Page:Lives of British Physicians.djvu/96

 78 BRITISH PHYSICIANS. verbs ; but the great body of numerals, auxiliary verbs, articles, pronouns, adverbs, conjunctions, and prepositions, which are the distinguishing and lasting part of a language, remain with us from the Saxon." To prove his position, he has drawn up a short discourse of six paragraphs, in Saxon and English, of which every word is the same in both languages, excepting the terminations and orthography. These are specimens — ENGI.ISH. The first and foremost step to all good works is the dread and fear of the Lord of heaven and earthjwhich, thorough the Holy Ghost, enlighteneth the blindness of our sinfull hearts to tread the ways of Avisedom, and leads our feet into the land of blessing. For to forget his law is the door, the gate, and key, to let in all unrighteousness, making our eyes, ears, and mouths to answer the lust of sin, our brains dull to good thoughts, our lips dumb to his praise, our ears deaf to his gospel, and our eyes dim to behold his wonders, which witness against us, that we have not well learned the word of God, that we are the children of wrath, unworthy of the love and manifold gifts of God, greedily follow- ing after the ways of the devil and witchcraft of the world, doing nothing to free and keep ourselves from the SAXON. The erst and fynnost staep to eal gode weorka is the drsed and feurt of the Lauord of heofan and eorth while thurh the Heilig Gast ou- lihtneth the blindnesse of ure sinfull heorte to traed the wseg of wisdome, and thone Ised ure fet into the land of blessung. For to fuorgytan his laga is the dure, the gat, and caeg, to let in eal unrightwisnysse, makend ure eyge, eore, and muth to answare the lust of sin, ure brsegan dole to gode theoht, ure lippan dumb to his preys, ure earen deaf to his gospel, and ure eyge dim to behealden his wundra, while gewitnysse ongen us, that wee oef noht wel gelsered the weord of God, that wee are the cilda of ured, unwyrthe of the lufe and meenigfeald gift of God, grediglice fely- gend sefter the waegen of the deoful and wiccraft of the weorld, doend nothing to fry and csep ure saula from the