THE PRINCIPLES · OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR, COMPRISING THE SUBSTANCE OF ALL THE MOST APPROVED ENGLISH GRAMMARS WITH COPIOUS EXERCISES IN PARSING AND SYNTAX. BY WILLIAM LENNIE, AUTHOR OF THE "CHILD'S LADDER TO THE BIBLE," ETC. PREFACE. Ir is probable, that the original design and principal motive of every teacher, in publishing a School-Book, is the improvement of his own pupils. Such, at least, is the immediate object of the present compilation; which, for brevity of expression, neatness of arrangement, and comprehensiveness of plan, is, perhaps, superior to any other book of the kind, "My chief end has been, to explain the general Principles of Grammar, as clearly and intelligibly as possible. In the definitions, therefore, easiness and perspicuity have been sometimes preferred to logical exactness." Orthography is mentioned rather for the sake of order, than from a conviction of its utility; for, in my opinion, to occupy thirty or forty pages of a grammar in defining the sounds of the alphabet is quite preposterous. On Etymology I have left much to be remarked by the teacher, in the time of teaching. My reason for doing this is, that children, when by themselves, labour more to have the words in their books imprinted on their memories, than to have the meaning fixed in their minds: but, on the contrary, when the teacher addresses them viva voce, they naturally strive rather to comprehend his meaning, than to remember his exact expressions. In pursuance of this idea, the first part of this little volume has been thrown into a form more resembling Heads of Lectures on Grammar, than a complete elucidation of the subject. That the teacher, however, may not be always under the necessity of having recourse to his memory to supply the deficiencies, the most remarkable Observations have been subjoined at the bottom of the page, to which the pupils themselves may occasionally be referred. The desire of being concise has frequently induced me to use very elliptical expressions; but I trust they are all sufficiently perspicuous. The Questions on Etymology, at the end of the book, will speak for themselves: they unite the advantages of both the usual methods, viz., that of plain narration, and that of question and answer, without the inconvenience of either. Syntax is commonly divided into two parts, Concord and Government; and the rules respecting the former, grammarians in general have placed before those which relate to the latter. I have not, however, attended to this division, because I deem it of little importance; but have placed those rules first which are either more easily understood, or which more frequently occur. In arranging a number of rules, it is difficult to please every reader. I have frequently been unable to satisfy myself; and, therefore, cannot expect that the arrangement which I have at last adopted will give universal satisfaction. Whatever order be preferred, the one rule must necessarily precede the other; and since they are all to be learned, it signifies but little whether the rules of concord precede those of government, or whether they be mixed, provided no anticipations be made which may embarrass the learner. For exercises on Syntax, I have not only selected the shortest sentences I could find, but printed the lines closely together, with the rules at the bottom in a small type, and by these means have generally compressed as many faulty expressions into a single page, as some of my predecessors have done into two pages of a larger size. Hence, though this book seems to contain but few Exercises on bad grammar, it really contains so many, that a separate volume of exercises is quite unnecessary. The former Editions of this Epitome were well received by my Friends and the Public, and it is hoped that the present will not be less acceptable. Whatever amendments were thought necessary have been made, and whatever defects were found in the former edition, in the time of teaching, have been carefully supplied. On Etymology, Syntax, and Prosody, there is scarcely a Rule or Observation in the largest grammar in print that is not to be found in this: besides, the Rules and Definitions in general are so very short and pointed, that, compared with those in some other grammars, they may be said to be hit off rather than made. Every page is independent, and though quite full, not crowded, but wears an air of neatness and ease invitingly sweet ;-a circumstance not unimportant. But, notwithstanding these properties, and others that might be mentioned, I am far from being so vain as to suppose that this compilation is altogether free from inaccuracies or defects; much less do I presume that it will obtain the approbation of every one who may choose to peruse it; for, to use the words of Dr. Johnson, "He that has much to do will do something wrong, and of that wrong must suffer the consequences; and if it were possible that he should always act rightly, yet when such numbers are to judge of his conduct, the bad will censure and obstruct him by malevolence, and the good sometimes by mistake." K. means Key; the figures refer to the No., not the page. THE PRINCIPLES OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR. ENGLISH GRAMMAR is the art of speaking and writing the English Language with propriety. It is divided into four parts; namely, Orthography, Etymology, Syntax, and Prosody. ORTHOGRAPHY. ORTHOGRAPHY teaches the nature and powers of Letters, and the just method of spelling Words. A LETTER is the least part of a Word. There are twenty-six Letters in English. Letters are either Vowels or Consonants. A Vowel is a letter, the name of which makes a full open sound. B 3 |