WEBSTER-COOLEY LANGUAGE SERIES ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION WILLIAM FRANK WEBSTEI\ /O DE No. (Q'. N m Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2008 with funding from Microsoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/elementarycomposOOwebsrich WEBSTER-COOLEY LA:NGUAGE SERIES ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION BT W. F. WEBSTER Principal of the East High School, Minneapolis, Minnesota ASSISTED BY ALICE WOODWOKTH COOLEY HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY Boston : 4 Pakk Street ; New York : 85 Fifth Avenue Chicago: 378-388 Wabash Avenue COPYRIGHT, 1903, BY HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED EDUCATION DEPT. Acknowledgmeiits are due to Messrs. Charles Scribner's Sons for their kind permission to use se- lections from the writings of Henry van Dyke and Robert Louis Stevenson ; to the Bobbs-Merrill Co. for the use of a selection from James Whitcomb Riley ; to Little, Brown & Co. for the use of " The True Ballad of the King's Singer," by Helen Hunt Jackson ; and to the American Book Company for the use of " The Origin of Rivers," from Baldwin's '* School Readings by Grades." PREFACE. Composition and grammar are very intimately bound together. In the earlier years of a school course, they are generally considered as one sub- ject, — language ; but in the later years they are pursued as separate subjects. Among educators there is a difference of opinion regarding the time when composition and grammar should be taught. One group, and that the larger, drop the regular study of composition when the study of grammar begins. This may be in the sixth, seventh, or eighth year of a school course, — rarely as late as the eighth. They aver that there is not time to pursue both grammar and composition; and as grammar must be finished before the high school period, composition, except the writing of occa- sional essays, must be dropped. They say, too, that while studying grammar, a child is learning composition; for familiarity with the principles governing a language is a direct and positive influ- ence leading to correct expression. The second group hold that a knowledge of the grammar of a language is a great aid to expres- sion ; but that expression is not best learned through grammar alone. Grammar deals only 54 1442 iv PREFACE with sentences ; but composition deals with words, sentences, paragraphs, and the larger themes. To gain a knowledge of these subjects requires care- ful instruction. They also hold that for the child who leaves school before the high school period, there is a serious limitation of his ability to meet life, if he has been deprived of any possible train- ing in the power of expression ; and that for the child that will remain in school, any break in the continuity of language training at a time when he is passing from a mere child to a self-conscious boy or girl is perilous. Moreover, they believe that in language, as in any other art, more is learned by doing than by studying how to do. These would have the language and grammar con- tinued side by side as in the earlier grades. Some will prefer to continue the study of com- position, but to them the question will arise : how can there be time enough ? In the earlier years of a school course, a period a day is given to read- ing and a period to language, — making in all, ten periods a week to language subjects. A pro- gramme that gives more than this amount of time to these subjects lacks balance. There must, then, be a division of this time among the three subjects. For a child who leaves school at the end of the grammar grades, — and he belongs to the great majority, — there is no need of as much instruction in grammar as two full years will give. Moreover, much of the grammar requires greater maturity of PREFACE V thought than the average twelve-year-old has. The evident solution is to reduce the amount of grammar in the seventh grade, giving more time for language ; and in the eighth year to reduce the time given to literature and language, placing the stress upon grammar. The following tables indi- cate a possible division of the time : — Seventh Year. Eighth Year. Beading. Composition. Grammar. Beading. Composition. Grammar. 4 4 2 3 3 4 or or OP or or or 5 3 2 3 2 5 This book, the third in this series, has been written with both classes in mind. It can be used in the first year of a high school course by those who suspended the regular study of composition in the grammar grades, and will make an easy intro- duction to the more advanced study of high school classics and composition. Or it will be found to contain sufficient material for study, if the compo- sition is pursued in conjunction with grammar, and it will give an adequate preparation for high school composition and literature. A word should be said about the subjects for composition. The object has been to make them as varied and suggestive as possible. But no per- son can assign subjects for composition so happily as the teacher of a class. She is acquainted with the manifold interests of the little community of vi PREFACE which she has charge. Their lives are crowded with incidents ; their minds have earnest thoughts ; their hearts quiver with deep feehng. The real teacher keeps close to the hearts of her children ; for there are rich mines of living themes. The subjects in the book are good, and will suggest methods of using material ; but the best composi- tions come from the pulsing lives of the children. This book, like the others of the series, is based on these principles: that exercises are a ready means of fixing correct habits in the use of lan- guage ; that life about us and life in the world of books is crowded with things to talk about ; that literature shows perfect ideals of strong and beau- tiful language ; and that contact with the best that has been thought in the world dignifies a child's thinking and leads to true and lofty expression. W. F. Webster. Minneapolis, Minn., August 9, 1903. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Chapteb. PxaB. I. Quotations . . • . « 1 Direct and Indirect — Use of Quotation Marks — Use of Capital Letters, Commas, Semicolon, Colon. II. Paragraphs 22 Topic Sentence — Length of Paragraph — Unity of Paragraph. III. Sentences . . , 75 Use of Synonyms — Use of Antonyms — Use of Com- parisons — Figures of Speech — Unity of Sentences. IV. Composition Writing 145 L Knowledge of Subject — Interest in Subject — Length of Essay — Condensation — Amplification — Proportion of Treatment. V. Narration 178 U Unity — The Main Incident — ■ Consistency — The Be- ginning of a Story. VI. Description 205 Observation — Point of View — Unity — Feeling — Number of Details. VII. Exposition 239 Use of Outlines — Exposition by Repetition — By Ob- verse Repetition — By Examples — By Analogy. VIII. Letter Writing 264 The Heading — Address — Salutation — Body of a Letter — Complimentary Close — Signature — Formal and Informal Notes. The Great Stone Face 292 Rules for Punctuation - 317 ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGK Queen Louise 55 Richter. The Lion of Lucerne ....•• ^ - 69 Thorwaldsen. The Great Stone Face .•..•* . 77 From a Photograph, Beethoven in his Study . . . . * « . 155 Schloesser, Morning Prayers in the Family of Sebastian Bach . 165 RosenthaL Mozart singing his Requiem i 171 Shields. The Wounded Lioness . • . • o * - 213 Dicksee. Curiosity , . 227 J, Adam, ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION. CHAPTER I. QUOTATION MARKS. DIRECT QUOTATIONS. 1. " Will they be Indians ? " inquired my brother (meaning the enemy); "or Roundheads, or what?" 2. I reflected. Harold always required direct, straight- forward answers — not faltering suppositions. 3. " They won't be Indians," I replied at last ; " nor yet Roundheads. There haven't been any Roundheads seen about here for a long time. They '11 be French- men." 4. Harold's face fell. "All right," he said; "French- men '11 do ; but I did hope they 'd be Indians." 5. " If they were going to be Indians," I explained, — " I don't think I 'd go on. Because when Indians take you prisoner, they scalp you first, and then burn you at a stake. But Frenchmen don't do that sort of thing." 6. " Are you quite sure ? " asked Harold doubtfully. 7. " Quite," I replied. " Frenchmen only shut you up in a thing called a Bastille ; and then you get a file sent in to you in a loaf of bread, and saw the bars through, and slide down a rope, and they all fire at you — but they don't hit you, — and you run down to the seashore as hard as you can, and swim off to a British frigate and there you are." Gbahame, from The Golden Age, •2 ' ' ' 'ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION '"' 111 'tte'^ele^-ticm just quoted, the exact words of the speakers have been reported. These words and sentences are direct quotations. A direct quotation is one that reports the exact words of a speaker or writer. There are certain rules for the punctuation of quotations. They have been followed by the author in the selection quoted above. By studying care- fully the way it is punctuated, the method of punctuation for all quotations may be learned. 1. Every direct quotation should be inclosed in quo- tation marks (" "). In the first paragraph of the selection above, " Will they be Indians, or Roundheads, or what ? " is one question, asked by one person ; and if it were not broken in two by the words, " inquired my brother (meaning the enemy)," there would be no need of two sets of marks. It would be written as follows : — " Will they be Indians, or Roundheads, or what ? " in- quired my brother (meaning the enemy). Since, however, the quotation is broken by some words of the author, there is need of two sets of quotation marks. And so there follows this sec- ond rule : — 2. If a direct quotation is broken by some words of the author, each part of the quotation should be in- closed in quotation marks. QUOTATION MARKS 3 Exercise. Re-write the following sentences, taken from J. G. Holland's *^ Arthur Bonnicastle/' putting in the quotation marks wherever they belong. Look very carefully at the other marks of punctuation, — the commas, the semicolons, the interrogation marks, and the exclamation marks. Be sure you can spell every word.^ Arthur Bonnicastle, said the officer before mentioned, you are brought before " The High Society of Inquiry " on a charge of telling so many lies that no dependence whatever can be placed upon your words. What have you to reply to this charge ? Are you guilty or not guilty ? I am not guilty. Who says I am? I exclaimed indig- nantly. Henry Hulm, advance ! said the officer. Henry rose, and walking by me, took a position near the officer, at the head of the room. Henry Hulm, you will look upon the prisoner, and tell the Society whether you know him. I know him well. He is my chum, replied Henry. . . . Do you consider him a boy of truth and veracity ? I do not. Has he deceived you ? inquired the officer. If he has, please to state the occasion and circumstances. No, your Honor. He has never deceived me. I always know when he lies and when he speaks the truth. Have you ever told him of his crimes and warned him to desist from them ? I have, replied Henry, many times. * This should be given as dictation in class. 4 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION What IS the character of his falsehoods ? He tells, replied Henry, stunning stories about himself. Great things are always happening to him, and he is always performing the most wonderful deeds. I now began with great shame and confusion to realize that I was to be exposed to ridicule. . . . Will you give us some specimens of his stories? said the officer. I will, responded Henry ; but I can do it best by asking him some questions. Very well, said the officer, with a polite bow. Pursue the course you think best. Holland, from Arthur Bonnicastle, CAPITAL LETTEKS. Several rules for the use of capital letters have been learned. Among them are these : — 1. The first word of every sentence should begin with a capital letter. 2. The words I and O are always written with capital letters. 3. The first word of every verse of poetry should begin with a capital letter. 4. All names of the Deity should begin with cap- ital letters. 6. All proper names should begin with capital letters. 6. All adjectives formed from proper names should begin with capital letters. Exercise, Write two sentences to illustrate each of the rules for the use of capital letters. You will find good sentences in the literature you are reading — probably better than you can make up. QUOTATION MARKS 5 Give the reason for every capital letter in the quotation from " The Golden Age." The meaning of two words should be understood. " Round- heads" were men who, led by Cromwell, fought against the English king, Charles I., conquered him, and had him beheaded. They were called ^' Roundheads," because they wore their hair cut very short. '' The Bastille " was a famous prison in the city of Paris. It was destroyed in 1790. Composition Exercise, From the little extract on page 1, what do you think Harold and his older brother were playing ? Was it good fun ? Were there any others in the game? Had any of them seen an Indian? Of course they had never seen a Roundhead. Where were they when they played this game ? Was it in the afternoon, or was it just getting dusk ? Go on and tell how it came out. Or tell of the best time you ever had playing at the game you liked the most. When was it ? Where was it ? Who played ? CAPITAL LETTERS IN QUOTATIONS. The rules for capital letters already learned will explain all the capitals in the following selection, except those in the last paragraph. Look at the way the capital letters are used in that paragraph, and be able to give the seventh rule for the use of capital letters. 6 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION The gentle Prince Arthur has been sent to the castle of Falaise in France by the wicked King John. Dickens goes on with the painful story : — One day, while he was in prison at that castle, mourn- fully thinking it strange that one so young should be in so much trouble, and looking out of the small window in the deep, dark wall, at the summer sky and the birds, the door was softly opened, and he saw his uncle, the King, standing in the shadow of the archway, looking very grim. " Arthur," said the King, with his wicked eyes more on the stone floor than on his nephew, " will you not trust to the gentleness, the friendship, and the truthfulness of your loving uncle ? " " I will tell my loving uncle that," replied the boy, " when he does me right. Let him restore to me my kingdom of England, and then come to me and ask the question." The King looked at him and went out. " Keep that boy close prisoner," said he to the warden of the castle. Then the King took secret counsel with the worst of his nobles how the Prince was to be got rid of. Some said, " Put out his eyes and keep him in prison, as Rob- ert of Normandy was kept." Others said, " Have him stabbed." Others, " Have him hanged." Others, " Have him poisoned." Dickens, from A Child's History of England. 7. The first word of every direct quotation should begin with a capital letter. Some pupils always begin the second part of a broken quotation with a capital letter. They for- get that there is but one first word of a quotation. If the break in a quotation comes in the middle of a sentence, the second part of the quotation should QUOTATION MARKS 7 not begin with a capital letter, unless for some other good reason. Of course, if it should be a proper name, or the word I or 0, or the first word of a sentence, it should begin with a capital letter, whether it is in a quotation or not. On page 1, paragraph 4, " Frenchmen " begins with a capital letter, not because it is within the quotation marks, but because it is a proper name. So in paragraph 5, " I " before " explained " begins with a capital letter, as it always does. But in paragraph 3, ^^nor" does not begin with a capital letter, though it is the first word of the second part of the quotation. Notice very carefully the position of the marks at the close of a quotation. The quotation marks come after the other marks of punctuation. The period, or the question mark, or the exclamation point is as much a part of a sentence as the last word. There is a big difference between " Yo ho, there, Ebenezer, Dick," and " Yo ho, there ! Eben- ezer ! Dick ! " The marks of punctuation help to express the thought and feeling. If, then, the quo- tation marks inclose the whole of the quotation, they must include the final mark of punctuation. Exercise. Study the following poem. Know who said each thing that is said ; then you will be able to put the quotation marks in the right place. Write these two stanzas from memory. Spell every word correctly. Notice the way Tennyson has spelled 8 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION "buzz'd/' ^^wither'd," and "It's." What is the reason for the apostrophe in these words ? THE BEE AND THE FLOWER. The bee buzz'd up in the heat. " I am faint for your honey, my sweet." The flower said, " Take it, my dear, For now is the spring of the year. So come, come ! " " Hum ! " And the bee buzz'd down from the heat. And the bee buzz'd up in the cold When the flower was wither'd and old. " Have you still any honey, my dear ? " She said, " It 's the fall of the year, But come, come ! " " Hum ! " And the bee buzz'd off in the cold. Alfbed, Lord Tennyson. COMMA, SEMICOLON, AND COLON. Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all. Now the authors of this book were not the first to say this witty sentence. It belongs to Oliver Wendell Holmes. It should have been inclosed in quotation marks, because it is borrowed from him. Notice very carefully the different ways of saying and punctuating this sentence shown in the first six sentences below. Then study the punctuation of the next sentences. QUOTATION MARKS 9 1. Oliver Wendell Holmes said, " Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all." 2. " Sin," said Oliver Wendell Holmes, " has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all." 3. " Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all," said Oliver Wendell Holmes. 4. "Is there any sin that does not call for a lie after- wards ? " asked Oliver Wendell Holmes. 5. " Sin has a thousand tools, and a lie is the handle for them all ! " exclaimed Oliver Wendell Holmes. 6. " Sin has many tools," said Oliver Wendell Holmes ; *' but a lie is the handle which fits them all." 7. This good thing is found in "Poor Richard's Almanac " : "At the workingman's house, hunger looks in but dares not enter." 8. In Whittier's " Seeking of the Waterfall," there are the following beautiful lines : — " To seek is better than to gain. The fond hope dies as we attain ; Life's fairest things are those which seem, The best is that of which we dream." In the first sentence, what mark of punctuation separates the words of the author from the quota- tion ? In the second sentence, what marks separate the words of the author from the quotation ? In the third sentence ? What mark is used for that purpose in the fourth sentence ? Do you know the reason for this mark ? What mark is used in the fifth sentence? Why is a comma not used here ? Can you explain why a semicolon follows the words of the author in the sixth sentence ? 10 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION What mark is used before the formal quotation in the seventh sentence ? What before the formal quotation of the stanza of poetry ? From these sentences we may derive the follow- ing rules for the punctuation of quotations. A short informal quotation is separated from the words of the author by a comma, or by commas. This rule is true whether the quotation precedes, follows, or is divided by the words of the author. It is illustrated by the first three sentences above. Two exceptions should be made to the rule. 1st. A question or an exclamation is followed by a question mark or an exclamation mark, always, whether quoted or not. Notice sentences 4 and 5. 2d. If the quotation is composed of two independent parts, and the words of the author separate these parts, a semicolon, not a comma, usually follows the words of the author. Sentence 6 illustrates this exception. A long quotation, or a quotation formally intro- duced, is usually preceded by a colon, or by a colon and a dash. For examples, see sentences 7 and 8. Exercise. Find in books two examples of the first rule and of each exception. Write them out carefully and bring them to class. Bring also three good ex- amples of formally introduced quotations. Find thoughts that are worthy to be quoted. QUOTATION MARKS 11 Composition Exercise. Monsieur Kandolphe was a poor French peasant. He and his wife worked hard all the long day to get food for their little family. One morning Marc and Robin, their boys, were playing with their pets near the door. Their talk ran on about their rabbits and pigeons, until their sister, Marie, appeared ; then they began to speak of the marriage of Marie to Charles Bertrand, a poor peasant lad. In their conversation it occurred to one of the boys that the only things they had to give their sister as a wedding present were their pet pigeons and rabbits. (The story of these poor boys is found in "The Peasant and the Prince/' by Harriet Martineau.) Write the conversation of the boys about their pets. Then, when Marie appears, have them say a few words to her ; and when she has gone, have one of them announce his decision to give his pets to Marie. Did the other agree to this decision ? The story would not be complete if the reader were not told who the boys were, where they were, and what they were doing. WORD STUDY. Very often it happens that pupils in reporting a conversation use but two words to express the many ways in which persons speak. Whether the person shrieks or barely whispers, the pupil will insist upon using "said" and "asked." It is not a good choice of words to write, " To arms ! to arms ! " suggested the commander ; or " Sh ! see 12 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION interrupted suggested called accosted rejoined yelled spoke remarked retorted questioned whispered shouted explained cried shrieked him ! " he shouted. Below is given a list of the more common words which may be used in report- ing a conversation. Study these words until you are sure you can use them correctly. said inquired asked answered replied Exerdse. Write ten sentences using ten of these words correctly. Have each sentence contain a direct quotation. Exercise. Bring to class ten other words which might be used in reporting a conversation. Write sentences using correctly the words you have found. Have three of the sentences contain broken quotations long enough so that you will need to use semi- colons in them. Composition Exercise. You remember that the officer of the court had just instructed Henry Hulm to pursue the course he thought best in showing that Arthur Bonni- castle did not tell the truth. Will you now go on with the questioning as you think Henry did it. You will have to make up a few ^^ stunning sto- ries " that Arthur had told his room-mate. If you have read the book, make up some other stories QUOTATION MARKS 13 of incidents that could not have happened. Do not forget that Arthur was ashamed and confused, and knew that he was to be exposed to ridicule. What questions would Henry ask to make Arthur a mark for ridicule ? How would Arthur answer if he were confused and ashamed ? PAKAGRAPHESTG. If the selections already quoted be examined, it will be found that every time the speaker changes, there is a new paragraph. What is said by one person makes one paragraph ; and what is said in answer by another person forms a second para- graph. In the selection from ^^ Arthur Bonni- castle," the subject of the first paragraph is the statement of the officer ; and the subject of the second paragraph is the assertion and question of Arthur. Each question and each reply is a group of related sentences, or sometimes but a single sentence, treating a single topic. So m recording a conversation^ what one person saySy whether one word, or a whole page full of words, is usually put into one paragraph. Exercise. In the following selections, make the division into paragraphs as it should be. Also put in the marks of punctuation and capitals which have been omitted. Wherever there are marks of punctuation and capital letters, they are correct. 14 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION THE MAN AND THE GOOSE. A man was plucking a living goose, when his victim addressed him thus suppose you were a goose do you think you would relish this sort of thing well suppose I were answered the man do you think you would like to pluck me indeed I would was the emphatic natural but injudi- cious reply just so concluded her tormentor that 's the way I feel about the matter. THE HODJA'S DONKEY. A friend called on Narr-ed-din to borrow his donkey very sorry says the Hodja who does not wish to lend the animal but the donkey is not here I have hired him out for the day unfortunately just at that moment the donkey begins to bray loudly thus giving the direct lie to the Hodja how is this says his friend you say the donkey is away and here he is braying in the stable ! the Hodja nothing daunted replies in this manner my dear sir please do not demean yourself so low as to believe the donkey rather than myself — a fellow-man and a venerable Hodja with a long gray beard the moral of the last fable some people will never perceive it is this : A donkey will always reveal himself by some inappropriate remark. INDIRECT QUOTATIONS. So far, in the study of quotations, the exact words of the speaker have been reported. It is possible to report the thought of a speaker without giving his exact words. John said that he was afraid, gives a report of what John said, but not in John's exact words. John said, '^ I am afraid," reports QUOTATION MAEKS 15 the same thought and in John's very words. The latter is a direct quotation ; the former is an indi- rect quotation. The following selection is taken from Warner's " Being a Boy." It is almost entirely an indirect quotation. John hoped it would be slippery — very — when he walked home with Cynthia, as he determined to do, but he did not dare to say so, and the conversation ran aground again. John thought about his dog and his sled and his yoke of steers, but he did n't see any way to bring them into conversation. Had she read the " Swiss Family Robinson " ? Only a little ways. John said it was splen- did, and he would lend it to her, for which she thanked him, and said, with such a sweet expression, she should be so glad to have it from him. That was encouraging. And then John asked Cynthia if she had seen Sally Hawkes since the husking at their house, when Sally found so many red ears ; and did n't she think she was a real pretty girl. " Yes, she was right pretty ; " and Cynthia guessed Sally knew it pretty well. But did John like the color of her eyes ? No ; John did n't like the color of her eyes exactly. " Her mouth would do well enough if she did n't laugh so much and show her teeth." John said her mouth was her worst feature. " Oh no," said Cynthia, warmly ; " her mouth is better than her nose." John did n't know but it was better than her nose, but he should like her looks better if her hair was n't so dread- ful black. 16 ELEMENTAEY COMPOSITION But Cynthia, who could afford to be generous now, said she liked black hair, and she wished hers was dark. Whereupon John protested that he liked light hair — auburn hair -;- of all things. Warner, from Being a Boy. An indirect quotation is one that reports the thought, but not the exact words, of a speaker or w^riter. An indirect quotation should not be inclosed within quotation marks. Did you not notice the two words in the selec- tion used incorrectly ? Why are they wrong ? Do not use them in the next exercise. Exercise. Every indirect quotation can be changed into a direct quotation. Commencing in the middle of the first paragraph, where John first speaks to Cynthia, the remainder of it might be made to read as follows : — Then it occurred to John that he might ask Cynthia about the last book he had been reading. " Have you read ' Swiss Family Eobinson ' ? '' inquired John, with a feeling of relief. " Only a little ways," answered Cynthia. " It is fine ; I '11 lend it to you," broke out John. " I thank you," replied Cynthia, with such a sweet ex- pression that John felt much encouraged. " I should be so glad to have it from you." Finish the selection in the direct form. Be very careful of all the marks of punctuation, and the capital letters. QUOTATION MARKS 17 Composition Exercise. In the story of Arthur Boniiicastle are these paragraphs : — At this moment a strange silence seized the assembly. . . . There, in the doorway, stood Mr. Bird. . . . The officer who had presided, being the largest boy, explained that they had been trying to break Arthur Bon- nicastle of lying, and that they were about to order him to report to the master for confession and correction. Then Mr. Bird took a chair, and patiently heard the whole story. . . . Tell what the officer told Mr. Bird^ reporting the conversation between Arthur and Henry indirectly^ not directly. Shall you use quotation marks ? PARTIAL QUOTATIONS. It is sometimes the case that a person in writing wishes to quote a few words from some author, which seem to fit the place better than anything he can say. If he does not use a whole sentence, but only a word or a phrase from the sentence, he uses the quotation marks to show that the words are not his own but belong to some other person. But he does not commence such a quotation with a capital letter, neither does he place any comma before the quotation. There may be a comma there, but it is for some other reason, not because- the words which follow are quoted. Over here in Germany, " 'mid pleasures and paJaces^" one finds much to trouble and annoy. 18 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION In this sentence there is a quotation of the first words of ^^ Home, Sweet Home"; they do not begin with a capital letter, but- they are inclosed by quotation marks. Notice, too, that the com- mas would be there whether there were quotation marks or not. Why ? Partial quotations from any author are inclosed by quotation marks ; but partial quotations do not neces- sarily begin with capital letters, nor do they call for the use of commas or semicolons, as do the full quota- tions. They follow the rules for punctuation of sen- tences that are not quoted. Other examples of partial quotations are given below. They are all from Irving's " Sketch Book." 1. He had overheard a boast of Bones, that he would '' double the schoolmaster up, and lay him on a shelf of his own schoolhouse." 2. The good people of Sleepy Hollow, as they sat by their doors of an evening, were often filled with awe, at hearing his nasal melody, " in linked sweetness long drawn out," floating from the distant hill, or along the dusky road. 3. The establishment reminded me of that of the re- nowned Robinson Crusoe; it was kept in neat order, everything being " stowed away " with the regularity of a ship of war ; and he informed me that he " scoured the deck every morning, and swept it between meals." 4. I have a kind feeling towards all " brothers of the angle," ever since I read Izaak Walton. They are men, he affirms, of the "' mild, sweet, and peaceable spirit." 6. Warriors, prelates, courtiers, and statesmen, lie mouldering in their " beds of darkness." QUOTATION MARKS 19 6. His errors and follies are remembered " more in sorrow than in anger." 7. I have heard a worthy but aristocratic old friend observe, when speaking of the sumptuous palaces of mod- ern gentry, that " money could do much with stone and mortar, but, thank heaven, there was no such thing as suddenly building up an avenue of oaks." 8. In the midst of his musing, as he casts his eyes downward, he beholds the " fairest and freshest young flower " that ever he had seen. It is the lovely Lady Jane, walking in the garden to enjoy the beauty of that " fresh May morning." QUOTATION WITHIN A QUOTATION. It sometimes happens that there is a quotation within a quotation. If John had wished to tell what he knew about the red ears at the husking, he might have said to Cynthia : — "I wonder if I ever told you about those red ears. Sally told me the next day. She said, ' Was n't Cynthia Rudd mad because I found all those ears that night? And she never guessed that I was digging up the same old ear and pretending every time that I had found an- other ! ' That was kind o' mean, I think." In this case what Sally told John is a quotation within a quotation, and it is inclosed by single marks of quotation instead of the double marks. Single marks of quotation (* ') are used to inclose a quotation within a quotation. The same marks of punctuation are required for the inclosed quotation as for any direct quotation. 20 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Exercise. Rewrite the sentences taken from the " Sketch Book " so that you will have a quotation within a quotation. To do this, it will be necessary to make an introduction to each of the quotations. Taking the first sentence, put before it some such words as these : Washington Irving, in the " Legend of Sleepy Hollow/' says. Then the sentence will read and be punctuated as follows : — Washington Irving, in the " Legend of Sleepy Hollow," says: ^^He had overheard a boast of Bones, that he would ' double the schoolmaster up, and lay him on a shelf of his own school- house.' " Or it might be written this way. Irving imderstood a boy's bragging when he wrote : " He had overheard a boast of Bones, that he would ' double the schoolmaster vip, and lay him on a shelf of his own schoolhouse.' " By making an introduction to each sentence, what was a quota- tion before becomes a quotation within a quotation and requires the single marks. It may be of assist- ance to you in rewriting these to know what each of them is from. The first and second are from the " Legend of Sleepy Hollow " ; the third and fourth are from " The Angler " ; the fifth is from ^^Westminster Abbey"; the sixth from the in- troduction to "Rip Van Winkle"; the seventh from " Stratford on Avon " ; and the eighth is from ^^A Royal Poet." QUOTATION MARKS 21 One more rule for the use of quotation marks, examples of which you have seen very frequently, should be learned. The names of books and the titles of selections are usually inclosed by quotation marks. The first word and each important word of a title begins with a capi- tal letter. . CHAPTER II. PARAGRAPHS. In the chapter just finished it has been said that the words spoken by one person form one para- graph, and those spoken by another make another paragraph. Turning back to the first page of the book, tell who spoke in the first paragraph ; in the third ; the fourth ; the fifth. The second paragraph contains no conversation. It gives some thoughts by the author of the story. Whenever a person frames a few sentences about one topic he has composed a paragraph. It may contain conversation, or it may not. Stories have many paragraphs of conversation ; but our histo- ries and geographies contain but little conversation. Yet in books of information as well as stories there are paragraphs. A paragraph is a group of related sentences, or soraetimes a single sentence, treating a single topic. Below are several examples of good para- graphs : — A Saranac boat is one of the finest things that the skill, of man has ever produced under the inspiration of the wiklerness. It is a frail shell, so light that a guide can PARAGRAPHS 23 carry it on his shoulders with ease, but so dexterously fashioned that it rides the heaviest waves like a duck, and slips through the water as if by magic. You can travel in it along the shallowest rivers and across the broadest lakes, and make forty or fifty miles a day, if you have a good guide. Van Dyke, from Little Eivers. It was interesting to see how closely the guides could guess at the weight of the fish by looking at them. The ouananiche are much longer in proportion to their weight than trout, and a novice almost always over-estimates them. But the guides were not deceived. " This one will weigh four pounds and three quarters, and this one four pounds, but that one not more than three pounds ; he is meagre, m'sieu', but he is meagre." When we went ashore and tried the spring-balance (which every angler ought to carry with him, as an aid to his conscience) the guides' guess usually proved to be within an ounce or two of the fact. Any one of the senses can be educated to do the work of the others. The eyes of these experienced fishermen were as sensitive to weight as if they had been made to use as scales. Van Dyke, from Little Eivers. There never was a wilder rout. As soon as the men began to run, and realized that in flight there lay some hope of safety, they broke into a stampede which soon became uncontrollable. Horses, soldiers, and the few camp followers and women who had accompanied the army were all mixed together. Neither command nor example had the slightest weight ; the men were abandoned to the terrible selfishness of utter fear. They threw away their weapons as they ran. They thought of nothing but escape, and fled in a huddle, the stronger and the few who had horses trampling their way to the front through the old, 24 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION the weak, and the wounded ; while behind them raged the Indian tomahawk. Fortunately the attraction of plunder- ing the camp was so overpowering that the savages only followed the army about four miles ; otherwise hardly a man would have escaped. Roosevelt, from The Winning of the West. The well-being of Virginia society was further protected by sundry statutes such as the one which punished pro- fane swearing by a fine of one shilling per oath. " For the better observation of the Sabbath " it was enacted that no person " shall take a voyage upon the same, except it be to church or for other causes of extreme necessity," under penalty of forfeiting twenty pounds of tobacco for each offense. A similar fine was imposed for firing a gun upon Sunday, unless it might be for defense against the Indians. Selling arms or ammunition to the Indians was punished by imprisonment for life, with confiscation of goods. Every master of a family was required, under penalty of ten pounds of tobacco, to bring with him to Church every Sunday a serviceable gun with plenty of powder and shot. FiSKE, from Old Virginia and Her Neighbours. The largest, the most populous, and in every way the most advanced is Dakota (now forming itself into the states of North Dakota and South Dakota) which lies west of Minnesota, and south of the Canadian province of Manitoba. Its area is 147,700 square miles, greater than that of Prussia and much greater than that of the United Kingdom (120,500 square miles). Its eastern and south- ern parts are becoming rapidly filled by an intelligent farming population, largely Scandinavian in blood. Pos- sessing a vast area of undulating prairie land, well fitted for wheat crops, and at least the eastern part of which PARAGRAPHS 25 receives enough rain to make tillage easy without irriga- tion, the two Dakotas are evidently destined to be among the wealthiest and most powerful commonwealths in the Union. Bryce, from The American Commonwealth. Each of the paragraphs quoted above is about one topic. All the sentences in each paragraph are closely related to each other ; and all of them help to make the topic clear. The sentence in a paragraph that announces the topic is called the topic sentence. The subject of the first paragraph is a Saranac boat ; and the topic sentence is : — A Saranac boat is one of the finest things that the skill of man has ever produced under the inspiration of the wilderness. What is the subject of the second paragraph ? What is the topic sentence ? What is each of the other paragraphs about? Find the topic sentence of each. (Note to the Teacher. — In the reading lessons for which the pupils have made preparation, have them always name the subject of the paragraph, — tell what the paragraph is about. If it has one sen- tence which contains the topic clearly announced, have them give the topic sentence. This should always be done before the oral reading in the class. Moreover, all the discussion of the reading lesson should precede the reading. In this way you learn whether the lesson has been prepared carefully before class time. If the discussion precedes the oral reading and all difficulties are explained, the pupil will have a clear understanding of the thought. Only when the thought is clear to the reader, will he be able to give good oral expression.) 26 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Exercise. Write a paragraph upon the room in which you study^ or about the study you believe the most useful to you. The following topic sentences may help you. 1. The room in which I study my lessons is not just what I would have. 2. The room in which I study my lessons was certainly made on purpose for me. 3. Arithmetic seems to me the most useful of my studies. 4. Language, including reading, writing, and composi- tion, seems to me the most useful of my studies. If you choose the first topic sentence, you should tell what there is about the room that makes it a hard place to study in. If the second, only those details should be mentioned which add to its com- fort, and make it an ideal place for study. Composition Exercise. In her journey from Vienna to Paris, the queen, Marie Antoinette, passed through the village in which Marc and Robin lived. She heard how poor they were, and expressed a wish to see them. Describe their home. Use two paragraphs, — the first telling how the home looked outside, and the next how it looked on the inside. The topic sen- tence of the first paragraph may read : — When the queen arrived before the home of Marie, she was astounded to learn that people lived in such a . PARAGRAPHS 27 Of the second : — Lifting her rich silk skirts, she put her dainty foot over the log that served as a threshold ; and such poverty and suffering as she saw there she had never dreamed of. Was the house made of stone, or logs ? How high was it ? Was it painted ? or were there vines climbing over it ? What did the queen see in the door-yard ? Imagine a clear picture of the home, and use those features in your description which tell you that it is the home of very poor people. Going inside now, how many rooms were there ? Where were the windows? What was the floor? Were there chairs ? a table ? Was there a cloth on the table ? Did she see a stove ? a chimney ? Select those details that make the reader think of poverty. These words may help you : hitt^ cottage^ hovel, shed, flat, low, squatty, thatched, weather-beaten, smoky, beams, rafters, ceiling, fire-place, benches, stools, kettle, bowls. THE FISHERMAN AND THE GENIE. 1. There was once an old Fisherman who was very poor. He could hardly keep himself, his wife, and his three chil- dren from starving. Every morning he went out early to fish, hut he had made it a rule never to cast his net more than four times a day. 2. One day he went to the seashore before it was light. He cast his net, and then, when he thought it time, he drew it in to the shore. It was very heavy, and he was sure he had a good draught of fishes. But no ! he pulled 28 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION hard, and when he had his net on the beach he found he had dragged in a dead ass. 3. He cast it a second time, and again he waited. Then he slowly drew it in, for it was very heavy. This time his hopes rose ; but when the net came ashore he found it held only an old basket filled with sand and mud. 4. Once more he threw his net. The third time never fails, he thought. Again the net came slowly ashore. But when he opened it, there was nothing but stones, shells, and sea-weed. The poor man was sore distressed. It looked as if he should have nothing to take home to his wife and children. 5. It was now dawn, and he stopped to say his prayers, for in the East pious men say their prayers five times a day. And after he had said his prayers he cast his net for the fourth and last time. When he had waited long enough, he drew the net in, and saw that it was very heavy. 6. There was not a fish in the net. Instead the Fisher- man drew out a copper jar. He set it up, and the mouth of the jar was covered with a lid which was sealed with lead. He shook the jar, but could hear nothing. 7. "At any rate," he said to himself, " I can sell this to a coppersmith and get some money for it." But first, though it seemed empty, he thought he would open it. So he took his knife and cut away the lead. Then he took the lid off. But he could see nothing inside. He turned the jar upside down, and tapped it on the bottom, but nothing came out. He set the jar upright again, and sat and looked at it. 8. Soon he saw a light smoke come slowly forth. The smoke grew heavier and thicker, so that he had to step back a few paces. It rose and spread till it shut every- thing out like a great fog. At last it had wholly left the PARAGRAPHS 29 jar and had risen into the sky. Then it gathered itself together into a solid mass, and there, before the Fisher- man, stood a great giant of a Genie. 9. " Get down on your knees," said the Genie to the Fisherman, " fo^ I am going to kill you." 10. " And why do you kill me ? Did I not set you free from the jar? " 11. " That is the very reason I mean to kill you ; but I will grant you one favor." 12. " And what is that ? " asked the Fisherman. 13. " I will let you choose the manner of your death. Listen, and I will tell you my story. I was one of the spirits of heaven. The great and wise Solomon bade me obey his laws. I was angry and would not. So, to pun- ish me, he shut me up in a copper jar and sealed it with lead. Then he gave the jar to a Genie who obeyed him, and bade him cast it into the sea. 14. " During the first hundred years that I lay on the floor of the sea, I made a promise that if any one set me free I would make him very rich. But no one came to set me free. During the second hundred years I made a promise that if any one set me free I would show him all the treasures of the earth. But no one came to set me free. During the third hundred years, I made a promise that if any one came to set me free I would make him king over all the earth, and grant him every day any three things he might ask. 15. " Still no one came. Then I became very angry, and as hundreds of years went by, and I still lay in the jar at the bottom of the sea, I swore a great oath that now if any one should set me free I would at once kill him, and that the only favor I would grant him would be to let him choose his manner of death. So now you have come and have set me free. You must die, but I will let you say how you shall die." 30 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION 16. The Fisherman was in great grief. He did not care so much for himself, for he was old and poor, but he thought of his wife and children, who would be left to starve. 17. " Alas ! " he cried. " Have pity on me. If it had not been for me you would not be free." 18. " Make haste I " said the Genie. " Tell me how you wish to die." 19. When one is in such great peril his wits fly fast, and sometimes they fly into safety. The fisherman said ; 20. " Since I must die, I must. But before I die, an- swer me one question." 21. " Ask what you will, but make haste." 22. " Dare you, then, swear that you really were in the jar ? It is so small, and you are so vast, that the great toe of one of your feet could not be held in it." 23. " Verily I was in the jar. I swear it. Do you not believe it ? " 24. " No, not until I see you in the jar." 25. At that the Genie, to prove it, changed again into smoke. The great cloud hung over the earth, and one end of it entered the jar. Slowly the cloud descended until the sky was clear, and the last tip of the cloud was in the jar. As soon as this was done the Fisherman clapped the lid on again, and the Genie was shut up inside. From The Arabian Nights. In this story from '^ The Arabian Nights/' the first paragraph is about the condition of the poor Fisherman. There is no one sentence, however, that states the topic of the paragraph. The topic might be stated this way : The poor Fisherman of our story fished every day. The second para- PARAGRAPHS 31 graph has no topic sentence. The subject is The First Draught ; and the topic might be stated as follows: His first draught dragged in a dead ass. So J too, if you look through the whole selection, you will find that no paragraph has a topic sen- tence : this is usually the case in stories. But you will find that every paragraph has a topic or a sub- ject ; and that you can make a topic sentence for each. What is the subject of paragraph 3 ? State a topic sentence for it. What are the subjects of paragraphs 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, and 16? Form topic sentences for each of these paragraphs. Notice the punctuation of paragraphs 13, 14, and 15. Make a rule for use of quotation marks when a series of paragraphs spoken by the same person succeed each other. Exercise. In " The Fisherman and the Genie," account for the use of the commas, semicolons, colons, and quotation marks, as far as you have learned the rules for them. Composition Exercise. Suppose that the story of " The Fisherman and the Genie " had been written only through para- graph 8, and that you had to make up what hap- pened after the smoke changed into the Genie. Finish the story in some other way. Remember that the story is full of things that could not really 32 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION happen. Keep it this way. It would spoil it to make it a true story at the end. Or write what you think Marc and Robin did and said after the queen had gone away. Or write a paragraph telling why you like or dislike stories such as the one from " The Arabian Nights." Have a topic sentence which states your opinion of them. 'WORD STUDY. Principal Parts of Verbs. Many verbs have three different forms. If one speaks of the present time, he uses one form ; if of the past, he uses another form ; and if he uses "have/' ^^has/' ^' am/' ^^ is/' ^^ are/' ^^ was/' or ^^were" with a verb, he must frequently use a third form. For example, he may say, "I see/' " he sees," " you saw," " they have seen." And it would be entirely wrong to say "I seen," "they have saw/' or "he has saw." These three forms of a verb are called the principal parts, because with these three forms all the other forms of the verb can be made. Below are given the principal parts of seven verbs. Learn them. Write three sentences hav- ing the first form ; three having the second form ; and four having the third form. see saw seen go drive went drove gone driven do did done PARAGRAPHS eat ate eaten begin began begun come came come 33 WOKD STUDY. In this lesson are several groups of words which are much alike in meaning. Yet these words can- not be used one for the other in all places. For instance, one may say " a grand parade/' but not " a grand streamer." So, too, he may say " a splendid banner," but not " a splendid company of men." Of all these words, " splendid " is the most often used incorrectly. Be very sure you know what it means ; then use it only when the thought calls for it. Write ten sentences, of which three shall use words in the first group ; three, words from the second ; and four, words from the fifth. 1 moved 2 grand 3 vehicle advanced gorgeous equipage proceeded splendid carriage marched brilliant brougham walked gay phaeton 4 squad 5 banner 6 parade company flag procession platoon pennon cavalcade body pennant review division streamer From dictionaries learn what each of these words means. Write twelve sentences, each con- taining two words from different columns. 34 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Exercise, Insert words taken from list above in the blanks. 1. The funeral slowly by. 2. One hundred men make a of the army. 3. The autumn sunset was . 4. The battle was torn with bullets. 5. Mountain scenery is . 6. A party of young people came here. 7. The garden flowers were with blue and scarlet. 8. The troops in before the generals, and made a appearance. 9. Conversation at table was witty and . 10. A large of strikers had gathered. Composition Exercise. Describe a parade. There was a friend in it, whose arrival you awaited with great interest. Before you saw him, three other little incidents took your attention. These three incidents should occupy three short paragraphs. At last your friend appeared. This makes the most important paragraph. FOR MEMORIZING. Sweet Auburn ! loveliest village of the* plain, Where health and plenty cheer'd the laboring swain, Where smiling spring its earliest visit paid, And parting summer's lingering blooms delay'd : Dear lovely bowers of innocence and ease, Seats of my youth, when every sport could please ! How often have I loiter'd o'er thy green, Where humble happiness endear'd each scene ! How often have I paus'd on every charm. The shelter'd cot, the cultivated farm, PARAGRAPHS 35 The never-failing brook, the busy mill, The decent church that topt the neighboring hill, The hawthorn bush, with seats beneath the shade, For talking age and whispering lovers made ! How often have I blest the coming day. When toil remitting lent its turn to play. And all the village train, from labor free. Led up their sports beneath the spreading tree ; While many a pastime circled in the shade. The young contending as the old survey'd ; And many a gambol frolick'd o'er the ground. And sleights of art and feats of strength went round ; And still, as each repeated pleasure tir'd, Succeeding sports the mirthful band inspir'd ; The dancing pair that simply sought renown. By holding out, to tire each other down ; The swain mistrustless of his smutted face, While secret laughter titter'd round the place ; The bashful virgin's sidelong looks of love. The matron's glance that would those looks reprove : These were thy charms, sweet village ! sports like these, With sweet succession, taught e'en toil to please ; These round thy bowers their cheerful influence shed. These were thy charms, — but all these charms are fled. Goldsmith, from The Deserted Village. This stanza might easily be divided into two stanzas, at the line ending vvrith the words, " and whispering lovers made." What would then be the subject of the first paragraph? of the second? Write a topic sentence for each stanza. Be sure you know the meanings of the follow- ing words : swain, seats, loiter' d, green, decent^ topt, remitting, traiii, contending, gambol, sleight, 36 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION mistrustless, reprove, bowers, circled, surveyed, feats, mspired, renowned. From the whole do you get the impression that the people were happy ? Do you think that they were rich? How could they be happy, then? Would you be happy if you knew that no one had more than you ? Farther on in the poem there are these two lines : — " His best companions, innocence and health ; And his best riches, ignorance of wealth." In these verses Goldsmith has given us just a glimpse of his childhood home. Where was the church ? Where was the mill ? Did this brook turn the mill? Were there fish in the brook? Where was the village green ? Were there any stores there ? Was there a schoolhouse ? a black- smith shop ? Was there a railroad entering the village ? Will you tell the way the village looks to you? Can you make a sketch, showing the church, the stream, and the houses at the bottom of the hill? In the second part of the stanza, the people have taken a holiday ; instead of toiling they have given themselves up to play. Did they take a train to the country to have their picnic ? What were some of the gambols of this party ? What " sleights of art and feats of strength" were tried? Did you ever see a boy and girl dance to see which could tire the other out ? Did the people have on fine clothes ? Did they enjoy themselves ? Would PARAGRAPHS 37 they enjoy a picnic every day? Do you think toil can be taught to please ? Composition Exercise. Write a description of a picnic in the country. Or write a description of a little country village. WORD STUDY. Study the following words. In the exercise be- low there are thirteen words and thirteen blanks. Each word is to be used but once. Care will be necessary to use each word, and to use it in the right place. cruel poor suffer want distressing f wretched endure need painful miserable submit poverty scarcity 1. The sight of is always . 