Wonders and Advantages of Speech. With regard to the first he says, what many others, I doubt not, have reflected on with the utmoft Amazement: "That at the very Inftant we would communicate "our Thoughts to others, our Lungs, Throat, "Tongue, Palate, Teeth, Lips, and an Infinity of "other Organs, which depend on and are Parts of "them, put themselves in Motion, and execute our "Orders with a Rapidity that almoft prevents our "Defires. The Air from our Lungs, varied and " modified an Infinity of ways, according to the "Diversity of Sentiments, iffues forth to carry the "Sound of them into the Ears of our Auditors, and "to inform them of all that paffes within us, and "of all we defire they fhould know.

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"To inftruct us in producing fuch marvellous Effects, have we, as M. Rollin afks, had Occafion "for Tutors, Leffons, Precepts? Nature, or Divine "Providence, has made every thing within us and "for us. It has formed in our Bodies all the Organs "neceffary for fuch aftonishing Effects; and that "with a Delicacy the Senfes can hardly trace, and "with a Variety, Multiplicity, Diftinction, Art, and Activity, which are above all Expreffion and Ad"miration.

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This is exemplified in the fingle Inftance of the Wind-pipe, the Structure and Function of which are here infifted on.

M. Rollin afterwards confiders the Formation, Office, and great Ufe of the Ear. He then celebrates the Beauty, unfpeakable Excellency and Advantages of the Invention of Writing. He expreffes his Surprife at what is not eafy to comprehend, "How

Men have been able to compofe, out of twenty"five or thirty Letters at moft, that endless Variety " of Words, which having no Refemblance in them"felves to what paffes in our Minds, do however "disclose all the Secrets of them to others, and make "those who could hardly otherwife penetrate our "Senfe understand all we conceive, and all the dif

❝ferent

"ferent Affections of our Souls. Only God could "teach Mankind to establish certain Figures to fig"nify all Sounds or Words.

Thefe, as he fays, are the firft Objects of Grammar, which is no other than the Art of Speaking and Writing correctly. He fhews how much this was esteemed and cultivated by the Greeks and Romans, beyond what it is in our Times He fuggests the Reasons of its Contempt and Neglect amongst us. He tells us what it formerly included, and how extenfive a Province it was. He points out two Species of Grammarians, and he relates in a few Words what History has tranfmitted to us concerning those who diftinguished themselves moft in this Way amongst the Ancients. He begins with the Greeks, of whom, omitting a great Number, he reckons about nineteen, at the Van of which he fets Plato. He mentions feven Grammarians only of the Latins. What he has delivered under this Head is very curious, and affords us a clear and diftinct Notion of one of the most valuable Parts of antique Literature. This Topick clofes with fhort Reflections upon the Progrefs and Alteration of Languages. The following Paragraphs are borrowed from them.

"We know nothing of the Beginnings or Progrefs of the Greek Tongue. The Poems of Homer 66 are the most ancient Work we have in that Language, and the Elocution of them is fo perfect, "that no future Age has been capable of adding any "thing to it. This Perfection of Language fubfifted "and preferved itself longer amongst the Greeks than any other Nation of the World. Theocritus lived "about fix hundred Years after Homer. All the "Poets who flourished during that long Interval, "except a very fmall Number, are efteemed excel"lent, with regard to Language, in their feveral

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Ways. The fame may be almoft faid of the Ora. "tors, Hiftorians, and Philofophers. The univer"fal and prevailing Tafte of the Greeks for Arts, "the Efteem they always had for Eloquence, their

"Care

"Care in cultivating their Language, which was the "only one they learnt, difdaining generally the Ro"man, though spoke by their Mafter; all this con

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fpired to fupport their Tongue in its Purity during "many Ages, till the Tranflation of the Empire to "Conftantinople.

"The Romans, folely intent upon establishing and "fecuring their Conquefts by the Method of Arms,

had little Regard in their earliest Times to the Em"bellishment and Improvement of their Speech. "It afterwards, by little and little, grew more copi"ous, and enlarged itself infenfibly. It borrowed a "great Number of Words from the Greek, which "it dreffed after its own Mode, and in a manner. "naturalized.What we have of the Discourses of Cato, the Gracchi, and the other Orators of their Times, fhews a Language already of great Co"piousness and Energy, and that wanted nothing "but Beauty, Difpofition, and Harmony.

