione of the members of the Society of Arts will be held on Thursday, June 1, at the South Kensington Museum.

M. ELISEE RECLUS, a very active contributor to the Revue des Deux Mondes, has been appointed director of the National Library in Paris, to fill the room of M. Taschereau, who has left for Versailles.

PROF. WYVILLE THOMSON delivered, on the 2nd inst., his inaugural lecture to the students of the Natural History class in the University of Edinburgh. In the course of his observations he paid a glowing tribute to the services of his predecessor, Dr. Allman, whose valuable researches in zoology will continue to be prosecuted in spite of his retirement from the chair.

WE regret to learn from Harper's Weekly that at the great fire which recently destroyed the printing office of Weed, Parsons, and Co. in Albany, the edition printed of the Twenty-fourth Report of the New York State Cabinet of Natural History was entirely destroyed. Fortunately a nearly complete copy of the revised proof was saved; so that no serious difficulty will be experienced beyond considerable delay, although the loss to the State in the destruction of fifteen thousand impressions of plates, &c., will be considerable.

THE continuation of the exhaustive work of Bronn on the classes and orders of the animal kingdom contains an elaborate memoir upon the anatomy of birds, and several numbers are devoted to the peculiarities of the muscular structure alone.

AT the meeting of the Boston Society of Natural History for March 1, the principal communication was one by Mr. George Sceva, in which attention was called to the fact of the shortness of the upper jaws in the skulls of the Hindoos, and the frequent absence of the third molar. This generalisation was based upon the examination of a number of crania; and it was found that about fifteen per cent. of the whole exhibit this peculiarity, while in an extensive series of skulls of European races only about one per cent. showed the same feature.

AT the annual meeting of the Chicago Academy of Sciences, held on April 11, various communications upon a variety of subjects of interest were presented. The most important paper read was one by Colonel Foster, upon the subject of Artesian Wells, in which an account was given of the principal borings that have been attempted in the West, with a statement of their geological relationships, and the depth to which they were carried.

THE Rugby School Natural History Society has just published its Fourth Report for 1870. Rugby having to so great an extent taken the lead among our public schools in its cultivation of Natural Science, we looked for this Report with special interest, and have not been disappointed in its value. There is an inte

resting paper by the President, the Rev. F. E. Kitchener, on the Times of Flowering of Plants, containing just that record of facts and minute observations which it is one of the special functions of local natural history societies to collect. It is illustrated

by two plates, in which are delineated curves representing the months of 1867, 68, 69, and 70, contrasted with other curves reaverage forwardness of flowering in the spring and early summer presenting the rainfall and temperature. Other illustrated papers are by the Rev. T. N. Hutchinson on Sun-spots, and Mr. C. H. Hinton on the Mechanism of a Crane's Leg. We learn that the society now possesses a museum of its own, and has just acquired cases for its botanical and entomological collections. We are glad to see that the officers, in their report, lay great stress on the importance of completing the local collections.

IN the Proceedings of the Cotteswold Naturalists' Field Club for 1870, the President, Sir W. V. Guise, Bart., calls attention, in his Annual Address, to the unusual interest and importance of two papers which occupy nearly the whole of the volume-The Gravels of the Severn, Avon, and Evenlode, and their extension over the Cotteswold Hills, by Mr. W. C. Lucy; and On the Correlation of the Jurassic Rocks in the department of the Côte-d'Or, France, with the Oolitic formations in the counties of Gloucester and Wilts, by Dr. Thomas Wright. The terms in which these papers are referred to by the president are thoroughly well deserved, and the Club is doing great service to science in their publication. Mr. Lucy's paper is the result of four years' labour, and is copiously illustrated by numerous sections, and a large coloured map showing the surface geology of the country be tween Evesham, Chipping Norton, Gloucester, and Cirencester. The work is most creditable to the club, and renders this volume of its Transactions indispensable to anyone studying the geology of the western counties.

