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Show lru.perjef1ion of Words. Book III. -thofe which other, even intelligent aod fiudious Men, make them the ligns of. , Where lhall ~ne find any, either contr07Jerjial Delate, or familiar Difco•rfo, concermng Honour , Fatth , Grnce, Religion Church f!tc. where~n it. is not~!:! lie to obferve the different Notions M~n have of them; wluch IS nothmg but tlus, that they are not agreed in the fignification ofthofe Words, have not the f.1me complex Jtfeas they make them 'fiand for ; And fo all the contefis that follow there~pon, a~e only about the meamng of a Sound. And hence we fee , that m the Interpretation of Laws, whether Di~.ine? or Humane, there is no end; Commentsbcgn Co'."ments? and Expltcmons make new matter for Explications: And of hmtmng, dtflmgudlung, varymg the ligmficat,ion of thefc moral · ~ords,there is no end. Thefe Ideas of Mens making, are, by Men frill havmg the f.1me. Power, mulnphed in infinitum. Many a Man, who was pretty well fansfied of the meanmg of a T~xt of Scripture, or Chufe in 1the Oxic, at firfi readmg, has, by confuln~g Commc;fnators, quite loll the fe,nfe of tt, and, by th~fe Eluctdauons, gtven rife or increafe to his ·Doubts, and drawn obfcunty upon the place. I fay not this,lthat !think . Commentar.es needlefs; but to fl1ew how uncertain the Names of mixed ·Modes naturally are, even m the moutbs of thefe, who had I;Joth the Intention and the Facultyof Speaking, as clearly as Language, was capable 10 exprefs theit Tl!oup;!ltS. ~· 16. Wh<tt e6fcu~itJ this has unavoidably bro\J!lht upon the Writings of Men, who have -lived m remote Ages, and dtfferent C<Juntries it will be needlefs to. take ~otice. Since the numerous Volumes of' learned · Men, cmploymg~h~•tThoughts-tha.r way, are probfs more thin enough, to lhew 1vhat Att~!Iorl,Srudy,Sagaruty, and ReH6ning is reqtlired to find :oUt the true M":l'nlllg~of ancitnt Autl;ors. But' there being 'oq Writings we have any g~~t~riJ~ent ;o be very follicitous about the meaning of, but ·lhofetha~ colllfam etther Truths we are required to believe, or Laws )Ve are to obey, apd draw.Inconvemenctes on us, when \lie mifiake . or tranfw:Cs, we- ~ay be l~fs an~ious about ·the fenfe of other Authors ; who Wntmg but the!~ own Optmons, we are under no greater nccellit)' to know tl~etn, thnn 1-hey· to know ours . Our good or evil depending . no~ on· thell' Dc'or'e<'S;' we may f:if~ly be ignorant of their Notions: And thorefore·tn the reading of them, if they d<>not ti(e their Words with a ~tu.e~lrornefs and perfpicuity, we m~y loy them <~fide, and without any tnjury done them, ref~lve thus with our felves, Si 11011 vis intelligi, detes negligi. ~. I r. {f the lignification of the I'Jqmes of mixed Modes are uncertain becaufe there be no Teal Statj1!a'l~s 'exifting ill Nature to which tho{~ Ideas are referred , , and by wl)ich :rhey may be ':ldjufied, ·tM, Names of ~i!/u:~ a;h •J'.,~tf::! /tgn/fofi9(i.0,11, for~ con,f(ary reafoll, viz. bew]f_ Tl ' a ey · r, are. ';f:pofed t'orlformable to the rea~ty Qf S bUgs, and are rcj'<lrred to Stirhtf'a~Js matje, 1jy Ntlture. in bur !dear of n "l"'es, we l1avc not tll~ ~illel't'Jr")ls in li'ril«!cF Modes ro frame wl~ dC om' b•'n. at10os w.e tl'\ 11ll<''i iJH'o ~'the cl'~"."."-".'l'.\c!r.uoJnwc a'· J No t' es 't'o ran k an a fe':7,/:a~~~o~~~g~ by. lti't: , '\ve 11\Uil f61fow1Nature, fuit our coirjpby tl Th' rl .~~\1.1:';ees,-:tnd r~latethelio-mficanorraftheir Names, 1e mgs 1emteh"' • if..... · 1 h " · • them , a.n d 1u1 an d'"··'o r t t·r ems , frewre IV' ( .. ave our·c .N, al!les to fj/i the ligns of 1 ' but P;tterns toot'will m. k he, tiS. true, We 1ave Patterns to follow; tain : ·!For Name$ \nufi b~ ? e ligmficatwn of their Names very oncc~lrh~ s the fr d 0 a very unfieadyand vanous ·meanmi(, 1f t(ir • Y an for, L'e referred to Stanaards without us tl1at titlier can- ."' l ' HOI .Cbap.IX. Imperfef1ion of Words. ••t he kno.vn at •II, or can be kno1on h•t imperfeEI!y and «>!Certainly. · §. 