OBS. 7.—S. R. Hall, formerly principal of the Seminary for Teachers at Andover, (but no great grammarian,) in 1832, published a manual, called "The Grammatical Assistant;" in which he says, "There are at least five cases, belonging to English nouns, differing as much from each other, as the cases of Latin and Greek nouns. They may be called Nominative, Possessive, Objective, Independent and Absolute."—P. 7. O. B. Peirce will have both nouns and pronouns to be used in five cases, which he thus enumerates: "Four simple cases; the Subjective, Possessive, Objective, and the Independent; and the Twofold case."—Gram., p. 42. But, on page 56th, he speaks of a "twofold subjective case," "the twofold objective case," and shows how the possessive may be twofold also; so that, without taking any of the Latin cases, or even all of Hall's, he really recognizes as many as seven, if not eight. Among the English grammars which assume all the six cases of the Latin Language, are Burn's, Coar's, Dilworth's, Mackintosh's, Mennye's, Wm. Ward's, and the "Comprehensive Grammar," a respectable little book, published by Dobson of Philadelphia, in 1789, but written by somebody in England.
OBS. 8.—Of the English grammars which can properly be said to be now in use, a very great majority agree in ascribing to nouns three cases, and three only. This, I am persuaded, is the best number, and susceptible of the best defence, whether we appeal to authority, or to other argument. The disputes of grammarians make no small part of the history of grammar; and in submitting to be guided by their decisions, it is proper for us to consider what degree of certainty there is in the rule, and what difference or concurrence there is among them: for, the teaching of any other than the best opinions, is not the teaching of science, come from what quarter it may. On the question respecting the objective case of nouns, Murray and Webster changed sides with each other; and that, long after they first appeared as grammarians. Nor was this the only, or the most important instance, in which the different editions of the works of these two gentlemen, present them in opposition, both to themselves and to each other. "What cases are there in English? The nominative, which usually stands before a verb; as, the boy writes: The possessive, which takes an s with a comma, and denotes property; as, John's hat: The objective, which follows a verb or preposition; as, he honors virtue, or it is an honor to him."—Webster's Plain and Comp. Gram., Sixth Edition, 1800, p. 9. "But for convenience, the two positions of nouns, one before, the other after the verb, are called cases. There are then three cases, the nominative, possessive, and objective."—Webster's Rudiments of Gram., 1811, p. 12. "In English therefore names have two cases only, the nominative or simple name, and the possessive."— Webster's Philosoph. Gram., 1807, p. 32: also his Improved Gram., 1831, p. 24.
OBS. 9.—Murray altered his opinion after the tenth or eleventh edition of his duodecimo Grammar. His instructions stand thus: "In English, substantives have but two cases, the nominative, and [the] possessive or genitive."—Murray's Gram. 12mo, Second Edition, 1796, p. 35. "For the assertion, that there are in English but two cases of nouns, and three of pronouns, we have the authority of Lowth, Johnson, Priestley, &c. names which are sufficient to decide this point."—Ib., p. 36. "In English, substantives have three cases, the nominative, the possessive, and the objective."—Murray's Gram., 12mo, Twenty-third Edition, 1816, p. 44. "The author of this work long doubted the propriety of assigning to English substantives an objective case: but a renewed critical examination of the subject; an examination to which he was prompted by the extensive and increasing demand for the grammar, has produced in his mind a full persuasion, that the nouns of our language are entitled to this comprehensive objective case."—Ib., p. 46. If there is any credit in changing one's opinions, it is, doubtless, in changing them for the better; but, of all authors, a grammarian has the most need critically to examine his subject before he goes to the printer. "This case was adopted in the twelfth edition of the Grammar."—Murray's Exercises, 12mo, N. Y., 1818, p. viii.
OBS. 10.—The possessive case has occasioned no less dispute than the objective. On this vexed article of our grammar, custom has now become much more uniform than it was a century ago; and public opinion may be said to have settled most of the questions which have been agitated about it. Some individuals, however, are still dissatisfied. In the first place, against those who have thought otherwise, it is determined, by infinite odds of authority, that there is such a case, both of nouns and of pronouns. Many a common reader will wonder, who can have been ignorant enough to deny it. "The learned and sagacious Wallis, to whom every English grammarian owes a tribute of reverence, calls this modification of the noun an adjective possessive; I think, with no more propriety than he might have applied the same to the Latin genitive."—Dr. Johnson's Gram., p. 5. Brightland also, who gave to adjectives the name of qualities, included all possessives among them, calling them "Possessive Qualities, or Qualities of Possession."—Brightland's Gram., p. 90.
OBS. 11.—This exploded error, William S. Cardell, a few years ago, republished as a novelty; for which, among other pretended improvements of a like sort, he received the ephemeral praise of some of our modern literati. William B. Fowle also teaches the same thing. See his Common School Gram., Part II, p. 104. In Felch's Grammar, too, published in Boston in 1837, an attempt is made, to revive this old doctrine; but the author takes no notice of any of the above-named authorities, being probably ignorant of them all. His reasoning upon the point, does not appear to me to be worthy of a detailed answer.[165] That the possessive case of nouns is not an adjective, is demonstrable; because it may have adjectives of various kinds, relating to it: as, "This old man's daughter."—Shak. It may also govern an other possessive; as, "Peter's wife's mother."—Bible. Here the former possessive is governed by the latter; but, if both were adjectives, they would both relate to the noun mother, and so produce a confusion of ideas. Again, nouns of the possessive case have a distinction of number, which adjectives have not. In gender also, there lies a difference. Adjectives, whenever they are varied by gender or number, agree with their nouns in these respects. Not so with possessives; as, "In the Jews' religion."—Gal., i. 13. "The children's bread."—Mark, vii, 27. "Some men's sins."—1 Tim., v, 24. "Other men's sins."—Ib., ver. 22.
OBS. 12.—Secondly, general custom has clearly determined that the possessive case of nouns is always to be written with an apostrophe: except in those few instances in which it is not governed singly by the noun following, but so connected with an other that both are governed jointly; as, "Cato the Censor's doctrine,"—"Sir Walter Scott's Works,"—"Beaumont and Fletcher's Plays." This custom of using the apostrophe, however, has been opposed by many. Brightland, and Buchanan, and the author of the British Grammar, and some late writers in the Philological Museum, are among those who have successively taught, that the possessive case should be formed like the nominative plural, by adding s when the pronunciation admits the sound, and es when the word acquires an additional syllable. Some of these approve of the apostrophe, and others do not. Thus Brightland gives some examples, which are contrary to his rule, adopting that strange custom of putting the s in Roman, and the name in Italic; "as, King Charles's Court, and St. James's Park."—Gram. of the English Tongue, p. 91.
OBS. 13.—"The genitive case, in my opinion," says Dr. Ash, "might be much more properly formed by adding s, or when the pronunciation requires it, es, without an Apostrophe: as, men, mens; Ox, Oxes; Horse, Horses; Ass, Asses."—Ash's Gram., p. 23. "To write Ox's, Ass's, Fox's, and at the same time pronounce it Oxes, Asses, Foxes, is such a departure from the original formation, at least in writing, and such an inconsistent use of the Apostrophe, as cannot be equalled perhaps in any other language."—Ib. Lowth, too, gives some countenance to this objection: "It [i.e., 'God's grace'] was formerly written 'Godis grace;' we now always shorten it with an apostrophe; often very improperly, when we are obliged to pronounce it fully; as, 'Thomas's book,' that is, 'Thomasis book,' not 'Thomas his book,' as it is commonly supposed."—Lowth's Gram., p. 17. Whatever weight there may be in this argument, the objection has been overruled by general custom. The convenience of distinguishing, even to the eye alone, the numbers and cases of the noun, is found too great to be relinquished. If the declension of English nouns is ever to be amended, it cannot be done in this way. It is understood by every reader, that the apostrophic s adds a syllable to the noun, whenever it will not unite with the sound in which the nominative ends; as, torch's, pronounced torchiz.
