64 ANCIENT REMAINS. 



Having heard in Aden from conversations 

 with a missionary who had visited Tajourah 

 that some ruins existed near that town, which 

 could only be referred to the labours of some 

 highly civilized people in a condition far superior to 

 the present state of the inhabitants, I was par- 

 ticular in my inquiries concerning the traditional 

 history of the place. The Sultaun, who appeared 

 to be one of the oldest men, informed me that in 

 his younger days stone walls of some extent, but 

 completely in ruins, were to be seen on the road to 

 the well, and offered to accompany Mr. Cruttenden 

 and myself to point out their situation. Their site 

 was about half way between the town and the well. 

 All traces of them above ground had long since 

 disappeared ; but by raking over the spot with the 

 butt end of a spear very evident marks of the 

 foundations of some extensive buildings were to be 

 seen, but still were too indistinct to enable us to 

 form any idea as to their character. A few yards 

 distant from them we found, nearly perfect, a regular 

 formed millstone of extraordinary dimensions, made 

 of a black coarse volcanic rock, and weighing at 

 least 600 pounds ; the Sultaun could give us no 

 other account of its origin than that it had been 

 brought down from the hills by the rain. Respect- 

 ing the stone houses, foundations of which we had 

 been examining, he told us that he had been 

 informed by his father, that the Turks had erected 

 them when they had possession of the country. 



