[p.160]affluence; the income of the convent being very considerable,
passengers of all descriptions are fed gratis, and as it stands in the
great road from Hamah to Tripoli, guests are never wanting. The common
entertainment is Bourgul, with bread and olives; to Christians of
respectability wine is added. The convent has large vine and olive
plantations in its neighbourhood; it collects alms all over Syria,
Anatolia, and the Greek islands, and by a Firmahn of the Porte, is
declared to be free from all duties to the Pasha. Youssef Pasha of
Damascus, however, made them pay forty thousand piastres, on the
pretence that they had built a Khan for poor passengers without his
permission. The prior, who is chosen by the brotherhood of the convent,
is elected for life, and is under the immediate direction of the
Patriarch of Damascus. Caravans generally stop at the Khan, while
respectable travellers sleep in the convent itself. A spring near the
convent is said to flow only at intervals of two or three days. The
prior told me that the convent was built at the same time with the
castle of Hossn.
We left Mar Djordjos in a heavy rain, descended into the Wady Mar
Djordjos, and after two hours slight descent reached the plain near a
spring called Neba el Khalife [Arabic], round which are some ancient
walls. A vast plain now opened before us, bordered on the west by the
sea, which, however, was not yet distinguishable; on the N. by the
mountains of Tartous, on the E. by the Anzeyrys mountains, and on the
south by the Djebel Shara [Arabic], which is the lower northern
continuation of the Djebel Libnan and Djebel Akkar. To the right,
distant about three hours, we saw the castle of Szaffytta [Arabic], the
principal seat of the Anzeyry, where their chief El Fakker resides. It
is situated on the declivity of the Anzeyry mountains; near it stands an
ancient tower, called Berdj Mar Mykhael, or St. Michael's Tower. About
seven hours from Szaffytta, towards Kalaat Maszyadt,
[p.161]are the ruins of a temple now called Hassn Soleiman, which,
according to all reports, is very deserving of the traveller's notice;
as indeed are all the mountains of Szaffytta, and the whole Anzeyry
territory, where are the castles of Merkab, Khowabe, Kadmous, El Aleyka,
El Kohf, Berdj Tokhle, Yahmour, Berdj Miar, Areyme, and several others.
It would take ten days to visit these places.
We continued along the foot of the hills which form the Djebel Shara;
they are inhabited by Turkmans and Kurdines. We passed several torrents,
and had great difficulty in getting through the swampy soil. After a
march of five hours and a half, we came to a rivulet, which had swollen
so much from the rain of last night and this day that we could not
venture to pass it. We found several peasants who were as anxious to
cross it as ourselves, but who could not get their mules over. As the
rain had ceased, we waited on the banks for the decrease of the waters,
which is usually as rapid as their rise, but it soon appeared that the
rain still continued to fall in the mountains, for the stream, instead
of decreasing, became much larger. In this difficulty we had to choose
between returning to the convent and sleeping in the open air on the
banks of the rivulet; we preferred the latter, and passed an
uncomfortable night on the wet ground. By daylight the waters had so far
decreased, that we passed over without any accident.
March 3rd.--On the opposile side we met with another and larger branch
of the same stream, and at the end of an hour and a quarter reached the
Nahr el Kebir (the ancient Eleutherus), near a ruined bridge. This is a
large torrent, dangerous at this period of the year from its rapidity.
The Hamah caravans have been known to remain encamped on its banks for
weeks together, without being able to cross it. On the opposite side
stands a Khan, called Ayash, with the tomb of the saint, Sheikh Ayash
[Arabic],