New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-10-16
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
EXPLORATION OF PALESTINE.

IAe sery U in the Countries OF Moab. Gead aud
Bashan during t1e yfa Of the American Palestine
Exploration Society. $40. PIP. XVI oi' '""
scribner's Sons. a., ~
The American and English societies tor tno '9
tcmatic EXP. oration of Palestine divided the WORK
hetyvoe, them. our countryInen taking charge OF
the dificult and little known country east Oh inc
Jordan while the English society restricted l'Seii
In the ofttraversed region on the west side vi ''
river Mr.. Merrill made four important Journeys III
charge of the American expedition, ana ne presents
n popular account of two OF them III TINS manu-
some volume. The nature OF his undertaking
ia well indicated in a brief introduction from the
non of Professor Roswell ID. Hitchcock. III the DID
cal sites within the field of his research are not SO
numerous those on the other Slde CT tiie rlVer'
they are nevertheless CT peculiar interests they
love bcen comparatiyely little studied, and their
Identification calls for the exercise OF el'"'
industry and great ingenuity. The Bible names IN
Eastern Palestine, according to Mr.. MerriiPs esu-
mate. number $40, and of these nearly lou nave
been identified 1.-TWO and half OF the tweiVe
tribes that came out of Egypt nrder MOSES, says
Dr Hitchcock "chose that side OF the river lor
their home Syrian, Assyrian ana Chai-
dean armies marched in and out theIe'
Some of the disbanded veterans OF AleAahue'
settled there. 1t was beyond the JORDAN 'lat JOHN
the Bantfst began and ended his official career
snent ON the same side of the river. The Christian
Church itself sought refuge there when the Roman
lecions began to close in upon Jerusalem IN
the time of the Antonines the country was
full of cities, with their temples lheatIeS'
and baths In the fifth century, Christian churches,
well organized were numerous and mourn, hile'
Thus the relics of long stretch OF ages he DuIieu
under the soil or strew the SUR ace ana the arcHi
toctural monuments which still exist are often OF
olii- fo
torical associations their hoary antiquity and the
noudor of their art That they have 50 rarely been
visited and 80 iuperfcctly described is pTnclPaly
o,yno to the difficulty and danger of travelling III
country held for centuries by the lawless Beda"eeH
The tact displayed by Mr.. Merrill III his dealings
with these people was not the least Il MS many
qualifications for the work entrusted to him; and 1t
speaks well for him that he passed through his per-
ilous adventure without serious lnishap.a
Asa specimen of Mr.. Merrills manner OF treating
questions of identification, we copy the following
remarks on the site of the Cities OF the PAN:
W. thov ot the south end of the Dead Sea
Have they been submerged Or were they on the
Shittin plain at the north end CT the DEAD sea
The traditional opinion is that they were SUD
,nerced. and we fluid in some of the old MAPS
Sodom GomorTah Admah, and Zebom ieprGsent.u
at suitable distances from e9cn o'er ~ ,ne nti
recently the opinion held by majority OF the pest
Biblical scholars was m0dhcatioh oil that JuSt
Y,
nromontnry III Lisan covered the sites of the doomed
cities But the geological researches thai have
been carried on about the Dead sea during inc
mast few wears have made both these theories no
longer tenable. These researches SNOW thaC tHe
surface of the Dead Sea was never less III extent
Than it * nj present which must have been the case
If any portion of The sea south OF I'll Llsah mas pec
created bv submergence of the land during past
Geological ages the surface OF Tue sea mas Coh
tracted to its present limits. The destruction OF
thee cities took place within historical times Dut
within historical times there mas Dfeh no o,,6
cha
about it. to Justify either OF the opinions TO Whlch
reference has been made. .,,.: - 49,
since Zoar was one of the cities OF the pam
hint" os IN their situation may be derived from
Genesis xiii 10, where Lot and Abraham are
represented standing on hiIL near Petaoi ar
iookinp down the Jordan valley toward Tue Dead
Son As this verse is rendered III our Engiis bDle,
the meaning is not clear; but 1t Will become so
when all the middle portion the DerSg rc Is u az
n parenthess, as follows: " Anu Lot hlteu up MS
ewes and beheld all the PLAIN OF JORDAN S'nao ~ " G
well watered everywhere, before tne Lo i'ri IT
stroyed Sodem and GOmorTah, even as tine gardeh
nj the orl like the land of Egypt untll tnoi
CONTEST to Zoar." The last qualities the hIst. Lot
cav ali the plains of Jordan, as Tar as LOar Or unH
Con co,oe 10 ZoarD Zoar was both the limit OF the
plain and the limit Of vision IN that dlTecoh 50 laI
Us the land was concerned How uGn o. ; tio un
less miraculously aided cOnd reach TO the southern
end ami distinguish anything; while from the POM
creat ShlttIm plan are distinctly seen he
phrase all the plain OF the JORDAN canhot IN
clnde the salt marsh at the southern end OF tile
DcoJ Sen since this marsh is fifty miles from the
river and belongs to a water system entirely dls-
tinct from that at the northern end OF the sea
The Book of Joshua, chapter XIV, III, uehHihe
the territory of Judah, speaks twice OF thc eha Oh
the Jordan" meaning the mouth OF that H'er
The river and the PLAIN OF the Jorudh Gnu "
The tradition maintains that the region about
these cities became barren ana HeSolao ~ tI 3
nuence of the catastrophe which overlook tneil.
ills desolation reached such degree llat the
region became uninhabitable and thereafter al
ways remained in that condition. But there is no
section about the Dead Sea which corresponds 10
such a state of things. The bfoad anu ieIIiISe
Shttim plain occupied 10y cities ~ tl!o tii I VI
Joshua and the same is true OF the Tune OF JOSE
MINIS There has ALWAYS been mountain OF rock
salt at the south end of the Dead sea, anu tneIe
must ALWAYS have been salt fields and marshes near
IT, The existence of fertile land ana ruins whether
at the north or the south end OF the sea- Is sun
cient answer to the tradition just stated; me
Bible does not warrant us IN supposng lnat 'e stes
of those cities were destroyed obllteraed or that
the destruction by birthstone ana hre Oh l ai
which grew upon the ground lOeheois AlA., ~
OIL was ANYTHING more than temporary. region
once fertile would always remain so, unless us
water supply was in way cut Oft and there Is
reason TO suppose that this has ever been the case
of any section at either end of Il DEAD sea.
The few ruins at the south end OF the Dead sea are
insignificant The small amount OF fertile land
tlere could never have been desirable location iot
towns or villages. On the other hand, there ~ a
remorkal le group of tells at the north emu Oh the
naad Sen which are covered with ruins and some
of winch are the sites Of cities that existed In 'he
f6e Rible represents the catastrophe, which was
sudden confagration, as one One and the same
conaagiation could not he S1d 70 destroy bn ces
which were to destroyed in this manner must nave
formed group in pretty close proximity to saon
other. Only five sites are required namely oouDln,
SHARED on account of Lot, because ho made 1t his
temporary refuge, which reduces the number OF
cities that persisted TO four. If take the account
nj the catastrophe as literal. the time which was
allowed to Lot to flee to the little city " must be
Considered without however. laying any very great
stress upon it, This from dawn TO SUNRISE
perhaps half an hour The fatal objection to all the
Hitherto proposed sites of the little city Is that
th aro several times too far from the of tho
disaster, whether the cities that were destroyed
are placed at the south or the north end OF the
Dead Sea. .,o. ,o -