The Grammar of English Grammars by Goold Brown (free ebook reader .txt) 📕

plain language together."—Blair's Rhet., p. 146. This means, "metaphorical language and plain language;" and, for the sake of perfect clearness, it would perhaps be better to express it so. "For as intrinsic and relative beauty must often be blended in the same building, it becomes a difficult task to attain both in any perfection."—Karnes, El. of Crit., Vol. ii, p. 330. That is, "intrinsic beauty and relative beauty" must often be blended; and this phraseology would be better. "In correspondence to that distinction of male and female sex."—Blair's Rhet., p. 74. This may be expressed as well or better, in half a dozen other ways; for the article may be added, or the noun may be made plural, with or without the article, and before or after the adjectives. "They make no distinction between causes of civil and criminal jurisdiction."— Adams's Rhet., Vol. i, p. 302. This means—"between causes of civil and causes of criminal jurisdiction;" and, for the sake of perspicuity, it ought to have been so written,—or, still better, thus: "They make no distinction between civil causes and criminal." NOTES TO RULE I.

NOTE I.—When the indefinite article is required, a should always be used before the sound of a consonant, and an, before that of a vowel; as, "With the talents of an angel, a man may be a fool."—Young.

NOTE II.—The article an or a must never be so used as to relate, or even seem to relate, to a plural noun. The following sentence is therefore faulty: "I invited her to spend a day in viewing a seat and gardens."—Rambler, No. 34. Say, "a seat and its gardens."

NOTE III.—When nouns are joined in construction, with different adjuncts, different dependence, or positive contrast, the article, if it belong at all to the latter, must be repeated. The following sentence is therefore inaccurate: "She never considered the quality, but merit of her visitors."—Wm. Penn. Say, "the merit." So the article in brackets is absolutely necessary to the sense and propriety of the following phrase, though not inserted by the learned author: "The Latin introduced between the Conquest and [the] reign of Henry the Eighth."—Fowler's E. Gram., 8vo, 1850, p. 42.

NOTE IV.—When adjectives are connected, and the qualities belong to things individually different, though of the same name, the article should be repeated: as, "A black and a white horse;"—i. e., two horses, one black and the other white. "The north and the south line;"—i. e., two lines, running east and west.

NOTE V.—When adjectives are connected, and the qualities all belong to the same thing or things, the article should not be repeated: as, "A black and white horse;"—i. e., one horse, piebald. "The north and south line;"—i. e., one line, running north and south, like a meridian. NOTE VI.—When two or more individual things of the same name are distinguished by adjectives that cannot unite to describe the same thing, the article must be added to each if the noun be singular, and to the first only if the noun follow them in the plural: as, "The nominative and the objective case;" or, "The nominative and objective cases."—"The third, the fifth, the seventh, and the eighth chapter;" or, "The third, fifth, seventh, and eighth chapters." [338]

NOTE VII.—When two phrases of the same sentence have any special correspondence with each other, the article, if used in the former, is in general required also in the latter: as, "For ye know neither the day nor the hour."—Matt., xxv, 13. "Neither the cold nor the fervid are formed for friendship."—Murray's Key, p. 209. "The vail of the temple was rent in twain, from the top to the bottom."—Matt., xxvii, 51.

NOTE VIII.—When a special correspondence is formed between individual epithets, the noun which follows must not be made plural; because the article, in such a case, cannot be repeated as the construction of correspondents requires. Thus, it is improper to say, "Both the first and second editions" or, "Both the first and the second editions" for the accurate phrase, "Both the first and the second edition;" and still worse to say, "Neither the Old nor New Testaments" or, "Neither the Old nor the New Testaments" for the just expression, "Neither the Old nor the New Testament." Yet we may say, "Neither the old nor the new statutes" or, "Both the early and the late editions;" for here the epithets severally apply to more than one thing.

NOTE IX.—In a series of three or more terms, if the article is used with any, it should in general be added either to every one, or else to the first only. The following phrase is therefore inaccurate: "Through their attention to the helm, the sails, or rigging."—Brown's Estimate, Vol. i, p. 11. Say, "the rigging."

NOTE X.—As the article an or a denotes "one thing of a kind," it should not be used as we use the, to denote emphatically a whole kind; and again, when the species is said to be of the genus, no article should be used to limit the latter. Thus some will say, "A jay is a sort of a bird;" whereas they ought to say, "The jay is a sort of bird." Because it is absurd to suggest, that one jay is a sort of one bird. Yet we may say, "The jay is a bird," or, "A jay is a bird;" because, as every species is one under the genus, so every individual is one under both.

NOTE XI.—The article should not be used before the names of virtues, vices, passions, arts, or sciences, in their general sense; before terms that are strictly limited by other definitives; or before any noun whose signification is sufficiently definite without it: as, "Falsehood is odious."—"Iron is useful."—"Beauty is vain."—"Admiration is useless, when it is not supported by domestic worth"—Webster's Essays, p. 30.

NOTE XII.—When titles are mentioned merely as titles; or names of things, merely as names or words; the article should not be used before them: as, "He is styled Marquis;" not, "the Marquis," or, "a Marquis,"—"Ought a teacher to call his pupil Master?"—"Thames is derived from the Latin name Tam~esis."

NOTE XIII.—When a comparison or an alternative is made with two nouns, if both of them refer to the same subject, the article should not be inserted before the latter; if to different subjects, it should not be omitted: thus, if we say, "He is a better teacher than poet," we compare different qualifications of the same man; but if we say, "He is a better teacher than a poet," we speak of different men, in regard to the same qualification.

