to the priest, but to his God; for when he was filled with anxiety about the event of his Afiatic expedition, that very perfon, in that very habit, appeared to him in a dream at Dium in Macedonia, and encouraged him to pafs boldly over into Afia, promifing that God would give him the empire of the Perfians. He then gave orders to march on to Jerufalem, and was attended thither by the high priest and his retinue, and conducted to the temple, where he caufed a great number of victims to be offered to the God of the Jews. Upon his departure, he granted the Jews the freedom of their country, laws, and religion, and exempted them every feventh year from paying any tribute. With Alexander died the profperous ftate of the Jews, their country being fucceffively invaded, and themselves captivated by the Syrians and Egyptians. In Ptolemy Philadelphus, however, they found a protector. As he was a great lover of learning, and was forming a noble library at Alexandria, he endeavoured to oblige them as much as poffible, in order to obtain from them a copy of the facred books to be tranflated into Greek, and depofited among the immenfe number of volumes, which he had procured from all parts of the world. A learned prelate * fuppofes this verfion, which is commonly known by the name of the Septuagint, to have been made in the feventh year of that monarch's reign. The name of the Septuagint was given to it, because, according to the Jews, there were feventy-two perfons concerned in the tranflation, and that the verfions made by each of them separate apartments, miraculously agreed without the difference of a fingle word. This ftory, however, with feveral other fabulous circumftances mentioned by ancient writers, is fufficiently confuted by modern critics, Archbishop Uther. CHAP. CHAP. VIII. Of the Phoenicians-Their Religion.-Arts. Sciences. Manufactures.-Language-and Commerce,-Of Scythia.Its great extent.-Character and Customs of the Scythians. -Their valour, and mode of raifing Soldiers. IT T is univerfally agreed, that the ancient Phoenicians were a branch of the Canaanites, who changed their original name to avoid the ignominy of the curfe denounced on their progenitor*. They were governed by kings, and their territory included the kingdoms of Sidon, Tyre, Aradus, Bery, tus, and Byblus. In this they imitated the primitive government of their forefathers, who, like the other Canaanites, were under many petty princes, to whom they allowed the fovereign dignity, referving to themselves the natural rights and liberties of mankind. By their hiftory it appears, that even the kings of Sidon and Tyre, when in their zenith, were far from being uncontroulable, The Phoenicians were of opinion, that the beginning of all things was a dark breathing air, or gale of darkfome breath, and turbid chaos, obfcure as night. These were infinite, and without end of duration, But when this fpirit of breath fell in love with its own principles, and a mixture enfued, that mixture was the fource of all creation f. In the infancy of their ftate, the Phoenicians, as well as the reft of their kindred, doubtless worfhipped the true God, whom they called Baal, or Lord. By degrees, however, degenerating to the deification and worship of dead men, they became idolaters; and how far they retained a due fenfe of the true God, in their multifarious idolatry, it is not eafy to determine, Amidst their endlefs polytheifm, they could not have a proper notion of the Supreme Being. In arts, fciences, and manufactures, the Phoenicians greatly excelled. The Sidonians, under which denomination it was ufual to comprehend all the Phoenicians, were of a very happy genius. Arithmetic and aftronomy either took their rife among them, or were brought by them to great perfection, Thofe excellent fciences, as well as their letters, were afterwards introduced into Greece. In early ages, they made philofophy their study. A Sidonian, whofe name was Mofchus, taught the doctrine of atoms before the Trojan war; and Ab * Bochart. + Sanchoniathon. domenus domenus of Tyre challenged Solomon, the wifeft of men, by the fubtle queftions he proposed to him. In latter ages alfo, both Tyre and Sidon produced their philofophers. Boethus and Diodatus were natives of Sidon, Antipater and Apollonius of Tyre. The Phoenician language, which was common to the other Canaanites, was a dialect of the Hebrew. However eminent they were for their learning and skill in the fciences, it is however probable they excelled much more in the labours of the hand, than in those of the head. The glafs of Sidon, the purple of Tyre, and the exceeding fine linen they manufactured, were famous to a proverb. For their extraordinary skill in working of metals, in hewing of timber and ftone; in a word, for their perfect knowledge of what was folid, great, and ornamental in architecture, we need only confider the large fhare they had in erecting and decorating the temple of Jerufalem, under their king Hiram. So remarkable were they for their proficiency in the arts, that whatever was elegant or pleafing, either in apparel, veffels, or toys, was diftinguished, by way of eminence, with the epithet of Sidonian. When we confider them as merchants, they may be faid to have engroffed, for a long time, all the commerce of the western world. As navigators, they were the boldeft and most experienced. With regard to difcoveries, for many ages they had no