united with Mr. Ellis, and assisted by Mr. Harwood, surveyed and explored to some extent all the inhabited districts of the principal Island, Owhyhee, and 130 times in the course of the tour proclaimed the Gospel of free salvation among her 85,000 inhabitants, scattered and lost, "like sheep having no shepherd." In this expedition undertaken with the approbation of the chiefs, they enjoyed the special favour of John Adams, the governor, in the prosecution of their plans, and his decided influence in promoting their objects. He issued orders for the observance of the Sabbath, and the suppression of flagrant vices, and to encourage attention to the instructions of the missionaries. He has also built a urch at Kirooah, his residence, where he is desirous to have missionaries stationed, and where Mr. Thurston is now ready again to take his post, with an associate, to labour among the thousands on the western side of Owhyhee.

Call for more Labourers,

We doubt not that men may be found, ready to endure the trials incident to the work, and suitable to receive the high and holy trust of missionaries, who pant for the opportunity and commission to fly to these waiting tribes with the news of salvation. And we would humbly ask our patrons if, in their sober judgment, the present is not "the set time," in the counsels of God, for making a great and vigorous effort to save this nation? Is not this emphatically the crisis to give the right impulse so powerfully, that it shall be effectually felt through all the ranks of 150,000 natives, of the present generation, in those islands;—an impulse which shall not cease to be felt till time shall end, nor till eternity shall have rolled away?

The question, then, that remains, s, Will a generous, affluent, highly favoured Christian community assume the responsibility of meeting the expense of equipping and maintaining an additional number of labourers in the Sandwich Islands? Or, in other words, will the resources of the Board warrant the measure of sending them to this field, and supporting them, here, in addition to the annual expenses of the mission in its present state.

Disinterestedness of Missionaries.

We ask no pecuniary compensation, we expect none, for our services rendered to the Christian public, to the Board, or to this nation. In respect to them, our voluntary services, such as they are, are gratuitous; -to Christ they are doubly due. We ask not for money to build or furnish fine houses, to provide elegant carriages, costly VOL. V.

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apparel, or sumptuous tables. Plain, humble, comfortable food, clothing and habitations, with the means of imparting instruction advantageously to the natives, is all the pecuniary aid we expect or desire from the church, or the Board, or any other source. These, together with the prayers and counsels and kind influence of our friends, we need, in order to prosecute our work at all. We need them to promote cheerfulness and vigour sufficient to perform our itinerating tours on foot, to preach in every district, village, and cottage, to study and master this rude language, to translate and publish the Scriptures, to perform no small share of domestic labour, and at the same time to teach the multitude of untutored natives all the arts and duties of social and civilized life, from the very a, b, c, of the language, to the highest possible attainments and most important duties of a Christian monarch and his counsellors.

PALESTINE MISSION.

JOURNEY OF MESSRS. FISK AND KING FROM CAIRO TO JERUSALEM, THROUGH THE DESERT.

Commencement of the Journey.

In their journey from Cairo to Jerusalem, Messrs. Fish and King crossed a part of the same desert, through which the children of Israel passed, when escaping from Egyptian bondage to the promised

land.

Monday, April 7, 1823. Soon after sunrise an Arab Shekh came with our camels. We had engaged thirteen, and were to pay six dollars and a half for each, for the journey from Cairo to Jaffa. our were for ourselves and servant, one for our guide Mustapha, one for water, one for provisions, four for our trunks of books and clothes, and two for the books of the Bible Society and the Jews' Society. We had purchased four goat-skins and four leather bottles, in which to carry our water.

At 9 o'clock we took leave of Mr. Salt and his family, and commenced our journey for Syria. As we started, a Turkish Dervish and two or three others joined our caravan. We passed a little way from Matarieh, and the obelisk of On or Heriopolis. We rode in the edge of the wilderness, with its immense extent stretching away to the right, and the fertile plains of the Nile to the left. At nearly 4 o'clock, after riding more than five hours, course E. N. E. we pitched our tent on the sandy plain near the village Abu-Sabel. Here a number of Mussulmans and several Armenians joined

our caravan.

