FOUNDATION ENGLISH THE EXPRESSION OF IDEAS MACDONALD GIFT OF Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation . http://www.archive.org/details/foundationenglisOOmacdrich FOUNDATION ENGLISH THE EXPRESSION OF IDEAS By ALICE B. MACDONALD HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH IN THE LAWRENCE (MASS.) HIOH SCHOOL ov TToXV aWd, TTOXU BENJ. H. SANBORN & CO. BOSTON NEW YORK CHICAGO 1911 l^-'Wv COPTHIQHT, 1911 Bt ALICE B. MACDONALD PREFACE Two demands, seemingly conflicting, have made a new first-year book in English for high schools a neces- sity, — the first being the demand of the college for better written English on the part of the entering stu- dents; the second being the demand of the public for a more democratic distribution of courses than a college preparatory school offers. An examination of the two demands will show, how- ever, that they are after all not diametrically opposed. Right thinking, clear and adequate expression, effi- ciency, are the reasonable and just demands both of the public and of the college. Neither is concerned with the method of doing the work, so long as desired results are obtained. The demand of the college for efficiency of expression has led to compulsory courses in English in our high schools, with a corresponding increase in the number of hours required for the study. No longer is it felt that only the gifted few can write; it is demanded that all shall write. The demand of the public, on the other hand, has led to the reduction of the elementary courses from nine years to eight, and the introduction into the high schools of the so-called vocational courses. The result has been to increase enormously the size of our first-year classes. These people also must be taught to write. In its way, then, the demand of the college is as utilitarian as the demand of the public. Both are asking that the youth of our land shall be taught to iii 251961 iv PREFACE express themselves with the lucidity, the ease, the direct- ness, the force, of which our noble language is capable. As high school teachers we have been slow to arise to the occasion. Our teaching has often been too aca- demic; we have copied the college methods without examining them to see whether they were pedagogically sound as high school methods. The consequence has been that we have allowed our classes to drift along, with the burden of real preparation placed on the pupils of the upper classes. Such slipshod work as this not only has failed to prepare classes properly for college, but has left out of account those pupils who are not preparing for college, as well as those who leave school before the course is completed. We are beginning to see, how- ever, that English as well as other branches of study can be taught in a definite and logical manner; that the proper time for beginning the work, whether in prepara- tion for college or for the world at large, is in the first year; that, sound as college methods may be for the col- lege, they may not be sound for the high school; that the whole of rhetoric should not be taught in the first year, or in any year, any more than the whole of algebra or the whole of Latin; that a book containing all the prin- ciples of rhetoric is, at this early stage, in the highest degree confusing; and that practice under direction is essential to coherent expression. There has been accordingly a shift in the emphasis. The comprehensive rhetoric written by a college pro- fessor for adult classes or for teachers, has yielded to the simple text-book written by a teacher for a specific class. We are laying the foundations of rhetoric where they should be laid, in the first year of the high school course. PREFACE V To meet the requirements of this shifted emphasis, this book, "Foundation Englis h," has been prepared. It is a book of exercises, designed for a specific class, to be taught by teachers who presumably have obtained their prepara- tion in the principles of rhetoric elsewhere than in the pages of the book used in their classes. The exercises have grown out of the needs of actual classes, and are the result of years of teaching. The methods which are outlined have been tried with eminently satisfactory results in the High School of a manufacturing city, where pupils come from the homes of working people, largely of foreign extraction, as well as from the homes of the cultured and well to do. Acknowledgment of indebtedness is due to Messrs. Houghton Mifflin Company for permission to use pas- sages from Holmes, Longfellow, Thoreau, Poe, Emerson, Bryant, and Whittier; to Messrs. Ginn and Company for the use of quotations from Gage's Introduction to Physical Science; to Messrs. Charles Scribner's Sons for selections from Stevenson and a passage from John C. Van Dyke's Nature for Its Own Sake; and to Scott, Foresman, and Company, for the paragraphs from The Story of the Middle Ages, and Greek Gods, Heroes and Men, by S. H. and S. B. Harding; also to Messrs. Scott and Southworth for the use of the s-form from their Lessons in English, To Mr. James D. Home, Master of the Lawrence High School, Miss Susana T. O'Connor of the English Department of that school, Miss Gertrude M. Hall of the Mechanic Arts High School of Boston, and other teachers, I am deeply grateful for the loyal support which has made possible the carrying out of my theories j ▼i PREFACE as also to Miss Leila M. Lamprey, Supervisor of Primary Grades in Lawrence, for reading proof, and to Dean Hurlburt of Harvard College and Professor Lindsay Todd Damon of Brown University for help and encour- agement in the initial stages of the book. No words can adequately express my gratitude to Professor Frank Edgar Farley of Simmons College for guidance in pre- paring the manuscript and for untold favors besides. A. B. M. Lawrence, May, 1911. CONTENTS PAGB Preface iii-vi Exposition op Method xi-xxv PART I: EXPRESSION OF IDEAS IN THE SHORT THEME. Lesson I. Preliminaries 1-5 Lesson II. Clearness in the Expression op Ideas 6-8 Lesson III. Clearness in the Expression op Ideas BY Means op Distinguishing Marks IN Sentences 9-14 Lesson IV. Clearness in the Expression op Ideas BY Means op Length op Sentence . 15-19 Lesson V. Clearness in the Expression op Ideas BY Means op Punctuation . . . 20-25 Lesson VI. Clearness in the Expression op Ideas BY Means op Punctuation . . . 26-32 Lesson VII. Clearness in the Expression op Ideas BY Means op Capitals .... 33-37 Lessdn VIII. Correct Use op Words in the Expres- sion OP Ideas 38-42 Lesson IX. Correct Use op Words in the Expres- sion OP Ideas 43-45 Lesson X. Choice op Words in the Expression op Ideas 46-^51 Lesson XI. Variety in the Expression op Ideas . 62-57 Lesson XII. Vividness in the Expression op Ideas 68-63 Lesson XIII. Review Exercises in the Expression OF Ideas 64-69 Lesson XIV. More Review Exercises in the Ex- pression OF Ideas 70-77 Lesson XV. The Correct Use op the Parts of Speech in the Expression of Ideas. Verbs , . 78-84 Y4 ILLUSTRATIONS rACING PAGB The Angel with the Lute. Carpaccio . . Frontispiece Abraham Lincohi (in Lincoln Park, Chicago). St. Gavdens . 10 King Charles. Van Dyck 36 The Gipsy. Franz Hals 36 Dignity and Impudence. Landseer 61 Weil-Bred Sitters. Landseer 61 At the Edge of the i^ond (Methuen, Mass.) 80 The Lake. Corot 81 Sir Galahad. Watts 106 Prince Balthasar, Carlos. Velasqmz 112 Laden with Snow (Methuen, Mass.) 166 Durham Cathedral (England) 167 Dance of the Children. Corot 176 Temple of Castor and Pollux (Sicily) 104 EXPOSITION OF METHOD I. Purpose of the Exposition: Plan of the Book. The Lessons contained in Foundation English are frankly, exercises, meant for the pupils only. In this part of the book, therefore, are put such explanations as may be necessary to aid the teacher in the proper development of the somewhat bald Lessons. The book is divided into four parts, as follows: — Part I. Expression of Ideas in the Short Theme. Part II. Expression of Ideas in Formal Correspondence. Part III. Expression of Ideas in the Long Theme and the Familiar Letter. Appendixes. A. A Brief Review of Grammar. B. Rules for Punctuation and Capitalization. C. Rules for Spelling. D. Themes Written by Pupils. Subjects for Short Themes. Symbols for Marking Themes. It will be noted that instead of taking up a subject by chapters, the work is divided into specific Lessons, so that a teacher may, if she chooses, follow the book exactly as it is laid out. For the benefit, however, of the teacher who prefers to make her own division of work, summaries are placed at the end of each Part, and she may choose the exercises for practice and com- position as she would from any rhetoric. xii EXPOSITION OF METHOD II. The Aim of the Lessons. The Lessons aim at the expression of ideas, such expression to be gained by means of oral and written exercises and compositions. The pupils are to learn by doing, and yet the doing is to be wisely guided by the teacher. To further this manifest aim, each Lesson is divided into two parts, as follows: — I. The Expression of Ideas by means of some principle of rhetoric or grammar, which needs eluci- dation and practice in order to break the pupil of his bad habits and to keep him from falling into new error. II. The Expression of Ideas by means of written and oral composition, in order to gain the spon- taneity and ease which comes from much writing and speaking. The rules in the first part of each Lesson are made to suit certain deductions drawn from the pupils' own work. Natural as self-expression may be, and necessary as it is to encourage it, correct usages cannot be expected from pupils who are constantly brought into contact with incorrect usages, in playground, street, or home. The rules, therefore, are not new and abstract, put there for the sake of covering so much ground in grammar or rhetoric; they are often-violated rules, put there for the sake of overcoming actual faults and strengthening the mind for further endeavor. Many a fault of the first year may be ignored, for the reason that it will disappear, not necessarily because of the teaching, but because of the added maturity of the pupil and his wider contact with books and people. The labor of the teacher EXPOSITION OF METHOD xiii then is the very definite one of laying the foundation, and the book aims to aid her to do this vital and sub- stantial work. III. The Idea of the Lessons, The practice followed in certain first-year Latin books, where the work proceeds definitely and logically from day to day, suggested the dividing of the book into Lessons. As far as has been possible by use of black- board and type-written papers and without textbooks, this plan has been followed out with some first-year classes, and the results have been eminently gratifying. With the exercises gathered into a book of this kind, infinitely better results ought to be gained. At a cursory view, some of the Lessons may seem long. It is not designed, however, that everything in a Lesson shall be taught. It should be remembered on the contrary, that most of the rules used have been taught in the elementary schools, that what the pupils need is the practice which makes perfect, and that accordingly little time will need to be spent on the rule itself. Plenty of exercises are included for the sake of variety, or for maturer or better prepared classes, or to supply home-work if desired. Moreover, the teacher herself grows weary of the same old exercise. If she has had time this term for Exercise 1 only, she may like the next term to use Exercise 2 for a change. Or, one exercise may make a better appeal to her now than at another time. It will be noted furthermore that the Lessons increase in length as the term goes on, — and this for the very reason that one cannot be so definitely sure as to the amoimt of work a well-grounded class adv EXPOSITION OF METHOD will be able to do later on. At first it was intended to mark the exercises in such a way that there could be no mistake on this point, but it was finally decided to omit all such foot-notes as being confusing, and to leave the matter of choice to the teacher's own judgment. IV. The Purpose and Content of Each of the Parts, Part I. The Short Theme. The real though disguised aim of Part I is to teach the pupils to express their ideas spontaneously, though at the same time clearly and correctly, in the theme of one paragraph. The teacher should bear this purpose in mind, therefore, when she is assigning a subject, and should guide the pupils to gather their ideas on that subject into one paragraph, though she need do nothing further about paragraph form until she reaches Part III. In Part I, also, some attempt is made to get clear sen- tences; practice is given in punctuation and capitaliza- tion; the vocabulary is enlarged; and violations of gram- matical rules are corrected. Part II. Formal Correspondence. The teaching of business correspondence cannot be made very simple. The letters must be business-like, an exercise of soul that does not usually belong inher- ently to the pupils in first-year classes. But the form of the business letter, the habit of neatness, the elements of courtesy, the addressing of the envelope, may well receive attention this first year. Not too much should be expected of the body of the letter, however. Maturity, the stress of real business needs, utihty, will all help EXPOSITION OF METHOD xv the boy, as he grows into manhood, to express himself in terms that will be to his best advantage. Acknowl- edged standards in forms he must know, and can easily be taught to follow. Aside from these, the teaching of the business letter will require patience and not too much time. Part III. The Long Theme. In Part III, the more formal work of paragraph form and content is taken up, both as a unit, and as a part of the longer theme. The first few Lessons of this part are designed to develop synthetically the transition from the "short'' theme, or the theme of one paragraph, to the "long" theme, or the theme of more than one paragraph. For example, the teacher herself may have in mind the subject, "A Rainy Day at the Old Farm House". Instead of assigning this subject to her class, however, she gives a topic which represents only one phase of the subject, "The jolly party that rainy day at the old farm-house". The pupils write a paragraph- theme on the subject, it is corrected and passed back. At the next lesson she gives them the topic, "Nooks and corners explored in the old farm-house that rainy day". Again a paragraph is written and corrected. Then, perhaps, a third time, she gives a topic, "A frolic in the garret that rainy day in the old farm-house". By this time the pupil will have perceived that he has written three paragraphs about a rainy day at the old farm-house. He will need now, in combining these paragraphs into one theme, to be shown only how to make his transitional phrase or sentence. Having seen this point clearly he may be taught the more analytic xvi EXPOSITION OP METHOD work of separating a subject into its various parts or topics, these topics to be arranged to form a simple outline for his theme. Such an outline in this first year should carefully avoid any such division as> "introduc- tion, discussion, conclusion". In Part III also is continued the practice in short- theme writing, for necessarily the longer themes will be written out of class and at less frequent intervals. The familiar letter is also placed in this part, because it has much the nature of the long theme, that is, the theme of several paragraphs. Appendix A. — A Brief Review of Grammar. Some teachers, especially since the instalment of the College Board of Examiners, like to include formal grammar in the course for the first year. For such teachers, as also for reference, a grammatical appendix has been included in the book. There are some strong objections to formal grammar study in the first year except as it comes in written practice: — 1. Grammar has already been carefully taught by experienced teachers in the grammar schools. Why should it be reviewed now any more than arithmetic? 2. If certain rules and definitions have been well- taught in the grammar schools, it is tiresome and unnec- essary to undertake a new phraseology, until at least the old has been forgotten, — ^if indeed such a thing can be. 3. It is not only discouraging and disappointing to the pupils to find that in their new school they must go over the same old dreary routine of parsing and analyzing, but it also takes up time that could be EXPOSITION OF METHOD JtVli given more profitably to practice, which in the last analysis is the only thing that makes perfect. 4. By the third year, the pupils who remain in school, possibly less than half of those who entered, will have discovered whether their aspirations for college or normal school are likely to be realized. They will then see some practical advantage in taking up the study of formal grammar at this time. Moreover, their pre- vious study of foreign languages, and their added matu- rity and growing reason, will enable them to tackle the subject with renewed vigor and perspicuity. 5. If it be asked, why, having decided to include a grammatical outline, it should be banished to the Ap- pendix, the answer is, first, — for the sake of the majority of teachers who would not care to see it earlier; and, second and more important, — because the secondary title of the book, which is really a definition of terms, "The Expression of Ideas,'' makes the Appendix the logical place for an outline of technical grammar. Appendix B. — Punctuation and Capitalization. During the course of the Lessons, exercises for prac- tice in punctuation and capitalization are given. Here again the rules are banished to the Appendix, and this for two reasons: — 1. Rules for many of these usages have already been taught in the grammar schools. If they have been carefully taught, it would be idle to change the phrase- ology. The rules are needed only for reference in correcting or punctuating themes. In an Appendix they may be all gathered together and their changed form will give no trouble. XViii EXPOSITION OF METHOD 2. There is much difference of opinion as to what and how many rules should be taught. With the rules gathered in an Appendix, the teacher is not bound by any dogmatic limits. Appendix C. — Spelling. At first it was intended to include in an Appendix words usually misspelled. Such a list, however, if at all adequate, would take too much space in a book like this. Instead, therefore, the teacher is ad- vised to use a speUing-book. In Appendix C, however, have been included a few rules for speUing such English words as conform to rule. A record of words misspelled in the written work of the teacher's own classes should be kept, and the words studied in constant review. It should be taken into consideration, furthermore, that young people learn by eye and by ear. Accordingly, both oral and written spelling should be given; one, to present a picture to the eye; the other, to present a sound to the ear. The habit of seeing, the habit of hearing, should be auxil- iaries to the teacher. Appendix D. — Illustrative Themes. Subjects for Short Themes. Symbols for Marking Themes. The themes included in Appendix D were chosen some- what at random from a number written by the pupils of a first-year class. They serve here the double purpose of showing the curious teacher what may be done in the way of imitiation, and of interesting pupils in the work of their peers. It should be borne in mind at the same time that the teacher's part of the work was done under EXPOSITION OF METHOD xix much more trying circumstances than would be possible with such a book as this at hand. Each Lesson in the book has included a number of subjects for composition; a supplementary Hst is added for further suggestions and in case of a ^ 'daily'' theme course. The symbols given for marking themes may not be those used by all teachers, but they are in general use, and may be found convenient for reference. V. The Use of Specimens, We are all born imitators, though we may not like to confess it as we grow older. ''Show us how," say the pupils; "Now let me do it," and they do it, often with a grace entirely their own. In writing compositions, as in playing a game or using a tool, they need to see how others do it. Since the work of their peers is unfortunately not often worthy of imitation, their models must be taken from the standard writers. In each Lesson of the book such specimens have been included, and they have been chosen not for any elusive beauty of style, but because their workmanship is rather appar- ent, and therefore easier to imitate. It is not meant that they shall be "aped sedulously"; often the imita- tion may consist merely in the use of some of the words, or in the development of a similar thought, or in the suggestion of a subject. Imitation of style may be unconscious. It will be noted that the subjects chosen for composition in each Lesson are suggested by the model; the class discussions ought to keep the imitation within proper Hmits. Says Bruneti^re, "If we are unwilling to imitate or follow anybody, life will be over XX EXPOSITION OF METHOD before we can get to work; men are forever imitating, but they cannot imitate without change." VI. The Oral Theme. Appended to each of the first twenty Lessons is a subject for oral composition. This exercise may be given at any time, on the day devoted to the study of literature as well as on the day given to the regular work in composition. After the twentieth Lesson no subjects are given for oral compositions as such. By this time the pupils should be quite accustomed to speaking before their class. The speaking should con- tinue, but the subjects may be chosen from the work in literature, from the current news, from the pupils' own experiences. Ten minutes at the beginning of a period should be enough time to devote to this partic- ular form of oral composition. One-minute, two-minute, or three-minute speeches will accomplish wonders if faithfully followed up. VII. The Distribution of Time, The book is planned for the ideal program of five periods a week for a term of thirty-eight or forty weeks. In this case, of the five periods two would be devoted to the definite work of the expression of ideas, three to the work in literature; that is, the work of one Lesson of Foundation English would occupy two periods. But suppose the term should not be so long, or the periods devoted to instruction in EngUsh so many? 1. In case of the shorter length of time: There are several ways in which the Lessons could be made to fit. Part III, for example, could be saved in part or EXPOSITION OF METHOD xxi in whole for the next year. Or, Part II could be omitted and taken up in later years. Or, especially in the case of well-prepared classes, Part I could be condensed: the lessons in punctuation or in grammar, as actual lessons, could be omitted. 2. In case of fewer periods per week: Two periods should be devoted to the work in composition, whether the periods devoted to the study of English number five, four, three, or two. In the last case, the literary models used in the Lessons would convey their message perhaps unconsciously as lessons in literature. Sup- plementary outside reading could be added if desired. At any rate the heaviest work in the expression of ideas should be done in these earlier years, before the pupils get set in their ways, habitually careless, or self-conscious in their attitude toward their work. It is discouraging indeed to find the themes of the senior year failing in the fundamental principles of compo- sition; not only discouraging but well-nigh hopeless. In this last year, the time should be left almost wholly free for the development of the larger principles of rhet- oric, and the forms of discourse as actual forms should be built on foimdations already laid. VIII. The Distribution of the Lesson, During the first of the year, or at least until the teacher becomes well acquainted with her pupils, the theme should be written in class, as often as once a week, and corrected as often. One set of themes a day ought not to be too many for a teacher to examine, if she looks only for those violations of the rule which she happens to be working upon at that particular time, or those xxii EXPOSITION OF METHOD which she has worked upon in previous themes. The pupils should not be confused by a multitude of correc- tions, many of which, even at best, they are incapable of absorbing. Red ink used merely to satisfy a teacher's conscience will not help the pupils to overcome their faults. Some sort of a rotating system will keep the teacher from being unnecessarily swamped with themes to be corrected. The schedule on page xxiii is a suggestion. It provides for a suppositious program of five classes of twenty-four pupils each, and five periods of English a week. Two of these periods will be devoted to the work in composition, one to the regular Lesson in the book, the other to studying or writing. During this second period a fourth of the class will receive individual help in private conference. The classes are called suppositiously. A, B, C, D, E. The conference sections AS AS AS AS BS etc. IX. Distribution of Time for the Long Theme. When this form of theme-work, the "long theme," is in full swing, the teacher will find herself not able to correct a whole set of themes as often as once a week. Once a month will be perhaps all that she can manage. She will now need to have some rotating system so that each pupil may have his full quota of work and so that she herself will not be overwhelmed by themes to be corrected. A few themes from each class each week will keep the whole class interested besides giving the teacher each week something by which to illustrate the work of the class. She may, then, post somewhere in full view of the EXPOSITION OF METHOD XXIU ^t ^1 «!■ «| »ll ?l ■? ^1 <=l ^g W2. ?g W2. "i| «l ■si S'S- ^1 ^g >i| Periods. > p DDdv EXPOSITION OF METHOD pupils some such scheme as the following: — The classes should be divided as before into four sections, and numbered AS A^, A^ A*, B^ B^, and so on. Each one of these divisions should have some stated work at some stated date. In the outline that follows, dates for one class and two compositions are given. The date for the second composition might be inserted in red ink to attract attention. Separate schedules would have to be made for each class, unless all classes were having compositions on the same day. This schedule presupposes the class to be ready to write long themes in March. EXPOSITION OF METHOD SCHEDULE II, FOR CLASS A. xxv Names of Pupils. Plan. Theme. Conference. Rewritten. A* Mon. March 7 AprU4 March 14 April 11 March 21 AprU 18 March 28 AprU 25 A« Mon. March 14 April 11 March 21 April 18 March 28 April 25 AprU 4 May 2 A» Mon. 1 March 21 April 18 March 28 April 26 AprU 4 May 2 r." A« Mon. March 28 AprU25 April 4 May 2 April 11 Mays AprU 18 May Id PART I. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS IN THE SHORT THEME FOUNDATION ENGLISH PART I EXPRESSION OF IDEAS IN THE SHORT THEME LESSON I I. Preliminaries for the Expression of Ideas. 1. Where may we gain these ideas? (1) By observation of the world about us. The things which we see and hear and do, these offer the most real and vital ideas, because they come within our experience. They offer the facts of Hfe. The great teacher, Horace Mann, once wrote to his sister, who was complaining that she had nothing to write about, "The whole world is before you and offers itself for your selection." "Make the most of this beautiful star — the earth," says Leigh Hunt. (2) By imagination. Building upon fact we may create an edifice of fancy. In other words we may "make up" ideas about things; we may "build a bridge to dreamland for our lay." (3) By suggestion. The open heart and the recep- tive mind will never lack ideas. They may be sug- gested to us by what other people have written or said, by conversing with others, or by listening to conversations. 1 2 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 2. How may we express these ideas? (1) By the medium of language either written or spoken. Language consists primarily of words. A word is the spoken or written sign of an idea. When we put two or more words together, we make a Com- position. For example, the word "birds'' represents an idea, so does the word "sing." When we put the two words together, we make a composition, and ex- press a new idea that "Birds sing." Composition^ is the putting together of ideas expressed in words. The sum or stock of words which we have at our com- mand we call our Vocabulary. It can be easily seen that if we are to gain ideas by observation, imagina- tion, and suggestion, we shall need a large and varied and forcible vocabulary in which to express them. The Lessons in this book will help us thus to express ourselves. Each Lesson will take up first an essential rule of composition with exercises for practice; and second, written or spoken expression of ideas embodied in so-called Compositions. (2) The form of Composition. In the sense in which the term composition is used in this book, we mean our ideas on a certain subject put together, and either spoken before the class, or written on paper and handed to the teacher for inspection. Sometimes for convenience we call such written com- positions, *Hhemes.'