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230 which the general appearance of the surface affords no justification. But is it not possible that the disputed signs are not letters but numerical symbols? On Phœnician inscriptions numbers are frequently expressed by symbols in lieu of words, but even when the words are written in full the equivalent symbols often follow. Similarly, on the Assyro-Aramaic lion-weights, the denominations are expressed first in words and then in symbols, some of them denoting fractions, which were doubtless intelligible to many persons who could not read. Of symbols for fractions among the Phœnicians and Hebrews we have hitherto known nothing; but that they existed is probable, since both the Egyptians on the one side and the Assyrians on the other had a fractional notation. If, then, we find the word "quarter" followed by a group of signs that cannot be read as letters without adding supplementary lines of a very hypothetical kind, it seems reasonable to suspend our judgment for the present and keep our eyes open for fresh evidence as to Hebrew and Phœnician arithmetical signs.

7. As regards the later inscription, it is difficult to believe that it can be anything but a modern forgery. It is not, of course, inconceivable that a new inscription was cut in ancient times after the old one was partly worn down; but the probabilities are all the other way. For my own part, I have little doubt that Professor Euting is right in reading the second word as and explaining it to be the Arabic word for "half." But how did the forger, after copying the of the other side, which means "quarter" both in Arabic and in Hebrew, come to follow it up with the word "half"? On this point I can, at least, make a suggestion, which I give for what it is worth. The lines immediately following on the side are (l) the detached oblique stroke which serves as the right limb of Professor Sayce's W; (2) the chevron-shaped stroke which he takes for the two middle lines of the W. Now the first of these is the usual symbol for  in modern Syria, and the second is the modern symbol for, turned through a right angle, so as to point upwards instead of to the left (see Caussin de Perceval, "Gram. Ar.-Vulg.," Paris, 1824, p. 73).

8. It is not denied that it is graphically possible to read the second inscription "quarter of a "; and if it could be shown that is a genuine Hebrew word giving a suitable sense, or even that a suitable new word of this form could be derived from a known root on ordinary etymological principles, this reading would deserve consideration, and we might after all be justified in concluding that the second inscription is ancient, though not so old as the first.

Professor Sayce, in Palestine Exploration Fund Quarterly Statement, 1893, p. 32, reads the word netseg—i.e., or  (ts being his transcription of the peculiar Semitic s which modern scholars commonly represent by s), and he thinks it possible that the word means "a standard weight," and is derived from the root. But every Hebraist knows that, if the word is netseg, it cannot possibly come from or


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Rh from any known Hebrew root. Professor Sayce cites Dr. Neubauer, but that scholar never made the grammatical blunder of deriving a segholate noun with initial from the root. Further, Professor Sayce thinks that he has found another occurrence of his new word on a hemispherical bead from Jerusalem (Palestine Exploration Fund Quarterly Statement, l.c.), of which he says that "the letters are those of the Siloam inscription, and must therefore belong to the same period as the latter." Through the courtesy of Mr. Armstrong I have been able to examine the bead itself, with a cast published by the Palestine Exploration Fund, and find that the first two letters may very well be, but that the character resembles that of the early Hasmonean coins rather than that of the Siloam inscription. The third letter is certainly not but. What these three letters mean I do not pretend to guess; and I do not see how one can reason from an inscription of three letters, not forming a known word, on a bead the nature and use of which are unknown. I will, therefore, say no more about the bead than that the inscription it bears is certainly not.

2em

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The excavations in Jerusalem have been carried on without interruption during the past quarter, and, notwithstanding the great heat and the fatigues and responsibilities involved in this work, the health of Dr. Bliss and his party has been, on the whole, well preserved. The discoveries made in the course of the excavations have been laid down from Dr. Bliss's plans on an enlarged Ordnance Survey plan by Mr. Armstrong, under the supervision of Sir Charles Wilson.

Herr Baurath von Schick has sent a number of notes full of interesting information respecting archeological discoveries, changes in and around modern Jerusalem, &c.

One very valuable find, outside the city, on the north, is a beautiful mosaic pavement, with Armenian inscription, of which we are enabled to publish a description and photographs.

The "Tombs of the Judges" and the land around them are reported to be for sale. It would be lamentable if these extremely interesting tombs were to be quarried away, as is very likely to be the case if they fall into the hands of the speculator or the property becomes the site of one of the new settlements springing up around the Holy City. Probably they might be purchased for a comparatively small sum.

The Rev. J. E. Hanauer, who now resides at Jaffa, having recently gone up to Jerusalem on the business of his Society, sends an interesting account of a visit which he took the opportunity of making to the excavations under Dr. Bliss's guidance. He alludes to the more favourable auspices under which the work is now being done as compared with that carried through with so much tact and skill under Sir Charles Warren. Then the Governor and leading inhabitants took little interest in the progress of the work, but now


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234 his Excellency Ibrahim Pasha, the Mutaserrif, affords it his full countenance and protection. Dr. Bliss spoke most gratefully of the kindness and courtesy shown him by the authorities.

Having, when a young man, been employed as interpreter in connection with the excavations under Sir Charles Warren, Mr. Hanauer not unnaturally looks back to the influence exerted on the native workmen by the English non-commissioned officers then engaged in the work, who, he says, left behind them among the fellahin of the district traditions which still influence their successors—as regularity, implicit obedience to orders, and so on.

Mr. Hanauer draws attention to one of what he calls the minor details of Dr. Bliss's work, namely, that in the spot which has long been called "the Baths of Tiberius," and which Dr. Sepp suggested was probably the site of one of the great public baths erected by Hadrian, Dr. Bliss has actually discovered extensive remains of Roman baths and fragments of tiles of the Tenth Legion which was stationed at Jerusalem after its destruction by Titus.

The Water Supply at Jerusalem.—The Turkish Ministry of Public Works has determined upon the reconstruction of the ancient water conduits of Jerusalem, dating from the age of King Solomon. By this means it would be possible to convey 2,500 cubic metres of water daily to the Holy City. Of this it is proposed to give 1,000 mètres away free of charge to the poor of Jerusalem, the distribution to take place at the Mosque of Omar, the Holy Sepulchre, and other places frequented by pilgrims.

The new conduits are to be joined to the ancient aqueducts of 'Arrûb, and are to be carried through a tunnel 3,570 mètres in length. The total outlay in connection with these works is estimated at 2,000,000 francs.—Standard.

The following have kindly consented to act as Honorary Local Secretaries:—

The Rev. F. W. Cox, Wakefield Street, Adelaide, in place of Rev. W. Roby Fletcher, deceased.

The Rev. W. Moore Morgan, LL.D., The Library, Armagh.

Henry Thompson, Springfield, Frome, in place of Rev. R. Raikes Bromage, who has left the district.

Mr. Walter Besant's summary of the work of the Fund from its commencement has been brought up to date by the author, and will be published shortly under the title, "Thirty Years' Work in the Holy Land." Applications for copies may now be sent in to Mr. Armstrong. Price as before.

The first edition of Major Conder's "Tell Amarna Tablets" having been sold within the year, he has prepared a second edition, in which a new chapter


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Rh is added, giving in full the Royal letters from Armenia, Elishah, Babylon, Assyria, &c., which are of great historical importance, and which contain allusions to the revolts in Palestine, and to the defeat of the Hittites. Major Conder has corrected his translations of the other tablets, and has added a new preface and some notes, including further translations. He has also treated the Mythological Tablets.

The Committee having secured the rights and interests of the publication of "Judas Maccabæus," have issued a new edition revised by the author.

Major Conder writes: "The first edition of 'Judas Maccabaeus' appeared in 1879, and was well received. During the fourteen years that have followed I had no occasion to look at its pages, until the present edition was called for; but I am glad to find little to correct, though much might be added. During this interval I have revisited many of the scenes described; have lived in Moab, and have ridden through the oak woods of Gilead. In the resting times, between more active years, I have had occasion to study more completely the subjects touched on in this volume, and further discoveries have cast some new light on the period."

"A Mound of many Cities," a complete account of the excavations at Tell el Hesy, with upwards of 250 illustrations, is now ready. This book, which will perhaps become the most popular work of the long list of books issued by the Palestine Exploration Fund, is a history by Mr. F. J. Bliss, of a Tell, or Mound, in Palestine, from the first building erected upon it, 2000 years B.C. to its final abandonment, 400 B.C. Mr. Bliss is a young American, educated partly at Beyrout, partly at Amherst College, Vermont. He is perfectly familiar with the language of the Fellahin. He took up the work upon this Tell where Prof. Flinders Petrie left it, and carried it on until he had compelled the Mound to yield up its secrets. He is the master of a free and lively style, and his work is interesting, not only for the story he has to tell, but also for the manner in which it is told. The work is also illustrated by very numerous drawings of objects found, plans, sections, and elevations.

In the history of this Tell we go back far beyond the beginning of European civilisation. A thousand years before David, a thousand years before the siege of Troy, a city stood upon the bluff overhanging the stream which is now called Tell el Hesy. The site formed a natural fortress. The first city was built by the Amorites. This city was taken, sacked, and destroyed, in one of the countless tribal wars. But the site was too important for the place to be left long deserted; another town was raised upon the ruins. Note that they did not clear away the rubbish when they re-built: they raised the new town upon the débris of the old. On the second town fell the same fate as that which destroyed the first. Then came a third, a fourth, and so on, until the ruins which are now covered with grass hide the remains, certainly of eight, probably of eleven cities. Probably the last city, which was not re-built, was destroyed about the year 400 B.C.

