A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. 8 | Page 3

Fitch, and six or seven
other honest merchants, and arrived at Tripoli in Syria on the next
ensuing 1st of May. On our arrival, we went a Maying on the Island of
St George, where the Christians who die here on ship board are wont to
be buried. In this city of Tripoli our English merchants have a consul,
and all of the English nation who come here reside along with him, in a
house or factory, called Fondeghi Ingles, which is a square stone

building, resembling a cloister, where every person has his separate
chamber, as is likewise the custom of all the other Christian nations at
this place.
[Footnote 1: Hakluyt, II. 402. As Eldred accompanied Newberry and
Fitch from England to Basora, this article is, in a great degree,
connected with our present purpose: It may likewise be mentioned, that
Eldred is one of the persons with whom Newberry corresponded.--E.]
Tripolis stands under a part of Mount Lebanon, at the distance of two
English miles from the port. On one side of this port, in the form of a
half-moon, there are five block-houses, or small forts, in which there
are some good pieces of artillery, and they are occupied by about an
hundred janisaries. Right before the town there is a hill of shifting sand,
which gathers and increases with a west wind, insomuch, that they have
an old prophecy among them, that this sand hill will one day swallow
up and overwhelm the town, as it every year increases and destroys
many gardens, though they employ every possible device to diminish
this sand-bank, and to render it firm ground. The city is walled round,
though of no great strength, and is about the size of Bristol: Its chief
defence is the citadel or castle, which stands on the south side of the
town, and within the walls, overlooking the whole town, being armed
with some good artillery, and garrisoned by two hundred janisaries. A
river passes through the middle of the city, by means of which they
water their gardens and plantations of mulberry trees, on which they
rear great numbers of silk-worms, which produce great quantities of
white silk, being the principal commodity of this place, which is much
frequented by many Christian merchants, as Venetians, Florentines,
Genoese, Marsilians, Sicilians, and Ragusans, and, of late, by the
English, who trade more here than in any other port of the Turkish
dominions.
I departed from Tripolis with a caravan, on the 14th May, passing, in
three days, over the ridge of Mount Libanus; and at the end of that time
came to the city of Hammah, which stands in a goodly plain, abounding
in corn and cotton-wool. On these mountains grow great quantities of
_gall-trees_, which are somewhat like our oaks, but less, and more
crooked; and, on the best trees, a man shall not find above a pound of
galls on each. This town of Hammah is fallen into decay, and continues
to decay more and more, so that at this day scarcely is the half of the

wall standing, which has once been strong and handsome; but, because
it cost many lives to win it, the Turks will not have it repaired, and
have caused to be inscribed in Arabic, over one of the gates, "Cursed be
the father and the son of him who shall lay hands to the repairing of
this place."
Refreshing ourselves one day here, we went forwards three days more,
with our camels, and came to Aleppo, where we arrived on the 21st of
May. This has the greatest trade, for an inland town, of any in all those
parts, being resorted to by Jews, Tartars, Persians, Armenians,
Egyptians, Indians, and many different kinds of Christians, all of whom
enjoy liberty of conscience, and bring here many different kinds of
merchandise. In the middle of the city there is a goodly castle, raised on
high, having a garrison of four or five hundred janisaries. Within four
miles round about there are many goodly gardens and vineyards, with
many trees, which bear excellent fruit, near the side of the river, which
is very small. The walls of the city are about three miles in circuit, but
the suburbs are nearly as large as the city, the whole being very
populous.
We departed from Aleppo on the 31st of May, with a caravan of camels,
along with Mr John Newberry, and his company, and came to Birrah,
[Bir] in three days, being a small town on the Euphrates, where that
river first assumes the name, being here collected into one channel,
whereas before it comes down in numerous branches, and is therefore
called by the people of the country by a name which signifies a
thousand heads. We here found abundance of