rally refort to the Hague, the feat of government, are not fo cleanly. On the other hand, the French are lefs cleanly than the English, though not lefs induftrious. But the lower claffes of people, being in England more at their ease than in France, have a greater tafte for living well, and in particular for keeping themselves clean. A beard gives to the countenance a rough and fierce air, fuited to the manners of a rough and fierce people. The fame face without a beard appears milder; for which reafon, a beard becomes unfashionable in a polished nation. Demofthenes the orator lived in the fame period with Alexander the Great, at which time the Greeks begun to leave off beards. A bust however of that orator, found in Herculaneum, has a beard; which must either have been done for him when he was young, or from reluctance in an old man to a new fashion. Barbers were brought to Rome from Sicily in the 454th year after the building of Rome. And it must relate to the time following that period, what Aulus Gellius. fays (e), that people accused of any crime were prohibited to fhave their beards till they were abfolved. From Hadrian, downward, the Roman Emperors wore beards. Julius Capitolinus reproaches the Emperor Verus for cutting his beard, at the inftigation of a concubine. All the Roman generals wore beards in Juftinian's time (ƒ). When the Pope fhaved his beard, it was reckoned a manifeft apoftacy by the Greek church; because Mofes and Jefus Chrift were always drawn with beards by the Greek and Latin painters. Upon the dawn of smooth manners in France, the beaus cut their beards into shapes, and curled their whifkers. That fashion produced a whimsical effect, viz. that men of gravity left off beards altogether: a beard in its natural fhape was too fierce, even for them; and they could not for fhame copy after the beaus. Language, when brought to any perfection among a (e) Lib. 3. cap. 4. (f) Procopii Historia Vandalica, lib. 2 polished people, may juftly be confidered as one of the fine arts; and in that view is handled above. But it belongs to the present sketch, confidered as a branch of external behaviour. Every part of external behaviour is influenced by temper and difpofition, and language more than any other part. In Elements of Criticism (g) it is obferved, that an emotion in many inftances bears a refemblance to its caufe. The like holds univerfally in all the natural founds prompted by paffion. Let a paffion be bold, rough, chearful, tender, or humble, ftill it holds, that the natural found prompted by it is in the fame tone and hence the reafon why thefe natural founds are the fame in all languages. Some flight refemblance of the fame kind is difcoverable in many artificial founds. The language of a favage is harfh; of polite people, fmooth; and of women, foft and musical. The tongues of favage nations abound in gutturals, or in nafals: yet one would imagine that fuch words, pronounced with difficulty, would be avoided by favages, as they are by children. But temper prevails, and fuggefts to favages, harsh founds, conformable to their roughness and cruelty. The Esquimaux have a language compofed of the harfheft gutturals; and the tongues of the northern European nations are not remarkably more fmooth. The Scotch peafants are a frank and plain people; and their dialect is in the tone of their character. The Huron tongue hath ftatelinefs and energy above most known languages; and the Hurons ftill retain a certain elevation of mind, which is more conformable to the majefty of their discourse, than to their prefent low condition. Thus the manners of a people may in fome meafure be gathered from their language. Nay, manners may frequently be gathered from fingle words. The Hebrew word LECHOм fignifies both food and fighting; and TEREPH fignifies both food and plunder. KARAB fignifies to draw near to one, and fignifies alfo to fight. The Greek word LEIA, which fignified originally, spoil procured by war or piracy, came to fignify wealth. And ('g) Chap. 2. part 6. the great variety of Greek words fignifying good and better, fignified originally strong and violent. Government, according to its different kinds, hath confiderable influence in forming the tone of a language. Language in a democracy is commonly rough and coarse; in a republic, manly and plain; in a monarchy, courteous, and infinuating; in defpotism, imperious with respect to inferiors, and humble with refpect to fuperiors. The government of the Greek- empire is well reprefented in Juftinian's edicts, termed Novelle Conftitutiones, the ftyle of which is ftiff, formal, and affectedly ftately; but deftitute of order, of force, and of ligament. About three centuries ago, Tufcany was filled with fmall republics, who fpoke a dialect manly and plain. Its rough tones were purged off when united under the Great Duke of Tufcany; by which means the Tufcan dialect has arrived nearer to perfection than any other in Italy. The tone of the French language is well fuited to the nature of its government: every man is politely fubmiffive to thofe above him; and this tone forms the character of the language in