2. There was a of potatoes in Ireland, and the peasants the hardships of famine. 3. The convicts must to the torture of a heartless jailer. 4. The wretches from the of sympathy and kindness. 5. To be known to be in is . WORD STUDY. Double Negatives. Such expressions as the following may often be heard spoken, though they are not so frequently seen written : — 38 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION ^^It don't do no good;" ^ There wasn't no- body there ; " ^^ I have n't seen him nowheres." All these sentences are wrong ; the fault is in the use of two negatives. In the first sentence, the boy wished to say that it did no good ; but instead, by the use of two negatives, he has really said that it did good. In the second sentence, to deny that there was nobody there is just the same as affirming that there was somebody there. In all cases the use of two negatives too-ether in a sentence results, not in a negative, but in an affirmative. " Neither," " scarcely," " hardly," and all such words have the same effect as a negative. '' I don't hardly think I shall " is used when the per- son means, " I hardly think I shall." '' Neither of them can't go " is the form of expression adopted by some persons for " Neither of them can go-'' Exercise. As these errors are more often made in speech than in written composition, the sentences below should be read aloud many times during the next two weeks, that the correct sounds may become familiar to each of the pupils. It does no good. He has learned nothing. He has not learned anything about it. I don't intend to go anywhere. I think I shall go nowhere. I have seen him at no time to-day. I have not seen him at any time to-day. He doesn't study his lesson. Neither does she study her PARAGRAPHS 39 lesson. I have such a headache that I can hardly think. He can scarcely enter the high school.^ What incorrect form have you ever heard in place of each of these sentences ? Composition Exercise, One cannot conceive the wretched condition of the peasants in France a hundred years ago ; or one cannot conceive the wretched condition of the poor people who live in some districts of our great cities. Upon this general topic sentence, write three paragraphs : one upon the homes in which these people live ; one upon the food and clothing ; and the third upon the ways in which they get their living, and what amusements they have. TOPIC SENTENCES. If the reading lessons have been watched care- fully for the topic sentences during the last two weeks, the usual position of this sentence in the paragraph has been determined. It has been found that it may stand almost anywhere ; but it gener- ally stands near the beginning of the paragraph. There is a good reason for this. When one listens to another speaking, he likes to know in the be- ginning what the other person is talking about. If he does not, he does not know just what the speaker is trying to say ; and he often finds him- 1 It would be well if the teacher should place upon the board lists of similar sentences and use them frequently to train the ear. 40 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION self asking, " What are you talking about, any- way?" This is exactly the case when one is reading. He wishes to know at once what he is reading about, and then all that he reads he un- derstands better. It is for this reason that the topic sentence generally stands near the heginning of the paragraph. The taste of it wakes her up as few other things do, and bars and fences must be well looked after. No need to, assort them or pick out the ripe ones for her. An apple is an apple, and there is no best about it. I heard of a quick-witted old cow that learned to shake them down from the tree. While rubbing herself she had observed that an apple sometimes fell. This stimu- lated her to rub a little harder, when more apples fell. She then took the hint and rubbed her shoulder with such vigor that the farmer had to check her and keep an eye on her to save his fruit. Burroughs, from Winter Sunshine. The first sentence has been omitted. It is the topic sentence. What does the word "her" refer to in the first sentence ? What does the remain- der of the paragraph tell you about the cow ? The topic sentence that has been omitted might be : — A cow loves apples. Every cow is fond of apples. All the domestic animals love the apple, but none so much as the cow. Burroughs used the last sentence. Supply topic sentences for the following para- graphs. The first thing to consider is the subject of the paragraph ; and then what is the thing that PARAGRAPHS 41 the paragraph says about the subject. This should be put into one sentence, and such a sentence will be a good topic sentence. ; They cannot be too gnarly and crabbed and rusty to look at. The gnarliest will have some redeeming traits even to the eye. You will discover some evening redness dashed or sprinkled on some protu- berance or in some cavity. It is rare that the summer lets an apple go without streaking or spotting it on some part of its sphere. It will have some red stains commemorating the mornings and evenings it has witnessed ; some dark and rusty blotches, in memory of the clouds and foggy, mildewy days that have passed over it ; and a spacious field of green reflecting the general face of Nature, — green even as the fields ; or a yellow ground, which implies a milder flavor, — yellow as the harvest or russet as the hills. Thoreau, from Wild Apples. There is hardly any furni- ture. The people squat on the floor on their heels. We look in vain for sofas or beds. The Siamese sleep on the floor, and as for pillows, these are merely wooden blocks or bundles of stuffed cotton about as large as a brick and almost as hard. The cooking is done on little fires of char- coal which burn in boxes filled with ashes. There are no stoves, and the houses have no chimneys. The windows are merely open holes, and there is not a pane of window glass, I venture, in this great floating city. Carpenter, from Asia. Dyspepsia, for instance, from which so many suffer, is in nine cases out of ten their own fault, and arises from the combination of too much food with too little exercise. To lengthen your life, says an old proverb, shorten your meals. Plain living and high 42 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION thinking will secure health for most of us, though it mat- ters, perhaps, comparatively little, what a healthy man eats, so long as he does not eat too much. Lubbock, from The Pleasures of Life, We all know how quickly the time passes when we are well employed, while the mo- ments hang heavily on the hands of the idle. Occupation drives away care and all the small troubles of life. The busy man has no time to brood or to fret. Lubbock, from The Pleasures of Life, WORD STUDY. Insert the following words in their proper places in the sentences below. Then write six sentences containing the six words in the list that you have not nsed. poor needy pinched straitened indigent destitute gift donation munificence wealth riches prosperity luxury af&uence opulence The boy was found in a condition. The widow had never seen such a display of • Those who live in are not always happy. A certain amount of is agreeable to all. Most of the peasants in Russia are . Too much tends to weaken a nation. He gave a large to the library. often take wings. Composition Exercise. Some days after the queen had passed through their little village. Marc and Kobin happened to PARAGRAPHS 43 get to talking about the expensive necklace she had worn. What did they think it cost ? What could have been done with the money ? Tell what you think these poor boys would say about the luxuries enjoyed by their rich sovereign. Where were they ? How did they happen to be talking on this subject? Or write a paragraph upon this topic sentence : The men who made our constitution were wise when they said that " no title of nobility shall be granted by the United States." Why should there be none ? What do you think is the proudest title any man can have ? Exercise. One way to learn to write a good paragraph is to study the method used in good literature of the reading lessons. By this time pupils have learned to analyze a paragraph so that they always can tell its subject ; and if there is a topic sentence, they can find it. There is a further benefit to be derived from the study of the reading lessons. Whenever a paragraph that seems especially good is found, it should be studied very carefully, the arrangement of the sentences and the choice of the words being specially noticed. After a few days this paragraph should be rewritten without the book or any notes. If there is a tendency to write it too much like the original, because it has been too well remembered, or too frequently re- 44 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION ferred to, a good paragraph from any source may be put upon the board for study and conversation, and then erased. Such a paragraph should be rewritten after a day or two, not at once. Any of the paragraphs on pages 23 or 24 would serve the purpose admirably. The following paragraph from Mr. Field's '' If I Were a Boy Again " is good, and will serve to illustrate the method. If I were a boy again I would practice perseverance oftener, and never give a thing up because it was hard or inconvenient to do it. If we want light, we must conquer darkness. When I think of mathematics I blush at the recollection of how often I " caved in " years ago. There is no trait more valuable than a determination to perse- vere when the right thing is to be accomplished. We are all inclined to give up too easily in trying or unpleasant situations, and the point I would establish with myself, if the choice were again within my grasp, would be never to relinquish my hold on a possible success if mortal strength or brains in my case were adequate to the occasion. Fields, from Underbrush. Define the following words, and be able to give sentences with them : inconvenient, conquer^ recol- lection^ trait, determination, establish, relinquish, adequate, occasion. What is the subject of the paragraph ? What is the topic sentence ? What does the second sentence mean ? Say it in some other way. Is " recollection " better than " thought " in the third sentence ? Why ? Why did Mr. Fields say " when the right thing is to be PARAGRAPHS 45 accomplished " ? Is " relinquish " better than " let go " ? Why does he say " in my case " ? Does the author anywhere indicate that he would not give up if he had a piece of work to do on a farm, or in a shop ? Where ? Rewrite the paragraph. \\rOKD STUDY. Principal Parts of Verbs. The principal parts of these verbs are frequently given incorrectly. Learn them so that you will not find yourself saying such things as these : The bell has rang ; He run a block ; He has sat the cup down. Present. Past. Perfect. know knew known ring rang' rung run ran run sit sat sat set set set bring brought brought lay laid laid lie lay lain read read read teach taught taught Exercise. Change the verbs below from the present form to the form which uses have or has ; that is, to the perfect form. 1. Few of the older Indians know how to read. 2. The sexton rings the bell. 8. I run as fast as he. 46 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION 4. Pussy sits beside the fire. 5. Anna sets the lamp on the table. 6. We bring fresh flowers. 7. He lays his little head in my lap. 8. Frank lies on his back at night. 9. She reads three books a week. 10. Miss White teaches four classes. Composition Exercise. I should like to be rich for three very good reasons. The first one is (First topic sentence). Besides, (Second topic sentence). Greater than these two reasons is my last one (Third topic sentence). The three reasons should each be stated and discussed in a paragraph. Notice that the topic sentences do not come first in the paragraphs ; but they have been delayed by the words connect- ing the paragraphs. If you can think of better connections between your paragraphs, do not use these words. They are only an example of the way it may be done. LENGTH OF PARAGRAPHS. A paragraph has been defined as a sentence or a group of sentences, treating one single topic. The topic may be a big one, and for that reason re- quire a long paragraph ; or it may be but a minor point, and so require a short paragraph. This is the thing to remember about the length of a para- graph : a paragraph should he just as long or as PARAGRAPHS 47 short as it needs to be to say what you have to say about your topic. Some pupils make a paragraph division about once in four or five lines. They seem to think that if they stop a line in the middle^, and begin the next line two inches from the left margin^ they are making good paragraphs. If that were so, the following might be called a paragraph. It fills four or five lines upon the page ; it is indented ; and it stops in the middle of a line. There is a beauty in deeds, kindly done. " If we have one disease, we may at least congratulate ourselves that we are escaping all the rest." Theodore Roosevelt is a man of action ; he loves to be doing something, and it is always a worthy thing. The edges of the flaky clouds were tinged with pink by the setting sun. The above group of sentences does not make a paragraph, because the sentences are not related. They have nothing to do with each other. The division of a composition into paragraphs may be poor, even when the sentences have some real relation. Pupils may feel that there must be a new paragraph at a certain point, because there should be so many on a page. A long time ago authors wrote very long paragraphs ; to-day they write very short ones, and in their desire to have their paragraphs short, they do not always put into one paragraph all they have to say upon a topic. These below are taken from good books ; but you will see that there should not be five paragraphs, but only three. 48 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Titian loved Giorgione so well that he even imitated his faults. At first this high compliment was pleasing to Giorgione ; then he became indifferent, and finally dis- gusted. The very sight of Titian gave him a pain. He avoided his society. He ceased to speak to him when they met, and he forbade his friends to mention the name " Titian " in his presence. Hubbakd, from Titian, Such courage and stanch fidelity were bound to win respect, if not toleration. At any rate, there was no gun- ner in wait next night, when all was still. Could it be of any use ? Driven off thrice with gun-shots, would she make another try to feed or free her captive young one ? Would she? Hers was a mother's love. There was but one to watch them this time, the fourth night, when the quavering whine of the little one was followed by that shadowy form above the wood pile. But carrying no fowl or food that could be seen. Had the keen huntress failed at last? Had she no head of game for this, her only charge, or had she learned to trust his captors for his food ? Thompson, from Wild Animals I have Known. These paragraphs are too short, not because they contain but a small number of lines, but be- cause they do not oontain all that the author said upon one topic. Put everything about one topic into one paragraph. The following story of " The Death of the Dauphin" was written by Alphonse Daudet in French. The paragraphs are short, but they are all real paragraphs. Each one treats a single small topic completely ; and in no case has the author let PARAGRAPHS 49 part of a paragraph get separated from the rest of it, in this way making incomplete paragraphs. The Httle Dauphin is ill ; the little Dauphin is dying. In all the churches of the kingdom the Holy Sacrament remains exposed night and day, and great tapers burn, for the recovery of the royal child. The streets of the old capital are sad and silent, the bells ring no more, the car- riages slacken their pace. In the neighborhood of the palace the curious townspeople gaze through the railings upon the beadles, who converse in the courts and put on important airs. All the castle is in a flutter. Chamberlains and major- domos run up and down the marble stairways. The gal- leries are full of pages and of courtiers in silken apparel, who hurry from one group to another, begging in low tones for news. Upon the wide perrons the maids of honor, in tears, exchange low courtesies and wipe their eyes with daintily embroidered handkerchiefs. A large assemblage of robed physicians has gathered in the Orangery. They can be seen through the panes wav- ing their black sleeves and inclining their periwigs with professional gestures. The governor and the equerry of the little Dauphin walk up and down before the door awaiting the decision of the Faculty. Scullions pass by without saluting them. The equerry swears like a pagan ; the governor quotes verses from Horace. And meanwhile, over there, in the direction of the stables, is heard a long and plaintive neighing; it is the little Dauphin's sorrel, forgotten by the hostlers, and call- ing sadly before his empty manger. And the King? Where is his Highness, the King? The King has locked himself up in a room at the other end of the castle. Majesties do not like to be seen weep- 50 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION ing. For the Queen, it is different. Sitting by the bedside of the little Dauphin, she bows her fair face, bathed in tears, and sobs very loudly before everybody, like a mere draper's wife. On the bed embroidered with lace the little Dauphin, whiter than the pillows on which he is extended, lies with closed eyes. They think that he is asleep ; but no, the little Dauphin is not asleep. He turns towards his mother, and seeing her tears, he asks : — " Madame la Eeine, why do you weep ? Do you really believe that I am going to die ? " The Queen tries to answer. Sobs prevent her from speaking. " Do not weep, Madame la Heine. You forget that I am the Dauphin, and that Dauphins cannot die thus." The Queen sobs more violently, and the little Dauphin begins to feel frightened. " Halloa! " says he, " I do not want Death to come and take me away, and I know how to prevent him from com- ing here. Order up on the spot forty of the strongest lansquenets to keep guard around our bed ! Have a hun- dred big cannons watch day and night, with lighted fuses, under our windows ! And woe to Death if he dares to come near us ! " In order to humor the royal child, the Queen makes the sign. On the spot the great cannons are heard rolling in the courts, and forty tall lansquenets, with halberds in their fists, draw up around the room. They are all veterans, with grizzly mustaches. The little Dauphin claps his hands on seeing them. He recognizes one, and calls, — " Lorrain ! Lorrain ! " The veteran makes a step towards the bed. " I love you well, my old Lorrain. Let me see your big sword. If Death wants to fetch me, you will kill him, won't you ? " PARAGRAPHS 51 Lorrain answers : " Yes, Monseigneur." And two great tears rolled down his tanned cheeks. At that moment the chaplain approaches the little Dauphin, and pointing to the crucifix, talks to him in low tones. The little Dauphin listens with astonished air ; then, suddenly interrupting him, — "I understand well what you are saying, Monsieur TAbbe ; but still, could n't my little friend Beppo die in my place, if I gave him plenty of money ? " The chaplain continues to talk to him in low tones, and the little Dauphin looks more and more astonished. When the chaplain has finished, the little Dauphin resumes, with a heavy sigh : — " What you have said is all very sad, Monsieur TAbbe ; but one thing consoles me, and that is that up there, in the Paradise of the stars, I shall still be the Dauphin. I know that the good God is my cousin, and cannot fail to treat me according to my rank." Then he adds, turning toward his mother : — "Bring me my fairest clothes, my doublet of white ermine, and pumps of velvet ! I wish to look brave to the angels, and to enter Paradise in the dress of a Dauphin." A third time the chaplain bends over the little Dauphin, and talks to him in low tones. In the midst of his dis- course the royal child interrupts him angrily. " Why, then," he cries, " to be Dauphin is nothing at all ! " And refusing to listen to anything more, the little Dauphin turns towards the wall and weeps bitterly. Daudet, from Letters from my Windmill. Define the following words : chamberlain^ major- domo^ perrouj equerry^ scullion^ pagan^ dauphin^ lansquenetj halberd, brave (as used here). 62 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION The last word has not its usual meaning here ; look it up in an unabridged dictionary. Exercise, Give the topics of the first five paragraphs. Go carefully through the remainder of the story and tell why each of these paragraphs, short as it is, is a real paragraph. Call up the rule of paragraph- ing in conversation. Composition Exercise. If you have been reading " The Peasant and the Prince/' compare the impression you obtain from that book regarding the instruction of the royal children with that obtained from reading " The Death of the Dauphin." W^ORD STUDY. In the list of words that follows, there are as many adjectives as nouns. But some of the adjec- tives go better with certain of the nouns than others. For example, it is much better to write "fair courtesy" than "benignant courtesy." Adjectives. Nouns, gentle politeness benignant kindness refined courtesy true dignity fair deeds well-bred culture Write six sentences containing these words ar- ranged in pairs as it seems to you best. Be sure that you know exactly what each word means. r PARAGRAPHS 53 PRINCIPAL PARTS OF VERBS. Learn the principal parts of the following verbs. Insert such forms as you think best in the sentences below. Write five sentences, containing some form of five of these verbs. Present break fly choose shine swim sleep give buy steal write WORD STUDY. Past, broke flew chose shone swam slept gave bought stole wrote Perfect. broken flown chosen shone swum slept given bought stolen written 1. the truth, and sell it not. 2. Mary has that better part which shall not be taken away from her. 3. Who my purse trash. 4. The sun on a dimpling sea. 5. Leander the Hellespont to Hero. 6. Having until morning, the party was ready for another hard day's journey. 7. The birds have to their southern homes. 8. The pitcher is at the fountain. 9. Motley has some delightful letters about his experiences in Europe. 10. " ! ! " cries the beggar in Italy, but when you have he will rail at you because you so little. 54 ELEMENTAEY COMPOSITION Composition Exercise. On the opposite page, there is a picture of Queen Louise of Prussia. The original of the pic- ture is in the gallery at Cologne. Few pictures have been copied oftener than this. One reason is because it is so beautiful ; and another is that the people over whom she was queen adored her. Study the picture carefully, and then write a com- parison between this queen as you think she was and Marie Antoinette as you have come to know her from reading " The Peasant and the Prince." Do not write about how they looked , but just about what kind of persons they were. You will naturally make two paragraphs. Those who are not reading the story may write two paragraphs : the first upon the appearance of Queen Louise, and the second upon her character as they think it must be from the picture. Kind hearts are more than coronets, And simple faith than Norman blood. Tennyson, from Lady Clara Vere de Vere, FOB MEMOKIZING. Sweet smiling village, loveliest of the lawn ! Thy sports are fled, and all thy charms withdrawn ; Amidst thy bowers the tyrant's hand is seen, And desolation saddens all thy green : One only master grasps the whole domain, And half a tillage stints thy smiling plain ; No more thy glassy brook reflects the day. But chok'd with sedges works its weedy way ; QUEEN LOUISE PARAGRAPHS 57 Along thy glades, a solitary guest, The hollow-sounding bittern guards its nest ; Amidst thy desert-walks the lapwing flies. And tires their echoes with unvaried cries. Sunk are thy bowers in shapeless ruin all, And the long grass o'ertops the mouldering wall ; And, trembling, shrinking from the spoiler's hand, Far, far away thy children leave the land. Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates, and men decay ; Princes and lords may flourish, or may fade ; A breath can make them, as a breath has made : But a bold peasantry, their country's pride. When once destroy'd, can never be supplied. A time there was, ere England's griefs began, When every rood of ground maintain'd its man ; For him light labor spread her wholesome store, Just gave what life requir'd, but gave no more ; His best companions, innocence and health ; And his best riches, ignorance of wealth. But times are alter'd ; trade's unfeeling train Usurp the land, and dispossess the swain ; Along the lawn, where scatter'd hamlets rose. Unwieldy wealth and cumbrous pomp repose ; And every want to opulence allied. And every pang that folly pays to pride. Those gentle hours that plenty bade to bloom, Those calm desires that ask'd but little room. Those healthful sports that grac'd the peaceful scene, Liv'd in each look, and brighten'd all the green ; 58 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION These, far departing, seek a kinder shore. And rural mirth and manners are no more. GrOLDSMiTH, from The Deserted Village, ^' The Deserted Village " was dedicated to the great English painter. Sir Joshua Reynolds. Gold- smith said in his dedication that he must speak against the " increase of our luxuries." " For twenty or thirty years past," he wrote, ^^ it has been the fashion to consider luxury as one of the greatest national advantages." He says that he cannot believe this true ; and he asserts that lux- ury does harm, because with luxury comes vice. This second division of the poem expresses his thoughts upon the change that wealth has wrought. Before the meaning of these verses can be gained, it will be necessary to know the definitions of some words. Define tyrant^ desolation^ tillage, stints, sedges, glades, bittern, lapwing, unvaried, spoiled, accumulates, peasantry, reed, usurp, dis20ossess, unwieldy, cumbrous, opidence, bade, rural, j^omp, repose, allied, pang. Why now is there " half a tillage " ? What change has taken place in the brook ? Why did the poet choose the bittern and the lapwing in- stead of the blackbird and the robin ? In the first part of the poem who could be found in the glades and bowers ? These words are by Burns : — " A prince can mak a belted knight, A marquis, duke, and a' that ; But an honest man 's aboon his might.'* PARAGRAPHS 59 Is the thought of these lines by Burns like that of Goldsmith in the second stanza ? Who has destroyed the hamlets ? Does it look prettier with great castles and wide estates than it did with Uttle farms and snug cottages ? Is there always some want which the opulent have not yet supplied ? Will it always be so ? Do proud persons suffer ? Is there more happiness in the new rich England, than there was in the England when every man owned his rood of land ? It 's no in titles nor in rank, It 's no in wealth like Lon'on bank To purchase peace and rest : It 's no in makin' muckle mair, It 's no in books, it 's no in lear, To make us truly blest. If happiness hae not her seat And centre in the breast, We may be wise, or rich, or great, But never can be blest. Burns, from Epistle to Davie. liENGTH OF PAKAGRAPHS. In the preceding chapter it has been learned that a paragraph is sometimes too short ; not be- cause it contains a small number of words, but because it does not contain all that the author had to say upon a topic. Paragraphs may be too long also. This occurs most frequently when a pupil does not think of 60 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION the topic upon which he is writing. In history the teacher places topics on the blackboard, and asks the class to study these topics and be able to recite upon them. When a pupil is called to recite upon " The Battle of Bunker Hill/' the teacher does not wish him to go on and tell about the next topic. She wishes him to recite upon the one topic assigned. All that the pupil says upon the one topic makes one paragraph. What the pupil says who talks upon the next topic will make another paragraph. If these recitations should be written upon paper, what each pupil says should make one paragraph, and then the series of paragraphs would be correct. Do not put the treatment of more than one topic into a paragraph ; and never let one topic run over into the next paragraph. Many years ago, the best writers did not para- graph as well ds the best writers of to-day do. Their paragraphs were as long as whole essays ought to be. Now we are writing very much shorter para- graphs ; and the reader likes it better, because such a division of the whole composition into small parts makes it easier to get the meaning. The following was all written as one paragraph. It is part of a letter by Lord Chesterfield to his son. The letter was dated at Bath, England, Febru- ary 16, 1748. In the beginning. Lord Chesterfield says that he has left business and has gone to his own home — there to enjoy the comforts of a quiet PARAGRAPHS 61 life, and especially his books and his library. Then he goes on with what follows : — I must observe to you upon this occasion that the unin- terrupted satisfaction which I expect to find in that library will be chiefly owing to my having employed some part of my life well at your age. I wish I had employed it better, and my satisfaction would now be complete ; but, however, I planted while young that degree of knowledge which is now my refuge and my shelter. Make your plantations still more extensive ; they will more than pay you for your trouble. I do not regret the time that I passed in plea- sures ; they were seasonable ; they were the pleasures of youth, and I enjoyed them while young. If I had not, I should probably have overvalued them now, as we are very apt to do what we do not know ; but knowing them as I do, I know their real value, and how much they are gen- erally overrated. Nor do I regret the time that I have passed in business for the same reason ; those who see only the outside of it imagine it has hidden charms, which they pant after, and nothing but acquaintance can undeceive them. I, who have been behind the scenes both of plea- sure and business, and have seen all the springs and pulleys of those decorations which astonish and dazzle the audience, retire not only without regret, but with content- ment and satisfaction. But what I do and ever shall regret, is the time which, while young, I lost in mere idle- ness, and in doing nothing. This is the common effect of the inconsideracy of youth, against which I beg you will be most carefully upon your guard. The value of mo- ments when cast up is immense, if well employed ; if thrown away, their loss is irrecoverable. Every moment may be put to some use, and that with much more plea- sure than if unemployed. Do not imagine that by the 62 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION employment of time I mean an uninterrupted application to serious studies. No; pleasures are at proper times both as necessary and as useful ; they fashion and form you for the world ; they teach you characters, and show you the human heart in its unguarded minutes. But then remember to make that use of them. I have known many people from laziness of mind go through both pleasure and business with equal inattention, neither enjoying the one nor doing the other ; thinking themselves men of pleasure because they were mingled with those who were, and men of business because they had business to do, though they did not do it. Whatever you do, do it to the purpose ; do it thoroughly, not superficially. Go to the bottom of things. Anything half done or half known is, in my mind, neither done nor known at all. Nay, worse, for it often misleads. There is hardly any place or any com- pany where you may not gain knowledge, if you please ; almost everybody knows some one thing, and is glad to talk upon that one thing. Seek and you will find, in this world as well as in the next. See everything, in- quire into everything ; and you may excuse your curiosity and the questions you ask, which otherwise might be thought impertinent, by your manner of asking them, — for most things depend a great deal upon the manner ; as for example, "I am afraid that I am very troublesome with my questions, but nobody can inform me so well as you," or something of that kind. Lord Chesterfield. Read the letter over several times very care- fully, until you know surely the different topics written about. Each group of sentences treating a single topic is a paragraph. There are six well defined paragraphs in the letter. What is the subject of the first ? What two things has he no PARAGRAPHS 63 regret for doing? Does each of these make the subject of a paragraph? What does he regret? What would he have his son do with his pleasures? How would he have him do all things ? Divide this letter into six paragraphs. Give the subject of each. Give the topic sentence of each, framing your own when there is none in the letter. Write from dictation what the class decides is the fourth paragraph. WORD STUDY. Write sentences containing the following words taken from the letter by Lord Chesterfield. refuge shelter seasonable undeceive decorations irrecoverable serious superficially impertinent The three words, ^^ observe," ^^plantations," " inconsideracy," are used with a meaning slightly different from the meaning given to the same words to-day. Write three sentences containing the words we should use to-day instead of these three words. Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph upon this topic sentence : — The most unhappy person I can think of is the one with nothing to do. Or tell a story in which some person who only half knew a thing which he thought he knew well got himself or some friends into trouble. 64 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Or write a little incident telling how a man whom you thought ignorant surprised you one day with some unexpected knowledge or skill in doing something. PRIlSrCIPAL PARTS OF VERBS. Learn the principal parts of the following verbs. Change the sentences in the present form to the perfect, and those in the perfect to the present. Present. Past, Perfect. bite bit bitten draw drew drawn drink drank drunk drive drove driven forget forgot forgotten sing sang sung throw threw thrown wear wore worn catch caught caught think thought thought 1. Jennie Lind sang very sweetly. 2. Mad dogs have bitten many children. 3. A wise person thinks twice before he speaks. 4. The soldier drew his sword from its scabbard. 5. Past ills have been forgotten. 6. Socrates drank the cup of hemlock. 7. The life-saving crew have thrown a rope to the sink- ing ship. 8. In early ages men wore skins for clothing. 9. We catch numbers of fish in this lake. 10. Our rural postman drives thirty miles every day. PARAGRAPHS 65 Exercise. No man can be poor that has enough ; nor rich, that covets more than he has. Alexander, after all his con- quests, complained that he wanted more worlds ; he desired something more, even when he had gotten all ; and that which was sufficient for human nature was not enough for one man. Money never made any man rich; for the more he had, the more he still coveted. The richest man that ever lived is poor in my opinion, and in any man's may be so : but he that keeps himself to the stint of Nature, does neither feel poverty nor fear it ; nay, even in poverty itself there are some things superfluous. Those which the world calls happy, their felicity is a false splendor, that dazzles the eyes of the vulgar ; but our rich man is glori- ous and happy within. L'Estrange, from Seneca's Morals. Seneca was a Roman, and lived nearly two thousand years ago. Besides being an ancient Homan, Seneca was a Stoic, a philosopher who believed that a man should accept without com- plaint whatever fortune happened to befall him. ^^Our rich man/' in the paragraph, then, was a Stoic of those old Eoman days. He was rich if he was " glorious and happy within." Who was Alex- ander? How much did he have? Had it been enough for all the world before? Would it be enough for you? Was it "sufficient for human nature " ? Was it enough for Alexander? Could Alexander be rich ? Why is it that " money never made any man rich"? How can the richest man that ever lived be poor? Define " stint." Is there enough in the world so that everybody can have 66 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION as much as he needs ? Is the amount that each person actually needs, Nature's stint? What is meant by the " stint of Nature " ? What is another word for " felicity " ? What was the original mean- ing of " vulgar " ? Look up the word " vulgar- ism." Does this word retain the original meaning of the word ^^ vulgar"? What word would be used to-day instead of ^Wulgar" in the phrase " dazzles the eyes of the vulgar " ? Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph giving your opinion upon Seneca's philosophy as it is expressed in the para- graph above. If Seneca's paragraph should be put into one sentence^ it would read : " He that wishes more is always poor ; but he that is happy and con- tent with what he has is always rich." What do you wish to say of this ? WORD STUDY. The following words will be of use in the next composition. Study them carefully ; and then use them. To gain some familiarity with them, write five sentences, each containing two of the words. Also fill the blanks with words selected from the list. trustworthy true faithful loyalty fidelity honor sign symbol emblem enraged crazy frantic massacre carnage slaughter PARAGRAPHS 67 awful direful fearful courage bravery ^ fortitude 1. Some of the incidents related of Indian are too for belief. 2. The stars and stripes are the of the Union. 3. August tenth, 1792, the Swiss guards proved their and to the Bourbon king, Louis XVI. Their and were unable to stand against the fury of the — ■ — and mob which had stormed the Tuileries. Of the one thousand brave men who made up this guard, barely two hundred survived the . The makes the tenth of August one of the oft- named days of the Reign of Terror. 4. A white lily is the of the Bourbons. Composition Exercise. The " Lion of Lucerne " is one of the sights the tourist goes to see. The model for it was made by Thorwaldsen, the great Danish sculptor. Following this model, the artist has carved the great lion out of the solid rock. It is twenty-eight feet long. The emblem, or banner, of Switzerland is a white cross ; it is seen upon the shield which leans against the rock. The conventionalized lily was the emblem of the king of France ; this is to be seen under the paw of the lion. This lion was made to commemorate the slaughter of the Swiss guards who fell on the night of August 10, 1792, while fighting bravely in defense of the king, Louis XVI. It is a symbol of the loyalty and valor and death of true men. 68 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Why should the symbol be a lion ? Why not a bear or a leopard ? Why has the lion placed his paw upon the lily of France? Does he wish to destroy it ? or is he protecting it ? What reason is there for the other shield appearing in the picture ? What significance is there in the broken lance and battle axe ? Does it mean anything to you that the spear thrust was not in the breast of the lion ? Look at the lion's face. Does it indicate yielding or defiance ? Is there sorrow in the face ? Is there pain ? After you have decided what Thorwaldsen meant to express in this famous " Lion of Lucerne/' write your impression of it as you come upon it after a little walk from your hotel through the streets of Lucerne. The following will make an easy ap- proach to the description. Copy it. The thing that we wished to see most in Lucerne was the famous " Lion." We hardly gave ourselves time to eat our lunch before we had asked the porter which way to go to find it. Following his directions we hurried along a crooked street lined with shops, in which the principal thing for sale was bears, — bears lying and bears stand- ing, bears singly and large families of bears quietl}^ at dinner, and all made of brown wood, — until we came to a sign which read, " To the Lion." Then we turned to the right and ran up a path a few rods, and there before us across a dark pool was the " Lion of Lucerne." Now go on with your description of the " Lion of Lucerne." PARAGRAPHS 71 FOR MEMORIZING. THE HERITAGE. The rich man's son inherits lands, And piles of brick and stone, and gold, And he inherits soft white hands, And tender flesh that fears the cold. Nor dares to wear a garment old ; A heritage, it seems to me. One scarce would wish to hold in fee. The rich man's son inherits cares ; The bank may break, the factory burn, A breath may burst his bubble shares. And soft white hands could hardly earn A living that would serve his turn ; A heritage, it seems to me. One scarce would wish to hold in fee. A rich man's son inherits wants. His stomach craves for dainty fare ; With sated heart, he hears the pants Of toiling hinds with brown arms bare, And wearies in his easy chair ; A heritage, it seems to me. One scarce would wish to hold in fee. What doth the poor man's son inherit ? Stout muscles and a sinewy heart, A hardy frame, a hardier spirit ; King of two hands, he does his part In every useful toil and art ; A heritage, it seems to me, A king might wish to hold in fee. 72 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION What doth the poor man's son inherit? Wishes o'erjoyed with humble things, A rank adjudged by toil-worn merit, Content that from employment springs, A heart that in his labor sings ; A heritage, it seems to me, A king might wish to hold in fee. What doth the poor man's son inherit? A patience learned of being poor, Courage, if sorrow come, to bear it, A fellow-feeling that is sure To make the outcast bless his door ; A heritage, it seems to me, A king might wish to hold in fee. O rich man's son ! there is a toil That with all others level stands ; Large charity doth never soil. But only whiten, soft white hands ; This is the best crop from thy lands, A heritage, it seems to me. Worth being rich to hold in fee. O poor man's son ! scorn not thy state ; There is worse weariness than thine, In merely being rich and great ; Toil only gives the soul to shine. And makes rest fragrant and benign ; A heritage, it seems to me. Worth being poor to hold in fee. Both, heirs to some six feet of sod. Are equal in the earth at last ; PARAGRAPHS 73 ' Both, children of the same dear God, Prove title to your heirship vast By record of a well-filled past ; A heritage, it seems to me, Well worth a life to hold in fee. Lowell. What is a heritage ? What is meant by the phrase, " To hold in fee " ? What are " bubble shares " ? Define " sated." What word do we use instead of ^^ sated " ? Who are ^^ hinds"? Why does the rich man weary in his easy chair ? What is a " sinewy heart?" How does the poor man win his rank ? What is the toil a rich man may engage in, that " with all others level stands " ? Is it honorable ? How can the rich man prove title to his '' heirship vast " ? How can the poor man do the same ? Do riches or poverty make any difference in the honor of a man's life ? The poem divides itself into three distinct parts. In each part, there are three stanzas. What is the topic of the first part ? of the second ? of the third ? Write three topic sentences which contain the principal thoughts in the poem. Composition Exercise. One bright afternoon in October, two boys, James and Harry, went into the woods to gather nuts. They were there before the squirrels, and in a little time had their baskets filled. They were a little tired by their walk and work ; and the smell of the leaves was so fresh and sprightly that they 74 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION lay down for a little rest before they started on their journey home. The boys had been reading " The Peasant and the Prince " ; and they had both been saddened by the unhappy life of the little Dauphin no less than by the misery of Marc and Robin. However^ James was inclined to think that the lot of poor little Louis was harder than the rough fate of the beggarly peasant's children. Harry insisted that he would rather be the king's unfortunate son than a son of M. Randolphe. Write the conversation between the boys. Be very careful in the use of quotation marks. Re- member how conversation is paragraphed. Don't forget how the comma and semicolon are used in reporting conversation. Those of you who are not acquainted with " The Peasant and the Prince " may make the two boys discuss the chances of success in life which a poor boy has when compared with the chance a son of wealthy parents has. The rich man's son has had to do nothing; and the poor man's son, from the time he was able^ has had to help earn the living for the family. In both cases there should be a paragraph of introduction. Follow the outline given above for this introduction, telling where the boys were, who they were, and how it happened that they fell to talking of this subject. Then give their con- versation. Why did they stop talking ? CHAPTER III. SENTENCES. SYNONYMS. A SENTENCE is a complete thought expressed in words. Yet, even when the thought has been ex- pressed so that the writer understands it, it may- be in words that puzzle the reader. A college botany contains such long, hard words that pupils in the seventh year at school cannot understand them. And a pupil in the seventh year may use words that would be too hard for his little sister. He may say to her, " The earth is surrounded by the atmosphere," but the child cannot understand him because the word " atmosphere " is new. She would understand, " The earth is surrounded by air." The thought is the same in both cases, but there is a difference in the expression of the thought. Take another example, this time a little harder. When " good George Herbert " said, years ago, " This coat with my discretion, will be brave," he expressed a complete and a beautiful thought ; yet it is possible that at the first reading it has not been comprehended. Two words have been used 76 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION which are not understood. '^Discretion" means " good judgment in regard to one's own conduct ; " and two hundred years ago it meant " good man- ners/' or " politeness." One definition of the other word, " brave/' is " making a fine display ; elegant ; showy ; spruce." So the same thought might be written to-day, " This coat, with my fine manners, will be elegant." George Herbert, being of good family, a rector of the Church of England, and a poet of no mean reputation, did not fear to wear a coat that was not quite new, for no one would criticise the coat of a true gentleman. A thought, then, may be v expressed in different ways by the use of different words. Words which may be put into the place of other words without greatly changing the meaning of the sentence are called synonyms. A synonym is one of two or more words having the same or like meaning. Exercise. In " The Great Stone Face " the following words are used for face : features^ visage^ lineaments, aspect, countenance, and physiognomy. They do not mean exactly the same. Be ready to tell the meaning of these words. Use the correct ones in the sentences. 1. His sharp and angular. 2. From the of his face he was considered a strict, hard man. 3. This of the case is encouraging. THE GREAT STONE FACE Froin a photograph SENTENCES 79 4. Sheridan had a battle-scarred . 6. He had made a study of . Exercise, Use correctly in sentences synonyms for the following words, taken from " The Great Stone Face " : industrious, energy , benign, truculent, con- fiding, affectionate. Composition Exercise, Write a paragraph upon the thought suggested by the sentence taken from George Herbert. One of the following topic sentences may be a help : — Wealth may buy clothes, but not refinement. A man that judges people by their clothes may be easily mistaken. A man is known by the clothes he wears. Or, write an incident in which you were sur- prised to learn which was the little lady or the true gentleman. SYNONYMS. It is very common for persons to think that all synonyms have the same meaning, w^hile it is prob- ably true that very few words have exactly the same meaning. The words " air " and " atmo- sphere " are excellent examples of good synonyms. Yet they cannot always be used one for the other. We speak of the " airs of heaven," meaning the breezes, and we say " he puts on airs " ; in neither 80 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION case can we substitute " atmosphere " for " air." Even such common words as '' large " and " great," " little " and " small," cannot be used interchange- ably in all cases, though they seem to be perfect synonyms. There is certainly a difference between " a large man " and " a great man " ; and it hurts one's feelings to be called " small," when he is by no means "little." One word very rarely means just the same as another ; and it is our business to learn when to take one word and leave another. This Hawthorne knew as well as any other writer in the world. During the study of " The Great Stone Face," particular attention will be given to his choice of words. WORD STUDY. The Great Stone Face. Paragraphs 1-3. Give synonyms for spacious^ rich, compelled, difficulty gifty and phenomenon. Would the words big, wealthy^ driven, hard, present, and appear- ance do as well as the words Hawthorne has used ? Put them into sentences and try them. What is the relation between " family " and " familiarity " ? What is the real meaning of " rivulet " ? What does the ending, 1-e-t, do to the meaning of a word ? Think of two other words that have been changed in this way. Do you see a word in its first syllable that helps you to understand the word " neighbors " ? What word does Hawthorne use to make the rivulet seem a live thing ? Do SENTENCES 81 you like it ? What is the topic of the whole of paragraph three ? Do you find it expressed ? If so, in what words ? Composition Exercise. Describe some peculiar natural formation of rocks which you have seen. It does not need to be as strange as a face carved out of the rocks. It may be just a pillar of stone like a chimney ; or possibly a wall of stone, something like the Pali- sades ; or perhaps you have seen some picture upon the rocks. Or, describe a brook that you have sometime seen ; or better, the one you have played in often. Or, if you have not had that pleasure, tell of the fun you have had building dams across little streams in the spring. WORD STUDY. The Great Stone Face. Paragraphs 4-10. Would it be in good taste to say, '' the majestic playfulness " of spaniels ? of lions ? What words has Hawthorne used in paragraph 4 for "face " ? for " very large " ? Of what value are so many words meaning nearly the same ? Is there any relation between " normal " and " enormous " ? Would you like " thunderous accents " as well as " thunder accents " ? Is there a difference between " further " and " farther " ? Give words that might be used instead of sculptured^ likeness, positively^ 82 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION gianty intact, and chaotic. Would you change these ? What is the topic sentence of this para- graph ? Is it expressed ? Give synonyms for forefathers, purport, des- tined, ardor, prophecy, inhabited. Are you glad that Hawthorne used '' murmured " and " whis- pered " instead of '' told " ? Is there any reason why Indians, not white men, should first have learned this story from the woods and streams ? Why does he use '^ personage " instead of " man '* or " person " ? Is " idle tale " better than " made- up story " ? Do you feel any difference between '' watched and waited till they were weary " and " looked for and waited till they were tired " ? Which do you prefer ? What word could be used for " not a few " ? Which is more emphatic ? What is the subject of paragraph 10? Is it ex- pressed ? If not, make a topic sentence for the paragraph. Exercise. The paragraph below is a description of a snow storm in old Paris. The cathedral of Notre Dame is on an island in the Seine River. This cathedral and this island are the ones spoken of in the para- graph. What is tracery? a niche ? a crocket ? a gargoyle ? In the parentheses are a number of words which might be used in the several places. Pick out the one which you think Stevenson has used in writing this good description. SENTENCES 83 The air was raw and (sharp, pointed, chill, cold), but not far below freezing ; and the flakes were large, damp, and (adhesive, sticky). The whole city was sheeted up. An army might have (marched, moved, walked, trod) from end to end and not a footfall given the (alarm, warning). If there were any (late, tardy, belated) birds in heaven, they saw the island like a large white patch, and the bridges like (slim, slender, delicate) white spars, on the black ground of the river. High up over head the snow (fell, settled, sifted) among the tracery of the cathedral (towers, spires). Many a niche was (piled, drifted) full ; many a statue wore a long white bonnet on its (funny, queer, grotesque) or sainted head. The gargoyles had been transformed into (large, huge, enormous, vast, great) false noses, drooping towards the point. The crockets were like upright pillows swollen on one side. In the intervals of the wind, there was a (monotonous, quiet, dull, unchan- ging) sound of dripping about the precincts of the church. Stevenson, from A Lodging or the Night. Composition Exercise. Tell the story which Ernest's mother told him of the prophecy regarding ^^The Great Stone Face." In writing it, introduce the questions that Ernest was likely to ask his mother while she was telling it. Was Ernest a boy with a head older than his years ? If you think so, be sure that he asks questions that older persons would ask. Do not forget the rules for the punctuation of quota- tions. See page 2. 