Many have conceived that the theatre of this important legacy to man was Mount Sinai. But it is observable, that previously to the arrival of the Israelites at Mount Sinai, Scripture makes mention of writing as an art already understood by Moses: “And the Lord said unto Moses, _write_ this for a memorial.” (Exodus, 17th ch. 14th v.) Now, Moses seems to have expressed no difficulty of comprehension when he received this command, nor does anything appear to induce the slightest doubt; on the contrary, I think we may safely conclude that Moses was even then well acquainted with the art of writing, or otherwise he would have been instructed by God, as in the case of Noah, when he was required to build the Ark. And further, we find that Moses wrote all the words, and all the judgments of the Lord, contained in the twenty-first and two following chapters of the Book of Exodus, before the two written tables of stone were even so much as promised. The delivery of the tables is not mentioned till the 18th verse of the 31st chapter, after God had made an end of communing with him upon the mount. Nevertheless, I am not prepared to dispute the probability of a divine origin to so wonderful a medium, any more than I am disposed to question the possibility of its resulting merely from what Aristotle terms the Faculty of Imitation; for which, says he, men are so remarkable, even in an uncivilized state. I pass by all questions of the kind, satisfied for the present with the simple fact, that such medium does exist; that through it we become, as it were, introduced to the multitudinous throng of a world’s tenantry, while we thus learn their words, works, and ways, their History, Literature, and Arts, their Science, and Theology; and while even the mummy, recovered from the subterranean recesses of the Egyptian pyramids, may still be said to talk with us, by virtue of the roll of papyrus and its pictured inscription which he holds in his hand; Writing’s art, which like a sovereign queen, Amongst her subject sciences is seen; As she in dignity the rest transcends, So far her power of good, and harm extends. In the earliest ages of mankind, very simple means were necessarily adopted, to preserve the remembrance of any important event. During many centuries, tradition, perhaps solely, served to represent that, which in recent times has been more completely effected by the introduction of printing.