=Bounds of Palestine.= Palestine lies between the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the Arabian desert. Its northern boundary is the southern slope of Mount Hermon and the River Litany, as it turns abruptly to flow westward into the Mediterranean. Palestine begins where the Lebanons and Anti-Lebanons break into a series of elevated plateaus. Its southern boundary is the varying line drawn east from the southeastern end of the Mediterranean a little south of the Dead Sea at the point where the hills of Judah and the South Country descend to the desert. Palestine therefore lies between 33° 30' and 31° north latitude and 34° and 37° east longitude. Its approximate width is about a hundred miles and its length from north to south only about a hundred and fifty miles. It is, therefore, about the size of the State of Vermont. =Geological History.= The geological history of Palestine is somewhat complex, but exceedingly illuminating. The underlying rock is granite. This is now almost completely concealed by later layers of sandstone (which appears in Edom and the east-Jordan), dolomitic and nummulitic limestone and marl. During the earlier geological periods the land was entirely covered by the waters of the sea. Probably at the close of the Pliocene period came the great volcanic upheaval which gave to Syria and Palestine their distinctive character. It left a huge rift running from north to south throughout Syria. This rift is represented to-day by the valley between the Lebanons and its continuation, the valley of the Jordan and Dead Sea. Further south it may be traced through the Wady Arabah and the Gulf of Akaba. This vast depression is the deepest to be found anywhere on the earth's surface. The same great volcanic upheaval gave to the mountains along the western coast their decided northern and southern trend and the peculiar cliff-like structure which characterizes their descent to the western shore. Through the centuries frequent and severe earthquakes have been felt along the borders of this ancient rift, and they are still the terror of the inhabitants, even as in the days of the Hebrew prophets. =Alluvial and Sand Deposits.= Until a comparatively late geological period the sea came to the foot of the mountains. The coast rose gradually and has later been built up by the process of erosion that has cut down the mountains, especially on the western side, where the rainfall was heaviest. The plains along the shore have thus been enriched by vast alluvial deposits. Very different was the deposit of Nile sediment, which was blown in from the sea by the western winds, leaving a wide border of yellow sand along the coast of Palestine.