I « taught. 1 may be I ° I ought to be J Have been, in combination with a defective, likewise asso- ciates with the past participles of other verbs. I will have been \ I would have been I shall have been \ taught. I should have been I ought to have beeu The verb do and its past tense did give greater emphasis to the infinitives of other verbs. I do teach. I did teach. Do and did are likewise used as auxiliaries in the construc- tion of interrogative and negative sentences. Do I teach ? Did I teach ? I do not teach. 1 did not teach. The negations 'I do not' and 'I did not' are colloquially contracted into 'I don't' and 'I didnV; ' he don't' is some- times used for 'he does not/ but this contraction involves a grammatical error, and is consequently a barbarism. The negation 'he can not/ in conversation is very frequently con- tracted into ' he can't/ and ' he shall not ' is sometimes heard in the form of 'he shan't.' The vulgar transform ' I am not,' ' thou art not/ ' he, she, or it is not/ into 'I ain't/ ' thou ain't,' 'he, she, or it ain't/ corruptions of this kind are only used by the very illiterate. The learner should generally avoid con- tractions, even in cases where they are sanctioned by polite usage. These combinations constitute the future tense of the indicative mood, as well as what are called in the Grammars the optative, conditional, and potential moods : an English verb not being susceptible of expressing a future time by inflection, will and shall are very properly used as auxiliaries ; but the necessity for employing the others in this way is not so obvious. 45 ETYMOLOGY. Under this head will have to be considered the derivation of English words. It is the practice of grammarians to deduce the meaning of an English word, not so much from its general acceptation in the vernacular, as from the sense in which the same or some similar word is employed in certain older languages. The word 'but/ for example, is found to be derived from the Saxon verbs e bo tan/ to boot, and ' butan/ to be out; the philologist argues that these are the primitive, and, consequently, the real meanings of the word ' but.' The value of an English word may in some cases be ascertained by this means, still the usage of the best English writers is a much less hypothetical and infinitely more rational authority. We have already seen that the word ' sonorous/ being a Latin derivative, is, in consequence, accented on the penult, though an English speaker would naturally accent the first syllable; for a like reason the word ' inquiry ' has i in the initial syllable, whilst English analogy rather leans to the vowel e. In this way other languages, and more especially the Latin and Greek, are allowed to exercise some degree of control over English orthography and pronunciation ; but though the language is strengthened and enriched by the introduction of words from the classic vocabularies, there is no reason why these words should continue subject to their original rules. The English has sufficient vitality to deter- mine its own principles, and a pedantic adherence to classic authority only tends to perpetuate anomalies which perplex and confuse the learner. The usual practice of two or more well-accredited English speakers or writers is, or at least ought to be, the proper authority in matters of orthography and pronunciation. With regard to derivation as an authority in the latter, University-men, generally, give the sound of i in e idea ' to the vowel i of the word ' direct/ because this i is long in the Latin derivative ; but they likewise, very generally, give the same sound to i in such words as ' simul- taneous/ although the i is short in the Latin equivalent; thus offending both analogy and derivation. Keeping in view that derivation is not essential, at least in so far as a practical knowledge of the language is concerned, we may observe that the etyms or roots of English words have been detected in the oldest languages of which any record has been preserved to the present time. They have been found in the Sanscrit, and other obsolete dialects of Eastern Asia: the arrow-headed characters on the tomb of Darius, a key to which has been recently discovered, throw 46 SYNTHESIS. some light upon English etymology; and most English words may be traced more or less disguised in nearly all the existing languages of Europe. The primitive language of Britain appears to have been the Celtic, which still lingers in some districts of the island; this was successively modified by an admixture of the Roman, the Runic or Icelandic, the Saxon, and Norman-French ; of these modified dialects the Anglo-Saxon may be regarded as the immediate progenitor of the classic English of the present day. In order to trace a word through all these transitions and establish its various ethnological relations some acquaint- ance with the early languages and literature of Europe would be necessary. The English etymologist must be conversant with the sagas of Scandinavia, the Mcesogothic gospels of Ulphilus, the chartularies of the Anglo-Saxons, and the monkish chronicles of the period immediately succeeding the Conquest. This kind of research, considered as an aesthetic recreation, has its uses; it opens an extensive field of inquiry, calculated to refine the taste; and it clothes every vestige of antiquity with interest; but, regarded as an element in the study of English, it is practically inferior to the consideration of those more living influences — the stage and the press. The learner desirous of reading and speaking English correctly will reap more advantage from judiciously observing the reading of our modern stage, and noting the quotidianal progress of the language as mirrored in the newspapers, than in labouring to trace the words through a labyrinth of changes to their primi- tive signification. SYNTHESIS. While the French Government were striving in this manner {turn words in italics into an attributive qualifying striving) amidst the confused chaos of the revolutionary passions to close up the wounds and to mitigate the fearful sufferings of the terrible revo- lution (omit the words that are not absolutely necessary), negotiations of an important character had commenced (employ superlative degree), and were advanced already considerably at Vienna (correct position of adverbs). It had been originally intended to commence the sittings of the Congress of Vienna on the 29th July 1814 (convert infinitive into a conditional clause introduced by that) ; but the visit of the Allied Sovereigns to England, and their returning afterwards to their own capitals (use a substantive and adjective for words in italics), it was caused necessarily to be adjourned (turn into active voice)', and not till the beginning of September was the august assembly commenced (resolve this sentence into two clauses, beginning the first with it, and the second with that) by the entry of the Emperor Alexander and the King of Prussia into the capital SYNTHESIS. 47 of Austria (render possessive by another construction). The King of Bavaria, the King of Denmark, the King of Wurtemburg, and a host of lesser Princes followed these (begin this sentence with predicate, use passive voice, and have only one noun in possessive case) ; Lord Castlereagh, and subsequently the Duke of Wellington, represented England, and M. Talleyrand represented France, and more efficiently than any crowned heads could have done up- held the interests of their respective monarchies (use a preposition instead of represented). But although the sovereigns and ministers appeared to keep up (convert predicate into an adverbial clause and object into predicate) very amicable and confidential relations (use superlative degree), it was easily seen (turn into adjective and infini- tive) that their interest and views clashed (employ an expression equivalent to this word) ; and that the removal of common danger and the division of common spoil had produced their usual effect (add the general result in such circumstances). There first arose a preliminary question of precedence as to the rank of the different states assembled and their representatives (alter construction and omit there) ; but Alexander at once termi- nated this (turn into passive voice) by a happy expedient, which was, that they should be arranged, and should sign in the alpha- betical order of their respective states (omit relative clause). But a more serious difficulty soon after occurred as to the states which were entitled in their own right as principals to take part in the deliberations (express conditionally) ; and the ministers of Russia, Prussia, Austria, and Great Britain, suggested at the outset (convert into passive) that they in the first instance agree (supply auxiliary and insert the verb come) as to the disposal of the territories wrested from France and its allies, before entering into conferences with France and Spain (use past indicative for parti- ciple). This, proposal was resisted (add attributive) by Talleyrand and the plenipotentiary of Spain (use attributive for possessive), and they endeavoured earnestly (express by verb to be and possessive case) in a note (make this sentence emphatic), to show that the treaty of Chaumont, though formally to endure twenty years (insert prepo- sition expressing purpose), had in reality expired with the attain- ment of its objects, and that France at least must be admitted into the deliberations (express conditionally). Lord Castlereagh early perceived the necessity of a counterpoise to the preponderating influence of Russia in the conferences, and supported this note of M. de Talleyrand's; and Prince Metternich was actuated by similar views did the same (use relatives and get rid of first and third conjunctions). In consequence, it was agreed that a com- mittee, to whom the questions coming before the Congress might be submitted, should be the ministers of France, Spain, Portugal, and Sweden, as well as the four Allied Powers (connect clauses with not tmly, but). The Cardinal Gonsalvi, on the part of the Court of Rome, was afterwards received on the personal inter- cession of the Prince Regent of England (use some other preposition 48 SYNTHESIS. for on); while the plenipotentiaries of Mnrat, King of Naples, the Kings of Sicily, of Bavaria, the Low Countries, Saxony, and Denmark, besides the ministers of the Swiss and^ Genoese Republics, were not admitted to the conference, but were in attendance {get rid of first were), and had their interests seconded by any of their more powerful neighbours that were disposed to support them {connect last clause by such as). A key was furnished by this preliminary difficulty, which always occurs in such cases, to the course which the different powers were likely to take in the approaching negotiation (use active voice and get rid of relatives)', but it was a considerable time before the real divisions appeared {turn into active voice and strengthen predicate). A great deal was done {render nominative by a single word), in the first instance, before any difference of opinion had taken place {employ without and present participle). Territories inhabited by thirty-one million six hundred and ninety- one thousand persons were at the disposal of the Allied Powers, and there was enough for each and to spare {get rid of and). It was at once agreed, in conformity with the secret articles of the Treaty of Paris, that Belgium should be united to Holland, and should form one kingdom under the title of the Netherlands {express words in italics by participle in apposition) ; that Norway integrally should be annexed to the existing kingdom of Sweden {omit words that are not essential to meaning); Hanover, with a considerable accession of territory taken from the kingdom of Westphalia, restored to the King of England {insert conjunction and verb); that Lombardy should again be placed under the rule of Austria; and that Savoy should again be placed under the kingdom of Piedmont {omit conjunction and use pronoun instead of repeating the words of preceding clause). So far matters were easily, readily, and amicably arranged {abridge this sentence), but the questions how Poland, Saxony, and Genoa were to be dis- posed of, were not so easily arranged {get rid of second, arranged). The first of them gave rise to dissensions so serious that they not only completely broke up for a time the Grand Alliance {correct this sentence) which had effected the deliverance of Europe, but, but for Napoleon's unexpected, and in that view opportune return from Elba {get rid of second but, and use possessive, with of for words in italics), the flames of war w T ould in all probability have again broken out, and the old allied forces have been conducted to mutual slaughter {use the verb led in first clause). THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. LESSON FOURTH. READING. The Congress of Vienna. \The following corrects the Exercise on Synthesis of preceding Lesson.'] While the French Government were thus striving, amidst the chaos of revolutionary passions, to close the wounds and mitigate the sufferings of the revolution, negotiations of the most important character for the general settlement of Europe had commenced, and were already considerably advanced at Vienna. It had been originally intended that the Congress should have commenced its sittings on the 29th July 1814, but the visit of the Allied Sovereigns to England, and their subsequent return to their own capitals, necessarily caused it to be adjourned, and it was not till the end of September that august assembly commenced, by the entry of the Emperor Alexander and the King of Prussia into the Austrian capital. These were immediately followed by the Kings of Bavaria, Denmark, and WUrtemburg, and a host of lesser Princes ; Lord Castlereagh, and subsequently the Duke of Wellington, on the part of England, and M. de Talleyrand on that of France, more efficiently than crowned heads could have done, upheld the dignity and maintained the interests of their respective monarchies. But, although the sovereigns and ministers in appearance kept up the most amicable and confidential relations, it was easy to see that their interests! and views were widely at variance, and that the removal of common danger and the division of common spoil had pro- duced their usual effect of sowing dissension among the victors. A preliminary question of precedence first arose as to the rank of the different states assembled and their representatives: but this was at once terminated by the happy expedient of Alexander, that they should be arranged and should sign in the alphabetical order of their respective states. But a more serious difficulty soon after occurred as to the states which should in their own right as principals take part in the deliberations; and it was suggested, at the outset, by the e 50 READING. ministers of Russia, Prussia, Austria, and Great Britain, that they should in the first instance come to an agreement as to the disposal of the territories wrested from France and its allies, before they entered into conferences with France and Spain. This proposal was naturally resisted by Talleyrand and the Spanish Plenipotentiary; and it was their earnest endeavour, in an energetic note, to show that the treaty of Chaumont, though formally to endure for twenty years, had in reality expired with the attainment of its objects, and that France at least should be admitted into the deliberations. Lord Castlereagh, who early perceived the necessity of a counterpoise to the preponderating influence of Russia in the conferences, supported this note of M. de Talleyrand's ; and Prince Metternich, who was actuated by similar views, did the same. In consequence, it was agreed that a committee, to whom the questions coming before the Congress might be submitted, should be the ministers not only of the four Allied Powers, but of France, Spain, Portugal, and Sweden. The Cardinal Gonsalvi, on the part of the Court of Rome, was afterwards received, through the personal intercession of the Prince Regent of England; while the Plenipotentiaries of Murat, King of Naples, the Kings of Sicily, of Bavaria, the Low Countries, Saxony, and Denmark, besides the Ministers of the Swiss and Genoese Republics, though not admitted to the conferences of the greater powers, were in attendance at Vienna, and had their interests seconded by any such of their more powerful neighbours as were disposed to support them. This preliminary difficulty, as always occurs in such cases, furnished a key to the course the different powers were likely to take in the approaching negotiation; but a considerable time elapsed before the real divisions appeared. Much was done, in the first instance, without any difference of opinion taking place. Territories inhabited by thirty-one million six hundred and ninety-one thousand persons being at the disposal of the Allied Powers, there was for each enough and to spare. It was at once agreed, in conformity with the secret articles of the Treaty of Paris, that Belgium, united to Holland, should form one kingdom under the title of the Netherlands ; that Norway. should be annexed to Sweden; that Hanover, with a considerable accession of territory taken from the kingdom of Westphalia, should be restored to the King of England ; that Lombardy should again be placed under the rule of Austria, and Savoy under that of Piedmont. So far all was easily arranged, but the questions how Poland, Saxony and Genoa, were to be disposed of, were not so easily adjusted. The first of them gave rise to dissensions so serious CONSTRUCTION. 