In the evening we observed the Monthly Concert of Prayer.

Tuesday, 8. We arose at 5, and at 6 resumed our journey. At 8, we passed a village in a large grove of palm-trees. At half past 11, having rode on with our guide, trotting our camels till we were almost out of sight of the caravan, we stopped to rest under the shade of a tree. Here we felt the force and saw the beauty of the comparison, "like the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." The caravan came up in half an hour, and we went on. At one, after riding seven hours, course N., and N. E. we pitched our tent on the road near the village Bilbes. Found the thermometer in our tent at 850. We have hitherto had fertile fields on our left hand,and the barren desert on our right. In looking off upon the desert we have observed at a distance the appearance of water. The illusion is perfect, and did we not know that it is a mere illusion, we should confidently say that we saw water. It sometimes appears like a lake, and sometimes like a river. As you approach it, it recedes or vanishes. Thus are the hopes of this world, and the objects which men ardently pursue, false and illusive as the streams of

the desert.

At half past 2, after riding five hours, we pitched our tent on the plain called Rode el Wolten. Thermometer in our tent at 79°. Asked the Dervish Hadgi Mustapha, what a Dervish is. He replied," One that eats what he has to day, and trusts God for the future." "Are they priests?" They are among Turks what Priests are among Christians." "Are they Monks? they marry?" "Some marry, others not, as they please."

Journey in the Desert.

66

or can

Most of the time to day we have been rising a gentle ascent, course E. and N. E. We are now in the desert, out of sight of the inhabited world. Its appearance, however, is not so perfectly barren, as we expected to find it. Almost every where we see thistles, grass, and flowers, growing out of the sand, though thinly scattered, of stinted growth, and of a dry and withered look. When we stop, we select a good spot for our encampment, raise our tent on its two poles;

and stretch out the ropes, and fasten them to the earth without pins, and then arrange our trunks and boxes of books, so that they serve us for tables, chairs, and bedsteads.

Thursday, 10. When the caravan stops, the camels are turned out to feed on the thistles, weeds, and grass, which the desert produces. At sunset they are assembled, and made to lie down around the encampment. Yesterday afternoon, four of them, which carried merchandise for an Armenian, went off, and could not be found. We arranged our baggage so as to give the Armenian one of ours. The rest of the company, also, gave him assistance in carrying his baggage, and we set off at seven. Saw a mountain at a great distance on our right, and a village far off on our left. In the course of the day the four camels were found at a distance, and brought into the encampment at evening. At 2, after seven hours travelling, we pitched our tent at Mahsima. Thermometer in the tent 84°, in the sun 104°. Here is a well of what we call here, in the desert, good water. The goat-skins, which we took to carry water in, were new, and have given the water a reddish colour, and an exceedingly loathsome taste.

After some refreshment, we took a Persian Testament, and Genesis in Arabic, and went to Hadgi Mohammed, the Dervish. We sat down with him on his blanket spread on the sand, with the sun beating on our heads, and then showed him our books. He reads well in Persian and Arabic. While we were reading with him, most of the Dervishes, and several Turks and Armenians gathered around and listened. Mohammed read in Genesis,and said it was very good. Another Turk then took it, and read that God rested on the seventh day, and said angrily, that it was infidelity to say that God rested. Mr. Wolff tried to explain, but to no purpose, till he said he had given such a book to the Mufti of Jerusalem, who said it was good. This argument silenced him at once.

Monday, 14. Hitherto we had generally enjoyed a refreshing north wind, which served to mitigate the heat, and rendered our journey less tedious, than we had feared it would be. This morning a strong scorching wind from the S. E. commenced. It was indeed distressing. The air sometimes seemed as if it issued from the mouth of an oven. Many of the Arabs bound a handkerchief over their mouths and noses, as a defence against it. After riding six hours and a half, we pitched our tent on the plain of Loolia, near a well of miserable water. The thermometer in our tent stood at 990.

To avoid the heat of the day, they arose at midnight, and resumed their journey at one in the morning.

