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

other account." "It was almost eight of the clock before I could leave that variety of objects."—Spectator, No. 454. Present usage requires—"eight o'clock." "The Greek and Latin writers had a considerable advantage above us."—Blair's Rhet., p. 114. "The study of oratory has this advantage above that of poetry."—Ib., p. 338. "A metaphor has frequently an advantage above a formal comparison."— Jamieson's Rhet., p. 150. This use of above seems to be a sort of Scotticism: an Englishman, I think, would say—"advantage over us," &c. "Hundreds have all these crowding upon them from morning to night."— Abbott's Teacher, p. 33. Better—"from morning till night." But Horne Tooke observes, "We apply TO indifferently to place or time; but TILL to time only, and never to place. Thus we may say, 'From morn TO night th' eternal larum rang;' or, 'From morn TILL night.' &c."—Diversions of Purley, i, 284. NOTES TO RULE XXIII.

NOTE I.—Prepositions must be chosen and employed agreeably to the usage and idiom of the language, so as rightly to express the relations intended. Example of error: "By which we arrive to the last division."—Richard W. Green's Gram., p. vii. Say,—"arrive at." NOTE II.—Those prepositions which are particularly adapted in meaning to two objects, or to more, ought to be confined strictly to the government of such terms only as suit them. Example of error: "What is Person? It is the medium of distinction between the speaker, the object addressed or spoken to, and the object spoken of."—O. B. Peirce's Gram., p. 34. "Between three" is an incongruity; and the text here cited is bad in several other respects.

NOTE III.—An ellipsis or omission of the preposition is inelegant, except where long and general use has sanctioned it, and made the relation sufficiently intelligible. In the following sentence, of is needed: "I will not flatter you, that all I see in you is worthy love."— Shakspeare. The following requires from: "Ridicule is banished France, and is losing ground in England."—Kames, El. of Crit., i, 106.

NOTE IV.—The insertion of a preposition is also inelegant, when the particle is needless, or when it only robs a transitive verb of its proper regimen; as, "The people of England may congratulate to themselves."—DRYDEN: Priestley's Gram., p. 163. "His servants ye are, to whom ye obey."—Rom., vi, 16.

NOTE V.—The preposition and its object should have that position in respect to other words, which will render the sentence the most perspicuous and agreeable. Examples of error: "Gratitude is a forcible and active principle in good and generous minds."—Murray's Key, 8vo, p. 169. Better: "In good and generous minds, gratitude is a forcible and active principle." "By a single stroke, he knows how to reach the heart."— Blair's Rhet., p. 439. Better: "He knows how to reach the heart by a single stroke."

IMPROPRIETIES FOR CORRECTION. FALSE SYNTAX UNDER RULE XXIII. EXAMPLES UNDER NOTE I.—CHOICE OF PREPOSITIONS.

"You have bestowed your favours to the most deserving persons."—Swift, on
E. Tongue.

[FORMULE.—Not proper because the relation between have bestowed and persons is not correctly expressed by the preposition to. But, according to Note 1st under Rule 23d, "Prepositions must be chosen and employed agreeably to the usage and idiom of the language, so as rightly to express the relations intended." This relation would be better expressed by upon; thus, "You have bestowed your favours upon the most deserving persons."]

