COM PO~ITfON
RHl 1~TOHJC

AND

~CHOOLS

FOR

ROBERT HERRICK, A. I\.
A SS I ST AST

PROl'ES ~O R

OF

E :" GL l ~ ll

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THF: !"N!\' 1-:R:"">\1 \' 11t-" CHiCA\-,•--1

A;o..;D

LINDSAY TODD DA:'IIO'.\ , A. B.
I NSTRUCTOR

IN

1·.:-.:< .i.1 "' 11

JN

J 111< l ",...,l\'f·I-''-,! I\' <; /t ('H 1• "."- ··•\

CHICAGO
SCOTT , FORES:-L\:\' ;\:-;D CO:'>l!',\'.\' Y

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llAh'AID ~LLEiE llllMYh'
61H Of f
fUD •COlll"fiftl'TOM

PREFACE.

iltllVIJIHIC'.31924
' . '

Certain beliefs that the authors of Com/x>si!ion and
Rlidorir for Sd1ools h old in re fere nce to the teach in g of

Bv SCOTT,

FORES~IAN &

PRES~

OP'

1"11M llli: :-.'H\' 0 . S llt!l ' .o\W I• <:11.

CHH.: A<.;O.

C:O.

English composition ha\·e innuenced them in preparingthe present text-book.
1. fn the earliest years, the critical side of tcachini;
should be subordinated to the constructive, stimulati\·e
side; the pupil should be encouraged t o write freely
and even un consc io usly at first, to form habits of
thought and of invention before his expression is
minutely cr iticised and pruned. For this 1·eason a
preliminary course (Part I) of constructive work has
been pro\·idecl. T o these chapters nothing has been
admittecl of a negative or minutely cri t ical nature. The
processes of work that a conscientious writer follows
are described, as cl osely as possible in the natural order
in which these processes occur in a \\'ritcr's cxµcric; ;u.: .
2. M llCh , if not all, of the usual freshman course of
rh etoric in collC'j:!"es can properly he in cluded in the
seconda ry CO\lrsc in l·:ni.:·lis h without rcqlliring- more
time than is alreacly devoted to th e Sllbject. In view of
the fact that only a small percentag-c of the students
of secondary schools enter coilege , it seems clesirahlc
to present to the high-school pupil ali the elementary
facts of style, such as usa~e. clea rn e ss in sentences,
paragraphing-, etc. Many 0f the best text-books designed for schools, h11wever, ;u·e purpuscly incul'!ij'liete
in tre'ltmen t ; they take for granted that the stuJcnt
will vursue a further cou r se of instruction.

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iv

PlUiFACE.

l'RFF.-\ CF .

3 . Jn the u s1 1al secondary course, the t ex t-book of
rhetoric is t oo m ::i rk cc11y sep::ir ated frorn th e ,,·ork in
co111position. Frequently i t is :<ssig-ned to b e t aug·ht
during- one ye:ir of the course , or one term of a ye :ir,
ancl is afterwards dismissed from th e pup il 's atte nti on .
This is due iu part to the fact that most text-books are
desi~ned for a short course, in \\'hich the s ubj ect is
presentcll methodically :ind theoretically . The au th o rs
of th e present book hclicvc that the text-hook shou ld
accompany the pupil :-is far as p ossible throu g h his
co urse - at lc:-isl fo r two ye:-irs . P::irt I is inte nded t o
provide for a year's class-\\'o rk in composit io n ; l'arts
I I, III, and IV arc intended for ::i secon d ye::i r u( more
system atic dr ill in th e p rin c iples of rhetoric. l'art V
may either be included in the second year or expanded
to g-ive work for an addition::il yc::ir . This leng-thcningof the course docs not imply, ho ,,·evcr , that daily lessons in the text-book should be r equired. Probably
one recit:-ition period c::ich week will be sufficie nt for
th e forma l \\' Ork in the text-book.
4 . From the llcsi;,;11 of l':trt I it r esults n:-iturally
t hat some topics arc treate d t\\' icc in the l)oo k . The
authors feel that this repetiti o n i11 the pract ical study o f
an art is n ut only \lcsira1Jlc , 1>11t C\'C n es se nti a l, in
order tint the yo t111 g writer may be tat1g-h l tu consider
ag·ai11 a 11 d ag-a i11 , under llCll' aspects, the few old and
ra ther L>lwi 1n1s rhct .. riL·:1l trnihs. Thi: :1r•pliL·:1ti " n ,, f
these trnths i11 ne w circum s tances is th e im po rt::int
matter. The aim of the authors in this p:-irticubr h ::i s
been to prepar e a book for te::iching, not a systematic
trc:-itise .
5. \ Vith this aim in view , mnch a tte n t io n has been
given t o the exercise s. A sch oo l-boo k o n writing
should p r esent rhetorical theory as a n ecessary com-

v

ment upon the exercises , no t th e exercises as an
appendix to th e- t ext
. . I n sp1't e o f. t J1e extended exercises g-ive11, teachers will probably /incl it wise tu
supple m ent ra the r than curtail this 1·l~i·t· <J"I •h
~ J·ir ·l •!·:.
ll C
Fo r the sake of pract ica l re sults in teachi 11 g als o , the
l:tri,:-cr part of the illustrative material in the exercises
h a s heen taken from the \\'ritin« ,,f J,.. ,.' 11 . .. ·', ..l ••,,, .1, .
\ uung- \\Titers learn by (Jb .scr1·1111r the <l"t-C'L"" . ·ic' "u1c
cxce1lc:1 cies of compus!tiu11s "ithin the ir 0 , 1 n JHi\\'CT ui
c,mulat 1011 , n ot by the exclt1si 1·e study of m::istcrpi cccs .
f· o r t he same r easo n it h as been deemed \\'isc to leave
these cr_ude examples of writ ing in as natural a stat.c
as poss1 ble . Only the grosser blunders have been
remo\·cd , for , \1·hilc c-... l e"I l ex
· ·t 1··.ll'L
·• ]1ns
.. - ·1Jec:1 c:noscn
·
to
illustrate one spee r·ri>C erro r, th e other oh\·ious f:wlts
'

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o: composition thal occur wi ll provide "PP<irtunitic,._
ol cxcru,,1n~- tl1c jrnpil's criL1c;tl skill.
Furthcr. it 1s
a ssumed th;'.t Lhe study o E l i teraturc \\'J jj accumpany
th e course 111 composition, a n d that illustratirms uf
e~ ec t ive ·w riting to supplement th ose g-iven in the text
w1il n ot uc hard to find.

1

1

I

P in ally , a word must be said ahout two dchatahle
points . Th e u se of examples o f bad English to teach
' us:1~·c h as l>cc n widely co1Hlcnrncd uf
co rrcc t "1 0,1 1~J'1sn
late years , yet this buok fo ll ows the o lder m«thud i•i
providing, in Part II, copious exercise s of this :::iti: :·c:.
Mnch 1·1111 'nc s:un
·' in
· f :..l\"( i r <if· t11i~ f1,rin ()( c>~ Lt: ~ <i i" i :l

~.

6.

;..
~.:

m usa ge . , Jn many cases, it is the only dTccti\·c
m ethod . Still , wherever a teacher dee m s that hi s ciass
would l~c h:-irmed by examples of b::id English h e
c~.n -~a:Ily omit the debatable sections of C'h :i;;ters
~1-Xi \; · Ai;ain, in treating- the kinds of compositi o i'., t he authors have felt doubtful whether this fo rmal
topic belong-s p ro perly in :i :;ecomlary school cou rs~ o f

. } )

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vi

PHEFACE.

English writing. As the pupil mee ts the various literary forms in his study of English classics, h o wever,
sorne discussi o n of the general laws underlying them
would seem to be us eful at this period.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
(SY'"OPSIS).

~,·.

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1{0bcrt

:\i or~s

L<>\' i. <: :t: 1tl 'fi·.

J;t 1n ·· ~

CHICA GO , Jr.LJ;>;OIS,

April 19 , 1899 .

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~-

PREL!i\HNARY W ORK.
CHAPTER I.
CO !.\·rPOSITrON -

ORAL ANll WRlTTE!<.
PAG R

RECTI01'"'

1. Expression the Object o f our Study
2. Composition Defined
3.

Rhetoric Defined

.

'"'

9
10

.

4. The Valu e of Oral Composition

5. Differences Between Spoken ;in cl \Vritten Comp <•sitinn.

6.

11
.:.:..'

Pleasu r e to bQ F o11n(1 ln Co rn po s ition

7. Themes Dcr1nctl , and General l>irections fror Thc-1 n es

1.i
~

CHAPTER II.

8.

How tn Choose a Subject

9.

2 . Pre\·i o us ln[o nn atio n
3. Size o f To pic , and Space
Fiodin~ Material to Wri te About

1.

In~ f"re:.t

2Z

24
24

1. rI'he H. eporter':-:. ~1cth od

10.

2 . The mes about Rooks
.
.
3. :Material fro m Newspapers and Mag-azio es
S ummary of Chapter
CHAPTER Ill.
DEVRI. Ol'MENT OF S U BJECTS .

.H

11. Titles

12.
13.

14.

.
.
.
.
.
Prel iminary Work: N otes and Outlines
The First Complete C o py
The Final Copy

36
38
'lO

CHAPTER IV.
DlVlD!~C:

15. The i'\atura1
16. Parag rap h s:
t•han ic;tl

S U BJECTS

r~ TO

'P AR :\t:R.4i.Pl1:-\

]_>ivi~~ons of a S t:b ;cl: t
ti1 c Jn<l icati on ., f th e,,- lJ i,· i,i< >Jh, "

nc,·1ce

.
~-

WllAT TO WRTTE ABO UT.

\\\·: ".· j· l,i11n . ,) f

the U niversity o f Chicago, for helpful commen t on the
proof.
Th e credit for the exercises of this book is due very
large ly to Miss Edi th Burnham Foster, of the University of Chi cag-o , who selected and arranged the iiin strative material, and wh o su~gested not a fe w o f the
q uest io ns in th e m. For her intcll ig-ent and pa instak ing
labor the an tb ors arc very grateful.

~

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PART I.
No text-book should pretend to completeness of
treatment or to exclusiYe origi nality o f presentation,
least of all a text-boo k upon the s ubtle aml bafliingsnbject of expres sio n . The authors of Co111posifion n111/
Rhetoric for S chools have b o n-owed so largely and so obviously from the co mmon sources of rhet orical doctrine
that acknowledgment is superfluous. Y et they desi re
to acknowlecl.g·e their constant im1ebt ed nes:; to their
teachers, Professors A. S. Hill and Ban-ett Wendell , of
Harvard Uni\·ersity , an<l t o Professo r G. R. Ca rpenter.
of Colu mbia Universi ty, whose text-book, l:!.~ 1.·arises in
Rlzeforic and Eng!islt Co111positio11 , they have used in
their classes. Than ks are aiso due Assistant Professor

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COMP0$IT!O:" A:\"D HHE:TOR !C.

TABLE O F CON T ENTS.

~ 1 : cr 10:-.:

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I

17.
18.

19.
20.

21.
22.
2 3.

PA O l"I'.

Length of Parn g rnphs
Pa ragraph Topi<:s
Development of Th o ught from t he Tnpic of the Pnrngr:qih
Den:lonmcnt of Topi<'' by lll ustratinn
Dcveloirn1cnt of Narrat in' Topi cs
Development of Descripti,·e Tnpics
Sunnnary of Ch:Jp tcr

I

r

I
I

s:1

t:.ECT I O!"

131
132

Cautions Aga inst Harl fo rm s

i 33

52.

56

57
SS

PART 1l .

C H APTER \' .

24.
2.5.

Definition of the Sentence
Content nf t he ~er:te:ice
.Sin1ple, Cun1pound, :-tnd Cun1plc.:~x

27.
28.

A dva nta ge ~ 0[

2ti.

Senl~ucc:-,

~3

29.

30.
., 1
v ... .

32.
33.
34.
35.
36.

38.

CII1\PTER IX
c·. oon CSP: n FF I NF n .

s .1

(_'I l/\ l' T lolZ \'I.
/\

USAGE.

79
80
;-..2

Cu111pound and Co1nplex Senteni:e-~
' [' i 1e N ee d fur \.Tari ...:t\' iii Scntencc Furnl:-. . \ Tarious
Forms Jllu s trntcrl .

1<.E\" l E\\' OF P t" 7'\CT1':\T IO:--:.

The u,es of P unctuatinn
How to L ear n Pt1 nd u:1tio11
rrh c Con1n::il
The S e m ico lon
The Colon
'T'hc Perion
~L1r~~ ot luterrog;ation ;-1:.(~
Th e l )ash
Itali cs
()notation ;lbrb

06
97

53.
54.
55.
56.
57.

CHAPTE R X.
Tl l E

101
l·~x c :a;-:-:a :~ci~i

~ ul

10 1
102
l OZ

39 . 1\ch·ant:1ges of l f a ,·ing a Larg-(•

ii

I
I

\ " n c ::i.hu!:~ry

58.
59.
60.

st:tnd and \ Vonl s \ \\.' ll sc
Use of the Noteb ook
Stucly of Syn ony ms
The U"e of Concordance~

·

41.
42.
43.
4 4. Tra nsl::lti()u
15. Spec ial Vocab ula ri es
46. ~n1n1nary of C ht.tpt e r

11-1
115
116
ll7

118
1 19
\"111.

Li :. .iit .... !<:-; .

48.

tion
Business Letters

(;u~nl

'l'.

Fnn· i ~ .. n '' r(1nl~

1\n1c1: ;'canl~:.n1'-> ;ind ,'\ ;1 g! i 1:;~n1"

Repu table esc
II~n\· tu Get. a Reputab it: \'uL'a l iuiary

f>rcsen t ,

1\~L-

150
150
152

152
15:1
1sr,

1~~'

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i (; 2

C HJ\ PTER Xl.

117

CH 1\PTE I
Lett er- \\. ritin~

62.

OF i:l Hl l J 1·si:

Nat ionai Use
The Violatio n s of National Use are:
l. Localisms
2 . Technical W ords
4.

61.

ST A ~l l :\ HOS

rrh e Three RcrpJircn1L·nts of
tional, and J{cputablc L'sc
P resent Use

J.

11 1J

T\\·o Ki nds <•f \'oca l>ularic s : \ \ "c,rd,< \\' e .\lcreh· Undc r -

47.

'f'hc Ori,l...(in .'.l.nd "r.rowth ( •f (; 1,_ )<1<1 ·L T ~e .
.
Extent of Usa>(e Not t he Unly Test u[ La ngu a ge
S n n11nary o[ Chapte r

0 :-.:

l! U\\" TU l:'<Cl<EASE .\ \"O(..\ IJU I . AU\'

li!

The 1J'\\'o i-.:ind~ o f La\\·s t h:tt <_;n\·c rn \ l/ritiogThe J<en ,<n n \ \' hv \\'c Shonlcl Ohcy c:u o d Use

9q
100

Cl !Al'T E !{ Vll .

40.

132

S-1

BUII.Df:'\G SE:'\TE:'\CES .

37.

I•

P AOF.

49- Fo r mal Letters in the Fi r st P erso n
50. Formal Letters i n the T hird Perso n
5 1. I nforma l Notes
.
.

6 3. Bar barisms, or \Vords
64. O b vio us V u lg-a r isms
6.5 . ;...; ian ~';
66.

tli c ~\fo:-; t Connuo u For:n <Jf CunJpo~~i-

~

6 1.

lL9

130

Englis h

~\ t it i ~1

F ore ig n \.Vorcl s

l6Ci
169

u··

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:\c\\·~p:t;)•:r \\·1·r11~.:

.A blnc\·!.;.\i r HJ :,

68. V u lg a ris1ns llar<l to

69.

I1<>l

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(i(,.l'_l l':--•.·

l{ c L"ug n izc

'

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171

:,'·

4

COMPOSITIO N A N D RHETORIC.
'r !l.HL E UF CONTENTS.

CHAPT E R XII.

88. l\li scellaneous Errors

l ~ !P ROPRTE TI E S.
~EC TI ON

2.\0
l . Adject ives Used for A d verbs , and \'t ee ve rsa
2.',0
2 . False Corre lati ons of the n,,u h le C11njunctions 230
3. T he Use of th e In d icative for the SulJin ncti ve 2:1 1
4. T he U se of t he Supe r lative for the Comp nr::i -

PAGF.

70. Improprieties Defined
174
71. Ill isu ses o f S ha ll and Will, .'>11011ld a nd /l'u11 1d, are

72.
73 .

I mp r op r ieties
1. a Shall a n u /!'ill in Direct Futures
b .\hull and Will in Questions
r Shall a ncl /f'ill in Sni1ordinate Clauses
2. a Special Uses o f !:JJ1011ld anrl W o11ld .
b S h ou ld an<l /l'o11/d in Main Clauses o f D irec t
S t<1 te nlt:n t
r· .')/;011ld and i{'ould in Questions
d .\/!ould nnrl f f.'011/d in lndin'ct lli '<>r•11 r'e
c .\houid ;,rnd ii 'uu L.L in Cuil d1l iu 11:tl Clclllsc:s
Vr'rhs (lftcn Mis11sf'r1

175

:\uuns (_)[k~n ~\L~u ~et!
Adverh s O ften Mi~11serl

}~.~

I
I

1 ,!·~ . \ .\l.'l . \I{

85.

I

I
I
Il
l

i

86.

~rh c

Sense

209
210

1 : 1_Hl! I

\ '~ F

; ~:

TflF

211
212
214

89.

~"'

'

Ditlu~ene ss a Com:non Canse !If \\'t;i k St y lt:
The Us~ •." r S1.1 per fl11 ous \\-nnJ,

l.
2.
.).

91 .

.i

~l ll t1.>11.'\./\ .

l\.cdu n~1:: ; ll. \.
\. cr! ;. ,;...it \.

221

"

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Th e l 'st: uf ~1 1 pt-r1iuuus lJetail:-.

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Cll:\l"l'ER :\ \'l.
lULH T

CHCllCE OF

\\' OH:J) ~ .

92. T h e ~ .:e<l for :t I Jiscrim inntinc: C hoice of \\'<>r e! <
93. "Fine \\'ri 1i11"'" a F:t11l1. Tlh· J\ch·antag-es ,, f C-:imJ>k
94 . 'i 'ritencs:-;.

~ .::;()

· ; ,,

( )ftf~ il

a F1)ri n u f '' FirH.· \\.ritin~~ '
Specif ic \'ersus ( ; cne ral \V n rds
.
Fi g u res of Speech a n 1\ id to Spec ific ]Ji c tion
1

222
222
223
223

95 .
96.

22-1

99. Summa r y

of C hapter

RHET<llOC :\L

L.\\\'S

97 . 'l.'hc Faults of Figu ra tive T>icti(,Jl

98. Accuracy nnd Indi\·iclua lity Needed

_:_1):

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l.()5
in

< )ur

Choice of
Lt /1
!l.9

\Vorcl s

22-1

225

l'ART IV .

225

22S
225
226

Tl!E SE ;-..;TE:'\Cl': A:'\ll TJIE
PARAGRAPH.
OF

226

Cll.\l '' j'FR :\\'JI

...... 1

227
L.:..J

Pronoun~

·•:"~~I

\l'Ol<D l);ESS.

') ) -

Pr oih)u 11:.;

l':uilts in i\: um h e r
l . :\ dj e cti n :s
; . Nonns an(1

I Tr.

J ) i1- ·'. 1n11

SF:'\'Tl:"-1..· 1

is Herc l!sccl

F:uil ts o f In co mpletenes s
1. l' hr:.tscs :u1d Clau se s l ' sed as Senten c es
2.. Omissio n o( " or //i(' .
3 . ( )mi ss ion of \\' onl s i\:ccCS>':t r\' tu tl1 e Sc the
.J. /Vhid1 Used w it h a l'lll·:i sc: ,·,r a Ci:l u't: as it s
Anteceden t
5 . Culloqnial Use of .\o and Such
F :rnlts from Using Too il!any· \\'urds
1. The " C nmm:l Blunder" .
2. M isuse of ,·/11d
3 . Duu l;le Subj e ct and Objec t
Faults in C:t se .
1. Nnu11s
'

87.

-

/•

2.'..\
233

CIL\l' TEIZ :\ \-_

207

i i1 \\~ h ~ch C r ~1mn ~ ~u·

..' - ~· .!

.

li

90.

Unid io matic Order o f \\·orlls
Miscellaneous Faults of Idi o m in Translati o n
T r nnslation-E n glish

.

i •ll"l'JO:\.

194

C H J\l'T ER XIV.

83.
84.

P /\ 1~ T

j?()

CHAPTER X lll.

Constr t~ctions

.

!fi:rdly '1ncl .\'( r.n-dv with n :\'ega t in'
The Split lnli niti\·e·
ll'hich a s a Dem on st r ative
Mi stakes in th e Principal Parts of \'erl1s

lbU
lSO

196

r >cfi:1it '. 0 ;) n f [r1 ~ ri711
U nidi om atic Phrasing

.

1 7~

76. Adjectives Often

l 7 nidiomatic

S.
6.
7.
S.

.

179

195

Mi sused

t j \'{"

176
177
177
178

74.
7 5. Prepositions and Co njun ctions Ofte n :',) i>11sed

7 '7
78.
79.
80.
81.
82.

-'

~}'1,

S ~t.::1'10:-.'

.:'.28

~I. I .\R); ES~

r.-. .

100.

S ent1...· nce~

10 1.

Cu il ere n ce . and ic mpha s is
Un ity Defi m :d

:ln d

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:~1· . .>T f·: >.: C l · ~ --- r~:n"

l ' ~1 r;tt-:T aph ~

..\[u ~ t

1 Lt\ ' l"

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6

7

T:\llLE OF CO:\ TE:--:TS.

COMPOSITION A:\D lUU:TUKIC.
PAGV.

102.
103.
104.
105.
106.
107.

285

Sentences Too Loug for Unity of Thought
Sentences Too Short for Unity of Thoug-ht
T he Re lat ion of the Sentence to the Pa1'.agraph
Unity of Form
.
.
.
.
.
_
.
Compound Sentences Often De;;tructive to Unity
Summarv of Chapter

288
289
291

THE \\"JJOLE (Cl;\J!'OSITION .

293

293

CHAPTER X:\:l.
TII E STRL" CTL"RE 0 1' TJIE \\"l!OT.E

CHAPTER XVIII.

C()~IPOSITI0:".
l'-\ 1;1-:

"'EC T I O:>:

CL <':AH:SESS l:S SF::-<TE:<CES- COIIEKE:<U ·: .

108.
109.
110.
111.
112.
113.
114.
115.
116.
117.

301

Coherence Defined
.
.
.
Ambiguity th e Usual Result of Incoherence
.
Ambi guity frum lncohereut Arrangement .
.
Ambiguity from the Use of Too Many Prrinouns
Pronouns i\fust Have Un mistakable 1\ntccecknts
Ambiguous l';Hticiples
.
.
.
Incoherence from .:-!isnse o f Connectives
Incoherence from Shifts of Construc tion
Some Ways of Securing- Coherence
Summary of Chapter

302
3UL

30-l
305
307

308
30')
313

139. The Relation of the l':tragTaph to the \\!JH, le Curnp<> sition

.

.

SE:STE:SCr~s:

141.
142.
143.

14·1:.

I Iv\\'

145.

How to Enrl the \Vhnle Composition

t1 )

12:3.
124.
125.
126.

127.

323
323
3i5

331
3J.O
333

.

.

·,

.

Paragraphs Too Long for U nity .
Paragraphs Too Short for Unity .
.
.
.
.
Cr>l1erence Ddined
Incoherence from Faulty Arrangement
Connectives an Aid to Coherence .
Emphasis in Paragraphs
Summary of Chaple!-

.

.

. 350
351
353
356
356
357
360
3f•-~

; • l ~:

l. i !.\l'°!Ti{ .\.\I! I
OKH",J>.\L

152.
153.

f

Jri;..:i:in:d

t.._' ~l\\1' ii<..; JTJ11".'.'

C 1 1r11p1~,...,jtir111

J I l I· . h'. \

!< \ .

l

\',\_'-,

i lt·!in hl

-·

Literary J.. :_1w :->
l. :-> ckct ion
2 _ l'nilv

413
.JJ I

.5 . Culierencc

•t;, : 1

Re\·ie\V nf

Il-l
.j 15

.\. Prc>p(•rt ion
5 . C iim:t x
The Fi,·e Ll\VS an: Essential

.1 ;1;
41h

CIL\PTF:!Z :\::\:I\· _

Definition of the Para g raph
.
.
.
. 34 7
Nature of the Laws Go,·crning th e Sin gle Para graph . 348

.

3.~.';

146.
147. ~1.cthod..;. l<) l lc 1\ \"1i1lv (l i11 St1:111nari1.i!:'..(
148. T he Proper ~It:·t hutl uf Surnniarizin:--;
149. The St,·Je in Snmm:'lries
150. l 'ropnrlion in ~ u in nl~ tr it::->
151. ~un1111:\rit":-> of 1\'ovels, Play s , etc .

104.

sr;-;GLE PARAGRAPHS .

.

] ,') ~
.~'-...,)

Definition o( :->urnrnaries

_--=, _~()

CJ-JAPTER XX.

lTnay Defined

3SO

Cl!Al'TER :\:XI I.

337
339

.

128. Summary of Chapter

129.
130.
., ..,.,
l.Vl. .
132.
133.
134.
135.
136.
137.
138.

37S
377

Su)l:\I.-\l-U l·:S.

E)(l'll.\S IS, LEC'l(;T]-l' l' E RIUD!CITY' A:-ID

Emphas is Defined
.
.
.
Em phasis Produced by Arrangement .
.
.
.
Emph asi s Secured IJy V io btion of the Normal O rde r.
Pcriod icitv an Aid to E m olrnsis
Devices fo r Gaining- l'eri<;dic itv .
.
'j'J;e l}( ';-;, .. ! ;.. ;--:.,_·;~:e:;~·l· t J ;)1_·:1 : 1-1 ,\ :!~:.--,_{ ·
"l'arti ~d l'niodicitv" s ,_;llletimes Desirable
.
.
~[onotony of S e ntei1ce Structure iJcstructi vt: to F orce .
Variation from Loug t•) Short S e ntenc es . The
Peculi a r Su itability o( Eac h Type of Sente nce .
l'ara\lcl and l\:tlan cc• l Structure Sometimes an ,\ id
to Force

375
l°<>111po-

fl pcn the \'.')1f•ll' ('r>inpr):-.:. itinu

314

[' ,\IL\ Ll.EL!S)I.

118.
119.
120.
121.
122.

.

sit ion
The J'lan, ur Outline
Th e Use of Connectives
Unity anrl i'ruporti<-'ll in the \Vhu le Cu1U )><JSitiun

CIJ,\PTER .XIX.
FORCE 1:-i

.

140. The <lrtler of the l':i ra ,_;raplis in the \\"hC>l e

Jlf·: SCH.IJ•TJ\"I·: .\):11 S .-\!.:.l\. . \-11\ ' I .-

155.
156.
157.
158.
159.
160.
161.

\\·1 . : 1 i

Kinds of 01:ttt·rial. ()lJjt.·ct~ an d
'I' he 1"<1ture of 1 )t·~rriphnn
J

\\'r>

Th e Law of Seleciiun in JJescription
Unity and Coheren c-<' in ])f'sc ripti<>n
Th e Force of Dcsc ripti \·e Writing
The :\ature of ::\arratio n
The Law oi Selection in Narr:1tion

!_'. 1,

l dc- , L~

l'"

427

:,

8

C O ~IP0SIT101'

A;>;V

RHETORIC.

:.'1

PAGlt

162. Coherence th e Chief Law in l\arration
163. Proportio n, Climax and Un ity in Narration
164. The Qualities of Good Narration

427
428
428

PART I.

CHAPTER XXV.
EXPOSITORY A:S-T> ARG 1J ;>.tEXTATfYE \\' JUT{N(; .

165.
166.
167.
168.
169.
170.
171.
172.
173.
174.
176.

'!

Terms the Su bjec t-matte r of Expositi on
The Distinction Between Description and Exposition
Hints for Wri ti n g Exp osit io ns
The Lnws of Compositi o n in Exposition
Argu ment Defined
Cautions to be Observed in \\- riting Argu ments.
The N'ntu re a nr\ the Neer! of Proof
T he Pa r ts o f an Argument
The Outli ne, o r Brief
The Laws of Composition in Argument
The Use of Exposition and Ar~11m en t in Learning
How to Write .
.

437
43 7
438
441
441
442
443
443
444
446
447

PRELD1INARY WORK.

CHAPTER 1.
CO:O.IPOSI'TIO N-ORAL

A~D

\\"RITTE:\'.

l. Expression the Object of Our Study.- E,·cry onc find~
some means of expre ssing himself. Even if \\'C <ln n•;t
pronounce words :-tnd sentences, our faces or acti• >n s
fref),uently betray our t11011;J1ts. So long- as this ~•ct ui
self-expression is unconscious, \\' C enjoy it; but \\·lien
·we attempt t o ,,·rit e. ,.; omc thin1.;· seems (<> l'i";.:'. • •11r
minds, the words \1·ill no t c"mc , the senten ces do n"t
say half \\'h at \1·c mean - in s]H >rt, ,,.c f:til t<> l.' :\jlrc·~s
ourseh·cs adequat e ly. l'\u one c11j(l\'S d<>in;.: ,,·)i;,l Ll·
Lioes baLiiy; ;,it first te l\' enjoy \\Tiri n;;, \\ lict llc r ,:1c::
ha1·e m uch o r little to say.
Stut1y of rh etoric and
practice in cnrnpositi o n hcip us to surmuu 1it the dilli c11lties o f expre ssion. Their ol>jcc t is t o e nabl e us to
re present to ot h er s \\'hate\'er thought o r fcelinf!' \1·e
m ay have in our minds.
2. Composition Defined. - The \1·ord " composit ion"
(fro m the Latin \\' ords r11111 and /J1>J10) means li tc r aliy
the putting t og·cther o t s omething· . The :-trtist \\'ho
p:-iints a picture, the ;,rchitcct \\'ho lntihh a l1•>11"L', the:
sculptor \\'h o models a st :-ttue, and the author \\·ho \\'rites
a book, arc :-ill co mpo s e rs .
In wri ting· o r spea kin6'.·, sin ;..:le \\'Ords \\'oultl ans\\'cr
our purpose, if we had only detached, sin~le id e as to

'.

.·~

'

'·'•

J,~

(

.

'

t.

.

,·

')

;.:-·:
,)}_. !}';;.~!~ ;,~

'~).

l ()

CU>IPOS ITIU:\

.\:\I> JU!E TORil' .

expre s s. But as though t consists of rebted id eas, we
mu t unite ,,·ords into senten ces , anc1 sentences into
larger bocl ies - para;,;rapbs and wh o le compos it io n s.
The selec t ion of " ·orcls, the r efo re, or the form ing o f
sentences , is only a p:trt o f our task in express ion.
\Ve ma y h :t\·e the ri :,;h t \\" Ord for c\·e ry id e a, we m ay
form excellent sentences, anc1 yet ollr thollgh t m :ty b e
li:tclly expressed . \\' l' must also bu ild the sentence s
intu a co h e rent st:ttt.:mcnt.
This b u ildin:..:- a whole
out of se p:w:1tc elc 111 c11ts is th e chief " ·ork of co mposition.
3. Rhetoric Defined.- - \\- hen ,,.c for m sentences we
s h ou ld follo w certain m ies of bngnagc called gramm ar.
The boy who says , "IIc do n't c:i.re how he Jone it, "
breaks one of these rules . It is not c1w u g·h, h ow'.!ver,
to choose p r oper \n)rds and to unite th e m co1-r/'rlly they mus t lie unitecl rfkrlii •dy . The se nten ce s and th e
gTonps of sente nces, also. must be compose<l effect ive ly .
Rhetoric is the stucly that giYCS us th e principles oi
effect ive cu 111p:i siti (J 11 .
It d ocs not , like g-rammar,
:tns\\·c r the q11c"l il•ll of right o r \\T ong- 111 any g"l\"Cll
case : it shuws what ch(liee to make \\·he n we ::ire in
doul>t; o r, fc, r ex ample, \\· hen we are un decided
whether i t is best t<> use a l<>n).!· sentence here or a
sho r t one; or \Yh eth cr this par:igraph belong s to this
part of th e ch::ipter. o r e lsewhere, etc . Gramm::tr Jc ::ils
with \\· orcls a nd sentences ; r hetor ic deal::; wit h words,
sentences, p::ir:1:..;r ap hs, and the "·h o le compositio n.
l;ramma r co n sists of rules, \\· hich arc to a iarge degTce
fixed; rh e t o ri c c1oc s n ot consist of rule s, b ut of princ ip les , which g11itlc us in the practice of com p osition.
Th e nam e rh etoric h as an 11 nfortunate t1se in pqpnlar
writing. \Ve hear fr equc1llly slatement::> sumell1111;;
like these : " In spite of all his rhetori c , he did n o t

C< i> I POS ITI O I ' - OH 1\ I. .-\;-: I J \\" I< I TTE :\.

i1

clccei,·e n te .
··T h en he ;,,:rew rheto ri cal " ( rnean'.n'.::
bomha st ic u r p o mpous). \\' h e n peuple use tile \\"<)rd
in this se nse, they imply that the study o( rhetoric
:;n:1hlcs a wr ite r or speaker t o play tr icks on hi,; audi ence . to m :t ke them helie,·e that hl:tck is " ·bite . (1r
teaches him how to ad(>r n rnc: 1n o r tri,·i:,1 th o u).;ltt :rn•I
m:ikc it im p rcssi 1·e . Th11s ri se s the co mm on fcciin:..:
about thc subject of rhet<J r ic; viz . , that it is the :trl <,f
deccptiu 11 , a g·:tins t \\·hich \\·e sho u ld be nn our ;~uarcl .
The o r igin o[ the \Yun1 ([rum th e C re ek Ilu\lll 1'1c.ir>i:1;..:
an orator ) e xplai ns this belief. The f·irst rheturici:tn::i
were m e r ely teachers u f speech -m ak ing" to b1 1: yers .
Bnt toc1ay the term is n sc d in r efe re nce to all fo rms of
pro se expres sion, aud the tru e rhct orici::in teaches the
writ e r not how to deco ra te poor tlwu g h t or to manufacture ideas , lrnt to expre ss his me:ming· acleq11ately,
j11stly. \Vhat is cnmmonly called ' ' rhe toric ' ' is frequ e ntly a ,·iob tio n of the tr ue p ri nc iples ot rhc'.•1ric .
4. The Value of Oral Composition. - \\ 'l·itin;..:. :1" lu"
b ee n s aid \Jcfore . see m s tu must of u s a J>ccuii:iriv li:trd
ia sk, \1· hic h dc m :111 ds al least ;..:rcat sl;i\1 :i;H] :1ptitudc.
·, f not ;..!·cnius . 'l' u \\Titc C\ '1.:ll a lv t tcr ~<.:Cill:-) tn fL'(;11i:·c
special ability. Thon~ht ~; Jly ap: trt v:hcn it cumcs to
p11tti11g t!Jen1 in 1Jbt.·k ;111(1 11·hitc . Yd c:t·~h <•11•.· 11 f t : ·;
engages in composition many time s e y cry day ; e\Try
spoke n sente nce , every recitati o n, every con,·crsatinn
wi th friends. i" :lll unc< >llS<'inu s ;1ct of compo"iti• 1 :1 - ,,f
pntt ing 011r tl10:1 g hts tog-et h e r an d cxpressin).!" them in
wo rc1s . The constan t practice which \\·e !-(cl i:1 • ::'1
c<>mpositiun should h eip us in the more d iflicu1c :i:· t uf
written composition . This p oi nt is m ade quite clear in
1

tl1( ' t ~ > 1 1{;\\· i11:...:· i)~t~:--;~1:...:-e :
Fi r st, th en , jo ok wc1l to your speech .

It \...; cotun1 unly sup-

p osed that wht:n a man scl'l;s l ite rary po we r h e goes to hi~ ;·oom

ll

CO~ll'USITI US

i\:\lJ RHETOlUC.

and plans an art icle for the press . l3ut this is to begin literary
culture at the wrong end. \\'e speak a hundred tim es for e,·ery
once we wri te . The busiest writc1· prn<luces littl e mo re than a
volume a year- not so mu ch as his talk woul tl amou nt to in a
week. Conscqn entl y, throuJ.!.h speech it is usu :·ti!y tlecitlccl
whe ther n man i:; to have command llf his language or not. If
he is slu\·enly i n h is ninety-nine <:~1 scs o( talk in g- , h e can ~~e l dl)tll

puli h imself up to strcng-th a nt! exactitude in the hu1Hlredth ca 'ie
of \\Ti ting-.
As a n ilc, languag-e, once within our control, c;tn be emplcJyed for or:-il or fnr writte n purposcs . And
since the o pportuni ties f1> r or:il p ra ct ice e nor 1n nusly o utbalan ce
those fCir writte n , it is the oral wh ich are chiefly sig-nificnnt in the
tlevelopmcnl uf lite rary po\\'e r. \Ve r ig-htly say of the acco mplished writer that ' ' lie shu11·s a n1a,..tcry of his <>\\'ll tongue .. ,
l\lureo \'er , whate,·er \\'e fi11<l really worth t:-i lki ng- ahottl is worth
\\Titin g about at grc:tlt'r or less extent. In stead ( >f feel in g- :i
helpless ,·a cui ty befo re the cnmpositiun -pad, turn tn th e topics
ta lked about \\'i th friends. One important means of p repa ri ng
the mind to \\'rite , e\·cn on difficult subjects . is con,·ersatiun.
Therefore , choose topics for composition that a re fa mili:ll- subjects in daily t:llk; \\'ri te on them frC'ely lll l l<.:h as you ta lk ; an(!,
con ,·e1·scly, discuss \\' ith frien cls \\·h:tt you propose to \\'r itc. C. l I . l'AL~rER: Sdf-C11/li1'<1lim1 i11 E11glisl! .

5. Differences Between Spoken and Writt en Composition.O ral compo s itio n , o r talk, differs , nevertheless, in cert ain respects, frurn 1ni ttcn cornpositioll . It is Jess
formal. Co11tr:tc tiu1 1s such :is ;,don't,"" it ' s,
c:m't ,
etc ., which give n:1tural11css to talk, arc u sccl sparingly,
or not at all, in 1Hiting-. ·w ords ancl phrases om itted in
the hurry of conversati on, s u ch as ycrbs, art icles, ol)jccts
of prepositions , even p a rts of sentence s, must be supplicJ in 11Tiling, Cur in U1 c ialtcr ca se 11·c cannot Jepe11J
o n the g-cst ures and the f:1cial expression of the speak er
t o compkte the meaning. \rriting- is aiso m o r e o rd e ri y
than conversat io n. \ Ve s pea k o ur thoughts rapidly in
th e order in 11-hi c h they come to u s . This order, however, i s fr e quentl y not the log ical one. aml in \\'riting
we have time t o arra n g·e o ur id ea s and to make plain

~_....:..,_

............

-.,......--.,.------,

CO:."IIPOSITION -

ORAL :\SV W R ITTE;-.; .

].\

the co nnections between them. i\J o r eover, a1Liwugh
written !>entences are coming to be m ore like sp0ke11
sentences than in the p ast, they arc still longer . more
complex, and mo r e closely knit tog-ethe r than i11 spe ech .
For example , \\'e shonid not be likely to ttnit c so rn; 1ny
thoughts in on e spoken sentence as lialYthorn e docs i11
thi !> instance:
In th e growt h of the town, h owever, afte r sPme thirty or fr,rty
years, tlic site covered by thi' rude hovel l:ad IJecollle exceed-

ingly desirable iu the eye~; cir a pnJnlln e nt ~t nd ;hn\·l'rful personage , ,vho as serted plau :-;ilJl c c lai111 s tn tlic pr )priet <1r...,iJ1 11 f 1_ :,i·,
a nd a lar,,;c adjacent tract of la nd, o n the st re ngth of a ;.::r:ult
1

11

of land froin the Lcgis1ati.ir--c.

Am1 these scn tences, nal t1r;1 l ;11 11l pr· , 'i' '~ r· i 11 c 1 1n \·c-r sat ion, would s carce ly be suitable for \1Tittcn composi ti on :
Cert ainly! There it i:-;. I ha\·c ofte n remarkeu it. It's lii<c
a C . But one end is l\\'i stecl !Jack . There il goes now .
\V e should keep in mind these distin c tions ;111d n r.t
allow ou r scln~s. when 11·riti11g-, the 1ihntics r1f spccc:'> .
Essentially, ho\\-c1·c r, th e art nf c·" rnpr•siti<•ll 1s tJ1, ·
same whethe r we practice it unconsciutlsly in t:ilk, ()r
more carefully with the ai d of ink ;tJ1d p:lfJcr . l 11
either case the ubjcd is i<lcnticai: t " C:\['I'<_. , , '• \:r
th oughts a11cl feeling s exactly, :1 ncl to interest o tl1crs in
what \Ye haYe to say .
6. Pleasure to be Found 111 Composition.- 1f "c: ";~ r·n
that g·ooc1 "·riting docs not cli ffc r e%ent i:tlly fr<>111 g·, " '<I
talkin g-, a nd that w e find pl e asure in expressing c1u rs ch-cs'
in sp eech, it follo ws th:1t th e l:lsk uf C(Jil1j)r ,,i·, i· .:1 <•ii
pape r shouk1 n o t be cl i:;tastefuL Just ;ts soon as \IT
learn tu us e the pen w itlwut tlii11ki 11 g ahuut it. \\C' sh;t11
find c1elig-ht in 11Titi11;.;. ('()mp<>s it iun is :t c<111st:rnt \'l>y ag-e of clisc;o Yery . a perpct ual expe ri ment. I·: 1 ny 11 ortl

1,

..
,

14

COMPOSITIOX Al\D IUlHTORIC.

CO:IIPOSITJO;-.;-OR ..\L .'\;'o:!J \\' JUTT E!\ .

is a ne\\. clement; e\·ery phrase or sentence, a new com.
p ound. These we can y ary infinitely ::it our pleasure,
until \\"C ha\·c forms to express each new iclca . But
some one m ny say: " Where shnll I find the ideas?
That is m y trouhlc." No 0nc is absolutely withont
anything to express . Our thought m:iy be s impl e and
commonplace, but it is w o rth expressing well. Let us
write :11ioul the simple ideas that come to hand each
d:iy . As \\·e learn to state th ese properly . n e w o n es
\\ill t ake th ei r phcc. If \\"e find pleasure in the \\·ork
of compos ition , there will be no difficulty in gettin~
material.
7. Themes.- Practice , then, in '.Yrittcn compositi on , i'.>
the only mc:ms by which we can make this f:urm of
expression as natural :rncl as easy as oral composition.
The course of study outlined in this book assmnes
that the s tudent is \\Ti l ing \\· eckly exercises, sometimes
daily ones . For con\·enicnce \\·c sh:ill r efer tn these
exercise s in composition as fli cm1s. To g-ct tl1e most
benefit from \Hiting themes, the student sh o uld obsen-e
the foll o winh:· directions ,';: especia lly No. 5, in reference
to rewriting-.
1. hr/J<F.- Rulccl \\·hite 1~aper ()f uni fo rm size should
be use (]; a cn1ffc11ient slw pc is the lar~· c lett e r fo rm.
alJont eig·lJt l1y ten in ches. These shects \\'hen hand ed
t o the instructo r shoulc1 be foldecl lcn~·tl1wise fro m left
to right. Each sheet should be numbered. The task
* nnt.h in~ t n1 cto r and stu.-Ji·nt \ •: i ll fii:d it of }.,:'n:• :1t ad\·anini..:-e if 1hcsc dire<>

of examining papers is maclc less difficult if 011ly one
side of the sheet is used.
2 . 1lfa1:r.:i11s.-Thc m:ir ~·in on the left-h:rnd side ,,f
the page shuulcl l1c :tl least an inch. i.Ltri,(ins ~;lwuld
be left on ;ill manuscripts, whether lette rs, exercises.
or themes, hut in the c:1se of E11;..:-lish thc111 cs, the\· :in·
especially needed for t11c in st rnctor's cum m e nts.
.1. /J/llo rsr:mc11!.- Every tlwmc should be i11.Jnrs•_.,]
care fully n ear th e top, on the outside, to show the
nam e , class, and date, thus:
James L. Smith (not "Jim'').
English, Class 1.
:\'o,·emher 2 .'. 1 P.08.
lf clcsircd, the Litle of the theme nwy be \HiLtcn un
the next line. II s!w11/d be l't'llh'lllbcrcd !fiat a neat m a1111scripl anr! a 01rr:/11! i11dorscmcnt 111akr: 11 !m.'orab!e impres-

irn·ari:-1bl~-.
,\ l:ir;,:P nu11ilw r of rna1111script ~ ca nn ot
with o ut nttentio n tq 11 Jt •thod aw l sr:--t•'ITL
Al l them e s
should be h:ln d l'!l in p r omptlr :1f th e d:1t c an•! t ile hour sf'L This i~ a co urtr·sy due the instn1<.:tor. If no CXl..'.ll~•·.:. arc a c c·<.:·pf1.:d. the ~tude nt will fincl it

tions

ar c

sion 11/>o!l /ll1' rr'ad1f.

follo wC'Ll

c :~sily be h:rndl cd

e:1~r t o l>1· pu nd11 :1l and wi ll (•xp1..·riL·111;c gn· at r vli1·f fr1)tll t he :HITlet\·anct.• of
cld :1n.• ! \\'drk. l f ail tli c rl H• 1111.:" w hen r cw r i1tc 11 h y tlh: shHknt arr. 1;J.t:·U in tli<·
in s:rul' I Or ' s <dlil:t', the·~· ru:iy lw found u sefu l fu r· an ut..x:ls io 11al rcdew . .·\:
tim es ir will bt' well fo r a strnk·nt to at( (' rn p t ;q..;:1 i11 a ~ulJje c t wllirli he has
handled poorly in nn cndicr thL'llH..: .
0

'

I

4 . /'it!"s. - --- Evcrv them e shuuld rc:cc 1vc :t Litle. Thi·,
is not n ecessa rily the same as the subject announced ],1·
the instructor.
5. N c;-urilin.11- and R c1• isi11g.-\\'hcn the mami s cri;J t i,;
rcturneL1 with the instructor's c"rnments written alon)..'.the margins and a ;~ cnc r:tl cril ici-;m on the; back, the
student sh<rnl<l read the theme carefully am1 study the
sug-g-estio11s 111adc. lf he docs n"t understand thelll
( after r derr in g to the sections of the rhetoric to which
they relate), he should consult the instructor before
attempting to rewrite' l1is theme. On the outside of the
theme he will find g-eneral directions, u s ually either
"Rewrite" or " Revis e ." "Rewrite" does not meaIJ
merely t o copy the manuscript; that is an exercise in
penmanship, not in cnmpnsition. "Re\\'rite" is a direction to recun~:truc1 the them e accortlin)..'. tu SU}..'.ge~otions
made by the instructc1r. After the lapse of a fe\\' days,

16

CO~!POS!TIOJ\' -O RAL

COillPOSlTIOC\ A'.'D RH E TORIC.

moreover, t h e student will see for h imsel f where he
can improve his first effort. This is his final opportunity to make a complete and finished piece of wo rk .
Rewriting often requires more sk ill and patience, and
teaches one m ore about composition, than the easy
production of the first copy . It uoes nut necess a rily
follow that a theme is of poo r grade when the student
is r equested to rewrite; it implie s frequent ly that the
thought co ntained in th e the me is worth working over.
·' Revise ," on the other hand . di r ects the student t o
correct mi stakes and improve weak passages o n the
original manuscript. Sometimes it will be nece ssary
to rewri tc parts of themes m arked " Revise." Both
the old and the new theme should be handed to the
instructor finally, so that he m::iy judge intell igently
what ::iclvance the student has made. The final mark ancl the only important une - i:; tha t whid1 the re written
or rev ised theme receives.

Exercise I.
,-1. Define composi t ion and i-hetoric. \ Vhat relation
has gTammar tu the art uf composition?
B. I s rhetoric " the art of ::i<lornment " ? Does the
study of rhcturic supply the \Hiter with ideas ? \\' ith a
stock of beautiful phrases , Wh at is the aim of the
study of rhetoric? \\rhat is mc;u1t by th e word
.. cffecti ve " as used in section 2 ?
C. W hat other method:; of expressin~ t h ou ~ht can
you name besides speech and wr iting ? What advan tages has written compo si tio n o\·er th ese ? Is composition concerned with wo rds alone ?
!J. \Vh at are the difTercnccs between oral and writte n
composition? To illustrate th ese dirlcrenees select a
<l ialo::;ne from a s to ry t hat yo n :lrc r c aci in g. S el ect

17

A C\ U \VH!TTE '.'i .

narrati YC passage from t he same story and g'i \ e the
ideas as they might he expressed in conversat ion .
<l

0

£. \ Vrite in a few sen tences what Prufessu r Palmer
s::iys about o ral composit ion. T ry to frame a c<>n\·er:;:iLi un abv u l thc:;e same ickas .
l·~ \Vrite out as nearl y :ts you c:tn remem ber it the
last conversati o n yon had with a friend on one uf th e·
followi11~ topics : Our football team; th e l:1st h:t :-, kt·1 ball g-arne; a trip with m y camera; hnw l spe nt n :::
v::i cali o n; my studies fo r t hi s year ; a sail: :1 bi ,·y1.. k
ride ; a g ood dinner.

C. Rt.: \\'ritc in the third person the fullu\\'in;,: cu111·crsations, expressing the speeches of the di fferent ch a racters as briefly as possible :
1.

11

CentlenH.:n .

)I

s;1.id

Arthur,

\\·ho

had

con11nand of th e t.:Xt Jl·d! ti 1; 11, "wliilc ( ; ec>r:..;c

i~:,

ass u n1c d
Lty in ~

uut

; Ile
ti.·~·

breakfa ~ t. kt us lie:.:; in liy culkl'lin;.:; tile 1<1:11,; and c·:irtriil :<c"•.
\re ca n talk wliil t: pcrfor111ing Lll at ne1...:essary task. Tlic:-.1.; ;..,:-1·11 ·

tlemen," adckd he. puintini< t u the l;o<li cs . " c ann <i t hear u s .
I l o \V n1a11y :-...:- c 1rL-~ , ;..:·c nt11·nH·11? "
"'T\\·elve . ' ' n . : iil ieJ Elu!l.
" l r 1•\\' 1n~Ul'•/ ~,artridgt·:-; ?"
•· J\ hund red."
' ' 'l'h a t ' s quite as iuan y as \\" C shall want. Lt:t u:-. h.ad the
g-un :-. .
'Th e four

cu1 11p~ lniuu~ \\' (.' Ill

t 11 work an <l

lo ~ 1ded

t l ic.;

~~· i.!il -....

. \ -..

they \\·ere pri111ing th e l a:--t 11111skct. Ceuq. ~· e a1111nun c<:d tiiat i>rt· . th ·

fast w as r eady .
"An<l now to lal;Je." s aid Arthur.
The four friends sat duwn upon the g-nrnnd, wit h th eir k;.:;s
t:rossetl, like 'f'urks.
"And now," said Eton, "as tht.:re is no longer a fear ,,f
being ove rh ea rd, I hope you arc going to let m e into this
m o mento u s sec r et. ''
"l hupe . at t lie sanit: ti111e . to p r\)cu re yuu an1u :--.. c1lleiit and
g- lor\',

11

Lll;g- h cd ;\rt!i nr.

"I h:t\·•.: 1:1'1 :.: n:d

\·1111

l<1

t:lh e

pleasant waik: iH: re 1'- ;l d1...:iil·J •i11...:. i1n.::dda:·-. t. ant\ 1i n .:
~

:l

\·,·n·

h1ind1t ·1 1

.•..

co :l! I'O SIT IO:\

lS

AC'l> 1'11ETOIUC.

CO)!PO:-;JTIOC-:-01'AL AC'D \\'UITTF.:\ .

1><.:rs<>ns yonder behind the fort taking us f11r !1t.:rocs 11r mad ·
llH.: 11.

but 1 cat111 ' .>l la:; j , 1!.
lf l
trie(l n ot to do it, I shollld cln it all the same. For I " ·"rk !"·
machinery. just like an engine. and am full 1,f \\"JH_.,,_. J.. . , :111 (J
springs inside. and rtn1 \Vot11Hl nn very c arefu l!\-, s1 1 th:1t I c·;t:Jnot help g 1,ing-. ''
.
Yery sorry for t lit.:111 . puur things;

11

"B nt tht: secret 1 the secret'" said Eton.
· ' The sccrl:l is- t hat ,,- e arc all to he s hot.' · -

IJ1 · :11.\S:

/"h f'

( 1\tlaptcd . )
2. No\\' little rl'o 1n 'X;t H.: hed all these :-;weet thin~~ gi\·c n
aw:L y, ti ll hi~ in outh wate red ;l!H1 his <"yes gTe·\,. as rnnnd as :tn
o\\" l 0s. Fn r h e h oped that his turn \\'ould co me :1t last: :u1d s•>
it did . 1<.. r the bdy c:t!kt1 him up an <1 hclt l out hc:r fing-crs
\\" ith s o mething- in them :rn<l poppe1l it into his nwutl1 - and , In
:u1d behold 1 it ,,-,, s a nasty. colt], hare\ pebble. "\" ou arc a
\ -ery c ru e l ,,·nman, '' s:titl he, an cl began to \\"h im per.
"A ntl you a rc a \'cry cruel boy. \\"hn pu)s p ci>l1 les int<> the
sea anemones' m o uths , to take the m in ancl make them f:tncy
that they hail c:uight a go(1tl c1 inner 1 i\s you die! t(J th em . so I
'/!J:·t'I'

111

19

(,"11an!s1 1101 .

l• \\~a s

it

l(in~

ag«., since they w 1> unt1

\"1•u

11p ( ·• ;l~~t·t:

T1 •:11

For he thollght, the cu n ning little feilo1~ . " Sl;c will n111 d""·:i
some day. or they may forget to winc1 her up. as old <~rimes
usecl to forget to ,,·in(1 up hi~ watch when he canic in frnni il~c
pnblie hon se , ant\ then I sh all b e safe. "
" l ,,·as \VOllnd up OlH.: e 3.lltl f,H- all, su long ag<> that I (,,r~ct
all about it."
)"(Ill mnst ha\"e been lll:tdc a 10:1;;
" Dear me," sait1 Tom,

ti1uc ag-o .',
" l ne1·cr was maclc, my child: and I shall g-<> forc,·cr :ind
e 1·cr . For lam as old as Eternity and yet as yonng as Time.· · -

u st c.1o to yo u.·'

··\\"h o t.olcl yon that?· · sai d Tom.
"You dit1 yourself, this \'t:ry minute." Tom had nen:r
opcnet1 his lips, so he \\"as n : ry much taken aback . in<\ccd.
"\"cs; c \·eryone tells me exact ly \\"hat they ha,·e done \\T<Jllg'.
:ttid that withont kno\\'ing- it thcmsC'h-es. So there is n o use
tr\· in .~ ff, hide : tny1 h i;n_~ frt)!~l :~if". T\11\•: '--~''· and he- :.i {~nnd hn\· ,

K1:-:GSL E \':

/Valer /;a/>it-s.

-

~-,

'' i did not knnw there wa s ;li1Y harin in i t ,'' :-:.~lid Ton!
' ' 'l'hen you knnw no\v. PL' r)plc c(n1ti11u~dly say that tu
l) u l

I

tcil thc1n, i(

\"ll\l

1111__·,

dun·~ ~1111\\" i.h;tt fin_: ln: ;-n...:. tll ~l l is

Ii"

rc~l sun th:it it :--.hvuitJ 11i1t bl1r11 y1111 ; and 1L y1ill <i·i:1't L111 •\\" t:i.1 !

t!irt \i rcvd s fc'.·cr. th:t\_ i...;. no n·: 1snn w lly 1hc fc\"lT sl1'1\ 1iri not l~il:

v•nl.

The lobster (\itl not know that there "·as any harm in get -

t in ).( inll) the lob~tcr - p o t, but it c0.ug-}1t hi :n, :dl the ~a!11e . "

"JJe:u me," th ought Tom, "she kno\\'S eyerything."

f.

' ;;-';::

;

And

s" she did, inrlcetl.
'' 1\ntl so, if yuu do not kno w that things are wrong, that is
111) reason ,,·hy yo u sl11 1Li1J ll 1it be punished for thc :-:1 - !l:nug_·h
not as much , my little man" (and the latly looked y ery kincliy,
after all ), "as if you did know. "
•· \Yt:ll, yun arc a little harrl nn a poor lad," s ai(l Tom.
· · :"\ ot at all . J am th e liest frielll1 you cH~r ha(\ in yu ur li fe.
Hut I w ili tell yon I c':rnn r.t help puni sh ing people \\·h en they
do wron g . l li J..c it illl more than t hey do. J am often 1·ery,

i, .
~

t

l[

j

t
t

...

WllAT '1'0 \\"l{[ ' l'E All0l'1' .

CHAPTER II.
WHAT TO \\'RIT E ABOUT.

8. How to Choose a Subject.-Oral composition, we have
seen, is not essentially different from written composition, and practice in the former assists us in
the latter. l\Ioreo vcr, wh:i.t we talk about will probably furni sh us our best material for writing. If the
last ball g::im e, or the best model for :i. bicycle, or a
new s t o r y , is the to p ic we discuss \\·ith our friends, w e
can find something to say abo ut it on paper. \V c h:w e
time cnouirh in writing to think about what we say,
and we shall find, naturally, that some ideas started in
o ur talk arc tri\·ial and p oin tless, while others suggest
new topics that can be developed m o re pro!ltably.
nut we shall not lack material to start with - that is
the first po int gai11ec1. O n the other hand, if we nc\-cr
care to talk about a subject, or h ear what other people
ba\·c to say abo ut it, \\·e ma y be quite sun; that it is n ot
a suitabl e topic for us to nsc in \\Ti t in g .
There arc , further , cc nain special consitlcrations that
should g-uicle us in s c kctin ;,:· snbjccts .
1. / 11 /(ffs/. - Thc subject . wbatc\·cr it may he. should
\Jc of present inte r est to the writer. He may possibly
\Jc interested in " G rowth of charac ter," "Peace,"
"George E liot's ethics," and topics of a similar
n:iture- p erhaps he ought to find them sug),!estive ]Jut if h e is not interested. he will fint1 nothinl! worth
s:tying- abC>ut them. arn1 h e will tim1 writing· a stupid
l~tsk . l\l orev\-cr. tu \Hile un subjects that do n ot

interest one is a kind of dece it ; the ideas cxp re sst'cl
are not real possessions of the writer; they arc merely
stolen or invented for the moment. On t he other
h and , if electri cal machines, or stor ies of ath·entnre o r
hun ting, or sports , occupy th e mind, somct hin;,:- ~-enu ­
inc l y interesting may be fount! to sa\· a lio 11t them.
This fa ct is n ot true m ere ly o f sch o( ;l exerc ise ..; in
co mposi t ion; it als o applies to all lit era tu re . S c<•tt.
wrote historical tales, while Dickens and Th;tcker:1\·
wrote abo ut men and women in the L ondon of thei.r
day. Each chose the material that intercstccl hi ni
most. ii!o good \\·ork can be done in ::iny oth e r way.
Our interests should grow an cl multiply, an cl, as a
matter of fact, they change perpetually. From s pin ning tops to playing baseball; from baseball to m a naging a school paper; from school to busin ess or a
profession - a succession of interests follow on e
another. \Vhat absorbs us today may seem tr iYial aml
clnll t o morrow , but for today it furnishes our thought.
\Ve shou ld not make up our minds hastily, ho wen:r,
t hat a topic is dull. If th e subject set for a th e me is
Shakspere's pby of J11!i11s ( {rsar, at first \\·e m ay think
it offers n othing t o us. J\ft e r some examination and
thoug·ht, hO\\'CYer, we may finc1 a g ood d e a l to say about
Brntus o r An to ny; if we turn to Plutarch·s J.i~·ts , \';c
shall h:-l\·e further reason to be interested in th e characters of the drama.
Do not decide on mere whim
that a subj ect is dull; look it ove r and test it well to
sec if it has n o t s o me sugge stion c,f int ere st fo r \· o u. '
2. P1n.,iv11s /11/un11afiv11. - ?\Inst we depcncl cnti.rch·
on ourselves for the material we shall ha ve to use
writing? Or is it well to select an interesting topic
an cl " rea d up" about it? Some previous knowlcd~c.
surely, is n ecessary - the m o re th~ better- and in many

i;1

22

I
l

1:

I!
l'

CO\ll'Os!TJO'.': ..\:\D RITETORJC.

cases t his c;ttJ he fuu 1Hl "nly i11 bouks . But \\' c must
be on our guarJ lest this consult ing books, "read ing
up'·' :i.bout our snbject, results merely in our p:i.tching
t oge ther icle:i.s g:i.thcrccl from other people. \Vh:i.t \\'C
\\Tit e sho111tl be our 0\1·1i. Suppose, for example, that
the general t op ic 11·erc the life of a 1w tcd man; if the
student selected .:\cbon, un less his attention had been
c:i.llcd to this topic prc1·iously, he \\·oulcl he fo rced to
get his information ent ire ly from b ook s, a11l1 g i\·e it o ut
agai n before he had had time to make it bis own. On
the othe r hand, it he \1·ere familiar w ith the campaigns
of the Ci\·il \\':i.r, ancl, better still, had read Grant's
something t o start \1·ith in
1 1/rmo/n, he wonk! ha1•e
\\Titing a bout G rant.
\Vh:-ite ver further reading he
could do, would add to ideas already at home in his
mind . The student should choose a subject that he
kno\1·s something :i.bont, an d r e ading o n the subject
shonld sup plement his 01Yn ideas, not furnish him 1Y ith
all his matter.
3 . Si::c uf Ji1j> ii" 11111/ Sparc.-'l'h<: br;;-cr the topiL-,
the.: you ni;· 11-riter u s ually thinks , the more there will 1Jc
to s.ay about it. As a rule, the opposite i s tru<: - the
smaller :md simpler th e topic , the easi e r it is to tind
r ebted ideas. ;, I mperiaiism" would puzzle a11 cxpc ·
ricn ccd writer , if he h:1d to discuss it in a thc~,1e of tll'O
or three hundred 11·onls . Ile l': o ukl find the Anncxa·
tion of Hall'aii" su111c11·hat c:1sicr, but it is doubtful if
he <:oulcl \\'ri te cu1111cctcdly e1·en on this ph:<sc of the
qu<::;tion, :md, imlct:d, it 11·01ilc1 he hard to moc1ify tile
t <>pie" I mper ialism" in anv ll'ay to make it suitable.;
for a short pape r. For the s:1me reasons we should
reject such subjects as tb e follo1\·i 11g-: "IJimctallism,"
"~haks pcrc ' s fools ," ";\f anu:ll trainin~-," "Lincoln's
call for volunt eers ," "State militia," "Electrical

\\"IL\T TO 11·1nTE

')

,

-"

AHOI'T.

science." An an:Llysis of these to pics m::iy kad t< •
subjects suitable for short papers , but in their pres ent
form they insure hi i ur..: from the start.
In the same ll'ay, :1 specific or d e finite sul.JjccL i,;
preferahl e to an ;1hst r :tct \)r g-cncral one. It is alw:11·s
easier to find ideas about :t special or particular obJCct
than ahuut a class of (Jlijcch or ;.;·cnc r:tl id ea;; . ·· Tbrn"
su i.; ~c sts l ittle l<> the ;n:rnl . hut ".\ly Ltllic·r's lurn"
may call up many 111cmories.
Eng·incs are ton nu111cTous and too cliffcrcnt one from another to discuss as a
\\'hole, lJul the " Ei:.;ht-11·hcelcr o n the.: P:t1 1h;1ndle," ur
"A double-headed lncomntivc, " i11sL111tly p;·cscnt,; ;i
picture. Our minds ck al Ii rst with si11g·lc u hJ<.'1 ·t,., : 11-c
never sec.: "in the min cl's eye" mn re than nne "llj<·ct nf
a kint1; 11·c.; Ill'\·er sec a class of "hj ects . l'a rt ic11Ltr
facts arc rcnwmbercd, nut l-[Cncral charactc:·i,.,: iLs .
This statement is true of all kinds of sulljccts. ;\
}..!·ood illustration is lht: topic" Books"; fc·11· , ,f us c., >1:> :
find a 11ythi11).!· not merely siliy to s:ty abcint lio(>ks in
general. Even on" The clranu," or" E11;,:·lish fiction,"
we sh"ul<1 11·ondcr \\'here t" bc;.:·in; "Shak,;pcrc ," or
"Dicke ns, " w ould abo bewilder m os t o f 11s; lmt
()liver T\\·lst,"

:-.;u~- ~· c sts

dctinitc

..:,:.

1dc~t~ .

Tw o bits of advice , then , m ay be ;.;i1·cn the yu1111:,.;
tlrst , ~\- oiLl J~. lri-:'C ~llH.l i..:-c nc:Ld tdpics l)r, ~tftcr
examination, chonse only one of tll c subjects i111·o h ·cd
in the large topic. If y1i111· suhjcct is limited, y011 (' ;111
hope to tre;1t it co nn ectedly 11·1 1h r c:ts <nu blc tli ur"1:c; i111 e ss. Secom1h·. shape yo ur s1ilij cct with sonw r c:._::m]
to the sv:1c·c :Lt your disp os ai.
Tl1c d1:rn:u1d< of a
,;ubjed c:ut he told r"u;,:hly by tl1c 1nitt:r Licfurc he licg-ms. Th e tnp ics cited 011 the prc\·i:iu;; p;1;._:c. f1 •r exa111 1>lc, arc 11lwiously unsuited fu r treatment in tl\"D 1n~· ..:s.
\\Titer:

;·,

,_

1

..

J;'

-)'

..

24

CO~IPOSITT01'

,\ ]';J)

IZ JIETOl<IC.

but "A co upera ti\·e factory .. might be described succes sfully in that space . It woulcl probably prove too
large for a th eme of less than one hundred \\·ords . The
subject "A motocyck" might be treated satisfactorily
in one pag·e, or at m uch grertter length, as th e write r
thought best. Tn the fi1·st case he would confine himself to givin g simply a lkscription of the machin e; in
the second , he might adtl rtn explanatio n of its mechanical pos sib ilities, etc .
Again, "Our n avy ," if attempted in a short t11cme. \rould result in a fo"·
scattering remarks, but a t orpedo boat could be
described in a page . \\"e should estimate in aclYancc
the possibilities of eycry subject , and i nnlriably "cut
our suit accordinR" to the cloth."
9. Finding Material to Write About. - 1. Tlie Repurln's flfd!tod.-The general advice that h::is been
gi,·cn about the selection of subjects pre supposes tha t
the student h::is a number of topics in mind, or th at his
in structo r sug-gcsts the theme -subject. But tb e youni::writer, if: left to himself, often is puzzlccl where t o find
a11yt!ti11g to wri te about; all subjects ha\·e fled from his
brain. If h e is to enjoy composition and ~ct b enefi t
from it , he must cultiyate habits of finding m aterial for
himself. In th is be ca nn o t do better th:m t o fol low the
r eporte r's method . The editor of a large ci ty paper
scncls a reporter to gather in fo rm atio n about any occurr ence , which the repo rter proceeds. to write o ut ::is his
"story." If he is to be a successful reporte r , he will
also fincl subjec ts for "stories" on his own accou nt.
If he happens to hear of an accident or secs a fire or
hears an interesti ng lecture, he will imm ed iately take
notes , anu later write out his news . A goocl reporter
is constantly ali\'e to (Jj)portunities for g-athe rin g ne ws ,
n o matter where he is or o n w hat business h e is

WHAT TO \\"l<TT E ABOUT.

engaged. He finds in app:trcnlly dull matters subjects
th at will interest the reaucrs of his paper. Jle talks
with men in different employments, finds out \\"hat is
inte resting the m, and from the odds and cmb 11111 ..;
pickccl up makes a r cadahlc pas,.;a;:.;e. En.:ry onc slJ<i t:id
cu lti\· atc the reporter ' s habit of ohsen·ation, of j1,"l' ing for interesting hcts in the e \·nyday life about
him. Neyer \\·alk dm\·n a hu,;y stret:l \\"ith y<•ur eyv"
shut, o r pay a ,·isit to a new scene \\·ithuut notillg :tl i
that strikes you as peculiar or imp<>rt:mt. Lc:lrll t11
carry a me n tal n otebook for future referenc e . and if
this is not enongh, jot down n ote s in a blank huPi.: .
Subjects that arc \\·orth writing upo n \\·ill thus s prin ;.:·
u p abou t yon ancl occupy your mind. ,\ \·i,;it to a
nei ghboring factory, a few minutes spen t in a bu,. y
store, the erection of a new office bni ld in;;, the man agem ent of a dairy or fruit farm - th c"e and simi lar
opportunities \\·ill suggest ideas for composition.
2. Themes About B ooks.- Naturally the lir"t ,.;uul'cL'
of ideas is the li fe g oi ng on abont us; a :-;ccullll, and
scarcely less impo1·tant source, is the field of literature.
Books rep r ese n t life at seco nd hand, i t is true , hnt tliev
give us often a better understanding of it than "'~
sh uld l>c ahlc to ;;ct hy onrsclvcs . It is safe l<> s:lv
that a book which g"i\·cs us nullling t" th111k a iluut ,
talk abont, :1ml hence, to write about, is not \\" Orth reading. This doe s ;10t mL·an that only bu(>ks uf infornn ·
tio n o r "deep" books should ]Jc read. ;\h ny b<w k;;
not \Hit tcn to convey facts or to teach trnths ma \· \"ct '
gi,·e us much that is \\·orth thinking- about if \\·c ·r~ad
them intelligently. Kiplin;(s J1111glc-h'ooks \\' ili no~
teach us much about natural history, but th ey \\· ill g-i\-c
u s sympathy \\'ith animals aml a kee n e r en joyment ,,f
wild life . Scott's I [~>od;!or!.· sh o uld n ot be read rnerc1y

t;,

•.

CO'.\IPOSITJO;.;' A:'\D ]{HET01nc .

\\"!l:\T 'I'<> \\' !{l'J'J·: i\Hot:T .

for the history it contains; that could be gain ed more
quickly from a short history of England. But from
S cott \\"e may learn to kn o w the C:l\"alier's lift:, the
Puritan's character; further, we may g-ct a picture
not easily forgotten of E11g-lish life in the stirring- times
of the Rebellion.
\V hat is the hcst way to use books in gathering ideas
fo r \\Ti l in g? In the first pbcc , 1·cacling should sug·gcst
tboug·ht tu the writer , n ut supply him with ready-made
itlcas . \V hcn a student is asked to w rite about a book
that has in terested hin1, he is likely simply to "tell th e
story . " That is one of the least profitable tasks he
could find . It is extremely difficul t for a trained h::ind
to put the story of a book containing two hundred or
more printed pag·cs into four or five written sheets am!
give any adequate idea of the original. But the worst
fault with this kind of exercise is that it requires little
of the writer himself; h e tries to reproduce as many of
the author's itlcas as he can , generally in the autho r" s
o\1·n w ords, for it seems impossible t" imp1·0\·e the
\1·ords :ind scnknccs of the hook. Usually it is mcn: ly
a 111cd1:mic:tl task of selecti(Jn and reproduction. Let
us, th en . for the present. <.'XCl l!dc from nl! r sulijccts th e
st11n111ary lit an entire liollk.
\Ve may decide to st1mmarizc an interesting· chapter
:u1d scene , :111tl thoug-h this exercise is open in a clc~rec
to the objection stated abo 1·c, it is far more likely to be
sl!cecssfnl. In a few parairaphs a :,;ood idea can be
give n of the casket scene in the Jlfn-r/l(mf of I (·11iff, o r
of Macaulay's picture of the trial of Lorcl Hasting·s , or
of Marner's clise oYery of Effie in Silas 11fan10·, etc. A
sa fe r m ethod, howe1·er, is for the student to ask himself. 'v\That interests me m ost in that h oo k? fs it the
vlot? Or a certain argument? Or a description "i a

scene in the country? (Jr the characters the author pc>r trays? cte. These questions once ans\l"crcd, it is co111 parati\·ely easy to proce ed \1·i th the suhjc:ct ; he c:tn
then state, :ts flllly as possible , «·It"! clements were
fuund interesting-, and explain 1;·/1_ 1· th e sc:t·nc . or ch:1r acter, or plot arouses interest.
J\ ··cri tic ism" of a hook 1s a topic frequently
assignee] for c<Jmposition. The objection tu this is th:tt
few of t1s :ire c:1pahlc of jucl;,.:·in i,; a11 thors like 1 i:111··
thornc , Lowell, c;cnrg-e Eliot, Burke. or \Vch-<tcr. :ind.
ti1cn:fore, the" criticism ,. 11su:tlly amounts tu 1J<.olhii1;,_:
more than a summary of the "st1Jry" am1, pcrhap,;,
a statement th:tt we like it or l1>1 not like it. Criti c i,;m
may be made profitable, huwc\·er, i iy consitlcrin;;
various quest io ns presented by the \\"Ork uf an aullh>r,
such as the style, the treatmen t of character. th e clc,;criptive scenes, the plot, etc . If t he write r ctn co111p:i;·v.
also, the author's treatment o( these qucstio rb \I i1 :1
that in some other l.Jook uf a similar di:tr:tctL·r, he will
Jiml othn definite itk:ts to express.
!"um e in tcrestin;,; ,;ulijcet s su;.,:-,;t:,;tctl by 11uu!,s c.t:1
for fu rther reaclillg· ; such arL·: ·· Dues .)l:tc:\ul:iy i:i\·e :1
fair pi ctu re nf \Va rren f l:lst in;..;s?" "Scott was prc judi ce cl in f:t1·1·1· of the: C :t1·:tlicrs ";" 1'11pe s //0111rr i~; 11 .. t
Homer, hut l'upc "; "Tennysur1 °s Idylls of tlir k i11_,·
and Mal ory"s 11/vrk d'. ·frl/111r "; "Ceor;,;c Eliot's u·,_·:tlment of \·illag-e life." These topics arc most prntitalJk
because they demand most of the writer. A nH• IT
imag-inative form of subject is possible in handling ;t
110\·cl. The student may take part in the composition
by continuing the story after a certain puint i,; reached,
or by constructin g a scene where the characters of the
story a ppear. This will ~i\'C :t ~om! opportunity ;"
write clialoi;ue.

26

·.·.'

;

)

.

..... . .

0

...

CO\JPOSJT!!l); A);J) lOIFTORIC.

In general, it is safe to say, it is m ore profitable to
write abon t one or t wo topics suggested by a b oo k
than to writ e abo nt the boo k as a whole. Summary
and cr iti cism arc less Yaluablc and les s int.<..!rcsting- than
discussion of spec ia l points, or im a~ inat· i,·c sketches
based on the bo<>k .
3. 11/alcrial from JVocspapcrs and Jlfa.i;a::: i11cs. - Much
of o ur readin g today consists of newspapers and mag-a zines. All o m information about the m ove ments of
the \\·o rlcl, industrial and politica l , com es from this
scattered reading. The facts and iLlcas here gained
sh o uld not go in one car and out the other. Detached
pieces of in for mation sh ould he avoided, ancl what has
been glance d at in the col umns of the paper, if important, shou ld be pursu ed in the m ore serio us articles of
the magazin es . Th e J..:: lon clikc g·olcl fields, the J;ipanese
w ar , the Russian rai lroad a cross the g r eat Siberian
plains , Russia n aggressions in Ch ina , the Nicaragua
can;tl, the F ashocla incident, the Philippines as a colo nyth c sc and man y o the r similar top ics ha\·c occupied
p uh lic atte n ti<1n the last few years. Each month brings
new and m ore o r less permanent que stion s , that arc
discussed at length in th e ne wspapers and magazines.
Every inte lligent man or \\" Oman wish e s to inform himself o n such matters. No better m e th o d can be found
tu arrange and sift information thus obtained than t o
w r ite on t op ics of the (lay .
In treatin g contempora ry eve n t s , c ertain cau tions
should be hccc1ccl : 1. Do not attempt t ou large a
su bjcct (se e section 8, :l) . 2. Do no t depend on o ne
source of information, but read as m any r epo rts as
possible . 3. Confine yourself t o st:i.tin g the facts as
interesting·ly ancl as co mp letely as possible wi t ho ut
g ivin .:· hasty opinions.
-t. S eek to sh o w the real

29

WHAT TO WH.!TE ABOUT.

importan ce of the subject.
5. Always g-;ve your
sources of in fo rmation.*
10. Summary of Chapter. - !. Th e gT<..!:1t test <>f the
suitability of a subject for a wril<..!r is his in teres t in it.
He cannot in tere st uthcrs in ,,·hat he himself is not
interest<..!d in, or \\·hat he has only an af1ect ed J;l.;.ingfor . If, af te r genuine effo rt to arouse his mind. th e
s ubjec t remains dist a steful, he shoulcl a\·oid it.
2. A i,;o od subj ect may be spoiled by attempting- t i )
treat it in too limile cl a space . Judg-e beforch :md
\vh ethe r your po \\·ers and the condition 11 nck r \\'hich
you arc wri t ing make a subject advisable .
.1. A\·oid i.:·e ncral and ahs tract t opics, such as war,
peace, science, podry, and the lik e . The more sp e cific a nd spec ial your topic is, the more you \\·il l find to
say abo ut it.
·L Cultivate observation; find intcrestini,; topic,; in
the c\·e n ts of the clay.
5. In takini,; a subject from a book , beware of writing a mere summ a ry; try to put some of your o wn
thought s into yo ur the me.
6. ::\lake your r c aclini,; of peri odicals o f some permanent value by using- t he information i,;aine<l as materi al
fo r themes.

Exercise II.
.·/. K eep a notebook for subjects, in wh ich arc
entered each day at le a st two subjects, with brief no tes
of what you ,,·ould write ::i.bout them . Read the topics
in class o nce a week , defend your choice of them, and
*N' OTE. -

(; oocl soun.: es fnr such articl <.:s arc (amonc- o thers ): Tiu Oull1J<.'1< ,
lf '"r.d·/y , Tiu· l ..omlon 1//11 .1/ raf«d :\>:v :; , Thi'

Tiu Vvu //1 '.\ (iunp~l!lf.On, /farj>r·r·s
A'c":•r>;l'

,if

A'1· :· 1 ~'; , · , ,

.lfrc'/11 1/ ., .l/11 Li,: . 1 ,; 11u'.

in 'll1t' l ·l nu11 , 'l'/11· .Y, ·:1·
1

} '0 1

\ lo r e s1:rious ar 1i1.; les 111 ay Uc fou nt1

k .Yut/,,11, Tit,• .\',11 Iii A u1,· 1 1; ·,ur A', ·.

'f'lu: / :' 11.i::h.\h C,, 11f,'1•t/ll'l ·a1 y N1· ; ·1>.-.-. Tit,~ . lt lan t1~
:; huu k l l>c fvuud in a hi.:·IJ- ::; t.:11001 library.

.\lo-, ~

1, ·;l',

J'/11' ( >ntury ,

uf t ht''>C

11:at,;:11. in c~

.,

30

j

\

i'

' lt~

! ~

CO~IPOS ITIO'.\'

slate the probabk length of the .thelll es required t<J
develop them properly.
IJ. \ Vrite a paragTaph of not less than a hundrecl
words on some subject sug-ge:o\tcd by \Yhat yon saw
today on you r way to school.
C. From the following list of subjects sel e ct fi\·e
that you conkl \\Tite a theme about, not o\·er one sheet
uf themc-p;tpcr in lcn~th . Select two that couhl be
treated in two or three pages, and outline the thought.
Select four that arc suited for longer themes, and give
your reasons why :

,

.l.

'

~

l,i

f:H

g
~···t
. ,f
l

.j
. •Jl
i-~
l

~ ii
l

Il
'!

II
'
i I
•
l
I

'
.i

2.
3.
4.
.'i.
6.
7.
8.

9.
10 .
1 l.
• ?
l ~.

LL

14.
Li.
J (, .
17.
1s.
19 .

20.
21.
22 .
23 .

2+ .

31

A:\"D RHETORIC.

A summer camp.
The boy wh o sits next to me .
An intelligent cat.
An old house.
A ten-m ile \Yalk .
\Vhat is a cheque?
Tote m-poles.
A w indstorm.
l'oints of a good horse.
A model sto ck farm.
A country railway station on the arrival of a
tr;tin .
H ow to niakc rr•s c s R"row .
The n:\\·al officer of the future.
Public baths.
Tennyson's !J11!!ad of '/'/1r Rt"<'m/(t".
Sir Rog-er de Coverley at the Play.
Biiiy Bones in Trcas11rc h!a11d.
l\iannal training.
The conditions necessary fo r the for mation of a
desert.
Mythology .
The three departments of government; their
functi o ns.
The Leg-em1 of the Holy Grail.
The story of Dr. ~fanette in / { Ta!r of Two Cifits.
Nap o leon.

2S . The plan of the Cru1frrb11n• 'li1/cs .
The oriR"in of ice-packs . .
27 . A six-clay b icycle race .
28 . J\ street-car incident.
29. A Conrt rn:<squc in Elizal!cth ' s t ime .
30. The orii.;in and fonctions of co~ in the atm<>s phere.
l\ry scns:1tions \\·lie n t11L·mcs arc rc:td.
Dinner on th e farm.
33 . The Swiss Rcfrrenclum -- \\·hat it is .
3-J. . Phn:be Pyncheon (character sketch).
35. Th e process of electroplating.
36. The his to r ic;:.l n o ycJ.
37. l\merican annexation.
38. Coal mining.
39. The orig-in of underground caves.
40 . Mrs. Primrose (character sketch).
41. The school store (description).
42 . Th e r mometers .
4.1. The metric systc;11 of ,,· cig:hts ;111d mc:1su1-c,.;.
44 . 'fhc lii~tory uf ~\I U \\ ..L!-11 in the ./1n1.1.:l1·-l/r,ol.:.
45 . Baloo, in the .!1111.r:lc-l»oo!.-, as a tcaLhcr.
46 . The uxy -hydrogcn l.JlO\q)ipc.
47 . l\bpie sug a r making.
48. Relation of insects and flowers.
49. How bumble bees help clover set seed.
2(> •.

So.

J(ccpi!l;_: a cl i;1n-.

Pr cp:i r~1ti1•n (Jf ch:ii-co ;1L
The Man in the Iron l\lask .
53. Vivisection.
54. b hunting cruel?
5.~. \\"h at arc pussy wi iin\\·s?
56. Bleaching with chlorine.
57. \Vhy plants need water.
58 . Hepzibah Pyncheon's shop .
59. The s tatue of the repubiic at the World's Fair.
60. The orig·in of waterspouts.
D . What objections do you find to the follo\';in~
subjects ?
1. T11C' wi nds.
2. Queen Victoria's reign.

Sl.
52.

32

W I·lAT TO WRITE .\ BOUT.

cm1roSITION AND JU!ETO IHC .

3. A rctic expcditions.
4. Foreign missions.
s. Vacations.
6 . Imagination.
7. The \Vorld "s Fa ir of 189.\.
8. D r eams.
9. Shakspere's hero ines.
JO. Educatio n.
11. War.
12. Fre e ti·auc .
13. Sto ries of ach·en t11re .
I+ . J\ vis it to Ne\\. \.'"ork .
15. Athletics .
16 . l'o etrv.
1 7. Presi(le nts of the United States .
18 . The inhabitan ts of ~[ars.
19. Cloud scenery.
20. Travel by rail ancl by steamer.
21. T he seasons .
22 . Taxation.
2J. Queer people .
z.+ . Darwin ism .
25 . T h e nature of man.
2(1. The mysterious as a factor in the b e autiful.
27. Ath· e nisi n g- .
2~ . J\ roll ing stone g-athers nu moss.
/:'. l\focli fy ten of th e fo llowing· subjects in a n y w ay
that will e nable you to treat them interest i n~iy:
1 . The Indiana gas belt.
2.

The JlolfSC of Ili c

.'>><·1"11

(,"ab/t"s.

.' . Transport at io n.
4. Kipling's animals in the Ju11glt -lloo/.:.
5. Standing armies.
6. Flags.
7. English colonies .
8 . Queen Elizabeth.
9 . Abraham Lincoln.
10. J\ third term of offlce fo r the Presillent of t h e
United States.
11. llypnoti s 111.

The humor of Dickens .
Bicycling.
Th e in fl uence of g·unpo'.\·cler .
T he ste a m e n g ine .
Photograpl1y.
The Continental C<>ni.(rcss.
English s chools.
The Supreme Court of the U nitcL1 Slat<.:s.
Th e Civil War in Eng-Janel.
!·~ From the books n.::u1 in s ch1Ju l tlurin).!· th e previous t e rm, make a list of not less than t e n subjects
about each uf \d1 i<J1 yo n C(lliltl \Trite three pa).!"es .
(,". \\' h:t( t u pi CS :trC \] {)\\" Jici11;_,:· <ii ." L'lh,;t'(j ill th L· th :J\·
pape r s \\"hich yuu cu 11hl use for tht:n1•.>stil ijccts ~
How w o uld y o u t reat th e m ?
H. A list of subject s of contemporary in:.cn: st i:-;
given bclo\\·. Select the <•\lC: yu u kno\\" mu"t alJullt and
write a sho r t theme upt>ll OJI<" di ~·is ion u f the \\·Ji, ,! e
12 .
13.
14.
15 .
16.
17 .
IS.
19.
20.

topic:
The Chicago clrai11a~; t c:tn:tl; 'frack cle\·:t ti1i11 111 ;_;Tc:1L
cities; The chief im1u s try uf my tull"ll; The p 1ili tic·:t1
divisions uf our county; J\ gr; :_,<.\ iu rm ,,i' ;.;·.,\·c r:in1c·1 :t
fo r a. small tu \\'11; CmlcrgTound \" S . cJc ,·;tt e d r:1ilru:tds ;
Storage b:1tleries; Electricit~· on steam railro ads ; J ]()\\"
the stal es in th e midd le \\'est market th eir pro<1\l L' c" ;
T h e lI:l\\·aiian Islands; Ce ntral J\rncrican r epubli cs;
The ~1 onroc ll octrine; \Vh a t is meant hy Crc:itc: r l\ c w
York; Social settlements .
I. Prepare a li s t of subjects t h at y on can \\"rit e
about suggested b y Silas !lfarncr; hy Burke ' s Spt"Cclt
on Co11ci!ia fio11 witlt rlnu:rirn; b y one of Macaulay's
E:o11iays.

3

. ·;- j. ~·

DEVELOP~!E'.':T

CHAPTER IlI.
DE\'ELOl':'>IE:'\T OF SUBJECTS.

11. Titles.- It makes little difference \Yh ether a
\Hiter gets b is title f-irst antl then plans his work, or
filHls the title after tbc complctiun of his composition.
\Ve shail discuss the title first because the topic forlows
closely the advice give n in the preceding chapt e r, an<l
because the \\Titer shoul d u nders tand from the start
that the title and the subject arc not the same thing.
The subjec t may be so phrasc<l as to rn:-ike a good title,
but as a rule, the statement of the subj ect is too broad
to be u sed as a title. The ti tle is the special name
which tlle author i::ivcs to his treatment of t l1e s ubj ect.
Thus, fr o m the general subject of " Bi<:ycling in Engkiml, "'w e may dcri,·e a number of titles, as," From
Edinbuq.:-h tu London on \\'h eel." or, "A Tour oft.he
English Lakes lJy Bicycle," or "Bicycling in Devon."
The selecti o n of a g-ood title is important, bcc:rnse by
rneans of th e title the wri te r marks out the field uf
his composition, and also cng·ag-es the attention of the
read e r.
Jn the first place, a title should lx: brief. Before this
century authors frcCJtH.:ntly g:i\·e long titles eYen to
shurt pamphlets, endeavoring to cover all matters
treated in the work; such, for example, is Bunyan's full
title for h i,.; allcg·ory:
Tltc l'i(i:ri111's !'n1i:rtss from !liis ,,·odd lo !Ital 1eltid1 is
t u ro111(, dc/i; ·cr<"d 1111dcr Iii <" si111ili!11d1·uf a /h·<"a111, ;.-'11(.,.t"i1t
34

OF SCllJECTS.

35

is disro z·crol Ili c 7//(lJlltCr of his sd!i11g tJ!(f, /1is da11,1:om1s
jo11r11cy, a11d sale arriz·a! at fli1· d«.;ircd 1·01m!1y.
But a modern writer will 11:u11e a lung \\·urk b;: :t
short ti tle, as, Forl_r-011(: Y o 1rs 1n India, or, T!ti: Jhscm•oy of .·I J//(rita.
The title sh<>uld he clear, nut misleading. \\"iJ ,·11 \\·e
read in a ne\\·sp:q>er" The Siaughter uf the innuccnts"
as the lH:ading- to an account of the dl'.structi"n ul fi~h
by a floud, \\·e are nsclessly deceived. 1\g·ai11, "Charity" is a va:,:ue title fo r :-i m:1 g a?,ine article. Th e rc:,dcr

cannot guess whether what fullu \';s is to be an account
of modern methods of distributing- r elief to the p oo r.
or a sermon. A good title sh ould answer. as far as
possible, the question, What is the article :thnu t )
If the titic is brief and cic:ti·, then the :iutlwr nn;:-,t
consider ih interest. \\' ill it draw attcntiun lu the
article or the bouk and stimulate peupic tu rca,i iunlh: r)
T/l(: /ViJJi>crs-a title for a hoCJk Jescribi n;,;- life am()nii
different classes of day laborers - is an intcrt:Slill):
titl e , much bettc:-, for insLrn<.·c. than " I ndustria1 Conditions." flow 111« <)l/10· //11// /,;,,"., tclllpts uur curiusity,
\\"hilc "The Cunclition .,f the l'"or in Our Lar;..:·e Cit i<.'S ··
docs not. \\'hat has been said in the prl'.\·inu,; cli:lJ>!_cr
about the \·:due of specific s1:hiccts is true :tl,;o of titles .
A student \\·iw g·i\"l_' ,.; " Fi,.,hi11;..:" as his title frJr the
story of a day's spurt is sure t<J discuur:tgc :1 rc::dcr
from g-oing· beyond the title . "Fishing' fnr ]':t,;s , ·· <•r,
'·How l Caught a Two-Pound Bass ," may tempt a
reader to g-o 01i. Seek to interest you r n'adcr hy the
titk uf yuur \\"urk.
In scckin~ for an entertaining title, do nut sclcc~
one that is merely S<.'n:;ati••n:11. l\ scnsatiun :tl tit le is
deccpti\·e. and it is cheap . i. <."., it cbsses the \\·<>rk \\·itli
the \\Titiug of su~)crficial and vnlg·ar \\"ritcrs. illany

' ·~ .

'·•)

CO~IPOSITION

36

,
I
i

•;

it
:1:

i'

~

l
;I
ii

"l

'j

d
I~
ft

~1

It(

1~

,r1~i
lt:i~. ~'
J

1

1l:i

i.f
I;;
j ''

'~

DFVF.LOP'.\!E:'\T OF

such sensational titles may be seen in the headlines of
the daily press: e. g. : ··From Jail to War," "Uncle
Sam L ets Loose the Dogs of War," "No Cross, No
Crown," etc.*
12. Preliminary Work.- Let us suppose that the s ubject for a short theme of t,,.o or three pag·es has been
decided upon; that the title is chosen; that any necessary reading or gathering- of information has been
performed; and th :i.t the subject has been talked on:r
with a friend, or at least thoug·ht over hy the ;nite r.
The n ex t step is to make n oll'.:;. The \\Tite r jots
down, quite at random, a few \n1nb tu sen·e as heading-s fo r the different facts ur ideas that occu r to him.
These notes need not be cumplctc sentences; somct i mes a s in g-lc \1·orc1 11·i 11 do. J\ ft er he has 111 ade as
many notes as occur tu him. he shoukl copy them on
a second s heet of paper, this time arranging· them ,
rejectini.:' those tha t arc not ln the p oint, filling o ut
those th:lt arc incomplete, ancl cxpandin).!' th e broken
phrases . This m ethod i:; illustrated in the fullowingoutlines :
General Subject : Description of the making- of cao;tings in a
mal'h ine shop .
Title (possib ly) : "Castinf's . "

or, " ll<JW lo ;\lake a Cast-

~:

/·irs! /<i1n11 -

i\ut<:s.

I..aq.;c in closurc w ith llaH-doz~n hulldin ~s.

y: trd.

Stca n 1 shoYcl

un

car.

~ :\\v

J{ailroad tra c k
chains.

; 11

11,

Opening- the casting-s liy 11nsc rc\\'illf( w<><Hle n pins.
/\!olds.
San<l. Men fillinf( molds \\'ilh sand. ;\! o lten m eta l pourc<l Ill.
Jt coob over ni g-ht. 1'! ~1ni11 g the castings. Csc of compressed

!1.1
j:!1:

Titlcs sl!ouh.l Uc w ritte n in it:dks or indosccl betwi.:en quotation
Th e lir:->t wo rd ;1rnJ. a:! the impo r ta nt w_or1b o: a title_ :-.h ould b..:· ~in
,,·ith L:;~pit:d lcttc:·...:.. J-:y 1..·ry thc nH' ...,11ould ll' l' l'! \ ' t • a utk· , wh1 ...:h ~hnu l.J »t.'

!i,111,, J

writt en at tlii..; !11..·ad vf the fl.r~t pa;,.:-u.

ii!:
'If

"I

i'l

* :\OTE. -

111 , 1rks.

llh.:ll

111aking

I

~Tl1JFCTS .

."'-ii

air in hancllin>?; castings. In another building- carpentt-1"' ,h,•:'
to nrnke molds. Setting up castings.

On examining these notes , I fi1Hl thal I ha,·e jottc(i
clown the s ubjects as I saw them, and as I h:1ppcncd to
see the casting first, and the carpenter's shop last , I
have placed them in the same order . B ut the mold
comes, n atu r:tll y, b cfo1·e the c:ts tin g . ).1:,irco\·er, T h:n-c
gi\·en about one-third of my notes to the introd uction- the shops, the yard, m:1king chain, elc. E\'lc1enlly, in r e\'is in g , I must either throw 011t some of
the notes in tile fi rst part, or find more to s:ty :tl>Uut
the casting. The secom1 form follows :
Second For/II l. The plant Isa\\' was situ:ttecl near et railro:icl ju:i ct ion :tr~c1
was mad e 11p of a number of lc>w brick Lrnil cl in g-s placc<l about
an open yard.
2. The plant \\'Jls for const ructing steam sho,·els , ancl one of
the completed shc>\·els \\'as s>1·ung- on a llat car on a track n:nni11g- across the yard.
3. The first step in the making of a casting is the rn,,:a;
that is constrttctecl from plans ( lik e maps) liy c:irpcn krs in a
separate shop. De,:cribe the making of molds.
4. The \\'OO<lcn m old goes to the casting room, 'l':hcr<' it is
fill ecl with a mixture of sa nd :i111l "·at e r that looks like hl:tck
meal.
S.

1n:.,:·.

Fi

-·----·

AND RHETORIC.

'I'he woo (len n1olUs arc rcn11>Yed, h.';t \·in;..( a gran11L1r, rc;..:-u·

Jar mass, like a h11gc mud pie.
m o I cl.
6.

The head man patches the

At ni~;ht the n111ltcn n1et ;d is poured int() tile~(· '.':and \·e-.:-

sels al1l1 the y arc left to cool.
7. The next day the sand is lin1she<l off ancl th e irn n ca-ting
comes out.
S. Hy means of <krriL:k s \\· o rke(l by comprcssecl air . tile c:tstings (sometimes weighing many tons) arc placed on little c;;rs.
9. They am taken into the machine shops ancl placed on
different lathes. Tl1 e lathes are sometimes like an nrdiu:iry
wood lathe; sometimes c irc ular disks.

DEVELOP~IF:\T

COMPOSITION :\NJ) RHETORIC.

JO_

int(> the n1~dd~ an d

Tiley arc sm oothc<l IJ,- sh:irp stevl chiq•ls th:it p:ire off

p~lrt,

thin st1·ip:--; of the rough ;., ut :--ii<h.·.

This time I have fo und it possible to adcl se,·eral
sections about the castings . I have thro\\'n out the
notes on the making- of chain ( \\'hich, th ough interest ing·, were not di rectly reiated to my subject), and I
h:n·e rean·a ng·c<l ;tml fi11cl1 ont the hrief notes.
13. First Complete Copy. -The next step is to write
nut a complete, connected draft. :\Inst \\'riters find it
alhisal;le to d<) this ,,-ith oul pausing: to hunt for the
hest \\'Ords, ur to rn :tke corrections. It is c:tsier to
kee p the mind s teadily on one thing at a time than to
rlo two th in g- s at once - to ~i ,-e our \\"hole attention,
first, to tt·lling the story: next. to improYing- it. The
\Hi ti ng--out "·ill result in something like this :

lU .

'.i'l1e 1uuld:s arc L~Lkcu tu t ile !illing

room and placed near the fur naces, wi1ere a workman fills them
with a mixture of black sand :11Hl water . 11. This wet sand
looks like black meal. 12. After the sand has been pressed

11;1...;,

t;1k..,'n the fc•r111 11f t l:e 1n11id ln l'\Tn·
1.1. . Thc-...c 11:1>].j-.., ,1;"- ·

fr;t1~1c i~ L d d _'.:l ;ijl~L rt .

cooled and the s~tncl i ~: hr11...;hc<1 a\\'ay , th e ca~. . tin .l..(

t ·1)1nf·..., 11 11t,

in

for111 likl' the w uni1en 11101<1, h11 t ,,·ith ron ;..~1 1 s11rf:tl·1_·...:. ~'~ . It
looks li l.;c a p it't'(; of pi~_:- i1«n1. 2 i . ~lliL·h rc·n1~Lill~ l1J lw 1~ •.1 : lL'

Third /'arm -

~casonct1 oak lu1ub<.:r.

\\t>'H icn

so mad e that they can easily be taken ap:i.rt without disturhin;:
th e sand . 14 . This k-an·s a , -csscl in sh:ipe like the r t'<Jnin"!
casting- _ }.')_ In rcmovinl..( the parts of the rnnlrl, little p;eccs Pi
sand arc broken off.
lli. The se breaks m11st he cardulil'
patched hy :t skillful wo rk man in order that the l':istin;;s nt:t\'
conH:' out rcg-ul~lr .
17. i\ftl.:r t11e s~nd rnold i...:. rr:i.d~'· i t;~ :;1~~ c_-:1
tn the furnal·e, \\·l1cr(; it i:-; filicd \\·ith il11-ilten irnn. 1:--i. i'.i urin'...:' .
as this is calle<l, is <l<>llC :it night. ]9 _ \\. he n ihe llll't:.J ii:is

11- Describe the complcte<l machine .

1- Some months ago I wa s delayed fo i- scyeral honrn at a
rnilr<>:tU junction in Ohio. 2. The first thing l did was to get
S"ll1P ltnw\won in the st:i.tlon. and then I loo ked :i.bont for something to dot<> fill the time until l could get my train_ 3 . Across
the tracks from the st:itinn \\-ere a nurnher of low brick huild ings, built irregularly around an open yanL 4. This, I learned,
\\':1s a w ell-know n pla nt for making- steam shoYels, rlrc<lg:cs,
ru:t<l machines, and sin1il:tr cn.~incs . S. Ob tainin g a card of
nd111 issi o n to the place at the oflicc nc:u the entr:i.nce , I spe nt an
hour \v:ttchin g the proce!'S of rnakin:..;- castin~s. 6. 'I'his \va s
very inte resting, and I sh:lll attempt to describe it. 7. The first
step in m:tking a casting- is the manufachtre of the w ooden p!:ln,
or mol<l; this is done by skillc<l c:irpenters, from pen -and -ink
sketches , in a carpenter shop on one s ide of the ya r d _ 8 . These
m old s must be \'Cry carefully and cx:ictly made :ltHl fitted
together. 9. They requ ire nice joincr-\\"ork, and are m:i.de of

Li1c

(>F Sl-BJEC'fS .

~-

before the casting l'an l>c used i11 a 111ac hine _ 22. Tl1l' 11c-xt
process i :-~ plani n;..; the r ough c;1~ti11g~ until the surfaces are tlie
rig-ht size . 23. Fur this operat:on the ca stings arc lif!c1l ()iJ 1~-,
little l':tr~ and run int0 an :-i.d_illining- ~11np. ~ -L Tli1_· l1 f1i: 1'. ._'." .-, :
the big- pic.._'CL'S of lron (son1cti1nc-.; scn.: r;ll Uins in \1.c: .~ :i :t 1
done l>y n1 c ~!ns nf derri c ks \\'tirkcd l1_\· . ._ ·, 1111prc:-; . . . L'd a:r_ ~ :::.
Tl1is apparatus, \\'hiclt s<·c111s \H·:ik, 11a11<1k.J th;, hc:in- ":1 -.:i11<
li ke a f<·:itltcr, :t:id \\":<s rPg-ubkd e:isily l•y a ,-,ih·t-_ ~.- .. Jtt,;,;,_the plan in:c: runm arc many lathes worke<l hy steam_ 27 _ :-;<> 11 1c·
arc sh::ipc<l like an orclinary w oo<!tu rn er 's Ja t!1e, and •• •_i1C'rs j .... k
like la q .:e (1run1s . 2S . 'Th e casting- i~ l11wcred <'!l a ~;iit:1: ,; t.
l=ithe, and the si'> \V prn(.'t·.o..;s ni sn1uothing- tlie su rfat·cs IH. :~·:: r :-, .
29. J.\ sni:dl :-;tee! ci;i~cl i s ~~r1 fix ed t i Lt! it )J;trc:\· t,~1j 1 ·h1 ·..; ti lt'
iron sur fa ce , and the 111;-ichine i...;. rcg-ul~del1 t() tnn-n : tile c;i-...t i1 1<
~l fr:1cti on (1f :in inl'h after c:t\·h trip ,,f tlie chi:--cl ~1(T'1 ...... ..:. the •, 1~r ­
face. J\ 1. Tlic chisel Clll S 0 111 :t li11c sl1:t\'i11g 41£ inin, li~..:t: a tli~n
apple-parin .:~·. 011 e:tch trip . :t n<l g-r:tilu:diy l'41\·1_·r~ t1Jc · c nlirc '.~~; · ·
f8.cC u ntil it i:-; ~nl()nth :lnd nf tht.! propc.._· r thicknl·~:-i. 31. I t i . . .
snrprisi11;; !•> "-arch the little steel chisels p:i.re aw,1y the irr•n :o·;
i( it were soft woo d. 32 . Frnm the s hops [we nt i1;to t he \' :< rd.
\vhcrc a con1pletc{1 st.earn s1irn·<·1 th:it rotated <111 a car \\· as ),._.in~
tested_ 33. Then I tltank ed the s u perintendent, and \\'ent back
to the station.

At first si"ht this \\'ntt1d seem lo ])c a s:Lfr-; f ,1 L't, inl han: co\-crcJ ail the points (•f 1111- sn'< •Ihl
outline ancl ha,-c added an inlruductiott , besides c()n nec tinb:- the parts so that it forms a coherent story.
t heme .

:,.,

40

CO)!J'OSITIO:\ A:\I> RHETORIC.

On looking it O \" Cf m o re car efully, ho\\'C\·cr, I am not
content with it. In the first pbce, it is too Jong, for X
was to \\"rite a theme of t \\·o or three pag·cs, an<l I
have n ea rly four pages. Then I notice t hat \\"Onl s arc
repeated, especially in sentences 1.\ 16, and 17. Some
s en tences, like 2ll , c::in be com1ensed to phrases a nd
u sed clse\\·herc . :"-Jo thi n,; h:is been s:iid ahou c th e putting together o f the machine .
14. The Final Copy. - There arc also a nu mber of
oth er places \\'here, aftl' r my critical examination, I
think I can imp ro,·e the account. ~o I make a last
trial:
F o11 rt h hn ·111 T lfl ~

:'\ L\KI~ f~

OF CASTI ~ CS.

1. Not lon g- :i go J h:l<l :i. cha nce to see h o w c:i.stii;Rs :tr<'
111<.Hle in a stean1-~h0Yci work~.

2.

'T he fjr:-;t step in n1akin~ ' '·

casting is the construction of a "·oo<le n plan , or mole~, which i,·,
made by skilled ca r pente rs, after pcn - atHl·ink sk e tches of th<'
piece rcqu ire<l. 3 . These m olds require nice joiner-work; thC'y
arc made of season c<l na k lumber, and the parts fitted tni::cthe1
in such a way that they can easily be ta ken apar t. ·• 4. The
\\'Oo <le n mo lds :1rn t h<'n taken to the filling 1·1H>111, whe re the y
arc packccl with w et s:11Hl :J1:1t looks like black mea l. 5. After
the sand has !Jecn pre,;sc<l i11t0 the rnolcl and h:ts taken the
proper fnrm. lli c \\·oodC'n rnnlcl is rcmoYccl , leaving- a sane! m old
in shape like th e required casting. 6. \\'hcren· r littl e piN· cs pf
the sand h:n·e been knnckccl nut in 1·c1110\'i ng the \\'oodt·n fr:1me .
a skillet] \\' Orkman must p :ttch th e s11rfaces. 7. ~-iext . the satHl
mold is tlllecl froiu t he furn:~ce-11sual l y at night - wit h molten
iron. S. \\'h en the metal h:i.s c<>olccl, the sa1Hl is knocked off,
and the casting comes <mt, in fo rm like th e \\' OO<lc n m old , b ut
\\'ith rough surfaces, something- li ke p i!( iron. 9. Before the
rough c:<sting can lie used in the machine, it must be planed
until the surfaces are of t he righ t .- izc. 10. fo\,r h andling the
ca:--:t ings , \\·hich arc son1ctin1cs scycr:tl tous in w eigh t, cra nes are

used , work ed lly cc>mpn:ssecl air. 11 . Hy means nf t hese strongm achines, a lw:n·y c1sting is seized as if it " ·ere a feather,

* ~ otc

that s('nten cc~ 1~ a nd 13 a re used here.

\Y hr?

DEVE LOP :'l!E~T

OF S\l HJECTS.

41

placed on a C'a r , and run in to th e planing- room, "·here it is
sh iftC'cl abolll in t h<' same way. ( U11fi11is/J1·rl. )

So far as
have ;..;one I haYe been able to slwrtcn
my account at least a third \\'ilhout omitting: ;u1y irnpc,r ·
tant id eas, and T 11a,·c strengthened the senten ces hy
suppress in g unimportant st:itcmen t s ;rnd nnit i n~· connect ing thoughts. One question puzzled me.· Should
I omit the in troductory sentences? They \\-ere int('resting- C lll>Ugh an11 served to hrin~ th e r e:1d c r natllr:11:v
to my subject. B lll I h:1 d to om it s omcthi n ~:·, and :1s
the in trnduL· ti 11n , after :-ill, \\·as merely preliminary·a kind of" getti n g· up steam " - I conld spare it. Introductions arc usuall y supc1·nuous; they are scaffoldings
erect ed hy the hnil<kr , a11c1 shmilc1 h e r emoved " ·he n
the lrnil din:.[ is compicte. i'\ otc that the scco;-,d forn1 is
longer than the first, arnl that the third is the lun;,; cst
fo rm , \\'hilc the fourth fo rm, though longe r tha n the
seconcl . is shorter than the third .
This seems to be :-in elaborate process to go through
wi th to obtain s u ch small r esults . 1\fter all fonr forms ,
we h ;1\'C on ly a t\\·o-pagc theme. One questions \\·lil'lhcr
C\-cry ).'."Ood \\'ritcr must t:tkc all this pains wlw11 he
un dertakes to \\'rite. Train ed \\'ritc rs do not, as a ru ic,
mak e f(Jur dr:tfls. r-;,·c11 \-cry c:1rdul writl'rS 1··:irn,
afte r a time. to combi ne the fir s t with the secon<l form .
and S()lllCtirnes the th ird with the iourtb, thus r u1nc ingthc process to t1Yo parts. The complete(] c1raft, hcrn· e,·c r, is fr equently rC\\Titte n a number of time~. J..:l'al
excellence in \\'riting-, :is in any art, comes only throu~h
the willini:;ncss to take infinite pains. l'ro babi:; the
n ovel or p oe m you skim throui.;h ,.;o easil y was "· rittL'n
three , fottr, o r c\·e n fi,- c times h c forc it \\'Cnt to the
p rinte r. '!'he prelim in ary cl ra ft is clcs i~· n cd to stra i"htcn
out o ur th oughts. Most of llS think in a disorderly,

:

42

CO~IPOSJTIO;-.;

:\XD HllFTC)RIC.

h elter-sk e lter fashion, :mu until we c.xam in c our idc:1s
as th e y appear on p aper, we cann o t tell wh ere tiH:y
r ea ll y belong, n o r \1·h e the r they belo ng to the theme at
all. The sl ow work o f making plans g ra<lually trains
the mind to arran g e id ea s, and if the stude nt Jc:1rns in
this way to think clearly and logically, he will gain
something f:tr m o re important than the po 11·er to write .
J\ ft er a few months of practice in th c 111 e- 1vork, a
student shoultl be able to \lo a1»ay with th e first fo rm.
One preliminary plan sho uld be suffic ient. nut he can
hardl y e xpect , if he 11·ants to clr) bette r than
passwork ," t o d ispen se with the third form .
Exercise III.
A. Find titles that "·ill show how yo u ca n the the
fo llowing statements of suhjects :
1. Th e United States o ught n o t to annex Cuba,
becau se the Cu bans are not capable o f assum in g th e
duties of U n itc<l Stat es citizensh ip.
2. The sensati o n a l ne wspape r s did a g r eat deal of
harm during the Cuba n agitation.
3 . O ne renso n why hi gh -school and collc~e students
like foo tball is because it is a stri ctly amateur g ame.
4 . A description of the scene v ie 1n.: cl from a 11·i nd ow.
5. A d e scription of a small b oy loo kin;,:- thro u ;.:·h a
crack of the fence at a baseball g-ame.
6 . Th e fact tha t m a ny p ris one 1·s leav e o ur penitentiari e s worse than w he n they went in would seem to
show th at o ur system of pun is hing- crime is n o t based
on the right id eas.
7. 1\ vis it to a coal mine in Pennsylvania .
8 . I t is desirable that good pictures and g-ood b ooks
form an import::m t par t of the eq uipment of c 1·en·
school room.
<J. 1\n :-tttcmpt is being made to cultivate the te a
plant in South Carolina.
10. Statistics show that during· the p:-tst yea r many

DF.VELOP~JE;\T

OF SUBJECTS .

more accidents ha ve resulted from bicycling than from
football.
11. A tlcscription of the house you 1vere bo rn in.
12. A characteristic feature of L ondun life in the
eighteenth ce ntury was the coffe ehouse.
13. A visit to the Bureau of Eni:;-rav ing and Printin~
in \Vashin gto n, to sec the process o f making· bank
notes.
14. An autohiog-raphy .
15. T he us e of i.;unpowcle r h a<l a po 11·erfu1 int1 ucnl:C
in making- society clcmocratic, for it r ende re d the
knight, formerly superior in his expensive armor and
equipment, of no m o re yalue in battle than men of
lesser rank.
16 . It is fo rtm1ate that "mass pbys" in football
have bee n cl on e a1Yay with, for they we re ,·cry dangrrous.
17. A d escripti o n of the d a y befo re Chri~tmas in the
toy department of a big store.
18. Many students who would not think of t:omganything- dishono r able o ubi<le of school seem not to lJc
asham ed of cheating in exa minati o ns.
19 . An account of the phases through which a raindrop m ay pass.
20. An acconnt of the famous fig-ht of Si r Richard
Grenville, in Tcnny,;on's hallall, Th,· N n•o1.1.;r.
21. A d escript ion of the home of Kat rina \·an
Tas se l.
22. J\s examinati o ns clo not afford a real test of the
stude nt's knowledge of the subj ec t, th ey should be
abolish ed .
23. It would be arlv isab le for the United St:-tte s t o
adopt th e English plan and not pay membe rs of
Congress .
24. There a r e several 11·ays 111 whi ch lak es rn:ty
become cxt i net.
25. Ce rtain facts p ro,·c that spring water has it s
ultimate o ri gin in rain .

'.;t.

~-

·'·-

CO~l1'0S1Tf0:\'

44

:\:i\D RIIETOR IC.

Discuss the appropriateness of th e ~ollowir.~
titles to the su hjects treated:
IJ.

1.

/ltc Tille.
"H istoric 1\ews Heat."

T/1c S11/'J",-r/ !iridfl' /Jrsrrihed.
Vi ctory of a newspaper in sec u rin~

news in ;i,dya nce.

2. "Lava."

A one-page them e to pro\'e

3. "T he Gocls (;i,·e My Don key \rings."

A

4 . "Hospital Sketches.

A cconnts <1f a nurse's cxperienL·e d11ri11g the Ci,·il \\"ar.
Lect nrcs on how a11d what to
re ad.
A story of !if· on a fishing
schooner olf the
Grand
Banks of 1\"ewfollndlan tl .
An accou nt of the typi cal history of a river.
A:1 •trg-nmcnl to pron: that the
Referend um is needed in the
United States.
A tlescription o[ an oltl-fashionetl garden in ;\°cw Jla111pshire.
/\n editorial on th e Spanish

that lava is a rock so lution .

5.

''Sesame an<l Lilies.''

6. '' Captains Courageo us."

7.

11

R.ivers.''

Swiss
S. "The
<111111."

Refereu-

9 . "/\ Description ."

lU.

'' Sp:-tin Receives the Ult i-

l J.

'' Cii:u1ce1.. s
Cantcrl> t; n·
T:11L's.''
"Treetsnre Isbncl. .,

1natun1. ' '

12.

l

;l
'!
l
,l

13. ''/\ JlS or tsan <lConclitions
of Jllen.''
14 . '' Nap111c1111 . " .

d

Hi

·•;

15. "De serts."

l

16. " Pri et m's Visit to J\chillcs . "

non~l.

,,·:tr.
/\one -pa ge thc:me 011 th e plan
of the C an te rbu ry Talcs.
/\ ston· of etth-entu re in search
of pirates· treasure .
J\ 11on:l dc·,1lin:-.~ \\'it h sf•Cial
refnrms in I ,ontlon.
A i>rief analysis of the charetc tcr of Napoleon.
A two-pet>(e tht·me~ettin;:: forth
the conditions necessary for
th e fo rnrntion of a Llesert.
A 1ksniptio•1
tak e n from
Pope's Homer.

DEVELOPJ\IENT OF SUBJECTS .

45

C. Prepare preliminary drafts (first form) for a
clescriptiye subject similar to " The Making· of C:i.stings." Prepare drafts one and two for :i. short narratiYe
of some event discussed in the history class; then writ e
out draft three and submit it to the class for criticism.
The following- su bjects may be suggestive:
1. An accou nt of the battle of Thcrmopyhe.
2. Bnrg-oyne's i1n-a sio n.
3. The games in the fifth book of th e A~nei<l.
4. Priam's visit to J\chilles.
5. The death of Hector.
6. The parting of J lectur and Andromache.
7. An account of til e liattk of Salamis.
8 . An account of the storm Ill the first book of the
.1Encid.
9. The battle of Saratog·a.
10. The sto ry of Reg-ulus.
11. King Philip 's war.
12. The migTation of an Intlian tribe.
D . Complete the fin:.il form of the theme, section 13.

I ••,~•

•,.

DIVIDING SUBJECTS INTO PARAGRAPHS.

CHAPTER IV.
J l]\TJI)J!\'(; SUBJECTS r;-.;T o

j',\R;\ ClC\PllS.

