The Penn's Grove record., 1885-01-31

place was Elm, noted for its wells and
palm trees. From thence they entered the
wilderness Of Sin, which lay between
Elm and Sinai. Here was the YIsi-
tation of quails, the Israelites dying
in great numbers, the place being called
KibrOth hat Taavah' ''the graves Of
lust" They then reached Rephidim,
where Moses, having gone on before,
caused the water to flow through the
riven rock, and thence they came TO
Mount Sinai.
This account, 1t is now urged, is con-
sistent, and not alone consistent with
a journey by the old caravan road which
existed III the time Of the PharaOhs
from Egypt across the desert to the
head OF the Gulf of Akaba, and thence
up the Arabian to Mount Hor. The
Egyptian has annually followed this
route from SueZ to Akaba. No water
is found until the end Of the third days
journey, at NahId. At the next stage,
now called Ahu Muhammad, the water
is salt and bitter, and two days more
journey brings the aravan to Akabah,
celebrated for It's wells and palm groves.
But Akabah was known to the Israel
ties as Elath-Deut. 2:S; Kings 9: 90
the Greeks as Elana, and to the RO-
mans as ALA, and as Elm and Elath
are only different plural forms Of the
word ell, "a palm grove" Mr.. Baker
Greene's solution of the olde of his
torical enigmas lies in the identitica-
ton of the Elim of the Book of Exodus
with the Elath of deuteronomy and
the historical books, the place justly
celebrated for its wells and palm trees.
If, however, the lsraelites took this
course across the desert. they would
then turn their steps up the Arabah, as
they confessedly did not pass round
Edom on the East till a much later
period. But half way up the Arabah,
on the eastern side, stand Mount HOr,
as it is rather unfortunately translated,
but literally Har ha Har, the Mount of
Mounts, which could have been no
other than Mount Sinai, and which
would fittingly receive such designa-
ton. 1t is curiously cOnirmatory of
the accuracy of the route thus Indicated
that In the ATabah, about twenty miles
from Akaba, on the way to Mount
HOr, is a marsh which in Major kitch-
| enel's report is named Et Taba, and on
ITS borders are the remains of an anc-
cient Bedouin cemetery. 1t was, how
ever, in the W l1erness between Elm
and Sinai that the Israelites died in
great numbers, the place being called
KibToth hat Tdavah, 30 that now, after
the laspe of 5000 years, this spot liter
ally bears the same description, ''the
cemetery of Eft Taba."
1t would be impossible here nov to
summarize the arguments and the evil
dence adduced by Baker Greene in sup
port of his version of what he terms
''The Hebrew Migration from Egypt"
but Major kitchener's confirmation of
the soundness of his conclusions will,
no doubt, induce Biblical critics and
Others to examine them carefully. st.
Paul unqHestionably placed Mount
Sinai In Arabia, and 1t Vas not until
the second century that Ptolemy is
supposed to have extended Arabia
PetTea to the Tih and the 50. called
Smaitie peninsula. All Arabian ge-
o~graphers made the Arabah the west.
ern limit of their country, thus exclud-
ing the peninsula II IS also notice
able that Eusebius AMI Jerome placed
the scene of the incidents which hap
pened in the neighDorhood of Mount
Sinai in Edom. and when the Crusaders
entered that country at the beginning
of the tN elfth century the great chasm
of the Six, which enters Petrea from
the east, was pointed out as the rock
riven by the wand of Moses. Mount
Hor was declared to be Mount Sinai,
aud Ala, the modern Akaba, was de-
aIanNl =. -. Nla Iff-n sc sLn DAal IF
Exodus, noted for its wells aud palm
fpaaa