Chap. IX. ANTIENT METAPHYSICS. 151 



other art. This I have maintained in feveral pafllages of this work. 

 But, with refped to the invention of it, I think, there is a diftindion 

 to be made betwixt articulate founds, that is the materials of which 

 language is compofed, and the art by which they are fo put together 

 in words and fentences as to make fpeech and to convey to the hearers 

 our ideas. 



The more I confider language, the more I am convinced, that, 

 though it be the moft common art amongft men, and of much more 

 general ufe than any other art, it is the moft wonderful art pra£tif- 

 ed by men ; and I am perfuaded that every man, who confiders lan- 

 guage as a philofopher, will agree with me. At the fame time, it muft 

 have been invented, as I have faid, in the firft age of civil fociety, and 

 before any other art. In fuch a ftate of man, I am convinced, as I 

 have faid in fundry pafTages of this work, that it could not have been 

 invented without fome fupernatural afli fiance. What diftinguifhes 

 language from every other art invented by man is, that in other arts 

 nature furnifhes the materials of the art, fuch as wood, ftone, me- 

 tals, minerals, and colours, which are the materials of painting : 

 Whereas of language we may be faid to create the materials; for 

 we form the articulate founds of which it is made. That thefe muft 

 have been at firft of moft difficult formation, muft be evident to 

 every man who confiders that language is neceffarily formed from 

 animal cries ; for man was an animal, before he had the ufe of in- 

 telligence or language. Now, let us confider the nature of animal 

 cries, and how different they are from language or fpeech. An 

 animal cry, while it lafts, goes on in a continual flow, and is oi;ly 

 diftinguifhed by loud or low, quick or JloWy long or Jhort, acute or 

 grave i and all thefe diftindions are in the found of language. But 

 there is this great difference betwixt language and animal cries 

 (in which difference the effence of language confifts), that langujge 

 inftead of going on without any break or divifion into parts, 



as 



