Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1859-05-13
Mount Sinai

The Rev pr. Bonar, of keso, Scotland deliver.
ell II lecture in Glasgow on the subject of'A re.
cent visit Ia Snn aud it's Desert" in which hc
detailed with graphic force the incidents "l u
journey ncross the Desert, md vividly described
the wastes # sand which everywhere prevail, cN-
cept where patches of rock vary the monet 'ny Of
the seen" spreading for miles. in some places ap-
pearing like II well macadamzrl road. or like tcs-
seatcd pavement formed with all tho cXnrtuess Of
Roman art.
The Dc,cri. he said, not n land without
rain: it had It's seasons oi heavy rnin aud floods.
Indeed, it had much moro rain than was known
in Egypt but it came in such terrific ru>hes that
it served no purpose but to food tho sandy wastes.
In almost all parts of the Desert there we've shrubs
to feed the cumcl-a most wonderful provision Of
o,crrulng proyidence There were the lnmarisk.
the acacia, the broom. and the palm towering
above th'm all but they were SO few in number
that they could hardly be said to relieve the uni
vcrsal ycllowncss of tho sand and there was no
clothing # vcrdurc under foot the oasis adorn
ed. hut it was not clothed. The English traveller
missed the beautiful daisies and yiolcts which
durked our meadows. But whatever was wanting
below, there wae sprndor above, in the brightness
Of the sun tho purity Of the moon, and the clear
blue hrmament. Sull there wanting the blue
smoke cullms from tho chimncys or the quiet,
happy English homes. and the soft murmnr Of the
woods nt rycntidr.
Go to the desert YOU would become satcl of the
sumencss Of the sky and sun, however brilliant I;
and you would call to mind the varying cloudy
skies IT rur northern latitude In the desert tho
length oi the day varied little throughout the year
not more than mn hour. There was no length.
cned twilight, but morning and night came very
suddenly Groups ot stones were found in some
parts OF the desert, and these were tho gravcrards
of the Bcdunns. In one or two of these desert
cemeteries you saw few plautsof the broom. with
its wirv leaves and white flower placed theic
memorial, uf affection -an expression Mt once of
desert poverty and desert love. Sometimes you
come across IA wide lenvcl ncacin almost covered
with rag oi every hue and every feature. the vo-
tive prorItatory offerings Of Arab snpersii.nn.-
The silence of the desert was perfect, nnl sur
passe in that quality the tranquil sea; the prime
val forest, any other scene in nature. The
lecturer then described Mount Sinai and its inter
c-ting locality. and referred to the passages Of
Scripture which it illustrated in most rcmarka-
bic manner, expaiiaiing in eloquent terms upon
the holy inrlings which are inspired on trcallng
this sunclifed ground. The ascent TO the summit
occupied about an hour and hnlf, and they had
then in view twelve or fifteen miles of the desert,
and huly it was n scene Of utter desolation and
horror 1t painful to think Of the traditions
by which this holy place wns now surrounded;
aud it WAS II great relief to get to the northern
portion of the desert, adjoining Palestine, where
hcsc traditions had no existence.