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Show - 3 - Fortunately, the Library had been teansferred from Its old and glooray home of medieval austerity to a jaodern teilding erected specially for it. Iter© the Expedition took its quarters? ana the d i m of electrical generators,, the damling floodlights for the ndcrofils cnoeras, and a batallion of scholars and technicians fros the Old and tie Bow !*>rMs singled Tilth the bearded Fathers and tirasoforaad the languid stnosphare of a sleepy peace into a beehivo of v*caters around the- Library, Manuscripts were brought down in hug© baskets by th© hundred to the Studio, and the work began and continued for every minute of the day umw^ttlngJy* 8MN ot night, we kept preparing targets end materials for the day that followed* sparing only half hours for steals without viteaiBB, And at last esse the hour of sleep -then we laid down our ueary heads- for a short period of rest and recuperation In readiness for another day's tell, Hallcing to ay cell by night, I felt that the world woo wrapped in such celestial silence as no a n In a aodera city could ever en*. visage or perceive. But 1 should not allow sysslf to be carried M f by these aeaories of tee past into poetic heights.* Lot us ooae do<»n to earth, and consider the .Arabic Collection of MSS, of which 1 turned every page and opened ©very scroll from e m to end probably for the first tiae throughout the long histery of this ancient sonastery, There is, however, a series of date which I wish to put before you in regard to the manuscripts of Mt, Sinai -without entering into the technique of the process of axaiaialng ana cataloguing the various collections before finally sending tea Bssuscripts to the aierofl3a eeiaara* In tee first instance, 1 wis* to point out that th© Expedition las revealed teat all previous estates- of the contents of the Library are inaccurate and far too modest. The total cumber of laannsoripts and scrolls taken : |