The phœnix, sacred to Osiris, I shall by and by speak of, and the white and saffron-colored cock, sacred to, and sacrificed in, the Temple of Anubis. Certain fishes are also held sacred by this extraordinary people, who convert every thing into gods. The oxyrhincus, the eel, the lepidotus, and others are sacred, and at Thebes are embalmed by the priests. The scorpion is an emblem of the goddess Selk, the frog of Pthah, and the unwieldy crocodile sacred to the god Savak--a barbarous deity. Serpents having human heads, and also hawk's and lion's heads, were sculptured along the frieze of this pantheon, intermingled with figures of nearly all the above sacred animals. On the abacus of each column was sculptured the scarabæus--the sacred beetle--consecrated to Pthah, and adopted as an emblem of the world; also the type of the god Hor-hat, the Good Genius of Egypt, whose emblem is a sun supported by two winged asps encircling it. Flies, ichneumons, and bees, with many other insects and animals, are represented in the sculptures, but are not sacred. Even vegetables do not escape the service of their religion. The persea is sacred to Athor; the ivy to Osiris, and much made use of at his festivals; the feathery tamarisk is also sacred to this deity; and the peach and papyrus are supposed to be sacred, or at least used, for religious purposes. Contrary to the opinion I formed when I first came into Egypt, the onion, leek, and garlic are not sacred. The pomegranate, vine, and acanthus are used for sacred rites, and the sycamore-fig is sacred to Netpe. The lotus, the favorite object of imitation in all temple-sculpture, is sacred to, and the emblem of, the most ancient god of Egypt, whom the priests call Nofiratmoosis--a name wholly new to me among the deities;--but it is also clearly a favorite emblem of Osiris, being found profusely sculptured on all his temples. Lastly, the palm-branch is a symbol of astrology and type of the year, and conspicuous among the offerings made to the gods. Now, my dear mother, can you wonder at Prince Remeses--that a man of his learning, intellect, sensibility, and sound judgment, should turn away from these thousand contemptible gods of Egypt, to seek a purer faith and worship, and that he should wish to give his people a more elevating and spiritual religion? Divisions and subdivisions have here reached their climax, and the Egyptians who worship God in every thing may be said to have ceased to worship him at all! What was on the fourth side of the great square, of which the lake, the grove, and the pantheon composed three, was the central and great Temple of Apis in Lower Egypt. In my next letter I will describe my visit to it. I am at present a guest of the high-priest of the temple, and hence the date of my letter at Memphis. Your affectionate son, SESOSTRIS. LETTER XIV. THE PALACE OF THE PRIEST OF APIS. MY DEAR MOTHER: