OUR RACE AND ITS ORIGIN. 
71 
Of all ancient nations, most, is now known of the social 
state of the Egyptians ; this is acquired from their pictured 
walls, fragments of manufactures, varied implements, pre- 
served in the deep recesses of their catacombs ; an insight has 
thus been gained into the manners and social life of a race 
which lived nearly four thousand years ago. Compared 
with these, even the remains of Pompeii and Herculaneum 
are of minor interest, as they are of far inferior antiquity. 
The ruins of Nineveh, indeed, are opening up a page of 
history of almost equal interest. 
From the knowledge thus obtained of the domestic state 
and probable appearance of the ancient Egyptians, the con- 
clusion is that they were not black, but rather red or copper 
colored. To the ancients very few colors were known, 
or, more properly speaking, were distinguished by names. 
It was with them, most likely, as it was with the Maori : 
every dark color was spoken of as being pango, black ; the 
blue sky was so called ; any light color, as yellow, was 
ma, white; thus the daughters of Jerusalem, though yellow 
would be considered white or fair ; and the daughter of 
Pharoah called herself black, though evidently, from the 
description given of her in the Song of Solomon, she could 
not have been so. “ I am black and yet comely.” She 
bids the daughters of Jerusalem not to look upon her with 
disdain, for the sun in all his glory had looked upon her, 
and placed his impress on her cheeks ; and although in 
their estimation she might appear black, yet to Solomon she 
was “ the fairest among women,” and he had selected her as 
his wife. The king speaks of her lips as being like “ a 
thread of scarlet ” — so delicate and thin, and compares her 
temples to “ a piece of pomegranite ; ” thus her lips could 
not have been thick like the negro's, or her cheeks black, 
for they are likened to the rich color of that fruit : 
hence it may be gathered that the ancient Egyptian more 
nearly resembled that of the red race of North America, 
and this opinion is corroborated by paintings, still to be 
seen in their temples, tombs, and catacombs. Since that time, 
however, how much darker have their descendants become. 
