Or Secondly, it might be a real Character consisting of divers Marks or Letters, that expressed so many simple Notions, several of which joined together might make up the more compounded Characters, of which I have added some Examples in the Plate, which may be also made literal and pronounceable, tho' that consideration were not made use of, when they were first invented. What things I have observed in my _Chinese_ Books that seem to respect this Method, I will give more particulars of by the next opportunity, by Printing a Specimen of the Book _Ye-kim_ which explicated by these Notions will I conceive appear more intelligible, than by the Accounts we find given of it by the _Chinese_ Commentators, and those that have Translated them into _Latin_, who seem not to have understood the true design thereof: For both the _Chinese_ and _European_ Commentators assert it to be a Conjuring Book, or a Book to tell Fortunes by, and to be made use of by the _Chinese_ for that purpose; whereas by the small Specimen I have seen of it, I conceive it to contain the whole Ground, Rule or Grammar, of their Character, Language and Philosophy, and that by the understanding of it, the Foundation and Rule of their Language and Character may be without much difficulty Deciphered and Understood. The present use of this Character, I conceive to be differing from what it was at first, both as to the position of Writing and Reading it, and as to the Expression and Pronunciation thereof. For the way of Writing and Reading it, I conceive might at first be exactly the same with that of the _Greeks_, _Romans_, _English_, and all other _European_ Nations, and also the _Æthiopick_ and _Coptick_. That is, they began at the top of the Page towards the left Hand, and so proceeded towards the right in the _Horizontal_ Line to the end of it, and then began at the left end of the next Line under the first and proceeded with that in the same manner, and so with the next under that and all the remaining. Continuing to Write the Words of the Line towards the right Hand, and the Lines of the Page one under another till the whole Discourse were compleated, joyning Leaf to Leaf one under another, after the same manner as the Rouls are at present Writ, and as the _Volumina_ were of the Ancients. And to make the parts of the Volume to be the more easily to be come at, without the trouble of rolling and unrolling as the Ancient _Romans_ did, and we do with our Rouls, they contrived to fold them, like the folds of a Fan, forwards and backward: And so stitching them together, that the Written sides might lie outwards, and open freely one from another, and the fair sides might meet together, it came to make the present form of their Book, which being laid as we generally place our Books before us, they seem to begin at the top of the Page on the right Hand, and to proceed to the bottom, and then at the top of the next Line towards the left