The broken pottery and other remains found on the various levels serve to give a date to the destroyed city. Thus, at a certain level, Phœnician pottery is found for the first time; at higher levels, Greek pottery. But there was also found an unexpected and very precious treasure in the shape of a cuneiform


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236 letter, on a clay tablet. The letter is written from the Governor of Lachish to the Egyptian Pharaoh, and the writer, Ziraradi, or Zimridi, is mentioned in the Tell el Amarna Tablets as Governor of Lachish. We also learn from the same authority that Zimridi was murdered by servants of the Pharaoh. The letter in the original cuneiform, with its transliteration and translation, will be found in the volume. In a word, the complete story of this Biblical City is here presented. It is the first time that one of the Tells of Palestine has been excavated, and therefore the first time that any of them has yielded up its secrets in illustration of the Biblical narrative. It is a history which is attractive from its subject, and made doubly attractive by the light, easy, and lucid manner in which Mr. Bliss presents it to the readers.

Price to subscribers to the Fund, 3s. 6d.; non-subscribers, 6s.

Mr. George Armstrong's Raised Map of Palestine is attracting much attention, and it is difficult to supply promptly all the orders that come in for it.

This raised map is constructed on the same scale as those of the Old and New Testament maps already issued by the Society. These were reduced from the scale of the large map (1 inch to the mile) to of an inch to the mile, or the fraction of  levels, as calculated by the engineers who triangulated the country, of whom Mr. Armstrong was one from the commencement to the end, are followed exactly. No other correct raised map of the country is possible, because the Survey of Palestine is copyright and belongs to the Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund. Without raising the question of piracy, however, no other trustworthy raised map is at all likely to be attempted, because the knowledge of the country requisite can only be possessed by one who has stepped over every foot of it, and because the labour which Mr. Armstrong has given to the work—extending over many years—will scarcely be expended by any other person, now or in the future. This labour will be partly understood when it is explained that the map was prepared by the super-position of small pieces of cardboard, many thousands in number, cut so as to represent the line of the country, and laid one above the other. The work occupied all Mr. Armstrong's leisure time for seven years. In its unfinished state the map presents the appearance of a completely terraced country. It embraces the whole of Western Palestine, from Baalbeck in the north, to Kâdesh Barnea in the south, and shows nearly all that is known on the East of Jordan.

The natural features of the country stand out prominently, and show at a glance the relative proportions of the mountains, heights, valleys, plains, &c.

Names are given to the coast towns and a few of the inland ones; other towns are numbered to correspond with a reference list of names.

With this map before him the teacher or the student is enabled to follow the Bible narrative exactly; he can trace the route of armies; he can reconstruct the roads; he can understand the growth and the decay of cities, their safety or their dangers, from their geographical positions. It is a magnificientmagnificent [sic] addition to the many works which this Society has given to the world. It illustrates the practical usefulness of the Society, while it adds one more to its achievements in the cause of illustration and explanation of the Bible Lands


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Rh The map should be in every public library, and every public school, and every Sunday School. Its price is necessarily high, because the work is most costly to produce. It measures 7 feet 6 inches by 4 feet, and can be seen at the office of the Fund, 24, Hanover Square, W.

The map is cast in fibrous plaster, and framed solidly; it is despatched in a wooden box, for which an extra charge is made, but this is partly returned on the return of the box. The price to subscribers, partly coloured, is £7 7s.; if fully coloured and framed, £10 10s. The price to the general public is £10 10s. and £13 13s.

The partly coloured raised map has the seas, lakes, marshes, and perennial streams coloured blue, the Old and New Testament sites are marked in red, the principal ones having a number to correspond with a reference list of names, the body of the map is left white.

The fully coloured raised map has the seas, lakes, marshes, and perennial streams coloured blue, the Old and New Testament Sites are marked in red, the principal ones having a number to correspond with a reference list of names, the plains green, the rising ground, hills, and mountains in various tints, the olive groves and wooded parts of the country stippled in green, and the main roads are shown in a thin black line.

Photographs of the raised map are now ready. Size 16 inches by 8 inches, 5s. each; 8 inches by 4 inches, 1s. each.

Subscribers to the who have not sent in their application for cases for binding the translations issued by the Society, are reminded that these are now ready, and that the whole issues—Nos. 1 to 26 (up to date)—have been arranged in chronological order, so as to make 10 volumes of equal size.

Index to the Quarterly Statement.—A new edition of the Index to the Quarterly Statements has been compiled. It embraces the years 1869 (the first issue of the journal) to the end of 1892. Contents:—Names of the Authors and of the Papers contributed by them; List of the Illustrations; and General Index. This Index will be found extremely useful. Price to subscribers to the Fund, in paper cover, 1s. 6d., in cloth, 2s. 6d., post free; non-subscribers, 2s. and 3s.

The new railway from Jaffa to Jerusalem has been laid down on the sheets of the large and small maps. Copies of these sheets are now ready.

The museum of the Fund, at 24, Hanover Square, is now open to subscribers between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., every week-day except Saturdays, when it closes at 2 p.m.

The Committee have to acknowledge with thanks the following donation to the Library of the Fund:—

"The Buildings of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem: Measured Plans and Sketches." By George Jeffery, F.R.I.B.A. From the Author.

"Jerusalem Explored." By Ermete Pierotti. From Major-General Sir Charles Warren, K.C.B., Q.C.M.G., R.E., &c.


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238 The Committee will be glad to receive donations of Boots to the Library of the Fund, which already contains many works of great value relating to Palestine and other Bible Lands. See list of Books, July Quarterly Statement, 1893.

It may be well to mention that plans and photographs alluded to in the reports from Jerusalem and elsewhere cannot all be published, but all are preserved in the offices of the Fund, where they may be seen by subscribers.

The first volume of the "Survey of Eastern Palestine," by Major Conder, is accompanied by a map of the portion of country surveyed, special plans, and upwards of 350 drawings of ruins, tombs, dolmens, stone circles, inscriptions, &c. Subscribers to the "Survey of Western Palestine" are privileged to have the volumes for seven guineas. The price will be raised, after 250 names are received, to twelve guineas. The Committee are pledged never to let any copies he subscribed for under the sum of seven guineas. A. P. Watt and Son, Hastings House, Norfolk Street, Strand, W.C., are the Sole Agents. The attention of intending subscribers is directed to the announcement in the last page of this number.

Mr. H. Chichester Hart's "Fauna and Flora of Sinai, Petra, and the Wâdy Arabah," which forms the second volume, can be had separately.

M. Clermont-Ganneau's work, "Archæological Researches in Palestine," will form the third volume. The first portion of it is already translated, and it is hoped that the concluding part will soon be completed.

The maps and books now contained in the Society's publications comprise an amount of information on Palestine, and on the researches conducted in the country, which can be found in no other publications. It must never be forgotten that no single traveller, however well equipped by previous knowledge, can compete with a scientific body of explorers, instructed in the periods required, and provided with all the instruments necessary for carrying cut their work. See list of Publications.

The Old and New Testament Map of Palestine (scale of an inch to a mile).—Embraces both sides of the Jordan, and extends from Baalbek in the north to Kadesh Barnea in the south. All the modern names are in black; over these are printed in red the Old Testament and Apocrypha names. The New Testament, Josephus, and Talmudic names are in blue, and the tribal possessions are tinted in colours, giving clearly all the identifications up te date. It is the most comprehensive map that has been published, and will be invaluable to universities, colleges, schools, &c.

It is published in 20 sheets, with paper cover; price to subscribers to the Fund, 23s.; to the public, £2. It can be had mounted on cloth, rollers, and varnished for hanging. The size is 8 feet by 6 feet. The cost of mounting is extra (see Maps).

In addition to the 20-sheet map, the Committee have issued as a separate Map the 12 sheets (viz., Nos. 5-7, 9-11, 13-15, 20-22), which include the whole


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Rh of Palestine as far north as Mount Harmon, and the districts beyond Jordan as far as they are surveyed. See key-map to the sheets.

The price of this map, in 12 sheets, in paper cover, to subscribers to the Fund, 12s. 6d.; to the public, £1 1s.

The size of this map, mounted on cloth and roller for hanging, is 4 feet by 6 feet.

Any single sheet of the map can be had separately, price, to subscribers of the Fund, 1s. 6d. Mounted on cloth to fold in the pocket suitable for travelling, 2s. To the public 2s. and 2s. 6d.

Single copies of these maps in sheets, with cover, can be sent by post to all foreign countries at an extra charge of 1s.

A copy of names and places in the Old and New Testament, with their modern identifications and full references, can he had by subscribers with either of these maps at the reduced price of 2s. 6d.

Branch Associations of the Bible Society, all Sunday School Unions within the Sunday School Institute, the Sunday School Union, and the Wesleyan Sunday School Institute, will please observe that by a special Resolution of the Committee they will henceforth be treated as subscribers and be allowed to purchase the books and maps (by application only to the Secretary) at reduced price.

The income of the Society, from June 22nd to September 22nd, 1894, was—from annual subscriptions and donations, including Local Societies, £188 15s. 7d.; from all sources—£366 10s. 4d. The expenditure during the same period was £719 5s. 3d. On September 22nd the balance in the Bank was £147 16s. 2d.

Subscribers are requested to note that the following cases for binding, casts, and slides can be had by application to the Assistant Secretary at the Office of the Fund:—

Cases for binding Herr Schumacher's "Jaulân," 1s. each.

Cases for binding the Quarterly Statement, in green or chocolate. 1s. each.

Cases for binding "Abila," "Pella," and "Ajlûn" in one volume. 1s. each.

