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LESSONS IN ANCIENT HISTORY.

Name the invaders who overran Egypt, and state who drove them out.

What does Manetho relate concerning them, and who was he? Who founded the eighteenth dynasty of Egyptain kings? Who were his three successors, and how did they benefit the kingdom? egi

Who was Sesostris, and what various epochs have been assigned for his reign?

Give some account of the story of this king, and state what extraordinary titles he assumed.

Mention some of the wonderful monuments that were erected in his reign.

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SESOSTRIS, OR RAMESES THE GREAT, CONQUEROR OF NATIONS,

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What countries or kingdoms did Amenoph II. render tributary?
What magnificent palaces were built by Amenoph III. ?
State some of the monuments which they constructed, and great
works in which they engaged.

What changes did he introduce into the government? and how far did his sway extend?

What commercial relations did he establish? and how was their existence proved

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TO THE READER.

In entering upon a new work, the leading features of which are so novel, it may be well to state clearly what we expect of the reader, and what he is to expect of us, so that there may be no disappointment or misunderstanding on either side. The success of the French Lessons, published in the Working Man's Friend, places it beyond doubt that it is possible to make a periodical the medium of conveying a large amount of information on all subjects, coming within the limits of what may be called an ordinary education. It is a well known fact that the acquisition of learning must be in every case the work of the pupil himself. In schools and colleges the master or professor does little else than direct, control, or stimulate. Where a difficulty occurs he may explain, or remove it, but it must be remembered that this may be done so frequently as to become positively injurious. Whatever he can do with the living voice may be done by us with the pen. But the materials on which we work differ widely. We can exercise no restraint, no oversight, and no coercion. Those who propose to accompany us through the columns of the Popular Educator must love knowledge for knowledge' sake, and be content to acquire it through labour and perseverance. Doubts we can remove, difficulties we can explain, but it must be upon demand. Much as must be done by ourselves, still more must be done by the reader. Eagerness in learning has done infinitely more for the world than ardour in teaching. But singularly enough the very profusion with which the stores of knowledge are laid around, is tending every day to embarrass and perplex those who can devote but little time to their selection and appropriation. The great mass of the people know not where to begin and what to choose. "What book shall I read on such a subject?" is a question which is every day asked by boys and men. "Why there are so many good ones that I hardly know which to recommend you," is the answer in nine cases out of ten. And even if it were more satisfactory, how many are there amongst the young and the working classes whose spare money is not a tenth part of what would be sufficient to procure even a scanty supply of those works which would be necessary to supply the amount of knowledge which any man laying a claim to be considered educated must possess. There are numerous instances in every hamlet in England, of dwarfed intellects and disappointed aspirations, in consequence of the want of means to procure even elementary works on com.mon subjects in this age of cheap literature; and there are thousands of youths throughout the land whom a simple and concise digest of the facts and bearings of leading subjects would have converted into diligent and earnest votaries of knowledge, but whom confused plenty has disgusted and sent

away empty.

no one can supply brains, perseverance, and energy to use them. If, in the course of our articles, anything should appear doubtful or obscure-if anything should seem to have been passed over lightly, or left altogether untouched, we shall be happy to afford the desired explanation upon application by letter. But it must be strictly understood, that we can give no direct answers to individuals. Everything must be in general terms for the benefit of all, and we must, of course, reserve to ourselves the right of deciding as to the pertinency of the queries which may be addressed to us. As we proceed, readers and authors will doubtless acquire more confidence in one another, and it must always be remembered that every obstacle overcome is a help in all after progress. In a few weeks we shall commence a series of "Lessons in German," upon the same plan as those in French and Latin, and shall continue them until the pupil is enabled to read with ease the works of standard authors. In the interval, however, we shall go on with the latter. Upon the im portance of attention to these three languages it is scarcely necessary to say one word. To have mastered them, is to have obtained the key to new fields of literature of the highest order, full of the soundest instruction, and possessing all the charm of novelty for the English reader. Now that travelling is becoming so cheap, and intercourse with foreign nations so close and frequent, many of our readers may some day find the use of our lessons in visits to France or Germany; but putting this out of the question, we hope, at all events, to enable them to enjoy one of the richest treats which any ardent and enthusiastic self-educator can recrive-the power of reading the great works of Rome, of Germany, and of France, in the original tongues. The best translation can give but a faint idea of any one of them; and it must be remembered, also, that the more familiar we become with foreign languages, the greater skill do we acquire in the use of our own. In learning languages, as in everything else, strength comes from striving, and every difficulty overcome is an aid in the achievement of still greater victories.

