830 W4G4 UC-NRLF ife-S:,, GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR BY J. WELTON, D.LiT., M.A. MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON GEOUNDWOKK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR MACMILI.AN AND CO., Limitild LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA • MADRAS MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO DALLAS • SAN FRANCISCo THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. TORONTO GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR BY J. WELTON, D.LiT., M.A. SOMETIME PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION IN THE UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS AUTHOR OF 'principles and METHODS OF TEACHING,* * THE PSYCHOLOGY OF EDUCATION,' 'the LOGICAL BASES OF EDUCATION,' ' WHAT DO WE MEAN BY EDUCATION,' ' GROUNDWORK OF LOGIC,' ETC.' MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON 1920 COPYRIGHT GLASGOW: PKINl'ED AT THK UNIVERSITY PRK8S BY ROBKRT MACI^EHOSE AND CO. LTD. CONTENTS FAET I SIMPLE ANALYSIS CHAPTER PAGE I. Sentences - - 1 II. Subjects and Predicates --.-.- 2 III. Nouns 4 IV. Pronouns 6 V. Adjectives 8 VI. Verbs 11 VIL Tenses 12 VIIT. Numbers 14 IX. Agreement of Subject and Verb - - - • 15 X. Single and Compound Subjects - - • - 16 XL Statements, Questions, and Commands - • • 18 XII. Verbs which cannot form Predicates - • • 20 XIII. Cases 22 XIV. Active and Passive Forms of Sentences - - 24 XV. Adverbs 25 XVI. Interjections 26 XVII. Analysing Sentences - - - • - - 27 W.G.P, A 2 106 vi CONTENTS PART II COMPLEX ANALYSIS CHAPTER Vk(m L Groups op Words 30 II. Prepositions - - - 32 III. Compound Sentences ------ 33 IV. Complex Sentences - 34 V. Conjunctions - - - 36 VI. Adverb Clauses 39 yil. Adjective Clauses 41 VIII. Relative Pronouns 43 IX. Noun Clauses 44 X. Combinations of Clauses - 48 XL Complex Subordinate Clauses 61 XII. Chains of Sentences 68 PART I SIMPLE ANALYSIS CHAPTER I SENTENCES 1. When we talk or write we wish to be understood by other people. To succeed in this we must use the right words, and put them together rightly. It is in the putting together that mistakes are often made. If someone says to me " This road needs repairing badly " I know that he means " It badly needs repairing," and probably if he were asked how it should be repaired he would reply " It should be repaired well^ I know what he means, so I disregard what he says. We constantly have to make such corrections, and, naturally, we sometimes do it wrongly. Words in no special arrangement mean nothing ; words carelessly arranged are likely to mean something different from what we intend to say. To speak or write well, then, we must be quite clear as to what we mean, and be careful so to use words that we exactly express that meaning. 2. Our thought goes on, and when we put it into words and examine it, we find that we are making statement after statement and linking them together. We make 2 GROUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR each statement about something, and we link them to- gether in such a way as to show how we think those some- things are connected. So both our speech and our thought can be taken to pieces and examined, and if we find we have been misunderstood we can detect the place in which what we said was put together differently from what we thought. 3. Each statement is called a Sentence. It is complete as a link in a chain is complete, but it is not complete in the same way in which the whole chain is. The links are of no use unless they are connected together, and when that is done the whole chain is no stronger than its weakest link. In the same way a single sentence is of very little value except as part of a chain of thought. If in that chain one sentence is faulty the whole chain is of little use. For example, if in the chain of thought which we call working out a sum, one false statement creeps in — as that 7x9= 56 — the whole calculation is made useless. 4. Speech, then, is made up of sentences joined together in various ways, and each sentence marks one step of our thought. If we take it away from the rest of the speech and look at it by itself we see that it says something, though we must look at the whole of which it is only a part to know why that something is said. CHAPTER II SUBJECTS AND PREDICATES 1. What do we mean by " saying something " ? If I call out " dog " I utter a word, but do I say anything ? The way I utter it may show what I have in mind. It SUBJECTS AND PEEDICATES 3 may be I intend to insult somebody ; it may be that I am calling a pet ; it may be that I am giving the English for the French chien ; or it may be many other things. But all that the word by itself shows is that the idea of a certain animal, or kind of animal, is in my mind. That this is all is evident if the word is simply written or printed quite alone by itself, when there is no tone of voice or surrounding circumstances to give it any meaning. 2. The word can never be alone like this in thought. Say " dogs " to yourself, and you find that all sorts of things you know about dogs begin to come into your mind ; as " Dogs bark," " Dogs are faithful friends." Each of these is a real piece of thought, and each when thus put into words is a sentence or statement about " dogs." So every sentence is a statement about some subject. Unless both these can be found in a piece of speech it is not a sentence ; that is, it makes no clear statement. 3. Every sentence, then, can be split up into two parts : — (a) The Subject about which the statement is made. (6) What is said about that subject, which is called the Predicate — from a Latin word meaning " what is said." Both subject and predicate may consist of any number of words, but always they together express one — and only one — piece of meaning. For example, "Little Miss Muffet sat on a tufiet " : Subject. Little Miss Muffet Predicate, sat on a tuf[et. 4 GROUND WOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAE CHAPTER III NOUNS 1. We cannot make statements without naming things. AH names are known as Nouns, a word derived from the Latin nomen, meaning " a name." 2. As the subject of a sentence is that about which the statement in the predicate is made, the chief part of the subject must always be some kind of noun or some sub- stitute for a noun. Nouns are also found in many predi- cates. Thus, in " The English army has won many battles/' there is the noun " battles " in the predicate, as well as the noun-group of words " The English army " which forms the subject. A noun by itself can form a subject, but a noun cannot stand alone as a predicate, and, indeed, is never the chief word there. 3. We name not only things we can see or hear or feel or taste or smell, but things we can only think about or imagine or desire or admire or despise, etc., as, bravery, cowardice. So when we say " A noun is the name of a thing,'' we mean by the word " thing " any and every subject about which we can think and talk. 4. A noun-group may consist of any number of words so long as together they make only one name. " The present king of England " is a noun-group because it is only one name. This contains as its chief word " king," which by itself is a noun, as in " The king was killed." All the rest limits the general name " king " to one particu- lar king. " England " also by itself is a noun, as in " Eng- land has a powerful navy." But when they are joined NOUNS 5 together, so that we may speak of " The king of England " they make only one name, and so together form one noun- group. Any set of words which names something of which we are thinking is a noun-group ; as, " That you have broken this window seems to be proved " ; " Digging the trenches occupied a good many hours " ; "I have heard that you can speaJc French " ; "I will show you how to howl'' All these groups of words name actions or other facts, and are, therefore, used as nouns. 5. All people, and many things, have many names. Thus, the same person is sometimes called " Tom Smith," sometimes a " boy," sometimes a " schoolboy," a " pupil," a " scholar " ; sometimes, it may be, a " dunce " an " idler," a " mischievous imp," a " quarrelsome beast," a " mean rascal," and so on. The first of these is his private name, and tells nothing about him. Anyone who did not know him and heard only his name would not gather what kind of a person he is, whether boy or man, good or bad : indeed, he might possibly be a dog or a horse. " Derby " may be the name of a town, or a horse- race, or the title of an earl. " Norfolk " an English county or a duke. Such names are called Proper Nouns — that is, private personal names. They enable us to talk about people and things without trying to describe them every time. They refer directly to them, but tell us nothing more about them. All the other names which may be given to Tom Smith belong also to many other people, and they all have a meaning. We should call him " a mischievous rascal " only if his actions show that he is a certain kind of boy, " a dunce " only if his ignorance of what he ought to know 6 GROUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR is plain to see. And so on. For similar reasons tlie same names may be given to many others besides Tom. Such names are, therefore, known as Common Nouns. They name the objects to which they are applied only indirectly, by stating some of their qualities. Every common noun, then, is a description. To call a person a " boy " is to tell his sex and approximate age ; to call him a *' pupil " is to state that he is a learner ; to say he is a " dunce " means that his learning has not been successful ; and so on. Places as well as people have proper names. Thus, " Brighton " is a proper noun because it is simply the name of a town ; to call the same town a " watering place " tells the kind of town it is and the occupation of many of its inhabitants. Similarly with " Liverpool," " a port " ; " Portsmouth," " a naval base " ; " Man- chester," " a manufacturing town " ; etc. Every proper noun has a number of common nouns connected with it, but many common nouns have no corresponding proper nouns, because we do not need to give special private names to everything we think and talk about. CHAPTEE IV PRONOUNS \. It is awkward to name a thing every time we refer to it : " Tom told Tom's father that Tom had been praised by Tom's teacher for the excellence of Tom's work" would sound very queer. So for all the " Toms " after fche first we use " he " or " his." Such words used instead PRONOUNS 7 of nouns are called Pronouns, from the Latin words jpro, meaning " for," and nomen, a name. 2. Unless we are babies we use pronouns, and not nouns, to indicate both ourselves and the persons to whom we are talking or writing ; as, " 7 saw you in the Park yester- day." The pronouns I, me, my, mine ; we, us, our, ours ; which we use instead of our own names are said to be of the First Person ; those we use instead of the names of those we are addressing — thou, thee, thy, thine, you, your, yours — of the Second Person. Thou, thee, thy, thine, have nearly gone out of general use, except in prayers, and sometimes in poetry. Pronouns used instead of the names of people or things about whom we are talking — he, him, his ; she, her, hers ; it, its ; they, them, their, theirs — are said to be of the Third Person. These are all called Personal Pronouns. 