^ The oral compositions, for a time at least, will con- sist largely in reproducing other people's ideas, because the time which we can devote to such work is so short > Expressions in bold face type should be committed to memoiy. PREPARATION OF THE MANUSCRIPT 3 and the supervision so scanty. The work in literature will help greatly in the oral expression of ideas. More- over, whatever helps in written expression will help also in oral expression. The written compositions for the first part of the year will be short, so that we may have more time to devote to the essentials of correct speech and the gaining of a vocabulary. When we have become somewhat skilled in writing the short theme, we shall try to express our ideas at greater length, in "long" themes. (3) The Preparation of the Manuscript. Every written composition should be spelled care- fully, and written legibly and according to a certain form. The copy of the paper thus prepared we will call the manuscript. Following are directions for preparing the manuscript for schools: — Margin. Leave about an inch in width at the left of the paper. Bring the writing out evenly at the right of the paper. Write on one side of the paper only, unless instructed to do otherwise. Title. The title is the name of the theme. Write the title so that it will occupy the middle of the first line of the first paper. Do not repeat it on other papers. In writing the title, do one of two things: — either begin only the first word and proper nouns with capitals; or else begin with a capital all words except prepositions conjunctions, and articles; for example. The principle of the Argand lamp. or The Principle of the Argand Lamp. 4 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Leave a space between the title and the first line of the composition. Indentation. Indent the first line of every para- graph about the width of the margin. On the final manuscript^ write legibly, have no blots and no ^'patchwork." Number the pages. Folding the manuscript. Place the corners evenly together from left to right, with the writing inside; hold the corners firmly and press the fold. Endorsement. Endorse neatly. When the paper is to be handed in flat, endorse in the upper left-hand corner^; when it is to be handed in folded, endorse in the upper part on the outside.^ Form of endorsement.^ Orville Horricks, Eng. I, Sect. A, Sept. 9, 1920. Theme 1. Orville Horricks, Eng. I, Sect. A, Sept. 10, 1920. Rewritten theme 1. ^To allow room for mark or criticism of teacher at the right. 2The teacher may determine for her own convenience on which side of the outside to endorse. ^Unifonnity in the form of endorsement should be required. The fonn given above is as good as any, and is the form used rather com- monly in schools and colleges. SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITION 6 II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Choose one of the following subjects and write a theme, about a page in length, which shall express your ideas on the subject gained by experience.^ 1. My favorite sport. (Name it. What materials are necessary? How is it played?) 2. The last school I attended. (The name, the teacher, what I studied, what I learned.) 3. My first impressions of High School. (The size and appearance of the building. Strange rooms and faces. Spirit of the school.) »The purpose of this theme is to give the teacher an idea of the previous training of the pupil, and to give practice in the prepara- tion of the manuscript. LESSON II I. Clearness in the Expression of Ideas. 1. Clearness is a quality of composition absolutely necessary if one wishes to keep from being misunder- stood. So essential a quality is it that we shall be many weeks studying how best to obtain it. 2. Before we can convey ideas clearly we must first have clear ideas. Clear ideas may be obtained by careful observation, careful thinking, careful study. 3. In order to convey ideas clearly, we must embody them in clear compositions. The simplest form of composition, a form without which no composition is possible, is the sentence. A sentence, in order to convey ideas clearly, must express a complete thought by means of words that are grammatically united. Exercise. In the following composition show that the thought is complete in each sentence and that the words are grammatically united: — THE FOX AND THE LION. The first time the Fox saw the Lion, he fell down at his feet, and was ready to die of fear. The second time, he took courage and could even bear to look upon him. The third time, he had the impudence to come up to him, to salute him, and to enter into familiar conversation with him. — ^sop. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following selections and notice the mental images presented by the author's expression of ideas : — 6 CLASS DISCUSSION 7 1. **We think we have looked at a thing sharply until we are asked for its speciJ5c features. I thought I knew exactly the form of the leaf of the tulip-tree until one day a lady asked me to draw the out- lines of one. A good observer is quick to take a hint and to follow it up. Most of the facts of nature, especially in the Ufe of birds and animals, are well screened. We do not see the play, because we do not look intently enough." — Burroughs: Locusts and Wild Honey, Sharp Eyes. 2. "When you come suddenly upon the porcupine in his native haunts, he draws his head back and down, puts up his shield, trails his broad tail, and waddles slowly away. His shield is the sheaf of larger quills upon his back, which he opens and spreads out in circular form so that the whole body is quite hidden beneath it. The porcupine's great chisel-Uke teeth, which are quite as formid- able as those of the woodchuck, he does not appear to use at all in his defence, but relies entirely upon his quills and when these fail him he is done for." — Burroughs: Squirrels and Other Fur-Bearen. Class discussion. 1. What injunction does Burroughs give us in the first composition? 2. Show how, in the second extract, he follows his own injunction. 3. See if you could draw now the shape of some familiar leaf so that your teacher could recognize it. 4. Notice that in the second com- position the author describes the porcupine as he appears at first sight. In the rest of the sentences he describes the various parts as they appear on closer observation. 5. What picture is presented by the use of the words "sheaf' and "chisel-Uke"? 6. What is the meaning of the word "formidable"? Subjects for written composition. Choose any one of the following: — 1. How does your cat prepare herself for sleep? 2. How does your cat 8 FOUNDATION ENGLISH defend herself against her enemy, the dog? 3. How do hens drink water? 4. How does a bird take its bath? 6. How does a fern or a brake develop from its first ap- pearance above ground? 6. Show that a peacock is very vain of its fine feathers. 7. Why does a cat have whiskers? 8. Why has a grey-hound, or a pointer his particular shape? 9. How does a turkey gobbler act and look when he is thoroughly angry? 10. Your cat has awakened from his nap and determined to do some- thing. Watch him and then write about him. Subject for oral composition. Describe the picture given as a frontispiece so that one who had never seen it could get a clear idea of it. The picture is a detail from a large picture of "The Presenta- tion of the Christ Child at the Temple". Can you see any spiritual significance in the angel's face? What do you think is the composition which he is trying to play on his lute? LESSON III I. Clearness in the Expression of Ideas by means of Distinguishing Marks in Sentences. 1. In a collection of sentences which together make up a composition, we may readily distinguish the individ- ual sentences by the fact that each begins with a capital and ends with a period, or an exclamation point, or an interrogation point. We should not, however, mislead the reader by placing these distinguishing marks where they do not belong. The marks should distinguish a complete thought. Young writers are inclined to do two things, — either they begin a new sentence with a small letter, or else they begin a part of a sentence with a capital. Either of these two faults confuses a sentence and must be avoided if the thought is to be clear to the reader. Following are two letters which are rather amusing instances of how two boys can differ in their compositions. Note how much clearer the boy Washington's letter is than the boy Lee's. What makes it clearer? Do you think that the boy Lee had learned "his tasks as weW^ as the boy Washington? "Pa brought me two pretty books full of pictures he got them in Alexandria they have pictures of dogs and cats and tigers and ele- fants and ever so many pretty things cousin bids me send you one of them it has a picture of an elefant and a little Indian boy on his back hke uncle jo's sam pa says if I learn my tasks good he will let uncle jo bring me to see you will you ask your ma to let you come to see me. — Richard Henry Lee", 10 FOUNDATION ENGLISH To this letter Washington sent the following reply: — "Dear Dickey I thank you very much for the pretty picture book you gave me. Sam asked me to show him the pictures and I showed him all the pictures in it; and I read to him how the tame Elephant took care of the master's Httle boy, and put him on his back and would not let anybody touch his master's Httle son. I can read three or four pages sometimes without missing a word. Ma says I may go to see you and stay all day with you next week if it be not rainy. She says I may ride my pony Hero if Uncle Ben will go with me and lead Hero. I have a little piece of poetry about the picture book you gave me, but I mustn't tell you who wrote the poetry. " 'G. W.'s compliments to R. H. L. And Ukes his book full well, Henceforth will count him his friend, And hopes many happy days he may spend.' "Your good friend, "George Washington". *T am going to get a whip top soon, and you may see it and whip it." — Benson J. Lossing: Mt. Vernon, the House of Washington. Exercise 1. Write six or more sentences suggested by the picture opposite this page. Examine your sentences to see if the distinction between them is made plainly evident. Exercise 2. Rewrite the following composition and put capitals and periods where they belong:— At noon, our juvenile party assembled in a dell, through the depths of which ran a httle brook the dell was narrow, and its steep sides, from the margin of the stream upward, were thickly set with trees, chiefly walnuts and chestnuts, among which grew a few oaks and maples in the summer time, the shade of so many clustering branches, meeting and intermingling across the rivulet, was deep enough to produce a noontide twilight hence came the name of Shadow Brook but now, ever since autumn had crept into CLASS DISCUSSION 11 thifl secluded place, all the dark verdure was changed to gold, so that it really kindled up the dell, instead of shading it the bright yellow leaves, even had it been a cloudy day, would have seemed to keep the sunlight among them; and enough of them had fallen to strew all the bed and margin of the brook with sunUght, too thus the shady nook, where summer had cooled herself, was the sunniest spot anywhere to be found. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following compositions aloud: — 1. That sociablest of flowers, the little Housatonia, was very abun- dant. It is a flower that never Uves alone, but which loves its own kind, and is always fond of dwelling with a great many friends and relatives around it. Sometimes you see a family of them covering a space no bigger than the palm of your hand; and some- times a large community, whitening a whole tract of pasture, and all keeping one another in cheerful heart and life. — Hawthorne: A Wonder Book for Girls and Boys. 2. That near relative of the kingbird, the great crested fly-catcher, has one well known peculiarity: he appears never to consider his nest finished until it contains a cast-off snake-skin. My alert correspondent one day saw him eagerly catch up an onion skin and make off with it, either deceived by it or else thinking it a good substitute for the coveted material. — Burroughs: Locusts and WUd Honey. Sharp Eyes. Class discussion. 1 . What peculiarity of the flower is given in the first composition? 2. Of the bird, in the second composition? 3. In each case an illustration is given. How does the illustration help the composition? 4. What expressions in the first composition give the flower a human quality? 6. What kind of a correspondent is an "alert" corres* pondent? 12 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Subjects for written composition. Choose any one from the following: — 1. The pecu- liarity of some bird, or flower, or wild animal, which you have observed closely. (Name and describe the peculiarity. Give an illustration.) 2. What peculiar- ity distinguishes your fox-terrier from your neighbor's? 3. Your cat from one that to an ordinary observer looks like yours? 4. What peculiarity distinguishes a morning in June from a morning in August, or September, or November? 5. How may one distinguish between a pine tree and a spruce or cedar? 6. How does a russet apple differ from a Baldwin apple? 7. How may one distinguish a mushroom from a toadstool? 8. What is the peculiarity of a cat-boat? 9. What pecuHarity distinguishes your automobile from your neighbor's? 10. What is the difference between a chipmunk and a squirrel? Subject for oral composition. Read the following poem through carefully so as to be able to tell the story orally in clear prose : — THE WRECK OF THE HESPERUS. It was the schooner Hesperus that sail'd the wintry sea; And the skipper had taken his little daughter to bear him company. Blue were her eyes as the fairy-flax, her cheeks hke the dawn of day, And her bosom white as the hawthorn buds that ope in the month of May. The skipper he stood beside the helm, his pipe was in his mouth, And he watch' d how the veering flaw did blow the smoke now west, now south. Then up and spake an old sailor, — had sail'd the Spanish main, — *'I pray thee, put into yonder port, for I fear a hurricane. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 13 "Last night the Moon had a golden ring, and tonight no Moon we seel" The skipper, he blew a whifiF from his pipe, and a scornful laugh laugh'd he. Colder and louder blew the wind, a gale from the northeast; The snow fell hissing in the brine, and the billows froth'd like yeast. Down came the storm, and smote amain the vessel in its strength; She shudder' d and paused, like a frighten'd steed, then leap'd her cable's length. "Come hither! come hither! my little daughter, and do not tremble so; For I can weather the roughest gale, that ever wind did blow.'* He wrapp'd her warm in his seaman's coat against the stinging blast; He cut a rope from a broken spar, and bound her to the mast. "O father! I hear the church-bells ring, O say, what may it be?" "'Tis a fog-bell on a rock-bound coast!" and he steer'd for the open sea. *'0 father! I hear the sound of guns, O say, what may it be?" ''Some ship in distress, that cannot live in such an angry seal" ''O father! I see a gleaming Ught, O say, what may it be?" But the father answer'd never a word, a frozen corpse was he. Lash'd to the helm, all stiff and stark, with his face tum'd to the skies. The lantern gleam'd through the gleaming snow on his fix'd and glassy eyes. Then the maiden clasp'd her hands and pray'd, that savdd she might be; And she thought of Christ, who still'd the wave on the Lake of Galilee. And fast thro' the midnight dark and drear, thro' the whistling sleet and snow. Like a sheeted ghost, the vessel swept towards the reef of Norman's Woe. And ever, the fitful gusts between, a sound came from the land; It was the sound of the trampling surf on the rocks and the hard sea-sand. U FOUNDATION ENGLISH The breakers were right beneath her bows, she drifted a dreary wreck, And a whooping billow swept the crew like icicles from her deck. She struck where the white and fleecy waves look'd soft as carded wool, But the cruel rocks, they gored her side like the horns of an angry buU. Her rattling shrouds, all sheath'd in ice, with the masts went by the board; Like a vessel of glass, she stove and sank. Ho! hoi the breakers roar'dl At daybreak, on the bleak sea-beach, a fisherman stood aghast, To see the form of a maiden fair lash'd close to a drifting mast. The salt sea was frozen on her breast, the salt tears in her eyes; And he saw her hair, like the brown sea-weed, on the billows fall and rise. Such was the wreck of the Hesperus, in the midnight and the snow! Christ save us all from a death like this, on the reef of Norman's Woe! —LongfeUow, LESSON IV I. Clearness in the Expression of Ideas by means of Length of Sentence. 1. The sentences of a composition should not be too long or too short. They should express the complete thought; nothing more, nothing less. Exercise 1. The first of the compositions that follow gives an example of long sentences, the second, of short sentences. Only skilful writers could use such sentences successfully. Read the sentences carefully, and decide for yourselves what makes them clear in spite of their length. The Americana will have no interest contrary to the grandeur and glory of England, when they are not oppressed by the weight of it; and they will rather be inclined to resp ect the acts of a supei^ intending legislature, when they see them the acts of that power which is itself the security, not the rival, of their secondary impor* tance. In this assurance my mind most perfectly acquiesces; and I confess I feel not the least alarm from the discontents which are to arise from putting people at their ease; nor do I apprehend the destruction of this empire from g iving, by an act of free grace and indulgence, to two millions of my fellow-citizens, some share of those rights upon which I have always been taught to value myself. — Burke: Conciliation toith America, 2. THE ALTERNATIVE The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone. It is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we 15 16 FOUNDATION ENGLISH were base enough. It is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but submission and slavery! Our chains are forged; their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston I The war is inevitable — and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come! It is in vain, sir, to extenuate matters. Gentlemen may cry Peace, Peace — but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that the gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it Almighty God I I know not what course others may take ; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death! — Patrick Henry: Speech in The Virginia Convention, 1779. Exercise 2. The ideas in the following composition are broken up into short sentences. Rewrite the compo- sition so that the sentence shall contain complete thoughts. In front of the cottage was a group of scrub-oaks. In the oaks the birds sang. They sang all day long. The squirrels chattered in them. A swing himg from one of the branches. Here Mary loved to swing. She loved to feel the soft breezes on her cheeks. Through the leaves of the oaks she could see the clouds. They were slowly sailing. They reminded her of the white sails of the yachts. The yachts were in the harbor. She used to dream that they were fairy yachts. She used to dream that they were coming. She dreamed that they were coming to bear her away to fairy land. The days were too short for all her dreams. 2. Clearness obtained by revision. A good plan to follow is to write whatever comes into the mind on a certain subject as carefully and thoughtfully as may be, and then to revise the work before making a final copy. In such revision we should see that the thought in each sentence is complete, that there is no more than one com- EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 17 plete thought in each sentence, and that each sentence is sharply defined by capital and end-mark. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following compositions aloud : — A November mist overspread the little valley, up which slowly but steadily rode the monk Eustace. He was not insensible to the feeling of melancholy inspired by the scene and by the season. The stream seemed to murmur with a deep and oppressed note, as if bewailing the departure of autumn. Among the scattered copses which here and there fringed its banks, the oak trees only retained that pallid green that precedes their russet hue. The leaves of the willows were most of them stripped from the branches, lay rustling at each breath and disturbed by every step of the mule; while the foliage of other trees, totally withered, kept still precarious possession of the boughs, waiting the first wind to scatter them. — Scott: The Monastery. 2. This is a glorious day, — ^bright, very warm, yet with an unspeak- able gentleness both in its warmth and brightness. On such days it is impossible not to love Nature, for she evidently loves us. At other seasons she does not give me this impression, or only at very rare intervals; but in these happy, autumnal days, when she has perfected the harvests, and accompHshed every necessary thing that she had to do, she overflows with a blessed superfluity of love. It is good to be ahve now. Thank God for breath, — ^yes, for mere breath! when it is made up of such a heavenly breeze as this. — Hauh thome: American Note Books. 3. The country is deUghtful; the fresh-looking wooded mountains never grow monotonous. Their shape constantly varies; there is a new aspect every quarter of an hour. They seem to me ever ahve, presenting here a chest and there a spine, prone or upright, grave and noble in appearance. — Taine: Journeys through France, 18 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Class discussion. 1. In each of the compositions given above, there is one word which furnishes the mood or atmosphere. Find the word in each composition. 2. What details empha- size the mood in each case? 3. Find other words for hewailinQy pallid, precarious, 4. What is the force of the expression in the last composition, "here a chest and there a spine"? Subjects for written composition. Choose from the following a subject that is in season: — 1. It is a dismal day in November (or any other month). 2. The first snow-storm has come, and a wonderful transformation has taken place. 3. The fields after harvest present a forlorn appearance. 4. It is a delight- ful day in June (or any other month). 5. From my piazza (or window) I get an attractive view. Subjects for oral composition. Read the following poem through. Study it to get a mental picture of the poet^s house. Describe it so as to present the picture to the class. Describe the house where you yourself were born. PAST AND PRESENT. I remember, I remember The house where I was bom, The little window where the sun Came peeping in at mom; He never came a wink too soon Nor brought too long a day; But now, I often wish the night Had borne my breath away. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 19 I remember, I remember The roses, red and white. The violets, and the hly-cups— Those flowers made of hghtl The lilacs where the robin built, And where my brother set The laburnum on his birthday, — The tree is hving yet I I remember, I remember Where I was used to swing. And thought- the air must rush as fresh To swallows on the wing; My spirit flew in feathers then That is so heavy now. And summer pools could hardly cool The fever on my brow. I remember, I remember The fir trees dark and high; I used to think their slender tops Were close against the sky: It was a childish ignorance. But now 'tis Uttle joy To know I'm farther off from Heaven Than when I was a boy. — r. Hood, LESSON V L Clearness in the Expression of Ideas by means of Punctuation. 1. When we are speaking to anyone or holding conver- sation with anyone, we can usually make ourselves immediately understood by means of inflection and pauses. In written composition, on the other hand, if we wish to be immediately understood we must indicate inflection and pauses by means of punctuation. There are a few marks of punctuation which are arbitrary and have little to do with clearness; for example, the period at the end of an abbreviation. But in general we punc- tuate with due regard to the economy of the reader's attention. That is, we use whatever marks are necessary to keep the reader from going over the sentence again to see what it means. Throughout our school course, we have been learning rules for the use of these marks of punctuation, and these rules we shall find reviewed in Appendix B, p. 251 of this book. But it is not so much rules that we need now, as good sense and good judgment in putting the marks where they will best express the ideas which we wish to convey to the reader. 2. The most useful of these marks of punctuation is the comma. It should become as much of a habit to put the comma where it belongs as it is to dot the i's or cross the fs. Great care should be exercised, however, not to use too many or too few of these marks. Either fault will confuse the reader and waste his attention which we are trying to economize. In the illustrative sentences 20 THE USE OF THE COMMA 21 below, for example, the meaning is made obviously different by the use or the omission of the comma. It matters not that there is a rule for its use. The question is, what do we mean? Will the reader under- stand what we mean? Example 1. The mules which had not been taken out of the mines for work tugged at their halters in desperation. (In this sentence there were evidently some mules which had been taken out of the mines.) Example 2. The mules, which had not been taken out of the mines for work, tugged at their halters in desperation. (In this sentence the explanation is given that the mules had not been taken out of the mine.) Example 3. The caterer had rolls, cake, peaches, and cream for sale. (In this sentence the caterer has four separate articles for sale.) Example 4. The caterer had rolls, cake, peaches and cream, for sale. (In this sentence, the peaches and cream were evidently sold together.) Exercise 1. Show the necessity of the comma as used in the following compositions. Could any of the commas be omitted without loss of clearness? 1. The bystanders began now to look at each other, nod, wink significantly, and tap their fingers against their foreheads. There was a whisper, also, about securing the gun and keeping the old fellow from doing mischief, at the very suggestion of which the self- 22 FOUNDATION ENGLISH important man in the cocked hat retired with some precipitation. At this critical moment a fresh comely woman pressed through the throng to get a peep at the gray-bearded man. She had a chubby child in her arms, which, frightened at his looks, began to ciy. *'Hush, Rip," cried she, "hush, you little fool; the old man won't hurt you." The name of the child, the air of the mother, the tone of her voice, all awakened a train of recollections in his mind. "What is your name, my good woman?" asked he. — Irving: Rip Van Winkle. 2. "There seemed to be no other inn in the whole town. People gave us directions, which we followed as best we could, generally with the effect of bringing us out again upon the scene of our dis- grace." Exercise 2. Read the following paragraph aloud, pausing wherever you think a comma should be inserted. Class criticize. Write the exercise, putting in commas wherever they are needed. Come little friend into the cool damp sweet woods. Birds and brooks and trees will be there to welcome us. Squirrels woodpeckers and robins will be our companions. TraiUng arbutus the har- binger of Spring wafts its sweet odors to us. Let us go dear child to the very heart of the wood. There we will push aside the damp leafy mold cull the fragrant blossoms and listen aU the while to the pure sweet notes of the woodland birds. Wherever we go the sunbeams will follow us. The murmuring pines too will whisper messages of joy to us and all nature will try to make us happy. The child who would reject these deUghts does not deserve to live. The Creator who loves his children made the woods for our enjoy- ment. Let us then help ourselves to His gifts and hie us away to the merry greenwood. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following composition aloud: — It was a rainy Sunday in the gloomy month of November. I had been detained in the course of a journey by a sUght indis- position, from which I was recovering; but was still feverish, and CLASS DISCUSSION 23 obliged to keep within doors all day, in an inn of the BmsSI town of Derby. A wet Sunday in a country inni — whoever has had the luck to experience one can alone judge of my situation. The rain pat- tered against the casements; the bells tolled for church with a melan- choly sound. I went to the windows in quest of something to amuse the eye; but it seemed as if I had been placed completely out of reach of all amusement. The windows of my bedroom looked out among tiled roofs and stacks of chimneys, while those of my sitting room commanded a full view of the stable-yard. I know of nothing more calculated to make a man sick of this world than a stable- yard on a rainy day. The place was Uttered with wet straw that had been kicked about by travellers and stable-boys. In one comer was a stagnant pool of water, surrounding an island of muck; there were several half-drowned fowls crowded together under a cart, among which was a miserable, crest-fallen cock, drenched out of all life and spirit, his drooping tail matted, as it were, into a single feather, along which the water trickled from his back; near the cart was a half-dozing cow, chewing the cud and standing patiently to be rained on, with wreaths of vapor rising from her reeking hide; a wall-eyed horse, tired of the loneliness of the stable, was poking his spectral head out of a window, with the rain dropping on it from the eaves; an unhappy cur, chained to a dog-house hard by, uttered something every now and then, between a bark and a yelp; a drab of a kitchen-wench tramped backward and forward through the yard in pattens, looking as sulky as the weather itself; everything, in short, was comfortless and forlorn, excepting a crew of hardened ducks, assembled hke boon companions round a puddle and making a riotous noise over their liquor. — Irving: The SiotU Gentleman, Class discussion. 1. Find a subject that will fit the composition given above. 2. Irving meant to reproduce a certain atmos- phere. Find a word that will define that atmosphere. 3. Find as many words as possible in the text which give that atmosphere. 4. There are some living objects in the scene besides the writer. What are they and 24 FOUNDATION ENGLISH what do they add to the scene? 