Alexandria gazette, commercial and political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1812-1817, 1813-04-19

having arrived in the port OF Iunis, c We
cast anchor opposite the ruins o. "a VA.
haze. looked at them but was una,
, u,s - make out what they could be. !
Ds -. few Moorish huts, Mano-
me,an hermitage at the point o. : p'o
;ectinr cape, sheep browning. among
ruin. :-ruins, SO far from striking, ina.
could scarcely distinguish them from
the ground on which they lay. lhlS
was Carthage. c.r.nooe
and her demolished towers, lie scattered
~ the fatal shore. What fears DID this
city formerly excite in Rome wna' q.
forts did she cost when insulting us;
ven in Latium and the Laurentlan PLAINS
Now scarcely relic other Is 20 DC SEEM
she scarcely retains her name' ana can
not even be recognised by her own fo-
ms. -. -.
In erdor to discover these ruins, 1t Is
necessary to go me,hodically to work.
I suppose, then, the reader sets ou'
with me from the fort Of the Goietta'
/ standing, as have observed, upon Inc
canal by which the lake OF iunis ais
charges itself into the sea- kid'ns a.
long the shore in an cast northeast ui'
rection, YOU come, in about halt an hour,
to some salt-pits, which extend towara
the west, as far as fragment OF WALL
very near to the grea. reservoirs. Pass
ing between the salt pits, and the sea-
you begin to discover jettles running
out to considerable distance under wa
| ter. The sea and the jetties are on your
right; on your left you perceive great
quantity ofruins, upon emlnences OF
unequal height and below these RUNS
is place of circular form, and OF con-
siderable depth, which formerly COM
munieated with the sea by means OF a
canal traces of which arc still TO be SEEN
This basin must be in my opinion, the
Cothon, or inner port Of Carthage. The
remains Of the immense works discern
ible in the sea, would in this case, lndl'
cate the site of the outer mole. 1t am
not mistaken, some piles OF the dam
constructed by Scipio, for the purpose
of blocking up the port, may still be
distinguished. also observed second
inner canal, which shall be, ifyou please,
The cut made by the CarthageniaEs when
they opened a new passage tor their
fleet.
Til. HaNey of Jordan.
We proceeded for Fifty minutes over
level plain, ard at length arrived at
the last range of hills that form the wes-
tern border of the valley of the Jordan
and the Dead Sea. The sun was near
setting, we alie h,ed to give little rest
to our horses, and contemplated OF lei.
sure, tho lake, the valley and the river.
When VIC hear of valley, we figure
to ourselves valley either cultivated or
uncultissted: if the former, 1t is cover.
cd with crops Of various kinds, vine-
yards, villages, and cattle; if the latter,
it presents herbage and woods. 1t is
watered by river, this river has wind
ings in it's course and the hills which
bound this valley have themselves un-
dulations which form prospect agreea-
bic to the eye.
Here nothing of the kind is to be
found. Figure to yourself two long
chains Of mountains running in paral-
lei direction from north to south, with
out breaks and without undulations. The
eastern chain, called the mountain of A
rabia, is the highest; when seen At the
distance of eighl or ten leagues, you
would take ito be a prodigious perpen.
dicular wall perfectly resembling Jura
in its form and azure colsr. Not one
summit, not the smallest peak can be
distinguished YOU merely perceive
slight infections here esd there, as if
tae hatd of the painter who drew this
horizontal line along The sky, had trem.
bled in some places.
The western range belongs to the
mountains of Jndea. Less lofty and
more unequal than the eastern chain, ii
differs from the other in its nature also
it exhibits heaps of chalk ard sand,
whose form bears some resemblance to
piles OF arms, waving standards, or the
tents OF a camp seated OF the border OF
plain. On the Arabian side, on the
contrary, nothing is to be seen but black
perpendicular rocks, which throw their
heightened shadow over the waters CT
the Dead Sea The smallest bird Of
Heaven would not 6nd among these
rocks blade of grass FIR its sustenance;
every thing thc'e announces the coun-
try of Feprobate people, and seems to
breathe the horror and incest whence
sprung the Amnon and Moab.
The valley, bounded by these two
chains of mountains, displays soil re.
semDllng the bottom Of a sea that has
long retired frons its bed, beach cover.
ed with salt, dry mud, and moving sands,
furrowed, as it were, by the. waves
Here and there stunted shrubs with dit