before the age of Moses, there sprung up in the east a custom, often mentioned in the Persian history, and noticed by Asiatic travellers, that whoever paid a visit to a person of higher rank, carried with him a suitable present. Joseph, as prime minister of Egypt, received such a present from his brethren. Saul did not presume to wait on Samuel, the judge, without a present. This was, therefore, the most ancient source of a king's revenue, prior to all tributes and demesnes. That Saul actually enjoyed a revenue of this kind is certain. Whether the tax continued to be paid to his successors, does not appear. There is no trace of it after the reign of Saul. It is not improbable, that David abolished so unseemly an impost, and admitted every petitioner into his presence, without subjecting him to any expense.

2. Tithes. In 1 Sam. 8: 15-17, mention is made of the tenth of the produce of the fields, the vineyards, and the flocks, as the right of the future king. This, on his actual appointment, was the third tenth which every Israelite had to pay. The first was given to the Levites; the second was appropriated to the sacrifice-feasts, to which were invited. priests, Levites, friends, orphans, and strangers. None but a very fruitful country could have borne the burden of an impost to the extent of three tenths of its produce.

3. Royal demesnes. Samuel mentions a demesne, to which the king would have a right; for, says he, "he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants ;"¶ i. e. in lieu of salaries. This seems inconsistent with the Mosaic law, which divided the whole of Palestine among the Israelites, and prohibited the alienation of their land. Nevertheless, it is certain, that the king had a demesne.** It is likely, that at first

* Gen. xliii. 11-25. Numb. xviii. 21-32.

| Deut. xii. 17-19. 1 Sam. viii. 14.

† 1 Sam. ix. 7.

Levit. xxvii. 30-33.

xiv. 22-29. xxvi. 12-15.

1 Sam. x. 27, xvi. 20.

** Eccl. ii. 4-6. 1 Chron. xxvii. 26-31.

the kings took possession only of the spots, which had not been previously appropriated and improved, of which there might be found a considerable number, particularly beyond Jordan, and about the rills in the Arabian deserts. Still, that will not sufficiently explain the passage, cited a little above; for it is there said, the king would take the best parts of every sort of landed property.

We must, therefore, seek some other mode of providing him with demesnes. It is certain, that the kings exercised the right of bestowing the inheritance of state criminals upon other persons. It is not improbable, that they availed themselves of the same right, to increase the royal demesnes by confiscations. Indeed, we have an instance of this, in the case of Nabal, who was stoned on a false charge of treason, and his estate annexed to the king's demesnes. This mode of increasing their lands must have formed a strong temptation to wicked kings, to put innocent persons to death for pretended crimes, in order to seize and appropriate their property. Need we wonder, that, in the Hebrew history, we find so frequent mention of the shedding of innocent blood? All this is confirmed, and rendered certain, by what we find in Ezekiel. That prophet was favored with a vision of the future reformation of the Israelitish church and state. In it he tells us, that the prince will then have his own portion, which he must neither alienate nor enlarge. It is very distinctly enjoined upon the king not to take the people's inheritance away from them by oppression, and not to thrust them out of their possessions. It is further enjoined upon him not to give lands to his family out of the people's portions, but out of his own. This clearly indicates the practices, and, I may add, the abuses, of preceding times.

The olive and sycamore grounds, in that part of the territory of Judah, which lay nearest the sea, and was called the † 1 Kings xxi. 15, 16.

* 2 Sam. xvi. 4.

Ezek. xlv. 7, 8. xlvii. 16-18.

lowlands, belonged to the king's demesnes. It is distinctly stated, that David placed one officer over the trees in that district, and another over the oil-stores.*

That the kings assigned a part of the royal demesnes to their servants, in lieu of salary, appears unquestionable.+ At a time, when the sovereign could be possessed of but little money, this was the natural way of maintaining and rewarding his servants.

