The Sun.
London, England, 1866-03-22 00:00:00

The Palestine Exploration Fund.
-0 --
TO TILE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

Stet—l have received a fourth report from Captain
Wilson, RE., in charge of the first expedition of
the association, dated Nazareth, Feb. 20, of which
the following is the substance :
" Topography.—Astronomical observations have
been made, fixing the positions of Khan Minyeh,
Mejdel, Tiberias, Kefr Arjib (north-east end of
Lake), Wady Fik, Alma, Kefr-Bir'im, Meiron,
Ailabun, and Nazareth, and considerable additions
made to the map. Since reaching Banias, a district
has been reconnoitred and plotted to a-6We of one
inch to a mile, extending from Belfort on the north
to Tabor on the south, and from the Jordan on the
east to Scpphoris on the west, giving with great
exactness the mean features of the country, the line
of watershed, course of chief Wadys, &c. The
greatest error found in the existing maps is in the
course of the Wadys running into the plain of Gen-
nesareth, the great bend of Wrdy Selameh, shown
by Van de Velde as forming portion of Wady
Amud, being really a continuance of Wady Rubadi-
yeh. The party had been disappointed in being
able to take the mules round the Lake, and tho-
roughly explore the eastern side, the Governor of
Tiberias, who appears to be at open war with the
Bedouin, refusing to give an escort, while the mule-
teers woUTd-not cross the Jordan. Captain Wilson
and Lieutenant Anderson, however, hired a boat at
Tiberias, and landed at the mouth of the Jordan,
made a three days' walking excursion, during which
they were able to examine the country to about half
a mile below Wady Fik, till the weather compelled
them to return to Tiberias. It appears that there
is only one place, about half way between W. Fik
and W. Semakh, which fulfils all the conditions re-
quired by the Biblical narrative of the destruction
of the herd of swine.

" Archaeology.—Some excavations were made at
Irbid, and detailed plans and drawings made of
the building there, which is an old synagogue,
but has suffered a good deal by having been at
one time converted into a Mosque. The ca-
verns Kalat Ibn Maan were explored, and found
to have been at one time used as a
convent. At Tiberias the ruins of the old
town occupy a larger area than had been expected,
and an old aqueduct was traced which supplied the
town with water to its course some miles off in the
hills. At the north end of the Lake, et Tel was
visited ; the ruins there are small, and no trace of
architectural detail could be found amongst them.
On the plain several old sites were visited ; one, near
the northern edge, to which no name could be ob-
tained, had a portion of the city wall standing, and a
few basaltic fragments of architraves and cornices, one
with a well-executed scroll of vine leaves and grapes ;
on the shore were found some ruins called Kefr Arjib,
of some extent, but containing nothing remarkable,
at the mouth of W. Semakh are some ruins called
Khersa, much of the same character as those at Kefr
Arjib ; at Kalat el Ifusn (Gamala) are numerous
capitals and fragments, but no distinct plan of any
building could be made out. The line of-the entire
street can still be plainly traced. From Tiberias they
turned north again to complete the examination of the
Jurmuk district, and at some ruins called Nebartein
discovered an old synagogue, on the lintel of which
was an inscription in Hebrew, and over it a represen-
tation of the candlestick with seven branches, similar
to the well-known one on Titus's arch at Rome. At
Kasyun, the ruins of a small temple were found, and
a mutilated Greek inscription; at Kefr-Bir'im, some
small excavations were made to disclose the plans of
the two synagogues, of both of which detailed plans,
drawings, and photographs have been made. A plan
was also made of the church at Yarun, the style of
architecture of which is very peculiar, and like no-
thing they had seen elsewhere ; the. cross has been
used with great freedom as an ornament, and no two
capitals were found alike—on one were some chrious
designs, on another each face had a bust in the centre,
&c. Two Greek inscriptions were found at Yarun,
both mutilated. At Meiron, plans, &c., were made
of the synagogue, and drawings of some of the tombs
which are peculiar. At Um el Amud were found the
ruins of another synagogue, and a broken slab on
which are two lions. Some fine sarcophagi, similar
to those at Kedes, were found at Shalabun (north of
Kefr-Bir'im).

" Photographs.—The following have been added
to our list :—View of the Ghuweir from Khan Min-
yeh, ,view of the aqueduct at Khan Minyeh, two
views of ruins at Irbid, view of Kura Hattin
(Mount of Beatitudes), view of Wady el Hammam,
view of ruins at Kalet el Husn (Gamala), view of
Tiberias, view of lintel with inscription and candle-
stick, at Nebartein ; four- views of ruins at Kefr-
Bir'im, view of ruins at Meiron, view of large sar-
cophagus at Meiron, view of slab with lions at Um
el Amud.

" Meteorology.—The three aneroids sent from
London on the 10th January, and forwarded by the
ambassador at Constantinople, through the kind
permission ' of Earl Russell and Mr. Layard, M.P.,
had reached the party the day they left Tiberias,
and since then a regular series of barometrical and
hyg,rometrieal observations (unavoidably interrupted
by the derangement of the aneroids, and Gay Lussac
barometer originally taken out) had been resumed.
" Great assistance had been afforded by the Rev.
Mr. Zeller, the Anglican clergyman at Nazareth,
well known to travellers for his knowledge, ability,
and kindness, who had drawn up lists of ancient
sites, and intended accompanying them to Beisan,
in the Jordan valley, where his personal acquaint-
ance with the Bedouin will be of the greatest as-
sistance to the party in their explorations. From
Beisan it was intended to go via Zerin to Sebas-
tiyeh and Nablus, though owing to the Adouan and
Sukka Bedouin being at war, and a grand fight
being imminent, it was probable the intended pro-
gramme might be slightly altered. The whole coun-
try round was very much disturbed, the people
being in many places absolutely starving;
had cleared off last year's crops, and were then
return to
eat-
ing up the Jordan valley, threatening to
cattle
the mountains when summer sets in ; the the locus
was every prospect
to plough the land, and ther,e,
dis-
ease was so severe that enough cattle were not left
of an increase in the distrevs.
of the places mentioned..bin
Kt
eisrsahurTried report no
So far Captain Wilson: Iht.will be observed that
less than five—
bun, Um el Amud--are not to be found on the
Van de Velde or Schultz.—Your
smerasvpyasdnoetfn,
GEORGE GROVE, Hon. Secretary.
ham, March 20.

HERONS appear to live in great harmony with
each other, and their nests are frequently very close to-
gether. Pennant mentions having counted more than
eighty nests upon one oak at Cressy-hall, near Spalding in
Lincolnshire, an estate belonging to the Heron family.
Colonel Montague also informs us that he saw an heronry
on a small island in a lake in the north of Scotland, on
which there was only one shrubby oak-tree, which, not
being sufficient to contain all the nests, many of them wero
placed on the ground. Had Dr. Johnson seen this fact, it
would probably have given occasion to another j. o
oko on
1 the paucity of trees in Scotland.—EDWAßD JESSE, in 110
a Week.