84 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION WOBD STUDY. Below are two groups of synonyms. Write the definition of each word. Put the proper words into the blanks below. Use each word but once. 1. Hospitahle^ /^'^e, generous^ liberal^ charitable^ princely^ munificent. 2. Unkind^ unfriendly^ harsh^ cruel ^ unmerciful^ irihu- man. The gifts made by Mr. Carnegie to colleges and libraries are and . We find many persons who cannot be . The homes of farmers are generally , but rarely He founded many institutions by his mu- nificence. The Hindoos sometimes throw their children to the Ganges. Such acts seem to us . The treatment of the physician was . The behavior of Emperor Nero was certainly , if it may not be termed . Exercise. A little boy, born in a valley so deep that he had never seen beyond his mountains, one day asked the miller where the river went. The miller was a simple man, and answered in simple words. Be very careful not to use big, hard words which the miller would not use. After you have written it carefully and the class has helped you to decide what words are best, the teacher will dictate tae beautiful paragraph to you, SENTENCES 85 just as Stevenson wrote it, that you may write it again, punctuating and spelling correctly. It goes down the (vale, gully, glen, valley, dale), an- swered he, and turns a power of mills — six score mills, they say, from here to Unterdeck — and it is none the (wearier, more tired, more exhausted, fainter) after all. And then it goes out (into, in) the lowlands, and waters the (great, large, vast) corn country, and runs through a sight of (rich, flourishing, powerful, fine) cities (so they say) where kings live all alone in great palaces, with a (guard, sentry, watchman) walking up and down before the door. And it (goes, flows, loiters) under bridges with stone men upon them, looking down and smiling so (strange, curious, queer) at the water, and living folks (resting, lean- ing) their elbows on the wall and looking over too. And then it goes on and on, and down through marshes and sands, until at last it (falls, drops, flows, empties) into the sea, where the ships are that bring parrots and tobacco from the Indies. Ay, it has a long trot before it as it goes singing over our weir, bless (it 's, its) heart. Stevenson, from Will o' the Mill, Exercise. There is a picture of " The Great Stone Face " on page 77. Write a description of it as it appears to you. Never mind what Hawthorne says about it. Tell only what you see in that great face on the mountain side. WOKD STUDY. The Great Stone Face. Paragraphs 13-15. Give synonyms for never ^ forget, pensive, mild, unobtrusive, intelligence, veneration, confiding, dis- 86 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION cerned^ recognized^ peculiar. Do you like " little hands " as well as " small hands " ? What is the difference between " loving heart " and " affec- tion " ? " Save only " are used instead of what word ? Read the sentence aloud, substituting the synonym. Do you like it ? Why did Hawthorne not say, " this was not a mistake/' or, " this was surely so/' instead of the sentence beginning, " We must not take upon us to affirm," etc. ? What is the subject of paragraph 13 ? Form a topic sen- tence. Tell the different meanings of these words: migrate^ emigrate^ immigrate. Define surna7ne^ given name, Christian name, nickname. The last word has a peculiar origin. Consult an unabridged dictionary. Give synonyms for inscrutable, efful- gence, original commodity. Is " bulky-bottomed " better than " very large " ? Look up the origin of '^accumulation." Is there any special fitness of the words " mountainous " and " accumulation " for each other ? You will be interested in the origin of the word '' sterling." Look in Webster's Inter- national Dictionary. Make a topic sentence for paragraph 14. In paragraph 15, what word has already been used which means " similitude " ? Why ^^ edifice " and not " house " ? Is " splendid " a good word here ? May you say '' a splendid diamond " ? "a splendid servant " ? "a splendid time " ? Is a piazza a portico ? Would you prefer to have had SENTENCES 87 the interior of the house described in detail ? or is it more beautiful because the details have been left to the imagination ? £Jxercise. In order that you may have some good words to describe the character in the next composition, make a list of adjectives which Hawthorne has used to present Gathergold. Put eight of these into sentences. Possibly you would prefer to write a paragraph using these ad- jectives in a description of a character. The following is a sketch of one of Dickens's characters. It has some good adjectives. Oh ! but he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge ! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner ! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire ; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his pointed nose, shrivelled his cheek, stiffened his gait ; made his eyes red, his thin lips blue ; and spoke out shrewdly in his grating voice. A frosty rime was on his head, and on his eyebrows, and his wiry chin. He carried his own low temperature always about with him ; he iced his office in the dog-days ; and did n't thaw it one degree at Christ- mas. Dickens, from A Christmas Carol Composition Exercise. The subject for the composition this week is an original incident in the life of a miser ; or some story you know of a very stingy man. 88 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION If you do not know one, or cannot imagine one, the following outline may be used. It was just after dusk. My brother and I had arrived in the outskirts of Waconia, where the houses are scat- tered about much like haystacks in a meadow. A gleam from a low hovel attracted us ; we could figure out in the distance a man ; we crept quietly up to the window to see what he was doing. Rising stealthily from our knees we beheld — Go on with your story, first giving a description of the room, then the man, and last tell what he was doing. Tell how you got away. Possibly he saw you. ANTONYMS. In the preceding section we have learned that a thought may be expressed in more ways than one, by using words that have similar meanings. By the use of synonyms a writer may be better un- derstood; and he can give to his composition greater variety of expression, and avoid the mo- notony of frequent repetition. The following phrases, taken from " The Great Stone Face," illustrate another method of expres- sion : — Not a few old-fashioned people. Hardly anybody. No ordinary men. No high purpose. But not in vain had he grown old. SENTENCES 89 In these phrases notice that there is always a negative, — " no," or " not/' or " hardly/' or some similar word. " He was by no means a small man " means " he was a large man." " The water is tepid " may not be understood by all ; but should it be written, " the water is not very warm/' every one would know what is meant. So our sentence from " good George Herbert/' on page 75, can be made to read, " This coat,, with my discretion, will not seem old." Notice, in the second place, that the word or words which follow the negative are opposed in meaning to the words which we should employ in an affirmative statement of the same thought. Thus "few" and "many" are opposed in mean- ing; and " not a few " means " many." So " small " and " large," " rich " and " poor," " weak " and " powerful," are sets of words of opposite mean- ing. Such words are called antonyms; and the method of expression which employs antonyms may be termed denying the opposite. An antonym is one of two words opposite, or nearly- opposite, in their meaning. WORD STUDY. What are antonyms of good^ sharp^ thin, little, far-off, true, famous, folly, high, idle ? You will find help in the dictionary. Use their antonyms in sentences. 90 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Composition Exercise. Do you think that you would have thought Gathergold stingy if you had only seen him ? What was there about him to make you think so ? Did you see it in his eyes ? in his mouth ? in his forehead ? Did his hands look generous ? Was he looking about to see some one to help ? Can you tell by the looks of a person what kind of man he is ? Have you a clear picture of a sweet old lady ? of a jolly man ? of a cruel boy ? of a cross policeman ? of a patient mother ? Do you think that everybody could see in the face what you see there ? Gathergold looked like a mean, stingy man : and he was all that. Can you write a description of some person so that we shall know and feel what kind of a person it is ? Try it. Or, write a paragraph upon this topic sentence : A man's character usually gets itself plainly written upon his face. Or this : — Little children are very quick to detect a man's nature by a glance at his face. AVOKD STUDY. The Great Stone Face. Paragraphs 16-24. What has Hawthorne used instead of " Ernest was stirred not a little " ? " Ernest believed " ? " was not false " ? ^" looked not unkindly " ? To your mind is " vast " as large as " great " ? Give SENTENCES 91 synonyms for harbingers, manifest, 7nagnificent, fancying. The English use the word " fancy " very often, much as we use the word " think/' and the word " guess." Which do you think is better in this paragraph ? Form a topic sentence for paragraph 16. What are the antonyms of the following words : small, innumerable, doleful, greatly, wrinkled, be- nign, sordid ? What synonyms of " image " has Hawthorne already used ? Does " piteously " mean the same as " pitifully " ? What is the topic sen- tence of paragraph 20 ? Give synonyms of meditate, sentiment, com- muned, counterjmrt, marvelous. May you say, '* I don't meditate that I shall leave town to- day " ? May you say, " I am going adown town to-day " ? Notice that " They knew not " has been used twice, and then " Neither did Ernest know." Would you have liked it as well, had it been ^^And Ernest knew not"? What is the topic of paragraph 24 ? Exercise. Frame sentences using the following words. Then write the same thoughts in another group of sen- tences using antonyms of these words. These last sentences will deny the opposite. benign low mean doubted true small noble industrious Example : Gathergold's face was hard. Gathergold's face was by no means kind. 92 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Exercise, In the paragraph below^ change the words in italics to or from the form which denies the op- posite; and for the words in small capitals use synonyms. The class should write the paragraph from dictation, when it has been determined what words are to be used. The punctuation should be correct. This garden John has no fondness for. He would rather hoe corn all day than work in it. Father seems to think that it is easy work that John can do, because it is not far from the house ! John's continual plan in this life is to go fishing. When there comes a rainy day, he ATTEMPTS to carry it out. But ten chances to one his father has different views. As it rains so that work cannot be done in the field, it is not a had time to work in the garden. He can run into the house between the heavy showers. John accordingly does not love the garden ; and the only time he works briskly is when he has a stent set, to do so much weeding before the Fourth of July. Warner, fom Being a Boy, Composition Exercise. Tell of a generous act by a poor person, either a child or an adult. Generosity is quite as often shown when there is no money spent or given as when there is. Be very careful in the choice of words. Do not put down the first one that comes into your head, but think which of a number of words best says what you wish to say. Try to SENTENCES 93 use a few sentences which make a denial of the opposite. Remember that variety of expression gives strength and beauty to your composition. " No deed is little if but greatly done." FOR MEMORIZING. It IS not growing like a tree In bulk, doth make Man better be ; Or standing long an oak, three hundred year, To fall a log at last, dry, bald, and sere ; A lily of a day Is fairer far in May, Although it fall and die that night — It was the plant and flower of light. In small proportions we just beauties see; And in short measures life may perfect be. Ben Jonson, from Underwoods. CONTRASTS. The form of expression which we have been studying has a variation which may give the sen- tence more emphasis and clearness. To say, " The sea is held in check by a beach of sand " is per- fectly clear. But the whole sentence is much stronger : " The sea is held in check, not by a wall of brick, but by a beach of sand." The contrast between the '' wall of brick " and the " beach of sand " gives great emphasis to a thought which before was perfectly clear. So if one read " Olive oil is made from olives/' he might easily think that 94 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION olive oil is extracted from such olives as we eat. A clearer expression is this : " Olive oil is extracted, not from the green olives which we eat, but from the ripened fruit." By the contrast, the sentence has become clearer. This kind of sentence construction may be termed the method of contrast. It is a combina- tion of an affirmative statement and the expres- sion denying the opposite. It is used for variety, for clearness, and for emphasis. Exercise. Using the method of contrast, fill the blanks in the following sentences : — 1. The earth is not flat, as was once believed, but 2. Oranges grow, not on tall trees, but on 3. When it leaves Lake Itasca, the Mississippi is not a full river, but . 4. People judge character, not so much by what we say, as by . 5. In Europe the houses are built of stone and brick, not, as in America so frequently, . 6. The English language has been made, not by one people, but . 7. Greatness consists, not in never falling, but every time we fall. WORD STUDY. The Great Stone Face. Paragraphs 25-33. What words already used are synonyms of " odd " ? Give synonyms for consigned^ decease^ illustrious^ infirm^ turmoil^ vista, relicy ruthlessly. SENTENCES 95 Express negatively " had been exceedingly like/' ^' served the more/' " a mighty crown." Tell the meanings of the words resemblance^ sim- ilarityy similitude^ likeness^ counterparty picture. What is the difference between " glancing " and " gazing " in paragraph 26 ? Change the places of the two words. What effect is produced by the change ? Is it right to say " a sylvan ban- quet " ? Is it right to say " a wooded banquet " ? " a sylvan youth " ? "a rustic glade " ? What is the meaning of " anxious " ? Is it proper to say '' I am anxious for a new dress " ? What is meant by " quite " in the sentence, Ernest was thrust "quite into the background" ? Is "quite" used correctly in the common expressions " quite sick/' " quite rich/' " quite late" ? What does the word " quite " mean when we say " he is not quite well " ? or " he is not quite the man we wish " ? " he has not quite finished " ? There is seldom a mistake in the use of "quite" after " not." Do we use it correctly in other cases ? Give synonyms and antonyms for energy, an iron willy eminent, beneficence^ quiet, humble. Haw- thorne uses " wanting " correctly. Is it correct to say " I want to go home " ? or, " The picture wants dignity and repose " ? What word do we commonly use " want " for ? Hawthorne has used " uttered " for " spoke " ; " auditors " for " listen- ers " ; " mankind " for " people " ; " contagious " for " catching " ; " aged " for " old " j " vocifer- 96 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION ous " for '' noisy." Why ? Give topic sentences for paragraphs 27, 31, 33. Exercise, Here are several phrases to be used in the exer- cises below. They are to be arranged in the following blanks so as to form contrasts. They are all needed, but none should be used twice. of the ripened scholar the study of a text book work one's luck what he saves noisy brawling worry experiment in a laboratory a noisy politician a wimpling murmur one's industry what one earns 1. It is not which kills men ; it is . 2. Emerson's was the eloquence , not of . 3. Success depends not on , but on 4. The little brook gleamed down the hillside not with -, but with 6. The study of physics is pursued now not by , but by . 6. Wealth is attained by , not by . Compositwn Exercise. Write a paragraph contrasting Blood-and-Thun- der whom Ernest saw, and the ideal man he had hoped to see. A few sentences may assist you to get started. Ernest was disappointed. There before him was the man he had long expected ; but instead of . Where SENTENCES 97 he had looked for . His mind had fancied . Old Blood-and-Thunder was , not . Go on with the contrast. WOKD STUDY. Here are four groups of synonyms. Many mis- takes are made in the use of some of these words. Study them carefully in the dictionary. Insert them in the sentences below. 1. Enormous, gigantic, mighty, vast, great. 2. Little, tiny, minute, small. 3. Broad, wide. 4. High, lofty, tall. 1. quantities of coal have been mined in Pennsyl- vania. 2. oaks from acorns grow. 3. Nimrod was a hunter. 4. The redwood trees of California are . 5. Steam is particles of heated water. 6. Napoleon was a man. 7. A child shall lead them. 8. A brook trickled over the moss. 9. prairies cover the central part of America. 10. We could see several miles up the valley. 11. This cloth is than that. 12. We were surrounded by mountains. 13. My brother is than I. 14. He gets marks at school. COMPAKISONS. There is still another way in which a thought may be expressed. Besides using other words. 98 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION synonyms and antonyms, one may tell how one thing looks or acts by comparing its appearance or actions with that of some other more familiar ob- ject. If a boy from the South had not seen a snowball, it would be easy to give him a very ac- curate idea of its size and shape by telling him that it is about as large and is shaped much the same as an orange. So of the snowfall, it might be said that it looks like small flakes of cotton dropping from the clouds. 1. The earth is shaped like an orange or a ball. 2. A panther looks like a large cat. 3. The leaves of some Nile lilies are very large and flat ; and they are turned up at the edge so that they look like a giant's pie-tins floating on the water. 4. " The grizzly bear looked like a fur-clad omnibus coming through the trees." 5. A sheep chews its cud as a cow does. 6. The air lifts a balloon as the water lifts a ship. 7. Millions of years ago the moon flew from the hot whirling earth, just as water flies from a turning grind- stone. In the first four sentences, " like " has been used ; and in the last three, " as " has been em- ployed. It would be entirely wrong to use "like'* in the last three sentences. This very common expression is incorrect : " Do it like I do " ; and so is this: "He laughs just like his father used to." " Like " is a little word to watch ; " as " will usu- ally be found in its proper place. After studying SENTENCES \^^ /;,^ : : ; . [W: the examples carefully, make a rule which will tell the class when they are not to use " like." Uxercise, Finish the following sentences with a comparison which will make the thought clear. 1. A snowball looks like . 2. It was a peculiar old chest shaped like 3. This poor house where they were living seemed more like . 4. Coral grows in many forms, some of them . 6. The engineer swings a bridge across the river just as a spider . 7. Kerosene rises on water as . 8. Attraction holds the earth in its orbit as Composition Exercise. Write a letter to Edouardo Vallejo, living in Manila, describing a sleigh-ride. It will be neces- sary to tell him about snow and sleds, what the weather is, and how we fix up to keep warm. To do this so that he will understand will require fre- quent use of comparisons. If your home is in the South, write to a boy or girl in Winnipeg, describing some sport which the children at the North know nothing of, so that he will have a good idea of the fun there is in it. COMPARISONS. In the preceding exercise, comparisons have been used for clearer expression of the thought. Such 1-00 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION comparisons help the reader to understand what has been written. In the sentences which follow, the purpose is different. 1. The little child is like a fresh flower. 2. Some of Eubens's paintings glow like a gorgeous sunset sky. 3. The morning dew sparkles like brilliant diamonds. 4. The fields of golden grain wave in the sunlight like the billows of the great broad ocean. 5. A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in baskets of silver. 6. As clouds and wind without rain, so is he that boasteth himself of his gifts falsely. In addition to clearness, such sentences add force and beauty to the thought. The first sentence might have read : '' The child is beautiful." The meaning of the two sentences would have been the same. " The little child is like a flower/' how- ever, does more than make clear that the child is not ugly in appearance ; it asserts that fact, but with more force and much more beauty than the simple expression " The child is beautiful," or " The child is not ugly," or even " The little child is not ugly, but beautiful." This additional point should be noticed about these comparisons. In the sentence " The trunk is like a box," there are many points of resemblance between the objects compared. A trunk is really like a box. But a flower is not really like a child, — except in one quality. Both have a graceful SENTENCES ; 101: beauty. So, when Solomon compared a boastful man to clouds that bring no rain, he meant only that in both cases the promise of help fails. In these sentences the words, then, are not literally true. The comparison is true only in one point. Such comparisons are called figures of speech. " A leaden weight of sorrow," " a heart of flint," "whispering breezes," are examples of words used in an uncommon way. Sorrow is not lead ; but a great sorrow oppresses the heart like a leaden weight. A flinty heart cannot be touched ; and the breezes in the trees make a noise like whispers. So in the following sentence, " Her lips were rubies, and her teeth were pearls," nothing more is intended than that her lips were red and her teeth were white. It is a comparison of color only. In all these examples, the objects compared are unlike ; yet they have one quality common to both. Such expression is called figurative ; and when natural, not forced, figurative language has thrilling power and beauty. Exercise. In paragraphs 35 to 52 of " The Great Stone Face," find ten comparisons. Not all of them need be figures of speech. Tell which are figures ; and of the figures point out the quality in which the otgepts compared are alike. 102 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION FIGURES OF SPEECH. A simile is an expressed comparison between unlike things. It is usually introduced by such words as lUce^ as^ as if, as though, as when, seemed, appeared, and similar words of comparison. '' The child is like a fresh young flower/' is a simile. A metaphor is an implied comparison between un- like things. It contains no word indicating the comparison. " Her lips were rubies and her teeth were pearls " is a metaphor. Personification is a figure of speech which ascribes to abstract ideas and inanimate things the attributes of living beings. " Sweet is the breath of Morn, her rising sweet with charm of earliest birds." In this sentence, Morn is personified ; that is, the abstract idea is spoken of as if it were a person. Exercise. In the following sentences, find the similes, the metaphors, and the personifications. Some sen- tences contain an example of each of the three figures. Tell of each in what respect the objects compared have a likeness. 1. Conscience is a thorn in the bosom to prick and sting. 2. Prayer is a strong wall and fortress of the church. 3. All words are pegs to hang ideas on. SENTENCES 103 4. If slander be a snake, it is a winged one ; it flies as well as creeps. 5. Pride, like a magnet, constantly points to one object, — self. 6. Truth will rise above falsehood, as oil above water. 7. Day, like a weary pilgrim, had reached the western gate of heaven, and Evening stooped down to unloose the latchets of her silver shoon. 8. The daisy's cheek is tipped with a blush ; she is of such low degree. 10. How like a queen comes forth the lonely Moon from the slow opening curtains of the clouds. Exercise. Most similes can be changed to metaphors, and most metaphors can be changed to similes. " The child is like a fresh flower " is a simile. It can be changed to read : " The child is a fresh young flower." This is a metaphor. The comparison is not expressed by any word. " Her lips were rubies and her teeth were pearls " can be changed to " Her lips were like rubies and her teeth were like pearls." This is a simile ; for the comparison is expressed by the word "like." It may be ex- pressed in this way : " She had ruby lips and teeth of pearl " ; or in these beautiful lines by Spen- ser, — " And twixt the pearls and rubies softly brake A silver sound, that Heavenly music seemed to make." The sentence, "^ The morning dew sparkles like diamonds " is a simile. Changed to a metaphor. 104 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION il may read : " Bright diamonds stud the morning lawn " ; or, — " Nature decks with generous hand Each blade and leaf with diamond dew." Lowell uses nearly the same comparison between the spray from the water wheel and jewels. Is his figure a simile or a metaphor ? " The miller dreams not at what cost The quivering millstones hum and whirl, Nor how for every turn are tossed Armfuls of diamond and of pearl." Exercise. Change three metaphors in the preceding lesson to similes and two similes to metaphors. FOR MEMORIZING. ABOU BEN ADHEM. Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase !) Awoke one night from a deep dream of peace, And saw, within the moonlight in his room, Making it rich, and like a lily in bloom, An angel writing in a book of gold : — Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold. And to the presence in his room he said, *' What writest thou ? " The vision raised its head. And with a look made of all sweet accord, Answer'd, " The names of those who love the Lord." " And is mine one? " said Abou. " Nay, not so," Replied the angel. Abou spake more low. But cheerily still ; and said, " I pray thee, then. Write me as one that loves his fellow-men." SENTENCES 105 The angel wrote, and vanish'd. The next night It came again with a great wakening light, And showed the names whom love of God had bless'd, And lo ! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest. Leigh Hunt. Composition Exercise. Hawthorne has these sentences : — Now, as heretofore, he labored for his bread, and was the same simple-hearted man that he had always been. But he had thought and felt so much, he had given so many of the best hours of his life to unworldly hopes for some great good to mankind, that it seemed as though he had been talking with the angels and had imbibed a por- tion of their wisdom unawares. It was visible in the calm and well-considered beneficence of his daily life, the quiet stream of which had made a wide green margin all along its course. Not a day passed by that the world was not the better because this man, humble as he was, had lived. Hawthorne, from The Great Stone Face. Write a paragraph telling of some of the ways it is possible for a man to be so helpful to his neigh- bors that he may be likened to a quiet stream which has made '' a wide green margin all along its course." The topic sentence might be : — Some people are so kind and thoughtful of others, that every one who comes near them is made happy. Or: — I know who is so kind to me that whenever I see I am happy. 106 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Exercise. Below are given nine figures of speech. They have been broken into pieces. Put them together as you think they were at first. 1. The kingdoms crumble and fall apart 2. Beautiful Venice floats 3. Beyond the shining harbor bar a dim sail lingers 4. Light, fleecy clouds swim through the sky 5. A doubtful throne is 6. Our brains are 7. Her crimpled ear is 8. The angry man was 9. St. Peter's Cathedral glows a veritable wolf, snapping and snarling. seventy year clocks. like great white swans. like a pearl. like a ruined wall. like a glowing opal in a sapphire sea. ice on summer seas. like an expanded jewel casket. like a pearly pink shell. Exercise. In the following figures, tell first what things are compared ; and second, in what respect the things compared are alike. Commit to memory the last three stanzas. 1. Cornelia said of her children, " These are my jewels.'* 2. Bread is the staff of life. SENTENCES 107 3. " The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold, And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold." 4. " Eocked in the cradle of the deep, I lay me down in peace to sleep." 6. " Silently, one by one, in the infinite meadows of heaven. Blossomed the lovely stars, the forget-me-nots of the angels." 6. " My life is like the summer rose That opens to the morning sky." 7. " Lives of great men all remind us, We can make our lives sublime, And, departing, leave behind us Footprints on the sands of Time." 8. " On Fame's eternal camping-ground Their silent tents are spread, And Glory guards, with solemn round, The bivouac of the dead." 9. " Like the dew on the mountain, Like the foam on the river. Like the bubble on the fountain, Thou art gone ; and forever ! " 10. " There is a garden in her face Where roses and white lilies blow ; A Heavenly paradise is that place, Wherein all fruits do grow ; There cherries grow that none may buy. Till Cherry-Ripe themselves do cry. " Those cherries fairly do enclose Of orient pearl a double row. 108 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Which when her lovely laughter stows, They look like rosebuds fill'd with snow : Yet them no prince nor peer can buy, Till Cherry-Kipe themselves do cry." 11. " She dwelt among the untrodden ways Beside the springs of Dove ; A Maid whom there were none to praise And very few to love. " A Violet by a mossy stone Half -hidden from the eye ! Fair as a star, when only one Is shining in the sky. " She lived unknown, and few could know When Lucy ceased to be ; But she is in her grave, and, oh, The difference to me ! " Exercise. Write sentences comparing an angry face with a storm cloud ; the heart v^ith a clock ; some men with some kind of animal; cheeks and roses; a candle with a mans life; rivers and arteries; a child's moods and an April day. Example : A storm of anger darkened his face ; or, His angry face looked like a threatening storm. Composition Exercise. How many figures can you find in " The Great Stone Face " after Hawthorne begins to write about the poet ? Is beautiful language more suit- able to a poet's character than to the others? Do SENTENCES 109 you think Hawthorne liked the poet better than the rich man ? than the warrior ? than the states- man ? Is there some poet that you like ? Has he said some things that you have thought before, but more beautifully than you could say them ? Has he sometimes seen beauties which you had not seen ? Did a blacksmith shop look so beautiful to you before you had read "The Village Black- smith" ? Was something added to the beauty of " A Day in June " when you read the lines by Lowell? Is the life of a brave soldier-boy more nobly beautiful after reading " An Incident of the French Camp " ? Do flowers smell sweeter, moun- tains grow grander, brooks murmur more gently, faces of youth glow brighter, and old age seem sadder when the poet sings of them ? Write a paragraph upon one of these topic sen- tences : — The world has always loved its poets, for all things assumed another and a better aspect from the hour that the first poet blessed it with his eyes. Go on with some of the beautiful things the poet has shown you. Or: — The most beautiful poem I know is the story of a noble life. What does such a life tell you ? Or, describe Ernest as he appeared to the poet approaching him in the evening sunlight. 110 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION FOB MEMORIZING. TO THE DAISY. With little here to do or see Of things that in the great world be, Sweet Daisy ! oft I talk to thee, For thou art worthy, Thou unassuming Commonplace Of Nature, with that homely face, And yet with something of a grace. Which Love makes for thee ! Oft on the dappled turf at ease I sit, and play with similes. Loose types of things through all degrees, Thoughts of thy raising ; And many a fond and idle name I give to thee, for praise or blame, As is the humor of the game. While I am gazing. A Nun demure, of lowly port ; Or sprightly Maiden, of Love's Court, In thy simplicity the sport Of all temptations ; A Queen in crown of rubies drest ; A starveling in a scanty vest ; Are all, as seems to suit thee best. Thy appellations. A little Cyclops, with one eye Staring to threaten and defy. That thought comes next — and instantly The freak is over, SENTENCES 111 The shape will vanish, and behold ! A silver Shield with boss of gold, That spreads itself, some Fairy bold In fight to cover. I see thee glittering from afar ; — And then thou art a pretty Star ; Not quite so fair as many are In heaven above thee ! Yet like a star, with glittering crest, Self -poised in air, thou seem'st to rest ; — May peace come never to his nest. Who shall reprove thee ! Sweet Flower ! for by that name at last, When all my reveries are past, I call thee, and to that cleave fast, Sweet silent Creature ! That breath'st with me in sun and air, Do thou, as thou art wont, repair My heart with gladness, and a share Of thy meek nature ! Wordsworth. Before memorizing the poem, study it carefully- Be ready to answer the following questions : — Where was Wordsworth when the poem came to him ? How do you know the flower was not in some town garden ? Had he picked the flower, or was it still on its slender stem ? Do you think the daisy a pretty flower? Why, then, does he call it " homely " ? What does " homely " mean ? Consult the dictionary. How many figures of speech are there in the 112 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION third stanza ? Are they similes ? If not, what are they ? How can he see a nun, a maiden, a queen, and a starveling all in this simple little flower? Show the likeness of each to a daisy. What is meant by ^^ demure," "port," "starveling"? What is meant by "vest/" here ? by "appellation"? Give a synonym of each of these words. How many figures are there in the fourth stanza? What is a " Cyclops " ? How can a daisy be like a Cyclops ? What is the " boss " of a shield ? What part of the flower looks like it? Where is the " Fairy bold " ? Do you like this figure ? Which of all the metaphors do you like best ? Is the last stanza beautiful ? Has it figures of speech as the others ? Does the language suit this common flower ? Has the poet shown you more beauty in the daisy than you had seen before ? Composition Exercise. Some weeks ago, you wrote upon the picture of " The Great Stone Face." Ernest did not see that face as you see it ; to him it was far more beauti- ful than it seems in the picture. Where was the ideal man that Ernest saw? Had Ernest really seen him in the face on the mountain ? Did others see the same face there that Ernest saw ? Why did Ernest at last become the man prophesied cen- turies before ? Have you seen an ideal that you would like to become ? SENTENCES 113 Write a paragraph upon the value of noble ideals in lifting our lives up to a high standard. Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are hon- est, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Phimppians iv. 8. UMITT OF SENTENCES. A sentence is a group of words expressing a complete thought. We have already studied the different ways of expressing a thought, — by syn- onyms, by antonyms, by contrasts, by comparisons, and by figures of speech. The subject now is the unity of sentences; that is, what should be in- cluded in a sentence, and what should be excluded. First we shall study what should be included in a sentence. Young children sometimes talk like this : " My sled is red. Mary's sled is red. I slide down hill on my sled. Mary slides down hill on her sled." When the child has grown a little older he says all this in one sentence, as he should ; for all those four sentences are but one thought : " Mary and I slide down hill on our red sleds." Yet he still may write some sentences, in his history lesson, like the following : " Washington was the first president of the United States. He was inaugurated April 30, 1789. He was inaugurated at Federal Hall, in New York City." Those three sentences make 114 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION really but one complete thought; they should, therefore, be included in one sentence. The whole of a thought, — the complete thought, — should be expressed in one sentence. Exercise. Combine each of the following groups of sen- tences into one sentence. Each group expresses but one complete thought. 1. Cambridge was a small village in 1819. It is situated near Boston. Boston i» about six miles from Cambridge. 2. James Eussell Lowell was born in Cambridge. He was born in 1819. His birthday was February 22d. Feb- ruary 22d is the anniversary of Washington's birthday. 3. He was the youngest of seven children. He had four brothers and two sisters. 4. His father was a minister. His father had a large library. The baby, James, tumbled over the books in the library. The boy, James, devoured the books in the library. 5. In those days most schools were kept by men. A few schools were kept by women. They were called dame- schools. 6. James attended a dame-school. James left the dame-school. He was eight years old when he left the dame-school. He then went to a private school. 7. The master of the private school was Mr. William Wells. Mr. Wells was an Englishman. He was a gentleman of good family and excellent education. 8. Mr. Wells made his school like the schools in Eng- land. English schools maintain s^evere discipline. SENTENCES 115 9. Lowell studied Latin in this school. Lowell after- ward found much use for Latin. He did not like to study it. 10. Lowell entered Harvard College. He was fifteen years old then. Exercise. The following groups of sentences make the thought of a paragraph by Irving. He wrote the paragraph in eight sentences. The beginning of each sentence is marked by its number. Combine the short sentences into one longer sentence. (1.) I am fond of loitering about country churches. This church was delightfully situated. It frequently attracted me. (2.) It stood on a knoll. A small stream made a beautiful bend around it. Then it wound its way through a long reach of soft meadow scenery. (3.) The church was surrounded by yew-trees. They seemed almost coeval with itself. (4.) Its tall Gothic spire shot up lightly from among them. Books and crows were gener- ally wheeling about it. (5.) It was a still sunny morn- ing. I was seated there. I was watching two laborers. They were digging a grave. (6.) They had chosen one of the most remote and neglected corners of the churchyard. By the number of nameless graves around, it would appear that the indigent and friendless were huddled into the earth here. (7.) The new-made grave was for the only son of a poor widow. So I was told. (8.) I was medita- ting on the distinctions of worldly rank. They extend thus down into the very dust. The toll of the bell an- nounced the approach of the funeral. Ibving, from The Sketch Book, 116 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph giving your opinion of ex- pensive monuments in a cemetery. Why are they placed there ? Is a cemetery a place for the ex- hibition of wealth ? Or^ relate an unusual experience at church. Or, write a letter to a friend telling him of some of the good things you heard at church last Sun- day which made an impression upon you and which you intend to profit by. UNITY OF SENTENCES. It is not elegant to write such short sentences as those in the exercises just corrected. Yet each of those short sentences states a fact. Sometimes, however, one cannot state the truth without using a longer sentence. To make the sentence true, he must frequently use some modifying clause. If one should say, " All men should be imprisoned," he surely is not stating the truth. However, if he should insert a modifying clause, such as, " that do murder," making the sentence read : " All men that do murder should be imprisoned," the sentence does state a truth which is accepted. " Illness is among the best gifts of the gods," is a statement which few wish to have proven on themselves. Modify it as Swift did when he wrote it, and it is not so bad. " A proper, comfortable illness, that keeps you in bed, yet leaves you free SENTENCES 117 to read ; that banishes all the interruptions of life, the constitutional walks, the stupid visits, the an- noying correspondence, the dressing and undress- ing, — and allows you to lie abed and read your fill, is among the best gifts of the gods." To state the whole, the complete thought, it is often neces- sary to use modifying clauses. Exercise. Introduce modifying clauses into the sentences below so as to make them true. All pupils should be suspended from school. The government is bad. (What kind ?) A tree cannot grow. A boy will not do his best in school. (When ?) Poverty is dishonorable. (Only when ?) A man always believes himself suspected of a crime. (All men?) No man is fit to be a citizen of the United States. A man becomes a real hero. UNITY OF SENTENCES. A sentence is a complete thought expressed in words. Yet sometimes we find a sentence like the following : " The boy broke the new bow. Which I gave him." " Which I gave him" is as much a modifier of " bow " as the word " new." A modi- fier of a part of a sentence must not be made to look like another sentence, by being cut off by a period from the word it modifies. Express the complete thought in one sentence. 118 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION All the following sentences are wrong. Too many similar ones will be found in the pupils' papers. 1. This is the story. Which I was intending to tell you. 2. Not hearing from you. I think it is time that I should write to learn what is the matter. 3. What I said to you. You had no business to tell. 4. He was one of those who cannot but be in earnest. Whom Nature herself has appointed to be sincere. Exercise. The following paragraph is taken from Irving's ^^ Christmas Dinner." The sentences have been incorrectly divided by periods. Take out these marks except in places where they should be used. Irving has but five sentences. It would not be wrong to have six. Eemember how much should go into a sentence, — the expression of a complete thought. After the dinner-table was removed. The hall was given up to the younger members of the family, who, prompted to all kind of noisy mirth by the Oxonian and Master Simon, made its old walls ring with their merri- ment. As they played at romping games. I delight in witnessing the gambols of children. And particularly at this happy holiday season, and could not help stealing out of the drawing-room on hearing one of their peals of laughter. I found them at the game of blind-man's-buff. Master Simon, who was the leader of their revels, and seemed on all occasions to fulfil the office of that ancient SENTENCES 119 potentate, the Lord of Misrule, was blinded in the midst of the hall. The little beings were as busy about him as the mock fairies about Falstaff. Pinching him, plucking at the skirts of his coat, and tickling him with straws. One fine blue-eyed girl of about thirteen, with her flaxen hair all in beautiful confusion, her frolic face in a glow. Her frock half torn off her shoulders, a complete pic- ture of a romp, was the chief tormentor. And from the shyness with which Master Simon avoided the smaller game, and hemmed this wild little nymph in corners, and obliged her to jump shrieking over chairs. I suspected the rogue of being not a whit more blinded than was convenient. Ibving, from The Sketch Book. Composition Exercise. Write a story of the games of Christmas Night at your grandfather's. Did only the children play, or did all the family join in the fun ? Who was " it " most of the time ? Or, tell a friend how to play the game you like the best. You have just learned it, and your friend has never heard of it ; so you will have to be very careful to explain all about it. Or, write a paragraph upon this topic sentence : It would be a good thing if older people would often forget their worries, and join with younger people in their sports. COMMA. The following rules for the comma have al- ready been taught in the first books on language. Find in your reader an example of each rule, and bring it to class. Commit the rules to memory. 120 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION 1. Words used in a series, unless all of them are joined by connecting words, are separated by commas. 2. In writing a date, a comma is used to separate the day of the month from the year. 3. A comma is used to separate the name of a town from the name of the state in which it is located. 4. The name of the person or thing addressed is separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma, or by commas. 6. A short, informal quotation is separated from the explanatory words of the author by a comma, or by commas. COMMA. Very few sentences are made up of just a sub- ject and a predicate. These essential parts of a sentence usually have modifiers. The basis of one of Hawthorne's sentences is: "He and the poet pro- ceeded to the spot." Hawthorne tells us how they proceeded : " arm in arm," he says ; and, " still talking together as they went along." These groups of words belong together ; they cannot be separated. But a whole group can be taken up and put into some other place in the sentence. Using " arm in arm " to illustrate, notice how many places it can occupy. 1. He and the poet proceeded to the spot, arm in arm. 2. He and the poet proceeded, arm in arm, to the spot. 3. He and the poet, arm in arm, proceeded to the spot. 4. Arm in arm, he and the poet proceeded to the spot. The group of words can be made to occupy many positions in the sentence. But the words that form the group cannot be separated. It would SENTENCES 121 be quite impossible to say : " He and the poet arm proceeded to the spot in arm." To show, then, that the words of the group belong together, they are held together by commas. And to separate them from other words of a sentence so that they shall not be connected with any word they do not modify, they are set off by commas. 6. Small groups of closely related words are inclosed by commas to indicate their own near relation, and to separate them from words they might otherwise be thought to modify. Exercise. In paragraph 74 of " The Great Stone Face," give the reason for the use of the commas. Re- member that one rule is sufficient for both the commas inclosing a group of closely related words. COMMA. Success is, indeed, achieved by one's own efforts. Success, however, is achieved by one's own efforts. In place of the words "however" and "indeed," let the expressions, so they say, my word for it, if one can believe reports ^ be substituted. All such expressions can be omitted from the sentence. It is true they add something to the sentence, but they are not absolutely necessary to the thought. They are explanatory, and, in a degree, paren- thetical. The words composing such an expres- sion are closely related to each other, — much more closely than the whole expression is to the 122 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION remainder of the sentence. Following our general rule for the comma already given, they should be separated from the rest of the sentence. 7. Words, phrases, and clauses, either explanatory or slightly parenthetical, should be separated from the rest of the sentence by commas. Exercise, The paragraph from " The House of the Seven Gables/' on the next page, is full of commas. They all come under the rules already learned. State the reason for them ; also give the word modified by the phrase set off by commas. The third sentence is a beautiful example of the way a sentence grows from a very short subject and predicate. " The bees kept coming thither " is the basis of the sentence. '^And often since then " modifies the predicate ; and, as a group of closely related words, it is separated from the rest of the sentence by commas. The author was not satisfied with "often/' so he added in explana- tion, " almost continually, indeed." This, also, is separated from the rest of the sentence by commas. Hawthorne has added dashes, too. " The bees kept coming thither for far-fetched sweets." To make it more mysterious and strange, he has thrown in the words, "Heaven knows why"; and these words, being closely related and slightly paren- thetical, are separated from the rest of the sen- tence by commas. In cases like these, do not try SENTENCES 123 to give the reason for each comma alone ; the two commas which inclose the whole of such expres- sions have one and the same reason for their use. Give one reason for them both. It is wonderful how many pleasant incidents continu- ally came to pass in that secluded garden-spot when once Phoebe had set herself to look for them. She had seen or heard a bee there, on the first day of her acquaintance with the place. And often, — almost continually, indeed, — since then, the bees kept coming thither, Heaven knows why, . . . for far-fetched sweets, when, no doubt, there were broad clover-fields, and all kinds of garden growth? much nearer home than this. Thither the bees came, however, and plunged into the squash-blossoms, as if there were no other squash-vines within a long day's flight, or as if the soil of Hepzibah's garden gave its productions just the very quality which these laborious little wizards wanted, in order to impart the Hymettus ^ flavor to their whole hive of New England honey. When Clifford heard their sunny, buzzing murmur, in the heart of the great yellow blossoms, he looked about with a joyful sense of warmth, and blue sky, and green grass, and of God's free air in the whole height from earth to Heaven. After all, there need be no question why the bees came to that one green nook in the dusty town. God sent them thither to gladden our poor Clifford. They brought the rich sum- mer with them in requital of a little honey. Hawthorne, from The House of the Seven Gables. 1 The honey from Hymettus, a mountain in Greece, is renowned for its fine flavor. 