MERGE TO GYRENE. 407 remarkably picturesque; and here and there a ruin of some ancient fortress, towering above the wood on the summit of a hill, contributed to give character to the scene.

Our attention was occasionally called away (in climbing up, or descending the steep and rocky sides of some of the hills over which we passed) by the difficulty and danger of the roads ; and our horses were continually slipping on the hard glassy surface which they presented ; notwithstanding we had used the precaution of taking off one of their shoes and the others were frequently dropping off of themselves, owing to the wearing away of the nails. As we passed some of the woods our guides begged we would keep together lest we should be fired at by some ill-disposed persons from among the bushes ; but we soon found this caution to be perfectly unnecessary, and continued to stray away in all directions without experiencing the least molestation.

On the second night we pitched the tents at MargM where we found a supply of water in an ancient cistern belonging to a fort on the hill close to it. Here were also several Arab tents, with flocks of sheep feeding about them. The Arabs received us very civilly, always offering milk and Ibban, although our guides would have made us believe that they were greatly averse to our passing through their country. On quitting Margad, we pursued our route through a country very similar to that of the preceding day ; but along other plants were remarkably fragrant. Athenaeus’s words are : ypcpcatrs Ss xou ra ev Six ■b'Xol'tov, xai Six ttjv Amvoris xxi BEgenKy)? amvSriv, syivero Ss xxi sv §oJivov x?'<JTOTfltTov, xaS’ov x§ovov BEgEvtxTi -n txiyxXn. — (Deipnosoph. Lib. xv. c. 12.)