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

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412 NOTES.named Soter, or Lagus^ <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r Philadeiphus. The most famous<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir kings who bore <strong>the</strong> name <strong>of</strong> Sesostris^ was sirnainedRameses Miriam. For distinction's sake, a series <strong>of</strong> kings <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong> same name must have some discriminating epi<strong>the</strong>t or appellation.The Sesostris mentioned by Justin was probably surnamedVexores, and <strong>the</strong>n both were <strong>the</strong> same person. There isnothing ascribed to <strong>the</strong>m by Justin, that will not much betterapply to one person, than to two different persons. Sesostris,according to Justin, was <strong>the</strong> first usurper on record, and so wasVexores. According to Herodotus, Sesostris was <strong>the</strong> first Egyptianking who fought against <strong>the</strong> Scythians, and, according toJustin, it was Vexores. In order to solve all <strong>the</strong> difficulties <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong> case, we have only to suppose that <strong>the</strong> name <strong>of</strong> this king wasSesostris Vexores, whom Justin's stupidity (for it ishe was no great head piece) split into two different kings.well knownHowfortunate was it that he did not hit on Sesostris Rameses Miri^ftm, and split him into three. But this blunder <strong>of</strong> Justin wassingularly convenient for Pinkarton, because it placed his favouriteGoths (Scythians) on <strong>the</strong> throne <strong>of</strong> Asia 1312 years before<strong>the</strong> deluge, and hence he fights as strenuously forVexoresas he does for Gothidsm itself. Well aware that Justin, in thisparticular, is contradicted by every ancient author, without exception,he must l^ave been sensible that <strong>the</strong> case was hopelessand desperate in <strong>the</strong> extreme, and <strong>the</strong> pro<strong>of</strong> he adduces is equallydesperate. He quotes Trogits, Trogus Pompeius, Ti^ogus* Nar,rative, Tragus' Ancient <strong>History</strong>, &c, without being able to produceone sentence, or even one word <strong>of</strong> that author. He mightat least have favoured us with one word, though it had been nolarger than <strong>the</strong> Utile ZQord Scot. But does this gentleman reallyimagine mankind so ignorant as not to know that Tragus" Ancient<strong>History</strong> has been lost more than 1500 years, and that hisfriend Justin is violently suspected <strong>of</strong> having been <strong>the</strong> murderer<strong>of</strong> it. It would have been much <strong>the</strong> honester way to have toldns candidly that Trogus was dead and his work lost, and tha<strong>the</strong> had no evidence to adduce. Had Mr. Pinkarton a cause depiMiilingin <strong>the</strong> Court <strong>of</strong> Session, in which <strong>the</strong> evidence <strong>of</strong> TroguS

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