lives on fish. It is not easily cut with a sharp knife, but when struck or broken with the hand it divides readily."

Nowhere in Bible lands could be found what we call "hay fields," but grass followed moisture all over the face of Egypt and Canaan, being especially rank in the valley of the Jordan. So there were good nesting sites for lark, quail, and all ground-builders loving grassy shelter.

In the wilderness and scattered all over the face of the country grew at least five acorn-bearing oaks, all of lower habit and more gnarled, twisted, and ragged branching than ours. Hosea wrote: "They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under the oaks, and poplars, and elms, because the shadow thereof is good.' There were four varieties of white poplar growing in Palestine, so it is very probable that translation is correct, but they had no tree corresponding to our lordly elm. Neither climate nor soil was productive of our sky-scraper," and without question the tree to which they referred was the " teil," which we translate turpentine. This tree resembled the oak in trunk and branching, had reddish leaves and clusters of red berries, and one of this species is still pointed out as that upon which Judas hanged himself. These great trees furnished the stout nesting sites chosen by hawks, ravens, and other birds of lofty locations.

The thorn, to which they so frequently referred in the Bible, grew in the form of bushes in Lebanon and along the Dead Sea, and another, which reached great size and bore heavy spikes, flourished in Palestine, on the plains of Gennesaret, and in thickets in the valley of the Jordan. The crown of Christ was woven from the thorns of these trees. Then, as now, the grey shrikes and the doves loved to nest in the protection of the prickly branches, and the young came forth safely in large broods.

The bay tree mentioned by David, who said, "I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree," was their most profusely growing shrub along lakes and rivers, but not so very common. It was the ancestor of our oleander, which proves that it

still retains a habit of sturdy growth by flourishing and blooming abundantly year after year in a tub. Luke mentioned a sycamine:

And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you." This tree is still called " sycamenea" in Greece, and is a mulberry, which grows commonly both black and white. The sycamore mentioned is a relative of the banyan tree, and not at all similar to our sycamore. David, in recording the story of the wrath of God, wrote, "He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with frost." This indicated the commercial value of the tree, because it was included in a list of precious possessions, such as cattle, flocks, and even human life. The reason for its use in this illustration lay in the fact that it was the common timber for Egypt for furniture, wood work, and mummy cases. It was an evergreen of great growth, having a leaf resembling a mulberry, and fruit like a fig. It grew sparsely on the low plains of Jericho, but not on the high hills of Palestine.

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The ash of the Bible was a pine from which idols were made, and the precious ebony the heart-wood of the date. The box was mentioned among the forest trees and was evidently larger than ours, for it was used as hard wood in which to inlay ivory, and also small articles such as combs and spoons were made from it. Isaiah spoke of cutting down the I tall cedars and the choice fir trees." Any pine seems to have been called a cedar in Lebanon. Jeremiah cried to the inhabitants of Lebanon that made their nest among the cedars." Ezekiel compared the Assyrians to a great cedar of Lebanon, of which he said, all the fowls of heaven made their nests in his boughs.' Solomon said, "The beams of our house are`of cedar, and our rafters are of fir." The firs were "choice," because they were used in making harps and musical instruments, for rafters, ceilings, floors in temples, and ships. Cypress was mentioned as the material from which a heathen god was made, and is thought to be a juniper, not the genuine cypress, which was the mourning tree of the Mohammedans.

Isaiah mentioned many trees suitable for agriculture and commerce. "I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, the pine, and the box tree together: that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it." The "nut" tree mentioned is no doubt a walnut which was transplanted from Persia, and grew vigorously in Palestine. Solomon

sang:

"I went down into the garden of nuts,
To see the green plants of the valley,
To see whether the vine budded,

And the pomegranates were in flower."

The almond was a native fruit tree, which blossomed before leafage, as our cherry and other trees, and from its wood the rod of Aaron was cut.

