"
At page 32, there is an interesting picture of the state of society in
Patriarchal times--the whole of the life of Moses is extremely well
written--the description of the Plague is indeed terrific--and the
death and character of the Prophet drawn with a masterly and vigorous
hand. The reigns of David and Solomon, as might be expected, are
magnificently told. Among the picturesque sketches none exceed the--
DESCRIPTION OF PALESTINE.
"It is almost impossible to calculate with accuracy the area of a
country, the frontier of which is irregular on every side. Lowman has
given three different estimates of the extent of territory occupied
by the twelve tribes, the mean between the two extremes approaches
probably the nearest to the truth. According to this computation, the
Jewish dominion, at the time of the Division, was 180 miles long, by
130 wide, and contained 14,976,000 acres. This quantity of land
will divide to 600,000 men, about 21-1/2 acres in property, with a
remainder of 1,976,000 acres for the Levitical cities, the princes of
tribes, the heads of families, and other public uses. Assuming this
estate of 21-1/2 acres, assigned to each household, of course a
larger proportion of pasture must have been given to those tribes who
subsisted on their herds and flocks, than of arable to those who
lived by tillage, the portions of the latter, therefore, must be
considerably reduced.
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