LESSONS IN ENGLISH GRAMMAR.-No. 1.

INTRODUCTION.

THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE is made up of several extinct into its composition than any other. The earliest inhabitants tongues or dialects, but the Anglo-Saxon enters more largely of Great Britain were the Ancient Britons, who spoke the old Celtic, which is now nowhere to be found except in Wales and Cornwall, and in a different form in Ireland and the Highlands of Scotland. When the Romans invaded the country, Latin of and continued to be so during the four hundred years of their of course became the language of law, literature, and fashion, occupation. But, singularly enough, upon their departure not a trace of it remained behind, except a few names of What we propose to do, is to present from week to week, a places such as Lancaster, Chester, Manchester, all of them concise but ample statement of all that is known, and all that compounds of the Latin castra, meaning a camp. It is now a must be learned in the various departments of Botany, Natural well established fact that there are not five words of Latin History, Astronomy, Latin and English Grammar and Com-origin in our language which can be traced so far back as the period of Roman domination. position, History, Jurisprudence, Political Economy, &c., After the invasion of the Saxons, the Britons were driven commencing with the simplest elements, and progressing step into the north-western and western corner of the island, and by step, until we leave the reader at such a point that he will there as we have already said, have preserved their ancient no longer need our assistance. We do not pretend that we the rest of the country, and their language became that in dialect. The Saxons and Angles took complete possession of shall exhaust each subject. It would be impossible to expect common use. A few words of British origin are, however, this within the limits of a small and cheap periodical; but we proved to have crept into it at this period, such as basket, may safely promise to supply every man with the means of ex-leather (meaning smooth in the Welsh), bride (meaning somehausting it himself, if time, inclination, and circumstances thing won), and about twenty others. allow him. But, of course, in this, as in other things, a great deal depends upon the co-operation we shall receive. It is comparatively easy to supply the materials of education, but

superseded the Saxon amongst the higher and educated When the Normans conquered England, the Norman-French classes. The latter being entirely abandoned to the common people, lost most of its force, flexibility, and precision

'Many of its inflections were altered, and many were lost | altogether. The power of expressing different shades of meaning by the change of termination in verbs and nouns, or by the addition of prefixes, fell into disuse. Prepositions and auxiliary verbs were employed instead.

The greater inherent strength of the Saxon language, however, at last enabled it to overcome and root out its rival, and establish itself firmly as the English tongue. In the hands of Geoffrey Chaucer, and other writers, it was moulded almost into its present form; but it must be remembered, that the Anglo-Saxon and modern English are now totally different. Many words of Norman origin are retained. All those relating to the chase, falconry, cookery, &c. are derived from this source, as also many law terms. Shakspere and Milton did a vast deal to fix the English language on a firm basis, and their works prove how easily it may be adapted to the highest purposes of oratory and poetry. At a later period, Dr. Johnson and other writers made it more flowing, sonorous, and majestic, by the introduction of many words of Greek and Latin origin; and it is now unequalled by any language in the world, for harmony, richness, variety, force, and precision. Every Englishman ought to account is his duty and his honour, to be well acquainted with the language of his own country, not only for its own sake, but as it will be a key to the knowledge of those of other countries.

The power of making thoughts known, either by speaking or by writing, is peculiar to human beings. But, in order that we may express our real meaning, we must write and speak according to some given rules. These rules make up what is called GRAMMAR.

