stammering and strange sounds at the Babel confusion, when God, by a miracle and visible exhibition, distorted their organs of speech, and gave them a trembling, hesitation and precipitancy, as to vocal and other powers. In short, the miraculous gift of tongues would in some measure affect the saints, in respect of pronunciation, as the Miracle of Babel did the people of that place. Nor is this the only

To this stammering or uncouth pronunciation of barbarous dialects the prophet Ezekiel refers, chap. 36. v. 3. "Ye are made to come upon the lip of the tongues :" that is, ye are become a bye-word even in the heathen gabble, among the babbling nations where ye are in captivity. Holloway, the author of Letter and Spirit, says, the word barbarous, used in so many languages, (with only their respective different determinations) for persons of strange or foreign tongues, is a monument of the great confusion at Babel; this word being a corruption of the reduplicate Chaldee word Balbel, by changing the l in each place into r. Some say, the word in the other languages is derived from the Arabic Barbar, to "murmur like some beast." Scaliger defines it, Pronunciatio vitiosa et insuavis, literasque male exprimens, blæsorum balborumque more: which was hitting upon the truth as to part of the original manner of the confusion. Indeed Blæsus and Balbus, in Lati are both derived in like manner from Bal and Ballel. The Welsh have preserved a noble word for this barbarism of confused language in their compounded

place in Scripture where shephah, lip, signifies language, pronunciations, and dialects; and where there is reference to the confusion of tongues at Babel, Isaiah, speaking of the privileges of the godly, says, 'Thou shalt not see a fierce people, of a

term Baldwridd; which is a plain compound of the Hebrew Bal, and Dabar, without any other deflection from the original Hebrew, than that of changing the b in the latter member of the word Dabar into the Welsh w, a letter of the same organ. Moreover, from their said Baldwridd, and Das, we again derive our Balderdash ; which therefore signifies strictly, a heap of confused or barbarous words, like those of the gabble of dialects, originally gendered at Babel. See Letter and Spirit, ch. 11. It is very remarkable, that this learned gentleman says he had been long of Hutchinson's mind, as to a confusion of confessions, and not of tongues; but on weighing the matter, is now of another opinion. Ibid. p. 115. Therefore, Hutchinson not infallible, but out for once, and as Dr. Sharp well observes, this may be an earnest of deserting Hutchinson in other points of his new hypothesis. See Dr. Sharp's Two Discourses on the Hebrew Tongue and Character against Holloway. His Two Discourses on Elohim, and Defence. And his Three Discourses on Cherubim. The Hutchinsonians lay the stress of their hypothesis on the Biblical Hebrew, being the language of Adam in Paradise; and if this be taken from them, they are left in a poor way indeed.

deeper speech than thou canst perceive, (of a deeper lip than thou canst hear, Heb.) of a stammering or ridiculous tongue, that thou canst not understand. This is enough in answer to Hutchinson and his fautors, in respect of what they say on the confusion at Babel. This proves that the word shephah, lip signifies language, utterance, dialect, as well as confession or discourse; and therefore, Moses, in his account of the Miracle at Babel, might have mean'd a confusion of languages. That he did mean this, is plain, not only from a tradition gone out into all the earth, which is a matter of greater regard than Hutchinson's fancy; but because the sacred oracles allude to this event. Beside St. Paul aforementioned, the royal prophet in Psalm lv. ver. 9. refers to the means of the division of tongues, and denounces a curse in terms taken from that inflicted at Babel. 'Swallow up, O Lord, and divide their tongues.' This seems to describe the manner of that confusion; that the substance of the one language was sunk or swallowed up in a vast chaos of universal babble; and that out of that jargon it was again, by another act, divided or broken into many particular dissonant dialects, or tongues."

"All this," I said, " is very just, and gives me delight and satisfaction. I am now convinced, not only that Hebrew was not the language of Paradise,

VOL. I.

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term Baldwridd; whi· Hebrew Bal, and from the original ric in the latter membe w, a letter of the s Balduridd, and I which therefore s barbarous words. originally gender. * ch. 11. It is v man says he h a confusion of weighing the p. 115. Th

for once, a

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ing the city. Therefore he called the name of it Babel; because there the Lord mingled together the tongues of all the inhabitants of the other. This you read in the Targum that was written before the days of Jesus Christ, as the Jews affirm; or, if not so early, yet it is a very antient book, and the doctor who composed it must certainly know the meaning of the word shephah better than Hutchinson. It appears, upon the whole, that the argument of this famous modern is without foundation."

"It is, indeed," I answered, "but then I am not able to conceive how Abraham and his sons conversed with so many nations, or how the Hebrew that Moses wrote in was preserved. Illuminate me in these things, illustrious Harriot, and from your fine understanding, let me have the honour and happiness of receiving true Hebrew lessons. Proceed, I beseech you, and stop not till you have expounded to my understanding the true nature of Cherubim? What do you think of Hutchinson's Rub and Rubbim, and of his notions of Ezekiel's cherubic form."

"To talk of Cherubim and Elohim," resumed Miss NOEL," and say all that ought to be said, to speak to any purpose; of the three heads and four visages, the bull, the man, the lion, and the eagle,