Page:Discovery and Decipherment of the Trilingual Cuneiform Inscriptions.djvu/294

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THE PERSIAN COLUMN
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descent and birth, was brought up at Copenhagen, and passed his whole life in Denmark, where he died as liishop of Seeland. Eask was a Dane, and he laboured throughout his life as a Professor at the University of Copenhagen. Westergaard belonged to the same nationality and, as in the case of Xiebuhr, his journey to the East was due to the liberality of the Danish Government. Lassen was born and educated at Bergen, though, it is true, he left Norway at the age of twenty-two and passed the greater portion of his life at Bonn Tvchsen was also of Norweman descent, but born at Tondenu in Schleswig. Grotefend was a Hanoverian, born at MUnden. Beer, on the other hand, was an Austiian from J3()tzen. France was as yet represented oidy by two scholars, St. Martin and Burnouf; Belgium l)y one, Jacquet; and England also l)y one, liawlinson. But the latter was soon joined by two others, Ilincks and Norris, both of whom, especially the former, were soon to acquire a brilliant reputation hi cuneiform studies. The Eev. Edward Hincjks l)elonged to a Chester faniilv settled in Ireland since 1707. His father was a Presbvterian minister who for a time kept a school at C'ork, and afterwards became classical master at the Belfast Academy (1821-36). He was a man of the most varied learning, who lectured with equal succes< on two such different subjects as Chemistry and Hel)rew. He wrote a -Greek Grannnar, and was a frequent contril)utor to the proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. He married a Chester lady, by whom he had a numerous family, many of whose members rose to distinction. One son became Arch- deacon of Connor, another Professor of Natural Science at Toronto, a third was well known in Canadian politics. He became Premier in 1851, and was called the ' Colbert of Canada.* He was afterwards appointed