The article, αρθρα, partakes of the nature of pronouns; and in apposition
or concord with another name, either active or substantive, determines it
to be a substantive, or the name of a substance, with its identity and
number.
There are two sorts of articles, viz. _the_ and _an_; an becomes _a_ or
_any_ before a consonant, and either of them being placed in apposition
to an active convertible name, convert it into a substantive, as _to
form_ into _a form_, _to chase_ into _a chase_. And, names being first
formed in the plural number, both these then stood as signs of the
singular number; but since plural names have been taken as singular, and
new signs have been added thereto to form plurals, _the_ is also put in
apposition to plural names, to indentify the person or thing meant or
spoken of.
Example; Some may still imagine _the_ signification of _an_ article
or _a_ letter, and perhaps more compound names to be indefinable, and
the article to be useless; tho’ _the_ definitions here given thereof
evidently shew _the_ contrary; and the Greeks and Romans not only made
use of the genders ο, η, το, and hic, hæc, hoc, but also of a declining
article at the end of nouns, as the Welsh did _un_ and _yr_, which last
before a consonant sunk into y _the_, inflecting with the following
radical consonant; and other nations have made use of the article. _To_
dispute the utility of the article seems therefore absurd, but it may be
_a_ dispute, whether either determine _any_ particular individual, or
only some third person alluded to, pointed at, meant or spoken of in
discourse, or in the line of possession; ο, η, το, hic, hæc, hoc, this,
that, yr, un, le, ein and der expressing as much.
Of Nouns Substantive.
A Noun Substantive denotes a substance, as a spirit, an animal, a
vegetable, or any other thing that may be conceived to subsist, as
_agreeableness_, _agility_, _acceleration_; which, tho’ their qualities,
_agreeable_, _agile_, _accelerate_, are indefinite or indeterminate, yet
by the signs, _ness_, _ty_, _ion_, signifying substances, properties,
and the sun’s motion, acquire such a determinate meaning as to become
substantives, and to shew their meaning without being joined with any
other word. And all names, whether of substances, qualities, or other
things, to which the articles _an_ or _the_, or any other substantive
signs are joined or set in apposition, are nouns substantive.
There are in the English language more substantive names than seem to be
necessary for an universal language, besides the synonymas of various
other dialects, which are incongruous in sense, with the hieroglyfic
signs, and tend to darken and confound the natural sense and sounds of
names and things. Tho’ the English vocables are explained elsewhere,
we shall here take notice of some peculiarities of that nature in the
English substantives.
Bl-ab, b-abe; ebb, gl-ebe; rib, tr-ibe; kn-ob, gl-obe; t-ub, t-ube; where
the final _e_ should be dropped, and the remaining vowel marked with a
grave accent, as tub, tùb.
B-ack, b-ake; b-eck, b-eke; l-ick, like, link; p-ock, p-oke, m-uck,
p-uke. These might be wrote as lic, lìc.
Ax, sex, ra-dix, ox, ux, as acs or ach as formerly. Ach, be-ach, spe-ech,
st-ich, l-och, n-och, touch.
M-atch, l-etch, itch, b-otch, sm-utch.
H-ac, ar-se, ace, dice, d-oce, d-uce.
H-ag, l-eg, g-ig, l-og, h-ug.
Age, b-adge, coll-ege, edge, se-ige, br-idge, d-oge, l-odge, subterf-uge,
b-udge.
Aight, eight, f-ight, f-ought, o-ught. These eight last classes are
made use of to express the three subsisting sorts of actions, viz. the
local or inanimate, the generative and energic, when the first might be
expressed by c, the second by g, and the third by ch, as, ac, àc, and
aç with a cedille, that is, the acute, the grave, and soft or feminine;
ag, àg, āg for the short, long, and soft of the generative species of
motion; and ach, àch, and āch, the last to be sounded like the Welsh ch
or the English _wh_ in what or where, for the acute, grave, and gutteral
of energies and animal motions; so that these three letters, which the
Welsh inflect so as to express the cases and genders by the difference
of acute, grave, and gutteral, might very well serve for all the uses of
the eight last classes of names, should the whole be deemed necessary.
