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smaller, cave exists, with its roof still entire. The floor of ^ 

 this cave is of soft earth, and in dig-giug in it nothing was 

 found. Near the mouth, however, was an oval bed made of 

 stones, lined with green rushes, on which some one had slept 

 within a few days, furnishing an example of the recent use of 

 this cavern. 



In the next adjoining cove to the south-west of Tristram's 

 cave. Dr. Bliss was so fortunate as to find the floor of a second 

 cavern still richer in remains than that of Tristram^s cave, 

 from which it is distant two hundred and ten paces along the 

 road. Its roof is entirely gone, the material having apparently 

 been for the most part removed to form the road, though 

 some large blocks remain. The stalagmite floor is ten paces 

 broad, and in some places as much as four feet thick. It is 

 somewhat softer, and of a more yellow colour, than that in 

 the other cave, but its contents in bones and flint knives 

 appear to be similar. 



Between the two caves the road passes round a point of rock 

 concealing the one from the other, and commanding an exten- 

 sive view of the coast from Beyrout to Tripoli. At this point 

 are the remains of a foundation of hard concrete, and near 

 it a plain shaft of grey granite projecting from the parapet of 

 the road, as if some monument had been erected, probably 

 in Roman times, at this point. 



It is to be observed that when these caverns were entire, 

 and before any road was cut around the cliff', their occupants 

 would enjoy a position difficult of approach by enemies and 

 commanding an extensive view along the coast. There 

 would also be easy access to the shore and to the top of the 

 cliff", and small terraces of ground capable of occupation and 

 even of culture, and, in any case, of sustaining trees available 

 for shelter and fuel. No running water is known nearer than 

 the river, but there are cavities in the rock which retain rain- 

 water, and, if, at the time of the occupancy of the caverns, 

 the land was a little higher than now, the flat country found 

 at other parts of the coast may have extended around this 

 promontory, and there may have been springs at the foot of 

 the cliff". The leds^es of rock at the foot of these cliffs abound 

 in limpets and other shell-fish, and at the time of my visit I 

 saw boys engaged in collecting these. If the sea had been 

 as near at the time of the occupation of the prehistoric caves, 

 we should have expected that their inhabitants would have 

 availed themselves of this source of food, and that numbers 

 of shells would have been found in their kitchen-middens. 

 As this is not the case, we have an additional reason to suppose 

 that the sea was then distant. If, at the period in question. 



