9. Same man.
An animal is a living organized body; and consequently the same animal, as we have observed, is
the same continued life communicated to different particles of matter, as they happen successively to be united to
that organized living body. And whatever is talked of other definitions, ingenious observation puts it past doubt,
that the idea in our minds, of which the sound man in our mouths is the sign, is nothing else but of an animal of
such a certain form. Since I think I may be confident, that, whoever should see a creature of his own shape or
make, though it had no more reason all its life than a cat or a parrot, would call him still a man; or whoever should
hear a cat or a parrot discourse, reason, and philosophize, would call or think it nothing but a cat or a parrot; and
say, the one was a dull irrational man, and the other a very intelligent rational parrot. A relation we have in an
author of great note, is sufficient to countenance the supposition of a rational parrot. His words are:
