PREFACE.

MONG the number of Dictionaries already published, it must be confeffed that many of them are poffeffed of great merit and utility; and yet it will not be denied by proper judges, that the general plan of thofe Publications will still admit of further improvement.

It is by no means our defign to decry the labours of former Lexicographers, to point out their defects, or to endeavour to fet off the merits of our own by any invidiouscomparison with their works. We fhall content ourselves with laying before the Reader the outlines of our plan, and fubmit its execution to his judgment and candour.

The improvements peculiar to the Dictionary now offered to the Public, and which we believe to be, for the greatest part, entirely new, are the following:

1. A PRONOUNCING DICTIONARY, of which the Titlepage explains the ufe. We have only to obferve here, that as the pronunciation of our language is too often arbitrary, (fo much, indeed, that the inhabitants of one county can. fcarce understand thofe of another) we have taken all poffible care to adopt the best, most plain and useful modes of Speaking, without perplexing or puzzling the Reader with the almost endless and unintelligible niceties of what are pedantically called Orthoepical Rules, or rules for right pronunciation. The only Rule that can be given in this cafe, of general ufe, is, carefully to attend to the best fpeakers; to the general, plain, and eafy pronunciation used in the Pulpit, in the Senate, and at the Bar; and therefore the greatest attention has been paid to the proper placing of the Accent; for upon this depends, in a great measure, the right and juft pronunciation of our language. Peculiar care has also been taken, that the Initial Letters denoting each part of speech fhould be correct; an advantage not to be found in many Dictionaries poffeffed of this diftinction*.

* Under this article of Pronunciation, the Reader will be pleased to obferve, that as the final tion, with very few exceptions is always pronounced fhon, we have only diftinguished thofe exceptions; as marking the variation for would have occurred fo often, as to have crowded and deformed the page. A 2

II. The Synonimous part of our Dictionary we modeftly affert to be entirely new; the use of which, both in speaking and writing, must at first view appear to every intelligent Reader; and we have endeavoured to execute it without running into any whimsical notions, or fantastic affected niceties.

III. Instead of a very few Lives of Statefmen, Authors, Poets, &c. which other fimilar Publications, very often with little propriety, contain; we have presented our Readers with a concife though comprehenfive Epitome of the Annals of this Country, exhibiting the characters of its feveral Monarchs, their most remarkable actions, and the most distinguished events of their reigns; with a brief account of the progrefs of the Arts and Sciences under each Monarch, as well as of the most eminent perfonages, whether Statesmen, Men of Letters, Authors, &c. who flourished in each respective period.

This department of our Dictionary will certainly prove of great utility to two kinds of Readers: Firft, to thofe who have not time, abilities, nor inclination to study the History of their Country in larger volumes. Secondly, To youth at Schools it will be found very serviceable in a double respect. By this Epitome they may be inftructed in that neceffary and useful part of knowledge, the Hiftory of their own Country, even imperceptibly; for it will prove rather an amufement than a task for them to turn to and find out those historical articles in the Dictionary, which, would escape their attention, perhaps, in reading the best written Hiftory, especially if impofed upon them by way of task. The fkilful Teacher may, in this cafe, find out methods of playing (if we may use the expreffion) his pupils into this valuable branch of knowledge.

Again: These Historical Anecdotes may be given as very proper and useful Exercises to Youth at Schools. Let the Mafter prescribe to his pupils, as he judges proper, any one Reign, or any part of it, to be fairly tranfcribed by them. Let him next, according to their capacities, fet them to point out the feveral parts of it; the character of the Monarch, whether a good or a bad prince; for what actions and exploits he was remarkable; what great events happened during his reign; with the other particulars as mentioned before, This will ferve as a whetstone to sharpen and try

their wit and ingenuity, and put them upon exercifing their judgment concerning facts which come within the sphere of their capacities.

But this is not all: The Mafter may advance one step farther with his pupils. Let him next put them upon drawing up, from the feveral parts of it, as they lie fcattered in the Dictionary, a complete History of England, beginning with King Egbert, the Saxon, and taking every reign, in its chronological order, down to the prefent period. This will prove both a pleafing and profitable exercise to young lads of any ingenuity, and will by eafy degrees lead them into fuch a knowledge of this part of Literature, as will prepare them for reading the English Hiftorians with advantage.

The fame method may with equal facility and benefit be pursued with other articles-fuch as Geography, in particular; which part of our Work we will venture to pronounce to be more copious, better arranged, and more uniform, than in any other Dictionary of this kind, and will therefore prove very useful to Youth, in facilitating the knowledge of the Globes and Maps, which every one knows to be a neceffary and pleafing branch of Polite Literature.

It may not be unneceffary to obferve on this part of our plan, that the Distances of the different Places, Cities, Towns, &c. of England and Scotland, from London, have been taken with the greatest care from the latest and most accurate measurements.

The CITIES, TOWNS, BURGHS, and MARKET TOWNS of SCOTLAND, are to be found in no other Dictionary; an article which, we hope, will render this Work peculiarly acceptable to our Readers in that country.

The fhort, but clear accounts of the feveral RELIGIOUS SECTS, both in the JEWISH and CHRISTIAN CHURCH, are more copious and numerous than are given in the very few Publications of this kind which have adopted them, and must therefore be acceptable to thofe Readers who defire information in this particular, but have neither time nor inclination to fearch for it in other Books.

