[ 2 9 1 ] 
the life of the Punic language and the Punic proper 
names was retained in Malta, as an antient part of 
the Carthaginian territories, at lead; three or four cen- 
turies after the lad; mentioned period, if not much 
longer, from what has been here advanced, is abun- 
dantly clear. Nay, that the Punic tongue is even at 
this day the vernacular language of the lower part of 
the Maltefe, though deformed by many corruptions, 
and difguifed by the accedion of various foreign 
words, after perufing what has been communicated 
on that head to the learned world by ,s Canonico 
Agius, I am dxongly inclined to believe. 
Since therefore the duds of feveral of the letters 
indicate this infcription to be of a later date, we can- 
not but fuppole it to have been many years (perhaps 
feveral centuries) pofterior to the conclufion of the 
fil'd: Punic war. And fince Hannibal Ben Barmelec, 
or Bormilc, is mentioned therein as a perfon of con- 
fideration, whofe death was greatly lamented by the 
peoplej perhaps he was either a popular fenator of 
Malta, or one of the fuffetes there, (the Punic form of 
government not improbably prevailing in that idand, 
even when dependent on the Romans, as it did in 
other 19 places that had been fubjed to the Carthaginian 
ftate) a century at lead; after Julius Casfar had given 
the finidiing firoke to the liberties of the Maltefe. 
T his, I fay, appears to me by no means improbable} 
but that he ready fuftained either of the charaders 
here mentioned, or lived at the time here fuppofed, I 
mud: not prefume pofitively to affirm. The forms 
of fome of the letters will not permit us however, 1 
13 Gio. Pietro Francefco i^gius de Soldanis, Delia Lingua P u . - 
nica prefentamente ufata da Maltefi, kc. In Roma, 1750. 
19 Hendreich, ubi fup. p. 316. Reinef. ubi fup. 
think, 
