26 OF THE ORIGIN OF CHEMISTRY. 



rapic was continually augmenting, and poflfcfled, 

 at the taking of Alexandria, in 642, above 

 700,000 volumes, John Fhilopon. a philo- 

 fopher, petitioned the general of the Saracens, 

 Amri Ebnol-As, that he would fpare him purt of 

 this library; but he dared not to comply with 

 his entreaties, without perniiilion from Omar, the 

 feccnd caliph; who, when it. was requeued 

 of him, returned for aniwer, that the books 

 could not be faved ; for, if they arrced with the 

 tenets of the Alcoran, they were ufclefs, if they 

 diilcred from them, they v/ere dangerous *. From 

 this blow the grea.teil trealure of the knowledge 

 of the ancient world wa> totally deflroyed, and 

 the barbarians employed, for above fix months, 

 all its various manuicripts to kindle the fires of 

 their baths, of which there were above 4000 in 

 the city. 



Cambyfcs, indeed, carried oiTthc fac red vo- 

 lumes, but the priefts either fecreted ibme, or 

 recovered them afterwards, or compofed others 

 again from the monuments; for both Herodo- 

 tus and Diodorus, and Erutoftheues law icveral; 

 and the latter diilinguiihed the genuine from 

 the falfc. But it is not unlikely, that the hiilo- 

 rical books were ofVafier cojnpoiition,and writ- 

 ten in smother manner, a< Jiratollhcncswas able 

 to understand them. 



Candidly, however, it mud be acknowledged, 

 that doubts may yet be entertained of all th'^ 



proof* 

 ii Hid. Dynaft. 



