A philosophical amusement upon the language of beasts / Written originally in French. By Father Bougeant ... , now confined at La Fleche on account of this work.

  • Bougeant, père, 1690-1743. Amusement philosophique sur le langage des bêtes
Date:
1739
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A philosophical amusement upon the language of beasts / Written originally in French. By Father Bougeant ... , now confined at La Fleche on account of this work. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    , [3i ] a Language among thefe Animais, arjd their having a Speech whereby they mutually commu¬ nicate their Thoughts to each other ? Pray, Madam, confider what is faid of the Tower of Babel. The Means God made ufe of to make that extravagant Project abortive (a fure and infal¬ lible Means indeed !) was the Confufion of their Languages. The Workmen having all on a fudden forgot the common Language which they fpoke before, and being no longer able to underhand each other, became incapable of act¬ ing in concert, and were obliged to give over their Enterprize. The fame muff happen to any Society whofe Members fhall not be able to un¬ derhand one another. Bring’ thirty People to¬ gether fpeaking each a different Language, and you will foon fee Diforder and Confufion among them. What would then happen, if thefe thirty People could not fpeak at all, and had no Means left of delivering theirThoughts? Let us fhppofe the Beavers to be really in that Condition; what wouM be the Confequence ? I fee in a Moment all the Society difordered ; without Chief, without Su¬ bordination, without Counfel, without Concert, I fee all the Works which require the Affiftance of many Hands, neceffarily abandoned. No more Centinels that watch for the public Safety : No dwelling in Common. Every ope, as in the Tower of Babel, fhall retire and live by himfelf, in fhort no more Society. Cannot Inftinft, fome will fay, fupply the Want of a Language ? Two Beavers meet and join to¬ gether, becaufe their Inftindt inclines them to¬ wards forming a Society. A third, then a fourth, and many others fucceffively come and increafe the Company : The Society is formed. The fame Inftindt inclines them to go and fetch Wood and ■' ’ — ‘ • Earth
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