Chap. XI. A N T I E N T M E T A P H Y S I C S. 241 



minated' by a fingle battle : And there were no profcriptions and ca- 

 pital punifhments, fuch as accompanied the civil wars in Rome, or 

 maffacres, fuch as we read of in other countries upon like occafions. 

 As to the Ethiopian Kings, who reigned in Egypt, it appears that 

 they got the Crown without any conqueft or civil war : And as the 

 Egyptians were undoubtedly a colony from ^Ethiopia,, as Diodorus 

 has fhown, (who fays, that the land of Egypt, as well as the people, 

 came from iEthiopia), I think it is likely that they fucceeded with 

 the confent of the nation ; for the Grown in Eg^-pt docs not appear 

 to have ever been hereditary or the property of any family. One 

 of thefe Ethiopian Kings, after he had reigned fome years, volun- 

 tarily refigned the Crown : Nor does it appear, that any of them 

 made, or attempted to make, any change in the conftitution or form 

 of government, nor introduced any new manners or cuftoms among 

 the people. And, indeed, the manners of the two countries were 

 fo like, that there could hardly be any thing of that kind : And the 

 form of government in both countries was fo far the fame, that the 

 Priefts were the governing men. 



Thus it appears, that the government in Egypt had every mark 

 of a perfed form of Government, and particularly its duration, 

 •which, compared with that of other governments, of which we read, 

 is moft extraordinary ; nor is there any thing like it to be found in 

 the hiftory of man, except the duration of the Polity of India, which, 

 as it was derived from the Polity of Egypt, is another proof of the 

 exceHence of that polity. The Polity of India ftill continues the fame, 

 notwithftanding the many eftablifhments of foreigners in that coun- 

 try, and the many conquefts that have been made of it, firft by Gen- 

 gifchan, then by Tamerlane and the Mogul Tartars, after them by the 

 French and EngUlh, who are in pofleffion at prefent of a great part of 

 the country;, and the Portugeefe have alfo fettlements there: Yet, not" 

 withftanding all thefe conquefts, and the frequent intercourfe they 



