The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-01-08
History OF the Alphabet.

Flow many of the millions that daily
use the alphabet ever stopto think of its
origin and long historyP In the true
spirit Of student, Isaac Taylor, well
known English writer on philosophical
and pathological subjects. has recently
written and published, in London, two
stout volumes under the title: The
Alphabet, an Account of the Origin and
Development Of Letters" 1t is only by
help of recent discoveries of early in
scriptions and the progress in the art of
reading lost languages and deciphering
hitherto unknown symbols, that such a
well posted history has been possible.
BY careful study of the learned essays
and scientific investigations of the latest
philologist5, Taylor has set forth in lam
guage within easy comprehension the
origin of tho alphabet, showing that our
own Roman letters may be followed
back to their very beginning, some
twenty or more centuries ago, as he as
serls. We have no better letters, ac-
cording to this account, than those OF
the Italian printers of the fifteenth CEN
fury. These were initiated from the
beautiful manuscripts of the tenth and
eleventh centuries, the lettering of these
being derived from the Roman of the
Augustan age The Roman letters, in
turn, are traced to those employed at
Rome in the third century B. c., and
these do not differ greatly from forms
used in the earliest existing specimens
OF Latin writing, dating from the fifth
century b. c. This primitive alphabet
of Rome was derived from q local form
of the Greek alphabet, in use about the
sixth century B. c., and that was va
riety of the earliest Greek alphabet be-
longing to the eighth, or even the ninth
century B. C. The Greeks got their
letters from the Ph@nicians, and theirs
are clearly traceable in the most ancient
known form Of the Semitic.
The most ancient of books, papyrus
found at Thebes, and now preserved in
the French National Library, supplies
the earliest forms Of the letters used in
the Semitic alphabet. The Stone Tables
of the Law could have been possible to
the Jews only because of their possession
of an alphabet, and thus the Bible and
modern pathological science unite in
ascribing a common origin to the alpha
bet which is in daily use throughout the
world. The nineteenth century B. c.
| is held by Taylor to be the approximate
date of the origin of alphabetic writing,
and from that time it grew by slow de-
grees, while from Egypt, the home Of
the Jews during their long captivity,
the knowledge of the alphabet was car
ried in all directions where alphabets
are now found.
The Aryans are thought to have beer
the first TO bring the primitive alphabet
to perfection, and each letter and eacl
sound may be traced, by Taylor's care,
fal analysis, through all the changes
that have marked the growth, progress
and, in some instances, the decay o.
different letters of various alphabets
1t is an interesting fact that the
| Oldest known "A B c. in existence is {
child's alphabet scratched on an inl
bottle of black ware, found in one o
the Oldest Greek settlements in Italy
| attributed TO the fifth century B. c
| The earliest letters and many late
ones are known only by inscriptions
and it is the rapid increase, by recen
discoveries, of these precious fragments
that has inspired more diligent research
and quickened the zeal OF learned stu
dents in mastering the clements o
knowledge of their origin and histor,
throughout the world. As late as 1871
there were found in Cyprus some bronz
| plates inscribed with Phpnician charac
tiers, dating back to the tenth, even thu
eleventh, century B. {. Each epoch ha
its fragments, and the industry of Eng
lish explorers, the perseverance of Ger
man students, and the genius Of French
| scholars have all contributed to groul
| them in their chronological order
Coins, engraved gems, inscribed statue
and last OF all, the Sloan inscription
found ia 1880 at Jerusalem, on the wal
of an old tunnel, have supplied new ma
| terial for the history. From the com
mon mother Of many alphabets, tn
PhHniciap. are descended the Gree
and other European systems on the on
side, including that which we use an
have the greatest interest IN; and on tn
other, the alphabets of Asia, from whic
have sprung those of the East, Syriac
! Arabic and Hebrew PtiladeiDhi
| IeF1gv