Chap. I. A N T I E N T M £ T A P H Y S I C S. 117 



kind to be feeii at this day iii Egypt, that they muft have come from 

 the fame country*. 



All the beauty and variety of the found of language, which I have 

 mentioned, could not have been difcovercd, if language had not been 

 firft analyfed into its elemental founds. This I believe was done before 

 thefe elemental founds got a form, which made them vifible to the eye; 

 that is to fay, before alphabetical charaders and writing was invented j 

 which compleated the art of language, by making it fpeak, not only 

 to thofe who are prefent but to the abfent, and even to future ge- 

 nerations f- 



But, befides all the variety I have mentioned, there is ftill fome- 

 thing wanting to make a language of perfe£l art ; and that is melo- 

 dy and rhythm, which make the mufic of language, and, I believe, 

 where they were governed by art, as they were among the C reeks, 

 added more to the pleafure of the ear than all the things 1 have men- 

 tioned J. Of thefe I have treated very fully elfewhere § ; and I 

 will only add here, that as in animal cries there is a variety of 

 founds, differing in tones as well as in length, it was very natural 

 that there (liculd be the fame variety in language, which fucceeded 

 to thofe cries, and may be faid to have been formed out of them by 

 being articulated ; and, accordingly, the mod antient languages 

 have all, as i have obferved, that variety. — And thus I have finilbed 

 what 1 have to fay of ihe Jo uniJ, or material part, as I call it, of lan- 

 guage ; which 1 have analyfed into Articulation, Meloily, and 

 Rhythm. 



Bus 



* Vol. II. of Origin of Language, p. 438. 



f See more of this fubjeft in vol. II. of Origin of Language, book IL chap. II. 

 % See what I ha»e faid upon this fubjccl, vol. VI. Oiigin of Lano-uage, book H.. 

 chap. IV. and vol. II. 



f Vol. II. of Origin of Linguagc, p. 226. anil 227. 



