102 
win Sands, .or any other undertaking 
conduciye to the public good, and their 
ptivate interests, We haye no business 
with their religion—that is manifestly a 
matter between God and themselves : 
while, a8 wise men and sound. politi- 
clans, 1E is for us to encourage them to 
amass their monics, by. honourable 
0 ; if i . 
eans,.. When generously confided in, 
and kindly protected, they would be- 
come better subjects and better men; 
and we Christians might, generally 
speaking, take a lesson from them, if 
not now even, in the article of common 
honesty. W.B, 
re ooo 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine, 
Sir: 
iT SHALL feel greatly obliged to any 
reader of your valuable miscellany, 
who. will inform me whether, and by 
whom, the inquiry into the nature of 
particles, in the English or any other 
language, so admirably begun by Mr. 
Horne Tooke, has been continued, 
either in a dictionary or otherwise. 
PHILOLOGUS. 
[Weare not aware that the important 
inquiry alluded to has since been regu- 
larly prosecuted, either in. our own or 
any other language. We should be as 
happy as our correspondent could be, to 
see it pushed to its practical extent ; 
as it is only by tracing these minor (as 
they iter but comprehensively signi- 
ficant, fragments of conventional speech 
to their primary roots, in now chiefly 
obsolete nouns and verbs, that a complete 
grammatical apprehension of our language 
can be acquired, or its expressive energies 
wielded with a master-skill.. The style of 
any writer'is only nervous and complete in 
proportion. to the depth of his feeling of the 
technically occult signification and powers 
of these fugitive remains of the olden 
tongue :—/feeling, we say, as opposed to 
technical knowledge of their signification ; 
and we call that signification occult ; for in 
idiomatic speech and composition, the most 
Yearned (even of those few who can be said 
to be learned in their vernacular tongue) 
are frequently obliged to depend much 
more upon habitual: feeling in this respect, 
than upon the assurance of etymological 
definition. Even the primitive derivation, 
and consequent significant power, of the 
specifying article Zhe, has never yet been 
satisfactorily defined or illustrated—and the 
consequent frequent abuse and perplexing 
misapplication of it might be demonstrated 
by a critical analysis of title-pages alone. 
We should be obliged by any communi- 
cations, whether of original discoveries, or 
collections from works*in, which any inge- 
nious or erudite explanations may, inciden- 
tally have been scattered upon the general 
subject into which Philologus inquires.— 
Epi. | : 
Inquiry on Particles. 
(Sept. 1, 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
A Purvosorntcat Revirw of the Cua- 
“RAcTER and DoctTRINE DESCARTES. 
A® the. political world is, divided into 
many parties O©..S@cts ;))80,,also, 
the realm of thought has, .in,its.varions 
divisions, crowds .of. upholders, ..who, 
seeking to support their own. particular 
views, endeavour to, avail themselves, of 
the authority of some great name z, and, 
in fact, the learned, world, too, has,jts 
blind masses, which need. the; direction 
of skilful and active leaders, lest they 
should fall into that dull inertness which 
draws upon them the odium of such esti+’ 
mation. Each sect ranges itself, as,it 
were, under the banners. of, its,own 
chief, and obeys the impulse alone which 
he has given: and, thus, it frequently 
happens, in this regard, as also in mat- 
ters of religion, that the most. dissen- 
tient are not the most independent... . 
There are men who, calling ,them- 
selves philosophers, disdaining the vul- 
gar evidence of reality, seek to. clothe 
themselves in impenetrable clouds, and 
to be subtly enveloped in obscurity,and 
mystery. While man and the universe 
are under their control, they think the 
grand objects of science cannot be un- 
derstood, without advancing towards an 
order of ideas which they regardas so yast 
and profound, as to be placed aboye or 
beyond the sphere of human ken, , Pro- 
ceeding thus by jumps and sudden starts, 
veiled in pompous words, and incontes- 
table, because incomprehensible,. prin- 
ciples, it may truly be said, that, they 
endeavour, upon the shoulders of, igno- 
rance, to arrive at knowledge ;.and) to 
attain the goal of earthly wisdom, by 
taking, for their starting-post, the hig lest 
vault of the star-gemmed firmament, ., . 
It will be perceived, that this species 
of philosophy cannot. be uuhesitatingly 
addressed to the reason, of mankind at 
large; it has,, therefore, more.peculiar 
need of the assistance of eminent, and 
unquestioned authority ; to, the;end 
that adepts, who, restrained. within:..the 
limits of common sense, can, only, be- 
lieve, may, also, at leastknow that there 
are “ men of mighty name,” who-haye 
undertaken to think for them., In short, 
they principally avail themselyes: of the 
names of Plato and of, Proclus, among 
the ancients; of Descartes and of. Kant, 
among the moderns. and, surely, these 
may well inspire confidence,in the;most 
timid. But may it not be askedCan 
the name. of , Descartes,.be, seriously 
ranked with those that are at the head 
-of this school ? 
Nothing 
