colonies of the people, who were denominated from him. They were the fame as the Ofirians and Herculeans; all of one family, though under different appellations.

Our fagacious Writer obferves, that from what has been faid, we may perceive that the fame hiftory has been appropriated to different perfonages; and that, if we look farther into the annals of the firft ages, we fhall find more inftances to the fame purpose. The inftances pointed out are Cronus, Aftarte, Ouranus, Apollo, Themis, Zeuth, and Thoules,

Thefe accounts our Author has collated, and brought in fucceffion to each other, that we may at one view fee the abfurdity of the history, if taken in the common acceptation. And however numerous, continues he, my inftances may have been, I fhall introduce other examples before I quit the fubject. I muft particularly speak of an Egyptian hero, equally ideal with thofe above-mentioned; whofe hiftory, though the moft romantic and improbable of any, has been admitted as credible and true. The perfon to whom I allude, is the celebrated Sefoftris. Moft of the ancient hiftorians fpeak of his great atchievements; and the most learned of the modern chronologists have endeavoured to determine his æra, and point out the time of his reign. But their endeavours have been fruitless; and they vary about the time when he lived not lefs than a thoufand years: nay, fome differ even more than this in the æra which they affign to him.'

Among the authors who have written concerning this extraordinary perfonage, Diodorus Siculus is the most uniform and full; and with his evidence Mr. Bryant begins his account.

The detail given by this hiftorian is very plain and precife: and we proceed very regularly and minutely in a geographical feries from one conqueft to another: fo that the ftory is rendered in fome degree plaufible. But we may learn from Diodorus himself, that little credit is to be paid to this narration, after all the pains he may have taken to win upon our credulity. He ingenuously owns, that not only the Grecian writers, but even the priests of Egypt, and the bards of the fame country, varied in the accounts which they gave of this hero, and were guilty of great inconfiftence.'-Though Diodorus Siculus has culled the most probable atchievements of Sefoftris, and coloured and arranged them to the beft advantage, they ftill exceed belief.-Yet the hiftory of this perfonage has been' admitted as credible by the most learned writers and chronologifts.-Sir John Marfham and Sir Ifaac Newton fuppofe him to have been the Sefac of the fcriptures. But this opinion is very ably confuted by our ingenious Author, who fhews, that we know nothing farther of Sefac, or Shishak, than what relates to his expedition against Judæa; and that if fuch a perfon as REV. June, 1775. Sefoftris

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Sefoftris had exifted, his reign must have been of the earliest date. The differtation is concluded with fome excellent obfervations upon the early ftate of the world; from which it is apparent that those who speak of mighty empires being at that time founded, know little of true hiftory, and have formed a very wrong judgment of the politics which then univerfally prevailed.

To the account of the Mythic heroes of Egypt, Mr. Bryant thinks it necessary to fubjoin two others of the like ftamp, who have made no lefs figure in the annals of Babylon and Affyria. The perfons here meant are Ninus and Semiramis; whofe conquefts, though they did not extend fo far as thofe above alluded to, are yet alike wonderful, and equally groundless. After ftating the hiftory of Ninus and Semiramis, he remarks that it is in a great measure founded upon terms which have been mifconftrued, and that fictions have been invented in confequence of the mistakes. Under the character of Semiramis we are to understand a people ftyled Semarim, a title affumed by the ancient Babylonians.-In short, the whole of the hiftory of Ninus and Semiramis, in its common acceptation, is to the last degree abfurd and improbable: but if we, for a perfon, fubftitute a people, we shall find, when it is ftripped of its falfe colouring, that there is much truth in the narration. It was a common mode of expreffion to call a tribe or family by the name of its founder; and a nation by the head of the line. People are often spoken of collectively in the fingular under fuch a patronymic. The Ninevites and Samarim did perform all that is attributed to Semiramis and Ninus. They did conquer the Medes and Bactrians; and extended their dominions weftward as far as Phrygia, and the river Tanais, and to the southward as far as Arabia and Egypt. But thefe events were many ages after the foundation of the two kingdoms. They began under Pul of Nineve; and were carried on by Affur Adon, Salmanaffar, Sennacherib, and others of his fucceffors.

