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

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THE BRITONS ASSERTED. 21<br />

*^ <strong>of</strong> Italy (Umbrorum gens antiqulffima Itallae<br />

" exiftimatur. Plin. lib. iii. Umbri antiquilTimus<br />

" Italics populus. Flor. lib. i.), were <strong>the</strong> p<strong>of</strong>terity<br />

'* <strong>of</strong> Gauls who penetrated into that country<br />

" long before <strong>the</strong> commencement <strong>of</strong> hiflory<br />

*' (Bocchus abfolvit Gallorum veterum propagi-<br />

*' nem Umbros effe. Solin. lib. viii. Umbri prima<br />

*' veterum Galloruni proles. Auguft. in Sem-<br />

* pron. Umbros veterum Gallorum effe propa-<br />

** ginem Marcus Antonius refert. Servius in<br />

** iEneid. xii.). We may naturally fupp<strong>of</strong>e that<br />

" <strong>the</strong> Gauls <strong>of</strong> Belgium would have found lefs<br />

" difficulty in cr<strong>of</strong>fing a very narrow channel into<br />

*' Britain than <strong>the</strong>ir countrymen at <strong>the</strong> foot <strong>of</strong><br />

** <strong>the</strong> Alps in clambering, with <strong>the</strong>ir wives and<br />

" children, over <strong>the</strong> vaft ridge <strong>of</strong> mountains<br />

*' which feparated <strong>the</strong>m from Italy. It may<br />

** <strong>the</strong>refore be concluded, that Britain received<br />

** very confiderable colonies from <strong>the</strong> Belgic di-<br />

" vifion <strong>of</strong> Gaul as early, at lead, as <strong>the</strong> Gael <strong>of</strong><br />

" <strong>the</strong> Alpin regions feized upon Italy under <strong>the</strong><br />

*' name <strong>of</strong> Umbri."<br />

In <strong>the</strong>fe palTages are contained two affertionS<br />

concerning <strong>the</strong> firft population <strong>of</strong> Britain, one<br />

urged as probably true, and <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r produced<br />

as certainly fo. According to <strong>the</strong> former, <strong>the</strong><br />

natives <strong>of</strong> Gaul fettled in Italy, under <strong>the</strong> name <strong>of</strong><br />

Umbri, long before <strong>the</strong> commencement <strong>of</strong> hiflo-<br />

ry, and may <strong>the</strong>refore be concluded to have tranf-<br />

ported <strong>the</strong>mfelv^s as early into Britain. And <strong>the</strong><br />

C 3<br />

latter

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