3. We do not always know the name of what we wish to talk about, and may ask a question to learn it ; as, " Who broke the window ? " " What is that on the desk ? " The words we use instead of the nouns we do not know — " who," " what," " that " — are also pronouns. 4. " What is that on the desk ? That is a blot of ink." The pronoun " what " asks the question ; the pronoun " that " points out what the question and the answer are about. So the former is an Interrogative (or Questioning) Pronoun ; the latter is a Demonstrative (or Pointing out) Pronoun. When we ask the name of a person we use " who ? ", " whom ? ", " whose ? ", as " Who is that man ? " " Whom did you see ? " " Whose is that book ? " When we ask the name of a thing we use " what ? ", as " What do you want ? " W.G, p, A 3 8 GEOUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAE When we refer to, or point out, something near we use " this " or " these," as " This is my book." " These are my opinions." When something at a distance is meant we use " that " or " those," as " That is my uncle," " Those were my fears." CHAPTER V ADJECTIVES 1. We constantly add words to nouns to show more clearly what person or thing we mean. Simply to say " The boy broke the window " is not nearly so definite as to point to each in turn and say " That boy broke that window." 2. If either is not in sight we must try to describe which we mean so clearly that no doubt can exist. If the boy is present but the window is not in sight, we may still point to him and say " That boy," but we must show which window we mean by saying something about it which can apply only to that one, as, " the window facing south in No. 12 class-room,^' or " the window on the ground-floor, to the right of the door, of the fourth house from the top on the east side of High Street.'' If the boy is not present and we do not know his name we must try to describe him with similar exactness. We might say " The fat boy who wears a blue sailor-suit and threw a stone at my dog last Wednesday," or describe him in any other way that would make quite clear exactly what boy we mean. Sometimes we do not need to be so precise. We may ADJECTIVES 9 wish to say something about a number of individuals, though not about all to whom the noun is a name, as " All the boys who do their home lessons well this weeh shall play cricket on Eriday afternoon," which picks out from all the boys in the class those who work well at home, and says nothing about those who do not. We should make another selection if we said " All the red-headed boys are hot-tempered." We use such descriptive words and groups of words also to express our idea of a person or thing even when our aim is not to show more clearly which we mean. We can say " The beautiful city of Florence contains many picture-galleries " without meaning that there is another city of Florence which is not beautiful ; and to say '' Her blue eyes filled with tears " does not imply that she had eyes of another colour as well as the blue ones. All such words and groups of words add some sort of a description of the thing named, and we may use that description for various purposes. They are all called Adjectives, a word which means " added to," because they are added to the names of the things they describe. 3. Adjectives which describe are called Adjectives of Quality ; those which point out exactly which of the objects that have a common name is meant are called Demonstrative Adjectives. The chief are this, these, that, those. As they are always joined with nouns it is easy to distinguish them from the demonstrative pronouns which are used instead of nouns. 4. Sometimes we need to say how many people or things are meant, as " Twenty prisoners were taken." If we do not know the exact number we may still be able to say 10 GEOUNDWOUK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR whether it is large or small, as " Many prisoners were taken." " Few prisoners were taken." These are called Adjectives of Number ; those that give an exact number, as twenty, are Definite, those that do not, as many, few, are Indefinite. 5. Definite Adjectives of Number may give the number directly, as " Twenty men," or they may do so indirectly by stating the place in a series, as, " Tom is the twentieth boy that has made this mistake." The former are called Cardinal or {Ghief) Numbers, the latter Ordinal (or Serial) Numbers. We can only find that Tom is the twentieth boy by counting all those who have gone before him. 6. If we wish to state how much of a single thing we mean we use an Adjective of Quantity, as, " Tom has eaten too much cake," " Jack has taken hardly any pains to do his work well." 7. Summing up : Adjectives are descriptive words added to nouns. There are (1) Demonstrative Adjectives. (2) Adjectives of Quality. (3) Adjectives of Number. (a) Definite. (i) Cardinal. (ii) Ordinal. (6) Indefinite. (4) Adjectives of Quantity, VEEBS 11 CHAPTEK VI VERBS 1. A predicate makes a statement about a subject. This may be made by one word or by a number of words ; as, Birds fly ; The British army in Flanders fought bravely in many battles during more than four years. If we examine the latter we see that the chief part of the statement is in the word " fought." All the rest only makes that statement more precise. So in every predicate there is a word, or a set of words, which shows the kind of statement made. This word, or set of words, is a verb, a shortened form of the Latin verbum, which simply means " a word." This indicates that the verb is the most important word, or set of words, in every sentence ; it makes clear the kind of statement that sentence is intended to make. Verbs are words that tell. 2. A verb may consist of one word or of several words. We can say I write, I am writing, I shall write, I have been ivriting, and many other forms. Each expresses one particular shade of meaning, and makes only one statement. 3. Many verbs can stand alone as predicates. Others require other words to complete the statement. " I walk " has a clear meaning, but " I make " requires other words saying what is made. So, "I am " is a complete statement if it means " I exist," but it is usually used to state that I am something — as, glad, sorry, tired, an English- man, and so on. In all such cases the predicate consists of the verb and all the other words required to make the meaning clear. 12 GROUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GilAMMAR CHAPTEE VII TENSES 1. Some of our statements refer to what is past, some to what is going on now, some to what will happen in the future ; as, I ivorJced yesterday (past). I work as hard as I can (present). I shall work to-morrow (future). 2. Which of these is meant is shown by the form of the verb used, and the exact time referred to is also often made clear by the addition of further words, such as " yesterday," " to-day," " to-morrow." The simplest form of the verb refers to the present. 3. To mark the past this form is changed, most commonly by adding -ed, or -d, or -t, as I worked, I resolve^^, I dreamt. The -d is used when the present ends in e ; the -t is a short- ened form of -ed ; dreamt is simply dreamed spoken quickly. Sometimes, however, instead of adding -ed to the present the vowel is changed, as I give (present), I gave (past). 4. To make a statement about the future we begin with will or shall ; as, I shall go to London next week. He will go to London next week. We use shall when speaking of ourselves, and will when speaking of anybody or anything else. If we use will for ourselves, or shall for others, we state not future time but present determination. " I will do it," or " You (or he) shall do it " means that I have made up my mind on the matter. 5. These forms of the verb to show the time to which TENSES 13 the statement refers are called Tenses, a word derived from the Latin tempus, meaning tifne. Thus there are three tenses — Present, Past, Future. 6. Each tense may be expressed in several ways. The simplest form only shows which tense it is : I write (present)^ I wrote (past), I shall write (future). If we wish to indicate that the statement applies to some length of time we more often use what are called the Progressive forms — I am writing (present), I ivas writing (past), I shall be ivriting (future). These consist of the suitable parts of the verb Be, with the form of the chief verb ending in -ing. This form by itself is called the Present Participle. 7. If we wish to show that the statement refers to a length of time which ends when the statement is made, we use the Perfect (or Completed) forms. These consist of the suitable parts of Have followed by the form of the chief verb known as the Past Participle. " I have written a letter " means that I began it some time back and have now finished it ; "I had written the letter when he arrived " means that the letter was finished at the time spoken of, but of course took some time to write ; "I shall have written this letter by the time you are ready to go out " means that at the time named the time taken in writing the letter will be ended. 8. All verbs must be in one of the three tenses, because all time must be present, past, or future. Such forms as " I am going to write," " I am about to write," are present, because they state that I intend (now) to write. The past would be " I was going to write," " I was about to write." But as the present intention is to do something in the future no corresponding future forms are used. 14 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR CHAPTEE VIII NUMBERS 1. We may think or talk of any number of things of the same kind ; as, " That hoy is idle," " Several of those hoys are idle,-' '^ All those hoys are idle," " Half a dozen of those hoys are idle " ; ''John is angry," " Many men are angry " ; " The Lancashire Regiment fights well," ^^ All the British regiments fight well." 2. If we begin a sentence with " A boy," " A man," etc., we see that we must alter the form of the noun when we wish to change the " A " into any word meaning more than one. This is the distinction of Number. So there are two numbers — the Singular, meaning one, and the Plural, meaning more than one. We make the Plural more dejS.nite by adding such adjectives of number as two, fifty, some, several, many, all. 3. If we try a good many nouns we find : (a) that in most cases we add -s to the singular to form the plural ; boy, boys ; lion, lions ; thought, thoughts ; (6) that if we cannot easily pronounce the -s with the preceding letters we add -es instead of -s, making a new syllable ; as, wish, wishes ; (c) that a few nouns form the plural by changing the vowel of the singular ; as a man, many men ; (d) that a few add -en instead of -es ; as, an ox, many oxe^ ; (e) that in a few cases we make no change ; as, a sheep, many sheep. And we usually speak of NUMBERS 15 " many fisli " rather than of ^' many fishes," though the latter is not wrong. 