fatigue. He and Dr. Keith have accordingly resolved on returning by the Danube. We felt sorry indeed to part; but, for the sake of our great cause and of his health, I believe it is our only duty. We saw them on board the Austrian steamer yesterday, which will arrive at Smyrna in four days. They will proceed by Constantinople up the Danube, and then across to the Rhine; and so they may reach home with hardly any land travelling, which is very needful to the Doctor's comfort. He has already performed good service in the cause; and I trust will reach home in safety. They promised to see you in passing through Edinburgh; as they will probably be a month before us.

Andrew and I feel that more is cast upon us now, so that we have more to cast upon God, who careth for us. We have got a converted Jew engaged to go with us, a most interesting young man of the name of Calman. We met him in London, and here again. He has labored five years in Palestine, and is much and justly esteemed. He speaks Arabic, Polish, German, &c.; so that we shall be better off than ever in regard to making inquiries. We propose, if God direct our steps, to sleep to-night near Sidon; to-morrow morning to visit the synagogue, and proceed to Tyre; then across to Tiberias, where are 1000 Jews; then to spend Saturday and Sabbath in Saffet. Next week we shall return to this place by Damascus. The Austrian steamer sails again on the 28th. We We purpose to sail by it for Smyrna and Constantinople. From that we proceed by land through Bucharest, Jassy, Lublin, Cracow, Warsaw, Posen, Berlin, Hamburgh, Hull, Edinburgh. We know not what a day may bring forth, but we trust that our way homeward may be prospered. My health is now decidedly better. A Jewish physician here (a convert) encouraged me much about my health, he having had the same complaint himself. He thinks the travelling will be very beneficial. The only new trouble that has come upon me is deafness in one ear. Had I acquired it when sleeping on the ground, I would have attributed it to that; but I got it within this last week, sleeping in a comfortable bed. I hope it will go away as quietly as it came. Andrew is quite well; and we are standing the heat much better now. Beyrout is the hottest place in Syria. Dr. Black preached yesterday, before sailing, in the American Consul's; we had the Communion afterwards at the Mission-house. It was pleasant to join in that holy service with so many of different persuasions. There were more than 20 turbans-two that had been Armenian Bishops-Bishop Karavet and Bishop Yakob, with venerable beardsone Abyssinian-several Greek Catholics-Presbyterians-Congregational, and Church of Scotland-and four converted Jews.

Now, my dear Eliza, how are you coming on in my absence? and how are you all? Do you hear still from Miss Carnegy? I am truly thankful to think that they are so well supplied in my absence. Perhaps my great Master will fully recover me, and I

shall preach among them once more the unsearchable riches of Christ. I sometimes think I set my heart too much upon this; and that God has sent me away to teach me that He can save and feed the people without any help of mine; and that His will, not my will, must be done. I fear I shall not be back till the end of October, if all shall go on safely, so that I must devolve my Communion again on some of my friends. I may be in time for it; but in case I should not, it will be better to ask some one to undertake it. You know it is the last Sabbath of October. What I propose is, that Mr. Mellis should preach the forenoon of the Fast, Mr. Moody the afternoon and evening. I mean to ask John Bonar to undertake the principal part on Sabbath, Horatius Bonar to preach on the Saturday and Sabbath evening. Robert Macdonald will undertake Sabbath tables, and the Monday. I shall try and write to all these myself, bidding them all write to my father, whether they can undertake it or no. In case of any declining, you must just use all your discretions to find out suitable laborers to fill their place. I would like Cumming to be asked, if John Bonar declines.

Now, dear Eliza, may your soul prosper and be in health. I commend you all to Him whom Jesus called your father and my father. If you have all a saving heart-acceptance of Christ as the Lord our Righteousness, all is well; without it, we shall surely perish. Every step I take makes Christ more precious. Indeed I should be miserable had I not a Father near. Commend me again to all dear friends. Kiss one another for me; and believe me ever your affectionate brother,

ROBT. MURRAY MCHEYNE.

