When Wr-alda gave children to the mothers of mankind, he gave one
language to every tongue and to all lips. This gift Wr-alda had
bestowed upon men in order that by its means they might make known
to each other what must be avoided and what must be followed to find
salvation, and to hold salvation to all eternity. Wr-alda is wise
and good, and all-foreseeing. As he knew that happiness and holiness
would flee from the earth when wickedness could overcome virtue,
he has attached to the language an equitable property. This property
consists in this, that men can neither lie nor use deceitful words
without stammering or blushing, by which means the innately bad are
easily known.
As thus our language opens the way to happiness and blessedness,
and thus helps to guard against evil inclinations, it is rightly
named the language of the gods, and all those by whom it is held in
honour derive honour from it. But what has happened? As soon as among
our half brothers and sisters deceivers arose, who gave themselves
out as servants of the good, it soon became otherwise. The deceitful
priests and the malignant princes, who always clung together, wished
to live according to their own inclinations, without regard to the
laws of right. In their wickedness they went so far as to invent other
languages, so that they might speak secretly in anybody's presence
of their wicked and unworthy affairs without betraying themselves by
stammering, and without showing a blush upon their countenances. But
what has that produced? Just as the seed of good herbs which has
been sown by good men in the open day springs up from the ground,
so time brings to light the evil seed which has been sown by wicked
men in secret and in darkness.
The wanton girls and effeminate youths who consorted with the immoral
priests and princes, taught the new language to their companions,
and thus spread it among the people till God's language was clean
forgotten. Would you know what came of all this? how that stammering
and blushing no longer betrayed their evil doings;--virtue passed
away, wisdom and liberty followed; unity was lost, and quarrelling
took its place; love flew away, and unchastity and envy met round
their tables; and where previously justice reigned, now it is the
sword. All are slaves--the subjects of their masters, envy, bad
passions and covetousness. If they had only invented one language
things might possibly have still gone on well; but they invented as
many languages as there are states, so that one people can no more
understand another people than a cow a dog, or a wolf a sheep. The
mariners can bear witness to this. From all this it results that
all the slave people look upon each other as strangers; and that as
a punishment of their inconsiderateness and presumption, they must
quarrel and fight till they are all destroyed.