Plain English

Exercise 2

Which of the following pronouns refer to the person speaking, which to the person spoken to, and which to the person or thing spoken of? Which are singular, which plural?

• I will defend my principles.
• Give them to me for they are mine.
• Do you believe him to be your friend?
• We saw their mistake at once.
• They acknowledged it was their fault.
• Success will be your portion if you persevere.
• He struggles for his rights; she does not understand her rights.
• It forces us to struggle for our education.
• Woman craves her freedom.
• Workers of the world, unite; you have a world to gain and nothing to lose but your chains.

Form sentences of your own containing all these pronouns.

POSSESSIVE FORM

211. You will note in these sentences above that we have used the pronoun my and your and his and her as my principles, your friend, his rights, her freedom. This is the possessive form of these personal pronouns, the form that denotes ownership or possession. You remember that nouns had a possessive form, a form to denote possession or ownership, as, The man's book. The boy's school. The worker's college. So pronouns also have a possessive form which we use to show that an object belongs to such and such a person or thing. If I want to tell you that I own or possess a home, I say, I own my home. Each personal pronoun has its possessive form, thus:

POSSESSIVE FORM

212. You will notice that the possessive forms, my, our, her, your, its, his and their, are always used with the name of the object possessed. As for example; my work, our library, her delight, your task, its purpose, his home, their mistake.

213. The possessive forms, mine, thine, hers, ours, yours and theirs, are always used by themselves and are used either as subject, object or complement. As for example:

• That letter is mine.
• The work is hers.
• Thine is the glory.
• Is that yours?
• Theirs not to reason why; theirs but to do and die.

The possessive form his may be used either in connection with the name of the object possessed or by itself. For example:

• This is his home.
• This home is his.

OBJECT FORM

214. Pronouns have one form which nouns do not have. We use the same form for the noun no matter whether it is the subject or the object. For example:

• The man saw me.
• I saw the man.

In the first sentence man is the subject of the verb saw, and in the second sentence man is the object of the verb saw. The same word is used; but you will notice that in the first sentence me is the object of the verb saw, and in the second I is the subject; yetboth refer to the same person, the first person, the person speaking.

So we have a different form of the pronoun for the object, for example: I saw him. He saw me. She watched us. We watched her. You found them. Him, me, us, her, and them in these sentences are used as the objects of the verbs, see, watch and found, and are called the object forms of the pronouns. You and it have the same form for both the subject and object; as, You did it. It frightens you. Her is used as both the possessive form and the object form, as, Her work tires her.

215. The following table gives the subject and the object forms of the personal pronouns, and these should never be confused in their usage. We must not use the object form as the subject of the verb, nor the subject form as the object of the verb.

GENDER

216. You notice in all of these tables that there are three forms given for the third person singular, he, she, and it. These are the only forms in which pronouns express gender. In all other forms the gender can be determined only by the gender of the antecedent.

He, representing a male, is masculine.

She, representing a female, is the feminine.

It represents a sexless thing, and hence is said to be of the neuter gender.

THE LITTLE VERB BE

217. You remember when we studied verbs, we had the incomplete verb that took an object; the complete verb that needed no object, since it was complete in itself; and one other kind of a verb. Do you remember this third kind of verb? This third kind is the copulative verb, and the copulative verb which we use most frequently is the one in the use of which we make the most mistakes.

It is that troublesome, bothersome, little verb be, which is so difficult to master. You remember it is an incomplete verb, but instead of taking an object, it takes a complement or completing word. So when you see a pronoun with any form of this verb be, you must use the subject form and not the object form. This copulative verb be is simply a connecting word, not a verb that asserts action or takes an object.

218. Here is where we make so many mistakes. We say, It was me, It was them, It was him, It wasn't her; instead of, It was I, It was they, It was he, It wasn't she. We have used the incorrect form in this particular so often that the correct form has a strange sound to our ears.

The only way to remedy this is to repeat over and over aloud the correct form until it has a familiar sound. Don't think this is putting on airs. It is not. It is simply demanding the best for yourself in words, as you should do in everything. We of the working class have built the world in its beauty. Why should we live in shacks, dress in shoddy, talk in slang? There is no reason except that we endure it. When the united working class demands its own, it will receive it. Demand yours and arouse the stupid from their sleep as rapidly as you can.

Repeat the following sentences aloud ten times every day this week and see if the correct form does not come to your lips more readily. We can learn the rule, but only continued practice and watchfulness can break us of our old habits.

• It is I who seek my own.
• It shall be they who are defeated.
• It was I who was ignorant.
• It is they who cause all wars.
• It is he who must be aroused.
• It is we who strive for freedom.
• It shall be I who shall win.
• It was she who was enslaved.
• It shall be we who shall demand equality.
• It shall be they who shall conquer.

Agreement

219. Pronouns are very agreeable members of the co-operative commonwealth of words. They strive to agree with their antecedents. Sometimes we do not allow the pronoun to agree, and then our sentence is incorrect.

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number, gender and person.

