Brinton.] °^ [Oct. 2, 



In his thesis, which received the prize of the Institute of 

 France, in 1835, he was less explicit in his statements, defining 

 the distinguishing trait of the American languages to be " the 

 formation of words, not only by prefixes and suffixes, but by the 

 intercalation, not merely of sjdlables, but of significant simple 

 sounds, by which they can multiply words indefinitelj'."* 



It should be distinctly stated on the part of Mr. Duponceau, 

 that he at no time claimed this as a peculiarity universal to 

 American languages. His mind was of altogether too scientific a 

 cast to venture such a rash generalization. He guards himself 

 repeatedly and with care against being so understood, and re- 

 iterates that his opinion must not be held to extend beyond the 

 tongues he had studied, although he was inclined to believe that 

 all would be found to reveal these characteristics. f 



The incorporative plan — das Einverleibungssystem — of Ameri- 

 can languages attracted early the attention of Wilhelm von 

 Humboldt, and in his monumental treatise, Ueber die Verschie- 

 denheit des menschlichen Sprachbanes und ihren Einfiuss auf 

 die geistige Enhoickelung des Menschengeschlechts, he explains, 

 illustrates, and analyses it at considerable length. In a previous 

 essay I have dwelt in detail on Humboldt's theory of ihe psy- 

 chology of the incorporative system, and shall here confine my- 

 self to his objective description of it.J 



Its purpose he defines to be, " to impress the unit} r of the 

 sentence on the understanding by treating it, not as a whole 

 composed of various words, but as one word."§ 



A perfect tj^pe of incorporation will group all the elements of 

 the sentence in and around the verbal, as this alone is the bond 

 of union between the several ideas. The designation of time 

 and manner, that is, the tense and mode signs, will include both 



* M&moire sur le Systeme Grammatical des Langnes de quelques Nations Tndiennes 

 de VAmerique rfu Nord, p. 247 (Paris, 1S36). 



t Ibid, pp. 07, 436. 



% The Philosophic Grammar of American Languages as set forth by Wilhelm von 

 Humboldt. By Daniel G. Brinton, pp. 24 27 (Philadelphia, 1885). 



(S Ueber die Verschic denheit des Menschlichen Sprachbaues, etc., s. 166. 