Casts of the Tablet, front and back, with a Cuneiform Inscription found in May, 1892, at Tell el Hesy, by F. J. Bliss, Explorer to the Fund, at a depth of 35 feet. It belongs to the general diplomatic correspondence carried on between Amenhotep III and IV and their agents in various Palestinian towns. Price 2s. 6d. the pair.

Casts of the Ancient Hebrew Weight brought by Dr. Chaplin from Samaria, price 2s. 6d. each.

Casts of an Inscribed Weight or Bead from Palestine, forwarded by Professor Wright, Cambridge, Mass., U.S.A., price 1s. each.

Lantern slides of the Raised Map, the Sidon Sarcophagi, and of the Bible places mentioned in the catalogue of photos and special list of slides.


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240 In order to make up complete sets of the Quarterly Statement the Committee will be very glad to receive any of the back numbers.

While desiring to give every publicity to proposed identifications and other theories advanced by officers of the Fund and contributors to the pages of the Quarterly Statement, the Committee wish it to be distinctly understood that by publishing them in the Quarterly Statement they neither sanction nor adopt them.

Subscribers who do not receive the Quarterly Statement regularly are asked to send a note to the Secretary. Great care is taken to forward each number to all who are entitled to receive it, but changes of address and other causes give rise occasionally to omissions.

The authorised lecturers for the Society are—

The Rev. Thomas Harrison, F.R.G.S., Hillside, Benenden, Staplehurst, Kent. His subjects are as follows:—

(1) Research and Discovery in the Holy Land. (2) Bible Scenes in the Light of Modern Science. (3) The Survey of Eastern Palestine. (4) In the Trade of the Israelites from Egypt to Canaan. (5) The Jordan Valley, the Bead Sea, and the Cities of the Plain. (6) The Recovery of Jerusalem—{Excavations in 1894). (7) The Recovery of Lachish and the Hebrew Conquest of Palestine. (8) Archæological Illustrations of the Bible. (Specially adapted for Sunday School Teachers).

N.B.—All these Lectures are illustrated by specially prepared lantern slides.

The Rev. J. R. Macpherson, B.D., Kinnaird Manse, Inchture, N.B. His subjects are as follows:—

(1) The Work of the Palestine Exploration Fund. (2) The Survey of Palestine. (3) The City of Jerusalem. (4) Eastern Palestine. (5) Calvary and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The Rev. J. Llewelyn Thomas, M.A., Aberpergwni, Glynmeath, South Wales. His subjects are as follows:—

(1) Explorations in Judea. (2) Research and Discovery in Samaria and Galilee. (3) In Bible Lands; a Narrative of Personal Experiences. (4) The Reconstruction of Jerusalem. (5) Problems of Palestine.


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Rh The Rev. Charles Harris, M.A., F.R.G.S., St. Lawrence, Ramsgate. (All Lectures illustrated by lantern slides). His subjects are as follows:—

(1) Modern Discoveries in Palestine. (2) Stories in Stone; or, New Light on the Old Testament. (3) Underground Jerusalem; or, With the Explorer in 1894.

Bible Stories from the Monuments, or Old Testament History in the Light of Modern Research:—

(4) The Story of Joseph; or, Life in Ancient Egypt. (5) The Story of Moses; or, Through the Desert to the Promised Land. (6) ''The Story of Joshua; or. The Buried City of Lachish.'' (7) The Story of Sennacherib; or Scenes of Assyrian Warfare. (8) The Story of the Hittites; or, A Lost Nation Found.

Professor Theodore F. Wright, Ph.D., Cambridge, Mass., Honorary General Secretary of the Palestine Exploration Fund for the United States. His subjects are as follows:—

(1) The Building of Jerusalem. (2) The Overthrow of Jerusalem. (3) The Progress of the Palestine Exploration.

The Rev. L. G. A. Roberts, 67, George Street, Hamilton, Ontario. His subjects are as follows:—

(1) Work in and around the Holy City. (2) Work outside the Holy City. (3) Popular Lecture upon the General Results obtained by the Fund.

Application for Lectures may be either addressed to the Secretary, 24, Hanover Square, W., or sent to the address of the Lecturers.


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Rh

present report, written 16 weeks after my last, will, I hope, be taken as a report of progress. I have to announce the tracing of a splendid line of rock, scarped for fortification, for over 300 feet. We have also followed, inside this scarp, a long line of actual wall in situ, of fine masonry; we have traced a paved street leading to a gate in this wall, which is in all probability the Dung Gate of Scripture. These, then, are the main features of our work, which I shall now proceed to describe in detail.

In my report dated June 6th, two weeks only after the excavations had been begun, I showed how we took up the work on the so-called Rock Scarp of Zion, beginning our digging just outside the Protestant Cemetery; I described the tower built on the rock-scarp (one side of which scarp is visible under the cemetery wall running south-west), and I showed how we had traced the counter-scarp of the ditch for over one hundred feet in a north-easterly direction, following the direction of the rock-scarp as previously known. I intimated that I felt doubts as to whether this ditch belonged to the outer line of wall, as it does not follow a steep contour (such as those found lower down the hill), and leaves outside of it to the south a large gently-sloping tract, between the contours 2489 and 2469, which would naturally have been included within the town.

Besides, Josephus' reason for the single line of wall at the south of Jerusalem is that the valleys were there so steep; and this would lead us to look for the wall along a lower contour, as for example 2429. I showed how, in pursuance of this idea, I sank a shaft on the contour 2469, about 75 feet from the cemetery south-west corner, to the depth of about 20 feet, and then drove in a tunnel, in the direction of the tower on the rock-scarp.

At the time when the report closed we had advanced only a few feet in the tunnel, but in subsequent letters I described our finding the desired outer scarp, at a distance of 48 feet from the mouth of the tunnel, and our following it to the right and to the left.

The windings of the scarp are shown on the Plan. We struck it first at the point H, where we later opened a shaft from above for the double purpose of getting fresh air, and of facilitating the handling of the débris to be removed. We were thus able to find the height of the scarp at this point, as we continued the shaft till we reached the base, which was not much below the level of the tunnel, as it happened. The scarp was here 13 feet high, the top being much broken away. We continued our gallery to the left, following the scarp to point E, where


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244 the work got difficult, as the débris consisted entirely of large chippings, the scarp evidently having been quarried away at the top at this point. Moreover, we were very near the cemetery wall, under which we did not care to tunnel. I, however, sunk a shaft in the school garden, beyond the cemetery, about 200 feet from E, and found a scarp almost in a line with E—F; that it is not exactly in a line does not prevent its being a true continuation (the difference was only 4 degrees), as we can see in the main scarp that the direction alters slightly from time to time. We followed this garden scarp (including a turning) for 22 feet, the rock then continued with a steep face, but unscarped. It was here naturally so perpendicular that the original engineers seem to have thought it unnecessary to work it.

We will now return to H, whence we followed the scarp with its various turnings to the south-east. The angle at J is beautifully worked. Between J and K, along the face of the scarp, there runs a sort of channel a couple of inches deep, evidently for collecting water. At K the top of the scarp appeared in the tunnel, and we sunk a shaft to ascertain the depth, which we found to be 15 feet. At K there is a sudden drop, so that the top of the scarp along K—L is 4 feet lower than the point K. From M to L the face is not quite regular. At the corner, M, there is another sudden drop. From M to N (as seen in the elevation ) the top of the scarp descends regularly and gradually, following, it is interesting to note, the slope of the surface of the ground 28 feet above. Our gallery followed the same slope, each box or frame being set 3 or 4 inches lower than the one behind it. At N we lost the clue. The scarp appeared to turn to the left. We were following it along its to]), and had not yet found the true depth at M. Accordingly we took the superficial turning at N for the true turning, and our troubles began. When the right clue is lost tunneling becomes dangerous work. When you open up in several directions from the same point, the fear of caving in becomes great. We were obliged twice to leave the scarp, and to drive a tunnel parallel to the direction required, returning to the scarp further on. We spent much time and trouble in shoring up, and I must say that Yusif managed most admirably and safely. We followed the line from N to V (see dotted line on plan), disgusted at the lowness of the scarp, at its arbitrary turnings, and at its evident resemblance to a quarry. I was much puzzled, for the fine lines from E to N seemed to preclude the quarry idea, and yet we seemed to be following a continuous line. Moreover, we were much troubled by large stones in the tunnels, which had to be broken up very carefully before the work could go on. The men in this tunnel spent almost a month in following these false clues.

In the meantime, having a gang of men to spare one day, I set them to find the true depth of the scarp at the point M, and this turned out to be the solution of our difficulties. To my delight, this was proved to be


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Rh feet below the scarp-top, the point being lower by several feet than the base of the low, irregular scarp found in the gallery from N to V, at a, b, and c. That there could be no rise in the orginaloriginal [sic] rock between M and a, b, and c was easily seen from the sharp slope down at the surface. The true state of the case immediately flashed upon me, as I stood, candle in hand, in the gallery at M and peered down the deep shaft at the man who held up his lamp to light this beautifully-worked scarp which towered for 21 feet, top and base being seen. It was a moment of relief, for the eccentricities of the rock cuttings beyond N had given me several bad quarter-hours. It was clear that the apparent turning at N was only superficial, that the line of scarp at its base must continue past N to somewhere near the point O, and that at that point we must expect a turning towards the north-west, as a, b, and c were so much higher than the base of the scarp. If this theory were correct, our winding gallery from N to V had been following along the top of the rock, inside the face of the scarp, probably along the top of the rock-base, of a great tower or bastion, the outer face of which we were yet to find. That at the point V we had again reached the true scarp (having crossed the width of the bastion) seemed possible, and the levels admitted of this.

