Indigenous Races of the Earth

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500 'l'Ul~ ~£0NOC:ENfSTS AND Whatever may be, out of Engln.nd, the general estimation in which her Univ rsitics arc held for IIcbraical scholarship, none will dare say that tho country, which gave birth to a BENTLEY and a PoRTJWS ' has , in soliu Gr k learning, over lack d a man to stand, . .'-' , like Jonadab the son of Rcchab, "before (IciiOuaii) for ever. Tl1e di£fcrcnce between the last century and tho pr sent, in English Hellenic studies, seems chioily t lie in tho fact that, having ex­hausted extant literary sources in recian dmma and pl1i.losophy, tho critic{tl apparatus d rived from those honored pursuits is now becoming intensely directed towards tho verbal restoration of tho original books composing tho Now Tostam nt; and the names of DAVIDSON, ALFORD, SrrARPE, and TREGELLF.S, are tho well-known representatives of this new school, in different phases of its ten­dency. The first-mentioned, speaking of tho Palcstinic period some 1800 years ago, allows: "Tho ago was one of illiterate simplicity. The apostles themselves were from tho humbloAt ranks of society. Their abilities and education were tolerably alil-c. * * * Tho age was illiterate. They belonged, fot· the most part, to a class of society unpractised in the art of writing." 517 The second fmnkly avows: "I do not hesitate to say that [verbal inspiration] being thus applied, its effect will be to destroy altoO'cthcr the credibility of our Evange­lists." 518 The thit·d published, Ia t year, that most us ful little book, Notes introductory to tlte N ew Testament. And tho fourth uses the followi11g language: "It is a cause for thankfulness that the common Greek text [of the NewT stament] is no worse than it is; but it is a cause for humiliation (and with sober sadness do I write tho word) that Christian translators have not acted with a more largo-souled and intellig ut honesty." 61D Tho foregoing remarks arise from the imperative necessity of ~17 Introduction to the New Tettament, &c., London, 1848, I, pp. 408, 417. Jo. LAMIUB (De ertlditione .Apottolorum. Liber tingularis in quo mull a qua; ad primitivorum O!lristianorum literas, cloctri11as, tcripta, plucita, .!tudia, conditionem, cenmm, mores, et ritzts al/incnt, exponun­tur et illustra11ttw: cditio altern., 4to, Floren tiro, anno MDCCLXVI, "Cousoribus pcrmitton­tibus," pp. 477-001),-publishing in Italy whon tho Itn.lian Catholic mind htld not yet ()ndurod a ''Francesco," a "Maffei," or a "Bomba,"-had long proviou~ly established n.postolio inoapooity in the republic of letters. As ouo among tho "world s"-!lnd I S!IY it with pride- to tre!ld down, and keep down, whn.t om bora of intolomnco mn.y yet smoke in my adopted country, I O!ln join in gr!ltuln.tion with citizens of Olll' republic of Amcricn.­m! lis (ici) nons !lvons oht~ng6 tout ccln.." 1148 Grtek Te8tament: witll a critically revi&cd Text, &o., London, 1854 ; I, Pt·olcgomona, p. 20. Ar.uono (II, p. 181) expressly o!lutions us to re!ld Acts xvii, 26-"Not, •hn.th m!ldc Of One blood,' &c., 118 E. V. but' CAUSED EVERY NATJON OF MEN (BPRUNO) OF ONE DI,OOD,' &o. Sco M!ltt. v, 82, M!lrk vii, 87." 649 Account of the Printed Text of tile Greek New Te6tament, London, 1865, p. 267. TIIE POLYGENISTS. vindicating, once for all, in 'cthnoJogi al discussion, the accuracy of my coli ague's and my own observations in tho joint volume which preceded tho prcson t." MiO Those ass rtions hayjng been :flatly contradicted, Dr. Nott,661 when resuming tho suhject, stated, "Tho wo1·d blood is an interpola­tion, and not to be found in the original texts. The word blood has been rejected by tho Catholic Church, from tbo time of St. Jerome to tho present hour. Tho text of Tischcnrlorf is regarded, I believe, generally as tho most accurate Or k text known, and in this the word 'blood' does not appear. I have at l1and a long list of authori­ties to the same cfl' ct; but as it is p1· sumed no competent authority will call our assertion in question, it is nccdlcAs to cite them. 'rho verso above alluded to in Acts should, therefore, read:- "'And hath m!ldc of 011e llll rncos (genus) of men,' &c. "The word blood is a gloss; and we have just as much right to interpolate one form, one substance, one nature, one responsibility, or anything else, as blood." Many incompetent authorities, nevertheless, still continuing to quesLion my collaborator's correctness, I io 1 it incumbent upon my­self to prove that he was perfectly right. I hope the foregoing anay of texts and references, among which is TrscnENDORl!''S much-prized authority, will obviate future dis ·ussiou of others amongst them­selves. It. will forever with myself. But, so swiftly docs archroological crilicism advance on the Euro­pean continent, that oven Tischoudorf's Text now falls-although in tbis particular verse, by leaving out "blood," tho highest Catholic llcllcnism (as it generally docs) coincides with that employed in the "rational method"- behind tho ago of LAOHMANN's; whose Text beads the list, j usLly eulogized by 'l'RJ!.)GELLBS 652 in these words:-" Tho first Greelc 'l'estament, since the invention of printing, edited wholly on ancient authority, irrespective of modern traditions, is duo to CIIAltLES LACUMANN." It becomes, in consequence, ovid nt to tho reader that scicnlii1c arguments (in England at last, as they have ever been on the conti­uent), in which texts of tho Greek Scriptures arc involved, arc n.either carried on, at tho present day, upon tho obsolete English V crsion of 11M TypcB of Af1111kind, Ch!lp. XV, "Diblic!ll Ethnogmphy: -Section E.-'l'erms, Universal and Sp,ocifio"- pp. 668-0. Ml The Moral and Jneellec/ual Divmity of Races, &o.-from the filrmcli of Oount A. de Gobi­nea" _by H. IIo·r:r.; Philt1dclphil1, J. 13. Lippincott & Co., 12mo, 1866; !lppondix C., p. 612. M2 Op. cit., p. 1 L3: Sec !II so tho same !luthor's n.dmirablo " Lcctnre on tbe llistorio evi­dence of tho !lntltor8hip !llld tr~~nsmission of tho Dooks of the Now 'l'ost!lmcnt," London, 12mo, 1862, passim.