Eastern origin of Scripture, by occasionally alluding to articles native in those parts: it will be seen too that we have considered Kedem, as a province very far east, and have supposed, if we have not rather determined, the migration of Abraham from thence; a much greater distance than has usually been thought. This gives considerable plausibility to the expectation of finding many things in India, illustrative of Scripture, and it accounts for our finding principles common to the eastern and the western regions of Asia. Nor can we close these observations, without congratulating the religious world, that a spirit of disquisition is gone forth, which refers very strongly to Eastern peculiarities. Besides those works which individuals have undertaken, and published, on this principle, the manner of interpreting Scripture by means of Eastern customs, &c. has been made a prize question at the university of Cambridge, under the will of Mr. Norris; and the essay, produced on that occasion, has been published. May this spirit strengthen and increase, till a mode of obtaining knowledge too long disused, recovers that station to

which it is entitled, and diffuses information, which, however desirable, may be sought elsewhere in vain! Much of the following arrangement is translated from the Flora Egyptiaco-Arabica, and the Descriptiones Animalium, of professor Forskall; whom Niebuhr accompanied into Arabia: but as it is extracted from different places of his work, the reader will excuse some repetitions, which are of little consequence, and less injury. A few articles are from Russell's Aleppo, and some from Hasselquist.

We venture to recommend the arrangement itself with some degree of persuasion : but we have not hazarded a more minute or scientifical disposition of its lesser branches, than alphabetical order: partly, because much information is yet wanted to enable us to determine absolutely on many specific subjects; and partly, because we would not appear to force our principles beyond what they will bear: the plan is sufficiently regular for popular use; and to show of what it is capable, under management properly scientific, which we doubt not it will receive in due time, from abilities competent to the undertaking.

The flowers are yellow; the leaves nearly a foot long; the upright stalk, a foot and a half long. The whole plant smaller than usual. Lohaja. Arab. sabbare.

At Alexandria it had not variegated leaves. In Egypt the flowers of this aloes-tree are deposited in houses recently built, in order to dissipate the vapours. F.

ALOE, OF THE SHOPS: it has red flowers, full of clusters, slender, and triangular.

The leaves are slender without; hollow above, convex below: they have on the edge prickles, opposite, erect, compressed, short; they are close together, flat in the base, and like a sheath; of a green colour varied with white, somewhat red underneath.

Mor. Arab. sabr. If the leaves are broken they yield a green pulp, thick and glutinous, having the rank smell of the aloes Socotr. of the shops; wherefore I think that juice the produce of this plant. The true aloe of Linnæus has flat leaves. F. ALOES, LIGN. Vide LIGN ALOES, among Trees. ANISE, strong smelling, grows spontaneously; is called schibt.

ANISE, fennel, is called sekamar, or schamer. BULRUSH, JUNCUS, SUBULATED. It has subulated leaves; terminal panicles; a two leaved subulated envelope.

Alexandria, Arab. Hallæn.

-JUNCUS, PRICKLY. It has the envelope of the lowest panicle prickly, those of the upper panicle bristly.

OBS. Those prickly matts, carpets, with which the Eastern people cover their floors, are manufactured with this bulrush. They are brought to Cairo from Upper Egypt, and the country about Suez in such abundance, that they export them to Constantinople. They are of a very neat texture. One sufficient for a room of moderate size frequently costs twenty piastres. The art of manufacturing them is very easy. F.

For the bulrushes of Moses, vide REED. CANE, kanah. Vide REED.

CORN.

BARLEY, hexastich; called by the modern Greeks krithari; by the Arabs schair.

-perversum; called kophocorto. There are several kinds of barley. HOLCUS DURRA, edible, called taam, habb, but in Egypt, durra.

Taam schebb saadi, with green glume.

T. schaer abjad; white seeds, brown glume. T. schaer almar; brown seeds and glume. F. I suspect that this arrangement may illustrate a passage which we confessed exceeded our powers on EXPOSITORY INDEX, Isai. xxviii. 25. "the principal wheat," literally, "wheat, shureh, perhaps for mw, w, shireh, and shoreh," ny. This latter, shoreh, is no doubt the schair of the Arabs, barley and what forbids that the first shureh, or shireh, should be the shuer, durra, or one of the kinds of millet, which we know forms a principal, if not the very principal, kind of food among the Orientals? But see another word, supposed to signify millet, under the article MILLET.

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