51 as not only to break up completely for a time the Grand Alliance which had effected the deliverance of Europe, but, had it not been for the unexpected, and in that view most opportune, return of Napoleon from Elba, would in all pro- bability have led to the flames of war again breaking out, and to the old allied forces being conducted to mutual slaughter. — Alison. TEXT. The numbers refer to table of vowel sounds given in the first lesson. 9 4 11 12 13 15 6 15 4 6 1 6 A phl-lOs-O-phEr whO h Ap-pen-ed tO bE pAss-Ing thAt 7 541 47 17 12 47 5 wAY, pEr-cEIv-Ing thE nA-tUre Of thE cAse, sAId: 14 6 6 1 4 13 12 15 ' 12| 15 14 5 sUch, Al-As, Is thE wOrld ! wOe tO thOse whO cOv-Et l i rlch-Es. The marks refer to the rhetorical inflexions and pauses explained in first lesson. A^philosopher | who^happened^to^be^passing^that w way | perceivings the ^nature w of w the w case j said: Such | alas j is w the w world ! | W6e w to^those w who w covet w riches ! CONSTRUCTION. In constructing sentences there are certain general laws which must be observed. These laws being followed by all writers cannot be infringed without setting every authority at defiance: they are the recognised elements of the English idiom, consequently identical with the language itself; and no combination of words which involves a breach of any one of them can properly be considered an English sentence. The most important of these general principles are embraced in the following rules : — I. An article is not employed with nouns used in a general or indefinite sense. * He was raised to the rank of a lieutenant,' should be ' rank of lieutenant.' ' The Grecian mind was directed into the healthy channels of induction and experiment,' should be 'into healthy channels/ 1. The article is used to determine some particular object. 'Smoke ascends a little way above the surface, and before any particular height is reached it melts into air,' should be 'it melts into the air :' to melt into air signifies to become air, which is not what is meant. 2. The indefinite article a is used before words beginning with a conso- nant; as, 'a traveller,' 'a long way.' A becomes an before a word beginning with a vowel or silent h; as, ' an intention;' 'an herb.' But a is used for the sake of harmony before the vowel u, when that 52 CONSTRUCTION. letter has the sound of the word yon, as 'a unit.' A, for a like reason, should be used before the word humour and its derivations, silent h being followed by a similar sound of u. 3. When two or more nouns follow each other, the article is usually appended to the first, and understood with the others ; as, ' a sword, musket and pike, were given up to the authorities.' The sentence, ' The plain was strewed with stunted tufts of the poisonous and prickly euphorbia, 1 means one kind of euphorbia. When distinct objects are signified, the article must be repeated. ' The prince and general fell mortally wounded,' (if two persons are meant) should be 'the prince and the general fell mortally wounded.' 4. When two nouns follow each other, one commencing with a consonant the other with a vowel, the indefinite article must be repeated. ' He bought a sheep and ox,' should be ' he bought a sheep and an ox.' II. Nouns must be in the plural number when more than one of an object are implied. ' The Bentleys and Scagliers of modern philology had no unworthy precursor in the Alexandrian Aristo- phanes and Aristarchus,' should be ' had no unworthy precursors.'' III. When a possessive case is used, the sign must be employed. ' They spoke of the kings abdication,' should be ' they spoke of the hinges abdication/ 1. The object possessed may be understood; as, 'I called at the book- seller's (shop)'. 2. The sign of the possessive is sometimes used after the preposition of; as, 'The Church of St. Paul's;' 'A palace of the Queen's.' This construc- tion, at least in so far as regards the first example, is scarcely a legitimate use of the possessive case ; but such expressions as ' A letter of Napier's, ' ' A statue of the duke's,' are recognised by our best writers. The double possessive thus employed is supposed to imply that there are more than one of the object possessed : it is correct to say ' I met a cousin of yours,' but an error to say ' I met a wife of yours.' 3. A possessive case is sometimes converted into an adjective ; as, ' A horse collar,' for ' A horse's collar :' there is, however, a limit to this con- struction; we cannot say ' The Queen palace,' for 'The Queen's palace.' 4. The possessive case must not be placed so as to create confusion in the meaning. 'A blue gentleman's stock,' should be 'a gentleman's blue stock.' IV. Adjectives must not be used for adverbs, nor adverbs for adjectives. ' He thinks high of the people,' should be ' he thinks highly;' * They lingered over the nightly view/ should be 'night view/ 1. Adjectives qualify nouns ; as, ' He is a timorous man ; his credulity is lamentable.' Adverbs qualify adjectives and other adverbs; as, 'The colour is ex- tremely black;' 'he speaks rather abruptly.' They likewise extend the meaning of verbs; as, 'he looked upwards;' and also express some attribute of a sentence; as, 'positively, I will do so.' 2. Participles ending in ted become adjectives by omitting the d ; as, 'situate' from 'situated;' 'devote' from 'devoted.' When the idea of action is to be preserved, the d must not be omitted. ' The wine was dilute with water,' should be ' the wine was diluted with water.' 3. Adverbs and adjectives should be used sparingly: a superfluous use of either weakens the language of the writer. Such phrases as 'correctly elegant,' 'beautifully transparent,' ' sublimely refined', have no meaning. ' Newton was a nobly illustrious and highly learned man,' resembles ' Peck- sniff's grandly magnificent and highly imposing pump.' CONSTRUCTION. 53 V. Pronouns must agree in number, gender and person, with the nouns they represent. * The traveller put poison in the viands, and administered it to his companions,' should be l administered them.' 1. When several nouns occur in a sentence, the pronoun agrees with the subject. 'This negro had been the ruler of all the slaves; they were made prisoners, fighting in his cause, by another prince, who was more fortunate than they,' should be 'than he.' 2. Pronouns must not be employed to repeat the noun in a simple affir- mation. 'The traveller he said,' should be 'The traveller said.' Poets, especially ballad writers, sometimes infringe this rule ; as, ' The night it was gloomy, The wind it was high.' VI. The relative pronouns who, which, and that, must agree with the antecedent or noun to which they refer. ' The man which,* should be 'the man who.' 1. Who relates to persons; as, 'The travellers who found a treasure.' Which relates to things; as, 'The treasure which the travellers found.' That to either persons or things; as, 'The men that died;' 'the materials that were obtained for a repast.' 2. Who becomes whose in the possessive case; as, 'Darius, a king of Persia, whose tomb still exists.' 3. Who becomes whom when under the government of an active verb or a preposition; as, 'The man whom we met;' 'the person to whom we spoke ' {see Rules VIII. and XXII.) Whose and whom, like the nominative who, relate only to persons. ' I trust the reader will glean some amusement from these volumes, for whose faults I beseech his indulgence,' should be 'for the faults of which.' 4. Which is used with persons in an interrogative sentence ; as, ' Which of the travellers perished V The older writers made which relate to persons ; as, ' Our Father which art in heaven;' but this construction is now considered ungrammatical. Which is used with nouns of multitude implying persons; as, 'The Court of St. James's who,' should be 'The Court of St. James's which.' The expression 'the things which,' may be rendered by what. 'I had forgotten what you told me,' is equivalent to ' I have forgotten the things which you told me.' ' Introductions are anything else rather than that they profess to be,' should be 'rather than what, or the things which, they profess to be.' 5. That is always used with antecedents of different genders. ' The man and horse which passed this way,' should be 'the man and horse that passed this way.' The word that is not always a relative. In the sentence ' The travellers were so fatigued that they could not walk,' that is a conjunction. Whether that is used as a connective particle or a pronoun it is frequently omitted ; as, 'He was so weak (that) he could not walk;' 'The traveller said (that) such was the case;' 'The man (that) I spoke of.' Though ellipses of this kind may be allowed in familiar discourse, it is inadmissible where accuracy is desirable. 'They returned to the nlar e they had left,' would be more correctly rendered by ' they returned to the place that they had left.' That, as a relative pronoun, is never preceded by a preposition : we may say, ' I saw the person of whom you spoke ;' but we must say, ' I saw the person that you spoke to.' 5. Who, which, and that, are used indiscriminately with collective nouns expressive of persons : we may say ' The people who, which, or that, were there. It is an error, however, to use who and which in the same sentence. 'The party who now rule in France, and which recently came into power,' 54 CONSTRUCTION. should be ' the party who now rule in France, and that recently came into power.' 6. Other parts of speech are occasionally used as relative pronouns. ' I will do as he bids me ;' as is equivalent to what or that which. In the sentence 'As the tree falls, so it must lie,' as has the power of a relative, and so of a demonstrative pronoun. 7. To prevent ambiguity the relative should be placed as near as possible to its antecedent. ' The statue was given to Belzoni by an Arab chief, in exchange for a fine elephant, who lived on the banks of the Nile,' should be ' the statue was given to Belzoni by an Arab chief, who lived on the batiks of the Nile, in exchange for a fine elephant. 8. Where, whence, whither, may be regarded as relatives under the government of a preposition. ' The house has been taken down, but this is the spot where or on which it stood.' Words used in this way must have the same position with relation to their antecedents, as who, which, and that. ' The house has a large portico, where Sir James lived, ' should be 'The house where or in which Sir James lived has a large portico:' unless, indeed, Sir James did actually live in the portico.' VII. The demonstrative pronouns this and that agree in number with the nouns they determine. ' Have you seen this travellers,' should be ' have you seen these travellers.' 1. This and that are used with nouns in the singular, these and those with nouns in the plural number. 2. This and these determine objects near, that and those point to objects relatively distant. ' The Arab chiefs of these remote ages lived in caves,' should be ' of those remote ages;' ' I have not seen him those three years,' should be ' these three years.' 3. The demonstratives frequently have the nouns they determine under- stood; as, — Some place the bliss in action, some in ease ; Those call it pleasure, and contentment these. 4. When employed to point out two objects mentioned before, that refers to the former and this to the latter. 5. The personal pronoun they must not be used instead of a demonstra- tive : they cannot be used unless the objects it represents are named in the context. ' They who are adepts in music are pleased with intricate compo- sition,' should be ' those who.' 6. A demonstrative must not be employed in the place of a personal pronoun. ' Having been engaged in extra tuition of some students in that school, I felt myself more competent to speak of that than of other national academies.' In this sentence the second demonstrative refers to extra tuition, which is not what is meant ; the writer should have said ' more competent to speak of it.' VIII. Active verbs govern the objective case. 'They met he and / on the road,' should be 'they met him and me;' ' Who did they meet?' should be • whom did they meet?' 1. A pronoun in answer should be in the same case as the question. Quest. — Who met them? Ans. — He. Quest. — Whom did he meet? Ans. — Them. 2. When the relative is in the objective case it comes before the verb which governs it; as, 'These are the travellers whom we saw.' The subject generally comes between the relative and the verb, as in the case of the pronoun we in the above example. 3. Neuter and passive verbs do not admit of an objective case after them ; as 'He endeavoured him to form a clear conception of the subject,' should be 'he endeavoured to form a clear conception of the subject.' CONSTRUCTION. 55 A noun, adjective, or verb, following another verb, without the interven- tion of a preposition, may be considered an objective case ; as, ' He bought poison,' * He works hard.' ' He stops writing.' IX. The verb ' to be ' has the same case after it that it has before it. * It is me,' should be * It is /.' 'I thought it to be he,' should be ' I thought it to be him J 1. Cobbett says that " the nominative case should always be used after it and the verb to be;" but if it is under the government of a transitive verb, and, consequently, an objective case, the pronoun after the verb 'to be ' should certainly be likewise in the objective case : we cannot say ' I took he;' we must say 'I took him.' Him is an objective case, and in the sentence ' I took it,' it must likewise be an objective; and if a part of the verb * to be ' and another pronoun are added, the second pronoun, according to this rule, must also be in the objective case, thus, ' I took it to be him.' The idiom of the language appears to admit the use of an objective pro- noun after it and the verb to be, even in cases where it can scarcely be considered directly under government of a transitive verb, as, for example, in the following sentences : — ' I considered it to have been him, and not the other persons.' ' I suspect that it must have been us they were talking about.' ' It might not have been the French we observed, but it certainly appeared to be t/iem.' Cobbett insists upon the nominative being used in all such sentences, but common usage is decidedly of an opposite practice. " The verbs to make, to render, to appoint, to elect, to think, to consider, are (in certain uses of them) incomplete predicates, requiring a nominative if they are in the passive voice, and a second accusative if they are in the active voice, to complete their predication." — Arnold. 2. When the pronoun after it and the verb to be is nominative to another clause, that person or those persons must be used. ' It must have been they who met us,' should be 'it must have been those persons who met us.' X. The past participle, and not the past tense, must be used after the verbs to have and to be. * Js that the steamer we ought to have went by ' should be ' gone by/ 1. The past participle must not be used for the past tense. ' They drunk the wine,' should be 'they drank.' 2. The regular form of the past tense must not be used when the verb is irregular. ' They teared down the trees,' should be ' they tore down.' XI. When an event is described as past, present, or future, at some given period, the proper sequence of time must be observed, ' He has come yesterday,' should be ' he came yesterday.' When two events are described as having occurred at the same period of time, the tenses must correspond. ' He said to himself as he goes along,' should be 'he said to himself as he went along.' XII. The verb shall in the first person foretels, in the other persons it commands ; the verb will in the first person expresses emphatically the speaker's intention, in the other persons it is a simple future. ' Will I help you V should be ' shall I help you V 1 Shall your brother be in town to-morrow V should be i will your brother be in town to-morrow V 1. The following is a slightly modified version of this rule, which may be readily committed to memory : — In the first person simply shall foretels ; In will a threat or else a promise dwells ; Shall in the second and the third does threat ; Will simply then foretels the coming feat. 56 CONSTRUCTION. 2. Should and would obey the same rules of construction as shall and will. XIII. One verb governs another in the infinitive mood. 