All this, however, remained to be proved. I first decided to follow along the scarp-base from M by a gallery some 15 feet immediately below the gallery already opened. However, as we had previously opened a shaft from above at the point N, it seemed more economical, considering the earth-question, to deepen this shaft. Here we were again troubled with large stones. When these occurred within the limits of the dimensions of our frames, the task of break-up was easy, but it was an anxious moment when, after a frame had been fitted in, a head of a stone would be seen projecting 2 feet into the shaft just below it and extending into the earth-wall, how far no one knew. The fear was that the removal of the stone would widen the shaft so as to make insecure all above, but happily we managed to keep our shaft safe until we reached the rock. As I had foreseen, the base of the scarp continued past the point N and on to the point O, where it takes the expected turn to the north-west to form the bastion. From O to P there is a rise at the base of the scarp of 3 feet. At O' the top of the scarp appears in the gallery, having here a height of only 4 feet. However, there are evident signs (small and large chippings) that the top had been quarried away. At P the scarp is only 2 feet high, but as we turn the corner there is a sudden drop of 6 feet at the base, so that the scarp is 8 feet high. The rock is also scarped from P to P' (which was as far as we followed it), the scarp facing south-west, the line P—O, of course, facing north-east. As I have said above, when I discovered that we had been working across the top of the rock instead of around its scarped edge in our cross tunnel from the false corner at N to V, I thought that probably at V we had again reached the main line of scarp. Accordingly I set a gang of men to work from V towards U to meet the gang working from O towards P. The earth from the line O—P was at first carried to the surface up the shaft


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246 at N, and the earth from the line V—U by a tunnel driven from the slope of the hill to the point V. Later, when I had taken measurements in the cross-cut tunnel from N to Y, we filled it up with the earth from the two tunnels to north and south. It happened at the same time we were filling up the tunnel in the English School garden, and we had a fourth gang engaged in tracing the street. Hence for two or three days the surface-field of the excavations appeared deserted. Of over 20 workmen employed only two were visible, the man at the rope above the shaft for the street-tunnel and his boy with the basket. The consumption of candles during those two or three days was tremendous.

The two gangs met at the point R. I was in the southern gallery at the time, and clasped the finger of the head workman in the other gallery through the tiny hole first made. This was soon enlarged, the air rushed through, the candles flared up with a brightness they had not had for many days, and the tired boys drew a long breath. Between U and P the scarp was never more than 4 feet high above its base (from N to V we always followed the base), and at one point it was only 2 feet high. At several points stones had been clearly quarried from its top, and chippings and some large stones still left were in evidence. At such places frames were necessary, but at other points we could sometimes tunnel for several feet through the hard, firm débris without any shoring up. For example, in the cross-cut gallery, though the rock had been evidently quarried, in many places chippings had not been left, and few frames were used. Indeed, while our main galleries at the moment of writing still remain open, we have removed a great part of the frames for use elsewhere, with the result that hardly anything has caved in. This does not mean that the frames were unnecessary while the work was advancing, for then the concussion of the picks, the constant roll of the wheelbarrow, and the tread of the workmen, would have brought down the earth had there been no frames.

We traced the main scarp from V to W, and then along its turn to X, where we came on an aqueduct. Its north side is formed partly by the continuation of the scarp along the line X—Y, the scarp being here only a couple of feet high, so that the wall of the aqueduct (3 feet high) is completed by rubble masonry. Its south wall consists of rabble. The aqueduct is, hence, not rock-hewn at this point, but has its floor on the rock, and runs along the rock-scarp. It is covered with roughly-hewn slate. The width at the top is about 2 feet 3 inches, the sides slope down and at some points it has a channel 8 inches wide at the bottom. The walls are covered with two layers of mortar, the inner coat consisting of rough lime with small bits of pottery inserted, and the outer of finer lime. The mortar is exceedingly hard. For a long distance the aqueduct is quite clear from earth, but at one point it is choked up with fallen blocks. At intervals air-holes (covered with a slab) appear to have led to the surface. It runs about parallel with the "Low Level Aqueduct," some thirty feet to the north. It is very likely a continuation of the aqueduct found by Warren some 500 feet to the east,


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Rh although I have not yet had time to study the levels. His aqueduct is also to the north of the "Low Level Aqueduct."

The discovery of this aqueduct has interrupted temporarily our tracing the scarp further east. It is possible that the line W—X was cut through to bring the channel within the city, and that X—Y is not the continuation of the scarp. In this case we should expect the main wall scarp to the south of the aqueduct. We have begun to open a tunnel inwards from the slope at a lower level, but have not yet reached the rock. The eastward line of the scarp is yet to be found, and must await description (and discovery!) till the next report.

We have thus followed the scarp in one continuous line from E to W for 308 feet. We followed the false clue from N to V for 86 feet more, and the shafts and tunnels from the surface of the ground to the scarp add 130 feet more, making the entire length of shafts and galleries employed in the search for this scarp 524 feet, or over 157 metres.

The question now arises: Can this rock-hewn work be the thing that we were looking for, that is, the base of the south wall of Jerusalem? I have said above that the inner line at work is the scarp uncovered by Maudslay, with the tower unearthed by us, and the continuing line of scarp and ditch in the direction of the Cœnaculum building seemed to me to take too north-easterly a direction beyond our tower to satisfy the conditions of the south wall, which on its easterly course towards Siloam should follow a steeper contour Hence, I expected an outer scarp, south of the tower. This, as I have shown, I first found at H, nearer the tower, with its line of ditch, than I expected. In order to reach a lower contour it should accordingly first proceed in a south-easterly direction, before turning east. This it did, as a glance at the plan, along the line E—M,! will show. The re-entering angles at J and K do not disturb the general direction, and are quite what might be expected in a wall. I watched the work anxiously from hour to hour, constantly fearing lest this scarp should be connected with the ditch to the north and take its north-easterly direction. The turn at M to the south-west did not trouble me, but it was rather a relief to feel that my scarp had turned definitely away from the ditch of the inner work. The turn to the north-east at O would have seemed strange had not my gallery already made along the line N—V led me to expect a great bastion at this point. Such a bastion we found, extending from O along P, E, S, U, to W. I have, of course, laid out the lines of this bastion on the surface of the ground above, and it is surprising to see how well suited the place is for such a great tower. It would have stood just above the turn of the valley, and have commanded the road from Hebron. It might also have flanked a gate between O and M, which would have been further protected by the line L—M.

The turn at U to the south-east was, of course, satisfactory, and I regret that at the time of writing I cannot report its progress further-east than W. As far as position and direction go, this unbroken line of scarp from E to W might well be the base of the south wall of Jerusalem,


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248 especially as the point W is found below a much lower contour than is the point E, the fall of the surface slope between the two points being about 30 feet. Thus far, then, our question, "Did we find what we were looking for?" may be answered encouragingly.

Another question, however, arises: the top of the scarp was seen at many points, often along a considerable length: were any stones of the wall found in situ, or, in default of this, was the top of the scarp cut for the letting in of stones, as in the case of the bottom course of the Haram masonry I To both these questions a negative answer must be given. This, however, need not rule out the scarp from being a true base of the wall. In the first place, as to the absence of masonry, it must be remembered that no stones were found in situ along the top of the 400 feet of scarp examined by Maudslay, and that this was the base of a wall has never, I believe, been questioned. Indeed Major Conder in writing of Maudslay's work (Statement for 1875, p. 89) remarks: "The shortest and "surest way to solve these questions (as to the wall, &c.) is to follow along "the line of Maudslay's excavations, which are very valuable in showing "that, however the masonry may have been destroyed and lost, we may "yet hope to find indications of the ancient enceinte in the rock-scarps, "which are imperishable." This is just what I have done for a length of 308 feet, having followed, however, not Maudslay's scarp, but one exactly similar in workmanship, to the outside of it. The two scarps stand or fall together.

As to the other question of the absence of cuttings at the top of the scarp for the letting in of stones, it must be remembered that at several points, notably at E and P, the top of the scarp had been quarried away, a process that would have destroyed such indications had there ever been any. Fortunately, we have close at hand an example to the contrary. On the base of the tower, which we uncovered on the line of Maudslay's work (see photograph), there are two courses of masonry in situ, placed directly on the scarp, except at the corner where it is broken away, and here small stones are built in between the rock and the masonry to preserve the level of the lower course.

The long line of chiselled rock from E to W can be only one of two things: it is either a huge quarry, or part of the line of fortification. I have considered the question anxiously, and the following points militate most strongly, indeed to my mind conclusively, against the quarry theory: (1) The unbroken line for 308 feet, which evidently continues still further. (2) The smooth face of the scarp, rising at one point perfectly straight for 21 feet, worked with long slanting chisel marks, evidently at one time and with one intention. At one point there are two shallow steps in the face, but not such as we find in a quarry. (3) The evident plan in the turnings, especially those that go to form the comparatively regular bastion from to W. (4) The complete absence of indications that stones had been cut out, except along the top of the scarp, which of course might have been done later. (5) The complete difference in the line of the rock cuttings found along the cross-cut line from N to V. The line on the


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Rh plan indicates only the direction of our gallery and not the line of scarps, which was most arbitrary, as is natural in a quarry. Here one could plainly see where stones had been cut out. Indeed, the evidence that this was a quarry was so great that I felt a genuine relief when the true clue was picked up again at N, where the line was found regular again. We must remember that for a thousand years (and perhaps, indeed, since the destruction by Titus) the wall has not extended as far south as this point, and yet during all this time Jerusalem has been, with hardly any break, an inhabited city. We may assume that hardly a year has passed when stone for building has not been required. First, the overthrown stones would have been carried away into the city; then the stones still in situ would have been removed; there still remained exposed this solid rock base, which, especially at the bastion, would have furnished a grand quarry. This, in turn, was cut into all along its top and even to its edge, which explains the lowness of the scarp at several points as we find it to-day, along the line R—S. We may be thankful that even 2 feet remained, as the quarrying might have been carried on to the base, thus destroying our clue.