• The celebrated Zoroafter, fays our Author, feems to have been a perfonage as much mistaken, as any who have preceded. The ancients, who treated of him, have described him in the fame foreign light, as they have represented Perfeus, Dionufus, and Ofiris. They have formed a character, which by length of time has been feparated, and eftranged, from the perfon to whom it originally belonged. And as, among the ancients, - there was not a proper uniformity observed in the appropriation of terms, we shall find more perfons than one spoken of under the character of Zoroafter: though there was one principal, to whom it more truly related.'-Hyde, and other learned men, have imagined that Zerdafht, who is faid to have been one of the Magi, and is fuppofed to have firft formed a code of infti

tutes for the Perfees, was the ancient Zoroafter. But Mr. Bryant, who has difplayed much curious learning upon the fubject, hath proved that Dr. Hyde is greatly mistaken. Many were called after Zoroafter: but who among men was the prototype can only be found out by diligently collating the hiftories which have been tranfmitted. The title originally belonged to the Sun; but was metaphorically bestowed upon facred and enlightened perfonages. Some have thought that the perfon alJuded to was Ham. He has by others been taken for Chus, alfo for Mizraim, and Nimrod; and by Huetius for Mofes.

By Zoroafter being the author of Magia, is meant, that he was the first promoter of religious rites, and the inftructor of men in their duty to God. The war of Ninus with Zoroafter of Bactria relates probably to fome hoftilities carried on be tween the Ninevites of Affyria, and the Bactrians, who had embraced the Zoroaftrian rites.

The character of Orpheus is in fome refpects not unlike that of Zoroafter. Our learned Writer, having collected together many of the traditions concerning Orpheus, obferves, that to remedy the inconfiftencies which arife in his history, it has been fuppofed that there were many perfons of this name. Suidas takes notice of no lefs than four in Thrace. But all these will not make the hiftory confiftent. Voffius, therefore, with good reafon, doubts whether fuch a perfon ever exifted.

I have fhewn, fays Mr. Bryant, that colonies from Egypt fettled in the region of Sethon, called afterwards Sethonia, upon the river Palæftinus. They were likewife to be found in the countries of Edonia, Pieria, and Peonia: in one of which they founded a city and a temple. The Grecians called this city Orpheus. But the place was originally expreffed Orphi, by which is meant the oracular temple of Orus. From hence, and from the worship here inftituted, the people were styled Orphites, and Orpheans. They were noted for the Cabiritic myfteries; and for the Dionufiaca, and worship of Damater. They were likewife very famous for the medicinal arts; and for their skill in aftronomy and mufic. But the Grecians have comprehended under the character of one perfon the hiftory of a people.' Our Author goes on to mention fome other circumftances relative to Orpheus, and then takes notice, that it was from the Babylonian and Perfian Magi, that the Orphic rites were originally derived. They came from Babylonia to Egypt, and from thence to Greece. We accordingly find this particular in the character of Orpheus,-that he was great in all the myfteries of the Magi. We moreover learn from Stephanus Monachius, that Orphon, a term of the fame purport as Orpheus, was one of the appellations by which the Magi were called. Orphon, quod Arabibus Magum fonat. In short, under the cha

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racter of Orpheus, we have the hiftory both of the deity and of his votaries.

