Oiap. I. A N T I E N T M E T A P H Y S T C S. 113 



and X *. 2do, This makes the found of thofe languages very vo- 

 cal, confifting of many fyllabks of only one vowel. 3/io, When 

 they ufe confonants, they feidom ufe more than one of them in the 

 fame fyllable ; fo that when two confonants happen to ftand toge- 

 ther in the fame word, they divide them in the pronunciation in- 

 to different fyliables. Thus in the Peruvian language, they pro- 

 nounce Roc-ro not Ro cro'f. For to ufe more, would be to join to- 

 gether different adions of feveral organs of fpeech, which make a 

 difficult pronunciation, and indeed impoflibie to favages who are 

 not accuflomed to it : Whereas, in languages of more art, four 

 or moie confonants are founded together in the fame fyllable, as 

 in the Greek words, trpuyi and <?>Xo|, and the Engiilh wordj 

 Jlrength ; where the adion of the different organs is fo complicated, 

 (more complicated ilian any adion of our hands, or any other mem- 

 ber of our body,) that, I am perfuaded, no favage, unlefs he was 

 taught when young, could ever learn to pronounce thefe words. In 

 order to give a variety to their language, which they want by hav- 

 ing fo few confonants, and by not making fo much ufe of thofe they 

 have as they might do, they often repeat in the fame word the 

 fame fyllable, confifting only of one vowel, as in the name of a 

 Lady of Ottaheite, Othea-Othea : And indeed, in a language fo 

 vocal as theirs, they could hardly, without fuch a repetition, diflin- 

 guilh the feveral words from one another. 



There is another peculiarity of the barbarous languages, I mean 



the extraordinary length of their words, but which is derived from 



another fource, namely, that language was originally formed out of a- 



nimal cries J, which have all a confiderable length; fo that the language 



Vol. IV. P of 



* Vol. I. of Origin of Language, 2d edition, p. 505. 



t Ibid. 



t Ibid. Book III. Chap. IV. 