5. Do the ducks at the end make the picture to your mind less " comfort- less and forlorn ? '' 6. Give other expressions for these in italics: — '^ littered with wet straw"; "crestfallen cock; drenched out of all life and spirit"; "reeking hide"; "a wall-eyed horse "; " spectral head "; "a riotous noise." Subjects for written composition. Choose one of the following subjects: — 1. Describe the scene given above as it might appear on a pleasant day. 2. Describe your back yard on a wet day. 3. The shopping district Dn a wet day. 4. The docks on a wet day. 5. The railroad station on a wet day. 6. Any scene (which you have observed closely and which has enough objects to give the scene life and color) on a wet day, — a grape-arbor, a vine-covered wall, a hen yard, a dingle in the woods, the creek, the salt-marshes, the hayfield after it has been mowed, the potato patch, the park, the flower-garden, your favorite play-ground, the ball-grounds. Subjects for oral composition. 1. Describe the battle that took place at this bridge. 2. Can you tell the story of a battle that took place at some other bridge? 3. Read the poem aloud. CONCORD HYMN. (Sung at the Completion of the Battle Monument, April 19, 1836.) By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood. And fired the shot heard round the world. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 26 The foe long since in silence slept; Alike the conqueror silent sleeps; And Time the ruined bridge has swept Down the dark stream which seaward creeps. On this green bank, by this soft streani, We set to-day a votive stone; That memory may their deed redeem, When, like our sires, pur sons are gone. Spirit, that made those heroes dare To die and leave their children free. Bid Time and Nature gently spare The shaft we raise to them and thee. — Emerson. LESSON VI I. Clearness in the Expression of Ideas by means of Punctuation. 1. There are certain other marks besides the comma, which are sometimes needed to make the sentence immediately clear to the reader; as, the colon, the semi- colon, the dash. Here again there are certain arbitrary usages; as, for example, a semi-colon before as, viz,, L e. But in general these marks are used only when they will make the sense clearer. Since, as young writers, we are not allowing our sentences to be very long, we shall need to use these marks but sparingly. 2. Quotation marks and the apostrophe are absolutely necessary, both for clearness and for correctness. We know where these marks should be used, but we some- times carelessly omit them and thus confuse the reader. We should make it as much of a habit to use them cor- rectly as to spell correctly. Exercise 1. Account for all uses of the marks of punctuation in the following extracts: — We trudged in and out of La Fdre streets; we saw shops, and private houses where people were copiously dining; we saw stables where carters' nags had plenty of fodder and clean straw; we saw no end of reservists, who were very sorry for themselves this wet night, I doubt not, and yearned for their country homes. — Stevemon: An Inland Voyage. 26 PUNCTUATION 27 2. Then, Sir, from these six capital sources: of descent, of form of government, of religion in the northern provinces, of manners in the southern, of education, of the remoteness of situation from the first mover of government, — from all these causes a fierce spirit of liberty has grown up. — Burke: Conciliation with America. 3. Shakespere's "Macbeth" contains the suggestive passage quoted below. — "Enter Lady Macbeth: reading a letter. "Lady M. 'They met me in the day of success: and I have learned by the perfectest report, they have more in them than mortal knowledge. When I burned in desire to question them further, they made themselves air, into which they vanished. Whiles I stood rapt in the wonder of it, came missives from the king, who all-hailed me "Thane of Cawdor"; by which title, before, these weird sisters saluted me, and referred me to the coming on of time, with "Hail, king that shalt be!" This have I thought good to deliver thee, my dearest partner of greatness, that thou mightst not lose the dues of rejoicing, by being ignorant of what greatness is promised thee. Lay it to thy heart, and farewell.' " Exercise 2. Copy the following exercises and punc- , tuate them wherever clearness or proper usage requires that they should be punctuated: — Boston has two terminal railway stations viz. the North Union Station and the South Union Station. There is not an hour in the day when people are not hiurying through them intent on some kind of business but perhaps the busiest hour of the day is the one about six o'clock when people are rushing for their home trains. At that time the interested spectator may stand £tod watch the surging stream of life business men who have laid aside the cares of the day and are looking forward to meeting their families women loaded with bags boxes and bundles children tired out with their 28 ^ FOUNDATION ENGLISH days jaunt and railway officials keeping careful watch of everything or busily engaged in their various duties. Reuben is a very lovable little boy. Among his playmates he is called Little Gentleman a title given to him because his manners are like those of a gentleman. He has also been dubbed The Peace- maker. One day at recess a big boy named Ben was making fun of a httle boys writing. Your 2s and 7s look like pot-hooks he shouted and your bs and da dont know which way to turn. The httle boy began to cry and Reuben comforted him by saying tactfully When youre as big as Ben youU make em all right. On another day the same big boy snatched a pencil from a httle girl. Its mine he shouted tauntingly and jabbed it into the fence. O youve broken its point sobbed the little girl. Never mind said Reuben to the Httle girls joy. Ill sharpen it for you. Reuben hke all bright httle boys is very fond of reading. He is especially fond of Coopers Leather-Stocking Tales and Coffins war stories. His favorite books are The Last of the Mohicans and The Boys of 76. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following compositions aloud; — 1. A Heidenberg stove, filled to the brim with intensely burning anthracite, w£is sending a bright gleam through the isinglass of its iron door, and causing the vase of water on its top to fume and bubble with excitement. A warm, sultry smell was diffused through- out the room. A thermometer on the wall farthest from the stove stood at eighty degrees. The parlor was hung with red curtains, and covered with a red carpet, and looked just as warm as it felt. The difference betwixt the atmosphere here and the cold, wintry twiUght out of doors, was like stepping at once from Nova Zembla to the hottest part of India, or from the North Pole into an oven. Oh, this was a fijie place for the httle white stranger. — Hawthorne: The Snow Image, EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 29 The dinner was served up in the great hall, where the squire always held his Christmas banquet. A blazing crackling fire of logs had been heaped on to warm the spacious apartment, and the flame went sparkling and wreathing up- the wide-mouthed chimney. The great picture of the crusader and his white horse had been profusely decorated with greens for the occasion; and holly and ivy had likewise been wreathed round the helmet and weapons on the opposite wall, which I understood were the arms of the same war- rior. ... A sideboard was set out just under this chivalric trophy, on which was a display of plate that might have vied (at least in variety) with Belshazzar's parade of the vessels of the temple: "flagons, cans, cups, beakers, goblets, basins, and ewers;" the gorgeous utensils of good companionship that had gradually accumulated through many generations of jovial housekeepers. Before these stood the two Yule candles, beaming like two stars of the first magnitude; other lights were distributed in branches, and the whole array gUttered like a firmament of silver. — Irving: The Christmas Dinner. 3. It had a garret, very nearly such a one as it seems to me one of us has described in one of his books; but let us look at this one as I can reproduce it from memory. It has a flooring of laths with ridges of mortar squeezed up between them, which if you tread on you will go to — the Lord have mercy on you! where wiU you go to? — the same being crossed by narrow bridges of boards, on which you may put your feet, but with fear and trembling. Above you and around you are beams and joists, on some of which you may see, when the light is let in, the marks of the conchoidal cHp- pings of the broad-axe, showing the rude way in which the timber was shaped as it came, full of sap, from the neighboring forest. It is a realm of darkness and thick dust, and shroud-like cobwebs and dead things they wrap in their gray folds. For a garret is like a sea-shore, where wrecks are thrown up and slowly go to pieces. There is the cradle which the old man you just remember was rocked in; there is the ruin of the bedstead he died on; that ugly slanting contrivance used to be put under his pillow in the days when his 80 FOUNDATION ENGLISH breath came hard; there is his old chair with both arms gone, symbol of the desolate time when he had nothing earthly left to lean on; there is the large wooden reel which the blear-eyed old deacon sent the minister's lady, who thanked him graciously, and twirled it smihngly, and in fitting season bowed it out decently to the Umbo of troublesome conveniences. And there are old leather port- manteaus, like stranded porpoises, their mouths gaping in gaunt hunger for the food with which they used to be gorged to bulging repletion; and old brass andirons, waiting imtil time shall revenge them on their paltry substitutes, and they shall have their own again, and bring with them the fore-stick and the back-log of ancient days; and the empty churn, with its idle dasher, which the Nancys and Phoebes, who have left their comfortable places to the Bridgets and Norahs, used to handle to good purpose; and the brown, shaky old spinning-wheel, which was running, it may be, in the days when they were hanging the Salem witches. — Holmes: TheGawbrel- Roofed House. Class discussion. 1. Find for each of the above compositions a subject which will define the idea the author meant to convey- 2. What details determined your choice of subject in each case? 3. In the last composition, what expressions give the piece a human quality? 4. Find other words for the following, taken from the first composition: intensely, fume, diffused, 5. In the second extract: spacious, profusely, vied, jovial, gorgeous. 6. In each composition find an illustration used to make the picture more vivid. Subjects for written composition. From the following subjects choose one which has come under your close observation: — 1. A spacious play-room. 2. Your grandmother's old-fashioned garret. 3. Your own cluttered attic. 4. A cluttered corner of the barn or cellar. 5. A fine playground. 6. A comfortable EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 31 veranda. 7. A cosy corner. 8. Your "den," or work- shop. 9. An untidy back-yard. 10. A well-kept orchard. Subjects for oral composition. 1. Read the poem aloud. 2. Why did the "Royal George " go down? 3. Tell the story of some other vessel that has sunk, and floated again. LOSS OF THE ROYAL GEORGE. Toll for the Brave I The brave that are no morel All sunk beneath the wave Fast by their native shore I Eight hundred of the brave Whose courage well was tried, Had made the vessel heel And laid her on her side. A land-breeze shook the shrouds And she was overset; Down went the Royal George, With all her crew complete. Toll for the bravel Brave Kempenfelt is gone; His last sea-fight is fought. His work of glory done. It was not in the battle; No tempest gave the shock; She sprang no fatal leak. She ran upon no rock. His sword was in its sheath. His fingers held the pen. When Kempenfelt went down in^th twice four hundred men. 32 FOUNDATION ENGLISH — ^Weigh the vessel up Once dreaded by our foes! And mingle with our cup The tears that England owes. Her timbers yet are soimd, And she may float again Full charged with England's thunder, And plough the distant main: But Kempenfelt is gone, His victories are o'er; And he and his eight hundred Shall plough the wave no more. ■W. Cowper, LESSON VII I. Clearness in the Expression of Ideas by means of Capitals. 1. It might be objected that capitals have nothing to do with clearness, because arbitrary rules govern their use. While this objection is true in a certain measure, we should remember that the primary use of capitals is to distinguish certain classes of words, and thus to make ideas clearer to the reader. 2. We have already found how necessary to clearness it is to have our sentences begin with capitals. In addi- tion to this regular use are other usages, rules for which we have been learning throughout our school course. Rules for these usages will be found in Appendix B, p. 256 and they should be consulted in all cases of doubt. It is as important to use a capital in the proper place as it is to spell correctly, or to punctuate properly. Exercise 1. Give the rule for the use of the capitals in bold face type in the following: — 1. In the December "Atlantic Monthly" there is an article on 'rExpan- sion through Reciprocity," one on the question of whether Italy will renew the Triple Alliance, an essay on the literature of the Civil War, and a Christmas poem by Julia C. R. Dorr. By Woden, god of Saxons, From whence comes Wensday, that is Wodensday, Truth is a thing that ever I will keep. 33 34 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 3. We set sail for Europe in April, soon after Lent, and returned early in September. We were steaming into New York Harbor on Labor Day. On our boat were Jews and Gentiles, Catholics and Protestants, French and German people, an Ambassador from Italy, and even an Indian student, returning to Carlisle after his holidays spent in the Trossachs. Exercise 2. Account for the uses of the capital in the following poem: — MUCKLE-MOUTH MEG. Frowned the Laird on the Lord: "So, red-handed I catch thee? Death-doomed by our Law of the Borderl We've a gallows outside, and a chiel to dispatch thee: Who trespasses, hangs; all's in order." He met frown with smile, did the young English gallant; Then the Laird's dame: " Nay, husband, I beg! He's comely: be merciful I Grace for the callant, If he marries our Muckle-mouth Meg!" "No mile-wide-mouthed monster of yours do I marry; Grant rather the gallows! " laughed he. "Foul fare kith and kin of you — why do you tarry?" "To tame your fierfce temper!" quoth she. "Shove him quick in the Hole, shut him fast for a week: Cold, darkness, and hunger work wonders; Who Hon-like roars now, mouse-fashion will squeak, And *it rains' soon succeeds to 'it thunders.* " A week did he bide in the cold and the dark — Not hunger: for duly at morning In flitted a lass, and a voice like a lark Chirped, "Muckle-mouth Meg still ye're scorning? EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 35 "Go hang, but here's parritch to hearten ye firstl" "Did Meg's muckle-mouth boast within some Such music as yours, mine should match it or burst: No frog-jaws! So tell folk, my Winsome! " Soon week came to end, and, from Hole's door set wide, Out he marched, and there waited the lassie: "Yon gallows, or Muckle-mouth Meg for a bride! Consider! Sky's blue and turf's grassy: "Life's sweet : shall I say ye wed Muckle-mouth Meg?" "Not I," quoth the stout heart; " too eerie The mouth that can swallow a bubblyjock's egg: Shall I let it munch mine? Never, Dearie! " "Not Muckle-mouth Meg? Wow, the obstinate man! Perhaps he would rather wed me! " "Ay, would he — ^with just for a dowry your can! " " I'm Muckle-mouth Meg," chirruped she. "Then so — so — so — so — " as he kissed her apace — "Will I widen thee out till thou tumest From Margaret Minnikin-mou', by God's grace, To Muckle-mouth Meg in good earnest! " — Robert Brouming. n. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following composition aloud: — Will Wimble is yoimger brother of a baronet and descended of the ancient family of the Wimbles. He is now between forty and fifty: but being bred to no business, and bom to no estate, he generally lives with his elder brother as superintendent of his game. He hunts a pack of dogs better than any man in the country, and is very famous for finding out a hare. He is extremely well versed in all the little handicrafts of an idle man: he makes a May-fly to a miracle; and furnishes the whole country with angle rods. As he is a good-natured officious fellow, and very much esteemed upon 6 36 FOUNDATION ENGLISH account of his family, he is a welcome guest at every house, and keeps up a good correspondence among all the gentlemen about him. He carries a tulip-root in his pocket from one to another, or exchanges a puppy between a couple of friends that live perhaps in the opposite sides of the county. Will is a particular favorite of all the young heirs, whom he frequently obUges with a net that he has weaved, or a setting dog that he has made himself. He now and then presents a pair of garters of his own knitting to their mothers or sisters; and raises a great deal of mirth among them by inquiring as often as he meets them, how they wear? These gen- tleman-like manufactures and obliging little humours make Will the darling of the country. — Addison: The Spectator. Class discussion. 1. What are the "gentleman-like manufactures " and "obliging little humors " that make Will Wimble the "darling of the country" ? 2. Find other expressions in the paragraph that here mean the same as "the darling of the country". 3. What excuse had this man for being without regular employment? 4. Why would "An Idle Man " not be a good title for the paragraph? 5. In what ways did he make himself welcome, and by these ways to what classes of people? 6. How does the writer of the extract make use of illustration or example? Subjects for written composition. Choose one: — 1. A welcome guest at our house. 2. The most popular boy (or girl) of our crowd. 3. An obliging fellow. 4. An agreeable companion. 5. A useful man (or woman, boy or girl). 6. The pet of the neighbor- hood. 7. A boy who makes himself a bore. 8. The man in our neighborhood who makes suggestions. 9. The most unselfish member of my family. 10. The unlucky member of my family. 11. The characters opposite. ' • . •• • • EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 87 Subjects for oral composition. 1. Read the poem aloud. 2. Describe what the poet saw as he stood "tip-toe upon a little hill". 3. Describe what you can see from the hill in your town. 4. Describe the scene given in the picture opposite p. 157. I STOOD TIP-TOE. I stood tip-toe upon a little hill, The air was cooling, and so very still, That the sweet buds which with a modest pride Pull droopingly, in slanting curve aside. Their scantly leaved, and finely tapering steins, Had not yet lost those starry diadems Caught from the early sobbing of the morn. The clouds were pure and white as flocks new shorn. And fresh from the clear brook; sweetly they slept On the blue fields of heaven, and then there crept A Uttle noiseless noise among the leaves, Bom of the very sigh that silence heaves: For not the faintest motion could be seen Of all the shades that slanted o'er the green. There was wide wand'ring for the greediest eye, To peer about upon variety; Far round the horizon's crystal air to skim, And trace the dwindled edgings of its brim; To picture out the quaint, and curious bending Of a fresh woodland alley, never ending; Or by the bowery clefts, and leafy shelves. Guess where the jaunty streams refresh themselves. I gazed awhile, and felt as light and free As though the fanning wings of Mercury Had played upon my heels: I was light-hearted, And many pleasures to my vision started; So I straightway began to pluck a posy Of luxuries bright, milky, soft, and rosy. —John Keata, LESSON VIII I. Correct Use of Words in the Expression of Ideas. 1. Correctness in the use of words is a most necessary requirement for the expression of ideas. In order to use words correctly we should know the correct meaning of the words and the correct place in which to use them. A word which might be wholly correct in one place might be wholly incorrect in another place. For example, we may say an elegant lady, but we may not say an elegant book. Why? Irving may say, ''This sequestered glen has long been known by the name of Sleepy Hollow," but we may not say, "The Ubrarian hunted long for a sequestered book". Why? 2. Sometimes an incorrect use of words leads to actual vulgarity. For example, if we say "The teacher was mad," we ought to mean that the teacher's intellect was diseased. If we say "She is an awful girl", we are using a word that should be used in connection only with things that fill us with awe. 3. While we are learning to write we shall have to be consciously careful to use words correctly. To help us, we may notice how cultured and educated people use words. We should never hear them say that they ^^adore peaches and cream". We may notice how the best authors use words in their writings. We never read there that "this is a nice day" though we might read the expression, "In the nice ear of nature which song was the best?" EXPREJgSION OF IDEAS 39 A surer way still of using words correctly is to look up their meaning in the dictionary, especially when we need to use a new word or one the meaning of which we are not quite sure of. Good taste and high aims will lead us to avoid words which are vulgarly incorrect. Exercise 1. Look up the exact meaning of each of the following words and use them correctly in oral sentences : — (1) act, action; (2) fetch, carry; (3) couple, pair; (4) defeat, vanquish; (5) depot, railway-station; (6) discover, invent; (7) home, house, residence; (8) lady, woman; (9) learn, teach; (10) mad, angry; (11) team, carriage. Exercise 2. Use the following words correctly in written sentences : bully, swell, horrid, yell, limit, funny, quite, dandy, healthy, nice, affect, accept. n. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following composition aloud: — In this by-place of nature, there abode, in a remote period of American history, that is to say, some thirty years since, a worthy wight of the name of Ichabod Crane; who sojourned, or, as he expressed it, "tarried," in Sleepy Hollow for the purpose of instruct- ing the children of the vicinity. He was a native of Connecticut; a State which suppUes the Union with pioneers for the mind as well as for the forest, and sends forth yearly its legions of frontier woods- men and coimtry schoolmasters. The cognomen of Crane was not inappUcable to his person. He was tall, but exceedingly lank, with narrow shoulders, long arms and legs, hands that dangled a mile out of his sleeves, feet that might have served for shovels, and his whole frame most loosely hung together. His head was smaU, and flat at top, with huge ears, large green glassy eyes, and a long snipe nose, so that it looked like a weather-cock, perched upon his spindle neck, to tell which way the wind blew. To see him striding along the profile of a hill on a windy day, with his clothes bagging and fluttering about him, one might have mistaken him 40 FOUNDATION ENGLISH for the genius of famine descending upon the earth, or some scare- crow eloped from a cornfield. — Irving: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Class discussion. 1. Notice that this character-sketch differs in its aim from the one in the last Lesson. How? 2. What is a craned 3. Do you find any points of similarity between Ichabod and a crane? 4. Does the description seem to you to be exaggerated? If so, can you find any excuse for the exaggeration? 6. Does the choice of words present a vivid picture to your mind? Illustrate. 7. What force have the words wight ^ tarried, sojourned , cognomeuy as Irving uses them? 8. What is a snipe nose? 9. What is the force of the illustration of the weather-cockf Subjects for written composition. Choose one: — 1. Some boy that you know has a nick- name among the boys. Describe him so that the reader may see the point in the name. 2. Describe a queer character in your town, or at your summer home, who is known by some name given to him on account of his peculiarity. 3. Describe some character from a book that you have read that reminds you of Ichabod Crane. 4. Mr. Blunderbus. 5. My friend. Fatty . 6. Goldilocks. 7. Honest Abe. 8. My queenly friend. 9. Miss Mischief. 10. Mr. Know-It-AU. Subjects for oral composition. 1. Read the poem aloud. 2. Tell the story in prose. 3. Tell another story of a lost child. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 41 LUCY GRAY. Oft I had heard of Lucy Gray: And when I cross' d the wild, I chanced to see at break of day The solitary child. No mate, no comrade Lucy knew; She dwelt on a wide moor. The sweetest thing that ever grew Beside a human doorl You yet may spy the fawn at play, The hare upon the green; But the sweet face of Lucy Gray Will never more be seen. " Tonight will be a stormy night — You to the town must go; And take a lantern, Child, to Hght Your mother through the snow." " That, Fatherl will I gladly do: 'Tis scarcely afternoon — The minster-clock has just struck two, And yonder is the moon! " At this the father raised his hook, And snapp'd a faggot-band; He plied his work; — and Lucy took The lantern in her hand. Not bUther is the mountain roe: With many a wanton stroke Her feet disperse the powdery snow, That rises up like smoke. The storm came on before its time: She wander'd up and down; And many a hill did Lucy climb: Put never reach'd the towij, 42 FOUNDATION ENGLISH The wretched parents all that night Went shouting far and wide; But there was neither soimd nor sight To serve them for a guide. At day-break on a hill they stood That overlooked the moor; And thence they saw the bridge of wood A furlong from their door. They wept — and, turning homeward, cried "In heaven we all shall meet!" — When in the snow the mother spied The print of Lucy's feet. Then downwards from the steep hill's edge They track'd the footmarks small; And through the broken hawthorn hedge. And by the long stone-wall; And then an open field they cross'd: The marks were still the same; They track'd them on, nor ever lost; And to the bridge they came : They follow'd from the snowy bank Those footmarks, one by one, Into the middle of the plank; And further there were none I — Yet some maintain that to this day She is a living child; That you may see sweet Lucy Gray Upon the lonesome wild. O'er rough and smooth she trips along. And never looks behind; And sings a soUtary song That whistles in the wind. — TT. WordswoHh. LESSON IX I. Correct Use of Words in the Expression of Ideas. Exercise 1. Look up the exact meaning of each of the following words and use them correctly in oral sentences: (1) balance, remainder; (2) council, counsel; (3) emigrate, immigrate; (4) relation, relative; (5) party, person; (6) admire, love, like; (7) aggravate, provoke; (8) recollect, remember; (9) bring, take; (10) between? among; (11) principal, principle; (12) expect, think; (13) ride, drive; (14) leave, let; (15) guess, think; (16) sit, set; (17) expect, suspect; (18) oral, verbal; (19) scholar pupil, student; (20) after, afterward. Exercise 2. Use the following words correctly in written sentences: lovely, luscious, awful, mad, ghastly, gorgeous, sure, couple, near by, lucky, effect, except. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following compositions aloud: — 1. A DIKE. A dike is a mound or embankment thrown up to prevent low lands from being inundated by water. 2. AN OLD ENGLISH DIKE. The dike, extending from the rough North Sea to the calm water of Bridlington Bay, is nothing more than a deep, dry trench, skil- fully following the hollows of the ground, and cutting off Flam- borough Head and a solid cantle of high land from the rest of York- shire. — Blackmore: Lorna Doone. 43 44 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 1. A CAUSEWAY. A causeway is a way raised above the natural level of the ground by stones, timber, or earth, serving as a dry passage over wet or marshy ground. 2. THE GIANT'S CAUSEWAY. The Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland is on the margin of a dissected lava plateau, whose clifiFs descend boldly to the sea. The name is given because the lava beds are cracked or "jointed" so that their siuface imitates an artificial pavement or "causeway." — Davis : Physical Geography, Class discussion. 1. In what way do the selections numbered 2, differ from or resemble those numbered 1? 2. Which is the more interesting and why? 3. Note that in the selec- tions numbered 2 the words are few but they present the idea strongly. Find illustrations. Subjects for written compositions. Choose one of the following subjects or a subject suggested by them. Write first a brief definition of the thing in gen^ eralj and second, a brief description or explanation of the specific thing you have in mind. 1. A delta; The Miss- issippi Delta. 2. A jetty; The Jetties at Oak Bluffs. 3. A harbor; Boston Harbor. 4. Give a general defini- tion of one of the following and a brief explanation of a particular one in the place where you live, — (1) A turnpike, (2) a portage path, (3) a suspension bridge, (4) a natural bridge, (5) a precipice, (6) a glen, (7) a filtering-gallery, (8) a stand-pipe, (9) a canal, (10) a dime, (11) a cove (12) a cape, (13) a prairie^ (14) a moor, (15) a plain. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 45 Subjects for oral composition. 1. Read the poem aloud. 2. What vision did the song of the thrush present to the eyes of "poor Susan". 3. Describe Susan as she is at the time of the vision and as she was when the vision was reahty. 