Wadi Barada in Its Most Glorious Days — How the Foreign Armies Departed from Syria

The Syrian lands donned a splendid new garment of flowers and adornment, and the capital appeared in an enchanting aspect without parallel, as the number of visitors arriving from the Arab countries exceeded fifty thousand, who lodged in the hotels and in the houses that opened their doors to receive them in welcome. The great parade began at half past nine that morning. It was magnificent to the point of splendor in its order, and the Syrian army — in its arrangement, the abundance of its battalions and companies, and its various arms and equipment — presented a stirring sight that drew tears, while the artillery saluted it with successive salvoes and squadrons of Egyptian and Iraqi aircraft accompanied it in the sky. It was preceded by a detachment of the Egyptian army, followed by the detachment of Lebanon and the detachments of Iraq, then Transjordan, then Nejd and the Hejaz, then the units of the Syrian army — the infantry, then the cavalry, then the camel corps, the mechanized and technical formations, then the tanks and armored cars, then the artillery and the units of the Red Crescent. In the pavilion facing the parade sat His Excellency the President of the Republic, with the Saudi Emirs on his right and, on his left, the Egyptian delegation headed by Abd al-Latif Talaat Harb Pasha; the remaining delegations of the Arab states surrounded His Excellency, among them the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, the Prime Minister and the ministers, the representatives of the Arab and foreign diplomatic corps, and a large company of deputies and notables. Farouk I Street, for all its breadth, and the streets leading into it and the balconies overlooking it, were packed with countless throngs, all gathered to feast their eyes on the sight of the Arab armies — exultant, proud, glorying, and grateful. After the parade ended, His Excellency the President of the Republic proceeded to Mezzeh, accompanied by the delegations and the official bodies in full, where the flags were raised over the forts and citadels in a majestic and splendid ceremony.