250 An Essay on the Signs of Ideas. 
Written words, it may, for the sake of. pre- 
cision, be observed, are merely the representa- 
tives of spoken words; and therefore, except 
in some certain respects, arising from the ne- 
cessary imperfections of written language, 
no distinction is required between them. 
It is by no means my intention, I may be 
allowed to remark, to enter, at present, into 
the general theory of language. That is the 
province of thegrammarian. My only object, 
on this occasion, is, toshow in what way words 
may be considered as competent to express 
ideas, and in what respects they are defi- 
cient. 
It is a common opinion, and a very fre- 
quent remark, that the use of words is to 
communicate ideas. Aristotle called them 
raSnnarwv cuuCore, that is, the symbols or images 
of feelings, or, as the more usual expression is, 
the signs of ideas.. That they are intended to 
be such, cannot be doubted ; and they may, on 
somé occasions perhaps, sufficiently answer the 
intention ; but, there can be little doubt, that, 
in a great number of instances, they fall far 
short of accomplishing the end. From not 
sufficiently considering this important fact, 
much error, and much fraud, pass every day 
unnoticed, and unsuspected, mankind are de- — 
ceived by words, and bow the knee to sounds 