The palm tree was almost worshipped in Bible lands because it provided shade and fruit in otherwise barren, desert country. There was not only the date palm, but a number of species, in all some two hundred and fifty varieties. These were the especially loved nesting sites of the doves. The palms grew on the plains of Jericho, in the ravines along the Jordan, and around the Sea of Galilee, and are still growing at Beirut. Palms grow a tall stem from thirty to eighty feet, and a plume of feathery foliage at the top makes them the most graceful and beautiful trees of the plains and valleys. On account of their loveliness their Hebrew name, tamar, was frequently given to women. To weary travellers no spot on the plains was so welcome as a grove of palms, which almost always surrounded water. Moses wrote, in describing one stage of the flight of the Children of Israel, " And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and three score and ten palm trees; and they encamped there by the water."

Apples are mentioned by Solomon, but as they are described as having a gold fruit, silver leaves, and being sweet to the taste, they seem more like our apricots.

The citron was the largest fruit, a native of Media. It had larger leaves than an orange, and exquisite purple bloom. Moses found it suitable for worship, for he commanded, "And ye shall take you on the first the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and the willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days." This expression "boughs of goodly trees" is translated from a Hebrew word meaning "fruits," and as the citron was the finest fruit, it was supposed to be intended and is used to-day on the feast of Tabernacles.

Hosea recorded that he "found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the first ripe at the fig tree." Solomon said, "The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell." It was Samuel who recorded of Abigail, of whom all housewives have heard, that she "made haste and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs." Figs were so nearly the staff of life that the people trembled when God threatened to smite these trees as a punishment. They grew all over Syria, and attained great size. The fruit was pear-shaped, the leaf wide, and the bark smooth. It was the first tree named in the Bible. The figs were eaten green, and also packed in cakes, and dried for winter use. No doubt the robins, jays, and lapwings had their full share.

One of the first trees mentioned by Moses, the most abundant in Palestine, and one of the most blessed of the Promised Land, was the olive tree, that yielded a great abundance of fruit and oil. It formed the foundation of the food from trees, and was most esteemed. Also its wood was fine-grained, of beautiful amber colour, and considered the best thing from which to make the body of the cherubim, and the door posts and the temple pillars.

The pomegranate was also such pleasant and popular fruit that many towns took its Hebrew name, rimmon. This was a tree of low growth, bearing large, blood-red flowers, and fruit with a juicy red pulp, from which a

cooling drink was made that was a great blessing in those countries. Blood oranges are now produced by grafting an orange branch on a pomegranate tree. These trees also were so appreciated that they were thought sufficiently sacred to use in temple worship. Solomon sang, "I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate."

These and other trees grew in Bible lands, over mountains, through valleys, on plains, in cultivated estate, and absolute wildness, so that travellers were sure of food almost anywhere, and might wander as they chose. Among such trees flew shrikes, sparrows, doves, and jays, saucy then as now; robins, always loving fruit trees, and sweetvoiced chats. There is a beautiful legend of the robin. The bird was said to have been a uniform grey until it stained its breast carrying succour to Christ on the cross, and since, the red badge of mercy always has covered its breast. With its joyous song of "Cheer up! Cheer up!" it should be added to the symbols of the Red Cross Society.

No man knew what it meant to live upon the land he owned and cultivate his crops in peace. Wild tribes from the Syrian desert constantly ravaged the eastern borders of Palestine from Lebanon to Edom, and wandering Arabs from the desert of Shur came up and pillaged the Philistines and Lower Canaan. Then in the fastnesses of Edom, along the rocky and almost impenetrable fortresses of the Jabbok, in deserted tombs near Carmel, and in numerous caves close Gennesaret, homed bands of professional robbers. These men were so wild and fierce they pillaged and killed without mercy, and when plunder was scarce, lived upon the flesh of eagles, hawks, wild goats, and hares.

Again, mostly in the name of the Lord, tribe after tribe of the settled residents of the country arose, annihilating neighbouring tribes with whom they had differences; confiscating movable goods and flocks, tearing down walls and villages, and enslaving all of the people not killed in battle, so that the face of the land was scattered with ruins. For these reasons people were driven to establish cities. They were compelled to build very small strong