Of Alphahetlcal Characters. 305 



Ao'ain: Where large communities have flou- 

 rifhed for ages, buc unconnefted with thofe 

 countries, which enjoyed this advantage, their 

 own folitary exertions were never capable of 

 efFedting this capital difcovery. Is it polTible 

 for prefumptive evidence to be more fatisfaclory 

 than this ? 



IV. Laftly, We will confider the argument, 

 upon which the commonly received fuppofition 

 entirely depends : that is, the natural gradation 

 through the feveral fpecies of fymbols, acknow- 

 ledged to have been in ufe with various people, 

 terminating, at laft, by an eafy tranfition, in the 

 deteftion of alphabetical charaElers. I cannot fee 

 this regularity of procefs, this eafe of tranfition, 

 fo clearly as feme others appear to doj but let 

 every one determine for himfelf from the con- 

 templation of the feveral ffcages of emblematical 

 reprefentation. 



1. The firft method of embodying ideas, would 

 be, by drawing a reprefentation of the objects 

 themfelvcs. 1 he imperfeiftion of this method is 

 very obvious, both on account of its tedioufnefs, 

 and its inability of going, beyond external ap- 

 pearances, to the abftradl ideas of the mind. 



2. The next method would be fomewhat more 

 general, and would fubflitute two or three prin- 

 cipal circumftances for the whole tranfaclion. So 

 two kings, for example, engaging each other 

 with military weapons, might ferve to convey 



Vol. II. X the 