4. As pronouns stand for nouns they also have distinctions of number, (a) Personal Pronouns have different forms for singular and plural : First Person. Second Person, Third Person. Sing. I, me, my thou, thee, thy he, him, his ; she, her, hers ; it, its. Pki. we, us, our you, your they, them, their, theirs. (b) Demonstrative Pronouns form their plurals by changing the vowels of the singulars : Sing, this, that Plu. these, those. (c) Interrogative Pronouns use the same form for singular and plural — Who is that man ? Who are those men ? CHAPTER IX AGREEMENT OF SUBJECT AND VERB 1. We say " This boy loves play," and " All these boys love play," where the verb, as well as the noun, changes to show the plural. But we say " He worked hard," " They worked hard " ; "He will work hard," " They will work hard." So the verb changes for the plural only in the present tense ; except the simple verb Be, which also changes in the past ; "He was tired," " They were tired." W.G.P. A 4 16 GEOUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR 2. If we take tlie personal pronouns as subjects of our statements we find that singular verbs in the present tense change according to person, as well as according to number : Singular Plural First Person 1 work We work Third Person He work^ They work When thou was in use the verb ended in -est, as, " Thou lovest thy father." But now we say " You love " for the singular as well as for the plural. 3. In putting our thoughts into words, then, we must make the verb agree in both number and person with its subject. Of course, when the subject is a noun, or a demonstrative or interrogative pronoun, the verb must have the form of the third person, as the subject cannot then refer either to ourselves or to the person whom we are addressing. CHAPTER X SINGLE AND COMPOUND SUBJECTS 1. We may name the subject of our thoughts in one or many words ; as, " Johnny is talking," " The fifth hoy frcym the left in the fourth roiv of desks from the top is talking." Both refer to the same boy, one by name, the other by a description of his position. In this long form there are five nouns, but they are not used separately, but as parts of the many-worded noun-group by which the boy is named, just as head, arms, legs, trunk, are parts of his body. SINGLE AND COMPOUND SUBJECTS 17 2. But we may need more tlian one noun because we are thinking and talking of more than one thing at the same time ; as, " Tom and Jack had a fight," when we mean, not that Tom had a fight with somebody unknown and Jack had another fight with another unknown person, but that they fought each other. So, " Jack and Jill went up the hill " means not only that each went, but that they went together. We may use pronouns for either or both the names, so long as it is clear to whom those pronouns refer. " Tom and I had a fight " is clear, but " He and I had a fight " is not clear unless we know who is meant by "he." 3. When two persons or things are thus connected in one statement, the verb should have its plural form ; as " Tom and Jack are fighting," ." He and I [i.e. We] are ready to go." 4. If we are thinking of more than one person or thing, but are not joining them together, we use or or hut instead of and ; as, " Tom or Jack has broken this window " ; '' Not Tom hut Jack has broken this window." In such cases the verb has the singular form because it belongs to each subject separately. There are really two sentences with predicates exactly alike — " Tom has broken the window," " Jack has broken the window." So in thought we attach the predicate to each of the subjects separately, though in speech we state it only once. 18 GROUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR CHAPTER XI STATEMENTS, QUESTIONS, AND COMMANDS 1. We not only make statements, but we also ask ques- tions and give commands and make requests ; as " John writes well " (statement). " Does John write well ? " (question). " Write well, John ! " (command or request). So we may now say : Verbs are words that either tell, ask questions, or express comm^ands or requests. 2. In a statement the subject is usually put before the predicate. 3. In a question the verb usually consists of two words, and the subject comes between them, the whole ending with a question mark (?) ; as, " Are you going ? " " Did he see you ? " " Why did he say that ? " The first word of the verb is commonly part of the verb Be when the question asks what anything is, or part of the verb Do when it asks what anything does. When the verb is simply part of Be a question is asked by putting that verb before the subject ; as, " Is that a pen on the table ? " " Are there many people in the room ? " In poetry this mode of asking questions is sometimes used with other verbs ; as, " Lives there a man with soul so dead ? " In ordinary speech we should say " Does there live a man with so dead a soul ? " or " Does a man live with a soul so dead ? " The answer to a question is always a direct statement : the question itself is that statement so changed as to show that we are not sure of its truth. STATEMENTS, QUESTIONS, AND COMMANDS 19 4, When we would like someone to do something we ash or tell him to do it. For instance, a teacher would like to be able to say " John tahes pains with his writing," so he says to him, " Take pains with your writing " ; and he may — or may not — add " John," to make it clear to whom he is speaking. A noun thus used is called a Nominative o£ Address, because it names the person addressed. But the command is completely expressed without it. So we see that when we turn a statement into a command or request we change the person of subject and verb from the third — or person spoken about ; as, " John takes pains," to the second — or person spoken to ; as, " Take pains." The verb has also changed its meaning : it is no longer a statement but a direction. This is called a change from the Indicative Mood, or manner of making a statement, to the Imperative Mood, or manner of giving a command. This involves a change of subject. Instead of the subject " John " used when we are speaking about a certain boy, we speak to him, and so must use the subject " you.'^ We need not say this " you," but we think, or understand, it. So the subject of every verb in the imperative mood is the second personal pronoun (" you " or sometimes " thou "), and to this may be added a nominative of address to make it perfectly plain to whom we are giving the command. 20 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR 9 CHAPTER XII VERBS WHICH CANNOT FORM PREDICATES 1. Some verbs cannot stand alone as predicates, but must be completed by an adjective or noun describing the subject ; as, " He is old'' " John became king.'' 2. Verbs which can make complete predicates are often expressed in more than one word ; as " The horse is galloping," But here " is galloping " is only a longer way of saying " gallops " ; so, though there are two words they together make one verb. But in such sentences as " John is old," " John is a good cricketer " we cannot express the predicates in single words, because " old " and " cricketer " are not parts of verbs ; " old " is an adjective, and " cricketer " is a noun. The verb " is " only joins these descriptive words to the nouns to which they belong ; by itself it only begins to make a statement which those other words complete. 3. Just as in " John is king " the is only joins the descrip- tion " king " to the subject " John," so it is with became in " John became king." For " John became king " means that he passed from the state in which " king " would not describe him to the state in which it would. " Became " does not tell us anything which John did, but only that it began to be true to say *' John ^5 king." 4. The chief of these mere joining verbs is BE, which has more different forms than any other English verb. The most important are : VERBS WHICH CANNOT FORM PREDICATES 21 Ti . ristPers. Present I 2nd Pers. 1 3rd Pers. Tense Past Tense fist Pers. 2nd Pers. 1 3rd Pers. r 1st Pers. n^ - 2nd Pers. Tense y^^^ p^^^ Future INDICATIVE MOOD SiNGULAB I am [Thou art] He (she, it) is I was [Thou wast] He (she, it) was I shall he [Thou wilt he] He, etc., will he IMPERATIVE M00D-6e. PARTICIPLES— Present, heing. Plural We are You are They are We were You were They were We shall he You will he They will he Past, heen. 5. Some verbs cannot by themselves stand as predi- cates because tbey name an action whicb must be done to somebody or something, as well as by somebody or some- thing ; as, " Jobn broke a window." Sucb verbs are called Transitive (i.e. passing over), because they name an action which passes over from the doer to some other person or thing. The name of this person or thing is called the Object of the verb. When the verb in a sentence, then, is transitive, the predicate must contain both it and its object. 6. Verbs which can be complete in themselves because they name an action that does not affect another person or thing — as, " Bixdsfly/' " Fishes swim " — are said to be Intransitive, i.e. not transitive. They are sufficient in themselves to form predicates, and they are the only verbs that are. 22 GEOUNDWOilK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR CHAPTER XIII CASES 1. When a noun or pronoun forms the subject of a sentence it is said to be in the Nominative Case, because it names the subject ; when it forms the object of a transi- tive verb it is said to be in the Objective Case. Thus, in " The tiger killed Jones," " tiger " is in the nominative case, and " Jones " in the objective case. 2. As there are two nouns (or pronouns) in every sentence in which the verb is transitive, the meaning depends on which is subject and which is object : " The tiger killed Jones " and " Jones killed the tiger " have very different meanings, though they contain exactly the same words, because in the second " Jones " is the subject and " the tiger " the object, while in the first " Jones " is the object and " the tiger " the subject. 3. Usually the subject is placed before the verb, and the object after the verb. But sometimes, especially in poetry, both come before the verb ; as in " The gallant hound the wolf hath slain." " All the air a solemn stillness holds." We have to make up our minds which is subject and which is object, and we may do so wrongly, for there is nothing in the order of the words to help us. Such sentences express meaning ambiguously, that is, the words admit of two differ- ent meanings, as if we should say " Jones the tiger killed." When we speah the sentence we show which meaning we intend by the way in which we say the words, and the different emphasis we put on them ; but when the sentence CASES 23 is written or printed there is nothing of this kind to guide the reader. Thus it is impossible to be sure of the meaning of either of the two lines quoted above till we look at the poems from which they are taken, and see what comes before, and what follows, them. Such examination of the context shows us that in the first of the two lines the first noun " hound " is the subject, and the second noun " wolf " the object ; but in the second line it is the second noun " stillness " which is the subject and the first noun " air " is the object. 4. Nouns and pronouns have also special forms used to show ownership ; as, " This is John's book," " That is my book." The noun or pronoun is then said to be in the Possessive Case. 5. The possessive case of nouns used to be formed by adding -es or -is to the nominative. This is now shortened into '5. If the nominative ends in 5, as in most plural nouns, we omit the s and only add the ', because two s sounds together would be an unpleasant hiss. 6. We seldom use the possessive form except with names of people and animals. We do not say " the house's windows," but "the windows of the house," because lifeless things cannot rightly be said to own anything. 