Page:A discourse upon the origin and foundation of the inequality among mankind (IA discourseuponori00rous).pdf/122

 and Speech therefore appears to have been exceedingly requiite to etablih the ue of Speech.

We mut allow, that the Words, firt made ue of by Men, had in their Minds a much more extenive Signification, than thoe employed in Languages of ome tanding, and that, conidering how ignorant they were of the Diviion of Speech into its contituent Parts; they at firt gave every Word the meaning of an entire Propoition. When afterwards they began to perceive the Difference between the Subject and Attribute, and between Verb and Noun, a Ditinction which required no mean Effort of Genius, the Subtantives for a time were only o many proper Names, the Infinitive was the only Tene, and as to Adjectives, great Difficulties mut have attended the Development of the Idea that repreents them, ince every