rivals. As planters of colonies, they did fo much, that it is furprifing how they could furnish fuch fupplies of people, and not wholly depopulate their small territory, which was little more than the flip of ground between mount Libanus and the fea. They were at firft, perhaps, furnished with eaftern and other commodities by the Syrians, as the productions of their own country would not be confiderable. Perceiving, by degrees, how acceptable thefe commodities would be in foreign parts, they turned all their thoughts to trade and navigation, being prompted by the great number of convenient harbours on their coaft, and the excellent materials for fhip-building on the neighbouring mountains. At the fame time, by applying themselves to manufactures, they quickly extended their commerce, and brought themselves to be confidered as the first people of the earth for riches and fplendor, if not for power. By SCYTHIA may be understood all thofe northern countries of Europe and Afia (now inhabited by the Danes, Norwe * Menander. gians, Swedes, Ruffians, and Tartars, whofe inhabitants overturned and peopled the Roman empire, and continued fo late as the thirteenth century to iffue forth in large bodies, and naval expeditions, ravaging the more fouthern and fertile kingdoms of Europe; hence, by Sir William Temple, and other hiftorians, they are termed the Northern Hive, the Mother of Nations, the Storehouse of Europe. We have no fyftem of the Scythian laws; yet, from the juftice, temperance, contempt of riches and luxury, and the fimple and primitive way of living which prevailed among them, we may conclude, that they were not numerous. Though innured to labours, fierce in war, and of prodigious ftrength, yet they could fo well regulate their affections, that they made no other use of their victories than to increase their fame. Theft, among them, was reckoned fo great a crime, and fo feverely punished, that they allowed their numerous Blocks to wander from place to place, without danger of lofing them. These they efteemed their greatest wealth, living upon milk, and cloathing themfelves with their skins. Inftead of ufing houses, they conveyed themselves to different places in covered waggons, which were capacious enough to carry their furniture for bedding, and for the kitchen. Gold, filver, diamonds, pearls, and other precious ftones, were as much defpifed by them, as they were esteemed by other nations. Thofe virtues, which the Greeks in vain endeavoured to attain by learning and philofophy, were natural to them; fo much more effectual and advantageous was the ignorance of vice in the one, than the knowledge of virtue in the other+. The Scythians are much celebrated by ancient writers for ftrength, valour, and conduct in wart. Their women were even inspired with their warlike temper; and their youth. were wont to drink the blood of the firft prifoner they tooks, and to present the heads of all the men taken by them in battle to their monarch. The worth and merit of a man rifing in proportion to the number of enemies flain by him; they used to preferve the fkins of the flain, to tan them, and then hang them to the horses bridles, where they ferved both for trophies, and napkins to the owner. Their pride, or rather, barbarity, went fo far with fome of them, that they covered both their quivers and horses, and sometimes decked their own bodies, with the skins of the flain, nay, even turned their fkulls into drinking cups . * Justin. + Herodotus. ↑ Thucydides. When When the Scythians took the field, they muftered their fighting men, according to Herodotus, by making each man throw the head of an arrow into one common heap; and he gives us the following inftance of the largenefs of their armies. One of their kings, obferving the brazen heads of the arrows thrown together at a mufter to form a large heap, caused them to be melted, and caft into the form of a bowl, which, he says, remained in his time, was fix inches thick, and contained fix hundred amphoras, that is fifty hog heads. Almoft all the Scythians feem to have neglected agricul ture. They rather chofe to roam where they found the best pafture for their cattle, and contented themfelves with the fpontaneous productions of the earth*. Their chief riches and food confifting in their numerous herds, they entrusted the care of them to fhepherds, whose rank was below that of the martial men, and who had flaves and captives under them. These moving about from pafture to pafture, with the perfons and families that were unfit to go to the wars, chiefly lived upon honey, cheese, and milk, and more especially that of their mares; but their choiceft food was the venison they killed. The Scythians talked little, but in a concife and strong manner, efpecially about their warlike affairs. When they travelled, they carried with them a certain compofition in fmall pieces, like pills, one of which, upon occafion, would yield fufficient nourishment for feveral days. They likewife carried fome compofition for feeding their horfes, upon the ftrength of which they could travel ten or twelve days without eating or drinkingt. CHAP. IX. Of the early State of Greece, and the Siege of Troy.- Of Grecian Colonization. UROPE, though the leaft extenfive, is the most E quarter of the globe. man hath at tained his chief excellence, and human nature appeared with the most diftinguished luftre. The arts which fupport life, |