OBSERVATIONS 



ON 



LANGUAGE. 



Br THE Rev. TIMOTHY DWIGHT, S.T.P. LL.D. 



JLT is a primary principle in all researches concerning 

 language, that Tiathms will uniformly have such words, as 

 express those ideas, which they wish to communicate. 

 Equally true is it, that they will, for no length of time^ 

 retain any other. Other words may be retained in 

 books ; but they will be lost out of the customary speech. 



What is true, in this respect, of nations, is equally 

 true of smaller classes of mankind. Thus lawyers, 

 chemists, mariners, miners, &c. have a peculiar lan- 

 guage of their own ; made up of many words, unused, 

 and ordinarily unknown, by other persons, belonging 

 to the same nations. This partial, local language de- 

 scends, also, from generation to generation in these 

 classes of men, severally, as those of nations to their 

 posterity. 



This scheme admits of no exception ; but is an abso- 

 lute, as well as universal, law of language. From it 

 many truths may be learned, which are of great impor- 

 tance in the philosophy of man ; and may be learned 

 with more ease, and more certainty, than in any other 

 manner. For example ; the character of a nation may 

 with absolute certainty be extensively known from this 

 source. The Latin language contains many terms, em- 

 ployed about war ; that of the Greeks, many terms, ex- 

 pressive of the several ideas pertaining to ai't, and sci- 

 ence ; that of the Hebrews, many, denoting things, be- 

 longing to morality and religion ; and that of the French, 

 S 