This scarp, then, appears to me to be part of the outer fortification of ancient Jerusalem. In writing these quarterly reports I prefer to follow the "historic method," and to present the arguments as they presented themselves to me during the course of the work. Some of the conclusions will doubtless be modified in my final memoir. Indeed, in this very report I shall have certain new facts to present, which may suggest slight modifications of the theory.

If this outer line of scarp, which we have been describing at such length, be adopted as the true outer line of fortification, it is left for us to account for the scarp of Maudslay, together with our tower and the continuation of the scarp and fosse north-east towards Neby Daûd. I take this scarp to belong to an inner fortress occupying the space between the contours 2499 and 2519, which seems to me to be well suited for an inner fort. This fort has its own fosse, towers, &c., as the present so-called Tower of David, though inside the wall, has its own towers and fosse. We cannot tell at what point our outer scarp joins this inner work, for we have not traced it beyond the school garden, but it is probably beyond the place where Maudslay's scarp begins at the Greek Catholic Cemetery.

In my report in the July Quarterly I described the masonry of the tower belonging to this inner work. This was found to rest upon a solid platform of rock, which we have since bared to its base, quite clearing out, as well, the ditch at this corner. The clearance was about 20 feet square, and averaged almost 20 feet in dearth. The amount of débris removed, accordingly, was great, and as the fosse was filled with large stones fallen from the tower, the work was difficult. We began by a shaft along the platform at its corner, but stones so choked up our progress that we could not reach the base. Another shaft had also been sunk above the cistern (where the rock was reached). We then connected these two shafts by


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 a long cutting, but even then the large stones made it dangerous for us to attempt to reach the base of the platform. Moreover the passages at the bottom of the fosse could not be followed clearly, and were

puzzling. Accordingly I made the large clearance, which finally enabled me to get the desired measurements. It was a very expensive hole for


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Rh the results, but it enabled us to get the relation between the platform, with its tower, the fosse, and the Outer Scarp. It also secured for us a capital photograph of the tower on its rock-platform, which will probably be more valuable to the general reader than the plans and descriptions. Again it will, I hope, be a lasting memorial of our work, as the proprietors intend, I understand, to have the place open, so that the tower, scarp, and ditch may always be seen. Their purpose is not purely archæological, as the huge stones we took out are of more practical value outside than inside the hole.

The original excavation for the fosse was evidently never completed, as shown by the large blocks still left, which explain the curious passages. That these passages descend by a series of steps may be seen by the section and elevation. Similar blocks (but much larger) may be seen in the cuttings at St. Stephen's.

The height of the scarp under the tower at the corner B, along the line A—B, is 16 feet; at the same corner, but along the line B—C, it is only 8 feet; in other words, the part of the fosse running north-east is higher by 7 feet than that part running north-west, as may be seen in the elevation. The fosse is here 20 feet wide. The outer scarp from the cemetery at first runs parallel to the counter-scarp of the fosse, and at the angle G is only 10 feet distant from it; it then runs towards the south-east, while the fosse tends north-east. The base of the outer scarp at H is 8 feet lower than the base of the scarp under the tower.

An examination of the many whole stones removed in this excavation adds little to what we learned from the two courses in situ. They are all drafted, and none are over 4 feet in length, the average being three or under. The stones, in situ, show the "pock-marking" dressing in their drafts. Many of the fallen stones, however, show on their drafts the diagonal comb-pick dressing, usually ascribed to Crusading times, with what certainty I am not prepared to say. This may be due to a re-using of the stones. A pilaster base, plainly in the Crusading style, may have rolled down from the ruins of a church near the Cœnaculum. One drafted stone was so worked as to make it appear that it belonged to a door or window of the tower. We cut into the débris above the tower base, finding only rude masonry. The rock slopes rapidly upwards from the line A—B, so that if there ever was one large room in the tower it must have been at a much higher level than the courses of stone in situ. At one point the rock was cut away to make place for a very small room, about on a level with the top of the first course, for here we found a cemented flooring in which there was a curious depression, widening at the bottom, in the shape of a water-cooler. The pottery found in connection pointed to Jewish times.

Thus far my report has concerned itself principally with rock-scarps. I have, however, to describe the discovery of a genuine wall in situ, which has been traced for about 100 feet. I think that the readers of the Statement will be interested to know of the steps which gradually led to the discovery of this wall. My instructions from the Committee


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252 confined my present work to the search for the south wall of Jerusalem. Before I had reached the outer scarp at H, I sunk another shaft at C, thinking that possibly the wall might have run along this contour. We found no wall, but a drain. I was curious to see whether this drain had any connection with the aqueduct traced by Warren beyond the road to the east. To this end I made openings at D', E', F', and G'. I had several misgivings from time to time as to the wisdom of following the drain, as it seemed to have no bearing upon the question of the wall, but a certain instinct told me to go on.

We traced the drain to the road, and proved that it had no connection with Warren's aqueduct. But, in the meantime, an examination of the shafts sunk to reach the drain flashed a new light upon me. At every point the flagstones which covered the drain extended in a pavement at one side and sometimes on both. At first, when this pavement had appeared only at one or two points, I had thought little of it, assigning it to houses at these points. But when it had appeared at five points, all in one line, all above the drain, some explanation was necessary. Then these questions crowded themselves upon me: Is this a paved street above the drain? If a street, is it not leading to a wall? If to a wall, must it not be also to a gate? Immediately I began to follow this new clue. The first point was its continuity, which we proved by following the pavement along the drain from C' to B" for 60 feet. Its width was also found at various points. From B" we pushed on to A", but after traversing about half the distance the pavement was lost. At A" we came upon a corner of masonry, which I took to have been built in later times over the street. Accordingly we opened up again from above, by the drain, just beyond the masonry. We went down till we reached the rock, but found no street. So we abandoned the wall at this point for a time, and employed the gang to search for a turn of the street northwards at the point where its continuation had not been proved. In the meantime, one day our work in the outer scarp suddenly came to an end during the middle of the day, and finding a small gang of labourers on my hands, I set them to work on the masonry at A", which, to tell the truth, I had not regarded as very important. I watched their work with constantly growing interest; the next day I added another gang, and soon it became clear that this apparently unimportant bit of masonry was a gateway in a wall. Meanwhile the other gang had proved that the street (which at the point where we last saw it was leading in this direction) had certainly not turned towards the north, as the rock there rises rapidly, and all probability was against its having turned towards the southern slope, hence, the obvious conclusion was that it had led to this gate, towards which it was pointing, when it was last traced a few feet away. Thus, weeks after it was first opened, was the shaft at C justified.

We opened it to find a wall, and found no wall but a drain; we followed the drain eastwards and found a street, we followed the drain back westwards and found a gate, and this gate, of course, was in a wall!


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Rh The drain, which furnished us the clue, is hewn in the top of the rock for a long part of its course. It is 2 feet wide at the top, 1 at the bottom (where there is a groove), and 4 feet high. From about the point E' the floor falls both to the east and to the west. At various points it is fed by smaller drains from the city to the north. Beyond the gate it falls rapidly to the south-west, and comes to an end at right angles with the valley, at a point above a steep pitch, where it poured its filth into the valley of Hinnom. Immediately under the point where we later found the gate the sides were seen to be, not rock, but well-chiselled slabs of stone. At the time it occurred to us that this might be the point where it passed under the wall, but finding the scarp further out, we gave up the idea, only to find it the true one later on. The drain is roofed with slabs, which form part of the pavement of the street. One of these slabs was carved with a large Jerusalem cross, showing that it was used and repaired in Crusading times. It was completely choked up with rubbish, not ordinary earth, but actual sewage. At the point E' it is only 4 feet under the surface of the ground, which, however, I understand has been recently levelled down.

The pavement of the street always shows the sign of wear, and was clearly trodden by feet. The actual pavement as seen is not more than 10 feet wide, but at the two points measured the rock has been levelled down at its side, adding 8 or 10 feet more to the width of the road; the flat rock here also showing signs of wear. At other points the pavement may be wider. At the point C, in following the pavement, we had to break through the walls of a house, evidently of Byzantine times, which had been built over the disused pavement. This house had a mosaic pavement of its own, 2 feet higher than the street, and its walls were covered with plaster over 2 inches thick. We followed the street, all through the length of the house 12 feet), broke through the second wall, and continued along the road—pavement. A few feet from the gate the flagstones disappeared, but I have shown that the road could have not turned anywhere else, and, indeed, it had been pointing towards the gate for a length of 230 feet, sure proof of its destination. I give the elevation of the wall from the gate at B' to the point where it joins the scarp of the fosse at A'. The dressed masonry does not rest on the rock, but on rough rubble built on the rock. The base of the wall may be seen to rise rapidly. The stones have smooth faces, are dressed with the comb-pick (without draft), and the point of jointure is so fine that sometimes it is difficult to find it. The top of each layer is perfectly horizontal. In other words, the workmanship is exquisitely careful. Between a and b (on the elevation) below the regular lower course another finely dressed course projects a few inches. Beyond the point a the dressed stones cease, but the course of the wall may be traced to the fosse along the line of rubble.

