1816.] On the supposed Antiquity of the Globe. 23 Europe, on the other hand, are of opinion that their origin dates from a comparatively recent period,"-proposes to sideration of the country which gave them birth. Should this design be carried into execution, it will be a monument erected by the Genius of Sculp-consult different sciences, and comtare to that of Patriotic Valour, and thus united, perpetuate their names through succeeding ages. Liverpool, Dec. 30, 1815. MR. EDITOR, W. S. AFTER the many and just animadversions on the "Magazine of Infidelity," which have appeared in your pages, it is rather surprising to find in them a paper calculated to support the same unhallowed cause. Such is the communication in your number for December last, containing Arguments tending to prove the high Antiquity of the Globe." These "arguments," as your correspondent terms them, are nothing less than a bold, though feeble attempt, to overthrow the whole system of revelation, by calling in question the divine inspiration and credibility of the Sacred Writings! Your insertion of such a paper can only be attributed to those liberal and impartial sentiments you have invariably manifested; while the principles on which your work is conducted induce the hope, that any thing tending to check the progress of error, and subserve the interests of religion, will meet with early attention. The means employed by INVESTIGATOR to depreciate the Word of God are similar to those adopted by infidels in general, who mostly assume an air of discernment, and affect to be very learned. With respect to the age of our world he tells us, that "there is not a priest, not a lama, not a bonze, not a talapoin, but is perfectly satisfied;" while there is "not a philosopher but confesses his total ignorance." But did those prodigies of universal science, BACON, LOCKE, and NEWTON, Confess their ignorance on this head?-or were they not rather perfectly satisfied with the Mosaic account of the Creation, and the chronology of Scripture? This we have from undoubted authority,-that they considered the Sacred Volume as having "God for its author, and TRUTH without any mixture of error for its matter."* Yet, without the least deference to such philosophers as these, your correspondent places the inspired penmen on a level with the sages of Hindostan; and finding that "the nations of Asia believe that their existence commenced innumerable centuries ago,-while those of Locke's Works, 10th edit. vol. x. p. 306. pare their data," in order to "decide between the discordant opinions of Europe and Asia,-between the calculation of the Bramins and that of the Levites!" In the prosecution of his design, he begins by" inquiring of ASTRONOMY, the science which embraces the universe with all its spheres, and which is acquainted with the longest epochs,—such as the precession of the equinoxes,a space of 25,000 years and more." But finding that "Astronomy says nothing decisive respecting the creation of the earth," he proceeds to "interrogate His-, TORY,-which, in the shape of tradition, seems to go back into the origin of things." He finds that," as a science, History is one of the latest date;" and that CHRONOLOGY " is so new, that no use has been made of it by Herodotus." "The Hebrews, however," he observes, "either at Babylon or in Egypt, invented the method of arranging occurrences in a kind of chronological order. They adopted it in their annals, which were in consequence less confused than the chronicles of several other nations." Yet, such is his partiality for these "other nations," who were strangers to chronology, and could fix the date of no event much prior to the Babylonish captivity with any degree of certainty, that he prefers their vain conjectures to the sure chronology of the Jewish Scriptures. He tells us that," according to the Egyp tians, their kingdom had subsisted fifty thousand years"-that "Plato, who lived four hundred years before the Christian era, assures us that for more than ten thousand years painting had made no progress in Egypt"-that "the magi of the Chaldeans boasted that they possessed an uninterrupted series of astronomical observations during a period of 4,730 centuries"-that "the Indians to this day assure us, that they have had kings in their country for more than 4,320,000 years." Pretty fair calcula tions, truly, for a boasting people, whe confessedly made them all at random! However, on the authority of these boasting assurances, made by a people who had no method of arranging occur rences in order of time, we are gravely told that, "as the Hebrew chronology ascribes so short a duration to the existence of the earth, it seems to have been set up only to contradict the Egyptian and Chaldean calculations, as well as 24 On the supposed Antiquity of the Globe. the Phenician, which numbered 30,000 years!!!" But shocking as this must be to the mind of every sincere believer in Revelation, we are further told respecting the history and chronology of Scripture, that it is connected with the general system of the legislator of the Hebrews, whose chief aim it was to separate his people from other nations, and to inspire them with prejudices against the two powerful states by which they had been successively enslaved !!!" And after having thus aimed his shafts at the veracity of Scripture, and the integrity of a sacred writer, he would persuade us to conclude, that "the whole Mosaic history of the Creation may perhaps be, like the name of the first man recorded by Moses, merely mythological!!" And thus, if we can digest this view of the subject, the Pentateuch is not only a production entirely human, but the most important part of its history a fable! The very slender and insufficient grounds, however, on which this monstrous hypothesis depends, are easily exposed. It is well known that "the commencement of authentic profane history is judged to be about a hundred years before Nebuchadnezzar's time. The learned Greeks and Romans used to call the ages before that the fabulous age; but the times after that period they called the historical age.