124 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Composition, Exercise. Write a description of the plant or flower that you like most. Eead Lowell's " Dandelion " and " Violet ! Sweet Violet ! " and Wordsworth's " To the Small Celandine." Kecall to mind Words- worth's " Daffodils " and " To the Daisy." These will help you to express your feelings in regard to the flower you love best. FOB MEMORIZING. THE YELLOW VIOLET. When beechen buds begin to swell, And woods the blue-bird's warble know, The yellow violet's modest bell Peeps from the last year's leaves below. Ere russet fields their green resume, Sweet flower, I love, in forest bare, To meet thee, when thy faint perfume Alone is in the virgin air. Of all her train, the hands of Spring First plant thee in the watery mould, And I have seen thee blossoming Beside the snow-bank's edges cold. Thy parent sun, who bade thee view Pale skies, and chilling moisture sip, Has bathed thee in his own bright hue. And streaked with jet thy glowing lip. SENTENCES 125 Yet slight thy form, and low thy seat, And earthward bent thy gentle eye, Unapt the passing view to meet, When loftier flowers are flaunting nigh. Oft, in the sunless April day. Thy early smile has stayed my walk ; But midst the gorgeous blooms of May, I pass thee on thy humble stalk. So they, who climb to wealth, forget The friends in darker fortunes tried. I copied them — but I regret That I should ape the ways of pride. And when again the genial hour Awakes the painted tribes of light, I '11 not o'erlook the modest flower That made the woods of April bright. Bryant. UNITY OF SENTENCES. A complete thought expressed in words makes a sentence. A modifying clause should never be far separated from the word which it modifies. It belongs to the principal clause just as much as any adjective or adverb. In a sentence in which one clause modifies an- other, it is not very difficult to know where the sentence ends. However, when we have two pro- positions, neither of which modifies the other, it is sometimes extremely difficult to tell whether they should form two sentences, or be included in one 126 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION sentence. Yet when clauses have certain rela- tions to each other^ they belong in one sentence. Of these relations, but three will be given. First The simplest and most common relation that may exist between the independent clauses of a sentence is the one indicated by the word " and.'' When this word is used between clauses it indicates that the second clause has been added to the first. It is called the additive relation. Examples : Slothf ulness casteth into a deep sleep ; and the idle soul shall suffer hunger. He that hideth hatred is of lying lips; and he that uttereth slander is a fool. Second, The next relation between the inde- pendent elements of a sentence is that indicated by the word " but." This word marks a contrast ,• and the relation is called adversative. Examples : Th§ wicked flee when no man pursueth ; but the righteous are bold as a lion. The rich are always advising the poor ; but the poor sel- dom venture to return the favor. In all labor there is profit ; but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury. Third, Another relation is usually indicated by "or " and ^^nor " ; or by "either, or " and "neither, nor.'' These words offer a choice of two alterna- tives ; and the relation is called alternative. Examples : They toil not, neither do they spin. Either the enemy did not know the weakness of the SENTENCES 127 American position and numbers ; or foreign soldiers did not care to risk their lives for money. These three relations — the additive, the ad- versative, and the alternative — are the most common ones to be found between independent clauses. Clauses betw^een which any of these re- lations exists should be united into one sentence. ^^ And/' " but," " or/' and " nor " very rarely begin new sentences. Exercise. Write three sentences of each of the three kinds, — additive, adversative, and alternative. UNITY OF SENTENCES. The additive relation is found in many sentences in which the connecting word is omitted. In telling a story, a writer may wish to give quickly several details that together make up one action. These he may group into one sentence. So, in a descrip- tion, an author may combine a large number of de- tails into a single sentence to get them before the reader at once, and make him feel that they are all parts of one picture. Such sentences are additive ; but they have no connecting word. Mrs. Cratchit made the gravy (ready beforehand in a little saucepan) hissing hot; Master Peter mashed the potatoes with incredible vigor ; Miss Belinda sweetened up the apple-sauce ; Martha dusted the hot plates ; Bob took tiny Tim beside him in a tiny corner at the table 5 the two young Cratchits set chairs for everybody, not 128 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION forgetting themselves, and mounting guard upon their posts, crammed spoons into their mouths, lest they should shriek for goose before their turn came to be helped. Dickens, from A Christmas Carol. Meantime the drops patter thicker on the leaves over- head, and the leaves, in turn, pass the water down to the table ; the sky darkens ; the wind rises ; there is a kind of shiver in the woods ; and we scud away into a shanty, taking the remains of our supper, and eating it as best we can. Warner, from Camping Out, Eead the last two selections through, supplying all the connecting words that could be used. What is the effect of the change ? Does it improve or injure the selections ? Composition Exercise. Write a description of a fire. When you come to the time when there is great excitement and many things are being done at once, put a large number of the details into one sentence. Or, write a story of a runaway. If you use a grocery wagon or milk wagon and have it over- turned, a number of things will happen all at once. This will give an opportunity for a sentence with many independent clauses. SENTENCES. Semicolon. Comma. You have noticed the punctuation in the sen- tences you have just been studying. The semi- colon has been used very often ; the comma, SENTENCES 129 sometimes. If the connecting words are omitted, if the independent clauses are long, or if the clauses have commas in them, the semicolon is used between the independent clauses. If the sentence is short and the conjunctions are present, the comma is the usual mark between the independent clauses. A semicolon is generally used to separate the inde- pendent clauses of a sentence, if they are complex, or if the clauses themselves contain commas, or if the connectives are omitted. A comma is used to separate the independent parts of a sentence, if they are simple and the connectives are expressed. Exercise. In the following sentences, insert commas and semicolons where they are needed. 1. Speak not evil of the absent for it is unjust. 2. Think before you speak pronounce not imperfectly nor bring out your words too hastily but orderly and dis- tinctly. 3. Turn not your back to others especially in speaking jog not the table or desk on which another reads or writes lean not on any one. 4. Sleep not when others speak sit not when others stand speak not when you should hold your peace walk not when others stop. 5. When another speaks be attentive yourself and dis- turb not the audience. If any hesitate in his words help him not nor prompt him without being desired interrupt him not nor answer till his speech is ended. 6. Read no letters books or papers in company but when there is a necessity for doing it you must ask leave. 130 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Come not near the books or writings of any one so as to read them unless desired nor give your opinion of them unasked also look not nigh when another is writing a letter. 7. Associate yourself with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation for it is better to be alone than in bad company. 8. Go not thither where you know not whether you shall be welcome or not. Give not advice without being asked and when desired do it briefly. 9. Labor to keep alive that little spark of celestial fire called conscience. 10. When you speak of God or his attributes let it be seriously in reverence. Honor and obey your natural parents though they be poor. Washington, from Rules of Condtict. Exercise, Punctuate the following. The periods are in the proper places ; and wherever there is a wide space, either a copima or a semicolon is to be used. They had good reason to wonder at the magnificence of Thomas a Becket for when he entered a French town his procession was headed by two hundred and fifty singing boys then came his hounds in couples then eight wagons each drawn by five horses driven by five drivers : two of the wagons filled with strong ale to be given away to the people four with his gold and silver plate and stately clothes two with the dresses of his numerous servants. Then came twelve horses each with a monkey on his back then a train of people bearing shields and leading fine war-horses spendidly equipped SENTENCES 131 then falconers with hawks upon their wrists then a host of knights and gentlemen and priests then the chancellor with his brilliant garments flashing in the sun and all the people capering and shouting with delight. Dickens, from A Child's History of England, Exercise, In the following selection, the periods are in their proper places. There are needed some commas and semicolons to make the meaning clear. Put them in where you think they will aid the reader in un- derstanding the good advice given. You complain since that the boys laugh at you and do not care about you and that you are not treated as you were at home. My dear that is one chief reason for your being sent to school to inure you betimes to the unavoid- able rubs and uncertain reception you will meet with in life. You cannot always be with me and perhaps it is as well that you cannot. But you must not expect others to show the same concern about you as I should. You have hitherto been a spoiled child and have been used to have your own way a good deal both in the house and among your playfellows with whom you were too fond of being a leader : but you have good nature and good sense and will get the better of this in time. You have now got among other boys who are your equals or bigger and stronger than yourself and who have something else to attend to besides humouring your whims and fancies and you feel this as a repulse or piece of injustice. But the first lesson to learn is that there are other people in the world besides yourself. There are a number ©f boys in the school where you are whose amusements and pursuits (whatever they be) are and ought to be of as much consequence to them 132 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION as yours can be to you and to which therefore you must give way in your turn. The more airs of childish self- importance you give yourself you will only expose your- self to be the more thwarted and laughed at. True equality is the only true morality or true wisdom. Re- member always that you are but one among others and you can hardly mistake your place in society. In your father's house you might do as you pleased in the world you will find competitors at every turn. You are not born a king's son to destroy or dictate to millions : you can only expect to share their fate or settle your differ- ences amicably with them. You already find it so at school and I wish you to be reconciled to your situation as soon and with as little pain as you can. Hazlitt, from On the Conduct of Life ; or^ Advice to a Schoolboy. Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph telling what you think are some of the characteristics of a gentleman. Was Ernest a gentleman ? Or, write a paragraph upon this topic sentence : Some people seem to be afraid that they will be called polite. Or, complete the following story so that the reader will know that Bill was a real gentleman. " Say, Jim, where were you last week ? " was the greet- ing Bill gave Jim Banigan, when he came back to his regular corner for selling papers. " I was at home," was the reply ; not given, however, in Jim's usual spirit. " What have you been doing ? " was the inevitable re- joinder. SENTENCES 133 Jim had thought all that long Saturday and Sunday that this question would be thrust into his aching heart ; and he had fortified himself with a reply. But he had not thought that Bill Brooks would be the first to ask it : for Bill's stand was three blocks farther down the avenue. He was glad, though, that it was Bill ; for Bill and he were good friends, and, more than that, Bill was "all right." Why had Jim stayed at home ? Before you begin writing, you must settle that question. After Bill found out, what did he say and do ? UNITY OF SENTENCES. We have learned that a modifying clause never can make a sentence; and that certain relations between independent clauses make it imperative that they shall be joined in one sentence. The whole thought must be included in a sentence to give it unity. There are times, however, when clauses must not be joined in a sentence. The unity of a sentence may be destroyed by including too muoh. Sometimes it happens in compositions that thoughts entirely unlike are put into the same sen- tence and connected by " but " or " and." The following sentences will make clear what is meant. '' Benjamin Franklin proved that lightning and electricity are the same ; but he married the lady who laughed at him for munching his rolls in the street." Or, " George Washington earned the proud 134 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION title of ' The Father of his Country ' ; and he cut down his father's cherry tree." The thoughts asso- ciated in each of these sentences are unhke ; they should not be brought together into one sentence, for a sentence expresses in words one complete thought. In such sentences there are two separate and distinct thoughts. They have no relation to each other ; and therefore they should be expressed in two separate sentences. In the following there are a number of illustra- tions of the error just mentioned. Correct the paragraph, either by rearranging the parts or by casting away what you think not essential to the topic. About this time Lowell was introduced by a friend to Miss Maria White, who knew more poetry than any one he had met before, and was an ardent anti-slavery beHever, and lived in a small town. He was much attracted by her singular grace, her boundless enthusiasm, and her appreciation of beautiful thoughts ; and he was frequently found lying in the grass or sitting on the fence in idle revery. Lowell belonged to the aristocratic set in Boston, and Boston aristocracy was not ready for anti-slavery ; but afterward many negroes escaped to the North through the help of Boston people. Whatever effect it might have on his prospects of success, Lowell was thrilled by the ardor of Miss White in the cause of the negro, and deter- mined to throw all his power and influence into the strug- gle for the freedom of the slave ; and he wrote some trifles about this time which are not worthy of preservation. SENTENCES 135 UNITY OF SENTENCES. An error similar to the one just studied may be found in sentences in which some clause modifies the principal clause, and is itself modified by an- other, and so on until the last clause has no rela- tion to the first. For example, " Jane bought her language book at the Glass Block, which stands at the corner of Sixth and Nicollet, which is paved with asphalt and has to be patched every year to keep it passable for teams which is a great expense to the city." A sentence is a group of words ex- pressing one complete thought, and only one. The thought of this sentence ends with the location of the Glass Block certainly ; some may think that even the location is not necessary. Surely the expense of paving the avenue has nothing to do with the purchase of the language book. Do not have more than one complete thought in a sen- tence ; avoid all straggling clauses. Correct the following by making a new sentence whenever one is needed. Cut out unnecessary connecting words. Be very watchful of the word " he." Be sure that it refers to the right person. Then write the paragraph from dictation. Spell- ing and punctuation are important. Lowell was married to Miss White in December, 1844, and soon after moved to Philadelphia for the winter, that the milder climate might benefit his wife's delicate health, and he returned to Boston in the following spring where in a few years following he did most of the work by which 136 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION he is best known. He was not an incessant worker, though he could toil terribly, but he generally finished his poems with the printer's errand boy sitting in his best chair, reading his morning paper while he waited for the manuscript which was sure to be good when he received it. He wrote Sir Launfal in 1848, and it took him but forty- eight hours to do it and he scarcely ate or slept during the time he was composing this poem which is the most popu- lar work he has done. The first series of Biglow Papers were written about this time too ; their theme is the polit- ical condition existing at the time of the Mexican war, and they are regarded as the best example of political satire written by any American. Lowell delivered a series of lectures at Harvard during the winter of 1854-5, upon the old English poets and they were very popular with the students, and when Mr. Longfellow resigned his chair at Harvard Mr. Lowell was appointed to take his place, and given a leave of absence for two years to study abroad, which he did at Dresden, returning to take up his duties as professor of literature at Harvard in 1856. Composition Exercise. " Bird-Lore " is a magazine devoted to the discus- sion of birdsj and the experiences of the men who love and study birds. The publishers are desirous of getting little incidents in the lives of birds, which show their peculiar habits. Write a letter to this magazine telling a new story about some birds, — something you have seen yourself. Not a day passes when Burroughs or Jefferies would not have seen enough to make a chapter in a book. Even the English sparrows, which we are SENTENCES 137 likely to hate cordially, are exceedingly interesting. Their heads are full of shrewdest bird-wisdom. Be very careful of the punctuation of the letter. ARKANGEMENT OP THE PARTS OP A SENTENCE. It has been seen that groups of words may be moved about in a sentence. They should be placed as near the word they modify as possible, so that there may be no mistake about what they be- long to. Sometimes, however, a phrase or word is put out of the place where it belongs so that its unusual position will call attention to it. Putting a word or phrase out of its natural order makes it emphatic. 1. Any arrangement that will throw the real sub- ject after the predicate makes the subject emphatic. Example : " Lowell wrote ' The First Snowfall.' " " It was Lowell who wrote ' The First Snowfall.' " 2. Placing any of the modifiers of the predicate before the subject makes the modifiers emphatic. Example : " Lowell showed his poetic power very early in his life." " Very early in life^ Lowell showed his poetic powers." 3. Words which modify a noun are made em- phatic by being placed after the noun modified. Example : " The spacious and well-furnished home at Elmwood was an ideal place for a poetic youth to grow up in." " The home at Elmwood, spacious and well-fur- nished^ was an ideal place for a poetic youth to grow up ^n ; " or, " The home at Elmwood, spacious and well-fur- 138 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION nished, was a place, really ideal, for a poetic youth to grow up in.'' "Words and phrases out of their natural order are usually separated from the rest of the sentence by commas. Many examples of this rule will be found in the exercises that follow. Find all the cases that are explained by this rule in the next two exer- cises. By changing the position of words in italics, make them more emphatic. 1. We visited several of the temporary hospitals this same morning, 2. While I was looking for it, a freight train started out, 3. I saw my Captain in the first car, on the fourth seat to the right. 4. He was a dark, still, slender person. 5. Galileo discovered the pendulum, 6. You are mistaken ; Titian painted the Assumption of the Virgin. 7. Lincoln's motto was, " With malice towards none and with charity for all,'^^ 8. I fell into a high road, for I took it to be so, though it served to the inhabitants only as a foot-path through a field of barley. I walked on here for some time, but I could see little on either side. 9. He would greedily devour every printed page that fell into his hands. 10. He had been content so far with ragged, patched, and shaggy " Kentucky jeans." SENTENCES 139 Exercise. The following paragraph is from Richard Jef- feries. You will remember that it was he who wrote ^^ Saint Guido." The position of some of the phrases has been changed. By making those marked " 1 " less emphatic and those marked '' 2 " more emphatic, you will be able to get the para- graph into the form in which it was originally written. Write it from dictation after the class has decided what changes should be made. If we had never before looked upon the earth, but came to it suddenly (2) man or woman grown, set down in the midst of a summer mead, would it not seem to us a radiant vision ? The hues, the shapes, the song and life of birds, above all the sunlight, the breath of heaven, resting on it ; unahle to grasp it (1), the mind would be filled with its glory, hardly believing that such things could be mere matter and no more. It would appear lilce a dream of some spirit land (2), scarce fit to be touched lest it should fall to pieces, too beautiful to be long watched lest it should fade away. It seemed so (2) to me as a boy, sweet and new like this each morning ; and even now, after the years that have passed, and the lines they have worn in the forehead, the summer mead shines as bright and fresh as when my foot first touched the grass. Now (1) it has another meaning ; the sunshine and the flowers speak dif- ferently, for a heart that has once known sorrow reads behind the page, and sees sadness in joy. But still (1) the freshness is there ; the dew washes the colors before dawn. Unconscious happiness in finding wild flowers — unconscious and unquestioning, and therefore unbounded. RiOHAKD Jeffbries, from Wild Flowers* 140 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Composition Exercise. Most schools now have flowers in or about them. Somethnes in crowded districts of our large cities there is a rainbow of flowers high up in some win- dow. Write of your feelings when you look upon a bed of flowers. Do not describe a flower this time ; you have done that already. Do not try to make the composition long ; just a paragraph filled with your feelings. Kemember how to make any part of your thought emphatic. Exercise. Punctuate correctly the following paragraph. Gives rules for the marks used. It will be wise to review the rules for the punctuation of quota- tions. One Sunday I went with him a few miles into the country. It was a bright soft day the fields and hills lay turned to the sky as if every leaf and blade of grass were nerves bared to the touch of the sun. I almost felt the ground warm under my feet. The meadows waved and glittered the lights and shadows were exquisite and the distant hills seemed only to remove the horizon farther away. As we strolled along picking wild flowers for it was summer I was thinking what a fine day it was for a trip to Spain when Titbottom suddenly exclaimed Thank God I own this landscape You returned I Certainly said he Why I answered I thought this was part of Bourne's property SENTENCES . 141 Titbottom smiled Does Bourne own the sun and sky Does Bourne own that sailing shadow yonder Does Bourne own the golden lustre of the grain or the motion of the wood or those ghosts of hills that glide pallid along the horizon Bourne owns the dirt and fences I own the beauty that makes the landscape or otherwise how could I own castles in Spain. CuBTis, from Prue and I. The following paragraphs are by Richard Jef- feries. They are dripping full of love for flowers, birds, and sunlight. I came every day to walk slowly up and down the plain road, by the starry flowers under the ash-green boughs ; ash is the coolest, softest green. The bees went drifting over by my head ; as they cleared the hedges they passed by my ears, the wind singing in their shrill wings. White tent-walls of cloud — a warm white, being full to over- flowing of sunshine — stretched across from ash-top to ash-top, a cloud -canvas roof, a tent-palace of delicious air. For of all things there is none so sweet as sweet air — one great flower it is, drawn round about, over, and inclosing like Aphrodite's arms ; as if the dome of the sky were a bell- flower drooping down over us, and the magical essence of it filling all the room of the earth. Sweetest of all things is wild-flower air. Full of their ideal the starry flowers strained upwards on the bank, striving to keep above the rude grasses that pushed by them ; genius has ever had such a struggle. The plain road was made beautiful by the many thoughts it gave. I came every morning to stay by the star-lit bank. A friend said, " Why do you go the same road every day ? Why not have a change and walk somewhere else sometimes ? Why keep on up and down the same place ? " 142 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION I could not answer ; till then it had not occurred to me that I did always go one way ; as for the reason of it I could not tell ; I continued in my old mind while the sum- mers went away. Not till years afterwards was I able to see why I went the same round and did not care for change. I do not want change ; I want the same old and loved things, the same wild-flowers, the same trees and soft ash-green ; the turtle-doves, the blackbirds, the col- oured yellow-hammer sing, sing, singing so long as there is light to cast a shadow on the dial ; for such is the mea- sure of his song, and I want them in the same place. Let me find them morning after morning, the starry-white petals radiating, striving upwards to their ideal. Let me see the idle shadows resting on the white dust; let me hear the humble-bees, and stay to look down on the rich dandelion disk. Let me see the very thistles opening their great crowns — I should miss the thistles ; the reed- grasses hiding the moor-hen ; . . . swifts shot through the air with outstretched wings like crescent-headed shaft- less arrows darted from the clouds ; the chaffinch with a feather in her bill ; all the living staircase of the spring, step by step, upwards to the great gallery of the summer — let me watch the same succession year by year. A little feather droops downwards to the ground — a swallow's feather, fuller of miracle than the Pentateuch — how shall that feather be placed again in the breast where it grew ? Nothing twice. Time changes the places that knew us, and if we go back in after years, still even then it is not the old spot ; the gate swings differently, new thatch has been put on the old gables, the road has been widened, and the sward the driven sheep lingered on is gone. Who dares to think then? For faces fade as flowers, and there is no consolation. So now I am sure I was right in always walking the same way by the starry SENTENCES 143 flowers striving upwards on a slender ancestry of stem ; I would follow the plain old road to-day if I could. Let change be far from me. . . . Give me the old road, the same flowers — they were only stitchwort — the old suc- cession of days and garland, ever weaving into it fresh wild flowers from far and near. Fetch them from distant mountains, discover them on decaying walls, in unsus- pected corners ; though never seen before, still they are the same ; there has been a place in the heart waiting for them. Jbfferies, from Wild Flowers. After a careful study of the beautiful language, commit the first two paragraphs to memory. To v^hat does Jefferies liken flowers twice in the first paragraph ? Do you like the figure ? What were the poles of this '' tent-palace of the delicious air " ? What was the roof ? What figure of speech is this ? Can you think of the bright blue heaven as a great, sweet flower " drooping down over us " ? What figure has he used here ? When you read Lowell's '' Violet, Sweet Violet ! " or Wordsworth's " Daisy/' do the flowers seem to you to be little people? Can their sweet souls have ideals? Is their ideal anything more than to be simply beautiful? Of what use is their beauty? Was it sweet of Jefferies to continue in the same old mind " while the summers went away " ? Do you like the old things you have once loved ? Do swifts with outstretched wings look as if they had been shot through the air '^ like crescent- headed shaftless arrows darted from the clouds"? What make " the living staircase of the spring " ? 144 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Whither does it lead ? Which do you like better, — '^ the living staircase of the spring " or " the great gallery of the summer " ? When sweet faces have faded as the flowers, then are the old things best ? And best of all in the springtime is God's great, beautiful out-of-doors. The year 's at the spring, And day 's at the morn ; Morning 's at seven ; The hillside 's dew-pearled ; The lark 's on the wing ; The snail 's on the thorn ; God 's in His heaven — All 's right with the world. Browning, from Pippa Passeso CHAPTER IV. COMPOSITION WRITING. KNOWLEDGE OP SUBJECT. The first necessity for a good composition is knowledge of the subject on which you are writing. O^ No one can write with any power when he but half knows what he is trying to tell. In describing as simple a thing as a tree, one should know ex- actly how the particular tree he is describing looks. So in telling a story, not a single little detail that would change the result of the story can be omitted. You must know it all. It is very often the case that a story is all made up ; but even then the writer should know the whole story from beginning to end. Know what you are writing about ; and write only about those things you understand. Moreover, every one is interested in the thing he knows most about. Every day that dawns upon a pupil with a good lesson closes over one interested in school ; and recitations are uninteresting only to the pupil who has not prepared his lesson. We all like what we know most about, whether it is horses, flowers, or arithmetic. And we like to write when we know what we are writing about. Full knowledge of a subject makes it interesting. K 146 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION It is when you are interested in a subject that you arouse interest in others. A class likes to hear a recitation from a pupil who is full of the subject and just aching to tell of it. The interest of the speaker is communicated to all the hearers. And the interest you have in the theme for composi- tion goes into the essay^ and then the essay becomes interesting to others. y Knowledge of a subject, then, is necessary before you can write about it. This knowledge of itself makes a subject interesting to you ; and when you are interested, you will write so that those who read must be interested. Knowledge and interest are two requirements for good work in composi- tion. Composition Exercise, Make a list of five subjects, of each of which you know enough for a good paragraph, and about which you would like to write. They may be subjects for stories or descriptions or explanations. Possibly there is some incident in history in which you are especially interested. Or it may be that you have put in an electric bell at home, and this is at present interesting you. (The teacher will find that subjects given by the pupils are the very best that can be obtained. These subjects should be kept by the teacher for use in the future. It is a good plan to put a list of twenty-five on the board and allow the pupils to vote on the ten they prefer. These may be used in the succeeding weeks.) COMPOSITION WRITING 147 INTEREST GAINED BY WRITING TO SOME PERSON. It adds interest to the composition if it is di- rected to some individual person. Who could stand up in an empty room and tell a story well to no- body ? It needs the other person, the listener ; then the story goes along without stumbling. The story- teller tries to make the other person see it all as he saw it, and so throws all his powers into the telling. A boy could not explain to a tree how to make a squirrel trap ; but he could tell another boy so that he could go home and make one. Always have in mind some one to whom you address your composi- tion ; it will give it a directness and vigor that cannot be gained by writing to no one. Directing a composition to some definite person also determines the manner in which it must be written. One would not use the same manner in telling a story to a five-year-old and to the mother of that same child. You have already seen that a person must use a different way of telling a Fili- pino about a sleigh-ride from the manner he would adopt in telling it to a school-mate. He has to use comparisons that are familiar to the Filipino ; and in writing to a child he needs to use words that the child can understand, and sentences so short that the meaning will not be lost. Sometimes a person writes for papers or maga- zines. Even in this case, he should keep before him some person to whom he is writing. That 148 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION person should be one of the class that read the magazine which he is writing for. If he should write for " The Youth's Companion " or " St. Nicholas/' he would address himself to some youth twelve to sixteen years old ; but should he write for " The North American Review/' he would select a grown man or woman. Compositio7i Exercise. Using one of the subjects you suggested in your list, write an anecdote for " The Youth's Compan- ion." Remember that articles in this paper must be short and right to the point. Keep in mind a person of the age of those who read " The Youth's Companion/' and tell your story to him. THE IiENGTH OF AN ESSAY. The purpose for which a composition is written will change the style of an essay or a story , and also its length. In answer to the question, " Who is George Washington ? " a pupil might say, " George Washington was a Virginian, and the first President of the United States." An ency- clopedia might answer the question in two col- umns. But Washington Irving needed four bulky volumes to answer it. The purpose for which each of these answers is given determines the length of the treatment. The schoolboy's answer in a test required but a short sentence ; the ency- clopedia should give the principal facts in his life ; COMPOSITION WRITING 149 while Irving has given ns all the details of the life of the man for whom he had been named. So, had you picked up a paper in Boston in August, 1795, you might have read this notice i " The Dauphin of France, Louis XVIL, died in prison June 8, 1795. He was the son of Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette, and his sad life was ended before he was nine years old." The papers in Paris would not have been satisfied with less than a column for such a news item. And Daudet has taken a similar incident and made a pretty story of several pages. The purpose in each case has determined the length of the composition. One is a news item in a paper whose readers are not especially interested in the Dauphin ; the second is for a people greatly interested in his death; while the third is a story for a book. Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph for your local paper giving such facts as you think would interest its readers about the arrival of Blood-and-Thunder. Do not make it over a hundred words long. Tell the im- portant things. Omit the rest. CONDENSATION. It is often necessary to condense a long article for some special use. If a pupil were asked to report to-morrow upon such a topic as the " North- men in America/' he could not give all that may 150 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION be found in an encyclopedia, or such a book as Fiske's " Discovery of America." Such an account would take too much time. But he would have to read the whole account in one of these places, and, from the whole matter, to select such parts as he thought the most important. Such a process is called condensation. In condensing an article or a story, it is neces- sary to keep the proportion among its several parts as it was before. Important facts must re- main important ; while unimportant matters should be kept unimportant. The whole article must be read through to know what are the important points in it. If a person does not grasp the whole article, he cannot know what is important and what is not. In condensing an article without first reading it, a person might use much of the begin- ning, and find that after all the best was still to come. Or he might take but little at the begin- ning and find that the best was finished before he had obtained anything worth while. Look carefully through the whole article ; and then go back and select the important parts, and put them into the condensed paragraph or essay you are making. Composition Exercise, Condense the story of " The Great Stone Face.'' The important points in the story are the follow- ing : — COMPOSITION WRITING 151 1. Description of the Stone Face. 2. Ernest's Early Life. 3. The Coming of Gathergold. 4. The Tour of Blood-and-Thunder. 5. The Visit of Stony Phiz. 6. Arrival of the Poet. 7. The Discovery. BEETHOVEN'S MOONLIGHT SONATA. Among the great musical composers of modern times, there have been only a few who rank with Ludwig van Beethoven. This famous man was born in Bonn, Ger- many, in 1770 ; he died at Vienna in 1827. It may be truthfully said that the works of Beethoven created a new epoch in the history and development of music, and his compositions lose none of their popularity as the years go by. Beethoven's life was a sad one. He was alone in the world, and the object of unkind treatment by those who should have been his friends. How nobly he rose above all petty annoyances, we can readily understand when we listen to the grand and solemn strains of his immortal music. The following story illustrates the kindliness of his nature, and shows how some of his works seem to be almost the result of inspiration. It happened at Bonn. One moonlight winter's evening I called upon Beethoven ; for I wished him to take a walk, and afterwards to sup with me. In passing through a dark, narrow street, he suddenly paused. " Hush ! " he said, " what sound is that ? It is from my Sonata in F. Hark ! How well it is played ! " It was a little, mean dwelling, and we paused outside and listened. The player went on ; but, in the midst of 152 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION the finale, there was a sudden break ; then the voice of sobbing. " I cannot play any more. It is so beautiful ; it is utterly beyond my power to do it justice. Oh, what would I not give to go to the concert at Cologne ! " " Ah ! my sister," said her companion, " why create regrets when there is no remedy ? We can scarcely pay our rent." " You are right, and yet I wish for once in my life to hear some really good music. But it is of no use." Beethoven looked at me. " Let us go in," he said. " Go in ! " I exclaimed. " What can we go in for ? " " I will play to her," he said, in an excited tone. " Here is feeling — genius — understanding ! I will play to her, and she will understand it." And, before I could prevent him, his hand was upon the door. It opened, and we entered. A pale young man was sitting by the table, making shoes ; and near him, leaning sorrowfully upon an old- fashioned piano, sat a young girl, with a profusion of light hair falling over her face. "Pardon me." said Beethoven, " but I heard music and was tempted to enter. I am a musician." The girl blushed, and the young man looked grave and somewhat annoyed. "I — I also overheard something of what you said," continued my friend. " You wish to hear — that is, you would like — that is — shall I play for you ? " There was something so odd in the whole affair and something so comical and pleasant in the manner of the speaker, that the spell was broken in a moment. " Thank you," said the shoemaker; " but our piano is so wretched, and we have no music." " No music ! " echoed my friend, " how, then, does the young lady — " He paused, and colored ; for, as he COMPOSITION WRITING 153 fooked into the girl's face, he saw that she was blind. "I — I entreat your pardon," he stammered. " I had not perceived before. Then you play by ear ? But where do you hear the music, since you frequent no concerts ? " " We lived at Bruhl for two years, and while there, I used to hear a lady practicing near us. During the sum- mer evenings her windows were generally open, and I walked to and fro outside to listen to her." She seemed so shy that Beethoven said no more, but seated himself quietly at the piano and began to play. He had no sooner struck the first chord than I knew what would follow. Never, during all the years I knew him, did I hear him play as he then played to that blind girl and her brother. He seemed to be inspired ; and, from the instant that his fingers began to wander along the keys, the very tone of the instrument seemed to grow sweeter and more equal. The brother and sister were silent with wonder and rapture. The former laid aside his work ; the latter, with her head bent slightly forward, and her hands pressed tightly over her breast, crouched down near the end of the piano, as if fearful lest even the beating of her heart should break the flow of those magical sounds. Suddenly the flame of the single candle wavered, sank, flickered, and went out. Beethoven paused, and I threw open the shutters, admitting a flood of brilliant moonlight. The room was almost as light as before, the moon's rays falling strongest upon the piano and player. His head dropped upon his breast ; his hands rested upon his knees ; he seemed absorbed in deep thought. He remained thus for some time. At length the young shoemaker arose and approached him eagerly. " Wonderful man ! " he said, in a low tone ; " who and what are you ? " 154 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION *' Listen ! " said Beethoven, and he played the opening bars of the Sonata in F. A cry of recognition burst from them both, and exclaiming, " Then you are Beethoven ! " they covered his hands with tears and kisses. He rose to go, but we held him back with entreaties. " Play to us once more — only once more ! " He suffered himself to be led back to the instrument. The moon shone brightly in through the window, and lighted up his glorious rugged head and massive figure. '' I will improvise a sonata to the moonlight ! " said he, looking up thoughtfully to the sky and stars. Then his hands dropped on the keys, and he began playing a sad and infinitely lovely movement, which crept gently over the instrument, like the calm flow of moonlight over the dark earth. This was followed by a wild, elfin passage in triple time — a sort of grotesque interlude, like the dance of sprites upon a lawn. Then came a swift agitato finale — a breathless, hurrying, trembling movement, descrip- tive of flight, and uncertainty, and vague, impulsive terror, which carried us away on its rustling wings, and left us all in emotion and wonder. " Farewell to you," said Beethoven, pushing back his chair, and turning toward the door — "farewell to you ! " "You will come again ? " asked they, in one breath. He paused and looked compassionately, almost tenderly, at the face of the blind girl. " Yes, yes," he said hurriedly, " I will come again and give the young lady some lessons! Farewell! I will come again ! " Their looks followed us in silence more eloquent than words till we were out of sight. "Let us make haste back," said Beethoven, "that I may write out that sonata while I can yet remember it." We did so, and he sat over it until long past day dawn. COMPOSITION WRITING 157 And this was the origin of that Moonlight Sonata with which we are all so fondly acquainted. Anonymous. Composition Exercise, This story should be studied so that each can tell it. It may or may not be true ; but any way it truly presents the character of the great com- poser. Condense this story about Beethoven into one hundred and fifty words. Keep the important parts in the story. Notice that the first two para- graphs do not really belong to the story. Omit them. Do not report any of the conversation directly, but indirectly give the thought of the conversation. How many important points do you think there are in the story ? Make a list of them before you begin to write. Direct your telling to a boy about eight years old. Keep him in mind all the time you are writing. PKOPOE.TION IN TKEATMENT. In an article, all the parts have not the same importance. If a person should be asked for a condensation of a chapter upon " The Discovery and Exploration of America/' he would have to mention a large number of men ; but he would not think that such men as Balboa and Vespucci are as important in the early history of America as Colum- bus and Raleigh. So, in writing such an article, a person would not give as much attention to these 158 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION minor men. Indeed, it is usually a fair test of the relative importance of the different topics in an article to note the space that is given to each. The most important topic requires the most to be said about it ; and a topic of less importance requires a shorter treatment. Topics of slight importance disappear entirely in a condensed article. In the condensation of a long article, then, two rules must be observed : — First : Some of the points of the longer article must be omitted, because they are of small import- ance, and must not use up the space that belongs to the important topics. Second : Among those topics that remain in the condensed article, the same proportion must be kept as exists among the parts of the long article. Exercise, In " The Great Stone Face," how many pages does Hawthorne give to the description of the rock ? How many to the visit of Stony Phiz ? Which, then, is more important? Which is the most important of the seven topics given on page 151? In writing the condensed story, which topic should be given the most space? Did you write it so? Exercise. What men are the most important during the period of discovery in our history ? Look in your history and learn if the length of treatment given COMPOSITION WRITING 159 to each supports your opinion. If you have them, look in different histories and determine whether they agree about the relative importance of differ- ent characters. MALIBRAN AND THE YOUNG MUSICIAN. In a humble room, in one of the poorer streets of Lon- don, little Pierre, a fatherless French boy, sat humming by the bedside of his sick mother. There was no bread in the closet ; and for the whole day he had not tasted food. Yet he sat humming, to keep up his spirits. Still, at times, he thought of his loneliness and hunger; and he could scarcely keep the tears from his eyes ; for he knew nothing would be so grateful to his poor invalid mother as a good sweet orange ; and yet he had not a penny in the world. The little song he was singing was his own, — one he had composed with air and words ; for the child was a genius. He went to the window, and, looking out, saw a man putting up a great bill with yellow letters, announcing that Madame Malibran would sing that night in public. " Oh, if I could only go ! " thought little Pierre ; and then, pausing a moment, he clasped his hands ; his eyes lighted with a new hope. Running to the little stand, he smoothed down his yellow curls, and taking from a little box some old stained paper, gave one eager glance at his mother, who slept, and ran speedily from the house. " Who did you say is waiting for me ? " said the lady to her servant. " I am already worn out with company." " It is only a very pretty little boy, with yellow curls, who says if he can just see you, he is sure you will not be sorry, and he will not keep you a moment." 160 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION "Oh! well, let him come," said the beautiful singer, with a smile ; " I can never refuse children." Little Pierre came in, his hat under his arm ; and in his hand a little roll of paper. With manliness unusual for a child, he walked straight to the lady, and, bowing, said, — "I came to see you because my mother is very sick, and we are too poor to get food and medicine. I thought perhaps if you would only sing my little song at some of your grand concerts, may be some publisher would buy it, for a small sum ; and so I could get food and medicine for my mother." The beautiful woman rose from her seat ; very tall and stately she was ; — she took the little roll from his hand, and lightly hummed the air. " Did you compose it," she asked — " you, a child ! And the words ? — Would you like to come to my con- cert ? " she asked, after a few moments of thought. " Oh, yes ! " and the boy's eyes grew bright with hap- piness, — " but I could n't leave my mother." " I will send somebody to take care of your mother, for the evening ; and here is a crown, with which you may go and get food and medicine. Here is also one of my tickets ; come to-night ; that will admit you to a seat near me." Almost beside himself with joy, Pierre bought some oranges, and many a little luxury besides, and carried them home to the poor invalid, telling her, not without tears, of his good fortune. When evening came, and Pierre was admitted to the concert hall, he felt that never in his life had he been in so grand a place. The music, the myriad lights, the beauty, the flashing of diamonds and rustling of silks, bewildered his eyes and brain. COMPOSITION WRITING 161 At last she came; and the child sat with his glance riveted upon her glorious face. Could he believe that the grand lady, all blazing with jewels, and whom everybody seemed to worship, would really sing his little song ? Breathless he waited, — the band, the whole band, struck up a little plaintive melody ; he knew it, and clapped his hands for joy. And oh ! how she sung it ! It was so simple, so mournful, so soul-subduing ; — many a bright eye dimmed with tears ; and nought could be heard but the touching words of the little song, — oh, so touching ! Pierre walked home as if he were moving on the air. What cared he for money now ? The greatest singer in all Europe had sung his little song, and thousands had wept at his grief. The next day he was frightened by a visit from Madame Malibran. She laid her hand on his yellow curls, and, turning to the sick woman, said, " Your little boy, madam, has brought you a fortune. I was oiBCered, this morning, by the best publisher in London, three hundred pounds for his little song; and after he has realized a certain amount from the sale, little Pierre, here, is to share the profits. Madam, thank God that your son has a gift from heaven." The noble-hearted singer and the poor woman wept together. As to Pierre, always mindful of Him who watches over the tried and tempted, he knelt down by his mother's bedside, and uttered a simple but eloquent prayer, asking God's blessing on the kind lady who had deigned to notice their affliction. The memory of that prayer made the singer even more tender-hearted ; and she who was the idol of England's nobility went about doing good. And in her early, happy death, he who stood by her bed and smoothed her pillow, and lightened her last moments by his undying affection, 162 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION was the little Pierre of former days, — now rich, accom- plished, and the most talented composer of the day. All honor to those great hearts who, from their high stations, send down bounty to the widow, and to the fatherless child ! Anonymous. Composition Exercise. This story has been divided into three parts by the author. The last part can easily be divided again. Where would you make the division? Frame a topic sentence for the first part of the story; for the second; the third; the fourth. Which of the divisions of the story do you think the most important ? In re-writing it, how could you make the reader know your opinion about this ? Write the story in four paragraphs, using the topic sentences you have made. Make the article for the " Pall Mall Gazette/' a London daily, on the second day after the concert. Madame Mali- bran sang first in London in 1825, when she was but seventeen years old. Her popularity increased steadily ; but she died before she had reached the fullness of her power, when she was only twenty- eight years old. REVIEW OF RULES FOR PUNCTUATION. Review the rules of punctuation given on page 318. Give the rules for the marks of punctua- tion found in the second part of this story about Madame Malibran. COMPOSITION WRITING 163 AMPLIFICATION. Just as it is necessary at times to condense an article, there are occasions when it is necessary to enlarge an article. This is called amplification. " Ample " means " large " ; " amplify " means " to make large " ; and " amplification " means " the process of making large." The process of amplifi- cation is exactly the opposite of condensation. In condensing an article, it is made smaller, while the proportion among the parts is not changed ; and little points disappear altogether. When an article is amplified, the proportion among the parts is not changed ; and little points which do not appear in the smaller form are introduced into the larger. If you should be called upon to enlarge the compo- sition which you have written upon Madame Mali- bran, you might make it into the form of the original story. Such a change would be amplifi- cation. Bach's life can be sketched in a few lines. He came of one of the most musical families in the history of the world. His brother, an organist, gave him his first in- struction. He was an organist and concert-master at Miilhausen, Weimar, and Anhalt-Kothen. In 1723, he became Cantor of the Thomas school in Leipsic, and held the position until his death on July 28, 1750. Bach, like Handel, sacrificed his eyes on the altar of music, and died blind. Henderson, from The Story of Music. This sketch would do for a Dictionary of Music, but it would hardly suffice for an essay to be read 164 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION at a literary society. The sketch would have to be amplified. Taking just the early life of John Sebastian Bach, let us find the material for such amplification. The sketch says that Bach " came of one of the most musical families in the history of the world." In the encyclopedia, how many Bachs do you find mentioned ? Do they all be- long to one family ? How many generations of the family do you find ? Do you think there was music in their homes ? Did it make any differ- ence with the love which the children had for music ? What topic sentence would you frame for the paragraph upon the Bach family ? Incidents in the Lii^ of Bach. The father of John Sebastian Bach was Johann Ambrosius Bach. He was shiftless ; played a violin ; whittled out many musical in- struments for pleasure ; a big fiddle in Eisenach which he made was ten feet high ; played at dances ; in churches ; loved his children. His wife, Sebastian's mother, died when Sebastian was but eight years old ; after that the father loved his children more than ever ; he died in 1695. When was Sebastian born ? Consult the encyclo- pedia. How old was this little boy wihen his father died ? What would be a good topic for this paragraph ? When his father had been buried, Sebastian's brother, Cristoph, took the little orphan to live with hini in Ohrdruff, where he was organist. He taught the boy to play the organ. Sebastian sang in a boy choir ; he had a good voice. His brother had much music, but said Sebastian was too young to care for it. The boy picked the lock of the music case ; copied music by moonlight ; his brother caught him after six months ; took the music all away ; would not let the boy practice upon his violin. Sebastian stole away to woods ; what do you think happened ? What do you think of the brother ? What would be a good topic for this paragraph ? Next we hear of him walking to Hamburg, to hear Reinke, a great o o COMPOSITION WRITING 167 organist, play. Find Hamburg on the map. Possibly you will not find Ohrdruff. It is a very small town near Weimar, and about fifty miles southwest of Leipsic. How far is it from this place to Ham- burg ? Did Sebastian have any money ? He carried with him the violin upon which his father had played. Would this do him any good ? How, then, do you think he obtained food ? Where did he sleep ? What did he do when it rained ? Describe his appearance when he entered the great cathedral in Hamburg. Did any one notice him ? Did he care ? Tell how the youth felt when the great Reinke began to play. What did this day mean to the boy ? Did he speak to the great organist ? Sebastian came back to Ohrdruff and played better than ever. When he was eighteen, he became court violinist at Weimar. From this time, he was always in demand. Why ? Have you heard any music written by this great man ? Did you like it ? What would be a good topic for this closing paragraph on the " early life of John Sebastian Bach " ? All this is but an amplification of the first four sentences in the sketch by Henderson. Notice how many things not found in the short sketch are mentioned in the longer story. (Note to the Teacher. — The teacher should make herself very familiar with the lives of the men who are made subjects of essays. Most of the material here is drawn from Elbert Hubbard's ** Little Journeys." This little sketch may take more than one lesson; it probably will require two or three. Have a part done at one time and the remainder finished later. A little well done is better than much carelessly done.) Composition Exercise. On page 171 there is a picture called " Mozart Singing his Requiem." This man, one of the few greatest 'musical composers of all times and all countries, died at the early age of thirty-five ; but even at that tinie he had written almost seven hundred compositions, including several whole operas. His last great composition was ^^The 168 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Requiem ; " and on the night before he died sev- eral friends came in and sang the score over with him. This is the subject of the picture. In the " Vienna News/' on the morning of De- cember 5, 1791, was this paragraph : — We have to announce with regret the death of the Im- perial Court Composer, Wolfgang Mozart, which took place between four and five o'clock this morning. Famous throughout Europe from earliest childhood for his singu- lar musical genius, he had developed his natural gifts, and by dint of study had raised himself to an equality with the greatest masters ; his universally favored and admired compositions testify to the fact, and enable us to estimate the great loss which the musical world has sustained in his death. Suppose that you were living in Vienna at that time, and that you wrote a letter to your cousin, telling her some of the stories you had heard about this man's life. Is your cousin old or young ? Shall you write with hard or easy words ? Shall you think of her while you write ? What kind of stories would she wish to hear ? Make a selection of three or four of the following incidents. The letter will then be an amplification of the newspaper announcement at the time of Mozart's death. Don't be afraid to allow your imagination to fill up the outlines. Incidents in Life of Mozart. Mozart four years old ; father and Court Trumpeter entered house ; Mozart working at desk ; father asked, " " ; Wolf- COMPOSITION WRITING 169 gang answered, " " ; father said, " Let me see it." The boy answered, " It is not finished." What was the boy doing ? Was it good ? What did the father say to the Trumpeter ? What to the boy ? Father was director of music at the court in Salzburg. Musicians played at his house. One evening Wolfgang wished to play with them. Father refused ; one of the men let the boy play his part with him ; soon saw that he was not needed ; put down violin ; let boy play part alone. Could the boy play the part ? What did the father do when he saw what had happened ? Wolfgang had a sister five years older than himself, whom he called Nannerl ; father proud of children ; took them to Vienna when boy was only six ; boy played at court ; pleased all ; made Empress cry with his violin-playing ; then jumped into her lap and kissed her. What did he say ? What did Empress say ? Slipped on wax floor ; little Marie Antoinette picked him up ; he said, " I will marry you." The Empress asked him why ; he said, " Because she is so good." Whom did Marie Antoinette marry ? How much older was she than Wolfgang ? Where did she live ? Was she happy ? Would she have been as happy if she had married the musical Mozart ? In 1763-64, the father with the children went to Paris and to Lon- don. Who was King of England at this time ? Why do you know him so well ? Did you know before that this king loved music ? His court musician was a son of John Sebastian Bach. Wolfgang and Nannerl both played for the king and queen. Which did the king like better ? Bach took Wolfgang on his knee ; he played one measure of a piece ; then boy played next ; no break in time. Was this hard ? Then Bach played a little way in one of his father's great compositions ; boy went on and finished it in his own way. What did the king say to the boy ? What to the queen ? When boy fourteen he had written two operas. One was given at La Scala, the great theatre in Milan. Can you find anything about this theatre in the encyclopedia ? Boy conducted the opera. He was small for his age. Buried in flowers. What did the audience say ? What did they do ? Lived in Salzburg where he was born until he was twenty-five ; then went to Vienna. One day in winter a friend went to his house ; found Mozart and his wife dancing. There was no fire. What did his friend ask ? What was Mozart's reply ? From this story do you think musicians were well paid ? 