'He already possesses too much knowledge to wish appear more learned,' should be ' to wish to appear more learned.' 1. This rule does not imply that an infinitive must be used in all cases after another verb, the participle present is frequently used; as, 'He will go as soon as possible, not returning to India;' but when the purpose, object, or design of the first, is to be expressed by the second verb, the infinitive should be used; as, 'He will go as soon as possible to return to India.' 2. All the prepositions, except to, govern the participle present. ' He prepares for to move,' should be ' he prepares for moving,' or ' he prepares to move,' 3. The particle to is omitted after the verbs observe, perceive, behold, bid, dare, let, hear, see, feel, need, make, and the defective verbs may, might, can, could, will, would, shall, should, must. ' He made his pupils to stare with his terms of art,' should be ' he made his pupils stare.' XIV. When doubt or uncertainty is to be emphatically expressed, the subjunctive mood may be used. ' Though he forbids me, yet I will go,' might be ' though he forbid me.' ' It looks as if the weather was broken,' might be ' as if the weather were.' 1. The subjunctive mood is the same as the present indicative, the per- sonal terminations est and s of the latter being omitted, as in ' If thou love me, keep my commandments.' The verb ' to be ' only has distinct forms for the subjunctive : the verb 'to have ' has no subjunctive forms, but the past indicative had is used to express a present or future contingency ; as, ' If I had ' or ' had I wings I would fly :' had used in this way is virtually a present conditional, and may be regarded as a subjunctive mood. Lowth and many of his successors appear to think that in most cases where this mood is used, the indicative might be employed with the greatest propriety. 2. Cobbett, who is very dogmatic on this matter, says that " the subjunc- tive forms must be used wherever the auxiliaries may or should can be introduced." Now, according to this rule, if we can say 'If the weather should continue wet we shall soon have a storm,' we must say ' If the weather continue wet we shall soon have a storm:' but, notwithstanding Cobbett's opinion, common usage generally uses the indicative form, and prefers saying 'If the weather continues wet,' etc. "If is often followed by the conditional forms, but it is not necessary to use these forms except where the contingency is to be strongly marked." — Arnold. 3. But after verbs implying supplication, or when an assertion is alto- gether hypothetical, the subjunctive forms of the verb to be must be employed; as, 'I wish I were you.' 'Would that he were here.' ' Were I to do so, I would be blamed.' XV. A verb must agree with its nominative, in number and person. 'The three travellers who were perishing with hunger sends in quest of provisions,' should be ' send.' 1. The nominative to a verb may consist of another verb, or of an entire sentence; as, '7b be or not to be, that is the question:' 'That you have wronged me appears in this.' 2. The nominative generally precedes the verb ; as, 'The extensive forests of the Zitikama, which supply the Cape colony, abound in buffalo, bear, and antelope.' In interrogative sentences, and after nor or neither, the nominative follows CONSTRUCTION. 57 the verb; as, 'Does lie depart to-morrow?' 'Neither did he go, nor did I send him.' The verb is sometimes made to precede the nominative; as, 'There is the keys,' should be 'there are the keys.' ' To the functions of legislator are due much respect,' should be 'to the functions of legislator is due much respect;' or 'much respect is due to the functions of legislator.' 3. Single nouns expressing a multitude in the aggregate, as Jlock, swarm, tribe, may have either a singular or plural verb according to the tenor of the context; as, 'The cannon was left on the field a prey to the enemy;' or 'The cannon were carried one by one into the camp.' The same rule is applicable to adjectives used as nouns: ' All on board were lost;' or, 'All around was still.' 4. Such words as snuffers, bellows, compasses, require a verb in the plural; but when the word pair is added, a singular verb is used: we say, 'snuffers snuff";' but, 'a pair of snuffers snuffs.' Names of sciences ending in ics, as mathematics, generally have a verb in the plural, but are sometimes used with a singular verb. The words deer, sheep, fish, means, news, pains, are both singular and plural; the words wages, riches, alms, are now generally followed by a plural verb ; though the older writers appear to have considered them singular; as, in the sentence, 'The wages of sin is death.' 5. Each, every, either, neither, and words significative of a single object, require a verb in the singular: 'None of the travellers ivere hungry,' should be 'none (not one) of the travellers was hungry.': 6. The adjuncts of the nominative do not control the verb: 'The march of the troops were rapid,' should be 'the march of the troops was rapid.' This rule will however depend upon the relation of the adjunct to the subject; 'The bunch of grapes were sour,' is better than 'the bunch of grapes was sour. ' XVI. Two subjects coupled with and require a verb in the plural : * The vanity and want of discrimination in the royal patron was in- jurious, it opened the gates of the university to a crowd of dunces \ should be ' the vanity and want of discrimination in the royal patron were injurious, they opened the gates of the university to a crowd of dunces/ 1. Two subjects coupled with any other conjunction likewise require a verb in the plural: 'Peter as also John was there,' should be ' Peter as also John were there.' 2. When two nouns coupled with a conjunction signify the same thing the verb should be singular; as, 'The soldier and officer was killed at the head of his company;' as also when the one subject is a mere adjunct of the other: 'The traveller with the treasure were sent away,' should be •the traveller with the treasure was sent away.' XVII. Two subjects separated by or or nor require a verb in the singular: ' Gold or silver used as a medium of exchange give great facility to the merchant/ should be 'gold or silver gives.' 'Neither art nor design have been consulted,' should be ' has been consulted.' 1. When the subjects separated by or or nor are of different numbers, the plural subject is placed nearest the verb and a plural verb used: 'Either the stars or the moon is reflected on the lake,' should be 'either the moon or the stars are reflected on the lake.' To avoid such a contact of dissimilar numbers it is better, however, to alter the construction, thus: 'The lake reflects either the moon or the stars.' XVIII. In a relative sentence the verb agrees with the subject to 58 CONSTRUCTION. which the relative refers: '/ who speaks is that man,' should be '/ who speak am that man.' 1. This rule is merely extending the principle that a verb must agree with its nominative to an isolated case. The relative in no way affects the government of the verb, the nominative governing the verb through the relative. 2. When the relative is preceded by two antecedents the verb agrees with the last: 'Are you the person who were enquiring for me,' should be 'are you the person who was enquiring for me.' This rule is, however, exceptional: 'You and the other person who was enquiring for me,' should be 'you and the other person who were enquiring for me :' agreeably to Rule XVI. XIX. The adverb must be placed as near as possible to the verb it qualifies: 'We are liable to be always deceived,' should be 'we are always liable to be deceived.' 1 . The position of the adverb frequently affects the meaning of a proposi- tion: 'I have only burnt two of them,' supposes that, though only two were burnt, several might have been torn or otherwise destroyed. ' I have burnt only two of them' confines the act of destruction to the two objects that were burnt. 'The property was given away absolutely,' signifies that the property was given away without the power of redemption. 'The property was absolutely given away,' signifies that the property was sold somewhat below its real value* 2. When the sense of a sentence does not require any departure from the usual order of the words, the adverb should be placed : — a. Before the word which it qualifies : ' She was beautiful exceedingly, ' should be 'she was exceedingly beautiful.' b. Between the auxiliary and the verb : 'They have seen him in the streets repeatedly,' should be 'they have repeatedly seen him in the streets.' When there are two or more auxiliaries the adverb is placed between the two first: 'He might have been elected easily,' should be 'he might easily have been elected.' c. After the verb: 'He immediately rose and went away,' should be 'he rose immediately.' 'Run to the doctor's as fast as you can,' should be 'run as fast as you can. ' When the verb is followed by an objective case, the adverb follows the objective : 'They rashly refused him,' should be 'they refused him rashly.' The word never must precede the verb: 'He walks never alone,' should be 'he never walks alone.' 3. The adverb is sometimes placed at the beginning of a clause; thus, ' Assuredly he might have acted with more discretion.' 'Immediately he rose the others sat down.' This last construction is not, however, considered strictly logical. XX. Two negatives in the same sentence are improper: 'The soldier never finds amidst the toils of military life no leisure for the pursuit of useful knowledge;' 'no' should be 'any.' Two or more negatives are however frequently used in an affirmative sense; as, 'In German the definite article is employed to point out the genders : there are few cases w r here it can be omitted, a great many in which it must be employed, and none in which it may not be used without ^pro- priety.' XXI. The relation of one object to another should be expressed by the appropriate preposition : 'He walked over the bridge/ should be 'he walked across or along the bridge.' CONSTRUCTION. 59 1. To expresses a relation of motion between one object and another; as, 'The traveller went to Rome.' At a relation of repose; as, 'He arrived at Rome.' In a relation of repose within another object; as, 'The wine is in the hamper.' Into expresses a combined relation of motion and repose; as, ' Put the wine into the hamper.' It is an error to say ' He arrived in Rome ;' 'He lives to Rome;' or 'He goes at Rome.' 2. In some expressions certain words govern a particular preposition; as, ' Independently of the intelligence obtained agreeably to your request, there are several persons here conversant with the subject and worthy of credit, who will not be averse to furnish you with further information relative to the case in which you are retained.' But generally the preposition is varied according to the nature of the relation to be expressed; as, 'The beauty of the poem consists in its simpli- city.' 'The composition consists of three ingredients.' 3. When a participle present is preceded by an article, the preposition of must follow it; 'The poisoning the viands occupied the mind of the traveller,' should be 'the poisoning of the viands occupied the mind of the traveller.' Such barbarisms, as, 'He was a thinking o/,' 'he was a speaking of,' are corruptions of this rule. It is better to omit both article and preposition under such circumstances ; thus, 'The idea of poisoning the viands occupied the mind of the traveller.' XXII. Prepositions govern the objective case: 'They have sent for he and // should be 'they have sent for him and me.* Who was the parcel sent to,' should be 'whom was the parcel sent to.' It is immaterial whether the preposition which governs a relative is placed after the verb, or between the pronoun and its antecedent. We may either say, 'This is a pleasure which 1 was not prepared for,' or 'this is a pleasure for which I was not prepared.' It is perhaps better in some cases to place the preposition immediately before the relative ; thus, ' To whom was the parcel sent.' XXIII. Some words require to be followed by corresponding particles : ' I will write so soon as I receive his letter/ should be ' I will write as soon as I receive his letter.' 1. Although or though is generally followed by yet ; as, ' Though he is poor, yet he is honest.' Yet may be omitted ; as, ' Though poor, he is honest.' Although may be followed by other particles ; as, ' Although he is poor, still he may be honest.' 2. As is generally used after such. ' There are such things in nature that are not dreamt of in your philosophy,' should be ' there are such things in nature as are not dreamt of in your philosophy.' That is the proper relative after such. ' The force of the torrent was such as it carried everything before it,' should be ' the force of the torrent was such that, etc' 3. When a degree of superiority is affirmed, so — that must be used. ' He ran so fast as I could not catch him,' should be 'he ran so fast that I could not catch him.' 4. When equality of manner is affirmed, as — so must be used. ' So he promises, so he performs,' should be 'as he promises, so he performs.' So in this construction is generally omitted ; thus, ' He performs as he promises.' 5. When equality of degree is affirmed, as — as must be used. ' He ran so fast as I did,' should be 'he ran as fast as I did.' 6. When equality of degree is affirmed negatively, so — as must be used. ' He is not as rich as he was,' should be ' he is not so rich as he was.' As, so, and that, when thus employed, are classed as conjunctions ; but 60 COMPOSITION. we have seen (Rule VI. 6,) that these particles have rather the power of relative pronouns. XXIV. Conjunctions couple the same moods and tenses of verbs. * One of the travellers departed and obtains materials for a repast,' should be ' departs and obtains/ or ' departed and obtained/ 1. Conjunctions likewise couple the same cases of pronouns. 'They met him and /,' should be 'they met him and me' Conjunctions do not themselves affect the cases of pronouns : in the sentence, 'They met him and me,' the active verb met governs both pronouns — see Rule VIII. In the sentence ' He went further than /,' the pronoun I may be con- sidered the nominative to the verb did understood. 2. Conjunctions generally unite two or more simple assertions, at the same time pointing out some relation between them. In the sentence 'Save all here save that worthy friar,' the second save is classed as a conjunction, though it has rather the power of a preposition, as in ' Save all, here except that worthy friar.' In the sentence 'He stood up yet he said nothing,' yet connects two simple assertions, and is consequently a conjunction. In the sentence 'They had not yet found a treasure,' yet is used as an adverb ; but it would be better to say ' They had not then found a treasure.' The foregoing rules embrace the general principles which are most frequently violated by writers and speakers ; some other peculiarities to be observed in the formation of sentences will be noticed under the head Composition. COMPOSITION. Composition may be defined as the art of putting our ideas into words, and of arranging these words with order and propriety. Teachers have suggested various methods for introducing the learner to the practice of Composition. Some recommend the description of an object ; as, ' a saw/ ' a table/ 'a cone ;' others advocate an abstraction, as 'envy/ and require this idea to be defined, explained, and illustrated. The diffi- culty does not, however, lie in finding a subject, nor even in knowing how to treat it, but in expressing the notions formed upon it with perspicuity. "What the learner has to do, is to acquire facility in clearly expressing his thoughts in what is properly understood to be the idiom of the English language ; this, like perfection in most other things, may be accomplished by practice ; but, at the same time, if the notions formed of a subject are not clear, if the ideas themselves are feeble, their expression must of necessity be indistinct. Generally speaking, to write or speak correctly is nothing more than to speak or write intelligibly; but in writing a certain degree of ornament is desirable, as well to render a subject more attractive, as to place it more effectively before the eye of the reader. A naked thought is often improved by a little chaste garniture, and the manner in which a writer thus clothes his language is designated Style. COMPOSITION. 