Page:Ancient and modern history of the Russian Empire.pdf/4

4 by the road to Danzic, Hamburg and Amsterdam, there is not even a hill of any eminence. This observation leaves room to doubt of the truth of that theory, which makes the mountains to have been formed by the rolling of the waves of the sea, and supposes all that is at present dry land, to have been a long time covered with water: But how comes it to pass, that the waves, which, according to the supposition, formed the Alps the Pyrenees and Mount Taurus did not likewise form some eminence or hill from Normandy to China, a space of above 3000 leagues.

Formerly Russia was called Muscory, from the City of Moscow, the ancient capital of that Empire. It is the largest province and most populous of the whole, extending from east to west 2400 miles, Moscow was formerly the residence of the Grand Dukes

The countries from Smolensko to the other side of Moscow, is cal edcalled [sic] white Russia, but Hubner the historian, gives it the name of Black; and the government of Kiow is generally called black Russia.

It is very likely that Madies the Sythean who made an irruption into Asia, near 7000 year, before our vulgar era, might have carried his arms into these regions, as Genzis-Khan and Tamerlane did afterwards andasprobablyand as probably [sic] others had done before Madies. Every part of antiquity is not deserving of our enquiries; that of of [sic] the Chinese, the Indians, the Persians, and the Egyptians, is ascertained from illustrious and interesting monuments; but these