MEDITATION UPON A BROOM-STICK. According to the Style and Manner of the Honourablé ROBERT BOYLE'S MEDITATIONS. THEE ner, HIS fingle flick, which you now behold inglorioufly lying in that neglected coronce knew in a flourishing ftate in a forest: it was full of fap, full of leaves, and full of boughs but now, in vain does the bufy art of man pretend to vie with nature, by tying that withered bundle of twigs to its faplefs trunk : it is now, at beft, but the reverfe of what it was, a tree turned upfide down, the branches on the earth, and the root in the air; it is now, handled by every dirty wench, condemned to do her drudgery, and by a capricious kind of fate, deftined to make other things clean, and be nafty itfelf: at length, worn to the ftumps in the fervice of the maids, it is either thrown out of doors, or condemned to the last use, of kindling a fire. When I beheld this, I fighed, and faid within myself, Surely mortal Man is a Broomfick! nature sent him into the world ftrong and lufty, lufty, in a thriving condition, wearing his own hair on his head, the proper branches of this reafoning vegetable, until the axe of intemperance has lopped off his green boughs, and left him a withered trunk: he then flies to art, and puts on a perriwig, valuing himself upon an unnatural bundle of hairs (all covered with powder) that never grew on his head; but now, fhould this our broom-stick pretend to enter the fcene, proud of those birchen spoils it never bore, and all covered with duft, though the fweepings of the fineft lady's chamber, we fhould be apt to ridicule and defpife its vanity. Partial judges that we are of our own excellencies, and other men's defaults! But a broom-ftick, perhaps you will fay, is an emblem of a tree ftanding on its head; and pray what is man, but a topsy-turvey creature, his animal faculties perpetually mounted on his rational, his head where his heels fhould be, groveling on the earth! and yet, with all his faults, he fets up to be a univerfal reformer and corrector of abuses, a remover of grievances, rakes into every flut's corner of nature, bringing hidden corrup tions to the light, and raises a mighty duft where there was none before; sharing deeply all the while in the very fame pollutions he pretends to fweep away: his laft days are spent in flavery to women, and generally the leaft deferving; till worn out to the ftumps, like his brother befom, he is either kicked out of doors, or nade ufe of to kindle flames for others to warm themfelves by. A PROPOSAL For correcting, improving, and afcertaining the ENGLISH TONGUE. IN A Letter to the Moft Honourable ROBERT Earl of OXFORD and MORTIMER, Lord High Treasurer of GREAT-BRITAIN. To the most Honourable ROBERT Earl of MY LORD, OXFORD, &c. HAT I had the honour of mentioning to WH tion, was not a new thought, just then started by accident or occafion, bnt the refult of long reflection, and I have been confirmed in my fentiments, by the opinion of fome very judicious perfons, with whom I confulted. They all agreed, that nothing would be of greater ufe towards the improvement of knowledge and politeness, than fome effectual method for correcting, enlarging, and afcertaining our language; and they think it a *This fentence is uncouth, and ungrammatical, and may eafily be amended thus- And they think it very poffible to compafs the work, &c.' work work very poffible to be compaffed under the protection of a prince, the countenance and encouragement of a ministry, and the care of proper perfons chosen for fuch an undertaking. I was glad to find your lordship's answer in fo different a style, from what has been commonly made use of on the like occafions, for fome years paft, That all fuch thoughts must be deferred to a time of peace: a topick, which fome have carried fo far, that they would not have us by any means think of preferving our civil or religious conftitution, because we are engaged in a war abroad. It will be among the distinguishing marks of your ministry, my lord, that you have a genius above all fuch regards, and that no reasonable proposal for the honour, the advantage, or the ornament of your country, however foreign to your more immediate office, was ever neglected by you. I confefs the merit of this candour and condefcenfion is very much leffened, because your lordship hardly leaves us room to offer our good wishes; removing all our difficulties, and supplying our wants, fafter than the most visionary projector can adjuft his fchemes. And therefore, my lord, the defign of this paper is not fo much to offer you ways and means, as to complain of a grievance, the redreffing of which is to be your own work, as much as that of paying the nation's debts, or opening a trade into the South-Sea; and though not of fuch immediate benefit, as either of thefe, or any other of your glorious actions, yet, perhaps, in future ages not lefs to your honour. VOL. V. F My My lord, I do here in the name of all the learned and polite perfons of the nation, complain to your lordship, as firft minifter, that our language is extremely imperfect; that its daily improvements are by no means in proportion to its daily corruptions; that the pretenders to polish and refine it, have chiefly multiplied abufes and abfurdities; and that in inftances it offends against every part of many grammar. But left your lordship fhould think my cenfure too fevere, I fhall take leave to be more particular. I believe your lordship will agree with me in the reafon, why our language is lefs refined than those of Italy, Spain, or France. 'Tis plain, that the Latin tongue in its purity was never in this island, towards the conqueft of which, few or no attempts were made till the time of Claudius; neither was that language ever so vulgar in Britain, as it is known to have been in Gaul and Spain. Farther, we find that the Roman legions here were at length all recalled to help their country against the Goths, and other barbarous invaders. Mean time the Britains, left to fhift for themselves, and daily haraffed by cruel inroads from the Picts, were forced to call in the Saxons for their defence; who, confequently, reduced the greatest part of the island to their own power, drove the Britains into the most remote and mountainous parts, and the rest of the country, in customs, religion, and language, became wholly Saxon. This I take to be the reafon why there are more Latin words remaining in the British |