A. M. 1656. A. C. 2349; OR, ACCORDING TO HALES, A. M. 2256. A. C. 3155. GEN. CH. vi. 12. TO ix. 20. Secondly, the ruins of vegetable life buried in our frozen circumpolar strata, clearly attest the genial climate which prevailed, and cherished their growth on the primeval earth. The numerous examples of this kind which occur furnish proofs that the hyperborean region where they occur, at one time displayed the noble scene of a luxuriant and stately vegetation. 3. It is objected to the Mosaic history that it represents the rainbow as formed after the flood, and as the sign of a covenant then made; whereas, as a natural phenomenon, the rainbow must have been occasionally exhibited from the beginning of the world. In answer to this it may be remarked, in the first place, that there is nothing absurd in fixing on a natural phenomenon as a sign and memorial of peace and reconciliation. The very best purpose was served by the rainbow, expressed by the sacred historian, when he represents God as saying, 'This is the token of the covenant, which I will make between me and you, and every living creature that is with you for perpetual generations: for natural and inanimate objects, such as pillars and heaps of stones, were considered as tokens, and even a kind of witnesses, in the contracts of all the civilized nations of remote antiquity. Of this we have several instances in the books of the Old Testament, but surely not one so apposite as that of the rainbow. Noah and his sons undoubtedly knew,-either by the science of the antediluvian world, or by the immediate teaching of God, that the rainbow is a physical proof, as long as it is seen, that a general deluge is not to be dreaded; and therefore, if their minds, filled with terror and astonishment at what they had escaped, should ever have become fearfully apprehensive of a future deluge, the sight of the bow would immediately dissipate their fears. But, in the second place, philosophers are now of opinion that the rainbow, from the constitution of the primeval atmosphere, could not have been formed till after the deluge. Immediately after the flood, the seasoaked lands would send up universal exhalations round the chilly globe; whence showers and rainbows would become, for some time at least, almost daily appearances. This conclusion of physical research, coincides well with our ancient history of the new drained earth. And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you, and every living creature that is with you for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud. And the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.' The ark preserved eight intelligent witnesses, come to mature age, of antediluvian skies and seasons. It is inferred, both from the emphatic words in which the sign of Heaven's favour is announced, as well as from the purpose which it was ordained to serve, that it must have been equally strange as it was glorious in their sight. In such clouds as might often be stretched in the cooler upper regions of their skies, no bow could be set. Heavy dews, deposited during the night and early dawn, from the well known influence of ground chilled by calorific radiation, would supply the place of rain for vegetable sustenance; as now happens in Lima and many other regions of our present globe. It is alleged that this theory receives support from the following declaration of the sacred historian. For the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the whole earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.' The rainbow thus becomes a most significant emblem of God's providential regard to man. It is a phenomenon which results from, and declares the ra delled constitution of the terraqueous sphere. It is a type of sin and suffering; of reconciliation and of peace; a memorial of the sublimest truths of revelation and science. While the earth remaineth, seed-time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night, shall not cease.' IV. It is alleged that Hindoo chronology, founded on astronomical observation, is irreconcilable with the era of the deluge according to the sacred historian; and the inference deduced from this allegation by those who advance it is, that the Mosaic record is false. In a commentary on Bailly's Treatise on the Hindoo Chronology, by Professor Playfair, read before the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and published in their Transactions, he announced the following conclusions:-" The observations on which the astronomy of India is founded were made more than 3000 years before the Christian era, (consequently more than 650 years before the deluge by the Hebrew chronology), and in particular, the places of the sun and moon, at the beginning of the Calyougham, (the age of misfortune 3102 A. c.) were determined by actual observation."—" It is through the medium of astronomy," continues Professor Playfair, “alone, that a few rays from those distant objects (the ancient inhabitants of the globe) can be conveyed in safety to the eye of a modern observer, so as to afford him a light, which, though it be scanty, is pure and unbroken, and free from the false colouring of vanity and superstition." In this opinion, so confidently announced, Professor Playfair was singularly unfortunate, since its falsity has been fully proved by La Place and Delambre. 