ave rife in the first place to some ficial mean, which was owing to -feen and accidental circumstance. conftant repetition of this mean her Men fucceffively to take adf new accidents, which occurred: ngth the mean became complete, adapted to other means, more or roportion to the different ftates of nd civilifation. And thefe means, t of fo many accidents, were, after ution of many ages, ranked amongst ber of Inventions; and were ads efforts of human fagacity. But uld Men do otherwife, who placed, re, fo low in the revolution of time, iged to look upwards to the objects, we contemplate. I do not therefore this admiration, fince it is founded in ty; but I think it ought to be conal, and fuch as actuates the mind of

ntiquary, who has the advantage of calcu

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calculating the mediocrity of the firft Ideas, and of viewing from a more elevated station the occafion and means, which have employed Men to extend their firft Ideas and expedients; and judging of all the privations and impediments, which they fuffered before they could make the leaft progress.

"We may then boldly affert, that the fimpleft Bagatelle never exifted in its original form fuch as it is seen in civilized countries; and that as the ufes or elegance of it were not owing to the forefight of the first Arift, it cannot be called an Invention ; at least it does not deferve that name according to its ftricteft fenfe and acceptation*. But I will bring fome instances.

All Arts and means are but varieties and modifications of former means applied to new purposes. What are called the greatest discoveries in Natural Philosophy have been the late refult of gradual acceffions of knowledge, and have been owing not fo much to the exertions and forefight of genius, as to the casual fuccefs of diligence and patient obfervation.

It is a great advantage attending this Study," fays a great Natural Philofopher and Experimentalift of the prefent day, Prieftly's Obfervations on Education, p. 18,19. "that every new ❝ discovery serves as a key to many more, of a fimilar nature. This

The Wheel is the most beautiful machine, which was ever made by Men, even

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This field of ufeful purfuit is by no means confined to men of great genius. In fact, men of common good fenfe "and fufficient industry have generally diftinguished them"felves in this way; and the hiftory of Philofophy fhews that the most valuable difcoveries have been made in fuch manner as reflects honour on the patient attention rather than "on the penetration of the Authors." Yet in this maturity of the Arts it is difficult to judge of their gradual augmentation; and it is impoffible without a confiderable degree of analyfis and abftraction, to perceive how the convenience and perfection of one mean fuggefted new modifications of that mean, and new applications to different purpofes, The Arts therefore to the incurious appear independent of each other, and to have arifen every one from the arbitrary exertions of Man's inventive faculty.

What is faid of the Mechanical, may be applied to another Art, the most beautiful of all Arts, the Art of Language. In the prefent maturity of Language all words feem to have been from arbitrary impofition; for the words which we use, we received from thofe, who went before us, as they from their predeceffors; and therefore do not think of the relation, which words have to the things which they denote. For what is conceived to have been arbitrary aud fortuitous, must be judged alfo to have been, in itself, infignificant; and words which are deemed infignificant cannot be fuppofed to have been connected by any community of fenfe, by any proximate relation to each other. In fubjects of remote inquiry it is abfolutely neceffary to abftract the mind, as far as poffible, from prefent modes and habits, cogitationem a confuetudine abducere; for though the words which we ufe be the fame, or expreffive of the fame meaning, yet our

habits.

clufive of its utility to all other machines to which it is applied; yet it could have been owing to nothing but chance, which naturally presents itself to Men the most favage and unenlightened. We will suppose them to have seen a tree thrown down, and fallen upon another already on the ground. The latter becoming more eafy to be removed by the motion of that beneath it, fuggefted by this firft experience the idea of a roler. However a long fucceffion of Years, and a frequent repetition of the experiment must have been neceffary before they coud have paffed from a long roler to that of a moderate thickness, and pierced in its centre in

habits are so variously fixed, and our feelings fo differently affociated, that we cannot otherwife conceive what reason the firft ufer of language followed in the impofition of names, that is, what relation words have to the things, which they denote; nor can this abftraction be safely pursued, but by a grammatical Analyfis of words, and a deduction of Ideas derived from fuch Analyfis.-But for fo regular Analysis all modern languages, on account of certain defects before mentioned, are above fuppofed to be unfit. B.

order

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order to be placed with another on an axle, and to render by this expedient the roler eafy to be moved, and capable of transporting the heaviest burdens. Lefs time might perhaps have been neceffary to proceed from the ufe of the little full wheel, taken from the long roler, to that which the Greeks made ufe of in their Cars, in which was united lightness with folidity.

"It will be found without doubt that I have chofen an example the best fuited to my purpose. I believe it to be so, and regard it in effect as the moft convincing. The Instance however which I am going to bring does not depend at all on Art, but on the knowledge of an Element, with the greatest,. or rather the first advantages of which it will be always aftonishing that Men continued fo long unacquainted.

The use of Fire, of which Men have in some measure made themselves mafters, required without doubt the experience of many Years, as well as the proof of

many

misfor