4. Recall some scene of your own childhood and present a word picture of it. THE REVERIE OF POOR SUSAN. At the comer of Wood Street, when daylight appears, Hangs a Thrush that sings loud, it has sung for three years: Poor Susan has pass'd by the spot, and has heard In the silence of morning the song of the bird. 'Tis a note of enchantment; what ails her? She sees A moimtain ascending, a vision of trees; Bright volumes of vapour through Lothbury gUde, And a river flows on through the vale of Cheapside. Green pastures she views in the midst of the dale Down which she so often has tripp'd with her pail; And a single small cottage, a nest like a dove's, The one only dwelling on earth that she loves. She looks, and her heart is in heaven: but they fade, The mist and the river, the hill and the shade; The stream will not flow, and the hill wiU not rise. And the colours have all pass'd away from her eyesi — W, Wordsuwrth. LESSON X I. Choice of Words in the Expression of Ideas. S3monyms. 1. Often in using words the question is not so much, **What word will be correct to use in this place?" as, *'What word is best to use in this place, either to make the idea perfectly clear to the reader or to give further explanation of the idea? " That is to say, we should not use words carelessly, but should exercise the greatest precision and judgment in their choice. For example, we may have before us the following list of words: inquisi- tivcj inquiring, meddlesome, peeping, prying, curious. These words at first glance seem to name the same characteristic, but careful examination will show that there is a shade of difference in their meaning. We might need to use several of the words to make our idea clear. 2. The words given in the list above may be called S3monyms. Sjmonyms are names which may be sub- stituted for the same thing. Sometimes, however, a synonym may be used incorrectly; as for example, we may say a notorious thief and a celebrated author, when it might be wrong to say a celebrated thief and a notorious author. We say loosely, ^'The battle of Lexington'' when it was hardly more than a fight. These examples serve to show us that in using a synonym, we should not think of the sjnionym only, but of the idea which the synonym is to set forth. 46 USE OP THE SYNONYM 47 3. The dictionary will give us lists of sjmonyms; sometimes, sentences to illustrate their use; and always, their meaning. We shall have to exercise our own judg- ment in our choice of a word. Exercise 1. In the following extracts find synonyms:— Addison sat for Malmsbury in the House of Commons which was elected in 1708. But the House of Commons was not the field for him. The bashfulness of his nature made his wit and eloquence useless in debate. He once rose, but could not overcome his diffi- dence, and ever after remained silent. . , . To the excessive modesty of Addison's nature, we must ascribe another fault which generally arises from a very different cause. He became a Uttle too fond of seeing himself surrounded by a small circle of admirers, to whom he was as a King, or rather as a God. He was undoubtedly one of the most popular men of his time; and much of his popularity he owed, we beUeve, to that very timidity which his friends lamented. That timidity often prevented him from exhibiting his talents to the best advantage. — Macaulay: Life and Writinga of Addison. Exercise 2. Find words, in the following extracts, which show Macaulay's evident care to choose the right word: — Poetry produces an illusion on the eye of the mind, as a magic lantern produces an illusion on the eye of the body. And, as the magic lantern acts best in a dark room, poetry effects its purpose most completely in a dark age. As the light of knowledge breaks in upon its exhibitions, as the outlines of certainty become more and more definite, and the shades of probability more and more distinct, the hues and hneaments of the phantoms which the poet calls up grow fainter and fainter. We cannot unite the incompatible advantages of reality and deception, the clear discernment of truth and the exquisite enjoyment of fiction. — Macatday: Milton. 48 I^OUNDATION ENGLISH There would seem, at first sight, to be no more in his words than in other words. But they are words of enchantment. No sooner are they pronounced, than the past is present and the distant near. New forms of beauty start at once into existence, and all the burial- places of the memory give up their dead. Change the structure of the sentence, substitute one synonym for another, and the whole effect is destroyed. The spell loses its power; and he who should then hope to conjure with it would find himself as much mistaken as Cassim in the Arabian tale, when he stood crying, "Open Wheat", "Open Barley", to the door which obeyed no sound but "Open Sesame".— /6wi. Exercise 3. Write sentences in which you make choice of synonyms from the following lists : — 1. Idleness, laziness, indolence, inactivity; or, idle, lazy, indolent, inactive. 2. Fluctuate, hesitate, oscillate, vacillate, waver. 3. Faint, faint-hearted, irresolute, languid, listless. 4. Excuse, pretense, pretext, subterfuge. 5. Ignorant, illiterate, uninformed, uninstructed, unlet- tered, untaught. 6. Requite, retaliate, repay, satisfy. 7. Disown, disclaim, disavow, renounce, repudiate, retract. 8. Compassion, forbearance, sympathy, lenience, mercy, justice. 9. Cause, consideration, design, ground, motive, object, reason, purpose. 10. Delight, ecstasy, gladness, gratification, happiness, cheer, jollity, satisfaction. n. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following composition aloud: — SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITION 40 DIRECTIONS FOR SHUTTING OFF THE STEAM. When it is found necessary to shut off the steam from the radiator in this room, be sure to close both valves. On no account close one valve and leave the other open. Any violation of this order will be reported to the School-Board. Class discussion. The above directions were printed on a card and placed over the radiators of a certain school-house. Note (1) that the directions are brief. Why? Note (2) that there are no waste words and yet that every neces- sary word is given. What is gained by so doing? (3) Why is the word "valve" repeated in the second sentence? (4) Why are the sentences put in the order given? Why not have had the second or third sentence first? (5) What words might be substituted for "violation"? Subjects for written composition. 1. Give directions for using a telephone. 2. For using an ice-cream freezer, or a meat-chopper. 3. For running a phonograph or for operating a camera. 4. For opening and closing a transom window. 5. For turning electric lights off and on. 6. For landing a trout, or a blue-fish, or a bass. 7. For using any mechanical contrivance or device. 8. For spinning a top. 9. For beating cake. 10. For oiling up an automobile or sewing machine. Subjects for oral composition. 1. Read the poem aloud. 2. What will Corinna see if she goes a Maying? 3. Describe a May-walk of your own. 50 FOUNDATION ENGLISH CORINNA'S MAYING. Get up, get up for shame 1 The blooming mom Upon her wings presents the god unshorn. See how Aurora throws her fair Fresh-quilted colours through the air: Get up, sweet Slug-a-bed, and see The dew bespangling herb and tree. Each flower has wept, and bow'd toward the east, Above an hour since; yet you not drest, Nayl not so much as out of bed? When all the birds have matins said, And sung their thankful hymns: 'tis sin, Nay, profanation, to keep in, — Whenas a thousand virgins on this day, Spring, sooner than the lark, to fetch-in May. Rise; and put on your foliage, and be seen To come forth, like the Spring-time, fresh and green And sweet as Flora. Take no care For jewels for your gown, or hair: Fear not; the leaves will strew Gems in abundance upon you: Besides, the childhood of the day has kept, Against you come, some orient pearls unwept: Come, and receive them while the Hght Hangs on the dew-locks of the night: And Titan on the eastern hill Retires himself, or else stands still Till you come forth. Wash, dress, be brief in prajring; Few beads are best, when once we go a Maying. Come, my Corinna, come; and coming, mark How each field turns a street; each street a park Made green, and trimm'd with trees: see how Devotion gives each house a bough Or branch: Each porch, each door, ere this, An ark, a tabernacle is. Made up of white- thorn neatly interwove; As if here were those cooler shades of love. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 51 Can such delights be in the street, And open fields, and we not see't? Come, we'll abroad: and let's obey The proclamation made for May: And sin no more, as we have done, by staying; But, my Corinna, come, let's go a Maying. There's not a budding boy, or girl, this day, But is got up, and gone to bring in May. A deal of youth, ere this, is come Back, and with white-thorn laden home. Some have despatch'd their cakes and cream, Before that we have left to dream: And some have wept, and woo'd, and plighted troth, And chose their priest, ere we can cast off sloth: Many a green-gown has been given; Many a kiss, both odd and even: Many a glance too has been sent From out the eye. Love's firmament: Many a jest told of the keys betraying This night, and locks pick'd: — ^Yet we're not a Maying. — Come, let us go, while we are in our prime; And take the harmless folly of the time I We shall grow old apace, and die Before we know our liberty. Our life is short; and our days run As fast away as does the sun: — And as a vapour, or a drop of rain Once lost, can ne'er be found again: So when or you or I are made A fable, song, or fleeting shade; All love, all liking, all dehght Lies drown'd with us in endless night. Then while time serves, and we are but decaying, Come, my Corinnal come, let's go a Maying. — B. Herrick, LESSON XI I. Variety in the Expression of Ideas. 1. In order to give variety to the expression of our ideas we should vary our vocabulary as far as good taste and good sense will allow. For example, if we wish to develop the idea of size, we have for the term large, such words as great, roomy, vast, massive, huge, capacious, immense, tremendous, gigantic, spacious, enor- mous. For the word very we may substitute extremely, excessively, exceedingly. For the word work, we may use toil, task, labor, employment, business, drudgery, study, stint^ vocation, calling, 2. In striving for variety our idea is not so much an effort to strengthen our thought by choosing a better word, as an effort to make our ideas more attractive to the reader as well as more forcible, and to prevent a tiresome monotony of words. The old adage, "Variety is the spice of life", will serve in the expression of ideas, as well as in other relations of life. Exercise 1. Find words that give variety in the fol- lowing extract. See if you could substitute still other words. During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone on horseback through a singularly dreary tract of country, and at length found myself, as the shades of even- ing drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher. I know not how it was — but, with the first glimpse of the building, a sense of insufferable gloom pervaded my spirit. I say insufferable, 52 VARIETY IN THE USE OP WORDS 63 for the feeling was unrelieved by any of that half-pleasurable, because poetic, sentiment with which the mind usually receives even the sternest natural images of the desolate or terrible. I looked upon the scene before me — upon the mere house, and the simple landscape features of the domain — upon the bleak walls — upon the vacant, eyelike windows — upon a few rank sedges — and upon a few white trunks of decayed trees — with an utter depression of soul which I can compare to no earthly sensation more properiy than to the after-dream of the reveller upon opium — the bitter lapse into everyday life — the hideous dropping of the veil. There was an iciness, a sinking, a sickening of the heart — an unredeemed dreariness of thought which no goading of the imagina- tion could torture into aught of the subKme. What was it — I paused to think — what was it that so unnerved me in the con- templation of the House of Usher? It was a mystery all insoluble; nor could I grapple with the shadowy fancies that crowded upon me as I pondered. ... It was possible, I reflected, that a mere different arrangement of the particulars of the scene, of the details of the picture, would be suflBcient to modify, or perhaps to annihilate, its capacity for sorrowful impression, and, acting upon this idea, I reined my horse to the precipitous brink of a black and liuid tarn that lay in unruflBed lustre by the dwelling, and gazed down — but with a shudder more thrilling than before — upon the remodelled and inverted images of the gray sedge, and the ghastly tree-stems, and the vacant and eyelike windows. — Poe: The Fall of the House of Usher. Exercise 2. Find as many words as possible to substitute for the italicized words in the following expressions: — 1. A pleasant 'place. 2. A pretty scene. 3. A little cloud. 4. Very warm. 5. A loud noise. 6. A still day. 7. A large rock. 8. A beautiful girl. 9. A good composition. 10. A sheltered nook. 11. A had mistake. 12. A great difference. n. Expression of Ideas in Compositions. Read the following compositions aloud: — 54 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 1. Experiment for Transmitting Sound- Waves. Lay a watch with its back downward, on a long board (or table) near to one of its ends, and cover the watch with loo8« folds of cloth till its ticking cannot be heard through the air in any direction at a distance equal to the length of the board. Now place the ear in contact with the farther end of the board, and you wiU hear the ticking of the watch very distinctly. — Gage: Introduction to Physical Science, 2. Experiment in Charging with Electricity. Rub a rubber comb with a woolen cloth or draw it a few times through your hair (if dry). Hold the comb over a handful of bits of tissue paper; the papers quickly jump to the comb, stick to it for an instant, and then leap energetically from it. The papers are first attracted to the comb, but in a short time acquire some of its electrification, and then are repelled. — Gage: Introduction to Physical Science. Class Discussion. 1. Note that in the above experiments, materials and directions for using are given first, and results are given finally. 2. Select expressions which might easily have been omitted through carelessness and thus have made the experiment come out wrong. 3. What is the force of the word contact in the first selection? 4. What other words might have been used for dis- tinctly, the last word in the first selection? 5. Find words to express motion in the second selection. 6. What idea is conveyed to you by the use of the word energetically? 7. By the use of the word repelled? Subjects for written composition. 1. Explain how to perform a simple experiment or a trick for an evening's entertainment. 2. Explain how SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITION 66 to do a sleight-of-hand performance. 3. Explain how to perform an experiment in chemistry or physics or biology. 4. Explain how to make a fancy cake or a pudding or to do a simple piece of fancy work. 5. Give directions for making a hammered brass candle- shade. 6. Give directions for making a pretty salad, or a fruit dessert. 7. Describe a new design or use for raffia-work. 8. Account for the reflection of clouds in the water in the picture opposite page 157. Subjects for oral composition. 1. Read the poem aloud. 2. Give an imaginary word-picture of Dalton-Hall. 3. What answer did the outlaw make to the words of the maiden^s song? 4. What famous outlaw do you know about? Tell something about him. THE OUTLAW. O Brignall banks are wild and fair, And Greta woods are green, And you may gather garlands there Would grace a summer-queen. And as I rode by Dalton-Hall Beneath the turrets high, A Maiden on the castle-wall Was singing merrily: "O Brignall banks are fresh and fair, And Greta woods are green; I'd rather rove with Edmimd there Than reign our English queen." 66 FOUNDATION ENGLISH "If, Maiden, thou wouldst wend with me, To leave both tower and town, Thou first must guess what life lead we That dwell by dale and down. And if thou canst that riddle read. As read full well you may, Then to the greenwood shalt thou speed As blithe as Queen of May." Yet sung she, "Brignall banks are fair, And Greta woods are green; I'd rather rove with Edmund there Than reign our EngUsh queen. "I read you, by your bugle-horn And by your palfrey good, I read you for a ranger sworn To keep the king's greenwood." "A Ranger, lady, winds his horn, And 'tis at peep of light; His blast is heard at merry mom, And mine at dead of night." Yet sung she, "Brignall banks are fair, And Greta woods are gay; I would I were with Edmund there To reign his Queen of May! "With bumish'd brand and musketoon So gallantly you come, I read you for a bold Dragoon That lists the tuck of drum." "I list no more the tuck of drum. No more the trumpet hear; But when the beetle sounds his hum My conu-ades take the spear. And 01 though Brignall banks be fair And Greta woods be gay, Yet mickle must the maiden dare Would reign my Queen of Mayl EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 57 "Maiden I a nameless life I lead, A nameless death I'll die; The fiend whose lantern lights the mead Were better mate than II And when I'm with my comrades met Beneath the greenwood bough, — What once we were we all forget, Nor think what we are now." Chorus. "Yet Brignall banks are fresh and fair, And Greta woods are green. And you may gather garlands there Would grace a summer-queen." —Sir W, ScoU. LESSON XII I. Vividness in the Expression of Ideas. 1. To gain vividness we should use words which will make the reader see the idea or image we have in mind. One way to do this is to substitute specific words for vague general words. For example, quadruped, animaly vessel, are general words; they name a class of objects: Boston-terrier f red-fox, four-masted schooner, are specific words; they name the individuals of a class of objects. Of the two sentences that follow, which presents the idea more vividly, and why? A vessel sailed across the bay. A cat-boat sped across the bay. 2. In the sentences which follow may be found exam- ples of the way in which an idea may be made vivid by the use of specific words: — ... a dash of rain came swirling across from the crest of Ben Garin, whose steep bulk heaved itself a blue haystack above the level horizon of the moorland. . . . when the rain blattered and the wind raved and bleated alternately among the pines of the Long Wood of Barbrax. . . . where Robert Kirk's dike dipped into the standing water of the meadow. It was duskily clear, with a great lake of crimson light dying into purple over the hills of midsunmaer heather. . , . humorsome, kindly eyes that lurked under their bushy tussocks of gray eyebrow. It was a bask blowy day in the end of March, and there waa a hmt of storm in the air — . . . where the mother granite sticks her bleaching ribs through the heather. 68 IDEAS IN THE SHORT THEME 59 . . . the heights of the crags, where, under its shallow coveriii^ of turf and heather, the gray teeth of the granite shone. — S, R, Crockett: The Stickit Minister and Other Stories. Beyond, red roofs about a narrow wharf In cluster; then a molder'd church; and higher A long street climbs to one tall tower'd mill. — Tennyson, Exercise 1. Find specific words in the following selections from a page in Tennyson's note-book: — 1. In the "Idylls of the King" with all Its stormy crests that smote against the skies. Suggestion: A Btorm which came upon us in the middle of the North Sea. 2. A great black cloud Drag inward from the deep. Suggestion: A coming storm seen from the top of Snowdon. 3. A full sea glazed with muffled moonlight. Suggestion: The sea one night at Torquay, when Torquay was the most lovely sea-village in England, tho' now a smoky town. The sky was covered with thin vapour, and the moon was behind it. 4. As the water-lily starts and slides. Suggestion: Water-lilies in my own pond, seen on a gusty day with my own eyes. They did start and slide in the sudden puffs of wind, till caught and stayed by the tether of their own stalks — quite as true as Wordsworth's simile and more in detail. 60 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Exercise 2. In the following, find examples of pic- tures made vivid by the use of specific words: — I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high o'er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host of golden daffodils; Beside the lake, beneath the trees, Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. Continuous as the stars that shine And twinkle on the milky way. They stretched in never-ending line Along the margin of the bay: Ten thousand saw I at a glance. Tossing their head in sprightly dance. — Wordsworth. Paddling gently to one of these places, I was surprised to find myself surrounded by myriads of small perch, about five inches long, of a rich bronze color in the green water, sporting there, and constantly rising to the surface and dimpling it, sometimes leaving bubbles on it. In such transparent and seemingly bottomless water, reflecting the clouds, I seemed to be floating through the air as in a balloon, and their swimming impressed me as a kind of flight or hovering, as if they were a compact flock of birds passing just beneath my level on the right or left, their fins, like sails, set all around them. — Thoreau: Walden. How some of us fellows remember Joe and Harry, Baltimoreans, bothi Joe, with his cheeks like lady-apples, and his eyes like black- heart cherries, and his teeth hke the whiteness of the flesh of cocoa- nuts, and his laugh that set the chandeher-drops rattling overhead as we sat at our sparkling banquets in those gay timesl Harry, champion by acclamation, for the College heavy-weights, broad- shouldered, bull-necked, square-jawed, six feet and trimmings, a little science, lots of pluck, good-natured as a steer in peace, It • a • • v o EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 61 formidable as a red-eyed bison in the crack of hand-to-hand battle. — Holmes: The Professor at the Breakfast Table. Exercise 3. Find specific words to describe the dogs and the expression in their faces in the pictures opposite this page. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following compositions aloud: — 1. Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested. — Bacon. 2. The book to read is the one which makes you think. — Dr. McCosh, 3. Read first the best books. The important thing for you is not how much you know, but the quality of what you know. — Erasmus, 4. Be sure, then, to read no mean books. Shun the spawn of the press or the gossip of the hour. Do not read what you shall learn, without asking, in the street and the train. Dr. Johnson said "he always went into stately shops"; and good travelers stop at the best hotels; for, though they cost more, they do not cost much more, and there is the good company and the best information. In like manner, the scholar knows that the famed books contain, first and last, the best thoughts and facts. Now and then, by rarest luck, in some foolish Grub Street is the gem we want. But in the best circles is the best information. If you should transfer the amount of your reading day by day from the newspaper to the standard authors — But who dare speak of such a thing? — Emerson: Books. Class discussion. 1. In the first selection, Lord Bacon uses figurative language. What does he mean literally? 2. Can you 62 FOUNDATION ENGLISH name any books which might fall into the three classes? 3. What books have you read or tried to read that make you think? 5. What does Emerson mean by the "spawn of thepress'7 6. Who are meant by "standard authors"? 7. What example does Emerson use to help make his thought impressive? 8. What is the force of the com- parison made in the next to the last sentence? 9. Meaning of the expression "in some foolish Grub Street is the gem we want"? Subjects for written composition. 1. Name some books you have read which might come under the three classes mentioned by Bacon and give your reasons for so classing them. 2. Tell about some book you have read which has made you think. 3. What books do you like to read and why? 4. What is your opinion of standard authors? Illustrate. 5. Why should people read newspapers? 6. A "good** book that you have read. Who wrote it? A fifty- word summary of it. Why is it a "good" book? Subject for oral composition. In the following poem, the scene is the same, but the expressions "In the bright October morning," and "In the dull October evening," give the keynote to contrasting circumstances. Relate those circumstances. THE HUNT. In the bright October morning Savoy's duke had left his bride. From the castle, past the drawbridge, flow'd the hunters' merry tide. Steeds are neighing, gallants ghttering, gay her smiling lord to greet, From her mullion'd chamber-casement smiles the Duchess Mar* guerite. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 63 From Vienna, by the Danube, here she came, a bride, in spring, Now the autumn crisps the forest; hunters gather, bugles ring. Hounds are pulling, prickers swearing, horses fret, and boar-spears glance. Off, — they sweep the marshy forests, westward on the side of France. HarkI the game's on foot; they scatter, — down the forest-ridings lone, Furious, single horsemen gallop. HarkI a shout, — a crash, — a groan. Pale and breathless came the hunters — on the turf dead lies the boar. Ah! the duke lies stretched beside him senseless, weltering in his gore. In the dull October evening, down the leaf-strewn forest-road. To the castle, past the drawbridge, came the hunters with their load. In the hall, with sconces blazing, ladies waiting round her seat, Clothed in smiles, beneath the dais sate the Duchess Marguerite. HarkI below the gates unbarring, tramp of men, and quick com- mands. " 'Tis my lord come back from hunting," — and the duchess claps her hands. Slow and tired came the hunters; stopp'd in darkness in the court. "Hoi this way, ye laggard hunters. To the hall. What sporti what sport!" Slow they entered with their master; in the hall they laid him down. On his coat were leaves and blood-stains, on his brow an angry frown. Dead her princely youthful husband lay before his youthful wife, Bloody 'neath the flaring sconces: and the sight froze all her life. In Vienna, by the Danube, kings hold revel, gallants meet. Gay of old amid the gayest was the Duchess Marguerite. In Vienna, by the Danube, feast and dance her youth beguiled: Till that hour she never sorrow'd, but from then she never smiled. — Matthew Arnold: The Church of Brou. LESSON XIII I. Review Exercises in the Expression of Ideas. Exercise 1. From the following extracts make a list of words that represent color, smell, sound, motion. Exercise 2. From the same extracts find other speci- fic words. Exercise 3. From the same extracts find words which are evidently used only to give variety. Not far from this village, perhaps about two miles, there is & little valley, or rather lap of land, among high hills, which is one of the quietest places in the whole world. A small brook glides through it, with just murmur enough to lull one to repose; and the occasional whistle of a quail, or tapping of a woodpecker, is almost the only sound that ever breaks in upon the imiform tranquillity. — Irving: The Legend of Sleepy HoUow. Thus one object of curiosity succeeded another; hill, valley, stream, and woodland flitted by me like the shifting scenes of a magic-lantern, and one train of thought gave place to another, till, at length, in the after part of the day, we entered the broad and shady avenue of fine old trees which leads to the western gate of Rouen, and a few moments afterwards were lost in the crowds and confusion of its narrow streets. — Longfellow: ,Outre-Mer. And, surely, of all smells in the world the smell of many trees is the sweetest and most fortifying. The sea has a rude pistoling sort of odor, that takes you in the nostrils like snuff, and carries with it a fine sentiment of open water and tall ships; but the smell of a forest, which comes nearest to this in tonic quality, surpasses it by many degrees in the quality of softness. Again, the smell of the sea has little variety, but the smell of a forest is infinitely change- ful; it varies with the hour of the day, not in strength merely, but 64 THE USE OF SPECIFIC WORDS 65 in character; and the different sorts of trees, as you go from one zone of the wood to another, seem to live among different kinds of atmosphere. Usually the rosin of the fir predominates. But some woods are more coquettish in their habits; and the breath of the forest Mormal, as it came abroad upon us that showery afternoon, was perfumed with nothing less deUcate than sweetbrier. — Steven- son: An Inland Voyage. The river streamed on steadily through pleasant river-side land- scapes. Washerwomen in blue dresses, fishers in blue blouses, diversified the green banks; and the relation of the two colors was like that of the flower and the leaf in the forget-me-not. A syn>- phony in forget-me-not; I think Th6ophile Gautier might thus have characterized that two days* panorama. The sky was blue and cloudless; and the sliding surface of the river held up, in smooth places, a mirror to the heaven and the shores. The washerwomen hailed us laughingly, and the noise of trees and water made an accompaniment to our dozing thoughts, as we fleeted down the stream. — Stevenson: An Inland Voyage. It was a still summer evening in the slack between hay and harvest on the farm of Drumquhat. The Galloway moors rose in long purple ridges to the west. The sun had set, and in the hollows, pools of mist were gathering, islanded with clumps of willow. The "maister" had made his nightly rounds, and was now meditatively taking his smoke, leaning on the gate at the head of the loaning, and looking over a green cornfield, through the raw color of which the first yellow was beginning to glimmer. From the village half a mile away he could hear the clink of the smith's anvil. There came into his mind a slow thought of the good crack going on there, and he erected himself as far as a habitual stoop would allow him, as if he proposed "daunerin' " over to the village to make one of the company in the heartsome "smiddy." — S. R. Crockett: The Stickit Minister and Other Stories. A touch, a kiss! the charm was snapt. There rose a noise of striking clocks, And feet that ran, and doors that clapt. And barking dogs, and crowing cocks; 66 FOUNDATION ENGLISH A fuller light illumined all, A breeze thro' all the garden swept, A sudden hubbub shook the hall, And sixty feet the fountain leapt. The hedge broke in, the banner blew, The butler drank, the steward scrawl'd. The fire shot up, the martin flew. The parrot scream'd, the peacock squall'd, The maid and page renew' d their strife, The palace bang'd, and buzz'd and clackt, And all the long-pent stream of life Dash'd downward in a cataract. — Tennyson: The Day Dream, Perhaps the best way to form some dim conception of it [the Cathedral of Genoa] is to fancy a little casket, inlaid inside with precious stones, so that there shall not a hair's-breadth be left unprecious-stoned, and then to conceive this Uttle bit of a casket increased to the magnitude of a great church, without losing any- thing of the excessive glory that was compressed into its original email compass, but all its pretty lustre made sublime by the conse- quent immensity. — Hawthorne: French and Italian Note Books. U. