is in which all its spirit and force consists. It is this strong
antithesis, this painfully marked contrast between the two states of
_each, body_ and _spirit_, which displays the power and skill of the
poet in handling the subject. Without it, the passage loses half its
meaning.

MR. HICKSON will not, I hope, accuse one who is no critic for presuming
to offer this suggestion. I tender it with diffidence, being conscious
that, although a passionate admirer of the great bard, I am all
unlearned in the art of criticism, "a plain unlettered man," and
therefore simply take what is set before me in its natural sense, as
well as I may, without searching for recondite interpretations. On this
account, I feel doubly the necessity of apologising for interfering with
the labours of so learned and able a commentator as MR. HICKSON has
shown himself to be.

L.B.L.

* * * * *

VENTRILOQUISM

(Vol. ii., p. 88.)

Plutarch (tom. ii., p. 397.D.) has these words:

[Greek: "Ou gar esti theou hae gaerus oude ho phthoggos, oude he
lexis, oude to metron, alla taes yunaikos: ekeinos de monas tas
phantasias paristaesi, kau phos en tae psuchae poiei pros to
mellon."]

If that be the passage referred to be Rollin, nothing is said there
about ventriloquism. The Scholiast on Aristoph. (_Plut._ 39.) tells us
how the Pythian received the _afflatus_, but says nothing about her
_speaking_ from her belly: He only has

[Greek: "Ta taes manteias hae mallon manias ephtheggeto
hraemata."]

In another place of Plutarch (tom. ii., p. 414. E.) we have [Greek:
eggastrimuthoi] and [Greek: puthones] used as synonymous words to
express persons into whose bodies the god might be supposed to enter,
"using their {235} bodies and voices as instruments." The only word in
that passage which appears to hint at what we call ventriloquism is
[Greek: hupophtheggesthai].

I have very little doubt that amongst the various tricks of ancient
divination ventriloquism found a place; but I cannot give that direct
evidence which MR. SANSOM asks for. I think it very likely that "_the
wizards that peep and mutter_" (Isa. viii. 19.) were of this class; but
it is not clear that the [Hebrew: 'obot]--the [Greek eggastrimuthoi] of
the LXX.--were so. The English version has "them that have familiar
spirits." The Hebrew word signifies _bottles_; and this may mean no more
than that the spirit of divination was contained