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Aftle’r Origin and Progrefs of Writing.he continues, of thtfe were begotten two brothers ; but whether of Agreus, of Haliieus, or fotnebody clfe in the fame generation he does not tel! us, though we are certain that both Agreui and Haliieus could not beget the fame two brothers: and though it be allowed that coufin germans in the eaftcrn way of expref-fion are fometimes called brothers, ftill this will not make it our, becaufe Agreus and Haliieus are not mentioned as brethren j and if they had been fo, it is reafonable to fuppofe that he would have told us fo, becaufe that appears to be his conftant method. He continues, afterwards from this generation came two bro-thers, Technites (the Arrift) and'Geinus Autochron (thehome-born man of the earth); but whether we are to underftand this of the generation of the forenamed brothers, or of the generation of Hypfuranius, or of that from which he came, is to us uncertain. However, on any hand, it is plain, even to a demonftra-tion, that he does not deliver, or pretend to deliver, a regular pedigree of defcent from father to fon. His whole fcope fcems to be, to attribute the invention of the moft ufeful manual art* to his own nation the Phoenicians, And if he found thefe things fo recorded, as he fays he did by the Cabin, at the command of Taaut, the chief counfellorof the tyrant Cronus (whoever that Cronus was,about whom the learned are divided},they were under the neceffity of recording only fuch things, and in fuch a manner as to pleafe him. And from the account which this hiftorian gives of Taaut, we have little to hope from his ve-^ r^city, who inftigated Cronus to rebel againft his father, and bury his own brother Adas alive.Here we cannot avoid mentioning another clrcumftance in this hiftory, of which the learned BiChop Cumberland takes no notice. The hiftorian fays, but when Cronus came to man's eftate, u/ing Hermes Triftnegiftus [Taautj as his coun-fellor or affiftant, for he was his fecret2ty, he oppofed his father Ouranus, c. Now, if Cronus be Ham, as the bifhop, and others fince him fuppofe, and Taaut his grand fon, how can it be fuppoled, that when Cronus came to man's eftate, he found bis own grand fon fit to be his counfcilor and fecretary ? And yet we find this Taaut a great man under Ouranus j for, fays the hiftorian, * before thefe things the god Taaut, having formerly imitated or reprefented Ouranus, made images of the countenances of the gods, Cronus and Dagon, and formed the facred characters of the other elements.’ Perhaps the favourers of San-choniatho may fay, that this alludes to Taaut’s invention of letters ; but we think it very doubtful whether the words will bear any fuch conftruion or meaning; they rather allude to piurea or hieroglyphics, and have all the appearance of a continuation of the real hiftory, if fuch it be, going before.But we are ftopt at tbc words * other elements,' It may weltbe
Newspaper Details
Monthly Review
London, Middlesex, GB
Fri, Oct 01, 1784
Page 16
Full Page
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USA 07 Aug 2020
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