The last of the heroes here confidered is Cadmus; concerning whom, and the collateral circumftances arifing from the accounts given of him, Mr. Bryant has treated more largely than upon Dionufus, Sefoftris, or any other of the fuppofed great travellers and conquerors of the earlieft ages. The expeditions of Cadmus, though not fo extenfive as fome which have been mentioned, are yet esteemed of much confequence in the hiftory of ancient nations. The time of his arrival in Greece is looked up to, as a fixed æra; and many points in chronology are thereby determined.-Bochart, with wonderful ingenuity, and equal learning, tries to folve the ænigmas under which the history of Cadmus is reprefented. He fuppofes him to have been a fugitive Canaanite, who fled from the face of Joshua; and that he was called Cadmus from being a Cadmonite, which is a family mentioned by Mofes. In like manner he imagines, that Harmonia had her name from Mount Hermon, which was probably in the diftrict of the Cadmonites.-Yet after all Bochart's ingenious conjectures, our Author declares, that he is obliged to diffent from him in fome points; and particularly in one, which is of the greatest moment. He cannot be induced to think that Cadmus was a Phenician. Having taken pains to fhew that his doubts, in this refpect, are well founded, his next endeavour is to prove that no fuch person as Cadmus exifted. This matter is laboured at large; and after taking notice of the feveral relations which are given of the adventures of Cadmus, our fagacious Writer afks, Is it credible that any perfon could have penetrated into the various regions whither he is fuppofed to have gone; to have founded colonies in Phenicia, Cyprus, Rhodes, Thera, Thafus, Anaphe, Samothracia; to have twice vifited the Hellefpont; to have worked the mines in the Pangean mountains; and in other places; to have made fettlements in Euboea, Attica, Boeotia, and Illyria; and, above all, to have had fuch territories in Afric? He is reprefented as heir to the kingdom of Egypt: this he quitted and obtained a kingdom in Phenicia. He leaves this too; and after much wandering arrives in Greece; where he founds feveral cities, and reigns fixty-two years. After this, hard to conceive! he is made King in Illyria. He muft alfo have reigned in Afric: and his dominion feems to have been confiderable, as he founded an hundred cities. He is reprefented as a King in Armenia; and had there too no small territory. Sure kingdoms in thofe times must have been very cheap, if they were fo eafily attainable. But the whole is certainly a mistake; at leaft in refpect to Cadmus. No perfon could poffibly have effected what is attributed to him. They

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were not the atchievements of one perfon, nor of one age. And place Cadmus at any given æra, and arrange his. hiftory, as may appear moft plaufible; yet there will arife numberless inconfiftencies from the connexions he must have in refpect to time, place, and people; fuch as no art nor difpofition can remedy.'

It may be asked, if there were no fuch man as Cadmus, what did the ancients allude to under this character? And what is the true purport of thefe biftories? Mr. Bryant answers, that the travels of Cadmus, like the expeditions of Perfeus, Sefoftris, and Ofiris, relate to colonies, which at different times went abroad, and were diftinguished by this title. But what was the work of many, and performed at various feafons, has been attributed to one perfon. Cadmus was one of the names of Ofiris, the chief deity of Egypt. Both Europa and Harmonia are of the like nature. They were titles of the deity; but affumed by colonies who went out and fettled under these denominations.

A variety of circumftances are produced by our Author, to fhew that Cadmus was a different perfonage from what he is generally imagined. He may principally be efteemed Ham, who by his pofterity was looked up to as the Sun. That he was the fame as Ham will appear from the etymology of his name. It is a compound of Achad-Ham, rendered by the Greeks Acadamus and Academus, and contracted Cadmus. Achad was a title of the Sun. Many learned men have thought that the place at Athens called Academia was founded by Cadmus, and denominated from him and of this latter circumftance Mr. Bryant makes no doubt. The Ceramicus at Athens had the fame name; and it was undoubtedly given from the fame perfonage.-The ftory of Cadmus, and Europa, relates to people from Egypt, and Syria, who went abroad at different times, and fettled in various parts. They are faid to have been determined in their place of refidence by an ox, or cow: by which this is only meant, that they were directed by an oracle for without fuch previous inquiry no colonies went abroad. Under the character of Europa are to be understood people ftyled Europeans, from their particular mode of worship. The firft variation from the purer Zabaifm confifted in the Ophiolatreia, or worship of the Serpent. This worship prevailed in Babylonia, Egypt, and Syria; from which countries it was brought by the Cadmians into Greece. The name Europa is a compound, Eur-Ope, analogous to Canope, Canophis, and Cnuphis of Egypt; and fignifies Orus Pytho. rendered by the Greeks as a feminine, upon a fuppofition that it was the name of a woman; but it related properly to a country; and we find many places of th like etymology in Media, Syria, and Babylonia, which were expreffed in the mafcu

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