The town is on a mountain, and commanded by a castle that is said to have been built in the time of the Crusades, but is now sadly in ruins. Down to the beginning of 1837 it was in good condition, and so were the houses where the people dwelt; the earthquake, on the first day of that year, wrought terrible destruction to Safed, as it overthrew nearly all the buildings, and killed, according to the estimates, five thousand of the inhabitants. The town was divided into the Christian, Moslem, and Jewish quarters; the Jewish quarter suffered most, and it is said that four-fifths of those killed by the earthquake belonged to the religion of King Solomon. Mr. Thomson, who visited Safed soon after the earthquake, says not a single Jewish house remained when the shocks were ended, and several persons were saved from the rubbish two or three days after the occurrence; they had been unable to extricate themselves, and suffered greatly from hunger and thirst. Others were less fortunate, and perished of hunger beneath the fallen débris of the houses where they had resided. There was nothing of special interest in Safed, as the town is nearly all modern, having been rebuilt since the earthquake. Some authorities think Safed was the "city set on a hill" which was referred to by Christ in his Sermon on the Mount (Matt. v. 14). Certainly the position would seem to justify such a belief, as it is visible for quite a distance from nearly all directions, and the view from it is a wide one. Our friends halted briefly for a contemplation of the scene, which includes the Lebanon and Hermon ranges of mountains, the countries of Samaria, Carmel, and Galilee to the sea-coast, the Valley of the Jordan, the land of Gilead, Moab and Bashan, and the whole area of rugged hills in which the Sea of Tiberias is enclosed. They were reminded of the view from Tabor, especially as they looked downward nearly three thousand feet before their vision reached the waters of deep Galilee. The guide indicated many points of historic interest, and the list became so long that the attempt to remember everything was soon abandoned. [Illustration: THE PLAIN OF HULEH.] From Safed they rode on through a rough and desolate region, where they were often compelled to turn aside to avoid great masses of rock that filled the way. For quite a distance they were in sight of Lake Huleh, or Merom, and the youths regretted that time did not permit them to visit the lake and make a voyage upon it. Their regret was not very serious when Doctor Bronson told them that Huleh was an insignificant body of water less than five miles long, and surrounded by a marsh, so that its banks were not easy of access. It is mentioned in the Old Testament as "the waters of Merom," and it was on the bank of Merom, or near it, that the events occurred which are mentioned in the eleventh chapter of Joshua. [Illustration: HUTS NEAR LAKE HULEH.]