ouetewe’™ 
On an Universal Character. gi 
vided he had been previously acquainted with this art. 
Nor would it be a matter of greater difficulty to 
learn this, than it is at present to learn to read and 
write one’s native language. 
This, you will say is a great discovery; and I 
shall not be surprised if you should think it a 
great gasconade at the same time: yet it is perhaps 
neither the one nor the other in the strict meaning 
of the words. It can lay no claim to the name of 
a discovery, if it be only the application of a princi- 
ple that has been long known, to some very obvious 
particulars that have been hitherto disregarded. 
Nor will it be deemed a gasconade, if I can shew 
that every literary man is in the practice of doing 
this very thing every day without paying attention 
to it.—For example : 
Supposing a stone were to fall from the clouds, 
with the characters 1795 delineated upon it; and 
that stone were to be exhibited to a convention of 
people, consisting of one of each of the nations 
of Europe, they would all read it with equal ease, 
and understand it perfectly. If you asked an Eng- 
lishman what it was, he would answer, one thousand 
seven hundred and ninety-five, and that, it denoted 
the present year of the Christian era. Aska French- 
man, he wouldas readily answer, mil-sept-cent-quatre- 
wingt-quinze. A Spaniatd—a German—a Russ, . 
&c. would each read it in the same manner in his 
own language. Here then is all that I propose ta 
