Republican vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1857, 1855-01-13
Were there Fishes in the Ark ?"


The Republican asks the question,
"were there fishes in the Ark :" and al.
ludes to the remarks we made last week
in which we stated that two of each Kind
Of every animal, fowl aud fish were
placed in the Ark. The word "fsll" was
inserted without thought II was purely
accidental and we wrote the word, we
presume, from the fact that j, is a verv
common expression 10 say "nesh, fish, and
fowl 1t is very natural to suppose that
there were no fishes in the AK as the wa
ter is the element in which they live,
and Of which they had plenty. But, as
the Republican says, the question turns
entirely upon the issue as to whether "fsA
is flesh" The biblical account reads thus
"And of every living thing of all flesh two of
every sort shalt thou bring into the Ark to keep
them alive with theethey shall be male and female.
VI fowls after their kind and OF cattle after their
kind and Of creeping thing OF the earth after his
kind two OF every sort shall come unto thee to keep
them alive
1t will be perceived that if fish is flesh,
fishes were in the Ark. That idea seems
however, to be contradicted in the re-
mark every creeping Thing Of the earth
Dr.. Clark, in his commentary, does not
alludeto the subject. We are strongly in !.
clined to believe, however, that there were
no fishes in the ark. Webster says "the
flesh Of fish, used as food. But we usual
ly apply flesh to land animals" lie fur
ther says, in defining flesh" "Thc body
Of beasts and birds used as food, distinct
from fish. In Lent the Roman Catholics
abstain from flesh, but eat fish,"
We referred last week to the size of the
Ark. Scripture says:
"And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it
of: The length of the Ark shall be three hundred
cubis, the breadth of it fifty cubts, and tac height
of it thirty cubits."
Commentators generally have given 20
inches and fraction us the length of a
cubit in scripture allusien. However there
is great contrariety Of opinion as to the cor
rectness OF this version. III fact in the old
countries the length Of cubit, as allowed
by them, differed materially. 1t is allowed
by some that the length Of mans arm
from the elbow to the extremity of the
middle finger was a cubit. The Romans
| called cubit II inches and four tenths.
The English cubit is estimated at IS inch
es. So it isvery evidens that there is no
reliable data to guide us to correct con-
clusion. According TO the cubital meas
urement as allowed BY commentators, the
Ark would have been g. 800 inches, or 500
feet, or 1873 yards long. Its breadth would
have been HOO inches, or 81 feet, or about
80 yards. Its height ego inches, or SIS
feet. or Is yards. Now the question
arises, could the cargo scripture informs US
certainly was taken into the ark, been
placed IN that space. We think not
Our readers can think for themselves
The vast amour: of food for physical sus-
tenahce, which the ark contained may be
inferred from the scriptural allusion to il:
And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten
and thou shalt gather it to thee and it shall be food
for thee and for them"
In our article last week, we stated that
it was the wife Of "Jepthah." 1t should
have been the wife of Japeth. 1t was so
written, but the error escaped our aten-
ton in reading the proof