For example, if you are referring to one man, you must use a masculine pronoun, singular, third person form, as I saw the man but he did not see me. Man is the antecedent. It is singular, masculine, third person and so we use the pronoun he.

The girl came, but she could not stay. In this sentence girl is the antecedent; it is singular, feminine, third person, and so we use the pronoun she.

The boys did not come when the teacher called them. In this sentence boys is the antecedent; it is plural, masculine, third person, and so we use the pronoun them.

220. Sometimes there are two words used as the antecedent, joined by and. We use a singular pronoun in referring to them if they denote the same person or thing; as:

• The secretary and treasurer (one person) resigned his position.
• My comrade and friend (one person) gave me his help.

221. But two nouns joined by and, that mean different persons or things, must be represented by a plural pronoun, thus:

• Marx and Engels (two persons) wrote their call to liberty, the Communist-Manifesto.
• Men and women will struggle for their freedom.
• Childhood and youth should have their rightful joys.

222. Use the singular pronoun when the nouns are kept separate by the use of each, every, many a, or no.

• Each man and boy must do his part. (Not their part.)
• Every soldier and every officer must do his duty.
• Many a city and many a village gave its best to the army.
• No comrade and no Socialist will give his consent to war.

223. If you have two singular nouns as antecedents, joined by or, or nor, use the singular pronoun, thus:

• Either Germany or France must abandon its position.
• Neither Wilson nor Bryan kept his promise to the people.

224. When you use a collective noun and are speaking of the collection as a whole, use a singular pronoun, as:

• The committee will make its report.
• The audience was hearty in its appreciation.
• The jury has returned its verdict.

225. But if you are referring to the individuals of the collection separately, use a plural pronoun; as:

• The committee adjourned for their dinner.
• The audience kept their seats until the close.
• The jury argued until their nerves were on edge.

PERSONIFICATION

226. We sometimes speak of things as if they were persons, and so use either masculine or feminine pronouns in referring to them. Such objects are said to be personified. Thus, we say:

• The sun his ceaseless course doth run.
• The moon sheds her silvery ray.
• Nature dons her robes of green.

Here we speak of the sun as though it were a man or possessing the qualities of a man and use the pronoun his. Then we speak of the moon and nature as though they were women and use the pronoun in the feminine form.

REMEMBER

227. A pronoun must agree with its antecedent.

Use the subject form of the pronoun if the pronoun is the subject of the sentence.

Use the object form when the pronoun is the object of a verb or a preposition.

Use the compound personal pronouns only in their reflexive or emphatic use.

With all forms of the verb be, use the subject form of the pronouns.

SUMMARY

Exercise 3

Read carefully the following beautiful dream of Olive Schreiner's. Mark all of the personal pronouns and note carefully their use and by referring to the table above decide just what form each pronoun is. Watch carefully too for the antecedents of the pronouns and note the agreement of the pronoun with its antecedent.

"I THOUGHT I STOOD"

I.

I thought I stood in Heaven before God's throne, and God asked me what I had come for. I said I had come to arraign my brother, Man.

God said, "What has he done?"

I said, "He has taken my sister, Woman, and has stricken her and wounded her and thrust her out into the streets; she lies there prostrate. His hands are red with blood. I am here to arraign him; that the kingdom be taken from him, because he is not worthy, and given unto me. My hands are pure."

I showed them.

God said, "Thy hands are pure. Lift up thy robe."

I raised it; my feet were red, blood-red, as if I had trodden in wine.

God said, "How is this?"

I said, "Dear Lord, the streets on earth are full of mire. If I should walk straight on in them my outer robe might be bespotted, you see how white it is! Therefore I pick my way."

God said, "On what?"

I was silent, and let my robe fall. I wrapped my mantle about my head. I went out softly. I was afraid that the angels would see me.

II.

Once more I stood at the gate of Heaven, I and another. We held fast by one another; We were very tired. We looked up at the great gates; angels opened them, and we went in. The mud was on our garments. We walked across the marble floor, and up to the great throne. Then the angels divided us. Her, they set upon the top step, but me, upon the bottom; for, they said, "Last time this woman came here she left red foot-marks on the floor; we had to wash them out with our tears. Let her not go up."

Then she with whom I came, looked back and stretched out her hands to me; and I went and stood beside her. And the angels, they, the shining ones who never sinned and never suffered, walked by us, to and fro, up and down; I think we should have felt a little lonely there if it had not been for one another, the angels were so bright.

God asked me what I had come for; and I drew my sister forward a little that He might see her.

God said, "How is it you are here together today?"

I said, "She was upon the ground in the street, and they passed over her; I lay down by her, and she put her arms around my neck, and so I lifted her, and we two rose together."

God said, "Whom are you now come to accuse before Me?"

I said, "We are come to accuse no man."

And God bent and said, "My children—what is it that you seek?"

And she beside me drew my hand that I should speak for both.

I said, "We have come to ask that Thou shouldst speak to Man, our brother, and give us a message for him that he might understand, and that he might——"

God said, "Go, take the message down to him!"

I said, "But what is the message?"

God said, "Upon your hearts it is written; take it down to him."

And we turned to go; the angels went with us to the door. They looked at us.

