be furprized at this, when we may be certain, that the artificer was God. It may at first It may at first appear too prefumptuous to determine about the designs of the Deity and the method, which he was pleased to obferve in his operations. But as God delights to fhew himself in his works; and to have his wif dom manifefted by its effects; we may venture to make inquiry. Above all, as we know, how man is gifted, and at the fame time, that he is limited in his faculties; we may from hence form a judgment of the process, by which he was led on towards the expreffing of his ideas. As the Deity never difplays any unneceffary inftance of his power, we may prefume, that language came by degrees. We may farther reason from man's powers being circumfcribed, that knowledge was afforded him in proportion, as he was capable of receiving it. Thofe objects, which were more obvious, and neceffary, were undoubtedly moft likely to be diftinguished. Thefe were things: fuch as the luminaries in the heavens; and upon earth hill and dale, wood and meadow, fountain and stream, food, and raiment. But above all we may fuppofe, that among the various objects in the creation, animals ftood among the foremost to be named. And we accordingly find it mentioned by Mofes, that, when God had formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air, he brought them to Adam to fee, what he would call them : and whatever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave name to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air; and to every beast of the field. Gen. c. ii. v. 19. 20. By degrees he must have learned to exprefs his particular feelings. Hence heat and cold, hunger and thirst, pleasure and pain, received their denomination. ideas increased, language improved: efpecially

As his

when he had gotten a confort; and when a progeny enfued. He alfo fhewed in. what manner and at what time he had any experience, and alfo described not only, what he fuffered, in a paffive ftate; but also how he acted himfelf; and how others acted, to whofe operations he was witness. We may fuppofe, that he at last began to abstract, and to compare; and to form combinations: from whence a new fet of words must have been invented to exprefs the feveral ideas. In all this, I imagine, that he was progreffively led on by divine wisdom, in proportion, as he had abilities to learn. And of this, I think, we may be fure, that things were first named. And by things I mean the works of nature: and thofe impreffions, and affections, to which the nature of man is most immediately liable. For there are alfo things, which are either the work of art; or the confequence of later and deeper confideration. Between these, and the former, there is a material difference. For the former stand first, and are manifestly principal and independant; the latter are fubfequent, dependant, and derivative; being denominated from the means or method by which they were produced. For they are effects, and denominated from their caufe. Suppose, that I were to infift, that not only nouns were in great measure first framed; but that paffive verbs were in order next: and the active laft. I do not fay, that it certainly was fo: but fuch a pofition would not eafily be confuted.. All verbs deduced from fimple ideas are properly paffive; however differently adjudged by grammarians. I feel, I fmell, I taft, in their nature denote paffion; as much, as I am burnt or I am heated. In Thort in respect to doing and fuffering, may we not suppose man to have been acted upon, before he himself acted and that he expreffed his own affections,

affections, before he was himself an agent, and witness to the feelings of others. But be this as it may: what I principally infift upon in respect to ancient etymology is, that the cause must preceed the effect; and cannot be deduced from it: for the cause was first known and named. Kaupa cannot be derived from xaiw or xauw. It is a primitive and original term: the very fame as, on of the Hebrews; by which is fignified both the fun and beat. Rules may be laid down, and canons formed: but whoever would be conducted with fecurity, must proceed upon principles, which were prior to grammar and grammarian: by an analogy, which is deduced from truth and nature; to which their rules are often repugnant.

I am accused in the fame manner about the words; and am greatly blamed for not knowing that the last fyllable was merely a Grecian termination. And indeed I did not know it: nor do I now believe it: to say the truth, I am convinced of the contrary. We may be greatly mistaken, if we think, that every word, thus terminated, is lengthened by a Grecian appendage. There are many names from other countries, a circumftance perhaps not much attended to; which end in the

דריוש. אחשורוש. כורש. fame manner. We read of

Cyrus, Aḥafuerus, Darius; whose names have the like termination in Hebrew: and we may be pretty fure, that they had the fame in the Perfic. The word xwxos, debilitatus, mutilatus, is probably the fame as n in a prior language. As to the word Aos, I make no doubt but that it was originally in the ancient Pelafgic expreffed no. But the Grecians continually changed into ; and out of, p keren, they formed xegas; out of Mavelwr, MaPEOs of which changes I have given many inftances. Haies was a word introduced from the

Eaft

Eaft by the first colonies, who came into Greece : and how it was originally rendered, we may learn from Sanchoniathon: who expreffes it Exov, Elioun. He is mentioning fome of the first perfonages upon earth, to whom were given divine titles and he fpeaks of them in the following manner.

Κατα

που τους γίνεται τις Ελιουνο καλουμενος Ὕψισος, και Τηλεία λεγόμενη Βηρουθ, εξ ών γενναται Επίγειος, η Αυτοχ θων, ὧν ύσερον εκαλεσαν Ουρανον. Εufeb. Præp. Evang. L. 1. p. 36. We find, that one of these perfons was Beryth; another was called Uranus, or Hea ven: and a third stiled Elioun, the Sun: who was also named 'sos, the most High. It may be farther known from the compound Abelion, AGEλLWY; under which title the Sun is known to have been worshiped. Hence we have infcriptions, DEO ABELLIONI; and ABELLIONI DEO TAURINUS. Gruter. Vol. I, p. xxxvii. The name of Apollo, Arrow, is fuppofed by Voffius to be a derivative from Abellion; which is a compound of Ab and Elion. Troy was facred to the Sun, the fame as Apollo: and it was from hence ftiled Ilion: which is only a variation of the former term. Some of the Grecian poets altered it to Iaos, and made it a femi. nine; and fo it occurs in Homer. But among profe writers it occurs a neuter: and it is fo found in Strabo. Stephanus alfo informs us, sderegws de maga πασι το Ιλιον. And that it was very properly o rendered, we may be farther affured by the Romans, who always exprefs it Ilion, or Ilium: and they were faid to be a Phrygian colony and to have come from this very place. Hence we find it thus introduced by Horace :

παρα

Another

Another poet, prior to Horace, fpeaks of it in fome very fine verfes by the name of Ilium: in which verfes he has a distant allufion to the original of the Romans from Troy.

O! Patria, O! Divom domus, Ilium, et inclyta bello:

Pergama

Quæ neque Dardaneis campis potuere perire ; Que non capta capi; quæ non combufta cremari.

The terms Ilion, Elion, and Ilium, are nothing more than the Elioun of Sanchoniathon: the fame word ending indifferently with or μ, accordingly as nations varied in their mode of termination. From hence, I think, we may be certain, that in this inftance was not an appendage; but a part of the original word Hale, or Haiw; only varied by the Greeks.

ος

A like cenfure has been paffed upon me for what I have mentioned about Nimrod, and Mount Nebrodes (Nepwdns) in Sicily. Here again I am fuppofed to have been not apprifed, that the latter part (wdns) was a Grecian termination. I must reply, as I have done before, that I really did not know it: nor do I know it now: for it certainly cannot be esteemed fo. A part only of the laft fyllable is the termination: Nebrod, Nɛgw, is the original word. As there are many paffages relating to the fame hiftory, for which I am called to account, I will bring them together, and lay them before the reader in the words of the author, Jam in rebus ipfis non minor eft vel negligentia, vel conjectandi temeritas. Quid eft, quod p. 9. Græ. cos Nimrodum, Nepwd, nominâffe ex Chronico Pafchali demonftrare conatur; cujus in hâc re nulla poteft effe auctoritas; nam qui Nimrodum

memorant