The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1880-02-05

!, do not Know, but somewhere toward
the farthest bound, counting back
ward, of written history, at some period
before the birth of letters. The fol-
lowing curious passage occurs in
Herodotus. In speaking Of Darius
and his campaigns, he says: They
who lived upon the lake (meanine
lake Prasis near Macedonia), in dwell
ing Of the following construction
were the objects of his next attempt
In this lake strong piles are driven
into the ground, over which planks
are thrown, connected by narrow
bridge with the shore. There cree
tions were in former times made at
the public expense; but a law after
ward passed obliging a man for every
wife he should marry (and they allow
plurality to drive three of these piles
into the ground, taken from noun
tain called Orbelus. Upon these
planks each man has his hut, from
every one of which trap-door opens
to the water. To prevent their chill
dren from falling into the lake, they
fasten them by means of a string tied
to their legs" Thus wrote the father
of history more than four hundred
years before the birth of Christ, touch
ing a people whom he had never seen,
but had learned by inquiry that CEN
tury before they prevented their chill
dren from falling into the lake by
tying them, by the legs with strings
These Lacustrlans, very recently have
been styled the Dolmen nations, i'll al
fusion to the conical mounds, or Crom-
lechs always found upon the higher
lands near one &C thoir cities. These
Cromlechs, or mounds, abound both
IN Europe and in this country. They
contain urns, articles of pottery, orna-
ments, weapons of polished stone, and
in some of the more recent, articles of
bronze, and the bones Of man. In
Europe the mound usually is con-
structed over and around the Crom-
lech proper, which is a large
flat stone resting upon other stones
now usually denominated ''dolmen."
These Cromlechs until recently were
supposed to be the remains Of Druid
ical affairs; but it is now evident that
the Druid system of superstition arose
long subsequent to the building of
the Cromlechs. They are the monu-
ments raised above the distinguished
dead Of the Dolmen nations, and
are essentially the same in Eu-
rope and America, and continued
to be constructed, in Europe at least,
until skill in the fabrication Of iron
instruments and weapons Of warfare
had made some slight progress, and as
the iron age brings the race down to
the province of written history, where
his deeds, his customs and manners
are alike the subject of historical rela-
ton, we may here with propriety close
the examination Of our record evil
dence.
Common repute is a species of evi-
dence frequently adduced in support
of a cause upon trial; and it is compe-
tent for us to inquire if in the neigh
borhood we live, we have the reputa-
ton of our fathers son; and as we
have traced our gerealogy by the rec
ord evidence, we now propose to offer
evidence Of common reputation upon
the same point.
Tradition, legend, and fabulous
myth alike unite with our sacred
Scriptures in placing man in seat of
natural and perpetual delights. And
this tradition the Greeks have wrought
into shape in their fanciful account
OF the Hyperboreans, race advanced
in arts and civilization, culture and
refinement, and these ideas existing in
the traditions Of most nations, and
dating back to the earliest times, are
worthy the most careful consideration.
Such highly wrought pictures of in
nocence and felicity are beyond the
conception of barbarians and savages.
Of the Hyperborei 1900 years before
Christ the following exalted strain
was sung: "On sweet and fragrant
herbs they feed amid verdant and
grassy pastures and drink ambrosial
dew, divine potation, all resplendent
alike in coeval youth, placid sereni-
ty forever smiles upon their brows
and lightens in their eyes. :
Neither disease or wasting old age in
fest this holy people. They continue
to live happily, and to escape the ven
geance of the cruel Nemesis" And
this fortunate people had life span
of thousand years. The general diff
fusion of this idea of longevity is evi-
denced by reference to it in the sacred
books Of the Hindoos and in the Zend
writings of Persia. These latter speak
of the great deliverer Feridoun finding
two princely maidens each aged a
thousand years and still fit for matri-
mony. These traditions all point to
the central plains of Asia as the cradle
of the human race, and the delightful
dwelling of happy innocence: here are
found all the necessary conditions OF
earth and climate, and Cashmere and
Thibet blossom as the rose. Our
Scriptures refer the second origin OF
man to mountainous region eastward
of Shinar; and the ancient books OF
the Hindus fix the primitive home OF
our race in the same quarter. The
Hindoo paradise, as above remarked, Is
on Mt. Meru, which is upon the bOun-
Diary of Cashmere and Thibet. Hav-
ing thus by reputation fixed the orl-
ginal home of man, we will endeavor
to ascertain whether or not the parol
evidence will sustain common repute
William Won Humboldt is accredited
with the following remark. Accord
ing to my fullest conviction, speech
must be regarded as naturally inherent
in man, for it is altogether inexplica-
BILE as a work of his understanding il
its simple consciousness. We are
none the better for allowing thou,
sands and thousands Of years for it
) invention. There could be no inven
ton of language unless its type al
: ready existed in the human under