|^s5) MAXWELL'S ENGLISH SERIES 
 
 WRITING 
 IN ENGLISH 
 
 MAXWELL 
 
 ^ 
 
 SMITH 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 CINCINNATI - CHICAGO 
 AMERICAN ROOK COMPANY 
 
MAXWELL'S ENGLISH SERIES 
 
 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 A MODERN SCHOOL COMPOSITION 
 
 BY 
 
 WILLIAM H. MAXWELL, M.A., PH.D. 
 
 CITY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, CITY OF NEW YORK 
 AND 
 
 GEOKGE J. SMITH, M.A., Pn.D. 
 
 MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF EXAMINERS, CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 NEW YORK .: CINCINNATI ... CHICAGO 
 
 AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 
 
MAXWELL'S ENGLISH COURSE. 
 
 FIRST BOOK IN ENGLISH. 
 
 For Use in Elementary Grades. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY LESSONS IN ENGLISH 
 GRAMMAR. 
 
 For Use in Grammar Grades. 
 
 ADVANCED LESSONS IN ENGLISH GRAM- 
 MAR. 
 
 For Use in Higher Grammar Classes and 
 in High Schools. 
 
 WRITING IN ENGLISH. 
 
 For Use in Higher Grammar Classes and 
 in High Schools. 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1900, BY 
 W. H. MAXWELL. 
 
 G/y. -sirrrjrf. ! 
 
 . -IN J 
 W. P. 3 
 
PREFACE 
 
 IT would doubtless be presumptuous to imagine that 
 this book, as a guide to the preeminently important school 
 subject of learning to write English, avoids all the faults 
 of its predecessors, or contains more than a portion of 
 their merits. But unless a text-book is thought to possess 
 some definite advantages over the others in its field, it 
 lias no excuse for being. Attention is therefore directed 
 to the following prominent features of this elementary 
 treatise on Writing in English : 
 
 1. The general plan of the development of the subject 
 is noteworthy, as proceeding from the study and produc- 
 tion of entire compositions, in the first chapters, to the 
 study of the next order of composition-units, well-made 
 paragraphs, then to sentence-construction, and, at length, 
 to the smallest units of composition, ivords. Since it 
 would, however, be unwise to complete any one of these 
 great divisions of the subject before attending at all to 
 the others, this general order, while it is kept in view 
 throughout, is modified as shown in the Table of Con- 
 tents; to which, and to its prefatory note, attention is 
 requested. This plan is justified not only by the estab- 
 lished principle of teaching from the whole to the parts, 
 but by the experience of all able instructors in English, 
 that nothing is more certain to kill a pupil's interest in 
 composition than to compel him to begin the subject by 
 laboring over the minutiae of style and diction, as em- 
 bodied in rules of good usage and exemplified in uncon- 
 
 3 
 
4 PREFACE 
 
 nected sentences. There should be composition, natural 
 expression of connected ideas or observations, from the 
 first. The study of the principles of sentence-construc- 
 tion and of choice of words should be made secondary, 
 because the pupil does not perceive the value of such 
 study to him, until, through the willing production of 
 compositions expressing his own conceptions of life and 
 nature, he has learned to feel the need of improving him- 
 self in the use of language. Interested observation and 
 spontaneous thought require for their growth an atmos- 
 phere of freedom. Therefore it is that, in the early 
 study of composition, we should aim, not at a finical re- 
 modeling of lay-figure sentences, but at copious and nat- 
 ural expression ; and should defer a studied manipulation 
 of sentences and of words until the student himself per- 
 ceives the use of it. He must have something to say 
 which he feels is worth saying and worth saying well. 
 In this, as in other concerns, it is the spirit that giveth 
 life, and it is the letter that killeth. 
 
 2. The method of studying models of good composition 
 is prominent in this book. The number of extracts pre- 
 sented from good authors is large, and the character of 
 them is such as to give of itself an interest and a value 
 to the book. These selections are used as models not 
 only of style, but of composition, that is, of the skill- 
 fully ordered presentation of ideas. It is, in fact, as 
 models of putting-together (composition) that they are 
 first employed ; the student's attention is primarily di- 
 rected to the arrangement of their parts. Distinct from 
 this use and yet along with it goes the employment of 
 the selections as models for direct imitation. The effective 
 influence of imitation in the molding of a good style is 
 something that has been profited by, in schools, far too 
 little. In support of it may be urged not only Dr. John- 
 
PREFACE 5 
 
 son's advice, "to give days and nights to the study of 
 Addison," and the recorded indebtedness of writers no 
 less admirable than Irving and Robert Louis Stevenson to 
 their conscious imitation of models, but, in fact, every 
 person's unconscious response, in his own manner of 
 writing, to the style of the authors he has read most and 
 with most attention. The helpfulness of imitation is 
 indeed one of the strongest bonds between the study of 
 literature and the study of composition. 
 
 ' It may be well, before passing to the next heading, to 
 direct attention also to the frequent employment, through- 
 out the book, of the inductive method in the presentation 
 of new points. It is strongly recommended that the 
 teacher, by multiplying illustrations before calling for a 
 principle, proceed in this method to a far greater extent 
 than is possible in a text-book of strictly limited size. 
 
 3. Particular notice is directed to the great number 
 and the practical character of the exercises in this book. 
 They have been planned with great care, and their con- 
 tents looked after no less sedulously than the order of 
 their progression. It may fairly be said that the exer- 
 cises constitute the active and living element in the book, 
 they should become, in the schoolroom, the outward 
 form, concealing and vitalizing the skeleton-structure of 
 the study. 
 
 In conclusion, a few words may be said regarding the 
 use of this book by the teacher. Conditions vary so much 
 in the myriad schools of this country, especially, perhaps, 
 with regard to the study of English, that work adapted in 
 many schools to the upper grammar grades may in others 
 be precisely what is needed in the first year of the high 
 school. It is difficult to present the principles of English 
 composition simply enough to meet the understanding 
 of children of grammar grades ; and in fact the cardinal 
 
6 PREFACE 
 
 objection to nearly every composition text-book designed 
 for high-school use is that it presents the subject in a 
 manner too dry or too difficult for the average high-school 
 pupil. 
 
 Since the sensible teacher always regards a text-book 
 as a mere instrument, a means not an end, he will feel 
 free to omit, in his use of any book, whatever portions 
 seem either too difficult or otherwise ill adapted for his 
 particular class of pupils. He will, further, in order to 
 meet the needs of his pupils or to make the hard-and-fast 
 plan of a book flexible in use, deviate from its order of 
 exercises or even from its order of contents, as may seem 
 to him wise arid good. Thus it would undoubtedly be 
 well to work at some of the chapters in this book two at 
 a time. Work in the sentence-making chapters (Chap- 
 ters VI, VIII, etc.) might very well go on concurrently 
 with work in description, narration, or paragraphing. In 
 fact, the book will probably yield the best results if used, 
 to some extent, in this way. Nevertheless, the arrange- 
 ment of the chapters and the progressive system of the 
 exercises are strongly recommended as a guide, in a gen- 
 eral way, to the natural development of the subject ; and 
 they will, it is hoped, commend themselves, both in theory 
 and in practice, to all who use the book. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 NOTE TO TEACHERS. Attention is asked to the remarks in the Preface, 
 regarding the plan of this book. It is to be noted that the subject of compo- 
 sition is treated here under the following divisions: 
 
 (a) Compositions, Chapters I, II, V, VII, XI, XIV. 
 
 (6) Paragraphing, Chapters III, IX. 
 
 (c) Sentence work, Chapters IV, VI, VIII, X, XII, XIII. 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 I. KINDS OF COMPOSITION ....... 9 
 
 General Introduction (Exercises 1-4). 
 Narration, Description, etc., explained (Exercises 5-8 
 and Lists of Subjects). 
 
 II. STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 17 
 
 The Four Requisites in Good Composition (Exercises 
 
 9-12). 
 Planning and Outlining of Descriptions (Exercises 13-16). 
 
 PARAGRAPHING 37 
 
 Topics, Indention, Topic Sentences (Exercises 17-20). 
 Paragraph Making in Description (Exercises 21-25). 
 
 IV. UNITY IN SENTENCES (Exercises 26-30) . . . .53 
 
 V. MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION ....... 60 
 
 Points of View ; Use of Comparison. 
 Statement of Effects and of Sense Impressions (Exercises 
 31-41). 
 
 VI. SENTENCE FORMS ......... 75 
 
 Kinds of Elements (Exercises 42, 43). 
 Kinds of Sentences and Transformations (Exercises 
 44-50). 
 
 VII. NARRATION 90 
 
 Outlining a Narrative (Exercises 51-56). 
 Construction of Narratives (Exercises 57-65). 
 
 7 
 
8 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 VIII. CLEARNESS IN WRITING . . . . . . .111 
 
 Lack of Unity ; Omissions ; Misuse of Pronouns ; Misuse 
 of " which" ; Misplaced Modifiers (Exercises 66-71). 
 
 IX. CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 121 
 
 Particulars ; Instances ; Comparisons ; Effects ; Reasons 
 (Exercises 72-85). 
 
 X. EMPHASIS IN WRITING ........ 143 
 
 Forms of Sentences (Exercises 86-90). 
 Arrangement of Words (Exercises 91-97). 
 Choice of Words (Exercises 98-105). 
 
 XL LETTER WRITING . 162 
 
 Formal Notes, Informal Notes and Letters, Business 
 Letters (Exercises 106-112). 
 
 XII. FIGURES OF SPEECH (Exercises 113-121) . . . .177 
 
 XIII. CHOICE OF WORDS 187 
 
 Correctness in Diction and Syntax (Exercises 122-128). 
 Choice in Diction : Use of Synonyms and of Suggestive 
 Words (Exercises 129-136). 
 
 XIV. EXPOSITION AND ARGUMENT ....... 206 
 
 Exposition (Exercises 137-139). 
 Argument (Exercises 140-146). 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 I. MARKS FOR USE IN CRITICISM OF COMPOSITIONS . . 217 
 II. ENGLISH WORDS 221 
 
 III. RULES FOR PUNCTUATION, CAPITALIZATION, AND SPELLING 
 
 (Exercises 147-149) 232 
 
 IV. VERSES AND VERSE MAKING (Exercises 150-153) . . 24,4 
 V. NOTES ON AUTHORS REFERRED TO OR QUOTED IN THIS BOOK 259 
 
 INDEX 267 
 
WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 KINDS OF COMPOSITION 
 
 THERE is hardly anything to be learned in school 
 that is more important to us, all our lives, than how 
 to talk and write properly and skillfully. We can 
 see one reason for this, when we think how con- 
 stantly all of us use language ; and another reason 
 occurs to us, when we think why it is that we ever 
 say anything at all. We talk and write to let other 
 people know what we have seen or thought or done, 
 or to tell them what we wish them to do ; and it is 
 highly important to us that we accomplish these 
 purposes. 
 
 But suppose, as it often happens, that those to 
 whom we express ourselves fail to understand exactly 
 what we are trying to tell them, or that they are 
 not interested in what we have said. Then, of course, 
 we should better have said nothing. There is no use 
 in our writing at all, unless what we write has these 
 two characteristics: First, others must be made to 
 understand our meaning, readily and accurately ; 
 second, what we say must be worth taking care to 
 say well ; it must be interesting. 
 
 9 
 
10 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Now, in order that other persons may understand 
 exactly what we mean to say, we must study how to 
 form our sentences in the best possible ways, and how 
 to put together our compositions. A good many of 
 the chapters in this book tell about these matters, 
 which, though they must be studied carefully, should 
 nevertheless be interesting. For it is always inter- 
 esting to learn how to do a thing well, and we should 
 learn to think of our language as a very fine and a 
 very wonderful tool or instrument which we wish to 
 use skillfully. It is certainly worth much trouble to 
 learn that. For think how a carpenter tries to get 
 skill in the use of a chisel, or how the musician prac- 
 tices the playing of his violin. Language is an instru- 
 ment both of use and of pleasure ; we all of us employ 
 it every day of our lives, and we may learn to get 
 much enjoyment both from our own skillful use of it, 
 and in appreciating the skillful use of it by others. 
 Is it not really worth a great deal of study to learn 
 to understand the masterly use of this instrument ? 
 
 Then, as for interesting others in what we say, we 
 would give this rule: The best way for you to be sure 
 of interesting others is to write about what really 
 interests you. Every one sees things, bears about 
 things, does things that interest himself. These are, 
 for each one of us, the very things we talk about or 
 think about ; they are what we should write about. 
 
 Exercise i. Lists of subjects. (a) Make a list of the 
 most interesting things you have ever seen, either near 
 your home (as buildings, places, celebrations, etc.}, or in 
 
KINDS OF COMPOSITION 11 
 
 school, or away from home, (ft) Make a list of the most 
 interesting things you now remember that ever happened 
 to you or to any person you know very well (.as journeys, 
 excursions, outings, accidents, or the like}, (c) Make a 
 list of persons or objects you have heard of or read of and 
 would like to learn more about. 
 
 Exercise 2. Written review. Write a short statement 
 of what has already been said in this chapter why we 
 make compositions, what we have to learn in studying 
 composition, what we should write about, and why the 
 study is important. 
 
 Exercise 3. Punctuation. Look at all the punctuation 
 marks so far used in this chapter, make a list of the 
 different marks, and see if there are any places where a 
 mark is used for no reason that you can see. If so, -find 
 out the reason from Appendix III, or from some person. 
 
 Exercise 4. Spelling. Make a list of the words used 
 so far in this chapter that you have sometimes misspelled, 
 or have known some one else to misspell. 
 
 Note concerning the exercises. Each of the pupils should 
 have a blank book and keep in it all the exercises which the 
 teacher asks the class or the individual to write. The pages of 
 the book should be numbered. In most cases the pupil should 
 first write his answer or exercise on paper and correct it all 
 he can before he copies it into the book. All the corrections 
 made afterward should be made in red ink, so that the original 
 writing can be easily seen by the pupil, the teacher, or any one 
 else. 
 
 Do not be afraid that because of these corrections the book 
 will not look neat. They show that you are learning something. 
 Besides, if an exercise is much corrected, and if it is an impor- 
 tant one, you can and should recopy it neatly in another part 
 of the book, with all the improvements and corrections made. 
 This should nearly always be done when the exercise is a 
 
12 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 composition that has been much corrected. Whenever you 
 recopy an exercise, write at the end of the original the words, 
 "Rewritten on page ." Reserve a page or two at the begin- 
 ning of the book for a table of contents. 
 
 Compositions may be either written or oral, but 
 when we think about what sorts of ideas we express, 
 we find that either written or oral composition may 
 be of four kinds. We are now going to divide com- 
 positions according to what we say in them. 
 
 The composition may be the story of what hap- 
 pened to somebody, really or in imagination; then 
 it is called narration. Story books, histories, anec- 
 dotes, biographies, are all narratives, because they 
 tell in some regular order what occurred or was done 
 during a certain time. How you spent your last 
 holiday, would be a subject of this sort. In the 
 letters we write we often narrate happenings or 
 events. There is at the end of this chapter a short 
 list of subjects for narration. 
 
 Or what you wish to do may be to tell what some 
 person or object or scene looks like, or what sort of 
 person or thing it is. This kind of composition is 
 called description. It tells the appearance and quali- 
 ties of persons or objects. You can select many sub- 
 jects for this kind of composition in the very. room 
 where you are sitting, and you can find many when- 
 ever you walk down the street or into the fields. 
 Some subjects for description are given on page 15. 
 
 Sometimes we wish to show that a statement is 
 true, or that it is false ; and then we write or talk 
 
KINDS OF COMPOSITION 13 
 
 argument. Of course, when we argue the subject 
 must always be a sentence, for it needs a sentence 
 to state a truth or an untruth. A few subjects for 
 argument are given on page 16. 
 
 Then, again, we may wish to explain a subject 
 that interests us to tell all we know about it. For 
 example, suppose we take " Pencils." In writing 
 upon a subject like this we should hardly describe 
 pencils there are too many kinds, and most of 
 them would not be very interesting, for everybody 
 knows what pencils look Hke ; we should not have 
 any happening to tell about, nor any statement to 
 argue about ; but if we knew, or could find out, 
 how pencils are made, and where the lead comes 
 from, and what different kinds of pencils there are, 
 and so on, we might give some interesting informa- 
 tion. Compositions of this sort, which explain and 
 tell all about a subject, are called expositions. Most 
 school books are expositions. A list of subjects for 
 exposition is given on page 16. 
 
 Of course these four kinds of composition are not 
 always kept separate. If you write about your last 
 railway journey, you will probably tell what hap- 
 pened and also describe what you saw, and in your 
 writing you have narration and description mingled. 
 Nearly every story combines these two kinds of com- 
 position. In exposition and in argument, too, you 
 will be very likely to have some description here and 
 there, and perhaps some narration. But it is better 
 to keep the four kinds of composition separate in your 
 
14 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 mind, so that at any rate you will know what you 
 are doing. Besides, if we are to learn how to de- 
 scribe, and how to narrate, and so on, it will be much 
 easier if, at first, we take up these kinds of writing 
 one by one. So we shall begin Chapter II with 
 description. 
 
 Exercise 5. Kinds of subjects. For what kinds of 
 composition are the following subjects suitable? 
 
 1. Flax. 2. A rainstorm. 3. It is more agreeable to 
 travel by steamboat than by railroad. 4- How paper is 
 made. 5. Clouds. 6. The. dandelion. 7. The story of 
 the invention of the telegraph. 8. A morning walk. 
 9. Our school building. 10. The life of a butterfly. 
 
 Exercise 6. Kinds of subjects. (a) Taking the sub- 
 jects you mentioned in Exercise 1, tell for what kinds of 
 composition they are suitable. (&) What kind of com- 
 position iv as called for in Exercise 2 ? 
 
 Exercise 7. Lists.of subjects. (a) Write three amus- 
 ing or odd subjects for description, (b) Write three sub- 
 jects for accurate, careful description, (c] Write three 
 subjects you have heard argued, (d) Write three inter- 
 esting subjects for exposition, suggested by objects seen at 
 home or at school or in street windows, (e) Write three 
 subjects for narration. 
 
 Exercise 8. Selections for copying or brief paraphras- 
 ing. (d) Find at home in a paper or magazine or book 
 a good, brief description of a person or an object ; bring it 
 or a copy of it to school, (b} Find and copy an amusing or 
 an interesting brief narrative, as an anecdote, (c) Tell 
 the anecdote to the class at school, (d) Find and copy a 
 brief piece of exposition or explanation, (e) Write a brief 
 account of some argument you have heard or read, stating 
 some of the reasons given as proofs. 
 
KINDS OF COMPOSITION 15 
 
 BRIEF LISTS OF SUBJECTS 
 
 Note. It is not intended that compositions should be 
 written on any of these subjects at present. They are given 
 here merely for further illustration of the different kinds of 
 compositions. 
 
 I. Description is the setting forth of the appear- 
 ances and qualities of .persons or objects. 
 
 I. My dog. 2. The way our grandfathers dressed. 3. A 
 house fly under a magnifying glass. 4. An odd visitor. 
 5. An old-time mansion. 6. A strange old lady. 7. A portrait. 
 8. A scene in the country (a picture). 9. The Angelus (a 
 picture). 10. Our schoolhouse (outside view). 11. My room 
 at home. 12. A secondhand bookstore. 13. A striking show 
 window. 14. The first railway train. 15. The fire last Thurs- 
 day night. 16. An old piece of furniture. 17. A certain tree. 
 18. View in the park. 19. What I heard and saw in the 
 woods. 20. A successful newsboy. 
 
 II. Narration is the setting forth in some intended 
 order of real or imaginary connected happenings. 
 
 1. An incident observed in a street car. 2. Account of a 
 ball game. 3. The events of a Saturday excursion. 4. My 
 last railway journey. 5. The story of a poor boy. 6. How 
 Ethel helped support her mother. 7. An amusing incident. 
 8. A trip by water. 9. A ghost story. 10. A theft, and how 
 the thief was caught. 11. How I spent my Christmas vacation. 
 12. An unpleasant evening. 13. A ramble down Broadway. 
 14. The adventures of a lucky boy. 15. The life of William 
 Shakspere. 16. The story of coal. 17. The history of the 
 adoption of our national flag. 18. The future histories of 
 our classmates. 19. A hunting adventure. 20. A day on the 
 farm. 
 
16 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 III. Exposition, or explanatory composition, is the 
 setting forth of the nature and relations of a substance, 
 a class of objects, or an idea. 
 
 1. How food is digested. 2. Earthworms. 3. How base- 
 ball is played. 4. Birds of prey. 5. Why spring conies. 
 
 6. The value of geography. 7. What is courage? 8. How a 
 boat is sailed. 9. The making of a book. 10. An education 
 for business life. 11. Timepieces. 12. Precious stones. 
 13. How paper is made. 14. How a knight was educated. 
 15. The circulation of the blood. 
 
 IY. Argument is the setting forth of proofs or dis- 
 proofs of a proposition, and the overthrowing of proofs 
 offered by ones opponents. 
 
 1. Arithmetic is less useful than geography. 2. Should the 
 law forbid the sale of intoxicating drinks? 3. The United 
 States should not retain the Philippines. 4. Athletics in school 
 should be encouraged. 5. Capital punishment should not be 
 used. . 6. Does higher education fit one for business life ? 
 
 7. Should education be compulsory? 8. Is war ever right? 
 9. Lowell was a greater poet than Longfellow. 10. It is some- 
 times wise for workmen to strike. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 STUDY OF DESCKIPT1ON 
 
 WHAT is the object in writing descriptions ? When 
 we understand what people write descriptions for, we 
 may learn in what respects we need skill, or what 
 things we must see to when we write. Our aim in 
 describing anything is to let others know how it 
 impresses us what it is, as we see it and to 
 cause others to see it in imagination, and to feel 
 about it as we do. Now we cannot possibly tell all 
 there is to be observed in even a small object. For 
 instance, we could not clearly tell in words about all 
 the spots and markings, the colors, and the exact 
 shape in minutest detail, of a single apple. When 
 we describe anything, therefore, we must select only 
 those points that seem to us worth mentioning, the 
 things that strike us and that we wish our readers to 
 see and feel. We must also keep to the subject, so as 
 to avoid confusing our readers ; but, on the other 
 hand, we must not leave out anything that ought 
 to be mentioned. Finally, we must arrange the points 
 of our description skillfully, so as to make what we 
 say interesting, and so as to produce on our readers a 
 clear impression. 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 2 17 
 
18 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 In good descriptions, therefore (and the same is 
 true of all good compositions and, indeed, of all good 
 works of art), will be found these four qualities : 
 1, skillful selection; 2, unity; 3, completeness; 4, plan. 
 
 Selection implies that the writer has a purpose in 
 view, and that he chooses, from all that he might 
 mention, those particular points that are interesting 
 and important for his purpose. This purpose may 
 be merely to give full and accurate information (as 
 in the description of the starfish on page 30) ; or it 
 may be to entertain ; or, more usually, it is to produce 
 an emotional effect upon the reader, that is, to cause 
 the reader to feel as the writer wishes him to feel. 
 
 Unity requires that the writer shall not wander 
 from his subject ; that is, that he shall not bring in 
 anything which is foreign to the subject. If you 
 were describing a house, and should break off in the 
 midst of your description, to tell of some events that 
 happened in the house, perhaps years before, you 
 would be forgetting the principle of unity. Unity 
 means oneness ; each composition must be a well- 
 made whole. 
 
 Completeness requires that nothing necessary or 
 important be omitted. If you were describing a 
 man's face, and should say nothing of his eyes or 
 of his expression, your description would lack com- 
 pleteness. 
 
 The requirement of plan simply means that a writer 
 must say what he has to say, in some well-thought- 
 out order or arrangement of the parts. Plan is fully 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 19 
 
 as important as selection, unity, or completeness, and 
 we shall have to study very carefully how to plan 
 well all that we write. 
 
 Now let us read and consider the following descrip- 
 tion of a scene in a court room. In London, the 
 judge (called here the "Lord Chancellor") and the 
 lawyers (called " gentlemen of the bar ") wear gray 
 wigs and silken gowns. This description was written 
 by Charles Dickens : 
 
 The High Court of Chancery. (From Bleak House, by Charles 
 Dickens, Ch. XXIV.) 
 
 When we came to the Court, there was the Lord Chancellor 
 sitting in great state and gravity, on the bench, with the 
 mace and seals on a red table below him, and an immense 
 flat nosegay, like a little garden, which scented the whole 
 
 2 Court. Below the table, again, was a long row of solici- 
 tors, with bundles of papers on the matting at their feet ; 
 and then there were the gentlemen of the bar in wigs and 
 gowns some awake and some asleep, and one talking and 
 
 3 no one paying much attention to what he said. The Lord 
 Chancellor leaned back in his very easy chair, with his 
 elbow on the cushioned arm, and his forehead resting on his 
 hand ; some of those who were present dozed ; some read 
 the newspapers ; some walked about, or whispered in groups : 
 all seemed perfectly at their ease, by no means in a hurry, 
 very unconcerned, and extremely comfortable. 
 
 Now mark, in the first place, that Dickens by no 
 means tells all that he might have told about this 
 court scene. There were, no doubt, many details to 
 be seen that he does not mention. You could not, 
 from this description, form an entirely clear mental 
 
20 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 picture of the place, or make a plan or map of the 
 court room. He selects the points that suit his pur- 
 pose. This purpose is to make you feel what an indif- 
 ferent, unfeeling, machinelike thing the court was. 
 The care and worry and sorrow of the persons whose 
 affairs were disposed of there, seemed to be nothing 
 to those drowsy and extremely comfortable officials. 
 
 In the second place, the description is a unit ; not 
 one thing is mentioned that has not to do with the 
 scene described. 
 
 In the third place, this description, though brief, 
 is complete enough to include all that helps out the 
 purpose in view. There we see the persons present, 
 how they are placed in the room, and what they are 
 all doing; and we see the most striking objects in 
 the room, the easy chair of the Chancellor, the table, 
 the mace 1 and the seals, the newspapers, the lawyers' 
 papers, and the bouquet. 
 
 Finally, the plan of the description is very clear 
 and excellent. Our attention is first directed to 
 the figure a visitor would naturally observe, in the 
 first glance, that of the presiding judge, the Lord 
 Chancellor. The first sentence describes briefly the 
 general appearance of the Chancellor, and tells of 
 the objects near him. The other persons present are 
 then mentioned, with their surroundings (sentence 2). 
 Then the third sentence tells what the various per- 
 sons present, from the Lord Chancellor down, are 
 doing. The plan might be stated thus : - 
 
 1 Look up "mace " in the dictionary. 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 21 
 
 1. Situation of the persons and objects observed. 
 
 2. Occupations of the persons. 
 
 Exercise 9. Study of the qualities of descriptions. - 
 
 (a) In a similar ivay study the following descriptions 
 with regard to their selected details, their unity, their 
 completeness, and their plan. (1} As~k yourself what the 
 general impression is that the writer wishes to produce, 
 and note the points selected for the purpose; (2} note 
 whether the writer keeps to the business in hand and 
 avoids speaking of things that have no sufficient con- 
 nection with the subject; (3} note whether each descrip- 
 tion mentions everything we should naturally wish to 
 know about the subject; and (4) note whether there is a 
 well-defined plan. (6) Then write down the subjects of 
 the parts of each description, in the order in which the 
 parts appear. 
 
 The Kitchen of an English Inn. (From The Sketch Book, by 
 Washington Irving ; paper on The Stage Coach.) 
 
 As we drove into the great gateway of the inn, I saw on 
 one side the light of a rousing kitchen fire beaming through a 
 window. I entered and admired, for the hundredth time, that 
 picture of convenience, neatness, and broad honest enjoyment, 
 the kitchen of an English inn. It was of spacious dimensions, 
 hung round with copper and tin vessels highly polished, and 
 decorated here and there with a Christmas green. Hams, 
 tongues, and flitches of bacon were suspended from the ceil- 
 ing; a smokejack made its ceaseless clanking beside the fire- 
 place, and a clock ticked in one corner. A well-scoured deal 
 table extended along one side of the kitchen, with a cold round 
 of beef and other hearty viands upon it, over which two foam- 
 ing tankards of ale seemed mounting guard. Travelers of 
 inferior order were preparing to attack this stout repast, while 
 others sat smoking and gossiping over their ale on two high- 
 
22 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 backed oaken settles beside the fire. Trim housemaids were 
 hurrying backward and forward under the directions of a fresh, 
 bustling landlady; but still seizing an occasional moment to 
 exchange a flippant word and have a rallying laugh with the 
 group round the fire. 
 
 Holders House after the Rains. (From Without Benefit of 
 Clergy, by Rudyard Kipling.) 
 
 He found that the rains had torn down the mud pillars of 
 the gateway, and the heavy wooden gate that had guarded his 
 life hung drunkenly from one hinge. There was grass three 
 inches high in the courtyard ; Pir Khan's lodge was empty, 
 and the sodden thatch sagged between the beams. A gray 
 squirrel was in possession of the veranda, as if the house 
 had been untenanted for thirty years instead of three days. 
 Ameera's mother had removed everything except some mil- 
 dewed matting. The tick-tick of the little scorpions as they 
 hurried across the floor was the only sound in the house. 
 Ameera's room and that other one where Tota had lived were 
 heavy with mildew ; and the narrow staircase leading to the 
 roof was streaked and stained with rain-borne mud. Holden 
 saw all these things and came out again. 
 
 Jo. (From Little Women, by Miss L. M. Alcott, Ch. I. 'Little, 
 Brown, and Company, by permission.) 
 
 Fifteen-year old Jo was very tall, thin, and brown, and re- 
 minded one of a colt ; for she never seemed to know what to 
 do with her long limbs, which were very much in her way. 
 She had a decided mouth, a comical nose, and sharp, gray eyes, 
 which appeared to see everything, and were by turns fierce, 
 funny, or thoughtful. Her long, thick hair was her one beauty; 
 but it was usually bundled into a net to be out of her way. 
 Bound shoulders had Jo, big hands and feet, a fly-away look 
 to her clothes, and the uncomfortable appearance of a girl who 
 was rapidly shooting up into a woman, and didn't like it. 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 23 
 
 Exercise 10. Reproductions. (a) Read over again, 
 carefully, twice, Irving' s description of the big kitchen 
 of the inn; then take your list (see Exercise 9, b} of 
 points mentioned in the several sentences, and write out 
 from memory what Irving says. 1 In doing this, try to 
 Iceep very close to his ivay of writing, imitate his choice 
 of words and his formation of sentences. See how 
 nearly like Irving you can write. (#) Give the same 
 description orally. 
 
 Exercise n. Imitation of model. Now select some 
 similar subject for description, a scene in a restaurant, 
 or a hotel, or a sitting room, with a number of people 
 in it, variously occupied. Then, with Irving's descrip- 
 tion open before you, write your description, as nearly 
 as possible in the manner of Irving. 
 
 1 Although the rules for the use of capitals and of punctuation marks 
 are given in the appendix, a few of the most important are printed here, 
 to serve as a reminder : 
 
 Capitals should be used to mark 
 
 The first word of a sentence, or of a line of poetry. 
 
 The first word of a somewhat long quotation ; as, John replied, " The 
 
 man then, after," etc. 
 Proper names, titles, names of the Deity. 
 The pronoun I, and the interjections O, Oh. 
 
 Periods should be used to mark 
 
 The close of all sentences, except direct questions (?) or exclamatory 
 
 sentences (!). 
 Abbreviations; as, T. A. Kerley, M.D.; Mon., Aug. 7, etc. 
 
 Commas mark most of the natural pauses in sentences, and are used par- 
 ticularly 
 
 After nouns of address ; as, John, come here. 
 After words in a list or series, where " and " or " or " is omitted. 
 Before and after explanatory or thrown-in words, phrases, or clauses. 
 
 The pupil should avoid using slang words. If there is any doubt as to a 
 word's being good English, look it up in the dictionary. 
 
24 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 12. Imitation of model. Take for a subject 
 some old ruined or deserted house, or a shanty ; study 
 carefully Mr. Kipling's description of H olden' s house; 
 note the plan; then write an imitation of his descrip- 
 tion, but using your own subject. 
 
 Now a further study of the descriptions already 
 given will help us in learning hoiv to plan our own 
 compositions. 
 
 We observe first that in beginning the description 
 each of the writers quoted tells us what first catches 
 the attention, gives us, as it were, the effect of a 
 single glance. Then he goes on to mention the 
 important details in some regular order. To have 
 a regular order, he must group the details under 
 well-marked divisions. Now, to see to these matters 
 properly, we must think out our plan beforehand. 
 To have a good plan in a description or in any 
 other kind of composition is very important ; there 
 can be no excellent description without it. Most 
 persons cannot make good plans for their composi- 
 tions while they are writing ; the plan should always 
 be made beforehand. No builder would set to work 
 on a house till the plan was decided upon ; so no 
 good writing can be done without a similar atten- 
 tion to plan. Writing down the scheme or plan of 
 a composition is called outlining. To make out- 
 lines before writing not only leads us to form a good 
 plan, but it helps us to secure both completeness 
 and unity in the points selected for our composition. 
 
 The study of the descriptions already given may 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 25 
 
 teach us the following points about the outlining of 
 descriptions : 
 
 1. We may or may not have an introduction to our 
 description. In the selections given from Dickens 
 and from Mr. Kipling the description begins at once. 
 In the selection from Irving the first sentence may 
 be called introductory; it is the second that takes 
 us with the writer into the inn kitchen. 
 
 2. The description begins with a glance; what would 
 be naturally noticed first of all is mentioned first and 
 briefly, with a statement of the impression it makes. 
 
 Thus the glance view strikes, as it were, the key- 
 note of the whole description. 
 
 3. In the detailed description which follows, and 
 which makes up most of the body of the description, 
 the writer proceeds according to some definite plan 
 by means of dividing the subject into parts or fea- 
 tures, arranging these in what seems the best order, 
 and then giving such details or particulars under 
 each division as aid in producing the effect desired. 
 
 This is illustrated in the following selection : 
 
 Description of Bleak House. (From Bleak House, by Charles 
 Dickens, Ch. VI.) 
 
 1 It was one of those delightfully irregular houses where 
 you go up and down steps out of one room into another, and 
 where you coine upon more rooms when you think you have 
 seen all there are, and where there is a bountiful provision 
 of little halls and passages, and where you find still older 
 cottage rooms in unexpected places, with lattice windows 
 
 2 and green growth pressing through them. Mine, which 
 we entered first, was of this kind, with an up-and-down roof, 
 
26 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 that had more corners in it than I ever counted afterward, 
 and a chimney (there was a wood fire on the hearth), paved 
 all around with pure white tiles, in every one of which a 
 
 3 bright miniature of the fire was blazing. Out of this room 
 you went down two steps, into a charming little sitting room, 
 
 4 looking down upon a flower garden. Out of this you went 
 up three steps into Ada's bedroom, which had a fine broad 
 
 5 window, commanding a beautiful view. Out of this room, 
 you passed into a little gallery with which the other best 
 rooms (only two) communicated, and so, by a little stair- 
 
 6 case of shallow steps, down into the hall. But if, instead 
 of going out at Ada's door, you came back into my room, 
 and went out at the door by which you had entered it, 
 and turned up a few crooked steps that turned off in 
 an unexpected manner from the stairs, you lost yourself 
 in passages, with mangles in them, and three-cornered 
 tables, and a Native-Hindoo chair, which was also a sofa, 
 a box, and a bedstead, and looked in every form something 
 between a bamboo skeleton and a great bird cage, and had 
 been brought from India nobody knew by whom or when. 
 
 7 From there you came on Richard's room, which was part 
 library, part sitting room, part bedroom, and seemed indeed 
 
 8 a comfortable compound of many rooms. Out of that you 
 went straight, with a little interval of passage, to the plain 
 room where Mr. Jarndyce slept, all the year round, with 
 his window open, his bedstead without any furniture stand- 
 ing in the middle of the floor for more air, and his cold bath 
 
 9 gaping for him in a smaller room adjoining. Out of that, 
 you came into another passage where there were back stairs, 
 and where you could hear the horses being rubbed down, 
 outside the stable, and being told to Hold up, and Get over, 
 as they slipped about very much on the uneven stones. 
 
 10 Or you might, if you came out at another door (every room 
 had at least two doors), go straight down to the hall again 
 by half a dozen steps and a low archway, wondering how 
 you ever got back, or had ever got out of it. 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 27 
 
 The plan of this description may be expressed in 
 the following outline^: 
 
 I. Glance Delightful irregularity of Bleak House, 
 illustrated in its arrangement of rooms and 
 passages 
 
 II. Detailed description 
 
 a. The first circuit to the hall 
 
 1. My room 
 
 a. Its roof 
 
 b. The fireplace 
 
 2. The sitting room, how you reached it, 
 
 and what you saw from its window 
 
 3. Ada's bedroom 
 
 4. The gallery and stairway to the hall 
 
 b. The second circuit 
 
 1. The passages from the other side of my 
 
 room 
 
 a. Mangles and tables 
 
 b. The Indian chair 
 
 2. Richard's room 
 
 3. Mr. Jarndyce's bedroom 
 
 a. Open window 
 
 b. Bedstead 
 
 c. Cold bath 
 
 4. Passage near the stable 
 
 a. Stairs 
 
 b. Stable sounds heard 
 
 5. Stairway to the hall 
 
28 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Let us now take a description of a person, and 
 outline it : 
 
 Description of Mr. Hyde. (From Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by 
 Robert Louis Stevenson, p. 58.) 
 
 I had never set eyes on him before," so much was certain. 
 He was small, as I have said ; I was struck besides with the 
 shocking expression of his face, with his remarkable combina- 
 tion of great muscular activity and great apparent debility of 
 constitution. 
 
 This person (who had, from the first moment of 'his entrance, 
 struck in me what I can only describe as a disgustful curiosity) 
 was dressed in a fashion that would have made an ordinary 
 person laughable ; his clothes, that is to say, although they 
 were of rich and sober fabric, were enormously too large for 
 him in every measurement, the trousers hanging on his legs 
 and rolled up to keep them from the ground, the waist of the 
 coat below his haunches, and the collar sprawling wide upon his 
 shoulders. Strange to relate, this ludicrous accouterment was 
 far from moving me to laughter. Rather, as there was some- 
 thing abnormal and misbegotten in the very essence of the 
 creature that now faced me something seizing, surprising, 
 and revolting this fresh disparity seemed but to fit in with 
 and to reinforce it; so that to my interest in the man's 
 nature and character there was added a curiosity as to his 
 origin, his life, his fortune, and status in the world. 
 
 I. Glance 
 
 a. The man's strangeness to me 
 
 b. Stature 
 
 c. Expression of face 
 
 cL Bodily characteristics 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 29 
 
 II. Detailed description 
 
 a. The man's clothes 
 
 1. Quality of material 
 
 2. Size 
 
 trousers 
 coat 
 
 1}. Impression made by the man 
 
 1. Sense of surprise and revolt 
 
 2. Sense of curiosity 
 
 Exercise 13. Outlining of description. In a similar 
 manner make written outlines of the following descrip- 
 tions: 
 
 Description of David Gamut (From The Last of the Mo- 
 hicans, by James Fenimore Cooper, Cli. I.) 
 
 The person of this individual was to the last degree un- 
 gainly, without being in any particular manner deformed. 
 He had all the bones and joints of other men, without any of 
 their proportions. . . . His head was large; his shoulders 
 narrow; his arms long and dangling, while his hands were 
 small, if not delicate. His legs and thighs were thin, nearly to 
 emaciation, but of extraordinary length; and his knees would 
 have been considered tremendous had they not been outdone 
 by his feet. The ill-assorted and injudicious attire of the in- 
 dividual only served to render his awkwardness more con- 
 spicuous. A sky-blue coat, with short and broad skirts and 
 low cape, exposed a long thin neck and longer and thinner 
 legs. His nether garment was of yellow nankeen, closely 
 fitted to the shape, and tied at his bunches of knees with large 
 knots of white ribbon, a good deal sullied by use. Clouded 
 cotton stockings, and shoes, on one of the latter of which was 
 
30 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 a plated spur, completed the costume of the lower extremity 
 of this figure. From beneath the flap of an enormous pocket 
 of a soiled vest of embossed silk, heavily ornamented with 
 tarnished silver lace, projected his musical instrument. A 
 large civil cocked hat, like those worn by clergymen within 
 the last thirty years, surmounted the whole, furnishing dignity 
 to a good-natured and somewhat vacant countenance. 
 
 Description of the Starfish. (From Life on the Seashore, by 
 
 J. H. Emerton, p. 59.) 
 
 The starfishes are among the most peculiar animals of the 
 seashore, and belong to a class, the Echirioderms, others of which 
 live on land or in fresh water. The common starfishes live 
 near low 'water mark, coining above it occasionally, and in 
 winter retreating to deep water. They live on mollusks, and 
 are a great nuisance to the oyster growers. They fold them- 
 selves around an oyster or mussel, turn their stomach out of 
 their mouth and in between the shells of the bivalve and 
 digest it without taking it inside their bodies. The starfishes 
 move by suckers in the fine grooves on the under side of their 
 arms. To bring them into use they have to be filled with water 
 from the water tubes, which receive their supply from the 
 porous colored spot on 'the back of the starfish and carry it 
 through all the arms, giving off a branch to each sucker. 
 
 The skin of the starfish is filled with little hard plates and 
 from it project spines of various shapes. These spines have, 
 around the base, clusters, of little organs which have jaws that 
 open and shut, for no apparent purpose unless to prevent dirt 
 from sticking to the skin. At the end of each arm is an eye. 
 
 Description of a Street Pageant. (From Varia, by Agnes Rep- 
 plier, p. 114. Houghton, Minim, and Company, by permis- 
 sion. ) 
 Suddenly there came the sound of drums playing a gay and 
 
 martial air, and in another minute, surrounded by a clamorous 
 
 mob, the Sire de Gayant and his family moved slowly into 
 
 sight. 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 31 
 
 Thirty feet high was the Sire de Gay ant, and his nodding 
 plumes overtopped the humble roofs by which he passed. 
 His steel breastplate glittered in the evening sun ; his mighty 
 mace looked like a May-pole ; his countenance was grave and 
 stern. The human pygmies by his side betrayed their insignifi- 
 cance at every step. They ran backward and forward, making 
 all the foolish noises they could. They rode on hobby-horses. 
 They played ridiculous antics. They were but children, after 
 all, gamboling irresponsibly at the feet of their own Titanic 
 toy. Behind the Sire de Gayant came his wife, in brocaded 
 gown, with imposing farthingale and stomacher. Pearls 
 wreathed her hair and fell on her massive bosom. Earrings 
 a handbreadth in size hung from her ears, and a fan as big as 
 a fire screen was held lightly by a silver chain. Like Lady 
 Corysande, "her approaching mien was full of majesty;" yet 
 she looked affable and condescending, too, as befitted a dame 
 of parts and noble birth. Her children manifested in their 
 bearing more of pride and less of dignity. There was even 
 something theatrical in the velvet cap and swinging cloak of 
 her only son ; and Mademoiselle Gayant held her head erect in 
 conscious complacency, while her long brown ringlets fluttered 
 in the breeze. 
 
 Happily, however, there was still another member of this 
 ancient family, more popular and more well beloved than all 
 the rest, Mademoiselle Therese, " la petite Binbin," who for two 
 hundred years has been the friend and idol of every child in 
 Douai. A sprightly and attractive little girl was Mademoiselle 
 Therese, barely eight feet high, and wearing a round cap and 
 spotless pinafore. In her hand she carried a paper windmill. 
 She ran hither and thither with uncertain footsteps, pausing 
 now and then to curtsy prettily to some admiring friends in a 
 doorway ; and whenever the pressure of the crowd stopped her 
 progress, the little children clamored to be held up in their 
 fathers' arms to kiss her round, smooth cheeks. One by one 
 they were lifted in the air, and one by one I saw them put 
 their arms around la Binbin's neck, and embrace her so 
 
A VIKING 
 
STUDY OF DESCRIPTION 33 
 
 heartily that I wondered how she kept herself clean and un- 
 crumpled amid these manifold caresses. 
 
 Description of the Mansion of Tally- Veolan, from the inner 
 courtyard. (From Scott's Waverley, Ch. VIII.) 
 
 The house, which seemed to consist of two or three high, 
 narrow, and steep-roofed buildings, projecting from each 
 other at right angles, formed one side of the inclosure. It 
 had been built at a period when castles were no longer 
 necessary, and when the Scottish architects had not yet ac- 
 quired the art of designing a domestic residence. The win- 
 dows were numberless, but very small; the roof had some 
 nondescript kind of projections, called bartizans, and displayed 
 at each frequent angle a small turret, rather resembling a 
 pepper box than a Gothic watchtower. Neither did the front 
 indicate absolute security from danger. There were loopholes 
 for musketry, and iron stanchions on the lower windows, prob- 
 ably to repel any roving band of gypsies. . . . Stables and other 
 offices occupied another side of the square. The former were 
 low vaults, with narrow slits instead of windows. . . . Above 
 these dungeon-looking stables were granaries, called girnels, 
 and other offices, to which there was access by outside stairs 
 of heavy masonry. Two battlemented walls, one of which 
 faced the avenue, and the other divided the court from the 
 garden, completed the inclosure. 
 
 The Burning of Rome, A. D. 64. (From The Early Days of 
 Christianity, by Canon F. W. Farrar, Book I, Ch. IV.) 
 
 But the sense of permanent loss was overwhelmed at first by 
 the immediate confusion and agony of the scene. Amid the 
 sheets of flame that roared on every side under their dense 
 canopy of smoke, the shrieks of terrified women and the wail 
 of infants and children were heard above the crash of falling 
 houses. The incendiary fires seemed to be bursting forth in so 
 many directions, that men stood staring in stupefaction at the 
 destruction of their property or rushed hither and thither in 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 3 
 
34 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 helpless amazement. The lanes and valleys were blocked up 
 with the concourse of struggling fugitives. Many were suffo- 
 cated by the smoke, or trampled down in the press. Many 
 others were burnt to death in their own burning houses, some 
 of whom purposely flung themselves into the flames in the 
 depth of their despair. The density of the population that 
 found shelter in the huge many-storied lodging houses in- 
 creased the difficulty of escape ; and when they had escaped 
 with bare life, a vast multitude of homeless, shivering, hungry 
 human beings many of them bereaved of their nearest and 
 dearest relatives, many of them personally injured, and most of 
 them deprived of their possessions, and destitute of the means 
 of subsistence found themselves huddled together in vacant 
 places in one vast brotherhood of hopeless wretchedness. 
 
 Exercise 14. Description from picture. Observe the 
 picture of the Viking ( page 32} carefully, make a brief 
 but well- arranged list of the points in it that should be 
 mentioned, then write the description after the manner 
 of Cooper's description of David Gamut. 
 
 Exercise 15. Description from picture. After observ- 
 ing carefully what is represented in the picture on 
 page 35, prepare an outline for a description of it, then 
 describe it, orally or in writing, from your outline. 
 
 Exercise 16. Outline and original description. (a) Bring 
 into the class an outline for a description, by yourself, 
 of some person seen on the street, or elsewhere. Select a 
 more or less peculiar-looking person, whom you may see 
 and observe before working up your description. De- 
 scriptions from memory are apt to be vague and scanty, 
 or else inaccurate. 
 
 (&) Write the description of the person, following the 
 outline made. This outline should already be in. the 
 exercise book. When writing the composition, leave a 
 margin of one inch at the left. 
 
\ " ' 
 
36 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Note to teachers. All the written exercises of the pupils 
 should be inspected at intervals by the teacher, and a certain 
 proportion of the original compositions should be carefully read 
 and criticised by the teacher, who should note in the margin 
 the points wherein the pupil is to correct or improve. There 
 is a list of marks for criticism given in Appendix I. The 
 teacher will at first have to use only such marks of criticism 
 as the pupils are ready to profit by. As the study contin- 
 ues, more and more of the marks may be employed. The 
 compositions that have been criticised by the teacher should 
 be corrected by the pupil in red ink, between the lines, and 
 then shown again to the teacher. If the changes made are 
 satisfactory, and the composition is an important one, it should 
 be rewritten in the same book. 
 
 An important aim with the teacher, however, should be to 
 teach each pupil to criticise and improve his own work. As 
 the study advances, the pupil should become more and more 
 able, by the help of the text-book and the instructions of the 
 teacher, to criticise his own writing with certainty, correctness, 
 and even pleasure. Of course the points in which the pupil is 
 to criticise his work should at first be few and simple. They 
 may progressively increase in number and difficulty, but the 
 teacher should always afford the pupils in this all possible 
 guidance and assistance. Nor can the teacher's own direct 
 criticism of some proportion of the compositions ever be en- 
 tirely dispensed with, though the ideal to be worked toward 
 is the pupil's well-instructed but independent and self-helping 
 criticism. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 PARAGRAPHING 
 
 WHEN we write descriptions, or other compositions 
 of considerable length, they are often or generally 
 clearer and easier to read if in some way it is made 
 plain where one part or division ends and the next 
 begins. For this reason, compositions are almost 
 always divided into parts or sections called para- 
 graphs. The beginning of a paragraph is marked 
 by placing the first word of it a little to the right of 
 where the lines of writing or print regularly begin. 
 This setting of a word to the right of the other first 
 words of the lines is called indention. The word 
 " when " at the beginning of this paragraph is in- 
 dented. If you turn to page 12 in this book, you will 
 see the paragraphs all marked by indentions. The 
 words "The," " Or/' "Sometimes," "Then," and so 
 on, are indented, because they begin new paragraphs. 
 
