ES-SALT. 19 



ridge a sliort but sliarp descent led to Es-Salt, the ancient 

 Ramotli-Gilead. The town is built in a nook among the 

 hills, on steep sun-baked slopes, uglily picturesque, if 

 one may use such a phrase. We found a pleasant camp- 

 ing-ground on a grassy ledge of the slope opposite the 

 town. 



Our starting-point in the morning had been more than 

 1,000 feet below the sea-level, and the ridge we had 

 crossed is 3,676 feet above it, so that we had made an 

 actual ascent of 4,676 feet from the Jordan valley to the 

 pass. 



After a short rest we walked over to the opposite hill, to 

 call on the Bimbashi (Colonel) in command of the garri- 

 son, who received us in his tent with gTeat politeness. 

 He said there was no difficulty in our going to Bozrah ; 

 that if we liked we might have a company of horse, 

 but that he should be quite content to send his own 

 wives under the escort of the two men we had with us. 

 He pressed us to stay at Es-Salt a day or two, which we 

 declined, and withdrew after a somewhat lengthy inter- 

 view. All our conversation had to pass through two 

 interpreters, being translated by Elias into Arabic, and 

 into Turkish by a servant of the commander. The latter 

 process was doubtless unnecessary ; but the Bimbashi's 

 dignity would have suffered, in Oriental estimation, had 

 he not had his own interpreter. 



On our return we found the camp in commotion. Cross 

 was the only member of the party who strove to keep up 

 an irreproachable exterior in the wilderness ; he generally 

 rode in a somewhat sporting costume, crowned by a white 

 tiu'ban, the construction of which cost Elias much time 

 and anxiety every morning. On the present occasion 

 Cross had entrusted his greatcoat to Elias in the morning; 

 the latter ignorant or careless of the respect due to a 



c 2 