From the gate we also traced the wall along its inside face for some 25 feet. The stones at the corner were well dressed, but beyond, the masonry was rougher, as is natural on an inside face. The width is 9 feet.


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254 The gate is proved by the following points:—(1) The dressed masonry from the inside to the outside corner, which would not occur in the width of the wall taken at random. (2) The slab under the corner-stone of the wall at B' projects out to form (with others) the sill of the gate, for while the part beyond the corner is smoothed, as by the tread of feet, the part projecting from under the corner is not thus rubbed. (3) Above the sill there are stones built in a totally different manner from the careful masonry of the wall; the joints are wide, and one stone is part of a broken column. In other words, they point to a later blocking up of the gate. (4) The tracing of the paved road for almost 250 feet to this point in the wall.

The finding of a sewer immediately under this gate, at a point which cannot be far from the limits between which the Dung Gate has been placed by various theorists, establishes its identity with a strength of proof considerable indeed for archæology, where identifications are adopted and clung to with a tenacity arising from indications far less satisfying. Moreover, the sewer not only passed under this gate, but poured its filth into the valley of Hinnom, scarce 20 yards away.

Beyond the gate we followed the wall for 25 feet more, where it has turned a few feet to the south-west as if to form a tower. Here the masonry is of the same character as at the points described before, save that a shallow draft ( inch) appears. This shows that in the same wall, and in all probability at the same time, both drafted and undrafted stones may occur. The courses are 2 feet high, and the stones, say in length, from 1 foot 9 inches to 4 feet 4 inches.

I have long felt that the question of ancient masonry rests on insufficient data. Not enough Jewish buildings are known. Because the Temple substructure and the Haram of Hebron consist of huge, drafted blocks, it is generally assumed that Solomonic and Herodian masonry was all massive. Smaller work is placed later. In regard to this wall Mr. Schick writes me that it may be the remains of a wall built in about 440 by the Empress Eudoxia, as Bishop Eucherius (440) says that Zion was included in the city (which it was not in Hadrian's time), and that the Pool of Siloam was also included. Theodosius (520-530} and Antonius of Platentia (570) always refers to Siloam as inside the wall, and the latter emphasises the fact thus: "It is now inside," as if it had been included by the Empress Eudoxia, who built new walls of Jerusalem.

My own opinion I reserve until we have traced this wall further, when new light may be hoped for. However, I am inclined to assign it to pre-Christian times, as the proof of a wall at this point at later periods is not furnished by much direct testimony. And the smallness of the masonry does not trouble me. We do not know that small undrafted stones were not used by Herod.

A very interesting question is the relation of this wall to the outer scarp. It runs fairly parallel to it from the gate to the counter-scarp of the fosse, but it takes no account of the bastion west of the gate. In


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Rh describing the outer scarp I showed how a wall might have stood on top of it, but warned the reader I might nullify the theory. A wall might have stood back of it. That the outer scarp was hewn for fortification is sure. Was it crowned by a wall destroyed before this one was built, and following the line of bastion? Or was this the original wall, and, if so, why does it not follow the bastion? Interesting questions which our further excavations may answer.

Indeed we have only this morning completed the connection between the gate and fosse, only this morning have the stones been studied and measured, as during the past week, while preparing the plans for this report, I have been able only to see that the tunnels were taking the right course. Hence there are many things to be settled in the next few days, such as the width of the gate, the finding of the socket of the gatepost, &c.

There still remain to be described the curious rock-cuttings near the fosse, mentioned in my last report, but uncovered more thoroughly since. The large chamber extends into the fosse (see plan), the counter-scarp of which seems to have been cut away to make place for it. This points to a date when the fosse was no longer used. The mosaic is late, the pattern being almost identical with the border of the Armenian mosaic on the Mount of Olives, which dates from the fifth or sixth century A.D., and also with the recently-found Armenian mosaic north of the Damascus Gate, which I have described in an intermediate report, and which dates from the same period. This last-mentioned mosaic is the floor of a mortuary chapel, the walls of which are of modest rubble and rough lime, thickly plastered inside; the chamber of which our mosaic is the floor is surrounded by walls of exactly similar construction. Thinking this also might be a mortuary chapel we searched for a cave below, but found nothing. The section shows the curious rock-cuttings. A bath is hewn in the solid rock, to its right is a rock platform, and to its left a shallow cutting, on the level with the platform, plastered and having a partition, only a few inches high, in the middle. The section of the bath shows the rubble elevation at the north end with the fireplace covered by a sort of half-dome. The broader north end of the bath was once arched over. In my last report I mentioned that "against the south rock-wall of the chamber there was what I must describe as the silhouette of a stairway, as the steps projected only an inch or two from the rock, which was cut away to form the three steps. It looks as if they had been intended as rests for a wooden stairway." Two small channels lead to the top of the bath. South of the rock platform occurs Cistern I, largely taken up with the rock-hewn steps which descend from the south end. The dimensions are hardly any smaller at the top than they are at the bottom (or as they would be without the steps), and there is no sign that the cistern (or pool) was arched over. Cistern II (to the south-west of I), however, has a small mouth hewn in the rock, the cistern widening out below. Cisterns III and IV may have been originally one, as they are separated merely by a wall. Part of


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256 Cistern IV is partitioned off by a low wall at the bottom. Both cisterns are large at the top, like Cisternal. They are all plastered; the plaster seems to be in two coats, the inner coat being a cement of rougher lime with pottery fragments.

Whatever may have been the original date of these various rock cuttings they were evidently utilised in Byzantine times, where the chamber belongs. The pottery we found in connection with them was later than most of the pottery found at other points of the excavations. I have very little to say about the objects found in general. The coins occurred in general débris, usually near the surface. I intended to have described them in this report, but they have not been studied yet. None of them were found under circumstances which would make them valuable in fixing dates. Coins found on a deserted site, even in a dust heap, are of great value in determining the limits of occupation. In Jerusalem débris, coins of any date may be expected: it is the conditions of finding them that give them value, as, for example, a great depth, occurrence in the rubbish inside a room, or under a pavement, &c., &c. However, I regret that I cannot report on our coins till next time. A great part of our work has been the following of the scarp. Unfortunately we found no objects near its base, save broken pottery. This appeared to belong principally to pre-Christian types, including the thick Jewish developments of the graceful Phœnician open lamps; the brittle purplish ware, found in the top third of Tell-el-Hesy, &c., &c. This points to the probability that the scarp was covered with débris in early times. Among the later pottery found in other places are Christian lamps, some lamp fragments with Greek inscriptions of the well known type, small vases, &c. One find was most tantalising: it was a life-size thumb of beautiful workmanship. The stone out of which it was carved is the hard native limestone. Ex pede Herculem. Where is the rest of the noble statue, which, if so much care was spent in the thumb, must have been beautiful indeed? Was it carved by a Jerusalem sculptor for the palace of Herod, and when broken up dumped in the débris, outside the city? Shall we ever find the head, or even the torso?

Since my last report on June 6th we have worked steadily through the summer to September 12th, the present date of writing. Only one day did we stop on account of the heat. Out of the 83 week days we worked 71, the remaining 11 days may be thus accounted for: 4 were government holidays, when, out of compliment to the authorities, who always assist us so kindly, I thought it best to stop work; one day at the end of the quarter the men got a holiday while their master, who had worked far into the night before, got his balance sheet of accounts ready for the post; two may be set down to sickness; and the remaining four may be called general holidays, including, however, the day of great heat mentioned above. All the nights but nine I have spent in my ^tent. Our camp has remained in the same place, except that the Effendi has twice had his tent moved away from the encroaching excavations, while the tunnels have gone under two of the other tents! The usual fever has


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Rh prevailed more or less in Jerusalem, but it has not reached our camp. We have almost always a breeze here, when it is still in town, and when there is a breeze in town, here we have a hurricane.

Our workmen are almost exclusively from Silwan, and when the final whistle is sounded it is a never-failing amusement to watch them plunge down into the valley of Hinnom. The largest number employed any one day was 26, and the smallest 14, the average being about 20. On the whole we got more work out of them than we did out of our Tell-el-Hesy labourers. They manage the mining very cleverly and, on the whole, with courage, although several times they have shown reluctance to continue a hazardous-looking tunnel, until Yusif has himself attended to the propping up and proved to them the safety of the position. Fortunately we have had no accident beyond the bruising of a finger, which did not interfere with its owner's work of the next day.

Ibrahim Pasha continues most friendly, and in Ibrahim Effendi, our Commissioner, the Society has a warm friend. It is largely owing to his presence that the work goes on so smoothly. Landowners do not trouble us; in fact, have hardly been near us since the first novelty wore off. What with the cisterns we have discovered for them and the beautiful stones we have dug up, they may well be pleased that we began work on their ground.

Other visitors, however, are very plentiful. We have had most of the Consuls, the Greek and Armenian Patriarchs, with the Latin Bishop, the Military Pasha, numerous ecclesiastics of all orders, and quite a number of travellers. Our guests have been of varying intelligence, from men who have excavated themselves, to the delightful person who congratulated us upon having come upon these tunnels, all made beforehand, and following along the scarp just where we wanted them to go.

