THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 497 



and immediately two roafted partridges came/j^, and rett- 

 ed upon his plate, to be devoured. Thefe ftories arc cir- 

 cumftantially told and vouched by unexceptionable people, 

 and were a grievous (tumbling-block to the Jefuits, who 

 could not pretend their own miracles were either better e- 

 ilablifhed, or more worthy of belief. 



There are other books of lefs fize and confequence, par- 

 ticularly the Organon Denghel, or the Virgin Mary's Mufi- 

 cal Inurnment, compofed by Abba George about the year 

 j 440, much valued for the purity of its language, though 

 he himfelf was an Armenian. The lad of this Ethiopic li- 

 brary is the book of Enoch *. Upon hearing this book firft 

 mentioned, many literati in Europe had a wonderful defire 

 to fee it, thinking that, no doubt, many fecrets and un- 

 known hiftories might be drawn from it. Upon this fome 

 impoltor, getting an Ethiopic book into his hands, wrote 

 for the title, The Prophecies of Enoch, upon the front page of it. 

 M. Pierifc fno fooner heard of it than he purchafed it of 

 the impoftor for a confiderable mm of money : being 

 placed afterwards in Cardinal Mazarine's library, where Mr 

 Ludolf had accefs to it, he found it was a Gnoftic book up- 

 on myfteries in heaven and earth, but which mentioned 

 not a word of Enoch, or his prophecy, from beginning to 

 end ; and, from this difappointment, he takes upon him to 

 deny the exiftence of any fuch book any where elfe. This, 

 however, is a miflake ; for, as a public return for the ma- 

 ny obligations I had received from every rank of that moft 



Vol. I. 3 R humane, 



* Vid. Origen contra Celfum, lib. 5. Tertuli.de Idolol. c. 4. .Drus in fuo Enoch. 

 Bangius in Ccelo Orientis Exercit; I. quxft. J. and 6. 

 f Gaffend in vita Pierifc, lib. 5. 



