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Show rl • l II I III. C H A P. l. Of Words or Language in gmeral. §. x. GOD having deligned Man for a fociable Creature, ~ade him not only w~~h a~ inclination,.'and un?er a neceffity to have fellowlhtp wtth thofe ofht~Q\Vn kmd; ~ut furni- . , llted him alfo with Language, which was tobe tl)e great tnfirument, and common Tye of Society. Ma• therefore had by Nature his Organs fo falbioned, as to be ft to frame auiculate pounds, 'fhich we ~~~Words, But this was not enough to produ~e Language; for Par• rots, and feveral other Birds, will be taught to make aniculate Sounds diftint!l eno~gl), which yet, by no means, ar~ capableofl.anguage. , · ~- 2.. Belides arttculate Sounds therefore, tt was farther neceifary, that he lhould b~ altle to ufo theft So•~ds, as /igHS of iNternal Conuptions; and to make them fiand as marks for the J<(eas w~thin ~ qwn Mind, where• by they might 1 be made Jmqwa to others, aqd the. Thoughts of Mens !\finds be cpnv,eyet;l fro111 one to another. . • , . §.J. But neither was thi~ f~fficient ~o l)l~ke Words fp ufeful as they ought to be .• ~~is riot eno~ghfor the pcrf~t!lion of Language, ,that Sounds !211 be made figns qf Idras, 11n)efs thofe fgns can be fo :made ufe of, as to Cdlllprrhtndfoperal particular-i'hings:, F9r. the multij!licatiol) of Words would have perplexed their life, had evr;y particular tlting need of a d'i· J\int!l nam~. to, be fignified by. ' . ' ~-4· Word• then are made to be Iigas of pur Idra[, and are grneral or J•rticular, ~f tly_e Idras tbe.y flandfor ar( grneral o~ ·p_articular. Bu~ be/ ides thefe Names whoch fiand for Jdras, there be oth~rs whoch Men have found and make ufe of, ~no~ to lignifie any Idea, l)ut tge want or abfeoce ilffome Ideas, limple or complex, or all!dras together; fuch ~s are the Latin words, Nihil, and in Engliflt, lg•orance and Barnnnrfs. All which negative or privative Words, cannot be faid properly to belong to, or C.gnifie no ldras : for then they would be perfectly infignificant Sound! ; but they relate to pofitive ldras, and C.gnifie their abfence. §. 5· .It may alfo lead us a little towards the Original of all our Notions and Knowledge, if we remark, bow great a dependence our Words havt on common fenfible !dear ; and how thofe which are made ufe of, tolland for Actions and Notions quite removed from fenfe, have thdr Original, and are transferred from obviotlf fonjiMr Ideas ; "'·g. to /magint, Afprthrnd, Comprrhrnd, Adben, Conui'Ve, lnfli/1, Difgujl, Dij/ur6a•cr, ],~•f•tl~ty, &c. are all Words taken from the_ Operatwns of fenfible Thmgs, and applied to certam Modes of Tlunkong. Spmt, m ots pn· !Jl•ry fignification, is Breath; Angrl, a Meffenger: And I doubt not, but of we could trace them to their Originals, we fhould find, in all Languages, the names, which !land for Things chat full not under our Set>fe.s; Bb to |