Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1857-02-12

BY no MEANS replied the Turk; 'but am
!usable to renouat my horse, because need
|lhe help of stone, in order to regain my
stirrup; ard who can find a single stone in
al the plain of Gingarnella!'
Nov, it is well known that Darius EN-
ployed three hundred thousand men, for ma
ny days, in evelling this plain, and in break
ing whatever would interpose an obstacle TO
bis cavalry and chariots Of war. In the
centre of the Old battlefield of Arbela rises
bill of colossal dimensions, whose object
the party vainly conjec1ured, thinking it
might be tomb, or triumphaI monument,
or more likely boh. Unfortunately, they
had not time 10 examine it, nor the appi-
anees necessary for exploring it.
Passing on, Mr.. Place and his party at
iength discovered what they believed to be
xet8isg less than the veritable remains of
the T5per of Babel--the wonder of w0n-
ders, and the grande t spectacle which the
eyes of men can contempilte in this age o.
the world. This proud tower, which was
built in defiance of Heaven, AMI aimed TO
pierce the very skies, has lost, in the course
of ages, its cloud reaching elevation. Six
of lis eight stories have fallen and crumhled
into dust; but the two which remain are so
high that they may be seen for fifty or strty
miles around. the base of the to@er is quad
rangular, and each side about six hundred
feet long. The tower is made of bricks of
the pures clay, and of white color, which
is little shaded with yellow tint Under
a clear sun, and as a whole, this ancient
monument of human skill and daring pre-
sents a fine blending of colors which sets
painters pallet at defiance. Before being
baked, the bricks had been covered with
characters traced with the accuracy ci the
hand of writing g-master. Near the top OF
the letters the straight strokes were adorn-
ed with flourishes resembling the heads of
nails. ,All was neat. regular and severe;
and, indeed, those who saw these specimens
of ancient calligrapky affirm that the fathers
of the human race wrote d better hand than
their children.
"Another curious fact arrested the atlen-
tion of the exploring party. The sacred re-
cord runs thus. And it came to pass as they
irom the East, that thy found
plain in the valley of Shinar, and they dweif
there. And they said one TO another--Go
10. let US make brick, and burn them thor
oughI, and they had brick for stone, (or
instead of slone,) and slime had they for
Modern skeptcs may ask-Where
could. these uilders obtain ! this bItumen!
for vast quantity must have been demand
eG to meet the wants of SO many trowels.
1t is a singular confidence tha. DIR. Place
discovered tJun,ain at a snail distance
from the tower, whose waters flow in such
abundance as almost to form a river The
stream would free its way into ri!er in
the vicinity. til not the people hasten to j..
stop it by setting the bitumnou, flo ID ON
fire, when they TRANQUILITY wait till tie hre
is extinguished Tor the want OF alineni.--
raus the Old fountain still Pours out mex
haustible quantities al bitumen also adds to
the durability Of bricks, as we'll as firmly
conso 'idales them in masonry. Could any
thing be added to the marvel OF the coinci-
dencer Thus travels and expeditions in
AssyIia become Biblical corollaries, and new
proofs are never wanting of old truths.
"Among the interesting discoveries Of Mr..
Place were certain inscription on hl'eta OF
gold, silver and copper, and also upon a met
tai now unknown, and which has somewhat
of the appearance of ivory. 1t has been sub
m;tted to the experiments of an inte lligent
and its qualities will soon be
ascertained.
"Some very curious photographs taken by
the expedition, com 5leted their labois, one
of which was of the ruins OF the palace of
the famous Qneen Semiramis. This ancien'
ituated on The height of noun
tain raised by the hands of men, overlookS
the awful so'itudes which surround Lake
Yan--a boy of water six ur seven times
larger than Lake Geneva.
sIt is not strange that gentleman who
had seen and handled some of the articles
brought from the Tower of Babel by Mr.
Place, should be excited, as he says he vas:
In relation to archaeological news, | take
the liberty to inform you that | have just
seen the Oldest things of the old world. H.
deed, do not know that | should be more
surprised by seeing the fragments of the
ark itself. Fancy to yourself that have
jus, touched and held in my hand, and turn
ed and TUNED ggan in every way, lille
morceau of the To,Oer of BaLel! This trim
ket If moulded clay, illustrated and baked by
the sons OF Noah, has passed from the plain
of Shinar to the chapel Of st. MeSmin, and
is the fruit of the .rokes of the hammer in
in the hand OF Mr.. Place, our learned and
euterprising Consul, 10 whom | avn indie ted
for sight of this precious relic, about which
cluster o m my grand sogrentrs.'
81 will only edd, that if your resders wish
10 obtain distinct and accurate idea of the
repIon referred to, in which lies the bNttle-
field OF ArDela, and the plain of Shnsr, they
should open their atlas and survey the conn
try between Mosul on the Tigris. and Like
Van, southeast of Mount Ararat. 1t i, very
naturs that the s,ns OF Noah, descending
from Arala, should commence their aari-
C alrurll laror5 IN the fertile ana vell-water-
ed plain oi Shinar. lying to the East, where,
in terr BILE remembrance of the flood, they
yaIniy ana lmpiouaiF a''''i'P'0" WIN
which should protect th"m tron the recur-
rerce o the disaster. Recently, met an
English gentleman, Mnjnr Frazer, who be
loneed to the staff of General Williams, the
hero of Kars, who, with three or 'our other
Englishmen, gained he summit of Mount
Ararot--ths first feat of the k nd since the
children of No n descended from . Thus,
by singular incidence, about the same
time, the sacred summit was reached where
the ark rested, and the tower discovered
which was erected on the plain Al It's base.
THE FULLNEsS OF BREvITY.-The Bos-
ton Transcript vouches for the genuineness
of the following modes of epstolary brevty'
Gall but the nameso