C 496 ] 
feparately. For example ; the fliape of month placed 
afide that of dog^ to fignify the verb hark. The 4th, 
Ktat-in, explication, or expreffioHj of the found, owes 
its origin to the difficulty of traefng in a manner fuf- 
iiciently diftindl, all the forts of fiffies, animals, vafes, 
trees, &c. To fupply this, they contrived to place 
the fimple charadler of one found on the fide of the 
figure. For example ^ the character of the found 
^ on the fide of the figure of a bird, to fignify a 
duck: the charadlerof ngo, to fignify a goofe. 
The 5th, called Kia-fe, idea borrowed, metaphor, 
hath opened an immenfe field to the invention of cha- 
radlcrs j or rather, to the manner of making ufe of 
them. In efiedt, by virtue of the Kia fie, one cha- 
radler is fometimes taken for another ; chofen to ex- 
prefs a proper namej turned afide to a fenfe allego- 
rical, metaphorical, ironical 3 and pufiied even to an 
antiphrafis, in giving it a fenfe oppofite to that wherein 
it is employed elfewhere. It mufi; be owned, that 
this 5th clafs gives the Chinefe tongue a force, and a 
vivacity of colouring, that no other tongue can attain. 
But it is alfd one of the principal caufes of its ob- 
feurities. The figurative fenfe of a character has not 
always a due analogy with the proper fenfe. 
The 6th, called Tchouen-tchou, developement, ex- 
plication, confifts only in extending the primitive fenfe 
of a character, or in making detailed applications of 
it. Thus the fame charadter is fometimes verb or ad- 
verb, fometimes adjedtive or fubfiantive. Thus 
again, the character ngo, which fignifies evil, ferves 
to exprefs hatred, to hate, mifoapen, &c. 
Thefe fix, Lieou-y, fuch as here deferibed, are as it 
were the fources from whence flow all the charadlers 
m 
