( 259 ) 
before Chrilt, afcribes the Invention of 
Brewing to I/is the Wife of Ofirh in Egypt i 
who lived many Ages before. This OJiris 
fome learned Writers will have to be the 
fame with Mifraim the Son of Cham. Thus, 
as the Invention of Wine is afcribed to the 
Grandfather Noah, fo is that of Ale to the 
Grandfon Mifraim . 
But in truth it feems hard to prove, that 
either of thefe Liquors was unknown before 
the Flood. Noah' s applying himfelf fo 
foon after it to the Plantation of Vines, 
feems a plain Argument of his being ac- 
quainted with the Ufe of them before. Nor 
in all likelihood would this ever have been 
queftioned, if it had not been for Noah' s 
fudden Intoxication. It is fuppofed, that 
fo wife, and fo good a Man, if he had 
known the Nature and Effects of Wine, 
would not have fallen into fuch an Abufe of 
it, efpecially at a Time when he had feen 
the Irregularities and Vices of Mankind fo 
feverely puniflied. But this Argument will 
have fmall Weight, if we confider that 
Noah 1 s Inebriation might eafily be owing to 
a very different Caufe. We may juftly 
and naturally conclude, that the Earth muft 
have been prodigioufly enriched by the 
S 2 Flood i 
