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cation., retired to the rear. After a little pulling and 

 tugging of the culprit by some of his friends he was led 

 off, though not until the Sheik had rushed about among 

 the crowd, giving every one he came near a push or a 

 thump, with injunctions to be off instantly. After 

 which he came to the tent, and by the Dragoman as 

 interpreter apologized for the row, and hoped the gentle- 

 men would excuse it and not think worse of the people 

 of Ain- Ata on account of what had occurred. I looked 

 dignified, and said we would excuse it, but hoped it 

 would not occur again, on which priest and all cleared 

 off, apparently well satisfied with the result. The 

 priest came this morning to beg for a small subscription 

 for a church he proposed to build, and seemed in ecsta- 

 sies at receiving a dollar for it. He was a fine-looking 

 man, but totally uneducated and quite from the lower 

 classes. He could write, as he had the Eastern pen and 

 ink-case in his belt/ 



May 14. c Got into Beyrout at half-past four, and so, 

 God be thanked, our Syrian tour is ended without mis- 

 hap of any kind. . . . Perhaps to me the most striking 

 thing has been the testimony borne to the existence of 

 the Great God of all, and the unity of that one God, in 

 the simple worship of the Mahometans. The prevailing 

 idea, in all that I have seen of it, has been adoration of 

 one great omniscient Spirit. Nowhere do you see any- 

 thing tending to divest the mind of this idea no pic- 

 tures, no statues in their mosques, no mauvaise honte in 