7. Personal pronouns and the pronoun ivho have distinct forms for each of the three cases : Singular Plural 1st Pers. 2ndPers. 3rd Pers. Sing. & Plu. Nom. Obj. I me [thou thee he him she her it it who whom my, mme thy, thine] his her, hers its whose Nom. Obj. we us you you they them Poss. our, ours your, yours their, theirs 24 GEOUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GEAMMAE Where two forms of the possessive case are given, the first is used before a noun, the second when the possessive is separated from the noun by is ; as, " This is my book," but " This book is mine.'' CHAPTER XIV ACTIVE AND PASSIVE FORMS OF SENTENCES 1. A sentence with a transitive verb names both the doer of the action and that to which the action is done. Our thought may start from either of these. We may say " Jones killed the tiger," when we lay stress on what Jones did. Or we may say " The tiger was killed by Jones," when we lay stress on what ha])pened to the tiger. The second sentence states the same fact as the first, but looked at from the other end. Which we use depends on the whole chain of thought in which the sentence is a link. In the first case we use the active form of the verb, because we wish to emphasize the action it names. In the second case we wish to bring out the results of the action, so we change the verb into what is known as the passive form. 2. This passive form consists of part of the verb Be followed by the past participle of the chief verb ; as is killed, was hurt. 3. These past participles must be distinguished from adjectives. We can say " The man was tall " as well as " The man was killed." But while the former is complete the latter is not. For if he was killed, something killed }iim, and to complete the thought this must be stated. ADVERBS 25 Jones was killed by— a tiger, the fall of a chimney-pot on his head, a motor car, and so on. When we have thus completed the sentence we can turn it into the active form, and say " The motor car [etc.] killed Jones." But when the word following the part of the verb be is an adjective we cannot do this, for nothing is required to complete the statement. CHAPTER XV ADVERBS 1. In all kinds of sentences, whether they are state- ments, questions, or commands, we often find words or groups of words which show when, where, how, why, or under what condition, an action is done ; as " Yesterday (when) our soldiers fought bravely (how) at Ypres (where)." " Tom worked hard (how) last term (when) at school (where) because he wanted to win a prize (why)." " If you stay longer (condition) you will be late." Such words, or groups of words, are called Adverbs, i.e., words added to verbs. 2. Some adverbs are used in asking questions ; as " When did you do that ? " " Where did you do that ? " " How did you do that ? " " Why did you do that ? " " In tvhat circumstances will you do that ? " These are called Interrogative (or Questioning) Adverbs. The answer must contain an adverb of Time, Place, Manher, Reason^ or Condition ; as, " I did that last night " (time). " I did that in the school ivork-shop " (place). 26 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR " I did tliat hy using a ruler and compass " (manner). "I did that because I ivisJied to ^please you " (reason). " I shall do that if I can find time " (condition). 3. We also find words joined to adjectives, and to adverbs of manner, to show how much or degree ; as, " Tom is very idle, and Jack is rather idle, but Harry is not idle at aW ; " Jack does sums quite quickly, but Tom does them someivhat slowly." These are also called adverbs, though they are not joined to verbs, 4. So we may say : Adverbs are words, or groups of words, added to verbs to ash or show when, ivhere, how, ivhy, or under what conditions, an action is done ; or added to adjec- tives or adverbs of manner to show degree. 5. There are thus seven kinds of adverbs : (1) Interrogative Adverbs — used in asking questions. (2) Adverbs of Time. (3) Adverbs of Place. (4) Adverbs of Manner. (5) Adverbs of Reason. (6) Adverbs of Condition. (7) Adverbs of Degree. joined to Adjectives and Adverbs of Manner. CHAPTER XVI INTERJECTIONS 1. We often use words which do not make parts of sentences, simply to demand attention, or to express such feelings as joy, sorrow, surprise, or expectation ; as, " Harh ! I hear the tramp of thousands, and of armed joined to Verbs. INTERJECTIONS 27 men the hum." ^' Ah me ! that I should suffer so." " Oh, for a good game of cricket ! " " Think ! what a bad thing that will be ! " Such words are called Interjections, that is, words thrown into speech, but not united with others into sentences. When written or printed they are followed by the mark of exclamation (!) either immediately or at the end of the sentence. CHAPTER XVII ANALYSING SENTENCES 1. We analyse anything when we split it up into its parts and show how they are put together in it. Thus, we analyse the number 8 if we find that it is composed of 5+3, 6+2, 4x2, etc. ; a chemist analyses water when he transforms it into the two gases oxygen and hydrogen and shows that to every part of the former there are two parts of the latter. So we analyse a sentence when we find in it the parts of which it is composed and see how those parts are related to each other. 2. We have found that : (a) every sentence consists of a subject and a predicate. (b) the subject is a noun — or some substitute for a noun — to which adjectives are often added. (c) the predicate contains a verb, to which adverbs are often added. (d) if the verb is transitive it has an object. This is a noun — or words that stand for a noun — and to it also adjectives are often added. 28 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR 3. Analysis makes clear exactly how the sentence is built up, and so shows to which of the two great parts — subject and predicate — each word, or group of words, belongs. 4. When we analyse a sentence we first separate the subject from the predicate, taking care that every word in the sentence is found in one of these parts. For example, " Through the thickly growing darkness came the rolling sound of drums '' : Subj. The rolling sound of drums Pred. came through the thickly growing darkness. Unless this is done correctly the whole sentence is mis- understood. 5. We then examine the subject and separate any adjectives it may contain from the noun. Thus, in the above : {Noun sound of drums Adj. {glial) the rolling 6. We next examine the predicate and separate any adverbs it may contain from the verb ; we then ask whether the verb is transitive, and if it is we separate its object from it ; lastly, we separate any adjectives in the object from the noun. Thus, in the above : {Verb came Adv. (place) through the thickly growing darkness As " came " is an intransitive verb there is no object, so the analysis of the sentence is complete. 7. Examples : {a) " Jack and Jill went up the hill To fetch a pail of water." Subject Jack and Jill Predicate went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. ANALYSING SENTENCES 29 The subject requires no further analysis ; the predicate does ; thus : [ Verb went Predicate I Advs. (place) up the hill [ (reason) to fetch a pail of water. (b) "A few days ago I found on a bookstall an old book which I had long wished to possess." Subject I Predicate found on a bookstall a few days ago an old book which I had long wished to possess. Further analysing the predicate : ' Verb found Advs. (time) a few days ago (place) on a bookstall {Noun book Adjs. (qual.) an old (demons.) which I had long wished to possess. (c) " Explain what you mean." Subject [you] Predicate explain what you mean. Further analysing the predicate : • {Verb explain Obj. what you mean. {d) " That I was mistaken was not my fault." Subject That I was mistaken Predicate was not my fault. The only further analysis possible is the separation of " not " from the rest of the predicate, for the verb is part of Be, which requires a noun or an adjective to make a statement. Predicate PART II COMPLEX ANALYSIS CHAPTER I GROUPS OF WORDS 1. An adverb, an adjective, or a noun, may be one word or a group of words. For example : Adverbs : (a) I went out early. (b) I went out before sunrise. (c) I went out before the sun rose. (b) I went out before breakfast. (c) I went out before I had my breakfast. (a) He readily changes his opinions. (6) He changes his opinions with every change of circumstances. (c) He changes his opinions as a weather- cock turns with the wind. {a) He fought very bravely. (c) He fought as bravely as a lion [fights]. Adjectives : {a) The jewelled crown is very beautiful. (6) The crown set ivith jeivels is very beautiful. 30 GROUPS OF WORDS 31 (c) The crown, which is set with jewels, is very beautiful. (a) You have made many mistakes. (b) You have made a great number of mistakes. (c) You have made mistakes which are both numerous and cureless. Nouns : (a) The Premier became very unpopular. (b) The head of the Government became very unpopular. (a) Walking is a pleasant exercise. (b) To walk in the country in the summer is very pleasant. (a) That story was false. (b) That story in the newspaper yesterday was false. (c) The story we read in the newspaper yesterday was false. (a) He asked me my business. (c) He asked me what I wanted. We may, then, have adverbs, adjectives, and nouns which are single words ; or adverb, adjective, or noun, groups of words, and often we can change one form into Another without altering the meaning. 2. Examining the groups of words in the sentences given above, we see that in each of those marked (c) the group contains a verb, so that in each we can find a subject and a predicate when we consider it by itself ; e.g. — " before I had my breakfast " has a subject "I," and a predicate " had my breakfast " ; " which is set with 32 GROUND WOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR jewels " has subject " which " and predicate " is set with jewels " ; " the story we read in the newspaper yesterday '' has subject " we " and predicate " read the story in the newspaper yesterday." At the same time, they are not sentences, but only parts of the sentences in which they occur. Such groups are called Clauses. The groups in the sentences marked (6) do not contain verbs, and so cannot be divided into subject and predicate. These are called Phrases. 3. A sentence containing only words and phrases is called Simple ; one containing clauses is called Complex. CHAPTER II PREPOSITIONS 1. The words of a phrase are joined to the rest of the sentence, or to each other, by such words as in, on, at, before, after, with, by. These are called Prepositions, a word meaning placed before, because they come before the noun or pronoun which is the chief word in the phrase, and relate it to either a noun, a pronoun, an adjective, or a verb. For example, in : " The head of the Government became very unpopu- lar," of relates " Government " to " head." " To walk in the country in the summer is very pleasant," each in relates the noun which follows it to " to walk." " which was set with jewels," with relates " jewels " to " set." COMPOUND SENTENCES 33 " I went out before breakfast," before relates " breakfast " to " went out." " He changes his opinions with every change of circum- stances," with relates " change of circumstances " to " changes." 