"Yet time ennobles or degrades each line;
It brightened Craggs's, and may darken thine."—Pope.
OBS. 14.—The English possessive case unquestionably originated in that form of the Saxon genitive which terminates in es, examples of which may be found in almost any specimen of the Saxon tongue: as, "On Herodes dagum,"—"In Herod's days;"—"Of Aarones dohtrum,"—"Of Aaron's daughters."—Luke, i, 5. This ending was sometimes the same as that of the plural; and both were changed to is or ys, before they became what we now find them. This termination added a syllable to the word; and Lowth suggests, in the quotation above, that the apostrophe was introduced to shorten it. But some contend, that the use of this mark originated in a mistake. It appears from the testimony of Brightland, Johnson, Lowth, Priestley, and others, who have noticed the error in order to correct it, that an opinion was long entertained, that the termination 's was a contraction of the word his. It is certain that Addison thought so; for he expressly says it, in the 135th number of the Spectator. Accordingly he wrote, in lieu of the regular possessive, "My paper is Ulysses his bow."—Guardian, No. 98. "Of Socrates his rules of prayer."—Spect., No. 207. So Lowth quotes Pope: "By young Telemachus his blooming years."—Lowth's Gram., p. 17.[166] There is also one late author who says, "The 's is a contraction of his, and was formerly written in full; as, William Russell his book."—Goodenow's Gram., p. 32. This is undoubtedly bad English; and always was so, however common may have been the erroneous notion which gave rise to it. But the apostrophe, whatever may have been its origin, is now the acknowledged distinctive mark of the possessive case of English nouns. The application of the 's, frequently to feminines, and sometimes to plurals, is proof positive that it is not a contraction of the pronoun his; as,
"Now Jove suspends his golden scales in air,
Weighs the men's wits against the Lady's hair."
—Pope, R. of L., C. v, l. 72.
OBS. 15.—Many of the old grammarians, and Guy, Pinneo, and Spencer, among the moderns, represent the regular formation of the possessive case as being the same in both numbers, supposing generally in the plural an abbreviation of the word by the omission of the second or syllabic s. That is, they suppose that such terms as eagles' wings, angels' visits, were written for eagles's wings, angels's visits, &c. This odd view of the matter accounts well enough for the fashion of such plurals as men's, women's, children's, and makes them regular. But I find no evidence at all of the fact on which these authors presume; nor do I believe that the regular possessive plural was ever, in general, a syllable longer than the nominative. If it ever had been so, it would still be easy to prove the point, by citations from ancient books. The general principle then is, that the apostrophe forms the possessive case, with an s in the singular, and without it in the plural; but there are some exceptions to this rule, on either hand; and these must be duly noticed.
OBS. 16.—The chief exceptions, or irregularities, in the formation of the possessive singular, are, I think, to be accounted mere poetic licenses; and seldom, if ever, to be allowed in prose. Churchill, (closely copying Lowth,) speaks of them thus: "In poetry the s is frequently omitted after proper names ending in s or x as, 'The wrath of Peleus' son.' Pope. This is scarcely allowable in prose, though instances of it occur: as, 'Moses' minister.' Josh., i, 1. 'Phinehas' wife.' 1 Sam., iv, 19. 'Festus came into Felix' room.' Acts, xxiv, 27. It was done in prose evidently to avoid the recurrence of a sibilant sound at the end of two following syllables; but this may as readily be obviated by using the preposition of, which is now commonly substituted for the possessive case in most instances."—Churchill's New Gram., p. 215. In Scott's Bible, Philadelphia, 1814, the texts here quoted are all of them corrected, thus: "Moses's minister,"—"Phinehas's wife,"—"Felix's room." But the phrase, "for conscience sake," (Rom., xiii, 5,) is there given without the apostrophe. Alger prints it, "for conscience' sake," which is better; and though not regular, it is a common form for this particular expression. Our common Bibles have this text: "And the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den."—Isaiah, xi, 8. Alger, seeing this to be wrong, wrote it, "on the cockatrice-den."—Pronouncing Bible. Dr. Scott, in his Reference Bible, makes this possessive regular, "on the cockatrice's den." This is right. The Vulgate has it, "in caverna reguli;" which, however, is not classic Latin. After z also, the poets sometimes drop the s: as,
"Sad was the hour, and luckless was the day,
When first from Shiraz' walls I bent my way."—Collins.
OBS. 17.—A recent critic, who, I think, has not yet learned to speak or write the possessive case of his own name properly, assumes that the foregoing occasional or poetical forms are the only true ones for the possessive singular of such words. He says, "When the name does end with the sound of s or z, (no matter what letter represents the sound,) the possessive form is made by annexing only an apostrophe."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 44. Agreeably to this rule, he letters his work, "Peirce' Grammar," and condemns, as bad English, the following examples and all others like them: "James Otis's letters, General Gates's command, General Knox's appointment, Gov. Meigs's promptness, Mr. Williams's oration, The witness's deposition."—Ib., p. 60. It is obvious that this gentleman's doctrine and criticism are as contrary to the common practice of all good authors, as they are to the common grammars, which he ridicules. Surely, such expressions as, "Harris's Hermes, Philips's Poems, Prince's Bay, Prince's Island, Fox's Journal, King James's edict, a justice's warrant, Sphinx's riddle, the lynx's beam, the lass's beauty," have authority enough to refute the cavil of this writer; who, being himself wrong, falsely charges the older grammarians, that," their theories vary from the principles of the language correctly spoken or written."—Ib., p. 60. A much more judicious author treats this point of grammar as follows: "When the possessive noun is singular, and terminates with an s, another s is requisite after it, and the apostrophe must be placed between the two; as, 'Dickens's works,'—'Harris's wit.'"—Day's Punctuation, Third London Edition, p. 136. The following example, too, is right: "I would not yield to be your house's guest."—Shakespeare.
OBS. 18.—All plural nouns that differ from the singular without ending in s, form the possessive case in the same manner as the singular: as, man's, men's; woman's, women's j child's, children's; brother's, brothers' or brethren's; ox's, oxen's; goose, geese's. In two or three words which are otherwise alike in both numbers, the apostrophe ought to follow the s in the plural, to distinguish it from the singular: as, the sheep's fleece, the sheeps' fleeces; a neat's tongue, neats' tongues; a deer's horns, a load of deers' horns.
OBS. 19.—Dr. Ash says, "Nouns of the plural number that end in s, will not very properly admit of the genitive case."—Ash's Gram., p. 54. And Dr. Priestley appears to have been of the same opinion. See his Gram., p. 69. Lowth too avers, that the sign of the possessive case is "never added to the plural number ending in s."—Gram., p. 18. Perhaps he thought the plural sign must involve an other s, like the singular. This however is not true, neither is Dr. Ash's assertion true; for the New Testament speaks as properly of "the soldiers' counsel," as of the "centurion's servant;" of "the scribes that were of the Pharisees' part," as of "Paul's sister's son." It would appear, however, that the possessive plural is less frequently used than the possessive singular; its place being much oftener supplied by the preposition of and the objective. We cannot say that either of them is absolutely necessary to the language; but they are both worthy to be commended, as furnishing an agreeable variety of expression.