"The Epocha of pure Latinity at Rome may be "fixed at Terence, and continued to the Death of "Auguftus, fomething more than an hundred and "fifty Years. This was the happy Age of Rome, "with regard to polite Learning and Arts, in which "Authors of the higheft Merit carried the Purity "and Elegance of Diction to their utmoft Height."From the Death of Auguftus there was a gradual "Declenfion in this refpect; and in the Space of "two hundred Years the Difference became excef"five.

Speaking of the French, he has a judicious Remark, which is every way applicable to the English. "We have, fays he, Reafon to believe, that our

Language has attained the highest Perfection of "which it is capable. If it be defective in any "thing, it is only with regard to a richer Abun"dance; notwithstanding good Speakers fcarce per"ceive that it wants any Words for the Expreffion "of Thoughts; but it would admit a greater Number. France had in the laft Age, and ftill has, E " Writers

"Writers of diftinguished Merit, highly capable of "acquiring her this new Advantage: But they respect and fear the Publick. They make it a Duty "to conform to, and not to clash with its Tafte. "Hence, to avoid incurring its Displeasure, they "dare hardly venture a novel Expreffion, and leave

હ

the Language in this Point where they found it. "It would therefore become the Publick, for the "Honour of the Language and Nation, to be less "delicate and fevere; and alfo Authors to become ἐσ a little lefs timorous; tho' at the fame time great "Discretion and Referve are always neceffary in "this Liberty.

In the fecond Chapter M. Rollin has drawn up a brief History of the most eminent ancient PHILOLOGERS, mingling Greeks and Romans together. Philologers, as he tells us in the Preamble, are thofe who have applied their Studies in examining, correcting, explaining, and publishing old Authors, in which formerly the principal and moft noble Part of the Grammarians Art confifted. They profefs univerfal Learning, including all Sciences and Writers. Philology therefore is a Species of Science containing Grammar, Rhetorick, Poetry, Antiquities, Hiftory, Philofophy, and fometimes even Mathematicks, Phyfick, and Civil Law; without profeffedly treating any of these Subjects either in whole or in Part, but occafionally ufing all or any of them. He laments the Decay of this Sort of Literature in France, where they fet no Value, as he fays, upon any thing but exact and perfect Sciences, fuch as Phyficks, Geometry, &c. And he commends the English, Italians and Germans as more affiduous in the Cultivation of it. [I believe, in reference to this, he has a better Opinion of us than we deferve.] Among his Philologers, Varro, the elder Pliny, Lucian, Aulus Gellius, and Macrobius, make the beft Figure. Befides informing us of the Time of their Birth, of their Country, and of the Subject of their Works, M. Rollin has enter'd a little into the Genius and Quality of

1

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their Writings, especially theirs whom I have particularly named. Pliny's Character is Force, Ener"gy, Vivacity, and even Boldnefs, as well in his "Expreffions as Thoughts, with a wonderful Fertility "of Imagination, to paint and make the Objects he "describes fenfible. But it muft alfo be owned, that "his Stile is stiff and crampt, and thereby often ob"fcure; and that his Thoughts frequently fwell be"yond Truth." Some Examples of this are produced, which let us into the Foible of this illuftrious Author. But M. Rollin foon refumes the Panegyrick, and obferves, that whereas "his Work, which "takes in all Natural Hiftory, and treats circumftantially an Infinity of Subjects, abfolutely neceffary to his Plan, but entirely disagreeable in themfelves, abounds almost every where with Thorns "and Brambles, which prefent nothing grateful to "the Reader, and are very capable of giving Dif"guft. Pliny, like a noble Writer, to prevent, or "at least to leffen, this Distaste, has taken care to "intersperse here and there fome Flowers, to throw "into his Narratives abundance of Grace and Spirit, "and to adorn almost all the Prefaces, which he "places in the Front of each of his Books, with fine " and folid Reflections.

"Lucian's Stile is clear, agreeable, lively, and "animated. In his Works we behold the Purity "of the Greek Language. In his Dialogues of the. "Dead he has hit that admirable Simplicity and "natural Pleafantry of Humour which are fo well

adapted to a Manner of Writing that is extremely. "difficult, tho' it does not feem fo, becaufe a Variety of Perfonages, very different in their Age and

Condition, are introduced fpeaking, according to "their peculiar Characters. His Books have this "Advantage, as Quintilian had obferved of Cicero's, "that they may be useful to Beginners, and no less "fo to the more advanced. He is wonderful in his Narration, and has an abundance in him, which may be of great Service to fuch as are of a dry, E 2 " and

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