old man, 'who understood the wisdom of the Greeks,' that there would be no overcoming the adverse party while they employed themselves in the service of God; and therefore one morning he put a hog in the box, instead of a lamb. When half way up, the pig reared himself up, and happened to rest his fore feet upon the temple wall, whereupon continues the story, Jerusalem and the land of Israel quaked. In consequence of this, two orders were issued by the Council: 'Cursed be he that breedeth hogs;' and 'Cursed be he who teacheth his son the learning of the Greeks.' Such is the origin of the order against rearing hogs, as related in the Babylonian Talmud. One of the enforcements of this prohibition is curious, as showing for what purposes besides sale, hogs had been reared by the Jews. 'It is forbidden to rear any hog, even though hogs should come to a man by inheritance, in order to obtain profit from its skin or from its fat, for anointing or for light.' From this it would seem that the Jews had been wont to make ointments with hog's lard, and that they did not exclusively use oil for lights, but fat also, which was probably done according to a method we have often seen in the East, by introducing a wick into a lump of grease, which is set in a lamp, or in a round hollow vessel, made for the purpose; the heat of the kindled wick, as in a candle, gradually melts as much of the fat as is required to feed the flame. The inconvenience of the deprivation of the useful lard of hogs for this and other purposes, seems to have given occasion to an explanation, that the prohibition was not to be understood to imply that the fat of hogs might not be obtained by purchase from the Gentiles. The prohibition of keeping hogs does not appear to have had complete effect, as regulations are made concerning towns in which hogs were kept; and the keepers of swine are mentioned as contemptible and infamous wretches, so that it was a favorite term of abuse to call a person a hog-breeder or a swineherd. Although, therefore, it may be likely that the herds of swine here mentioned were the property of the heathen, who certainly did live with the Jews in the towns of this neighborhood, (the country of the Gadarenes,) it is not impossible that they belonged to the Jews, who kept them in despite of the prohibitions we have mentioned."
Among the ancient Egyptians, although the figure of the hog occurs several times well drawn at Edfou, this animal was held in detestation. "Swine," says Herodotus, "are accounted such impure beasts by the Egyptians, that if a man touches one even by accident, he presently hastens to the river, and in all his clothes plunges himself into the water. For this reason, swineherds alone of the Egyptians are not suffered to enter any of their temples; neither will any man give his daughter in marriage to one of that profession, nor take a wife born of such parents, so that they are necessitated to intermarry among themselves. The Egyptians are forbidden to
