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much greater Extension than the word "horse." It is the same with the word "animal" in relation to the word quadruped." The first of these words, besides four-footed beasts, includes man and all the animals which the earth, air and water contain; it therefore greatly surpasses the word 'quadruped” in extension. But animals are themselves but a small part of "beings," and consequently, the Appellative noun "being," which comprises all existences, spiritual and corporeal, has a still greater extension than the noun mal."

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ani

The number of individuals or classes of beings, comprised in the signification of an Appellative noun, forms. the Extension of that noun. This is the greater, the more of them the noun comprises.

From the definitions we have just given of the Comprehension and Extension of an Appellative noun, it follows that the greater Comprehension an Appellative noun possesses, the less is its Extension. The word "being" comprehends but a single idea, that of existence, and extends to every thing which exists. The word "animal" comprehends several particular ideas, but it extends only to corporeal, complete beings, endowed with animal life and with locomotion; it excludes all others.

The word "quadruped" comprehends one idea more than the word "animal," hence it extends to a part only of the tribes of animals, to those which have received from nature four feet upon which to move; it excludes man, birds, fishes, etc. Finally, the word "horse" includes a great number of particular ideas which are not comprised in the word "quadruped;" but it extends only to a single class of four-footed animals and excludes all the rest.

and Extension

What we have said of Appellative Nouns ap- Comprehension plies also to Abstract nouns. The word "indo- of Abstract lence," for instance, comprehends a greater num

Nouns.

ber of particular ideas than the word "vice," and hence has less extension than this last word, which extends to indolence, pride, gluttony, anger, etc.

Peculiar Nouns.

There are in most languages Appellative nouns,

whose Comprehension is very limited, and whose Extension is almost boundless, because they designate beings by the simple idea of existence, common to them all, and augmented only by some accidental or external relation whether to the person who speaks, to those who listen, or to others.

Such in English are the words "this," "that," "these," and "those," which are equivalent to "this person," "this being," "this thing," "that person," "that being," "that thing," etc.

These are genuine Appellative nouns, which join to the general idea expressed by the words " person," "being," "thing," that of demonstration, that is to say, the particular circumstance of being under the eyes of those who speak or listen; and it is precisely because these objects are corporeally present, or because he who speaks has already designated them in such a manner as to render them present to the minds of his auditors, that we are content to recall them by Nouns so vague and of such unlimited extension. The words "each," "whoever," "whatever," "somebody," etc. belong also to the class of Appellative nouns, and the extension of their signification should not exclude them from it.]

CHAPTER V.

OF THE ARTICLE.

PROPER Nouns designate beings in a definite manner, so that there is no need of any sign to point out the particular individuals to which they are applied. Appellative Nouns, on the contrary, being common to all the individuals of the same species, when we wish to apply them to a single individual or to a certain number of individuals of this species, or, lastly, to the entire species, it is of use to employ particular signs to indicate these various applications.

It is the same with Abstract Nouns; they designate a quality or an action in a general manner, and independently of the shades of difference of which it is susceptible, and which, in some sort, denote different things. Thus the word "indolence" includes alike indolence of body and indolence of mind; the dulness which we feel on rising from bed, and the indolence which prevents the performance of our duties. The word "virtue" includes alike prudence, temperance, docility, etc. Hence, when we employ Abstract Nouns to express qualities or actions, considered in a particular manner in relation to a subject in which they are found, or to something which is their object, this employment of them must be denoted by particular signs.

The words which serve to determine the exten

Articles.

sion of Appellative and Abstract Nouns, are denominated Articles. Such in English are the words "

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66 that,” “these,” those." *

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"the," this," Let us make this apparent

by examples.

*The words "

" and "an a

are usually regarded as Articles.

I think it is without reason, that they are thus regarded. They

The word แ man" denotes the union of all the qualities necessary to make a man, and common to all the individuals of the human species. It is found with this sense in the following sentence: "To merit the name of man, we must act like men, and not like animals destitute of reason." In this case, I neither mean to designate the entire species, or all the individuals collectively which compose it, nor to point out a particular individual. If I wish to speak of a certain man in particular, I make use of the article 'the," as in saying, "The man who built this house, was rich." We may denominate this Article, the Determinative Article.

Determinative

Article.

Demonstrative

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If the man of whom I was speaking, were Article. present, or if I had previously pointed him out in such a manner, that he was, as it were, under the eyes of those whom I addressed, I should employ the Article "this" or that." I should say, for example, "This man whom you see, is a rogue." This Article may be called the Demonstrative Article.

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The Determinative Article frequently serves to denote that the Appellative Noun is used with the whole of its extension, and this happens especially when we wish to characterize a whole species in opposition to another. When I say, "The woman has sensibility for her share, but strength is the attri bute of the man," it is plain that I oppose the entire class of the masculine to that of the feminine sex, and the Article adds energy and precision to the expression.

The Demonstrative Article, on the contrary, always confines the extension of the Appellative Noun, by limiting its signifi cation to a part of the individuals to whom it is applicable by

appear to me to be nothing more than Numeratives, employed to designate the singular, which is scarcely different from the plural, in most modern languages.

itself. When I say, "these men," ""these horses," I never speak of the whole class of men or of horses; I speak only of a determinate part of this species.

[Some languages, as the Biscayan and Danish, employ for Determinative Articles, instead of separate words, terminations suffixed to the nouns. There are moreover some languages, as the Latin and Persian, which make no use of Determinative Articles.]

The Determinative Article is frequently employed in English, and in most modern languages, in an improper manner, and contrary to its primitive intention. Although in many of these cases, we can by means of subtilties justify its use, there is a large number in which we can offer no other excuse for it than the caprice of custom. It is thus that in Greek the Determinative Article is placed before Proper Nouns, and that in that language together with the Arabic, the Determinative and Demonstrative Articles are often united. It is thus, also, that in these languages the Article is used before both the Noun and the Adjective; so that they say, "the door the great," instead of saying, as in English, "the great door." Besides, in most modern languages, although not in the English, the Determinative Article is of great use in distinguishing gender and number; and perhaps it is this, more than any thing else, which has contributed to render its use so extensive. The number of Demonstrative Articles may be large or small. Some languages, for instance, have different Demonstrative Articles for things which are near and things which are distant, while others do not. This distinction of signification is expressed in French by the addition of the Adverbs "here or "there," The Demonstra

according as the

according as the object is near or remote. tive Article may be different, moreover, Noun to which it is attached, denotes a rational animal or a brute, an animated or an inanimate being. There might