Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1906-05-23
STORY OF THE FLOOD
THERE ARE MANY AND VARIED YER
elONS OF THE DELUGE.

One Of the most powerful and vivi
descriptive portions Of the book 0
Genesis is that devoted to the wonder
full story Of the deluge. Together wit
the accounts of Adams fall, the slay
ing Of Abel and the turning Of Lot
wife into pillar Of salt, every on
remembers from childhood how Noal
was warned of the doom impending
over the children of men and how h
constructed huge ark in which he diC
live, himself and his family and TIVE
Of every beast of the field and fowl Of
the afr, for the space Of 100 days, o,
until the waters subsidized and the dry
land appeared. But the Biblical recital
of this terrible visitation OF divine
wrath Is by no means the only one
In fact, the most skeptically inclined
must believe that something Of the sort
actually occurred long ago, for 1t has
been perpetuated not only IN the Tai
mud and Koran, but In the legends Of
almost every nation and race that ever
lived on the face of the earth, including
the Chinese, the ancient Astecs Of
Mexico, the Indian tribes Of North and
South America and even the savages
Of Africa.
The story, Of course, varies material
~ In the multitudlnous traditions, but
the gist Of 1t remains substantially the
same-nAmeiy, that the earth was once
visited by a great food In which nearly
every living thing was overwhelmed
and lost. Thus in the Koran we read
that Noah constructed the ark with
divine assistance and was rallied at Tor
his pains by the wicked. When the
time prescribed for the punishment Of
mankind arrived, water was seen to
Cow from the burning oven Of Noah's
wife, and Immediately all the veins
and arteries Of the earth broke and
spurted out water
Noah was then admonished in these
words: "Take and bring into the ark
two couples Of every kind Of animal,
male and female, with all your family,
except him who has been condemned
by your mouth, and receive the faith
full and even the unbelieving, but few
only will enter" The Koran also says
that the ark was built In two years
and that 1t contained three stories, the
upper one for the birds, the middle one
for the men and the provisions and the
hold for the beasts. Canaan, the son
Of Ham, refused to be saved. There
fore Noah cursed him, and his posterl-
ty became black and were enslaved
The Persians assert that Ham incurred
his fathers malediction as well. When
six months had passed the ark rested |
on the top Of Mount Djondi (Ararat),
after having made the circuit OF the |
world. Tabari says that two sorts of |
animals left the ark which had not en- |
tered 1.-THE pig and the cat. Concern
Ing the latter we have this interesting
piece Of information: When the rats be-
gan to make trouble the voyagers CON-
planned to Noah. Whereupon the patri-
arch passed his hand down the back
of tho lion, who sneezed, and the cat
eaped out Of its nose. And the cat ate
The rats"
According to the Talmud, Noah and
ais family and one pair Of each kind Of
beast were to be saved In the ark, but
II every clean beast seven were to en-
.er in. The rhinoceros, however, had
o be left out, for the simple but sum
lent reason that its neck alone was
hree miles long Nevertheless all the
abbinic writer's agree that the rhi-
loceros survived the food; hence It is
easoRable to suppose that the huge
'east was taken in tow by a rope at.
ached to its horn. Some authorities
lkewise declare that Noah extended
Is hospitality to another outsider in
be shape Of Og, the giant, who climb
d on the roof Of the ark and received
is daily food through a hole bored In
be side Of the vessel
Ararat has been known under this
anne for 1900 years, and an Armenian
ritter declares that an entire country
'as so called after Arai the Fair, an
ncient Armenian king, who lived
bout 1850 B. c. He fell in a bloody
attic with the Babylonlans, and the
,ene Of his death was thenceforth
nown as Arai-Arat, or the Fall Of
raj. Josephus refers to the mountain
Nazuana and declares that the re-
aims Of the ark were there to be seen
lrefully preserved.
Almost all the Asiatic traditions
osely resemble the Biblical account ..
erosus In his Chaldee history B. G. :
'O speaks Of ten kings, who appear :
correspond to the ten patriarchs In
enesis before the food The last of =
ese kings was called Xisuthrus. Be- I.
'sus relates that "Kronos appeared to =
1suthrus In dream and warned him :,
Iat all men would be destroyed by a =
eluge on the 10th OF the month Dae- \
os and commanded him to write
'wn all the learning and science of h
en- and to hide 1t in the sun city 6
paris and then to build a ship and !,
tier it along with his family and rela- h
yes and nearest friends and to take h
to 1t with him food and drink and b
'asts and winged fowl When he was
ked whittier he was about to SAIL he b
as hidden to reply, TO the gods to q
ay them that men may prosper" a
isuthrus did as he was commanded, "
I'd when the flood showed signs Of e
'ating he sent out three birds In sue RI
ssion. The first and second came n
Ick. the latter with mud on its feet, hi
1t the third returned not Soon after X
Is the ship was stranded on a noun Il
In. and Xisuthrus dlsembarked with 81
5 family offered thanks TO the gods 81
I'd vanished, Subsequently the re. tc
aiming survivors heard hts voice in
e heavens bidding them fear God W
ID to take his writings out Of siparis CO
ID from them instruct men. al
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Use your gifts faithfully and they bo
all be enlarged. Practice what you do
Ow and You shall attain to higher ~