LANGUAGE. 



j.'i orange ribbon, which will exemplify 

 what has been said: if we wish to dis- 

 tinguish a ribbon by its colour, we are in 

 this case able, agreeably to the custom of 

 our language, to connect with the word 

 ribbon, the name of an object remarkable 

 for that colour. It must however be ob- 

 served, when tracing 1 out other examples 

 of this contrivance, and the application of 

 it to other qualities^ that sensible qualities 

 were those, and those only, which would 

 be first noticed, and most requisite to 

 be noticed. Local situation, or vicinity 

 to some object, would furnish another 

 ground for distinction ; the fountain near 

 the cave, for instance. Now to express 

 this, the procedure would be simple and 

 intelligible, if, immediately preceding or 

 following- the term denoting 1 fountain, the 

 term denoting cave were added ; in like 

 manner as we at present use the expres- 

 sions, barn-yard, &c. This juxtaposition 

 of the signs, to signify the contiguity or 

 similarity of the objects which they* de- 

 note, is natural, and, in a language little 

 extended, sufficiently adequate for all the 

 purposes of common life : but it is obvious 

 that it would allow of great latitude of in- 

 terpretation ; and hence, as languages be- 

 came more copious, contrivances were 

 used to denote the nature of the connec- 

 tion which existed between objects de- 

 noted by the signs employed. The chief 

 of these is the employment of preposi- 

 tions ; and these, in the outset, furnish 

 additional proof that the procedures we 

 have spoken of were in reality those of 

 the early framers of language, (see GH.VM- 

 MAR, 41, particularly respecting J'ranJ ; 

 but these were contrivances of a later 

 date than those of which we here speak. 

 By degrees it was by some tribes found 

 convenient to designate those names 

 which were employed in connection with 

 other names to point out some quality or 

 restricting circumstance of the thing* sig- 

 nified, by some note that they were so 

 employed. They might without any dis- 

 advantage have left the inference to sim- 

 ple juxtaposition ; but this appears to 

 have been done in few languages after im- 

 provements began to take place: and to 

 effect such designation, words (h 

 cases denoting tuld, join, Sec.) were sub- 

 joined to the particularizing names, and 

 they then became adjective. (See GUAM- 

 MAR, _22.) The Chinese, however, make 

 no distinction between words when em- 

 ployed as nouns and as adnouns; the same 

 word when placed first being an adjec- 

 tive, and when placed last, a substantive. 

 We do the same in many instances ; but 

 a large proportion of our simple adjec- 



tives are formed as above, and are i.ever 

 employed as substantives; the Chinese, 

 on the other hand, when a substantive is 

 not to be used adjectively, add a desig- 

 nating syllable to it. 



9. As far as respects sensible objects 

 and their connections, all seems very plain: 

 in order to express objects which were 

 not sensible, so as to convey to others the 

 feelings which existed in the mind of the 

 speaker, words were used which had pre- 

 viously been appropriated to objects, to 

 which those objects of the mind's eye ap- 

 peared to have some resemblance or 

 other connection. This resemblance or 

 connection was frequency forced, and to 

 those whose situation was different would 

 not be at all striking; in other cases it 

 was correct, and the justness of the ap- 

 plication is proved by a similar procedure 

 of unconnected inventors. We may de- 

 rive great light here from the hiero- 

 glyphics : for there cannot be a doubt, 

 that where the visible sign, which origi- 

 nally represented only a, sensible object, 

 was applied to denote some quality dis- 

 covered by reasoning and observation, 

 that the audible sign or word was applied 

 in like manner. Several instances will 

 be adduced when we come to consider 

 the hieroglyphical mode of communica- 

 tion: at present we shall adduce one or 

 two examples as illustrations of the prin- 

 ciples here slated. The term used to 

 denote the mouth would also denote speech,- 

 this connected with the word dog, would 

 signify the dog's voice,- and this com- 

 pound the Egyptians employed to signify- 

 itiMMiiati'jn, and the sorrow which pro- 

 duced it. In the uncultivated periods a." 

 society, grief is loud and clamorous; and. 

 we need not be surprised to find the 

 term fio-i'l employed lo denote the ex- 

 clamations of pain, and even of sorrow 

 .Hy a similar, but more obvious procedure, 

 the words dog, field, placed together, de- 

 noted hunting. Our readers will be able., 

 even in the present refined period of our 

 language, to trace numerous instances in 

 which the names of intellectual thing* 

 have been obviously transferred from 

 sensible things; and to those who have 

 attended to the subject it will not appeu. 

 too much to affirm, that in every instance; 

 where a word is not the name of a sens;' 

 ble object, it has acquired its preseni 

 force by a gradual transition from it;.-, 

 primary application to sensible objects. 

 In every known language the transition 

 has been begun -, but it is only amo;u r 

 the more refined that it lias been com- 

 plete: in our own, we find abundance oi 

 23 in almost ever inte 