"Then shall man's pride and dulness comprehend
His actions', passions', being's use and end."—Pope.
OBS. 20.—The apostrophe was introduced into the possessive case, at least for the singular number, in some part of the seventeenth century. Its adoption for the plural, appears to have been later: it is not much used in books a hundred years old. In Buchanan's "Regular English Syntax," which was written, I know not exactly when, but near the middle of the eighteenth century, I find the following paragraph: "We have certainly a Genitive Plural, though there has been no Mark to distinguish it. The Warriors Arms, i. e. the Arms of the Warriors, is as much a Genitive Plural, as the Warrior's Arms, for the Arms of the Warrior is a Genitive Singular. To distinguish this Genitive Plural, especially to Foreigners, we might use the Apostrophe reversed, thus, the Warrior`s Arms, the Stone`s End, for the End of the Stones, the Grocer`s, Taylor`s, Haberdasher`s, &c. Company; for the Company of Grocers, Taylors, &c. The Surgeon`s Hall, for the Hall of the Surgeons; the Rider`s Names, for the Names of the Riders; and so of all Plural Possessives."—See Buchan. Synt., p. 111. Our present form of the possessive plural, being unknown to this grammarian, must have had a later origin; nor can it have been, as some imagine it was, an abbreviation of a longer and more ancient form.
OBS. 21.—The apostrophic s has often been added to nouns improperly; the words formed by it not being intended for the possessive singular, but for the nominative or objective plural. Thus we find such authors as Addison and Swift, writing Jacobus's and genius's, for Jacobuses and geniuses; idea's, toga's, and tunica's, for ideas, togas, and tunicas; enamorato's and virtuoso's, for enamoratoes and virtuosoes. Errors of this kind, should be carefully avoided.
OBS. 22.—The apostrophe and s are sometimes added to mere characters, to denote plurality, and not the possessive case; as, two a's, three b's, four 9's. These we cannot avoid, except by using the names of the things: as, two Aes, three Bees, four Nines. "Laced down the sides with little c's."—Steele. "Whenever two gg's come together, they are both hard."—Buchanan. The names of c and g, plural, are Cees and Gees. Did these authors know the words, or did they not? To have learned the names of the letters, will be found on many occasions a great convenience, especially to critics. For example: "The pronunciation of these two consecutive s's is hard."—Webber's Gram., p. 21. Better: "Esses." "S and x, however, are exceptions. They are pluralyzed by adding es preceded by a hyphen [-], as the s-es; the x-es."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 40. Better, use the names, Ess and Ex, and pluralize thus: "the Esses; the Exes."
"Make Q's of answers, to waylay
What th' other party's like to say."
—Hudibras, P. III, C. ii, l. 951.
Here the cipher is to be read Kues, but it has not the meaning of this name merely. It is put either for the plural of Q., a Question, like D. D.'s, (read Dee-Dees,) for Doctors of Divinity; or else, more erroneously, for cues, the plural of cue, a turn which the next speaker catches.
OBS. 23.—In the following example, the apostrophe and s are used to give the sound of a verb's termination, to words which the writer supposed were not properly verbs: "When a man in a soliloquy reasons with himself, and pro's and con's, and weighs all his designs."—Congreve. But here, "proes and cons," would have been more accurate. "We put the ordered number of m's into our composing-stick."—Printer's Gram. Here "Ems" would have done as well. "All measures for folio's and quarto's, should be made to m's of the English body; all measures for octavo's, to Pica m's."—Ibid. Here regularity requires, "folios, quartoes, octavoes," and "pica Ems." The verb is, when contracted, sometimes gives to its nominative the same form as that of the possessive case, it not being always spaced off for distinction, as it may be; as,
"A wit's a feather, and a chief a rod;
An honest man's the noblest work of God."
—Pope, on Man, Ep. iv, l. 247.
OBS. 24.—As the objective case of nouns is to be distinguished from the nominative, only by the sense, relation, and position, of words in a sentence, the learner must acquire a habit of attending to these several things. Nor ought it to be a hardship to any reader to understand that which he thinks worth reading. It is seldom possible to mistake one of these cases for the other, without a total misconception of the author's meaning. The nominative denotes the agent, actor, or doer; the person or thing that is made the subject of an affirmation, negation, question, or supposition: its place, except in a question, is commonly before the verb. The objective, when governed by a verb or a participle, denotes the person on whom, or the thing on which, the action falls and terminates: it is commonly placed after the verb, participle, or preposition, which governs it. Nouns, then, by changing places, may change cases: as, "Jonathan loved David;" "David loved Jonathan." Yet the case depends not entirely upon position; for any order in which the words cannot be misunderstood, is allowable: as, "Such tricks hath strong imagination."—Shak. Here the cases are known, because the meaning is plainly this: "Strong imagination hath such tricks." "To him give all the prophets witness."—Acts, x, 43. This is intelligible enough, and more forcible than the same meaning expressed thus: "All the prophets give witness to him." The order of the words never can affect the explanation to be given of them in parsing, unless it change the sense, and form them into a different sentence.
THE DECLENSION OF NOUNS.
The declension of a noun is a regular arrangement of its numbers and cases.
Thus:—
EXAMPLE I.—FRIEND.
Sing. Nom. friend, Plur. Nom. friends,
Poss. friend's, Poss. friends',
Obj. friend; Obj. friends.
EXAMPLE II.—MAN.
Sing. Nom. man, Plur. Nom. men,
Poss. man's, Poss. men's,
Obj. man; Obj. men.
EXAMPLE III.—FOX.
Sing. Nom. fox, Plur. Nom. foxes,
Poss. fox's, Poss. foxes',
Obj. fox; Obj. foxes.
EXAMPLE IV.—FLY.
Sing. Nom. fly, Plur. Nom. flies,
Poss. fly's, Poss. flies',
Obj. fly; Obj. flies.
EXAMPLES FOR PARSING.
PRAXIS III.—ETYMOLOGICAL.
_In the Third Praxis, it is required of the pupil—to distinguish and define the different parts of speech, and the classes and modifications of the ARTICLES and NOUNS.
The definitions to be given in the Third Praxis, are two for an article, six for a noun, and one for an adjective, a pronoun, a verb, a participle, an adverb, a conjunction, a preposition, or an interjection. Thus_:—
EXAMPLE PARSED.
"The writings of Hannah More appear to me more praiseworthy than Scott's."
The is the definite article. 1. An article is the word the, an, or a, which we put before nouns to limit their signification. 2. The definite article is the, which denotes some particular thing or things.
Writings is a common noun, of the third person, plural number, neuter gender, and nominative case. 1. A noun is the name of any person, place, or thing, that can be known or mentioned. 2. A common noun is the name of a sort, kind, or class, of beings or things. 3. The third person is that which denotes the person or thing merely spoken of. 4. The plural number is that which denotes more than one. 5. The neuter gender is that which denotes things that are neither male nor female. 6. The nominative case is that form or state of a noun or pronoun, which usually denotes the subject of a finite verb.
Of is a preposition. 1. A preposition is a word used to express some relation of different things or thoughts to each other, and is generally placed before a noun or a pronoun.
Hannah More is a proper noun, of the third person, singular number, feminine gender, and objective case. 1. A noun is the name of any person, place, or thing, that can be known or mentioned. 2. A proper noun is the name of some particular individual, or people, or group. 3. The third person is that which denotes the person or thing merely spoken of. 4. The singular number is that which denotes but one. 5. The feminine gender is that which denotes persons or animals of the female kind. 6. The objective case is that form or state of a noun or pronoun, which usually denotes the object of a verb, participle, or preposition.
