Syria whom I knew in Europe, those of Yemen,' whom I faw in the ifle of Hinzuàn, whither many had come from Mafkat for the purpose of trade, and those of Hejaz, whom I have met in Bengal, form a ftriking contrast to the Hindu inhabitants of these provinces: their eyes are full of vivacity, their speech voluble and articulate, their deportment manly and dignified, their apprehenfion quick, their minds always present and attentive; with a fpirit of independence appearing in the countenances even of the lowest among them. Men will always differ in their ideas of civilization, each measuring it by the habits and prejudices of his own country; but, if courtesy and urbanity, a love of poetry and eloquence, and the practice of exalted virtues be a jufter measure of perfect fociety, we have certain proof, that the people of Arabia, both on plains and in cities, in republican and monarchical states, were eminently civilized for many ages before their conqueft of Perfia.

It is deplorable, that the ancient History of this majestick race fhould be as little known in detail before the time of Dhú Yezen, as that of the Hindus before Vicramáditya; for, although the vast historical work of Alnuwairì, and the Murújuldbabab, or Golden Meadows, of Almafüudi, contain chapters on the kings of Himyar, Ghafan, and Hirah, with lifts of them and

sketches of their several reigns, and although Genealogical Tables, from which chronology might be better ascertained, are prefixed to many compofitions of the old Arabian Poets, yet most manuscripts are so incorrect, and so many contradictions are found in the best of them, that we can scarce lean upon tradition with security, and must have recourfe to the fame media for inveftigating the history of the Arabs, that I before adopted in regard to that of the Indians; namely, their language, letters and religion, their ancient monuments, and the certain remains of their arts; on each of which heads I fhall touch very concisely, having premised, that my obfervations will in general be confined to the state of Arabia before that fingular revolution, at the beginning of the Seventh century, the effects of which we feel at this day from the Pyrenean mountains and the Danube, to the fartheft parts of the Indian Empire, and even to the Eastern Islands.

I. For the knowledge, which any European, who pleases, may attain of the Arabian language, we are principally indebted to the university of Leyden; for, though feveral Italians have affiduously laboured in the same wide field, yet the fruit of their labours has been rendered almoft useless by more commodious and more accurate works printed in Holland; and, though Pocock certainly accomplished much, and was able to

accomplish any thing, yet the Academical eafe, which he enjoyed, and his theological pursuits, induced him to leave unfinished the valuable work of Maidánì, which he had prepared for publication; nor, even if that rich mine of Arabian Philology had seen the light, would it have borne any comparison with the fifty differtations of Hariri, which the firft ALBERT SCHULTENS tranflated and explained, though he sent abroad but few of them, and has left his worthy grandfon, from whom perhaps Maidáni also may be ́expected, the honour of publishing the rest : but the palm of glory in this branch of literature is due to GOLIUS, whofe works are equally profound and elegant; fo perfpicuous in method, that they may always be confulted without fatigue, and read without languor, yet so abundant in matter, that any man, who fhall begin with his noble edition of the Grammar compiled by his master ERPENIUS, and proceed, with the help of his incomparable dictionary, to study his History of Taimùr by Ibni Arabsbáh, and fhall make himself complete mafter of that sublime work, will understand the learned Arabick better than the deepest scholar at Conftantinople or at Mecca. The Arabick language, therefore, is almost wholly in our power; and, as it is unqueftionably one of the most ancient in the world, fo it yields to none ever spoken by mortals in

the number of its words and the precision of its phrases; but it is equally true and wonderful, that it bears not the leaft resemblance, either in words or the structure of them, to the Sanscrit, or great parent of the Indian dialects; of which diffimilarity I will mention two remarkable inftances: the Sanferit, like the Greek, Perfian, and Germọn, delights in compounds, but, in a much higher degree, and indeed to fuch excefs, that I could produce words of more than twenty fyllables, not formed ludicrously, like that by which the buffoon in ARISTOPHANES defcribes a feast, but with perfect seriousness, on the most folemn occafions, and in the most elegant works; while the Arabick, on the other hand, and all. its fifter dialects, abhor the compofition of words, and invariably exprefs very complex ideas by circumlocution; fo that, if a compound word be found in any genuine language of the Arabian Peninfula, (zenmerdah for instance, which occurs in the Hamáfah) it may at once be pronounced an exotick. Again; it is the genius of the Sanferit, and other languages of the fame stock, that the roots of verbs be almost univerfally biliteral, fo that five and twenty hundred fuch roots might be formed by the compofition of the fifty Indian letters; but the Arabick roots are as universally triliteral, so that the compofiation of the twenty-eight Arabian letters would

accomplish any thing, yet the Academical ease, which he enjoyed, and his theological pursuits, induced him to leave unfinished the valuable work of Maidánì, which he had prepared for publication; nor, even if that rich mine of Arabian Philology had seen the light, would it have borne any comparison with the fifty differtations of Hariri, which the first ALBERT SCHULTENS tranflated and explained, though he sent abroad but few of them, and has left his worthy grandfon, from whom perhaps Maidáni also may be ́expected, the honour of publishing the reft: but the palm of glory in this branch of literature is due to GOLIUS, whofe works are equally profound and elegant; fo perfpicuous in method, that they may always be confulted without fatigue, and read without languor, yet fo abundant in matter, that any man, who shall begin with his noble edition of the Grammar compiled by his master ERPENIUS, and proceed, with the help of his incomparable dictionary, to study his History of Taimùr by Ibni Arabsþáh, and fhall make himself complete mafter of that sublime work, will understand the learned Arabick better than the deepest scholar at Conftantinople or at Mecca. The Arabick language, therefore, is almost wholly in our power; and, as it is unqueftionably one of the most ancient in the world, fo it yields to none ever spoken by mortals in