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following composition aloud: — I consulted several things in my situation which I foimd would be proper for me: first, air and fresh water; secondly, shelter from the heat of the sun; thirdly, security from ravenous creatures, whether men, or beasts; fourthly, a view of the sea, that if God sent any ship in sight, I might not lose any advantage for my deliverance, of which I was not willing to banish all expectations yet. I reached a proper place for this. I found a httle plain on the side of a rising hill, whose front towards this little plain was steep as a house-side, so that nothing could come down upon from the top. On the side of this rock there was a hollow place, worn a Httle way in, Hke the entrance or door of a cave; but there was not really any cave, or CLASS DISCUSSION 67 way into the rock at all. On the flat of the green just below this hollow place, I resolved to pitch my tent. This plain was not above a hun dred yards broad, and about twice as long, and lay like a green before my door; and at the end of it, descended irregularly every way down into the low ground by the sea-side. It was on the N. W. W. side of the hill, so that it was sheltered from the heat every day, till it came to a W. and by S. sun, or thereabouts, which in those countries is near the setting. — Defoe: Robinson Crusoe. Class discussion. 1. Note that in the above selection Robinson Crusoe had first an ideal in his mind of what the situation of his camp should be, and that the rest of the paragraph carries out his ideal. 2. What were the four necessary qualifications of the situation? 3. What reason was there for each, one? d. How was each requirement met? Note how intimate the author seems to be with the reader. In what way does he gain this air of intimacy? Subjects for written composition. Choose one of the folio wing j or a subject suggested by them. In your theme give the necessary requirements and show how the requirements were met. (1) Where I pitched my tent, (2) established my camp, (3) chose my fishing excursion, (4) my sum- mer home, (5) built my snow-fort, (6) planned my summer wardrobe, (7) held my picnic, (8) built my out-door sleeping room. Subjects for oral composition. 1. Read the following poem aloud. 2. Tell the story in your own words. 3. Relate some other daring deed that you have read in poetry or in history. US FOUNDATION ENGLISH INCIDENT OF THE FRENCH CAMP. You know, we French stormed Ratisbon: A mile or so away, On a little mound, Napoleon Stood on our storming-day; With neck out-thrust, you fancy how, Legs wide, arms locked behind, As if to balance the prone brow Oppressive with its mind. Just as perhaps he mused, "My plana That soar, to earth may fall. Let once my army-leader Ltannes Waver at yonder wall," — Out 'twixt the battery-smokes there fle«7 A rider, bound on bound FuU-galloping; nor bridle drew Until he reached the mound. Then off there flung in smiling joy. And held himself erect By just his horse's mane, a boy: You hardly could suspect — (So tight he kept his Ups compressed, Scarce any blood came through) You looked twice ere you saw his breast Was all but shot in two. "Well," cried he, "Emperor, by God's grace. We've got you Ratisbon! The Marshal's in the market-place. And you'll be there anon To see your flap-bird flap his vans Where I, to heart's desire. Perched himl" The chief's eye flashed; his plans Soared up again like fire. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS i The chief's eye flashed; but presently Softened itself, as sheathes A film the mother-eagle's eye When her bruised eaglet breathes; "You're wounded!" "Nay," the soldier's pride Touched to the quick, he said: "I'm killed. Sire!" And his chief beside, Smiling the boy fell dead. —Browning. LESSON XIV I. More Review Exercises in the Expression of Ideas. Exercise 1. In the following extract find words by which Hawthorne struggles to express the idea contained in his first sentence : — No language can give an idea of the beauty and glory of the treesi just at this moment. It would be easy, by a process of word- daubing, to set down a confused group of gorgeous colors, like a bunch of tangled skeins of bright silk; but there is nothing of the reahty in the glare which would thus be produced. And yet the splendor both of individual clusters and of whole scenes is unsurpassable. The oaks are now far advanced in their change of hue; and, in certain positions relatively to the sun, they light up and gleam with a most magnificent deep gold, varying according as portions of the foliage are in sha/dow or sunlight. On the sides which receive the direct rays, the efifect is altogether rich; and in other points of view it is equally beautiful if less brilliant. This color of the oak is more superb than the lighter yellow of the maples and walnuts. The whole landscape is now covered with this indescribable pomp; it is discerned on the uplands afar off; and Blue Hill in Milton, at the distance of several miles, actually glistens with rich, dark hght, — no, not glistens, nor gleams, — but perhaps to say, glows subduedly will be a truer expression for it. — Hawthorne: American Note Books, Exercise 2. In the following extract, the author is trying to show a contrast. He does not describe the streams of southeastern England, and yet we can dis- cover from his description of the Scottish streams, how they differ. What words especially show this difference? 70 CHOICE OF WORDS 71 But perhaps the feature in these Scottish lowlands which more particularly deserves notice here is the contrast to be found between their streams and those of southeastern England. Owing to the uneven form and steeper slope of the ground, the drainage runs off rapidly to the sea. The brooks are full of motion, as they tiunble over waterfalls, plunge through rocky ravines, and sweep round the boulders that cumber their channels. They furnish, moreover, countless dells and dingles where the native copsewoods find their surest shelter. There the gorse and the sloe come earliest into bloom, and the wild flowers linger longest. There, too, the birds make their chief home. These strips of wild nature, winding through cultivated field or bare moor, from the hills to the sea, offer in summer scenes of perfect repose. But they furnish, too, from time to time, pictures of tumult and uproar, when rain-clouds have burst upon the uplands, and the streams come down in heavy flood, pouring through the glens with a din that can be heard from afar. —Sir Archibald Gdkie: Types of Scenery. Exercise 3.^ What effect is produced by the choice of words in the following extracts? 1. The one common note of all this country is the haunting presence of the ocean. A great, faint sound of breakers follows you high up into the inland canons; the roar of water dwells in the clean, empty rooms of Monterey as in a shell upon the chinmey ; go where you will you have but to pause and listen to hear the voice of the Pacific. You pass out of the town to the southwest, and mount the hill among pine woods. Glade, thicket, and grove surround you. You follow winding, sandy tracks that lead no whither. You see a deer; a multitude of quail arises. But the sound of the sea still follows you, as you advance, like that of wind among the trees, only harsher and stranger to the ear; and when at length you gain the summit, out breaks on every hand and with freshened vigor, that same unending, distant, whispering rumble of the ocean; for now you are ^Any one or more, of Exercises 1-5 may be omitted or taken up at some other time at the discretion of the teacher. 72 FOUNDATION ENGLISH on the top of Monterey peninsula, and the noise no longer only mounts to you from behind along the beach towards Santa Cmz, but from your right also, round by Chinatown and Pinos lighthouse, and from down before you to the mouth of the Carmello River. The whole woodland is begirt with thundering surges. The silence that immediately surrounds you where you stand is not so much broken as it is haunted by this distant, circling rumor. It sets your senses upon edge; you strain your attention; you are clearly and unusually conscious of small sounds near at hand; you walk listening like an Indian hunter; and that voice of the Pacific is a sort of disquieting company to you in your walk. — Stevenson: Across the Plains. The Hispaniola was rolling scuppers under in the ocean swell. The booms were tearing at the blocks, the rudder was banging to and fro, and the whole ship creaking, groaning, and jumping Uke a manufactory. I had to cling tight to the backstay, and the world turned giddily before my eyes; for though I was good enough sailor when there was way on, this standing still and being rolled about like a bottle was a thing I never learned to stand without a qualm or 80, above all in the morning, on an empty stomach. — Stevenson: Treasure Island. Exercise 4. In the following extracts what words might have been used instead of the itaHcized words: — Our meeting was extremely cordial, for the countenance of an old fellow-traveller always brings up the recollection of a thousand pleasant scenes, odd adventures, and excellent jokes. To discuss all these in a transient interview at an inn was impossible; and finding that I was not pressed for time, and was merely making a tour of observation, he insisted that I should give him a day or two at his father's country seat, to which he was going to pass the holidays, and which lay at a few miles distance. "It is better than eating a solitary Christmas dinner at an inn," said he, "and I can assure you of a hearty welcome in something of the old-fashioned style." His CHOICE OF WORDS 73 reasoning was cogent, and I must confess the preparation I had seen for universal festivity and social enjoyment had made me feel a little impatient of my loneliness. I closed, therefore, at once, with his invitation; the chaise drove up to the door, and in a few momenta I was on my way to the family mansion of the Bracebridges. Such being our chief scene, the date of our story refers to a period toward the end of the reign of Richard I, when his return from his long captivity had become an event rather wished than hoped for by his despairing subjects, who were in the meantime subjected to every species of subordinate oppression. The nobles, whose power had become exorbitant during the reign of Stephen, and whom the prudence of Henry the Second had scarce reduced to some degree of subjection to the crown, had now resumed their ancient license in its utmost extent, despising the feeble interference of the EngUsh Council of State, fortifying their castles, increasing the number of their dependants, reducing all around them to a state of vassalage, and striving, by every means in their power, to place themselves each at the head of such forces as might enable him to make a iBgure in the national convulsions which appeared to be impending. — Scott: Ivanhoe. Exercise 5. Put the words, given below each of the following extracts, in the blank space where they seem to belong: — 1. In the background is a line of plain, or of rising heights, tawny or with blue, fairly in tone, as rich as in Decamps; and in this obscure border there are little white specks of houses. Further away still are the backs of the hills, the saddle of pale violet, and the sky, with clouds beneath the afternoon sun. It is all on a scale; there are but three or four hues, all in their effect. It is like an of Poussin, but there is color and beyond the reach of Poussin. — Taine: Journeys through France. round, richness, architectural, tinged, vast, deep, gently, long, scattered, curving, flecked, grand, downy, amphi- theater, immeasurable. 74 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 2. Young Thomas More had no sooner the University than he was known throughout Europe as one of the figures in the new movement for the advancement of learning. The keen face, the gray eye, the thin Hps, the brown hair, the gait and dress, as they remained on the canvas of Holbein, picture the soul of the man, his , his restless intellect, his keen and even wit, the kindly, humor that drew its veil of laughter and tears over the deep reverence of the soul within. — Green: Short History of the English People. half-sad, strange, tender, vivacity, restless, irregular, quitted, foremost, mobile, tumbled, stamped, reckless, careless, inner, all-devouring. 3. And with this she a courtesy, and, taking her can- dle, went away through the door which led to her apart- ments; Esmond stood by the fireplace, staring after her. Indeed, he scarce seemed to see until she was gone, and then her image was upon him, and remained forever upon his memory. He saw her the taper her marble face, her lip , and her golden hair. — Thack- eray: Henry Esmond. blankly, retreating, fixed, shining, lighting up, dropped, tapestried, stately, impressed, scarlet, quivering. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following composition aloud: — 1. Before I set up my tent, I drew a half-circle before the hollow place, which took in about ten yards in its semi-diameter from the EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 75 rock, and twenty yards in its diameter from its beginning and ending. In this half-circle I pitched two rows of long stakes, driving them into the ground till they stood very firm like piles the biggest end being out of the ground about five feet and a half, and sharpened on the top. The two rows did not stand above six inches from one another. Then I took the piece of cable which I cut in the ship, and laid them in rows, one upon another, within the circles between these two rows of stakes in the inside, leaning against them, about two feet and a half high, hke a spur to a post: and this fence was so strong that neither man nor beast could get into it or over it. This cost me a great deal of time and labor, especially to cut the piles in the woods, bring them to the place, and drive them into the earth. The entrance into this place I made to be not by a door but by a short ladder to go over the top, which ladder, when I was in, I lifted over after me. — Defoe: Robin- son Crusoe. 2. After this, I spent a great deal of time and pains to make an umbrella. I was indeed in great walnt of one, and had a great mind to make one. I had seen them made in the Brazils, where they are very useful in the great heats which are there, and I felt the heats every jot as great here, and greater too, being nearer the equinox; besides, as I was obliged to be much abroad, it was a most useful thing to me, as well for the rains as the heats. I took a world of pains at it, and was a great while before I could make anything likely to hold; nay, after I thought I had hit the way, I spoiled two or three before I made one to my mind. But at last I made one that answered indifferently well; the main difficulty I found was to make it let down; I could make it spread, but if it did not let down too, and draw in, it would not be portable for me any way but just over my head, which would not do. However, at last, as I said, I made one to answer. I covered it with skins, the hair upwards, so that it cast off the rain like a penthouse, and kept off the sim so effectually that I could walk out in the hottest of the weather with greater advantage than I could before in the coolest, and when I had no need of it I could close it, and cany it under my arm. — Defo$: Robinson Crusoe, 76 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Class discussion. 1. Before Robinson Crusoe made his enclosure, he must have had a careful plan in his mind. See if you can make a diagram from his directions. 2. If you can make a diagram, what does it show with regard to the directions? What kind of words are used in the two selections, long or short? Usual, or unusual? Are there any words that could have been omitted without spoiHng the sense? 3. What do you think Crusoe did to make the umbrella *'let down" as well as spread? Subjects for written composition. Explain how you (1) made and pitched a tent, (2) made and set a trap, (3) built a canoe, (4) a doll-house, (5) a snow-fort, (6) constructed a play-engine, (7) a kite, (8) a rabbit or dog-house, ( 9) how you set the table for a pink tea or an Easter luncheon, (10) how you made your wireless outfit. Subjects for oral composition. 1. What fate does the poet ask for in the "downhill of life"? 2. Most people have an idea as to how they would like to Hve "in the downhill of Hfe". How are some people that you know spending it? 3. What ia your ambition? TO-MORROW. In the downhill of life, when I find I'm declining, May my fate no less fortimate be Than a snug elbow-chair will afford for reclining, And a cot that o'erlooks the wide sea; EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 77 With an ambling pad-pony to pace o'er the lawn, While I carol away idle sorrow, And blithe as the lark that each day hails the dawn Look forward with hope for To-morrow. With a porch at my door, both for shelter and shade too, As the sunshine or rain may prevail; And a small spot of ground for the use of the spade too, With a barn for the use of the flail: A cow for my dairy, a dog for my game, And a purse when a friend wants to borrow; I'll envy no Nabob his riches or fame, Or what honours may wait him To-morrow. From the bleak northern blast may my cot be completely Secured by a neighbouring hill; And at night may repose steal upon me more sweetly By the sound of a murmuring rill: And while peace and plenty I find at my board, With a heart free from sickness and sorrow. With my friends may I share what To-day may afford, And let them spread the table To-morrow. And when I at last must throw off this frail cov'ring Which I've worn for three-score years and ten. On the brink of the grave I'll not seek to keep hov'ring. Nor my thread wish to spin o'er again: But my face in the glass 111 serenely survey, And with smiles count each wrinkle and furrow; As this old worn-out stuff, which is threadbare To-day, May become Everlasting To-morrow. —J. Collins, LESSON XV I. The Correct Use of the Parts of Speech in the Expression of Ideas. Verbs. 1. Many grammatical diiSiculties beset us when we try to express our ideas. These difficulties must be overcome if we wish to make our speech correct; and they can be overcome only by knowing the principles which govern good speech, and by constant application of these principles to our own speech whether written or oral. 2. One of the chief difficulties we experience is in determining when to use the s-form of the verb. Fol- owing are some rules and illustrations, which if we apply them carefully to all our speech will help us to overcome this difficulty. (1) Verbs in the present tense, indicative mode, having a subject in the third person, singular number, end in -s. The form is called the s-form. 1. I say I have I am 2. You say You have You are 3. He says He has He is Third Singular. The bird flies. Third Plural. The birds fly. (2) The s-form of the verb requires a subject in the singular number, third person. The man does not know which way to go. Note: Was may be used with I or with a third singular subject, 78 CORRECT USE OF VERBS 79 (3) Words intervening between the subject and its verb should not change the form of the verb. The building (subject) with all its surroundings was (verb) in flames. (4) If two or more singular subjects connected by and are modified by each, every or many a, the s-form of the verb should be used. 1. Every leaf and twig is moving. 2. Many a boy and girl has gone through this school. (5) If two or more singular subjects connected by and refer to the same person or thing, the s-form of the verb should be used. My guide, philosopher, and friend is with me. (6) Two or more third singular subjects connected by or or nor require the s-form of the verb. One or the other of them always goes wrong. When the subjects connected by or or nor differ in person or number, the one nearest the verb controls the form. 1. Neither my parents nor my teacher knows what is the trouble. 2. Neither John nor his brothers were there. 3. Either you or I am going. (7) A Collective Noun, though singular in form and usually singular in meaning, may sometimes be plural in meaning. For example, if we say "The Com- mittee has decided to close the schools to-morrow,'* the word "Committee" is singular in meaning, as well as in form, and requires the s-form of the verb. If we say, "The Committee have gone to their homes," the word "Committee," though still singular in form, is plural in meaning, and thus does not take the s-form. 80 FOUNDATION ENGLISH A Collective Noun takes the s-form when the group indicated by the noun is considered as forming a unit. 1. My family are widely separated this summer. {Family consid- ered as individuals.) 2. My family is anxious to know where my brother is now. (Family considered as a imit.) Exercise. Give the reason for the form of each verb in the following selection: — Of late years the number of writers among the Cheroke6s has greatly increased. There are historians in the tribe whose works are used as text books in the Indian schools, and who are cited as authori- ties not to be disputed. There are also Indians who have written codes of law which before being put in permanent form had been handed down from generation to generation. The Indians today obey these laws with a greater reverence than they do the laws of the United States. There are Indian novelists — novelists who devote their time to entertaining the Indian mind with romance, with entangling plots and blood-curdling climaxes. These books are popular among the Indians. Edition after edition of some works is published, and they are read by buck and squaw alike. — Chicago Journal, II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following composition: — "The spruce, for instance, is a straight-trunked tree that throws out branches that ride upward like crescents, and bear needles that hang downward like fringes. Its outline, when seen in silhouette against the sky, is pyramidal; its color is dark green, often blue- green when seen from a distance, and at twilight it is cold-purple. The pine is like it, but its branches are not so crescent-shaped, and the needles push outward in clusters rather than droop downward in fringes. It is of a darker color than the spruce, and at night or under shadow, it is bluer. The poplar is a tall tree, and often a straight one, but the branches do not swing outward like the pine. *^ ^^1 ^ m ^ 1 J • ••• I < c a • CLASS DISCUSSION 81 They seek rather to grow straight beside the parent stem, and the twigs and the sharp-pointed foliage surround the branches as a loose sleeve the arm of a woman. It is white-trunked, with a leaf that is bright green on one side and silvery green on the other side. The black oak grows a straight trunk with limbs that shoot out almost at right angles ; but the white oak and the pin oak are crooked and twisted, their harsh trunks are often broken with boles, and their limbs may take angle lines or prong out like the horns of a deer. Very different from such an angular growth as the oak is the stately elm, its long limbs branching and falling so gracefully, the weeping willow that throws its branches up and over like a spray from a fountain, the round ball-shaped horse-chestnut, or the long-armed, white-breasted birch of the mountains." — John C, Van Dyke: Nature for Its Own Sake. Class discussion. 1. Note that in the above composition the author is comparing objects that are alike in some respects, different in others. He begins by describing one tree, which he takes as a standard of comparison. Find the description and read it aloud. 2. In what order does he proceed to make his comparisons? 3. What are some of the resemblances which he finds? What are some of the differences? 4. In the pictures given opposite this page, what resemblances do you find? What differences? 5. One of these pictures is a photo- graph of a scene, the other is a photograph of a paint- ing. Judging from these pictures, what should you say is the difference between what the camera sees and what the artist sees? Subjects for written composition* In the manner of the paragraph given above, set forth the distinguishing marks of some of the objects in the fol- 82 FOUNDATION ENGLISH lowing classes: 1. Our common squirrels. 2. Terriers 3. Long-haired cats. 4. Ponies. 5. Your little girl- cousins or boy-cousins. 6. Fruit-trees in bloom. 7. A photograph of Abraham Lincoln, and the statue given opposite page 10. 8. Some pictures of the Madonna and Child. 9. Photographs of myself. 10. Leaves of oak trees or of maple trees; or, oak trees; or, maple trees. Subject for oral composition. Reproduce the following story in all its details as carefully as possible. Explain the figurative language in order to be sure of the imagery. What did Ulysses do when he * ^guided with nice care the helm"? Why were the heights "shadowy"? Translation from the Odyssey, They took their rest. But, when the child of dawn, Aurora, rosy-fingered, looked abroad, Ulysses put his vest and mantle on; The nymph, too, in a robe of silver white. Ample and delicate and beautiful, Arrayed herself, and round about her loins Wound a fair golden girdle, drew a veil Over her head, and planned to send away Magnanimous Ulysses. She bestowed A heavy axe of steel and double-edged. Well fitted to the hand, the handle wrought Of olive wood, firm set and beautiful. A polished adze she gave him next, and led The way to a far comer of the isle Where lofty trees, alders and poplars, stood, And firs that reached the clouds, sapless and dry Long since, and fitter thus to ride the waves. EXPRESSION OP IDEAS 83 Then, having shown where grew the tallest trees, Calypso, glorious goddess, sought her home. Trees then he felled, and soon the task was done. Twenty in all he brought to earth, and squared Their trunks with the sharp steel, and carefully He smoothed their sides, and wrought them by a line. Calypso, gracious goddess, having brought Wimples, he bored the beams, and, fitting them Together, made them fast with nails and clamps. As when some builder, skilful in his art. Frames, for a ship of burden, the broad keel, Such ample breadth Ulysses gave the raft. Upon the massy beams he reared a deck. And floored it with long planks from end to end. On this a mast he raised, and to the mast Fitted a yard; he shaped a rudder neat To guide the raft along her course, and round With woven work of willow boughs he fenced Her sides against the dashings of the sea. Calypso, gracious goddess, brought him store Of canvas, which he fitly shaped to sails, And, rigging her with cords and ropes and sta3r8, Heaved her with levers into the great deep. 'Twas the fourth day; his labors now were done, And, on the fifth, the goddess from her isle Dismissed him, newly from the bath, arrayed In garments given by her, that shed perfumes. A skin of dark red wine she put on board, A larger one of water, and for food A basket, stored with viands such as please The appetite. A friendly wind and soft She sent before. The great Ulysses spread His canvas joyfully to catch the breeze. And sat and guided with nice care the helm. Gazing with fixed eye on the Pleiades, Bootes setting late, and the Great Bear, By others called the Wain, which, wheeling rounds Looks ever toward Orion, and alone Dips not into the waters of the deep. 84 FOUNDATION ENGLISH For so Calypso, glorious goddess, bade That, on his ocean journey, he should keep That constellation ever on his left. Now seventeen days wereer. EXPRESSION OF IDEAS IN FORMAL CORRESPONDENCE. SUMMARY OF LESSONS XXI-XXVI I. The Parts of a Business Letter (pp. 119-121). 1. The heading. 2. The address. 3. The salutation. 4. The body of the letter. 5. The formal closing. 6. The signature. II. The Body of the Letter (pp. 127-130). 1. Two things should be kept in mind, — a. The point of view of the person to whom we are writing. b. The settling of the business at hand to our own satisfaction, — a. By making our business clear and explicit. h. By making our letters neat, legible, and correct in form and composition. c. By being prompt to reply to all inquiries. d. By being courteous. 2. Separate paragraphs should present the points clearly, definitely, and in logical order. 3. All such details as express, freight, inclosures, and remittance should be carefully mentioned. III. Folding the Letter and Addressing the Envelope, (pp. 133, 134). 146 SUMMARY 147 IV. Letters Applying for Positions (p. 137). 