Page:A View of the State of Ireland - 1809.djvu/128

 discovered, a redresse thereof will the more easily he provided: For I thinke it very strange, that the English being so many, and the Irish so few, as they then were left, the fewer should draw the more unto their use.

Iren. I suppose that the chiefe cause of bringing in the Irish language, amongst them, was specially, their fostering, and marrying with the Irish, the which are two most dangerous infections: for first the childe that sucketh the milke of the nurse, must of necessity learne his first speach of her, the which being the first inured to his tongue, is ever after most pleasing unto him, insomuch as though hee afterwards be taught English, yet the smacke of the first will allwayes abide with him; and not onely of the speach, but also of the manners and conditions. For besides that young children be like apes, which will aflfeet and imitate what they see done before them, especially by their nurses, whom they love so well, they moreover dravve into themselves, together with their sucke, even the nature and disposition of their nurses: for the minde followeth much the temperature of the body: and also the words are the image of the minde, so as they proceeding from the minde, the minde must needes be affected with the words. So that the speach being Irish, the heart must needes bee Irish: for out of the abundance of the heart, the tongue speaketh. The next is the marrying with the Irish: which how dangerous a thing it is in all