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An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, fol. 242

Machine transcription. Not an edition. Errors are expected: about 8% character error rate on Latin and French lines, higher on German. Mean line confidence on this page: 0.91.

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The machine reads it as

  1. Abus noras
  2. 5. 6. Fhiraly, Another abule oF Languase is, an affected Obscurity, Vy
  3. cither applyins old Words, to ne and unusual significations; Or intro-
  4. ducins nem and ambisuous Terms, rrithout detinins cither; or else Dut-
  5. cins ehem (o rogecher, as may contound cheir ordinary meanins. Phous
  6. the Peripatetick Philosophy has been molceminent inthis ar, vet o
  7. cher Seets have not been Wrholly clear oFit. There is scarce any ofthem,
  8. chat are noc cumbred rich lome Difficulties, (Tuch is the imperfection ot
  9. IJurane Rnomledse,) Which cher hare been tain to cover with Obleu
  10. rier ol Terms, and tocontoundthe signification of Words, Wrhich, lilie
  11. a mist belore Peoples Eyes, inishe hinder their wealc parrs trom beine
  12. discovered. That Body and Extension, in common ule, stand For tivo
  13. distinct Ideas, is plain co any one that ilt but reflect a little: POr vere
  14. cheir Sisnisieation precisets che same, ic would be as proper, and as inrelli-
  15. sible to sar, the Body. oF an Fxtension, as the Extention ol a BodY; and
  16. vet there are tliole who Cind it neceslars io contound cheir Signilication.
  17. Tortis abuse, and the mischiess of consounding the signitication ot
  18. Words, Losicle, and the liberal Sciences, as ther have been handled in
  19. the SchoolS, have siven Reputation; and the admired Art os Disputing,
  20. hath added much to the nacural imperfection ot Languages, Whilit it has
  21. been madte use ot, and srted to perplex the signification oF Nords, more
  22. than to discover che Knomledse and Pruth of Things: And he chat rilI
  23. look into that Cort of learned Writinss, Wrill End the Words there much
  24. more obseure, uncertain, and undetermined in cheir Meanins, chan they
  25. are in ordinaes Convertation.
  26. 5. 7. ThIS. is unavoidably to be (0, Where Mens Parrs and Lcarnins, arc
  27. estimated by cheir Still in Dispuring. And iE Reputarion and ReVacd
  28. Mall atrend chese Conquests, Which devend mostly on the Airenels and
  29. niecties oF. Words, tis nomonder if the Wit oF Man (0 employ d, Mould
  30. perplex, involre, aud subtilize che lisnification oE Sounds, lo aS Reverto
  31. irant Lomethins to Pay, in oppolins or desendins any Ouection; the Vi-
  32. ctory beins adjusted noc to him who had Truth on his lide, but chelalt
  33. Wrord in cheDispute.
  34. 5. 8. This, though a verr useless SKilI, and that ehich Pthinte the di-
  35. rect oppolite to the mays ot Rnorledse, hath vec passed hicherto under
  36. the laudable and esteemed Names of Subtility and Acuteness, and hashac
  37. the applause ol the Schools, and encourasement ot onc part ot the lear-
  38. ned Men ot the World; and no monder, since the Philolophers oE old,
  39. (the disputinss and vranslins Philosopters I mean, such as Lucian Witti
  40. lr, and wich Reason tazes,) and the Schoolmen lince, aimins at Clory
  41. and isteem, For their sreat and universal Rnoledse, calier a great deal
  42. to be pretended to, than reallr acquired, found this a good Fxpedient to
  43. cover their Ignorance, rith a curious and unexplicable Web oF perplexed
  44. Words, and procure ro themselres the admiration ol otters, by unintel.
  45. lixible terms, the apter to produce onder, becaule ther could not De
  46. understood: Whilst ic appears in all Flistory, that these profound DoctOrs,
  47. vere no riser, nor more usetul than their Neishbours; and broughe but
  48. Imall adrantasse ro humane Lile, or the Socieries, Wherein they lived:
  49. Enlels the coinins ofne Words, Where thes produced noner Thinss
  50. to apply eliem co, or the perplexins or oblcurins ihe signilication ol old
  51. Ores, and fo bringins all Fhinos intoquestion and dispute, ere a LMIn
  52. proticable to Fhe Lile os Ntan, or Worths Commendation and Rerard.
  53. G. 9. For, nocichstandins these learned Disputants, these alI lnowins
  54. Doctors, ic as to the unscholasticke Statelman, that the Crovernments ot
  55. the World owed their Peace, Detence, and Liberries; and trom the illite.
  56. raTE

Cite

An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, fol. 242. Machine transcription, not an edition: Leibniz Legible (model FoNDUE-GD_v2_ft_Leibniz, run 74). https://leibnizlegible.com/page/778263916:0258?run=74