 Now, since each paragraph stands for a distinct 
 part of the plan of a composition, it has a distinct 
 subject of its own. This subject is called the topic 
 of the paragraph. 
 
 In the following description there are, as the inden- 
 tions show, five paragraphs. The topics of them may 
 be stated and subdivided thus : 
 
 37 
 
38 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 1. The scene in the garret (including "introduc- 
 
 tion " and " glance ") 
 
 a. Dimness of the place (introduction) 
 
 b. The white-haired shoemaker (glance view) 
 
 2. The old man's voice 
 
 3. His appearance 
 
 a. Tools, etc., about him 
 
 b. His face 
 
 white beard and hair 
 hollow cheeks 
 unnaturally bright eyes 
 
 c. His clothing 
 
 shirt 
 
 other garments 
 
 4. Special features of the man 
 
 a. His thin hands 
 
 b. His vacant gaze 
 
 c. His habit of wandering in attention 
 
 5. His absent-mindedness 
 
 a. Unconscious movements 
 
 b. Difficulty of arousing him 
 
 The Shoemaker of the Bastille. (From A Tale of Two Cities, 
 by Charles Dickens, Ch. VI.) 
 
 The garret, built to be a dry depository for firewood and the 
 like, was dim and dark. Such a scanty portion of light was 
 admitted, that it was difficult, on first coming in, to see any- 
 thing. Yet, with his back toward the door, and his face 
 toward the window, a white-haired man sat on a low bench, 
 stooping forward and very busy, making shoes. 
 
PARAGRAPHING 39 
 
 When he spoke the faintness of the voice was pitiable and 
 dreadful. It was not the faintness of physical weakness, though 
 confinement and hard fare no doubt had their part in it. Its 
 deplorable peculiarity was, that it was the faintness of solitude 
 and disuse. It was like the last feeble echo of a sound made 
 long and long ago. 
 
 The half -opened door was opened a little farther and secured 
 at that angle for the time. A broad ray of light fell into the 
 garret, and showed the workman, with an unfinished shoe upon 
 his lap, pausing in his labor. His few common tools and vari- 
 ous scraps of leather were at his feet on his bench. He had a 
 white beard, raggedly cut, but not very long, a hollow face, and 
 exceedingly bright eyes. The hollowness and thinness of his 
 face would have caused them to look large, under his yet dark 
 eyebrows and his confused white hair, though they had been 
 really otherwise; but they were naturally large, and looked 
 unnaturally so. His yellow rags of shirt lay open at the throat, 
 and showed his body to be withered and worn. He. and his 
 old canvas frock, and his loose stockings, and all his poor tat- 
 ters of clothes, had, in a long seclusion from direct light and 
 air, faded down to such a dull uniformity of parchment yellow, 
 that it would have been hard to say which was which. 
 
 He had put up a hand between his eyes and the light, and 
 the very bones of it seemed transparent. So he sat, with a 
 steadfastly vacant gaze, pausing in his work. He never looked 
 at the figure before him, without first looking down on this side 
 of himself, then on that, as if he had lost the habit of associ- 
 ating place with sound ; he never spoke, without first wander- 
 ing in this manner, and forgetting to speak. 
 
 Now that he had no work to hold, he laid the knuckles of 
 the right hand in the hollow of the left, and then the knuckles 
 of the left hand in the hollow of the right, and then passed a 
 hand across his bearded chin, and so on, in regular changes, with- 
 out a moment's intermission. The task of recalling him from 
 the vacancy into which he always sank when he had spoken, 
 was like recalling some very weak person from a swoon, or 
 
40 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 endeavoring, in the hope of some disclosure, to stay the spirit 
 of a fast-dying man. 
 
 A study of these, or of any well-constructed para- 
 graphs, will show that paragraphs, like whole compo- 
 sitions, must have riot only well-selected details, but 
 also completeness, unity, and plan. 
 
 The planning of paragraphs we shall study later 
 (Chapter VIII) ; but that a paragraph should be 
 complete, and that it should be a unit, are points 
 already clear, because each paragraph has its own 
 subject or topic. The outline above given states the 
 five topics in the last selection. If, in this selection, 
 the writer had, in the second paragraph, which treats 
 of the old man's voice, described in part his clothing, 
 this paragraph would have lacked the unity it now 
 has. Every sentence in that paragraph relates to the 
 voice which is being described. Or if, in the next 
 paragraph, any important or striking detail, neces- 
 sary to a clear and vivid picture of the old man's ap- 
 pearance, had been omitted, that paragraph would 
 have lacked completeness. Unity and completeness, in 
 compositions and in paragraphs, seem perhaps very 
 simple and plain matters to be spoken of so much, 
 but careless and uninstructed writers so often fail to 
 think of these qualities and to secure them, that their 
 importance must be insisted upon frequently. 
 
 A carefully written piece of composition may always 
 be outlined, paragraph by paragraph, much as the 
 selection just given was outlined ; and all school 
 compositions should be so outlined before being writ- 
 
PARAGRAPHING 41 
 
 ten. The pupil by thus working out his plan or 
 order of topics secures himself against omission of im- 
 portant points, and against wandering from his topics 
 while writing (secures for his composition complete- 
 ness and unity). He will then write his composition 
 with the outline before him, and his paragraphing will 
 follow the topical outline. Whenever a writer finishes 
 what he has to say on one topic of the outline, he 
 should begin a new paragraph for the next topic, and 
 mark the beginning by indention. 
 
 Thoughtless or ignorant writers, forgetting that 
 each paragraph must have unity, often indent incor- 
 rectly. In the following selections, as printed here, 
 the indentions are irregular and misleading. 
 
 Tlie Battle of the Blue Licks. (From Tlie Choir Invisible, 
 by James Lane Allen, p. 67. Copyright, 1897,. by The 
 Macmillan Company.) 
 
 Let the creek here be the Licking River. The Kentuckians, 
 some on foot and some on horse, but all tired and disordered 
 and hurrying along, had just reached the bank. Over on the 
 other side some distance back the Indians were hiding in 
 the woods and waiting. No one knew exactly where they were ; 
 every one knew they counted from seven hundred to a thousand. 
 The Kentuckians were a hundred and eighty-two. 
 
 There was Boone with the famous Boonsborough men, the 
 very name of whom was a terror ; there was Trigg with men 
 just as good from Harrodsburg ; there was Todd, as good as 
 either, with men from Lexington. More than a fourth of the 
 whole were commissioned officers, and more fearless men never 
 faced an enemy. There was but one among them whose cour- 
 age had ever been doubted, and do you know what that man 
 did ? After the Kentuckians had crossed the river to attack, 
 
42 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 been overpowered, forced back to the river again, and were 
 being shot down or cut down in the river like helpless cattle, 
 that man his name was Benjamin Netherland did this: 
 He was finely mounted. He had quickly recrossed the river 
 and had before him the open buffalo trace leading back home. 
 About twenty other men had crossed as quickly as he and were 
 urging their horses toward this road. 
 
 But Netherland, having reached the other bank, wheeled 
 his horse's head toward the front of the battle, shouted and 
 rallied the others, and sitting there in full view and easy reach 
 of the Indian army across the narrow river, poured his volley 
 into the foremost of the pursuers, who were cutting down the 
 Kentuckians in the river. He covered their retreat. 
 
 He saved their lives. Yet when some twenty of the officers 
 had come out before the ranks to hold a council of war, and the 
 wisest and the oldest were urging caution or delay, one of them 
 McGary suddenly waved his hand in the air, spurred his 
 horse into the river, and shouted, "Let all who are not cow- 
 ards follow me ! " 
 
 They all followed; and then followed also the shame of 
 defeat, the awful massacre, the sorrow that lasts among us still, 
 and the loss to Kentucky of many a gallant young life that 
 had helped to shape her destiny in the nation. 
 
 (From The Man who Was, by Eudyard Kipling.) 
 
 The great beam-roofed mess room of the White Hussars was 
 a sight to be remembered. 
 
 All the mess plate was on the long table, the same table 
 that had served up the bodies of five dead officers in a forgot- 
 ten fight long and long ago, the dingy, battered standards 
 faced the door of entrance, clumps of winter roses lay between 
 the silver candlesticks, the portraits of eminent officers looked 
 down on their successors from between the heads of sambhur, 
 nilghai, maikhor, and, pride of all the mess, two grinning snow 
 leopards that had cost Basset-Hoi mer four months' leave that 
 he might have spent in England instead of on the road to Thi- 
 
PARAGRAPHING 43 
 
 bet, and the daily risk of his life on ledge, snow slide, and 
 glassy grass slope. The servants, in spotless white muslin and 
 the crest of their regiments on the brow of their turbans, 
 waited behind their masters, who were clad in the scarlet and 
 gold of the White Hussars and the cream and silver of the 
 Lushkar Light Horse. 
 
 Dirkovitch's dull green uniform was the only dark spot at 
 the board, but his big onyx eyes made up for it. 
 
 Exercise 17. Indention. Write the words that should 
 be indented in the above selections, and be able to give 
 reasons for the indentions as you think they should be. 
 
 Exercise 18. Paragraph topics. Write the topics of 
 the paragraphs in the above selections, after the inden- 
 tion has been corrected. 
 
 There is usually in a paragraph one sentence which 
 states or suggests the topic of that paragraph. This 
 is called the topic sentence. It usually appears at or 
 near the beginning of the paragraph, but sometimes 
 at the end. The purpose of the topic sentence is to 
 tell clearly and simply what is the subject of the 
 paragraph. Thus it shows the unity of the paragraph 
 either by preparing the reader for what is to be said, 
 or by summing up what has been said. 
 
 In the following paragraphs the topics are printed 
 as titles, or headings, and the topic sentences are 
 printed in italics. 
 
 A Room and its Occupant. (From Bleak House, by Charles 
 Dickens, Ch. X.) 
 
 The character of the room 
 
 The air of the room is almost bad enough to have extin- 
 guished the candle. It is a small room, nearly black with soot, 
 
44 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 and grease, and dirt. In the rusty skeleton of a grate, pinched 
 at the middle as if Poverty had gripped it, a red coke fire 
 burns low. In the corner, by the chimney, stand a deal table 
 and a broken desk ; a wilderness marked with a rain of ink. 
 In another corner a ragged old portmanteau, on one of the two 
 chairs, serves for cabinet or wardrobe : no larger one is needed, 
 for it collapses like the cheeks of a starved man. The floor 
 is bare ; except that one old mat, trodden to shreds of rope 
 yarn, lies perishing npon the hearth. No curtain veils the 
 darkness of the night, but the discolored shutters are drawn 
 together; and through the two gaunt holes pierced in them, 
 famine might be staring in the Banshee of the man upon the 
 bed. 
 
 The occupant of the room 
 
 For, on a low bed opposite the fire, a confusion of dirty 
 patchwork, lean-ribbed ticking, and coarse sacking, the visitor, 
 hesitating just within the doorway, sees a man. He lies there, 
 dressed in a shirt and trousers, with bare feet. He has a yel- 
 low look in the spectral darkness of a candle that has guttered 
 down, until the whole length of its wick (still burning) had 
 doubled over and left a tower of winding sheet above it. His 
 hair was ragged, mingling with his whiskers and his beard 
 the latter, ragged too, and grown like the scum and mist 
 around him, in neglect. Foul and filthy as the room is, foul 
 and filthy as the air is, it is not easy to perceive what fumes 
 those are which most oppress the senses in it; but through the 
 general sickliness and faintness, and the odor of stale tobacco, 
 there comes into the visitor's mouth the bitter, vapid taste of 
 opium. 
 
 Burns in Edinburgh. (From Familiar Studies of Men and 
 Books, by Robert Louis Stevenson, p. 77.) 
 
 He was now, it must be remembered, twenty-seven years of 
 age ; he had fought since his childhood an obstinate battle 
 against poor soil, bad seed, and inclement seasons, wading deep 
 in Ayrshire mosses, guiding the plow in the furrow, wielding 
 
PARAGRAPHING 45 
 
 "the thresher's weary flingin' tree " ; and his education, his 
 diet, and his pleasures had been those of a Scotch countryman. 
 Now he stepped forth suddenly among the polite and learned. 
 We can see him as he then was, in his boots and buckskins, 
 his blue coat and waistcoat striped with buff and blue, like a 
 fanner in his Sunday best ; the heavy plowman's figure firmly 
 planted on its burly legs ; his face full of sense and shrewdness, 
 and with a somewhat melancholy air of thought, and his large 
 dark eye "literally glowing" as he spoke. "I never saw such 
 another eye in a human head," says Walter Scott, "though I 
 have seen the most distinguished men of my time." 
 
 Exercise 19. Topics and topic sentences. Bring to 
 class, in writing, a statement of the "topics" in the 
 following paragraphs, also the " topic sentences " copied 
 out. 
 
 (From Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Eobert Louis Steven- 
 son, p. 8.) 
 
 It chanced on one of these rambles that their way led them 
 down a by-street in the busy quarter of London. The street 
 was small and what is called quiet, but it drove a thriving 
 trade on the week days. The inhabitants were all doing well, 
 it seemed, and all emulously hoping to do better still, and lay- 
 ing out the surplus of their gains in coquetry ; so that the shop 
 fronts stood along the thoroughfare with an air of invitation, 
 like rows of smiling saleswomen. Even on Sunday, when it 
 veiled its more florid charms and lay comparatively empty of 
 passage, the street shone out in contrast to its dingy neighbor- 
 hood, like a fire in a forest; and with its freshly painted 
 shutters, well-polished brasses, and general cleanliness and 
 gayety of note, instantly caught and pleased the eye of the 
 passenger. 
 
 Two doors from one corner, on the left hand going east, the 
 line was broken by the entry of a court; and just at that point 
 a certain sinister block of building thrust forward its gable 
 
46 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 on the street. It was two stories high; showed no window, 
 nothing but a door on the lower story and a blind forehead of 
 discolored wall on the upper, and bore in every feature the 
 marks of prolonged and sordid negligence. The door, which 
 was equipped with neither bell nor knocker, was blistered and 
 distained. Tramps slouched into the recess, and struck matches 
 on the panels ; children kept shop upon the steps ; the school- 
 boy had tried his knife on the moldings ; and for close on a 
 generation no one had appeared to drive away these random 
 visitors or to repair their ravages. 
 
 (Hamlin Garland, in the Ladies' Home Journal, August, 1899 
 By permission.) 
 
 Koweechee was a most wonderful mountain. It sprang from 
 the lowlands of dark green hills, covered with pines as with a 
 robe, and it reached to a dazzling dome of snow two miles 
 above the valley where the Angry River roared. Every line was 
 noble, sweeping, regal, and the summit burned under the noon 
 sunlight with unearthly radiance, and glowed and lightened 
 till it seemed as if the sky and snow were one. As the sun 
 sank to the west, Koweechee amplified and glorified like some 
 mighty orator stepping before a countless multitude of men. 
 He loomed over the tall pines and intervening hills with inex- 
 pressible grandeur it would seem that nothing more remained 
 of majesty to express and when the sun went down and the 
 stars came out behind his awful crown, then the lone traveler, 
 crouching close beside his camp fire, lifted his eyes timidly and 
 whispered, " Lord, I adore ! " 
 
 (From Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, 
 p. 27.) 
 
 It was by this about nine in the morning, and the first fog of 
 the season. A great chocolate-colored pall lowered over heaven, 
 but the wind was continually changing and routing these em- 
 battled vapors ; so that as the cab crawled from street to street 
 Mr. Utterson beheld a marvelous number of degrees and hues 
 
PARAGRAPHING 47 
 
 of twilight; for here it would be dark, like the black end 
 of evening ; and there would be a glow of rich, lurid brown, 
 like the light of some strange conflagration ; and here, for a 
 moment, the fog would be quite broken up, and a haggard 
 shaft of daylight would glance in between the swirling wreaths. 
 The dismal quarter of Soho seen under these changing glimpses, 
 with its muddy ways, and slatternly passengers, and its 
 lamps, which had never been extinguished or had been kindled 
 afresh to combat this reinvasion of darkness, seemed like a 
 district of some city in a nightmare. 
 
 % 
 
 (From TJie Sketch Book, by Washington Irving.) 
 
 Suddenly the notes of the deep-laboring organ burst upon 
 the ear, falling with doubled and redoubled intensity, and 
 rolling, as it were, huge billows of sound. How well do their 
 volume and grandeur accord with this mighty building ! With 
 what pomp do they swell through its vast vaults, and breathe 
 their awful harmony through these caves of death, and make 
 the silent sepulcher vocal ! And now they rise in triumph and 
 acclamation, heaving higher and higher their accordant notes, 
 and piling sound on sound. And now they pause, and the soft 
 voices of the choir break out into sweet gushes of melody; 
 they soar aloft, and warble along the roof, and seem to play 
 about these lofty vaults like the pure airs of heaven. Again 
 the pealing organ heaves its thrilling thunders, compressing 
 air into music, and rolling it forth upon the soul. What long- 
 drawn cadences ! What solemn, sweeping concords ! It grows 
 more and more dense and powerful it fills the vast pile and 
 seems to jar the very walls the ear is stunned the senses 
 are overwhelmed. And now it is winding up in full jubilee 
 it is rising from earth to heaven the very soul seems rapt 
 away and floated upward on this swelling tide of harmony ! 
 
 Exercise 20. Topics and topic sentences. Write out the 
 topics and topic sentences of such others of the para- 
 graphs printed elsewhere as the teacher may select. 
 
48 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Note to teachers. When completed, the following exer- 
 cises, as well as many of the others, might be placed upon the 
 blackboard, read, and criticised during the recitation period. 
 
 Exercise 21. Arrangement of sentences in paragraphs. 
 EXAMPLE OF SENTENCES MISARRANGED : 
 
 The two halves of a huge white mustache encircled his mouth, 
 like two parentheses. This man had on his head a piece of a 
 cocked hat, without a cockade ; his dilapidated face had a stony 
 tint, that yellow tint which old monuments have in the sun- 
 light. He was dressed in an old uniform. They saw in front 
 of a vineyard gate a sort of soldier. Across one of the sleeves 
 stretched an old and worn strip of gold lace. 
 
 THE SAME SENTENCES PROPERLY ARRANGED : 
 
 Topic Description of an old soldier 
 
 They saw in front of a vineyard gate a sort of soldier. This 
 man had on his head a piece of a cocked hat, without a cockade ; 
 his dilapidated face had a stony tint, that yellow tint which 
 old monuments have in the sunlight. The two halves of 
 a huge white mustache encircled his mouth, like two paren- 
 theses. ^Ie was dressed in an old uniform. Across one of the 
 sleeves stretched an old and worn strip of gold lace. 
 
 Study the following paragraphs of Disarranged sen- 
 tences, discover the topic of each paragraph and write 
 it as a heading ; then rewrite the sentences, arranged so 
 as to connect smoothly and naturally. 
 
 (a) He had a very large nose, slightly brass-colored: his 
 cheeks were very round and very red. His doublet was pro- 
 longed behind into something like what is now termed a 
 " swallow tail," but was much obscured by the swelling folds 
 of an enormous black, glossy -looking cloak. It was the most 
 extraordinary looking little gentleman Gluck had ever seen. 
 His mustaches curled twice round like a corkscrew on each 
 
PARAGRAPHING 49 
 
 side of his mouth, and his hair, of a curious mixed pepper-and- 
 salt color, descended far over his shoulders. He was about 
 four feet six in height, and wore a conical pointed cap of 
 nearly the same altitude, decorated with a black feather some 
 three feet long. 
 
 (&) They thought their thick mats would defend them 
 from a rifle ball as well as from a stone. Observing the 
 flashes of the guns, they naturally concluded that water would 
 counteract their effect. It was generally observed that at first 
 the Indians showed great resolution in facing our firearms ; 
 but it was entirely owing to ignorance of their effect. Being 
 soon convinced of their error, yet still at a loss to understand 
 how so many among them were killed, they had recourse to 
 the following plan. But finding this last resource to fail them, 
 they soon dispersed, and left the beach entirely clear. They 
 therefore, very sagaciously, dipped their mats or armor in the 
 sea, just before coming on to face our soldiers. 
 
 (c) Beneath the pulpit sat the deacons, and just before 
 them were the deaf seats and benches for the old and feeble 
 who owned no pews. In the left-hand gallery were the young 
 men and boys. There, too, .sat the tithingman. A narrow aisle 
 crossed the broad one midway and joined the doors on either 
 side. The young women filled the wall pews of the right-hand 
 gallery. The main door opened on a broad aisle that led to 
 the high pulpit, with its green cushions and its funnel-shaped 
 sounding board. In the front gallery sat the singers. Spin- 
 sters and elderly women were given the front row of seats. 
 Close to the four walls was a row of pews separated by a con- 
 tinuous aisle from the body of the church. The little girls 
 had benches. 
 
 Exercise 22. Paragraph making. Complete the para- 
 graphs suggested ~by the following topic sentences : 
 
 (a) To-day I saw an old woman selling newspapers . . . 
 (6) This old high-walled garden was a very interesting and 
 delightful place. . . . 
 
 AVRIT. IN ENG. 4 
 
50 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 (c) The tramp's most notable peculiarity was his voice. . . . 
 
 (d) In one of my recent walks I came upon the handsome 
 new building of ... 
 
 (e) The house has a very interesting attic, now used as a 
 storeroom . . . 
 
 (/) To-day I saw a striking experiment performed in ... 
 (g) The old mill is well worth a visit . . . 
 
 Note. This exercise may be employed for oral or for written 
 composition or for both, as the teacher may direct. 
 
 Exercise 23. Paragraph writing. Write from each of 
 the following suggestions a paragraph. Introduce a topic 
 sentence in each case. 
 
 (a) Our school yard. Shape, size position of building in 
 it parts of the yard objects, trees, etc., in the yard signs 
 it bears of its use scenes it has witnessed. 
 
 (b) The public square (or, a square or little park). Situa- 
 tion, shape, size plan or parts objects in it special 
 features. 
 
 (c) A horseless carriage. First impression difference in 
 appearance from other vehicles number of seats where its 
 mechanism is the steering gear, etc. the brake appear- 
 ance when at full speed. 
 
 (d) A domestic animal. Size limbs proportions coat 
 movements. 
 
 (e) Our church. Parts and plan material, colors strik- 
 ing features. 
 
 (/) A balloon. Twenty feet high when filled made of 
 silk brown hanging basket (for passengers) . ropes form 
 network over balloon ropes hold up the basket. 
 
 (g) The cotton plant. Two or three feet high white flow- 
 ers, which fall off seed pod ripens, opens of itself cotton 
 plucked with seeds in it seeds must be removed by a 
 machine. 
 
 (h) The whale. Great size (sometimes sixty feet or more in 
 length) enormous mouth tail flat, strong and heavy enough 
 
PARAGRAPHING 51 
 
 to break a small boat blubber or fat beneath skin in top 
 of head, nostril through which the whale " spouts." 
 
 (/) " TJie Dewey Arch." Erected at time of welcome to 
 Admiral Dewey made of white staff, coated over a wooden 
 framework as high as a four-story building two wagons 
 may pass abreast through the arch smaller side arches 
 sculpture groups on faces and top. 
 
 Exercise 24. Original description. After reading again 
 Scott's description of the mansion of Tully- Veolan (p. 33} 
 outline and then write a complete description of some 
 interesting building, paying special attention to para- 
 graphing and to the use of topic sentences. See that the 
 several paragraphs are smoothly connected. 
 
 Exercise 25. Description from picture. Make an out- 
 line for a description of the Capitol (p. 52}. Write the 
 topic sentences for all the paragraphs you would write 
 from this outline. Then write the description. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 UNITY IN SENTENCES 
 
 WE have seen that each part or division of a com- 
 position (each paragraph) has its own part to perform 
 in the setting forth of the whole subject, and that it 
 is the business of a paragraph to tell only what 
 belongs to it. But it is important to bear in mind 
 that each sentence, as well as each of the paragraphs 
 and the whole composition, should have oneness or 
 unity. For a sentence is the expression of a thought; 
 its one business is to express that thought, no more, 
 no less. So a sentence is not even a correct one, 
 unless it has this quality of unity. Every sentence, 
 no matter how long it is, no matter how many modi- 
 fying or subordinate ideas it has, no matter how many 
 coordinate verbs it has, can and must have unity. 
 For so long as the less important or subordinate ideas 
 are kept in their place, being used merely as modi- 
 fiers, the sentence still has the unity that belongs 
 to its principal idea or statement. And as for com- 
 pound sentences, which state two or more ideas of 
 equal rank or importance, such sentences also have 
 properly a unity, because the parts or clauses must be 
 closely connected in thought, or they are simply parts 
 
 53 
 
54 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 of the same thought. If not, the sentence lacks unity, 
 and is a bad sentence. 
 
 To see how several coordinate statements may have 
 unity, take the sentence : " We shouted until we were 
 hoarse, and Tom hoisted a pole with a handkerchief 
 tied to it ; my brother fired his revolver, and all of us 
 waved our arms wildly but we could not attract 
 their attention." Here the unity among the state- 
 ments is in the idea of what was done to attract the 
 desired attention. 
 
 To secure unity in sentences is extremely important, 
 yet not always easy. Careless and uninstructed writ- 
 ers and speakers are continually uttering sentences 
 that fail of unity. Nothing shows the poor writer 
 more than this. In fact, the greatest lesson we can 
 learn about good sentence making is to give every 
 one of our sentences unity. There is one sound rule 
 to follow : Have for each sentence one main thought, 
 and one only; express it, and then put the period. 
 If at first all your sentences are short and simple, no 
 matter. Have no ambition to write long sentences, 
 until you are sure you can write them as clear units. 
 
 There are three or four very common causes of 
 failure in sentence unity. 
 
 I. The " and" habit. 
 
 Careless writers and speakers seem almost to think 
 there is no other conjunction in the English language 
 than "and." They string out idea after idea, using 
 "and" to pin the statements together, until chance 
 
UNITY IN SENTENCES 55 
 
 or weariness suggests coming to a stop. This is one 
 of the commonest and one of the very worst faults 
 in sentence making. It shows thoughtlessness and 
 slovenliness. In every sentence there should be a 
 principal thought or statement, and details that are 
 subordinate in importance should be expressed as 
 grammatically subordinate. Note the following faulty 
 sentences : 
 
 1. There is a bird on that branch, and its nest is near by, 
 and there are three eggs in the nest. 
 
 2. Mr. Beecham came to town the other day and bought his 
 boy a bicycle and ordered it sent out to his farm, and it 
 was not sent for a week and Mr. Beecham was very angry 
 about it. 
 
 3. He was getting old, and he had to be out on the wharf a 
 good deal, and it wasn't convenient to be locking up his office, 
 and he sent down to Machias for a school-teacher who was a 
 sort of poor relation of his. 
 
 4. And so John saw his native village again, and it was a 
 calm sunny day, and they descended into the green valley 
 where the town lay, and knocked at Mr. Ericsson's door, but 
 the house was empty. 
 
 5. In many places the forest had been cut away, and this 
 left open tracts, and here the sweet mountain grass grew thick 
 and strong, and there were also harebells, foxgloves, and wild 
 pinks. 
 
 6. Hans was walking backward and forward on the moun- 
 tain side, and his eyes were fixed on the ground and he did not 
 see me approach. 
 
 7. It was in summer and the flowers were all in blossom, 
 and he was walking along after his sheep, and all at once he 
 saw a wonderful sky-blue flower, and he had never seen one of 
 the kind before in all his life. 
 
56 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 26. Correction of abuse of "and." In each 
 of the above sentences, select what you regard as the 
 principal ideas, then cut each sentence up into two 
 or more sentences having "unity," expanding the one 
 main thought when necessary, and using relative pro- 
 nouns or other connectives. (See the table of conjunctions 
 on page 85.) Some of the clauses made coordinate should 
 be put as modifiers (phrases or clauses) if they are really 
 subordinate in thought. 
 
 EXAMPLE OF CORRECTION (sentence 1) : There is a bird on 
 that branch. Its nest, containing three eggs, is near by. Or, 
 On that branch there is a bird, whose nest is near by. The nest 
 has in it three tiny eggs, of a pale blue color. 
 
 II. Needless change of subject. 
 
 EXAMPLE : After the fire had been lighted, the boys re- 
 treated to a shed which was some twenty feet from the house 
 of Mr. Foote, whose family was absent from home. (This 
 sentence employs four words as subjects : fire, boys, which, 
 and family.) Changed so as to reduce the number of subjects : 
 After lighting the fire the boys retreated to a shed near the 
 home of Mr. Foote's absent family. 
 
 1. When my uncle reached home, the members of his family 
 were found to have gone out to a party. 
 
 2. Although the captain thought the fire was a serious one, 
 it was concluded by him that prompt action might save the 
 house. 
 
 3. He received us very pleasantly, and we were invited by 
 him to take seats in the shady courtyard. 
 
 4. The climate of Khartoum is very unhealthful, and we 
 learned that this unfortunate gentleman had long been a 
 resident of the place, and that he was suffering greatly from 
 fever. 
 
 5. There were indeed some persons, but the number of them 
 was small, by whom a kind of hobbling march on the broken 
 
UNITY IN SENTENCES 57 
 
 arches of the bridge was continued, but they fell through, one 
 after another, as so long a walk had tired them. 
 
 Exercise 27. Avoiding change of subject. Correct the 
 above sentences, by reducing the number of the subjects, 
 if possible to only one, by placing some of the. statements 
 as modifiers, or by changing verbs in the passive voice to 
 the active voice, or the reverse. (See the example of cor- 
 rection given.) Sometimes it may be well to make two 
 sentences instead of one. 
 
 III. Forgetting the verb. One fault that is simply 
 bad grammar, and can appear only in very careless 
 writing, is to omit the verb. This occurs in rather 
 long and complex sentences, which have confused the 
 writer himself. 
 
 EXAMPLES : 1. But Fletcher, who, after he had visited the 
 mill, thinking he had now to cover his tracks, walked some 
 distance in the brook. 
 
 2. But when we returned to the cottage at nightfall with the 
 horse which had been stolen, and which was now, as we ap- 
 proached the house, so badly frightened that he broke away 
 and ran into the woods. 
 
 3. The long facade, consisting only of balconied windows 
 deeply recessed, standing erect on the summit of a con- 
 siderable hill, which gives a fine plunging movement to its 
 foundations. 
 
 4. But Frank, after he had tried again and again to break 
 open the shutter, which was nailed at three or four places, and 
 found he could do nothing with it. 
 
 5. Looking very weak and weary, the boy, who had evidently 
 walked' a great distance, for his face was pale and his steps 
 were slow, coming timidly up the garden walk, and rapped at 
 the door. 
 
58 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 28. Correction of sentences. Rewrite the above 
 sentences so as to make them say something clearly and 
 grammatically. If you prefer, make two sentences to 
 take the place of any one. 
 
 EXAMPLE : The first above given may be corrected by omit- 
 ting "who." If this is done, " walked " becomes the principal 
 verb, with the subject "Fletcher." 
 
 IV. Joining unconnected ideas. 
 
 EXAMPLES : 1. Soup is good to begin a meal with, and we 
 were all hungry as could be. 
 
 2. Goldsmith, who had the smallpox in his youth, became a 
 great writer before he was forty. 
 
 3. He came back on the night boat, looking much better 
 after his two weeks' vacation. 
 
 4. He had the air of a nobleman ; at the time I saw him he 
 had on a white waistcoat. 
 
 5. When the body was pulled into the boat it was found to 
 be clothed in the same blue suit Martin had recently bought, 
 but all efforts to restore life were in vain. 
 
 6. I next saw the town from the stern thwart of a little sail- 
 ing vessel ; behind the settlement was a great gash in the hill- 
 side where granite was quarried. 
 
 7. The name of the building was The Mentone, and it was 
 completely destroyed by the fire. 
 
 Exercise 29. Sentence-unity. Correct or expand the 
 above sentences so as to secure unity ; or write reasons for 
 thinking them faulty. 
 
 EXAMPLE (1 above) : When one is tired and cold, a bowl of 
 soup is the best thing to begin a meal with. As for us, we 
 were so hungry that anything would have tasted good. Or 
 (make a connection between the two statements given) : We 
 
UNITY IN SENTENCES 59 
 
 were so hungry that the soup, poor as it was, seemed a delicious 
 and satisfying thing to begin the meal with. 
 
 Exercise 30. Criticism. Look over one of your own 
 compositions, sentence by sentence, to make sure that each 
 sentence has "unity" and contains no misuse of "and." 
 Bring to class, copied out, the incorrect sentences, and 
 opposite them write correct or improved ones, thus:- 
 
 The incorrect sentences. The same corrected or improved. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 
 
 IN Chapter II we learned that all compositions 
 should show skillful selection and have completeness, 
 unity, and a well-thought-out plan. Descriptions, 
 therefore, should be full enough of well-chosen details 
 to be satisfactory, that is, there should be no omission 
 or oversight of important parts of the subject ; and 
 descriptions should be free from sentences or para- 
 graphs that have no close or useful connection with 
 the subject. As for the requirement of plan, we saw 
 that in good descriptions the writer usually begins 
 with a glance at the subject of the description, men- 
 tioning that which first or most prominently strikes 
 the attention in it ; and then that he uses the larger 
 part or body of the description to set forth the details 
 in full, arranged in some definite order, and grouped 
 under certain divisions or heads. 
 
 In this chapter we are to consider a few ways of 
 improving our descriptions, and we shall continue 
 also our study of paragraphing. 
 
 I. Point of view. In beginning a description, it 
 is usually necessary, for the sake of clearness, to 
 select a point from which to view the object or scene. 
 
 60 
 
MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 61 
 
 If your subject is a house, and your point of view is 
 outside of it, you are not expected to describe any of 
 the interior, except, perhaps, what you see from that 
 outside position. Neither should you describe all 
 the sides of the house, for all are not to be seen from 
 one point of view. Sometimes, however, the observer 
 may change his point of view during the description. 
 He may, for instance, walk entirely round the house. 
 Whenever the point of view is movable, the reader 
 should be distinctly told so. Whether it is well to 
 have a moving point of view, depends upon the 
 nature of the subject. Of course, in describing the 
 interior of a house of several rooms, the point of view 
 must change from room to room. (See Dickens' s 
 description of Bleak House, quoted in Chapter II.) 
 This is really a case, however, of several descriptions 
 in one. 
 
 A very important result of having a certain point 
 of view is that the scale of the description depends 
 upon the distance of the point of view. If a writer 
 is describing a mountain as seen from a distance of 
 several miles, of course he will see none of the details 
 that engage the attention of a person climbing the 
 same mountain. The latter would write of the rocks, 
 the fallen trunks, the brushwood, the flowers, the 
 dead leaves, and perhaps the occasional outlook from 
 the slopes over the broad valleys. The distant 
 observer would see the great outlines of the moun- 
 tain, the play of light and shade, the overhanging 
 clouds. 
 
62 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 All that can be said is, that a writer should decide 
 carefully upon his point of view, just as a painter 
 must select the place for his stool and canvas. Not 
 to have clearly in mind a point of view, whether 
 close or distant, oblique from the object or directly in 
 front, above or below it, outside of it or inside, makes 
 danger of vagueness and inaccuracy in the description. 
 
 Exercise 31. Points of view. What are the points of 
 view in Irvine's description of an inn kitchen, page 21, 
 Mr. Kipling's deswiption of Holden's house, page 22, 
 Stevenson's description of Mr. Hyde, page 28, Miss Rep- 
 plier's description of a street pageant, page 30, Dickens 's 
 description of the shoemaker, page 38, of a room and its 
 occupant, page 4$> Mr. Garland's description of Mount 
 Koweechee, page 46, Stevenson's description of a London 
 fog, page 46? 
 
 Exercise 32. Points of view. (a) What were the 
 points of view in three of the descriptions you have writ- 
 ten? (&) What point of view would you adopt in writing 
 a description of your room, at home ; of a house on fire ; 
 of a florist's window ; of a snowstorm ; of a race ? 
 
 II. Use of comparison. Sometimes in describ- 
 ing a complex or extensive subject or scene, it is 
 very useful to compare it to something simple and 
 familiar, for this helps our readers to understand all 
 that we say. Thus in describing the battlefield of 
 Waterloo, Victor Hugo asks his readers to imagine a 
 great A. Then he goes on to explain that the lines 
 are roads, and that the three-cornered space is occu- 
 pied by a certain hill, and so on. This comparison 
 
MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 63 
 
 of the place with an A makes the entire description 
 much clearer and simpler than it might have been. 
 In the same way Mr. Creasy, the author of The 
 Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World, makes clear 
 his description of the battlefield of Marathon by 
 comparing it to a crescent (the shape of the young 
 moon). Sir Walter Scott, in describing the hall of 
 Cedric the Saxon (in Ivanhoe, Ch. Ill), explains the 
 arrangement of the tables by saying they formed a 
 large T; the cross part, on a slightly raised platform, 
 being the table at which sat Cedric and his immediate 
 family. 
 
 The world is full of similarities, and if a writer 
 chooses a comparison that will really explain and 
 make distinct the thing or scene he is describing he 
 will add much to his description. It will usually be 
 wise for the writer of a description to pause and ask 
 himself: "What is this like? What can I compare 
 my subject to ? " 
 
 Note the comparisons in the following description 
 of an army hospital : 
 
 (From The Wound Dresser, by Walt Whitman, p. 35. By per- 
 mission.) 
 
 As a specimen of almost any one of these hospitals, fancy 
 to yourself a space of three to twenty acres of ground, on which 
 are grouped ten or twelve very large wooden barracks, with, 
 perhaps, a dozen or twenty, and sometimes more than that 
 number, of small buildings, capable all together of accommo- 
 dating from five hundred to a thousand or fifteen hundred 
 persons. Sometimes these large wooden barracks, or wards, 
 each of them, perhaps, from a hundred to a hundred and fifty 
 
64 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 feet long, are arranged in a straight row, evenly fronting the 
 street; others are planned so as to form an immense V; and 
 others again arranged around a hollow square. They make 
 all together a huge cluster. 
 
 III. Statement of effects. One of the strongest 
 ways of describing anything is by telling its effect 
 upon yourself or upon others. Instead of trying to 
 describe the beauty of Helen, Homer tells us of the 
 admiration and wonder the sight of her caused in 
 the old men at the gate of Troy. So, in the descrip- 
 tion of Mr. Hyde, quoted in Chapter II of this book, 
 the author makes us realize how horrible was the 
 man's appearance by telling how the very sight of 
 his deformity made the observer feel. 
 
 Always try, in describing anything, to make your 
 reader feel as you do. Bring yourself into your 
 descriptions, not so much, perhaps, by telling as by 
 suggesting what you think and feel in the presence 
 of your subject, and thus causing your reader to have 
 those thoughts and feelings too. This gives life to 
 what you write. If you are telling about a wretched 
 abandoned old house, your thoughts and feelings 
 would not be the same as if you were in a great 
 sunny field filled with flowers. Make the reader 
 share your own impressions. In this way you make 
 the description distinctly your own. Do not put 
 down just bare cold facts, but write with love of 
 your subject, write feelingly and personally, so that if 
 anybody reads what you write he may think and 
 feel as you did. 
 
MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 65 
 
 IV. Giving of sense-impressions. One particular 
 form of giving your own feelings is to mention or 
 indicate how the subject impresses your five senses. 
 Of course, in most descriptions we are obliged to 
 speak principally of sight-impressions ; but very 
 often there are odors and sounds to be mentioned 
 and described, and occasionally there are impressions 
 of touch and taste. It is extremely important to 
 suggest sense-impressions, for, the more you mention, 
 the more vivid and complete is the reader's idea of 
 the thing or scene described. 
 
 First let us think how many different impressions 
 we get only or chiefly through sight. When we 
 look at an object we see : 
 
 1. Its size, 
 
 2. Its shape and parts and position, 
 
 3. Its apparent texture or character, 
 
 4. Its movements, if any, 
 
 5. Its colors, and effects of light and shadow. 
 All these are valuable parts of the description of 
 
 any visible object or scene. The details regarding 
 colors may be particularly delightful, and should 
 always be given. 
 
 Add to the five sight-impressions these others : 
 
 6. Impressions of one's own bodily motions, 
 
 7. Of sounds, 
 
 8. Of touch, of pressure and weight, and of 
 temperature, 
 
 9. Of odors, 
 10. Of taste, 
 
 WRIT. IN ENO. 5 
 
66 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 and we have a wide range of impressions, whether 
 agreeable or disagreeable, which it is the describer's 
 business to convey or suggest, and which, when well 
 communicated, impart to a description a large element 
 of its merit and of its pleasure-giving qualities. 
 
 Exercise 33. Sense-impressions. In the following de- 
 scriptions, note (in writing} the sorts of impressions con- 
 veyed by the words or phrases in italics : 
 
 Description of a Landscape in France. (From Travels with a 
 Donkey, by Robert Louis Stevenson, p. 48.) 
 
 Pradelles stands on a hillside, high above the Allier, sur- 
 rounded by rich meadows. They were cutting aftermath on all 
 sides, which gave the neighborhood, this gusty autumn morning, 
 an untimely smell of hay. On the opposite bank of the Allier 
 the land kept mounting for miles to the horizon ; a tanned and 
 sallow autumn landscape, with black blots of fir wood and white 
 roads wandering through the hills. Over all this the clouds 
 shed a uniform and purplish shadow . . . throwing into 
 still higher relief the twisted ribbons of the highway. It was a 
 cheerless prospect, but one stimulating to a traveler. 
 
 Description of Amy Falconer. (From The Choir Invisible, 
 by James Lane Allen, p. 3. Copyright, 1897, by The 
 Macmillan Company.) 
 
 Her pink calico dress, newly starched and ironed, had looked 
 so pretty to her when she had started from home, that she had 
 not been able to bear the thought of wearing over it this lovely 
 afternoon her faded, much-stained riding-skirt; and it was so 
 short that it showed, resting against the saddle-skirt, her little 
 feet loosely fitted into new bronze morocco shoes. On her 
 hands she had drawn ivhite half-hand mittens of home-knit; and 
 on her head she wore an enormous white scoop bonnet, lined 
 with pinky and tied under her chin in a huge white muslin bow. 
 
MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 67 
 
 Her face, hidden away under the pink-and-white shadow, 
 showed such tints of pearl and rose that it seemed carved from 
 the inner surface of a seashell. Her eyes were gray, almond- 
 shaped,, rather ivide apart, with an expression changeful and 
 playful, but withal rather shrewd and hard ; her light brown 
 hair, as fine as unspun silk, was parted over her brow and 
 drawn simply back behind her ears ; and the lips of her little 
 mouth curved against each other, fresh, velvetlike, smiling. 
 
 On she rode down the avenue of the primeval woods ; and 
 Nature seemed arranged to salute her as some imperial pres- 
 ence; with the waving of a hundred green boughs above and 
 on each side ; with a hundred floating odors; with the/as/i and 
 rush of bright wings ; with the swift play of nimble forms up 
 and down the boles of trees ; and all the sweet confusion of 
 innumerable melodies. 
 
 Willowby Heath. (From Green Pastures and Piccadilly, by 
 William Black, Ch. II.) 
 
 This was Willowby Heath a vast stretch of sandy ground 
 covered by dark heather mostly, but showing here and there 
 brilliant masses of gorse and broom, and here and there a small 
 larch tree not over four feet in height, but gleaming with a 
 glimmer of green over the dark common. A couple of miles 
 away, on a Jcnoll, stood a ivindmitt, its great arms motionless. 
 Beyond that again the heath darkened as it rose to the hori- 
 zon, and ended in a black line of firs. 
 
 Exercise 34. Comparisons in descriptions. What com- 
 parisons cure stated or suggested in the three descriptions 
 just quoted? Write out a list, containing at least five. 
 
 Exercise 35. Description from picture. (a) Make an 
 outline for a description of the scene represented in the 
 picture on page 68. (b) Write the description, convey- 
 ing a sense of reality, as far as you can, by suggesting 
 comparisons and sense-impressions. 
 
MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 69 
 
 Exercise 36. Sense-impressions. Note, in a table or 
 list, the words in the following descriptions that men- 
 tion or suggest sense-impressions, and opposite each word 
 write the sort of sense-impression conveyed. 
 
 A Youthful Pioneer. (From The Choir Invisible, by James 
 Lane Allen, p. 14. Copyright, 1897, by The Macmillan 
 Company.) 
 
 One among them, larger and handsomer than the others, had 
 pleased his fancy by donning more nearly the Indian dress. 
 His breechclout was of dappled fawn skin; his long thigh- 
 boots of thin deerhide were open at the hips, leaving exposed 
 the clear whiteness of his flesh ; below the knees they were 
 ornamented by a scarlet fringe tipped with the hoofs of fawns 
 and the spurs of wild turkey ; and in his cap he wore the in- 
 tertwined wings of the hawk and the scarlet tanager. 
 
 A Scene in Southern Californ ia. (From A Summer in a Canon, 
 by Kate Douglas Wiggin, p. 20. Houghton, Mifflin, and 
 Company, by permission.) 
 
 The town is yet asleep, and in truth it is never apt to be 
 fairly wide awake. The air is soft and balmy ; the lovely Pacific, 
 a quivering, sparkling sheet of blue and gray and green flecked 
 with white foam, stretches far out until it is lost in the rosy 
 sky ; and the mountains, all purple and pink and faint crimson 
 and gray, stand like sentinels along the shore. The scent of 
 the roses, violets, and mignonette mingled with the cloying fra- 
 grance of the datura is heavy in the still air- The bending, 
 willowy pepper trees show myriad bunches of yellow blossoms, 
 crimson seed berries, and fresh green leaves, whose surface, not 
 rain-washed for months, is as full of color as ever. The 
 palm trees rise without a branch, tall, slender, and graceful, 
 from the warmly generous earth, and spread at last, as if tired 
 of their straightness, into beautiful crowns of fans, which sway 
 toward each other with every breath of air. Innumerable but- 
 terflies and humming birds, in the hot, dazzling sunshine of 
 
70 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 noonday, will be hovering over the beds of sweet purple helio- 
 trope and finding their way into the hearts of the passion 
 flowers, but as yet not the faintest whir of wings can be heard. 
 Looking eastward or westward, you see either brown foothills, 
 or, a little later on, emerald slopes whose vines hang heavy 
 with the half-ripened grapes. 
 
 The Circus CfirL (From Day Dreams, by Kenneth Gra- 
 
 hame, p. 105.) 
 
 & 
 I found myself seated actually in the circus at lastj and took 
 
 in the first sniff of that intoxicating circus smellthat will stay 
 by me while this clay endures. The place was beset by a hum 
 and a glitter and a mist; suspense brooded large o'er the 
 blank, mysterious arena. Strung up to the highest pitch of 
 expectation, we knew not from what quarter, in what divine 
 shape, the first surprise would come. 
 
 A thud of unseen hoofs first set us a-quiver ; then a crash of 
 cymbals, a jangle of bells, a hoarse applauding roar, and 
 Coralie was in the midst of us, whirling past 'twixt earth and 
 sky, now erect, flushed, radiant, now crouched to the flowing 
 mane; swung and tossed and molded by the maddening 
 dance music of the band. The mighty whip of the count in 
 the frock coat marked time with pistol shots; his war cry, 
 whooping clear above the music, fired the blood with a passion 
 for splendid deeds, as Coralie, laughing, exultant, crashed 
 through the paper hoops. We gripped the red cloth in front 
 of us, and our souls sped round and round with Coralie, leaping 
 with her, prone with her, swung by mane or tail with her. 
 It was not only the ravishment of her delirious feats, nor her 
 cream-colored horse of fairy breed, long-tailed, roe-footed, an 
 enchanted prince surely, if ever there was one ! It was her 
 more than mortal beauty that held us spellbound. What 
 princess had arms so dazzlingly white, or went delicately 
 clothed in such pink and spangles ? 
 
 But summers sicken, flowers fail and die, all beauty but 
 rides round the ring and out at the portal; even so Coralie 
 
MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 71 
 
 passed in her turn, poised sideways, panting, on her steed; 
 lightly swayed as a tulip bloom, bowing on this side and on 
 that as she disappeared. 
 
 Near Whales at Night. (From Two Years Before the Mast, 
 by E. H. Dana, Jr., p. 30.) 
 
 It was on the night that we passed between the Falkland 
 Islands and Staten Land. We had the watch from twelve to 
 four, and, coming upon deck, found the little brig lying perfectly 
 still, inclosed in a thick fog, and the sea as smooth as though 
 oil had been poured upon it ; yet now and then a long, low 
 swell rolling under its surface, slightly lifting the vessel, but 
 without breaking the glassy smoothness of the water. We 
 were surrounded far and near by shoals of sluggish whales and 
 grampuses, which the fog prevented our seeing, rising slowly 
 to the surface, or perhaps lying out at length, heaving out 
 those lazy, deep, and long-drawn breathings which give such 
 an impression of supineness and strength. Some of the 
 watch were asleep, and the others were quiet, so that there was 
 nothing to break the illusion, and I stood leaning over the bul- 
 warks, listening to the slow breathings of the mighty crea- 
 tures, now one breaking the water just alongside, whose 
 black body I almost fancied that I could see through the fog ; 
 and again another, which I could just hear in the distance, 
 'until the low and regular swell seemed like the heaving of the 
 ocean's mighty bosom to the sound of its own heavy and long- 
 drawn respirations. 
 
