Morning journal and courier., 1890-03-12
OUNEIFORM INNOVATIONS.

They Arc ComPrehensively aud Rn-
 tertainingly Discussed by pr. Robert
 F. Harper Before . Large Audience
 In North Shemeid Hall.
 The eighth lecture of the Mechanics' course was delivered in North Sheffield hall last night by Dr. Robert F. Harper before large audience on the "History of the Discovery and Displacement of the Cuneiform Inscrip. tions."
 "The history of the Egyptians" he said, "bscemes more interesting from year to year, as new discoveries are made. The history from inscriptions is more interesting than that from papers, for it treats of time par allel to that of the Hebrews of the Exodus Babylon is no favored in the antiquity of the parallel.
 Between 1790 and 95 Freachman shipped the first bricks to Paris. In 1910 the famous Nebuchadnazar stone, now in the East India house, London, was discovered by Rich. Austin Henry Layland followed up the work of Rich in 1S40. In '45 means was furnished to Laylard by Sir strafford Canning and he laid bare three palaces in the nsighborhood Sennacherit, later place called the tomb of Noah, and found large cylinder containing 800 lines.
 Colonel Rawlinson worked from 1883 te 49 and after '53 nothing was done for twenty years. In 1873 the celebrated bronss gates of Babylon were found. The first American expedition was the Catherine Wolfe and in 1888 an expedition went out under the direc- tion of the University of Pennsylvania. The prospect for the future Is poor for two rea- l sons. First, the Turkish government has discovered the value of these antiquities; l second, the jealousy of the ambassadors at Constantinople. Some of the districts are | besides not under the control of the Turkish government and very dangerous. Tho cli- mate is rapidly alternate, heat and cold and damp. Pleasant, however, in some respects. One may run races with the Arabs and some have even firted with their pretty girls. Mir. Kenford was the first to use the term tonne | form" or wedge shaped. The inscriptions run from left to right instead of from right to left.
 Tho first method of deciphermsnt was like this. A sign known to signify "king" from its frequency is preceded by sign A, thus: | I. A king-C--,.
 | II B king-A king.
 O not being king, A is the founder of the dynasty and his name being already known, the sign A is known.
 Henry Rawlinson is in every sense the father of Assyriology.
 h 1o4U uouIy hIukb Au lrbuMhu, pIOveO that tho Assyrian was syllabic and ideo. graphic language and not alphabetic.
 Just as the southern Turkish governments publish their state documents in three lan- gusees, Turkish, Arabic and Persian. 90 tho i Ancients in three, Old Persian, Sasian and Hetsro Babylonic or Semetic.
 Unlike the Hebrew text, there are few errors. Everything goes to prove that the oldest civilization was to the south of Baby- lonia. The Babylonian tablets have paral- lel account of the creation and the deluge, the last moro full than the Hebrew, but much alike, though the Babylonian is poly theistio and the Hebrew monotheistio. There is Babylonian account of the history of Moses who is called Sargou. There is no doubt that it is older, as old as the thirty seventh century B. c. The Babylonian Psal- tor is much larger than the Hebrew. David is none other than the Babylonian Dudu. l The leading away of the ten tribes is told more correctly than in the Hebrew and we know from these inscriptions that Lenna. ehassit was not killed when his army was lost. The Hebrews, on the other hand, are not at all reliable with regard to Assyrian history and did not even spell the names cor rsctly. The Assyrians have given us new ideas of ancient oriental geography. Noth- ing was known of the Hsttites thirty year. ago. The contemporaries of Isaiah have ceased to be mere names to us. A now l world ia orAnnd