61 It may be laid down as a general law, that the mode of expressing a thought or series of thoughts is incorrect when the meaning is obscure ; either the words have no meaning whatever, or if they have a meaning there is an error of some kind somewhere : the sentences may want connexion or be badly arranged ; there may be too many words, or too few ; they may have been injudiciously selected, or may be im- properly applied: whenever the sense is not apparent, the construction is ungrammatical and the composition faulty. In order that the learner may avoid this kind of error, the following general rules should be observed : — Avoid all vulgar expressions, and generally regard every word which has not obtained the sanction of polite usage with suspicion. Never use such grandiloquent expressions, as tenebrosity for darkness, ponderosity for weight, the limpid element for water, the arms of Morpheus for sleep, in speaking of trifles. Beginners, in an endeavour to be elegant, are very apt to apply obscure designations of this kind to simple objects. Obsolete words, as ycleped, eke, anon, enow, give a forced tone to the colouring of a sentence. This class of words is however effective in poetry; as, 11 Whilome there dwelt in Albion's Isle." — Childe Harold. Such words as morn for morning, eve for evening, oft for often, likewise belong to the vocabulary of the poet, and are inadmissible in prose composition. The repetition of the same word in a sentence, or the employment of such a verb as get for all sorts of purposes, as get up for ascend, get down for descend, get round for recover, get in for go in, get out for go out, get at for reach, get a coat off for take off a coat, get dinner for dine, implies either great poverty in the language itself, or great ignorance in the writer of his own vocabulary. It is considered a vain or pedantic affectation to use foreign terms, as terra firma, tete-a-tete, vis-d-vis, sotto voce, hauteur, when English words equally expressive may be found. This practice in a great measure expired with the fashionable novelists of the past century, whose style has never been upheld as a correct model for imitation. Such words as intensify, opinionate, to accite, used by American writers, must likewise by regarded as aliens, until they have obtained the sanction of polite usage. Beginners sometimes confound words of similar orthography but different meaning, as ingenuous for ingenious, corporal for corporeal, principle for principal, eminent for imminent, genius for genus, counsel for council, presumptive for presumptuous, b% COMPOSITION. contemptuous for contemptible, affect for effect, ludicrous for ridiculous, momentous for momentary, least for lest. It is necessary to be cautious in using what are called synonyms : most writers to avoid tautology, or the repetition of the same word, are in the habit of harmonising their sentences by introducing words of apparent similarity in meaning, and thus often unconsciously obscure the sense. In a case of this kind, when choice lies between two words, the one with a simple signification and the other with two, choose the former; because any superfluous or accessory idea renders the expression of a subject less distinct. The words clear and transparent are synonymous in one respect, both words imply freedom from obscurity ; but an object may be clear and yet not be transparent, whilst a transparent object must necessarily be clear. Entire and complete are considered to be synonymous, but a thing may be entire and not complete ; we may have the entire work of an artist, but it may not be a complete work. It is useful to weigh with attention the force of words, for the more the distinction between a variety of verbal meaning is observed, the more perspicuous will be the composition. The learner, where possible, should likewise prefer euphonous to harsh or clumsy words when the meaning is identical, as inutility to us elessness, pathos to patheticalness , capability to capableness. Endeavour to distinguish general from specific terms when a precise idea is meant to be conveyed. Instead of saying ' to settle a quarrel by gentle remonstrance,' { to hear the cry of horses/ ' to bellow like a cow,' { to listen to the murmuring of bees,' ' to see an eagle flying,' it is better to say ' appease a quarrel,' i the neighing of horses,' ( to low like a cow/ ' the hum of bees/ ( an eagle soaring.' An important element in a correct style is precision, the learner should therefore avoid circumlocution, or the use of several words, to express what might be better expressed by one ; thus, ( The thing was clear and evident,' should be ' the thing was obvious. 3 ' A plain, simple, and unaffected man / plain and simple are superfluous. ' An awful and appaling scene/ appaling embraces awful. ' He was a talented intel- lectual man/ a talented man is necessarily an intellectual man, but a man may be intellectual without being talented, f a talented man' therefore is sufficient. 6 A diligent active man/ should be ' a diligent man/ for a man may be active and not diligent, but we cannot conceive a diligent man as not being active in some degree. A similar remark is applicable to ' He was quite aware and conscious of it/ and such like sen- tences. A redundancy of words weakens the effect of a SYNTHESIS. 63 sentence, and indicates either ignorance of the precise meanings of the words themselves, or a feeble conception of the idea they are intended to express. It is not, however, advisable for the learner to be over fastidious at the outset; searching for a more appropriate word or a happier expression would be to enhance precision at the expense of perspicuity; better hazard the one than peril the other : write first, and correct afterwards, but endeavour to acquire the habit of writing correctly. SYNTHESIS. Correct the following sentences agreeably to the rules of Construction : 1. Fear is the anticipation of an evil. 2. The traveller was awarded a title and estate. 3. The riches are the source of many evils. 4. The travellers lived in ages we usually call dark. 5. Our universities do not generally promote the study of geology and chemistry. 6. Geography and astronomy make an equal stride. 7. Euclid produced a model of clear demonstrations. 8. They spoke of the traveller having found a treasure. 9. I heard of the treasure being lost. 10. We knew of you going. 11. There was an indomitably wildness in the scene. 12. Volcanoes are rarely displays of supernatural power. 13. Your committee would strong and affectionately urge. 14. Results recurring frequent are often disregarded. 15. If the old almanac system and its ' Francis Moore' are to be discarded, something else must be found for us in its place. 16. The Jews under the Ptolemies were far from being a perse- cuted race ; on the contrary, it enjoyed very extensive privileges. 17. Caesar tells us of three indigenous languages in Gaul, and we find traces of it at the present day. 18. The traveller beheld the obelisk of Osirtesen, who was 60 feet high. 19. A pardon was obtained from the king by means of an old helmet, who happened to be present. 20. Egypt had colleges of priests and prophets, and those were part and parcel of the church establishment. 21. Take that book and hand me this one. 22. The travellers accosted he and I. 23. Who did they send for provisions? 24. They disapproved the design proposed. 25. It was me who found the treasure. 26. I knew that person to be he. 27. Whom do people say the travellers are ? 28. Some hymns were sang by the peasants. 29. The travellers have ate the poisoned food. 64 SYNTHESIS. 30. They had at that time began their journey. 31. The traveller who went in quest of provisions should return next day. 32. People were said to encounter strange shapes in the forest. 33. Will I have the book to-morrow? 34. It is difficult to frame a rule that some bold genius shall not subvert. 35. Let him to do what he proposes. 36. Allow him do as he pleases. 37« Bid him to go in quest of provisions. 38. Was he to remain longer, he would be too late. 39. Fame comes unlooked for if it comes at all. 40. Do thou know me ? 41. Does the travellers depart immediately? 42. Not one of the travellers were seen after. 43. The traveller or his companion go in quest of provisions. 44. Neither the traveller nor his companion have returned. 45. He and the traveller finds a treasure. 46. Doubt and uncertainty hangs over their fate. 47. Appearance and reality, when united, constitutes truth. 48. I, a priest of Isis, who now addresses you. 49. Thou who think so are certainly wrong. 50. He who has a head of his own need not borrow one. 51. That which glitterest is not always gold. 52. Why did the travellers so act ? 53. The weather both was rough and stormy. 54. It is difficult always to be correct. 55. The traveller who departed did not conceive no such design. 56. Neither traveller nor treasure was never heard of more. 57. They merit their fate for their avarice. 58. The philosopher was astonished by their cupidity. 59. Who did you speak to just now ? 60. I am sure it was we they were staring at. 61. They were speaking of either he or I. 62. These are the travellers who the repast was prepared for. 63. Who did the treasure belong to. 64. Some remarks were made against you and he. 65. Our opinion of you and they is not favourable. 66. Between you and I, this matter is fraught with danger. 67. His fame was such as his name was in every mouth. 68. There is no one as amiable, as generous, as beloved, as he. 69. He has travelled further than me. 70. I shall come so soon as possible. 71. We doubt if you will come at all. 72 Did the travellers send you and they in quest of provisions ? 73. If he recover and survives many will rejoice. 74. We do not estimate the Egyptians very highly, but we owed them much. THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. LESSON FIFTH. READING. [ The following is a corrected version of the Exercise given in the Fourth Lesson.] 1. Fear is the anticipation of evil. 2. The traveller was awarded a title and an estate. 3. Riches are the source of many evils. 4. The travellers lived in the ages we usually call dark. 5. Our universities do not generally promote the studies of geology and chemistry. 6. Geography and astro- nomy make equal strides. 7. Euclid produced a model of clear demonstration. 8. They spoke of the traveller's having found a treasure. 9. I heard of the treasure's being lost. 10. We knew of your going. 11. There was an indomitable wildness in the scene. 12. Volcanoes are rare displays of supernatural power. 13. Your committee would strongly and affectionately urge. 14. Results recurring frequently are often disregarded. 15. If the old almanac system and its ' Francis Moore ' are to be discarded, something else must be found for us in their place. 16. The Jews under the Ptolemies were far from being a persecuted race ; on the contrary,, they enjoyed extensive privileges. 17. Csesar tells us of three indigenous languages in Gaul, and we find traces of them at the present day. 18. The traveller beheld the obelisk of Osirtesen, which was 60 feet high. 19. A pardon was obtained from the king, who happened to be present, for an old helmet. 20. Egypt had colleges of priests and pro- phets, and these were part and parcel of the church establish- ment. 21. Take this book and hand me that one. 22. The travellers accosted him and me. 23. Whom did they send for provisions ? 24. They disapproved of the design proposed. 25. It was I who found the treasure. 26. I knew that person to be him. 27. Who do people say the travellers are ? 28. Some hymns were sung by the peasants. 29. The tra- vellers have eaten the poisoned food. 30. They had at that time begun their journey. 31. The traveller who went in quest of provisions should have returned next day. 32. People were said to have encountered strange shapes in the forest. 33. Shall I have the book to-morrow ? 34. It is difficult to frame a rule that some bold genius will not subvert. 35. Let him do what he proposes. 36. Allow him to do as he pleases. F 66 PRONUNCIATION. 37. Bid him go in quest of provisions. 38. Were he to remain longer, he would be too late. 39. Fame comes un- looked for, if it come at all. 40. Dost thou know me ? 41. Do the travellers depart immediately ? 42. Not one of the travellers was ever seen after. 43. The traveller or his com- panion goes in quest of provisions. 44. Neither the traveller nor his companion has returned. 45. He and the traveller find a treasure. 46. Doubt and uncertainty hang over their fate. 47. Appearance and reality, when united, constitute truth. 48. I, a priest of Isis, who now address you. 49. Thou who thinkest so art certainly wrong. 50. He who has ahead of his own needs not borrow one. 51. That which glitters is not always gold. 52. Why did the travellers act so ? 53. The weather was both rough and stormy. 54. It is difficult to be always correct. 55. The traveller who departed did not conceive any such design. 56. Neither traveller nor treasure was ever heard of more. 57. They merit their fate on account of their avarice. 58 The philosopher was astonished at their cupidity. 59. Whom did you speak to just now? 60. I am sure it was us the people were staring at. 61. They were speaking of either him or me. 62. These are the travellers for whom the repast was prepared. 63. To whom did the treasure belong? 64. Some remarks were made against you and him. 65. Our opinion of you and them is not favourable. 66. Between you and me, this matter is fraught with danger. 67. His fame was such that his name was in every mouth. 68. There is no one so amiable, so generous, and so beloved, as he. 69. He has travelled further than I. 70. I shall come as soon as possible. 71. We doubt whether you will come at all. 72. Did the tra- vellers send you and them in quest of provisions ? 73. If he recover and survive many will rejoice. 74. We do not estimate the Egyptians very highly, but we owe them much. PRONUNCIATION'. VOWELS. In the first lesson we pointed out the vowel sounds used in English; we have now to show when, and under what cir- cumstances, a particular vowel has one, and when another of these sounds. We have seen that there are in all eighteen vowel sounds in the language ; there are only five signs or letters to repre- sent these eighteen sounds, a, e, i, o, arid u. Each of these letters is not confined to a certain determinate number of the sounds, but sometimes represents one and sometimes another with the greatest degree of apparent irregularity, and it is PRONUNCIATION. 67 this singular property of the English vowels that renders the acquisition of a correct pronunciation of the language so difficult. It is, however, a popular error to suppose that there are no rules for English pronunciation ; we have already said that common consent determines the pronunciation of the words, but common consent only determines directly the pro- nunciation of the majority, the pronunciation of the minority it determines indirectly by analogy, and this analogy consti- tutes the rules, by which common consent itself must submit to be judged ; besides, in cases where usage is doubtful, or when a new word is added to our vocabulary, it is not com- mon consent that is consulted, but the rules or principles recognised by that authority. It is almost unnecessary to insist upon the importance of a correct pronunciation; in some professions, as the bar and the stage, it is indispensable, and in most others it is more or less advantageous. Cobbett, in his English Grammar, says that, " though the Scotch say come, the Londoners cawn, and the Hampshire folks cam, we all know they mean corn;" and concludes, therefore, that pronunciation is a matter of 'very little real importance.' Now Cobbett might as well have argued that when we hear, { ain't you a goin?' and understand it to mean f are you not going ? ' English grammar is unnecessary. It appears to us that a barbarism of the one kind is quite as much to be deprecated as a barbarism of the other. There are two classes of error in pronunciation which the learner should endeavour to avoid, that of giving a wrong enunciation to a sound, and that of giving a variety of enun- ciations to the same sound ; the first error is peculiar to the natives of London, the second has a wider range. The fifth vowel in the table, lesson first, that of a in traveller, occurs in the words tax, wax, axe. These words are pronounced by the Londoner, as if written tex, wex, ex ; this pronunciation does not give exactly the vowel sound of these words which is recognised by polite usage; but the Londoner is consistent in the error ; he almost invariably gives this particular enuncia- tion to that particular sound. Not so the inhabitants of other localities; the Scotch, for example, pronounce the words named, as if written tahx, wawx, aix ; thus not giving one only, but three distinct varieties of intonation to the same sound. In pointing out the proper sounds of each vowel, it will be necessary to make use of some kind of orthoepical mark, and in order not to perplex the learner with a variety of systems f2 68 PRONUNCIATION. of this description, we shall adopt that prefixed to the original edition of Walker's Pronouncing Dictionary, which is in every respect well suited for the purpose. It is not, however, our intention to follow Walker's pronunciation ; many of the irregularities sanctioned by the polite usage of his day, as ke-arriage, for carriage ; ke-ind, for kind ; ke-ard, for card ; front-cheer, for frontier, having happily fallen into desuetude. The following is Walker's method of exhibiting the vowel sounds, together with a reference to the group of words illustrating each sound, given under the head l Pronuncia- tion,' in our first lesson. Number of sound in Table, - Walker s Maries.