* And as chronology," a science so new that no use has been made of it by Herodotus," is acknowledged to be of Hebrew origin, what dependence can we place on the boasted antiquity of other Eastern nations? Very properly does Lucretius inquire, if the globe be of such antiquity, "Cur supra bellum Thebanum, et funera Trojæ, Non alias alii quoque res cecinêre Poëtæ ? Quò tot facta virûm totics cecidêre, nec usque Æternis famæ monimentis insita florent? And though it certainly "would be very easy to assert, that the schoen of the Egyptians, the magi of the Chaldeans, the colao of the Chinese, and the bonzes of Tibet, are mistaken in regard of the antiquities of their respective countries, and that the Levites and monks alone were possessed of sound sober understanding," with respect to the Chinese, who may be taken as a fair specimen of the rest in this matter, something more than assertion has already been produced. Monsieur de Guignes has recently shewn in a most satisfactory manner, that the existence of the Chinese empire cannot be traced farther back President Edwards' Works, vol. v. p. 105. [Feb. 1, "What than 529 years before Christ. dependence," says President Gagnet, "can we place upon the certainty of Chinese chronology for the early times, when we see those people unanimously avow, that one of their greatest monarchs, interested in the destruction of the ancient traditions, and of those who preserved them, caused all the books which did not treat of agriculture, or of medicine, or of divination, to be burnt; and applied himself for many years to destroy whatever could recal the knowledge of the times anterior to his reign? About forty years after his death they wanted to re-establish the historical documents; for that purpose they gathered together (say they) the hear-says of old men. They discovered (it is added) some fragments of books which had escaped the general conflagration: they joined these various scraps together as they could, and vainly endeavoured to compose of them a regular history. It was not, however, till more than 150 years after the destruction of all the monuments (that is to say, till the year 37 before Christ) that a complete body of the ancient history appeared. The author himself who composed it, SseMa-tsiene, had the candour to own, that he had not found it possible to ascend with certainty 800 years beyond the times in which he wrote. Such is the unanimous confession of the Chinese.t" Besides, their pretensions to high antiquity, founded on the report of astronomical science, have been tound inconsistent with themselves. It has been proved that the earliest Chinese observations are those of two fixed stars (one in the winter solstice, the other in the vernal equinox) in the reign of their king Yao, who lived after the Mosaic date of the General Deluge, that is, 2,357 years before Christ. Cassini assigned the date of another of their most early observations to be only 2,012 years before Christ. And since, according to the testimony of Mr. Morrison, our English missionary at Canton, “insincerity and want of truth are vices which cling to the Chinese character, || surely lay much stress on any thing coming no impartial inquirer after truth would from that quarter; much less could any virtuous mind place their accounts in *Voyage à Peking, &c. tom. i. + Origin of Laws, Dr. Henry's translat. vol. iii. ↑ Bianchini Histor. Univers. c. 17. 1816.] On the supposed Antiquity of the Globe. competition with those of the Hebrew Scriptures. The conduct of INVESTIGATOR and M. Langlès, in placing the fabulous his tory of Greece on a par with authentic history and chronology-building their calculations on "the expedition of Bacchus," according to the conjectural dates of Pliny and Arrian-and thence main taining that the said expedition "must have happened 2,724 years earlier than the period at which the Jews and Christians place the creation of the world"—is truly ridiculous and trifling. If the age of authentic history did not commence until "about 100 years before Nebuchadnezzar's time," and if the Greeks and Romans considered all as fabulous and uncertain before that period, how could Pliny or Arrian say any thing decisive on the expedition of Bacchus?. "Ex nibilo nihil fit." But if your correspondent can be satisfied with any date assigned to a supposed event,-which he first mentions as "a real fact," and then as "an expedition which can scarcely be doubted," perhaps most of your readers will be of a different mind. And whereas he supposes "the Bramins would be highly diverted if we were to adduce the Hebrew or the Samaritan chronology as an irrefragable proof that the world is not older than about 6,000 years," we can assure him, that if he finds cause to be diverted with them, it cannot be for want of faith that he rejects the authority of Scripture. If his heart were as easily gained as the assent of his understanding, we might surely be induced to hope, that a man who entertains such implicit belief in Hindoo fables, would easily be made a convert to the religion of the Bible, as soon as its evidence should be laid before him. 66 ас It is observed by INVESTIGATOR that "the Hebrews represent the period - which elapsed between the Deluge and their departure from Egypt to have been no more than 857 years;" so that, cording to this calculation, Egypt, so celebrated for learning and magnificence, could not have existed longer than five or six centuries at the above-mentioned epoch." This, he maintains, "is evidently impossible, especially for a country that is annually overflowed, and that could only be inhabited by colonists possessing sufficient skill to be able to keep the river within due bounds!" The nature of this "skill"-how it enabled the Egyptians to keep a "river within due bounds" while it annually overflowed NEW MONTHLY MAG,-No, 25, 25 their