 A Drive in Missouri. (From Green Pastures and Piccadilly, by 
 William Black, Oh. XLIV.) 
 
 That drive up the bed of the Missouri we shall not soon for- 
 get. There was no made road at all, but only a worn track 
 through the dense vegetation of this swampy plain, while ever 
 and anon this track was barred across by ravines of rich, deep, 
 black, succulent mud. It was no unusual thing for us to see 
 first one horse and then its companion almost disappear into a 
 
72 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 hole, we looking down on them ; then there would be a fierce 
 struggle, a plunge on our part, and then we were looking up 
 at the horses, pawing the bank above us. How the springs 
 held out we could not understand. But occasionally, to avoid 
 these ruts, we made long detours through the adjacent prairie 
 land lying over the bluffs ; and certainly this was much pleas- 
 anter. We went through a wilderness of flowers, and the scent 
 of the trampled Mayweed filled all the air around us. ... The 
 sunflowers were higher than our animals' heads; they could 
 not possibly see where they were going; but, all the same, 
 they slowly ploughed their way through the forest of crackling 
 stems. . . . The air was thick with insect life, and vast clouds 
 of reedbirds rose, as we passed, from the sunflowers. There 
 was a red fire all over the west as we finally drove into the 
 valley of the Decatur. 
 
 Rubens's Painting, Samson and Delilah. (From George Eliot's 
 Letters, in her Life, by J. W. Cross.) 
 
 [I was] delighted afresh in the picture of " Samson and Deli- 
 lah," both for the painting and the character of the figures. 
 Delilah, a magnificent blonde, seated in a chair, with a trans- 
 parent white garment slightly covering her body, and a rich 
 red piece of drapery round her legs, leans forward, with one 
 hand resting on her thigh, the other, holding the cunning 
 shears, resting on the chair a posture which shows to perfec- 
 tion the full, round, living arms. She turns her head around 
 to look with sly triumph at Samson a tawny giant, his legs 
 caught in the red drapery, shorn of his long locks, furious with 
 the consciousness that the Philistines are upon him, and that 
 this time he cannot shake them off. Above the group of 
 malicious faces and grappling arms a hand holds a flaming 
 torch. Behind Delilah, and grasping her arm, leans forward 
 an old woman, with hard features full of exultation. 
 
 Exercise 37. Imitation of model. (a) Write, in imita- 
 tion of one of the descriptions given in Exercises 33 and 
 
MORE ABOUT DESCRIPTION 73 
 
 36, a description of some place in the country that you 
 remember very well, or of some scene in a park, or of a 
 garden, (ft) Give orally an imitation of another of the 
 descriptions given in the same exercises. 
 
 Exercise 38. Topics and topic sentences. - Write the 
 topics and the topic sentences of the paragraphs quoted 
 in Exercises 33 and 36. 
 
 Exercise 39. Outlining of paragraphs. Outline any 
 three of the paragraphs in Exercise 36. 
 
 Exercise 40. Paragraphs from summaries. (a) From 
 the following suggestions write descriptive paragraphs, 
 introducing sense-impressions. (See descriptions of simi- 
 lar subjects quoted previously.) (ft) Reproduce orally one 
 of your own descriptions. 
 
 (a) TJie Pasha's son. Age about eleven tall for his age 
 (form) face, eyes (colors) smile (impression made) he 
 made a graceful salutation, just as (comparison) voice (im- 
 pression made) manners. 
 
 (6) The home of a Russian serf. Supper ready (odors) 
 in one corner a picture of Mary and Jesus, the figures covered 
 with gilt (color) except the hands these blackened by smoke 
 of a tiny lamp (colors) fire burning (light and shadows) 
 boiled potatoes steaming in a big wooden bowl salt, plate of 
 melted fat, loaf of black bread no plates, knives, or forks 
 rough wooden spoons (form) all ate from the bowl (move- 
 ment; comparison) for drink, a thin and rather sour beer 
 (taste ; invent a comparison). 
 
 (c) The bay on a windy day. The water (color), furrowed 
 (comparison) the water flecked with foam (color, comparison) 
 bare, empty of vessels all the sails now huddled at the 
 wharves, like (comparison) the wind from off the water (effect 
 on sense of feeling ; odor). 
 
 (d) At night among the pines. I wakened thirsty drank 
 a tin of cold water (feeling and effect) stars clear (colors, 
 
74 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 comparison) Milky Way (color, form) all around me the 
 firpoints (color) stood upright and stock still my donkey 
 munching at the grass the only sound except that of the brook 
 (describe this sound) the colors in the sky/ 
 
 Exercise 41 . Original description. (a) Prepare an out- 
 line for a complete original description of a landscape, 
 a street scene, a picture, an audience, or a classroom. 
 
 (&) Write the description, introducing all the direct 
 sense-impressions you can. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 SENTENCE-FOKMS 
 
 WHILE it is of the first importance in our writing 
 that we shall have something to say, and shall know 
 how to arrange and present our paragraphs and their 
 contents, we should at no time lose sight of the great 
 need all writers have for skill in the formation of 
 sentences. In this chapter are to be studied the parts 
 or elements of sentences, the kinds of sentences, and 
 some of the transformations of which sentences are 
 capable. Now we must, through the patient practice 
 afforded by many exercises, acquire skill in thus 
 changing and manipulating sentences. Only in this 
 way may we be able to make and select the sentence- 
 form that is best suited to each case. Necessarily a 
 good deal of what follows is in the nature of a review 
 and application of English grammar. 
 
 I. Kinds of elements. In the study of grammar l 
 we learn that a sentence consists of two principal 
 parts, the subject (the word or words denoting that 
 about which something is said), and the predicate 
 (expressing what is said of the thing denoted by the 
 subject). The subject may be a word, a phrase, or a 
 clause ; and it may be modified by a word, a phrase, 
 
 1 See Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, Ch. V, p. 39. 
 
 75 
 
76 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 or a clause. The verb in the predicate may also be 
 modified by one or more words, phrases, or clauses. 
 (Remember that a clause always has in it a subject 
 and a predicate.) 
 
 A noun (or a noun expression), whether it be a 
 subject, an object, a predicate noun (sometimes called 
 attribute), or the noun part of a prepositional phrase, 
 may be modified by an adjective element. (For 
 example, the word " element " in the last sentence 
 belongs with the preposition " by," and is modified by 
 'an" and "adjective.") A verb may be modified 
 by one or more adverbial elements, and, if transitive, 
 may have one or more object elements. So we may 
 form this table of elements : 
 
 I. Principal elements 
 
 a. Subject 
 
 1. Word (a noun or a pronoun) 
 
 2. Phrase (usually an infinitive verb) 
 
 3. Clause 
 
 b. Predicate, always a verb, with or without com- 
 
 plements or modifiers 
 
 II. Subordinate elements 
 
 a. Predicate complement or attribute (of intran- 
 sitive verb) 
 
 1. Word 
 
 2. Phrase (an infinitive verb, or else a prepo- 
 
 sition with its object) 
 
 3. Clause 
 
SENTENCE-FORMS 77 
 
 6. Object complement (object of transitive verb) 
 
 1. Word 
 
 2. Phrase (usually an infinitive verb) 
 
 3. Clause 
 
 c. Adjective element 
 
 1. Word (including adjectives, nouns in appo- 
 
 sition, nouns or pronouns in the possess- 
 ive case) 
 
 2. Phrase (either an infinitive verb, or a prep- 
 
 osition with its object) 
 
 3. Clause (always introduced by a relative pro- 
 
 noun, or by a word like where, wherein, 
 etc., used as the equivalent of a preposi- 
 tion and a relative pronoun) 
 
 d. Adverbial element 
 
 1. Word 
 
 2. Phrase (infinitive or prepositional) 
 
 3. Clause (introduced by one of the subordi- 
 
 nating conjunctions; see page 85) 
 
 Exercise 42. Kinds of elements. In the above table 
 there are -five groups, each group containing three sub- 
 divisions. There are, therefore, fifteen forms of elements 
 to be known (not including the verb, which is found in 
 all sentences}. Write, in order, fifteen sentences, illus- 
 trating the fifteen forms of elements enumerated in the 
 table. Underline in each sentence the element you intend 
 as the example. 
 
 Exercise 43. Transformation of elements. In the follow- 
 ing sentences change the italicized words to phrases, 
 and the italicized phrases to words. In each case, after 
 
78 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 making the transformation, tell what kind of element 
 you have made, and tell what it modifies (unless it is a 
 principal element, a subject). 
 
 EXAMPLES : (a) That inaple CHANGED : That golden-leaved 
 
 tree with the golden leaves may maple tree may be seen afar. 
 be seen from a great distance. 
 
 (b) Seeing is believing. To see is to believe. 
 
 (c) He is a man of stern seventy. He is a stern and severe man. 
 
 I. The laws of nature are just. 2. Windsor Castle has long 
 been a residence of kings and queens. 3. He has done his work 
 with thoroughness. 4. " Happiness " is a stronger word than 
 " felicity." 5. The offer is certainly to be accepted. 6. Writing 
 about a man's life is not an easy form of literature. 7. Playing 
 quoits is a game of small merit. 8. His object was to secure 
 that money. 9. It is of no use to send him away. 10. What 
 is of more bitterness than seeing one's children ungrateful ? 
 
 II. Kinds of sentences. We further learn in the 
 study of grammar that sentences are simple, com- 
 pound, or complex. A simple sentence is a sentence 
 containing one subject and one predicate (but either 
 the subject or the predicate, or both, may be composed 
 of two or more parts of equal importance, as, two 
 noun subjects or two verbs ; there is then said to be 
 a " compound subject " or a " compound predicate "). 
 A simple sentence may be lengthened by the addi- 
 tion of modifiers ; but so long as these modifiers are 
 words or phrases, and not clauses, the sentences are 
 still simple sentences. 
 
 Exercise 44. Formation of simple sentences. If we 
 take apart a simple sentence like this: 
 
SENTENCE-FORMS 79 
 
 After a refreshing walk of about two miles we reached the 
 corner of a high stone wall running parallel with the road, 
 
 we get separate elements like these : 
 
 We had a refreshing walk. It was a walk of about two 
 miles. Then we reached the corner of a wall. It was a high 
 wall. It was of stone. It ran parallel with the road. 
 
 Each of the following groups of separate elements you 
 are to combine into a good simple sentence. Be sure that 
 you use in each sentence but one subject-element and one 
 verb-element (though the subject or the predicate may be 
 compound}. 
 
 Note. Other exercises of this sort are found in MaxwelPs 
 Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, p. 45. 
 
 1. He could scarcely sit still in the house. This was dur- 
 ing the first few days. He could scarcely take part in the 
 studies. Mr. Lome had chosen these studies for him. 
 
 2. It was a great triumph for his mother. . It was especially 
 a triumph for his sister. His sister was now a bright, bloom- 
 ing girl. She was sixteen years old. 
 
 3. He had a restless look. He had a rather unhappy look. 
 This was very different from the bright eyes and the pleasant 
 countenance of Otto. Otto was his best friend. 
 
 4. Old Gregor and his grandson were returning home. They 
 were coming through the forest. They had bundles of wood. 
 The old man was stooping low under the weight of the heavy 
 sticks. 
 
 5. He set out in a direction opposite from home. He was 
 armed with a club. He expected to find another bear. 
 
 A complex sentence is one that contains one or more 
 dependent or subordinate clauses, but only one princi- 
 pal clause. Any sentence that contains two or more 
 
80 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 principal clauses (no matter how many subordinate 
 clauses) is a compound sentence. 
 
 Exercise 45. Formation of easy complex sentences. 
 Form complex sentences from the following sets of simple 
 sentences, by using suitable connectives and jnahing 
 necessary contractions. 
 
 EXAMPLES : (a) I saw a boy start up and run after his cattle. 
 The last one of the cattle was entering the forest. 
 
 I saw a boy start up and run after his cattle, the last one of 
 which was entering the forest. 
 
 (6) The boy was singing. I came out of the thicket. 
 
 As I came out of the thicket, the boy was singing ; or, 
 
 While the boy was singing, I came out of the thicket. 
 
 Note. Similar exercises are to be found in Maxwell's Ad- 
 vanced Lessons in English Grammar, p. 48. 
 
 1. I seated myself in the shade. I wished to enjoy the view. 
 
 2. The first object attracting my attention was Otto. He 
 was knitting beside his herd of cows. This was his usual 
 occupation. 
 
 3. We stepped back a few paces. We sat down on the 
 ground. We desired to bring the box between us and the blue 
 sky. (Purpose.) 
 
 4. Other bees come. They quarrel with the first bees. (Use 
 a time clause.) 
 
 5. It was a hemlock tree. It stood in a niche in a wall of 
 rocks. These were hoary and moss-covered. They were thirty 
 feet high. 
 
 Exercise 46. Formation of compound sentences. Form 
 compound sentences from the following sets of simple 
 sentences, and tell which clauses are principal and which 
 subordinate. 
 
 EXAMPLE : To the southwest the soil is a tough clay. To 
 the northeast the gardens consist of a warm crumbling mold, 
 very fertile. 
 
SENTENCE-FORMS 81 
 
 To the southwest the soil is a tough clay, while to the north- 
 east the gardens consist of a warm crumbling mold, very fertile. 
 
 Note. Similar exercises are to be found in Maxwell's Ad- 
 vanced Lessons in English Grammar, p. 50. 
 
 1. Our wells, at an average, run to about sixty-three feet. 
 When sunk to that depth they seldom fail. 
 
 2. The north wind is blowing hard. It must be a cold day. 
 
 3. It was the first of May. Snow was falling. 
 
 4. His name was James. It may have been John. 
 
 5. He lay back in the steamer chair in his hall room. The 
 shadows began to lengthen a little. The long day drew nearer 
 to its end. 
 
 6. He roused himself. The hand organs had both gone 
 away. The child next door had ceased her piano practicing. 
 
 7. With an effort he raised himself. He saw a line of car- 
 riages on the other side of the street. They were moving 
 slowly toward the corner. 
 
 8. He was thinking about himself. He was thinking about 
 his hopes. They had been as bright as the sunshine of spring. 
 He was pondering over his bitter disappointment. 
 
 9. He saw the long shafts of level sunshine. They entered 
 his window. He took heart again. He recalled the great 
 things accomplished by one man. 
 
 10. The dogs were barking. Cattle bells were jangling in 
 the wooded pastures. The youth passed farmhouses. Lights 
 in the kitchen windows showed that the women were astir 
 about breakfast. He heard the sounds of voices and curry- 
 combs at the barn. The men were at their daily chores. 
 
 Most compound sentences may be changed into 
 complex sentences, and many complex sentences may 
 be changed into compound. But these changes make 
 some difference in the meaning, and therefore one or 
 the other sentence in every case is the better. Usually 
 the complex sentence is better than the compound, 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 6 
 
82 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 because there is generally but one principal idea or 
 statement in a sentence, and the other statements 
 should be put in the form of subordinate clauses, 
 participial modifiers, phrases, adjectives, or adverbs. 
 No exercises will be given in the transformation of 
 complex sentences into compound, but the opposite 
 transformation it is very important to understand. 
 
 Exercise 47. Transformation of compound sentences 
 into complex. Put all but one of the clauses in each 
 of the following sentences into the form of subordinate 
 clauses, so as to make complex sentences. Be very care- 
 ful to keep for the principal clause the statement which 
 you think is the most important in the sentence. 
 
 EXAMPLES : (a) He did wrong, and his father punished him. 
 
 Changed: His father punished him because he had done 
 wrong; or, As he had done wrong, his father punished him. 
 
 (6) You have only twenty marbles, and I have five more 
 than you. 
 
 Changed: If you have only twenty marbles, I have five 
 more than you. 
 
 1. The mercury dropped suddenly, and I knew a storm was 
 coming. 
 
 2. The horse felt the fly and shook himself at once. 
 
 3. He spoke always in a whisper, and this lent him an air 
 of mystery. 
 
 4. I needed all the money I could save, and I came most 
 of the way by canal boat. 
 
 5. " He'll teach him," said Mr. Lightly, and he laughed and 
 coughed. 
 
 6. They might open these letters, and I might be kept here 
 many years longer. 
 
 7. I promised to deliver both letters with my own hands, 
 and the man parted from me in more cheerful spirits. 
 
SENTENCE-FORMS 83 
 
 8. You sign this paper, or I sue you for the money. 
 
 9. I found the Pasha's house, but I was not admitted, be- 
 cause the Egyptian women are not allowed to receive the visits 
 of strangers. 
 
 10. I bring you this letter, and I promised your father I 
 would deliver it into your own hands. 
 
 Exercise 48. Transformation into simple sentences. 
 (a) Change the above compound sentences, or the com- 
 plex sentences into which you transform them, into 
 simple sentences. Observe that an adjective or adverbial 
 clause may in many instances be changed into a phrase 
 or even into a word element. Since this change secures 
 brevity and simplicity, it is often a good one to make. 
 But the more expanded form may sometimes be easier 
 to read and understand. 
 
 EXAMPLES of this kind of change : 
 
 a. The valleys which produce grass enough for the cattle 
 are generally scattered widely apart. 
 
 Changed to a simple sentence : The valleys producing grass 
 enough for the cattle are generally scattered widely apart. 
 
 b. In the front of the house, where the sun shone warmest, 
 he had laid out a little garden. 
 
 In front of the house, in the place warmed most by the sun, 
 he had laid out a little garden. 
 
 c. The farmer determined that he would not sell his corn. 
 The farmer determined not to sell his corn. 
 
 d. The storm did damage that could not be repaired. 
 The storm did irreparable damage. 
 
 (&) Change in similar ways the following to simple 
 sentences : 
 
 1. He was a man whose character was above reproach. 
 
 2. As nature had done so much for Athens, it is fortunate 
 that art did so much more. 
 
84 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 3. One day as I stood on a street corner in a great city, I 
 saw above the trucks and the traffic a line of bees that were- 
 carrying off sweets from some grocery. 
 
 4. He leapt from bed as the sun was rising. 
 
 5. After there had been some days of impatient expec- 
 tation, the king landed at Margate, which was then an im- 
 portant port. 
 
 6. It was a book that one could read with enjoyment. 
 
 7. When he saw the woman open the door, he dodged back 
 again behind the fence. 
 
 8. However differently the thirteen colonies may have been 
 founded or governed, they were all alike in some respects that 
 were very important. 
 
 9. The tumult was such that it could not be described. 
 
 10. Others were governed by the original proprietors or by 
 those who represented them. 
 
 11. Find single words for the following expressions : In a 
 high degree, it is possible that, with earnestness, for that 
 reason, a great amount of (unhappiness), through his whole 
 life. 
 
 One of the most serious troubles writers have in 
 making sentences is due to a failure to see what is 
 the principal idea, of which the others must be modi- 
 fiers. Nearly always when several sentences are 
 connected by "and/* one of the statements should 
 clearly be made the principal one. The others may 
 be subordinated to it by a proper use of conjunctions. 
 
 Learn to use complex sentences instead of compound. 
 
 . Now a skillful use of complex sentences is impos- 
 sible without a knowledge of the kinds and meanings 
 of the English conjunctions. 
 
SENTENCE-FORMS 85 
 
 Conjunctions may be classified as follows : 1 
 I. Coordinating conjunctions 
 
 a. Copulative or additive and, also, moreover, 
 likewise, both . . . and, not only . . . but 
 also 
 
 1. Adversative but, yet, still, however, while, 
 whereas, though, and yet, though . . . yet 
 
 c. Disjunctive or, else, or else, otherwise, either 
 
 ... or, neither . . . nor 
 
 d. Illative or consequential therefore, hence, 
 
 so, and so, so that, consequently, then, so 
 then, wherefore, accordingly 
 
 II. Subordinating conjunctions 
 
 e. Introductory that, whether, if 
 
 /. Causal because, since, as, for, inasmuch as, 
 whereas 
 
 g. Purposive that, in order that, so that, lest 
 
 h. Concessive though, although, even if, inas- 
 much as, notwithstanding 
 
 i. Conditional if, provided, supposing that, un- 
 less 
 
 j. Adverbial when, how, where, as, why, 
 whither, as if, while 
 
 k. Comparative than, as 
 
 1 Compare Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, pp. 202, 
 203. 
 
86 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 To these, for the present purpose, may be added a 
 class of words that serve both as pronouns and as 
 connectives : 
 
 1. Relative pronouns which, who, that, as, 
 what ; whichever, whoso, etc. Certain 
 conjunctive adverbs, as where, wherein, 
 whereto, where-at, -on, -upon, -by, etc., are 
 frequently used as equivalent to a prepo- 
 sition and a relative pronoun, and intro- 
 duce adjective clauses. 
 
 The correct use of any of the subordinating con- 
 junctions makes a complex sentence, while the 
 coordinating conjunctions, when used to connect 
 clauses, form compound sentences. (See Maxwell's 
 Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, section 465.) 
 
 Exercise 49. Formation of complex and of compound 
 sentences. Combine each of the following groups of sim- 
 ple sentences into (a) a compound sentence, (&) a complex 
 sentence, (c) Whenever it is possible, change the result- 
 ing sentence into a simple sentence. 
 
 Mark with a star which of the three sentences, (a), 
 (&), or (c\ you think to be the best one, and be prepared 
 to tell why. 
 
 In making change (&) the letter placed after each 
 group of simple sentences refers you to the table of con- 
 junctions just given and suggests what relation between 
 the clauses is to be expressed. 
 
 EXAMPLE : I came home at seven o'clock. My brother had 
 already returned. 
 
SENTENCE-FORMS 87 
 
 Changed (a) to a compound sentence: I came home at 
 seven o'clock and my brother had already returned. 
 
 (6) to a complex sentence : When I came home at 
 
 seven o'clock my brother had already returned (time clause used). 
 
 (c) to a simple sentence: By the hour of my 
 
 coming home, seven o'clock, my brother had already returned. 
 
 Here, of course, the complex sentence is best, since it ex- 
 presses most clearly and briefly the true relation between the 
 two statements given to be combined. The compound sentence 
 (a) is a distinctly bad sentence. 
 
 1. The piece of quartz was pure white. My father gave it 
 to me. (I) 
 
 2. Marion looked at his sister. He nodded, (j) 
 
 3. This has been one of the warmest days of the summer. 
 Of that there can be no doubt, (e) 
 
 4. The winter was now coming on. I had to complete my 
 house very rapidly. (/) 
 
 5. He determined to make the visit. He had to borrow 
 money to pay his way. (h) 
 
 6. Goldsmith was not well supplied with money. Johnson 
 had no more, (k) 
 
 7. I stayed out under the tree a quarter of an hour longer. 
 I knew I should get wet. (i) 
 
 8. They wrap the trunk and boughs in woolen cloth. The 
 severity of the winter might kill the tree, (g, d) 
 
 9. They came at length to the very top of the hill. They 
 had a fine prospect of the surrounding country. (7) 
 
 10. I made haste to scramble to my feet. I could see who 
 the newcomer was. (/, g, d) 
 
 Skill in making the various kinds of transforma- 
 tions or substitutions that have now been spoken of, 
 and skill in making and selecting the three kinds of 
 sentences, will do something toward giving one's 
 writing ease and variety in form of expression. A 
 
88 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 good deal of practice in these substitutions and in 
 sentence formation is necessary to the making of a 
 good writer. The ignorant or unskillful writer writes 
 tiresome and monotonous sentences, mostly com- 
 pound, or else very short, simple sentences. Learn 
 to say much in simple sentences by using modifiers ; 
 and learn to write complex sentences easily. Study 
 the table of conjunctions, and use the different kinds 
 as they are required, so that you will not overwork 
 the conjunction " and." (See pages 54-56.) 
 
 Exercise 50. Combination of short statements into good 
 paragraphs. 
 
 EXAMPLE OF SHORT SENTENCES TO BE COMBINED: 
 Washington was elected general of the army. He was at 
 this time forty-three years of age. In stature he a little ex- 
 ceeded six feet. His limbs were sinewy and well proportioned. 
 His chest was broad. His figure was stately. It had dignity of 
 presence. It had ease of manner. His constitution was robust. 
 It had been tried and invigorated by his early life in the wilder- 
 ness. It had been tried and invigorated by his habit of oc- 
 cupation out of doors. Also by his rigid temperance. In 
 consequence of these facts few equaled him in strength of 
 arm. Few equaled him in power of endurance. His com- 
 plexion was florid. His hair was dark brown. His head was 
 in its shape perfectly round. . . . His eyes were dark blue. 
 They were deeply set. They had an expression of resigna- 
 tion. They had an earnestness that was almost sad. 
 
 EXAMPLE OF COMBINATION : 
 (Description of the appearance of George Washington.) 
 
 When Washington was elected general of the army he was 
 forty-three years of age. In stature he a little exceeded six 
 feet ; his limbs were sinewy and well proportioned ; his chest 
 
SENTENCE-FORMS 89 
 
 broad, his figure stately, blending dignity of presence with ease 
 of manner. His robust constitution had been tried and in- 
 vigorated by his early life in the wilderness, his habit of 
 occupation out of doors, and his rigid temperance ; so that few 
 equaled him in strength of arm or power of endurance. His 
 complexion was florid, his hair dark brown, his head in its 
 shape perfectly round. . . . His dark blue eyes, which were 
 deeply set, had an expression of resignation and earnestness that 
 was almost sad. GEORGE BANCROFT. 
 
 Combine the following, sentences into well-written 
 paragraphs, making the proper headings and under- 
 scoring the topic sentences: 
 
 (a) I had my own little sled. It was filled with hay, 
 It was covered with reindeer skins. These things were to 
 keep me warm. So long as the weather was not too cold, it 
 was very pleasant to speed along. I sped through the dark 
 forests. I sped over the frozen rivers. Or I went past farm 
 after farm in the sheltered valleys. I went up hill and down. 
 I rode until long after the stars came out. It was very pleas- 
 ant then to get a warm supper. 
 
 (6) When Sir Roger is diverting himself in the woods or 
 the fields, I have a companion at the house. He is a venerable 
 man. He is always at Sir Roger's. He has lived at his 
 house over thirty years. He is Sir Roger's chaplain. This 
 gentleman is a person of good sense. He is a man of some 
 learning. He lives a very regular life. His conversation is 
 obliging. He heartily loves Sir Roger. He knows he is very 
 much in Sir Roger's esteem. 
 
 (c) On the other side of the high town the houses stand 
 closer. Yet they leave the same space for^a little walk. This 
 walk is shaded by sycamores. From it one looks down on the 
 whole southern reach of the lake. The lake opens wide to the 
 horizon. It is edged there like the sea. But in the summer 
 sunshine it looks like a well of blue. This well of blue looks 
 as if it was what the sunbeams drank to make the sky of. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 NARRATION 
 
 ONE who writes an account of the real or imagi- 
 nary events or happenings which a narrative con- 
 tains, must have in mind two points : 
 
 First, these events or happenings must in some 
 way be connected, that is, they must all be thought 
 of either as having chiefly to do with some one per- 
 son, or as having occurred at certain places, or as 
 relating to some one idea or plan. 
 
 Second, these events or happenings must be told 
 in some intended order, which should be definitely 
 thought out beforehand by the writer. 
 
 Both these points (unity and plan) are what we 
 must chiefly keep in view when we study the out- 
 lining of a narrative. Let us bear in mind that out- 
 lining always means grouping, that is, getting the 
 minor points in a composition arranged under head- 
 ings. We can grasp and carry in mind a small 
 number of headings or main topics much better than 
 we can a large number of coordinate minor topics. 
 In addition to the advantages of plan, unity, and 
 completeness, this is another reason why it is helpful 
 to make outlines. It is like putting twenty or thirty 
 
 90 
 
NARRATION 91 
 
 small packages into two or three baskets ; in that 
 way they are much more easily carried. 
 
 Now, how can we find headings under which to 
 group the minor events of a narrative ? Suppose 
 there are thirty events or happenings to be told, how 
 can they be grouped ? There are three principal 
 sorts of head topics under which the events of a story 
 may be grouped : 
 
 1. Periods, 
 
 2. Places, 
 
 3. Chief events. 
 
 We may divide the whole narrative into' sections 
 or periods of time. Thus the events of Longfellow's 
 life may be grouped under these headings : (a) Period 
 of childhood and education, 1807-1825. (b) Period 
 of early travel in Europe, 1825-1829. (c) Period of 
 professorship at Bowdoin, 1829-1835. (d) Period of 
 professorship at Cambridge, 1835-1882. In out- 
 lining a man's life l by periods, do not use common- 
 place headings, which might be used for any man's 
 life, such as " boyhood," " manhood," " old age." 
 After the words " period of " put, in each case, words 
 showing the character of the period in that particular 
 narrative. To illustrate the method of periods from 
 a work of fiction, the events of the story of Evan- 
 
 1 In outlining the life of a man we may use (as one form of division 
 by periods) the man's successive occupations. Thus, to illustrate from 
 Milton's life we might use the headings : (a) Milton's life as schoolboy 
 and college youth, 1608-1632. (6) His earlier life as poet, 1632-1641. 
 (c) His life as political writer and essayist, 1641-1660. (d) His life as 
 writer of epic poems, 1660-1674. 
 
92 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 geline may be grouped under : (a) Period of love. 
 (b) Period of hope and search, (c) Period of despair. 
 Or, the story of Rip Van Winkle may be divided 
 into : (a) Period of idleness, (b) Period of sojourn 
 in the mountains, (c) Period of renewed life in the 
 village. 
 
 Exercise 51. Outlining by periods. Read carefully 
 the following summary of the life of Lincoln, then out- 
 line it, using periods for main headings : 
 
 Abraham Lincolu born in Hardin County, Kentucky, 1809 
 when Lincoln was eight, his father moved to Indiana 
 region then a wilderness schools very rare boy grew up 
 in pioneer life learned to read, write, and cipher at nine- 
 teen Lincoln went on a flatboat to New Orleans as a hired 
 hand in 1830 family moved to Macon County, Illinois 
 Lincoln hired out as a hand and later as a clerk in a country 
 store borrowed a grammar and other books volunteered 
 in the Black Hawk Indian War studied surveying 1834 
 elected to state legislature studied law reflected several 
 times practiced law married 1842 elected one term to 
 Congress 1846 made many antislavery speeches from 1854 
 on 1860 nominated and elected for the presidency directed 
 the movements of the war issued Emancipation Proclama- 
 tion 1863 reflected as President witnessed end of war 
 assassinated, 1865, by Wilkes Booth. 
 
 Exercise 52. Writing from outline. Using your out- 
 line of the above summary, (a) tell orally, in complete 
 sentences, the life of Lincoln; (&) write a brief life of 
 Lincoln, paragraphing with care, and introducing all 
 the particulars given. 
 
 In outlining by places, which is not always pos- 
 sible, we have to group merely according to the 
 
NARRATION 93 
 
 chief scenes of the events. Thus, in outlining the 
 life of Longfellow, we might use these headings : 
 
 (a) Life in Maine, (b) In Europe, (c) At Bow- 
 doin College, (d) At Cambridge, Massachusetts. 
 
 The life of Shakspere is easily outlined by places : 
 
 (a) Life in Stratford, 1564-1586. (b) In London, 
 1586-1611. (c) Last years at Stratford, 1611-1616. 
 
 Or, in outlining Shakspere' s play, The Merchant 
 of Venice (see Lamb's Tales from Shakspere for the 
 story, which may well be used as a reading lesson), 
 we might group the events under : 
 
 (a) In Venice (the bond given ; Jessica's elope- 
 ment), (b) At Belmont (the three suitors and the 
 caskets ; the news of Antonio's losses), (c) . In the 
 Court of Justice, Venice (Shylock punished), (d) 
 Closing scenes at Belmont. 
 
 Exercise 53. Outlining a narrative by places. Group 
 the minor incidents in the following story under head- 
 ings that indicate places. After the outline is made, 
 reproduce the story orally, following the outline. 
 
 JOHN GILPIN'S RIDE 
 
 John Gilpin was a citizen of credit and renown ; 
 
 A train-band captain eke was he of famous London town. 
 
 John Gilpin's spouse said to her dear, " Though wedded we 
 
 have been 
 These twice ten tedious years, yet we no holiday have seen. 
 
 " To-morrow is our wedding day, and we will then repair 
 Unto the Bell at Edmonton, all in a chaise and pair. 
 My sister and my sister's child, myself and children three, 
 Will fill the chaise ; so you must ride on horseback after we." 
 
94 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 He soon replied, " I do admire of womankind but one, 
 And you are she, my dearest dear, therefore it shall be done. 
 I am a linen draper bold, as all the world doth know ; 
 And my good friend the calender will lend his horse to go." 
 
 Quoth Mrs. Gil pin, " That's well said ; and, for that wine is dear, 
 We will be furnished with our own, which is both bright and 
 
 clear." 
 
 John Gilpin kissed his loving wife ; o'erjoyed was he to find 
 That, though on pleasure she was bent, she had a frugal mind. 
 
 The morning came, the chaise was brought, but yet was not 
 
 allowed 
 
 To drive up to the door, lest all should say that she was proud. 
 So three doors off the chaise was stayed, where they did all get 
 
 in; 
 Six precious souls, and all agog to dash through thick and 
 
 thin. 
 
 Smack went the whip, round went the wheels ; were never folks 
 
 so glad ; 
 
 The stones did rattle underneath, as if Cheapside were mad. 
 John Gilpin at his horse's side seized fast the flowing mane, 
 And up he got, in haste to ride, but soon came down again. 
 
 For saddle-tree scarce reached had he, his journey to begin, 
 When, turning round his head, he saw three customers come in. 
 So down he came ; for loss of time, although it grieved him sore, 
 Yet loss of pence, full well he knew, would trouble him much 
 more. 
 
 'Twas long before the customers were suited to their mind, 
 When Betty, screaming, came down stairs, "The wine is left 
 
 behind ! " 
 " Good lack ! " quoth he ; " yet bring it me, my leathern belt 
 
 likewise, 
 In which I bear my trusty sword when I do exercise." 
 
NARRATION 95 
 
 Now Mrs. Gilpin (careful soul !) had two stone bottles found, 
 To hold the liquor that she loved, and keep it safe and sound. 
 Each bottle had a curling ear, through which the belt he drew, 
 And hung a bottle on each side, to make his balance true. 
 
 Then over all, that he might be equipped from top to toe, 
 
 His long red cloak, well brushed and neat, he manfully did 
 
 throw. 
 
 Now see him mounted once again upon his nimble steed, 
 Full slowly pacing o'er the stones with caution and good heed. 
 
 But finding soon a smoother road beneath his well-shod feet, 
 The snorting beast began to trot, which galled him in his seat. 
 So, "Fair and softly," John he cried, but John he cried in 
 
 vain; 
 The trot became a gallop soon, in spite of curb and rein. 
 
 So, stooping down, as needs he must, who cannot sit upright, 
 He grasped the mane with both his hands, and eke with all his 
 
 might. 
 
 His horse, which never in that sort had handled been before, 
 What thing upon his back had got did wonder more and more. 
 
 Away went Gilpin, neck or naught ; away went hat and wig ; 
 He little dreamed when he set out of running such a rig. 
 The wind did blow, the cloak did fly like streamer long and 
 
 gay, 
 
 Till, loop and button failing both, at last it flew away. 
 >. 
 
 Then might all people well discern the bottles he had slung ; 
 A bottle swinging at each side, as hath been said or sung. 
 The dogs did bark, the children screamed, up flew the windows 
 
 all, 
 And every soul cried out, " Well done ! " as loud as he could 
 
 bawl. 
 
96 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Away went Gilpin, who but he ! his fame soon spread around ; 
 "He carries weight! He rides a race! 'Tis for a thousand 
 
 pound ! " 
 
 And still, as fast as he drew near, 'twas wonderful to view 
 How in a trice the turnpike men their gates wide open threw. 
 
 And now, as he went bowing down his reeking head full low, 
 The bottles twain, behind his back, were shattered at a blow. 
 Down ran the wine into the road, most piteous to be seen, 
 Which made his horse's flanks to smoke as they had basted 
 been. 
 
 Bat still he seemed to carry weight, with leathern girdle braced, 
 For all might see the bottle necks still dangling at his waist. 
 Thus all through merry Islington these gambols he did play, 
 And till he came unto the Wash of Edmonton so gay. 
 
 And there he threw the wash about on both sides of the way. 
 Just like unto a trundling mop, or a wild goose at play. 
 At Edmonton his loving wife from the balcony spied 
 Her tender husband, wondering much to see how he did ride. 
 
 " Stop, stop, John Gilpin ! Here's the house ! " they all at once 
 
 did cry ; 
 
 " The dinner waits, and we are tired ! " Said Gilpin, " So am I ! " 
 But yet his horse was not a whit inclined to tarry there ; 
 For why ? his owner had a house, full ten miles off, at Ware. 
 
 So like an arrow swift he flew, shot by an archer strong ; 
 So did he fly which brings me to the middle of my song. 
 Away went Gilpin, out of breath, and sore against his will, 
 Till at his friend the calender's his horse at last stood still. 
 
 The calender, amazed to see his neighbor in such trim, 
 Laid down his pipe, flew to the gate, and thus accosted him : 
 "What news? what news? your tidings tell; tell me you 
 
 must and shall ; 
 Say why bareheaded you are come, or why you come at all ? " 
 
NARRATION 97 
 
 Now Gilpiu had a pleasant wit, and loved a timely joke ; 
 And thus unto the calender in merry guise he spoke : 
 "I came because your horse would come: and, if I well fore- 
 bode, 
 My hat and wig will soon be here, they are upon the road." 
 
 The calender, right glad to find his friend in merry pin, 
 Returned him not a single word, but to the house went in ; 
 Whence straight he came with hat and wig a wig that flowed 
 
 behind, 
 A hat not much the worse for wear, each comely in its kind. 
 
 He held them up, and in his turn thus showed his ready wit, 
 " My head is twice as big as yours ; they therefore needs must 
 
 fit. 
 
 But let me scrape the dirt away that hangs upon your face ; 
 And stop and eat, for well you may be in a hungry case." 
 
 Said John, " It is my wedding day, and all the world would 
 
 stare 
 
 If wife should dine at Edmonton and I should dine at Ware." 
 So, turning to his horse he said, " I am in haste to dine : 
 'Twas for your pleasure you came here, you shall go back for 
 
 mine." 
 
 Ah, luckless speech and bootless boast ! for which he paid full 
 
 dear ; 
 For, while he spoke, a braying ass did sing most loud and 
 
 clear ; 
 
 Whereat his horse did snort, as he had heard a lion roar, 
 And galloped off with all his might, as he had done before. 
 
 Away went Gilpin, and away went Gilpin's hat and wig : 
 
 He lost them sooner than the first ; for why ? they were 
 
 too big. 
 
 Now Mrs. Gilpin, when she saw her husband posting down 
 Into the country far away, she pulled out half a crown ; 
 
 WRIT. IN KN<;. 7 
 
98 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 And thus unto the youth she said, that drove them to the Bell, 
 " This shall be yours, when you bring back my husband safe 
 
 and well." 
 The youth did ride, and soon did meet John coming back 
 
 amain, 
 Whom in a trice he tried to stop, by catching at his rein ; 
 
 But not performing what he meant, and gladly would have 
 
 done, 
 The frightened steed he frightened more, and made him faster 
 
 run. 
 
 Away went Gilpin, and away went postboy at his heels ; 
 The postboy's horse right glad to miss the lumbering of the 
 
 wheels. 
 
 Six gentlemen upon the road thus seeing Gilpin fly, 
 
 With postboy scampering in the rear, they raised the hue and 
 
 cry : 
 "Stop thief! stop thief! a highwayman!" not one of 
 
 them was mute, 
 And all and each that passed that way did join in the pursuit. 
 
 And now the turnpike gates again flew open in short space, 
 The tollmen thinking as before that Gilpin rode a race. 
 And so he did, and won it too, for he got first to town, 
 Nor stopped till where he had got up he did again get down. 
 
 Now let us sing, " Long live the king," and Gilpin, long live 
 
 he, 
 And when he next doth ride abroad may I be there to see. 
 
 WILLIAM COWPER. 
 
 Finally, in outlining by chief events, we select for 
 headings those few turning points in the narrative, 
 on which many minor events and details hinge or 
 
NARRATION 99 
 
 depend. Thus, to outline the life of Franklin (1706- 
 1790), we might use the headings: 
 
 (a) Franklin learns printing in Boston, 1718. (b) 
 He goes to Philadelphia, 1723. (c) Publishes the 
 first Poor Richard's Almanac, 1732. (d) Goes to 
 London as colonial representative, 1757. (e) Is 
 chosen an American representative to Paris, 1776. 
 
 Or, to outline a narrative poem by chief events, 
 we may take for illustration Paul Revere s Hide 
 (see Longfellow's Tales of a Wayside Inn) : 
 
 I. Introduction the subject of the tale 
 
 II. Body of the narrative 
 
 (a) Paul Revere arranges to be signaled from the 
 
 church tower 
 
 1. Signals are agreed upon 
 
 2. Revere sets out 
 
 3. His friend learns of the intended march 
 
 of the British 
 
 (b) The friend climbs the tower 
 
 1. Sees from there the British troops set- 
 
 ting forth 
 
 2. Revere waits impatiently in Charlestown 
 
 3. The signal is given 
 
 (c) The ride begins 
 
 1. He reaches Medford 
 
 2. He passes through Lexington 
 
 3. He arouses Concord 
 
 III. Conclusion the results of that ride 
 
100 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Caution must be taken, in using this last method, 
 that each head topic is an event or occurrence. Do 
 not fall into the error of mingling in one outline two 
 or all of the three methods we are considering 
 (periods, places, chief events). Keep the three 
 entirely distinct. Decide which method you purpose 
 using in an outline, and then keep to it strictly. 
 Also in using any method state all your main topics 
 in a similar form, whether that of brief sentences, or 
 that of nouns with modifiers. 
 
 Exercise 54. Outlining of narrative poems. (a) Out- 
 line in a similar way at least two of the following 
 poems either by " chief events " or by "periods " ; (&) then 
 tell or write the stories, using your outlines as guides : 
 
 King Robert of Sicily . . H. W. Longfellow 
 
 The Skeleton in Armor . . H. W. Longfellow 
 
 The Bell of Atri . . H. W. Longfellow 
 
 The Ballad of Carmilhan . H. W. Longfellow 
 
 The Falcon of Ser Federigo . H. W. Longfellow 
 
 The Vision of Sir Launfal . J. R. Lowell 
 
 (For this purpose omit the preludes.) 
 
 Herve Riel . . Robert Browning 
 
 The Pied Piper of Hamelin . Robert Browning 
 
 Maud Muller . . J. G. Whittier 
 
 The Garrison of Cape Ann . J. G. Whittier . 
 
 Horatius at the Bridge . . T. B. Macaulay 
 
 Alice Brand . . Sir Walter Scott 
 
 Lady Clare . . A. Tennyson 
 
 The Passing of Arthur . . A. Tennyson 
 
 Dora . . A. Tennyson 
 
 Lord Ullin's Daughter . . T. Campbell 
 
 Bishop Hatto . . R. Southey 
 
 The Prisoner of Chillon . . Lord Byron 
 
NARRATION 101 
 
 Sir Patrick Spens . . Old ballad 
 
 Sir Hugh (Hugh of Lincoln) . Old ballad 
 Bewick and Grahame . . Old ballad 
 (See the title Ballads, in Appendix V.) 
 
 Exercise 55. Outline some prose story you have read 
 lately, by " periods " and then by " chief events," in each 
 case putting in the minor events; then compare the two 
 outlines and decide which is preferable for that story. 
 
 Using your outline as a guide, reproduce, orally or in 
 writing, the story. 
 
 Stories suitable for use in this exercise may be found in such 
 books as the following : 
 
 A Wonder Book . . Nath. Hawthorne 
 
 Twice-Told Tales . . Nath. Hawthorne 
 
 The Age of Fable . . Thomas Bulfinch 
 
 Tales from Shakspere . . Charles and Mary Lamb 
 
 Tales of a Traveler . . Washington Irving 
 
 Christmas Stories . . Charles Dickens 
 
 In Ole Virginia . . Thomas N. Page 
 
 Main Traveled Koads . . Hamlin Garland 
 
 Van Bibber and Other Stories Richard H. Davis 
 
 Exercise 56. Outlining a biography. Outline the life 
 of some American by (< places," or by " chief events," intro- 
 ducing the more important details of his life as subtopics. 
 
 Construction of narratives. When we write a nar- 
 rative, there are four sorts of reasons why our readers 
 may be interested : (a) The events themselves, and 
 the order in which they are told, in other words, what 
 we call the story or plot, may be a source of interest ; 
 (b) The characters of the persons in the narrative 
 may be interesting ; (c) The scene or scenes of the 
 
1-0-2 .W.RTJtNG IN ENGLISH 
 
 events (what may be called the background or setting 
 of the principal figures and events) may be interest- 
 ing ; and (d) In the works of able and excellent 
 writers, the style of the writing, that is, the language 
 used, and the personal qualities of the writer as 
 shown in what he says, should be no small source of 
 interest and pleasure. To repeat, then, good nar- 
 ratives are enjoyed on account of : 
 
 1. The style: 
 
 The language used may be clear, smooth, and 
 musical, equal to all demands upon it for the expres- 
 sion and suggestion of emotions. 
 
 The writing may contain wit, humor, sympathy, 
 pathos, wisdom, acuteness. 
 
 2. The scenes or setting : 
 
 Which may be interesting because of familiarity, 
 or of strangeness ; of beauty, or of sadness and horror. 
 
 3. The characters, which may be interesting be- 
 cause they are : 
 
 Made to seem lifelike, 
 
 Shown as resourceful, heroic, and admirable, 
 Shown as contemptible, or unfortunate, or 
 Made comical or entertaining. 
 
 4. The plot or story, which may be interesting be- 
 cause of : 
 
 The strangeness or extraordinariness of the events, 
 The element of mystery, 
 
NARRATION 103 
 
 Our natural sympathy with characters placed in 
 the particular situation described, in which they have 
 difficulties to overcome and ends to accomplish, or, 
 
 The working out of some plan or idea. 
 
 As far as the plot alone is concerned, it may be 
 said that the element of mystery is what chiefly in- 
 terests us in ghost stories and in detective stories ; 
 the element of strangeness or remarkableness, in 
 adventure stories, stories of travel, or comic stories ; 
 and the elements of natural sympathy and curiosity, in 
 stories of difficulties overcome or of success achieved, 
 as in stories of undertakings, or of events that work 
 out definite consequences. 
 
 In reading a work of fiction, we should think 
 about all four of the sources of interest given in the 
 table above. By so doing we not only shall get much 
 more enjoyment out of what we read, but shall become 
 able to form intelligent opinions of books and able to 
 give reasons for liking them or disliking them, in 
 whole or in part. 
 
 Exercise 57. Study of interest. Using the above out- 
 line, think carefully over some story you are familiar 
 with, chosen by yourself or by the teacher, and write 
 clown the reasons for its being interesting to you. 
 (.Z) Under the head of style, write ivhether the book or 
 story has, in your opinion, any of the qualities named 
 in the outline. (2~) State what the setting or background 
 of the events is, and for what reasons it is interesting. 
 (3} State which of the characters are interesting, and 
 why. (4) State for what reasons, given in the table 
 above, the plot is interesting. 
 
104 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 58. Study of interest. Write a list of five 
 narratives or stories (in prose or verse) which you have 
 read, and under the name of each write the reason or 
 reasons ivhy the plot is interesting, ivhy one of the char- 
 acters is interesting, and why the setting or scene is 
 interesting. 
 
 Exercise 59. Narration from picture. Think out a 
 story suggested by the picture on page 105, make an 
 outline, and write the story, seeking to make it inter- 
 esting by reason of the scenes, tlw characters, and the 
 events. 
 
 Brief narratives or anecdotes are usually interest- 
 ing because of the nature of the events, or because 
 of some point they illustrate, whether comical or 
 serious. But even in these the interestingness of 
 characters and of scenes should not be lost sight of. 
 
 Exercise 60. Anecdotes. Bring to class two anecdotes, 
 or interesting brief narratives, found by you in a news- 
 paper or elseiuhere. (a) Write down, referring to the out- 
 line we have been studying, the reasons for the selection's 
 being interesting. (&) Tell the anecdotes orally. 
 
 Exercise 61. Anecdotes and historical sketches from 
 summaries. 
 
 MODELS FOR STUDY 
 
 (a) The Sphinx. (From The Age of Fable, by Thomas 
 Bulfinch.) 
 
