pose, a general massacre to be made of the ancient inhabitants of Africa."*

"All the coasts of the Mediterranean, particularly that of Italy, Spain and Greece, were plundered; and felt the scourge of the barbarian; not one year elapsed without pillage and conflagration. Rome, after the assassination of Valentinian III., experienced the heavy hand of the avenger, who was invited thither by Valentinian's widow, (455). All the succeeding emperors until the fall of the Western Empire, trembled before him. Majorianus alone summoned the courage for a powerful attack; but Genseric BURNT HIS FLEET. A second, and still greater enterprise, fitted out by both empires, under Leo and Anthemius, was DESTROYED in the vicinity of Carthage. Genseric, more insolent than before, put the coasts under contribution, as far as Asia, conquered Sicily, with all the islands. about Italy, and concluded true peace first with Odoacer (474), who had terminated the Empire of the West-Romans." * * * * "Genseric was cruel from character, a stranger to every humane sentiment, cold even for sensual enjoyment, desiring the pleasures of tyrants alone, as if born for the scourge of nations. Through him, whose command and example operated destructively, more than by the peculiarity of the nation, the name of the Vandals became detestable. For the Germans were only barbarous not inhuman."†

It will be seen by the above extracts, that the Vandals fought both by land and sea. If the sea in this

*Rotteck, vol. ii. p. 54. † Rotteck, vol. ii. p. 54.

connection symbolizes the people, as in Rev. xvii: 15, there was in these wars a perfect fulfilment of this prophecy. The Vandals destroyed the entire Roman dominion in Africa, from the Atlantic on the west to Tripoli; they also invaded Italy and other portions of the Roman territory. If naval engagements are indicated by the sea, we have a striking fulfilment in this respect. We are informed by Gibbon, that the fleet which sailed from Constantinople to Carthage against the Vandals, consisted of eleven hundred and thirteen ships, and the number of soldiers and mariners exceeded one hundred thousand men. The whole expense of the African campaign amounted to about five millions two hundred thousand pounds sterling. This mighty force landed near Carthage. Genseric requested a truce of five days, and it was granted. "During this short interval, the wind became favorable to the design of Genseric. He manned his largest ships of war with the bravest of the Moors and Vandals, and they towed after them many large barks filled with combustible materials. In the obscurity of the night, these destructive vessels were impelled against the unguarded and unsuspecting fleet of the Romans, who were awakened by the sense of their instant danger. Their close and crowded order assisted the progress of the fire, which was communicated with rapid and irresistable violence; and the noise of the wind, the crackling of the flames, the dissonant cries of the soldiers and mariners, who could neither command nor obey, increased the horror of the nocturnal tumult. While they labored to extricate themselves from the fire ships, and to save at least a part of the

navy, the galleys of Genseric assaulted them with temperate and disciplined valor, and many of the Romans, who escaped the fury of the flames, were destroyed or taken by the victorious Vandals.* After the failure of this great expedition, Genseric again became the tyrant of the sea: the coasts of Italy, Greece and Asia were again exposed to his revenge and avarice; Tripoli and Sardinia returned to his obedience; and he added Sicily to the number of his provinces." The prophetic deleniation of the second trumpet, we conceive, had a perfect fulfilment in the history of the Vandals. From the great destruction of life and property during the wars of Genseric, both by land and sea, we apprehend the Revelator could not have made use of a more appropriate symbol than that of a BURNING MOUNTAIN, to represent the subject.

THIRD TRUMPET.

"And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; and the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters because they were made bitter," (vs. 10, 11).

This star evidently refers to the barbarians, who fought under the standard of Attila. The action of the second trumpet affected the sea; that of the third, the rivers and fountains of waters.

* Gibbon, vol. iii. p. 496, 497.

In relation to this symbol, Mr. Lord remarks: "As in a great empire like the Roman, embracing many nations and tribes, the central and most numerous people is to distant and tributary communities, what the sea is to fountains and streams that descend into it; the fountains obviously and rivers on which the meteor fell are representations of communities and tribes at a distance from the Capital, which are perpetually descending towards the centre, and intemixing with the main population, 'Like a meteor descending from the distant regions of the atmosphere, they'―the Hunns -'came from the remote solitudes of Asia. As the elements of the star were soon absorbed by the waters where it fell, so they were wasted, in a large degree, in their disastrous contests with the Visgoths, Franks, and others, and disbanded, and absorbed by the tribes of the Danube: on the death soon after of Attila; 'their war-like youth left without employmeut by their independence, soon after enlisted, in large numbers, in the Italian armies, and became a scourge alike to the people and rulers, and prepared the way for their subjugation; and the nations around the Alps, like their rivers which have never ceased to flow, have continued from age to age, to make that country their battle-field, and waste it with slaughter.” *

In 451, "a tide of nations united under the banner of Attila, poured out from the plains of Hungary, through Germany, over the Rhine, into Belgic and

*Lord on Apoc. pp. 202, 203.

Celtic Gaul. This army which increased continually as it advanced, consisted of seven hundred thousand But they were defeated with great

barbarians." slaughter.*

"Not quite a year elapsed before the powerful robber returned, marking his path with destruction." This invasion was directed against Italy, but after taking a number of cities in Lombardy, he returned to Hungary, and soon after this he died.

FOURTH TRUMPET.

v. 12. "And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise."

We understand the events of this Trumpet as having reference to the fall of the Western Empire of Rome, A.D. 476. The Scriptures sometimes represent rulers of communities under the emblem of the sun, moon or stars; for example, in Gen. xxxvii : 9, 10, referring to the dream of Joseph: "And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more: and behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I

*Rotteck, vol. ii. pp. 45, 46.