15. Natural Divisions of a Subject.-In cons ideri ng th e
subject of castings, when I came to the seco nd form
I fo und my ideas sorting thcrnsch·es int o bundles .
F irst came the situat ion of the" plant," or shops; next
a description of the buildin~·s and the yard; the n, the
making of the wooden mol<ls, etc . This di,·ision was
chang·ed in my next dra ft hy combinini.:- the situation
and the cl e~c ripti o n of the place into one bundle, which
I called the introduction . Although neither in the
third nor in the fourth form haYc I shO\\·n these divisions in the page, that there is a change of subject a t
different points can easily be seen. The tirst group of
ideas, for example, is introduce d by the sentence,
"Some months ago I was de layed for seve r al hours a t
a r::iilroacl junction" (b1·i cAy . the scene); the seco nd,
by the sentence, "The first strp in ma ki ng a casting is
the manufacture of the w oode n plan or molds"
(briefly, th e molds); the third ." The molds arc taken
to the fillini.; room, where a "·orkman fills them with a
mixture of black sand an<l water " (briefly, filling th e
molds), etc. These sentence s beg in new divisions in
the thought.
As soon as "·e h:i,·e a subject in mind, the id e a s
related to it will begin to arrange themselves in
groups. For instance, if \ \'C take the topic, " Functions
of Go\'ernmcnt." certain n:1tural di,·isions sui,:·~cs t
themsch·es :it once : first, the function of making

47

laws; second, the function o f executing th e laws; and,
third, the function o f interpreting the laws :incl settling
disputes according to the laws. \\'hatever may be s:iid
on this topic can be groupcc1 under one of these three
divisions: the leRisl:tti\'c function; the administratin:
function; the judicial fonction. Of course, few subjects divide themsch·cs as e::tsily and naturally as this;
frequently the best di,·i sions arc discovered only after
some experiment, and ::t topic is uften c::tpablc of sen:ral
different schemes of division. Some final di\·ision of
a topic into its min or groups, hu\\"C\'er, should be macle
before the last draft is attempted.
Some tenta ti ve
scheme should be kep t in mind after the preliminary
work of making notes. Unless the writer h:is an
exceptionally logical and o rderly mim1, it will be
impossible for him to find the proper places for c!i,·ision
aft er he has finished his composition.
If the writer has found the best scheme fo r di\·ision - if he has foun d the natural units in his subject,
and has thus arranged his ideas in distinct groups - it
will be easy to discover his plan, whether he indicat e s
the changes of thought o n the page or not. The ful lowing passage . for example, ca n be di,·ided into its
fiv e integral pal"ts as we read:
Many indi,·iduals of exi s ting or future historic ce lebrity in
th e Netherlands , whose names "n" so familiar to the student <•f
the e poch, seeme,J to k t,·e been groupe(l, as if by premeditated
d esig n, upon this imposing platform, where the curta in was to
fall fore\·er upon the mightiest emp e ror since Charlernag11e, a1Hl
where the o pening s cene of the lo11g and tre mendou s tragedy
of Philip's reign was to be simultaneously enacted. Th.ere was
the Bishop of Arras, the sere ne a1Hl smili ng priest whose subtle
influen ce over the destinies o f so m:-tny individuals th en present ,
:.11H 1 0\·er th e fortunes of th e \\'hok l:tnd, was ti> !Jc so cxtensi ,·e
and so deadly. Th ere wa s t!1:1l lio\\'er •>f Flemish c·hi,·:ilry
already distinguished for his bra,·ery in many fields, uut nut

48

J

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1. j: ;

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1,. :
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1

1

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I

DI\' ff>IK G SUBJECTS IJ\TO l'c\ RAG RAPHS.

having yet w on those two remarkab le \·i cto ries whi c h we re soo n
to ma ke the name of E g mont lik e the suund of a trumpet
thro u ghout the wh ole cou ;1 t1·y. Tile Count of ll o n1, t oo , with
b o ld, sullca fa ce , and fan -s haped beard - a l>r;l\·c, honest, discontented, qtt:\!Tebo111c, unpupu l:n 111:111. \\'h ile in imm ed iate
attenda n ce u pon the empe ru r was t he immo r ta l l'rince of Orange.
Such w ere a few only of the most prom inent in that gay throng,
who se fortun e s, in part, it will be o ur humble duty t o narrate;
how m any of the m passing through all this glitter to a dark ant\
mysterious d oom 1 - some to perish 011 pt!blic s c affo ld s , so me
by lnidni ght a~sas~inatiun; otl1e r~ , n1o re fortunate, to fal l on
the battle -field - nearly a ll , s"oner or l:ttcr , t o !Jc laid in bl o ody
gra\·es ! All the l' <Jtlljl:tll)' present had r ise n to their feet a s the
e mp eror entered. Hy his co mm ;tIHl, all i111m ed iatel y afterwards
resumell th•ci r plac·cs . 'l' h c benches at eit h er end of the p l:i tform \\'ere a cc o r din~ly fille d \\·ith the royal aud p rincely personages i11"itcll, \\'ith the Fle ece K nights, \\'earing the i ns ig nia of
th eir order, w ith the membe rs of the three g r e at euuncib, and
with the gO\·ernors. The Empero1-, the King , a nd the Queen of
Hun ga ry \\' ere left con spicuous in the cente r of the scene. 1\s
the whole object of the ec:·cmony "·as to p resent an impress i\'e
cx!iibition , it is \\'Orth ou r 'd1il c to examine minutel y tlle appea r an ce o f the t\\'o principal ck:tractc: :·s . Charles th e Fifth was
then fifty - fi,·e yea rs ant! eight months old; but he \\·as alreacly
decrep it wi t h prc•niature old a~e. l l e \\·a s of abou t the rnidclle
height, a nd h ad 11een a thlctic an <l well -p r•1portiuned . B road in
the s hou lde r s, tleep in t he c h est. th in in the flank, n :ry 1Jlt1 sc ular

the dnch y and co unty, wa s heavy and hangin g ; the lower jaw
protntdin g so far be yo ncl the upper ll1at it was impu ss iiJi e for
him to brin g togethe r t he fe w fr ag ments of t eet h which still

in the anns a11fl k· g-~ . lie had l n'l.'ll ahk·

L11

1n:dvli li i111s1.:lf \\·i1l1 :\ 11

c:ompetiturs in t~1 e tu11rncy and the ri111.;, :rnd t<> \·anquish th e
llllll \Yith h is own h:tnd in the fa,·n1·ite natiun:tl amu se m e n t o f
Spai n. Th ese p e rso n a l a<h·:inta~·.: s \\·ere n o w dc·p:u te <l. Crippled in han ds , knees, and le.t;s , he supp •; rteJ hilll sc-lf " ·i th dilli c ul ty upon a c r utch, w ilh the aid o( an attenda n t' s siiu u lde r.
l n face he ha<l always been extreme ly 11gh-, ::rn<l time had n"t
improve<] his physi og nomy. H is hair, nm·e o f a light co lor,
w as now w hite \\'i th age , c lose -clippe <l and bri s tlin g ; his bearcl
was g ray , co::irse, and shaggy. His forehead \\'a s spacious and
comma ndi ng : the eye was da rk- blue, wi t h an express ion both
majest ic a n<l li euignant . His n ose was aquiline but c roo ked.
Th e lo \\'er par t of hi s face \\·as bm•n1s f.1 r its deformity. The
u1H1cr lip, a Buq~·undia n in heri tauec, a s faithfully tran s mitt.:d as

reniained, ur tu ~peak a wliolc sentence in an inte!lig·ilJ]e \' Ciice .

S o much fm- the fathc·r. T lw son, l'hi lip th e ScToncl, wa s a
small, meagre rnan, much IJe\n w the midclle h e igh t , with thin
legs , a narrow chest , and the sh r inkin g , tim id air o f ;in ha b it u a l
inval id.- !IIuTLE\' : Th e Rise of the /)11/ch R c·public. (Condensed . )

16. Paragraphs.- Th ese divisions of the t opic arc
commonly m ade pbi n to the eye by a mechanic:d
devi ce. The first line of eve ry d ivision is indented
(placed in fr o m the margin) about a quar te r of an
inch in a printed pa ge, usually a long-er space m
manusc r ipt. The group of sentence s thus indicated
by inde ntati o n is called a paragraph . Paragraph s , it
must be remcrn berecl , are not breaks in the pag:e made
arbitrarily hy rhc prin te r to r ciicn: the eye in rc:Hiin;..:.
Th ey represent to the r cat1c r the di \· i~i, 111:' t h :tl t ii c
author \\'ishe s to make in his suhjcct, and thus thev an.:
extremely useful, both t o the reader and to the '"~itci- .
Paragraph d i,-is io ns should be m a de plainly. .At
first t he stu dL0 11t \\·uu ld dll ll' eli to set the par:tgr:t;lh
mark (~ 1 ) :1;..:·:tinst the opt·11ing· scntt·nce of n·cn- di\·isi o n th:tt h e intends tu ni:1kL'.. .\l:iny c:trLOkss wri ters
indent. a ll C\\' sentence \\·h cnc Ycr it hq;·ins :t lin e, allll
also leave a hl:ink space at the righ t of th e page wh e n ever a senten ce C!l(b , th11s , This h :-ibit keeps th e re ad e r in d oubt as tu ,,·here the
wrilL'. r 111tcmis tu m:1kc his diY is1 0 ns, :tnd abu l1rc: ti-::>
the symm et ry of the p:-i~·e. J-::eep the manuscript fl u sh
with the margins (o.s in printin)..;'), except \\'hen a para graph is to be made; th en indicate it plainly .
17. Length of Paragraphs.- If th e para g ra ph is deter mined by the di\·i~ion of thnu1~·ht in th e subject. it s
4

··. d

49

CO'.\lPOSIT IO:-< AND RHETORIC.

.. ).

.,
c~ - .

CO!llI'OSITIO'.'l A1':D RHETORIC .

DIVIDING SUBJECTS INTO PA!{AGR:\Pl!S.

length will v:try with th e 11nmbcr of iclcas to he developed in each part. Sometimes it may co11sist of a
sentence, and ag·ain it may coyer several pag-1.:s . There
arc ce rtain facts, ho\\"C\"er, gathered from experience,
which arc helpful in determining the size of paragraphs:
In conversation, \Yhatc \·er is said by one person,
together \Yith the comment of the author on the speech,
and the author's statement of action ("he said,"
"repli ed, " "moved," etc.), is placed in o ne para-

infer, u sually, tb:.it his thong-ht-divisions arc clispruportionate. For cxampk, let the line A B

50

.

:
I

'

I\
l

i

I

gTapli.*
In descriptive aml narrati\"C \Hiting, where the topic
changes frequently, paragTapl1s i11-c usually brief : from
two to ten sentences, or from thirty t one hundred
and fifty words in length.
In essays and aq;um c nts, where the sub-t opi cs arc
c omparati \·ely few , the paragraphs are longer: from
five to twenty sentences, or se\·cnty-five t o three
l1u11dre d won.b .
lf the \\Ti ter finds himself making many paragraphs
of one o r two sho rt sentences only, he m:ty safely
decide that his di\·isio ns of thoug·ht arc too minute are not organic divisi on s. On the other hand, 1f he
finds that h e writes t\\"o o r rnor1.: mannscript pag-es
before ]Jc comes to a tli\·ision of his thought, he may
infer, as a general rule, that he has not c1i,·idccl his s ubject enough, or ll:is too larg-e a subject for s:ttisbctory
treatm ent in a brief theme.
If th e re are manv paragraphs in the fir st part of a
th eme and few at tl~e end, or ~·ice 1•cr.rn, the writer may
"'~ u T i ·: . --· Th t.·rc are certain ('X~cption~ to thi s rul e : when a >:roup of
char :ll'h'r s ~pt·ak at th e sam e ti1ll t'; wh\..'11 th e ~p1,_·1.:d1 of .one c!ia ra1.:tc r . is
Jun>:· :tli•I \'OllLiin..;, tl io u :.:l!t -di\· i-.; i H?l " "f ih_ ~1wn,' ct_1.· . . J-:~:1'.:111;1~· !·1.'.· tl·n"' .~)i;ll;lt
1
au}-· l h•\·1.:I i ,
1 :-·:· \ · i·tl,11r1 ;t: 1J1'f..:l' J .!1 1·: . ••!" lha 1: t\. 1·t.1.' · '' 11L il 1... •.J t • ll~ 11. .L 1... · II
1.;la~:'o.

f

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51

:

A--1-1--1 - 1--: --· 1- --- 1--- 1- - B
represent the subject to be trc:-itccl ; if six divisions arc
made in the fir s t p:trt (x), :-ind three in the last (y),
the topics of x must each have relatively one-luif
the importance of those of y.
Although it is true that some writers of narrati\·c
paragraph single sentences in order to ca11 ~pccial
attention to them, such a practice is not to be imitated,
for the paragraph device is not intended for emphasis.
Do not p:.1ra g raph CYcry import::11L stall:ment, as is the
custom in se nsational juurn:tiisni.
18. Paragraph Topics.- In the example used in section 15 of this chapter the diYisions of thou;J1t were
made clear by sentences which contained the sulijcct
of the paragraph.
Such introductory sLttemcnts,
usually c:i.llccl "topic-sentences." arc of grc:1t cOiWen ience, both to the rc:H1cr :rncl to the writer; they sh ow
the former the topic to he treated, and they help tu hCL'Jl
the latter strictly to his thut1ght. T<_•pics arc nut alw:tys
announced in the first sent e nce; s'1ml:tirncs they appc:tr
after (Jne or mor1.: preliminary statements or al th e l"lld
of the paragTaph . l\[orco,·er , not every para graph is
supplied with a clear topic-scntc;icc; frcqncntl y, in narrative and clcscriptiYc writin;.;-, the tupic is g·:tthcrcd
from all the senten ces, and not stated as a \\"hok in
any one. The use of the topic-sentence may be seen
in these paragraphs from Bryce.*
•~- U TE. - At this point the stud e nt shoukl C'X:'lmint: such books as Burke's
:::,pel'rh on ( "1111 oi /a//n11, '.\Jneaulay's F s.\1ty "" .·ldd /,1> ,,, \\.t·hster's Jr 11 ,tl,·r / f,,:!
Dnttr'ons, ot s Wt'll a s H text-hook in h is tory. the 1l aily p;q1er, a11d ;:1 well - writ kn
lllU.b:'al.ill t: •trli\:i<-, !111!:-,,l·11\·~·1 !ht•!1•J1i.--...,,'tl! 1__·111 ·1·-. •• I !':11;t;..:r;1pl1-.. ·,\·!wn !!It'; a,~·
.stated , and tu .o,upply lh..:111 where tliey rnay lit._· inltrn_•,_I.

;

.-:

-r·<

52

I

,I
j;

:1

CO~IPOSITION

DIVIDii':G SUBJECTS IJ':TO l'ARACk.\l'H S.

AND RHETORIC.

The National Lcgislnture of the United St:ttcs, called Con gress, consists of t\\"O bodies, sufficiently Llissimibr in co mposition, po\\"crs, and characte r to require a separate description.
Their n:specti,·e fu n cl inns lle::ir some rescm hlance t11 th11se of the
two !louses c•f the En1'1i sh l'arlialllcnt, which had \1d<nc 1787
suggestecl the crcali•"' of a d·.rnlilc-chambcred lc gi, \ature in all
hut three o[ the orig-inal thi rtee n States of th e Cunkdcration.
\"ct th e differe n ces !Jet \\·ce n the- Sen::itc and the British ] \.,u se uf
L on\,;, and in a kss de g ree bc t\,·ccn the Hou se of Rcprcse nlat iYes and th e l\ritish I lonsc o ( Comm ons, arc so consiclcrall lc
th:tt the En:..;li s h reade r mu st he cautioned against :ipplying his
Engiish stant1anls to the examinatio n of the 1\ nwri<.:an system .
The Senate consists of t,,.o persons from ea c h Stale, who
must he inh abitants of that State, ancl at least thirty yea rs of
age. They arc elcl·tcd !1y the Legislature of tlH.: ir ~t alc fur six
years, and are re\.'ligihlc . One-third rc lire e\·ery t,,.,, years, so
that the \\·hole body is ren e we d in a periocl of six years, the ol<l
members being thus at any gi,·en m oment t\\"il'e as numerous
as the new members elected within the bst t\\"o Yl':trs. :\ s there
are now thirty-ei;.;ht Statcs. the number of Senators, .. rig in ally
t\\"enty-six, is 1ww sc,·cnty -si x . This great and unforeseen
augmentation must be lio rne in mind when cnnsiderin g the
purposes fo r \\"hich the Senate was c reated. for srn11c <,f ,,·hich a
small body is litter than a lar~e one. /\s there n·main only
eight Tc·1Titories which c:tn be formed into Sta tc·s, th e number
of Senato rs \\"ill nut ( unl ess , indeed, exi sting Stat es arc divi1kd,
01· more than 11nc State created out of some ,,r th e Territ o ries)
ri se hcy(lnd ninety - two.

' l'his ls. 0f cnu1·st-. n11n: li

IH·lo\\'

the

present nomina l streng-l h .,f the English I ! .. u se of L o rd s (:t!J<> ut
560), an<l helo\Y th :it of the f'rench Scn ate (3U\J), and the l'rus·
sian 1-len-enhaus (432) . >:o Scnatq 1- can h"lcl any nfli,·e under
the United State s. The \" ice · l'rcsiclcn t of the l'nion is 1-x-officio
l'resillent of t he Scnate. l>ut h:is no ,-olc, exc<'pt a casting vote
wh e n the numbers arc t·qua ll y di,·icled.
Failing him (if. f<lr
in stance, he Llics, or f:dls sick, or sucLe .: ds to the prc:--.ich:ncy ) ,
the Senate cho••Sl'S une nf it:-- num ber to be president fro l <lll/'i>rr.
ll is autho r ity in questions of order is n : ry limit er\ , the dec ision of su c h qttcsti.ins l>cing held tn h elong to th e Scn :tt c it>'elf.
The functi <•!Is of the ~.;en:1ti: fall into three c·lasses - lcgi sbtivL', exccuti\T, and j 11dit:ial. lh lcgi,;lati,·e function is t11 pass ,
along with th e !Jo ust ,,f R c prescntati,·es, liilb whi c h become
1

5.\

Acts of Congress on the assent of the President, or e\·c 11 w ithou;
his consent, if p:issc<l a second time IJy a two·thircls maj .. ril\" ., f
each I l ouse , afte r he has rctnrnc<l them f.,r reen11si1lcratini1.
Its exccuti\·e functions arc: - (a) To approve (•r di sappr.. ,·c tlic
Presiclcnt's non1inati ons of Fed e ral oOiccrs, in cluding- judg-e~.
m11:1st_e rs (If state , and am!Jassadors. (b) To appro,-c, JJ\· ,1

mai o nty of two-thirds of th ose prese nt, of treaties ma<lc !J,· tite
J>resi<lcnt-' i. c. if lc,;s than t\\"o-t hi r<ls appr(>\·c, the treat\." faib
to the g"l"f>un<l. Its judicial fu11ctirn1 is to sit as a court r:,r 1h l'
trial of impeachments preferred l>y the I l ouse of Represc nt :ttives.-Tl 1n"CE: /l111criu lll Co1111J1r>111C'ca l/h.

The three topics in this pass:q:;e may be stated brief1y
by three titles: 1. The National Legislature, or Congress. 2. The Senate - Its Compositio n. 3. The Senate - Its Functions .

19. Development of Thought from the Topic of the Paragraph.- A little analysis will show h ow Mr. Brv ce clrew
o ut the ideas contained in the top ic-s e nte nce s." In the
first parag-raph, as he is writing- for Englishmen, he
compares the Ameri..:an Con;,:Tess ,,·ith the En),!"lisii i':u·liament. His first idea is that th ey are alike in some
respects; his second , that they arc more unlike. J Ll\" ing introduced his general subject and made it clear in
part by a compar is on to the well -k nown English svstem, h e turns to the fir s t di,·isi11n, the Sen:ttc. \\-Ji :tt
is it? is tile questiun tu l>e answered. S e ntences, •ill',
two, aml three descr ibe the make-up of the Se nate i:i
general ; sentence four, th e actual numbers. S entence
five is a digression to draw attc:1tio n to the preceding·
se ntence s. Number six cont inu es the thought of the
first three sentences. The size of the Senate is tl1c11
made plainer by comparison with th e same b<>dy in
Eng-land, France, and Gcrtn;1ny. The last four se n·
tence s describe \Try briefl y the regulation of the p< )\\·ers of the Senate by the Cons t ituti o n. The th ird para graph is even more clearly developed than the others

,;:·.-,

54

CO:ll POS!TIO:\ A:l\D RHF.TOR IC.

hy the use o( three sub-t o pics mcnti o ner1 in the first sentence . This m et hod uf clc ,·cloping th<.; to pic cf a para-

graph is, ronghly, to am\\'cr the questio n, \\·hat is it?
Let us now take a p:lrag-ra ph-top ic a nd develop it
in the s:une manner . If, for example, we take the
subject, "roads," "·ith the ti tle," IIow to ~fake Good
]{oads," we may find four divisions of the matter, or
four para~raphs: (I) ~oocl Y S. lxtcl roads; ( 2 ) the
g·ooll country roa I; (.1) the rnacacbmizecl roacl; (4)
the asph:-tlt roaLl and the brick road . The fo urth division is m ade to include two topics, because both are
less important th:-tn the other kinds of roacls. Under
the first division ,,.e :-tsk, What are goocl roads? They
:-trc, (:-t) Jwnl (tlc,· eloped by gi\'ing the reasons) ; (b)
wcli graded (reasons ,,·hy); (c) n o t dusty (reasons
why). \\That arc poor r oads ? The ans w e r may be
made in either one sentence or more. One other idea
should be tre;1t cLl here: Is the same kind of road
g-ond unclc r ;111 conditions? Finally, as ce rtain roads
answer th e r equisites of g-ootl roads, it will be well to
describe them in detail. UnLlcr divisions two and three ,
the same process may be continuctl. In each case th e
first sent e nce ,,·ill i,:i,·c an idea of what is to follow;
thus, th e first t o pic-sentence will be : " Roads arc l!OOd
o r bad according as th e y are m:lde \\'ith good o r bad
material , and are m ack stupitlly o r intelligently." The
second topic-sentence will be : " A g-ood country road
may be constructed cheaply from materials near at
hand, and, if properly repaired, will answer for li ght
traffic as we ll as the expen sive city boulevard." The
third topic-sentence is : "The construction of the m ac:ttbmizeu road is , as a rule, on this plan," etc.
20. Development of Topics by Illustration.- Whcn the
topic is a general or abstract idea, the best method

D I\' IIJT:'>G Sl'll.!F C TS l:'>TO p ,\R.-\CRAl'I! S .

of treating- it is to :ins,,·cr th e questio n, \\.li:tt i:-- it lil-:c)
or, \.Vhat is a g-oocl example of it? l 11 scL't i()n 18,
above, w e saw ho\\' Mr . Bryce expbin c cl to Eng- lishmen the general idea of the J\m c ri ca n Co n g-rcss by
comparing it with the Eng-li sh l'::trliam cnt. The s:tm~
writer illu strates the spirit o f fraternit y a111 0 11;.; ,\mcricans hy gi ,•ing· an example:
\Vealth is g-e nera ll y felt to he a tn1st. arnl e xc·ll 1si\·eness con ·
demnecl not merely as i11dic[1ti\'c nf selfishness , lrnl a s a sn rt ,, f
offense against the pn l>li c. 1\·o 0111', for i11 s /1111 0', lhi11ks of .<hlll·
ti11K 11p his f'/ ,·,1s 11r,"gr,11111ds ; hi· sddo111 c; ·1·11 {J 11 i/ds a ~i'a l!
around //i,·111, h11! p11!s 11p /0 71• raili11,1;"S, sv Iha! lh1· sii:/1! of his
trees and sli r:il>s is 01j11_1 n l by /Hr ss,·rs -hy.

Robert Louis Stc\·cnso n explains in the same
general idea :

\\' :ty

a

The difference he t\\'cen En;;bncl and Ameri ca to a \\' orkin,.;·
man \\':ts thus most humanly pnt to me hy a fellow -passe n ger:
''In i \m e ril'a,'' said h e , ''yv11 gd fir·s a11d p11ddi11gs .'''

A long-e r instance of this method of dcvcl"ping- an
idea is gi,·en in the follo\\'ing pass:1g-e :
In onlcr 10 carry on produ c tion cont inuousl y, in these daY ~ .
a n1a:1 111u st have th e u se o f sonic \\'ealth whii<.: he is t.:nga g-c d . l n
w o rking. if ht' is rnak in g- sere ,,·:-; , h e c~11111ot Jive nn thcn1 : h t·

must h :t \'C fn n d 1111t il the scre\\'s :1re made aiHl exchange d f.,r
other th 111gs. If , a s soon as he IJccamc hu 11gry , he h ad tu stop
\\'o rk, t:1k c his dog and gn n , and hnnt fo r s0 mc g-amc. it \\" ou lrl
gre atly int e rfere with steady \\'Ork. :,io , also , other \\'ealth n H 1"l
be gi,·c:i h im to nse \\'hile he is a t work- fo r i11 s ta11cc, tu., ls .
maehincr>" an<i hnildings. Th is part nf wealth \\'hi ch is dn·.,1<- d
to produ~·i ng other \\'enlth by snpporting- the laborer and pr•i v1drng- him t o ois. is called c ap it al.- L.-\ l'l. 11!.t '.';": Eln11oils of
Pv!itiurl / :'m110111y. (Adapted.)

In this last case there arc t ,,.o g·encr:-tl statem e nt s one opening- th e parag-r:iph, and one c losin g· it. The
illustration usuall y fullo\\'s the g-encral statement.

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DI\'[l)!C\G Sl' IlJECTS !:"TO l'c\R .\(;H.-\PIJ S.

21. Development of Narrative Topics. -· l n te lling a
story, the paragraph s arc not often introduced by a
topic-sentence, but one can usually be supplied. The
method of composition, also, differs fr o m that follovved
in the preceding section. Instead of answering the
-:1 ucstion, \Vh at is it? the writer of the narrative
ans\\'crs the question, \Vhat happens next? One sentence follows anoth er, because what it relates happened
<1!tcr the event of the preceding sentence, or because it
shows the result of a previous action. Notice, for
example, the order of events in these paragraphs:

is a digTcssiun , is intended to mak e the narr:tti \"C 111 orc:
important. ·with these exceptions, the event s arc
recorded continuou sly as they took place, and the
reader is carried from the time the first shot strnck
Nelson's ship to the close of the firing from her enemy.
In like manner we can ck\'(: lop a naJTati \'C p:traj,"'."raph
on such a subject as, "A boat race ." The first topi c
will be the start. The first sentence will contain, perhaps, the position of the boats; the second sentence,
the first signal; the third, forming to cross the line;
the fourth, an accident ancl de lay; the fifth, final sign al ;
the sixth, crossing the line; the seventh, p ositions
taken by the boats . Unless it is necessary to return to
a previous p oint of lime for the sake of ackling new
information, the arrangement of the sentences in n:1rrativc fullO\\'S the order in time of the c\·ents.

1. 1\. few minutes after\\'ards a shot struck the fore-brace bits
on the quarter-deck , and p assed between l\clson and Hardy, a
splinter from the bit tearing- off I-lardy's buckle, and bruising
his foot. 2. Both stopped, and looked anx io usly at each other:
each supposed the olh<.:r to be wounded.
3. Nelson then
smilecl , and said: "This is too warm work, Hanly, to last
long."
4 . The Fict01y h a<l not ye t returned a single gun; fifty o f
he1· men had been hy this time killed or wou1Hled, and her
main-top-mast, with all her studd ing-sail s and their booms shot
away. 5. Nelson <leelarecl , that, in all his IJa ttles , he had seen
nothing- \\'hi c h surpassed the cool courag-e of his crew o n this
occasion. 6. At fou r m inutes after twcl\'e, s he opened h e r fire
from b oth sides of he r deck. 7. lt \\' as not poss ible to break
the enemy's line with o ut run ning- on IJoa rd one of their ships:
Hardy inform ed him of this. "nd askctl him which he wo uld
prefer. 8. Nelson rep lied: "Take your choi ce, !lardy. it d ocs
no t signify much." The master was ordered t11 put th<.: helm to
port, and th<.: l'i<lury rnn un 1,.,anl the Nt·dv11b/111>/1·, just as her
tilkr- ropes were shot a\\'a)'. 9. Th<.: Fre n c h ship r ccei\'ed her
with a broadside; th e n in stantly let dnwn her lo \\'cr-deck ports ,
for fear of being IJnarde<l throug-h th e m, an<\ n e\'cr afterwards
fired a great gun c\11ring the action.-Su11T1IEV: Life of J\'elson.

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CO:lll'OSITlOC' AND RH ETO !UC.

Jn this accollnt of a sea fight, a number of distinct
events arc related in s\\cccssio11. Sentence fo ur, however, sums up pre\'i o us events, and sentence five, which

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22. Development of Descriptive Topics.- Herc a ga in \\' C
may o r may not ha,-c the to pic statecl in the opcni11;.;
sentences. In developing this kind of topic there :11"l',
in gene ral, t\\"O methods, either one of vvhich we mav
use. \Ve may start \\'ith the whole of the object \\'C
have in mind, and c.li\·ide it into parts, or \\"C ma y tlcal
with the parts first, concluding· with a general statement.
ln this desniption (Jf Itali a n rob1Jc rs Ir ving u ses a
topic-sent ence and fol lows the first plan :
1. Th e Italian rubbers arc a desperate class of men. th at
have almost formeL1 them~eh·es into an order of soci e ty. 2. They
wear a kind o f uniform, or rather costume, which openly designates their profes~;ion. 3 . This is prol;ab ly done to dimin i:;l1
its skulking, lawless character, ancl to gi\·e it somethinR of a military air in the eyes of the C•>1u111on people; or, per)1aps, lo catch
by outward show and fin e ry the fancies <>f the young- mcn of the
villages, and thus to gain 1·<.:cruits . 4 . Th e ir dresses arc often
,·cry ri ch ant! p icturesque. S. Th<.:y \\"Ca r jackets and l.>rce c hes
of bright co lo rs, sometimes g ayly e mbroidered; their breasts are

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CO:\ f PO SITI00: A:-.:U HllETO lU C .

DIVIDI KG SUBJECTS n:To l':\R.\GRAPHS.

cove red with m ella ls antl relics: t he ir hats arc i>marl ·h rimmed,
with conical crowns , decorated with feathers , o r variously-co lo red
ri ba nd s ; th e ir hair is someti mes gathered in sil k nets : they wea r
a kind of sanclal o f cloth or leat her, l.Jountl rouncl the legs with
th 011gs , a n d extreme ly ft exi bl~ . to e na b le th e m to sc ramble with
case and celer ity among the m o lln tain prec ipices : a broad belt
of cloth, or a s::ish of si lk ne t . is stuck full of pist.1ls and stilettos;
a ca r b ill e is slung at the hack; while abollt them is generally
thrown, in a ne g ligent manner, a great ding")' mantle, whi ch
serves as a protection in storm s , o r a b e 1l in th ei r bivouacs
among the m ount:1i ns .- l R\·t~G: Tal1·s of a Tra ;·,,!/t'r.

T here are , of course, man y oth e r ways th an those
de scribed in sections 18-22 , by which to pic-ideas may he
expanded, and in most cases m ore than o ne method is
used in the same paragraph. Practice with these four
methods , h o wev er, will train th e m ind to habits o f anal ysis . In time, the writer \\·ill co m e t o a nal yze t he topic
instinctively, and u se the method of devel opmen t best
suited, without calling it by any n:ime.

The first se ntence states th e topic, the Itakm robbers,
and al so describes in gene ral the kind of m en they are.
The second sentence describes their dress in g eneral.
The third sente nce (not descripti \· c ) accounts for th e
preceding st:itc ment. The fourth sentence aLlds a little
to the scc011tl one. Sentence fiyc - an nnu s uall y lo ng
one - co \·crs the chief parts of the rob be rs' cos tume s.
The order of dc\·clopmcnt in this description is fro m
the gen e ral to the pa rticular - first, the ki nd of m e n;
next, the dress; last, the parts of the dress . If we
ex:irninc the last sentence, we find that it is m ade up
of a num ber of little d cscriptiYc sentences , c:ich one
dc:iling with one piece of the cost um e. The o rde r he re,
again, is from the g-c ncral to th e pa rti cular - first, the
large , prominent pieces of clot h ing ; next. th e less
important parts (hats, feathers , ri b:imb, hair, e tc. ) ;
last , their arms, and the mantles they carry.

A. State what n atnral di visions may be fo und in
four of the follo\\·ing subj ects. The themes, wh e n
completed, sh ould each t ake about three pages:
1. Perseus and Andromeda.
2. The Picture of Eng-land in Kingsley 's 11 i·s f1c•a rd /lo .
3. A local char:ictcr.
4. The history of a raintlrop .
5. The histor;_,. of a snowti:.tke.
6. An English public school.
7. Description of a Roman book .
.
8 . Descript ion o f a theater in Shakspere's time.
9 . The s ource s of the plot in T !te Jlferdia11t of /. i n ire.
10 . Relay races .
11. A ride on a locomo t ive .
12 . \ Vhat Charlc m ag- nc did fo r education .
13. The go ve rn m en t of Ch icago ( or any other city) .
14. The proces s of electroplating.
15. The process of makin~ a photograph.
.
16. Salt : its sources, and h o w it is ren dered snitable
for use.
17. S ir Humph rey Davy ' s safe t y lamp .
18. E xpert accountini; .
19 . Mo\vgli and his fr iends, in T!tc J1111g!t•-/Joo/.:.
20. The story of Dr. Manettc , in ,..J Ta it: of T<co Citits .
2 1. An account of a night in the woods .
22. How th e President of the United States is elected.
23 . The Legion of Honor.

23. Summary of Chapter. - The steps to he tak e n,
then, in treating any su bject , arc these: 1. To discover
the proper d ivisions and indicate them by th e parag rn phing. 2 . To determine the paragrtph top ics; o r ,
in case th ey cannot be set fort h fu ll y , to h ave in mind
wh at the topics re all y are. 3. To find th e b es t m eans
to draw o ut all th e iucas co ntained in the t opics.

Exercise IV.

60

COMPOSITION A N D R HETOHIC.

24 . The d ead-letter office.
25 . Should picture galleries and m u seums he open
on Su nday ?
26. Th e g reat fi re of L ond o n in 1666.
27. J oan of Arc-a short account o f her li fe .

B . Ha,·e prope r cli,· isi on s of th e thou g ht b ee n m ade
in th e following- themes?
l'RI :-;C E

If not, correc t th e m .
l'EH C I\' ..\l..

l. There \\'as once upon :l time a prin ce nam ed Perc ival. He
hall e\·crything h e co11ld \1·ish fnr. The cas tle in whi c h he lived
was octag-o nal. J\11 the rooms were exactly alik e , with a wi n dow
in the cen te r of th e wall an d panels on ea c h side. Th ere was a
tab le in the m id d le of the mom w ith a fl owe r on it. There was
also a bi rd in a cage. On o ne s ide there was a co mfo rtable
lon n ge; o n th e oth e r. a l)l)okcase w ith many books in it. T he
prince ne Ye r did an yth ing ex cept :lmuse him self ; m os t o f the
time he sat antl r cacl. Sometimes he :lsked the ma id \\·h y s he
cl id n u t feed the bird. o r \\·atcr the plant, antl the m a id a lw a ys
repl ie d that t he h ird antl th e plant were his, l• l rl <> " ·ith ns he
liked. J\t la st h e noti tTd tli al th e \\·a lls seemetl to he ge tting
smal le r , a;Hl also the \\·i n<l o w . Il e dicl nnt pay att e nt io n to t h is
at first, b ut aftc•1· a while th e wi ndo w got so sm ;ill lliat it ditl uot
let in enou;:;h air ancl su nshi ne to keep a p e rso n he allhy, and t he
prin ce began to fee l si c k, an cl cl id not cat th e footl bro ug ht in tu
him. One tlay he th ought he would li ke to h e:l r the bird sing;
so he go t up from t he lo u nge and gaYC the hi r d a few cn1mbs,
a n ti ask ed it to sing fo r h im . The bircl sang a few n otes , an d
the n the pl'i11ce we n t hack to the lounge. Il e looked at the wintlow, a n d thoug ht it had got to be a little laq.;c r. En~ 1·y clay n o w
he g:l \'e the lJinl some food , and it s:rng :l littl e m ore, a nd he
wateretl th e plant , ancl it !<Joked bri g hte r. The room kept
grow in g laq.;e r , an cl at last it was a s bi g as C\'l~ r . The prin ce
learn er] the lesso n and a fter that w:l s a h:lppier little boy.
LOllE'CCR !:-; .

2. 11 eu ry t he First of (; c rmany, \,·110 was k nown to his sn 'Jjects as the" l ~ <•wler," went to ,\ntwcrp l">r t he p11rpose o f get ·
ting tro ops tn a icl him in cn1~hing the re belli o n w h ic h was
threaten ing the k i1, gdnm.

D I VI D I ?\G SUBJECTS Ii\TO 1'.-\ l{ACJ,:.\ J'IIS.

Upon hi s arr i\·al at Braban t , :l small town out s ide of Antwerp ,
he fo uucl it i n a s ta te of anarchy.
Elsa, wh o was the da ughte r of the lat e duke, wa s ..:k1rged ])\·
Telramu nd , the one \\·h o claimed the duked o m, with k ill in;.; her
brothe r, \\·ho h:-u1 n1y~teriou~ly di~appc•trcd.

It W:lS ann o unced to h e r that sh e mi;..:ht choose a knight t t•
fi g ht in her cause with T el ramu1Hl, the accuse r .
She describes the kni g ht, whom s he ha s seen in a dream, and
she d eci des to wai t fo r him lo appear .
Upon th e day appointed th e cvnrt assembled o n tiK' bc,nhs of
a r ive r near Antwerp.
On the thirrl blast of th e h11 .c;lc a knight w:ls seen apprn:lch ·
i ng, in a boat clr:.t \\'ll b y a s wan.
Befo re the batt le , L ol1engr in , th e k nigh t wh o comes lo 1; 1,11t
in Elsa's behal f, betroths himself to Elsa, with the underst andin g that sh e wili ne\·er q uestio n him a s to his race or name.
This El s:l fait hfully promi ses .
T elrn munrl was clefeatecl, hut nnt kille<l, l•y !_,,J1en;;Tin.
\ \' he n Ortrud hears o f the hetrot ha l , she grn.:s to E lsa and

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adv ises h e r not to marry L nl1eng-rin, as it is poss ible tilat h e i...,

not her eq11al.
Elsa docs not heed O rlrud , s a y ing- that ~>h e knew him t" h<·
fai thful and hro"t 1·e .
O n the ni g ht of their \l'cdtling , a( lt.: r Elsa has been q ne s ti n nin)o.'.
L o heng rin as to his r:l ce and n:lme , T e lra m und, at·c.,nipani cd
uy four kni g h ts, ru shes into the :lpartme n ts o f Loheng-rin and
E lsa , with the inte ntion of takin g the life o f L o hengr in .
Ilut thi s gallant knight is too qu ick for Telramund, a ntl one
blow of h is s word kill s th e h us band of Orlrnd.
Lohengrin th e n p laces Elsa in charge o f h e r ladi e~. :ind
o nl e rs her taken to the king, s:tying he \\·ill follow. li e llw:1
ann o unces to t he m that h e is th e su n of Kin g Parsi fal o[ t he
H o ly (~rail.
He is no w compelled to go back tu his father's cuurt .
Tl1e Sl\.,l!l again appe ars , drawing t he li oat , into whi C'h
L ol ien gr in jn mps.
As it moves off s l<iwly . Ortrud tells th e 111
tlrnt the swan is the Jo ng- lost brother o f Elsa, whom ~ li e her S!.!lf ha s bewit c hecl into this f11 r m.
L o lwngri n tl i ~enc hants the sw:in :ind moves o ff ~o r ro w fully ,
le avi ng E lsa to llie in her brot her 's ar m s .

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CO~lPOS!TlO:\

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TllE BATTLE OF 11.-\STI:\"GS.

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A:\D RHE TORIC.

3. It was in the middle of the eleventh century , after William
of Normandy 11a cl conquered France, that the battle of Hastings was fought. ln the yea r 1051 William hall l.leen at the
English court an(] obtained from the k ing the promise o f succession to the throne of England after the king's death-for
Godwine, the king's son, was in exile . Godwine returned, however , when his father died, only to d ie in a shor t time. The
rule the n passed to his son Harold. This so enraged William,
to whom Harold had promised his sup port, that he clc•ciclcd to
enforce h is c la im by arms. Although he llid n o t claim the
th rone, he did cla im the ri ght of presenting him self before the
peop le for e lection. He decided to revenge himself upon Harold,
and to this encl he co llected an army and st :t rte rl fnr England .
Harold was at this t ime in the north of England, checking an
invasio n of his brother Tost ig . \ Villiam, as soon as he had
landed, cornm<:nced devastating the coast in order to bring
I Iarold south and force him lo an engagement. The plan succeeded , and Harold advance<] as far south as the hill called
S en lac, near the to wn of Hastin gs . I Je re he entrenched himself.
On the morning of October 1-l, 1066 , \V illiam le d his force>
out in front of Senlac, where th e y facecl the English h os t. Har·
olrl was in a very strong positio n. On the right was a very
laq~e marsh, ancl on the left was his well -armed body- g uard.
Bet ween these w as a large IJody of peasants wh o had responde d
to Harold ' s call to fight the Duke of Norrn:rnd y. Against this
mass \Villiam 's foot solcliers mac.le the first cha rge. They were
repulsed , and th e next sally wa s made by the ho1·sc men. Time
and a gai n the Norman solcli<:rs we re t hrO \\'ll back hy llarold's
men, who were behind a trench and a stockade. But \Vi lliam's
courage and persistence at last won the day. He pretended to
retreat , an<l this drew the En g li sh from behind the stockade.
Then, turnin g suc.ldenly, the Normans faced the pursuers, \\·hile
the mercenary troops from France surrounded them o n e ith e r
side . This wa s about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and at sunset
Harold was ki lled antl the b a t t le was ended. After this vi cto ry
\V illi am the Conqueror proceede d to L ondo n and received the
crown of England.
?\ fY

Pl<l!\.JOl ; ~

TRAl:\'I:\'C I'.':

E~ \. T.ISJt.

4. I st11<licd Engli s h litl'r:1t11rc in Ke 11t11 cky , 111Hler the g-uiil;ui cc of a colkgc gradn:itc . Our class r<:citcd forty minute::.

Dl\'lDI?\G SUBJECTS I:\TO PAl~AGRArus .

63

each clay, and we were s11pposc·tl to spend an hour rea d in ..; outside of schoo l, in addition to the time g-ivcn to our themes a nd
history work.
\Ve st ud ied Brooke's l'ri111er of L' 11glish Lifrra/111-,-, and made
tables of the principai subjects in each <: ha pte r.
In our li s t of IJc,oks that were read were The 11ferr!tau! uf
Ve11ice , A -i11.i: / Jar, Jlids11111mcr /\ 'ii;hl's /Jr.-a111 , As Vi11t !_ 1'1,-,
fl, 1\Uclisun':--; l.::s say 011 .1/illun, J>araJist' /,/)st , lJef4,c's ///.\/i •JT
vf llu: l)la,i;ttc 11·uud:JIU<-k, En 1ersu11 s essays .)~·/(-J\'c · !iuna· a n~l
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4,. /111:·rio111 .\.ri:olar, and .'-;f/as

, 1f11rl.'1'r.

..

Our tli e m e s were (lutlines of these hoo ks and
sketches o f the heroes and heroines.

c h::tr:-i ctcr

C. 'iVl1ere should divisions be made in the followin g
extracts? \\-ii;tl ;m:.: Lhc topic-scnlcnccs?
1. The place o f our retreat \\·a s in a little neighborhood con sisting of farmers, who tilled their own grounds, anrl were equal
strangers t.n opulence anrl poverty. As they had alm os t all tile
conveniences of life within t hemse lves . th ey se ldom vi sitt'd
towns or cities in search of superfluity. Remote from the polite,
th ey still retainer] the prim e val s implicity of manners: and,
frugal by habit, they scarce knew that temperan ce wa s a virt ue .
They wrought wi th chee rful ness on days of hbo ur , but observed
festivals as intervals of idleness and pkasure . They kept uµ
the Christm:-is carol, sent lrnl:-l1>\'e-k1101s o n Vcdentine morn'.:i.r:;.
nte pancakes on Siiro\'ctidc:, showed their v;it on the fi "t u[
April.' aml religiou,;}y c r:1ckcd nuts on i'.!ich ac lmas e\·e. Jki;i;.;
apprised of our approach, the whole nei gh borhood came out
to rneet their n1i:1i~tl'r, dressed in tl1eir finest cl{Jtlles .and p~c­
ceUed lJy a pipe and lab Jr. 1\ feast ab<J was provided fur uu r
1

reception, at which we sat C'hecrfully down; :rn1l what the: con ,·crsation wanted in wit was m:idc up in laughter. Our little
habitation was situated at tl1e foot of a sloping hill, shcltcr<:d
with a be.autiful underwood behind, and a prattling river before;
on one side a meadow , on the other a gTeen. ?lh· iarm c·onsiste d of a buul twenty acres o f excellent la n d, ha\·i;1g gi ve n an
humlred pound for my predecessor's good will. Nothing cou !d
excc·<:ll the neatness o f my little enclos ures, th e e lms and lh"•l)~e­
ro" s appearing with incxpres,.:i!Jle beauty. li ly huusc: con,.:istc:d
,,f hut o:K· slon', and w:1:> cn\·crL'd \\'ilh that c h, which g-ave it an
air of g reat s11u;.;uc·ss ; lhc \l'alls ull the in si d<: \\·ere uic<:l\· willl<:·

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CO~IPO S I TIU'.'\

DIVIDIJ\"G SUBJEC TS ! :\ TO PARA G KA PHS.

i\:'-ID lUIETOR IC .

\\'ashed, and m y daughters t1ntlertook to adorn th em with pictures o f their O\\'n designing . Th o ugh the sa m e room se rved
us fur parl our an<l kitche n, that o n ly mar.le it the wanner.
Bes ides, as it was kept with the u t nwst neatn ess- the di shes,
plates, anLl coppers be ing \\'ell scoured , and all disposed in
bright rows on the shc l\'cs - the eye \\'as a g rcl'ably re lic\'ed ,
and did not \\' ant r ic-hc r furniture. There were th ree o ther
apartments; nnc f<lr 111y \\'ifc and me, a nnth e r for our two .
,la ugh te rs wit hin our O\\' n, an<l the thircl , \\'ith l \\'o heels, for
the rest of the children . '!'he li ttle re public to \\' h ic h l gave
l:t \\'S \\'as regul:tted in the following manner:- By s1m risc \\'e a ll
asse111l ilcd in uur cu111111 on a p:trtmcnt. the fire ll c in ).;' prev io t1s!y
kinclletl by the scn·ant . ,\ ftcr \\' C had sa lt1k<l eac h othe r \\'i t h
prope r ce rc 1no ny-fo r l al\\'~l\'s though t lit to keep up so me
m e cha :iical form s o f g ootl IJrcecl ini"., \\' ith out \\'hich free d o m e ve r
<lt·strnys friendship-\\' e all be nt in gratit1Hle to that Being \\'h o
gan:: u s anothl'r d a y . This d llt y J,eing pcr·fnrm e <l, my son and
I \\'ellt to pu1·su c: ollr usual indllstry ai>rnad, \\'!t ile my \\'i fe all<l
claughters c mplo yl'tl tli e msch·cs in JHO\'itling breakfast, \\'hi c h
was al\\'ays ready at a certai n tim e . l aJJ .,\\·ed half an h o ur for
this m ea l, and a n lwt1r for dinn e r, wh kh ti m e w as take n up in
innocent mirth !Jet ,,·ccn my w ife a:itl daug-htcrs, and in phil oso phical arguments bct,,·ecn my son antl me. As we rose \\'i th
th e sun, so \\'C rH:Yer p ursuecl o ur labors after it was go ne d own ,
but 1·dnrncd hnme t" the c:<pec tin g family , \\'h e re s miling looks,
a n eat hearth, an cl pleasant li re ,,·ere preparer] fur o ur r ecep tion .
Nor we re: \\'C \1·i thon t gucsh: sometimes F arm e r Flam!Jorough,
our talkative n eigh!Jor·, and often the b lin d piper, \\' ottld pay us
a \'isit, anti taste. our gopscbcJTy \\'inc, for th e making nf \\·hi c h
\\'C hatl !t>st neitlll'r the receipt n o r t he reputatio n.
T hese h:irm !t-ss pe11ple h :\\1 seYc:r:il ,,·:1ys of IJcing R"'" l c11mp:rny; \\'hil e one
played, th e other \\·ould sing so m e soo thin i~ hall :ul - .l <•hn ny
Ar111st rong"s L:tst Cootl :'\ ight, o r th e crnl'lty o[ Barbara /\lien.
Th e night ,,·as C:O'H·iud..:tl in th e mann e r \\'e heg:u1 the morning ,
m y yo11n g-cst i>ny s be ing :1ppo in te<l to rea d tir e lessons o f the
<lay ; antl h e th:1t rea d htl<kst , distindc st., and IJL·s t \\'a s to h:\\'e
a h:-tlfp e nny on S u ntl:t y tu put in the !'""r's l io x . - C t iJ.Ps~ tl T ll :
T/11· 1 'irnr uf /l 'akd idt!.
2 . It \\'as n o ne t•10 sDon fo r me to louk to m y O\\·n part; for
111\' hca <l \\':ts sea rec bad: al the willll ll\\' uefurc fi \·c men ca rry in ~ " s<juare yard f.,r a h:ll tcrin ~ ram ran pct sl m e and tuok pl:lst

65

to drive the d oo r in. l had never fired with a pisto l in my life
and not often w it h a gu n , fa r less against a fellow c rea t ure. But
it was n ow or ne \·e1', and jn s t as they sprang the yard I cried
out: ''Take that! '' and shot into the ir mi dst. I m ust ha\'\; hit
one of th e m for he sang- out and gave back a step and the rbt
stopped as if a lit tle disconcerted . Before they had time to
recove r I sen t an other ball ove r th e ir hea ds, and a t my third
shot (which ,,·ent as \\'id eas th e se!'ond) the wh o le party threw
down the yartl a nd ran for it. Then I looked arnun 11 again int o
the deck -ho use. The wh ole place was full of smoke of my o"·n
tiring, jnst a s my ears sectn cLl to be uurst with th e noi se of the
shot. But there \\' as A llan s ta nding as before; only now hi~
sword was ntnning IJ!ood to the h ilt aml himseif so swelled w ith
triumph a nd fall e n in to so fine an att itude that he loo ked to he
invin cible. Ri g-h t before him on th e flo o r was Mr . Shuan on his
han ds and k nees; the blood \\'as pouri n g from his m outh and he
was s inkin g slowly lo wer \\'ith a terrib le whi te face, an< l jttst as
I looked so-me o f those fr.,m beh incl caught h old of h im i> y the
h eels a 11<l dr:1gged h im li o<l ily out of the rountl hou se . I lJe lien·1!
he di e d as th ey \\'e re do ing it.,. _ STE\' E:>ISO:<: /\id11apprd.

D . Divi de these su bjects into topic s and find for each
subdi v isi o n a su itab le t op ic-se n tence:
1. Th e drainage s ys tem o f a city.
2. Descripti o n of a country tO\\·n.
3. My school life up to the present time.
4 . Bird life arou nd my h o me .
E . 0£ these three short th em e s o n the same su bject,
why is th e second bette r than the first? The third than
either the fi rst or the second ?
Tll f'. S T1 l l< V OF THE CA S KETS.

Th e story of the caskets in th e .lfrrdianl vf f 'o rit-< \\';"
one of the t hree stories in the play. Th e story of the c·a~kt'ls
dep e n ds on th e ,,·ill of l'orti a ' s father . Port ia wa s a ric h i1e ir ·
ess. Her fat h er \\'h e n h e tlied matle a \\'ill sa yin:.;- !Ital a ny "ne
wh o \\' ante<] to marry Porti a must <lec itl e his fate h y thn·e
l.

ca sket."' .

(}ne

wa ~

g-uld . one \\· ~ l :-; sih·cr , :ll1d

o ne

was lead.

They :.iii !tad diffcrvnt inscriptio>ns . ! Jilk rcnl snit .. rs chose d if·
fe rcnt <J tlc'S. Hut th C' y \\'ere all mi st ak e n i>ttt lh ss:rnin. 11"
<.:hose the <inc \\'ith the p ict ure in it. For l'<irtia' s father had

s

:1··

I
·~

-· l

•l
··i'

;!•

'.:'l

·.,,

66

CO~!PO S !TI O X

1\XD RHETORIC.

ca u sed a picture of h er lo be place d in t h e ri ght casket , and
Bassa nio chose th a t. Th e othe r t wo co ntained a death's head
and the portrait of a blinking idiot. The re w ere also piece s o [
poetry in e ach casket abo\ll the man \\·h o chose them . But
B:bsa n io w :1s the lu c ky man.
2 . The sto ry of th e caskets is one of th e three stories in the
J!l-rr/111J1t of //mice.
P ortia was the daughter o f a rich man of V enice. S h e was
ycry beautiful.
\\'h e n he died he m a de a will which said t hat any man who
" ·anted to marry his daug-hter must choose her according to
three caskets . Jf he did not choose the right cas ket , h e had to
prmnise never to marry :inybody.
Th ese cas kets w e re m :idc o f di ffere nt m e tals. O n e was gold,
nne was sih·cr, and one was k a<l. They all h ail in scr ipti o ns o n
t hem . On t he ).(u ld one it s ai <l: "\\'ho ch oose th m e shall )_(a in
w hat man y m e n <l esi re." O n t he s ih ·er one it said: •· \Vho
ch oo se th me shall get a s much as he dese r\"e S. ' ' On the lead
one it said : "\Vh o chooseth m e must gi,·e an(\ ha za rd a ll he
hath . "
J ns ide the gol<l one w as a d e ath's head and some ,·erse, .
I n side the sil\"er one- was the pict ure of a fool. Inside th e lead
one \\":I S P o rtia ' s pi ctu re . This sho wccl that the la st w as the
righ t one .
Th e l'r in ce of ;\forocco chose th e gold one and t he P ri nce of
Ar ragon the silver one. Sn they both failed t o ob tain Portia,
a nd besi<l es c o uld ne \"e r m a rry. l3u t Bassanio sai d that, as the
\\·orld was still decei,·e<l by o rnament, he would c h oose th e lead
casket .
Thu s Bassaoio w on the fai r heiress to be his bri de, because
he k n ew tha t all that glistens is not g ol d.
.1. T he sto ry of th e caskets , one of the three sto r ies that are
" ..,,·e n t oget her to m ake the play "f th e .1frrd1ant of I i ·11irc ,
te lls how l'(lrtia , a lieautiful he iress , was \\" O il in marriage.
lh th e prm·isi" n" of hL·r father',; will, all ,.;ui tors t11 h e r hand
\\·t:re to choose on e of three ca s kets.

'l'he ~uitor IJcforc (; h oos ~

ing 11aLl to s w ea r th:1t if h e were u11 ,.; u ccessful h e wo uld 11ever
nHllT )' .

Pri n('eS a1H1 nobk· 1n e 11, hearing- of P t> rtia 's b eauty and wealth,
vame fr'>l11 all H\"l.~ r t he """ rid t" try thei r fa te
J11 <ln:d. th e
P ri n ce nf ;\Joro cco,

01H:

of th e s\:itn r s. s:1id:

D[VlDil\"G SUBJECTS I:\TO Pi\RAGHAPHS.

" The Il yrcan ia n deserts and tr1e \"a s t y wil ds
Of wi de Arabia ;ire as thn rnughfarC's n•nv
F o r princes c o m e t n Yic\\· fa ir Port ia. "
This sam e Prince o f Morocco \\·as t he first person to make ;i
ch o ice. lla\"ing looked at all the casket s :i nd c;in:fll il\· rc:id
their _ i1~scriptinns, he cilo,.;e the guld one , thinking that the
m sc n pt1on o n !hat, ''\\.ho c hoose th me shal l get wh:it nuwc
men desire," meant tl1at it was t he fortunate casket . B:it 0 ;1
ope ning it lie fo und only a skull, in tile cyesod'et o f w hich w ;, s
a paper \\"i t h Yerses saying: "J\ 11 t hat gl istens is n o t gold." So
he departed sadly .
The n ext lo l ry was the Prince of Ar ra gon. L ik e th<' J' r [lll·e
o f Morocco, lie read all the inscr ipt ions c aref11l lv, and fi nal!\·
chose the ~ih·e r cask l't, !J ...:-1.._·~tu ....;e un t h a t w ere

j

he -\\' n r·ils . '· \\" i ii,

ehooseth me shall get as ll llJC h a s he dese n·es ," a nd he th ouoch t
that he w o uld stand o n his merits. On ope ni ng t he cast'et ,
howe\"er , he fo uncl only the pil"ture of a foo i, \\·ith n ·rses mock in;:;
him . So h e tuo went H\\·:1y .
Then c ame Bas,.;;inio, a m:t11 wh o m Portia liked . S he w :i,:
aln1ust as anxiuus \\·hile li •_· \\~t s Jll:lkiiJS h is ch ~•icc ; 1 ~ he \\-~ ts
himself. li e commented "n th e caskets to himself whil e soft
mu sic pb,·ed , cli scanling th e go ld hec:rnse it rnnc!y mad e "
sh o \v, tlie s ih·c r b eca u se it w :1s a C'' 1n 1 111011 nie t:tl n:--c.._.d f-;, r nJii:ie\·
But the le:Hl casket \\"hic h "·:t:-; unpreten tinu ~ and \•.-1i ;c1 i )L~i l
rathe r a forbidding- inscri pti o n, "\\·h o ch o oset h m e mu st :.;in·
!lm! hazard all h e hath," a ttrac te11 him, a n d h e cl10se it .
Portia , \\"h o knew that the leade n casket w as th e rig-ht oue, wa s
full of l"Y· an d whe n Bassan io opened the cask e t and f<nitHl
Portia',; pi~· ture -the_ to ke n of success-he was full uf j .. y t<>u .
He read 111e 1n,.;cr1pt1on \\"hich tol rl him t h:it h e, the man w h ..
did n o t chnose th e sho\\"y th ing-s . \\·;is the fo r tuna te person . :ind
" turn ed to w he re his lady was, :tncl ,·lain1e1l h e r with a l1_" ·i' ' 1'"

kiss .''

I·~ \Vha t 1s inrk n t ation ? \\Th at 1'i a para;..:-raph ?
How do cs a p :ir:i~Taph differ fru m a scntt:ncc? \\'h at
is the 11sc of the p:ir:igraph for the writer? F o r the
reader ? Tl o w is the le n gth of a pm:-tgr;:tph u ctcrm in ell ?
Shonk! the paragTaph di\·ision he ma<k b e fore th e fi1i:l l
draft is completed, or after , \Vhat i:-: your cust om ii:

••r

68

6')

co:11POSITION AKD RIIETOl<IC.

llIV!DT>: C SUBJECTS I NTO PAIL\(;Jc \l' llS.

this matter? 'iVh a t ad vantages has your custom of
paragraphing?
G. Paragraph the foliO\Ying conversations:

he went on repeati ng, all the tim e thnt J\lice \\·as ;.:ett ing him un
his feet again . "'l'lent1· nf p r'1 ctice. "' "Jt"s too ridi culous ."'
cri e tl :\lice, l<1sing- al l h<.:r p:tticnu: thi,.; tillll'. "'You ought In

1. "\Vhat would you do?" asked Ch;lr!otte presen tly-the
book o f the moment always d o minrlting her thoughts until it
was sucked dry an<.l cast aside-" what wo u ld you clo if you
saw two lions in the road, one on C;1Ch sitle , and you di<.ln ' t kuow
if they were loose o r if they were chained up?" "Do?" shouted
Edward , valiantly , "I sh o ul<.l-1 should-I shoultl - " His
boast ful accents cliell :-tw:-ty into :1 mumble: "Dunno what 1
should do . " "Shouldn't do anything," I obscrvetl after con·
sideration; anrl really it woultl be difficult to arr ive at a wise r
conclusion . "Ir it came to ' dvi11g-,'" remarkeu Harold, re flec·
ti\·ely. ''the lion s would do all the doing th ere was to d o,
wouldn't they ? "
"But if they we re good li ons ." rej o ined
Charlotte, "they wnulll do as they wou ld be done by . " "i\h,
but how do you know a goo<l li on fro m a bacl one?" said
Etlwanl. "Th e boo ks don"t tell you at all, and the li ons ain't
marked any diITercnt." " \\'hy, th ere aren't nny good l io ns,"
sn icl li arold hastily. ''O h, yes, there nre, h e:qis and heaps,' '
cont1·adicte<l Edward. ";\early all the lions in th e story books
i\re gooc.l li1) !1S. There w as i\ntlrocles' lion, and St. .Jerome's
li on antl - and-and t he Lion and the Unicorn-" "Ile b eat
the 'unico rn," ohsern :d Harolcl, dubiously, " all a roun d the
town." "That j>rO«t"S he \1·a s a good lion," c1·ied Edward
triumphnntly. "Bllt the question is , h ow are you to tell 'em
when you see 'cm?·' " I slt<•ul<l nsk Martha," said Harold of
the simple creed.-KE:-;:>:ET11 l.HAII.DTE: 7/1,· r;o/doi ,. /ge .
2. "The grent :-trt of riding-,., th e Knight suddenly began in a
loud voice, w nYing his right nrm as lte spoke, ''is to k eep-- "
Here the sentenc~ enllell as sucltlcnly as it ha<l 1Jeg un, as th e
Knight fell henvil y o n the top of hi s h e ad exnc tly in the path
w he re Alice was walking. She was quite frighte n ed this time ,
and saill in an anxious ton e : "I hope no ho nes arc broken."
"Non e tu sp e ak <>f ." t!1c Kn igh t saicl, a~ i[ he didn't mind
breaking

t\\-1)

Pr thn:L' of

thC'n1.

' 'The great !1.r t <,f riding- , as

I was s:1\'ing, is ·- l'> keep y»ur balance p rnpcrly. L ikc this,
yon J; 1w 1;. __·_ .. J·le kt go th e bridle and stretehc·d out IH• lil his
arms t<.• show Alice ll"hat he nwant. an1l this ti111c he fcll ll:tt <•n
liis back, right under the horse 's fed. ''Plenty of pn:ct ice, ''

have a \\' 0<,<1cn hor:-:.c c>ll Wh(•els, that yo 1111t1 ght.''

·· f)o<:s that

kind go :-.nHH1thly?" the Knight said in a tone uf great intere~t.
clasping his arn1 s around the horse':-; neck a~ he spoke. ju:--t

in ti me lo ,.;ave him fro m tumbli11;.: olf aga in. "~! uclt more
smoothly Lh:tn a li\'l' horse," i\lice ,.;aid, with :1 li1tle scre:im .,f
laught<.:r, in spit e o f all site coulcl clo to pre\'ent it. "1· 11 get
o ne," t he Kni gh t said thougl1tfully to h imself. · •One or 111·0 severnl. ' '-LE\\"tS CARROLL : .-lli!'C in IV011dcrla11d.

11. Compare the paragTaphing· of these short themes
arran,,;ed in p:-trallcl columns. \Vh at advantage have the
second forms over the first ?
I /:"x/rarl frul/l lh r 111c n11

( N,·wri//,· Jt fvr111. )

,l/a nw/11y.)

Thomas HalJingt"n
'.ll:t c aulay \\'as born on tlte t\\·e1111·fif t h (>f October. eig hteen 1tu11·
clrecl. at Rutltlcy Cltap<.:I, in
Leicestershire .
His f at 11.., r.

1. Th"mas Babington
Macaul ay wns bnr11 on the 25th
of <ktol>l:r, l XOO, at R o thle1·
Chnp<.:1, in Leicest<.:r~hire.
His father, Zachary, \\' n,.; a
sten1 , au,.;l"C re man, a S co tch
Presbyterian. nnd a lcarling
agitator of t he anti-slavery
movement.
l 1i,.; mother was a nol>k
wom an of Quaker dc,.;ccnt and
Macaul:ty's 11we of his mother
n1Hl o( his ho1ne is

1111 e

of th e

m ost pleasing traits in his
ch:tract<.:r .
In his early chilclhootl Mnc ·
auby sho\\'cd indisplltalJle e\·i ·
ll e nccs of ilis co rning- gre:ttncss. i\t t he :1 gc of four he
h:-tcl learn ccl to rend nncl at
live he had read the cntire
Hil>lc. E\·cn at l~1is age h e
b ega n to use tho se lon g \\'nrds

Zachary, \\'as ~ ~tern, an:-;tere

man, a Sc·otch Presbyteria n ,
nnc1 a leading ng it ator of the
anti -slavery movement.
ll is
mother was a noble woman .,f
Quak e r clescent. ll is mother.
ancl th e home she mndc, in,.;pired l\!aeaulay wi th a lu\'e
which was one of the ple:tsin;.;
traits in h is charac te r.
Eve n in !t is early cltilclhnocl
l\!acaulay shO\\·ecl e\·ic!en ces of
lt is coming grentness. i\t the
age of four he hacl learnl"<l tn
re:-td, and at fi\·e he lt:1<i reacl
the enti re Hih le . J\s earl\' a,.;
this , t""• lie bega n lo use those
long- \\·n rd ~ \\·liiL·h are so 11nu.:h

in evidence in

his writings.

70

]JI\"!T>I:\ f; S\" l lJF CT S l:\TO

COil lf' ()S !TIO>: :\:-.:D RHETORIC.

which arc so nn 1ch in c\·itlctH:e

in his \\Titing .
Oneday,\\"hen he\\"asatdinne r with his father an d mother,
at the h ouse o f a n eigh bo r . t he
sen·ant. while p:1ssing- the coffee , overtu r ned a cupfu l o n
his legs .
The lady of the
hou se , as soon as s he per ceive<l t he accident , in '1 11ircd
\\"h cthcr lie w as in nwch pain.
Youn g Thnn1as i111111 ediatcl y
repl ied : '·Madam, th e ag-•> ny
is somewha t abatecl . ''
JD!.

2. "Ji111 I Jim I wh ere can
that ho>· be? It is fully an
l 1o ur since l sent him tlo \\· 11
town.
\\'ell , there h e is at
last , and I'll wa ger he ha s fo rgotten what I sent him after.
! low man y ti m e s h a ,·e l tol cl
yon n ot to g0 ou t without
your coat and
h a t on?"
"'Cl::ire it 's too h o t." "\\'e ll,
perhap s it is too h o t to go
errands, but how about the
ci rcus t his nfternoo n ? It will
be cooler th en ,
suppose.
\'cs, you may ,.;o, b11 t t he
n e x t time yo n go tn t he p ostoffice , mitlll yo u h11r ry an<l
tlon ' t s top t () carry \\"atcr for
the animals; for I know that's
what you ktvc !Jee n d oin g:
your clothes are w et . !'\ow
you n ee d n't ' 'clan: fo' goo dness you has n 't,' fo r can't r
sec the edge of that pink
ti c ket in your pocket? Yes,

lllustratin: of th is fa ct is th e
fnllcJ\l"ing ane1.:dote. \\"hil e he
was dining one day w ith his
fa th er and mother at the h o use
of a ne ig h bor t he scn·ant 11p·
set a cup o f coffee on hi s leg s.
On h is hostess's in qui r y as to
wh ethe r he was hurt . the
young T homas im mediate ly
rep lied : "~fadam, th e a ,.;o ny
is s" m e wlrnt <1batcd ."

1 1:11.

(

you 111 ay g o th is t i111c , lH1t y \)u

y o1 1 n111~ t

fini sh y ()ur \\·o rk first."
Jim sh uffles nnt of si gh t. a1HI
I can hear Ji i n1 w histling a~ he

Ii rst. · '

111u st

cuts t h e grass. In about t"·"
h ou rs h e co m es ba c k :nnl
tells
me :
l'm
th rong-h,
M iss us ; cu t e ,·e ry wisp o'
g r ass and fed it to the co w. ' '
What a change has taken
place in him 1 !] is motlwr h:is
polished hi s fa ce u n t il it s hin c.:s
lik e e b o ny, his hands are
clean e r than usual, an<l his
hat, for a wond er , has a bri m.

N<"1£•rilln 1.)

1-lis

1

"Jim' Jim 1 \\"h e re can that
!Joy he? l t is fully an h o ur

c lotl 1(·~.

his

"n1 ee tin',.

: lo th cs , th e ones his m:-immy
hirn la st. c onrt -da y ,
ha ve l>c·cn t:tkcn out o f tile
press and hurried into . Jim
likes new cluth cs. in1t tlii11J...:->
it an outr:q:~:e to \\·e~tr ~ co:i. t;
it hi<les the pride o f his he-art
J~ is
- his ne w suspen de rs
ve ry seldom that one of th ese
little darkies gets a pai r of new
gall uses : t hey are gene rall y
ha nd -m e- down s. and by t he
tim e th ey rea c h the \"irnngest
they are usually onl y one
strap .
But today t hese gi ,·e pla ce
to the circ ns "·i th its animals
bo u g ht

si n ce 1 sent hin1 d o wn t ow n .

\\'el l, t he.-e he is at last, and
l"ll wage r h e has forgotten
\\·h at I sent him after . ll i>\\'
many times ha,·e I t ul d you not
to go wi tho ut your coat and
ha t o n ? ''
' ' 'Clare it ' s too
hot." " \ Ye ll, p e r haps it is
ton h ot to go crra 1Hls , hut h o w
about the circ us th is a ft e rnoon? It \\"ill be coo le r then ,
[ suppose. \" es, ynu m ay go ,
hut next t ime you go to the
post11nln', mind yon h uny and
don 't s top to carry water fo r
the animals; fo r I know th at's
w hat yo u hn \" e b een d oi n g-;
you r clothes are w e t. N ow
you nee dn't' 'c la rc fo ' goodness you hasn't,' fo r can't I
sec th e edge of that pink
ti cket in your p ocket? Yes,
you may go this tim e , but

and

c lowns, a nd

the criat

is

buttone d ti gh t un der his cl1in
to keep the precious t icket
fro m falling ou t.
Jim gone , I go out to lock
the stable and g ive t h e cow an
unusuall y ,:;nod supper , as I
k n ow that o n th e m or row she

71

1' .\ H .\ Cil. \ l ' l lS .
fi11 isll

.Jin1 shuffit:s

y•ttlr

n11t

\\·,i r k
si~ht .

of

and I can h.-ar him wl1i,.1lin;.:
as he c nt s t he g rass.
111
abuu t

tw o

h" urs

he

co nics

ha ck an d tells me: "' 1"111
t h rou gh. i\l issus ; cut en·n·
"·i sp c,' gra ss and feel it t<>
th e

('O\\',

I t

\\"li:tt a l"h" n .« e It:" la h ·n
pbcc in him 1 Jlis mother ha s
polished hi ~ face until it sh ines
like «h11n:-, h is hands arc
cleaner l11:t1 1 u:->ual , and iii~
hat, for a wnndc..:r , has a IJfini.

l li s

hi~

cl<>thes .

"m eeli11 ""

c\11thes 1 tlie 11 !ll'S his n1~un;n\·
h1 1ll'.1.!:ht

LL . . . t

been

takf'n

and

hurried

of th e

11lto .

JH:\\" clot~1cs
11u t r~t ."..,:· e

ii:-\ \

l'IHlrt-<Lt\·,

out
ln ;t

l '

pr1·-......:

J in1 i il.1._·:--.

think...; it

:Lr:

lt1 \ 1,'1._·:1r :t i..:u:l!, fur it

hide:--:. the pride of his heart -

his new s u s pe n ders. I t is ,-e r y
seld••ll l th;tl one o f these lilllc
'' dark ies '' gets a pair of new
"g all u ses, "

for these

art ieh..·s

arc g-encrally handed down i11
th e famil y , and liy the ti me
they

n: a clt

the yuunge...;t arc

u sual]\· onl y 1111 e str:q>

iltJt

to d~ ty

a rc

Ji 1n':-;

S<'C'flllclary

in

su:--.pc: .i. Hlcrs
i1n 1>(irt: 1rH·e

ti>

tJ1e circ us ,,·ith it s ani1n ais and

clo\\"ns, and tl1 e coat is butto ned tight under his ,-hin to
keep th e precious ticket from
fall in g out.
.Jim gone, l go out t o lock
tl1c stable and g-ive the co w

!"
· . .-:

.,
7.1

CO'.\IPOSITI(l>:" AND RIIETOHIC .

\\' ill h ave to be th e p<ior lwrse
wh ile Jim plays clo wn.

an um:sually good sup per, as
I k n o w that un th e morrow
she will ha \'c to Ile the p oo r
h o rse wl1il e Jim play s clown.

! . Rewr ite the following th emes in suitable paraIf top ic-sentences :-t re ne eded . supply th em:

~raphs .
1.

Tl! E Cl L\ RACTER OF SI I( R O CER DE COYER l.E Y.

Ad<lison represe nts Sir Rnger de Cu,·crley as one o f the kindest, most ge nial, m ost iuvcd i le men tu be found in li tera ture .
l fe is ad orecl by his scn·ants, looked up to a n d n :n :rencetl by
his tena ntry , respec ted by his ne ighbors , lo,·ed, and at lim es ,
im posecl upon li y his friends .
l n his youth he had a IO\·e affai r w ith a " ·ido w whi c h did
not e n c.I happil y , c h ieily 011 account of Sir R oge1" s bashfnlti ess .

I l is character does not seem to ha\'e b<.:t·11 so ured or e1nbit lered by this epi sode , but he e ,·i clcntly w ithdrew from ge ne ral
S1Jc it.:ty , devo ti ng himself to h is tena nts and his ser\'ants, who
grew olcl and g r ay in h is se n·ice.
I!is chief din:rsion , like that of many anothe r Englis h gen tle man, seems tu h a ,·e IJee n hunting.
His religi o l!s \' ie \\'s \\'ere most co nse n·ati\'e ancl at the same
time orig-inal.
I le chose for his recto r a man wh o had n clea r , pleasant
\'Oice , presentecl him with se r mons hy eminent pre achers, and
o rderecl one of these cli s<«l11rses reac! ins lea cl o( a serm o n
preac hed by the parson him,clf.
Sir Roge r \\' as \'<.:ry re g-tt!a r in hi s attendance at churc h ancl
\\·i s h etl his tenantry lo be t he same .
l le oft<.:n rnse during pra,·c:rs tltat he mig·ht count the cong-re gati on and afterwar d~ n1c11tin11cd th e ab~c nt ones to their rel tl-

tio:1s, hopin g th a t he <>r s he was not ill hut \\'<>\tic\ !Jc prese nt
n<.:xt Sunc\a\' .
I k \\'as very obs<.:r\' ant, a lso , of hi s p11lilic duties, se ttli n g
w ha l<.:\' er cl isp11tes \\'t.:re liro11ght l•i h im h y his ten ants, and
sitting on the magistrate's li e nc h whl'n the c uuntv co urts were
held.
Jlis h ospitality is 'ec:1 in tltc tnuc ltl's \\'h ich th e Spec tator
g ives of S ir R <J,l.!;l' t"s courtt.:sy t(o\\' a r<l himself, a nd in th e affecti o n

whic h thl' nld
\Vim!Jle .

).; n ight disp l:l\·s I•• his t'<Tent ri<·

g11cst, \\' ill

lli s general he11c\·ule n ce tow~ u· d th1.; worl•l at la r;i<t: i:' ~h'l\\"tl

by th <.: lo v ing and res pe ctful m:tnner 1Jf all those with wh om he
meets , \\'l1 e th er in the hunting fi el d, th e con ntry inn, or the
co unty c0 llrt.
O n th e whole he is an honest , bene \'olent, th o u gh eccentric
old Englishman, \\·ho tries to do hi s tluty in th a t station to
wh ic h it h as p lea se cl God to call him .
2.

ADD1S0 1'.

Ilut what shall \\' e say of Add iso n's humor, o f his sense of
the hHli c rous, o f his power of a\\·aken in g- that sense in otlt crs ,
and of drawing mirth fr"m in cillcnts which occur e\'ery d ay ,
and from l it tle peculiarit ies of temper and m a nner, such as may
be fou111l in c\·ery man ?
\Ve feel th(' cltarm; we g- i\'e nursl'l\'es up to it; but we stri,·e
in vain to analyze it.
P e rha ps the best way of describing ,\ ,Jclison's peculiar p il'asantry is to compare it with the pil'asant 1·y o f some other great
sa t ir ists.
Th e t h ree most eminent masters of the art of ridi cu le during
th e eighteenth century we re , we conce i\·e , Addison , Swift, a1Hl
V ol taire.
\Vhi c h o f the three ha tl the gre atest power o f m oving laugh ter m:i.y he q uestioned.
But each of them, within his own d o main, was supreme.
V o ltai re is th e prin ce of buffoons .
II is m erriment is w it hon t cl isgu ise or restra in t.
I-l e gam bols; h e grins; he sh akes his sides; he points the
fin gers; he turn s up lhe n cse ; he sh oots out the to ngue.
Th e mann e r of Swift is th e ve ry op p os ite lo this.
He m oves laughte r , but ue \'e r joi ns in it .
I le appears in hi s w o rk s such as lt e appe are d in soci ety.
All the company are conv u lse,] with merrim ent, w hile th e
D ea n, the a uth o r nf all the mirth, prese rves an in ,· ineiblc g ra\·it. y , and e ven sourness o f aspect, and gives utteran ce t o the
mnst ecce ntric and lu <lic r o us fancies, with th e air o f a man
re:1ding the commination se rvi ce.
Th e m a nner of ,\d dison is as remo te from that of Swift as
from that of Voltaire.

>·

\

C<l~ll'<lSfTTO:'\

.\:\ll lHfET<lRIC.

DIVlDI:-<G S\j BJECTS !:\TO PARAGR.\PllS.

Ile neith er bug-hs out like the Fre nch wit . nor , like the Irish
w it , throws a tlo ul1J e po rtion of sc,·e rity into l11s countenance
whi le l:i.ughin g- inw:udl y ; b ut pre serves a look pec uliarly his
o\\·n , a look of demure s e renit y, <li s turbe J only by an arch
sparkle of the ey e , an ::ilrn<>st imperceptible c url of the lip.
llis to ne is n.:n·r that e ither of a .lat:k Pudding- or of a Cynic.
It is that of a g e ntl e rn::in, in whom th e quickest sense of the
riJicul ou s is constantly tem pered by g ood nature and good
breeding .

J. In \\'hat kin cl of \Hiting· d o we find short paragraphs? lllustrntc from the houks read in the classes
of literature, physio~raphy, :rn<l history. Por what
reasons are th e se parag-raphs short?
1,·. \Vhat do \\'e mean Ly "d c ,·cl o pment" \\'h e n
applied t o an idea treated in compo sition? Explain
how the third paragraph of the extrac t from ?.tr. Bryce,
in sectio n 18, is devel oped. Find in a text-ho ok in history six para gra phs ,,·h ich be gin with ~ oo d to pic-sentences. Expl a in how the s e ideas arc clevcl o pccl in the
paragraph s .
L. D e velop two of the £0 1101\·in g topic-sente nces in
the manner explained in section 19.
I. The jury system is an esse ntial ly Anglo -Saxon system.
(In eight senten ces -two nn the hi story; two un the di1·isions;
the re mainder <lcs c ripth·e . )
2. A g r ~tin c.: le,·ato r is t he pl:t ce fn r the transfer and storag-e
of gr ~tin. (I n si x to te n sen lt' nccs . descriptive.)
3 . C ount y ::ind city nffi ciab cxi't si d e by side , but with different fun c t ions. ( Fi\'e U> tc 11 sentc nc·6 . )
4 . A kn ow le d ge o f L at in is o( g reat ,·a l uc to the pe rson who
w oul d use E n g lish intelligentl y. ( AlJOut si x sen tc•n t:es, two o f
explana t io n, t he rest o ( illu stra ti o11. )
5.

rJ'h e

~fi SSOll ri

COrnp r o n1i sC ,

like

lllO S t

Cn1 11 rrn n1ise s,

\VaS

forced by necessity. (Ten senten ces. two of de finition ancl
eight of explanation .)
6. Th e occupati o n of trained nn rse is one peculiarly a dapted
to women. (Several sentences of explanation.)

7. Tennis affo rds healthful exercise. ( Sen~ :i nr eight se ntences.)
S . .Maj o r Andre's punisl1mcnt was just. ( ~cn'n to te n sentences . )

JV/. Make paragraph divisions for the following narrative passai;es :
1. I fell e d a ceJar tree: 1 qu est io n mu c h whether S o lo mon
e ver ha<l su c h a one for the building o f the Temple at J e rusalem.
It was tiY e feet te n inches in diamete r at the lower pa 1·t ne xt the
stump, an cl four feet e leven inches diameter at th e end of twentytwo fee t, after which it lessened for a while , an<l then parted into
branches. It was not without infinite labor that I fell e d this
tree : 1 was twenty clays hacking ancl hewing it at the lJ u ttom.
I wa s fourteen m o re gt:tling- the lJram:h e s ancl limbs and th e \'a st
spreading head o( it cut off, whi c h I hacked and hewe d through
with ax and hatchet , and inexpressibl e laho1-. After this, it cost
me a m o nth to shape it and dub it lo a proportion, and to something like the bottom of a boat, that it might swim upri){ht as it
o ught to do. It cost me near three m o nths m o re to clear the
·inside ancl wor k it so as to make an ex a ct boat of it. This l
d id , ind eed, wit ho u t tire , b y me re mallet and chisel, and h y t he
,i int of hard la bo r t ill l hacl brought it lo be a ve ry ha n d so m e
"periag u a ," and big eno u gh tn have carrie cl six ::i n d twe nty
m e n, and, co nse quentl y , big enough to ha\·c carried me and all
my ca rgo . \\'hen Thad gone t!Hough this work, I w as extremely
clelighted with it. The boat was re ally m11ch bigger than le\·crsaw
a cargo o r periagua that was made of one tree, in my life. l\lany
a weary str<>ke it had cos t, you ma y be sure; an<l there remain ed
nothing- bu! to get it in to the wate r; and had I gotten it into the
wat er, l make no q uesti o n but I sh o uld have begun the madd est
voyage ancl the most unlikely to be pe rformed that e\'er was
und e rl a kt•n . Hut all m y d e \'ices to ge t it into the w::iter fa iled
me, th o u g h th e y cost me infin ite la bo r, t oo. It Ja y abo ut 1Jne
h11ndrecl yanls from the \\·ater a ntl n o t m o re ; b u t t h e firs t in co nveni e nce was, it w::is up-hi ll to wa rd the creek. \\'e ll, to tak e
awa y this discoura gement, 1 reso l\'e<l to di~ into the surface o f
the e arth, and so make a declivity. This I began and it cost me a
prodigious deal o f pa in s; but who gru<lges pains that have th eir
delive rance in view? But when this was worked through , and
'.his difficulty m anaged, it was still much at one, for I could no

7(,

77

COC> l l'O S IT IO X AXll HI! FT()]{ re .

DIVIDI I'G SUBJECTS I NTO PARAGRAPHS.

more s tir the ca 1111c tli:rn I c·n 11ld tile' other IJoat. Then I measured the distance of gT<11ltHI, and rcsn ln·d to cut " d oc k or canal
to brin g the w a ter 11p to the c anoe, see i u~ tila t 1 could n"t !iring
the can oe down .to the wa te r.
\\"ell, I bc,~'111 tlti,.; wnr k, and
" ·hc 11 [ lleg an to en te r illtu it a tHl c:-ik11late how dee p it was to
I>~· dug , lt o w broad , lt ow th e st uff wast <) be thro wn out, [ fuu nd
t hat l>y the n umber of han d:< I ha<l. lici ng none 1.iut my own, it
mu :< t h ave been te n or twe lve years l>~f01·e I s hnttl<l h:\\·e gone
through wi th it; for the shore lay ltigh , so t hat at the upp e r e nd
i t mus t have liecn at Jc:ist twenty feet deep; so at le ngth, tho ugh
rel11ct:inth-, 1 g:we this at tempt o ver al so . - DE FOE: N vbiuson

an eye-witn ess, that he was d eeply offen ded. H e chan;.;ed color
frequ e ntly, so t ha t all present" coultl remark , fr om th e working

Crusof'.

2. The address first read was tha t o f the Est aks o f Art uis.
The chairm an of the deputies from that pro\'ince read a seri.;s
of resolutions , dra wn up , says a co ntem p o rary, "\\·ith th at elegance whi ch characterized a l l the public acts of th e Arte ~i a ns,
bearing witn ess to the Yi\·acity of th ei r wit s ." The dep uties
spoke o f the ex treme affection which the ir p ro \'in ce had a lways
bo rn e lo hi s .i\lajesty :ind t•> the Emperor. They hatl p roved it
by th e constan c y with w hic·h they had endured the calamities of
wa r so long, and they no\\· chc·erf ully con sented to th e Request,
so far a s t heir co ntin gen t went. The y were willing to pla ce at
his Maj es t y's disposal, no t only the rem ains of their prop e rty ,
but e ye u th e la s t drop of t heir bloocl. As th e e loq ue nt c hairman
reac hed this p oint in his discourse, l'hilip, wh o was standin g
with h is arm rest ing upon E;.;mont's should e r, list e ning eaRerly
to th e Artesian address, loukccl upon the deput ies of t he province wi t h a s milin g fa ce , express ing b y the 1111 \\· o nted be nignity
of his enunl e nance the sat isfact ion which hl' rl·cc ic·ed fro m th ese
loyal expressions of affoctio n, :rnd t h is dutiful co m p1ia n ee with
his Request.
The deputy, hnweYcr , pr<•ceeded to a n unexpected co n clusio n , by earnest ly entreating his Majes ty, as a co mpensa ti o n for t he readiness tltns evinced in the roya l ser\' ice,
forthwith to order the depart \lre of all fore ign troops then in
t he l'\etherlands . Their p1·escnce , it \\"a S adcled, wa s now re ndcrecl co mpletely superfluous lJy tlte ratifi cati o n o f the trea t y of
pe at·e so fortunately arran gecl with all the wo rld. At this
Slld clcn cha n ge in the deputy's language, the kin g, no lo n ge r
smiling , th rew him se lf v iolen tly llp on his c lwir of stale, where
he remained, 1Jrootli11g wi th a g-loomy co un ten ance upon the
langu age whic h had been ml dressed lo him. lt was e vide nt, said

of his fac e , 11ow rnuch his n1in <1 w:1s rq..; itatecl. ··

;l'l:e

n:~t

1

•f the

provi nces were e Yen m o re expl ic it t han the deputies of 1\rtois.
All had vot e d the ir contingen ts to the Request, but all ltad made
the withdrawal o f the troops an express antecedent co ndi tion to
the pay ment of their re;; pective 1uotas.- l\!OTI.EY : Th 1· Nist' o l

t!ze Du/cit R l'j>ublit-.

N. Develop into full paragraphs one of the follow ing narrative t opics. Show plainly in each sentence that
there is an advance in time.
Th e m e 1. T op ic: A <lay 's duck shootin }.!", - ( a) the
start; ( b ) t he pbce ; ( c) the first shot; ( d) (su pp ly at
will).
The m e 2. T upic : A lonely ride , - ( a ) th e occasion;
(b) th e road; (c) an inci(knt ; (d) (conti nu e at will) .
Th e m e 3. Topic: The treason of Benedict Arnolc1,(a) Arnold 's :<cn·iccs up to the tim e of tlw trea sonable
negotiations; ( b) the i111 111ccliatc r e asons fu r his <ksl'rt in i; the Am erica n ca us e; (c ) how the tre aso n was discove re d; (d) Arnold's escape; ( e ) his later caree r.
Them e 4. Topic: A yac ht race, - (a) the start; (b)
the first tack; (c) rounding th e buoy; (cl) an accident, etc.
Th eme ."i . T o pic : The S :1k111 witchcr aft delusion, (a) causes; (b) or~: t nizat i o n of cnnrts fo r tri a ls; (c)
m eth o ds u se d a t th e trials, \Yitn cs scs, test im ony, e tc .;
(d ) pnnish111c11ls; (c) d yin~ out of t he c raze.
Th eme 6. Topic : J\ d i,; :1s tro11s fi re,- (:t) the ala rm:
(b) th e arri,·al of the cng·incs; (c) the rescue of
inma tes , etc.
0. F ind four descript i,·e passages in the nove l that
is n o w b e ing r ead by the clas s. Show h ow th e description is dev e lo pec1. \Vith two of the following s ub jects
try the 111 cthoc1s c1i scus sed in section 22:
1. A cathedral clock .
2. An old farmhouse.
3 . Some favorite scene 111 the n e ighborhood.

78

CO~!

POSITIO:'\ AN lJ RIIETOR IC.

4. The pump in g- station .
5. A machine ( e. g., for puh·erizing rock).
6. A scene at the falls.
7. A geyser; a volcano; or a sand dnne .
8. The death of J oan of Arc.
9. The \' em1s of l\filo .
I O. Th e picture of a r oo m.

I'. Exp:md two of the following to pic-sente nces by
'-'Uitablc illustra tions:
l. _Th at men are getting wealth is c,n ]y anoth e r way
.1 f say111i..:· that men are supplying their wants . .
2 . The mental power o f an y labo rer is of importance to h is pruducti,·c capacity.
3. J\ good book impro ,·es upon acquaintance.
4. Mem o r y plays HS m:rn,· tricks.
. 5. Liberty for any pcrso1~ is tru e liberty only when
it does n ot infringe o n the rights of ot h e r p e rso ns.
6. In an c ient times s ites fo r cities we re often
chosen for militarv rc:isons .
7. Circumstrtntial e\·idencc m:iy be more reliable
than direct tcsti monv.
8. M o unt:iins ar~ the most ephemera l features of
the earth's surface .
9 . R ivers arc the m ortal enemies of lake s .
HJ. Every clrop of w ater that falls upo n th e land
finds its way sooner or later to the sea.

·ll

!
t

l'

!

l L:

iI'
I 'l

'l ll

l '.
i

l

1

CHAPTER V .
BUILDil\G SENTEl\CES.

24. Definition of the Sentence.- A sentence is the
expression of a complete thought by means of words
that are rebtcd grammatically to each other. The
words " troops" and " General Grant" stand for ideas,
th ough not complete thoughts. Nor does the phrase
"to encamp um1e r the trees m the park," althou g-h
it expresses a more complex thoug-ht than the tll'o
n ouns, make a complete statement. Not until we ha\' e
a subject and a predicate can we express a complete
thought; e . g., "General Grant orde r ed the troops to
encamp under the trees in the park." . Moreover, t\\·o
complete thoughts, such as," Th e night was cool, we
rode swiftly along the silent.road," do not make a sen tence unkss 1111ilcd J}Fa111111aliwl!y.
The link may oc
made in this example by supplyin).!' the conjuncti\·c
word " and," or b y insf'rting the semicolon to indicate
that the tw o groups of words are ind e p e nd en t :.;ram matically. It would seem t o be a v e ry simple matter
to make a co mple te sentence, but unless the writer is
careful he punctuates as sente nces such groups of
words as th e following:

:;_

"A lo ng, d ust y road betwee n hi gh fields that extended
into the clim distance." (Contains no fin ite verb of
statem e nt.)
" The hi }.!'hcst part of the plateau." (A phrase.)
"Though I didn't mind what he said." (A claust.:
"hang-ing in the a ir.")
" \ Ve all walked rapidly, th e sun h ad gone down,

·.-;

i9

l 1'
-··

,;

.

80

th ere were n o houses ."
g r:lmmaticall y joined . )

·•I

!"

I

BU IL DI:-.:G SE1'TF.1'CJ7S.

CO :l! POSITION AN D Hl!ETORIC .

(Com p le te statements not

This last for m of blunder (so m e time s call ed the
"comm:l blunder" ) is ex ceedingl y co mm o n in the
w ork of careless or ignor:lnt writers . It shows, first,
an ignorance of the primary laws of grammar, and it
is often fo und in the compos it io n o f persons wh o have
n et bee n trained in Latin, wh e re the necessity for
relating- words is m ore fully show n than in m ode rn
language s . Scconcll:<, it indicates a co nfused, ill og- ical
habit of thought . \Vhe n c,·er it is fouml, the student
shou ld try t o parse the se ntence \\"here the blunder
occurs.
Not eve r y g ro up o f \\"o rc1s pu nct uat ed as a sentence,
h oweve r , must co n tai n a subject and a predicate. Exclamatory and interrogative phrase s may be set o ff a s
distinct sentences . Further than this, we find good
writers occasio nall y bre a k ing the rule mack above,
and fo r the sake of some special effect to be gai ned
punctuat in g a phrase or a clause as a n in depe ndent
sentence.
lle t o! J us that he \\"Onde red any order of perso n s sho ul d
tl1i11k th em s e lves too considentblc to IJe ad vise d. That it \\' as
not qualit y, but innocence, that exempted men from reproof.
That ,·ice and folly oug-ht to be a ttacked, wh ere\·er they co uld
be met wi th .-A 1>1>1sux.

Bu t this practice, which occurs rarely in o rdi nary
prose, is not tu be imitated. It is s:ife to re itera te
what has bee n said before: every sentence should
express a complete tl1011i,;ht - that is , contain b o th subject a nd pred icate ; aml e\·ery sente nce sh o uld satisfy
Jirst the g-rn.mmati cal test - that is, its w ord s sh o uld h e
bnuml t ogethe r a cco rding- to tl1e la11·,; of ).:"ra mrnar .
25. Content of the Sentence,- ll <J\\" much can \\'e put

~l

into one sentence? In uur readi ng we find sentcnc·cs
of all lengths; \\"C also knu11· by experim ent th:t t \l" e
ca n enlarge a short sentence almost inde finitely, :ts
in this ill us tratiun :
l. America is a common ,,·ealth.
2 . Am e r ic a is a commo nwe a lth of co mmonwea lths, a Republic o f r ep u blics , a State which is composed of o th er sUttes.
3. Am er ica is a common wealth of com m onwealths . a ]{epul>·
li e of rep111Jlics, a S tate. whi ch , while one, is nc,· ertheless cnm·
pose d o f other states en.' n more essential to its exi s ten c e t li:L11 it
is to th e irs.
4 . Am e 1·ic a - l cal l it 1\111c r iea (lea vi n g uut n[ si;;ht South
Atn eri ca, C an ad[l , antl ~I e:,ico ) in o rd e r to avoid using- ~tt tilis
stage th e t e rm V n ilt:<l Stat<::s- Am er ica is a c omm on \\·ealth."
Repul> lie <if republics, a State, \\·hich, w hile olle, is ne ,·crthckss
con1pose<l of o th er stat.<..:s even 1nore e:->sential I d it ~ cxi~ten cc­

thau it b to thei1·s. -

BRYCE:

A 1J1c' r irc1 11 Co n11110 11u·c ·c1!th.

Form o ne co ntai ns fo ur wo rds ; fo rm t\1·0 , ei~htcen:
form three, thirt y-t\\"u; fo rm four, fifty-six . All four
forms make complete g-ramma.tic:il statements , hut 11·ith
the additions the original idea is expanded from a sentence o f fo ur \\"on1s to o ne of fifty-six.
By examinin1,; a number of sentences ta. ke n from di fferent \\"riters \Y e shall fi nd th at the length of the s c11tence may vary from t\\"O words to a hundred o r mo re.
The· ave;·ag-e lcng·th o f a sin;,(lc se nt ence , hu\\T1·cr,
am o ng- m oue rn \\"ritc rs is about thir t y wo rds. 1-\ut as
there are m a.nv shorte r and many mu ch lo ng·c r se11tenees in ever:i-~ wri ter's work, this fact docs n ot he lp
u,.; in deter minini; ho\\" long- to mak e any l-,'. i,·en sentence. Fo r example, in the fi nal fo rm o f the illustr:1tion there are eleven d ist inct statements and fifty-six
w or ds , yet it is as g-ood a. sen t ence as the first fo r m
whe re there is bnt one s tatement made in four words.
If we sho uld try to aclcl to the last form many more
words, h ow ever, we should soon finU. that the min d
6

82

COllIPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

BUILDING SENTENCES.

would not grasp quickly all the ideas - the sentence
w o nlcln ot be clear. A sin gle sentence, th e n, may contain as many won.ls as can be related g rammatically,
arnl, further, as many ideas as can be cxpressecl dearly
in one un it of th oug·ht.*

27. Advantages of Compound and Complex Sentences.All stat e ments might be m acle in the form of simple
sen tence s. The Jo ng sentence from Mr. 1-:rycc on pa;:e
8 1 might h:in: been composc cl in this form:

26. Simple, Compound, and Complex Sentences.- Tn forming· sentences it is not a matter of. indifference \\"hethcr
\\"C make them simple, compound, or complex in form.
Each form has its peculiar u se in expre ssing- the relati on of ideas in the sentence. \\"h en the s impl e senten ce is employed, but one statement is made; e. g.,
"The room is quite ba re." The compo uml sentence
expresses two or more statements, \\"hich arc equal in
ya!ue; e . g., "The r ou m is qnitc bare, and it is uncarpeted." 111 the complex sentence one or more statements arc subunlinatcd to the main proposition; c. ).(. ,
''The room, which is uncarpe t ed , is quite bare." In
the follo,,·ing passage may be seen the proper use of
the last t\\"O forms :
llis CO ll Vi...:r:-:.ation wa:--; nowla.:re

Sil li;·i l li :tnt

~u 1 tl

stri1~ i ng" :t ~;

\\·h en he w:is surrounded hy" few friends, whose aliilitic s an ll
kn•) wkdge enabled them, '" he once cxprcssccl it, to send him
hack e,·ery l>:tll that he thre w. Some of these , in liM, formed
themselves in!o a clni>, \\·hi ch r:r:ulually l>eca me :t formidable
pu\\'l'r in lltc l·q1n1111111we:dll 1 11f ktk r~.
' rile \"t...'J'di ...: ls prull<>lllll'l:Cl J;y this concla\'e o n new hooks were speedily known
o\"t·r a ll London , and w ere ~ 11flicicnt to sell off a who le eclition
in a clay, or to con demn t he sheets to the service of the trnnkmakers and the p a stry cook . Nor shal l we think this strange
when \\'!..! conside r what great and Yarious talents and a c quirem e nts met in the little fratcruity. - 1-IACAULAY: f :"ssay Vil J olt11sv11 .
*:-\uT 1·:.·- Id e as whi d1 :1r·· un ii ~c·. not r ...·l:!.t r L n r ,.:-H:nt.·ly rela ted. nntur·
11lly destroy t•kn:·111·...;: ; , 1H1 1na1t1·r l :1· ·s ~ 110n tlu: !-.\.'l~i1..·1~ \.·•: i-. . Fo r th!"' ~:1h~f"<.: t

see

' 1

~<'c : :u;t:-.

TQ\;.102, 10:1, 106.

83

1. I cail th·~ country ;\mcri c'1 . 2. l rn<.:an tilat part <>[
J\mt:ri ea not in clucled in South America, Canada, and :'>kxico.
3. F<>r [ do !l o t wi s h to USC at t his stage the term united States.
4. 1\rn e ri c a, tilc.:n, is a cornmo11wcalt!J.
5. l\Iureo\·er, i l is a
common\\"calth of commonweait hs. 6. !t is a Stat e <•f stall's.
7. ll is a l~ c·pul,lic of republics. 8. It is one . 9 . Ncn·rthckss, it is composcrl o f nt11cr stales . 10. Th ese are cssent ictl to
its existence . 11. They are C\"en nwre essenti:d tu its existenc·e
than it is to theirs.

:.; · -~.

;·.•

But this manner of expressing ideas in sin g·lc sentences is l"l'rtainly \\'ordy a11cl awk\\';1r<l , ;u1d nc cc ,.,,;i\ . ttc: s
tires \Jl11C rc·pct illun . In t11c (~rlb:·i11~d (11rin, l1y tlll_' 1;~~l·

.·

of gTan1n1~1t.icai dc\ - iLc~. clt...":L''.1 ~: n~p]c ~i,Ltci11c;~:s ~ t : · 1~·

.,

cond e nsed into one complex s c ntcnl'e , arnl the lcng·th
of the ,,·hole reduced from eighty-six to flfty-six
w o r d s. In both cases the thou;:;ht remains cssc nti:i lh·
the :<un:.:.
There is : l be tter re;tS()!l, ll<>\\"e\'L'l", 11·!1\· \!1·. J;n·c·c:",;
furrn is prcferal>lc tu the other in the c1>111plc:-;. s ui tencc, th e prope r rclatiClnship li ctwec n th e i1_h ;1s 1s
sho\\'n; in the dc:tachecl sentences, th e re ;1d er li;1s to
make th e r elati o nship clear for himse lf. In fo e com plex sentence, s ome ide a s that arc snbordinate in
importance arc pl aced snbonlinately , 1\·ltercas in the
simple sentences aii the ideas ha\"C apparentl y the
same v:llue.
Hy the use of compound arnl complex
sentences. then, a \\Titer shows the connection and the
~·o mparativc value of his iJeas.
The more mature ;md
·1illin 11t his thong-ht i:,, the more carefnlh· arc his s cnk1h·,; s c<>th!Tnctl'cl tn rc,·c;il the prope r rc hti1>1iship
bct\\"cen hi s ideas, a:id the more he will use compoun d

8-+

C O~!POSITION

Bl ' ILOJ :\(; SF:'\TF:\CES.

A ND RHETOR IC .

complex sc11tu1ccs.
Th e ch ild saYs , "chair,
cushion, lw :u;ti fu l "; next," chair is heauti-fn l, cushi on
is beaut iful"; tl1c 11, · · t hl' ch:-tir is b e autiful :md th e c ushio n is hc a uti ful "; iillally " t he cha ir and the c11shi un
arc both bc:-tu tifo i. " This t ask of fitting· t h o ug-hts
~ogc th c r in su c h a \1·ay as to s h o \\" 1Yhcth c r th ey arc
llld cpc nd cn t, of equ a l Yaluc, or one prin c ip;tl and th e
o th e rs subordi nate, is one of the most important steps
in lea rn in g- ho11· to 1ni te .
There is yet a nothe r r eason 11·hy simp le s e n te nces
ca nnot do the \\"Ork of C<1111plcx ancl c ompou1Hl o nes:
passages of c1 ct ach cc1 sho rt se ntences are fat ig u ing to
rcacl. T!i e fo ll o w in;.:· extract fr o m ;i n e1Yspaper will
illustrate thi s po int :
and

This is the result o [ the g rea t fi.<.;ht in l\fanila Bay .
E le \·en Spani s h sliips 1,·cre cl•es troyecJ.
E ight S panish s hips \\·ere captu 1·e11.
Fu~1r sho re IJ:t tte ri es at Ca\·ite arc de m olishec1.
T hree furt s ''11 Corrcgid<•r h !:tn cl are rccl ucccl .
Four hundred S1,an i:1nl s kl\·e !Jccn killed.
Si x hundred Spani: trds are wnu :iile<l.
Spa n ish suppl ies Jo s t an d c aptured an w1rnl to $."i.0011 ,000.
Th e .l\rueric an loss is e ight m e n slight ly \\" •>tllHiecl , :tnd o ne
tl11 111sand dollars d:u11 :1 g-c .
Those arc t he fign rcs of Yil't n n". T!Jc stu ry ,,[ the l.Jati le \\·ill
Ji,·e fo re ver . T he n ame.· of its h~ro<:s can ne ver die.

The sh ort simple sen tence, if us ctl \\" ithout vari e ty,
produces fatigue.

28. Variety in Sentence Forms Needed.-Thc 11 se <,f
many short simple sente nces and of stra gg·ling cum pou nd sent ences, wh ere the statemen t s are ti ed t ol!e ther
lo o se ly by " a ncl's, " " b ut 's," " or's ," "which's ," and
similar conjunctiv e 11"< 1nls , results from tli c fa c t that the
\\' r itc r do c s nn t p osse s,; a 1·:1ri cty o f f<Jrms o r m o lds in
whi ch t o cast his t hu u;,:·ht.
Frum 11 0 uns <t11U a t:c\\"

v e rbs , wi t h the aid of one o r tw o conjun ct iuns, he liui lds
s e nten ce s th a t resemble sn:1kc fe nccs. To rcmel1y th is
fault he must mak e himself famili:ir \\'ith differe nt sen tence- fo r ms usc<l h y c xpc ri c 11 ccd \Hit c r s in :..:·ivin;..; s h: 1pc
to their thoughts . At first s uch comp lex and lung· se nte nce s \\'ill seem dinicult t o 111 :111age; aft e r a 1ni tcr has
practiced 11sing th e m sufficiently, t h ey \\'ill come 1mcun scio u s ly wh e n rcquirell by the thoug-ht to be express ed .
A variety of u sef ul for ms ma y he learn ed by copyin:..:into a n ote h o(J k any se nt e n ce that illus t rate s a nc\\'
:-trran g-ement o f the clemen ts , and, further, by imi tat ingth e fo r m in a new sente nce . This exerc ise rn ay seem
artifi c ial at Jirst , hlit, th e form once thorou;,,:hl y kno11·n.
it w ill n o lo n ger b e n eces sary t o think of th e m od el.
J\ fow o f th ese s e nte nc e-fo rms arc d l:'scr ihcd be low:
t;)

1. :\ s w e ex pected o ur Ltndlorcl the next clay, my wife: we n t
ma ke the Yc·nison p asty.- (;ur.ns~ tr TJ r.

This co n ta ins an in troducto ry cau sal c lau se , follu\red
by a s im ple lkclarati,·c s e nten ce. Th e s:1mc kind of
th o u ght ma y h e cxpressc<l by a clause fo ll owing-; as.
"M y wi fe w e nt to m ake th e ven iso n pas ty, for \\' e
expected our lamll onl t h e nex t day. " Similar sente nce s
ma y be co nstru ctc<1 1\·ith th e cau sal co n junction s
"since," " becau se," " fo r th e 1«. ::-tso n th a t, "" inasmu ch
as ," etc . , and also \\'ith the p :irti c ipk s; as , " I f:11·i11 ;..;
fou nd out the ea s ies t w ay , \\"e arrived at ou r dc,;tinati o n
before dar k . "
2. H w e aLl op t thi s m od e, if we mean t o co n cili ate a nd L"<>llcecl e , let u s sec o f w h a t natu re the cnncessi0 11 ought t·.• he.B U H KE.

H e re a conclitional clause precedes the main st ate m e nt. The second conJiti o nal cla u se is an explanati o n
of th e fir :-;t , and is in :-tppos iti on with it. The sente nce
may 1.Jc expanded by adding phrases or claus es to e ith e r

•

·-·I

.'
·'

86

I'

I

CO:IIPOSITION AXD HJJETORIC.

part; as," If we adopt. this 1110dc, which I ha,·c urg-ed,"

before tile doo r is famili ar to ('\·cry town -l>orn child ll\· ti:. · 1:1;,.

etc.

of th e l'yncheon el111. -

3. That ,\u.~11stan deliv:tcy of taste, w hich is th e lioas t of the
grea1 p11hlie sc h()olsof E11g-lanc1, ht· IH..'\"Cr P' ':-:scssL·d. - :\L\ C.\t ' l.A\".

This is an extensi o n <if form six. .Note huw casi l:·
one member <if the compound se nt e nce may he c:>. pamlcd, ;is in th e last member of this example. The
conjnncti<>ll "and" may he omitted at the discretion of
the writ e r in either six or eight.

For the sake ()f emphasis, the clements ,.f thi ,; sentence arc t1·:rnsposcd, the object with its clause m udific r
L'nmin:,; first. This form is useful wh e n the writer
wishes to emphasize an clement of the sentence.
·~.

Jh· such exert ions as we ha,·c dcscri!Jed, Johnson sup-

porletl himself till the , ·c;ir 1762.- ;\f..\CA\"l.A\'.

A part o nl y of the predicate is transposed to the first
of the sentence for emphasis.
5. li e \\'a s c hiefl y m :irked ns a g-cntleman - if such, indeed,
he made any c laim to !Jc - by tilt: rather remarkable- whiteness
of his skin. - llA\\"TllOIC'E.

Herc the predicate is interrupted by a clause which is
wholly parentheti cal; this form serves t o bind to).!'ether
matt c: rs n ot closely related, or digressions. Sec a lso
the sentence from Bryce. section 25 , where the p:ircnthesis occu r s in the subj ect of the sentence.
6 . The cummen: ial spirit "·as g-reatly fostered l.iy se ,·cral Jaws
passed in the 1·eign of llenry the Seventh : an<l in th e same
re ig n encoura gem ent was giYe n to arts and manufactures in the
eastern countrics.-\VEIJSTER.

This compound form-consisting of two short sentences- is useful where th e t\\·o stat ements arc closely
connected in thou:;ht ancl may be maclc parallel 111
form.
7. Th e world will little 11 0te , nor lr>ng- rcmem!Jer , what we
say here, but it can n e,·er forget wh at they cl id here . - Lr:.;co1.:.;.

This is similar to number s ix, except that the two
parts are contrasted or opposed in thou~ht inst e ad of
bein~ parallel.
S. The s t reet is l'yn chcon street: the h ouse is the olrl P y ncheon hou se; and an elm tree . o f wide circumference, rou ted

ll.\\\"Tll<lR:<1' .

9. H e rnnsackecl his father's sl1elvcs, dipped into a m ultitude
of hool;s, read what was int eresti ng-, anrJ passed oyer what was
<111ll.-So1 r rr 11,y .

This form is a usefnl one for the rapid narration ui
a number of coordinate events. One subject answers
for a number of verbs with their objects and llHHl ificrs.
The tenses and the phrases should be kept unif1lrm.
10. Turn your eyes t o th ose popular gran ts from " ·hc!lt:<.: all
your !{reat suppl ies are cnme, and learn to respect that only
source of public wealth in the British Empire .-H URKI·:.

This is an imperative sentence, \\'here all the cxp:lllsion occurs in the predicate.
11. lt is ra th er for us to be here dedicated t o th e great t a~k
r ema inin g- !Jcfore us-that from these honored de:td \Ye t:il.;c
inu·cascd d c\·o ti on t" that cause for which the\· ga,·e tile la , ~
full measure of dc,·o ti on ; tliat we hL·re highly res oh·c that the ' L"
d c a<l shall n ot haYe rl ie <l in vain; t h at this nation under C <>rl
shall have a new bi rth of freedom: and that government .. r \I ll"
peo pl e , h y th e people, and fnr the people, s hall n<1t perish fr"'"
the e arth .- Lr:<coJ.N.

One simple proposition 1s amplified by a number o f
explanatory clauses, which arc coordinate in thou;.;ht
aml form and arc separated by semicolons.
12. Il l y resnlu tions, there fore, m ean to e stablish the eC]ll it y
aud justice o f taxation of Ameri c a by v.rant, and n o t by i mp•>siti <111; to mark the legal competency of the Colon y ,\ sscml>lies
for the Sllpp 0 rt <•f their g-overnmcnt in peace and fnr pulili··
enrls in tim e of \\·ar: to aclrnnwlcdgc· I hat t his le gal c n111 1H: tc nl·v
has ha<l a dutiflll and beneficial exen.:ise . - BtJRKE.

Hli !L!Jl:\ C

88
This fnrm is similar to ckn:n; but phr::tses, instead
of cbuscs, arc ·a rr:rn;,;c l1 in p::tra1kl form . Either
eleven or twelve rn ny be yaried by transposition, the
proposition bein~ stated at the close.
Exercise V.
A. Divide the following· extracts into sentences and
punctu:tlc them in such a manner as to b ring the
thought out clearly:
] . To h:we taken the fiei<l oµenly against hi s rival would
ha,·e !Jccn m:ul1H.:ss for he w:is not a man t<> be thwarte1l in his
:.1111our,; an y mnrc.: tk111 th:1l ,.;torm\· lo1·cr / \ chi li es khabo<I th erefore made h is :Hh ·:inees in :t quiet am! gently insinu:\ling man1v.: r under cover of h i,; characte r as singing m:-.ste r he made
freq u ent visih :it the farmhouse not t hat he had anything to
appreh end from the mcdd!es nme inkrference nf parl·n ts which
is so often a st11mhlin g- lil11ck i11 the path of 1., ,·ers Halt Van
T:i ssc l was an easy ind11lgent soul he love 1l his d:u1ghlc' r b etter
e \·en than his pipe and lik e a r easonable man and an excellent
fa ther id hc.:r ha , ·c her "· ::y in t:1·c1Ythi11g 11 is 1wtalJI<.: little wife
too li:1d cn1J 11 g-h t11 do to :1ttcnd to her l10usckccping and manage the pnultrv fo r :1s she sagely ubsc1Yc d d11c·ks n11d geese arc
fo oli s h thi11 .i.:-s a nd n1u s t liv lookctl after lrnt girls c an take care
uf thc1l1 »eln:s thu s \\·hill' tl1c illlsy dame lm s tlcd al>1lllt the house
01" plied her sp i11 ni11g whl'el at one encl of the piazzn honest
B:tlt wn11ld s il smo k ing his eveni ng p ipe at th e other watching
the ach ie vc menh of a li t tl e wo o<lcn 1ra rrior who armed with a
s\\·onl in his hand was mu s t valiantly fighting the wind on the
pinna c le of the barn in the 11.leantime khalJ<H! w oulcl c:arry o n
his suit with the d a11 ;;hter by the sid e of the spring under the
great c.:lm or sanntcring a!l)ng in the twilight th a t hour so favora)1lc tu the l11n' r's eloqucnce. - l 1n·1x<..; : The L1:r:n1d nf S!t·1·py
J l u// u;i' .
\ \'e know ind ee d th at the n :cnnl of il lus trious actions is
must safe ly dcpusit<;c.i in the' unin:rsal re meml;r:1net.; of 111:111kind
we kn<>W that if we could c·:111"e this struuure to asc·end n11t only
until it reached the she'< but t ill it p ierced them its i>road surf:t ces co11l <l sti ll contain llut p:trl of that \\ hi c h in an age of
knowledge h :lt h a ln::u h · IJl·cn spreacl over the ea rth and which

SE:-.:TE1'CE!::i.

history charges itself with making known to all f11t11re tin1es 1•:e
kn ow that n<> i1 i,;cripti<1ns on cntaulatures less hro a<l than the
earth itself can carry information ,, f the events we commcmo·
rate where it ha-; nut :d re:ldy gone and that no structure wh:ch
s hall not out]i,·e a il11ralion of ktkrs an<l knuwle<l;.::e arnon ,1.;
men can prolong the memorial hut 011r object is by this edifice
to show 011r own deep sense of th e ,·:tl11e :u11l importance of the
uchicvem_c nts of n11r ancestors and hy presenting this work .,f
gratitude to the eye to keep aJi,·e similar sent iment and to fos ter a const:1nt reg;H<l [<Jr the principles of the Revolution.\ VEnSTEk: B1111!.-o· /-fil! Ora tion.
3. Th e re was no sleeping in the clay time on the plantcr"s
cle:lring th e wages were too high lo risk !Jecsa sat on Moti G11j's
n eck ancl ga,·e him o rders while M<lli (;uj rooted up the stump.,
for he owne<l a magn ificent pair o f t11sks or pulled at the encl of
a rope for he hall a magnifi ce nt pair of shoulders while Dc<'sa
kick e cl him behind the ears anti s;tid he was the king uf c·lephanls al e,·cning time .Moti C11j \n111l,J \\·as h dn\\·n his three
h11ntlre1l po11nd weight of green food with a qu:irt "f arra ck
ancl Deesa w"11 ld take a share and si ng songs b etween >Inti
Guj ' s legs until it \\·as Lime to go to bed unce a week l>ecsa led
Moti Gnj d ow n to the ri1· e r a nd >futi C11j lay o n his side: 1.,x 1; rio11sly in the shallows \\·hile D eesa went o ve r him with a cnirswab ancl a brick M<>ti Cuj never mistook the pounding blow qf
the lat tc-r fnr th e smack of the f<1rmcr that warned him to ge l up
an<l turn over on the other s icle then Dcesa woulcl look a t ]fr;
feet an1l examine his eyes and turn 11!) the fringes of his Il1i,1:;hty
ears in case of sores or lrnclcling ophlhalmia afte r insp ection the
two won lei 1·orne up "\\ ith the so ng of th e sea" Moti C11j all
black and shining waving a lorn tree branch twelve fed long- in
his trnnk and Deesa knotting u p hi s own long w et hair.- KIPLI:\'C~: Jlfoti C11j- ,Jf11ti11ffr.
4. IL was towunl R o me as th eir ecclesiastical capital that the
thought and hopes o f the men of the sixth and se ,·e nth cent111·it'"
were con ,;ta ntly cli1·ecte<l yet not from l{om c feeble: and cnrn1pt
nor 01 1 the cxhaustc1l soil n[ Jtaly was th e d e li,·ercr to arise ju>t
when as we may suppose the \·ision o f a ren e wal of impc-rial
authurity in the \\-estern provinces was beginning to ,·anish a\\·:1\·
th ere: appearc-tl in the furtherest corner u( Europe sprung ,,fa
rac·e hut lately bro u ght within the pale of civilization a line ,,f
chieftains devotee! to the sen·ice of the Holy Sec ancl amnu;::

90

CO~! POSIT! Ol'\

91

A:-.· n l<I!ETOIUC.

po\\'<·r }~111111 fo;-t1 1 n~· :ind Jieroi t: ('harat:ter
:! ~ \\·11 nhy ,, f a cli;..enil\· I· • wl1i('li doctrine :ind
tr:iditinn had att ached sanC'tit\· almn.,; <J i \·in<'. - Jl i(\'l'l ' : Tit£:
t!ic1n

1\1le

wh11 st·

po in ted liin1 1 11~!

