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

2o6 THE GENUIN£ HISTORY OF
rally fettled In Afia under the denomination of
their anceftors, and even retained the name when
their anceftors had refigned it for another : but,
as the Caledonians appear not to have originally
poffelTed the appellation of Scots, fo they aftually
obtained it fome centuries after the Irifh. Thefe
are the two eifential points upon which the par-
allel was to run. But it grofsly fails in both.
And Mr. Macpherfon himfelf acknowledges it to
fail, allowing " the colony and their anceflors in
*' Greece, for a feries of ages," to have been
** called lonians," and yet confeffing " the coun-
*' try of the Irifh to have received the name of
** Scottia fome centuries before it was appro-
*' printed to Caledonia."
This argument therefore is of no moment.
And the ufe that has been made of liidore's au-
thority Hands unimpeached. But the author has
made one or two miftakes in the argument, which
it may be proper to reftify.
Mr. Macpherfon reafons, not u[x)n the national
appellation of Scoti or Scots, but on the terri-
torial denomination of Scotia, as if the latter was
different from the former, and as if his argument
derived a greater weight from this dirc6>ion of it.
" Ifidore — fays that — Ireland was indifcrimi-
** nately called Scottia and Hibernia.—We iliall
" not difpute with the Irifh that their country
" received the name of Scottia fome centuries,
** before