Appear is a verb. 1. A verb is a word that signifies to be, to act, or to be acted upon.
To is a preposition. 1. A preposition is a word used to express some relation of different things or thoughts to each other, and is generally placed before a noun or a pronoun.
Me is a pronoun. 1. A pronoun is a word used in stead of a noun.
More is an adverb. 1. An adverb is a word added to a verb, a participle, an adjective, or an other adverb; and generally expresses time, place, degree, or manner.
Praiseworthy is an adjective. 1. An adjective is a word added to a noun or pronoun, and generally expresses quality.
Than is a conjunction. 1. A conjunction is a word used to connect words or sentences in construction, and to show the dependence of the terms so connected.
Scott's is a proper noun, of the third person, singular number, masculine gender, and possessive case. 1. A noun is the name of any person, place, or thing, that can be known or mentioned. 2. A proper noun is the name of some particular individual, or people, or group. 3. The third person is that which denotes the person or thing merely spoken of. 4. The singular number is that which denotes but one. 5. The masculine gender is that which denotes persons or animals of the male kind. 6. The possessive case is that form or state of a noun or pronoun, which usually denotes the relation of property.
LESSON I.—PARSING.
"The virtue of Alexander appears to me less vigorous than that of Socrates. Socrates in Alexander's place I can readily conceive: Alexander in that of Socrates I cannot. Alexander will tell you, he can subdue the world: it was a greater work in Socrates to fulfill the duties of life. Worth consists most, not in great, but in good actions."—Kames's Art of Thinking, p. 70.
"No one should ever rise to speak in public, without forming to himself a just and strict idea of what suits his own age and character; what suits the subject, the hearers, the place, the occasion."—Blair's Rhetoric, p. 260.
"In the short space of little more than a century, the Greeks became such statesmen, warriors, orators, historians, physicians, poets, critics, painters, sculptors, architects, and, last of all, philosophers, that one can hardly help considering that golden period, as a providential event in honour of human nature, to show to what perfection the species might ascend."—Harris's Hermes, p. 417.
"Is genius yours? Be yours a glorious end,
Be your king's, country's, truth's, religion's friend."—Young.
LESSON II.—PARSING.
"He that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman: likewise also, he that is called, being free, is Christ's servant."—1 Cor., vii, 22.
"What will remain to the Alexanders, and the Cæsars, and the Jenghizes, and the Louises, and the Charleses, and the Napoleons, with whose 'glories' the idle voice of fame is filled?"—J. Dymond. "Good sense, clear ideas, perspicuity of language, and proper arrangement of words and thoughts, will always command attention."—Blair's Rhet., p. 174.
"A mother's tenderness and a father's care are nature's gifts for man's advantage.—Wisdom's precepts form the good man's interest and happiness."—Murray's Key, p. 194.
"A dancing-school among the Tuscaroras, is not a greater absurdity than a masquerade in America. A theatre, under the best regulations, is not essential to our happiness. It may afford entertainment to individuals; but it is at the expense of private taste and public morals."—Webster's Essays, p. 86.
"Where dancing sunbeams on the waters played,
And verdant alders form'd a quivering shade."—Pope.
LESSON III.—PARSING.
"I have ever thought that advice to the young, unaccompanied by the routine of honest employments, is like an attempt to make a shrub grow in a certain direction, by blowing it with a bellows."—Webster's Essays, p. 247.
"The Arabic characters for the writing of numbers, were introduced into
Europe by Pope Sylvester II, in the eleventh century."—Constable's
Miscellany.
"Emotions raised by inanimate objects, trees, rivers, buildings, pictures, arrive at perfection almost instantaneously; and they have a long endurance, a second view producing nearly the same pleasure with the first."—Kames's Elements, i, 108.
"There is great variety in the same plant, by the different appearances of its stem, branches, leaves, blossoms, fruit, size, and colour; and yet, when we trace that variety through different plants, especially of the same kind, there is discovered a surprising uniformity."—Ib., i, 273.
"Attitude, action, air, pause, start, sigh, groan,
He borrow'd, and made use of as his own."—Churchill.
"I dread thee, fate, relentless and severe,
With all a poet's, husband's, father's fear!"—Burns.
IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION.
ERRORS OF NOUNS.
LESSON I.—NUMBERS.
"All the ablest of the Jewish Rabbis acknowledge it."—Wilson's Heb.
Gram., p. 7.
[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the word Rabbi is here made plural by the addition of s only. But, according to Observation 12th on the Numbers, nouns in i ought rather to form the plural in ies. The capital R, too, is not necessary. Therefore, Rabbis should be rabbies, with ies and a small r.]
"Who has thoroughly imbibed the system of one or other of our Christian rabbis."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 378. "The seeming singularitys of reason soon wear off."—Collier's Antoninus, p. 47. "The chiefs and arikis or priests have the power of declaring a place or object taboo."—Balbi's Geog., p. 460. "Among the various tribes of this family, are the Pottawatomies, the Sacs and Foxes, or Saukis and Ottogamis."—Ib., p. 178. "The Shawnees, Kickapoos, Menomonies, Miamis and Delawares, are of the same region."—Ib., p. 178. "The Mohegans and Abenaquis belonged also to this family."—Ib., p. 178. "One tribe of this family, the Winnebagos, formerly resided near lake Michigan."—Ib., p. 179. "The other tribes are the Ioways, the Otoes, the Missouris, the Quapaws."—Ib., p. 179. "The great Mexican family comprises the Aztecs, Toltecs, and Tarascos."—Ib., p. 179. "The Mulattoes are born of negro and white parents; the Zambos, of Indians and negroes."—Ib., p. 165. "To have a place among the Alexanders, the Cæsars, the Lewis', or the Charles', the scourges and butchers of their fellow-creatures."—Burgh's Dignity, i, 132. "Which was the notion of the Platonic Philosophers and Jewish rabbii."—Ib., p. 248. "That they should relate to the whole body of virtuosos."—Gobbett's E. Gram., ¶ 212. "What thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them."—Luke, vi, 32. "There are five ranks of nobility; dukes, marquesses, earls, viscounts, and barons."—Balbi's Geog., p. 228. "Acts, which were so well known to the two Charles's."—Payne's Geog., ii, 511. "Court Martials are held in all parts, for the trial of the blacks."—Observer, No. 458. "It becomes a common noun, and may have a plural number; as, the two Davids; the two Scipios, the two Pompies."—Staniford's Gram., p. 8. "The food of the rattlesnake is birds, squirrels, hare, rats, and reptiles."—Balbi's Geog., p. 177. "And let fowl multiply in the earth."—Genesis, i, 22. "Then we reached the hill-side where eight buffalo were grazing."—Martineau's Amer., i, 202. "Corset, n. a pair of bodice for a woman."—Worcester's Dict., 12mo. "As the be's; the ce's, the doubleyu's."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 40. "Simplicity is the means between ostentation and rusticity."—Pope's Pref. to Homer. "You have disguised yourselves like tipstaves."—Gil Blas, i, 111. "But who, that hath any taste, can endure the incessant quick returns of the also's, and the likewise's, and the moreover's, and the however's, and the notwithstanding's?"—Campbell's Rhet., p. 439.
"Sometimes, in mutual sly disguise,
Let Aye's seem No's, and No's seem Aye's."—Gay, p. 431.
LESSON II.—CASES.
"For whose name sake, I have been made willing."—Wm. Penn.
[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the noun name, which is here meant for the possessive case singular, has not the true form of that case. But, according to a principle on page 258th, "The possessive case of nouns is formed, in the singular number, by adding to the nominative s preceded by an apostrophe; and, in the plural, when the nominative ends in s, by adding an apostrophe only." Therefore, name should be name's; thus, "For whose name's sake, I have been made willing."]
"Be governed by your conscience, and never ask anybodies leave to be honest."—Collier's Antoninus, p. 105. "To overlook nobodies merit or misbehaviour."—Ib., p. 9. "And Hector at last fights his way to the stern of Ajax' ship."—Coleridge's Introd., p. 91. "Nothing is lazier, than to keep ones eye upon words without heeding their meaning."— Philological Museum, i, 645. "Sir William Joneses division of the day."—Ib., Contents. "I need only refer here to Vosses excellent account of it."—Ib., i, 465. "The beginning of Stesichoruses palinode has been preserved."—Ib., i, 442. "Though we have Tibulluses elegies, there is not a word in them about Glycera."—Ib., p. 446. "That Horace was at Thaliarchuses country-house."—Ib., i, 451. "That Sisyphuses foot-tub should have been still in existence."—Ib., i, 468. "How every thing went on in Horace's closet, and in Mecenases antechamber."—Ib., i, 458. "Who, for elegant brevities sake, put a participle for a verb."—Walker's Particles, p. 42. "The countries liberty being oppressed, we have no more to hope."—Ib., p. 73. "A brief but true account of this peoples' principles."—Barclay's Pref. "As, the Churche's Peace, or the Peace of the Church; Virgil's Eneid, or the Eneid of Virgil"—British Gram., p. 93. "As, Virgil's Æneid, for the Æneid of Virgil; the Church'es Peace, for the Peace of the Church."—Buchanan's Syntax, p. 18. "Which, with Hubner's Compend, and Wells' Geographia Classica, will be sufficient."— Burgh's Dignity, i, 155. "Witness Homer's speaking horses, scolding goddesses, and Jupiter enchanted with Venus' girdle."—Ib., i, 184. "Dr. Watts' Logic may with success be read and commented on to them."—Ib., p. 156. "Potter's Greek, and Kennet's Roman Antiquities, Strauchius' and Helvicus' Chronology."—Ib., p. 161. "Sing. Alice' friends, Felix' property; Plur. The Alices' friends, The Felixes' property."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 46. "Such as Bacchus'es company,"—"at Bacchus'es festivals."—Ainsworth's Dict., w. Thyrsus. "Burn's inimitable Tam o'Shanter turns entirely upon such a circumstance."—Scott's Lay, Notes, p. 201. "Nominative, Men. Genitive, Mens. Objective, Men."—Cutler's Gram., p. 20. "Mens Happiness or Misery is most part of their own making."—Locke, on Education, p. 1. "That your Sons Cloths be never made strait, especially about the Breast."—Ib., p. 15. "Childrens Minds are narrow and weak."—Ib., p. 297. "I would not have little Children much tormented about Punctilio's, or Niceties of Breeding."—Ib., p. 90. "To fill his Head with suitable Idea's."—Ib., p. 113. "The Burgusdiscius's and the Scheiblers did not swarm in those Days, as they do now."—Ib., p. 163. "To see the various ways of dressing—a calve's head!"—Shenstone, Brit. Poets, Vol. vii, p. 143.
"He puts it on, and for decorum sake
Can wear it e'en as gracefully as she."—Cowper's Task.
LESSON III.—MIXED.
"Simon the witch was of this religion too."—Bunyan's P. P., p. 123.
[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the feminine name witch is here applied to a man. But, according to the doctrine of genders, on page 254th, "Names of males are masculine; names of females, feminine;" &c. Therefore, witch should be wizard; thus, "Simon the wizard," &c.]
"Mammodis, n. Coarse, plain India muslins."—Webster's Dict. "Go on from single persons to families, that of the Pompeyes for instance."—Collier's Antoninus, p. 142. "By which the ancients were not able to account for phænomenas."—Bailey's Ovid, p. vi. "After this I married a wife who had lived at Crete, but a Jew by birth."—Josephus's Life, p. 194. "The very heathen are inexcusable for not worshipping him."—Student's Manual, p. 328. "Such poems as Camoen's Lusiad, Voltaire's Henriade, &c."—Blair's Rhet., p. 422. "My learned correspondent writes a word in defence of large scarves."—SPECT.: in Joh. Dict. "The forerunners of an apoplexy are dulness, vertigos, tremblings."—ARBUTHNOT: ib. "Vertigo changes the o into ~in=es, making the plural vertig~in=es."—Churchill's Gram., p. 59. "Noctambulo changes the o into =on=es, making the plural noctambul=on=es."—Ib., p. 59. "What shall we say of noctambulos?"—ARBUTHNOT: in Joh. Dict. "In the curious fretwork of rocks and grottos."—Blair's Rhet., p. 220. "Wharf makes the plural wharves."—Smith's Gram., p. 45; Merchant's, 29; Picket's, 21; Frost's, 8. "A few cent's worth of maccaroni supplies all their wants."—Balbi's Geog., p. 275. "C sounds hard, like k, at the end of a word or syllables."—Blair's Gram., p. 4. "By which the virtuosi try The magnitude of every lie."—Hudibras. "Quartos, octavos, shape the lessening pyre."—Pope's Dunciad, B. i, l. 162. "Perching within square royal rooves."—SIDNEY: in Joh. Dict. "Similies should, even in poetry, be used with moderation."—Blair's Rhet., p. 166. "Similies should never be taken from low or mean objects."—Ib., p. 167. "It were certainly better to say, 'The house of lords,' than 'the Lord's house.'"—Murray's Gram., 8vo, p. 177. "Read your answers. Unit figure? 'Five.' Ten's? 'Six.' Hundreds? 'Seven.'"—Abbott's Teacher, p. 79. "Alexander conquered Darius' army."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 58. "Three days time was requisite, to prepare matters."—Brown's Estimate, ii, 156. "So we say that Ciceros stile and Sallusts, were not one, nor Cesars and Livies, nor Homers and Hesiodus, nor Herodotus and Theucidides, nor Euripides and Aristophanes, nor Erasmus and Budeus stiles."—Puttenham's Arte of English Poesie, iii, 5. "Lex (i.e. legs) is no other than our ancestors past participle læg, laid down."—Tooke's Diversions, ii, 7. "Achaia's sons at Ilium slain for the Atridæ' sake."—Cowper's Iliad. "The corpse[167] of half her senate manure the fields of Thessaly."—Addison's Cato.
"Poisoning, without regard of fame or fear:
And spotted corpse are frequent on the bier."—Dryden.
CHAPTER IV.—ADJECTIVES.
An Adjective is a word added to a noun or pronoun, and generally expresses quality: as, A wise man; a new book. You two are diligent.
OBSERVATIONS.
OBS. 1.—Adjectives have been otherwise called attributes, attributives, qualities, adnouns; but none of these names is any better than the common one. Some writers have classed adjectives with verbs; because, with a neuter verb for the copula, they often form logical predicates: as, "Vices are contagious." The Latin grammarians usually class them with nouns; consequently their nouns are divided into nouns substantive and nouns adjective. With us, substantives are nouns; and adjectives form a part of speech by themselves. This is generally acknowledged to be a much better distribution. Adjectives cannot with propriety be called nouns, in any language; because they are not the names of the qualities which they signify. They must be added to nouns or pronouns in order to make sense. But if, in a just distribution of words, the term "adjective nouns" is needless and improper, the term "adjective pronouns" is, certainly, not less so: most of the words which Murray and others call by this name, are not pronouns, but adjectives.
