coast of Africa, from Tripoli to Egypt; and At whose suggestion it had been arranged, that a party on shore, to be conducted by Lieutenant Beechey, should proceed simultaneously along the coasts of the Greater Syrtis and Cyrenaica, and from thence as far as practicable to the eastward, communicating from time to time with his vessel, as occasions might offer in the course of their route. Mr. Henry W. Beechey, brother to the lieutenant, and who had already travelled in the Levant, was likewise attached to this expedition, with instructions to examine and report on the antiquities of the country[1].
The Adventure did not arrive at Tripoli before the 11th of Sept.; and it was not till the morning of the 5th of November, that Messrs. Beechey were able to commence their long and fatiguing journey. Their party then consisted of the three gentlemen named in p. 101; three Europeans, who acted equally as interpreters and servants; three Arabs of Tripoli, to look after their horses; one Tchaous, or janissary, belonging to the Bashaw; and an escort of six Bedouins; one of whom was an aged chief, whose daring exploits had obtained for him the appellation of El Dúbbah, or the Hyaena, and who had recently been established as Shekh of Syrt, a district of more than 200 miles in extent, through which they had to travel. On the 20th, they entered Mesurata, a town situated in lat. 32° 25' 1" N., long. 15° 10' 19" E., at the eastern boundary of the cultivated districts, near the Cephalis Promontorium of Strabo, and where the coast begins to trend to the southward.
“Its remarkable position,” say they, “between the fertile regions of the Cinyphus and the barren dreary wastes of the Greater Syrtis, cannot fail to make it an object of more than common interest to those who witness its singular contrast.
“From a high range of sand-hills between the town and the sea, an excellent idea may be formed of this striking peculiarity of situation; and we often toiled up their steep and yielding sides, to enjoy the singularity of the prospect.
