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No. 898.-2 KINGS ii. 19.

And the ground barren.

MARG. Causing to miscarry. If the latter reading is allowed to be more just than the former, we must entertain a different idea of the situation of Jericho than the textual translation suggests. There are actually at this time cities where animal life of certain kinds pines and decays and dies; and where that posterity which should replace such loss is either not conceived; or, if conceived, is not brought to the birth; or if brought to the birth, is fatal in delivery to both mother and offspring. An instance of this kind occurs in Don Ulloa's Voyage to South America, vol. i. p. 93. He says of the climate of Porto Bello, that " it destroys the vigour of nature, and often untimely cuts the thread of life." And of Sennaar Mr. Bruce (Trav. vol. iv. p. 469.) says, that "no horse, mule, ass, or any beast of burthen, will breed or even live at Sennaar, or many miles about it. Poultry does not live there; neither dog nor cat, sheep nor bullock, can be preserved a season there. They must go all, every half year, to the sands. Though every possible care be taken of them, they die in every place where the fat earth is about the town, during the first season of the rains." He farther mentions, that the situation is equally unfavourable to most trees.

No. 899.-iii. 15. But bring me now a minstrel.] The music of great men in civil life has been sometimes directed to persons of a sacred character, as an expression of respect, in the East: perhaps the playing of the minstrel before Elisha is to be understood, in part at least, in the same manner. When Dr. Chandler

was at Athens, the archbishop of that city was upon ill terms with the waiwode: and the Greeks in general siding with the waiwode, the archbishop was obliged to withdraw for a time. But some time after, when Chandler and his fellow travellers were at Corinth, they were informed, that the archbishop was returned to Athens; that the waiwode had received him kindly, and ordered his musicians to attend him at his palace; and that a complete revolution had happened in his favour. Travels in Greece, p. 244.

HARMER, vol. iii. p. 302.

No. 900.-iii. 27. Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt-offering upon the wall.] In great distress several persons, like the king of Moab, have offered their own children upon their altars. Eusebius (Præpar. Evang. lib. 5.) and Lactantius (Div. Instit. cap. 21.) mention several nations who used these sacrifices. Cæsar (De Bello Gallico, lib. 6.) says of the Gauls, that when they were afflicted with grievous diseases, or in time of war, or great danger, they either offered men for sacrifices, or vowed they would offer them. For they imagined God would not be appeased, unless the life of a man were rendered for the life of a man. See Oriental

Customs, No. 128.

No. 901.-iv. 1. The creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be his bondsmen.] This was a case in which the Hebrews had such power over their children, that they might sell them to pay what they owed; and the creditor might force them to it. Huet thinks that from the Jews this custom was propagated to the Athenians, and from them to the Romans.

.

No. 902.-iv. 23. It is neither new moon nor sab

bath.] Peter Della Vallé assures us (Travels into Arabia Deserta, p. 258.) that it is now customary in that country to begin their journeys at the new moon. When the Shunamite proposed going to Elisha, her husband dissuaded her by observing that it was neither newmoon nor sabbath. HARMER, vol. ii. p. 514.

No. 903.—iv. 39. And one went out into the field to gather herbs.] To account for this circumstance, why the herbs were gathered in the field and not in the garden, it may be observed from Russell, that at Aleppo, besides the herbs and vegetables produced by regularly cultivated gardens, the fields afford bugloss, mallow, and asparagus, which they use as pot-herbs, with some others which are used in salads.

HARMER, vol. i. p. 332.

No. 904.- v. 6. That thou mayest recover him of his leprosy.] Schultens (in his MS. orig. Heb.) observes that the right understanding of this passage depends on the custom of expelling lepers, and other infectious persons, from camps or cities, and reproachfully driving them into solitary places; and that when these persons were cleansed and readmitted into cities or camps, they were said to be recollecti, gathered again from their leprosy, and again received into that society from which they had been cut off.”

No. 905.—v. 7. And it came to pass when the king of Israel had read the letter-] It was an ancient custom for the kings of Egypt to read all the letters of state themselves. DIODORUS SIC. p. 44.

No. 906.-v. 17. And Naaman said, shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules burthen of earth?] When the Israelites were in the

wilderness, and water was so scarce that a miracle was necessary to procure a sufficiency for their sustenance, it must have been almost impossible to have obtained such a quantity as their numerous ablutions required. In similar circumstances of difficulty contrivances have been adopted, whereby it has been obviated. "If they (the Arab Algerines) cannot come by any water, then they must wipe themselves as clean as they can, till water may conveniently be had; or else it suffices to take abdes upon a stone, which I call an imaginary abdes; i. e. to smooth their hands over a stone two or three times, and rub them one with the other, as if they were washing with water. The like abdes sufficeth when any are sickly, so that water might endanger their life: and after they have so wiped, it is gaise, i. e. lawful to esteem themselves clean." PITTS'S Account, p. 44.

In a Mahometan treatise of prayer, published by De la Motraye, (vol. i. p. 360.) it is said, " in case water is not to be had, that defect may be supplied with earth, a stone, or any other product of the earth; and this is called tayamum, and is performed by cleaning the insides of the hands upon the same, rubbing therewith the face once; and then again rubbing the hands upon the earth, stone, or whatever it be, stroking the right arm to the elbow with the left hand; and so the left with the right."

With respect to Naaman the prevailing opinion has been, that he meant to erect an altar of the earth which he requested of Elisha: but it may be proposed to consideration, whether he had not a view to purification, agreeably to the instances which occur in the foregoing extracts.

No. 907.-v. 18. And he leaneth upon my hand.] This might be done out of state, or on account of weak

ness. In the additions to the book of Esther (xv. 4.) anention is made of two young women that waited on that queen, upon one of whom she leaned, and the other held up her train. It was not only the custom amongst the Persians and Syrians, but the Israelites also. 2 Kings vii. 2, 17. PATRICK, in loc.

No. 908.-vii. 12. And the king arose in the night, and said unto his servants, I will now shew you what the Syrians have done to us: they know that we are hungry, therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, when they come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city.] In the history of the revolt of Ali Bey, (p. 99.) we have an account of a transaction very similar to the stratagem supposed to have been practised by the Syrians. The pasha of Sham (Damascus) having marched near to the sea of Tiberias, found Sheik Daher encamped there but the sheik deferring the engagement till the next morning, during the night divided his army into three parts, and left the camp with great fires, all sorts of provisions, and a large quantity of spirituous liquors, giving strict orders not to hinder the enemy from taking possession of the camp, but to come down and attack them just before dawn of day. "In the middle of the night, the pasha of Sham thought to surprise Sheik Daher, and marched in silence to the camp, which, to his great astonishment, he found entirely abandoned, and thought the sheik had fled with so much precipitation, that he could not carry off the baggage and stores. The pasha thought proper to stop in the camp to refresh his soldiers. They soon fell to plunder, and drank so freely of the liquors, that, overcome with the fatigue of the day's march, and the fumes of the spirits, they were not long ere they were in a sound sleep. At that time Sheik Sleby and Sheik Crime, who

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