170 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Only a few friends were at Mozart's funeral. The day was bitter. When they reached the cemetery gate, they all left. The sexton placed the body in a pauper's grave. Was it an honor only to bury this great man ? Did the sexton realize it ? Did the people ? Read again the notice from the paper. During the summer before he died, a man dressed all in black came to him and asked him to write a requiem mass. What is a requiem ? Mozart agreed. Was paid half the price. When time was up man returned. Was not finished. Man did not give his name. Some mystery. Mozart was superstitious. Said to friend he was writing his own requiem. Was it ? Did he finish it ? Look at the picture carefully. What do you think he feels ? What are the others thinking of ? Was it beautiful to die so ? FOR MEMORIZING. THE TRUE BALLAD OF THE KING'S SINGER. The king rode fast, the king rode well, The royal hunt went loud and gay, A thousand bleeding chamois fell For royal sport that day. When sunset turned the hills all red, The royal hunt went still and slow ; The king's great horse with weary tread Plunged ankle-deep in snow. Sudden a strain of music sweet. Unearthly sweet, came through the wood ; Up sprang the king, and on both feet Straight in his saddle stood. " Now, by our lady, be it bird, Or be it man or elf who plays. I 1 n J !. '-^-^ 1 ■ ^~ "-■«< ► V-P^ IL- ^,_ _^ M ^ -'' ■'■^' m'iSl^S^' ^ ^m^^ ,ii*;^ ^-; P ■ '^=-:-'^ ^ ^;:. ^^^^1. : MP ^?^^ »1B3P ' / --'^ Ik .11 C*'m^ '-»HB^^^^ k 1 ll^^a '■ 1 i ■ ■ 1 1 |^AuH||||^^J^^''^^\^H ■ sf 1 ' '- m ^ ■" Wf^^^^'^ '^'^♦t;" X !^vi-AS^>;^^^ W^ -- -** ' "^" COMPOSITION WRITING 173 Never before my ears have heard A music fit for praise ! " Sullen and tired, the royal hunt Followed the king, who tracked the song, Unthinking, as is royal wont, How hard the way and long. Stretched on a rock the shepherd lay And dreamed and piped, and dreamed and sang, And careless heard the shout and bay With which the echoes rang. ' Up, man ! the king ! " the hunters cried. He slowly stood, and, wondering. Turned honest eyes from side to side : To him, each looked like king. Strange shyness seized the king's bold tongue ; He saw how easy to displease This savage man, who stood among His courtiers, so at ease ! But kings have silver speech to use When on their pleasure they are bent ; The simple shepherd could not choose ; Like one in dream, he went. O hear ! O hear ! The ringing sound Of twenty trumpets swept the street, The king a minstrel now has found, For royal music meet. 174 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION With cloth of gold, and cloth of red, And woman's eyes the place is bright. " Now, shepherd, sing," the king has said, " The song you sang last night ! " One faint sound stirs the perfumed air, The courtiers scornfully look down ; The shepherd kneels in dumb despair, Seeing the king's dark frown. The king is just ; the king will wait. " Ho, guards ! let him be gently led, Let him grow used to royal state, — To being housed and fed." All night the king unquiet lay, Eacked by his dream's presentiment ; Then rose in haste at break of day, And for the shepherd sent. " Ho now, thou beast, thou savage man, How sound thou sleepest, not to hear ! " They jeering laughed, but soon began To louder call in fear. They wrenched the bolts ; unrumpled stood The princely bed all silken fine. Untouched the plates of royal food, The flask of royal wine ! The costly robes strewn on the floor, The chamber empty, ghastly still ; COMPOSITION WRITING 175 The guards stood trembling at the door, And dared not cross the sill. All night the sentinels their round Had kept. No man could pass that way. The window dizzy high from ground ; Below, the deep moat lay. They crossed themselves. " The foul fiend lurks In this," they said. They did not know The miracles sweet Freedom works, To let her children go. Safe on a snow, too far, too high For scent of dogs or feet of men. The shepherd watched the clouds sail by, And dreamed and sang again ; And crossed himself, and knelt and cried. And kissed the holy Edelweiss, Believing that the fiends had tried To buy him with a price. The king rides fast, the king rides well ; The summer hunts go loud and gay ; The courtiers, who this tale can tell. Are getting old and gray. But still they say it was a fiend That took a shepherd's shape to sing. 176 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION For still the king's heart is not weaned To care for other thing. Great minstrels come from far and near, He will not let them sing or play, But waits and listens still to hear The song he heard that day. Helen Jackson. In the ballad, why does the poet say that the shepherd was careless of " the shout and bay with which the echoes rang " ? Why did h*e not jump to his feet when the king appeared ? Why did he not know which was the king ? As the king and shepherd stood facing each other which was really king ? One verse reads, " Like one in dream he went." Where did he go ? Have you seen a good picture of a king's court ? Who were . there ? How were they dressed ? What would you say if you were told to speak or sing in such a place ? Could the simple shepherd sing there ? Why not ? Is there not another reason ? Can the nightingale sing in a cage ? What is the reason for his silence ? Where had they found the shepherd singer ? What was he doing ? Did Mozart sing because he must? Do you think that his beautiful music came to him when he was in a crowd or when he was alone? Do you know whether Beethoven loved to be in the woods alone ? What would he COMPOSITION WRITING 177 hear there ? What would he not hear there ? Did he sing because he loved to sing ? Composition Exercise. Condense this ballad into three short paragraphs. What is the subject of each ? What is the topic sentence ? Whom have you in mind to read this to when it is written ? Will he like it ? CHAPTER V. NARRATION. There are several forms of composition. One may tell a story, or tell how a thing looks, or ex- plain something. Dickens wrote many stories, and the form of composition he used in them is called narration. On page 84 of this book there is a paragraph telling what kind of a man old Scrooge was; this is description. A pupil is frequently asked to give an explanation of a problem ; to do this he uses exposition. Narration tells what per- sons or things do ; description tells how they look or appear ; exposition aims to explain. Narration is that form of composition which tells what happens. If a person keeps a diary, and sets down in it each day what happens, he uses narration. If one man writes what happens in the life of another, as Mr. Scudder has written the events in the life of Mr. Lowell, he uses narration. If a man relates the events that have happened in the life of a nation, as Mr. Fiske has related the history of the United States, he uses narration. So if a man makes up a series of events and puts them to- gether in a story, he uses narration. A diary, a NARRATION 179 biography, a history, or a story, — each of these employs one form of composition, narration. It makes no difference whether the composition is written in verse or in prose ; if it recounts events one after another, it is called narration. Description is that form of composition which tells how things appear. A man with his eyes shut might hold something in his hand. If he felt of it and found it nearly round, rather hard, somewhat heavy, he might guess that it was an apple. If he smelt of it or tasted of it, he would know that it was an apple. Of course if he had his eyes open, he would know by the way it looked that it was an apple. Now if he wrote out how it appeared when he felt of it, he would be describing it. And if he told how it looked, he would be describing it. Telling how a thing appears to any of the senses is description. Exposition is that form of discourse which aims to explain something. A boy explains how to do an example in per- centage, how foot-ball is played, how the President of the United States is elected ; in each case his explanation would be a good example of exposi- tion. Explanation is exposition. " Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata " is a good ex- ample of narration. The following is a good example of description : — The head was large, with a grand forehead, great breadth of jaw, and somewhat protruding lips, the lower 180 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION one more developed in his later years. A profuse mass of black hair, cast upwards and backwards, left the full open face — the more striking with its ruddy, clean-shaven skin. As Beethoven grew older and bore the brunt of excessive troubles, his hair, as abundant as ever, turned white, but remained a great ornament behind his red face. The eyes arched with luxuriant brows were, indeed, the mirror of his soul. Large and jet-black, they were full of the fire of genius, and on occasions of special joy or inspira- tion were remarkably bright and peculiarly piercing. The teeth, beautifully white and regular, were much shown in laughing ; happily, the careless man at least kept them brushed. Unlike his hands, Beethoven's feet were small and graceful. The former were ugly, thick, dumpy, with short, untapering fingers, which could stretch little over an octave and afforded anything but the impression of grace or fluency over the piano keys. His voice varied. When quite himself, it was light in tone, and singularly affecting ; but when forced, as it so often was, on occa- sions of anger and temper, it became very rough, and far from sympathetic. Crowest, from Beethoven. In the following paragraph, the author explains the topic sentence, which says that " Nearly all the great music of the world has been produced in humble life." The composition is, therefore, exposition. It is a curious fact that nearly all the great music of the world has been produced in humble life, and has been developed amid the environments of poverty and in the stern struggle for existence. The aristocracy has con- tributed very little to music, and that little can be spared without detriment. Nearly all the masters have been NARRATION 181 of lowly and obscure origin, and have lived and died in comparative poverty ; for, with rare exceptions, musi- cal composition has been miserably unremunerative until within the last fifty years. The enduring music has been the child of poverty, the outcome of sorrow. Sebastian Bach was the son of a hireling musician. Beethoven's father was a dissipated singer. Cherubini came from the lowest and poorest ranks of life. Gluck was a forester's son. LuUi in his childhood was a page, and slept in palace kitchens. Haydn's father was a wheelwright ; and his mother, previous to marriage, was a cook in the kitchen of Count Harrach, the lord of his native village. While on his death-bed, Beethoven called Hummel's attention to a picture, and said : " See, my dear Hummel, the house in which Haydn was born ; to think that so great a man should have first seen the light in a peasant's wretched hut." Mozart's father was a musician in humble circumstances, and his grandfather a bookbinder. Handel was the son of a barber and surgeon. Rossini's father was a miserable, strolling horn-player, who led a wild Bohemian life. Schubert was the son of a poor schoolmaster ; and his mother, like Haydn's, was in service as a cook at the time of her marriage. Schumann was a bookseller's son, and Verdi the son of a Lombardian peasant. Weber's father was a strolling musician and actor. Wagner, the musician of the future, was born in humble circumstances; his father having been a petty municipal officer, and his step- father an unpretentious portrait painter, who at one time had also been a very poor actor. Among all the promi- nent composers, but three were born in affluence, — Auber, Meyerbeer, and Mendelssohn. With these three excep- tions, they developed the grandeur, the sublimity, the pas- sion, and the majesty of their music out of the storms of life, the pangs of sorrow, and the hard battle with fate. I 182 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Exercise. What form of discourse is "The Niirnberg Stove"? "The True Ballad of the King's Singer " ? What form of discourse is the first stanza of " The Deserted Village/' found on page 34 ? What form is the first stanza found on pages 54 and 57 ? the other three stanzas ? What form of discourse are the illustrative paragraphs found on pages 40-42 ? Find five examples of description in " The Great Stone Face." Is the whole a story or a description? May there be description in a piece of narration? What form of discourse in the three paragraphs on pages 147 and 148 of this book? Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph telling a pupil in the sev- enth grade the difference between narration and description. What form of discourse will your paragraph be ? AKRANGEMENT IN NARRATION. It has been learned that under the head of narration are included such compositions as diaries, biographies, books of travel, histories, as well as stories and novels. In the first three kinds men- tioned there is a simple principle governing the order of the parts : they are arranged in the order of their occurrence. In a diary or biography, the events are related in the order in which they NARRATION 183 happen ; and in a book of travel, the different features of interest are spoken of in the order in which they are seen. It is the same with narra- tive histories ; the events are arranged in the order in which they occurred. Composition Exercise. If your class is reading Dickens's " Christmas Carol/' write for Scrooge's diary the events of the day up to the time Marley's ghost appears. Re- member what kind of man Scrooge was, and think how he would look at the different events of the day. Was he pleased with his nephew ? Did he like the visit of the men soliciting help for the poor ? What did he say about them when he wrote his diary that night? Make any additions to the few events told by Dickens that you think might have happened. Or, watch a baby for a half -hour and tell all the little things he does. There will be enough to fill several sheets of paper. Select those that seem to you most important. As you write have in mind your grandmother to whom you are intend- ing to send this account. Or, if, as a boy, you have lived on a farm or do live there now, tell of the things that you have to do in the first half-hour in the morning. Do you like to go to the barn and care for the horses? Do you have to milk ? Had it rained during the night? What difference does it make in your / 184 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION morning work ? A girl has many tasks to do in- doors. Of these she may write. Or, write the biography of a cat. Put yourself in the cat's place, and tell the story as if you were the cat writing to another cat. (It would be well for the pupils to hear one or two of Helen Jackson's " Letters to a Cat.") Or, do the same thing with a dog's biography. THE MAIN INCIDENT. It is more difficult to tell a story well than to write a diary or a biography, or to relate the events of a day's or a month's journey. In these last all the events are noted in the order of their occurrence, and there is no reason for making one event more prominent than some others. On the other hand, when a person tells a story, one of the incidents in it is of much more importance than any of the others. This incident is often called the point of the story ; and may be called the main incident, because all the other things in the story contribute to this one incident. Where, then, should this main incident in the story be placed ? Surely not at the beginning, for when the point of the story is told, the story is done. When a person lets the main incident of the story be known at the beginning, the story has been spoiled in the telling. The main incident be- longs at the end of the story ; and, when this has been told, it is time to stop writing. NARRATION 185 Sometimes a person would like to put some sentiment at the end of a story, because the story teaches a good lesson. It may be that the story has taught that " honesty is the best policy/' and this seems to be a rare chance to write a good paragraph to say that it pays to be honest. Let the story teach its own lesson. If the story is well told, it needs no help. Never put a moral at the end of a story. Composition Exercise. Write the beginning of this story. Here is a sentence near the close. It seemed hard to little Maggie after a day full of dis- appointments, to be so unkindly sent forth from Scrooge's dark, cold office into the darker, colder fog, to find her way back to a bare hovel, where warmth and plenty and kindness had not been known for years. Or, write the beginning of this story. This was the happiest moment of my life. It seemed as if nothing could be added to my enjoyment. What did it matter if I did have to hoe in the garden to-morrow, or pile up wood, or carry papers ! For once I had been perfectly happy. Or, write the story that preceded this sentence. When the laugh was over, Jennie, thoroughly wet and dripping, realized that the joke had been very nicely turned ; and the victor of her fancy had become the victim in reality. • 186 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION THE MAIN INCIDENT. (' The first thing in writing a story is to get a firm hold of the main incident, the point of the whole thing. This main incident comes at the end of the story. But during the composition the mind must be constantly looking toward the main inci- dent, so that the story will not lose its track, and for a while be about something else. No fault in telling a story occurs so often as digression. This word means stepping aside, getting off the track. When a man ploughs the first furrow in a field, or marks a field in straight rows for planting corn, he sets up some object across the field; then, keeping his eye fixed on that, he drives straight ..toward it. And that is exactly the way to tell a l/ story : tdl it straight toward the main incident. The main incident helps to determine what to include in the story. All incidents must he included that are necessary to make the main incident pos- sible. In " The Christmas Carol," it is necessary to include the different staves, because they make the end of the story possible. Scrooge, the hard- fisted, grinding miser of the first chapter, could never have become the kind man of the last if he had not beheld the different visions which Dickens has told us of. So, in the story of " Mali- bran and the Young Musician," the little boy could not have been in the opera house to hear her sing if one of the incidents told us should be omitted. NARRATION 187 He could not have known the great Malibran was to sing unless the man had posted the bill near his house. His mother had to be sick ; else he would never have felt the suffering that drove him to see the famous singer. He could not have entered the opera house, had he not called upon Malibran. So each little thing told in this story is necessary that the main incident may happen. Keep your mind on the main incident ; it will tell you what you must put in to make a good story. The main incident will also direct you in keep- ing out matter that does not belong to the story. Supposing that you knew that the day before the story of Malibran begins, the little boy had saved a girl from drowning. It would be interest- ing to tell about ; but it does not belong to this story. This story has for its main incident some- thing entirely different. The rescue of the little girl would make a good storj^ all by itself, but it does not lead toward the main incident of this story. So, if you were writing about "Towser and the Woodchuck," and the main incident were a dreadful fight between the two, it would be quite out of place to tell what you fed Towser for supper the night before, or where Towser sleeps. Keep out everything that does not contribute to the main incident. 188 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Composition Exercise. At the time Dickens wrote " The Christmas Carol/' nearly all schools in England were board- ing schools. Is there anything in the story that helps you to know why Ebenezer Scrooge was sent away to school? Was the boy happy at school ? Why was he alone reading in the empty schoolroom ? Was it his only pleasure ? What did the other boys do for fun ? Did they like Ebenezer? What do you think they nicknamed him? Imagine his whole life at the school. It will help you to know one class of English schools of those days if you read chapters from " Oliver Twist " and " Nicholas Nickleby/' telling of their school days. Now write a story in which the main incident is the arrival of Ebenezer's sister, Fanny, to take him home. Had there been any incidents in his life that made him very glad to see some one from home ? What were they ? His sister's arrival is told of by Dickens in Stave Two of the " Carol." Make up the story before Fanny's arrival ; that is, before the main incident. Or, write a story where in the main incident, or climax, some one says, " I have made a mistake." Make all the minor incidents lead up to this main incident, and make it possible. Or, write what preceded this situation : — I stepped upon the piazza lightly, hoping that I might NARRATION 189 get into the house without being seen. I opened the door quietly, and there sat my father by the stove, reading the paper, home an hour earlier than usual. " What 's the matter. Jack ? I thought you had gone to that surprise party at Rigby's," queried my father, looking calmly over his paper. " Oh, Charlie and I did n't care very much about going, and the sleds were too full," I answered, trying to appear unconcerned and a model of a generous youth. But father knew better. Exercise. Put in the marks of punctuation in the follow- ing. Think first where the sentences end; and then be very careful about the commas. There is but one semicolon in the paragraphs, and there are only two dashes besides the two that are already there. I reached the fence and climbed up two bars of it and leaning over I looked this way and that for my twin- souled partner of the morning it was not long before I caught sight of her only a short distance away her back was towards me and — well one can never foresee exactly how one will find things — she was talking to a Boy. Of course there are boys and boys, but this was the parson's son from an adjoining village a red-headed boy and as common a little beast as ever stepped he cultivated ferrets his only good point and it was evidently through the medium of this art that he was basely supplanting me for her head was bent absorbedly over something he carried in his hands with some trepidation I called out hi but answer there was none then again I called hi but this time with a sickening sense of failure and of doom she 190 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION replied only by a complex gesture decisive in import if not easily described a petulant toss of the head a jerk of the left shoulder and a backward kick of the left foot all delivered at once that was all and that was enough the red-headed boy never even condescended to glance my way why indeed should he I dropped from the fence with- out another effort and took my way homewards along the weary road. Gtrahame, from Bream Bays. Composition Exercise, Write the story that you think preceded the unhappy ending of the preceding paragraphs. Or, write a story in which the main incident shall centre about the word " coward." The per- son may or may not be a coward. Some of the bravest deeds may appear to be cowardly ; not all the circumstances are known^, and so we hastily judge by what we have seen. Or, re-read " Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata." Imagine yourself to have been in the room with the young people after Beethoven left the house, and tell the conversation which took place between the blind girl and her brother. Be careful of the punctuation of the parts quoted. Or, tell a good story of something that hap- pened at a party you attended. Do not tell a string of things that happened one evening and have no other connection. Pick out one good in- cident and make the most of it. Tell it as you told it to your mother when you came home. NARRATION 191 CONSISTENCY IN A STORY. A story should be consistent ; that is, the differ- ent parts of a story should agree. If a boy from the country, who has never before been in a city, be introduced into a story, it would be wrong to make him entirely familiar with street cars, tele- phones, gas, and theatres. In exactly the same way, a city-bred girl would not be expected to know how to harness a horse, milk a cow, or handle a harvester. If the story is of times two hundred years ago, it must have no railroads, steamboats, or telegraphs ; men must wear wigs, gay clothes, breeches, knee-buckles, hose, and slip- pers. To introduce modern costumes into such a story would be inconsistent. So, too, if a foreigner newly arrived be brought into a story, he must retain his nationality. All the parts of a story must be consistent. Moreover, a story must harmonize with the laws of nature. Water will not run up-hill, even in a story. Though in " Ivanhoe," Scott has dared to call a dead man back to life, dead men should remain dead. A man cannot jump across a river ; neither can a seven-year-old carry her mother from a burning building. Dogs stay dogs, horses are horses, and men can only do what men do do in every-day life. Every person and thing in a story must obey the laws of nature. In one case, however, things may do just what 192 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION you please to have them do. There are no laws in fairy land. There walruses talk, the little dogs laugh, and the cow jumps over the moon. Wagner was criticised because he made a monster dragon sing ; but one of his defenders answered, " But, come to think of it, I have never met a dragon that could not sing." Possibly dragons do sing in fairy land. The only thing you must not do in this kind of a story is, after you have had the walrus talking, the dog laughing, and the cow making such marvelous jumps, to turn these animals back into just ordinary animals. They must remain as they were. The whole story must be consistent.. Composition Exercise. The story of Scrooge is a dream, and things occur in it which could not really happen. If you wish, you may make up another incident to fit into the Carol. Be sure that it is consistent with the remainder of the story. Or, write up one of your own dreams. Eemem- ber that you can do anything in this dream ; and do not forget that people usually wake up in the most exciting place. This will put the main inci- dent at the end, just as it should be. Or, if you can, you may write a fairy story. Or, the instructor will read the beginning of "The Reluctant Dragon," in "The Golden Age." Then you will finish the story as you think it should be. NARRATION 193 THE BEGINNING OF A STORY. We have learned that the story teller must know how his story is coming out before he begins ; that the main incident must be near the end of the story ; that this incident will guide him in deter- mining what to put into the story, and what to keep out; that all the parts must be consistent. One more point should be mentioned before leav- ing narration : — The heginning of a story must he interesting. If one wishes his story to be read, he must place at the beginning something that will catch the reader's attention, — something that will interest him. Descriptions of places or of persons must be very well done to hold the attention ; so it is not best to begin a story with descriptions. Have something doing, or some bright conversation going on at the beginning ; and so get the reader's interest aroused in the story. Then he will go on and read the duller places because they add something to the story in which he is already interested. Give the story a good start. In the beginning of a story, three things must be introduced : namely, the principal characters^ i^ the place^ and the time of the story. Readers like to know at once when the story happened ; it makes it more real. They like to know where it was ; for this, too, makes it more real. And they must 194 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION know the principal characters. Whefi^ where, and who must be introduced near the beginning of the story. And they must be introduced in a way that will awaken the interest at once. The beginnings of two stories are given here. Do you think they catch the attention ? Are they interesting as far as you have them? Do you know who is the principal character in each ? Is there anything in each that tells you when it hap- pened ? Do you know at what kind of a place each has occurred ? Does each of these stories have the proper beginning ? The Imp strolled out of the big summer hotel with that careless and disengaged air that meant particular and pressing business. It was early — lunch was barely over — and he was the only person on the broad piazza. As he rounded the corner he ran against Bell-boy No. 5, a great friend of his. " Hello, Imp ! " shouted No. 5, " where you goin' ? " " To the theatre to buy my ticket for the play ! " an- nounced the Imp proudly. " Oh ! " said No. 5, " guess I 'd ruther go to the circus over at Milltown. That 's to-day, too. Why don't you go there ? Ev'rybody in town 's goin' except these hotel folks. Why don't you go ? " The Imp frowned. This was a tender point. Emmy Lou, laboriously copying digits, looked up. The boy sitting in line in the next row of desks was making signs to Emmy Lou. Emmy Lou had noticed the little boy before. He was a square little boy. He had a sprinkling of freckles over NARRATION 195 the bridge of his nose, and a cheerful breadth of nostrils. And his teeth were wide apart, and his smile was broad and constant. Not that Emmy Lou could have told all this. Emmy Lou only knew that to her, the knowledge of the little boy concerning the things peculiar to the Primer World seemed limitless. And now the little boy was beckoning Emmy Lou. Emmy Lou did not know the little boy. Neither did she know anything of the seventy other little boys and girls making the Primer Class. Martin, from Emmy Lou. Composition Exercise. For composition, finish either of these stories as you think it would turn out. Kemember that be- fore you begin to write you must know the point of your story, — just how it is to come out. Keep that main incident clearly in mind, and write toward it. Do not put into your story anything that does not contribute to the main incident. The paragraph below is near the end of the story. It gives a distinct picture of a climax. Write what led up to this situation. " Dried beef ! licorice ! Oh, heavens ! " cried Mrs. Schuyler. " Algernon, how did you dare ? You will be sick for weeks ! You are in a fever now ! " Or, write a story entitled " Adventures of New Year's Eve," of which the following is a begin- ning : — Mother Kate, the watchman's wife, at nine o'clock on New Year's Eve, opened her little window, and put out her head into the night air. The snow was reddened by 196 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION the light from the window as it fell in silent, heavy flakes upon the street. She observed the crowds of happy people, hurrying to and fro from the brilliantly lighted shops with presents, or pouring out of the various inns and coffee- houses, and going to the dances and other entertainments with which the New Year is married to the Old in joy and pleasure. But when a few cold flakes had lighted on her nose, she drew back her head, closed the window, and said to her husband : " Gottlieb, stay at home and let Philip watch for thee to-night ; for the snow comes as fast as it can from heaven, and thou knowest the cold does thy old bones no good. The streets will be gay to-night. There seems to be dancing and feasting in every house ; masquer- aders are going about ; and Philip will enjoy the sport." HERVfi KIEL. I. On the sea and at the Hogue, sixteen hundred ninety- two. Did the English fight the French, — woe to France ! And, the thirty-first of May, helter-skelter through the blue. Like a crowd of frightened porpoises a shoal of sharks pursue, Came crowding ship on ship to Saint Malo on the Ranee, With the English fleet in view. n. 'T was the squadron that escaped, with the victor in full chase ; First and foremost of the drove, in his great ship, Dam- f reville ; NAKRATION 197 Close on him fled, great and small, Twenty-two good ships in all ; And they signalled to the place " Help the winners of a race ! Get us guidance, give us harbor, take us quick — or, quicker still. Here 's the English can and will I " III. Then the pilots of the place put out brisk and leapt on board ; " Why, what hope or chance have ships like these to pass ? " laughed they : " Eocks to starboard, rocks to port, all the passage scarred and scored. Shall the ' Formidable ' here with her twelve and eighty guns Think to make the river-m®uth by the single narrow way. Trust to enter where 't is ticklish for a craft of twenty tons. And with flow at full beside ? Now, 't is slackest ebb of tide. Eeach the mooring? Rather say, While rock stands or water runs. Not a ship will leave the bay ! " IV. Then was called a council straight. Brief and bitter the debate : " Here 's the English at our heels ; would you have them take in tow All that 's left us of the fleet, linked together stern and bow, 198 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION For a prize to Plymouth Sound ? Better run the ships aground ! " (Ended Damfreville his speech). " Not a minute more to wait ! Let the Captains all and each Shove ashore, then blow up, burn the vessels on the beach ! France must undergo her fate. V. " Give the word ! " But no such word Was ever spoke or heard ; For up stood, for out stepped, for in struck amid all these — A Captain ? A Lieutenant ? A Mate — first, second, third? No such man of mark, and meet With his betters to compete ! But a simple Breton sailor pressed by Tourville for the fleet, A poor coasting-pilot he, Herve Kiel the Croisickese. VI. And " What mockery or malice have we here ? " cries Herv^ Kiel : ''Are you mad, you Malouins? Are you cowards, fools, or rogues ? Talk to me of rocks and shoals, me who took the sound- ings, tell On my fingers every bank, every shallow, every swell, 'Twixt the offing here and Greve where the river dis- embogues ? Are you bought by English gold ? Is it love the lying 's for? NARRATION 199 Morn and eve, night and day, Have I piloted your bay, Entered free and anchored fast at the foot of Solidor. Burn the fleet and ruin France? That were worse than fifty Hogues ! Sirs, they know I speak the truth ! Sirs, believe me there 's a way ! Only let me lead the line, Have the biggest ship to steer, Get this ' Formidable ' clear, Make the others follow mine, And I lead them, most and least, by a passage I know well, Right to Solidor past Greve, And there lay them safe and sound ; And if one ship misbehave, — Keel so much as grate the ground, Why, I 've nothing but my life, — here 's my head ! '* cries Herve Eiel. VII. Not a minute more to wait. " Steer us in, then, small and great ! Take the helm, lead the line, save the squadron ! " cried its chief. Captains, give the sailor place ! He is Admiral, in brief. Still the north-wind, by God's grace ! See the noble fellow's face As the big ship, with a bound. Clears the entry like a hound. Keeps the passage as its inch of way were the wide sea's profound ! See, safe through shoal and rock, How they follow in a flock, 200 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Not a ship that misbehaves, not a keel that grates the ground, Not a spar that comes to grief I The peril, see, is past. All are harbored to the last, And just as Herve Kiel hollas " Anchor ! " — sure as fate, Up the English come — too late ! VIII. So, the storm subsides to calm : They see the green trees wave On the heights o'erlooking Greve. Hearts that bled are stanched with balm. " Just our rapture to enhance, Let the English rake the bay. Gnash their teeth and glare askance As they cannonade away ! 'Neath rampired Solidor pleasant riding on the Eance ! " How hope succeeds despair on each Captain's countenance! Out burst all with one accord, " This is Paradise for Hell ! Let France, let France's King Thank the man that did the thing ! " What a shout, and all one word, "Herve Kiel!" As he stepped in front once more^ Not a symptom of surprise In the frank blue Breton eyes, Just the same man as before. IX. Then said Damfreville, " My friend, I must speak out at the end. Though I find the speaking hard. NARRATION 201 Praise is deeper than the lips : You have saved the King his ships, You must name your own reward. 'Faith, our sun was near eclipse ! Demand whate'er you will, France remains your debtor still. Ask to heart's content and have ! or my name 's not Dam- freviUe." Then a beam of fun outbroke On the bearded mouth that spoke. As the honest heart laughed through Those frank eyes of Breton blue : *' Since I needs must say my say. Since on board the duty 's done. And from Malo Eoads to Croisic Point, what is it but a run ? — Since 't is ask and have, I may — Since the others go ashore — Come ! A good whole holiday ! Leave to go and see my wife, whom I call the Belle Aurore ! " That he asked and that he got, — nothing more. XI. Name and deed alike are lost : Not a pillar nor a post In his Croisic keeps alive the feat as it befell ; Not a head in white and black On a single fishing smack, la memory of the man but for whom had gone to wrack All that France saved from the fight whence England bore the bell. 202 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Go to Paris : rank on rank Search the heroes flung pell-mell On the Louvre, face and flank ! You shall look long enough ere you come to Herv^ Eiel. So, for better and for worse, Herve Riel, accept my verse ! In my verse, Herve Riel, do thou once more Save the squadron, honor France, love thy wife the Belle Aurore ! Browning. This poem is founded upon fact. Louis XIV., king of France, and William III., king of England, were at v^ar. The English fleet numbered about ninety vessels, v^hile the French could barely gather fifty. Louis had become so confident of the ability of Frenchmen to whip Englishmen that he ordered Tourville, the French admiral, to attack the Eng- lish fleet whenever there was a chance. The battle was fought " on the sea and at the Hogue, sixteen hundred ninety-two," and the French fleet was destroyed, except a small remnant that escaped to St- Malo. Browning tells the story of their rescue by Herve Riel. It is well to know the geography of the story. Cherbourg is on the long peninsula that reaches out into the English channel. The Hogue is just around the point to the northeast of this city. It was here that the battle was fought. The remnant that escaped fled to the south about a hundred miles to St. Malo. This town is at the mouth of NARRATION 203 the Ranee, a small stream flowing north from near Rennes to the English Channel. The approach to St. Malo is made dangerous by many islands and shoals. " Greve/' in French, means ^^a shoal;'' and Greve is a beach north of St. Malo. Solidor is a fort on the Ranee above St. Malo. Directly south of St. Malo, across the next peninsula, is Croisic, very near the mouth of the Loire. The people who live here are called Croisickese ; and those who live at St. Malo are called Malouins. " Riel " rhymes with " well " and " pell-mell." The story falls into three parts, and a last stanza giving the teaching of the whole. What stanzas make the first part ? What topic sentence would be suitable for it ? What stanzas form the second section. Frame a topic sentence for it ? Make a topic sentence for the last division. Define scarred and scored, porpoises, straight, pressed, sounding, offing, profound (noun), rapture, enhance, askance, wrack. What word would you use instead of '^ Like " in the first stanza ? In the fifth stanza is " was spoke." Is it correct ? Define " disembogues." Would the word be used in prose ? What is meant by the phrase " bore the bell " ? Why does Brown- ing say, " That were worse than fifty Hogues " ? What is full tide ? ebb tide ? Where is Plym- outh Sound ? Do you think it " but a run " from St. Malo to Croisic Point ? About how far is it ? Every harbor into which large ships enter has 204 ELEMENTAKY COMPOSITION special pilots to guide the vessels to anchorage. Whenever a vessel comes into sight, the pilots put out briskly and leap aboard. Knowing the harbor thoroughly, they are able to make the anchorage safe and sound. The Louvre is the old royal palace in Paris. With the Tuileries, which joins it, this great build- ing covers forty-eight acres of ground. Besides many groups of sculpture, there are eighty-six colossal statues of the heroes of France along the sides and ends of this vast palace. It is this that Browning refers to when he says, — Search the heroes flung pell-mell On the Louvre, face and flank. Memorize the whole poem. CHAPTER VI. DESCRIPTION. Description has been defined as that form of composition which tells how any object appears. The object may be described as it appears when \ we feel it, when we taste it, when we smell it, as i well as when we hear or see it. Telling how an f object appears to any of the senses is description. In order to tell how an object appears, it is necessary first to Tcnow how it appears. How many know the number of windows on the north side of their house ? Has a fly six or eight legs ? Do you know what is on the outside of your readers? Most people have indistinct, hazy pictures of ob- jects in their minds. They do not know exactly how things look. In narration, the first require- ment of a story teller was that he should know his story from beginning to end before he began to write. A thorough knowledge of the appearance of an object is necessary before any person is ready to begin a description. This all means that a person who describes must see, — not in a general way, but very definitely and accurately. No two objects are exactly alike. Persons look alike, yet not exactly alike. Grains of sand look alike in the hand; but put a magnifying 206 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION glass over them and each one changes to an in- dividual, as different from its neighbor as a boy is from his twin brother. Every tree, every flower, every dog, every horse, every man has something about him that makes him different from every other object of the same class. To say that a rabbit has four legs, the hind ones very long, two long ears, and a short tail, is not describing any particular rabbit, for all rabbits are such animals ; and as soon as any one hears the word " rabbit," he thinks all these characteristics. Suppose, however, you should say that your rabbit had a little tuft of hair on his right shoulder that remained a dark gray all the year round, and that one of his ears had been nicked, then your rabbit begins to be different from other rabbits ; you have begun to describe him. Such qualities as belong to the object you are describing and to no other of the same class, these are the qualities that sep- arate the object from all the thousands of others, and make it a real individual that can be pictured in the mind of the reader. See what is about you ; look at each object closely ; notice each detail carefully ; observe it with minut- est attention. Sketching in the drawing class and describing in the composition class are very much alike. They differ only in the means employed. One uses the crayon and the brush ; the other uses words. Both, however, require the most careful observation. DESCRIPTION 207 Composition Exercise. Take some very familiar object for description. The chair in which you study at home is a good subject. Why do you prefer this chair ? Does it fit you better than some of the others ? Is there anything pecuUar about the way it rocks? Is the varnish worn off anywhere ? Are there any scratches upon it ? Look at it as you never have before, and be able to make us all see it as if in a picture. Or, describe your father's every-day coat, or your mother's morning dress. Do not describe the persons. POINT OF VIEW. The success of description depends primarily upon observation. If a person sees well, he has the basis for describing well. Often, however, one thinks he sees what he does not see. You know that your brother has gray eyes and that he has lost a tooth. At a distance you could not see these things. So if you were describing him as he stood a little way from you, you should not men- tion these things. Suppose you were telling how your neighbor's lawn looked to you from your window. You could see that it was green, that it was smooth, and that it was velvety; but you could not say that it had in it some coarse grass, and many ants. Your imagination, not your ob- servation, supplied these details. You should put 208 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION into a description only what you can see. This is exactly the same in drawing. The objects are arranged to make a picture, and the pupils are to draw just what they see, — nothing more. In de- scription, as in drawing, the rule is : look, and tell what you see. In describing a man at some distance, you might truthfully say that you could not tell the color of his necktie. If that was really the case, you could not write in the next sentence that he wore in his shirt a pearl of no large size. For if he was so far away that you could not tell the color of his necktie, you certainly could not see a pearl shirt stud. There must be no change in the point of view. Things do not look the same far and near. If you start in far from the object, stay where you are and finish the picture from that point. Suppose that a description read as follows : " We came up one of the narrow, crooked streets, — not so wide as the hall in our home, and so crooked that we could not see ahead of us any distance, — and without any warning we came out into the great square before St. Mark's. There at the other end was the cathedral, its beautiful domes lifted against the blue sky. The glorious colors we had heard people tell of were all there in the front, — the blues, the reds, and the gold, — all splendid in the bright sunlight. There, too, were those bronze horses, their necks arched, their nostrils stretched, DESCRIPTION 209 their eyes gleaming, and their close-cut manes stiff and erect." Now the last part of such a de- scription is impossible. For no one could see the length of the square to tell anything about the manes, nostrils, and eyes of the horses, if he had, indeed, seen the horses at all. The person de- scribing has changed his point of view; he has moved nearer. This always results in a confused picture. Never change your point of view during a description. Composition Exercise. Choose any object and write two descriptions of it, — one when your point of view is close, and the other when the point of view is at a distance. A good object is an old house, or a factory. From a distance the general outline of either may be very good, and the building may appear to you a worthy piece of architecture. Go nearer, and what you thought was a fine house, or an attractive art museum, turns out to be an old house, or a grimy foundry with broken windows and without paint. While you are writing each description, keep your position unchanged. Or, you were out hunting, and lost your way. It was late ; you were hungry. You came in sight of a farmhouse. How did it look ? You hurried up to it only to find it long ago left vacant. Now tell how it looked. 210 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION POINT OF VIEW. Small objects cannot be seen from a distance ; neither can objects be seen round a corner or through a stone wall. Neglect of these principles leads to many impossibilities. Notice the follow- ing : " Looking out of the window of my study room, I can see across the street an old brown house. The piazza has lost its foundation, and slopes dangerously down toward the street. At the back of the house the condition is even worse ; for the little back step has entirely severed its connection with the house, and only a narrow board leads up to the door." Nobody could intro- duce the back step into a drawing of the front side of a house ; and no one should introduce it into a description of the front view of a house. The same impossibilities are to be seen in the following : '^ As he approached, he walked very slowly with his hands locked behind him ; and I noticed that upon one finger he wore a large seal ring." In the following there is the same mistake : " I tried my best to catch him, but in spite of my hardest pedaling he managed to keep about ten rods ahead of me. The freckles on his face seemed to grow more brilliant from sheer joy of knowing that I could get no nearer." Sometimes, however, it is necessary to describe all the parts of a house. A photographer would make his picture by taking several views from dif- DESCRIPTION 211 ferent places. He would never think of trying to get it all upon one plate. So in describing a house it is necessary to make several different pictures. These must be made from different points of view. There must be no change in the point of view while one of the pictures is being made. When- ever the point of view is changed to get another view, the reader must be notified. Then there will be no confusion and no impossibilities. . Taking the first description, after the front of the house had been told about, the person might say : " Now going round to the back of the house, . I found a worse condition than I had seen before.'' The point of view has been changed, and the reader knows it. There will be no confusion. So in the second, the writer might say : " When he came up to me, he reached out his hand to greet me, and I noticed a large seal ring on his third finger." Keep the following in mind always when writing a description : If it is necessary to change the point of view, the reader must be notified at oTice ; if the object described changes its position^ the reader must be informed of this. Composition JExercise. Describe the interior of your home as it would appear to a person you were showing through it. Every time you move from one room to another let the reader know it, so that it may be perfectly clear where you are standing when you write the different parts of the description. 