st of the land
of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord. And IT shall
be for a SIGN and for a WITNESS unto the Lord of hosts in the land of
Egypt."
The word translated pillar is from the Hebrew word Matzaybhah, and means
a large structure--some monument that is pre-eminent. The Hebrew word
Ammood is translated pillar also, and corresponds to the English word
pillar much better.
The word _altar_, in Hebrew, means lion, carrying with it the same
meaning as pre-eminence. And is not this Pyramid preeminent? and is it
not the lion of monuments, pre-eminent as being the oldest, pre-eminent
as being the highest, pre-eminent as being the largest, pre-eminent in
location--being _central_ to all the land surface of the earth,
pre-eminent in construction, unlike any other buildings, except such as
have been modelled after it, pre-eminent in orientation--that is, being
exactly East, North, West and South.
Perfect orientation men in past ages and countries have tried to express
in temples, churches, observatories, and monuments, yet none have
succeeded so well as the Pyramid builders.
The famous Uranibourg Observatory, built by aid of the European
Governments, under the skilful supervision of the learned Tycho Brahe,
was found to be five minutes of a degree askew in its orientation when
finished.
A few years ago our Government determined to have one perfect point of
orientation, fixing upon Mount Agamenticus in the State of Maine. They,
at a great cost, and time, and labour, concluded their work, and found
they were in error somewhere about the four-hundredth part of a second;
although they tried to solve the problem by three distinct
processes--namely, differences of zenith distance, absolute zenith
distances, and by transits in prime vertical.
How then came these ancient architects so early in the world's history
and progress to build so skilfully? How were they able some 4,000 years
ago to find the poles, and determine the latitude and longitude so
precisely? Answer, ye godless scientists, and tell us how these
monkey-men were so skilled. How did they know without your instruments
and instruction which parallel of latitude to choose so as to be on that
line which would mark the half-way of the world's surface between the
equator and the poles?
And why did they lay bare and make smooth the lime-stone table rock on
which they built close to its Northern edge? Why press so closely to the
brin
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