And one said, "Ah! but their dresses are beautiful!"

And the other said, "I thought it was mire when they came in, but see, it is all golden!"

But another said, "Hush, it is the light from their faces!"

And we went down to him.—Olive Schreiner.

SPELLING

LESSON 12

Last week we learned the rule governing the spelling of derivatives of one syllable ending in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel when we add a suffix beginning with a vowel.

The same rule applies to words of two or more syllables, accented on the last syllable.

For example:

• Compel, compelled, compelling.
• Prefer, preferred, preferring.

Words accented on the last syllable, when they end in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel, double the final consonant when you add a suffix beginning with a vowel.

When these words take a suffix that begins with a consonant, they do not double the final consonant; as, preferment.

Words accented on any syllable but the last, do not double the final consonant; as, offer, offered, offering.

Words that have two vowels before a single final consonant do not double the final consonant; as, reveal, revealed, revealing.

Words that end in a double consonant or any two consonants, keep the two consonants, no matter what suffix they take; as, indent, indented; skill, skilled, skillful.

The only exception to this rule is when the addition of the suffix throws the accent back to a preceding syllable. When this is the case, the final consonant is not doubled. For example: refer, referred, ref'erence; confer, conferring, con'ference.

Look up the following words in the dictionary, watch for the accent, mark and add the suffixes, ed, ing, ence or ance, if possible.

Monday

• Repel
• Alter
• Prefer
• Debar
• Answer

Tuesday

• Inter
• Offer
• Demur
• Wonder
• Succeed

Wednesday

• Detain
• Combat
• Compel
• Occur
• Cancel

Thursday

• Permit
• Travel
• Repeal
• Control
• Profit

Friday

• Forbid
• Neglect
• Expel
• Render
• Infer

Saturday

• Benefit
• Retain
• Submit
• Reveal
• Limit

PLAIN ENGLISH

LESSON 13

Dear Comrade:

Did you ever tie a knot in your handkerchief to help you remember to get something you felt almost sure you would forget? Well, tying a knot in a cord was one of the first ways devised by our ancestors of long ago to aid them to remember. They also used this plan to send word to those at a distance or to keep track of things for succeeding generations. A relic of this old device of our forefathers is also found in the rosary on which the Roman Catholic counts his beads as an aid to memory.

There are some primitive tribes to-day who still use knotted strings as an aid to memory. These consist of a main cord, and fastened at given distances are finer cords of different colors. Each cord is knotted in different ways to mean different things and each color, too, has its own meaning. A red string stands for soldiers, a yellow for gold, and a green for corn, and so on, while a single knot may mean ten, two single knots twenty, a double knot 100, two double knots 200. In this way, they keep a record of things, transmit orders and use them for various purposes.

Only a generation ago the tax gatherers in the Island of Hawaii kept account of the assessable property on lines of cordage knotted in this manner, and these cords in some cases were three thousand feet long. The method of keeping track of things by means of a notched stick is easily within the memory of many people living today. For in England in the early part of the last century, accounts of debts to the government were kept by means of tally sticks, which were merely notched sticks.

Such methods as these were the only ways primitive man had of keeping track of things before he had discovered the art of written speech. And even after written speech was known and used, these old methods persisted.

Gradually, step by step, man has come along the path of progress. Adventurous spirits, not satisfied with the old way of doing things, sought new ways. The conservatives of their day thought them dangerous people, no doubt, and feared that they would destroy the very foundations of society. And this they oft-times did, but only that there might rise a more perfect form of society. It is the seeking, questioning mind that demands the reason for all things, that seeks ever better ways of doing things. They have always throughout the ages refused to bow to the authority of the past but have dared to live their own lives. To them we owe the progress of the world and we are the inheritors of their spirit.

Let us prove our kinship by daring to live our own lives and think our own thoughts.

Yours for Freedom,

THE PEOPLE'S COLLEGE.

INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS

228. You recall that in our first lesson we studied concerning the four different kinds of sentences which we use in expressing our thoughts, the assertive, the interrogative, the imperative and the exclamatory. The interrogative sentence is the form which we use in asking a question, interrogative being derived from the Latin inter, meaning between, and rogare, to ask, meaning literally to ask between. The interrogative sentence differs from the assertive sentence in the arrangement of the words; for in order to ask questions, we usually place the predicate, or part of it at least, before the subject, thus:

• Can you use good English?
• Did you spell the word correctly?
• Has he studied grammar?

In these sentences, you note that the helping verbs, can, did and has, are placed first instead of the subject. It is by this arrangement that we put the sentence in the interrogative form.

229. Frequently, however, in asking questions we wish to ask concerning a person or thing whose name we do not know. So we need a word to refer to the unknown object. See how these uses of words grow out of our need! We have three interrogative pronouns, who and which and what, that we use to meet this need. Notice the use of these three pronouns in the following sentences:

• Who wrote the Communist Manifesto?
• Which of the two men is the better known?
• What are the closing words of this famous document?

In these sentences, who and which and what are the interrogative pronouns, used to ask questions concerning the unknown persons or objects.