"But to rise beyond that, and overtop the crowd, is given to few."—Blair's Rhet., p. 351. "This also is a good sentence, and gives occasion to no material remark."—Ib., p. 201. "Though Cicero endeavours to give some reputation of the elder Cato, and those who were his cotemporaries."—Ib., p. 245. "The change that was produced on eloquence, is beautifully described in the Dialogue."—Ib., p. 249. "Without carefully attending to the variation which they make upon the idea."—Ib., p. 367. "All of a sudden, you are transported into a lofty palace."—Hazlitt's Lect., p. 70. "Alike independent on one another."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 398. "You will not think of them as distinct processes going on independently on each other,"—Channing's Self-Culture, p. 15. "Though we say, to depend on, dependent on, and independent on, we say, independently of."—Churchill's Gram., p. 348. "Independently on the rest of the sentence."—Lowth's Gram., p. 78; Guy's, 88; Murray's, i, 145 and 184; Ingersoll's, 150; Frost's, 46; Fisk's, 125; Smith's New Gram., 156; Gould's Lat. Gram., 209; Nixon's Parser, 65. "Because they stand independent on the rest of the sentence."—Fisk's Gram., p. 111. "When a substantive is joined with a participle in English independently in the rest of the sentence."—Adam's Lat. and Eng. Gram., Boston Ed. of 1803, p. 213; Albany Ed. of 1820, p. 166. "Conjunction, comes of the two Latin words con, together, and jungo, to join."—Merchant's School Gram., p. 19. "How different to this is the life of Fulvia!"—Addison's Spect., No. 15. "Loved is a participle or adjective, derived of the word love."—Dr. Ash's Gram., p. 27. "But I would inquire at him, what an office is?"—Barclay's Works, iii, 463. "For the capacity is brought unto action."—Ib., iii, 420. "In this period, language and taste arrive to purity."—Webster's Essays, p. 94. "And should you not aspire at distinction in the republick of letters."—Kirkham's Gram., p. 13. "Delivering you up to the synagogues, and in prisons."—Keith's Evidences, p. 55. "One that is kept from falling in a ditch, is as truly saved, as he that is taken out of one."—Barclay's Works, i, 312. "The best on it is, they are but a sort of French Hugonots."—Addison, Spect., No. 62. "These last Ten Examples are indeed of a different Nature to the former."—Johnson's Gram. Com., p. 333. "For the initiation of students in the principles of the English language."—ANNUAL REVIEW: Murray's Gram., ii, 299. "Richelieu profited of every circumstance which the conjuncture afforded,"—Bolingbroke, on Hist., p. 177. "In the names of drugs and plants, the mistake in a word may endanger life."—Murray's Key, ii, 165. "In order to the carrying on its several parts into execution."—Butler's Analogy, p. 192. "His abhorrence to the superstitious figure."—HUME: Priestley's Gram., p. 164. "Thy prejudice to my cause."—DRYDEN: ib., p. 164. "Which is found among every species of liberty."—HUME: ib., p. 169. "In a hilly region to the north of Jericho."—Milman's Jews, Vol. i, p. 8. "Two or more singular nouns, coupled with AND, require a verb and pronoun in the plural."—Lennie's Gram., p. 83.

   "Books should to one of these four ends conduce,
    For wisdom, piety, delight, or use."—Denham, p. 239.

UNDER NOTE II.—TWO OBJECTS OR MORE.

"The Anglo-Saxons, however, soon quarrelled between themselves for precedence."—Constable's Miscellany, xx, p. 59. "The distinctions between the principal parts of speech are founded in nature."—Webster's Essays, p. 7. "I think I now understand the difference between the active, passive, and neuter verbs."—Ingersoll's Gram., p. 124. "Thus a figure including a space between three lines, is the real as well as nominal essence of a triangle."—Locke's Essay, p. 303. "We must distinguish between an imperfect phrase, a simple sentence, and a compound sentence."—Lowth's Gram., p. 117; Murray's, i, 267; Ingersoll's, 280; Guy's, 97. "The Jews are strictly forbidden by their law, to exercise usury among one another."—Sale's Koran, p. 177. "All the writers have distinguished themselves among one another."—Addison. "This expression also better secures the systematic uniformity between the three cases."—Nutting's Gram., p. 98. "When a disjunctive occurs between two or more Infinitive Modes, or clauses, the verb must be singular."— Jaudon's Gram., p. 95. "Several nouns or pronouns together in the same case, not united by and, require a comma between each."—Blair's Gram., p. 115. "The difference between the several vowels is produced by opening the mouth differently, and placing the tongue in a different manner for each."—Churchill's Gram., p. 2. "Thus feet composed of syllables, being pronounced with a sensible interval between each, make a more lively impression than can be made by a continued sound."—Kames, El. of Crit., Vol. ii, p. 32. "The superlative degree implies a comparison between three or more."—Smith's Productive Gram., p. 51. "They are used to mark a distinction between several objects."—Levizac's Gram., p. 85.

UNDER NOTE III.—OMISSION OF PREPOSITIONS.

