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OUR MONTHLY.

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RELIGIOUS AND LITERARY MAGAZINE.

OCTOBER-1872.

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THE KINGDOM OF ARARAT.

BY DUNCAN M'GREGOR.

T the foot of a lofty range of snowy | small, sharp, merry, sociable man; two hills in Armenia, lies the village bald-pated monks from the neighboring of Etschmiadzin, with its convent. At convent; the lady of the house and her a little distance the convent lo ks like sister, lazily seated on a divan apart, the whole place, for its low but massive and dressed in the full-flowing robes, the walls and rambling rooms throw the jewelry and trinkets prized by the Arpoorer huts of the villagers quite into menian belle. Their dark dresses were the shade. This small town is situated relieved by the brilliant embroidery of in the very heart of a land full of vene- the cushions against which they leaned; rable romance-the kingdom of Ararat, the floating black tresses of each were the second cradle of the race. In what-bound with a silken circlet, decorated ever glorious and blooming garden spot our first parents lived their days of unsullied purity, and afterwards wept their repenting tears, the chill regions of Armenia, where winter has a half-yearly domination, received the children of Noah when the ark rested.

In Etschmiadzin was living in 185-, a certain cosmopolite trader, who might have belonged to any nationality, so familiar was he with the tongue and custom of each. This man had built for himself a house near the convent, making it something more comfortable than the ordinary Armenian dwellings; he had also taken to himself an Armenian beauty for a wife. In his home were we seated on a September night. At this part of the year it freezes keenly in Etschmia dzin, and we were all gathered around the fire-a motley group. The trader, a

with coins, and by each fair lady's side
stood-a long-stemmed pipe!
Our talk was of Ararat.

"Was it by any means certain," questioned one of our travelling companions, "that 'the mountains of Ararat,' where the ark rested, as saith the Scripture, are the same as these tremendous peaks overlooking Araxes? In olden time Ararat meant a territory; it may have had many hills far lower than this hoary king of mountains, who frowns upon us from the distance, looking so near, and yet being in truth so far away."

One of our monks here shook his head, in melancholy reproof of such profane doubts. "Peace, my son," he said, "this mountain, once called Taneez, is the very spot where the ship which carried Noah rested. It cannot be otherwise, for we have in our own convent a

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1872, by ALFRED MARTIEN, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.

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plank from that very ark, brought from the crest of Ararat by a most pious and devoted brother, upon whose soul be peace!"

Indeed," cried the doubter, "perhaps you can show us the plank and tell us how it was obtained."

"The blessed wood you can see tomorrow at our convent, and as for the way it came into our keeping, the story is brief. There was once a holy man of our order, the thought of whose life was to ascend Ararat. One day he set out, staff in hand, and climbed the third part of the mountain. Being exhausted, he ate some bread and fell asleep. When he awoke, lo, he was lying at the gate of the convent. He then fasted and wept, making all his prayer that he might reach the summit. At last he had a vision, granting him this desire. He again set out, and seeming upborne by invisible hands, he reached the topmost height, where he found the fragments of the ark lying under the snow. Laying a plank on his shoulder, he descended without difficulty."

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Now the other monk took up the tale. "A most notable abbot, living among us, also ascended the mountain. A band of angels fanned off the snows, and exhibited to him the ark entire, so that he even thrust his arm into the hole where the devil went out."

"And how was that?" asked the trader.

"When Noah was fairly shut in the ark, he looked about upon all the living creatures with him, and extending his hands said, ' Benedicite!' The devil had entered the ark in the shape of a hegoat.

When Noah said 'Benedicite,' the father of lies was so alarmed that he leaped through the side of the ark, about ten feet up, and vanished, leaving a broken place."

"Ararat as a kingdom," said our host, "is mentioned as the refuge of the sons of Sennacherib, after they had murdered their father in the house of his god in Nineveh. Jeremiah also calls it to come with other kingdoms to the overthrow of Babylon."

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Japhet, our father," said the elder monk, | dwelt on the sides of this mountain; and "came here and established his king- on its lower peak the twe've wise men dom. The top of Ararat is the centre of were keeping watch, when they saw the the world." star in the east and went to Bethlehem." "And the Armenians have a name of

Balaam," said the other friar, "once

Haiks, from Haig, a cotemporary of Belus, who came here and established a monarchy, to escape from the tyranny of Belus at Nineveh," said the trader. 'Have you ever climbed Ararat?" we asked.