I Inly

//.

!t'OJ ll llll

f:'nt/'irt'.

.,

.

\\'h y ;ire the fol lo\\·ing groups of words no t sen·

tcnccs?

Rewrite them :is grammatical units.

l '. If, \\'C lu<>k :it Sir l< <>:.;er \\'e can sec a f:iir example of
1\cld1son s skill as a clescril1cr . i11 a few qrokes he has portrayed \Is a c haracter al Olll'e peculiar, pleasing, and congenia l
lo Oil r ta sks.

2. The. moral of t'ach of his s tories can eas ily be fotlllll, jllst
tak e for instance the \\':J )' he tr<'ats the su 1Herstitio 11 s of the
people.
, .3 .. He was n ·ry lenient ailo ut p eople 's n<lt being
I nnctpally IJCCause he \\'as al\\·:1\·s l:tt<.: him self.

4. The stranger blamed hirn~elf sc\-creh'.
doing- him se lf jusliC('.
·

\\"hi c h

011

time.

\\':1S

not

.'i. Milton \\'rote ma11y poem s in his youth. The best knriwn
being- I I Pc n~(:r< 1 ~ 1• , I/~·\ ll1,:g1 · n, J.,,·cicla~ and Coniu..;
(; _. Sir H.:•gl'r I>c· l' 11 \ ·l...'.r.t·\
k n<kd ch11rch cn·n· S 11 11d:t\'.

\\::is a

grn1d

t·il11r.·!J·n1;u 1,

li e at·

. 7. The clri\·er cr:;ck e d hi ; \\'!tip loudly, i1c s<.: ,• 111ed to h e anxious to start.

S:

.J\;.;-nes clid a great dea l for Da\·icl l'C\ppcrficld, Jla,·icl rc'i.:ogn1z 111g he r sympathetic n:•t urc, a11<1 early learned to look
up on her as a sister.

9. One. cby while Jchabocl Crane

\\':1 S

teaching, a little <lark y

ca1nc to linn ancl gave h i n1 an invitation to g() to a party

Su

th e

books \1·cre slung asid e ancl sch•><>l dismiss,, d.
10. T \\'o glances L'(>nvincc<l h im th:1t·
. tl1 e1·e \\',~".·
'"' n o one here ,
the kitchen \\'as as he had seen it last.- HAHIOE.
11. \\" hi c h pro\·es that \\'hen a m:in tl oe s gone! \\'ork o;rt of all
proporti .. 11 to his)>'.!\'. i11 >'C\'(~n l'ascs out of nine there is a \\'otnan
a t tire h ack of the \'i rt11e .- K11•1.1>:<:.
12. Th e docto r \\'Cn t to the inside of the window a11d look ed
in, he coulcl see n othing but hi s o\\·n n:fkction in the mirror and
was <:on.ipletely puzzlecl.-1\..\tuuE.

C. Rewrite these sentence -groups in lari:er units.
What change in the thought takes place ?

l. Pa111hc

111c~J. l· ur•.: d

the tli~1:1n c c lo ~T11rl-:t·...:·d\: naked brc:tsl.

If he sprang at him h e might he trippl'<l u:i. a11d a 1Jii11d t.i,,1•:
at th e chcst sometimes only means a gash on the breast hvne.
Ribs are difficult to thrn~'t between unless th e sul1jec t he askcp.
So he said 11othi11 g; nor <licl the other Lascars. Their faces
immediately clrnpped all expression, as is the custom of the
Oriental \\'IH.:n there is killing on the carpet or any chance " f
t rouJ,Je. Nurkce<l lookerl long at the whit e eyeballs. l!e \\'a'-'
onl y a n African a n<l could not re ad c haracters . A big s igh almost a ;.;rnan - J,roke from him, and he \\'Cttt 11:ick to th e furnaces . The Lasc:trs took up the co:n·ersation where he had
interrn pte<I it. The y talked o( the best methods uf cooking
rice . - K11•1.1:-:c.
2. Some of the m e n \\'e re ner\'ons. One lieutenant \\'as
surl y , and another sang softly lo himself. l was lvld afler\\'ard
that H<H\· anl , nn th e Conconl \\'as found reading- his Hillie.
But Dewey led right ahead. If he fe:iretl mines he did not
show it. E\'id e ntly h e had fai h in the insurge nt chief, \\'ho was
acting as his pilot. Sn on li e \\·ent. There \\'as not h i n g- more
to be done. The ships had bee n cleared for actio n long lJd< •r<:.
Only the most perfunctory orclers \\'L' re gi\'en. The da\\·11 «ame
out of the black suddenly. T he n\\'(:' saw that the" <•ltl man"
kn e w just what lie \\·as about al l the time. Right ah e:Hl uf us
lay the Spanish nt:cl an<l the C;ivite forts. Far up the h:iy was
Manila. \\'e were in for it.

D . Study the following sentences . \Vhy :lre the
forms in the seconu column to lie prefcrreu to those in
the first ?
1. After I had grn1lua led
from the hi gh school I fvuncl
that I was woefully deficient in
rhetoric ancl English composition. I immediatel y set to
work to rem e dy the t \·il. I
got a copy of Hill's Fuuncl:itions of rhetoric an<l started t,,
study it. I also re atl "\\'1H1b
and their meaning ." I read
a number of books, paying

Finding, after I hacl graclu atecl from the high school, that
I \\'as woefully d eficient in
rhetoric and English composi tion, I imm e diately set lo work
to re medy the e\•il. As a fi rst
slcp I studiccl Hill's /·(,unda lions of f,"'hl'loric aiHl ff 'ords
and '/'heir 11!ra11in.i:s . Then,
wit h especia l attention(<> st yle,
I read a number of books-

92

CU.\ll'U::llTlU:\

especial
attention
tu stvle .
Among the book s we re \\',;ndstoc k, Sila s Mar ner, ){ r111wl:1,
Mill 011 the Floss , \\' averle1·.
Th e Spcct:1tur, La s t c>f tl.1e
ll:1ron s . I :ilso wro te sketches
nf the clifferent charavtcrs I
l.':-t rne ~tlT iJSS i n the hooks .

~h·

IJruther, a coll ege g racluat ; ,
c·or-rcckd the m fur m e . Jn
this wa y I \\·as enal.>lecl to pass
th e
llnin.' r s ity e xamination s
after a good deal <i f trnllhk.
2 I g'()t o ff the tra in at San
Jose a nd w e n t to the \'en clo m e
I Iotel. Th e rcn w incler nf tht:
j<1 11rney was to he m:1de ])1·
n1can s of a stage, wliicli

...

wa~"

tt1 start from th is hotel.
'l:ated lll)'Self on the piazza
unti l it wa s time to sta rt. T he
liea11ti f11l grcJ1111ds plea se d me .
l \V :ts interested a n d an1 u~ctl
by the peo pl e nn th e p i:1zz:1.
I t seemed as if c\·c ry cin e aliout

the pla ce ,,·;1s

~ 11i11 g 0 11 ...; 11 nH:

picas11re trip. lt wa s ricling ,
dri1·i 11g , ••r ~lo11nt ll:u.nilton.

3 . A t e ig·h t o' c lock th e professor recei1·cd the party. E\"
crythi ng ab <> u t the p lace \ HIS
s hown to 11s and explained.
Through th e smaller te lescope
I loo keel at the moon. Fnim
t he small teles co p e I wen t to
the r oo m wh e re the la rg-e telescope is kept.
l waitecl an
hour· b efo re my tim e ca me
lo loo k thro ugh th e gla ss .
'l'h, 1111gh the larg-e telescope

.\:\!)

k!I E Tul<l C.

JJ U [LDING SENTENCES.

an1ong- t ile !11 Ii ·, iods!ut-!1· \'ilas
.lfar11cr. N omo/11, Jl/i/! 011 /lit'
Floss , If ·"'" 'rlt')' , Tit,· _<.;/><rlalor,
and '/Z·" l .11sl of //1 1· /!,:ro11s . I
a ls o 1n<> tc ,.l; ctl'he,; of the diffe rent ch :!rt1clc rs I ctnH.: acn1ss in
the IH>e>I<' , :111<1 th ese my
1

••

l saw Saturn arnl his many
sate llites. The ri1i g s could b e
seen v e ry plainly.
4 . Vil lon c<>ul d sec oniy
one way (CJ get a l<>dgi ng
:111<1 that 11·:is to s tc :tl it. l lc

graduate,

not iced a l1o u~c lllll fa r a\\·ay

l'Orn:ckd for m e . In this \\':lV
l 1\·as en :1lilccl. aft e r a good d e<;l
of trou lok, t11 p:iss th e unive rs ity
e xaminati o ns.

an <1 it lool<cd dark and easy
to ).';c t in. lie 11·cnt to t.hc doo r
a11ll kno c ked bol dly . I n a fe w
minut e s a Lill lllan appcaret1
and asked: ''\i'ho i...; it? ''
Tl1 c n Vill o n told him li e h a d
no p lace t o go for the night,
a nd that h e , ,· as n·ry ('llid a:itl
hun g-1-,-. Tlic man asked him
to eume in an ti g a\'c hi m a
good suppe r.

br() th t·r.

:t

col!e g-c

Cetting 11fl the train at San
l \\' e n t to the \ ·c ntl ume
llok l, fro m " ·liic h the stage
that \\' :lS to t:i kc us th e rest 11f
the jn11rney \\'as t11 s tart. Th e

.leis(:,

int e n·ening- tin1c pa sse d ple:i sant l ~-,

for a s I sat on th e pi azza
l got a vi e w of th e lie a11tif11l

g'rounds , and

w as

in te rc stcd

an cl a mused li y the p eopl e
around m e . It seemed as if
e 1·cry one about the pla ce \\'as
g o i ng- on snn 1e pkas11r<' tr iplo rid e or clri1·e, or to visit
~ fou n t l l :1mil t'> 11.
:\t eig h t u' clllck the party
rccc i1·ecl i>y the pr11fesso r,
\\·ho shu\\·e cl a ntl e xp la ined to
us e n·rythi n g abo ut th e place .
Throu g h t he small e r telesco pe
I l< 10kc<l at the moo n, and
:i fte r \\'aiting an hour for my
turn, J saw thro u gh th e large
tel<:scope Saturn a ncl his many
sat e llit es . Th e ring-s c ould he
see 11 ve ry pl:Linly.
\Y :ts

9.1

\'illon co u!tl sc:c onl y on e
\\·a 1· to ge t n. l<Hl g in g- - to st ea l
it. t'-!oti c ing- not far away a
h ouse whi c h looke d cl ar k ancl
easy to e nt e r, he went tu the
d(lor and kno c ke d b"ldly. Jn
a kw minutes a tal l man appea red antl asked : ''\\'ho is
it?" \\'hen V illon t uhl h im th :1t
he had no p lace to go for t h e
night aml that lie w a s \·ery
c"ld and hungry , tile 111 an
ask l'd hin1 to corn e in and Ra\·t:
hin1 a guo1l suppe r.

E. Fin<l ten examples of se n te ncc- fon11s in books
you arc rcalling· that sh ow some \·ariation fr o m the
forms g-iven in section 28.
.F Complete the follow in g sentences:
1. \Vha tC\T r help th e comm;mder may have rc nd e rcrl; \\'h rit·e \-c1· :1 i<1 the eleme nts mav ).'.'i\·e, the
soldier - - (Pred icat e with cbusc ).
2. ( C ondition;tl clause) --- , yet the tracks would l>c
clc:1 red for t ralh c.
.1. (Causal clause) - -, therefore the two p:1r tic s
united to support thi s candidate.
-1-. 'J'honi;h this was one of th e firs t m e rcantile transact ions of m v life - - (Predicate \\·ith exphn at"ry
clause).
.
5. Th e ap pe al of the suppliant was so piteous - (Complem e nta r y "th a t" c bu se ) .
(, . As th e re wa s only o ne thing- to be d one, t o bear
onr own los s \\·ith fortit ude - - (Result clause).
7. They have no sooner fetched th e mselves up to th e
fashion of th e polite worl<..l - - (Complem entary

" than " claw;e).

..:-·

·'

J.

94

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC .

8. (Conditional c lause) - - we find in th em the manners of the last age .
9 . It is one of the first duties of a person - (Ex planatory rcl:ttin.: cl:rnsc, follo\\'ed by an infi niti\'c
co nstructi1rn) .
10 . Il l'l p ful cr itic ism docs not so much puint out
\\·hat is l>ad - - (A balancin~ " as " clause ).
11. \Vi th th e ho pe of retrie,·ing- past blunders, and
<>f doin~· something- re ally \\'Orth while - - (Subject
:mcl predi ca te}.
l 2 . (Participial clau se of explanatio n)-- the gene ral o rd ered his ann,· t<J ret reat.
U. This quality ~f political courag·c - - (Relative
clauses ch ar:tctc1·izing· the qu ality) - - ~cl so n possessctl in an emi nent dc;..:Tcc.
l..J.. l f intern.:ntion liy n:ttion ,\ in the affairs of
natio n H is to·d :ty ;..:ood ]a,,. and ju stice, because of B's
oppression tif a ]l\\r ti o n of ib people.-- (Conclusion).
15. \ Ve may s ay tlnt :-Iacaulav doc s not ).:·o beneath
the surface of events - - (Antith ct ic:d clause).
C. Rc\\"ri te this passage from l\Iacanlay in seve n or
eight sentences:
Th e last N11111blcr was wri tten in a sacl and gl oo my hour.
l>lrs. John so n had heen g-in:: n O\'e r by the physicians. Three
11:.lys later she died. She left h er hllsi>and almos t broken·
hcartetl. Jl!any pe< ipl c h ad been surprisecl to sec a man of h is
ge nius :rnd learning- stoopi1'g- t< > every clrudg-e ry, antl de nying
him self almost every vomfo rt, for the pnrpose of supp lying a
silly, affeclC' d old wo111 a 11 w ith s11p cr lluities, whi ch she a ccepted
with b\lt lit tle );Tat it ude . B ut all his affect ions harl IJeen con·
ce ntrat e 1l <'11 her. l le hacl 1wither hru lher uor siste r , neither
so n no r <laug-htcr. T<> him she wa s he:llltif11J as th e Cunnings,
:rnd wi tty as L ndy >Iary . Il er "Piniun of his writings was
more imp o rtant to him than t he voice of the pit o f Drury Lane
Theatre or th e jtHlgment o f the .lfunlhly N1·;•icw. The chief
support whic h ha tl sustain ed h im t hro u g h the most arduous
la bo r of his l ife: was the h o pe th:-tt she wo\l ld enjoy the fame
ancl the prolit \\·hich he anti c ipated from h is fJidio1111ry. She
was ~one. :11 1d in t ha t vas t la!Jy1·int h of streets, peo ple d by eight
h u ndred th o\lsa ntl humau ucings he was a lo ue.
'l.'et it was

BUI L DING SENTENCES.

95

necessary for him to set himself, as he expressed it, dog-gcclly to
work. After three more labori ous years the J)irlion111y was at
length complcte.- l\IACAliLAY: Lift- uf John son.

fl. Mak e six or seven sentences from this one com plex sentence :
Wh e n I was m ysel f in th e rndirncnts of my poetry, w ithou t
name or re putati<>n in the wor ld , h a ving- r:itht·r tlt e alllhition
of a \\Titer than th e skill; when I wa,; clrawinK th e outlines of
an a1·t, w it h ou t a ny li \·iug- ma ster to inst ruct me in it : an art
whi c h had b ce u he ller praised titan s tudi e d here in En gland.
wherein Shakespeare , wh o created tlte stage among us, had
rather wri tten h:-tppih· than knowingly an d justly ; and J onson,
w ho, by stltllying 1-loracc, had bee n a cqu aint ed with th e r ules,
yet see m e d to enYy poste rity t hei r kno\\·lcd;:e . and, like :u1
in \·e ntor of some usd11J :trl, to make a monopoly of his learning; when thus, as I may say , before the 11sc of the lvadston e , or
kn o\vl edg-e o [ the con1pass, I \\·as sailing in the \' a~t O\.'tan.
without other help than the p ole star,,( the a11 c il'11t s , and tlte
rules o[ th e French st:ige amongst the 11l<•clcrns. which arc
extrem ely d ifferen t from ou rs, l1 y rc:-tso n o f t hei r o pp os ite taste:
yet, even then, 1 h:-t d th e p resumption to dedicate to yo11r lurd sh ip a very unfinishe ll piece, l must confess, and w hiclt only
can be excu sed by the littl e e xper ience of t he author, anl\ the
modesty of the title, An Es:;ay . - lJ!l Y DEN: L::sscJy u11 Satire.

A REVIEW OF PU1\CTUATION.

CHAPTER VI.
A REVIEW UF l'C/\CT LJ i\TION.

29. Uses of Punctuation.- Jf all sentences consisted of
but one simple statement, not more than half a dozen
\\· o n.ls in length, we shonl<l need only the period to
indicate their close. Bnt as soon as we write compound or complex sentences, or long si mple sentences,
we realize the necessity for some mechanical scheme
that will show th e division and the relationship of the
different parts. Snch a scheme is found in the proper
use of the marks of punctuation. The reaso ns for
their u se scarcely need statement.
In the first place, punctuation, like spelling, capitalization, and grammar , is a matter of custom or good
nse. The me thod of po inting· sentences that has gradnally come to be use d among- \\"ri tcrs by common
consent should be observe(], if for no better reason, to
avoid eccentricity. The comma mi).!ht be used in
place of the period after abbreviations, for example,
without causing obscurity . The modern writer, again,
might place the sign of the paragraph (~I) against
every new paragraph, as was once the custom. But he
woul d gain nothing by such deviations from customary
usage . In punctuation, as in man y matte rs, the best
rule is to follow a generai custom when nothing is
gained by breaking it.
Moreover, punctuation assists the reader. Unpunctuatcd sentences arc hard to read , ancl, as a matter of
96

97

courtesy, the writer should not compel the realle r to
make this effort.
The most important reason, however, for using a
consistent scheme of punctuation is that it enables
the writer to make his meaning clear. The omission
or misuse of a punctuation mark may render a sentence obscure or ambiguous. \Vhat sense, for example, does this gr011p of unpunctuated words give?
\Vherever the e nvoys went they were recein·d with d el ight as
they had the means to purchase drink for the natives they easily
obtained the desiretl information.

This sentence is capable of two slig·htly different
interpre tations, depending on the punctuation us ed
after" delight." In the following sentence the absence
of a comma afte r "nothing" wonld materially alter the
sense:
The committee has either cl one something of which it is
ashamed, or it has done nothing, of which it is ashamed.*

30. How to Learn Punctuation.- Like other m:i.tters in
language, punctuation i::; a growth. vVe do not punc·
tuate today as Addison dicl; nor do we punctuate precisely as was the custom twenty-five y ears ago. \\Te
use fewer marks, especi:i.lly commas, for the tendency
is to simplify punctuation as much as possible. The
best way to lea rn present usage in this matter is to
examine modern books published by firms of good reputation for accuracy, and to study carefully the methods used in different sentence-forms. If th e student
will copy in hi::; notebook good examples of the use of
the different marks, he will quickly learn the general
*NOTE .- Another useful function of punctuation may be rnentioncd: the
writer can en1ploy tll c various marks (c socciaily the comma and the dash) to
bring ont emphasis in tl1c sentence . Just as the musician uses svmbols to
indicate time , the

~killful writ e r may mark sli.i.!'ht pauses or chan)...'"es

in thou,s.;ht

by punctuati o n. In this WU}~ punctuation rcudcrs th e inHcctions of the ,·oicc
in spoken lan'-ruai:C.

7

:,

.• ~

98

99

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

A REVIEW OF PUNCTUATION.

laws. Some students, however, will find it easier to
learn rules, and for them the following summary of
the more common usages has been prepared.*

last two words or phrases are united as one element,
parallel in force with the other elements of the senes;
as,

31. The Comma.-The comma is used:
1. To separate elements of the sentence that are
grammatically independent or parenthetical.
II ail , C::cs:u !
There is, moreover, another r easo n that should move you.
No one believes more firmly than I do in the usefulness,
mi:<ht well say the n ecessity, of practical studies .

2 . To separate a conditional or a relative clause from
the rest of the sentence .
Even should 1 brin~ yon peace , you would not accept it.
They \\'ere th e framers of our Constitution, which has end ured
for over a century.

If the sentence had read,-They were the framers of
that Constitution wh ich our fathers supported, - separation b y the comma of the re st rictive clause from its
antecedent \\'Otiid ha,·e been wrong .
3. T o separate a phrase or clause subject (especially
when long) from the predicate.
To hold fast to the trutl1 a s he sees it, is m a n's first duty.

But,To kn o w her is to love h er.

4. To separate all words, phrases, 'or clauses used in
apposition .
Our object is to found a state, one that shall be i•n all time
free and indep e n dent.

5. To separate words or phrases used in a series.
He was poor, lonely, and depressed.

The comma b efore "ancl" (as 111 the illustration)
should not be omitted, except in rare cases where the
* DiKdow '::> l/a,,dbovk of Pnndualion is a convenient reference book, con·
tainint: umplt..! illu strati on of all po:o:isiblc uscN,

She wore a long, faded and dingy ski rt.

Modern usage docs not sanction the following punctuation of words in a series.

h . .·

The principa l shouhl have a voice in the appointment, the
promotion and the llismissal of teachers in hi s school.

A comma sh on hl be inserted after ''promotion,'' for
the three words in the series arc of equal value grammatically.
6. To indicate omitted words.
We respect deeds; they, words.

7. To im1icate a change in subject between the parts
of a compound sentence.
The war was bri ef , but it was decisive .

\Vhen the subject does not change, usually no punctuation is necessary .
The horse ran a mile and th e n stopped at a stable.

8. To rest the eye be tween the elements of a long
compound sentence.
The houl1ll ca111-:ht the scent after a long delay, and led us
over the hi ll to the next piece of woods.

In general, the comma is used to separate those parts
of a sentence that arc 1,;rammatically non-essen tial from
the chief elements - the subject anc1 the predicate - or
to indicate pauses between wonls ancl phrases used rn
a series, or to indicate ell ipses .

32. The Semicolon.-The semicolon has three important uses:
1. To separate short, complete sentences when unite<..!
in one period.

r...,

100

CO~IPOSITION

AND RHETORIC.

This monument may molder away; th e so lid g-round it rests
upon may sink down to a level with th e sea; b~1t thy memory
shall not fail.
His auswer was brief; his manner, courteous.
The ship wallowed in the trough of the sea; but it kept
afloat.

vVhy is a se micolon used in the bst example in place
of a comma?
2. To separate a series of clauses or phrases that
depend upon a common proposition.
The ground strewed with the dead and dying; th e impetuous
charge; the steady and snccessful repulse; the loud call to
repeated assault-all these you have witnessed .
He was courteous, n ot cri ngin g , to superio rs ; affable , not
fam iliar , to equals; and kind, but not condescending, to inferiors.

3. To precede "as," "viz.," "c. g.," "i. e .," etc.
The best example may be fonnt1 near al hand; as.-

Young writers neglect to use the se micolon, especially in the first case cited above, preferring to write
a number of simple sentences. A frequent mi suse of
the semicolon may be seen in the following- sentence:
His ability was unusual in many fie lds ; wherever, in fact, he
cared to apply himself.

The <.lcpenden t clause beginning- with "wherever"
should not be separated from the main clause.
33. The Colon.-In modern prose there is but one important office for the colo n: to indicate anticipation or
summary, as seen in this s entence or in the familiar
punctuation of the opening phrase in a letter, " Dear
Mr. Smith: " For this purpose the colon may precede
a long quota tion, or a l ist of items, or merely the conclusion to a statement.
Some th in gs we can, and others we cannot do: we ca n walk,
bllt we cauuot fly.

A REVIEW OF PL'NCTUATION.

101

Unlike th e comma and the semicolon, the colon does
not merely separate elements of the Sl'lltencc: it points
out the relation 1Jctween elements . The proper u se of
the colon adds greatly to a writer's power over his
sentence .
34. The Period.- Every declarative sentence, which is
a complete grarnm::itical nnit, should end with a periud .
That this simple rnle is frequently violated is shO\nl in
Chapter V. A per iod should also be usecl after e\·ery
abbreviation; as," Dr.,"" ::\Ir.,"" B. D.," etc.
35. Marks of Interrogation and Exclamation.- These
symbols explain themselves. It should he noted. bo\1._
ever, that both the exclamation point and the intcrrngation point may be inserted \\·ithin the sentence; c. g .,
But ah! llim I the first great n1;trtyr in this gn:ilt c·a11se.
\Vou lt1 you receive 11 im? :l11(1 would you ai•l him? corn fort him>
cherish him ?

The use of these marks, when inserted in the sentence with parentheses for the sake of irony is characteristic of vulgar style; e . g., "The great (?) man,"
or," How brilliant (!) this remark was," etc.
36. The Dash.-The dash is used more frequently
now than (ormerly. There arc three instances where
the dash may be used with effect:
l. To point out an cleme nt in the sentence on which
the writer wishes to place special stress .
Yet we in Oxforll, brou6ht np amidst the beauty and S\H·etness of that beautiful place, have not failetl to seiLe one trutli,the truth that beauty and sweetness arc essential characters of a
comp lete human perfection.

2. To point out parenthetical matter w.hich 1s neces sary to the full meaning of the sentence . In this case
the co mma is frequently used with the dash.

..

, ·,

102

CO~IPOSITION A N D RHETORIC .

'.-le was h'.ms('}f a Tory, n ot from rational co1n- ict ion - fo r his
senous op1n1on wns that one form of go\·e rnm e nt was just as
good o r ns bad as another - but fro m m ere pass ion.

3. T o indicate an abrupt change in construction or
thought. .
She lo oke d up- b ut rather at the Jes uit than at H e lbec k.

The dash should no t be usetl c:trc less ly in place of
the other marks of punctu a ti o n. The ab use of the
clash is characteristic of bzy writers.

37. Italics.-In manuscript, worc1s to he italicized are
~mclcrl in c d once; to be pri nted in small capi tals, t wice;
111 heavy capitals, three times .
Titles may either be
pbcccl between quotation marks, or italicized, as the
wri ter prefers . The c::ircful writer is spari n g in his use
of ital ics to show emphasis ; ll Ot e \·cry wo rd that
rccci,·cs stress from the voice in oral deli,·ery should
be i talicized.
Forcig·n words that h::i\· e not been
received into the la11gi_1:1g-e should invariablv be italicized when n scd in a n English se nte nce .
38. Quotation Marks.- Certain cautions should be
o bscrved in quoting . The dou blc marks (") should be
used fo r simple quotat ion ; the single mark ( '), for a
quotation \\·ithin a quotation . \ Vhcnevcr th e quotation
is broken by desc ri ptive stat em e nts of th e author ( e. O" .
"h
. , " ,,
b,
e S:.tJl,,
they m o,·cd a\';ay," "rising- from the
t able, ': etc.), the change should be noted by closing the
quot_at10n antl open ing- it ag:'.lin after the interpolated
words. C::irclcss wr iters frequently fa il to show where
quoted passages end. In quoting lo ng p::issages covering more than one paragraph, the marks of qu otation
should be u sed o nly at the openin g of every paragraph
and a t the encl of the passage.

A HEVIEW OF PUNCTUATION.

103

Exercise VI.
A . Enum e rate five common uses fo r the comma ;
three fo r the semicolon; two fo r the period.
11. Pu nctua te t he followi ng sen tences :
1. \Vere these to l>e .-·o rthily recounted t hey would form a
narrative of n o small int e rest and in str u<.:t i<m and possessing
m o reove r a certa in rem arkable uni ty whi ch mi g ht almost seem
th e result of artistic ar r ~1ngemcnt - IL~WTJI OR>:E.
2 . The men of Engl:HJ<.l th e m e n I mean of light ancl leading
in Englan d whose " ·isclom if they h ave a n y is open and d irect
wou ld be ashamed as of a sil ly deceitful tri ck to profess any
reli g ion in n:-ime which by their proceedings they appear to con clemn- BU RK E.
3 . ·what your politicians th ink the marks o f a bold hardy
genius are only proofs o f a deplorable want of ability- B t:R KE.
4. Then sir fro m these six cap ital sources of descent of form
of government of rel igion in t he n orthern provi nces of manners
in th e southe rn o f educatio n of the re m o ten ess of situation from
the first m over of goYernmen t from all th ese causes a fierce
spirit of liberty has grow n up - B 1;iu.;:E.
5. As for win teri n g where they \\·ere th at drca<lful experiment had been al ready trie<.I too o ften - So VTllEY .
6. B ut o f al l the numerou s congrat ul a ti ons \\'hi c h he recei Yc<l
none cou l<l ha \"e affected him with deeper delight than that
whi ch ca me from h is Yencrable father - SouT1rnv.
7 . He is a clergyman a very philosophic man of general
lea rnin g g reat sa n c ti ty o f life and th e m ost exact goo<l breeding
-

ADDISO;>;.

8. My frien<l Si r Roge r has ofte n told m e \\' ith a grea t deal of
mirth that at his first coming to his estate he found three parts
of hi s house altoget her useless that the best r oom in it had the
r epu tation of being h aun ted and by that m eans was lo ckc<l up
th a t noises had bee n h eard in his long- gallery so th at he <:<>ul d
not get a servan t to enter afte r eight o'cloc k at ni g ht t hat the.
d oo r o f o ne o f his ch ambe rs \\' US naile d up because there \\'ent
a story in the family t ha t a bu tl e r had form erly hanged himself
in it an d th a t his mother wh o lived to a g rea t age ha<l shut 11p
half th e rooms in the house in whi ch eithe r h e r hu sband a son
or a dau gh te r had cliecl-i\001soN.
9. Upon his firs t ri sing the court was hushed and a general

"

COMPOSITION Al'D RHETORIC.

whisper ran aruoni: tlie country pt:ople that Sir l{oger was up AD D1so::-..

10 . We were in some little time fixed in ou r seats and sat with
that dislike whi<.:!1 people not too gooll nat11red us11a!ly conceive
of each ot her at first s ight - A oo 1so::-..
11 . What seems a kind of te mpo raf death to people choked
between walls and curtains is only a light ancl living slumber to
the man who sleeps afie ld- STE\"E:\'SO:\'.
12 . Matthew J\faule on the other hand thoug-h an obscure
man was stubborn in whnt he cons idered the defe nse of his
right and for sc\'eral years he succeeded in protecting the acre
or two of earth which wit'.1 his own toil he had hewn out of the
prim eva l forest to be his garden ground and homestead-HAWTHORNE.
13. Wh at greatly strengthe n s uch a suspicion is the fact that
this controversy between two ill matched antagoni s ts at a period
moreover laud it as we may when personal influence had far
more weight than n ow remained fo r years undecided and came
to a close only with the death of the party occupy ing the disp11ted soil- HAWTHOR:\'E.
14 . Clergymen j utlg-es statesmen the wisest ca lmest holiest
persons o f their day stood in the inner c ircle round abo ut the
gallows loud est to applaud the work of blootl latest to confess.
them sel\'es m iserably deceived - l-L\\\Tl! OHNE.
15. Thus the grea t house was built familiar as it stands in
the writer' s re collections for it has been an object of curiosity
with him from boyhood both as a speci m en of the best and
stateliest architecture of a long pnst epoch and as the scene of
even ts m o re full of human interests per haps than those of a
gTay feudal castle familiar as it stands in its rust y old age it is
therefore o nly the more difTicult to ima;;-ine th e bright novelty
with whi ch it first c:i.ug-l1t t he sunshine-l-IAWTllOHNE.
16 . J\ mere dimness of sig-ht a11d dizi.i 11ess of brain was it or
a disagree:tble choking or stifling or gll rgling or bubbling in the
region of the thornx as the anatomists say or was it a pretty
severe throbbin g and kicking of the heart rather c re ditable to
him than otherwise as showing th at the organ had not been left
ou t of the judge 's physi c al cont ri\·a11ce- IL\WTl!<JR!\E.
17. If we adopt this mode if we mean to conciliate and concede let us see of what nature the concession ought to be BU RK E.

A REVIEW OF PUNCTUATI0:-1.

105

18. If sir we incline to the side o f conc iliati on we are not at
all embarrassed unless we please to make ourselves so by any
incongruous mixture of coercion and restraint - BURKE.
19. Something of this sort seemed to be indispensable in
order amidst so vast a fluctuation of passions and opinions lo
concentrate my thoughts to b:i.llast my conduct to preserve me
from being blown about by every wind of fashionable doctrineBURKE.
20. Plain good intention which is as easily discovered at the
first view as fraud is su rely detected a t last is let me say of no
mean fo r ce in th e government of mankind-BURKE.
21. To impoverish the colonies in general and in particular to
nrrest the noble course of their marine enterprises would be a
more easy task - BURKE.
22 . In 1783 two st:i.ge-coaches were enough for all the tra\·cl lers and nearly all the freight besides that went between these
two cities except such large freight as went by sea around Cape
Cod-FISKE.
23 . Habit keeps the fisherman and the dec k-hand at sea
through the winter it holds the miner in his darkness and nails
the countryman to hi s log-cab in and his lonely farm through all
the months of snow- JAMES.
24. Oh mother mother if thou hadst seen tbe black herd-bulls
pour clown the ravine o r hurry through the gates when the Manpack flung s tones at me- KIPLING.

C. In what different ways may these sentences be
punctuated? Explain the change in meaning produced
by the change in punctuation .
1. In any case he w:i.s n o t pretending a thing whi ch he
desp ised.
2. His appointment to office according to well recognized
precedent required that he support the administration .
3. Deserted by all but a few personal adherents chiefly of foreign extraction and utterly incapable of further resi stance J ohn
accepted the articles of the Barons which were embodied in the
Great Charter at Runnymede on the fifteenth o f Jun e 1215T ASWELL-LANGMEA D.
4. The surrender of the temporal and spiritual ind ependence
· of the Kingdom completed the alienation of the people from the

106

COJ\IPOSITION AND JUIRTORIC.
A REVIEW OF PU?-;CTUATION .

King whose misgoYcrnment h:id brough t on this national humiliation - IBID.

D . 'iVhat are the three correct use s of the dash? Is
the dash nsed properly in this p:iragr:iph from a novel?
"No, no," sai<l her stepmother , eagerly ; "he 's never hard
on them-only on himself . The Church doesn't expect anything m o re tlrnn 'abstinence ,' you unde rstand- not real fasting- from people like th e m-people who work hard with their
h ands . But- I really belicye- they do \"Cry much as he does.
Mrs. Denton seems to keep the house on n ot hing. Oh ! and
Laura-I rea ll y c:in 't he alw:iys h~n· ing extrn things! " -MRS .
H u ~rP111<.Y WARD: fle!bal.: of 1Ja1wisdale.

E. \ Vhat is th e general purpose for which tbe colon
is used? Find in your reading six in stances of the
correc t use of the colon and expbin them .
F. ·wh at m:irk of punctuation is 11scc1 befo re a longq11otation? Before a short one ? Before "e. g-.,"
"i. c.," "viz.," "as," and" thus"? \ Vhen tna y a tnark
of interroi:ati o n o r exclamation be placed within the
sentence? Fiml four cx;imples of such sentences.
(; . Write three sen knce s t o illustrate the correct
uses of the colon; four to illustr:ite the correct uses of
the clash; six, those of the comma; five, th ose of the
semicol o n.
JI. \i\Th cre may we use italics? Arc italics properly
11secl in the following passage ?
My Dear Madam,-J\lthough it is so 1111111y yea rs s in ce Iprofilrd by your dd1:i;·/Jlf11l and i11i •11/11ablc instrnctions, yet I have
c1n· reta ined th e fv11dcsl and most rn·on1lial rega rd for Miss
Pinkerton and rk11r Chiswick. l hope you r health is good. The
worlcl and Ilic rauy of rd11caliu11 c:innot afford to lose J\I iss Pinkerton for many years. \\'h e n my friend, Lady Fuddleston, m en-

tioned that her <lear g irls required an instruct rcss (I am loo poor
to engage a gu \·er ncss for mine , but was I no t CLl u ca tcd at Chiswiek ?), '' \Vho," I exclaimc<l, '' ca n we consult but the excellent, the incomparable Mi ss Pinke rt on?'' lo a word, have you;

107

dear mafl am , any ladies on you r list, whose ser\'i ccs might he
made a\•ai lab le to my kin<l friend and nei g-hbor? I assnre you
that ·she will take no go\·erness but of your c/;oosi11g .
.
My dear hu sbancl is pleasetl to say th:it he l ikes n •c1J·t/1111g
w!tic!t comes from Jl!iss l'i11 kcrto11 's S<"hool . 1 l<>w l wi s h I could
present him and my be love d g irl s to the frit·nd uf my youth, antl
the admired o f the g reat lexicograph e r of our country! If yuu
ever trave l into Hampshire, Mr. Craw ley IJegs me to say he
h opes you wi ll ad o rn our n1ra/ rcrtory with you r presence .
'Tis the humbl e but h:ippy home of your affecti onate M:irtha
Crawley.
.
P . S .-Mr. Crawley 's bnithe r, the Baronet, with whom \\· e
nre not, a las! up o n th ose terms of unity in \1·hich it /l,·, ·um, ·s
brel!trcn lo dwell, has a );O\"erncss for his littl e g-irls, who, l am
told, had the good iortune to lie educated at Chiswick. I hear
vari ous reports of her; a ntl as I h'we th e tenderest mteresl_ in
ruy dearest little uieccs, wh o m I wi sh, in spite of family ditkrences to see among my own children - and as I Ion;; lo be
attentive to any pupil of yours - do, my dear !lliss Pinkerton,
tell m e Ilic hislo1y of this young bel y , whom, fo r your sa k t·, I :tm
m ost anxio us to befrienfl.-M. C.-THACKEH.AY: / 'a 11ity 1"1ir.

/. Punctuate the following- parai:raphs from Macaulay , Southey, and \Vebste r:
1. It is by his poetry that Milton is b est known antl it is of
his poetry that we first wi sh to speak by th e ;;encral suffrage of
the civilized world his place has been assi g ned am.,n g the greatest maste rs of th e art his detractors however thou;;h oiit\'<•ted
have n ot been silenced there are many c riti cs antl s<1111e o{ Kreat
name who co ntrive in the' same breath to extol the poems and
to d ecry the p oet the works th ey acknowledg-ed cmLsidcrcd in
themselves may be classed among the no b lest produ c tions of the
human mind ii ut the y will not allow the author to rank with
those g-reat men who born in the infan cy o f ci \·ilization supplie <I
by th e ir own po\\·ers the want of instruction ai:d thn ug h llcsli ·
lute o f models thcmseh·cs bequeathe d to postenty models wluch
defy imita tion Millon it is said inh e rited what h.is pretle_cessors
c reated he lived iu an enlightened age h e recei ved a l111i,.,h ed
education and we must th erefore if we would form a just csti.
mate of his po wers make large deductions for these advantages - MACAULAY.

.J

"J

, I

108

".

A REVIEW OF PUNCTUATION.

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

2. Yesterday said one of his naval friends the day after the
wedding the navy lost one of its greate~t ornamen ts by Nelson's marriage it is a national lo ss tli:it such an officer shoul d
marry hatl it n o t been for this Kelson \\·oul d have become the
;.;reales t man in th e scn·icc the man w:1s ri ghtly est imated but
he who dcli,·cre<l this opinion did n ot undcrs tanll the effect of
domestic love and dnty upon a mind of the true heroi c stampSo uT HEV.
3. It shonld n ot I.Jc omitted even in this slight reference to
the general measures and general principles of the first pres ident
that he saw and felt the fu ll ,- ~due and importance of the judicial
department of the government :rn up ri g ht and able administration of the laws h e lie!tl to be a life indispe n sable to private
h:1ppiness and pu b li c li berty the temple of justice in hi s opi nion
was a sacred place and he would profane aml p oll ute it who
should call any to mini ster in it no t spotless in character not
incorruptibk in integ-r ity n o t competent by talent and learning
n ot a fit object •>f t1nhesitating trust-\YE!lSTER.

J. \Vhcn arc the full quotation marks u sed? 'vVhen
arc the single quotatio n mark s . l1sccl ? Docs every
exclam:i.tion require the cxcbmation point?
A'. 'vVhen may we omit the comma. between words in
a series? \\'hat is the rule for the use of the comma
before relative clauses?
Pnnduate the follo wing
sentences:
l. Or a ga in if it rained in :rnd P:1r is thro ngh the studio
wind o w loomed recl-cnlored w it h its shiny slate roofs t1nd e r skies
that were ashen and so ber aud the wi ld \\·est wind made woeful
music among the ch imn ey p ots antl little gray waves ran up the
nver the wron g way and the lll org- ue looked chi ll and dark an d
we t anll almost t1ninviting even to three healthy-minded yo ung
Britons th ey would resolve to dine and spend a happy eveni ng
at home- Du MA URIER.
2. It was a loose sa nel y rock which yielded eas ily to th e la bor
bestowed upon it - Dr:: FoE .
3. F o r she stooLl at the head of a dee p g-reen valley carved
from out the mountains in a perfect oval w ith a fence o f s heer
rock standing round it eighty feet or a hundred high fro m whose
brink black wooded hilb s wept up to the sky-li ne - BL\c1010RH.

109

4. At the top of the w oods which do not climb Ye ry hi gh
u pon this cold ridge I struck leftward by a path among the
pines - STEVE:-iSO'.'i' .
5. I thou gh t I had rediscovered one of those truths whi ch arc
revealed to sa vages aucl hid from political economists - STEVENS ON.

6. The next cla y the young rec ruit who had been id le and
overlooked up to that tim e was brough t in to be mad e part of
the big machine.
7. Those who adva nce s uch a proposi ti o n betray their dense
ignorance of the subject.

IIOW TO I NCREASE A VOCABULARY.

111

cates: a small vocabulary actu::t!Jy r estricts th o ught.
Compare these two descriptive passages:
:il!ACKINAC ISLA ND.

CHAPTER VII.
HOW TO !!\TREASE A VOCABULARY.

39. Advantages of Having a Large Vocabulary.- When
c.ommon words are repeated frequently within a few
Imes, th e reader feels quickly the mon o to ny and nar~ownc ss of the. writer's vocabu lary . The following
s e ntences, fo r mstance, show ho w unpleasant such a
r estricted choice o f words may make even very simple
writing-:
J\!Y ROO)I.

. I have for my roo m a bi g roo m at t he to p of th e h o use , which
is rea lly the g ues t room; I.mt it h appens that m y roo m downl · 'l I
st:11rs is occupied, and therefore I h:w e th e g-uest r oo m
j'
h b
·
, W 11 C 1
1i;:e m uc
e ttcr. It exten ds the width o f the ho u se froiu front
to bac k, and has si x wind o\\'S \\' hic h let in much s un
It 11
f'
l
·
·
·
as a
1rep ace with bl ue tiles, the same color as the fi gu res on the
wln te wall paper. Unfortun a tely thi s fireplace smokes ver
m.u~h. when. the re is mu ch wind, and the refo re in su ch a plac~
as Ch1.ca1ro 1t 1s not p oss ib le to use it much. Ne xt to the firep la ce. IS a little b ookcase in wh ic h I keep my books , and next to
that 1is a hi g h win dow
. very
. seat o n which I keep th e boo ks. I use
mu c 1 and where I IIk e to st udy. I am a fr a id, h o wc \'er, that I
<lo n ot study as mu c h th e re as I might somew here el se , for I can
see all that goes on o ut of doors, and that keep s m e from
stuclyrn g . In tlt c front encl of the roo m is a Ia1xe ro und tab le
that was once a <l ini ng ta b le . This tab le is u sua lly covered with
books.

The· r epel
t't 1on
·
o f " r oo1n," " 1nuch , " "is," "books"
etc., betrays eithe r care lessness or a m eage r s tore ~f
words. The di ffi culty with a small vocabul a ry, h owever, l."~ a 111ore s<.:nous
·
matter t Jrnn this example indi110

Mack in ac I sl::i.nd is a s mall islan d n orth of th e southern peninsula o f Michigan. It is a fav o r ite µlace fo r to uri sts in summer
tim e wh o go there to see th e 1.Jeau t iful sce nery and ot h er poi nts
of general interest, and t o have a good time generally. T he re
are a num ber of soldiers stationed th e re wh o guard and ta ke
care of the place.
Th e first thing one sees wh e n one gets to the place an<1 gets
off the boat is the la r ge white h<, tel called the Astor ll ousc.
This h otel was bui lt b y old J o hn J acob Asto r whe n he w as
gathering fur to sell t o th e furri ers. It is a n o ld -fashioned hott:!
with la rge rooms an<l a large ve rand a which extends al ong t he
fro nt.
Th e n e xt thing people go to see is a roc k ca lled L o vers' L eap .
Off thi s rock an In dia n mai den, wh e n s he heard that h e r lo ver
was d ead, le aped into the lake. The roc k is about s ixteen feet
high a nd o n the edge of th e la ke e xte ndin g d o wn pc rpendicu·
larl y . A la dde r has b ee n pl aced on one side of the roc k, so th a t
peop le can clim b to the top o f the rock .
The guide then lea,Js one to anoth e r roc k called Sugar L0af
Roc k, wh ic h is abo ut seventy-five feet hi g h and shape d n early
like a lum p of suga r, e xce pt th a t the top is rounde d . T here
are many li ttle kn o bs and projec tions by which many boys try
to climb to the top .
JI HL L CATE.

Abou t six miles fro m the rcno wn c<l c it y of the llfanhattocs, in
that so und or a r m of t he sea whi ch passes b e tween th e mainland
au<l Nassau, or Lung Island , t here is a narro w stra it , w here the
curre nt is , ·io le ntly co mpressed. b e tll'ee n shouldering promonto ries an d ho rri bly perple xed rock s and shoa ls . Rein g, at the
best of tim es , a v e ry , ·iole nt, impe tuou s c u rren t, it tak es tiH:'c
impediments in rni5ht y <lud gcu n, bo ili ng in whirl pools; bra\\' ling and frett ing in ri p pl es; ra g ing and roaring in rapicis and
bre ake rs; and , in s h o rt, indulging in all sorts o f wrong- he a ded
paroxysms. At s uc h ti mes , w oe t o a ny unlucky vesse l that
ven tu res within its clutc hes .
'!'his te rmagant humor, h o we ver, pre vail s o n ly at ce rta in
times of tide. At low water , for in stance, it is as pac ifi c a

112

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC .

HOW TO INCREASE A VOCABULARY.

stream as you would \:ish to see ; but as the tide rises it begins
to fret; a t half tide 1t roars with mi g ht and main like a bu11
bellowi1'.g for more drink; bu t when th e tide is full it relapses
mto qmet, and, for a time, sleeps as soundly as an alderman
after dinner.- IRVING.

Most of us, indeed, feel vaguely this need of word s
to represent half-formed ideas, or to distinguish different ideas that res emble each other superficially. These
common exclamations betray this: "You know what I
mean,"" I can't think of the right word,"" The word
I am after will come to m e in a moment ," etc. Tb e
right word will not come, however, unless th e speak e r
.has seen or heard it at some time, unl es s it has be en
caught ancl lodged in the brain, and also used. Again,
even if we have some sort of word tu answ er for
our idea, it m ay not be the exact te rm that will separate our thought from many others nearly lik e it. Fur
example, le t us try to find a word that will describe
a p oo r man; he is n o t merely poor, this ma n , hut he is
both habitually without means and so absul ute ly poor
that the general t erm is not strong enough. Is he,
then, a b eggar? No, because a beggar indicates something- besides pove rty ; it indicates a moral attitude ;\s
well as a physical condition. This man, who is lu bit uall y and absolu tely poor, who belongs to a class of
the poor that will always be poor, is a pauper. That
shade of meaning is now firmly establish ed .
lVforeover, it is not merely for the sake of writin i..:·
that a large yoc abulary is ncecle<l. Not on1y must the
writer hav e many words to defi ne his thoug-ht, hut the
reader must also have a co rrespondini:; sense of distinction between words in order to get all that the
writer inte nds to convey.
To sum up, the chief reasons for cultivating a wide
vocabulary are: first, because words, like pieces of
money, n.:prcsent we alth- the more symbols the more
ideas; second, becanse if we have three words or
more that repre sent very nearly the same thought, we
can distinguish just what we do mean more clearly

The first passage, like the description of th e room
seems thin and bare compared with Irvin g' s acc 01rnt of
"Hell Gate." Not only are common words r epeated,
but also the objects mentioned are n o t vividly described, because the write r evidently docs not po s sess
the words to apply to them. His few words arc counters of the m ost necessary kind fo r daily interco urse.
The second pass age, on the other hand, contains no
repeated words.
Irving has fresh adjectives, v erbs,
~nd n ~uns for each sentence . Although the vocabulary
is a s imple one, variety g ives the charm of novelty.
Moreover, Irving gets more out of his subject than
does the author of " Mack inac Island," not necessarily
because it is more suggestive or impressive, hnt
because he has words to represent its every feature.
Probably th e author of the first passage could not
number more than five hundred words in his entire
vocabulary.
In:ing uses over one hundred different
terms in two short paragraphs.
For purposes of m e re existence, a few hundred overworked w ords will answer w ell enough. It is safe to
say, however, that such a small v ocabulary impli e s a
narrow range of thought.
vVords represent objects
and ideas ; generally speaking, few ideas call for few
words, and, conversely, the use of few words indicates
the possession of few ideas. As a rule, a man who
has at the most a thousand term s for expressing his
wants, his feelings, his r eflections, has fewer wants
feelin gs , and reflectio ns than the man who has tw~
thousand words at his command.

8

JU

.y

. ·~

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11-t

llS

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC .

HOW TO INCREASE A VOCABULARY.

( e . g ., w o m :m, b d y, mother; h ou se, residence, home;
co ntrive, m ake , experiment , etc.); third, b ecause variety
re :-;b th e re ader's mind an d gives him enjoyment ;
fu urth, lx:cause the possession of many words aids
()Ur exac t understanding of writers who use many
word s t o differentiate th e ir ideas. Much valuable
tho ught is mi su nd e rst ood, o r but h:ilf understood when
th e r eader has o nly a ,-a~uc idea of th e words used.
In sh o r t , ad d t o yo ur s to re o f wo rds in order that you ·
may have a richer mental li fe antl that you may never
b e at a lo s s for the rig-ht word when you want it.
40. Two Kinds of Vocabularies.- It is a commonplace
th a t we unde rs t and many words which we never use. If
it were othe rwise, m :my book s would be unintelligible
t o most o f us. The following paragraph contains a t
least a dozen wortls th a t we use rarely or never, and
ye t we unde rstand ea sil y the s ense of every statement:

Yet, alth o ugh no t unfamiliar whe n we see them, th e y do
n o t co me readily to hand when \Ve are using wo rd s.
Another passage, this time from Mr. Bryce, will further
illu strate this point:

It see m s as if a grea t deal \\·e re attn in a bl e in a w o rld whe re
the re a re so many m a rriages an d d ecis ive battles, and where we
a ll, at ce r tain ho urs u[ the da y, and with gre at gu sto a nd
cles p:ttch , sto w a p orti on of v ic tu al s fi nall y an cl irn.: trie vahly into
th e h ag wh ic h co n ta ins u s . J\n<I it wo uld see m a lso , on a hasty
vi e w, th a t th e attaiument o f as mu ch ns p oss ib le was the one
go al of man ' s cc>11tenti o 11 s life. J\ncl y e t, as regnnls the spirit,
t his is bu t a se mbl a n ce . \\"c li\"e in nn asce n d in).( sca le wh e n we
live h appil y , one th ing leacl ing t o a n<> th e r in an e ndl ess series.
T he re is a lwa ys a n e w ho rizo n fo r o nward · loo king m e n, and
a lt h o ugh w e dwell o n a sma ll pl a net, immerse(] in p e tty business
and n o t entl uring beyo nd a brief p e riod of years, we are so con s t itute d tha t o ur ho p es are ina ccc ss ihl e , like st a rs, and the term
of ho p ing is prolo nged unt il t h e te r m of li fe. -STEVENSON.

There is no reaso n why we sho ul d not use in speech
and writing such words as "attainable," "decisive,"
" g u s to ," " despatch," "irretrievably," "contentious,"
"semblance," "ascending," "imm ersed, " " constituted , " "inacc<.: ss iblc, " - 11o t one of which is bookish .

The lon g-suffe rin g tol erance o f publi c opini o n t o wards in co m·
pete nce and misco nduct in officials and publi c m e n ge ne ral ly is
a feature which has str u c k rccent E u ropea n obse rvers . It is th e
more remarkable b ec au se nowhere is exec utive ab ility m pre
value(] in th e m a na ge m e nt of pr intte con cerns, in wh ic h the
stress of competition fo rces eve ry manage r lo secure al whate,· c r
pri ce the most able subordin a tes. \Ve may attribute it partly to
the g-ood nature o[ the people , whi c h makes th e m o ve r-leui e nt to
nearl y all niminals, p a r tly to the preoc cupatio n with their private affairs of th e mos t e ne rg-eti c a nd useful men, who th e refore
can not spare time to un earth abu ses and g e t rid of offe nd ers,
partly to an indiffere n ce itHl ucecl by the fata list ic sentime nt
whi c h 1 ha ve a lready sought to describe.

Mr . Bryce has no t used a \v o rd that all cann o t co mprehe nd r eadil y , ye t h o w rare ly do we hear the s e e x act
terms i n d aily sp eech o r find th e m in th e s e nte nces of
ord inary write rs! Th e first step, then, in o ur effo rt
towards acquirin g a vocabulary, sho uld be to make o ur
passive word-store into a wo rking, useful word -s to re .
41. Use of the Notebook.- Some people easily remember wo rds o nce h e ard or seen , anJ see m to take
plea sure in usin g th e m. F o r su ch p e rso ns, no spec ial
effort is needed; reading will add gradually t o th e ir
stock of words . Most of u s, however, read more or
Jess h eedlessly, contenting ourselves with a passmg
ac quaintance with unfamiliar wo rds . Th e fi rst step,
then, is to be sure that we really understand the wo rds
we see . For this purpo se it is a good plan to kee p a
special noteboo k for words and to e nter in it at least
five n e w words each clay. It will not be enou gh
merely to copy the words in the n o tebook, althou g h

__

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116
1.

'I j

i jl

.: d

HOW TO INCREASE A \ "OCAHlJLAR\".

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC .

eve n that practice will help one in fo rmin g- a vocabulary. Each word should be followed by :i.s many of
its meanings as the student knows ,,·ithou t th e aid of
the dictionary . Later, he should look up each word
in an unabridged dictionary, copy into his noteboo k
any new information he may gain about its definition,
and add several synonyms. Lastly, it w ould be well to
acl<l in a third column a number of useful derivatives .
By this time the word ,,·ill kt,·c become familiar as a
reading- word. Everything now depends upo n the will
of the student to '//Sf the word, and it s dcrinttivc s, in
his speech and \Hiting-. lk shoul<l m ake a point of
enjoying his new possessions. Only a few w o rd s each
day can be treated in thi s th ornug-h manner, hut it is a
good pbn to mark any unfamiliar wonls that occ ur in
a text-book, or Eng-lish classic. A second careful 1·eading of the passa~·e may explain some\\'hat th e 111e:i.ning
of the m arked wonls; they will not h e fixed in the
memory, howcYer, until the rc ack r has taken the pains
to look them up .
42. Study of Synonyms.- In cvc rv school libr;"trv there
shoul ll be iountl one or more \.,;iumcs "f ,.;yrn',11ynb ,
whi ch treat that large class of words th;"tt arc n ea rly,
though not quite, identical in meaning·. But the best
hook of synonyms is that \\'hich the student .makes for
himself by g-atherinh:· from his memory and fr om the
dictionary all allied terms; e . g., party, company,
g·athering, clan, a s sembly, congregatio n, meeting, etc .;
reply, retort, rejoin, r espond, answer, etc.; beautiful,
lovely, handsome, pretty , exqu1s1tc , etc.; money,
wealth, riches, m eans, plenty, etc.
Before making the final draft of a theme, the \\'riter
woultl <lo well t o unucrscore in pencil every r epeated
word of any importance , especial ly repeatcu verbs ancl

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117

adjectives . If such words arc used twice or oftener
through carelessness, or ign orance of any llcttcr word,
the writer must r esort to c1ict iona ri cs o r llooks of syn onyms. \Vords sh ould lie r epeated freely for ernph:.sis
and fo r clc:.rness, but \\'h e re the student repc:tls C<•nscionsly for these purposes once, h e will r epeat a dozen
times inadvertently.
This is espec ially true in the
case of verbs.
43. The Use of Concordances.-" I rarely consult my
dictionaries," an English sch(Jlar once said . "\Vhen I
want to find OlTt h o w to use a wurd, I go to t he masters o[ English \\'ho have used it again a11cl agai1L"
This docs not m e an that he r e ad one of ilfacaula:(s
essays tn find out th e latter's use of the word" lienig-n."
for example, but that he turned t<J concurda11ccs (ur
special clictionaries fur ll.iITerent authors) to examine
the qu ot;\t 1ons \,!'in:n th c rc under the ''·"nl. U1,J,- 1>n·asio11ally c:tn we trc:1t a word in such an cx lnusti,· c
fashion, \Jut when \\'C <lo Lt kc the p:tins to <..'.xplorC the
past experiences of :. word at the hands of our g- rc at
masters of speech . we have made a g-ond friend L1 r
life-.
44. Tra.nslation.- An oth e r great help in acqutrll'1;.,:' a
large and Yaried vocabulary should he the task nf
translation, especially from Greek and Latin .
Of
course, if the s t uden t contents him,;eif ,,·ith onc E11~­
li,;h word t o he usc<l on ail occ asions as the equivalent
of one foreign wo rrJ , h e wil l make littl e prug-ress in
either langu:ig·c. This bad habit is en co uraged by the
use of special glossaries or vocabularies, which a;·c
prepare<] for the lazy. Tn the c:i.sc of common (•r
important words, an amhitious s t ud e nt will n ever content himself v\'ith the information given by th ese . J\n
everyday example of ,,·hat is meant is the word ;nr.

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.....

.

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118

COMPOSlTION A ND RHETORIC .

Most beg inners in L1ti11 think that the Engl ish word
" man" will tr:-insla te <:ir in all cases; someti m es they
remember th:-it <·ir means "hero." But v ir means also
"h us band," and sometimes in the plura l, " foot-sol (]ie rs ."
Its real m eaning is fou nd in the Eni;lish
derivatives such as "viril e" a nd "viril ity"; i. e., 'iJir
is the kind of a human bcin;::- \\·ho possesses the distinctly masculine qua li ties.';: To enlarge his English
Yocabulary, the student should master the various
importa nt literal mcaning·s of a ny g-iven word, its figurati\'C me:ming·s, and some ()f its English derivatives
if t here arc any.
.'
45. Special Vocabularies.- Each trade or art has its
own Yocabubry, much of which, to be sure, is not
useful for genera l purposes. Yet en; n ve ry special
I as " swl\·e,
. 1 '' i' warp,"
.
t eims,
sue1
clo u ble-entr v,"
"harrow," etc., enrich our vocabula r ies by defi 1;ite
ideas :rnd arc frequently used figuratively. Let no
oppo rtunity pass for acquiring special terms wi th their
ex:1cL meanings. The Yocabularics of the arts and the
crafts \\'ill add greatly to our store of definite images
and picture~;que, illu strat i,·c \\·orcls. A word m ay be
said here fo r an intcllig-cnt interest in coll o quial isms
:rncl provincialisms; racy idi o ms of the people arc fast
disappearing as the count ry becomes unified . The
habitual u se of dialect forms is hardly t o be enco uraged , y et an apt u se of an expression from the soi l
adds to the st r e ngth of our diction . How much shou ld
we miss without the New England \\'Ord" chore, " th e
Southern worcl " tote," the m o un tain word "moo nshine" ! When u sccl in writi ng, ho wever, s uch co ll oq uialisms should be indosctl in quotat io n marks in
H

* ~OTE . ·- Thc work o f translati o n is n ot completc<l w he n the words are
tl1orouiid1l;· underst ood . Groups of w o rds. or idio ms, n1ust be rendered by
corresp onding idiotns; c. ~ .. /,11·.un -allr·r by "t o c-o as you pl ease." This
part of trans lation will be discussed in the chapte r on Translation-Ensrlish.

BOW TO INCREASE A VOCABULAk\'.

11'J

order to indicate that they are not established in good
use.

46. Summary of Chapter.-To conclude, a wide vocabulary means freedom. \Ve must become free of our
language (as it was said anciently of a town or state),
if we are to express o urselves effective ly ancl com pletely . \Vo rds are curiously human things; they carry
with them r o mantic stories . Each one , no matter h ow
unobtru sive it may seem , differs from its fellmY, ancl
is u seful in its own way . The truth o f the m atter is
n1mme<l up in these pithy sentences :
It is important, therefore, for anybody who would cultivate
l 1im self in English to m ake strenuous and systematic efforts to
aularge his vocabulary . Our dictionaries contain m o re than a
hundred thousand words. The average speaker employs ahout
three th o u sand. Is this becanse ord ina ry people have 011\y
th ree or four thousand things to say? Not a t all. It is sim ply due to dulln ess. Liste n t o the average schoolboy . II e has
a dozen or two nouns, half a dozen ve rbs , three or fou r adjectives, and e n o u gh conj un c tions and prep os itions to stick the
conglomerate to gether. This ordinary speech tleserves th e
Llescriptiou which Hobbes gave to his Sta Ii: ol JVu!11n', that " it
is solitary, poor, n a sty, brutish, and s h ort." The fact is, we
fall into the way of thinking that the wealthy wonls are for
others and t hat they do not belong to us . \ Ve are lik e t hus•'
who have received a vast inheritance , but who JH!rsi st in t he
in ~o nveniences o f har<l u eds, sca nt y food , rude clothi ng , who
never travel, and who limit thei r purchases to th e bleak necessities o f life. Ask suc h people why they e n du re nigi;anll y living
while we alth in plenty is lying iu t he uank, and they can only
answer t hat they ha\'e n ever lea rned h o w to spend . But th is is
worth lea rning. .llli lton use d eight thousand words, Shakespea re
fifteen th ou sand. \ Ve have a ll th e subj ects to talk about that
1.hese ea rl y speakers ha<!; anll in addition we have bicycles and
~ci ences and s tri kes and political combinations a nd all the nJm plicatcd living o f the m odern world.
\Vhy, t hen, do we h esitate to s we ll our worcl s to m eet o ur
.1eeds? It is a nonsense question . There is no reason. \Ve are

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121

COMI OSITION 1\ J\D RHETORIC.

HOW TO INCREASE A VOCABULARY.

s imply lazy; too lazy to make ou rse lves comfortable. We Jet
our vocabularies be limite d, and get along rawly with ou t the
refi n eme nts of human int ercourse, without re fin e m e nts in ou r
own thoughts; for th ou ghts are almost as dependent o n words
as w o r ds on th o u ghts . F or example, all exaspcr a ti o ns we lump
tog-ether as " aggravating," n ot cons ide ri ng- wh e t he r th ey may
n ot rather be displ easing, ann oying, offcns i\'e, disgust in g , irritat ing, o r e ven madd e nin g: and \\'ith o ut observing-, too , that in
ou r re ckless usage we h:l\'e burned up a word whi c h mi g ht be
conven ient when we shou ld need to make s o m e s lia<ling of the
\VC•rd "i ncrease ." Li ke the bad cook, we seize th e frying-pan
whene\'c r we ne ed to fry, b roil , roast, or ste w, and then we
wonder why all uur dishL·s ta ste alike while in the next h ou se the
fo od is appetizing. It is a ll unn ecessary. Enlarge the vocabulary. '
L et anyone who wants to see himself grow, resoh-e to adopt
two new w unls each week . it wiil not be lun g l;clore the
endless and enchant ing \' aricty of th e wo rld will begi n to reflect
itself in his speech , a nd in his mind as \\'ell . I know that when
\\·e use a word fo r the iirst time we are startled, as if a fire cracker went off in our neigh\Jorl1ood. \Ve look alJout has tily
to see if anyone has noticed. But finding- that no o ne h as, we
m a y Le emboldened. A word used three t im e s si ips off the
ton g ue wi t h e ntire na turalness. Th e n it is ours fo reve r, and
wit h it some phase of life wh ich had bee n lacking hith e rto.
For each wonl presents its own point of vi ew, disc loses a ~pecial
aspect of t l1i n p; , reporb so me little im p orta nce n o t othe rwi se
con veye d, and so cont ri liu tcs its sm:dl emancipatio n to our
tieLl-uµ m inds and tongues.-<.;. ll. PAL~I ER : Sdf-C11/tivatio11 in

part, flow s into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Between the Appa lachian and th e R ocky Mountai ns , lies the ce ntral part, and the
Miss issippi Rive r and its tw o great tributari es , the Mi ssou ri a.ncl
Oh io Rive rs, drain it. Of the part west o f the Ro c k y Mountams
the two principal ri\•e rs are the Co lorado and the Colum bi a .
The Colorado Rive r drains the southe rn part and flows into the
Gulf of California; the Columbia River drains the northern part
and fl o ws into the Pacific O cean.

English.

Exercise VII.
A . Rewrite the fo llowing- the m es , u si nl! new words
for the repea ted te rm s:
1.

THE DRAINAGE OF :o;QRTll A~I E fUCA.

North Am e r·i ca is di\'ic1ed into three parts: the eas tern,
the central , an fl t he weste rn part. ~!any small rive rs drain the
easte rn part of the Appal ac hian Mountains and the Atlantic
coast. Hudson Ri,·er , which drains th e south pa rt, fl ows into
the Atlantic O cean; the St. Lall'reucc, wilid1 drains the north

2.

FE:UDA J .lSM.

In Englnn<l at th e time of \Villi a m the Con que ror it was
c ustomary for th e KinR tn g-ive any land b elong ing to him to his
n oules o r lurd s f<> r any service th ey ha<l d one . ,\t :irs t thi s bn d
was give n wit hout any co ndi t ions , but afterwa rd th e ow n er o f
the land m ust collec t men for the king in time of wa r. The
th anes , , vho \\~ere the noh 1es

1

:-..nd the bishnps, in tlH:- ir turn,

w o tild give lan<l to !he ir inferio rs, an<l these in fe1· iors woulrl till
th e gro und fo r the barons. \Vhen an y land was given, the person whu ,._~: 1 \·c...· the 1anl1 .'llll1 the pcrsu n to whon1 the land ''a~~ to

be

~i ven.

"·o uhl t:-il'e an oath and sw ear the firs t to pru tect tt-:e
1

seco nd, an ll the sccon ll to serve the first. The huts u f the• serfs
were generally buiit a bout the fortilied house of the barons:
in t h is \\'ll\' he co uld pr01ect them. The Jl<""l' le iiving- on t lt e
land of th ~ baro n \\'e re jud g ed by him; and if the baron ha d to
fi g ht a du e l hi s peop le must g ive their serv ices and fi g ht fo r h im.
The king always cal le d toc<cther a conocil at Ch ristm as, E aster ,
ao<l \V hitsuntide, an<l th is all the th a nes had to attcn<l. The
king also had the right of collectin g annual cl ues when he went
to wa r, at the time whe n h is eldest so n was knighted, an<l at the
m a rri age of his eldest daughter . The feudal system was ,·cry
good both for th e ri ch an d p oo r as they we re in constant \\'arfarc, beca use the p oo r peo ple gave their se rvices and the king
prntcction.

B. Supply adjectives, nouns, and verbs in the spaces
left blank:
L A belt o f rh ododendrons grew close down to one side o f
o ur pond; and along th e edge of it many thin gs - -- rankly.
If yo u - - - through the undergrowth and - - - by the wa tcr·s
rim , it " ·as easy-if your imagination were in - - - wor kill g
o r der - to - - - y0 u rsel f in a - - - to the - - - o f a trop ical forest. Overhead the monkeys-- - , parrots - - - from

:

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122

123

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

HOW TO INCREASE A VOCABULARY.

b o ugh to bou g h, stran ge larg e bl ossoms - - - around you , and
the - - - and - -- o f great beasts m oving un seen thrille d you
And if yo n la y down with yo ur n ose an in ch or two
fro m the w a te r, it wa s not lo ng e re the old sense of proportion
- - - clea n awa y . Th e - - - insects that - - - to and fro on
it s surfa ce becam e sea-mon ste rs - - - , the gn a ts that - - abo ve th e m - - - a lba trosses, an <l th e p o nd itself - - - into a
vas t itilnn<l sea, whereo n a navy m igh t - - - sec ure, and
wh e n ce a t an y m o m e nt t he ha iry scalp of a sea-se rp e nt might
be seen t o - - - . - KEN:<IETII CHAJLl:\11!:: Thr (;olden .//ge.

numbe r o f s mall colleg-es , espec ially in th e Missi ss ippi an<l P acific State s, is i 11rrcas i11g'. The c hara cte r of th e E aste rn P ac i lie
Stale s is in c re a s ing. The character of the East e rn uni,·arsities is b e ing co ns tantly 111odificd. The form e r multiply b eca use,
und e r the F e d e ra l syste m, eYc ry State like s to have its own
unive rsities numerous, and its inhabitants i11dt'pe11dc'lrt o f ot he r
State s, e,·en as re spec ts educatio n; whil e the al11111da 11ct' o f
we alth, t h e d es ire of ri c h m e n to co111mt·111orale th e m se lY cs and
to b e nefi t their 0 11111111111ily , and the 1·i1•c1/1y of the churc he s, le a d
to th e cs/ab/ish 11 u·11 t nf new co ll q .: e s where none arc n eed e d anrl
where m o ney w o u icl b e tte r be sp e nt in impro v ing th ose whi ch
exis t. fndi z·idu a /ism a nll la isSC".: faire ha ve in this ma tte r, at
least, free srof>i', for a State legislature is ah\"ays rcacl y to rlrar/1·r
any numbe r of new d e gree -givin g bodi es . J\feam\·hil e , the grea t
in stiluliuus o f t he At la nti c States co n t inu e to e.1P._.111 rl and
deve lo p, n ot merely owin g to the accrdiun of we al t h t.o th e m
from t.he liberality of bo1efaclors, but bec ause they are 111 cl ose
tou ch with Europe, resolved to brin g their highest edu catio n up
to the E uropean le \' e l antl to kee p p ace with the pro g rc,;s of
sc ience , fill e d with tha t lo\'e of e xpe rim e nt and s pirit o f orll'rprise w hic h are so mu c h st ron ge r iu Am e ri ca th a n an ywh ere
else in t he w o rl d . - BR YCE : .-./ 111rrirc1n Co11111w11 wra/lh ·
4. Ju s t n ow , w he n e Ye ryon e is bo und, un<ler pain of a dt·rrce
in absrnt"C co nvi ct in g th e m o f !rsc-rcsj>cdability, t o e nt e r on
so m e /urrc1/i;•c pro fessio n, and lab o r th e re in with somethi ng not
far sh o rt o f c11/h11 sic1 .rn1, a c ry from the oppo site part y "·h o arc
conte nt when they h a \' e eno ugh, and li ke to loo k o n a n d e n joy
in the mcan\\'h il c , sm·ors a litt le o f bra z•a do and ;;asro11adr .
And ye t th is sh ou ld no t be. Idl e ness , s o -calle d, wh ic h d ocs
n ot co n sis t in d o ing n o thing, b u t in d o ing a great d ea l no t
re co gni,,cd in the do.~walic fur11111/arics o f the rulin g cla:<s , has
as good a ri g ht to s tate its position a s i11d11s/1y itse lf.. It is
admitt ed that tlt e prese nce o f p eo ple who re fuse to e nte r 111 the
g re at handicap race for s-ix-penny pieces is at on ce an in s ult anrl
a disr11t·ha 11t111r 11t for th ose \\' ho <l o . A fin e fell o w (as ' "e see so
m a ny) ta kes hi s dclc r111 i11at io11, vo tes fo r the six pences, .a nd , in
th e c 111phatic Am e r ica ni sm, "goes fo r" th e m. And whil e su ch
an one is pl o u g hin g disfrcss fully up the road, it is n o t h a rd tu
unders tand hi s rese11t111c11t wh e n h e p erceives cool pe rso ns 111 th e
meadows by the waysid e lying with a handkerchief oye r the ir
ears aud a glass at their elbow. Alexander is touched in a very

C. In th e follo wing sel ectio ns, explain care fully all
the italicized words anc1 su ggest one or two synonyms
fo r each one :
l. T o be sure , there wa s a n r.rrcptiort in th e r11 rrrte, who
wo n ld rece ive 11 11b/1·11 rhi11.;; th e i11for11111tion that the meadow
bt'yo n d th e o rc h anl was a pra iri e studdrd with herd s of buffalo ,
\\·hich it wa s our delight, m occa s ined and to rnaha,\·kc<l. to ride
dn \\·n wi t h th ose whoop s th at a11 1101111ce th e src11ti11,1; of bl oo d.
I le ne it he r lau g he d no r s neered . a s the [otha!r '' g rown -ups• ']
would h a \'e done; b ut possessed of a se ri o us idiosy11crasy, he
IV<>ttlcl co11trib11 /,· suc h lo ts of valuable su gges tio n as to th e p11rs11il o ( t his partic u la r sor t o f b ig g ame th a t, :is it see me d to us,
his 111a /11rc ag-e a u d cmi11 r11 t pos itio n c o uld sc:irce h a ve been
at ta ined w ith o u t :i pra ct ical k no wledg-e o f th e creature in its
native lc1ir.- K EX"l\"'E TII G HAflA~ tE : Tire C olden .//g'f" .

2 . \Vi t h :ill hi s fault s - and th ey \Vere neither few nor s mallo nl y o n e crmcfrry w ns wo rthy to conta in hi s rem a ins. 111 that
temple of s ile nce ancl n·ro11cilia lio11 , w he re the 0 1111ilics of
twe nty .r:-cnr ralio11s lie buried, in th e Great ./lbbry which has for
ages afforded a q u ie t res ti ng- p lace to th ose wh ose minds and
bo dies ha ve b een slraltercd b y th e co11tn1/io11s o f th e Gre at Hall ,
t he du s t of the ill11 slrio11s a cc use cl sh o uld have bee n mingled
wi t h th e d ust o f the illus tri o u s acc users .- MACA U LAY: /l 'arren

/lastings.
3. Mo reo ve r, the A merican uni ver sities and colleges are in a
sta te of lra11sition. True, n ea rl y e ve ry thing in Ameri ca is
c h a nging, the apparently inflexible Co n s tituti o n n o t excepted.
B ut the changes that are pass in g in the univers ities are only to
be paralleled by those that pass in the Wes tern cities. The

!'

124

125

COMPOSITION Al\D RHETOR IC.

HOW TO INCl{EASE A VOCABULARY.

delicate place b y the disrq;ard of Diogenes. Where was the
g lory of having taken Rome for these l1111111/l11011s barbarians,
who poured in to the Sen:lte house , :111cl founcl the fathers sitting
silent and unm o\·cd br th ei r s11cccss? I t is a sn rc thi ng to have
labored along an cl surkd the rrnl11011s hillt ops, and when all is
done, find l11111u111ily i11diffrn·11/ I•> your rrd1in" ·111 n!I . ll e ncc
j>/Jysirisl_s condemn t he unphysica l: fi11rr11rft>rs have only a
s11f'crfJ r wl tokratiou for th ose \\'ho know little of stocks; literary_ persons_ cl espise the 1111/dtcrrd, and people of :di pursuits
combrne to d1Sf'rrra.i:c those who hrn·e non e .- STE\· E:-;;;01<: ,-/ 11
Aj>olo,i;y for / d/,·111·ss.

finding them a school of posturi11g· and melancholy self-decep tion.
Regarded as training, it had one grave defect;
for it set me no sla11dard of ad1ie11ement. So that there was
perhaps more pro fit , as there was certainly more effort, in my
secret labors at home. \Vh enever I read a book or a passage
t hat particularly pleased me, in which a thing was said or a n
effert rendered with propriety, in which there was either some
co11spic11011s force or some happy distin ction in the style, I mu st
sit down al once and se t myself to ape that quality.- STEVENSO N: A College flfaga =i11 e.
2. Then , secondly, I said, you are not to be cruel. Perhaps
you think there is no cha n ce of your being so, anti ind ee d I
h ope it is not likely that you shoulcl be deliberately unkind to
any creature; but unl ess you are deliberately kind to eye ry
creature, you will o fte n be crnel to many.
Cruel, partly
throu gh want of im agination (a far rarer and wea ker faculty in
wom en than in meu), and ye t more, at the presen t clay, through
the sub/le e11courage111e11t of your selfishness by the religious
dodri11e th at all wh ic h we n o w suppose to be evil will be
brou ght to a good encl - doctrine practically issuing, n ot in less
caruest efforts that the immediate unpleasantness ma y be
avcrfrrl from ourselves , but in o ur remain in g satisfied in the
co11!cmplrrlio 11 o f its ultimate objects when it is inflicted on
others.- K usK 1=--: Sesame a11d Lilies.

D_ \Vhat words in the following- passag-c from Lowell arc you sure that you never use?
Over i_t rose the noi sy belfry of the College, the square ,
brown t o we r of the church , and the sl im, yellow spire of the
pa rish meeting-house, by no means ungrace ful, anti then a n
invar iable characteriqic of ]\'cw Englan d re ligiou s architecture.
On your ri g ht, the Charles slipped smoothly throu g h green and
purpl e salt meadows, darkened , here ancl there, with the blossomin g ill a ck-11:rass as with a stran cktl clo ucl -shatlow. (h·c r
these marshes, le \· c l as water, but with ou t its g-lare, ancl with
softer and m o re soothing g ra clat ions of perspecti\·e, the eye was
carried to a horizon of softly-rouncled hill s. To yo ur left h:rncl,
up o n the Old R oad, you saw some half-d oze n clignili ecl old
houses of the colonial time, all co mfortably fronling southward.
Jf it w e re early June, th e ro ws of horse-chestnuts along the
fronts o( t11ese houses showed through eve ry crc,·icc o( their
dark h ea p of foliage, and on the end of every drooping limb, a
cone of pearly flowers, while the hill behind was white or rosy
with th e cro wd10 g blooms o f Y:lrious fruit trees. 'I'here is 110
sound , unless a horse man clatters ove r the loose planks of the
brid ge , while his antipodal shadow glides silently over the
mirrored bridge below.-LowELI.: Cambridge Thirty r ears
Ago.

E . What are the literal meanings of the italicized
words in these passages ?
1. This was all excellent, no doubt; so were th e diaries I
sometimes tried to keep, !Jul always autl ,·ery speedily discarded,

F G ivc several commonly used derivatives from each
one of the following stems. Define each derivative:
aud, (hear) amlible, etc

cap, cip, capt, (take)
captu re, etc
cctl, cess, (move, yield)
cession, etc
crcd, (believe)
dat, dit, (give)
diet, (speak)
dom, (home)
dorm, (sleep)
tl UC, U\tCt, (lead)
fac, fie, fact, feet, (make,
do)

fer, (bea r)
grad, gred, grcss, (step)
ject, (cast)
leg, li g, lect, (gather,
choose, r ead)
mit, miss, (send)
mot (move)
nat: (born)
nav, (sh.ip)
not, (known)
pat, p ass, (suffe r)
port, (carry)
reg, rect, (rule)

126

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

sci, (know)
teg, tect, (cover)
sec, sect, (cut)
,·en , vent, (come)
sol, (alone)
Yid, vis, (see)
spic, spect, speci, (sec)
G. Supply at least three synonyms for each word in
this list. Explain how each synonym differs in use
from the others :
to go away
porch
to g-ive
associate
to have
building
to transmit
word
to traverse
name
to elevate
to reject
transversely
to spend
properly
to supply
concisely
to advise
big
size
sha1·p
depression
prickly
statement
crooked
unwillingness
religious
importance
delicate
management
internal
integrity
monotonous
necessity
inadequate
rich
wri tcr
serious
letter
charitable
fl. Here are twenty familiar Latin words; give for
each one ( 1) several liter:il mcaning-s; (2) at least one
secondary meaning-; (3) some common English derivatives:
accedo, accedere, accessi, acccssum
aer,
anima
asper
bar barns
caput

HOW TO INCREASE A VOCABULARY.

127

capio, capere, cepi, captum
cerno, ccrnere, crev i, cretum
colo, co lere, colui, cultum
condo, condere, condidi, conditum
confero, conferre, contuli, collatum
con vi vi um
cop1a
cura
dexter
hospes
res
rumpo, rumpere, rupi, mptum
tero, terre, trivi, tritum
umbra
/. Discuss these groups of synonyms, con structing
short sentences to illustrate the appropriate u se of each
wortl:
To abandon, desert, forsake, relinquish.
To abate, lessen, diminish, decrease .
To abide, sojourn, dwell, live, reside, inhabit.
Acquaintance , familiarity, intimacy.
To admit, allow, permit, suffe r, tolerate.
Apparent, visible, clear, plain, obvious, evident,
manifest.
Band, company, crew, gan g .
Behavior, conduct, carriage, deportment, demeanor.
Blemish, defect, fault.
Calamity, disaster, misfortune, mischance , mishap.
Compe1;satio11, amend, satisfaction, recompense, rern\lnerati o n, req uital, reward.
Cun\'ersation, llialo};ne, conference, c·olloquy.
Ueed, exploit, achievement, feat.
Distress, anxiety, anguish, agony.
Situation , condition, state, predicament, plight, case. •
J. Look up in a dictionary the words in the following
list, and then use them in appropriate sentences:
anticipate
alternative
aggravate
tortuous
felicitous
judicious
cur:;ury
sonorous
habitual

128

COMPOSITION AN!) RHETORIC.

denote
alienate
delineation
incumbe nt
abdicate
essential
discrimination
specious
copious
specific
facilitv
methodical
pertain

diversified
resources
arbitrary
formidable
arduous
facilitate
adequate
requisite
approximate
vapid
conversant
di sparity
ambiguous

analogous
obliterate
grope
access
expediency
subtle
truism
inauspicious
scholar
Jargon
deride
distinction

CHAPTER VIII.
LETTERS .

47. Letter·writing.-The one form of composition that
we are all called upon to practice, almost daily, is letterwntmg. A s lette rs are more or less informal communications between business correspondents or friends,
they are more perso nal than any other kinds of writing- .
and hence resemble com-ersation in style. Yet in spi te
of this informality, letters should never be slipshod
in spelling, punctuation, gTammar, paragraphing, etc.
The wri!;cr of a letter betrays to his correspondent at
a glance his general education and cultivation; that
"the style is the man " is never truer than in the case
of letters.
A distinction should be made between letters and notes,
which are merely brief messages on specific topics. It
is frequently said today that letter-writing is a lost art,
and that we write only notes. If this be true, one of
the most delightful forms of literature has died.*
As an exercise in composition there are few bette r
tasks than writing letters. The sense of having a correspondent "vho \\;ill read our words with interest stimulates the imagination and makes writing a pleasun;;.
• NoTr:.- Both En&'lish and French literature contain many cntertaininz
volum es of pleasantly written letters by noteworthy persons.

Such letters

make the best form of bio;;:-raphy. Amonl( others in Enzlish are Scott ·s Let·
tcrs and Journals: Lowell's Letters; S teve nson's Vailima Le tte rs; Arnold 's

Letters; also those of Emerson. Carlyle, Gcorze Eliot, Lou1>fellow. and
Cowper.

9

J 29

130

CO'! POSIT IO:\ A:\ D

!{

HETOIUC .

Good letters ::ire always personal, but not necessarily
egotistic; that is, wh::it the eorrespomlent wishes to
r ece i,·e in a letter is the writer's personality- his
thou:,:-hts and feelings and opinions - but no t a list o f
his private a ffairs ur wo es.
Custom has regulated in general the forms of letters,
i. e ., the manner of address and subscription, the position of address, dates , etc. These for ms should be
observed invariably, for any marked deviation from
th e m indicates either i~norance or carelessness on the
part uf the writer. l\ u other kind of composition is
regulatecl by such rigid usages as letters.
48. Business Letters.-For111s. - 1. In a business letter
the full address of the writc:r should always be placed
with the date in the upper right-hand corner of the first
page, unless it is printed as a lctter-hea<l . 2. The
name, title, and address of the person or firm to whom
the lette r is sent should be placed to the left above the
body of the letter. .1 . " Sir: - ", " Sirs:-", " Dear
Sir:-"," Dear Sirs:-", and" Gentlemen:-" are the
proper fo rms of introdu ction. The last form is usually
resen·ed fo r formal letters that are not purely commercial ; e. g., lett ers to a firm of lawyers or bankers, or to officers of an institution. 4. The co nclusi o n
(usually called the " term of respect") may be either
"Yours truly ," or "Very truly yours," and, rarely,
" Respectfully yours." Terms of excessive p o liteness,
such as "Your obedient servant," "Humbly yours,"
and " Respectfully yours," once customary in Englis'h
and today common in French, are n o longer used by us
in ge neral correspondence. " Respectfully" is r eserved
fo r very forma l letters, s uch as public letters and p eti tions . Note that capitals are i1sed o nly with the first
word of the term of respect.

LETTEJ.:S .

131

Example.
Messrs. J. Scott & Co.,
18 1 State St.,
Boston, Mass.
Dear Sirs:-

100 W as hingto n St., Chicago .
Oct. 1, 1898.

Very truly yours,
Clarke & Clarke.
.)"!ylc. - A business letter should be brief, to the point,
and specific, but courteous. It is not courteous to
abbreviate every other \\·orcl , to o mit verbs anc1 other
important \\·ords, or tu use slang. A business letter
should not be a telegraphic message; c. g-., "Yours at
hand, contents noted . Quality o. k. Send x. y. 3 bis.
C. 0. D." Nothing is gained by a h aste that clocs not
permit courtesy. Con\'entio na l phrases in introduction
and conclusi o n sho uld be avoided. It is well to write
only on one side of the page.

49. Formal Letters in the First Person.- Th ese resemble
business letters in that they arc written about some
special matt er and, within the demands of vuliteness ,
should he hrief.
They arc public letters, letters t•1
strang«.:rs or perso ns slightly acquaintecl with the
writer. petiti o ns, ancl letters asking or conferring
favors.
Forms. - I. The a<lclress and elate arc the same as in
bus in ess lette rs . 2. The name of the p erson to " ·horn
the letter is sent (often witho ut address) is usually
placed at the close, to the left of the signature. 3.
Introductions are "Dear Sir:-" (or "Dear Madam: - "), " My clear Sir: - ", "G entle m en : - ". 4. The
subscription may be "Very truly yours," ''Faithfully
you rs," o r " Respectfully yours," as occasio n requires .

132

CO'J P OS ITI U:" J\:\l> ){I!ETORIC .

Frn111plc.
10 Oak ll"ood Park, Chicago.
J uly 15, 1898 .
)! y dear Sir:-

Faithfully yours,

.'\.. S. Smith.
Elton Lock, Esq.*
50. Formal Letters in the Third Person.-C ustom has
prescribed arbitrary rules g o \·ernin i;:- fo rm al invitations,
acceptances, and r eg rets . They sh oultl be writte n in
the third person t hroughout, an<l the phrasing- sho uld
foll()\\' co n\'c ntional mmk ls. Th e addres s and date
( << ·rillm 011 !) sh o uld be placed at th e lo\\'cr left-hand
of the pag·c; the cbtc nf entertainment . pl:tcc . etc.,
sh ould be wri tten in full.
51. Informal Notes.-Fo r informal n o tes and le tters
there arc a great variety of fo rms suitable fo r diffe rent
p urpo s e s .
Introduc t io ns and conclusio ns sho uld be
m od ifi ed to show the relationship between the corres pomle nts.
A dd r esses and dates should be given
in variably; they ma y be pbced at the upper ri g ht-h a nd
of the sheet, o r the lo w er le ft -han d opposite the si g nat ure, as t h e \\'ritcr prdcrs . It is customary to o mit
the name and add ress o( the perso n to wh o m th e
letter is sent. Introd uc tions vary in for mality, as m ay
he seen in the folln \\'ing- t:1h lc:
Dear ~Ir. Sm ith :.i\Iy dea r illr. Smith:M y dear S mith: -

Dear Smith:Dear H enry : Dea r Hal: - e tc.

Conclu s ions also v ary " ·idely, but a fow fo rm s are
most ofte n usecl :

*

Tl1 e u st• o f csrinirf' (Esri.) instend of ~tr. i..: ,1.!'l'ndnr-d l r d is appee1rin~ . A
..;afc rule i s to apply it i n the c ;i"l' nf l.:' C' ll! lc 111t·n ov er :lft)' yL· ar~ old. 0 ri'C·
111a ily the title irnplic<l a U i ~ti n ctio n .

LETTERS.

V e ry truly yours,
Very sincer ely yours,
Eve r sincere ly yours,
A ffectionate ly yours,

Faithfnlly y ours ,
Sincere ly yours .
Cordially yours,

52. Cautions.-C e rtain ' don ' ts " wi ll be found useiu l :
i. Nc\·e r si gn a n ote \\'ith yo ur init ials or your fi rst
n ame only, unl ess yon are writ in g- to an intimate friend.
2 . I\ c \·er h e gi n a note \\'ith "Dear friend." nr
"Fri end" (as '' Friend Smith," o r" FrienJ T om" ) .
3. 1--Je,·e r concllllle \\'i th " F ra ternally y o urs; " nn'l' r
say m e re ly " Y o urs. " nur omit the "yours " in othe1·
fo rm s .
4. N e ver end a note : " I am well, and hoping vuu
are the same"; ·• I am, etc., " aml simibr forms. - lk
sure that your final sc:ntc:ncc \1·h e n it is united \\'ith the
subsc r iptio n is i; ramma tical : in su ch express ions as
" Trusti n g that yo n \\'ill be able t o make this arran gem e nt, Very trul y you1·s," supply, " r am," before t li e
t e rm of r espec t.
5. Neve r si gn a lette r \\' ith a tit le . Gi\'e tl:e ,, t: rn amc o r ini tials and prope r 11;u11e, and in case it is necessa ry t o in d ica te the ti tle, \\"rite it o ut at \lne side nr
underneath, a s:
J. \ V . J ones,
Secretary.

or i\fary i\!. J ones (Mrs. Jo hn \V. J ones)

6. D o n ' t fo r ~ct to leave margins, to punctuate, or to
make p aragr:-i phs .
7. Sing-l e ladi e s are aclclrcssed as fo ll ows:
l\Iiss Smith ( eld est dau ghte r).
Mis s J ane ( young-er cbui.;hter).
The l\liss c s Smith ; or th e ) fiss Smiths (collecti\·elv) .
Madam (n: fcrrin g- t o sini;lc o r marri ed lady, to e"r~responc1 in u se to" Sir" <•r "Dear Sir'').

... -!

l'O:l ll'OSITI<):"'

l\'.'\ll RHETORIC .

L F.TTERS .

Exercise VIII.
.·/. Writ e o ut on the blackboard all possible forms of
introd uctions an d h eads to letters betw een fri e nds;
p11nct11atc aml capitalize th e forms correctly.
fl. As in .·/ , \\·rite o ut all possible fo rms of su bscri pt io ns :rntl s i).!"n a tu rc s .
C \\' hat arc the correct for ms in \\"riting- to a r eales tate firm ? Tu y o ur la\\"y crs ) To the schoo l b oard?
ln petitioning th e city cou ncil ? In introclncing a fri e nd
to H business acqua intance i n another city? In writing
a lette r to the editor of a da il y paper?
n. Criticise the followi n g let ters both fo r fo rm and
style . R e write them .
\Vatertown , Inrl ian a, l\iarch 19t h, 1898.
Mo rt on Bri c k Co., Chicag-o. 111. - Gen t lemen: Your pr ices on
brick under <hte of Feh. :l are much ton high. \Yh at we want
prices on is the <lark red xxx h r ic-k , also on dark mottled 41 1.
Separate price ou e nch also price on circ le brick same ;.;ort. Bnt
few of 411 wi ll be used in fact onl y what are r eq nired fo r trimming- or pattern w o r k . Y our prices to inclnclc de livery at W :-.tertnwn al so menti o n cash disco llnt fo r 10 clay set tl eme n t.
\" onr promp t reply tu the above w ill be r equired if yo u wi s h
t o du business w ith me.
Yours trn lv.

B. L.

HAY:-O E S.

Battle Creek , Mich., Jan. 9, 1898 .
M or ton B. Cu . , C h icag"<>, 111.- Sirs: lf you want a goo d
reliable trnveling- m:-.n , I am open for eng-:-.g-e m e nt. I und e r·
st an <l h:intlli n g l'nntract ors :111<1 architects and will w ork d1cnp.
1 11nckrstancl brick ancl l'an gi,·e g"uocl references. An y te rr ito r y
anvwhere in the U. S. s<> long :•s I can g"l"t to work a nd ea rn
si) l!H.:tlling-.

R ·~p.
]DI

F. 1>11:..\:-> .

;\lrs . \ \ "illiam S tone r"<.:gn.:ts that she cannot a ccept l\1rs. S at ·
tt:r ' s i11,·itntio11 f, , r \\'ednesda)· e,·e ni ng- , the fifth.
Sin cerely yn\lrs ,
E1.r.1£ :-; S 1u.:-:1:..
J regret th at l canno t a ccep t you r kiml in,·i t:1t ion for \\'e<l nes·
rhy next.
Truly yonrs .
MRS. J OJI:\' R. S:-rnr r.

l accept w ith pJ.:asu re the ,-ery kin d inv ita tion o f Mrs . Satter~
for \Ve<ln escl ay evening, F eb ru ary fifth . Sincerely,
GRACE !In.To:>.
Dean of Oxford Univen;ity: Yom letter of 21st to hand and
co nte nt s n oted. I w a nt t o p ut in 1 yr. a t some school . Have
had 3 yrs. w ork in Cal. S tat e Norm:-.! Univ. l\1 y p r in cipal wa s
Prof. G. A . \\"ilson. 11elieve I ; l!n up in c ,·erything- except
L:-.tin. ha,·ing had nothing a!Jo\·e ' ' C;.csar'' (-t books ) . \\"olli cl
h e m11 c h ohl igetl to \ 0\1 fo r fnll infnrmati "n . l'hiJ,.so)'hivod
course especially.
Rcspt 'y
]A:'>l l!S B. Gool>, 1\ llenv illc , Col.
0

Sec'y Oxford Uni ,·ers ity- Si r : Please sen <! catalogue o f y .. ur
un iversity and o bli ge . I have a son whom I am thin k ing uf
sending to the U. an d w ish the cata logne to l1elp determine what
studi es he may take , &c .
Y ou r s, &l' .
F. R. JOHNSO'<.
Prof. Bartlett: Having been detaine<l a t h o me o n acc't of
sickness in the fan1 ily it will he in1pussiblc for 1ne to attenrl Y''in

class to-day, so I send my written w ork by a friend, ao11l ""i '"
b e back soon.
R. H. ATKINS<>'.' .

t ..

E. Should you ever u se th e following form ?
Prof. A. C. Smith:I w as unavo idably detained, etc.

F. Examine carefully the followini; letter:>.
qualities do they exemplify ?

What

~ood

1.

TO MR. CA VE.

G ree nwi c h , ne:<t doo r to the Golcl e n lleart.
Churc h-s tree t, July 12, 1737 .
Sir : Hav ing obse n·e<l in your papers very un common <>ffers
of e n co urageme nt to men o f letters, l have chosen, being a
s tran )(er in L o 1ul on , to commllnicate to yoll the folluwin;;
d csiis n, whi c h, l hope, if yo u j o in in it, will be of advan tage l"
lwth of us .
The Histo ry of the Cou nci l of Tre nt havin ;; been lately tran~­
lated into French, and pulilished with large note s li y I>r. L t"
Courayer, the repu ta t io n of tha t l>ook is so much revived 111
England that, it is presl!med, a ne w tra nsla tion of it front the
Itali an, to;;ether wit h Le Col!rayer'~ n o tes from the Frtndi.
could n ot fail of a favourable re<.:eption.

.•

136

CO :lfPOS ITI ON A:\"D RHETO RIC.

If it .. b.e an s we re d, that th e history is already in English, it
mu s t be 1e mem lH: re d, th at there \\" ts the same o lJ·e t'
·
.
.
.
··
··
J c ion aga inst
C ou rn ye r s unclertak111,i.; , \\' ith this disad vant :q.;-e , that the Frenc h
ha t! a version by u ue vf th e ir best t ranslators, whereas you canno t reaLl three ~ages of the En glish histo r y without di sc.:o veringth a t the style 1s capa b le of g rea t improvements; but whe ther
these nnprovements a re to. be e x pected from this attempt, yo u
mu s t Jutlge from th e spcc un e n, whi c h, if yo u approve the propos:tl, l sha ll subru 1t to you r examinati o n.
Suppose the meri t of th e ve rsio ns e q ual, \\'e may hope that
the achl iti on o f t he n otes \\' ill turn t he IJala ncc in o ur favour,
consideri n g- the re putat io n o f th e annotator.
. Be pleased to f~~vo ur. me \\'ith a spee d y ans \\'er. if yo u are not
w11!1ng to engage Ill tl11 s sc he m e; a nt! appoint me a tlav to wait
upon you , if you a rc. lam . sir, yuur hurul>l e serva nt.-

S .u1. J OUNSON.
2.

TO W\' ND llAM SLADE: .

6 Esplanade, Dover . Jul y 28 1854
My Dear \.Vyn dha m : The blue sky and the calm s~a w~r~
too tempting w h en 1 ca m e rlo\\'n here last wee k ; so on Saturcl :'.y we .bolted , and return ed Yl'Slerday, ha\·ing JJCC ll grilled
alive , en1oyec1 o urselves im mense!}-. sp e nt £ 15 , eate n o ne gootl
dinne r, and seen Bru sse ls, G he nt, and Antwe rp . Antwe rp I ha d
ne.'-er see n, so \\'e made that our obj e ct. I ha\·e so l ittle m o ney
tins yea r th a t l really co u ld n o t ha\·e afforded to spend more
t han what I have S!Jen t uu travelling; so I am glad th at" I weut
at uuc.e , when m y .w ork compelJed me to be l>ack in a few days,
and did n o t wait till m y l10Jidays bega n , \\' he n I should ce rtain ly
have gone farth e r, spent mor·e mo ney, a nd bee n mo re embarrasse d than e ver o n m y 1·e tur n.
Hut we have !Joth reco rd ed a S•Jlem n vuw , if we live , to spe nd
at least seven w eeks alJroall next yea r, and tu make all o ur
a r ra ng-e ments , fro m t his time fonh. in conformity w it h thi s reso lu tion .
Antwerp is well w orth seein g , t hou gh I h a te p o kin g about iu
the north . . But Rubens ' s great piettll'es are th e re; and hardly
Rap hae l h imself 1s bette r wo r t h s eeing th a n Ru bens at his best .
If you have not yc.;t seen the Descen t fro m the Cross and the
Crucifixion, go and see them.
Brussels I had often see n .

ft is a white , sparkli ng , c heerful,

LETTERS .

1'7

wicked little place, wh ich, h o wever , one find s ra th er good for
o ne' s spi rits .
I mu st say the en n ui uf having to return is somewhat lessene d by returning to this p lace , whic h is charmin g. Y o u
must come here . \Ve :ire here fo r three wee ks fro m next Mo n day .
Wri te to me , you good soul, and belie\'e me. cn-r yours ,
~l. AR;o;OI.D.

Sunday, June -Ith, 1.c;ci3,
N ow for a litt le sn ippet of my life . \'es tenhy , 12:30, in a
heavenly day of sun and trade, l 111 ounlt'.d my h v rsc anJ ~et vll .
A boy o pe ns m y ga te fo r me. ''Sleep and lo ng- life ! A l.Jiessin g
on your journey," says h e.
And I reply: " Sleep, long life! A bless in g on the h o use!"
•Then on, down t he lime lane, a rugge d , narrow , wi nding way,
that seems almost as if it w as lead in g yo u into Lyonesse, and
you mi g ht see the head and sh o ulders of a g ia nt !lJo kin g in . At
the corner of th e ro a <l I meet the in spector o f taxes, an d h o ld a
diplo matic inter\'i e w w it h hi m ; he w ants me to pay the ta xes o n
the n e w h ouse ; I am in formed J shvL1lcl nut ti ll 111.: xt yea r; and
we part, r e i nfata, he promi sin g to brin g me d ec is ion s , I a ssurin g him that, if I find any favouritism, he will find m e the mos t
recalcitrant taxpayer on the islarnl . Then I ha\'e a t :1lk with an
o ld servant l.Jy the \\'a ysicle . A lit tle fu rth e r <Jn I pa~s t\\'v L'h il dren com in g up . " L o ve!" say I , " are yo u t wo c hictly pro ceeding in land? " and they sa y. " L o \·e ! yes!" and the

\_,."'"'

':

.,

3.

interest in g ce r e nHH1 )' is finished.

1 ), ,wn 1<> th e p<, ~tuftl 1 · e, w here..:

I find
si x c:opi L's of "J slancl Nigh ts ' En lC' rtainm e nts. '' S om e of \\' cal hcrnll ' s illu st ratio ns arc very clever;
but 0 L o rd I the lagoo n ! l dicl say it was "shallo w." ln1t. (>Ii
dear! not so shallow as that a 111an <.:oul<l stand "P in it! I had
sti ll an hour to wait for my meeting-, so Pos tma ster Da\' is let me
sit d o wn in h is roo m and I had a li ot tlc of l>ee r in, :rntl rc·:1d
"A Gentlema n of Fra nce." Have yo u see n it coming out i n
Lon g man's? .My d ear Colvin, 'tis th e m os t exq uisite p leasu re;
a real chivalro us yarn , like th e Dumas ' and ye t unlike. T he re after to the mee tin g of the five newspaper propr ie to rs . Bu sin ess tran sacted , I have to g-allop ho me a n cl fin cl th e boys wa i ti n~
to be paid at the d oorstep.- S TE \ ' ll;';SON.

·,

138

C'll:l lPOSTTfO:-.; :\:'\J) HII ETOH TC.

LETTFHS.

4.

.
:'\<H'ember 21, 1817.
Dear ~-11ss \Vords worth: Here we a rc , transpla nted from o ur
nat1~e. soil. I th ought. we never could have been torn u p fro m
the icmple . Ind ee d, 1t was an ug-ly \\'rench , but , like a too th
now it's o u t, an d I am eas\". \Ve ne ,·cr ca n stri ke ro ot so deer;·
111 an~ other g- ro11n d._ This, where we are, is a light 1.J it o f gardene r s mould, and 1f th ey take us up from it, it will cost no
bloo('. and groans, like mandrakes pull e<l up . \\'e a re in th e
1t1d1nd11al spot I like best, in all this grea t cit'" The theatres
wi th all th eir 1:oises- Co,·cnt Garden, dearer .to me than any
gar dens o f Alc111o us , where we are m orally sure of the ea rli est
p eas and 's para gus . Bow St reet, wh ere the thieves arc e xamined
within a few yards o f us . Mary 'h a d not been here fou r an (l
twe nty h ours before she saw a thi ef. She si ts at the wind o w
working ; and cas11ally throwing ou t her eyes , she sees a conco u rse of people coming this way, with a co nstal.Jl e to co n d uc t.
the solemn it y . These little inc iden ts a g reeab ly diversify a fe male
life.

13. No more at prese nt.
14. I must close n ow.

I. v'Vrite the following JetterS?:J
1. An o rder for hooks.
2. An acknowledgment of the recei pt o f money.

3. A note inviting- a friend to spend a week with
yon in the conn try.
4. A petiti o n to the sch ool board.
5. A letter to an editor on a public matter.
6. A letter of introduction.
7. A letter to the secretary o f a club o r society.
8 . A letter to your tea~her.
9. A letter of in quiry to th e mayor of a t own .
10. A letter of complaint to a railroad corporation.
11. A news letter for a journa l.
12 . A letkr in answer tu an inquiry about a piece of
real estate.
A n ot e to yo u r washer\\'oman.
no e o t e m1 man.
A letter askin1;:· your co n gressman to appoin t you
as a naval cadet.

G. ·what defects do you find in these expressi o n :-;,
frequently fou nd in letters :
l.

Your favo r of the 13th inst. to hand a nd contents

I sh all be glad to g-et your reply . And obli~e
Yours , &c., &c.
Yours r eceived ancl \\'ill say .
Your letter to hand. In replv to sam e , etc.
Yours r e s p'v.
"
7. Should have r eplied e arlier but have been t oo
busy.
. 8 . . I am in g-ood health and hope thi s finds you
e n1 oymg the sam e ble ssi ng.
9. I take my pen in h:ind to in fo nn you.
10. Hanni.; a fe w mome nts to spare, I writ e.
11. I will <1rop you a line .
12. vVith the compl im ents o f the seaso n.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

From yours truly.

J-1. Where are date s placecl in d iffer en t forms
of letters? \Vh cn may we omit the n ame of city or
town in the address? When and where do we write the
name and the address of th e correspondent for wh om
the Je tter is intended? \Vhen will yo u use " Respectfully " in a conclusion ? " Faithfully " ?

Mary has brought her part of this letter to an o rth odox and
loving co n cl u ~ i o n, whi ch is well, for I have no room for pansies
and re membrances. What a nice h oli day I go t o n \Ve<lnesday
by favor of a princess dyinR 1
c . L.

n oted.

1-'9

r

f

J. What for m (ad<lress and subscription) should you
nsc in writing to a single lady whom you have not
m e t? T o a gentleman much older than yo urself?
!·>.'. \\That good qualities do these letters exemplify?
.A11 I n formal R egrd.
Dea r Mrs . Uudley: I fi nd at the last minute that I cannot
enj oy the compa ny of my kind this even in g, and send must
heart y regre ts . I h ave a little bit of work whi c h sh o uld huve
l1een done last N v \·ember . Unti l January I kept the task at bay

.h

}-11 I

C(l ,\ I POSITf l) '.'

..\ :--; !) IO!FTOR re.

by excuses; until _l\[ay T held it ofT by pro mi ses; a nd n ow in th e
la s t llitch I am reduced to performing: it. I a m thus ci rcum stantitd that )"•1u rna y sec that, i n spite " ( aJ..>pcarauces, o r,
rather, non -appearance, l am at the bvttvrn worthy of th e occa·
sion and of you r kincl invitati o n.
Very s in cere ly yo nrs ,
ELLIS WI NSTON.
;\f:ty fifteenth.
,·/ 11 /11/ormal .· /crcj>fm1ff.

;\[y d ear i\!rs. \\"cst cott: I t w:-is a Ycry pleasant surpri se to
g-et your n o te invit ing ;\fr . Vane and me to dine with you on
Friday evening . \\"e haYe bee n look ing- fl>J"\\·ard to yo ur return
C\' er sin ce o ur u\\'n. Ynnr n ote , in fnct, was \Vhat \Va s necessa ry
l<> assu re us that we were in Jeed at ho m e.
Need J say that it
g-iYes 11s gn:at pl easure to a ccept yo ur invi tati o n. R e membe r us
most co rdially t o l\fr. Westcott.
Sincerely yours,
Al\" l\"E 1 ;U l lTU)I VA NE.

/ / J\"o!c 1•! Ack11mc!Ct(r;m e11f.

To John B . D ibdin , Esq.
J\f y ll ea r Si r: l mu st a ppear m"g ligen t in not having: th anked
Y<ll J io r the ,·c r y pleasant books you sent me . .' /rf/111r a nd the
nv,·el, \\"C ha,·e ll ot li vf l b read w ith u nmixe d satisfaction.
T hey nre full of quaint co nceits, and runn in g o\·er with good
humor and good nature.
l naturall y t ake li ttle in te rest in
sto ries, but in t h ese the mnnncr and not the cnLl is the interest;
it is suc h pleasant tr:l\·clling- one scarce ca res whi the r it leads us .
!'ra y express my pleasure to your fathC'r \\"ith my best th a n ks.
J am invoh·cll in a routi ne of \"i s iting am o ng th e fa m ily of
lbrro n Field , just retmnL"(l fro m Bo tan y Bay. I sha ll hardly
ha,·e an o pen e \·euing befo re T11,-st!ay next . \Viii you co me to
Yours trul y ,
u s then?
C . LAMU.

/ / B11si11rss / _r//o·.
100 Dearborn St reet , Chicago,
F eb ruary 7, 1898.
flollnnd & D:n-is , ~[onndnock Bu ildi ng:, Chi cago . - Dear
Sirs: George I. Ila!] and Co mpan y, Genera l Contrndo rs, 79
R ando lph St reet , Chicagu, han' !! Jade applic ati•rn to thi s com p a ny to IJeco me surety upo n a b<rn<l f1Jr t h e fa ithful pe rfo rmance

LETT E H.S .

141

of a contra c t, and have g i\"en tJs yo ur nam e as one o f the ir re fere nces. \\" ill you kin Llly info rm us wha t yon kno w of this firm,
and gi ve u s your opinio n as to its li na n c ial standing-. Y o ur· re p ly
will not i nvolve any n:sponsil>ility upo n yo ur part and will be
considered confidential.
Yours very truly,
S~llTH SURETY C O MPANY,

By J a mes Fie ld s , A ss istant Secretary

PART II.
USAGE.

CHAPTER IX.
GOOD USE DEFINED.

53. The Two Kinds of Laws that Govern Writing.- The
two classes of rules governing writing have been indicated in Part I. When the matter of choosing subjects for themes was nnder consideration, we found
that small subjects arc best, because in the given
space large ones cannot be handled adequately. 1\
three-page essay on " Books " can be nothing but a
rambling, trifling heap of facts and fancies. "Why I
like Treasure fl Land," on the other hand, is a good subject for a theme, because it can be treated satisfactorily in three or four pages. This, and similar general
cautions, the writer might disregard ancl still write
correct English: he obeys them merely because they
arc common-sense directions that will help him to gain
clearness and force. I3ut in considering punctuatio n
and letter-writing we meet a different kind of law ;
here it was said dogmatically," You must use a comma
in this case, a semicolon in that; you must head a
business letter in this fashion, a private letter in that.
All other uses are incorrect." The rules of this second cbss. called the rules of good use , arc as precise
I~ . \

144

CO~lPOSITI0:--1

J\;\'I)

J{l!ETOKIC.

and stiff as the ruks uf the first class are general and
flexible. La te r, good use ll"ill be defined in detail. For
the present it will be suffic iently definell if we remember that there arc a num bcr of fixed rules governing
our speech; tint the \\'urlls and constructions wb ich
obey these rulc.:s arc sai d to be in g-uod use; and that
the m a n who speaks and writes carefully feels compelled to follow good use. The careful speaker, for
in stance, neve r allows himself to say "I ain't going,"
"We was there,"" He's a chump," or" You're a crackerjack," because these expressions viobte good u se.
54. The Reason Why We Should Obey Good Use.- Anyone who stops to con,.,idcr the matter will naturally ask
hims elf wh y he may not say "ain't" ancl "chump."
Surely 110 one could 111isuntkrsU t1Hl these expressions ,
and surely we use words only tu make uur m eani ng
clear. Again , since we arc t ol d that the m ore words
w e know and can u se intelligently the better, a nd
since new things and , as some say , new ideas appear
every day, \Yhy n o t im·cnt a wo rd en·ry tim e we feel
the want of o ne? "Skinflint." " miser," " curmud geon " arc r ecogn ized knns fur 011e kind of man .
\Vhy may we n ot call him "ol c.1 hunks ··? \ Vhen a new
kind of soap is in\·entc d. wh~· ll•Jt c;llJ it "clcanine"?
\\Thy is n o t "he don't·· as ;;oud as "he doesn't"?
\Vhy, in other w ords, m ust we he sitate to use any and
every word or phrase that we hear or can inve n t? T he
answer is tha t langua ge is meant not so mu ch for the
speaker as for th e hearer. If cYery man should u se
his private judgme nt in in\'enting words, it would n o
longer be possible to talk intelligibly.
Toda y the
Frenchman u ses 011c word for "man ." th e Tt:llian
another, the Eng·lishma n a third. If every t wenty, or
eve n e\·ery twe nt y thousand . En}.!'lishmen sl10n ld use a

GOOD USE DEFI NED .

special word for " m a n," the d iffi culty of communicating would be enormously increased . If this liberty
were taken with all \Yortb, we should ha\·c th o usands
of lan g uages inste a d of dozens.
55. The Origin and Growth of Good Use.- The neccs,;ity
of fo llowing g-uoll u se will be m o re evident if \\'C con sider how language s g row . \ Vunls, in the origin, arc
merely arbitrary symbols; th ere is no reaso n except
custo 1n vd1y "n1an" should mean "man," and " bear "
mean" bear." Probably at first a giv e n symbol \\·as
u sed only in a very limited area. An intere s tin g
m ed ia'!val proverb asserts that "A la nguage extends
only one hundred miles and lasts only one hun urcd
years ." African explorers say that today they meet
twenty languages within five hundred miles, and tha t
of.ten the grandfather in an African village c:rnnot
unde rs tand his grandchildren: But ,,.c can bring the
question nearer h o m e . To the nineteenth century
English man the customary language of the reign of
Alfred the Great - that is, the language in good w,e
then - is as hard to understand a s German. F or instance, we say "Charlc.:s , King of the Franks, died this
same y ear "; King Alfred would h:t\'e sail1 "Thy ilc a n
g-eare fonh f erdc Carl Francna cyn ing ." In Chaucer· s
time (13-i 0 -14 00 ) it was correct to say "I guess,"
meaning' ' I think." In Shakspere 's day the common
use was "he du th," not "he does ."
Again, the
no rthern Englishman of the Anglo-Saxon per iod conjugate d the present sing-ular of "to be," as " :-1111 ."
"arth," "is," and the Eng-lishman who Jiyed near
Lond on said "com," " cart," "is." The Eng·lis h
symbols then have changed mu ch from g-cnerat.ion to
gencrati0n, and from place to place. Indeed, there has
often been so great a difference between the usage of
10

'!rl

• "i

145

..,

.,

"

146

CO~I

t'OSITJ0:-1 1\

~IJ

RHETORIC .

two sections ot thl.: English race that they could hard1y
understand each other.
Ob,·iously, be fo re English could become a good
means of cornmnnication, it hac1 to beco m e mnch more
fixed; the c11stom of one section must become the cn:'tom of all, or nearly al 1. J\ t least so it happene<.l; as
life became se ttl ed, co mmerce broadened, and the variou s English communities came into closer contact, the
language, too, settled, until finally without any consci0t1s thought about the m atter there was a n ation;il
habit of using- ce r ta in words for certain things and
empl oy ing certain definite changes in form 10 express
certain changes in id ea . Kot only do Englishmen
agree to say "man," but th ey also ag ree to say" the
m:m is '' and '' the m e n arc.·· The reaso n fo r thes e
rules of good use is, therefore , the desire to be as clear
as possible to as many men as possible.
56. Extent of Usage Not the Only Test of Language.It must not be supposed, h o wever, that this fixing of
the language co uld be universal or permanent. Th e
old co ni1ict between diffcrc·it cus toms of speech is a
ne,·er-ending one. Our language is still changing and
growing, and even today th e re are often two phrases
fo r the same idea. ,;\fany people say " are you going,"
but perhaps as many say " be you go in'." In som..:
sections the incorrect " I feel like I could <lo it " is as
common as the correct" I feel that I can do it." If
extent of usage is the only test of language, one of
these forms is as good as the other. \Vby not use
either form, since both are clear? The answer lies in
the fact th at we must conform, not to u se , but to good
use. However long a history "be you" may have
behiuL1 it, and ho\\'ever widely it may be us ed now, it is
a voided by the nwst carefn I \\'riters and speakers, and

GOOD l'SE

DEF!~ED.

