Page:Palestine Exploration Fund - Quarterly Statement for 1894.djvu/125



a brief but most interesting stay of nine days in Palestine, the pilgrims of the party, under the leadership of Mr. Woolrych Perowne, have embarked on their special steamer for Athens. As several lectures were given to the party in Jerusalem under the auspices of the Fund, an account of the pilgrimage will be of interest. On Sunday, February 25th, the party landed at Jaffa in comparative comfort, whereas the company arriving in the "Fürst Bismarck" on the Friday following were tossing about for forty-eight hours before an embarkation was possible. The pilgrims numbered one hundred and twenty.

There were twenty-two clergymen, including the Bishop of Worcester, Canon Tristram, of Durham, the Rev. Osborne Jay, of Shoreditch, and five Nonconformist ministers. About fifty proceeded to Jerusalem at once by train, while the rest followed on Monday, some by train, some by carriage. The hotel accommodation here was somewhat strained, but all were comfortably housed.

Notwithstanding the fatigue after the long journey, a large number turned out to hear Canon Tristram lecture Monday evening in the lecture room of Christ Church, kindly lent for the week by the Vicar, the Rev. Mr. Kelk. Canon Tristram began by referring to a remark made to him years ago by Rawlinson, that a large part of the history of Kings and Chronicles could be reconstructed from the Egyptian Monuments, but that Palestine itself, the theatre of those events, furnished hardly any such monuments. The reason is a double one. First, the geology: Palestine is a limestone country, Egypt used the imperishable granite, Assyria employed the equally immortal burnt clay, while Palestine worked in the soft and friable limestone or the perishable wood. Hence the preservation of inscriptions becomes most difficult. Second, the climate: In Egypt the wonderful dry atmosphere and the preserving sand have kept painted wooden panels perfectly fresh for thousands of years. Here the frosts and rains of winter alternating with the fierce heat of summer have destroyed the monuments. Wood in Palestine is exceptionally perishable. Tyre was in advance of Egypt in metal-work, but could not hand it down; the climate made this a physical impossibility.

The lecturer then reviewed the country between Jaffa and Jerusalem. Jaffa was Phœnician rather than Israelite. The coast between Scandaroon and Gaza has only two natural harbours, suitable for large shipping. The pilgrims had reason to notice the reefs, cropping out above the water, parallel to the coast at Jaffa. Similar reefs may