We intend to part with some of our portmanteaus; sending them home by sea to Liverpool, then to Leith.-Farewell.

My dear Eliza,—I have written half a letter to John Bonar, but a converted Jew has interrupted me, and now the hour is come we must ride. Our horses are at the door. If I leave this letter till I come back to Beyrout, he will not receive it for another month, that is, till September. I do not like to send him a hurried line from this land, and must therefore postpone it. Perhaps, then, my father will write to him, urging my earnest request, that he will, in case of my not arriving, dispense the Communion. Perhaps also he will invite Mr. Moody. Explain to him why I have not written him. I shall write him my very first leisure. He may write H. Bonar of Kelso also. Mellis and Macdonald I will undertake. The Lord watch over you again. My dear Eliza, yours.

I plucked a rose of Sharon for you, and concealed it under my saddle, but, alas, it dropped. I am of opinion that the rose of Sharon is the splendid rhododendron, or rose-tree, which blooms there in magnificent profusion. It is, like Christ, altogether lovely.

LETTER XIII.

TO MRS. COUTTS.

BEYROUT, 22nd July, 1839. MY DEAR MRS. COUTTS,-I do not forget my promise to write to you; and as I know you will wish me to do so from the land of Israel, I make a point of writing you before I leave it. I would have written from Jerusalem, but there were so many things I thought it my duty to see and inquire after there, that scarcely a moment was left for writing. Our Lord has dealt very kindly with us in all our journeyings, although the fatigues have been such as I never experienced before, and the dangers often very imminent. Yet praise be to Him on whose errand we go; He has let no true evil befall us.

The time needful to finish our work in Immanuel's land has been much greater than we anticipated. Still this has given us an opportunity to see more of its hills and valleys, and ruined cities; and we have also the satisfaction of having visited the Jews, and left a testimony for Jesus with them, in every city of this country where they live, with the exception of Joppa. Jerusalem was the first city we visited where there are Jews. During our residence, the plague was daily carrying off its victims; and as the Jews are poor, and most exposed to its ravages, we were greatly hindered in our intercourse with them. Still it was deeply interesting to mark their wan visages in the streets of the city of their fathers. They are quite different from the Jews of our country, or of France and Italy. They have little or no merchandise. Their whole time is devoted to reading the Law and the Commentaries of the Rabbins. They are broken down in heart by their distresses, and, like Manasseh in his affliction, much more willing to attend to one who speaks from God to them. Their appearance is very remarkable. The European Jews wear the broad German hat, or the high Russian fur cap. The beard is allowed to grow, and ringlets down the side of the face to distinguish them from the heathen. They have a pale, thoughtful look, and are really waiting for the consolation of Israel. The Church of England missionaries at Jerusalem are truly delightful men, and their success has not been small. Mr. Nicolayson acted towards us like a very brother, being our guide to all the sacred spots, and a most intelligent informant in all points which we desired to know. Mr. Pieritz, a Jewish convert, is a very singular man. His hold of the Gospel is like that of a little child, and he has great power with the Jews. He may be said, like Paul, to confound the Jews, proving that this is very Christ. One young man, named Joseph,

has been fully brought to know the truth, and has gone to Constantinople for fear of the Jews. Another was baptized in Jerusalem, and has gone to London. Three Rabbis are at present under daily instruction. They are all determined to make an open profession of the faith. They are really earnest, devoted men, and may be a great blessing to Israel.

