mortal men nor women; nor indeed any thing but the letters of an ancient alphabet; the mere figures which composed the symbolic directions to the Egyptian hus-bandmen *. And yet, after all this, he has the modesty to talk of SYSTEMES BIZARREST; and to place the Newtonian system in that number. It would be impertinent to ask this writer, where was his regard to Antiquity or to Truth, when we see he has so little for the public, as to be wanting even in that mere respect due to every reader of common apprehension? and yet this System, begot by a delirious imagination on the dream of a lethargic pedant, is to be called interpreting Antiquity. However, as it is a work of entertainment, where AGRICULTURE has the top part in the piece, and Antiquity is brought in only to decorate the scene, it should, methinks, be made as perfect as possible. Would it not therefore be a considerable improvement to it, if, instead of saying the Egyptian husbandmen found their gods in the symbolic directions for their labour, the ingenious author would suppose that they turned them up alive as they ploughed their furrows, just as the Etruscans found their god Tages ||: This would give his piece the marvellous, so necessary in works of this nature, corrected too by the probable, that is, some kind of support from Antiquity, which it now totally wants. Besides, the moist glebe of Egypt, we know, when impregnated with a warm Sun, was of old famed for hatching men and monsters.

To return. From what hath been last said, we conclude, That the true original of brute-worship was the

* See note [YYY] at the end of this Book.

+ See p. 122 of his Revision de l'histoire du Ciel.

S'il y a même quelque chose de solide et de suivi dans l'histoire, que je vais donner de l'origine du ciel poetique, j'avoue que j'en suis redevable à l'explication ingénieuse, mais simple, par laquelle l'auteur des saturnelles [Macrob. Saturn. lib. i. cap. 17.] nous a éclairci l'origine du nom des ces deux signes. Hist. du ciel, vol. i. c. i.

Tages quidam dicitur in agro Tarquiniensi, cum terra araretur & sulcus altius esset impressus, extitisse repente, & eum adfatus esse, qui arabas. Is autem Tages, ut in libris est Etruscorum, puerili, specie dicitur visus, sed senili fuisse prudentia, &c. Cic. de Div. lib. ii. cap. 23.

Ο Δήμος Ερηχθῆς μεγαλήτορες, ὃν ποτ' ̓Αθήνη

Θρέψε, Διός θυγάτης, ΤΕΚΕ δὲ ζείδωρος ΑΡΟΥΡΑ. Il. ii. ver. 54.

P 3

use

use of symbolic writing: and, consequently, that Symbols were extreme ancient; for brute-worship was national in the days of MOSES. But Symbols were invented for the repository of Egyptian wisdom; therefore the Egyptians were very learned even from those early times: The point to be proved.

And now, had this long discourse on the Egyptian Hieroglyphics done nothing but afford me this auxiliary proof, which my argument does not want, I should certainly have made it shorter. But it is of much use besides, for attaining a true idea of the EASTERN ELOCUTION (whose genius is greatly influenced by this kind of writing), and is therefore, I presume, no improper introduction to the present volume, whose subject is the religion and civil policy of the Hebrews. The excellent Mr. Mede pointed to this use: and the learned Mr. Daubuz endeavoured to prosecute his hint, at large; but falling into the visions of Kircher, he frustrated much of that service, which the application of hieroglyphic learning to scripture language would otherwise have afforded.

A farther advantage may be derived from this long discourse it may open our way to the true Egyptian Wisdom; which by reason of the general mistakes concerning the origin, use, and distinct species of Ifieroglyphic writing, hath been hitherto stopped up. subject now lies ready for any diligent enquirer; and to such an one, whose greater advantages of situation, learning, and abilities, may make him more deserving of the public regard, I leave it to be pursued.

The

But whatever help this may afford us towards a better acquaintance with the ancient Egyptian Wisdom, yet, what is a greater advantage, it will very much assist us in the study of the Grecian; and, after so many instances given of this use, one might almost venture to recommend these two grand vehicles of Egyptian learning and religion, the MYSTERIES treated of in a former volume, and the HIEROGLYPHICS in the present, as the cardinal points on which the interpretation of GREEK ANTIQUITY should from henceforth turn.

SECT. V.

THE course of my argument now brings me to examine a new hypothesis against the high antiquity of Egypt, which hath the incomparable Sir ISAAC NEWTON for its Patron; a man, for whose fame Science and Virtue scemed to be at strife. The prodigious discoveries he had made in the natural world, and especially that superiority of genius which opened the way to those discoveries, hath induced some of his countrymen to think him as intimate with the moral; and even to believe with a late ingenious Commentator on his Optics, that as every thing which Midas touched, turned to gold, so all that Newton handled turned to demonstration.

