nd to obtain a
hold of the one good road which traverses the Judaean range from north to
south, from Nablus to Jerusalem."

CHAPTER IX

NEBY SAMWIL

Our advance had hitherto been northwards along the low country, and had
already reached a point on the Maritime Plain some miles north of the
parallel of Jerusalem. It now wheeled to the right and struck into the
Hills, with the object of getting astride the Jerusalem-Nablus road and
of thus capturing the Holy City.

It will be remembered, from our survey of the geography of Palestine,
that the ridge of the Judaean Hills runs approximately north and south,
and that along the top of this ridge runs a first-class metalled road
connecting Nablus with Jerusalem. From this ridge spurs run east and
west down towards the Maritime Plain. These spurs are steep, bare and
stony, and in places, precipitous, and are separated from one another by
narrow valleys. Between such spurs, a few miles to the north-west of
Jerusalem, sweeps down the Valley of Ajalon, with the villages of
Beit-ur el-Foka (Beth-horon the Upper) and Beit-ur el-Tahta (Beth-horon
the Lower), where Joshua won his memorable victory over the five kings
of the Amorites. It was here that the routed hosts of the Amorites were
pursued in panic, and near here that the sun and moon "stood still" at
the bidding of Joshua. Further to the south, another gorge, or pass,
roughly parallel to the Valley of Ajalon, leads down to the Plain, and
along this pass runs the metalled road through Kurzet-el-Enab
(Kirjath-Jearim), Saris and Bab-el-Wad, to Ramleh and Jaffa; this is the
road followed by the Pilgrims. Other paths were shown upon the map, but
these were found to be mere tracks on the hillside or up the stony beds
of wadis, and, without considerable improvement, were impracticable for
wheeled guns or transport. The only routes along which guns, other than
mountain artillery, could be moved, were the two first-class roads
running northwards and westwards out of Jerusalem.

Ten miles north of Jerusalem, along the Nablus road, at a height of
nearly 3,000 feet above sea level, is the village of Bireh. This
commanding position overlooks the Jordan Valley and all the surrounding
country. This was the point which General Allenby decided to make his
next objective. Reports had indicated that it was the probable intention
of the enemy to evacuate Jerusalem, and in the known or suspected state
of the demoralisation of the enemy