'Every thing," says the former, "leads us to conclude that they (the Indian tables) are not of high antiquity. They have two principal epochs which go back, one to the year 3102, and the other to 1491 years before the Christian era. These are linked together by the mean movements of the sun, moon, and planets, so that one of the epochs is necessarily fictitious. The celebrated author (M. Bailly) to whom I refer, has tried to establish in his Treatise on Indian Astronomy, that the first of these epochas is founded on observation. Notwithstanding his proofs, expounded with all the interest which he could bestow on the most complex subjects, I consider it very probable, that this epocha has been invented for the purpose of giving a common origin upon the zodiac to the movements of the celestial bodies. In fact, if we assume for our point of departure, the epocha of 1491, and go back by means of the Indian tables, to the year 3102 before the Christian era, we obtain a general conjunction of the sun, moon, and planets, as these tables suppose; but this conjunction differs too much from the result of our best tables, to have taken place, demonstrating that the epocha to which it refers, is not grounded on observation. The tables altogether, and particularly A. M. 1656. A. C. 2349; OR, ACCORDING TO HALES, A. M. 2256. A. C. 3155. GEN. vi. 12. TO ix. 20. the impossibility of the conjunction which they suppose | made such an impression on my mind, that I could never at the same epocha, prove on the contrary that they have been constructed in modern times. "The whole system of the Indian tables," says Cuvier, "so elaborately conceived, falls to pieces of itself, now that it has been proved that this epocha was adopted at an after period from calculations retrospectively made, the result of which is false. Mr Bentley has discovered that the tables of Tirvalour, on which the assertions of Bailly were principally founded, must have been computed towards the year 1281 of the Christian era, (only 547 years ago,) and that the Sourya-Siddhanta, which the Brahmins esteem their most ancient scientific treatise on astronomy, pretending that it was given by revelation, more than twenty millions of years since, could have been composed only 767 years before our own time." place the least reliance on the pretended proofs that he adduced, nor would I have ever seriously entered into the discussion could I have avoided it in this history of astronomy. Finally, it appears that there does not exist at present a single Hindoo book, which can possess an antiquity higher than 1300 years; and that none of the romances called pouranas date farther back, from the present time, than 604 years, while some of them are more modern still. Their great geographical treatises are merely a tissue of the most incredible absurdities."1 With respect to the knowledge which prevailed among heathen nations of the general deluge, it may be observed, that the destruction of mankind which was effected by this catastrophe, was so signal and so extensive a judg ment, that the remembrance of it was every where retained, and traditions of it every where preserved. Express mention of this memorable infliction of divine wrath, is to be found in the earliest writings, and the accounts of its general or partial operation appear in various relations. Berosus and Abydenus speak of it in histories of the Medes and Assyrians; and records of the event through every country, exciting a peculiar interest in those lands in which some memorial and vestige of it were to be found. The Egyptians had a sacred ship, called Baris, which represented the ark; and the story of the Argos is supposed, somewhat fancifully, by Bryant, to have been derived from Egypt, and to have a relation to the ark, represented by the sacred ship of Osiris. An allusion to the ark is to be found also in many sacred rites of antiquity. Nonnus, who was born at Persepolis in Egypt, in the fifth century, and who collected in his Dionysica, scattered remnants of knowledge, from the hieroglyphical descriptions and ancient hymns of the country, alludes to the circumstances of the deluge. Relations respecting this event were to be found in various parts of Greece. Aristotle speaks of its effects in Epirus. The Thessalonians believed it to have prevailed in their country. Delambre speaks with equal decision, and to the same effect, in his History of Astronomy, Ancient and Modern. "The extensive treatise on Indian astronomy," says he, "by Bailly, has been laboured with more care than any of his other works. We regret only to remark too frequently in it, that spirit of system which predominates in all his productions. Instead of giving a simple exposi-extended through the east, and thence were circulated tion of facts, which may enable us afterwards to consider them in every point of view, he espouses an opinion to which he makes every thing conform. If we be allowed to hazard a conjecture, we would say, that Bailly never writes but to prop a system formed beforehand; that he glances slightly over the writings of the ancients, reading them in bad translations; and, that he runs over all the calculations in order to pick out obscure passages, which may lend some countenance to his ideas. When we inquire why the Indians chose the remote and fictitious epoch of Cole-youg, or misfortune, we