becomes

, and then the 'h' of the alphabet.

The process of development which I have attempted to explain by imaginary examples and illustrations in our own language, is probably applicable to a greater or less extent to all hieroglyphic systems; yet such hieroglyphics as have been preserved are of a mixed class, uniting in one word, or sentence, or document, all the forms, representative, symbolic, and phonetic; the Egyptians first spelled a word phonetically and then, to make the meaning clear, represented the word by a picture or symbol; the Chinese characters were originally pictures of visible objects, though they would not now be recognized as such, if the originals were not in existence. What proportion of the letters in modern alphabets are simplified pictures, or representative characters, and what arbitrary, it is of course impossible to determine; many of them, however, are known to be of the former class.[657]

In the Aztec picture-writings all the grades or classes of pictures are found, except the last and highest—the alphabet. A very large part of the characters employed were representative; many conventional symbols are known; and the Aztecs undoubtedly employed phonetic paintings, though perhaps not very extensively in the higher grades of development.

SPECIMEN FROM CODEX MENDOZA.

The plate on the opposite page is a reproduction of a part of the Codex Mendoza from Kingsborough's work. Its four groups describe the education of the Aztec child under the care of its parents. In the first group the father (fig. 3) is punishing his son by holding him over the fumes of burning chile (fig. 5); while the mother threatens her daughter with the same punishment. Figures 2 and 8 represent, like 11, 16, 20, 24, 30 and 34 in the other groups, the child's allowance of tortillas at each meal. In the second group the son is punished by being stretched naked on the wet ground, having his hands tied, while the girl is forced to sweep, or, as she has no tear in her eye, perhaps is merely being taught to sweep instead of being punished. In the third group the father employs his boys in bringing wood (fig. 21) or reeds either on the back or in a canoe; and the mother teaches her daughter to make tortillas (fig. 27) and the use of the metate and other household utensils (figs. 23, 25, 26, 28). In the last group the son learns the art of fishing, and the daughter that of weaving.

Education of Aztec Children.
[View larger image.]

Thus far all the pictures are purely representative; the remainder are more or less symbolic. The small circles (fig. 1, 10, 19, 29) are numerals, as explained in a preceding chapter, and indicate the age of the children, eleven, twelve, thirteen, and fourteen years respectively; the character issuing from the mouth of the parents is the symbol of speech, and indicates that the person to whom it is attached is speaking; the tears in the children's eyes, are symbols of the weeping naturally caused by the punishment inflicted; and figure 14 is interpreted to be a symbol of night, indicating that the child was forced to sweep at night.[658]