Dale

(Antonius van), Dutch writer, b. Haarlem, 8 Nov. 1638. His work on oracles was erudite but lumbersome, and to it Fontenelle gave the charm of style. It was translated into English by Mrs. Aphra Behn, under the title of The History of Oracles and the Cheats of Pagan Priests , 1699. Van Dale, in another work on The Origin and Progre of Idolatry and Superstition , applied the historical method to his subject, and showed that the belief in demons was as old and as extensive as the human race. He died at Haarlem, 28 Nov. 1708.