[October, 
456 The Cradle of Civilisation. 
Meantime we cannot admit that entire freedom from con- 
tradictions for which Dr. Ottema contends. On p. 33 we 
read : — “ In early times almost all the Finns (in the original 
Finda’s folk) lived together in their native land, which was 
called Aldland, and is now submerged. They were thus far 
away, and we had no wars. When they were driven hither- 
wards, and appeared as robbers, then arose the necessity of 
defending ourselves, and we had armies, kings, and wars.” 
Yet, judging from other portions, Aldland or Atland was 
the patrimony of the Frisians, and its submergence “ occa- 
sioned a great dispersion of the Frisian race.” Moreover, 
if it was land stretching out to the west of Jutland, and if 
Heligoland and the isles of North Friesland, are its “ last 
barren remains,” it could in no manner be pronounced “far 
away,” having been part and parcel of what is now known 
as Holland. Indeed the account of the origin of the Finns 
or Finda’s folk, as given in detail on p. 73, fully contradicts 
the view of their having been the original inhabitants of 
Aldland : — 
“ One hundred and one years after the submersion of Aldland 
a people came out of the East. That people was driven by 
another. Behind us, in Twiskland (Germany), they fell into 
disputes, divided into two parties, and each went its own 
way. Of the one no account has come to us, but the other 
came in the back of our Schoonland (Skenland, or Scandi- 
navia), which was thinly inhabited, particularly the upper 
part. Therefore they were able to take possession of it 
without contest, and as they did no other harm we would 
not make war upon them. They were not wild people like 
most of Finda’s race, but, like the Egyptians, they have 
priests and also statues in their churches. The priests are 
the only rulers, and call themselves Magyars and their head 
man Magy : he is high priest and king in one. The rest of 
the people are of no account, and in subjection to them. 
This people have not even a name, but we call them Finns 
(Finna) because, though all the festivals are mournful and 
bloody, they are so formal that we are inferior to them in 
that respeCt.” This passage decidedly proves the contra- 
diction to which we have just referred. 
As regards the coincidences upon which Dr. Ottema lays 
such emphasis, they are striking only if we start with the 
assumption that the book is a genuine document. If we 
consider it a forgery, they as decidedly support that hypo- 
thesis. Besides, it must be noted that the work gives us, 
after all, merely what may be called modified versions of old 
stories. There is nothing entirely new ; nothing which 
