Page 20 - Travels in Arabia (Vol 2)_Neat

!•] t6r TO SUEZ. 3

correctly traced, or omitted entirely, and our
knowledge was therefore confined to a few of
its principal points, and the general track up
the sea.
If we look to the extraordinary proportion
of wrecks which have occurred among the
few ships that have visited the Arabian Gulf,
it will at once show the necessity there ex­

isted for ascertaining the position and extent
of these reefs for the purpose of general navi­
gation. But preparatory to the introduction
of steamers, it became an object of the highest
importance that a passage should be sought
for inside them, where we invariably find
smooth water and moderate winds ; land and
sea breezes prevailing there when hard north­
westers are experienced outside. It was con­
sidered that the completion of a survey in
furtherance of these objects, besides confer­
ring a decided benefit on the nautical world,

would prove a valuable acquisition to science,
since the shores of the Red Sea have been
the theatre of many very important occur­
rences, recorded in the pages of both sacred
and profane history.
The Palinurus, on a former voyage, had
b 2