The wind continued from S. E. during the night, and we anticipated another dreadful day. But in the forenoon it changed to the S. W., and we were refreshed by a cooling breeze.

On the Shore of the Mediterranean. Wednesday, 16. Resumed our journey at five in the morning. Soon came upon a harder road than we had found for several days. It was at no great distance from the sea. The salt water had overflowed it, and had been evaporated by the sun, leaving a considerable thickness of salt on the ground. At 2, we came upon the shore of the Mediterranean, where the waves were rolling, and foaming, and breaking in a most beautiful and majestic manner. Turning from the sea-shore, and passing over a mountain of sand, we came in a little while to El Arish, a village situated in the desert. At Messaoudia, a watering-place on the seashore, the caravan separated, and one part took a different rout to Gaza. After riding ten hours and a half, we pitched our tent on the plain near the village.

In conversation with the Greek, who is from Tocat, he told us that there are in that place 100 or 150 Greek houses, a bishop, six priests, and two churches. One priest is from Greece, and knows Greek; the rest understand only Turkish.

Entrance into Syria.

We

Friday, 18. After riding nine hours and a half, we pitched our tent at Burel Khoor, a large plain covered with grass and shrubs, on which several large flocks of sheep and goats were feeding, under the direction of Arab shepherds and shepherdesses. walked up to the top of a sand hill near our tent, where we had a delightful view of the plain. After being so long in the wilderness, this view was indeed cheering. We have now just left the dominions of Mohammed Ali Pasha, and entered modern Syria. Whether we are yet within the limits of ancient Palestine, or not, we do not know. The valley of Zaaka is no doubt a torrent in the rainy season. Possibly this is the river of Egypt. See Gen. xv. 18, and Josh. xv. 4. If so, we are already in the promised land. While in the desert, we have found comfort in singing,

Guide me, O thou great Jehovah, Pilgrim through this barren land. From the top of the hill, near our tent, we lifted up our eyes and looked "northward and southward, and eastward and westward," and thought of the dangers we had escaped, and of the prospect before us. How trying it must have been to Moses,after wandering forty years in the wilderness, to

be told that he must not enter the good land which his eyes beheld. In the evening read the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th chapters of Deuteronomy, which were extremely interesting to us at this time. We are now entering the land of Canaan.

Saturday, 19. At 6, the caravan moved off the ground. As we proceeded, we found a gradual increase of vegetation, and cultivated fields became more frequent. At half past 10, we passed a well of water and some ruins. Two pillars of gray granite were standing. The place is called Rofa. This is probably the ancient Rophia, which was the first town in Syria, Rhinocalura (probably El Arish) being the last in Egypt. At half past 11, after crossing a mountain which is called on one of our maps a continuation of Mount Seir, we came to the village Khan Yoanas (the Inn of Jonas,) the first village we have seen in Syria. It is surrounded by gardens, and is inhabited by Mussulmans, who have a tradition that the Prophet Jonas once was here.

From Khan Yoanas we travelled several hours over a wide and beautiful plain, filled with herds of camels, sheep and goats, which were generally tended by Bedouin women. This is the ancient land of the Philistines. Here we were continually harassed by the Bedouins, who seemed to spring up like Hydras in every corner. Their dress was merely a turban on the head and a piece of cloth tied round the waist. It was soon found that they wanted money. Our guide told them they must exact nothing from us, because we were Englishmen. The name of Englishmen is so much respected even among Bedouins, that we were not molested. They extorted a few dollars from the Armenians and Greeks, and at last took an ass from one of the Arabs.

Under a large sycamore tree we saw women and children threshing barley on the ground with long sticks. Near by was a shepherdess tending a large flock, with her crook in her hand, and the skin of a lamb, having the wool on, thrown over her shoulders for a shawl.

Southern Boundary of Canaan.