country-or in what way this could prevent their advancement in "learning and magnificence"-is left for your readers to conjecture; but surely there can be no difficulty in conceiving that "five or six centuries" were sufficient for the acquisition of all that was ever attributed to them. The advancement of national character does not depend so much on time, as on natural genius and other circumstances under the direction of Providence; by whose decrees nations flourish or decline, and by which we are made to know that there is a God whose kingdom "ruleth over all." -The "prodigious grottoes," therefore, "and sculptural figures in the mountains of Ellora," are no such "manifest proof that the arts must have been cultivated for a long series of ages before the bold plan of such an enterprise could have been projected;" for if improvements in the arts have any necessary dependence on time, how is it that the moderns are so generally inferior to the ancients? Of Bramin fables enough has been said to shew that no confidence can be placed in the alleged antiquity of these grottoes; and though it is asserted, that the work is such as "even at the present day we should be incapable of accomplishing in Europe," we may venture to say, that British workmen need only be engaged, and every obstacle would vanish before them. Your correspondent seems to imagine a great difficulty in affording an explanation how, at the time of Herodotus, the Egyptian pyramids could have been so old, that the time of their construction was already buried in total obscurity." But it seems less difficult to account for such a fact among a people unacquainted with the art of writing, than to account for a similar fact more nearly allied to our own times. Every circumstance connected with the erection of our castles in Haverfordwest and Pembroke is actually buried in oblivion; so that the inhabitants of these places can give no account of their early history. It is only while such objects are new that mankind feel interested about them; in the course of a few generations inquiry naturally ceases; with other old things they become neglected, until their memorial inevitably perishes, unless preserved by some faithful monument.-As to the wonderful story of the "two zodiacs very curiously carved in stone, found by the French savuns who accompanied Buonaparte in his expedition to Egypt, it is so lame, and savours so much of VOL. V. E 26 Account of the Bazaar, Soho-square. [Feb. 1, widely-circulated magazine. Sublime conceptions may be augmented in effect by obscurity, but projects for the benefit of mankind require to be brought into the clearest light; and while I do not reject the omne ignotum pro magnifico, it may be expedient to adopt a different motto in the present instance, and say, Omne notum pro bono. In truth it appears to me, that the admirable scheme which I am about to unfold to you requires only to be generally understood in order to be generally approved ;-at least I can answer for myself, that when first explained to me, I was delighted alike with the novelty of its invention, the excellency of its plan, the charity of its design, and the sound moral and practical usefulness of all its dispositions; French infidelity, as to lay it open, prima facie, to strong suspicion. One of these zodiacs "proves," as we are told," that, at the time of its execution the summer solstice was seen in the sign of Virgo." We are informed that "the other placed in Leo;" that these savans "were con vinced, that this zodiac belonged to a Solar year; and that, at the time of its formation, the sun was in the sign Capricorn." We are further assured, that they shewed that this formation dated at least 15,000 years back; because, since that period, the summer solstice had retrograded seven signs, from Capricorn to Taurus!!!" But if the veracity and ability of these savans were admitted, and their calculations ever so accurate, who does not perceive that all this depends entirely on the previous ques--and since that period, the more I have tion, whether these zodiacs were made according to any astronomical observations, or merely as architectural ornaments, without any particular regard to the real place of the sun? The difference between them renders it probable that they were not made with any scientific nicety. To fix their respective ages by the place of the sun, as represented in them, is evidently begging the question. The whole affair shews how easily Frenchmen are (6 convinced," when they find an opportunity of devising any means to bring the Scriptures into disrepute. It is not truth, but the subversion of religion, which they seek; and hence, while your correspondent, and the savans to whom he refers, plead for the high antiquity of the globe, Laplace insinuates that the world cannot be above half as old as Moses makes it!❤ (To be concluded in our next.) MR. EDITOR, TO a work devoted to patriotic, useful, and benevolent purposes-to such a publication as the New Monthly Magazine-no apology is necessary for the following communication on a subject involving all these recommendatory qualities. Deeply imbued with the conviction of the utility of the BAZAAR, and of the great advantages which the extension of it promises to the country, though I have already employed my pen in bringing it before the public, I cannot refuse myself the satisfaction of obtaining for it further notice by requesting a place (where a place is so peculiarly appropriate) in your well-conducted and * Expos. du Systême du Monde, liv, iv. chap. 4. considered the matter, the more have I become convinced of the immediate value of the institution, even limited to one establishment, and still more of the incalculable advantages which may hereafter accrue to society should it happily flourish and spread its branches over the land. It would be a waste of time, and a prostitution of reasoning, were I to enter upon the painful task of demonstrating the actual existence of the wretchedness which it is part of the object of the BAZAAR to relieve. Alas, sir! the miseries of mankind are too certain, too universal, too obvious, to admit of doubts either as to their reality, their extent, or their afflictiveness. Where can we turn our eyes without witnessing their preponderance? Into what rank of society can we penetrate without gathering the sad conviction that there is no class free from its share in the common lot of humanity? Well may we generalize the poet's expression, and exclaim after this survey 66 Suffering is the lot of all our tribe!