WADY DHOBBYE. 
206 
and we set out about mid-day. Half an hour from Beteddein is 
the village Ain el Maszer (), with a spring and many large 
walnut trees. To the left, on the right bank of the Nahr el Kadhi, 
higher in the mountain, are the villages Medjelmoush ( 
and Reshmeyia (a)). At one hour is the village Kefrnebra 
), belonging to the Yezdeky, under the command of Abou 
Salma, one of their principal Sheikhs. The road lies along the 
mountain, gradually ascending. At one hour and a quarter are 
the two villages Upper and Lower Beteloun (). 
One hour and three quarters, the village Barouk (6), and near 
it the village Ferideis (); these are the chief residence 
of the Yezdeky, and the principal villages in the district of Ba 
rouk. They are situated on the wild banks of the torrent Ba 
rouk, whose source is about one hour and a half distant. The 
Sheikh Beshir has conducted a branch of it to his new palace at 
Mokhtar; the torrent falls into the sea near Saida. From Barouk 
the road ascends the steep side of the higher region of the moun 
tain called Djebel Barouk; we were an hour and a half in as 
cending; the summit was covered with snow, and a thick fog 
rested upon it : and had it not been for the footsteps of a man 
who had passed a few hours before us we should not have been 
able to find our way. We several times sunk up to our waists in 
the snow, and on reaching the top we lost the footsteps, when dis 
covering a small rivulet running beneath the snow, I took it as 
our guide, and although the Druse was in despair, and insisted on 
returning, I pushed on, and after many falls reached the plain of 
the Bekaa, at the end of two hours from the summit; I suppose 
the straight road to be not more than an hour and quarter. The 
rivulet by which we descended is called Wady Dhobbye (a). 
We had no sooner entered the plain than it began to snow again, 
and it continued to rain and snow for several days. Small cara¬