NOTE XIV.—The definite article, or some other definitive, (as this, that, these, those,) is generally required before the antecedent to the pronoun who or which in a restrictive clause; as, "All the men who were present, agreed to it."—W. Allen's Gram., p. 145. "The thoughts which passion suggests are always plain and obvious ones."—Blair's Rhet., p. 468. "The things which are impossible with men, are possible with God."—Luke, xviii, 27. See Etymology, Chap. V, Obs. 26th, &c., on Classes of Pronouns.

NOTE XV.—The article is generally required in that construction which converts a participle into a verbal or participial noun; as, "The completing of this, by the working-out of sin inherent, must be by the power and spirit of Christ in the heart."—Wm. Penn. "They shall be an abhorring unto all flesh."—Isaiah, lxvi, 24. "For the dedicating of the altar."—Numb., vii, 11.

NOTE XVI.—The article should not be added to any participle that is not taken in all other respects as a noun; as, "For the dedicating the altar."—"He made a mistake in the giving out the text." Expunge the, and let dedicating and giving here stand as participles only; for in the construction of nouns, they must have not only a definitive before them, but the preposition of after them.

NOTE XVII.—The false syntax of articles properly includes every passage in which there is any faulty insertion, omission, choice, or position, of this part of speech. For example: "When the verb is a passive, the agent and object change places."—Lowth's Gram., p. 73. Better: "When the verb is passive, the agent and the object change places." "Comparisons used by the sacred poets, are generally short."—Russell's Gram., p. 87. Better: "The comparisons," &c. "Pronoun means for noun, and is used to avoid the too frequent repetition of the noun."—Infant School Gram., p. 89. Say rather: "The pronoun is put for a noun, and is used to prevent too frequent a repetition of the noun." Or: "The word PRONOUN means for noun; and a pronoun is used to prevent too frequent a repetition of some noun."

IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION. FALSE SYNTAX UNDER RULE I.

[Fist][The examples of False Syntax placed under the rules and notes, are to be corrected orally by the pupil, according to the formules given, or according to others framed in like manner, and adapted to the several notes.]

EXAMPLES UNDER NOTE I.—AN OR A.

"I have seen an horrible thing in the house of Israel."—Hosea, vi, 10.

[FORMULE.—Not proper, because the article an is used before horrible, which begins with the sound of the consonant h. But, according to Note 1st, under Rule 1st, "When the indefinite article is required, a should always be used before the sound of a consonant, and an, before that of a vowel." Therefore, an should be a; thus, "I have seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel."]

"There is an harshness in the following sentences."—Priestley's Gram., p. 188. "Indeed, such an one is not to be looked for."—Blair's Rhet., p. 27. "If each of you will be disposed to approve himself an useful citizen."—Ib., p. 263. "Land with them had acquired almost an European value."—Webster's Essays, p. 325. "He endeavoured to find out an wholesome remedy."—Neef's Method of Ed., p. 3. "At no time have we attended an Yearly Meeting more to our own satisfaction."—The Friend, v, 224. "Addison was not an humourist in character."—Kames, El. of Crit., i, 303. "Ah me! what an one was he?"—Lily's Gram., p. 49. "He was such an one as I never saw."—Ib. "No man can be a good preacher, who is not an useful one."—Blair's Rhet., p. 283. "An usage which is too frequent with Mr. Addison."—Ib., p. 200. "Nobody joins the voice of a sheep with the shape of an horse."—Locke's Essay, p. 298. "An universality seems to be aimed at by the omission of the article."—Priestley's Gram., p. 154. "Architecture is an useful as well as a fine art."—Kames, El. of Crit., ii, 335. "Because the same individual conjunctions do not preserve an uniform signification."—Nutting's Gram., p. 78. "Such a work required the patience and assiduity of an hermit."—Johnson's Life of Morin. "Resentment is an union of sorrow with malignity."—Rambler, No. 185. "His bravery, we know, was an high courage of blasphemy."—Pope. "Hyssop; a herb of bitter taste."—Pike's Heb. Lex., p. 3.

   "On each enervate string they taught the note
    To pant, or tremble through an Eunuch's throat."—Pope.

UNDER NOTE II.—AN OR A WITH PLURALS.

"At a sessions of the court in March, it was moved," &c.—Hutchinson's Hist. of Mass., i, 61. "I shall relate my conversations, of which I kept a memoranda."—Duchess D'Abrantes, p. 26. "I took another dictionary, and with a scissors cut out, for instance, the word ABACUS."—A. B. Johnson's Plan of a Dict., p. 12. "A person very meet seemed he for the purpose, of a forty-five years old."—Gardiner's Music of Nature, p. 338. "And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings."—Luke, ix, 28." There were slain of them upon a three thousand men."—1 Mac., iv, 15." Until I had gained the top of these white mountains, which seemed another Alps of snow."—Addison, Tat., No. 161. "To make them a satisfactory amends for all the losses they had sustained."—Goldsmith's Greece, p. 187. "As a first fruits of many more that shall be gathered."—Barclay's Works, i, 506. "It makes indeed a little amends, by inciting us to oblige people."—Sheffield's Works, ii, 229. "A large and lightsome backstairs leads up to an entry above."—Ib., p. 260. "Peace of mind is an honourable amends for the sacrifices of interest."—Murray's Gram., p. 162; Smith's, 138. "With such a spirit and sentiments were hostilities carried on."—Robertson's America, i, 166. "In the midst of a thick woods, he had long lived a voluntary recluse."—G. B. "The flats look almost like a young woods."—Morning Chronicle. "As we went on, the country for a little ways improved, but scantily."—Essex County Freeman, Vol. ii, No. 11. "Whereby the Jews were permitted to return into their own country, after a seventy years captivity at Babylon."—Rollin's An. Hist., Vol. ii, p. 20. "He did riot go a great ways into the country."—Gilbert's Gram., p. 85.

   "A large amends by fortune's hand is made,
    And the lost Punic blood is well repay'd."—Rowe's Lucan, iv,