1797-] 
Syria. But it will be afked, if the title 
Nebuchadnezzar be applied in Daniel to 
“the great Cyrus ?—if by Belfhazzar be 
meant the pretender to the Perfian 
throne, browght forward by the Magi 
—why does no mention occur of Cam- 
byfes, who is commonly fuppofed to 
tein feven years and a half, between 
thefetwo'fovercigns? To thefe it may 
be anfwered, that Cambyfes probably 
did not furvive Cyrus many weeks, and ' 
that the feven years and a half, allowed 
him by chronologeys, are fo many years 
£ delegated fovereignty, of viceroyalty, 
by which no Babylonian dated. Hero- 
dotus (Clio, ccv'ii) fays, that when Cy- 
rus marched againft the Maffagetai, he 
formally made over his power to his fon 
Cambyfes. Xenophon (whofe authori- 
ty, indeed, amounts to little) alfo de- 
{cribes him, long before his death, as in- 
vetting Cambyfes with the kingdom, and 
affigning to Tanoaxares the fatrapy of 
the Medes. Herodotus again (Clio, ccx) 
explains a vifion of Cyrus, to fignify, 
that Darius was to fuceeed to the em- 
pire of that conqueror: which is no 
weak procf that Darius dated the com- 
merfcement of his reign from the death 
of Cyrus. The homeward hafte, and 
violent death or Cambyfes, at Ecbatana, 
(Thalia, Ixiv.) fo like an affaffination, 
and the cotemporary but prévious pro- 
clamation of Smerdis, both indicate the 
recent deceafe of the true fovereign, to 
the commencement of that convulfive 
firuggle for the fucceliion, which ter- 
minated in favour of Darius. 
The book of Baruch, which is pro- 
bably the faithful tranilation of a genu- 
‘ine epittle, records (i..2) that in the 
fifth year of the taking of Jerufalem, a 
' collection of money was made at Baby- 
‘ton, for the fufférers by that fiege; and 
at the fame time, Baruch received (i. 8) 
the weffels of the houfe of the Lord, 
which had been browght to Babylon by 
‘Nabuchodonofor, for whom he recom- 
mends the Jews to pray, now that his 
“intentions were become gracious to them. 
Bat we know from. Ezra Gita),! ther 
thefe veffels were reftored by Cyrus: ‘he 
is, therefore, the Nebuchadnezzar of 
thefe writers. Jofephus. it is true, in- 
fers, from his ftudy of the: Septuagint, a 
very different fyftem of chronology, 
,which the modern theologians have 
adopted :ithe tenth book of the Antigni- 
| ties is the fountain-head of their wild 
| fuppofitions. Eufebius, and others, who 
Mill poffeffed all the fources of Jofephus, 
af be thought to have held the opinion 
> 
a 
Fertilization derived from the Atmofphere. | 259 
here defended: he fays, in. Chronicles, 
KeyPvonv. pact ‘map? “Efaaios Seuteccy NaPov- 
yalovoroy muderaar. 
EE : 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
athe SERS i 
‘T is probable, that the labours of fe- 
veral ingenious men, who are at pre - 
fent occupied on the phyfiology of plants, 
may throw light on the.mode by which 
‘vegetation is aided by the atmofphere : 
I meddle not with nice difquilitions, but 
I confider it as a faét, eftablithed by ex- 
perience, that land is improved in ferti- 
lity by the application of its own pro- 
duce, in the fhape of manure, without 
any foreign aid; of courfe, that fome- 
thing of a fertilizing nature is derived 
from the atmofphere: now, had the 
cultivator any means of afcertaining the 
quantity (brought to the ftandard qua- 
lity of fome manure, dung for inftance) 
he would then know precifely how much 
of the produce of his farm, reduced to 
the fame ftandard, might be carried off, 
without impoverifhment. There are, 
I apprehend, very many farms, which 
have long depended foiely on the .atmof- 
phere for amends for the grain and cat- 
tie difpofed of : amongft thefe, it is cer- 
tain, many are impoverifhed, others pro- 
bably continue atabout an equal degree of 
fertility, and others. are ina ftate of im- 
provement. Wereagriculture fubjected ta 
the correct management. which is. requi- 
fite in mercantile concerns, or manufac- 
tures, it, would be as indifpenfable to 
keep a regifter uf vegetable matter, ac- 
quired or expended, as of cafh with our 
banker, or. of the raw, material deliver= ° 
ed to the workmen... But we have ne 
guage for afcertaining the flate of the 
foil, no feale of degrees, from abfolute 
fterility to intemperate richnefs, by 
which the relative, condition of land can 
be determined. However, as therevis 4 
courfe of cropping, which, under rhe 
prefent improved ftare of, hufbandry, has 
obtained general anprohation ; a, calcu- 
lation, grounded on the. facts which that 
fyfem exhibits, may. furnifn a rough 
oniline, to be filled up, as we arrive at 
greater precifion in our obfervations.— 
From a farm, containing 7oo;acres, .Un- 
der the plough, the @raim produced on 
abont 230 acres, deduging feed, is-an- 
nually carried off, amounting .to aboue 
126 tons; this, with about... tons, -of 
animal mateer ,(fheep and hogs)..makes 
ai annual expenditure of 4740-tons,.juit 
4 cwt. per acres on, chegmhole farm. . I 
am not prepared to day, Nii cole 
dai 
Sd « t~ al. 




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