BABYLONIAN LITERATURE. 59 



dependent! y of the peculiarities which have 

 still to be adduced, as much, at least, as it 

 is possible to do, from the extracts of M. 

 Quatremere and Dr. Chwolson, 1 we shall 

 find in it all the evidences of lower an- 

 tiquity : — no grandeur of expression; a 

 flimsy method of reasoning, bordering on 

 puerility, in a word, strikingly analogous 

 to that of Arabian authors ; and, above all, 

 that flat and prolix style of those periods of 

 much writing consequent upon an influx 

 of paper or other writing materials ; whilst 

 throughout the whole work the style is 

 essentially personal and reflective, so con- 

 trary to that of works of high antiquity. 

 There the author keeps ever in the back- 

 ground, to render more prominent the doc- 



1 The Paris Manuscript, which had heen sent to the Russian 

 minister for Dr. Chwolson's use, was only returned to the Biblio- 

 theque Imperiale when the present memoir was nearly finished. I 

 have not thought it necessary to devote further time to the perusal 

 of this manuscript, already examined by M. Quatremere, and which 

 only could furnish me an imperfect text of one third of the work, 

 of which Dr. Chwolson possesses a complete and collated copy. 

 We must wait for the promised edition of Prof. Chwolson in 

 order to make a consecutive and comparative examination of the 

 work. 



