NAZARETH. 181 
before her dwelling, she as quickly ran back chap. 
again; we then perceived her beating some- _. 
thing violently, all the while filling the air with 
the most piercing shrieks. Running to see 
what was the cause of her cries, we observed 
an enormous serpent, which she had found near 
her infant, and had completely dispatched be- 
fore our arrival. Never were maternal feelings 
more strikingly pourtrayed than in the counte- 
nance of this woman. Not satisfied with havino- 
killed the animal, she continued her blows until 
she had reduced it to atoms, unheeding any 
thing that was said to her, and only abstracting 
her attention from its mangled body to cast, 
occasionally, a wild and momentary glance 
towards her child. 
In the evening, we visited the environs ; and, Environs 
walkino- to the brow of a hill above the town, Town. 
were gratified by an interesting prospect of the 
long valley of Nazareth, and some hills, between 
which a road leads to the nei^hbouringc Plain 
of Esdraelon, and to Jerusalem. Some of the 
^rabs came to converse with us. We were sur- 
prised to hear them speaking Italian : they said 
they had been early instructed in. this language, 
by the friars of the Convent. Their conver- 
sation was full of complaints against the rapa- 