The RULES of GRAMMAR therefore must be understood. Their study may seem rather dry and difficult at first; but by a little attention and the exercise of memory you will be able to master one rule at a time, and by degrees you will master the whole. And this is well worth a little trouble; because you will then speak and write correctly, and you will be able to see and enjoy the beauty of the different books you may have the means of reading. Books will thus become a rich treat, and the knowledge you get from them will be of great service to you through life, whatever station you may be

called to fill.

The word GRAMMAR is formed from the Greek word gramma, signifying literature; and it means the art of speaking or writing a language properly; that is, according to rules agreed upon in the country in which & person lives.

ENGLISH Grammar is the art of speaking or writing the English language so that every word shall have its proper place in a sentence, and every sentence be placed in proper order. Unless these rules be understood and attended to, a person will neither make his own meaning plain, nor will other persons understand what he writes or says.

English Grammar is divided into four parts :First, ORTHOGRAPHY. This word is formed from the Greek word orthographia, signifying writing correctly; and it teaches the shape and sound of the letters of the alphabet, the art or practice of spelling rightly, or the putting of the letters properly together, as their nature and sounds may require, so as to form words according to rule. Under this head is included ORTHOEPY, a word formed from the Greek word orthoepeia, signifying correct speaking; and it means the art of pronouncing words properly.

Secondly, ETYMOLOGY. This word is formed from the Greek word etymologia, signifying the analysis of a word so as to find its origin; and it means the science which explains the true nature and meaning of words by pointing out how they have been formed; also the several kinds of words and the changes of which they admit.

Thirdly, SYNTAX :-from the Greek word syntaxis, signifying a pulling together in order. It means that part of grammar which teaches the mutual connexion and dependence of words, and how they should be put together so as to form regular and connected sentences.

Fourthly, PROSODY, from the Greek word prosodia, signifying the doctrine of accentuation and rhythm. It is that part of grammar which teaches in what tone and emphasis words are to be pronounced; also the measure of verse or poetry; so that we may know how sentences, either in prose or verse, ought to be written, spoken, or read.

Each of the above parts of English Grammar will now be considered separately.

I. ORTHOGRAPHY and ORTHOEPY, or the correct spelling and pronunciation of words. Words are formed of the letters in the alphabet. ALPHABET is the name given to the whole set of letters in any language; it is so called from the first two letters in the Greek Alphabet, namely, alpha and beta.

In the English Alphabet there are twenty-six letters, a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z. Now, before we can put any of these letters properly together so as to make words, we must understand the nature of their sounds, otherwise we might put letters together which would not make a word, and which could not be spoken. For instance, the letters g, m, r, if put together, will not make a word, but the letters g, r, a, m, m, a, r, put together, make the word grammar.

The letters used in the English language are divided into two classes, vowels and consonants. Vowels are letters having a clear and distinct sound, and which may be uttered by themselves: they are six in number; a, e, i, o, u, and y. The remaining twenty letters are called consonants, because they cannot be distinctly sounded unless a vowel be added to them; n, p, and g, are consonants, but in order to sound them we must add a vowel, as en, pe, gee.

SOUNDS OF THE VOWELS.

a, the first letter or vowel in the alphabet, has three distinct sounds, as in the words all, an, and ale; the last two are the most proper sounds because they belong to this letter and to no other.

e, has also three sounds, as in the words then, the, and me. The first and second are the most proper sounds of this letter, for the e in the, and the ce in thee, are not to be sounded exactly alike. From want of observing the exact sound, many words in the English language are sounded alike which ought to be sounded with some difference, as, for example, the and thee meet and meat-beet and beat, and many more which might be named.

first of these is the proper sound, the second being nearly the i, has three sounds; as in the words find, third, and kill. The same as the full u, and the third as the narrow sound of e.

o, seems to have four distinct sounds, as in the words cloth,

ton, bone, and womb. The third of these sounds is the most proper, as the first is very like the broad sound of the a, the second resembles the broad sound of the u, and the fourth that

of oo.

u, has three sounds, as in the words us, use, and mule; of these, the middle is the most pure and proper sound, as the first nearly resembles the second sound of o, and the third is like the sound of oo.

y, is sounded nearly the same as i, and in many cases may be regarded as a substitute for it in sound.

