Philocophus, or, The deafe and dumbe mans friend exhibiting the philosophicall verity of that subtile art, which may inable one with an observant eie, to heare what any man speaks by the moving of his lips : upon the same ground ... that a man borne deafe and dumbe, may be taught to heare the sound of words with his eie, & thence learne to speake with his tongue / by I.B., sirnamed the Chirosopher.

Of the excellent choice of Nature in the Appulsive Motions of Speech. CHAP. VI.

IT is no wonder that Nature destined the Mouth for the place and Organ of Speech, wherein (if any where) vari∣ous and manifold Appulsions are made, wherein the Tongue and Lips being moveable, may be appelled and concurre together: yet the Motions of the Tongue and Lips which conduce to Speech and the production of Letters, al∣though they are manifold and vari∣ous they that are most agreeable for forming of Letters, are chiefly up∣ward Motions, for it behoved these In∣struments to follow the nature of the Ayre (which is a most light body) whereby it raiseth it selfe upwards. All Appulse being done straight upward: for, all Appulsions are not profitable to Speech, and to forming of Letters, since other Offices also of the Tongue, to wit, commanducation and deglution are performed by the Appulsion of the bo∣dies of the Tongue, Lips, and Teeth;

but with this difference, that the Ap∣pulsions which conduce to Speech, are more facile and expeditious, and are done with farre lesse endeavour and strength. For whereas the tongue is appell'd to the Palate, Teeth, and Lips, the Teeth to the Teeth, to the Lips and Tongue; and besides Lip to Lip and to the Teeth and Tongue. Certainly those Appulsions of the Tongue onely are profitable to Speech, which are made to the Palate and Teeth: and again, of the Lip to Lip and to Teeth, whereas other Ap∣pulsions conduce to other Offices of the Mouth: therefore there are two efficient parts of Appulse, the lower Lip and the Tongue; the suscipient or sustaining parts are either the upper Lip, or the upper Teeth, if the Lip do appell, but if the Tongue do appell, they are the Pa∣late and the Teeth. The Quere therefore is, Why since Appulsions are made from other parts of the Mouth, yet those two proposed should be onely profitable to Speech? And it is answer∣ed, that those Appulsions were admit∣ted which were both facile, swift, and elegant; and on the contrary, those re∣jected,

which were either unapt to for∣ming of Letters, or which were more difficultly or slowly effected or disfigured and deformed the Mouth. Nature ha∣ving had great regard to provide for the comelinesse and decency of pronunciati∣on: therefore Nature avoided the Ap∣pulsion of the Tongue to the Lips, as that which came more fouly, difficultly, and slowly to the forming of Letters; for if the Tongue should appell to the lower Lip, that Appulse would prove unprofitable, for it would vibrate to no apt Letter; but if to the upper Lip, it would onely make L, N, T, D. but il-favouredly and difficultly, which per∣chance Nature left to old men that were Edentuli; whereas the same Letters notwithstanding are neatly, distinctly, easily and speedily compressed by the Appulse of the Tongue to the Palate. Besides the Appulse of the Tongue to the Lips could not be done unlesse the Tongue were made longer, whereupon afterwards it would not perchance be congruous for the Appulse to the Palate for the forming of other Letters. In like manner, Nature avoided the Ap∣pulse

of Teeth to Teeth as that which can produce no consonant by reason of 〈◊〉〈◊〉 too fierce and cruell illision of the ayer, which should be pleasing soft and gentle, it being worth our labour to be so faire spoken. Whence Galen said, there ought to be a proportion and conveniencie between the percutient Body and percussed: therefore from the most hard Teeth there is made too fierce a percussion to the ayer, and for this cause, although to the uttering of the voyce, hard bodies ought to con∣cur: yet to articulate the same, that is to the production of any letters, either both, or one at least, of the concurrent bodies must be soft, whereby the ayre may be pleasingly intercepted and ex∣pressed, from whence it is collected, that nature in the producing of Letters, hath most especially substituted those appulsions which have elegancy; facility, and expedition adjoyned unto them, such as are the appulsion of Lip to Lip, and to the Teeth; and of the Tongue to the Palate, and the Teeth. And ve∣rily so farre are the Motions requi∣site to Speech, from introducing any

deformity into the Face, that they are observed many times to improve the Countenance. Wherefore the Bride∣groome in the Canticles to his Spouse. Sicut vitta coccinea labia tua, Thy Lips are like a thread of Scarlet, and thy talke is comely. And it is a piece of the character of our Henry the seventh, that his Covntenance, to the disadvantage of the Painter, was best when he spake. But above other considerations it ap∣peares, that Nature in the contrivance of Speech, affected expedition, which is dispatched by most swift, and expedite Motions: for if Speech be made by Motion, and signifie the affections of the mind, which are Motions: with∣out doubt, the moving of the instruments must answer to the movings of the minde; now since there is nothing swifter than the minde which in a mo∣ment can passe unto the Heavens, and survey the whole earth; it is requisite and deservedly fit, that the Motion both of the Lip and Tongue should be most swift, as that which was to follow the motions of the minde. Therefore na∣ture would have these appulsions and

motions performed, not by the Muscules of the Tongue and Lips, but from their Body only, quatenus they are Muscu∣les, whereby the Motion and formati∣on of Speech might be most swiftly dis∣patcht; for, both the Tongue and the Lip hath Muscules, and are made Mus∣cules; quatenus they have Muscules, they are moved by another, and there∣fore more slowly: but quatenus Mus∣cules, they are moved of themselves, and most swiftly and expeditiously rol∣led, agitated and appelled. And for this cause chiefly, were the Tongue and Lips made Muscules, that they might strike on and affect the ayre, which is indeed a most light Body, and in the meane while most suddenly follow the most swift Motions of the mind. It sufficiently therefore appeares, the mov¦ing whereby the Tongue and Lips are moved to performance of Speech pro∣ceeds not from any other, but from their proper Bodies, the Motion arising thence being sufficient for such an em∣ployment; for when as Nature with that which in moving required no great strength, requires also the celerity of

motion, she makes the parts to be moved of themselves, mingling throughout the motory power with the part to be mo∣ved, as in the Lips and Tongue, which since they were not to agitate bones o•• Meates, but most light ayre, and to af∣ford quick and speedy motions in speak∣ing, by good reason we judge Speech to be accomplished without the mini∣stry of Muscules, by the Body onely of the Tongue and Lips; for if in speaking the Tongue should be moved by Mus∣cules, as in Commanducation, both its motion and Speech would have fallen out to be farre slower: but it was fit that Speech should be most speedy and expe∣dite, that the soule might on a sud•••••••• signifie its conception of pleasure o•• distaste, to the Conservation of the Body.