fairly confess I have not any other conjecture to make *.

No sea, or shores, I believe, in the world, abound more in subjects of Natural. History than the Red Sea. I suppose I have drawings and subjects of this kind, equal in bulk to the journal of the whole voyage itself. But the vast expence in engraving, as well as other considerations, will probably hinder for ever the perfection of this work in that parti

cular.

The Red Sea is called in Coptic Phiom an-shairi, the sea of weeds; sari according to Hesychius is a plant growing in the fens in Egypt.

E.

CHAP. X.

Sail from Tor-Pass the Elanitic Gulf-See Raddua -Arrive at Tambo-Incidents there-Arrive at Jidda.

OUR Rais, having dispatched his business, was eager to depart; and, accordingly, on the 11th of April, at daybreak, we stood out of the harbour of Tor. At first, we were becalmed at the point of the Bay south of Tor town, but the wind freshening about eight o'clock, we stood through the channels of the first four shoals, and then between a smaller one. We made the mouth of a small Bay, formed by Cape Mahomet, and a low sandy point to the east-ward of it. Our vessel seemed to be a capital one for sailing, and I did every thing in my power to keep our Rais in good humour.

About half a mile from the sandy point, we struck upon a coral bank, which, though it was not of any great consistence or solidity, did not fail to make our mast nod. As I was looking out forward when the vessel touched, and the Rais by me, I cried out in Arabic, "Get out of the way, you dog!" The Rais, thinking my discourse directed to him, seemed very much surprised, and asked, "what I meant ?" "Why,

did you not tell me," said I," when I hired you, that all the rocks in the sea would get out of the way of your vessel? This ill-mannered fellow here did not know his duty; he was sleeping, I suppose, and has given us a hearty jolt, and I was abusing him for it, till you shall chastise him some other way." He shook his head, and said, "Well! you do not believe, but God knows the truth; well now, where is the rock? Why, he is gone." However, very prudently, he anchored soon afterwards, though we had received no damage.

At night, by an observation of two stars in the meridian, I concluded the latitude of Cape Mahomet to be 27° 54', N. It must be understood of the mountain, or high land, which forms the Cape, not the low point. The ridge of rocks that run along behind Tor, bound that low sandy country, called the Desert of Sin, to the eastward, and end in this Cape, which is the high land observed at sea; but the lower part, or southermost extreme of the Cape, runs about three leagues off from the high land, and is so low, that it cannot be seen from deck above three leagues. It was called, by the ancients, Pharan Promontorium; not because there was a light-house upon the end of it, (though this may have perhaps been the case, and a very necessary and proper situation it is) but from the Egyptian and Arabic word Farek †, which signifies to divide, as being the point, or high land, that divides the Gulf of Suez from the Elanitic Gulf.

Anciently called Pharos, This is not a certain derivation. E.

The Koran is, therefore, called El Farkan, or the Divider, or Distinguisher between true faith and heresy.

I went ashore here to gather shells, and shot a small animal among the rocks, called Daman Israel, or Israel's Lamb; I do not know why, for it has no resemblance to the sheep kind. I take it to be the saphan of the Hebrew scripture, which we translate by the coney. I have given a drawing, and description of it, in its proper place*. I shot, likewise, several dozens of gooto, the least beautiful of the kind I had seen, being very small, and coloured like the back of a partridge, but very indifferent food.

The 12th, we sailed from Cape Mahomet, just as the sun appeared. We passed the island of Tyrone, in the mouth of the Elanitic Gulf, which divides it near equally into two; or, rather the north-west side is narrowest. The direction of the Gulf is nearly north and south. I judge it to be about six leagues over. Many of the Cairo ships are lost in mistaking the entry of the Elanitic for that of the Heroopolitic Gulf, or Gulf of Suez; for, from the island of Tyrone, which is not above two leagues from the main, there runs a string of islands, which seem to make a semicircular bar across the entry from the point, where a ship, going with a south wind, would take its departure; and this range of islands ends in a shoal with sunken rocks, which reaches nearly five leagues from the main. It is probable, that, upon these islands, the fleet of Jehosaphat perished, when sailing for the ex, pedition of Ophir †.

I take Tyrone to be the island of Saspirene of Ptolemy, though this geographer has erred a little, both in its latitude and longitude.

We passed the second of these islands, called Se

* See the article Ashkoko in the Appendix,

+ 2 Chron. chap. xx. ver. 37.

naffer, about three leagues to the northward, steering with a fresh gale at south-east, upon a triangular island that has three pointed eminences upon its south side. We passed another small island, which has no name, about the same distance as the former; and ranged along three black rocks, the south-west of the island, called Sufange el Bahar, or the Sea-Sponge. As our vessel made some water, and the wind had been very strong all the afternoon, the Rais wanted to bring up to the leeward of this island, or between this, and a cape of land, called Ras Selah; but, not being able to find soundings here, he set sail again, doubled the point, and came to anchor under the south cape of a fine bay, which is a station of the Emir Hadge, called Kalaat el Moilah, the castle, or station, of Water.

We had sailed this day about twenty-one leagues; and, as we had very fair and fine weather, and were under no sort of concern whatever, I could not neglect attending to the disposition of these islands, in a very splendid map, lately published. They are carried too far into the Gulf.

The 13th, the Rais having in the night remedied what was faulty in the vessel, set sail about seven o'clock in the morning. We passed a conical hill on the land, called Abou Jubbé, where is the sepulchre of a saint of that name. The mountains here are at a considerable distance; and nothing can be more desolate and bare than the coast. In the afternoon, we came to an anchor at a place called Kella Clarega, after having passed an island, called Jibbel Numan, about a league from the shore. By the side of this shoal, we caught a quantity of good fish, and a great number also very beautiful, and perfectly unknown, but which, when roasted, shrunk away to nothing ex