Lectures on the Evidences of Christianity [pp. 250-294]

Apologetics;.
tament. Though in themselves interesting and valuable, they
are probably much inferior in interest and value to the twelve
rolls of vellum containing the law, each thirty feet in length by
two or three in breadth, which our messengers examined in the
holiest of holies. Measures are already in progress for procuring these latter MSS., and for bringing down to Shanghae
any Israelites who might be induced to visit that city. The
portions of the Old Testament Scriptures already received are
the following:-Exod. i.-vi., Exod. xxxviii.-xl., Lev. xix.
and xx., Numb. xiii.-xv., Deut. xi.-xvi., and Dent. xxxii.;
various portions of the Pentateuch, Psalms, and Hiagiographa,
which appear to be parts of an ancient Hebrew liturgy, are
contained in two of the MSS. already received."
A friendly feeling was generally evinced towards our visitors,
which is in no small measure attributable to the Hebrew letter
of introduction from Shanghae, of which although the Jews
understood not the purport, they readily perceived its identity
with their own sacred writings. Without such an introduction,
they would probably have been received with suspicion, and
mistrusted as spies. Our visitors learnt that during the year
1849 the whole of the little Jewish community at K'ae-fungfoo were thrown into great alarm, and exposed to danger of
persecution on account of suspected connection with foreigners,
by a letter written in Chinese and despatched some time before
by the late Temple Layton, Esq., H. B. M. Consul at Amoy,
for the purpose of procuring some Hebrew MSS.
ART. VI.-Lectures on the Evidences of Christianity. De livered at the University of Virginia during the Session of
1850-1. New York: Robert Carter & Brothers, 1852.
Suci a book, proceeding from such a source, and under such
auspices, is not only a profoundly interesting phenomenon in
itself, but eminently suggestive of the ultimate issue of the
great and protracted controversy, to which it is so formal and
massive a contribution. It is well known that the University
250
[APRIL