HISTORY 



OF MEXICO. 



407 



beyond meafure barbarous ; but whenever we confider 

 what other nations of the world have done, we are con- 

 founded at viewing the weaknefs of the human mind, and 

 the feries of errors into which they have fallen from their 

 miferable fyftems of religion. 



There has been no nation in the world which has not 

 at fome time facrificed human victims to that god whom 

 they adored. We know from the facred writings, that 

 the Ammonites burned fome of their fons in honour of 

 their god Moloch, and that other people of Canaan did 

 the fame, whofe example was followed by the Ifraelites. x 

 It appears from the fourth book of the Kings, that 

 Achaz and ManalTeh, kings of Judea, ufed that pagan 

 rite of.paffing their fons through the fire. The expref- 

 fion of the facred text appears rather to fignify a mere 

 luftration or confecration, than a burnt-offering, but the 

 hundred and fifth Pfalm does not leave a doubt that the 



/■I X 



Ifraelites facrificed their children to the gods of the Ca- 

 naanites. Of the Egyptians we know, from Manetho, a 

 prieft and celebrated hiftorian of that nation, cited by 

 Eufebius Csefarienfis, that daily three men were facrific- 

 ed in Eliopolis to thegoddefs Juno alone, in like manner 

 as the Ammonites facrificed human victims to their Mo- 

 loch, and the Canaanites to their Beelfegor ; the Perfi- 

 ans facrificed to their Mitra or fun, the Phoenicians and 

 Carthaginians to their Baal or Saturn, the Cretans to 

 Jove, the Lacedaemonians to Mars, the Phocians to Dia- 

 na, the Lefbians to Bacchus, the Theffalians to the Cen- 

 taur Chiron and Peleus, the Gauls to Efo and Teutate 

 (q), the Bardi of Germany to Tuition, and other nations 



to 



(y) A certain French Author, through a blind attachment to his native coun- 

 try, hardily denies that human victims were ever facrificed by the Gauls ; but 



he 



