The genuine history of the Britons asserted against Mr. Macpherson ...

THE BRITONS ASSERTED. 161
founded upon very different authorities. The
former refts folely on the credit of writers that
never exifted, and on the authority of records
that were written fome ages before the ufe of
Letters was known in the ifland. The latter is
grounded upon the teftimony of writers a£lualiy
or nearly cotemporary with the facls, on'hiflo-
ries of the beft credit, and on records of the
greateft authenticity, Bede, Oroiius, and others.
And this our author fufficiently aclcnowledges
hereafter. In p. no he fays, that " tlie abet-
*• tors of the Hibernian Antiquities, finding that
*' the credit of the domeftic annals of Ireland
*^ could never eftablilh this fact, had recourfe
" to fome palTages of foreign writers.'* The
Hibernian extraftion of the Scots therefore, ac-
cording to Mr. Macpherfon himfelf, does 7iot
*' depend upon the fame authority" with the
Milefian tale, and muft: not " fall by the fame
*' argument." It is fixed, according to himfelf,
upon the additional teftimonies of " foreign
" writers ;" and it mufl be overthrown by a re-
ply to them. And he accordingly cites the
authority of Claudian, Orofius, Ifidore, and
Bede for it, in p. 105, iii, 116, &c., and
fpends various pages in anfwering them. So
little does the author fcem to have had a full
view of his plan, as he proceeded in the work ;
and fo little does he feera to have looke4
M back