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dialects, and set forth their affinity to foreign tongues in orthgraphy, 

 «ense or sound. 6. Above all, to supply, as much as possible, the 

 defects in preceding works of this nature, with respect to num- 

 berless words, not yet finding a place in any Lexicon hitherto pub- 

 lished.* A Grammar and Dictionary formed upon this system would 

 leave but little to be said or done by future writers on this subject. 



I now proceed to notice the Grammars and Lexicons of the 

 Irish language, with their contents, excellencies and defects. This 

 is done, not with a view to detract from the merits of the authors by 

 exposing faults, but to point out the necessity of an undertaking 

 such as I propose, for the purpose of extending a useful knowledge 

 of our language. An investigation of this kind will tend to shew 

 how much more deeply versed in the subject our original writers 

 liave been than the moderns ; the latter having little more to do than 

 to peruse the works of tlie former, some, perhaps, with a view to stig- 

 matize those patriotic men, and raise a name on the ruin of their 

 memory. But little is the labour or the honour of those who review 

 their works, and even improve on their systems, from the lights 

 which they afford, compared with the toil and learning of the ori- 

 ginals. This is not advanced for the purpose of discouraging use- 

 ful and liberal criticism, than which nothing would be more be- 

 neficial to our native literature. It cannot be supposed that a few 

 essays, written at distant intervals, by exiles labouring under many 

 disadvantages, could restore, or, to the full extent, improve a lan- 

 guage ridiculed, misrepresented and proscribed as that of Ireland has 



* They are to be found in Irish manuscripts treating of history, laws, medicine, romance, 

 poetry, Divinity, ethics, astronomy, &c. The living language of the country, and different species 

 of poetry handed down by tradition to our own time, abound with them. Tliese words, if gleaned 

 and committed to writing, n-ould euricii our language, and prove useful in leading to the 

 etymologies of many, at present unknown or doubtful. 





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