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mancy in Palestine, derived most probably from the surrounding 

 nations. In that instance we find that the woman herself had a 

 familiar spirit; and by that means obtained the power of convers- 

 ing with departed spirits [from the human body]: similar to that 

 is the belief so universally entertained throughout Persia, Arabia, 

 and India, of the existence of genii, demons, and familiar spirits, 

 under different denominations. Manner, on this singular subject, 

 says, " the sacred and profane writers, believing the reality of the 

 same thing, use exactly the same language, and apply the same 

 terms in precisely the same sense. An afflicted father brings his 

 wretched son to our blessed Lord, and thus in accosting him de- 

 scribes the case of the child: ' Master, I beseech thee, look upon 

 my son, for he is my only child; and lo, a spirit taketh him, and 

 he suddenly crieth out; and it teareth him, till he foameth again; 

 and bruising him, hardly departeth from him.' 



" That the same form of speech is used by heathen writers, 

 and the same effects described, when they speak of supernatural 

 influence, the following account from Herodotus will make suffi- 

 ciently evident. Speaking of Scyles, king of the Scythians, who, 

 having received a Grecian education, was more attached to the 

 customs of the Greeks, than to those of his own countrymen, and 

 who desired to be privately initiated into the bacchic mysteries, he 

 adds, " Now because the Scythians reproach the Greeks on ac- 

 count of these bacchanals, and say, that to imagine a god driving 

 men into paroxysms of madness is not agreeable to reason; a cer- 

 tain Borysthenian, while the king was privately performing the 

 ceremonies, went out, and discovered the matter to the Scythian 

 army in these words. " Ye Scythians ridicule us because we cele- 



VOL. II. 3 c 