It is difficult to ascertain the limit, which divided the ancient Canaan from Egypt. God said to Abraham, Gen. 15: 18," Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates." In Josh. 15: 4, it is said, that the border of Judah "went out unto the river of Egypt." The question is, what was meant by the river of Egypt. D'Anville places it, on his map of ancient Egypt, within about 10 miles of Katich

(Casium) and more than 39 from El Arish (Rhinocalura.) We crossed no river, nor any stream of water, however small, between Cairo and Gaza, but we passed the beds of several now dry, one in the valley of Zaaka, another called Silgah four hours, and a third two hours, before reaching Gaza. This last is probably the brook Besor, which David passed over with 400 men in pursuit of the Amalekites, who had smitten Ziklag, and whom he found "spread abroad upon all the earth, eating, and drinking, and dancing," where he "smote them." I Sam. 30. 16, 17.

Country of the Philistines.

At half past 5, after riding 11 hours and a half, we arrived at Gaza; took two small dirty apartments in a large filthy khan, and put up for the Sabbath, thankful that we were not among deserts of sand, or bands of Arab free-booters, so as to be obliged to travel on the Lord's day. Gaza is the city whose gates Sampson carried away, and where he slew 3000 Philistines at his death. We had no very good opportunity to judge of the population of the place, but probably the estimation, given by geographers of 5000, is not far from the truth. The city stands on a little elevation. The houses are all built of stone, but make a very mean appearance. The scenery around is beautiful.

At Gaza they found a number of Greeks, and a Greek priest, to whom they gave 13 copies of the Scriptures, and sold 25. But one present knew the Greek language, and to him they gave a Testament. The Priest said, that the Church had been built twelve centuries. They left Gaza on the forenoon of Monday, April 21st.

We passed through groves of olives, and fields of grass, wheat, barley, and tobacco. The plains were agreeably diversified by gentle elevations and small valleys. Five hours and a half from Gaza, we saw on our left the village Mijdal, near the ruins of the ancient Askalon which is now uninhabited. Such at least is the information given us by the Arabs. After riding eight hours and a half, we pitched our tent near the village Esdood, which, from its situation, and from the similarity of the name, we presume to be the ancient Ashdod. It consists of 100 or 150 miserable cabins, built of stone, covered with branches of trees, and roots, and these again with earth, so that vegetation appears every where on the tops of them. The place is inhabited wholly by Mussul

mans.

Tuesday, 22. In three hours and a half after leaving Esdood, we passed Yibua. In riding through this ancient country of the

Philistines, we have seen, at a distance to the east, a range of high mountains. On the west, a range of small sand hills ran along between us and the sea. The country around us was green and beautiful, and the soil of a good colour, which might, no doubt, be made very productive by proper cultivation. At present, however, the grass, and crops of wheat and barley are of but a small growth. We saw few villages, and those few are small. There are no scattered houses. The population appears not to be great.

Jaffa.

In ten hours and a half ride after leaving Esdood, they arrived at Jaffa, and word being sent to Mr. Damiani, the English consul, his Dragoman came to procure them admittance into the city. They took lodgings in the consul's house, which stands by the sea-side, and, as is supposed, at, or very near the place where Simon the tanner lived, and the Apostle Peter was lodged. At evening the table was served by a man of Greek origin, who was 100 years old, and had been 80 years a servant in the family of Mr. Damiani and his father.

On the 24th they left Jaffa, and, after a ride of four hours, arrived at Rama, or Ramla, the Arimathea of the Scriptures, where they took lodgings for the night in an Armenian convent.

Approach to Jerusalem.

Friday, 25. At half past 5 we set out for Jerusalem, comforted with the hope, that this was the last day of our journey. For some time our road lay along the bed of a brook, in a deep ravine, with mountains of rocks rising up like pyramids on each side of us. By degrees the ascent became more steep, till we reached the height of these ragged mountains, where we had a good view of the plains between us and Jaffa. It was often with difficulty that our beasts could walk, on account of the badness of the road, and the steepness of the mountains. These mountains are covered with small shrubs, suitable for goats, of which we saw several large flocks. There are no forests, but in the vallies and on the sides of the hills are many olives and fig

