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CHAP. XII.] VALLEYS OF THE HALYS AND ARAXES. 273
with groves of plum, apricot, and peach trees, rising above
dense clusters of the fig and pomegranate, which are themselves
half hid beneath clustering vines. At intervals a picturesque
cottage appears, like a nest, among the trees; and the silence
is occasionally broken by the sounds proceeding from a distant
mill. 1
Southward of the eastern extremity of lake V an are the Valleys of
valleys of the Zab, the Berdizawi, and those Of the Assyrian Kurdl8tin -
Khabur, which are occupied by the long-secluded Christian
tribes of the Kaldani, 2 also by the Nestorian Seceders, 3 and
the Yezidi; with these the travels of Mr. Ainsworth have
just made us acquainted, and there is ground to hope that a
beneficial and lasting intercourse will be the result.
The adjoining territory of Urumiyah forms the south- District of
eastern portion of the supposed limits of paradise; towards Umm,yab '
the extremity of which, and a little way from the southern
shores of the lake, is the plain of Solduz. This is a magnifi
cent district, having extensive rice grounds, and meadows
pasturing at least one thousand mares ; it is likewise covered
with herds of buffaloes, cows, sheep, &c., and contains
numerous villages, which teem with a prosperous peasantry. 4
The remainder of the district, of which Sa^amast is the
western portion, presents one vast extent of groves, orchards,
vineyards, gardens, and villages. 5 This description may be
partly applied to the country round the flourishing town of
Khoi; and, with still greater propriety, to the tract extending its prosperity,
along the river Araxes, which, for striking mountain scenery,
interspersed with rich valleys, can scarcely be equalled; this
district accords, therefore, in every respect, with the best
notions we can form of the cradle of the human race. Here,
say the Armenians, was the vale of Eden. On the summit
of Mount Ararat, at no great distance from hence, the ark
rested; and here, also, the vine was first cultivated by Noah,
1 . Mr. Ainsworth's Travels and Researches in Asia Minor, Mesopotamia,
&c.. Vol. II., p. 349. ...
2 Ibid., pp. 256, 257, 285, and 286. 8 Ibid., pp. 212 and 2*73.
♦ Major Rawlinson: Vol. X. Part I., p. 14, of the Journal of the Royal
Geographical Society.
I Mr. Ainsworth's Visit to the Chaldeans.—Ibid., Vol. XI. Part I., p. 61.
VOL. I. ^ N
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