The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1893-07-13
OLDEST BOOK IN THE WORLD.
1t Is Not the Bible, as Many May

Think, According to n Writer.
Baltimore American: j. II. Mitchnier, in
knowledge for June, gives an interesting ac-
count of the oldest book in the world. Many
will suppose that the Bible is meant but
the most orthodox have never claimed that
the earlier books of the Bible were written
prior to the exodus from Egypt, while the
''PapSruS PriSSe'' was written at least
1900 years before Moses was born, and
many years before the occurrence of the
NOachian deluge. The book was discovered
by a Frenchman named PrisSe at Thebes,
and presented to the BibliotheQue Rationale
in Paris. 1t was taken from a tomb in
which was found the mummy OF one OF the
Entews of the eleventh, or first Theban,
dynasty, which would prove that the man
uscript was written at least prior to 2aOu
Ii. c.; but the book itself furnishes internal
evidence of the date of its composition, anu
contains extracts from work that was
much older. 1t was complied by the rrefect
Ptah-hotep during the reign of King ASA
This pOtentate was the last but one OF the
fifth dynasty, that the book must have
been written about 1850 B. e., or consider
ably more than 5000 years ago.
The preceptS of Ptah-h otep, which give the
from an earlier work written by kakimna,
Project to King Seneferu, of the third dy-
nasty. which ruled before the pyramids were
1t if in existence now $3.50 years old, ante
dating, according to the old chrOnologtsts,
and as some still believe, the creation OF
Adam in the Garden of Eden, or at least
his fall from grace. The book is written in
French by NJ Virey and into English by
Prof, OSgood. Its main value is not as Il
literary curiosity, but for the insight it
gives into the education and culture which
had been reached by man at that early Pc
Rod in the history of the human race. Its
writer, Ptah-hOtep, was n prefcct-a place
of great dignity and responsibility under the
ancient Egyptian kings 1t was second only
Ff,aN OF l-st OIL n
was held by Joseph, the son of Jacob, dur
ing the latter portion of his career, as told
in the Bible. The project was sort OF
pOoh-Bah, or treasurer, secretary OF state
and chief justice of the supreme court rolled
into One that what is said in the book
must be accepted as authoritative, so far
as il goes.
, The book upsets some theories concerning
tie origin of n number of philoSOphic re
f1ectiCns. for they are found here, diYeSted
of all rubbish, several thousands or years
before the advent of the Greeks, who were
thought TO have originated them Its whole
tone is lofty. not relatively but actually,
and would be creditable to moral winter
in the nineteenth century. 1t deals Win IN
diyiduai conduct and the government or the
state. Persons holding public positions are
urged Ito labor at all times to be true gen
Elemen, lest from their own defects or char
acter they suffer the authority given them
by favor of the Supreme Being to be weak
ened" Numerous illusions are made TO tie
Supreme Being. and they are always III the
singular number, proving, what has been
claimed by lPelaeOl0SlSjS, tuaI tne EellSlOA
Of the EgyDtianS was monOtheiStic, and that
only among the ignorant classes were birds
and beasts and ima@es-Which We're intended
10y the religion as types of certain of God 5
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. as gods. Moses, who
was really n prince in Egypt so far as his
social standing went, was educated by the
priests and of course, well understood the
mOnOtheistic character of the Egyptian re-
iigion; but he saw that the masses or the
DeOple had so prOStitHted their religion that
he was anxious to get the Hebrews as Tar
away from their pernicious example as pos
Siblp. But it is reasonable to suppose that
in the age Of Ptah-hotep, the writer OF this
book, nearly 1000 years before Moses was
born, there had been no such perYersion or
their religion by the Egyptians as disguised
the great lawgtyeP Of the ISraeliteS.
I This book it must be borne in MIND, was
not an isolated example of culture and
scholarship. 1t was the perfectly natural
outcome Of a civilization which was scarcely
inferior 10 that of u century ago, and which
could boast Of magnificent libraries, "a PEG.
pIe highly instructed in all the arts or
Oeace. a state carefully organized, q HE
farchy firmly founded, infinitely divided, anu
Organized even to the smallest external
matters, a universally dinused system OF
writing and the common use of papyrus-,ln
short a civilization which in all essential
DOinfs has already attained its 1ull matu-
rity and only by close Investigation Is IuF-
ther CleyeInBiliaut in some directions ulScoVo
cred" And all this was many hundreds OF
years before Abraham. under the Suluance
Of the Lord became ali exile from MS coun-
cry and settled i'll the plain OF Mamfe'