1. Require painstaking, tact, directness of expres- sion, clearness of explanation. The ideas should be expressed concisely, yet adequately. 2. At least three paragraphs needed: — (a) An application and mention of the agency through which the position was offered. (b) Our capabilities and qualifications. (c) References and recommendations. V. The Formal Note (p. 140). 1. Should be written in the third person. A formal note has no heading, no address, no formal closing. It is written on the first page only of note paper. 2. If the address of the writer and the date are used, they should be written below the body of the note, and at the left-hand side. 3. A reply to a formal note or invitation should carefully follow the formula used in the invi- tation. IS PART III EXPRESSION OF IDEAS IN THE LONG THEME PART III EXPRESSION OF IDEAS IN THE LONG THEME LESSON XXVII I. The Paragraph in the Expression of Ideas. 1. We have been expressing our ideas in paragraph themes all the year, but nothing has been said definitely in the Lessons about the form and content of the para- graph. The following Lessons will consider the indi- vidual paragraph as a unit and also as a part of a whole composition. 2. The paragraph defined. A paragraph is a collec- tion of sentences all bearing upon one easily discovered subject; as, for example, the following paragraph, where the subject is easily discovered to be, "The human species is composed of two distinct races." The human species, according to the best theory I can form of it, is composed of two distinct races, the men who borrow and the men who lend. To these original diversities may be reduced all those impertinent classifications of Gothic and Celtic tribes, white men, black men, red men. All the dwellers upon earth, "Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites," flock hither, and do naturally fall in with one or other of these primary distinctions. The infinite superiority of the former, which I choose to designate as the great race, is discernible in their figure, port, and a certain instinctive sovereignty. The latter are bom degraded. "He shall serve his brethren." There is some- thing in the air of one of this cast, lean and suspicious; contrasting with the open, trusting, generous manners of the other. — Lamb: Essays of Elia. 151 152 FOUNDATION ENGLISH II. The Paragraph as a Part or as a Whole. A paragraph may represent a natural division of thought in a whole composition, or it may exist as a complete composition in itself. Of the following examples, the first is very evidently one of the natural divisions of a whole composition; the second seems to be a complete composition in itself. 1. THE SAGACITY OF A WILLOW-WREN. Topic : A farther instance of sagacity in a yellow-wren. A farther instance I once saw of notable sagacity in a willow-wren, which had built in a bank in my fields. This bird a friend and myself had observed as she sat in her nest, but were particularly careful not to disturb her, though we saw she eyed us with some degree of jeal- ousy. Some days after, as we passed that way, we were desirous of remarking how this brood went on, but no nest could be found, till I happened to take a large bimdle of long green moss, as it were, care- lessly thrown over the nest in order to dodge the eye of any imperti- nent intruder. — White: Natural History of Selborne. 2. THE ASS IN THE LION'S SKIN. An Ass, finding the skin of a Lion, put it on ; and, going into the woods and the pastures, threw all the flocks and herds into a terrible consternation. At last, meeting the owner, he would have fright- ened him, also; but the good man, seeing his long ears stick out, presently knew him, and with a good cudgel made him sensible that, notwithstanding his being dressed in a Lion's skin, he was really no more than an Ass. — JEsop^s Fables, III. Indentation. The distinguishing mark of a paragraph is that it is indented, — that is, the first line is set in from the margin, as in the following: — EXPRESSION OF IDEAS 153 EPPIE'S WEDDING DAY. There was one time of the year which waa held in Haveloe to be especially suitable for a wedding. It was when the great lilacs and laburnums in the old-fashioned gardens showed their golden and purple wealth above the lichen-tinted walls, and when there were •alvea still young enough to want bucketfuls of fragrant milk. People were not so busy then as they must become when the full cheese- making and the mowing had set in ; and besides, it was a time when a light bridal dress could be worn with comfort and seen to advan- tage. Happily the sunshine fell more warmly then usual on the lilac tufts the mom ing that Eppie was married, for her dress was a very light one. She had often thought, though with a feeling of renuncia- tion, that the perfection of a wedding-dress would be a white cotton, with the tiniest pink sprig at wide intervals; so that when Mrs. Godfrey Cass begged to provide one, and asked Eppie to choose what it should be, previous meditation had enabled her to give & decided answer at once. Seen at a little distance as she walked across the churchyard and down the village, she seemed to be attired in pure white, and her hair looked like the dash of gold on a lily. One hand was on her husb.and's arm, and with the other she clasped the hand of her father Silas "You won't be giving me away, father," she had said before they went to church; "you'll only be taking Aaron to be a son to you." Dolly Winthrop walked behind with her husband; and there ended the little bridal procession. — George Eliot: Silas Mamer. Exercise 1. In the examples accompanying this Les- son, show how each paragraph bears out the definition of a paragraph. Exercise 2. Show which paragraphs in the examples given are natural divisions of thought, and which exist by themselves as complete compositions, and why. Exercise 8. In the following selections, find subjects 164 FOUNDATION ENGLISH for the separate paragraphs, and for combinations of paragraphs; tell which paragraphs seem to be complete compositions and which seem to be part of an incomplete whole and why. 1. I propose to demonstrate to you that, notwithstanding these apparent diflBcuIties, a threefold unity — ^namely, a unity of power or faculty, a unity of form, and a unity of substantial composition — does pervade the whole living world. — Huxley: The Physical Basis of Life. 2. Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting-place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate — we cannot consecrate — we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will httle note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — ^that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. — Abraham Lincoln: Gettysburg Address. THE PARAGRAPH 155 8. In the coal regions of Pennsylvania, where the timber has been destroyed and many of the valleys have been turned into mere sluices and drainways for the black waters of coal mines, the laurel and the rhododendron grow in great profusion, covering valley, hill, and mountain for miles at a stretch. In the early summer, when they are in bloom, they are really splendid in effect. All the mountain seems in blossom, and along the ridges the color is banked up against the blue sky in pink and red clouds. — Van Dyke: Nature for Its Own Sake. The stranger who would form a correct opinion of the English character must not confine his observations to the metropolis. He must go forth into the country; he must sojourn in villages and hamlets; he must visit castles, villas, farmhouses, cottages; he must wander through parks and gardens; along hedges and green lanes; he must loiter about country churches; attend wakes and fairs, and other rural festivals; and cope with the people in all their conditions and all their habits and humors. — Irving: The Sketch Book, 6. The functions of the Senate fall into three classes — legislative, executive, and judicial. Its legislative function is to pass, along with the House of Representatives, bills which become acts of Congress on the assent of the President, or even without his consent, if passed a second time by a two-thirds majority of each House, after he has returned them for reconsideration. Its executive fimctions are: — (a) To approve or disapprove the President 's nominations of Federal oflBcers, including judges, ministers of state, and ambassadors, (b) To approve, by a majority of two-thirds of those present, of treaties made by the President — i. e. if less than two-thirds approve, the treaty falls to the ground. Its judicial function is to sit as a court for the trial of impeachments preferred by the House of Representa- tives. — Bryce: American Commonwealth. 6. One autumn day, when the grapes were ripe, a fox stole into a vineyard. Spread out on the treUises above him were great massiSB 166 FOUNDATION ENGLISH of luscious grapes, and he longed for a bunch. He made many a jump, but the grapes were high, and he could not reach them. Tired out at last, he said to himself, "Ugh I I don't care. The grapes are sour anyway!" and made off. — ^sop^s Fables. II. Expression of Ideas in Composition. Read the following compositions: — 1. Those who see the Englishman only in town are apt to form an unfavorable opinion of his social character. He is either absorbed in business, or distracted by the thousand engagements that dissipate time, thought, and feeling, in this huge metropolis. He has, there- fore, too commonly a look of hurry and abstraction. Wherever he happens to be, he is on the point of going somewhere else; at the moment he is talking on one subject, his mind is wandering to another; and while paying a friendly visit, he is calculating how he shall economize time so as to pay the other visits allotted to the morning. An immense metropolis like London, is calculated to make men selfish and uninteresting. In their casual and transient meet- ings, they can but deal briefly in commonplaces. They present but the cold superficies of character — its rich and genial qualities have no time to be warmed into a flow. — Irving: Rural Life in England 2. There it rose, a little withdrawn from the line of the street, but in pride, not modesty. Its whole visible exterior was ornamented with quaint figures, conceived in the grotesqueness of a Gothic fancy, and drawn or stamped in the glittering plaster, composed of lime, pebbles, and bits of glass, with which the wood-work of the walls was overspread. On every side, the seven gables pointed sharply toward the sky, and presented the aspect of a whole sisterhood of edifices, breathing through the spiracles of one great chimney. The many lattices, with their small, diamond-shaped panes, admitted the sun- light into hall and chamber, while, nevertheless, the second story, projecting far over the base, and itself retiring beneath the third, tbrtw » ihadowy and thoughtful gloom into the lower rooms. THE PARAGRAPH 157 Carved globes of wood were afl5xed under the Jutting stories. Little spiral rods of iron beautified each of the seven peaks. On the triangular portion of the gable, that fronted next the street, was a dial. The principal entrance, which had almost the breadth of a church-door, was in the angle between the two front gables, and was covered by an open porch, with benches beneath its shelter. — Hawthorne: The House of the Seven Gahle8. Class discussion. 1. Find a subject for each of the above paragraphs. 2. Show how the paragraphs bear out the definition of a paragraph. 3. Find examples of specific words in the paragraphs. 4. What force have the words "absorbed** and "distracted'* as they are used in the second sentence of the first paragraph? 5. What two words in the last sentence of the first paragraph show that the English- man has two sides to his nature? 6. What details in the second paragraph present a picture of the house? Find expressions which serve as illustrations of the idea. 7. In the pictures given opposite page 81 which is the more faithful to details? Which is the more faithful to the spirit of the scene? What value does the presence or absence of minor details give to the picture? Would Corot have put the reflection of the clouds in the water if he had been painting the scene opposite this page? Give reasons for your answer. Subjects for written composition.* Choose one of the following sentences and use it as the first sentence of a one-paragraph theme: — 1. Those who see the boy (or girl) only in school are apt to form an unfavorable opinion of him (or her), «See "Exposition of Method" page XV. 158 FOUNDATION ENGLISH (Describe him as he appears in school.) 2. The exterior of the house in which I was born presents an odd ap- pearance. (Describe the exterior.) 3. When you see my little dog trotting along the street, you perhaps do not admire him. (Describe him as he trots along.) 4. Fronting a country road is a queer-looking deserted house. (Describe its exterior appearance.) 5. In the outskirts of the city is a tumble-down house, which once must have been very grand. (Describe its exterior appearance as it looks now, giving also such details as will show why it was once ''grand.") 6. My grand- father's house is one of the finest and oldest farmhouses in the country around. (Describe its exterior appear- ance.) 7. An artist's reproduction of a scene is very different from that given by a camera. (Illustrate from the two pictures given opposite page 81; or from the picture of the statue of Lincoln by St. Gaudens given opposite page 10 as compared with a familiar photograph of Lincoln.) LESSON XXVIII I. The Paragraph in the Expression of Ideas. 1. The test of unity. A good way to test a paragraph for unity is to see if the thought contained in it can be put into one sentence. For example, the first sentence in the following paragraph seems to sum up all that ia said in the paragraph: — ^ A peculiar melancholy reigns over the aisle where Mary lies buried. The light struggles dimly through windows darkened by dust. The greater part of the place is in deep shadow, and the walls are stained and tinted by time and weather. A marble figure of Maiy is stretched upon the tomb, round which is an iron railing, much corroded, bearing her national emblem — the thistle. I was weary with wandering, and sat down to rest myself by the monument, revolving in my mind the chequered and disastrous story of poor Mary. — Irving. 2. The ideal paragraph has (1) an introductory or topic sentence giving the subject about which the para- graph is to be; (2) a group of sentences developing, explaining, exemplifying, or illustrating the thought contained in the introductory or topic sentence; (3) a concluding sentence which serves to bind together or to sum up the whole of the thought contained in the paragraph. 160 FOUNDATION ENGLISH The following paragraph will illustrate this definition of an ideal paragraph; — ductor?**' *' Books f however f were the least part of the education of •entence. an Athenian citizen. Let us, for a moment, transport ourselves, in thought, to that glorious city. Let us im- agine that we are entering its gates in the time of its power and glory. A crowd is assembled round a portico. All are gazing with delight at the entablature, for Phidias is putting up the frieze. We turn into another street; a rhapsodist is reciting there; men, women, children, are thronging round him; the tears are running down their cheeks; their eyes are fixed; their 2. Imaftl- very breath is still; for he is telling how Priam fell fure in**^" ** ^^^ '®®* °^ Achilles, and kissed those hands — the words to terrible — the murderous — ^which had slain so many of the his sons. We enter a public place; there is a ring of contained yo^^ths, all leaning forward with sparkling eyes, and In the first gestures of expectation. Socrates is pitted against the famous Atheist from Ionia, and has just brought him to a contradiction in terms. But we are inter- rupted . The herald is crying — * Room for the Pry tanes I ' The assembly is to meet. The people are swarming on every side. Proclamation is made — *Who wishes to speak?' There is a shout and a clapping of hands: Peri- cles is mounting the stand. Then for a play of Sopho- cles; and away to sup with Aspasia. / know of no 3. Con- modem university which has so excellent a system of ■sntence. education." — Macaulay: Essay on Athenian Orators. 3. In conversational passages the speeches of differ- ent persons are paragraphed. Explanatory matter com- ing between speeches is combined with the speech to which it is most nearly related; as in the following: — THE GRASS-HOPPER AND THE ANT. Miss Grasshopper, after she had sung all through summer, found b«nelf, when the biting winds began to blow, in a sorry plight. The EXPRESSION OP IDEAS 161 eye of the little trifler met not anywhere a bit of grub or a fly to eat. So weeping sorely for hunger, she knocked at the door of her neighbor, the Ant, and begged that she would lend her just for once a little grain till warm weather should come. "On my life, " she cried, "I will pay you before the next harvest with interest and principal." Now every one knows that the Ant is no lender. "Tell me, " said she to the beggar-maid, "what have you been doing all sunmierl" "I'm afraid," the little beggar replied, "I was singing day and night to every nook and comer. " "Singing!" cried the Ant. "Do tell! How charming! Well then vagrant, off, and be about your singing!" — La Fontaine* 8 Fablea, Exercise 1. Find a sentence in each of the following paragraphs, which shall contain the gist of the thought in the paragraph; find also explanations, illustrations, or examples which develop the thought. 1. If you look at the map of Europe you will see two great rivers, — the Rhine and the Danube, — flowing in opposite directions across the continent, one emptying into the North Sea and the other into the Black Sea. Their mouths are thousands of miles apart ; yet when you follow up the course of each, you find that they come nearer and nearer, until, at their sources, the distance between them is no greater than a good walker might cover in a day. Thus these two rivers almost form a single line across the whole of Europe. Each in its lower course is broad and deep, and makes a good boundary for the countries on its banks. The Roman armies in the old days often crossed these rivers and indeed gained victories beyond them; but they found it so hard to keep possession of what they conquered there, that in the end they decided not to try. So for many years the Rhine and the Danube rivers formed the northern boundary of the theRomanEmpire.- Singular. Norn. girl baby child Charles Poss. girl's baby's child' s Charles' Obj, girl baby Plural. child Charles Nom, girls babies children Poss. gu-ls' babies' children's Obj. girls babies children PRONOUNS i. Singular. First Person. Second Person. Mas. Third Person. Fem. Neut. Nom. I (thou) he she it Poss. my or mine (thy or thine) his her "1 its . hers / Obj. me (thee) Plural. him her it Nom. we you (ye) they Poss. our or ours your or yours their or theirs Obj. us you them Singuli ar or plural in meaning. Nom, who whoever which Poss, whose whosever (whose) Obj. whom whomever which INFLECTION OF VERBS 235 VERBS. 1. Verbs are inflected to indicate voice) mood, tense, person and number. 2. The conjugation of a verb is the regular arrange- ment of its various inflections. The conjugation of a verb is effected (1) by a change in its form or (2) by the use of auxiliaries. Buy, bought. (Change in form.) Will have bought, have been bought. (Auxiliaries.) When a verb consists of more than one word the form is sometimes called a verb phrase; as, You should have gone. 1. Voice is that form of a transitive verb which shows whether the subject acts, or is acted upon. The active voice represents the subject as acting. The passive voice represents the subject as acted upon. The passive voice is expressed by means of the auxil- iary be (in its various forms) combined with the past participle of the verb; as. The errand boy brought the package. (Active.) The package was brought by the errand boy. (Passive.) Intransitive verbs have no passive voice, but they are sometimes passive in form; as. My father is gone and I am grieved at heart. 2. The mode or mood of a verb is the manner in which it expresses action. The indicative mode simply indi- cates or declares a thing, or asks a question. He runs fast. May I go now? 236 FOUNDATION ENGLISH The subjunctive mode expresses (1) an uncertainty, (2) a condition contrary to fact, (3) a wish. 1. Though all else fail, he will stand by me. 2. If I were you I would not do it. 3. Would I were a bird. 4. I wish I were with you. Subjunctives are generally found in subordinate clauses introduced by if, though, although, except, lest, etc. Not all clauses thus introduced, however, con- tain subjunctives. The imperative mode expresses a command or entreaty. Go at once. Please do as I ask. 3. Tense is the distinction which verbs have to indi- cate present, past, or future time. (1) The present tense refers to present time, (2) the past tense or preterite to past time, and (3) the future tense to future time. (1) He sees it. (2) He saw it. (3) He wiU see it. The above are the simple tenses. There are besides, three complete tenses formed by prefixing some form of the auxiliary have to the past participle. The complete tenses are: (1) The present perfect tense, which represents an action as completed at the present time. It is formed by using have, hast, or has with the past participle. (2) The past perfect tense, which represents the action as complete at some point in past time. It is formed by using had with the past participle. (3) The future perfect tense, which represents that the action will be completed at some INFLECTION OF VERBS 237 future time. It is formed by using will have or shall have with the past participle. (1) He has seen the comet. (2) He had seen the comet. (3) He wUl have seen the comet. 4. Potential forms of the verb are made by using the auxiliaries may, can, must, might, or could with the root infinitive. May and might express possibility, can and could express ability, and must expresses obligation or necessity. I may go tomorrow. They can do it because they think they can. I must see what they are doing. May, can, and must generally give a present meaning; might and could, a past meaning. 6 . Emphatic forms of the verb are made by using the auxiliaries do and did with the root infinitive. I do assist in the work. (Present.) I did assist in the work. (Past.) Do and did are often used in asking questions or deny- ing statements, and are then called interrogative, or negative forms; as, Do you go tomorrow? I do not go tomorrow. 6. Progressive forms of the verb are made by using the auxiliary be, in its various forms, with the present participle. The progressive form represents an action as unfinished; as, He is gftvm^ his attention to electricity. I am trying to do right. 238 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 7. Passive forms of the verb are made by using the auxiliary be in its various forms with the past par- ticiple . The sun is sety the battle is lost. 8. Person and number. The only change in the form of a verb of indicate person and number occurs in the present tense of the indicative mode, where the third, singular ends in s. This is called the third-singular or S'form. Note: Was may be used with / or with a third-singular subject. INFINITIVES AND PARTICIPLES. 1. Infinitives and participles, like verbs, have simple forms and inflected forms. 1. Infinitives have a present tense and a perfect tense, as in the following illustrations: — Perfect- / "^^ have called. I Having called. 2. Participles have a present tense, a past tense, and a perfect tense, as in the following illustrations: — Present: Calling. Past: Called. Perfect: Having called. INFLECTION OF VERBS 239 CONJUGATION OF THE VERB BE Principal Parts: Be^ Was, Been, Indicative Mode Present Tense First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, Sinfrular I am You are (thou art) He is Past Tense I was You were (thou wert) He was Plural We are You (ye) are They are We were You were They were Future Tense I shall be We shall be You will be (thou wilt be) You will be He will be They will be Present Perfect Tense I have been We have been You have been You have been (thou hast been) He has been They have been Past Perfect Tense I had been You had been (thou hadst been) He had been We had been You had been They had been Future Perfect Tense I shall have been We shall have been You will have been You will have been (thou wilt have been) He will have been. They will have been 240 FOUNDATION ENGLISH First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, Subjunctive Mode Present Tense Singular If I be If you be (thou be) If he be Past Tense If I were If you were (thou were) If he were Plural If we be If you be If they be If we were If you were If they were Imperative Mode Singuiaf Plural Be you (thou) Be you (or ye) Present: INFINITIVES. rTobe \ Being p J, , . / To have been \ Having been PARTICIPLES. Present: Being Past: Been Perfect: Having Been CONJUGATION OF THE VERB HAVE Principal Parts: Have, Had, Had. Indicative Mode First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, Present Tense Singular Plural I have We have You have (thou hast) You have He has They have Past Tense I had We had You had (thou hadst) You had He had They had INFLECTION OF ADJECTIVES 241 First PersoTif Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Third Person, First Person, Second Person, Future Tense I shall have We shall have You will have You will have (thou wilt have) He will have They will have Present Perfect Tense I have had We have had You have had You have had (thou hast had) He has had They have had Past Perfect Tense I had had We had had You had had You had had (thou hadst had) He had had They had had Future Perfect Tense 1 shall have had We shall have had You will have had You will have had (thou wilt have had) Third Person, He will have had INFINITIVES. D , /To have Present: { „ . I Having /To have had Perfect: They will have had PARTICIPLES. Present: Having Past: Had Perfect: Having had \ Having had ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS. I. Adjectives. 1. The inflection of adjectives is called comparison. Comparison is the change in the form of an adjective to denote degree. 2. There are three degrees of comparison, — the posi- tive, the comparative, the superlative. 242 FOUNDATION ENGLISH (1) The positive degree is the simple form of the adjec- tive and simply denotes a quality. (2) The comparative degree is regularly made by adding er to the positive and denotes a higher degree of the quality. (3) The superlative degree is regularly made by adding est to the positive and denotes the highest degree of the quality. Positive, glad; comparative, gladder; superlative, gladdest, 3. Adjectives of one syllable and a few of more than one, like happy, hearty, etc., regularly form their compar- ison by er and est, 4. Some adjectives are irregularly compared; as fol- lows: — Positive. bad 1 evil \ ill J far good \ well / fore late little many "^ much / near old Comparative. Superlative, worse worst farther farthest better best former f foremost I first f later \ latter /latest Uast less least more most nearer ^ ' nearest .next folder I elder /oldest 1 eldest INFLECTION OF ADVERBS 243 5. Many adjectives when compared by means of er or e%i would sound awkward. Hence we compare them by means of the words more or mo%t, less or least; as, fashionablef more fashionable, most fashionable; fashion- able, less fashionable, least fashionable. 6. Some adjectives cannot be compared; for example, chief, square, unique, principal. 7. Two adjectives, this and that, are inflected for number, the plurals being these and those, n. Adverbs. 1. Adverbs, like adjectives, have their degrees of comparison, — ^positive, comparative, and superlative. 2. A few adverbs are compared by means of er and est; as, cheap, hard, high, slow, soon. 3. Most adverbs are compared by means of the words more and most, less or least; as, sadly, more sadly, most sadly; highly, less highly, least highly. 4. Some adverbs are irregularly compared; as follows: — badly \ ill(evU)/ worse worst far 1 forth / f farther I further f farthest I furthest late later / latest tlast little much less more least most nigh Higher fnighest I next weU •better beet 18 244 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Syntax of the Parts of Speech. Each word in a sentence has its own use or relation to other words in the sentence. This use or relation to other words in the sentence is called its syntax or construction. NOUNS. A noun may be used in the following relations: — 1. As the Subject of a verb. Birds sing. Do crows singf 2. As the Subjective Complement of a copulative verb (or of a verb in the passive voice). Cats are lazy animals. David was appointed captain of the team by the class. 3. As the Object of a transitive verb (or participle or infinitive). The ambassadors greeted the king. Having greeted the king, the ambassadors retired. 4. As the Object of a preposition. The books lie on the table. 5. As an Appositive explaining the noun (or pronoun). David, the captain of the team, was the hero of the hour. 6. As a Possessive modifjdng the noun. The fishermen's huts are along the cove, by Lane's wharf. 7. As the Indirect Object of some transitive verbs. The school gave David the trophy. SYNTAX OF NOUNS 245 8. As the Objective Complement of some transitive verbs. They made David captain of the team. 9. Independently either in exclamation or by direct address. 1. The poor people I How I pity them this cold winter! 2. God of the nations, be with us yet. 10. Absolutely with a participle to express the cause, time, or circumstance of an action. The game having been won, the team marched home triumphantly. 11. Adverbially to denote measure (time, place, or manner). The driveway was a mile long. The cold spell lasted three days. Where shall you be a week from to-dayt 12. As an Adjective. The team play was the best part of the game. They will spend the week end with us. 13. As the Subject of the infinitive. I wish the captain of the team to he dismissed, PRONOUNS. 