July 9th, 1894.

came to me recently the servant of an Effendi, who is the proprietor of the small hill north of Damascus Gate, on which I reported some time ago (see Quarterly Statement, 1893, p. 298), telling me that his master had sent him to say that he was about to build another new house on the side of the hill, and in digging for the foundation had found a great many stone boxes of various colours, and wished that I should come and see the place and tell them what they ought to do. So in the afternoon I went there


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258


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260 and found that a very nice mosaic flooring had been laid bare about 3 feet under the surface of the ground. I told them they should not destroy it, but clear all earth away, so as to show what it might have been and of what size. This they did, and after two days I went again to see what had been done. Three sides of a former room were visible, but the fourth, towards the east, was not yet reached. The room was, inside, about 15 feet wide (length unknown). At my first visit I saw that at the end near the wall there was a kind of scroll, and further in I saw some figures, which I thought to represent burning candles, but now at the second visit I recognised as the tail of a peacock. Of these birds there are several, as well as of another kind, which I thought were intended to [represent geese. These two sorts of birds are standing amidst branches. Some said there were also fishes, but these I did not see. I was also shown a stone slab about 12 inches square, with a cross of the Knights of St. John on it, and below some writing in two lines of a language unknown to me. The slab was broken into five or six pieces, but no pieces were lost, so that they can be put together and everything seen. This slab was not found on the pavement, but about 25 feet distant from it, where a new house has been built, and where tombs also are said to have been found. I am sorry that I did not see the latter, as they were soon covered again. When I had seen things so far, I resolved to come the next day and measure everything carefully, as I had not at the time the necessary things with me, nor could I hinder the workmen. Her Majesty's Consul, Mr. Dickson, who came and examined the matter, thought the writing on the slab to be Latin.

The next morning, thinking the whole pavement must now be cleared, I went early there with all that I wanted for measuring, copying, and making squeezes, but on arriving I found many people there—amongst them the Greek Patriarch, and, what surprised me, also a policeman, and the whole floor covered with mats, so that I could do nothing. Asking the servant of the proprietor how it happened that the work was arrested and under police guard, he said: Ibrahim Effendi, who is with Dr. Bliss, and has the duty to inspect and watch all excavations, came to see it^ and went to the Pasha and reported thereon, on which the Pasha stopped the work. I cannot say how soon I may gain free access to do my intended work, but as perhaps Dr. Bliss, in company with Ibrahim Effendi, may do it, my efforts may not be needed. I have not yet seen Dr. Bliss to speak with him about it, but will soon do so.

The pavement has since been covered with a new plain room built over it, and so fully protected. It is connected with the other parts of a new dwelling house, but has a separate entrance, and on two sides windows. This work seems to have been done at the expense of the owner of the ground, as the proposed purchase by some other parties was not effected. The new room is considered as a chapel, and shown to visitors. It is now locked up. I have entered the situation of the mosaic on the plan now forwarded. C. Schick.


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Rh July 9th, 1894.

I was called away this afternoon for the purpose of photographing a magnificent mosaic a couple of hundred yards west of St. Stephen's, north-west of the Damascus Gate. When the Pasha heard of its discovery by the owner in the course of digging for foundations he arrested the work, and put the matter in our hands. I sent my foreman with labourers to complete the excavation, and on Saturday a photograph was taken, but not satisfactory, so we must try again to-day. Full reports will be given later; here I may say that it is a splendid piece of work, about 21 feet by 13 feet, with a small apse pointing almost exactly east. Within a beautiful border, springing from this base is a vine with ramifying branches, on which hang grape clusters; among the branches are numerous birds, peacocks, ducks, storks, an eagle, a partridge, a parrot in a cage, &c., &c. It is almost perfectly preserved. Near the east end there is an Armenian inscription, to the effect that the place was in memory of the salvation of all those Armenians whose names the Lord knows. It is evidently a mortuary chapel. The débris over the walls is hardly more than 3 feet, and the chapel rests on the rock, which doubtless contains tombs and coffins. The mosaic is similar to that found on the Mount of Olives with the Armenian inscription, but is far more elaborate, being the finest work of the kind ever found here. It is clearly Byzantine. The pattern is identical with that found in our mosaic near the counterscarp, and the walls of the two rooms are of the same construction. Hence our mosaic is also doubtless Byzantine.

2em

1. The Muristan.—In rebuilding the ancient church, St. Maria Major, the foundations of the old building—not only of the piers of which I have already reported, but also of the walls—were found so defective that the remaining parts of the walls had to be taken down. The foundations go down only from 8 to 10 feet below the surface and rest on rubble, small stones, and earth of no solidity. The north wall has already been taken down, together with the entrance arch, with the figures of the months of the year, but the stones will be preserved, and put up again as they were before.

This state of things delays the advance of the building and adds greatly to the expense.

The German Emperor has ordered this new church to be called "Erlöserkirche," or Church of the Redeemer. Nothing of interest was found in the rubbish, except the proofs that here was once an important


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Rh quarry, which must have been made before the second wall was built; hence in the time of the early Jewish Kings.

2. A Colony of Bokhara Jews.—Although the immigration of Jews to the Holy Land is restricted by the Government, yet it seems that the Jews are increasing in number, especially those from Mohammedan countries, and bringing money with them. Those from Bokhara are about to build a village. They have bought a large tract of land, northeast of the so-called "Plantation," an English property, north-west of the city, 1,700 yards distant from the town wall. It is on the ridge between the upper part of the Kedron Valley, near the Jaffa road, and the upper part of a branch valley more to the north, but south of the tombs of the judges. At the western end of this ridge stands a guard-house—then comes the ridge with olive trees and some new houses; further east, Mr. Schneller's Orphan Asylum, then "the Plantation," and close to it the Bokhara settlement. As the ridge becomes here more and more narrow, a great part of this settlement stands on its northern slope. It is laid out in regular and wide streets crossed by one or two others, and the houses are very well built. About 40 families are already residing there and new houses are being erected. The natives call this place now "Bokharieh." I intend to go there when I find time and measure everything for a plan, which they themselves wish me to prepare, as they want one to send to their friends in Bokhara. They seem a healthy people and are well dressed, the opposite of the poor Yemen Jews, of whom also there are a great number here in several settlements, the bulk being settled below Siloah, where there are now four long buildings on the slope of the eastern mountain.

3. The English Hospital—For many years there has been, especially on the part of the English doctor, a desire to build a new hospital outside the town, and in the best manner. The site chosen is the Sanatorium of the Loudon Society for Promoting Christianity amongst the Jews. The spot is noted in the Ordnance Survey Map, scale It used by the mission staff to camp there during the summer months, and hence its name. A new Girls' Mission School was three or four years ago built there by the society under my direction, and now the hospital building has been commenced on the remaining portion of land. It will occupy a great deal of space as the plan, made by a London architect, is on the pavilion system. It will be the only one here on that system. It is remarkable that nearly all the new hospitals here are situated on the same ridge which comes out from the city and extends in a north-westerly direction. Inside the town the new Greek Hospital is on it, immediately outside the new gate, the French, then comes the Russian, then Dr. Sandrezky's Hospital for Children, then Rothschild's Hospital, then farther out the new German Hospital, then the English one about to be built, and beyond it, on the highest part of the ridge, close to the Jaffa road, the new


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Rh Hospital of the Municipality. Still further out, on the water shed, a piece of ground has been selected for a Jewish Hospital by the German Jews, who have already applied to Constantinople for a firman. In regard to its plan, I had to give my assistance. So there will be nine hospitals, one after the other, on the same ridge, and the road going along it (passing also my house) will rightly bear the name "Sanatorium Road," which we gave to it many years ago on account of the above-mentioned Mission Sanatorium.

4. The Russian Orthodox Palestine Society is getting by degrees nearly all the Russian establishments in this country under its rule, except those of the Government. The Russian Hospital, some time ago, came under it, and is now about to have the arms of the society put on the top of the building, as has already been done on several other buildings, to mark them as the property of the society.

5. Rock-cut Aqueduct on Skull Hill.—The ground with the so called "Gordon's Tomb" at the "Skull Hill" having been sold to an English association, they are now about to enclose it with a wall. In doing this an interesting rock-cut channel was found just on the top of the said tomb or rock-cut cave. It comes from the east, at the northern brow of the hill in a south-western direction, and near the edge of the rock turns due west, as I have shown in the plan.' The channel is on an average 6 feet deep, 2 feet wide at the top, and 15 inches at the bottom, where it is rounded. It has a strong decline towards the west, where also the rock becomes low, as the section shows. It seems to me that it was intended to take all the surface water falling on the "Skull Hill" to the cisterns now in the ground of the Dominicans, and made deep enough for the rain falling on the eastern part of the summit to be brought hither.

On the top of the sides of this channel there is the rock, but another smaller channel crosses the large one, by which the water, if stopped in the large channel, could flow over the edge of the rock scarp as a cascade into the cistern of the ground with Gordon's Tomb, as plan and section show. At first I had an idea that this large newly-found aqueduct might be the long looked-for continuation of the one coming from the twin pools under the Sisters of Zion, to the northern town wall—the most distant trace of which, outside the wall, was found near the entrance to the Cotton Grotto. If this is correct, it would have surrounded the Skull Hill; but would the levels allow such an idea? In order to solve this question I have levelled from the nearest bench mark (which is on the Sheikh's buildings west of the Nâblus road, and 1,400 feet north of Damascus Gate) to the bottom of the rock-cut aqueduct, 700 feet south of the said Sheikh's Tomb, and found it to be 2,521 feet above the sea. It agrees with the contours there as entered in the Ordnance Survey Plan, being at the point where the ground over the aqueduct is highest, 2,529. The surface of the rock is near under it, viz., foot, and


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264 the aqueduct 1 feet deep brings it also to 2,529. The B. M. on the Sheikh's Tomb is 2,534 feet 4 inches, hence the bottom of the aqueduct is 13 feet 4 inches lower, just as I have found by the levelling.

