Social History of the Aramaeans. By A. Featherman. (Trillaner•) —This
volume of 652 closely printed pages forms only the fifth division and first instalment of a work on the social history of the whole human race. In a short introduction, Mr. Featherman gives a slight sketch of the various stocks from which existing nations have sprung, and then proceeds to classify the various Semitic (or, as he prefers to call them, Aramaean) nations. The cradle-land of this grand division of mankind was Syria, whence came the members of the Syro-Aramaean branch, the Phoenicians, Assyrians, Chaldoes, and Hebrews. The Libyo-Aramaeans included the old inhabitants of Egypt, who are now represented by the Copts, the Berbers, and many tribes which dwell in the northern parts of Africa. Some of these, as the Kabyles, were forced by the pressure of conquering tribes to retire into the mountains ; some, as the Berbers, into the desert; some, as the Guanches in the Canaries, to islands. The invaders who thus pushed the former inhabitants out of their abodes were the youngest branch of Semites, the Arabo-A.ramaeans, from whom sprang the Saracens, Bedouins, Barbary Arabs, the bulk of the population of modern Egypt, and several peoples of Syria. " Ten years of constant application have thus far been devoted to the collection of materials, and this time has been passed in the best libraries of England and America." For thia work, there are ample results to show, consisting in a vast body of well digested information on climate, crops, marriage customs, mode of government, religion, and language ; in fact, on every incident of life, from the cradle to the grave. Some idea of the minuteness and extent of the work may be gathered from the fact that the present volume alone contains thirty-four subdivisions of the larger divisions mentioned above. We may notice, as specially exhaus- tive, the account of the ancient Egyptians, which includes particulars of more than fifty departments. A general list of authorities is given under each subdivision,—e.g., sixteen sources are specified for the information given under the head of " Moors." Some of the most interesting chapters in the book are those on the Druses, Maronites, and Jews. We select the following from the general observations which introduce the subdivisions:— "The reasoning powers of the Aramaeans, although not originally of a speculative cast, indicate the highest order of intellect. Governments of long duration flourished under belied- cent systems of laws, which have survived the wreck of time, and are still considered as living monuments of profound piffle- 8M13' and genius. Aramaean nations reached a high degree of civilisation, by their own inherent force of development, at periods in the world's history when all other nations were still uncouth barbarians, or oriel and vindictive savages. The races of the Aramaean stock were the daring and adventurous mariners who first navigated the ocean, engaged in commercial enterprises, visited the most civilised nations, and thus mouopolised the traffio of the world. They were the inventors of alphabetic writing, as well as numerical symbols, which places them in the first rank as the benefactors of mankind who have contributed the most essential elements for the diffusion and perpetuation of human knowledge."
Wo shall look with much interest for the other divisions of this work.
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