the feats of idolatrous worship. Now, were a foreft of fpears, with the points upwards, and with the handles of dry wood, or, perhaps, fome of the Teribinthinate kind, which are bad conductors, and placed upon an elevated situation, they might, if placed within ftriking distance, exhibit a luminous appearance, and in certain seasons collect electrical fire, fufficient to make a great difcharge; and, as I fuppose, to destroy any perfon within the reach of their influence. This is not altogether matter of conjecture. Plutarch fays, that balls of fire were feen to reft on the points of the foldiers' fpears, and we know, that in our own times, in the Mediterranean fea, it is common for balls of fire to reft on the rigging of the fhips, which appearances were formerly called by the names of Caftor and Pollux; and in later times, the fires of St. Helmo, and are thought to foretel good weather. Was it from this opinion, that St. Paul's fhip, mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, had the images of Castor and Pollux on its prow. Livy* fpeaks of a fpear, in a house, that burned more than two hours, yet without being confumed. Could this be any thing but electrical?

It fhould be obferved, that Numa did not build a temple, but an altar, in the open air, to

* Fregellis in domo L. Atrei haita, quam filio militi emerat, interdiu plus duas horas arfiffe, ita ut nihil ejus ambureret ignis, dicebatur. Liv. XLIII. 13.

Jupiter

Jupiter Elicius, and that it was fituated on a hill, namely, the Aventine Mount. But Tullus Hoftilius, it is faid, was in fome retired part of his house, and alone.

A fpear, however, might become electrical in a thunder storm, in which Tullus Hoftilius is faid to have perished, even in a house; witness the story from Livy, mentioned above: but we may suppose, that he might be on the house top, which was a common place of worfhip, and there have erected his apparatus for drawing down lightning. That this was a common place for idolatrous worship, we learn from the fcriptures. The book of Kings† fpeaks of the altars, that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz. Jeremiah ‡ fpeaks of "the "houses, upon whofe roofs they have burned "incense unto all the hoft of heaven, and have "poured out drink-offerings to the gods. Zephaniah mentions thofe "that worship the hoft of heaven on the house tops." Might not

μελλοντος δε Τυλλου θυσίαν τινα κατ' οίκον επιτελείν, αυτούς μονον εβουλετο τους αναγκαίους ειδεναι, κατα τυχην της ημέρας εκείνης χειμερίου σφοδρα γενομένης, κατα τε ομβρον και ζαλην και σκότου. Dionyf. Antiq. Rom. lib. III. p. 176, edit. Sylburg.

Is it not probable from hence, that thefe facrifices were commenced on the approach of storms?

† Kings, book II. chap. xxiii. 12.

Jerem. xix. 13.

Zephaniah i. 5.

U 2

then

then Tullus Hoftilius, fuppofing him placed in an elevated fituation, and upon the top of a building, and furrounded by, or in the neighbourhood of a number of fpears, placed with their points upwards, receive a ftroke by their means from an electrical atmosphere; or might not an electrical cloud be fo attracted and difcharged upon a multitude of metalline points, terminating in bad conductors, as to explode and destroy him, and burn the house and might not Numa be inftructed, how to conduct this procefs with greater fafety, though, perhaps, not fcientifically? But many a house is preferved by conductors, whofe inhabitants, and even the artificers that erected them, are nearly ignorant of the rationale of the matter.

ESSAY on fome fuppofed DRUIDICAL REMAINS, near HALIFAX in YORKSHIRE; by Mr. TнoMAS BARRITT.

A

READ OCTOBER 19, 1787.

BOUT a mile weftward of Saddleworth church, in the county of York, is a high hill, which commands an extenfive profpect over the adjacent country. It is called, by the neighbouring people, POTS AND PANS. Upon the

fummit are abundance of large craggy ftones, (of that fort generally called mill-stone grit) lying scattered up and down, which, when viewed from the east, look like the foundation or ruins of fome stupendous fabric. One of these ftones, or rather two of them clofely joined together, is called the PANCAKE; it is of an irregular fquare form, with obtufe angles, and hath upon its furface four bafons, hollowed in the ftone; the largeft, being nearly in the center, is capable of holding eight or ten gallons of water, fome fay more: whether thefe hollows be natural, or artificial, is not known. This ftone I measured, and found to be about seventy-fix feet in circumference: another long uneven hole, upon this ftone, is called Robin Hood's bed. A little weftward of this, is another ftone, about twenty feet in height, and about fifty-fix feet in circumference at the bafe, but much narrower at the top, from whence proceed irregular flutings or ridges, down one fide, of about two feet long, by fome fuppofed the effect of time, and by others the workmanship of art. More weftward, and nearer the valley of Greenfield, the ground is called Aldermans, and overlooks that valley, oppofite to a large and high rock called Alphian. Upon the level of this ground, is a fiffure in the earth, about twelve or fourteen yards long, each end terminating in a cavernous hole in the rock, one of which is capable of admitting

U 3

mitting dogs, foxes, or fheep; the other large enough to receive men. Neither of these cavities has been thoroughly explored by any one within memory; a perfon informed me that he had gone into the larger with a light, but returned, after having gone down a floping defcent of about fixty yards: tradition fays, into the other hole once went a dog, in full chace after a fox, but neither of them ever returned.

To a fuperficial obferver, unacquainted with ancient history, and bufied only with the common occurrences of the prefent day, these rude remains may appear to be no more than the fport, or chance of nature, thus left, when the water of the general deluge quitted its earthly feat, and fixed its refidence in its proper bed.

To guess at the tranfactions of remote ages, where we have no written authority, is, it must be owned, too often fallacious, and at beft very uncertain; and fome, whofe purfuits do not coincide with fuch researches, may flight those attempts, which might lead to a discovery of actions fo far back as "twice ten hundred years;" yet where we cannot attain complete knowledge, it is humbly prefumed, a probable conjecture may be admitted.

Upon this ground of conjecture we may go, and fay, that fituations like thefe, and ftones like those we defcribe, have been made use of in the most ancient idolatry, and particularly by the Druids of this ifland; who, as priefts of its first inhabitants,