INTRODUCTION. Iix 



myra, indeed any fculpture I ever remember to have feen 

 in ftone. All thefe views of Palmyra and Baalbec are now 

 in the King's collection. They are the moll magnificent 

 offering in their line that ever was made by one fubject to 

 his fovereign. 



Passing by Tyre, from curiofity only, I came to be a 

 mournful witnefs of the truth of that prophecy, That Tyre, 

 the queen of nations, mould be a rock for fifhers to dry 

 their nets on*. Two wretched fifhermen, with miferable 

 nets, having juft given over their occupation with very little 

 fuccefs, I engaged them, at the expence of their nets, to 

 drag in thofe places where they faid fhell-fifli might be 

 caught, in hopes to have brought out one of the famous 

 purple-fifh. I did not fucceed, but in this I was, I believe, as 

 lucky as the old fifhers had ever been. The purple fifh. at 

 Tyre feems to have been only a concealment of their know- 

 ledge of cochineal, as, had they depended upon the fifh for 

 their dye, if the whole city of Tyre applied to nothing elfe 

 but fifliing, they would not have coloured twenty yards of 

 cloth in a year. Much fatigued, but fatisfied beyond mea- 

 fure with what I had feen, I arrived in perfect health, and 

 in the gayeft humour poflible, at the hofpitable manfion of 

 M. Clerambaut at Sidon. 



I found there letters from Europe, which were in a very 

 different flyle from the laft. From London, my friend Mr 

 Huffel acquainted me, that he had fent me an excellent 

 reflecting telefcope of two feet focal length, moved by 



h 2 rack- 



* Ezek. chap. xxvi. ver. 5. 