4. Bond service. For the cultivation of their lands, the Israelitish kings, governing a country where slavery was permitted, would naturally require servile labor. Accordingly, we find bond service mentioned by Samuel among the royal rights, established by usage among the neighboring kingdoms, and which would be claimed and exercised by the Hebrew sovereigns, whenever monarchy should be instituted. In process of time, these services seem to have been increased and altered, so that they became very burdensome and very distasteful to the Israelites. It was probably this, which gave occasion, first to the complaints, and then to the rebellion, in the reign of Rehoboam.

5. The right of pasturage in the Arabian deserts. This right belonged to the king, in common with his subjects. We find David taking advantage of this privilege, and keeping large herds of cattle, sheep, goats, asses, and camels, partly in Sharon, and partly in Arabia; the greater part of them, no doubt, in the latter place. Among the officers, who had charge of them, two Arabians are mentioned, Obil, the Ishmaelite, superintendant of the camels, and Jaziz, the Hagarite, superintendant of the sheep.

6. The spoils of vanquished enemies partly flowed into the royal treasury.

7. Among the royal revenues must be reckoned the tribute

* 1 Chron. xxvii. 28.

1 Sam. viii. 12, 16.

|| 1 Chron. xxvii. 29–31.

+1 Sam. viii. 14. xxii. 7.

1 Kings v. 17, 18.

2 Sam. viii. iii. 12.

paid by conquered nations. These are often mentioned under the name of gifts.*

8. Commerce. Solomon discovered a new source of royal revenue, which must have been very productive. He engaged in an extensive and lucrative foreign commerce, trading chiefly in gold, silver, precious stones, spices, linen, and horses.+

CHAPTER V.

The Hebrew Senate.

THIS was another department of the Hebrew government, and one of the bonds of union between the tribes of Israel. The study of this part of the constitution is not without its difficulty. The persons composing the senatorial council, the powers vested in it, and the functions discharged by it, are points involved in no little obscurity. All the information, which I find in the sacred books, touching this subject, is embodied in the present chapter.

According to the Hebrew polity, as we have seen, every tribe, and even every city, had its senate of princes, or elders, as well as a more popular assembly. Some such institution seems to be essential in every well-balanced government. A council of sages, venerable on account of their age, wisdom, and dignity, is necessary to check the rashness and haste of popular assemblies. Accordingly, we find, that free govern ments have always had senates of some kind, to balance the power of the people, to prepare matters of public business, and

* 1 Kings iv 21. Ps. lxxii. 10. 2 Sam. viii. 6. +1 Kings x. B. 2. C. 3.

to propose measures of state, in some degree of maturity, for the action of the more popular branch of the government.* That the commonwealth of Israel had a council of this sort, does not admit of a reasonabla doubt. This is rendered certain by the frequent mention in the Hebrew history of the princes and elders of Israel, and the distinction, many times made, between the princes and the congregation. We are now to inquire when this body was instituted, what it was, and how long it continued.

Bertram has well observed, that the number of seventy elders, appointed by the law of God, was not so much a new institution, as the continuation of a former usage; as God rather confirmed than new instituted many things at Mount Sinai, which were ancient customs of the fathers. Bishop Sherlock also takes notice, "that every tribe had its own princes and judges," even while they yet remained in Egypt. When Moses was first sent to the children of Israel, to inform them, that Jehovah had visited them, and seen what was done unto them in Egypt, he was commanded to gather the elders of Israel together, and deliver the message to them. This direction was punctually followed, for it is said: "Moses and Aaron went and gathered the elders of the children of Israel." It is a material observation here, that, besides the princes of tribes, explicit mention is made, in the same period of the Hebrew history, of the heads of families, or clans. Of these, as we learn from a subsequent part of the history,** there were fifty-eight, who, being added to the twelve princes of the tribes, make up the number seventy.

There is little doubt, that, even before the exodus of Israel out of Egypt, these chiefs of tribes and heads of clans formed. a council of state, a kind of provisional senate. They were