THE Proceedings and Transactions of the Nova Scotian Insti tute of Natural Science for 1869-70 lies on our table, and we may take this opportunity of acknowledging the great service rendered by this society in the elucidation of the natural history oour American colonies. Among the papers in the present number we may mention especially the continuance of Dr. Bernard Gilpin's series on the Mammalia of Nova Scotia, a monograph by Dr. Lawson of the Ranunculace of Canada and adjacent parts of British America: a paper by the President, Mr. J. M. Jones, on the Laridae of the Nova Scotian coast; and a record of Meteorological Observations for 1869, by Mr. Henry Poole.

THE Botanical Exchange Club has just issued its Report for the current year, signed by its indefatigable curator Dr. J. Boswell-Syme. It is chiefly occupied by observations on certain critical sub-species or varieties gathered by the members, no absolutely distinct indigenous species having been added to the British flora during the year. We are glad to see a considerable increase in the number of members of this useful society.

WE have received the Report of Observations made by the members of the Observing Astronomical Society for 1869-70. A considerable proportion of these observations has already been reported in our columns. In addition, the Report includes Hints and Suggestions on the Observation of Lunar Objects by Mr. W. R. Birt, and three drawings of the Bands of Jupiter on Oct. 6, and Nov. 1 and 24, 1869. We are glad to see that the number of members has increased to fifty, and congratulate the society on the good work it is doing.

IN a recent number of the "Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal," we have a report of the Address of the President, the Hon. Mr. Justice Phear, a considerable portion of which is devoted to a statement of the importance of a systematic series of barometrical observations in India. Mr. Phear points out that

in India we possess almost unrivalled opportunities for examining and analysing the atmospheric column in all its parts, and that India proper, the Bay of Bengal and Burma, constitute a region

which, for the purposes of one branch at least of meteorological science, demands to be taken and treated as a whole. The actual state of the case, on the other hand, is that for administrative purposes, British India is divided into eight principal districts or provinces, viz., Bengal, Madras, Bombay, N.W. Provinces, Oude, Panjab, Central Provinces, and Burma; and in each of these, except Burma, is a separate local system of observation, with its own independent head, and very little communication with one another.

On the 2nd May, two days before the full moon, a complete lunar halo was observed at Clifton by Mr. George F. Burder, and described fully in the Times of the 4th. Mr. Burder saw the two halos, the large one and the small one, the larger being very difficult to be seen. A paraselenic circle, having the zenith for its centre, was also observed, and mock moons, or paraselines, four in number, were seen at the intersection of the halo with the paraselenic circle. This appearance, as usual, was followed by very bad weather. It is produced, as demonstrated by the French natural philosophers of the eighteenth century, by floating particles of ice; and the light from the moon being considerable, the phenomenon was observed in all its glory.

MR. T. LOGIN's reports on the experimental cultivation of cotton at Carp Bahalgurh in the Valley of the Jumna, are exceedingly satisfactory. Although the crops were damaged by floods and by late frosts, the yield of clean cotton has been at the rate of 307 lbs. per acre, or from four to five times the average yield in India. Mr. Login attributes this result in great measure to his practice of irrigating the fields in the afternoon or night, rather than in the mid-day, believing that the combined action of light and heat on stagnant water makes it under almost all circumstances injurious to plants.

Of the many fresh-water fish characteristic of the continent of North America, comparatively few, with the exception of mem bers of the salmon and trout family, are of sufficient economical value to make it expedient to introduce them into regions where, they do not naturally occur. This transfer has been made to a very disastrous extent in the case of the pike (Esox), which although multiplying rapidly, is at the same time the determined foe of all other kinds of fish, and soon almost exterminates them from the waters which it inhabits. For this reason, some States have passed laws prohibiting, under severe penalties, except by direct permission of the Commissioners of the Fisheries, any transfer of the species in question to new localities. There is, however, one fish that is of great value, and which can be introduced without as much doubt of the propriety of the act as exists in regard to the pike. We refer to the black bass (Grystes salmoides). This inhabits, in one variety or another, the basin of the great lakes of the Mississippi Valley, and the upper waters of the streams of the south Atlantic coast as far north as the James River. Within a few years it has been transferred with success to streams previously uninhabited by it-to the Potomac, for one, where it is now extremely abundant. During the past summer some public-spirited gentlenen of Philadelphia collected among themselves a fund to stock the Delaware with this noble fish, and obtained about seven hundred, principally in the vicinity of Harper's Ferry. These were carried alive in large tanks to the Delaware, and deposited in that stream at Easton, about two hundred of the number dying by the way.

