The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-08-07

low lines of earth, the remains of an ancient cana
ran along for quarter or half mile. gradually
sinking to the ordinary level. Ia other places
vast heaps OF earth. reminding one somewhat
fOrcibly OF the hills about Auburn, N. y, except
that these latter are covered with grass, rise
above the plain. And now, for the first time since
leaving khur, one begins to see signs or fertile
soil. There is little pasture and few
shrubs to be met with and the prospect IN
this respect improves every mile one
advances. After about an hour we struck
away from the main road, and passing through
an immense dry ditch, we came to a huge mound
of bricks. The rains of 5000 years had worn
the outer walls Of this immense pile into q.
debris of bricks and earth, which forms sort OF
gradual approach to the top OF the mound,
marked by channels through which the rains OF
the present run. In extent the mound Is some
sixty or seventy yards square. Its base is covered
with fragments Of brick and pottery. Ascending
a waste OF broken bricks. The surface OF the top
Of the mound is extremely irregular, here rising
in square pile of bricks, and again sinking into
hole of earth, filed with stagnant water. On
one side of this vast ruin the Arabs are now exca-
waiting the bricks for the construction of new
houses in Hillah but though they have thus
employed themselves for many years they have
as yet made no appreciable impression upon tho
mound. The bricks are large and fat, foot
long, three-quarters of foot wide, but only three
or four inches deep. Some of them are burnt,
others simply baked in the sun. In building
with the latter the Babylonians seem
straw between every few layers of bricks, and
the mark of the reeds is still fresh upon the
bricks. Happening to pluck out some OF the
straw, the kidish l was leading made a snatch at
it and ate it as eagerly as though it had been
garnered yesterday. Antiques in the shape of
pottery and coins have been found in this mound,
but not to any very great extent. ought already
to have said that this ruin is known as the Little
Limjeibe.
GENERAL REFLECTIONS.
Before leaving this mound one ought to take
good look from its summit at the country round
about. The orthodox idea of Babylon is of a desc
late waste, "a possession of the btterns and
pools of water" That is what the Hebrew pro-
phet wished to see it, no doubt, and. far as the
greater part of Southern Mesopotamia is con-
cerned, the prophecy holds good. But, viewing
the land Immediately about the old city of Baby
lon it is impossible not to that some vestge
of the vitality Of the grand old city still fingers
about its site, reluctant apparently to entirely
desert it. Hillah, which must have been about
the centre of Babylon, is a fOurishiDg little city
of 10 900 inhabitants, surrounded by date gardens
and presenting an appearance of prosperity and
wealth quite exceptional in the pashalic of
Bagdad: One of the principal mounds the
dens and houses. And, looking from the summit
of the Limjellibe, one sees the banks of the
Euphrates still fringed, as they were in the time
of Nebuchadnezzar, with graceful trees and COW
cred with green grass. Perhaps one sees also
man dropping bucket by long rope into the
river to draw water for his household, just as men
wont TO do in that far off time, while the
FLASHING Of the falling drops mingles pleasantly
now, il did then, with the laughter of crowd of
playing children So far from its being 'howling
wilderness the site OF ancient Babylon is an
oasis in the desert bright spot in desoate and
abandoned land. Let those who doubt what is
here stated come and see for themselves. They
will find that instead of being the home of lynxes
and jackals, of hyenas and bitterns, of bats and
carrOn birds, Hillah is, for Turkey o very com
Portable place indeed to stay in.
THE AMRAN.
Half mile from the Limjellibe, and close to
the banks of the river, is another mound larger,
though scarcely so high--the Amran. This
mound boasts the possession Of two especial an
wthered but still firmly rooted in the earth 1t is
situated at the top of the mound, and is
asserted by tradition to be 5000 years old, to
have been green and hOurshing-that is, when
the old city was in the zenith of her grandeur
The second is huge stone lion, which some
thusiastic Englishmen have on two several coca
sions attempted to carry away; but, owing to its
bulk, without success. 1t is now half buried in
the ground 1t is about ten feet long by six feet
in height. The carving is OF the toughest, and it
is somewhat doubtful whether the lion is sup
posed to have six legs, or whether what might be
taken for the two surplus members IS not q VIC
tim struggling i'll its paws. The Turks thought
the Giaours wanted the figure because 1t con-
tanned some treasure and jewels, and they have
themselves blown OFF half the head by blasting in
searching for this hidden hoard. The Amran is
also the cite OF two small Moslem tombs of no
great Importance. In other respects it is simply
what the Limjellibe il also-a shapeless mound
Of old bricks.
have already said that Hillah is fourshing
little city; but il is WELL perhaps, to add that
ii is a telegraph station and that steamboat
makes not very regular trips between il
and Bussorah. The people, too, are exception
ally enlightened and tolerant; a Giaour is in fact,
made little more of than Moslem. But / have
no space TO give any account OF most hospitable
reception with which the HERALD representative
at Babylon was greeted.
THE BIRs NEMROUD.
After days rest in Hillah, set out to visit the
Birs Nemroud the largest and most important of
all that remains of ancient Babylon. This ruin is
eight miles from Hillah rs the crow flies, but
river only fordable in the dryest Of seasons gene
rally forces the traveller TO make detour nvoly-
ing an additional three miles Although so
near to Hah the road out is very unsafe, as the
Shammar Bedouins range close up to the ruins
and are very apt to snap up u stranger somewhat
rudey was therefore provided with an escort
of couple of soldiers, who certainly looked very
terrible fellows, with their immense pistols and
huge curved sabres. But am afraid they were more
cautious than courageous, as they asked everybody
we met on the way, and somewhat ncrvously,
il they had seen any Bedours. However, no
mishap occurred TO US; from the top Of the Birs
we did indeed in the distance the black tents of
the children Of tue desert but we were luckily far
out of their ken. g7-sS--..-4.
as soon as We had cleared the town, passing
over u prldec OF nOats, winch II ceftaihiy tho
craziest, shakiest, and most unsafe structure Of
the kind in existence we came IN sight OF the
Birs, the reputed Tower of Babel 1t appeared
to be simply a slender pile OF building,
standing up from conicel mound. AT so
great o distance it seemed, OF course, very
small, but il was evidently the most conspicuous
feature in the landscape. When one gets up to it
it s impossible not TO be greatly impressed with
its immense extent. There are two mounds, one
q mere mass of orumhled brick, crowned with a
koslem mosque, and the other the Birs. The lat
ter is almost entirely built Of burned brick. and
one immense block of solid brickwork towers up
from the top Of the mound TO height of perhaps
IA hundred aud eighty feet from the level of the
plain. Lightning has riven this huge mass into
two; but the crack is only about foot wide. The
most curious sight al the Birs are some large
blocks of brickworll welded together by Lightning
into solid biackened masses as hard "a stone.
The Anglo-Saxon genius has immortalized itself
here, as elsewhere, by cutting names in the most
conspicuous positions. Such is the Tower OF
Babel or tho Temple of Belus--antqu3rians have