264 On the Animals designated in the Scriptures by 



schools and colleges, like the Greek and Latin, although the 

 richness of the treasures contained in it, — the faithful history and 

 painting there of ancijent manners, — the noble tone of a steady 

 and just morality, which pervades the whole series of a litera- 

 ture originating with the first of men, and enlarging through 

 many succeeding generations, — the sublime and rational theology, 

 forming a sanction to that morality, — and the deep influence 

 which all these have exercised upon our own English literature, 

 through the instrumentality of the popular diffusion among 

 us of the common translation of the Bible, — might well have en- 

 ticed all who possess the necessary attainments, to the illustra- 

 tion of every thing contained in writings so remarkable, and 

 which, the more they are studied and compared together in their 

 various branches, the more they exhibit the infallible impress of 

 consistency and truth. 



A better spirit with regard to this matter is now displaying 

 itself among the cultivators of science; and I perused lately, 

 with interest, " An Attempt to ascertain the animals designated 

 in the Scriptures by the names Leviathan arid Behemoth, by 

 Thomas Thompson, Esq. one of the vice-presidents of the Hull 

 Literary and Philosophical Society." 



Mr Thompson arrives at the result, that by Leviathan is 

 meant the Megalosaurus, a predatory lizard or saurian, 60 or 

 70 feet long, the remains of which are found chiefly in strata 

 which lie below the chalk ; and that by Behemoth is meant the 

 Iguanodon, an herbivorous saurian, upwards of 60 feet long, 

 whose remains were found by Mr Mantel below the chalk, but 

 very close to it. I conceive Mr Thompson's conclusions on the 

 two questions to be erroneous, and shall set down some of what 

 appear to me the most decisive proofs that they are so. 



In order that Mr Thompson may be free to apply the term 

 Leviathan to the Megalosaurus, it becomes necessary for him to 

 adopt the Reverend James Hurdis' conclusion, that the Hebrew 

 word Than or Thanin, means the Crocodile which still inhabits 

 the Nile. It is even indispensable to his reasoning, that we un- 

 derstand that Hebrew word as the specific name of the Croco- 

 dile ; for, in page 307, he says, " Already we have seen reason to 

 assert that the Than of the Scriptures is the Crocodile. Then 