The same

party of gentlemen propose to use a surplus fund in their hands in experimenting upon the restocking of the river with shad and salmon.

THE white sugarcane of Cuba has been tried in Columbia and found more productive than the local variety called Cinta.

REPORT ON THE DESERT OF THE TIH*

THE following report has been sent to the Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge by Mr. C. F. Tyrwhitt Drake, who received a grant from the University for the purpose of investigating the natural history of the Tíh. He spent several months in the district, accompanied by Mr. E. H. Palmer (late of the Sinai Survey), who was travelling on behalf of the Palestine Exploration Fund:

I have now the honour to lay before you a report of my work during last winter in the "Badiet et Tíh," or Wilderness of the Wandering. As this desert had been only partially, and even then superficially examined, I shall give, firstly, a short account of the route we took and of the general physical features of the country; and, secondly, the various traditions of beasts and birds which are current amongst the Arabs. Many of these are curious, from their similarity to Western tales; and others, though seemingly foolish in themselves, are not without interest, as illustrating the beliefs and folk-lore of the Bedawin. These stories are not so numerous as I found them to be in former journeys amongst Arabs inhabiting more fertile tracts, for the Desert of the Tih is in truth "a great and terrible wilderness." The last winter, too, was one of unusual drought even in those experienced great difficulty in finding pasture for the herds of parched regions, and the scattered tribes of Arabs who live there camels and goats which exist in considerable numbers in some

districts.

The supply of water is very scanty and variable, as springs are extremely rare, and most of the water is obtained from "Themail," or pits dug in the gravelly beds of wadies, and similar situations into which the water filtrates. The water thus obtained is very bad, being impregnated either with mineral salts or lime, to say nothing of the quantity of earthy and animal matter held in suspension by its being constantly stirred up for the daily use of the Arabs and their flocks, who naturally collect in the neighbourhood of any place where water is to be had. This want of water was the greatest drawback to the satisfactory exploration of the country: want of food may be contended with, obstructive Bedawin may be quieted, and trackless mountains crossed, but the absence of water renders a country impracticable, especially to those who travel as lightly laden as we did, dispensing with the usual suite of dragoman and servants. Picturesque and desirable as a large retinue and guard of wild Arabs may appear to some persons, had we indulged in these impedimenta, I feel convinced that we should never have got through the country by any but the ordinary route. In these districts fertility is slowly but steadily being driven northwards, for various traces of cultivation and dwellings show that the rainfall must formerly have been plentiful and regular, for surely as tillage and the consequent vegetation decreases, so will' the rain-supply diminish till the land has become an irreclaimable waste.

The manner in which gardens may be made and will afterwards sustain themselves, is well shown in those which still flourish at Sinai, notwithstanding the neglect of the present degraded inmates of the convent.

Even in those parts of the Tíh near El Aujeh and Wady el Abyadh which, from internal evidence, must at one time, and that within our era, have supported a large settled population, so desolate is the general aspect, that, to a casual observer, the country would seem to be and always to have been an utter waste. That they were so always is, however, at once negatived by the existence of several ruined cities surrounded by the remains of extensive gardens and vineyards; of these, the walls alone remain to tell their tale. The vineyards are clearly to be traced on the low hills and rising grounds by the regular heaps and "swathes" of black flints, with which the chief part of the district is covered, and which still retain the name of "Teleilat el 'Aneb" or grapemounds. These facts are of great importance as showing that the objections to fixing certain localities-mentioned in Scripture as abounding in pasturage-in what is now completely desert, may be set aside as worthless. I consider too, that the southern limit of the Promised Land, at the time of the Israelitish invasion, must be placed as far south as Wady El Abyadh. This would remove many difficulties hitherto met with in the satisfactory identification of Kadesh. Though I have not space to enter fully into the question here, I may say that there is strong evidence in favour of fixing that much-disputed locality at Ain Gadis (first dis

*A map to illustrate this paper is printed in the "Quarterly Journal o the Palestine Exploration Fund" for January.

covered by Mr. Rowlands, though he seems to confuse it with Ain El Gudeirat). Many facts support this supposition, for instance, the suitability as a strategic position for a camp of long duration. There is abundance of water there even at the present day, and springs are found at Ain Muweilah to the north and Biyar Maayin to the south. The probability is great that a large host like the Israelites, encumbered with their families and herds, would take the easy route by the open country to the west of the Azazimeh mountains in preference to the barren and rugged passes south-west of the Dead Sea.

