A Journey From Aleppo to Damascus Author:John Green Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: A Aleppo to Damafeus: PART II. BEING An Account of the Maronite Nation inhabiting the Mountains of Libanus and other Parts of Syria. Extracted ... more »from their own Authors. LONDON: Printed in the Year M DCC XXXV. INTRODUCTION. Concerning the Peopling of the Mount tains Libanus and Anti Libanus; and building of the frjl City there by Cain. The prefent Inhabitants thereof, particularly the Maro- nites. HE Opinion of the learned Men of the Country, fupported by Tradition, and the Authority of fome Oriental Writers is, That Libanus was inhabited by our firft Parents; and that the firft City in the World, fpoken of in Scripture, and by Jofephus , was built in thole Mountains by Cain. G A They ap'3'' They are confirmed in this Sentiment by a Belief which runs thro' the whole Country, that the Murder of Abel was committed at the Foot of Anti Liba- nus (), on that Side of the Mountain which faces Damafcus. They ftill mew the Place, diftinguifhed by Pillars, three or four Leagues from the City, near the Road to Balbe. From hence, they fay, Cain, difturbed by the Horor of his Crime, fled and retired towards the Eaft Side of Eden', as it is related in Scripture. Now this Eaftern Country, according to them, is no other than Libanus, whither they pretend Cain fettled, and afterwards built the City we are fpeaking of. There is alfo a great Burrough, or little Town, on Mount Libanus, called Ban , which they fuppofe to have been built on the Ruins or that firft City. There are to be feen about it many Ruins of ancient Buildings; called, at prefent, in the Country, Medinat al Ras, which in Arabic, fignifies the Capital, or firft City. Two learned Europeans of great Reputation, who never were in the Eaft, have entertained the fame Opinion in Favour of Mount Libanus...« less