But the sublimest understanding has its bounds, and, what is more to be lamented, the strongest mind has its foible. And this Miracle of science, who disclosed all nature to our view, when he came to correct old Time, in the chronology of Egypt, suffered himself to be seduced, by little lying Greek mythologists and storytellers, from the Goshen of MOSES, into the thickest of the Egyptian darkness. So pestilent a mischief in the road to Truth is a favourite hypothesis: an evil, we have frequent occasion to lament, as it retards the progress of our enquiry at almost every step. For it is to be observed, that Sir Isaac's Egyptian chronology was fashioned only to support his Grecian; which he erected on one of those sublime conceptions peculiar to his amazing genius.

But it is not for the sake of any private System that I take upon me to consider the arguments of this illustrious man. The truth is, his discourse of the empire of Egypt contradicts every thing which Moses and the PROPHETS have delivered concerning these ancient people. Though some therefore of his admirers may seem to think that no more harm can derive to religion by his contradicting the History, than by his overturning the Astronomy, of the Bible, yet I am of a different opinion; because, though the end of the sacred history

was certainly not to instruct us in Astronomy, yet it was, without question, written to inform us of the various fortunes of the People of God; with whom, the history of Egypt was closely connected. I suspect, therefore, that the espousing this hypothesis may be` attended with very bad consequences in our disputes with Infidelity. The present turn, indeed, of Free-thinking is to extol the high antiquity of Egypt, as an advantage to their cause; and consequently to urge Scripture, which bears full evidence to that antiquity, as a faithful relater of ancient facts; yet these advantages being chimerical, as soon as they are understood to be so, we shall see the contrary notion, of the low antiquity of Egypt, become the fashionable doctrine; and, what all good men will be sorry to find, the great name of NEWTON set against the BIBLE.

It is therefore, as I say, for the sake of Scripture, and from no foolish fondness for any private opinion, that I take upon me to examine the system of this incomparable person.

His whole argument for the low antiquity of Egypt may be summed up in this syllogism:

OSIRIS advanced Egypt from a state of barbarity to civil policy. OSIRIS and SESOSTRIS were the same.-Therefore EGYPT was advanced from a state of barbarity to civil policy in the time of SESOSTRIS.

And to fix the time of Sesostris with precision, he endeavours to prove him to be the same with SESAC. But this latter identity not at all affecting the present question, I shall have no occasion to consider it.

Now the minor in this syllogism being the questionable term, he has employed his whole discourse in its support. All then I have to do, is to shew that OSIRIS and SESOSTRIS were not one, but two persons, living in very distant ages.

And that none of the favourers of this system may have any pretence to say, that the great Author's reasonings are not fairly drawn out and enforced, I shall transcribe them just as I find them collected, methodized, and presented under one view by his learned and ingenious Apologist:-"He [Sir Isaac Newton] has found it more easy to lower the pretensions of the

"Ancients

"Ancients than to conquer the prejudices of the Mo"derns. Many of his opinions, that are in truth well "founded, pass for dreams; and in particular his argu"ments for settling the time of Sesostris, which the "Greeks never knew, have been answered with scurrility. I shall lay together here the evidences that have "convinced me of the truth of his conclusion, because "he has not any where collected all of them.

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1. That Osiris and Bacchus were the same, was generally agreed by the Greeks and Egyptians, and is "therefore out of question; and that the great actions "related of Sesostris are true of Sesac, and the difference between them is only nominal, is affirmed by "Josephus.

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2. Osiris and Sesostris were both Egyptian kings, "who conquered Ethiopia; and yet there never was "but one Egyptian king that was master of Ethiopia. 3. Both were Egyptian kings, that with a prodigious army and fleet invaded and subdued all Asia "northward as far as Tanais, and eastward as far as "the Indian ocean.

4. Both set up pillars in all their conquests, signi"fying what sort of resistance the inhabitants had made. "Palestine, in particular, appears to have made little or none, to them.

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5. Both passed over the Hellespont into Europe, met with strong opposition in Thrace, and were there "in great hazard of losing their army.

6. Both had with them in their expeditions a great "number of foster brothers, who had been all born on "the same day, and bred up with them.

"7. Both built or exceedingly embellished Thebes in "Upper Egypt.

"8. Both changed the face of all Egypt, and from an open country made it impracticable for cavalry, by cutting navigable canals from the Nile to all the "cities.

9. Both were in the utmost danger by the conspiracy of a brother.

10. Both made triumphant entries in chariots, of "which Osiris's is poetically represented to be drawn by

"tigers;