OBS. 2.—The noun, or substantive, is a name, which makes sense of itself. The adjective is an adjunct to the noun or pronoun. It is a word added to denote quality, situation, quantity, number, form, tendency, or whatever else may characterize and distinguish the thing or things spoken of. Adjectives, therefore, are distinguished from nouns by their relation to them; a relation corresponding to that which qualities bear to things: so that no part of speech is more easily discriminated than the adjective. Again: English adjectives, as such, are all indeclinable. When, therefore, any words usually belonging to this class, are found to take either the plural or the possessive form, like substantive nouns, they are to be parsed as nouns. To abbreviate expression, we not unfrequently, in this manner, convert adjectives into nouns. Thus, in grammar, we often speak of nominatives, possessives, or objectives, meaning nouns or pronouns of the nominative, the possessive, or the objective case; of positives, comparatives, or superlatives, meaning adjectives of the positive, the comparative, or the superlative degree; of infinitives, subjunctives, or imperatives, meaning verbs of the infinitive, the subjunctive, or the imperative mood; and of singulars, plurals, and many other such things, in the same way. So a man's superiors or inferiors are persons superior or inferior to himself. His betters are persons better than he. Others are any persons or things distinguished from some that are named or referred to; as, "If you want enemies, excel others; if you want friends, let others excel you."—Lacon. All adjectives thus taken substantively, become nouns, and ought to be parsed as such, unless this word others is to be made an exception, and called a "pronoun."
"Th' event is fear'd; should we again provoke
Our stronger, some worse way his wrath may find."
—Milton, P. L., B. ii, l. 82.
OBS. 3.—Murray says, "Perhaps the words former and latter may be properly ranked amongst the demonstrative pronouns, especially in many of their applications. The following sentence may serve as an example: 'It was happy for the state, that Fabius continued in the command with Minutius: the former's phlegm was a check upon the latter's vivacity.'"—Gram., 8vo, p. 57. This I take to be bad English. Former and latter ought to be adjectives only; except when former means maker. And, if not so, it is too easy a way of multiplying pronouns, to manufacture two out of one single anonymous sentence. If it were said, "The deliberation of the former was a seasonable chock upon the fiery temper of the latter" the words former and latter would seem to me not to be pronouns, but adjectives, each relating to the noun commander understood after it.
OBS. 4.—The sense and relation of words in sentences, as well as their particular form and meaning, must be considered in parsing, before the learner can say, with certainty, to what class they belong. Other parts of speech, and especially nouns and participles, by a change in their construction, may become adjectives. Thus, to denote the material of which a thing is formed, we very commonly make the name of the substantive an adjective to that of the thing: as, A gold chain, a silver spoon, a glass pitcher, a tin basin, an oak plank, a basswood slab, a whalebone rod. This construction is in general correct, whenever the former word may be predicated of the latter; as, "The chain is gold."—"The spoon is silver." But we do not write gold beater for goldbeater, or silver smith for silversmith; because the beater is not gold, nor is the smith silver. This principle, however, is not universally observed; for we write snowball, whitewash, and many similar compounds, though the ball is snow and the wash is white; and linseed oil, or Newark cider, may be a good phrase, though the former word cannot well be predicated of the latter. So in the following examples: "Let these conversation tones be the foundation of public pronunciation."—Blair's Rhet., p. 334. "A muslin flounce, made very full, would give a very agreeable flirtation air."—POPE: Priestley's Gram., p. 79.
"Come, calm Content, serene and sweet,
O gently guide my pilgrim feet
To find thy hermit cell."—Barbauld.
OBS. 5.—Murray says, "Various nouns placed before other nouns assume the nature of adjectives: as, sea fish, wine vessel, corn field, meadow ground, &c."—Octavo Gram., p. 48. This is, certainly, very lame instruction. If there is not palpable error in all his examples, the propriety of them all is at least questionable; and, to adopt and follow out their principle, would be, to tear apart some thousands of our most familiar compounds. "Meadow ground" may perhaps be a correct phrase, since the ground is meadow; it seems therefore preferable to the compound word meadow-ground. What he meant by "wine vessel" is doubtful: that is, whether a ship or a cask, a flagon or a decanter. If we turn to our dictionaries, Webster has sea-fish and wine-cask with a hyphen, and cornfield without; while Johnson and others have corn-field with a hyphen, and seafish without. According to the rules for the figure of words, we ought to write them seafish, winecask, cornfield. What then becomes of the thousands of "adjectives" embraced in the "&c." quoted above?
OBS. 6.—The pronouns he and she, when placed before or prefixed to nouns merely to denote their gender, appear to be used adjectively; as, "The male or he animals offered in sacrifice."—Wood's Dict., w. Males. "The most usual term is he or she, male or female, employed as an adjective: as, a he bear, a she bear; a male elephant, a female elephant."—Churchill's Gram., p. 69. Most writers, however, think proper to insert a hyphen in the terms here referred to: as, he-bear, she-bear, the plurals of which are he-bears and she-bears. And, judging by the foregoing rule of predication, we must assume that this practice only is right. In the first example, the word he is useless; for the term "male animals" is sufficiently clear without it. It has been shown in the third chapter, that he and she are sometimes used as nouns; and that, as such, they may take the regular declension of nouns, making the plurals hes and shes. But whenever these words are used adjectively to denote gender, whether we choose to insert the hyphen or not, they are, without question, indeclinable, like other adjectives. In the following example, Sanborn will have he to be a noun in the objective case; but I consider it rather, to be an adjective, signifying masculine:
"(Philosophy, I say, and call it He; For, whatsoe'er the painter's fancy be, It a male-virtue seems to me.")—Cowley, Brit. Poets, Vol. ii, p. 54.
OBS. 7.—Though verbs give rise to many adjectives, they seldom, if ever, become such by a mere change of construction. It is mostly by assuming an additional termination, that any verb is formed into an adjective: as in teachable, moveable, oppressive, diffusive, prohibitory. There are, however, about forty words ending in ate, which, without difference of form, are either verbs or adjectives; as, aggregate, animate, appropriate, articulate, aspirate, associate, complicate, confederate, consummate, deliberate, desolate, effeminate, elate, incarnate, intimate, legitimate, moderate, ordinate, precipitate, prostrate, regenerate, reprobate, separate, sophisticate, subordinate. This class of adjectives seems to be lessening. The participials in ed, are superseding some of them, at least in popular practice: as, contaminated, for contaminate, defiled; reiterated, for reiterate, repeated; situated, for situate, placed; attenuated, for attenuate, made thin or slender. Devote, exhaust, and some other verbal forms, are occasionally used by the poets, in lieu of the participial forms, devoted, exhausted, &c.
OBS. 8.—Participles, which have naturally much resemblance to this part of speech, often drop their distinctive character, and become adjectives. This is usually the case whenever they stand immediately before the nouns to which they relate; as, A pleasing countenance, a piercing eye, an accomplished scholar, an exalted station. Many participial adjectives are derivatives formed from participles by the negative prefix un, which reverses the meaning of the primitive word; as, undisturbed, undivided, unenlightened. Most words of this kind differ of course from participles, because there are no such verbs as to undisturb, to undivide, &c. Yet they may be called participial adjectives, because they have the termination, and embrace the form, of participles. Nor should any participial adjective be needlessly varied from the true orthography of the participle: a distinction is, however, observed by some writers, between past and passed, staid and stayed; and some old words, as drunken, stricken, shotten, rotten, now obsolete as participles, are still retained as adjectives. This sort of words will be further noticed in the chapter on participles.
