Nearly all the villages in Palestine are of ancient date. They often stand on the sites, and are buUt from the ruins, of cities not seldom CTeat and splendid in the past. There is something both grotesque and pathetic in the appearance of Corintldan capital and sculptured stone in the walls of mud-plastered huts. Positions diilicult of access are much prized for defence against maraud- ing bantls. There are, of course, no scattered dwellings or solitary farm-steadings, which would be too easy a prey to plunderers.
The village life is mean and squalid. The houses as a rule are of but one apartment, in which, along with the family, their animals find nightly shelter. Sanitation is unknown, and the villages are hot- beds of fever. In some it is ascribed to an iuter- ▼ention of Allah when a child survives infancy. Oppressed by rapacious tax-gatherers backed by a brutal soldiery, often loaded with debt they can never hope to pay, — interest on which is a first charge upon their j-early pittance, — the spirit is crushed, and there is little inducement to work for improvements the fruits of which would in- fallibly be seized by others. They put little into the soil ; their houses are frail ; tlieir furniture scanty ; they live practically ' from hand to mouth,' and bear themselves like men who may at any moment receive notice to quit.
The villagers in Palestine mostly rank as Moslems, orthodox or heretical ; but there is much obscurity as to their real religious senti- ments and practices. Usually a makdm, the tomb or sanctuary of some saint or famous sheikh, stands near by or on a neighbouring hUl. It serves as a kind of village strong-room. Although it is quite open, no one dreams of removing what has been placed there for safety. A common responsibility for hospitality is also recognized. In every village there is the menztl or mulAfy, ' village guest - house,' where all strangers are welcome. The sheikh acts as ' host,' but the villagers contribute each bla share towards the entertainment of the guests. W. EwiNG.
VINE, VINEYARD.— Three Heb. words are tr. in EV 'vine.' 1. [E} gcphen, Arab. jafn. This always refers to grape-bearing vines, except 2 K 4*", where .tiS? jys the ' vine of the fields,' AV and RV ' wild-vine,' refers to a wild gourd-vine, prob. colocynth, and perhaps Dt SS*", wTiere on? [r; ' the vine of Sodom ' may denote a grape-vine, or some other plant (see ' vine of Sodom, below). 2. pi-' surek (Is 5' 'choicest vine'), plto (Jer 2-' 'noble vine'), nsnb sdrekak (Gn 49" 'choice vine'), used of a superior kind, producing dark-coloured grapes, with soft seeds or none. It is called in Arab. t&rik. 3. Tij nazir (Lv 25'- " AV ' vine undressed,' m. ' separation,' RV ' undressed vine '), fig. for un-
pruned vine, named ndzlr from its resemblance tc the Nazirite, whose hair was uncut and unshaven.
The vine is one of the most important plants mentioned in the Bible and cultivated in the East. Noah planted a vineyard (Gn 9-*). The chief butler saw a vine in his dream (Gn 40"). Judah is repre- sented as binding his ass to a vine (Gn 49"), an allusion to the luxury in which he would live. Living under one's own vine and fig tree (1 K 4^, Mic 4'') was an emblem of peace. The languishing of the vine (Is \& etc.) was an emblem of destruc- tion and desolation. Palestine was a land of vines (Dt 8*). They were planted on mountains (Jer 3P). They flourish best there at the present day. The Nazikite, as being under a religious vow, was to ' eat nothing that is made of the grape- vine, from the kernels even to the husk ' (Nu 0^). Manoah's wife, as the future mother of a Nazirite, was also forbidden for a time to eat or drink of the fruit of the vine (Jg 13'*). The \nne is fre- quently associated with the fig (Ps 105**, Jer 8", Hab 3", Ja 3'- etc.). Christ calls Himself the true vine (Jn 15'"'). There are several other figurative allusions to the vine and vineyard. Israel wa-s a vine brought out of Egypt (Ps SO*"", Is 5'°). The fruitful wife was compared to the vine (Ps 128^). The remnant of Israel was to be gleaned as a vine (Jer 6"). Samaria was to be as plantings of a vine (Mic 1'). Beth-haccherem, 'the house of the vine' (Neh 3", Jer 6'), Abel-cheramim, 'the meadow of vineyards' (Jg 11''), were named from kerem=' y\ae.'
The vine is cultivated in a variety of ways. Sometimes it is trained over a trellis, or made to climb a tree (Ezk 19"). In this way a man sat under his vine (1 K4'^etc.). Sometimes it is trained over props about the height of a man, or a little higher, and the branches spread laterally, often forming festoons from stake to stake. But tlie more usual method is to allow the stem to trail on the surface of the soil, and simply to prop up the cluster-bearing branches by foiled sticks, sulfici- entlj' to keep them ott' the ground. The vines in both the latter methods of cultivation are planted far enough apart to allow the plough to pass be- tween them. They are pruned at tlie end of the fruiting season (Jn 15'), so that, during the winter, the Wne is reduced to a trunk and a few principal branches. The shoots of the next spring are thus made more vigorous, and bear better fruit. Those branches which bear no fruit are diligently cut away (vv.*-"). A whitened branch is a sign of withering (JI 1'). The trunks of old vines often attain the thickness of a man's body or more. Vines aie sometimes planted in irrigated ground (Ezk 19'"), but most of the vineyards are on dry liillsides, where, for 7 or 8 months they have no water except such as they can extract from Hie apparently arid soil. Notwithstanding this, they live (Ezk 19"). In such situations as have a moist subsoil of clay or marl they flourish without irrigation, and produce large vintages. Whole mountain -sides are often ^een with vineyards, where one may search in vain for a spring or well. They are often not fenced ott', so one can come with ease into a 'neighbour's Wneyard' (Dt 23^). To protect the vines from foxes, jackals (Ca 2" etc.), and esp. from men, watclimen are stationed in commanding positions. In Judu;a and some other parts of the country round towers are built for the watchmen (Is 5^ Mt21»'etc.). Generally a shelter of boughs and leaves (Is 1' AV 'cottage,' RV ' booth'), similar to the 'lodge in a garden of cucumbers' (.see illustration in vol. i. 532"), is con- structed in a prominent place, from which the watchman can overlook the vineyard. To frighten away animals, a single cylindrical stone is set up, or several stones are placed one above anothei