, 1879-08-10
Aggressive Tendency Of the Mo-
hammedan Missions---Con-
-. yerts in China and ss.:- .
!. Af,,,oo
~~ .-AAAA Aca1"
Bishop Seymour's Plea for tie Pro-
= vincial System in tie Epis.
= copal Church.
:Tha Exiled German BishoDs---W the
Empcror's Amnesty Does Not
Include Them. -.:.:
General Notes, Personals Sun
day Squibs, Services i.
To-Day. -:


--
49,. CHALDEAN LEGENDS. =
THEIR RELATION TO TIRE EARLY HEBREW
WRITINGS.
Lewis G. james some months ago delivered in
Drooklyn, before the Philosophical Society; an
essay On the Chaldean LEGENDS of-the creation
fall Of man, the dcluge+ From it is taken the
following excerpt: :
The creative process advances In six distinct
stages, and their order is identical with the first
account in Genesis. In various fragments oi
the inscriptions, man is called Admi or ,Adami,
which is precisely the term used in The Bible. 10
Tie Chaldean legend, however, it is always rep
resented as common designation applicable to
the race anu nertr as proper nanc. 1t Is also
sometimes used in this sense in Genesis; I. e.,
..Male and female created He them, and blessed
+hem and called their name Adam.n {Gen., T.,
81 Sir Henry Rawlinson says that the Chal-
deans recognized two principal races Of men !:
the AdnInu, or dark race, which was the race
that fell. and the Sarku. or light race, who re-
taiprl their holiness Traces Of this legend arc
recognizable in the Bible, two races being there
mentioned; the sons Of Adam and the sons Of
God. In one place VIC are told that they actually
intermarr;cd:. -s The. sons Of God saw the
daughters of men that they were fair. aud took
to themselves wives Of all which they chose"
{Gen., Vi. -
The dragon Tiamat, In the Chaldean legend,
seems to perform the same Office as the serpent
in Genesis, but in the inscriptions Ills history is
given ut much greater length, and his appear
ance as Il tempser is less abrupt and unnatural.
Hc was the persopifcatlon Of the original chnOs
Of waters out of which the universe was created.
He is recognized rs identical with the Thalatth
nrf f4vSry MY f4
to Thallassa, the sea. OF Greek literature. This
dragou, the genius Of Chaos, was at war with
the gods and the divine principle Of order from
the beginning. After the fell OF man. the god
Bel, Merodach, or Elu, attacks i1amat. and
finally yauquishes him; q Legendary event Which
was favorable snbject of Assyrlan and Baby
loaiau sculpture, but has been strangely nisin-
tcrprcted by the author OF the Apochrypnal
book, Bel and the Dragon. wherein both Bel
aud 1he Dragon are represented as gods who
were worshtped By the Baby1ontans; which Is
very much as if we should say that orthodox
Christians worshiped equally Christ and the
Decil.
Introductory to the Creation legends is u
curious account Of conflict between the gods
in Hearen, and the fall Of the rebellious deities
In whose place man is created. There are other
legends in which serpcnts and animals are made
10 speak; reminding the render Of the talking
serpent in Genesis, and the story OF Balaam in
Numbers :.
Equal il interest to The Genesis legends Of
Chal1e2 arc those contained in q remarkable
series ot twelve tablets, which recount the ex-
ploits Of q mythical hero whose name has not
ret been corrcctlg deciphcred, but whom Mr.
George Smith calls, Professionally, kdubar. The
eleventh tablet OF this series contains the
Chaldean story OF the deluge, which is related
to lzdubar by l1asisadra, or Slsit, the Chaldean
Noah, who has pcen translated and become as
one Of the gods. The account Is not perfect,
but is much less mutilatel than the Creation
tablets, SO that there difficulty in discover
Ing the main features OF the story. l shall pre-
sent it somewhat at length, mainly in the trans
ladon Of alr. George Smitl. The god LEA thus
orders Hasisadra to build the ark:
- ''son Of Uoaratutu,
Make ship after this manner:
Fur l will destroy the sinner and the life.
Cause all OF the seed qf life ="
TO INTO the midst df the ship. e..
The ship which thou shalt make.
Six hundred cuoits ehati DC the measure OF its
length,
And sixty cubits the amount OF it's prcaa1h and
hight.
Into the deep launch it.
Making the ship which thou hast commanded
Thcn it is made, young and Old will deride me-
Hes opened his mouth and spakc,
And said unto nc his serrant:
the flood shall conc which will send. to you.'
Stron. r:s Lac ship,
On the fifth day+ completed it.
placed water plani1s against tie water within it.
Three measures Of bl1umcn poured over the out
s,ue.
Three measures OF bitumcu poured over the In
side.
- The men constructed chests.
lp}eced in them the offering for the sacrifice. =
Two measures Of boxes distributed TO the boat
.MeA. :
h1ne IN receptacle collected like the waters Of
All food, Ike the dust Of the earth.
The matera} NJ the shin ,s.s conn1etc5
The reed oars Of the ship caused to be placed !
above and below.
Az possessed: all possessed Of silver,
all possessed OF gold; all possessed OF the seed
of lnc.-
aAe "hole caused to 20 up into the m!cst OF the
sap: "
a.. NJ ny maze servants aud my female servants,
HE ae oeast OF 1he field. the animal Of the field.
rh. 60 u7.
% euaMas o,aue HOOD. and be spake to me, say1ng:
en'et ,1h lao s shc EMP. and shut ny door,
aouu s uappeneu VI WHICH ne spake, say
TN tho ,,,o', ~. :. ,,,,
nnr;nS the ~. na ~ WI 1s1n IRON heaven heoV1J'
~ .ns Wy eeicorated his festival;
ensesed Iy is,n q, TIA %a;e5'ns ;as q ana 90 Of 1sas.
~ 4o.a ..e 441ast u Inc SLIP, anu smut my t
The e1ona..cors Ivu5. ,,sa
From tie nns,1G" 80 ,osGr I.a
Eida 'en ea'ena1nR 1ar anu
Vuf in the midst a, Il tb,,ao..a
And Nebo and Saro .vorv Fo.,
The throne bearers ,gant n matu, !
b,oirs. ~"' 'ef MounIa1ns and
The DESTROYER Nerra1 q nvar4r-,aa
Einines ,vcnr for,.n~t Hses .uInco.
The Storm 1ods a. c7,rr;s1 ~ 1In sas-1n. Saa aowa-
~~~-.S>~ NH7A