230. Who refers only to human beings or to personified objects.

Which refers either to human beings, animals or things.

What refers only to things.

Which and what have the same form for both the subject and the object. Who has a different form for all three forms, the subject form, the possessive form, and the object form. It uses the same form, however, both in singular and plural.

231. We often make mistakes in the use of the different forms of the pronoun who. We often use the subject form for the object form, using who where we should have used whom. For example:

• Who did you see?

The correct form is:

• Whom did you see?

The pronoun whom is the object of the verb see, hence the object form should be used. However, the use of the subject form who instead of whom is coming into such general use today that some grammarians accept it as a permissible usage. The will of the people influences language, as it does all other human institutions, and gradually creates new rules.

Write three sentences, using who, which and what as interrogative pronouns.

An interrogative pronoun is a pronoun used to ask a question.

RELATIVE PRONOUNS

232. There is one other class of pronouns which plays a great part in our speech and is a wonderful help to us. For example, suppose I want to tell you several things about this book. I say: I am reading this book. It interests me greatly. Now it would be a great advantage to me if I could put these two sentences together, and we have for this use a pronoun which makes it possible for us to combine these sentences, and so I say:

• The book which I am reading interests me greatly.

Thus I am able to unite two short sentences into a long sentence, which conveys my meaning better than the two short sentences and gives a smoother bit of reading. We have four pronouns which we use in this way, who, which, that and what and they are called relative pronouns because they refer or relate to some noun in the sentence and they also serve to connect two statements.

233. A relative pronoun is a pronoun that relates to an antecedent and at the same time connects two statements.

A relative pronoun always relates to its antecedent and at the same time connects the statement that it introduces with the one that contains the antecedent to which it relates, as in the sentence above, The book which I am reading, interests me greatly. Which is the relative pronoun; first, because it relates to the antecedent, book; and second, because it connects the statement, I am reading, with the rest of the sentence. Notice these sentences also:

• The man who thinks will not enlist in the army.
• We will destroy the system that enslaves us.

Who and that are the relative pronouns in these two sentences and their antecedents are man and system, and they connect the statements, who thinks and that enslaves us, with the rest of the sentence.

234. Who is used to relate to persons.

Which is used to relate only to animals and things.

That may relate to either persons, animals or things.

What relates to things.

Note that which, as an interrogative, may refer to persons as well as to animals and things; but as a relative, which never refers to persons.

235. Note that we use the same pronouns who, which and what as both relative and interrogative pronouns. You will not be confused in this matter if you will remember that they are called interrogative pronouns only when they are used to ask questions. When they are used as interrogative pronouns they never have an antecedent. Who and which and what are always relative pronouns when used in an assertive sentence and referring to an antecedent.

That and what have the same form for both the subject and object forms. They have no possessive form. Who has a different form for the subject form and the possessive form and the object form. Which has the same form for subject and object forms, and a different form for the possessive form. Note the following:

• I know the man who called him.
• I know the man whose voice I hear.
• I know the man whom they called.

In these three sentences we have the pronoun who used in its three forms, subject, possessive and object form. We should be very careful not to confuse the subject and the object forms of the pronoun who.

• This is the book which tells the truth.
• This is the book whose author is in prison.
• This is the book which I wanted.

In these three sentences we have the pronoun which used in its three forms, subject form, possessive form and object form. In the first sentence the pronoun is the subject of the verb tells; in the second sentence, it is used in the possessive form with the noun author; in the third sentence, it is used as the object of the verb wanted.

236. What differs from the other relative pronouns in that its antecedent is never expressed, for it is implied in the word itself. What is always equivalent to that which, or the thing which. For example, the sentence, Do not tell what I have told you, is equivalent to saying, Do not tell that which I have told you, or the thing which I have told you.

237. Never use what in a sentence as a relative pronoun unless you can replace it and make good sense by using that which, or the thing which in place of what.

For example, do not say, I know that what he would say. This is incorrect. You should say, I know that which he would say, or I know what he would say, using what in place of that which. Here is a sentence that occurred in an English examination recently, which illustrates most aptly this point. A subject is that what something is said about. Here what is used incorrectly. A subject is that about which something is said, would have been the correct form.

Watch for this in your speech for it is a most common error and to the educated ear is harsh and marks the speaker as uneducated. All of these mistakes which we make so commonly will require a considerable amount of effort to overcome, but the result is worth the effort, for even those about us who will not take the pains or give the required time and effort to acquiring an education for themselves, will give greater heed to the speech of those who do speak correctly, and will readily acknowledge the leadership of those who have given the time and effort to self-development.

238. The antecedent of who is sometimes omitted and understood; for example, Who follows the cause must endure hardship, He, is understood and omitted. He who follows the cause must endure hardship.

239. The relative pronoun itself is often omitted. For example:

• These are the men (whom) you must help.
• The words (that) you use and the deeds (that) you do, are your judges.

240. The relative pronouns have compound forms also, such as whoever, whosoever, whichever, whichsoever, whatever and whatsoever, which are used in the same manner as the simple forms.

COMMON ERRORS

241. Here are a number of common errors which only constant practice and watchfulness can overcome. Study these over and watch your conversation closely. Force yourself to speak correctly for a time, and soon correct speech will become a habit.

1. Do not use both a noun and a pronoun as the subject of a sentence; as, John, he waited for me. Mary, she refused to go. Leave out the pronouns he and she in these sentences. They are unnecessary and incorrect.

2. Never use hern, ourn, hisn or yourn for hers, ours, his and yours; as, The book is hisn. Ourn stopped on the first. Did you get yourn? Say: This book is his. Ours stopped on the first. Did you get yours?

3. Never say hisself for himself. There is no such word as hisself. Do not say, He hurt hisself. Say, He hurt himself.

4. Do not say them for those; as, Did you bring them songs? Them things are not right. Say, Did you bring those songs? Those things are not right.

5. Do not use an apostrophe in writing the possessive forms of pronouns, as her's, our's, it's. Leave out the apostrophe and write hers, ours, its.

6. Do not use who to relate to animals or things; as, The dog who bit me was killed. Say, The dog that bit me was killed.

7. Do not use myself as the subject. It can be used only as an emphatic or reflexive pronoun. It is correct to say, I found the book myself, and I hurt myself. But do not say, They asked my friend and myself, or Myself and my wife will go. Say, They asked my friend and me. My wife and I will go.

8. Avoid the use of pronouns when the reference to the antecedent is not clear. Better repeat the nouns or re-write the sentence. For example:

• He said to his friend that if he did not feel better soon he thought he had better go home.

Now you can interpret this in at least four different ways. No one but the speaker can ever know to whom the pronouns he refer, whether to the speaker or to his friend. Or in the sentence,

• A tried to see B in the crowd, but could not because he was so short.

Who was short, A or B? John's father died before he was born. Did John's father die before John was born or did John's father die before John's father, himself, was born? Be careful in the use of pronouns in this way.

9. Remember that I, we, he, she, they and who are always used as subject forms and also as the complement of all forms of the verb be.

10. Remember that me, him, her, them, us and whom are always object forms. Never say, They charged he and I too much. Say, They charged him and me too much. In an attempt to speak correctly and follow the niceties of English, this mistake is so often made. Always use the object form as the object of a verb or preposition.

11. When a participle is used as a noun, and a pronoun is used with it, the pronoun should always be in the possessive form. We make this mistake so frequently. For example, we say: Us going there was a mistake. We should have used the possessive form, Our going there was a mistake. I have never known of him being absent from work. We should say: I have never known of his being absent from work. Did he tell you about me joining with them? This should be, Did he tell you about my joining with them? You talking to him set him to thinking. This should be, Your talking to him set him to thinking. Watch this and wherever you have used a participle as a noun, use the pronoun in the possessive form, as you would with any other noun.

12. Watch carefully that the number of the pronoun always agrees with the number of its antecedent. If you are speaking of one person or thing use a singular pronoun. If you are speaking of more than one person or thing in your antecedent, use the plural pronoun. For example: Each man must do his own work. The soldiers fully understood their danger.

13. When a singular noun, in the common gender (this means that it may name either a male or female being), is the antecedent of the pronoun, it is customary for us to use the masculine pronoun. For example:

• Every student should send in his examination paper promptly.
• Every member of the class may select his own subject.

Do not use the pronoun their when the antecedent is a singular noun.

SUMMARY

Pronoun—In Place of a Noun

Exercise 1

Complete the following sentences by using the correct form of I, me, or myself, in the blank spaces:

1. My partner and......joined the union.
2. They asked Henry and......to go.
3. May my friend and......call?
4. I will attend to that.......
5. Let my comrade and......go with you.
6. Are you sure it was......?
7. I blame......for joining with them.
8. They accused......of bothering them.
9. I am nearly beside......with grief.
10. The manager dismissed the men......among the rest.

Exercise 2

Complete the following sentences by using the correct form of we, us or ourselves in the blank spaces:

1. They are better off than.......
2. The French as well as......claim a war of defense.
3. Can you blame......who have always stood by you?
4. We will do that for.......
5. Between......comrades there should be no differences.
6. They gave......men work.
7. Do not trouble;......will attend to this.......
8. They sent a special notice to our friends and.......

Exercise 3

Complete the following sentences by using the correct form of thou, thee, thy or thyself in the blank spaces:

1. To......be true, and it follows as the night the day...... canst not then be false to any man.
2. Paul,......art beside......; much learning hath made ......mad.
3. ......shalt love......neighbor as.......
4. Trust....... Every heart vibrates to that iron string.

Exercise 4

Complete the following sentences by using the correct form of he, him, or himself in the blank spaces:

1. ......and John are to blame.
2. I think it was.......
3. My friend and......called on you.
4. He blamed......for the accident.
5. You are no better than.......
6. I shall call for you and.......
7. You and......must come on time.
8. He found the place.......
9. There should be no quarrel between you and......who loves you.
10. If you were......would you go?

