246 
this throw light upon the league of the fmr kings described in 
Gen. xiv., who united, in Abraham's time, to make war with 
the kings of Canaan ? 
34. Be that as it may, the Semitic elements of undent 
Chaldsea are very obvious. Indeed, Babel itself, ye *J, na ^ 
of the capital, is Semitic, signifying the gate of God. I or 
as in Hebrew, El is the well-known root of EloUm , and of tne 
Arabic Allah, so II, or Ilus, is the emphatic Babylonian name 
° r 35.°Let us, then, take our ethnic testimony, gathered out of 
early Semitism, in favour of the Mosaic narrative. Who tha„ 
is accustomed to traee analogies and sift evidenc^ can fan to 
acknowledge this in the primitive tradition of ^e Flood of 
Xisithrus— a tradition which even Baron Bunsen with ml his 
unsparing criticism, allowed to be common with that ot the 
Hebrews. * I will not occupy my precious space by relating 
this story ; but will simply sum up its mam P°mte °f harmony 
with the Mosaic account, by quoting the words of P r0ie88 ° 
Rawlinson. This writer reminds us that the deluge 
acauainted, not merely with the mam facts of Noah s deluge, 
but even with its minutest points. “They know says JjV 
“ 0 f the Divine warning to a single man (Gen. vi. 13), me 
direction to construct a huge ship (vv. 14-16) the 
take into it a chosen few of mankind only (v. 18), and .o 
devote the chief space to winged fowl and four-footed beasts 
(v 20). They are aware of the tentative sending o - — 
from it (Gen. viii. 7), and of tbeir returning twice (vv. 9 11), 
but when sent out a third time returning no more (v. -2). 
They knew of the egress from the ark by removal of 
its covering (v. 13), and of the altar built and sacrifice offered 
immediately afterwards (v. 20). They knew^ that the^ark 
rested in Armenia (v. 8), that those who escaped or tnen ^ de 
scendants iourneyed towards Babylon (xi.2), and tnattnema 
town waTbegun, but not completed, the building being popped 
by Divine interposition, and a confusion of tongue ( • , ( 
y 36 Speaking of Xisithrus, who is thus shown plainly to 
have been the 8 Chaldsean Noah, it is remarkable also 
whereas Holy Scripture gives ten g ene y;°“^y reference 
Noah, Berosus makes exactly the same statement i 1 ^ 
to the antediluvian condition of Chaldsea, i. e. . &o ^ 
Xisithrus. The names are, of course, very diffe , 
“ctL of them is localized; yet » not 
the propernumber oflinks should have been exactly preserve 
* See Egypt's Place, &c., vol. iv. p. 374. 
