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did not flop to dine, as many caravans do, but travelled thirteen hours together. Many Eastern travellers ftop to dine, though fome do not. No wonder our Lord then, who feems to have been a-foot, and wearied with the length of his walk, ftopped near fo inviting a well.

A confiderable time after I had finished this article, I had the pleasure to find, the very learned and accurate Bishop Pearce had made a fimilar obfervation on the meaning of the word 8Tws, in his commentary and notes on the Acts of the Apostles'.

OBSERVATION LXIX.

Though it must, one would think, be much more commodious to carry water in fkins or leather-bottles, where water must be carried, and accordingly, fuch we find are generally made use of in the Eaft in travelling; yet, whatever the caufe may be, they sometimes content themselves with earthen jars.

Thus we find, in the beginning of Dr. Chandler's expeditions, in fearch of the antiquities of thefe countries, though he was equipped under the direction of a Jew of that country, of fuch eminence as to act as the British conful at the Dardanells, and was attended at first by him, yet the vessel in which

* On chap. 20, ver. II.

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their water was to be carried, was an earthen jar, which not only ferved them in the wherry in which they coafted fome of the nearer parts of Afia Minor, but was carried upon the afs of a poor peafant, along with other luggage, when they made an excurfion from the fea-fide up into the country, to vifit the great ruin at Troas1.

This may ferve to remove our wonder that Gideon fhould be able to collect three hundred water-jars from among ten thousand men, for we have no reason to suppose, the method he was to make ufe of, to furprise the Midianites, was not fuggefted to him before he difmiffed all his army to the three hundred. In an army of ten thoufand Ifraelitish peafants, collected together on a fudden, there might be many goat-fkin veffels for water, but many might have nothing better than earthen jars, fince Dr. Chandler appears not to have been better equipped, at least at first; and three hundred water-jars, collected from the whole army, were fufficient to answer the views of divine Providence.

OBSERVATION LXX.

The margin of our tranflation remarks, that the word rendered harnessed, in Exodus xiii. 18, fignifies by five, but when it adds five in a rank, it seems to limit the sense of

· P. 25.

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Judges 7. 3, 16, 19, 20.

the term very unneceffarily, as it may as well fignify five men in a company, or their cattle tied one to another in ftrings of five each.

If there were 600,000 footmen, befides childred, and a mixed multitude, together with cattle, the marching of five only abreast, fuppofing only one yard for each rank to move in, would make the whole length of this enormous file of people more than 68 miles'. If we should fuppofe two fuch columns, and place the children, mixed multitude, and cattle between them, the length then of this body of people would be above 34 miles. At the fame time we cannot conceive any reafon for fuch a narrow front, on the one hand, in fuch a wide defert; nor, on the other, why they are described as marching five abreaft, if there were many fuch columns. It would feem, in fuch a cafe, to be a circumftance that required no particular notice.

Pitts tells us, that the Algerine armies, when they march, go only two abreast, and that at the fame time each rank keeps at a confiderable distance, fo that a thousand men make a great shew, and a very long

For 600,000 divided by 5 gives 120,000 ranks of five each, and there being only 1760 yards in a mile, the dividing 120,000 by 1760 will give the number of miles fuch a column of people would take up, which by fuch an operation will be found to be fomething more than 68 miles, which the circumftances of the hiftory will not eafily admit of.

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train'. They have their reafons for fo doing: they want to appear as numerous as poffible.

For a like reafon, it fhould feem, the Indians of North-America walked fingly, and with great gravity, I apprehend flowly is meant, when they went in form, according to the honourable Mr. Colden', on a warlike expedition.

Mofes had no fuch reafons; on the contrary it must have been of importance to him, to draw the van and the rear nearer together, and confequently to make the breadth of this vaft body of people confiderably large.

Pitts tells us, that in the march of the Mohammedan pilgrims from Egypt, through this very defert, they travel with their camels tied four in a parcel, one after the other, like fo many teams. He fays alfo, that usually three or four of the pilgrims diet together *.

If we will allow that like circumftances naturally produce like effects, it will appear highly probable, that the meaning of the word ufed in this paffage of Exodus is, that they went up out of Egypt with their cattle, in ftrings of five each; or that Mofes ordered that five men with their families should form each a little company, that should keep together, and affift each other, in this difficult march. In either of these fenfes we may understand the term, in all the other places

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• Account of the Rel. and Manners of the Mahometans, P. 30. Hiftory of the five Indian Nations of Canada, p. 7. `s P. 149. * P. 153.

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in which it appears'; whereas it is not natural to fuppofe they all went out of Ægypt properly armed for war, and it is idle to fay, as fome have done, that they were girded about the loins, that is always fuppofed to be done by the Eastern people when they journey. Not to say that the kindred word continually fignifies five, and this word should in courfe fignify that they were, fomehow or other, formed into fives-companies of five men each, or companies that had each five beafts, which carried their provifions and other neceffaries, faftened to each other."

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The fituation of Babylon, on the river Euphrates, must have made caufeys neceffary to thofe that had occafion to go thither, or come from thence, as marks fet up muft have been very requifite to thofe that had to pafs through the deferts, that laid between Chaldæa and Palæftine: to both which conveniences Ifaiah feems to refer, as well as to fome other circumftances attending Eaftern travelling, in that paffage in which he pro

7. II.

The other places are, Joh. 1. 14, ch. 4. 12, Judges The Algerines have 20 foldiers to a tent, but we know, from other paffages, Mofes divided them into tens, Exod. 18. 21, 25; for neighbourhood he might divide them into fives.

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