upon their heads, wearing sackcloth next their skin, and lying upon the bare ground.

Their language was the Hebrew; the genius of which is pure, primitive, natural, and strictly conformable to the simplicity of the Jewish patriarchs: and it is highly probable, that not only they, but all their trading neighbors, had the art of writing very early; though it is impossible to determine whether each nation had a peculiar character of their own, or the same in common to them all.

The arms like those of the ancient nations, were either offensive or defensive. The former consisted of broad crooked swords, javelins, slings, bows and arrows, and two-edged swords; the latter were shields, helmets, coats of mail, breast plates, and targets.These arms were commonly made of brass and sometimes of iron or steel.

Few trades or manufactures were carried on among the Jews before the reign of Solomon, except such as were absolutely necessary. They built their own houses, and their wives and servants attended to all domestic avocations. The dress of the men consisted of linen drawers and tunics, over which they threw a loose garment of woollen when they went abroad.

The dress of the women, especially the higher class, was more curious, as they bestowed more ornament upon it, chiefly of needle-work, which was within their own province. They also wore jewels of gold and silver, which were first brought from Egypt, and afterwards augmented by the spoil of their enemies, and their commerce with Tyre After Solomon's time pride and luxury increased so rapidly, that the prophet Isaiah has spent a whole chapter in enumerating the costly ornaments with whi, h the female Israelites used to decorate their persons.

CURIOSITIES OF PALESTINE.

Among the remarkable curiosities of Palestine may be justly reckoned various petrifactions in the neighborhood of Mount Carmel, which bear the most exact resemblance to citrons, melons, olives, peaches, and other vegetable productions. Here are also found a kind of oysters, and bunches of grapes of the same consistence. Small round stones, resembling peas, have been frequently seen on a spot of ground near Rachel's tomb, not far from Bethlehem. On the same road is a fountain, honored with the name of "Apostle's Fountain ;" and a little farther is a barren, rugged, and dismal solitude, to which our Saviour retired, and was tempted by the devil. In this desart appears a steep and craggy mountain, on the summit of which are two chapels. There are also several gloomy caverns in the neighborhood, formerly the solitary retreat of Christian anchorite.

Among the artificial varieties may be considered the ruins of Ptolemais, or St. John D'Acre which still retain many vestiges of ancient magnificence; such as the remains of a noble Gothic cathedral, formerly dedicated to St. Andrew; the church of St. John, the titular saint of the city; the convents of the knights hospitallers; and the palace of their grand master. The remains of Sebaste, the ancient Samaria, though long ago laid in ruins, and great part of it turned into arable land, exhibit some marks of those sumptuous edifices with which it was adorned by king Herod. Towards the north side is a large square piazza, encompassed with marble pillars, together with the fragments of strong walls at some distance. But the most remarkable object is a church, said to have been built by the empress Helena over the place where St. John the Baptist was beheaded, the dome of which, together with some beautiful columns, capitals, and mosaic work, prove it to have been a noble fabric.

Jacob's well is highly venerated by Christian travellers, on account of its antiquity, and of our Redeemer's conference with the woman of Samaria. It is hewn out of the solid rock, about thirty-five yards in depth, and three in diameter, and is at present covered with a stone vault.

The famous pools of Gihon and Bethesda may be ranked among the most stately ruins; the former is situated about a quarter of a mile from Bethlehem-gate westward: Its length is a hundred and six, paces, and its breadth sixty-seven. It is lined with wall and plaister, and conteins a considerable store of water. The other at Jerusalem, is one hundred and twenty paces long, forty broad, and eighty deep; but at present dry..

In the city of Bethlehem they pretend to shew the stable and manger where the adorable Messiah lay at the period of his nativity; and exhibit a grotto hewn out of a chalky rock, in which they affirm the blessed virgin concealed herself and holy child from the persecution of Herod.

At Nazareth is a magnificent church under ground, said to occupy the very cave where the virgin Mary received the angel's salutation, and where two beautiful pillars of granite are erected in commemoration of that interesting event. At a small distance are some fine remains of a larger church, supposed to have been erected in the time of the empress Helena. But this is much inferior to the great church built over our Saviour's sepulchre, by the same empress, and called the church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The last class of artificial curiosities worthy of notice, is that of the sepulchral monuments, which are scattered all over the country; and of which the most remarkable are selected for the reader's gratification.

The tomb of the holy virgin, situated near Jerusalem, in the valley of Jehosaphat, to which there is a descent by a magnificent flight of steps, has on the right hand side the sepulchre of St. Anna, the mother, and on the left, that of Joseph, the husband of Mary. In each

division are altars for the celebration of divine worship; and the whole is cut out of the solid rock.

But the most curious and magnificent pieces of antiquity of this kind are royal supulchres without the walls of Jerusalem: they are all hewn out of the solid marble rock, and contain several spacious and elaborate apartments. On the eastern side is the entrance leading to a stately court, about one hundred and twenty feet square, neatly wrought and polished. On the south side of it is a sumptuous portico, embellished in front with à kind of architrave, and supported by columns; and on the left of the portico is a descent into the sepulchral apartments.

The first of these is a handsome room, about twentyfour feet square, formed with such neatness and accuracy that it may justly be stiled a beautiful chamber, hollowed out of one piece of marble. From this room are three passages leading to other chambers of a similar fabric, but of different dimensions; in each of which (the first excepted) are stone coffins placed in niches, that were once covered with semi-circular lids, embellished with flowers, garlands, &c. but now broken to pieces. The door-cases, hinges, pivots, &c. are all of the same stone with the other parts of these rooms, and even the doors appear to have been cut out of the very piece to which they hang. Why these grots are honored with the appellation of the sepulchres of the kings is not exactly known, but whoever views them with any degree of attention must be induced to pronounce them a royal work, and to regard them as the most authentic remains of the old regal splendour, that are to be met with in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem.

CHAPTER XXXIII.

JAPAN OR SIPHON.

The empire of Japan is called by the natives Niphon, which signifies the foundation of the sun; the largest island giving its name to the two smaller ones which belong to it. By the Chinese this country is called Zippon, or Siphon.

The government and religion of the Japanese are so closely connected with their pretended origin, that it is impossible to separate them. These people are highly offended at the supposition of their being descended from the Chinese, or any other nation; for they assert that they arose within the compass of their own empire, and esteem themselves the offspring of their gods, who during an inconceivable number of ages, governed that empire, in a regular succession from father to son. Of these gods they imagine there were two races; the first perfectly divine; and the last, which descended from the former, partly divine and partly human. But who were the subjects of these imaginary deities, they do not presume to determine; for they imagine that the present inhabitants were descended from Awase Dsu No Mikotto, the last of this second race; and that their original ancestors were all of them his children by his wife the goddess Isarami No Mikotto. Thus, though they trace their original, as descended from the gods, even higher than the Chinese (for each of these imaginary deities reigned during a long succession of ages) yet they date the origin of the present inhabitants so late as about 600 years before Christ, when the genuine history of Japan begins with the reign of Sin Mu Ten Oo, the eldest son of Awase Dsu No Mikotto. To the dairi, or ecclesiastical hereditary emperors, who were said to descend in a direct line from the eldest branch of their fabulous ancestors, the people attributed an almost divine power, and an unlimited authority over their fellow