188 GENERAL SIK CHARLES WARREN, G.C.M.G.^ F.K.S., ON 



opened across the sea for the Israelites, and they passed over 

 dry-shod, but the Egyptians following after were overthrown in 

 the midst of the sea, chariots and horsemen. 



The Israelites were now free to move at leisure, and Moses 

 led them south by the shore of the Eed Sea into the Wilderness 

 of the Wanderings about Sinai to the foot of the Holy Moun- 

 tain. They w^ere now put into training for the simple life 

 which was to fit them for their work of conquest. 



But the people, now that the danger from Pharaoh was 

 eliminated, became dissatisfied with their lot, and rather than 

 undergo the hardships of training they recalled the flesh- 

 pots of Egypt, and said that they would rather have died 

 in Egypt. Then the Lord rained manna from heaven, and 

 also sent them quails. We have no idea at the present day 

 what kind of food manna was, but the descent of the quails, 

 as described, is a complete account of what takes place in the 

 desert at the present day : with certain winds they descend 

 un the desert near the Suez Canal and are captured in numbers 

 by the Canal warders, who put out bottles with the bottoms 

 knocked out, into which the birds creep in the heat of the day, 

 and are thus captured. Quails are a delicacy when eaten 

 sparingly, but you soon get fed up with them in the desert. 



After the second month of tlieir wanderings the Israelites had 

 fully entered into their training : (1) They led the simple life with 

 their limited amount of food, eked out by manna. (2) They 

 supplied themselves with warHke implements, and learnt how 

 to use them and how to drill, and fought successfully against 

 the Amalekites. (3) Whilst resting at the foot of Sinai, they 

 were ori^anized in their thousands and hundreds under militarv 

 judges and leaders, and the law was promulgated, and they were 

 made subject to it. 



How far there was any previous organization we do not know, 

 but it seems clear that in Egypt they must have had an organi- 

 zation for the performance of their daily tasks. The Egyptians, 

 we know from their monuments, were highly organized, horse, 

 fuot and chariots, but as they were jealous of the growing 

 numbers of Israel, they may have restricted tlieir organization 

 to reduce their power of rebellion. After training for little over 

 one year, the Israelites w^ere considered fit as to their military 

 organization, and were sent up from Sinai on their way to the 

 conquest of the Land of Canaan (Deut. ix, 23). They were told : 

 " Go up and possess the land which I have given you," and 

 they marched direct on Kadesh Barnea. Bewildered with the 

 reports of the spies, they refused to go on to conquest, having 



