XX INTRODUCTION. 



there has been a tree of Hfe at all. In their wander- 

 ings they came upon a forest of date trees. Its 

 shade, its fruit and its fire-wood were sufficient 

 reasons for their staying there. 



When they multiplied and began to feel the 

 advantage of dates, as a food, what was more 

 natural for them than to look upon the date tree as 

 their saviour — their ' tree of life ' ? Would it not 

 be the thing ahvays in their minds ? Those who 

 may have had a turn for picturing would picture it 

 here and there. Would not this tree eventually be 

 also considered as the 'key of life,' in further migra- 

 tions, just as w^e now speak of bread as the ' staff 

 of life ' ? 



We have to-day more well-ascertained facts than 

 the Assyrians had — all wrought out by generations 

 of observation, experiment, and careful study, and 

 whipped into shape by stern logic and criticism, as 

 a check to the riot of the imao-ination : nevertheless 

 the mental operations of to-day are essentially those 

 of the Assyrians. A dream, a vision, which we 

 now euphoniously call a speculation, a hypothesis, 

 a theory, in those days ' banged ' out as an ui- 

 fallible divine revelation. For all we know to the 

 contrary it may have been an inspiration, evolved 

 by the impinging on their brain-cells of molecules 

 of alcohol, opium, hashish, etc. 



We now think those Assyrians were imlxied with 

 many absurd superstitions. But one cannot mix 

 and converse with people of to-day without be- 