The Outlines of Natural History, i. e. of Beafts, Birds, Fishes, &c. and the terms of Chymiftry, Painting, Medicine, &c. which are occafionally explained in this Work, will not only ferve to affift the memory, but may also, to

gether

gether with the articles comprizing the Hiftory of the HEATHEN MYTHOLOGY, be used as Exercifes to Youth at Schools, according to the difcretion of the Master.

We shall conclude this Preface with recommending to the special attention of our Readers the following articles, all of which, except the 3d and 6th, are peculiar to this Dictionary.

I. A FREE INQUIRY into the ORIGIN and ANTIQUITY OF LETTERS.

II. A Short ESSAY on the ORIGIN and ANTIQUITY of the ENGLISH TONGUE.

III. A Compendious ENGLISH GRAMMAR.

IV. An ESSAY on the CONSTITUTION, TRADE, and GoVERNMENT OF ENGLAND. This Effay was thought neceffary to accompany, and in fome degree to illuftrate, the History of England.

V. An OUTLINE of ANTIENT and MODERN HISTORY: Containing a chronological series of remarkable events, difcoveries, and inventions, from the Creation to the present time: Together with a complete lift of the GRECIAN, RoMAN, and ENGLISH CLASSICKS. This article is entirely new, and will be found extremely useful to almost every clafs of Readers.

VI. The Lift of the most usual Chriftian Names of Men and Women, with the abbreviations of them ufed in common difcourfe, will certainly ferve both to amuse and inftruct feveral forts of Readers, and is therefore no improper conclufion of a Work calculated for thofe purposes.

In a word, we submit the whole Work, both as to plan and exccution, to the candid judgment of the Public, and shall esteem ourselves much obliged to any Gentleman who will point out to any of the Publishers the errors and defects of this Edition, that they may be rectified in the next.

A FREE

A

FREE INQUIRY

ΙΝΤΟ THE

ORIGIN AND ANTIQUITY
AND ANTIQUITY OF LETTERS.
By the ABBOT ANSELM,

Member of the Royal Academy of Infcriptions and Belles Lettres at Paris.

N

OTWITHSTANDING it would be a concern of no fmall moment or importance, to be capable of rightly informing you, at what particular time the Art of Writing, or Ufe of Letters, was first found out; yet I muft ingenuously acknowledge my infufficiency to refolve fo abftrufe, fo myfterious a fecret. All that I fhall pretend to is, to collect, out of various conjectures, thofe opinions on fo critical a topic, to which fome of the mott learned and judicious Antiquarians have paid a more than ordinary deference

and regard.

Nothing doubtless could be of greater fervice; nothing could poffibly be more entertaining to human life, than an ability of recollecting what was paft, and of giving an established Being, as it were, to the fentiments of the Soul, by virtue whereof, we might transmit them down to lateft pofterity, without the least variation.

This, one would imagine, indeed, Nature might have prompted Mankind to have accomplished; and yet, it must be allowed, it was an arduous task, a discovery of the last importance.

We are fenfible, however, as profound as the fecret was, it has been found out; and it is felf-evident, that Custom, from its being first brought to light, not only received, but established and confirmed it.

Such Authors, as give the leaft antiquity at all to the Invention of Letters, afcribe the honour of it to Mofes. Others, however, will not admit, that it could ever poffibly be difcoved by any Human Penetration, by any Dint of Thought, how profound, how deep foever; and for that reason give God alone the Glory of it; and peremptorily infift, that the Knowledge of Letters had never been found out to the final diffolution of all things, had not the Almighty condescended to have written the Decalogue, or Ten Commandments, on two Tables of Stones, with his own right-hand, in which are interfperfed (as they very fhrewdly obferve) all the letters in general of the Hebrew Alphabet, the Teth only excepted. And on what reasons that conjecture is grounded, we shall remark by the bye; though we cannot allow them to be conclufive.

Thus far we will admit, indeed, that the Art of Letters was known only by a few, and but very little practised before the Law was delivered to Mofes upon Mount Sinai; and we will farther admit, that divers nations have been, time immemorial, without it: and this has been the main, if not the fole occafion of those confused and and abfurd accounts that we find, not only in the Ancient Stories of thofe Nations, but in the Religion and Genealogies of their Gods.

Thefe conceffions, however, are no convincing evidence, that the Art of Letters was altogether unknown, that Mofes had no Manufcripts, no Hiftorical Memoirs in his custody, which had been preferved, as an invaluable treasure, with the utmost care and circumfpection, in the families of his predecessors.

Now those who peremptorily affert, that the Art of Letters was a human, and not a divine Invention, and that we are indebted to the fuperior knowledge and profound penetration of Mofes for that inestimable bleffing, produce the following arguments to strengthen their conjecture:

Mofes, fay they, never quotes any book prior to his Law: that not the leaft hint is given either of Letters, or the Art of Writing, in fuch places, where, had it been discovered at all, due notice had doubtless been taken of it; and again, that if the commemoration of former great and heroic actions has been preferved, fuch Memoirs, or Hiftorical Accounts, could have been tranfmitted to their descendants no otherwise than by word of mouth; or, in other terms, by oral tradition.

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