370 TRAVELS TO DISCOVER 



ufe it was made for, was apparently to ferve for a hiero- 

 glyphic, of what he had accomplished, viz. that he had laid' 

 open the gold and filver trade from the mines in Ethiopia, 

 and had navigated the ocean in mips made of wood, which 

 were the only ones, he thereby infinuated, that could be 

 employed in that trade. The Egyptian fliips, at that time, 

 were all made of the reed papyrus *, covered with ikins or 

 leather, a construction which no people could venture to.* 

 prefent to the ocean. 



There is much to be learned from a proper underfland- 

 ing of thefe lafl benefits conferred by Sefoftris upon his 

 Egyptian fubjecfts. When we underfland thefe, which is 

 very eafy to any that have travelled in the countries we are 

 fpeaking of, (for nations and caufes have changed very lit- 

 tle in thefe countries to this day), it will not be difficult to 

 find afolution of this problem, What was the commerce that, 

 progreffively, laid the foundation of all that immenfe gran- 

 deur of the eaft ; what polifhed them, and cloathed them 

 with filk, fcarlet, and gold ; and what carried the arts and 

 fciences among them, to a pitch, perhaps,,never yet. furpaf- 

 fed, and this fome thoufands of years before the nations in 

 Europe had any other habitation than their native woods, or 

 cloathing than the fkins of beafts, wild and domeftic, or 

 government, but that firfl, innate one, which nature had 

 given to the ftrongeft?. 



Let us inquire what was the connection Sefoftris brought 

 about between Egypt and India ; what was that commerce 



3 of 



' i i ii ■ iiiuiii i i.i i wi i n n .. _ i r 



* See the -artcle papyrus Iu the Appendix* 



