might wear. It is a mixture, if I remember right, of gold and steel, or of copper and steel. Calmbac is this metal, composed of gold and copper; it in colour nearly resembles the pale carnation rose, has a very fine grain, and the polish extremely lively. Gold is not of so lively and brilliant a colour." HARMER, vol. ii. p. 490.

No. 934.-ix. 3. And plucked off the hair of my head.] In ordinary sorrrows they only neglected their hair, and let it hang down scattered in a careless manner, the prac

tice mentioned in these words was used in bitter lamentations; and that also amongst the heathens. Thus Homer, speaking of Ulysses and his companions bewailing the death of Elpenor, says,

Εζόμενοι δὲ ἐνταῦθα γόων τίλλον]ο τε χαίτας.

Odyss. x. 15.

They sitting down there howled and plucked off their hairs.

No. 935.-NEHEMIAH ii. 8.

`And the king granted me according to the good hand of my God upon me.

THE hand is sometimes taken in an ill sense for inflicting punishments. Ruth. i. 13. Jer. xv. 17. and sometimes in a good sense, for we extend favours to men with the hand. Thus Drusius explains Psalm Ixxxviii. 5. cut off from thy hand, that is, fallen from thy grace and favour. Pindar (Olymp. 10.) thus uses the hand of God, for his help and aid, Taraua, by the hand of God: which the scholiast interprets, by the power and help of God. Thus Nehemiah is here to be understood.

No. 936. v. 5. We bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants.] As to the paternal power of the Hebrews, the law gave them leave to sell their daughters, Exod. xxi. 7. but the sale was a sort of marriage, as it was with the Romans. Fathers sold their children to their creditors, Isaiah 1. 1. and in the time of Nehemiah the poor proposed to sell their children for something to live upon; and others bewailed themselves that they had not wherewith to redeem their children that were already in slavery. They had the power of life and death over their children, Prov. xix. 18. But they had not so much liberty as the Romans, to make use of this severe priviledge without the knowledge of the magistrate. The law of God only permitted the father and mother, after they had tried all sorts of correction at home, to declare to the elders of the city that their son was stubborn and rebellious; and upon their complaint he was

condemned to death and stoned. Deut. xxi. 19. The same law was in force at Athens.

FLEURY'S Hist. of the Israelites, p. 140.

No. 937.-v. 11. Also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them.] The hundredth part was an usury at this time exacted in those countries, as afterwards among the Romans: this was the hundredth part of what was lent every month, so that every year they paid the eighth part of the principal. Salmasius however observes, that in the eastern countries, there never were any laws to determine what interest should be taken for money lent for a day, or a week, or a month, or a year, (for there were all these sorts of usury,) but every one was left to demand what he pleased; and according to what was agreed they paid for what was borrowed. Patrick, in loc.

(6 Nothing is more destructive to Syria than the shameful and excessive usury customary in that country. When the peasants are in want of money to purchase grain, cattle, &c. they can find none but by mortgaging the whole or part of their future crop greatly under its value. The danger of letting money appear closes the hands of all by whom it is possessed; and if it be parted with, it must be from the hope of a rapid and exhorbitant gain: the most moderate interest is twelve per cent. the usual rate is twenty, and it frequently rises as high even as thirty." Volney's Trav. vol. ii. p. 410. See also Jer. xv. 10.

No. 938. v. 15. Even their servants bare rule over the people.] By these words it is evident that some oppressive practices are referred to. They probably relate to the forcible taking away of provisions from the people by the servants of former governors. In these countries this was no uncommon thing: many instances of it VOL. II. A a

might easily be produced: the one which follows may however suffice. After the jealousy of the poor oppressed Greeks lest they should be pillaged, or more heavily loaded with demands by the Turks, had prevented their voluntarily supplying the Baron Du Tott for his money, Ali Aga undertook the business, and upon the Moldavian's pretending not to understand the Turkish language, he knocked him down with his fist, and kept kicking him while he was rising; which brought him to complain in good Turkish of his beating him so, when he knew very well they were poor people, who were often in want of necessaries, and whose princes scarcely left them the air they breathed. “Pshaw! thou art joking, friend,” was the reply of Ali Aga, "thou art in want of nothing, except of being basted a little oftener. But all in good time. Proceed we to business. I must instantly have two sheep, a dozen of fowls, a dozen of pigeons, fifty pounds of bread, four oques (a Turkish weight of about forty-two ounces) of butter, with salt, pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, lemons, wine, salad, and good oil of olives, all in great plenty. With tears the Moldavian replied, I have already told you that we are poor creatures, without so much as bread to eat; where must we get cinnamon? The whip was taken from under his habit, and the Moldavian beaten till he could bear it no longer, but was forced to fly, finding Ali Aga inexorable, and that these provisions must be produced. A quarter of an hour was not expired, within which time Ali Aga required these things, before they were all brought. (Memoirs, vol. i. part 2. p. 10.)

No. 939.-x. 34. The wood-offering.] Concerning this offering Maimonides says, "what is the wood-offering? there was a time fixed for families to go out into the forests, and bring in wood of disposition (to be laid in order upon the altar :) and the day when it came to the turn of

a family to bring the wood, they offered up a free-will burnt-offering, which they called a wood-offering, and it was to them a good day (or festival): and they were forbidden to mourn, fast, or do any work on it." Josephus speaks of a feast called Europopia, when it was customary for all to bring wood to the altar, to keep the sacred fire, that it might not go out. De Bello Jud. 1. ii. c. 17. §. 6.

No. 940.-xii. 24. And the chief of the Levites; Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel, with their brethren over against them, to praise and give thanks according to the commandment of David the man of God, ward over against ward.] "Though we are rather at a loss for information respecting the usual manner and ceremony of chanting the Hebrew poems; and though the subject of this (the Jews) sacred music in general is involved in doubt and obscurity, thus far at least is evident from many examples, that the sacred hymns were alternately sung by opposite choirs; and that the one choir usually performed the hymn itself, while the other sung a particular distich, which was regularly interposed at stated intervals, either of the nature of the proasm or epode of the Greeks. Exod. xv. 20, 21. Ezra iii. 11. 1 Sam. xviii. 7. and many of the Psalms."

LOWTH's Lect. on Heb. Poetry. vol. ii. p. 25.