Exercise 5

Complete the following sentences by using the correct form of she, her, or herself in the blank spaces:

1. They asked Mary and......to go.
2. Mary and......went.
3. May......and I go with you?
4. Let......and Harry go.
5. Is that Mary? Yes, it is.......
6. There are many points of difference between......and me.
7. You are more beautiful than.......
8. She brought it to me.......
9. If......and I join you, will you go?
10. They must not quarrel over......and me.

Exercise 6

Complete the following sentences using the correct form of they, them, or themselves in the blank spaces:

1. They gave......up.
2. ......and I will finish the work.
3. I found......where......hath thrown......down to rest.
4. I am sure it was......for I saw......plainly.
5. The workers enslave......by their lack of solidarity.
6. ......must learn the lesson.......

Exercise 7

Cross out the wrong word in the following sentences:

1. Everybody do—does as he pleases—they please.
2. No one should waste his—their opportunities.
3. The jury rendered its—their verdict.
4. If anyone wishes war, let him—them do the fighting.
5. The audience displayed its—their approval by its—their applause.
6. The audience remained quietly in its—their seats.
7. The jury adjourned for its—their dinner.
8. Nobody willingly gives up his—their rights.
9. Each one may express his—their opinion.
10. Every man received his—their wages.

Exercise 8

Complete the following sentences by using the correct form of the pronouns who, whose, or whom:

1. ......do you think I am?
2. I am the man......you taught yesterday.
3. With......are you going?
4. The contract was let to a man......we are sure cannot fulfill it.
5. The contractor......wishes to bid will come tomorrow.
6. On......are you depending?
7. The friends......counsel I took, stood by me.
8. He is a man......I am sure will succeed.
9. We tried to talk to those......we thought would understand us.
10. For......did you work?

Exercise 9

Insert who, whose, whom, which, that or what in the blanks in the following sentences:

1. Man is the only animal......uses a written speech.
2. Can you save......you earn?
3. Ricardo's law was that the workers always receive a wage......permits them to produce and reproduce.
4. Have you read the book "War, What For"......Kirkpatrick wrote?
5. Newspapers......distort the news......they print to serve the ruling class are dangerous foes to the workers.
6. The massacre at Ludlow was an event......aroused the working class.
7. They......live by the labor of others are drones in society and should be given the fate......they deserve.
8. The big machine gun......will destroy slavery is the printing press.
9. The man......leadership we should follow is he......preaches social equality.

Exercise 10

In the following quotations note the use of the pronouns and mark whether they are personal, relative or interrogative, whether they are used in the subject form, possessive form or object form:

1. "Camerado, I give you my hand,

   I give you my love more precious than money,

   I give you myself before preaching or law;

   Will you give me yourself, will you come travel with me,

   Shall we stick by each other as long as we live?"

2. "I think I could turn and live with animals they are so placid and self-contained,

   I stand and look at them long and long, they do not sweat and whine about their condition,

   They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins,

   They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God;

   Not one is dis-satisfied, not one is demented with the mania of owning things.

   Not one kneels to another nor to his kind, that lived thousands of years ago,

   Not one is respectable or unhappy over the whole earth."

   —Whitman.

Exercise 11

Note the omission of the antecedent in the first sentence, also the use of the relative what in the last sentence of the first paragraph:

"Whoso would be a man, must be nonconformist. He who would gather immortal palms must not be hindered by the name of goodness, but must explore if it be goodness. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of our own mind. Absolve you to yourself, and you shall have the suffrage of the world. I remember an answer which, when quite young, I was prompted to make to a valued adviser who was wont to importune me with the dear old doctrines of the church. On my saying, "What have I to do with the sacredness of traditions, if I live wholly from within?" my friend suggested—"But these impulses may be from below, not from above." I replied, "They do not seem to me to be such; but if I am the devil's child, I will live then from the devil." No law can be sacred to me but that of my nature. Good and bad are but names very readily transferable to that or this; the only right is what is after my constitution; the only wrong what is against it.

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do. He may as well concern himself with his shadow on the wall. Out upon your guarded lips! Sew them up with pack threads, do. Else, if you would be a man, speak what you think today in words as hard as cannon balls, and tomorrow speak what tomorrow thinks in hard words again, though you contradict everything you said today. Ah, then, exclaim the aged ladies, you shall be sure to be misunderstood. Misunderstood! It is a right fool's word. Is it so bad then to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood."—Emerson.

SPELLING

LESSON 13

There are a few more rules governing the spelling of derivative words. Words ending in silent e keep the e before the suffix beginning with a consonant. Notice the following words:

Words ending in silent e drop the e before the suffix beginning with a vowel, as:

Some words ending in silent e retain the e before the suffix beginning with a vowel, to prevent a change in the pronunciation or to preserve the identity of the word. Notice the following words:

These are words ending in the soft sound of c and g, where the e is retained to preserve the correct pronunciation of the c and g, and with some few words like toe, dye, etc., where the dropping of the e would lose the identity of the word.

The e is dropped in a few words before the suffix beginning with a consonant, as in wholly, nursling, judgment, wisdom, lodgment.

