Page:The spirit of the Hebrew poetry 1861.djvu/117

 result equally significant, we think more so, as evidence of what may be called the picturesque or the poetic copiousness of this ancient language; and in a note at the end of the volume the reader who may wish to pursue the suggestions here thrown out will find some further aid in doing so.

The conclusion with which we are here concerned is this—That, whereas the ancient Palestine was a land richly furnished with the materials of a metaphoric and poetic literature, so were the people of a temperament and of habitudes such as made them vividly conscious of the distinctive features of the material world, as these were presented to them in their every-day life abroad. As proof sufficient of these averments we appeal, first, to the obvious characteristics of their extant literature; and then, to the fact of the richness, and the copiousness, and the picturesque distinctiveness of their language, which in these respects well bears comparison with other languages, ancient or modern.