13.07.2015 Views

A new edition of Toland's History of the druids: - Free History Ebooks

A new edition of Toland's History of the druids: - Free History Ebooks

A new edition of Toland's History of the druids: - Free History Ebooks

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

NOTES. 351-Of all attempts to determine <strong>the</strong> country <strong>of</strong> Abaris, <strong>Toland's</strong>j*s <strong>the</strong> most ingenious and probable. Dr. Smith imagines <strong>the</strong>name was Abarick, from Abar (Latine Abria), <strong>the</strong> ancient name<strong>of</strong> Lochabar. The conjecture is ingenious, and may, perhaps,be founded in fact. Still I think it better to content ourselveswith what can be certainly known <strong>of</strong> this eminent man, than tobuild hypo<strong>the</strong>tical <strong>the</strong>ories respecting <strong>the</strong> spot <strong>of</strong> his nativity,which can, perhaps, never be certainly known. That he wasa Celt, a Druid, a philosopher, an author, and <strong>the</strong> most accomplishedscholar <strong>of</strong> his age, rests on <strong>the</strong> most unexceptionable evi.dence. It is agreed on all hands that Europe was peopled bytwodistinct races <strong>of</strong> men, <strong>the</strong> Celts, and <strong>the</strong> Scythians, Goths,or Germans (for <strong>the</strong>se three are all <strong>the</strong> same). Pinkarton adnutsthat <strong>the</strong> Germans were not acquainted with <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong> letters,till <strong>the</strong> ninth century;and Abaris, who wrote 1500 yearsbefore, could not be a German. On <strong>the</strong> testimony <strong>of</strong> C»sar,<strong>the</strong> Germans had nei<strong>the</strong>r priests nor sacrifices, and consequentlyno temples; but Abaris had a winged temple,and was <strong>the</strong>priest <strong>of</strong> Apollo, consequently he must have been a Celtic priestor Druid.Mr. Pinkarton, sensible that he could not claim him asa Goth, and unwilling to pay <strong>the</strong> smallest tribute <strong>of</strong> respect to <strong>the</strong>Celts, has not once mentioned his name ;and this circumstancealone will have great weight with any one who knows Mr.Pinkarton'8 extreme alertness and dexterity in catching atthingeverythat can favour his Gothic system, and in studiously suppressingwhatever might add lustre to <strong>the</strong> latter.The merits <strong>of</strong>Abaris as a philosopher, author and scholar, stand fully recordedin <strong>the</strong> page <strong>of</strong> history, and need no comment from me. Asto his country, it is, from all circumstances, extremely probable,though not absolutely certain, that he was a Hebridian.Note LXXV.—Page 210.Whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> Egyptians had not <strong>the</strong>se things before ei<strong>the</strong>r <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong>m, c^c—That <strong>the</strong> Egyptians were <strong>the</strong> first inventors <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>Metemps2/chosis is evident from <strong>the</strong> following passage <strong>of</strong> Herodotus,quoted by Dacier in his life <strong>of</strong> Pythagoras, p. 43. '' TheY y 2

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!