"Only so far as Arguri, the spot where tradition says Noah planted his vineyard. It must have been warmer in his day than in ours."

The Armenian ladies had caught the name of Ararat, and madam spoke of something to her husband. He laughed and said, "They are speaking of the eruption of Ararat in 1840, which occasioned much alarm through all this country. Though Ararat may not be, as our friend thinks, the centre of the world, it is a gigantic waymark, showing the dividing of the Russian and Turkish empires. The mountain is their boundary stone."

"Armenia is nevertheless the true centre of the world," we said, "because hence all the nations departed and divided; humanity flowed from it, in its diverse streams, as rivers flow from some great water-shed."

"I don't wonder that they got away as fast as possible," said the doubter; "what a cold place it is, winter from October until May! Ice in September! Good reason for emigration."

"But we prize our summer the more while it lasts," said the friar, "and then the climate is healthy. People come here as well as go away-ask our trader;" and they nodded triumphantly.

"That is because of the silver, lead, iron, copper, and rock salt in which this olden kingdom of Ararat abounds," we suggested.

"It is an old kingdom, indeed," said one of the monks; "we Armenians get our name from Aram, who lived about two thousand years before Christ. We would have done very well if we had been let alone; but every neighboring nation has made us a prey. Turks, Kurds, and Persians all have ravaged our country, and murdered the inhabitants. Left to ourselves, our agriculture, our natural resources, our religion and literature would have been good enough,

very good; but an Armenian has D rights.'

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The two friars rose and drew their cowl over their shaven heads, preparatory ✰ facing the cold night. "When we ge back to the convent we will let you see the coverings of the plank from the ark.'

We left the trader's house. The moonlight shone brilliantly, a hoar frost glistened on the grass and shrubs; afar the mountains climbed toward the sky, a succession of noble summits, Ararat high over all.

The next morning we set out for a ride about the mountain, not expecting to undertake the whole ascent. We hired horses of some Persians, and engaged a couple of villainous Kurds for guides. The lower slopes of Ararat are sterile and dreary to a singular degree; coarse grasses fail to hide the volcanic boulders scattered in every direction. But after several thousand feet of the ascent had been made the scenery changes; springs of deliciously clear water are frequent, the herbage is varied and luxuriant, and in the high valley between the two summits of Ararat, one finds a delightsome little Arcadia for summer months.

Our Kurds proposed that we should lunch at "the village." For a village we watched in vain. When at last they proclaimed our arrival at the desired spot, and set themselves to take down the hampers, we looked about for houses. We might have been in a small village of prairie dogs, but saw no traces of more human habitations; certain hummocks, with holes in the sides, extending into some subterranean lais, showed where miserable members of our race had burrowed at some not distant period. Whoever they were, they are gone, let us hope to better abodes.

We ate our luncheon, looking as we did so longingly toward these peaks, the great twin brethren of mountains. Could we not make the ascent?

Our Kurds were vehement in their opposition to such a scheme; Kurds and Armenians girdle these mountains with superstitious fears. To them the white summits have a sacred inviolability; they

are assured the attempt could never be successful; if one went up and brought dozens of planks from the ark down as a proof that he had reached the very tip-top, he would never be believed!

"Never!" cried the Kurds, "never; the great father, Noah, rules there, clad in a huge white mantle; he is as large as one hundred men; very much larger than the giants who dwelt in

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delay was long; the Kurds ate, and were happy; as for ourselves, growing weary, we left guides and baggage-mule, and rode on to the convent. The moon was

Bashan. He will slay the intruder from |
afr; the man who tries to climb Ararat
will fall nine times where he only rises
once, and he will slip back three feet for
every one he climbs up;" and they un-up.
easily began to make preparations for our
return to the village.

The low walls shone white in the pure light, here and there a clump of hardy shrubs still retained their dark As we rode back toward evening, we foliage. Once the home of a strong people came upon an encampment of Kurds who and the cradle of nations, Armenia now had killed a sheep, and were now roast- seemed desolate and depopulated, downing it for supper. We were invited to trodden by her irreverent descendants, partake of the feast, and our guides who value little her gray antiquity, and are could not resist the temptation. The careless of the legends of her joyous youth.

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