Fremont weekly freeman. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1850-1853, 1850-06-22
sEThe 6sol.len fsnfes.,,

: 1.-THE Golden Gates.ss
Since the modern discovery of the eolde
mountains and golden soil of California, thef
has been . good deal of curious and instruc
tive disqnisition ineulged in, whether or nc
:. this auriferons region is the identical "Ophir
from which King Solomon and King Hyran
! obtained their vast supply Of gold. NJ. N
Noah of New York, eminently learned i
) sacred and profane history, has written som
i interesting articles to prove the affirmative
, side OF the question. An objection, on til,
negative side was recently urged that il wa.
impossible for the navigator Of Solomon,s da1
to san from the Red Sea across the Pacific /,
California; and still more impossible that the,
: should have sailed around the Southern ex
trenity OF Africa, across the Atlantic, an,
then around the Southern extremity Of Soutl
America.
10 this objection, Mayor Noah has respond
ed IN substance as follows:
He says that the Phoenicians. many cen
turies before Solomon, circumnavioatedi tbe
whole continent of Africa, and visited the is
land Of Great Britain and the Western Islands
and that brisk trade was carried ON in tn,
Cartea (now Gibralter1 in the time of Abra
ham. That they planted a colony at Fanoier,
from which they made voyoges in all direction.
IN the broad Atlantic, in good vessels which
they nayigated by the stars. No one car
doubt, he thinks, that the splendid antiquities
in Mexico and Ameriea-the ruins Of temple:
and palaces, the pyramids, military highways
aqueducts, bridges and viaducts--were erec.
ted by the Phoenicians, the same people who
built Tyre, Carthage, and Babylon. There
can be no doubt, that these adventurous naYi
gators visited the Gulf of Mexico BY design
or accident-were at Panama and established
colonies, and discovered the rich placers Of
gold on the Pacific coast
In Solomon's time, commerce was in a
fourishing condition, and every port at the
head Of the Mediterranean was filed with
coasting vessels The Bible, in various plac-
es, tells us of commerce "going down to
the sea in ships" and Josephus, who wrote
many years after Solomon, says with historical
accuracy
Moreoverthe king ESolomon built many
ships in the Egyptian bay of The Red Sea, in
certain place called Ezion- Giber (itis now
called Beresina, and it is not far from the city
| OF Elath, This country belonged formerly to
the Jews, and became useful for shipping
from the dominions of Hyram, King of Tyre,
for he.s sent sufficient number of men tliither
for pilots, and such as were skillful in navi-
CATION. to whom Solomon gave this command !;
that they should go along with his own stew
ards to the land that was of old called Ophir.
but now the Aurea Chersoaesus, which be-
longs to India, TO fetch him gold; and when
they had gathered four hundred talents they
returned to the king again.
This record of Josephus, Maj Noah says, is
Z taII0 oil -hvTS, .<1k
He says the Phoenician colonies in South
America, which hourished more than seven.
hundred years before Solomon's time, and
which were productive in gold silver and pre-
eious' stones, were well known to that great
king and to all the people of Syria and Egypt.
That Solomon obtained his gold for domestic.
purposes, from Africa and the neighborhood,
where only sufficient quantity for that pur-
pose could be obtained; but to build his
splendid temple larger quantities we're requir-
ed and great effort was made "A ..tiiree
years voyage" according to scripture, was .un-.
dertaken, a treaty with King Hyram was
concluded. and great preparations were made
IN the two large sea-ports on the Red Sea
Sailors pilots. metal mem (geologists, miners
and skillful workmeu were collected, and
heavy ships built, manned and provisoned for
this three years voyage in search of gold
CAN'T supposed, says Noah. that all this
this getting out of this great
squadron, by Solomon in person, contemplat-
ed a trip only to a peninsula in India, distant
about 1900 miles-a mere coasting voyage
This is impossible, and besides four hundred
talents of gold could not have been gathered
there
King Solomon's fleet was sent out in search
Of gold to build the tempIe-an army of sea-
men, pilots, workers in gold and silver, miners
and geelogists were sent, and all pro7isioRed |
Tor 'three years ge"-.his feetreturn-
ed freighted with gold, ard from some place
rom whence King Solomon obtained four /
thousand nail2ions in gold and expended It in |
he temple. This golden region could not /
have been, within afew hundred miles, in the
iulf of Persia or on the borders of the Indian /
Ocean-it could have been none other than /
california The Golden Gates discovered /
~ the Phoenicians--"th land that was of
I'D called Ophir--is the @auriferous reofon's
n the Pacific, now called California; and
Alng Solomon's fleet had two passages, by 1
which it could be reached They could coast
long the Chinese seas and cross over to Cali
ornia, voyage in those days of only fifty /
lays in sailing yessel-or they could double
he Cape of Good Hope, then direct 10 Cape
Horn, and coast down the Pacific to the "Gol-
en Gates"-to the land of "Ophir',--to Cali
ornia. Suehis the substance Of the argument
MoRDIcA NJ. Moan TCiu Gazette
Dog Express.
M