14i

is an ear-mark of illiteracy. In choosini.; words and
constn1ctions a writer mu st reg ard not only h ow often
a word or construction is used, but by whom it is
used . He must foll o w the educated taste of good writers, because they have so many opportunities to learn
h y observati o n what the widest and best present usage
is that we may appeal to them as to a sort of high e r
court in matters of language.
The " ·isdo m of submitting to their rule is evident
wh e n we consider how new words come into being.
Language, left to its e lf, might change with out r egard
for analogy, fi tnes s, o r anything but momentary fas hio n. In many cases new words are invented haphaza rd
hv men who know nothing of the la\1·s of English
s{)eech . Sometimes they invent a good \\'Ord, as in
the case of " phonograph," but in many cases the new
word is as badly formed as " me grim inl.: '· (the name
of a h eadache medicine) and a "defy " (the current
newspaper word for a '' defiance''). Once such "·orcls
are accepted, n o one has the slightest ri g ht to object to
them because of their origin. "He who fig·hts custom
with grammar i s a fool," says fllontaig·ne. If, for
in stance, "defy " is e1·cr accepted by tbe h est speakl.:rs
in place of ''defian ce ," no one nCl.:Ll :t\·oitl it because it
\\'as formerly a vulgarism. Dut it is bl.:st tu ha,·e \\·o nls
formed regularly, and while there is a chance to stamp
out such \Yords as "tlcfy," it should be d one. At such
times the judgment of those who love language becau.se
it is th e ir vocation to use it, is most valuable. For
these reasons we give the body of ca rdul writers and
speakers two powers: fir st, to decide " ·hat is present
usage; second, to decide between two conflictin i;
u s ages - to condemn one usage as bad and to :ipprnve
another as gvo<l. \Vw might even say that thes e men ,

148

CO M POSJT!O)I Al\D RHETORIC .

if a ny, have t he right tu inve nt n ew \\"Ords, tho ugh we
mnst admit th a t their s in gle voices will n ot make a new
w ord curre n t, o r always stamp out a bad one . Coleri dge, writi ng in 1832 , say s :
I reg-rd t<> sec th a t vi le ancl barbaro us \·oca lJle talc111l'd, s tealing
ou t of the newspapers into the leading reviews and m os t respectai>le pu bl icatio ns of the d ay . \Vh y not s!t i llillged , far/hinged,
f1'l1j>ellf't'lf, etc .? T he formation of a parti c iµle passi ve from a
noun is a license \l'h ich n o th in g but a ,·cry peculia r felicity can
<'!>.c 11 se . IE mere con ,·enience is to justify such attempts upon
th e idio m , you cannot stop till th e lan g-uage becomes , iu the
pr1>pe r se n se of the word, corrupt.-Cl>LER I DGE: T able-talk.

Yet " t:ilcnted" is today a per fectly ;.:·ood \\'Ord.
In p o int of fact we need not ivllow even th e best
writer in using or aYo id ing this or th:it new \\· o rd, but
we mu s t be most careful not to use the \\'O rds which
the m a jority of the best writers co nsider inco rrect.
57. Summary of Chapter.-Thi s chapte r of p r e liminary
d e finition may be summed up YCry b ri efly . S ince we
us e lang uage t o communicate ideas , \1·e must have cert a in fixed fo r ms, both in single w ords and in combinations of w ords . These perfectly arbitra ry for m s are , at
any g iv e n m ome nt, absolute in th ei r rule. To find o ut
what these forms a rc. w e mnst obse rve th e u sage of
the best wri ters and spe ake rs, who, by v ir tue of their
special aptitude in matters of bng u ~1 },:'e , are t h e best
j ud!,!'CS , not o n ly of what is now usccl, but also o f w hat
is m ost correct a nd m ost effecti ve. To the ir usage ,
called good u se, we mu st conform.
Exercise I X.
. -!. \ Vhat two sorts of rules govern wri tte n co mposition ? \,Vhich is the more important ? Wh ich th e more
1111ivcrsal? \Vhich sort secures l'orrcctn e ss? \Vhich
secures effectiveness?

GOOD US E

UFFINEJ>.

B. \Vh at is the purpose of la n guage ? How do th e
la w s of good use further this purpose ?
C. G ive a numbe r o f \\'ords or pllr:.i:-;cs common 111
convers at io n, hn t not sanctio ned b y good use .
D. Docs good use go ve rn on ly sin g le words?
E. \\Th y are good speakers an d writers the tin:.il
court of appeal in matters of good use? \\' hat ;-ire
thei r t11· 0 fun ctions ? \Vhi ch is the more irnp(1rt ant ?
Arc th e re ;my li mits to th e ir exe rc ise of these functions?
F \ \Th o rn llo yu u reg·anl as a sa fe l;!·uid c in matters
of bng·uag-e ?
G. \ \T!Jy must langu ag·e change ? \ \That ca u,..es tend
t o m:ikc a langua~e stable ? H:1s \\'r itin;.:- a tend e nn·
to fix language? \V ha t g r eat inve ntio n b as h clpecl tu
fix lan ~na;::-c ?
/-/. \Vhat do yo n do wh e n y o u want to know whetli c r
a word is in goo<l n se ? J\ ~ramrnatical co nstructi(Jn?
Is a nc11·spapcr a safe guide ? J\ hoy' s story ]Japcr ?
Tli e C ·11t111y :1/ (zr;a z ii1e r The latest dict io nary?
I. W hat diction:iries s h o uld yo u us e ? \Vh y n ot ll~l·
J o hnson's ? \Vhat is th e r elatio n of the di ct ionari es tu
langua~e?

J. What :ibbreviati ons are in g-ood use ?
I<. R ead a scene fr om /lfacbel;,, Tl"· .1fadu111t ul
Venice, or any other El izahethan play, aml s<.:l e ct th<.:
w ords an cl constructions th at s ee m to yu u n ot i 11 good
use at the present tim e.

''
·;

THE STANDARDS OP GOOD USE.

CHAPTE R X.
THE !:>TAND:\K D S OF (;() () I> USE.

58. The Three Requirements of Good Use.- Good use,
that is, the practice vf the hcst \\'ritcrs arnl speakers,
g-overn s us in o ur grammar and in our selection of
words . In both ca se s th e stand anh are the same.
(;rammar ,,·i ll be treated bter. This chapter takes up
tltc pu\\'Cr uf gond ti:-;e o\·cr sing-le \\' Ords. It attempts
to make clear the fact that th e \Hiters and speakers
t.tkcn :ts thl! st:111d:trcls must be of our 0\\' 11 time, must
lie un derstood th n•ug-hou t ou r own co untr y , and must
he of hi~h rank in the world l•f k ttc rs . In the t echni cal t e rms of rh e tor ic , word s in g-oo J use are in
pre se n t, national, an(l r eputable use.
59. Present Use.- First, a \\'ord must be inte lligible to
th e present g-cnc rati on . \Vords, lik e human beings,
li\·c ancl cl ie , an cl expressions pe r fec tly familiar to the
men of l\\' O hund red years, or even o f seventy years
a ~~o. may today be quite incomprehensible.
It is
c\·ident , fur ins tance , that with the deat h o f a social
cu sto m, or a branch o f indust ry , a wh ole set of word s
must become obsolete - th a t is, go ou t of present use.
In lz. .,.; ft Ii N1~r;M, Sir To by says, " \Vlnr do st th ou not
:,:·o to chnrch in a galliard and co me ho me in a coranto ? " Th e t\\'O dances nam ed are dc:id, and so the
words also ha,·e died , e xcept for tho se who know Elizabe th an literature. The le tter that .i\falvolio supposes
to come fr o m his mistress, the L ady O livia, reads,
JY >

151

" Remember who . _ . wished to see thee <: 1·cr en •ssgartered. "
With the passing of doublet and h ose,
the fas hi o n of cross-gartering went out, and for m ost
people the word itself los t all meaning. Similarly
the whole vocabulari.es of hawking and duel ing have
lost significance t o all but those curious alJout th e
matters of the past. Nor need the examples be taker.
from so distant a time. Every political campaign
brings for th a host of wo rcls , understood temporarily,
but usually forgotten before the next election. Today
( 1899) all Americans understan d "gold-bug," "silverite" and "rcconcenlrado," but in ten years these
words will probably be quite unintelli gible to most mrn,
except after an effort of m e m o ry. Temporary business
or social condit ions also produce temporary phrases.
"The man from Castle Garden '' has a distinct m eaning t oday, but may in t en years lose it altogether, and
certainly will if the locat io n of the New York immigrant station is changed.
Vv ords that have changed their meaning m ay also be
recko ned as obsolete in th e ir original sense . \Vhen
Falstaff says " Call me villain and baftlc me," he
means "Deprive me of my knighthood l>y a ce rtain
peculiar ceremony." " Bame" is still an Engli,.;h wo rd,
but it may no lo nger be used in the way in which Falstaff used it . \Vh en De Q uince y speaks of the "translation" of the Tartar Tribes from Russia to China, he
use s "translation" in the s ense of "transference ," a
sense t he wo rd once had, but which it has no lo nger.
" Leasing·" in the sense of "lying" is a third example .
Of the two classes of obsolete te rm s this seco nd is
the m ore dangerous. \ Vorcls not common in th e hooks
or the speech of today are seldom u sed, except when
an untrained author tries to write in what he conceives

152

COC.! POS!TIO:-i A:\"D RHETOR IC.

to be a literary style. Then words which m goo<l
modern pro se are almo s t or quite obso lete appear:
" p erac1venture" for " perhaps," "babe" fo r "baby,"
"d amsc l" o r ·~ ma1"cl e n
for
g irl,"
spake" for
"spoke, " "'tis' ' fur "it is," ''.save" fo r "except,"
are only a few examples of this affectat ion, commo n in
juveni le writ in g, h11t comm oner still in "oratory," both
jm·cnile ancl a<llllt. Tbc other fault - the error of
11sing in the original sense words wh ich hayc changed
their meaning- is not infrequen t. To be on the safe
side, we mu st avoid words which d o no t appear in the
writinl,!'s of the last three-quarters o f a ce ntury, ancl we
must u se eurre 11t words o nly in the sense in which
they are usecl t oday. That is, the style of the last
century is obsolete.
I t mu st be noted, }iowever, that there is a difference
in the present use of prose :incl of poetry. \Vords which
are q uite cleac1 so far as prose i,; concerned, are yet
living in verse.'!'
60. National Use.- The clang-er of usin g obsolete words
is sm all , but the dan ger of u sing wo rds which are not
in national use is itreat. Wh en writing is int e nded for
th e world at larg-c, it is obviously imprope r to employ
phrases understootl only by a section of th e people.
Hence, we should avoid localisms, technical \vorcls , foreign words , and, in most cases, words which are exclusi ve ly British o r American. Each of th ese classes is
treated separately be low .
1. Localisms. - E \·c ry sect ion of the country has
ti

II

II

•R hetoricians usuallr hold that <'x cccdindy new w ords, lik e ohsolc te
ones. arc not in pr1..·sc11 t use.

I t is true that ~u c h words as " motoni ci·r"

·· elect r ocuti on.'' " X-rays. "
" ~Oailin t · ." · " will kovc r." and "rf·ro ,1r,·"t' a dos ...
are n o t £"OOd Eni;:lish. Th ey Uo no t l:tck p resen t use. how<: v c r . Th ey are

used every <lay by hu ndreds of people. auJ arc

11 o t

a ccep ted e le ments of

the Engli sh lunJ.ruar:c m cn:ly bcl..'. au~ c th(_·r a re nvt U:-.l!J Ur ~ ooU writers aud.
speakers. Hen ce tliP>• will be tn•atc:d urnJcr th e h~a d o f r('putable uso.

'!'HE ST.\NUARUS OF GOOD t.;SE.

153

local mann e rs o f expression - called localisms - so
wid e ly u sed \\·ithin that sect ion, th a t to the unwary th ey
see m national. In so me sections o f the country
"g-um s" m eans "overshoes"; in others, "rubbers"
docs dut y for the same word . "Gripman," "ca1 Jk·
man," "drin.: r ·· ;dl mean the same olficial. In out:
sec ti on of the: S <>Uth, it is s:.tiL1, "ba nquette" mc:u1s
"balcon y ." In .New Orl ean s , "galle ry" is u se d fnr
"vcr:rnda ."
" Rock," in some American di~1lccb,
rnc;:ms " stone, " small o r large. " forehanc1cl1" is a
eurio11s
N c: w England word for "well-to-do ."
·'C lever " in some parts of Ohio m eans " amiable,"
" kind." Nor are such spec ial u sages confined to the
illiterate; sl a ng and localisms a re peculiarly rife in
colleges. "flunk," "cut," "prof," and " footless"
("inco mpete nt") are some o f th e com m one r culle:;c
words . The li st might be m :1c1e much lo n ge r. It
may well be doubted \\·hethc r an educated but no t college -bred man, if placed in a secret place i;1 :1 culle;,;e
roo m, woulll not miss wholly th e 111c anini; of mueh of
. th e evening's conversat io n. It is ce rtain that t he man
who u ses the dialect of Vermont will never compl e tely
understand the man wh o use s the dialect of North
Carolina. And whi le it miitht, perhaps, be pedantic to
insis t on the exclusion of some of these words from
the car eless conversati on of a country t ow n or a coli q~ e
room, l ocalisms must he k e pt out of serious, d ign ified
writing, o r, indeed, o ut of any writing which is meant
to be r ead beyond a certain sect ion of the country. In
writing, localisms must m ake way for words which
arc national- that is, used throughout the co untry.
"Flunk" mu st give pbcc to "fail ," "cut" to " stay
away from," and "foot less " to "incompe tent."
2. Teclrniral l·Vimls .-\Vorcls may come short of bein~

:i

.

~

l S.+

THE STANDARDS Or (;OOD USE.

CU1111'0SITlu:\ i\.,\;l) lHlETU1'1C.

national, h o wever, e\·en if used all over the United
States or England. " Function," in the sense of a social
entertainment, is probably u sed in both .Maine and California; yet it is hardly known outside the narrow limits
of conventional society, ancl is, therefore, no t a national
w ord . This is e\·cn more true of the technical words
of all trades and profess ions, of cooking and criticism,
of law ancl cloth-making. Let us take an example
from a text-book on ~·co logy:
The formation of monoc linal folds is som e times we ll -illustrated by the cren ul:lti o ns o f a 1:1va bed in which there was diffe rential flow down a sl op e , the upper la yers mov ing faste r than
t he lower. Mo noc linal fold~ thus formed are usu ally not large.
Th e directing force was gravit y, and the axial planes clip toward
the force . The crenulatious are therefo re o ver-thrust (oh.ls .

To none but a g eologist cloe s such a passage convey
meaning . A doctor or a lawyer, for instan ce, probably
would get nothing out of it. But, as the following
extract sh ows, the lawyer's techni cal words will mean
littl e to the geo loi,cist:
,\ remainder is contingen t wh e n it is so limi te(] as to take
dfc..:t to a JH.: rson n ot " in esse ," o r not ascertaineu, or upon an
e1·cnt which may nen: r ha ppen o r may not h appen until after
the dete rmination o f the part icular estate. Three cases are
cited. In each of these cases it will he observed that whether
or n ot the remainder will ever take eficct in possess io n depends
upon th e concurrence of a collateral contingency irrespective of
its owu duration, and hence it has been said that the non-existence in a vested remaind e r and the existence in a contingent
remainder of a conti ngency irrespecti ve o f its own durati o n ,
up o n wh ich the possess ion o r enjoyment stri ctly depends, is that
which co nst itutes th e fnntla1uental llistinction between them as
regards th eir mode of <:reation , and forms a true, tan g ible, ~nd
practical criterion for determining to whi c h spec ies the remainder b e longs.

Contrast with the fore~oing- extracts the following
one from Huxley:

L e t us consider the olfactory sense organ m o re nearly. Each
of the nostrils leads into a passage completely separated fr o m
the other by a partition, and these two passages place the
nostrils in free communicat ion with the back of the throa t, so
that they free ly transmit the air passing to the lungs when the
m outh is shut, as in o rd inary breathing. The floor of each
passage is flat, but its ronf is a high arch, the crown of wh iC" h
is seated between the orbital cav ities of the skull, which s erve
for the lod g ment and protection o f the eyes ; and it th erefore
li es b ehind the apparent limits of that feature which, in onlinat")·
lan guage , is called the nose . From the side wa lls of the up pe r
and ba..:k part of these arched chambers certain delicate plates
of bone projec t, ancl these, as we ll as a considerable part o f the
partition between the two chambers, are cove reu by a fin e, soft,
moist membrane.- Ht1XJ.EY: So1salion and /he .Si:nsiferous

<>rgans.

This is clear, because Huxley, realizing that he was
ad<lressin;,:- an audience not versed in the technicalities
ot ph ysi o logy, translate<l the unfamiliar technical names
into familiar English anJ used only those few technica l
te rms which b ore their meaning o n their face . Had
his a udi e nce been one of scientists no such translatio n
\\·1.mlcl have been necessary; he would have used technical terms freely. The question is entirely one of
rclati,•e clearness.
Technical terms, although not
national, are appropriate in writing addressed to th o se
who know the science or art or trade in question. But
the man who is writing for general purposes, or speaking- t o a mixed audie nce, even of educated men, can
with propriety use on ly a very small numbe r of technical words. One man among- his audience will un-.
tkr stand minutely botany; another, printing; a third,
z.o(iloi,cy; a fourth, chemistry; a fifth, boat-buil<.ling.
To talk to the zoUlogist as if he knew how to make boats,
to the printer as if he were familiar with chemi stry,
is an absurdity. To an untechnical audience the man of
sense will talk in th e common speech of the intelli~ent

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156

l.'i7

C0)JP0.' iTI O :\ :\:<D IU1ETORIC.

TllE STAND:\ }{DS OF GOOD USE .

public; he will use n:-.tional, not professional words.

expressions accepted lJy all writers~ such as a jJrio~i
0 ,1.n d'fLal the \Hiter who wishes to use pllte
a nd c. r
Th
and effcctiYc English \\·ill shun foreign worcls. .
_c_
rule that furcign words should be italici zed \'.·ill, 11
rio·idly observcc1, serve to call a writer's attent w n t(l
Sl~ch foreig·n words as h e u ses and probably decrease
their number.
It mu st he clearly b o rne in mincl, h o wevc_r, th at <i11r
language has grown l;trgely hy th~ adaptation. of f•.,r1.'l1c j)uint is· to a1·01d all 11· orcb
11 h1ch,
Cl. ,,.n WO!-1
C S· .
.
.
like coiffur<', ma! de m er, etc., ha1·e goud Engltsh equivalents. \Vorcls which, like "a priori," " budget, " aml
" abundance," are e ntirely naturalized, may uf course
be u sed wi thuut c;.n-il.
.
·
· ·C>·lllS. - Certain forms u. t
4. ,·11111.!rl·( tllllSlllS
l/l/.t f /:JIi/[1lCI
. ) ·cssion arc to their detriment branded as Angl1. l
.,'
f th ,
ex1 I
cisms or Americanisms, and on en 1er srue. o. . .~
11
Atlantic there is an amusing sort of patrioll~>m
whi ch consists in laughing- at the u s~ ge _of t'.~e. uthc1:
1 bright 111 . the
natio n.
The Englishman says that
· t e 11.1,,,crc11t" is not E1v,.lish
sense o f " 1n
c.
'· the
" Am erican
..
smiles broadly at the use of "lift" fu r
elent o r.
Clearly we must answer the questions, " Is American
US "t"e 1ntional usage? Must we avoid cn: ry Amer. ' b
'
1 f l
? ..
icanism, or may we accept any or al o t K i l l ·
The grounds of diffcrcnc;c arc not so large as _they
at fi rst appear. For , S ince we ·sr)e·tk n o t the American,
but the English language, the great mass of our word s ,
pllrascs, and constructiuns must inevitably be t_h c_ sa me
as those used in England.
In the vast m~JO.rity of
. ,1 ·cs a word is nut in national use unless 1t is usccl
C< s
. b I E
widely by the best writers and speakers 111 ot 1 ·· ngland and America.
This does not do away, however, with differences in

., .
'
I

And if, as is often the case, a technical subject can not
be made clear wilhont an excessive number of technic:i.l terms, he will abandon that subject for a noth er.
The student mu s t be csr.ec ially o n his guard against
th e numerou s highly technical terms used in the games
\\·ith which he is familiar, but which to the general publi c arc mere names, anc1 ag·ainst the clumsy, inexcusable word s , such as " th o ught-content," " action-center ,"
etc., which are frequently employed in schoo lbooks on
liter:i.ture .
3. Foreign l-Vvrds.-The free u se in English prose of
fore ign won.ls is to be conde mned unhesitatingly . Yet
it is one of the most frequent si n:; of half-educated
writers. To say that an act has "i ts raison d'hre in the
esprit i11comw of l\ifr. Bro1rn" i s a form of this error
too gross to require much notice. Must stude nts know
bdtcr than to employ such a proportion of foreign
words, and this particular vu lgarism is u su:i.lly left to
the s ociety r e porter, who talks fre ely without being
undcrsto o cl by those who r e ad him, or being read by
th os e who could u11clcrst a11c1 him, of airs disli11g-11ts, of
rlo/f.i..· ycnx, of roiff11rrs (2 ra <.'ir, ancl of a!!afrrs r/'a111our.
Similar fanlts, ho wever, occur in th e mes. A favorite
Latin or French phrase , plea sin g- because compact and
seemingly new, is dragged ou t on c\·cry occasion. So
the be g inner in Latin, struck \rith the phrases per se,
al/er (({O , cui bo110, m11/l1111l in par•·o, and 111c11s sa11a in
rorporc sano, inserts one or murc of them in every theme
in which they can possibly be used. To the great mass
of English readers these words h :l\·e only a hazy sig-nificancc - they are not in national use, a nd th eir presence is merely a si~n of th e writer's imperfect command of his o wn langua ge . Except fo r the few foreign

<

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158

1.'i9

COMPOSITIO N A:-;-D RHETORIC.

THE STANDARDS OF GOOD U SE .

!:tOcial cu stom s, pol iti cs, and trade, and so lo ng as there
:ire d iffe re nce s in these things, th ere will be slight
differences in diction. Some words u sed in England
arc un known t o us, because the thin g they name is
unknown; for the same reason some words co mmon in
America do n ot appear at a ll in England. Englishmen
do not speak of " statehouses" and "lobbyists";
Americans do not speak o f "hustings ," "beadles,"
"mummers," or " grilled bo nes. "' For the comparatively small number o f words belonging to this class,
eiLher England or America may regard its own use as
national.
The same rule holds for an even m ore limited class
of words wh ere there are equivalent forms, one in
good use in England, one in America. Such words
arc " perambulator " for " b aby carr iage "; " shunt"
for '"switch," etc. Trade sh ows some striking cases.
In a recent issue of the Pall /Ila!! Gazelle a carefully
written advertisement r eads:

English use; nor can the Englishman condemn our use.
It is of ju st such differences that Free man wrote :

T he company has been for med to acquire a s a g-oing concer n
the old, cstablishell b usiness of R. l l. and S. Ro ge rs, the wellknown shi rt and collar warel1uuseme n and manufac ture rs, of 9,
10, and 11 , J\dtl!e-street. Lonclrrn. with fa cto ries at Rutherhithe,
an d a t Coleraine, Ire lan d.
The accounts o( the firm h al'e been supe r visccl fur man y years
past by l\Ir. Th omas Frid J\Iaundcr . an d amongst th e sa tisfac to ry features o f the bus in ess it wi ll be seen from hi s ce rtifi cate
that , w h ile the turnover has increased )"L":tr i>y yenr, the percen tag-e of profi ts ha s bee n maintained and the bad d eb ts have
averaged less than a half per ce nt. on the amount of the turno ver.

The wo rd " warehouse men," the phrase " a going
co ncern " fo r " an active business ho use,'' and the use
of " turnover" for "total amount of business," strike
t h e American as strange. Yet we cannot condemn the

A good Brit ish writ e r and a gootl American wr ite r w ill write in
the same lan guage a nd th e sam e dialect; but it is we ll that ea c h
should keep to those li tt le pecu li a rities of estab li shed a n d rc a·
so nahl e loca l u sage whi c h will show o n whi c h side of the ocean
he writes.*

Some words o f this class are given in the following
list :
American.
British.
men's furni sh e r
haberdasher
druggist
chemist
engine-dri ver
e ng ineer
stoker
fireman
antimacassar
tidy
body (of a gown)
waist
re el of cotton
spool of thread
lemon-squash
lemonade
tart
pie
carriage (railway)
car
railway
railroa d
g uard
conductor
booking-clerk
ticke t agent
luggage-van
baggage car
form
bench
jug
pitcher
perambulator
lJaby carriage
farrier
blacksmith
lift
elevator
chest of drawers
bureau
But even in this list there is proof of the theory th a t
these differences are not vita l or long-enduring. •· Elevator," for insta nce , is said to be driving "lift" out
of English usage, and in America " che st of drawers "
is certainly supplanting " bureau."
The real d anger for both American and Englishman
is not in using the se words approved by "establish ed
•Quoted by A . S. H"ill in '/'fir Pr/11nflt'J oi Rlu/u1 ir, µp. D. 14 .

I.
1

\!

1(il

COMPOS I TlON Ai'D JUIETORIC.

THE STANDARDS OJ:' GOOD USE.

anrl r easonable local usag-e," but in employing t h ose
An gl icis ms or Americanisms which have really n ever
recci vcd the support of good British or American
writers. The reas on that a c:.ireful American write r
speaki11g in h is own perso n, will not say "pant s,' :
" ves t , .. - ' ' rec k·on,
ca I cu 1ate, ' ' and " g u ess " fo r
"think , " - " ri g ht hard, " " smart," and "brainy" for
" c l c\·er, ,. - " f o ll-:s . ' f or " f amily
. ,' ' - and " fix" for
"repair,··- is nut that they are not usecl in England ,
hut that they arc n ut u sed by the b e st J\merican writers. l f an Amc..:ricm is in do u bt about a w o rd , he need
not furcg o it s u se because it is not found in t he pages
of Th:.ickcray ur Ruskin, lmt he should abandon it if it
is not in the writin~s o( Emerson, Poe, C u rtis, Lowe ll ,
and I-Iawthornc. American b:id use diffe rs widely from
English bad nsc; American and English good u se are
;1lmos t, though n ot quite, identical.
61. Reputable Use.-Thc reason for rejecting the vast
majority of so-called Am erican isms is that they do n ot
sat isfy the third requirement of good use-they :-ire not
rcpulalJle . A \\·ord ma y be both prese nt and national,
ln1t if it is not reput:-iblc - that is, used hy th e body of
the best writers and spc:-ikers - it is n ot in goo d use.
Once it is g-rantccl th a t thc s c write rs and speakers are
t he fi na l juclg-cs in matte rs of language , t h e ir rule m ust
be ,·e ry nearly absolute . " Reconce11trado " was in
v ery wide present use in the spring o f 1898. Ye t , as
almost n o one of the m en who write lite rature used it,
it w ::is never a good English wo rd. The same law
applies to "ain't," which bas be en u sccl for many years ;
to "ro u s tabo ut," a new . w o rd fur a disreputable idler;
t o " unl·1
er11::in d
ccl, " f
or" umIer ha nd"; to " fo lks," fo r
"folk"; and to all the numerous misuses of good English w ords, such as" lie" fo r" by ,"" can" fo r " may ,"

"nice" for" pre tty," and" Jo,·e " for" like." IL ap plies
also to words u sed by a few good authors h ere ancl
th ere . Carlyle, for instance , invented the compound
" care fl
l
fl"
' ]lt well have saHl
. " right u -1ope
u
anc1 1111;,:
angle -ism." But a word cannot be put in to !.:·oud usc
by one man, and we make our final judg-me nt o n a
word, n ot because Carlyle or Thackeray o r Ru s kin
used it, bnt b ecan se all thr e~ and many m ore goocl
write rs of t oday use it. In r e ~tlity , then , a reputable
word is n o t only use d by some careful writers , but is
also present and national.
\Vo rds which are n ot in
r epu t a ble use because tht.:y arc used only by the Gtrcless, o r Lecanse they arc obsolete , or technica l, ur Ioctl .
we m n st shun if we wish to be clear and t o avoicl tht.:
ch arge of ignorance.
N e w w o rds inevitably lack standing fo r a time,
because for a few years th e y are either localisms and
slang, as "bo ycott," "boodle, " "l ync h," and ",·ellow '' (for '' sensational ''), or arc us~d by only on~ ur
.
t\\·o wntcrs,
as " careful-ho peful." Y e t the languag e
must gTO\\', a nd many of the \\'urLis tuday called had
English will in t im e be acce pted by all as g·oucl use.
During- the trial of a worr1 1111trained writers mu st
be caut ious . T he bc g·inncr slwuIJ never hirn,; cl t inv e nt
words, espec ially in writing-, which is mnch more pnmane n t antl s h ould he more careful than speech_
Those which others in,·cnt he should u,.;e \\'ith ti1e
u t m ost caut io n. If a new wo rll is an .absolute ncCl:s sity, it may be u sed wi t h propriet y, provided it is reg-ularly formed. So when the teleph o ne w as in ven ted,
on ly a nanow-mincl ed nun \\·ould ha ve hesitat e d to u se
the wo rd at once in his speech , and if forc ed t o , in his
writ ing, tho ugh to be sure h e woultl avoid the nee dlessly clipped fo rm" 'ph o ne." B1 1t when a hadl y form ed

160

II

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.. !

11

·;3

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163

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

THE STANDAHDS OF GOOD USE.

word is invented, such as "megrimine" or "confliction," there is e\·ery reason for re jecting it and waiting
for a good w o rd to take its place, using in the meantime a circumlocution. "X-rays" soon gave way to
"Roentgen rays," "1notornecr" t o
n1 o torman."
In a 11 such cases the duty of the ordinary man is to
observe the custom of the body of approved writers and
speake rs. These men register the cus tom of the more
lette red circles and from their judgmen t there is no
appeal ; if in the long run they adopt even a badly
formed \Vorel like " elec trocute " or reject a good one
like "he li og-raph, " th e world at large must follow .
The interesting questio n o f wh o these writers are
cannot be treated here, bcc:rnse the list of present writers changes continually. The class will find it h elp ful
to make up a list of men whose custo ms in matters of
dictio n they must accept, and make it clear to th em selves why they may unh esi tatin g ly fol lo w L o well,
Hawth o rne, and Emerson , but no t a boy ' s story paper,
a n ewspaper , o r the ordinary magazine.
62. How to Get a Reputable Vocabulary.- The vocab ubry that the untrained l)Crson \Y ill use wh e n he begins
to write is the colloquial one . In almost eve ry case
that vocabulary has the v i rtu e of being li ve ly aml the
defect of not b e ing in i;·oocl use. The problem before
the student of composition is how t o make this inco rrect but effective voca.bulary O\Tr into one that is 110t
only effective but also dil!"nificcl and co rrect. J f he
always stops to think about his choice of words as he
write s, his style will beco me dry and hard; he will
a cquire correctness by becom ing dufl. The remedy
for inco rrectness must be s ought in other ways. A
little care in spcakin~- will do mu ch , hnt to make th :: t
care profitable the st lidcn t must kno w what is wrong.

The next few chapters point out a few of the more
striking cases of bad English. These he sh ould look
over very carefully in order that he may reco g n ize bis
bad compa.nions. But unless the student gets into
good literary company by rc:-icling vYiclcly in g-oocl
literature, this study of e rrors will have little effect.
Nor will careless r eadi ng help. It is not well to
choose readi ng so far allove one that the dicti onary
must be constantly referred to; then, what sh ou ld be a
pleasure becomes a bo r e . Still, in good reading some
new words arc always m et. These the stude nt should
always look up; often, wh e n a word really catches his
attention, he should note it clown, and later, frame sen tences about it. Finally, whe n reading poor English,
he sh ould keep in mind th e kn ow ledge gained by reading goocl English. Be as conscious of the style of
ne w spap ers ancl slovenly magazine-writing as p os sible;
pick it to pieces, putting goocl w o rds in th e place o f
bad ones . Criticise to you rself all the carel ess speech
you hear. In t hese ways a faulty, even a v 11l g;1r
vocabulary will in a fe w months begin t o change, and
in a few years be qu ite made over.
:Exercise X.
,-J. \Vrite a paragraph acc uratel y defining gooll use
in the matter of single words and giving examples llf
w ords which yon rej e ct as not in good u se.
B. \Vh at are the two sorts o f old word s not in good
use ? What is the usual sin against present use ?
\Vhat words used in a Latin sense do you find in your
reading? \Vhat words have you found in Shaksp<-:re
that are not used nowadays? l\Jake l ists o f such
words and , when yon can, give the reason why th ey
are n o t now current.

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164

C O MPO SITION A:"D HHETORIC.

C. L ook up in a Shakspere lexicon o r g-lossary the
following- words. Which arc used at th e present tim e ?
What w ere th e ir m ean in gs in Shakspcre's day? \ Vhy
have th ose which arc obsolete gone out o f u s e?
abuse
besort
k nee-crooki ng
anci en t
bulk
lure
an trc
butt- shaft
passado
attach
crusadoes
punto r e \·er so
a tt end
e scape
secl
b a tin g
jesscs
D. \ Vhat obsole te wo nls are sometimes used affectedl y in prose ?
F. R ead a chapte r in th e J-::i11:..; James ,-e rsi o n of the
B ihle , and sele ct th e ohsolde words .
F. P ick o ut obsolete or obsolescent expressions in
Tiu· Vicar of I Val.:didd or J"!1t · .\[)(r/a lor.
D . Put thi: passag-e into mode rn En;;lish:
Jt \\·as a quaint <litfen.:nce the ancients did put 'tw ix t a letter
and an o ratio n; that the one ,.;hould be atti r'd like a \v c1111an,
the o th er like a ma n: the latter pf the lwo i,.; allowed large s ide
rol ies , as long periocls, parenth eses, simi les , examples, an<l othe r
parts of rhetori c al fl nu rishe,;: hut a letter o r ep is tl e s'11rnlcl he
short coatctl, :-tnd closely co11ch ' ll : a h1111!;e rl in hcco mcs a lett e r
more handso mely than a gown . lndeetl we shoul ll w rite as we
speak: an <l th a t 's a tru e familiar letter wh ic h cxprcsscl h one's
mind, a s if he we re <lisco 11r,.;ing with the p;1rty to wh1 l l1l he
\\'rites , in succinct and ,.;!t o rt term >' . Th e l"ng11e and the pe n
are both <•f th e m interpreters of the mind: lrnt I h old th e pe n to
be the more faithful of th e two. The t1>ng11e, in udo posil<J,
being- seatecl in a 11.w ist s li ppe ry place, may fail aml fa lter in he r
s11tltlt: n ex temporal expressions; !nit the pe n having a gre ater
a<h·anta ge o( prcmeclitation, i,.; nut so ,.;ul>ject to errors , and
lea\·es things behind it upon firrn :-tnd a11thentic r ecL> rtl. Now
letters , thou;:;h they bc capable of any subject, yet comm<mly
thty arc either narrator~', ohjurg:1to ry , consolato ry, mn n i1ury , n r
congn1t11latory. The first consists of rela ti o ns, the second of
repreh e ns io ns, th e third of cornfnrt, t he l:ist l\\"O of cu u11 ,cl and
joy. There arc ,.;ome who in liL'll of l etters wr itt: h o mili es, they

16S

THE STA;-.; DA RD S OF GOOD US E .

preac·h w hen th ey shnu lcl epistulize. There arc· othe rs th:ll turn
them lo tedi o u s tra C'tates; this is tu mak e let ters degenerate
from their trnt: nature . Some mu clcr n authors t here arc· who
haye cxposc·cl t heir ktters lo the wt)rld, h11t most of them, I
Ilh::ln

an1 0 n g- ypur L atin

cp ist <1lize r s,

g-u f n: i glitc.: cl w it h n1c..~ re

Banhc•l <> ll1C'\\' wnre, w ith tritt: ancl t r ivia l ph rase,.; onlv, Ji ,ted
w ith pedan t ic shreds o f school -boy verses.-J .·D f Es I I.o w ELI.:
f ,dlt'rS .

ff. \Vhi cll of th ese e:-;trn.c t s see ms to y<lu to employ
\\'h y arc the w"rds in the
o th er ext racts not in g-ooc1 11 sc ?
a nicahulary in goo<l u se?

1. Th· :-Iclbonrne foursome contes t was started immecliatelv
a(ter l11n ch, m any o ( the club's best golfers b('ing entered·.
J . H . C .. rham an'l l l. J . Markham h a<l been eleded as the
f:l\'Pri t.:s , their

ability in t<::·anl

nL1! chc- ~

IJei11g \\'1.: l l - k11 1>Wll; l>ut

Lh•JU g h (;orham dro,·e ,.;plelldidly alld putte•l re 111arkabh·. their
net ~co re of 93 \\·as no t sufficient to win, the mat ch g~· ing to
\\ . Ke1n plon and
2.

'l'l1n1na~ :--;111 T L')'

hy a n<'t

s~·ore

(\f

~()

strnk{'..; .

\ \ .h :1 t w :-ts :1 hea\·y li{4uidati11g n1~1rkt<t d11ring tlie grt_•;lt<: r

part uf the session yt:sterday . The local sentiment w as decid ·
edly beari s h, a!ld con,.; i<leralio ns which might ha\'e bten given a
bullish constructio n were ignored . Li\"crpoul was off 3ll un
spot wheat and fro m l ll to 7 ;~ cl on f11lu 1·es .
3 . Th e ill11stralio11 rcp1·csents a clre,.;s of m::\llve China cre•le
1
!)\· l\lirecour. I t is cut in th e l' ri nccsse stv le an<l trimmed wi tl1
g11ipu re . The co rsage is made w ilh a 1ic.: hu of crepe, dr:-tpecJ
o\·e r v io let·frillctl taffeta .
4. Ill the ,.;ixth, L ange hit ,.;a fe an<l was slealiog when Stahl
rn!Jbeil Dahlen of :1 hil by scfl nping hi s line r w hile plnnging
lorwa r c.l . By a qnick throw he tlo11ble<l L allge.
l>unahue
pnlled Duffy's fo ul off the stands tu st:-trt th e s ixth. Cullin,.; and
Lowe bunted sa fe, and \Voods f11111IJlcl1 Y<:ager 's l.ioun,le r !Jut
K lobcda n z fannecl.
'
S. / \ t lirst it may seem alm os t in c re Ll ih le that the wh <•le
surface of the lallcl, eve n the ]., fliest :-tn<l s tateliest mountains,
s h o 11ld thus be c rumblin g- down. But the more w e sea r c h for
proo fs of the assertion, lht! more clea r anti abunLlan t c.lv the y
become. \\'e lear n that, w ha tever may h a ve bee n th e aspect of
the laud whe n firs t pu shed out of th e sea, it has been, and is

166

167

CO'.\IPOSITION AND RHETOR IC.

THE STANDARDS OF GOOD t;SE.

now being- c hi selle rl from its hig-hest peaks d own to below the
ti rle-mar ks. Its cliffs nml pin nncles a re sp lit up ancl g r ow m ore
shattered and sharp e\"ery year.
Its ravin es are widened and
d eepe ned. I ts hill y surfaces beco me m o re roughened and m ore
fk e p ly sea m ed by the lines which ru11ning- wnter traces over
them. Its \" nl leys and plains are le velled nnd strewn with deb ris
wa s hed clo wn fro m h ig her grou nds.- GE rK IE: Physical Ceo.r.;-

J. ·write a paragraph giving your o wn o pini o n o n
th e subject of British a nd Am erican u sage.
I<. From yo ur reading of Thackeray, Dick e ns, am1
George Elio t, see if you cann o t add to the lists in
section 60, pages 157-15 9. Note whe ther you fiml the
Anglicisms in the dialogue or in th e a uth or's own langu age.
L . ·what American writers should you foll ow in
your choice of words ?
!If. \Vhat sh ould be your attitude tov.rard new words?
May a grea t a u thor allow himself to m ake a n ew
word or to compound words? ·why? May you in ve nt
or employ such wo rds ?
N. S elect fro m an article in a daily paper the words
and phrases n o t in good use . Comment o n them .
0. Indicate in the followi ng se nte nce s the words
aml phrases n o t in g ood u se:

raphy .
6 . In heterogen eous rock strntn in this middle zo ne o f fl o wa ge
and fracture , irregular fractur ing, brecc iatio n, joint in g, faulti ng,
fo ld in g a n d th e d e velo pm ent of seconda ry stru c ture m a y occ ur
in a most complex m a nn e r. A deeply buri ed br ittle formation
m ny be under such st ress that a s a whole it folds with o ut major
fracturin g , but in a minor w ay it m ay be faulted, fra c tured, or
brecc ia ted.

I . Point o ut the loolisms
tences :

111

th e fo ll o wing sen-

1. The colo red wom an sairl that her <laughter was fee ling
p uny t oday.
2. As it \v a s raining ha n1, h e too k both hi s g um s and his
umbrella .
3. The little g irl knocket1 at the doo r, saying that she
wante d in.
4. They fried t he eggs in a spit1c r.
5. The m a n had a va st contempt for ganlc n truck.
6. It was a smart walk to th e station.
7. lle hat1 seen th e killing o( his broth e r with his o wn eyes .
8. Il e r m o th er h a cl rai sed h er care flllly .
9 . She slapped the Jines o ve r the horse 's bac k, in the d e pl o ra ble fa s hi on of he r sex.
10. She reprnache<l he r brother wit h h is t ardiness, saying th a t
she had waite d o n him n early an h o ur.
11. The maid, to the great discomposure uf her mistre ss, said
that t h e b u tter was nil o ut.
12. He did not lik e b o u g hten pies, and sa id so.
13 . He pu t the books in to his gr ip, anti went forward to the
din e r.
14. He said he recko ned t hat th e man was n o t looking for
trouble.
15. She said that she al lo we d the y we re sic k .

1. "\Vhere have you been to?" she a sked.
2. Th e d e tectives bagged their m a n.
3. It was a b ogus cheque.
4. A fter a sh o rt walk th ey found a gen ts ' furnishin g store.
6. This well -kn own aut h oress was a poe tess as we ll as a
prosis t.
6. The children bbmcd it o n eac h o th e r.
7. Ile was a smart b oy in schoo l.
8. Whe n asked h o w o ld she was, sh e said she <li sremembere d.

J>. What words in t he list in section 60, p age 159,
are coming into good u se in America ?

1·
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B.\RBARIS:IIS.

CHAPTER XI.
BARBARISi.fS.

63. Barbarisms, or Words not English.- Every combination of letters used by those who speak English is,
perhaps, in the strictest s e nse, a \\'Orel; thus "chump"
is as English as "fool." But just as C harl es Lamb said
" There :-ire books which are not b ooks," the rhetorician may s:-iy th:-it there arc words whi ch are not
words, and that "chump," which may n ot be used in
careful speech or writing, is n ot, so far as correct
speaking and writing are conccrnccl, a ·word at all.
Expressions which the best taste in words - that is,
good use - reject s alt ogethe r are called barbarisms.
\Ve may define baroarisms as " words n ot English."
Such words may violate a ll t hree requirements of good
use, but a violation of any one of its three rigid laws is
sufficient to make a wonl :-i b::lrbarisrn. "Carven," a
word once used, bnt llO\\' obsolclf..!; "cinematograph," a
word so new that it is yet unacccjltctl; "pants," a vulgar ism ; "c0::le ntcrata," a word so technical as not to
be clear to the general public; and '' forehanded," a
localisrn, are one and all barbarisms .
\ Vords not English arc most commonly found in the
speech of the uneducated; barbarisms do n o t often
appear in the writing of any but the most careless.
Still, they form so large a portion of everyday speech
that some caution agains t them is needed . No complete list of barbarisms is possible, but if words of the
classes referred to below arc studiously shunned, many
J6S

169

of the grosser errors of speech :incl \\'ritin:,; may lx;
av oided. The pupil shoulll supplement the lists Ly
careful uhservat ion, and by referring, in any d oubtful
case, to a good dictionary .
To learn thc~; e lists, or
any list of barbarisms, by heart wonld be a waste of
time, however. Barbarisms arc t o be re cognized and
th e n a voided rather than r em cm be red .
64. Obvious Vulgarisms.- 1\ certain numbe r of w ords
are so easily recognizable as barbarisms that on ly the
completely un educated use them even in speech.
Among such expressions are:
ain't
disremernber
in course, for of course
complected
hadn't ought
for to
unbeknow n
j ust as le:-ives, for just as lief
folks
leave me go
65. Slang.-The most easily detected of all errors in
written work is slang - temporary and vulgar phrases
that spring from some local co nditio n or quickly forgotten episode. Slang often has a suggestiveness lacking in reputable language , but it is a lmo st invariably
vulgar, and is so transient that the cant phrases of a
year ago arc usually unintelligible today . No list is
g- i vcn, because everyone knows that such phrases as
"on th e dead" (i. c., pri\'ately), "he's a brick," and
"out of sight" ( i. e., excellent), are :;Jang and may
not be used in dignified speech o r writing. The danger in using slang; is th a t it will master ou r diction, and,
having forced reputable vvords out, confine our speech •
to its own narrow limits. It forms a very large part of
the conversation of Americans, but u sually does not
appear in the writing of any mature person except the
newspaper reporter.
66. Newspaper Words.-C losely allied to slang and tar
more contagious are the reporter's inventions. Every-_

.1

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170

COilIPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

one who m akes the n ewsp aper the staple of his reading is in cbnger of u si n g- m a ny express io n s as improper as the followi n g :
to en thn sc
to excursi o nize
t o excursionate
to bag
a scoop
a fa k e,
a literar ian
suspicioned
poultryist
to de fa lea te
to eventuate
to burgl:lrize
to suicide*
a defy
an in vite

a disappoint
a combine
preve ntat ive
m ;i n a~c ri al

r epor to rial
booklet
an expose
material izc
to ges ture
to cu ltn re
to cl e rk
to crayo ni zc
to fin ance
to lo tion
t o probate

proven
w a lki s t
underhan ded
second-handed
off-handed
confliction
hum a n s

to railroad
in our midst
a s te al
a try
ed ucationali st
speciality
sin gist
stabbist
camcr ist
b illi ar<list
faddist
to jail
to jug
a tough

67. Abbreviations Not in Good Use.- N cwspapcrs and
t heir r c:1clcrs fre qu e ntly nsc abbrevi ations co nde mned
uy goo d u se, s u ch as:
gents, for g e nt leme n
pants , for pantaloons
(''trousers" is fa r better )
photo. for ph o tog-raph
phiz , for physiognomy
co -eel, for woman student
'pho n e, for tel ephone
tHl, fo r advert isement

curios, for cu r iosities
cap, for cap tai n
cloc, for docto r
spec, fo r specu latio n
exam, fo r exami nati o n
prel im, fo r preliminary
cntc, fo r acute
p;ird, for partner.

68. Vulgar isms Hard to Recognize.- The most da n gero u s barbari s ms a rc those words or phrases so frequently u sed as to th row us of1 our g·uard , o r s o n ea rly
like accepted words as to be co n fused with the m.
Among s u ch wo rds a r c :
•NOTE. - Some rheto ri cians c all such
noun o r an adjective is made int o

applie s to severa l words in

thi~

11

li s t.

w ord~

im proprieties.

verb. th e rC"sul t is reall y

R

171

IlA R IlARISMS.

But when a

new word . This

-y

bogus
indecided
casuality
m:mageress
donate
onto
a permit

to restitutc
s ig htlier
firs tly
illy
doubtlessly
in side of
(within)

69. Foreign Words.-The fore ig n terms given below
a re, with th e except ion of 1wm de p!1111U', p e rfectly g ood
words in their own tongue, but in E ng lish th ey are
barbarisms, because the y violate national use :
11011p" rn'/
711fIa11,1;-c
artiste
11011 7'nll1 rfrlu ·
al!rc11x
sobriqucf
on dit
soi-disan t
beau m oJ1de
ra vissanfc
debut
fau x pas
a m erw·il h
corlig c
('rt/ rt' 710/lS
ct bo11 ma rduf
!IC f>I /I S ul Ira
do11ble eJ1 lcll<lre
affain· d ' a111011 r
ra iso11 rl'et re
71om de j>l ume
bin1 d ' arrorrl
/){[ r e.:r:rt'/ lt.'l1t'C
d r lt crrlt/
dis! i11gu/
d1ic
r/i/r·
/11 ,-ore
Exercise XI.
A. Define the t erm barb;irism. Must a word violate
a ll three r equire ments of good u se in order to be a
barbarism? \Vhcrc arc barbarisms mo st frC(i\lCntly
m et ? Give example ,.;.
B. ReaJ a cbily paper ancl make a list of the barbarisms found .
C. Glance ag-ain at Exerci se X, C, (;, //, I , ancl 0,
and decide how many of th e words you condemned are
harhar isms .
/J. For the follow in i..:- barbarism s suhstitntc words
Give in each case y o ur r easons .
1ll g'Ood use.
vim
'ph o ne
immune
enthuse
dis remember
bogus

-

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172

COMPOSITION AND RHETOR I C .

BARBAlHSMS.

173
'.

snide
tote
casuality
flustratecl

effectuate
eventuate
highfal utin
finicky

F . How do barbarisms get int o use ? H ow do they
get into good use ( i. c ., h o w do th ey cease to be
barbarisms)?
F. Rewrite the following passages in good English :
1. Fine En gl is h pantin gs for sale.
2. Here is an excellent ,·est for three dnlla rs.
3. In t he (l ec isive e ighth inning Lange sing le d, Da hl en drove
a fierce bouncier to the fe n ce in le ft, but tried to take second
and pe ri s hed on Duffy ' s perfect th row . Stahl started the eighth
fo r Bosto n with a hit . L o we fouled and Yeager pump- h andled
a hi t to r ight. Kl obeclanz flew out. I-lamilton h it a lin er to
left. Ryan was in waiting , but the ball fell safe in front of him
aucl the winning score came in .
4. During all these years I was doctoring- with one d oc tor and
then another, but was getting w o rse instead o f be tter.
5. The democratic party has ta ken a step fnrth e r o n the
financial q uest ion than it took in 1896 ancl ha s t o a considerable
extent espoused green bac kism.
6. \Vhat is so gifty as a piece of s ih·e rware for wedding or
birthd::iy? Givin g IJas a n achlco pleasure wl1 cn proper so r ts arc
get::iblc at proper prices - our prices.
7. Several hundre d plants i11 full hl on m m ake a very f-i ne
show when ta st ily arrangccl.
8. They accep t , ::is :1 rnlc. wi thou t <]uestion , th e pronouncem en t of the part y to whi ch the y hel<,ng.
9. Gladston e once said of Disraeli , " lle's t•l" much of a sarcast." Of th e same m :1ster nf p crsiflag-c a n l rish 111e111bcr said:
"I',·e n o con fid ence in him . He persillies t<><> 11rn c h."
10. " J oc k' s no more th:rn :t 'anick in trousics. 'E be'1wes
like one; :in' ' e c:in't 'ii one at a ' undre<l; 'e 'va s born on one,
a n' s 'wclp me , ' e'll die 1111dn' one for n ot bein " able to say w'at 'e
wan ts in a Christian lin go ,'' s::ii<l Ortheris.- I<rP u :-.:G: Jl!y I.on/

the E!eplia11t.
ll . "His big h e::id w:ls d o wn IJetun e hi s big f11rcfee t, an· they
was twisted in si \~eways like a kitten's. !Tc looke\l th e pic ture

a v iun oc in ce an' fo rl ornso meness, an' by this an' that his high a iry undh erlip was thrembl in ' an ' he winked hi s eyes together
t o kape from cryin'."- /bid.
12. "J\fther that I w::is so well pleased wid my h andicraftfulness that I ni,·er r aise d fi st o n the gua r d th at came to tak e me
to Clink . " - / bid.

·'I

G. ·why, in F, examples 10, 11, and 12, was the
author perfectly justified in using b arbarisms?
El. " Kids" for "children" is a barbarism. \Vhcn
sh ould yo n u se in place of it" yo ungs ters," and whe n
"chil dren ? "

,.

J .

IMPROPRIETIE S.

CHAPTER Xll.
I.MPR Ol'R I ETJES.

70. Improprieties Defined.-.!\ wri tcr may us e n one but
English words, and yet not write English. Mrs. Malaprop with her "alleg-o ry on the banks of the Nile,"
the woman who said that a sculptor " was making a
hust of her daughter's hand," ;mcl that a certain actor
"appeared in the garbage of a monk," were violating
good use because they usecl English words in a sense
not English. Such errors are called improprieties.
The cause of th ese mistake s is either carelessness, as
in the use o f " alone " for " only " and " mad " for
''crazy," or a desire to use big words \\'hich the writer
tloes not fully unclerstam1, as in the use of "aggrayate " for " provoke." I mproprietics are the most
common and the most harmful errors in the use of
\\'Ords; they rob the language of definiteness and
cau se obscurity.
\Vhcn "quite," fo r instance , was
used only in its proper meaning of "entirely," it was
alwavs clear. But since it has come to be u sed n early
as often for "very" and "almost," it has become
ambiguous; n ow, "ram quite \\'ell" may mean" r am
almost cured," or, " I am entirely cured . " There is
the same trouble with "fix," which means properly
to "establish"; with "transpire," which means "to
become known"; and \\"ith "m ad," which m ean s
"crazy . " This obscurity is far w o rse than the vulgarity that results from the use of barbarisms . It must
i:···

175

be met with a vigilance that will at first make us \'Cry
stiff and uncomfortable in speech and in \IT iting-.
Y et if we pcrscn·re in 1ookin6" llp in a gooJ dictinn :iry
every doubtful word, we shall finally arrive at the happiness uf being al.Jlc to talk and write properly and
cle:irly, with o ut effort.
71. Shall and Will, Should and Would.- Une class uf
imprupriclic s it seems Lest to Lliscuss :tl h-11,.;tli -· tl1e
improper llSCs uf tl1e vcrhs "shall" :·:rnl "\\'ill,"
"should" aml "\\·oulJ . " It is c<Jmmo11ly S<tid that
"\Vill I i;u to town" and all uthL·r Yiolati1)1lS uf the
correct use of "shall" and "\\'i ll," "sli"uld ·• :u1d
""·nuh1" arc yio1ations o f t;,:r~u n 111:tr . It is, hr_1\\'C\'t.'i·,
more natural to regard sllch mistakes as impropriL'tics ,
for, so far as the law s of i,:-rammar go, ",;hall" allll
"will," " should" and "\\·ould" can be \lseJ interch a ngeably. The difference is unc uf mcani11g "nly.
"\\-ill I go to lo \rn?" \\·ill p ;1rsc as \\-Cll as" Sln11 i
g-o?" We say "Shall T go?" simply because "Will I
go?" means someth ing that we do n ot inteml to say.
This will be clc:1rer afll'.r aa cx:u11i11ati<.ll1 .,f th c· hi c,tory of the t\\"O \\·orcls. Originally," shall" and "'' 11 1"
h ad no connection whate\·cr. "Shall" meant "u\\'e,"
"be obliged to," etc. "\Vill" meant "\\'ant tu," "desire
to ," "wish to." These primitive meanings, howc\·cr,
have changell s o rne\\'hat, and the two \-Crbs have come
together, until it is n ow commonly said that the future indicati\·e [CllSe is," f shall,:.(>\! will, Jic \1·i1J; \IT
shal l, you will, they will." Ivloreo ver, "slwuld" and
"\\'Ould," orig;inally the p:i.st tenses of " shall" aml
"will," are said to form the conditional mood as follows : " I should, you would, he would; we should,
yo u would, they \\-ould." But we all know that s o metimes it is right to s::iy , " 1 will, I would, he shall, he

176

177

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC .

Bl PROPRIETIES.

should," etc. \Ve nee<l some rules which shall help us
to determine wh e n to use" shall" and "sho uld," when
to use "will" and "\\"Ould."
1. Sltall and /! 'ill.- Before those rules can be formed
we must note that the difference in m eaning still
obtains , tho ugh in a mo<lifiecl form. "Will" still keeps
its primitive meaning- of" d es ire ," and" I will" mean s
" I wish to." "He will do it whether o r no" shows
cle::trly t he amount of volitio n .contained in "will."
So docs "will" when it is :1 princip::tl verb, as in , "He
wills this, n ot that." "Sh::tll" has weakene<l until it is
no longer a principal o r imlependcnt verb, but merely
:1 tcnse-sig-n, m ea ning" this is going t o happe n ."
a . \Vh cn w e d e sire to state :1 future fact about our:.eh·es , w e s::ty, "I (or we) shall go." But "shall"
implies absolute prophecy, and, in ;:i way, contr0! of the
future. It is, there fore, impolite t o say ( except when
we give an order), "You shall go" or "he shall go,"
because thereby \Y e assume control of somebody else.
It is obvi o usly nonsense to say, "It shall rain ."
Hence in the second and third persons we normally
use " will," whi ch docs not imply co ntrol by the
speaker. Indeed, the question is almost always to be
considerc<l from the p o int uf view of the speaker.
\Vhen we wish to exp re ss volition on his part, \\"C say,
"I will," "yo n shall,"" he shall," etc. Rule I , then ,
is: \Vhen the spc::tker desires simply to state a fact, he
must say," I shall,"" you will,"" h e will." \Vh en the
speaker desires to express volition o n hi s part, to give
a command, to make a promise o r a threa t, he must
say, "l will," "yo u shall,"" h e shall." He may violate this rule if he \\'i shcs to express a command very
politely; e. g-., "Yo u \\"ill report to yo ur general at 10
o'clock.''

b. The use of " shall " and " \\'ill " in que stions 1s
somewhat more perplexing-. But if we remember that
"shall" means one thing, an<l "\\·ill" anoth e r, it
beco mes e::tsicr. In qu es tions of the first person
"will " is n eve r u secl, except in ironical questions such
as" I \\"ill, \\"ill I?" b e cause t o ask someone else, " I s
it my <le s ire t o go ? " is nonsense . In questions of the
secon<l and thirtl person, whe n you m ean, " Do you
d e sire (or docs he d e sire) t o go?" u se "\\·ill." To
"\Vil! you g·o?" the answe r will be, "I will." \Vh cn
you ask, "Are you (or is he) going· ?" use "shall."
To " Shall you go?
the answer \\"ill be, .. r s hall."
'When yon ask a quest ion equivalent tu " How can
he," use " shall "; for examp le :
II

How shall he c ut with o ut any knife,
How shall he marry without any \\"ife?

Rule 1I is: In questions of the first person, practi cally
always u se" shall" ; in questions of the second or third
person, use in the question the form you expect in the
answer. \Vh en the v e rb is equivale nt t o "can," use
" sh al I."
c. The difference between " shall" and "will" in
subon1inatc clauses is , as above, o ne of meaning on ly.
" He says that he will come" m e ans "he desires to
come, in sists o n coming, promises to come." Th e man
said " I will come." "H e says th at he shall come"
mca;1 s, " It is a fact that h e is coming-." The m::tn said,
"I shall come." Accordingly, such sentences as" ll e
fe ars he will be to o late" are w rong , b ecause to s.~Y
" I will be too late " is absurd, unless one means I
promise you to be bte ," and because" fc::tr" destroys
that possibility. vVc say, correctly, however," He fears
you will be late," because of the rule of courtesy
12

178

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

spoken of above. Rule III is : ·when there is a questio n as to which form - " shall " or " will "-to use in
indirect disco urse, use the fo 1·m that you find when you
turn the s e nt e nce into direct discourse.
2. S!iould a 11d 11 i}// /il. - The questions between
"\n 1ulcl" :incl" should" come mainly in th e ir u se as
cun<litionals o r subjunctiYcs. But th e se two verbs have
specia l uses \\·hich ,,.c shall du well to conside r first.
Of "sho uld" th ere is one special use: it is us ed with
an infiniti\·c to <lcnot<.; duty u1· oblig-ation, as, "In case
of a n unrighteous deed, yuu should be too h onest
to def encl your action." In th is case " should" is
cqui,·alcnt to "ou g-ht to ." " \\"ould " has two special
uses: ( 1) it is used to denote h:tbitual a ction, as in,
"Ile would often go to sleep during- the sermon,"
\\"here it is equi,·alcnt tu" \\"as accustomed t o" ; (2) it
is o fte n us ed to express a \\"ish, as in, "Would God
I had <lied before thi s day ," and, "Would th at he
w ere h ere ." In this ca se, as is natural fro m the fact
that " \\" oul<l " is the past te n se of "\\"ill, " it means
"It is my \\·ish that."
\V e n ow come to the confusing case s . Shall we say,
"If he \\" Oukl come, I would n ot notice hi m," o r," If
he sh u uhl come, I wuulll nu t no tice h im, " or, finally,
"If h e sh o uld come, I should not notice him?" Shall
we say , "Th e man sai<l his )!room should no t r epeat
the action," or, "The man said his g r oom would not
r cpc:i.t the :lction ? "
a. There arc four cases tu be cons i<lerc<l : main
clauses, questions, indirect discourse, and c<J n<litional
clau:es . In main clauses, the rule fo r the u se of
" sh:i.11" an<l "will" in main clauses applies; " should"
is the normal form for the first person, " would " for
the second and third pcrs1111,.; . But "should ·· normally

IJ\IPROPRIETIES .

179

g oes with" I" and" we," simply because of the m ean ing. "I sh ould go if I could" mere ly states a fact.
"I would go if I could" me:i.ns " I s ho uld w:i.nt to go
if I could." "You ( o r h e) should go if you (or h e)
cou ld" m c:i.ns "You o ught t o go if yo u coukl, " and
im plies m ore control by the speaker than it is o rdinaril y proper to assume. Either form is correct; th e
qu estion is entirely one of m e aning . Rule IV is: In
main clause s us e " sho uld" for th e first person, except
where vou desire to imply ha b itual actio n , or <lctc rmi·
n:i.ti o n, -or desire. For the seco nd an<l thir<l pers o ns,
use "\\'Ould," unless you wish to give th e speaker a
sort of authority ove r the person spoke n to or of.
b. In qncstions of the first p e rso n , "would," like
"will," is usually imprope r. One ought not t o say,
"\Vhcrc w o uld I be if that happened?" but, " \\'h ere
should I be ?" In questions of the second person,
either" sho ul d" or" \\' Ou!<l ,. may be co rrect, beca use,
tho ugh usua ll y yo u ask a qnestion of fact merely, you
m ay desire to ask, "·wh a t \\'ill your desire be? "
"Sh o ul d y o u go to to \\' n i f yo u cou ld ?" and" \ Vould
you go to t o\\"ll if you could ?" get di ffere nt answe r s.
vVi th th e third person, " wo ulcl" is usually the correct
form; we say, "\Vould he go?" because ne ith1.:r the
speaker n or the one spoken t o ca n u sually assume co ntrol of the one spok1.:11 of. " Should he go ? " woul d
m ean "Ought he to g-o ? " Rule V is : In questions,
use " sh ou ld" or "would" according to th e anS \\·cr
you expect. Almost al\\'ays "sho uld " is correct f<, r
th e first person. Usually " sho uld " is correct for the
second pe r son, "would" fer the third.
c. In in direct discourse, the question is still one of
meaning. \\'e say u sually, "The man saicl that h e
sh o uld oc ready at one , ancl that h is friend also \Y Onld

,,

'

'

•I

.i

180

COMPOSfTIO:-f AND RHETORIC .

IMPHOI'RIETIF~ .

be ready," because usually the man do c s not mean that
he will force his friend to be ready. He said, " I shall
be ready, and my friend will be r e ady ." Had he said,
"lily fri e nd shall lJc rcacly," \\' C sh o ulc1 have reported
him as fo ll o ws: "He sa iLl his fri e nd should be ready,
t o o ." Had he sai Ll , " I \\'i 11 b e rc acl y, " it w o nlcl have
been a prom is e , t o be r e p on ecl as full o \\'s: "He said
he wo uld h e ready." R uic\'[ is: In ind ire ct Llisco urse,
emplo y the form u se d by the speak e r in direc t discourse .
d. In c o ndi t io n a l cbusc s ( i. c., "i(" clauses ), the distincti o n 1Jc twcc n "should'' and "would" is c\·en more
clearly than clse 11·hcrc on e only of meaning-; indeed,
here th e two verbs <ire 1wt eve n p :trt of the sam e conjug-ati un . "IE l. if you, if he wo ulcl ~ u," arc th e o nly
fo rms fo r the re al co ndit iona l of " s hall " ; th ey m ean,
" lf, as a matte r o f bet , any on e of us du e s g-o ."
"If I, if he, if s he wo u ld g-u ," a rc e nt ire ly di s tinct
in m e ani n g-, and cal l in q ues tion, nnt the h c t, but the
will of all thre e p e rso ns. Th e y m e an , "If it should
happen to be the des ire of any on e · of us to i;:·o ."
- Rule VII is: In" if " clauses, unlike th e o th e r cases,
"would,'' in all three persons, Llcnotcs inclinatio n ;
"should ," - here an entirely distinct verb - Llt:notes a
yag-u e futurit y . Qu e sti o n exactly \Yh:-tt y o ur 111<..!aningis before y o n write e ith er fo rm.
All the se rules sho u l(l be carefully studie d. One
sug- g·estio n, h o wC\·cr, \1·ill be found helpful. In point
of fa ct, Ame r icans n se "will" o r "woull1" in many
cas e s where the y sh ould us<.! "shall" or "sho uld."
W O RDS G Ei\ERALLY ~ll SU SED. *

72. Verbs. -

1.

Affect,

effect:

The

co lcl a!lcctcil

*T he Jo n;:: list o f \\'t,rd s ;..!'i '.·<·n belo w. the s!tH.k nt sli o 11 ld scan c :uefnlly .

1t c ontains the w o rds m os t c omm o nlr rni :-> '..1s c J . 111 th<.' ex amph-s ~i\·en the

181

Smith ' s throat, because , when he clfccll'd h is escape
from priso n, he had not b e en in the open air for months.
2 . A g- ~ravate, proYokc: (N o te the derivation of
nJ.;/;-rn~·nlc. )
For the soldier to pro~·o/.:c the g·eneral as
he did w a s an n.f?:r;ra<:alion of h is o ffe nse.
~ . A llucl e , elud e (n ote the fo rce of the pre fixes),
m e nti o n : Und e r the co ,·er of a qu o tation - we

·i

I

!

·l
i

- rather bear those ills we ha Ye
Than fly to oth e rs that we know not of

th e orator nl/11rkd to the tyranny he dared not 111oilio11.
Hut the point d11drd most of the audi e nce.
4 . J\ cccpt , except: ( N otc th e force of the prefixes.)
Th e gen e ral nrojJfrd paro les from every o fficer but on e .
I-le r.ffr'/Jfrd the treacherous ll!aj o r \ Valters.
5. Administ e r, deal: He now nd111i11islcrcd bounty
to th e ve ry men who oft e n, ye ars befo re, li:td dealt s uch
h e av y b lo ws at his rcput:-tti o n. (In ordinary newspaper
dicti o n th e big- word ad111i11islcr is made to llo duty fo r
the littl e word deal.)
6. Accord , grant, ;;ivc: J o vegranf<'d (orga~·e consent
to) the prayers of The tis , who then gave to Achilles
the armor forged by Vulcan . T h is fact ncrords with the
w o rd s arc u sed correc tl y , and u s uall y th e trans position o f th e it alic i?.cd
w o rds w o uld pr od uc e im pr opr ietie s.
E x tended co mm ent on the w o rd s is
made o nly wh e re the dic tio n ary doc s n o t read ily aff o rd the nccclcd in for m at ion. ~IL'r c l y to fi nd out t h at" pur pose " means" t o i11t c n<l," and" pr opo se "
··t o o ffe r as a p r opo siti o n" is n o t sufllcic nt. Th e stud e nt sh o u ld rirst find ou t
th e co rrcd n nd the im.:. o rrcc t u se s o f the w ord ~. anLI sho uld th en fram e a ddi ·
ti o na l sl· ntc n 1.:c s, f..! m ployin~ the w o rds i n th ei r co rrec t sen se s. If he c an,
be sides J11 oki nj! Ht) th e w ords aml fo nn inJ.: se ntCT1 L"CS abo ut th rm. h r ini:: a
k n0w lcUi;:c o f fore i!.;n la n ;:ua ~ cs . p a rt ic\1 l a rly Lntin, to be ar, he will o ft en ~ct
a muc h d e are r ide a o f th e e rro r. \Vh c n o n e kn o ws tll a t ··transpi re·· co m e s
fr o m lran :.;- tp fr111 · ~ ( to bn·ath c th r ou i;::- h ) he is n o t lilu.:l y to u se it i n th e se n se o f
"to h:t ppc n. ·· T o til e m :-i n w ho k no w s that" d e m ean " L"U lll l ' S fr o m u d/ m,.nr r ( to l 1c nr on c: ·s se l f) t he us• ~ o f ·· d l· 1111..: an" for" dc· b ase '' o r" degrade" is
an Oh\·ious nb s11rdity, \\' h e n th e fo rL"C nf tl1 c prc f1.x(: s ''X and 1"11 is 1uastered,

··expire " anJ .. in s;1irt..:" ar c 1: 0 lon ~:c r pu zzlingly alike .

i.

182

CO~TPOSITTON

AND HHETORIC.

theory that J ove was imp;irti a l. ( / l rn1rd is n o t to be
used in the sense of ,f(i<·e.)
7. Allow, assert, bclic,·e, think: The judge allowed
the man to go ,,·h en the latter asserted that he was innocent. Yet no one in the room bclic1·{'(( what the prisoner said, nor clic1 h e l/1in/; we acceptell his story.
(The use of a!/011• for lltink, etc. , is a n1lgarism.)
8. Anticipate, expect, suppose: By ca tching the two
o'clock train. which I missed, Smith was able to anticipate every effort of mine with th e governor. I had not
c. t}fffcd this. I s11/1/Jr>sr I am beaten.
9 . J\ dmire. like: r should l ike to s ee a good bust of
Napoleon, \\'lH>m T much (l!/111 irc. (The use of admire
in the se nse of "like to," "desire to," "be pleased
to," is a vulgarism.)
10 . Approach, ncklress, appeal to: \\Te wished to
address the go,·erno r in pri vate, that we might appeal to
him about the new game Jaw. But our courage fail ed
when ,,.e found that we must af!jJroad1 him through a
large group of officials who stood neg·Jigent ly about his
t:i.hlc . (The use of approarlt for ajijJml !o is newspaper
English.)
11. Accede, cede: i\t th e encl of the Franco-Prus~ian war, the French go ,·c rnmcnt, forced to acrr·dr to the
<lem::tnds of the Ge rman emperor, r{'(kr/ to the latter the
provinces of Alsace and Lorrai ne. ( Ccrle is transitive;
affedc is in trnnsiti,·e.)
12. Accredit, credit: l\fr . Bayar<l was , in 1890,
a!"!"ffrlilo! t<> the Cou rt (1f St. James. I I is co untrym e n
rroli!t'd but liLtle his expression of an h ones t desire to
promote h;i.rmony het\\'ce n Englan<l ancl Am erica.
13. Assist, be present: The Reverend i\Ir. Jones was
assisted in performing the cere m ony lJy tw o curates.
Nearly all the royal family <l"l'f f /Jr<'smt. (The use of
assist in the sen se of "!•t' pr,·.1 mt at" is not English.)

IMPROPR TETIES.

18.)

14. Appreciate, rise, like : (Note the derivation
of ajJjJreciafc.) To anyone who appreciaks the force of
such move ments, the fact that grain has recently rism
ten per cent is distressing. The speculators, h owc,·cr,
naturally like the change . (Th e use of apprccia ks as
equivalent to likes or rises is a mark of pretentious
ig;norance . )
15. Bring, fetch, carry : John said, "Go into the
next room and fcfdt a chair. I will bring this ch air.
'vV e can easily { any the two to the other hou sc ." (Do
not avoi<l !dd1 in the mistake n idea that it is a vulgar
word. \Ve feldt a thing from a distant place to a nearer
one: we ei ther !etc!t or brhtJ: a thing from the point
where we are to some other place. Ciu-ry is a m o re
general word, meaning simply "bear along.")
16. Condone, compensate, atone for, etc.: Si nce he
compensafcd me for my financial Joss, and b y ::t full a nd
public apology atoned for the insult offered me, I was
ready to condone his offence. (Condone has no other
meaning than "to forgive ." It never equals "make
up for.")
17. Decimate, destroy: The cowardly regime nt
which fl ccl was almost entirely destroyed by the enemy.
Th e ir own commander had the survivors rkrimalcd the
next morning as a warning to the rest of the army .
(Derim atc , from the Latin decem (ten), means to take ont
every ten th person or pmt.)
18. Demean, degrade, d ebase : The officer who..
debased hims elf by cowardice was dr;(•nulcd the n e xt
rn o rn111g. During the trying· o rdeal of dt:r;radation he
dc111r:a11cd himseH far better than he had done on the
field of battle. (IJcmr:a n, coming from the Prcnch
se dfmcner, m eans nothing but" to conduct one's self."
To those ignorant of its origin it looks like a componn<l

.,

1S-t

COMPOSITION AXD JU-IETORIC.

of the adjective "mean " an cl the prefix ''de " in degrade:
hence its improper use as " to bcluve ill.")
19. Discover, invent : Had the s teamship been inc•ot!cd in 1400, America \YOnld have been discovered
lo ng before it was . (\Ve im1c11 t something new; we
discoc•tr things already existing.)
20. Eliminate , elicit: Having clirilcd from him the
information that h e was not seriously in love with Miss
Benton, I cli111i11alcd him altog-ether from the cast of
th e little tragedy then playing in that co untry house.
(To c!i111i11a lc means" to thrust out," as· from a n equation . It does not mean "to draw out from." \Vhen
you pick a tru th o ut of a mass of details you h ave not
climi11alcd it , but found it. To c!i111i11alt• it would be to
throw it aside. In c/im i11alc , note the force of the
prefix.)
21. Extend, give : ·w c gave the new Lord Mayor of
London a dinner last week. Down th e big hall, on
every side, exlmdcd Jo n g tables . The outgoing mayor
exlmded h is hand to hi s successor very cordial ly. ("To
cxlmd a dinner" to a man is a common, but fau lty
expression.)
22. Endo r se , approYe, second: The fact that I
endone your promissory note shows tbat I rrpj>rove of
your action. I shall second :my m o ti o n you make in
the meeting. (E11 dorsr• still has its literal meaning of
"put upon the back of." Note Milton's use of it in the
phrase " elephants endorsed with towers."
\V c have
limited it to d:t y, howe ve r, to the meaning of putting
a name on th e back of s o me document . )
2.l. Fly, li ce, flow: The murderers of L:lwto n were
forced t o fl!"I·. f n thL"ir f1iR·ht they passed by tha t same
s\\"iftly flmei1~1: 1·i,·c r o n whose banks th ey h ad com mitte d the crime . Th e y !ltd almost as swiftly as birds

IM PROPRIETIES.

185

fly. (The correct forms of these verbs are: fly, flc<c,
''Overflo w n; !lei-, fled, fli'd; flow, flo wed, floa·nl.
flown" is incorrect. Gooc1 use alloi.\·s, as a figure of
speech, "He flew before the com ing punishment," etc. )
24. Fix, repair, mend: The watchmaker first repairtd
(or m ended ) the clock. Then he fixed it steadily on
the wall. (Fix in the sense of repair is common, but
incorrect.)
25 . Fire, throw : Smith was unarmed, and when the
robber had fired at him, h e could do nothing but throw
a heavy book toward hi s assailant.
26. Give on, look on : The window looked out on a
court.
(The use of grr-;·r: 011 in this sentence would be
quite un-Eng-lish .)
27. Get, h ave : 1 lzm·e had a cheap watch for a long
time. I haz•e recently got this more expensive one.
(Do not say I !tave got it, m e aning simply that yon
lzm:e it. To get is "to acquire ." You need not avoid
gotten; it is in goo cl u se.)
28. Hanged, hung: The murderer was betrayed by
the long a nd peculiarly black locks which /mngdown over
hi s shoulders. After a speedy trial, he was as speedi ly
!za11gal. (The past tense and the 11articiplc of the YCrb
t o /1 a11g, meaning " to execute," arc !tanged not /11m/;-. )
29. Inaugurate, begin, commence, start: The president who was inaugurated last year has commenced a
se ri es of actions entirely unparalleled. He began his
strange .course when he started for the west, leaving
the government, at a critical moment, in the hands of a•
snbordinate . (Do not use the pompous word inaugu ra!r in place of the simpler words commence and b1:r;in.
Prefer /Ji:r;in to rommc11rc on the ground of simplicity .
S o me writers asser t that co111111mce is used with a series
of acts, beg in with a single act.)

CO'.\! POSITTO;'\.' .'\ '-:

"j)
'

J)

1HIETORTC.

30. Lie, lay: Having laid the book on the t able, he
l(/y down at once. (Th ese two verbs are among the
most commonly misused words. The verb lay, laid,
laid, is transitive and should alway~ tak e an object ;
the verb lil', lay, lain, is intr:msitivc and should have
no object.)
31. Learn, teach: H e lai([[lt! me so well that I
learned to speak French in six months . (The 11Se of
lrnni for ltac/1, as in "He learned me to write," is a
vulgarism.)
32 . Locate, settle: Having lorn!c'd (i.e., found) the
gold mine in this particular field, he bought the farm
and set I led on it.
33 . LoYC, like : \\·e /ikr cancly and excursions . \Ve
loioe our parents . (The 11SC of lo7'<" for Ii/;,· shows immaturity or sentimentality . )
.34. Lease, hire: He was willing to lease the build ing to me at a moderate rent; so I liircd it of him.
( To lease equals only " to Jct by le:ise.")
35. May , can : 11/ay I h:i\'e that French book? Yes,
but ran yo u read it? (Ciu1 implies only ability to do
something. 11/ay asks for permission. "Ca11 I open the
door," and" Ca11 I go," arc l! sually incorrect. \\.h c rcvc r
you mean" vViJ! yo11 i:.yrant me permission," 11 SC may.)
36. Negot iate , make a sale: After 1/f;r.;olia li1~ £( some
ti me, Brazil sold us the war ship N ict hcroy . ("Iii nt:r:oliat,· :i sale" is a cant business term for 111ake a salr'.)
37. Partake, share : Man's nature jJarlal<<'S of that of
the brutes, yet he is readi e r to slia rc \Yith his fell o ws
than arc bru les. (Pa rla l•c shou lcl never he u sed as
"take, " c . g., " He partook of breakfast ." )
38 . Purpose, propose; Since r purj>DSI' to leave town
at once, I shall propose a new plan immediately.
39. Prosecute, persecute: Though the s tate's attor-

IMPROPRIETIES.

187

ney prosem lcd the criminal, h e did not perserute him,
because he mere ly did his duty .
40. Proscribe, prescribe : The emperor prescribed
for his courtiers a course of action which speedily
brought about a revolt. Then he proscribed the leader
of the rebellion .
41. Promise, assure: I assure you I shall Prom ise no
su ch thing .
42 . Per suade, advi se: I never persuade men to write.
IndeeJ I oftener advise not writing. (Persuade suggests argument against opposing views.)
43. Present, introduce : VI e were first presen ted to
·the Queen . In the nex t room we were introduced to a
1number of very intell igent looking peers of the realm.
(Use the si m p ler word whe never possible. The ordi111ar y phrase should be , "May I introduce Mr. So-and-so
r:o yo u? ")
4-t. R eco mmend, counsel (or ad vise ): I recommendcd
my former coachman to the e nlistin g officer ; but the
:tatter cDu11sd led (or advised) him to stay out of the :irmy .
(" I rerommend you to go " is common, but not
correct.)
45. Ride, drive: We ride a bicycle or a h orse . We
drive when we arc seated in a carria)!C .
46. Replace, displace : Wh e n m y bust of Hermes had
been disj>la ff d by a oust of Ap o llo, I replarcd Hermes
wh ere he had stood so long before, on my mantel.
4 7. Recollect, remember: I n·member very well the
first of these circumstances to which you refer. It will
be hard to recol lcct the others.
4S. R esu me, sum up: I resumed my speech after
the interruption, but could not go on well, and was
forced to s11111 up hastily. ( R cs11111e in the sense of sum
11/J is a usage caught from the French word rfsu111er.)

189

CO)f POSITION A KD Jl!.HETORIC'.

HIPROPRIETIES.

49 . Stop, stay : The bo:-tt sloj>/>cd :-tt Porter's Landing, where I w ent ashore anc1 slaynl for the r est of the
day . (To stop mc:-tns ·•to cause a cessation uf action,"
or "to cc:-tsc :-tcting." ](1 slay means " lo remain."
Hence " I slo/>j>td wi th my friend f1>r a 111onth " is
incorrect.)
50. Sit, set : Will you sit down? Yes, aftcr I have
srl this basket on the tabk. (Sil, sat, sa t. is intransitive; sd, sci, st!, is tr:rnsitin.:. But idi o m - il l1Jg- ical
custom, th:tt is - p rescribes "th e sdli11.I( st111 '' and "a
sl'lli11,r: hen.")
51. Settle, pay: \\T e j>oy o ur bills and ot1 r fare. \Ve
sdtk in a town.
52 . Statc, say, maintain , claim: I le slater/ th e case
with :.;rcat fo rma lity. I srrid I cot1ld no t grant his
request. Still be 11111i11!11i11td that he co uld prope rly
rla i111 the estate. (In the second sentence abo Yc, slate
in pl::icc of say, would be a pretentious improprictv.
Shun the sentcncc "I \\'ant to slalt: rig-ht here .")
53. Tr::rnspirc, happe n: It soon tra11sj>ired that an
event of g-reat moment h ad liaj>pmcd at the council
board. ( N otc the clcri vation of f ransj>irt. The \\'Ord
mc:-tns " to become known." J\ newspaper said r ecent ly
that "A most incompetent go ,·crnor-).!"encral ha s tra11 s(>ired in the Philippines.")
73. Nouns.- 1. Act, action : The specific art with
\\'hich Mr. Walt ers was ch::trg-ccl \1· as certainly illega l.
Yet no other course of adio11 ,,·::t s open to him.
2. Aclvan cc, advancc111c11t, pro).!"ress: The 11d: ·a11U' of
General Grant on Pet e rs burg \\'as a step of g-rcat
importance . By it the \\'ar m::tde notiec::tble Pn!t;./"t'SS
t oward settlement. The deeds of brnvcry performed
during this arfra11ff r esulted in the ad-i'anremc11t of many
officers to higher ranks.

3 . Alternative, choice: Going or staying is your
alternative. Among the three courses of action already
abandoned by you there was no r/1oirc. (Allcmati<.·e
implies a clivice between two things, or courses of
action. If there \\·ere three dwircs there \\'Oukl he more
than o ne alter11ati've. )
4. A vocation , vocation: For eight years ill r.
Smith's <.'vcativn was making s h oes . His az:ooztiu11 \\'as
huntin g·. (.·l v ocatio11, because of th e prefix "a," means
''a call ing- a\\'ay from."
It i~ n eve r synonymous with
"trade" or ''profession."
S. Acceptance, acceptation: In the comm on atr,j>tatiun of the \\'on1, acapta11ce means either the act of
accepting, or a favorable reception.
6. Acce ss , ::tccession: Henry V. of Eng-land changed
gTcatly on his acassivn to the throne. To all his disreputable companions of the old days he deni ed arffss.
(These two words h:wc so many diffe rent meanings
that it would be useless to try to give th em here. But
if, in the sentences above , the t\\"O be transposed, the
student will have a good exa mple of the common error
in usin g them . Consult ::t good dictionary about these
words .)
7. .I\ g-greg-atio n, team, carriage : Growth by rr.t;,t;"l(t.;11 tion is a somewhat irregular process. To the ca rria.i;c
was attached a prancing team of fo ur horses. ( :'.IJ ever
say" The Chic::tgo aggn;ga tion of ball tossers is poor,"
or" The agc;ugalion of vessels \\'as a formid::tble one ."
Tmm implies combination .)
8 . Artist, actor, singer, writer, etc.: At the Bohemian Club were gathered recently some of th e most
famous artists, adors, si11gcrs, and zeriltr s of the cby.
(Th e use of artist for ::t man who practices any one
of the fine arts is to be deplored. Artist should be

188

190

IMPROPRIETIES.

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

191

int o a rkpot ()f army sllppli t: s. (Th e 11sc; o f ilr/Jo/ ior
slafion is particularly un fo rtunate , for it rolJs us <>f the

applied only to tho se who practice painting. This rule
is t o be violated o nl y when one wishes to ca ll special
atte ntio n to th e excellence of workman ship o f singer,
writer, adv r, etc. Y u u m ay , for ins tance , say tha t
·wo rdsworth was " indeed a n artist in descript io n."
But this is one of the most hackneyed uses p o ssible.)
9. Balo.nee , r e ma ind e r: \Ve gave the rc111ai11rkr of
the d ay to an attempt to find the transposed fi g ures
that maclc the ba lanrc of o ur cash book \\To n g- . (Balance in the se n se o f "r e~t" o r rcmaiurlcr is an overwo rked fig-urc of s p eech taken from commerc ia l life . )
10. Caliber, o rder: Th e steel employed in making
these guns of high ca liba is of a very hi g·h order.
(Never say" Mr. Jon c s's writ in g is of a high ra libcr."
Ca liber, li ke "capacity, " indicates compass o r extent
ra the r than excellence .)
11. Celebrity, clistin i;uishccl p erso n: Th o ui.:·h l\fr.
\Vinte r is a d i sf/11gu isltnl 111a11, his rdcb rily rests o n a
single act.
12. Council, co un se l: The ro1mri/ of Gove rn o r Smith
gave the strikers good cou11sd. (The t1J11 11r i! is an
advising b ody . Cu1111sd is the advice they g-ivc. )
13. Co upl e . pair: Y ou c:i n ma ke a pair of hull -terriers a 1·0 11/J / , · by tying them tog-e the r. (D o no t av oi d
co11plc in the mistake n idea tha t it is n1lgar. Use it
freely wh e n the two objects me nti oned arc really
co upled . N otc, ho \\·e vcr, the idio m
a rouj>!c of
days.")
14. Characte r, r ep uta t io n: His r/1arad<r is so g ood
th at we cu ulcl n o t smirch hi s n'/mlalio11 if \l·e trie d.
( R cj){(falio11 is the e sti m ate the puhlic has of o nc "s

best word \\· e have to express a p l:u..:c for l"\ )lkcti11;,; r;;·
slu rin g- gv oJs.)
16. Em igTati o n, immigrat io n: (Note the fo rce of
the prefixes . ) Hans an c1 Gretch e n are, when they k ;1n:
ILtm b urg·, c111igranls from Germany. \Yhcn lhey enter
New Y o rk th ey arc i11111u:r;m11!s to the United Sta tes .
17. En o rmity . en o rm o usness : The c1101111011 s11 ,·.>s of
this prin ce's w c:ilth was only equaled lJy the m ormity
o f the crimes h e had commiLLe<l in ama::;s i n~ it.
lS. Falseness , falsity: h 1lsi!y in his statements is
so common that we are co mpelled to think lr rls1·11,·ss the
b:is i,; o f his character. (/".(t!sily means sim ply ·· n<> ncon fo rmity to truth. " )
19. F emale , "·om:in: The !0 11r1/,· <>f th e hllm;i n ];ind
is c:illcd woman. (To say th at " 1\ / ,·male has lJn·n
fon ncl dead at the roads ide, '' ,,·hen you mean that the
body is tha t o f :i «"'0 111 rr 11, 1s \\Tong-. Th e \\Tit e rs n;·
th e last century used the won1 fre ely in this sc n;;c', hut
KOO(l use now co nd e mn,.; it a,; a \ "til;.:-: 1 ri~111. /\111"n:.~ tlw
ranks of the c:irckss and the haif-educatni th e:-(~ i,.; ;1 ?1
aversion to the simple and c·': ("Cllcnt word ;:'11111.111 . )
20. Gentleman, m :rn ; bely, \\" (1Jll;u1 : i\ol ail J1;, ·:1
arc gc11t!c 1110 1, an cl not all « ·om, ·11 a rc !11clin.
( :\"
adeq uate comment o n th ese worc.b can be give n here.
L ook them up in a g·oocl dictionary. Use go!//0111111
aml lady ve ry sparin g iy. )
21. IIou sc , home . rcsic1ence: I took up my ,,-,/J,11,,..
in Scranton and bu ilt a !1 0 11sc there. For years Scranto n
was my !tom e. (A !t vusc b e comes a ltumt only when it
h:is bee n lived in fo r some time. In g-cneral the wu rd
rcsirlmre mean s " legal d om ic il e .")
!. !. . lnvent ion , discO\'cry : (Sec dis(();;o, section 72.)

clwrartcr.)

15. D e pot , r ai lwa y station: 'fh c has ty mas ,; in ~ nf
tro op s rn;tclc it ne\.· c s s;1ry to tur n the ra thi'ay slalio11

I
i

-~ · .

·,

-. ,,

l

--~

192

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

23. Individual, m a n: Though we condemn the society
as a whole, we may freely admire so m e individuals
b elo ngin g to it, since they o. re m cll of firm and stalwart
character.
( !Jttliv i d11a ! comes from Latin i11divid11us
(indivisible) and may stand for m a//. " only wh en
members of a class a re vie wed as atoms or units of a
wh ole ."* The real s ig-n ificance of the n o un will b e
r eadily se en from its older use as an adjec tive, as in
Milton's" seal it with an indiv idual kiss," i. e ., a kiss
that cannot be di viclcd . )
24. Limit , limitation: The limits placed upon Frederick the G rcat's youthful activity were likely to produce a corresponding l imilatiun of intellect. (Limits
means practically the physical b o unds. Note, however,
_the few idioms li ke " endurance has its due limits.")
25. Lot, numbe r : The se corner lots have been sold
to a 1w111ba of New York people .
26. Loan, lend : \Ve lent the money to him. For
the loan he was gra teful. (Loan is n o t a ve rb, but a
nou n.)
2 7. Maj ori ty, plurality: Thirty thousand votes were
cast. Mr. A . g-ot 20,000, Mr. B. 4,000, and Mr. C. 6,000.
A.'s plurality over B. was 16,000, over C., 14,000 ; his
majority was 10, 000.
28 . Party, person: The party of tramps contained
ten prrsons , m e n, \\"Omen, and children. (Party, in the
sense of" man" or person . is inex cusabl e . Note . ho wever, the peculiar and idi omatic u se of the word in
"Smith was a party to the crime" and the legal use
in "the party of the fir st part.")
29. Plenty, plentiful, sufliciently: Money is plm!if11!
am o n~ farmers now, be cause last fall th ey had j>lmty
of grain . Their grain was s11!ficicn lly g-ood to bring a
•Quoted from

llod~ so n·~

F.rron ,·,, F.n.l[lij h.

l ~l l'ROPRIETIES.

193

hi gh price. (Plenty is a noun, not an adjective or an
adverb. "Plenty go od " is a vulgarism.)
30 . P o rtion, part: In the j>arf of the country in which
I live, th e portion of land owned by each man is small.
(Do not say, "I ha\"e read a porlioll of the book."
P ortion contains the idea of a distinct setting- asicle.)
31. Profes~or, in structor, teacher , etc. : The university ranks its tcad1l'rs as professors and instructors.
(Prokssor means nothing but an instructor of profes·
sorial rank in a college o r university .)
32. Observation, observance: The observation of the
stars led, in the past, to many religious obser uances.
33 . Quantity, number: I have for sale a vast qum1tity of irrain, but o nl y a small 111mtbt·r of squashes.
(Quantify measures bulk; number counts the un its.
\Ve cannot speak of a q11rmtily of men or books.)
34 . Renditio n, rendering, reacling, playing: Th e
rc1tdition of the town to the conqueror was speedily
accomplished . The actor's n·11deri11g of his part \Va s
fair. The elocutionist's rcadi1~,r;- was excellent. The
actress played the chambermaid's part rather poorly.
Dickens says, " By the way, that word, Read in;,:-, in
its critical us e, always charms me.
/\ n actress's
Reading of a chambermai<l, a dancer's Reading of a
hornpipe, a singer's R eading of a song, a marine
painter's R eading of the sea, the kettle-drummer's
Readin g of an instrum en tal passage, are phrases ever
youthful and delightful."*
35. Recipe, receipt: H e rc is a receipt for your money
and a rcripe for apple pies. (The use of recipe for
"directions for compound ing" is preferred to rffeipf
simply because the latter word has a second meaning.)
36. Re lative, relation : To my rdali'i·rs I stand in
•Quoted in

13

Hoct~son's

Erfcors ,-,, l:..·nJ:"lhJr.

.

~.

, ._,,,·

·~

··'

....
, ·

_

194

195

COll!POSITION AND RHETORIC.

IM PRO PR IF.TIES.

an unusual relation of enmity . (Rela tion in the sense
of " family connection " is to be avoided because it has
also the more g-eneral mean ing indicated in the sent ence above.)
37 . Right, duty: It is not right to say" You had a
rz:t;"ltl to tell me," when you mean " It was your du ty
to tell me ."
38 . Si g-nificance, si!.!"nification : The s1:[[11ifica11ce (importance) o f his words was ev id e nt once we had
canght their srj;-nifitafion (meaning) .
39 . Statue, statute: A special sfa fufc provides that
every defacement of the s/(1 /uc of Napoleon shall be a
crirn in al offe nse .
40. Storm, shower: Before the wind-s/onn descended
in its full fury, there was a short aml gentle s!1ozNr.
41. Scholar, student, pupil: Of the many hig-h school
pupils (or sLudm !s) only a small number become university studmLs, :rnd of the sfudm!s in the university and in
the world at large o nly a few become real sc!wlars.
42 . School, college, university : The school year and
the col h;ge year do not often coincide . (Ev ery institution of icarning is, of course, a schoul, but the best
nsa ge condemns such sentences as " I went to Harvard;
it is a good school. ")
74. Adverbs.-1. C o nstantly, often: Though she gazed
at the prisoner constantly, the sound from the s treet
offen tempted her to take her eyes off him . ( Cons!a11t!y
means" firmly , steadfastiy,"' not" repeatedly.")
2. Continuously, continnally: ( See con!i1111ous , continua/, section 76.)
3. Directiy, as soon as: As soon as he got to New
\-01·k he walk ed dindly to his brother's office . (Diratly means" in a straig-ht line." You should not say,
'' T'll go. dirccl/y I g-ct there. " )

4. Most, almost: il/(>sf of ns were g-reatly fati;.;rn: <l
and imleed a/mos! unable to continue our journev. \V e
were, in fact, mus! plucky to have )!Ot even that far.
5. Quite, somewhat, \·e ry, rather: \Vhcn y11u are
quifr done with jokin;c: [ hope you will alnndun y";1r
rafltcr unm:u1iy behavior. It is ~·<1y childish, :c;1 cl l itm
more than sum r u 1!1 a f ani.;ry .
( Q11if ,- means ,·11 fi1d1·:
it never has properly the me :rnin;.:- of .1·(>m1·;,.·/urf. ~-,.,.;-.
or m f ltrr.)
6 . Ri~ht, just: Ju st her.:; stood Gc11 cral Scot t .
("N1:i:1rt here" is an Ameril:anisrn.)
7. R.:;al, JTaliy, extremely: Thoug-h no t r·xfrondy intc llig-ent, he is :t n ·11/ly g·ood 111:lll. His ho1H's ty is quite
real. ( Rrnl is an adjective and should never be user!
as in the sentence, "He's real good to me . .. )
S . Then, of tha t time: The monarchies of !!t at fimr
were extremely arbitrary.
( ;\°e\·cr say" the !l1m monarchies ." T/1m is an ;iJ,·erh. no t an :t(1jectin: . )
9 . Some, some11·hat: He has taken s,Jm,· ,·c ry se1·erc
exercise, and no w he is sm11n,·lrat hctter.
(Sr>mr is
never an ach-erb. ''.'<0111c i)e tte r" is a 1·uig-arism .
lU. A11·iuiiy, n:ry : ~he i,.; a 7'rT I' p1·ctty 1-:irl.
(S: l1.,_·
awfully for cases in \\'hid1 awe is inspired . )
11. \\-h en, \\'hik: It '/1i/1· \IT \\'eJ"L; the re 11· e enj•J~Td
ourse lves. f V!to1 \\' C were lca\'ill~ 11·e had an unfurtu·
nate :-icc id ent. ( ll'!tt11 means" at the momen t th;11 · ·.:
7!'1ii!1· means "dllrin:_:· the ti1~1 ..: t i1:1t.")
12 . Partially, partly : Ee ai•x:iy.s jud)..;eS j){f1/w!iy, for
he is only f17l"lh a jllst rn:rn.
75. Prepositions and Conjunctions. - 1. Among-. he tween: !ld:1Y<11 these ti'»() collrses ()( actic•ll I •::Lil
choose easily. If the choice lay 11111(>11,ff three or four
conrses , T sh ould he puzzled. (IJl'f1c·cm implies two
thing-s; among, more than two.)

J,

1
;;

:1
!

f

tt

f

r

I

I
l

1,;_···

.

--~

~

,·

.,

.,,

196

l '1 7

CO)ll'OSITJO;-.i' l\;-.iD HHETOHIC.

l :I I I' J<(; I' I' 11.i TIES .

2. Above, preceding, beyond : Tbe preceding state ment indicates that our numbers will not go beyond a
thousand.
We shall put our camp above the bre:i.kwater. (. ·lboz:c is :i. preposition meaning" over" in the
physica l sen se . )
3 . After , afterward s: ..-/ftcn,·an/,· r went to t own .
(After is a p reposition, not an :i.dverb, and should not
be us ed wi t hout an object. Yet sentences like ".·-l i ter,
I went out" arc co mmon.)
4. As, th a t: 1 am llOt sure !fiat r think so.
5. Except, unless: Do not agree tv his propo sition
f(llft:.\S r write you to do so.
Eri"Cjit for th e final clause
[ am likely to a~-ree tu his request. (/:'xn'/Jt is a preposition, not a conjunction. Do not s:-iy, " I will not g-o
txa '/JL you go to o. ")
6. If, but that: I sh ould not wonde r if he came .
I have no fcnr bl/.t tlw t he will succeed .
(r\. s imilar
quest ion occurs in the sen tence, "I don't know but
what I will," which should read, "I don't know but that
I will," or better," Perhaps I will.")
7. Like, as : A ct prec isely as your leaders do.
8. \Vitho ut, unl ess : r shall not go Ullif'Ss you come .
\ Ve never mo\•e ,,"Jiflw11/ du e preparati v n. ( IY/!/1 011! is
a prepo si tio n, 110 l a conjunct ion.)
76. Adjectives.- l. J\pt, likely, li able:
The apt
schob.r is li!.:d1• (or ajJ!) t o sllcceed, but often his ove rexertio n m:tk e s him liab/L· to ill-bealtli.
2. Any, at all: I am not o f all b ette r.
ha ve not
eaten any food today.
3 . Bound, <letcrmined : He is dcft:r111i11ed to do it.
He is bo1111d b y his oath.
4. Condig-n, great : His .r:rc·a/ crim e rcc::!i\'Cd condign
punishment. ( Co11d1:01- from the Lntin n111 -J1:[(nusmeant originally " worthy."
[cliom has arbitrari ly

restncte(l it to phra ses implying blame or puni shment.
\ Ve c:i.nnot s:i.y '' He recei\·ecl condign reward.'' Co11d1:r:n
is never a verb . )
5. Continu:i.1, continuous: The drops of poison which
fell on Loki's bead were conli1111a!. IIa<l they been ro11li1111m1s he would soon ha Ye been drowned. ( Conli11u1111s
im plies un int errnpted; couli11ua!, repeated action.)
6. Capacious, large: His pocke t is mjiao·o11 s : th e
rent in his coat is /m;r;c. (Look up the clcri\·atinn ( >(
orjiac iou s. )
7. CJeycr, kind: Only a dci1cr man would ha\'e done
that li11tl action so llT1<>1Jtrusivc ly . ( Chur, in the sense
of "pl easan t,"" affable, " or kind, is a localism . )
8 . Credible, credulo us: That report is credible only
to crcrlu/011s pevple.
9. Contemptible, contemptuous: It is well to be co11le111pt11ous o f conlc111jJtib/e p eople.
10 . Corporal, corporeal: Corporal punishment can
be given only to those h::iving «orjJorcal existence.
11. Comprehensive, comprehens ible: So cu111jJ1d1rnsh:e (all-including) a reason is not easily co111prd1e11sib!c
(understood) .
12. De:i.dly, deathly: A deadly poison wiil produce a
deatlily look. (Dea/lily mean s "like death"; deadly
means " producing death ." )
13. Ihn:;;erous, in cbnge r: He was sick ten days but
was n o t thought to be in danxcr . Th e d isea se was,
however, far more do11.r:cro11s lhan was supposed . (A.
ne wsp;1pe r once saicl, "~Ir. Blank , who died yes terday, \\"a s sick t en days , but was not th o ught to be dan g erous. ' ' )
14. Definite, definitive: The judge's opinion was so
definite and comprehensive that I said , "Thnt 1s a
definifii1e decision" (i . e., it settled the mntter ) .

I

,.

I,I

198

CO:'<! POSITIO:-r A!'D kl!ETOH IC.

IMPROPRIETIES.

15. Distinct, distinctive: llfo st men are undecided
enough to ha;·c three or four distinct ways of solving
the same problem. Only the man who has one definite
course of action can be said to have a distinctive method.
16. Eminent, prominent: l>Iany a political leader is
a prumi11,·11t but no t an cmi11e11 f man.
l 7. Elegant, excellent, pleasing: Really d r'.!fll11t furniture must be both t·xcellent and p!msing. (Unless yon
arc perfectly sure of its meaning, d cgmtl is a good
word to a\·oid.)
JS. Exceptional, exceptionable : J ohn's conduct is, to
he sure, 1·. 1·<'1/1!io11al; but it is too s e lf-forgetful to be exop!ionablt". (Lru'f>!iona! means" o nt of th e ordinary";
<'.l'C1jJtio11ab!e means "open to adverse comment.")
19. Excessi,·cly, exceed ingly: His w e:1lth is c.ffeedingly, but not cxffss i·• ·dy, great. (1:.~rceedi11gly means
"very"; ('.l"rcssi<1dy means "undul y great.")
2U . F ine , excellen t: That was an ex (d/cnt dinner.
The toa s tmaste r showed a line sense of propriety.
(C o mpare the distinction between" llice" and ' ' agreeabl e . " )
21 . Corgeous, grand , pleasaut: \Ve had a pleasant
p1cn1c. Th e colors o f the sunset were gor._1;eous ; the
munn tai11s in the distance were grand. (D o no t waste
the force of grand and gorgcu11s by u sing them on trivial
occasions .)
22 . Horricl , u11plc:1s:mt: At first his clammy touch
was mcrc:ly 1111/J/nrsanf . .i\t last it grew e ven h orrid.
23. I kalthy, hea lthful, wholesome: Man cann o t be
lic·al!liy \\'ith o ut z11!to!csf1111c foo ll and a. !1ca/tlil11l climate.
24. In, into: /11 the room into which he had pushed
the boy w as a larg·e tabl e . (Compare the di s tinction
111
Latin and G e rman hct wc (' n "mo tion in" and
" motion t o .")

25. Limited, small : A limited capacity is not necessarily a small capacity. (Limited means "with limits,"
large or small, as the case may be.)
26. Less, fewer: The fewer the number of workmen,
the less will be the money paid out. (Less means
" smaller in bulk "; fewer means " smaller in number. " )
2 7. Impracticable, impassable: Since the broken
bridge made the road impassable any advance was

199

impracticable.
28. Last, latest, preceding: Mr. Hope's latest book
is Rupert of Hcnfzau. Browning's last book w a s Asolando. Among those which preceded it was The Ring
and tlze Book.
29. Ma<l, angry: A mad-man may not be angry at all.
30. Mutual, common: A mutual (reciproc~-ll) repul-

sion drove Jones and me apart. Yet we had one feeling in common: we b o th disliked bombast.
31. Lovely, pretty: It is rather hard for a vivaciously pretty woman to be lo·vely.
32. Magnificent, good: Napoleon was certa inly a
111ag11ilicent man, but there are many who deny that he
was good (upright). His laws, however, are certainly
good (effi~ient). (Magnificent is too often used for good
or even passable.")
33. Nice, pleasant, attractive: A nice taste in words
sometime produces a fastidiousness that is far from
pleasan t (or attractive). (Look up the history of the
wo rd nice. Its misuse is spoiling one of the most us~­
ful words in English.)
3-J.. Notorious, noted, famous : Every notorious man
is uofed, but not every noted man is 110/oriuus. Carlyle
was famous; Jesse James was notorious.
35. Oral, verbal: All messages, unle ss they are like
that skinful of powder sent by the Puritans to the

200

IMPHOPRIETIES.

CO:l1POSITION Al\'D JUIETORIC.

Indians, are verbal. But a message is oral only when
it is spoken.
36. Odd, fnnny : It was the oddc'.r/ and a t the same
time the most lamentable thing that ever happened tu
me. Yet it was only one step from being funny.
37. Posted, informed: He is so well i11for111cJ in
matters of bookkeeping that he rare ly posts his book:;
wrongly. CWeU-poslcd, for wel1-i11formcd, is a commercial phrase to be avoided.)
33. Practicable, practical: Rarely does a jJmcliml
man evolve an imjJrac!icab!c p lan . ("A practical plan"
differs in meaning from "a prac!irnble plan.")
39. Pronounce d, striking: The stri!.:i11g nature of
his discourse was partly lost because of badly pro7lounccd words.
40. Pitiable, pitiful : That no one was pitiful enough
to aid her, shows indeed a pitiable state of public man ners.
41. Prospective, perspective: The jJrosjJccfiz1,? bride
had arrived. The jJasp,.d h!t' of that drawing is excellent. ( I'c:rsP<·c!ive is a noun confused with the adjective
prosj>eclh!c oniy by extremely careless persons.)
42. Real, very: (Sec really, section 74.)
43. Splendid. pleasant: Our journey throui,:h the
sj>!rndid palaces of antiquity was rcallv more tl1dn
pleasaut. (Never use sj>!mdid nn les s actu~ l splendor is
implieL1.)
4.+ . Superior, able: One may he s11jJrrior to his fellows (higher in rank) without being ahlr'r than the\' .
(The phrase " a superior man " is common, but inco-rrect.)
45. Sensible of, sensitive to: 'Ve are sensible of
our own ideas and sotsitivc to any change in the
weather.

201

46. Supreme, last: In his las! momcnh be h:;r1 the
supreme gratification of seeing the work he h:tt1 lK·su;1
completed. (Look up the deri \'ation u( rnj>l/'111, ·.)
4 7. U nqucstioned, unquestionable : His veracity is
1111queslionablc. \Ve recognize that, and whatever he
says remains u11q11rs!ioned.
43. \Vomanly, womanish, manly, mannish; child·
like, childish: - Mari::i, the servant, in T«·dli!t A'i~·li! .
lacked m::iny 1i'iwtauly qualities . But one i,;i,·es li er
more respect than he docs to the 1••om1misli Sir Andrew.
(\Vords ending- in is!t suggest unpleasant simil:trity.}
49. \Veird, unearthly: The three 7t'1·irJ sisters in
Macbeth arc h'Cini hccrnse they can proph esy, not
because they are unea rthly and uncanny. (The rc:ll
meaning of weird, as seen in the Scotch "tu tlree one's
weird," is to fulfill nne's fate.)

Exercise XII.

I

IF

1r
Ji

A. Define the term impropriety. Which are to be
more freq11cntly foun d in writing, barbarism s ur improprieties? Why? \Vhich are the more harmful? \\'Jiy?
How do improprieties arise? How may you o ut~row
th.;, hahit of using them?
/J. Make s e ntences, nsmi.: the followin~ words correctly:
a\·ocation
fix
ag·gra \·;tt L:
liable
inau}!urate
allude
caliber
locate
anticipate
depot
m:1y
apprec iat e
individual
ba1:mcc
l~ lai 111
party
purpose
reckon
scholar
propose
decimate
directly
ride
ca n
quite
drive
demean
profossor
t r:rn spire
discover
alternative
eliminate

.... -.
'•.:.i

.>

202

DI PR O l'lUET!ES.

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

C. Explain the correct uses of the following words:

apt
likely
ril,!'ht
real
lik e (as a conjnnctiun)
l>etween
{;Ont in uo u s
D. Correct
ex tract s:

above
after
without

funny
sple ndid
ugly

grand

mad

womanish

nice
ve r bai
a wfull y

clever
deadly
line
th e

improprieties

the

discipline, au<l u!lfJllali f:e<l

10

retu rn to the servi ce of t he gov-

ernment.
11. Sargent nnd his s i'·.ter Jocaterl nt R ockfonl about t hree
y ea rs ago aud started a n1iilinery 1·~Llh1i:-.h1u ent un t1er the na1uc
~f '' Tl a; l'arisi au l 'a lo.ice . ''

.
12 . T his need o f a line of demarcation is ::tlannin ~:h'. cons;J1cuvns. an d if you contiuu.1.,; to hri n r:,· i nt() t lic.: c hur\_'h all t1. i1-.; qt,1c ...,tionablc stuff , the l'iiu rch wi ll \\'fL· d : ihclf; unkos there is a cic;\r
line between t h ese clnsses -- the church and the ,,·orl<l- bdc•rc·
Jo n g , we will simply be swamp<:d. I am nnt ,.,11re t hat \\' e art

cond ig n
Ill

203

following

I . In th e ir places we shouhl instill m o re hones t men.
2. Theu, pl 11cing him self at their heact, Solano him sel f
marched the m e n back tu t heir qnarter<, \\'he re he a!;ain
addreo<scd them, promis in g- them the y would be paid.
3 . Wooley claimed tha t the label was common property.
4 . There are Jive female R ed Cross nurses do in g exce llent
w o rk in the hospital, and twe nty more of the ri g ht kind could
be profitably emp loyed .
5 . General Aro l:J.s, who n o w :lrrive<l on the scene , in an
excess of ra ge li fteLl his baton of o ffi ce and savagely attacked
some o f the onlookers.
6. \Vh e n s uch a course is fo ll o wed, we have th at stability
w hic h is a bsolu tely e ssential to the success of those g rand business enterprises, w h ic h are the wonder o f m od ern t im es.
7. Nobody i,; foo lis h enou gh tu claim that the government's
in terests would a ppre<.:iably suffer if it µut out a limited amou nt
of paper money, und stoppetl there .
8 . Right at t hi s time must eve r y one is beginning- to think
seriously o f Christmas .
You wi ll soo n bei;in to thiuk about
sornc ni ce present for some dea r relative or some friend. Remember, at our store it doesn't always require the cash, fo r we take
your old gold and s ilver as pay.
9. Appropriate servi ces will be h eld o n that day and durin g the balance of the wee k .
10. All the members of the S ixth regiment were h onorab ly
discharged from the servi ce o f the United States sa\·o four privates of Com pany C. \Vhile th ese four were not dishono rably
discharged, the y were s aid to be out o f harm ony with military

..':.,;.

1

''

~

n ot swam ped already.
13 . J le lived in ex tenu :tkd cir\'nmst anccs.
14. Th ere is hardly a day in th e year t hat so me !urge concern
d oes nut call o n ou r city btt\'er . offering t o close out the ir stock
at :t g-reat di scou nt.
\\·e aiw;~y:-; pi i..:k ou t the c~ea1n a n.tl lc~l\·c
th e l;al :t ncc of the stuff fur tbe

u~hcr

fellows.

C u nit: U11s

\\.·~·1...~k

aud sec the cr eam o( bargains th rou g- hout our laq.;c cstabli s 1 1 ·

m en t. And, by the w ay, no matter h o w little the pri ce, y~u can
always tlepcm1 on getting dcpenclable clo thini; at the (, u!de n
Eagle; \\'e leave t he o th er s tuff a lo ne.
_
l ''t tH1 if bcsid1,_· . ,;
15 E,·c n if your lungs arc a I r<:a<1y e f1 ec t el,
th e cough you have f., \' e r antl emaciation thetc h ot1ll .1 otrong
pr(lhah !1i ty ·if :l cure.

_

16 . A llonl>l" welld ing w as pla nned for t h is pbce today , l>u t,
a cconnl of the Lli sap pc;iraucc uf unc uf the pcropcdl\'e K'ruum ~ .
011

it w as chan ~et 1 to a ~in~~lc ~dfair .
.
.
17. A !Juut 5 o ' clock 'l'hur,,cby c\·cniug it began to ram q uitco
har<l an Ll L"Jntinucd u:it il la te in the cvcn inj~"
.
l S. There was a quit<.: largc " ltcutl anL·e al the c.ouuty ..:attiemen fa ir la st ni gh t, and everyone was satisfied th a t 1t wo uld have
bee n diffi c n lt to pass t he evening more pleasantly.
.
19 . Advices from the Phil ipp ines state t hat th e m surgents
h nve dec ide d n o t to recogn ize t he cess io n of the islands t o t he
U n ited States. It is claimed the Un ited States will require 70,000
troo ps to put down the rebelli on.
.
.
20 . His h ouse is bein g riddled o f its old furniture.
21. His delineation of the negro dialect is perfect.

J:. ·why are errors in the use of " shall " and " wi l~"
classed a rn o n~ improprie tie s rather than amo nE;:" mistakes in j!'ram11::u· ?

··,

t

r

204

COMl' OSITI01' AND l<l-iliTOlUC.

F. What special meanings have " should" and
would " ?
C. \\' hat was the original meaning of " shall" ?
Of " \\"ill " ?

H. Is it correct to use" will" \vi th the firs t person in
quest io n s ? \Vhy ?
I . Correct the errors in the use of " shall " and
"will," "should" and" would," in th e followi ng- sente nces:
l. /l.s long- as they continue to shun such a life, sn lon g will
we continue to have corruptio n and misery.
2. I think we will n o t be able to finish by si x o'clock.
3 . l know I will get a better grade of gn<>Js than this 11t the
next store.
4. The question that agitated us was, if the lake were rough
would we get seasick?
5 . \Ve will neve r be a ble to purify p ol it ics so long as the best
men will not go to the polls .
6. Will I go and ge t the flowers for you?
7. \ Vii i you be at home to-morro w afte rn oo n ?
8 . S h e sa id she wou ld he ill i( she did not get 011 t o f doors
oftener.

