Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1902-12-17

ed to him. Senator Edmunds regarded
it as unlucky If the first person he met
on emerging from his house was a
woman and would return for fresh
start.-United Service.
LIVED LONGER IN BIBLE DAYS.
Scientist Tries to Show Men Reached
Age of Thousand Years.
In scientific or quasi-scientific inter-
pretations of the Old Testament at
tempts have been made to explain away
the repeated and definite statements as
to the longevity of the first generations
of men-of Adam and his descendants
It is possible that men actually lived
thousand years in those times-in amaz-
ing contrast with the present span Of
life, which, indeed, goes back to the
Psalmist's era? "The days Of our years
are three score years and ten," said the
Psalmist, land If by reason OF strength
they be four score years, yet Is their
strength, labor and sorrow; for 1t Is
soon cut off and we fly away" How Is
this to be reconciled with the chronicles
of the Bible?
This and similar questions relating to
the longevity of humanity in Biblical
times are discussed in book just pub
lished in Russia by a learned physician
"A. A. Piasetski. The title Of the work
is Medicine According to the Bible and
the Talmud," and it is an attempt to
prove the complete accuracy OF the
statements Of fact made in the Old Tes-
lament in regard to early mankind.
A full account and review Of this book
appears in the Novoye Vremya, which
praises the book as sound, reverent,
scholarly and ingenious. The article
is condensed by The Literary Digest In
the following free translation:
Eight Of the forefathers lived near
ly a thousand years each. Adam lived
$50 years. Seth 912, and so on until
Enoch, who lived only 1866 years, and
of whom the Bible intimates that he
died prematurely. OF each Of the 9TH
ers 1t is said, And he died. implying
perfectly natural cause, while Of Enoch
It is said: And he was not, for God took
him. Lamech's days were TIT and
Noah, $50. When we reach Terah the
change is striking; for his days were
only 205 years, and there is no intima-
ton of any special cause Of death.
Abraham, who died in good old age,
an old man, and full Of years, lived alto
gether ITS years.
"How is this decline in longevity to
be explained? The sceptics hold that In
the antedeluvian period our month was
called a year, and that, therefore, the
average length Of life was eighty years.
But the Bible distinctly recognizes
monthly and an annual period of time,
and the theory III question is purely ar
bitrary and fanciful.
There is no reason for doubling the
literal accuracy Of the Bibles reckon
ing. The conditions Of antedeluvian hu-
manity were such as to permit the
length of individual life alleged in the
Bible. There were, we know, giants
in those days. The animals, too, were
of stupendous and colossal proportions,
as the bones discovered in the earth's
strata fully attest. We must apply
different measures and different criteria
to the beings Of that era.
eff the men were giants their organ
isms were naturally stronger and their
health infinitely better. 1t could not
we'll be otherwise. The climate OF Mes
opotamia (the cradle Of the human
race) is even now mild, warm, benefi-
cent and favorable to longevity. Then
It was much more so. And men led
different lives. They lived under the
smiling sky, needed no buildings to
shelter them and undermine their VI
tality: there was food in abundance on
every hand to be had practically with
out exertion. The trees were laden
with fruit, the rivers teemed with fish
and the meat Of one animal sufficed for
weeks.
again. the use Of fermented liquids
was totally unknown; the grape was
not among the fruits eaten by early
mankind and consequently alcoholism
with all it's evils was absent. Marital
life was the natural condition, and ap-
parently offspring was equally divided
between males and females, so that
neither sex had preponderance. There
was no vice nor violation Of law.
ITO vail this must be added the entire
freedom from the diseases due to con-
gestion and the sundry other evils OF
dense population. There was no rival
ry, no anxiety, no struggle for life,'
and no tax upon the nervous system
Death could only come from violence or
old age.
"In short, in 5000 years the average
of human life fell from upward Of 900 to
26O years and as a result of natural
causes Chicago Tribune.