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copious, no language feems better calculated to facilitate the intercourfe of mankind, as a univerfal medium of communication.

Since the Grammars of Lowth and Priestley, and the Dictionary of Johnfon have been publifhed, our language has been brought nearer to a fixed ftandard. It is now confidered, more than ever, as an object of grammatical rules, and regular fyntax, Its idioms are more accurately afcertained by a comparison of paffages felected from the beft authors. The derivations are traced from their original fources with greater precifion; and its orthography is now more reduced to fettled rules, To the labours of Johnfon, as a Lericographer, our nation is under great obligations; and if he has in fome inftances failed in diligence of research, or extent of plan, we muft at least be ready to allow, that he has contributed more than any of his countrymen towards the elucidation of his fubject; he has given his definitions of words with great clearnefs, and confirmed them by a detail of quotations from the beft authors. There is perhaps no book, profeffedly written upon a philological fubject, that can give to foreigners as well as to natives, fo juft and advantageous an idea of our language, or of the variety and the excellence of our writers: the Preface to his Dictionary is a most accurate and defervedly admired compofition,

The derivation of English words, as far as it

relates

relates to Latin and Greek, has been frequently and fatisfactorily traced but thofe which are of Saxon origin were a long time prevalent without fufficient investigation. The Author of the "Di" verfions of Purley," whofe natural acutenefs and turn for metaphyfical research peculiarly qualified him for fuch a task, has directed his attention to the subject; and the ingenious theory which he has formed, respecting the origin of the indeclinable parts of speech, was remarkably confirmed by his knowledge of Saxon. He has proved very clearly, that many of our adverbs, conjunctions, and prepofitions, which are commonly thought to have no fignification, when detached from other words, are derived from obfolete nouns or verbs, the meaning of which they refpectively retain; but which have been shortened for general convenience, and corrupted by length of time. Such a discovery is valuable, not only on account of the light it throws upon those parts of our language which have been too flightly regarded by all former grammarians; but for the affiftance it affords to the science of etymology in general.

Dr. Johnson has declaimed against tranflations as the bane of language: but Warton has obferved, in the "Hiftory of English Poetry," on the contrary, that our language derived great benefits from the tranflations of the claffics in the fixteenth century. This difference of opinion may probably be reconciled, by fuppofing that thefe writers advert to the ftate of a language at different periods of

time. When it is in its dawn of improvement, as was the cafe when the tranflations of the Claffics were first made into English, the addition of foreign terms may be requifite to keep pace with the influx of new ideas. In a more advanced period of arts and civilization, fuch an increase is not only unneceffary, but may be injurious; and the practice seems as needlefs, as the introduction of foreign troops for the defence of a country, when the natives alone are fufficient for its protection,

1. Beauties of the English Language.

A language, which has been fo much indebted to others, both ancient and modern, muft of courfe be very copious and expreffive. In these refpects perhaps it may be brought into competition with any now spoken in the world. No Englishman has had reafon to complain, fince our tongue has reached its prefent degree of excellence, that his ideas could not be adequately expreffed, or clothed in a fuitable drefs. No author has been under the neceffity of writing in a foreign language, on account of its fuperiority to our own. Whether we open the volumes of our divines, philofophers, hiftorians, or artifts, we fhall find that they abound with all the terms neceffary to communicate their obfervations and difcoveries, and give to their readers the moft complete views of their respective fubjects. Hence it Hence it appears, that our language is fufficient for all topics, and can give proper and adequate expreffion to variety

of

of argument, delicacy of tafte, and fervour of genius. And that it has fufficient copioufnefs to communicate to mankind every action, event, invention, and observation, in a full, clear, and elegant manner, we can prove by an appeal to the authors, who are at prefent held in the greatest esteem,

But its excellence is perhaps in few refpects difplayed to fuch advantage, as in the works of our poets. Whoever reads the works of Shakespeare, Spenfer, Milton, Dryden, and Pope, will be fenfible that they employ a kind of diction which may be faid to be facred to the Mufes. It is diftinguifhed from profe, not merely by the harmony of numbers, but by the great variety of its appropriate terms and phrases. A confiderable degree of beauty refults likewife from the different measures employed in poetry. The Allegro and Penferofo of Milton, Alexander's Feaft by Dryden, the Ode to the Paffions by Collins, and the Bard of Gray, are as complete examples of verfification, judiciously varied, according to the nature of the fubjects, as they are specimens of exquifite fentiment and original genius.

One of the most beautiful figures in poetry is the Profopopoeia, or perfonification, which ascribes perfonal qualities and actions to inanimate and fictitious beings. The genius of our language Senables the English poet to give the best effect to this figure, as the genders of nouns are not unalterably fixed, but may be varied according to

the

the nature of the fubject. Thus the poet can make whenever he pleases the most striking diftinction between verfe and profe, and communicate to his defcriptions that spirit and animation, which cannot fail to delight every reader of tafte, in the following paffages.

Milton thus perfonifies Wisdom;

"Wifdom's felf

Oft feeks to fweet retired folitude,
Where with her beft nurse Contemplation,

She plumes her feathers, and lets grow her wings,
That in the various buftle of refort,

Were all too ruffled, and fometimes impaired."

And Pope, in his Windfor Foreft, thus defcribes the effects of Peace:

"Exil'd by thee from earth to deepest hell,
In brazen bonds fhall barbarous difcord dwell.
Gigantic Pride, pale Terror, gloomy Care,
And mad Ambition fhall attend her there.
'There purple Vengeance bath'd in gore retires,
Her weapons blunted, and extinct her fires.
There hateful Envy her own fnakes shall feel,
And Perfecution mourn her broken wheel:
There Faction roar, Rebellion bite her chain,
And gafping Furies thirst for blood in vain.".

Warton thus defcribes the advance of Evening: "While Evening veil'd in shadows brown

Puts her matron mantle on,

Aud mifts in fpreading ftreams convey
More fresh the fumes of new-mown hay;
Then Goddess guide my pilgrim feet

Contemplation hoar to meet,

As flow he winds in mufeful mood,

Near the rush'd marge of Cherwell's flood.”

Our

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