J. In sert the correc t forms - " shall " o r " will,"
" should " o r "would" - in the blanks left in the fol lowing sentences:
1. I - - - not be ;IJle to recite to-morrow , if I am us hoarse
as I was afte r the la s t ball g-ame.
2. Grant's last directions tu his a ide were : "You - - - mana ge t his with secrecy and di s patch. "
3. W e - - - finish Lhis pi ece of work , come what m ay.
4. Th e e xpress man - - - c o me f<>r th e trunks at tw o o'clock .
5 . If you s it in tl1:1t <lraug-ht ynn - - - take cold.
6. \Vi Lh determination in hi s vo ice the o ld man sa id : "They
- - - suffer for this . "
7. If we do n't hurry we - -- be late .
8. How ofteu - - - I ha,·e to t ell you that you are to come
iu before it is dark? Yo u · -- nol g-o nut a gain afte r dinner
thi s wee k.

IMPROPlHETIES .

205

9. H I were to re visit m y uld h ome, l -- - -,I hnow, find it
lamentably change d.
10. I-le says he - - - not klluw th e result r1f th,; e:<arninatiun
for a week.
11. l wrote her that if sh e - - - come to us no w ,"'" - - be able to make her visit pleasante r than it - - - be late r in the
year.
12 . He says he wishetl that I -- - be frank, but if I
tell him just wh'-!t I thought he - - - never forg ive me.
13 . Th e d oc to r said he - -- be here in au h o ur.
14 . I - - - not fo r,;e t yo ur kindness .
15. T he fa c ulty h :tvc d ecreed that F ri day - -- bt> a holida y.
16. The time is comi n g when we - -- find travel a vNy
prosa ic thing .
17. H e is afraid tha t he - - - not pas:; t he exami nati 1!ll.
18 . If letters co me during- you r al_,.;enee, - -- I forward thelll
to yo n ?
19. - - - yuu he in your oflicc between two anrl th ree
tomorro w ?
20. I - -be so rry to think th at I had !1,st my temper.
21. I f my brother - - - spea k to m e as J ohn speaks to hi s
sister, J - - - rese nt it.
22. If I we re to go away, - --yo u be s o rr y?
23 . li e says he - - - be in New Yo rk at the t ime we are
th ere.
24. - - - you feel the a ir if I o pen this window?
25. The s alesman promis ed that the parce l -- --be h ere by
six o ' c lock .
26. If the custom of using check-rei ns - - - !Jc aboli s hed, we
- - - not be any the worse for the change and the horses - - he much more comforta!Jle.
27. If it - - - rain we - - - have to give up the picnic.
2};. Our coo k is a treasure a nd I don't know what we - -do without lier.
29. !-l e sa id that, a s h e was a sho1·t-distauce runner, he - - b e foolish to enter for the mile r ace.

A'. \ Vhat difference in m ea ning comes from chang" should " to " wonld" in the following sentence :
Will iam said tha t the regulation was absurJ, and that he
should not obey it.

"·

)

.

.;· .: '

;,:

\

.'

' 1t

.,

. I 5

206

CO~!POSITIO:"\

A:"\D RHETOHIC.

L. Improprieties often arise throui;h i;:-110rancc of
the meaning of prefixes. Below is a li st of common
Latin prefixes, \\'ith their English meanings. Cite
three words in which e;-ich prefix occurs, and define the
words:
a, ab - a way, off.
ad - to, toward.
ambi, amb - around, about.
ante - before.
circum - around, about.
contra - against.
cum (com, con, co l, cor) - together, with, completely, thoroughly.
de - down from, down, of.
dis, lli - asunder.
e, ex - out, forth, \\'ithout (implying- freedom from).
extra - beyond.
in (im. il)- in, into, 011 , at, against.
in - not.
inter - between, together.
per - through, thoroughly; (sometimes 111 a bad
sense) breaking through, disregarding.
post - after, behind.
prae - before.
praeter- before, beyond.
pro - forth , forward, before, for.
re, red - back. ag-ain, in return.
sed, se - apart, aside.
super- over, upon, aboYe .
trans - across, through, completely.
ultra - beyond, across.

' - .._\
'.1,

CHAPTER XIII.
IDIOM AND TRAi\SLATION-ENGLISH.

I

t
.

f

77. Definition of Idiom.-An impropriety may consist
of the misuse of a single word; in that case, as in a11
of the instances cited in the last chapter, it is merely a
mistake about the meaning of a word. It may also
consist of a wrong combination of words. \Vhen a
" stump speaker" says he wishes "to say a few remarks," and when a steamship ai;ent writes, " Do you
anticipate to take a trip abroad?" the u se of "say"
for " make," and " anticipate to take" for "expc-ct to
take," are obvious improprieties. They violate \\·bat
is called English idiom - that is, the English fashion
of combining words. An idiom (the term comes from
the Greek word for "peculiarity") is a phrase or construction not capable of literal translation into a foreii,;n
tongue.
Idioms, even more obviously than sin;;·Jc
words, are the result of mere ill ogical habit. The
English say "Shut the door," and the German~.
" 11fad1t' die T!1iire zu " (" :Make the door to "), without
any definite reason for so doing. Often,· as in " How
do you do?" a sentence does not mean literal ly \\·hat
it does idiomatically. Yet idiom is the highest rule of
language, the most lasting form of good use. Always
obey idiom, even if, as in the case of "How do you
do ? " or "pretty sure," it seems illogical and absurd.
Idiom has a far wider rule than is at first evident.
The student may amuse and profit himself b!' collecting

·,

"
·;!,

.,,,::.
'.·

'

~ • .'

' •.

;
I

208

C O~ I POSITI01'

1\ ND lUI ETUH I C.

un fa miliar id iom s , like "to be free o f th e to wn. " But
for the m o m ent we need most to di sco ve r h ow not to
sin agains t id io m. Un idiomatic E ng li sh is u suall y th e
propert y of the fo reigner. Ye t e ve n those wh o se
nati ve to n g ue is En~lis h frequently v io l:lte id io m,
either fro m an unscholarly oYe rni ee ty , a s in the
avoidance of " hacl rather ," or from an impe rfec t education , as in "He \Yas im·ol ved with it. " In the long
run, t he only way to co mmand icliom:ltic En g lish is to
reaJ idio m atic E n glish . Keep g-ood l i t e r ~u·y co mpan y
and your English is pre tty sure to be good. A more
immediate benefit will co me fro m looki ng a t a fe w of
the current violations of id iom .
No complete classification of such e1To rs is p o ssib le .•
simply because idiom is illog-ical cu stom. But m ost
o f the violati o ns of idio m can b e gro uped unde r three
heacls : t h e use of a phrasing 11ot E n glish; of gram m a r
not Engl ish; and of an order of words no t En g lish.
No English man co uld think t he fo llo win g si g n, which
may be seen in Berlin h acks, E nglish, beca use it vi ola tes
all three d iv is io ns o f idio m :
No passage money has t he passage g-uest to p ay , if to h im
not on the mounting o f t he cal> the valid passage ti cke ts o f the
fo r a l' imple passage to !Jc paid passa){e m oney, by th e coa chm an downrcache<l become are.

Idi om o f ph rase is v io lated in the use o f "pa ssage
money " fo r -" fare ," " passage g-uest" f o r . ' passe nger, " " th e m o untin g of: the cab" fo r " getting into
the cab ," " do wnrcach ecl" fo r " ha ncled d own , " e tc.
The use o f "for a sim ple p:lssage to be paid p a ssa.gem on e y " in stead of " fa re to be paid fo r a n o rd inary
p assa ge " v iolate s Eng·lish grammar, a s doc s "b ecome
a re," for " is ." F inall y , the order of the words, eve n
were they the r ight word s, is enou g h to make the

I D I O M A N D T R A N SLATIO N -ENGLI S H .

passa g e entirely unidiom a tic.
b ecom es :

Put into

En g l i ~h

209
it

..

·

Th e p asse nge r n eed p ay no fa re, u nless, wheu h e gets in to
th e ca b, tl1e cab m a n h a n ds him a ti c ke t fo r the o rd ina ry dista nce.

',:

78. Unidiomatic Phrasing.- Natu rall y no t e ye n the
m os t careless of E ng li s hm e n will m ake such gross
b lunde rs a s those cited abo ve . Yet one w riter say s
" J ohn so n ne ver accomp li shed o rigin al ity "; n or is it
u ncom m on to hear peopl e say , " I jo urneyed by the
trai n," "I reme mber o f it ," " I mac.le men ti on on it ,"
" He is no t to h om e, " " He died with an a ttack uf
B ri g ht 's d isease ," " He sa ves him self to a purpose ,"
" H e h ad a n avers ion from this action," e tc. One
careless a uth or de sires his fello ws to "pilg-rim t o th e
grave of Goeth e " ; anothe r write s, "The s tor y treated
fro m the a rri val o f Brut, the g reat g ra nd so n o f A:n cas ,
to a W elsh kin g , Cadwallo , on th e Isle" ; a third says
tha t "Fo r twenty years Milton g ave up wri tin g poe try
a nd de vo ted h is time in wri ting p a mphl e ts for dcfe nJing his side ." Gall icisms like "Yo u h a ve rc;:iso n " for
"You a re ri ght," are also co mm on . In m ost of th es<.:
cases, a ch an ge in one word will make the unid iomat ic
E nglish id iom a t ic. It will b e noted that a g reat m any
o f th ese fau lts co m e from th e use of the wrong prepos1t10n. It see ms worth while, th e re fore, t o gi \'c a
list o f the mo st u sual combina tio ns o f prepos iti on s
with o ther words :

.,

.

.I

,.,l

*

abhorrence o f
abso lve fro m
acco rd with
acq uit o f
adapted to or for

affi nity betwee n, to ,
with
agree with (a per so n )
agree to ( a p ropo sal )
averse from or to

ur

•Th is Hs t ls Quoted from A . S. Hill's F ourufa ll'u ns of Rhdur/,~ . wh ich in turn
quotes a lar!:e JHtrt o f it fro m Meiklejo hn 's T iu 1:'11J{ hsl1 l"-"'.J:- uUJ: ~.

14

''

210

CO;\iPOSITION AND RHETOR I C.

bestow upon
differ from (a person or
change for (a thin!!)
thing)
change with (a person)
differ from or with (in
comply with
opinion)
confer on ( = give to)
disappointed of (what we
confer with (=talk with)
cannot get)
confide in ( = trust in)
disappointed in (what we
confide to ( = intrust to)
have)
conform to
dissent from
in conformity with or to
glad at or of
convenient for or to
involve in
conversant with
martyr for or to
correspond to or with (a need of
thing)
part from or with
correspond with (a per- profit by
son)
reconcile to or with
dependent on (but indc- taste of (food)
pendent of)
taste for (art)
derogatory to
thirst for or after
79. Unidiomatic Constructions.- Un-English copstructions are usually caught only from literal translations
of foreign constrnctions that are so marked as to
impress themselves on one's mind. The chief danger
for the student is that he will copy the sentence-structure of French, German, or Latin. Many a student of
French employs the highly exclamatory French sentence in English and says, " \Vhat to do ! " thinking
that he has translated "Que faire." Almost every
student of Latin or German uses at times the absolute
constructions, so useful in inflected and so awkward in
nninflected languages. In such a sentence as, " Charles
would buy the dog, t lzc owner bei11_1: u·il lh~f[," the italicized
clause is, if not entirely un-English, at least very
clumsy. One other fault of idiom common in careless translation from classical tongues must be noted .
Frequently the accusatiYe of specification is turned
directly into Enl,!"lish, and the translator writes, "He

I I>IOCll A:\"D THAl\"SL;\ TlO:\-ENGLlSH .

211

was easy as to his mind," when he means, " He was
easy in his mind ." In one case a pupil said, not," His
trousers were turned up," hut," He was turned up :is to
his trousers ." The student should make it a rule nen::r
to write a sentence containing the peculiar constrnctiolls of Latin, French, Gcrm:in, or any other foreign
tongue. In practice, he will find that avoiding absolute
constructions will go far toward ridding his style of
unidiomatic constructions.
80. Unidiomatic Order of W ords.-A sentence may contain none but English words and English constructions
and yet be quite un-English, because the order of the
words is that of some foreign tongue. For instance.
"This one editor in Tlie Prina:ss says," is not English,
but Germ:rn masquerading in the disguise of English
words. It should be, "One editor says this in an edition
of Tiu: f>ri11r<"ss." During- the first years of acquaintance with a foreign tongue, the danger of falling into
such errors is great.
French sentence -structure is
enough like English not to cause much trouble. But
in Latin and German, the inflections make possible an
order of words impossible in English. In the follow ing sentences from a translation of C::esar's Gallir
War, the punctuation and the order of words arc tbc
only things absolutely wrong. Yet the sentences arc
not English :
Among them was Di\·itiacus still in uur memury the must
able man of all Gaul, who held not only a large part of th ese
districts but also the whole of Britain; Galba was now king-~
to him, on account of his justice ant.I prudence, was given the
command of the war by the wish of all.

It should read :
Among them \\'as Divitiacus, the most able m:tn in all Gaul. -

a man who held, C\'en in our memory, not only a large part of

I,
I

.I

'.·
;

'

I•

212

CO~IPOS1T10:'\

A:'\D RUETORIC.

the.;e <li:;trietb, but '1lso the who!o of Britain. Bearn"° hls justice and prudence m ade all so wish it, th& command of the war
wns g-iven to him.

speak about such a ,·ariety of affctirs. it is s11Alcienr fnr 1h i:nk,.;·;
,,.~ train our niinds by study. ()r-14- dn yn11 thinh" r1:1r n111 ~ cl:--; ca :1
l1ear suc h a strain unl c~s we rcl:1x then1 l;y ttic plea:--.urc~ rt2i..'C:i\·ed
from th ese studies? tor my part l confess to h:ive given m yself
ove r to these studies: let others lJe ashamed \\"ho s<> bi;ry them ·
sth·,•s in books that they Uring- 'Jll t (•f the1n 1h1thin g f,i r i..: 1d11n1on
a<h·ant:1ge or clo not bring their knO\\"led,;e to the· li ght :111<1 , ic w
of others; moreo,·er, why sho11ld I be ashamL·tl , j11n.r,.; , l \\·i1"

.i\ second example ,,·ill prove tlut this c1an.:cr is n
re:tl one for those who come in cont;ict with Latin;
th..: sentence is chos e n from a \\·ell-known e<.liti\Jn uf
Ca:sar :
The superiority is readily app::irc-nt o f the interlinear over
nthc-r translations 1 n ot only in thP

~:tv1ng

of tirne, but

:-d~o

fnr

all pu rp uses of careful stucly.

r

If the sentence rc::icl as follO\\·s, it wonl<l he Eng-lish:

1m1111

ill'lltl
!i(.
iiihiii

mmn

l!l!HH
lllillll

illlllll
!i'Jllli

rnm11

il!iiill

mum

llllll!I

"liijii

~1111
ili!1'!H
~1HIH

~mm
wnm

~lllll
llllllll

i

The superiorit y of the interiin ea r o n~ r other translat ions , not
uuly in tht..' ~i._l\·ing o[ ti1u <:, l1ul d;~!) fpj· ;:1:1 rnnpo . . . 1,:-.. (lf cart."'fu l
:-.ttu_ly, is apparent.

Transbtions frum German shu1\· the s:unc crrurs .
stud ent translates a l.Te rma11 sentence as fol lows:
[ h:tve cnmpelJ <• <l

A

in o ].J J·fr]l:ts t" wander, an<J the
pictures of that pair of frien(b to raise, to wh o m the old w o rld
\\· ;ts

~o

111)' fanC'V

ri('h.

If "tv \\·andcr" 1lc placccl .Jftcr

f;tncy," anU '' tu
!"~USC
after •. a11d,'
tile ScllLCllCC UCCull1t.:S t:u gli:-;h .
Th..: extreme suspension uf lllc sense common in lhe
CL·rrnan sentence, is often intolerable in English.
81. :Miscellaneous Faults of Idiom in Translation.--- Other
falllts in transbtiun arc not rare . l\fony persons in
translating keep rig-i<.lly to the pnnctuatiun. the seutence
division, and the paragraphin::; uf th e 1irih:i11:11. The
1·L·sull is, that though th e individu:tl cl:tusec: rn;1y h e ;,;·,-,od
E11;.:-lish, the scnlcncc or par:1;;rapll as:• 1\ h"k i·; quite
unidiomatic. Examples will make the fault clear:

ttuUH
~Hli1

.titt·r

\\(·;L :·i·;o1uc

di~,:--.cnsiiill.

()r +

=::.:.i::·i
+ Thit;

use

01 · ·

o r " is uuidioJnatic.

dn

\·011

+--

1

~

I

jJL:Tsn11~1l

pieasures calle d m e nr fin:tlh·
.-/I t"!!l.(f.\

~kep

a111 su pka~cd ,,· 11li

arc tired hy altercations .

l

~upply

You ask

n1e, (,ratins , \\·hy

<n1 r~c lYes

li

this llJd11. It
\\"liil ·h will rcfn...·~,Ji ~ 11;r

with

r\!1d

l H)\\' tin y-~Jt! tl1ink we 1..· ~ tn either
for speaking- daily on :--t:ch a

tnaterial

Y:triety uf s11hjc1..:ts, unless "·e train 01ir n1ind-.:. \\"itll study, or nia~e

our 111i11ds a liic t u iJC .;.lr such a str:tin . i;nlt: -.;~,
p1v:1 :-.ti rt..:

tll( · <..;t.:~1 11dic-.; .

f

l

n1in<ls after the Jl(li:-:.e of the fonIJn, and n .• :--.t our t.:;lrs \\"iicn tlivy.

tlic

ij-

1 1r

( ' 1c1· 1«•

ContLtst this \1·1th the f,l]lowin;.: pn>perly tra11shtcd
version u f the pa '-'S < t~e :

t

i_

1it·\·t:r (_' itlivr

Lq>t nw l>ack 'i·

1 ~ beca11~e he :·..:.upplie;-; tis \'.·it l t so111l'tl1i11,'..!.·

f

\Y:ty tL~t:.

a (l\·:ln tagc or lnv<.· of e:"t:--;e ha:--: dra\\-!1 nh.· fr(~111 dut) · ,

..

u

\'.iu :i sk us. Cratius, whv \\"e are pkase<l hy th e gre:it talent
of t Ii ;,; rn:1 n. lkt: ause it fnrni s he!S t h with t Ju t \\"hich re freshes
!lit· 1ni111l aftt.: r til t: quarreiin~~· uf t-iic f(1rn111 ;t111l I"< :-.t .... 1111 r t..:1r:->

in ~ll('h a

for so n1any years have li,·<:d

t

1Jf si.lt(1\·?

1 ad111it th;lt

I

\\"t..'

n:l.lx t l 1cn1 l1y

h:1Yc gi\·cn n1y ...;<: l f

t•1

f ,ct t]H1-.:.e IH...' ;l~h:uncd \\·ho lu1\·1,.; so IH;rit.·d tlic11i

sch'l:S in tiictr IJooi-:s that they gain no IJenefil from tla.:m, nr
hrill;.! non~~ into Yil'\V o r lig-ht.
But \Y l1y, junH·~. ~h<>tild I l.je
ashamed, I, who have live d so many years i n such a '':ay th :1t
scllish conve nience or desire for peace never drew me a\\·ay, 11CJr
pleasure called me, nor en:n sleep kept me hack. ·--C JCERo.
Ard1ia .1

!.

Oth e r cx;1mplcs of Ind tr:mslation ;tre ;,;i\·cn 1Jc]o1\·:

-l

l. 1)ivitiac·11...;, ~JH11-:e i11 tlH:ir i el1alf, the Bvll<)\'al·i ll:t\"c ~ tt all
times l>ct:ll 1111,kr the prntccti»n and in alliance \\'ith the J Ltt:dtnn
state: driven hy the i1· leade1·s, who said that th e Haedui re<lu ced
into slavery !J y C<1·sar were e;Hl11ring all s<Jrls t>i ins11J1,; and

!

f

1

shan1c, they llacl re,· fdl('d frc11 n tile Haedui a11d i1ad n1;1de
on the H. . c1111:1u penplc. -- C.·l ·S .\H: ( ,'r1lll'r· lf"11r.

Wdr

1hi1i~. !1'--· 1: ,ttht' \\"t.~ d;t~ly

"'Th is u s·:: 0 : .. •.•r " i~ 1.::1:Jiom;:,lt;l:.
+ ThrM <...1i~1i11C't Env.li~h '1t·11te1JC'e111 artj written n.s nn e.
of the Latin t ~xt i• followed almost exadly .

Tht• runctuntion

, :.i

216

Cm! POSITIO> .\ ~; o RHETOR IC .

formit.17 with th e sense o f the orig ina l. Some 11oted
teachers o f Latin go so fa r as to make th eir pupil~
trans la te Latin s lang into modern English slang . But
perh:ips this is !!Oing t oo fa r. The t eache r of E nglish
is an xiou s only that when a student is learning
ano th e r langnai;e, it s ha ll not be at th e cost o f his
Enl,(lis h. The stnclent should be co n sta ntly o n the
watch lest into translatio ns ostensibly E ng lish there
creep foreign fashi on s o f punctuation, diction, and
gramm ar. For \\' he n an Englishman h as los t the
ahili ty t o talk and \\'rit e in th e Eni!·li sh fas hi o n, he may
as well buy no m ore paper and ink. H is w o rk will be
unidiom atic and the re fo re ha rsh, ohscnre, ill ite rate.
Exercise XIII.
A. Define idi o m . What is the relation between
idiom and g-ood u se ? How <lo faults in idi o m a rise?
Is a fault in idiom an impropriety?
JJ. Wh y is it im poss ible to m ake a co m ple t e class ifi cation of erro rs in idiom? Un der what three h eads
may the commo nest Yi olatio ns of idiom be g-rouped?
Give exampl es of these three classes .
C. Gi\·e examples of clumsy "no minati ve abs o lute"
constructions in E n g li sh .
D. Does idiom go ve rn only wo rds and phrases ?
I s the duty of a tran slator done when h e h as fo und as
exact syn o nyms as possible fo r th e fo r eii,:-n words?
\Vhen he h as tran slat ed the \\'Onls approximately, and
m ade s ente nces of English fo rm? \Vh y is scrupulous
transl ation important ?
E. How do so me Prc m:h sc..:ntences d iffe r fro m Engli sh ones ? H ow do Germa n and L at in sent ences differ
from En g li sh s ente nces ? H o w d oes a French p aragraph differ from an E n i:;li sh one? A Latin paragTaph?

I DIO:ll

A~D

'l'ld.:-.:~L A TIO:-; - E::-;GLlSl L

Z1 7

F. Frame se nt e nces e mbody ing th e E ng li sh idi oms
given belo\\'. i\ cid othe r id ioms to the li ~t:
1 The so-called "cl ouble possessiYe "; e . g .," this
pict t;re of J ohn 's." (What is the \·alue of this do uble
posses sive?)
2 . " Eith er " at th e end o f a negative sentence:
e. g-., "I did no t go , either."
3. Many a.
4. To the best o f o ne ' s abi lity.
5. On hand.
6. To cal l to account .
7. To take advanta ge of.
8. To take after (i. e., to resemble).
9. To take a thing am iss.
10. To pay attention .
11. To avail o nese1f of.
12 . To be badly off, o r well o ff.
13. To have a hand in (anyth in g ).
14. To have a mind t o (i. e ., t o inte nd) .
15. To be be nt upon ( i. e., to be de termined).
16. To catch cold.
1 7. To pay court.
18. To be h ead ove r ears, in debt, in love, e tc.
19 . To put t o deat h .
20. To turn a d ea f e ar.
21. To take a fancy t o (anything).
22 . To be o n tente r-hooks.
23 . To stick in one 's crop .
24 . Che ek by jo wl.
25 . To take a wal k.
26. T o b e abo ve do in g (anythini;:-).
27. To be of age .
28. To agree with (u sed o f food).
29. To turn the tables.
30. To get wind of ( a thing).
G. Are these passages English?

If not, rewrite

them :
1. Therefore, for these reasons he was given over from the
state by Cneius Pompey . The a ccuser does not deny this; but

220

CO.Ml'OSITION AND RHETOlliC.

4. Coffee lrns been contracted for ::!long the route, the experieoc~ of preparing thei r own on the way here from Springfield

havin g been enough for the bo \·s in that lin e .
5. All was bustle and activit}:, drill being dispen sed with.
6 . The balloon was connected to the ground by a rope.
,7· I was very desirous to put myself in the proper llght in
this matter.
8. His stubbornness to persuasion was great.

CHAPTER XIV.
GRAMMAR - GOOD USE IN THE SL<: NTENCE.

83. The Sense in which Grammar is Here Used." Grammar," says the author of a recent English grammar, "is a systematic description of the esse ntial principles of a language or a group of languages." He
divides it into orthoepy, orthography, classification of
words, infl ection, and syntax.* Undoubtedly gr:unrnar in its wides t sen se includes all the se subjects;
but rhetoric, which deals with grammar merely as a
means of expressing· complete thought s, is concerned
only with syntax - that is, with the laws governint:
the cu stoms in combinin g words in se nte nces. F o r
the purpose s of this chapter, grammar may be used as
the equivalent of syntax, and defined as the good use
of sentence construction. ·
Good use in sentences is not the entirely ill ogical
matter that it is in single words . D efinition ot the
sentence will make this clear. A sentem:e is a complete statement the elements of which are logically
related in form. A group of words n ot making complete sen se, as, "The ship that chased the enemy out
of the harbor," is ungrammatical because it does not
make a complete stateme nt. Again, the fault in sent e nces which, though complete, are ungrammatical, is
often a want of logical agreement between the parts.
The singular "it" cannot properly be joined to the

.,

' '~

:I
.. '
'..J

•From G. R. Carpenter's ?1 ,.n r ijJJ~s of E1'ghsJ1 (; r ammar, pa"es 1·5.

'1

,,
. i
',)

222

Ii'

!I 1
'!
11

[I
II

I

•I'
t<

!I

!!

I!
II

ii,,
i!

Ii

"Ii
ii
II

II

ii

·!
11

ii

!1

II
!!
I!
!! .

"

ii

I

CO:'-IPOSITION A:--:1> J.tHETOh'.IC .

p lu ral ·· don ' t"; "it don't" is ungrammatical bec:-lllse
1llogica i, Hy no m eans all of the violatio ns of grammar can be brought unde r the heads of incomplete
statement or illog-ical s ta te m e nt. Still a good working
test t o app ly to the grammar of a senten ce is th is: is it
a complete statement t he parts of which fit logically
to gether in for m ?
The r est of this chapter will be devoted t o a s tatem e nt of the princip::ti gTam rnatic:d errors ( cal led solecisms) cumm il tcd by those \\·h o arc lca rnin;: to write,
or who arc careless . Two general rul es it will be well
to give at the outse t. \ Ve easily learn the names of
the vario us parts of speech - n oun , verb, adjective,
etc.-bnt \\"C seldo m remember that "on ce a noun
al\\"ays a n o un" is entirely false. In, "Early rising- is
a gool1 thin g-,"" risin ~·" is a noun: in, ''He was rising
sl o wly when h e tirecl, " it is a v e rb. That is , the part
of speech to which a w ord belong-s is allrnys settled,
not by its for m, but b y its use. A gai n, people often
fa il t o recognize the fact th at a group of m'rds may
have the function of a part of speech. It is c<Jmm011
to h ea r people s:1y, " E x cnse me bein g- h e re," fn q,;etting
that "being h e re" is a noun. to be parse<l as th e o bject
of" excu se," ;ind that t h e se ntence sh o n lrl re rid , "Excuse my l>eini.::: here." In stu d vi ng- th e erro rs note d in
the fol lowing- pages, the student shou Id rina h·ze c<u-e fu 11 y the iilustrati\-c sentences. and 1n ;1dd:ti"11 (I) tlw
t\\"o rul es g i v en abo,·e h e should ll'- c all the rnnre
specific grammatical laws which are applicable.
84. F aults of Incompleteness.- 1. Phm St·s a11J d(/11 _,·,·s
used as scn f curcs . - Phrases o r clauses s h ou ld n o t be
used a s if they w e re complete sentences. I n t h e fo llowing- exa mp le, ;i p h r:tse is written as if it had b o th
.s ubject and prel1icat e : " H e also wro te prose works .

__,___

)

~·
~..<Jt-~

...,~ ·-

~-·
~--

-1

I'

- - ,i

~
¥--

Oulrc fifer , a d e scription of his t r ip t<> Eurupe. beint;
among them ." \'er y oft en this error re sults from
faulty punctu ati c•n, a p eriod usur pin g- th e place of a
co mma (as above), a semicolon, or a colon. The us•'
of a clause as a sente n ce is show n in the followin;.[
qu otatio n from /'!rn·" y;,/,·s ln•111 !lu· I Ii/is · ''Thi,; ;.;<" "!
yntm g- man was quiet and self-co nt:iin c d - too nld f<>r
his years by far. \Vh ich ah\·:t\·s carries its (I \\ 11 p1 11'ishme nt." This List u s:c~e is s<•lllcl i111es ddc111.kcl . '
}hit i t i,.; safe to l:t y du\ \'ll tJi,.,;c rule,; : 1\i\\':1\ ·,; s c·:1 11
your sentences cardn1ly t<> s ec: t h<t t c:1,·h lus a suJ.jn t
:i nd a pn·Jicatc. D o 1wt u se a rclatiYc pr<>ll• •llll ;1s the
subject ut a principal \·erb.
Z. Omission of "a" <>r "t /1, -. " - ,\ rcLtte <l hu t f"r Jc,.;s
ob\·ious fau lt is the ornis-:i"11 ,,f the~ :1rtick - " ;1
1•r
"the" - in phr:1ses \\"]1c;-c l\\'<1 dist ind <• h;lTcS ar1:
meant. There seems to be a umspir:1cy anwn;.; care·
less writ e rs against the article : \\" C nfte n SL' •.·. "The
ukl and y1•un;.; woman \\"L'll t :t\\·ay," when l\\' IJ pe r son-;
departed, and , " The fire des tror cd a house :1ml ofhcc ,, (
:\1r. Smi th's," \Yhcn the house ,,·:1,; in one 1Ji 1>ck :u1d th L·
oflice in a nothe r. \\'h en there arc two n<>uns rdcrri11;.::
to t wo distinct objects , or \\·hen twu adjcl'li\·cs make
it evide nt that there is a second 11on11 u11dcr,;toud, a,;
in" :in old wo1n:tn and a y ou n~:· ( ""n11 :111 1," n· 1w: 1t tl"'
:i.rtielc. U n the other h:i.nd, s h1·11. as nu,· lw the c:1sc·
with "t he cashie r an d te lle r." y<> t l mc:rn th:t!. onv pcr"" n hri1ds bC>th 111l in·s, o m it the secuncl art iclc .

<f

.:-·:·

1

3. O m ission of 7i'ords 111 '<<'SS ilry to !It« Sc"J/.\1'. - .A 1non:
n1111plex var ict\· of t h is error occu rs in th e omis s i1.11

u f wun1s necess ary to make sense. Often , as in the
sentence, "He used to 1;0 nuttini.: n· e n· hll, an d ;11
times ~"t ;1 g«H>Ll m:llly.· · the word urnitted is fu1u1 d 111

t

~•For

a mon· ~x tt:n d c .J tn:atrnent uf thi~ o;,ubjc-c t. see secti()n 24.

_-£

•i
~

J

f

T

-~'.;

'°\ • •

.~

228

~m!

!

filill!'

~11111
111111.
~ im

"!liPI

r

~

i);j ii i

CO :l!POS I TJO); A:\D JU-!ETO IU C .

u sed fo r" t his kin d " an d " that ki nd . " W ith co llective
n o uns singul ar in fo rm , " t hi s" and " th at" a rc t o b e
us ed .
2 . l\'v 1111s and J>ru1wu11s. - a . Tt is n e ed le s s t o r e mind
th e stt:lk:nt t h at" Il e dun ' t," "\Ve w a s ," a nd a ll si mil ar
u s e s of plura l snhj cct s with si n ).!·u b r v e rbs are wro n g.
\\. he n, h o \\·eye r, t h e subject is s eparated fr o m th e n :rb
by a plu ral w o rd, it i s easy t o slip into ma k i 1 1~ thc
v e rli plura l; s o in the sentence ,· · Thc s tat e v f affair:; a rc
s u ch that w e o u g ht t o pro test," " affa irs" h as fo rced
"s t a te" o ut o f the \\T iter·s 111 i11 d and clri,·c11 th e \· c rh
i nto t h e plura l. In r e v is ing- w r itte n w o rk, always loo k
carefully a t Jo n g se nt e nces to see that the v e rlJ a nll the
subj e ct, b e it n o un o r pron o u n , agre e in numbe r.
b. A par en thesis co min g- afte r a s in gu lar s u b je ct
frequen t ly leads o ne into u si n g a piu ra l v e rb. I n th e
sente nce, " 'l'hc }Jrc s idcn t , \\·ith ali h is cab in et , a re
h e re ," ' ' w ith all h is ca binet" is eithe r a n adn:'. r ll ial o r
an ad jccti ,·e phrase; it h a s n o rnflue1 1cc u11 tli <.: 11t1111l.Je r
of the su bj ect. a nti · :ire · · s ho u lJ L•e · · is . · ·
«. A c o llecti ,·c n o un ta ke s a p iura l Yc r b w he n t h e
g- r o u p indi ca t e d by t he n o un 1s cun,.;ide r c <i a s :t cui ic c ti o n of ind ind ual o bj ects; it take s a slllguLir \'<.:rl;
wh e n t h e c u llcl'l io n o f o lijcch is c nn sidL' rcd a s iu n11i11 g·
one uni t. B u th of th e foli u \\' Jll g· se nte nce s are 1·ight.
"The aud ie nce \\'a :-. h e ld hy th e t1·:q.:·l'd ia11 's a rt as if it
w e re o n e m :-m. \\ ' h l' ll h t.: ._·...·a s._«i . i 11-. <iud ic nce \I-C r<.:
fre e t o g v th eir ways .' ·
d. Eve r y sin g ul ar a ntecedent prescril.Jes a s ingular
p r o n o u n . So w e say , " E\-eryo 11e gav e his mi le fre e ly, "
and, '' It so unded a s if s o me b o dy \\·a s b rcathi11g l:: ud
t h r o u g h h is n ose . " Co n ve r s el y , eve r y pl ura l ant eccd c 11 t
r equires a p lural pru nou n a n d a p ln r:d ve rb; e . g., , " l ! is
lecture wa s o ne of the w eakc:--t t h:1L have been h ea rd

GRA~I:\!.\ R - G OO D L' S E

I i\: T IIE S E:>:T EC\CE.

229

in t hi s hal l." H ere " lecture s" is n nderstood a ftL-r
" w e a kes t," an d h e nce " th at " an Ll ' ' ha ve" m u st be
plur :-tl.

e. " E ither , " " n e ithe r, " use d as di str ibutive c onjunct io n s r e qu ire a singu lar y erb, e. g ., " Ne ith e r
l\l r . \ Vhite n o r Mr. Dro wn is in t h e o ffic e ."
f . \ Vh c n " ci t h c r
or," etc . con nc ct t \\' o
s11hjec h di fTc r c nt in n umbe r , th e vcrli should a;,;:1-cc
\\'ith the ncare r sui>jcct : " E :thcr yo n o r I ;illl t<•
h lamc." Th e cons truc ti o n is c ill m sy , h o \\' e Yer, a n d
sh o ul d he a\·ni dcd .
g. \\'h e n the wo rds" eac h, "·' e ith e r, " and " neither ,"
arc \\se d a s pro n o uns. t he y t a ke -; in g·ul:i r n:rlJs : " l ~: t ch
o f t he m e n is read y ; n e ith e r is c :trcf u lly pbced .
'' .N. . o ne ' ' ( n ng-11ia1
· · '1 y (' n o -o n e " ) an cl " ,,~ 11 " 111 ·<.
~ ,, li<·
ei th e r sin g ul a r <1r p11lra1, c . ).:'.' ., "i\11 is dun e , and !l ( >\\'
all of \\ S :<re r(':ttiy ."
;, , " Eithe r " is \\T d ll).!'i \· us ,~d f ur " any "; "1H.: 1thl'l·
f"r
Jlfl l l\'.
" J-:1tliL·r " :rnd " nc·i1hcr." :t s h: ts l>cL·11
s:tid. : 1n· «in;..:ul:tr . \\ ' lwn u;1l1· t 11·t1 11 l1j L· cr,; :1 ;·<.: llll'1 1tinncd , "c irlll'r .. " r .. nc·ith er ·· is usL: d ; \vh c n 111 t1rl'.
t h :lll t 11·n , :111 \· n r nt •ilC' .
T h<.: f,,Jlo\1· 111;.: SL'lllL'llL'l'..,
arc rig h t: "E ither ., f th l· 1\\" » 111 , ·11 L'<>t1ld k t \·c t;1kt·11
:tll\' u( t h e thre e L'" ll r ,.;('s; th ey t ook 1wne u f them, l n 1t
re mai ned in i nactivity. Ne it her of t h e tw o m e n i,.;
L' '- L·n sahk . "
TLttl it. li c'l' ll " a n y uf t he t \1· 0 m e n c«11id ..
<> I' " t<>uk 11c:i:i1cr "( t hem," t h e scn tL'll l'L'S w o u ld li:11·c
bCL'll

i111.:c1i·rcc t .

i . Tn \\ s in g fnr<:> ig-n nn\\ns th e c: 1re lc ss a r c likch· tu
\\SC the sin ;..:·111: 1r for the plur:LI, a nd v ice \'cr sa . '!'lie:
p lu r:Li ,,f t h l! \\·»rds g·i,« ·n below shou ld 1,c h11 11 t<.:d llJ I

t
I

in the dictionary an d memo ri zed :
che rub
ph c 11 0 m c 1lf111

an im alcul e
d ictum

o;er a ph
s tratum

_..:

.~

230

bacterium
erratum
politics
necropolis
fu ng·us

CO~f POSITIO>:

1\ ;\"]) RI-IF.TOR.IC.

curriculum
tab lean
ath letics
addendum
a lumnu s

alumna
datum
terminus
mathematics

88 . Miscellaneous Errors.*- 1. ,,-.Jdjccli<•rs us1·d for ad•·abs, a11d «ire -;·crsa . - It is a fixed principle of English

g-rammar that adj ectives modify nouns and ad\·c rhs
modify verbs, adjectives, and other ach·c r bs . Yet when
an adjecti vc ends in " y " (or " ly " ) the careless ofte n
use it as an adverb, as in , "He dresses well hut not
i,:· ~mdy." Sometimes an adn.:rb is used for an adjective,
as in, " his then \\'ife." The comm o nest form of the
improper use of th e ad\·crb comes in connection with
the various verbs that take predicate adjectives . We
\\'rite, "The rose smells S\\·ect," not ··sweetly," because here " sweet" docs not m od ify the verb, but the
no un; it does not describe the ac tion of sm e lling, but
g·ives a quality of the rose, and hence must be an
adjective . Similarly, \\'e say, "He fee ls gentle,"
becau se, "He feels gently," would mean that he performs the action of feeli n g in a gentle manner.
Exceptions to this rule arc the idi om s like, " He feels
bad ly (ill)." This usage is obviously the result of a
desire to a\·o id ambiguity: "He fee ls bad" means
that he feels wicked. It is better, however, to say
in place of "He feels b~Hlly," "He feels ill." One
must note the similar nsng-c in "look s \\' e ll." \Ve say,
"His coat looks w e ll o n him," because when we say a
thing " looks good" we imply that it shows moral
exce lle ncc.
2. False corrdalio11s of lit e du111>/c t o11j1mctivns.-The
• NoTE.-F'o r comment o n tho "ah ~olu t es " usually classed unde r solecisms. s ee section 79. For comment on mi srel ated a nd han2"in~ participles.
nnd errors in th e sequence of tens es . sec !'\Cctions 113, nod 11 ~. 3.

GRA'.11'.\IAR-GOOTJ l!SE I:\!' THE SENTE>:"CE.

2.11

correct pairs of conju nctive particles arc "eith er
or," "neither
nor," "not on ly
but
also" ( o r " but even ") .* Both hakes arc necdecl. rt
is wrong to write, as Dryden does, "For they who ha\·e
never h eard of you can neither love or h ate y• •ll, ' · or as
students frequently do, "He n o t only saw his faults.
but extenuated them." In practice, the errors in the
use of these particles amount to using "neither" with
"or," and to 0111itting either" also" or "even ' ' fr0m
the "not only
bnt also" combination. A s imilar error is the use o f ''nor'' after'' not'' or '' no ' ';
for example, "He did not g-o nor come," and, "IIe
a ll owccl no man nor woman to escape."
3. Tl1l' use of t!t r i11di(·a /i;•1· for t!t1· s1rbj1111r!h·1·.English has lost so many of its inflection al endings
that the distinction between the inc1icativc.: aml the subjunctive is nearly gone. -Indeed, only one verb-'' to
be"- r etai ns a complete set of subjunctive endings
distinct in form from the indicative. In all other verbs
the only difference in form is in the third person si:1~u­
lar, where, for instance, "he g·ocs" is the indicative.
"if he go" the subjuncti,·e.
\'et there remains a
distinction in m cani11g- that g-oocl writ e rs strive to preserve. \Vhcn tl1e condition is o ne contrary to fact, the
subjuncti\-e form is the better. l n, " If I had your
ability, I should n o t stay here," "had" is subjunc t i\-c,
even though the form is no t different from th e indicati\'C form. \Vritc, "If I were yon," nut, " ff I \\·as
you." On the other hand, when" if" du e s nut i11trod nce an unreal supp o sition, use the indicative. \Vrite
"lf it is bad to spcncl money loosely, it is equal ly bad
to speml time loosely," because you rne:.in t11at it certainly is bad t o spend money loo sely. And in, "\Vhen
•Non~.-

For errors in placini.r these particles, see section 110.

·!
.,
'~

- -~

\

\.

,.,

i" ~~

l.

..

i ,,

-~

232

COi\!POSITIO:\ A:'-ID RHETORIC.

the m o nev is sufficient, when the zea l for learning is
great, no time is too lon g to spend in study," both
form s are properly the indicative "is ," because neither
supposition is a staten1ent contrary t o fact. This rule
holds even when th e verb is colorless. We write correctly, "If he was the re, I mu st have seen him." It
m ust be n oticed further that there is a diffe rence in
m eaning between the present and th e past subjunctive.
"If it be ri g ht," imp lies tha t it probably is ri g ht. "If
it were ri g ht," implies that it is probably not right.
The question is entirely one o f m eaning . The usual
danger, however, is th a t the inclicati ve will be used
wh e n the subjunctive is needed.
4 . T!te use of t!te s11pa!at fre for t!te comparative. The compar::ttive form of adjective s and adverbs should
be used wh en t here are only two objects, and hence
only one possible difference in degree. " Of h e r two
tall sons, the yo ungest is the tallest," should be, "Of
her two tall son s, the youn ger is the taller." "Between
Harvard and Yale th e re is not much to choo se , but
1-:Iarvard grows the mo st rapidly," should b e, " Between
Harvard and Yale there is not much t o choose, but
Harvard g rows the m o re r:-ipidl y." Similarly, one
should not spe:-ik of "the last o f two ," since "last"
is superlative.
5. "J-fardly" and "srarcdy" <eith a 11cga fh 1e." He couldn't do it scarcely," ;:i.nd , "He oughtn't to go
hardly " are examples of an illiterate but not uncommon bluncler.
Strictly spe;:i.kin g, the fault is one in
idiom, but "hardly" ;:i.nc1 "scarcely" co me so near to
being n egati ves th;:i.t we m:-iy s:iy their use with "not"
am o unts to the u se of a do uble ncg-ative .
6. T!tc split infinitivt.-The fault o f inserting ;:i.
word between "to," th e sign o f th e infinitiv e , and the

GRAMMAR -

GOOD U SE IN THE SENTENCE .

233

v e1·b itself, as in " t o swiftly run" is properly a bit of
clum s iness rather than a solecism. Indeed, m any
write rs whose grammar is above reproach commit this
fault. It is placed in thi s chapter because it h as been
so long accounted a solecism, and because no chapt er in thi s book is devoted to clum s iness. Note the
awkwardness in saying, "The pilgrims decide to each
tell two tales ."
7. "IV!tich" as a demonstrative.-" Which" is properly a rela tive pronoun, and though a fe w good writers
use it as a de monstrative, it is best to avoid sentences
like the following from Goldsmith : " I allowed half an
h o ur for this me;:i.l, and an hour for dinne r, which time
was taken up in innocent mirth between my wi fe and
dau g hte rs, and in philosophical arguments between my
s o n and me." Say rather, "a time which."
8. Jlfistakes in t!te principa l parts of verbs.-The use
of a past tense for a present, of a past participle fo r an
indicative verb, and of a wrongly formed part of the
verb are errors too gross to need much comment.
"He d o ne it well," "He come into the room," and,
"He dove down rapidly," are cases in point. The
stude nt should memorize the principal parts of "prove,"
"clo ," "co1ne," "overflow,"" begin,"" bid," "dive,"
" get."

*

Exercise XIV.
A . Wha t i s grammar? With what part of grnmmar
does this chapter deal ? Define that part.
B. Define a sentence. ·w hat rough and ready te sts
m;:i.y we apply to the grnmm;:i.r of sentences?
C. \Vhat is the "comma blunder"? Give an exampl e.
*NOTE.- See also Ii~. lay, sit, sl'I. s ection 72..

;i
'I

l,J

'i

:

'I

'I•

u
·"'
11

ii
I '

I'

j 1

''
'i

''

2.H

lU.\ll'USD'lOX ,\0;]) RHETORIC.

n. 1'0i11t uut the crrvrs in the folluwini,; sentences
:rnd rewrite them correctly:
...1..

';' lie 1.. ·a\·:._dry, hu rs~k:ss as yet , is 1 ,0J(J strong- , h11t fr0rn the

p1ts1:u t out ionk e xpec t to rec ru it up t o 1. 2nn .
Hc ie n said, "l am verv tired "
set·rncd Lu call fo r our departure.
.
'
2..

Tiic n

t(

,

which

rcm:1rk

5 . l asked him how h e w::is, and he s a id h e felt bad.
6. He did not seem t o grasp the fact's sign ifica n ce.
7. \Vh y should a man be compelled to sp(-nd rn:1n\· of the
best yc:-irs of his life w ithin prison w :1lls, :-ind " :h r'J'c . ; erh~lf"'·
near th(; •.: iose nf his terru, it n1 ny b e discovt· red that he \V :ts not
the guilty p e rson?
8 . Burke implies that he th>n't see wh y Eni<lishrn e n should
blame descend ants o f E ngli s hm e n fur act in g accnrdinK to Eng li sh principl es .

t

r

Tltc 11upil \1.;ill s ,1()11 t:t L c 11 n\k' in tlit.~ n 1•1· 11 '...; ;\ ; 1jH.::1 L1n 1.._ ·l ·
'r'll(1\l'.<lits \\·li iL·li ~~1, {! i:<1 · !l11_·r Tl1lht lie oril1..:rl\· J._~r 1 n1pcd t• 1
p:tr:t .~~T ~l;)h ' c.:. :-:.Lr; H·t 11 n ·

2h . T he re st ()f the pLty ers a re ca1l.-:d "scrubs,
C\'t: ry day :-ig-ainst the lirsl team .
27.
: 1 nd

(;eneral .i\ rnl :\S rcn1i11det1 thc1n that they

1
'

the .q · line

\\"t·ir·

,·t·!~·r:1il'-' . nnt l1H'rl' p() 1it: e1nen. :t ~ tlil · \· 1i:t•1 l1een

n~ fcrru.~

1;;)

re~11l a r"'

t:1 un 1 i11 ~ ~1'·

tu .

28. '['hi s year \\·e a b() prupose a Ll rge L' liri~tllLtS tree f )r
poor children, with prc~cnt~ 11 f v:111d~· :tnd pop-corn . dr ill:-:. and
1'"·s, and e vcn·thinl.'. that will hrin ," a little chel'r t<> their Ii"'""',
for this \\"1._' :-;h:-111 hl ' de li t.:"lit1_·d t•, H'1:ei,·c an\· apprl) i )ria:t: .~if t .
C'-'j HT j ;d J \" ~,( l 111 L' ...;(" r\· i\ ·1 ';l \ ';l' : l J"l i 1-'.<'
Lt). I\tIJnlJer tlic a1L.._,\\·L·r:-:. a :-; till' q11L·stio1h :trc.
30 H 11 rkt, st :i tcrl that Lon] °K <> rl h' s pla n would be useless
he.cause it wo11ld nol sati~fy th e co111plaint of tl1e crilnn it ·"·
Inst e ad(> ( i>r ing-in g- in their rev e nu e~. il would produce an endless q 11 :irre l among- t he C'<) ln nies an•l bring- thi n!.!;S to a w0rse
1

to the (>u<'en

J ,~·-·f~ l· /J ~ d ,_;\·i~in~ .~p:ti11 to i:11rJJedi~ttch · ;1....,~ f1 1r tlic 111edi;ttinn 11(

Lu r \1 jH:an p u\vers.

12. Fur ins tance a p ict ure , g-o<>< l o f it s kind an«l npp r opria tcly and s111tai>l y fram e d. \\"c sell onlv th a t surf
13. l le w as h e r only s o n, b ut wh e n tl;e seco nd ·~a ll came from
Fath e r Abrah a m, th e h e roic 111 0•,11 "'-- r 111·,·1 I 11111
·
g-n "rt~~ I i t f nr hi:--:

(:uuatry .

\Vh1 c h
undt...:r

'l'lli:-:. dicia SC~'n1cd t{) h i iil \· en· sc,·ert..'

, ,·1n 1ldn't he cnc111 .~h to ::.~o .:.tro u nd .

10. The polished floor w as so slippery tlrnt he co uldn ' t keep
hi s bala n ce o u it h a rcll v.

_14.

2q.
21.

with t lh~ tr.tfli'-" l1ut n_.fusc t , , \"nh.: t:i:t L way !JL:l:: tLhC c1f tlil' ll;tn11
it "·0111 <1 do th e ir h11'-il1e'"' if it- \\":L"' kn <J\Vl1 the~· \"11 ted a :~a;n...:.r ti:<'
s :tl oo n , or lH..'G1l1 Se party ti e :-; are ~tr<1n:..:-er than n1o raJ con\·i L·t ii)n ~;.
2·l. I l e en.: n \•:cnt sq f:lr in hi-.: ge ne ri1~ity ;1 '-\ lo pay tlit· Lili vf
:1 fc·llcnv tra \ ·eler v:i1 r1 h e had DC\'C r seen hcf nre.
ZS Excu~c n1c liei;)il1:..( n 1 '. · ~e!f !lr:--1, h11t 1 w;l..:. alrdi •! 1lH:· re

,·ii "- resu It o ( t'nc v1·01erlt
·
escape of

The l't>pe h:-is. sent an earnest telel-'.ram

ca1ne , tllc witnl'S'-'

23 . 'r'ih.·y lH·iit·\T p r ()hil ,i:i (l:1 f,1 lie t11e ()!11~· ri .~ht wa \· to deal

gase s w hen pressure is r elieved.

l 1.

111e crn ~'~ - cx:unin:tti(J!l

•_"r\ ·

J,ui!d up thl'

1

\. ll :t.:: li lic 11 J ::<.:nunH.:ll;.L i .~,

~he is int e re s ted in all \i( ins, 1itcr:1 il y 11r ntherwi...;(·

\\"hen

22.

3. If au~· lj~Hly will pny f u r their owri teh::-.l' 11pe, :t nd n:·soln.~
3.notht..:r neuu1a, \Ve cackle o \·e r the di~cernme:it :ts if it ,\·ere
our uwn . - Rl'SK1x: Sesame· and f , i/i,·s .
4 . Neithe r he or J saw the acc ident.

lj ,

I

ls.
] f)

stand th ~ tn

lie h ad dove wi tho ut testing the de pth .. f tlw w:ikr,
\V:l.S very dangerous , ancl h e h :i.d ~w:irn --:nnie· di-...: t ~t!lcf'
i;c fqre curn in ·'"
11·) ,,.•1·
c' 1 f"
Jt·
• •
.
h
I •
·1 J l
1 1~: 1 t'tH:' C! liH' Spf'(' f :lfr,ro..: .

\\' dk·r

15 . ht: w as one of th ose kind of me n who are angi·y if thn·
have t~ repl'at a rem ark . lie thinks cvcn·bo<h' nu"ht to l a~'
a~1de tne1r 0 \\'11 \\'Ork wh en !J c speaks, and listen tn ]1im .
.
16. He will likely break <ln wn und<'r tlw s•rnin
17. h i11g- 1\J frcd's other tran~J:i_tinn i. :. ;~ r·-:-· iin;''H' t .'l nt fn r the
good they do n e for the peop le .

I

tlH:y· ,,·crl· t i1 1._·n .
31. Caedmo n paraphr~1s<'d th e( Jld an d 7\L'\\' 'J\·s t:l! llL'lll.
32 Sj>l'll '-t'r ret 11 rnecl to F: ngl:tnd !\\' ic e
i111111cnu:d 1,,. IZ:ile1,gl1.
3J. I h:1,·c he:1rd n1en ~<l\', ve:1r...; after tllcy li11i:-:.l1eil ("olk"<c
th:1t they l,: nnl d no t n<J\\' cr1n...;tr11c a pa .~e ()f ( ;reel< •)r La t i n
prl)p(·rly, or wo rk out a pn 1blcn1 in hi s-h er 111 atla: n1;1 tic~~ - Hut
th:\t th e i!l !l 1Jl'.' '. h ' t.· of ~111JH'. nf the

\\·nrk ed \\ -l H' Ll :tt <' r1 lk1..~c lia11
3.i. I clin...:.e the th1ckt.:sl of

wca r t he l>c '; t.

TH' \· cr
tl1e

lllCll

undt:r w liun1 tlie y h:td

lL· ft tlie111 .

t\\·" l> L' l. .'. ;lll~e I th 1J1.lg"ht it

\\'Pl ii 1

i

236

237

COll!POSITION A:-:D lUIETOR!C'.

GRAi\IMAR-GOOD USE IN THE SE.NTENCE.

35. "She is but ch::rnging her headgear," replied a ferua!e
atlt-ndant, with as much co nfidence as the favorite lad y 's maid
usually answers the ma ste r of a modern family .- Scorr:

51. He come into th e room after the lamps were lit.
52. Panlon me reaching in fro nt of you.
53. On the side of treachery the re are many theori es ad van ced , among the most important are these.
54 . These kind of patent egg b ea ters are n o t so good after
all as the olcl-fashioned fork like your mother used to use.
55. Burke apologizes for his presenting the pl a n, because of
his insig-nificance. But the state of affairs are such that anyone
ougl1t to do all he can to mend matte rs.
56. ]f [was him, I'd refuse to stantl s u c h treatment.
57. Try stamp-collecting yo urself. Spend as much time,
mon ey and thou gh t upon it as I have, and you will soon find
yourself a vi cti m of its mysterious c h a rm.
58. His then wife was an invalid, and spent her winters in
Florida.
59. Reside the swine herd, for such was Gurth's occu pation,
was sealed , up o n one of the fallen nruiclica\ monuments, a person about ten years yo1111;-;e r in appearance, and whose dress,
though resembl in g- hi s cnmpanio11's in fon11, was of better material s, anrl of a more f;iut ast ic rlescripti,,n.-Scorr: l va11/ioe.
60. But this man was not actually present at the time, therefore his lt'stimony is of littk weight.
61. lie fee ls very lJad about that social error.
62. The specimens and the ir mod<! of arrange ment readily
gives the teac her a cine to the t:ha racte r <• f the children.
63 . One of the pictures was endeared to m e by associations,
but I took the other because it was the prettiest.
6-1. Kipling is su ch a goo<l sto1·y teller. We all like him.
6S. Every tlay the naval board of inquiry is <leve luping new
facts whi c h tenrl to pro\·e that the Maine's destruction was the
result of treacherous design .
66 . I!is office-hours nc\·e r vari e d, ;rnd he kept hi111'clf unrler
as rigid tliscipline as he expected !tis men . li e i.: such a \·ery
fair -minded man .
67. E\·ery Spaniard, from th e highest to the lowest, is now
quite as much cxaspcrated against everything English as they
have been ag:i inst the Y :in kces.
6S. The Liberal goH·rnrncnt is furnish e d an exce llent opportunity to forrn a strung cabinet with Lord Rosebe rry at its
h<·a<I, whorn the' European JH>wers consider can be tru sted to
make peace as soo n as possible.

h•1111hoe .

36. So carefully had he planned his work that only one
add e nda was n ecessa ry.
37. The path, wincling antl shady, a11cl which ran through
the middle of the garden, was often travcletl by the ol<l gra n d father.
38. The man, wh o m I found \\'as an hon es t-looking person,
said h e hacl been out "f work for three months.
39. The night was con c luded in th e manner we began the
morning.-Gor.ns:111TH: Th e l 'i car of l! 'a l.-1·fidd.
40. It was not my sister but me that finally solved the
cliftlculty.
41. llroses was very likely familiar with its appeara11ce.
42. This clog al\\'ays showed the edge of his ton gue at the
side of his m o uth, like a pink rose leaf , which marle h im loo k
very coquettishly.
43 . One day the squire b roached an apple-barrel in honor o f
one of the seamen. l we nt t•> get one.
44. Th e re are defeats that arc helte r than victori es , o f which
truth our t ime has offered no l1etler ex ample than th e author o f
the lines:
T am th e master of rny fate .
I am the captain of my soul.
45. As he sat o f au e\·ening, surroundctl by his children, which
he was very fond of doing, he would have been called a very
happy man.
46. \Vas you late for your train?
47 . It was to this part of th e cap that th e bells \\·ere attached ·
which circumstance
stdticiently l"'intctl him out a~
belonging to the race .,f tlomestic l'lowns nr jes te rs.- Scorr ;
h ·a11 /we.

48. Layamon's "Brut" is the legend of J,,:ing 1\rthur, which
g-i\'es to t h e people the beginning <>f rnn1:tn ce.
49. The first Chinese llah v-sh1Jw in the \\'orlrl has just been
heltl at Peuang, according t" the C1r:::l'lli. There Wt!re 200 of
them.
50. If he was a little bro:ule r in th e shou lde rs , h e w ou ld have
a fine figtire.

.

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238

239

COll!POSITIO:\" A:\"D RHETORIC.

GRAM:l!AR-GOOD USE lN THE SENTENCE .

69. \Vhich is manifestly uufair.-KJl'LI:-.-1;: J'ok cd w1 /h an
U11belic<1er.
70. Either a c usto m e r should refuse to trade with a merchant who has n o t complied with human e laws, o r e lse patro nize
those who do.
71. Thi s view was one of the ti.ne~t I ever hat! a chance to
see, the lake was ns sm ooth as glass, and nowhere on it could
a ship be seen.
72. The P o pe expla in s the impossi bility of Spain continu ing
the war against an ad \·ersar·y who is too powerful for her.
73. The siste r is not at all strong. She looks I.Jail, I think.
74. Furth er more the on ly circumstances that can he imag ined as likel y to induce war is overbea ring cond uct, or injurious
language.
75. Being one of those persons who ne\·e r thinks o f herself,
she dresses plainly .
76. The clip o f these stratu111s is ve ry g-reat.
77. The li g ht being so h igh in the ceiling made th e room so
dim he coulcln't scarcely see to read.
78. Johnso n is so artificial a writer. We seldom read him
for amuseme nt.
79. Th e re is nothing in the realm of botany m o re puzzlin g
than this phenomena.
80. There were so many of these little streams, and they all
ran in the same llirection .
81. .It rain ecl, so we dic.l not g<>.
82. Elino r says that li e r n<:w g:own fits just lovely .
SJ. This pr0Yc1l to !Jc a \"Cry important data for the sc ientist.
84. ~h e thinks it is smart to rlress very Eng:lish .
85. She had on ly one brid m emo randa of the subject.
86. Ce lia lo ved Rusalincl far too well to c\·cr leave her.
87 . The maid told the visitor that her mistress hadn ' t hardly
been gone ti.vc minutes .
88. Is it not possil.Jle to honnralJly say: Let 11s han: peace?
89. General \ V:uk , \1·h o assumed cornnia1Hl t01lay as rankingmajor g:eDeral at Tampa, declines to either affirm or deny th.!
rumor that a g-cncral mo\·cm enl is ordered [or Thu1·sday, consequently the report that the Fourth Inf:tntry goes south to-night
is not true. The )?;encral will revi ew the r\ inth C avalry in camp
to-morrow (l fternoon , whi<' h li kt· w isl' d is pel s t he r u m o r that they
arc to break camp in the mornint;.

90. The difficulties over which he now worke<l for the next
five years was to di scover the exact degree of heat necessary
for the perfection of the rubber, and the exact len gt h of time
required for heating it.
91. Whatever he clone, he was careful of his diet, and to take
regular exercise.
92. Then we left for the city. We were all so devoted t o our
country home .

t

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PART III.
DICTION.

,.il

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r;

CHAPTER XV.
WORDINESS.

89. Diffuseness a Common Cause of Weak Style.-We now
pa s s from th e consideration ()f correctness tu L·ITc cti vencs s in style . From here on \\·e shall l>e discussing,
no t \\'hether a given mode of ex pression is right or
\\Tong, but whether it is clear ancl forcible. The flr,;t
law we lay clo wn is that force depemls l:trg e ly on co mpactness of expression. \Vhen a writer use s two pages
to say som ething- \\'hich might be saicl in one, he is
ineffective because cliffuse. The story or essay which
interests us is the o n e that goes straight to the point,
u sing no more worcls than an: absolutely necessary .
Yet much writing is very wordy. De Quincey calculated that to cut one superfluous word out of each
wordy sentence would increase the time of the rcadin gpublic by one-twelfth. The stuclent of composition
may be sure that in most cases he will benefit his work
by condensing it.
The fault of diffuseness takes two forms-the use of
superfluous words, ancl the use of superflu ous details.
In both cases the result is the same - a lo ss of force.
In the following pass::q,:-e , both too many words and
16

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242

COllIPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

too man y <lcta ils arc ns ed . The g-ain that comes from
cutting o nt the llcad \\'Ood 1s ol)\·ions:
~!Y

DA I LY

ROUTI:'\E

01'

LJFE .

Days come and days g-u, all
with th e s ame r out ine of s c hoo l
!if~.
l r ise , cat, stu<l y, and go
to sc hool. Afte r scho o l , l return hoine, study, cat, st ud y ,
and retire. Su c h, in IJrid, is
the tillle-tahlc, as it were, of
my d;i ily life.
llowcve r, as
t he t illle - tal>le for Sllnday diffors from that f•>r w eek-days .
,;o the round of my li fe, fro m
Friday to l\lond:i y, differs mat er i:t!ly fro m the routine "[
uthcr clay,;. Arni as 11·e d<> n"t
consnlt the tim e-table ,,f last
y e ar for ou r pre sent n eccls , sn
it is IJc st that l write uf my
life, 1wt a s it ha s been, hnt as
it is now. A tim e-tab le giYcs
tH> det ails uf
the route, nor
d oes it giYe :rny of the various
incidents whi c h lessen the m on o tony ol trav el and tnake it
enjo,·ah le. In like manne r the
iJ rid <> t1t li11c I h:i,·e gi\'l'll prc sc• n ts 110 indi,·idttal itics that
1·:tn distinguish my life from
ti1at of otiu: r s , nor do e~ it ~ivc
:tny of the little pleasantrit:s

t h:tt case the mon o tony of
rolltine and make life's tr:l\·el
enjuyable. A nd so, follo\\'ing,
l skt.11 a dd to m y out l in e, and
give those e \'e nts which are
pet:uliar to my o wn life, and
whirh , perchnnce, nrny make
it i nt e res ting !11 the \>IJscrn' r.

)!\' DAIL\' LJFE.

( J{ewritten .)
n ays come and clays go, a ll
wlth the s ~ u11e ro1 ili11e u[ sc h oo l
l ife. l get 11p, e at, study, and
go to school. l\ ftcr sc h ool, l
return home, cat , study, ancl
go lo bed.
Such, in brief,
is the time -table nf my clail y
life . But :t timC'-taiJlc gi ves n o
details of the r o11 tc - n one of
the various in cid ents which
lesse n th e monotony o f trave l
ancl mak e it enjoyable. And
sn I shall acl<l to my out.li ne
thnsc eH'Ills whi c h are p ecu lia1· to my o wn life, an(] whi ch ,
perchance. ma y make it inter esting to the obse rYer.

2·t3

WORDINESS.

. c

90. The Use of Superfluous Words. - The 11se of superflu ous \\'ords may take any one of thre<: furms: Ltt1t<>lOg"y, a direct repet iti o n of the thought; r cdunuancy,
the use of a need le ss \\' Orel here antl there ; and \'Crbosity, th e constant use of too many words. Redundant
and tautologo u s passages may be corrected b y strik ing
o ut \\'orcls here and there; a verbose pa ss a ge can he
c01Tcctc(l only by r c\1·riti11g co111pklc ly . Bcluw arc
examp le s of all U1<.:sc i<>rrns <>t crr<>r:

~11111 l1l' st·r\·e1\ 1<1 11 11r S< )t tls

tl tt.:

; I

~·

.;
.,j

..i·

'l irnlol<~i:y .

1. Ue was completely su r roumlul on all sides IJy a howling- n1 ob .
2. Tile greatt:st w o rk of
Persia, the g-randt:st cont ri bu t iun tu ll i~tory fro n1 th is gn:al,
<;x:te11sive cn1pire, \\·:ls it s de vel upn1ent of a sy ste rn n[ proYin c ial gon:r nmcnt.
3. \\' e l1a\'C not pai<l sufficient attenti on to this important problem of 1111r dail y lift: .
'I' hc cxan1inatinn g- i,·en to this
question, whi c h h as a co nstant
influ e n ce upon our habits, is
entirely inaclcquat e .
4. The exemplary student
ts
n ot exen1piary fr<J I1l
:tll
putnt s uf v1c1\'. lie is " iten
disagreeable t o his fel lo ws,
and especially so when he is
so \'cry faithfnl in t:i.king n .. tcs
a t a lect nre. \\'e obscure people pre fer th:i.t the teacher's
ideas. while
still
glowing,
shnul<l melt in to 011r !>rains
r;dhcr than ('on~_;c;d u ; l paper

.'
,i.

1. ![ e was su rrou rnkcl
a howling mu!J .

by

2. 'l'lie greatest cnnt ri 1111 t ion pf l\. . rsia tc, th e \\'n rltl \\"aS
the d1. : n .: lop1nenl 11f a ~ysten1
of provinc i:d go vernment.

'.

3 . \\'e hcwe not paid s11ffi tn th is in1purtant problem of our dailv life _

cic.11l attt.:nti1111

·l.
is

The exemplary stuclc11t

ll!•l

exc11qd:try

pui nls uf

Yit..•\\ ' .

f r1,;1 1

:111

I le is <1ftt..· i1
hi .·: f<:ll<111,,

dis:igree:tble to
cspt:cially wheu he is su \Tr\'
f:tilltlul in tahing uutes v[ a
lec:t11re.
\Ye obscure l'<'"i'le
prefer that the tea cher's ide:ts,
while sti ll f!:luwing, sliu1ild
melt in to our brains r:dhc:r
t1ian t...·.,n;. .'.; e ;d

sen·ed

1r11 p ~ tpcr

;1nd

iH:

t o our S•Htl s the <lay

i:.. _, _

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2·H

CO J\lPVSITlO:'.'< J\:--:ll l<l!ETORIC.

\\' UH1J l1' ESS .

day before examination. To
one who thinks thus, a nti has
the co ura ge <•f his c<11wi ct i< •ns,
it: is e xa ." perati11g ti• Sl'e the
cx e n1plary stud e nts c-. 1p ying

pe:lrls nf tli uught in their

l ike in :ul , :<athering up :lll t!H_·

i1c: 1y

pearls <>f th 011gh t in their ord e rly s11t:ccssi 0 n. \ \·e o f the
passi n' lin ge rs gd quite as
many o( the g e m s, perhap s,
eve n if we neglect the co rd
on whi c h th e y w ere strung .
This a cti , ·ity o f fin ge r s is
annoyin g to th e shHlr·nt ,\·hn
d0es not practice it. It makes
him fee l that h e tlues not :-ippreciate the va lne o f e\·cry
point. A nd tinally it makes
him sa tl t0 think h ow it is
encouraging the" cra mmi ng "
system .

'.'>lil·\·1.: .-..->1o n .

p;i :-;~ l\ ·c

many

iingc...'r:-l
0[

gel

1n-

uf tl1~

\ \' c

quilt;

'I'hi~

!un! g-ives g-ond :-;:1t -

i~ faclio11.

2. Gen er:-i l G 0rd on ·s wh o le
e xp ecl ition cannot be trc:-itcd
i n this parti c ular place, but a
few of its cktaiis may iJt: IJrictiy
anc1 ct:rso ri! y treated.
3 . lie is a st ud ent domgw o rk in the department of

the g-ems , perhaps,

1.

.3.

It is :-i pi cttt re whi c h
hangs up o n 111y wa ll 0 f whi c h
1 am going- to speak .

:i

w111·d

h,

ea<'ii

c•r \\'<>r<is n11t esser1ti:il l11 the u111-

E\·c:n th e 1'ind, compas-

si o nate vi sit:-i of his neighbor s,
tu try tu encourage: the: <lr<>uplu g, d iscu nsolatc, 1le:-icilate- 111;1 n

T

did ll flt !i ring

t 11

1.

Even th e cu111pa:-:.:-.ioJ.Lt: •,.:

. .,

Yi sits of his n eig11bors did not
lffill~

nll1ch c tnufor t tu tli c .-.:.a.J -

dellt:"d , 11 11 1ely IlLtll.

J1i-.; ;-,:t 1 lde1H:d

nature much h eip o r co mfort.
2 . rr!ic d i n i11t. :: - roo111 i11 wl1il·li

'i' iiis tn<d gi \ ·<:s ~a 1i ~ f : t1..: ­

1

l~ y

corning-

t •, ~ c thcr

i:1

th ey c(nl lC together th ree tin H:s

t11e d i11 in g - roon1 thre e l imes a

a day is a m ea n s 11f so c ial a cq11aintan e e f•Jr st u de nt s , and

d;1y, students h<:'con1c \\· ,~ii ac-

c: u1 :-..c s

! ~ r1 n,

2.
tion
hcr·e,
ma y

tinn .

stn1ctiu11 t•r th e tlwu;,;ht. Olll.: ',f Lll e cornrnu11cst f"rrns
,if r c dun danl·\· is th.; us e at the: b e;..:-i llnin;..:- of :t ,.;cntcnce uf :t needless " it i s,"" there is," or .. thl'.re arc."
Oflen 1Tclu!1(1ancy is the rc,.;11 lt nf an inexact lltHkrstanding- of \\«>nls: when "n c knows \\·h: 1t "popubr"
111'.:a ns, he w ill sav. nut , "I le was :t pupubr man wit h
the people," hut. " lfe \V;J.s pupular."

whi c h they w ere strnng.

a

f :·ic11diy

fcciing

qttainl<.:tl an cl even frie nd ly .

to

cxi:-:i t ~t111 u n g· tJ1 ,.:111.

:l .

(;en e ral ( ;onlon ' s exp<· rlicannot IJe fully treated
lrnl a few of its results
be touched npon.
li e 1s studying

111at ic:-;.

4. J nm go ing- to speak of a
picture wh ic-h h anc:s ll)'" ll my
wnll.

Se ve ral

I

Il

m o nt11s

ag-o a

3.

The pe titi on rccenth· se nt

p e titiun was circul ated a111ung-

l•1 tile hc ;1cl uf this durmiton·.

t l1e members

asking

c1111lt:nls u(

mathe-

rna thcn1atics .

4.

cont :1 i11 s

even if we n e.~l ec t I IH"'- cnrd on

i.

5. T o severa l uf thc; se pru lJ·
]e m s we mu st pay a tte nti o n at
o n ce .
6. \\·e shuul d use p 11r,.· r di~ ­

T h ese s entence s ;ire :ill redundan t ; that

as

In ~II these case s a pnrt inn r)f the th"u;..:lil i :; rcpeatcc1 . S o ;111:; time,; currectio :i necess i tates th e excisio n
o( but a w ord or tl\· n ; in i1thcr c:1st·s it n eccss it:tlcs
the excision nf one or 11111re s c nl e nccs.
I.

5. There are sc yeral of these
problems to which we m 11st pa y
attent ion at 0:1ce.
6 . \\. e slt11tt ld use a p u rer
cli c ti<in {Jf sp1.._~ t_·t_' 1'! .

IJdorc examination. It is exaspcr:-iti ng t o see th e e xe mpla r y sl udents c opying like
111ad, gathering up all the

u(

this h a ll, the

\ Vl 1 iL·l 1

\\'\_·re as fl)l-

io ws: · · ln o r<kr to deaden
the sound in the corridors, w e ,
the un ik rsi ;; ncd, petition the
heaJ uf the dormit o ry to gi,·c
permi ssion for the lay ing of
c<Jrk o r rulJber fl o oring in the
<l 1_:_n ·n1i to ri 1_·'.",

t11

ih_·~ t <h~ n

that

tluor:-; be

l~id

cork

ur ruiJIJcr
in the d i1 r111itu -

r:cs, is j ustilidlilc .

J\t p rt'sc11t

the noise in tli~ corr idors dis-

t11rlls the s t11dent, a nd, wlwn
he is c)\-cr- wurk c d, aggravates

It is ne ryousness.

!lie
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246

COMPOSITION AND RHETOI<.IC.

noises c:rnsed by the students'
freqnently passing to and from
their rooms.'' I feel ;:ure that
the anuoyances \\'h ic h arc occasione<l by these n<> ises ought
!<> he <l•llle away with. licT:111se
tlt ey di ;: t11ri> the peaccf11l quiet
w hich s ho11ld pt•rva<l e such a
place; antl bcc:rnsc they also
aggravate the nervousn ess of
the student, alreacly very much
o\·cr-workecl.
4. For three years the same
motorman has heen on mv car
both morning an<l n ight: and
I feel that I kn o w ;:urely what
m a nn e r of man he i;:. This
1uotorru an is very different
fro m the other m en of hi s
class.
H e looks very intellige nt, is always n eat ly dressed.
and is manl y in his appearance. It is only natural to
supp o;:e that a motorman that
has ma clc a s many trips as he
l1 as W<Hil<l become ca reless .
Hut such i;: not the case with
this nnc. I le is always to lie
found in his place, and, with
one hand on the lever and the
other on the motor, and his eye
on the track, he is re::uly f~> r
any emergency, and one feels
certain that if an accident
should happen , he would in no
way be responsible fo r it. I
like t<l watc h him and I alw;n-s
feel safe when li e is at the lcn:r.
Jn my own mind I have surn amed him "l\lr. B., the
Faithful."

247

WORDINFSS.

Thes e passai..:-es arc verbose . 'l'he wonlincss is ~r>
all-pervading that striking out a \\'Ord h e re an, 1 tht:rc:
will not r emedy the difficulty. Verbosity is the cumrnoncst form of wordin e ss.
91. The Use of Superfluous Details.- The 11,.;c e>f superfluous d e tails indicates thinness 0£ rnate 1·i :tl, Lick ,,f
concentratio n of thought, am1 sometimes, pompos it y .
Th e prolix writer is like Holmes's " Katydid."

4. For three years I have
ridden night and morning
with the sa me motorman. I
feel that I know him intimate ly
now . llis neatness and hi s in telligent :UHl manly look s how
that he is not of the ordinary
class 0f m o tormen. He is unusually careful, too, and I feel
sure that if an accident should
happe n, he w o uld be in no
\\'ay responsible for it. I like
to w;-itch l1im, and I always
feel safe when he is at the
lc\·cr.
In my own mind I
ha \·c s11nrn111 e<l him "l\!r. B.,
the Faithful."

Thon mintlcst me of gentle folk,
Old gentle fo lk are they ;
Thou say"st an undisputed thi ng
In such a solemn way.

To gi,-e needless details in treating an impo rtant
s ubj ect, o r to treat ;in nnimport;:int suhj ect at gr eat
length, destroys force. The more usual mistake i~; t o
treat trivi al subjects with a multiplicity of detail, a s in
the following· examples . It may well he question ed
wh e ther the subject of the first extr;1ct was worth
treating at a 1l :
1. The people a t home
laugh at me occasiottally for
the lun ches that I lirittg Ollt t<>
school , atHl, althoui.;h I 111\l ~t
aclmil that they arc s.-i111eti111cs
a little pe c uliar, I think that 011
th e wh ole th ey arc Yery sensible - at a n y rate they arc wha l
I like . Th e best llln ch that l
have brought with me yet is a
piece of bro\\·n hre;-i cl, a cttp nf
fried potato, a11<l a little ~la;:s
box of hulle r. Then, o[ C.->ttrsc,
I have a knife and fork ottt
h e re, so as t<> manage such a
lun ch properly. Another lund1
that I think is ve r y g-on<l, a
lun ch that I hrin~ more than I

1. Th e l 1111 c hes I bring tn
school amu;:c my family a
:;:oo <l dea l. I arlmit th at the y
are otl1l, bu t they
sc11si lil ee 111111g-h.

~cl'Tll

ti>

n1e

Hn1\\' 11 ! )r~·ad

attd fried potatoes make one o f
m y bills of f:tre. 1\11.,tlwr hill
of fare i,; satHlwichc,; ,,f c·innamon-hrea<l ancl potatoc;:, seas<1nc(l

or

1111 se:1soned

a s t IJ e

case may be; a thin! is simply
whole bak e d put:1toes - attd
co l<] lm ketl potatoes tas te hel ter than you would thittk.
(_)ttl't'f comhinati»tts, you "ay ,
1>11t I lik e them.

i

:.

'·

. ~:

248

COi\11'0S1T10~

do any othe r, is sa nd\\'i ches
made out of cinnamo n- b read
and p o tato.
The p o ta to is
s o m e times fri e d, s o m et im es
s tewed, a ntl s om e times baked;
but the fried, I think, mak e s
th e bt-st sa n d wi c hes. Once in
a w hil e, n f co u r se , I h:l\·e to
11 se in place of c inn amo n·
b r ead , iJiscuits o r munlns o r
co ni - bre:-t d. 1 haYe tr ied p u ttin g a little c innam o n and
suga r on the biscuits befo re
putting th e pr1tato on, lrnt I
don't get in th is way quite t h e
same effec t that l <lo from tlie
cinnamon - bread , and .! have
al)out come t o the conclusion
that butte r and potato are all
that lJi sL'tlits need.
Another
co mbina tion th a t I have tried
is a littl e maple syn1p on the
potato·m111lin sandwiches. l
have dccick cl, 1H>1\"C\"e r, a !Jout
the mut!in s a s I did al1 o u t th e
biscuits, t liat all they need is
b utte r and putatu. ,\nutl1cr
thing that l have tried is lirin<.;ing baked p o tat oes whole, instead of putting them in s id e u f
sanclwiehes . Th e n [ha Ye so me
sa lt out here , and - w tl l, co lcl
baked potato so metimes tastes
pretty goo<l.
2. Miss Carrie Williams, the
prett y agent of the New J e rse y
ancl New Y o rk Railroad Company at the Unio n Sta t ion, has
t o go on dllty so early that she
returns hom e for breakfa s t
ufter the cxpn~ss trains pass.

A:\ D :H.HETORIC.

.

WO:kDINESS.

She arrived at her office at
o'clock yes terd ay, from
breakfast, and was snq,riscd
to find the wind o \\·s nf the
tieket-office open. J!cr heart
began to beat ias t, for she was
sure the place ha rl been robbed.
And so it hacl.
A cl ose t had IH:cu hr"kcn
open, and a hag- containing- jlS

10

in

silver

\Vas

g(Ji1C .

llalf a

d oze n express packages had
also been ritlc<l, and it was
evident t hat ~[iss \\"illiams hat!
frighten e d ,,ff the lrnr):;l a rs, fnr
the ti c kl"l~ cct'c w;is all !Ju t
hacked open.
Some uf the lu~t rnoney be·
longed to the young \\'uman
and :;ume to the raiiruad cum·
pany. The rolJbers are supposed to ue Jllaking a t o ur o f
tl1e railrn;ui (\flice-" . :1nd rill
agents have h<:cn wnrnccl tn he
extra watchful.

c·oyered that a bag containing
\\':CS go ne , a nd tliat h;tlf

$1 8

a d()zen express p;ll·l :ages L::td

lJe(, 11

rifl e d.

E\'i<lentl y

\\. ilii1. 1n1s had fri~· htt· 1H:t!

burgla rs,
was

all

Sonic

rif

for

the

!Jut

the

~l iss

11ff

~ ht·

ticket-c:1'"'l"

liacl.: cd

opt.·11

nH1nl'y t:t l-: cn \\· ; 1....,

hers a1 H l St)!llt.:: 1Jcl() :1;..:·cd to ti:c
railroad 1.:. or11p:t11 y . 'l'l!c r• .1,_
Ue rs :1.re ~ upp o:--.cd t(_) l ie :~ i:1k ­

ing

a

tullr

uf

the

railr.,1ad

o ffices , an<l agen ts are warned
t•' l;e cardul.

Exercise XV.
A. ])e fin c \\'()rdincss. \Vhal arc the two main c\a ,.,,.,eo.;
of wun1incss? \Vhich is thc more harmful? \\'hat h
the effect of wordiness? \Vhat is the remedy for \\·c:irdi -

ness?
B . Reduce the number of words m the following
extracts:
2 When Miss Carrie Williams , the age nt of the New
Jerse y ancl New Vork Railroacl ,
ca me to her onl ce at the Union
S tatio n at 10 o'clock y esterday
morning-, she fuuncl the wind o w open. Entering, she dis-

1. Prince William, with his yuunger frienu s, w a ited a l ittle
while before sailing. In France, th ey had been entertained ~"
r o yally ancl enjnye <l themsel\"cs so much tlHit t hey coulcl n••t tc:ir
them selves away . Rut, as duty callee! them ba c k to Englancl,
they were compelled tu e m bark bter in the day.
2. Th e y liad rn11 s ic to <lan ce l;y, and all sorts uf gan1cs fvr
amusement, in urLlcr that the young people might pass the time
away.

-

,. _

~

;~.

~~

-,,

:.;;~

250

i !!

i !I

l 11
1 '\.

I ii
1·11

ii

I

'lI
I

I
i
II
I

I

I
!

.!

I

'

Ii

:!.'i l

COMPOST1'TON Ai'D RHETORIC .

WORDINE SS.

3 . Th e s hip !tad stnu: k 11 po 11 a r oc k , and, w:it c r havi11 f!: n1 s hed
i11,she\\"as sinking . N ow tile heart s were not f ree arnl glnd, hut
ili ey \n.: re fti il "[ re ar and horror.

its rnar vc l<•n sly <kl ica le flakes which we are cru s h i11g , an•l \ n;
c...-\·en c un1pL1l:l a:.-:·din:--.t tl1c111 i:t r ):1r hcart1'.. · -"~nc:--.~ . ~·) tlie fr ....... t

4. They l1~td r owed h:lnl ly t....·n yards fron1 the ship when
there wa s a sh arp c r·y hc:ird f rom those th:1t \\" ere ldt li eh in cl.
The prin ce comm:rndetl his men to r nw b:1ck tu the s hip, for th e
ny wa s that o f h is little sister, an cl she must he san·d.
5 . l l e has deep -set, fine, thoug-illfu i cn:s, whi c h Ji g-ht u p h ea utif11ily at the t in1es ,,·hen i1c is m o ,·ccJ cmotionalh-, 1J11t which arc
v e r y satl when h e is in r epose and quiet. His !;ai r is gray, an d
" -a,·es as i t g-oes bac k fro m hi s forcheacl.

t i1ue:-. , 11

6. I thi nk this is t rue of alm ost c\·ery life; if we n eve r h a d
clon e so an<l so, o r met suc h a nd s u c h p erso n s , so many thin g s
would 11ot haYc h appened: i t seems as th oug h ou r lin!S w e re
fttll o f c h :1nce, nncl w e re c h ange d somet imcs h\' tlit· sl ig ht est cir-

,..., \Ji ll •.. '-

r

\'11J"(d · ~

f\

1

r l..'.'.:llll-

11.

It is our Juty to make the· Filipinos 111Hlc·rst"11cl tii;1t ·.l1 v \

n1u :-;t t1o n o thin g except by ou r will, that they ari..: i n 11ur pc i\\ t_'. r,

f•

upri sing- t :1J..:cs pl:H·e in t ll nse i~ la nds , whi c h are :-;n n 1l11. .-h tlie

r

f

tli:lt . in L11 -t . they b ~. :iu;1 ~~- 11) lh .

..-\nd when any kiritl (/f

:·t11

talk of the w orl <l lOlla y , it is the duty u [ our trv<>j> s to p11t s11cli
rehelli11n~ fl, ,wn .
12. I le ~1bd h :1cl ;i rule <if cx<'11sin.1...:· fro1n C\:a111i1~:1!i 1 1tl :til tl1(•'-,c
in tl1c

E11~l i:-. h

\\-h() () 1,t:1i:1ed lilJ ci r

c1: 1:-.....;

a l i oi\·._~

f" r the

111 11 ~ 1t! 1.

and u f ati(1\\·iug- t he othe r s the p k::h1t rt..'. of t a kin~ a1 1 ex~u11i11ai.l 1 iil.

13 .

Our n . ·L:cnt \\· :1r ,,·it h ~p:lin lus g-i\·e n ri~t..: t" ~1H ·

f

c 1il1H1ies

of

N()rth

the

1\1n c rica,

11f

( 111e...;ti 1111

al1llu :-. l ill\';tri;dJ! y :-:..cttlc...:d !1y tht.' .. ;ifH»iti11il c1f
\\· i~,Lt .\

\ \·Ji,,

1·1.

t!w

t· 1ii ,111i1.."~

t'l

1nih·1l

11>- -

J 11 tili...' t:~tr l y (l a~·-.; r1f t h e tliirt (· t·: 1

pute d q11L"-.:. tio11 of c-xp:111sion.

,,.; t-.:.

cx1i;111:-.J,q1

ai1ti · c.\j1:t1hi( dli-..,\ ..... ,

~· ' ', . ~

r1·;1L1 i 11 ;1....; ~ lit· \ · \i..· , · r (' .

\\· c l:~l\·c li: td tn sc:id ll"•Hljh ti 1c

di:-. t: t1 11 ·c

11f Iiftcc11

: !J,,.

sand 111iit-..; i :1 ~)nkr l< 1 :.- :eL tl1t · r11 i< 1 ti1c: l,ii il~1111i 1H. », l•i hccp ti1c
1

llh:l!"/,~t·Llh

15.

a p e r so n.

\\ ;,,,

:--; !Je

i~

;1h·

i.lt' l.4..'

ii l

the Ide o[ a

t · Jl\'1 ;,

cr(1\\ d

,,[ yotill .~~

J>c...·nplc,

:1 ~;

:-.111...·

l·:tll

entertair1 t l1c1 11 li y lier l,c~uitiful \" uicc.

9. llc wa s very w ild in disposition . So wi ld \\" as he that 11 11
occas ions, when anyt h ing out of the ortlinarv was happe n i n \'.",
he w ouicl be r estless all <luring- th e <la,·. and t o H":ird~ eveninl'."
would h ::l\·e drank so mu c h stronl< liquor th a t th e,· \\"01ilcl li:l\·e
l o carry him home.
He w a s co n tin11aily y;ettinf!: into tr<>11 hle .
Ncnv it \\·as in a br:1'v1, no w in dan 1ag-ing son1c nci~~hli~.i · ' ~;

16 . T hey ILt\·e perfect c<>11iiclcnc·c in thc·ir ali'lity to 'llc·c:<:•: .J
in g;etting- ennuglt \'qles so ti1~lt tilt._· '.\lc1r~c liiil \\·ili g·11 tllr11u'...:. l1
17 . Su ch

r

adnnrc the \\·nrkc: nf f :t nF\li~

:!1.'l.5-'.! i::>rs

( ' Xj ·1.. ·1J'-.i \· c

l11lt

in crn\\·rlv d
f;iiilty

dr.1\\' ·

i :;

~li e

t.:li:ll· ~1ctc r

,,( 'i. : 1"~

fo\lnwi1n~·
h er~e1f

\\" (Jl~L 1:1

wl1 ( 1 si; "'- ··: 1_· 1k(~

: :1

out t ile pr1_1~_(T~un111c nf li!e ' :hi ch ;--;lie ni:tppcd (, :; t f., r
in lier ;..~irl11ucn1, and f 111 e \\·liich :-;lie carried ~1 11t tP tl1e
1

l<-t t er .

10 . Jt w;\....:, nnt her f;u1lt
:-:i':fu1ilt' -.:...; 1,f \\"f•:--1 rin'.~·

propert y.
g;. 1; ie1lc:-. , ~l 11d L·J"v\\"d ou r flHJ;1 1s \\"iih

ur

ir1 1:, \\'C :: r 1..'.

f

i;hort time, and knew th e m w e ll. whi c h is not always t he case

\\Te

pi~·tt1rc

1...al1\'.'..lS .

1

lU.

du ll•Jl ~ l l ~in(_·c ~1...· ,_· a

11 1c...:., a :-; \\·c g-i \·c ;L 1 1 ;1 ~;.,,i11:..:: ~Ltili_,c :.t
a windo\\", \\·e see a \\"onclcrfnl pict11rc painted liy 11:1t11re lwr~cif , reprodu cing- he r own furin:-; ,,;ith fidelity (J!l ~l te1np1)r:try

1\ii persons witi1 w h o m li e ca 111c in con tad he knew as \\" el l
<,n the fir:-.t tL Ly uf t ii eir a c qu :-t int:tncc as he c\·c· r \\<llild hn11\', /
thcnl. Su il Sl'cn1ct1 at least, fur he certain!\· hccanH-1: :-11· rp 1ninl~ · d
wit h pc11ple \Try rap1diy.
lii s a <' quaintanc(' ~ , t lie n· f11 rt.', w1·n•
\· ~ ·ry 1H!IJH·t11t)-....
lie kne w lle:tr ly c \·~·r•: t>li <' i:1 til e• ~,·)irH1] 1 11 a
Stl<..: ii

\\'L'

~.-;ud , ~( 1nn.. :ti

But, a s J

pJe.

b.

wi t lt

lf

l lllW i JJillg" f11 ~l11dy if, :l~ \\ "C \ \."oUJd : 1 picttlrt:

cun1sta11ces.

7. Th e n ten o( tile R o man men set spurs to their ho rses {11Hl
lned to ge t tlH<>ug-h, li11t only fi,·c of t ilcm s 11 c ccedcd . Th e
other li\·e of them fe ll before the spears of the 1>:1rli:1ri:111~. H11t
the li ve horse m e n that brok e ou t co nye ycd the tidinr.:s to t lic•
c ity.

111...·1...·~ui-.c

t ~:c'

tll~·1t

<.;he h;u1 s11c l1 l)arl1:1n11is id e:t·~ , ,f
.1 (1)\\"Jl<..;, l 1;1t it
\\ ;1...; a <..; ] 1l\\· ,

l. 1 ·1·(1:1;ii1:~

v,1:t•l1 1.t l ' ' I< •\\ ill , 1 · \· -~1 1]l 1il'< i1·11i!i 1ll l' f. 1l · t J]1;1! ~, ]:~·

iug:-. , iJut a: t..: unwilii11~ tc1 il> Oi.:: a t 111ucil IJH>re w11ndcrltJ I pictun·..;,

1n

p ain te d by the g reatest art ist - na ture. \\"e e njoy the vie w of a
beautifu l lake o r forest, hu t still pass it hy \\"i l li a few liy; ht
words. The s n o w is ~rampl c d 111Hlc:r fn <•t without a thoug-ht o f

i 1crcd i1 1 t lic <"llll1~ 1 l~ uf h i ~tury , fur

a

Lt111il\'

19.
~Jaine

,_,.h t·:·e

>, :11 · l i

\ '. ;t'>

] , 1 1 1L!'< :

1ij>

•,tr:l t 11r '. iil· i 11k:-; ii:c 1\q 111111:LtL·d

Tlic lifi n::11li of Fel, n1 an·, ].'>(iS, \\·ill :il\\'a\·s l'c rc' 111cn1(.ill

that

I1H'I1l<Jra1Jk

d1 llC the

\Va s ld1iwn up .

..,·';'.:

COMl'uSITIO:\ :\:\!> IUIFTOl<J C.

20. B11t many will disagree :is to whether \\'e should h:n·e the
y:trd :is :I stanclarcl or the meter :1s :t s tand:-.r1I; \\'h ether we
~huuld have tile pound or the kil0m ctc r :l s th e
st:itHlard;
whether \Ve ~hould ha\·e sii n ..: r or gold ~h t he !"Lutd~Lrd.
21. They were wainuts and lrnttennas, as l11<:k ury nuts do
not grow in the low -land or al11ng: the \\"ater; liut these nnts d11.
22. There were, as yet , hut few people in th e car, and l
gla need at some of them.
23. 'l\: nuyson's attitude l<Jward the llr"gress of tile nineteenth
century shows that he is v e ry mu c h in sy111 path y with it. E special ly all his l:iter poe ms relate t<J prn_gre s s and his <],...; ire to sec
the world pr(•gress.
l-l . Jn your last letter l t111nk y"u cxpr.: ssed :t de ~ 1r.: lo know
all :ti>uut m y little (; e rtrudc, aiJuut w ho m I am enntinually writi ng. Now is my opportunity to \\"rit<.: tu y•>U qf (;ertruclc's hist ory, which is one .,f so much intere ~ t and imp,11·ta n c·c to m e,
an<1, I may safely a1lcl, of inter<:sl l <> all at \\'- - Semin:i r y ,
where, among teach e rs as \1·el! as amon:<; pupils, she has won so
many h ear ts, now d evotc11 to her .
25. Near th e window stood a group of three dirty chiil1ren .
dressed in rags. In one of the corners a bed was placed, upon
which a man, doubtless their father , "-:is laid- a living skeleton.
The children w ere waiting for their mothe1·, wh o , when she came,
would IJI"ing them food. Their pale, thin facc-s and glistening
eyes expressed well their lon ging for the f• >otl an <1 the animal
gree diness which controlled th e m. The room looke<l lik e the
n est o[ a n eagle wh e re the young ones hungrily open their beaks
and cry w ith impatience.

C. Foll o win g are several themes and extracts from
themes. All are w o rdy.
Rewrite them in compact
form . How docs the w ordiness of these extracts d iffer
from that of the examples in !J .~
l. One Sunday, I was finding my \l":t)' home from church,
on the Illinois Central train, w it h l\1·0 other young ladies. The
train stopped al F• l rty- sc \'l.:n th stn:<: t, which was our place of
destination, and we started t u get off. A s it h:1ppencd, the train
was \"cry, \·cry cro,l"lkd. Many othe r people 11"cre at te mpting
:ilso to gel uff at Forty-sc\·e nth st rl"l'l, and t herefo re \\" e hacl to
wait our tim e , until \\· e Cll\1ld stc·p off the train. \\'c \\'ere in

WORl>T~ESS.

the car tH''<t the en~ine. and \\·ent t" the fr<>nt end of tile var l"
\\p,. ti 11Tt' ~~iris \\·1..·rt_• tlh~ cn«l (1f tlic stre:1111 ,.f pt·, ; )le
'.--.'.'(__. tt ii ~:~ 1i!1
( l;;•,· r1f t1h_' :< ir ls stepped <ill , and tl1t·11. ju~;t a'-> l

Rt't <1ff

1

was g"uin_~- tu ~lcJ> ~ d1" , li1c tr<1 i11 ~l :tr:1 ·( l lii>- St._·c.._·ing tli:1t i~ ,,- ;1 ~,
just startin:;~, l ;tltv1npted to \\·a lk (•:f < ~ 11 tl 11J ~t:lti < •ll p l:L'.f•1r111
l~tlt, :t...; I steppc•d 1ljv1 n it, I fnund tny:--.t·lf C1>llfn111tt·d \ \'tt li ~tn
iron r;1iii11~~-. wl1ic h is a ra\li11g up <iiH.'. s:de qf tli~ ~t1..·p'-; ~L!\ll a
fe\\· fe et :tl!1Jl\{ the pla tfonn . ju~t where the en:...:-ine ~,L~>Jh.
,1\-..
t!ie ctl'..··irF:.
111 n\·erl :1ln n )..:" a littl e, :\ll:l :t~ I \\·; 1...; lc.._·:t\·ing the pi:tl -

fortn u( th e car ucxt to tlic cng-inc , I then:fnre c11cuu11tcred tliis
r:tiling.
Jt '': ~ 1....; a n1q....,f critic:tl rnonH·nt; l rni g-ht lia\·c hc1.::1
thrown l1:w k :t'..~:lil1'-.t the c:Lr . t 11 ,_· 11 tl: t....; lled c],.,,\·11 11nder the..: tr:1111
~lnd not 11111ch left of 111e to tc1l t!1i,~ iJJcidcnt.
But a ni:u 1 '.\'h1>
was curni11~ tthlil!~ thP 1)1:11f!1nn fr1,n1 •lllL' of tlh· other car-..,, . . ; :lW
ffl'.. 1l : in~ (f• r, and jun1ping- forw ::ircJ . caug-ht n1e atHl pullt:d 1ne
t>l;t fronl lx~tw<.:e n the c;u· and th e r:1ili11:-:;-, up()n the st:tti<1;1 pLll-

forn1.
Ill; frighten(;l1 me \'(;ry much by speaking \'Cry h:trshly
an<l sharply a-t what, I suppose, \\'aS my \'l'ry i11ju<lici,,us act.
Afte r he di<l this, he hurried awa y ant1 \\'as lo st :irnong tl1e
cnn\'ll.
In my [right, I had hardly time to s<:c him - much
less to thank him for his kindness .
After the fir s t moment of fright was over and the crowd had
tlisapp eare d fr om the plat[orm, my firs t friend (the young la dy
who h:11l gotte n off) alll1 I looke11 at each other, and feeling 011r safety, a sor t o( react ion from our first frig-ht set i11,
;ind \\"e ).,oke<l at the ri1li c uln us side o( the matter. !! ere we
were on the platf.,rrn, looking aftc-r the train, whi c h was L·arrying our othi.!r fric-n<l (>tl to the next station. 1 don't S1I)ll" "'" it
was such :1 very ridi<.!11hi11s si tuation; hut th e n it is s aid th:-tt
, -e ry hi g h. deep erno tions in one line arc sometimes apt t" t11r11
t<> so 111 c deep e111otions of a directly opposite sort. This is <>IH'
rnasott l gi1·e for our lau gh ing after it wa s all O\'Cr. Then , I
suppose l shall ha\'C to give another-that we wc·re foolish
young girls and suscep tilll e tn suc h friv o lity.
.
The n e xt clay, on picking up the newspaper, we fo11nd this
li ttle ;ncident relatul in a very l1ramatic sty le, but with no
nam es gi1·cn . Th e r e w:1s a d eci1ledly fahulo11s description of the
yo 11 ng girls and of the young, han,bome h ero who rcs<:ttc<1
tlwrn, \\·ho, the three girls thought , wa s not a day less than lifty,
aith11 11 gh they couldn't be certain, hardl y h:tving seen him.
Then , th ere was a sharp comment on the young gi rls for not

254

255

COJ\1POSITION A N D RHETORIC.

WORDINESS.

~ha_n k in g th e ir hero, aml fo r the way they lau g hed aft e rwards.
t1 y to. feel .t h at th e re was some excnse for m e , 011 aLT<> unt o f

squares, were desolate, al>a ndoncd, sile nt, e sp ec ia ll y th e o ne
up o n whi ch l came after pass in g A s tor avenue an cl Forty-secll llll
street. A sharp, disag reeable wind fro m the Jak e ho wle d
through bare bran ch es o f trees and te leg raph wires , in a tone
which usually m akes us glall th at we s it in a warm room a t a
famil y ta b le . I haste ned O\'e r bro k e n side walks, al o ng rows of
half-rotten w ooden h o u ses whi ch in spired horror i n m e am!
quiL·keued m y steps co n s idera b ly . As I loo ke d up on th ose black,
cnwked s trnctures of wood , l had a feeling that I was loo kin g
up o n th e liens of beasts rath er than th e dwellings o f human
bein gs.
5. J am es Whitcomb Riley h as mad e the w or ld think more
hi g hl y of the so-c alled ordinary or co mmon thin g s o f life . He has
described th ese , and be shows something l>eaut iful a nd tou ching
in e\·cryt hing-. Some of hi s s to r ies of c hildre n are so path eti c
th at th ey ofte n m a ke a lump in th e throa t a nd bring tea rs to th e
eyes of those who read them . Yet one reads them again and
again. Bu t this last thing may be said of all his w nrks. If th ey
are read on ce, they will sure ly and ine \'itab ly be read a ga in . H e
is \'ery humo rous , a s \\'e ll a s patheti c. H e is lo \'e d by eve r yo ne,
fro m the child o f six to th e "kl man. And why is this? Wh y
sh ou ld he ap pea l to so man y ? \Vh y should h e have so varied an
au llicn cc ? lt is beca nse he has the cha rm of describing everythin g ju st as it is , w ith th e ad ditio n o f something that goes to
every b ody' s h ea rt, stron g ly affecting the emotions.

n ot hav111 g tune, ruy fri g llt, and th e manner in whi c h the man
spoke to m e; ye t, I ha\·e al \\· ays felt this reproof keen ly, which
some unknown ne wspape r reprirtcr wrote . A n<l th ey say that
\\h en w e a re cnt 1used, we feel it m ost when the re is some truth
in it.

z._ Sir R oge r tle Coverley, that goocl oltl kni ght , abo ut who m
wrote
so many of h is best Sf-'" 1·r/alon' \\' <·ts·• U~ k·1J}( l I C l1 ~lf·
.
Acltl1snn
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1talile, rel1 g1o u s, he nenilent , and good -h ea r te d gen tleman . H e
\Va:-;.IJelon..: d I Jy al l wl10 knew hirn, fro1n hi:-\ ari stoc r~ lti c friends
to hes lowest menia l sen·a nt. His hospi ta lity "''" snch that he
h ad nearl y always at least one guest. Th e . Sprdalors written
al>out
hrn1 will ca use the rea
.
. der to )0 ,·e ~·rnd 1·eve rc tl 1en1a n,
f co m th e way h e trea ted !u s dom estics th e ll <><> r ·in rl . 11 l · .
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nenc s.
ic1e \\.ts no one in his pari.->h o r in the adjace nt
t o w ns an d counllcs who h ad 110t hea rd of him, and of the
gra n d a nd ex cel lent re p ut at io n he b< Jre. ln fact, he was a man
\\:ho might lit taken as a type of c\·e ryth ing that is upr ig- ht and
I

\ ·1rtu ott s .

Th e det'p ltl\·e which ev e rvone had for him wa s made \·e ry
rnamfes t , w hen Sir Roge r di ed . The re w as 111.i b ody with a drv
eye wh en th at event tcwk p la ce , and th o u g h his snu l passe~l
f10111 th e people. stil l Ins ,t;ond na m e never left.
.3 .. No thin g has eve r rc cci,·cd suc h an am o un t of labor and
thrn k1 11g as m y w aste bas ket. \\" he n e\·er I loo k upo n the pile
of paper wi t h a sorrowful loo k, an d sigh for so mu c h s nowwln te p ape r destroyecl l>y my elaborate th o ug-ht s , I swear that
l s h a ll ll e\·e r take pen and pap e r t'> fill m y wa ste l""ket again
and th us dra w upon m ysel f nw siste r's power of cl uqu e nce, 1?y siste r, w hose task it is to keep t he basket e mp ty. Fnr th e
tire 11~ th e ftirna ce is supported onl y by the pap e r destroyed b y
m e, tne tluor of my roo m is cu\·ered by it, and yet there is a
lo t of 1t alwa ys on hand .
1'1 1c s·k ) . \V a s c 1ca r
4. I t was a perfect c \·enill'·· in J ·u111u)·
c..
•
~ nd set with unmberlcss sta1·s. T he slu gg is h m oo n , whi c h wa~
JU St full , p o ure d powerful streams of ma g ic li g ht down up o n th e
suow-covered roo fs o f h ouses , making a stro ng contrast with th e
dark sky, th e beau ty o f wh ic h no m ist impaire d.
I was wa lking home frnm a visit to (Ille 11f rny fric11cls livi11g
on t he South S id e . The stree ts , except the main business
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RIGHT CHO IC E OF WO RDS.

:-;o-call ed " orator ical " di cti o n, wh ere the b ig phrases
u sed fasten the h e are r 's attenti on , not on the ide as , but
o n what th e "orato r" himself wo uld c:< ll "a 11 ow of
language." This undue ornateness of sty le is called
in rhetorics , " fin e writing ." "Fin e writing" n o t o nly
destroys force , but a lso makes the write r ridiculous;
fo r example:

CHAPTE R XVI.
R!G!IT CHOICE OF WORDS .

l. Th e wat e r p ipes refu se d t o y ield the ir acc u stomed d o nat io n
to th e h ouse h old activities.
2. \\'ha t mean these mutteri n gs and th uuder in gs o f war?
Arn the c ivili zed nations o( the earth to e xtrac t th e m e talliferous
deposits o f th e g lobe for t he sa ke of manufac turin g instrume nts
for th e dest ruction of rnankiud?
3. The m oller n student of h istory gran ts mental foalty tu th e
gra nd principle of evolution. Geology m a kes e vi dent th:H in
t he processes leading to th is pres.., nt unparalleled state of life,
o ne urgani<.: creation after anothe r has held sway. The Trilo bite,
t he giant Orthocc ratite, the mon ster Amphibians o f the .l\lesozui<.:
age, rulcLl in their s uccessive eras, and after e o ns o f domin io n
ceded th ei r position to their und o ublt:d lord and maste r -man.
4. It is true th at this r ace is n o t clean, and has several
peculiarities ; ye t th at is no reason why its iudh·i d uals should
not be treated as c reatu res bel u ngin g to the highes t o r de r o f
ma mm alia.

92. The Need for a Discriminating Choice of Words.Care in our selection of words is always necessary if
w e would \\'ri te clearly and forcibly. Even th e n ewest
o f thoughts may be made to seem fla t if tritel y phrased;
the most precise thinking looks vague if it is conch ed
in generalities; th e most d ignified matter beco m es
triv ial if it is overadornc(l. Th e demands upo n o ur
tas te in the ch oice of words arc m ani fold; e\·e ry sentence is a n e w problem in dictio n . Y e t it is p oss ibl e t o
by down a few ge ner:i l rules which will h e lp us to g:i in
the necclccl p o wer of se lect ion.
93. "Fine Writing" a F a ult.- T h e fi rst rul e for ch o ice
of worcls is th a t, wh e n possible, short, simp le words
s h ould be used. This is true for two reasons. In the
first place, a s the aim of writing is t o impart in fo rmati o n , a n yt hing which calls atte ntio n fro m th o ught to
style is a flaw . Coleridg-e says pertinently:
The w o rtls in p rose ought to e xpress the inte nd er] m eani n g,
ancl no mo1·e; if they attract attention to th e mseh-es , it is, in
gen e ral, a fault. In the very best sty les, as S o u th ey's , yo u rea d
page afte r page , understanding the author p e rfec tly , wi tho ut
once taking noti ce of the m ed ium of commn nication : - it is a s if
he had been speaking to you all th e whi le . Cor.muocE: TableTa!k.

In the second place, the la r ger and hi g her- sounding a
word is , as a rule, the more attention it draws to the
style. No o ne can have fa il e d to note this d efec t in
256

257

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Such bomhast is alway s irritating-, but perh a ps it is
lc:>s reprehensible than the form of fi11 c \\Tttinl,!° which
comes fr o m a vulgar horror o f n arni 11g-, fredy and
ope nly, the ordin ary facts of life . False delicacy is
w orse tha n n o clc I icac~', an cl the man who says he cann o t go to the ope ra "bccatlse o f financial considerations," \\'h o "perfo rms ablutions " in stead o f washing,
\\'ho "retires" instead of goi n g to bed, a nd who shuns
th e w ord " sweat" as he wo uld a pestile n ce, is insince re a n d vulgar. R e finement may be los t b y gro ssn e ss, b u t just as vft~·n it is lost by false modesty in the
ch o ice of words.
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RIGHT CHOICE OF WORDS.

COMPOSITION AKD RHETORIC.

259
\.·.
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The following three extr::i.cts all deal with subjects of
importance, which gave every chance for the use of
"fine writing." All are extremely effective; ye t all
are written in the simplest diction :

A thircl form of fine writing resu lts from the mist aken fee lin g that, just as icle::i.s grow in importance or
in tensity, the lan guai;e in \\'hid1 they are expressed
"h o u Id i;row more formal - from the fee lin g, in short,
that liii; ideas de m and big \\"or<ls. This is certain to
pm<lucc a prim, stilted, insincere diction; for cx:m1p lc:
The sun was throwing- his declining beams from the weste rn
sky, and the evening breeze was sweelly breathing around with
!J:llm y brea th, w he n m y eyes fell on a !Jeautiful patch o f bloom·
in g fl o wers, whn se gr~uHleur and fr agra nce drew me to them .
l\1y heart scemetl more alh·e than ust1al to the beauty o f God's
creation. I examined the variegated flowe rs with admiring
wonder. I saw the lun:ly rose, the gaucly tulip, the stately
hollyhoc k, the m:t g- n i ficcnt cl:i hlia, and the g o rg-co us anemone.
Thcu I hcg:111 to rdlcc t. \ \'ere th e tl o wers of the w orld to be
tak e n awa y . they w oulrl lca \·c a blank in creation. Im aginat ion
cannot sug-gcst a subst itute fo r th e m. Th e sta telies t room in
the statdiest man si un must h :we the flowers in the little wicker
baske t on th e stand. Th e l;iu sh ing- ma iden, cleg-antly dressed ,
skals e ver aud :\lll• n a g lan ce at the moss-rosebud blooming at
her breas t. T he ;><>nr. age d widow loo ks \\·ith sa tisfa c tion upon
the bunch of gillif10\wrs in the window o f her cottage. The
agetl laborer, to o , wh o ht:.>ld the plo w in hi s boyh oo d, and who
now has seen h is eightieth yea r , mu s t have a sprig o f "Sweet
\Villiam" in his !Juttonhole. The newl y made gTa,·e is carpeted
ove r with fl o we rs that manifest the respect and affection of the
li,·ing for the dead. !To w grateful should we be for the gift of
fl o wers!

In point nf fac t, tlw m"rc imp or t:int nr t o u chin r:- the
subject m:tttcr, the silllpkr shou lcl he the di ct ion. Of

Pilgrim's Pro,i;n'ss, Coleridge, an excellent critic of diction, writes as foilows:
The l'i!;:rim 's Prv_("rcss is compos<:J in the lowes t style o f
En g li s h , witl1out slang or fal se grammar. If you were t o polish
it, you would at once dest rnv th e r eality of the visinn. For
w orks of the im:tgination shonld be written in very plain language; th e rnore pnrely imaginative they are the m o re necessary it is to l•e plain. - Co1.i::1uut:E: Tablt'-Talk .

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1. He was still hamlso me, this great-hearted friend of ours,
although disease had whitened his face and made n ecessary :1
supporting cane. \Vhen I came away. he took my hand in hi,.;
and said, half jesting-ly , half earnestly,•• Guorl-IJye. G<nl lil<"''s
you'" I tried to smile, but couhln't.
At Christmas I stood !Jesicle his grave. The funeral :] l) wc: rs
had withered, !Jut I saw , shining- through them, th e green lean:s
and the re el ber ri es of a h olly wreath.
2. \Vhen I pu t my pen to the paper I did not know the first
word that I should make use of in writing the term s. I only
knew what wa s in my mind, ancl I wished t•> express it clc:ar iy .
so that th<:re <.:ould be no mbtakiil){ it. As I wrote: on, the:
thought occurn.:d to rnc that the office rs had th eir own private
horses and effects, which were important tu them , hut of ll<J
value to us; alsci, that it wvuld lJe an tll t!l ecessctry h ulll ili:tlic>o
to call upon theru to clt.:li\Tr th eir s ille :trm s.
No conversation, not one wo rrl, p assed between G en eral L.;e
and myself. either about private prope rty, side a rrn s, nr kindred
subjects. He appearccl to have no objections lo tilt: t<:r:us iirs t
propc1se1_1; or if he h~u 1 :1. p11 in t tq 111 <.tl. c a:;ain .--.t tl1c; 11 , li e. \ 1:: '.-. :1cd
to \vait unt il they were in wr ;tin :._:- to tnake lt.

\\"h ell hL· r·· arl

over th:i.t p.'..lrt nf the tern1 . .~ :i.lJuut sid e arn 1"', bur:-ies and pri-

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vate property of the office rs, he re rnark·~ d. with some fec li n ~. I
th o u g ht, that t his wuuld li:l\·e a happy clkd up0n his ari 11~-.
l ittle f11 rthcr cuu,· c..:r:-:.a t i1 111, (~t..:ll l' ral Le 1~ r1.._· 111:1r~cd
,.\.ct' <i rg anized ~l li ttle <1: tlcri-·t-:t l:frn111 the ;lrn1y nf th1~ Unile d St:ih;s ( ~ till n1ai11t.'..1iniu < b~· in1plicatin11 that we \\·ere t\\·o countrics"l . t il:tt in thC' ir arrll,. the· c:i,·'rh~n, af t l'r a

tn n1c :1g":l i 11 t h at t lH·ir arin~·

aln·rnen awl artillerists owned tl1eir h o rses: anrl h e ;i ske d if lr e
was' '' 1111derslaud that the men who su owned their 11ur~c~ we re
to be pcr:nittccl to reta in th e m. I UiJ.-1 him th:it a'' th· tcrn1'
were written th e y would not; that 0nly the oflicers werl· permitt ed to take their pri,·ate prope rt v . li e then. a(kr rl·, .. 1inf(
over the terms a secontl time, re m a rked that that w:i s clear.
I then sa id tu him that I th o u g ht th is would be about the last
battle of the war- I sincerely hupecl so; and I said further I

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260

CO:l!POS!Tffl:'>i 1\:\D RHETORIC.

RIGHT CITOH'E OF WORDS.

took it that most of the mc•n in the rank s were small farmers.
The whole country h:lll been so raided by th e two armies that it
was doubtful whether they wouitl be able to put in a crop to
carry th e msth-es :111tl their families thruugh the next winter
without tl1e ui<l of t he lw rses they w<.:re then rilling. The
Unite d States did !lt>t want them :rnd I wuulcl, then;fore,
instruct the officers I left be hind to rc cci\·e the p :troles .. r h's
troops, to let c\·c ry man of the C<rnfederate arrny wh o claimed .,
to own a h orse or mule take the auimnl to his home. Lee
nmrnrked again that thi s would h ave a happy elfcc t.-U. S .

energy and sleepless vi g ilance go forward and give u s victories.

GRA'.';T:

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Po-sonat 11/cmoirs.

3. I have placeLl you at the head of tbe 1\r my of the Poto·
mac. Of course I have d o ne ll:is up on what appears to me lo
be s ufficient reasons, and yd I think it bes t fo r you lo kn"w
that tlu:: rc arc some things in r c ~anl lo w hich I am not quite
satisfie,J with yo u. I beli e ,·e you to be a b ra\'e aml skillful s .. 1.
dier, which, of course, I like. I also believe you do uol rnix
politics wil~1 your pn , fL: ssion, in which you arc right. Yo u ha\·e
confidence in yourself , \'.- hi c h is a \":tluab ie, if n o t an inllispen·
sable, quality. Yon :ire a1111Jitiucs , ,,·!Jich, within reasonal,lc
bound s , does goo d rather than h;mn; but I th ink that, <;luring
General l3nruside·s conuna1Hl of the arll!y, you have taken
coun sel of you r ambiti o n, a nd thwarted him as mu c h as yo u
could, in ,,·!tich you di d a g re at \Hon g tu th e coun try aull to a
most meril.,rin us and h u no r:iiJle brother officer. I h ;n·e h eart! ,
iu such a w:1y : t>; f1> helie\"l' it, o( yu11r J"('cently ,;;1y i11 g tha t hnth
the army and tile Con:rn111 c nt n el! dl!d a dictat o r. Of course, it
was uot ftJr tlli~, b11l in ~p i l e
\.'.t)ll1Jll~Uld.

