, 1879-05-18

ourst Of prolific vigor. In forty-fyc years the
seed of this uupromising stock numbers seventy
souls. This Is the point of the settlement In
Egypt. The fact that there came thence, 70
fcars later, 6o3 $50 men is the one which troubles
the tiu,id faith Of so many.
LET l1R turn aside for moment from the
seeking OF actual facts to consider possibilities.
OF the seventy persons, sixry-sevcn besides
Jacob were males, and the oldest less than 45 |
years old. Let each one OF these young males |
during the first forty-dve years IN Egypt do as |
we'll as Jacob did during the previous forty five,
md, not counting the elders, here is the result:
67X67-f,4s9 men. Make the same estimate for
the next forty-dve years and we reach ,469X61--
800, ,76s. Multiply again and we reach the close
of 1876 years with 20,151,121. Multiply again
for the next forty-dve years, and we find We
have reached the enormous sum Of over bill
ion and a third, ,350, 125, ,107 young males.
We have only used $50 years Of otlr time.
There remain thirty-fve years on which We
might compute still further increase, and yet
reserve time for every one to grow TO adult
years: Tnis host, vast as it Is, by no means
fully represents the theoretical possibilities OF
human increase. We have started from basis
not Of theory but Of actual facts. UntrammeIed
figures would run. still higher. This host We
have figured up is more than 1000 tunes rs
great Us the actual host calmly enumerated bT
the sacred historian. The increase in Egypt, so
fraction of per cent Of what might haoe bee','
Some one will say that the fore@olng figures
make no allowance for deaths. They do allo"
for deaths. Jacob probably bad few grand
children buried in Canaan, besides the many nc
took down to Egypt; and each great company
in our computation is discarded Al dead at tue
end OF forty-iive years. ..
Renewing now our search for the facts, VIC
inquire whether the 2l5 years Of sojourn In
Eeypt was one period OF uniform growth, or
whether it comprised several periods IN Whlch
different tendencies were manifested upon
close examination It appears that the latter was
tile case. We can dim3y discern the outlines o. ol
five different periods, numbering about w,
|. iyelv In the first period there was very high
ratio OF increase In tttt second period the rato
| had declinad, but the aggregate increase (wh1cn
/ alone Impressed Pharaohs cyes) vas lrl@nt1ul.
| In the third period the ag9regate increase,
though still great, is no greater than in p:r.eo
second showing great decline in ratio " the
| fourth period population sways slowly from
gradual increase to stationary, and then ueclines.
! In the fifth, the short PERIOD rapfu uecllne
| sets in. It required the whole forty years ol
liberty and favorable circumstances in the Wilder
ness to arrest this declining tendency, and start
| the nation again on career OF Increase.
/ Before proceeding further we must CONSIDER
the most curious, Us well as one ol the @ nus ~
deal. The early Israelites were tribe Of men.
| Abraham had eight son3, no daughters. Isaac
had Two sons, no daughters. Jacob had tWc'vs
sons, one daughter. The younger progeny, at
| G1tv.tive males one female. This curious finn
ily trait is common enough in all ages, o1IS IL
does not usually run to such an extent. Once
established US confirmed trait It Is pam tli;ti
it would not immediately disappear. we wou1o
naturally expect it to continue: to some extent,
as long as they took their wives mainly from
other and less vigorous races, or until tneli
own native yigor had declined. The absence Of
| female births at first was mercy, as wen as
help to rapid increase. The family tree was nof
ret, broad enough to allow iutern'arrlage'
daughters OF distinguished family must ilaVe
distinguished husbands, and that would nave
scnaratcd them and their children from
se t viii not DC t,.n 10 tsn say tt fcma,et
siYtr-eicht miles. We have the names OF them
Mi. Diuah and Scrah are explicitly named Al
| women; and all the others are e1pilcil'r na!t az
ed as sons: The pitiful blight Of Dlnahs ~ ~.
we know. Serah stands glorious and alone likt
the AIa4ionua. The absence OF female blrths
the prevalence of polygaEny, and tlie earl1
fecundity of the race, are lie three roots flotf
which the tree arose which so threatened e
cnvrr the whole earth. All things favored raplt
fncrease,-rotous blood within, the King 8 1avo
| without, aud Gods promise oyerneau' the oes
Of the land OF Egypt before them,- polygam.
established, chill-marriage familiar thnss, aht
youths plump Dissemination not 10 % 1e na'pon thai
fathers left otf'' The outcome OF IT all wa
| that they took to themselves wives like youns
| Solomons aud multiplied like mice: !hey na'
before them the example OF their dranu1atne
Jacob. who sustained marital relations VIII
fnur women at one time, und the poiygamou
nrecocity of their father aud Uncle benjamin
VINO at the age Of rs was the father OF ten sons
The sacred historian Lays before us these uuu
| sual and peculiar circumstances; win stron
| hA
; the wonderful results, tells US OIL u u
alarm and the cruel repressive measures OF tn
Egyptians, and gives us finally statistics pei
fectlv 10 harmony with what has gone before
This ouubt to command respectful cons1defa
ton at least; yet in the face Of it all infide!s ar
; ! fond Of telling us what the increase OF lsrat
must have been, using for rule and compass tn
vital statistics of the United States or some or
, settled community: Ihs Is bsggng& ~ .ne CUE que
ing that it lied. 1t is worse than II one snoul
take some Ncw-Ensland town, where births a.
erapc less than three to the marriage, aud arsu
: against the recorded facts OF its pioneer "a,
!. | wneu births averaged ten to the marriage
9 As the whole is equal to the sum OF its part
nersnic,1ity is favored By following tile career
: only one tribe. We choose the tribe OF Ep
U roinn BECAUSE We have more OF Its history tbs
. we have Of any OF the others. and because it ii
e l. the most wonderful increase OF any. Most
n y the other tribes began the period ot so1ourn WI
= from five to eleven males. Ephram was put
= | boy years old, aud came out 40, SUI men. Nbf
. sevcuty-one years of the period OF prosperity al
a favor had passed Joseph died, as we learn fro
{. Cen, l., e. At that time the third generate
" Of Ephraim's children had appeared, probably
;. several collateral branches OF the family tre
= This allows little over twenty years to the gen
- ration. We have twentY~nine years left Of Il
= first period OF 100 years; time tor one II
! two generations more. We compute, hoWevt
! the probable numbers of the third generatlo
= nud allow the whole balance OF the time tor tn
rcueration to develop its numbers, for ch1ldr'
:; to grow up, and for the tagging divisions OF
y family host to fall into line, that We may cou
~ ~ them and take new start. Many members
- :. the fourth generation must have appeared, b
e We treat them as not yet born, and ouly cou
- - them in the next period. Ephraim himself d
y, !, pears not to have entered polygamy, but to ha
. . followed the example OF his admirable fathe
~ He had, however, at least ten sons, as the nam
- OF that many are recorded. Perhaps he b
- more Two of these sons were slain IN bait
- Il Chron., Z, 2l). AS they may have been you
- - and childless we compute the first generation
~ ~ sons as eight To these eight young Princes
~ ~ allow an average of five wives and twenty ch
10 10 dreu, over and above those dying IN carly yea
~ ~ This will appear d very moderate estluis
=, when we consider the circumstances, u
- =. remember Gideon's seventy sons, King Rel
q, boam's eiehty-eeAt children, and King Abljan
| 1p