 Shortly after this event, the city of Thebes was afflicted 
 with a monster which infested the highroad. It was called 
 the Sphinx. It had the body of a lion, and the upper part of 
 a woman. It lay crouched on the top of a rock, and arrested 
 all travelers who came that way, proposing to them a riddle, 
 
106 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 with the condition that those who could solve it should pass 
 safe, but those who failed should be killed. Not one had yet 
 succeeded in solving it, and all had been slain. CEdipus was 
 not daunted by these alarming accounts, but boldly advanced 
 to the trial. The Sphinx asked him, "What animal is that 
 which in the morning goes on four feet, at noon on two, and in 
 the evening upon three ? " QMipus replied, " Man, who in 
 childhood creeps on hands and knees, in manhood walks erect, 
 and in old age with the aid of a staff." The Sphinx was so 
 mortified at the solving of her riddle that she cast herself 
 down from the rock and perished. 
 
 (6) Perry's Victory. (From Eggleston's History of the United 
 States.) 
 
 A little fleet was launched on Lake Erie in 1813, and its 
 officers and men were anxious to rival the glory of the American 
 ships at sea. In the battle of Lake Erie, fought this year, 
 Commodore Perry hung up for his signal, " Don't give up the 
 ship ! " the dying words of Lawrence. When his flagship was 
 riddled and disabled by the enemy, he got into a small boat and 
 was rowed to another vessel, standing upright while the enemy 
 was raining shot about him. Reaching the ship Niagara, he 
 sailed down on the British line and broke it, and at length 
 compelled the whole fleet to surrender. At the close of the 
 battle, Perry wrote to General Harrison, "We have met the 
 enemy, and they are ours." 
 
 Write out or tell orally the stories suggested in these 
 sum/maries, seeking to interest your readers, not only by 
 the nature of the incidents, but also by the characters of 
 the personages, and by the description of an attractive or 
 unusual scene or setting : 
 
 (a) Legend of William Tell. The Swiss ordered to toss 
 their caps in the air at sight of Gessler, the Austrian Tell 
 refuses is arrested is found to be renowned as a skillful 
 
NARRATION 107 
 
 archer is made by Gessler to shoot at an apple which is 
 placed on the head of Tell's son the arrow pierces the apple 
 
 Tell is found to have concealed other arrows under his 
 coat " To kill thee, tyrant, had I slain my boy ! " 
 
 (6) The bundle of sticks. Quarreling brothers father can- 
 not make them friendly has sons try to break bundle of 
 sticks both fail then bundle is undone the separate 
 sticks are easily broken quarrelsome brothers are like sepa- 
 rated sticks in union there is strength. 
 
 (c) Tlie hare and the tortoise. The hare makes fun of the 
 tortoise's slowness the tortoise offers to race the hare the 
 tortoise starts off the hare laughs at the idea of such an 
 easy race decides to take a nap when he awakes the tor- 
 toise has reached the goal. 
 
 (d) A retort. Samuel Foote had a wooden leg a person 
 one day amused himself by remarking on this limb Foote 
 became annoyed at last he said, "Why do you attack me 
 on my weakest part? I never said anything against your 
 head!" 
 
 (e) The, Pilgrims. They move from England to Holland 
 decide to come to America prepare to depart ship, the 
 Mayflower the voyage landing in December settlement 
 at Plymouth hardships of the winter why we remember 
 the Pilgrims. 
 
 (/) The battle of Trenton. Fifteen hundred hired Hessian 
 soldiers stationed at Trenton on Christmas night, 1776, 
 Washington crossed the Delaware it took all night to cross 
 
 river full of floating ice Hessians stupefied from their 
 drinking and reveling of the night before they were sur- 
 prised at light in the morning a thousand taken prisoners. 
 
 (g) Discovery of gold in California. Existence of the gold 
 long known to the Indians and Mexicans of that region the 
 discovery on the Sacramento in 1848 the rush of gold seekers 
 in 1849 dangers of the long journey overland or by way of the 
 Isthmus of Panama hard and dangerous life in California 
 the result. 
 
108 
 
 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 62. Writing from picture. Write a story sug- 
 gested by this picture. 
 
 In writing a story of your own, if it is a true story, 
 it is not worth telling unless the occurrences are more 
 or less interesting. If the characters or the places 
 are also interesting, so much the better. A great 
 deal depends upon the way the story is begun. It is 
 usual to suggest in the first few sentences or in the 
 first paragraph the setting of the narrative the 
 time, the scene, some of the characters. You may 
 bring your own feelings or ideas somewhat into the 
 composition, by explanations or remarks, humorous 
 or otherwise. If the story is an invented one, see 
 
NARRATION 109 
 
 to it that, for some of the reasons we have been 
 studying, it is made interesting. Let the story have 
 a center of interest, and let the incidents lead up to 
 the situation of greatest interest. 
 
 Exercise 63. Developing original narratives. Write 
 out the following suggested narratives, or ivrite similar 
 brief narratives from subjects chosen by yourself. In- 
 dent carefully for the paragraphs, and mark- in each 
 paragraph the topic sentence. In writing do not forget 
 tlie characters and the scenes or surroundings, as sources 
 of interest. 
 
 (a) TJie story of our camping out. How we came to think 
 of it who talked it over where we decided to go what 
 we took how we got to the place the pitching of the tent 
 
 the cooking of meals what we all did incidents the 
 breaking up the return. 
 
 (6) A country boy's visit to the city. How he came to go 
 
 getting ready catching the train the railway journey 
 what he first saw in the city incidents places visited 
 the most remarkable sight of all the return home. 
 
 (c) A picnic by the river. The company the preparations 
 
 the weather how the members of the party got to the river 
 
 what the boys did during the morning what the girls 
 did the dinner the fishing the games played the ride 
 homeward. 
 
 Exercise 64. Reproductions. (0 Select a poem men- 
 tioned in the list in Exercise 54, one that you have not 
 previously reproduced, and develop it into a carefully 
 written story. Avoid the language of the poem; merely 
 tell the story in your own words. 
 
 (#) Select a story told in one of the books named in 
 Exercise 55, read it once or twice very carefully, then 
 write from memory the story, imitating the language of 
 the original as closely as you can. 
 
110 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 65. Original narration. The problem is to 
 work up a true story, known to you, of an adventure. 
 When you come to write it, you will have to describe the 
 scene and the chief characters (not all at first}, and to tell 
 the events in an interesting way. 
 
 (a} First, prepare a careful outline of the entire com- 
 position, using places or chief events or periods for the 
 headings. 
 
 (&) Write the story, introducing description wherever 
 necessary, but holding to your outline and telling the 
 story clearly and connectedly. Attend to the paragraph- 
 ing. In this the outline will guide you. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 CLEARNESS IN WRITING 
 
 THERE is no use in writing at all unless you make 
 clear what you have to say. It is not enough to write 
 so that you may be understood ; you ought to write 
 so that you cannot be misunderstood. Language is 
 for the communication of ideas. If your reader does 
 not understand what you meant to say, there is no 
 communication, and you may as well not have written. 
 Therefore, whatever you write, write clearly. 
 
 Of course, no one can write clearly without think- 
 ing clearly. You must know and understand com- 
 pletely what you wish to say, or else it is useless for 
 you to begin. The only way to do is to write about 
 what you know and understand. Do not attempt 
 subjects that are difficult, abstract, or unfamiliar. 
 Take simple, easy, and above all near-at-hand topics 
 at first, topics about which you can write of your own 
 knowledge ; and in writing upon these do not try to 
 utter ideas or to talk about supposed facts that you 
 do not comprehend. For instance, avoid all such 
 subjects as The Ideal, Fortune, Virtue and Happiness, 
 Miserliness, Generosity ; better write about an insect, 
 or a plant, or an old chair, or something you saw or 
 did last week or yesterday, things upon which you 
 
 111 
 
112 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 can direct your five senses and actually learn and 
 know something, than try to write on an object you 
 have never seen or an idea nobody can ever see, a 
 place you have never visited or a feeling you never 
 experienced. Stuff written about vague, lofty, or far- 
 off themes is usually lacking both in clearness and in 
 interest. But when you have written from your own 
 knowledge or experience, no matter how common and 
 simple the subject, your writing is far more likely to 
 be not only intelligible but readable. 
 
 But aside from understanding precisely what you 
 want to say, there are some difficulties met with in 
 the use of language itself; and to learn to avoid certain 
 faults in sentence making will do much to secure 
 clearness in all that you write. 
 
 I. Lack of unity. In the first place, having unity 
 in all your sentences will do a great deal toward 
 making them clear. We have studied unity in Chap- 
 ter IV, so we need say no more about it here than to 
 notice that when two or more ideas, unconnected in 
 thought, are put together in one sentence, the effect 
 is confusing, and the sentence fails to express any 
 idea with sufficient clearness. Or, when a number of 
 ideas, connected in thought, but some of them impor- 
 tant and some unimportant, are strung along in one 
 sentence full of " ands," the sentence is pretty certain 
 to lack clearness, simply because it does not emphasize 
 the really important idea, but offers a jumble of 
 several ideas, most of which should be merely modi- 
 fiers. 
 
CLEARNESS IN WRITING 113 
 
 For examples of sentences thus lacking in unity 
 and clearness, see those referred to in Exercise 26. 
 
 II. Omitting necessary words. To omit words that 
 are necessary to the sense is a much commoner fault 
 than may be supposed. 
 
 (a) Sometimes it is merely a matter of good gram- 
 mar, as in such sentences as the following (further 
 illustrations are given in Exercise 28, and in Exercise 
 129): 
 
 1. Such mistakes always have and always will happen. 
 (Good English requires the word " happened " after " have.") 
 
 2. He knows better than go there. 
 
 3. Look up in the dictionary every word the spelling of 
 which you are not certain. 
 
 4. She is as old, if not older, than her brother. 
 
 5. I have for over a year, and I will still continue, to pay my 
 rent promptly. 
 
 6. I do not think he is any taller, if as tall, as I am. 
 
 7. You are the man whom the letter is addressed. 
 
 (b) Sometimes such words SLS other, else, or before 
 are carelessly omitted. Examples : 
 
 1. This has been a greater exposition than was ever at- 
 tempted. 
 
 (The word "before " must be inserted after "ever"; other- 
 wise the statement is untrue.) 
 
 2. Nobody ever knew so much about fishes as Agassiz did. 
 
 3. No period of ten years ever saw so much progress in 
 science as the last ten years have seen. 
 
 4. She thinks nobody knows so much as she does. 
 
 5. I believe no one ever saw so beautiful a sunset as this. 
 
 6. I think no dog ever had so fine a coat as this one has. 
 
 7. New York is larger than any city in this country. 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 8 
 
114 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 (c) Sometimes a necessary verb, preposition, or 
 other part of speech is omitted in statements of com- 
 parisons, after than or as. Examples : 
 
 1. He likes me more than you. 
 
 (Insert "he does" after "than," or "do" after "you," 
 according to which is meant.) 
 
 2. Marmosets are as much like men as some monkeys. 
 
 3. That dog looks more like a wolf than a bloodhound. 
 
 4. This meat belongs to this dog rather than that. 
 
 5. He wished for it more than his brother. 
 
 6. He wished for nothing more than a dog. 
 
 7. That stone resembles a dumpling more than anything else. 
 
 (d) Examples of other faulty omissions, including 
 the omission of the article : 
 
 1. If dead, his wife and children may apply. 
 
 2. This blacksmith can repair the machine when injured. 
 
 3. The wise and (the) good are all too few. (What differ- 
 ence is made by the inserting of "the " ? ] ) 
 
 4. We know how likely the loss of all was, when we think 
 how thick the fog was, .and especially we remember how the 
 wind blew. 
 
 5. Some persons cannot tell the difference between the use 
 of a colon and A a semicolon. 
 
 6. The society elected a secretary and A treasurer, who 
 were to hold office for one year. 
 
 7. I believed A the man was honest and A he was 
 accused falsely. 
 
 8. He selected out of the herd all the white and A black 
 horses. 
 
 9. I cannot remember A one thing he said. 
 
 10. If he is not a scoundrel, he is very near A one. 
 
 1 See Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, p. 133. 
 
CLEARNESS IN WRITING 115 
 
 11. For that crop of grass, though A green and fresh, the 
 farmer got only five dollars a ton. 
 
 12. $5000 reward if you can set fire to anything after wash- 
 ing in flamine. 
 
 Exercise 66. Supplying faulty omissions. Correct all 
 the sentences given in the four groups given above as 
 illustrating faulty omissions. 
 
 III. Faulty use of pronouns. One of the com- 
 monest faults of thoughtless writers is the use of a 
 pronoun without a perfectly certain antecedent. Pro- 
 nouns in themselves mean nothing ; they merely 
 stand for their antecedents. Hence it is foolish to 
 put into a sentence a pronoun of whose antecedent 
 the reader may not be certain. 
 
 EXAMPLES : (a) Mary asked her mother how old she was. 
 
 Mary said to her mother, " How old are you ? " (Or, " How 
 old am I ? ") 
 
 (6) On the mountain, at one place, there was a stone face, 
 which we had much trouble in reaching. 
 
 On the mountain, at a place which we had much trouble in 
 reaching, there was a stone face. 
 
 Exercise 67. Obscure pronouns. Correct the following 
 sentences, either by using direct quotation, by changing 
 the arrangement of the words, or by making clear in sortie 
 other way what is the antecedent of each pronoun that is 
 doubtful in meaning. 1 
 
 1. He made that remark without leaving me a chance to make 
 a reply, which I thought was very wrong. 
 
 2. The gentleman told his brother that the umbrella he had 
 borrowed was worthless, and so he returned it. 
 
 1 See Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, pp. 246-247. 
 
116 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 3. Henry called yesterday to see my father, for he had writ- 
 ten to him to make the engagement to do so. 
 
 4. There are many pets of different characters, which are all 
 good enough. 
 
 5. He says there is near here one dangerous place, and that 
 is certainly worth knowing. 
 
 6. When the Indians stole his horses, he said they were 
 worthless beasts that ought to be shot. 
 
 7. Among the new arrivals was Mr. Derby, now so loved by 
 every one, who was to officiate on the occasion. 
 
 8. He said he had talked with the agent, and he would do all 
 he could to prevent the injustice. This is just what I wanted. 
 
 9. The poor boy said his father used to beat him till he was 
 out of breath. 
 
 10. He was surprised, he said, that he had not done as he was 
 directed to do. 
 
 11. On the opposite sides of the bridge are walks for foot pas- 
 sengers that are about three feet wide. 
 
 12. He was a man of great height, and that accounted for his 
 being able to see. 
 
 13. They issued a circular concerning the horse thief, that 
 offered a reward of ten dollars for his arrest. 
 
 IY. The " which" habit. Sometimes a sentence is 
 made very uncertain in meaning and very tiresome 
 by the careless repeating of "which," "who " or "that" 
 with different antecedents. A familiar example is the 
 tale in which we read, " This is the dog that worried 
 the cat that caught the rat that ate the malt that lay 
 in the house that Jack built." It is needless to say 
 that sentences like this are amusingly lacking in 
 unity ; yet we sometimes find examples like those 
 below, written in all seriousness. One relative in a 
 sentence is usually enough, unless the relatives refer 
 
CLEARNESS IN WRITING 117 
 
 to the same antecedent and the clauses are connected 
 by coordinating conjunctions. 
 
 EXAMPLE : These words, which were not meant as a joke, 
 seemed funny to the audience, which had not expected a speech 
 to be so serious, which Mark Twain delivered. 
 
 CORRECTED : Though these words were not meant as a joke, 
 they seemed funny to an audience which had not expected a 
 speech of Mark Twain's to be so serious. 
 
 Exercise 68. The " which " habit. Rewrite the follow- 
 ing sentences so as to give them clearness and unity. 
 One good device is to write in place of a relative clause an 
 adjective modifier, either a word or a phrase, or a noun 
 in apposition. 
 
 1. Burnes, whose father was a business man who had accu- 
 mulated a tolerable fortune, grew up in idleness, which was 
 very much to his taste. 
 
 2. The suit of clothes, which was much the worse for the 
 wear and tear which it had received in the summer which its 
 owner had spent in the mountains, had still to be of service. 
 
 3. The point in which he most excelled was the use of the 
 tomahawk, which he could hurl with a skill which amazed us. 
 
 4. This story winds at first like a quiet brook, which leads 
 here and there across green fields, which gradually give way to 
 a stern and rocky region in which there are abrupt cataracts. 
 
 5. He had no books excepting an old copy of Paradise 
 Lost, which he read in the intervals of his work, in which way 
 he acquired some of the knowledge of good poetry which gave 
 him pleasure all through his life. 
 
 V. Misplacing of modifiers. Words, phrases, and 
 clause modifiers may all be misplaced, and frequently 
 are. In fact, this misplacing is the most common 
 of all the faults of sentence making. It is sometimes 
 
118 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 called "squinting construction." When a modifier 
 squints, or can be taken as belonging to one or the 
 other of two words in the sentence, the statement may, 
 of course, be taken in two ways, and is therefore not 
 clear. One of the most frequently misplaced words 
 is " only." Be sure to place it where it can limit 
 only what you intend it to limit. 1 
 
 Note the different meanings of the following sentences : 
 
 Only I saw three men. 
 I saw only three men. 
 I- saw three men only. 
 I only saw three men. 
 
 Another class of words often misplaced is parti- 
 ciples. As a rule, when a sentence begins with a 
 participle, the latter is understood to modify the 
 subject of the sentence, as in the following ex- 
 amples : 
 
 Trusting to hear from you soon, I remain your friend, E. S. S. 
 Brought to a halt in that direction, the animal faced about 
 toward us. 
 
 It is very important also to remember this caution, 
 that when two words are used correlatively (as both 
 . . . and, not only . . . but (also), either ... or, 
 etc.), each member of the pair should come before 
 the same part of speech. Thus in the sentence 
 " John not only had to walk the whole distance, but 
 to carry his little brother a part of the way," not 
 
 1 See Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, pp. 260-263. 
 
CLEARNESS IN WRITING 119 
 
 only should come after had, so that the correlatives 
 may stand next to the coordinate infinitives. 
 
 Exercise 69. Misplaced modifiers. Correct the follow- 
 ing sentences, by rearrangement or by substitution of 
 equivalent expressions for the modifiers, so as to make 
 the sentences mean clearly one thing and one thing only. 
 
 EXAMPLE : For rent, a well-furnished parlor, for a lady, 
 thirty-five feet wide. 
 
 CORRECTED : For rent, a well-furnished parlor, thirty-five 
 feet wide, suitable for a lady. 
 
 1. For that crop of grass, though it was green and fresh, 
 the farmer only got five dollars a ton. 
 
 2. Tell him, if he thinks so, he should stay at home. 
 
 3. Thinking this amusing, like a fool, he never suspected 
 treachery. 
 
 4. I was almost allowed to do as I pleased. 
 
 5. That talk is only fit for the dullest of company. 
 
 6. He only receives four dollars a week, and has nearly 
 spent all of it before the week is half gone. 
 
 7. He had only been there two days. 
 
 8. Rising upon tiptoe, the mere top of the gable could be 
 seen from where he stood. 
 
 9. This rug was bought by a firm in Troy, costing over a 
 hundred dollars. 
 
 10. Having removed the top of the jar, the mysterious con- 
 tents were displayed to our sight. 
 
 11. Crowned by a tuft of poplar trees, we at last saw the 
 hill that rose near our destination. 
 
 12. Trusting to hear from you favorably, believe me 
 sincerely yours. 
 
 13. The train had already rounded the curve, carrying over 
 a hundred passengers, when the engineer saw the danger 
 signal, and, reversing the lever, the train stopped. 
 
120 WHITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 14. A dog that had long belonged to a man living during 
 those years in Cairo, never having been ill a day, suddenly 
 died. 
 
 15. I never remember to have heard a more convincing 
 argument. 
 
 16. He not only looked at rugs but at carpets. 
 
 17. This is neither the time for idleness nor for play. 
 
 18. The teacher said we should not aim merely to memorize 
 the lesson, but to understand it. 
 
 19. It is a country not more attractive to the farmer than to 
 the soldier. 
 
 20. He spoke both like a manly fellow and a kindly one. 
 
 21. He did not wish to be president but still to remain in 
 the position to which he was accustomed. 
 
 Exercise 70. Lack of clearness. Examine one of your 
 recently written compositions for examples of the mis- 
 placing of modifiers, the improper use of pronouns, 
 faulty omissions of words, or for other causes of loch of 
 clearness. On a sheet of paper write, opposite all your 
 sentences lacking clearness, corrected or improved sen- 
 tences of the same meaning. 
 
 Exercise 71. Composition. (a) Prepare an outline for 
 a description of a street scene that you have witnessed. 
 
 (#) Write the composition, mentioning impressions 
 of colors, shadows, movement, forin, odors, etc. (See 
 page 65.} 
 
 (c) After ivriting, look the composition over and cor- 
 rect all sentences lacking, for any reason, in clearness. 
 
 (d) Copy the corrected composition into the exercise 
 book. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 
 
 SINCE all we say goes into our paragraphs, it is 
 extremely important that we learn what to put into 
 these developments of the topics on hand. Given a 
 topic, what shall we say about it ? What ways are 
 there of treating it? We have already seen that 
 since each well-made paragraph has its distinct topic, 
 or deals with its own particular part of the whole 
 composition, everything in the paragraph must have 
 to do with this topic, otherwise there would be a 
 lack of unity. Now for the question, how may we 
 fill out, illustrate, or develop the topic, so as to make 
 our handling of it interesting and adequate ? 
 
 First, a caution : no matter what we say in a para- 
 graph, our sentences should be connected in thought ; 
 they should follow one another easily and naturally 
 throughout each paragraph. This is one reason why 
 topic sentences are useful. When we read a topic 
 sentence, we naturally expect the explanation of it, 
 and thus the paragraph reads smoothly. An em- 
 phatic word in one sentence suggests the beginning 
 of the next remark, and thus we go on without effort 
 from sentence to sentence. 
 
 What shall be written in paragraphs f There are 
 several ways of developing paragraphs, and with all 
 
 121 
 
122 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 these ways we should be familiar. Which of them 
 we should use in a given case depends, as we shall 
 see, upon the kind of composition, the nature of the 
 topic, and what we desire to say. 
 
 I. Details or particulars. If the topic is a single 
 object, scene, pe -son, incident, or the like, the para- 
 graph consists usually of details or particulars. For 
 example, in the following paragraphs (descriptive), 
 the topic is in one case an English farm, in the other 
 a country church. In such a case the subject is a 
 single scene, and the natural way to deal with it is 
 to give particulars about it. 
 
 On one of these solitary houses, the afternoon sun, about to 
 descend before very long behind the hills, was still lingering 
 on this May afternoon we are describing, bringing the white- 
 washed porch and the broad bands of white edging the win- 
 dows, into relief against the gray stone of the main fabric, the 
 gray roof overhanging it, and the group of sycamores and 
 Scotch firs which protected it from the cold east and north. 
 The western light struck full on a copper beech which made a 
 welcome patch of warm color in front of a long gray line of 
 outhouses standing level with the house, and touched the 
 heckberry blossom which marked the upward course of the 
 little lane connecting the old farm with the road ; above it 
 rose the green fell, broken here and there by jutting crags, 
 and below it the ground sank rapidly through a piece of young 
 hazel plantation, at this present moment a sheet of bluebells, 
 toward the level of the river. There was a dainty and yet 
 sober brightness about the whole picture. 
 
 From Robert Elsmere, by Mrs. Humphry Ward, Ch. I. 
 
 I am fond of loitering about country churches ; and this 
 was so delightfully situated, that it frequently attracted me. 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 123 
 
 It stood on a knoll, around which a small stream made a 
 beautiful bend, and then wound its way through a long reach 
 of meadow scenery. The church was surrounded by yew trees, 
 which seemed almost coeval with itself. Its tall Gothic spire 
 shot up lightly from among them, with rooks and crows 
 generally wheeling about it. 
 
 From The Sketch Book, by Washington Irving. 
 
 The following paragraph shows how the method 
 of particulars and details is used in narration : 
 
 The history relates that Sancho Panza was conducted from 
 the court of justice to a sumptuous palace, where, in a great 
 hall, he found a magnificent entertainment prepared. He no 
 sooner entered than his ears were saluted by the sound of 
 instruments, and four pages served him with water to wash 
 his hands. The music having ceased, Sancho now sat down to 
 dinner in a chair of state, placed at the upper end of the table ; 
 for there was but one seat, and only one plate and napkin. 
 A personage, who, as it afterward appeared, was a physician, 
 took his stand at one side of his chair, with a whalebone rod 
 in his hand. They then removed the beautiful white cloth, 
 which covered a variety of fruits and other eatables. Grace 
 was said by one in a student's dress, and a laced bib was 
 placed, by a page, under Sancho's chin. Another, who per- 
 formed the office of taster, now set a plate of fruit before him, 
 but he had scarcely tasted it when, on being touched by the 
 wand bearer, it was snatched away, and another containing 
 meat supplied its place. Yet before Sancho could make a 
 beginning, it vanished, like the former, on a signal of the 
 wand. Sancho was surprised at this proceeding, and looking 
 around him, asked if this dinner was only to show off their 
 sleight of hand. "My lord," said the wand bearer, "your lord- 
 ship's food must here be watched with the same care as is 
 customary with the governors of other islands. It is my duty 
 to see that the governor eats what is good and salutary, and 
 
124 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 prevent his touching whatever I imagine may be prejudicial to 
 his health. It was for that reason, my lord," continued he, 
 " I ordered the dish of fruit to be taken away, as being too 
 watery, and that other dish as being too hot, and overseasoned 
 with spices, which are apt to provoke thirst." 
 
 From Don Quixote, by Cervantes. 
 
 The following anecdote of a walk with Sir Walter 
 Scott, containing both description and narration, is 
 an illustration of the use of the method of particulars 
 in writing that intermingles these two kinds of 
 composition : 
 
 Everything that was beautiful and picturesque caught his 
 attention in an instant. I remember walking out with him 
 and a lady, who was staying in the house at the time, along 
 the sunny banks of the Tweed, toward Selkirk. It was a 
 bright morning, and two great and very beautiful staghounds 
 accompanied us in the ramble. Sir Walter pointed out the 
 beauties of the scene with great animation, stumping along the 
 little narrow path we were following, supported by a stout 
 stick. He had a plain Scotch bonnet on his head, and a gray 
 shepherd's maade or plaid round his broad shoulders, and, 
 when not excited, he looked, with his somewhat heavy 
 features, and white, overhanging eyebrows, like a good, stout, 
 portly farmer. About half a mile from Abbotsford, however, 
 a bright, sparkling stream crossed the path on its way toward 
 the Tweed, forming a little still pool by the side of the road 
 before it took another leap down the bank ; and by the side of 
 this pool one of the staghounds, which had run on before, 
 stopped for some moments to contemplate his own image in the 
 mirror, throwing himself into the most graceful attitude 
 imaginable. The dog's proceeding immediately caught the 
 attention of the poet, and he turned to point it out to our fair 
 companion with his face all sparkling with eager admiration. 
 The gray eye lighted up, the heavy mouth beamed with a 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 125 
 
 bright sinile, and even the stalwart figure became more erect 
 and stately. " Look at the vanity of the creature," he cried, 
 " did ever lady before her looking-glass show more admiration 
 of herself than that brute ? " 
 
 From The Bride of Landeck, by G. P. R. James, p. 48. 
 
 II. Instances or examples. The second method of 
 developing a paragraph is used when the topic is not 
 a single object, but a general topic or statement, such 
 as, Women are sometimes very brave, No person is 
 faultless, " Time is money," The recent increase in 
 the cost of living. Topics like these are naturally 
 explained or developed by giving instances or exam- 
 ples of what is being discussed. This method may 
 be used in description as in the following paragraph. 
 The topic is indicated in the first sentence ; the other 
 sentences give selected instances of the fog's being 
 everywhere : 
 
 Fog everywhere. Fog up the river, where it flows among 
 green aits and meadows ; fog down the river, where it rolls 
 defiled among the tiers of shipping, and the waterside pollu- 
 tions of a great (and dirty) city. Fog in the Essex marshes, 
 fog on the Kentish heights. Fog creeping into the cabooses 
 of collier-brigs; fog lying out on the yards and hovering in 
 the rigging of great ships ; fog drooping on the gunwales of 
 barges and small boats. Fog in the eyes and throats of ancient 
 Greenwich pensioners, wheezing by the firesides of their wards ; 
 fog in the stem and bowl of the afternoon pipe of the wrathful 
 skipper, down in his close cabin ; fog cruelly pinching the toes 
 and fingers of his shivering little 'prentice boy on deck. Chance 
 people on the bridges peeping over the parapets into the nether 
 sky of fog, with fog all round them, as if they were up in a 
 balloon, and hanging in the misty clouds. 
 
 From Bleak House, by Charles Dickens, Ch. I. 
 
126 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 The method of instances or examples is occasionally 
 used in narration; very frequently in explanatory 
 paragraphs (exposition) ; and a good deal used in 
 argument, because instances of the truth of a proposi- 
 tion are proofs of it. Sometimes a paragraph is made 
 up of merely one important instance or example. 
 
 Further illustrations : 
 
 At last I fell into some talk, at a distance, with this poor 
 man. First I asked him how people did thereabouts. " Alas, 
 sir/' says he, "almost desolate; all dead or sick. Here are 
 very few families in this part or in that village " pointing at 
 Poplar "where half of them are dead already, and the rest 
 sick." Then he pointed to one house : " There they are all 
 dead," said he, " and the house stands open ; nobody dares go 
 into it. A poor thief," says he, " ventured to steal something, 
 but he paid dear for his theft, for he was carried to the church- 
 yard too, last night." Then he pointed to several other houses, 
 "There," says he, "they are shut up; you see a watchman at 
 the door ; and so of other houses." 
 
 From A Journal of the Great Plague, by Daniel Defoe. 
 
 In some respects the animals excel us. The birds have a 
 longer sight, besides the advantage by their wings of a higher 
 observatory. A cow can bid her calf, by secret signal, prob- 
 ably of the eye, to run away, or to lie down and hide itself. 
 The jockeys say of certain horses, that "they look over the 
 
 whole ground." 
 
 From R. W. Emerson, Essay on Manners. 
 
 His children, too, were as ragged and wild as if they 
 belonged to nobody. His son Kip, an urchin begotten in his 
 own likeness, promised to inherit the habits, with the old 
 clothes, of his father. He was generally seen trooping like a 
 colt at his mother's heels, equipped in a pair of his father's 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 127 
 
 cast-off galligaskins, which he had much ado to hold up with 
 one hand, as a fine lady does her train in bad weather. 
 
 From Eip Van Winkle^ by Washington Irving. 
 
 The structure of every organic being is related, in the most 
 essential, but often hidden manner, to that of all the other or- 
 ganic beings with which it comes into competition for food or 
 residence, or from which it has to escape, or on which it preys. 
 This is obvious in the structure of the teeth and talons of 
 the tiger; and in that of the legs and claws of the parasite 
 which clings to the hair on the tiger's body. But in, the beau- 
 tifully plumed seed of the dandelion, and in the flattened and 
 fringed legs of the water beetle, the relation seems at first con- 
 fined to the elements of air and water. Yet the advantage of 
 plumed seeds, no doubt, stands in the closest relation to the 
 land being already thickly clothed with other plants; so that the 
 seeds may be widely distributed and fall on unoccupied ground. 
 In the water beetle, the structure of its legs, so well adapted 
 for diving, allows it to compete with other aquatic insects, to 
 hunt for its own prey, and to escape serving as prey to other 
 
 animals. 
 
 From The Origin of Species, by Charles Darwin. 
 
 Exercise 72. Study of paragraphs. Write out (a) the 
 topic of each of the paragraphs so far quoted in this 
 chapter, and (&) the first and the last words of the topic 
 sentences. 
 
 (c) Mention what things are given as " instances " or 
 " examples. " 
 
 (d) Write also the kind of composition fou,nd in each of 
 the extracts (see Chapter 7). 
 
 Exercise 73. Writing of paragraphs. Develop the fol- 
 lowing topics or topic sentences by giving instances or 
 exam-pies : 
 
 1. Many interesting games may be played in the sand. 
 
 2. America has already produced some excellent poets. 
 
128 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 3. Sometimes ludicrous mistakes are made through ignorance 
 or carelessness. 
 
 4. Swimming birds. 
 
 5. Boys' sports are not always without danger. 
 
 6. The best fruits grow in the temperate zone. 
 
 7. Damages caused by bad roads and rough streets. 
 
 III. Comparisons or contrasts. A third method 
 of working up a topic is by the use of comparisons 
 or contrasts ; that is, by explaining the resemblance of 
 the topic to something else, or by showing how it is 
 different from something else. In each case particu- 
 lars and details are given, but they are particulars 
 about the resemblance or the contrast. In the fol- 
 lowing paragraph the two parts of the valley which 
 is being described are made more distinct to our 
 minds by contrast. 
 
 During the greater part of its course the valley of Long 
 Whindale is tame and featureless. The hills at the lower part 
 are low and rounded, and the sheep and cattle pasture over 
 slopes unbroken either by wood or rock. The fields are bare 
 and close-shaven by the flocks which feed on them ; the walls 
 run either perpendicularly up the fells or horizontally along 
 them, so that, save for the wooded course of the tumbling 
 river and the bush-grown hedges of the road, the whole valley 
 looks like a green map divided by regular lines of grayish 
 black. But as the walker penetrates further, beyond a certain 
 bend which the stream makes halfway from the head of the 
 dale, the hills grow steeper, the breadth between them con- 
 tracts, the inclosure lines are broken and deflected by rocks 
 and patches of plantation, and the few farms stand more boldly 
 and conspicuously forward, each on its spur of land, looking 
 up to or away from the great masses of frowning crag which 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 129 
 
 close in the head of the valley, and which from the moment 
 they come into sight give it dignity and a wild beauty. 
 
 From Robert Elsmere, by Mrs. Humphry Ward, Ch. I. 
 
 In the following paragraph the idea of character is 
 made more distinct by contrasting it with another 
 idea : 
 
 There is a difference between character and reputation. 
 Character is what a man is ; reputation is what he is thought 
 to be. Men of good character are generally men of good repu- 
 tation, but this is not always the case, as the motives and 
 actions of the best of men are sometimes misunderstood and 
 misrepresented. But it is important, above everything else, 
 that we be right and do right, whether our motives and actions 
 are properly understood and appreciated or not. 
 
 Edmund Burke. 
 
 One form or variety of the method of contrasts is 
 the telling of what a thing is not, or what it is not 
 like. For example : 
 
 The scene around was desolate ; as far as the eye could reach 
 it was desolate ; the bare rocks faced each other, and left a 
 long and wide interval of thin white sand. You might wander 
 on and look round and round, and peep into the crevices of the 
 rocks and discover nothing that acknowledged the influence of 
 the seasons. There was no spring, no summer, no autumn; and 
 the winter's snow, that would have been lovely, fell not on 
 these hot rocks and scorching sands. Never morning lark had 
 poised himself over this desert; but the huge serpent often 
 hissed there beneath the talons of the vulture, and the vulture 
 screamed, his wings imprisoned- within the coils of the 
 
 serpent. 
 
 From The Wanderings of Cain, by S. T. Coleridge. 
 
 WRIT. IX ENG. 9 
 
130 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 The use of comparison is illustrated in the follow- 
 ing paragraphs : 
 
 She is like some tender tree, the pride and beauty of the 
 grove ; graceful in its form, bright in its foliage, but with the 
 worm preying at its heart. We find it suddenly withering, 
 when it should be most fresh and luxuriant. We see it droop- 
 ing its branches to the earth, and shedding leaf by leaf; until, 
 wasted and perished away, it falls, even in the stillness of the 
 forest ; and as we muse over the beautiful ruin, we strive in 
 vain to recollect the blast or thunderbolt that could have smit- 
 ten it with decay. 
 
 From The Broken Heart, by Washington Irving. 
 
 A principal fruit of friendship is the ease and discharge of 
 the fullness and swellings of the heart, which passions of all 
 kinds do cause and induce. We know diseases of stoppings 
 and suffocations are the most dangerous in the body, and it is not 
 otherwise in the mind ; you may take sarza to open the liver, 
 steel to open the spleen, flower of sulphur for the lungs, casto- 
 reum for the brain; but no receipt openeth the heart but a 
 true friend, to whom you may impart griefs, joys, fears, hopes, 
 suspicions, counsels, and whatsoever lieth upon the heart to 
 oppress it, in a kind of civil shrift or confession. 
 
 Francis Bacon, Essay on Friendship. 
 
 The method of comparisons and contrasts may be 
 used in any kind of composition. Further illustra- 
 tions : 
 
 " Take thine eyes off the bridge," said he, " and tell me if 
 thou seest anything thou dost not comprehend." Upon looking 
 up, "What mean," said I, "those great flights of birds 
 that are perpetually hovering about the bridge, and settling 
 upon it from time to time ? I see vultures, harpies, ravens, 
 cormorants, and among many other feathered creatures, several 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 131 
 
 little Vinged boys, that perch in great numbers upon the 
 middle arches." " These," said the genius, " are envy, avarice, 
 superstition, despair, love, with the like cares and passions 
 
 that infest human life." 
 
 Joseph Addison. 
 
 Nothing strikes one more, in the race of life, than to see how 
 many give out in the first half of the course. " Commence- 
 ment day " always reminds me of the start for the " Derby," 
 when the beautiful high-bred three-year-olds of the season are 
 brought up for trial. That day is the start, and life is the 
 race. . . . This is the start, and here they are, coats bright 
 as silk, and manes as smooth as eau lustrale can make them. 
 Some of the best of the colts are pranced round, a few minutes 
 each, to show their paces. What is that old gentleman crying 
 about ? and the old lady by him, and the three girls, what are 
 they all covering their eyes for ? Oh, that is their colt which 
 has just been trotted upon the stage. Do they really think 
 those little thin legs can do anything in such a slashing sweep- 
 stakes as is coming off in these next forty years ? . . . 
 
 Fifty years. Race over. All that are on the course are 
 coming in at a walk ; no more running. Who is ahead ? Ahead ? 
 What ! and the winning post a slab of white or gray stone 
 standing out from that turf where there is no more jockeying 
 or straining for victory ! Well, the world marks their places 
 in its betting-book ; but be sure that these matter very little, if 
 they have run as well as they know how ! 
 
 From The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table, by Oliver W. Holmes. 
 Houghton, Mifflin, and Company, by permission. 
 
 I have been up to look at the dance and supper rooms, for 
 the inauguration ball at the Patent Office; and I could not 
 help thinking what a different scene they presented to my 
 view awhile since, filled with a crowded mass of the worst 
 wounded of the war, brought in from second Bull Run, Antie- 
 tam, and Fredericksburg. To-night, beautiful women, per- 
 fumes, the violins' sweetness, the polka, and the waltz ; then 
 
132 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 the amputation, the blue face, the groan, the glassy eye of the 
 dying, the clotted rag, the odor of wounds and blood, and many 
 a mother's son amid strangers, passing away untended there 
 (for the crowd of the badly hurt was great, and much for nurse 
 to do, and much for surgeon). 
 
 From Specimen Days, by Walt Whitman. 
 By permission. 
 
 Exercise 74. Study of paragraphs. Write out (a} the 
 topic of each of the above paragraphs, (&) the kind of 
 composition illustrated, and (o) the comparisons or 
 contrasts made or suggested. 
 
 Exercise 75. Making of paragraphs. (a) Write brief 
 paragraphs from the following summaries, using the 
 method of comparisons or contrasts. 
 
 1. The beehive. Like a little city the queen bee the 
 young the drones the workers have the bees a language ? 
 
 2. Some pretend to despise what they cannot obtain. Fable of 
 the fox and the grapes repeated efforts the fox, baffled, 
 says at last, " They are only sour grapes, anyway." 
 
 3. Easter. What Easter commemorates appropriateness 
 of the time of year springing up of the flowers (comparison). 
 
 4. Tlie sunflower. Said to turn as the sun moves (compari- 
 son) its appearance (comparison). 
 
 5. Troubles make men strong. Without the need of effort we 
 should never grow strong comparison with an oak tree 
 its weak beginning the rough winds the hot sun the 
 storms its rival trees the strength of the great tree. 
 
 (#) When you have developed these paragraphs, give 
 one of them orally. 
 
 IV. Effects or results. We may develop a topic in 
 a fourth way, namely, .by giving the effects or results 
 of the fact or thing used as the topic. Thus, if the 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 133 
 
 topic sentence read, " The Gulf Stream is of immense 
 importance to the civilized world/' the paragraph 
 might give many effects of the temperature and 
 course of this ocean current. The method of effects 
 may be used in exposition and in narration ; less fre- 
 quently in description and argument. (For examples 
 of its use in description, see page 64.) 
 Further illustrations of this method: 
 
 I mounted the stair. As I approached the room of which I 
 was in search, a vapor, deadly infectious, assailed my senses. 
 It resembled nothing of which I had ever before been sensible. 
 Many odors had been met with, even since my arrival in the 
 city, less supportable than this. I seemed not so much to 
 smell, as to taste the element that now encompassed me. I 
 felt as if I had inhaled a poisonous subtle fluid, whose power 
 instantly bereft my stomach of all vigor. Some fatal influence 
 seemed to seize upon my vitals, and the work of corrosion and 
 decomposition to be busily begun. 
 
 From Arthur Mervyn, by Charles Brockden Brown. 
 
 When Mr. Cooper returned in 1833, without meeting any 
 such burst of welcome as had greeted Irving on his return the 
 year before ; and when he began shortly thereafter to scold his 
 countrymen in schoolmaster fashion about their lapses 
 from good breeding, and their lack of social independence, and 
 their subserviency to British influences (much of which was 
 solemnly true), the newspaper people lost their tempers and 
 abused him loudly and continuously. This was irritating to a 
 man who honestly believed himself better equipped to instruct 
 and amuse his countrymen than ever before. And the irrita- 
 tion put him in the mood to be watchful for fresh sources of 
 discontent. These came pretty abundantly when after plant- 
 ing himself in his old remodeled home of Otsego Hall there 
 sprung up a fierce quarrel with his village neighbors in respect 
 
134 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 to ownership of a tongue of woodland which shot into the lake, 
 and which had long been used as a public resort. The legal 
 rights were with Cooper ; but popular feeling all against him. 
 What the people lacked in rights, they made up in abuse ; and 
 what the author lacked in sympathy, he made up in ill temper. 
 The quarrel had wide echoes ; slanders and libel suits ensued ; 
 Cooper winning in the courts, and losing out of court. 
 
 From American Lands and Letters, p. 246,- by Donald G. Mitchell. 
 
 Charles Scribner's Sons, by permission. 
 
 Ambition, ruled by reason and religion, is a virtue; un- 
 checked and maddened by vanity and covetousness, it is a vice. 
 Without ambition, no great deed was ever accomplished. It is 
 a guiding star to the wise and good ; only a snare to the vain 
 and foolish. Ambition is the strongest incentive to persever- 
 ance, and difficulties will sink before it, where they had ap- 
 peared mountain high. It is ambition which keeps alive hope 
 and courage. Without it, man would be content to be a poor, 
 debased creature, allowing the powers of his brain to rest for 
 want of energy to cultivate and apply them. He could never 
 rise in his profession, having no ambition to reach its highest 
 point. Like every other good gift, it is the abuse, and not the 
 use of ambition's fire that leads to sin. Kept within the proper 
 bounds, it is a noble quality, leading to perfection. 
 
 Laurence Sterne. 
 
 V. Reasons or causes. A fifth way of working up 
 a topic is to set forth reasons or causes. This method 
 is valuable mainly in exposition and argument. It 
 may well be used in writing on such topics as, The 
 disappearance of the North American Indian, The 
 benefits of giving the vote to women, The increasing 
 frequency of strikes, Strikes do not aid the cause of 
 labor. 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 135 
 
 Illustrations of this method : 
 
 Let us proclaim it firmly, proclaim it even in fall and defeat, 
 this age is the grandest of all ages ; and do you know where- 
 fore? Because it is the most benignant. This age, the 
 immediate issue of the French Revolution, and its first born, 
 enfranchises the slave in America, uplifts the pariah in Asia, de- 
 stroys the suttee in India, and extinguishes in Europe the last 
 brands of the stake, civilizes Turkey, penetrates the Koran with 
 the Gospel, dignifies woman, subordinates the right of the strong- 
 est to the right of the most just, suppresses pirates, ameliorates 
 penal laws, purifies the galleys, throws the bloody sword into 
 the gutter, condemns the death penalty, takes the chain and 
 ball from the foot of the convict, abolishes torture, degrades and 
 stigmatizes war, . . . plucks out the fangs from tyrants. 
 
 Victor Hugo. 
 
 "Therefore," said he, "hath it with all confidence been 
 ordered by the Commons of Great Britain, that I impeach 
 Warren Hastings of high crimes and misdemeanors. I im- 
 peach him in the name of the Commons House of Parliament, 
 whose trust he has betrayed. I impeach him in the name of 
 the English nation, whose ancient honor he has sullied. I im- 
 peach him in the name of the people of India, whose rights he 
 has trodden under foot, and whose country he has turned into 
 a desert. Lastly, in the name of human nature itself, in the 
 name of both sexes, in the name of every age, in the name of 
 every rank, I impeach the common enemy and oppressor of 
 
 all." 
 
 From Macaulay's Essay on Warren Hastings. 
 
 Exercise 76. Study of paragraphs. After studying the 
 paragraphs given under Methods IV and V, write out 
 (a) the topic of each of the paragraphs, (&) the kind of 
 composition illustrated, (c) the effects, or the causes or 
 reasons mentioned (as the case may be). 
 
136 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 77. Writing of paragraphs. Write brief para- 
 graphs on five of the following topics, developing them< by 
 giving effects, or else reasons (stating which} : 
 
 1. Outdoor games. 2. Winter the healthfullest season. 3. 
 The importance of forest trees. 4. The battle of Bull Kun. 
 5. The outbreak of the Eevolutionary War. 6. The drum is 
 indispensable in battle. 7. Waves on the seashore. 8. The 
 cold north wind. 9. A summer shower. 10. Life on a farm 
 is pleasant. 
 
 Exercise 78. Study of paragraphing Study the follow- 
 ing paragraphs, and determine what method of para- 
 graph-development is used in each case. Write your 
 answers. 
 
 Note. The five methods of developing paragraphs may be 
 remembered by the aid of the keyword picer (particulars, in- 
 stances, comparisons, effects, reasons). 
 
 There were, however, several persons who gave me great di- 
 version on this occasion. I observed one bringing in a fardel 
 (burden) very carefully concealed under an old embroidered 
 cloak, which, upon his throwing it into the heap, I discovered to 
 be poverty. Another, after a great deal of puffing, threw down 
 his luggage, which, upon examining, I found to be his wife. 
 From the Spectator Papers, by Joseph Addison. 
 
 How few men in the world are prosperous ! What an infi- 
 nite number of slaves and beggars, of persecuted and oppressed 
 people, fill all corners of the earth with groans, and heaven 
 itself with weeping, prayers, and sad remembrances ! How 
 many provinces and kingdoms are afflicted by a violent war, or 
 made desolate by popular diseases ! Some whole countries are 
 remarked with fatal evils or periodical sicknesses. Grand 
 Cairo, in Egypt, feels the plague every three years returning 
 like a quartan ague, and destroying many thousands of per- 
 sons. All the inhabitants of Arabia, the desert, are in contin- 
 ual fear of being buried in huge heaps of sand, and therefore 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 137 
 
 dwell in tents and ambulatory houses, or retire to unfruitful 
 mountains, to prolong an uneasy and wilder life. 
 
 Jeremy Taylor. 
 
 It was a lovely drive, along winding roads rich in the pic- 
 turesque scenes that delight beauty-loving eyes. Here an 
 ancient monastery, whence the solemn chanting of the monks 
 came down to them. There a bare-legged shepherd, in wooden 
 shoes, pointed hat, and rough jacket over one shoulder, sat 
 piping on a stone, while his goats skipped among the rocks or 
 lay at his feet. Meek, moss-colored donkeys, laden with pan- 
 niers of freshly cut grass, passed by, with a pretty girl in a 
 capnline sitting between the green piles, or an old woman spin- 
 ning with a distaff as she went. Brown, soft-eyed children ran 
 out from the quaint stone hovels to offer nosegays, or bunches 
 of oranges still on the bough. Gnarled olive trees covered the 
 hills with their dusky foliage, fruit hung golden in the orchard, 
 and great scarlet anemones fringed the roadside ; while beyond 
 green slopes and craggy heights the maritime Alps rose sharp 
 and white against the blue Italian sky. 
 
 Valrosa well deserved its name, for, in that climate of per- 
 petual summer, roses blossomed everywhere. They overhung 
 the archway, thrust themselves between the bars of the great 
 gate with a sweet welcome to passers-by, and lined the avenue, 
 winding through lemon trees and feathery palms up to the villa 
 on the hill. Every shadowy nook, where seats invited one to 
 stop and rest, was a mass of bloom ; every cool grotto had its 
 marble nymph smiling from a veil of flowers, and every foun- 
 tain reflected crimson, white, or pale pink roses, leaning down 
 to smile at their own beauty. Roses covered the walls of the 
 house, draped the cornices, climbed the pillars, and ran riot 
 over the balustrade of the wide terrace, whence one looked 
 down on the sunny Mediterranean and the white-walled city 
 on its shore. 
 