212 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Or, describe the schoolhouse in the same way. Kemember that when the point of view changes, there must be a word to let the reader know it. Then there will be no impossibilities in your writing. Or, describe some mill, or factory, or store in the same way. FEELING, Sometiixies the sun does not seem to shine much ; the grass is gray, not green ; there is a chill in the air ; nothing pleases. Another person looking out of the window the same morning sees a glorious sun and velvety lawns ; to him the air is soft and sweet; all's well in the world. These different pictures result from the different feelings of the two persons. Indeed, the same person may see these different pictures on different days. Sup- pose that a friend has invited you to a party ; you know what a good time is in store for you. You go to your room ; it beams back the joy you feel. It is really the dearest room you know. In the evening your father decides that you ought not to go. Again you find your way to the little room ; but what a stuffy little room it is ! If you had de- scribed it in the afternoon, you would have picked out all the bright, beautiful things, and told only of these ; but in the evening you would have seen only the dull, ugly objects. The feeling you have when looking at anything should be the feeling the reader has when he reads DESCRIPTION 215 your description of the same thing. Make him see it so plainly that he will feel just as you feel. To do this, select only those details that produce the feeling ; omit all details that might produce any other feeling. There is nothing in the description of Scrooge as we first see him that does not suggest a mean, stingy, hard-hearted miser ; and there is nothing in the picture of the Cratchit home that does not suggest kindness and joy. Every detail has been thoughtfully chosen to produce the feeling in- tended. As you kept the point of view and told only of those things that could be seen, so now keep the same feeling throughout your description, and tell only of those things that will produce that feeling. Look at the pictures on pages 213 and 227. Note the things that Mr. Dicksee has introduced into the first : the dying mother crying to the vast, un- answering sea ; beside her, the little cub, ignorant of the awful future ; on the crags, the vultures already gathering for the horrible feast; and round all, desolation. Everything in the picture contributes to the feeling of the awf ulness of death, especially when little helpless ones are left behind. Now look at the next, picture. The feeling is entirely different. What is the feeling ? Is there anything that mars the unity of the picture ? Turn back to the picture of Bach's family. What is the feeling of this picture ? And then 216 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION look at the picture of " Mozart's Requiem/' What is the feeling produced by this picture ? What are the different things that produce that feeling ? In these pictures have the painters kept the feeling throughout ? Composition Exercise. You were going to a picnic. Just before it was time to start, your mother learned that certain persons were going whom she preferred you not to be with ; she decided that you should not go. In your disappointment you went to your room, for you did not wish to see anybody. Now the room was a real loving consolation to you. De- scribe the room. Or, perhaps you were angry. How did the room look then ? Or, suppose that your mother convinced you that she was entirely right, and you were rather glad than otherwise to get out of going. Now describe the 'bus as it drove up for you; was it a comfortable looking carriage ? Or, describe the place they went to, — not a very good place for a picnic, after all. Or, imagine some of the neighbors' boys had been at your house all the afternoon and you had been playing hide-and-seek in the big barn. Dur- ing your play you had all decided to go fishing the next day up the brook that was two miles away. Unfortunately, your father decided that to-morrow you would have to cut up potatoes ready for plant- DESCRIPTION 217 ing. You did it in the barn. Describe the barn as it looked to you in the afternoon while you were playing ; or the next day when you were sitting ther^ cutting up potatoes. PEELING. Everything that is worth describing is the cause of some feeling in us. The woods make some people feel lonely. A rainy day brings a feeling of sad- ness. Autumn winds are dreary. On the other hand, June with its bright sunshine, its blossoming flowers, and the singing of birds, fills us with hap- piness. In describing anything, it is necessary to look at it so long, and think of it so hard that you will discover what it is that makes you feel as you do. Then tell just these things as they seem to you, and the result is a good description. Put mto a description only those things that will produce the feeling you have about an object; leave out everything that can in any way destroy that impression. Below is a description of a bitter storm. It is probable that there was a good fire in the house that night ; but there is no mention made of it, because a bright fire would not make you feel chilly and shivering. The author has told us what made him feel cold, and that is what has made the feel- ing that it was a cold, bitter night. He has left out of the description anything that could destroy that one impression. 218 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION A storm had been raging from the northeast all day. Toward evening the wind strengthened to a gale, and the fine, icy snow swirled and drifted over the frozen fields. I lay a long time listening to the wild symphony of the winds, thankful for the roof over my head, and wonder- ing how the hungry, homeless creatures out-of-doors would pass the night. Where do the birds sleep such nights as this ? Where in this bitter cold, this darkness and storm, will they make their beds? The lark that broke from the snow at my feet as I crossed the pasture this after- noon — What comes o* thee ? Whare wilt thou cow*r thy chittering wing, An' close thy e'e ? The storm grew fiercer ; the wind roared through the big pines by the side of the house and swept hoarsely on across the fields ; the pines shivered and groaned, and their long limbs scraped over the shingles above me as if feeling with frozen fingers for a way in ; the windows rattled, the cracks and corners of the old farmhouse shrieked, and a long, thin line of snow sifted in from be- neath the window across the garret floor. I fancied these sounds of the storm were the voices of freezing birds, cry- ing to be taken in from the cold. Once I thought I heard a thud against the window, a sound heavier than the rattle of the snow. Something seemed to be beating at the glass. It might be a bird. I got out of bed to look ; but there was only the ghostly face of the snow pressed against the panes, half-way to the window's top. I imagined that I heard the thud again ; but, while listen- ing, fell asleep and dreamed that my window was frozen fast, and that all the birds in the world were knocking at it, trying to get in out of the night and storm. Sharp, from Wild Life Near Home, DESCRIPTION 219 Below IS Lowell's description of June, from ^' The Vision of Sir Launf al." Notice that — Everything is happy now, Everything is upward striving ; 'T is as easy now for the heart to be true As for grass to be green or skies to be blue, — 'T is the natural way of living. There is not a thing in this beautiful descrip- tion that did not make Lowell happy ; and he has told us his feelings in such a way that we, too, are happy. His feeling is our feeling. And what is so rare as a day in June ? Then, if ever, come perfect days ; Then heaven tries earth if it be in tune. And over it softly her warm ear lays ; Whether we look, or whether we listen, We hear life murmur, or see it glisten ; Every clod feels a stir of might. An instinct within it that reaches and towers, And, groping blindly above it for light. Climbs to a soul in grass and flowers ; The flush of life may well be seen Thrilling back over hills and valleys ; The cowslip startles in meadows green. The buttercup catches the sun in its chalice, And there 's never a leaf nor a blade too mean To be some happy creature's palace ; The little bird sits at his door in the sun, Atilt like a blossom among the leaves, And lets his illumined being o'errun With the deluge of summer it receives ; His mate feels the eggs beneath her wings. 220 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION And the heart in her dumb breast flutters and sings ; He sings to the wide world, and she to her nest, — In the nice ear of Nature which song is the best ? Now is the high-tide of the year. And whatever of life hath ebbed away Comes flooding back with a ripply cheer, Into every bare inlet and creek and bay ; Now the heart is so full that a drop overfills it, We are happy now because God wills it ; No matter how barren the past may have been, 'T is enough for us now that the leaves are green ; We sit in the warm shade and feel right well How the sap creeps up and the blossoms swell ; We may shut our eyes, but we cannot help knowing That skies are clear and grass is growing ; The breeze comes whispering in our ear. That dandelions are blossoming near. That maize has sprouted, that streams are flowing, That the river is bluer than the sky. That the robin is plastering his house hard by ; And if the breeze kept the good news back, For other couriers we should not lack ; We could guess it all by yon heifer's lowing, — And hark ! how clear bold chanticleer, Warmed with the new wine of the year. Tells all in his lusty crowing ! Composition Exercise. After years of absence, go back to the house where you first lived. Was your life full of hap- piness there ? Did the house seem large to you when a child ? Was there a piazza in front ? Did DESCRIPTION 221 it often invite you to rest ? Have you had good times playing on it ? What did you play there ? Think of the various things that made the old home so attractive to you. There are strangers living in the house, so that you will have to ask permission to go in, or else stay outside. Eemem- ber that if you describe different parts of the house you will have a changing point of view, and you must tell where you go. You will do well to begin your description with your approach to the house, and your feelings as you come nearer, and then the first view of the house after an absence of several years. Or, possibly you prefer not to go back, because the house as you remember it is beautiful and large, and you fear that now that you have grown older it may not look so lovely and attractive. Describe it as you remember it. All boys that have had the good fortune to be born and raised *n the country or in a small town remember the place where they used to go swimming. Wri^e about it. Was there green grass on the bank ? \\ is there a fine old tree shading it ? Did the water look cool and inviting ? Was the sand good to roll in ? Just think how it was and how good it seemed to you ; then try to make us feel what you used to feel there. It may be that when you were a child you went with your father or mother to gather flowers in the spring. Was it on a bank that you found the 222 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION violets ? Was there a brook running near ? Were there some trees at the bottom of the hill ? Did you find any other flowers? Be careful not to write a narrative composition ; this is description — make it a picture of the place where you gath- ered flowers. OBSERVATION. Whenever anything is to be described, it should be observed so closely that one characteristic of it becomes the most prominent, and overshadows all the others. When Lowell wrote Violet ! sweet violet ! Thine eyes are full of tears, the thought that was impressed upon him was that the tender little flower was like a pure, sweetly sad child. The oak seems like a storm-defying giant ; while the poplar is full of delicate grace. Have you not seen a gossiping old hen that is always prying into her neighbor's secrets ? and in the same flock some old cowardly braggart of a rooster who will run at the least sign of danger ? What a proud old colonel a turkey-gobbler is ! So of dogs and cats there is always some character- istic that overshadows all the rest. Seek this out, and then tell what it is that makes you feel that way about it. In the case of animals this charac- teristic is often made plainest by telling what the animal does. So in describing a person, find out first what DESCRIPTION 223 kind of a person you have for the subject of the description. If you have decided that he is gentle from his looks and from his actions^ tell what it is in his looks that makes you feel so ; and what he does that leads you to think him such a person. That makes a good description. This brings us back to the first thing that was said about description ; good observation is the basis of good description. Look at the flower, the tree, the cat, the duck, the man, until that object seems to you to be different from any other of the same class. Tell what it is that makes you feel so, and the description is good. The first description below is by Dr. John Brown. Toby was the most utterly shabby, vulgar, mean-look- ing cur I ever beheld : in one word, a tyhe. He had not one good feature, except his teeth and eyes, and his bark, if that can be called a feature. He was not ugly enough to be interesting ; his color black and white, his shape leggy and clumsy ; altogether what Sydney Smith would have called an extraordinarily ordinary dog ; and, as I have said, not even greatly ugly, or, as the Aberdonians have it, honnie wi^ ill-fauredness. (The last phrase means pretty with ill-favored- ness, that is, beautifully ugly. Do you mean what the English mean by the word " ugly " ? Look it up. Their use of this word is better than ours.) There are a number of good descriptions of animals in the chapter called ^^Shy Neighbor- 224 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION hoods " in " The Uncommercial Traveler/' by- Dickens. The following of a degraded, disreputable donkey is one of the best : — I have known a donkey — by sight ; we were not on speaking terms — who lived over on the Surrey side of London Bridge, among the fastnesses of Jacob's Island and Dockhead. It was the habit of that animal, when his services were not in immediate requisition, to go out alone, idling. I have met him a mile from his place of residence, loitering about the streets ; and the expression of his coun- tenance at such times was most degraded. He was attached to the establishment of an elderly lady who sold peri- winkles ; and he used to stand on Saturday nights with a cartful of those delicacies outside a gin-shop, pricking up his ears when a customer came to the cart, and too evi- dently deriving satisfaction from the knowledge that they got bad measure. His mistress was sometimes overtaken by inebriety. The last time I ever saw him (about five years ago) he was in circumstances of difficulty, caused by this failing. Having been left alone with the cart of periwinkles, and forgotten, he went off idling. He prowled among his usual low haunts for some time, gratifying his depraved tastes, until, not taking the cart into his calcula- tions, he endeavored to turn up a narrow alley, and became greatly involved. He was taken into custody by the police, and, the Green Yard of the district being near at hand, was backed into that place of durance. At that crisis I encountered him ; the stubborn sense he evinced of being — not to compromise the expression — a black- guard, I never saw exceeded in the human subject. A flaring candle in a paper shade, stuck in among his peri- winkles, showed him with his ragged harness broken and his cart extensively shattered, twitching his mouth and DESCRIPTION 225 shaking his hanging head, a picture of disgrace and obdu- racy. I have seen boys being taken to station-houses, who were as like him as his own brother. Most of US do not like lizards ; but after reading the chapter called " The Pine-Tree Swift " in ^^ Wild Life Near Home/' I am sure all would change their opinions about these fascinating little creatures. Here is a bit out of the chapter : — Upon the end of a rail, so close to a cluster of the butterfly-weed blossoms that he can pick the honey gath- erers from it, — as you would pick olives from a dish on the table, — lies a big male swift without a tail. He lost that member in an encounter with me several weeks ago. A new one has started, but it is a mere bud yet. I know his sex by the brilliant blue stripe down each side, which is a favor not granted to the females. The sun is high and hot. " Fearfully hot," I say under my wide straw hat. " Delightfully warm," says the lizard, sprawling over the rail, his legs hanging, eyes half shut, every possi- ble scale exposed to the blistering rays, and his bud of a tail twitching with the small spasms of exquisite comfort that shoot to the very ends of his being. The little Caliban ! How he loves the sun ! It cannot shine too hot nor too long for him. He stiffens and has aches when it is cold, so he is a late riser, and appears not at all on dark, drizzly days. Sharp. Composition Exercise. Write a description of some animal. Cats, dogs, and horses will form the most of the subjects. If you take one of these, find one that you like or dislike ; do not take one that you have no feeling 226 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION about. You cannot do so well with an animal that you do not love or hate. A neighbor's dog digs up your flower beds, he barks at night, possibly he has frightened you ; but your own dog would not do such a thing. A good subject would be " My Neighbor's Dog." For cats good subjects are ^^ Mischief/' ^'A Tramp/' or "A Happy Family." " His Impudence " is a good title for a descrip- tion of a sparrow ; " Old Brag" names some hens ; " Trot-easy " describes some lazy horses. The pictures on pages 213 and 227 will make good subjects for this week's composition. NUMBEIl OF DETAILS. When the central thought of a picture has been grasped, when the character of the person has been seized, when the feeling to be expressed is known, then but few details should be selected to bring out the picture or the description. Many details are confusing. The mind cannot remember them. Scott used to make descriptions that covered pages; but though the details were all true, the great num- ber served only to make the picture indistinct and confused. On pages 194, 195 there is a description of a little boy that interested Emmy Lou. There are in it but thirty-seven words; yet the little rascal is right before us when we read those words. So if you take the trouble to look through your books at home for a long description of a house or CURIOSITY DESCRIPTION 229 a landscape, you will find few or none. The author picks out one or two details that are strikingly different from others and these he enforces. When we read these few sentences, we supply the rest of the picture. Get hold of the details that make the picture individual ; make the reader see these ; never mind the things that everybody knows about. In describing a person be sure that you know first what kind of a man you wish to make him appear to the reader ; then pick out just such details as will bring out this character; and last, do not have too many details. Make the descrip- tion short; and make every word go straight to the mark. Below is a description of George Gisze, written by a Frenchman. Can you see the man ? If not, the description is not good. Holbein has represented George Gisze in his mercantile office, at a table, holding a letter which he is about to open, and surrounded by small objects, articles for which he has use in his business and in his every day Hfe. This man appears before us in a marvelous pose, among these material surroundings and in this professional scene. Ob- serve his calm attitude and his almost placid physiog- nomy ; we notice, however, the firm and decided air of a wealthy and elegant merchant. And, at the same time, we are sure that the type represented here is not of sud- den growth ; everything about him reveals intelligence. George Gisze is young ; the painter has told us his name and his age in an inscription on the wall ; he is 230 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION thirty-four. We do not lack information about him. We like him under that air of youthful seriousness ; we see upon his face that dawning gravity in which the blossom of feeling already exists, but its plenitude and maturity are still to come. And in attentively examining our per- sonage we are struck with his reflective and searching glance. We seem to have a glimpse in him of an unde- fined melancholy. This expression surprises us in this man, who ought to be happy at living and who lacks no pleasures that Fortune can procure. This is a state of mind which is indicated to us, more- over, by a motto traced above his name on one of the walls of his office : " No pleasure without its sorrow." Why this thought ? Is it purely emblematic, or does it con- tain an allusion to some private matter ? We are led to believe that it is intended as a complementary explanation, that it was placed upon the picture because it was in sym- pathy with a train of ideas special to the model. Perhaps it recalls a domestic sorrow, the lively grief left by an absent one, or by some eternal separation. A moral mys- tery which seems to us very attractive hovers around George Gisze. He has long fair hair confined beneath a black cap; his smooth-shaven face is rather thin. He wears a rich costume, a pourpoint of cerise silk with pufPed sleeves, and, over this pourpoint, a cloak of black wool lined with fur. The table on which he is leaning is covered with a Persian rug, and, besides the various objects scattered upon it, you notice a bunch of carnations in an artistically wrought Venetian glass. These carnations, like the motto, awake in us an image, a poetical reminiscence. Senti- ment, Germanic in its essence, mingled with dreams and vague ideals, is introduced into this merchant's office. Valabreque. DESCRIPTION 231 The following sentence is by Mr. Motley. Is it a good picture of Thackeray ? Is it better than the long description of Gisze ? I believe you have never seen Thackeray. He has the appearance of a colossal infant, smooth, white, shiny, ringlety hair, flaxen, alas ! with advancing years, a round- ish face, with a little dab of a nose upon which it is a per- petual wonder how he keeps his spectacles, a sweet but rather piping voice, with something of a childish treble about it, and a very tall, slightly stooping figure — such are the characteristics of the great Snob of England. From Letters of John Lothrqp Motley, The next is by Thackeray. What do you think this boy was reading ? Several times in the course of our sober walks we overtook a lazy, slouching boy, or hobbledehoy, with a rusty coat, and trousers not too long, and big feet trailing lazily one after the other, and large lazy hands dawdling from out the tight sleeves, and in the lazy hands a little book, which my lad held up to his face, and which I dare say so charmed and ravished him, that he was blind to the beautiful sights around him ; unmindful, I would ven- ture to lay any wager, of the lessons he had to learn for to-morrow ; forgetful of mother waiting supper, and father preparing a scolding ; — absorbed utterly and entirely in his book. From Boundabout Papers. Composition Exercise. Pick out the man that is most striking of all you know. The pop-corn man is a good one to describe. He generally has some striking charac- teristics. 232 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Then there is the man in every small town that goes to see the trains pull in at the station. He is a good one to describe. Or go on with this : " He was the meanest little scamp that lived in our neighborhood ; and he looked just as mean as he was." Or finish this : " I found it in the attic. It was old — fifty years old. The crown was high and bell-shaped, — much like the hat that Uncle Sam always wears. And I fell to fancying my old grandfather who wore this high hat fifty years ago. He appeared to me " ARRANGEMENT OF DETAILS. In addition to the care that must be given to the choice of the details that go to make up a good description, care must also be given to the arrangement of the details. They must be in order ; and the order in which they must be is the order in which they are seen. A man in his right mind does not jerk his head about looking at an object. He passes from one point of it to the next, slowly and naturally. If he is observing a house, he does not notice first the ornament in the gable and next that the foundation is of brick. Gener- ally a man sees the house from foundation to ridge ; though, if it be very high, he may notice the height, and then make his description from the top to the bottom. In either case he should have order in the description, giving the differ- DESCRIPTION 233 ent details in the order in which they will be seen. The first is a description of the Cathedral of Strasburg by Victor Hugo. Notice the arrange- ment of the parts. Yesterday I visited the Cathedral. The minster is truly a marvel. The doors of the church are beautiful, particularly the Roman porch ; the f a9ade contains some superb figures on horseback ; the rose-window is beauti- fully cut ; and the entire face of the Cathedral is a poem, wisely composed. But the real triumph of the Cathedral is the spire. It is a true tiara of stone with its crown and its cross. It is a prodigy of grandeur and delicacy. I have seen Chartres, and I have seen Antwerp, but Stras- burg pleases me best. The next is from ^^ Bleak House." by Dickens. It begins at the top and approaches the ground. As to the house itself, with its three peaks in the roof ; its various shaped windows, some so large, some so small, and all so pretty ; its trellis-work, against the south front, for roses and honeysuckle ; and its homely, comfortable, welcoming look ; it was, as Ada said, when she came out to me with her arm through that of its master, worthy of her cousin John — a bold thing to say, though he only pinched her dear cheek for it. It is exactly the same in describing a landscape. From whatever point you begin, from that point you must take up the different details in order. Sometimes you will sweep the picture from right to left, sometimes from left to right ; and again 234 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION you will begin in the middle and go to right and to left. It is more common, however, in descrip- tions of landscape to begin with the near and advance to the far, or from far to near. In any case there must not be a jumping back and forth, but an order in the arrangement of the details. In this description of the harbor of Yokohama by John La Farge, notice how he begins with dis- tant objects and comes nearer and nearer until the " fine wrists and delicate hands," and even the very square toes of the boatmen can be seen. The slackened beat of the engine made a great noise in the quiet waters. Distant high hills of foggy green marked the new land ; nearer us, junks of the shapes you know, in violet transparency of shadow, and five or six war- ships and steamers, red and black, or white, looking bar- barous and out of place, but still as if they were a part of us ; and spread all around us a fleet of small boats, manned by rowers standing in robes flapping about them, or tucked in above their waists. There were so many that the crowd looked blue and white — the color of their dresses repeat- ing the sky in prose. Still, the larger part were mostly naked, and their legs and arms and backs made a great novelty to our eyes, accustomed to nothing but our ship, and the enormous space, empty of life, which had sur- rounded us for days. The muscles of the boatmen stood out sharply on their small frames. They had almost all — at least those who were young — fine wrists and deli- cate hands, and a handsome setting of the neck. The foot looked broad, with toes very square. They were excitedly waiting to help in the coaling and unloading, and soon we saw them begin to work, carrying great loads with much good-humored chattering. DESCRIPTION 235 The same rule holds when persons are being described. If the person does not move, you give the details from head to foot, or in the opposite way. If the person and you are approaching each other, the details should be given in the order in which they appear. The description of the lazy boy by Thackeray is a good example of the last. As the men approached him, they saw first his pose, and it was lazy ; then his coat and trousers ; then big, lazy feet; then lazy hands; and last, since they were behind him, the little book he was reading. The following short description has in it only the face ; but notice that there is order in it. The neighbor on his right was not encouraging either. It was the Italian tenor, a lively fellow, with a low fore- head, oily eyes, and brigandish mustache, which he angrily twirled now that he was separated from his pretty neigh- bor. The next is a description of the dress of the ^' blue-coat boys," who attend Christ's Hospital School in London. This is from '^ The Prince and the Pauper." Its order is from top to toe. He was soon in the midst of a crowd of boys who were running, jumping, playing at ball and leap-frog, and otherwise disporting themselves, and right noisily, too. They were all dressed alike, and in the fashion which in that day prevailed among serving-men and prentices — that is to say, each had on the crown of his head a flat black cap about the size of a saucer, which was not useful as a covering, it being of such scanty dimensions, neither was it 236 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION ornamental; from beneath it the hair fell, unparted, to the middle of the forehead, and was cropped straight around ; a clerical band at the neck ; a blue gown that fitted closely and hung as low as the knees or lower ; full sleeves, a broad red belt ; bright yellow stockings, gar- tered above the knees ; low shoes with large metal buckles. It was a sufficiently ugly costume. Mark Twain. The following is by James Whitcomb Riley in his story called " Tod " : — Tod's features wore a pr.oud, exultant smile, though somewhat glamoured by a net-work of spiteful-looking scratches ; and his eyes were more than usually bright, although their lids were blue, and swollen to a size that half concealed them. His head, held jauntily erect, sug- gested nothing but boyish spirit ; but his hair, tousled beyond all reason, with little wisps of it glued together with clots of blood ; his best clothes soiled and torn ; a bruised and naked knee showing through a straight rent across one leg of his trousers, conveyed the idea of a recent passage through some gauntlet of disastrous fortune. Order, then, is necessary in a description. No one would think of sketching a figure or landscape by jumping about over his paper. He would not make a hand, then a nose, then a shoe, then hair; but he would begin at some point and each detail would be put in as he came to it. In that way the picture grows under his brush. In exactly the same way the picture grows under the pen. From whatever point the sketch begins, it should advance from that point in order. DESCRIPTION 237 Composition Exercise. Describe something as you came to it on a coun- try road. At a distance you could not tell what it was. But, as you approached gradually, it took form, and you saw that it was a . Or, describe the catcher of your base-ball team. Can you see his face well ? Don't forget your point of view. Or, some opening in the w^oods you love ; or a little valley made by a cool, murmuring brook. MEMORIZE. I profess, sir, in my career hitherto, to have kept stead- ily in view the prosperity and honor of the whole country, and the preservation of our Federal Union. It is to that Union we owe our safety at home and our consideration and dignity abroad. It is to that Union that we are chiefly indebted for whatever makes us most proud of our country. That Union we reached only by the discipline of our virtues in the severe school of adversity. It had its origin in the necessities of disordered finance, prostrate commerce, and ruined credit. Under its benign influences these great interests immediately awoke as from the dead, and sprang forth with newness of life. Every year of its duration has teemed with fresh proofs of its utihty and its blessings ; and although our territory has stretched out wider and wider, and our population spread farther and farther, they have not outrun its protection or its benefits. It has been to us all a copious fountain of national, social, and per- sonal happiness. I have not allowed myself, sir, to look beyond the Union, to see what might lie hidden in the dark recess behind. I 238 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION have not coolly weighed the chances of preserving liberty when the bonds that unite us together shall be broken asunder. I have not accustomed myself to hang over the precipice of disunion, to see whether, with my short sight, I can fathom the depth of the abyss below ; nor could I regard him as a safe counselor in the aiBfairs of this govern- ment whose thoughts should be mainly bent on considering, not how the Union may be best preserved, but how toler- able might be the condition of the people when it shall be broken up and destroyed. While the Union lasts, we have high, exciting, gratify- ing prospects spread out before us for us and our children. Beyond that I seek not to penetrate the veil. God grant that in my day, at least, that curtain may not rise ! God grant that on my vision never may be opened what lies behind ! When my eyes shall be turned to behold for the last time the sun in heaven, may I not see him shining on the broken and dishonored fragments of a once glorious Union ; on States dissevered, discordant, belligerent ; on a land rent with civil feuds, or drenched, it may be, in fraternal blood ! Let their last feeble and lingering glance rather behold the gorgeous ensign of the republic, now known and honored throughout the earth, still full high advanced, its arms and trophies streaming in their original lustre, not a stripe erased or polluted nor a single star obscured, bearing for its motto no such miserable inter- rogatory as " What is all this worth ? " nor those other words of delusion and folly, ''Liberty first and Union afterwards ; " but everywhere, spread all over in characters of living light, blazing on all its ample folds, as they float over the sea and over the land, and in every wind under the whole heavens, that other sentiment, dear to every true American heart, — Liberty and Union, now and for- ever, one and inseparable ! From the Speech of Mr. Webster in Reply to Mr, Hayne. CHAPTER VII. EXPOSITION. Exposition is that form of composition the pur- pose of which is to explain something. In the work of the schoolroom it is by far the most com- mon kind of composition. A pupil explains a problem ; he explains the way dew is formed ; he explains the " spoils system." This is all exposi- tion. An instructor asks " Why ? " or, " How do you make that out?" Or possibly she says, "That is correct ; but make it a little plainer to the class." The answer to every such question and the reply to any such request is exposition. A definition is an explanation of the meaning of a term. In answer to the question, " What is a fraction ? " a pupil says, "A fraction is one or more of the equal parts of a unit." The reply is an explanation of the term, and it is exposition. Every definition is an example of exposition. What kind of things do persons explain ? Before answering this question it will be wise to note two things that they do not explain. First, they do not explain "A Dog." "A Dog" is a subject for description. And they do not explain " Water Babies" or "Peasant and Prince." These are sub- 240 ELEMENTARY COlflPOSITION jects for stories. They do explain " The Intelli- gence of Animals/' or the meaning of the word " fraction." In narration and description the ma- terial used is concrete ; it is things or animals doing something, or things arranged for a picture. But in exposition, the material is abstract ; it is ideas ; it is thoughts ; it is statements. Abstract ideas are the subjects of exposition ; and abstract ideas and thoughts men explain. Exercise. Below are given the titles of a number of se- lections from an old reading book. Tell which are subjects of narration, of description, of exposi- tion. 1. The Sky. 8. Don Quixote and Sancho 2. A Dream of Summer. Panza. 3. Grace Preferable to 9. Trial of Baxter. Beauty. 10. The Coral Insect. 4. The Proud Miss Mac- 11. The Widow and Her Son. bride. 12. Life Intended to be 5. Imagination. Happy. 6. Why does the Hair turn 13. The Mocking Bird. White ? 14. Gesler and WiUiam TeU. 7. Henry Wadsworth Long- 15. Queen Mary's Landing. fellow. 16. Men of One Idea. OUTLINES. The words, " exposition " and " explanation/' both mean a placing out, or a spreading out flat. When an idea is to be explained it must be spread out. EXPOSITION 241 SO that all the parts can be clearly seen. For in- stance^ in explaining base-ball to a stranger to the game, it would be necessary to lay out the whole subject before him. It would not be sufficient in reply to his question, ^^ What is base-ball?" to say, " Base-ball is a game played with a bat and ball by eighteen men." With this explanation the stranger would not understand the game. He must be told all about it ; the whole game must be laid out before him ; the details must be given ; that is, it must be explained. A piece of exposition may be compared to a map. At its bottom is its name, — North America. A child would know nothing of this great western world if the map remained rolled up. It must be unrolled, spread out, so that he can see all the parts and their relation to one another, before he knows anything of North America. And when- ever any one writes a piece of exposition he is unrolling a map of the subject. An idea has been explained when all its details have been laid out so that each can be clearly seen in relation to its fellows. Tyndall, in the selection that follows, took for his theme, the real cause of rivers is the heat of the sun. To many young people that sentence is not clear. Tyndall knew it would not be understood, so he explained it in detail. He follows the rivers back through streams, brooks, threads of water, springs, rains, to clouds; and then he shows that clouds are the 242 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION result of the heat of the sun. This idea has been explained by giving all the details that make up the thought. This is exposition. When a person begins to gather the details to- gether ready for writing on any subject, he soon finds that they fall into groups of more closely related thoughts. For example, in explanation of base-ball a certain number of details would be about the way the ground is laid out. Certain other details would be concerned with the instru- ments used in playing the game ; while yet others would be needed to tell what the duties of the players are. If the headings under which these details come are arranged in some order, this arrangement is called an outline. To go back to our geographies, there are cer- tain facts which should be learned about North America. But a pupil in studying them would not take them up hap-hazard, — San Francisco, coal, Cape Hatteras, manufactures, — but he would take up one complete group of geographical facts, and then another. Probably he would study the sur- face, the soil, the products, the industries, the people, and the cities. All the details would be grouped under these headings. Such a grouping would make an outline for the study of North America. In a similar way grouping the facts you wish to present under certain headings is making an outline for any piece of exposition. Each detail should be placed under its proper EXPOSITION 243 heading ; and the headings themselves should be arranged in a logical order. Each part should be so placed that it shall come naturally after the preceding part, and lead easily to the succeeding part. Arrange an outline so that the explanation shall not jump back and forth over the subject, but shall progress steadily toward its conclusion. The following is one method of outlining an essay upon Base-Ball : — 1. The Grounds. 2. The Instruments with which it is played. 3. The Game, — What is it ? An Innings. 4. The Players. a. At Bat. b. In the Field. 1. The Infield. 2. The Outfield. Below is a very simple outline of the essay upon " The Origin of Rivers." Notice how each divi- sion comes from the preceding one, and leads directly into the one following. If you change them about, you will immediately feel the loss in the clearness of the explanation. 1. The source of a river is numerous mere threads of water. 2. The source of these threads of water is rain and springs. But the source of springs is rain. 3. The source of rain is clouds. 4. Clouds are vapor of water. This may be learned by studying steam. 6. The heat of the sun forms this vapor, as the heat of 244 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION a fire causes steam. Therefore the real cause of rivers is the heat of the sun. Composition Exercise, Make an outline of any of the following sub- jects : — Football is a game played with an inflated ball by twenty-two men upon a large open field. Checkers is a game played by two persons with twenty- four small pieces of wood moved upon a board of certain design. There are several things to know if one is to make good bread. The climate of a country depends upon a number of conditions. The selection of a President of the United States is a long process. There were many causes of the War of the Eevolution. THE ORIGIN OF RIVERS. Let us trace a river to its source. Beginning where it empties itself into the sea, and following it backwards, we find it from time to time joined by tributaries which swell its waters. The river of course becomes smaller as these tributaries are passed. It shrinks first to a brook, then to a stream ; this again divides itself into a number of smaller streamlets, ending in mere threads of water. These con- stitute the source of the river, and are usually found among hills. Thus, the Severn has its source in the Welsh moun- tains ; the Thames in the Cotswold Hills ; the Missouri in the Rocky Mountains ; and the Amazon in the Andes of Peru. EXPOSITION 245 But it is quite plain that we have not yet reached the real beginning of the rivers. Whence do the earliest streams derive their water ? A brief residence among the mountains would prove to you that they are fed by rains. In dry weather you would find the streams feeble, some- times, indeed, quite dried up. In wet weather you would see them foaming torrents. In general these streams lose themselves as little threads of water upon the hillsides ; but sometimes you may trace a river to a definite spring. But you very soon assure yourself that such springs are also fed by rain, which has percolated through the rocks or soil, and which, through some orifice that it has found or formed, comes to the light of day. But we cannot end here. Whence comes the rain that forms the mountain streams ? Observation enables you to answer the question. Rain does not come from a clear sky. It comes from clouds. But what are clouds ? Is there nothing you are ac- quainted with which they resemble ? You discover at once a likeness between them and the condensed steam of a locomotive. At every puff of the engine a cloud is pro- jected into the air. Watch the cloud sharply. You notice that it first forms at a little distance from the top of the funnel. Give close attention and you will sometimes see a perfectly clear space between the funnel and the cloud. Through that clear space the thing which makes the cloud must pass. What, then is this thing which at one moment is trans- parent and invisible, and at the next moment visible as a dense opaque cloud ? It is the steam or vapor of water from the boiler. Within the boiler this steam is transparent and invisible ; but to keep it in this invisible state a heat would be required as great as that within the boiler. When the vapor mingles 246 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION with the cold air above the hot funnel, it ceases to be vapor. Every bit of steam shrinks, when chilled, to a much more minute particle of water. The liquid particles thus produced form a kind of water dust of exceeding fineness, which floats in the air, and is called a cloud. Watch the cloud banner from the funnel of a running locomotive : you see it growing gradually less dense. It finally melts away altogether, and, if you continue your observations, you will not fail to notice that the speed of its disappearance depends on the character of the day. In moist weather the cloud hangs long and lazily in the air ; in dry weather it is rapidly licked up. What has become of it ? It has been reconverted into true invisible vapor. The drier the air, and the hotter the air, the greater is the amount of cloud which can be thus dissolved in it. Make the lid of a kettle air-tight, and permit the steam to issue from the spout ; a cloud is formed in all respects similar to that which issues from the funnel of the loco- motive. To produce the cloud, in the case of the locomo- tive and the kettle, heat is necessary. By heating the water we first convert it into steam, and then by chill- ing the steam we convert it into cloud. Is there any fire in nature which produces the clouds of our atmosphere ? There is — the fire of the sun. By tracing the course of a river we find that both its beginning and its ending are in the sea. All its water is derived from the sea, and to the sea it returns its floods. But if we seek for its causes, we find that its beginning and its ending are in the sun. For it is the fire of the sun that produces the clouds from which the water of the river is derived, and it is the same fire of the sun that dries up the stream. Adapted from Forms of Water in Clouds and Rivers by John TyndalIi. From Baldwin'' s Readers. Sixth Year. Taken by permission of the pub- lishers, The American Book Co. EXPOSITION 247 DEFINITION AND KEPETITION. All our knowledge is gained in two ways : di- rectly by one's own experience ; and indirectly from the experience of others. Other persons' knowledge must be communicated to us by lan- guage. In order that we may understand such ideas they must be given to us in terms that we understand ; that is^ the words themselves must be understood. When the sentence, " This coat with my discre- tion will be brave," was given, not all understood it ; but as soon as the words, " discretion " and " brave," were defined, the meaning of the whole sentence was clear. All that was necessary to explain the saying was a knowledge of the words themselves. A sufficient explanation of such terms as " noun," " peninsula," " partial payments," is their defini- tion. Definition is a concise form of exposition. Often the words used in announcing the theme upon which a paragraph is written do not need definition ; they are all easy. Still the idea of the whole sentence may not be perfectly clear as it is stated. It would be clearer if repeated in some other way. This method is exposition by means of repetition. For example, the first sentence of the following paragraph contains none but simple words ; yet the thought of the whole is much clearer when the other sentences are read with it. Notice that each 248 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION sentence gives the thought a little different turn ; it is more than a mere repetition of the first sen- tence. It adds something to the thought, makes it deeper, broader, more definite, or more general. Note, too, that it is not necessary to repeat the whole of the theme in each sentence of repetition. The second sentence does not repeat the whole of the first. In the same way the fourth and fifth sentences repeat but a part of the idea of the first^ while the sixth repeats the complete thought. The love of dirt is among the earliest of passions, as it is the latest. Mud-pies gratify one of our first and best instincts. So long as we are dirty, we are pure. Fond- ness for the ground comes back to a man after he has run the round of pleasure and business, eaten dirt, and sown wild-oats, drifted about the world, and taken the wind of all its moods. The love of digging in the ground (or of looking on while he pays another to dig) is as sure to come back to him as he is sure, at last, to go under the ground, and stay there. To own a bit of ground, to scratch it with a hoe, to plant seeds, and watch their renewal of life, — this is the commonest delight of the race, the most satis- factory thing a man can do. Wabner, from My Summer in a Garden. Definition and repetition correspond very closely to the use of synonyms in sentences. In a defi- nition there is a group of words that means the same as the term defined ; and frequently all the explanation necessary is a synonym. In repetition other words saying the same thing are substituted. Notice the number of synonyms in the paragraph: EXPOSITION 249 love of dirt, fondness for the ground, the love of digging in the ground, and so forth ; and the earli- est of passions, as well as the latest, first and best instincts, commonest delight of man, the most sat- isfactory thing a man can do. What synonyms are in the construction of sentences, repetition and definition are in the forming of a paragraph of exposition. What is the topic sentence of the next paragraph ? In what sentences is an English city defined? Where is there a definition of an American city? Does the paragraph explain the difference between an English and an American city ? What method, has been used in the exposition of the topic sen- tence ? A city in the United States is quite a different thing from a city in the technical sense, as the word is used in England. In England a city is usually taken to be a place which is or has been the seat of a bishop. The head of a city government in England is a mayor, but many boroughs which are not cities are also governed by a mayor. In the United States a city is a place which has received a charter as a city from the legislature of its state. In America there is nothing whatever corresponding to the English borough. Whenever in the United States one enters a place presided over by a mayor, he may generally understand that he is in a city. Bryce, from The American Commonwealth, 260 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION i Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph explaining this saying: A fool wanders, a wise man travels. What is meant by the word '' wanders " ? " trav- els " ? When you have defined these words you are ready to make the proverb clearer by a few sentences of repetition. OBVEKSE KEPETITION. In the study of sentences another way of saying a thing was to deny the opposite. When this was united with an affirmative statement of the same thing, there was the method of contrast. In para- graphs, as in sentences, this method is frequently employed in explaining anything. It is in reality only another way of repeating a thing ; and may justly be called obverse repetition. No one would think of writing a whole para- graph having in it nothing but sentences denying the opposite. One or two such sentences are as many as are usually found in a paragraph. Neither would a person leave a paragraph with a sentence denying the opposite at its end. The close of an explanation should never be what it does not mean; but it should always state what it does mean. In the following paragraph about " Anon " the topic sentences are " Anon is one of our greatest authors. And yet of this great man so little is EXPOSITION 251 known that we are not even acquainted with his Christian name." The second sentence repeats the thought of the first ; and the fourth repeats the third by denying the opposite. The fifth re- peats the whole topic; and the sixth makes a witty comment on it Anon is one of our greatest authors. If all the things which are signed with Anon's name were collected on rows of shelves, he would require a British Museum all to himself. And yet of this great man so little is known that we are not even acquainted with his Christian name. There is no certificate of baptism, no mouldy tombstone, no musty washing-bill in the world on which we can hook the smallest line of speculation, whether it was John, or James, or Joshua, or Tom, or Dick, or Billy Anon. Shame that a man should write so much, and yet be known so little. Oblivion uses its snuffers sometimes very unjustly. Anon. In the next paragraph the author tells what Avarice does not do with gold, and closes with what it does do with gold. Avarice seeks for gold, not to build or buy therewith ; not to clothe or feed itself ; not to make it an instrument of wisdom, of skill, of friendship, or of religion. Avarice seeks to heap it up ; to walk around the pile, and gloat upon it ; to fondle and court, to kiss and hug to the end of life, with the homage of idolatry. On page 237 there is an extract from Webster's " Reply to Hayne." In the first paragraph he says that he has " kept steadily in view the preser- vation of our Federal Union." This thought he 252 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION repeats all through the paragraph. In the second paragraph he says the same thing by telling what he has not done : he has not allowed himself to consider a divided country ; " to hang over the precipice of disunion." Then in the third para- graph he comes back to the opening sentiment, — the prosperity and honor of the whole country while the Union lasts. The chapter in the Bible from which the follow- ing paragraph is taken, tells us that men know the place of gold, silver, iron, and precious stones ; but the place of wisdom they have not found by search- ing through the earth. Neither can wisdom be purchased for gold or jewels. The source of true wisdom is the fear of the Lord. But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the place thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living. The depth saith, It is not in me ; and the sea saith, It is not with me. It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof. It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. The gold and the crystal cannot equal it : and the exchange of it shall not be for jewels of fine gold. No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls : for the price of wisdom is above rubies. The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold. Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding? Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom ; and to depart from evil is understanding. EXPOSITION 253 Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph upon the sentence : A parti- ciple is a verbal. Explain what a verbal is by definition. Then show that a verbal is not a verb by denying that it has some of the characteristics of a verb ; for example, person and number, a sub- ject that limits its form, and other differences that you are familiar with. Conclude with your com- plete definition of a participle. Or, write a paragraph upon the study of com- position, introducing the fact that composition is not grammar. Or, tell what a marine is, by contrasting him with a sailor and a soldier. Or, explain what you mean by good reading, contrasting it with so-called elocution. EXAMPLES. All new knowledge has to be put into the terms of old knowledge in order that it may be under- stood. Already we have seen that repetition and obverse repetition are nothing more than saying a thing in other words which are better understood. The new knowledge has been put into the terms of old knowledge. Again, in telling a boy from the South that a snowball was the shape and about the size of an orange, the new idea has been put into the terms of an idea that he is familiar with. And this is the object of the use of all comparisons. 254 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION To a child who had not seen a mountain, it could be explained by saying that it was a hill lifted up, up, until it reached a height of thousands of feet ; that its base was covered with soil and vege- tation which gradually disappeared towards its summit ; and that in high mountains the top was bare rocks towering against the sky. Hill, soil, vegetation, rocks, are all familiar ideas, and with these a new idea is obtained, — that of a mountain. So a balloon might be likened to an enormous soap bubble big enough and strong enough to carry persons. Tyndall pointed out the likeness of a cloud to the steam that issues from the spout of a tea-kettle. There is no easier way of explaining a thing than to liken it to something that the per- son to whom it is explained is familiar with. All members of a class of objects are alike in many respects ; for example, all cows have a num- ber of characteristics in common. They are large, horned, four-legged, cleft-hoofed, cud-chewing ani- mals. So if a person wished to explain any trait of cows he would be safe in taking one cow for an example, and assuming that in general the one is like the other thousands of cows. To explain any- thing in this way is called exposition by example. On page 40 is a good example of this method of exposition. Burroughs wrote, "All the domestic animals love the apple, but none so much as the cow." This is repeated in two or three sentences; then he says that he once heard of a quick-witted EXPOSITION 255 cow who found a way to get them. The example enforces the statement made at the beginning. So on page 24 there is a good paragraph illus- trating exposition by example. In it Fiske gives a large number of examples to show that '^ the w^ell-being of Virginia society was protected by sundry statutes." In the following paragraph Warner shows by examples that we " respect some vegetables, and despise others " : — This matter of vegetable rank has not been at all studied as it should be. Why do we respect some vegetables, and despise others, when all of them come to an equal honor or ignominy on the table ? The bean is a graceful, con- fiding, engaging vine ; but you never can put beans into poetry, nor into the highest sort of prose. There is no dignity in the bean. Corn, which, in my garden, grows alongside the bean, and, so far as I can see, with no affec- tation of superiority, is, however, the child of song. It waves in all literature. But mix it with beans, and its high tone is gone. Succotash is vulgar. It is the bean in it. The bean is a vulgar vegetable, without culture, or any flavor of high society among vegetables. Then there is the cool cucumber, like so many people, — good for nothing when it is ripe and the wildness has gone out of it. How inferior in quality it is to the melon, which grows upon a similar vine, is of like watery consistency, but is not half so valuable ! The cucumber is a sort of low comedian in a company where the melon is a minor gentleman. I might also contrast the celery with the potato. The associations are as opposite as the dining- room of the duchess and the cabin of the peasant. I 266 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION admire the potato, both in vine and blossom ; but it is not aristocratic. Warner, from My Summer in a Garden. In the next paragraph the topic sentence is explained by the examples that follow. All vegetable farm products were derived from wild plants. They have been greatly improved in size and nutritive quality by cultivation. Some of them, as maize, the potato, tobacco, and the tomato and pumpkin, were not known in Europe till introduced there from America. The cereals are a few grasses whose seeds, improved and enlarged by tillage, are used as bread-stuffs. They are the vegetable food of most importance, and hence are the largest product of the world's farming lands. Adams, from A Commercial Geography, All through this book the different subjects have been explained by examples. It is one of the best ways, and it is the method most frequently em- ployed. Composition Exercise. Write a paragraph upon one of the following topic sentences, explaining what it means, by using examples : — Timidity is the cause of great unhappiness. Grown-up people think the plays of children very foolish. Children see many things in the lives of their elders that are laughable. All animals of the cat family prowl aboj.it for food at night. Or, define a fraction, and explain your defini- tion by an example. EXPOSITION 257 Or, explain what a delta is, by using for an example the sand-bar formed during a rain where a little stream has run into a pond. ANALOGIES. The use of comparisons is a valuable way of expressing thought. Two things compared may be essentially alike, and the unfamiliar one be explained by the familiar ; as, the unfamiliar delta is made clear by the familiar little sand-bar. Or the comparison may be between a class and one member of the class chosen out as an example ; as, a cat is an example of a large family of animals. Then, too, comparisons may be made between ideas that are essentially unlike, but which have a singular striking likeness. Such a comparison is usually a metaphor or a simile. When a compar- ison is made of the relations existing between ideas, we have an analogy. For example, it would be an easy way to explain the circulation of the blood in an animal if a comparison should be made with a water and sewer system in a city. The relation between a water and sewer system and the city is the same as the relation between the circulatory system and the body. This is a comparison of the relations between two sets of ideas. It is, there- fore, an analogy. Possibly this will be clearer for an illustration from arithmetic. The relation between 2 and 4 is the same as the relation between 3 and 6. This 2^ ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION is a comparison between the relations of two sets of quantities. It is called a proportion ; and it is written thus : 2 : 4 : : 3 : 6. So, the analogy might be read as a proportion : A sewer and water sys- tem : city : : a circulatory system : body. In the next paragraph Charles Dudley Warner says that the relation between bunch grass and his garden is the same as the relation between sin and man. The garden and the man are the soil ; bunch grass and sin are the weeds. Both are hard to root out. Expressed as a proportion it would read, Bunch grass : garden : : sin : man. It is a compar- ison of relations. It is analogy. I believe that I have found, if not original sin, at least vegetable total depravity in my garden ; and it was there before I went into it. It is the bunch, or joint, or snake grass, — whatever it is called. As I do not know the names of all the weeds and plants, I have to do as Adam did in his garden, — name things as I find them. This grass has a slender, beautiful stalk : and when you cut it down, or pull up a long root of it, you fancy it is got rid of ; but in a day or two it will come up in the same spot in half a dozen vigorous blades. Cutting down and pulling up is what it thrives on. Extermination rather helps it. If you follow a slender white root, it will be found to run under the ground until it meets another slender white root ; and you will soon unearth a network of them, with a knot somewhere, sending up dozens of sharp-pointed, healthy shoots, every joint prepared to be an independent life and plant. The only way to deal with it is to take one part hoe and two parts fingers, and carefully dig it out, not leaving a joint anywhere. It will take a little EXPOSITION 259 time, say all summer, to dig out thoroughly a small patch ; but if you once dig it out, and keep it out, you will have no further trouble. I have said it was total depravity. Here it is. If you attempt to pull up and root out any sin in you, which shows on the surface, — if it does not show, you do not care for it, — you may have noticed how it runs into an interior network of sins, and an ever-sprouting branch of them roots somewhere ; and that you cannot pull up one without making a general internal disturbance, and rooting up your whole being. I suppose it is less trouble to quietly cut them off at the top, — say once a week, on Sunday, when you put on your religious clothes and face, — so that no one will see them, and not try to eradicate the network within. Warner, from My Summer in a Garden. By a very simple analogy Mr. Heilprin has ex- plained how mountains are formed. Perhaps the simplest mountain that we can picture to ourselves as having been formed through a contraction of the earth's mass is a single fold of rock-strata. If you place on a table a number of napkins or table-cloths, one upon another, and push gently from the opposite sides, you are likely to force up a fold of this kind. Your pushing is only the equivalent of the pulling in of the earth's crust, and the napkins may be taken to be the rock-strata. If you continue pushing, you will probably raise up a number of distinct folds running parallel to one another. So, in case of the earth's crust, continued or excessive strain has reared up parallel folds of rock, and these are the backbones of mountain chains. Heilprin, from The Earth and its Story. Many of our common proverbs are really anal- ogies in which but one of the relations is expressed. 260 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION For example, " a rolling stone gathers no moss " means that just as a rolling stone gathers no moss, so a changeable man gathers neither money nor honor. The relation between a changeable man and money is not expressed ; it is understood. Complete the analogy in the proverb, " A bird in hand is worth two in the bush." And the follow- ing : " Birds of a feather flock together." And this: "My cake is dough." And this: "Don't count your chickens before they are hatched." Composition Exercises. Write a paragraph upon the circulatory system, using the analogy suggested. Work out the com- parison somewhat in detail. Hawthorne compared the work of a generous man in a community to the good done by a stream watering a thirsty land. It is an analogy. Write upon the topic sentence : — No one can count the joy and happiness scattered in a community by one generous man, — using the analogy of the brook. Or, write upon any of the subjects suggested by the proverbs. For example, A little that one is sure of is better than a fortune in uncertainties. Or, It is bad policy to spend one's money before one has it. GENEBAL OBSERVATIONS. An idea may be made clear by defining the terms used ; by repeating the thought in other words, either affirmatively or obversely ; by the EXPOSITION 261 use of examples ; and by employing analogies. It is very unusual to find in any single paragraph but one method of exposition. Generally two or three methods are combined, because it gives clear- ness to the thought and it adds variety to the expression. The purpose of exposition is to ex- plain ; and any device that can contribute to clear- ness should be used. If one method is enough, use one ; if all are needed, use all. Be sure to explain. Some time ago it was said that the first essen- tial of a good composition was a knowledge of the subject. This is true for all kinds of composition ; but full knowledge seems most essential in exposi- tion. It must be evident by this time that to explain an abstract idea is more difficult than to tell a story or to write a description. Ideas can- not be placed before one and looked at until they are thoroughly understood. Still, if one is to be clear in his explanation, he must think his subject all out until he sees it all as clear as day. He must have complete knowledge of his subject. Moreover, if he is to be clear in exposition, a writer must consider the person to whom he makes his explanation. He must consider how much or how little the other person knows, so that his explanation will be full enough to be perfectly clear. And he must consider what terms the other person is probably acquainted wdth, so that his language will not be too difficult. 262 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Tyndall was a great scientist.^ Had he been talking to men familiar with science, he could have taken it for granted that they knew some things about the sun's power, and he could have omitted much that he did say in " The Origin of Rivers." So, too, such men would have under- stood scientific terms, and in such words he would have addressed them. But in writing for young people, he considered that they would not know much about science, and that the terms used must be simple. In exposition one should always con- sider the other person, — how little he knows, and what words he is familiar with. Write to the other person. In description the last advice was to look, see, observe. In exposition the word is think, think, think. Think the subject clear in your own mind ; think of the other person, — just what he needs; think of every way in which your ideas can be made clear. Then write your best thought. Composition Exercise. Make an outline of one of the following sub- jects, after talking it over in class. Then write upon the subject, following your outline. This essay will probably occupy several days. One well-made paragraph a day is good work. Why I love America. What our flag should mean to every American. What it means to be an American. 1 EXPOSITION 263 What I would do if I could vote. The influence of heroes upon the life of a nation. MEMORIZE. GETTYSBURG SPEECH. Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great bat- tlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field z,s a final resting-place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is alto- gether fitting and proper that we should do this. But in a larger sense we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly ad- vanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us, — that from these hon- ored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion, — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. Lincoln. CHAPTER VIII. LETTER WRITING. All persons write letters; some persons write better ones than others. Indeed, there are to-day but few charming letter-writers ; probably because but few are charming in their conversation. Yet our letters are seldom as good as our conversation; for when a person begins to set down what he would have said to his friend, had the friend been present, he finds that the written form grows stiff and very unlike his talk, and the charm of his conversation has been lost in the labor of writing a letter. Though ease and grace in letter-writing will never be gained by many, certain established forms must be learned by all who expect to enter either the business or the social world. These established forms are concerned with the heading, the address, the salutation, the complimentary close, and the signature. THE HEADING. The heading of a letter announces to the reader the place from which, and the date on which, it was written. These two things are necessary to an understanding of the letter ; and they are still LETTER WRITING 265 more necessary when a reply is to be sent. In that case, should the address on the envelop be illegible or become erased, or should the person to whom the letter is written not call for it, and the letter arrive at the home of all wandering letters, the Dead Letter Office could return it to the sender. On letter paper, not note paper, the heading begins about an inch and a half below the middle of the top of the sheet. It usually occupies two lines : the first contains the name of the place and the state, and the second has the date. If a letter is written from a city, the house number with the street has to be given ; in this case, the house number and street make the first line, the city and state the second, and the date the third. Each line of the heading should begin a little farther to the right than the line above it. The heading is an abbreviation of a long sen- tence. Thus, the heading, 129 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis, Minn., Dec. 9, 1901, means, This letter was written from house numbered 129 Hennepin Avenue, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on the ninth of December, in the year nineteen hundred and one. In the heading many of the words of this long sentence are omitted ; and wherever words are omitted commas are inserted; and wherever w^ords are abbreviated periods mark the abbrevia- tion. Notice especially the period and comma fol- lowing the abbreviation for the state and the month. 266 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION In friendly letters the heading is sometimes placed at the end ; in this case it is at the left, and begins one line below the signature. The punctuation is exactly the same as when written at the beginning of a letter. Clearwater, Mont., Jan. 7, 1902. 129 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis, Minn., Dec. 9, 1901. Exercise. Put the following facts into headings properly. Be especially watchful of the punctuation and the penmanship. Charleston south Carolina, palmetto street 714 July 4 1897. Trumbull Co. ohio greensburg June 15 1902. Auditorium Hotel illinois august 31 1896 Chicago. Kome Italy 52 Via Sistina February 1 1900. September 15 1901 221 Girard Avenue Phila- delphia Pennsylvania. THE ADDRESS. The address contains the name and title of the person to whom the letter is written and his place of residence. These two items are necessary ; for should a letter be enclosed in the wrong envelop. LETTER WRITING 267 the person receiving it can forward it at once to the right person. Or, if the letter should reach the Dead Letter Office, it can be promptly for- warded. More than the service done, however, is the courtesy shown to the person to whom the letter is written by acquainting him with the fact that the writer knows his title and the place of his residence. In addressing persons who have titles such as Rev., Dr., Hon., but one title should be used. For instance, one should not write " Rev. S. L. Stearns, D. D.," or " Dr. Asa Gray, M. D. ; " nei- ther should he write " Mr. David Jones, M. D." " S. L. Stearns, D. D.," '^Dr. Asa Gray," and " Mr. David Jones '' are correct. In one case this rule is broken : if a clergyman is addressed, and his initials are forgotten, it is proper to write " Rev. Mr. Stearns." Remember that all persons have some title ; if not a distinctive one, such as Dr., Hon., Pres., it certainly is Mr., or Mrs., or Miss. Never omit the title in the address. The address is written at the left side of the paper, and begins one line below the last line of the heading. The first line always contains the name of the person to whom the letter is written, together with his title. The last line contains the name of the place and the state. If the person addressed lives in a city, a line must be inserted between these two containing his house number and street. 268 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION The address, like the heading, is an abbreviated sentence. And in the address, as in the headings wherever words are omitted, commas are inserted. The whole address is closed with a period. Cambridge, Mass., July 7, 1847. Mr. John G. Whittier, Haverhill, Mass. U. S. Consulate, Liverpool, England, Jan. 1, 1902. Hon. John Hay, Department of State, Washington, D. C. Exercise. Write headings and addresses of letters includ- ing the following data : — Trenton N J 1901 December 7. • Minn Wabasha Jan 3 1902. February 21 1891 N Y Binghamton. 21 May 1901 Clark eo South Dakota Howard. New York 127 East 14th Street 1897 June 28. Wyckoff, Seamans and Benedict 327 Broadway New York City. The Globe- Wernicke Company London E. C. 7 Bunhill Row England. Mary Huntington 946 Tremont Street, Boston Mass. James H. Sawyer D. D. 427 Albemarle Street Bal- timore Maryland. Amos Barton Washington D. C. House of Repre- sentatives. LETTER WRITING 269 THE SALUTATION. The salutation is the next part of a letter. It is written one line below the address, and at the left margin of the paper. There are a large num- ber of salutations ; and the form adopted depends upon the relation existing between the writer of the letter and the person that receives it. A busi- ness man addresses his correspondent as ^-Sir;" while a friend writes " Dear Mr. Stevenson." One thing should be noted : the word " dear " in the business world means nothing. Our lan- guage has no other word for the place ; and so, although the word denotes a degree of intimacy, people go on writing it to persons whom they have never seen, and whom they know only as dealers in the kind of merchandise they wish to buy or sell. " Sir " and " Gentlemen " without the qualifying " dear " are coming more and more into use. This change certainly seems sensible and in good taste. One other fact is worthy of notice. Contradic- tory as it may seem, fashion in America has determined that to write " Dear Mr. Stevenson " indicates a greater degree of intimacy than " My dear Mr. Stevenson." One may write " My dear Mr. Stevenson" to a comparative stranger; not so " Dear Mr. Stevenson." Notice further that the word '' dear," unless it is the first word of the salutation, does not begin with a capital letter. It is equally important to remember that the word 270 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION " Sir " or " Friend/' or whatever principal word is used in the salutation, does begin with a capital letter. The punctuation which follows the salutation varies. The older writers, as Emerson, Carlyle, Browning, Tennyson, Scott, and Lowell, use the comma and dash ; and the usage of such men stamps it as being in good taste. However, the colon is coming to be regarded as equally good for this place ; and there is excellent authority for the colon and dash. The comma and dash seem to be in best taste for letters of friendship ; and the colon, or the colon and dash, for business letters. Below are given several forms of salutation : — Sir : My dear Mr. Brooks, — My dear Sir : — Gentlemen : Dear Mrs. Glegg, — Dear Father, — Madam : My dear Friend, — Dear Timothy, — Mr. John G. Whittier, Haverhill, Mass. My dear Mr. Whittier, — Cambridge, Mass., July 7, 1847. Exercise. Write headings, addresses, and salutations to the following persons, from your own home. 1. The governor of your state. 2. The author you like best. 3. A schoolmate who has moved away from your city. 4. A dealer in merchandise. 5. The editor of a paper you take. LETTER WRITING 271 6. The superintendent of schools. 7. The mayor of the city. 8. The member of Congress from your district. 9. The President of the United States. 10. A person you have met but once. 11. A member of your family. THE BODY OF A LETTER. The body of a letter follows the salutation. It may begin on the line below the salutation ; or^ to save space, it may begin on the same line with the salutation. In the former case the first word of the letter is just below the mark of punctuation which follows the salutation, or, if the salutation is long, further to the left at a point where it would begin with " Dear Sir " for a salutation. Letters may be roughly classified as letters of friendship, of business, and of society. The style of a letter should suit the purpose it is to serve. A letter of friendship should be as nearly as possible like pleasant conversation. It should be newsy, and contain much of the writer's own experiences and opinions. A good letter sounds "just like her." Letter writing too often becomes essay writing ; and when a letter adopts the stiff manner of an essay, it has lost its charm and be- come a dull letter. On the other hand, great care should be taken in order that a letter be not too informal. To use pet names, to introduce slang or other coarse expressions, or to employ abbrevia- 272 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION tions is to violate good taste. The person who does such things is as ignorant as he who, instead of touching his hat and saying " Good morning/' slaps you across the back and says '-' Hello ! " Moreover, there is no place in any letter for carelessness. Words must be carefully chosen, and they must be spelled correctly ; the rules for punc- tuation must be obeyed ; sentences and paragraphs must be carefully formed. Perhaps in no kind of writing do people give so little attention to paragraphing as in letters. They string one thing after another ; and the same paragraph will have the announcement of the grandmother's death and a comment on the coronation of King Edward. Eemember that in all kinds of composition the rules for paragraphs must be followed. The letter of friendship should be in every respect correct ; it should be in good taste; and it should be in- formal. A few words of caution about the opening and closing of friendly letters may be of service. It is unnecessary to announce to a friend at the begin- ning of a letter that you are thinking of writing her a letter, or that you take your '^ pen in hand." The fact that she has received the letter proves both things, and saves you from that unnecessary trouble. So, too, it is in bad taste to begin a letter with 'an apology. A letter, like any other piece of composition, should move off at once with*^ out any needless introductions. And a letter should LETTER WRITING 273 be closed when the news is told. The fact that the postman will soon collect the mail^ or that the train will soon arrive has served a good many per- sons as an excuse for closing a letter. Indeed this excuse occurs nearly as often as the apology for a bad pen, and the hope " that this will find you the same." What does a friend care about your pen- manship, if she can read the letter ? And the fact that you are her friend warrants her in believing that you wish her to be in good health. It is your own self that your friend wishes to know about, — what you are doing and what you are thinking. Omit all the introductory excuses and apologies ; and especially see to it that none of these old worn- out phrases ever finds its way into a letter of yours. Begin a letter at once ; and stop when you have finished all that could be of interest to your corre- spondent. A letter of business is quite different in its pur- pose from a letter of friendship. A business man wishes to be understood, and that quickly ; so a business letter is characterized by clearness and directness. Yet a business letter should never be on the model of a telegram. Such a beginning as the following is bad : " Letter reed. Contents noted. Replying would say etc., etc." In the business world there is no place for any discour- tesy; and the omission of words or punctuation marks, because the writer thinks that the one who receives it does not care whether it is well or 274 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION poorly written, is putting a low rating upon the taste of the receiver of the letter. Without omit- ting any detail, the omission of which would stamp the writer as less than courteous, a business letter should be short, direct, to the point, and so clear that it cannot be misunderstood. In a business letter paragraphing is very import- ant. Every business house now copies all the let- ters it sends out ; and it files away all the letters it receives. Both things are done so that all the correspondence may be at hand, should any dis- pute arise regarding the terms of a transaction. If the head of a firm should need a letter written a month ago and find that it contained three pages, and all in one paragraph, he would have to read through the whole letter to learn what he wished. If, on the other hand, the discussion of each topic formed a separate paragraph, he would know that a paragraph beginning about fish would not quote the price of silks. A person cannot be too careful in paragraphing a business letter. Notes of invitation and notes accepting invita- tions or regretting that invitations cannot be ac- cepted may be either formal or informal. If the persons are intimate friends and the party is not a large affair, the invitation may be informal. Such a note should contain nothing but the invi- tation, stating the kind of function it is to be, the hour, and the place. It should be perfectly clear, and direct as politeness will allow. LETTER WRITING 275 If the invitation is to a large party or reception, the note should be formal. And society has di- rected that such notes of invitation and acceptance shall follow fixed forms. Each person may not suit his own pleasure in such matters. Instead of the usual address and salutation, complimentary close and signature, formal notes omit all these and are written in the third person. The words " you " and " I " do not appear in them. The examples on page 289 give an idea of the manner adopted in formal notes ; but to avoid embarrassing mis- takes the safe thing to do is to have a book con- taining all the forms accepted by good society, and to follow them slavishly. THE COMPLIMENTARY CLOSE. The complimentary close follows the body of the letter. It is written one line below the body of the letter, and begins about the middle of the line. There are many forms for closing a letter ; but they are all abbreviated sentences. '^Sincerely yours " means " I am sincerely yours." If, how- ever, a person writes a phrase or a clause for his complimentary close, such words must conform to the rules of grammar. One should not write " This will oblige Yours truly ; " for " Yours truly" cannot possibly be the object of the verb ^' oblige." In conversation he would say, " This will oblige me;" and in a letter he should write ^' and oblige me. Yours truly, John Honeyman." 276 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Any form of closing that is much abbreviated is in bad taste. '^ Yours " alone should never be used. Nothing could be much worse than " Yours, etc." It would look just as well to write in the salutation " etc. Jones." Remember that the close is a com- plimentary close ; and it should be as courteous as you can make it. Abbreviations show haste ; and haste is never courteous. In closing a letter to a person holding a high position, or to a person who has become famous, more formality is employed than in an ordinary business letter. To the governor of the state the salutation is usually " Sir ; " and the close, some sentence like the following : '' I have the honor to remain, Sir, Your obedient servant, John Honey- man." Care should always be taken to have the close and the salutation in harmony. One should not write " Sir " and then close with the words, '' Faith- fully yours." Neither would it be in good taste to write " Dear Mrs. Honeyman," and close with "I have the honor. Madam, to remain Yours with much respect, Ellery James." The saluta- tion and the close should be nicely adapted to each other. The first word of the complimentary close should begin with a capital letter, but no other word should. " Yours very truly " is right ; " Yours Very Truly" is wrong. A comma follows the complimentary close. LETTER WRITING 277 Custom has accepted the following forms of complimentary close. All are in good taste. Yours truly, Yours sincerely, Yours very truly, Yours respectfully, Cordially yours. Very truly yours, Truly your friend, Your affectionate mother, Your loving daughter, I have the honor, Sir, to remain Most respectfully yours, Believe me. Sir, Most sincerely yours, THE SIGNATUKE. The signature follows the close of a letter. It is placed one line below and a little to the right of the complimentary close. It should be the name of the writer as he usually signs it ; that is^ sur- name and initials, or surname and Christian name and one initial. In the case of very intimate friends or relatives, one is allowed to sign his given name alone or only his initials. FOIiDING AND ENCLOSING A LETTER. There is a right way and a wrong way to fold and enclose a letter. Many people care little whether letters are folded and enclosed for the convenience of the receiver of them ; their care seems to be to get the letters inside the envelops. A letter upon note paper, which is now generally used in friendly correspondence, should be placed upon the desk with the first page up ready for 278 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION folding. It should be folded from the bottom up. Then- with the envelop in the hand, the letter should be taken in the right hand, and the top and bottom edges of the letter inserted first, the folded edge being at the top of the envelop. In this way, when the envelop is opened at the top, as it should be, the person receiving the letter can remove it with the least possible inconvenience ; and it is in the right position for him to begin reading at once. If the letter is written upon letter paper, — the size generally used in business correspondence, — the sheet should be folded up from the bottom just far enough to make the length of the letter a little less than the length of the envelop. Then fold the edges in equally, enough to make the folded letter a little narrower than the envelop, folding the left edge down first. Taking the letter in the right hand and the envelop in the left, insert the letter so that the fold and exposed edge go in first. If it is done this way, when it is removed the letter comes out easily, and is right side and right end up for reading. These may seem like little things ; but when a man has to open and read one or two hundred let- ters a day, it is no little accommodation to him to have them arranged for his convenience. And it is the boy or girl who does these little things cor- rectly that gets employment, holds his place, and wins promotion. The superscription upon the envelop is the same LETTER WRITING 279 as the address of the letter. It contains the name of the person to whom the letter is written, his house number and street, the city, and the state. If the town is very small, it is well to give the county. If the letter is ^ent in care of a third person, the direction should immediately follow the name, and it should not be written in the lower left- hand corner of the envelop. If the letter be one of introduction, the phrase "Introducing Mr. Jane- way " should be written in the lower left-hand corner of the envelop. No pains should be spared to make the super- scription as plain as possible. It is said that more than five million letters and parcels go to the Dead Letter Office every year. These letters contain more than $10,000,000. The reason that they go there is because they have no addresses, incorrect addresses, incomplete addresses, or illegible ad- dresses. The superscription should be well placed upon the envelop. The name stands as near the centre of the envelop as it is possible to place it. The other items of the superscription are placed exactly as in the address. The punctuation is the same as in the address. 280 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION Address Salutation LETTER FORM. Heading Body of the letter New paragraph Complimentary close Signature LETTER WRITING 281 Put the following data into the proper forms for beginning and ending a letter : — 1. A letter written by Elmer Day living at Clearwater, Minn, on the 29th of September, 1899, to Marshall, Wells and Co., Duluth, Minn. 2. 139 E. Seventh Street, St. Paul, Minn. Houghton, Mifflin & Co., 4 Park Street, Boston, Massachusetts, Gentlemen, Please reply as soon as possible, and oblige us. Respectfully yours, James Owen and Son. 3. Elmwood, Cambridge, Massachusetts, January 1, 1890, Mr. Leslie Stephen, British Museum, London, Dear Leslie, Affectionately yours, J. R. L. 4. Fifteen miles from any place, About the 20th of September, 1901, Jack Havergail, 45, Portland Square, Erie, Pennsylvania, Dear Jack, Hoping soon to see a house and to sleep in a bed, I am. Yours truly, Ben Jon- son. The following are examples of good letters. The first is written by James Russell Lowell to the Misses Lawrence, at whose home in Whitby he lived a number of summers. Elmwood, Cambridge, Mass., January 2, 1890. . . . Here I am again in the house where I was born longer ago than you can remember, though I wish you more New Year's days than I have had. 'T is a pleasant old house just about twice as old as I am, four miles from Boston, in what was once the country and is now a popu- lous suburb. But it still has some ten acres of open about it, and some fine old trees. When the worst comes to the worst (if I live so long) I shall still have four and a half 282 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION acres left with the house, the rest belonging to my brothers and sisters or their heirs. It is a square house with four rooms on a floor, like some houses of the Georgian era I have seen in English provincial towns, only they are of brick and this is wood. But it is solid with its heavy oaken beams, the spaces between which in the four outer walls are filled in with brick, though you must n't fancy a brick-and-timber house, for outwardly it is sheathed with wood. Inside there is much wainscot (of deal) painted white in the fashion of the time it was built. It is very sunny, the sun rising so as to shine (at an acute angle, to be sure) through the northern windows, and going round the other three sides in the course of the day. There is a pretty staircase with the quaint old twisted banisters, which they call balusters now, but mine are banisters. My library occupies two rooms opening into each other by arches at the sides of the ample chimneys. The trees I look out on are the earliest things I remember. There you have me in my new-world quarters. But you must not fancy a large house — rooms sixteen feet square, and, on the ground floor, nine high. It was large, as things went here, when it was built, and has a certain air of am- plitude about it as from some inward sense of dignity. Now for out of doors. What do you suppose the ther- mometer is about on this second day of January ? I was going to say he was standing on his head — at any rate he 's forgotten what he 's about, and is marking sixty- three degrees Fahrenheit on the north side of the house and in the shade ! Where is the sense of propriety that once belonged to the seasons ? This is flat communism, January insisting on going halves with May. News I have none, nor of her resources, as you see, save those of the special correspondexit, who takes to description when events fail. Yes, I have one event, I dine to-night LETTER WRITING 283 with Mr. R. C. Winthrop, who remembers your father very well nearly sixty years ago. I have all my grandchildren with me, five of them, and the eldest boy is already conspiring with a beard ! It is awful, this stealthy advance of Time's insupportable foot. Here are two ponies for the children, and two dogs, bull- terriers, and most amiable creatures. This is my estab- lishment, and four of the weans have had the grippe. I remember it here in '31, I think it was. You see I make all I can of age's one privilege — that of Jiaving a drearier memory than other folks. I forgot one thing. There are plenty of mice in the walls, and, now that I can't go to the play with you, I assist at their little tragedies and comedies behind the wainscot in the night hours and build up plots in my fancy. 'Tis a French company, for I hear them dis- tinctly say wee, wee, sometimes. My life, you see, is not without its excitements, and what are your London mice doing that is more important ? I see you are to have a Parnell scandal at last, but I overheard an elopement the other night behind the wainscot, and the solicitors talking it over with desolated husband afterwards. It was very exciting. Ten thousand grains of corn damages ! Good-by, and take care of yourselves till I come with the daffodils. I wish you both a happy New Year and a share for me in some of them. Poets seem to live long nowadays, and I, too, live in Arcadia after my own fashion. Affectionately, J. R. L. Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Scotland^ but after he became a man he was not able to live there during the winter, because the severe cli- mate was too harsh for his weak lungs. After long 284 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION seeking he found that the islands of the Pacific were best suited to him ; and so he settled down at Samoa, half the circle of the globe from his old home. From this distant spot he wrote frequently to Alison Cunningham, who had been his tender nurse through childhood and boyhood. The letter below was written just a year before he died. Vailima, December 5, 1893. My dearest Cummy : — This goes to you with a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. The Happy New Year anyway, for I think it should reach you about Noor's Day, I dare say it may be cold and frosty. Do you re- member when you used to take me out of bed in the early morning, carry me to the back windows, show me the hills of Fife, and quote to me A' the hills are covered with snaw, An' winter's noo come fairly ? There is not much chance of that here ! I wonder how my mother is going to stand the winter. If she can, it will be a very good thing for her. We are in that part of the year which I like best — the Eainy or Hurricane Season. " When it is good, it is very, very good ; and when it is bad, it is horrid," and our fine days are cer- tainly fine like heaven ; such a blue of the sea, such green of the trees, and such crimson of the hibiscus flowers, you never saw; and the air as mild and gentle as a baby's breath, and yet not hot ! The mail is on the move, and I must let up. With much love, I am, your laddie, E. L. S. LETTER WRITING 285 Exercise. Write the letter you think Ben Jonson wrote from ^^fifteen miles from anywhere " to Jack Hav- ergail. The letters below are upon matters of business. They will serve as examples of the qualities which should characterize such letters. Rome, N. Y., Dec. 23y 1901. Hill, Clark and Co., Buffalo, N. Y. Dear Sirs : — The machines which I ordered a week ago have arrived promptly and in good condition. They ful- fil all the specifications. Please find enclosed a New York draft for two hun- dred dollars in full payment of the bill, for which send me a receipt. Respectfully yours, Frank Redway. Madison, Va., Jan. 2, 1902. Mr. J. B. GiLLAM, Clerk of the Board of Education, Altoona, Iowa. Dear Sir : — I have just learned through Mr. Jones that there is to be a vacancy in your schools the coming year. I wish to be considered an applicant for the position. I have completed courses in both high school and col- lege, graduating two years ago from William and Mary's College. While there I took special courses in mathe- 286 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION matics and physics, and believe that I am entirely quali- fied for the work in your schools. Of the teaching I have done and my success, I prefer that others should speak. I send you some letters from gentlemen who are acquainted with my work ; and I confidently refer you to Mr. James E. Tarbell, Mr. Clark Wright, and Mr. Alfred W. Jen- sen, all of Petersburg, Va. Hoping that I may hear from you as soon as you have reached a decision, I remain Yours respectfully, Harvey Jones. 627 Washington Street, Birmingham, Ga., July 17 y 1899. Mr. George E. Walters, 17 Superior Ave., City. Dear Sir : — Some weeks ago you were in our office asking for a position as office boy. Will you write us an appli- cation for the place which we may place on file. There is reason to think that we shall need a good boy within a few days, and an application in writing is of assistance in selecting. Yours respectfully, Smith, Andrews and Co., per A. J. B. Philadelphia, Pa., March 7, 1901. Mr. C. M. Lansing, San Francisco, Cal. Dear Sir: — This letter will introduce to you Mr. Herbert Johnson, whom I have known intimately for a number of LETTER WRITING 287 years. For the last ten years he has been in our employ, and has been successively advanced until he became cashier of our banking house. Just recently he has been warned by ill health that he must change his residence, and he is seeking a new position in the milder climate of California. If you can make him acquainted with some of the prominent business men in the state, I am sure that he will have no trouble in finding employment. By doing this for my friend, you will be renewing my obliga- tion to you. I remain Yours very truly, John C. Patterson, Pres't Merchants National Bank. Exercises. 1. Write the letter that you think George E. Walters wrote in reply to the request of Smith, Andrews and Co. 2. Write a letter of recommendation for an em- ployee whom you have been compelled to discharge because your business has decreased. 3. Write a letter to the Pillsbury- Washburn Co., Minneapolis, Minn., ordering a carload of flour to be shipped to you by fast freight. Specify over which line of railroad you wish it to come. 4. Write an answer to the following advertise- ment, taken from the Record-Herald : — Wanted — A young man for shipping clerk. Must be a good penman, and quick and accurate at figures. Good salary paid to the right man. Address J 2 c/o Record- Herald. 288 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION 5. Write the letter which Hill, Clark and Co. sent to Frank Eedway, acknowledging the receipt of the money. 6. Write Mr. Gillam's answer to Harvey Jones. 7. Write a letter of introduction. The person introduced has capital to invest, and is looking for a place where he will receive good returns for his money. SOCIETY NOTES. All invitations and acceptances follow closely certain forms. Whether to dinner, to a dance, or to a reception, the form is nearly the same ; the only modification being that it is necessary to in- form the person to whom the note is sent what he is invited to. The notes below give a fair idea of formal and informal society notes. Miss Nellie Bly requests the pleasure of Mr. Frank Sperry's company at dinner on Tuesday evening, November twenty-second, at seven o'clock. 627 Linden Avenue. Miss Nellie Bly requests the pleasure of your company at dinner on Tuesday evening, November twenty-second, at seven o'clock. 627 Linden Avenue. LETTER WRITING 289 627 Linden Avenue, November 17, 1902. My dear Mr. Sperry : — Will you give us the pleasure of your com- pany at dinner on Tuesday evening, the twenty-second, at seven o'clock ? Sincerely yours, Nellie Bly. 1492 Columbia Heights, November eighteenth. Mr. Frank Sperry accepts with pleasure Miss Nellie Ely's invitation to dinner on Tuesday evening, November twenty-second, at seven o'clock. Mr. Frank Sperry regrets that absence from town pre- vents his acceptance of Miss Nellie Ely's kind invitation to dinner on Tuesday evening, November twenty-second, at seven o'clock. 1492 Columbia Heights, Nov. ISth, 1902. 1492 Columbia Heights, November 18, 1902. My dear Miss Ely : — I regret exceedingly that I cannot accept your kind invitation to dinner on Tuesday evening. I have just received word that compels me to leave town to-night to be absent for a month. Eelieve me, sincerely yours, Frank Sperry. Exercises. 1. Tour class in school is to give a reception and an exhibition of the school work in drawing 290 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION and modeling. Write a note of invitation to your teacher. 2. Write the teacher's reply, both formally and informally. 3. Write an informal invitation to a friend of yours to a little party at your home. 4. The recipient of the invitation declines to come. There is serious illness at home. Write the note. 5. Write an informal note inviting the Cratchits to a picnic on the Thames. 6. Three of the Cratchits could go; but one had to stay at home, for Tiny Tim had been grow- ing worse and needed some one to stay with him. Write what Mrs. Cratchit wrote to you. 7. Your mother is to give a large dinner party, and has asked you to write formal invitations to it. Make a copy of one you have planned to send. 8. Write an acceptance of the invitation. It should be formal. 9. Write a note regretting that the invitation cannot be accepted. MEMORIZE. Breathes there the man, with soul so dead, Who never to himself hath said, This is my own, my native land ! Whose heart hath ne'er within him burn'd As home his footsteps he hath turn'd From wandering on a foreign strand ? If such there breathe, go, mark him well, For him no minstrel raptures swell ; LETTER WRITING 291 High though his titles, proud his name, Boundless his wealth as wish can claim, — Despite those titles, power, and pelf. The wretch, concentred all in self, Living, shall forfeit fair renown. And, doubly dying, shall go down To the vile dust from whence he sprung, Unwept, unhonor'd, and unsung. Scott, from The Lay of the Last Minstrel THE GREAT STONE FACE. 1. One afternoon, when the sun was going down, a mo- ther and her little boy sat at the door of their cottage, talking about the Great Stone Face. They had but to lift their eyes, and there it was plainly to be seen, though miles away, with the sunshine brightening all its features. 2. And what was the Great Stone Face ? 3. Embosomed amongst a family of lofty mountains, there was a valley so spacious that it contained many thou- sand inhabitants. Some of these good people dwelt in log-huts, with the black forest all around them, on the steep and difficult hill-sides. Others had their homes in com- fortable farm-houses, and cultivated the rich soil on the gentle slopes or level surfaces of the valley. Others, again, were congregated into populous villages, where some wild, highland rivulet, tumbling down from its birth- place in the upper mountain region, had been caught and tamed by human cunning, and compelled to turn the ma- chinery of cotton-factories. The inhabitants of this valley, in short, were numerous, and of many modes of life. But all of them, grown people and children, had a kind of familiarity with the Great Stone Face, although some pos- sessed the gift of distinguishing this grand natural phe- nomenon more perfectly than many of their neighbors. 4. The Great Stone Face, then, was a work of Nature in her mood of majestic playfulness, formed on the per- pendicular side of a mountain by some immense rocks, which had been thrown together in such a position as, when viewed at a proper distance, precisely to resemble THE GREAT STONE FACE 293 the features of the human countenance. It seemed as if an enormous giant, or a Titan, had sculptured his own likeness on the precipice. There was the broad arch of the forehead, a hundred feet in height ; the nose, with its long bridge ; and the vast lips, which, if they could have spoken, would have rolled their thunder accents from one end of the valley to the other. True it is, that if the spectator approached too near, he lost the outline of the gigantic visage, and could discern only a heap of ponder- ous and gigantic rocks, piled in chaotic ruin one upon another. Retracing his steps, however, the wondrous fea- tures would again be seen ; and the farther he withdrew from them, the more like a human face, with all its origi- nal divinity intact, did they appear ; until, as it grew dim in the distance, with the clouds and glorified vapor of the mountains clustering about it, the Great Stone Face seemed positively to be alive. 5. It was a happy lot for children to grow up to man- hood or womanhood with the Great Stone Face before their eyes, for all the features were noble, and the ex- pression was at once grand and sweet, as if it were the glow of a vast, warm heart, that embraced all mankind in its affections, and had room for more. It was an educa- tion only to look at it. According to the belief of many people, the valley owed much of its fertility to this benign aspect that was continually beaming over it, illuminating the clouds, and infusing its tenderness into the sun- shine. 6. As we began with saying, a mother and her little boy sat at their cottage-door, gazing at the Great Stone Face, and talking about it. The child's name was Ernest. 7. " Mother," said he, while the Titanic visage smiled on him, " I wish that it could speak, for it looks so very kindly that its voice must needs be pleasant. If I 294 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION were to see a man with such a face, I should love him dearly." 8. " If an old prophecy should come to pass," answered his mother, " we may see a man, some time or other, with exactly such a face as that." 9. " What prophecy do you mean, dear mother ? " eagerly inquired Ernest. " Pray tell me all about it ! " 10. So his mother told him a story that her own mother had told to her, when she herself was younger than little Ernest ; a story, not of things that were past, but of what was yet to come ; a story, nevertheless, so very old, that even the Indians, who formerly inhabited this valley, had heard it from their forefathers, to whom, as they affirmed, it had been murmured by the mountain streams, and whis- pered by the wind among the tree-tops. The purport was, that, at some future day, a child should be born here- abouts, who was destined to become the greatest and noblest personage of his time, and whose countenance, in manhood, should bear an exact resemblance to the Great Stone Face. Not a few old-fashioned people, and young ones likewise, in the ardor of their hopes, still cherished an enduring faith in this old prophecy. But others, who had seen more of the world, had watched and waited till they were weary, and had beheld no man with such a face, nor any man that proved to be much greater or nobler than his neighbors, concluded it to be nothing but an idle tale. At all events, the great man of the prophecy had not yet appeared. 