Litchfield enquirer., 1848-08-31
The Political and social Life of the Ancient EgyptianS-EVideacCS of their High Civilization, Sc.

their High Civilization, Sc.
 IL is a curious fact that if we knew less af the Ancients Egyptians, a century s'nce. tl.an of any other p~ople of past times. we now know more than of any other nation, and this knowledge is daily increasing. Il is to discovery of a key
 the hieroglyphics. that we owe the ac. quIsIiion of this valuable information. The ancient Egyptians, Il is we'll known, covered their public buildings, and their private tOmbs with inscriptions, written in language of fsigns,-For ages the key 10 these signs was loss: But, about the beginning of the prese Il cen'ury,a block f stone was discovered, containing three inscriptions. one in Greek, and the others lA two sets ot characters used among anci mt Egyptians, one being employed by the populace and the other by t.le priests. A clue was thus obtained 10 the hieroglyphics Since ih,t period, with Inhnte labor, numerous inscriptions have been d"ciphered, and about 400 words of the old Egyptian tongue recovered. This IS but beginning indeed, but has been sufficient !o teach us much of the past, and among other things, it has estahlish> ed the veracily of Herodotus, ,he Greek hIstorIan,. who travelled in Egypt 500 years before Christ. =.
 The Government of Ihe country.,ifbe ma King Of the laws, and cseass1on of public opinion was exclusivelvs~;n inc hand. or,ha 1 f"'"y oaS'e' ep. course a class of men possessing Such advantages lived in SUI Pe' n9s. lo. manner 10 the common ople. We 1 nave every reason to believe that the veal ; lhier Egyptians enjoyed an amount of lux ury such as even modern times cannot equal. Miss Martineau tells of tomb she explored, the walls of which abounded with pictures of Egyptian life a> it existed four thousand years ago. There Were people at the blow, harvesters tying up sheaves, men winnoWing wheat, clerks sup rin,ending the sowing of grain in granneries, and the other evidencieS of an advanced state of agriculture. There was feast, the hest and hostess sitting in elegant chairs. with quarters of beef, cakes, fruit and wine nasks crowding the board, while musicians played in corner of the apartmen, and guests s't around, each lady with noque' like modern belle. In another picture. money bags, carrier pigeons, sculplors at work, &c, are seen. In one tomb is a view of coronation, in another, of wall ed town in state of siege. But the strong est evidence Of ancient Egyptian c:viliza> tion, appears in the fact that every man had but one wife, and that woman he'd a position nearly, if not quite as exalted. as she does in modern Christian communi- ties.
 !. ;~ evident that the ancieni Egyr,ian a ne understood somn,mbulism, and some think mesmeriSm also. Many arts, new lost, were then known, and proficiency in me- chanics attained, which the inhabitants of the nineteenth century cannot rival Some of the pictures found in the most ancient tombS almost remind us of Ihe present day. There are glass Blowers at work, spinne S, flx dressers, wravers. .po'lcrs. painters, and carpenters. There are hunters throwing The lasso, manlua makers, founcing dress> eS, and servants drawing off liquor with syph' ms. There are couches, lrmps, Va. >es, fauleuils. hangings of he most luxuri- ant character, such indeed il cannot be ex > He'd in this day. Thyre are cabinet ma k"rs, inlaying woods of different c,lors With g'ue There are ships ,ha, surpass in elegance our fashion lble yachts. There are chariots superbly finished. But the most curious of all are women ge.i in cAi'Sthnic exercises for it evi fences high s'a'e of civilization and luxury, when we fl i'd the sex engaged in gymnastics for the s"ke of the health. The ladies wore frin- 2es on their dresses, and braided lhe,r ha.r down the back "a 1tyolrse.
 Really: we have made fewer advances than in our vanity, we had supposed Ex. p II as we think ourselves in this nine- teenth century. there were people quite as expert four thousand years ago.
 I9 Gen. Shields has il seems, declined his appointment of Governor of Oregon,