The Wilmingtonian, and Delaware register., 1825-05-26

with the glow Of heaven. In all my rever-
cnce for their mightiness, l was never SO
impressed with it as now"
From the London .Nezv Monthly Magazine.
MOUNT SINAI.
At no great distance from the convent is
the scene in the solitudes OF Mdian, where
tradition says Moses kept the sheep OF Jethro.
his fater-in-law. 1t is a valley at the back
of the Mount, between two ranges OF mount
aims. A solitary group of trees stands in the
middle.--The superior apoloslzed for his
inability to supply us with any other than
vegetable food, and advised us to buy goat
of the Arabs. This miserable creature.
which had been obliged to keep Lent on the
rocks, was purchased for seven piastres;
and, being pulled up through the window,
was slain for the Christians use, and scrN-
cd up, dressed in different ways, for dinner
in the evening; but it proved 50 lneagre, and
had so unhappy a favour, th.,t we were O.
bliged to abandon it.
A venerable monk, above ninety years OF
age, the oldest, in the convent, paid us
visit in our apartments: he had resided here
seventy years; and we asked him III what
manner his life had passed during this best
part of a century's confinement within the
convent and garden walls. One day, he said
passed away like another; he had seen only
the precipices, the sky, and the desert; and
he strove now to fix all his thoughts on am
other world, and waited calmly the hour Of
his departure. He then dwclt much on the
vanity Of human pleasures and the nearness
of eternity, and ended by asking me, very
earnestly, for bottle Of rum. We had but
one left for our future jrrney, but gave it,
however, to CRAFTY the old father, who re
T quested that my servant, when he brought
it to his cell, would conceal 1t beneath his
cloak lest his brethren should catch
glimpse of it. On the third morning we sat
out ca ly from the convent, for the summit
of Mount Sinai, with two Arabian guides.
4 The assent was, for some time, over long
and broken flights of steps, placed there by
the Greeks.-The path was often narrow
and steep, and wound through lofty masses
of rocks on each side. In about half an
/ hour We came to a we'll of water; 4 short
! distance above which is a small ruined chap
el. About half way up was vcrdant and
! pleasant spot, in the midst of which stool a
high and solitary palm, and the rocks rose
in small and wild ampthcatre around. We
were not long now in reaching the summit,
which is OF limited extent, having two small
buildings on it, used formerly by the Greek
pilgrims, probably for worship. But Sinai
has four SUBMITS; and that of Moses stands
almost in the middle OF the others, and is not
visible from below, SO that the spot where
he received the law must have been hid
from the view Of the mutitudes around;
and the smoke and flame which Scripture
says enyeloped the entire Mount of Sinai,
must have had the more awful appearance,
Of its many submits and great extent; and
the account delivered gives Us reason to inn
aginc the summit or scene where God APP
peAred, was shrouded from the host around;
As the seventy elders only were permitted
to behold, as 'sthe body OF heaven in its
clearness, the feet of sapphire" &c. But
what occasions no small surprise at first, is
the scarcity of plains, valleys, or open places
where the children Of Israel could have stood |
conveniently to behold the glory OH the
Mount. From the summit cf Sinai you see
only innumerable ranges of rocky mount
aims. One generally places, in imagination,
around Sinai, extensive plains of sandy des
erts, where the camp Of the hosts was
placed, where the families Of Israel stood at
the doors of their tents, and the line was
drawn round the mountains which no one
might break through on pain Of death.
But it is nat thus: save the valley by which |
we approached Sinai, about half mile wide,
and few miles in nlcngth, and Il small plain
We afterwards passed through, there appear
TO BE few open places around the Mount.
We did not however examine it Gu all sides. |
On putting the question to the superior of
-he convent where he imagined the Isreal
ties stood; every where, he replied, wav
iag his hands abnut--in the raNines, the [
valleys as wei as the plains. Having spent /
an hour here, we descended to the place
Of verlnre, and after resting awhile, took /
our road with one of the guides towards +
the mountain Of St. Catlrarine, The rap
turc Of Mr.. WIS feelings on the top Of Sinai
was indiscribable. ] expected to see him
take his flight for better region. Being
the son Of Rabbi at Munich, the convie-
tion of being on the scene Hehere God yis-
tied his people, and conferred such glory on
them, was almost too much for him. After
ascending again in another direseion, we
came at last to a long and sleep DESCENT that
commanded very noble scehc, and rfeached
at last little valley at the 'bottose that was
10 be our resting place for the pigTt. The
mountains rose 4round the valley in vast
precipices---a inc of beautiful verdurc ran
alongits w..ole extent, in the midst of which
stood . deserted monastery. The fathers
chad long been driven from it by the Arabs,
ISbut it's various apartments were still entire
and afforded an excellent ASYLUM fer a
traveller.
The deep solitude had an exceeding and
aWful hpality the palms the loftiest ever