loona. The mountains here are of a peculiar formation. They seem almost as if built by the hand of man, and rise gradual. ly, step by step, like pyramids. Each step, however, is so fastened into the "Everlasting Hills," as to show you that it was placed there by the hand of Him, who existed "before the mountains were brought forth." On these steps, which are sometimes three or four rods wide, and sometimes only a few feet, you see soil, which produces shrubs, and, when cultivated, vines, figs, and olives. The country continued the same till we were within half an hour of Jerusalem, when all at once Mount Olivet and the Holy City opened to our view. Thus it is often with the last hours of the Christian. He is obliged to pass over a rough and wearisome way, where he is continually exposed to the attacks of enemies, till near the close of life,--till his feet are about to stand within the gates of the New Jerusalem, and then he is favoured with some bright visions of the place he is soon to enter.

Reflections on Mr. Parsons.

As we drew near the city, we remembered how our dear brother Parsons, when wars and rumours of wars obliged him to leave the place, turned back his eyes, as he ascended the hill west of Jerusalem, and wept, and said, "If I shall find favour in the eyes of the Lord, he will bring me again, and show me both it, and his habitation." Alas for us! these words were fulfilled in a much higher sense, than he then anticipated. We cannot for a moment doubt, that he did find favour in the eyes of the Lord; and though he was not permitted to return to the earthly Jerusalem, yet his divine Saviour has given him an infinitely higher felicity, even that of seeing and enjoying the bliss of that Eternal City, in which the divine glory dwells.

They enter the Holy City.

With feelings not easily described, about four o'clock, we entered JERUSALEM. The scenes and events of 4,000 years seemed to rush upon our minds; events, in which Heaven, and Earth, and Hell, had felt the deepest interest. This was the place, select ed by the Almighty for his dwelling, and here his glory was rendered visible. This was the "perfection of beauty," and the glory of all lands." Here David sat and tuned his harp, and sung the praises of Jehovah. Hither the tribes came up to worship. Here enraptured prophets saw bright visions of the world above, and received messages from on high for guilty man. Here our

Lord and Saviour came in the form of a servant, and groaned, and wept, and poured

out his soul unto death, to redeem us from sin, aud save us from the pains of hell. Here, too, the wrath of an incensed God has been poured out upon his chosen people, and has laid waste his heritage.

Description of Jerusalem.

Jerusalem appears, in a general view, to be situated on the side of a mountain, descending towards the east, where it is divided from Mount Olivet by the valley of Cedron. The summit of the mountain is considerably higher than the city, so that in coming from Jaffa you arrive near Jerusalem before you see it.

On a nearer view of the city, you perceive that it is built on several hills; viz. Zion at the south-west part, Calvary at the north-west, Moriah at the south-east, and Bezetha at the north-east.

The south wall passes over Mount Zion, near its summit, so that a great part of the hili is without the city. South of the hill is the deep valley of the son of Hinnom; the same valley, turning north, bounds Zion likewise on the west. The valleys, which separate it in the city from Calvary on the north, and Acra on the north-east, are not deep. Moriah has on the east the deep valley of Cedron. On the south of it, without the city, is a little elevation, which is marked on D'Anville's map as Ophel; thence the descent is steep, till you come to the fountain of Siloah. The valleys north and west of Moriah at present are not very deep. Calvary was perhaps only a small elevation on a greater hill, which is now the northwest part of the city; but the name is now given to the whole hill. Bezetha is separated from Calvary by a wide valley; and east of Cavalry is the dividing valley between Moriah and Bezetha, in which is the pool of Bethesda.

We have viewed Jerusalem from different stations, have walked around it, and within it, and have stood on the Mount of Olives with Josephus's description of it in our hands, trying to discover the hills and valieys as laid down by him near 1800 years ago; and after all our research we compare Jerusalem to a beautiful person, whom we have not seen for many years, and who has passed through a great variety of changes and misfortunes, which have caused the rose on her cheeks to fade, her flesh to consume away, and her skin to become dry and withered, and have covered her face with the wrinkles of age; but who still retains some general features, by which we recognize her as the person, who used to be the delight of the circle in which she moved. Such is the present appearance of this Holy City, which was once "the perfection of beauty, the joy of the whole earth."