The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1906-05-17
STORY OF THE FLOOD
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'
descriptive portions Of the book OF
Genesis Is that devoted 10 the wonder.
ful story OF the deluge, Together Win
the accounts Of Adams fall. the slay'
,ne o. Abel and the turning OF Lots
wife into pillar OF salt, every oae
remembers from childhood bow Noah
was warned Of the doom Impending
over the children of men and how he
constructed huge arb Ia which he did
live. himself aud his family and Two
Of every beast OF the field and fowl OF
tho air, for the space Of 100 days, or
until tho waters subsided aud the dry
land appeared. But the Biblical recital
OF this terrible visitation OF divine
wrath is 10y no means tho only one.
In fact the most skep,icaily Inclined
must believe that something OF the SORT
actually occurred long ago, for u has
bcen perpetuated not only In the Tai.
mud ana 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 Astees OF
Mexico. the Indian tribes OF North ana
South America and even the savages
Of Africa.
The story, OF course. varies materih.
ly In the mutltudInous traditions put
the glst OF II remains substantially the
same namely, that the earth was once
visited by great food In which nearly
every living thing was Overwhelmed
aud lost. Thus In the Koran we read
that Noah constructed the ark Win
divine assistance aud was rallied at Tor
His mains by the wicked. When the
time prescribed for the punishment OF
mankind arrived, water was seen 10
f,ow from the burning oven OF NOAH y
wife. and Immediately all the veins
and arteries OF the earth broke and
spurted out water
Noah was then admonished In these
words: "rake and bring into tho ARK
two couples OF every kind OF animal
male and female, with all your famiiy,
except him who has been condemneu
by your mouth, and receive tho fnith-
ful and even the unbelleying, but rev
only win enter" The Koran also says
TINT the ark was built In two years
and that Il 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 posteri-
| ~ became black and were enslayed.
! The Persians assert that Ham incurred
| his fathers mhledictlon as well When
, six months had passed the ark rested
on the top OF Mount Djondi (Ararno,
after having made the circuit OF the
world. Tabari says that two sorts Of
animals left the ark which had not en-
J tered it,~the pig aud tho cat Concern
] ing the latter we have this Interesting
j piece OF information. When the rats De
gan 10 make trouble the voyagers com
plajned to Noah. Whereupon the patri
arch "passed his hand down the bacA
of the lion, who sneezed, and the ca
leaped out OF its nose. And the cnt att
u the rats"
G According to the Talmud. Noah and
d his family and one pair OF each KIND o'
d beast were to be saved In the ARK, Du
@ OF every clean beast seven were to en-
q ter In. The rhinoceros, however, bat
:, TO be left out for the simple but SUN
:, cient reason that Its neck alone wal
:, three miles long Nevertheless all tb'
rabbinlc writers ngree that the rhi
= noceros survived the flood; hence It u
y reasonable to suppose that the hug
d beast was taken In tow by rope at
/ tached TO Its horn. Some authorities
! likewise declare that Noah EXTENDED
his hospitality to another outsider II
. the shape OF Og, the giant, who climb
cd on the roof Of the ark and receivet
: his daily food through q hole bored II
= the side OF the vessel.
70 Ararat has been known under thi
It name for 1900 years. and IN Armenian
e writer declares that an entire couDtr,
e was so called after Arai the Fair, aI
r. ancient Armenian king. who live
"a about 1850 b. c. He fell In q blood.
"a battle with the Baby ylonlans. and th
scene OF bis death was thencefort
'" known as Aral-Arat, or the Fall 0
= Arai. Josephus refers to the mountain
y as Nazuana and declares that the re
:, mains OF the ark were there to be seel
A. carefully preserved.
n Almost all the Asiatic tradition
y closely resemble the Biblical account
Il Berosus In his Chaldee history B. {
"a 2G0) speaks Of ten kings. who appea
i, to correspond to the ten patriarchs !
Genesis before the food. The last
: these kings was called Xisuthrus. III
SC rosus relates that "kr0nos appeared
er Xlsuthrus IN q dream and warned biz
Il. that oil men would be destroyed by
ut deluge on the 18th Of the month Da'
ie sios and commanded him 10 VIII
4. down all the learning and science
m men and 10 hide II IN the sun cit
=, siparis and then 10 build a ship an
\ enter II along with his family and reli
" fives and nearest friends and 10 tak
- into Il witt, him food aud drink an
he beasts and winged fowl When he WI
~ asked whittier he was about to SAL, ,
~ was bidden to reply, TO the gods
Vt pray them that men may prosper
II. xisuthrus did as be was commands
re and when the food showed signs
ds sbating he sent out three birds In sn
he cesslon. The first and second can
back. the latter with mud on its fee
- but The third returned not Soon aft'
~ this the ship was stranded on a moul
= tain, and xisutbrus dlsembsrked VII
10 bis family, offered thanks TO the 20
nd and vanished. Subsequently the :
be maInIng survivors heard bis voice
- the heavens. bidding them fear Gt
re and TO tak. bis writings out OF blpar
- and from them instruct men.
Yer The Bioodssons.
or Almost every jewel has supefsnu'