The desert of the Tih consists of a succession of limestone plateaux intersected by several wadies, of which the most important are W. El Arish, which is joined near Nakhl by W. Rowag, W. Garaiyeh, with its tributaries Mayin, Jerur, Muweileh, W. El Ain, which runs into W. El Abyadh, W. Rehaibeh and W. Seba, which drain into the Mediterranean. W. Ghamr and W. Jeráfeh-the names of which have been interchanged by former travellers-fall into the northern slope of the Arabeh, and so run into the Dead Sea, as also do Wadies Murreh, Maderah, and Figreh, which debouch into the Ghor es Sáfi.

The southernmost limit is Jebel el Ráhah and Jebel el Tíh on he S. W., and Jebel el 'Ejmeh on the S. and S. E., which together form a cliff running from Suez to Akabah, and projecting into the peninsula of Sinai much in the same way as that peninsula projects into the Red Sea. The height of this cliff at its most elevated point-on Jebel el 'Ejmeh-is about 4, 200 feet above the sea, and from its summit the ground descends north-westwards.

To the N. E. of the Tih rises a third steppe or promontory, its northern portion corresponding to the "Negeb" or south-country of Scripture, its southern part bearing the name of Jebel Magráh, sometimes also called "the mountains of the Azázimeh," from the tribe of Arabs which inhabits it. To the S.E. of this mountainous region we came upon the only bed of sandstone which occurs throughout the whole country. It belongs to the same formation (New Red sandstone) as that at Petra and the lower strata of the Dead Sea basin.

Having carefully considered the best means of thoroughly examining the Tih plateau, Mr. Palmer and myself determined to proceed along the base of Jebel el Tíh, and leaving to the west the Nagbs Emreíkheh and er Rákineh-the passes on the or. dinary routes for travellers proceeding northwards from Mount Sinai to cross Jebel el 'Ejmeh wherever it might prove practicable, and thus proceed through a hitherto untraversed district to Nakhl, where we had established a depôt of provisions, and where we should have to make arrangements with a different tribe of Arabs for carrying our baggage northwards.

This plan was carried out, and we entered the Tih by the Nagb el Mirád on January 12, 1870. From the summit of the clifffor Jebel el 'Ejmeh has no pretensions to be called a mountain—a magnificent view is obtained of the Sinaitic peninsula. The range itself is composed of mountain limestone, so worn and broken by the action of frost and weather that the hills are covered with fine detritus, which, after rain, would produce some herbage, but when we were there only a few dried-up, stunted bushes were to be seen, which here as elsewhere in the desert supply good and abundant fuel.

From Jebel el 'Ejmeh the steep, bleak, waterworn hills gradually slope down and fall away into the great plains, or rather, low plateaux, which stretch across to the Mediterranean.

The sameness of outline and dreariness of this country is something terrible: the few shrubs that exist are grey or brown, and seemingly withered and dead; no animal life enlivens the scene--at times perhaps a stray vulture or raven may be seen sailing far away in the blue sky, a frightened lizard will start from beneath one's feet, or a small flight of locusts be disturbed from their scanty meal on some 66 'retem bush." Water on the road there was absolutely none; a supply for four days had to be carried from El Biyár, a well strongly impregnated with Epsom salts, and lying a few miles to the south of Nagb el Mirád.

Under these conditions we can scarcely expect to meet with many signs of life. Judging from the numerous cairns and other primeval remains, this district must at one time have been populous. Wearily did I tramp day after day, gun in hand, but I was seldom rewarded with any thing more than a stray beetle or lizard, and now and then some small desert bird, and on very rare occasions a hare or snake.

