be produced, and affirmed to the Baron that they would be brought, before the primate, (or chief of the Moldavians of that town, who had been fo feverely handled,) affifted by three of his countrymen, brought all the provifions, without forgetting the cinnamon.

May not this account be supposed to illuftrate that paffage of Nehemiah, ch. v. 15? "The former governors that had been be"fore me, were chargeable unto the people, "and had taken of them bread and wine, "befides forty fhekels of filver; yea, even their Servants bare rule over the people: but fo "did not I, because of the fear of God."

It is evident fomething oppreffive is meant. And that it related to the taking bread from them, or eatables in general, (together with wine,) perhaps heep, fowls, pigeons, butter, fruit, and other things, when probably they were travelling, or fojourning in fome place at a distance from home. And that the like imperious and unrighteous demands had, from time to time, been made upon them by the fervants of thefe governors, whom they might have occafion to fend about the country.

I cannot account for the fetting down the precife number of forty, when speaking of fhekels, but by fuppofing, that the word befides here, fhould have been translated afterwards, which it more commonly, if not more certainly, fignifies, and means, that afterwards they were wont to commute this demand for provifions

provifions into money, often amounting to forty fhekels.

It is certain it could not mean the whole annual allowance to the governor by the children of the captivity, that would have been much too fmall.'; nor could it mean what every householder was to pay annually towards the governor's fupport, for fifty fhekels was as much as each mighty man of wealth was affeffed at by Menahem, when he wanted to raise a large fum of money for the king of Affyria, and when Ifrael was not in fo low a ftate as in the time of Nehemiah: it must then, furely! mean the value of that quantity of eatables and wine they might charge any town with, when fingle towns were charged with the fupport of the governor's table, for a fingle repaft, or a fingle day, which it is natural to fuppofe could only be when they thought fit to travel from place to place. This, it seems, their fervants took the liberty too to require, when they were fent on a journey. And if they that belonged to the officers of the king of Persia, enforced their requifitions in a manner similar to that made ufe of by the people belonging to the Turkish governors of provinces, when they travel on a public account among the Greeks of Moldavia, it is no wonder that Nehemiah obferves with emotion, in this paffage, "Yea, even their fervants bare rule over

Something less than 51. fterling. 2 2 Kings 15. 20,

"the

"the people: but fo did not I, because of "the fear of God."

Whether the preceding governors of the children of the captivity were all Jews, or not, is a matter not eafily, perhaps, to be determined, but it is apparent, from a paffage of the book of Nehemiah, that they were not all of them zealous for the welfare of that people, and confequently might be ready to adopt the oppreffive managements of other governors of the Perfian provinces, and fuffer their under officers to do it. The paffage I refer to is, ch. ii. 10, "When Sanballat the "Horonite, and Tobiah the fervant, the Am"monite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to "feek the welfare of the children of If"rael."

It may not be amifs to add, that Noldius has obferved', that Aben-Ezra, a very celebrated Jewish rabbi, fuppofed it was a different word that was made ufe of in his copy of the book of Nehemiah, and that the fame reading appears in the Babylonian Gemara, which different word Aben-Ezra apprehended meant, that thefe governors took from the people forty fhekels of filver for the expence of one repast.

Such commutations, or money given instead

• Concord. in voc. Achar. Achad is the word AbenEzra read, (resh and daleth being often changed one for the other, as being letters very much refembling each other,) but I fhould prefer the common reading.

of

of provifions, may be met with, I think, in the accounts travellers have given of the managements of the Eaft; certainly they have often taken place among the copyhold tenants of our manors.

The supplying the people belonging to government with their provifions on particular occafions, is alfo what is meant, I apprehend, by the prophet Amos, ch. v. 11, "Forafmuch therefore as your treading is upon

"the poor, poor, and ye take from him burdens of "wheat; ye have built houses of hewn ftone, "" but ye fhall not dwell in them, &c."

The Bishop of Waterford has tranflated the original word gift, not burden, but as wheat is not wont to be demanded for those that travel on account of government, but bread, (" fifty pounds of bread," faid Ali Aga to the poor Moldavian, when he brought him by the force of blows to fupply his demands;) fo neither do I remember ever to have obferved, in that variety of things that are made prefents of in the Eaft, that quantities of wheat were offered to great men: I should rather be difpofed to believe that the tranflation of the Septuagint is more exact than our's, where the words of the prophet are rendred Sopa EXNEXTα, (choice gifts, fuch as the cinnamon of Ali Aga,) as the words of Amos may be understood to mean a gift of fomething coftly and of a felect kind, fuch as cinnamon, for inftance, not to be procured without plunging them into difficulties, and confequently be

very oppreffive; whereas a moderate quantity of wheat must have been as easy to them to part with as many other things, whether presented in order to obtain fome favour, or demanded as a due by thofe that were travelling on behalf of government.

So Sir John Chardin, fpeaking of the univerfal custom through the East of making presents to the great, fays, that "every thing " is received, even by the greatest lords of "the country, fruit, pullets, fruit, pullets, a lamb. Every one gives what is most at hand, and has

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a relation to his profeffion and those who "have no particular profeffion give money. "It is an honour to receive presents of this "fort. They receive them in public: and

even choofe to do it when they have the "most company. This custom univerfally "obtains through the Eaft; and it is perhaps "one of the most ancient in the world."

If presents were made according to people's profeffions, a quantity of wheat from one in the farming way of life was not improper; nor was a ftone of flour, or even a bufhel of wheat, a more oppreffive gift to expect or demand than a fat lamb. In one word, if the requifition of wheat was really the thing that was complained of as oppreffive, it must be the greatnefs of the quan. tity, not it's being wheat.

OBSER