Vol. III. MifcellarteA Curioja. 219 



tcr , which was firft concerning the method 

 of the Charafter^ whether it confifled of a 

 certain number of Marks methodically dif^ 

 pofed like Letters in a literal, or like Num- 

 bers in a Numeral, or like Radicals incompo- 

 fite and decompofite Derivations? 'Tis faid 

 to be legible into a great many Languages^ 

 confiderably different one from another, but 

 how this is effefted is not related, only 'tis 

 faid that the Marks are of the nature of our 

 Arithmetical Figures, (which are become al- 

 moft Univerfal at leaft to us here iti Europe^ 

 and 2dly, concerning the number of thefeCha--^ 

 rafters ? to which I found as little fatisfadion j 

 for, by fome Relations I found that there 

 were 120000, by others 80000, and by others 

 tfoooo. And that a Man muft be able to 

 remember to Write and Read at leaft 8goo, 

 or 10000, before he will be able to exprefs 

 his meaning thereby, and that it is the bu- 

 fmcfs of a Man's whole Life to be throughly 

 underftanding in the whole Charader Teem- 

 ing to intimate that the Charaders are ifii- 

 methodical, and there are as many primitive 

 Charadlers as Words. Other? t?il lis of va-^ 

 rious kinds of Charafters \yhich have been in 

 life in feveral Ages. The firfl they fay were 

 MierogtyfhicaL like the tJEgyfti^n or Mexican^ 

 cdiififting of the Pictures of Animals and Ve* 

 getables. But that the laft are made up of 

 Lines and Points, that they have no fuch 

 thing as Letters or Syllables, but every di- 

 ftin A Word and Notion has a diftindl Cha- 

 rafter, and that all are p'riinitive or in com- 

 pofit, fo that if Calepir^es Didlionary were to 

 be tranflated into the Chinefe^ 'twere necef* 