11. " O mother, dear mother ! " cried Ernest, clapping his hands above his head, " I do hope that I shall live to see him ! " 12. His mother was an affectionate and thoughtful wo- man, and felt that it was wisest not to discourage the gen- erous hopes of her little boy. So she only said to him, " Perhaps you may." THE GREAT STONE FACE 295 13. And Ernest never forgot the story that his mother told him. It was always in his mind, whenever he looked upon the Great Stone Face. He spent his childhood in the log-cottage where he was born, and was dutiful to his mother, and helpful to her in many things, assisting her much with his little hands, and more with his loving heart. In this manner, from a happy yet often pensive child, he grew up to be a mild, quiet, unobtrusive boy, and sun-browned with labor in the fields, but with more intelligence brightening his aspect than is seen in many lads who have been taught at famous schools. Yet Ernest had had no teacher, save only that the Great Stone Face became one to him. When the toil of the day was over, he would gaze at it for hours, until he began to imagine that those vast features recognized him, and gave him a smile of kindness and encouragement, responsive to his own look of veneration. We must not take upon us to affirm that this was a mistake, although the Face may have looked no more kindly at Ernest than at all the world besides. But the secret was that the boy's tender and con- fiding simplicity discerned what other people could not see ; and thus the love, which was meant for all, became his peculiar portion. 14. About this time there went a rumor throughout the valley, that the great man, foretold from ages long ago, who was to bear a resemblance to the Great Stone Face, had appeared at last. It seems that, many years before, a young man had migrated from the valley and settled at a distant seaport, where, after getting together a little money, he had set up as a shopkeeper. His name — but I could never learn whether it was his real one, or a nick- name that had grown out of his habits and success in life — was Gathergold. Being shrewd and active, and en- dowed by Providence with that inscrutable faculty which 296 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION develops itself in what the world calls luck, he became an exceedingly rich merchant, and owner of a whole fleet of bulky-bottomed ships. All the countries of the globe ap- peared to join hands for the mere purpose of adding heap after heap to the mountainous accumulation of this one man's wealth. The cold regions of the north, almost within the gloom and shadow of the Arctic Circle, sent him their tribute in the shape of furs ; hot Africa sifted for him the golden sands of her rivers, and gathered up the ivory tusks of her great elephants out of the forests ; the East came bringing him the rich shawls, and spices, and teas, and the effulgence of diamonds, and the gleam- ing purity of large pearls. The ocean, not to be behind- hand with the earth, yielded up her mighty whales, that Mr. Gathergold might sell their oil, and make a profit on it. Be the original commodity what it might, it was gold within his grasp. It might be said of him, as of Midas in the fable, that whatever he touched with his finger im- mediately glistened, and grew yellow, and was changed at once into sterling metal, or, which suited him still better, into piles of coin. And, when Mr. Gathergold had be- come 80 very rich that it would have taken him a hundred years only to count his wealth, he bethought himself of his native valley, and resolved to go back thither, and end his days where he was born. With this purpose in view, he sent a skilful architect to build him such a palace as should be fit for a man of his vast wealth to live in. 15. As I have said above, it had already been rumored in the valley that Mr. Gathergold had turned out to be the prophetic personage so long and vainly looked for, and that his visage was the perfect and undeniable similitude of the Great Stone Face. People were the more ready to believe that this must needs be the fact, when they beheld the splendid edifice that rose, as if by enchantment, on the THE GREAT STONE FACE 297 site of his father's old weather-beaten farm-house. The exterior was of marble, so dazzlingly white that it seemed as though the whole structure might melt away in the sunshine, like those humbler ones which Mr. Gathergold, in his young play-days, before his fingers were gifted with the touch of transmutation, had been accustomed to build of snow. It had a richly ornamented portico, supported by tall pillars, beneath which was a lofty door, studded with silver knobs, and made of a kind of variegated wood that had been brought from beyond the sea. The win- dows, from the floor to the ceiling of each stately apart- ment, were composed, respectively, of but one enormous pane of glass, so transparently pure that it was said to be a finer medium than even the vacant atmosphere. Hardly anybody had been permitted to see the interior of this palace ; but it was reported, and with good semblance of truth, to be far more gorgeous than the outside, insomuch that whatever was iron or brass in other houses was silver or gold in this ; and Mr. Gathergold's bedchamber, espe- cially, made such a glittering appearance that no ordinary man would have been able to close his eyes there. But, on the other hand, Mr. Gathergold was now so inured to wealth, that perhaps he could not have closed his eyes unless where the gleam of it was certain to find its way beneath his eyelids. 16. In due time, the mansion was finished ; next came the upholsterers, with magnificent furniture ; then, a whole troop of black and white servants, the harbingers of Mr. Gathergold, who, in his own majestic person, was expected to arrive at sunset. Our friend Ernest, meanwhile, had been deeply stirred by the idea that the great man, the noble man, the man of prophecy, after so many ages of delay, was at length to be made manifest to his native valley. He knew, boy as he was, that there were a thou- 298 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION sand ways in which Mr. Gathergold, with his vast wealth, might transform himself into an angel of beneficence, and assume a control over human aifairs as wide and benignant as the smile of the Great Stone Face. Full of faith and hope, Ernest doubted not that what the people said was true, and that now he was to behold the living likeness of those wondrous features on the mountain-side. While the boy was still gazing up the valley, and fancying, as he always did, that the Great Stone Face returned his gaze and looked kindly at him, the rumbling of wheels was heard, approaching swiftly along the winding road. 17. " Here he comes ! " cried a group of people who were assembled to witness the arrival. " Here comes the great Mr. Gathergold ! " 18. A carriage, drawn by four horses, dashed round the turn of the road. Within it, thrust partly out of the window, appeared the physiognomy of the old man, with a skin as yellow as if his own Midas-hand had transmuted it. He had a low forehead, small, sharp eyes, puckered about with innumerable wrinkles, and very thin lips, which he made still thinner by pressing them forcibly together. 19. " The very image of the Great Stone Face ! " shouted the people. " Sure enough, the old prophecy is true ; and here we have the great man come, at last ! " 20. And, what greatly perplexed Ernest, they seemed actually to believe that here was the likeness which they spoke of. By the roadside there chanced to be an old beggar-woman and two little beggar-children, stragglers from some far-off region, who, as the carriage rolled on- ward, held out their hands and lifted up their doleful voices, most piteously beseeching charity. A yellow claw — the very same that had clawed together so much wealth — poked itself out of the coach-window, and dropt some THE GREAT STONE FACE 299 copper coins upon the ground ; so that, though the great man's name seems to have been Gathergold, he might just as suitably have been nicknamed Scattercopper. Still, nevertheless, with an earnest shout, and evidently with as much good faith as ever, the people bellowed, — 21. " He is the very image of the Great Stone Face ! " 22. But Ernest turned sadly from the wrinkled shrewd- ness of that sordid visage, and gazed up the valley, where, amid a gathering mist, gilded by the last sunbeams, he could still distinguish those glorious features which had impressed themselves into his soul. Their aspect cheered him. What did the benign lips seem to say ? 23. " He will come ! Fear not, Ernest ; the man will come ! " 24. The years went on, and Ernest ceased to be a boy. He had grown to be a young man now. He attracted little notice from the other inhabitants of the valley ; for they saw nothing remarkable in his way of life, save that, when the labor of the day was over, he still loved to go apart and gaze and meditate upon the Great Stone Face. According to their idea of the matter, it was a folly, in- deed, but pardonable, inasmuch as Ernest was industrious, kind, and neighborly, and neglected no duty for the sake of indulging this idle habit. They knew not that the Great Stone Face had become a teacher to him, and that the sentiment which was expressed in it would enlarge the young man's heart, and fill it with wider and deeper sym- pathies than other hearts. They knew not that thence would come a better wisdom than could be learned from books, and a better life than could be moulded on the de- faced example of other human lives. Neither did Ernest know that the thoughts and affections which came to him so naturally, in the fields and at the fireside, and wherever he communed with himself, were of a higher tone than 300 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION those which all men shared with him. A simple soul, — simple as when his mother first taught him the old pro- phecy, — he beheld the marvellous features beaming adown the valley, and still wondered that their human counter- part was so long in making his appearance. 25. By this time poor Mr. Gathergold was dead and buried ; and the oddest part of the matter was, that his wealth, which was the body and spirit of his existence, had disappeared before his death, leaving nothing of him but a living skeleton, covered over with a wrinkled, yel- low skin. Since the melting away of his gold, it had been very generally conceded that there was no such striking resemblance, after all, betwixt the ignoble features of the ruined merchant and that majestic face upon the mountain- side. So the people ceased to honor him during his life- time, and quietly consigned him to forgetfulness after his decease. Once in a while, it is true, his memory was brought up in connection with the magnificent palace which he had built, and which had long ago been turned into a hotel for the accommodation of strangers, multi- tudes of whom came, every summer, to visit that famous natural curiosity, the Great Stone Face. Thus, Mr. Gath- ergold being discredited and thrown into the shade, the man of prophecy was yet to come. 26. It so happened that a native-born son of the valley, many years before, had enlisted as a soldier, and, after a great deal of hard fighting, had now become an illustrious commander. Whatever he may be called in history, he was known in camps and on the battle-field under the nickname of Old Blood-and-Thunder. This war-worn veteran, being now infirm with age and wounds, and weary of the turmoil of a military life, and of the roll of the drum and the clangor of the trumpet, that had so long been ringing in his ears, had lately signified a purpose THE GREAT STONE FACE 301 of returning to his native valley, hoping to find repose where he remembered to have left it. The inhabitants, his old neighbors and their grown-up children, were re- solved to welcome the renowned warrior with a salute of cannon and a public dinner ; and all the more enthusi- astically, it being affirmed that now, at last, the likeness of the Great Stone Face had actually appeared. An aid- de-camp of Old Blood-and-Thunder, travelling through the valley, was said to have been struck with the resem- blance. Moreover the schoolmates and early acquaint- ances of the general were ready to testify, on oath, that, to the best of their recollection, the aforesaid general had been exceedingly like the majestic image, even when a boy, only that the idea had never occurred to them at that period. Great, therefore, was the excitement throughout the valley ; and many people, who had never once thought of glancing at the Great Stone Face for years before, now spent their time in gazing at it, for the sake of knowing exactly how General Blood-and-Thunder looked. 27. On the day of the great festival, Ernest, with all the other people of the valley, left their work, and pro- ceeded to the spot where the sylvan banquet was prepared. As he approached, the loud voice of the Rev. Dr. Battle- blast was heard, beseeching a blessing on the good things set before them, and on the distinguished friend of peace in whose honor they were assembled. The tables were arranged in a cleared space of the woods, shut in by the surrounding trees, except where a vista opened eastward, and afforded a distant view of the Great Stone Face. Over the general's chair, which was a relic from the home of Washington, there was an arch of verdant boughs, with the laurel profusely intermixed, and surmounted by his country's banner, beneath which he had won his victories. Our friend Ernest raised himself on his tiptoes, in hopes 302 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION to get a glimpse of the celebrated guest ; but there was a mighty crowd about the tables anxious to hear the toasts and speeches, and to catch any word that might fall from the general in reply; and a volunteer company, doing duty as a guard, pricked ruthlessly with their bayonets at any particularly quiet person among the throng. So Ernest, being of an unobtrusive character, was thrust quite into the background, where he could see no more of Old Blood -and-Thunder's physiognomy than if it had been still blazing on the battle-field. To console himself, he turned towards the Great Stone Face, which, like a faithful and long-remembered friend, looked back and smiled upon him through the vista of the forest. Mean- time, however, he could overhear the remarks of various individuals, who were comparing the features of the hero with the face on the distant mountain-side. 28. "'Tis the same face, to a hair!" cried one man, cutting a caper for joy. 29. " Wonderfully like, that 's a fact ! " responded an- other. 30. " Like ! why, I call it Old Blood-and-Thunder him- self, in a monstrous looking-glass ! " cried a third. " And why not? He's the greatest man of this or any other age, beyond a doubt." 31. And then all three of the speakers gave a great shout, which communicated electricity to the crowd, and called forth a roar from a thousand voices, that went reverberating for miles among the mountains, until you might have supposed that the Great Stone Face had poured its thunder-breath into the cry. All these com- ments, and this vast enthusiasm, served the more to inter- est our friend ; nor did he think of questioning that now, at length, the mountain -visage had found its human coun- terpart. It is true, Ernest had imagined that this long- THE GREAT STONE FACE 303 looked-for personage would appear in the character of a man of peace, uttering wisdom, and doing good, and mak- ing people happy. But, taking an habitual breadth of view, with all his simplicity, he contended that Providence should choose its own method of blessing mankind, and could conceive that this great end might be effected even by a warrior and a bloody sword, should inscrutable wis- dom see fit to order matters so. 32. " The general ! the general ! " was now the cry. " Hush ! silence ! Old Blood-and-Thunder 's going to make a speech." 33. Even so ; for, the cloth being removed, the gen- eral's health had been drunk, amid shouts of applause, and he now stood upon his feet to thank the company. Ernest saw him. There he was, over the shoulders of the crowd, from the two glittering epaulets and embroidered collar upward, beneath the arch of green boughs with in- tertwined laurel, and the banner drooping as if to shade his brow ! And there, too, visible in the same glance, through the vista of the forest, appeared the Great Stone Face ! And was there, indeed, such a resemblance as the crowd had testified? Alas, Ernest could not recognize it ! He beheld a war-worn and weather-beaten counte- nance, full of energy, and expressive of an iron will ; but the gentle wisdom, the deep, broad, tender sympathies, were altogether wanting in Old Blood-and-Thunder's vis- age ; and even if the Great Stone Face had assumed his look of stern command, the milder traits would still have tempered it. 34. " This is not the man of prophecy," sighed Ernest to himself, as he made his way out of the throng. " And must the world wait longer yet ? " 35. The mists had congregated about the distant moun- tain-side, and there were seen the grand and awful fea- 304 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION tures of the Great Stone Face, awful but benignant, as if a mighty angel were sitting among the hills, and enrob- ing himself in a cloud-vesture of gold and purple. As he looked, Ernest could hardly believe but that a smile beamed over the whole visage, with a radiance still bright- ening, although without motion of the lips. It was prob- ably the effect of the western sunshine, melting through the thinly diffused vapors that had swept between him and the object that he gazed at. But — as it always did — the aspect of his marvellous friend made Ernest as hopeful as if he had never hoped in vain. 36. " Fear not, Ernest," said his heart, even as if the Great Face were whispering him, — " fear not, Ernest ; he will come." 37. More years sped swiftly and tranquilly away. Er- nest still dwelt in his native valley, and was now a man of middle age. By imperceptible degrees, he had become known among the people. Now, as heretofore, he labored for his bread, and was the same simple-hearted man that he had always been. But he had thought and felt so much, he had given so many of the best hours of his life to unworldly hopes for some great good to mankind, that it seemed as though he had been talking with the angels, and had imbibed a portion of their wisdom unawares. It was visible in the calm and well-considered beneficence of his daily life, the quiet stream of which had made a wide green margin all along its course. Not a day passed by, that the world was not the better because this man, humble as he was, had lived. He never stepped aside from his own path, yet would always reach a blessing to his neighbor. Almost involuntarily, too, he had become a preacher. The pure and high simplicity of his thought, which, as one of its manifestations, took shape in the good deeds that dropped silently from his hand, flowed also forth in THE GREAT STONE FACE 305 speech. He uttered truths that wrought upon and moulded the lives of those who heard him. His auditors, it may be, never suspected that Ernest, their own neighbor and familiar friend, was more than an ordinary man ; least of all did Ernest himself suspect it ; but, inevitably as the murmur of a rivulet, came thoughts out of his mouth that no other human lips had spoken. 38. When the people's minds had had a little time to cool, they were ready enough to acknowledge their mis- take in imagining a similarity between General Blood- and-Thunder's truculent physiognomy and the benign vis- age on the mountain-side. But now, again, there were reports and many paragraphs in the newspapers, affirming that the likeness of the Great Stone Face had appeared upon the broad shoulders of a certain eminent statesman. He, like Mr. Gathergold and Old Blood-and-Thunder, was a native of the valley, but had left it in his early days, and taken up the trades of law and politics. In- stead of the rich man's wealth and the warrior's sword, he had but a tongue, and it was mightier than both to- gether. So wonderfully eloquent was he, that whatever he might choose to say, his auditors had no choice but to believe him ; wrong looked like right, and right like wrong ; for when it pleased him, he could make a kind of illuminated fog with his mere breath, and obscure the natural daylight with it. His tongue, indeed, was a magic instrument : sometimes it rumbled like the thun- der ; sometimes it warbled like the sweetest music. It was the blast of war, — the song of peace ; and it seemed to have a heart in it, when there was no such matter. In good truth, he was a wondrous man ; and when his tongue had acquired him all other imaginable success, — when it had been heard in halls of state, and in the courts of princes and potentates, — after it had made him known 306 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION all over the world, even as a voice crying from shore to shore, — it finally persuaded his countrymen to select him for the Presidency. Before this time, — indeed, as soon as he began to grow celebrated, — his admirers had found out the resemblance between him and the Great Stone Face ; and so much were they struck by it, that through- out the country this distinguished gentleman was known by the name of Old Stony Phiz. The phrase was con- sidered as giving a highly favorable aspect to his politi- cal prospects ; for, as is likewise the case with the Pope- dom, nobody ever becomes President without taking a name other than his own. 39. While his friends were doing their best to make him President, Old Stony Phiz, as he was called, set out on a visit to the valley where he was born. Of course, he had no other object than to shake hands with his fel- low-citizens, and neither thought nor cared about any effect which his progress through the country might have upon the election. Magnificent preparations were made to receive the illustrious statesman ; a cavalcade of horse- men set forth to meet him at the boundary line of the State, and all the people left their business and gathered along the wayside to see him pass. Among these was Ernest. Though more than once disappointed, as we have seen, he had such a hopeful and confiding nature, that he was always ready to believe in whatever seemed beau- tiful and good. He kept his heart continually open, and thus was sure to catch the blessing from on high when it should come. So now again, as buoyantly as ever, he went forth to behold the likeness of the Great Stone Face. 40. The cavalcade came prancing along the road, with a great clattering of hoofs and a ' mighty cloud of dust, which rose up so dense and high that the visage of the THE GREAT STONE FACE 307 mountain-side was completely hidden from Ernest's eyes. All the great men of the neighborhood were there on horseback ; militia officers, in uniform ; the member of Congress ; the sheriff of the county ; the editors of news- papers ; and many a farmer, too, had mounted his patient steed, with his Sunday coat upon his back. It really was a very brilliant spectacle, especially as there were numer- ous banners flaunting over the cavalcade, on some of which were gorgeous portraits of the illustrious statesman and the Great Stone Face, smiling familiarly at one another, like two brothers. If the pictures were to be trusted, the mutual resemblance, it must be confessed, was marvellous. We must not forget to mention that there was a band of music, which made the echoes of the mountains ring and reverberate with the loud triumph of its strains ; so that airy and soul-thrilling melodies broke out among all the heights and hollows, as if every nook of his native valley had found a voice, to welcome the distinguished guest. But the grandest effect was when the far-off mountain precipice flung back the music ; for then the Great Stone Face itself seemed to be swelling the triumphant chorus, in acknowledgment that, at length, the man of prophecy was come. 41. All this while the people were throwing up their hats and shouting, with enthusiasm so contagious that the heart of Ernest kindled up, and he likewise threw up his hat, and shouted, as loudly as the loudest, " Huzza for the great man ! Huzza for Old Stony Phiz ! " But as yet he had not seen him. 42. " Here he is, now ! " cried those who stood near Ernest. • " There ! There ! Look at Old Stony Phiz and then at the Old Man of the Mountain, and see if they are not as like as two twin-brothers I " 43. In the midst of all this gallant array came an open 308 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION barouche, drawn by four white horses ; and in the ba- rouche, with his massive head uncovered, sat the illus- trious statesman. Old Stony Phiz himself. 44. " Confess it," said one of Ernest's neighbors to him, " the Great Stone Face has met its match at last ! " 45. Now, it must be owned that, at his first glimpse of the countenance which was bowing and smiling from the barouche, Ernest did fancy that there was a resemblance between it and the old familiar face upon the mountain- side. The brow, with its massive depth and loftiness, and all the other features, indeed, were boldly and strongly hewn, as if in emulation of a more than heroic, of a Ti- tanic model. But the sublimity and stateliness, the grand expression of a divine sympathy, that illuminated the mountain visage and etherealized its ponderous granite substance into spirit, might here be sought in vain. Some- thing had been originally left out, or had departed. And therefore the marvellously gifted statesman had always a weary gloom in the deep caverns of his eyes, as of a child that has outgrown its playthings or a man of mighty faculties and little aims, whose life, with all its high per- formances, was vague and empty, because no high pur- pose had endowed it with reality. 46. Still, Ernest's neighbor was thrusting his elbow into his side, and pressing him for an answer. 47. " Confess ! confess ! Is not he the very picture of your Old Man of the Mountain?" 48. "No!" said Ernest, bluntly, "I see little or no likeness." 49. "Then so much the worse for the Great Stone Face ! " answered his neighbor ; and again he set up a shout for Old Stony Phiz. 50. But Ernest turned away, melancholy, and almost despondent ; for this was the saddest of his disappoint- THE GREAT STONE FACE 309 ments, to behold a man who might have fulfilled the pro- phecy, and had not willed to do so. Meantime, the caval- cade, the banners, the music, and the barouches swept past him, with the vociferous crowd in the rear, leaving the dust to settle down, and the Great Stone Face to be revealed again, with the grandeur that it had worn for untold centuries. 51. " Lo, here I am, Ernest ! " the benign lips seemed to say. " I have waited longer than thou, and am not yet weary. Fear not ; the man will come." 52. The years hurried onward, treading in their haste on one another's heels. And now they began to bring white hairs, and scatter them over the head of Ernest ; they made reverend wrinkles across his forehead, and furrows in his cheeks. He was an aged man. But not in vain had he grown old : more than the white hairs on his head were the sage thoughts in his mind ; his wrinkles and furrows were inscriptions that Time had graved, and in which he had written legends of wisdom that had been tested by the tenor of a life. And Ernest had ceased to be obscure. Unsought for, undesired, had come the fame which so many seek, and made him known in the great world, beyond the limits of the valley in which he had dwelt so quietly. College professors, and even the active men of cities, came from far to see and converse with Ernest ; for the report had gone abroad that this simple husbandman had ideas unlike those of other men, not gained from books, but of a higher tone, — a tranquil and familiar ma-jesty, as if he had been talking with the angels as his daily friends. Whether it were sage, statesman, or philanthropist, Ernest received these visitors with the gentle sincerity that had characterized him from boyhood, and spoke freely with them of whatever came uppermost, or lay deepest in his heart or their own. While they 310 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION talked together, his face would kindle, unawares, and shine upon them, as with a mild evening light. Pensive with the fulness of such discourse, his guests took leave and went their way ; and passing up the valley, paused to look at the Great Stone Face, imagining that they had seen its likeness in a human countenance, but could not re- member where. 53. While Ernest had been growing up and growing old, a bountiful Providence had granted a new poet to this earth. He, likewise, was a native of the valley, but had spent the greater part of his life at a distance from that romantic region, pouring out his sweet music amid the bustle and din of cities. Often, however, did the mountains which had been familiar to him in his child- hood lift their snowy peaks into the clear atmosphere of his poetry. Neither was the Great Stone Face forgotten, for the poet had celebrated it in an ode, which was grand enough to have been uttered by its own majestic lips. This man of genius, we may say, had come down from heaven with wonderful endowments. If he sang of a mountain, the eyes of all mankind beheld a mightier grandeur reposing on its breast, or soaring to its summit, than had before been seen there. If his theme were a lovely lake, a celestial smile had now been thrown over it, to gleam forever on its surface. If it were the vast old sea, even the deep immensity of its dread bosom seemed to swell the higher, as if moved by the emotions of the song. Thus the world assumed another and a better aspect from the hour that the poet blessed it with his happy eyes. The Creator had bestowed him, as the last best touch to his own handiwork. Creation was not fin- ished till the poet came to interpret, and so complete it. 54. The effect was no less high and beautiful, when his human brethren were the subject of his verse. The man THE GREAT STONE FACE 311 or woman, sordid with the common dust of life, who crossed his daily path, and the little child who played in it, were glorified if he beheld them in his mood of poetic faith. He showed the golden links of the great chain that intertwined them with an angelic kindred ; he brought out the hidden traits of a celestial birth that made them worthy of such kin. Some, indeed, there were, who thought to show the soundness of their judgment by affirming that all the beauty and dignity of the natural world existed only in the poet's fancy. Let such men speak for them- selves, who undoubtedly appear to have been spawned forth by Nature with a contemptuous bitterness ; she hav- ing plastered them up out of her refuse stufP, after all the swine were made. As respects all things else, the poet's ideal was the truest truth. 55. The songs of this poet found their way to Ernest. He read them after his customary toil, seated on the bench before his cottage-door, where for such a length of time he had filled his repose with thought, by gazing at the Great Stone Face. And now as he read stanzas that caused the soul to thrill within him, he lifted his eyes to the vast countenance beaming on him so benignantly. 56. " O majestic friend," he murmured, addressing the Great Stone Face, " is not this man worthy to resemble thee ? " 57. The Face seemed to smile, but answered not a word. 58. Now it happened that the poet, though he dwelt so far away, had not only heard of Ernest, but had meditated much upon his character, until he deemed nothing so desirable as to meet this man, whose untaught wisdom walked hand in hand with the noble simplicity of his life. One summer morning, therefore, he took passage by the railroad, and, in the decline of the afternoon, alighted 312 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION from the cars at no great distance from Ernest's cottage. The great hotel, which had formerly been the palace of Mr. Gathergold, was close at hand, but the poet, with his carpet-bag on his arm, inquired at once where Ernest dwelt, and was resolved to be accepted as his guest. 59. Approaching the door, he there found the good old man, holding a volume in his hand, which alternately he read, and then, with a finger between the leaves, looked lovingly at the Great Stone Face. 60. " Good evening," said the poet. " Can you give a traveller a night's lodging ? " 61. " Willingly," answered Ernest ; and then he added, smiling, " Methinks I never saw the Great Stone Face look so hospitably at a stranger." 62. The poet sat down on the bench beside him, and he and Ernest talked together. Often had the poet held intercourse with the wittiest and the wisest, but never before with a man like Ernest, whose thoughts and feel- ings gushed up with such a natural freedom, and who made great truths so familiar by his simple utterance of them. Angels, as had been so often said, seemed to have wrought with him at his labor in the fields ; angels seemed to have sat with him by the fireside ; and, dwelling with angels as friend with friends, he had imbibed the sublimity of their ideas, and imbued it with the sweet and lowly charm of household words. So thought the poet. And Ernest, on the other hand, was moved and agitated by the living images which the poet flung out of his mind, and which peopled all the air about the cottage-door with shapes of beauty, both gay and pensive. The sympathies of these two men instructed them with a profounder sense than either could have attained alone. Their minds ac- corded into one strain, and made delightful music which THE GREAT STONE FACE 313 neither of them could have claimed as all his own, nor dis- tinguished his own share from the other's. They led one another, as it were, into a high pavilion of their thoughts, so remote, and hitherto so dim, that they had never en- tered it before, and so beautiful that they desired to be there always. 63. As Ernest listened to the poet, he imagined that the Great Stone Face was bending forward to listen too. He gazed earnestly into the poet's glowing eyes. 64. "Who are you, my strangely gifted guest?" he said. 65. The poet laid his finger on the volume that Ernest had been reading. 66. "You have read these poems," said he. "You know me, then, — for I wrote them." 67. Again, and still more earnestly than before, Ernest examined the poet's features ; then turned towards the Great Stone Face ; then back, with an uncertain aspect, to his guest. But his countenance fell; he shook his head, and sighed. 68. " Wherefore are you sad ? " inquired the poet. 69. " Because," replied Ernest, " all through life I have awaited the fulfilment of a prophecy; and, when I read these poems, I hoped that it might be fulfilled in you." 70. " You hoped," answered the poet, faintly smiling, " to find in me the likeness of the Great Stone Face. And you are disappointed, as formerly with Mr. Gathergold, and Old Blood-and-Thunder, and Old Stony Phiz. Yes, Ernest, it is my doom. You must add my name to the illustrious three, and record another failure of your hopes. For — in shame and sadness do I speak it, Ernest — I am not worthy to be typified by yonder benign and majes- tic image." 314 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION 71. " And why ? " asked Ernest. He pointed to the volume. " Are not those thoughts divine ? " 72. " They have a strain of the Divinity," replied the poet. " You can hear in them the far-off echo of a hea- venly song. But my life, dear Ernest, has not corresponded with my thought. I have had grand dreams, but they have been only dreams, because I have lived — and that, too, by my own choice — among poor and mean realities. Sometimes even — shall I dare to say it ? — I lack faith in the grandeur, the beauty, and the goodness, which my own works are said to have made more evident in nature and in human life. Why, then, pure seeker of the good and true, shouldst thou hope to find me, in yonder image of the divine ? " 73. The poet spoke sadly, and his eyes were dim with tears. So, likewise, were those of Ernest. 74. At the hour of sunset, as had long been his fre- quent custom, Ernest was to discourse to an assemblage of the neighboring inhabitants in the open air. He and the poet, arm in arm, still talking together as they went along, proceeded to the spot. It was a small nook among the hills, with a gray precipice behind, the stern front of which was relieved by the pleasant foliage of many creeping plants that made a tapestry for the naked rock, by hanging their festoons from all its rugged angles. At a small elevation above the ground, set in a rich frame- work of verdure, there appeared a niche, spacious enough to admit a human figure, with freedom for such gestures as spontaneously accompany earnest thought and genuine emotion. Into this natural pulpit Ernest ascended, and threw a look of familiar kindness around upon his audi- ence. They stood, or sat, or reclined upon the grass, as seemed good to each, with the departing sunshine falling obliquely over them, and mingling its subdued cheerful- THE GREAT STONE FACE 315 ness with the solemnity of a grove of ancient trees, be- neath and amid the boughs of which the golden rays were constrained to pass. In another direction was seen the Great Stone Face, with the same cheer, combined with the same solemnity, in its benignant aspect. 75. Ernest began to speak, giving to the people of what was in his heart and mind. His words had power, be- cause they accorded with his thoughts ; and his thoughts had reality and depth, because they harmonized with the life which he had always lived. It was not mere breath that this preacher uttered ; they were the words of life, because a life of good deeds and holy love was melted into them. Pearls, pure and rich, had been dissolved into this precious draught. The poet, as he listened, felt that the being and character of Ernest were a nobler strain of poetry than he had ever written. His eyes glistening with tears, he gazed reverentially at the venerable man, and said within himself that never was there an aspect so worthy of a prophet and a sage as that mild, sweet, thoughtful countenance, with the glory of white hair dif- fused about it. At a distance, but distinctly to be seen, high up in the golden light of the setting sun, appeared the Great Stone Face, with hoary mists around it, like the white hairs around the brow of Ernest. Its look of grand beneficence seemed to embrace the world. 76. At that moment, in sympathy with a thought which he was about to utter, the face of Ernest assumed a gran- deur of expression, so imbued with benevolence, that the poet, by an irresistible impulse, threw his arms aloft, and shouted, — 77. "Behold! Behold! Ernest is himself the likeness of the Great Stone Face ! " 78. Then all the people looked, and saw that what the deep-sighted poet said was true. The prophecy was ful- 316 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION filled. But Ernest, having finished what he had to say, took the poet's arm, and walked slowly homeward, still hoping that some wiser and better man than himself would by and by appear, bearing a resemblance to the Great Stone Face. RULES FOR PUNCTUATION. A Period closes every declarative sentence. A Period is used after abbreviations. A Period follows a letter heading, a signature, or a title. An Exclamation Mark follows an expression of strong emotion. A Question Mark follows a direct question. A Colon, or a Colon and a Dash, usually precede a long quotation, or a quotation formally introduced. A Semicolon is generally used to separate the inde- pendent clauses of a sentence, if they are complex, or if the clauses themselves contain commas, or if the connectives are omitted. A Comma is used to separate words used in a series, unless all of them are joined by connecting words. A Comma is used to separate the items of a letter heading, date, and address. A Comma, or Commas, are used to separate the name of a person or thing addressed from the rest of a sentence. Commas are used to enclose small groups of closely related words to indicate their own near relation, and to separate them from words they might otherwise be thought to modify. Commas are used to separate words, phrases, or clauses, either explanatory or parenthetical, from the rest of a sentence. A Comma, or Commas, separate a short informal quotation from the words of the author. 318 RULES FOR PUNCTUATION A Coniina is used to separate the independent parts of a sentence, if they are simple and the connective is expressed. A Comma, or Commas, separate words or phrases out of their natural order from the rest of a sentence. An Apostrophe is used in place of omitted letters in contractions. An Apostrophe is used to indicate possession. A Hyphen is used to separate the parts of a com- pound word. A Hyphen is used to separate the syllables of a word broken at the end of a line. Quotation Marks should enclose every direct quota- tion. Quotation Marks should enclose each part of a broken quotation. Quotation Marks enclose partial quotations. Quotation Marks usually enclose the names of books and the titles of pieces, when introduced into dis- course. Single Marks of Quotation enclose a quotation within a quotation. Quotation Marks should not enclose an indirect quotation. A Capital Letter is used to begin the first word of a sentence. A Capital Letter is used to begin the first word of a line of poetry. A Capital Letter is used to begin all names of and pronouns referring to the Deity. A Capital Letter is used to begin all proper names, and all words derived from proper names. A Capital Letter is used to begin the first word and each important word of a title. A Capital Letter is used to begin the first word of every direct quotation. The words I and O are written with Capital Letters. INDEX Abou Ben Adhem (Hunt), 104, 105. Acceptance, Notes of, 274, 288, 289. Adams, quotation from, 256. Additive Relation in Sentences, 126, 127. Address of a Letter, 266-268. Adversative Relation in Sen- tences, 126, 127. Alternative Relation in Sentences, 126, 127. American Commonwealth, The (Bryce), quotations from, 24, 25, 249. Amplification, 163-170; Defini- tion of, 163 ; Method of, 163. Analogy in Exposition, 257-260 ; Compared with Ratios, 257, 258. Antonyms, Use of, 88-92 ; Defi- nition of, 89. Arrangement of Parts of a Sen- tence, 137, 138 ; in Narration, 182-184 ; in Description, 232- 237 ; in Exposition, 241-243. Arthur Bonnicastle (Holland), quotation from, 3, 4. Asia (Carpenter), quotation from, 41. Bach, Sebastian, Sketch of, 164- 169 ; Morning Prayers at the Home of. Picture, 165. Bee and the Flower, The (Tenny- son), 8. Beethoven, Ludvig van, descrip- tion of (Crowest), 179, 180 ; in His Study, Picture, 155; his Moonlight Sonata, J5X-154. Beginning of a Story, The, 193- 196. Being a Boy (Warner), quota- tions from, 15, 92. Bleak House (Dickens), quota- tion from, 233. Body of a Letter, 271-275. Brown, Dr. John, quoted, 223. Browning, Robert, quoted, 144, 196-202. Bryant, William Cullen, quoted, 124, 125. Bryce, James, quoted, 24, 25, 249. Burns, Robert, quoted, 59. Burroughs, John, quoted, 40. Camping Out (Warner), quota- tion from, 128. Capital Letters, Rules for Use of, 4, 6, 21, 318. Carpenter, Frank, quoted, 41. Cathedral of Strasburg (Hugo), Description of, 233. Characters in a Story, 193. Chesterfield, Lord, quoted, 61, 62. Child's History of England, A (Dickens), quotations from, 6, 130, 131. Christmas Carol, A (Dickens), quotations from, 87, 127, 128. Colon, Rule for its Use, 10. Comma, Rules for its Use, 10, 120-122, 129, 138, 317, 318. Commercial Geography (Adams), quotation from, 256. Complimentary Close of a Letter, 275-277. Comparisons, Use of, 97-113. Composition Writing, 145-177. 320 INDEX Condensation, Use of, 149, 150 ; Method of, 150. Consistency in a Story, 191, 192. Contrasts, Use of, in Sentences, 93-96. Conversation, Paragraphs in re- ported, 13. Crowest, quoted, 179, 180. Curiosity, Picture of, 227. Curtis, George William, quoted, 140, 141. Daisy, To the (Wordsworth), 110, 111. Daudet, Alphonse, quoted, 49- 51. Death of the Dauphin, The (Dau- det), 49-51. Definition, A, 239 ; a Method of Exposition, 247. Description, 205-238 ; definition of, 179 ; observation necessary, 205, 222, 223 ; what to intro- duce into, 206 ; point of view, 207-212 ; change in point of view, 211 ; compared with pho- tography, 210 ; feeling in, 212- 222 ; number of details in, 226- 232 ; arrangement of parts in, 232-237. Deserted Village, The (Gold- smith), quotations from, 34, 35, 54-58. Dickens, Charles, quoted, 6, 87, 127, 128, 130, 131, 224, 233. Digression in a Story, 186. Direct Quotations, 1-14 ; defini- tion of, 2 ; rules for the punc- tuation of, 2, 7, 10. Double Negatives, 37-38. Dream Days (Grahame), quota- tion from, 189, 190. Earth and its Story, The (Heilprin), quotation from, 259. Emmy Lou (Martin), quotation from, 195. Emphasis by change in sentence order, 137, 138. Epistle to Davie (Burns), 59. Examples, Use of, in Exposition, 253-257. Exclamation Mark, Rule for, 10. Exposition, 239-263; definition of, 179 ; subjects for, 239 ; out- lines in, 240, 241 ; compared to a map, 241 ; details in expo- sition, 241-243 ; by definition, 247-250 ; by repetition, 247- 250 ; by obverse repetition, 250-252 ; by examples, 253- 257 ; by analogy, 257-260 ; general observations upon, 260- 263. Fairy Stories, 192. Feeling in description, 212-222 ; how obtained, 212-216. Fields, James T., quoted, 44. Figures of Speech, 102-113. Fisherman and the Genie, The, 27-30. Fiske, John, quoted, 24. Forms of Composition, 178, 179 ; narration, 178-204 ; descrip- tion, 205-238 ; exposition, 239- 263. Gettysburg Speech (Lincoln), 263. Gisze, George, description of, 229, 230. Golden Age, The (Grahame), quotation from, 1. Goldsmith, Oliver, quoted, 34, 35, 54-58. Grahame, Kenneth, quoted, 1, 189, 190. Great Stone Face, Picture of, 77. Great Stone Face, The (Haw- thorne), questions upon, 76, 80- 83, 85, 86, 88-90, 95, 101 ; quo- tation from, 105 ; complete, 292-317. INDEX 321 Hawthorne, Nathaniel, quot- ed, 105, 123, 292-317. Hazlitt, William, quoted, 131, 132. Heading of a letter, 264-266. Heilprin, Angelo, quoted, 259. Heritage, The (Lowell), 71-73. Hervd Kiel (Browning), 196-202. Hodja's Donkey, The, 14. Holland, J. G., quoted, 3, 4. House of the Seven Gables, The (Hawthorne), quotation from, 123. Hubbard, Elbert, quoted, 48. Hugo, Victor, quoted, 233. Hunt, Leigh, quoted, 104, 105. Importance of the Union, The (Webster), 237. Indirect quotations, 14-16 ; de- finition of, 16 ; punctuation of, 16. Interest necessary to good com- position, 145, 146 ; gained by writing to some person, 147; at the beginning of a story, 193. Invitation, Notes of, 288, 289. Irving, Washington, quoted, 115, 118, 119. Jackson, Helen, quoted, 170- 176. Jefferies, Richard, quoted, 139, 141, 143. Jonson, Ben, quoted, 93. Knowledge of the Subject Necessary, 145, 146. LaFarge, John, quoted, 234. Lay of the Last Minstrel, The (Scott), quotation from, 291. Length of an Essay, 148, 149. Length of a Paragraph, 46-52, 59-63. L*Estrange, Sir Roger, quoted, 65. Letter Writing, 264-290 ; head- ing of, 264-266 ; address of, 266-268 ; titles in address, 267; salutation of, 269, 270 ; punc- tuation of salutation, 270; body of a letter, 271-275 ; business letters, 273 ; friendly letters, 272 ; paragraphs in letters, 274; society notes, 274, 275 ; com- plimentary close of letters, 275-277 ; signature, the, 277 ; notes of invitation, 274, 288, 289 ; notes of acceptance, 274, 289 ; notes of regret, 274, 289. "Like "and*' As," 98, 99. Lincoln, Abraham, quoted, 263. Lion of Lucerne, Picture of, 69. Literature : Poems ; Extracts and Complete Selections. Abou Ben Adhem (Hunt), 104, 105; Daisy, To the (Wordsworth), 110, 111 ; Deserted Village, The (Goldsmith), 34, 35, 54- 58; Epistle to Davie, The (Burns), 59 ; Heritage, The (Lowell), 71-73 ; Hervd Riel (Browning), 196-202 ; Lay of the Last Minstrel, The (Scott), 291 ; Pippa Passes (Browning), 144 ; True Ballad of the King's Singer, The (Jackson), 173- 176 ; Underwoods (Jonson), 93 ; Vision of Sir Launf al. The (Lowell), 219, 220; Yellow Vio- let, The (Bryant), 124, 125. Literature : Prose ; Extracts and Complete Selections. American Commonwealth, The (Bryce), 24, 25, 249; Arthur Bonni- castle (Holland), 3, 4 ; Asia (Carpenter), 41 ; Bee and the Flower, The (Tennyson), 8 ; Beethoven (Crowest), 180, 181 ; Being a Boy (Warner), 15, 92 ; Bleak House (Dickens), 233 ; Camping Out (Warner), 128 ; Cathedral of Strasburg (Hugo), 233 ; Child's History of Eng- land, A (Dickens), 6, 131 ; Christmas Carol, A (Dickens), 87, 127, 128 ; Commercial Geo- 322 INDEX graphy (Adams), 256 ; Death of the Dauphin, The (Daudet), 49-51 ; Dream Days (Gra- hame), 189, 190 ; Earth and its Story, The (Heilprin), 259 ; Emmy Lou (Martin), 195 ; Fisherman and the Genie, The, 27-30 ; Gettysburg Speech (Lincoln), 263 ; Golden Age, The (Grahame), 1 ; Great Stone Face, The (Hawthorne), 105, 292 ; Hodja's Donkey, The, 14 ; House of the Seven Gables, The (Hawthorne), 123 ; Impor- tance of the Union, The (Web- ster), 237 ; Little Rivers (Van Dyke), 22, 23 ; Lodging for the Night, A (Stevenson), 83 ; Malibran and the Young Musi- cian, 159-162 ; Man and the Goose, The, 14 ; My Summer in a Garden (Warner), 248, 255, 258, 259 ; Old Virginia and Her Neighbours (Fiske), 24 ; On the Conduct of Life (Haz- litt), 24 ; Origin of Rivers, The (Tyndall), 244-246 ; Pleasures of Life, The (Lubbock), 41, 42 ; Prince and the Pauper, The (Twain), 235, 236 ; Prue and I (Curtis), 140, 141 ; Roundabout Papers (Thackeray), 231 ; Rules of Conduct (Washington), 129, 130 ; Seneca's Morals (L *Es- trange),65 ; Sketch Book, The (Irving), 115, 118, 119 ; Titian (Hubbard), 48 ; Tod (Riley), 236 ; Uncommercial Traveller (Dickens), 224 ; Underbrush (Fields), 44 ; Wild Animals I have Known (Thompson), 48 ; Wild Animals near Home (Sharp), 218, 225 ; Wild Ap- ples (Thoreau), 41 ; Wild Flow- ers (Jefferies), 139, 141-143 ; Will o' the Mill (Stevenson), 85 ; Winning of the West (Roosevelt), 23, 24 ; Winter Sunshine (Burroughs), 40. Little Rivers (Van Dyke), quota- tions from, 22, 23. Lodging for the Night, A (Ste- venson), quotation from, 83. Lowell, J. R., quoted, 71-73, 219, 220, 222, 281-283. Lubbock, Sir John, quoted, 41, 42. Main Incident, The, in narra- tion, 184-190 ; position of, 184 ; directs the story, 186 ; gives unity to the story, 186, 187. Malibran and the Young Musi- cian, 159-162. Man and the Goose, The, 14. Martin, George Madden, quoted, 195. Metaphor, 102-113 ; can be changed to simile, 103. Moral of a Story, 185. Morning Prayers at Sebastian Bach's, Picture of, 165. Motley, John Lothrop, quoted, 231. Mozart, Wolfgang, Sketch of, 168-170. Mozart Singing his Requiem, Pic- ture of, 171. My Summer in a Garden (War- ner), quotations from, 248,255, 258, 259. Narration, 178-204 ; definition of, 178 ; arrangement in, 182- 184 ; main incident of, 184- 190 ; consistency in, 191, 192 ; how to begin, 193-195. Number of details in description, 226-232. Observation necessary in de- scription, 205, 206, 222, 223. Obverse Repetition, its Use in Exposition, 250-253. Old Virginia and her Neighbours (Fiske), quotation from, 24. On the Conduct of Life (Hazlitt)j quotation from, 131, 132. INDEX 323 Origin of Rivers, The (Tyndall), quotation from, 244-24^5. Outlines, their Use in Exposition, 240-244. Paragraphs, 22-74 ; definition of, 22 ; topic sentence of, 25, 39-42 ; length of, 46-52, 59-63 ; unity of, 60 ; in reported con- versation, 13 ; in letters, 274. Partial quotations, 17-19 ; punc- tuation of, 18. Personification, 102-113. Pippa Passes (Browning), quota- tion from, 144. Place of a Story, 193. Pleasures of Life, The (Lubbock), quotation from, 41, 42. Point of View, 207-212 ; change in, 208, 209. Prince and the Pauper, The (Mark Twain), quotation from, 235, 236. Proportion in Treatment, 157- 163. Proverbs incomplete Analogies, 259. Prue and I (Curtis), quotation from, 140, 141. Punctuation, Rules for, 317, 318. Queen Louise of Prussia, Pic- ture of, 55. Question, Rule for, 10. *' Quite," Use of, 95. Quotations, 1-21 ; direct, defini- tion and punctuation of, 2 ; in- direct, definition and punctua- tion of, 16 ; punctuation of, 10 ; broken, rule for capital letters in, 6, 7 ; partial punctuation of, 18 ; within a quotation, 19, 20. Quotation Marks, Rules for the Use of, 2, 10, 21 ; position of, 7; single marks of quotation, 19. Regret, Notes of, 274, 289. Repetition, Use of, in Exposition, 247-249 ; obverse, 250-253. Riley, James Whitcomb, quoted, 236. Roosevelt, Theodore, quoted, 23, 24. Roundabout Papers (Thackeray), quotations from, 231. Rules of Conduct (Washington), quotations from, 129, 130. Salutation of a Letter, 269, 270. Scott, Sir Walter, quoted, 291. Semicolon, Rules for the Use of, 31, 129. Seneca's Morals (L' Estrange), quotation from, 65. Sentences, 75-144 ; unity of, 113- 137 ; what to include in, 113, 114, 125-128 ; what to exclude from, 133-137 ; arrangement of parts in, 137, 138 ; emphasis obtained by change of order in, 137, 138 ; additive relation in, 126 ; alternative relation in, 126 ; adversative relation in, 126. Sharp, Dallas Lore, quoted, 218, 225. Signature of a Letter, 277. Simile, 102-113 ; can be changed to Metaphor, 103. Sketch Book (Irving), quotations from, 115, 118, 119. Society Notes, Forms of, 274, 275, 288, 289. " Splendid," 86. Stevenson, Robert Louis, quoted, 83, 85. Strasburg Cathedral, description of, 233. Synonyms, 75-88 ; definition of, 76 ; care in the choice of, 79, 80. Tennyson, Alfred Lord, quot- ed, 8. Thackeray, William Makepeace, description of, 231; selection from, 231. 324 INDEX Thompson, Ernest Seton, quoted, 48. Thoreau, Henry David, quoted, 41. Time of a Story, 193. Titian (Hubbard), quotation from, 48. Titles, punctuation of, 21 ; use of, in a letter, 267. Tod (Riley), quotation from, 236. Topic sentence of a paragraph, 25, 39-42 ; position of, 39-40 ; no topic sentence, 31. True Ballad of the King's Singer, The (Jackson), 170-176. Twain, Mark, quoted, 235, 236. Tyndall, John, quoted, 244-246. Uncommercial Traveller, The (Dickens), quotation from, 224. Underbrush (Fields), quotation from, 44. Underwoods (Jonson), quotation from, 93. Unity of sentences, 113-137 ; of paragraphs, 60 ; of a story, gained how, 186. Van Dyke, Henry, quoted, 23. Vision of Sir Launfal, The (Low- ell), quotation from, 219, 220. Warner, Charles Dudley, quoted, 15, 92, 128, 248, 255, 258, 259. Washington, George, quoted, 129, 130. Webster, Daniel, quoted, 237, 238. Wild Animals I have Known (Thompson), quotation from, 48. Wild Animals near Home (Sharp), quotations from, 218, 225. Wild Apples (Thoreau), quota- tion from, 41. Wild Flowers (Jefferies), quota- tions from, 139, 141-143. Will o' the Mill (Stevenson), quo- tation from, 85. Winning of the West (Roose- velt), quotation from, 23, 24. Winter Sunshine (Burroughs), quotation from, 40. Wordsworth, William, quoted, 110, 111. Wounded Lioness, The, Picture of, 213. Yellow Violet, The (Bryant), 124,125. Yokohama, description of (La Farge), 234. Blectrotyped and printed by H. O. Houghton &» Co Cambridge y Mass., U.S.A. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY BERKELEY Return to desk from which borrowed. This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. MAR 2 6 1953 OCT 2 7 1955 Eaw?c(o)fi3ug(c|^ '^liiii? LD 21-100m-7,'52(A2528sl6)476 Tb J6V/^ ^lL^f»?Pl*!^? «>?SWT?T*it5t^^n«|