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 Chap. III.

by which the noble Author, the Duke of Lunenburg, did disguise his true name of Augustus Luneburgicus.

2. For Brevity: There were single Letters or marks, whereby the Romans were wont to express whole words. Ennius is said to have invented 1100 of these; to which number Tullins Tyro, Cicero's Libertus, (others say say Cicero himself,) added divers others, to signifie the particles of speech; after whom Philargyrus the Samian and Mecenas, added yet more. After these Anneus Seneca is said to have laboured in the regulating and digesting of those former notes; to which adding many of his own, he augmented the whole number to 5000, published by Janus Gruterus; though amongst his there are divers of a later invention, relating to Christian institutions, which have been added since (as 'tis said) by S. Cyprian the Martyr. The way of writing by these did require a vast memory and labour; yet it was far short of expressing all things and Notions, and besides, had no provision for Grammatical variations.

Of this nature is that short-hand-writing by Characters so frequent with us in England, and much wondered at by Foreiners; which hath a great advantage for speed and swiftness in writing; those who are expert in it being able this way to take any ordinary discourse verbatim.

Besides these, there have been some other proposals and attempts about a Real universal Character, that should not signifie words but things and notions, and consequently might be legible by any Nation in their own Tongue; which is the principal design of this Treatise. That such a Real Character is possible, and hath been reckoned by Learned men amongst the Desiderata, were easie to make out by abundance of Testimonies. To this purpose is that which Piso mentions to be somewhere the wish of Galens, That some way might be found out to represent things by such peculiar signs and names as should express their natures; as Sophistis eriperetur decertandi & calumniandi occasio. There are several other passages to this purpose in the Learned Verulam, in Vossins, in Hermannus Hugo, &c. besides what is commonly reported of the men of China, who do now, and have for many Ages used such a general Character, by which the Inhabitants of that large Kingdom, many of them of different Tongues, do communicate with one another, every one understanding this common Character, and reading it in his own Language.

It cannot be denies, but that the variety of Letters is an appendix to the Curse of Babel, namely, the multitude and variety of Languages. And therefore, for any man to go about to add to their number, will be but like the inventing of a Disease, for which he can expect but little thanks for the world. But this Consideration ought to be no discouragement: For supposing such a thing as is here proposed, could be well established, it would be the surest remedy that could be against the Curso of the Confusion, by rendring all other Languages and Characters useless.

It doth not appear that any Alphabet now in being, was invented at once or by the rules of Art, but rather that all, except the Hebrew, were Rh