But, those of the third, fifth, eighth, and ninth classes are compound
sounds expressed by a combination of characters, which ought not to be
kept together but in terminations; they having been corruptly introduced
into languages by the Greeks and Romans, in order to express qualities
and pleasant sounds contrary to the nature of things.
Bre-ad, bl-ade, br-ed, br-eed, ma-id, si-de, c-od, c-ode, b-ud, pr-ude,
should be wrote and accented as ud, ùd.
St-af, st-ave, be-ef, be-eve, l-ife, ol-ive, beho-of, beho-ove, c-ave,
might be made staff and stàf, as formerly.
An-im-al, male, h-ell, h-eel, circ-le, Apr-il, v-ill, b-ile, car-ol,
par-ole, c-ull, b-ull, m-ule, might be wrote and accented al, àl, el, èl,
il, ìl, not eel, ol, òl, ul, ùl; or as the Welsh and Spanish aspirate ll.
H-am, l-ame, sarc-asm, anth-em, th-eme, apoth-egm, cla-im, cl-ime,
quiet-ism, wisd-om, h-ome, mikrocosm, ch-um, h-ume, usm. Here the final e
might be dropped, and the Greek compounds have no particular meaning; all
being alike expressive of the forms of substances and things.
Me-an, m-ane, g-ang, p-en, obsc-ene, chall-enge, p-in, p-ine, th-ing,
mo-ti-on, t-ong, b-un, b-ung. These signify various existences and
things, and are properly accented; but the final e might be exchanged in
writing, for the grave accent, màn.
Attend-ance, abstin-ence, prov-ince, sc-once, d-unce. These may do as to
orthography and accent, and signify the ens or essence of various things,
as, ance of earthly substances, ens those of water, ince of things in
general, once of motion, and unce of man, as in dunce or di-unce a
privative of the human essence.
Ant, ag-ent, m-int, f-ont, h-unt, signify the possession of the earth
and water or property, properties in general, the property of motion
and human property, that is of hunting or driving to and fro in the
possessions.
G-ap, g-ape, sle-ep, p-eep, tr-ip, tr-ipe, h-op, h-ope, s-up, d-upe,
shap, ship, shop. Here the grave accent might serve for the final e; the
meaning thereof being the division generally of matter into substances or
parts, except the terminations shap, ship, and shop, signifying from high
or high.
Cell-ar, c-are, be-er, p-er, or pear, f-ir, fire, clam-or, st-ore, c-ur,
cens-ure, am-our or am-ur, here the final e might be dropped; and ar
signifies upon, àr earth, er since, èr water, ir high or to, ìr fire, or
from, òr an extension of possession, or a circle, ur or wr a man.
Lam-as, ass, g-aze, ash, be-ast, actr-ess, sque-ese, fl-esh, ap-ish-ness,
apt-ness, ch-est, bl-iss, s-ize, f-ish, l-ist, m-oss, d-oze, osh, c-ost,
b-uss, f-uze, bush, b-ust, might be all expressed and accented as, as,
às, ash, ast to express the affirmations and energies of affections,
properties, and things.
P-at, p-ate, p-et, def-ete, b-it, b-ite, kn-ot, m-ote, c-ut, mute, p-ath,
t-eeth, fa-ith, m-oth, mo-uth. These express the identity and property
of different parts or things, and the final e might be exchanged for the
grave accent.
Abili-ty, agili-ty, ami-ty, du-ty, antipa-thy, apa-thy, sympa-thy. These
signify different general properties and qualities of things.
Aristocra-cy, oligar-chy, ordina-ry, mason-ry, orator-y, lecher-y,
grocer-y, orthodox-y, ha-y, ho-y. The cy and chy signify different
qualities, and the y is the Welsh _the_.
Ma-w, me-w, mo-w, and s or es for substantives of a plural nature. This w
signifies different springs.
