1895 printing of 1895 copyrighted text. The publisher preface informs the reader that the author is the chief-proofreader in one of the largest book publishers in New York. Bowden asserts in the preface to his grammar that his contribution to the realm of grammar handbooks will be one that avoids unnecessary material that detracts from the learning process and one that establishes a beneficial system of classification to lessen the need for rote memorization, both of which he argues are failings of the preceding grammar handbooks. The text covers etymology, syntax and prosody-punctuation, establishing classifications for each. Exercises follow the sections on syntax and punctuation. The Schultz Archive only includes an excerpt of the title page, contents, author's preface and publisher's preface. The scans are good quality, but some highlighter obscures text.
A copy of the second, corrected edition, dated 1885. The author is one of the ministers of the High Church and Professor of Rhetoric and Belles Lettres in the University of Edinburgh. A collection of lectures from twenty-four years of Blair's instruction. Blair claims that he has only published these lectures as a result of their circulation in uncertain forms without his consent. The lectures cover taste, genius, the sublime, beauty and other pleasures, the rise and progress of language, structure of language and the English tongue, perspicuity and precision, structure of sentences, harmony of structure, figurative language, and figures of speech.The Schultz Archive only includes a few excerpted lectures from the various volumes. The quality of the text in the collection is good.
This excerpt of the third American edition (with additions and improvements) was published in 1819. The preface states its from the eight British edition. The author, Reverend David Blair, is credited for authoring several other books on grammar and juvenile letters. Blair's work, which only briefly discusses grammar from a broad, and colonial historical perspective, seeks to advance a scientific understanding of many subjects, including the English language. It is Blair's assertion that language instruction should build on and be part of a holistic education that enables the students to better understand all educational subjects. The Universal Preceptor includes chapters on various subjects, including the arts, mathematics, the sciences, government, agriculture, etc. The Schultz Archive only includes a brief excerpt (focusing on geography and grammar), and the scans are not very good quality (but they are legible).