At Jenain, about two hours distance from Cyrene, we found two wells of excellent water, apparently of ancient construction; and observed remains of building on a rising ground adjoining, and some tombs excavated in the rock. An hour more, travelling along the brow of the ridge, brought us to Marábut Sidi Arāfi, the division between the territories of Derna and Bengazi. Here also we found several wells, and partial remains of building, which continued all the way along the road to Bĭrāsa, where their number considerably increased. This has evidently been an ancient site; and we have no doubt that the whole of the country, through which we this day travelled, was once very thickly inhabited. Traces of ancient pavement are continually met with on the road, which is occasionally flanked by ancient tombs, similar in construction to some of those at Cyrene, and every pass of importance has been fortified with towers of considerable strength[4].
At Wady Jeráhib the table land ceases, and a steep and somewhat perilous descent begins into the valley (or wady) here mentioned, down which we with difficulty conducted our horses. A strong fort on the right commands, or rather, formerly commanded the entrance on this side to the wady, and overlooks the country to a considerable extent. The sides of this ravine are quite perpendicular; and in some places more than five hundred feet high; they are filled with excavated caves, like those which we have described at Apollonia, and are entered by ropes in a similar manner, which are always very carefully drawn up after them by the inhabitants.
The road which leads along Wady Jeráhib winds for two hours through woods of pine-trees, some of which were two feet in diameter (the largest size we had hitherto seen in the country), and appear to be well adapted for spars. In the centre of the valley their naked trunks were lying (amongst heaps of stones, and other matter collected about them) in considerable numbers when we passed along it; and the bark of most of those trees which are standing has been worn away for several feet upwards. We may infer from these appearances, that in the rainy season the body of water which rushes along Wady Jeráhib must be very great; and to avoid the inconvenience to which travellers would in consequence have been exposed, we find the ancient road raised several feet above the actual level of the wady in other parts, and occasionally paved, and cut through the rock. At its western extremity, Wady Jeráhib opens out into a very spacious and beautiful, we may say without exaggeration, a magnificent valley: at the entrance of which are the remains of a very large fort, now called by the Arabs Belíggidem; the walls of this are still upwards of forty feet in height. Other valleys are seen from the fort, stretching out far into the blue horizon; and we looked on all sides over the tops of thick forests of pine, which covered the sides and the summit of the wadies, as far as the eye could reach. Belíggidem may be called a very good day’s journey from Cyrene, which would more frequently, indeed, be extended to a day and a half. The road from hence winds through a succession of wadies, and we found it to be very indifferent; till, after ascending a difficult hill, it brought us once more to Margàd,—a spot at which we had stopped for the night on our journey from Merge to Cyrene. From this place, our former conductor, Boo-Bukra, had turned off abruptly to the southward, in order to avoid passing through Bĕlĕnege (a part of the road which we had taken in returning), where he understood that the relations of two men whom he had killed were lying in wait for him. The party in advance had learnt this from an Arab at Bĕlĕnege; and it enabled us to account for the circuitous and difficult route along which Boo-Bukra had conducted us on our former journey. We had observed, that in addition to his musket and pistols, the usual arms of an Arab, he always carried a short carbine slung over his shoulder, which he never took off on any occasion; but were not at all aware of the difficulty of his situation, till we heard of the fact just mentioned. The change of route made a difference of two days to us, as nearly as we can recollect; but we do not regret the circumstance, since it enabled us to see a part of the country which we should not otherwise have had an opportunity of visiting. From Margàd we proceeded to Bogràta by the road which we had formerly taken, and from thence to Merge, where we found Bey Halil, for he had not been able to collect all his tribute. From Merge we descended to Ptolemeta, and joined Captain Beechey, who had arrived there the day before from Teuchira, having left Mr. Coffin at Bengazi, to make the necessary arrangements for our embarkation. We had arranged this meeting in order to complete the plans of both these places, which had been left somewhat unfinished in our eagerness to visit Cyrene. Three days were spent at Ptolemeta, and we then continued our journey to Teuchira, where we had no occasion to remain more than a single day, after which we proceeded to Bengazi[5].
On the 25th of July we had completed all our arrangements, and embarked the same afternoon for Malta.
We cannot close our account of the proceedings of the Expedition without expressing in a public manner our warmest thanks to the officers who accompanied us on our journey: the privations and hardships to which they were exposed might have reasonably drawn forth an occasional murmur; but these have always been patiently and cheerfully borne; and we have cause to be grateful, on many occasions, for services which have materially contributed to forward the objects, and facilitate the advance of the Expedition. To Lieutenant Coffin, in particular, who attached himself as a volunteer to our party, we feel ourselves under considerable obligations; and we should not do justice to the assiduity and regularity with which he kept the camel-track, mentioned above, if we did not state that it has enabled us to lay down the route with much greater precision than we could otherwise have attained to[6].
END OF THE NARRATIVE.
FOOTNOTES:
[1]The whole of the table-land in the neighbourhood of Cyrene, as well as that upon which the city was built, may probably have been called Irasa, and the fountain of Theste may reasonably be imagined to have been that which we have formerly mentioned at Gobba, where remains of antiquity still exist. We are led to this conclusion, from the nature of the ground in the neighbourhood of the fountain in question; for it is there that the table-land ceases altogether, and the Cyrenaic range descends so abruptly as to be in most places inaccessible. We have mentioned the difficulty which we ourselves experienced in leading our horses down one of the passes near Derna, considered, of course, to be a practicable one; and can readily imagine the disadvantage which an army would labour under in having so formidable a barrier to surmount, as any of the passes alluded to would present; in front of an enemy whose lines were drawn up on the summit of the range, and on the edge of the ascent by which they were advancing.
This position in fact is one, of all others, which would naturally be selected as a line of defence against forces advancing from Derna and Egypt; and the Greeks would hardly have neglected to avail themselves of it, supposing them to be at all acquainted with the country, which can hardly be doubted at the period in question, after so long a residence on the mountain.
[2]This army is said by Herodotus to have penetrated farther to the westward; and the historian believes (what is extremely probable) that the Persians had views on other parts of Libya, besides that possessed by the people of Barca; and that the army of Amasis was intended to reconnoitre the country, if not to reduce it to subjection.