1. Pronouns have the same cases as nouns. 2. The case of a relative pronoun has nothing to do with its antecedent. The case is determined wholly by the used of the pronoun in the clause of which it forms a part. 246 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 3. A relative pronoun is used not only to refer back to its antecedent, but also to connect with it the subordi- nate clause of which it forms a part. The boy who toins the game is always the hero. {Who is used as the subject of the clause and to connect the clause with boy.) ADJECTIVES. An adjective may be used as 1. The Modifier of a noun (or pronoun). A tremendous cataract fell over the cliff. 2. As a Predicate Adjective after a copulative verb, modifying the subject. The captain of the team was exceedingly popular. 3. As the Objective Complement of a transitive verb* modifying the object. His success made him exceedingly popular. Their team play made the trainer proud. VERBS. 1. With third-singular subjects, in the present, in- dicative, the s-form is used. Time flies. The canoe glides smoothly over the water. The chimney on one of those houses looks crooked. 2. Infinitives have the same uses as nouns. Seeing is believing. (Seeing is the subject of is. Believing com- pletes the copulative verb is and is therefore the subjective com- plement). I want to do right. {To do is the object of want.) SYNTAX OF ADVERBS 247 3. Participles have the same uses as adjectives. The team winniiig the most points gained the coveted honor. The trainer kept the boys running for practice. (Objective com- plement.) The dog, bought for almost nothing, proved a valuable friend. Participles may be used absolutely with the noun (or pronoun) . The pennant having been won, the boys were satisfied. ADVERBS. 1. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. The boy ran swiftly (modifies the verb ran) and though reaching the goal in an incredibly (modifies the adjective short) short time, he received his honors very (modifies the adverb modestly) modestly. 2. A conjunctive adverb not only answers the ques- tion, when? where? why? but also connects the clause of which it forms a part with the rest of the sentence. Please bring the ball when you come. It is a mystery why he should do so. 3. Modal adverbs modify the whole clause or sentence. Yes, indeed, I will go with you. PREPOSITIONS. 1. A preposition is used to show the relation between its object and some other word in the sentence. 2. The object of a preposition may be a noun, a pro- noun, an infinitive, a phrase, a clause. In the follow- ing sentences, objects are in heavy italics: — 248 FOUNDATION ENGLISH I went to Boston directly from him urith the hope of getting the job. He did nothing except to ask me questions and to glare at me from across the desk. I only nodded, however, at what he chose to ask me. 3. Prepositional phrases may be used as adjectives, as adverbs, as nouns. A day in June. (Adjective phrase.) I shall go in the morning. {Adverbial phrase.) The players came from out of the city. (Noun phrase.) CONJUNCTIONS. 1. Co-ordinate conjunctions are used to connect co-ordinate words, phrases, or clauses. The two team^ and (joins words) their captains were well matched in spirit and (joins phrases) in practice, but (joins co-ordinate clauses) of course the heavier team won the game. 2. Subordinate conjunctions are used to connect adverb or noun clauses with the rest of the sentence. I saw that he did not want to go (noun clause) and since it was not important (adverb clause) I let him off. INTERJECTIONS. An interjection has no grammatical relation with other words in the sentence. How to Parse the Parts of Speech, Parsing consists in naming the parts of speech, and giving their inflections and constructions. HOW TO PARSE 249 Nouns Verbs Infinitives. Participles Adverbs . . Pronouns . . Adjectives . . Prepositions. Conjunctions Class C Person Inflection \ Number Syntax I Gender or Construction Class f Person Inflection ] Number Antecedent I Gender if there is one I Syntax or Construction (Class Inflection — Comparison Syntax or Construction Class Principal Parts Voice Form Inflection . Mode Tense Person I. Number , Syntax or Construction f Forms ' \ Syntax or Construction f Forms * \ Syntax or Construction {Class Inflection — Comparison Sjmtax or Construction (Give the object Construction of the phrase introduced f Class * \ What they connect 250 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Analysis of Sentences, Analysis consists in resolving a sentence into its elements, and pointing out the offices and relations of each. To analyze we tell in the following order, — 1. The kind of sentence. 2. The kind of clauses of which it consists. 3. The principal clause or clauses. a. The subject and its modifiers. b. The verb and its modifiers, c. The complement and its modifies, 4. The subordinate clause or clauses. a. The subject and its modifiers. b. The verb and its modifiers. c. The complement and its modifies. 6. The connectives. 6. The independent expressions. APPENDIX B I. RULES FOR PUNCTUATION I. The Comma. 1. The comma is used to separate words, phrases, or clauses arranged in a series, when these are not con- nected by andf or^ or nor. When a conjunction is used between the last two members of the series only, the comma should be used before the conjunction. It was a fine, green, fat landscape. It has enervated their strength, multiplied their diseases, and superinduced upon their original barbarity the low vices of artificial life. 2. The comma is used to separate from the rest of the sentence, all words, phrases, or clauses used in apposi- tion. It was Frank Bracebridge, a sprightly good-humored young fellow, with whom I had once travelled on the continent. 3. The comma is used to separate words in direct address from the rest of the sentence. Seyton, send out. Doctor, the thanes fly from me. Come, sir, dispatch. 4. The comma is used to distinguish an explanatory relative clause from a restrictive relative clause. 1. First-year pupils, who are not allowed to attend rhetorical exercises in the hall, have instead exercises in their own rooms. (Explanatory.) 261 252 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 2. First-year pupils who are deficient in their work must report at once to the Principal. (Restrictive.) 5. The comma is used to separate the parts of a com- pound Sentence when there is a slight break in the thought. 1. The game was brief, but it was interesting. 2. Their wants were few, and the means of gratification were within reach. 6. The comma is used to separate from the rest of the sentence, expressions out of their natural order. 1. In manners and appearance, he is distasteful to me. 2. If I had had longer training, I should write better themes. 3. Whenever a man makes a statement, he must be sure of his facts. 7. The comma is used to separate from the rest of the sentence, expressions more or less parenthetical in their nature. 1. He was not, however, on the best of terms with me. 2. A man must be sure, whenever he makes a statement, that his facts are right. 3. There is a class of people, alas, who need watching. 8. The comma is used to indicate an ellipsis. One of us goes to the grammar school; the other, to the primary school. 9. The comma is used to separate the items of a date or address at the head of a letter or elsewhere. Charles Dudley Warner was bom in Plainfield, Massachusetts, September 12, 1829. RULES FOR PUNCTUATION 253 n. The Semi-Colon. 1. The semi-colon is used when there is a strongly marked division in the sentence. 1. I was dirty from my journey; my pockets were stuflFed out with shirts and stockings, and I knew no soul nor where to look for lodging. 2. The latter I gave the people of the boat for my passage, who at first refused it, on account of my rowing; but I insisted on their taking it. 2. The semi-colon is used to separate phrases or clauses in a series, when the phrases or clauses contain commas. The ships of war, that prowled like guardian giants along the coast; the headlands of Ireland, stretching out into the channel; the Welsh mountains, towering into the clouds; all were objects of intense interest. 3. The semi-colon is used to precede ^'e. g.'* (exempli gratia = ioT example), *'viz." (videlicet ^nsunely), "i. e.'* (id est = th&tis)f "as", and "p." (page). 1. A period should be used after every abbreviation; as, "Dr."» "Mr.", "B. C", "viz." 2. Tenement, a piece of property; p. 230, 1. 6. 3. There are three end-marks for sentences; viz., the period, the interrogation point, the exclamation point. in. The Colon. 1. The colon is used before a long or formal quotation and before a list or statement. His master says further as follows: "I think I can't charge my conscience with being much short of my duty to him. I shall now 254 FOUNDATION ENGLISH desire you, if you have not done it already, to invite him to lay his complaints before you, that I may know how to remedy them." — Benjamin Franklin: Autobiography. 2. There are four gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. 3. A good motto is: Follow the leading of your own conscience. IV. The Period. The Interrogation Point. The Excla- mation Point. 1. The period is used at the end of every declarative and imperative sentence. The period is used to mark abbreviations. 2. The interrogation point is used at the end of an interrogative sentence and after a direct question in the middle of any sentence. "Are you going so soon?" asked Mary. 3. The exclamation point is used after words or sen- tences uttered with strong feeling. Mary! Maryl What are you doing! Alas! What shall I do! Oh! you hurt. After the word used in direct address, no punctua- tion is needed. "O Thou that changest not, abide with me." V. The Dash. 1. The dash is used to mark a break or excited pause in a sentence. *T could be happy with her," cried he, convulsively, "in a hovel! — I oould go down with her into poverty and the dust! — I could — I RULES FOR PUNCTUATION 256 could— God bless her! — God bless her!" cried he, bursting into a transport of grief and tenderness. — Irving: The Sketch-Book, VI. The Hyphen. The hyphen is used to separate the parts of a compound word, and to mark a break in a word of more than one syllable when the whole of the word can not be got in at the end of the line. Monosyllables may not he divided, Vn. The Parentheses. The parentheses are used to inclose figures, words of explanation, or words thrown in that might be omitted without disturbing the sentence. They are little used by good writers. Vm. Quotation Marks. 1. Quotation marks (" ") are used to enclose direct quotations. 1. Here a general shout burst from the bystanders — "A toryl a tory I a spy I a refugee! hustle him! away with him!" 2. Shakspere says, "All the world's a stage". Note 1. Single marks (* should be used to enclose a quotation within a quotation. "Methought I heard a voice cry *Sleep no morel Macbeth does murder sleep'. " Note 2. Sometimes a quotation is interrupted for the sake of explanations. The parts of the quotation thus interrupted should be noted by quotation marks. 1. "And what is so rare," says Lowell, "as a day in June." 2. "My very dog," sighed poor Rip, "has forgotten mel" 266 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Note 3. When titles of persons, books, and magazine articles or the like are quoted, they are sometimes enclosed by quotation marks, especially in manuscript. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is one of the essays in "The Sketch-Book", written by Irving, one of whose pen-names was "Geoffrey Crayon". IX. The Apostrophe. 1. The apostrophe is used to denote the possessive case. « 1. The boys were hunting for squirrels' nests. 2. The boys were hunting for the squirrel's nest. Note: The pronouns ours^ herSj its, and theirs take no apostrophe. 2. The apostrophe is used to denote the omission of letters or figures. 1. *Tis (it is) the last rose of summer. 2. Aren't (are not) you going to the fair to-morrow? 3. I was graduated with the class of '99 (1899). 4. It's (it is) fine weather for sailing. 3. The apostrophe is used to make plurals of letters and figures. 1. Mind your p's and q's. 2. Cross out all your 6's. II. RULES FOR CAPITALIZATION 1. A capital should be used for the first letter of the first word of — 1. A sentence. 2. A fine of poetry. 3. A direct quotation. RULES FOR CAPITALIZATION 2S7 4. The topics of an outline. 5. The title of a book, a poem, an essay, a story, etc. Examples of the above rules are shown in bold' faced type below. (Poetry.) Pack clouds, away, and welcome day, With night we banish sorrow. (Direct Quotation.) It was Shakspere who said: "The qual« ity of mercy is not strained". ( Topics.) The causes of this fierce spirit of liberty were, 1. Descent. 2. Government. 3. Religion in the North. (Titles.) The first chapter of "The House of the Seven Gables" is entitled, "The Old Pyncheon Family". Macaulay wrote an essay called, "The Life and Writings of Addison", and also some poems called, "Lays of Ancient Rome". 2. The pronoun / and the interjection should be written as capitals. 3. A capital should be used for the first letter of — 1. Names or titles of persons. 2. Names of localities. 3. The name of the Deity. 4. Names of sects and parties. 5. Names of historical events and documents. 6. Adjectives when used as names. Examples of the above rules are shown in bold' faced type below. (Titles.) The King of England. Secretary of War. The President of the United States. 258 FOUNDATION ENGLISH {N'amea of persons,) Mary. John. Smith. Jones and Co, (Names of localities.) Essex Street, Boston. Buziard'a Bay. Memmac River. The West. The South. {The Deity.) The Almighty. The Creator. {Sects and Parties,) Protestants. Catholics. Methodists. Republicans. Democrats. {Historical Events.) The Civil War. The War of Inde- pendence. The Constitution of the United States. The Declaration of Independence. The Monroe Doc- trine. {Adjectives used as names.) The American people. An Indian boy. A British ship. A Latin lesson. A French soldier. 4. A capital should be used as the first letter of — 1. The days of the week. 2. The months of the year. 3. Festivals and holidays. Thursday. February. Easter. Washington's Birthday. Labor Day. Good Fri day. 5. A capital should usually be used as the first letter of every word in a title except articles, prepositions, and conjunctions. "Squirrels and Other Fur-Bearers", by Burroughs. "Three Men in a Boat", by Jerome K. Jerome. APPENDIX C RULES FOR SPELLING^ 1. Monosyllables ending in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel, double the final consonant on adding another syllable; for example, rurij running; slip, slipped. Dissyllables, when accented on the last syllable, follow the same rule: for example, occur, occurred; prefer, preferring. Note: A single vowel after gu also doubles the final consonant, as in equip, equipped; equal, equalling. Exercise. Apply the above rule to the following words:- bar recur demur quiz chop wrap prefer begin expel drop shovel gossip occur remit profit war offer sham skin sputter acquit submit squat commit ^In the preparation of this book the author intended to give a representative list of words ordinarily misspelled in the secondary school. Such a list, however, could not fail to be incomplete, and on her attention being called to ^'Daly's Advanced Rational Speller," (Benj. H. Sanborn & Co.), it seemed better to refer teachers to this and strongly commend its use with poor spellers. It is a three years' record of the misspelled words in all subjects pursued at one of the largest Washington, D. C, High Schools. It is an admirable Speller and is used in hundreds of the leading secondary schools of the country. 10 259 260 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 2, When a word ends in y preceded by a consonant, change y to i before a suflSx not beginning with i; for example, hurry^ hurries; happy^ happily. When the y is preceded by a vowel, no change is made; for example, gay, gayer; pulley, pulleys. Exercise, words '. — Apply the above rule to the follow Add er or est Add s or es AddAj heavy valley delay gloomy sorry treaty dry merry coy pony curry lucky tidy chimney country dry jolly story society icy lively worry alley fly ally gay 3. To spell words in ei and ie. Learn the rule as a jingle:— Place i before e Except after c. Exceptions to this rule are Seize, weird, and seizure. Either, neither, leisure. And words pronounced like neighbor. Exercise. Apply the above rule to the following words: — ' achieve believe brief ceiling deceive hygiene neigh niece receive relieve seizing siege RULES FOR SPELLING 261 chief deceit weigh conceit pierce weirdly conceive perceive wield deign priest besieging fierce receipt reins grieve reign sleigh 4. Final e with few exceptions is retained before a syllable beginning with a consonant; for example, close, closely. Exceptions: Tine -\-\y = truly ; awe+ful = at6j/MZ; due+ ly = duly; argue +ment = argument. Final e is dropped before adding -ing; for example, hope, hoping. Exceptions: hoe, toe, dye, shoe, singe, tinge. Die becomes dying. Final e is dropped before the suffixes ahU, ably, and ous, except after soft c and g; for example, blame, blamable; change, changeably; trace, traceable. Exercise 1. words: — Apply the above rules to the following accuse +-ing acquire +-ment or -ing appreciate +-ing argue + -ing base+-ness or -ly besiege + -ing bicycle +-ing criticise 4—ing defense + -less define + -ing determine + -ing eye -{--ing frame + -ing freeze +-ing grieve +-ance or -ing hinge + -ing hoe + -ing judge +-ment or -ing measure 4—ment or -ing immediate +-ly operate 4—ing paralyze + -ing 262 FOUNDATION ENGLISH discourage +-ment or -ing perceive +-ing drape +-ing die 4— ing dye+-ing elope +-ment or -ing examine H—ing excite +-ment, or -ing retrieve + -ing separate +-ly or -ing shine + -ing singe +-ing tie + -ing write + -ing Exercise 2. Apply the rule to the following words by adding able, ably, or ous:- advantage advise believe blame change charge conceive courage define love manage marriage measure mistake notice move observe outrage peace perceive pronounce receive service trace 5. Dis and mis are prefixes used us negatives. They do not change in spelling when prefixed to a word; for example, disappear = dis (not) -\- appear; misguide = mis (wrongly) + guide. Exercise. Write the following words at dictation: — disappearance miscall disappoint mismanage disagree miscarry disapprove mistake disarrange misspell disease misstep dissatisfy missent dissent misplace RULES FOR SPELLING 263 dissipate misstate dissension misspent disembark misjudge 6. Three do nots. Do not drop final -I when adding the suflix 4y, Do not drop final -y when adding the suffix -ing. Do not drop final -n when adding the sufiix -ness. Exercise. Apply the above rules to the following words: — Add Ay Add -ing Add -ness general study even final carry sullen real empty open occasional hurry plain official scurry stubborn especial berry keen peaceful tarry drunken principal whinny lean natural weary mean gradual marry thin original fancy rotten incidental hurry forlorn 7. Nouns ending in / or fe usually form the plural by adding s to the singular; for example, roof, roofs; fife, fifes. The following nouns, however, form the plural by changing / for v and adding es: — knife wharf elf self life thief half sheaf wolf beef leaf shelf wife calf loaf staff 264 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Nouns ending in s, x, 2;, sh, or ch (soft) form the plural by adding es to the singular; for example, box, boxes; topaz J topazes; church j churches. Nouns ending in preceded by another vowel, form their plural by adding s; for example, cameOy cameos. If the is preceded by a consonant, the plural is usually formed by adding es; for example, echo, echoes; potato, potatoes. Chief exceptions are halos, pianos, solos, banjos. Some common nouns always form their plurals with- out s. They are: — Singular. Plural. Singular. Plural. man men mouse mice woman women louse Hce ox oxen child children goose geese tooth teeth foot Jeet dre dice Exercise. Apply the rules given above to the follow calico grotto shelf cameo halo solo canto hero strife cargo hoax suffix chintz hoof thatch buffalo knife tooth domino leaf tomato folio life torpedo fox loaf tornado echo lurch veto elf march vireo gas match volcano goose mosquito wharf RULES FOR SPELLING 265 8. The possessive singular of nouns is formed by add- ing an apostrophe and s ('s) to the root form; for exam- ple, boyy boy's; man, man's. The possessive plural is formed by adding simply an apostrophe when the plural ends in s; by adding an apostrophe and s ('«) when the plural does not end in s; for example, boys', men's. Exercise. Write the following nouns in the possessive singular, and in the possessive plural: — woman doctor lawyer lady thief baby wife jockey James turkey pony monkey wolf peasant calf hero shepherd mouse gentleman deer tornado child ox Charles goose Dickens lackey APPENDIX D I. EXAMPLES OF PUPILS' THEMES L MODELi It had a garret, very nearly such a one as it seems to me one of us has described in one of his books; but let us look at this one as I can reproduce it from memory. It has a flooring of laths with ridgea of mortar squeezed up between them, which if you tread on you will go to — ^the Lord have mercy on you! where mil you go to? — the same being crossed by narrow bridges of boards, on which you may put your feet, but with fear and trembling. Above you and around you are beams and joists, on some of which you may see, when the light is let in, the marks of the conchoidal clippings of the broad- axe, showing the rude way in which the timber was shaped as it came, full of sap, from the neighboring forest. It is a realm of darkness and thick dust, and shroud-like cobwebs and dead things they wrap in their gray folds. For a garret is like a sea-shore, where wrecks are thrown up and slowly go to pieces. There is the cradle which the old man you just remember was rocked in; there is the ruin of the bedstead he died on; that ugly slanting con- trivance used to be put under his pillow in the days when his breath came hard; there is his old chair with both arms gone, symbol of the desolate time when he had nothing earthly left to lean on; there is the large wooden reel which the blear-eyed old deacon sent the minister's lady, who thanked him graciously, and twirled it smilingly, and in fitting season bowed it out decently to the limbo of troublesome conveniences. And there are old leather portman- teaus, like stranded porpoises, their mouths gaping in gaunt hunger ^Pupils were reading The Gamhrel-Roofed Hcmse in the class in literature. PUPILS' THEMES 267 for the food with which they used to be gorged to bulging repletion; and old brass andirons, waiting until time shall revenge them on their paltry substitutes, and they shall have their own again, and bring with them the fore-stick and the back-log of ancient days; and the empty churn, with its idle dasher, which the Nancys and Phoebes, who have left their comfortable places to the Bridgets and Norahs, used to handle to good purpose; and the brown, shaky old spinning-wheel, which was running, it may be, in the days when they were hanging the Salem witches. — The Ganibrel-Roofed House: J.G, Holmes. PUPILS' THEMES. A CORNER OF AN ATTIC. In a comer of my attic are met together in silence but in wild confusion, many old articles. Tattered coats, seedy hats, and intox- icated looking boots are hung on the rusty nails in the wall. An old sinewless table and chairs with faded coverings and lacking legs are leaning helplessly against the chests and boxes which chance to be in their way. On a crazy shelf many dog-eared volumes are scattered about. All are covered with a thick blanket of gray dust. This blanket perhaps is the sheker for them, summer and winter. From a small window at the farther end of the attic a thin ray of ghostly light settles on the silent articles, about which, many light- footed sprites must often scamper. 2. AN OLD ATTIC. In the thin wavering light strained through a dingy, dusty window conspicuously decorated with cob-webs, I discerned, on first entering the room, a mere jumble of objects. But as my eyes became accus- tomed to the light, objects seemed to be moving to their places. Here was an old foot stove used long ago to keep the feet warm in church. Crippled chairs leaned on one another for support. On a rusty nail himg a sword that from disuse had rusted in its scabbard* 268 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Against the wall was a time worn trundle bed that had heard many a generation of children sung to sleep by its mother's crooning. This spinning wheel, hung with wreath-like cobwebs had long sur- vived the hands that turned its wheel. Possibly this sacque-coat and stove-pipe hat were the wedding raiment of some person long since dead and gone. If the people who treasured these things so should see them now they would not know them. It seems almost like seeing the dead again to spend a few hours in the old garret on a rainy day. 3. A CORNER OF AN ATTIC. In a certain dark and dusty attic, repose articles which have retired from active service, and are spending their last days in peace. Under an old bench is a doll's house forlorn and empty, while in a remote corner an old-fashioned cradle stands, used only as a haunt for the mice. Pompous spiders spin their webs around the windows and coax their unsuspecting victims into their parlors. Stacks of childish books are scattered over the dusty floor, and hanging above them on rusty nails, old carpet bags, and tattered hats keep "watch and ward"^ year in and year out. Everything tends to make the attic a forlorn, yet interesting place for an explorer of old relics. 4. A CORNER IN THE CELLAR. One rainy day last week found me with nothing to do, so I thought that I would go down cellar and rummage around a little bit. At the first glance I could not make out anything, but as my eyes became accustomed to the darkness, I saw a big box looming up directly in front of me. Peeping over the edge was an old bicycle-frame and some old wheels, which, after long years of service, were now resting in peace. Beside this box was a decrepit old chair, lacking a bottom. On a shelf over this chair were a number of dust-covered bottles which I was going to sell to the rag-man, but did not remember to. Beside the bottles was a yellow box and also a black one. The yellow *An expression borrowed by many of the pupils after reading one Whittier'a poems. of Whittier'a poems PUPILS' THEMES 269 box contained old enap-cracker fuses with which I had set off my cannon last Fourth of July. The black one contained a brush and a little bottle full of gilt. In reaching up to get these boxes I spilled a paint-pail full of water down on myself, so I hastily decamped and went upstairs to get dry. A CORNER IN A CELLAR. This comer is filled with rubbish, cobwebs, and dust. As there is no attic in the house in which to stow things, this dark, mouldy comer is used instead . At a first glance the eyes meet with a j umbled mass of odds and ends, but at a nearer and more prolonged gaze they see a trunk, old and forsaken, against which a chair with two legs is leaning for support. An old stove, that in its youth has given warmth and light to the household is standing way back in the gloom as though ashamed of itself, and is holding on its head a lamp, or what was once a lamp. Dust an inch thick in some places is lying about on the articles. An old table that has done honor to the house in its young days is leaning against the wall for support, and under it repose the remnants of a couch now broken and old. Car- pets and quilts are lying about trying to cover the barrenness of an old stove-pipe that is red with mst and gray with dust. 6. A CORNER OF THE CELLAR. In one corner of our cellar is the meeting house of all useless arti- cles. Each article cries out for elbow-room. An old skate, rusty with age, hangs on a nail just like itself. The toe of an old boot is kicking its way through wood, dirt, and the much needed coal. A spider's web reaches from the old skate to the boot. A broken chisel is going to stab somebody if it does not get room. There is no end to broken jack knives. Here are the remains of an express cart, whose wheels would like to run away if they could. An old chair leans forsakenly against the wall. An aged stove stands in the middle of the pile and looks upon himself as the "watch and ward" society over the weaker articles. 270 FOUNDATION ENGLISH 7. THE CORNER OF AN ATTIC. The comer is one in a typical old farmhouse. At first glance the picture presented nothing of particular interest, and seemed but a confused mass of old rubbish and cobwebs. But upon a second observation, I discovered an antique chest, in which, undoubtedly, reposed the finery of bygone days. Resting on a broken stand was a pile of papers, yellow with age. Some were bordered by heavy black lines and contained accounts of President Lincoln's assassination and death. Against the wall leaned an old trimdle bed, and a powder horn hung from a rusty nail. Partly obscured by a broken down chair, was a spinning wheel, its shuttle forever silent, and to replace the golden flax, were but the webs of the spiders. A small stove had toppled over, and leaned against a few old slats. Queer companions they, for in their time of usefulness one would have consumed the other. Nearly covering these two objects was a bundle of rags. A stove pipe hat, its lustre gone, formed but a banquet hall for the spiders. Some old, moth-eaten garments hung on a few hooks. Faded and dejected, they added to the little comer of cast off and mutilated objects. n. MODEL.