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i t, that 1 have gi\'etl yon the

()11l y llH1 ...; t• t~t.:IH. .:r~d s \\ 11-) ~~ : Lin Sll l..' CC S S<..'S ('<ill se t 11p

tlidators. \\"Ji:1 t l no w ; 1 ~ k o( yo u i.> military su ccess , and [
will risk the ll ict:1torship. Th.: C o \·ernment will s11ppor l you l•J
the utm os t nf its a !Ji!il\', \\·hich is neither more ll ' •r kss than it
has dL>ilC :lnd will rlo fnr a ll e n mrnandcrs. I much fear that tlll'
spirit, wh ich ynu h :we aicl e Ll to in fuse into the army, of criticis·
ing th eir co mmander anti withlwhling confidc:ncc: Crom him, will
now turn upon you. I sh a ll ass i't you so far as I can to pul it
<lo\\"n. Neither yv u nor N a p o lecn1, i( Ile were alive aga in, cou l<l
g-et an y g-ood out of an army while s11ch a spi ri t pn.: v:lils in it.
il.nd n o w beware of rashness . Beware of r;.i~hn:: ~ s. but with
• Non:.- ls this

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261

L etter to Cmcral /looker.

94. Triteness Often a Form of" Fine Writing."- Inflated
d!ction frequently take s the form of worn-out, conventional phrases, phrases u sed simply because they have
long been employed in literary work. This fault is
called triteness. In trite diction we find numbers of
words which, like worn-out coins, have lost sharpness
of outline. \.Vith the trite writer, "elem ents" are
always bcin).!" "eliminated"; all influences arc "factors"; all houses arc "residences"; all cou rs cs of action
o r th ou:;ht g-o on this or that" line"; all waltze s arc
"sl ow anJ dreamy"; all moonlight scenes are "fairylikc "; boys ancl girls arc "gay youths and happy
maidens"; eycry hero has " striking features"; and
all rivers" go dancing along with many a ripple." J\ren
do not marry pretty g- irl s ; they " wed cbmscls \\'hose
teeth arc like sets of pearls, whose waists are beautifully slende r, \\'ho have rave n tresses aml s\\'an-likc
necks . " Such \\'ritin:; is obYionsly s illy, yet pa s,;ag-es
quite as bad can be found. Moreover, even thon~h \\·c
do not often Jlm1 in one place so many exag-~cratcJ,
conventional phrases , ordinary writing is full of such
passaR"CS as the followin~. in which the worn-out diction is a complete b:uricr to force :
The ni ght was a perfect one. All n atu re seemed to have
united in making- that party a success. The stars twinkl ed so
fast that th ey appeared to be tryin g to outdo each other in shiuing their !,ri g- htes l. The we:1th e r was warm and balmy. The,
lake was so calm and cle~r a:lll brig-ht that it looked like an
imme nse mirror. On either sitle, ancl at the farther end of tht'
lake, all , ,-;!S da rk, save where here and there a l ight from som e
cottage window penetrated through the thickness of the wood,
or the la ntern on the prow of some b oat shone merrily out as
the boat glided along r,,· e r the ripplin g waves. There was musiL'.
to ll1e car in the gracefu l bpping of the waves on the distant
shore.

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CO~ll'6SITJ(J:\.' :\:\V HHET0JUC.

.IUGHT CHOIC E OF WORDS.

Contrast with the conventionality and insincerity of
the preceding extract , the freshne s s :tntl naturalness of
the following one :

\vished to refer to the class, writing wo uld be impossible. But, making all du e all owance for th e u sefuln ess of general words, it is true that \Ve sh o ultl, when
po ssibl e , choose the spec ifi c word . Much wr iting- lose s
force by employin g gen e ral words fo r individ ual ide:is
or facts. The mat te r w ill be clearer for examples :

To cross such n plnin is to g-row homes ic k fo r the m o Lrnta ins.
long-ed for th e Black ll ill s u f \Vyoming- , whi c h I knew we
\\'e re soon .I• > enter, li ke :rn ice-bound w haler fot· the sp r ing .
Alas! and 11 \\' as a w o rse cou nt ry than the other. All Sunday
a nd lll onday \\'t: traveled through t he se sad mountain s , or ovtr
the main r idgt o f the Rockie:;, whi c h is a fair match to th e m for
misery o.f a spect. !l ou r aftl'r hour it w:ts the same unhom ely
:tt~<l unkindl y world abont our onwarcl path; t umull'cl boulders,
c liffs t li:'lt clren ril y imitate the shape of mon um ents and fortifications - h o w drenrily, how tamely , non e can te ll who has not
see n th e m ; not a tree , n ot a patch o f sward, no t one s h apely or
co mm anding m ount ain fo nn; sage-b ru s h, ete rn a l sage-brush ;
? ver all, the same wea r iful and gloomy coloring, grays warming
rnto brown, grays darkening to\\'ard s black ; and fo r so le sign
of life , here and there a few fleein g antelopes ; here and th e re,
but at in c retl ibl e intcn·als, a c reek rnnnin g into a cai'ion. The
plains have a g-rarnleur of th eir O\\'l l ; but here t here is nothing
l•ut a c" ntort ed small ness. Except for tile air, whi c h was li g ht
an<l s timulatin g , tilc:re wa s not one "00 11 c irc um sta nce in th a t
God-forsaken land .- - STEVEKSON: Across the Plains .

95. Specific Versus General Words.- A for m of ineffective diction close ly allied to "fine wri ting" is the u se of
a general word for a specific iclca o r fac t. The words
which n ame a class of objects or ide as are g e neral ;
the \\' urtls which n:tmc the individu als of those classes
arc specific. The term "unpleasant," for example, is
a g_cncral word, which may be translated into any one
of a number of m o re speci fic wo rds - " ill-tempered,"
" 1·1 1-mannc rc cl ," o r " grotesque ly ug-ly." The process
mig h t be carrictl even furthe r, unt il \\'e go t ju st the kind
of un pleasantness meant. Obv iou sly general words are
a necess ity when we ,,·ish to name cbsscs o f objects.
ff, in stead of usin g the wo n l. " mamma l," we h ad to
name the various anim als of this o rder every time we

l. vVe do n ot find mu ch
comfort in th ose systems of
th eology which lack pro,·i s io n
for the future ex iste n ce of m nn.
They leave us no principle o f
conduct except that o f rega rd
for our fell o w-be ings .

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2 . It was he re that Mowgl i
came ofte n for refreshment
and company. The form of
the youth had b ee n re duced to
so extreme a state of wretchedness by th e lnck of food th at
none o f h is enemies would
have cared for him n ow . Yet
h is physica l di sco mfo rt h ad
not, owing to the co un sel of
Baghee ra , i mpaired the qu a lity of his mind or his temper .

It was u ot much of a crec,I.
It o nly prove d tlt a t meu had
no son ls, a nd t ht rc "· as 110
(;ocl a u<! nn hereafter, and
t ha t you mus t worry alo n g
somt:how for the good of hu manity.- Ktl'LI XG: The Con 11rrsio11 of A 11 rdian ! l<fr(;ogf{irt.
It wn s h e re that Mo\\'gli
ca m e nightly fo r the coo l and
the companionship . The most
hun g ry of hi s e nemies would
hardly have c·arecl fur the boy
t!ien . Hi s nak c<l !tid e m acle
him seem more lean and
wre tc h ed than any of his fellows. His h air wa s bl enc hed
to tow colo r by th e sun; !t is
ribs stood ou t lik e th e ribs of
a basket, a n d th e lumps on
hi s knees and e lbows , wl1ere
he was u sed to t rnck cin all
fours, gave hi s sh rn nken limbs
the loo k o f k notted g-ra , s ste m s . Bu t his eye , under his
matted forelo c k, wa s L"no l and
quie t , for !Jagh ee ra w a s !t is
ad v iser in this time of trouble, and to lcl hi m to go qui etly ,
hunt slo wly, and n e, ·er, on
any acc o unt , to lose his te mp er. - KIPLINC: The Secu11d

Jungle-JJook .

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COMPOSITION A ND RHETORIC.

96. Figures of Speech an Aid to Specific Diction.- A gener:-i.l statement mny be m:-i.de specific and forcible by
the addition of a figure of speech. A figure o f speech,
or trope , is the use of a word in so m e sense not
exactly literal. \Vhe n , for in st:-i.nce , a student wrote
that " Schoolboys take informati on in very unwillingly, like kitten s "·hose eyes must be opened prematurely with a pin," he used a figure of speech . So did
the \Ve s tern stage-driver, who, explainin g how his
horses fell ove r one another go ing d o wnhill, said,
" The wheeler s just jackknivecl o n the leaders." In
each case, the gene ral state me nt is made m ore specific
by th e figure of speech . How important a part fi gures
play in sty le will be clear from an examinatio n of the
follo \',·i ng passage, in which the various figures of
speech are italicized. I t will be noted that m a ny words
not at first recognizable as tropes arc in reality figures
of speech . A good figure, like those in the follow ing
example, springs so n atur:illy out uf the thought and
is so simple and consistent th at we h ard ly recognize it
as a literary device:
To visit th e woods while they arc /a11g11idly burning is a
strange piece of experience. The fire passes thro u g h t he underbrush at a nm. Every here and there a tree flares up instantaneously from root t<1 s11 111mil, scatte r ing tuft s of flame , and is
quenched, it seems, as quickly. Hut thi s las t is on ly in se mblance. F••r after this fi rst 51/11it> -li/;, · contlag-ratio n o f the dry
moss and tw igs , there re mains b ehi nd a dr,p -rool!"d an<l con sroning fire in the very r11/ra ils of the tree. Th e resiu of the
piti.:h-pine is principally condensed at th e base of the bo le and
in the sp readin g roots. Thus, after the lig-ht , show.1', skirmishing
flames, which a re only as lite ma/di lo /Ire explosio11, h ave already
scampered down. tltc mind i11to !hr dis l a11r:c, the trnc harm is but
beginning for t his gian t of llu: woods . You m ay approach th e
tree from one side, and see it, scorched ind ee d fro m top to b ottom,
but apparently a srffvivor of tire peril. Make the c ircuit, an <'.

RIGHT CHOICE OI' \\'ORDS .

265

. there, on the other side of th e rolunw, is a clear mass of living
c oal, spreadi11g like a11 u.tcer; whi le umlerground, to their most
extended fibre, the roots are bei n g eaten out by fire, and the
smoke is ri sing throu g h the fissures to the su rface .- STI!VE:NSON :

Across the Plains.

97. The Faults of Figurative Diction.-Any conscious
striving for figures of s peech, however, is almost cert ain to be disastrous. Gooc1 figures will suggest
themselves n aturally - w ill be simple , appropriate, and
s elf-consisten t. If the writer sets him self the task of
writing figuratively, h e is in great dange r of employing fi gures which are inappropriate, exaggerated, or
"mixed " (i.e., a fusion o f two conflicting figures). In
such cases h e overshoots his m ark and is in a worse
plight than if he h ad u sed n o fig-ure at all. The fig-nres
cited below illustrate these faults.
1. Coy sp r ing was about to make its d Gbut.
2. Th e people of thi s co u n try , without r egard t o party, arc tn
be congratulated that the t ime is at hand fo r the dying ember,;
o f democracy to tuck their s hrou ds about th e m and hi e them to
the ir t omb.
3. The inaudible foot of tim e has left its imprint on the old
m an 's fore h ead .
4. The pale ha nd of death stal ked into ou r m idst last week
and faste ned its c ru e l eyes on little Mary .
5 . Th us Engli sh , like symbo li c truth, th ough crushed to earth
by the powerfu l influen ces of. the in truding tongues , Danish and
Norman, rose again in simple majesty , with the rags and tag-,;
cast upon it by fo reign tongues cl inging about its puny limbs,
weak from d isuse. J\ntl this language, with its story of oppression, endurance, and final v icto ry, is o ur h er itage to day.
•
6. In this picturesque garb , in th is coat of many colo rs, in
these garments with which not even Solomon in all his glory
was arrayed, in the shreds a n d rags from every tongu e flun;;
u po n her in the p rocess, comes this, our language. and claims us
hers. And as we have been und e r her m otherly instruction ever
since she was the nurse of o ur ch ildh ood , we joyfully claim h e r

266

C:O~iPO~ITION /\ND RHETORIC .

ours, and assert that she is the noblest language on earth. Perhaps she is. Who knows?
7. Think of a poor, innocent, young woman's having poured
forth her whole life , and, as it were, propped it a gains t th a t of
another, only to have the support suddenly to rn away!
8. The Genernl s tumbled o,·er a bullet int o eternity.
9. If Erasmus was the intellect for the reformation, Luth er
was the throbbing heart that beat off the fetters of fear and
superstitio n in that dark age, the lion -hearte <l who dared in the
face of death to reach far clown throu g h the blac k ni gh t, and,
lighting the to rch of everlasting truth, to lift it in the valley
below, whi ch we may call the heart. Then these two mi g hty
forces become the mead o w- stream of glorious life, rippling over
the peb bles , sparkling in the sunshine, mi1Torin g- the heave n
an<l painting the fl owers, refreshing travelers, turning millwheels, and finally losing itself in the infinite ocean. Sn ch is
a useful life.
10. I have gathered welcomes fro m a thousan d hearts in
Tennessee, and I have pressed them into a perfumed bombs hell
of smiles and kisses. I light the fu se and toss it from my lips ;
it explodes above this beautiful audience and scatters in the air
a million sweet forget-me-nots, and they come fl oating down
and fall into the hearts of all who love their h o mes and their
country.
11. In criticisi ng this book, I shall attempt to expose one
fault, merely for the sake of va riety; then, as a rose covers up
its inner mass of imperfect petals by tier after tier of mature
ones, producing the glorious result, I shall hide this fault by an
enumeration of the merits of the book.
12. Washington and Hamilton were at this time driving the
ship of state. \Vashiu gto n had hold o f the reins -the constitution; Hamilton u sed the whip-the doctrine of unified
powers .

RIGHT CHOICE 017 \vORDS.

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98. Accuracy and Individuality Needed in Our Choice of
Words.- \Ve need a large vocabulary so that we may
have a free choice among words . This matter has
been treated at length in sections 39 and 46. The
point is restated in order to emphasize the fact that
a wide vocabulary is a prerequisite of accuracy and

J.

267

individuality in phrasing. In diction more than anywhere else a writer shows his power, because out of
any one of a dozen words, all possible in a given passage, probably only one word will be exactly appropriate. In most cases we never find just the word
desired. When we do, the style goes at a bound from
the commonplace to the individual, from the merely
clear to the forcible. The perplexity of the hero of
Sentimental Tommy as to the expression he should use
to indicate the size of a given crowd, hindered him, to
be sure, from finishing an essay in the set time anJ
lost him a prize, but it marked him as a boy with definite capabilities for writing.
Tommy and McLau ghlan, two Scotch peasant boys,
are competing for the prize of a sch olarship at the
Uniyersity of Edinburgh. At the encl of the two hours
allowed for writing the essay on which the prize is to
be given, McLaughlan hands in a complete production,
but Tommy has stuck in the middle of his second
page.
He had brought him$elf to public scorn for lack of a word.
\Vhat word? they asked testily, but even now he could not te ll.
He had wan ted a Sco tch word that would signify how many
people were in church, and it was on the tip of his tongu~ but
would come no farther. Puc kle was nearly the word, but 1t <ltd
not mean so many people as he meant. The hour had gone by
just like winking; he had forgotten all about time while searching his mind for the word .
"You little tattie doolie," Cathro roared, "were there not a
d ozen words to wile from if you had an ill-will to puck le? What
ailed you at manzy, or - - "
"I thought of manzy," replied Tommy, woefully, for he
was ashamed of h imself, "but- but a manzy's a swarm. It
would mean that the folk in the kirk were buzzing thegi ther
like bees instead of sitting still."
" Eve~ if it docs mean that," said Mr. Duthie, with impatience, "what w ;c. :he need of bei ng so parti c ular? Surely the

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co;vrPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

nrt of essay-writing consists in using the first word that comes
and hurryi n g on."
"That's how I did," said th e proud McLaughlan, who is
now leader of a party in the church, and a 1i g ure in Edinburgh
durin g the m onth of May.

RIGHT CHOICE OF WORDS.

to leave tlie school, the door opent:Ll a
in the aper tn re the face of T o mllt)",
"I kc u the word uow," h e: cried, "it
it is ha!ltle ! "-B.U<RIE: Sc:11ti111e11f,1t

269

littl e anJ there appeared
lea r-slaineJ, !JUl excited.
c:uue l o me a' at onc.:e ;
'/(11111JJy (co ndensed).

"I se~ ," inte r posed Mr . Gloag, "that l\kLa u ghlnn speaks of
th ere being a mask o f people in the churC' h. Mask is a fin e
Sco tch word .''
"Admirab lC'," assented Mr. Dish art.
" I th ought of ma s k," whimpered T om my, "but that wo uld
mean the kirk wa s C' ra1nmecl, and I just meant it to be middling
full."

\Ve cannot always he:s itate so long as this over a smworu, but we c:rn all str ive to make our phrases fit
acc urately the thing \\·e :tre talking :thout. ft that is
done, our dict io n is likely to be appropri ate , indi vi<lu a l.
and, h e nce, effective . Note in the follo\\"ing- ex trac t
th e accuracy ::rncl the individuality of the phrasi ng:

"Flow would have clone," suggested ilfr. Lord mer.
"Flow' s but a ilanc1fu l, " said T omrn ..·.
"Curran, th e n, you jackanapes' " ·
"Curran's no enough."
.Mr. Lorrimer flung up his hancl s in despair.
"I wanted something betwee n curran and mask ," said
T ommy, d ogged , yet alm ost at the cryin g-.
ilfr. Ogilvy, who hacl beC'n hiding hi s admira ti on with diffi culty, spread a net for him. " You sa id you wanted a word
that meant miclcl ling full. Well, why dirl yo u n ot say rniddling
full - o r fell mas k?' '

T\\"o o[ th e stnJ11 .t;·est monke ys cau~ht M<>w ,c;·li und e r 11 1<0
:in ns and swttng- off willt hi111 throug-h the trc: e· top s , tw c:1 t ty
kc:t at a iJou nil. !Lt<l th ey lJ cc n al<rn<:: th ey co11ld 1Lt\'e gone
twic«.: :ts f:t ~ t. hut tl w hoy's w t: ig ht h eld th..:lll hac k. Sick antl
;:iddy "~ ;\ l"w.:.;Ji w as, he could not h e lp eujoying the wild rush,
1!i, , t1 ;.c,h tl w g li111p sc:.-; o [ earth f:tr tlown belo\\" fri:.;-htenetl him,
",1d t li e tc: rri IJ!e check and jerk at the encl of the: sw ing ove r
11utlt in ;; but emp ty air brou g ht his h eart betwee n h is teeth.
fl is e sco rt would rush him up a tree till he felt the weak topmost bra nches crackle and bend und e r them, and then, with a
cou g h a1Hl a whoop, \\· <>uld fling themselves into the air outw:cnl :.tncl downw:u-.1, aud 1.Jriug up hanging b y their hands or
th ei r k ct to the lower limhs of the next t ree. Sometimes he
could se: e for miles an cl miles over the still, gree n jung le, as a
man on th e top of a mast can see for miles across th e sea, and
th e n the bran ches and le:tves w o uld lash him across the fa ce ,
and he and his tw•• g uards w•>t.tltl lJ c almost down to ea rth
ag:tin.
So b onndi n g and cra shi ng anc.l wlwopiug aud yelling, the
wh nlu tri be vf B'1n LLtr-!ug swept al ong the tree-roads with
The: J11ng/c -l1uok.
~[u\1·gli their prisoner.- Kt i'LI :-"l;:

"Yes, why not?" clemanded the ministers, un consciously
caught in th e n et.
'' l want ed one worLl," re plied T o mmy, unconseioc1sly avoidin g- it.

··Yo u jewel!" llllltlererl :\Ir. Ogih'y und e r his breath, but
Mr. C::ithro would han.: !Ja11;..;cd the iJ c,y's heafl had not th e
lll in i ~ t c rs in terfererl.

: : It , is so ea?, too'. '.o find the r iRht word," said !lfr. Gloag.
Its n o ; its as cl1fl1cnlt a s to hit a sq uirrel," cried Tommy
and a g-ain Mr. Ogilvy nodd ed appro\·a l.
'
Hut t he mi11i sters were only pained.
"The l::td is merely n nn111 sk ull," sai rl Mr . Dishart, kindly .
. " Ancl n o teacher c01ilrl li:t\·e turn e d him into anything- e lse ,"
said Mr. Duthie.
. ''And so, Catbro, you need not fee l so re over your defeat,'•
add.eel :\[r. Glnag-; but ne\·ertbelcss Cathro took Tommy by the
nee!< and rau 111111 out of tiJ,, p:tri~h sc lrno l of 'rhrums.
An<l then an odd thing happe ncrl. As they were preparing

~le

99. Summary of Chapter.-Force in writing depends
quite as much up o n the quality of our uiction as upon
the selection ancl the arrangement of our material. In
gu .:.i d \\Titing- there \\'ill be no strained, trite, or inappropriate phrases . Good t1icti o n im pli es th e use of simple
rather than orn::ite words , of specific and new rather

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271

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

RIGHT CHOICE OF \V ORDS.

than general or trite words , and of words carefully
selected because of their appropria teness. To gain
the re qui site power over words, we mu s t extend our
vocabulary as much as possible, and observe carefully
the amount of fitness a given word has for the idea we
desire to express.

something of his life prior to his appearance in that section of
the country.
6. A very quiet marriage took place in the northern part of
our town, at th e residence of the bride's mother, last \\'ednesday evening at 8:30 o 'clock, in which the rites o f matrimony
were solemnized between Mr. Andrew Winter and Miss Jennie
Smith .
7. At last she reached the rustic summer houses with which
art had adorned the soda springs.
S. Having partaken too freely o f the cup that cheer:;, the
individual in question experienced. some difficulty in preserving
th e perpendicular.
9. This orchard, though not of great extent, is remarkable in
that it bears most delicious fruit. The rosy pea ches and the
silYer pears appeal very strongly to the eye of th e artist and to
the taste of the connoisseur.
10. Th ose whose unh appy Jot it has been to ha\'e been horn
in the city, canno t experience this feeling [love uf one's birthplace]. But with those who ha\·c been born in th e country, the
ve nera ti o n of th ei r respective birthplaces never ceases.
11. Oh ! let us strive to be m e n that have deci sio n of ch arac te r and not Jet the gentle bree7.es o f delusions , the cyclonic
winds of gossip, the great hurri canes of skepticisms carry u~
asunder, d eflec t us from the p aths o f our true motives, and hurl
us to the great oblivion of non-progressiveness and igno minious defea t.
12 . I had joyously anticipated my arrival at this quaint
aml o ld -fash ioned city , but I was n o t prepared for the pictureS(jllC scenery, the imp os ing edifices, and the othe r m onuments
of no\'el and historic interest with whi ch it abounds . Ha\·111;::
been previously instruc ted by a competent guide as to the
position the m ost favorable for an extensive view o f the city. l
forthwith proceeded to wend my way to the summit of the
mountain.
13. Dr. :Moore, it will be remembered, has encountered a
singularly persistent and malevole nt train of misfortunes in
politics. lt was n o t Jong ago that one \V'illiam B . Gro\'er's
C orsica n poniard became interpolated in his clavicle, ancl som e
tim e pre\'iously Mr. J ames \Varren thrust a painful, horizontal
whisker o f contnmely into his self-respect by request111g- him
to get off the earth as a proper pn:liruinary to an important

Exercise XVI.
A . Write a paragraph on the choice of words.
B. What is "fine writing" ? Give some common
exampl es of " fine " phrases.
C. What are the equivalents, in plain English, of the
following extracts from themes and newspapers ?
1. He came out waggiug his ta il an<l making circles with his
body, not unl ike a cat in pursui t of h er appendage.
2. The attorneys on bo th sides and the public at large
watched for the deci sio n of the jury with all the eagerness o f the
orc hid hunter waiting for the opening of a n ew bud of strange
form . \Vould it evoh-e delici ou s blossom of freedom and peace ,
o r would it produce the dead ly nightshade, distilling doom into
the prisoner's cup? Mi g- ht it not rather ope n as a nondesc ript
mass of doubt and disagreement , th e apple of discord putting
forth a blossom and the old-fashioned go lden apple of mythological times? Rumor hinted that it was the same.
3. This was Miss Vaughn's first appearance as Galatea in
this city. and it is sca rcely necessary to say that her extiuisite
impersonation of the cold marble that became warm life won her
many new friends. J\Ii ss Vaugh11 is an arti ste in every way, by
inhe ritan ce, training. experience, instinct and genius, and in
addition is p ossessed of yo u th and personal beauty, a sweet
smile, eloquent eyes and a soft voice. She was an ideal Galatea.
4. He had either been murdered, or had suddenly and unac countably lost hi~ mental e qui librium and wandered away.
5. He finally confided to the mayor of the to wn h is belief that
he was n ot right mentally, and asked that official to aid him in
asc.ertaining, if potisible, such facts as would enable him to lear11

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CO~! POSITION AND RHETORIC.

m ayo ral campaign, in whi ch Dr. Moore harl thought of taking
m ore th an cursory iutercs t.
14. \\'h e n the Hollenbeck member g"t into action in earnes t,
th e g-ame was s till yo1111g--a lusty infan t of twent y-s ix minutes.
Theu HolI.:: nbec k 's leg \\a s at t he zen ith. IL~ color of dun and
reel_ had tlas hed all throug-h the conflic t. It was knotty. Imagine
a p1<.!ce of cord wood with a limber joiut in it. That was th e Hollenbec k dexter leg at 2:01 o'clock.
Tht: ball was soappetl back to this man of basi c development.
F o r a moment he shifted his entire weight, dropped the ball, anti
as it tou ched the ground, swung the toe of his destiny into it
w ith a rlull but mighty whac k.
The ball started for a definite place in the solar system at an
ang-le of forty tlegn::es . It described a li ne o f beauty m o re
attractive than all th e parabolas of geometry which the young
m en of the cullege love so \\' ell. The c ro wd s hu shed their yells
and caught their breaths . Th e hall rose straight betwe..,n the
goal posts and high abo ,·e them.
In days to come, the men of the c ollege will delight to tell the
tale o f a blue and stocky leg, a tough, padded , muddy leg th at
ki cked its way to fame through the terrible opposiug line and
bruised their hopes and persons .
Until yesterday , that leg- was the uudisputed property of a
young man of the college nametl Hollenbec k, chictiy known as
'varsity full-ba c k. Iu fact it was his dexter member. He used
it to stand on, and for other menia l purposes. IJut having won
the g-reat ga~ue o f '96 betwee n the two great univers ities, it is
~;aime~ by hundreds of jubilant students as a relic of hi story.
I here ls little doubt that, could the modest and inoffensive
H ollenbeck be illlluced to part with the stocky leg, it would be
framed, se t on a pedestal, o r preserved in alcohol by its frenzied
worship e rs .
15. The number of my ideas is considerably tliminished during my next attempt to conceal from the large and enthusiastic
audience of my cl;issmates how thin is my m ental furni s hing,
and the vacuum thus caused is fill etl by a slight mal de /di' ,
whi c h, together "·i th a11 aching ,·oi tl in the stomach , is the occasion fo r a somewhat sudden departure fo r the region of civilized
cooks.

16. On the newl y -washed deck of a transport ve.;sel stood an
aged Briton , bent with t he weight of years, and worn with the

RIGHT CHOICE OF WORDS.

273

hardships h e h ad endured. He had been d oomed to exile, th is
champion o f li berty, in whose eyes there still gleamed the
undying fire of self-devotion, and he calmly awaited th e departure of the ship to the foreign shore which would be his final
resting-p la ce. He was bidtling a last farewell to his native
land, where he had so faithfully se rved the ca use of frecrlom.
He gazed intently on the land that guarded the withered bones of
his noble ancestors, and though reco nciled to hi s fate, he could
uot repress the tears that arose to his eyes as he cast a long and
lin ge rin g look on the verda nt s h o res h e was no m ore to beholrl.
Reminisce nces of the past surge d in h is mind, and he thoug-ht
of his happy and undi s turbed youth, which had been passed in
p e rpe tual s unshine, but whi c h speedily gave way to th e perincl
o f manhood, whi c h had been strife and turmoil from the very
beginning. H is heart was oppressed and sore with grief at the
th ough t of h is country's wrongs, but h e was consoled with the
knowledge that he h ad faithfully done his duty. H e h ad no
dread apprehension of future woes, and resolved to brave! all
sorrows with good will. Remembrances, both fontl antl dear,
he would fain forget, but n ature claims her right , an<l mem ories
of a sad past remain sad till death.

D. What is the fault in the following extracts ?
1. He walk ed three mil es through the slushy sno w , to the
great detriment of his nether garments.
2. She was a kitchen mechanic of the Hibernian pers uasion,
n ot beautiful to loo k at, but a wonder in the culinary departm l' nt.
3. Miss Jane Armstrong was last night united in the bon ds of
matrim o ny with John Wilbur, of this place. We wish them
happin ess 011 the voyage o n which they have embarked.
4 . James C. Gavin, tonsorial artist.

E. Point out the hackneyed phrases in the following
sentences:
l. The night was a perfect one. All nature seemed in tune . •
The stars tw inkled like diamonds, the air was warm and balmy,
anrl the lake was so calm and clear and bri g ht that it looked
lik e an immense mirror. Behind the trees, that stood ·like grim
se ntine ls on the shore, the moon rose slowly, grandly, majestic·
ally, like a great ball of fire .

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274

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

2. Only with great persuasion did she prevent him from
demanding the hand of his lady fair from her stern father.
3. The little boat danced merrily over the sparkling waves
on its way to the deep, blue sea.
4. A few heartrendin g cries made night hideous, and then
thirty souls had gone down into the briny deep.
5. Old S ol's broad , smiling face rose over the distan t hill·
·: ops and began to diffuse the genial warmth of his smile.
6 . The blushin~ brine, leaning on the arm of her fond par·
ent, passe<l up the ai sle, the a llmired of all admirers.
7. If he can only work from morn till dewy eve, he thinks
he is in his native element.
8 . He neve r supposed, when a boy ou the few paternal
acres, that he should attain such dizzy heights of fame .

F Why does triten ess destroy force ?
G. Contrast the v ocabularies of the two following
extracts . Which is th e more specific ? The more general? The more effective ?
l. The town is laid o ut o n the t op o f a plateau which is
surrounded on all sides by very high hills. The m ost beautiful
part of the place is occ upied by the co llege campus and buildings. The campus itself is a great, sq uare block, without a tree
or a building up o n it, but cO\·ered with a perfec t carpet o f thick,
green grass. The streets on all fou r sides are like broad an:·
nues, carefully laid out, and set on each side with elm trees
which have grown to snch g-i~antic size that the boughs of their
top s mee t in m:rny places and com pletely roof over the street.
Surrounding th e campus o n all fo ur sides, and separated from
it only by these four beautifully shaded ave nues. are th e colleg-e
buildings.
On the corner of one side stands an ol<l bri c k dormitory, three
stories in height, built some eighty years ag.o , which by means
of pain t st ill has a rather youthful loo k. Next to it stands
another dormito ry of simi lar description, but built some years
later . In the middle of this side. stands the main college building, where most of the college exercises are held. It is a long,
narrow, wooden building, three stories in height and sur·
mounted by a cupola cor:taining the great old college bell whict,
strikes every hour during day and night. This building faces

RIGUT CHOI CE 01' WORDS .

275

the campus directly from the north , and from Its elevated posl·
tion commands a charmin g \·ie,,- of th e wh o le ca mpu s and the
surrounding buildings. \\"ith it are connected mo st o f th e traditions and honored customs of the co llege, together wi th the
nam e s of her most fam ous alumni. This bu ilding is the sec o nd
o ld est college bui lding in use in J\m e rica.
One of the m os t beaut ifu l buildings of th e wh ole group "'rrounding- th e c:1m pu s is, I think, the college church. Ir is built
on a corner of one of th e sides, and overlooks the campus from
th e west. It is simply an old -fashi one d church, l1uil t aftl·r the
ty pical ?\ew England fashion of nne hundred years ag1J . I han:
h carcl it sa id tl1at thi s church is co n sid e re d one of th e IK~t speci men s of Colon ial archit ec ture extant. Near by it stands a little
vestry of e qual age, th e d oo rs of whi ch are se ldom op e ne d.
2. The pl::i ce was created seem in gly on purpose tor the di,·cr si o n o f you,1g gentlemen. A stree t o r two of ho u ses, mostl y red
and many of them til e d, a number uf fin e tree~ clustered about
the manse and the kirkyard, and turning the c hi e f street into :t
shady alley; many little g:Hclens more than usually bright \\i t h
flowers; ne ts a-dryin g-. and fisher-wives sco lding in the hack·
ward parts; a smel l o( fish , a genial sm el l of seaw eed ; w hiffs
of blowing ~and at th e street-corne rs; shops with golf -IJalls and
bottled l ~llipops; another sh op \\·ith p e nny pickwicks ( th at
remarkable ciga r) and the L o11do11 Jvunta!, clear to me for its
startling pictures, and a few n ove ls , dear for th e ir su ggesti,·c:
names : such, as we ll as memory s.:rves me, were th e ingredients of the town. These, yon ar<: to conceive poste d o n a spit
between two sandy ba ys , and sparsely flank ed with vill as -··
en ough for the boys tu lodge in wit Ii th ei r subsid iary parents ,
not enough (not yet e nough) to cocktKyfy the sce ne: a h a ven in
the rock s in front: in front of that, a file of gray blets: t•) thL'
left, endless links and san1l wreaths, a wii<lcrness of hidin g h olcs, al ive wi t h poppin).'; raiJIJil s and so:tring- ,:u lls: to the
right, a range of s eaw:ird c rags , one ru gge d brow beyond
another; th e ruins of a mighty an cl ancie nt fortress o n th e
!Jri.n k of one; coves !Jdwcen - n ow c harm e d into sunsh in e
quiet, now whistling with wind ancl clamorous with burs ting
surges; the dens and shelte red holl ows red o le nt of th y me a nd
southern wood, the air at the cliIT 's e Llge brisk and clean a 11 cl
pungent of th e sea-in front of all, the Bass Rock , ti ltc cl se award like a doubtful bather , the surf ringinis it with white. the

l

~.

CO.\JPUS I TJO.'\ :\ :\"D HHETO IU C.
}{J(;I[T CHOICE OF WOllDS.

solan-gecse h:rn ging- ronnd its s umm it like a gre:.it and gli t te ring
s m ok e .- STE YEC\SO:\": T/11• La11lcr 11 b'carc·rs.

I!. Criticise th e figures in th e full o \\"in,; extrac t s :
I . Til e Ill'•) young doct ors , han rlsornc as (;reek go d s , stood
1all;ing- in t he s il \' e ry m oo nlig ht .
c. Hi s tea r s fell like rain on th e g irl 's tn.:~ses , line as spun
~i,Jd .

.I. 1-!i ,: toric:tl Fran ce !::ts th re e g rea t sea rl! hli g hts that h:t\"C
s wept the o ce: lll u f tillle :tnd se nt th e ir littl e beams t hrough all
th " c·enturics - L .. u i,.; :\!\'., Xap olcon , antl l!en ry of :\' :tva rrc .
-I. Th e duugllly h alf-back plunges <l v wn t h<! fi el d, li <.: rce ns a
Ji, 111, t ossing his foes a s ide.
5 . T o the tr:we lc r \\'h t>. coming frnm th e n ort h, has p assed
throug h :t C(l t1n t ry o f p lains and hi ll·• hu t s li1 •ht ly trimmed
in it,; l1H1n1ll•Jny hy sc·attcrcd strip e~ of \\'Oo;ls ~r shini ng
thrt.!a lb o f streams , the fina l view o f th<! Alp s t t1~11s co mfo r table
en joyme nt int o c:trnes t admiration.
6. \\"he n l\lr. Cottle, the pu b lishe r. s lH• rtly afte r sold h is
cop yri g hts to Mr. Lon ;(ma n, th at of the f . 1·rin i! fla l/ads was
r clrnne d at zero , ancl it wa s a l last g- i\'\:n u;i .tu the a ut ho rs . f\
fe w per~ons were not want ing-. ho wc ,·e r, " ·ho d isCO \"t.! rc d th e
clawn-~tre ak s of a ne w <Lt\· in th at li<;ht whic-h th e c riti ca l fire IJJ"ig-ade th uu gh l to c ~l in:,;u i ~ h w ith :1 f<.: w c·tonte111ptuuus s p nrts
., f •· <Jltl \\':1ter. - Lo\\"EI.1 . : 11·u r cls:i'o rl/i.
1.
" ·orc! S\\'< l!·th wc· :1t quiet ly O\'Cr to Gt:rm:tn \· t o wri te m n re
Lyr ica l lbllads , and to IJcg in a p uc lll 0 11 th <.: gr~ wth of his ow n
1nind, a t a t i 111c w h e11 th e re \ n .: rc only t wo ni e n in th e \vorl<l

( him sel f an d Cokrid ;.;e J \\·ho were a\\" a r<.: t hat h e h ad one, o r a l
le:ts t on e any\\·i,.;e diffe r ing- from th ose 111ec hn 11i ca lly uniform
un (·s w hi c h arc stuck dr<.:ar il y, sitl c l iy >icl c, in th e g- rca t p in
pa p<.: r of sncic ty. ··- !1111> .

I. Arc tile figures in the fo ll owi ng q uotations cffecti\· c ? Why?
1. ln th e rni tbt of it al l 1:·Iea ms th e \\" c1' '1 l!.1rp Lal;e , Ji]; e a
piece of sky tha t ha s 11ec·<>m e n:1 s tu ck and tumlJkd in to th l'
l:i11c1 sc,1pc with its shiny s ide u p .-D u 111.\\·:" r·: :{ : / \"!,-,- / Midsun .
!. . LT li e llrn w n hca r J l111 g-g crl a s m :t 1\ y [ rn o :1 k c 1·;; l a s he
could bold , and lhcu began to ilit wi th a n :g ular /,;f- bat- ba/ ,

27i

like the fl ipping s tro kes of a paddle wheel.- KIPLIN G: Tiu:
J unglc-Eoo!.:.
3. The mo o n was s in ki n g behind th e hill s, and the lines o f
tremb lin g m o nkeys huddled together on th e walls and ba ttlem ents loo ked like ragge d, shaky fringes of things.- lD!D .
4. I t is n ot a g reat Xerxes-a rmy o f words , but a co mpact
Greek te n tho u sand, thnt_ march sa f~y dow n to p oste rity. Lo\\'ELI. · /l 'u rdsworlh .
5. That [ th e abi lity t o write ] was a profi cie n cy that tem pted
me ; and f practiced to acqu ire it as men learn to whittl e , in a
,,·a ge r w ith m yse lf.- STEVEC\SO:'>I: A College 1lfag azi11e.
6. l\lm os t fro m t he 1irst moment o f my march, a faint,
large noi se, like a di s tant surf , had filled m y cars .
As I conti nu e ,] t o advance, th e n o ise in creased a nd became like
th e h issing o f an e no rm ou s tea -um. -STE \' E:--;so:--1: Tra vels
1(1/ //i a D o11f.1'J' ·
7 . Night is a d ead , m ono to n o us p e ri od u nde r a roo f; but in
th e o p en wo r lcl it passes lightly, with its stars and dews a n d
perfumes, and th e h o urs a re m a rk e d by ch anges in t he face o f
Nature. W hat seems a kind o f te mpo ral d e ath to people
ch o ked bet wee n \\'a lls and curtains , is only a li g ht anLl l iving
s lum ber to the man who sleeps a fi e ld. All night long lie can
hea r N,tturc breat hi ng deep ly a nd freely: even as sh e takes
her rest s h e t urns am! s mil es ; an d t h e re is one s ti rring- hou r
u nkno wn to those wh o dwell in h ouses wh e n a wakeful influe Dce goes abroad over the sleeping h em isphe re , a nd a ll the outd oo r w o rld are on the ir feet.
lt is then that th e co ck first
crows , n ot t hi s t im e to ann ounce th e dawn , b u t li ke a c heerful
watc hman speediD g the course of ni g ht. Cattle awake on th e
m eadows ; sheep bre ak tl1eir fas t o n de wy hill s ides, and chan ge
to a n ew lair among the ferns; and h o useless m e n, \\' lio h a ve
la in d o wn with th e fow ls , ope n thei r d im eyes a nd behold the
b eau ty of t he ni g h t.- IIJID.
8. One t h in g on ly De L au nay coul d have done -what he said•
he would d o . F ancy him sittin g, from the firs t, with lighted
tape r, within arm' s -length o f th e powder m agazine ; m ot io nless, like old Roman Senator, o r bronze lamp-holde r .-CARLYLE: T/ie S torming of the Ba stile .
9 . Path et ic little t umble -do wn o ld h ouses, all out o f drawinR
a nd perspec tive, n estled like old spide rs ' webs betwee::i the buttresses of the great cath edral.- D u llfA UIUER : Tri lby.

:,:

280

co:11 POSITIOX AXD RHETORIC .

lay at anchor, w ith one mas t h ::l\"ing an odd sort o f crow's-nest
at the t o p of it. - K E ~~ 1n11 GRAIIA~IE: Dream Days .
11 . The travelle r , descending from the slopes of Luna, even
as he g o t hi s first view of the Port·of-Ve nu s , wo uld pause by
the way , to read the face as it we re , o f so beautiful a dwelli ng
pla ce, lyi 11 ;::- away fro m t he white road, a t t he point whe re it
beg-au to clec line some wha t steeply to the marsh -l and below.
T he bu iltling o f pale red and yellow marbl e, mellowed by age,
which he saw beyond th e gates, was indeed but th e exq ui site
fragment of a once large and sumptuous villa. Two centuri es
,,f the pla y o f the sea-wind were iu the velvet o f th e m osses
whi c h lay .al on g its i11a ccess ible led g es anrl a n gles . Here and
t he1·e the marble plates hacl s lipped from th e ir places, where the
tl elicate weeds had forced the ir way. The gra ce ful wildness
which prevaile d in gard e n and farm gave p la ce to a s ingular
nicety about the actual ha bi tation, and a st ill m o re scrup ulo us
sweetness and o rder rei g ned within .-PATER: i1farius the Epi-

RIGHT C H OICE C)F \\"OR D::;.

Pl.t"iftil and ha][ absurd , since the next eye to b cholcl that sheet
· mi g ht b e th e e ye of an e,;oplonng
·
fi s h · O ne o' clock
of paper
came , the n t\\" O; t he captain g loomed and c hafed, as he ht: ld t"
·
the co~nungo [ tie
1 li <> LISe
- , nnd if ever I saw dorman t m111tlt:t 111
, · ·in h 1· s.• God hd1J the hand th::it sh onld have
ru an's eye , ·.it \\'.ts
disob .. y~d him.-ST EVE:-;soN: The Wrecker.

curean.
12. The m o rning brok e with s inis ter brightness; the a ir
alarmingly tran s pare nt , the sk y pure . the r im o f th e h orizon
clear and st ro ng aga inst t he he a\·e ns. The wind and the wild
seas , now vastly swoll e n, indefati g ably hunt e d us . I stood on
deck, chokin g with fe ar ; I seem ed to lose all po\\"e r up on my
limbs ; m y kn ees we re as paper \\"hen s he plunge d into the murd erous va lleys ; my heart co ll a p se cl whe n some b la c k mouota iu
foll in av a lan c h e bes ide her counte r, and t he \\" ater, th at was
more th an s pray , swept ronntl m y ankles like a to rrent. I was
c onscious o f i>ut o ne strnng desi re, to bear myse lf decently id
my terrors, and whate ,·cr s ho uld happe n to my life, preserve
my charac te r: a s th e captain said, \\·e are a queer kind of
beasts . Breakfas t time cam e . :inrl I m acle shift to swallow some
hot tea . Then I must stagger be low to take t he tim e, reading
the chron o meter with dizzy eyes , and man·eling the while what
value there could be in o hse n •a tio ns t:i ken in a ship launched
(as o urs then was) like a mi ss ile among llying seas. The
forenoon dragged on in a grincling monotony of p e ril; every
spoke of th e wh eel a rash. b u t an ob li ged experime nt - rash as
a forlorn hope , needful as the lea p that lands a fireman from a
burning stairc ase . Noo D \\" as m ad e; th e captai n dined on his
day's wor k, a nd I on watching him ; and ou r place was entered
o n the ch ar t wi th a meti c ulous precision which seem ed half

i1

..
PART IV.
RHETORICAL LAWS OF THE SENTENCE
AND THE PARAGRAPH.
CHAPTER XVII .
CLEARNESS IN SENTENCES-UNITY.

100. The Content of Part IV.-At the \'Cry outse t of
o ur work in composition, we learn ed th at in writing
there are two matters to be considered - correctness
a nd effectiveness. Part I I deals with correctness. P3.rt
III states the rhe torical laws which h elp us to make
o ur dict io n effective . Part IV tak es up the rh etorical
l; ws obse rvan ce of whi ch makes senten ces and paragraphs clear an d fo rcibl e. \V e sh all clisco\•er th at sentences and paragraphs, t o b e clear, must have unity
and coherence; tha t t o be fo rcible , the y must have emphasis.
101. Unity Defined.- We shall discuss first clearness
in sentences. T o be clear , a sentence must have unity;
that is, it must not co ntain incong-ruous material , anc.l
must be so expre ssed that it gives th e reader the
impres~ion o f being one th o ught.
\Vh en a sentence
contains i11congn10us statem e nts, it is said to lack unity
o f thought. \Vh e n a sentence fails to present its
meaning as o ne obvious wh ole, it is said to lack unity
of form. Each of the examples cited in th e left-h :u1d
column below violates unity of thought, or unity of
form, or both. Note how much clearer are the r ewritten sentences in the ri~ht-hand column.
~113

"I.
,

.

284

CO~IPOSITION

1. Chaucer began to write
at a n early age , antl as he was
a page for some court la dy, he
went to Fr:rnce \"hen she did .
2. Once I saw a college
President as he wal kcd upon the
stage, and he h el d in hi s hand
a whole basket o f diplom:~ s .
3. A good paragraph mnst
have unity of thought, a.ncl the
different sentences o f whi ch it
is composed must be lo g-ically
connected, and what is most
important in the pa.r:igra.ph
must be made prominent, and
what is of sma.ll con se qu e nce
merely hinted :it.
4. The history of ou r country during the last forty years
proves to the mind o f c\·cry
thoughtful citizen tl1at our
party is the o nl y party to be
intrustecl with :iny work of
construction, and it is the only
party that ha s had th e brains
and the c o ura ge to deal successfully wit h the many important and serious quest io ns
that have come up during the
period of a life-time , some of
whi ch h:ive threa tene d an<!
endangered the very cxi,.;tencc
of our republic, and a ll of
th ese great quest ion s ha ,·e
been st:ttled w ith h o n or and
crc<l it to the nati o n, and today, after the trials ancl rlistresses of panic and of war,
the American p eop le :ire more
prosperous than the pe ople of
any other country.

CLEARNESS I N SENTENCES -

UNITY.

285

AND l<II F.TORIC.

1. Chaucer began to write
at an early :ige. Being at this
time the page of a court lady,
he went in hc•r train to France.
2. I once saw a college
president walk t1pon the stage
holding a whole basket of diplomas in his haml.
3. A good paragraph must
have unity of thou g ht. A paragraph is unified if the different sentences in it are logically
connected, and if what is most
import:int is made prominent,
what is of sma ll conseq uen ce,
merely hinted at.
4. The history of our country d llr in g- the pas t fvrty years
pro,·es, t<J every th o ughtful citizen, that ou r party is the on ly
party to be intrusted with any
wo r k of constru c tion ; that it
is the only party that has had
the brains antl the co ur:ige
successful ly to deal with the
many important que s ti o ns
which have come up (luring
the period of a lifet ime some of them serious enough
to endanger the very ex istence
of the repub lic. All of these
questions it h:is settled with so
mt1ch hon<Jr and cre,]it to the
nation that today , immediately after th e trials anti <listrcsscs nf panic and of war,
the American people arc more
prosperous than the people o f
nny ot her country.

102. Sentences Too Long for Unity of Thought.- l:nity
of thou vh t will be considered first, because without
unity otth ought there can be no unity o f form. Lack
of unity of thought comes from h aving eith er too
much CJr too li ttle in the.: sc:1tencc - more common I~,
from haYing too much. The most elementary form of
this error consists in joining in one sentence t\\·o or
more incongTuo us stat e ments; for example:
1. Bno th ha(! a i.(reat a\·ersion to rehe arsals, !Jut he was a
m os t gentle man t u tho,.;e holdini.( minor positions.
2. "Hut m r hu sband's tongue 'ud have been a fortune to
anybody, and -the re was many a 01ie sai d it was as good as a
dose of phys ic to hea r him talk; not lrnt ,,·hat that got him into
tronble in Lancashire, but he always said i[ the worst came to
the wors t, he co ttlcl ~o and preach to th~· blacks."- GiroRCE
ELIOT: l ·dtx /loll.

Such collections of odds and ~nd» ::i t thought arc not
comm o n in serious \\Titing· . In must cases, sentences
too long for unity of thoug·ht m e re ly unite two or more
st:i.tements, properly consecutive, but not parts of the
same thought; e. g.:
The men of our day have little conception of t h e roughn ess of
Elizabethan tim es, but the men o[ t11at time were loyal to the
quee n, :ind they had a great love for literature, too.

These statements c::in properly follow one another as
separate sentences, but they cannot be joined in one
unit, because the resulting sentence lacks a lcadin).!'
thought. The writer has not tried t o say one thing at
a time. A similar, though less elementary error, is
the addition to the sentence of a postscript, as in the
following extr act:
\\'hen th e wire is in th e groove around the edge of the pan,
th e p an is giv~n to a boy who bends toget he r the ton gue-shaped
corners s poken of a!J o,·e and puts eac h corner into a machi ne,
and w!ten 1t romcs out, we find tlu: corners riveted.

286

CLEARNESS IN SENTENCES- UN IT\'.

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

summer of 1783, when though
the country round was con tinually harassed w ith tempests, and often from the
sout h, yet we escaped t hem
all ; as appears by my journal
of th at summer.- \VHITE:
Natural 1-fislory of .<.'dbor11e.
4. In loo king up elates, I
find that my own birth-year,
1834 (not so long ago it seems
to me), was th e year in which
occurred , at the age of seventy~even, the death of the FrenchAmerican hero and kn ight of
libe rty, wh ose life, togethe r
with the battle of Yorktown,
in which he perform ed sltl·h
di sti nguished services, Am e rican school you th s are called
up on t his week to hon or and
celebrate by schoo l exercises
and by contribt1lions loo king
to the erection of an Amer ican
Youth's monument to his
memory at the Paris e xp osition of 1900 , to be dedicated
on the 4th of Jul y of th at year.
5. One of the Naval Re serves went dow n in the same
car I d id one clay , and his poor
mother, who was a wiclow, at
least so I judged from the
mourning she wore , seemed to
fee l very badly ind eed to think
h e r son was going away, and
she sig-he<l from tim e to tim e,
and gazed at him always .
6 . As t i me goes on, those
things which at first 6eem to
Pe a burden become lighter,

The italicized words represent a new th ought and
<leman<l a new sentence.
This a ttempt to utter a string of thoughts in one
breath is so common that othe r in stances will be
useful.
l. Torn bet but once and
lost, and afte r watch ing the
races till late, we left the
grounds.
2. The allusio n in the last
three Jines is to the story that
Orpheus sought his wife in
Hades, an<I played so well that
"Iron tears ran down the
cheeks of Pluto," and he
granted that Orpheus might
take hi s wife with him back
to earth , o n condition that
Orpheus must n ot look back
at her till they reached the
surface, but he didn't obsen·e
th e co ndi tio n, and looked back
at his wi fe when he himself
got to the earth's surface, and
so h e los t his wife a second
time.
3. \Ve arc very seldom ann oye d with thunderstorms;
and it is no less remarkable
than tr ue, th at those whi ch
arise in the sout h have hardly
bee n known to reach this village; for b e fore they get o\·er
11 s , they take a direct ion to the
e a s t or to the west , or so metimes di\'i<l e into two, and go
in part to one of tho se quarters, and in part to the other ,
as was truly the case in the

1. T o m bet but once, and
los t. After watching the races
till late, we left the grounds.

2. The al lusi on in th e last
line is to the story of O rpheus' s
search for his wife in Hades .
He played so well that " Iro n
tears ran down th e cheeks of
Pluto ," and the monarch of
Hades gra nted th e musician
permission t o tak e his wife
back to ea rth , on conditio n that
he should not look ba c k at her
unti l they reached t he surface .
Bn t Orphens did not observe
the cond it ion; as soon an he
himself got to the surface, he
turned to glance at Eurydice.
So he lost his wife a seco nd
time .
3. \\"e arc very seldom a nnoyed with thunderstorms;
and it is no less remarkable
than true, that those whi ch
arise in the sou th h ave hardly
been known to reach thi s village ; fo r before they ge t over
us, they take a direction to the
east or to t he west, o r sometim es divide into two and go
in part to o ne o f these qua rter~. a nd in part to the other.
This was truly the case in the

1

287

Gummer of 1783, when, as appears by my journal o f that
summer, th o ugh the country
round was continually harasse d
with tem pests, ofte n fro.n t he
so uth, we escaped th em a ll.

4. In looking up dates, I find
that ruy own birth-yea r, 1334not so long ago it seems to
me - was the year in which
died, a t the ag-e o f seventvseven, th e French -American
hero and knight of libe rtyLafayette . I! is li fe and the
l!a tt le of York town, in which
he performed such distinguish ed services, you are to
celeb rate this week by schoo l
exercises and by contri b ution,;,
Your cont ributions, if they art:
large e noug h, arc to be used
for a monument to th e memory
of Lafayette, to be erec ted at
the Paris exposition of 1900
and to be dedicated on the 4th
o f July of that year .
5. In the car in whkh I went
down t ow n one day were one
of the Naval Reserves and his
m o ther. His mother, wh o m I
judged to be a widow, from th e
m o urnin g she wore, seemed to
fee l very badly indeed to think
her son was go in g away , and
sighed from time t o time, and
gazed at him always.
6. As ti me goes on, those
things which a t first see m to
be a burden become lighter,

288

CO:UPOSITJ0:-1 A~D RH ETOR IC.

and in som e cases e n~n pleas ·
ant, and th e s tud e nt begins to
rea lize that col lege life is n o t
so hard as his firs t impressio ns
w ould h:we him think, and,
a ltho ugh there are man y difficulties to be ove rco m e, ncvcrth elcss th ere arc ru ::rny t h in gs
whi ch go to m ake up that opin io n whi c h a ll oltl college students h o le!, nam e ly, that th eir
C(JIJege d ays were undoubtedly
t he m os t pleasant days o f their
lives .

and in some cases even pleasant. The st ud e nt b eg ins to
rea li ze that co ll ege life is not
so h ard as his firs t impress io ns
made it seem . S o m e difficulties th e re arc, to be sure,
t hrougho ut his co urse; but
th e re a re enough ple a sant spots
t o make him agree with all o ld
college stud.,nts when they say
that their coll ege clays were the
pleasantest days of their lives.

103. Sentences Too Short for Unity.- We cannot a lways
co nfine oursclvc..:s t o simple d edara tivc ant.l in tcrroga ti,·e sentences, o r to very brief complex and compound
ones. N ot infrequently, if there are a numbe r of
closel y r e lated facts o r ideas, unity requires that two
or more brief, simple se n tences be jo in ed in o ne lo ng,
compound or co mpl ex sentence. Otherwise , all our
writing w o uld be like the following extrac t fr o m a
th eme:
The d a y wa s cv ld ant! tlry. I had wrapp ed my se lf up in a
c loa k and a blanke t. I w o re two ho<> Js an1l a ve il upon my
h c·:ul. i\f y hancl s were 1lrcs ..;c <J in tw" p:tirs u f mitl e n s. Aft e r
seating m yse lf in th e hnggy, I wa s roughly tu c ked in with two
m ore bla nke ts. I was so burdened with wraps that I could
h a rdl y m o ve.

This is n ot only rough and unp leasant, but e ven ill ogical. Fac ts which b elong to g·ethe r arc unnaturally
fo rcccl apa rt, and the r eade r is compe ll e d, be fore he
can s e c the r e la ti o n of each se nt e nce t o th e others
ancl t o the para g raph , to c ombine so m e <•f them in
his miml. Properly writte n, it rca(ls as foll o ws:
As tl1 e day, th o u g h dry , w a<; col cl , I had wrap p e d m yse lf in a
<iloak nud •l blankc:l, wore two h ootls , a veil, u.nd two pairs of

CLE,\H.?-:ESS IN S EN TENCES- U:-ilT\".

289

mitte us; but even this was not cnuu ;: h, and after I sat clown in
the t.iu;:gy, 1 w as tucked in w ith two more blankets. N a turall y ,
I co uld hardl y mo\·e .

The extracts which follow show the sam e fault; e ach
of the sh ort s cntt.:nces lacks unit y , because each r e presents only a fragment of the who le thought of which
it is a part. The long sentences in the right-han d
column, o n the contrary, are unifi e d. Clearly, unity
d epe nd s, no t o n how long or h ow short a sentence is,
but u pon th e tho u g hts contained in the sentence.
1. It is \"c:ry sad tn sec th e
soldi e rs g o olf to w:ir , because
y o u feel that you may neve r
see th em again. I do n o t think
that any of the you ng bo ys
wh o start off re a ll y kn ow
whe re the y are gning . Still
th ey all S t:t:lll n ·ry anxious to

1. It is ve ry sad t o see the
soldi e rs gtt off to war , becau se
yo u feel that you may n e ver
sec som e o f the m a gai n, and
that, hc.weve r e age rly th ese
you n ;: bo ys st art off, ve r y few
o f th e m kn ow for what th e y
:ire rea ll y go in g.

)(0 .

2 . Th e re a re m e n wh ose
2. The re are men whose
w o rd s only occasionally u tte r
c harm is in their entirety.
what th e ir loo ks invariably
'I'h ei r w o r ds o cca s ional I y u tl c r
ex press, whose thou g hts we
what tht:ir loo ks invari:tli ly
exp ress.
\V e r ca t1
thei r
mu s t read l>y th e li ght of th ei r
smiles-men who se c harm is
thou g ht s uy th e light of th e ir
smiles. s.wh a man was J\!r.
in th o.; ir entire t y. Such a m a n
Etu t rs on.
w:is J\Ir. E111 e rson.
3. I wish tv point ou t a fe w
3 . I wi s h t o point ou t fo ur
o f the c hi e f cha ra cte risti cs o f . cha racter isti cs of the works o f
the w orks o f th is dee p thinker .
t hi s deep thinker: the e xcelI shall d e al fi rs t with his rauk
le nce of his verse ; the t!xcelas a poe t. Th e n I shall cou lcn ct!s a nd the defec ts of hi s
s id e r his style a s a prose writ e r.
prose; th e kee n perce pt ion
Th e thircl point is the keen
di s playe d in his essay s ; au<l
perce ption cl is playecl in h is
hi s happy te mpe r.
essays. La st ly, I shall co nsider
his happy temp e r.

104. The Relation of the Sentence to the Paragraph.\V c sh :1 :l not arri,· c at :tn ade quate unde rstanding- of
l'.J

2%

Ct.D IPU:-;r n1 )'.;

.\'-:!)

297

RHFTUIUC.

Ll. She was a wonderful s wimm e r , am•rni,: other thi11g1;, and
one ea rly morning, wh e n she was a girl, sh<' die! rt:ally s\\'im,
they say, across th e Shann o n and hack, to \\'in a bet for her
broth e r, Lor<! Le,·cllier, the colonel of cm·a lry , who le ft an arrn
in Egypt am1 change cl his \\"a\· of life to become a wizard, as th e
comm on people ab o ut his ne ighbo rh oo<1 supposed, !Jeca11se he
fordol<l the we:tther an<l had cures f0 r ach es and pains without
a doctor's diploma .- :--lERE D!TI!: T/!(' ,·/1/la:i11g ; lfa rriar:t•.
14. His \\'ai s t<.:o:<t wa s of purple satin, \\'ith large yell o w tulips
w orked upon it. This was made on~ r fr om an old party gown
of my wife's . It ,,·as a ,·ery goocl garment .
15. The new President of France . like his predecesso r, is
n eve r so happy as \\'hen potlering about with a gun, an<l may
be expectecl to make full use of his new- fledge cl pre rogat ives in
con n ect ion wi t h the ga me pr<'serves, dilTering th erein from poor
President Carnot, who never got over th e fact th at at o ne of his
first shooting parties :-ther becoming President, h e woumle d an
official in the lower part of the back, the offici:i. I in consequence
t he reof be ing kept on as chief of the household in lieu of
receiving his clismiss:-tl, which had already been determined
up on .
16. The Holy Grail w:-ts given into the care of J oseph of
Arinwthea :111<1 his descendants , but one of t hese led a \\"i c ked
life, so th:-tt the cnp di s:lppeared , and it w:-ts a cnstom of the
Knig-hts of the Rouncl Table to g-o on long journ<'ys in searc h
of it.
17. Milton \\'as married three times in his li fe , the latter part
nf \\"hich was very 1111happy, as his <laughters i>l' came impaIi cnt of the rcs lrai11ts whivh th c·ir falh<:>r's hlinclncss impo~cd
up o n th e m.

I

I
,

lS. S o nll~ of L o11g-fl' llow's gT c:tt<..'st \vorks are / :''l ·a11,1,:1·/i11t\
lliucl't1llta, Tltr C111trlslti/> of ,l!it.-s .\/a11dislt, an<l the /'sa/ 111 of
f .ifc , a11d he di e <l i11 the year 1SS2, when he was se\·enty-five
years o f :-t f!;e .

19 . (~ol<b111i1h w :-tndered abou t Enn>pe for some years and
wrote Tlt1· 1·;,.,Ir of lf"t1kl'fi dd just in lime to save himself from
imprisonment fo r clcht.
20. After munkring Duncan, ;\la c beth <.:mild not rest until ht·
h:-t<l put Banquo out of the way, i>ecausc he thought Banq 1111
suspected the murder h e had co m m ilted, and hes id es, he
wished him anrl Fleance . Iii~; son, to be kille<I, because the

]
,

'

wc ircl sisters lrnt! said that the crown would co me lo I hem in
after time.
21. He had seen the president's little daughter w alking
across the s treet, and had r1111 after li e r to save h e r, wh en he
was struck by a heavy truck and badly hurt, but n ot seriously.
22 . H e died at the age of sixty- live , surrounded by man,·
m ou rn ers , among whom were his three danghte rs, to wh om he
<l ic tatecl his writings, after he became blind.
23. Oliver (;oldsrnith w:-ts b o rn in l'allas, in 1728. Hi s family
was 1"w or, an<l he <lid not receive a n e fficient education, both on
this acco unt ancl because he pbye<l in school instead of working,
alth ough when he got to c1Jllege he wor ked harder.
l.J. 1\t Rinkleyville the hard y vo luntee rs met with lernonacl e
and cheers, while at Nashville, through the streets of which they
marc hed , all w:-ts very c hilly, whi c h, despite the heat of the sun,
was not relished, ne ith e r was it und e rstood.
25. P ope was !Jorn a few miles from Lond on , and fr o m the
age of twelve he educated himse lf at h o me .
26. H ere he beg-an his translation of Homer , which took him
fift ee n years, :-tnd fo r it he rece ived £8,000.
27. She was the next book I re ad, and I believe that th is
work is the most appalling flight of the imagination in the English language .
2fl . The Spaarndam belongs t o the Holland -Ame ri can line
and should have re:-tched p o rt two days ago.
29. Th e three years at college di<l not take mu c h money , and
found that b y working during my spare time l could fini s h a
1 Wll-y car C'> nrse in law, and was not lo ng- in deciding- to clo it.
30. Schllol is out with m e al three o'clock, an<l it is seld"m
that I fee l very mueh like stu<lying the n for the following <lay.
31. lt ha<l been clecicled to le:-tve the dog in th e country an<!
this grieved his little master greatly, but finally Romp was
allowed to go.
32. In Book r the story opens with a vivid picture o f the
Bishop, a nd he is said to have been a Bishop of Provence.
33. The Prince shelters and feeds th e hero of o ur story over
night, and this is the turning point in the he ro's life.
3-1. The practice of preaching b y n:-trrative commends itse lf
to many ministers. It makes sermons more popular . Popularity is n ot the only ambition of th e ministe r. Rut he snrely
desires to extend his influence . That is, he wants to extend it

~~·

.,

.;j

,.

~/

'.

; '

'
t.·'
; '

298

CO?>!POS ITION A:\D RHETORIC.

C:LEARXE SS I N SEN T ENCES -

ns far as is consistent \\'ilh true helpfulness. No f· •rrn of literatnrc is so p o pulnr as the story. l t is even trn c tk tt t.he pop ul a r
preachers are those w ho m ake frc•que nt the nf illu st ration s and
an ecdotes . If thi,; plan is follow ed , a rn i ni~ter ma y lJeg-in a se ri es
o f sermon;. which is but a series of chnptcr,; 01[ an 01riginal nu\·e l.
'l'hc

~ainc

characl,..'r~ arc n1 ct i n eac h

\\' C:t:k'~ di ~c 1l\tr~e.

'l'he

plot gradually dc,·elops. The iuten:st of th e hl' arers increnses
with cnch succeedi n g- Sl'l'lnnn.

n. \ Vhy arc compound sentenc es often <li;st nt d ive
of unity? \\' hat dc,· icc:' exist for unifying- compound
sente nce s which bck unity?
F. Th e fo ll ow in g- compound sentences bck unity .
Re\\'rite them :
l. Burns's sudd en friends forgot him, o r al lea,;t no thing was
done fo r h im , and that ernbil tc retl h im, and he return ed to th e
oute r darkness of the olll st raitene<.1 circnmstances , antl doggedly
resumed the b urden of po\·crty and toil.
2 . Satan \\'as th e first to waken, anti then he ca ll ed hi s h ost
arouncl him i n t'<rnsultation antl they tl ec id etl to IJuil<l a large
cnstle an<! there hol d cou nsel: so in a \'ery s hort tim e l'andemonium w:1s lJtJilt and the an g-cls !locket! in and lilled t he palace.
3. I tried to \Jark al c,·cryunc wh o passed my new h or.i '.! . a nd
before n week \\'as ov er l couldn't ma ke a sou nd , but by th e
time my \·oicc wns all r igh t I h:td become more accu stomed lo
the w nys of the c ity an<! let people pass u nnoticed.
4. Macd uff succeeds in gett ing some En g-lis h fo rces a ncl
marches up to Birnam wood and orders C\'cr\' m an to take a
branch and marc h ng-ain s t ;\lac beth in I lunsinane, a nd lhL'l'<.! he
mnintains he was n ot woman·b<•rn, n11<l in th e 11a ttl c h e meets
l\fa cbet h and kills him .
5 . They become king :rntl quee n now, and l\la cbcth says that
B:rnquo is li ke ly to make troub le for him, nn<I ~f:t c b et h ge ts
th1·ce murcl cre rs to kill Banqu o :rn d Pleance, i>nt F lea nce
escapes.
6 . \ Ve tried to scare the cre:tture from the org-an , but tha t
was impossible and then we tipped it O\·e r and the . rat ran o ut,
bu t did n ot get away, fo r Carlo, th e clog, was after it anrl ca u g ht
it before it could get into a hnle.
7. \ Ve nre cont inualiy told , durin g- our sc hoo l course, that the

UX ITY.

299

benefit \\'C receive depencJs not so much upon the books we
sttHl y as up o n association with learned anLl noble minos'. and
my p oi nt is that in the c ity one has the grea tes t oppo.rtunitylo
m eet nnd h enr em in en t p eo ple, and so go in g to schoo l Ill the city
is better thnn going to schoo l in th e cou n t ry.
9 . Once a m onth , an a fternoon reception is gi\·en h y the
m e mbers o f th e hall tn their friends, an<l at these the gi rl s nssi st
;ttHl thus keep in touch \\'i t h th e socia l w orld .

F

Arc the fo ll owing- para~raphs r ig-h tly clivicled fo r

sentence-unity ?
l. Shellev nflirmed thnt th e cause of Kea ts's <len1h \\' as the
h a rsh c rili c i ~ms h e hml rece i\'ed fro m certain of the critics . He
:dnrm etl th a t Keats had hrootle tl over t hese nnti l it had ultimately ca used h is cleath. I <lo not agree with Shell ey in this,
for it is stated that Keats died of co nsumption. Th o ngh he
may ha \·e grie\'ed over th ese c rit icism s , yet 1 do not think th ey
were th e Lli rec t cause of his death .
2 . At the fi rst glance I saw a room all draped nntl hung
w ith Pe rsia n tnpestry and curtai ns. On the wall s we re old
wea pons, lnntern,;, an d some c uri ous olct pi ctures . I n the mit!<lle of the room w ns a swing ing couch . This was shaped mu ch
like an ordinary ]Jed , being witle a nti low. It wns h ung from
the ceiling by tour h eavy, black c h a in s , and was covered by a
huge. Oriental afghan o ( the brightest colors . . On. this w ere
in numerable pillows. Th ese m ade it look very invit111g.
3. Between the couc h and th e wind o w stoot! two ta ll brass
starnlards, o ne of wh ich pro\'ed to lie a n A ssy rian charcoal
sto\·e a11tl t he other a huge cand lest ic k. Upo n close examina ti o n they we re seen to be ski llf u ll y inlaid with gold. si l\·er :nHl

mother- o f-pear l .
4. Then l examinerl numerous d aggers, st ilettos, shields,
snbres antl many cu r ious trinkets. Am ong t hese trinkets was
o ne worthy of special n o tice . It w:1s an nn c ient instrument .of
to rture. T his w.as n large iron ba ll , covered with cha in s an d
spangles. From one si d e of i t prot rud ed a long.' slrnrp point.
J l ow it w ns n sed , 1 know not, but neve rth e less it is a \·cry mter c,.; t ing object.
s. Ario sto tells a pretty story of n fairy, wh o, by some mys terious Jaw of h er nnture , wns conclemne<l to appea r at ce r tam
seaso~s in the form of a fo u l nncl p o isonous sna ke. Those wh o

:wo

c u:11 P US lTlU'.'; A1'D J< HE TUJ< IC.

inj u red he r <l ur in g t he period o f he r disg ui se we re fo r e ver
ex clu ded fro m p a rti c ipa t io n in th e bless in gs whi c h sh e be stowed .
But to th o se wh o , in s pite o ( he r lonths" rn e aspect , p iti e <l and
p r o tecte d h e r, s he afterwards r e1·eal e d he rse lf in t he be autiful
a nd celes ti a l fo r m w h ich was natural to he r, acco m p an ie d the ir
s te p s , grante d all th ei r wi s hes , fill ed th e ir h o uses wi t h we alth,
m a de the m h ap p y in 101·e ~1 11 <1 1·ict o ri•) tis in \\' ar . Such a spi r it
is Libe:·ty . J\t tim es sh e takes th e fo rm o f a h a te ful rep til e .
S h e g rove ls , s he hisses, sh e sti n gs . n ut woe to th ose w h o in
d isgnst shall 1·e nt11re to c rn sh he r 1 J\ml ha ppy a rc th ose wh o .
havi n g d a r e d t o recc i1·e her in he r deg ra <l e<l and fri g ht fu l sha pe,
sh a ll at le n gt h be re war<l e <l b y h e r i n t he t im e o f he r bea uty and
her glory! -MACA U LAY: Essay on , Jfillon .

CHAPTER XVIII.
CLEAR NESS IN S E NTE NC ES-CO HERE NC E .

108. Coherence Defined.- Unity is not the only qualit y
r equi site in a goo d se nte nce . As the fo llo wing e xamples wil l sh o w , a sentence may b e perfec tly un ifie d and
y e t far fr o m clear:
1. \Ve h olll a g rand raffle
Frid ay for th e b e n efit o f William l\Iill e r wh o lost hi s foo l fo r
a fin e c loc k las t week .
2. Th e n he cam e into th e
roo m tal ki ng- a bo ut t he re la ti ons be t wee n S m i l h a n ti
J ohnso n , a nd lte sai d th a t if he
d illn 't sto p t h at so rt o ( thin g
1·e r y soon , he \\' a s su re to get
in to t ro u ble .
3 . I o n ly th o u g-ht tha t he
w o uldn ' t w• unl ess [ b o u g ht
him o ff, n o t t ha t he wo uldn't
g° " a t a ll.
4. Th e ba n ker , tho ugh he
tru st ed th e te lle r, a s is apt tu
h e th e case with m e n o f !t is
so rt, yet fe lt that th e loss oe c nrrecl a l hi s de sk.

1 . We h o ld a gra n d ra file
F rid ay for a fin e cloc k, for th e
ben efi t o f \Villi a m l\!i llt r wh o
lost his fo o t last week .
2 . Th e n he cam e int o t he
r oom ta lkin g ab o ut th e re la ti o ns be twee n Smith au t!
J o hn so n , and said th at if th e
fo rme r didn't s to p irri ta t in g
Sm ith ve ry soo n, he w as sure
to ge t into t ro u b le.
3. I th o u gh t o nl y t ha t he
wo uldn't go unless I bou gh t
him o ff, n o t that h e wo nld n' t
g o at a ll .
4 . Th o ugh th e bank e r, as is
ap t to b e th e ca se with men o f
his sort , tru sle<l th e te lle r , ye t
he fC' lt that t he loss ha d oc curre d at t he latte r 's d es k.

Th e o ri :,,:·inal v e rsi o ns o f the se se nt e nce s , a ll un its i;i
tho u g-h t, a nd all, exce pt se nte nce four , uni t s in fo rm ,
arc o b scure . At s 1J111 e p o int in e a ch th e re ad e r fails to
sec th e e x ac t relat i(J n of so m e wo rd o r w o rds to th e
r est o f th e se nte nce . Co h e re n ce is lack in g-.
In a
l'< ihc rc nt se nt e nce th e th<>u~hts foll o w each oth e r in

302

CO~!

POS ITr o:-; /\:'\ D Rl!ETOl<IC.

iogic::tl order, and the r elati on of e\"<:: r y part o f the
sentence to eve r y o th e r p ar t is nnrnistakabl<:. In •Jth c r
w o rd s, a co h erent s en t ence is one in whi ch the eleme nts
stick together.

109. Ambiguity the Usual Result of Incoherence.- In
many cases an irn.:oh erent sentence is :.imbiguuus. The
t erm "am biguity" com e s from the Latin a111b1:r;1111s,
which m eans "wavering-" or "uncerta in," and an
ambiguous se nt ence is o ne conta inin g a word, a phr:-ise,
or a clau se , capable <Jf tw o o r m ore int erpretati o ns.
J\Ji the il lustr::ttive sentences in section 108 arc ambiguous.
The fi rst sentence s ee ms to say that l'lfill er
g: t \·e his f"ul i11 cxcllallgc to r a lin e clock . Sent e nce
t\\·u Jcayes in doubt whether th e onc who is to g-ct into
truuble is the spe:tkcr, :-lrni1h , <•r .fohnson. In three,
" l only" might be take n t o m ea n "l a lo n e. " Jn fuur,
it is uncertain ·whe the r such men as th e banker com m o nl y trust all tell<:rs, o r wh eth e r this t e ll e r is th e
sort o f man whom mo st p eople trust.
110. Ambiguity from Incoherent Arrangement.- 1\ mh ig- uit y m:1 y result fro:n faulty arr:1ng·cment of \\'ords .
Such ambig-uitics can u s u ally be remedied by bring·ini,:·
together t ili n gs related i11 thoug-ht, and by separat in g
t lli 11 gs disli11ct ill thuuglil. Fur in stance, when a n e wspaper says tha t ' ' Justice ,\[arLii1 ha s conlinued the c a se
of A . L. \ Valke r, ch:irg;cd \\·ith hc:H1ng his w;fc f\•r ten
days, · · we can make the scntcnce !:>e ll :-,ilJlc anu cuhcrent
o nly by shifting the w o rd s ' ' f"r kn U.:tys" to the
place next the wo rds th ey llludify ill tho u ght. Then
the passage r e:tds, " Justice :'l l:trtin li:ts C<!lllin u u l fur
ten days the case o f,\ . L. \Ltlkcr, ch:t r)..:cd with lx:ating
his wi fe ." Mure thuruughl y anibiguuus i s the italiei zeu clause in th e fu il owi n g· exam ple: "Th e o lcl m a n,
altho ugh he loved his s o n with unc o mm o n warmth,
___L .

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CLEARNESS I N SENTE:\CES-CO llEl{E:\C E.

.103

as i s aj>t to fie lit e rasc 1i'if!t a11 ()Ill)' c!t i !d , spoiled ltim."

O nl y th e one who \'.Tote this knows whether the it::llic iz e cl claus e m"ditics" lo\·ec1" o r" spuikd." By \· c ry
sli gh t chang c:s in phrasin:..:- :rnd eon,;i<k~·:tlik cli:u1:_: cs
in arrani,;crne11t, the un certain ty is rcrno\·cc1 . "The
ohl man , :iltlwugh he spent on his son th e un co mmonly
warm affection g-ivcn tu on ly sons , spu ik d him." has a
d e finite ll1L':t11i11;.;: . " The old m:111, alth<Jtlc;li he lu\Tcl
his son \1·ith uncomrnun w:1rmth , ,;putkd him . as Ollly
chi ldren arc so often spo il ed," means something qutte
difrl·l'L' ll[.
In tlfr; con ncd ion the positions of the :t1ll-crh "only,"
the n eg·at ivc particle "n ut," :tn d the l'llrrcLtti\·e particles " eit h e r . . . o r," "neither . . . lt< •r" mu"L I" ·
nuticcd . Though :t moment's th<•ll;..'.hl 11·ill :tll1·:1\·s sh,,\1·
the writ e r ju s t w hat words they 111odify, 11·e uftcn find
sente n ces like, "This only is the r e:oult uf IJlY bd: of
expc1-ience," in wh ich" only" bclong·s before" m1· Ltc·k
o f expc ricnce "; "Bu t all of th is cl n1 dgcry is not 11·ithnut r C\\·ard ." in which "not" lx·l on g·s hdnrc "all";
aml, ".J1 Jhi1S() ;j :t:ltl f lJL·it!J c1· thullgJ1t hilll ri1..·!J ll<>f
pour," in whi ch " neitlll'.J'" hcl• in gs just hcfore" rid i."
Such s e 11tcnccs \' 1o late th e la\\' tliat th i11g,; rL· Lik<l 111
thoug ht sh<itild be brvu~ht l ogcl h cr, tlii11g,; di,,t111cl lll
thuught kept ap:trt.
One utlicr bnd ,,f inc"lH:1-c11L·l· ll nc to faultv :1i'l':u1g-cmcnt must !Jc referred tn - tl w use "f a pr,,11"t111 1"11);
lief or<.: 1 Ii,; oc·ct11Te11cc "f <lie ll.,t;ii tu 1\·li iL·l i 1t r«tcrs .
In the f.,11.,\1·i11~· e :-: tr:H' t. "thn·" is c ntircly u1 the air
t111til the nl:.':t to the Ja,;t li11e

'!!.

~' !;

V.·'

~~'

B;tll:tds are a , ·cr·v inten:stin~ fnrn1 uf 1;11..·r;ttun. .', hut thnu :.~h

lliey ha\·e made

carefu l rcsc arc-hcs in haila cl his t ,,ry , and tli""i'.h

th e ~· ha\'c clisc,l\·cre<l some inkresting fac·ts wi th re ga rd t" sJ JiJjec ts, cummun re fraills, a nd other chara c teri s ti c~ . stu:lents of

~,-

fi

"

'::;•·'

...

306

C0'.11 POS ITIO N AI\D RH E TORIC.

antecedent, or wi th only a Ya~11e antecedent, or if the
w o rd to which it refers gramm::i.tic:tlly is not th e word
t o which it r efers in sense, ambig·u ity sure ly results .
The follo\\'ing se ntences arc c tscs in p oi nt:
Ei t h e r \\'a )' will lie tliffi c nlt,
for the President will \\':.lilt
t he Sec ret ary o f \\'ar t u 11e
in fe ri o r i!1 ra n k tu t he com m anding general, as he \\'i ll be
more of a personal nppointee,
antl so he w il l h :l\·c a l.H.: ltL· r
cuntrvl ove r the army.

E itl.J e r way will be d iffic ult,
for the l'rei;id e nt will want t ile
S ecret ary o f \Var to he inferio r
in r:rnk to th e co mmnnding
general, h eca n se th e n the former will be mnre of a personal
appoi nt C;e, and h e him se lf will
so gain a be tte r co ntro l over
th e arm y.

The fir st " he" refers tu the Sec re tary of \\' ar, the
se culld tu th <..: l'n.: sident; tht.: s hift in ant<-:cede nt p roduc es compktc obscur ity.
No cl u ubt B: t ll'!llO w :ts a mbitious, bnt it <hi n ot master
h im as it tl itl J\l:u: betl t.

No d o ubt BatHJUo w ;ts a111 bitiuus, bnt ambiti o n (or the
craving- fur ath•an cem e nt} ditl
nut master him as it did J\facbeth.

In th e orig-ina l form, "it"
b ec au se a p ro no un may no t
acljecti ,-c. Th e r eader is
''am b iti on ," fr om the u:;c
ti o ns."

is · \\'ith o ut an antece tknt,
1-cfcr g- ramm:iti ca ll y t o an
icft t o supply th e n o un
of the adj ect i \ 'C " am bi-

W e m :: nt to th e Capit ol
cletcrmrned tu v o te again~t
him , bnt got t here too la te f.,r
our v otes to cou nt, \\' hich
seen11.: d lt• 011r arllterents a
m os t un\\'ise pol icy .

\\'c weut t o th e Cap itol
<le tt:r111iued to v o te aga in s t
h im , though thi s determina tion see:ne(\ to ou r :Hlhc ren ts a
m o st u n " ·ise policy, but we
gut there t uo la te fo r o ur vo les
t o CO\ln t .

"'\\'hich" is he r e ambi g uous, becan sc its antece d e nt
i !' y ::i.~:;11e. S re:1kin:; stri('(ll·, it ha s no anlvt'<" lc nt . for
' wh ich " m ay 1wt rdcr i;Tamrnati cal ly t P :t ph r:1se o r a

CLEAR NESS I N SENTENCES-COHERE:-;CE.

307

clansc, but, like <ill pronouns, must ha\·c one \\' Ord as
its a nt<-:ccdcnt. Disregard ing, how eve r, th e gTammatical fault , \\'e m ay still co ndemn th<-: se ntence , b ecause
"which " m :iy mea n e ither th e d e termination t o cast a
negativ e Yo te or the carelessness of corning· late.
1. They (t he Danes) did n o t
care for g-ratT1n1ar, a nd, co a s e~

quently, their in fiuence un set' tle tl th e in flec ti ons o f th e lang u age a n d prepare d the wa y
f1 ir th e ir co mplete di sappe aran ce.
2 . (; e nera l J o hn so n's father,
also a sol die r, tlicd in battle
befo re his twentiet h year.

1. They (the Danes) did n ut
obse rve the rules of gra mmar
and, co nsequen tl y , th eir inllu cnce un se ttl ed tlte langnage
a nd pre pare d th e way fur the
comp le te disappea ran ce o f iutl ec ti o u.
2 . G e nera!Jo hn so u's fa ther,
a lso a so ldier, die d in battle
before his son w as twentr.

In th<..: fir:; t se ntence, "the ir" refers grammatically t o
•·th<-: l>an es ," in se nse tu" infl ect ions" ; in the sc<-:u nd,
"his " refers g-ra mmat ically to " f:1 thcr," in S C' the to
"C e neral J ohnson ." Be ca rdul t u mak <-: a pro noun
refe r gTamm:ttically to the \\'Ord it modifies in s c11se .
l n al l the se ca:;es, re\\'ritin ~ has increas ed the numhc r of wo rds, but \\'hen cl earn e ss is at st ake, to think
of th e number o f words is a p e nny-\\'i :;e , pound- foo li ~; h
p ol icy.
113. Ambiguous Participles. - Participles, like pronouns, frequently cans e ambig·uity by being used without an y g-o,·crni ng \\'urcl, o r by being m ade t o r efe r
grammaticall y tu a \\' urtl to \\'hi ch they du n o t r efe r in
se nse_ Such participles are ca ll ed "loose " o r " han ging" participle s . In the fo ll ow ing exampl e , ' ' being"
is grammatically governed b y no word in the s ente nce:
" On<-: day, be in g- at dinn<..:r with his father and m o th e r at
the h o use o f a n c i~hli o r, th e :;e rva nt, while passing- th e
·co ffe e , oYc rtunwd a c upful o n ~Ia cauby's legs." In ,
"Afte r hmricrlly eating· my :; upper, a frienLl came in ,"

'·,

.\llS
G? !nl

u ,;e of c "llll l't'ti1· c ,; 111il liring· all•>Ut l<•;.: ic al i11c1•llcre1Jce,

dispi:tl' L'S 1111c nf tile tli,;jum·ti1-cs, "Ji1 11 . · "s11li." 1.i·
"h()\\'C\'L'r " : " Th e r e :ire 11011· <>ll the 111:1rkL·t 111:1111·
i.:111<is "1· p:ti11t t" l';i11 c h li11til ship11· ": ·111 s :tnd li:1r1i:tc ·:, .,,
y ie ld :it <•llL'C , nnd whi c h p re c:L'l'1·e the ship nnly :1 sh<,rt
ci m e ." 111 the Jo l l()11·i11i,; extract, the sccullcl "and"
t:~kes th e pl:tce of " s in ce" or " \Jeca u se ": "Tliou ;.;h
tl1c :1tt:ick '>11 I lou;,;omo nt was a feint to draw \\\·ll i n~ ­
i• >ll t hi ther :11H1 to make him s11-cn·c tu the left, the
a tt e mpt clid 1H' t succ::ced, :1nc1 he too 'r fou r more com pani c:: <if g-u ~1nl,; am1 one Brun sll'·ck ha tt:ili<,n t" til e
th rc:t l encd p l:t l't'." B e c a refu l t h:i t e:tc h colljunct ion
sholl',; 1he exact r elat io n li ~ t\1·ee11 th e id e:is it co 1111cch.

that is, uh,;curity. " i;uL " a11d "aIJd ., :1rc th e chief
Th e,;e t 11,·., 11·, 1rcls ,.,Ji<>\l Id L'<>ll llL'Ct ic\1· :t,; of
equal 1·a11k: ":u1<1 ·• ,,]1t >u ltl sh<>11· ,;i111ibrit: ; "hut "
shuuld sh<>\\' c <11.lr;1 ,., l, 11r :1 L·h:t1 1gL' i11 t li <>11g·li t . S •• lllL~ ­
tirnes "bt:t" is i1hcrtcd 11·\icre th e re s !lt) uld liL· ll<> con11ccti 1·c, :ts in the· ,;c 11tc1Kv. ·· 111 som e 11·:t1 "c l" <>llc cannot
11·:tlk " n the sidc11·alk f 1 >1 · a l> l• •c:.: 11·ithiJlll j11 111pi11;.; npcn
spacc s , b u t in 11·:ilki11g· at 11ight. the d:111g·cr is greatest."
l\lorc fre 1p 1c11tly · · hut" is c111pi"y cd ill th e pl:tcc PE
":llld," a,; i1 1 tl1c sL"ntcnce . "Thi s indo<Jr Jll':l l' tice is
111L•rcly to Ji111IJL'l' up the men, bu r a,; soon as 11T:ltllcr
p e rm it,; , they il<>ck "utdoor,; ." 'l'll'o ' ' buts" u sed "t:cL'css ivcly arc like ly t<• cau"c illl'<>hcrL'ill'C ; fur cxam pl c: "Th e [ll'<>L'l'S,; 11·:1,; clea r iii g·c·ncr:il to :t! l of us,
lJllt som e cl ctaib 11·L·rc <>b"L'lil'L', l1 t1 t the" <.: cll'la i!s cou ld
n ot he learn ed i11 t he ii111itL·<i ti111c the 111:11i:1 ;~c r \\·o u lLl
:t1!011· u,; ill th e f:td \J ;·y ." " 1\ nd" i·; p c·1·h:1ps t.hL: mo s t
commo nl y 111i s us c d c"1111ecti1·L· ; it i\Tc.11:.,:ly takcs lh e
place of :ti! the 1·ari<>ll:' "·"rd,; 11·hi c·h indicate cause and
effect, or cnnt r :is t·. I n, "J t hou:.:.ht it L> ll l :in rl T came
to no conclusinn ," ":1nd" h as u s urped th e p !:tce u f.
"\mt" <• r "y e t
I it th e nc:;t cx:unpk it in~i1 : · upcrly

115. Incoherence from Shilts of Constrnction.- Th e crrnr.s
c11u111 1_·r:1lcd :1ho\'l..: prudu•: e amb i;..;ui t y cir <>lJ su1 rit 1'.
E1·e 11 tlwugh a sentence is clear , hc ,11· L·1·cr , it m ay h e
rn:tdc slight ly i11cohcrc1 1l by a sh i ft in constr u c ti o n.
( Jften, \\'hen a ;:1wakcr ,;t:1rts a :-;cntcnce in on e \l'ay and
fini,;h cs it in :-tnothcr, h e is cil':1 r, but at th e expense of
:1 1-cxi11g· increase of our attention . 1\ ,;tudcnt , cxplaini11;..:· h "". fo<JtlJall pl:tyc r s arc placccl up()n the field,
\HitL"s : "The o pp osing- s idl' sc:.ilt.crs it,.; 111 c11 so th :t t
e:td1 one h as a ccrt:ti n part of the fi e ld t o g 11 ;1 rd , and
in (Jl'•kr t o ]Jc in posi t io n t o ca tc h th e l>a ll 11·h e ll it is
kic ke d."
Our :tltcn1 io n t o his th o u g ht is clisturhcd,
because he for;;·cts tl1 :1t tb c first of his d cscri pti1"C
state m ents is a c hu,;e and rnnkcs 1h c second an infini
ti1· e Ji h r:1sc. Jfc should ha1·c sa id : "T il e oppus i n~
si(lc sca tl e rs its m l' n so t h at each o n e m:1 y ha n ; a ccr t :tin p :1rt nf th e k : ld t" :..;uard and ma v h e in p o,; iti n1 1
to c:1lc h 1he h:ill 11·h c 11 i t is kick e d . "
S11111ct irnes the shift a:lliJ\lllts m crL·lv lei a 1:1L·k cif
n eede d ,.,imi lari ty of phrasin;~-.
I 11 t he se11tc.: 11 L·c, " .J uc.t
a s (; c n11 a11y h:1s dis1 in g·1 1i s h c d h e r se l f in mu s ic, so the
p a int er,; <·f Fr:.111 cc ha\' C be en pro minent," th e writer

eat ing·" is \\T <• ni!;h· u,;cd. 11cc:1u,;c, th"t1;J1 in L'<i :1 strudio11 it m odifies ' ' frie nd. " it is intended t11 modify
'' I. " Th e ,;c11tc11L·c: sh<>tild l"l':td : '· J\fter I !i:td liurri cd ly eaten 111 y st 1ppe r . a friL'tH I c:t•nc i11." 'T li c L:tilt
is ludicrou s ly illustr:tted in the se 1ltL'llcc, "\\' h e n 11wulti11;.:·, w e should t :d-:e ;.:rc:tt can: o( birds." : \ s s u ch
:t1nbi;.;11itics <>c·,·11r l°rL·qucntly, th e \\Ti te r shnt:!d :.;c:t n
I1is 1ur lic·ip ks vl<>,;e·ly to se c 1ha t they rdcr <kli1 1i tc ly
t11 so111c ,,.,•rel 111 thL· sentence, :tnd th :tt the·;: 1111Hlify
g-r:u11rnat ic:tlly the ,,·.,rds thL·y lll<>dify in tli• •t1 g·h t.

114. Incohere nce from :Misuse of Connectives.- 'l'h c mi s -

<>ff enders .

I
f

CLE .I 1-::\FSS J \

C(l:\l l 'OS IT!() :-; J\;-,; ]l IUIFTIJ IU C .

contrash Germany as :t 11·holc \\"ith the
France .

.>. "\\-c kn<>\\. fro111 t ltc -.;t udy of tlte 1kad th n t 111:111\· ~ ufkri1 H~
from j'tt.J m n11:try tultl'rc11lnsis recove r from the disease-. ;1nd t hv
·ia t icn t d ics of other il i,;easc."
I
"
I
.
..
\
The s11 lijet"t is changed from '' we'· to
t te l"' t 1enl ·
·
lidkr fo rm is : "\\·e knnw from the sl11<ly of th e dc::t•l tlt a t
niaiJ\' suffl'ring- fn)tn pu1ni onary t.uben.:uld sis rec<i\'t•r f r1 111 tll i...:.

paint e rs of

.lust :;:-; C c rman y ha <> distinguished h c r,; c lf

in mt1,.;ic, so Fr:t?1 ce ha,; cli,.;tin;..;uisl1cu h c rscl£ in p:ti11tin).!· "

1s a,; c l >llLTCnt :l!ld cffccti1-c

\\"as lil urrcd :u 1d i 11•.: fT cct i 1·c.

as the fir s t

fur m

11i ~:c :~...:c

things silllibr in thou~hL sho uld l>e ,.;imil:tr in construc-

othL~ r causes. "

·I . " I k aL-cc ptet1 the invitation, antl a pleas:111t. <1111 1\c"r

start \\"ith one suhjn:t and t u fini :-;J1 11· ith another;

\\ · :i-.;

The sultject ant! tlie voict: of the \'er lJ are IJo llt ,.,hiftc.!. ;\[ore"'·er tlte fu rm of the \·l'rlJ used is that called "the Y;tgttl' p:t<>,., ive ;, a p:is~ iH' \\'ltic·lt p nts t !te olJject in t!tc j>l;t('<.: of th<: rc·:d
,; 11 bject.
Tltc passive shoul<l li e ~: tv e d fn r ca ~ cs 111 \\·l11c·!t t lte
subject act11:tlly un<lcrgo c· s snmetl 1in g . lt. is n e \·cr well , if it c-:.n

111 th e i:1dic1tin.: :uHl 1h c· •• tlr cr i!J th<-· i11fi11i t in'. or c1·c n
in the par ti L· ipi:t l c"nstructi o n; t o

:11Hl di e of

given hini."

to g·ive one of the ma i n 1·crlJ,.; ol a cumpuund sc11k11cc
h e ).!·in

in th e pa st

tcn,.;c and e nd i11 t he present- th ese :ire unly a few of

b e avuidt"d, to g-o \Vithin the san1c ~L·nt<.;;1 ce fr,1 111 tlic :~l · t i\l' t11

th e n umh c rkss ch:u1g-cs in cnnstrudion that ma~· spoil

t.he pass ive. l{ e \\Tittc n, tlte sente nce r~::u l ~ . '' ! k :llTE' jl kd lite
invitation, an<! ha(l a pleasant tltnncr.
5. "Little did ] tl1ink al that ti111<.: <•f its l1cing S<> c·x t re 111c-I\·
small, an<] that a part of th e win<lows were lm>l;e n, "r t 11:11 the

a sen te nc e .

Errors <>f this sort arc so manifuld th at

rules mu s t gi1·e 11·ay to a some11·haL ext.ended comment
on specific sentences:

the p :t ra .t:Tapll di..· 111 ~1.1i<l~

tl1 :tt hut

111a·

" I ts bei ng so extremely small" is a 1w11n phra se; tlt c f\n•
parallel statements are give n as cbu ses . The sentence slw11:d
read: "Little tli•l I think at th e tim e that It w;ts so cxtrem<"I)
small, that a ;;re aler p;irl of the windows werL' broken, :tn d that
th e fm11 Hlation was gi,·ing way."
6. "The line L'onsists of a center rush, who lt as a gu:tnl on
eaL' h sitk nf ltirn; next to th e gu:trds come tlt e tack ks, and tlte!l
tlte line s are terminated b y tltL· player~ called end ~ ."
rl'h L're an..: two ch:i.ngcs ln cnn ~ truction.

tl11H1 g·l1t ~ll11uld

01 11..· .

two suc 1..T vdin g

;i\

'' .A center nt ~ h \':ho

slatenH: 11t :-; , \vhi c l1

in

nu.: ani11g-

;lrt'

p :tr:tllel t 11

t!tis noun phrase antl to c:t c lt other, take t !te f.,ri n ,,f di .-"i111il ;ir,
in<lL'pend e nt stateme nt s . lt is [ar better t<> writ e·: '' 'l'ii e l111c
l'o n sists ()f :1 cent e r ru~h, of two gu3rd:-., wl10 st:Li lf.l (111 c itlh: r
side of him , of two tackles place d just ouhidc tlte gtun b , and
o f two ends, who flank the tackks ."
7. ",\n<l he \\·ent frequently to tl1 e te rnplcs anLl ma<k .,fferings to vile gods, in whom he <l id not lw l icn', p cr h :q • ~ . f ,ul •: till
ht' ,l!ll1't" thnJt rcvcrt'Jt CC . "
( From t!te authorized tr:.n,.,!at l<>n of

11

2 . "Th e t ltrc·c: n1 1L·s ti 1:1 t one should con s ider arc: first,
:td:tpt the st yle to tlt t' tltnugltt; sc·co n cl, adapt t lte s tyl e to tlt e
reader; third, lit e writ e r mu s t mak e tlie style rcp rc,c nt himself."
Th e fi:·~t two ntlc s :ire state d in tit<.: i1111H:r:tli,·e: the third
r11ll', in tile indi1.:~ti,·e nlod c .

d~

has a g11:trd nn eaclt sirle of !tint" is the .,J,jel'l <>f .. .,f "; tltc-

lie dl'\·c !oped, th ;it tlti s tho11 ;~ 1t: ,.))rrnld l•l' till' 1•ri1l<'ipal idc·a .,f
tile parag-rap lt , ;111d tli;it ;ill othl'r tlt,,11 .1.; lt:s ~ 11 •11ild lie plainly
snhunlinat c to th is

'."

··'

•,1

':ll

fo undati on \\·as g- i\·inj..( \\':l)'."

1. •·Unit y in 1h e paragraph <lemands the tle\-cl op m en t of one
thought, that thi~ thou g ht s h ou ld h e the pri nc·ipal idea o f th e
parngr: tph, :111d all other thn11ghts intnid ttc·ed !<1 lie p la inl y sulJ<>rdinate to tit is one."
Jlere the predi c:t!e s hifts constntction twil'l' : " tltl' d c ,·clop111 en t of the tltu11ght" is a simple obj e:.: l phrase ; "that t his
th tl ttght sh<>ttld lie t lte prin cipa l id ea pf th e p:tra ~r:1 ph," is a
sul>nnli11ate c l:t1i,;e : ''a ll ot her tho11 gltts t <> IH.: s ul>11rdi:: :ite to
th is nnc," is an i11fi niti n : phra~c. 'l' lie sc11tc11 ... ·l' shntild r \..'.a <l:
" U nit y pf

:'

1

Cohe r e n ce d ema11ds th a t

tion, and, 11·hv11 jl( is,.;ihk, t11 11·ordin;.:-.

To

S F:\TF:-;CF. :O- COITERT':-;cr.

'rlien_· is abo a \'ex i ng ch~tngc in

J< ltr:1~eol<>g\".

l'lte last ,·l:t11sc of the st·nlt:11 L·e shott!(l rearl:
"Third, adapt tlte style , so far as poss ible, to your o wn character."

(!uu I ;,r/fs.)

.

.

The clau se in italics brings about confuston, because it p11ts a

1

\·

CLE ..\I~NESS I:": SENTE:--:C'ES- COHER£i':CF.

CO:l!PO S ITIO:"J .-\\]) HlTETORfC.

'I

I

min or state m ent, properly o nly a p:irall e l t o ''in whom h e did
n o t be! ie vc," in to the po s it inn of a main statem e nt. T!Je clanse
s hould reacl ''to whom h e still ga\·c reYe re nce . '' Jn Scott's
b•a11hoe th e r e is a Yariety of th e s ame erro r; this time co here nce
clemands a phrase, not a c lau se . "These twn srp1ires ," s ays
S co tt, ""·e re f·illow e <l hy tw o attenclants , wh ose dark visages ,
whit e tnrb:rns , anrl the oriental form o f th e ir garm e nts, sho~ved
th e m to be n :1ti ves of some clistant Eastern coimt n·." Th e senten ce is im pro \·e d in e\·ery ,,·ay if we subst itute /, oriental g:irments " for '' the oriental form of their ).';ilrments."
S. " Site w ent her way· in s ile nce , unh ee ding th e IJ!inding
s n o w, and no one t a kcs noti ce o f h e r. ' '
Ilerc the writ e r purp ose ly c!t:u1ges th e te n se , hopin g th e re li y
to secure , .i,·i<ln css h11t s u cceedi ng only in being in co!t cn: nt.
If a sentence begins in the pa st t ense , it shnu lcl encl in the pa s t;
if it beg-ins in t ile prese nt , it should encl in the prese ut . The
\\Tite r al so s hift s th e snl>j c ct fro m " s h e " to" no on e . " Far
bet te r say, "Sh e w ent he r wa y in sile nce , n u ti cc< l by no o n e . "*
9 . Subordinate Yc rb s in cnm pkx sentences , and complemen ta1·y infinitives, arc so lialile to inc-ohere nt shifts of tense th a t a
few rul es alJ<)\lt th e m mus t h e gi \·e n. Fur in s tance, "\\·c s !ttJu!d
d es troy :d i th e g-on d \\.,_, ha,·c d o ne, if we follow hi s at h·i ce " is
wrong , b ecau se cohe rc;1cc nlics that til e conditiona l g oes with
th e p:1 s t s11bjunl'li,·e. th e· i11cl ic::tti ,·c fut1ire with the pre se nt s ubj11 n c th·e . Th e se n tence shnu l<l he either, "\\·e sho11ld dl' s tro y
1( we follo w e cl , " o r , ' ' \\'e sh all d estroy if we follow."
i\g-;tin,
the complementary infinith·e in, "llacl he informed him self
b e fo re hand, h e wm1ld nnt ha\·e nee d ed to have tak en so mu c h
t.ronble," slrnnlt! l ie i l1e prese nt infiniti,·c "to t;tl, c," b ec au se
taking th e troubl e is su ii>;c·qucnt in time t'> "h[t\·e n ee d e d." On
the cnnt r:try , "'J \ 1 ha,·e dnn c this is unwi se " is correc t, liccausc
tit ~ d"in g- i .~ p:i ~t, 11 nt on ly in fac t, h11t a l"'o \Vi t h n : fere nce to

" is.
Tli c t e nses 1) f th e s 11l >nrdi nat e \'c· rli ancl the complementary infiniti\'c are to be settled by the rclatiou of these verbs to
the main verb.

* N'O T E.- \\'h en:.:\'L'I" an 111HrainL·tl writer desires t o }.,:"row ,.i\'iJ, he relates
~rn st e\·cnts in tli e p r 1..· sent. It ma y h e wi~ c at times t o cast the wh o le story
111 th e f)r C'sf•n t , b:a ir j..., not o f fL'll so . hec aust• thC' "hi st 0 r h: :ll pr('SL' nt" is a
,..,.orn ·out tri ek , the p ro perly o f ! hf' 1·1lt• ap des cripti,·e wri1 cr.
ten se and Pn d in nn othl'r i-; a l mos t llC'\"(' r elTL·clivt:.

To stnrt in one

313

116. Some Ways of Securing Coherence.- So much of
this ,;h:i. pt er h :ts be e n a d ep ress ing- series of " cl o n ' ts"
that it is well to r efe r once lllore to the basis of coh e rence - strict sequence of th o ught-and to enum e rate
a few o f the devices by whi ch one may l,.!·ain coherence.
Th e first and the most oln·io us cl cY ice for sho\\·ing- the r elat io n nf tho ughts is the nse nf co nnect ives.
H \\·e ha ve three fac ts which belong- in onc sentence, it
will n o t alw:iys cln to pnt the m forw:n-c1 as co<ird inate
cla11 s l's \\'ith o11t links h etwe e n the m . " l know this
proces s, I know it is goocl, I know it is n o t advisal>le,"
is a p o ssible.; ancl som e tim es a n emphatic sentence, but
usu:tlly su ch a se ntence t1ocs not stick t o g e th e r; it
n ee ds more m ortar b etwe e n the bricks. ;\;or arc th e
simplest conncct i\· cs ahv:i. ys th e b e st. H we say , "I
kn ow that this pro ces s is ).(OOcl, :i.ncl I know th at it is
possihl c , ancl I knO\\. that it is inach-isabl c, " ,,-e actually
los e coherence. J\'<Jr <ln \\·c g·ain much by putting"hut " in place of the s1::coml ' ' an<l." I t is far more
coh e rent to say: "Tho ugh I know this process is g:ood
ancl pnssihlc, I als o know that i t is inad\'isabl e ." To
be coherc11t we mnst he able t o use freel y all connectives - "however," "yet," "also ," "not even,"
"still," "though," "neve rth e less," etc. I n this co nnecti on it is \\'e ll to rcco;.:-nizc that man y \\·o nls not
formally class e d :is connect ives really do th e \\' Ork of
connecti o n. For exam ple, the e ch o -\\'ords use d in secti on 111 a rc connectives.
The second aicl to coherent statem e nt is a free ·
employment of the yari o us forms of suhorclinatc statem e nt. Th e use of a suhorclinat c <:1:.tuse is too familiar
to n cc cl m o re than a rcfcre nce. The use o f parti ci pi a l
phra se s also h elp,.; coherence. Nothing co nlcl be m or e
cruclc ly inco herent:, for example, than the following

:H S

CO\ll'O S IT!ON A:\'D HTTFTOJUC.

C'T.E !\HJ\:E SS l N S E]\;TE:'\CES-COIIERE>:CE.

cxtr:-ict from a th c 111 c . The impl'<J\· e m e nt shu11·11 111 the
right-ha11<1 version c<>rne:.; from usrng- a p a rticipial
construction:

ou,; pronoun s , by the vagu e use o f parti ciples, and by
n eedless shifts in cunstructilrn. It is g·ained by adhere nce to th e principles that things r elated in th o ught
sh1Ju!d be pbcecl t oge th e r, :-ind th at thin g-s similar in
th oug-ht sh o uld o (te n he simibr in fo rm; by a lil Jc ral
u,;c of conncctin's; ancl by a judicious use (1 f the
more iiffoh·cd sentence forms - f,,rms in \\·hi ch there
occur echo-wo rds , participial phrases, an<l p a re nthese s.

\ -e r bosity is t he 11,e of t"o
nlany \\"(H'th·• , none (•f

w hich ,

l1 u\\·e,·t·r, ca n be c11t nut \r itli -

nut

c lc:-.tr n ~· ing-

til L· na.·ani11 .~

;

yet the "' "" " th ou)!;ht can IJC!
lll• >J'e f,.r ci !JJ y expreSSL· cl with
fe wer

A.

~cntc n ce is v <.: rl11, .... t:

thou g- h

containing-

110

when,
wurd

\\'hil'11 c·ould b e sp:ue d "·ithout
dl'~ t r•iyingthe
111 l· :u1 ing.· it
could he s ta k cl m1Jrc forcib ly
\\'ith fewer \\'ords .

\n1 nl ~ .

A third device, especially useful in hri ngi11 g· tugct her
thi11;,:·s r elatccl in thou g ht , is th e \\'i;;e 11 st: ut parenth e l ical st :1tcrn e nts ; f\lr example:
J\t th e conc·lu~i"n of C:q>t ain
Smith's t<: ~ti nwn' " a ..::t n of
r oast b e d "'"' cx:11ni11cd !Jy
t he cou rt \\·hi eh Jud been w it h
the troo ps at S a nti:igo.

1\t th ec •>n c lu si on tof Captain
Srnit h ' :-:. te ..,t. i11 101 1y,

a

van

of

r ":ist lie d - one w hich l1 ad
!Jcen \\'t th the tr<•ops at S :L11l ia,;•J - \\·as ex amined 1Jy the
court.

N o te the str ict coherence in th e fnllowin).:' se nt e nces ;
no m ntter h o\\' lon g· th e paren tlH.::,es arc , nu matter if
there is a pare n th esi s \\·ith in a pare nth es is , a ll is n cntly
jo in ell and n o thini.::- co nl d b e m <n-cd \1·ithont hurt:
These m e n, pr:i ct ic al politi c ians who kn e w how inlinilely rlilli c ult a
n1cnl s .-

bu sin ess
BH.\'L J'. :

~~u o d

~ 11vcr11111 c..:n t

/ ;,,,,.,.;,·,111

is. d ..._·~irc d nn l>o ld c~q1c r i ·

(_(1111111c1 11-;,·,·i1//h.

Th e o th e r s , who \\·ere not mort:dil· "'"11n.J c d like th e 1\d111 iral,
iuterfered with som e dec ision, luckc:d the 111:1sle r · g-u1111cr in lJis
c: thin , af k r h:\\·in~ d ep ri\'(~ d h im ,,f h i'"'·" r d, f1Jr he 111 a11ife ; kd
an int ention t1J k ill hirnsl'lf if he \\'ere not p er mitt e d t i> s ink the
sh ip ; ancl sent tn th e Sp:in iarcb t •> <le nund ll'rlll'. - ~TE\ ' ":<­
so:<: Th,· F11g!ish .·ld111inds .

117. Summary of Chapter.- Coh erence - that is clearn ess o( rc btiun am"n ~· the p:trts uf a sentence - is
neve r pres e nt unle ss th e re 1s p e rfect sequen ce of
th o u g ht. It i,.; lost li1· the nse of t()() man y ur ambigu-

Exercise XVIII.
, /. Ddinc cohere nce in the sentence. lJoes it <lepend on th <'U ;..'. ht alone? ( >n form al o ne ? ( )n one
n1orc than <Jn the oth er ? \Vh y is co h erence indi sp c 11sable ?
!!. J)cfi11c :unbiguit y . \Vhat a r e the chief cau ses o f
ambi l;·uit y?
C. Sh <J\1· h o w p ou r arrangernc·nt prm1u cc ,; ambiguity.
In the fullo\\'inlo:· se nt ences , the cletnents arc badly
arrange(l. C.tirrect the sente nces, );· 1\·1ng· in each cuse
specific r eas o ns fo r th e cha n ges:
1. There \\'as bu t <>n e ;.;hss in onr r oo m, \1·hi l' h J\Llry usually
apprupri:ill'd lirs l.
2. I IJ:t,·e al\\':t )"' l ih· d IHHJl<:; frt1m whi c h l c·o1J! d k c ! that I
had lc:ll"llc d :--.~ 1Jl 1(·tl1in .~ wh e n 1 Jini s lu..: cl rL· a d i11;~ tl1l'1:1.
,'\. J\t furty -t\\·o t he Presid e nt appuinlc'd h irn !J is p ri,·:ite scc r et: tr y.
.). ( Ju r llat·tnp rksks :t rc suita !J lc fu r teacher ~ ha,·ing L·losc d
b a c ks :ind t<>p r:iils :t11d ni:id e both s ingle a:id d o 1ilo!v sidL·tl.
5.

!\'11\v

in

St. 1\ ug- u :-; tin t.: ' s Con fess ion s is f o11nd

1111 e

111 11 :-:it

i111p as.. ; io11c d p:i. ~...;: q..~c , \·i z. : th e l ~1111 c nt atio 11 f o r th e d eath nf liis

youthful friend in t!Je fourth lH>llk.
6. In pla ce of the w e ll -hre d an cl we ll -fe1l L o ndon clom e s tic· ~.
wh o c< •11lrl 0nly speak l".ng li s h, Do lihin procure<! fo>r J" ,; ' s 1• :1 rt y
a s\\' arth y little Belgian scn·ant. - 'l' 1L1CKER AV: I irni/_1' ! ·;1/r.
7. Thei r rn o\'Cmc nts were o nly c heckt:<l liy the ad\'ancc vf the
B riti sh in their rear.- lnrn.

316

!

:; 1i

C<l:\11'<> .'i !Tl<> 'l .\'.\ll Rl!F'f<))OC.

CLE.\R'.\FSS IN' S F"-:TE >; CES-L' OllFR F >: C I' .

8. 1\ Fre nch l:lnCl' r h :ul sp ·.. ·~\rc d the yuun g· c n~ i g- n in th t.! l e~ ,
wh o fe ll, st ill b r:n Th· hu ld int; t n hi s fl:l g .- 111111,
9 . "En t rc z," s:ii .\ a c·k:ir littl e voice , and <J tl r fr iend fo und
him se lf in l< l' !J<:l'l::t 's p resen ce : \\·h o ju rn pc· d up, l' i"PJl<:d lw r
h a n d s tn g·ct hc:r, :rn d h e ld onl llo t h 11( th e111 t•> c; ,., 1r;.>;e. - I 11111.

esc ape , h e mi g ht tra\·el with him as far a s the mee tin g p lace
wi t h th e Ba shLirs.

10. J was nwc: ting l~ iJ IJ n o w and a ,;ain in th e g le n, a s Lin g
wi th an afkct l' d c::trc le:;s nc ss l: e di 1l not bo tt o m , for n ews of th e
lirtk m in is te r . ]Jil t w h at h e tni <i I l l ( ' \\":t s o nh· th e gi is-oi p o f th e

111 ;.: .

t()\\' fl , ~u1 d

\\·h:1t l ~-.h o u l d ila\·1, ,· knllWll , tltat Thru111 s 111 ig li t JH.·\·er

!,n o w it. IH· J.:<: pl tn him sc·l f. -- H.\RRtE: ; ;,,. I .ii/ /,- .1/i11is/,·r .
11. \\"l1c·11 !J u t IHl\'S, :1s onr fa n1ih' ha d li e c- 11 for g·c'.ll c· r:it ions
hacl; in some \\':t y c11 11 11e c te (] "·i t h mi lit ary affairs, my llr<> th e r a!lll
I IWl':l llle int e n s e ly i11t v re s tc d in th e nav,· .
12 . T h eir c o nd u c tnr p :irs n e d :in o ppo s ite r<J a <l fr q m t ha t
\\'h ic h \\'a 111l >a h :t d n :< ·" :i1111c1Hled , fo r til e p 11r po-.c of mi s le ading
th e m. ·- ~ c urr: 1:·:111 /ie: ·.

n.

J I O \\" d o cs

d es troy
co h e re nce ? P()in t o u t and co rrec t t h e faults in th e fol lo wing" se nte nce s :
1.

J>(H ) r

all

t111s killf u l

\!S C o f

j)l'•J :l ul lll S

pol ic y \\·a s sho \r n hy J>c ri cle :-o in 11\:tk i : 1 .~ th t:: 'l' ex p e n-

diture' s , :ts it made t!it~ d t•pt: n d o·n t :tl li c·s jc a lu tis .
2 . 'J' lie \Vh o le affair is in a ta ng-le . an d C o ngTe ~ ~ 111 u:-; t ~u · t ~no n
t o s l ra ig-htl' n it ou t : th<: q ni •: l;t:« it is (]o ne, t il t: l1L'! tl'r it w il l b e
f., r t he c" trntr y :t1Hl tla · :trill\"
.\. ln h is prn...:.t' S ( Jt1 t h e y i" a rn a o..;t er i n h i ~~ :irt, \ \·l 11 1 \\·11r k s \\·ith
;::r:ice ancl sLil l.
4. 'J'h c e: tr l y R 1n 11 ~ 1: 1 O l' t'll] 1:t t i 11 11 {,f l ~r i t :t i n L 1s tc..: 1\ (nHn about
40 IL C. t•J ·111! ,\. I J .. lrnt t llt'\' ld t li c·h ind t !1(' 1ot i<t :<ii th:1t tim e
nn ly ~ix w o rd s.

