278 



ON LEGIBLE LANGUAGE^ 



Supposing,* by a miracle, the world were now to be reduced to the state in 

 which we may conceive it to have existed in its infancy; and every trace and 

 idea of written language were to be swept away, and the only means of com- 

 munication to be that of the voice, what would be the mode most likely to be 

 resorted to of imparting to a deaf person, or a foreigner ignorant of our dia- 

 lect, a knowledge of any particular fact or thing with which we might wish 

 him to be acquainted 1 The reply is obvious : we should point at it if in sight ; 

 and if not, endeavour to sketch a rude drawing of it ; and thus make one 

 sense answer the purpose of another. This is not mere fancy, but manifest 

 and experimental fact; it is the plan actually pursued in most institutions for 

 instructing the deafly-dumb, and the elementary system by which they ac- 

 quire knowledge. In such establishments, however, it is the elementary sys- 

 tem alone ; for the use of letters significative of words or sounds is, in every 

 respect, so far superior to that of pictures significative of things, that the 

 latter is uniformly dropped as soon as ever it has answered its purpose and 

 served as a key to the former. 



But we are at present adverting to a state of things in which letters are 

 supposed not to exist ; and the only established mode of communicating 

 between man and man is that of vocal language. Under such circumstances, 

 the most natural method of conveying ideas to a person unacquainted with 

 our tongue must be, as I have already observed, to point at the things to which 

 they relate if at hand, as all savage nations are well known to do ; and if not 

 at hand, to trace out a rude sketch of them on the sand, the bark of a plant, 

 or some other substance. In this manner the idea of a horse, a house, a dog, 

 or a tree, may, as single objects, be as distinctly communicated as by alphabetic 

 characters ; while two or more houses may be made significative of a town, 

 and two or more trees of a wood; and, by thus continuing to copy in suc- 

 cessive series such things or objects of common notoriety as the train of our 

 ideas might call for, a kind of connected narrative of passing events might 

 be drawn up, which, though not calculated for minute accuracy, might be 

 generally understood and interpreted. 



This kind of language would be fairly entitled to the appellation of jaidwre- 

 writing ; it would give the images of things instead of the symbols of sounds 

 or words. In its scope, however, it must be extremely limited, for though 

 conveniently adapted to express imbodied forms, it must completely fail in 

 delineating pure mental conceptions, abstract ideas, and such properties of 

 body as are not submitted to the eye ; as wisdom, power, benevolence, genius, 

 length, breadth, hardness, softness, sound, taste, and smell. 



Our next attempt, therefore, would be to remedy this deficiency ; and the 

 common consent of mankind in ascribing peculiar internal qualities and 

 virtues to peculiar external forms, would enable us to lay hold of such forms 

 to express the qualities and virtues themselves. Thus the figure of a circle 

 might be made to signify a year ; that of a hatchet, separation or division ; 

 that of an eye, watchfulness or providential care, if open ; and sleep or for- 

 getfulness, if closed; the figure of a harrow might represent a ploughed field; 

 and of a flag a fortress ; a rosebud, odour ; and a bale of goods, commerce. 



Upon the same principle compound ideas might be expressed by a combi- 

 nation of characters ; the character expressive of a man in the midst of that 

 expressive of an enclosure, as a square, for example, might denote a prisoner; 

 and a union of those significative of mouth and gold might import eloquence. 

 And we hence advance to another kind of imitative characters, those of a mixed 

 kind, and which are called allegorical, or emblematic writing. 



It is obvious that legible language must be very considerably improved by 

 such an accession of power; that it must become both more manageable and 

 more comprehensive. It is obvious, also, that in a variety of abstract subjects, 

 as those of philosophy or religion, the allegorical characters alone might be 

 employed as a medium of communication ; and that, by attaching an esoteric 



* A few pages of this lecture, particularly adapted to the occasion, were introduced into an article in 

 the British Review for 1811, at the request of the writer's friend, who was at that time its editor; and 

 may be found in the analysis there given of Dr. Marshinan's Elements of Chinese Grammar. 



