nounced exactly as they are written, would in many companies fubject a perfon to the charge of affectation or vulgarity'. He must be guided by the prevailing fashion of the times, and look upon the pronunciation of his Ancestors of only half a century ago as obfolete as their drefs, with the high probability, that ere many years fhall elapfe, the fame obfervation may be applicable to the prefent times. The analogy, however, between drefs and language is not perhaps very clofe, for it may be remarked, at leaft with regard to our own country, that although the fafhion in drefs which prevailed in former times has of late years in fome refpects been revived; yet that part of the affurance of Horace, which promifes the renovation of antiquated words, is not found to be warranted by experience". We muft here conclude our obfervations on a language, which by the commerce, the conquefts, 1 Such as nature, fuperior, fugar, education, infuperable. It is not unusual to fay chune for tune, chumid for tumid, chumult for tumult, fortchune for fortune, covetchous for covetous, banifter for baluster, from balluftrade: Bedlam for Bethlehem, cheney for china, confter for conftrue, hatchment for atchievement, hapenny for halfpenny, hern for heron, hunderd for hundred, marchant for merchant, fallet for fallad, ftake for fteak, ferutore for efcrutoire, Sparrowgrafs for afparagus, woond for wound, &c. &c. See Nares, p. 266. m Multa renafcentur quæ jam cecidere, cadentq; and the colonies of the English, is at prefent very generally diffufed, and probably is fpoken at this day. by not less than twenty millions of perfons in the various parts of the globe. Its reputation feems to increase more and more, as it is of late years become the favourite study of many foreigners, who wish to complete a liberal education. And indeed it may be faid, without partiality, to merit their particular attention; fince it contains fome of the choiceft treafures of the human mind, and is the vehicle of fuch intellectual vigour, warmth of imagination, depth of erudition, and research of philofophy, as can with difficulty be equalled in any other nation. The prevalence and flourishing state of our lan, guage depend not folely upon the inhabitants of the British dominions in Europe. In many of the islands of the Weft Indies it is cultivated with diligence. Our extenfive and ftill increafing fettle: ments in the Eaft Indies promife to infure its prefervation, and open a fpacious field for its wider diffufion. The United States of America cannot fail to preferve the language of their parent country; and in proportion as the fpirit of literary refearch rifes among them, the ftudy of thofe English publications will be encouraged, from which the Americans have acquired their knowledge of legislation, and their principles of liberty. When we confider the uncertainty and the fluctuating nature of all human affairs, and particularly ticularly the great mutability of language, we cannot help giving way to the melancholy reflection, that the time may arrive, when the English, which at prefent appears fo durable and permanent, as the standard of converfation and writing, will become obfolete. The caprices of fashion, the wide extent of our commerce, the general intercourfe with other pations, and more particularly the predominance of the French language may produce great changes; and Hume and Johnfon, Pope and Goldsmith, may become what Speed and Afcham, Chaucer and Phaer, are at prefent. We cannot, however, think that the understanding and the taste of mankind will be likely fo far to degenerate, as to fuffer works of intrinfic merit ever to fink into oblivion; on the contrary, we are inclined to cherish the pleafing expectation, that the best productions of our writers, rankeɖ with the admired claffics of Greece and Rome, will be carefully preferved for general improvement and pleasure, and will convey the treasures of genius, learning, and philofophy, to the moft dif tant ages and generations. CHAPTER CHAPTER IV. The Latin Language. A KNOWLEDGE of this language introduces us to many of thofe works, which are defervedly claffed among the most elegant productions of the human mind, and are confidered as fome of the moft correct models of literary excellence. If we eftimate its comparative value and importance, it claims a place immediately after our own tongue; as not only the Roman writers have made it the vehicle of their genius, but it has been diftinguifhed fince the revival of learning, by the productions of many eminent authors. The utility of an acquaintance with this language will be more immediately apparent, if we confider how much our own is indebted to it for many of the terms of art and fcience, as well as for most of our polyfyllables. Without its affiftance, it is not only difficult to underftand our Authors, but to write or fpeak even a fentence of elegant English; fo that when we are engaged in ftudying the Latin, we are in fact making ourfelves more perfect mafters of our own language. It is equally ufeful, if we wish to acquire the French, the Italian, and the Spanifh, as it conftitutes fo material a part of thofe elegant tongues. It is the prolifie 5 prolific mother of many children; and whatever difference may prevail among them with refpect to the various countries, in which they are fettled, or the foreign alliances they have formed, they difcover the parent from which they fprung, by the most striking fimilarity of features. Confidered with refpect to its origin, the Latin language derived many words from the Etrufcans and Sabines it is however, for the moft part, a yery ancient branch of the Greek, and is chiefly formed from the Doric and Eolic dialects. From the Eolic genitive in oo was formed the Latin genitive in i. From the genitive in aw were formed the feminine plurals in arum. The Roman S fupplied the place of the Eolic Digamma F, as in femis, fus, fuper, fub, fylva, as V did in vis, venter, vinum, vicus, &c. From the Dorica for n are derived the words of the firft declenfion. From the third perfon plural in o for 8 was formed the Latin third perfon plural in unt. A colony of Arcadians under Enotrus are faid to have introduced Greek into Italy many centuries before the Trojan war. As Latin was feparated from the mother tongue at fo very early a period, it was deficient in that melody and fweetnefs which the other diaJects acquired, when' Greek afterwards reached its greatest perfection". 3 Not "Muretus non dubitavit dicere, eos qui Græci fermonis ex pertes fint, ne Latina quiden fcripta penitus percipere poffe. Ipfe vir fummus Hemfterhufius fefe in Latinis intelligendis fic a Græcis |