Chapter I: Preface

Although Syria possesses a rare natural beauty and boasts a wealth of historic and religious interest, its fame has been so overshadowed by that of the neighboring Land of Israel that most travelers are content to take the easy railway journey to Baalbek and Damascus, and know nothing of the wild mountain valleys and snow-capped summits of Lebanon or the many ancient shrines of a country whose history reaches far back of the classic days of Greece.

It is therefore with great pleasure that I accede to the request of the publishers of my “Real Palestine of To-day” and supplement the earlier work by the present companion-volume on Syria; so that, though the books may be read independently, the two together may give a complete view of the lands of the Bible.

The chapter on Palmyra is from the pen of Professor Harvey Porter, Ph.D., of the Syrian Protestant College; and for many of the hitherto unpublished photographs I am indebted to other members of the faculty of that institution. Grateful acknowledgment is also made to _The World To-day_, _The New Era_, _The Sunday School Times_, _The Newark_ (N. J.) _News_, and especially to _Travel_ and _Scribner’s Magazine_, for permission to include material which originally appeared in these publications.

In the writing of Arabic words, my aim has been smooth reading, rather than a systematic transliteration of the numerous sounds which are not found in English. As an aid to pronunciation, it should be noted that the stress always falls upon a syllable bearing a circumflex accent.

It will be seen that this book is written from a more intimate and personal viewpoint than the volume on Palestine. I could not write otherwise of the country which was for years my own home and where to-day I have many cherished friends among both Syrians and Franks. In fact, I must write very slowly; for every now and then I lay down my pen and, with a homesick lump in my throat, dream over again the happy days in that land of wondrous beauty which I still love with all my heart.

LEWIS GASTON LEARY

Pelham Manor, N. Y., October 15, 1913.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

I THE WHITE MOUNTAIN 1

II THE LEFT-HAND LAND 6

III THE CITY OF SATURN 26

IV THE SPIRIT OF OLYMPIA 44

V ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS 60

VI THE LAND OF UZ 72

VII THE EARTHLY PARADISE 88

VIII THE PORT OF THE WILDERNESS 95

IX THE RICHES OF DAMASCUS 110

X THE DESERT CAPITAL 128

XI SOME SALT PEOPLE 144

XII THE CEDARS OF THE LORD 163

XIII THE GIANT STONES OF BAALBEK 184

XIV HAMATH THE GREAT 201

THE ILLUSTRATIONS

Evening in the harbor of Beirut _Frontispiece_

FACING PAGE

Along the coast north of Beirut 4

Looking up the western slopes of Lebanon 5

Lebanon soldiers 16

Village of Deir el-Kamr 17

Bay of Beirut and Mount Sunnin 26

Pine groves of Beirut 27

Bridge over the Dog River 36

Procession in Beirut 38

Students of the American College 48

Cape of Beirut viewed from Lebanon 49

Old Bridge over the Barada River 70

Cascade in the Yarmuk Valley 71

A caravan 82

Damascus—a distant view 83

Damascus—one of the more modern avenues 100

A Syrian café 101

Damascus—court of a private residence 112

Damascus—Moslem cemetery 113

Damascus—The Street called Straight 120

Damascus—The Omayyade Mosque 121

Palmyra—General view of the ruins 134

Palmyra—the Triple Gate 135

Funeral procession of the patriarch 160

A summer camp in Lebanon 161

The Cedar Mountain 170

Source of the Kadisha River 171

The oldest Cedar of Lebanon 182

Baalbek—the six great columns 183

Baalbek—the stone in the quarry 198

Hama—the Orontes River 199

MAPS AND PLANS

The railway from Beirut to Damascus 62

Cross-section of Syria 64

The Hauran 74

The temples of Baalbek 194

SYRIA

THE LAND OF LEBANON

_Syria, The Land of Lebanon_