DIALOGUE ON THE SOUTH DEVON MUSEUM. 11 



covered the way to make one of our threshing ma- 

 chines, therefore we ought to rub the corn in our 

 hands or beat it out with a stick. Or because the 

 good folks of ancient times, who used to communi- 

 cate their ideas, as well as they could, by what was 

 called " picture writing " did not at once succeed in 

 forming an alphabet, but got only half way, i. e. to 

 the use of heiroglyphics^, therefore we ought to lay 

 aside our " A, B, C," and draw pictures like the old 

 Egyptians. 



D. No, No ! that 's going too far. I only mean 

 to say that the inhabitants of Plymouth are not suf- 

 ficiently intellectual to support a monthly magazine. 



E. Then Plymouth is much farther behind all 

 the rest of the kingdom in " the march of Intellect/' 

 than I had suspected. Yet I cannot imagine but 

 that you will find your assertion to be not quite cor- 

 rect. Just think of 32,000 individuals not able to 



support a little magazine ! that the intellect of 



a thousand of our towns-folk should not be sufficient 

 for the mighty work of filling a page, or a page and 

 half in a month. 



D. I suppose there are persons enough in the 

 town who could write much more than sufficient for 

 such a work if they chose, but the question is, will 

 they do it ? 



E. I 'm glad you find it necessary to shift your 



ground ; that you admit the possibility of the 



thing and doubt only its probability. 



D. I do, indeed, think it exceedingly improbable, 

 yet still do n't imagine but that I should like very 

 well to see a respectable work issuing monthly from 

 a Plymouth press. I shall look forward to it perhaps 

 with as much interest as yourself. 



E. But do n't you see, my good Sir, that if 



all men were doubters like you, there never would 



* It is true that the Hieroglyphics are sometimes called picture 

 writing; but simple picture writing was in use long before the 

 invention of what are properly called hieroglyphics. See The. 

 Abbe Millot's Ancient History, Vol. i. /?. 54, 



