Chap.I. ANTIENT METAPHYSICS. 281 



gone by land to Thrace, where he was. — But the eafier and JJjorter 

 paffage from Egypt to Europe nvas by Sea. — Of Navigation the E~ 

 ^yptians had the ufe in the earliejl times. — The nearefl Ifland in the 

 Mediterranean Sea to Egypt was Crete. — Thither the Egyptian 

 Arts frfl went, being introduced by the Idsei Dadyli and the 

 Curetes. — That Religion came from Egypt to Crete, proved by the 

 Samothracian and Eleifinian My/leries, being well knoiun there. — 

 Saturn the firjl King of Crete, being dethroned by his Son Jupi- 

 ter, carried from thence the Egyptian Arts to Italy, and made 

 a Sattirniati age there. — Jupiter ruled in Greece as well as in Crete, 

 — introduced there the Egyptian Arts. — Thefe Arts brought into 

 Greece more direSlly by Colonies from Egypt. — The necejfity of Mi- 

 gration from fo //nail a Country as Egypt, and fo populous. — Of the 

 two Colonies which came from Egypt, and formed the nations of Athe- 

 nians a7id Arcadians : — Thefe the two mofl antient nations of Greece. 

 — From Arcadia came a Colony under Oenotrus, that fettled in Italy, 

 and another under Evander. — Froin Arcadia came the Pelafgi, 

 who introduced a great deal of Civility and Arts into G reece, par- 

 ticularly the Writing Art:~But the Egyptians carried their arts to a 

 Country very remote, viz. India.— This thefubjcEi of another Chapter. 



THE firft thing to be confidered, in this inquiry concerning the 

 propagation of arts and Iciences from Egypt into other coun- 

 tries, is the fituation of Egypt with refpe£t to thefe other countries. 

 If it had been fituated any where in the extremities of eaft or weft, 

 north or fouth, it could hardly be fuppofed that its arts fliould have 

 made any great progrefs into other countries. But its fituation was 

 as favourable for that purpofe as the other circumftances that I have 

 mentioned ; for it was fo frtuated as to have an eafy communication 

 not only with Africa, a part of which it was, but with Afia and Eu- 

 rope. By land it had a communication with every part of Africa : 

 Vol. IV. N n ' But 