 From Little Women, by Louisa M. Alcott, Ch. XXXIX. 
 Little, Brown, and Company, by permission. 
 
138 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 The river (the Oise) was swollen with the long rains. 
 From Vadencourt all the way to Origny it ran with ever- 
 quickening speed, taking fresh heart at each mile, and racing 
 as though it already smelt the sea. The water was yellow and 
 turbulent, swung with an angry eddy among half-submerged 
 willows, and made an angry clatter along stony shores. The 
 course kept turning and turning in a narrow and well-tim- 
 bered valley. Now the river would approach the side, and run 
 gliding along the chalky base of the hill, and show us a few 
 open colza fields among the trees. Now it would skirt the 
 garden walls of houses, where we might catch a glimpse 
 through a doorway, and see a priest pacing in the checkered 
 sunlight. Again the foliage closed so thickly in front that 
 there seemed to be no issue ; only a thicket of willows over- 
 topped by elms and poplars, under which the river ran flush 
 and fleet, and where a kingfisher flew past like a piece of the 
 blue sky. . . The light sparkled golden in the dancing poplar 
 leaves, and brought the hills into communion with our eyes. 
 And all the while the river never stopped running or took 
 breath, and the reeds along the whole valley stood shivering 
 from top to toe. 
 
 #####=*# 
 
 The river was more dangerous here ; it ran swifter, the 
 eddies were more sudden and violent. All the way down we 
 had had our fill of difficulties. Sometimes it was a weir which 
 could be shot, sometimes one so shallow and full of stakes that 
 we must withdraw the boats from the water and carry them 
 round. But the chief sort of obstacle was a consequence of the 
 late high winds. Every two or three hundred yards a tree 
 had fallen across the river, and usually involved more than 
 another in its fall. Often there was free water at the end, and 
 we could steer round the leafy promontory and hear the water 
 sucking and bubbling among the twigs. Often, again, when 
 the tree reached from bank to bank, there was room, by lying 
 close, to shoot through underneath, canoe and all. Sometimes 
 it was necessary to get out upon the trunk itself and pull the 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 139 
 
 boats across ; and sometimes, where the stream was too impetu- 
 ous for this, there was nothing for it but to land and " carry 
 over." This made a fine series of accidents in the day's career, 
 and kept us aware of ourselves. 
 
 From An Inland Voyage, by Robert Louis Stevenson. 
 
 Nothing in the work has astonished us so much as the igno- 
 rance or the carelessness of Mr. Croker with respect to facts 
 and dates. Many of his blunders are such as we should be 
 surprised to hear any well-educated gentleman commit, even in 
 conversation. ... In one place Mr. Croker says that at the 
 commencement of the intimacy between Dr. Johnson and Mrs. 
 Thrale, in 1765, the lady was twenty -five years old. In other 
 places he says that Mrs. Thrale's thirty-fifth year coincided 
 with Dr. Johnson's seventieth. Johnson was born in 1709. 
 If, therefore, Mrs. Thrale's thirty -fifth year coincided with 
 Johnson's seventieth, she could have been only twenty-one 
 years old in 1765. This is not all. Mr. Croker, in another 
 place, assigns the year 1777 as the date of the complimentary 
 lines which Johnson made on Mrs. Thrale's thirty-fifth birth- 
 day. If this date be correct, Mrs. Thrale must have been born 
 in 1742, and could have been only twenty-three when her ac- 
 quaintance with Johnson commenced. Mr. Croker, therefore, 
 gives us three different statements as to her age. Two of the 
 three must be incorrect. 
 
 From Macaulay's Review of Croker's Boswell's Johnson. 
 
 Neither could they, with all the skill they had, get again to 
 the stile that night. Wherefore, at last, lighting under a little 
 shelter, they sat down there till the day brake ; but, being 
 weary, they fell asleep. Now there was, not far from the place 
 where they lay, a castle, called Doubting Castle, the owner 
 whereof was Giant Despair, and it was in his grounds they 
 now were sleeping; wherefore he, getting up in the morning 
 early, and walking up and down in his fields, caught Christian 
 and Hopeful asleep in his grounds. Then with a grim and surly 
 
140 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 voice lie bid them awake, and asked them whence they were, 
 and what they did in his grounds. They told him they were 
 pilgrims, and that they had lost their way. Then said the 
 Giant, You have this night trespassed on me by trampling in 
 and lying on my grounds, and therefore you must go along 
 with me. So they were forced to go, because he was stronger 
 than they. 
 
 From The Pilgrim's Progress, by John Bunyan. 
 
 For do but consider what an excellent thing sleep is : it is 
 so estimable a jewel that, if a tyrant would give his crown for 
 an hour's slumber, it cannot be bought ; of so beautiful a shape 
 is it, that though a man live with an empress, his heart cannot 
 be at quiet till he leaves her embracements to be at rest with 
 the other ; yea, so greatly are we indebted to this kinsman of 
 death, that we owe the better tributary half of our life to him ; 
 and there is good cause why we should do so, for sleep is that 
 golden chain that ties health and our bodies together. 
 
 Thomas Dekker. 
 
 Exercise 79. Topic sentences. Write the topic sentences 
 of the paragraphs given in Exercise 78. 
 
 Exercise 80 . Paragraph methods . (a) By which methods 
 might the following topics be developed? (b} What kinds 
 of compositions would be the results ? Write your answers. 
 
 1. The game of blind man's buff. 
 
 2. How to learn to skate. 
 
 3. The robin. 
 
 4. Story of a parrot. 
 
 5. Mistakes made by poor cooks. 
 
 6. Dogs are sometimes very brave and faithful. 
 
 7. Traveling is a source of both pleasure and profit. 
 
 8. The wild flowers of spring. 
 
 9. A cat and a mouse (narrative). 
 10. The murder of President Garfield. 
 
CONTENTS OF PARAGRAPHS 141 
 
 Exercise 81. Paragraph development. Develop into 
 paragraphs five topics given in the last exercise, so as to 
 have one of each type of paragraph (p. i. c. e.r.}. 
 
 Exercise 82. Writing of paragraphs. Develop the fol- 
 lowing summaries, according to the methods named : 
 
 1. Joan of Arc. A peasant girl in France she sees strange 
 visions she goes to the king becomes leader of the armies 
 of France her great victories her capture by the English 
 
 she is burned at the stake in Rouen. (Method of particu- 
 lars narration.) 
 
 2. The blacksmith's shop. The blacksmith his tools 
 what he is doing the bellows, the fire, the water tub the 
 sparks the finished work. (Method of particulars de- 
 scription.) 
 
 3. A friend in need is a friend indeed. A poor Swede 
 landed in New York, with but little money no friends 
 knew not where to go had been cheated suddenly hears 
 his name called sees a friend of his boyhood in Sweden 
 the friend takes him to his home the Swede gets a start be- 
 comes prosperous. (Method of instance or example narration.) 
 
 4. How the world seems after a long illness. As if one had 
 been off on a long journey the very sky looks strange 
 the people have changed new houses have been built, etc. 
 (Method of comparison description.) 
 
 5. The snow. It falls all night is drifted in the morning 
 
 then comes a cold snap where the snow was blown off the 
 plants are frozen the thick snow covering protects the grain 
 and the flowers (comparison) when it melts in the spring 
 there is a freshet. (Method of effects.) 
 
 6. Take time by the forelock. Miss no opportunity we do 
 not know what to-morrow may bring forth a chance lost may 
 never return the sooner we succeed, the longer we enjoy the 
 fruits of success. (Method of reasons.) 
 
 1. An entertainment. The audience the music the 
 dialogues the conjurer's tricks. (Method of particulars.) 
 
142 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 83. Outlining. Outline three of the para- 
 graphs given in Exercise 78; or three given in the text 
 of this chapter. 
 
 Exercise 84. Outline for original narration. This ex- 
 ercise is in preparation for Exercise 85. Outline the 
 narration there called for, by chief events, or places, or 
 periods, whichever method seems best; put minor topics 
 (subtopics} under the several head-topics. These minor 
 topics may be descriptive, or they may be merely details 
 of the narrative. 
 
 Exercise 85. Narration of invented or imaginary occur- 
 rences. Write a ghost story, or a story of a boy's struggle 
 for a foothold in the world, or a story of adventure or 
 trial of some sort. Introduce some description of persons, 
 and of places or objects. Follow your outline, developing 
 your paragraphs with, care as to their topics and their 
 contents. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 EMPHASIS IN WRITING 
 
 So far, in our study of sentence making, we have 
 had exercises on the various elements and the gram- 
 matical forms of sentences, on the securing of unity 
 in our sentences, and on securing clearness (see Chap- 
 ters IV, VI, and VIII). Now we may ask, " Very 
 well, if we know how to make grammatical sentences 
 that have unity and clearness, what more is neces- 
 sary?" The answer is, that those things are very 
 important, that they are more important than any- 
 thing else in making sentences, and that it would be 
 far better not to study anything else about sentences 
 until we have thoroughly learned what those former 
 chapters teach. But if we wish to become really 
 skillful writers, there is something left to learn about 
 sentence making, even though we write and speak 
 correct and clear sentences. In this chapter we are 
 to study the simplest and most useful ways of making 
 emphatic what we wish to impress upon the minds 
 of those who read or hear what we say. 
 
 To emphasize a statement, or a part of a statement, 
 as a word or a phrase, means to call special attention 
 to it and to impress it upon the mind. The things we 
 say or even the words we use are not all equally im- 
 
 143 
 
144 WAITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 portant. So, how shall we emphasize what we think 
 most important ? Sometimes writers, especially in 
 school books, emphasize words and sentences by print- 
 ing them in italics or in broad-faced type. But in most 
 writings (as you will see by looking at magazine articles, 
 poems, story books, histories, and other books) the 
 words to be made emphatic are not printed in different 
 type from the rest. This is because skillful writers, 
 though they print all the words in the same type, 
 know how to make their readers feel what is meant 
 to be specially noticed. There are numerous ways 
 of doing this. Some of them depend upon the form 
 chosen for the sentence, some upon the arrangement 
 of the parts of the sentence, and some upon the 
 wording of the sentence. 
 
 a. Forms of sentences, for emphasis. Most sen- 
 tences are what are called in grammar declarative 
 sentences, that is, they state or assert, and are closed 
 with a period. But many assertions may be put in 
 the form of a question, to which no answer is expected, 
 because every one knows what the answer would be ; 
 and a question thus occurring in the midst of declar- 
 ative sentences arrests our attention, and becomes 
 more emphatic than a mere plain statement would 
 be. For example, 
 
 Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right ? 
 is much more striking than to say, 
 
 The Judge of all the earth will do right. 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 145 
 
 So also the exclamatory form of sentence may be 
 used for emphasis. It is much more striking to say, 
 
 How dear to my heart are the scenes of iny childhood ! 
 than to say, 
 
 The scenes of my childhood are dear to my heart. 
 
 Hence, when you are writing a series of declara- 
 tive sentences and wish to call special attention to a 
 statement, see if it would not be emphasized if put into 
 the interrogative or the exclamatory form. These 
 forms, however, must not be used too frequently, 
 lest through repetition they lose their effectiveness. 
 
 Exercise 86. Transforming interrogations and exclama- 
 tions. Change the following to declarative statements, 
 and note how much less emphatic they become when put 
 into the commonplace form. 
 
 1. " How ! " cried the mayor, " do you think I'll stand being 
 treated worse than a cook ? " 2. How few men. in the world 
 are prosperous ! 3. When shall I find forgiveness for my sin ? 
 4. What a fool am I, to lie thus in a dungeon when I may as 
 well walk at liberty ! 5. And as we are talking of bragging, 
 and I am on my travels, can I forget one mighty republic, 
 where people are always trying to pass off their claret for 
 port ? 6. Nonsense, man ! Why so squeamish ? Do they spare 
 you? 7. Do these fellows never give themselves airs ? 8. The 
 sky is changed and such a change ! 9. Shall he expire, and 
 unavenged ? 10. A horse ! a horse ! my kingdom for a horse ! 
 11. How they '11 greet \ls ! 12. Has the gentleman done ? 
 Has he completely done? 
 
 Exercise 87. Interrogation. Put the following decla- 
 rations into the interrogative form. Note that in changes 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 10 
 
146 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 of this kind a negative question conveys the idea of an 
 affirmative statement, and a question without a nega- 
 tive, the idea of a negative statement. Observe the in- 
 creased emphasis given by the interrogative form. 
 
 1. This is not your house. 2. I did not know what I was 
 to do. 3. The happiness of peace can nowhere on earth be 
 found. 4. Poor wretch, thy success will amount to nothing. 
 5. You cannot shut the windows of the sky. 6. There was 
 never a greater surprise. 7. That is good news ; you have not 
 heard better news for this month or more. 8. Assyria, Greece, 
 Rome, Carthage, are nothing now. 9. You would not let your 
 little finger ache for such as these. 10. This verse shall to 
 future ages tell thou wert my guide, philosopher, and friend. 
 11. The hardest thing we have to do is to learn to say, " I was 
 mistaken, and am sorry." 12. Thy jokes, that used to set the 
 whole table on the roar, are no more. 13. You care little for a 
 beggar's story. It is amusing, perhaps, or you find it strange. 
 14. It could not be otherwise. 15. A man is not very wrong 
 after all for being only a man. 
 
 Exercise 88. Exclamation. Put the following decla- 
 rations into the exclamatory form. In making this 
 change a writer may sometimes, for brevity and empha- 
 sis, omit the verb. 
 
 1. Their melody foretells a world of merriment. 2. Ocean, 
 I have loved thee much. 3. If this is Christian work, I should 
 like to be a slave, along with the barbarous Turk. 4. It is 
 sharper than a serpent's tooth to have a thankless child. 
 5. Sleep is an excellent thing. 6. Ah, well-a-day ! I had evil 
 looks from old and young. 7. And see those sails, they are 
 very thin and sere. 8. I could willingly lay my head within 
 the cold grave's silent breast. 9. Very many deeds of death- 
 less virtue and immortal crime would ne'er have been, had the 
 actor said, I will do this to-morrow. 10. I wish I could fitly 
 describe that scene. 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 147 
 
 Another point worth remembering about the choice 
 of sentence formations is that to quote directly, or 
 use what is called direct narration, is more emphatic 
 than to tell indirectly what a person said or thought. 
 When you use direct narration you give, in quotation 
 marks, a person's direct language. We learned, in 
 studying clearness (page 115), that direct narration is 
 often useful in avoiding ambiguous pronouns ; it is 
 also useful in emphasizing what some person has 
 said. 
 
 Study the differences in the verbs and pronouns in 
 the following examples of direct and indirect narra- 
 tion : 
 
 (a) Direct. My old schoolmaster asked me: 
 " What are you doing now, and where have you been 
 all these years ? " 
 
 Indirect. My old schoolmaster asked me what I 
 was doing, and where I had been all these years. 
 
 (b) Direct. Harry's old schoolmaster asked him : 
 " What are you doing now, and where have you been 
 all these years? " 
 
 Indirect. Harry's old schoolmaster asked him 
 what he was doing now, and where he had been all 
 these years. 
 
 (c) Direct. Fielding says: "Without adversity 
 a man hardly knows whether he is honest or not." 
 
 Indirect. Fielding says that without adversity a 
 man hardly knows whether he is honest or not. 
 
148 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 89. Indirect narration. Change the follow- 
 ing frowi direct to indirect narration : 
 
 1. Mary said to me, at last, " Say you'll let me stay and 
 watch you write.' 7 2. I said to him, "You thought I was not 
 comfortable." 3. "But I shall never try any more," said I. 
 4. My little boy said to me, "Papa, what do you. do all day 
 long while I am playing ? " 5. You ask me, " What do you do 
 all day ? " Why, you know very well what I do. I heard your 
 mother tell you only yesterday, " He goes down town to work, 
 so that we may have our pleasant home." 6. Farmer Jones 
 said to his neighbor Williams, "Your sheep are in my meadow, 
 and I wish you would get them out." 
 
 Exercise 90. Indirect to direct narration. In the fol- 
 lowing sentences change the indirect report of what was 
 said by any one, to the direct form. Be careful to use 
 quotation marks where necessary, and to begin the quoted 
 saying with a capital. Be sure to use pronouns and 
 tenses of verbs precisely as you think the speaker or writer 
 used them ; give his exact language as you think it was. 
 Note the increase in clearness and emphasis. 
 
 1. Miss Ophelia told Tom to go for the doctor, and to lose 
 not a moment. 2. He asked, in a low whisper, when this 
 change had taken place. 3. Then Hopeful asked where they 
 were now. 4. She asked him if he would call her a name she 
 wanted him to call her. 5. One day, in much good company, I 
 was asked whether I had seen any of their struldbrugs, or im- 
 mortals. 6. He told me to look no more on the bridge, but to 
 cast my eyes upon the thick black mist into which the tide 
 flowed. 7. Pope said that to err is human, to forgive divine. 
 8. Then the other man told his brother to be of good cheer ; but 
 Christian answered that the sorrows of death had compassed 
 him about, and he should not see the land that flows with milk 
 and honey. 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 149 
 
 b. Order of words, for emphasis. We have just 
 seen that, when we are reading a series of declarative 
 sentences, our attention is aroused if we come upon a 
 question or an exclamation. This is because of the 
 difference from the ordinary form of sentence. Now, 
 for much the same reason, certain words in a sen- 
 tence may be made emphatic by being placed out of 
 their ordinary or regular position. When we say, 
 His locks were gray, The rain came down, we use a 
 customary arrangement, subject, verb, complement, 
 or modifier of the verb. Now reverse the order; say, 
 Gray were his locks, Down came the rain, and what 
 is the effect ? In the first sentence gray and locks are 
 both made emphatic, in the second sentence down 
 and rain are made emphatic, all for the same rea- 
 son : these words are in an unusual position in the 
 sentence. 
 
 Hence, when you wish to give to a word a special 
 emphasis, see if you cannot place it in an unusual, 
 and yet not absurd, position. If it is the subject, put 
 it toward or at the end of the sentence. If it is a 
 verb, an adverb, an object element, or a predicate 
 attribute, put it toward or at the beginning of the 
 sentence. The two most emphatic positions in the 
 sentence are those of the first word and the last 
 word. Of these the more emphatic is that of the 
 first word. 
 
 The unusual or inverted sentence arrangement 
 must, of course, not be used too frequently. It is 
 emphatic only when it is used occasionally. 
 
150 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 91. Transposed or inverted order of words. 
 In the following sentences, note what words are made 
 emphatic by being in an unusual position, and change 
 the sentences into the regular or natural order. 
 
 1. Imprudent it certainly was. 2. Generously and freely did 
 they share with you their comforts and their homes. 3. Beau- 
 tiful are those lights and shadows thrown abroad among the 
 mountains. 4. The atrocious crime of being a young man 
 I shall not attempt to deny. 5. Much more is he to be ab- 
 horred, who has receded from virtue. 6. White as the snow 
 were his locks, and his cheeks as brown as the oak leaves. 
 7. Whom, therefore, ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto 
 you. 8. This is the state of man : to-day he puts forth the ten- 
 der leaves of hopes ; to-morrow blossoms, and bears his blushing 
 honors thick upon him ; the third day comes a frost, a killing 
 frost. 9. Across the ocean came a pilgrim bark, bearing the 
 seeds of life and death. 10. If we do not educate, short will 
 be our race from the cradle to the grave. 
 
 Exercise 92. Inversion. Change from the usual order 
 to the emphatic order the following sentences, by placing 
 in emphatic positions the words which you think should 
 be made emphatic. 
 
 1. The church was erelong thronged with men. The 
 women waited without in the churchyard. 2. Then their com- 
 mander uprose. 3. The hope of escape was vain. 4. His 
 tones were deep and solemn; he spake in accents measured 
 and mournful. 5. I have labored among you forty years of 
 my life. 6. The lamps shone bright o'er fair women and 
 brave men. 7. I cannot do the one, and the other I will not 
 do. 8. War had never assumed a more splendid and imposing 
 aspect. 9. So he entered the Netherby hall boldly, among 
 bridesmen, and kinsmen, and brothers, and all. 10. Time 
 presses on, still on, and forever. 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 151 
 
 Another way to make words emphatic is to ar- 
 range the parts of a sentence, or of any compound 
 element in a sentence, in pairs. This is called bal- 
 ancing, or antithesis. It places both the ideas in con- 
 trast, and so makes both emphatic. The two parts 
 should be made similar inform. 
 
 Exercise 93. Balance and antithesis. What words in 
 the following are made emphatic by contrast ? In which 
 sentences are the balanced ideas similar, and in which 
 are they dissimilar? 
 
 1. The mountains look on Marathon, and Marathon looks on 
 the sea. 2. Let us be faithful to their rude virtues as men, and 
 pay due tribute to their unhappy fate as a people. 3. The style 
 of Dryden is capricious and varied, that of Pope cautious and 
 uniform. 4. Dryden is read with frequent astonishment, and 
 Pope with perpetual delight. 5. A professed Catholic, he im- 
 prisoned the Pope ; a pretended patriot, he impoverished the 
 country. 6. With one hand he smote the house of Bourbon, 
 and wielded in the other the democracy of England. 7. La- 
 fayette lived chiefly for his own. age, and chiefly for his and 
 our country ; but Eobert Raikes has lived for all ages and all 
 countries. 8. A wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish 
 son is the heaviness of his mother. 9. To his equals he was con- 
 descending, to his inferiors kind. 10. If Swift's life was most 
 wretched, I think Addison's was most enviable. 
 
 Exercise 94. Balance and antithesis. Make balanced 
 sentences on the topics suggested, emphasizing either 
 likenesses or contrasts. See that the parks are similar in 
 form of expression. 
 
 1. The stormy night the calm morning. 
 
 2. To spend money to save money. 
 
 3. Lincoln Washington. 
 
152 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 4. Hamilton Benedict Arnold. 
 
 5. The violet the peony. 
 
 6. The dog the horse. 
 
 7. Generosity selfishness. 
 
 8. The South during the Revolution the North. 
 
 9. The town pump the grog shop. 
 
 10. The poetry of Longfellow that of Scott. 
 
 Exercise 95. Balanced construction. Make the corre- 
 sponding parts in the following sentences similar, so as 
 to make the balancing clear and pleasing. 
 
 EXAMPLES : (a) He expected a reproof, and that his mother 
 would punish him. (Word object balanced against clause 
 object.) 
 
 Improved : He expected that his mother would reprove and 
 punish him. 
 
 (6) He had a tall and commanding figure, and his face was 
 strikingly handsome. (Figure and face are balanced improp- 
 erly ; one is an object, the other a subject.) 
 
 Improved : (make figure the subject in the first clause, or 
 make face an object in the second clause). 
 
 1. The tears gushed from his eyes, and his face was de- 
 prived of its color. 2. He concluded that he would return 
 home, and if his parents forgave him, he would live an honest 
 life. 3. So faithful in love, and a dauntless warrior, there was 
 never knight like the young Lochinvar. 4. He winds up the 
 ascent of the stairs, and the door of the chamber is reached. 
 5. We delight in the bracing air of winter, and in the summer 
 that is warm and bright. 6. To err is human, but forgiveness 
 is divine. 7. About the river of human life there is a wintry 
 wind, though a sunshine that is heavenly. 8. You repaid them 
 by fraud, oppression, and conduct that was dishonorable. 9. He 
 preferred a brisk walk across the green fields rather than to 
 ride in the cushioned carriage. 10. He believed in one's doing 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 153 
 
 the best one knew how, and that by such a course one would 
 become wise and happy. 11. John was told not to venture 
 on that bridge, and, in fact, that he should not leave the yard. 
 
 When Patrick Henry said, " We have petitioned ; 
 we have remonstrated; we have prostrated ourselves 
 at the foot of the throne," he arranged his statements 
 in the order of their strength and proper emphasis, 
 beginning with the weakest statement and ending 
 with the strongest. If he had used a different order, 
 some of the strength of his utterance would be gone. 
 The arrangement of ideas in the order of increasing 
 emphasis, is called climax. 
 
 Exercise 96. Climax. In the following sentences 
 arrange the ideas in the order of climax. 
 
 1. When shall we be stronger ? Will it be when we are 
 totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed 
 in every house ? Will it be the next week, or the next year ? 
 2. His death-bell is tolling, black is the bier, and the war drum 
 is muffled. 3. Must I observe you ? Must I stand and crouch 
 under your testy humor ? Must I budge ? 4. A tory! hustle 
 him ! a spy ! away with him ! a refugee ! 5. If we must die, 
 let it be under the clear sky, by the bright waters, in noble, 
 honorable battle ! If we must fight, let us fight for ourselves ! 
 If we must slaughter, let us slaughter our enemies. 6. Did I 
 become drunk ? and squabble ? swear ? speak parrot ? swag- 
 ger ? 7. If you tickle us, do we not laugh ? If you wrong us, 
 shall we not revenge ? If you poison us, do we not die ? If 
 you prick us, do we not bleed ? 8. To be now a sensible man, 
 presently a beast, and by and by a fool ! 
 
 Somewhat similar to the principle of climax is that 
 which tells us that the clause or statement we wish 
 
154 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 to emphasize should be placed at the end of the sen- 
 tence. In the following two arrangements, see how 
 much more emphatic the first sentence is than the 
 second : 
 
 them invisible spirit of wine, if thou hast no name to be 
 known by, let us call thee devil ! Shakspere. 
 
 thou invisible spirit of wine, let us call thee devil, if thou 
 hast no name to be known by. 
 
 So in general it is much more forcible to put the 
 modifying phrases and clauses, as much as possible, 
 toward the beginning, and so to put the main state- 
 ment toward or at the end. Sentences thus formed 
 are called suspended or periodic. It is not emphatic 
 to make a statement and then add modifiers. Such 
 a sentence is called a loose sentence. Loose sentences 
 are by no means always faulty, because they avoid 
 stiffness and the tiresomeness that would result if all 
 the sentences were of the suspended or periodic sort. 
 Besides, we may wish to emphasize a certain modifier ; 
 then we should place it in an emphatic position, as at 
 the beginning or at the end. 
 
 We should know the difference between loose and 
 periodic sentences, and should be able easily to change 
 one form into the other. Then we may choose, as we 
 write, which form we need to use. In general, tbe 
 periodic form, since it does not complete the main 
 statement until at or near the end of the sentence, is 
 the more emphatic ; while the loose form is the more 
 familiar. 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 155 
 
 Exercise 97. Suspended structure. In the following 
 sentences, rearrange the parts so as to make periodic sen- 
 tences, or so as to place at the end what ought to be empha- 
 sized. Note what words are made emphatic by the 
 rearrangement. 
 
 1. Thou diest, and all thy goods are confiscate, if thou takest 
 more or less than just a pound of flesh. 2. I was ill-tempered, 
 too, when I spoke that. 3. The rank thistle nodded in the 
 wind and the wild fox dug his hole unscared not many genera- 
 tions ago, where you now sit, encircled with all that exalts and 
 embellishes civilized life. 4. The Indian hunter pursued the 
 panting deer, beneath the same sun that rolls over your head. 
 5. And here curled the smoke of peace, when the tiger strife 
 was over. 6. He still retained his good humor in this mansion 
 of distress (a prison), though denied all amusements, and even 
 the conveniences of life, and entirely cut off from all inter- 
 course with his friends. 7. He called it " seeing life " when- 
 ever he fell into any misery. 8. Stand here like fat oxen 
 waiting to be killed, if ye are beasts. Follow me if ye are 
 men. 9. Said John, " It is my wedding day, and if I should 
 dine at Edmonton and my wife should dine at Ware, all the 
 world would stare." 10. Unless you are a coward, try that 
 again. 11. And, sir, American liberty still lives, in the strength 
 of its manhood, and full of its original spirit, where it raised 
 its first voice, and where its youth was nurtured and sustained. 
 12. At the head of this vanguard rode the Bishop of Avila, 
 upon a snow-white palfrey, followed by a long train of bare- 
 footed monks. 13. A woman sat, in unwomanly rags, plying 
 her needle and thread, with fingers weary and worn and with 
 eyelids heavy and red. 14. The ladies in the gallery were in 
 a state of uncontrollable emotion, being unaccustomed to such 
 displays of eloquence, excited by the solemnity of the occasion, 
 and perhaps not unwilling to display their taste and sensibility. 
 15. At the dead hour of midnight, when all was silent in the 
 garden, into the lock of the wicket which opened into the cas- 
 tle garden, the page put the key. 
 
156 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 c. Choice of words, for emphasis. To repeat an 
 idea simply for the sake of filling up space, or for the 
 reason that one has little to say, is very annoying to 
 the reader, and very characteristic of a poor writer. 
 To say, " The entire gallery was all lighted with 
 brilliant lights, which were placed in every part of 
 the room," means nothing more than that "the en- 
 tire gallery was brilliantly lighted." The words 
 "all," "with lights," "which were placed in every 
 part of the room," are unnecessary they really add 
 nothing to the meaning of the sentence. Such words 
 are said to be redundant. 
 
 Exercise 98. Redundancy. Correct the following sen- 
 tences by getting rid of all unnecessary words: 
 
 1. He is a universal favorite among all his friends. 2. I was 
 called upon by a poor-looking widow woman, who visited my 
 office the other day. 3. There is an ample abundance of food 
 here, that will serve all of us plentifully. 4. He cut the grass 
 with a keen and sharp scythe that needed no whetting. 5. In 
 this work we are necessarily forced to meet many difficult ob- 
 stacles that will be hard for us to overcome. 6. They often 
 benefit by it sometimes, for experience is the best teacher. 
 7. We must repeat the lesson over and over again. 
 
 The repetition of a word or of a form of expression, 
 however, is often very emphatic. In your writing do 
 not be afraid to repeat, therefore, provided you have 
 the intention of making something clear and em- 
 phatic by the repetition. 
 
 Note the strong effect produced by repetition either 
 of meaning or of language in the following passages : 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 157 
 
 1. They are meant for us ; they can be meant for no other. 
 
 2. What is it that gentlemen wish ? What would they have ? 
 
 3. Kemember March, the ides of March remember ! 4. No 
 villain regards the Sabbath. No vicious family regards the 
 Sabbath. No immoral community regards the Sabbath. 5. If 
 we wish to be free ; if we mean to preserve inviolate those ines- 
 timable privileges for which we have been so long contending; 
 if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which 
 we have been so long engaged, we must fight ! I repeat it we 
 must fight ! An appeal to arms and the God of Hosts is all 
 that is left us. 
 
 6. Work! work! work! 
 Till the brain begins to swim ; 
 
 Work ! work ! work ! 
 Till the eyes are heavy and dim. 
 
 Seam and gusset and band, 
 Band and gusset and seam, 
 
 Till over the buttons I fall asleep, 
 And sew them on in a dream. 
 
 7. By foreign hands thy dying eyes were closed, 
 By foreign hands thy decent limbs composed, 
 By foreign hands thy humble grave adorned, 
 By strangers honored, and by strangers mourned. 
 
 We may sometimes emphasize -an idea by denying 
 the opposite of it. Thus, to say, " This has been no 
 easy task," is a way of saying emphatically that the 
 task was difficult. It has this effect because a milder 
 statement than we expect attracts the attention and 
 gives an impression of care and accuracy, leading us 
 to give full weight to what is said. But sometimes, 
 of course, denying the opposite makes a statement 
 more cautious, and therefore less direct and emphatic. 
 
158 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 99. Denying the opposite. Change the fol- 
 lowing sentences by denying the contrary of what is said. 
 Note whether the original or the changed sentence is the 
 more emphatic. 
 
 1. She is a lazy girl. 2. This was an event of great impor- 
 tance. 3. As I lay crouched in the hogshead, hearing the 
 soldiers near at hand, my position was uncomfortable. 4. I am 
 a grown man. 5. He stood still. 6. It was a very dull town 
 (give negative particulars). 7. Just before the storm broke 
 there was a great silence in the forest (mention sounds that 
 were not heard). 8. It was a wretched place for a little child 
 to be growing up (give negative particulars). 
 
 There is still another suggestion to be offered, with 
 regard to making ideas emphatic. It is much less 
 striking to say, 
 
 He had but a wretched shelter all that stormy night ; 
 than to say, 
 
 He had but a thorn bush to huddle under all that stormy 
 night. 
 
 The reason why the latter is more emphatic, is 
 that the word " thorn bush " is more definite than 
 " shelter." To illustrate again, " swallow-tail coat " 
 is more definite than " garment," because a swallow- 
 tail coat is one particular kind of garment. Specific 
 words produce a vivid effect of reality, while general 
 words are often vague and colorless. 
 
 txercise 100. Specific words. In the following pairs 
 of words, which are the more specific terms ? 
 
 1. Horse, animal. 2. Hopping, moving. 3. Purple, color. 
 4. Melancholy, state of feeling. 5. Reptile, snake. 6. Exer- 
 cise, walking. 7. Food, boiled potatoes. 8. Monarch, king. 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 159 
 
 Exercise 101. Use of specific words. In the following 
 sentences substitute for the italicized words others that 
 are more specific. Note the increase in emphasis or 
 force. 
 
 1. As I saw a larger boy strike his playfellow, I was sud- 
 denly filled with a strong emotion. 2. Burrowing animals have 
 holes and creatures of the air have nests, but the Son of Man 
 hath not any place to rest. 3. Old age may sometimes be piti- 
 ful, but it cannot be so bad as certain kinds of disease or some 
 species of misfortune. 4. His clothes were ragged and torn 
 (specify the garments, with particulars). 5. He was never a 
 studious man ; what cared he for the subjects treated of in books? 
 6. I had seen many wild animals, but I never before was placed 
 in a position so full of discomfort as this. 7. On the table 
 were various fruits and two or three dishes I was fondest of. 
 It was worth being sick three weeks to be able so to enjoy 
 taking food again. 8. After all, a writing instrument is mightier 
 than an instrument of battle. 9. Consider the jlowers of the 
 surface of the earth, how they grow ; they toil not, neither do 
 they manufacture fabrics, and yet I say unto you that no mighty 
 king in all his glory was ever arrayed like one of these. 10. 
 Men do not gather good fruits from dry and unfriendly !?. lies. 
 
 Exercise 102. Tabular review. Make in the form of a 
 table a review of all the suggestions given in this chapter 
 for securing emphasis. 
 
 Exercise 103. Application of review. Examine one 
 of your own compositions, and see if you can improve 
 any sentences in any of the ways named in your re- 
 view (Exercise 102}. If you can add emphasis by rear- 
 rangement, by change of sentence- form, or by a better 
 choice of words, copy out the sentences and place the im- 
 proved forms beside them, thus: 
 
 Sentences to be improved. Improved forms. 
 
160 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 104. Review of direct narration. Rewrite the 
 following passages after deciding where direct narration 
 might well be used. In writing direct quotations be care- 
 ful as to punctuation and use of capitals. 
 
 1. The countryman, who was of a goodly presence, then 
 came in, and it might be seen a thousand leagues oft' that he 
 was an honest, good soul. He asked which among them there 
 was the lord governor. The secretary answered that of course 
 it was he who was seated in the chair. The countryman said 
 he humbled himself in the governor's presence, and kneeling 
 down, he begged for his hand to kiss. Sancho refused it, and 
 commanded him to rise and tell his business. The countryman 
 did so, and said he was a husbandman, a native of Miguel 
 Turra. 
 
 2. I asked him if he left her the four shillings, too, which he 
 had said was his week's pay. He answered that he had, and 
 that I should hear her admit it. So he called Rachel again 
 which it seems was her name and asked her if she had 
 gotten the money. She said she had. He asked her how 
 much it was. She answered that it was four shillings and a 
 groat. Then praying God's blessing upon her, he turned to go 
 away. 
 
 3. Now, as they came to these places, behold, the gardener 
 stood in the way, of whom the pilgrims asked whose goodly 
 vineyards and gardens those were that they saw. He answered 
 that they were the King's, and were placed there for his 
 own delight, and also for the solace of pilgrims. So the 
 gardener led them into the vineyards and bade them refresh 
 themselves. 
 
 4. The merchant said he had a weakness for young men, 
 and though he knew the danger of disappointing his master, 
 the Pasha, he was unable to resist the young man's supplica- 
 tions. So he told him to take the necklace, but demanded 
 that the young man promise to give whatever he, the merchant, 
 might ask in exchange. The young man replied that he might 
 take his head itself if he wanted to, for he had saved his life. 
 
EMPHASIS IN WRITING 161 
 
 Exercise 105. Review of interrogation and of exclama- 
 tion. In the following passages decide which few sen- 
 tences might well be made interrogatory or exclamatory, 
 and rewrite such sentences in the desired forms : 
 
 1. These are the mansions of good men, he said ; every island 
 is a paradise accommodated to its inhabitants. He thought 
 these were habitations worth contending for. Life, he said, 
 did not appear miserable, that gave me opportunities of earn- 
 ing such a reward. Death was not to be feared, that would 
 convey me to so happy an existence. 
 
 2. " Look for the knight in dark armor, fair Kebecca, and see 
 how he bears himself : for as the leader is, so will his followers 
 be." "I see him not," said Kebecca. "He is a foul craven," 
 said Ivanhoe ; " it seems he blenches from the helm when the 
 wind blows highest." "He does not blench, he does not 
 blench," said Rebecca ; " I see him now ; he leads a body of 
 men close under the outer barriers." 
 
 3. The day was made for laziness, and lying on one's back 
 in green places, and staring at the sky. This was not a time 
 to be poring over musty books in a dark room. The idea was 
 monstrous. 
 
 4. " I have no power to speak, sir." " I am astonished to see 
 that you are amazed at my misfortunes. It is strange to me 
 that you can wonder that a great man may decline." 
 
 5. Our hearts bound to the music of the solitary cries we 
 hear in the mountains, to the tinkle of the gushing rills, to the 
 sound of their cataracts. The odors that breathe from the up- 
 land turf, from the rock-hung flower, from the hoary and solemn 
 pine, are very inspiriting. The transparent haze that is din used 
 over the valleys and the lower slopes, as over a vast picture, is 
 very beautiful. 
 
 6. Our brethren are already in the field. There is no good 
 reason why we should stand here idle. We cannot wish peace 
 with dishonor. Life is not so dear, in my opinion, or peace so 
 sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery. 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 11 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 LETTER WRITING 
 
 WHEN we consider that, for most of us, perhaps 
 three fourths of the writing we do after leaving 
 school is in the form of letters, we ought to take es- 
 pecial care to learn how to write letters in proper 
 form and with skillful expression. Letters, of course, 
 may contain any of the four kinds of composition, 
 but usually they are occupied with description or 
 narration, except in certain types of business let- 
 ters. In the body of a letter dealing with several 
 topics, we should take the same care in inden- 
 tion for new paragraphs as in any other form of 
 composition. 
 
 Letters are divided into (a) social letters and (b) 
 business letters. The first are either informal and 
 personal, or formal. The difference here is that the 
 informal style is more familiar and easy, employing 
 naturally the first and second personal pronouns; 
 while the formal style, as used often in invitations, 
 acceptances, and regrets, is distant in manner, though 
 of course courteous, and employs the third personal 
 pronoun. 
 
 162 
 
LETTER WRITING 163 
 
 I. SOCIAL CORRESPONDENCE 
 
 Examples of formal notes 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hobart H. Vermilye request the 
 pleasure of Mr. Da vis's company at dinner, Wednesday, 
 February sixteenth, at seven o'clock. 
 
 14 Brattle Street. 
 
 Mr. Davis regrets extremely that a previous engage- 
 ment prevents his accepting Mr. and Mrs. Vermilye's 
 kind invitation for Wednesday evening. 
 
 17 Washington Square, 
 February eleventh. 
 
 Will Miss Clark kindly excuse Helen's unavoidable 
 absence yesterday from school, and oblige her mother, 
 
 KATE M. BURNETT. 
 124 West Fiftieth Street, 
 Wednesday morning. 
 
 It should be observed in reading these notes that 
 the writer begins at once what he has to say; that 
 the place, and, whenever necessary, the date of the 
 writing are put after the note, at the left ; that the 
 day of the month is written out; that the year, 
 in such notes, is usually not mentioned ; and that pro- 
 nouns of the first or the second person are not used. 
 Notes meant to be formal must not contain any infor- 
 mal expressions. It is absurd to begin formally, in 
 the third person, and end with "Yours very truly," or 
 the like. Formal notes should be so arranged that no 
 
164 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 name shall be partly on one line and partly on an- 
 other. 
 
 In all letters the writer should be careful to preserve 
 a half -inch margin at the left of each page, and should 
 not write anything within an inch or more of the top 
 of the first page ; but in formal notes much more care 
 must be taken with regard to all margins. The 
 spaces left blank at the top and the bottom of the 
 page should be about equal. 
 
 In informal social notes or letters, the aim should 
 be to write easily and more or less conversationally. 
 It is sometimes difficult to make a careful description 
 or a somewhat long narrative seem easy and uns tilted. 
 This means only that real excellence in letter writing, 
 as in most other efforts, is none too common. The 
 writer should at least, however, be able to choose the 
 forms of address and of closing that are fitting. You 
 would hardly write to a close and intimate friend 
 with the salutation "Dear Sir" and the ending 
 "Yours respectfully." In social letters one may 
 choose from such forms of salutation as these : 
 
 My dear Charles : 
 Dear Mother: 
 Dear Uncle Henry: 
 Dear Miss Reed: 
 
 To use "my" before "dear" in a salutation adds some 
 formality lessens the tone -of intimacy or of cor- 
 diality. 
 
LETTER WRITING 165 
 
 The following are some forms of closing for social 
 letters : 
 
 Cordially yours, Believe me, yours faith- 
 Yours most sincerely, fully? 
 
 As ever, yours, Your affectionate cousin, 
 
 Your loving son, Your loving daughter, 
 
 Whether you should sign your full name after such 
 forms of closing, or only your first name or a nick- 
 name depends, of course, upon your relation to your 
 correspondent. Do .not write " Yours, etc." 
 
 In a social letter it is necessary to have the follow- 
 ing parts : 
 
 The heading ', giving place and time of writing. This 
 information is, except in brief informal notes (see 
 model below), put at the top of the letter, toward the 
 right. The place of writing must be given with suf- 
 ficient detail to enable your correspondent to address 
 his letter to you properly. 
 
 The salutation, to be placed a line below the head- 
 ing, but at the left. Examples of forms of salutation 
 have already been given. 
 
 The body of the letter. 
 
 TJie form of dosing, toward, but not reaching to, 
 the right-hand margin, at the end of the letter. 
 Examples already given. 
 
 TJie signature. 
 
166 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Examples of social correspondence 
 
 1. Informal note. 
 
 DEAR MRS. PATTISON : 
 
 Will you have the kindness to send me, by the bearer 
 of this note, Lanciani's " Ancient Rome " ? It will be 
 very useful to me in the preparation of my article on 
 
 Roman life. 
 
 sincerely yours, 
 
 2025 Seventh Avenue, MARION S. WRIGHT. 
 
 Monday, Nov. 8. 
 
 2. A letter to a friend or relative. (Note. As the 
 following letter of Rossetti's does not illustrate the 
 point, it should be noted that it is always advisable 
 to write somewhere, even in a private letter, the full 
 name of the person to whom the letter is written. 
 Otherwise it may be impossible to determine after- 
 ward to whom the letter was written. The name 
 and address may well be placed at the end, to the left.) 
 
 14 Chatham Place, London, 
 Monday, 19 May, 1856. 
 
 MY DEAR AUNT CHARLOTTE : 
 
 I will certainly paint Aunt Eliza for you as soon as 
 she comes to town. It will not be any great tax on my 
 time, as a portrait is a thing needing no forethought, 
 and to be taken up at any moment. 
 
 If Lady Bath wishes to favor me with a visit, the 
 best time would be now, as I happen to have two or 
 
LETTER WRITING 167 
 
 three things just finished, still by me especially a 
 drawing from Dante's " Vita Nuova," which I should 
 have much pleasure in showing her. It is better 
 worth seeing than "The Monk," which is not yet 
 finished, but which I could show her also. I should 
 also very much like to show you the things, if you 
 come with Lady Bath, supposing she is able to give 
 me that pleasure. 
 
 Your affectionate nephew, 
 
 D. G. KOSSETTI. 
 
 Exercise 106. Formal notes. (a) Write a formal note, 
 inviting a friend to a luncheon. (&) Write an acceptance 
 of the invitation, (c) Write a note of regret in response 
 to an invitation to a wedding. 
 
 Exercise 107. Informal notes. (a) Write a note, ac- 
 knowledging the receipt of a Christmas present. (#) 
 Write a note to a friend, to thank him for the use of a 
 book ivhich you are returning. Mention the book ~by 
 name, and give your opinion of it. (c) Write a note to a 
 friend, asking him to meet you at a certain time and 
 place, and stating the purpose of the meeting, (d) Write 
 a note introducing one of your friends to a person resid- 
 ing in a city which your friend is about to visit. 
 
 In addressing the envelope of a letter, observe the 
 following suggestions : 
 
 1. The name of the person addressed should usu- 
 ally be preceded by Miss, Mrs., or Mr., as the case 
 may be. In addressing a minister or a doctor, use 
 such a form as Rev. S. C. Burgess or Dr. Charles 
 Probasco. Do not give, in such cases, the last name 
 
168 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 only. In addressing lawyers and perhaps some other 
 classes of men, instead of Mr. before the name, Esq. 
 may be written after it. The title Hon. is appropri- 
 ate only to a Congressman, a Judge, or other public 
 official. In addressing a business firm, the title 
 Messrs, is frequently used when the firm name in- 
 cludes the names of persons, as Messrs. Brown, 
 Johnston, and Company. Of course one would not 
 write " Messrs. American Book Company." 
 
 2. The direction of the letter to street and num- 
 ber (when necessary), city or town, and State, should 
 follow below the name of the person or firm ad- 
 dressed, and should be placed as in the models given 
 on the next page. The name of the city or town 
 and that of the State may be written on the same 
 line. As a rule, the names of States should not be 
 abbreviated. The post office box number, if it is 
 necessary to use it in the address, may be placed 
 toward the lower left-hand corner of the envelope. 
 If the letter is important, the name and address of 
 the sender should be given on the upper left-hand 
 corner. In addressing a letter of introduction (see 
 Exercise 107, d), it is customary to write in the 
 lower left-hand part of the envelope the form of 
 words, " Introducing Mr. Charles E. Smalley" 
 
 What is written on the envelope is called the 
 superscription. No punctuation marks need be used 
 at the ends of the lines in the superscription, except 
 to mark abbreviations. The stamp should always be 
 placed in the upper right-hand corner. 
 
LETTER WRITING 
 
 169 
 
 Examples of superscriptions 
 
 66 <$ > i 
 
 From A. B. See, 
 Oberlin, Ohio, U.S.A. 
 
1TO WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 II. BUSINESS LETTERS are arranged according to 
 the following example : 
 
 312 Ohio Avenue, 
 CINCINNATI, OHIO, July 3, 1896. 
 
 MR. EVAN HARRINGTON, 
 12 West 2d Street, New York. 
 
 DEAR SIR, The clothing recently sent 
 me by you (shipped June 21) is of such inferior qual- 
 ity that I am unwilling to offer it to my customers. 
 Your house has always dealt fairly with me hereto- 
 fore, but I am obliged to advise you that the recent 
 shipment is wholly unsatisfactory, and will be laid 
 aside until your directions regarding it are received. 
 An immediate reply will be a favor to 
 
 Yours respectfully, 
 
 NICHOLAS NICKLEBY. 
 
 It will be noted that in this form of letter not 
 only are the parts used in the social letter given, 
 the heading, the salutation, the body of the letter, 
 the form of closing, and the signature, but the 
 name and address of the firm or person to whom the 
 letter is written, are placed above the salutation. 
 Sometimes, perhaps less formally, these are placed 
 after the letter, toward the left, on the lines below 
 the signature, as in the next following letter. 
 
 In business letters to women, whether married or 
 unmarried, the form of salutation is " Dear Madam." 
 To men the usual form is " Dear Sir" or "Dear 
 
LETTER WRITING 171 
 
 Sirs." For the latter, " Gentlemen " is sometimes 
 used. " Madam," a Sir " or " Sirs " is purely formal. 
 Women, in signing a letter, should write in paren- 
 theses Mrs. or Miss, as the case may be. A married 
 woman, after signing her own name in full, should 
 add, in parentheses, Mrs., followed by her husband's 
 name; thus, 
 
 Very truly yours, 
 
 Amelia J. Clark 
 (Mrs. John K. Clark). 
 
 Business letters should be as brief as possible, con- 
 sistently with clearness. A fault in the letter of Mr. 
 Nickleby, given above, is that he does not state what 
 was the matter with the clothing of which he com- 
 plains. Mr. Harrington would naturally have to 
 write a letter to inquire about this, and so time 
 would be lost because of the faulty brevity in the 
 first letter. 
 