10, is used as a vowel when it does not begin a word or part of a word, as vow, towel; and y is used as a consonant when it begins a word, as you, yoke, &c.

Besides these seven proper sounds of the vowels, there are some other sounds in the English language which can only be expressed by uniting two vowels, as ae, written æ, or o e, written e, &c. These are called diphthongs, or double vowels; and where three vowels come together they are called triphthongs. The a, though two letters, has but one sound, as Cæsar sounded Cesar.

The a 1 also combines the sounds of the two vowels in on.

as in praise, fail, rail, frail, &c.

The au has three sounds, as in the words author, aunt, gauge
The aw has one sound, as in the words awl, bawl &c.

ay has one sound, as in bay, lay, say, &c.

ea has three sounds, as in heart, heaven, seat.

ee has one sound, as in see, thee, sheep, &c. ei has two sounds, as in weight, deceit.

e o has three sounds, as in George, leopard, people.

eu has one sound, as in feud: and ew one, as in few.
ey has two sounds, as in the words eyre and key.
ic has three sounds, as in fie, friend, chief.
oa has two sounds, as in broad, boat.
of has but one sound, as in vil, toil, voice.
oo has three sounds, as in the words for, flood, fool.
ow has two sounds, as know, now.

ou has three sounds, as in noun, could, though.

oe has one sound, as in Phabe.

oy has one sound, as in toy, boy, joy.

ua has two sounds, as in the words guard, persuade.

ue has but one sound, as in true, blue.

u i has three sounds, as in guide, guild, fruit.

e au has two sounds, as in the words beauty, beau.

ieu has two sounds, as in lieu, and in lieutenant as it is usually pronounced, when it has the sound of lef, as leftenant.

Diphthongs are divided into proper and improper. A proper diphthong is one in which both the vowels are sounded by a single effort of the voice, as oi in voice, or oy in joy. An improper diphthong is one in which though two vowels are joined, only one is sounded, as e a in beagle, and oa in boat. This includes also triphthongs, as eau in beau, and iew in view.

THE CONSONANTS.

Consonants are divided into three classes, semivowels or half vowels, liquids, and mutes. Semivowels have a sound of their own, though it is not so perfect as that of the vowel; they are f, j, l, m, n, r, 8, v, x, z, and c and g soft. Four of these, l, m, n, r, are also called liquids, because they readily unite, and sound pleasantly with any other letters, as lemon, melon, nectar, rose, &c. The mutes are letters that cannot be sounded at all without the help of a vowel; they are b, d, k, p, q, t; and C, and g hard.

Some letters require to be sounded hard and others soft, some sharp, and others flat. This should be borne in mind, so that your words may be pronounced correctly.

Cis either hard like k, as in cull, pronounced kull; or soft, like s, as in cell, pronounced sell. Cis always hard before a, o, u, and all consonants, and at the end of words, as call, coal, cut and public. It is soft before e, i, and y; as in cease, city,

cypress.

G is likewise either hard or soft; hard, as in gun; soft, as in gin. It is always hard before a, o, u, and all consonants, and at the end of words; as for example, get, got, gut, glad, jug. It is, for the most part, soft before e, i, and y; as in the words yem, gill, clergy. În most of the names of persons or places in the bible, g is sounded hard before e and i, as in Gera, Gilboa, Gilead, &c. Gis likewise hard in many English words before e and i, as in geese, get, gear, girl, give, giddy, dagger, anger, and many more.

Ch has one hard and two soft modes of sound; hard, as in Baruch; soft, as in arch, chaise, &c. It is generally hard in words derived from the Greek and Hebrew; and soft in words that come from the French.

Ph, when united in the same syllable, is sounded like ƒ, as in asaph, elephant.

S has a flat and a sharp sound; sharp as in this; fat, as in those. The flat sound prevails in all words made plural, or increased by the addition of s, as in pins, foxes, gloves.

Th also has a sharp and a flat sound; sharp, as in thin; flat, as in thine.

is

Ti before a vowel is frequently softened down to sh; as in station, nation, &c.; in these words the sound of the nearly if not quite lost.