^ A storm of summer has its redeeming sublimities, — its slow, upheaving mountains of cloud glooming in the western horizon like new-created volcanoes, veined with fire, shattered by exploding thunders. Even the wild gales of the equinox have their varieties, — sounds of wind-shaken woods and waters, creak and clatter of sign and casement, hurricane puffs, and down-mshing rain-spouts. But this dull, dark autumn day of thaw and rain, when the very clouds seem too spiritless and languid to storm outright or take themselves out of the way of fair weather; wet beneath and above, reminding one of that rayless atmosphere of Dante's Third Circle; no sounds save the heavy plash of muddy feet on the pavements; the monot- onous, melancholy drip from trees and roofs; the distressful gurgling *The pupils happened to be studjring Yankee Gypsies in the class in literature^ PUPILS' THEMES 271 of water-ducts, swallowing the dirty amalgam of the gutters; a dim, leaden-colored horizon of only a few yards in diameter, shutting down about one, beyond which nothing is visible save in faint line or dark projection; the ghost of a church spire or the eidolon of a chinmey-pot. He who can extract pleasureable emotions from the alembic of such a day has a trick of alchemy with which I am wholly unacquainted. — J. G. Whittier. Yankee Gypsies. PUPILS' THEMES. A DULL DAY. The kind of a day Whittier said he did not like, has arrived. Beginning with a fog in the morning, the day continues to be dull until nightfall. The air is dull and heavy. The horizon is narrow. The clouds seem too spiritless to storm outright or to take themselves away to make room for fair weather. The tall, sentinel trees seem too languid to move their outstretched arms, and while leafless they seem to be dead. Even the telegraph wires seem spiritless; rain- drops are seen moving along as if they had been forced by some invisible power. The wind has not been here since the previous evening and there is no sound save the heavy splash of muddy feet on the slushy pavements, raindrops dripping from trees and roofs, rain running down the water-spouts, and the soimds of dirty "amal- gam" of the gutters running into the sewers. Beyond the horizon objects look like ghosts. It is a day of thaw and rain, wet above and below, and an umbrella is almost useless. 2. AN OLD HOUSE AND ITS SURROUNDINGS. On the outskirts of South Lawrence and near the border of And- over is a small house. It is an old, rough-made, weather-beaten structure, yet it is not deserted. It is occupied by an old lady and gentleman. When I saw this house last, everything was covered with snow. The well in the yard reminded me of Whittier's "Snow- Bound",— 272 FOUNDATION ENGLISH "The well-curb had a Chinese roof; And even the long sweep high aloof, In its slant splendor, seemed to tell Of Pisa's leaning miracle." The house seems as if it were going to fall in, but it has held up its head wonderfully. A tall chimney keeps "watch and ward" over all. Near by is a small plot which was once covered with trees, but now is covered with stumps. Everything seems to be going to rack and ruin, but the house still hangs together. m. MODEL. It is in the country that the Englishman gives Boope to his natural feelings. He breaks loose gladly from the cold formalities and neg- ative civilities of town; throws off his habits of shy reserve, and be- comes joyous and free-hearted. He manages to collect round him all the conveniences and elegancies of polite life, and to banish its restraints. His country seat abounds with every requisite, either for studious retirement, tasteful gratification, or rural exercise. Books, paintings, music, horses, dogs, and sporting implements of all kinds, are at hand. He puts no constraint either upon his guests or himself, but in the true spirit of hospitality provides the means of enjoyment, and leaves every one to partake according to his inclination. — Irving: Rural Ldfe in England. PUPIL'S THEME. HOW A BOY FEELS OUT OF SCHOOL. It is out of school that the boy gives scope to his natural feelings. He is not worrying about his lessons which are to be prepared for the next day but becomes joyous and free-hearted. He manages to get a rod and a gun and spend the day fishing for trout in the rapids of some sequestered brook or shooting squirrels in the lofty pine trees. Here he is joyful and free for there is nobody keeping a stem watch over him as the schoolmaster did in school, for he is the master of himseilf and may do just as he pleases. He can also PUPILS* THEMES 273 enjoy the fresh air of the country and the songs of the neighboring brooks which flow through the meadows, murmuring and chattering to themselves. All these things teach him j ust as much as the musty school. Out of school he is more himself and finds various ways of amusing himself and his companions in the roomy, outside world. IV. MODEL. DIRECTIONS FOR THE TEACHER. When it is found necessary to shut off steam from the radiators in this room, be sure to close both valves. On no account close one valve and leave the other open. Any violation of this order will be reported to the school-board. PUPILS' THEMES. 1. DIRECTIONS FOR USING THE TELEPHONE. When the telephone bell rings, the teacher must take the receiver from the hook, place it at her ear, and speak through the trans- mitter. When calling up the principal, the teacher must take the receiver from the hook, hold it to her ear, and press the small button beneath the transmitter. Be sure to take the receiver from the hook before pressing the button. 2. HOW TO BUILD A FURNACE-FIRE. First of all see that your furnace is free from ashes. Next put in your paper and put in enough. Be sure not to have it too thick. Then put in a good deal of kindling wood and apply a match. After the kindling wood is all ablaze, put in some hard wood or coal. If you wish to burn hard wood in your furnace, you must feed it with hard wood as fast as it is consumed. If you wish to burn coal, you must wait till the kindling is all ablaze and then put in enough coal to cover the wood. Be sure, in starting, that your paper is not too thick, otherwise there will not be enough blaze to start the wood. 274 FOUNDATION ENGLISH SETTING A WOODCHUCK TRAP. The first thing to do in setting a woodchuck trap is to find the villain's den. The trap is made of two pieces of steel connected by a large spring which runs between the two pieces. A spoon-like piece of iron rests on the spring and works the trap. The trap is chained at the woodchuck's hole and barely covered with sand. When the woodchuck touches the spoon, the two pieces of steel spring together and hold him fast. V. MODEL. DEFINITION. A river is a stream of water bearing the waste of the land from higher to lower ground, and as a rule to the sea. A trunk stream and all the branches that join it constitute a river system. — Davis: Physical Geography. PUPIL'S THEME. A GOLF TEE. A golf tee is a mound of hard sand about seven feet long and four feet wide, and is used for driving the golf ball. When the player of golf is ready to make his first drive, he steps upon the tee and makes a very small mound on which he rests his ball. Then he firmly places himself on the tee and drives, or makes his first shot. VI. EXAMPLES OF PUPILS' LONG THEMES.* 1. A NEW ENGLAND WINTER. If you would view a heavy snowfall, before the laborers A Topical ^jj^ ^jjgjj. ploughs have cut it up into paths and walks, jjjjy you should step out of doors in the early morning. At a first glance everything seems to have been wrapped up in ^This and the following theme were written after the transition was made, as in Lesson XXVII. There were so many good, "long" themes that it was difficult to narrow down the selection to two. The first of the two was written by a boy, the second by a girl. I>UPIL'S THEME 275 Typical Outdoor Pleasure* Typical Evening Pleasures a vast sheet of white. Even the air is full of scurrying snow, which strikes your face and stings your ears, making you wish for a minute that you were safe in by the fire. Recovering from this feeling you begin to be more observing and you recognize familiar objects which break up here and there through the snow. The air is keen and cutting and if you are not well protected the cold is unbearable. A few snowbirds that have defied the cold, hop about looking for seeds and allow you to come very near. The trees are covered with ermine, and a few pickets from a neighboring fence stand up like white-capped sentinels. Smoke is now beginning to appear over the city and the snowplough bells ring out on the still air. Breakfast must be nearly ready and the cold air has by no means injured your appetite. On a typical New England day, when the sim shines brightly, when the air is keen and snappy, and the snow well beaten down, a good observer may witness at least half a dozen different scenes of merriment within a short range of vision. On the top of that high hill a group of coasters are preparing to make their rapid descent. Farther down in the valley a group of younger boys are gallantly defending a fort against the furious attack of a few sturdy little patriots. Near by another group are throwing icy snowballs at a poor old snow-man, who with stove-pipe hat and coal black eyes utters no com- plaint. The lake at the foot of the hill is covered with skaters. Here is a group of boys engaged in an exciting game of ice polo and although the day is rather cold, the perspiration drops from their faces. Others are out to skate up and down in long graceful strokes, while, in contrast, we see on the edges of the ice, still others who are making their first attempt. Farther up the lake where the crowd is not so dense, iceboats dart here and there, like seagulls gliding over the surface of the ocean. On the other hand, scenes of gayety, dances, and all sorts of indoor sports and games serve to make the long, cold evenings very enjoyable. Let us take for instance 276 FOUNDATION ENGLISH ^n evening when the wind is howling outside and whirling Snow against the window panes in sudden furies. This is the kind of evening when one's bright sitting room seems most homelike. The fire burns with a bright glow and around this the family sits in a large semicircle all within range of a large hanging lamp. The father sits in his comfortable armchair with his feet resting on a brightly colored hassock, cheerfully enjoying his pipe and reading a Boston paper. The mother on the other side sits telling a story to her youngest child and at the same time mending with deft fingers a pair of stockings. Two of the elder sons are enjoying a game of cards with two old friends whom they have invited in to spend the evening. Around the fireplace com is popping and chest- nuts and apples are roasting. These are watched by a bright eyed girl who seems to enjoy the care of getting them done to perfection. On a stool before the desk sits the studious member of the family, softly singing to herself while preparing her lesson for the morrow. Out- side, the wind howling dismally rattles the blinds and blows sudden gusts of snow in spiteful fury against the window panes; but wrapped in the cheerful glow of the hearth the family sit forgetful of the tempest raging outside and laughing gleefully at the roar of the north wind in the chimney. 2. A NEW ENGLAND WINTER. A Typical ^ ^®^ England Winter I What charms lie in those Winter three words. Picture to yourself a gray day. The blue Day gky is thickly screened by dull, heavy clouds. The sun, so bright in the morning, has "sunk from sight before it set". The air grows chillier, and soon the snow-flakes begin to fall from the leaden sky. Faster and faster, they come, until the air seems swarming with them, and still they continue to fall silently to the ground. Night advances and the wind howls dismally through the branches of the trees. Inside, the firehght flickers from PUPIL'S THEME 277 Typical Outdoor Pleasures Typical Indoor Pleasures the fireplace, and sheds a ruddy glow all about the room. Outside, the sleet blows against the window pane, and the wind rattles the sashes as though determined to enter. As the snow drifts by the window, it takes the forms of "sheeted spectres of the night". When the next morning comes, what a transformation! As you care- fully open the door, you receive a shower of wind-driven snow. This does not daunt you, and you wrap up warmly and venture forth into the wonderland of white, the scene of a New England snowstorm. With the first cold weather the sports begin. We do not wait for the snow. As soon as the chilly nights freeze the ice to a safe depth, skating begins. Then, what fun it is to start out, on a clear December day, skates in hand. The ice is thronged with merry skaters, and their gay laughter is heard, before they are seen. The eyes are sparkling, and the frost tinges the cheeks with pink. At last the snow comes, however, and skating is spoiled at least for a few days. Never- theless, a new sport appears upon the field, namely, coasting. Every boy and girl near and far owns a sled. Youngsters bob out unexpectedly, around corners, from yards, and every other place, running and shouting like "mad Greenlanders". Double runners whiz by, loaded with merry children. Gongs ring and warn people out of danger's way. All is color and animation. The icy ruts sparkle, and their cold brilliance dazzles the eye. And then what delight it is to go, on a clear moonlight night, snowshoeing. The crust crunches beneath your feet. The moonbeams play along the cold, brilliant enow. The pines form dark mysterious silhouettes against the starlit sky. These are but few of the health- ful outdoor sports of a New England winter. The wind howls around the house, the sleet drives against the window pane in showers, and the snow lies deep and cold outside . Ah ! what a typical day for indoor pleasure. You find an interesting book, and with a ruddy-faced apple, bury yourself in the sofa pillows, lost 278 FOUNDATION ENGLISH Indoor Pleasures to all the world. You live in a sphere of your own, Typical very different from that which you have left. What a glorious time you have in the realm of that book. You assume the role of one of the characters, the heroine, perhaps, and follow her through her different emotions. At last, however, you tire of reading, your eyes need rest, and you wonder what next you can do. Your gaze wanders around the room, and rests with appreciation on the blazing warmth of the fire. What will match it? A box of marshmallows, lying on the table; the very thing! You get a fork and toast them and eat them as fast as they toast. They do not satisfy you and a trip to the pantry is the next thing. You return, laden with corn, the popper, salt, and a dish. What fun it is to watch those little kernels bounce into tiny fairies, all in white. Oh! how good the corn tastes, salted just to suit. It appeases your appetite, and you forget that you were restless. In a short while, though, popping corn becomes monotonous. You have eaten too much, your face burns from the heat, and you are rather drowsy. You fall to thinking, and your thoughts carry you far away. The noise of the sleet driving against the window softens to the gentle lapping of waves on a sandy beach, and finally you drift off in a tiny boat, across untroubled waters to the land of Dreams. V. MYTHS WRITTEN BY PUPILS. 1. MAGNIPUER'S SIN. Many, many thousand years ago the people, who were then giants, had never known how to smoke. But once there happened to be a boy who was very much larger than his fellow playmates, whose name was Magnipuer. This boy was a venturesome sort of a fellow, and was always looking for some new amusement. One day when walking through the woods, he stopped and made a fire of some dry leaves. As he saw the smoke in wreaths float PUPILS' THEMES 279 silently through the tree tops, he wondered how it would be to blow smoke out of his mouth. He got a sheet of paper and wrapped some leaves up in it. Then getting some fire, he set fire to his torch. He drew in, then blew out, and great clouds of smoke rolled upwards toward the sky. He kept on repeating these strange actions. Cloud after cloud rolled upward towards the sky. The thing he was smoking burned away towards his fingers ; he threw it away and made another one. He made one after another until he had used up all the leaves he could find. When he got tired of this he went home. Soon a great cry was heard throughout the land. Huge clouds had massed together and covered the sky. Now there was a space, then more clouds would sail by, some black and some white. This was an awful happening because at times the clouds would cover the sky and the sun, and it would be very dark. When Magnipuer got home his father asked him what he had been doing. When he told his father, he was very angry and caused an earthquake, but they could do nothing. All these years the clouds have sailed around, and around the world. On summer days when you see the white clouds, or on stormy days when the black clouds cover the sky, then you can think of Magnipuer's sin. 2. THE RAINBOW. Years and years ago there lived a very bright little maiden, and because she was so bright and pretty, she was called Sunshine. She had golden hair and blue eyes that seemed to reflect some of the sky in bright weather. Sunshine did not know what pouting meant, but looked on the bright side of all things. Her dress was always of the brightest colors, and she generally wore a wreath of gay- colored flowers on her- hair. Often on rainy afternoons she would amuse the children with her lively and quaint ideas,"and aged people brightened at the sight of her. Somehow she always seemed brightest and gayest on a rainy afternoon", but perhaps it was only a contrast to the outside world. One afternoon she was out in the fields picking flowers, when, like a flash, she was taken up to Heaven by the East Wind, and on 280 FOUNDATION ENGLISH rainy afternoons when the sun comes out, you may often see part of her bright gown in the sky, in the shape of an arch. And children even now look up at the sky, at the end of a shower, to see this bright Rainbow, and if you were ever so fortunate as to find the end of the Rainbow, you would find her beautiful golden hair. 3. THE LILY AND THE ROSE. In the beautiful garden of the heavens where the flowers go when they leave the earth, dwelt a lily and a rose. Only the word beau- tiful can describe them, for they excelled all the flowers of their acquaintance in beauty. The two flowers, sad to say, were great enemies. The lily's beautiful head, like carved marble, was a great contrast to the blushing rose. They dwelt in their cozy homes not far from each other. Both had many lovers and for this the two flowers were jealous of each other. They had paid each other many insults and often they sat thinking of some way which would cause the downfall of their rival. One day they were both invited to a great wedding feast. Many gods and goddesses were among the guests, but the lily and the rose were by far the most beautiful. The lily walked with great dignity and grace, followed by her numerous lovers. The rose blushed, giggled, and flirted with her admirers, causing many to laugh at her jokes. Suddenly there was a silence and all eyes were turned to the door. Stately, graceful and beautiful came Juno, attended by various gods. The lily and the rose put on a brave front. Great was their wrath and each sneered. One of the attendants reported this to Juno, and they were brought before her. Both were near the verge of tears. "The idea!'* exclfdmed Juno. She was terribly angry on account of their beauty. Turning to the lily she said, "On earth and in heaven your head shall always droop with sorrow". To the rose she said, "Though you shall still retain your beauty, your stems shall be covered with thorns and your leaves shall shrink". Thus does this story show us that beauty though pleasing, is often f atftl. SUBJECTS FOR SHORT THEMES 281 n. SUBJECTS FOR SHORT THEMES. A Straggling Fence. A Frisky Young Colt. A Silly Young Calf. Our Family Horse. A Deserted House. An Old-Fashioned Garden. A Tramp. A Drove of Cattle. A Flock of Geese. A Proud Rooster. A Group of Giggling Girls. Our Class Meeting. The Best Scholar in My Class. A Poplar Tree. The Whittier Ehn (or any his- toric tree). A Babbling Brook. A Meadow Brook. The Old Farm-Hand. A Bunch of Wild Flowers. The Old Pine. Voices of the Pines. A Newcomer. A Mischievous Boy. A Bad Scrape. The Whisperer. A Bed of Crocuses. A Good Romp. A Typical New England Farmer. An Old Fashioned Garden. A Ragged Child. A Tired Horse. An Old Well. A Com Field. (In full ear.) (Alter hjurvest.) Eight O'clock on a Winter Morn- ing. The Bells on Christmas Morn- ing. The Sky on a Frosty Evening. A Well-to-Do Man's Table on Christmas. A Poor Man's Table on Christ- mas. Preparations for Papering a Room. An Old Barn. An Old Bridge. Sounds on a Cold Winter Morn- ing. A Coasting Scene. The Beach in Winter. (Deserted except for sea-gulls.) The Work of Jack Frost. A Rickety Fence in Winter. A Rickety Fence in Summer and Its Friends. A Study in Green. A Gust of Wind. A Dusty Day. A Sandy Road. A Generous Act. A Ragamuffin. My Old Doll. A Lonesome Cricket. A June Day. My Favorite Author. My Favorite Book. My Favorite Chwacter. My Hero. 282 FOUNDATION ENGLISH My Idea of Perfect Bliss. My Heroine. From My Window. From My Piazza. A Mossy Bank. A Picturesque Wall. A Sunset. My Friend, the Hop-Toad. A Spring Gown. A Gay Girl. A Giddy Girl. A Smooth Pond. Den Rock in Winter. Snow-Covered Fields on a Sunny Morning. A Grove of Evergreens. A Pair of Red Mittens. A Full Moon. The Night Before Christmas. A View from the Falls. (Down the river.) A View from the Falls. (Up the river.) The Face I Know Best. A Comer of the Garret. A Comer of the Old Bam. Describe a Picture. A Piece of Coral. A Dollar Bill. A Portrait. The Common (or Park) at Night. My Bicycle, after a Collision. A PoHtical Cartoon. A Pool of Water. An Old Tree. A Scraggly Apple Tree. A Clump of Pines. A Dreary Scene. A Cheerful Scene. An Inviting Couch. Moving Shadows. (Cast by firelight.) My Notebook. My Canary. A Tiger Skin (or any skin used for a rug). A Street Scene. A Street Comer. A Bit of Sunshine. A Path in the Woods. A Cherry Tree. A Spring Songster. A Whiff of Odor. May Blossoms. A Queer Girl. A Merry Group. A Bed of Violets. A Laughable Sight. A Pair of Old Shoes. My Last Summer's Hat. A Remodeled Gown. My Fishing Regalia. The Oldest Person I Know. My Baby Brother (or sister). A Shady Nook. A Calm Retreat. A Comer in the Orchard. After a Shower, A Queer Trick. A Bonfire (at night). A Furrowed Field. The Patient Horse. A Study in Color. A Frog Pond My First Teacher. SUBJECTS FOR SHORT THEMES 283 Street Cries. My Most Intimate Friend. A Stray Dog (or cat). A Budding Maple Tree. A Green Field. An Observation of Ten Minutes. Up and Down the Brooks. A Modest Flower. A Bunch of Violets. Trailing Arbutus. The Celandine. A Bird's Nest. The First Dandelioa A Late Blossom. A Ploughed Field. A Babbling Brook. A Dilapidated Place. A Typical New England House. A Row of Poplar Trees. A Snow Flurry. The Old Cart Horse. A Glimpse from a Car Win- dow. A Hillside. My Old Reader. A Leafless Tree. A Forest of Pine Trees. A Frozen Swamp. An Old Grain Mill. A Moss-Grown Stone. A Tree after a Snow Storm. A Few Tumbles on the Ice. A Walk in the Shadows. An Adventure. An Exciting Experience. My Opinion. A Bit of Dialogue. A Study in Gray. Set in Silver. Every Cloud has a Silver Lin- ing (or any other proverb). A Bit of Satire. A Bit of Humor. A Good Joke. Overheard in Passimg. A Glimpse into the Windows of a Passing Train. A Current Event. A Symphony in Color. A Sad Experience. A Desolate Scene. The North Wind Doth Blow. Zephyrs Gently Straying. Old Boreas. 284 CORRECTING THEMES 8TMB0LS FOR USE IN CORRECTING THEMES. II Sentence should or should not begin here. Ms. Illegible or careless manuscript. sp. Fault in spelling. p. Fault in punctuation. Cap. Capital letter needed. 1. c. Use small letter instead of a capital. /\ Caret. Something necessary to the thought or construction needed, gr. Fault in grammar. % Begin a paragraph here. No H Do not begin a paragraph here. Obscure; not clear. K Awkward, clumsy construction, quots. Quotation marks needed. 1 Placed opposite the sentence means to recast the sentence. X Some fault too obvious for comment. ^ Dele = omit. [ ] Omit part enclosed in brackets. WW. Use a better word. INDEX ^8op, 155. Addison, Joseph, 35, 86, 103. Adjectives, correct use of, 107, 108, 109; defined, 214; classi- fied, 223, 224; inflection of, 241; syntax of, 246. Adverbs, correct use of, 107, 108, 109; defined, 214; classified, 229, 230; inflection of, 243; syntax of, 247. Analysis, 250. Apostrophe, 26, 256. Appendixes, 213-284. Arnold, Matthew, 62, 152. Bacon, Francis, 61, 68, 109. Be, conjugation of, 239. Beech Tree's Petition, The, 89. Blackmore, Richard, 43, 168, 180. Brown, Dr. John, 92, 93. Browning, Robert, 34, 68. Bryant, William Cullen, 82. Bryce, James, 155. Buckland, Francis T., 170. Burke, Edmund, 15, 27, 158, 170. Burroughs, John, 7, 11. Busmess Letter, The, 119-147; materials, 119; parts of, 119, 146; arrangement, 120; exer- cises, 125, 138; content, 127; point of view, 128; sub- jects for writing, 129, 132, 136, 138, 139, 145; details, 130; illustrative letters, 130- 135; folding the letter and addressing the envelope, 134; applying for position, 137, 147; formal note, 140, 141, 143, 144, 145, 147; Bummaiy, 146, 147. Byron, Lord, 192. Campbell, Thomas, 89. Can, 90. CapitaHzation, 33, 34, 256-258. Carlyle, Jane Welch, 179. Carlyle, Thomas, 200. Case, 233, 244. Classification of parts of speech, 219-232. Clauses, correct use of, 183, 186; defined. 214; exercises, 187, 188; classified, 218. Clearness^ 6; by distinguishing marks m sentences, 9; length of sentence, 15; by revision, 16; by punctuation, 20, 26; by capitalization, 33. Collins, Thomas, 77. Colon, The, 253. Comma, The, 20; exercises in placing, 21, 22; uses, 251. Composition defined, 2. Concord Hymn, The, 24. Conjugation, 239-241. Conjunctions, defined, 214; clas- sified, 231, 232; syntax of, 248. Corinna's Maying, 50. Could, 90. Cowper, William, 31. Crockett, S. R., 58, 65. Dash, The, 254. Declension, 234. Defoe, Daniel, 66, 74, 75. Dickens, Charles, 172, 200. Eliot, George, 153, 176. Emerson, Ralph W., 24, 61. Endorsement of Mss., 4. Exclamation Point, The, 264. 285 286 INDEX Exercises in capitalization, 10, 33; in punctuation, 21, 22, 26. Expression of ideas in the short theme, 1-116; in business letters, 119-147; in the long theme, 151-210. Familiar Letter, The, 196-203, 210; illustrative letters, 197- 201; subjects for, 202. Figures of Speech, 190-195, 209. Foote, Samuel, 164. Formal Note, The, 140-145, 147. Franklin, Benjamin, 163. Gettysburg Address, 154. Hyphen, The, 255. Ideal Paragraph, The, 159. Incident of the French Camp, 68. Indentation, 4. Infinitives, classified, 227; in- flection of, 238; syntax of, 246. Inflection of the Parts of Speech, 232-243. Interjections, 214, 248. Interrogation Point, 254. / Stood Tip-Toe, 37. Irving, Washington, 22, 29, 39, 64, 86, 102, 103, 155, 159, 161, 165, 272. Keats, John, 37. La Fontaine. 160. Lamb, Charles, 104, 151. Lay or lie, 90. Lee, Richard Henry, 9. Letters, Business, 119-147; fa- miliar, 196-203, 210. Lincoln, Abraham, 154. Longfellow, Henry W., 12, 64, 193. Loss of the Royal George, The, 31. Lucy Gray, 41. Metaphor, 190, 191, 210. Paragraph, The, defined, 151, 152, 208; exercises, 153, 161, 166-8; connecting words be- tween, 167, 168. Parentheses, 255. Participles, 238; syntax of, 247. Parts of Speech, correctness in use of, 78-112; defined, 214; exercises, 215. Past and Present, 18. Period, The^ 254. Personification, 190, 210. Phrases, defined, 212; position of, 183, 184, 186, 209; exer- cises, 187; classified, 216. Poe, Edgar Allan, 52. Point of View, 204. Predicate, The, 213. Preliminaries, 1. Prepositions, 214, 231; syntax of, 248. Principal Parts of Verbs, 229. Pronouns, 101; exercises, 101, 102; inflection of, 232; de- clension of, 234; syntax of, 245. Psalms, The, 191. Punctuation, exercises, 10, 21, 26-28; clearness by use of, 20, 26. Pupils' Themes, 104, 110, 111, 266-280. Quotation Marks, 20, 255. Reverie of Poor Sitsan, The, 45^ Ruskin, John, 86, 163, 169. Scott, Sir Walter, 17, 55, 72. Semi-colon, The, 253. Sentence, The, defined, 6, 9, 213; length of, 15, 213; exercises in writing, 16; classified, 215; analysis of, 250. s-form of verbs, 78, 79, 80. Shakspere, Wm.,27^ 193. INDEX 287 Simile, 190, 191, 210. Smith, Sidney, 206. Stevenson, Robert Louis, 26, 65, 87, 162, 173, 199. Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 93. Subject and predicate, 213. Subjects for Themes, Written, 5, 7, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 40, 44, 49, 54, 62, 67, 76, 81, 88, 94, 99, 105, 111, 129, 132, 136, 138, 139, 145, 157, 166, 174, 178, 182, 185, 189, 194, 202, 281-283. Oral, 8, 12, 18, 24, 31, 37, 40, 45, 49, 55, 62, 67, 76, 82, 88, 94, 99, 106, 112. Summaries, 113, 146, 147, 208- 210. Symbols for Correcting, 284. Synonyms, 46. Syntax of Parts of Speech, 244r- 248. Taine, H. A., 17. 191. Tennyson, Alfred, 59, 65, 99. Test of Unity, 159. Themes, defined, 2; written by ptipiifl, 103, 110, 111; the short theme, 1-116; the long theme, 151-210. Things to be avoided, 204-207. Thoreau, Henry, 60. Title defined, 3. To-morrow, 77. Van Dyke, John C, 155. Verbs, 78; s-form, 78, 79; exer- cises, 80, 85, 90; lie, lay, 90, 91, 92; will, shall, 95; exercises. 96, 214; classified, 225; inflection, 235. Vocabulary, defined, 12. Washington, George, 10. White, Gilbert, 152. Whittier, John G., 171, 271. Will or shall, would or should, 95. Words, correct use of, 38; exer- cises, 39, 43, 46, 47, 59, 60, 61, 64, 72, 73, 74; synonyms, 46, 48; variety, 52, 53; vividness, 68; specific, 59, 60, 61. Wordsworth, WiUiam, 41, 45, 60. Wreck of the Hesperus, The, 12. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY BERKELEY THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW Books not returned on time are subject to a fine of 50c per volume after the third day overdue, increasing to $1.00 per volume after the sixth day. Books not in demand may be renewed if application is made before expiration of loan period. v ^B e 1919 SFP g iQon 507n-7,'16 ^^1961