Add the suffixes ment and ing to the words in Monday's lesson; the suffix able to the words for Tuesday and Wednesday; the suffixes some and ous to the words for Thursday; the suffixes ly or ness to the words for Friday and Saturday.

Monday

• Excite
• Advise
• Chastise
• Disfranchise
• Enslave

Tuesday

• Manage
• Receive
• Blame
• Exchange
• Imagine

Wednesday

• Admire
• Service
• Desire
• Peace
• Pronounce

Thursday

• Whole
• Meddle
• Courage
• Advantage
• Outrage

Friday

• Accurate
• Positive
• False
• Definite
• Distinct

Saturday

• Agreeable
• Careful
• Awful
• Sure
• Secure

PLAIN ENGLISH

LESSON 14

Dear Comrade:

You remember our definition of a word; a word is the sign of an idea. In our lessons we have been studying the different kinds of words which we use in the expression of our complete thoughts. Probably the first step in the development of language was to name the objects about us. Then the next logical step would be to invent words which would tell what these objects did. So we have our nouns, which are the names of things; our verbs, which tell what these things do; and in these we have the foundation for spoken and written speech. We soon found, however, that the constant repetition of a name was tiresome and annoying, so we invented words which we could use in place of these nouns; and we have pronouns.

All of the things about us possess certain qualities and our next great need was for words to describe these qualities; so we have adjectives. Each adjective is a sign of an idea. It adds its part to the expression of our complete thought. So we find that each part of speech comes logically in its place to fill a certain need. Without any one of them, we would be crippled in our power of expression. Each different word is the sign of an idea and the combination of these ideas as represented by the various signs gives us the complete expression of our thought.

So primitive man in the development of written speech had signs to express the various things about him. Naturally his first sign was a picture, as nearly as he could draw it, of the object itself. If he wanted to tell you about a tree he drew a picture of the tree; the picture of a man represented a man, and so on. You will notice among children that this is the first development in their endeavor to express their thoughts in writing. They draw pictures. The average small child cannot understand why you read those strange marks on the page. They want you to read the pictures. To their mind that is the only way to communicate ideas.

These early forefathers of ours grew to be very adept at this picture writing. We have examples of this among the Indians of our own country. There is a picture on the face of a big rock on the shores of Lake Superior which records an expedition across the lake led by a noted Indian chief. Canoes are shown in the picture with the crew denoted by a series of upright strokes and there is a picture of the chief on horseback. You or I would have great difficulty in reading this picture writing, but an Indian could read it right off just as we would read a written page. Aids to memory such as knotted strings and tally sticks were the first step toward written speech. This picture writing was the second step toward the development of written speech.

We owe a great deal to the work which these primitive ancestors of ours accomplished. It took them years and years to develop through these different stages and our rapid development of the last few centuries has only been made possible because of this slow and patient building of the foundation. An understanding of this helps us to appreciate the place we occupy in this great struggle of the ages. The power of written speech opens up to us such tremendous possibilities. Let us make the most of them, that we too may hand on worth while things to those who follow us.

Yours for Education,

THE PEOPLE'S COLLEGE.

CLASSES OF ADJECTIVES

242. Adjectives, like nouns and pronouns, are divided into classes. Adjectives are divided into two main classes, qualifying and limiting.

243. An adjective which qualifies a noun is one which names some quality which is possessed by the word which it modifies. When we say, Trees grow, we are making a general statement; that is, we are saying something that is true of any kind of trees. We have not described any particular tree. But when we say, The tall trees grow, The old trees grow, The young trees grow, the words tall, old and young describe certain qualities of the trees, which separate them into classes. So these adjectives are qualifying adjectives.

An adjective qualifies a noun when it attributes some quality to the noun, as, The brave man, The sweet apple, The pretty girl, The large house, etc.

244. But if we say, this tree, that tree, some trees, many trees, three trees, or four trees, we are not giving any quality of the tree, but are pointing out a particular tree or trees and limiting the word to the ones pointed out. So such adjectives as the, this, that, some, many, three and four are limiting adjectives. An adjective limits a noun when it restricts or limits its meaning as to quantity or number.

245. So adjectives are divided into two classes, qualifying adjectives and limiting adjectives.

Words that limit or qualify other words are called modifiers because they modify or affect the meaning of the words to which they are added. So adjectives are modifiers of the nouns and pronouns to which they are added because they modify or qualify or limit the meaning of the noun or pronoun.

The limiting adjectives answer the questions which and how many. The qualifying adjectives answer the questions which and what kind.

246. A qualifying adjective is an adjective which describes the noun it modifies by attributing to it some quality.

A limiting adjective is an adjective which merely shows which one or how many, without describing the noun it modifies.

HOW TO DISCOVER AN ADJECTIVE

247. Sometimes the noun may have several adjectives qualifying or modifying it; as,

• The beautiful, old elm tree shades the lawn.

The, beautiful, old and elm, all modify tree, telling something of the qualities or pointing out which tree we are speaking of. You can discover an adjective in a sentence by asking the questions, which, what kind, or how many; and the words that answer these questions will be the adjectives in the sentence. For example in this sentence:

• Those three immense factories employ thousands of men.

