. $73 
B A M 
g.'.rd the emperor a? an apoftate, and themfelves abfolved 
from their obligations as fubje&s. It is faid that the 
emperor was fo provoked by thefe letters, that he caufed 
one to be drawn up in a hand-writing nicely refembling 
that ot Damafcenus, containing pretended propofals from 
the latter to himfelf, that amounted to treafon againff 
the caliph, which he fent to that prince, glorying in 
taking no advantage of the perfidioufnefs of a traitor, 
and in being fo generous as to difcover his guilt to his 
aim fed fovereign. It is alfo faid that the caliph, on 
reading the counterfeit letter, ordered Damafcenus’s right 
hand to be cut off, without hearing the protections of 
innocence which lie made. Damafcenus then (hut him¬ 
felf up in the monaftery of St. Sabas at Jerusalem, de¬ 
termined to devote the remainder of his days to ftudy, 
and the feverities of the cloifter. He was ordained a 
prielt towards the latter end of his life by the patriarch 
of Jerufalem, and died about the year 750. He was the 
author of a great variety of works in theology, philofo- 
phv, and eccledaftical hiftory. They abound in proofs 
of extensive erudition, eminent talents, and great contro- 
veriial lubtilty, united with an abundant portion of fu- 
perftition, and a flaviffi veneration for the opinions of the 
more ancient fathers of the church. Damafcenus has 
been confidered by fome as the father of the fcholallics, 
on account of his having fet the fil'd example of apply¬ 
ing the language and arrangements of the peripatetic 
philofophy in an explanation of the doctrines of the gof- 
pel. What infinite mifchiefs have arifen from this un¬ 
natural alliance between Jefus Chrid and Aridotle ! The 
bed edition of this father’s works was publidied at Paris, 
in Greek and Latin, 2 vols. folio, by Michael Lequien, 
in 1712. 
DAMAS'CIUS, a Gentile philofopher, the lad pro- 
feffor of the Platonic fcliool at Alexandria, a native of 
Damafcus, flourifhed in the fixth century. He dudied 
both at Athens and Alexandria, under the following 
able maders r Theon, in rhetoric ; Iddorus, in logic; 
Marinus, the fuccelfor of Proclus, in geometry and arith¬ 
metic ; Zenodotus, in philofophy ; and Ammonius, in 
mathematics and the dodtrines of Plato. After the death 
of Theon, Damafcius filled for nine years the chair of 
rhetoric, and, after the death of Iddorus, that of philo¬ 
fophy, at Athens. At what time he removed to Alex¬ 
andria is uncertain. After having prefided for a while 
in the philofophical fchool in that city, he was obliged 
to withdraw, and fly into Perfia, to avoid the perfec¬ 
tions which were exerclfed by Judiuian againd the Gen¬ 
tile philofophers. We are not furnillied with any parti¬ 
culars of his fate after that event. He was the author 
of a life of Iddorus, and the lives of other philofophers, 
which probably compoled the Philofophical Hiftory, of 
which Saidas fpealcs. He alfo wrote Commentaries on 
Piato, which, from the fragments handed down to us, 
appear to have been oblcure and fanatical; and a trea- 
tiie, in four books, Concerning Things Extraordinary 
and Surpridng, containing relations of marvellous events, 
demons, apparitions, &c. that {hewed the author to pof- 
i'efs an abundant diare of credulity and fuperdition. 
DAMAS'CUS, [ypiMj-j, Heb.] A celebrated city of 
Syria, about fifty miles from the fea, from which 
it is feparated by a long chain of mountains; but by 
whom, or when founded, is unknown. That it exided 
in the time of Abraham, is evident from the facred 
writings. In the time.of David, it was the capital of a 
kingdom which David conquered and added to his own 
dominions. During the reign of the fucceeding kings of 
Iirael and Judah, it was lometimes fubjedfc to them, and 
at other times independent, or governed by kings of their 
ow.i), who called themfelves kings of Syria and Da'maf. 
cus. In the year of the world 3939, it came under the 
power of the Romans, with whom it continued till it fell 
into the hands of the Arabians. Oboaas, father of Are- 
tas, king of Arabia, was mader of Damafcus, under Au- 
Sjudus; and Aretas was governor of Damafcuswhen St. 
