At the time of this writing there is a railroad extending from
Damascus to Mecca, but at the time of my visit the terminus was at
Mezarib, a small town about fifty miles south of Damascus, near
the northern boundary-line of Gilead. It was in my plan to travel
that distance by rail; hence my presence at the city railroad
station.
The ride to Mezarib, through Bashan, especially that part of it
now known as the Hauran, is one of more than ordinary interest.
For the first twenty-five miles the land is literally covered with
black basaltic rocks, as is also part of the remaining distance.
How it is cultivated I can scarcely understand, for I am sure that
the American horse could not be made to serve well here. But I was
told that the natives do cultivate it, and that they raise
excellent crops of grain. When I looked upon them at work with
their crude wooden plows and brush harrows, and then heard that
they raise excellent crops of grain, I was satisfied that the land
must be very fertile; and I was reminded of a certain humorist's
remark about the fertility of some land in Kansas, of which he
said, "All you need to do is to tickle the ground with a hoe, and
it will laugh with a big harvest." Farther on the rocks almost
entirely disappear, and there is spread out a beautiful valley,
extending far to the south, whose fertility and pasturage
attracted the Israelites on their march to Canaan, and which, ever
since, has caused the name "Bashan" to be a synonym for "plenty."
And, because of its abundant production of grain, which finds a
ready market in Damascus, it has been aptly called the "granary of
Damascus."
The manner in which this grain is put on the market is quite novel
to me. I see hundreds of camels loaded with large sacks of grain
moving with slow, swinging tread toward Damascus, or returning
unloaded to the desert. The camels proceed in single file, usually
ten or more in a train, and each is led by means of a rope
fastened to the animal next in front - the rope of the foremost of
all being fastened to the saddle of a donkey, on which the owner,
or driver, usually rides. Many grindstones also are shipped from
this country, one large stone constituting a load for a camel.
This land is, also a great grazing region, and for more than three
thousand years Bashan has been celebrated for its fine breed of
cattle.
Some distance south of Damascus I cross the headwaters of the
Pharpar River, whose clear, sparkling water Naaman considered much
more suitable for a general's bath than the muddy water of the
Jordan. At my place of crossing an athlete could clear the stream
at a single bound.
The distant scenery deserves more than a passing notice, though
but little more can be given here.
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