OBS. 9.—Adverbs are generally distinguished from adjectives, by the form, as well as by the construction, of the words. Yet, in instances not a few, the same word is capable of being used both adjectively and adverbially. In these cases, the scholar must determine the part of speech, by the construction alone; remembering that adjectives belong to nouns or pronouns only; and adverbs, to verbs, participles, adjectives, or other adverbs, only. The following examples from Scripture, will partially illustrate this point, which will be noticed again under the head of syntax: "Is your father well?"—Gen., xliii, 27. "Thou hast well said."—John, iv, 17. "He separateth very friends."—Prov., xvii, 9. "Esaias is very bold."—Rom., x, 20. "For a pretence, ye make long prayer."—Matt., xxiii, 14. "They that tarry long at the wine."—Prov., xxiii, 30. "It had not much earth."—Mark, iv, 5. "For she loved much."—Luke, vii, 47.
OBS. 10.—Prepositions, in regard to their construction, differ from adjectives, almost exactly as active-transitive participles differ syntactically from adjectives: that is, in stead of being mere adjuncts to the words which follow them, they govern those words, and refer back to some other term; which, in the usual order of speech, stands before them. Thus, if I say, "A spreading oak," spreading is an adjective relating to oak; if, "A boy spreading hay," spreading is a participle, governing hay, and relating to boy, because the boy is the agent of the action. So, when Dr. Webster says, "The off horse in a team," off is an adjective, relating to the noun horse; but, in the phrase, "A man off his guard," off is a preposition, showing the relation between man and guard, and governing the latter. The following are other examples: "From the above speculations."—Harris's Hermes, p. 194. "An after period of life."—MARSHALL: in Web. Dict. "With some other of the after Judaical rites."—Right of Tythes, p. 86. "Whom this beneath world doth embrace and hug."—Shak. "Especially is over exertion made."—Journal of Lit. Conv., p. 119. "To both the under worlds."—Hudibras. "Please to pay to A. B. the amount of the within bill." Whether properly used or not, the words above, after, beneath, over, under, and within, are here unquestionably made adjectives; yet every scholar knows, that they are generally prepositions, though sometimes adverbs.
CLASSES.
Adjectives may be divided into six classes; namely, common, proper, numeral, pronominal, participial, and compound.
I. A common adjective is any ordinary epithet, or adjective denoting quality or situation; as, Good, bad, peaceful, warlike—eastern, western, outer, inner.
II. A proper adjective is an adjective formed from a proper name; as, American, English, Platonic, Genoese.
III. A numeral adjective is an adjective that expresses a definite number; as, One, two, three, four, five, six, &c.
IV. A pronominal adjective is a definitive word which may either accompany its noun, or represent it understood; as, "All join to guard what each desires to gain."—Pope. That is, "All men join to guard what each man desires to gain."
V. A participial adjective is one that has the form of a participle, but differs from it by rejecting the idea of time; as, "An amusing story,"—"A lying divination."
VI. A compound adjective is one that consists of two or more words joined together, either by the hyphen or solidly: as, Nut-brown, laughter-loving, four-footed; threefold, lordlike, lovesick.
OBSERVATIONS.
OBS. 1.—This distribution of the adjectives is no less easy to be applied, than necessary to a proper explanation in parsing. How many adjectives there are in the language, it is difficult to say; none of our dictionaries profess to exhibit all that are embraced in some of the foregoing classes. Of the Common Adjectives, there are probably not fewer than six thousand, exclusive of the common nouns which we refer to this class when they are used adjectively. Walker's Rhyming Dictionary contains five thousand or more, the greater part of which may be readily distinguished by their peculiar endings. Of those which end in ous, as generous, there are about 850. Of those in y or ly, as shaggy, homely, there are about 550. Of those in ive, as deceptive, there are about 400. Of those in al, as autumnal, there are about 550. Of those in ical, as mechanical, there are about 350. Of those in able, as valuable, there are about 600. Of those in ible, as credible, there are about 200. Of those in ent, as different, there are about 300. Of those in ant, as abundant, there are about 170. Of those in less, as ceaseless, there are about 220. Of those in ful, as useful, there are about 130. Of those in ory, as explanatory, there are about 200. Of those in ish, as childish, there are about 100. Of those in ine, as masculine, there are about 70. Of those in en, as wooden, there are about 50. Of those in some, as quarrelsome, there are about 30. These sixteen numbers added together, make 4770.
OBS. 2.—The Proper Adjectives are, in many instances, capable of being converted into declinable nouns: as, European, a European, the Europeans; Greek, a Greek, the Greeks; Asiatic, an Asiatic, the Asiatics. But with the words English, French, Dutch, Scotch, Welsh, Irish, and in general all such as would acquire an additional syllable in their declension, the case is otherwise. The gentile noun has frequently fewer syllables than the adjective, but seldom more, unless derived from some different root. Examples: Arabic, an Arab, the Arabs; Gallic, a Gaul, the Gauls; Danish, a Dane, the Danes; Moorish, a Moor, the Moors; Polish, a Pole, or Polander, the Poles; Swedish, a Swede, the Swedes; Turkish, a Turk, the Turks. When we say, the English, the French, the Dutch, the Scotch, the Welsh, the Irish,—meaning, the English people, the French people, &c., many grammarians conceive that English, French, &c., are indeclinable nouns. But in my opinion, it is better to reckon them adjectives, relating to the noun men or people understood. For if these words are nouns, so are a thousand others, after which there is the same ellipsis; as when we say, the good, the great, the wise, the learned.[168] The principle would involve the inconvenience of multiplying our nouns of the singular form and a plural meaning, indefinitely. If they are nouns, they are, in this sense, plural only; and, in an other, they are singular only. For we can no more say, an English, an Irish, or a French, for an Englishman, an Irishman, or a Frenchman; than we can say, an old, a selfish, or a rich, for an old man, a selfish man, or a rich man. Yet, in distinguishing the languages, we call them English, French, Dutch, Scotch, Welsh, Irish; using the words, certainly, in no plural sense; and preferring always the line of adjectives, where the gentile noun is different: as, Arabic, and not Arab; Danish, and not Dane; Swedish, and not Swede. In this sense, as well as in the former, Webster, Chalmers, and other modern lexicographers, call the words nouns; and the reader will perceive, that the objections offered before do not apply here. But Johnson, in his two quarto volumes, gives only two words of this sort, English and Latin; and both of these he calls adjectives: "ENGLISH, adj. Belonging to England; hence English[169] is the language of England." The word Latin, however, he makes a noun, when it means a schoolboy's exercise; for which usage he quotes, the following inaccurate example from Ascham: "He shall not use the common order in schools for making of Latins."