D A M 
Paul was there. Damafcus was a long time under the 
dominion of the emperors, and was one of the live arfe- 
nals which they had in the ead. In the reign of Hera- 
clius, the Saracens became maders of it; they were driven 
out by the Turks, whole general became foudan, or lul- 
tan, of Damafcus. Other Turks, commanded by Otto¬ 
man fultans, dedroyed the kingdom of Damafcus. Ta¬ 
merlane, having defeated the fultan, Bajazet II. be- 
fieged and took Damafcus, and put the inhabitants to 
the fword : next the Egyptian mamelukes got poffedion 
of it, and kept it till the year 1516, when Selim, empe¬ 
ror of the Turks, conquered both it and all Syria, dnce 
which time it has remained with the Turks. Damafcus 
is now the capital of a pachalic. The Arabs call it EL 
Sham. It is dtuated in a vad plain, open to the fouth 
and ead, and (hut in toward the wed and north by moun¬ 
tains, which limit the view at no great didance; but, in 
return, a number of rivulets arife from thefe mountains, 
which render the territory of Damafcus the bed watered 
and mod delicious province of all Syria ; the Arabs fpeak 
of it with enthudafm, and think' they can never fuffi- 
ciently extol the frelhnefs and verdure of its orchards; 
the abundance and variety of its fruits; its numerous 
breams ; and the clearnefs of its rills and fountains. No 
city affords fo many canals and fountains; each houfe 
has one ; and all thefe waters are furniihed by three ri¬ 
vulets, or branches of the fame river, which, after ferti¬ 
lizing the gardens fora courfeof three leagues, flow into 
a hollow of the defert to the fouth-eaft, where they form 
a moral's called Bchairat-el-Mardj , or the Lake of the Mea¬ 
dow, With fuch a fituation, it cannot be difputed that 
Damafcus is one of the mod agreeable cities in Turkey; 
but it is dill deficient in point of falubrity. The inha¬ 
bitants complain, with reafon, that the white waters of 
the Barrada are cold and hard, and it is obferved, that 
the natives are fubjedt to obftrudtions ; that the white- 
nefs of their {kin is rather the palenefs of ficknefs than 
the colour of health ; and that the too great ufe of fruit, 
particularly of apricots, occafions there, every fummer 
and autumn, intermittent fevers and dyfenteries. Da¬ 
mafcus is much longer than it is broad. M. Niebuhr, 
who has given a plan of it, makes it 3250 toifes, or fome. 
thing lefs than a league and a half in circumference, and 
it is fuppofed, by Mr. Pinkerton, in his Modern Geogra. 
phy, publidied in 1802, to contain about 180,000 fouls. 
The greater part of thefe are Arabs and Turks; the 
number of Chridians are edimated at above 15,000. Da¬ 
mafcus is the rendezvous for all the pilgrims who go to 
Mecca from the north of Alia, as Cairo is for thofe from 
Africa. Their number every year amounts to from 
thirty to fifty thoufand ; many of them repair here four 
months before the time, but the greated number only at 
the end of the Ramadan. Damalcus then refembles an 
immenfe fair, nothing is to be feen but hrangers from all 
parts of Turkey, and even Perda ; and every place is 
full of camels, horfes, mules, and merchandize. By 
means of this caravan, Damafcus is become the center of 
a very extenbve commerce. By Aleppo,, the merchants 
of this city correfpona with Armenia, Natolia, Diarbe- 
lcar, and even with Perfia. They fend caravans to Ca¬ 
iro, which, following a route frequented in the time of 
the patriarchs, take their courfe by Djefr-yakoub, Ta- 
baria, Nablous, and Gaza. In return, they receive the 
merchandize of Condantinople aud Europe by way of 
Saide and Bairout. The home confumption is balanced 
by filk and cotton duffs, which are manufactured here in 
great quantities, and are very well made ; by the dried 
fruits of their own growth, and fweetmeats, cakes of 
rofes, apricots, and peaches, of which Turkey confumes 
to the amount of about 40,000 pounds. The remainder 
paid for by the courfe of exchange, occafions a confider- 
able circulation of money in cuftom-houfe duties, and 
the commifiion of the merchants. This commerce has 
exided in thefe countries from the mod remote antiquity. 
It has flowed through different channels, according to 
