358 UNIVERSAL ERUDITION. 



have articles which diftinguifh the genders : 

 all the European languages are wrote from 

 the left to the right, and almoft all the Afiatic 

 from the right to the left. 



VIII. Thofe languages that are derived from 

 the Latin have this further advantage, that they 

 adopt without reftraint, and without offending the 

 ear, Latin and Greek words and exprefllons, and 

 which, by the aid of a new termination,* appear 

 to be natives of the language. The privilege is 

 forbid the Germans, who in their bed tranfla- 

 tions dare not ufe any foreign word, unlefs it be 

 fome technical term in cafe of great neceffity. 

 Our mod fcnipulous tranflators would gladly 

 make ufe of the word menuet^ if they were not 

 fearful of appearing ridiculous. 



IX. To conclude ; philology is yet deficient of 

 one very important invention j and that is, an 

 univerfal language, or rather an univerfal charac- 

 ter, which each nation may read and comprehend 

 in their own language. After like manner, as all 

 European nations underftand the figures and cal- 

 culations of each other-, and as the Chinefe and Ja- 

 panefe exprefs their thoughts by the fame charac- 

 ters, fo that thefe two nations can read each others 

 writing, though their languages are very different. 

 The late baron Leibnitz was fo far from believing 

 this invention impoffible or impracticable, that 

 he employed himfelf affiduoufly to the ftudy of 

 it : and it is to be imagined that his death de- 

 prived Europe of fo important a difcovery. 



CHAP, 