 Another important suggestion to the writer of 
 business letters is, that in replying to a letter one 
 should in every case state briefly the contents of 
 that letter. By doing this, one not only saves the 
 time of one's correspondent, but prevents misunder- 
 standing. It may be unnecessary to summarize the 
 entire letter before beginning the reply itself, but at 
 least the important points, or those to which the 
 reply is directed, should be stated. This is illus- 
 trated in the following letter : 
 
172 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 1879 West 206th Street, 
 
 CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, May 2, 1900. 
 DEAR MADAM : 
 
 In reply to your letter of April 29th, in 
 which you complain that the articles recently purchased by 
 you had not been delivered by us, and that your letter was the 
 second you had written to us on the subject, we beg to assure 
 you that no letter from you of earlier date than April 29th 
 has been received by us. We have lost no time in seeking to 
 discover the error of which you apprise us, and now have 
 pleasure in informing you that we have succeeded in tracing 
 and recovering the missing articles, which had been sent to 
 a wrong address. They will, we trust, reach you to-morrow. 
 With apologies for the much regretted delay, 
 
 We remain truly yours, 
 
 TARQUE AND PILFORD, 
 
 Miss ISABEL C. HENRY, per J. McK. 
 
 25 Irving Place, Indianapolis. 
 
 One or two other suggestions regarding business 
 correspondence : 
 
 While a business letter should be brief and to the 
 point, it is a matter both of courtesy and of good 
 practice not to use clipped forms of words or sen- 
 tences. Avoid, therefore, abbreviations such as 
 " rec'd," "y'rs"; and do not omit the subjects of 
 your sentences, as, " Have written to Chicago head- 
 quarters." 
 
 When you reply to a letter, state the date of that 
 letter. Some business firms request correspondents 
 in replying to " refer to this letter as B 210," or the 
 like. The point is to make it perfectly plain to what 
 
LETTER WRITING 173 
 
 letter you are replying, so that your correspondent 
 may easily find it in his files. 
 
 It is advisable in addressing a large office or estab- 
 lishment with several departments, to write a dis- 
 tinct letter concerning each of the unrelated matters 
 of your correspondence, so that each letter may be 
 received and filed by the proper department. 
 
 Exercise 108. Business letters. 
 
 Note. It is of the utmost importance in business letters 
 that they be properly divided into paragraphs. If several 
 topics are to be spoken of, they should be kept perfectly dis- 
 tinct. The best plan is to note down the topics before writing 
 the letter. In replying to a letter covering two or more points, 
 the distinctness of these points should be recognized by the 
 paragraphing. 
 
 1. Write a letter from Oliver Twist, Pawtucket, Rhode 
 Island, inclosing $4 to Harper and Brothers, Franklin Square, 
 New York, for his subscription for one year to Harper's Weekly. 
 
 2. Write a letter from Henry Esmond, applying for a posi- 
 tion as clerk in a bank. Age, experience, and references 
 should be given. 
 
 3. Write a letter to Edward March, publisher of the Weekly 
 Mirror, 17 West 31st Street, Brooklyn, New York, asking to 
 have the address of your paper changed. In such a letter you 
 must give both the old and the new address. 
 
 4. Write to the American Book Company, ordering fifty 
 copies of this book, inclosing a money order, and directing how 
 the books are to be sent, and where. 
 
 5. Write an answer for the American Book Company to 
 the last letter. 
 
 6. Write to a gas company, inclosing their bill, with your 
 check for the amount, and complaining that the gas is of poor 
 quality. 
 
174 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 7. Mrs. Rebecca S. Crawley, wife of Eawdon Crawley, of 
 10 Poppenham Terrace, is asked by a former servant to write 
 a letter of recommendation. Write the letter. 
 
 8. Write a letter to your teacher, asking for a letter of 
 recommendation, as you are obliged to leave school, and have a 
 chance of employment in a situation for which you believe you 
 are fitted. 
 
 9. Write a letter to John Havemeyer and Co., calling their 
 attention to three errors in a bill recently sent you for various 
 purchases, and asking them to correct these errors on the 
 bill. 
 
 10. Write a letter to the school committee, or board of 
 education, asking that no school be held on the Friday after 
 Thanksgiving, and stating three reasons why the petition 
 should be granted. This letter should be signed by several 
 persons. 
 
 Exercise 109. Letters from outlines. Where, in the 
 following letters, the matter is descriptive, take care to 
 introduce your own feelings and sense-impressions ; where 
 the matter is narrative, endeavor to make it interesting 
 by reason of the characters or situations of the persons, 
 and the nature of the places and incidents. Attend care- 
 fully to the paragraphing. 
 
 1. (From a boy on a visit in a strange city. To his parents.) 
 Arrived two days ago the trip arrival meeting at the 
 
 station the host's home went to theater the first evening 
 
 opinion of the play the doings of the next day places 
 visited plans impressions of the city. 
 
 2. (From a girl to her school friend. During summer vaca- 
 tion.) 
 
 Time of leaving home the journey description of sum- 
 mering place occupations places of interest persons met 
 
 plan for the remainder of summer. 
 
 3. (From a boy who has just entered into business life. To 
 his uncle.) 
 
LETTER WRITING 175 
 
 How he got his position nature of his duties difficulties 
 
 how he is treated life outside of working hours remem- 
 brances to uncle and family. 
 
 4. (A letter to a friend who is absent for a year in 
 Europe.) 
 
 Kind of time you suppose your friend is having how 
 things are going on at home school incidents news about 
 friends questions concerning Europe hope for a prompt 
 and a long reply. 
 
 5. (A letter describing a visit to Concord, Mass.) 
 
 By train from Boston memories of the march of the 
 British in 1775 the quietness of Concord its frame houses 
 and big elm trees Emerson's home, outside and inside 
 The Wayside, once dwelt in by Hawthorne his tower his 
 walk on the piny hillside the little schoolhouse of Bronson 
 Alcott the home of Thoreau The Old Manse the Concord 
 River, the bridge, the statue commemorating the battle 
 the cemetery where the famous men lie buried reflections 
 about the history of this little village. 
 
 6. (From a boy, describing to a friend a recent game of base- 
 ball.) 
 
 The weather the two teams prominent members the 
 beginning description of two or three exciting times in the 
 game the result. 
 
 7. (Letter describing your seeing and hearing some famous 
 man.) 
 
 How it came about the crowd present your first im- 
 pression what he said his manner why he became famous, 
 as you suppose. 
 
 8. (Letter in reply to a friend who prefers living in the 
 country.) 
 
 Admit the advantages of the country, especially in summer 
 
 name them point out the advantages of the city over the 
 country, 
 
 9. (Letter from a man of thirty to a man he has not heard 
 from for fifteen years.) 
 
176 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 At school together those old days leaving that school 
 further education family events first position subse- 
 quent positions travels married ? prospects inquiries 
 about his friend. 
 
 10. (Letter describing winter, to a child who lives in south- 
 ern California.) 
 
 The winds the temperature the frozen ground the 
 ice skating snow sledding other sports effect of 
 winter upon health and strength what you suppose life is 
 like in a climate where there is no winter. 
 
 Exercise no. Kinds of composition. What kinds of 
 composition are called for in the letters of the last exer- 
 cise ? 
 
 Exercise in. Outlining. Outline in full one of the 
 letters in Exercise 109, with topics and subtopics 
 properly arranged. If necessary, correct the para- 
 graphing in your letter by the aid of the outline. Note 
 whether your own letters and those of your classmates 
 possess completeness, unity, and plan. 
 
 Exercise 112. Sentence-criticism. Read over care- 
 fully one or more (as the teacher may direct) of the letters 
 written by your classmates. Suggest in the margin cor- 
 rections in spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing; 
 mark with " U " sentences which you think lack unity or 
 contain misuse of "and" ; with " Cl" sentences lacking 
 clearness, by reason of faulty use of pronouns or misplac- 
 ing of modifiers; and with " F" sentences which you 
 think might be made more emphatic by a rearrange- 
 ment or by other change in expression. 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 
 FIGURES OF SPEECH 
 
 ALONG with the means of emphasis already treated 
 of in Chapter X, we should consider one more, which 
 is very important, the use of what are called figures 
 of speech. There are certain forms of expression 
 which may give not only emphasis, but also clearness 
 and beauty to what we say. Some figures, in fact, 
 are used merely for the sake of their beauty; but 
 usually they also add force to the expression of the 
 idea. We shall consider only a few of the commoner 
 and more useful figures here. A full treatment of 
 the subject belongs only to an advanced work on 
 rhetoric. 
 
 I. Simile. If we wish to say that the Assyrian 
 enemy came down upon the city secretly and fiercely, 
 we may express both these ideas with vividness and 
 therefore with emphasis by using such a comparison 
 as this : 
 
 The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold. Byron 
 
 In this too the swiftness, devouringness of the wolflike 
 Assyrians, give you, on the other hand, the panic, 
 rout, unresistingness of the sheep. 
 
 A comparison of this sort is called a simile. It is 
 always plainly marked as a comparison by the use of 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 12 177 
 
178 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 such words as like, as, than, resembles, etc. A simile 
 is not a comparison of things of the same sort, as one 
 man with another. Thus, the sentence, " Napoleon 
 was a greater general than Caesar/' is a mere com- 
 parison, not a simile ; or to say, " This flower looks 
 like a rose," is not to use a simile. A simile, then, 
 is an expressed comparison between objects of different 
 kinds. The reason why a simile adds clearness and 
 vividness to our writing is that it brings up some- 
 thing common, familiar, or concrete to explain that 
 which we wish our readers to see or feel. By the 
 use of a simile we thus tell or hint to our readers 
 that what we are writing about, which perhaps they 
 have not seen or may not imagine vividly, is like 
 something they have seen, or know about, or can 
 picture. 
 
 A simile fully stated forms what is called a pro- 
 portion A : B : : C : D. Thus, - 
 
 Their ranks were breaking like thin clouds before a Biscay 
 gale, 
 
 could be stated more fully, 
 
 As thin clouds break before a gale, so their ranks broke before 
 the onset of the enemy. 
 
 Note that, while a simile is a comparison between 
 unlike objects, yet there must of course be one or 
 more points of likeness, and these are precisely what 
 the simile brings out and emphasizes. Thus, in the 
 last simile quoted, in what respect were the ranks of 
 the defeated army like clouds ? Of course not in color 
 
FIGURES OF SPEECH 179 
 
 or texture or weight, or, in fact, in any respect except 
 that of helplessly breaking and yielding to a force. 
 A simile such as this adds not only emphasis but 
 clearness and beauty to the statement. 
 
 Exercise 113. Simile. Examine the following simi- 
 les, then (a) tell wherein the resemblance lies ; (#) state 
 the simile in full, as a proportion. 
 
 1. Fret not thyself because of evil doers, for they shall be 
 cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Bible. 
 2. It seems to me those verses shine like the stars. Thack- 
 eray. 3. Troubled thoughts filled his mind as if with a fog. 
 Balzac. 4. He was carried about from place to place like a bale 
 of goods; he never moved, and he said nothing. 5. Mean- 
 while in the old State House, dim as ghosts, sat the lawgivers 
 of Connecticut. Whittier. 6. If reasons were as plentiful 
 as blackberries, I would give no man a reason on compulsion. 
 Shakspere's Henry IV. 7. Stones and beams are hailed 
 down on the brave champion ; he regards them no more than 
 if they were thistle down and feathers. Scott. 8. Every 
 phrase was a calamity like the blows of a bludgeon. Balzac. 
 9. The first time I read an excellent book, it is to me just as 
 if I had gained a new friend. Goldsmith. 10. He received 
 my arguments with his mouth open, like a poorbox, gaping for 
 half-pence, and, good or bad, he swallowed them all without 
 any resistance. Colman. 11. High o'er the heads of the 
 others rose, with his arms uplifted, the figure of Basil the 
 blacksmith, as, on a stormy sea, a spar is tossed by the billows. 
 - Longfellow. 12. Cassius, thou art yoked with a lamb, that 
 carries anger as the flint bears fire, who, much enforced, shows 
 a hasty spark, and straight is cold again. Shakspere's Julius 
 Ccesar. 13. This juggler would catch four balls in succession, 
 in less than a second of time, and make them revolve around 
 him at certain intervals, like the planets in their spheres; 
 would make them chase one another like sparkles of fire, or 
 
180 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 shoot up like flowers or meteors ; would throw them behind 
 his back, and twine them round his neck like ribbons, or like 
 serpents. Hazlitt. 
 
 A simile should always be chosen and expressed 
 with good judgment. An inappropriate simile is 
 worse than none. If you are describing a person 
 whom you do not wish to make ridiculous, it would 
 not be well to say that in dodging the attacks of 
 enemies he jumped about like a monkey. This might 
 be perfectly true, but the comparison would be ill 
 chosen. You should also have some regard to size 
 and form, as well as to fittingness of suggestion. 
 You might well enough say, " The farmer's cheeks 
 were as ruddy as rosy -cheeked apples," but hardly 
 would it do to say, " His cheeks were as ruddy as 
 his barn, newly painted red." 
 
 If you wish to make your similes pleasing, do not 
 make them too short and simple, or too common- 
 place. Such expressions as " black as coal," " red as 
 fire," are worn out. Longfellow does not say merely, 
 " Her eyes were black as berries," but he makes the 
 comparison particular and beautiful, " Black were 
 her eyes as the berry that grows on the thorn by the 
 wayside." The more fullness and definiteness the 
 better. To say " He fled before his enemies as a leaf 
 before the wind," is not so good as to say " He fled 
 swiftly, blown by the blast of fate, like a dead leaf 
 over a frozen meadow." 
 
 The way to make a fine simile is not by thinking 
 of words, but by fixing your mind upon the object, 
 
FIGURES OF SPEECH 181 
 
 event, or person to be described, or the characteristic 
 to be illustrated. Ask yourself, What is this like ? 
 and let the images come. 
 
 Exercise 114. Simile. Work out appropriate similes 
 as suggested. 
 
 1. The gates once being open, our men poured into the 
 town like . . . 
 
 2. Life bears us on like . . . 
 
 3. Books are to the mind what . . . 
 
 4. At this period of his life he enjoyed a prosperity that 
 was as ... 
 
 5. Smoothly out of the harbor, with all sails set, the ship 
 came . . . 
 
 6. War passed over the land like . . . leaving devastation 
 behind it. 
 
 7. As he said this, the man's eyes . . . 
 
 8. Wit, sudden gleams ; kindly humor, steady glow of light. 
 
 9. I saw the moon's bright reflection in the waters under 
 me, like . . . 
 
 10. Eloquence comes, if it comes at all, like the . . . 
 
 11. Metaphor. If, instead of saying, " She waited, 
 like an ill-tempered cat, to give him with her sharp 
 words a parting scratch as he went out," we leave 
 out the words that express the comparison of the 
 person to a cat, and say, " She waited to give him 
 with her sharp words a parting scratch as he went 
 out," we save time and gain emphasis by merely 
 suggesting the person's likeness to a cat. In like 
 manner, the simile, " Thy words are as a lamp to my 
 feet," may be shortened and at the same time 
 strengthened by omitting " as." Of course it is 
 
182 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 absurd to speak of words as actually scratching a 
 person, or of words as actually being a lamp. When 
 we read such an expression we understand that the 
 writer means to suggest a comparison. The differ- 
 ence between a simile and this second kind of figure, 
 called metaphor, is that the latter is an implied or 
 suggested comparison. 
 
 Exercise 115. Metaphor. Examine each of the follow- 
 ing metaphors, then (a) tell wherein the resemblance 
 lies ; (&) state the comparison in full, as a proportion. 
 
 1. " Twenty-five thousand francs ! " cried Cesar, feeling ice 
 in his veins instead of blood. Balzac. 2. He was now in the 
 turbulent and seething city, which a modern poet has called a 
 vat. 3. Open that rusty door of your mouth, and make your 
 ugly voice walk out of it. Colman. 4. The earth is the cup, 
 the sky is the cover, of the immense bounty of nature. 
 Emerson. 5. Misfortune is a stepping-stone for genius, a 
 treasure for the skillful man, an abyss for the feeble. Balzac. 
 6. Dryden's page is a natural field, rising into inequalities 
 and diversified by varied vegetation ; Pope's is the velvet 
 lawn, shaven by the scythe, and leveled by the roller. 
 Johnson. 7. I have but one lamp by which my feet are 
 guided, and that is the lamp of experience. P. Henry. 
 8. Poverty froze the genial current of his soul. 9. Say that 
 Wolsey, who sounded all the depths and shoals of honor, 
 found thee a way, out of his wreck, to rise in. 10. His 
 conversation was uninteresting ; it was weak water gruel 
 a tame rabbit, boiled to rags, without sauce or salt. 
 Colman. 
 
 Exercise 116. Metaphors to similes. By introducing 
 "like," "as," or other words expressing comparison, 
 change the metaphors quoted in Exercise 115 into 
 similes. Note the loss in brevity and force. 
 
FIGURES OF SPEECH 183 
 
 Exercise 117. Similes to metaphors. By omitting all 
 expression of the comparisons, change the similes in 
 Exercise 113 to metaphors. Note the greater conden- 
 sation, but also, in some cases, a loss in clearness. 
 
 Simile and metaphor are the two chief figures that 
 one should try to learn to use. It is not well to 
 employ many figures in one's writing, at least not 
 until one is wise enough to exercise good judgment 
 as to the number and character of them ; though of 
 course it is good that a writer use any kind of figure 
 that comes naturally to him and helps him to express 
 his idea or his feeling. It is, moreover, important to 
 be able to recognize several other figures of speech 
 besides simile and metaphor, so that we may enjoy 
 them when we meet them in reading. Some of the 
 additional figures which it is well to understand are 
 now to be briefly explained and illustrated. 
 
 III. Personification. Sometimes we speak of 
 things not living as though they were alive. This 
 may be either because they at the time seem alive, or 
 because we can make the idea of them emphatic by 
 ascribing life to them. Thus, the idea of Rome is 
 made more stately and beautiful by using this figure 
 of personification : 
 
 "This is Rome, that sat on her seven hills, and 
 from her throne of beauty ruled the world." 
 Mitford. 
 
 Personification may merely give feeling to inani- 
 mate things or vegetable life, as, u The mountain 
 shuddered," " The branches moaned in the wind " ; or 
 
184 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 it may give to inanimate things or to plants or to 
 lower animals human qualities, as, " Then would the 
 very stones of the street rise and mutiny." Animals 
 may shudder or moan, but only men can mutiny. 
 Personification, then, ascribes to its object' qualities 
 of something higher than itself in the scale of being. 
 
 Exercise 118. Personification. Examine the follow- 
 ing sentences for examples of personification, state why 
 the figure is personification, and give a reason for the 
 writer's having used this figure. 
 
 1. Then, too, the old year dieth, and the forests utter 
 a moan. Longfellow. 2. Hope for a season bade the 
 earth farewell, and Freedom shrieked when Kosciusko fell. 
 3. Let the dead past bury its dead. 4. Soon as the evening 
 shades prevail, the moon takes up the wondrous tale, and 
 nightly to the listening earth repeats the story of her birth. 
 Addison. 5. Hear me, ye walls, that echoed to the tread of 
 either Brutus, once again I swear the eternal city shall be free. 
 Mitford. 
 
 IT. Metonymy and synecdoche. Personification, 
 like metaphor and simile, may be said to depend on 
 a resemblance, real or imaginary. In fact, all per- 
 sonifications are really metaphors. But if we say, 
 "This dish is well cooked," we mean, the food in the 
 dish is well cooked. There is no resemblance between 
 the dish and the food, but there is so usual a con- 
 nection between them that we may speak of the dish 
 when we really mean what is in the dish. A 
 metonymy is the using of one word in place of another, 
 when the two ideas are closely and commonly con- 
 
FIGURES OF SPEECH 185 
 
 nected. When the connection between the two ideas 
 is that of part and whole, the figure is called synecdo- 
 che ; for example, " He employs twelve hands in 
 his factory." 
 
 Exercise 119. Metonymy and synecdoche. Point out 
 the instances of metonymy and of synecdoche in the fol- 
 lowing sentences, and tell what the words used in the 
 figures are really substituted for, and what the connec- 
 tions are between the ideas. 
 
 1. No sheltering roof was nigh. 2. He wielded the scepter 
 for fully twenty years. 3. Do you read Shakspere? 4. He 
 is the worst oar in the crew. 5. She was by now a maiden of 
 sixteen summers. 6. The hedges are white with May. 7. All 
 the world looked on indifferently. 8. A fleet of twenty sail 
 came out of the west. 9. He is a slave to his pipe. 10. I 
 have always voted for the administration. 
 
 V. Allegory. An allegory is a series of metaphors, 
 or an extended comparison, forming a narrative. Ex- 
 amples of allegory, parable, and fable, are the follow- 
 ing : " I am the vine and ye are the branches," etc. 
 (St. John, Chapter xv), The parable of the prodigal 
 son (St. Luke xv. 11-32), Bunyan's The Pilgrim's 
 Progress, JEsop's Fables. 
 
 VI. Alliteration is the use of two or more promi- 
 nent words near together, beginning with the same 
 sound. This is frequent in poetry, but should be 
 used very sparingly in prose. Examples : " And the 
 sails did sigh like sedge," " Some days must be dark 
 and dreary," " Up the high hill he heaves a huge 
 round stone." 
 
186 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 VII. Onomatopoeia is the use of words whose sound 
 suggests or imitates the meaning. Words like buzz, 
 hum, rustle, splash, flop, dinging, twang, clatter, and 
 the like, are onomatopoetic. Onomatopoeia is fre- 
 quently found in connection with alliteration. 
 
 Exercise 120. Criticism. Examine carefully such of 
 your own or of your classmates' written paragraphs or 
 longer compositions as the teacher may direct ; mark in 
 the margin with " F" sentences which you believe could 
 be made more emphatic by rearrangement or by change 
 of wording ; and write out on a slip of paper the im- 
 proved forms which you think these sentences ought to 
 have. 
 
 Exercise 121. Figures of speech. Look over two of 
 your own exercises in paragraph-writing or in longer 
 composition, and insert in each, in red ink, between the 
 lines, one or two appropriate and helpful similes or 
 metaphors. 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
 CHOICE OF WORDS 
 
 MOST of our sentence work up to this point has 
 bad to do with the form of the sentence as a whole, 
 or with the form or arrangement of the elements of 
 the sentence. (See the Table of Contents.) It is true 
 that in some cases we have considered the use of cer- 
 tain words, namely, conjunctives, especially and, and 
 the relative pronoun which. But in English the 
 choice of what words we shall use is a large subject, 
 to which whole books have been given. For the 
 sake of learning to write more effectively, we must 
 now study the subject a little further. 
 
 Some words and constructions ought never to be 
 used. It may be that the words themselves are not 
 good English, or that they are used in a wrong sense, 
 or that they are put together ungrammatically. 
 
 L Correctness in diction and syntax. 
 
 a. The words we speak or write should be in good 
 use. This means that we must avoid : - 
 
 (1) All slang and vulgar expressions, such as ain't, 
 gent, pants, photo, party (for person), well posted 
 (for " well informed "), put it through, gave himself 
 away, got left. 
 
 187 
 
188 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 (2) All local or provincial uses of words, such as 
 tote, onto, reckon (for "think"), be you (for "are 
 you"), complected, like (for "as," as in the sentences, 
 " Do like I do/' " She spoke just like my mother used 
 to speak " ; remember that when the noun or pronoun 
 following like is the subject of a verb, you should use 
 as instead of like). 
 
 (3) All obsolete or disused words, such as, verily, 
 methinks. 
 
 (4) All too recent or as yet unaccepted words, as 
 burglarize, motorneer, electrocute, suicided (verb). 
 
 (5) All words belonging only to poetry, as ere, 
 e'er, o'er, ne'er. 
 
 b. We must not give to words distinctly wrong 
 meanings. To illustrate : a place may be healthful, 
 a certain food may be wholesome, but neither a place 
 nor a food can be healthy, because it is not alive. 
 
 Exercise 122. Precision in use of words. If you are 
 
 in any doubt as to the precise meaning of any of the fol- 
 lowing words, look them up in a good dictionary. The 
 words in these groups are often used incorrectly one for 
 another. Whether you need to look them up or not, write 
 sentences containing these words used correctly. 
 
 1. Accept, except (verb). 2. Balance, remainder. 3. Ke- 
 spectively, respectfully. 4. Invention, discovery. 5. Observa- 
 tion, observance. 6. Affect, effect. 7. Aggravate, irritate. 
 8. Demean, degrade. 9. Guess, think. 10. Lie, lay. 11. Sit, 
 set. 12. May, can. 13. Liable, likely. 14. In, into. 15. Most, 
 mostly, almost. 16. Like, as. 17. Quantity, number, amount. 
 18. Expect, suspect, suppose. 19. Quite, rather, somewhat. 
 20. Propose, purpose (verb). 21. Are finished, have finished. 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 189 
 
 22. To find, to found. 23. I shall, I will, he shall, he will, 
 shall you ? will you ? will he ? shall he ? shall I ? will I ? 
 (see the following note). 24. Which, that, who, whom (see 
 the note below, on relative pronouns). 
 
 Note on "shall" and "will" In declarative sen- 
 tences, with the first person will expresses intention 
 or determination ; shall expresses merely the future 
 tense. With the second and third persons will ex- 
 presses merely the future tense, while shall ex- 
 presses intention or determination on the part of 
 the speaker. 
 
 In questions, the above uses are changed, because 
 of the answers expected. The word of the question 
 is the word of the expected answer. Thus, shall 
 you? (answer expected, I shall, or I shall not) has 
 merely the future idea ; will you ? asks for deter- 
 mined assent, the desired answer being, I will. Will 
 he? is merely future, asks for information. Shall 
 he f means " Do you insist or intend that he shall ? " 
 Will If is usually ironical. Asked seriously, it is 
 absurd. Shall I? expresses an offer, or else a mere 
 question in the future tense. 
 
 The use of should and would is generally governed 
 by the same rules as those for shall and will. 
 
 Note on relative pronouns. Compare "Young birds 
 that cannot fly are frequently starved to death " and 
 " Young birds, which cannot fly, are frequently 
 starved to death." In the former sentence the rela- 
 tive clause "that cannot fly" limits the antecedent 
 "young birds." That sentence does not say that all 
 
190 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 young birds are frequently starved to death, but 
 speaks only of those young birds that cannot fly. 
 But the second sentence says that young birds are 
 frequently starved to death, and adds the information 
 that young birds cannot fly. Here the relative 
 clause, since it introduces a new fact about the ante- 
 cedent, is said to be coordinative, and may be re- 
 garded as parenthetical. The correct punctuation 
 also indicates this. 
 
 As a rule the pronoun that is used to limit or restrict 
 the antecedent ; for example, in the case given, we are 
 not speaking of the antecedent in general (young 
 birds), but of a particular class of the antecedent. 
 To test whether a relative is used restrictively or 
 coordinatively in a sentence, see whether such words 
 as the, that, those, that class of, those particular, can 
 be or are used before the antecedent ; if so, the rela- 
 tive is restrictive. Another test is to see whether 
 the relative clause is equivalent to and he, and it, and 
 they, etc., or for he, for it, etc., or to some other clause 
 which adds a new statement about the antecedent. 
 In such cases the clause is, coordinative. To express 
 restriction who, whom and which are sometimes used 
 instead of that when it sounds better ; as when that has 
 already been used as an adjective or a conjunction, 
 or when the use of that would throw a preposition to 
 the end of the sentence with an unpl easing effect. 
 
 Exercise 123. Use of relatives who, whom, which, that. 
 
 In the following sentences select the proper relative to 
 insert in each space. State whether the relative clause 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 191 
 
 restricts the antecedent or merely adds information about 
 it. Punctuate the sentences properly. 
 
 1. He is the very man . . . threw the stone. 2. We should 
 take good care of books . . . are among our best friends. 
 3. Grass . . . stays green later in the year than most vegeta- 
 tion is a hardy plant. 4. Coal-oil lamps . . . are very cheap 
 are now found in many houses. 5. Good shoes . . . are made 
 of calfskin are commoner now than ever before. 6. Squirrels 
 . . . build nests of dry leaves and twigs store up nuts for win- 
 ter food. 7. He says that that is a statement . . . you may 
 believe or not as you think best. 8. Alice in W r onderland . . . 
 is called a children's book is much read by grown people too. 
 
 9. He believed that the stories . . . children read are often 
 the cause of a loss of time ... is much to be regretted. 
 
 10. That is the Mr. Phelps . . . you wanted to be introduced 
 to. He is a man ... 1 have the highest regard and admiration 
 for. 
 
 Exercise 124. Use of shall and will. In the following 
 sentences, choose from the words given in parentheses, 
 and state the reason for your choice. If either might be 
 used, state the difference in the meanings. 
 
 1. I (shall, will) see him at once, or know the reason why. 
 
 2. (Should, would) you think of going to that lecture to-day ? 
 
 3. I (will, shall) go up to the house at once and see what is 
 the matter. 4. He (will, shall) do as I say, never fear. 
 5. (Shall, will) you not remain here till I return ? 6. I am 
 determined that this game (will, shall) be the last one I play 
 to-day. 7. I am now at Brampton, where I (shall, will) re- 
 main all summer. 8. The count came riding up, crying, " I 
 (will, shall) not surrender, except to death." 9. You (will, 
 shall) not find it easy to hoodwink that lonely old man. 
 10. He replied scornfully, " (Shall, will) I consent to such a 
 proposition? Never while life (will, shall) last!" 11. You 
 (shall, will) not have the chance to do that again, so long as I 
 
192 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 (shall, will) be here to prevent you. 12. He asked me if I 
 (would, should) have a rehearsal that day or the next. 13. Yes, 
 we (would, should) linger that one night till the sunrise itself 
 (should, would) come to bid us seek our rest. 14. We (would, 
 should) often remain till the stars came out. 15. You (should, 
 would) not say so, if you knew him better. 
 
 c. Correctness in syntax, or grammatical construc- 
 tion of sentences, includes so much that only a few 
 important points will be considered here, and those 
 must be points that belong especially to the study of 
 composition. 
 
 1. Incorrect use of " and which." Since which is a 
 relative pronoun, it does not require a conjunction 
 before it, as relatives are also connectives (see page 86). 
 It is therefore bad grammar to use and, but, or, or 
 other conjunctions before which, who, or that, except 
 to connect two relative clauses having the same ante- 
 cedent. Coordinating conjunctions should always 
 connect like elements. 
 
 EXAMPLES : 
 
 Incorrect Corrected 
 
 1. He was a man of great 1. Omit the and (comma 
 firmness and who never could after " firmness "), or recast : 
 endure opposition. He was a man that was as firm 
 
 as he was intolerant of opposi- 
 tion. 
 
 2. This is a time not meant 2. This is a time which we 
 for angry disputes, but for the must not spend in angry dis- 
 right use of which we shall be putes, but which we must use 
 held accountable. rightly and wisely. * 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 193 
 
 3. This time the gateman 3. This time the gaternan 
 was a man named Watty, or was a man whose name was 
 who was called that by his Watty, or who was at any rate 
 companions. called that by his companions ; 
 
 or, This time the gateman was 
 a man named Watty, or known 
 by that nickname among his 
 companions. 
 
 4. Going down the steps I 4. Going down the steps I 
 met Robert Longacre, the son met the son of a well-known 
 of a well-known writer, and writer. It was Robert Long- 
 whom I had never been intro- acre, a young man to whom I 
 duced to. had never been introduced. 
 
 5. I believed he had the 5. Though he carefully con- 
 strength of a horse or an ox, cealed the fact from me, I 
 but which he carefully con- believed he had the strength 
 cealed from me. of a horse or an ox. 
 
 6. No person unable to read, 6. No person who is unable 
 or who does not understand the to read, or who does not un- 
 Constitution, may vote in this derstand the Constitution may 
 State. vote in this State. 
 
 2. Faults relating to possess ives. The possessive 
 case should be used before a gerund (verbal noun) in 
 cases like these : "I was glad of your being able to 
 make the journey, but disappointed at your sister's 
 having been too ill." The use of the objective case 
 instead of the possessive in such sentences is incorrect. 
 For instance, to use sister in the sentence given would 
 make it object of at, which would be absurd. Care 
 must be taken also to write the possessive case cor- 
 rectly, particularly in case of compound expressions. 
 (See Appendix III, page 239 ; and Maxwell's Ad- 
 vanced Lessons in English Grammar, 201-208.) 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 13 
 
194 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 Exercise 125. Use of possessive case. Correct the 
 errors in the following sentences, with regard to the 
 use, and the proper writing, of possessives. 
 
 1. I did not like him saying that before all the others. 
 2. My father thinks that Lyon's and Fourpaw's circus is better 
 than this coming one. 3. Is that Worcester or Webster's dic- 
 tionary ? 4. We are much obliged for Mr. Beeman having 
 acted so promptly. 5. I have read several of Tennyson and 
 Longfellow's poems to-day. 6. You arriving on time was 
 what saved the day. 7. I found him at Howe's and Hub- 
 bard's law office. 8. As for your mother giving her consent, 
 that is unlikely. 
 
 3. Pronoun not agreeing with antecedent. The 
 pronoun they (their, them) should generally not be 
 used except with a plural antecedent. If the ante- 
 cedent is singular and the gender unknown, better use 
 requires that the pronoun he, not they, should be used. 
 Thus, instead of saying, " If any one in the room has 
 lost a handkerchief, they may obtain it after the 
 meeting," we should say, "he may obtain it." We 
 must also observe that one, each, either, etc., are sin- 
 gular, not plural, and should be referred to by he, 
 not they. (See examples in the following exercise.) 
 
 4. Pronouns in the wrong case-form. The follow- 
 ing are common errors in the forms of pronouns : 
 
 (a) Wrong case-form in questions, as, Who did 
 you take me to be ? Who are you making that for ? 
 
 (&) Wrong case-form after prepositions or verbs, 
 as, Between you and I, this is not easy to understand. 
 He believed she and I to be against the plan. The 
 animal next attacked John and I. 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 195 
 
 (c) Wrong case-form after than or as, as, He is 
 three years older than me. You would rather talk 
 with my brother than I. 
 
 It is to be noted that the forms of the verb to be, 
 and of other verbs of being and becoming, take the 
 same case after as before. The subject of an infinitive 
 verb is put in the objective case. Than and as com- 
 pare words that are in the same case, whether nomi- 
 native or objective. 
 
 Exercise 126. Ungrammatical uses of pronouns. 
 
 Correct the following, giving reasons : 
 
 1. If either the engineer or the fireman had lost their head 
 one moment, there would have occurred a terrible accident. 
 2. No one can save their soul by good resolutions. 3. Whom 
 did you think I was ? 4. Who do you think I saw ? 5. Who 
 do you suppose him to be ? 6. Who did you take him for ? 
 7. Not a child should leave this room without putting on all 
 the wraps they have brought. 8. Has any of you people lost 
 their knife? 9. Mary can read as well as him. 10. The 
 teacher, it seems to me, would sooner promote her than I. 
 11. Who can we tell about it ? 12. This is a pretty position 
 for you and I to be in. 13. Whom do you say was elected? 
 14. The thing for you and I to do, friends, is to change all 
 this at once. 15. Who did you say he told to go ? 
 
 5. Verb with wrong number or tense. Perhaps the 
 commonest example of disagreement of verb with 
 subject in everyday speech is he dont (she don't, it 
 don't) for he doesnt. Other examples of false agree- 
 ment are in the following exercise. With regard to 
 tense-forms, one should note particularly the fault of 
 wrongly inserting have when the sense does not 
 
196 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 require it. If you think of the intended meaning 
 you will see, for example, that " I expected to have 
 called yesterday/' should be " I expected to call yes- 
 terday." It should be observed also that a state- 
 ment true for all time is put in the present tense 
 even when the principal verb is in a past tense; 
 thus, " I said that air is a mixture of oxygen and 
 nitrogen." 
 
 Exercise 127. Verbs. Point out the false syntax in 
 the following sentences: 
 
 1. Each, of those books, as Mr. Williams says, contain good 
 reading. 2. Neither of these pencils write well. 3. The 
 building with all its contents were destroyed by fire. 4. This 
 is not a color like scarlet or purple which tire the eyes. 
 
 5. Nothing but games and idle pursuits interest him any more. 
 
 6. Either this box or that one are worth buying at such a 
 price. 7. While the state of affairs are as I have described, 
 there suddenly appears on the scene a robber and his son, a 
 youth of eighteen. 8. Why is the smoking of cigars and the 
 drinking of beer allowed in this place? 9. Either you or I 
 are to stay, while Mary and you, or Mary and I, am to go. 
 10. If one of these chances are again presented, which happen 
 none too often, he or I is to start at once. 11. Our joy or our 
 sorrow are really due in large part to ourselves. 12. Neither 
 of those persons seem to be able to understand me. 13. How 
 high did you say the Washington monument was ? 14. What 
 study was it you failed in ? 15. The minister said that God 
 was no respecter of persons. 16. I never expected to have 
 been accused of insincerity. 17. I admit that I failed to 
 have proved that statement. 18. Hopkins had hoped to 
 have graduated this year. 19. I was not aware that this was 
 now your house. 20. I knew he wished to have advised me 
 not to have gone. 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 197 
 
 6. Misplacing of adverbial modifiers. The infini- 
 tive verb and the particle " to " should not be sepa- 
 rated by an adverbial or other element. The placing 
 of adverbial modifiers with respect to the position of 
 the verb is a subject requiring some attention. (See 
 Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, 
 article 597.) It should be particularly noted that, 
 while an adverb may generally precede a simple verb, 
 yet, when the verb is in a compound tense, the 
 adverb usually comes after the first auxiliary if the 
 verb is in the active voice, and next to the principal 
 verb if it is in the passive voice. 
 
 Exercise 128. Misplaced modifiers. Rewrite the fol- 
 lowing sentences so as to avoid misplacing the adverbials. 
 In correcting these sentences care jnust be taken not to 
 put an unimportant word in an emphatic position. 
 
 1. He determined to immediately ask the teacher's pardon. 
 2. We have concluded to not read it at present. 3. The 
 weeks in his course of study were so arranged as to each in 
 itself take up a certain part of the subject and complete it. 
 4. It is my wish to most completely repair the injury I have 
 done them. 5. He intended to, if possible, return without 
 being seen. 6. Agnes could hope now to only see her 
 mother once again. 7. This writing is too bad to be easily 
 read. 8. We shall have then been here ten days. 9. That game 
 easily can be learned. 10. I have very rapidly walked home. 
 11. He read the book that I gave him with great care. 12. He 
 will finish probably before dinner. 
 
 7. Grammatical incompleteness. This is the fault 
 of omitting a word required for the grammatical con- 
 struction of a sentence. This fault nearly always 
 
198 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 springs from carelessness, but it is very common, and 
 the danger of falling into it should be understood. 
 
 A few examples are given in the (attempted) sen- 
 tences of the following exercise, which were actually 
 written by school children. Other sentences illus- 
 trating grammatical incompleteness are to be found 
 in Chapter VIII, on clearness, page 113. 
 
 Exercise 129. Grammatical incompleteness. Correct 
 
 the following : 
 
 I. He was taking a step the consequences of which he was 
 not quite sure. 2. Taking, for example, the Greeks at the 
 beginning of their history were fond of hearing and repeating 
 fables. 3. He made it a practice to experiment with all he 
 came into contact. 4. If we take, for instance, a child coming 
 late to school is made to stay after the others have gone home. 
 5. On the other hand if we could learn by the experience of 
 others (as by reading and observing) and start our lives with 
 this knowledge, as a child of to-day accepts the automobile, the 
 steam engine, and the telephone without inquiring how these 
 came to be. 6. You now pass from the condition you are in 
 less time than it takes to tell it. 7. By charity I understand 
 that not to give money always, but to give attention and sym- 
 pathy when we find a chance. 
 
 II. Skillful choice in diction. 
 
 If the words given in pairs in Exercise 122, near 
 the beginning of this chapter, are used wrongly, one 
 for the other, it is simply a blunder due to ignorance. 
 But there are in the English language many word- 
 groups, in each of which the meanings are so nearly 
 the same that in many cases one of the words or 
 expressions would be quite as correct as another. Is 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 199 
 
 there any difference, for example, between begin and 
 commence? But even among such words there is 
 usually, for each particular case, a best word. We 
 must, therefore, try to learn how to choose words 
 with accuracy and good judgment. We learn to do 
 this mainly by much reading of well-written books ; 
 in that way we gradually come to feel how certain 
 words or kinds of words ought to be used. The 
 English language, containing as it does words from 
 many other tongues (see Appendix II), is so rich in 
 words, that one might be learning new uses or even 
 new expressions all one's life. 
 
 Words having nearly the same meaning are called 
 synonyms. In reality, as has been said, there is always 
 a choice among synonyms. One word may be more 
 agreeable in sound than any of its synonyms ; or more 
 specific, or more emphatic. Sometimes synonyms 
 differ in the degrees or intensities of the idea they 
 express, as, grateful, pleasing, refreshing, delightful, 
 intoxicating. It is in choosing among such words 
 that care is especially needed. There are persons 
 to whom everything they like, from soda water to 
 scenery, is " lovely," or " elegant," or " so nice"; 
 and to whom whatever they dislike is " horrid " or 
 'perfectly awful" or " fierce." 
 
 The usual reason, however, for distinctions among 
 synonyms, is that the words have come, in the 
 course of time, to be used most appropriately in 
 certain connections. Thus, sincere, honest, genuine, 
 real, all have an element of common meaning, 
 
200 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 yet each has its own proper use. Should one 
 say genuine sympathy, or sincere sympathy ; honest 
 indignation or real indignation ? Or, compare the 
 words : old, aged, ancient, antiquated, venerable. Of 
 these old has the widest range of use, but it implies 
 a less amount of duration than ancient; aged is 
 applied mostly to living beings ; venerable suggests 
 the admirable qualities of age, while antiquated 
 means old fashioned, out of date, obsolete, of less 
 value than formerly. 
 
 For the proper study of words each pupil should 
 have a dictionary and a book containing lists of 
 synonyms. There should also be in the schoolroom 
 an unabridged dictionary, a large standard book on 
 synonyms, and a copy of Roget's Thesaurus of 
 English Words. 
 
 Exercise 130. Choice of words. Select adjectives of 
 praise or commendation to be applied fitly to the fol- 
 lowing nouns: 
 
 Sunset, book, roast of beef, opinion, distinction, sentence, 
 soup, apple, lady, essay, preacher, character, disposition, bou- 
 quet, vase, picnic, journey, hat, bonnet, party, weather, moun- 
 tain, violin playing. 
 
 Exercise 131. Use of synonyms. Concerning the 
 following words consult a dictionary, or a good book of 
 synonyms. Select from each group, first, the word that 
 has the widest use ; then write a sentence containing it, 
 and other sentences containing the other words of the 
 group, so as to show the accurate use of each word. 
 
 1. Gruff, ill natured, sullen, sour, surly, gloomy. 
 
 2. Glad, happy, jolly, joyful, pleased, blessed. 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 201 
 
 3. Warm, hearty, genial, cordial, ardent. 
 
 4. Close, sultry, stifling, suffocating, oppressive, stuffy. 
 
 5. Plentiful, abundant, adequate, sufficient, generous, lavish, 
 ample. 
 
 6. Destroy, abolish, exterminate, obliterate, ruin, wipe out, 
 annul. 
 
 7. Wrath, anger, rage, resentment, indignation, exasper- 
 ation. 
 
 8. Try, attempt, endeavor, strive, undertake, essay. 
 
 9. Character, reputation, temper, temperament, disposition, 
 constitution. 
 
 10. Charity, compassion, pity, mercy, kindness, goodwill, 
 benevolence, benignity, sympathy. 
 
 Exercise 132. Synonyms . Make lists of four or more 
 synonyms for each of the following words, and be ready 
 to use eaeh of your words accurately in a sentence: 
 
 1. Brave. 2. Convince. 3. Clear. 4. Injury. 5. Diffi- 
 cult. 6. Sorrow. 7. Gleam. 8. Answer. 9. Haughty. 
 10. Baffle. 
 
 Exercise 133. Choice of synonyms. In the follow- 
 ing passages select from the words given in parentheses 
 the word you think fittest for the place. In doing this 
 consider the sound of the word as well as its accurate 
 meaning. 
 
 1. In a (moment, instant, second) all was again (silenced, 
 still, hushed). Dead (noiselessness, silence, quiet, stillness) 
 succeeded the (roar, bellow, growl, noise, reverberation) of the 
 thunder, the (howl, roar, rush, noise) of the waters, the (groan- 
 ing, howling, moaning, outcry, yelling) of the beasts, the (twit- 
 tering, chattering, screaming, outcry) of the birds. Nothing 
 was heard save the (dash, splash, plash, beating) of the (agi- 
 tated, troubled, disturbed, roughened) lake, as it beat up 
 against the black rocks which girt it in. 
 
202 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 2. Not long since, a gentleman was (journeying, traveling) 
 in one of the counties of Virginia, and about the close of the 
 day stopped at a (hotel, inn, public house) to (get, have, obtain, 
 procure) (supper, an evening meal, refreshment, food) and 
 (spend, pass) the night. He had been there but a (little, short, 
 inconsiderable) time, before an (aged, old, ancient) man alighted 
 from his gig, with the (obvious, evident, apparent, seeming) 
 (purpose, design, intention) of becoming his fellow guest at 
 the same house. 
 
 3. Urge every (person, body, one) within reach of your 
 influence to be always (neat, nice, trim, tidy, spruce) and 
 (cleanly, clean, spotless), and give (them, him) means of being 
 so. In so far as they (entirely, wholly, absolutely, positively) 
 refuse, you must (abandon, leave off, give up, relinquish, cease) 
 the effort, with (respect, regard) to them, only (seeing, looking 
 out, taking care) that no children within your sphere of influ- 
 ence shall any more be (reared, raised, brought up) with such 
 (customs, habits) ; and that every person who (is willing, con- 
 sents, agrees, endeavors) to dress with (care, propriety) shall 
 have (assistance, help, encouragement) to do so. 
 
 4. And, (indeed, in fact, in truth, to be sure, certainly,) if 
 there were to be any (difference, distinction, unlikeness, dis- 
 similarity) between a girl's education and a boy's, I (should, 
 would) say that of the two the girl should be earlier (taken, 
 introduced, led, started), as her (mind, intellect, brain, power 
 of thought) ripens faster, into (profound, deep) arid (grave, 
 solemn, serious, great) subjects. 
 
 5. The (cliff, bluff, precipice) called " Starved Bock," now 
 (shown, pointed out, indicated) to travelers as the (main, great, 
 chief, most striking) natural (curiosity, formation) of the 
 (region, district, section, vicinity, place,) (rises, ascends, stands 
 up) (steep, sheer, abrupt) on three sides as a castle wall, to the 
 height of a hundred and twenty-five feet above the (water, 
 stream, river). In front, it overhangs the water that (laves, 
 laps, washes) its (foot, base) ; its western (crest, summit, brow) 
 looks down on the (tips, tops, heads) of the forest trees below, 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 203 
 
 and on the east (lies, extends, spreads, reaches out) a wide 
 gorge, or ravine, (choked, stuffed, filled, piled) with the (mixed, 
 mingled, various) foliage of oaks, walnuts, and elms ; while in 
 its (rugged, rough, stony, rocky, jagged) depths a little (stream, 
 rivulet, brook, creek) creeps down to mingle with the river. 
 
 III. Suggestion in words. Most words are mere 
 matter-of-fact words, that is, they convey an idea 
 without suggesting anything of pleasure or of dis- 
 pleasure connected with it. " Little valley " is about 
 the same in meaning as " dell " or " dale/' but the 
 latter words are, by reason of their history or use, 
 poetic, full of pleasant suggestion, while " little val- 
 ley " is a plain and, as we say, colorless expression. 
 Scientific books, and most school books, are written 
 usually in plain, everyday English, for in them the 
 object is merely clear explanation. But writing that 
 is intended to give pleasure is full of color, warmth, 
 imagination, suggestion, or, in one word, feeling. 
 
 We have already learned in studying description 
 (Chapter V) how important it is to express the sense- 
 impressions and the feelings that the thing or person 
 described produces in us. We have also learned (in 
 Chapter X) that specific words are more emphatic 
 and lively than general words ; this is because spe- 
 cific words usually suggest more than general words. 
 Thus, "dale" is a particular kind of valley. The 
 more general term suggests less. In the same way, 
 when we see the word " plant," less is suggested to 
 us, we see less and feel less, than when we see the 
 word u rosebush." 
 
204 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 In the following selections note the words that are 
 printed in italics. They are not plain, colorless, un- 
 suggestive words, but they express some sort of feel- 
 ing, either pleasurable or the opposite. 
 
 " And soon the dappled softening sky gave some earnest of its 
 mood ; for a brisk south wind arose, and the blessed rain came 
 driving ; cold, indeed, yet most refreshing to the skin, all 
 parched with snow, and the eyeballs so long dazzled" Black- 
 more, Lorna Doone. 
 
 " Here comes a big, rough dog, a countryman's dog in search 
 of his master, smelling at everybody's heels, and touching little 
 Annie's hand with his cold nose, but hurrying away, though 
 she would fain have patted him. Hawthorne, Twice-Told 
 Tales. 
 
 " 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 luster, not a stripe erased 
 or polluted, not a single star obscured" Webster, Speech in 
 Eeply to Hayne. 
 
 "There is certainly some chill and arid knowledge to be 
 found upon the summits of formal and laborious science ; but 
 it is all round about you, and for the trouble of looking, that 
 you will acquire the warm and palpitating facts of life." 
 Stevenson, Virginibus Puerisque. 
 
