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Show Re1nedies of the Imperjeflion Book III. §.it. Now theft leading Qgalities, are /Jejl made known ~J /hewing, and can hardly be made known othe_rwife. For .the .lhape of an Horfe, or Caff•ary, will be but rudely and Imperfectly Impnnted on the Mind by Words, the light of the Animals doth it a thoutand times better: And th~ idea ?f the particular Colour of Gold, i~ not to be got by any defcri· ptton of<lt, but only by the frequent exercife of the Eyes about it. as is evident in thofe who are u(ed to this Metal, who will frequently difiinguilh true from counterfeit, pure from adulterate, by the light, where others (who have as go?" Eyes, but yet, by ufe, have not got the precife nice Idea of that pecuhar Yellow) !hall not perceive any difference. The like m:iy be faid of thofe other lim pie !dear, peculiar in their kind to any Subfiance; for which precife Ideas, there are no peculiar Names. The particular ringing found there is in Gold, difrinct from the found of other Bodies, has no particular Name annexed to it, no more than the particular Yellow that belongs to that Metal. §. n. But becaufe many of the lim pie Ideas that make up our fpecifick IdeAs ofSub!lances,are Powers, which lie not obvious to our Senfes in the Things as they ordinarily appear ; therefore, in the lignification of our Names of S•Mances, fome _!art •f the ./ignification wiD be better made known, !Jy enumerating thofi! jimple Ideas, than in /hewing tl;e SuMa11ce it fe!f For he that, to the yellow lhining Colour of Gold got by fight fl1all,, from . my enumerating them, have the Idw of great Ductility; Fuliblllty,Fixednefs, and Solubihty,m Ay. Regia, will have a perfecter !Je~ of Gold,. tha.n he can have .by fee~ng a piece of Gold, and thereby im· pnntmg m Ius Mmd only liS obvwus ~alities. But if the formal Confl: itutio~ ofthislhining, heavy, ductil Thing (from whence all rhefe its Properties flow )Jay open to our Sen(es, as the formal Confliturion or Elfence of a T~Iangle does, the lignification of the word Gold, might as ealilybe a(certamed, as that of Triangle. §. ~ 1· Hence.we may take notice, how much the foundation of all o•r Knowledge of corf>oreal Things, lies in our Senjes. For how Spirits, fepa. rate from Bodies, ( whofe Knowledge and Ideas of thefe Things, is certamly much more perfect than ours,) know them, we l1:1ve no Notion, nt4 Idea at all: The whole extent of ~ur Knowledge, or Imagination, r ches not beyond our own Ideas, hm1ted to our ways of Perception. Though yet It be not to be doubted, that Spirits of a higher r.mk than t~ofe 1mmerfed m Flelh, may have as clear Ideas of the radical ConfritutiO~ of Subfr~nces, as we h~ve of a Triangle, and (o perceive how all their Properttes and OperatiOns flow from thence : but the manner how they come by that Knowl~d.ge, ex~eds our Conceptions. ~. ~4· But though Definmonswiii ferve to explain the Names of Subfiance~, as they. fiand for our Ideal ; yet they leave them not without great Im~rfect,on, as they ftandfor Things. For our Names of Subflancos bemg not put ~rely for our Ideas, but being made u(e of ulti· ~ately to reprefe~tTiungs, and fo arc: put in their place, their fignification mull agre~ With the Truth ofThmgs, as well as with Mens /Jeas : {\.nd therefore m Subflances, ":e are not always to reft in the ordinary complexldea, commonly rece1~edas the lignification of that Word, but t0 go a httle farther, and enqmre mro the Nature nnd Properties of the Tlungs themfelvcs, nnd thereby perfeB:, as much as we can, our Ideal of their d1frmct Species ; or elfe learn them from fuch as are ufed 10 that fort of Things, and are experienced in them. For fince 'tis intende-d their Names fl1ould !land for fuch Collections of fimple Ideas ; as do really ex1fr m Tlungs themfelves, as well as for the complex Idea