the ground, and razed from its foundations. Eleven hundred thousand Jews perished during the siege; and, of ninety-seven thousand captives, some were reserved to grace the triumphal return of Titus to Rome, and the rest dispersed as slaves, or as criminals, throughout the empire. A small portion, indeed, were permitted to remain and establish themselves in Judea, who, by degrees, formed themselves into a regular system of government, or rather subordination, connected with the various bodies of Jews dispersed throughout the world. But a subsequent revolt, in the reign of Adrian, A. D. 134, carried on with the most furious outrages by the Jews, great numbers of whom had by that time collected in their native land, was followed by the destruction of their leader Barchochba, who averred himself to be the Messiah, -by the slaughter of more than five hundred thousand of his adherents,-by the sale of additional multitudes,-and by the expulsion of almost the whole nation from Judea.-To give a detailed narrative of their situation, as far as it has been ascertained, in the principal countries in which they have sojourned during their dispersion, would require a volume, or volumes, of itself. I shall notice only a few events, which are in themselves important, and are also recorded by sufficient authorities. For more full information, recourse

the prophecies of Christ respecting the destruction of Jerusalem, in Archbishop Newcome's "Observations on our Lord's Conduct," 2d Edit. 8vo. p. 203, &c.

may be had to M. Basnage, a learned French refugee of the beginning of last century, who wrote their history as a supplement and continuation of Josephus; and to the "Modern Universal History," 8vo, vol. 13. See also David Ganz's "Tsemach David," a meagre chronicle, but perhaps the best history written by a Jew since the time of Josephus. Unfortunately they have no historians but Josephus; and, except some very short and desultory notices of successive facts preserved by different authors, they have scarcely a chronology, D. Ganz's book, and Rabbi Zacut's Sepher Juchsin," excepted.

During the continuance of the Roman empire, they experienced from different emperors varying degrees of oppression or forbearance; and at some times indulged their inveteracy against the Christians in tumultuous and sanguinary outrages; at others, endured many grievous cruelties from the spirit of bigotry and retaliation. From Julian, who equalled them in enmity towards the Christians, they received many marks of favour. His abortive endeavours to rebuild the temple and city of Jerusalem are well known; a terrible earthquake, and flames of fire issuing from the earth, killed the workmen, and scattered the materials.*

Dr. Jortin, speaking on this subject, says, that "all things considered, the story is as well attested as one can reasonably expect."-Remarks on Ecclesiastical History, vol. 2. p. 213. edit. 1805. See p. 212,-224.

They soon became known as divided into the Western and Eastern Jews. The Western were those who inhabited Egypt, Judea, Italy, and other parts of the Roman empire;-the Eastern were those who were settled in Babylon, Chaldea, Persia, &c. The head of the Western Jews was known by the name of Patriarch; the head of the Eastern Jews was called Prince of the Captivity. The office of Patriarch was abolished by the imperial laws about the year 429; from which time the western Jews were solely under the rule of the chiefs of their synagogues, whom they called Primates. The Princes of the Captivity had a longer and a more splendid sway. They resided at Babylon or at Bagdad, and exercised their authority over all the Jews who were established there, or in the adjacent country, or in Assyria, Chaldea, or Parthia; and they subsisted as late as the 12th century. About the year 1038 the Jews were expelled from Babylon, when some of the most learned of them passed into Africa, and thence into Spain, where great bodies of them settled, and soon after assisted the Saracens in their conquest of that kingdom. Upon that event, an intimate connexion took place between the disciples of Moses and those of Mohammed, which was cemented by their common hatred of the Christians, and subsisted till their common expulsion.

Of the state of the Jews during the middle ages, we have curious and interesting accounts by Benjamin of Tudelah in Navarre, and Rabbi Patachiah;

two learned Jews who, in the 12th century, visited the principal cities of the East where the Jews had synagogues, and returned through Hungary, Germany, Italy, and France. The object of this journey was to ascertain the situation of the Jewish people; and a wish to magnify the numbers and the importance of their brethren is discernible in the writings of both; and, for their extreme credulity, both are justly censured. But, after every reasonable deduction is made on these accounts, from the credibility of their narratives, much will remain to Interest even an intelligent and cautious reader.

Benjamin scruples not to affirm, that he found at Bagdad the Prince of the Captivity, lineally descended from David, and permitted by the Caliph to exercise rights of sovereignty over the Jews from Syria to Indostan. And indeed the modern Jews, notwithstanding they admit that this author is not much to be depended upon on account of his credulity, yet seem to think, that he may nevertheless have asserted truth respecting the genealogy of the Prince of the Captivity; for, they say, it is known as a certainty, that the last Primate, who died A. D. 1038, named Rab Hay Goan, was indubitably descended from king David; and that, prior to that period, no one was installed as Prince unless of that lineage.

The existence of a succession of these imaginary potentates from the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, the Jews have ever been strenuous in

maintaining, partly to aggrandise the glory of their nation, and partly to deprive Christians of the benefit of the argument furnished by the prophecy of Jacob, concerning the termination of the Jewish polity and independence soon after the coming of the Messiah.

In most countries where they have sojourned, the Jews have been most cruelly treated; and have been banished, at different times, from France, from Germany, from Spain, from Bohemia, and from Hungary. We have particular accounts of the miseries of those who were banished from the last of these kingdoms. In England their sentence of exile was remitted, and they were invited back by William the Conqueror;* they were again banished in the reign of Edward I., but were permitted to return by Oliver Cromwell, since which time repeated attempts have been made to naturalize them, but in vain.

When their naturalization was last proposed, in 1753, Dean Tucker wrote in favour of the measure, and the bishops did not oppose it, doubtless, not foreseeing that any injury could have arisen from the indulgence, either to the state or to the people, whilst some of this unbelieving race might have

* Since writing the above, I have seen Anglia Judaica, by Dr. Tovey, who has taken great pains to search after the antiquities of the Jews in England, contends for the existence of Jews there coeval with Julius Cæsar, and says nothing of any banishment of them prior to that of Edward I.