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—316 NOTES.crime, more acceptable sacrifices to the gods, but when there isa deficiency of this description, they have recourse even to thesacrifice of the innocent.'" Tacitus says, *' they held it lawfulto sacrifice captives on their altars, and to consult the gods byhuman fibres.*'Annal^ lib. 14. cap. 5. Pliny is sliil more se-Tere— " No7i satis cesiimari potest, quantum Uojnanis cicbcaiur,qui sustulere jnonsira, in quibus hominem occide?'e relfiiiosissimumeratf tnandi vero etiam saluberriiuum.^^— Nat. Hist. lib, 30. cap,1. i. e. " It cannot be sufficiently estimated how much mankindare indebted to the Romans for destroying monsters (the Druids)who reckoned the sacrifice of a man the greatest act of religion,and his flesh the most salubrious food."There is hardly a nation on earth vpho has not, at one time orother, offered human sacrifices. The propitiation was indeedinadequate, but the idea was founded on the basis of moral rectitude.Man was the sinner, and he was the proper victim.When, in order to appease the wrath of the deity, he oiieredwhat was most dear to him, (generally his first-born) he couldnot go further. Isaac was offered by substitute, as were also allthe first-born of the Jews, after the passover. Jephthah's daughterwas really sacrificed; and the whole gospel dispensationrests on the merits of the great human sacrifice of the Messiah.Human sacrifices among the Jews by substitute, were, no doubt,ordained, and among the Gentiles, in reality, permitted, by anall-wise God, that they might typify the sacrifice of Christ, theonly true, and the only sufficient propitiation for the sins of theworld.Note LII.—Page 143.Cromlech,—Mr. Toland has treated the Cromlech at sontelength, but not with his usual perspicuity. The grand distin.rguishing feature of the Cromlech is, that it is never surroundedby a circle of stones, but has only one obelisk standing near it.Anotiier criterion is, that it is elevated from five to ten fevt abovethe level of the ground, whereas the altars in the temples are seldom,if ever, elevated above one foot. Another distinct mark