in other Mens Minds, ·chap. Xi. Abufe of Words. Minds, which in rhe'ir ordinary acceptation they fl:and. for : -rhcrefare to Jejne their Names right, n~tural Hijl~ry it to be enruired i"to; andJ:heir ,.Pruperries are, With care and examm~tlon,to be found out. ,For Jt IS. not enough for the avmdmg Inconvemenc1es In D•fcolirfes and A:rglungs about nanlral Bodies, and fubfrantial Things, to hav.e. learned, from tire Propriety of the Language,. the common butconfu(ed,JOr very imperfeCt Jdea to which each Word IS apphed, <1nd to Jceep them to that Idea m our ~fe of them: but we mull, by acquainting odr felves with t4e Hillery of that (drt of Thing<, recti fie and {erie our compleic Idea, ·belongjog to each (pec;ifick Name; and in difcourfe with others, (if we Hrid them mifiake us,) we ought to tell what -the comple.x ldea is, that we! make fuch a Name !land for. Tltis is the mon! nece(]ary to be done, by all thofe who fearch after 1\nowledp;e, and philofaplrical Verity, in~hat Children, being taught Words whiHl: they have bur. imperfect Notions of Things, apply them at rondom, and WJthout mueh thmlungorframmg dear difrinct Ideas; which Cullom, (11 bemg ealie, arid fervmg well e) lough for the ordinary Affairs of Life and Converfatiort,) they nre' apt 10 continue, when they are Men: And Jfo begin at the wxon~ end, learDing Words firft; and perfectly, but make the NotiOns, to which they ·apply thofe Words :ifrerwards, very overtly. By this means it comes to paf<, that Men {peaking the proper Language of their Country, i: ~- accordincr to Grammar-Rules of that Language, do yet fpeak very Improperly ~f Things themfelves ; and by their arguing one with ili\other, make but fmall progrefs in the dlfcoveries .of ufeful Truths, and tbc'lmowledge of Things, as they are to be found Ill themfel.v~s, and not m ou~ Imaginations ; and it matter~ not much , for the Improvement of our Knowledge, how they are call d. • · . ~· ~5'· It were therefore to be wifl1ed, Th:it Men, werfed ~n !"hy!ical Enquiries, and acquainted with the feveral forts of natural ~od1es, )VOuld fer d11.wn rhofe limple /dear, wherein tltey obferve the Individuals of each fort c'llnfrantly to agree. This would remedy a .great deal of that confulion which comes !rom feveral Perfons, applymg the fame Name to a Colldtion of a fmaller, or greater number of fenlible ~alities, pr?portionably as they have been more or lefs ac1uaintcd with, or accurate In examining the ~aht~s of any fort of Thmgs, wluch come under one denomination. But a Dictionary of this (orr, containing, as it were, a Natural Hillary, requires too many hands, as well as roo much nme, coil, pains, and fagacity, ever to be ho~ed for ; and nil that be done, we mull content our {elves with fuch Definitions of the Names ofSubtlances, as explain the fenfc Men ufe them in. And 'rwould be well, where there is occalion, if they would afford us (o much. Th1s yet IS not ufually done; but Men talk to one another, and d!fpute m Words, whofe meaning is not agreed between them ~ out of a mLfrake , that the ligmficarion of common Words, are cerramly e!lnbhfl1ed, and the precife Ideas, they !land for, perfectly known; and that it is a fl~ame to be •gnorantof them. Both which Suppofirions are falfe; 110 Names of complex Ideas having fo fetled determined Significations, that they are confrantly ufcd for the.fame precife Ideas. NoriS It a lhamefor a Man notto have a~citain knowledge of any thing , but by the ncce!Tary. ways of attammg it· and fo it is 110 difcredit not to know what precifc Idea any Sound fr;nds for in another Man's Mind, without be declare it to me by fame other way, than barely ufing tbt Sound ; rbe_re being 110 other w~y, Without fuch a Declaration, certamly to know It. Indeed, the nece!!Ity of Communication by Language, brings Men to an agreement ~~ the Ll %. J l gOL~ Z,f9 |