5.

:-;:tic1 :

1'111 a fra id \ ·t1 11 r 1no th e r i :~ \\ 'll rr y i 1 ~ .~ - "

n:·pli cd t hat ::;h e w o 11ld nn t c~ ! rt: , f1>r she o :· t t'~ l

\\";__·11t

;--; he u11 ly

: t w ; ~ y w i t l14~llt

te ll in g an y o ne .
6 . M acbet h h im st" lf w : t ~ p n.:ce<! C"d IJ\· " c»tlfier " ·h o ca rri e cl to
La (ly J\[ache th ll\· lc- t: e r n ? w s n [ th e ou ~ C < lllll' o i t he h :tttl es ,
th e gra c ious hnn <> r.' of th e J;i11 g, and an i11tim :tt io11 of hi s prnp o se d crin1e.
7. \\' h en t h e l~li : 1 :i ,:11 : t !tc• m '< s : 1 ~e f r n !ll t !te ll :i s hl;ir ..; , he
\\·e nt at on ce to \\" eseluff, :111d tnl<I him that, if he \\'ant e d to

/~'.

rs :t larg-e numbe r of pronouns always clc s tructi\'(;
lllu s trate by e x ampl e s fr o m y o ur re ad -

<, f cle arness?

F H o w ma y participles cause ambig-uity?
the foll o\1·ing se ntence s :

!..:.<.:write

l. ,\f te r \\'al kin g se vt: ral blo c ks through th e p o ur ing rain, our
Jl l" >J> Ose d t ri p wa s alm o s t !Jrn ught to an e1hl whe11 we [o un d t ha t
th e r e w as r u on1 f<1r u:-; o n ly on Lil e l 1) ps of stree t cars .
B y s av in g a m:ta thi s dis g ra ce he is able t<J r e tain hi s g ood

.'!
·I

·\i

:

z.

11 a n1 e .

3 . T o his g re a t s ur pri se , IJy t urnin;; th e kn.,J, tit<.: cluor r,;a d -

ily OJWIH.: d.
· 4 . If th e n1 e ct ing had bee n trea te d se ri<Hbl )' i11 stc: u l .. r ln.::t t ·
in,c; it a s :1 far ce , l t h i n k t h at s11me g'•)(l d speec!1._.s \\'P tild ha\·t:
IH:c n h e a r d.
5. Res ides b e ing u sel e ss to us f1)r co lunizin ;..:: purp r 1 ~c.._, an
,,, ·erwlt c: lm in g 111 :1j11r it y of th e p o pulation has v ir tuall y h ad
nn \·ni ce in in stit utin g th e f;U H~ rnment th a t n u w r u les these

..,'

··'

i'. ; land :-; .
(1. ,\f tc r wa il ing for al1 o ut h;df an lwur, th ere wa s a s 1tcl (lcll
sc· 1-.1111 1J lc t o wa rd on e e nd of th e h u a t .
7. 'l'lt c: fh ·- lrn u k is u se d :dm rht al tog-t:t lt ,; r, a11d ,,·!Jik ii s ltin: :
tlt e horok is ke pt c on s tantly on t h <" s n r fa ce o f tlt e \\':t ier .
S . I sl:i \'l' cl :1t Sq u ire Trc la\\' ll t:)' ' s . 1\flt' r \\·ait in < tl1 v r·c
tlt nT " ·c v L ;. :t lc t l<: r ca m e from th v s qui re .
'J. J·;l'f"n.: it is pla ce d in the tank it is sul1j cc te d to a th11r•rt1·.:lt
c lt.::1 11 i n ~ . lir:-; t l) y clipping th e l1a r i11 a stro:1g· siJ lt1ti1111 , ,f p• 1L t...,li,
:tnd SLv1 >tHl ly by sc ouring in \\·hitin g- anil di p pi n g- i ; 1 (· " ld w.tlt:r.
Il l. S •J011 afte r ta k in ;:: o ur c hairs , th e lu ng l in c·s <>f t·on,·ic·h
ii l'gan tr> fi le in and t:tkt: their :1c·c u s t:um e cl pbc:es .
ll. ,\ ftl' r nu ki n g thn.:e; r .. 11:,; !1 drafts it w as li n: ilh" g o t int n
, h a p t: .
1·> Th e us.; 11 ( all th e c urre nt nrn g-azin e s , whil e still th ey are
11 c \\· a n <l fr c·s il , rdainin g- them as lone: a-; 1le sire (l, :.11 Hl thus
st:c ur iu:,; t he p le a s ure <1f p e ru s in g all a t a s mall c11st, is :i n llt h c r

:uh·:111l.'l ,l((; \\·i1ich tli e C'l ii c:t '...;o ' ' l\fur1ie' :-. ' ' pron1i ses .

13.

ll:t vin g an ade quate st1,c k o[ general lite rature , s pe cial

1'

·,•

31 8

CLE . \R~ESS

COlllPOS !Tl(> :\' J\:\']) JU!FTOJU C.

attention will li e g-i,·en t o t he tlepa rtm e nt ,; o f fi n e n rt s , s o ciology ,
th 1:orc tica l a n d applied sc ience, :rn<l children's re ading.

C. \Vh :i t :lrc th e co rre ct ns cs of "hut" and ·• a11cl " ?
G i ve a li st of the com 1nn11cr t:: lilllcctivcs, telli1 1g in
e:ich ca se ju st wlut surt of co nn ec ti o n the word iml iC:lt c s.
if. fn th e foll o win[i sentences, co nncctivcs h an;
b ee n mi suscu. l'uint o ut th e faults , :iml rewrit e th e
se n tences:
l . I t w as :lll old tll11il>le-duw11 h u use abou t whic h I am guingt o s p eak , fo1 · b v fur e th e Ci,·il \Yar it had had a great n :p ut:.it.iun
and nnw it was fall ing- int<> t!ecay.
2. Nor is Sir R 11gc: r :rn idea l p c rs un :t.C:t: creatl!cl by th e
author's g e nius, lrnl thnc: are su c h peup!..: now, th ough uf
course tl<Jt many.
3 . Th e n Ill )" c ou n try c alll' <l u p on lilt.: l o s en«· in th<: :\fri van
:lnd in the I'ctt.: it it: sq11atlrn11 s ; b11t when our Civil \\'a r d e 111 :111tL:cl
my <km o u s tration of 1\ mcri ca11 patrioti s m I gan: mys<:lf to t he
c :1use o[ th e l"ni un .

4 . T ilo1 h :i11 d s of s h ip s h :ivt.: b cc·n mad e w;ek ss b y ""111ing in
contat:l w iih a cupp e r -b<Jtl<1111«d lw: Lf , hut th e n:i,·a l a11 tlwrities
have had t u is s ue st r ict 11rde rs f11rbid<lin.t:" anc·IH,ring llear a cop p e r - b o tt"m c rl b":i t .
5. Tha t di s putes slwuld arise !Jet wce n l\\'P p e 1·so n s of s uch
<lifTe ren l t:t stt·s ""'"' ine,·ita!Jle; and th e troub le which t·a 111 e w a s
<lu e pri 1n:trilv (<>t he· ch :H:i t·ll"r of th e d:int, hfl:r .

I. \\'l w ll r> CS a s h ift of co nstruct ion Yi o latc coh e ren ce ) Di sc uss the shifts of cunslrncl'ion i11 the fo llowin '.,; s c n tc ncc s, and correc t th e sentences:
1. Dr . I l:t1·s :l b o e s tal..Ji s h c•d t he o nly Eu1-.1p e:l n h1 .s pital il)
th e co u n t r y, and Am e rican a nrl English sa il ors :ire treate d th ere
at a nn min:-i l cos t . Oth e r h n s pit :i ls we re built l 1y him , a nd at
th e death of th e King's ph ysic i:m Dr. l la ys was appoinlt:tl tu
SII L'C<:e<l liirn.

2. All crit ica l r e p :lirs are exec ute<] IJy him , :i n1l Y"" ca n
safely s a y h e w ill r·e pair an d p11l in co111pl e k n r<kr th e m ost
intri cate c l.,ck , wat ch , o r c hi1 11«. of wh:iten:r n1 akl', ancient o r
illv<lcru, forci;,11 or /\ rn vri c·:111. li e: n1:1y·bc iut:· u s tc·d ll'it h .

I N SE!\TE;\CES -COIIER E::\ lT.

319

3. Hy coni ;1111 it\· is 111<.:ant t h e natural dc\·e J.,plllen t 11f one
se nten ce fr.,m th e one preceding, and that thi ~ next sc1lte m:c
should s e r \'e as an intr<> ductio n for the fo ll ow ing.
-1. Th e Cir11/, ·d1111y J;r!cs , J, y C ha u ce r , w ere \\·ritt1:11 t" repre se nt :i l' <>lllpany of p eo ple of all L'lass cs wh o ga t he r<:d at the
T a1J:1rcl In n, a nd fro m th e re t hey were go ing t o the s hri ne o(
St. Tl10111as :"1 Becket.
5. ~I c: 111\\· hile I ha,·e mtt s ome friends, anti after s pc:akiug
with them a few mim:tcs, we ,·.,Ji<:d o ur,elves on th e co rner.
6 . Jn ~le aLI of h;.i,·ing· a dc si ralJ!c effect u pon th e boys , this
scl 10ul has a dec id e dl y oppo s iu.: <) Ile ; in s te atl of sending the b o y
!•Ill. into the w orld a !Jetter !:id, h e lc a\'es th e schoo l more dishones t t han llefore.
7 . Bul as h is eye.: fa lls up un hi s lu,·ely wife and tlie 1v ,y hal,y
besid e her in th~ n u :·sc's ar111 s , \\'el l may his ,;.,1Jl ha\·c bet'n
quiete d :111<1 his gre:.t h c.:art han: s\\·ell e d.
8. /\ t the fuul of t h e hill w lu.: re tli t: \\" l>IHl e rfu! ~tu11e is s uppose d to li e , th e re is gat h l" rl' d a part y of s ix n1•c n a 1; d o ne yo u n;.:
la tly. Ea c h <>ne hacl lie:t n l uf the l;reat Car1Ju 11 c lc . a nd a ll are
in ~\· ; a rch f o r iL.
'J. 1 lc w it h h is ( \\'<> t r ic nd ,, J'J., r ian and Cy ri l, d-:t c.: r mi ned
g 11i n g- tn t l1 e fat he r ,,f 1:1l! l 1 r i n ccss 1 and th t.: rc h e w o u l d tr y
l1> gain tile Prin ce ss 's Jon:.

tJ !l

If!.

Th e C. 111l«rl1111y l ir/,-.1 ;.re not finished ; n<> one !: as t<> ld

111 or<.: titan o th.» an d :~11 11 H..: •li d 11 1it t L·l l ~lll)' tal e .

11.

In par : l!~ rap h in g", it ;~ n <: cessa r y t<> 11:1\·e co h en;nce; tl1at

is, in g'fli n g fro111 <111e p ~ tra ;..~rap h ro a11ot li e r, the y nntst IH; con ·

11ec tcd in 1l1<>u ,t.:;ht.
12 . 'I'h <.! F: tc·ril· <._> i:n·:1 c· is s upposeil t o lie \..)11 1.:en El izal i<.:tli.
Til e pne!ll pil'lur<:s a knig·l1t ridi11.i.: tn so m e unkn•J\\'ll c·:.t\' e wi t h
a beaut iful lad y . a nd t 11 c 11 he fights wi t h th e dr:tgon wh ic h he
nH.'t: l~ then. ·, a11d is \·ictor ic nts.
13. Through<>ut tile st»ry. t h l! l'rin cess seems t" b e und c r th e
inllu e nce of an1itl1 c r w u 1na11, :ind \\' ,l S ta ug ht nr \\"~I:-\ try in g- t (J
belic:\T ,;!Jc hate<] m en.
l ·~. J t would, therefor,; , IJ<.: a fa vur if yuu w ould send m e a
c heck for 'i-S, t!i c amount <•f y •) ur su lisc riptio•1 for th e presen t
year; or the m vn e y m ay !Je ldt al m y ofTi,. c: _
I S. The Pro!<.:slants he threw <>Ill of offll·e and took a\\·a1·
t l: c i r l:i ll<],; .
I f> .

Bc:in:.; l» >!li Jf ,·dl l':1rkc'I', , :llr. \\' :ilk er :t l"•l1lracto1 liere

-.

.120

CO~Il'OSlTIO>i'

CLEARNESS IN SE:\TENCES-COHERENCE.

A:'\D HHETOI<IC.

5. ll e re I joined a rat her ad,·a n ce1l En g lish co urse for o ne
who ha il had so little work as I.
6. Th ese are th e worrls nf Brut u s whi le m e ditatin g up o n the
dan ge rs that confrontecl th e nati•)n, jn s t aft e r the interview with
Cassius, in A ct J, Sce n e l.
7. On retu rnin g ti> ou r starting puint , nam e ly, where the
dectric cars land their passe n ge r ,; , the land sca pe had as- urn ed
an entire ly different app ea ran ce .
~ . Hnt when th e mea s ure has b eco me a law, what will have
liee n al' co mplished? In th e first place, the prese nt fault y eomli tions " ·"uld gm(lually gi,·e place to a s fi ne a system o( walks as
exi s ts a nywh e re .
9. By day , wh e n s tanding on one of the s ur rounding hill s ,
th e littl e la ke looks like an uncut d iam o nd.
10. \Ve d esire to ca ll yo nr attention to o ur large s t ock of
w:tll papers, se lected from a ll the lea ding fact o rie s in th e Un i1 e d
Sl:ttc,;, in cludi ng e\·cryt hing that is new and a r t ist ic, and as 11·__,
c·arrv th e largest a s,;o r t m e nt o n the Soutb Sicle, w e can g ive you
pr ices ,·e ry mu c h lower than down-tO\\·n stores.
11. O ur select io n of fore ign wall pap e rs are as large nnd as
n irefull y se lecte d as any s t o re in the city, and our p rice,; are
n :r y mu c h lu we r, whi c h yo n will e a s il y sec b y c alling and inves·
tiga tin g for yn nrself.
12. ,\n alba t ross followed a ship that h a d b ee n dri,·e n in to
th e Sonthern ice for a numiJe r of days . Eac h da y th e great bird
L"<lllle at th e ca ll of th e sailors for food.
1.3 . CE clipns, to sa\·e his O\\·n life , killed his fath e r, the king.
i\ft L'r \\-arcl s, h e married t h e king's wife, hi s own m o t h e r, ig norant
tha t it \\'aS SU .
14. Miss E<lw:irtl s kctu rc d with ste re opti cn n vi ews . a t Chi1.:ke rin g llall, with a mu sica l \'oi ce, her brok e n lef t arm in a sl in g,
o n Eg y pt, fiY e or s ix th ousand miles away.
l.'i. In this city of wnnclcrs is an ed ucation a l in stitution prC1 habl y d esti ned t o b e a leacl ing sc hool of t h e \vorl 1l - a y•ntn g
gi a nt ,,·i th a n e ncl O\nn en t fund of m a n y mil l inns of cJ , ,ll ar~, 11p<>n
\Yhich th e peopl e o f America loo k with asto nishm en t.
Hi. llaving n o tifie d my good fri e n d Sir Rnge r th a t I s hould
leave for Lond o n th e next clay , hi s horses were rea<l y at the
appoinkd honr in the evening , attend e d by one o f his grooms.
17. Meeting wi th no ohstrnction to rletai n ns, th e ~lfhance
arrived in fro nt of ti"1 e e nemy by n o on .- ( ~ RA.'.'T.

fur the last twenty yta rs, :incl i\lr. Merto n connected with L. M.
Brown for the p ast s ix tee n year ...; , you ,,·ill n ot IJ c d e aling with
strangers , and w e assure y"u th:H your patronage w ill be apprec iated all<l recc.:i,·e prnmpl atlt'n tion.
17 . She hat es 1\rt hn r, d l' s pises hi s fat h er , and the o nl y s p a rk
of fe e ling s h o wn is t n w artl little l>or rit.

J. \\' hat arc the ru les fo r the tenses o f subordin ~1 te

n:rbs in complex sentences, ancl of th e complemc11 tary intini ti,·e? \ Vhich of the fullo\\' in g· sentences
arc cu r rect? l<. c1nite th e inc o r rect ones:
1. l'eggy , fo r h l' r p ar t, \\·oulcl have li kc d t' ' liave s hown h e r
turban anc11J ir c1 uf p;iraclise al t lic IJ:dl. - Tll .\ CKER.\\" : {;wily
h1ir .
2 . H e w ould not h :l\«.: IH.:cclecl to h m·e Lik en so mu c h trouble
il h <.: had in i<> r llll'd himself hdon:ltand .
.3. It w uul<I lta\·e lic.:c.: n a eru-.:1 t hing to li: t\·e don e t o h ave
tur ned a d ese rving rn au away fr o !ll the dour.

4. A w c.:ek lakr, th o ugh l w oul d hav e giH·:i lllU c h to have
av oicle tl it, I lll et on the t«>ad to the ~ ! ctssulm an ln1n·ing-g ruuncl,
llll a lll Din. - KIPLI>:c ; : J!11/ian1JJud ! Ji11 .
5 . I t wo uld h e worthless, if w e clo so .
6. \\'e s h :il l not suc· cec d if we do nut gr: tnt hint his wi s h .
7. \\'e s hnuld l• >se the fr11i1 s of our p:bt l'n <k:t\·., r,: , if we rnn
counll'r tu th e ,,· ill u f th e p eople.

A' . Illustrate fr o m th e book you :lrc n.::td in g- the
vari o us d t.:\·ice s f"r g-ett in g· l"<ili c rcn cc in t lh: SL'I lt"l' ncc.
L . Sh ow why th e folJm,·in~ senten c es Li ck coherenc e. R e writ e tl1 c n1
1. Passing :d ong t il l' :t\-c.:nu e s of t h e nld to\1·n, our thCJttghts
<!rifted from musi1: t•J pnc:try.
2. The p owe r s for 1n c.:d a coa liti on for their mutual protectio n
and t o main ta in the established urder in Lur.,pc .
3

rrh ere

is a

l1 UJl1bcr

u( )'tli!llg' ft:l !t1\\' S

\';h f )

321

~ rt! steadi ly

going t o th e i>a d, and num cTnus ha,·e Uc".' n th e complaints of
th e prope rt y -own e rs in th e v ill:cgc of th e ir 1kpr-.: <lati.,n s .
4 . Two train loads o f reind ee r wi lh 11inety - t l1re·~ La p p s , Norwc• gia ns , a11cl Finns , in c lu ding halt a 1l• >1.c:t l bridal coup le s to
take c are ot the m , passe d through Chica:-;<> this morning-.

21
I

j

.,

. ·t

.,
322

CO~IPOSITION

AND RHETORIC.

18. Tapes try b urlaps are be ing largely u sed for clecorutin~.
\Ve keep a co mplete assortme nt in stock and o ur pri ces a re lowe1·
than you ca n buy else wh e re .
19. Whe never Sir R oge r went to chllrch, the people wou ld a ll
,,·ai t until he had walked up the aisle tu h is pe w a n d sat dow n ,
before any of th e m w oulll sit do\\'n.
20 . She wo uld n ot hm·e e,·e n wanted to ha,·e dune s uch a
th ing if she had known the effec t.
21. \\l hen at l:is t he hec:ime kin g , an<l, not nnnatnrally, was
pnfTe cl up with prid e, althcrngh a goocl rnl e r. he learn e d of his
unsu s pected crime .
22. Cap tain Evan s sh owetl h is fi ghting prope n sities by h aving
the boat a rm e d with lo:iclcd rifl es, :ind th e crew w as in s tru cted
to use them if the C hile:ins o ffere<l an y opp(lsitio n to the escape
of the refu gees; bnt fortun:itely they were outwi tt e d and international comp li cations were a\'erte d.
23. She has in t he meantime been stc:idily l os in~ h e r money,
and one day found herself yery nearl y h o mel ess, that being a ll
she saved out of her small fortune .
24. But the re are perso ns whom we think th e w orlcl o f, and of
whom we a lways ask advice , and their n ature is su c h that we
h ave perfect confi d ence in th ei r counsel.
2.5 . He mak e s n s eage rly watch the march o f J\farrni o n a nd hi s
band to th e n or th , and b reat hlessly is the o utcome o f Constance
De Re,·erley's tria l awaited.
26 . Find ing- that hi s emls coul d n ot be accomp li s h ed by fair
m ea ns , t h ose of a baser sort were reso rte1l to .
27 . Everybody we n t away having' any p re ten ti ons to p o liten ess.- 1 "' 11A CKE1<.A \" .

28. Fo 1111de <l in 1833 for th e educat ion o f p oo r orphans by
Stephen Girard , t he col leg'e h as been e nlargctl from time to tim e.
29. He knew o f a donkey owne,1 liy :i ce rtain " Father
Adam," whi ch h e th o u gh t would be satisfac tory ; so he went to
F at h e r A da m, a nd , after some bickering, M odes tin e , th e donkey,
was purchased ,

CI! ,\J>T !rn XJX .
FORCE I :\ SE:\T E:\l'ES:
l'ERI O lll C IT\', 1\ N D

E'.\ll'IL\S l S, LEI\GTII .
1' 1 \l{ ,\LLELI S~ l.

118. Emphasis Defined.·- Up t o this t ime th<.: sentence
h as b ee n co n s idc ru 1 o nl y from th e point of Yi c w of
clea rn ess. L's11:1 ll y, lwwc,·er, a sent e nce is n lit ~1 cu'pt­
a l>lc wh e n i t is nic..:n.: ly clear; it slJ<Jtild also be ef'kct i\·e. \\'c mu st ~i,·e each sente nce a fu rin whi d1 will
br in g ou t all the strcng·th th e re is in th e idea st:t tc d.
S e nt e n ces in which this is successfully don<.: arc calkd
e mphati c . l n ma ny cases emphasis dt.:p cncls on the
numbe r and the ch o ice o f words, bu t in quite as many
it depe nds on the arrang-eme nt of th e p ;irts of th e sen te nce. "Thy n ame be hallow e il" is ,,·cak. "Tf:tl lowed he Th y nam e" is strong. \'ct the differen ce is
solely one of arrnni.;e m e nt.
119. Emphasis Produced by Arrangement.-- S t.: nt c11ccs
Jacking- emphasis of arra n gemen t g-i,·c tile \\Tit e r's
itlea in a weake n ed fo rm. In the fo ll owi11g s<.:ntcncc ,
"Achille s hurlc<l h is sp e ar, \\·hich cntcrcd th e lJOdy <•f
hi s oppo nent ancl g-ave him a dcath \\'ott 11 d thro u;.:h an
opening in hi s armor, " the l:i ;; t phras<.:, a ""r t of
postscript, forces us to think of th<.: opc11in;.: in th r
armor :lt a momen t when th e writer cl csi r c s lo imprc~s
o n us most d eep ly the fact th at Il cct.or \\'as m ortally
\\' Oun ded. A very slight change in \\'Ording· and a u>n sicler able chan ge in ar r ~m :;:-e m c nt will gi ,-e the ideas
the com parative importance the writ e r inte ncls them to

J,

~.

'·•,

I
i

CO:'-lPOSITIO:\ :\:\ D IU I ETUIUC.

h ave . Th en the sentence becomes : ''Thro u g h an
o p e nin g- in the Trojan's armo r , Achil ks hurl e d hi s
s[>e:ir into th e b ody of his op p onent , w oumling- him
nH irtally . " Take an ot h e r exampl e : ''By munifi ce ntl y
p atron iz ing: wri te rs t h e R o man Emperors se cured th e m
ag·ain st \\·:mt, th c reby g: i\·i n g- th e m tim e and opportunity f"r the cJc,·c lop m cnt of th eir art , tr L~ C fr o m all
petty care s a nd a1nict ie s a bo ut the ir in co 111es . " As we
fini s h the scntencl', we think •· free fr o m all petty cares
an<1 anxiet ie s ahont thei r in comes" to be the mo st
imp<>rtant idea . Bu t seco nd th o u g-ht g i\·cs pre cede nce
t n '' for th e de ,·elopmcn t of their art." :'o.lore<>ve r , the
i..:-r:ttnmat ical su li.iL'L°t of the scnlcncc , clea rl y t.h e thin g:
"c con d in i111porl:lll l' L' in the scnt c nce, is ll<lt pre,.;cntcd
t t1 us S()lJJl ennug·h. l f \\·c merely sh if t the' phrase s ,
th<.:! se ntenc e r eads : · •The R um an En 1perors , !Jy mu niJice ntly p :Llro ni zin g· write rs , sccurec l th e m :1 g:a inst want,
g·i,·i n g: the m freedom from all p e tty care,.; :1ml anxi e ti e s
:iliou t th ei r income . and time antl op portunity fu r the
dc\·clopmcnt nf their ar t." Thi,.; , h o\\·cver , is h ::irdly
sat isf:tctory: the main stnternent in fn rm is," sec11red
t h L'l11 :q.'.·:li11,.;t \\·:lil t" ; th e rna in s tatclllL'll t in th o 11;..:·ht is,
" ~: i\ i11 g- th c lll tim e :tlld oppurt11 11it y fo r tlll; d en~ l o p ­
m cnt t>f the ir :1 rt." lf we \U>tild g- in: t!i l! l·hid idea
al l possihle e mphasis, w e m ust w r ik the se nt e nce as
fnllo\\·s: "The Rurn:i n Emperor,.;, h y th l' ir n11111ifice nt
patr(ln:tg-c, \\·hich scc11recl wriLLTS frnm \\·:u 1t and fr ee d
th e m fr nm ca re :1hout t h e ir in co m es , lef t lit e rary 111 c: 11
tim e a ncl opptl rtunit~· for the tle \·elop111L'llt uf th ei r
art." T h e im p o r tance of emphasis i,.; sh0\n1 by th e
fa ct that in s o me c:1ses a shi ft of ar r :rng-c 11 ;c: 11 t actn ally prudnccs a cliffcrcnce in m ea ning-. " l t w as a
,;rand si ~ht as th e g- re c n and bbck, min g-led w it h fire ,
shone o ut vi,·itlly in th e g-loom; h11t it wa s hri e f," is

'I

!

11 o t the s ame in m eani ng as, " It was brief, but it \\· as a
gTa ncl s i;.;-ht, wh e n th t.:: ~Teen a nd blac k, mingled \\'ith

tire, shn ne out , -i\·iJly in the g·luo m. "
Th e re ,.;nlts of o ur i11\'estigati o n of these three s e nt e nce s m a y ] )C summ ed up a s fo1lo\\·s : force , :tncl
so m e tim es ev en meaning, d e pe nd upo n cmpha,.;i s, and
empha s is o ft e n d epe nds upo n a rrang-e ment. The 111 0,.; t
emph a ti c places in th e sente nce arc, in the order of
cumparat i\·e impo rta nce , th e b eg innin g- and the enc1 .
T o m ake our s e nten ce s e mphatic, we mu st strive to
m ake the m h e gin aml " e nd with w o rds th a t <1escrve
di stinction ." '''
120. Emphasis Sccurecl by Violation of the Normal Order.1n Eng·li,.; h there is a scriuns li mitati<Jn u po n our
P"''·cr tu 1110,·e c lauses and p h rase:; alJ<>u t.
In L atin
th e adj ec ti ,·e ma y , without o bscurity, be se par:-tt e ll by
man v \Yonb fr o m th e 11 0 1111 it m odifie,.; . A gain, in th e
L:1ti;1 f!>r ",\1q.:- nstus n : \Yardecl V e r ;,:-i l " ( ,.;incc the
acc u sa ti \T and th e n<>111in :tt i\·e l'ndin)..;·,.; arc cii,.,tinl'll ,
th e 1mler of th e \\·o r<ls i,.; o f no imp orta nce .' \\' c t·an
,.;;t\', .. c\ ug·u st 11s rl'\\'ardcd Verg·il ," " \ 'crgil 1\ 11g·ustllS
r L';\·a nkd," " Vc r g·il rcw ard eLl A11g·u s tus ," a11d .. \'er ;; il
1 \ t1g· 1 1 ~;t. t1s rc\\': trded ," \\' ithl>ut e \·c r leaving th e r e a de r
i11 dl!ttlit 1ha1 it. \\' :ts 1\11 g n ,.; t11s \\' h ogan; s"rn c tlii n ~ to
\'l· r ~ il.
Tn En ;.:- lish \\' C ha ,·e almo st nu inll cctiona l
c·nd in g·s to i11clicate t h e r e l:ition o f o ne wo rd to ano t her ,
a nd im portan t as e mplu sis is , it 11111st ah\·ay,.; yield t o
L"< 1h c re nce a 11 d to t.h e natural English order- a n or~c r
rn o re fav o rabl e to coh e re nce th an to e mph :i,.; is . Still.
,;hifts for t he s a ke of emphasis fr o m th e normal order
o f subject and i ts modifi e rs , predicat e and its mod ifi er s ,
are by no m ean s im possib le even in Eng-Ii sh . Th e
,;e nte n ce s below are eapable o f several a rr nn i:e m e nts,

unr l'OS!Tl(l:'\

,\'.\"]>

FORCE IS SESTESCES.

Rl!ETO!UC.

each one giving to the sense a slightly different emphasis:
1. Thi s policy is , indeed , subject to limit:itions.
2 . Subject to limit:itions , in deed . this policy is.
3. Limitations upo n this policy inde ed , th e r e are.
1. He would g-o into the jail.
2. Into the j:1il he wo uld g o.

1. T h is seems tou triYial fo r n o tice. yet h e noticed it.
Too triYial for not ice this see m s , yet nnti cc it he
did.
3 . He n o ticed th is, th ough it seemed tou trivial for
no tice.
2..

1. H e groped blindly about as soon as he was in the

d a rk.
2. As soon as he was in the dark, h e g-rop ecl blindly
about.
1. To keep an y ne w sc heme of ~·o\·ernmcnt from
bcncling- under th e force of realiti es . i,.; hard.
2. H:ircl it is, to keep any new sch e m e of 1-!'<>Yernment
from h c nclin g und e r the force of r ea li ties.
3 . Hard it i,.;, under the force of r ealities, to keep
fr o m lJcnd ing any ll<.:\1· scheme o f guycrnm<.:nt.
1. He wa s, th l' n, entire ly without fo rce of character.
2. F orce of character then, he wa,.; cntircly without.

It is evident th: it 11·e may keep a sentence idi o matic
aml cohe rent and yet shift its parts about a g-ood deal,
:1ml tha t s hiftin ~· the subject or the prc dic:ite, or a part
of either, out oE it s no rmal position will g-ive th e
transposed wo rcls emphasis.
121. Periodicity an Aid to Emphasis.- The normal
English sentence is loos e. In a lo ose sentence, the
sentence w o ulcl be g-rammaticall y complete if it stopped
at so m e p o int before th e actua l encl. "I foll just as
.J o hn ::i.ppcared around the corner " is loose, because
" I fell" is a complete grammatical state ment. A

327

periodic se ntence is one which, if it stopped ~1t any
point before the last word, would be grammatically
incomplete. "Just as John appe are d aro und the corner,
r fe ll " is periodic. In the foll o wing extract the first
sentence is periodic , the second loose:
B y a curiou~ irony of fat e , the places to which w e are se nt
whe n health d eserts us are o ften singularly beautiful. O ft e n,
too, they are places we have v isited in form e r years, or seen
briefly in passing b y, and ke pt c1·er afterwards in pi o us memory;
and we please ourselves w ith the fan cy that w e shall repea t many
vivid and pleasurable sensations, and take up aga in the thrc:ul
of our enjoyment in the same spirit as we Je t it fall. - STEVE:-<SON:

Ordered Sou th.

The periodic sentence aids emphasis in two ways :
first, it often changes the no rmal order of the sentence ;
second , it is li ke ly to be more compact and stro nge r in
arrangement than the corresponding loose se ntence .
A lo ng loose sentence, which is both orde rly a nd em phatic, is ha rd t o write, the temlcncy be ing t o spoil
emph a sis and o rder by dragging in a num ber of min o r
claus es after the main clause. The ,.;cntencc mak es
one firm stride, then limps un e ve nly thruugh two o r
three lines more. "Nothing,'' says Stc\·ensun, "mon:
often disappoints th e car than a s e nt ence ,.;u lenrnly
and sonoru usly prepared a11d weakly finished." That
Burke, a no ticeably pcri o llic writer. is als o a noti ce ably
co mpact an<l emphatic one, is shown by th e fC>l l ow i11 ~
typi cal sc11tcnce:
Hut, Sir , in wishing to put an en d to pernicionsexpe riments.
<lo n ot m e an to preclude the fullest inquiry .

r

Consider o n the other hand the shambling gai t of
this loose sentence :
The king insisted on iuse rting numerou s stip ul ati<Jns in th is
trea ty, which made it hard to get th e co nsent ,,f th e •ll her nati<J11.
and h e \\'n11ld nnt g- iYe way a s ingle in c h

\Vt.: g e t the main id(' a m •Jllr min ds \\·h e n \ h' c' (<ill(' tn
"lreaty "; \\' ith n« ·ry :t<ldl'd st:itement we :trc forced
i nse=rt in tile tcr; h ·d l'c~u. :e
llllI!H_·r 1 1u...; -..,tipuLttluJ!:-\ '."<.'\:1ti•.1t1 :-.. l11 the c<l!Hilll'rt.. '. <l nati():J, \\'(>llld
n<>t yi (' ld ::in inch, it \\':ls difTicttlt to make a treaty.
t1 i

In this St.:cund furm, ail llit.: suuonlinate propositions
arc placed subordinately, ;ulCl arc so stated lhat they

!;

I

t·

"

main statem<.:11t itsl·lt is forced lw pcrimlicitv into the
most l og-ical a11d tlw most cmplutic place. To bring
this about, c<>1hidcrablc ch:u1~cs h:tn: hccn made , but
when a write r <>n ee decides th ~t r :i. s c·nll' tHT ts t'"' l"<>s e.
he mu,.;t not hesitate~ tci thro\\" a11·a>· the loose form
e ntircl_1·, and build up a n e 11·. p c riod1c structure.
Try
nev e r to leavc 111 yo u r w riting· ]1111:.;". rambling-, loose
sente nces.

Notc the ga111 in empha s is that crJ1ncs from chan:,:- ing·
the s e loos e s e 11te11Cl's t11 pcrin r.lic r_i:ics:
l.

It

\\' nu!~l

s till 11:t\· e !ic cn
a IJe au :.if 1:l ~ l.·1..: n L' if t he ~un
!1ati no t h ct> !l s h i n i :~ h ~o

\': o nid stiil h;l\·c !1c C'rl a Li·::~lLiti­
\\"itil the sun shin-

l•riglitl y

fui ' '-''" tw.

111agniiiu..:1Jt (111e with tlit: :-,1111
~; IJinin g . :111d :1: tlH· .•...: 1111 L' tinic.

i11:-.-~. th L' intlest_Td1~tl i lc,; :-:0\\."t.Tlllt"SS

in the ;1ir, :t11d

S()lll<.~ thing- 11(

of

:111

i11cle~l·rih;dil<·

~\\·cettH:_· s~ .

cntnl)ined \\·irh a
~ u~ge slion of purity, in thcc:t..«1r1 t: !·: :-:. p 1...:e.
2. 1>atcnts \\· e re issu e d :tfter\\'an1:-:. in nia11y c~t;::. e :-. . !n1t
these c ;1 tr i 1:~:-;. :tn' \ 't..·r:· in 1pc1r +
:ant ,,.JH:n.· tlH ·y \\'t..'ft..~ n~1t, :h
till~ )' ~ln: lhl· r~,11nd~1 t i11!1 llf the
title tr> th e hnd.
3. '!'he tttrn ns t care llll ht lie
t.c1ken in copying· tlie·;e i t elll.'-'.

tilt~ :--.11\!~~ · · .... 1i ,J1 1

p11ri1 y i11 !ll P 1,,_·h·itr, 1-ri ..; p
ice , it \\':ts truly n1~tg-nili('ent.

: 1 !·1 ·

: 1l

t Ile

a11i • H111t

i....;.

(ii

lll411lt·\·

!i,>1-

tt!l. l lhh·;-t (l ~ii

Lt1..'.l'l1

Ilic (:'.Jl1 '-. idt·r.t:i,1:1

1:i\'<·:~

~tf t t·!"\\' ~ lrd :->

\':ere
\\·h e re

•·nt ri ('s,

i:-;:--. ucd.

But

tinn 1Jf ti: ~ t.i:lc flf the L.llld,
an.· \' e r~p 1111p1-if't.ant.
·'·

lnl.: 11pyin~tile :-:. eiten1s,the

i1t11111~t

l··art..·

n111:-. t

he l a ken.

1 l • f i> :1~vLtt 1 .. 11

tlic
;t !

IH 'l l l i l

!I:I ' I

( ·(

j ..·. Ltl:t· 11 (• II

;l

Ct1111p:1r : 1ti,·1... · l:· c:1....;.:-· 11L1ttl'f

it)

;L

lll;lkL'

J(1l)~l._'

_.. ;, t 'll -

tcnce periodic. l 11\·crsi11n uf the cbusc.s is 11!1('11 ;,u(licic11t.
1. 'J'J;f •ll !," h ! d 1d11't want ~ ti
\\ '<: ?11 , tl 1011gh I rlirln"t
I.
\\," ;lll l

->

it I

garrul it\·

ill

I \\ "C n t
2 . [ n :tll the t!irct..' c: t ..:.l' :-: \ 1."t'
h:t\"C n1e11li111 1cd. ii i . . c1 1n iJ,i1H·d

g·u

}~I 1 .

It i.; ,·.,mbim: J with gre:-ct

all the three cases

1

we ha\'e mentiun l'll.

with g-n: :Ll g:1r r u i it\

1. II..: r e li e d f1 1r l1 i"' fh·f<"nce
the tr11tll , and (111 hi ~ 11'.\"ll
rt.'('og-n i1.e11 h• iJlt ". .:. 1 ,.

hnt]1

<1n

2.
t1r :-; t

:1.11d

ff > h is

u1111c

lie rc l !t..·11 f··r L l·-. rh· f1,,_· 11\__ c

1.

!Jt•

t J"lll )1

~. ::a,·e

Iii:-:.

ffi

l

O!l

2.

[ g"a , . .__. 110 c rL'd e tH.' t:' to hi:-:.
j> tJ ll11,

~ l'l'l ") tl1l.

t.1i:-.tiugu i ~i1ed

n ci tl i•_-r

1

....

l 1h

i ~~ 11·1! r1~ f '!' \..·

'" ~

Li y ti1e c..:it:anh_.. . ,. . ,

;;~¥1

!·:1t r 11 -.. . :t'...'.:( in .

1!i;111 l~y

1 •i l )J i~;

111 r tu

ptJilll

J. Bur11 s •t<..·: ~un. is <l1 ~ ti:i·
guisl1ec.1 iJ:• tile c h: arne:-;"' of ilis
collct'ptinns, and l1y tl1cir i1n-

. :. .

: t ll'J

cr1....:11t..· J ~ l"C

tir ~l

~ecnn<l.

the impctu11\h f•)rl ·,_ · ·d
( ' .\IU \"IF:

t2

Sulis t iltttio 11 of a sttli"nl1n;1tc f"r a c:11iird111,Llc c111 1jnnctinn, \\'itb rc:trr:rn~:e1~1cnt, pnicl11ec,; l'l'rinrlicity.

le ~ ,

ff1rcc, 111 t.:qu~d Jll(' ~h­

pett1<i11:-;.

urc.

111~

\ ' fllll"(·ption~.

/ ...L'. i/_I" ( 1 / /

rnnthcr had.

p:ilcnt~

th ey were Jlq!, tli~:-..e
\\'hi c h are the fott1llb·

~it

w

1)

( )11\\· ,

122. Devices for Gai.niug Periodicity. - I 11 111;111y c:1sc·s 11
l~

matte r , hut rny

rn:lll\' c :.l,:cs

i11 ~ t~::td
~~- \ \"(•Tl ,

:1 1•-

:1rt '

like tht· i]tTil '<

·.tr:t l ·;l'rl

j)(> r niwl· d

I hncl nn feelittg ahnu t th e
in

n 1 1·rt_-.:_:· :1 .~ ~c · ..._

T l1v

•

t l n i·,.
r1)\Vl'<l

Bl' c :tu se the king, d e u.: rrnincd

1 ! ! ' ' I t ~·,;\'.»\ .,,

'f' ):,_·

.j .

f,'/IJJ/ .\

~ '~

Though l h a rl
ahout the 111:tttvr,

tlr\

kcling

111~ -

111uthcr

l1:Lfl .

RcarrangTmcnt and the use "f a part1cip1:il l.'r•nstrnc·ti on 111 place ut a clause, \\'ill ).:'i\·e pc:rio d 1cit y.
I.

JI

t·

qui c i.! •; dq""·tL-t!.

slTH.:e lit: ,,·:1s a

L.
tltat

l.':1n·f111

Y~ it1 ~J1011ld

\'•Jll

\•:ill n"t

tl~f':1

11 1 :~n.
n· --- 1) ;\-t '

\\;1 s lc

rc: c l.-

1.

1~c ! nt...:·

a c: Lrcful

Jl L t !l ,

i: c·

r11: i l·Li :; r\vjJ:tl"tt·(l

I I ;I \ ' 1!l

~ ·.- '

t tl l

'l '

: ·( . ( ' ; \ .' . '

:~~~;;
:--~

CO~IPOSIT!O'.\

lessly, but u se earnestly, th ose
early years of yours, a ncl you
should re m e mber that all the
duties of h e r c hild re n t o England may be summe(l up in
two w o r<ls- in<lu stn· a nrl
h ono r .

..\:-ID

RJ!ETOHIC.

lessly, but ea rn es tl y use , these
early days o f yours, remember that all the duties of h e r
ch il dre n to England may be
summed up in two w o rdsin<lustry an<l honor. - R USKIN:
Crmcn of /{ 'i/d 0117-cs .

123. The Periodic Sentence Open to Abuse.- Students
are ofte n told to m a ke th e ir style a s p e riodic as poss ible. But pe ri od icity is liy no m eans always dcsirahle.
The periodic and th e loose sente nce have e ach a spec ial
use: it takes o ne st yle to relate a hall g-ame, another to
prove that Milton is a great poet.
In simple narrati ve
o r descripti,·e \\'riling- pc-rioclic structure is like ly t o be
pompous. In m or e formal \\'riting the pe ri o dic se ntence
fi nds a natural place. Th e bnlk o f good st ori e s a re
told in easy, natural, loose sentences.
l\r o st g-ood
essays contain a large number o f peri o di c sent e nces.
Th ere are ot he r reasons than a lack of approp riateness why uni for m pe riodicity wou ld produce an unn a tural style.
Since English is an unin flec t ed tong-ue,
many English se ntences cannot be made periutlic.
"Just as t he cart came n ea r me, uff th e ha y- mow,
bre a ki n g my arm, r fe ll , " is not E11i;lish. In point o f
fact, sentences in 11·1iiL·h the se11se is s uspe nded until
the very en d are c o mparatin~ ly rare in English.
J o hn so n , one of th e most pcrinc.l il· o f English m e n
of le tters. does n ot aYc rage o,·c r fo ur periodic sentences t u the page. :'ll o r c <l\·cr , th e suspension of th e
sense .characteristi c of the periodic sentence is o ften
t oo great a strain upo n the rea(le r's attention; for
exampl e :
In the beautiful village of W eim ar, in the springtime o f 1832,
ju st as the dial was touching noon, there sat in bis easy chair,
\vith min(l tlitting hither and thithe r, the !,,'Tent poe t Goethe.

FCrnCE f 1' SE;\TEl'CES.

331

SurruunJed by friencls near and dear , whu h ad failed tu bar th e
doo r against the death angel, be neath the wings o f the shado wy
m essenge r that hoverecl ob tru s ively near, h e was slowly breathing
forth hi s life. Whil e he still fe lt the warm clasp of th e h a nd in
hi s, while friendly v o ices so unded yet near, while the lo\·ed
fa ces were jn st beginning to fa<le from hi s sight, mistakin g th e
approach of death fo r even tide , h e , lifting hi s almost palsied
h an<l an<! bec ko ning to w a nl the open wind o w, c ried. "M ore
lig l1t."

124. Partial Periodicity Sometimes Desirable.- Si11ce the
p e ri odic se nte nce is m ore or le s s foreign to English, it
is ofte11 stiff. 1\t tim e s, even wh e n a se nte nce is
undul y loose, \\' C cann ot make it pe ri od ic and at th e
sam e tim e natural in form. In these cases we m ay
make a part of the sente nce periodic, or mak e the
whole se nte nce so ne arl y pe riodic that \\'e may call it
"periotlic in e ffect. " In the following sentence, t o
turn one clause into th e periodic form r em oves the
difficulty:
In the hunclre <l an(! fifty years which h a d cl:qhed from the
landing of th e Pil grims to the o utbrea k of ho stiliti es, the Colonists had bee n \\·ont to re~ula te thcir domestic affairs in the ir
ow n wa y, and to Id F11gland t ak e C<ll"< of lh rir fo r l'l:i;·n affair s i n
,.,.t11n1 fur ht'r pro!t'df,111.

If th e italicized part o f th e se ntence r eads , " and in
r e tnrn fo r pro tccti o11 b y En g land , tu kt her take care
of the ir foreign a ff airs," the se nte nce b eco m es satis-

facto ry.
In the rambling, loo se sentence next g-i ,·en we have
resort to p e riodicity o f effect.
Two or three th o u sand logs are fastene d together so that a
raft is made, an d oars or swee ps to g uide it are hun g o n eac h
eml , and then the raft is ready to g o <! own the ri ve r, manned hY
ten or twe lve men.

If we try to m ake this sentence completely periodic.
we get this:

'

i
'

FOJ<C E I:'\ SE:'\TE:'\CES .

Yet the ordinary sch oo l or college th eme h as one p e rm a nent se ntence form: unc s tude nt \\'rites hi ,; three
p ag-es \\'ith o ut a sin g·Jc sentence o\·cr t\\'e nty o r under
ten words Jun:,:· and \\'ilh o ut a \·ariatiun from th e s impl e
dcdarati,·e furm; th e s tll lkn t ne xt him \\'rit es hi s s tint
in sentences all abo ut forty \\'UrL1s in lcn i,:-th , and :tll
uf the crm1cst form u f compound statem e n t. ::'\otc
h o\\' m11ch stron g-e r th e secu m1 extract b e low is than
th e first, because the sen te nce forms in it arc more
v<iri e d.

Two thousand logs haYing bcc11 faste ned togtt hc:r into a raft,
and oars a1Hl sweeps to s t<-c r it h a\·ing been hun g on eac h end,
th e ten o r twl'ln· rn en wl10 nre to ~u id e it d n wn !ht· ri\·er are
all that is l:t <.: ki11 g .

This is much bcttn th a n the first furm; it is clt.:ar,
c o mpact, and 11 o t un emphatic. Yet m o st r ead e rs \\'Ould
feel that it \\·as pompous - that a big--so umling- sentence ha<1 b ee n fi tted to a little fac t. It is better,
because le ss inappropriately formal, to write:
The raft is mark l >y f a~tc ni n g togethe r tw o or three th o usa nd
lugs. Th e n, wh en th e oars and sweeps to steer it arc hun g on
one end, it is ready for tl 1c ten or t wch·c m e n who arc to gu ide
it down the ri,·e r.

1. l we nt into !he p a rlor, an old-fashioned roo m furni shetl
accord in gly. In th e ce nter was a table o f some ula c k w .... c1 ,
with sle nder legs and glass caste rs. Un the p o li s he d top of thi s
was an ol1l lamp, wh ose s tand was <1f 1.Jn,n ze ; in one l'orm:r
\\·as a r o se\\"U<Hl g r:t tHl pian o , wh u ~t! kl·:; :-; \\·ere yelluw w it h :t g' L'.
Next it s tllo<l a dark-coln rt: cl m usic stan d, p n.: tlily ort 1.t mented
with inl ai <l w"rk.
Th e c hairs w e re "f th e old -fashio ne d,
s tra igh t- bac k ,·a r ie ty . Ou the wall hung th e famil y P"rtraits in
their h eavy , gilt fra me s , the n t\\·n or three landscapes in o il.
A tall, oval mirror was al so s tanding li ke a sen tin el ovl' r th e
room. The windows w e re low, with in s ide shut te rs, and u1r ·
taiD c d with fin e lace.
2. Ile found him self in a large aparlment of p o li s he d ,;to ne.
Th e re \\·e re three floors; o ne o n eac h of th ree s idt: -< : all s im ila rl y
curta ined with t apestry. The fo urth s ide w a~ o cl·upi,· d IJy tw"
lar ge window s and a g reat s ltJne c himne y -piece·, c dn..-d 1«itli tl •c·
arm s u f the l\laletroits. Uet tis recog nizer! the ucar ings , :ind wa s
gra t ilie<l to fintl himse lf in su c h g ood hand s . The room wa s
stron g ly illu mi uate d ; but it con tained l itt le f urnilurc except a
heav y ta b le and a c ha ir or tw ll, the h earth wa s inn o ce nt u[ fi r<:.
and the pavement was but sparse ly st re wn with n1 s ht·s cle:trl y
m~111y clays old.- STE\'EXSO:\": iii,· .5ir<' ti,- .1/aldroi/' .1 Door.

The first se nt e nce 1s periodic, bu t it is so short that
it t1 oe s n ot s ee m stiff. The second sente nc e is almost,
thoug-h n o t quit e , periodic in form. antl is ce rtainly periodic in effect.

125. Monotony of Sentence Structure Destructive to Force.
At this point \\'e mu st a;..;:tin ex te nd <i ur nution o [ th e
inllm:n ce the fo rm uf sc 11tL·11ccs ha s nn th e furcc <>f what
,,. e \\'rite. Th e lcn;..;th an d the c:nk nce of se ntences
may con tril ntle rn11ch Lo th e for ce and the nH.: aning.
One kind of itka 1kn1:mds sh <>rl, i11 f"rm al statements;
:rnoLhcr, !011:,:·, f"r111al u11c s . t\ l·co rdin ;.; ly, in g«itJd \\'riling- there is :tl\\·ays some ch a n ;,:e fn>Jll bri ef and s imple
t o ext e nded a nd in 1-.>1n·d fonn,;. ii [oreo \· c r, , ·ariation
of form and lcng·th i;-; necessary merely to ~n· oi<l m onoto ny. Ste ycns o n, a \\'ritcr \\·hose s tyle is noted for
excellence of fo rm, remarks in this co nn ec Liun:

126. Variation of Sentence Structure.- The simplest.
kind of variatio n in th e structure is from short tu lo n g
sentences. A string of short sentences prod 11ccs an
effect of distract ing je rkin es s and e\"en CJf se nsa t i()n a lism. In the first uf the fo llo\\'ing- e xtract s. th e style;

th e one rnl c is 11\ be infinit e ly ,·ario1t s ; to inkrcs t,
to d isappoint , to s1trpri sc, atlll yet sti ll to g ratify; to be e 1·er
chan g ing, a s it " ·ert', tile ,;t it ch , :rn cl yet still to give the effec t
of a11 in gt> ni o us neat ness .- STE \ 'E :o; so:-;: O i1 .\ {i111 c: 7;·r1111ica!
Elf'me11ts of Style in Lili'rnl:in ·.
I

l

j

·,,1

.1.l5

COMPOSITI0:'-1 A:-.:D HJIETOR!C.

FORCE IN SENTENCES .

is unpleasa ntly ch (J ppy ; in the sernnd it is both choppy
a nJ se nsati o n a l :

till they outgro w the g oo<l appropriated to their satisfaction, as
it is frequen tly o b served of cwarice and ambit io n, ye t t heir
imm ed iat e te nd e n cy is to so m e m ean s o f happin ess re ally e xis t in g , antl g e nerall y wi t hin the prosp ec t. Th e m ise r a lway s
imagines that th e re is a certain s um th a t will fill hi s h ear t to t he
brim; and e \·e ry ambiti o us man, lik e King Pyrrlrns , h as an
acqui s iti o n in his thou g hts that is to te rminate his lab o rs , afte r
whi c h he s hall pass the res t o f his life in ease o r ga iet y , in
re p ose or devo ti o n .-J OHN so :-.r: Th e Namh!er .

.1,H

l. T he U n ive rs ity offi c ia ls ha ve re ce ntl y c h ange d the reg ula t ion c o ncer ning- th e p a \"l nen t o f Univers ity du es . By so d o ing
they pl a ce <l a great im posi tion upon th e stud e nts. F o rm e rly
stutle n ts we re all o we d ten clays in whi ch to pay their tuition.
Thi s rul e was e ntirely sat isfac to r y to the stude nt s . !\:'"" th ey
must pay th e ir t u it io n o n the firs t da y o f t he qll a rt e r. This
ch an g e cause s th e stllde nt need le ss tro ll b le . H e is n• •W co mp e lled to st a nd in line two or three h"u rs , wa iting tn pay his
bi ll s. Ju s t b e [o re he rea ch es the wind ow, h e fincl s that it is tim e
[o r his class . If he wai ls antl pays his bill, he is ab sent from
hfs clas s. If h e gncs to class h e is co mµ ell e d to s tantl in lin e
aga in fo r two h o urs befo re he can pay hi s bill.
2 . Th e b a r b a r ians p osted a t H ippo -Z a rytus p e rce in~d his
ar my as it clc-sce nd<.! <l from t he m o u ntai n.
\\' hne c o ll l<I the Cart h agi n ians b e g oin g- ? Hun ge r , no d o ubt,
w as llrg ing th e m n n ; a n <l, di s trac ted hy th e ir s uffe rin g-s , they
were coming in spite of th e ir weakne ss to g-ive battle . But th<!)'
tllrned to th e r ig- h t ; th ey we re fl ee ing-. Th e y mi g- ht he o ve rtak e n and he all c rn sh ecl. T he har ha ria ns clashe cl in pllrsu it of
them .
T he Cartha ,g in i: rn s \\' Crc c he cked ]),· the r i,·e r . It \\';ts wi de
this lim e , :in d th e \\"L'St \\' ind h:ul nnt Ilee n bl n \\' ing-. S o me
crosse rl by s w irnmin g- and th e rl·> t 0 11 t he ir· s hi«ld s . Th ey
re sum c cl the ir ma rc h. N i.~ ht fe ll. Th ey \\' e re Ollt .,f s ig ht.
[From a tra11 slalit1n u [ FlalliJert' s S ,1/,11111111";·

A s ucce ssi o n o f lo11 b; se nt e nce s , o n tlw ot he r ha nd.,
p r o du ce s e xa ctl y the o pposite effec t from cho p pin e ss
and sen sat io nalism . Th e writ er see ms r e spec ta ble, but
p o mpous; th e re ader is b ored am1 sometin1 e s p e rplexed. In this r e spect J o hnson's style is as had as
any o ne's.
O f the p ass ions w it h w h ich t he mitH1 o f man is a g itated, it

may be obse rve d , th a t th ey n atu ra lly ha stc n to wards th e ir o wn
exti nctio n, by in c it ing- a nd q u icke ning the atta inmen t o f th e ir
obj e cts . Thus fe a r urg-es o u r Ai~ h t, and des ire :111imatcs our
progress ; and if th e re are so me whi ch perhaps may be indulged

The u se o f a lo n g s ent e nce in each o f th e fir s t t,,. n
extracts and a sho rt s e nte nce in the third o n e , wo uld
have increas ed th e ir effectivene ss . On e of th e lJe st
d e vices for gaining fo r ce is to inse rt a long se ntence
am o n g a successi o n o f sh o rt o nes, o r a sh o rt o n e am o ng
a su ccess io n o f lo ng on e s. The s e ntence o f a d iffer e nt
t v p e fr o m th e oth e rs is there b y gi\·en p ro min e nce .
An y gi ve n bit o f writing ma y , howe\·e r, p ro pe rl y
have one prevailing type o f sentence . Sho rt s e nt e nce s
are marked lJy co lloquial c ase and rapidity; lu ng- se nt e nces, hy care fnl fo retho ught and di g- nit y. Na tura ll y ,
th e sh o rt ty pe is m o re us eful in th e m o r e in fo r ma l
kind s o f wri tin g -lette rs, d e scripti o ns, and sto ri e s;
the lo ng- type , in the m o re fo rm a l kinds - edit o rials , th e
grav e r sort of historical narrative, anJ essays. In the
foll o win g four extracts , all but one fro m th e sam e
author, there is a ste ady increase in th e length of se n te nces . In th e fir s t, very sh o rt se ntences arc u sed to
give rapidity and for ce; in the others, th e in cre ase in
th e len g th o f th e se ntences corresponds to an in cre:is c
in weightiness o f subjec t matter. On the oth e r h a nd.•
in every extract th e re is at least one senten ce not o f
th e prc \·ailin g t ype.
1. Th e King of Fran ce has summ o ne <l th c Duk e o f G11i sc t"
an ea rly co ns ult a t i() n in hi s !Jc tk l1ambe r. In res p o n se to t he tl:ltterin g call , the Duk e d o ns th e s plendid costume o f th e co urti e r
and hasten s to th e palace . The doors fly open before him, anti

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339

C O :l!POSITI O:" A:"D RHETO RIC .

J•O R CE !:" SF. .:'\ TE:'\CE S .

h is min istcrs a re rcs ponsi b le is :i lso o f imm e mori a l antiquity .
Th e d oc trin e th at wh e n th ere is n o res p o nsibility there can be
no t ru stwo rth y sec urity a gainst m alad ministrati o n is one whi ch
i n ou r :ige :111d coun try few p eop le will be in c lin ed to dispute.~IACAl 'L A \": lfislory of F11.t;!a11d.
3. Th ose who were spare<! at fir st w o uld generally be spared
to the etl<l; th ose who perish e d at :ill woultl p erish at once.DE Qur:-.-cEv: R n•o fl of tire T a r/11rs.
4. It was difficult fo r En gl is hmen to believe that any real
danger to liberty coulll come fr om an itl le r and a vo luptuary
suc h as Charles the Second. But in th e very tlifli c ulty of believing this lay h al f the K ing's streng th . H e had in fact no taste
whate \·e r (or th e tlcsput ism o f t h e Stuart,; wh o had gone before
him .
His s hre wdn ess laug-h e<l his g randfath e r's th eory of
l)i\·in e Ri g ht down the wi nd , while hi s in dolence made such a
p e rsu nal admini;.;tr:it io n a s th:it wh ich hi s father d e lighted in
burthensom e to him. lle was tuo h u morou s a man to care for
the porn p a nd show o f power, a nd too g ood-n a tured a man
to play th e tyrant. But he belie \·c d as firmly as hi s fath er or
his grandfather h all b elien~d in th e ol d e r p rcrogati \•es of the
C rown ; an tl, li ke th em , h e loo ked on Parliam e nts \\"ith su spicion
;i,ncl jeal ottsy . " J-l e told Lord E ssex,' ' Burnet says , "tha t he
did n ot wi s h to be li ke a Gran t! Sig-nior, with so m e mutes about
h im, and bags o f bow-strings to strangle men : but h e did not
think that h e w:is a king- so lo ng as a co mp a ny o f fell ows were
looki ng in to his a ctions, an t! cx:imining- hi s ministers as well as
hi s a cc o tt n ts . '· '' A king," he th oug ht, ' ' wh o might b e checked ,
anll h ave hi s minis te rs callee! to a n acco un t , was hut a king in
n :un e. "-GR EU::-.-: S hort /fis /O/ '. J' of the l o'n1t fish F'('()pfc .

or an exact ctJntras t bct\\· cc n his th o u g hts . Th ere is
dan ge r, t oo, th at, as in th e fo ll o win g ex tract fr om
Johnso n , t hC' halanccd stru cture w ill bl' nhtrusi\·c ;rnd
monoton o u s :

In a11 these examp le s, similar th o ughts arc given
.. ro ug-hl y sim ilar form. That this parall elism often
gives pleasure to the reader aml force to the style is
undo ubted. There is danger, ho wc Ye r, that when a
write r has th e habit o f writing th e exactly parall e l sent e nce s whi ch arc called balanced senten ces , h e will
falsi fy th e facts s imply t o secure force. Th ou gh an
occasional use of balance is adv is able, the writer should
save it for case s in which the re is an exact similarity

Dryden knew more of man in hi s gen eral nature , and Pope
in hi s loca l mann e rs. The noti o ns of Dryd e n \~ ere fnrrned hy
comp re hen s ive spec ula tio n, ant! th ose of Po pe hy min ute att ention. The re is more digni ty in th e kn o wl e d ge of !J ryclen, an<l
m o re certai nty in th at o f P ope.
Poetry was n o t t he sole prai se o f either: for h•1th cxcc llecl
li kewise in prose; but Pope dill n o t b o rrow h is JH"sc from h is
pred ecesso r. Th e style of Dryden is cap ri cio us an<l vari e d : th a t
of Pope is cauti o us a111 l unifo rm. l>ry<kn obeys t he 111oti•1ns nf
his own mint!; P ope const rain s his mind to h is n\\'n rul es o(
composition . Dryden is sometimes \"e hcment :u1cl ra pid ; Pope
is a lways sm oo th, uniform , ancl gen tl e. Dry <len's p age is a n:.t ·
ural fi e ld, risini; in to in equaliti es , a n cl cli\·ersif ie tl by th e \·a ri etl
exuberapce o f a bundan t veg-etat ion ; P ope's is a \·eh·et lawn.
s haven b y the scyth e, and level le d by the roll e r.-JoJTNsoi..-:
Liz·cs of lht• f'od s.

128. Summary of Chapter.-· S e nte nces slwu ltl h e n ot
m e r e ly n nificcl :ind coh e r ent, hut ;ilso forcihlc. Disregarding th e nu1111Jc r and t11 e ch o ice of \\·o rd s, we may
say that th e forcc --that is th e e mphasi s- of a sente nce ,
depends upon the arrange m e nt of its parts a nd th e
s11i tahility of its form. \\'c must a r ran).!·e th e c lements
o f o ur sente nce s in such a manner that the main ide as
will come, s o fa r as English idi o m will alluw, in th e
orller <J f comparati \-c importance, the most important
idea coming e ith e r at the beginning or at the e nd, prefe rably at th e e nd . Furth e r, we must nsc fr ee ly bo th"
lo n g and sh o r t, loose and p e ri od ic sentence s, for a sty le
in which th e se nte nce s arc all of one t y p e \1· ill prohably be both m o n oto n o us and wea k. It will lil' \\"ell
for a tim e to \\"rit e consciously p c riollic ancl parall e l
sentences. Occa sional p e riodicity is e spec ia ll y us e ful,

1'·

340

CU \ I r·t •.· iTIU:\

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1-: lll ·: T\JJH C .

Exercise XIX.

10. ,\ s I dc scende1\ the gentle sl •' pe t o\\'arcl th e g ru u n• l
wl1erc t h e n q ;-lec: ted m in by , the I nn~ . straight ro w s of towering
m a ples \\'hi c h b u rd e n.~c l th e s tree t, stre le h c cl o ut hdore me.
11. It is ee rt :tin ly to th e inte rest of th e city w ha \·e as fe w
crim ina ls :ts p ossihl<:: \\' ithi n h e r borders.
12. ln f:t et, th e re i' h a r cll y a p e rso n lrnt il :1s s h•,wn >o rne
L"nthn s ias m cl\·er the peace ju bike in so m e " .,.,. or oth er.

.·!. Define e mpha s is in the sent e nce'.
JJ. B y c ri tic ising- and rc \\'ritin g- th e f u ll u \ 1· in ~ s e nt e nces, s hn\\' how c mphasi,; <lcp c nd,.; on ar r :rn ge m c nt:

C. Ho1\· d ocs ,- iol:l ti o n o f th i:: n (l n1 i; tl onkr in a ~ e n ­
ten ce fa1·n r e mphas is? J\la ke a s man y :t rr an~cmcn ts
a s yo u c an o f each o f th e fo ll o win g s e nt e nce s:

l.
w ood
from
2.

1. ll e re:,ftl'r any chi hl u ndl'r tile a ge of fif te<: n w h o i.-> f.,u n d
on the st reds aft e r eigh t o ' clll c·~ in til e e\·cning will IJe de:1l t
w ith sen: rcly, nn lc:ss h e h as sum1.: plansil..ilc c· xc n se f•1 r hi s p re sence on t h e st reet afte r t li :tl h<Jllr.
'l. . In o rder t1J vxpla i n i t~; ,,·qrJ.: in g; . lt ntJW ht ·c1 11n e:-:. ncu.:ss:i ry

b e cause i t forces us to thin k ullt the r c lati \'C impo rt ance , ,f our c;t :tlc111cnts . g·i\'cs compac t11 c,; s t o s tyl e,
;md r c li l: \·es the m1i11ut<•ny r cs ultin ~:· fr"m th e prevailing·ly lcosc En:,,:·li,;h sentence.

Fur a n hour \\' e bli <He d tn start a fire , as e\·e r y liit o[
" ·as satm·:1t ed hy t he mis t, a nd in th :1t time nur su ffer in gt he co lt! wa s intc11se .
/ \ ftcr lite armies o[ th e Creci ans and the T roja11~ h:td

c n g-ag-<.: d in co 111ha t fur sq 111e t im e , fo r t un e fav1 1n..:d b1 1 th side:-;,

t o some exte11t.
·'· Il er s11111 n1er :-; arc ~pen t in swin 1n1 ing- o r saili t_1g . tu a
con s id erable extcnt.
4 . Th e re \\·as n o t a so und , e xcept \\'h e n we ste pped o n a dry
twi g or lJrush cd a gains t a lo w b o ugh .
5. I t i,; a!lc1ys k now n w hen an erupt io n is going- to take
pb ce , h y t he ditTc-n:nt J'h e norn e na t 11at n ccu r.
6. Jll y son ~l oses is :1 g-rea l studen t n [ the el:tss ics , tl wugh h e
is st il l bu t a yp11ng hoy.
7 . I r<.:c.:iH:d lllY fir s ~ impression o f th e I lec·r l'a rk o( I llinois
while on :t l> ic-ycle to11r t hro11 ,'. h till' s tal e \\·ith a fr ie nd o f th e
san1c a~<.; ;i.nd cntl1u~i:l s n1 fqr "·heclin :~ a :-; 111y ~c lf.
8. Il e \\·as tlw great e s t (Jf l{<i!llan h is t., r ians frn111 th e i'" i11t of
\'iew nf lite rary cxc·ellenee, n o t fr.,111 that of h isto r ica l a c'C 11rac y.
') . \\' hen n 11e ,; cc:< I le idcl he r ;:; C:i s tle frnm th e h e ig ht s :\cr,,ss
th e r i\·er , and secs the rnincd fat;:id e \\·ith its 111y r iad wi11do \\' s,
its t h ree r uined ti 1\\·c rs . and i ts \\· idl..! p r1 ,1nc11~ldc , n11c can n ut

J1clp being c'.lrric·< I h:1 ck in im:i g-in :iti1>1 1 t" the t im e \\·hen t he
c'.l s tl e \\'a,; th e rcndc?x o us and strr•n ."'.h•iltl o f rnlih e r -h a r ons, \\'h e n
the Rhine \\·a s th e b oundary nf (; e r rn auy and t he Fre nc h c:in 11 :rn
thund e re d frnm th ..: l1eig lll's alit> YC, and \\'h e n th e s pa cious h a lls
o f t his stronghuld r an,: w ith th e g:iit'l y and lllerrilllent of th e
co u rt 0f Prin ce ll cn r y . th e man \\'hn buil t t h e eno rm o u s
" Fass " ( \':tt ) .

to 111·c ~ upp u:-:. c :\ k1F1\v kd:~l: , if lo ~ar i ti 11 11-.; 011

tl1 . ._· part of

tilt:

read e r.
3. 1\ t t he righ t sa t a blly , whll e\·en \\·l1il c sca tc: d .'.~a ,· e tile id t:a
o f ex t r:tll rdinary t:dlnl·ss . or p e rhaps e x t ra,, n lina ry lc: ng-th \\'uulcl
exprc::.s it n1orc cnrr~'C i_ ly .
..J. l t is not reas•>l la ble t,, snppose tl 1:1t , " ·i th in a limill' d area .
th e re s lwnld he fo rmed h y :1n· i<i e n t. :1n1· ;;rv:it 11n1u !Je r ,,[ ;.;t·1·.;c r
tu bes in 11·h ic h nei g hb oring \'cin s <•f \\'at< ·r mi ght li11 tl a c .. nven icnt cour;o;c .

5. Sr. George's H a ll is of e s pecial in kreot ttJ Knights u f tlw
Garte r, fnr here all kni g ht s fro m tli e tim e of Ed\\'artl tli e T hird
nnt il t! 1e prese nt t im e h a ve th ei r arm s emb lazoned <111 the roof
o r til e \\'all s.

JJ . ]{ cad th e full o wing s e nt c nccs alulld and n o t<.:
h o\\' th e r epe tit io n o f w ords at t he encl <>f c1111scc uti\·c
cLt 11 sc:s ;rnd se nten ce s afkcts e mph asis . ]{ e w ri t~ th e
,;cnt cncc,; :
1. Coeducation is !Je tt er fur t.he gir ls IJe c:ius..- thc:y be come
mqre in<kp en dent :llld le arn n1ore o[ rea l life. F n r ihis reason
th ey :u·e better e< 1u ;p pcd t •l tr:i\·el throu1~ h l ife.
2. L uth t> r \\·isheil fnr e \·c n se \·erer exerti o ns, thinki n g that by
them he mi ~· h t linil f:i\·or in <;,><]':; sig-ht. lie f..:lt <i t"eply tl 1e

need of union \\i th God; but suc h a u111on \\' as impossible while
he held his present conceptions of God.
3. \Vh e n he reached h is seat, he casually glanced aro und to
see who \\as abse nt, aIHl a s he knew all his tenants by name ,
anti where th<'y ~at in cliun: h, h e co ultl quickly see who was

iJ

:ib~cnt.

.J. Jn the inten· a l tall pint:s lift their majes ti c heads to the
winds , and the ya rd beneath is stre\\'n with the co nes which are
hlo\\'n off by the s trong wi nds .
5. In ~o i 11" tu visit at ou r uncle's hou se we fe lt some co m punctio n at cli s turuing tha domes tic tranquillity of his h o use .

E . In the fo llowini; sentences, emphasis is marred
by l:ick of proper subordination of o ne th o ug ht to
another. Recast the sentences :
1. 13ut at l:lst. he says , Gntl revealed to h im the fact that hi s
r ighteousness is th e grace antl forg iveness freely given to th ose
who have faith in llim; stil l it was onl y by degrees th a t Luther
a r rived at a full perception of th e truth.
2. Satan first arose antl said that the s ub ject before them
wa s h ow could t hey regain h eaven .
3 . Bee lzebnb's plan seemed t o please all, and Sa ta n, who
was seeking h o nor, said he wo ul d go in sea rc h of the new
creati on.
4. 11 is clo t hes W(;re orig inally of good black broadcloth , still
ge nteel, ou t slii11y w ith lung \\'Caring .

F Ddinc ], •us c nt: ss antl pcrioJicity.
H o w does
periodicity ai d emphasis? Define "periodicity of
effect."
G . ;\ Ltkc tilt: fuJlo\\'ing loose sent ence s wholly or
p artly periodic :
1. '!'!:·er all play<' <l " rnuglt game , and n ot a si ng le match in
tlte whole sc hc:t!ulc wa s pl:tycd wi t hou t sume tli s pllte arnong the
i11tlividtul p layers , yet he J>laycd in t:\'e ry g;unc without an y
t roubl0 w hate\·er .
2. illy Englis h ma:t " ""'certainly au Iri shma n, if appeara ncOti
could be depended upon , aud if I had an y doubts ou tllat point
they were speedi ly di~pcllo r\ w hen 110 introduced him self as Mr.
l'cttrick '.\[urphy.

3. Ile \\·as an o rt;auist by profession, but 1u his Lt~t po~1t1 u :_;
he had been oblig<.:d tu sing as \\·ell a~ p lay, \\·hen ll is \'(lice

faile d him and the churc h had n o further u se for his se n·ices.
4. He w as a v isionary, a gen ius in many wa ys , but succeed in g in nothing, with an optimi ~ tic spi rit which 1H.:n:r alloll't.:d
him to realize that he wa s <ldeat<:d , a ntl co nse qu c11t ly he ne1·e r
wholl y lost courage .
5. H e came to consult me al>ont everything- he did or con·
te mpla ted doing, and this was no s mall tax on my time an(l
patience ; b ut l gaye both willingly, as I w as still faithful to my
interest in him .
6 . The United States has expe ri enced the des tru c tive p:rngs
of the d o ubl e s tand a rd, and the whole world, in truth, has expe ·
r ienced th em.
7. Th is is where the good po int s in h e r ci1aractcr beg-in to
appear , and it is at this poin t of the story that the reade r
changes his opinion abou t .Miss Betsey Trotw ood .
8. Perhaps M iss Betsey Trotwoo d was uo t the m ost interest i11 g
character in Daz•id Copperfidd, but sh e was th e o ne wh o w as ever
David 's counselo r, his good angel, and the one to wh om he
always w ent when in t rouble .
9 . L o rd Marmion me t C lare a nd th o ught to w in her and
receive her lands , so he fough t with De \Vilton, and it was sup ·
p osed that h e had k illed De Wilton . De Wilton ha d not bee n
killed in the fight, uut had been taken care of by an old man.

EI. Criticise the following sentences :

t

l

ll
..

1. Th e d og's pa rt of the house was the back porch , wh ere he
could be found mos t of the time, as he was n ot allowed to follow
wagons o r buggies.
2. l w as ve ry g lad to hear this welcome news, a lth o u gh I did
disl ik e to le ave th e fre sh a ir of th e co untry fo r the confined life
o f the cit y; but being again with my dearest fri e n ds wa s more
than a sufficien t a t tra ct io n to make me go .
3. I h ave formed a new habit o f s leeping in a hammock ,
although it t oo k me a long time to get a cc usto med to it , as it
seemed so ·.rnnatu ral.
4. l felt that I o u g ht to read at least one book of Ste\·enson 's
tu familiarize myself \\'i th his style; so I began Wilt o' the JI/ill,
an d before fin ishing it I decided to read m ore of hi s w ork s , and
re:ul T ra.-f'ls ff 'il !t 11 Donkey and othe rs.

344

CO~ ! POSITHJ:-;

AND HHETUIUC.

5. Im m ed iate ly o n Hannibal's ar ri ,·ai in S pain, because the
veteran s IH::lit:\'ed that ll a milcar , res tort:cl to ,·0 11t h, h:tcl returned
to them , tl wy admire d hi m .
6. E,·e ry s 11nm1er, a s soon a s sch11ul cl ust:d, tu a sma ll lake in
fh t: no rthern part of llli no is , th e wlw le f:tm ily ll"e nt.
7. J\ n o ld lishe r ma n said th a t p ass ing th rou g h sc:veral lak es
:in d int o tlw F" x Ri,·e r :m d fro m th e re int o the I ll ino is , whi ch
Ho ws int o t he Mississ ippi , he, in a rowbo at , with o ut landin g ,
h a tl re:ic hed th e Gu lf o( Mexi co .
:i. i\IJ ou t s ix fee t in he ig ht, with a !Jod y st ra ig"l"tt a s an a rrow
antl w e ll pro port ion e d throngh o ut , having- ma ss i,·e and broad
s h ou ld e rs , s t ra igh t IJ!ac k hair whi«h partl y t·un cc::ll c d his high
and noble fore head, brown eyes, fra nk and p athet ic , a broad
nose , firm mouth , and a sq uare chin -suc h a ruan wa s George
Mo rton.
9. I went to p ick him np, antl he i;rowled at m e and tried to
esc:t pe , but r was too qu ic k and su cceeLled in cap t urin g him.
10. Preparin g to g o nut into th e bu s y ti e lt! s of labor, enrlowed
with th e tru e su lt: m nnt:ss o f life , h a vi ng the lii gltes t ft: t: ling of
gratefuln ess to the g-rea t C reato r for living in thi s age; made
enthus ias ti c b y th e g re a t at tai n ments in th e w orl d o f litera ture,
in spire d b y t he m a s te r inte llec ts o f a ll races, a nd cl ee ply s tirred
by the ma g nifi ce nt achieve me nts of th t: n inetee n th ce ntury, I
ba\·e e spec ially beco me inte reste d in the q ues t ion nf o ur mission.

1. F o r wh a t tw o r e asons mu s t the le ngth a nd the
form of se nte nces vary?
J. \ Vhcrc arc sh o rt se ntences m o s t approp riate ?
Lo ng- sentence s? Loos e se nte nces ? i'e ri od ic sente nce s ?
A'. l~cwrite the fo llo \,·i11g- extracts, g- 1 v i11 ~ yo ur
r eas o ns fo r the chan g-es yo u make :
l. T he in ~• it at i o n to Burn s to Yisit Edinburgh carn t: to him
m os t oppo rtune ly. He was at thi s t im e plannin g to lt:ave S cotland fore ver. H e h a d not m e t wi th th e app reciatio n he wi shed
for. H e rea lize (! th a t he had d o ne m uc h to ru in both his reputation and hi s chara c ter siu cc he had left h om e . He was dis co u raged , fo r the se rea so n s , :1 1\d wa< a bnn t t<.• see k a ne w fi el cl
for his \Vurk and 11 ~ \v a ss(1cia ti11n s .

2 . Mi lto n ope ns f'c11 '{1di.<c l .<>.<L in the c\l s lo m ary man ne r o f
epic poem s by an invocation to t il e Mn sc . 'l'l1 is ill\·ocati on can not d e fi nitely be s•~ parate d [1-.1 111 t he rt:s t ,,f th e: p oe m. llut \\"e
may say a p p ruximate ly th a t it occ upies th e li bt lif ty Jin<." .
N e xt we ha ve an a cco unt o f a co nversa ti o n ut:t\\·een B eelze lrn li
and Satan. The y di sc t1 ss th e ir prese nt sit uation a n ct th ei r p la ns
fo r th e ft1ture . ,\ d esc ription o( Satan lyi ng Ot1ts tre te h ed fJ ll l ite
burn ing lak e is n ext tlrawn. In th is d esni pt io n S a ta n is rC' p n· se nte d as like alm us t eve ry h o rribl e ima :..;e th a t the m int! L'a ll
conce ive. Th e last p a rt o f th e lirs t IJcwk is d evo ted tu a <k v
cription o f th e building o( Pand c m o ninrn . The p iclll rc o f th is
bt1ilding in all its gran tlt: ur is beau t if u ll y t! c pi c t<.:d . J\li lt on tells
u s th a t its magnilict:ncc h a s nev e r l;n·u equ;ille d li y men .
3. St. Be nedict es tabli sh ed a numbe r of m onas teries . The
p rinc ipa l one wa s at :.lonte C:ts ino. Th e m o nk s took th<:: t riple
vow of perpe tua l p overty , ciicbtit y , and obedience . Moreove r,
th e y had to w o rk. I n th is n.:s pect t11 t: y di ffe re d fro m th e mo n ks
of th e East. The E a ste rn m on k s did n o t work o r preac h . J\11
t hey <lid wa s to pray , wh ile t he \\"e ste rn nwnks did all th est:
oth e r thin gs . Th e \Ve, tern m o nk s d itl ve ry pra ct ical wo rk .
T hey built roatl s , brid ges , an (] c h u rch es . Th e y m aLle a p a ss
over th e Alp s . They obta inetl g rant s o f land in t he fo res ts ,
whi c h th ey c le are d, a ntl plante d c rop s and built m o n a ste ri es .
F ro m th ese p laces tiie)' pre a c hed to th e ne ig h boring tribes . Jn
t h is way th e trib es were co nve rted and c ivili zed.
4. I ri se a t a littl e a fte r s ix o' c loc k in th e morning. Afte r
having mad e my to il e t I h ave breakfast . Th e n, if th e re is any
t ime le ft b e (ore sc ,·e n o ' c loc k , I g lan ce o ve r t he edit o rial p :tge o f
th e morning pap c: r. A co nden sed vi e w o f a ll the im p ort a nt ue ws
of the clay [ o bt ai n (rom tha t s h eet.
S. At seve n o 'c loc k I s tart fo r sch ool. l ust1a ll y t;i kt: t ile
eablc car. (;cn c rally I e mp lo y m y time o u th e c ar t: itlter in
re adin g a h oo k or in ltiok iug- ove r m y lt:sso ns . S u m t:ti mes I d u
n o t fee l like reaclin).!;, and th e n [ s it a n<l watc h oth e r pe o p le . T hL;,
ca r is usuall y fill ed \\'ith h ig h sc hoo l antl cu llt:g e g-i rls. Th ei r
ceaseless c:hatte r is ve r y amu s in g and se rvc·s to bre ak th e m on ot·
ony of t he r ide. l arri\"e at m y d es ti natio n abuut half -past
e igh t.
6. Dur ing- th e t hin] year o f m y hi gb school course l began
th e study of th e hi stor y o f E n gli s h lite rature. \\' e had a tea che r
wh o was well p repare d , a nd she ma tle th e subject inte rest in g

.H6

CC>:l ll' flSITfn:'\

A~f)

f( IJFTOl(JI'.

aud instructive . She uividell t he history in to d ifferent periods
and th en m ade a chart of t he leading writ e rs of eac h of th ose
p enocls, g roup ing the n o veli s ts, poets , hi s to ri a ns, etc. This
mad e 1t a littl e easie r to remem be r . I cont in ued the study
clurmg the tlllnl anti fourth years.

_I .. \ \.'h;;t good influence o n emphasis m a y s imilarity
o t sentence structure h ave ? Illustrate by p as sages

CHAPTER XX.
Sl:-;' <; LJ·:

l',\R.·\CRAPHS .

from your reading.
129. Definition of the P aragraph.- The paragraph, the
unit of style midway between the whole compo siti o n
and the sentence, ha s already been treate d in sections
15-23. Those sectio ns the student sh ould r eYicw
before he begins this chapter. It was said th ere ,
in brief, t hat a paragraph r epres ents a natnral divi sion o f the tho ught in a who le compositio n ; tha t very
long paragraphs are obscure, and Yc ry sho rt o ne s ,
fragm entary and sensational. At this po int it seems
best to consider in d e tail th e para g raph as a comp lete
compositi o n in it se lf; t o sh ow what law s c-o,·e rn it; how
it may fai l and h o w succeed in being cl ear and fo rcible.
The o nly d efi nition imme di a te ly necessa ry is th a t a
paragraph is a co ll ec ti o n o f se ntences al l be arin g upo n
o ne easily d iscovered s ubj ect. F o r example, both the
followini.c extract s arc g-oud para),!"rnphs.
Each is
remarka"blt.: for definiteness o t purpose ; e ve r y state·
ment reinforces the main idea so clearly that the
reader is never at a loss to know, not only what eac h
sentence means, but a lso wh at the paragraph a s a whole
is intended to co nvey:
l. The elec ti on of Judge Smith to the positi o n of S p ea ker o f
our H o use o f Re pre lOCntatives shows h o w fruitl ess a re the s pas·
modic outbreakli of public wrath against co rrupti ou in politit:s.
How long ago was it that the newspapers we re co nfid ently pred icting that no supporter of the Charleton law cou ld <,"Ver ng ain
aspire to a p os itinn of publi c tru st? Tho ink wa s sc:ncely dry
upon their press• ·' be fore th e e lect io n of Juc\g-e Smith s howed
347

CU~IPOSlTION

AN!>

Sll\f:t.E l'.-\HAGl<APIIS.

HHETUl<I\.'.

how littl e the "pr:tctic:il politici:rn" reg::irds th e \IT;ith o£ s nch
of his c onst ituents as choose t o nbjec t to his cou rse. The cou n·
try r cprescntat i\·e n :q s secure, k11n11"ing- the ignorance of th e
rnhab1tanh of hi s di s trict ct1nccr 11i 11g- rnatl<:rs in th e city, where
he- find ,; l11 s cl11cf prey. The eit1· r c prese11tati,·e h as p rnn~d in
th e p:i st ll1:1t t l1e gift •l( a fe1,· l1u1Hlred tur kc·i·s "r Slll1le t"n s of
cr;:tl to the pnor of lii s co11 s tilt1 t:• ncy will in:-;ure hi s ret:Icc tion.

ll o lh knn11· that Ili c majority of cnn s cienti•>lls \ '<•ter" either cannot or will n"t sp:i re th e time :ind the money nev essa ry to defe at
th em.

2. "\\"ha t dn yr111 think of our in s tituti .. ns ' " is th e questio n
atltlresscd t .. the.: l·:" r"pc :i n travele r in tl!c L"11i1 cd Sl a tes byei·ery
chance :1cip1:1111tance. The tr:n-ckr fi n d s th e qncstion natural
for i f he l>e an "l>sc· n·:i!lt mnn his " 11·11 1ni1 1tl i, ; full of these in s ti'.
t11ti ons . . B nt h e " 'k s himself why it s h•.•t1ld J,c· in Am erica only
th:1 t he is so rnter r(J g-:1ted. In England u11 e c] , ,e , n ut inquire
f~o1n. f~ 1 n..: ig-n c rs, n 1 ir C\' e n fro111 l\n 1erk:ins, t hei r vie\\'s on the
l~11 ; '.· 11,1i
and g<>1"<.!r11m e11t ; n or d•>es t he E 1 1 1 ; 1 i~ lrn1an on th e
C on trncnt h11d Prc n c hlll('rt nr C c rmans '". l t:i! iaih ;;n,..ions to
h :11·c hi' jurl1.~ m e nt on the i r politics. l'rc sent ly the rc a , ., 11 of the
differen ce ap;i c ars . Th e institution s of th e U 11 itcd Stat .;s are
d rel' n1ed l1y inl1 :i l>il:int.s
' ""I :lllmitlt•<l 1>,·
,, ....... ,. :-..· t<l 1Jl' a ;11a tt er
.
. .-,-1
, 1-.,
· 11 !":>

la"".'

o.

1nC1 r e

:..~·c1!f..: r :ll

1111<...

iT ~ t

than

th o .... e

of

t he

ll1Jl

11.·ss

f:JllJiHis

nati_<1 11s. nf t he O ld \\ ... rid.

They nre , or arc s npi»• s<·d l•i J,e·.
i11 stltu lin11s of ;1 IH:\\' typ1.'
Tlt <..'y f o 1ni. or ate ~l l Jl J>'' ....,t d to ftHnt
a sy1J1nH; l11 c. d \\ hul-: ccip 1d iiL' of })(·11 1,; c,t11dic ti dlld ) t1d ged .di
t ogc:the r more pr u l1tabl1· tk111 til e k-s s perfeuly harmonized
in s tituti o ns t;f ul dv r C< 1u11 t rivs . 'fhL·y r t:p i·L'"" e nt an ~~p(·riznent in
th e n'.l e of tile 11111ltitu1k, 11 iv cl 0 11 " si·; tle llllJ>l"el·c.: dcn tcd ly va s t,
a111l t1w rl' s nlt s ol \•:111•: '1 ,.. , ·cry""" is l' <JIH ·<·rncd to w:it e h. And
yet. th ey are _snn1etl1in.~· J!Jc11e than an expL'rinicnt, for th ey are
licl1eved to d1s<:losc alld d i,;pl;iv the t ype of in st ituti .. 11 s llill"arcls
wlt 1c l!, as !Jy a law of fate-, lit e n· s t of ci1·ii iLcd mankind are
forced :o 111 01-e , srnnc ll"ilh s11 iflc'r, utlicrs \\·ith s lo\\·c·r, lint a ll
\ V1th unres ting fcet. - H!<\'CE: / /111 ,·r/t·an {_(1JJ1Jll Ol!-;, ·(·a//lt .

, , l~lO. Nature of the Laws Governing the Single Paragraph.
I h esc paragTaphs arc so clear th:it one is in c lin e d tn
<>ay, • ParagTaphin g i:-; a simple matter; one \\'rites para-

graphs ju:;t as h e pl e :iscs." Tn point of fact the paragraph is much freer from rule than the small e r clements

349

of con1[lv'-iti1 lll. .As suon as we i,;ct beyvnd the :;e ntencc \\'e are fn: etl iru111 Ille tra11;111 ...: ls of gu"d us e :ind
may c:l10os c and place our idc :is in ~ltly 11·:ty 11·c: liJ..:e.
Nu la w uf Ltn~· 11ag·e c o mpels us to u :;c o ne 1-ixec.l combination or order of id eas. [n th!:; freedom fr o m rul es
lies a chance fur :;treng lh a nd ;1 currespu11uing· chance!
fur \\·e akncss in wriLi11;.;. \Vt.: are prunt.: to think the
.-,rckr in which ideas tirst come t o us th e ri i,;ht order ,
and t<i conn:: rt freed<illl into la\\'lessn c:;s . The re s ult
;...; that o nr 1nirp1l :i c' is often ol>seure cl. E\·en c:1rcfn l
reading of th e fr,Jlu1\·i11!,!· paragrap h d"cs n ot make
c lear ju:;t 1\·hat is the main idea of th e writer :
It 11·:1s n<iL unlil th e: sev enll"cnth <:entury tliat the· di:tm<rnd
bec ame th<: 111 <>~ t h i,;h ly \'aluctl portiun o f a ri11).'. , and sin ce the
c oming in .,f di :1rno11ds, less and le" :;e utirnent '"" ;dl a ched to
rin g, . :\ di anH •n d ri ll g, like t he old thumb rin g, s eems in tended
chidly t<1 di s p lay the ll"e:tlth .,f its owner. Sum c m<>dc.:r11 Ger ·
mans, to s a y a 11·.. n l nHire abo ut the m e tho1ls (If wc:trillg rings ,
li ke tlw <1hl Rn111a11 s , 11-c:t r a ring on th e seco1 HI j<>in l . Hut the
clcricai f;t , Jii .. n ., [ \\T.1ri11 g a rin g outside of thv f!;l·Jl·c has fount!
little fal'11r, e\·en \\'illt th >se mo s t a11,..io11s fnr d i,, pl;i y . Th at th e
high er c·krg-y 11·cre fond of rin g s was manifc: s t l> y many,,[ t hose
in the B"ardm a n c olle c ti11n. Ind ee d the rulJ y and t he em eral d
ha\·e :tlll"ays Ileen c·o11sidcrc d ponLilical stones. Th e serpen t
1·ing , whi c h s <>mc: people always w ea r, is one: uf the earlies t
d c· ,.;i;~n s , f<>t1111I e\·cn i 11 Egypt.
And i11lked the: jewckr "f today
c"uld h:trdly del'i se a style that has not lieen ill v<ig-uc at S•Jll1e
time in the p ;h t.

l"lc:nly, it freedom is not to be bwlelisness, if our
paragr:..tphs arc not to Lie d isorc.lerly heaps of sentences,
we mu st find a few general and flexible principles
which shall go1·crn us in writing parQgraphs. These
principles we find in th e laws already discn sse<l with
reference t o the sentence - unity, coherence, and
e mpha s is. A i,;·oocl paragraµh may take :.iny o ne of a
do ze n forms so long as it keeps to one subj ec t, shows

362

363

CO:IIPOSITIO>: AXD RHETOl<IC.

SI"°GLE PARAGRAPHS.

holding out for the inspectio n of the crowd pen c il s, shoeln ces,
(\r ln1ito11 h oo ks. Y et any rig id examinatio n of the c o ndition
of these unfortnn:t tcs \\'ill show that n ear ly h alf of th e m are
fraud s , th :i t m os t of the remainder co uld g-ain ent ran c,; t tl char itabl e in s tituti o n s, :rnd that t he 1111rn b cr \\'ho n::tlly rkse r1·e the
aicl of th e p :tssc rs-hy is infi nites im al. Th e c:.nc l11 sio 11 is in ev ita l1le . No matt e r how mu c h of a \\'rc nc h i t is to our sof te r
n ature s , \\'C shou ld 1·ef use t•1 huy front th e stn.:L:t p e 1.lcllers.
3 . T he picture of an old man, \\'ilh gray hair , an rl dark eyes
\\·hich lo o k h eni~~ nly on the chi ldre n, C1J111es l;;tck to m y memory . This happ y- looking <>1<1 man h:1s s too<l at th e c ~· n tcr str.:d
entran c e to Lincoln Park as Jong as I c an rememb e r. "Pnpcn rn J ohn , '' as h e is kno\\'n among the chi ld re n , l<> s t on e hand
in the Ci\'i l \\'ar. Su n o \\' he make.; h is Ji,·i:1g l1y Sl'lli n g his
large, tempting balls of pop c-.1rn to th e c hildren, am"ng whom
he has n :g·ul:tr cus tomers. \\'ith e :tc h sa le gn e s a p k :1sant li ttle
gree t in g, or a kind w ish. F:t1 r!.1' i11 / /J ,· spring t111d I.rt,· i11 the
la/!, /his old JJ1<111 is al h is p vst, J1 t ' l t 'r St't 'JJlillJ.t Iv <TJ.:·,., and a/z,)ays
,-/J,:cr ful . II is 011 /y during Iii< fi;u n ;/d ;l'i11/,·;· 111011//1s / /J ,1 t //1is

u •ri/illg vi th e r!isarll'allta.r::·es of 111ai11tain i11g th ese fc>rlifications,
/he 111ost i111por!a11t 011e t o be ro11sidered is the r'11()n11 011s ro st.
A voy grea t 011tlay of 11/0llCY is 1ieffs.rnry t o nta blis/J. a11d m a /I/ fain forlifiraliolls, and a l so t o trai11, cq11ip , a11d Sllff'o1'l the 11Ncssarv 111 r 11 . H <JWC\'e r, we must remembe r it is nut a q uestion

1

brii;h t fcn1 · is 111isscd by th ose arr11s/01111·d l o s,·,·i11_,,. !tim as l!tcy
pass l>y ill I/ti· C11rs .

·I.

T llE l'>E CE SS lT\' H>R COAST F<>l lT ll'I C ATltJ:o.;S .

Jn writ in g <>n th is s 11lije l't, ·* let 11s firs t L'<> 11s i<ler t he advantages iu th e time of war. \\'e lia\'C nnt yet reached a state .,f c ivil izat ion \\·l1 t.: 11 \L. 1r s ~h : dl cca se, and so long a s \\'ars c1n1tinue ,
prep:1r:i t io n s mu st lie !ll:1tk fnr them. Jt i,: \\'ith n:ili»ns a s \\'ilh
intli\·i <l u als; \\'hen th e re is an oppo rtu nity f.,r one· nation t o
s e curt· an adYan ta gc n \"C f an o tl 1er which is \\T:t kt:r,

01·

s<..·t•111ingly

\\·eakcr, an attempt will be made to secu re tha t :1< h ·:111tage by
fo rce . In a t tackin g a n:1ti o n, th e C•>a,:t c iti es arc' th e firs t puints
t hat arc li:1blc to a tt :ick; there f<>rc . t hey sho u ld h e \H·ll fortified. The e ffe ct of \\·ell fn r tiliul coa s t cities on th e \\'<Hild-be
agg rc s ~;ivc: nati o ns, is tn hold th c• rn in f<.:ar.
The effe ct on th e
c iti es t h emse ln:s is nut less important, sin ce, wh en th e f<.:nr of
atta c k is n:: m<>\·e<l, c o mmcl'C'c and tl:e \·ario11 s indu stries will be
slimnl:ttc tl lo a g re at clegrc c, till"' r ende rin g prospe rit y poss ib le.
Th is la s t statement is al so a gre at a rg11men l for maintainin g fortific-ati o ns in tim e s of J1cace , fo r, 11nl\· when th ere is thi s assurance, can th c· re h e any cl Cl,~rce of growth and prnspcrit y . l it
*The hnbit of phras in ;: th e first sent c n t t: <i s if tht! titl e Wl' re a part of it is
This th eme sho ul d b c ~in with a s t atement of t he su bjec t.

t o be co n d emned .

o f c~st, !Jut a questi o n of n ecess ity - a q u esti on of th e necessity
of gaining a pro pe r respec t for ou r g-ovcr n ment abroad, a
question of the n ecess ity of g iv in g a ll poss ible en c 1nll'agem~nt
t o our affairs a t h o me. Therefore, uncl e r th e pre,.;ent eon d1 t1<> n
o f things, th e prope r fo rtifi cation of ou r coast citic·s mu st he
m ain tai n ed .

138. Summary of Chapter.- A parag raph sh o uld be a
collectio n of sentences treatin g completely one subject, or one vi ew of a subject. It mus t h ave unity,
coh ere nce , and e mphasis . It has unity wh e n it contai ns no matter foreign to the anno unced subject, and
conta in s a ll the m a tte r n ecessary to the spec ial side of
the subject it presents. U nifi ed paragra phs can usually
b e summed u p in a unifl ed sentence . A pa ra g raph h as
coherence when the relatio n of every sentence t o ev ery
other sentence and t o the paragraph as a whole is
clear. T o gain coherence, the tho ughts must be
arrani::-ed in consecuti ve orde r , and co nn ec ti \' es must
he freely used. A para g raph has emphasi s whe n the
impo rtant th oug-h ts are put in the important places,
th a t is , e ither at the beginning or at the end .

Exercise XX.
A. ·write a go od parag raph t e lli ng wh a t a paragraph is; another , t elling what la\\'s go vern par;
agraph structure.
JJ. D ef-i nc unity rn the paragraph.
What is th e
t est o f unity in th e paragTa ph? H o w m ay unity be
destroy ed ?
C. Fincl in th e ne\\'spape rs t\\'o or three paragraphs
which lack unit y ; criti cise a ncl rewrit e th em .

J6 -~

COMPOSITION A N U RHETO RI C .

D . The foll o win" p ara g raphs lack unity.
th e faults in each.

Point out
Rewrite th o se whi ch you can unify.

. 1. Wh ile many b oo ks have !Jee n writt e n in praise of the :.esthetic
s a le o f J a pan , no boo k , a cco rd ing t. o Jllr. U icisy , h a s cl o ne just ice t o the re al g rea tness of th e c() untry . Th e illus trations in
this u oo k a re ily a native arti s t , nnll a re, tli e re fore , of special
m te rest.
2 . C harlo tte C u shman ]O\·ed fam e, wo rshipe d m o ney, and
w a s d e Yo te cl to he r art. T ha t s ht was a grea t ar tis t has never
~J,ec n qu esti o ned. In pri,·ate life , s h e was a c harming woman.
l he nVi mc nt sh e e n te re d the t he: !tcr , e ithe r a t re hearsal or at a
p e rforman ce , he r wh o le s<>ul was wrapp e d up in he r art. If she
was s1·111 c what mist' rl y with m oney in ge n e ra l, s he was extravag ant in her a ssi stan ce and enco ura ge m e nt to tho se in whom she
s aw ge nius anLl tal e nt.
O f_ C ha rlotte Cu sh man 's greatness in s1Jni e p ar ts there is no
qu es tion . Jllcg .Me rri lies, La d y Ma c beth , and <ju ce n Ca therine
we re her bes t pa r ts. J\t re hea rsals she was evt: r ki n cl a nd tender
ne ve r ti r in g in tea chi ng th ose wh o we re lack in g in e xperience 0 ;
\\·ere su ffe r in g fro m s tage frig ht.
3. A gai n I m a d e bo ld t o e n ter t he h o nse .
Juana was ly ing on th e same ul a uk e t and was in the same
spo t wh e re she d ied .
At he r h ead a co up le of candles stu c k into bottles were burnin g fitfully in th e d ust-lad e n , fe tid atm os ph e re . A dozen
squaws in th e ro o lll kep t up a co nstant wailing.
J\t tim es th c wailin gwas a so rtnf sonthin g ,·hant, and atother
tim e s SOlll C of the sq11a\\'s wmild se t up a shrill shri e k clinch
th e ir fi s ts \'c n o rnou sly, an<l fill th e air with curses.
'
Sud den ly t he d o nr ope ned . a n d a squ a w en te rc el \\' ith an Indian
lKlSK e t fill e d with e[l rth.
L o u de r a nd lo ude r beca me th e wa ili n g , bo th in s ide a nd out.
Th e s q u a ws fo rm e d in a process io n and wa l ke d around the
L'o r pse , each ta kin g a handfu l o f earth fro m the u asket and
sca t te rin g it o\·e r th e bo dy. Th e e arth was dry a nd soo n filled
th e a ir with d us t.
' ' \Vh y d o n't yo u bury J 11ana ? ' ' I a s ke d th e \'!Om a n who six
days be fore told m e that Juana wa s go in g trJ die .
"No place fo r b u r y," \\·as the su ll en a us we r. All the women
in the room th e n b egan wailing and h o wling and cursing.

SI J\° GL E

PAHA G RAPHS.

365

"No place for bury ," so me o f the m s creamed in En g lish,
while o th e rs kept up th e in co he re nt wa iling .
4 . Thomas J o nes , o f 227 E m e rald ave nu e, w a s killed yeste rday morning with a base ball bat in the hands o f C harl es
\ Valk e r, of 666 \\' a s hin g to n a ye nu e .
W a lker is n ow locked up at the Wes t AYenue p o li ce statio n,
charge d with murd e r.
Th e p o li ce are , ho\\·eve r, in c line d to beli e ve he a c te d in se lf clefense.
H e is a bic ycl e -p o lisher and bea rs a goo d re putati o n . H e
had h a d tro u b le wi t h J o nes , w ho is a te am s te r, so m e tim e ag<>,
but the killing was th e result of mon ey m a tte rs.
J o nes was dri n king with a part y u f m e n wh ose reput a ti o n is
not of th e be st, it is said .
Necessit y for m o ney an lse, and Fra nk O'Brien gave th e
teamste r an Orlkr fur $.50 upon \Valkcr, declaring that th e la tt e r
owe d him t ha t a m o un t.
J o nes, with his co mpani o ns , we nt to th e h u me of th e polish e r
and d e mand ed th e m o ney .
W alke r to re up t he li ill, d eclari ng he di d no t o \\·e O' Bri e n
anythin g . T his a n ge recl th e cr o wcl, an cl all , it is sa id , se t u po n
the o n e m a n.
Th e p o li s he r n1 she d into his h o n se, se ize <] a b a t , a nd st ru c k
Jones a terr ific h low o \·e r t he h ea d.
The skull 1vas fra c ture d and d eath was alm os t insta nt a neo us.
5. M y fa t h e r too k his fi rn littl e girl s driving- e ver y e \'e nin g
abou t twili g h t . IJ e s aid th at it \\' a s to mak e th e m sle e p. Th e
nei g hb o rs n se d to sa y , "Th ere g r\CS Mr. ]uhnson with his six
littl e fl o we r lnals." I was grea tl y i1np .. se <I on li y m y s is te rs at
tim es , as I \\'as th e yo un gl's t, and must nrn all the e rrand s. J\ s
I had five si ste rs to m ake m e d o e rrand s for them , I ha d a great
many to accompli sh .
6. I w e nt th ro u g h seve n g rad es in the .l a m es R . Be n nett
public scho ol. S o m e o f m y tea c he rs to ld m y m othe r th at I w a s
a w o nderfull y bri g ht c hild, IJn t o th e rs <lid no t Aat te r he r : o
much. \Ve 1110\·e d t w ice wh e n I was thirt ee n. Th a t yea r I w as
very ill for s om e tim e ; th e re fore m y moth e r ke pt m e h o me
from schoo l for th e w ho le year. Mos t o f the time, I kep t myself
busy re adi ng .
7 . Diirin g t h e s ic kn ess o f an old fri e nd, sh e ;.:-ave up eve ry thing an ll t ook care o[ he r. She never le t a cross look or wo rd

370

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

SINGLE PARAGRAPHS .

fought wi th Ca~sa r' s co hort s . Rut be nea th th e p olish of higher
c ivili za ti o n th e re remains th e same spirit uf res is tance to the
Latin s, alth oug h o ften co ncea led so co mplete ly as appare ntl y to
h a ve vanish e d. T he races of th e North h ;l\·e always uee n tryin !{ tu wres t the scepter of p o wer fro m the wealthy reside nts of
th e So uth.
6. Burke says that the temper and c hara cte r of the American
Co lon ies haye gi Yen th e m "a fierce s pirit o f libe rty. " The
reaso n s are: 1, their desce nt from th e En g lish - a liberty -loving
nati o n; 2, th e ir gove rnm e nt, whi c h consists of local assemblies,
gi v in g th e m loca l li be r ty; 3, the ir re ligi o n is o ne whi c h protests
again st th e lack of libert y in th e En g li s h Churdi. The fa ct that
slave1-y ex ists a m ong th em has the effect of m a king them consider lil;e rt y a privilege o f rank , and th e re fore the y hold it dear;
5, th ei r edu catio n is mostly directed to ward s law, which fact
give s them a good id ea of their rightful privile ges ; 6, the fact
that th e colonies are re m o te from th e h ead of the government
always tends to weake n its authority.

an act m a y be a wise regulat ion, but it is no concession: whe reas
our present th e me is the m ode o f giving satisfaction .-B u RKF:

,I

Spece/I. 011 Co11ci!iatio11.

J. Define emphasis in the paragraph. How may it
be s ecured ?
I<. Criticise spec ifically the followin~ unemphatic
paragraphs:
1. In the last year, a s the result of the Spanis h-Am erican
war, the people o f thi s co untry have become imbued w ith a
spirit of expansi <m. It seems t<i be their ide a to beco me a great
worlcl -pow<:r, t<i stretch out immense arms over th e earth and
perfr.; rm wonders . It see ms to he their sincere desire to pacify
c1v1hzed countries, to bring e iv ilization tu th ose liv ing in semibarba rous darkness, and a lto ge ther to per form undertakings of
herc ulean propo rtions. Nor will other lands alone benefit bv
this. Probably the trallc of the United States will in creas~
seventy-five pe r ce nt.
2. "The repo rt of the vi c tory, which seems to ha\·e Iieen a
complete rou t of th e Spani sh fl eet o!f the Ph ilippines, \\'ill be
the m ost welco me n ews the American p eop le have had in ma n y
yea rs," said (;eneral Brown. "It seems to me that it is the
beginning of the e nd of Spain , which is to follow very speedily.
The totte ring dynasty is abont to fall, and I think D on Carlos
will be on the throne before th e ye ar is ove r, and the Au st rian
government se nt hom e . 'J'!1e doom of the ::Sagasta ministry is
seale d. The men of the Illinois guard a re ready to marc h to
m a ke the defeat a cn1shing- and de cisive o ne. An<l th e Courier
g e ts lanre ls for ha,·ing brought us the news far in advance o f
any other l.rnllc tin."
3. Ue is o ne of those tall, unusually go<><l-loo king o ld gent le m e n with a soldierly bearing, such as we see , now and the n, in
Un Maurier's pictures. "The (;cneral" is not a ni c knam e gh·en
him because of his dig-nific<l appearance; he wo n his titl e n c1 J;lv •
in the Ci\·il \\'ar. The Ge nera l is always imrna c nlate; his frock
coat tits him faultl essly, and his tall hat seems always tq have
had an extra p oli sh.
4. \\'h cne \·e r he ha s the opp ortunity, the old man is g lad to
talk. Alth o ugh he can an<l will talk o n any s 11l1ject, hi s ol d
stand-by is p o litics . I k is a strong Re pnl1li ca n, an cl clde nns his

I. Do yo u find the following paragraphs coherent?
Why?
1. As a p atrician o f Rome, St. Rc ned ict ha<l be fore him the
brightest worldly p rospects . F ea r ing-, h o we ver, that in the midst
o f iud u lc ncc and luxury, hi s spiritual we lfare would he forg ot·
ten, h e fled lo the Apen nines. ll erc , a mere la d, he lived three
ye ars . Isolated from all ci\·ilizatinn, h e spent his tim e in ceaseless pra y ing. One clay, whil e thus praying, h e was found by
some shepherds who we re pasturing th e ir Huc ks on the m o untain s id e. Fro m th ese shep herds he formed th e nucle us of his
m o naste ry. Th ese un cu lturccl and un ecl nca tcd m e n fo unded a
se ttl e m e nt, whi c h was watch e d and governed li y St. Be nedi ct.
2. If we adopt th is m o<le : if we mean to conciliate and conced e ; le t us sec of \\·hat na t ure the concessi" n <•light to be: to
asce rtain the nature of our co ncession, we mt1 s t loo k at their
complaint. Th e n.l o nies co m pla in , that th ey han: not the chara cteri stic m ar k aud seal of British freedom. They cu m plain, that
th ey arc taxe d in a p a rli a me nt in whi c h they are n o t re prese nted.
If you m ea n to satisfy them at all , you mt1 s t sa ti s fy them with
re ga nJ to this c«>mplaint. If yo n m ean to please any p eo ple,
y 1' 11 nn 1st .~ i\-L' 11!..-•11 1 the ho 1111 , ,·hiL· h tl 1ey ~t~k; 1111 t what \'llU
may t hink l>vttcT f,>r tl!cm , Intl of •t kind !<>ta ll y different. :-;;1ch

371

')

·.,

,,

372

373

CO:l1POSITI01' Ar-:U .RHETORI C.

S I r-; (j LE J•.'\l< .'\G RA l' H S.

p:irty very :ibly. lfe k no ws C\"C: r yhocly, and c\·eryhody kno \\·s
him. The nl'ighl1ors tease him a good deal about hi s gossipi ng
am ong- the \\"omen , hut. as hi s sense of hum<Jr is strong , he
usually holds hi s 011· 11 with the m. li e dearly lo\·es a good joke,
eve n o n him se lf.
5. \\"hen my l unch is fini shed I go to tl1e library tu loo k up
the references for my next day"s work. The rest of the clay is
spent in \·isiting fri en ds and 11·a tc:h ing- the footb all tea m practice.
After dinner 1 get my lessons - t hough freq ue ntly , if I wish to
go out in th e evening I get the m in th e afternoo n . I mak e it a
practice to prep:.trc all of my lessons before g o ing to lied, except
wh e n I am not feeli ng we ll.
6 . It is receding rapidly now-this histori c old place (;\ lo unt
Vern on], for we are s tea ming along up the ri\·er. J\ncl as we
puff a lo ng, a feeling of a1\·e and re \"C:renct:: ste:1b over u s, and
our thoughts take on an histo rical n ature. !! ere in this very
spot, not so long ag<>, li1·e<1 th e ma n to wh o m the lln ited States
of Ameri ca o\\"es a debt n o t to be com puted. ll un es t man ,
courteous gentleman, \\"ise statesma n , \·aliant so ldi e r-he is a
lofty example to all suc ceeding generations- jm;tl y ca ll ed the
Fathe r of his Country. And no w our renc> ri e is brok e n, fur we
turn a bend in the 1·i\·er. A d is tant chanticleer c rows fare wel l.
7. The next year I went to l'aris. Herc I h ad a Fre nch
maid, \\"ho to"k charg-c of me. Every \\"eclnesday she took me
to the Bois tle Rou lngne , wh ere \\"e h ad l un c h . I u sed to spend
all my allowance on the qu eer trin ket s \\"hi ch 1 fou nd in the
fasci n ating sh o ps abo ut Paris. My life passed the re was mu ch
m ore d el ig-htful than it is here, where my time is taken up with
st u dies , music, and a (cw parties , pleasant !Jut uninte resting.

with th e \·oices o( ocean antl the sigh ing of the wincl in her
s hroud s . E very prospero ns breeze, whi c h , gen tl y swe llin g he r
sai ls , h e lped the pil g rim s Oll\V:lr<l in their col!rse, awok e new
anthems o f praise; an ll when the e lements we re \\'roug ht 111to
a fury, neith e r the tempes t, t ossin g t he ir fra g ile hark like a
feather, n o r th e darkness anti h owling uf the midni )(ht st o rm,
e ver clisturbetl, in man or \\'oman, the tirm and se ttlecl purpose
of th e ir souls, to undergo a ll , and to clo all, that the m ee kest
patience, the boldest resolu ti o n, an d th e high es t tru st in Got!
co uld enable human bei ngs to suffer or to perform.W EBSTE R: The Co111pldion of the JJ1111kcr / -fi ll .1! 01111111c11/.
2 . The (~overn<>r of Arizona is ou t wit h t he annual plea for
the admission of that thinl y settled territory as a State, \\'ith
power in t he S e nat e equal to th at of New York or l'e nn sylvania.
He claims•· tha t Ariznna h:\s as much \\' ealth as the average of
the t\\'enty-two ~lat e:; admitted fr o m 179 1 to 1876, and estimates
its p opu lati un at 'c'.7 ,SOO. The fo rmer cla im is too vague fo r
analy sis, but the latter ca n easi ly be tested . In ! SSS th ere were
cast in Ar izona ll, .'i3S vot es for delegate to Congress ; in 1896,
after a much more closely con tested canvass, 14,051. Thi s rep ·
resen ts a g-ain u f only about 20 p e r cent in e ight years , and the
p opulation in l S90 \\'Us bnt 59,620, of.. which more than l,500
were I ndians, nearl y 3,000 Chinese, and over 3,000 llfoxicaus. A
o-ain n f 20 per cent w ou ld lning the total now up to only about
~O 000 fr om \1·hi c h d ed uction must be made for I ndians, Chinese,
an.cl lllexi ca ns. E\·cn that reckless advocate of premature s tate h ood, Senator Platt of Connecticut, will h a rdl y favor giving two
sea ts in the Se na te to the few th o usand men in Arizona who
have th e right to vote .- Th e 1\ 'a l ion.

/ ,. Do yo n fincl th e folluwi n g- paragTaphs e mphatic ?
Why?
l. The Ma y llo\\·e r sought ou r sho res under no high-wrou g ht
spirit of com111ercial ach·e nture, no lu1-c of gold , no m ixture of
purpose warlike <>r 1111stile to any human bei ng. Lik e th e dove
fro111 th e ark, she hacl put forth o n!;· t<• lind res t. Solc 111n snp·
plications on the shore of th e sea, in l loila1!d, hacl in voked for
he r, at her cl e partun', the IJkssi ngs of l'rovidenc(·. The stars
which g-uided her \\·ere the unoli sc·nn: d co ns tellati ons of c ivil
and n·ligi ous liliert y . li e r deck was the altar cd the living (; 0 1! .
Pcrvent prayers on 1Jc1Hktl knees , 111ingled, !1l1>r11ing anti eveni ng ,

•I s this word ri),:-htly used?

PART V.
THE WHOLE

CO \IP OS T T I O~.

CHAPTER XX!.
THE STR lJC T U R E OF Tl!E \Yll OLE COMPOSITION.

139. The Relation of the Paragraph to the Whole Com·
position. - A paragraph may be a comp lete composition
in itself. A small s ubj ect, such as a short edito ri a l, is
properly devel ope d in one unit. I n consiclerin~ th e
growth of the th e me, * hO\\·c,·c r, we fo und th:tt \Yh crc
subjects are of sufficient size to have w ell -mark ed
organic divisi o ns , the com posit ion must consist of
related parts, o r p :-i rag-raphs . \Ve slrnll see that th e
rhetorical laws which govern th e construction of
good paragraphs apply equally to themes of larger
proportions.
140. The Order of the Paragraphs in the Whole Composition.- In this large r unit , which we call for the sake of
convenience the whole compos iti o n, the most im portant
matter is the order of its parts. The whole composi tion may he liken ed to a ch ain of whi ch the p:-iragraphs
form the links. To achie\·e clearness, the writer must
include in his chai n of paragraphs every essential link:
and he must place the links where th ey conn ec t clearly
with each oth er. If h e omits link s or misplaces them ,
th e reader will miss the orde r of thoug-ht ancl become
confuse d . The proper order fo r paragTap!'is in the whole
•sec sec ti o n s 15-17.

.176

CO~lPOS!TlO:-<

STJ<UCTlJRE OF THE \VH()LF CO!ll POSITION.