* Lesson First. 1. First sound of a, as in fate, a. . . . 7 and 8. 2. Second sound of a, , J! 2 , far, a . . 9. 3. Third sound of a, , ball, a . . . 10. 4. Fourth sound of a, , fat i. . . . 6. 5. First sound of e, , me, e . . . 4. 6. Second sound of e, , , met, I . . 5. 7. First sound of i, , fire, i . . 2. 8. Second sound of i, , pin, l . . 1. 9. First sound of o, „ no, 6 . . 12. 10. Second sound of o, , move, o . . .15. 11. Third sound of o, , nor, o . . 10. 12. Fourth sound of o, „ not, 3 . . 11. 13. First sound of u, ,, tube, u . . 17. 14. Second sound of u, „ tub, u . . . 13 and 14. 15. Third sound of u, „ bull, u . . .15 and 16. 16. The sound of ou, „ out, ou . . 8. 17. The sound of oi, , oil, oi . . 3. It will be observed that Walker indicates the sound of a in fat by a sign thus, &, and throughout the course of the fol- lowing observations this sound will be represented in the same manner, and as in this, so in the case of the other sounds. For facility of classification, the sounds, as exhibited in the foregoing table, may be further distinguished by the terms open and shut, thus : Open. Shut. 1. a, as in fate. 1. a, as in fat. 2. t j» far. 3. 3 a, >> ball. 4. e> ?) me. 5. i, >> fire. 6. o, » no. 7. 6, » move 8. o, nor. 9. A, 55 tube. 2. e, 3.1, 4. 6, 5. u, 6. u, met. pin. not. tub. bull. * Smart and other modern editors of Walker's Dictionary use marks, thus, — w instead of figures, to distinguish the sounds. We do not see any particular advantage to be derived from this modification, and have consequently preferred Walker's own annotation, in which figures alone are introduced. PRONUNCIATION. 69 A vowel may be defined as a simple unobstructed utter- ance, or as a sound that does not cease from the beginning to the end of a single impulse of the voice. When a sound is uttered curtly, it is said to be short ; when the voice dwells upon it, it is said to be long ; the sound of e, in the word met, if prolonged, would make that word rhyme exactly with the French word fete, or resemble e in the Scotch pronun- ciation of the word well; but this long sound of I is not used in English. We mean by the terms, short and long, either a protraction or prolongation of the same sound, and we men- tion this more particularly, as orthoepists sometimes use these terms to signify one thing and sometimes another. When two letters are employed to represent a simple sound, as ie in grief, oa in coal, ea in treasure, the combina- tion is termed a digraph. Some orthoepists consider such sounds as ew in few, oi in oil, as compound sounds, and call them diphthongs ; others consider the i of fire, and the a of fate, to be sounds of this kind. When two vowels are used to represent a simple, or a union of two simple sounds (which we think means as nearly as possible the same thing), the combination belongs to one syllable, as treasure, feu-dal ; but when two letters occur in a word, each of which has a distinct sound, they separate, and belong to distinct syllables, as in cre-ate, co-alesce. It would be a better arrangement to class the combined vowels representing simple sounds, as well as those representing what are called combined sounds, under the general term digraph, and confine the term diphthong to such combinations as in create, coalesce. GENERAL RULES. [ The learner will bear in mind that the numbered letters indicate the sounds, as shown in the annexed table ; thus u signifies the sound of \x in tub, which is the fourteenth of the table], I. When a single vowel ends an accented syllable, or when a vowel is followed by a single consonant and an e mute, it has the first open sound ; as in fa'-tal, fate, e-vil, eve, li-bel, spite-ful, spy, mo-tive, mote, tu-nic, tune. Exceptions — Fa'-ther, ra-ther, br&'-vo, gape, bade, have, wa-ter, give, live, g#ne, tr6de, sure, were, there (thafe), ere (are), where (whare), move, prove, do, who, lose, maritime, jacobine, med'icine, discipline, mas'culine, jes'samine, fem'inine, heroine, nec'tarine, lib'ertine, genuine, palatine, cu'curbite, in'genite, in'finite, definite, hypocrite, favourite, exquisite, opposite, ap'posite, per'quisite, requisite. In the following words, which are chiefly derived from the French, i has the sound of e — machine', antique', critique', pique, chagrin', fatigue', caprice', pal'anquin", routine', intrigue', invalid' (noun), marine', police', suite (sweet), tontine', frize, fascine', tambourine', man'darin", pronounced as if written mashene', anteke', criteke'. In the following, o has the sound of u — love, glove, dove, above, shove, done, one, none, come, some. 70 PRONUNCIATION. This rule is frequently violated by the Londoner, who perversely gives the sound of o to u, pronouncing toon, sioopid, constitoot, for tune, stupid, consti-tute. It is scarcely necessary to dwell upon such palpable errors. II. When e, o, or u ends an unaccented syllable, it has its first open sound, but protracted, that is, pronounced somewhat rapidly ; as in e-mo'-tion, no-bil'-ity, u-nite'. III. When a ends an unaccented syllable, the sound varies with the position of the syllable ; when the syllable is not final, a has the short sound a; as in tra-duce', tra-verse': but, when the syllable is final, it has the open sound a ; as in i-de'-a. IV. When i or y ends an unaccented syllable, it has the shut sound i ; as in di-vine', hor'-ri-ble, dit'-ty. Exceptions — Ci-ba'rious, ci-lic'ious, ci-ta'tion, dl-rep'tion, di-rup'tion, mi-crom'eter, mi-gra'tion, pi-rat'ical, ri-val'ity, rhi-noc'eros, vi-ca'rious, vi-bra'tion, vi-tal'ity, vl-vific, vi-vip'arous. V. When a single vowel is followed by a consonant in the same syllable, it has a shut sound ; as in c&t'-tle, met'-al, grin, hymn, f6f-ly, cub, un-shod', in-can-des'-cence, c6n-nect'. Exceptions — Many (men'-y), any (en'-y), bath, path, lath, Isle, island, viscount (s, in the three last words, is silent), climb (b silent), indict (c silent), pint, pretty (pntty), England (ingland), clerk (dark), both, comb (b silent),, gross, woman (wum-an), wolf (wulf), bosom (bus-om), whom, tomb, womb (6 silent in the last two words), sugar (s like sh), impugn, bury (ber-ry), busy (blz-zy). In the following words, o has the shut sound of u — among, amongst, affront, front, brother, mother, smother, pother, other, hover, cover, plover, doth, son, sponge, allonge, honey, money, coney, Monday, stomach, mongrel, monk, monkey, month, nothing, oven, onion, pommel, covert, conjure, cozen, covet, covenant, conduit, colour, comfit,, comfort, compass, company, combat, comrade, borough, bomb, bombard, sloven, shovel, ton, tongue, sovereign, wont, once, wonder, comfrey, rhomb, colander, pronounced amung, frunt, etc. VI. All the vowels have the sound of u when followed by r in an unaccented termination ; as collar, differ, elix'ir, satyr, author, sulphur, pronounced collur, diffur, elixur, satur, authur, sulphur. But when a, % or e precedes any other consonant, the vowel has its regular sound ; as in petal, valid, solemn. Care must be taken not to give the vowels indiscriminately the irregular sound. Careless speakers slur all the unaccented vowels, pronouncing capable, del'egate, visible, correct' , as if written capable, delugate, visuble, currect, and sometimes viable, tfr-rect. If the learner has acquired this inelegant habit, he should endeavour to correct it, even at the risk of being thought pedantic : it is this fault that generally causes indecision in pronunciation, and is the source of much of that indistinctness so often observed when an unpractised speaker addresses a large assembly. In speaking with deliberation, it is necessary to give every unaccented syllable its specific sound; and the degree of accuracy attained in this respect distinguishes the cultivated from the conventional speaker. 7i PARTICULAR RULES. VII. A succeeded by nge, ste, gue, has its first open sound ; as in range, chaste, plague ; it also has this sound in the words danger, manger, angel, ancient ; pronounced dain-jer, main-jer, ain-jel, ain- shyent. VIII. When a, by the. first general rule, has the sound a, this sound is shortened before the letter r ; as in dare, fare, com-pare, Ma-ry ; except the word are, pronounced ar. None of our orthoepists have noticed the difference between the sound of a in fate and a in fare ; yet, if the two words were pro- nounced in precisely the same manner, a correct ear would at once detect a certain degree of uncouthness in the pronunciation of either word. Good speakers invariably make a distinction between the two sounds, whilst the Scotch and Irish pronounce the first syllables of da-ring and Ma-ry to rhyme with day and May. The sound of a in fare, and generally before r, approximates somewhat to the French e in fete, which is not the case with a in fate when that word is pro- perly pronounced. IX. A has the open sound a when followed in the same syllable by r, If Im (except qualm), Iv; as in card, calf, calm, calve: but when r is followed in the next syllable by a vowel or another r, a has the short sound a ; as in par-a-dise, c&r-ry. X. A has the open sound a when followed in the same syllable by 11, Id, Ik, It, also when followed by r, and preceded by w or qu ; as in call, bald, balk, halt, war, quart (the word shall only excepted). But when r is followed in the next syllable by a vowel or another r, a has the shut sound & ; as in quar'-antine (quSr), war-rant (wSr-rant). XI. A has the shut sound 3 when preceded by iv or qu and followed by any other consonant than k, g, ng, x (ks), or /; as in swab (sw6b), wal-low (w&l-low), quash (qu6sh), quantity (quon-tity). XII. Aa. This combination, representing a simple sound, occurs only in Scripture proper names, and is pronounced as a alone would be in the same position ; as Aaron, Canaan, Isaac, Balaam, pro- nounced a-ron, Ca'-nan, I'-sac, Ba'lam, and in the word baa, pro- nounced ba. XIII. M is found chiefly in Latin words, and is pronounced like e in a similar position ; as Caesar, Daedalus, Michaelmas, pronounced Ce-sar, Did-alus, Michel-mas. XIV. Ai and ay are the same, except that ay is always found at the end of a word. Under the accent these combinations have the sound of a ; as in de-tail', de-lay'. Unaccented they have the shut sound of i; as in Captain, Monday, pronounced Capdn, Mondi. Ai before r is shortened, as stated Rule VIII.; as in fair, dairy. Exceptions — Plaid and raillery are pronounced plad, rallery ; said, again, against — sed, agen, agenst ; aisle like isle (s silent) ; and quay — ke. XV. Au, aw. These combinations generally represent the third sound of a; as in daub, law, pronounced dab, la. Exceptions — Cauliflower, laudanum, sausage, and guage, pronounced c&iflower, l6danum, sasage, and gage. 72 PRONUNCIATION. XVI. Au, followed by n and another consonant, has the sound a; as in aunt, haunted, gauntlet, pronounced ant, hanted, gantlet ; as also in draught, laugh, and their compounds, pronounced draft, laf. XVII. E is silent at the end of words, as in battle, sale ; but is pronounced when the final letter of Latin and Greek words, as in recipe, epitome ; as also when the only vowel of an English mono- syllable, as in he, she. XVIII. The termination re, preceded by a consonant, is pro- nounced ur, as in massacre (massacur). XIX. E is silent in the termination en when preceded by any other consonant than Z, m, n, or r, as wooden, heaven, pronounced wood'n, heav'n ; and in the past tenses and participles of verbs, except when e is preceded by d or t, as blamed, scanned, pronounced blam'd, scann'd. E is also silent in the words shrivel, swivel, snivel, drivel, grovel, pronounced shrivle, swivle, snivle, drivle, grovle. Exceptions — The e is heard in the last syllable of sudden, kitchen, hyphen, chicken, aspen, platen, marten, latten, leaven, sloven, mittens. This rule is very often violated. Careless speakers, in an endea- vour to speak distinctly, sound the e in such words as seven, golden, and omit it, especially in words ending in el, as chapel, gospel, parcel, vessel, jewel, novel, in which e ought to be distinctly heard. XX. E is silent in the unaccented terminations eon and ean ; as in su'rgeon, o'-cean, pronounced sur'-jun, o'-shun. XXI. E, followed by r, has generally the sound of u prolonged ; as in herd, pronounced hurd ; but when r is followed in the next syllable by a vowel or another r, e has its regular shut sound ; as in her'-i-tage, mer'-ry. XXII. Ea is generally pronounced like e ; as in repeal, repeat, heal, heat. XXIII. Ea has the first sound of a in great, break, steak, pro- nounced grate, brake, stake. XXIV. Ea has the protracted sound of a in the words pair, wear, swear, tear. XXV. Ea has the second open sound of a in the words heart, hearth, and their compounds, pronounced hart, harth. XXVI. Ea has the sound of u in learn, earn, yearn, earl, pearl, early, dearth, earth, search, hearse, rehearse, heard. XXVII. Ea has the shut sound e in unaccented terminations, and in the following words and their compounds — head, stead, breast, read (past tense), ready, spread, bread, breath, death, break- fast, dead, deaf, cleanse, endeavour, feather, heaven, health, wealth, heavy, lead (metal), leather, peasant, pheasant, pleasant, pleasure, treasure, realm, stealth, jealous, sweat, threat, tread, thread, treachery, weapon, weather, zealot, zealous. XXVIII. Eau in beauty has the first sound of u\ thus,.buty, this combination is generally found in French words, and it follows the PRONUNCIATION. 73 pronunciation of that language ; as beaux, bureau, pronounced bo, bu'-ro. XXIX. In the unaccented terminations eous and ious, the e and the i are generally heard, but the o is dropped ; as in courageous, insidious, pronounced cur-ra-ge-us, in-sid'-e-us. Careless speakers are apt to drop the e or i sound, as well as that of the o, and to pronounce such words as if written cur-ra'-jus, in-si'-dus. Walker converts the d and t, immediately preceding this termina- tion, into j and tch, as hideous and piteous, he pronounces hijeous and pitcheous. This practice of softening the consonants d and t, before eous and tons, though much followed, is not by any means general. XXX. Ee has invariably the sound e; as in green, meet. XXXI. Ely when under the accent, has the sound of e, as in receive', conceive' ; when unaccented, ei has the sound of I, as in surfeit, forfeit, pronounced surfet, forfet. Exceptions — Ei has the sound of 1 in height, sleight; in the following words ei has the sound of a — deign, feign, reign, weigh, neigh, neighbour, inveigh, eight, freight, weight, feint, skein, reins, rein, vein, veil, heinous ; in the following ei being followed by r has the protracted sound of a — their, theirs, heir, heiress. XXXII. Ey when under the accent has the sound of a, as in grey', purvey'; when unaccented ey has the shut sound of i, as in pulley, money, pronounced pully, mony. Exceptions — The word eye is pronounced i, the words key and ley, as if written kee and lee. Friend and tierce have the shut sound of e, frend, terce. XXXIII. Eo in the following words has the sound of e; in the same position, as peo'-ple, leop'-ard, jeop'-ardy, feoff, pronounced pe-ple, lep'-ard, jep'-ardy, fef. The e is dropped in the word yeoman, pronounced yo'-man. The words Geoffrey, feod, etc. are now writ- ten as they are pronounced, Jeffrey, feud. It should be borne in mind that eo generally separates into distinct syllables, as in neology, geometry, pronounced ne-ol'-o-ge, ge-om'-e-tre. XXXIV. Eu and ew have the sound of u; as in feud, few. After r or j these combinations have the second of o prolonged ; as in crew, Jew, rheum (h silent). Exceptions — Ew in sew is pronounced 6. The words strew, shew, etc., are now written as they are pronounced, strow, show, etc. XXXV. / has its first open sound when followed in the same syllable by nd, ld> gn, or gh ; as in mind, mild, sign, high. Exceptions — Wind, gild, guild (u silent), build (u silent), abscind, rescind, descind. XXXVI. / has likewise its first open sound, when alone and un- accented, as in l-de'-a ; when followed by a vowel, as in di-ur'-nal ; and when final preceded by 6, ch, er, I, pr, or tr, as in bl-den'-tal, chl-rur'-geon, cri-te'-rion, l»-ba'-tion, pri-me'-val, cli-mac'-ter, trl- bu'-nal. 74 PRONUNCIATION. Exceptions — I-mag-ine (e-mad-jin) and its compounds, li-tig'-ious (le-tig- yus, li-bid'-i-nous (le-bid-e-nus), hy-poc'-ri-sy (he-p6c-re-sy). XXXVII. When the accent of a word is on the penultimate, i in the last syllable followed by a single consonant and an e mute, has its shut sound ; as in res'-plte, pro-jec'-tile, ada-man'-tine. Exceptions — Ex'-ile, se'-nile, e'-dile, em'-pire, um'-pire, ram'-pire, fi'-nite, fe'-line, fe'-rine, con'-fine, su'-pine, ar'-chives, con'-trlte, sex'-tile, gen'-tlle, cri'-nite, Ar'-glve (g hard), Sam'-nite, Hi'-vite. When the accent is on the antepenultimate, i in the last syllable followed by a consonant and an e mute, has its first open sound in accordance with the first general rule; as in chamomile, serpentine, appetite. Words accented on this syllable have in consequence a secondary accent on the last. Walker, by not considering that the power of the secondary nearly equals that of the first in determining the vowel sounds, has supposed the open sound of i in a few words terminating in He, accented on the antepenultimate, to be irregular, because i is generally shut in this termination; but almost all words accented on the penult have the shut sound of i, whilst those accented on the antepenult have the open i sound. The * in the last syllable of mercantile, juvenile, etc., which he has marked 1 ought therefore to be pronounced i in obedience to the general rule. XXXVIII. When the accent is on the antepenultimate, i in the last syllable, followed by v or c, and an e mute, has its shut sound ; as in ad'jec-tive, rel'-a-tive, prej'-u-dice, ed-i-f ice : except cockatrice, sacrifice. XXXIX. Y unaccented, at the end of words has the shut sound of i, as in identity ; except in the termination fy, in which y has the sound of i, as in qualify, satisfy ; as also in the words multiply, occupy, prophesy. XL. / followed in the same syllable by r, has like e the sound of u prolonged, as in bird (burd), virgin (vurgin); except when r is final or when followed in the next syllable by a vowel or another r, in which case i has its regular shut sound, as in vir-ulence, squir-rel. Exceptions — In the words girl, skirt, girt, gird, the i is generally pro- nounced like e. Some orthoepists have affected to waive the foregoing rule. Properly both e and i before r should have their regular sounds, but we hear none but foreigners pronounce them so: were an Englishman to pronounce mercy, or first, without introducing the irregular sound, he would in all probability be regarded either as ignorant or affected. A few speakers compromise the matter by using an intermediate sound, but this only increases the evil, for without removing the existing anomaly it adds one more irregularity to the prosody of the language. XLI. /is dropped in the unaccented terminations, Hon, sion, and clous; as in attention, pension, conscious, pronounced atten-shun, pen-shun, con-shus. As in the case of other unaccented terminations, care should be taken not to drop the vowel sound altogether ; it is a very common but a very vulgar error to pronounce such words, as emotion, portion, as if they were written emoshn, poshn, or emoshen, poshin, the pronunciation emo-shun, po-shun, though in itself irregular, is that given the words by polite usage, and consequently must be adhered to. PRONUNCIATION. 75 XLII. / when followed by another vowel in an unaccented syllable, generally has the sound of the consonant «/, as in fil'ial, conci'liate, pronounced fil'-yal, c6n-cil -yate. But when preceded by r, the i is heard distinctly, as in 6'-r!-ent. XLIII. Ie is pronounced like e, as in grief; but when ie is final, i only is pronounced, in accordance with Rule XVII, as in die, lie. XLIV. leu and iew have the sound of u, as in adieu, view, pronounced adu, vu. XLV. / is silent in the words cousin, evil, devil, pronounced cous'n, ev'l, dev'l. XL VI. followed in the same syllable by ll, st f Id, It, Ik, has its first open sound ; as in roll, post, cold, bolt, folk. Exceptions — L6st, c6st, ddll, frdst, dost (dust). XL VII. followed in the same syllable by r, has its third open sound, as in for, cord, for-tune; but when r is followed in the next syllable by a vowel or another r, o has its short sound, as in compounds • 44 . . exert, box 17. ch (for fa&) J 1 32 . . charge, such 18. ng or n . nasal . . . 21 . . rang, rank 19. I . * ^liquids . . { 38 . . line 20. 21. 72 39 40 . . mine . . nine 22. r 41 . . rind 23. # • . l vocal . J consonants { 43 . . yield 24. w 42 . . wool 25. h . . aspirate . 19 and 20 hand In pronouncing the consonants, the following usages will have to be observed : — GENERAL RULES. I. Double consonants of the same sound occuring in the same syllable are equivalent to a single letter ; as butt, off, shall, scene, pronounced but, of, shal, sene. When two consonants of dissimilar sound occur in the same syllable they are both pronounced, as in hold, resolve, defend; but when the sounds are discordant the weaker consonant is generally dropped ; as in gnome, hymn, indict, pronounced nome, hym, indite. II. C before a, o, or u, has the sound of k; as in can, cork, cut; and before e and i, the sound of s; as in centre, cinder. Exceptions — The words sceptic, sacrifice, suffice, pronounced skeptic, sacrifize, suffize. III. G before e and i has the sound of j; as in gentle, gin. Exceptions — G is hard in the following words befoi'e e and i; gibber, gib- berish, gibbons, giddy, gift, gig, giggle, gigglet, gimlet, gimp, gild, gird, gill (of a fish), girl, girth, gizzard, give, begin, noggin, gear, geese, geld, gelding, get, gewgaw, dagger, swagger, stagger, trigger, tiger, anger, eager, meagre, finger, linger, conger, stronger, younger, longer, target, together and their compounds. IV. Ng has the nasal sound when at the end of a word; as in sing, ring, writing. PRONUNCIATION. 85 TV represents the nasal sound of final ng, when followed in the same syllable by k, or when it ends an accented syllable and the next begins with c, k t g (hard) or q; as in bank, con-cave, languish, canker, banquet, pronounced bangk, cong'-cave, lang'-guish, cang'-ker, bang-quet. N does not acquire this sound in nouns, adjectives, or verbs, taking an additional syllable after ng ; as in ringer, singer, winged, pronounced ring-er, sing-er, wing'd; except the comparatives and superlatives of long, strong, young, which are pronounced as if writ- ten long-ger, long-gest, strong-ger, strong-gest, young-ger, young-gest. Some speakers give improperly the nasal sound to n, pronouncing such words as sing, ring-er, wing-y, as if written sing-g, ring-ger, wing-gy. V. X represents z when it begins a word; gz when it is followed by an accented vowel ; and ks in every other position ; as in Xiphias, exert', anxiety, exile, box, phalanx, pronounced ziphias, eg-zert', ang-zi'ety ek'-sile, boks, phalanks. VI. Custom sanctions the following irregularities ; but it is better to give the consonants, as far as possible, their regular sounds: 1. C (soft), s (sharp) and t, followed by a digraph beginning with e or i, or by u unaccented, are generally pronounced like sh; as in conscious, so'cial, nauseate, expul'sion, faction, nature, pronounced con-shus, so'-shial, naw'-she-ate, ex-pul'-shun, fac-shun, nat'-shure. 2. Z and s (flat) in a similar position have a tendency to become zh; as in glazier, grazier, vision, pleasure, pronounced gla-zhier, gra-zhier, vi-zhun, pleazh-ure. 3. The s and z of x when resolved into its primitive elements obey the same tendency ; as in luxury and luxurious, pronounced luk'-shury and lug-zhu'rious. 4. D under like circumstances is generally allowed to run into the sound of j; as in soldier, verdure, pronounced sol-jer, ver-jure. PARTICULAR RULES. VII. B has only one sound, that in robe ; but is generally sunk before m and t in the same syllable, as in lamb, doubt, pronounced lam, dout. B is also silent in the word, subtle, pronounced suttle. VIII. C has the sounds of k and 5, as stated in Rule III; c is always pronounced at the end of a syllable, as in cri-tic, flac-cid ; but is silent in the words, indict, muscle, corpuscle, victuals, pro- nounced indite, mussle, cor'pussle, vittles. IX. C in combination with h has the following sounds : 1. Ch has generally the sound of tsh, as in church, rich, pronounced tshurtsh, ritsh. 2. Ch when preceded by I or n, has the sound of sh, as in filch, quench, pronounced filsh, quensh. 3. Ch has also the sound of sh in words derived from the French ; as in chaise, chagrin, charade, champaign, chandelier, chevalier, charlatan, chicane, capuchin, machine, marchioness, cartouch, cheroot, and their compounds. 4. Ch has the sound of k in words derived from Latin or Greek ; as in chaos, chasm, chyle, chord, chymist, character, chalybeate, chamomile, cha- 86 PRONUNCIATION. inelion, chely, chimera, choler, chronicle, chlorosis, chorus, chalcography , chiromancy, chirography, chorography, scheme, school, schesis, echo, ichor, anchor, orchestra, drachma, cachexy, catechism, epoch, anarch, conech, distich, eunuch, monarch, stomach, pentateuch, technical, and their compounds. In charity, arch, and their compounds, ch has the sound tsh; but arch, signifying chief, is pronounced ark, when it begins a Greek word, and is followed by a vowel, as in archangel, architrave, architype, architect, archives, archaism. 5. Ch is silent in the words yacht, schism, and drachm, pronounced got, sizm, and dram; it has the sound of k in the word ache, and has an irregular sound in the word choir, pronounced quire. X. D, except under the circumstances mentioned Rule VI, has generally its proper sound, as in did ; but when e is omitted in the past tenses and participles of verbs, d acquires, when preceded by a sharp consonant, the sound of t, as in tripped, passed, pronounced tript, past, XL F has its proper sound, as in for, loaf, except in the prepo- sition of which is sometimes pronounced as if written ov. XII. G has the sounds stated Rule III; but is silent before m or n in the same syllable, as in sign, paradigm, gnaw. XIII. Gh at the beginning of a word has the sound of g hard ; as in gherkin. At the end of a syllable gh is generally silent ; as in plough, fight. In the words laugh, cough, clough, enough, rough, tough, slough (a cast skin), draught, trough, gh has the sound of/. In the words burgh, burgher, gh has the sounds of g hard, and of ck, in the words shough, lough, hough. XIV. H is pronounced when it begins a word or a syllable, as in hold, be-hold; but is generally silent in the middle of a syllable or at the end of a word, as in rhu-barb, sir-rah, H is silent in the words hour, herb, heir, honest, humble, humour, honour, hospital. XV. J has always the same sound, a compound of d and the z of azure, the only exception is the word hallelujah, in which it has the sound of?/. XVI. K likewise represents uniformly the same sound, but is silent before n in the same syllable ; as in knee, pronounced nee. XVII. L has only one sound and is mute between a and k, or m, in the same syllable as in talk, calm, pronounced tawk, cawm ; I is also silent in the words calf, half, calve, halve, folk, yolk. XVIII. M undergoes no variation of sound except in the word comptroller; pronounced controller. It is silent before n; as in mnemonics. XIX. N besides its proper sound has the nasal inflection pointed out Rule VI; it is silent after m and /; as in hymn, kiln, pro- nounced hym, kil. XX. P has only one sound, and is silent between m and t; as in empty, pronounced emty; p is also dropped at the beginning of a word when followed by n, s, or t; as in pneumatics, psalm, ptisan; p becomes b, in the word cupboard, pronounced cubboard. PRONUNCIATION. 87 XXI. Ph has the sound of/, as in philosopher; it is silent in phthisis, and has the sound of p in naphtha, ophthalmia, and diphthong. XXII. Q has always the sound of k, and is invariably followed by u, as in quote, quarter. XXIII. R has the trill or vibrating sound at the beginning of a word and the end of a syllable followed by another r or a vowel, but under other circumstances has generally a guttural vowel sound. XXIV. S has two distinct sounds; it has its hissing sharp sound at the beginning of words, as soon; before and after a sharp consonant as spear, peaks; in the accented prefix dis, as in dislocate ; in the prefix mis, whether accented or not ; in the terminations sive, sorry, sarry, sity, as in persuasive; and in the words design, desist, pre- side, practise. S has the sound z under the following circumstances: 1. When it follows a flat consonant, or an e mute preceded by a flat consonant; as in robs, robes. 2. When it terminates a word and is preceded by a liquid or ng ; as in rolls, hams, beans, roars, hangs. 3. In the terminations asm and ism ; as chasm, schism. 4. In the terminations sible, sition, sation, sal, sel, sand, sant, preceded by a vowel; as in feasible, position, causation, refusal, pleasant. 5. In the termination sy, sey when the preceding syllable is accented and ends with a vowel or a liquid ; as in daisy, pansy. 6. When it forms a syllable with an e mute, preceded by s, z, sh, or zh, or any corresponding sound ; as rose, roses, cage, cages. 7. When it is added to form the plural of nouns ; as opera, operas. 8. In the prefix dis, when unaccented and followed by a vowel, a flat consonant, or liquid ; as in disease', disdain, dislodge', disrobe'. 9. After the prefix re; as in reserve, resume. 10. S has also this sound in as, has, was, is, his, dissolve, possess', dessert', scis'sors, hus'sy, hussar, damson, crimson, absolve', observe, present', presume', desert, desert', deserve, desire; as also in the "verbs but not in the nouns, grease, close, house, mouse, abuse, excuse, diffuse, use, premise, advise, devise. S is silent in isle, island, aisle, demesne, puisne, viscount; and has the sound of sh in sure, sugar, sewer, pronounced shure, shugar, shore, as also under the circumstances mentioned Rule VI. XXV. T has generally its proper sound, and is silent in the terminations ten, tie, when preceded by $; as in listen, bustle, pro- nounced lissen, bussle. XXVI. Th has two sounds, either of which is employed under the following circumstances: — 1 . Th has its sharp sound at the beginning and at the end of a word, in the middle of a word when it is preceded or followed by a consonant, and between two vowels in words derived from the Latin or Greek; as in thick, path, ethnic, author, pathos. The following are the chief Latin and Greek words in which th has this sound between two vowels : — apathy, sym'pathy, atheist, authentic, author, cath'olic, cathartic, cathedral, cath'eter, ether, eth'ics, let/iargy, Lethe (e pronounced), leviathan, lithotomy, mathematics, metath'esis, method, pathos, pleth'ora, amethyst, anathema, apoth'ecary, apotheosis, antipathy, • 88 PRONUNCIATION. antithesis, kypotk'esis, Ath'ens, A'thos, bathos, dithyram'bic, mythology, Pythagoras, Arethu'sa, polym'athy, lithography, 2. Th has its flat sound as in bathe, clothe, wither, father, when followed by e mute, or when it occurs in the middle of a word under other circum- stances than those stated in the preceding Rule. Th has the sound of t in the words thyme, asthma, Thomas, Thames (pronounced terns), Anthony. XXVII. Fdoes not vary in sound, and is always pronounced as in vine, move, dove, We have already bad occasion to allude to the very common but very vulgar error of substituting w for this letter, and vice versa. XXVIIT. W has a sound closely resembling that of oo in oosy, or ou in ouzle, and is always pronounced, as in wind, wove, we. W is silent in the words whole, who, whose, whom, whoop, sword, answer, two, toward; and also when it occurs before r, as in wrap, wreck , pronounced rap, reck. Wh has the sound of hw; as in when, wheat, pronounced hwen, hweat. XXIX. X has the sounds pointed out Rule V, and is always pronounced. It has the sound of s at the end of French plurals; as bureaux, beaux, pronounced bureaus, beaus ; but it is better to write such words as they are pronounced. XXX. Y is a consonant only at the beginning of a word or syllable, and is always pronounced as in yes, churchyard. In other positions y is equivalent to, and obeys the same laws as, the vowel i. XXXI. Z has the flat sound of s, and retains this sound except under the circumstances stated in Rule VI. Z is silent in the French word rendezvous, pronounced ren'dyvoo. Having passed the sounds of the language in review, and shown how they are represented, it may be advisable to ex- hibit the letters in the order they are usually arranged. We have seen that the letters are inadequate to the duties they have to perform as symbols of the English sounds, and must therefore hope that some effort will be made to remedy the evil. There is no good reason why the written and spoken language should differ so widely. English has everything to gain, and will lose nothing by increased simplicity; so that any judicious innovation on the existing system of writing should be regarded at least with candour. There is one thing to be observed regarding the alphabet. Some country schoolmasters have an unwarrantable predilec- tion for naming the letters aw, hay, say, each, dji, instead of at, bee, see, aitch, jay, thus rendering their pupils incapable of spelling their own names intelligibly. For the benefit of these gentlemen we subjoin the proper designations of the letters. 89 THE ALPHABET Names. Names. 1. A a . ai 14. N n . en 2. B b . bee 15. o . 