perceive, in the first place, that it was from national vanity; and in the next, that they might make all the planets start from one point, a conjunction which their method of calculation required. If we further ask, why they adopted a complicated method, which employs divi- | sions and multiplications of enormous numbers, with so many additions, subtractions, reductions, and different precepts, the answer is, that they did not wish for written tables; they wanted numbers which could be put into technical verses, even into songs, so that the calcula-prevail, that a deluge had taken place, but the history of tions might be performed without opening a book. These facts, now well known through the labours of the Asiatic Society, are alone sufficient to subvert the whole system. “Mr Playfair acknowledges that the Indians have not actually demonstrated either of the two processes which they point out for these calculations. I would be tempted to believe that they were ignorant of these demonstrations; if they had known the principle, their table would have been probably a little better. Mr Playfair has not calculated it anew; he has not even had the discernment BEFORE we conclude this chapter, and this book togeto perceive the error of the divisor 225, substituted, pro-ther, it may not be improper to give the reader some bably by an error of the copy, for the true divisor 235.5" "The idea of the Hindoo system, given by Mr Bentley," says M. Delambre, "is so natural, that I am astonished it did not occur to Mr Bailly, and make the pen fall from his hand. It occurred to myself on the first persusal of Mr Bailly's book, before the publication of the first volume of the Asiatic Researches ; and it The people of Phocis supposed the ark to have rested on Parnassus. Lucian, a native of Samosata, gives also an account of the flood. Not only did a general belief the world among the heathens seems to take its origin from that period, insomuch that many blended the idea of a creation with that of the universal flood; and supposed the system of the world to arise from a chaos of elements, of which water was the primary principle.” CHAP. IV. Of Mount Ararat. account of the mountains of Ararat in general: in what History of Ancient Astronomy, vol. 1. p. 500. Ure's Geology. A. M. 1656. A. C. 2349; OR, ACCORDING TO HALES, A. M. 2256. A. C. 3155. GEN. CH. vi. 12. TO ix. 20. of what form and magnitude this mountain is. But in | that thereby he might be capable of giving better direc this inquiry some difficulties will arise, by reason of the tions to his family now to disperse themselves, and to different traditions concerning it. replenish the new world as occasion did require. But The author of the verses which go under the name besides that there appears little or no authority for all of the Sibylline Oracles, places the mountains of Ararat this; the observation of travellers into those countries in the borders of Phrygia, not far from Celænæ, at the may make it be questioned, whether such a vessel as the head of the two rivers Marsyas and Meander: but it ark is represented, drawing much water, and very unfit appears from good authorities, that there is in reality no for sailing, could be able to reach Mount Caucasus mountain at all in that place, or at most, but a small hill, from the province of Eden (where it is generally thought an eminence made by art, and not by nature; and there- to have been built) in the space of the flood's increase, fore the learned Bochart has happily found out the ground which was no more than 150 days. The most proof this mistake, when he tell us, that not far from this city, bable opinion therefore is, that by the word Ararat, Celænæ, there is another town called Apamea, and sur-the Holy Scriptures denote that country which the named Kars or the ark; not from any tradition that Greeks, and from them other western nations, do call Noah's ark ever rested there, but purely on account of its Armenia. In this sense it is taken by the Septuagint, situation; because it is encompassed with three rivers, by the Chaldee paraphrase, by the Vulgate, by TheodoMarsyas, Obrimas, and Orgas, which give it the resem-ret and by divers others. The learned Bochart has blance of a chest or ark, in the same manner that the port of Alexandria was so called, by reason of the bay which enclosed the ships. 1 36 Sir Walter Raleigh, and from him some later writers are of opinion, that the mountains of Ararat were those of Caucasus, towards Bactria and Saga Scythia. This, as they imagine, agrees with the general notion, that the Scythians might contend for the antiquity of their original with any other nation; with the Chaldean tradition, concerning the actions of their great man Xisuthrus, who is commonly supposed to be the same with Noah; with the language, learning, and history of the Chinese, who are thought to be Noah's immediate descendants; and with the journey which some of his other descendants are said to have taken, namely, from the east to the land of Shinar. A modern chronologer has endeavoured to prove, that the place where Noah built the ark was called Cyparisson, not far from the river Tigris, and on the north-east side of the city of Babylon; that while the flood continued, it sailed from thence to the north-east, as far as the Caspian sea, and when the flood abated, the north