up and fastened to the door-post of every Jewish house. The m'zuzah is made in the following manner:-the portions of Deut. vi. 4-9, and Deut. xi. 13-21, are written on one page in one column, and a margin is left above and below, about the width of half a nail. These

portions must be written on parchment which has been ruled, if it is not ruled there is no virtue in it. The number of lines is twenty-two, and all the lines must be of equal length. Nothing is to be added to these passages of Scripture; but the word Shaddai (Almighty God) is written on the outside.

M'ZUZAH.

It is also customary to write on the outside three angelic names: in these names every Jew, acquainted with the particulars of his creed, prays for success whenever he goes out to business. These names are Coozu, B'muchsaz, Coozu, and great sanctity is attached to them.

When the above-mentioned passages of Scripture are written, the m'zuzah is rolled together, the ends of the lines coming inside, and the scroll is put into a cane, or a cylindrical tube of glass or tin, in which a hole is made in order that the word Shaddai may be seen. This tube is then fastened to the doorpost by a nail at each end, "on the right of him that enters the door." The m'zuzah is commanded by the Rabbis to be placed on each door of a habitable house, whether parlour, reception-room, bed-room, kitchen, or cellar. Devout Jews never go out of or come into their houses without saluting and kissing it as they pass. On fixing the m'zuzah to the

door-post, the following grace is said: "Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who hast sanctified us with Thy precepts, and commanded us to fix a mʼzuzah.” This command, however, does not appear in the law of Moses, but only in the pages of the Talmud.

Houses of prayer and learning do not require any m'zuzah, nor is it ever placed over a bath-room. When a Jew changes his residence, he must not take his m'zuzah with him, on penalty of the untimely death of his children; but if a Gentile is to succeed him, he is at liberty to depart with it. In its obligation the m'zuzah is stronger than either the phylacteries or fringes, for from the latter, as I have already stated, women and children are exempt; but "all are bound to have a m'zuzah, even women and servants; little ones are to be trained to make a m'zuzah for their doors." This scroll is to be examined twice in seven years, as it is liable to be worn out or to decay; and when it belongs to several persons, twice in a jubilee. When worn out, the m'zuzah is buried with some great man. The same custom is adopted with decayed and useless phylacteries, rolls of the Pentateuch, and other books; nothing in which the name of God is inscribed is to be destroyed.

Like the phylacteries and fringes, the m'zuzah is an object of great superstitious reverence. The Jew considers it as a sentinel to keep away evil spirits; hence, when he is troubled with unpleasant dreams, he thinks something has gone wrong with his m’zuzah, and immediately sends for a scribe to examine it. The scribe is the only person authorised by the Rabbis to write the scrolls, for the scribes are supposed to be very pious Jews, having a perfect knowledge of the Pentateuch, as to every jot and tittle.

The virtues of the m'zuzah, as described in the Talmud and other Rabbinical writings, are transcendently great. Unfortunately for those of the house of Israel who assert that Modern Judaism is coeval with the institution of Judaism, the precept of the m'zuzah as it now exists is not laid down in the law of Moses, nor even mentioned by him. It is merely a dogma of the Rabbis. The institution of the m'zuzah is of course derived from the command, "And thou shalt write them upon the posts of Thy house, and on thy gates." In the infancy of the Jewish Church, when only a few written copies of the law existed, it was very desirable that certain important and comprehensive passages of the law, especially the Decalogue, should be written on the door-posts and walls of the Jews, in order that the precepts of their God might be ever before their eyes. But as the Church grew up, and took as its guide the pages of the Talmud, a corrupt and unreasonable virtue became attached to these door-post writings, which has resulted in their present superstitious position. The Talmud, Sohar,* Medrashim, and other works, lay great stress upon this subject. The following are a few selections from their pages regarding the m'zuzah :

"Whosoever attends to the m'zuzah, the days of himself and his children will be prolonged; and whosoever does not, they shall be shortened."

* The Sohar teaches the pure Cabala (doctrine)-that is: "the Trinity in Unity, and Unity in the Trinity; the everlasting generation of the Son of God," in whom alone God can be known and seen, as in a glass (2 Cor. iii. 18), with the eye of faith; that the Son of God is the brightness of His glory, and "the Prince of His face, the express image of His person (Heb. i. 3); the mediatorial offices of the Son of God, as the Angel of the Covenant; the personality, divinity, and office of the Holy Spirit," etc.-Dr. Pauli.

"By reason of the m'zuzah the destroyer shall have no admittance in your houses."

"The Lord is thy keeper, the Lord is thy shade on thy right hand, for the m'zuzah is on the right hand on entering thy house."

He who observes the m'zuzah will be kept from sinning." All young Jews should be educated in the rigour of these observances. By the time they are eight years old they should have committed to memory the whole of the 613 precepts. These precepts are divided into 248 affirmative precepts, or precepts of commission; and into 365 negative precepts, or precepts of omission. The Rabbis have also discovered that the law of Moses corresponds with the construction of the human body, for it has 248 members, according to the number of the affirmative precepts; and 365 veins, according to the number of the negative precepts: hence they pray, " And that it may be made, through my fulfilling this precept, a spiritual garment for my soul, spirit, and breath, for my 248 spiritual members, and for my 365 spiritual veins." However, though the Jewish religion contains 613 precepts, the Jews are permitted to transgress 610 of them, when life would be endangered by a strict compliance. A man sick unto death may take food on the most holy fast day; for such a one it is also lawful to break the Sabbath; and in order to save a man from death, all the commandments and prohibitions of the law may be transgressed, except three. These three are murder, adultery, and a denial of the Jewish religion. These three are so important, so sacred, that life must be given up, rather than they be ever transgressed.

The Jews are divided into the following chief sects:

The Rabbinical Jews (Ashkenasim and Sephardim), who are

the orthodox Jews, and believe in the Talmud and all the above precepts.

The Reformed Jews, who reject the Talmud, and only believe in the Old Testament. They have also introduced various reforms in their mode of worship, and abridged their prayers.

The Karaites (or Caraites), who differ from the Rabbinical Jews in the wearing and manufacture of their fringes; and who have no m'zuzah on the doors of their houses, but only on the doors of their synagogues. They keep neither the Feast of Dedication, nor the Feast of Tabernacles; and only four Fasts in the year. They kill their animals differently from the Rabbinical Jews, and will not eat meat killed by the latter, and vice versa. The Karaites are very much detested by the Rabbinical Jews, who look upon them as worse than the Christians.

*

* Among the Jews all cattle and poultry must be slaughtered by a Jew according to prescribed rules; and as these rules are exceedingly numerous, the killer must be duly qualified for his profession. This killer is called Shochet. His office is divided into two departments-that for poultry and that for cattle. The candidate for this office has to be examined by three Rabbis before receiving his diploma. The Shochet kills in a different way to all other butchers. With a peculiar knife he cuts the windpipe of the animal about three-quarters through. No more than three cuts are to be made, and no fewer than two. The Karaites only give one and a half. Should he cut a little of the throat, then stop and cut again, and continue this till the beast is killed, the killing is irregular, and the meat unlawful. Should the cutting be effected by pressure only, or the knife used as a hatchet, the meat is unlawful. Should the knife be covered with a cloth, or hidden by the wool of the animal during the slaughter, the meat is unlawful. As soon as the animal has done bleeding it is opened, the Shochet ex. amines the heart and liver to see if they be healthy, after which he pronounces the meat to be kosher, or fit for use; if the contrary, trephah, or unfit for use. The meat is then sealed and ready for sale. This plan of killing is adopted so that the blood may be entirely drained from the animal, as it is an article of Jewish faith not to eat the life of any creature,