3. C c . see 16. P P . pee 4. D d . dee 17. Q q . cue 5. E e . e 18. R r . arr 6. F f • eff 19. S s . ess 7. G g • gee 20. T t . tee 8. H h . aitch 21. U u . you 9. I i • eye 22. V V . vee 10. J j • J a V 23. w w . double u 11. K k . kay 24. X X . eJcs 12. L 1 . el 25. Y y . wy 13. M m . em 26. Z z . zed The foregoing rules point out why such pronunciations as sOOperb, vllent, calkElate, del Ug ate, cOnnexion, demATJnd, regElate, evEn, direct, are faults, and show how such errors may be avoided. To speak in all cases correctly , the learner must know the proper pronunciation of every letter under every circumstance in which it occurs. It may be difficult to charge the memory with all the analogical principles requisite to provide for every contingency of this kind, but the general accuracy of the learner's pronunciation will in a great measure depend upon the degree of care with which the orthoepical tendencies of the language have been investigated. ORTHOGRAPHY. The words of the language are all more or less susceptible of a variety of meaning by being associated with what are called the prefixes and affixes. These particles, whilst they alter the meaning of the word to which they are joined, like- wise in some degree alter its form ; and it is chiefly the laws governing these changes that have to be considered under the head Orthography. It is necessary to remind the learner that some of the rules belonging to this branch of the subject have already been given under the head Grammar. These rules will have to be considered as supplementary to those that follow. GENERAL PRINCIPLES. I. Monosyllables, except those ending in /, I, s, or z, have the final consonant single, as in slur, sum, tub. Exceptions — Add, butt (barrel), err, egg, ebb, odd, inn. II. Monosyllables ending in /, I, s, or z, preceded by a single vowel, have the final consonant double, as in stuff, roll, grass, buzz. Exceptions — As, gas, has, if, is, his, of, this, thus, us, yes, was. III. Polysyllables, except those ending in /or s, have the final consonant single, as in trinket, winter, regal. 90 ORTHOGRAPHY. IV. Polysyllables ending in / or s, preceded by a single vowel, have the final consonant double, as in distaff, mastiff rebuff harass, caress, witness. Exceptions — Alas, bias, dowlas; compounds with mas, as Christ- mas, Michaelmas, Lammas ; and words adopted from other languages, as axis, basis, calculus. V. Monosyllables ending in k have ck after a single vowel, as in shock, sick, knock, but k only after a double vowel, as in croak, book, peak, and after a consonant, as in hawk, ask, shrink. Exceptions — Disc, pic-nic, zinc. VI. In polysyllables k is omitted after c, as publick, critick, almanack, now written public, critic, almanac. Exceptions — Attack, ransack, mattock, fetlock, forelock. K is however restored before an augment beginning with e or s, as mimic, mimicker, mimicking ; frolic, frolicker, frolicking ; traffic, trafficker, trafficking. VII. Compound words generally retain all the letters of the simples, as in uphill, allwise, football, hereafter, telltale, thereon. Exceptions — The word tell drops an I in foretel; till in until; well in welfare, welcome; all in almighty, always, already, withal; call in recal, miscal; roll in enrol, disenrol; stall in forestal, reinstal; and compounds of fall, full, fill, and skill, invariably drop one I, as in fulfil, skilful, downfal, befal. All the dictionaries vary less or more in the orthography of these words. Johnson omits one / in most words of this class, but his editors restored the missing letter ; and Webster, the American lexicographer, writes all the words in the foregoing list of exceptions with 11. Walker is somewhat inconsistent in his treatment of them, for he writes forestal, waterfal, and recal, with //, and gives only one I to reinstal, downfal, and miscal. Smart rectifies these anomalies by omitting an / from all the words; but whilst he writes enrol with one I, he gives disenrol two. The general tendency appears to reject an I in combining words ending in 11; and consequently, where usage is doubtful, that is the proper course for the learner to pursue. VIII. When e and i in combination have the sound of ee in been, the e generally follows the i, as in grief, field, achieve; but words in ceive and ceit, the e precedes i, as in conceive, deceit, as also in the words inveigle, ceiling, plebeian, either, neither, and seize. IX. Where usage fluctuates between the terminations ant and ent, the latter should be preferred. Walker gives both dependance and dependence. Smart recognises only the latter form, but suggests that independent should have the termination ent when used as an adjective, and ant when used as a noun. We always say a correspondent, a superintendent, analogy therefore admits an indepen- dent; and so in the case of the dei'ivatives dependence, independent. This rule does not apply to such adjectives as redundant, abundant, which without exception terminate in ant. X. As lexicographers vary in the application of the terminations er, or, ery, ory, and ary, the following observations may be useful. 1. Er and ery are English substantive terminations, which when joined to English verbs convert them into nouns ; as, to bake, baker, bakery ; to brew, brewer, brewery. ORTHOGRAPHY. 91 2. Or, ory, and ary, are likewise substantive terminations, but are used with nouns derived from the Latin ; as, to expostulate, expostulator, ex- postulatory ; to deprecate, deprecator, deprecatory. It is to be noticed that usage tends to substitute the English for the Latin terminations; as, to deliver, deliverer, delivery. In some cases er has completely superseded the use of or, as in dispenser, informer, exhauster ; but in a few instances both terminations are recognised, as in director and directer. Where, however, usage is doubtful, er should be preferred to or, as observor, devotor, exhibitor, should be observer, devoter, exhibiter. 3. Ory and ary may be regarded as equivalent Latin terminations ; ory is appended to words derived from Latin adjectives in orius, as oratory, from oratorius; ary to Latin adjectives in arius, as voluntary, from voluntarius. The distinction between these two affixes depending upon other than purely English analogy, there is great irregularity in their usage ; we have in consequence both accessory and accessary, receptory and receptary, in the language, with no tangible reason for preferring the one to the other form, and a recent controversy relative to the respective merits of sanitary and sanatory will be fresh in the recollection of some of our readers. Keeping out of view the opinions of the learned, it appears to be a general rule that when the vowel a precedes a single consonant, ory is almost invariably employed, as in amatory, conciliatory, interrogatory ; and that when e or i precedes a single consonant ary is generally used, secretary, oner ary, tute- lary, ordinary, diciplinary, veterinary. XL Where usage is doubtful the termination or should be pre- ferred to our; as error for err our ; splendor for splendour ; emperor for emperour. Some lexicographers always use the Latin termination or for the French affixrar; but usage still rejects this innovation, especially in such words as behaviour, endeavour, colour. XII. The initial syllables in, en 9 im, and em, from the similarity of their pronunciation, are apt to be confounded ; it will therefore be advisable for the learner to bear the following distinctions in mind. 1. In prefixed to verbs signifies in or into ; as, to in-close, to in-ject, to in-lay : inclose is, however, almost always written enclose. 2. In, im, or ig, prefixed to an adjective, generally have a negative signification ; as, invisible, immaterial, ignoble. 3. En or em never implies a negative; enviolate, emmovable, should therefore be written inviolate, immovable. 4. En and em convert nouns and adjectives into verbs, or give verbs additional emphasis ; as, en-rage, en-chain, en-gulf, en-noble, em-balm. XIII. The termination ize is written ise by some modern authors; as centralise, civilise, generalise, for centralize, civilize, generalize. Usage is somewhat unsettled on this point ; so far as prosody is con- cerned it is immaterial which form of the affix is employed, both forms being pronounced precisely alike. It is necessary, however, to observe that there is a theoretical distinction between the terminations ise and ize : the former is properly part of a word and not an affix, as in apprise, arise, advise; whilst the latter is a movable particle, as in fertilize from fertile ; stigmatize from stigma ; apostrophize from apostrophe. The affix ize is correctly employed when it converts a noun into a verb. The word merchandise is often incorrectly written mer' chandize ; this word ought properly to be written merchandice to rhyme 92 ORTHOGRAPHY. with cowardice : at all events it bears no relation either in prosody or grammar to cowardize. It is in a great measure optional whether this affix is written with s or z, but the learner should be consistent ; it would be a fault to write sympathize with a z and dramatize with an s } one or other mode should be uniformly maintained. XIV. When the vowel of a first syllable has its open sound, it is generally followed by a single consonant; as in later, penal, title, total, superb. When the vowel of a first syllable has its shut sound, it is generally followed by a double consonant; as in latter, petty, tittle, bottle, supper. But the vowels of initial syllables have often the same sound whether followed by a single or double consonant; as in apathy, opposite, imitate, imminent, medal, meddle. XV. When a prefix ending in a consonant is joined to a word beginning with the same letter, both consonants are generally retained ; as in with-hold, un-named, en-noble, con-nect, dissolve im-merge. Prefixes of Latin origin generally change the final consonant to correspond with the initial letter of the root: ad (to) becomes ac, af, ag, at, an, ar, as, at, when joined to a word beginning with one or other of these consonants; as in ac-cede, al-lure, af-fix. In the same way con (with) becomes col, com, cor; dis (of, from,) becomes dif; in (in, un) becomes il, im, ir; ob (for, fore) becomes oc, of, op, etc.; sub (near) becomes sue, suf, sup; as in col-lapse, dif-fuse, ir-radiate. The final consonant of these prefixes is often dropped ; as in a-vert, co-heir, di-verge. A variety of changes are being gradually wrought in the orthography of the language. It will be advisable for the learner to note these changes, and to adopt them as they come into general use; unless, indeed, they are foreign to the genius or tendencies of the language, in which case 3 though supported by a volume of learning, they ought to be decidedly rejected. SPECIAL RULES. XVI. When a syllable is added to a word ending in any double consonant, except 11 both letters are retained, as cross, crosser, crossish, crossly, crossness; stiff, stiffly, stiffness; possess, possessor, possession. XVII. Words ending in II drop one I before a consonant ; as chill, chilly. Exceptions — both Vs are retained before the affix ness; as, illness, stillness, shrillness, smallness, tallness. XVIII. Monosyllables and words of more than one syllable having the accent on the last, ending in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel, double the final consonant before an affix beginning with a vowel; as, star, starry; wit, witty; rid, riddance; begin, beginner; recur, recurrence. Exceptions — Polysyllables ending in I double the final consonant whether the accent falls on the last syllable or not; as travel, travel- ler, no'vel, novellist, gambol, gambolling. When the accent does not fall on the last syllable, or when the final con- sonant is preceded by a double vowel, no reduplication of the consonant takes place, a3, maid, maiden; sister, sisterly ; deliver, deliverance. The word worshiper is now generally written with a single consonant. PUNCTUATION. 93 XIX. When a syllable beginning with a vowel is added to a word ending in e mute, the e is rejected; as, mire, miry; rogue, roguish; blame, blamable. Exceptions — When g or c soft precedes e mute, e is retained before able and ous ; as, change, changeable ; peace, peaceable ; courage, courageous, XX. When a syllable beginning with a consonant is added to a word ending in e mute, the e is retained ; as in hopeless, useful, pureness, closely, chastisement ; but — 1. Le is dropped before ly ; as noble, nobly ; able, ably ; humble, humbly ; and their co)upounds ; except solely, vilely, supplely. 2. Silent e before fy, ty, and ous, preceded by a consonant, is changed into i; as pure, purify, purity ; active, activity; space, spacious. 3. Silent e is omitted before a consonant in the combinations, awful, duly, duty, hatred, nursling, only, truth, truly, width, wisdom. The words judgement, acknowledgement, abridgement, and lodgement, are included by most grammarians in this list of exceptions; but Smart retains the e in these words, and it is always better, where usage is doubtful, to follow a general rule. XXI. When a syllable is added to a word ending in y, preceded by a consonant, y is changed into i; as pity, pitiful ; fancy, fanciful; rely, reliance; holy, holiday, holily, holiness; but — 1. Y preceded by t is changed into e before ous; as, duty, duteous; bounty, bounteous. 2. Y retains its form before ish ; as, baby, babyish ; boy, boyish ; likely, likelyish. 3. Y of the words dry, shy, sly, retains its form before ly and ness ; as, dryness, shyly, slyness. XXII. When a syllable is added to a word ending in y preceded by a vowel, y retains its form; as, play, playful; joy, joyous; portray, portrayer; but — In the derivatives of day, gay, y though preceded by a vowel is changed into i ; as, daily, gaily, gaiety. The Rules given under the head Pronunciation are like- wise calculated to aid the learner in the right spelling of words; accuracy in Orthography will however require, in addition to the rules, much careful reading, some practice in writing, and a diligent exercise of the memory. 94 PUNCTUATION. The learner, in writing, will have to separate properly the various heads and clauses of the subject by the signs or stops used for that purpose. A sentence may be grammatically correct, and yet from the omission or misapplication of a point may be unintelligible or convey a meaning very different from that which the writer intended. It will be observed, for example, that the sentence, ' The two travellers were found on the road, assassinated by their companion/ signifies some- thing very different from 'The two travellers were found on the road assassinated, by their companion f in the one case the traveller is said to have discovered his companions on the road, in the other he is accused of having assassinated them. The points or stops used in writing, are The comma ( , ) The semicolon ( ; ) The colon ( : ) The point or period ( . ) The Comma is used to prevent the words of one clause of a simple sentence from being confounded with those of another; the sentence f we may praise love, and admire beauty,' means that we may praise the sentiment called love, and admire the sentiment called beauty ; but the same sentence with commas introduced thus, ( we may praise, love, and admire beauty,' signifies that we may praise the sentiment called beauty, love the sentiment called beauty, and admire the sentiment called beauty. The following quotation will shew more clearly the confusion that may arise from an improper use of this point : "Caesar entering on his head, his helmet on his feet, armed sandals on his hrow, there was a cloud in his right hand, his faithful sword in his eye, an angry glare, saying nothing he sat down." The comma thus materially affects the meaning of a sen- tence, and must therefore be used with care; the learner should mark off all the clauses of a sentence likely to be improperly connected, but should not employ a comma where the sense is perfectly clear and distinct without one. In using the comma it may be useful to bear in mind the following general rules. 1. In a simple sentence, as 'Three travellers found a treasure on their way,' no confusion is likely to arise, a comma would therefore be super fluous; but where an explanatory or incidental clause is introduced, it should be marked off; thus, 'Three travellers, who were perishing with hunger, found a treasure on their way.' 2. When two or more such clauses are introduced, each should be marked off, as ' Three travellers, who were perishing with cold, hunger, and fatigue, found a treasure on their way.' PUNCTUATION. 95 3. When two words or short clauses are connected by a conjunction, a comma is unnecessary ; as • Three travellers found a treasure and were highly delighted with their prize;' but when a conjunction connects two distinct clauses, a comma should be introduced, as ' Three travellers found a treasure, but gold and silver are valueless in the desert, and the travellers were perishing with hunger.' 