CHAPTER IV. 841 floral and intellectual ideas, when traced up to the original in t he learned languages, will be found to signify sensible and cor- poreal things; thus the words apprehension, understanding, abstraction, invention, idea, inference, prudence, religion church, adoration, &c. have all a corporeal signification in their original. The name spirit itself signifies breath or air, in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew ; such is the poverty of all languages, they are forced to use these names for incorporeal ideas, which thing has a tendency to error and confusion. 8. The last thing I shall mention that leads us into many a mistake is, the multitude of objects that one name sometimes sig- nifies; there is almost an infinite variety of things and ideas, both simple and complex, beyond all the words that are invented in any language ; thence it becomes almost necessary that one name should signify several things. Let us but consider the two colours of yellow and blue, if they are mingled together in any considerable proportion, they make a green; now there may be infinite differences of the proportions in the mixture of yellow and blue; and yet we have only these three words, yellow, blue, and green, to signify all of them, at least by one single term. When I use the word shore, I may intend thereby a coast of land near the sea, or a drain to carry off water, or a prop to support a building; and by the sound of the word porter, who can tell whether 1 mean a man who bears burdens, or a servant who waits at a nobleman's gate? 'l'he world is fruitful in the invention of utensils of life, and new characters and offices of men, yet names entirely new are seldom invented ; therefore old names are almost necessarily used to signify new things, which may occasion much coiifusiou and error in the receiving and com- municating of knowledge. Give me leave to propose one single instance, wherein all these notes shall be remarkably exemplified. It is the word bishop, which in French is called eveque ; upon which I would make these several observations :-1. That there is no natural connexion between the sacred office hereby signified, and the letters or sound which signify this office ; for . both these words eveque and bishop signify the same office, thoggh there is not one letter alike in them ; nor have the letters which compose the English or the French word any thing sacred belonging to them more than the letters that compose the words king or soldier. 2. If the meaning of a word could be learned by its derivation or etymology, yet the original derivation of words is oftentimes very dark and unsearcháble ; for who would imagine that each of these words are derived from the Latin Episcopus, or the Greek E'nesoaot4 Yet in this instance we happen to know cer- tainly the true derivation ; the French being anciently writ evesgus, Y 3
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=