"This would have been less worthy notice."—Churchill's Gram., p. 197. "But I passed it, as a thing unworthy my notice."—Werter. "Which, in compliment to me, perhaps, you may, one day, think worthy your attention."—Bucke's Gram., p. 81. "To think this small present worthy an introduction to the young ladies of your very elegant establishment."— Ib., p. iv. "There are but a few miles portage."—Jefferson's Notes on Virginia, p. 17. "It is worthy notice, that our mountains are not solitary."—Ib., p. 26. "It is of about one hundred feet diameter."— Ib., 33. "Entering a hill a quarter or half a mile."—Ib., p. 47. "And herself seems passing to that awful dissolution, whose issue is not given human foresight to scan."—Ib., p. 100. "It was of a spheroidical form, of about forty feet diameter at the base, and had been of about twelve feet altitude."—Ib., p. 143. "Before this it was covered with trees of twelve inches diameter, and round the base was an excavation of five feet depth and width."—Ibid. "Then thou mayest eat grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure."—Deut., xxiii, 24. "Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary."—Ezekiel, xliv, 1. "They will bless God that he has peopled one half the world with a race of freemen."—Webster's Essays, p. 94. "What use can these words be, till their meaning is known?"—Town's Analysis, p. 7. "The tents of the Arabs now are black, or a very dark colour."—The Friend, Vol. v, p. 265. "They may not be unworthy the attention of young men."—Kirkham's Elocution, p. 157. "The pronoun that is frequently applied to persons, as well as things."— Merchant's Gram., p. 87. "And who is in the same case that man is."—Sanborn's Gram., p. 148. "He saw a flaming stone, apparently about four feet diameter."—The Friend, vii, 409. "Pliny informs us, that this stone was the size of a cart."—Ibid. "Seneca was about twenty years of age in the fifth year of Tiberius, when the Jews were expelled Rome."—Seneca's Morals, p. 11. "I was prevented[438] reading a letter which would have undeceived me."—Hawkesworth, Adv., No. 54. "If the problem can be solved, we may be pardoned the inaccuracy of its demonstration."—Booth's Introd., p. 25. "The army must of necessity be the school, not of honour, but effeminacy."—Brown's Estimate, i. 65. "Afraid of the virtue of a nation, in its opposing bad measures."—Ib., i, 73. "The uniting them in various ways, so as to form words, would be easy."—Music of Nature, p. 34. "I might be excused taking any more notice of it."—Watson's Apology, p. 65. "Watch therefore; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come."—Matt., xxiv, 42. "Here, not even infants were spared the sword."—M'Ilvaine's Lectures, p. 313. "To prevent men turning aside to corrupt modes of worship."—Calvin's Institutes, B. I, Ch. 12, Sec. 1. "God expelled them the Garden of Eden."—Burder's Hist., Vol. i, p. 10. "Nor could he refrain expressing to the senate the agonies of his mind"—Art of Thinking, p. 123. "Who now so strenuously opposes the granting him any new powers."—Duncan's Cicero, p. 127. "That the laws of the censors have banished him the forum."—Ib., p. 140. "We read not that he was degraded his office any other way."—Barclay's Works, iii, 149. "To all whom these presents shall come, Greeting."—Hutchinson's Mass., i, 459. "On the 1st, August, 1834."—British Act for the Abolition of Slavery.

   "Whether you had not some time in your life
    Err'd in this point which now you censure him."—Shak.

UNDER NOTE IV.—OF NEEDLESS PREPOSITIONS.

"And the apostles and elders came together to consider of this matter."—Barclay's Works, i, 481. "And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter."—Acts, xv, 6. "Adjectives in our Language have neither Case, Gender, nor Number; the only Variation they have is by Comparison."—Buchanan's Gram., p. 27. "'It is to you, that I am indebted for this privilege;' that is, 'to you am I indebted;' or, 'It is to you to whom I am indebted.'"—Sanborn's Gram., p. 232. "Books is a noun, of the third person, plural number, of neuter gender,"— Ingersoll's Gram., p. 15. "Brother's is a common substantive, of the masculine gender, the third person, the singular number, and in the possessive case."—Murray's Gram., i, 229. "Virtue's is a common substantive, of the third person, the singular number, and in the possessive case."—Ib., i, 228. "When the authorities on one side greatly preponderate, it is in vain to oppose the prevailing usage."—Campbell's Rhet., p. 173; Murray's Gram., i, 367. "A captain of a troop of banditti, had a mind to be plundering of Rome."—Collier's Antoninus, p. 51. "And, notwithstanding of its Verbal power, we have added the to and other signs of exertion."—Booth's Introd., p. 28. "Some of these situations are termed CASES, and are expressed by additions to the Noun instead of by separate words."—Ib., p. 33. "Is it such a fast