212 A NATURAL HISTORY 



Revelations of himfelf, under the Appearance of Fire, might give 

 occafion to the Chaldeans and Perfians to entertain fuch enormous 

 Veneration for Fire, which is a Symbol of the Deity : The Lord 

 thy God, fays Mofes, is a confuming Fire. At their high Solemni- 

 ties they fet feveral Trees (hung with diverfe Sorts of Beafts for 

 Sacrifice) on fire; this they did after they had carried about 

 thefe Fires in Proceflion. 



I Shall add here, a remarkable Conteft thathappen'd be- 

 tween the Chaldean and Egyptian Priefts about the Superiority of 

 their Gods. ... In the time of Conflantine the Chaldean Priejls, to 

 prove that Fire, which was their God, excelled all other Gods 

 in Power, travell'd over the Earth, carrying Fire with them, 

 which foon confum'd all the Statues and Images of other Gods; 

 whether of Brafs, Silver, Stone or Wood, fays Suidas *, who 

 gives a large Account of it, under the Word navuTroc. At length 

 coming into Egypt, and making this Challenge; the Egyptian 

 Priejis agreed upon a Battle of the Gods, and immediately brought 

 into the Field one of their Idols, which was a large Statue of 

 Nilus, full of Water, and full of little Holes, which they ftopt 

 with Wax not difcernable, and fo artificially, that the Water 

 was kept in. 



The C/6^/^?fl;zy (not aware of this Device) begun the Adlion, 

 with much Aflurance, and v/ith Eagernefs put Fire around the 

 Egyptian Statue, which foon melted the invifible Wax, and the 

 Water gufhing forth from all Parts, immediately put out the Fire, 

 and drown'd the hitherto invincible Deity of the Perjians ; {he 

 Tragedy ended in a triumphant Shout of Laughter among the 

 Spectators : And I might add -|- how the Arabians and Indians^ 

 Peruvians, Lithuanians, and Vandals worfhip'd Vegetables,—— 

 the Scythians Iron. Trees and Plants have been made Gods.. 

 Leeks and Onions were Deities in Egypt. The ancient Gauls 

 and Britons bore a particular Devotion to the Oak ; from . which 

 their Priefts took their Names, Ceres and Proferpina^ worfliip'd 

 by the Ancients, were no other than Wheat, Corn, Seed.— The 

 Syrians and Egyptians ador'd Fiflies. What were 'Tritons, Ne- 

 reids, iS^r^^y, but Sea- Gods? Infedts, as Flies, and Ants, had their 



Priefts 



* Vol. I. pag. 13(^8. 



t Kuffiy. Hill. EccIeGaftka, lib. 2. Stanleys Lfves of the Pbilofophers, pact ul 

 chap. 8. page 28. 



