3. =The Jordan Valley= is a remarkable depression, beginning at the sources of the river, and plowing a gorge which grows deeper as it goes southward. At the springs of the Jordan it is 1,700 feet above the sea, with lofty mountains on each side, Hermon and Lebanon. At lake Merom it is 7 feet above the level of the sea. Below Merom it descends by a fall of 60 feet to the mile, and at the Sea of Galilee is 682 feet below the Mediterranean. Here begins the _Ghor_ (its Arab name, meaning "hollow"), a gorge 65 miles long to the Dead Sea, and descending 610 feet further in its depth, with a barrier of cliffs on either side, from 2 to 8 miles apart, except at the "Plain of Jordan," or "Plain of Jericho," just north of the Dead Sea, which is 14 miles wide. This plain lies 400 feet above the level of the Dead Sea, and is encompassed by mountains which rise above it about 4,000 feet. 4. =The Eastern Table-Land= is a lofty plateau, east of the Jordan. The mountains on this side are higher and more steep than are those on the west; and from their summit a plain stretches away to the great Syrian desert. It is mostly fertile, and especially adapted to pasturage. On the north is Bashan, now called "the Hauran," in the centre lies Gilead, and south was the land of Moab. III. THE WATERS OF PALESTINE. These may be noticed under three heads: 1. The River Jordan. 2. The Three Lakes. 3. The Brooks, or mountain torrents. [Illustration: THE RIVER JORDAN.] 1. =The River Jordan= has three sources. (1.) The most northerly is at _Hasbeiya_, on Hermon. (2.) The largest stream proceeds from a great spring at the ancient Dan, now _Tell el Kady_. (3.) The one recognized as the source by the Jews is at Banias, near the ancient Cæsarea Philippi. It may be divided into three sections: from Hasbeiya to Lake Merom, about 40 miles; from its entrance into Merom to the Sea of Galilee, 15 miles; and from the northern end of that lake to the Dead Sea, 79 miles,--making its direct length 134 miles, though by its windings the channel is about 200 miles long. In its progress it falls over 3,000 feet, an average fall of over 22 feet to the mile. It varies in width from 80 to 180 feet, and in depth from 5 to 12 feet. 2. =The Three Lakes= are: (1.) Merom, now called _Huleh_, a triangular sheet of water three miles across, located in a swamp in Northern Galilee. (2.) The Sea of Galilee, called Chinnereth in the Old Testament, a pear-shaped lake, 14 miles long, and 9 wide. (3.) The Dead Sea, 46 miles long, its surface 1,290 feet below the level of the Mediterranean, and in some places 1,300 feet deep, though the great lagoon on its southern end is not more than 20 feet deep. [Illustration: SECTION OF PALESTINE FROM NORTH TO SOUTH.]