Substantives are distinguished by grammarians into appellatives or
general names of things common to many individuals, as _man_, _river_,
_month_, _wind_; and proper names, appropriated only to individuals,
as, _George_, _Britain_, _London_, _October_, _Libs_, which admit of
neither articles or plurality of numbers. But all words, excepting one
or an, according to their natural meaning seem to me to be appellative
and capable of being applied to things of a plural nature, were their
primitive sense understood, as for instance, _George_, which originally
signified _a chief of the circle nation_, as an appellative name of a
magistrate, in the same manner as King, Prince, Duke, or any other;
but when its original meaning was lost, and it came to be adopted as a
Christian name by different families, it was thence supposed to be a
mere arbitrary term, imposed as the name of an individual; and so as
to Britain, London, October, Libs, Thames, Avon, which were originally
appellatives or common expressions for _the sea coast_, _long towns_,
_the eighth month from the spring_, _the west south-west, or Libian
wind_, _the limits of the Iceni_, and _Rivers_. So that these names,
so long as their original meanings were understood, were as much
appellative or common expressions, as man, river, month, wind, or any
other common names, and as capable too of a plural or singular sense,
in concord with the articles or demonstrative pronouns; as, _a_, _the_,
_this_, or _that_, chief of the circle nation or long town, &c. Hence
the distinction of common and proper names seems to be frivolous and
unnecessary.
All substantives were originally appellative and plural, and the
articles and demonstrative pronouns were set in apposition or as
terminations thereto, to determine their singular nature as well as the
identity of the individual. But as they are now mostly understood as
the signs of single things, the English method of adding s or es as a
plural termination, should be generally followed as the best method;
unless substantives and their articles should be restored to their
original sense and use; but in either case the particles, an or en, as
terminations of plural names, when the sense will admit of their being
singular, and en does not express the male and female of the same kind,
as men does both man and woman, seem to be improper. Nor is it best so
to continue the use of such plurals, as mice, lice, teeth, feet, geese,
but rather mus, lus, toth, fot, gus, which are so in their nature, as
expressing the little eaters, the little family, the grinders, the movers
and the water nation. It is however certain that the numbers of nouns are
in their nature but two, singular and plural, one and two or many, but
whether they are expressed by one or an, and two or as and es seems not
to be very material, tho’ as and es were the primitive signs, as, _as_
signified the masculine gender, and _es_ the feminine. And numbers and
genders ought to be the same.
There were originally no other distinction of genders of nouns than
the masculine and feminine, and which were distinguishable only by
the signification of vocables; and whatever other arbitrary modes
and distinctions as to genders of nouns and their declensions or
inflections have been arbitrarily made by other nations, the English
still in fact adhere to the original masculine and feminine genders,
the only distinction of nature, _as_ and _es_; for were the meaning
of substantives precisely understood, they would all appear to be
either masculine or feminine, at least, as relative to man and woman,
or according to their active and passive, or hard and soft sounds. Nor
do the English adjectives or pronouns vary as to genders, numbers, or
cases, as has been supposed; but naturally agree in concord, without any
variation or inflection thereof, from their primitive state.
Indeed if the Welsh modes of inflection derive their origin from the
original language, which was musical, and vocables could be reduced to
their true primitive state, perhaps it might be the best way, but as that
might be impracticable or too arduous a task, we may as well stick to
our old English voices, which deviate so very little from the primitive
language.
And, as to any variation of cases or the declension of nouns, the English
still remains in the primitive state of language without any; their
prepositions being fully expressive of the situation and direction of
actions and things, and those of other nations being altogether arbitrary
and calculated more for the sake of variety and preservation of vocables,
than from any necessity, as their prepositions and vocables might in
their primitive state be as expressive, and agree in concord, like the
English, which has no other state or case, than that in which names were
originally formed, or the nominative, as will appear to any one, that
will be at the trouble of a deliberate consideration of the origin,
frame, and construction of the English language, whatever may have been
advanced by our modern grammarians, as to the variation of the genitive
or possessive case.
Of Pronouns or general Personates.
Pronouns, so called from their being supposed to be mere substitutes
of nouns, ought according to their signification to be deemed either
substantives or adjectives; for as general signs they serve to personate,
demonstrate, relate, and interrogate persons, things, and parts of
discourses; and being all demonstrative and interrogative, they are
properly distinguishable only into the following sorts, viz.
Personals. Possessives. Relatives.