As from former experience we had found that it was impossible to work a country thoroughly when mounted, we only employed enough camels to carry our baggage. The camel-drivers acted as guides, and, to a certain extent, as attendants, for we took no ser

vants whatever. This added to our already heavy work, yet it enabled us to get on much more satisfactorily with the various Arab tribes than we could otherwise have done.

From the Nagb el Mírá our course lay down Wady Rouag, which takes its rise in the highest part of Jebel el 'Ejmeh, about eighteen miles east of the head of Wady el Arish, with which it holds a nearly parallel course till it joins it at a short distance to the north-east of Nakhl. The district between Wady el Arish and Wady Rowág is drained by W. Ghabiyeh, which falls into the latter about twenty-five miles from the Nagb el Mirâd; after this junction the country becomes open and comparatively level. Here the ground is almost as hard as a macadamised road, and is covered with a layer of small, black, polished flints, which glisten in the sun as though they were wet. This polish must be attributed to the dust and grit kept in motion by the almost incessant winds, which are frequently very violent. Many of the monuments in Egypt bear witness to the destructive action of the grit. In this desert sand is almost unknown. There are only two or three sandy tracts, and these may be traversed in a few hours at most. The largest sandy district we had to cross was the Rumeilet Hamed, to the north of Khalasah (the ancient Elusa) where the prevailing north-west winds have formed extensive dunes. This sand, however, seems to have been entirely brought from the coast.

On arriving at Nakhl we found a small fort with wells and cisterns. In this dreary spot, encompassed by glaring white hills, a few miserable soldiers are maintained by the Egyptian Government for the protection of the Hajj caravan, the place being halfway between Suez and Akabah. Here we were obliged to dismiss the Towarah Arabs, and taking up our provisions which we had sent on from Suez, we entered into an agreement with the Teyáhah, who, after considerable discussion and futile attempts to extort a large "ghafr" or black mail, engaged to take us any. where we wished through their country.

At

Of the various tribes which inhabit the Desert of the Tíh, the most numerous and powerful are the Teyáhah, of whom there are two divisions, the Sagairát and the Benaiyat, and truly they were, as their name implies, birds of prey." They possess large herds of camels whose numbers are frequently increased by the product of the raids which they make on their hereditary foes the 'Anazeh, whose territory lies around Palmyra and to the east of the Hauràn, and is about twenty days' journey from the Tíh. These forays are sometimes carried out on a large scale; on the last occasion the Teyáhah numbered 1,000 guns. times the plunder amounts to many hundred camels, but at others the owners come down in force and the aggressors are compelled to retire. Bloodshed in these freebooting expeditions and even actual warfare is avoided as much as possible, for it results in a blood feud which is always much dreaded by a Bedawi, since it binds the relatives of anyone who has perished either by murder or manslaughter-the Arabs do not distinguish between themto avenge his death. The blood feud or vendetta thus exercises a most salutary influence, for without it the value of human life would be totally disregarded in these wild regions which lie beyond the pale of the law.

The Terabín, the tribe next in importance, occupy the country east of the Teyáhah, their territory extending from Jebel Bisher and Bir Abu Suweirah on the Sinai road some forty miles southeast of Suez, as far as Gazı to the north.

The Haiwátt live in the mountains to the west and north-west of Akabah, and are not numerous.

The Azázimch occupy the mountainous region which I have before mentioned as bearing their name: this tribe is not large, and they are exceedingly poor; their only food consists of the milk and cheese obtained from their camels and goats and such roots as they can dig up. On very rare occasions they may have the luck to shoot some wild animal which, whether it be ibex or hyaena, is equally acceptable to their not over squeamish stomachs. They are obliged to live in very small and scattered communities, from the fact that-with the exception of one or two brackish and unpalateable springs, their only water supply is derived from the rains collected in hollows of rocks in the ravines and wady beds, and even these are few and far between. This water was usually putrid and full of most uninviting animalculæ : however, as no other was to be had, we were obliged to drink it.

From Nakhl we went in a north-easterly direction to Wády Garaiyeh, thence to Jebel 'Araif, which we ascended; though it is little more than 2,000 ft. high; the view is very extensive. We then proceeded to cross Wady Mayin, W. Lussán, and W. Jerúr, and afterwards reached Ain Muweileh (the supposed