2. A preposition, then, is a word which relates a noun (or pronoun) following it to a noun, pronoun, verb, or adjec- tive, in the sentence. CHAPTER III COMPOUND SENTENCES. 1. When two or more sentences are joined together by a linking word they make a Compound Sentence ; as : {a) Many are called | but \ few are chosen. (6) All men desire success | and \ many work hard to attain it. (c) I called him | but \ when he saw I was angry he ran away. {d) The king, who had heard of the plot, arrested the conspirators | and \ commanded that they should be brought to trial | a7id, \ if found guilty, be severely punished. 2. In [a) and (6) the. conjoined sentences are both simple ; in (c) the first is simple and the second complex ; in {d) there are three sentences, and they are all complex. The subject of the second and the third of these is carried over in thought from the one before, and in the third, part of the predicate is similarly carried over from the 34 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR second. Putting in these understood words, the whole would read : " The king, who had heard of the plot, arrested the conspirators | and | [the king] commanded that they should be brought to trial | and, | [the king commanded that] if [they were] found guilty, [they should] be severely punished." It is only by thus stating fully the thought which is often shortened in speech that the complete structure of the sentence is shown. 3. We may indicate that sentences are combined in a compound sentence by joining them by a bracket ; thus : rMany are called \ Link but Uew are chosen. 'The king, who had heard of the plot, arrested the conspirators Link and Compnd. Sent, Compnd. Sent, [The king] commanded that they should be brought to trial Link and [the king commanded that they should] be severely punished if [they were] found guilty. CHAPTER IV COMPLEX SENTENCES 1. We have seen that there are adverb, adjective, and noun clauses, and that each is always part of a complex sentence. The rest of that sentence is also a clause, because it is part of a whole sentence and is divisible into subject and predicate when taken alone. As it contains COMPLEX SENTENCES 35 the chief verb it is called the Principal Clause, while the adverb, adjective, or noun, clauses that depend on it are called Subordinate (or Dependent) Clauses. 2. We may indicate the relation of principal and sub- ordinate clauses by marking the former by a horizontal line, and the latter by an oblique line falling from it. For example : Gmplx.^—~Prin. CI. I went out Sent. ^^^8ub. CI. [adv.) before the sun rose. Cmplx.^—Prin. CI. The crown is very beautiful Sent. ^^^Svb. CI. (adj.) which is set with jewels. Cmplx. Prin. CI. He asked me Sent. ^^^Sub. CI. (noun) what I wanted. 3. Any clause in a complex sentence may be compound. For example : (a) When he heard what had been done he was vevy angry and spoke very fiercely. THe was very angry Cmplx. TT — Cmpnd. Pr. CI. i Link and Sent. \ l[Jie] spoke very fiercely \Suh. CI. (adv.) when he heard what had been done. (6) The army was discouraged when it learnt the numbers of the enemy and saw how strongly they had fortified their position. Cmplx.^ — Prin. CI. The army was discouraged Sent, \ r when it learnt the numbers of the enemy \Cmpnd. Sub. CI. I Link and {adv.) 1 [when it] saw how strongly they had ^ fortified their position. (c) The teacher said that all the exercises were badly done and must be written again. Cmplx. ^ — Prin. CI. The teacher said Sent. \ rthat all the exercises were badly done \Cmpnd. Sub. CI. | Link and {noun) 1 [that all the exercises] must be written I again. Sent. 36 GEOUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GEAMMAE {d) He who would live happily and win the affection of his fellows must be kindly disposed towards others and show his kindly feeling in his actions, or he will not be really loved, and will be thought a hypocrite. 'He must be kindly disposed towards others Link and Crnph.. Cmpnd. Pr. Cl.\ ^^ '^"yjn?"'' ^'' ^'""^'^ ^^^""^ '" ^'^ Link or he will not be really loved Link and ^[he] will be thought a hypocrite rwho would live happily \Cmpnd. Sub. Cl.j Link and (adj.) 1 [who] would win the affection of his I fellows. CHAPTER V CONJUNCTIONS 1. The words which^ link together two sentences in a compound sentence are called Conjunctions, a name mean- ing linhs or joiners. Three of the most common are and, but, or. And simply joins the sentences ; but at once joins and contrasts them ; or offers a choice between them. 2. Conjunctions are also used to join words in a sentence ; as " Jack and Tom made this box " ; " Harry and I went for a walk " ; " Eton and Harrow played their annual match at Lord's last week." Each of these is a simple sentence, because the act named in the predicate is done by both together. 3. But if the action is done by each separately, there CONJUNCTIONS 37 are two sentences in thought, of which only one is stated fully ; as, " Jack and Harry have done their lessons well " ; " Both Eton and Harrow made good scores." These are shortened forms of — " Jack has done his lessons well | and | Harry has done his lessons well " ; " Eton made a good score I and | Harrow made a good score." This is most clearly shown when the compound sentence begins with Both, Then the Both . . . and together form the con- junction. Similarly, " The master praised Jack and Tom " is a simple sentence if it means he praised them both at once and for the same thing, but a compound sentence in a shortened form if it means he praised them at different times or for different things, for then there would be two distinct acts of praise. So, when two names are joined by and^ the sentence is simple if the predicate is related to them taken together , but a shortened compound sentence if it is related to them separately. 4. When the conjunction contrasts as well as joins, the sentence is always compound ; as, " Nobody hut Jack made over ten runs," the full statement of which is " Jack made over ten runs | hut \ nobody else made over ten runs." Similarly, " Smith is poor hut honest " states two things about Smith — (i) he is poor, (ii) he is honest ; and by joining these by hut implies that it is unusual for poor people to be honest. 5. When two or more alternatives are stated we begin with Either, and connect them by or ; as " Either Jack or Tom broke this window." Like Both . . . and, the Either . . . or together make one conjunction. We cannot deny such a statement by simply putting 38 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR in a not, and saying " Either Jack or Tom did not break this window." That means exactly the same as the former statement ; for if Jack did not break the window Tom did, and if Tom did not break it Jack did. So we must deny the deed of both of them, and say " Neither Jack nor Tom broke this window," where we have put a not before both either and or, and then shortened those words into neither ( =^not either) . . . nor ( =not or). 6. Conjunctions are similarly used to link together into a compound clause, clauses of the same kind that are closely connected in thought, as in the examples in 3 of the last chapter. 7. Conjunctions may also connect (i) adverb, and (ii) noun, subordinate clauses to their principal clauses in complex sentences ; as : (i) You will fall if you are not more careful. Come where honour calls thee. Sweetly sang the monks of Ely as Canute the king rowed by. (ii) I feel that I was wrong. He told me that I should fail. 8. Conjunctions that join a subordinate clause to its principal clause are known as Subordinative \ those that link sentences, or clauses of the same kind, are called Coordinative, to mark that the elements they connect are coordinate, i.e. of equal rank. ADVEKB CLAUSES 39 CHAPTER VI ADVERB CLAUSES 1. Adverb clauses usually modify tlie verb in tbe principal clause so as to show wlien, ivhere, how, ivhy, or under ivhat condition, the action is done ; as : He came when I called him (time). He went where I sent him (place). He changes his opinions as a weathercock turns with the wind (manner). The battle was lost because we had not enough ammuni- tion (reason). All you learn will be of little use if you do not think and reason upon it yourself (condition). 2. Adverb clauses may also modify adjectives or adverbs in the principal clause, as : The muscles of his brawny arms are strong as iron bands [are strong] (modifies adjective "strong"). He ran as quickly as an arrow flies (modifies adverb "quickly"). 3. An adverb clause is joined to the principal clause by its first word ; as when, where, as, because, if, in the above examples. The whole adverb clause gives the time, place, manner, reason, condition, or degree ; the sub- ordinative conjunctions " when," " where," etc., both begin that clause and link it to the principal clause. 4. Several independent adverb clauses may be connected with one principal clause ; as, " As soon as I called him he came as quickly as he could,'' where the first adverb 40 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR clause modifies " soon," and the second modifies " quickly " in the principal clause. 5. When two or more adverb clauses of the same hind are attached to the same word in the principal clause, they together form a Compound Adverb Clause, as in the follow- ing sentences : {a) " If a man has acquired great power and riches by falsehood, injustice, and oppression, he cannot enjoy them ; because his conscience will torment him, and constantly reproach him with the means by which he got them." (6) " In the day-time, when alone, and when he has time to think, he will be uneasy and melancholy." In dealing with these we first analyse them, and then from that analysis determine the clauses and their relations. Thus: (a) Analysis — Suhj, He ^ / Verb. cannot enjoy Ohj. them Advs, (i) if a man has . . . oppression Pred. \ (ii) because his conscience will torment him Conj. and (iii) [because his conscience will] constantly . . . got them. This shows that the clauses and their relations are Cmplx.^ — -Prin. CI. He cannot enjoy them Sent. \\ Adv. CI. if a man has acquired great power and {cond.) riches by falsehood, injustice, and oppression /'because his conscience will torment him ^Cmpnd. Link and Adv. CI. \ [because his conscience will] constantly {reas.) reproach him with the means by (^ which he got them. ADJECTIVE CLAUSES 41 (b) Analysis — Subj. He [Verb. &Adjs. will be uneasy and unhappy Advs. (i) in the day-time Pred. (ii) when [he is] alone Conj, and (iii) when he has time to think. This shows that the clauses and their relations are Cmplx.- Prin. CI. He will be uneasy and unhappy in the Sent. \ daytime rwhen [he is] alone ^Cmpnd. 4 Link and idv. CL twhen he has time to think. CHAPTER VII ADJECTIVE CLAUSES 1. Adjective clauses may be attached to any noun (or pronoun) in the principal clause, whether it be in the subject or in the predicate ; as : (a) " The match, which was well contested, was won by Eton," where the adjective clause qualifies the subject " match." (b) " He was a leader whom we all loved/' where the adjective clause qualifies " leader," which goes with " was " in the predicate. (c) " I saw the boat-race, which ended in a dead-heat,' ' where the adjective clause qualifies " boat-race " which is the object of '' saw," and so part of the predicate. 