I am sorry they are filling up with masonry this newly-discovered piece of aqueduct in order to put the boundary wall partly upon it, and so this part will disappear. I will see that the mason makes a mark on the new wall, to show in future where the continuation may be looked for, and perhaps cleared out.

6. Of the Muristan Inscription, of which I recently sent a copy to you, I may say that at the same time I also sent a copy to Dr. Euting in Strassburg, who writes me as follows about it:—"I think I can read it correctly. It is a Hexameter, but not a good one. The cross at the beginning has to be read as F, and so it runs: i.e., 'Fame goes round the parts of this round earth circling.'"

7. A Rock Scarp.—West and north-west of the place of the mosaic houses have been built, and boundary walls made. When recently passing, I observed a high rock scarp laid bare for a short distance and forming an angle, looking as if it had been a ditch; the workpeople said it had been a bir (cistern), but I could not detect any marks of former cementing. As the bottom was not yet reached, I cannot tell the depth of the scarp, but it is apparently above 12 feet. I have entered this scarp, and also some of the several new houses, on the plan. What is marked with the word "old" is a bit of old masonry, rising a little above the surface and marked in the Ordnance Survey Plan. The scarp was very probably connected with it, but not with the line given as "old foundations," which have since been removed. In this neighbourhood was also found the large lintel, respecting which I reported about a year ago. So that I think if the "third wall" did not pass here, as some have suggested, at least there once stood here a large and important fortified building. The egg-shaped cistern cut into the rock, which was found some years ago, would have belonged to it. One cannot say much that is positive about it, and I wish only to give the various details as they come to light; what they may have been is simply guess.

8. New Drains.—A few years ago the Russians made, under the inspection of the local authorities, a new drain from all the buildings on their property west of the city, by which all used water and dirty fluid was conducted down into the city drain, and so down to Siloah. In the accompanying plan I have shown in blue the line thereof with all is branches. It enters the city about 150 feet west of the Damascus Gate. In the course of the last 20 years several colonies or settlements of Jews have been built north-west of the city, and as no sewers were provided, the retention of the dirty water has made the settlements more and more unhealthy. The leaders of the settlements, therefore, resolved to make a drain, leading into the Russian one. The local authorities gave permission, and it was constructed for £500. But, as there is from the starting point in the west (more west than the plan shows) only a small decline,


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Rh and the distance is very great, and in its middle there is even a rise, the contractor did not make the channel deep enough, and the water could not run. A claim having been made at the Serai, it was ordered that the drain be made deeper, and that the Jews pay more for the work. I had to give my opinion, which was, that the decline must be one in a hundred, which the Russian drain would allow. The parties finally agreed to 0'5 per cent, decline, and even with this, they had, at one point, to go down 12 feet, and at another even 20 feet, blasting the solid rock with gunpowder, and causing great expense. The drain will be made so that a man may walk in it, and will cost about £1,000.

9. Tombs of the Judges, and the neighbouring ground.—Owing to the stoppage of a local bank, these celebrated tombs and the ground round about, in which are many other rock-cut tombs, are to be sold, and I have been commissioned to measure the ground and to find out the size of each of the various pieces, which I have done, and send herewith a copy of my plan on a reduced scale, showing the curious irregular lines of the boundaries of each piece, as, perhaps, this may be interesting to some members of the Fund. It will be seen that there is an ancient road (now no more in use) which certainly once formed also a division, and even now the land south of this road is mulk (private property), that north of it is meri or crown land. To build on the latter, permission must be obtained from Constantinople, whilst for building on the other, which is mulk, permission may be obtained from the local authorities. If, in course of time, new buildings should be erected here, the ancient road must be opened again, as I have shown in the plan with dotted lines. All these various pieces of ground are still called Kerm (vineyard), so it is clear that they were formerly vineyards.

10. Interesting Cisterns and Winepresses.—At the eastern end of the above-mentioned pieces of ground, there is also an old road going from south to north, and passing two cisterns; the southern is an inferior one, of no special interest, but the northern one is rather large, hewn in rock, under a kind of rocky platform, in which are hewn also winepresses. Of these I send plans and sections on a larger scale. The winepresses are like so many others found in the country, cut into the surface of the rock, and remarkable only for their large size. If full, their overflow would run into the cistern. The cistern is 60 feet long and 20 feet wide, and at present about 19 feet deep from the surface, but there is a great accumulation of earth and small stones in it, so that very likely it is from 25 to 30 feet deep. It has at its east end a long recess, also cut in the rock, 3 feet wide and about 10 feet deep (or long), containing very likely a stairway enabling people to go down into the cistern. The roof is rock, in a somewhat arched form, but the greater part flat, and in one place is^ a breakage in the lock, filled up with masonry arching. The cementing is very well preserved.

11. Alterations in the City.—It is well known that a fair or market for animals is held in Jerusalem every week, on Friday, at the open place or square, east of Gate Nebi Daud, inside the city wall. As mischief


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266  happened from frightened animals, and it was sometimes dangerous for people to pass, the weekly market is now held outside the town in the depression of the so-called Birket es Sultan, or the lower pool in the Western Valley on the side of the Bethlehem road.

12. In consequence of the increase of the population and of the railway traffic, some streets have become overcrowded with people, and heavily laden camels could only with difficulty pass through, endangering the crowd, so that accidents repeatedly happened. It is now arranged that in those streets no camels can henceforth pass. At their ends iron bars forming narrow and low entrances are put, which no camel can pass but only donkeys or horses without a rider, and especially walking people. These hindrances are put at the top of Suwaikat Allun, at the Greek convent, at the Khankeh, and at the entrance of the Jewish quarter; Khan es Zait is still left open on account of the building work at the Muristan, to which camels have to bring stones, coming in by the Damascus Gate.

13. The excavations of Dr. Bliss are going on, and I take the liberty to go there once every week to see the state of things. It proves that the city wall was once situated a little more down the hill than was expected. Yet the question is not yet fully settled. It is strange that no proper wall or traces of such have hitherto been found except at the tower, but only very high rock scarps.

numbers in column 1 of this table show the highest reading of the barometer in each month; of these the highest appear in the winter, and the lowest in the summer months; the maximum for the year is 27·656 inches in December. In column 2 the lowest reading in each month is shown. The minimum for the year is 27·086 inches in March. The range of readings in the year was 0·570 inch. The numbers in column 3 show the range of readings in each month; the smallest, 0·196 inch, is in July, and the largest, 0·487 inch, in March. The numbers in column 4 show the mean monthly pressure of the atmosphere; the highest, 27·504 inches, is in December, and the lowest, 27·251 inches, in July. The mean pressure for the year was 27·385 inches. At Sarona the mean pressure for the year was 29·839 inches.

The highest temperature of the air in each month is shown in column 5. The highest in the year was 105°, on June 15th. The first day the temperature reached 90° was on April 30th. In May there were 2 days when the temperature reached or exceeded 90°; in June, 14 days; in


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Rh July, 11 days; in August, 19 days; and in September, 8 days. Therefore the temperature reached or exceeded 90° on 55 days during the year. At Sarona the first day the temperature reached 90° was on April 30th, it reached or exceeded 90° on only 16 days during the year; the highest temperature in the year at Sarona, 112°, took place on June 15th.

The numbers in column 6 show the lowest temperature in each month; the lowest in the year was 28°5 on March 28th. In January the temperature was below 40° on 22 nights; in February on 16 nights; in March on 18 nights; in April on 10 nights; in November on 7 nights; and in December on 24 nights. Therefore the temperature was below 40° on 97 nights during the year. The yearly range of temperature was 76°·5. At Sarona the temperature was below 40° on only 3 nights during the year; the lowest in the year, 37°·0, took place on both December 22nd and 23rd. The yearly range of temperature at Sarona was 75°. The range of temperature in each month is shown in column 7, and these numbers vary from 28°·5 in January, to 60°·2 in April. At Sarona the range of temperature in each month varied from 26° in August to 55° in June.

The mean of all the highest by day, of the lowest by night, and of the average daily ranges of temperature, are shown in columns 8, 9, and 10 respectively. Of the high day temperatures, the lowest, 53°·9, is in January, and the highest, 92°·2, in August. At Sarona, of the high day temperature, the lowest, 64°·7, is in January, and the highest, 87°·9, in August.

Of the low night temperature, the coldest, 37°·8, is in December, and the warmest, 59°7, in June. At Sarona, of the low night temperature, the coldest, 48°·1, is in December, and the warmest, 69°·2, in August. The average daily range of temperature is shown in column 10, the smallest, 14°·8, is in January, and the largest, 33°·8, in August. At Sarona, of the average daily range of temperature, the smallest, 15°·4, is in January, and the largest, 23°·5, in October.

In column 11 the mean temperature of each month is shown, as found from observations of the maximum and minimum thermometers only. The month of the lowest was December, 42°·0, and that of the highest, August, 75°·3. The mean temperature for the year was 60°·1. At Sarona, of the mean temperature, the month of the lowest is January, 57°·0, and that of the highest August, 78°·6. The mean for the year at Sarona was 66°·8.

The numbers in columns 12 and 13 are the monthly means of a dry and wet bulb-thermometer, taken daily at 9 a.m. In column 14 the monthly temperature of the dew-point, or that temperature at which dew would have been deposited, is shown; the elastic force of vapour is shown in column 15. In column 16 the water present in a cubic foot of air is shown; in December it was as small as 2·9 grains, and in August as large as 5·3 grains. In column 17 the additional weight required for saturation is shown. The numbers in column 18 show the degree