June 29, 1888.] 



SCIENTIFIC NEVV^S. 



617 



formed a distinct class from the priests ; the latter had 

 only ceremonies to perform and omens to take ; they also 

 received the offerings of the supplicants, and even per- 

 formed certain rites for them, while the magicians 

 attended the sick, and by their incantations, and some- 

 times by the administration of potions, endeavoured to 

 bring them to health again. In some cases the magicians 

 were guilty of witchcraft, bringing by their incantations 

 curses or diseases on the head of their client's enemy. 

 They had brought this science to a very high degree of 

 perfection : there were incantations to bring, as well as to 

 remove, every kind of illness, and also to remove curses 

 and hatred, or bring on sympathy and love. 



The third class was composed of the small agricul- 

 turists, shopkeepers, artisans, working men, and journey- 

 men of every kind. This last class was rather numerous, 

 and though the manual work was generally done by 

 slaves, the skilled artisans were not infrequently free- 

 men. 



The fourth class has fortunately ceased to exist in 

 Europe ; I mean that composed of serfs, who were con- 

 sidered as part of the landed property. The slaves who 

 also belonged to this class were on many accounts in a 

 better position, as the laws and customs provided for 

 their protection. 



The organisation of the family — family with the ex- 

 tended meaning of the Latin familia — is in a great 

 measure the image of the social organisation of a nation, 

 and for this reason a subject of great interest to the 

 student. In Babylon the paternal authority was not 

 more limited than that of the king. The father had great 

 powers : he could, for instance, sell his children as slaves, 

 but he had also duties, the neglect of which was punished 

 by the laws. An old text-book, dating back from the 

 earliest period of the Babylonian monarchy, gives us 

 special information on the subject. It says that when 

 the child is born the father must receive him, and by this 

 act recognises him as his own child ; when the child has 

 grown he must teach him how to read the inscriptions, 

 and provide food and clothing for him. The father is 

 also ordered to provide a wife for his son and a husband 

 for his daughter. There were also other customs, which 

 appear to have fallen in disuse in course of time, as for 

 instance the consecration to the temple of the firstborn 

 son, a custom which, however, was preserved among the 

 Jews. 



The duties of man, as a husband, are also well defined 

 by this ancientcode. There were two kinds of marriages — 

 by contract and by purchase. The first kind was 

 general amongst the daughters of the higher and middle 

 classes. The wife in this case brought to her husband a 

 dowry, money, landed property and slaves, house, furni- 

 ture, etc. She always retained exclusive power over her 

 dowry, which, when there was no issue, returned after 

 her death to her own family. No man could have more 

 than one wife of this Kind, and could not repudiate or 

 divorce her without taking legal proceedings. The law is 

 careful to state that such a wife must be a free-born 

 maiden. The other kind of wives were not much better 

 than slaves : the husband bought them from their parents, 

 and could have as many as his fortune allowed ; it is 

 this kind of wife which is designated often in the Bible 

 by the name of handmaid. The husband had absolute 

 power over his bought wives : he could repudiate them at 

 pleasure, and if one was guilty of unfaithfulness could 

 demand her death. 



The position of women among the Babylonians has 



been much exaggerated. They had no political right ; 

 they were dependent upon their parents or husbands. 

 They had, however, the right of seizin : they could hold 

 houses, fields, leases, etc. In contracts the right of some 

 female relatives over properties sold are often mentioned. 

 They could trade in slaves, houses, and other com- 

 modities, and their husbands had no claim over their 

 private possessions. Tablets mention instances of 

 women carrying on an extensive trade, and having their 

 own husband as an employe. This privilege of women 

 seems to have slowly developed through the system of 

 settlement : the dowry was first made special property 

 of the wife beyond the reach of the husband ; then 

 property settled on her was afterwards assimilated to the 

 dowry ; and, lastly, all properties which she should 

 acquire. Besides that, a wife had always claim on her 

 husband for the necessities of life. 



The submission of the children to their parents was 

 their first duty. It is only at the age of twelve that 

 they became answerable for their actions, but even after 

 this age they remained under their parents' power, 

 especially for the most important step of life — marriage — 

 the consent of the parents was indispensable. The law 

 was very severe against disobedient or disrespectful 

 children. When the father or mother was in poor 

 circumstances, the children were obliged to provide for 

 them ; it they refused — or, as it is put in the Babylonian 

 code, if they denied their parents — they were sold as 

 slaves or outlawed. 



In the term family, slaves must be included ; the laws 

 and customs of Babylonia protected them to a great 

 extent. There were several classes of slaves : the 

 lowest or common slaves were those acquired by pur- 

 chase in public markets. The slave markets were pro- 

 vided from the war prisoners or captives after foreign 

 conquest ; these slaves did not rank much above horses 

 or dogs, and their master had absolute power over 

 them. It was not so for the slaves born in the house : 

 these had privileges ; their masters were obliged to 

 provide them with the necessities of life, and 

 if they were sold, the purchaser undertook to treat them 

 as their old master would have done. Some slaves 

 were even admitted to posts of trust. In contracts we 

 often see the galla, or chief slave, acting for his master, 

 and even signing the documents. Slaves could be 

 freed, but, as in Rome, though considered as free men, 

 they were alwaj'S under certain obligations, and, if they 

 misconducted themselves, they returned to servitude. 

 The child of a freed slave was, however, completely 

 free. To these kind of privileges enjoyed by the slaves 

 may be due perhaps the fact that in the history of 

 Babylon there is not an example of a slave rising. 



The part played by Atmospheric Nitrogei-j in 

 Vegetation. — Professor Chevreul {Comptes Rendits) 

 insists that the absorption of gaseous nitrogen by plants 

 is no novel discovery, but that as far back as 1854 it was 

 recognised by a special Commission of the Academy, 

 including MM. Dumas, Regnault, Decaisne, Peligot, and 

 Chevreul. The recent researches of MM. Gautier and 

 Drouin have simply confirmed the conclusions of M. 

 Georges Ville, as verified by the above Commission. 



Sulphur Springs in Paris.— Sulphurous springs 

 have been discovered in digging foundations in the Isle 

 St. Louis, the most ancient part of Paris. The soil con- 

 tains gypsum and also organic remains. 