4. When a conjunction follows the first of three clauses, and belongs to the last, it is usually marked off; thus, ' Three travellers found a treasure on their way, and, after having procured something to eat, continued their journey.' 5. When two or more nominatives precede a verb, or two or more adjectives a noun, each is marked off, except the last; as 'Three very cold, very wet, and very weary travellers.' 'Three travellers, a treasure, and the materials for a repast were found on the road.' 6. W T hen two or more verbs are governed by the same nominative, each is marked off; as, ' The traveller who departed, buys food, brings it to his companions, and resumes his journey.' These rules are merely suggestive; commas may or may not be employed under the circumstances stated, all will depend upon the meaning the writer intends a sentence to convey. A multitude of rules might be given for the use of the comma, all of which would only reiterate the principle, that the comma should be employed whenever perspicuity requires the clauses of a sentence to be distinguished by its intervention. Besides the foregoing uses of the comma, a single pair of inverted commas are employed to give prominence to a par- ticular word or phrase, thus " The sentences 'let one of us go,' and' one of us must go/ are nearly equivalent in meaning;" a double pair of inverted commas are employed to mark a quotation, as 'The phrase "let one of us go," quoted from the text/ an inverted comma is likewise used to mark the omission of one or more letters, as 'don't' for 'do not,' 'tis for 'it is,' 'tho' ' for 'though/ when a comma is used in this way, it is called an apostrophe. The Semicolon is used to separate the clauses of a com- pound sentence. When a sentence consists of several clauses containing commas, they are separated by semicolons; a distinct but dependent clause is likewise marked off by a semicolon, as 'Three travellers were hungry; one of them departed in search of something to eat/ The Colon is used to mark off an illustrative observation or supplementary remark appended to a sentence complete in itself, as 'The three travellers are rich: that bag is filled with pearls/ Generally the colon and semicolon are used wherever a comma would fail to mark the separation of two clauses with a sufficient degree of distinctness, but in applying these points 96 PUNCTUATION. to particular cases the logical affinities of the sentence will have to be considered in determining which should be employed : the sentence 'Avarice prompted the travellers to speak advisedly/ means that avarice induced the travellers to speak in a particular manner; but introduce a colon thus, f Avarice prompted the travellers: to speak advisedly,' and the clause e to speak advisedly' becomes a parenthetical remark totally independent of the preceding sentence. An indiscriminate or improper use of these points might often render the best composition vague and obscure. The Period is used to show where the sense terminates, or to mark off a group of words that have no necessary connexion with the succeeding series. Some writers, especially those engaged in the public press, use the period whenever the sense requires a lengthened pause, breaking up their subject into a multitude of short abrupt sentences; this practice gives a curt formality to the style, which contrasts unfavourably with more graceful and less constrained language of those writers who make a sparing but judicious use of this point. The period is used to mark a contraction, as 'etc' for e etcetera;' c viz/ for ' videlicet;' l M. P.' for e member of par- liament.' INCIDENTAL POINTS. The following marks are likewise occasionally used in writing : — The note of admiration ( ! ) The note of interrogation (?) The dash ( — ) The hyphen, as in dew( - )drop. The parenthesis ( ) Brackets I. The note of admiration is used after invocations or any em- phatic expression ; as ' Thomas ! you are wanted.' ■ How cold the weather is ! ' 1. This point is always used after interjections and ejaculatory expres- sions ; as O ! Oh ! Ah ! Very good ! What a pity ! O ! is generally used with invocations ; as 'O peace ! ' Oh ! with expressions of feeling. ' Oh ! that was one of my foolish mistakes.' 2. The note of admiration is placed after the word or clause that is exclamatory or emphatic; as 'When he started, lo! the rain came on.' ' How scanty their size ! they shrink into pompous nothings.' 3. When the emphasis runs through an entire clause the point is placed at the end ; as ' How close the suitableness of the earth and sea to their several inhabitants, and these inhabitants to their place of appointed residence ! ' 4. When a sentence, arranged interrogatively, merely involves an exclamation, a note of admiration is used j as ' Are we startled at these PUNCTUATION. 97 reports of philosophy ! Let us attend our philosophical guides, and we shall be brought acquainted with speculations yet more enlarged.' — Addison. ' What misery must he suffer, who lives in perpetual dread ! ' — Blair. II. The note of interrogation indicates a question ; as ■ Where is he?' 1. This point should not be used unless a question is expressed. • When I called he asked me to dinner?' is not a question, and consequently the adhibition of a note of interrogation to such a sentence is an error. But in ' When I called, he said, will you come to dinner ? ' the use of the point is, here, legitimate. 2. When several distinct questions occur in a sentence, the note of interrogation is appended to each ; as ' Where is he ? ' ' When did he arrive ? ' ' Can I see him ? ' ' When will you call ? ' ' This evening ? ' 3. It is an error to use this point in an incomplete sentence; ' Why? and when did he come?' should be ' Why and when did he come ?' 4. As a note of interrogation is considered equivalent to a full stop, no other point should be used after it, and the succeeding word should begin with a capital letter. 5. Some writers use this point after an indirect or dependent question ; as ' Ask where he is ? ' 'If we demand an answer ? He can scarcely refuse it.' This use of the note of interrogation is however scarcely legitimate. III. The dash is used to indicate an interruption or a change in the subject ; as ' Let me be clearly understood — it is not the army but the navy I mean.' ' Please your honour, quoth Trim, the Inquisition is the vilest — ." ' 'Prithee spare thy description, Trim. 1 1. Cobbett and some other authorities decry the use of this point in no measured terms; it is nevertheless useful, and is employed by our best authors. The following examples from a modern writer will show generally the circumstances under which the dash is used : ' I have certainly drank worse, said the knight gravely — at an infantry mess.' ' He recounted the narrative of his arrival — his concealment in the canoe — the burning of the law papers, and even the discovery of the car.' ' How does the doggerel run — ay, here it is — .' ' One of King James's Lords, forsooth ! — why, what country gentleman of any pretension would give precedence to such a fellow as that ; he neither reads, writes, nor speaks English — and the other — .' ' Every civil appointment must be filled up by them — the law — the church — the revenue — must all be theirs.' 'You shake your head — . No, it is by no means impossible — nay, I do not think it even remote.' 2. The dash is used after another point to lengthen the pause ; ' They say Thomas has arrived. — Arrived ! yes, many weeks ago.' 3. When the leading word of the first clause is repeated in the second clause of a sentence, a dashed comma is used ; ' That is his opinion, — an opinion, perhaps not new, but — ' 4. Under ordinary circumstances, when a comma, semicolon, or colon, may be substituted, the dash is improper; 'The sun has set — the night dews fall — and the air which was sultry and oppressive — becomes cool,' should be ' The sun has set ; the night dews fall ; and the air, which was sultry and oppressive, becomes cool.' 5. The dash sometimes marks the omission of the preposition to; ' He has a salary of 3 — 400 dollars ; ' ' Hume's History of England, 1 — 14.' 6. The dash is occasionally used to give emphasis to an antithesis ; as ' The mountain laboured and brought forth — a mouse ! ' 7. A dash follows the general title at the beginning, and precedes the author's name, at the end of a subject ; as, — H 98 PUNCTUATION. 'The Distance of the Stars. — A ball shot from a loaded cannon, and Hying with unabated rapidity, must travel at this impetuous rate almost seven hundred thousand years, before it could reach the smallest of these luminaries. ' — Addison. IV. The hyphen is used to connect words and syllables; as ' The English word above is derived from the Saxon on-be-ufan.'' 1. When two distinct words are used to designate or qualify a single object, they are connected by a hyphen ; as 'snake-like,' 'toil-hardened,' ' tea-pot,' ' post-office.' This rule is not much attended to by our best writers, now that such compound attributives, as ' strong-able-to-bear-much-fatigue bodies,' have gone out of fashion. The adverbs, to-day, to-night, to-morrow, are old forms of the day, the night, the morrow, and the particle is sometimes connected by a hyphen, and sometimes written without — usage is not fixed in this respect ; together means the gether, just as to-morrow means the morrow ; and it appears to us that the particle might as well be connected with the word in the one case as in the other. When figures are written, units are generally connected by a hyphen with the tews; as ' Thirty-five hundred ; ' 'Twenty-eight shillings;' 'Sixty- nine miles.' In general, when the parts of a compound word are closely connected, they may be written together, as wellbred, forenoon, bootjack ; but, until common usage sanctions this correction, it will be better to write them apart; as ' salt-cellar,' 'market-place,' ' post-housed 2. The hyphen is used to connect prefixes ending in a vowel to words beginning with a vowel; as co-ordinate, co-eval. There does not appear to be much reason for this practice whilst we have such words, as zoology, create, in the language. 3. When there is not sufficient space at the end of a line for an entire word, a hyphen indicates that a portion has been carried to the succeeding line. In this case it is improper to divide the word in the middle of a syllable. V. A parenthesis is used to mark off an incidental clause occur- ring in the text; as 'At Cologne (called Coin by the Germans) there is a bridge of boats. 1. It is an abuse of this point to employ it in cases where the paren- thetical clause may be easily blended with the context : ' Neither Jews nor Christians (on account of their impurity) were allowed to be present in Egypt at the opening of the Nile, lest (by reason of that impurity) they might prevent the overflowing of the waters,' should be, 'Neither Jews nor Christians were allowed to be present in Egypt at the opening of the Nile, lest, by their impurity, they might prevent the overflowing of the waters.' 2. A parenthesis is employed to enclose an explanatory observation, or an extraneous remark; as, 'He (the Minister of Foreign Affairs) thought it unnecessary to enter into lengthened explanations relative to the actual state of our relations with Spain. (Hear!) That country rarely had a mini- stry long enough in power to admit of our entering into friendly relations with it (laughter). 3. A reference to an authority occurring in the text is likewise marked off by a parenthesis ; as ' Some laws of King Alfred are still in force. (Blackstone, book 2, chap, xi.) 4. A sentence is punctuated according to the sense without regard to the PUNCTUATION. 99 parenthesis; as, 'This dial-plate (if we may credit the fable) changed countenance with alarm.' « He excelled in the game of chess (the result of much practice), which was the only game recognised at the ducal court.' VI. Brackets are used to separate a remark or observation from a subject, or to mark off' a sentence that has no immediate connexion with the context; as 'I know the banker I deal with, the physician I usually call in [There is no need, cried Dr. Slop (waking), to call in a physician in this case] — to be neither of them men of religion.' The only other points that remain to be mentioned are : the asterisk or star (*), the obelisk (f), the double obelisk ($), and the paragraph (H), these referring to notes at the foot of a printed page, are not used in writing; and a mark thus (§), which is occasionally used instead of the word section. For practice in punctuation it will be advisable for the learner, after having acquired the rules, to transcribe a portion of some author, omitting the points and capitals, to be after- wards filled in. This exercise, when compared with the original, will show where the learner, or the author himself, has erred. Capital Letters. — In English books of an early date all nouns begin with capital letters; writers of a more recent period seem to have used capital letters freely, whenever their taste or fancy suggested: at present the practice is to begin with a capital letter the first word of every book, chapter, letter, note, or other piece of writing; the first word of every sentence following a period; names of persons, places, streets, ships, months, days, rivers, seas, mountains, as ' John,' * James/ 4 Tuesday,' ' the island of St. Helena/ ' the United States/ adjectives derived from proper names, as * the Roman forum/ ' the British possessions/ * the vivacity of the French / the principal words in the titles of books ; as ' English Without a Master/ ( the Bride of Lammermoor/ Titles likewise begin with capital letters, as ' Her Majesty the Queen/ ( the Duke of Wellington/ ' the French Republic/ but when these designa- tions occur otherwise than as portions of a proper name, they are not written with capitals; as, the title of duke ceased to exist when the republic was proclaimed in France :' ' the majesty of the throne.' The pronoun ' 1/ and the interjection ' 0/ are always capitals ; and the most important word of a particular subject, or any word or phrase that requires more than ordinary prominence may begin with a capital. 100 HOW THE LEARNER SHOULD NOW PROCEED. The general rules of grammar and the rudimentary principles of construction being known, the learner will have to endeavour by practice to acquire a habit of writing and speaking correctly and fluently. It will be advisable, at the outset, to continue the process of analysis and re-construction suggested under the head Synthesis. By transposing and re-arranging an author's words and sentences, a command over the language will be attained, not so readily acquired by other means. For this purpose, some work of modern date and good repute will have to be selected, such, for example, as Campbell's Lives of the Chancellors, or Macaulay's History of England. Our modern novelists and essayists, with the exception perhaps of Bulwer, seem to affect a characteristic quaint- ness of language, rather than graceful diction or rigid purity of composition; and the B lairs, Addisons, and Johnsons, of the past century, though still authorities in some respects, can scarcely be considered faithful mirrors of the language as it actually exists. The periodical press is a good authority in matters of ordinary detail. The scholarly articles of the Quarterlies generally exhibit a correct adaptation of the innovations to which both the voca- bulary and construction of the language are constantly subject ; they might therefore be consulted with advantage. The chief authorities in matters of verbal criticism are Lowitis and Booth's Grammars, Harris's Hermes, and the Diversions of Purley: Latham's recent Introduction to the Language likewise conveys a large amount of information on this branch of enquiry. To correct a faulty pronunciation, it will be necessary first to ascertain the manner in which. the sounds are enunciated by polite speakers, either orally or by such means as we have pointed out ; the general rules of prosody will next have to be acquired, and the exceptions, however numerous, committed to memory ; recourse being had in every case of doubt to some good pronouncing dictionary. It should be borne in mind, that a natural uncon- strained utterance is of primary importance, — hesitation or em- barrassment in reading or speaking, is a greater evil than even an erroneous pronunciation. A moderate degree of study, careful observation, and practice, will enable the learner to speak and write with accuracy and precision ; without which, a most important truth, or a well con- ceived thought, might fall unmeaningly on the ear, or appear to the eye utterly unintelligible. London: Printed by M. Mason, Ivy Lane, Taternoster Et n 4^!» LIBRARY OF CONGRESS iii inn mil iiiii mil mill! 11 I 003 182 312 2 • **>'* » *' &?PitVj g& • ' * . ./ 2*j3 * A ^tf* ••5»Jii * J AIT* . * ^* 11 • *tt iS <* *