6f)0 Chateaubriand's Travels in Greece^ Palestine, Kcl 
Unable to make out what it was, I per- 
ceived what appeared-to be sand in mo¬ 
tion. On drawing nearer to this singu¬ 
lar object, I beheld a yellow current, 
tvhich I could scarcely distinguish from 
the sands on its shores. It was deeply 
sunk below its banks, and its sluggish 
stream rolled slowly on. This was the 
Jordan ! 
I had surveyed the great rivers of 
America with that pleasure which soli¬ 
tude and nature impart; I had visited 
the Tiber with enthusiasm, and sought 
•with the same interest the Eurotas and 
the Cephisus; but I cannot express what 
i felt at the sight of the Jordan. Not 
only did this river remind me of a re¬ 
nowned antiquity, and one of the most 
celebrated names that the most exquisite 
poetry ever confided to the-memory of 
man ; but its shores likewise presented 
to my view the theatre of the miracles of 
my religion. Judea is the only country 
in the world that revives in the traveller 
the memory of human affairs and of ce¬ 
lestial things, and which, by this combi¬ 
nation, produces in the soul a feeling and 
ideas w hich no other region is capable of 
exciting. 
THE ARABS. 
The Arabs, wherever I have seen 
them, in Judea, in Egypt, and even in 
Barbary, have appeared to me to be 
rather tail than short. Their demeanor 
is haughty. They are well made and 
active. They have an oval head, the 
'lirow high and arched, aquiline nose, 
large eyes with a watery and uncommon¬ 
ly gentle look. Nothing about them 
would proclaim the savage, if their 
mouths were always shut; but, as soon 
as they begin to speak, you hear a-harsh 
and strongly aspirated langqage, and per¬ 
ceive long and beautifully white teeth, 
like those of jackals and ounces: dif- 
fering'in jhis respect from the American 
savage, wliose ferocity is in his looks, and 
human expression in his mouth. 
Tlie Arab women are still taller in 
proportion than the men. Their car¬ 
riage is dignified; and, by the regularity 
of their features, the beauty of their 
^giires, and the disposition of their veils, 
they somewhat remind you of the statues 
of the Priestesses and of the Muses, 
This must, however, be understood w'ith 
some restriction : these beautiful statues 
are often clothed in rags; a wretched, 
squalid, and suffering look degrades those 
forms so elegant; a copper teiat con¬ 
ceals the regularity of the features ; in a 
word, to behold these women as I havg 
just delineated them, you must view 
them at a distance, confine yourself to 
the general appearance, and not enter 
-into particulars. 
Most of the Arabs wear a tunic, fast¬ 
ened round the w'aist by a girdle. Some¬ 
times they take one arm out of a sleeve 
of this tunic, and then they are habited in 
the antique style; sometimes they put on 
a white woollen covering,which serves for 
a toga, a mantle, or a veil, according as 
they wrap it round them, suspend it from 
their shoulders, or throw it over their 
heads. They go barefoot, and are arm¬ 
ed with a dagger, a pike, and along fire¬ 
lock. The tribes travel in caravans ; 
the camels going in file. The first camel 
is fastened by a cord made of the tow 
of the palm to the neck of an ass, which 
is the guide of the troop. The latter, as 
leader, is exempt from all burden, and 
enjoys various privileges. Among the 
wealthy tribes, the camels are adorned 
with fringes, flags, and feathers. 
The horses are treated according to' 
the purity of their blood, with more or 
less honor, but always with extreme se¬ 
verity. They are never put under shel¬ 
ter, but left exposed to the intense heat 
of the sun, tied by all four legs to stakes 
driven in the ground, so that they cannot 
stir. The saddle is never taken from 
their backs; they frequently drink but 
once, and have only one feed of barlej', 
in twenty-four hours. This rigid treat¬ 
ment, so far from wearing them out, 
gives them sobriety, patience, and speed, 
I have often admired an Arabian steed 
thus tied down to the burning sand, 
his hair loosely flowing, his head bowed 
between his legs to find a little shade, 
and stealing, with his wild eye, an oblique 
glance at his master. Release his legs 
from the shackles, spring upon his back, 
and be will paw in the valley, lie will re¬ 
joice in his strength, he will swallow the 
ground in the fierceness of his rage, and 
you recognise the original of the picture 
delineated by Job. 
THE HOLY SEPULCHRE. 
I repaireii to the church which en¬ 
closes tiie tomb of Jesus Christ, All 
preceding travellers have described this 
church, the most venerable in the world, 
whether we think as philosophers or as 
Christians. 
It no longer exists; having been to¬ 
tally destroyed by fire since my retursy 
from Judea. I am, I may sny, the last 
traveller by whom it was visited^ and, for 
the 