OBS. 3.—Dr. Webster gives us explanations like these: "CHINESE, n. sing. and plu. A native of China; also the language of China."—"JAPANESE, n. A native of Japan; or the language of the inhabitants."—"GENOESE, n. pl. the people of Genoa in Italy. Addison."—"DANISH, n. The language of the Danes."—"IRISH, n. 1. A native of Ireland. 2. The language of the Irish; the Hiberno-Celtic." According to him, then, it is proper to say, a Chinese, a Japanese, or an Irish; but not, a Genoese, because he will have this word to be plural only! Again, if with him we call a native of Ireland an Irish, will not more than one be Irishes?[170] If a native of Japan be a Japanese, will not more than one be Japaneses? In short, is it not plain, that the words, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Maltese, Genoese, Milanese, and all others of like formation, should follow one and the same rule? And if so, what is that rule? Is it not this;—that, like English, French, &c., they are always adjectives; except, perhaps, when they denote languages? There may possibly be some real authority from usage, for calling a native of China a Chinese,—of Japan a Japanese,—&c.; as there is also for the regular plurals, Chineses, Japaneses, &c.; but is it, in either case, good and sufficient authority? The like forms, it is acknowledged, are, on some occasions, mere adjectives; and, in modern usage, we do not find these words inflected, as they were formerly. Examples: "The Chinese are by no means a cleanly people, either in person or dress."—Balbi's Geog., p. 415. "The Japanese excel in working in copper, iron, and steel."—Ib., p. 419. "The Portuguese are of the same origin with the Spaniards."—Ib., p. 272. "By whom the undaunted Tyrolese are led."—Wordsworth's Poems, p. 122. Again: "Amongst the Portugueses, 'tis so much a Fashion, and Emulation, amongst their Children, to learn to Read, and Write, that they cannot hinder them from it."—Locke, on Education, p. 271. "The Malteses do so, who harden the Bodies of their Children, and reconcile them to the Heat, by making them go stark Naked."—Idem, Edition of 1669, p. 5. "CHINESE, n. s. Used elliptically for the language and people of China: plural, Chineses. Sir T. Herbert."—Abridgement of Todd's Johnson. This is certainly absurd. For if Chinese is used elliptically for the people of China, it is an adjective, and does not form the plural, Chineses: which is precisely what I urge concerning the whole class. These plural forms ought not to be imitated. Horne Tooke quotes some friend of his, as saying, "No, I will never descend with him beneath even a Japanese: and I remember what Voltaire remarks of that country."—Diversions of Purley, i, 187. In this case, he ought, unquestionably, to have said—"beneath even a native of Japan;" because, whether Japanese be a noun or not, it is absurd to call a Japanese, "that country." Butler, in his Hudibras, somewhere uses the word Chineses; and it was, perhaps, in his day, common; but still, I say, it is contrary to analogy, and therefore wrong. Milton, too, has it:
"But in his way lights on the barren plains
Of Sericana, where Chineses[171] drive
With sails and wind their cany waggons light."
—Paradise Lost, B. iii, l. 437.
OBS. 4.—The Numeral Adjectives are of three kinds, namely, cardinal, ordinal, and multiplicative: each kind running on in a series indefinitely. Thus:—
1. Cardinal; One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, &c.
2. Ordinal; First, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth, seventeenth, eighteenth, nineteenth, twentieth, twenty-first, twenty-second, &c.
3. Multiplicative; Single or alone, double or twofold, triple or threefold, quadruple or fourfold, quintuple or fivefold, sextuple or sixfold, septuple or sevenfold, octuple or eightfold, &c. But high terms of this series are seldom used. All that occur above decuple or tenfold, are written with a hyphen, and are usually of round numbers only; as, thirty-fold, sixty-fold, hundred-fold.
OBS. 5.—A cardinal numeral denotes the whole number, but the corresponding ordinal denotes only the last one of that number, or, at the beginning of a series, the first of several or many. Thus: "One denotes simply the number one, without any regard to more; but first has respect to more, and so denotes only the first one of a greater number; and two means the number two completely; but second, the last one of two: and so of all the rest."—Burn's Gram., p. 54. A cardinal number answers to the question, "How many?" An ordinal number answers to the question, "Which one?" or, "What one?" All the ordinal numbers, except first, second, third, and the compounds of these, as twenty-first, twenty-second, twenty-third, are formed directly from the cardinal numbers by means of the termination th. And as the primitives, in this case, are many of them either compound words, or phrases consisting of several words, it is to be observed, that the addition is made to the last term only. That is, of every compound ordinal number, the last term only is ordinal in form. Thus we say, forty-ninth, and not fortieth-ninth; nor could the meaning of the phrase, four hundred and fiftieth, be expressed by saying, fourth hundredth and fiftieth; for this, if it means any thing, speaks of three different numbers.
OBS. 6.—Some of the numerals are often used as nouns; and, as such, are regularly declined: as, Ones, twoes, threes, fours, fives, &c. So, Fifths, sixths, sevenths, eighths, ninths, tenths, &c. "The seventy's translation."—Wilson's Hebrew Gram., p. 32. "I will not do it for forty's sake."—Gen., xviii, 29. "I will not destroy it for twenty's sake."—Ib., ver. 31. "For ten's sake."—Ib., ver. 32. "They sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties."—Mark, vi, 40. "There are millions of truths that a man is not concerned to know."—Locke. With the compound numerals, such a construction is less common; yet the denominator of a fraction may be a number of this sort: as, seven twenty-fifths. And here it may be observed, that, in stead of the ancient phraseology, as in 1 Chron., xxiv, 17th, "The one and twentieth to Jachin, the two and twentieth to Gamul, the three and twentieth to Delaiah, the four and twentieth to Maaziah," we now generally say, the twenty-first, the twenty-second, &c.; using the hyphen in all compounds till we arrive at one hundred, or one hundredth, and then first introducing the word and; as, one hundred and one, or one hundred and first, &c.
OBS. 7.—The Pronominal Adjectives are comparatively very few; but frequency of use gives them great importance in grammar. The following words are perhaps all that properly belong to this class, and several of these are much oftener something else: All, any, both, certain, divers, each, either, else, enough, every, few, fewer, fewest, former, first, latter, last, little, less, least, many, more, most, much, neither, no or none, one, other, own, only, same, several, some, such, sundry, that, this, these, those, what, whatever, whatsoever, which, whichever, whichsoever.[172] Of these forty-six words, seven are always singular, if the word one is not an exception; namely, each, either, every, neither, one, that, this: and nine or ten others are always plural, if the word many is not an exception; namely, both, divers, few, fewer, fewest, many, several, sundry, these, those. All the rest, like our common adjectives, are applicable to nouns of either number. Else, every, only, no, and none, are definitive words, which I have thought proper to call pronominal adjectives, though only the last can now with propriety be made to represent its noun understood. "Nor has Vossius, or any else that I know of, observed it."—Johnson's Gram. Com., p. 279. Say, "or any one else." Dr. Webster explains this word else thus: "ELSE, a. or pron. [Sax. elles] Other; one or something beside; as, Who else is coming?"—Octavo Dict. "Each and every of them," is an old phrase in which every is used pronominally, or with ellipsis of the word to which it refers; but, in common discourse, we now say, every one, every man, &c., never using the word every alone to suggest its noun. Only is perhaps most commonly an adverb; but it is still in frequent use as an adjective; and in old books we sometimes find an ellipsis of the noun to which it belongs; as, "Neither are they the only [verbs] in which it is read."—Johnson's Grammatical Commentaries, p. 373. "But I think he is the only [one] of these Authors."—Ib., p. 193. No and none seem to be only different forms of the same adjective; the former being used before a noun expressed, and the latter when the noun is understood, or not placed after the adjective; as, "For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself."—Romans, xiv, 7. None was anciently used for no before all words beginning with a vowel sound; as, "They are sottish children; and they have none understanding."—Jeremiah, iv, 22. This practice is now obsolete. None is still used, when its noun precedes it; as,