As they sat in front of their tents while the sun was dipping below the horizon, our friends naturally talked of the country around them, and compared it with what it probably was two thousand years ago. The reflection was not a cheering one, and they were not at all sorry to change to a more agreeable topic. The full-moon rose over the eastern mountains. As it ascended, and threw its light on the lake, the ruggedness of the hills was softened, the placid waters became like a sheet of silver, the stars were reflected as in a mirror, and the sky was without a cloud. The picture was one to be long remembered, and each one of that little party regretted that the time was near for them to bid it farewell. [Illustration: VIEW OF THE LAKE FROM THE WESTERN SHORE.] CHAPTER XXX. FROM GALILEE TO DAMASCUS.--A RIDE THROUGH DAN AND BANIAS. [Illustration: THE ROCK PARTRIDGE.] Everybody was out of bed before daylight, and prepared for an early start. Before the sun was up the tents had been folded and packed, and the travellers were in the saddle and riding away from Tell Hum. From the summit of a hill they looked back upon Gennesaret, which lay far below them, with its waters sparkling in the sunlight, and its surface undisturbed by a single boat. Then they rode on again. Around them were the rugged hills of Palestine, and every few minutes they disturbed the partridges that have their homes among the rocks. Frank recalled to memory the passage in Samuel, "as one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains." The guide said that in some parts of the country these birds are so abundant that they do a great deal of damage; they dig up and devour the freshly-sown wheat, and when the crops are ripening they feed upon the grain, and are often to be seen in large flocks. The road was rough and steep, and led steadily upward. Frank thought that when the engineers laid it out they selected the worst places they could find, and Fred replied that he did not believe it had any engineers at all. "Even the mules and horses would have done better," Fred continued. "You know it is said in America that the buffaloes were the first road-makers, as it has been found that the buffalo trails in the Rocky Mountains are always through the lowest passes, and avoid the roughest places. Now if the beasts of burden in this country had laid out the roads they would have done better than the men who undertook the work." It was a weary ride along this road, and frequently the travellers dismounted, partly out of compassion for their horses, and partly because riding was dangerous where the rocks were worn smooth or moistened by recent rains. Ruins of towns and villages were seen in several places, and some of the cliffs were pierced with caverns that formerly gave shelter to robbers or were the homes of hermits. Three hours of climbing brought them to Safed, which is one of the holy cities of the Jews, and has a population of three or four thousand.