2. Several independent adjective clauses may be con- nected with one principal clause ; as " The master, ivho 42 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR . was very angry, called Jack, who went in fear and trembling, "^^ where the first adjective clause is in the subject, and the second in the predicate. 3. If two or more adjective clauses are attached to the same noun (or pronoun) they form a Compound Adjective Clause, as in the following sentence : " Those who speak and write a language with purity and elegance have a great advantage over even those who are free from faults, but have yet no beauty nor happiness of style and expression." Analysing this — (Pron, Those 8ubj.< Adj. who speak and write a language with purity and 1^ elegance ' Verb. have Ohj. a great advantage P red. \ Adv. over even those who are frse from faults, but have yet no beauty nor happiness of style and expression. In the light of this analysis we now distinguish the clauses : Cmplx.^—Prin. CI Those have a great advantage over Sent. \\ even those Adj. CI, who speak and write a language with (siibj.) purity and elegance rwho are free from faults ^Cmpnd. I Link but Adj. CI. ^ [who] have yet no beauty nor happiness (pred.) I of style and expression. RELATIVE PRONOUNS 43 CHAPTER VIII RELATIVE PRONOUNS 1. Adjective clauses commonly begin with ivJio, which, or that. These words are pronouns, because they stand for the noun (or pronoun) to which the clause is attached. They also attach — or relate — that clause to that noun (or pronoun). Thus, in " The master, who was very angry, called Jack, who went in fear and trembling," the first " who " stands for " master," and relates " who was very angry " to " master " ; the second " who " stands for " Jack " and relates " who went in fear and trembling " to " Jack." Because of this two-fold office they are called Relative Pronouns. 2. Who is used when the noun or pronoun for which it stands, and which is called its Antecedent, names a person ; which is used when the antecedent names a thing ; that is used for either persons or things ; as, " This is the man that shot the cat, that killed the rat, that lived in the house that Jack built." 3. Sometimes ivhere or when is used instead of which preceded by a preposition ; as, " This is the spot where (=on which) Harold fell"; "Now is the time when (=at which) each must do his best." In such cases the clauses are adjective clauses, and the where and when are relative pronouns. What a word is always depends on how it is used. 4. The case of a Relative Pronoun is determined by its relation to the other words in the adjective clause. 44 GEOUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GEAMMAE Thus, " This is the boy who wrote the best essay yesterday," where lOJio is in the nominative case, because it is the sub- ject of " wrote " ; " This is the boy wham you praised yesterday," where whom is in the objective case, because it is the object of the verb " praised " ; " This is the boy whose essay won the prize " where tvhose is in the posses- sive case in relation to " essay." 5. Eelative Pronouns must have the same number and person as their antecedents, and when they are subjects of the adjective clauses the verbs in those clauses must agree with them ; as, " I, ivho am very busy, will yet find time to help you " ; " We, who are poor, will yet give all we can afford " ; " You, who were my friend, have betrayed me, while he, who was my enemy, has befriended me." CHAPTER IX NOUN CLAUSES 1. A Noun Clause may be either the object or the sub- ject of the complex sentence ; as : Object : (a) He told me what I was to do. (b) I thought that I was to go to London to-morrow. Subject : (c) Whatever is worth doing is worth thinking of while one is doing it. (d) It is astonishing to me that you have not an ambition to excel in every thing you do. NOUN CLAUSES 45 2. An object noun clause usually follows the verb of the principal clause, but, for the sake of emphasis is some- times placed before it ; as " What toolc place at that meeting I cannot tell you." If we turn this inverted mode of speech into the straightforward order we have " I cannot tell you ivhat toolc place at that meeting.'' 3. An object noun clause after verbs of saying and thinJcing may either quote the exact words, or may give the substance as it would be described by another person. The former is known as Direct, and the latter as Indirect Narration ; e.g. : Direct : (a) He said : "7 am very tired.'' (b) I thought : " This will not do." Indirect : (a) He said he was very tired. (b) I thought that this would not do. In direct narration the noun clause is written in inverted commas to show that the words are quoted as they were said or thought, and the verb is in the present tense because we place ourselves at the point of time when they were spoken. It is customary to begin quotations with a capital letter. In indirect narration no inverted commas are used, nor is the statement of what was said or thought begun by a capital letter. The verb is in the past tense as recording a past occurrence. Direct narration has greater dramatic force and vivid- ness than indirect narration ; e.g. " On Bosworth field Eichard exclaimed ' A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse \' " is much more stirring than the indirect narra- tion " On Bosworth field Richard said he wanted a horse, and would give his kingdom for one." 4. A subject noun clause may precede or follow the verb 46 GKOUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR of the principal clause. In the latter case it is first repre- sented by the pronoun It placed before the verb, as in 1 {d) above. This It stands for the noun clause, and that clause shows what the It means. Both It and the noun clause, therefore, refer to the same thing. They are then said to be in apposition ; that is, to be placed near each other in the same sentence, so that a definite meaning may be given to the general word It. We have a similar con- struction in such a sentence as " They fought bravely, those English lads/' where " They " and " those English lads " are in apposition, and " those English lads " explains who are meanb by " they." In much the same way, in such a comparative sentence as " He ran as quickly as he could/' the adverb clause " as he could " expands the vague meaning of the adverb " as " which precedes " quickly " (see Chap, vi., 2). Such placing of the subject last makes it more emphatic. 5. When this appositional construction is used, the subject noun clause begins with the conjunction that, which joins the clause to It, The same subordinative conjunction is often used to join an object noun clause to the verb of the principal clause, as in 1 (6). 6. A sentence may contain more than one noun clause, either in the object, or in the subject, or in both ; as : Object : He told me where I was to go, whom I was to see, and what I was to say. Subject : That I am right and you are wrong is now proved to everybody's satisfaction. Both : ' That I am right proves that you are wrong. 7. When two or more noun clauses form the subject, or the object, of the verb in the principal clause they together NOUN CLAUSES 47 make a Compound Noun Clause ; as in the following sen- tences : " Suppose I were to bid you give me your thoughts upon the subject of Virtue. You would first consider what Virtue is, and then what are the effects and marks of it, both with regard to others, and to one's self. You would find that Virtue consists in doing good, and in speak- ing truth ; and that the effects of it are advantageous to all mankind ; and to one's self in particular." Here are three complex sentences, each containing noun clauses. We will first analyse them : First Sentence Suhj, Pred. (Verb. jObj. [you] suppose I were to bid you give me your thoughts upon the subject of Virtue. Second Sentence Subj, Pred, Verb Adv. Objs. you would consider first (i) what Virtue is Conj. and then (ii) what are the effects and marks of it, with regard to others, and to one's self. Third Sentence 8ubj, [Verb Objs. Pred. you would find (i) that Virtue consists in doing good, and in speaking truth Conj. and (ii) that the effects of it are advantageous to all mankind ; and to one's self in particular. 48 GEOUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR In the light of this analysis we now distinguish and relate the clauses : (1) Gmplx ^ — Prin. Gh [you] suppose Sent. ^^Noun CI I were to bid you give me your thoughts (ohj.) upon the subject of Virtue (2) Gmplx ^—-Prin. Gl. you would first consider Sent, 'what Virtue is Gmpnd. Link and then Noun CI - what are the effects and marks of it, (ohj.) both with regard to others, and to one's self. (3) Cmplx .:—-Prin. Gl you would find Sent, ^\^ 'that Virtue consists in doing good, and Gmpnd. in speaking truth Noun GL Link and (obj.) that the effects of it are advantageous to all mankind ; and to one's self in . particular. CHAPTER X COMBINATIONS OF CLAUSES 1. Any number of subordinate clauses may be joined to a principal clause to make a complex sentence, and they may be of any of the three kinds. For example : {a) " When he read the accounts of the enemy's cruelties he felt that he must go to fight for his country." Analysis : Suhj. He C Verb felt Pred. i Adv. when he read the accounts of the enemy's cruelties [Obj. that he must go to fight for his country. This shows that the clauses and their relations are OmpZaJ.s^— - — Prin. Gl. He felt Sent. ^^^^^^"^Adv. Gl. when he read the accounts of the enemy's {time) cruelties 'Noun Gl. that he must go to fight for his country, (obj.) COMBINATIONS OF CLAUSES 49 (6) " In the manner that you improve, you will soon know more than many boys that are two or three years older than yourseU." Analysis : Subj. yon f Verb will know Advs. (i) soon Pred. J (ii) in the manner that you improve (Noun more than many boys ObjAAdj. that are two or three years older than I yourself. This gives the clauses : Cmplx.r^— Prin. CI. You will soon knoAv more than many Sent ^\\^ boys '^Adv. CI. in the manner that you improve (reas.) Adj. CI. that are two or three years older than (pred.) yourself. (c) " All you learn, and all you can read, will be of little use, if you do not think and reason upon it yourself." Analysis : rPron. All o ; . I Adjs. (i) [which] you learn ^'^^'■^- \ Conj. and ^ (ii) [which] you can read C Verb & Adj. will be of little use Pred \ ^^' I Adv. if you do not think and reason upon it ^ yourself. This gives the clauses : Cmplx.rr — Prin. CL All will be of little use Sent. \\ \ \ Cmpnd. Adj. r [which] you learn \ CI. {subj.) -I Link and \ I [which] you can read Adv. CI. if you do not think and reason upon it {cond.) yourself. 