 Suppose we try to put this last statement into 
 plain and unsuggestive language. It would become 
 something like this, " There is certainly some merely 
 intellectual knowledge to be found in the study of 
 science ; but everywhere and without study are to be 
 acquired the facts of human life." 
 
CHOICE OF WORDS 205 
 
 Exercise 134. Suggestive use of words. In the fol- 
 lowing groups, select the words that are suggestive, 
 agreeably or disagreeably, and write sentences contain- 
 ing such words. State also which words are plain and 
 matter-of-fact. 
 
 1. Walked, limped, skipped, hobbled, moved, hurried. 
 
 2. Touch, caress, fondle, pet, handle, seize. 
 
 3. High, lofty, tall, commanding, noble, grand, stupendous, 
 impressive. 
 
 4. Small, inconsiderable, petty, mean, contemptible, deli- 
 cate, fine, minute, tiny. 
 
 5. Looked, gazed, stared, glared, glowered, observed, beamed. 
 
 6. Green, verdant, emerald, fresh, succulent, juicy. 
 
 7. Smell, sniff, odor, fragrance, aroma, stench. 
 
 8. Unlighted, dark, dismal, gloomy, darksome, dim, obscure, 
 shady. 
 
 9. Large, extensive, vast, great, limitless, tremendous, enor- 
 mous, immense, overwhelming. 
 
 10. Dry, waterless, arid, parched, moistureless, juiceless, sere. 
 
 Exercise 135. Suggestive use of adjectives. Such ad- 
 jectives as the following were doubtless originally ap- 
 plied to objects known through the senses. But they 
 can be applied, suggestively, to states of the mind or 
 feelings, or to character or some abstract idea. Write 
 sentences containing these adjectives so applied. 
 
 1. Dull. 2. Keen. 3. Bright. 4. Narrow. 5. High. 
 
 6. Fine. 7. Hazy. 8. Sweet. 9. Hard. 10. White. 
 
 11. Black. 12. Solid. 13. Hollow. 14. Cold. 15. Luke- 
 warm. 
 
 Exercise 136. Criticism of composition. Look over one 
 or more of the letters recently written by you, and re- 
 write, substituting, wherever it is possible, more accurate 
 or more suggestive words in place of those you have used. 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 EXPOSITION AND ARGUMENT 
 
 WE have heretofore been mainly concerned with 
 description and narration, as those are the commoner 
 kinds of composition, and require less study or prep- 
 aration of material than the kinds we are now to 
 consider. Before we can write an exposition of a 
 subject or enter into an argument, we ought to do 
 either some reading or some thinking, and usually 
 both. 
 
 I. Exposition. The object in exposition is to 
 explain a subject clearly, and as satisfactorily and 
 fully as our space admits, or as suits our purpose. If 
 possible, we ought also to make our treatment of the 
 subject not dry and merely matter-of-fact, but some- 
 what interesting and entertaining. This may be done 
 by a suggestive and pleasing choice of words, and by 
 sprinkling a few ideas and observations amid the 
 facts presented. 
 
 In preparing for an exposition, we need to get 
 abundant information on the subject. This we may 
 get in several ways : 
 
 1. By thinking, 3. By conversations, 
 
 2. By observation, 4. By reading. 
 
 206 
 
EXPOSITION AND ARGUMENT 207 
 
 " But," you may ask, " how can one get informa- 
 tion just by thinking over a subject ? " It may be 
 admitted that thinking does not of itself give us 
 information, but that we should think about our 
 subjects for exposition is so important that thinking 
 should be put first of all. We cannot know what 
 to look for in our reading unless we have thought 
 enough about the subject to have discovered certain 
 questions that need to be answered. 
 
 For expositions, since they aim at explaining a 
 subject, will have to answer for the reader all his 
 reasonable questions. In most expositions, these 
 questions are apt to be such as the following : 
 
 1. What is the meaning or definition of the subject ? 
 
 2. What kinds of it are there ? 
 
 3. Where does it come from? 
 
 4. How is it made ? or how does it grow ? 
 
 5. What are the parts of it ? 
 
 6. What are the uses of it ? 
 
 7. What are its effects or influences ? 
 
 In writing expositions we must carefully plan out 
 the composition in advance, making sure that what 
 we say shall have completeness and unity. If you 
 went to hear a lecture on " Cricket," and the speaker 
 should tell about the pof ularity of the game in Eng- 
 land, the origin of it, and the way it was formerly 
 played, and then should praise it as a better game 
 than baseball, but should omit to explain how a 
 game of cricket is played, you would feel dissatis- 
 
208 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 fied and think that the lecture lacked completeness, 
 and that the talk about baseball could be spared, to 
 the advantage of unity. 
 
 Exercise 137. Outlining for exposition. Without read- 
 ing or talking on any of the following subjects, think 
 out and write down for each one in the form of an 
 outline the topics you think should be included in 
 an exposition. 
 
 1. The making of pottery. 2. The making of bricks. 
 3. Honey. 4. Yellow paint (ochre). 5. Olive oil. 6. Rai- 
 sins. 7. Coffee. 8. Good roads. 9. Coal. 10. Gunpowder. 
 11. How to raise tomato plants. 12. Use of bicycles in 
 war. 13. Bookbinding. 14. How thermometers are made. 
 15. Stamp collecting. 16. Cider. 17. Beer. 18. Maple 
 syrup. 19. Weather forecasting. 20. Ants. 
 
 Exercise 138. Writing of expository paragraphs. On 
 each of the following topics write a paragraph. Under- 
 score the topic sentence. 
 
 1. Danger of too little exercise, effect on digestion on 
 the blood on the circulation on the brain. 
 
 2. Effects of a warm climate, makes men lazy much 
 sleep little brain work no need of energetic work. 
 
 3. Learning to skate, first efforts difficulties how to 
 overcome them cautions. 
 
 4. Disadvantages of large classes in school, bad air 
 tendency to noise and inattention teacher has too many to 
 look after each pupil receives less attention than in a small 
 class. 
 
 5. Causes of the Spanish- American war, the situation in 
 Cuba our commerce with Cuba the feelings of the Ameri- 
 can people the blowing up of the Maine the political 
 reasons. 
 
EXPOSITION AND ARGUMENT 209 
 
 Exercise 139. Writing of expositions. Prepare for a 
 thorough and interesting exposition of one of the sub- 
 jects given in Exercise 137 , and make a complete out- 
 line. Write the composition, aiming at clearness and 
 skillful choice of words. Avoid arguing; simply ex- 
 plain the subject. Later, write as many other expo- 
 sitions as the teacher may direct. There are some 
 additional subjects given at the end of Chapter I. 
 
 II. Argument. In argument, the subject, if fully 
 stated, must always be a 'sentence, because, for stating 
 a truth or an untruth, a proposition is required. We 
 must aim, in arguing, at clearness, but of course the 
 main thing is convincingness. We wish, therefore, to 
 get all the arguments we can that support eur side 
 of the question, and to weaken or overthrow all the 
 arguments of our opponents. 
 
 There are several important matters to be kept in 
 mind when we are preparing an argument : 
 
 1. The subject must be clearly stated ; and the 
 meaning of it, and the words used in it, must be 
 agreed upon, or made perfectly plain by definition. 
 It is too common to see the opponents in debates 
 argue about entirely different questions. 
 
 2. Do not waste time over unimportant matters ; 
 strike at the main points. 
 
 3. Remember that your opponent, real or imagi- 
 nary, has arguments for his side of the question. 
 You cannot ignore these. If you do, it will look as 
 if you could not answer them. If you do not know 
 what is to be said, or may be said, on the other side 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 14 
 
210 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 of the question, you should devote some of your time 
 to thinking and reading on that side. Answering 
 your opponents' arguments is called refutation. 
 
 4. In writing or delivering your argument, it is 
 well to adopt a courteous tone toward your adversary, 
 and to be considerate and even complimentary toward 
 your audience. Do not forget that you are trying, 
 not only to convince the minds of the audience, but 
 to persuade them to feel about the subject as you do. 
 
 The first great step in outlining or planning an 
 argument is to divide the subject into two, three, or 
 four main questions or aspects. Thus, if the subject 
 is, 
 
 Should women be granted the right to vote ? 
 
 you might consider the arguments under these 
 heads : 
 
 1. The justice of granting the suffrage to women. 
 
 2. The wisdom of it. 
 Or if the subject is, 
 
 The sale of intoxicating liquors should be prohibited, 
 
 and you are on the negative or denying side, you 
 might take for main divisions : 
 
 1. Is prohibition desirable ? 
 
 2. Is it wise ? 
 
 3. Is it possible ? (or practicable ?) 
 
 Exercise 140. Division of argument. In a way simi- 
 lar to that just described, suggest main heads for the 
 discussion of the following questions: 
 
EXPOSITION AND ARGUMENT 211 
 
 1. The spelling of English words should be reformed. 
 
 2. Hawthorne was a greater writer than Irving. 
 
 3. Examinations should be abolished. 
 
 4. Young persons should not read the newspapers. 
 
 5. French and German should not be taught in American 
 schools. 
 
 6. Washington was not so great a man as Lincoln. 
 
 7. Writers are more useful than inventors. 
 
 8. Winter is to be preferred to summer. 
 
 9. The Spanish-American war should have been prevented. 
 
 10. Novel reading is a waste of time. 
 
 11. The observance of the Sabbath should be compulsory. 
 
 12. A man should always vote with his party. 
 
 We must in an argument try to get all the proofs 
 we can. Proofs may be divided into three kinds or 
 classes, the knowing of which will help us strengthen 
 our argument : 
 
 1. Proofs from what might naturally be expected. 
 
 2. Proofs from observation or general knowledge. 
 
 3. Proofs from the experience or the opinions of 
 others. 
 
 All these may be (a) direct proofs, supporting our 
 own side of the question, or (b) indirect proofs, weak- 
 ening or overthrowing our opponents' side. Of the 
 three classes of proofs just mentioned, the first is 
 of course the least convincing. The second form of 
 proof becomes more convincing in proportion to the 
 carefulness of the observation recorded and the gen- 
 eral acceptance of the knowledge stated. The third 
 form of proof depends for its validity on the thorough- 
 
212 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 ness with which evidence has been tested and the repu- 
 tation and authority of the persons whose opinions 
 are quoted. 
 
 Exercise 141. Kinds of proofs. In the following 
 cases tell what kind of proof each one is: 
 
 (a) Subject, A killed B. 1. A was a man of bad and des- 
 perate character. 2. A blood-stained knife was found in his 
 room. 3. The effort to show that A staid at home on the 
 night of the murder fails. 4. He had been known as an 
 enemy of B. 5. After the murder, A was observed to have 
 more money to spend than before. 
 
 (6) Subject, 7s the United States as great a nation as England? 
 1. The purpose of our forefathers was to secure and establish 
 freedom. 2. The territorial growth of the United States and 
 its increase in wealth and population. 3. The noble history 
 of England. 4. Unjustly privileged land-holding classes in 
 England. 5. The thousands of the poor and degraded in 
 London. 6. The alleged greater purity of English politics. 
 7. The negro population in America. 8. England's great 
 colonies. 9. Lincoln's opinion of the American government. 
 10. Dickeus's opinion (in American Notes). 11. Lawless 
 regions in the United States. 
 
 When we have undertaken an argument, we should, 
 after stating our main divisions of the whole, set to 
 work to think out, or else get from reading, proofs 
 of all the tbree classes above named, including those 
 supporting our side and those against the other side. 
 All these proofs should be arranged under the main 
 heads, and there we have our outline, or, as it is often 
 called in argumentation, our brief. For example ; 
 
EXPOSITION AND ARGUMENT 213 
 
 Brief on the subject, Composition is a more impor- 
 tant study than arithmetic : 
 
 I. Introduction 
 
 (a) Meaning of composition and arithmetic 
 (6) Meaning of " important " 
 (c) Division of subject (see a and b under dis- 
 cussion) 
 
 II. Discussion 
 
 (a) Composition is more important in school 
 than arithmetic is. 
 
 1. Writing is necessary in most other 
 
 school studies. 
 
 2. Oral recitation, which is a form 
 
 of composition, is necessary in all 
 school studies. 
 
 3. Composition work trains us how to 
 
 think and reason ; this is valu- 
 able for all school work. 
 
 4. Arithmetic is mostly a matter of 
 
 memory and practice. 
 
 5. Composition work leads us to under- 
 
 stand, consider, and appreciate all 
 we read in school. 
 
 (&) Composition is more important out of 
 
 school than arithmetic is. 
 1. It is natural to expect this, because 
 in life we do so much more read- 
 ing and writing than figuring. 
 
214 WRITING IN ENGLISH 
 
 2. To be able to write well is impor- 
 
 tant in more occupations than to 
 be able to compute. 
 
 3. All but the simpler kinds of arith- 
 
 metical work are never used after 
 one leaves school. 
 
 4. There is a great demand from busi- 
 
 ness men for assistants who can 
 write good English. 
 
 5. In later life it is important to be 
 
 able to win people to one's ideas 
 by writing or talking well. 
 
 6. We may derive much pleasure from 
 
 good writing and the appreciation 
 of good reading. 
 
 7. The opinion of ... and ... on 
 
 this question. 
 III. Conclusion 
 
 (a) Summing up of the arguments 
 (&) Statement of the conclusion 
 
 Exercise 142. Preparation of brief. Following -more 
 or less the plan just given, prepare a full outline or 
 brief on one side of one of the subjects given in Exer- 
 cise 140 or at the end of Chapter I. 
 
 Exercise 143. Written argument. From the brief 
 called for in Exercise 14> or from a brief on some 
 other question than the one formerly selected, write out 
 the argument in full, in the form of a speech. In 
 doing this, bear in mind what is said on page 211, 
 about how to malce arguments strong. If you quote 
 
EXPOSITION AND ARGUMENT 215 
 
 opinions, let them be those of persons regarded as au- 
 thorities ; if you offer as facts statements not of your 
 own knowledge, try to ascertain, and to convince your 
 readers or hearers, that the statements are true. 
 
 Exercise 144. Criticism. dfter completing the ar- 
 gument called for in the last exercise, criticise it, sen- 
 tence by sentence, with regard to clearness, unity, and 
 paragraphing. 
 
 1. Any superfluous " ands " ? 
 
 2. Any sentence containing unconnected ideas ? 
 
 3. Any faulty use of pronouns ? 
 
 4. Any misplacing of modifiers ? 
 
 5. Any paragraphs without definite topic and unity ? 
 
 Exercise 145. Criticism. Now read critically the 
 essay again, this time with respect to emphasis and 
 choice of words. 
 
 1. Any opportunity for interrogation, exclamation, or direct 
 quotation ? 
 
 2. Any need of repetition of a word, or any place for cut- 
 ting out unnecessary words ? 
 
 3. Any opportunity to change to order of climax or of peri- 
 odic sentence ? 
 
 4. Any chance to introduce simile or metaphor ? 
 
 5. Any possible improvement in choice of words, so as to 
 use more accurate, specific, emphatic, or suggestive terms ? 
 
 Exercise 146. Oral debate. Let the class choose sides 
 on some question for debate, then let each member of 
 the class collect arguments for his side and arrange 
 them in a brief. Let the class on the appointed day 
 form itself into a debating society, elect a president 
 and a secretary, and debate the question, all speaking 
 in turn. The teacher is to decide which side wins. 
 
APPENDIX I 
 MARKS FOR USE IN CRITICISM OF COMPOSITIONS 
 
 NOTE. Some of these marks relate to general faults, and some to 
 very specific ones. The teacher will, of course, use such of the marks 
 as he believes most suitable, and will add others if the need for them 
 appears. 
 
 Both the outline and the composition should be criticised. 
 
 To show that a marginal criticism refers to some special word or words, 
 the latter may be underlined or marked out or inclosed in brackets. It is 
 often well to let the pupil find out for himself what word in the line is, 
 for example, misspelled. 
 
 Two or more of the marks may be combined, as, inc, outline incom- 
 plete ; U ns, lack of unity, divide into shorter sentences. 
 
 ab Abrupt; lack of introductory words, or sudden change 
 of subject without making connection. 
 
 ad Adjective wrongly used for adverb, or adverb for adjec- 
 tive. (After verbs of being, or becoming, or seeming, 
 the adjective is correct, as it describes the subject and 
 does not limit the verb ; as, She is looking beautiful 
 to-night.) 
 
 agr Agreement faulty, either of verb and subject, or of pro- 
 noun and antecedent. 
 
 amb Ambiguous; word or expression may be understood in 
 two ways. (As, We saw certain signs of a storm. 
 Here certain may mean some, or sure, unmistakable.) 
 
 arr Arrangement faulty, causing either lack of clearness or 
 lack of emphasis (as by climax or suspended construc- 
 tion ; see Chapter X, on emphasis). 
 
 c Capital required, or capital wrongly used (see Appendix 
 
 in). 
 
 217 
 
218 APPENDIX I 
 
 ch Choice of word poor; word not accurately used, or 
 weak (trite, too general, or unsuggestive; see Chapter 
 XIII). 
 
 cl Lack of clearness; from faulty use of pronoun, from 
 faulty arrangement, from omission of necessary word 
 or words, or from confusion of ideas. 
 
 cond Condense ; cut out unnecessary words, phrases, or even 
 sentences. 
 
 conn Connective ill chosen ; avoid the " and " habit ; study the 
 table of conjunctions, page 85. 
 
 cons Improper change of construction; in using contrasting 
 or added clauses or phrases, seek to make the expres- 
 sions similar (see page 151). 
 
 cxs Combine or recast into a complex sentence. 
 
 d Diction faulty ; no such word, consult the dictionary. 
 
 eu Lack of euphony ; combination of words disagreeable to 
 the ear. 
 
 excl Transform the sentence into the exclamatory form, or 
 back into the declarative. 
 
 F Lack of force, due to weak arrangement or poor choice 
 of expression. 
 
 gr n Bad grammar, disagreement in number. 
 
 gr t Bad grammar, wrong tense of verb used. 
 
 inc Incomplete ; necessary part of sentence, or of entire com- 
 position, or of outline, omitted. 
 
 intrg Kecast the sentence into the interrogatory form, or back 
 into the declarative. 
 
 mar Margin not properly looked after. 
 
 mis Misstatement of fact. 
 
 N Lack of neatness. 
 
 ns Put a period, and begin a new sentence. 
 
 p Bad punctuation. Study the rules for punctuation given 
 in Appendix III. 
 
 pi Use the plural, or change to the singular. 
 
 pos Position wrong ; word too far removed from its modifier ; 
 or word misplaced that should be in emphatic posi- 
 
MARKS FOR CRITICISM 219 
 
 tion, that is, at the beginning or at the end of the 
 sentence. 
 
 poss Use the possessive case ; spell it correctly (see Appendix 
 III for rules for writing the possessive case of nouns, 
 page 239). 
 
 Outline faulty, disorderly, incomplete, or badly arranged. 
 
 onf Outline not followed in the composition. The topics of 
 the outline should be taken up in their proper order, 
 and the composition paragraphed according to the 
 plan of the outline. 
 
 om Omission of necessary word or words. In the writing 
 opposite this mark the teacher or critic may place a 
 caret ( A ) where the omission has occurred. 
 
 quot Use direct quotation for emphasis, and punctuate the 
 sentence accordingly (see Appendix III, page 236). 
 
 red Redundancy ; use of superfluous words or repetition of 
 idea. 
 
 ref Reference not clear. This may be true of a pronoun, a 
 participle, an adjective, or any other modifier. 
 
 re b Repetition bad ; find synonym or change the expression. 
 
 re g Repetition good ; repeat word or expression for clearness 
 or emphasis. 
 
 rel Relative pronoun wrongly chosen; restrictive for coor- 
 dinative, or the reverse, or change of pronoun re- 
 quired by euphony (see page 190). 
 
 rew Rewrite ; recast the sentence, or rewrite the entire com- 
 position, according to the position of the mark. 
 
 S Bad spelling. 
 
 sim Use a simile or a metaphor to explain or emphasize your 
 idea. 
 
 sms Use simple sentence ; recast, condense, or combine into a 
 simple sentence. 
 
 subd Subdivide the topic ; give the points it includes. 
 
 t Topic of this paragraph not clear. Make it so; intro- 
 duce, if necessary, a topic sentence. 
 
 tr Transpose. 
 
220 APPENDIX I 
 
 U Unity violated. Sentence contains unrelated ideas or 
 too many ideas ; or paragraph does not have unity. 
 
 U Paragraph. See outline or observe change of topic. 
 
 no IF Do not paragraph ; topic has not changed. 
 
 '~>+~' Transpose. (Mark to be used in the body of the text, 
 not in the margin.) 
 
 A Some letter, word, or words omitted here ; or else a sepa- 
 ration into two words is necessary. (Mark to be 
 used in the body of the text, not in the margin.) 
 
 8 Strike out or omit. 
 
 ( - ) Hyphen lacking or word wrongly divided. 
 
 O Period omitted. 
 
 X Error. 
 
 ? Probable error. 
 
 /or\ Calls attention to a letter or to a place for punctuation. 
 (Mark to be used in the body of the text, not in the 
 margin.) 
 
APPENDIX II 
 
 ENGLISH WOKDS 
 
 NOTE. In connection with sections I and II of this Appendix may 
 be read the Historical Sketch of the English Language given in Maxwell's 
 Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, pp. 314-322. 
 
 I. Sources of English words. There are three 
 main elements in the English vocabulary : the Saxon, 
 the French, and the Latin. The French itself is 
 largely of Latin origin. The mingling of the Saxon 
 and the French elements, five to six hundred years 
 ago, formed the English language. Many words 
 since then have been added from the Latin and the 
 Greek and from most of the modern languages. 
 
 The original inhabitants of England were Celts, 
 called Britons. From about 100 A.D. to 400 A.D. 
 they were subject to Rome. The Roman soldiers 
 withdrew in 410 A.D. Very few modern English 
 words are derived either from the Celtic or from the 
 Latin of those times. 
 
 The Saxons came from Germany, and conquered 
 and settled England during the fifth century A.D. 
 (beginning in the year 449). 
 
 Six centuries later, in the year 1066, the Norman 
 French, under William the Conqueror, invaded Eng- 
 
 221 
 
222 APPENDIX II 
 
 land and subjugated the Saxons. Thereafter, for 
 about three hundred years, there were two distinct 
 languages spoken in England, the Saxon, mostly 
 by the humbler classes and the serfs ; the French, by 
 the Normans. Chaucer, the author of the Canterbury 
 Tales, was the first great writer in the English or 
 mixed tongue (1340-1400). His English is not so 
 much unlike ours of to-day but that it can be read 
 with very little trouble. 
 
 When and how did the Latin contributions come 
 in ? Easily and frequently. There were many 
 monks and churchmen in England from early Saxon 
 times on. All these read and spoke Latin. Later, 
 in the times following the period when Chaucer lived, 
 there were many scholars and learned men who 
 wrote Latin, although English was their native 
 tongue. When such men wrote English, they natu- 
 rally introduced many Latin words in an " Englished" 
 form. Examples of this late Latin contribution 
 (fifteenth century) may be taken from this and the 
 preceding paragraph : century, invaded, subjugated, 
 distinct, author, contributions, frequently, period (origi- 
 nally from Greek), naturally, introduced, preceding, 
 paragraph (originally from Greek). Note that these 
 words are rather long. If you consult a dictionary, 
 you will see how very like they are to the Latin (or 
 Greek) words from which they are derived. 
 
 The following examples of words of French extrac- 
 tion are found in the same two paragraphs. (Note 
 that these words are a good deal changed from the 
 
ENGLISH WORDS 223 
 
 Latin originals. Some French words are not of 
 Latin, but of Germanic or of Celtic origin.) 
 
 language (Fr. langage, from langue, from L. lingua, a tongue). 
 
 class (Fr. dasse, from L. dassis, an assembly, a fleet). 
 
 serf (Fr. from L. servus, a slave, from servio, serve). 
 
 humble (Fr. from L. humilis, lowly, from humus, the ground). 
 
 very (Old Fr. verai, vray, from supposed Low Latin veracus, 
 from L. verax, veracis, meaning veracious, truthful). 
 
 trouble (Fr. from L. turbula, a little crowd, a disorderly 
 crowd, from turba, a crowd). 
 
 example (Fr. from L. exemplum, a specimen, from eximo, 
 pick out, buy). 
 
 The word " monk," which was used in the same paragraph, 
 is from Latin monaclius (original Greek meaning, living alone, 
 solitary). This word, as an English word, goes back to the 
 earliest days of the Koman church in England. The form of 
 it in Anglo-Saxon was munec or munuc. The word " scholar " 
 is from Saxon sco/ere, from scolu, a school, but this came from 
 Latin schola, a school (originally Greek). The h in scholar 
 was introduced much later, to make the word agree with Latin 
 scholaris, pertaining to a school. 
 
 Practically, all the other words in those two para- 
 graphs are of Saxon origin. 
 
 If we liken the history of the English language to 
 the course of a river, we should imagine the stream 
 of original Saxon words flowing on with but little 
 change from the time of the Saxon conquest (fifth 
 century) to the time of its junction with the Norman 
 French language (fourteenth century). During those 
 nine long centuries the Saxon speech accepted a few 
 words from the conquered Britons (whose descendants 
 live now mostly in Wales, Ireland, and upper Scot- 
 
224 APPENDIX II 
 
 land) ; a few from the Danes (who invaded England 
 repeatedly in the ninth and tenth centuries, and 
 finally set Danish kings for a time on the Saxon 
 throne) ; and a few words of Latin or Greek origin 
 from the monks and priests (the words " monk/' 
 "priest" and " scholar" are examples of this class). 
 The Saxon also lost many of its word-endings or 
 inflections. In the early Saxon there were over 
 fifteen case-forms of the article "the." 
 
 After the great junction of Saxon and French, 
 five to six hundred years ago, the enlarged stream, 
 now English, received, in the fifteenth and sixteenth 
 centuries, many words from the Latin and not a few 
 from the Greek. As the English people spread over 
 the globe, they encountered many languages and 
 adopted many words. 
 
 Thus, from the American Indian we have wigwam, papoose, 
 squaw, canoe, and the like. So we have from the Spanish such 
 words as alligator, potato, negro, cork, cigar, tornado, and 
 vanilla; from the Italian many words, such as balcony, 
 cameo, cartoon, soprano, piano, macaroni, pistol, and umbrella. 
 From French we have blonde, bouquet, bivouac, trousseau; 
 from German, nickel, meerschaum, quartz; from Hebrew, 
 abbey, cherub, Sabbath; from Arabic, alcohol, algebra, zero, 
 gazelle, lute ; and so on from many other languages. 
 
 The histories of the following words are peculiar and 
 interesting, worth copying into your notebook : calico, copper, 
 dollar, check, gypsy, tantalize, assassin, panic, sincere, tariff, 
 salary, silly, slave, vandalism, daisy, dahlia, galvanic, Friday, 
 July, January. Many other words of curious history will be 
 found explained, usually with correctness, in Trench's On the 
 Study of Words. 
 
ENGLISH WORDS 225 
 
 Finally, in recent times, down to the present, as 
 new discoveries and inventions have been made, and 
 new sciences developed, many words have been 
 coined, mostly for scientific or technical use, and 
 chiefly from Latin and Greek. Examples of such 
 words are biology, geology, phonograph, telephone, 
 telegraph, photograph, photosphere, spectroscope, 
 electrolysis. 
 
 II. Description of the classes of English words. 
 Counting English words as they are listed in a 
 dictionary, those of Saxon origin are a much less 
 number than those from the Latin. But the Saxon 
 or native English words are used, in ordinary writing 
 or speech, far more than the words of Latin origin. 
 They nearly always outnumber the latter, if we group 
 according to origin the words used on a page in a 
 book, because the Saxon words are used over and 
 over. We can easily write whole pages without 
 using a word of Latin origin, but we could hardly 
 write one sentence without using words of Saxon 
 origin. 
 
 The Saxon element in English includes, generally 
 speaking : 
 
 1. All the pronouns. 
 
 2. All the prepositions. 
 
 3. All the conjunctions. 
 
 4. All the numeral adjectives, except second, and 
 the articles. 
 
 5. All the auxiliary verbs. 
 
 WRIT. IN EXG. 15 
 
226 APPENDIX II 
 
 6. Most of the nouns, adjectives, verbs, and ad- 
 verbs expressing simple everyday ideas. 
 
 Words of French and Latin origin are usually more 
 general and abstract. Compare the following : 
 
 Words of Saxon origin From French or Latin 
 
 walk, go, run, skip, hop, jump, move, proceed, 
 
 leap, fly, swim, crawl, 
 eye, nose, ear, hand, tongue, cheek, feature, part, 
 
 foot, head, 
 red, yellow, green, blue, brown, tint, color, 
 
 black, white, 
 father, mother, brother, sister, parent, relative, 
 
 son, daughter, 
 fox, bird, fowl, snake, whale, bee, beast, creature, ani- 
 
 cat, hound, wolf. mal. 
 
 Perhaps the simplest way to compare the French 
 and the Latin elements in English is to place side by 
 side, in pairs, English words : (1) from the Norman 
 French, adopted mostly in the fourteenth century; 
 (2) from the Latin direct, coming in later than 
 the fourteenth century mostly book-words at first, 
 only gradually adopted into speech. 
 
 (1) From the (2) From the (3) The Latin 
 
 French Latin words 
 
 benison benediction, benedictionem 
 
 sir, sire senior seniorem 
 
 feat fact factum 
 
 chance cadence cadentiam 
 
 loyal legal legalem 
 
 royal, real regal regalem 
 
 poor pauper pauperem 
 
ENGLISH WORDS 227 
 
 poison potion potionem 
 
 caitiff captive captivum 
 
 sure secure securum 
 
 treason tradition traditionem 
 
 frail fragile fragilem 
 
 parcel particle particulam 
 
 sever separate separatum 
 
 If it seems hard to understand how the words in 
 the first column came from those in the third, we 
 must remember that for centuries there existed 
 no written French or English, and that until after 
 the invention of printing in the fifteenth century, 
 there were so few books that languages were pre- 
 served only by custom in speech. Spoken languages 
 naturally change from period to period. Words are 
 usually worn down and shortened in common speech, 
 as may be seen from the table just given. 
 
 III. Word-formation. 
 
 In Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, Part II, Chap- 
 ter IV, pp. 206-221, there is to be found a much fuller treatment of the 
 subject of word-formation in English than can or need be given here. 
 There are also given exercises. 
 
 The following are short lists of prefixes and suffixes 
 of English words : 
 
 ENGLISH PREFIXES LATIN PREFIXES GREEK PRE- 
 
 for-, fore-, mis-, un-, ab-, ad-, ante-, bi-, contra-, 
 
 be-, with-, en-. cum- (French col-, com-, anti-, auto-, 
 
 coun-, cor-), di-, in-, ex-, dia-, epi-, 
 
 per-, pre-, pro-, post-, se-, hemi-, mono-, 
 
 semi-, sub-, super-, trans-, peri-, syn-. 
 
228 
 
 APPENDIX II 
 
 ENGLISH SUFFIXES 
 
 For nouns : 
 -dom, -hood, -ing, 
 -ness, -ship, -ie, -ling, 
 -ster, -ard. 
 
 For adjectives: 
 -ed, -ern, -en, -fold, 
 -ful, -ish, -less, -ly, 
 -some, -wise, -ward. 
 
 For verbs: 
 -en. 
 
 LATIN SUFFIXES 
 
 For nouns: 
 
 -age, -ance, -ence, -ion, 
 -ment, -tude, -ty, -y, -or, 
 -ary, -er, -ate, -ist. 
 
 For adjectives : 
 -acious, -al, -ant, -able, -ar, 
 -ent, -ible, -ic, -id, -il, -ive, 
 -lent, -ose (-ous), -und. 
 
 For verbs: 
 -ate, -fy. 
 
 GREEK SUF- 
 FIXES 
 
 For nouns: 
 
 -sis. 
 
 For adjec- 
 tives : 
 -ic. 
 
 For verbs : 
 -ize (-ise). 
 
 The following are some of the most useful Latin 
 and Greek root-words employed in English word- 
 formation, (pp. stands for past participle, as ard-, 
 burn, pp. arsus, burnt.) 
 
 Latin root-words, (a) verbs (6) nouns and adjectives 
 
 ag-, do (pp. actus) 
 
 am-, love 
 
 aud-, hear 
 
 cap-, take (pp. captus) 
 
 cad-, fall (pp. casus) 
 
 cred-, believe 
 
 ced-, go, come 
 
 die-, say 
 
 doc-, teach 
 
 due-, lead 
 
 f ac-, make ; fi-, become 
 
 leg-, read 
 
 mitt-, send (pp. missus) 
 
 nasc-, be born (pp. natus) 
 
 ager, field 
 anima, soul 
 animus, mind 
 annus, year 
 aqua, water 
 caput, head 
 earn-, flesh 
 cura, care 
 deus, god 
 finis, end 
 gradus, step 
 gravis, heavy 
 homo, man 
 littera, letter 
 
ENGLISH WORDS 229 
 
 pet-, seek m, great 
 
 port-, carry manus, hand 
 
 reg-, rule mors, death 
 
 stru-, build (pp. structus) multus, many 
 
 tang-, touch (pp. tactus) novus, new 
 
 sci-, know nox, night 
 
 scrib-, write (pp. scriptus) omnis, all 
 
 spir-, breathe ped-, foot 
 
 terr-, frighten rota, wheel 
 
 vid-, see terra, land 
 
 vor-, eat, devour unus, one 
 
 Greek root-words 
 
 anthropos, man opsis, sight (optikos, pertain- 
 bios, life ing to the sight) 
 
 deka, ten orthos, right 
 
 dunamis, power petra, rock 
 
 ge, earth phemi, speak 
 graphein, write (gramma, philein, love 
 
 something written) phone, sound 
 
 hekaton, a hundred skopein, see 
 
 hippos, horse sophia, wisdom 
 
 kuklos, circle sphaira, globe 
 
 logos, speech, treatise tele, distant, far 
 
 metron, measure theos, god 
 
 monos, alone tupos, a type, a figure 
 
 Properly coined words should combine Greek 
 affixes with Greek words, Latin with Latin, and 
 English with English. Such words as walkist, elec- 
 trocution (from Gk. electron, amber, and the termi- 
 nation of the Latin word executionem, from ex and 
 sequor, pp. secutum, follow), shadowgraph, burglarize, 
 and cablegram, are badly coined. 
 
230 APPENDIX II 
 
 IV. Style as affected by the derivation of words. 
 In each of the following two selections, both taken 
 from Irving' s Stratford on Avon, in the Sketch-Book, 
 count up the number of words you take to be of 
 Saxon origin and those of classical origin. In which 
 selection is used the larger proportion of native Eng- 
 lish words ? Which is the simpler style of writing ? 
 What in the character of the subject-matter made it 
 natural for Irving to use more Saxon words in one 
 passage than in the other? 
 
 Its situation is quiet and retired: the river runs murmur- 
 ing at the foot of the churchyard, and the elms which grow 
 upon its banks droop their branches into its clear bosom. An 
 avenue of limes, the boughs of which are curiously interlaced, 
 so as to form in summer an arched way of foliage, leads up 
 from the gate of the yard to the church porch. The graves 
 are overgrown with grass ; the gray tombstones, some of them 
 nearly sunk into the earth, are half covered with moss, which 
 has likewise tinted the reverend old building. Small birds 
 have built their nests among the cornices and fissures of the 
 walls, and keep up a continual nutter and chirping ; and rooks 
 are sailing and cawing about its lofty gray spire. 
 
 As I crossed the bridge over the Avon on my return, I 
 paused to contemplate the distant church in which the poet 
 lies buried, and could not but exult in the malediction which 
 has kept his ashes undisturbed in its quiet and hallowed vaults. 
 What honor could his name have derived from being mingled 
 in dusty companionship with the epitaphs and escutcheons 
 and venal eulogiums of a titled multitude? What would a 
 crowded corner in Westminster Abbey have been, compared 
 with this reverend pile, which seems to stand in beautiful 
 loneliness as his sole mausoleum! The solicitude about the 
 grave may be but the offspring of an overwrought sensibility j 
 
ENGLISH WORDS 231 
 
 but human nature is made up of foibles and prejudices ; and 
 its best and tenderest affections are mingled with these facti- 
 tious feelings. 
 
 The words italicized in the following selection 
 (from Irving' s Westminster Abbey) are of Latin or 
 classical origin. Note the fine effect they produce 
 by being placed in contrast with the simple and 
 homely Saxon words. 
 
 The time must come when its gilded vaults, which now 
 spring so loftily, shall lie in rubbish beneath the feet ; when, 
 instead of the sound of melody and praise, the wind shall 
 whistle through the broken arches, and the owl hoot from the 
 shattered tower when the garish sunbeam shall break into 
 these gloomy mansions of death ; and the ivy twine round the 
 fallen column ; and the foxglove hang its blossoms about the 
 nameless urn, as if in mockery of the dead. Thus man passes 
 away ; his name perishes from record and recollection ; his his- 
 tory is as a tale that is told, and his very monument becomes 
 a ruin. 
 
APPENDIX III 
 
 EULES FOR PUNCTUATION, CAPITALIZATION, AND 
 SPELLING 
 
 NOTE. These rules are adapted and condensed from Maxwell's 
 Advanced Lessons in English Grammar, pp. 270-278 (punctuation) ; 
 pp. 69-75 (rules for use of capitals and for spelling). 
 
 I. Punctuation. 
 
 Punctuation is necessary to mark (1) the close of a 
 sentence ; (2) pauses required in reading ; (3) the 
 elements or parts of sentences to be joined in mean- 
 ing. It is a mistake to think punctuation of little 
 importance. Accurate punctuation shows accurate 
 thinking, an understanding of the construction of 
 the sentence, and of the relations of the parts. You 
 cannot punctuate correctly unless you think clearly 
 and understand what you wish to say. 
 
 (a) The points used to mark the completion of a 
 sentence are the period (.), the question mark (?), 
 and the exclamation mark (!). 
 
 The period marks the end of every declarative and 
 every imperative sentence, unless the words are 
 spoken with strong feeling ; then the exclamation 
 mark is used ; as, Go at once ! 
 
 The period is also used to mark abbreviations ; as, 
 The Rev. John Sinclair, D.D., read from Rev. xxi. 
 
 232 
 
PUNCTUATION 233 
 
 The question mark is used after an interrogative 
 sentence, arid after a direct question contained in any 
 sentence ; example of the latter : When he asked 
 " What are you going to do about it ? " we made no 
 reply. 
 
 The exclamation mark is used after declarative and 
 imperative sentences expressing strong feeling, com- 
 monly after interjections, and after the nominative of 
 address when strong feeling is to be indicated ; as, 
 John ! John ! What a mess you have made ! Oh 
 dear ! What shall I do ? 
 
 Never place together a question mark and a period, 
 or an exclamation mark and a period. Use one or 
 the other. 
 
 Exercise 147. Terminal punctuation. Put proper 
 marks at the ends of the following sentences: 
 
 1. Breaking through that white streak of water near the 
 shore comes a dark something, which soon takes form and is 
 seen to be a steamer What a variety of craft haunt the lake 
 The largest are these tall steamers, taller still for their red 
 stacks At night, with their colored lights, they look like 
 jeweled slippers 
 
 2. Let us think over this passage and examine its words 
 First, is it not singular to find Milton assigning to St. Peter 
 not only his full episcopal function, but the very types of it 
 which Protestants usually refuse most passionately His " mi- 
 tred " locks Milton was no bishop lover ; how comes St. Peter 
 to be " mitred " 
 
 (b) The points used within a sentence are the 
 comma (,), the semicolon (;), the colon (:), the dash 
 ( ) ; quotation marks (" "), the parentheses [( )]. 
 
234 APPENDIX in 
 
 The comma is used : 
 
 1. To separate the nominative of address from the 
 rest of the sentence ; as, Cassius, thou art yoked 
 with a lamb. 
 
 2. To mark the beginning of a direct quotation (but 
 see also the rules for the use of the colon) ; as, The 
 judge said, " Gentlemen of the jury, what is your ver- 
 dict?" If the quotation is not a question, and pre- 
 cedes the clause on which it depends, it is followed 
 by a comma ; as, " We are unable to agree," answered 
 the foreman. If the clause on which a quotation de- 
 pends is inserted between parts of the quotation, it is 
 cut off by two commas; as, "We have," said the 
 foreman, "been unable to agree; but, if your Honor 
 will let us have a little more time, we may be able 
 to reach a conclusion." 
 
 3. To separate a very long subject from its verb ; 
 as, Whatever you may wish to do about this matter 
 of answering his letter, will be agreeable to me. Here 
 the subject is the whole clause, and not letter or an- 
 swering, as might be carelessly supposed. In general, 
 however, a single comma is not to be used between the 
 subject and the verb. 
 
 4. To cut off, at its beginning and at its end, a 
 parenthetical or explanatory expression. This in- 
 cludes : 
 
 Thrown-in words, like however, to be brief, finally, 
 besides, indeed, in fact, moreover. 
 
 Nouns in apposition, especially when they are ac- 
 
PUNCTUATION 235 
 
 companied by modifiers ; as, John Brown, the leader 
 of the attack, was executed. 
 
 Relative clauses, when they are not restrictive but 
 coordinate ; as, John Brown, who led the attack, was 
 executed. 
 
 Adjective and adverbial elements when they are 
 inserted for explanation ; as, General Wolfe, wounded 
 and dying, learned of his great victory. That story 
 is, in several particulars, improbable. 
 
 Adverbial clauses, when inserted for explanation ; 
 as, He determined that, if the chance were given 
 him, he would set out for the Philippines at once. 
 
 5. To separate words in series, conjunctions being 
 omitted ; as, Poetry, music, painting, and sculpture 
 are not the only fine arts. He was tall, broad- 
 shouldered, muscular, and active. 
 
 6. To separate words in pairs, for the same rea- 
 son ; as, The flower and the star, the pebble and 
 the mountain, the raindrop and the sea, all are 
 the work of His hand. 
 
 7. To separate clauses in a compound sentence, 
 when they are related in meaning; as, The rivulet 
 becomes a brook, and the brook becomes a creek, 
 and the creek becomes a river. 
 
 The parentheses are used to inclose a remark that 
 might be omitted without destroying the sense of the 
 sentence ; as, Know then this truth (enough for man 
 to know), virtue alone is happiness below. 
 
 It is a fault to make use of long parentheses. 
 They interrupt and often obscure the sense. 
 
236 APPENDIX III 
 
 The quotation marks are used : 
 
 1. To inclose direct quotations. If a quotation in- 
 cludes another, the latter is inclosed in single inverted 
 commas, to distinguish it from the main quotation, 
 which is inclosed in the double inverted commas ; as, 
 " Aha!" said my lord, "I go on the principle that 'a 
 bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.' ' 
 
 2. Sometimes to indicate titles of books, and nick- 
 names. 
 
 The dash is used : 
 
 1. To mark an abrupt turn in a sentence ; as, I 
 will tell you but no ! why should I not keep my 
 own counsel ? 
 
 2. To mark a significant pause that should be 
 made in reading ; as, Now you listen to what I have 
 to say I will never give you what you demand ! 
 
 3. To mark words in apposition, or other paren- 
 thetical expressions ; as, This work was performed 
 four hundred years ago, and such is the merit of 
 good work it endures to this day. 
 
 As a rule, it is better usage to set off parenthetical 
 expressions by commas, than to set them off by dashes 
 or parentheses. 
 
 Exercise 148. Punctuation. Which of the above rules 
 for the use of commas, etc., are illustrated in the fol- 
 lowing sentences 9 
 
 1. There were the first editions of the immortal "Elia," he 
 who had the " delightful art of making a delightful summer 
 out of a single swallow." 
 
PUNCTUATION 237 
 
 2. Shakspere's town library has now every volume except 
 The Merchant of Venice, which was, for some reason, never 
 purchased. 
 
 3. Why should we judge him by his words, when all his 
 works are there a whole collection of them, by the by, is 
 now being exhibited in Boston to prove his power ? 
 
 4. The studio a bare barn of a place, outside the Porta 
 del Popolo stood on a slope commanding a view of the mon- 
 astery in which Luther, they say, dwelt, when he was planning 
 his defiance of the Church. 
 
 5. The food was bad, the meal ill served, the landlord 
 (heaven bless him ! ) was dirty, but what a talk we had about 
 work, play, books, art, life ! 
 
 Exercise 149. Punctuation. Punctuate, according to 
 the rules for the use of the comma, etc., the following 
 sentences: 
 
 1. Vedder said What do you think I have been studying 
 lately fungi I showed an Italian friend some drawings which 
 I had made from some specimens Why bless my soul said he 
 you are going into this fungus line quite seriously are you not 
 
 2. Now having known him a good many years I realized 
 what this task involved 
 
 3. Well I met a sort of second cousin there Alice Brooks 
 I've known her since we were children 
 
 4. The ashes sighed he of my fondest hopes 
 
 5. Ah Mr Lever he said very blandly I didn't know you 
 were in England in fact I was not even aware of your having 
 asked for leave 
 
 The semicolon is the most commonly used stop, if 
 we except the comma and the period. The semicolon 
 is, in general, used when the comma would not indi- 
 cate so distinct a pause or so definite a division as is 
 
238 APPENDIX III 
 
 desired. If several coordinate clauses, for example, 
 follow one another, and each or any of them contains 
 commas for minor pauses, the semicolon must be 
 used to separate such clauses ; as, " Still more sur- 
 prised were they to learn that, in order to have 
 bread, wheat had to be sown in the ground ; that 
 grass was necessary for the production of milk ; and 
 that wine did not flow out of casks on a turning of a 
 key." Examples of another use of the semicolon 
 are to be found throughout this Appendix, before 
 the word "as", when this is followed- by a sentence 
 given for illustration. 
 
 The colon is used most commonly as follows : 
 
 1. To indicate that a list, enumeration, or state- 
 ment is to follow ; as, " The following are the princi- 
 pal rules for punctuating the possessive case : First," 
 etc. Under this rule comes the use of a colon 
 before a direct quotation, when the quotation is to 
 be marked as especially emphatic ; as, The dealer 
 then uttered these words : " I believe you have been 
 trying to cheat me. I refuse to deal with you at 
 all." 
 
 2. In a long complex or compound sentence, after 
 groups of clauses, or sometimes phrases, when the 
 members of the groups are separated by semicolons ; 
 as, If the man walked slowly, the lion lessened his 
 pace ; if the man stopped, the beast did likewise : 
 but in spite of this seeming imitation of the man's 
 movements, the lion was gradually gaining. 
 
PUNCTUATION 239 
 
 (c) Miscellaneous marks. 
 
 (1) The apostrophe (') is used to mark the omission 
 of a letter when the abbreviated word is to be pro- 
 nounced as it is spelled ; as, don't, o'clock, o'er. 
 
 The apostrophe is a necessary part of all nouns in 
 the possessive case, singular or plural. The rules for 
 writing the possessive case are as follows : 
 
 1. Nouns in the singular number add 's to the 
 nominative form, whether the nominative ends in s or 
 not ; as, the man's, Charles's, Dickens's, Mr. Jones's, 
 mouse's. 
 
 2. In the plural, if the nominative plural does not 
 end in s or the sound of s, the apostrophe and s are 
 added ; as, men's, children's. 
 
 But if, as is usual, the plural already ends in s. 
 only the apostrophe is added ; as, girls' hats, the 
 Joneses' house. 
 
 In short, to form the possessive, always add 's, 
 except in the plural when the nominative plural ends 
 in s. 
 
 In certain expressions, as, for goodness' sake, for 
 conscience' sake, the s is omitted because there are 
 already two s sounds present. 
 
 The pronouns ours, hers, yours, its, theirs, are writ- 
 ten without any apostrophe. 
 
 (2) The hyphen (-) is used to connect the parts of 
 a compound word, as, cathedral-tower ; also to sepa- 
 rate a word into its syllables. This usually is neces- 
 sary only at the end of a line where there is room for 
 only a part of a word. A word of one syllable should 
 
240 APPENDIX III 
 
 never be written part on one line and part on the 
 next. Words of more than one syllable should 
 always be divided between syllables. For instance, 
 to write alw-ays, or belie v-ed, is wrong. In general, 
 divide words so that the part beginning the next line 
 shall begin with a consonant ; as, re-quired, enumera- 
 tion (not -ation). However, to divide before the 
 syllable -ing, when it is preceded by a single conso- 
 nant, is proper ; as, follow-ing, eat-ing. 
 
 (3) The caret ( A ) is used to mark an error of omis- 
 sion in one's writing. It has been called the " blunder 
 mark." 
 
 (4) Marks like * t \ and others are used to direct 
 attention to a note in the margin or elsewhere. 
 
 (5) Underscoring a word once indicates that it 
 should be printed in italics ; twice, in small capitals ; 
 three times or more, in large capitals, as for headings 
 or title pages. 
 
 II. Use of capital letters. 
 Begin with capitals : 
 
 1. The first word of every sentence, and of every 
 line of poetry. 
 
 2. Every proper noun, every proper adjective (as 
 French, Latin), every personified common noun (as, 
 Then Peace shall smile upon us). 
 
