316 
to express them in words, ask himself whether ordinary lan 
guage is an instrument planned for such purposes. Of course, it 
is not. It is hard to say which is the more striking, the want of 
scientific system in the expression of thought by words, or the 
infinite cleverness of detail by which this imperfection is got over, 
so that he who has an idea does somehow make shift to get it 
clearly in words before his own and other minds.”* * * § 
If it be objected that language is perfect, though man’s use of 
it may be imperfect, I rejoin that we only know it in man’s use 
of it ; unlike religion, the principles of which and their har- 
monious expression in conduct, we see before us as a “ flying 
perfect,” a mark, goal, and standard to aim at, but which, unless 
terribly self-deceived, f we must be conscious that we do not 
attain. We may, therefore, well conclude with the Archbishop 
of York that language is a divine gift ; but the power, and not 
the results of its exercise, the germ, and not the tree, was im- 
parted.” J 64 Languages are not made, but grow.” Their 
natural original is well illustrated by Canon Farrar, § who truly 
observes, “ On the human origin of language, the voice of the 
Bible coincides perfectly with the voice of reason and of science”; 
and who quotes the remark of St. Gregory of Nyssa that t£ the 
hypothesis of a revealed language ” is “ Jewish nonsense and 
folly.” 
4. Primeval Language unknown. 
As language, whether slowly developed or instantaneously 
bestowed, had a beginning, there must have been at least one 
primeval form of speech. Inquiries respecting this have long 
been made, are naturally interesting, and lack nothing to com- 
mand success except the requisite data. The hopelessness of this 
ignis fatuus pursuit is, in the present state of our knowledge, 
very apparent ; but it may be desirable to illustrate the fact by 
one or two examples. 
We have an account of the creation of man, written in Hebrew 
at a comparatively early period ; but this circumstance affords 
not the least real ground, even in the abstract, and apart from 
any historical investigation, for supposing that Hebrew was the 
primeval language. We now know historically that it was a 
comparatively modern Semitic dialect ; but we need not have 
* Prim. Cult, i. 216. 
f “ When the deceiver is always at home and always with you — that is 
indeed terrible.” (Plato, Kratylos.) 
X Outline, 47. 
§ Language and Languages , cap. i. 