wind brought it back by a southern course, and landed it upon Mount Caucasus, east of Babylon, and about nine degrees distant from it in longitude; and that this opinion, as he imagines, is more agreeable to the course which the ark, by meeting with contrary currents, would be forced to make; to the sense of Scripture, in bringing the sons of Noah from the east, and in settling the children of Shem (who went not to Shinar) in this place, and to the great conveniency of Noah's landing not too far from the country, where he lived before the flood, History of the World. Heylin's Cosmography; and Shuckford's Connection, b. 2. brought together a multitude of arguments, all tending to the same conclusion; but then the question is, on what particular mountain it was that the ark landed? b 1. The most prevailing opinion for some time was, that one of the mountains which divide Armenia on the south from Mesopotamia, and that part of Assyria, which is inhabited by the Curds, (from whence the mountains took the name Curdu,) which the Greeks changed into Cordiæi, and several other names, was the place where the ark landed: and what makes for this opinion is, that whereas the deluge was in a great measure occasioned by the overflowing of the ocean, as the Scriptures tell us, that flux of waters which came from the Persian sea, running from the south, and meeting the ark, would of course carry it northward upon the Cordiæan mountains, which seems to be voyage enough for a vessel of its bulk and structure to make in the stated time of the flood's increase. The tradition which affirms the ark to have rested on these mountains must have been very ancient, since it is the tradition of the Chaldeans themselves, and in former ages was very little questioned, till men came to inquire into the particular part of these mountains whereon it settled, and then the authors seemed to place it out of Armenia; Epiphanius on the mount Lubar, between the country of the Armenians and Cordiæans; and all the eastern authors, both Christian and Mahometan, on mount Themanin, or Al-Judi, which overlooks the country of Diarrhabia, or Moussal, in Mesopotamia. To confirm this tradition, however, we are told that the remainders of the ark were to be seen upon these mountains. Berosus and Abydenus both declare, that there was such a report in their time; the former observes farther, that several of the inhabitants thereabouts scraped the pitch off the planks as a rarity, and carried it a The verses, as they are set down by Gallaus, de Sibyllis, p. about them for an amulet; and the latter says, that they 5-9, are these: There is upon the Phrygian borders black, But that which shows the spuriousness of these verses, is this:- used the wood of the vessel against several diseases with wonderful success; as the relics of this ark were likewise to be seen in the time of Epiphanius, if we may believe him. The town of Themanin, which signifies The Greek and Latin writers name them Carduchi, Cardici, Cordiæi, Cordueni, Cordi, Cordæi, Curdi, &c. The orientals call them likewise Cardon, Cordyn, Curud, &c. Bochart sup poses that they are the same which are called by mistake in Josephus, Caron.-See Universal History; and Phalegomena b. 1. c. 3. A. M. 1656. A. C. 2349; OR, ACCORDING TO HALES, A. M. 2256. A. C. 3155. GEN. CH. vi. 12. TO ix. 20 2 For they tell us of one traveller, a person of singular piety, who endeavoured to do it, and had advanced as far as the middle of the mountain; when, being thirsty and wanting water, he put up a prayer to God, who caused a fountain to spring out of the ground for him, and so saved his life; but at the same time, he heard a voice, saying, 'Let none be so bold as to go up to the top of this mountain.' eight, situated at the foot of the mountain Al-Judi, was | of it. 1 How difficult the ascent of this mountain is (without any particular revelation) we may inform ourselves from the following account which Mr Tournefort gives of it. "About two o'clock in the afternoon," 3 says he, "we began to ascend the mountain Ararat, but not without difficulty. We were forced to climb up in loose sand, where we saw nothing but juniper and goats-thorn. The mountain, which lies south and south-south-east from Eimiadzim, or the three churches, is one of the most sad and disagreeable sights upon earth; for there are neither trees nor shrubs upon it, nor any convents of religious, either Armenians or Franks. All the monasteries are in the plain, nor can I think the place inhabitable, in any part, because the soil of the mountain is loose, and most of it covered with snow 2. This opinion places mount Ararat towards the middle of Armenia, near the river Araxes, or Aras, above 280 miles distant from Al-Judi, to the north-east. St Jerome seems to have been the first who hath given us an account of this tradition. "Ararat, says he, is a champaign country,incredibly fertile,through which the Araxes flows at the foot of mount Taurus, which extends so far; so, that by the mountains of Ararat, whereon the ark rested, we are not to understand the mountains of Armenia in general, but the highest mountains of Taurus, which overlook the plains of Ararat." Since his time, its situation in this place has been remarked by several other writers; and all the travellers into these places now make mention of no other mount Ararat than