Page:Harry Charles Luke and Edward Keith-Roach - The Handbook of Palestine (1922).djvu/23

 4 Lakes.—Palestine possesses a geographical feature unique in the world in the Jordan Valley, or Ghor, and the chain of lakes through which the Jordan flows. Rising near Banias at a height of about 3,000 feet above sea-level, the Jordan enters Lake Huleh (the Waters of Merom), whose surface is 7 feet above sea-level. The depth of Lake Huleh varies from 10 to 16 feet; its width is 4 miles from north to south and 3 miles from east to west at its broadest point. Between Lake Huleh and the Lake of Tiberias (Sea of Galilee) the river drops 690 feet in a distance of 10 miles, and becomes a narrow turbulent stream.

The Lake of Tiberias is 13½ miles long and 7½ miles broad. The surface is 682 feet below sea-level, and the greatest depth 160 feet. The northern end of the Lake is muddy, this being due to the turbulent nature of the Jordan, but its southern part is quite clear and is potable, except in the neighbourhood of the town of Tiberias. The Lake, as in biblical days, is liable to sudden storms, and the local boat- men avoid, so far as possible, crossing its centre after mid-day.

Between the Lake of Tiberias and the Dead Sea, whose surface lies 1,292 feet below sea-level, the Jordan falls nearly 600 feet. The Dead Sea, called by the Arabs Bahr Lut (the Lake of Lot), is 48 miles long and 10 miles wide at its greatest breadth, both dimensions being almost identical with those of the Lake of Geneva. Its maximum depth is 1,310 feet, but its southern extremity is shallow, and is separated from the principal basin by a low-lying peninsula called al-Lisan ('The Tongue’). It has been calculated that 6½ million tons of water fall into the Dead Sea daily, and, in consequence of the extraordinary evaporation which ensues, the water remaining behind is impregnated to an unusual extent with mineral substances. The water contains about 25 per cent. of solid substances, chloride of sodium (common salt) contributing 7 per cent. The water has a bitter and nauseous taste, due to the chloride of magnesium, while the chloride of calcium makes it smooth and oily to the touch. Owing to the intense buoyancy of the water, swimming is