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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



dust-storms. Rain is not uncommon in 

 the spring, and then a tinge of green 

 spreads over the landscape. The ancient 

 fortress of Petra and now Maan owe 

 their importance as standing at the gate 

 of Arabia, and forming the last outpost 

 of Syria and Western civilization before 

 the long, dreary stages of the northern 

 Arabian journey. 



For countless ages — long before the 

 present pilgrimages — this was the route 

 by which the gold, frankincense, and 

 Arabian products found their way into 

 Syria ; but the Suez Canal and steamer 

 transport by the Red Sea seem to have 

 abolished all, or almost all, trade pros- 

 pects, and only the pilgrims remain. 



On leaving Maan it may indeed be said 

 that all hope of dividend is left behind, 

 and the line enters a spirit world without 

 towns or even inhabitants. The stages 

 south of Maan, the old pilgrim route, 

 were the most desolate of all, and the 

 way was always strewn by dead and 

 dying camels as the caravan toiled along. 

 The line crosses a constant succession of 

 small wadis. 



Some 50 miles south of Maan comes 

 the most remarkable change in the land- 

 scape, and the veritable gate of Arabia 

 and the home of the genie is at last 

 reached. The line arrives quite suddenly 

 at the edge of Ihe curious escarpment 

 known as the Batn-el-Ghrul, or the Hol- 

 low of the Genie. 



From the station of Batn-el-Ghrul, at 

 the top of the descent, the traveler can 

 walk to the edge of the cliff and take 

 in the immense extent of view which un- 

 folds itself to the south. The escarp- 

 ment is visible for some 20 miles to the 

 east and is a sheer cliff without, it is 

 said, a single passage of descent. For 

 some 15 miles to the west, also, the es- 

 carpment is fairly well defined, until it 

 merges in the high ranges overlooking 

 the Gulf of Akaba. The pilgrim route 

 follows the descent close alongside the 

 line and is comparatively easy. The 

 principal descent is from 3,207 feet at 

 the summit to 3,278 at the foot of the 

 escarpment, or 329 feet altogether. 



The view from the summit is ex- 



tremely striking and comprises a great 

 inland depression, walled in by a contin- 

 uation of the escarpment on the east, and 

 glowing throughout in the most brilliant 

 and striking colors. The prevailing note 

 is bright red and yellow, changing to vio- 

 let, purple, and black, so that every tint 

 except green seems to be supplied. The 

 escarpment is of sandstone, which seems 

 to have worn away in some places to 

 sand-drifts of all colors, but principally 

 red and yellow. The spurs of the Tel- 

 esh-Shahim, which run out parallel to- 

 me line, are covered with glistening black 

 rocks, at first sight volcanic, but, as I 

 was told by an engineer, they were really 

 of sandstone blackened by the intense 

 heat of the sun. The depression extends 

 south for a distance of about 120 miles. 

 In this clear, dry air every feature is 

 visible. Inquiries regarding the country 

 to the east gave it as an almost waterless 

 region, although a route does exist from 

 Maan to Jauf along which some scanty 

 wells can be found. Towards the Red 

 Sea the district is said to contain a few 

 villages, and a sufficient supply of water 

 from small springs. 



An endless series of beautiful mirages 

 unfold themselves as the train toils 

 slowly along these two lines of steel 

 leading through an endless expanse of 

 sand and rocks, varied with an occasional 

 volcanic outcrop raising black-topped 

 hills. 



At Tebuk, 430 miles from Damascus, 

 is the first oasis of any size, and here 

 a depot has been formed, at which the 

 railway can recoup itself before another 

 long stretch of nearly waterless desert is 

 entered and the next depot at El Ula 

 reached. A group of buildings for the 

 employes, a small repairing shop, and a 

 hospital with sixty beds form the prin- 

 cipal part of the depot. 



Tebuk consists of a group of date 

 palms about a half a mile square, deriv- 

 ing water from a large spring walled 

 round in a concrete basin and watched 

 over by another of the masonry forts 

 which mark a pilgrim station. Alto- 

 gether there were about sixty mud 

 houses, with a few walled gardens be- 