what the Armenians call Masis, (from Amasia, the third successor of Haikh, the founder of their nation,) and what the Mahometans do sometimes name Agri-dagh, that is, the heavy or great mountain, and sometimes Parmak-continually flying from one side to the other, has dagh, the Finger-mountain, alluding to its appearance; for as it is straight, very steep, and stands by itself, it seems to resemble a finger, when held up. The mount Ararat, which the Armenians, as we said, call Masis, and sometimes Mesesoussar, (because the ark was stopped there when the waters of the flood began to abate,) stands about twelve leagues to the east (or rather south-east) of Erivan, (a small city seated in the upper Armenia, four leagues from Aras, or Araxes, and ten to the north-west of Nakschivan; which, because nak, in Armenian, signifies a ship, and schivan, stopped or settled, is supposed to have its name from the same occasion. This mountain is encompassed by several little hills, and on the top of them are found many ruins, which are thought to have been the buildings of the first men, who might fear, for some time, to go down into the plains. It stands by itself in the form of a sugar-loaf, in the midst of one of the greatest plains that is to be seen, and separated from the other mountains of Armenia, which make a long chain. It consists of two hills, whereof the less is more sharp and pointed; but the larger (which is that of the ark) lies north-east of it, and rears its head far above the neighbouring mountains. It seems so high and big indeed, that when the air is clear, it does not appear to be above two leagues from Erivan, and yet may be seen some four or five days' journey off'; but from the middle to the top, it is always covered with snow, and for the space of three or four months in the year, has its upper part commonly hid in the clouds. The Armenians have a tradition, that on the summit of this mountain there is still a considerable part of the ark remaining, but that it is impossible to get up to the top 1 Isaiah xxxvii. "From the top of a great abyss, (as dreadful an hole as ever was seen,) opposite to the village of Akurlu, (from whence we came), there continually fall down rocks of a blackish hard stone, which make a terrible resound. This, and the noise of the crows that are something in it very frightful; and to form any notion of the place, you must imagine one of the highest mountains in the world opening its bosom, only to show one of the most horrid spectacles that can be thought of. No living animals are to be seen but at the bottom, and towards the middle of the mountain. They who occupy the lowest region, are poor shepherds and scabby flocks. The second region is possessed by crows and tigers, which passed by, not without giving us some dread and uneasiness. All the rest of it, that is, half of it, has been covered with snow ever since the ark rested there, and these snows are covered half the year with very thick clouds. "Notwithstanding the amazement which this frightful solitude cast us into, we endeavoured to find out the monastery we were told of, and inquired whether there were any religious in caverns. The notion they have in the country, that the ark rested here, and the veneration which all the Armenians have for this mountain, (for they kiss the earth as soon as they see it, and repeat certain prayers after they have made the sign of the cross), have made many imagine, that it must be filled with religious. However, they assured us that there was only one forsaken convent at the foot of the gulf: that there was no fountain throughout the whole mount; and that we could not go in a whole day to the snow, and down again to the bottom of the abyss; that the shepherds often lost their way; and that we might judge what a miserable place it was, from the necessity they were under to dig the earth from time to time, to find a spring of water for themselves and their flocks; and in short, that it would be folly to proceed on our way, La Boulaye's Voyages See his Voyages into the Levant, Letter VII. A. M. 1656. A. C. 2349; OR, ACCORDING TO HALES, A. M. 2256. A. C. 3155. GEN. CH. vi. 12. TO ix. 20. because they were satisfied our legs would fail us; nor would they be obliged to accompany us for all the treasures of the king of Persia. "When we considered what the shepherds had told us, we advised with our guides; and they, good men, unwilling to expose themselves to the danger of dying for thirst, and having no curiosity, at the expense of their legs, to measure the height of the mountain, were at first of the same sentiments with the shepherds; but afterwards concluded, that we might go to certain rocks, which were more prominent and visible than the rest, and so return by night to the place where we were; and with that resolution we went to rest. In the morning, after that we had ate and drunk very plentifully, we began to travel towards the first ridge of rocks, with one bottle of water, which, to ease ourselves, we carried by turns; but notwithstanding we had made pitchers of our bellies, in two hours' time they were quite dried up; and as water shook in a bottle is no very pleasant liquor, our hopes were, that when we came to the snow, we should eat some of it to quench our thirst. "It must be acknowledged, that the sight is very much deceived when we stand