Page:The grammar of English grammars.djvu/753

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contact and the greater will be their pleasures or their pains."—Murray's Key, 8vo, p. 275. "This is the machine that he is the inventor of."—Nixon's Parser, p. 124. "To give this sentence the interrogative form, it should be expressed thus."—Murray's Gram., 8vo, p. 279. "Never employ those words which may be susceptible of a sense different from the sense you intend to be conveyed."—Hiley's Gram., p. 152. "Sixty pages are occupied in explaining what would not require more than ten or twelve to be explained according to the ordinary method."—Ib., Pref., p. ix. "The present participle in -ing always expresses an action, or the suffering of an action, or the being, state, or condition of a thing as continuing and progressive."—Bullions, E. Gram., p. 57. "The Present participle of all active verbs[457] has an active signification; as, James is building the house. In many of these, however, it has also a passive signification; as, the house was building when the wall fell."—Id., ib., 2d or 4th Ed., p. 57. "Previous to parsing this sentence, it may be analyzed to the young pupil by such questions as the following, viz."—Id., ib., p. 73. "Subsequent to that period, however, attention has been paid to this important subject."—Ib., New Ed., p. 189; Hiley's Preface, p. vi. "A definition of a word is an explanation in what sense the word is used, or what idea or object we mean by it, and which may be expressed by any one or more of the properties, effects, or circumstances of that object, so as sufficiently to distinguish it from other objects."—Hiley's Gram., p. 245.


UNDER CRITICAL NOTE XIV.—OF IGNORANCE.

"What is an Asserter? It is the part of speech which asserts."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 20.

[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the term "Asserter" which is here put for Verb, is both ignorantly misspelled, and whimsically misapplied. But, according to Critical Note 14th, "Any use of words that implies ignorance of their meaning, or of their proper orthography, is particularly unscholarlike; and, in proportion to the author's pretensions to learning, disgraceful." The errors here committed might have been avoided thus: "What is a verb? It is a word which signifies to be, to act, or to be acted upon." Or thus: "What is an assertor? Ans. 'One who affirms positively; an affirmer, supporter, or vindicator.'—Webster's Dict."]

"Virgil wrote the Ænead."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 56. "Which, to a supercilious or inconsiderate Japaner, would seem very idle and impertinent."—Locke, on Ed., p. 225. "Will not a look of disdain cast upon you, throw you into a foment?"—Life of Th. Say, p. 146. "It may be of use to the scholar, to remark in this place, that though only the conjunction if is affixed to the verb, any other conjunction proper for the subjunctive mood, may, with equal propriety, be occasionally annexed."—L. Murray's Gram., p. 93. "When proper names have an article annexed to them, they are used as common names."—Ib., p. 36; Ingersoll's, 25; et al. "When a proper noun has an article annexed to it, it is used as a common noun."—Merchant's Gram., p. 25. "Seeming to disenthral the death-field of its terrors."—Ib., p. 109. "For the same reason, we might, without any disparagement to the language, dispense with the terminations of our verbs in the singular."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 50.

"It diminishes all possibility of being misunderstood."—Abbott's Teacher, p. 175. "Approximation to excellence is all that we can expect."—Ib., p. 42. "I have often joined in singing with musicianists at Norwich."—Music of Nature, p. 274. "When not standing in regular prosic order."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 281. "Disregardless of the dogmas and edicts of the philosophical umpire."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 75.

"Others begin to talk before their mouths are open, affixing the mouth-closing M to most of their words—as M-yes for Yes."—Music of Nature, p. 28. "That noted close of his, esse videatur, exposed him to censure among his cotemporaries."—Blair's Rhet., p. 127. "OWN. Formerly, a man's own was what he worked for, own being a past participle of a verb signifying to work."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 71. "As [requires] so: expressing a comparison of quality: as, 'As the one dieth, so dieth the other.'"—Murray's Gram., p. 212; R. C. Smith's, 177; and many others. "To obey our parents is a solemn duty."—Parker and Fox's Gram., Part I, p. 67. "Most all the political papers of the kingdom have touched upon these things."—H. C. WRIGHT: Liberator, Vol. xiv, p. 22. "I shall take leave to make a few observations upon the subject."—Hiley's Gram., p. iii. "His loss I have endeavoured to supply, as far as additional vigilance and industry would allow."—Ib., p. xi. "That they should make vegetation so exhuberant as to anticipate every want."—Frazee's Gram., p. 43. "The quotors " " which denote that one or more words are extracted from another author."—Day's District School Gram., p. 112. "Ninevah and Assyria were two of the most noted cities of ancient history."—Ib., p. 32 and p. 88. "Ninevah, the capital of Assyria, is a celebrated ancient city."—Ib., p. 88. "It may, however, be rendered definite by introducing some definition of time; as, yesterday, last week, &c."—Bullions's E. Gram., p. 40. "The last is called heroic measure, and is the same that is used by Milton, Young, Thompson, Pollock, &c."—Id., Practical Lessons, p. 129. "Perrenial ones must be sought in the delightful regions above."—Hallock's Gram., p. 194. "Intransitive verbs are those which are inseperable from the effect produced."—Cutler's Gram., p. 31. "Femenine gender, belongs to women, and animals of the female kind."—Ib., p. 15.

"Woe! unto you scribes and pharasees."—Day's Gram., p. 74. "A pyrrick, which has both its syllables short."—Ib., p. 114. "What kind of Jesamine? a Jesamine in flower, or a flowery Jesamine."—Barrett's Gram., 10th Ed., p. 53. "Language, derived from 'linguæ,' the tongue, is the faculty of communicating our thoughts to each other, by proper words, used by com-