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Show DISSERT. VI. L H I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0. to].,;!'. de Paw, numeral ,}Vords to count above three, had, in fpite c~f his ignorance, w;ords to count to at ~~eaft forty-eight .millions. 1 In like manner, we could cxpo[e the err0r of M. Condamme and M. de Paw, in .many other· hmguagcs of Am.crica, and even in thofe 'fhicl arc reckoned the mofl: barbarous ; as there are in Italy at prefent per-1 fons acquainted with the new world, nnd capable of .giving an ac-. count of more than fixty American languages. Among the materials we colleCted for this work, we have the numeral words of the Araucan Ia~guagc, whid1 ·although it is a 11'\0re warlike than civil'zcd nation, has words to cxprcfs millions . . M. de Pavr is not lefs wrong in affirming, that the languages of America f;lre, fo poor, that they c,annot exprcfs a metaphyfical idea; which opinion 1\t,L de Pt~.w hns lc~ ned ~f M. Con9amine. Time, fays this philofopher, treating of the languages of America, duration, fpace, b~ing, fubftance, matter, body, all thefe words, and many ·others, have no equivalents to them in their languages; and not only the names of metaphyfical beings, but alfo thofe of moral beings cannot be expreffed, unlefs imperfectly and by long circumlocutions. But M. Condamine knew as much of the language of America as M. de PaWy; and he certainly gaipcd his information from fome ignorant perfon, which is a ufual cafe with travellers. We are perfeCtly fure that many American languages have not that poverty Mr. Condamine afcribes to them ; but without attending to that we ilull examine the ftate of the Mexican. It is very true, that the Mexicans had no words to exprefs fuch conce'ptions, as matter, fubfl:ance, accident, and the like;. but it is equally [o, that no language. of Afia, or Europe, had fuch words before the Greeks began to refine and abftraet their ideas, and to create new terms to cxprefs them. The great Cicero~ who knew the Latin language fo well, and .flouria1cd in thofe times when it ·was at its greateft perfec- Ompoalxiquipilli forty times Bcoo 3 zo,ooo, &c. Centzonxiquipilli four illlndred times Soo~ 3, 2oo,ooo Ontzonxiquipilli eight hund1·od times 8ooo 6,foo,ooo l\1atlactzonxiquipilli four thoufand times Booo 3 z,ooo,ooo nltoltzonxiquipilli fix thotLfa·nd times Sooo 4B,ooo,ooc, &c. We m ntioncd that they bnd words to count as fat· as forty-eight t11illions nt lcnfr, but thofc 11\.love arc fufficicnt to confute M. de P:11v, . tion, .. , H I S T 0 R ·y 0 F M E X I C 0. ' ' .. tion althou~· h he e!l:' eu1ed it moi·e cop' io\1~ han 't)1e Greek, is often ' • t ' ' ttt the greate :diHi ul'ty in his philofophical works, to find words cor-r~ fponding to the metaphyfit~lldCilS b I c ~reeks . liow often was :he cotrfhainetl to ·crentc new t~rhi'S''e!q\J'i~alenf iri forii~' mnhn'cr' to thofe' , ''\.'I'H · . I L}J r' ru1t: ~ ·· t..! • ),• r ' h ~f t\~e S' r.c. ,I , · o~caufe h~ ~~t1ld ·. pof,1 ~~d .~~~.~f. 1I;1Fu.: m ; lll;:. am on? t c, ft~ma·r~s 1; uq ~vJn at thls ~a~, a{ter ~P~L;~~n&nage h~~ been. ennched. by Cite r'o,,' an~ ?,~lie~ le~rne;I Ror~an,~, . who, . ~f~c: !;us> ~~~mp)~, applied thcmfelves t'o ~~1e ftudy of phrlofophy, m?ny _terms ar~ wantmg to ev'1"refs metaphyfica} n·otlons, un)c.fs recourfe lS rutd . fo die barbarous .,.,t:' ' , ' l l r t 1 I J ' Latln1'or tlie' 'fchpols. None of ~h.ofe langLmges whicp are, fpoken (}y Tf ll f: J.. !'J Y' f., • ' the' p.J n ; • 1 d" i f .lJ r.. J.r:. '· ' . t J r. bfl: 1lofoj)11crs or c LtrO})e, 1:.1 words ngn uymg tu~tter, J,ll a nee, accident and other firnilat ideas ; and therefore· ' ·J·r.n1. . 1t wa~ necclliLry that flilofo.,t:>,. hers HJ.1 cil· ~~d'' adopt 1 the wo, rd1's of the Latin' , or t h.c G rcc 1c T I lC . ;ncient Mexicans, becaure ' thcy" nad no concern with the ftudy of.n?etap yfi~s,: ur~ v'~rv c~cur~ ~e (~ ' ~ot ,ha'vi~S' invented words to exprefs- , • ' l 1, l ,(, "' tw' :J I • I, " • • {j , c thofe' ideas ; their h11guage, nowever, IS· rrot wantmg tn term& 1gnuy-. ing , metaphyfical and moral things, as .Cond~mine affir.m~ t.hofc of SoutH: ;America to be; we,. on th-e contrary, affirm, that 1t 1s not eafy t 1 find a language more' fit to treat ~n rnctaphyfical fubjeCts· than the ~~iean ; as it would be dtftk'u.lt tp fi~d I ano~I;el~ ~-~.i~~ abounds_ r~ m~ch as it iJil abfl:q:tctr te~n;l~; fo~· 1t11re _are. few ~er~s, m ~t frorn wi-11ch ar e not for.med verbals co. tre~pona!n w1th• tho,f~ :tn' ti'J of the Romans; 1 .• r 1 , ,. , , 1 1 , , ,.J. h ' .fj , and et: t few fubfiantive ~ Or adjeCt~v lilOUil~ fro~ v:mc ·are npt Orm-ed ab:ll:raB:s expreffing the. being, r as• they fay m the · f~hools, the ·'dd't! of. things · cquival~nts to whicR! ~e can ot find m the He- C!J. ~1 t Y,, T , • • ' • . • . , J I • h I r . li>rew~ il'l> the <_Jreek, iri the Lathl! n .the".fltiell'ch, .m t e ta 1an, 111 t h e it:"r ng1 l'f ut.h · ltr the 'Sp' ani fftf.' 'r•I ch' P, or ugdIe, fe' .: 16'f Whtch 1angu~ges, we ' pre'1r:u me,. at lea•f b ' to have :CufficientI• knowledge, to make ha com·p a- ·r: 1 order to give [orne fp cirl}en of thi~ language tot e cunous. raon. n t • r:. . 1 fi 1 d among our re ad· ers , w·e fubJ'oin1f ome l wor,d s .f igntrymg m. ctap 1y 1ca an moral ideas,. which are ' un'd~Hl:ood qy tHe rudefl: . Imhans (x). The . t I i (..-) Spec1· men of wor ds I·n t"IV' c M~xican l~ng• tlngc , fignifying, moral and metaphyfical con- TlatnAntli· Jeliztli ~all uri'· Ncl iliitli Kin'g Eflcncc Goodncfs Truth ceptw s. ) I N e jolnonou:aliztli . r' lach topaittaliztli l N cjoltzotzona liztli Tlaluamiq uiliztli Relkxion · Forctighr Dollbt. Rcmembr~nc.e Ceti~ · • 397 DIS ERT~ VI. ~ |