—" it is the birth-right of our species, the inseparable companion of our being. What then is the philanthropist's and Christian's office? Is it to murmur at the dispensations of Providence, or to sit down in actionless despair? Assuredly it is not. The feelings of the heart, and the precepts and the example of the divine teacher of our faith, point all to another course :-to alleviate the woes of our fellow-creatures, to relieve the wants of the destitute,-to succour those who are ready to perish. Such is the object of the BAZAAR! But though there is not one living soul who would question the expediency of 1816.] Account of the Bazaar, Soho-square. charity in the abstract, there may be many who entertain very different ideas as to the proper mode of applying the principle. The legislature has recently been most benevolently employed in investigating the state of pauperism and mendicity: its labours have shewn how much and how often men have been mistaken when they imagined they were affording aid to the miserable and the unfortunate. In other quarters the excellent institution of Savings Banks, founded as it appears upon the purest motives, and upon the best rules of political economy, have met the sense of the country; and, in spite of the objections to which they are liable in particular instances of private erection and responsibility, they are now so firmly established in public opinion, that there is every prospect of their becoming, what is all they want to render them perfect, a great combined national concern, under the guarantee of the Government. On similar grounds with the Savings Banks does the BAZAAR claim the approval of the British people. It is not intended to be a gratuitous charity; it has no view to administer pecuniary assistance to mendicants, who "toil not, neither do they spin;" it is not an asylum for the utterly destitute who cannot nor will not labour; of these places of refuge, and of funds sufficient for all good and charitable purposes, there is ample provision already, and the BAZAAR, so far from a tendency to add to the number of the former, or augment the amount of the latter, is calculated to accomplish a nobler end, in diminishing the mass of applicants for public relief, by inculcating the necessity, and putting into their power the means of providing for their own wants by their own industry. These remarks apply to the lowest order of society, to whom the BAZAAR will open the road of usefulness and in dependence; and, were it simply confined to this class, I am free to affirm that it must stand much higher in estimation than the foremost of our benevolent associations, inasmuch as the withdrawal of persons from a state of abject want and dependance on casual bounty, setting them upright, and teaching them how to attain comfort and respectability by reliance on their own exertions, is infinitely superior to the administration of mere unearned charity, which is speedily exhausted, and leaves the parties wretched as before, a burthen to 27 the community, instead of converting them into useful members of society. But the BAZAAR has no such limita tion in its objects: it extends its views of utility far beyond this sphere. Its grand design spreads into almost every rank of social life, and desires to benefit them all; it invites indeed the humblest, but it also presents the most honourable means of employment to a multitude of persons who have heretofore been condemned to penury and hopelessness by the insuperable difficulties and equally insuperable delicacies of their situation;-in short, it is to encourage FEMALE and DOMESTIC INDUS TRY. Before entering into a more detailed view of this branch of the plan, it may be requisite to copy the brief outline which has been circulated. BAZAAR, Opened to encourage Female and Domes tic Industry. "Shop counters, in an immense range of premises eligibly situated, to be let to persons of respectability, by the day, and by the foot measure, according to their ac tual wants. The expense of taxes, heating, lighting, and watching, being borne by the landlord, the tenant will be exempted theretime, with daily rent alone; which may be from, and charged, according to space and for one day, or one foot, or to any greater extent, at the rate of three-pence per foot; by which accommodation the industrious, though with slender means, may hope to thrive; reduced tradesmen may recover and retain their connexions; beginners may form friends, connexions, and habits, before they encounter more extensive speculations; and artists, artisans, and whole families, employed at home, although infirm or in the country, may securely vend their labour to advantage by proxy. "By immense numbers selling under the same roof, an attractive display may be obtained, equally and highly beneficial to all all are the advantages that may result from parties concerned; and equally important to the exertions of each, to obtain for them. selves the patronage and favour of their particular friends." No. 5, Soho-square. Who can look upon this project without being at once struck by its applicability to numerous cases of individual and family difficulty or distress? Who can give it a few minutes reflection without perceiving into what an endless multitude of ramifications its usefulness diverges? To strengthen this impression, which every one must feel, though perhaps not so vividly in the aggregate, I |