Signification of the word Alukah—The Arable word—Leeches in Palestine—The horse and the Leech—Leeches in England.
IN Prov. 30:1515The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough: (Proverbs 30:15) there is a word which only occurs once in the Scriptures. This is alukah, which is translated as horse-leech. “The horseleech hath two daughters, crying, Give, give.”
The Hebrew Bible does not translate the word at all. There is, however, no doubt that the translation is a correct one. Buxtorf renders the word as sanguisuga hirudo, and it is worthy of remark that the Arabic name for the Leech, Aluk, is identical with the Hebrew Alukah.
The Leeches are very common in Palestine, and infest the rivers to such an extent that they enter the nostrils of animals who come to drink, and cause great annoyance and even danger. The following anecdote, related by Mr. H. Dixon in his “Holy Land," gives us a good idea of the prevalence of the Leeches, and the tenacity with which they retain their hold:—
“At Beit-Dejan, on a slight twist in the road, we find the wheel and well, and hear a delicious plash and rustle in the troughs. To slip from my seat to dip Sabeah's nose into the fluid is the work of a second; but no sooner has she lapped up a mouthful of water, than one sees that the refuse falling back from her lips into the tank is dabbled and red. Opening her mouth, I find a gorged leech dangling from her gum. But the reptile being swept off, and the mare's nose dipped into the cooling stream, the Blood still flows from Between her teeth, and, forcing them open, I find two other leeches lodged in the roof of her mouth.
“Poor little beast I how grateful and relieved she seems, how gay, how gentle, when I have torn there suckers from her flesh, and soused the water about her wounds; and how my hunting-whip yearns to descend upon the shoulders of that laughing and careless Nubian slave!”
Persons passing through the river are also attacked by them, and, if they have a delicate skin, suffer greatly. Even in England this will happen. While bathing in a Kentish stream, I have found, when coming out of the water, that numbers of Leeches were adhering to me, and have had considerable trouble in removing them.