2. Complex sentences may be combined with simple 50 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR sentences, or with other complex sentences, into compound sentences ; as in the following : (a) " One reads to know other people's thoughts, but if we take them upon trust, without examining and comparing them with our own, it is really living upon other people's scraps, or retailing other people's goods." Analysis : First Sentence : Suhj. Second Sentence Svhj, One reads to know other people's thoughts Conj, but it ' Verb and is really living upon other people's Noun scraps, or retailing other people's goods Pred. I Adv. if we take them upon trust, without examining and comparing them with our own. The first sentence is now seen to be simple, and the second complex, for the adverb-group in it is a clause. As they are linked by a conjunction, the whole is com- pound. So the structure is : Cmpnd. Sent. ^Simp, Sent. Cmplx.-^ Sent. One reads to know other people's thoughts Link but -Prin. CI. it is really living upon other people's scraps, or retailing other \ people's goods Adv. CI. if we take them upon trust, (cond.) without examining and compar- ing them with our own. (6) " When one is learning, one should not think of play ; and when one is at play, one should not think of one's learning." COMBINATIONS OF CLAUSES 51 Analysis : First Sentence : Suhj. Verb Advs. Obj. Pred. Second Sentence Subj, Verb Advs. Pred, Obj. One should think of (i) not (ii) when one is learning play Gonj. and one should think of (i) not (ii) when one is at play one's learning. Each sentence is complex, and they are joined by a conjunction. So the whole structure is : -Prin. Gl. One should not think of play Gmpnd. Sent. 'Gmplx. Sent. Gmplx. ^ KSent. dv. Gl. when one is learning (time) Link and ■Prin. Gl. one should not think of one's learning ^Adv. Gl. when one is at play, {time) CHAPTER XI COMPLEX SUBORDINATE CLAUSES 1. A subordinate clause may itself be complex ; that is, if taken by itself it is found to be divisible into a principal and one or more subordinate clauses. In order to show fuUy the structure of a complex sentence, therefore, this second step must be taken whenever a subordinate clause is complex. Then, after the relation of its clauses has been laid bare by analysis, it should be combined with the 52 GROUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAH relation of that subordinate clause to the principal clause of tlie whole sentence. For example : (a) "It is extremely rude not to give the proper atten- tion, and a civil answer, when people speak to you ; for that convinces them that you despise them." Analysis : Suhj. It = not to give the '. . . you p 7 / Verb & Adj. is extremely rude ^^ * {Adv, for that convinces . . . despise them. This gives the general relation of clauses : Cmplx.- — Prin. CI. It is extremely rude not to . . . you Sent. ^^^'^^-^Adv. CI. for that convinces . . . despise them. {reas.) But, on further examination each of these is seen to be complex, the relations being : (1) Cmplx.^ — Prin. CI. It is extremely . . . answer Clause ^^^^Adv. CL when people speak to you {time) (2) Cmplx.^:— — Prin. CI. that convinces them Clause ^^^Noun CI. that you despise them. (ohj.) So the complete structure of the complex sentence is : Cmplx.-^ Prin. CL It is extremely rude not Sent. Y\ to give the proper atten- tion, and a civil answer, ^Adv. CL when people speak to you {time) \Cmplx.-^ — Prin. CL for that convinces them ^Adv. Ciy^Noun CL that you despise them. {reas.) {ohj.) (b) "I need not tell you how rude it is to take the best place in a room, or to seize immediately upon what you like at table, without offering first to help others ; as if you considered nobody but yourself." COMPLEX SUBORDINATE CLAUSES 53 Analysis : 8ubj, I [ Verb, need tell Pred \^^^' ^^^ ^^^- \Objs. (i) you I (ii) how rude it is . . . yourself. The second object is a complex noun clause, in which the structure is made plainer by substituting " that which " for " what." The relations are then seen to be : Gmplx.^^ — Prin. CI. how rude it is . . . upon that at table Clause \\ . . . others ^Adj. CI, which you like ^Adv. CL as if you . . . yourself. (man,) So the complete structure of the complex sentence is : Cmplx,sr Prin. CI. I need not tell you Sent, Cmplx Prin. CL how rude it is to take the Noun CL \\ best place in a room, or (obj.) \\ to seize immediately up- on that at table, without offering first to help others I Adj. CL (pred.) which you like \Adv. CL as if you considered (man.) nobody but yourself. (c) "As I am sure you will mind and practise all this, I expect that when you are nine years old, you will not only be the best scholar, but the best-bred boy in England of you age." Analysis : Subj. I f Verb expect Pred. ^Adv. as t am sure you will ... all this 1 06;. that when . . . age. 54 GROUNDWOEK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR This gives the general relation to clauses : Gmplx.^ Prin. CI. I expect Sent v\ ^ Adv. CI. as I am sure that . . . this (reas.) ^Noun CI. that when . . . age. {obj.) Examining this we see that each of the subordinate clauses is complex. The analysis of the Adverb Clause is : Suhj. I Pred / ^^^^ ^^ ^^^^ XOhj. you will mind . . . this where the object is seen to be a noun clause. The analysis of the Noun Clause which forms the object of the whole sentence is : Subj. you Pred I Verb. & Noun will be not only . . . age \Adv. when you are nine years old where the adverb is a clause. So the complete structure of the complex sentence is : Cmplx.^ Prin. CI. I expect Sent, \\ ^Cmplx.^ — Prin. CI, as I am sure Adv. Cl\ {reas.) \Noun CI, you will mind and practise (obj.) all this Cmplx.— — Prin. CI. that you will not only be Noun Cl.\ the best scholar, but the (obj.) \ best-bred boy in Eng- \ land of your age xAdv. CI. when you are nine years {time) old. 2. The subordinate clauses in a complex clause may themselves be complex, so that the relation of subordina- tion may be carried on through several stages. To lay bare the complete structure of a complex sentence we must, COMPLEX SUBORDINATE CLAUSES 55 therefore, carry on, step by step, the analysis and deter- mination of the relations of clauses as long as a complex subordinate clause remains. For example : (a) "I dare say, if I told you that such a day next w^ek you should have something that you liked, you would certainly remember the day, and call upon me for it." Analysis : Suhj. I f Verb dare say ^'*'^- \Obj. if I told you . . . for it.- So the general relation of clauses is : Cmplx.s- Prin. Gl. I dare say Sent. \^ \Noun CI. if I told you ... for it. WO The noun clause is complex, consisting of an adverb clause " if I told you . . . liked," and a compound principal clause ; for " you would remember the day " and " [you would] call upon me for it " are quite distinct assertions, and the adverb clause modifies both. So the relations are : You would certainly remember the day Link and [you would certainly] call upon me \ for it \Adv. Gl. if I told you . . . you should have (cond.) . . . you liked. The subordinate adverb clause is doubly complex, as the two dependent verbs " should have " and " liked," show. Its analysis is : Suhj. I \ohjs. (i) you (ii) you should have something . . . liked. This shows the second object to be a noun clause. Gmplx. Y Cmpnd. Gl. \ Prin.Gl. 56 GEOUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GEAMMAR Examining it we see that it contains a demonstrative adjective clause attached to " something." So the rela- tions contained in it are : Gmplx.^ Prin. CI, I told you CI. \ \ Cmplx.- '■ — Prin. Gl. \Noun Cl. (ohj.) you should have some- thing that you liked. ^Adj. Cl (pred) So the complete structure of the complex sentence is : Cmplx. ^ Sent, ^ -Prin, Cl, Cmplx.— ^ NounCV (ohj,) -Cmpnd. Prin, Cl. Cmplx. ^ Adv. CIS (cond.) -Prin. Cl - - I dare say - you would cer- tainly remem- ber the day Link and • [you would cer- tainly] call up- on me for it - if I told 3^ou \Cmplx.—T — Pr. Cl. that such a day Noun Cl.\ next week (ohj.) \ you should \ have some- \ thing Adj. that you liked. Cl (pred.) (b) " That kind of bashfulness, which is justly called by the French mauvaise Tionte, is the distinguishing char- acter of an English booby, who is frightened out of his wits when people of fashion speak to him ; and, when he is to answer them, blushes, stammers, can hardly get out what he would say, and becomes really ridiculous from a groundless fear of being laughed at : whereas a real well- bred man would speak to all the kings in the world with as little concern, and as much ease, as he would speak to you." Examining this, we see that it consists of two complex COMPLEX SUBORDINATE CLAUSES 57 sentences, linked together into a compound sentence by the conjunction " whereas," which at once connects and contrasts them. The analysis is : (Noun That kind of bashfulness {Adj. which is justly . . . mauvaise honte ' Verb dj Noun is the distinguishing . . . booby Subj, Pred, Fred. Adjs, Verb (Verb ]0bj. [Adv. (i) who is frightened . . . him Conj. and (ii) [who] blushes . . . laughed at, when he is to answer them Conj. whereas a real well-bred man would speak to all the kings in the world with as little ... to you. This gives the general relations of clauses : 'Cmplx.^ Sent Cmpnd. Sent, Cmplx.-^ Sent. -Prin. CI. "-Adj. CI (subj.) \Cmpnd. Adj. CI. {pred.) -Prin. CI That kind ... is the distin- guishing . . . booby which is justly . . . mauvaise honte (i)who is frightened . . . him Link and (ii)[who] blushes . . . laughed at Link whereas a real well-bred . . . ease ^Adv. CI. as he would speak to you. (deg.) Each of the members of the compound adjective clause attached to " booby " in the predicate of the first complex sentence is complex, consisting of a principal clause and an adverb clause of time. In the second of them the principal clause is compound, as there are four distinct assertions about the booby's behaviour, and they are conjointly modified by the adverb clause "when he is to answer them." Further, one of these clauses is complex — " [who] can hardly get out what he would say," where " what he would say " is a noun clause, forming the object to " can hardly get out." 58 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR So the structure of the whole sentence is : fcixA Pr.Cl. That kind of bashful- Snt. \\ ness is the distin- guishing character of an English booby \\Adj. CI. ' - -- - - - which is justly called [suhj. ) by the iVench mau- vaise honte ^Cx.s—Pr. CI. • - - - who is frightened out Gl. \ of his wits Av.CL{t) - - - - when people of fashion speak to him mpnd. znt. Cpnd. Adj. CI. {pred. ) Link and fSim. CI. - - [who] blushes Sim. CI. - - [who] stammers rr Pm-nrl ^^- \ ^^- ^^' ^^^^^^ ^^^ hardly get ci'V~p CI \ ^^' ^\-^- ^^- ^^^ wh^^ ^® ^^'^^^^ ^ ^ ^* ' ' [ohj.) say Link and Sim. CI. ' ' [who] becomes really ridiculous from a groundless fear of being laughed at Av. CI. ' - - - when he is to answer {time). them Link whereas ^Glx.v — Pr. CI, a real well-bred man Snt.\ would speak to all the kings in tho world with as little concern, and as much ease Adv. CI. - - ■ - - - - as he would speak to {deg.) you. CHAPTER XII CHAINS OF SEISFTENCES 1. Thought about any one topic flows on, dealing with one aspect of it after another, and always clothing itself CHAINS OF SENTENCES 59 in words, whether we say or write them, or simply hold them in our minds. So all speech consists of chains of sentences. In conversation these are supplied by various people in turn ; in working out a subject by oneself they are all produced by one mind. Just as the clearness with which a single sentence ex- presses one piece of thought depends on how the words are put together as well as on what words are used, so the clearness with which a chain of sentences expresses our whole thought about anything depends on how the sentences follow each other as well as on the character of each. When the sentences are so connected that they show exactly the bearing of one part of the thought on another, and give a clear and systematic view of the whole, both thought and speech are well ordered or methodical. Intelligibility in speech or writing depends, then, on methodical arrangement. 