been pronounced the most early and most authentic record extant relative to the commerce of the ancients.
Among the contributions made by the Ph[oe]nicians to the west, were alphabetical writing, the Greek alphabet being a derivative from the Ph[oe]nician; the scale of weight; and that of coined money. Having made these and other contributions to the west, Ph[oe]nicia began about (700 B. C.) to decline in importance; the Ionian Greeks, and latterly the Egyptians, becoming its commercial rivals on the Mediterranean: and the invasions of the Assyrians from the east depriving it of independence. Subdued by the Assyrians and Babylonians, Ph[oe]nicia was transferred by them to the Persians. Among the last of the Ph[oe]nician achievements was the circumnavigation of Africa B. C. 600—a feat undertaken by Ph[oe]nician sailors at the command of the Egyptian king Nekos, one of the immediate successors of Psammetik: and, as is now believed, really performed—the course pursued being from the Red Sea round Africa to Spain—the reverse, therefore, of that followed by Vasco de Gama 2000 years later. About the time that Ph[oe]nicia began to wane, her colony, Carthage, assumed her place in the affairs of the world. Carthaginian civilization was essentially a mere repetition of the Ph[oe]nician, although under a different form of government; Carthaginian history interweaves itself with that of the Romans.
Palestine—the Jews. Palestine extends from north to south a length
of about 200 miles, and 50 in breadth; and is therefore, in point of size, of
nearly the same extent as Scotland. The general character of the country
is that of a hilly region, interspersed with moderately fertile vales; and
being thus irregular in surface, it possesses a number of brooks or streams,
which for the most part are swollen considerably after rains, but are almost
dry in the hot seasons of the year. The present condition of Palestine
scarcely corresponds with its ancient fertility. This is chiefly attributable
to the devastating effects of perpetual wars; and some physical changes
have also contributed to the destruction of agricultural industry. Yet,
after all, so excellent would the soil appear to be, and so ample its resources,
that Canaan may still be characterized as a land flowing with milk and
honey.
The history of the extraordinary nation which once inhabited this land, must be so much more familiar to our readers than that of any other ancient nation, that all that is necessary here is a brief sketch, such as will assist the imagination in tracing with due completeness the general career of the East till the establishment of the Persian empire. According to the accounts given of the Jews in Scripture, and in their history by Josephus, they were descended from Abraham, who was born in the 292d year (according to other authorities, in the 352d year) after the Deluge, 'left the land of Chaldea when he was seventy-five years old, and, at the command of God, went into Canaan, and therein he dwelt himself, and left it to his posterity. He was a person of great sagacity, both for understanding of all things and persuading his hearers, and not mistaken in his opinions; for which reason he began to have higher notions of virtue than others had, and he determined to renew and to change the opinion all men happened then to have concerning God; for he was the first that ventured to publish this notion, that there was but ONE God, the Creator