1 ~. The N.rnes of Subj/ances have, as has been fl1ewed, a double.rtfer•• ce in their ordinary ufe. Firjl, Sometimes they are made to fiand for, and fo their lignification is fuppofed to agree to, the ual conjlitution of ibin:r,.s, from which all their Properties llow, and in which they all centre. But this real Conflirution, or (as it is apt to be called) E!Tencc, being utterly unknown to us, any Sound that is put to fiand for it, mull be very uncertain in Its application ; and it will be impoffible to know what Things are, or ought co be called an Horfe, or Antimony, when thofe Words are put for real EITences, that we have no !tlea of at all. And therefore in this fuppolition, the Names of Subflances being referred to Standards that cannot be known, their Significations can never be adjufled and efiablilhed by thofe Standards. §.tj. Secondly,The jimple !dear that are found to co-exijl in Sut;lancer, being that which theirNamcsimmed~ately ligmfie, thefe, as united in the fuvernl Sorts of Things, are the proper Standards to which their Name~ are referred, and by which their Significations may bell be re~blied. But neither will thefe Archetypes fo well ferve to this purpofc, as to leave thefe Names without very various and uncertain lignificarions; becaufe thefe ftmple !dear thnr co-exifl, and arc united in the fame Subjc~'l:, being very numerous, and having all an equal right to go into the complex fpecifick I dea, which the lpectfick Name IS to fiand for, Men, though they purpofe to thenifelves the very fame Subject to confider , yet frame very different Ideas about it; and fo the Name they ufe for 1t , unavmdably comes to have, in fevernl Men, very dtfferent figmficauons. The lim pie ~alities, which make up the complex !dear, be10g mollof them Powers, 10 relation to Changes they are apt to make 10, or recetve from other Bodies are almofi infinite. He that lhall but obfcrve, "'hat a great variety of alterations any one of the bafer Metals is apt to receive, from the different application only ofF•.re;. and how mucb a greater number ofChnges any of them' wJ!l recetve m the hands of a Chy.mll, by the appl.cauon of other Bod1es, Will not clunk tt flrnnge, that 1 count the Properties of any fort of Bodies not eafie to be aolled:ed , and completely known by the ways of enquiry, which our Faculties arecapable of. They being therefore at !call fo many, that no Man can know the precife and defimte number.' they are d1fferently. d1fcovered by different Men, accordmg to the1r vanous skdl , attentwn, and ways of handling; who therelore cannot cilllfe but hare d1ffercnt 1- Jeas of the fame Subflance , and therefore make the f•gmfiear,on of its common Name very various and uncertain. For rhe complex fleas of Subflances, being made up of fuch limple ones a; are fuppofed to co-exill in Nature, every one has a nght to put mto Ius complex Idea, thofe ~alities he has found to be united together. For though tn the Sub!lanceGold, one fatisftes himfelfwirh Colour and . ~e1ght, yet ana- . ther thini<S Solubility in Aq. Regia, as nece!faryto be J010 d With that Colour in his Jd.aof Gold,asany one does 1ts Fulibthty; Solubthty m aq.regra, being a ~ality as confiantly joi~'d with irs Col~ur and 'Ye•ghc, as Fufibllity, or a,ny other; others put 1n Its Duchhtyor Ftxednefs,~c.as they have been taught by Tradition, or Expenence. Who of all thefe , has ellabhflJed the right fignification of the word Gold! Or who /hall be the Judge to determine! Each has his Standard m Nature, wluch heappealsto, and with Reafon thinks he has the fame right to put into Ius complex Id.a, flgnified by the word Gold , thofe QJ!alities, whtch upo!l tnal he has Hh ~ wuod |