at the bottom, and guess at the height of a mountain; and especially, when it must be ascended through sands as troublesome as the Syrtes of Africa. It is impossible to take one firm step upon the sands of mount Ararat; in many places, instead of ascending, we were obliged to go back again to the middle of the mountain; and, in order to continue our course, to wind sometimes to the right, and sometimes to the left. "To avoid these sands, which fatigued us most intolerably, we made our way to the great rocks, which were heaped upon one another. We passed under them, as through caverns, and were sheltered from all the injuries of the weather, except cold, which was here so keen and intense, that we were forced to leave the place, and come into a very troublesome way, full of large stones, such as masons make use of in building, and were forced to leap from stone to stone, till I, for my part, was heartily weary, and began to sit down, and repose myself a little, as the rest of the company did. "After we had rested ourselves, we came about noon to a place which afforded us a more pleasing prospect. We imagined ourselves so near, that we could have even touched the snow (we thought) with our teeth; but our joy lasted not long; for what we had taken for snow, proved only a chalk-rock, which hid from our sight a tract of land above two hours' journey distant from the snow, and which seemed to have a new kind of pavement, made of small pieces of stones broken off by the frost, and whose edges were as sharp as flints. Our guides told us, that their feet were quite bare, and that ours in a short time would be so too; that it grew late, and we should certainly lose ourselves in the night, or break our necks in the dark, unless we would choose to sit down, and so become a prey to the tigers. All this seemed very feasible; and therefore we assured them, that we would go no farther than the heap of snow, which we showed them, and which, at that distance, appeared hardly bigger than a cake; but when we came to it, we found it more than we had occasion for; the heap was above thirty paces in diameter. We every one eat as much as we had a mind for, and so, by consent, resolved to advance no farther. It cannot be imagined how much the eating of snow revives and invigorates : we therefore began to descend the mountain with a great deal of alacrity; but we had not gone far, before we came to sands, which lay behind the abyss, and were full as troublesome as the former; so that about six in the afternoon we found ourselves quite tired out and spent. At length, observing a place covered with mouse-ear, whose declivity seemed to favour our descent, we made to it with all speed, and (what pleased us mighty well) from hence it was that our guides showed us (though at a considerable distance) the monastery, whither we were to go to quench our thirst. I leave it to be guessed, what method Noah made use of to descend from this place, who might have rid upon so many sorts of animals, which were all at his command: but as for us, we laid ourselves upon our backs, and slid down for an hour together upon this green plat, and so passed on very agreeably, and much faster than we could have gone upon our legs. The night and our thirst were a kind of spurs to us, and made us make the greater speed. We continued therefore sliding in this manner, as long as the way would permit; and when we met with small flints which hurt our shoulders, we turned and slid on our bellies, or went backwards on all-four. Thus by degrees we gained the monastery; but so disordered and fatigued by our manner of travelling, that we were not able to move hand or foot." I have made my quotation from this learned botanist and most accurate traveller the longer, not only because it gives us a full idea of the mountain, so far as he ascended, but some distrust likewise of the veracity of a certain Dutch voyager, who seems to assure us, that he went five days' journey up mount Ararat to see a Romish hermit; that he passed through three regions of the clouds, the first dark and thick, the next cold and full of snow, and the third colder still; that he advanced five miles every day, and when he came to the place where the hermit had his cell, he breathed a very serene and temperate air; that the hermit told him, he had perceived neither wind nor rain all the five and twenty years that he had dwelt there; and that on the top of the mountain there still reigned a greater tranquillity, which was a means to preserve the ark without decay or putrefaction. There is one objection which may be made to all that we have said concerning the situation of this famous mountain, and that is,-Whereas the sons of Noah, when they quitted the country where the ark rested, are said to 2 journey from the east into the land of Shinar,' it is plain, that if they removed from any part of Armenia, they must have gone from the north or north-west; but this we shall take occasion to examine when we come to treat of their migration. In the mean time, it is worthy of our observation, and some argument of our being in the right, that the situation of Ararat, as we have supposed it, whether it be mount Masis, or the mountain of Curdu, was very convenient for the journey of the sons of Noah, because the distance is not very great, and the descent * Struy's Voyages, c. 17. |