Factories is the noun, subject of the sentence. Which factory is indicated by the adjective those. How many factories is indicated by the adjective three. What kind of factories is indicated by the adjective immense. So we have three adjectives answering the three questions, which, what kind and how many.

Exercise 1

In the following sentences the adjectives are printed in italics. Study them carefully and determine which are qualifying and which are limiting adjectives. Note that the possessive nouns and possessive pronouns are not adjectives. Its in the phrases its cruel fangs and its savage claws, is a possessive pronoun, third person singular. In the last sentence beggar's, miser's, and Ingersoll's, are nouns in the possessive form.

• This terrible war in Europe is slaughtering the working-class.
• Gaunt famine follows war.
• A docile, meek, humble, working-class makes war possible.
• The shrieking shell snarls like a living thing; like some wild beast in ferocious glee it thrusts its cruel fangs in earth and rock and rends living flesh with its savage claws.
• Its fetid breath of poison powder scorches in the autumn winds.
• Shattered bones, torn flesh and flowing blood were mingled on the battlefield with broken swords and split rifles.
• The best modern rifles will force a bullet through five human bodies at a range of twelve hundred feet.
• The pitiful dead, slain in war, sleep under the solemn pines, the sad hemlock, the tearful willow and the embracing vines.
• A world without the beggar's outstretched palm, the miser's heartless stony stare, the piteous wail of want, the livid lips of lies, the cruel eyes of scorn, was Ingersoll's vision of the future.

QUALIFYING ADJECTIVES

248. Qualifying adjectives are also called descriptive adjectives because they describe the noun. They answer the questions which and what kind.

You remember we found in the beginning of our study of English, that words were grouped into classes according to the work which they do in the sentence, not according to the form of the word itself. For instance, we have already found that some words, without changing their form, may be used either as a noun or as a verb. Take the word oil, for instance. I may say, I oil the engine. Here I have used the word oil as a verb telling what I do. But I may say, The oil is gone. Here I have used the word oil as a noun, subject of the sentence. The part of speech to which a word belongs in the English language, always depends upon the work which it does in the sentence.

1. So we have nouns which are used as descriptive adjectives, for example the word oil, which we have found we can use either as a noun or a verb, may also be used as an adjective. For example; I may say, the oil tank. Here I have used the word oil as a descriptive adjective modifying the word tank. So also we may say, the oak tree, the stone curb, the earth wall. In these expressions oak, stone and earth are nouns used as descriptive adjectives.

2. We have descriptive adjectives derived from proper nouns, as French, English, American. These are called proper adjectives; and since all proper nouns must begin with a capital letter, these proper adjectives, also, should always begin with a capital letter.

3. We have also descriptive adjectives derived from verbs as active, talkative, movable, desirable, derived by the addition of suffixes to the verbs act, talk, move and desire.

LIMITING ADJECTIVES

249. Limiting adjectives are also divided into classes, the numerals, the demonstratives and the articles.

Numeral Adjectives

250. Numeral adjectives are those which limit nouns as to number or order. They are such adjectives as one, two, three, four, etc., and first, second and third, etc., as for example:

• Three men applied for work.
• The train ran at the rate of forty miles an hour.
• There have always been two classes in the world.
• The first martyr to anti-militarism was Jaures.
• The eighteenth day of March is the anniversary of the Paris Commune.

In these sentences the adjectives three, forty, two, first and eighteenth are all numeral adjectives. They limit the nouns which they modify as to number or order.

Adjectives that limit nouns as to number or order are called numeral adjectives. Numeral adjectives answer the question how many or in what order.

Demonstratives

251. We have also a class of adjectives which are used to point out some particular person or thing. These are called demonstrative adjectives. Demonstrate means literally to point out. So these adjectives point out from a number of things, one particular thing to our attention. These demonstrative adjectives are this, that, those, these, yonder, former, latter and same.

These and those are the plural forms of this and that. This and these are used to point out things near at hand. That and those are used to point out things more distant, as This is my book. These are my papers, meaning this book or these papers, close to me. By, That is my pencil and Those are my letters, I mean that pencil, and those letters, which are farther away from me.

Former and latter are used to show which of two things already mentioned is referred to, and to point out things in point of time, not of place. For example, we may say:

• We no longer observe the former customs, but rather prefer the latter.
• He did not like his former job but this latter job pleases him.

You understand from this that we have been discussing and describing two kinds of work, and that the first in point of time was unpleasant and the second pleasant.

The demonstrative adjective same refers to something of which we have just spoken, as for example, He has gone to work, I must do the same thing. These demonstrative adjectives answer the question which, so when you wish to discover a demonstrative in a sentence, ask the question which, and the answer will be the demonstrative adjective.

Exercise 2

1. This study is very interesting.
2. These comrades will stand by us.
3. That solution will never deceive the people.
4. Those books have opened our eyes.
5. Yonder battle appals the world.
6. Former investigations have had no results.
7. This latter decision has reversed the former.
8. The class struggle has persisted through the centuries; we are engaged in the same struggle.

Make sentences of your own containing these demonstrative adjectives.