the leaves. Many of these bunches were as long as from my elbow to the tip of my middle finger. There are five different kinds of grapes grown at Hebron. The berries of one, a very large kind, measured, on an average, three and a half inches in circumference one way and three and a quarter inches the other." What may be said of the future prospects of a country which has still such splendid natural resources as Asiatic Turkey? The answer depends entirely upon the administration of the country. With good government the most splendid prospect is opened out; and good laws, efficiently administered by just and intelligent officials, will do more for the improvement of this land than all else. Before all things there is need of security to life and property. Armed violence must be put down with the strong hand. Wandering Arabs and raiding Kurds must be held in check, till, finding robbery unprofitable, they settle down to more peaceful pursuits. Religious passions, too, must be held in restraint. The tithes must be commuted for a fixed money payment, the system of farming must be abolished, titles must be simplified and secured, and above all judges appointed who will not take a bribe or be the creatures of the Government. With good laws, justly administered, the natural resources of the country will be developed, the people will enjoy the fruits of their labour, trade and commerce will flourish, emigrants will pour in to supply the lack of inhabitants in the thinlypopulated districts, railways will be formed, good roads made, and irrigation systematically attended to. Confidence once established money will come in, and private enterprise will supplement the efforts of the Government; the ancient canals will be cleared of their accumulated sand, and made serviceable not only for irrigation but also for transport; steamers will be placed upon the rivers; and instead of a comparatively few tons of grain being with difficulty carried on donkeys' backs, the vast region on the banks of the Euphrates and Tigris will send grain in abundance to supply the demand from other lands. That this is no overdrawn picture may be shown by one more reference to Mr. Geary's valuable letter. He says: "If a railway were constructed it would be difficult to assign limits to the development of this region. A railway from the Mediterranean to the valleys of the Euphrates and the Tigris would pass through countries of great natural resources, and would tap provinces of wonderful fertility and boundless extent. It is a mistake to suppose that Asiatic Turkey is now decaying. Nearly everywhere throughout a journey extending over 1,500 miles I saw evidence of progress rather than of decay. The population is scanty but it is robust and well fed, and with proper inducement would work well. When you can get men any day to carry three hundredweight for a few piastres there can be no want of hard muscle." In concluding this short sketch of the Sultan's provinces in the East, the words of a noble lord in the House of Commons, Lord Sandon, may not inappropriately be quoted :-" We are going in a different guise to the conquerors of former times. We go not to dispossess the legitimate sovereign but to strengthen his hands, and we invite civilised Europe to join us in that high enterprise. We hope to bring to these lands the blessings which our civilisation and our long peace have brought us; we hope to give them the blessings of commerce, railroads, the steamplough, manufactures, and all the arts and employments of peace. We have invited the French, the Italians, and the Germans to join us. We are coming hoping it may be our happy lot, by the arts of Europe, to bring back to the East, from whence these arts originally sprang, happiness once more and prosperity. If should be added to all this that noblest of all enjoyments, the pleasure of communicating the good things we have to others, the prospect is surely one worthy of the greatest enthusiasm. Let us gird up our loins to the task; let us invite civilised Europe to join with us; let us thank God and take courage 'Such blessings peace to happy Britain brings, |