 3. Every name or title of the Deity, pronouns 
 pertaining to the Deity (this rule is to be followed 
 with judgment ; sometimes the repeated use of capi- 
 
USE OF CAPITAL LETTERS 241 
 
 talized pronouns becomes tiresome and annoying), and 
 names of religious denominations. 
 
 4. The names of the days of the week, the months 
 of the year (but not the four seasons of the year, 
 except when personified), and the four points of the 
 compass when they denote great regions or sections 
 of a country ; as, He journeyed west and north till he 
 had traversed the region called the great Northwest. 
 
 5. The important words in the title of a book or 
 of an essay or of a poem. 
 
 6. Titles of honor or respect; as, The Honorable 
 Member from Ohio ; the Duke of Westminster ; His 
 Excellency, the Governor of North Carolina ; His 
 Honor, the Mayor. 
 
 7. Words to be particularly emphasized, such as 
 words denoting an important epoch of history ; as, 
 The period of the Thirty Years' War. 
 
 8. The first word of a direct quotation, except 
 when only a word, a phrase, or a clause is quoted and 
 made a part of the writer's own sentence. 
 
 9. Write with capitals the pronoun I and the 
 interjections 0, Oh. 
 
 III. Rules for spelling. 
 
 1. Final e silent is generally omitted before a 
 suffix beginning with a vowel ; as, write, writ-ing ; 
 please, pleas-ing, pleas-ure ; grieve, griev-ance ; com- 
 bine, combining; change, changing; slice, slicing. 
 But since c and g have the " hard " sound before a, 
 o, and u, the endings ce and ge must be retained 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 16 
 
242 APPENDIX III 
 
 before suffixes ending in a, o, u. Thus, courageous, 
 serviceable, changeable. The word singeing retains 
 the e to distinguish it from singing; dyeing to dis- 
 tinguish it from dying. Shoeing and agreeable would 
 be apt to be mispronounced if spelt shoirig and 
 agreable. 
 
 2. Final e is generally retained before a suffix 'be- 
 ginning with a consonant ; as, pale, paleness ; dole, 
 doleful. (Exceptions to this rule are judgment, ac- 
 knowledgment, wholly, truly, and nursling.) 
 
 3. Words ending in a single consonant (preceded 
 by a single vowel) double the final letter on taking 
 a suffix beginning with a vowel, if the words are 
 monosyllabic or accented on the last syllable. Thus, 
 begin, beginning; sit, sitting; underpinning, repel- 
 lent, befitting. But if the words are accented on 
 some other than the last syllable, or if the conso- 
 nant is preceded by two vowels, the consonant is 
 not doubled ; as, trav'el-er, viv'id-est, offer-ing, wor'- 
 ship-er, profit-ing, fo'cusing, bi'as-ed ; retaining, toil- 
 ing, revealing. 
 
 4. Words ending in a double consonant usually 
 retain it when suffixes are added ; as, ebb, ebbing ; 
 will, willful ; shrill, shrillness. (But note the ex- 
 ceptions, almost, altogether, also, although, fulfill, 
 belfry, welfare.) 
 
 5. Words ending in a double consonant usually 
 retain it when prefixes are added ; as, farewell, down- 
 fall, respell, undersell. (Note the exceptions, until, 
 and adjectives ending in -ful.) 
 
SPELLING 243 
 
 6. Final y, if preceded by a consonant, is usually 
 changed to i when a suffix is added which begins 
 with a vowel (except the suffix -ing] ; as, happy, 
 happiest, happiness ; fly, flies ; rely, reliance ; accom- 
 pany, accompaniment; very, verily; duty, dutiful. 
 (Duteous, beauteous, and plenteous are not formed 
 according to the rule.) 
 
 7. Final y, preceded by a vowel, or before the 
 suffix -ing, is retained; as, valley, valleys; monkey, 
 monkeys ; spy, spying ; pity, pitying. 
 
APPENDIX IV 
 
 VEESES AND VERSE MAKING 
 
 SOME knowledge of versification is valuable for 
 two reasons : it is an indispensable aid in the 
 appreciative and musical reading of poetry, and 
 the writing of verse is very excellent practice in 
 the use of English. Merely for the skill it gives 
 in choice and manipulation of words and the varied 
 phrasing of sentences, it is an exercise that develops 
 deftness, command of diction, and a nice ear for 
 sound. It is therefore well worth while for a student 
 occasionally to try his hand at verse making tak- 
 ing care to see beforehand that he has something to 
 say, and that he has a good model to follow in his 
 versification. 
 
 The subject of prosody, or versification, is treated 
 at some length in Maxwell's Advanced Lessons in 
 English Grammar (pp. 306-318) and in most books 
 on rhetoric. It includes the following divisions : 
 
 1. Meter, or measuring of lines into portions 
 called feet. 
 
 2. Rhyme, the agreement of the final syllables 
 of lines in sound and accent. A correct rhyme con- 
 sists in identity of accented vowel sounds, followed 
 
 244 
 
VERSIFICATION 245 
 
 by identical consonant sounds, and preceded by unlike 
 
 consonant sounds. 
 
 Examples of correct rhyming : 
 
 Battle, rattle ; relate, state ; range, strange ; alley, valley ; 
 prodigious, religious ; importunate, unfortunate. 
 
 Examples of incorrect or imperfect rhyming : 
 
 (a) Corresponding syllables not accented alike; as, prel'ate, 
 relate'; tak'ing, cling'; recline', i'odine. 
 
 (6) Sounds of vowels different ; as, door, boor ; care, far ; 
 river, never ; disdain, amen ; whistle, rustle ; element, aliment. 
 
 (c) Vowels followed by unlike consonant sounds ; as, cling- 
 ing, singeing ; wet, red ; through, cough. 
 
 (d) Vowels preceded by like consonant sounds ; as, scene, 
 seen ; restrain, strain ; allay, delay ; persuasion, dissuasion. 
 
 3. Stanza-form, or the grouping of lines into 
 sets of a fixed number of lines, with a certain arrange- 
 ment of rhymes. Examples of stanzas are the coup- 
 let, the triplet, the ballad stanza, the Spenserian 
 stanza, the elegiac stanza, the rondeau, and the 
 sonnet. Most of these are explained or exemplified 
 later in this Appendix. 
 
 Of the above three divisions the first is the only 
 one we shall consider at any length. 
 
 Meter. Meter means measure. Poetry, like music, 
 is divided into measures, each requiring the same 
 amount of time. You can therefore beat time for 
 verses just as for a piece of music. As in music f 
 has the same amount of time as ' or C i, so 
 in poetry, three syllables may fill a measure having 
 
246 
 
 APPENDIX IV 
 
 the same time allowance as one containing only two 
 syllables. For example, take these lines from Low- 
 ell's Vision of Sir Launfal (the syllables that have 
 the beat are marked with an accent) : 
 
 Down swept the chill wind from the mountain pea*ks, 
 From the snow five thousand summers old. 
 
 Each of these lines has four measures, or feet, as 
 they are called ; but in some cases there are three 
 syllables to a foot, and in others only two. If we 
 wished to represent the movement of these lines by 
 musical characters, we should put : 
 
 c r 
 
 r 
 
 * 5 r 
 
 c r 
 
 B r 
 B r 
 
 But since in every foot there is one syllable given 
 more time than any other, the long syllables are 
 usually represented by bars, and the short by curves, 
 thus : 
 
 This is less accurate than the representation by musi- 
 cal notes, but it is more convenient. 
 
 Sometimes the first syllables in the feet are the 
 long ones. For example the nursery jingle : 
 
 Little Jack Hdrner sat in a cdrner, 
 Ea*ting his Christmas pie, 
 
 has a movement which may be represented thus : 
 
 w 
 
 \j 
 
VERSIFICATION 247 
 
 Here again we find feet of three syllables given the 
 same time as feet of two syllables. (Beat time as 
 you repeat the lines. The beat should fall on the 
 long syllables.) 
 
 Kinds of feet. The different kinds of feet are 
 named according to the number of syllables they 
 have, and the position of the accented or long 
 syllables. 
 
 Feet of two syllables are either ^ or w - . 
 
 Trochaic feet have the long syllable first, as in 
 the words re'cent, moth'er, differ, be'ing. The fol- 
 lowing are trochaic lines of verse : 
 
 Tell me not in mournful numbers, 
 
 Life is but an empty dream. LONGFELLOW. 
 
 Iambic feet have the long syllable second, as in 
 the words combine', return', along', intent'. The fol- 
 lowing are iambic lines of verse : 
 
 You all did see that on the Lupercal 
 
 I thrice presented him a kingly crown. SHAKSPERE. 
 
 Feet of three syllables are either w w or w w . 
 
 Dactylic feet have the long syllable first, as in 
 the words, syllable, clat'tering, cylinder, cel'ebrate. 
 The following are dactylic lines of verse : 
 
 Cannon to right of them, 
 
 Cannon to left of them. TENNYSON. 
 
 Anapcestic feet have the long syllable last, as in the 
 words, entertain', interfere', contradict', undertake'. 
 The following are anapaestic lines of verse : 
 
248 APPENDIX IV 
 
 The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold, 
 And his cohorts were gleaming with purple and gold. 
 
 BYRON. 
 
 We have already seen in scanning (that is, mark- 
 ing off into their feet) the lines beginning, " Down 
 swept the chill wind " and " Little Jack Homer," 
 that iambic and anapcestic feet may easily be used in 
 the same line, because they have the long syllable 
 at the end of the foot ; and that trochaic and dactylic 
 feet may be used in the same line, because they both 
 begin with the long syllable. In either case it is 
 easy to read two short syllables in the time of one, 
 just as in music two sixteenth notes may take the 
 place of one eighth note. 
 
 For the sake, then, of simplicity, we may say that 
 there are only two types of movement in English 
 verse: the iambic (I am', I am', I am', etc.), and the 
 trochaic (tro'chee, tro'chee, etc.) ; and in either kind 
 two shorts may take the place of one, forming, in 
 the iambic movement, an anapaestic foot, and, in the 
 trochaic movement, a dactylic foot. 
 
 Kinds of lines, as to length. 
 
 1. Lines of one foot are called monometer lines. 
 Examples : 
 
 Iambic. Away. (As in Herrick's To Daffodils.) 
 Anapcestic. On a throne. (In Tennyson's Merman.) 
 Trochaic monometers may also be found, but lines of one 
 foot are rare in any measure. 
 
VERSIFICATION 249 
 
 2. Lines of two feet are called dimeter. Ex- 
 amples : 
 
 Iambic. The year's | last rose. 
 Trochaic. Ori|ana 
 
 Anapaestic. Of the mold|ering flow'rs. 
 Dactylic. Take her up | tenderly. 
 
 3. Lines of three feet are called trimeter. Ex- 
 amples : 
 
 Iambic. And I | desire | to rest. 
 Trochaic. Neither | moon nor | starlight. 
 Anapaestic. That he sings | in his boat | 011 the bay. 
 Dactylic. Chasing each | other so | merrily. 
 
 4. Lines of four feet are called tetrameter. Ex- 
 amples : 
 
 Iambic. A sec|ond voice | was at | mine ear. 
 
 Trochaic. Then the | little | Hia|watha. 
 
 Anapcestic. Not a word | to each oth|er; we kept | the 
 
 great pace. 
 
 Dactylic. Brightest and | best of the | sons of the | morn- 
 ing. 
 
 5. Lines of five feet are called pentameter. Ex- 
 amples : 
 
 Iambic. And built | herself | an ev|erlast|ing name. (The 
 iambic pentameter is the most used line in Eng- 
 lish poetry. It is sometimes called heroic verse. 
 As we have seen, anapaestic feet may be substi- 
 tuted for one or more of the iambics in such a 
 line.) 
 
 Trochaic and dactylic. Over the | sea, with a | motion | slow 
 and ar | rested. 
 
250 APPENDIX IV 
 
 6. Lines of six feet are called hexameter. Ex- 
 amples : 
 
 Iambic. As one | for knight |ly jousts | and fierce | encoun- 
 ters fit. (The iambic hexameter line is called 
 an Alexandrine. See the dictionary.) 
 
 Dactylic. This is the | forest pri|meval; the | murmuring 
 | pines and the | hemlocks. 
 
 7. Lines of seven feet are called heptam'eter. Ex- 
 ample : 
 
 Iambic. John Gil|pin was | a cit|izen | of cred|it and | re- 
 nown. (Such lines are frequently divided into 
 two lines, one tetrameter and the other trimeter.) 
 
 8. Lines of eight feet are called octom'eter. Ex- 
 ample : 
 
 Trochaic. For the | mighty | wind a|rises, | roaring | sea- 
 ward, | and I | go. (Octometers are rarely 
 used, about the same effect being produced by 
 two tetrameters.) 
 
 Rests. As there are rests in music measures 
 or parts of measures in which no notes are sounded 
 so in poetry there are rests or pauses in the meter, 
 which must have their time allowed, even though no 
 syllables are uttered. In the following scansions the 
 letter r is used to mark a rest. If the accent or beat 
 falls upon a rest the r is italicized. The test of the 
 accuracy of the scanning of a line is whether the 
 syllables marked as long, or represented by a straight 
 
VERSIFICATION 
 
 251 
 
 line, really receive the stress or beat of the measure. 
 Beat time as in music : 
 
 (a) Sweet and low, sweet and low, 
 
 Wind of the western sea 
 Low, low, breathe and blow, 
 
 Wind of the western sea ! TENNYSON. 
 
 Trochaic movement (4 feet, 3 feet, 4 feet, 3 feet) : 
 
 w 
 
 w w 
 
 -00 
 
 -(*) 
 
 -(*) 
 
 (6) Break, break, break, 
 
 On thy cold gray stones, sea ! 
 And I would that my tongue could utter 
 
 The thoughts that arise in me. TENNYSON. 
 
 Iambic movement (3 feet, 3 feet, 4 feet, 3 feet) : 
 
 (r) 
 
 These selections also well illustrate how dactylic 
 feet may be used in the trochaic movement, and ana- 
 paestic feet in the iambic movement. 
 
 (c) The fine emphatic effect of the rest is also 
 shown in the following nursery jingle, especially in 
 the third line after " who " : 
 
 Ding, dong, bell, 
 
 Pussy's in the well ; 
 Who put her in ? 
 
252 
 
 APPENDIX IV 
 
 Trochaic movement, 3 feet to a line : 
 
 -W -(r) -(r) 
 
 - (r) - o - (r) 
 
 Run-on lines. It frequently happens that there is 
 an extra syllable at the end of a line. In such a case 
 this syllable is really a part of the first foot of the 
 following line. 
 
 (a) Thus in the nursery jingle, 
 
 Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard 
 
 To get her poor dog a bone ; 
 When she got there, the cupboard was bare, 
 
 And so the poor dog had none, 
 
 we have an iambic movement, beginning with a rest, 
 the feet running 4, 3, 4, 3 : 
 
 oo- 
 
 Here the extra syllable at the end of the first line 
 clearly goes with the first foot of the following line, 
 making the foot anapaestic. Note that the third line 
 has no extra syllable at the end. 
 
 (b) This use of an extra end-syllable is common 
 in Shakspere's later and better versification. For 
 example, we have Hamlet's familiar lines : 
 
 To be, or not ta be, that is the question : 
 Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer 
 The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, 
 Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, 
 And, by opposing, end them. To die ? To sleep. 
 
VERSIFICATION 
 
 253 
 
 Iambic movement, 5 feet to a line : 
 
 Here it will be observed that though the move- 
 ment is iambic, the second, fourth, and fifth lines 
 all begin with long or stressed syllables. The short 
 syllables to fill out the iambic feet in these cases are 
 found as extra syllables at the ends of the preceding 
 lines. The first foot in the third line, for a similar 
 reason, is an anapaestic foot, whose syllables are : 
 -f er the slings, w w . 
 
 There are illustrated in the last section two other 
 points frequently exemplified in the best English 
 poets. 
 
 (1) A short syllable is sometimes accented (6). 
 Thus, in the first line quoted, the word " that " in the 
 fourth foot is given the beat, as the natural emphasis, 
 depending on the meaning of the words, requires 
 "that" to be accented. But the regular beat in the 
 foot falls on " is." Another example of a short sylla- 
 ble's being accented is in this line : 
 
 Take these again, for to the noble mind. 
 
 (2) The regular beat in a line may fall on a short 
 syllable. Such a syllable may be represented by ^. 
 
254 APPENDIX IV 
 
 Thus, the word " of," in the third line quoted, cannot 
 be read as a long syllable, nor does it receive any 
 emphasis. But it stands in the place of a long syl- 
 lable, receiving the regular beat. In such a case give 
 the syllable its full time in the measure, but do not 
 in the least emphasize the short syllable, even though 
 it comes in the place of a long syllable. The word 
 " to " in the line last quoted is an example. Another 
 example is the word " for " in this line : 
 
 How does your honor for this many a day ? 
 
 w w I vy ^ I w ww . 
 
 Or the word " the " in this : 
 
 Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought. 
 
 Exercise 150. Scanning. Mark off in measures the 
 syllables (and the rests, if any) in the following pieces of 
 verse; also note the arrangement of the rhyming lines. 
 
 1. The curfew tolls the knell of parting day, 
 
 The lowing herd winds slowly o'er the lea, 
 The plowman homeward plods his weary way, 
 And leaves the world to darkness and to me. 
 
 (This is the opening stanza of Gray's Elegy Written in a 
 Country Churchyard. This form of stanza is often called the 
 elegiac stanza.) 
 
 2. And what is so rare as a day in June ? 
 Then, if ever, come perfect days ; 
 Then heaven tries the earth, if it be in tune, 
 And over it softly her warm ear lays. 
 
 From LOWELL'S Vision of Sir Launfal. 
 
VERSIFICATION 255 
 
 3. There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream, 
 The earth, and every common sight 
 
 To me did seem 
 Appareled in celestial light, 
 The glory and the freshness of a dream. 
 It is not now as it hath been of yore ; 
 Turn wheresoe'er I may, 
 By night or day, 
 
 The things which I have seen I now can see no more. 
 From WORDSWORTH'S Ode on Immortality. 
 
 (An ode is a form of poem in which there is permitted much 
 variety in length of lines and arrangement of rhymes.) 
 
 4. Lives of great men all remind us 
 
 We can make our lives sublime, 
 And, departing, leave behind us 
 
 Footprints on the sands of time. LONGFELLOW. 
 
 6. I had a little pony, his name was Dapple Gray ; 
 I lent him to a lady, to ride a mile away. 
 She whipped him, she slashed him, and rode him through 
 
 the mire : 
 I would not lend my pony now for all the lady's hire. 
 
 MOTHER GOOSE. 
 
 6. Little Tommy Tittlemouse 
 Lived in a little house. 
 He caught fishes 
 In other men's ditches. MOTHER GOOSE. 
 
 7. Sweet are the uses of adversity 
 
 Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous, 
 Wears yet a precious jewel in his head ; 
 And this our life, exempt from public haunt, 
 Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, 
 Sermons in stones, and good in everything ! 
 
 From SHAKSPERE'S As You Like It. 
 
 (Verse that does not rhyme is called blank verse.) 
 
256 APPENDIX IV 
 
 8. There is a pleasure in the pathless woods, 
 There is a rapture on the lonely shore, 
 There is society where none intrudes, 
 By the deep sea, and music in its roar ; 
 I love not man the less, but nature more, 
 From these our interviews, in which I steal 
 From all I may be, or have been before, 
 To mingle with the universe, and feel 
 What I can ne'er express, yet cannot all conceal. 
 From BYRON'S Cliilde Harold. 
 
 (This stanza is an example of the Spenserian stanza, so 
 called because it is that used in Edmund Spenser's great alle- 
 gorical poem, The Faerie Queene. Note the arrangement of 
 the rhymes, and the closing of the stanza with an Alexandrine, 
 or six-foot line.) 
 
 Verse writing. Most verses are simple and regular 
 in movement and scansion, and as mere verses not 
 hard to write. The easiest forms for the beginner 
 to attempt are the following : 
 
 (1) The couplet (two rhyming lines, each containing 
 five feet, or each containing four feet). Examples : 
 
 Pentameter couplets, iambic : 
 
 But most by numbers judge a poet's song, 
 
 And smooth or rough, with them, is right or wrong. 
 
 POPE. 
 
 Sir knight, though I have asked thy life, yet still 
 Thy destiny depends upon my will. CHAUCER. 
 
 Tetrameter couplets, iambic : 
 
 Disdains against its will to stay, 
 
 And struggles out, and flies away. BUTLER. 
 
VERSIFICATION 257 
 
 Beneath her torn hat glowed the wealth 
 
 Of simple beauty and rustic health. WHITTIEB. 
 
 The train from out the castle drew, 
 
 But Marmion stopped to bid adieu. SCOTT. 
 
 Tetrameter couplet, trochaic : 
 Come, and trip it as you go, 
 On the light fantastic toe. MILTON. 
 
 Exercise 151. Writing in couplets. The couplet being 
 well adapted to descriptive and narrative verse, write the 
 following jingles and verses in couplets. 
 
 1. Complete the following nonsense couplets (tetrameter) : 
 
 Ten little kittens, ready to dine, 
 
 One choked on a bone, and then there were nine. 
 
 Nine little kittens 
 
 eight, etc. 
 
 2. Complete this alphabet jingle : 
 
 A is an archer, steady and brave, 
 B is a barber, ready to shave, 
 C is a cormorant, greedy and strong, 
 D is a doctor whose bill is as long. 
 
 3. Write in four-foot couplets of trochaic movement, includ- 
 ing dactylic feet if necessary, a comic anecdote, found in some 
 book or newspaper, or any of the stories found on page 107. 
 
 4. Write in five-foot couplets of iambic movement an ac- 
 count of a picnic or an excursion. (If preferred, the iambic 
 tetrameter couplet may be used, with anapaestic feet, intro- 
 duced as desired.) 
 
 (2) The ballad stanzas of four lines are easy to 
 write and pleasant to read. They are suited for 
 lively narration and description. Examples : 
 
 WRIT. IN ENG. 17 
 
258 APPENDIX IV 
 
 Iambic, 4, 3, 4, 3, rhyming second and fourth lines : 
 About, about, in reel and rout 
 
 The death fires danced at night ; 
 The water, like a witch's oils, 
 
 Burnt green, and blue, and white. COLERIDGE. 
 
 Iambic, 4, 4, 4, 4, rhyming second and fourth lines : 
 He was no sooner over the river, 
 
 Down in the forest to take the air, 
 But eighty merchants of London city 
 Came kneeling before King Henry there. 
 
 OLD BALLAD. 
 
 Exercise 152. Writing of ballad verse. Put into 
 ballad verse the following little story: 
 
 The town rat and the country rat. A town rat politely 
 invited a country rat to dinner. They were to have some ripe 
 old cheese and a well-cooked quail. The feast at last was 
 spread out in a cozy corner, and merrily they set to eating ; 
 but hardly had they well begun, when a sudden racket at the 
 door alarmed them, and they both scampered away as fast as 
 they could. When the noise was over they returned : " Come," 
 said the city rat, "let us finish our meal." "Not a nibble 
 more for me," said the rustic rat. " You come dine with me 
 to-morrow, where all is quiet and safe. I am not envious of 
 your life, for I have no love for pleasure when it is mixed 
 with fear." 
 
 Exercise 153. Verse writing. (a) Put into ballad 
 stanzas of either of the types mentioned above, the story 
 of some book or tale you have recently read. 
 
 (6) Write jingles or verses in other stanza-forms, such 
 as are exemplified in this Appendix or may be found 
 elsewhere. These may be nonsense verses, or versified 
 anecdotes, real or imaginary. Do not attempt any seri- 
 ous verse for some years to come (if ever}. 
 
APPENDIX V 
 
 NOTES ON AUTHORS REFERRED TO OR QUOTED 
 IN THIS BOOK 
 
 Joseph Addison, famous English writer of essays (and a few 
 poems). 18th c. (1672-1719). The Spectator Papers 
 (1711-1714). 
 
 Louisa M. Alcott, American story writer. Daughter of Bron- 
 soii Alcott, a friend of Emerson. 19th c. (1831-1888). 
 Little Women (18(57). 
 
 James Lane Allen, American novelist (1849 ). The 
 Choir Invisible. 
 
 Francis Bacon, great English lawyer, statesman, philosopher, 
 and essayist. 17th c. (1561-1626). Novum Organum, in 
 Latin, 1620 ; Essays, in English (1597-1625). 
 
 Ballads, old narrative poems by unknown bards. Some manu- 
 scripts date back to the thirteenth and fourteenth centu- 
 ries. A good convenient and interesting collection of them 
 has been prepared by Professor F. B. Gummere, and pub- 
 lished by Ginn & Co., Boston. The standard collection is 
 that of Professor Child, 10 vols., Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 
 
 George Bancroft, American historian. 19th c. (1800-1891). 
 History of the United States, 12 vols. (1854-1882). 
 
 William Black, English novelist (1841-1898). A Princess 
 of Thule, Madcap Violet, etc. 
 
 R. D. Blackmore, English novelist. 19th c. (1825-1900). 
 Lorna Doone. 
 
 James Boswell, famous for his Life of Samuel Johnson. 18th c. 
 (1740-1795). 
 
260 APPENDIX V 
 
 Charles Brockden Brown, the earliest American novelist. Late 
 18th c. (1771-1810). Wieland (1798); Arthur Mervyn 
 (1800). 
 
 Eobert Browning, great English poet. 19th c. (1812-1890). 
 Plays, for example, A Blot in the 'Scutcheon ; Colombe's 
 Birthday ; Pippa Passes. Long poems : The Eing and the 
 Book ; Bordello. Many much-loved short poems. 
 
 John Bunyan, English writer, famous for his Pilgrim's Progress. 
 17th c. (1628-1688). 
 
 Edmund Burke, great Irish orator and writer. 18th c. (1730- 
 1797). Speech on Conciliation with the American Colo- 
 nies (1774) ; Inquiry into the Sublime and Beautiful 
 (1756). 
 
 Lord Byron, English poet. Early 19th c. (1788-1824). Trage- 
 dies. Narrative and descriptive poems : Childe Harold ;' 
 The Prisoner of Chillon. Lyric poems. 
 
 Thomas Campbell, Scottish poet. Early 19th c. (1777-1844). 
 The Pleasures of Hope (1798), and narrative poems. 
 
 Cervantes, famous Spanish novelist. 16th c. (1547-1616). Don 
 Quixote. 
 
 Geoffrey Chaucer, the first great English poet. 14th c. (1340- 
 1400). The Canterbury Tales ; The Flower and the Leaf ; 
 The House of Fame. 
 
 Samuel T. Coleridge, English poet and reflective writer. Early 
 19th c. (1772-1834). The Ancient Mariner (1798) ; several 
 other fine poems ; many prose works. 
 
 James Fenimore Cooper, American romance writer. 19th c. 
 (1789-1851). Sea Tales : The Ked Rover, etc. Indian 
 Tales : The Pathfinder ; The Last of the Mohicans, etc. 
 
 William Cowper, English poet. 18th c. (1731-1800). Most of 
 his poems didactic. John Gilpin (1785) not in his usual 
 manner. 
 
 Richard Henry Dana, Jr., American writer. 19th c. (1815- 
 1882). Two Years before the Mast. 
 
 Charles Darwin, English scientist, one of the originators of the 
 theory of evolution. 19th c. (1809-1882). The Origin 
 
NOTES ON AUTHORS 261 
 
 of Species (1859); The Descent of Man; Movements of 
 Plants; etc. 
 
 Richard Harding Davis, American story writer (1864- ). 
 Van Bibber and Other Stories. 
 
 Leonardo da Vinci, great Italian painter, architect, and scien- 
 tist. 15th c. (1452-1519). 
 
 Daniel Defoe, English imaginative writer. Early 18th c. (1661- 
 1731). Journal of the Plague; Robinson Crusoe (1719). 
 
 Thomas Dekker, minor dramatist of Shakspere's time. Early 
 17th c. (1570-1637?). 
 
 Charles Dickens, one of the most popular of English novelists. 
 19th c. (1812-1870). Pickwick Papers (1837); Nicholas 
 Nickleby ; Oliver Twist ; Old Curiosity Shop ; Dombey and 
 Son; David Copperfield ; Bleak House; Christmas Stories. 
 
 Edward Eggleston, American story writer and historian (1837- 
 ). The Circuit Rider; The Hoosier Schoolmaster; 
 A History of the United States. 
 
 " George Eliot " (Mary Ann Evans, Mrs. Lewes, Mrs. Cross), 
 the greatest English woman novelist. 19th c. (1819-1880). 
 Scenes of Clerical Life ; Adam Bede (1859) ; The Mill on 
 the Floss; Silas Marner (1861); Romola; Felix Holt; 
 Middlemarch ; Daniel Deronda (1876) ; also essays and 
 poems. The standard biography of George Eliot is by her 
 husband, J. W. Cross. 
 
 Ralph Waldo Emerson, American reflective writer and poet. 
 19th c. (1803-1882). Nature (1836). Essays (1841-1844) ; 
 Representative Men; English Traits; Conduct of Life. 
 Poems: Concord Hymn; Woodnotes; May Day; The 
 Problem. 
 
 Canon F. W. Farrar, English divine, and author of several theo- 
 logical and historical works (1831- ). 
 
 Hamlin Garland, American story writer (1860- ). (Subjects 
 mostly western.) Main Traveled Roads. 
 
 Oliver Goldsmith, English writer of poems, prose, and plays. 
 18th c. (1728-1774). The Deserted Village; The Trav- 
 eler: The Vicar of Wakefield; She Stoops to Conquer. 
 
262 APPENDIX V 
 
 Nathaniel Hawthorne, greatest American romance writer. 
 19th c. (1804-1864). Twice-Told Tales (1837) ; The Scar- 
 let Letter (1850) ; Mosses from an Old Manse ; The House 
 of the Seven Gables; The Blithedale Romance; Wonder 
 Book for Boys and Girls; American Note Book; The 
 Marble Faun. 
 
 William Hazlitt, English essayist and critic. Early 19th c. 
 (1778-1830). 
 
 Oliver Wendell Holmes, American essayist, novelist, and poet. 
 19th c. (1809-1894). The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table 
 (1858) ; The Professor at the Breakfast Table ; The Poet 
 at the Breakfast Table ; Over the Teacups ; One Hundred 
 Days in Europe. Novels: Elsie Vernier; The Guardian 
 Angel. Among his poems: The Chambered Nautilus; 
 Old Ironsides ; The One Hoss Shay. 
 
 Victor Hugo, great French romance writer and poet. 19th c. 
 (1802-1885). Les Miserables ; Ninety-Three. 
 
 Washington Irving, perhaps the most classical of American 
 writers. 19th c. (1783-1859). Knickerbocker's History of 
 New York (1809) ; The Sketch Book ; Bracebridge Hall ; 
 Tales of a Traveler; The Conquest of Granada; The 
 Alhambra; Lives of Columbus, Mahomet, Goldsmith, and 
 (1855) Washington. 
 
 G. P. R. James, English novelist. 19th c. (1801-1860). 
 
 Samuel Johnson, a great literary man of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury in England (1709-1784). Poems ; English Dictionary 
 (1755); Rasselas (a tale); Tour of the Hebrides; The 
 Eambler, The Idler (periodical essays) ; Lives of the Poets. 
 
 Rudyard Kipling, English poet and story writer (1865- ). 
 Plain Tales from the Hills (stories of life in India) ; 
 The Phantom 'Rickshaw, and Other Tales; The Day's 
 Work; Barrack Room Ballads and Other Poems; The 
 Seven Seas. 
 
 Charles Lamb, one of the most gentle and delightful of English 
 essayists. 19th c. (1775-1834). Essays of Elia. With his 
 sister Mary he wrote Tales from Shakspere. 
 
NOTES ON AUTHORS 263 
 
 Henry W. Longfellow, the most popular of American poets, 
 19th c. (1807-1882). Two or three prose romances; Evan- 
 geline (1847) ; Golden Legend ; Song of Hiawatha (1855) ; 
 Courtship of Miles Standish; Tales of a Wayside Inn; 
 Birds of Passage ; many favorite short poems ; Transla- 
 tion of Dante's Divina Comrnedia (1867). 
 
 James Kussell Lowell, prominent American essayist, critic, 
 and poet. 19th c. (1819-1891). Prose: Among my 
 Books; My Study Windows; Fireside Travels; political 
 and literary essays and addresses. Poems : The Biglow 
 Papers (1848 and 1866); The Vision of Sir Launfal, 
 (1848) ; Commemoration Ode (1865) ; Under the Willows ; 
 The Cathedral (1869). Some excellent short poems. 
 
 Thomas Babington Macaulay, famous English essayist, histo- 
 rian, and poet. 19th c. (1800-1859). Historical and lit- 
 erary essays ; History of England, five vols. ; Lays of 
 Ancient Rome, and other poems. 
 
 John Milton, one of the greatest of English poets and prose 
 writers. 17th c. (1608-1674). I. Early Poems: Hymn 
 on the Nativity; Com us; Lycidas ; L' Allegro; II Pense- 
 roso. II. Prose works : Of Eeformation ; Of Education ; 
 On Divorce ; Defense of the English People ; Areopa- 
 gitica. III. Later poems: Paradise Lost; Paradise Ee- 
 gained ; Samson Agonistes ; Sonnets. 
 
 Donald Grant Mitchell (" Ik Marvel "), an American imagina- 
 tive writer and essayist (1822- ). Reveries of a 
 Bachelor; Dream Life; English Lands and Letters; 
 American Lands and Letters. 
 
 Agnes Repplier, an American essayist (1855- ). Varia, and 
 other volumes of brief critical essays. 
 
 Dante Gabriel Eossetti, English painter and poet. 19th c. 
 (1828-1882). Poems (1871), including The Blessed Darno- 
 zel, Sister Helen, etc. ; The Early Italian Poets (1873). 
 His life and letters, edited by his brother, Wm. M. Eos- 
 setti, appeared in 1895. 
 
 John Euskin, eloquent and influential writer (English) on art, 
 
264 APPENDIX V 
 
 ethics, and social economy (1819-1900). His works, col- 
 lected in thirteen volumes, include Modern Painters, 1843- 
 1860 ; Stones of Venice ; Seven Lamps of Architecture ; 
 Ethics of the Dust ; Sesame and Lilies ; Time and Tide ; 
 Fors Clavigera ; etc. 
 
 Sir Walter Scott, one of the greatest of novelists, and a poet. 
 Early 19th c. (1771-1832). The Waverley Novels, mostly 
 historical, including Waverley, The Monastery, The Abbot, 
 Ivanhoe, Kenilworth, Quentin Durward, The Heart of 
 Midlothian, Guy Mannering, The Bride of Lammermoor, 
 and others almost as well known. His poems include The 
 Lay of the Last Minstrel (1805), The Lady of the Lake 
 (1810), and Marmion. 
 
 William Shakspere, the greatest of dramatic poets. Late 
 16th and early 17th c. (1564-1616). His plays are: 
 (a) Historical: Henry IV, Henry V, Richard III, Richard 
 II., King John. (6) Legendary : Hamlet, Lear, Macbeth, 
 Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Cymbeline. (c) Fictitious : 
 Merchant of Venice, Midsummer Night's Dream, As You 
 Like It, All's Well that Ends Well, Much Ado about 
 Nothing, Othello, Winter's Tale, Tempest. Shakspere also 
 wrote 154 sonnets and several other poems. 
 
 Robert Southey, English poet (laureate next before Words- 
 worth). 19th c. (1774-1843). His (prose) Life of Nelson 
 is admirable. 
 
 Laurence Sterne, English novelist and preacher. 18th c. 
 (1713-1768). A Sentimental Journey ; Tristram Shandy ; 
 Sermons. 
 
 Robert Louis Stevenson, one of the most admired of recent 
 English writers of fiction (1850-1894). Dr. Jekyll and 
 Mr. Hyde ; The Master of Ballantrae ; David Balfour ; 
 Treasure Island ; The New Arabian Nights. Will of the 
 Mill ; and other short stories. Essays : Familiar Studies 
 of Men and Books ; Virginibus Puerisque ; Sketches and 
 Criticisms. Note-books: An Inland Voyage; Travels 
 with a Donkey. Poems : A Child's Garden of Verses. 
 
NOTES ON AUTHORS 265 
 
 Bayard Taylor, American writer of travels, poems, and novels. 
 19th c. (182S-1878). The Land of the Saracens; Views 
 Afoot ; Boys of Other Countries ; Byways of Europe ; 
 Translation of " Faust " ; Prince Deucalion ; Poems of the 
 Orient. Novels : Hannah Thurston ; Story of Kennet. 
 
 Jeremy Taylor, English divine. 17th c. (1713-1767). Ser- 
 mons ; Holy Living ; Holy Dying. 
 
 Alfred Tennyson, the most popular and one of the greatest of 
 modem English poets. 19th c. (1809-1892). Longer 
 poems: In Memoriam ; Idyls of the King; The Princess; 
 Maud ; Enoch Arden. Dramas : Queen Mary ; Harold ; 
 Becket. Many beautiful shorter poems. 
 
 Henry D. Thoreau, American naturalist and essayist. 19th c. 
 (1817-1862). A Week on the Concord and Merrimac 
 Eivers; Walden; The Maine Woods; Cape Cod; Sum- 
 mer; Winter. 
 
 Mrs. Humphry Ward, noted English woman novelist (1851- 
 ). Robert Elsmere ; David Grieve ; Marcella ; The 
 Story of Bessie Costrell. 
 
 Daniel Webster, the greatest American orator. 19th c. (1782- 
 1852). Eulogy on Adams and Jefferson ; Bunker Hill 
 Orations ; Speech in Reply to Hayiie (1829) ; Speech on 
 the Murder of Captain White. 
 
 Walt Whitman, regarded by some as one of the greatest of 
 American poets and writers of prose. 19th c. (1819-1892). 
 Poems all included under the title, Leaves of Grass. His 
 prose includes : Collect ; Democratic Vistas ; Specimen 
 Days in America; The Wound Dresser. 
 
 John Greenleaf Whittier, a well-known American writer of 
 ballads and other poems. 19th c. (1807-1892). Maud 
 Muller ; The Barefoot Boy ; Barbara Frietchie ; Snow- 
 bound ; Among the Hills. Many favorite short poems. 
 
 Kate Douglas Wiggin (Mrs. Kiggs), American writer of juvenile 
 stories and other books (1857- ). The Birds' Christ- 
 mas Carol; The Story of Patsy; Children's Eights; A 
 Cathedral Courtship ; A Summer in Southern California. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Accent In verse, 246, 248. 
 
 Accuracy in use of words, 188-191, 199- 
 
 203. 
 
 Adjectives, suggestive use of, 203-205. 
 Allegory, 185. 
 Alliteration, 185. 
 Anapaestic feet, 247. 
 " And " habit, 54-56. 
 " And which," 192. 
 Antithesis, 151. 
 Apostrophe, uses of, 239. 
 Argument, defined, 13, 16. 
 
 lists of subjects, 16. 
 
 general treatment, 209-215. 
 Arrangement, grammatical, 149, 197. 
 
 for clearness, 117-120. 
 
 for emphasis, 149-155. 
 Article, omission of, 114. 
 Authors, notes on, 259-266. 
 
 Balance in sentences, 151, 152. 
 
 Ballad stanzas, 257. 
 
 Blank verse, 255. 
 
 Briefs in argument, 212-214. 
 
 Business letters, 170-174. 
 
 Capitals, rules for, 240, 241. 
 Cases of pronouns, 194, 195. 
 Change of subject, faulty, 56. 
 Characters in narratives, 102. 
 Chaucer, 222. 
 Choice of subjects, 111. 
 Choice of words, for accuracy, 188-191, 
 198-203. 
 
 for emphasis, 156-159. 
 
 for suggestion, 203-205. 
 Clauses, 76. 
 Clearness, 111-120. 
 Climax. 153. 
 Colon, uses of, 238. 
 
 Colors in description, 65. 
 Comma, uses of, 234, 235. 
 Comparisons, in description, 62, 63. 
 
 and contrasts in paragraphs, 128- 
 
 132. 
 Completeness, in compositions, 18. 
 
 in paragraphs, 40. 
 
 in sentences, 57, 113-115, 197, 198. 
 Complex sentences, 79, 81, 84-88. 
 Composition, purpose of, 9-11. 
 
 kinds, 12-16. 
 
 general principles of, 18. 
 Composition books, 11, 36. 
 Compound sentences, 80-83. 
 Conjunctions, kinds, 85. 
 
 with relatives, 192. 
 Contents of descriptions, 17-20, 25. 
 
 of expositions, 207. 
 
 of paragraphs, 121-142. 
 Correctness, in diction, 187, 188. 
 
 in syntax, 57, 113, 192-198. 
 Couplets in verse, 256. 
 Creasy, 63. 
 
 Criticism, of a composition, 36, 176, 
 215. 
 
 scheme of marks for, 217-220. 
 
 Dactylic feet, 247. 
 Dash, uses of, 236. 
 Debate, 209-215. 
 
 Denying the opposite in sentences, 157, 
 158. 
 
 in argument, 209, 210. 
 Description, defined, 12, 15. 
 
 general treatment, 17-36, 60-74. 
 
 lists of subjects, 15. 
 Details, in description, 24, 25, 60. 
 
 or particulars in paragraphs, 122- 
 
 124. 
 Direct narration, 147, 148, 166. 
 
 267 
 
268 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Effects, statement of, in description, 
 64. 
 
 or results, in paragraphs, 132-134. 
 Elegiac stanza, 254. 
 Elements of sentences, 75-77. 
 Emphasis, 143-161. 
 English language, brief history of, 
 
 221-229. 
 Evangeline, 91. 
 
 Exclamatory sentences, 145, 146, 161. 
 Expositions, defined, 13, 16. 
 
 lists of subjects, 16. 
 
 general treatment, 206-208. 
 
 Feet, kinds of, in poetry, 247, 248. 
 Figures of speech, 177-186. 
 Formal notes, 163. 
 Franklin, 99. 
 
 French element in English speech, 221- 
 223, 226. 
 
 Glance in description, 24, 25. 
 Grammatical agreement, of verbs, 195. 
 
 of pronouns, 194. 
 
 Greek element in English, 222-225, 
 229. 
 
 Headings, in letters, 165. 
 
 Homer, 64. 
 
 Hugo, 62. 
 
 Hyphen, uses of, 239. 
 
 Iambic feet, 247. 
 
 Iambic movement, 248. 
 
 Imitation, 23, etc. 
 
 Indention, 37, 41. 
 
 Indirect and direct narration, 147, 148, 
 
 160. 
 
 Infinitive, splitting of, 197. 
 Informal notes and letters, 164-169. 
 Instances or examples in paragraphs, 
 
 125-127. 
 
 Interestingness, 10, 101-103. 
 Interrogation, 144-146, 161. 
 Introduction in description, 25. 
 Inversion, 149, 150. 
 
 John Gilpin's Ride, 93. 
 
 Latin elements in English, 222, 226, 
 
 228. 
 Letters, parts of, 165-168. 
 
 Letter writing, 162-176. 
 
 Lincoln, 92. 
 
 Lines in verse, kinds of, 248-250. 
 
 Longfellow, 91, 93. 
 
 Loose sentences, 154. 
 
 Merchant of Venice, 93. 
 Metaphor, 181-183. 
 Meter, 244-248. 
 Metonymy, 184. 
 Milton, 91. 
 
 Narration, defined, 12, 15. 
 lists of subjects, 15. 
 general treatment, 90-110. 
 use of " direct narration," 147, 148, 
 160. 
 
 Omissions in sentences, 57, 113-115. 
 " Only," position of, 118. 
 Onomatopoeia, 186. 
 Outlining, importance of, 24, 40, 41. 
 
 in description, 20, 25-29. 
 
 narration, 90-93. 
 
 in exposition, 207, 208. 
 
 in argument, 210-214. 
 
 Paragraphs, defined, 37. 
 
 general treatment, 37-51, 121-142. 
 
 contents of, 121-142. 
 
 topics of, 37. 
 Parentheses, 235. 
 Participles, position of, 118. 
 Paul Revere's Ride outlined, 99. 
 Periods, uses of, 232. 
 Periodic sentences, 154. 
 Perry's Victory, 106. 
 Personification, 183, 184. 
 Phrases, 76-78. 
 Plan, importance, in composition, 18. 
 
 in description, 24, 25. 
 Plot in narratives, 102, 103. 
 Poems for outlining, 100. 
 Point of view in description, 60-62. 
 Position, for emphasis in sentences, 
 149. 
 
 of modifiers, 117-120, 197. 
 Possessive case, use of, 193. 
 
 punctuation of, 239. 
 Precision in use of words, 188-191, 199- 
 
 203. 
 Prefixes, 227 
 
 
 
INDEX 
 
 269 
 
 Pronouns, obscure in sentences, 115. 
 
 agreement with antecedents, 194. 
 
 relatives, use of, 86, 189-191. 
 Proofs, kinds of, 211, 212. 
 
 strength of, 211. 
 Punctuation, 23, 232-240. 
 
 Question mark, 233. 
 Quotation marks, uses of, 236. 
 
 Reasons or causes in paragraphs, 134. 
 
 Redundancy, 156. 
 
 Refutation, 210. 
 
 Relative pronouns, use of, 86. 
 
 restrictive and coordinate, 189-191. 
 
 preceded by conjunctions, 192. 
 Repetition, 156, 157. 
 Rests in verse, 250. 
 Rhyme, 244. 
 
 Rip Van Winkle outlined, 92. 
 Run-on lines in verse, 252. 
 
 Salutations in letters, 164. 
 
 Saxon element in English, 221, 225. 
 
 Scale in description, 61. 
 
 Scanning, 248, 254. 
 
 Scott, a walk with, 124. 
 
 Selection in composition, 18, 20. 
 
 Semicolon, uses of, 237, 238. 
 
 Sense impressions in description, 65- 
 
 72. 
 Sentences, grammatical kinds, 78-88. 
 
 balanced, 151, 152. 
 
 loose, 154. 
 
 periodic, 154. 
 
 inverted, 149, 150. 
 Setting or scene in narration, 102. 
 Shakspere, life of, 93. 
 "Shall" and " will," 189, 191. 
 Simile, 177-181. 
 Simple sentences, 78, 83. 
 Smoothness in paragraphs, 121. 
 
 Specific words, 158, 159. 
 
 Spelling, rules for, 241-243. 
 
 Spenserian stanza, 256. 
 
 Sphinx, the, 104. 
 
 Stanza forms, 245. 
 
 Style, as affected by derivation, 230, 
 
 231. 
 
 in narration, 102. 
 Suffixes, 228. 
 
 Suggestion in words, 203-205. 
 Superscription of a letter, 167-lfi9. 
 Suspended or periodic sentences, 154, 
 
 155. 
 
 Synecdoche, 185. 
 Synonyms, 199-201. 
 Syntax, correctness in, 57, 113, 192-198. 
 
 " That," use of, 190. 
 Titles in letters, 167, 168. 
 Topic sentences, 43. 
 Topics of paragraphs, 37. 
 Transformation, of elements, 77, 83. 
 
 of sentences, 80- ( JO. 
 Trochaic feet, 247. 
 Trochaic movement, 248. 
 
 Underscoring, 240. 
 Unity, in compositions, 18. 
 
 in paragraphs, 40. 
 
 in sentences, 53-59, 112. 
 Use of words, accurate, 188-191. 
 
 suggestive, 203-205. 
 
 Verbs, grammar of, 195, 196. 
 Verses and verse making, 244-258. 
 
 "Which "habit, 116. 
 
 "Will "and "shall, "189, 191. 
 
 Word coinage, 229. 
 
 Word formation, 227-229. 
 
 Words, sources of English, 221-225. 
 
 TYPOGRAPHY BY J. S. GUSHING & CO., NORWOOD, MASS. 
 
Eclectic English Classics 
 
 Arnold's (Matthew) Sohrab and Rustum $0.2C 
 
 Burke 's Conciliation with the American Colonies ... .20 
 
 Burns's Poems Selections 20 
 
 Byron's Poems Selections. . . . . . .25 
 
 Carlyle's Essay on Robert Burns ...... .20 
 
 Chaucer's Canterbury Tales Prologue and Knighte's Tale . .25 
 
 Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner 20 
 
 Cooper's Pilot 40 
 
 Defoe's History of the Plague in London ..... .40 
 
 DeQuincey's Revolt of the Tartars 20 
 
 Dryden's Palamon and Arcite 20 
 
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 Goldsmith's Vicar of Wakefield . .35 
 
 Gray's Poems Selections 20 
 
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 Shakespeare's Twelfth Night 20 
 
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 Shakespeare's As You Like It 20 
 
 Shakespeare's Macbeth . -20 
 
 Shakespeare's Hamlet . . . . . . . . -25 
 
 Sir Roger de Coverley Papers (The Spectator) .... .20 
 
 Southey's Life of Nelson 40 
 
 Tennyson's Princess 20 
 
 Tennyson's Idylls of the King Selections. .... .20 
 
 Webster's Bunker Hill Orations 20 
 
 Wordsworth's Poems Selections 20 
 
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Text-Books in Grammar for Advanced 
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Webster's School Dictionaries 
 
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