Page 42.—_Egypt abounds with horses._] The horse appears to have been used by the Egyptians long before it was common among the Jews, or even the Arabians, though Arabia has been supposed to be the native country of this animal. Horses formed no part of the riches of the patriarchs: it is only in connection with Egypt that we find them mentioned in early Scripture history. See Mich. Mos. Law § 166, and Appendix. It was forbidden the Israelites to breed many horses, (Deut. xvii. 16.) a mountainous country being indeed ill adapted for this purpose. Solomon, when he married the daughter of Pharaoh, in violation of this law, procured horses from Egypt, (1 Kings x. 28, 29. 2 Chron. i. 16, 17.) and even carried on a traffic in them. And when Zedekiah (Ezek. xvii. 15.) is about to rebel, he sends to Egypt for cavalry. It is true that the Egyptian horses do not appear to have been highly valued for their qualities by the Greeks and Romans; and that Egypt is never mentioned by those who have treated of the places in which this animal is found in the greatest perfection. See Bochart Hierozoicön, ii. 9. Yet, even in later times, when the great increase of canals had both lessened the necessity for the employment of horses, and had made the use of them difficult, (Herod. ii.) we find from Appian that the Ptolemies kept on foot 40,000 cavalry, Rom. Hist. Præf. 10. Page 43.—_Sabbath-day’s journey._] In the remainder of his work the author generally uses the sabbath-day’s journey as equivalent to somewhere about three quarters of an English mile.