2. The structure of chains of sentences, as well as that of single sentences, therefore, both requires and deserves study. To find out exactly how well-ordered portions of speech are put together is a great help in constructing our own speech. To lay bare the faults in construction of obscure passages is to set up sign-posts against committing similar faults. 3. In such study we first divide the passage into the sentences which compose it, and discover by analysis whether each is simple or complex ; we then fuUy deter- mine the relations of clauses within each complex sentence ; finally we note which of the sentences are bound together into compound sentences, and seek a reason for this union. If the whole passage has conveyed a clear meaning to our minds we have now laid bare the structure which enabled it to do so ; if it has not conveyed such a meaning we have separated out the elements, and are thus prepared 60 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR so to re-arrange them as to express exactly what we believe to be the meaning intended. 3. As illustrations we will examine the following passages : (a) "A man will never do anything well, that cannot command his attention immediately from one thing to another, as occasion requires. If while he is at his business he thinks of his diversions, or if while he is at his diversions he thinks of his business, he will succeed in neither, but do both very awkwardly. Hoc age, was a maxim among the Romans, which means, do what you are about, and do that only. A little mind is always hurried by twenty things at once ; but a man of sense does but one thing at a time, and resolves to excel in it ; for, whatever is worth doing at all, is worth doing well. Therefore remember to give yourself up entirely to the thing you are doing, be it what it will, whether your book or your play ; for, if you have a right ambition, you will desire to excel all boys of your age, at cricket, or trap-ball, as well as in learniog." The division into sentences is : (1) A man will never . . . requires. (2) If while he is . . . awkwardly. (3) Hoc age . . . that only. (4) A little mind ... at once ; but (5) a man of sense . . . doing well. Therefore (6) remember . . . learning. Here the sentences follow each other in orderly sequence. The fourth and fifth are bound together into a compound sentence. The sixth gives the practical conclusion to be drawn from all the reasons that have preceded it, and so is united with those reasons into a wider compound sen- CHAINS OF SENTENCES 61 tence. Thus, the structure of the whole chain, as shown by analysis of each of its parts is : Cpnd. Sent. (1) Glx.srPr. CI. CI. [8.) -Pr. GL Av. Gl.{t.) (2) CIx. JSnt. Cpnd. Pr. CI. Cpnd. Av. CI. {cond. ) [Cx.^Pr. CI. ^^' ^Av. CI. Cx.- Cl. -Pr. ^Av. CI. CI. {t.) [t.) (3) Clx.^Pr. CI. Snt.\ Cx. Aj.^ CI. {s.) -Pr. CI. A man will never do any thing' well that cannot command his attention immediately from one thing to an- other as occasion requires he will succeed in neither Link but [he will] do both vary awkwardly if he thinks of his diver- sions while he is at his busi- ness Link or if ho thinks of his busi- ness while he is at his diver- sions Hoc age was a maxim among the Romans - which means /Cx.—-Pr.Cl. do CI. \iV. CI. what you are about CI. (0.) '(4) Simple Sent. I {0.) ySim. CI. Cnd, Sent. ' (5) Clx.^Gpnd. Snt. \ Pr. GL \r (6) Glx.-rrPr. a. Snt. \ Cx. Aj.::: \Gl.{p.) \Cx. Av.x GL (r.) -Pr. CI. -N.Cl.{8.) -Pr. GL -Cx. Av. {c.).:^—Pr. a. \N. CI. is.) -Pr. GL - - - --Av. GL (c.) Link and do that only A little mind is always hurried by twenty things at once Link but a man of sense does but one thing at a time Link and [a man of sense] resolves to excel in it for [that] is worth doing well whatever is worth doing at all Link Therefore remember to give your- self up entirely to the thing you are doing be it what it will, whether your book or your play for you will desire to ex- cel all boys at your age, at cricket, or trap-ball, as well as in learning if you have a right am- bition. 62 GEOUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GEAMMAR (6) " When an awkward fellow first comes into a room, it is liigUy probable tliat his sword gets between his legs, and throws him down, or makes him stumble at least ; when he has recovered this accident, he goes and places himself in the very place of the whole room where he should not ; there he soon lets his hat fall down, and, in taking it up again, throws down his cane ; in recovering his cane, his hat falls a second time : so that he is a quarter of an hour before he is in order again. If he drinks tea or coffee, he certainly scalds his mouth, and lets either the cup or the saucer fall, and spills the tea or coffee on his breeches. At dinner, his awkwardness distinguishes itself particularly, as he has more to do : there he holds his knife, fork, and spoon, differently from other people ; eats with his knife to the great danger of his mouth, picks his teeth with his fork, and puts his spoon, which has been in his throat twenty times, into the dishes again. If he is to carve, he can never hit the joint ; but, in his vain efforts to cut through the bone, scatters the sauce in everybody's face. He generally daubs himself with soup and grease, though his napkin is commonly stuck through a button-hole, and tickles his chin. When he drinks, he infallibly coughs in his glass, and besprinkles the com- pany." Here the independent sentences are : (1) When an awkward fellow ... in order again. (2) If he drinks tea . . . breeches. (3) At dinner . . . dishes again. (4) If he is to carve . . . face. (5) He generally . . . chin. (6) When he drinks . . . company. CHAINS OF SENTENCES 63 This passage also is quite clear, because it is orderly in arrangement, though the whole is not united into a compound sentence. The punctuation shows that the adverb clause " so that he is a quarter of an hour before he is in order again " is attached to the whole set of sen- tences which describe the awkward man's behaviour from his first entrance into a room ; and the " there " in the third sentence joins all that happens at dinner into a compound sentence. So the structure of the whole chain, as shown by tho analysis of each sentence composing it is : {See next page) 64 GROUNDWORK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR Cvni. N. CI. , (subj.) Clx.- 'Clx.^—^rr.Cl. It is highly probable CI. v\ fSim. CI. • ' • that his sword gets between his legs Link and Sim. CI. - • - [that his sword] throws him down Link or Sim CI. - - - [that his sword] makes him stumble at least Adv, CI. (t) • . • - when an awkward fellow first comes into a room • he goes Link and [he] places himself in the very place of the whole room Aj. CI. (p.) where [ = in which] he should not - when he has recovered this acci- dent • there he soon lets his hat fall down Link and . [there he] throws down his cane in taking it up again - [there] his hat falls a second time in recovering his cane - so that he is a quarter of an hour - before he is in order again (2) CIx.^ SnO Av. CI. (m.) rSim. CI. Sim. CI - Cpnd. Pr. CI. ISim. CI. Av. CI. (c.) (4) Clx.\ Snt (5) Cte.< Snt. (6) CIx.^ Snt. —Cpnd. Pr CI. Av. CI (c.) -Pr. CI. Cpnd Av. CI (c.) -Cpnd. Pr. CI ^Av. CI. (t.) it.) he certainly scalds his mouth Link and [he] lets either the cup or the saucer fall Link and (he] spills the tea or coffee on his breeches if he drinks tea or coflfee At dinner his awkwardness distinguishes itself par- ticularly as he has more to do there he holds his knife, fork, and spoon differently from other people [there he] eats with his knife to the great danger of his mouth [there he] picks his teeth with his fork Link and [there he' puts his spoon into the dishes again which has been in his throat twenty times /'he can never hit the joint J Link but I [he] scatters the sauce in everybody's face in his vain V efforts to cut through the bone if he is to carve he generally daubs himself with soup and grease /"though his napkin is commonly stuck through a J button -hole j Link and I [though his napkin] tickles his chin {he infalliblj'^ coughs in his glass Link and [he] besprinkles the company when he drinks. CHAINS OF SENTENCES 65 (c) " ' There's a very respectable-looking young man,' added Mrs. Nickleby, after a short consideration, ' who is conductor to one of the omnibuses that go by here, and who wears a glazed hat — your sister and I have noticed him very often — he has a wart upon his nose, Kate, you know, exactly like a gentleman's servant.' " Here the construction is not methodical. Nicholas immediately asks : " Have all gentlemen's servants warts upon their noses, mother ? " Though this is ex- actly what she had said, Mrs. Nickleby is indignant. " Nicholas, my dear, how very absurd you are ; of course I mean that his glazed hat looks like a gentleman's servant, and not the wart upon his nose." Like many people in real hfe, having said one thing and meant another, she thinks all are stupid who do not re-arrange the words she has not taken the trouble to put in proper order. If we take the sentence to pieces and then transfer " exactly like a gentleman's servant " so that it follows " hat " immediately, we have the structure of the sentence which represents the thought. The additional statement about the wart can follow this without confusion either of thought or of statement. Even such a simple example brings out the importance of the arrangement of clauses and sentences in the use of speech to express thought, and the need to dissect obscure passages as a preliminary step towards putting them together in an intelligible and intelligent order. As Lord Chesterfield wrote in the Letters to his Son, from which most of the examples in the last seven chapters are taken : " Though indeed the justness and strength of the thoughts are the most material points, and that words are but the dress of thoughts, yet, as a very handsome man, or woman, 66 GROUNDWOKK OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR may be disfigured, and rendered even disagreeable, by an awkward, slovenly, and ragged dress, so good thoughts may lose great part of their beauty, if expressed in low, improper, and inelegant words. People mistake very much, who imagine that they must of course speak their own language well, and that therefore they need not study it, or attend to it : but you will soon find how false this way of reasoning is, if you observe the English spoken by almost all English people who have no learning. All the ordinary people in general speak in open defiance of all grammar, use words that are not English, and murder those that are ; and though indeed they make themselves understood, they do it so disagreeably, that what they say seldom makes amends for their manner of saying it.'' GLASGOW: PRINTED AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS BY ROBERT MACLEHOSB AND CO. LTD.