No place in this world ever did, or ever will, interest me like Jerusalem. It tells so many tales of God's love and grace to guilty souls. It is, as it were, marked by the footsteps of Jesus; and so many promises of future glory are bound up with it. If God has graven its vales on the palms of his hands, should not his children do the same? The view of the Holy City from a distance always disappoints, and makes you feel the words in Lamentations, that all her beauty is departed. I except the view from the Mount of Olives. As you climb up that interesting hill, every step reveals new beauty in the Daughter of Zion; or rather, you are forced to say, How beautiful it must have been! The valleys round it are so deep, the mountains so plainly standing round it on every side. Moriah covered with a Turkish mosque; "the high places of the forest ;""Zion ploughed like a field;" Jerusalem itself vast heaps of ruins and desolate houses, yet most beautiful in the pure air of an Eastern clime. It is a sight never to be forgotten. We stood there, at the very turning of the road where Jesus wept over the city. We lingered on it. Gethsemane, too, with its old olive-trees, was a pleasant and often visited spot; and you will not wonder if we tried there to pray. We went out twice to Bethany-the only place on earth where the Man of Sorrows found a home. It is a very striking village, situated on the back of Mount Olivet, where the road to Jericho winds past. The fig-trees, and olives, and almonds, and pomegranates were growing luxuriantly among the ruined walls. But I must leave Jerusalem. We next visited Hebron, 20 miles south. The Jews here we found the most respectable of any in the land. They sent us a present of wine, and treated us very kindly when we visited them. The land is more cultivated near Hebron than anywhere else. The terraces are pleasantly covered with vines and olives. We tried to find the place where Abraham wrestled so wonderfully for Sodom and Gomorrah; and we sat beneath an aged oak, called Abram's Tree. The cave of Macpelah is covered with a mosque, into which we were allowed only to look. Every recollection of Hebron is pleasant to me. I only wish that I could share the pleasure with my friends.

A most interesting visit to the Jews was at Sychar, where Jesus sat by the well. It is situated in a lovely valley between Ebal, with its bare rocky sides, and Gerazim, planted with gardens. The Jews are a small, but interesting company. One of us visited the synagogue, where there is service every morning and evening. The rest followed. Each of us had a group of

ancient Israel around him, and reasoned with them out of the Scriptures. The European Jews speak German, the others Hebrew and Spanish. We have found it a pleasing exercise to tell them the Gospel in the holy tongue. We have almost everywhere found some who are deeply interested in us and our mission. We also visited the synagogue of the Samaritans here-150 remain; I believe, the real descendants of the worshippers on Gerizim. We tried to lead them to the same living water where Jesus led the poor woman 1800 years ago. They are richer and prouder than the Jews. They made us take off our shoes before entering their synagogue, regarding it as holy ground.

66

We have seen Israel also in Kaiffa, in Tyre, and Sidon, and in Acre; but the most interesting places of any for Jews are Saffet and Tiberias--the one within sight, the other on the brink of the sea of Galilee. We just returned on Saturday last from visiting these places. Saffet is supposed to be the city set on a hill, to which Jesus alluded in his Sermon on the Mount. It is remarkably placed--the climate truly delightful. The view of the sea of Galilee beautiful beyond description. Once there were 7000 Jews here; but a dreadful earthquake on the 1st January 1837 destroyed great multitudes of them. It is one of their holy cities, and a favorite place with the Jews. There is no plague in the north; but the war with the Sultan having drained the country of all the soldiers, Bedouin Arabs are roving about, committing murder and robbery everywhere. This rendered our journey very perilous, and it makes the Jews go about trembling. All their best clothes and valuables they have buried in the ground; and I never could have imagined such a realization of the words of Moses in Deut. xxviii. 66, Thy life shall hang in doubt before thee." The Jews here were not so willing to listen to us; they were very suspicious. Still they gave us one of their houses to live in, baked delightful bread for us, and some of them attended most seriously. The synagogue service here is quite different from what I have seen in other places. The earnest cries and tears—the uplifted hands-the head bowed to the ground-and all this among venerable men with snow-white beards reaching down to the girdleformed one of the most touching pictures I ever beheld. Israel are like the dry bones in the open valley, "very many, and very dry;" but if we will preach and prophecy to the spirit, we will yet make them live, and stand up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Should not Christians pray more for Israel in secret and in united prayer? Preaching and prayer are the divinely appointed means for saving Israel, Ezek. xxxvii. This is never to be forgotten. Should not the answer of our Church be, "We will give ourselves to prayer for Israel, and to the ministry of the word to Israel."

Still

It was pleasant to encamp on the shore of the lake of Gennesareth. The cords of our tents dipped in the very water. It is a