W when used as a vowel has the sound of u, as in few, new, but when used as a consonant, it has a sound peculiar to itself, as in the words William, we, &c.

The letter A can hardly be called a vowel or a consonant; it is a sort of breathing or aspiration. It is found both at the beginning and in the middle of words, and also at the end.

It is not necessary to remark on the other consonants, as they have little or no variation,

USE OF THE LETTERS OF THE ALPHABET.

Of the letters of the alphabet, words, syllables, sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and volumes are made. A WORD is composed of one or more syllables. A SYLLABLE is any complete sound spoken at one effort, as man, book, give, take, &c. A word of one syllable, as man, is called a monosyllable; a word of two syllables, as manly, a dissyllable; a word of three syllables, as man ess, a trisyllable; and a word of four or more syllabl as polyanthus, is call d a polysyllable.

A SENTENCE is as many words put together as will make complete sense, or express a whole thought or a distinct divi

sion of a train of thoughts; as, "I wish to learn grammar." "If I knew the rules of grammar, I should be able to write and speak correctly." "I mean to take in the Popular Educator, and hope by reading it carefully that I shall become acquainted with many useful branches of knowledge of which at present I know little or not' ing." These are all

sentences.

A PARAGRAPH consists sometimes of one long sentence, but more commonly of several sentences put together in proper order, so as to form a distinct part of a letter or discourse. Paragraphs are often used to break into shorter portions, a letter, discourse, or essay, which might otherwise fatigue the reader.

put together in order, either to form one complete part of a A SECTION, OF CHAPTER, consists of a number of paragraphs whole work, or to give the reader a little time to rest or think. For instance, the instructions in grammar in the Popular Educator, which contain a number of paragraphs, are put together so as to form one complete lesson or chapter.

A BOOK, or a VOLUME, is made up of many sentences, paragraphs, sections, or chapters, and varies in length and bulk, according to the nature of the subject, or the intention of the writer.

QUESTIONS ON THE FOREGOING LESSON. What is grammar?

Why is a knowledge of it necessary?

Into how many parts is English grammar divided?
What is orthography?

What is orthoepy? What is etymology? What is syntax?

What is prosody?

What part of grammar is that which teaches the art of spelling and pronouncing words correctly?

How many letters are there in the English alphabet?

Is there more than one class of letters in the alphabet ?
Which are called vowels?

How many sounds has the letter a?

What are the sounds of the other vowels?

What are the names given to the double and treble vowels?
Mention the sounds of some of the diphthongs.

What is the difference between a proper and an improper diphthong?

What are consonants?

How are they divided?

Describe a semi-vowel, a liquid, and a mute.
How are consonants sounded?
Give an example of the hard sound.
Also of the letters sounded softly.
How is a word or syllable made up?
What is a sentence?

which contains either one long sentence, or several sentences? What is that portion of a letter, speech, or discourse called What is a section, or chapter?

What is the principal subject of this lesson ?

MATHEMATICS.

THE word mathematics, which is derived from the Greek verb, manthano (to learn), was originally applied to learning in general, but it was afterwards restricted to the knowledge of what are now called the exact sciences. This restriction began with Plato and Aristotle, in whose writings the term was especially applied to skill in the sciences of Arithmetic, Geometry, and Astronomy, the latter science having been cultivated at a very early period of the world's history. So high an opinion had the former philosopher of the value of these sciences, and particularly of the second, that he placed over the door of the academy or school founded by him at Athens, this inscription: "Let none ignorant of geometry enter here." Passing over the "dark ages," when religion and philosophy were alike encrusted with the ignorance and prejudice of mankind, we come to the opinion of one who mightily assisted in the "advancement of learning." Lord Bacon, in his treatise on this subject, expresses his opinion of the nature and value of the exact sciences, in the following appropriate words: "The mathematics are either pure or mixed. To the pure mathematics belong those sciences which handle quantity determinate, merely severed from any axioms of natural philosophy, and these are two, geometry and arith

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