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ters. At moft it could not be the Roman alphabet that was altered; but if any it muft have been the Greek, for Ulphilas was at that time in a country where the Greek language was fpoken. Nor is it dif- ficult to difcover what it was that led hifto- rians into the miſtake of fuppofing Ul- philas to have been the inventor of thefe characters. The Greeks had probably never heard any mention of them before he came among them: The introducer of a novelty eafily paffes for the author of it; and when we compare the Runic letters, taken from the infcriptions fcattered up and down on the rocks in the North, with the alphabet of Ulphilas, it is eafy to fee that the bishop has added diverfe characters un- known to the ancient Scandinavians. It was doubtlefs the tranflation of the Bible which obliged him to make thefe addi- tions. The ancient alphabet being com- pofed only of fixteen letters[1], could not exprefs many founds foreign to the Gothic language, that neceffarily occurred in that work. Thefe additional letters might ea- fily confer on Ulphilas the credit of invent- ing the whole. This is one of thofe in- accuracies which every day happen. It is no lefs probable that before Ulphilas, the
- ↑ Verel. Runogr. Scand. cap. vii.