general, fo as even to regulate the tone of the few who have occafion to fpeak with authority. The freedom of the English government forms the manners of the people: the English language is accordingly inore manly and nervous than the French, and abounds more with rough founds. The Lacedemonians of old, a proud and auftere people, affected to talk with brevity, in the tone of command more than of advice; and hence the Laconic ftyle, dry but masculine. The Attic style is more difficult to be accounted for: it was fweet and copious and had a remarkable delicacy above the style of any other nation. And yet the democracy of Athens produced rough manners; witness the comedies of Ariftophanes, and the orations of Efchines and Demofthenes. We are not fo well acquainted with the Athenians as to account for the difference between their language and their manners: and are equally at a lofs a bout the Ruffian tongue, which, notwithstanding the barbarity of the people, is fmooth and fonorous. All that can be faid is, that the operation of a general cause may be, difturbed by particular circumstances. Languages refemble the tides: the influence of the moon, which is the general caufe of tides, is in feveral inftances overbalanced by particular caufes acting in oppofition. There may be observed in fome favage tribes, a certain refinement of language that might do honour to a polished people. The Canadians never give a man his proper name, in fpeaking to him. If he be a relation, he is addressed to in that quality: if a stranger, the fpeaker gives him fome appellation that marks affection; fuch as, brother, coufin, friend. : From fpeech we advance to action. Man is naturally prone to motion; witnefs children, who are never at reft but when asleep. Where reafon governs, a man restrains. that reftlefs difpofition, and never acts without a motive. Savages have few motives to action when the belly is full their huts require little induftry; and their covering of fkins, ftill lefs. Hunting and fishing employ all their activity. After much fatigue in hunting, reft is fweet; which the favage prolongs, having no motive to action till the time of hunting returns. Savages, accordingly, like dogs, are extremely active in the field, and extremely indolent at home*. The favages of the torrid zone are indolent above all others: they go naked; their huts coft them no trouble; and they never hunt except for vegetables, which are their only food. The Spaniards who firft landed in Hifpaniola, were furprifed at Quotiens bella non ineunt, non multum venatibus; plus per otium tranfigunt, dediti fomno, ciboque. Fortiffimus quifque ac bellicofiffimus nihil agens, delegata domus et penatium et agrorum cura feminis fenibufque, et infirmiffimo cuique ex familia, ipfi habent; mira diverfitate naturae, cum iidem homines fic ament iner tiam, et oderint quietem. Tacitus, De moribus Germanorum, cap. 15.---[In English thus: "While not engaged in war, they do not "often spend their time in hunting, but chiefly in indolence, minding nothing but their fleep and food. The braveft and most war"like among them, having nothing to do, pafs the time in a fluggish "ftupidity, committing the care of the houfe, the family, and "the culture of the lands, to women, old men, and to the most "weakly. Such is the wonderful diverfity of their nature, that "they are at once the most indolent of beings, and the most impatient of reft."] ་་ the manners of the inhabitants. They are defcribed as lazy, and without ambition; paffing part of their time in eating and dancing, and the reft in fleep; having no great fhare of memory, and ftill lefs of understanding. The character given of these favages belongs to all, efpecially to favages in hot climates. The imperfection of their memory and judgment is occafioned by want of employment. The fame imperfection was remarkable in the people of Paraguay, when under Jesuit government; of which afterward (b). In early times, people lived in a very fimple manner, ignorant of fuch habitual wants as are commonly termed. luxury. Rebecca, Rachael, and the daughters of Jethro, tended their fathers' flocks: they were really fhepherdeffes. Young women of fashion drew water from the well with their own hands. The joiner who made the bridal bed of Ulyffes, was Ulyffes himself (i). The Princefs Nauficaa wafhes the family cloaths; and the Princes her brothers, upon her return, unyoke the car, and carry in the cloaths (k). Queens, and even female deities, are employed in fpinning (4). Is it from this fashion that young women in England are denominated fpinfters? Telemachus goes to council with no attendants but two dogs: "Soon as in folemn form th' affembly fat, 66 "From his high dome himself descends in state; Bright in his hand a pond'rous jav'lin fhin'd; "Two dogs, a faithful guard, attend behind. ODYSSEY, book 2. Priam's car is yoked by his own fons, when he went to redeem from Achilles the body of his fon Hector. Telemachus yokes his own car (m.) Homer's heroes kill and drefs their own victuals (n.) Achilles entertaining Priam, as now mentioned, flew a fnow-white (b) Book 2. fketch 1. (m) Ib. Book 15. |