2. The Tahhland oj Western Palestine and tht Desert of the Tih. — This forms the central and largest ph'^'sical district of Palestine, stretching from the base of the Lebanon to the northern margin of the mountainous region of Sinai. On the west it is bounded by the low-l3-ing Maritima tract ju.st described, except where the bold lic;ul- land of Mount Carmel thrusts itself out into the very waters of the Mediterranean ; and on the east by the deep depression of the Jordan-Arabah Valley. Along its centre it consists of an elevated plateau of limestone ; or, more freqiientlj', of a narrow ridge invaded by deep raAdnes coming np from the Maritime Plain on the one hand, and from the Jordanic Valley on the other. Along this ridge runs the main high road from Sj'ria to Hebron and the Sinaitic peninsula ; and most of the important towns, including Safed, Bethel, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Hebron, are pl.anted on this saddle. Some of the higher points rise to considerable elevations ranging up to over 3000 ft. ; thus, Jerusalem at the temple area reaches 25;)3 ft., and Hebron 3040 ft. above the level of the Mediterranean. Towards the south (lat. 31° N.) the tableland of southern Judosa broadens out into the arid expanse of the Badiet et-Tih (' Desert of the wanderings'), which stretches southw.arda as far as lat. 29°, and is perhaps the least known of any part of N. Palestine. It consists of a v.ast e.xpan.se of Cretaceous and Numniulitc lime.'>^one breaking oft' along a high escarpment overlooking the plain of Lower Egypt and the Gulf of Suez towards the west, and in the opposite direction forming the western margin of the Wady el- Arabah along a somewhat indented line of limestone cliffs. Towards the south the Badiet et-Tih terminates in the lofty escarpment of Jehel Ejmeh, which reaches a level of over 5000 ft. above the Red Sea, and is formed of strata of nearly horLzontal lime-
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GEOLOGY OF PALESTINE 151
Btone superimposed on others of Nubian sandstone. To tlie south of this grand rampart of terraced strata rise tlie lofty ridges and peaks of the Sinaitic mountains.
Tlie Badiet et-Tih forms a nearly barren, re- pulsive, but broken tableland of an average level of 4uOO ft., with little pasturage except in the neighbourhood of a few springs, and along the course of the valleys. That it was at a former period well watered we have clear evidence in the existence of these valleys themselves, some of which yield an intermittent supply of water, esiiL'i'ially those which connect with the rivers Jeib and Fikreh, wliich enter the Dead Sea from the south. Kadcsh-bamea was doubtless situated near the eastern margin of the IJadiet et-Tih.
The streams which descend on either hand from the tableland of Western Palestine generally have their sources in copious springs rising through the limestone strata — widen, being highly jiorous, readily absorb the rain or snow which falls during the winter months. The rain thus imbibed sinks down and forms undei'Tound reservoirs which feed the springs. The valleys are generally bounded by steep, sometimes precipitous, banks of lime- stone ; and, owing to the extraordinary depth of the Jordan Valley and its close proximity to the sources, the streams descending from the central watershed on the east side to enter the Jordan or Dead Sea have a very rapid fall. Thus the Wady el-Aujeh, which has its source at Mezrah esh-Sherkij'eh at a level of about 3000 ft. above the Mediterranean, reaches the Jordan at a depth of 1200 ft. below the same plane, having a fall of 4200 ft. within a distance of 15 miles, that is, at the rate of 2S0 ft. per mile. The Kelt (brook Cherith?), which rises at Bireh (Beeroth) at a height of 2S00 ft. and flows for the most part between lofty walls of rock for a distance of 21 miles, reaches the Jordan at a depth of 1170 ft. below the Mediterranean level, the fall being at the rate of about 190 ft. per mile; and lastly, the Wady en-Nar (brook Kidron) rising to the east of Jerusalem after flowing through the deep gorge of Mar Saba, enters the Dead Sea at a level of 1290 ft. below that of the sea, and has a total fall of about 3092 ft. in 14 miles, being at the rate of 264 ft. per mile. The streams entering the Medi- terranean have necessarily a less precipitous course, and flow with a gentle current on reaching the Maritime Plain. Tlnougliout the greater p;irt of their extent the hills of Western Palestine are very bare of soil, the limestone strata of which they are formed being clearly traceable bj' the eye along their Hanks, or cropping out under the feet at the summit. But in the valleys where soil has accumulated, and especially where there is artilicial irrigation, the fertility is extraordinary and amply rewards cultivation.
(3) The Jordan ■ Arabah Vallo/. —The third physical feature is that of the Jordan - Arabah Valley intervening between the tableland of Western Palestine and the high plateaii of Edoni, Moab, and the JauUln. Commencing in Ccele- SjTia at the ba.se of the Lebanon, it ranges south- wards to the Dead Sea, when it descends to its lowest level of 1292 ft. below the surface of the Mediterranean, as determined by the oHicers of the Ordnance Survey (see Dead Sea) ; then continuing southwartfs, the lloor of the valley gradually rises to a level of al)Out 040 ft. above the same plane at er-Kishy, from which it descends with a very gentle slope to the head of the Gulf of '.Akabah.of which it tonus the physical prolong.a- tion. As already stated (see AkabaH), this great depression coincides with a line of ' fault' (or fracture of the eartji'a crust), along which the strata have been vertically elevated on the ea-st