(7) into the contraction (s) in the word Acolatys, writing it contractedly Azarns, and finally using the said contraction 5, as if it were the ez

or cypher s', for each LETTER must be taken SEPARATELY and NOT contractedly, in calculating words or names, according to all Greek authorities extant, and the example of Irenæus ; and to depart from this established custom or rule approaches nearly, in my opinion, to an impeachment of God's perfect word. For if such spurious orthography, etymology, homogeneity, &c. as Mr. Faber has introduced on the present subject, be allowed to pass current for orthodoxy, whilst Irenæus is overlooked in silent contempt; the result must be that there will be an END to all ancient authorities and established rules of calculating Greek NAMES, words, &c. although there must have existed some known and standard ruLE, as well in the time of St. John as of Irenæus, or why has the Apostle furnished us with the sacred number x§s', 666, and exhorted us to "COUNT the NUMBER?"

I will readily admit that there is a legitimate propriety in using the μ Fav, or cyphers' to denote the number 6, in unison with the 24 LETTERS of the Greek Alphabet, when calculating NUMBERS, but NEVER when calculating the NAMES of MEN, nor even WORDS of any description; and I say so for this plain and obvious reason—that an emoμ, or cypher, is no LETTER or LETTERS; or why should it be designated by Greek grammarians επίσημον Ταν, oι επίσημον only? It were useless to have given this character or cypher a distinct appellation and form, if it were

not for a specific use; and not to preserve this distinction is to introduce confusion among the 24 Greek LETTERS, the THREE on, and the general Greek

CONTRACTIONS or LIGATURES.

I will also admit that one form of the επισημον Ταν, or cyphers, bears a singular resemblance to the form of the regular contraction of sigma and tau, or s; but this is likewise the case with the CYPHER nought 0 and the LETTER O, in the English language; yet it would be preposterous to admit that because the Greek or English characters before mentioned resembled each other in form and appearance, that, therefore, they must be synonymous with each other, which is contrary to FACT; because they were originally designated by different appellations, which they retain to the present day. Mr. Faber must therefore search into the Records of Antiquity to disprove the existence of such a truism. until it is settled beyond dispute that the aforesaid

And

σμ or cypher s' is synonymous with the regular Greek contractions (or 7); or that it may be orthographically and numerically used as the representative of sigma and tau, when written CONTRACTEDLY, there must ever remain an ambiguity on the subject; for it is most obvious from all Greek grammarians and lexicographers who have noticed this stenographical cyphers', that, whatever resemblance it may bear to the Greek contractions, the former has a peculiar definite situation and appellation allotted to it, in order to distinguish its numerical Use, Form, Name, and Locality, as well from that of the CONTRAC

TION 5, as from the regular LETTERS of the Greek Alphabet, among which the episèmon s' has no positive station, neither has it any place whatsoever among the stenographical contractions or ligatures of the Greek Letters, of which there are very manyand when the μ Fav is used in unison with the 24 Greek Letters of the Alphabet, to denote the Number 6, then it is immediately placed between € and in the numerical space occasioned by the absence of the obsolete Æolic Di-gamma, which was anciently used to express the Number 6, but the LOCALITY of which was FAR ENOUGH REMOVED from sigma and tau. Therefore, until this ambiguity is cleared up, Arosaтns can never, by the spurious and unorthodox use of the episèmon s', as if it were the numerical representative of the contraction 5, produce the genuine Number 666. Consequently, after all the pains and labour which Mr. Faber has taken, which are certainly very great, in order to confirm the use of the word Apostatès as the supposed figuratively impressed name of the numbered Beast or Man, it is most unequivocally true that Mr. Faber's ORTHOGRAPHY, ETYMOLOGY, HOMOGENEITY, &c. are infinitely more objectionable than those of Irenæus, whose testimony he has so complacently rejected for the word APOSTATÈS is not only erroneous because of a necessary HIATUS produced on the one hand by the spurious introduction and use of the episèmon s'; and a redundancy of numbers, occasioned by the calculating of the individual Letters of the word on the other: but the word itself, which is

certainly not the NAME of any MAN, admits of far too general an application to any lapsed church or schism, which is in a state of Apostacy from the Faith, (añola The sews) though totally distinct from, and unconnected with the Roman or LATIN Church, of which I shall give sundry examples hereafter, leaving it to the candour of Mr. Faber and my other Readers, to judge whether there be sufficient force in my Remarks.

CHAPTER IV.

FURTHER OBSERVATIONS ON THE NUMERICAL CYPHER

DENOMINATED F, OR V, OR G, OR s', as USED TO DENOTE THE NUMBER 6, AND TO SUPPLY

THE

VACUUM OCCASIONED BY THE ABSENCE OF

THE OBSOLETE ÆOLIC DI-GAMMA.

I SHALL now proceed more particularly to point out the marked and necessary distinction existing between the eminuo Fav, or stenographical cypher s', and the contraction or ligature of sigma and tau, s.

In truth, I cannot imagine any thing more preposterous than an attempt made, in this age to prove that an μ or stenographical CYPHER, OF INDEFINITE CHARACTER may be ORTHOGRAPHICALLY used as the legitimate representative of TWO DISTINCT LETTERS of the Greek Alphabet in the formation of the NAME of a MAN, or indeed of any word, words, or sentences, which are simply composed of LETTErs, unless it be first of all admitted that the said