AND IUIETOIHC.

composition is a question of logic. Sometimes there is
a choice among several methods of arranging· the parts,
and the b est arrangement can be found on ly after
experiment. One general direction may be given: see
that the reader is not obliged t o jump from one paragraph to another. In the following newspaper article
there is no apparent reaso n why the second paragraph
should follow the first, or the third the second, or the
fourth th e third:
·
no M.
o ne Faure a lone was unaware that he soon must res ign,
but
excep t l'lcrnenceau au<l a few others foresaw the fatal
issu e .

Th e republic for th e next forty-eight h o urs will he lyin g at
the mei:cy of the first man who \\·ill seize it, but the suddenness
o f M. l:au re 's demise prevents the enemies of th e re publi c from
concertmg to strangle h e r. Besides, there is no man of sufficient
prestige to make a coup d ' (:/a/. The generals are disaffected
but the so ld'.e rs, though hostile to the Jews, w ou ld not obey
ordered to hre on th e R epublicans.
. M. Faure apparently di ed in the ni c k of time. The re a c tion1st forces, un der his encouraging eye, were bei ng gathered to
battle.
-

if

Goo<lne_ss knows what he fo ndl y imagined. Perhaps it was
that a military coalition would hail him as a savior.
llI. Faure went p riva tely and unexpec tedly last week to the
opera.
Notwithstanding- the surprise ca used by his visit, the
directo rs' staff rn shed out to receive him . M. Fau re's aid-deca~np, as the Pres ident al1vanced toward th e stairs, made a sign
that th e attendants were to fall back a considerable distan ce to
m a rk tht:ir respect. The President had rece ived , a few days
before, a lette r from the Czar, and had n ot yet descended from
the high sphere.

c_ompare \\'ith these disjointed paragraphs the followmg extract from Bryce's .·J111c rica 11 (_0111 111 01111 ,f'al lit :
An ~nglishman expects to find his ll o u se of Commons rep roduced 1n the H ouse of Representatives. He has the more reas~n for this notion because he knows that the latte r was mod·
eded on the former, has borrowed many of its rules a nd technical

377

expressions, and regan1s the procedure o f the English chamber
as a storehouse of precede nts for its own guidance. The notion
is d e lusi\·e . R ese mblan ces of co urse there are. But an English parliamentari a n who obsen·es the Am e ri can House at work
is more impressed by the p oints of contrast than by those o f
similarity. The life and spirit of the two bodies are wh o lly different.
The room in which the Hou se meets is in the south wing o f
the cap ito l, the Senate and the Supreme Court being lod ged in
the north wing. lt is m o re th an thrice as large as the Engl ish
Hou se of Commons, with a floor about equal in area to \\'cstminstt:r Hall, 139 feet lon g by 93 feet wifle and 36 feet high.
Light is allmitt e d throug-h th e ceiling. Th e re arc on a ll sides
deep galleries, rnnning haekwarcls over the lohh ies and c·a pahl e
of h o ld ing t " '" thousan<l fi,·e hnndred persons. The pr<1p ortio:1s arc so gootl that it is not till you l11Jscrve how small a man
Ioo !<s at the fnrth e r e nd, and how faint orllinary voices s1n11Hl ,
that yo u reali ze its \'a st size. The se:tts are arranged in curved
concentric row s looking toward s the Speaker, wh ose hand some
marble chair is placed on a raised marbl e platform projec ting
sl ightly forward into the r oom, the clerks anc1 the mace below
in fr o nt of him , in fro nt of the clerks the ufticial stenogra ph ers ,
t o th e right th e seat of the se rgean t-at -a rms. Each member has
a revo lving arm-chair , with a roo my desk in fro nt of it, wh e re
he writes and keeps his papers.
Behind these c hairs nins a
railing, and b e hind the railing is an o pe n space into which
strangers may be brought, where sofas stand against the wall,
and whe re smoking is praeticccl, even by strang-crs, thoug-h the
ru les forhicl it.
\\'hen yon enter, your first impression is of rwise and turmoil,
a noise like that of short, sharp waves in a Highlancl loc h, fretting undt:r a squall again s t a roc ky shore.

141. The Plan, or Outline.- If a writer h3s a keen
sense of order and logic, he can arrang-e the parts of
his whole composition as he writes. Few write rs, ho weve r, can trust th e mselves to work without any pre liminary plan. In the end, it is easier to make an o utlin e
of the subject first, no matter how simple the subject
may be. These first notes, or jottings, have been

'·i

J'

f

j

II
li
:·'

-~"::--,

378

co~rPOSITION

A:'\I> RHETOl<IC.

described 111 sec ti on 12 chiefly as an aid in g-athering
material. \Ve shall now consider the outline as a help
in ordering the parts of the wh o le composi ti o n. For
such a purpose a few wonls or phrases may answer, if
the th eme is a sho1·t one o n some simple matter. The
m ore pains one takes with this o utlin e , h o we\·er, the
easier th e actual labor of compositio n will become. It
is best, therefore, to frame a full head ing for each paragraph of the theme. T o this may he jo ined, in brackets, brief notes of the contents of th e paragraph. In
cases where the whole composition will re ach to more
than a thous:rn(J \\·ords ( roug-hly, about fiyc themepagcs ) , a murc exten dctl out lin e is ad1·isahk,- o ne that
will indicate larl:!·er part s of the whol e than the paragraph, such :-ts the bci::-inni ng- , the body, and th e conclu sio n.
The first t1\·o o utlines that follow :ire mere lists of
topics. The seco nd two a r e adequate outlines of
four-page th emes .
A . Sewing in the Grammar Schools.
I. Not pro fitable .
1. Not in all schools.
a. Not time enough .
11. Enou;;h to <lo with ou t it.
1. Other work neg lected.
III. Bad for hea lth.
1. \Vo rk at home.
IV. T eachers p oo r.
V. Sh oul d he discontinued.
B. The Hi sto ry of a Sin (as d e ve loped in ,Jfacbetli)
I. Introduction.
1. Pinn of play.
11. Macbet h's temptat ioll.
1. Conditions making it poss ibl e.
a. Might be king.
b . J\ge of Duncan .
c. Temperament.
d. Preceding e\·e nt s.

STRUCTURE OF THE \VIIOJ,E COMPOSITION.

379

2. Ma cbeth's a ttitude.
III. Events.
1. Duncan' s visit.
2. Lady Macbeth .
IV. Effects .
l. Lost self-control.
2. Hanlenecl.
3. Death.
V. Conclusion.

A'. Sewing in th e Grammar Schools.
I. lt is n ot a profitable course.
1. That man y in auth o rity grant this prop osition,
is sh o wn by the fact that sewing has not
been pnt into all the schools.
2. Too lit t le time (from fiftee n to thirty minutes)
is given daily to th e work .
3. The .ins tructors are n ot com p ete nt. for
a. Th ey have rece ived n o special training in
this subjec t.
I I. The pupils do n ot have time for both sew ing and
their o th e r m o re important work.
1. Already eac h lesson receives but thirty minutes.
Ill. The work has a bad effec t on the pupils' h ealth,
for
1. As they are required to do a good deal o f it at
h o m e, the ir time for exercise in the fresh air
is shortened.

B'. The History of a Sin (as deve loped in Jl!acb<'lh ).
I. Introdu ct io n.
]. General s tate m e nt of the plan of .l!ar bdh.
II. Macbet h 's temptation.
1. Conditions that macle th e temptation possi2Jle:
a . .Mac be th's n e arn ess to the throne.
b. Th e age of th e king.
c. Ma c beth's own temperam en t.
cl. Events that immediately preceded.
x. Macbe th's successes in the campaig n,
his h o n ors at the hands o f Duncan ,
and his coll sequent vanity.

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STRliCTURE OF THE WHOLE

CO:> ll'O SI'l' ION' A:\"D IHI ETOH I C.

the banners arc adorned \\'ith family names and coats of ar111s,
some with national mottoes, and o thers with p ictures of heroes .
Boys in fe s tival dress go up and down the streets, some wearing
l\\'O little S\\'ord s , some carrying small banners, and othe rs bearing large wooden s\\'ords tied \\'ilh gay ribbons on their shou lders. It is a beautiful and inspiring sight, ant] it is a day to
make th e young masc uline heart beat high with pride and joy.
The game of football \\' as played in the Empe ror's palace
g-rounds until foreigners ente red Jap a n; sin ce then, it has
i,ccomc quite general, and much the fashion. L e ap-frof;, jumping , \\'re:; tling, and running- races are a m ong the athletic sports:
!mt Japanese boys do not show as much enc111rancc in th e"·
<'X e rcises a,; 1\111N ican and Eng lish boys show. Thirty min utes at fl)o\bal l will fatigiie the averag-e !Joy; but fur a ll that ,
he has great pei:se\·erauce. (From a them e nn boys ' sports in
Japan.)

2 . Macbeth's attit11de toward th e lctllptati•Jn .
a. lie yields readily and wcakh'.
11!. E\·cnts leading up to the crillle.
1. li11llcan' s \"isit to :'llacheth's ca,;tl<.: .
2. The tannts uf Lad y Macbeth and her d e finite
plan.
IV. Effects of th e cr ime on Macbeth.
l. L oss of self -control.
2. 1-l:trdening of hi s c h aracter .
.l . Early death.
V. Cnnc·lnsion.
1. There is nuthing Ile\\' in th e history <>f ;\[achl'th':-; cri nH.:, hut tile \" ~lritJllS sta~t·s o f a
sin arc marke1l with 111H1sual dearness.

The preparation of the o utlin e, though a sorne\\' hat
tedious task, is the only means of i11st1ri11g o rderly
wntmg. The \\Titer can detect in his outline what
parts of his subj ect \\'ill not deve lop proportionate ly,
and what parts, mis11laccd in his plan, belong naturally
to~ether.

142. The Use of Connectives,- It is n ot enongh to
arrange the parts of the whole composition log·ically .
The relation bet\\'ccn the parts must be made plain by
the us e of connectives, just as the relation between the
sentences in the p ~tragTaph mnst be sho\\'n hy conn ectives . Tn ot h er 1\·ords, the reaclcr should not lie left to
find out that the writer's order of th Oll l;ht is th e proper
one. 1Je shuu hl feel as he reads that the ide as are
coherent. The \l'ritcr of the fullowing· paragTaphs had
in mind a definite and log-ical order, but he failed to
make th e con ne ction clear.
Among the Saruaurai famili es it was the cus tom to buy a
complete set of these toys for each son horn, aIHl on this feastday these sets are IJrought out anLl displayed with great magnificence in the chief 1·00 111 of the house. In the streets, bamboo
poles are plant e d at intcn·als, with iJ:ilb of gilded paper on to p,
from which lon g p:1pe r streamers of e1·cry color float. Many of

CO~Il'OSITIO:-o;.

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The secund paral;raph needs an introductory sentence
to make the r elation bet\\'een the paral;raphs quite
apparent; e . g-., " Japanese boys ha\·e athletic sports
also."
Careful \\'riters employ three obvious devices to
bring o ut the connection between the parts of the
\\'hole composition. The first is the use of conjun ctions and conjuncti\·e ach'erbs (especially "hence,"
"therefore," "111orco\·er," "then," "ho11-c.1·cT," and
"no\\'"). "And" and "bnt" may be used tu link
t \\' () paragT:1phs, hut only when th e thou;..:·ht of the
second paragraph as " 7t'lto/,; is paralle l \\'ith, or in
opposition to, that of the first". As these ca-.;cs rarely
occur, "and" ancl "but" arc frequ e ntly misused at
the ope ning- uf th e paragraph. Th ey should not be
n se<l to unite the last scntenn: of the first paragraph
\l'ith the first sentence of the second. The second
dc\·icc is the use uf r eference words, such as "this."
"thnt," "these," "those, " "snch," and "like."
Th ese te rm s n eed not come first in the opening· sente nce of the succeeding paragraph. but should be

382

CO~IPOSITION

AND RHETORlC.

woven into the first sentence, as "Pride, tinder s11rh
training, is turned to account," and " I might consider in th e same manner.
The third device
is repetition (in opening a paragraph) of words or
phrases used in the closing sente nces of the preceding
paragraph, as in this pa~sage:
I was ve ry sm·e that, if my proposition were futile or tlangc r ous, if it were weakly co nceive d or improperly timed, th ere was
nothing exterior to it, of power to awe, dazzle, or d e lude you.
You will sec it j ust as it is, and yuu will treat it just as it
<1cserves.

The proposition is peace, etc .- Ht: RKE:

Ci>110"/ialio11 wi/!r

.·lmcrfra.

It is use less, howe,·er, to :ittempt to disguise diso rd erly thinking- by tying tog-ether with cunnecti\'es
loosely related thoug·hts.
Logical thinking- must underlie clear writing .
The orderly arrangement of
thought and the clear demonstration of that arrangement, arc the first principles to be observed in building whole compositions.
143. Unity and Proportion in the Whole Composition. The principle of unity in the whole compc1s ition is
precisely what it is in the paragraph th ough the unit
in th e ca~c of th e whole compos ition em brace s more
lupics th an ca n h1.: treatccl prclJ)L:rly in the sing·le parag-raph. Unity may be viulatcd by the intrnduction of
too many tupics, or by the incomplete de\·clopment of
necessary t opics . l\!atter that. although related to the
subject, is a t1igression from the main purpose of the
theme, must be excluded. 1\ny gross Yiolation of
unity is easily detected in the outli ne. A good plan
of the whole composition, therefore, will aid the writ er
in preserving unit y.
Closely related with the winciple of unit y is that of
proportion between the dilfcrcnt parts uf th e wh o le

STRUCTURE OF THE WHOLE COi\lPOSCTCON.

38.1

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cornposlt10n. Any piece of writing- shuuld lca\·e with
the reader an impression of balance or proportion.
The outline will often reveal the fact that too many
paragraphs have been devoted to one portion of the
theme, perhaps the introduction or the conclllsion or
some subordinate point in the body. These inequalities, when they occur in the tinal draft of the theme,
necessitate r ecasting- the whole. I 11 the out lin e, h owever, it is easy to strike out o r subordinate unimportant topics.
1_44. How to Open the Whole Composition.- To make a
good beginning is a difficlllt feat in composition. A
dangerous piece of ad,·ice sometimes given to yo ung
writers, is to open always with an introductory paragraph. In lo ng essays o r books, such an opening, containing a general stateme nt of the author's JlUrpose
anc1 his plan, may make a suitable introducti on . Carly le 's f:'ssay 011 B11r11s, for example, has an introduc tion
five paragraphs in length, which treats of biography
in general and of the v:irious biogTaphies of Burns.
l\I:icaulay, on the other hand, deYotes th e first paragTaph of his essay 011 The J.ifr of .Si111111d Jol111so11 to
Johnson's l>i rth ancl early life. Il e hcg·ins:

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San1t1L'l J11linso11, one of the rn11 st <.:1 11ine nl English writers uf

the eighteenth century, w a s the S()fl .,[ l\lichacl Juhn s<> n , who
was at the beg inn ing of that cl'ntury a magistratt· of Li chfiel d
and a bookseller of gre at note in the midland counties.

This more direct form of introduction is, generally
sp1.:aking, preferahle. Preliminaries arc usuall y dull;
the introduction is the writer's scaffolding for his
thong-ht,;, which should be removed when his final draft
is made. In telling a story or in describing an object,
it is especiall y desirable to ;wo id a n e lahorate opening,
fo r in such cases the reader's attention Jllust he ga in ed

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384
at once.
story :

CO:ll POSITION AND RHETORIC.

This, fo r exa mple , is a g ood b e )!inning for a
PERE Cl! E \"}{ E F!L S.

A m o n th had passed since olcl P e re La F o rce was buried
be nea th th e s to ne fl oo r o f th e chape l wh e re h e h a d so long
atte nded th e spir itn a l wants o f his little Hoc k. Four whole
Su n"t!ays with out a m ass, a n d the n M. Che vre fils arri\·ed from
Mont real to tak e charge o f the p a r is h. H e ca m e o n th e ni g ht
tra in ; a nd , ::t!th n u gh o ld J oe l'ileau x a n ll tw o o r three o ther
to wn a d v isers loitered a ro und t he sta t io n to see wh a t h e wa s
like, so m e h ow he s lippe d past the wa tch e rs and w as walking
swiftly up th e ro ad bd o re th ey noti cell him.
Sun lla y m o rnin g e veryo ne in St. Anne 's was at mass. \Vagon s a nd cart s that we re see n o nl y at Eas tc r-tirn e we re hit ched
u n <le r th e trees , wh ose bran c hes sp re ad ove r the lit t le c hapel.
T he Demo ts fro m La Prair ie , 01 <1 B uck , th e c h ief of the
Cocogno wa go s , c \·e n ol d T herese L ozo n, wh o h a d n o t go n e to
m ass for ye a rs o n acco unt o f her rh e um a t is m , were the re . The
sab o ts, th a t were n cn :r di scard e d b y th e old fo lk, c lattered up
the narrow a is les until t he ve r y last s trok e of the be ll.

Stern e b e gi n s hi s Sm timcn!a! J ournry in thi s informal
manne r:
"Th ey o rd e r." sai d I, " thi s ma tte r b e tte r in France. "

Lo well o pens an essay o n "The Stud y of Mode rn
Lan g·ua gcs" with this sl ig-ht introducti on:
Three years ago I was o n e of th ose wh o ga th e red in the
Sand e rs Th eatre to co mm e m o ra te th e t wo hun d re d a ncl fifti e th
an n i\"e rsa r y o f a col lege fou n de d t o p e rpetuate livin g learning
c hi e fiy b y th e he lp o f th ree dead la n g u ages - th e H e brew, the
Gree k, an d th e Lati n. I h a \"c gi\·e n th e m that o nl e r o f preced e n ce whi ch th e y h a d in th e min ds o f th ose o ur pi o us founders .
Th e H e bre w ca m e firs t beca u se they b c li c\" e<l th a t it h a d been
spo ken b y Go d Him self, an d th at it wo uld h ~w e b ee n the co mm on sp eec h o f mank ind but fo r th e ju di cia l i1we nti o n of the
mod ern lan g uages at Shinar . Gree k ca m e n ex t b ecau se the
Ne w T es ta m ent was w ritte n in th a t to n gue , ancl Latin last as
th e inte rp re te r bet ween schola rs. O f t he m e n wh o st oo d a bo ut
tlrnt fate ft1l nadlc s wung fro m ho t1 g- h o f th e prime \·a! forest,

STRUCTURE OF THE WHOLE COMPOSITION.

385

there were probably few who believed th a t a boo k written in
any livin g lan g u age co uld itself live.
F o r n e arl y tw o h und re d years n o m o d e rn lan g u age w a s co nt inu o usly a nd sys te m a ti ca ll y ta u g h t h e re. In th e la tte r h a lf o f
the las t ce ntury a s tray Fre nchm a n was caught n o w an d the n.
B y h oo k o r b y c roo k so m e en thu s iasts man aged to lea rn Ge rman, b ut th e re was n o offic ia l te ache r b e fore Dr. F a lle n , a lmost
sixty yea rs ago. \V he n a t las t a c hair o f Fre n c h an d Spanis h
wa s e sta b li shed, it was ra ther with an eye to c omme rce th a n to
culture .

A g o od opening, however, must b e more than brief;
it mu s t be engaging. Where shall we attack our subject
to g e t the most interesting view of it ? Lowell intro·
duce s his essay by stating strikingly the p a st condi tion
o f education in re g ard to m odern languages. O ne fo rm
o f introduction o ft e n used b y speake rs is a short story
or apt illu strati on o f the topic. Anothe r co mm o n form
is some g eneral a sserti on that is d ebatable, or, on the
other hand , an a ssertion which is indisputably true.
145. How to End the Whole Composition.-To e nd well
is alm os t as diffi cult a s to begin well. Th e co nclus ion
sh ould be in teresting and important. Th e d esc ript ive
the me that foll ows rnns down at the end, as if the
writer were tired o f his subject:
We trud ge d into Amh e rs t about du s k, as the c hape l be ll was
s trikin g se ve n o 'c loc k,-a ve ry tire d lo t of !Joys, j ud ging by
m yself . Bes id es ge ttin g nn idea o f the beaut y o f th e s u rrou n d in g co untry, o f which I have n o t sa id mueh o n acco unt o f lac k
o f t im e, we becam e we ll a cq u a inted with o ne anothe1· ; t h is
fa c t a lo ne was e n o u g h to pay us for our d ay' s ou t ing in th e
mount a ins.
I su ppose yo u have reache d thi s point in the le tter o n ly a fte r
th e seco nd o r thi rd readin g , b ut yo u know y ou sa id y o u w a nted
m e to te ll yo u e ve 1·y thing I did, so thi s is wh a t I have do ne. I
ca nn o t think o f a n ything more to say n o w, and I must close and
g et to \\" Ork. Yott a1·e always c a llin g- for m y le tt e rs, but l d o
tJ OI. h L"ar fron1 y r111 half as r1ften a :-; vnu do fro1n 1n e .

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386

CO:\IPOSITION A N D RHETORIC.

STRUCTURE OF THE WHOLE COMPOSITION.

If he h ad said simply, "We trudged into Amherst
about d u sk , as th e ch ape l be ll was strikin g seven o'clock,
- a very tired lot of bo ys," he w o uld have le ft us with
a clearer, h appier impress io n of his e xcursio n. The
best rule, then, in the conclusio n, as in the opening, is
to be brie f. Find out where the inte r es t in the subject
r eall y ends, and h ave the cour age t o leave off at that
point. l\ void postscripts, fo r if the in fo rmatio n contain ed in th e postscript is importan t, it probably
belongs earlier in the theme, and should be inse rte d in
its proper place. O ne form of the p o stscript th a t is
especially an noying occurs whe n the writer, thinking
th at th e re:-icle r will no t see hi s p o int, tries to explain it
or to m o rali ze abo ut it. The real encl o f this d e scripti o n , for example, is "a sen se of ceaseless activity
whi ch accomplishes nothing."

The result caused by the m ingled e ffe ct o f droppin g pears,
wa ilin g wir<l, m oanin g organ, droning reader, and splas hin g
waves, was depressin g.

AN AFTER:-\00'.'; RECITATION .

My afternoon recitatio n in Bt·o zvulf brought little with it.
The large, da rk room was crowded w ith s tud e nts wh o settled
them selves in their c ha irs in the pleas ing anticipation of be in g
bored for an h o u r. Before us sa t the teac he r - s ho rt, heavy,
and un in teresti ng, gazing impassivel y at us ove r her spectacles .
Th e ho ur beg-an with u rec itat io n o n the assig ne d lesso n, now
an d then interrupte(\ by th e s quea kin g- of th e d oor, as some
tardy member e ntered . The n th e teac her sptmt the remaining
tim e read in g a loud in a mo110ttmous voice extrac ts from B eou111lf, e specially descriptions of a lo ne ly sea and o f gloomy contli c ts . From the ch apel overhear! came the melan c holy wailin g
of the organ practice. The impressio n recei ved fr o m the win dow was jus t as cheerless; t here, a sombre g ray sky met our
gaze. Amici the h owling- of the wind th e re were heard occasional dull thuds, as a stron g gust s hoo k down the late pears
from a n ow alm ost leafless pear tree nea 1· th e window . No less
so was the mental picture nf th e e ternal clashin g- of waves o n a
blea k s h ort un der a leaden sky, an<I a so lita ry hero on the
stra n d , tng-aged in morta l combat w ith a g-r irn 11 1,,nste r. Th ere
\\·as something uppressivt about th e wh<de atn1osphere - a
-;e n se of ceaseless a ctivity which acco mpl b ht: s nothing.

387

An abrupt co nclu sion , o n the oth er h a nd, leaves the
r eade r wondering wlut th e ar ticle has been written for.
In thi s fin:-il paragr:-iph of an essay o n Shelley's life, the
author h as cut off his remarks with a kn ife :
Min o r works, th e m ost impo rtant of whi ch a re Ode to tlie
J.Vest /Vind , The Cloud, To /li e Skylark , and To Night, fol lowed
in rap id succession. Th ese little poems are so m e ti mes th oughtful, somet im es m erely sugges t ive , and so m et im es m yst ic; but
th ey are al\\·ays c h arn 1in g-. Of hi s lo nger p oems , ..-Jdonais is th e
m ost popular. It is a n elegy on the dea th of Keats, and, next to
L ye idas, is the finest elegy in th e la n guage.

The length o{ the conclusion will natura ll y depend
upo n the scale and the n ature of the wh ole composition. If the subject is a complex or difficult one, it will
be necessary to m a ke th e conclu s io n a summary of the
chi e f points touched upon.
In every composition,.it is importa nt to see that yo ur
w ork is fini shed, that yo ur reader h as no thing m o r e t o
expect from you, a nd to s ee tha t yo u d o not weaken
y o ur effect b y weary in g yom reacle r w ith tri via l remarks - that you e ncl with inte restin g- matte r.
Exercise XXI.
A . Show h o w the principles disc uss ed in the chapt e r
o n p a ragra ph s (sections 131-137) apply to th e wh o le
th e me.
lJ. Illu strate th e principle of rhe torical cohercnc~
fr o m a chapter of the 1.Jook you arc r eadi n g in t he class
in E n glish literat nre. Wh at mea ns of lin kin~ paragraphs do yo u fi nd beside s th ose m e nti o ned in th e t ext ?
C. T o illn strate cohe re nce in th e wh o le co mpos iti o n,
o u tline the first te n p:q.~cs of B ur ke's .\pro It''" Conrilia tion : the second ch ap ter of Southe y 's Liff of Ndso11:

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l'OSITIO:-.: ,\ :-; 1l l<llETOJUC .
ST in 'CT l "HF OF Tl!F \\"ft() I. E CO:lt l'uSCTf<>>: .

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the first chapter of Scott's I Voodsfocl.' ; the who le of
Carlyle's !:.:>say 011 /J11n1 s .
n. Criticise th e coherence of the following- themes.
Rewrite th e m in cohere n t form:
l.

THE C ll AJ{ACTE}{ OF GLAJJSTO:>E.

Like a rn gge(] English oak, William Ewart Gladstone successfully withstood th e storm s of m o re than half a century in the
political life of his na ti \'c country. ll is deep-ro(l\e d s tre ngth
was un doubtedly base d upon t he f:-tct that he po ssesse d in the
high es t d eg re e th e slunly manhood and all-pcn·ading comm o n
sense for whi c h his countryme n of the better class are n ote d .
In fact, if an effo rt w ere ma de to fi nd a t\·pi ca l Briton, one who
represents th e most practica l ta le nt in politi c al, li terary, and
n.: ligious thought, the present gcnl'rati"n wollld a\\'ard the palm
tu C!:1dston e.
Gladstone inh e rit e d a fi ne rl' ligious temperament frnm hi s
mother. and vig<1ruu s and prac tical qu ::diti l:s from his father.
The c o mbinati o n o f these \' irtues g aYe G latlstone an aristocratic
beautv and a personal magnetism and fasc ina ti on \\'hi c h ren dcrecl his speeches ve r y p e rsLiasi\·e. (~l:Hlston c \\·as at al l t imes
the m u st earnest and sincere man in all En gla nd. lli s efforts
\Ve re denJtt..·l.l to r ::tis in g- rnenta l and n1 o ral cunditiuns iu Eng-land, and he \\'as e\·er a sh ining- pe r so na l e xample o f th at which
he t a ught . Lc·a dcr,h ip in p•>liti ca l life \\·01il<l n nt o f it se lf be
sufli ci cnt tn a cc·nrd the lr"·e nf the masses to the m an o\·e r whose
bier England stands with bo wed head. It \\'as Gl:tdsto ne t he
fi g h tc:r \\'hon1 the En gl is hrnan admirecl, but m o re than all t h ey
reverl:d (;ladstone the man .
He cou ld n ot, it is said , C<!lllpre h cnd a witticism unl ess it was
sarcastic a 1Hl sen·ed a d e fini te purpose . De s pit e th e man's sinc erit y and e arnest n ess of purpose , hi s recor d s h o\\·s that he at
one time o r an o th e r tv <•k pu,; itions on both s ides of cn.: ry politi,·;i ] questio n except Fn:e Trade. This ma y l>c ac· c1»Jn ted for
b y the fact that h e n: prc·,;c11ted a l1 11ost pl:rfectl y lll>pu lar opinion.
;\Jr. Bri g ht, s peakin g of h i111 at a Reform d c nwnstrati o n,
sa id: "\\"h o is there in th c I lou se nf Commons wlw equals him
in kno\\'lt'd ge of all J>"l it ic:: tl q uc slio n s > \\'h e> equals him in
e: ll·n \:s tne,s? \\"h•> c•qual s hi rn in c·l <>< JUCllct'? \\'ho e qu als him
in co ur;L g·c a11<1 fideli t y l11 ii i--; 1·11n\'i1..·ti111 i:-. ~ Jr tlu.: s e /..'.'l' llt lenH-· n
who say tli l·\· \\'ill nu t fullu\1· hi rn lla\·c a!11·u11c· \I'll<> i.> hi s c·<1ual 1

.\S•)

let t he m show him. If th ey can point 011t any st:ttesman 11·1i,,
ca n add dignity a1Hl g-rnnde11r to the statu re of !\ Ir. (;Jadstone.
le t th e m p roduce him."
'l ' hc ~ Pl' C ch(' s of the sage ha\'e l1ee 11 ~11hject1:· d to 111u c: h criticism.
His utte rances w e re h c m·y and fil led \\'ith invnh·cd
rhetori c ; still , they were interest ing bec: u1 se of the personal
rna :..;11etis111 o f th e spC' :-tker.

("; real learning :tnd an ;1cti\.L' n 1ind

cau~t:d ~lr . <;Jndsto :1e tn win pr:ti sP fnr his ti 11c n c y :11ld r c:l.di!lt:"'"'

i11 \..'Xt1...·111p11ranet 1us S]H·aki11~ . .:\ ltlH111g-h his tl11c1h·y an1<it1n tc· 1!
a lmost to a fault, ye t it \\':ts \·ery usd•tl d11ri11 g puliti l' :il c :llll paig:ns, when hy l ong spceclit:·s li e c<H1ld ple:t...,t· 11i s !i c<trcrs with out sa y ing anything- of impnrtan ce. llis ~11·le of oraton· ha s
b ee n st\·lc<l "ling11istie pomp." '!'hes~· sp<"< ."<·l1 es h:11·e lit .t ie t<>
~tt tract tl 1e read e r, :Lnd in t ilC'i r lack ui ! i tl· r~ in· n1 vri1 tl:l·\· f,, rn 1
a strong cn 11tr:1:-'t tn th P

.\~/11df, •s

ti!/

\\' ri r i11 ~

//0111er <U?d

lflr~

nf the

~t ~ tt ~· ...: n i:tn

//0 111«rir

.·l ::r·

i.·~

11 lt'

\\1ir k

t1 1

\\·h i1..:h th e l1e~t c !T<Jrt~ ,,f 1\Ir . CLu1 :-; t o n e's litcr:1ry J;fl· \\' CH.:
clc\·otPd. Prc\·k-111...; tn the p11hii1 ·:1t1fln of tlii ~ \\'<Jr k in l ."-\SS , ii i<,
said that the stu <h· of ll<1llh.: r at Oxford \\·:i s C' '<L c·pti <>na i. T!i,·
ensuing c h;1nge in till· cnrric11lun1 is CJT(litcd J;\' 1nan\- to tlll.'
L L\.' l tli;:d I\Tr. Cl adsto n c s t 11die d Il11n 1cr :1-; otl1l'r...; . . .; t11d\· ·~il:ti-: f'o..; ­
lh-·.lrc , and did nn:1._ l1 t(1 i ]1._·11111 n...;.: r :L lc tq h i:-. 1._ · · i:ltt·111p 1 >~-aric :") t l i c
\·: dl! e of the \\·ork of th e <;rc·ek poe t.
Th \: pern·pti<>n, thor ·
<>11gh11e,;s, and lea rning sho\\·11 in th e se w1>rks on Jlnm e r arc
freely prai sed by c riti cs .
Se\·e r ity in his tas tes un<loul>tedl y c11 11tril H1te d l:tr~eh" t" t liL
h :deness o f the former Pre mi er's o ld age. I le w:.s il!dt1stri<>u s ,
r el ig ious, and generous: all that li e did sho1vl: d strength of char acte r and vigorr1u s manhon rl.
\\' h e n past eighty yC"ars .,f age
he s\\'ung- his ax in the fores t about lla\\"arden, and manv a
slump hears silent \\·itness to the aged man's J)(•ll'er ,,[ .. ; 11 1.
li e h e \\·ed <lut. a path to h appin e ss and co nt e nt. That h e clid
no t wi s h titl e s is sho\\'n ll\· the fact t h at h e repc:1te dly refused
tn :llTCJll :1 J>l'Cr:1 g e , and m<1re tlia n once adually s n uhhe<l the
<J ueen .
lk11ca1h th e pathos .,f Mr. (]Jad sto ne's la s t illn ess lies a grl':tl
lesso n in C hristian fortit11cl c. Know ing full 11·cll t h at h e llll1't
le:t\"C thi s world, he bade fare\\· e ll lo l1is fr iends :tn.J L11· .f.,11· 11
l» :tll'ait de:1th . li e die d \\'ith a pra yer C•n hi s lips . \\"l;l'n till'
rl' l' Ording an ge l close d the bo ok co ntaining t he re<'.'.ord nf t he
cl eecls of Englancl's "C1·ancl Old Man," hi s fam e 11·:1s ass ure d

~90

cn:11 rnsrnn:" A xn R llETOR re.

STRUCT\..l<E OF THE WHOLE COMPOSrTIO:-.-.

even if h is politi ca l \\" Orks "·e re blo tted out. His manly qualiti es stand a s a stea dy li g ht to gni cl ~ the youth who jour neys on
the sea of life .

will always hinc1 er him. Then again he says it tak es 11p lc"1
much valuable time. T o be sure it takes up three o r four ho urs
a week. But in what better way could three or four hours be
spent?
Besides these things, it gives one a better commatHl of the
English language. After a while, words come to one's mind
with o ut the least thought, and the speaker becomes very lh1ent.
Public speaking also gives a man the greatest confidence in himself. F o r instan ce , if a man is called upon to make an afterdinner impromptu speech, and has n o t been trained in this
direc tion, he will fl o und e r around and say nothing . How embarrass ing that wo uld be!
Therefore, from these things here stated, l consid e r that 1
have proved without doubt that it is the best thing possible to
make public speaking a compulso ry study.

2.

P U BLIC SPEAKI:-;G SHO U LD IJJ! :'>JADE CO:\li'U LSOR \' .

So. many ha\·e doubted the a<lvisability of making publit:
spcakrng compulsory that I will gi'.·e here a few arguments in
it s fav o r and again st it. As to the stand I myse lf take, I shall
le:t\'e th e reader to <let e rmine for him self.
That publi c speakin;.; in itself is a good co urse, I think no o ne
will d ou bt, fo r su re ly the ccillege man sh ou ld liave the c han ce to
beco me.; a speake r if he wishes. J\11(1 thi s leads up to th e fact
lam going to <lisc u,s. Sh ould this study, o r may we no t even
call it a pleasure, be made compulso ry ?
ha..:e to take public
A man says to you : "\\"hy sho uld
!-<pc.;a king-? I am in tcn"tcd in the sciences and ne \'c r intent! to
make a speech.'' l'c" rhaps he d ocs not inte nd ever to make a
sp eec h, !Jut if he cn·r w:rnt s to tell an aud ience th e resu lt ot
some sc ie ntili c exp e rim e nt , wit ho ut this trainin g h e will be
utt e rly at a loss to kn ow h ow to beg in, to e ncl, or e\·en to stand
befo re an audien ce . U nl ess he is a n ;ry self-possessed m a n, he
w ill be frightened to d eat h e ve n to loo k an audience in th e face.
I be li e 1·e that wh e n a man is in this cond ition, h e is said to be
s l<tge-s tni c k . Th e man who said that m any a fin e thought was
lust to th e wo rlcl hcc au sc the man wh o had it cou ldn 't m ake it
k no wn, h it th e nail 011 the head. Now, if th e man who dislikes
it is n u t fo rce d t" take th at wurk, h e never will. But to the
man who wo uld choose it in any case, it matters n othing wh ether
it is compu lsory or not.
.
Th e n, again, a stude nt ma y say : "Public spe aking is a bore,
all(] th o ugh I don't a ctu.1lh· dislike it, it takes u p three or four
valu a bl e hours a week . ll cs idcs, I c an"t learn a pi ece and then
speak it lik e a c hild." li e says it is a b ::i re. I thou g ht so , too,
al th e fl1A lesson. Th e n l too k a mild interest in it, and now l
look fur\\"ard eag·c rly to eac h reci tati o n . And I venture to
say the whin e r will co m e to my wa y o f thinking before he has
had fo ur lesso n s. Th e n he says h e can't commit a short selection to m emorv. \\'ell, then, this course is ju st the one he
should take. H e sh o uld without de la y le arn to commit pieces of
literature to m e1nory. Awl will h e do this w o rk unless he is
forced too? No, he will not. He says he will, but something

3.

A COLLEGE ROO:M.

had the pleasure the oth er afternoon of vi siting a college
room . It was a large front room, well lighted and fa c ing west ,
and opened on the north side into an alcove which was used for
a becl room.
The flrst thing I n oticed as I e ntered the room was the predominance of maroon-colored furnishings, and its crowded condition . Every nook and corner had so mething in it.
The wind ows were all draped in maroo n curtains worked with
a large capital C . Fastened to these curtains were suu \·e nir
badges of las t year's football games. Besides these curtains,
maroo n pennants and banners hung from eyery conceivable
place, aml maroon cushions fill e <l every cha ir.
In the center of the room wa s a st udy-table, ttj:On whi ch was
a student-lamp, school-books, and a jar of tobace() and a meerschaum pipe. Beside the table was a large, comfortable armchair an<l foot-rest combined.
Tacked up on the walls were pictures of the various football
and glee and mandolin clubs . There were also numerous ne wspaper likenesses of individual players . The mantelpiece over
the firepl:ice o n the south side of the room was filled with souvenirs th e student had picked up. Two silver cups, trophies of
athletic victories, stood on the mantel.
Between the two front windows was a lounge, a'' bronco,'' as
the owner calls it. This piece of furniture is. so built that if a

392

I

.I
I

•\

1,

CO~IPOSITf0'.'1

A1'D .RHETORIC.

person sits on eithe r end of it, that e nd will sink and spill him
on the flo o r. This causes mu ch amusement.
A n ea t and ingeni ous method of displaying photographs was
t1sed in this room. Suspended from the ceiling and running
nroun<l the four walls, w:is a I:irge net , somet hin1' lik e a tennis
ne t. Fastened to this in a haphazard way were picture s of fair
young ladies. Th e mirror of the dresser was fringe<! with smallsized likenesses o f hi s friends.
One side of the room is papered with posters, that is, with
fan cy covers of different publications. Boxing-gloves, dumbbells , a tenni s- racket, and skates are hung on the other walls.
The o nly drawback to this otherwise pleasant room is the
tobacco-laden atmosphere.

E. Point o ut the parts of the followin~ th e me \\·hich
injure th e proportion. HO\\" would you r ecast the
theme?
WHAT \\'ILL DEC O ~IE OF THE l'lflLIPPI:>;Es?

The present conflict between the Un ited States anti Spain is
the center of attraction of the whole p o litic a l world . Jt will
serve its purpose in o ne way at least, if no t m o re; it will have
rnscued the United States from the ever-present dange r of falling into the staid ways of European countries.
The Cuban war, which began in rn95, seemed to the people
of this country of little importance. But the barbarous meth ods of the Spaniards, and later the piteous addresses of the
Cubans, arousetl the dormant sympathy of the officials of this
country to acti,·ity. Our entrance i11to the conllict was not
looked upon kindly by Spain, ancl , as is we ll kn o wn, the ensuing diplomatic complil'ations and the bl ow ing up of the l\faine
led to war between the two co untri es . \Vhen \\' a r \\'as declared
by the United States, neither the showing of o ur military and
naval prowess, nor the acquisition of te rritory by co nquest were
thought of by Congress; the rendering of an ob li gat io n to the
cause of downtroclden humanity was ou r object.
But in th e s ho rt time that has elapsed sin ce the clec laration of
war by the United States, how chang-ed is th e co ndition of things!
\Ve have been compellecl to gaze into various parts of the world;
n ow toward the Canary Isla nds, n o w toward the Cape Ve rde
Islands , now toward France, and finally toward the Spanish

STR UCTUHE OF THE WHOLE C();\I POS ITION.

393

\Vest Indies. Probably the object o f most interest lo the U nited
States and the \\'Oriel is the Phi lippines .
The brilliant victory of Commodore Dewey has paralyzed the
Spaniards in that part of the world. By submerging the Spanish
fl ee t and capt uring the stronghold of their navy, Cavite, Dewey
has placed .M anila at hi s mercy. Manila is the capital of the
Philippines , b ot h commercially antl poli tic ally; therefore the
cap ture of this ci ty will pra ct ically put all the islands in our
control. Undoubtedly the fall o f Manila will take place with the
a rri,·a l of General Merritt and his soldiers, who are to invest the
city and establish military rule. But the occ upation of Manila
will be only a means for an encl, and after the conclusion o [ the
war, it will become a grave problem for Congress to decide what
we shall do with the islands.
That the islands will not be returned to Spain, who has been
ruling as opp re ssi,·el y th e re as in Cuba, seems to be certain.
The propos ition that the Unitecl States keep them, I think, would
hardly ~ain the necessa ry votes in Congress, where it seems
n ext to impossible to come to a satisfactory con c lusion o[ the
Hawaiian questi o n . The possess ion of Hawaii is urgetl as an
invaluable coaling station. To sell the islands to some one o f
the countries who are burning with a desire to get possession of
them is also ve ry difficult. The last solution possible is th a t o f
granting libert y to the islands, but this may not be the best thing
for a people who have never even tas ted o f the sweets o f free dom. Therefore, a grave question demands the attention of the
American Government.

F. Illustrate the application of the principle of unity
in the whole composition by an analysis of a magazine
article".
C . Examine C hapter XI of Scott's 11/oods!ock for
propo rti on. What digressions d o yo u find in Chapters
I and VITI of George Eliot's Si'las 11/amer.
JI. Criticise these opening paragraphs of th e mes:
(Theme of three pages entitled" A Trip to Milwaukee.")
F o ur of us who had jus t finished the June examinations were
g oi ng to stay in the city for a fe w tlays and have a good time
before separating for our summer vacation . \Ve were ready for
anything in the way of pleasure. Books had no claim on us,
1.

394

COMPOSITION' AND RHETORIC.

and we could play tennis or go bicycling at any time or for any
len g th of. time. Among othe r amusements suggested was a day'•
tnp to M1hvaukee. A ll jumped a t the suggestion, and the sub·
ject was care fully discussed from four sides. As we girls had
never before been on the water lon ge r than a few hours at a
time, to spend a wh ole d ay on Lake Mich igan was something
new, and we loo ked forward to the outing with great expecta·
t100. The state of the weather was a question whi ch needed
some discussion; if the lake we re rough, should we get seasick
or not? The men took d e light in assuring us that in case the
lake were rough, as it probably would be o n account of recent
hi gh winds, we should undoubtedly have the experience of seasickness.
2. (Theme of three pages entitled "The H o usehold of Sir
R oge r de Coverley. ")
\Vhcn we read th e hi sto ry of past ages and past generations,
we are surp rised and s hocked a t t he manner in which the
an cie nts treated their servants. The ancient Greeks and Romans
held the idea that s laves were inferio r to their masters and that
masters co uld do as they pleased with th ei r sen•a nts, even to the
extent of killing them. We all know how the ser vile uprisings
of R ome were suppressed, and how barbaro uslv the leaders
wc r:e punished. Lik e wise in all ages we can find n;any instance~
of Ill-treatme nt of se n ·ants by masters; even our own country
is not ex e mpt.
Hut as we look back we plainly sec that servants are being
treated better and better as the years roll by; now no one would
think of a!Jn si ng a st· tTant.
·
. ~n the time of. ~ir J{ .. ger de Coverley, h o weve r, things were
different; masters treat e d sen·a nts shame fully, and ~ervants
co uld ge t no re dress. Fnr this reason we must loo k o n a man
who loved his sen·anh :it !hat time as a man advanced in civili·
zatrou beyon d his age.

~· (Th e me nf f•rnr pages entitled "An Experience.")
I'he worst experie nce that ha s ever befalle n m e , I think, is the
fa c t that I am ob li gecl to write upon such a hroa rl sub ject as I
am now gnrng to undertake.
I ha\'e alrea~ly reali zed the difficulty in \\Tiling thi s theme, for
I rack .m y brains and set th e m in a whirl trying- to think up
so m e thing- that has h ap pened to rne within my m e mory. I have
almost rnade myse lf helie,·c that I have bee n through fires,

STRUCTURE OF THE WHOLE CO]'llPOSTTI01'.

,19 .'i

floods , cyclones , and every other co nceh·able disas ter that could
look well in black and white. But such wo uld ne\'er d o , 1 fear .
Perhaps I will tell you all about a little expe rie n ce, n ot thrdl·
ing, which my sister and I h ad o ne summer when we were m
Michigan, where we were visiting ou r aunt and uncle.
"\Ve il, girls , " said auntie, when we h ad all pushed back o ur
chairs from the breakfast table," you may have the single b,uggy
and Prince this morning; go where you please, and stay as lo ng
as you wish."
4. ( A th e me of

five

pages entitled "Thomas Jefferson,

Democrat. ' ')
The majestic march of Dem onatic prin c iples marks the bat·
tle-lin e be tween libe rt y and despotism, between th e rule o f caste
and the rule of man, and their ach-ocates are the se ntinels upou
the battle ments o f reform . 'l'his new order of things was fo reshadowed in the constitution of C listltenes; Savonarola burst
the chai n s of t yra nny for th e people o( the lo ng-o ppressed It aly,
and Cromwell led the English co mm one rs to co n flict and vi c tory. •' Ueroocratic freedllm '' \\'ailed the serf from the gloo my
walls of feuda l tyranny . '' Dem oc rati c freedom'' sang the ni g l:t
wind th rough th e Mayflower's crea king masts. '' Democratic
freedom " belched forth the ca nn o n from Bunker Hill and Yorktown. When tyrann y ·-hall fettered the American colonies. when
En g land's avarice h ad retarded our progress and blighted our
commerce, wh e n insult and add ed injury alo ne responded to the
appeals 0 ( ju st ice . th e n arose in <lefense of democ ratic freed o m•
simplicity, and integ rity , the genius of his tim e, the sage of
Monticell o , the apostle o f democracy. Thomas .Jefferso n .

/. \\Trite int roclnctory paragraphs on the following
snhjects:
1. The first football match of the seas o n.
2. The necessity of a stand in g army.

3. A ~ood m ethod of dea lin g with the liquor prob-~
le m.
4. \Vhv English sparrows should not be destroyed .
5. The purposes of a bank.

J. Criticise the following· conclusions for themes:
1. (From a theme of four p ages on Quo Vatfis.)

3%

CO:lf l'OS TTIOX A xn lHTFTORTC.

One of the \'tlluable features, but, o ( co urse , secondary to the
main ideas , is the information to be gained fro m the accurate
descr iption o( the socia l conditions in Rome . The topography
is minutely set fnrth; th e Porta Cappena, the Subura , the
Esquiline , nil hec"me familiar.
\Ve ha\'e a co mprehe nsive
pictu re of the st rcl'ts and building-s 0f Nero's capita l, peopled
with its \'ari o u ,; races, and an outline of the da ily life of the
citizens.
On the \\"lrnl e su ch an account wo nlcl be highly
pl easi ng to a pe rson \\"ith an economical or soc iological turn of
mind.
2. (From a theme of four pages entitled " Six Mo nths in
Berlin." )
But in spite of these several o bstacles I passe d an exceedingl y interesting tim e. There were many parks within Berlin
itself and SC\"{!ral suburbs wh ere the m embers of the royal famil y spe nt their summers. There were also plenty of art ga lleries
atHl muse ums. and we \"isited places o f histo ri cal interest.
A fter six mouths in Berli n we tra\'eled o n to Paris, wh ere we
spent only two weeks. During this short time we also had
several very funny experiences .
3 . ( Fro m an argument o f eig ht pages entitlell "\\"hat is the
Most Adequate Theory of th e Ca\lse of F o ld ed .Mo untains? ")
For severa l reason s. then, the contra\'.:tion th e ory is the most
adeq ua te th eory yet offered. Jn the first place all the objections
thus far l.iro11ght agains t it can, as has been s hown, be satisfa cto rily answered . Jn th e next place, it is based 011 the most
wid e ly accepted theory in reg-anl to th e cond ition of the interior
of the earth. Besidt·s this, the it"ading geologists, alth o u g h th ey
d o not n ecessa ril y l"onsider it the right theory, yet think it has the
strongest proo f in it s fa,·rn·. Lastly , it f\llfills th e essential condition of accounting- f.,r all the prese nt known fa cts abo ut folded
mountains.

I<. Discuss th e effec t of the openinr,:· pages of Silas
/lfrrrn cr. \Vh at do yolt think of Scott's opening chapter in I um1!toe P What is th e exce llence of .Macaulay's
first paragraph in his E ssrry 011 Samuel Jo/m so11 i' Select
from a Cltrrent magazi ne an article which you think
opens strongly, ancl explain to the class the author's
m ethod.

STRUCT U RE Ol' THE WHOLE CO~ l POS !TI ON.

397

vVhat effec t h as the last paragraph in i!te House
L.
"
c-r(/ ti.
Can
von think of good
re asons
1 lS',
of ffte ..Jl'Vell
<
J
•
.
.
.
.
!cl
be<'in
·mcl
end
more
d
irectly
than
1
why :;tones s 10u
,,,.
•
other forms of writing?
/If. What <l o you think of the opening of The Pilgrim's Progress!
· c1erness of this world
, l lighted
As 1 walk'd th~ough the w1l
.
.
certain place where was a D enn , and I la id me down 111
on
thata place to sleep ; and as. 1 s.1ep t , I l1rc·'1 med a Dream.. . I
ing
d reame d , a ncl behold I saw a lllan clothed withl Raggs, stand
Book Ill
.
.
l
with hi s face from his own 10use, a
Ill a certalll p ace,
· '
k
I l k cl , nd
his hand and a great Burden upon his bac .
oo ·e , a
sa.w l;im ~pen the Book• and read therein; and as he rea_d, he
wept and trembl ed ; and not being al~ le longer t_o . con tam', I:'.
brake out with a la mentable cry• sayrng' What ~hall I do .
BUN\/ AN:

The

Pi~r;rim's Progres~· .

SU:ltMARIES.

CHAPTER XXII.
SUMMARIES.

146. Definition of Summaries.- One method of learning
how to forrn who le co mpositions is to analyze and
summa:·ize the work of another writer. A summary
(sometimes called an abstract or an epitome) is a condensed state m ent of another's thought in one's own
words. Th e m aterial, that is the thought, belongs to
the author wh ose work is taken; but the expression of
the th o ught, except whe re quotations are made, must be
the writ e r's, no t the author's. Th e summary h as many
uses besides the practice which it affords in studying
the structure of different forms of co mpos ition; thus,
the summary is ofte n an important part of a bookreview, of a speech, or of an editorial. i'Vhereve r it is
necessary to use th e th o ught of another in a brief form,
the summary is e mpl oyed.
147. Methods to be Avoided in Summarizing.- The careless writer usually mak e s a summary by purl o ining
worJs, phrases. or en:11 wh"le senll.:nces fro m his
author, which he strings tl>g"ether withuut the use of
quotation m urks .
Such :i patchwork of d e tached
extracts, wh en presentcJ as th e writer's own wo rk, is
dishonest . Moreover, th e th o ught of the auth o r, garbled in this fashion ancl separated from its context, is
lik e ly to be distorted and unfairly presented. It is
impossibl e to make in this way a connecte d, coherent
account of the material, for some steps in the author's
thought are neces sarilv dropped out altogether. The
~

399

"patchwork" or " mosaic " method of summarizinir
should be avoided.
Another poor way to make a summary is to condense
each paragraph. I£ the article is short and composed
on a simple pl a n, this · mechanical method may succeed.
but if the material to be summarized is complex, the
summary will consist merely of scraps of information
that bear no apparent r e lati o n t o one another.
148. The Proper Method.- Th e material which is to be
summarized should be read care fully more than once,
until the student has mastered its conte nts and is
familiar with its structure. The next step should be
the drawing up of a careful o utline. that will represe nt
exactly the structure of the original. Th en the scal e
to be used in r e ducing the le ngth of the article must be
determine d, and the topics of the outline reduced t o
accord with this scale. After this pre liminary work it
will be a simple matter to make the summary a coher·
ent article, well-propo rtio ned and independent of the
original in expression.
The following summary of Chapter V, Vol. I, of
Mr. Bryce's A merica n Co11m1omwalt/1 , has bee n pre·
pared in this way. The chapter is fourteen octavo
p;:q.; es in le ngth , or about six th o usand words , and h.as
bee n reduced in the summary to abo ut one -tenth of its
original le ngth. The outline comes first:
THE PRESID ENT.

l . Introducto ry: of the three departments in the American
Constitution the Executive is the simplest.
2. Reaso ns for establishing the office of President :
: l. English example.
b. Ex a mple rlrawn fro m State executives .
3. Limitations of the Pres id en t 's powers:
a. To serve only four years.
b. To be chec ked by the Senate .

,.

400

co:HI'OS ITIO N AND RIIETORlC.

4.

Ell'ction u f th e Preside nt:
a. O ri gi na l id ea w as to ha\'e d ou ble e lect io n in order to
a\'oid (x) congressio n a l influence, ancl (y) popular
infl uence.
b. Th e plan o f the e lectora l coll ege, x. Its failure to w ork as des ig n ed.
y. The h isto ry o f the e lecto ral co llege.
c. Presen t ,,·o r·k ing o f th e s ys tem, x. D irect popula r vote for e lectors.
cl. Conse qnen ces of the system no t foreseen,x. The President ma y be elected by minority of
,·ote rs .
y. A party man is irw :i riabl y e lected .
5. The e ligibility of Pres ide nt fur reelecti o n n o t provided for
by law :
a. lint precelknt in G ra nt' s case se ttled th e custo m of
n o t more than two te r ms.
6. l'rovisi ons in t he Co nst itu tion in ca se of n o choice in electora l co llege :
a . Only once has such a case occu rre d.
Ii . Th e prcs irli11 g o ffi cer of the Se n ate wa s to provide

fo r this eme r gency.
c . Co ngress ha s ass nme<l this right.
7. A se r io u s \\'eakness in the electora l syste m:
a. Jllu st rat cd liy Tilde n· Hayes electi o n .
::>. Im pea c hm en t th e only means o f re m o ving a President
fro m office :
a. Andre w Johnson is th e o nl y case.
9 . Su ccession to t he office in case o f death o r removal of
Vicc-Pre sicl e nt:
a. F o rm er pla 11.
Ii. S ince 18 '6 a n1:w plan.
c . l'rn l't icall y lit t le pains taken in cltuice o f Vice-Presid e n t.

Evidently th e sltmrnary must contain something
nbout everyone of these nine divisions. In reducing
the scal e o f th e article , howeve r , a number of th e <livisic~ns wi ll be 1111ite d, and th e o rder ma y be cha nged.
Attc 1· cxa 111i 11i11~ the ollt lin c, th is simp ln pla n is decided
upo n fur a l>r id summ ary:
.

S U '.\ I:IL\ H I ES.

40 1

1. T he o rigin o f the e xecutive offi ce in th e Am e rican Couqi tntion.
2. Th e sys tem o f el e cting th e Pre s'ld en t,-a . A s o ri g inally desi g ned.
b. 1\ s it has res nlt ecl in pra ct ice.
3. Provis io ns !or,a. Reeli g ibility,
b. I mpeac hment, and
c. Succession in case of death.

This o utl ine is prep ared for a summ a ry of three paragraphs, which \\'ill represe nt the three important division s of the mate rial in th e cha pter. Th e co m pl ete
summary may be found in sec ti o n 150.

149. Style.- After th e th o u g·ht of th e arti cle ha s bee n
maste red a nd the o utline has b ee n m ade properl y, th e
most di ffic nlt part o f th e \\' Ork has b ee n d o ne. Th e
next step is th e expressi o n of th e ideas. C learl y , thi:>
part mu s t be the writer's 0 \\'11 work. R easo n h as been
shown jn a forme r secti o n why the write r of a su mmary
should n o t u se the autho r 's style. Natura ll y some
phrase s, sentences, o r even whol e pa s sages, m ay best
be transcribed from the original. But they s ho uld be
quot ed, not borrowed with o ut ackno wl edgm e nt. In
every case wh e re more than t hree successive w o rds are
tak e n fro m another's writing, quotati on marks should
be used. N o t t o give the a uth or credi t fo r hi s work
i s dishon est. o r at leas t culpably care le ss. ·whe n we
scrupulously indicate all that w e borrow, we shall be
less reatly to tak e every oth e r phrase. Th e best \\'a y
to avoid borrowin g is not to refer to the o ri ginal
while filling o ut the outlin e. Afterwards, it will be
well to compare the two t o s ee that no thing impo rtant
has been slighted . iV e mu st t ake p ains, also, to be
th orou g hl y fair to th e auth or in rep rese ntin g his
tho u ghts . It sho uld m a ke 11 0 diffe re nce wha t ou r
26

~

~ii
·;1

402

CO>!l'OSITIOC< A:-.-JJ kl!ETOUJC.

opinion of the author's views may be; we must do
justice to his thoui;ht as a whole, not to uur own fcclin;,:- :1bont it . Tn st :,·!c, thcrcforL:, tlll'. ideal summary i~
t o :t large: e:xtL: nt ;.in i1111;crsonal transcript, lllH.:olored by
the writer's opinivns.

150. Proportion Must Be Obsernd.- The outline will be
helpful in keeping a clue proportion in the treatment of
the different parts of the matter tu ]Je su1nmarized,
There is always a danger that the first part of the summary \\"ill be made rni11ntely and at great length, to the
nciriect of the remaind er . To preserve clne proportion,
it is well to note exactly what sp::ice the author give~ to
different scctinns of his m~ttcrial.
'.\Ir. Bryce , fur
example, in the chapter on the Executive, gave about
two pages to the top:c that form,; thl'. Jirst section of the
second outlill<.:; li\·e paKes to the suliject o f the second
section ; and O \ 'Cr six pa~·es to that of the last part.
This scale of two, five, and six must be obse.,-ed as
closely as pos;;ible in condens ing the chapter.
The summary in full folluws:
The otlice of President was created by the Con~titu t ion of
1789. The idea of having a sing le head to the United States was
suggested to the framers of the Constitution lly the example of
tile monarch in the Eng-lish nation, lrnt m11ch nwre lJy the system o f State executives in th e co mmonwealths. The aim was to
have as chief executive a man of prominence, whose powers
were restricted, and whose office shou ld lJe independent of the
legislative branches.
For this reaso n, the Constitution provided fur a method of
electi on of the President by an indirect choice by the people .
The States were to c hoose electors, who should exercise freed om
in selecting a President. Thus the President, it was thonght,
would not be "the creat ure of Congress," or a party man.
A s a matter of fact, however, after the first two electiuns , every
election has heen condnctetl u n party lines. The electurs have
been p ledged tu vote for a certain candidate, and t his pledge
has never been broken. ~ l oreover, the States, which selec t the

·\U3

SVIDL\ R.IES.
electors , have nuw instituted p<Jpular election..;, in~lcad

b\' the

le~1slatun.:s.

li~ureliea 1 i

thus r1...·1H1ering- the Ek·1.:tor:t: t

;\n(;tlicr rc:-:-u lt

Constituti(llJ.

ha;-; be<:n

unfc irc:--tTll

tli~tl

tl1e

ck·~ · ti1111

l1y t l H·

i1f tlic

11

f

-~ilk ..._~ c

f1.tr11t · 1 -.,.

1...

:t

ll< ·i\..c
ll'1,·r1..·

<1 1

Prv":'~t· r1t

! l it·

li ; t....;

become an elect ion by States; fur the present svskm "f choo,;in"
1

electors bv ·· gl'ncr:1l ti cket
c;1uses the \\·hole 11 u n1!Jt·r (if cl1._·l·tors of on~e party to be elected. In this w:1y a Pn::-;idcnt 111:t\·
be, and in one no t able c:1sc has IJecn, clcctl'd h :-· an ~ lct u~d
'

111inoritv of tlie \« tcr.'-' .
J\ltlH_~ug h the Const ituti on contains
1

nothin~

al>uut tlle rt..·l.: li :.:,i-

bility of a President. yet after the failure o[ the )l<•]":Lir hc·r"
Grant to "et a third nom inati on . custom may !Je :.:ud tu lie:
finn1y uppusct.1 tu 111o rc th;1 n tw<1 tt.:rins. 111 cast·-.:. \If d i:--. p11tcd
elecliuu, in which a 111~1.iority of the elet'f(q·s l1:h n1d l>ct·11
obtain ed for one

l·;t

ndiclate,

tl1e choiL·e g·, 11._· :-; t•'

t lh:

1 I' )u .-, .__.

11

f

1.
1,\..~t a t ,.,. Tile
· h· tai-:c11
R ep n:sentati\·cs, where t I1c n>tc
. d1._·l:i si«1 !l
is made 011 partv lines . The must celel.>r:tted c:t'e ot thi-; k111d

llayt·s, \\'i1icil \\·a~ ultinLttcl>· ;-..vtticd l)\' a
ch.•1._'tuLtl t ·un11nis'.--.i(l!1 cn · ~tted f()r t l1c pt:r·
Since that tin1e a dc\·ice lL1~ bt·c11 f1>und for n. ·11H:d yi1 1g·

\V as in the elcctiun of
p.:irti~;an

\ ' !1te ()f ~Lll

pose.
this dithculty . A President once eled e d is rem,,\·:tl.!c: ,,n:y i>y
m ea ns of impeachment by the House - a measure attempted

St1u_·t•s..:.io11 in ca:--.c « f tl1c de:Lth "f the
\·i . .: c~l'rc :-:.i dent ·~ in ~ek·l·ti11:._:- \\"lio111
little c~tn.: is l:lk t:ll-: ll1d in th(· C' \ ' l.'i1t uf Jiio..:. <lt..·~tth, ~~lll" l 'l.'-.:.:--. 1 ,111 10..:.
now regulated hy .o..:.t~llult: 11;\~~ed in 1S.'-\f) !o Ltll f!1 tlie ~t' l TC Ltn·
of State, and after lli111 t•i utht.·r tdfivcr:-. uf tllL' :1d111iiii:--.~r:iti!1JJ
unsuccessful!\·

President

faUs

once.

up1nt

1

tl1e

151. Summaries of Novels, Plays, Etc. -- Su far, iL h~ts
been assumed thal the onkr u( the summary i,.; pr:H.:ticallv the same as that of the m:Lterial to be co ndens~cl . \Vherc an entire book i,.; t" b e su111Lnar ized,
howe\Tr, and especiali\' in the L·asc \Jl 1011,,;- n:Lrr;i\1\-c .s,
the method of the author cannot all\·ays be followed
with su ccess . In a n o vel, for examp le, the story is
told by separate incide n ts, by con\·crsations, and by
descripti o ns. not all of wl1ich \\T neL:\1 in the ,;u1m11an· .
Hence it is well t o ado pt some ,.;impler, more direct
plan for g-iving the necessary facts . A good method is

404

fi rs t t o describe th e ch ara cte rs br iefl y , then to give the
e vents ( or pl ot ) as n cnrl y a s p oss ib le in the order of
th e ir h appe n ing . An othe r pl a n is to g i,·c a synopsis
of th e principa l sce nes, b e g-innin g with so me importa nt one and g roupin g- the n ece ssary facts about
this ce nter. Wh a te ve r p lan is :-iclo pted , th e summary
sh o uld n ot be interru p ted by criticism o r comm ent.

Exercise XXII .
,·/. \ Vhat cri t icisms c::i.n yo u make upo n the followin g su mmaries ?
1.

T IIE l\T ERC IIA~T O l' YE ); !C E .

P o rti a , one o f t he lo \·e!iest c h arac te rs in Th e , )ferc!zant of
Vi?nicc, ha s suito rs from all qua r te rs o f the g lo be wh o are ask iu g- fo r her h a n d . T he re is Bassani o , th e Duk e of Saxony, the
Pri uce o f lll orocco , the Eng-li sh lo rd, and t he Frenc hm a n. It is
with g reat fun and jest th a t s he sp ea ks o f th ese s uitors to
Ne r issa , h e r w a iting ma id . S he is bou u ct by the w ill o f her
fat he r, so t hat it is only by ch oos ing th e ri g ht ca s ke t that the
fo rtunate o ne m a y o b ta in he r b a nd .
I t is \\·ith great joy t h a t she re ce ives Ba ssanio , wh o m she
wo uld m os t w is h lo m a ny a mo ng the m a n y th a t a d mire her.
Bassa n io mus t try t h e caske ts o f go ld, s ilve r, anrl le ad, a nd by
c h oo s111 g t he on e co n t:i in in g he r pi c ture h e wi ll rece ive he r conse nt to wed he r.
Bassanio reads th e in sc ript io ns writte n o n the vari o us ca s kets ,
and whe n h e co m es to the lead en o ne he is in d o u b t whether to
ope n it o r no t, for he cons ide r s th e metal too base for su ch a
tre asure. I le o pe ns it to find wi th a happy h eart the p ortrait of
P o r ti a t here in.
No soon e r d oes he fee l the joy o f hi s su ccess than he must
leave h e r. It is wi t h m any vows o f lo \·e and ki sses th a t they
par t. l'orlia tells h im she w ill s pe nd th e tim e d urin g hi s a bsence
in praye r and holy m ed it a ti o n.
\Ve see h er la ter in t he play at tire d in ca p and go wn as a
lea rn ed docto r o f P adua . She is at ten d e d l1 y Ne ri ssa , who is
dresse d as a young page. It is in th e tri al t h:i t l'o rt ia tries to
ronviu cc the a\· ar iciuu ,; ;1ud n ;\·e ngefu l S h yluc k that m e rcy is

,,

S l':ID! A HTES.

CO :lll' OS I TIU:" .\ :'\' JJ J' IIETOH IC .

40 5

high e r th a1 1 j us t ice; she c ,·en goes so fa r a s t" tc:l l him th a t it is
an a ttri b ute o f G o el h im se lf. She reads portion s of the law to
him, but it is o f n o avail ; jus ti ce is his plea.
Then fo llo ws th e e n te r tainin g and pre tty e piso d e o f the rin g .
Bassanio par ts with hi s rin g- . Af te r som e chid ing o n the part o f
P ort ia, li e e xpl a in s it a ll to h e r at Hl t hey become goo d fri e nd s ,
aga in p ro m is ing n e ver to pa rt with th e ir rin gs .

2.

TH E

~tP:R C llA:-OT

OF \ "E:-:tC E .

"In Belm o nt is a lad y ri c hl y le ft , " sa id Bassanio to h is
fri e nd," an<! s he is fair, a nd faire r th a n that wo rd ." N o won·
d e r tha t th e fo ur wind s blo w in, fro m every co rn e r of th e e art h ,
p r in ce ly su itors wh o surro u n d thi s fair lad y a tHl till h e r ea rs with
vows o f love an d co n st an cy . Th e re is th e Fre nc hman, with hi s
horse, b ette r t ha n th at o f an y one else; th e E ngli sh ma n, wh o
borrowe d o n e piece o f c lothi ng fro m eve ry co u n try h e pas,;ed
th ro u g h o n hi s journ ey to Be lm o nt, and his man ne rs eve rywh e re; th e re is th e Ge r m an p rin ce , the n e p hew o f t he Duke o f
Saxo n y, who is " ve ry vile in th e m o rnin g , wh e n h e is so be r , and
mos t vile in t he afte rn oo n, wh e n he is drunk " ; th ere is Ara go n,
and l\1orocco, wh o te ll s o f hi s d ee ds and o f hi s n a ti\·e co untry
and h is wea lth t o offse t a n y re pu g nan ce that m ay be called fo rth
b y hi s co m p le xi o n. But o f all th ese n o ne ha s wo n t h e hea rt o f
th e fair Po rtia, wh o , a las , ca n d o no more th a n lea d e:l\·h in h is
tnrn to th e c a sket,; (i f h e h ave th e co ura ge) . ancl te ll h im : " lf
m y for m li e th e re , I a m yours withal," and pra y t h at he Illa)'
c hoose t he " co nt ra ry ca s ket. "
Bnt An to ni o s u pp li es Ha ssani o 's nee d s , ancl he arrives at l.le lm o nt to pre ss his suit. O f all th e m e n Po rtia has ye t bid eyes
up o n, he is m ost w o rthy o f th e h a nd o f a fa ir lady. H e is
rece ivecl am! trea te d with di s tinctio n; so agreeab le d oes it see m
to P o rtia to ha,•e n ear h e r one sh e d oes n ot shrink from t ha t she
wo u ld fain d e tai n him so m e wee ks befo re p er mittin g h im to go
to hi s c h o ice , for sh e h o pes that by a s lay o f so me le ng th he
m a y p e rchance lea rn h o w to c h oose a ri g ht.
'
B u t Bassa ni o will lose n o tim e . Il e mu st kn ow imm edi a tel y
wh e th e r he is to be happ y ; m o reove r, h e is qu ite co n ti de nt: '' 1
h a ,·e a mind, " he sai d to A n to ni o, "presa g-es m e s u ch thrift ,
th :l t I sho uld q ues t ion less be for tun ate . " \\. h ile P o rtia obse n ·es
Bassani o Illa k ing h is c ho ice, s he is m ove d by fea rs uf an entire ly
ditfe reu t nature fro m th ose whi c h di st u rbed h e r whe n Aragon

406

407

co:.rPOS!Tl()'.': J\:\"D RHF.TO R! C.

SUMr.IARTES.

ancl Mo ron :u s too cl before th e caskets . Th e noble Venetian is
willing to " g i,·e an tl hazard all he hath," ancl P ortia ' s fears are
allaye d when he read s hi s scro ll, "Since this fortune falls to
y o u, be conte nt and seek no new," and turns, in obedience to
its in s tru c ti o ns, to " cla im h e r with a loYing kiss."
But, a las ! alt h ou gh he h a'< \n m his fa ir lad y , he ruu s t hasten
b a ck to Veni ce, fo r the m11nifi c.:cnt fri e nd, to wh ose assistance he
owes his all, is in sore d istrcs,;. And now, for th e first time in
the pl ay·, t he stre n g- lh of P<> rtia's characte r is sh own. Duty
calls he r hu s!J:rn cl, a1 Hl sh e ha ste ns him on hi s way, th o u g h the
parting is n o le ss a so rrow to he r than to hi 111 . The re is no
whin in g , no weak e nin g or breaking d o wn o ve r th e se paration ;
a fri e nd is to be resc ue d : sh e forge ts he rself and thin ks o nly of
the clange r o f Anto ni o .
The tr ial is the climax of the wh ole play . S!Jyloc k shows
him self in all his m ea nness , and d oes n ot even attempt to conceal a bit o f it; his so ul is fill e d with but one d esire, his mind is
fixe d o n o ne o bj ec t , every n erve and eve ry mu scle read y for one
task- to h a \'e reve nge .
Po rtia rise s superi o r to all obstacles,
ma s te r of e \·cr y situ a t ion. She is firm , but it is n o t th e firmn ess
o f whi c h th e J\lnnl s to nes s peak so mu c h: it is the all -powerful
c onvi cti o n th a t R ig h t , Truth, a nd Goo <ln e ss must conquer, and
t he s te rn reso lut io n that th e y sh a ll co nqu e r.

it was Dunstan; they found it out many years later when
Dunstan's body was found in the o ld stone pit.) Then he
became harder and colder than ever, but soon Eppie came to
gladden his life with her merry, childish prattle. When he first
saw her yell o w curl s , he thought it wa s his gold come back to
h im. She brou g ht new love and h ope into his life, and it was a
prond moment for him when, although she discovered that Godfrey, the 'Squire's son , was her own father, she chose to stay
with Silas.
The punishment of sin is well shown in the case of Godfrey.
The sketches of the village characters are very amusin~ .

3.

Tll E STO RY O F SILAS MAR1'ER.

S ila s Ma rner, the wea\'er of Raveloe , was a man who had
see n mu c h tru11 b le . \\' he n h e h a d hi s g old he wa s happy, for
h e counte d it o \·e r e ,·ery ni g ht, and it was like a friend to him.
Jn clee cl, he ha t! ,·c ry few other friends, for the p eo pl e o f the
v ill age w e re ne,·e r very fri e n d ly, probably because he seemed
always rat her cold and di stant to th e m. So when he lost his
gol<l, h e was qui te :dune and lost al so hi s faith in G od allll man.
F o r this was not the tirst time trouble h a d come to him . l for g o t to say that be fo re he ca me to R a ,· c loe he lived in a place
calle d L:rntern Yard, and there he had another sorrow . A
fri e nd be t rayed h im alHl sto le some m o ney that Silas had in
ch arge, a rnl th e n m :icle e ve rybo dy be lieve that Silas had stolen
it. So Silas hall to leave th e pi nce . Besid es, the woman he was
en gaged to b ro ke h e r en g a gement to him, and his nature became
em h itte recl. In R a ,•eloe he spe n t all h is time weaving, until
Dunstan Cass sto le h is m o ne y. (No body kne w at the time that

4.

THE FLIGHT OF A TARTAR TRIBE.

Oubacha was the prince of the Tartar Tribe abo ut which De
Quincey tells us. But Zebek Dorchi, a relation of his, was jealous of him, and indeed he had as good a right to the headship
of the tribe as Oubacha. So Zebek Dorchi made plots and g o t
himself elected head of the council and worked very skillfully
and secretly.
\Vhen the tribe started to flee to China, their enemies heard
of it and pursued them. The flight was a te rrible experience.
There were many hundreds of people , including w o men and
children, and they had to go through deserts where there was
little o r n o water, and ride very fast, because their enemies were
c lose behind them .
Finally they came to the borders of Lake Tengis, which was
in the dominions of the Emperor of China. They had been for
a long while without water and were almost exhausted, so they
all rushed into the water, horses and all, to drink. .Meanwhile
their pursuers came up to them and rushing into the wate r
killed them right and left, until the lake wa s red with b lood and
they could n o t drink the water any more.
By this time some troops o f the Chinese Empe ro r came up
and drove o ff the Khirgishe s , and th e Emp eror let th e Ka lmu c ks
stay in his dominions. Zebek Dorchi lived only about a year"
after this.

B. Draw up a plan for summarizing:
1. The first five chapters of Silas Marner.
2. The third act of Tlie flferclia11t of Venice.
3. A s You Like It.

408

CO:lll'OSITIO'.'\ A'.'\D l < ll!'T O J~ I C.

4 . The caplurc of the manor i11 If oodstock.
5. Chapter IX, Vol. I, of the American Comm u11u•i·alt!t.
6. The first bo o k o f f'amdis1" L ost.
7. Th e firsl, seco nd , or se ve nth book of the
. ·!:"11,·id.

S. The Fre nch story yuu arc r eatling- in class.
9. A chapte r in th e t ext-boo k of histo ry .
10. The Co nst itut io n of the United States.
C. Summarize th e first chapter of T!te f/011 se of !lie
S even Cablts in three o r four paragraphs. Draw up a
plan for a summary of the \\'hole story.
D. Tell the story of iirnS!ll'l' Island (o r some other
story of adventure) in about e ight hun tl red words,
according to the fir s t plan suggested In s ec ti on 151.
E. Relate the best short story th at you know, b eginning- with an account of the m o st intercst inJ,i character.
F Wh y is the fo llo wing- summary of T!tc Jlfac/1a11t
of Venice defect ive in proport io n? R e \\'rite it, giving
du e atte nti o n to neglected p o rtions.
Correct any
e r rors in sty le that yo u no tice.
An tonio is walkin g- cl o \\'n th e stree t n o t feelin g as bri g ht as
usual, \\'h e n Salanio and Salarino m ee t him anll stop to inquire
aft e r hi s hea lth. TIK'Y a ssi!{ n causes for his sadness , which Anto nio denies; he <kclar<'s he is not in love . (;rntiano an<I Bussanio
inter rupt t l1 c ir talk, and they depart , lea vin g ./\nto ni o with these
m o re de,,1ralJ!e frien d s. Lorenzo soo n come s up and tak e s Cratiano, for \\' hom he has bee n seek in g, awa y with h im. Anto nio
tells Bas,,:inio that he is anxi ous to hear abo ut th e lad y of w hom
nassan in had pnirnise d to te ll him. At fir s t Ba ssa ni o tri es to
mak e an cxc11sc fo r asking him for m ore m o ne y, sin ce hi s fri e nd
!1ad alre;HJy loaned him mu c h, wh ic h was now a ll g-.• nc . H oweve r , in yout h , when he los t r>nc arrow he "sh< it ib fe ll ow o f
the self-sam e tlig-h t , th e se lf -sa me \\·a y , to find the o ther forth."
So n o w il y an ot he r ven tu re he mig-ht g-ain all. 1\ntonio sa ys t,>
h im h e had o nl y to a s k a !H l th e mone y was hi s , hnt he \\'1H1!d
he p lease d to hea r :-ihnut the la cly. S o Hassanio desc1·ihes her
to Antoni o . '' I n Be lnwnt is a lacly ri c hl y le ft, and fair, and
.j

i

I,

409

STJ:\l'llARil'S.

fairer than th at word, of \\'Oncl rou s virt u e:. t ier name is Po rtia,
nothing und e rvalu e d to Brutus' P o rtia, Cato's d a u ghter. Nor
is th e wid e w orld ig no rant o f h er w o rth.
Many
Jaso ns co me in qu est of h e r.
Cou ld I but ho ld a
place among th em . I h ave a miu cl presages m e suc h thrift that
I should qu est inn less be f<1 rt tt nat e. "

41

H:issa n io , I h ave nnt

re acly mone y to th e amo u nt o( three thnusand du <.: ats," s"id
Ant o ni o, " but \\'e will go antl secure some. \ ' <>11 g-o t o th e m;i rke t and see what you ca n g e t on my c redit o r for the sa ke ,,f
fri e ndship.''
Bass anio, with th ese instru c ti o ns , soon place <l a st a te m e nt ,,f
his needs before Shyloc k, a ri ch J ew, but l.iefo re ac<"e ptin;.;
Antonio's b o ncl Shyloc k wanted to talk with him . Anto nio
ca me along soon, and Shylock a cc u se d him o f ca llin g him a
dog and sp itting on hi s J e wi s h gaberdi ne. "No w h e wants to
borrow m o ney of me." "Yes, that is tr ue ," said Anto nio, "l
am as like t o treat you that way again; so d o n ot !encl me
mo ney as a friend, but charge inte rest as you would in any busin ess transaction ." Th e n Shyloc k , so m e what n ett led, offe rs to
le nd him th e m oney g-ratis, o nl y d es iring h im to exec ute a
"merry" bond wh e re b y Antoni o shall p e rmit him, in ca se he
fails to repay the m oney in three month s , to cut a po und o f fl esh
from wh at part of ./\ntonio's hotly h e shall cho<ise. ./\ntoni o
agrees to this in spite o f Hassanio 's e ntrea ti es to keep him from
suc h a co ntra ct. ./\nto ni o fee ls so confident o f hi s ability to
mee t th e conditions that h e pa ys n o h eed tn his fri e nd' s won ls
o f cautio n.
Having proc ure d th e n ecessary m o ney fro m Sh y lock , Hassanio is n o w able to marry P o r tia . But soo n after th e wedd in g a
re port co m es that Antonio's ships are lost. Th e Jew demands
payme nt. What w ill Bassani o do?
He le aves his fa ir yo un g bride and g oes to Ve ni ce to repor t.
Shylock refuses m e rcy and demands hi s pound o f fl esh . But
then a wi se young lawye r co m es int o cou rt and says that S hylo<.: k
must take n o drop of bloocl with th e fl es h, ancl as this of course
is impo ss ible, Ant o ni o is set free ancl Shylock punish ed. The
young lawyer proves to !Jc Portia dressed as a man.

C. What are th e good qualiti es of the following
summary, whi ch S teve nson prefixed to the sequel of
Kiduapjxd '!

410

SU:'>!~[ AR

CO:llPOSITTON A:C-:D RHETORIC.

Alexander and Ebenezer Balfour, brothers, of the house of
Shaws near Cramond in the Fores t of Ettrick, being in love
with the same lady, and she preferring the elc.l e r brother, Alexander, it was agreed between them that Alexanc.lcr should take
the lady, and Ehen czer , as amends for his disappointment, the
estate of Shaws . ;\lcxandcr and his wife removed to Essen<lean, where th ey li ved olisc11rcly, Alcxanc.le r in the character
of village schoolmaster, and where an on ly son was born to
them, namely Davi,] Balfour, the hero of this history. David,
brought up in ig-nor:rnce of the family affairs an<l of his own
claim on the estates, and los ing both parents before he was
eighteen, was le ft \\"ith n o other fortune than a sealed letter from
his father addressed to hi s un cle Ebenezer, which was handed
him hy the minister o f Esscndean, l\fr. Campbell. Proceeding
to deliver it, David founcl his uncle livin g chi ldl ess and a miser
at Shaws; \\·ho recei\·ed him ill, and after vainly endeavoring to
compass hi s death, had him trepannecl o n hoard the brig Covenaut, Captaiu Hose rtson, hound to Carolina, to th e end that he
might be sold to labor in the plantations. But early in the voyage, the Covenant, running through the Min c h, struck and sent
to the bottom an ope n boat, fro m which there saved himself and
came on board one Alan Breck Stewart, a Highland gen tleman
banished after the '-15, and now engaged in smugg l in~ rents from
his clausmen, th e Appin Stewarts, to their chief Anlshiel, living
in exile in France. Hoseason and his crew, learning that Alan
had gold about him, conspired to rob and murder him; but
David, being mac.le privy to th e plot, put Alan on h is guard and
promised to statH1 by him .
Favored hy the shelt er of the r(lundhouse, and by Alan's
courage and skill of fen ce , the two got the better of their assailants in the attack which followed , killing or maiming more than
half of them; whereby Captain Hoseaso n was disabled from prosecuting his voyage, and came to terms with Alan, ag-reeing to
land him on a part o f th e coast whence he might best make his
way to his own country of Appin. Hut in attempting this the
Covenan t took ground and sank off the coast of Mull. Those
on board saved themseh·es as they best cou ld, David separately;
being first cast on the Isle of Earrai<l, and thence making his
way across Mull. Alan had passed befo re by the same r oad, and
left word that David should follow anrl rejoin him in his ow n
country at th e house of his kinsman, Jam es Stewart of the

ms.

411

Glens. On his way to keep Jiis tryst, David found himself in
App in on the same day when the King's Factor, Colin R oy
Campbell of Glenure , came with a force CJ{ red-coats to drive
ont the tenant s from th e forfeite<l estates of Arc.lshiel, and was
prese nt wh e n (~len11re was slain up o n the roaLlsi<l e by a shot out
o f a neighboring woo<l. Susped" d of complicity at the moment
when he was in the act of gi\'ing chase to the unknown murderer, David betoo k himse lf to flight, and was qui c kly joinecl
by Alan Breck, who, though he hacl n o t firec.1 the shot, was lurk·
ing not far off. The two now Ji,·ed the life of hnnted 111en tq.iun
th e

moors 1 tll e (>\lll..'ry on aL·cnunt of the 1nurc1cr bcin~ very

great, and its guilt being declare<! lo rest un James Stewart uf
the Glens, the already out lawcrl Alan Breck, anrl a la<l 11n kn.,wn,
being no other than David Baifon r; for wr:ose al'prehcnsiun
liloorl-money w a s offered anLl the country scoured h y soldiery .
In the course of their wanderings, David and Alan visited James
Stewart at An charn, were co ncealec.1 in Cl un y l\laL"pherson 's cag.-,
nn<l suffered to rest during sickness in the l1<>1hc <>f I iun can
Dhu l\Iaclaren in Balwhi<lder, where Alan played a mat ch upon
the pipes against l<.obin Uig, the son of Rob 1-<.oy. At last, after
much peril and suffering-, th e y marle their wa\· clown to the
Highland line and the Forth; which, howeve r , they . dart!d nut
cross for fear of arrest unti l the innkeeper ' s <laughter of L imekilns, A li son Hastie, was prevailed on tn r"w them o\·er tu tile
Lothian shore untler cover of night. H ere 1\lan again wen t
into hilling, whilti Davi<l made himself kno\\-n to ~Ir. liope of
Rankeillor, l:twyer and late ly agent to the Shaws' estate, wh o
promptly took up his <" a11se and co ntrived a plan whereby, with
the h el )' ,,f Alan, Fhenczcr l\alfn11r w:is c<,mpellc<l t<> rec-og-nizt!
his nephew's title us heir to the estate, and in the !llt!antirue to
make him a suitable allowance from its in come .
Dav id Balfour, having- thus come to his own, proposes to go
and complete his education at the University of Leyden; hut
must first satisfy the claims of friendship, by h e lping J\1'111 out
of Scotland, and of conscience, by testifying to the innocen ce of
James Stewart of the Glens , now a prisoner awaiting his trial
for the Appin murder.

J-1. Write out a connected summary of Chapter IX of

this book.

~-.

t·)

5:

;,

·~·

'•

)
'

"l

ORIGINAL CO~IPOSITIU ); -L!T ER.\RY LA\\·S.

CHAPTER

xxrrr.

O R! GJNAL CUMPOSITJON- LITERARY LAWS .

152. Original Composition.-" I haven't anything new
~?say," is the young writer's mos t common complaint.

·when the old prove rb runs, ' There is nothing new
under th e sun, · ho\\' can it be expec ted that the average
mortal wil l fincl some n e \\' thought tu express ?" It is
indeed, true that fres h material, e ither in th oug ht or ii;
experience, is harcl to find, a nd th e task of hu nti ng for
nove l s u bjects is neither profitable nor successful.
The material fo r any writer must be largely the old,
rnuch-usec1 matter that h as gone t o m ake up life for
c~nt uri es. An ex pl o rer, an in ve ntor, or a poet may
d iscover new facts or tn1ths to te ll us , b ut m o st o f us
mus t coptent Oll r seh·es with idea s that are alreacly
comm o n property.
Hy o ri g in a l CO!ll posit iu n, h oweve r , we do not mean
orig-inal subjcct- matte1-, bnt rath er the wri te r 's own
expression o r representati o n o f th e ultl m aterial.
\Vh atcver is taken int o the mind is transformed, reshaped, and rnnd c n ew, lln co nsc io usl y for th e m ost
part , in Sllch a wny th at the r es lllt, wh e n it is g ive n
forth, will differ m o re o r less from the r esll lt of any
ot he r mind working o n th e s am e material. Evidences
o f this are co mm on c non I,:h . No two p eople will tell
th e same story in precisely the snm e man ner. One
will o mit an incident that a second will m en ti o n, and
a third will dwell at length o n what a fourt h passes
over briefly . For instance, a nurn lJer uf witn e sses of

4 13

an accident \Yill t e ll the s:1me simple story, each in his
ow n way, with slight \' ar iat iuns from th e other narrators. In th e fami linr game of trying- to enumerate
from m e m o ry all th e articles on a tabl e, few pe1·s~ns
·11 rn a k e· th e· s·11n
record. \Yh1ch
\V 1
, , e n1l,·
' J • This· l)ecnliar
.
each miric1 fo rm s o f its u 11·n thought and experience is
to a greater o r le ss degree or iginal. By o ri g_in al composition is meant , then, the personal expre ssio n of tl~e
writer's own knowledge a nd experiences. If he_ is
hones t 11·ith h imself and tries to record faithfully JUSt
what he has in hi s min d, h e n ee d g i1· e no further
tho u ght to or ig-in al ity. In thi s se nse all writing ( ex cept , perhaps, the compositio n of summari es ) is
original. Th e story of a l)icnic, or of a battl e ; th e
descripti on of an experiment , o r of a per so n's face;
the expla nation of evolution, o r o f a system of athletic
train ing; th e proof t h at cit ies sh o uld own and operate
stree t car lin es, - one and all m ay be treated by any
write r as fresh opportunities for express ing him self.
153. Review of Literary Laws.- The wr iter's chi ef task
is t o adapt this m ate rial, which is his ow n, t o his purposes . li e must select this d e tail, r e ject that one, and
m od ify a third. I n sh a ping his material h e will observe, con scio u sly or unconsc io usl y, certa in well-established principles. Th ese lav\'s, so far as they apply to
the clements with wh ich the write r w orks - se ntences,
paragTaphs, ~rnd wh o le composition s - h nve b een explained :111d illu s trated in the preceding chapters . . We
ha ve seen that sentence s t o be cl ear mu s t be umfied
and coh e re nt , that· a good paragraph is composed of
sen tences closely r elat e d (i.e., observes th e principle of
coherence), etc. F o r the sake of r ev ie w, we shall bring
th ese ]:t 1,·s toget h e r at this po int , b efo re con siderin g
th e diff e rent furrns of cu rnpositi u n.
J

'414

CO:llPOSITIO:\' A:-..'D RHETORIC.

Literary laws are but common-sense rules, which
apply to all th e arts as well as to writing, and, indeed,
govern our conduct in practical life. Th ey are univers al principles of action. A s ensible man, for example,
does not fritter :t\\"ay his tim e and his s tren g th in a
larg-e num ber of enterprises; he cun.ccntrates his efforts
upo n one ch ief object. In writinl,!" , this principl e of concentration
. . is ca lled unity - the law tha t re q uires ever y
cornpos1t1011 to co ntain one ce ntral idea, to which all
its parts a re subordinated. Similar parallels between
o th e r fun da me ntal principles of co mpos itio n and the
max ims that govern us in life may easily be found.
I. .Sd,·rtion.- The first step in compos iti o n ( see section 9) is the gathering of material; the second step
is the se lec tion fro m the ma ss of tho u ghts , facts, and
impressions thus brou g ht tog-e th er, of th ose e le ments
which will serve o ur purpose. \V c can see m ore in
one glance than we can de scribe co mpl ete ly in a dozen
pages; we mu st make many n o tes and accumulate
v a ri ed facts be fore we are ready tu \Hite C\'en a simple
paper. i\lcanwhile a process of selecti o n goes on in
~ur minds un obse n ·cd, yet before any se rio us writing1s atte mpted we must examin e co nsc io usl y the material
we h ;we at o ur co mmand t o see what is needed fo r our
purpose. Thi s cli o ice of mat e rial is infiu e ncecl by three
co nsid e rati o ns : the details selected must be important,
they must be harmoni ous, and they mu st be suggestive.
In other words, the writer s ho uld take fro m his material
what it is neces sary for the reader to know, what fits
t oge ther properly, and \\·h a t will inte res t his r eader.
2. Uriily. -Any piece of writing should give the
reader an impressi o n of being a wh ole. In discussingsentences , para:.;raphs, and Ct1m p os itions we fo und that
unity was dcs trn\·ecl bl' the use of too much matter or

ORIGINAL C O MPOS ITIO);-L!TERARY LAW S .

415

too little; that is , tha t digressions and omissions are
to be avoided. We m ay call this "unity of matter. "
The principle o f unity furth e r directs th at e very composition should be treated from one "point of view."
This is" unity of fo rm. " The phrase "point of view"
may best be explained by an illustrati o n. ff in te llingthe story o f a fo o t race, the writer d esc ribes th e affai r
as he saw it from the grand stand, h e will have one
"point of view"; if he de scribes it as one of the
a thletes saw it fro m the track, he will have a noth e r; if
he describes it in part fro m the g-rand stand and in part
from the field, he will have two opposed p o ints of
view. Unity requires that the write r shall h ave one
point of view clearly in mind ; and that whe never it is
riecessary to change the p o int o f view he shall m ake the
transition quite plain.
3. Colierc11rc.-" Order," we arc t old , "is Heaven's
first la w ." Clea rness in composition de pends almost
entirely upo n the observance of the principle o f coherence. Ideas must be prese nted in such an order that
the reader is prepared to understand each sente nce anu
each paragraph a nd each sect io n o f the whole comp osition, when he comes to it. Coh e re nce m eans literall_Y
" sticking togethe r." S eque nce , another na me fo r this
principle, conveys a little m o re clearly than cohere nce
the idea of order, i. e., that parts o f th e compositi o n
must follow one afte r a no the r in logical o rder.
4 . Proporlim1.- Every part of a wh ole ·composition
should be written with reference t o every oth er part. ~
N 0 one p a rt should be deve lo ped at the expense of
another p a rt. The scale of treatment (see section 150
in the preceding chapter) sh ould be maintained throughout the whole compositio n. This principle of measure

416

CO~IPOSITION

and balance promotes force in the presentation of
thought.
5. Climax . - The won! climax (from the Greek word
meaning a scale or ladder) originally had hut one meaning in Eng-lisb, the sen se in which we use it herethat of a rise or ascent. In composition, climax is the
principle that g-overns the effective arrangement of
material, just as co he rence go\·crns the logical arrangement of material. Th e interest of the reader should
grow as the \Yh ole compos iti on prugTesses, and the
highest point of interest shunld be the close. The
good sense of this law is self-evident. No one wishes
to reacl a story that opens with much excitement, but
"runs do\Yn" a t the close. In telling an anecdote, he
who puts his point first, fails to win attention . Expectation on the part of the re::ider is the attitude desired
by the writer.'''
154. The Five Laws are Essential.- Other laws than
the ones treated here may be discovered in gootl literary composition, but th ese five arc essential. Every
compo sition, no matter what its scope or n::iture is,
must satisfy th e requirem e nts of th ese five important
principles,- selection, unity, cohere nce, proportion,
climax.
The \\'hole compo sition may he a description of a battl e , a story of a day's sport, a discussion
of duty, or a d clia te about the tariff; in each and every
case the efiecti \'C \Hiter\\ ill see that he has left with his
reader ::i single definite impression, that h e has used the
best of his mate rial, that he has arranged his thoug-hts
logically, that h e has paid due attention to every part
of his subject, and that he has proceeded from less to
moce interesting matter.
•NOTE.- Proporti on am..l ct inrnx have been referred to in sentences and
fHH :l!;TA.phs u s cm µhu .. is.

ORIGINAL COMPOSITIOl'-LITERARY LAWS.

AND JUIETORIC.

417

Exercise XXIII.
A. In what sense is composition " original" ?
B. Define and illustrate the phrase" a literary law. "
What parallels to these rhetorical principles can you
find in other fields, such as sculpture, painting, and
architecture? ·what is the use of a law in practical

composition ?
C. What are the five laws defined in this chapter?
Describe the application of each one. Do they apply
to any one kind of writing on ly? Can you find any
general law not included in the five discussed in this
chapter?
D. Illu strate unity by examination of one of Hawthorne's short stories, one of :M acaulay ' s essays, or an
act of The 1Vcrc/ia11t of Vmire. \Vhat is the "point
of view" in each case ? Is th ere an y n o ticeable p oi nt
of view in the following themes? What is it in each
one?
1. I sit high up in the old tower. The ho uses below me look
like little girls' pl ay -hou ses, and the men and w o men hurrying
h e re and there, see m like the little men and wome1r that inhabit
these mansions o f the j uven ile mind.
I grow dizz y loo king clown so far below me, and my eyes
wander far off over the level country dotted with farm-houses
and peaceful h o mes w ith their surrounding barns anLl orchards.
A little wa y from town, towar<l the west, is the h ome of an
English family. Th e large . square huuse , with its h ospitable
look, the winding road, lin eLI with Ho\\· e r he<b full o f m 1g- 11 0 11ette, forge t-me-nots, marigolds, and other old -fashioned flowers,
the tin y p o nd with its little boat-house on the bank, and the•
two swans sa iling majestically on the water, the fant astt ca llyshapecl evergreen trees and big rose bushes covered with pink,
white, crimson, and yellow blossoms, a ll lend an air of beauty
ancl well-being to the place as they lie in the morning sunshine.
2. Here she co m es , trotting np the walk toward the p orch of
the h ouse next door, her scar let L·loak flyin g and golden cu rls

27

418

CO:ll POS I TION AND RHETORIC.

bobbing u p an<l cl o wn on e ith e r s ide of he r glow in g c h ee ks , as her
fat little legs almos t tr ip o ne an o ther up in the ir hurry to reach
s h e lte r fro m observatio n. Vp the p o r c h s he runs , hood askew
and tin y mit ten g rasp ing fi rml y a big, white enve lope . After
rin g in g the bell s he s tand s there, jumping up and down with
e xcite m e nt, and as she ca tches sight of me s he s hak es h er head
vigorously and throws wh at I inte rpret as an appea l fo r si le nce
int o her laughing eyes . S o meo ne o p e ns th e inne r door, and in
a flash sh e is duwn the steps and around th e corner a t a gait
which seems to me :111 inimitable mixture t>f hnp and slide.
Everyth in g is well, I th ink to myse lf; but ju s t as I turn away
I catch sight of a sma ll brow n hea d, wi t h cl ose c ropped hai r,
in a window oppos ite me, a head wh ic h h a d a pparen tly
b ee n watc hi ng proceedi ngs as eage rly as I . St. Vale ntine's
sec re ts wiil ne ve r be inviolate while he entrusts them t o the l ight
of dav.
3 . The m ail was j ust in, but had not been distribu te d . On
the s te ps o f the post-office was a re prese ntal i\·e asse rnbly of the
vi ll a ge rs - farme rs o ld and young, a storekeeper, the h airy
bla c ksmith, the buttennaker, and o th e r men o f n ote . The m ost
striking figure in t he group was an old man, consp icuous by his
erect h e ig ht ancl finely marked fac e . li e wore a lo ng coa t of
];lack IJro:t <kl.,t h, a s il k hat, an nl<l-fashi,.necl sl" l' k, and carriecl
a pair o f gloves. It was the "old docto r," a lirot her of llfrs.
H at hawa y , a ma n we ll known all over th e co untry.
\V ithin, th e little Jl'"' t-n01cc was fil led hy a jo ll y crowd of
youth, from th e acad emy . drawn th ere not by t he expectati o n
of letters, hut h y th e· ,·.,m 11 w n soc ia l in s tin ct u s uall y somewhat
exag ge rated a1111111g y<J11 11 g- lads and lassies . A few e ld erly
w o m e n occupied c hairs in th e hack o f th e room a nd gossiped
quietly , or listenecl tn the gay talk of the youth. Nohofl yseemed
to be in a hurry for the "mail t o he ou t , " and b e hind the
scree n Mrs. 1-lath a wa y pursu e d he r wo rk at he r le isu re . P e rhaps it was n o t true that she i·ea <l all t he p osta l ca rd s before
sh e put them in the boxes, but at a ny r a te she might have clone
so. At lengt h , the littl e w oo<le n <loo r in the sc ree n was pushed
<lown with a clatter o f announce ment, the mail was "distribu te<!,' ' '1! 111 the c rowd leisurely took lea ve .

/:'. E xp lain in d e ta il th e applica ti o n of th e principle
of sele ct ion. Uut lin e a sto ry abuut so m e commonplace

ORIGI N AL

CO~!PO S IT! O)( -L!T ERARY

LA\\'S .

419

in cide nt, and indicate the parts that yo u w<>uld omit m
writin g .
F. ·what is coherence ? In d e scribing a room , h o w
w o uld you obse rve the principle of co here nce? In
t e llin g the sto ry of the caskets in T/1c ,Jfcrcliant of
I "m ice? In explaining the making of chlor in e-gas ?
G. Show h ow Macaulay pre se rves proportion in that
one o f hi s essays with which you arc m os t fa miliar.
Is there any chapter in the first fift ee n chapte rs o f
I Vvodstock that Jacks propo rtion?
JI. \Vrite o n the foll ow 111 g tupics themes of om: tl!
two pages :
l. A "sk y-scraper" - ( m;ike pl:un the point o f
view).
2. A fa m ili:1r ha t t le - (nhserve coherence).
3 . l\:fy be st fricnd - (s e le ctio n).
4. An a bando ned farm -(co he r ence ).
5. Th e principle of i.;Tavitv - ( coherence).
6 . Bird ltfe near yo ur h o n~e- ( se lection).
/. \Vli: tt on e of th e fi\·e laws is mo st ev ident 111 th e
passa ge irom i\Tutlcy, scd illJl 15 ?
J. Sh o w b o w c limax is observed h ere :
Ct ~:": EI C\L \\"l~ \ · r .ER ' s ;..rET1rons Of' \ \'ARP" .-\ H.rr

In what is h y co11rte sy termed c ivili7.e rl wada re, a command e rin -c hid is expec te d to 111 aintain the di sc ipline o f h is arm y , to
in spire h is suldit.' rs \\'ith t.:1 1tlu 1si:ts111, to pnivid e f11r th eir \'-'cif;:u-e

in camp ancl lo avo ill use less waste of th e ir lives in th e fi eld,
ancl to ruake hi s cam paign a s brief as is consisten t with success.
Quite aside fr om the ques t ion o f p at ri ot ic c! e n> t ion, or of the
justice o f the cause in whi ch h e fi g hts , util it y de111and s th ese
qua lit ies in a general.
Pat r iot ism a ncl humani ty, ru<>reoyer,
requ ire that war be carried on, not on ly eco n o mi cal ly, but h ono rably.
Ju dged by such a stan danl. what is the ve r d ict on th e Cuban
ca mpai g- n o f G e neral \Vey ler? This ca mp a ign began in Febru ary, 1S96, and lasted u.nti l We\'le r's reca ll tw o months ago. The
duration of the war , as well a s its fa ilu re hithe rto, demand so me

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II

420

COllI P OS ITION A ND RHETORIC.

exc u se. The Cuba n insurgents h ave all a long been infer·10 .
numbers and
· t , I' JI - d'1sc1plmecl
.. · .
r in
. . equip men
, and unsupported even
by t he m a io n ty of thei r own count ryme n . \Veyler had at his
command an army gra nd in nu mbers and in potentia l ab ilit
and the reso urces anti patrio tism o f S p ai n at his bac k Cy,
t:1 e re be any d oub t that it was poss ible for him to s ubd.ue
Cubans
w1th1n
·
· · \Ve are f o rcel1 to the con.
. fo ur o r fi ,·e. months?
e 1us1o n th a t it was not !us purpose to put down th e rebell'10
I nstead o f emp loying the vi goro us methods prescribed
v.alo r a~d good sense'. he has p u rsue<! th e po li cy o f d a magin
as m uc h as poss ible, wi t h th e least p ossible aclvantag tg
Spam.
e o

t~:

:~

~u ba

Th e re are co mpetent officers on his staff, a lth o ug h he has
t o heed. their a cl\' ice · The m aionty,
. .
refused
however take
.
their cue from lum; and the Spanish forces therefo re prese~t the
most
· T cl1so nlerecl appea ran ce e \'e r to be see n i· n th e a rmy o f a
c1~1 ized .p oweL
The ra w recruits from t he farms o f S pain have
been
· ipline<l · Tl1ey are cl esp1.se d ,
1 . neither in spired n or di sc
a )used, starved. G rea t ach·anta ges over the insurgents have
repeatedly. bee~1 net: lected. And a s is us ually th e case , the
subord111ate otl1ce r o ut does h is supe ri o r in in effic iency. the
~e ne rals o f \\'cy ler 's army add coward ice to cruelt y and co,r ru1J·
t1 on.
Co rm.pt.ion ! Here, then , is the secre t of the wh o le matter.
~; Is p .1 o f1table to squa nde r the funds whi ch Spain, though
. " Iias. pa tien
b. .lectl 1n g ·it
· tl y furmsh
. e d t.o prosecute
' C\'crv
, 1io 1e,
this war. Wey le r has made hi s uame a by- wo rd in H avana
wh ere e ve ry o ne kn o \\'s that he h as m ade h a lf a milli on dollar~
Ill hts campaign .
Because he mu st ca r ry o n some pretense o.f
war fare , he h as go ne up and dow n in th e land, sp readi n g mi se.ry
e re · ,'1nd yet m os. t .s kil ful )y m anaging
.
a n d. desolation
not
. evc rvwh
.
t o conquer his feeble enemy.

CHAPTER XXff.
DESC RIPTIV E A ND NARRATIVE WRITING.

155. Two Kinds of Material : Objects and Ideas.- Th e
mate ri al with which th e write r deals co n s ists always o f
one of two ki nd s, eith e r objects o r id eas ; th at is,
som ethin g that is seen, or so m c thin l!' th a t is tho u g ht.
A s imple illu stratio n will serve to distinguish th e t wo
kinds . In lookin g o ut o f the window a cl oud may be
see n ; it is a large, pulpy ma ss, dark-gray in colo r,
shad in g to white o n its b o rde rs , with a golden edge
where th e sun strik es it. Th a t cloud is a n object. No
other clo ud is ex actly like it. ' Vh en the w rit er undertakes to de scribe it , h e sh ould sec " in his mind's eye"
just that o ne cl oud. But the class in ph ysi ol!'raphy, in
discu ss in g clo uds , do no t deal with this spec ial cloud ,
n or any one c1ouc1 th at the eye h as see n. Th ey J cal
with the idea " cloml "-a substance fo rm e<l of vapor,
with a variety o f ch aracteris t ics. In th e firs t inst a nce
cl o ud was an object; in the second, a n idea. Another
illustrati o n will m ake the distincti o n clearer. The
wonl patriotism su gj.!'ests t o us man y id eas - dev o ti o n
to coun tr y , self-sacrifice, love fo r o the rs, e tc. Not o ne
o f these qualities is an obj ect which we can s ee. Patri·
otism, h owever, may suggest an illustrious instance of
patriotism, a g reat patri ot , such as Linc oln; in this,
case we have an object . All th e mate rial that the
writer u ses b elo n gs t o o ne o f th ese tw o clas ses .
156. The Nature of Description.- Descripti ve writing
d eals with th e fir st kind of material -with objects . It
is of te n said that we d escribe ideas, also , such as anger,
421

422

CO :ll POSTTI O N A N D l<HETO RIC.

love, o r co ld . B 11 l .1ctu ally we d e scribe o nly the effect
o f such id e a :; upon objects. \ Ve d e scribe a man in
ange r , the love th :1t a m ot her sh o ws for he r child or
the actio n o f cold upo n th e lake . If, th e n, d escrip;ion
c1 e~ls so lel y \\'ith o bjects, the purpo se of description is
a simpl e one: it is to m a ke oth e rs se e what th e writer
see s. Hi s imaginati o n may alt e r the form of the object
h e has s ee n ; ind eed, h e may ne ve r h :l\'e really seen
what he atte mpt s to de sc ribe. It is o f no importance
where he fincls th e o bj ects tha t h e \\'i shcs to r epresent
but as he \\'rit e s h e must haye in mind some pictur~
th ~ t _h e wi sh e s ns t o se e. Th e succe ss o f d e scriptive
wntmg- d e pends upo n th e Yi\' i<lnc ss with which the
read er can s ec thi s picture that the writ e r has in mind.
Such _ is th e ge ncr:-i l o bject o f clc scripti\·e writing.
There is a simple fo rm o f d escripti o n , ho wever 1 the
o bj ect of wh ich is to ide nti fy th e thing d e scribed. The
" I ~ o st and fo und n o ti ce ," fo r ex:-impl e , is n ot intended
t o s ug-ge st a pi cture , but to serve as a m e ans of comp ariso n ": it!~ th e art ic le in questi o n . In the sa me way
th e d e scnpt1 011 o f a pi ece of r e al e state in a deed, or
of an escaped criminal, o r of a built1ing- t o be let is
designed t o gi\·c exact information and should be' as
complete a s p o s sibl e . F o r thi s purpo se o f identificati o n a ph o t og raph is o ften bett e r than any d e scription
by w o rd s .

157. The Law of Selection Applied to Description.- Even
wh e n \\·e unde rtake t o d escribe an o bj cc t for the
purpo se of ide ntificati o n, \\"C arc forced to limit the
number of details, lo st a te onl y th ose d e tails that are
r epre sentative and s pe cially impo rtant. Thus in the
foll o \\"ing d e sc ripti o n of a ho r se , fr o m :-i ne wspaper
adv e rtis e m e n t , onl y those p arti cular s o f th e ho rse that
will inte re s t a p os si ble purchaser are give n:

lJES C' RlPTIVE :\ N D NARRATIVE \\'RIT17' G .

4 23

F u 1< S .\l. E <J R Ex c 11ANC E FOR A LAR l;E R ll• >1 <SF. -- Fxcc pti o nally handso me g ra y mare , w ith <lark points , S•"111d, l; in.t,
high -headetl, spirited, and a ve r y fast, square tr .. tt e r, hc i;.; lit
15;'.{ han d s, wei ght 1,010 lbs .

S e lection has be e n ob served m making- this inve nt o ry o f th e h o r s e . Th e princ iple o f sel e ctio n mu st be
foll o wed much more full y in literary d escription ; that
is, in d e scription that aims t o present :-i pi cture o f th e
object to the r e ade r's mind. Thus Ste ve ns o n, in th e
foll o wing passa g-e from Tile ;!ferry fl fen, tak es no t m o re
than half a do ze n d e tails fro m th e great swee p o f la ndscape th:-it h e has in mind:
A ro s is a ve r y rou g h isle t, its s urface strewn with g reat roc ks
Upo n t he su mm it ,
a nd s ha ggy w it h fe rn an d h eath e r.
[of the high est kn oll] l p a used. A lth o u g h not ve ry hi g h - not
three h u ndre d fee t , a s l thi n k-it yet o utto p s a ll the n eig hb o ring low la n d s o f th e R oss , and co mm a nd s a g reat vie w o f sea
a nd isla n d s . Th e s un , whi ch had bee n u p so m e tim e, was
already hot up o n m y n ec k; the a ir was listl c:ss anti 1hun de r y ,
alth o u g h pure ly clear ; away ove r the n o rth\\"es t , where the isles
li e thi ck liest co ngregated, so m e h a lf-a- d oze n srn:tll an d ragg-etl
clouds hung t ogether in a covey ; and the h c atl of Re n Kyaw
w o re , no t mere ly a few stre am e rs . b ut a su liLI h ood o f \" a p o r.

I3y ex a mining this d e sc riptio n, w e may see o n what
plan th e sel ecti o n o f d e ta ils sh o uld b e m ad e . In th e
first pl ace , p eculiar or imli v idu a l facts th a t bc lu ng- to
th e o bj ec t sh o uld be b ro u g-h t o ut , fo r s uch fa cts s c n ·c
t o distin g uish the o bj e ct in mind from similar u bjccts .
Thu s in thc fir s t se nt e nce S te ve nso n dwe ll s u po n th e
S eco ndly, harm o nious d e r o u g hn es s o f th e island.
tails - that is , th o ,; c detai ls that fit toget he r - sh ou ld
he ch osen, in o rde r t o produ ce a uni fo rm impre s si o n.
St evens o n hrin ;;s o ut in th e last se nte nce many indicati o ns o f th e thunde ro us qu alit y o f the atm os ph er e .
Mu ch must h e nec e s sa rily o mitt e d in an y d e scri pt io n,
but if th e se le ctio n of d e tails is m a de skilfully, the

+.! l
illl:t~:i 1 1:t t 1•> 1 1 w1 il till in the pi l l\Jre 11·ith ap-

rc:idcr"

p1« 1p r1:tlc l:ich.

th:it 11" 11r1•c1·ss .,f rcprodul'ti< 111 \1·ill ;..:in: s•>Il1L' dct.1ils
that words 1·:1n, such :ts th<1S1' "f ,.;.,u 11 d :111d t>cl<>r :u1d
(1,111·11.
\J ., ru()\· L·r, \1·•1rds d" m<>rc· th:m rc·p 1« ·scnl ~
tlll'y S\l>'.i~Tst. Tile \niter docs 11t>t clcpc:11tl ll]l<>ll his
st:1kml'l1t only : ltc depends up"11 h1,., rc·:1dcr· s 11n:q,;111:1ti"11 .
Lon;..:· <icseripti<> n ,.; . nf unfamiliar sc'L·ncs a11tl
<>hJcCh a rc ii<•lllit less tiresome : but sJi.,rt, ,.;ugg·csti\·c·
clt-,.;cr q>ll \T p:ts,.,:1:..;c,.; add t " the: Cil J«\· m,· 11t «f tilt·
rl'atkr liv g i\·1ng :1 sense <>l r1_·:il 1t 1· th:1t lie \\·t>uld cithcr11·1 ,.;1· m is c: . :\<> i1i1·t11rc. 1111 S(Tll'S ,, ( Jllc'l\lrcs, t« >r
i nstan c e. C\Til in u>1<lrs. c11u1i\ render tltc SL·nst: uf hL'.ill

Su;..:;..:csl1\·c dct:t1ls, thc11, arc the third

l " 1· ;..:.,., , j 1ks1Ti;>l1"1L
The "sol1cl huocJ of
\";tp"r" alJ.,11t the li L·:1dLt11d sug·;..:csh inure tli; 111 it tdls.
Till' L111· uf ,.;cl<: c ti«11, 11-c call casrl:: infer, is the most
essential priIJciple m tlcscriptive writing-.
rcq111:-.1tc

158. Laws of Unity and Coherence Applied to Description.
.r\11y ul>3cct ,.;ccn liy th e eye is \·1cn-cd as ;1 11·iwlc . and
literary descrip t iun must attC.:rnjlt tn ;..:in; th is irnpres,.;11111 <Ji t1111t1· lt> th e oh.wet c1cscnliei! Iii· ;1 c :1rcful sclcctlun a!ld a mctliucl1cal :trr:mg-crnent of details. If the
' · puint uf 1·icw" (sf'c ;.;cTtit•n 153, 2) is sh"11·n dis t i11dh-,
the rc:1dcr 11·1 ii he as,.;i;.;tcd 1n ;..:;1ining· :1 Yicw (Jf tl;c
wh o le . Stevenso n estahlishe s the pnint nf v i ew in his
<le:--:•Tij)t1 )ll (if ~\r( )<..; np 1)n t1F· '' ·~t1 1111 11 i t () f :1 k111Jl l ' '

th:1t

1

:..: i \Ts i1 1 t !1 is p:1r : 1~:Taph :

!( ipl 111:..:

never flowered.

nto lr:i"d in:e , that l~:tl 1 H 1
'l'lle gTt_'CllJ". c r c; tn1 -cn lored.

were hc~t'. ;,,lled

11 ·, ·f\1n_·

'!' h :lt

1...,j)r in~ :·

the

tl1t·\· \\'t ·:·t·

:--;:11t·ll:r1-..: ] ' t • l ' " \. ;1 n 1t..: 1~·1\\ " !l \\- IH_.:1

'J' l: (·;1 . i : ; l · : ; 1, ._.

th i~ ~~ ;, , t··, i .
n1can~ ,.i

\\ -t · 11111...,i

-..,11 ; )1<~ ·

\•:lii clt Ire· c· ; u1

<-:cirnC' 1) 1:t1 1 t{ Jl"

the n ·:1d cr l)y

his

:u1il 11:11·: :l ft·w

) f: 11; -

ll" :-..:.t~) "i\ ! 1:1 h i -..; hind It-~~ :t11 d
; 1 l · ~ i . • 11 t · 1; t ~ t l. 111 i )( ·:·c 1 l 11'- ·. t t t ·rt.· i >:

l 'l

the cll't:tils Jll"l' "l'lll\'d
rnind. F<>r th is rc: 1s 01 1

1 1 11

<llT:!ll).!('

:md tlrn-; l':·r •:tk :rn i111:1_~ l' in

l oi· ;·: 1 .

...;,n f,;nd ()f,
\\·axy lilns~on1--:

\\':t"

1 ~, Lr"L \

]Hi(>J..., ~. an~

Ii

\1,· 1rv:-. ;t1 1 • l

1 l( 1\Y!1 :t 11~l 1·:tk<·(l

thL·i r t·(l ;~t· -.: a;.;, if it h: td

1( dct :tils
arc put tu;;ctlicr : 1t r :mdom, :t s they " l'L' ll r t" tile w rit er,
the result wiil prubahly be confu sin g- to th e reader.
\Vhat cvc r p bn 1s decided npnn, it· mnst hf' f"llnwe,1

1_· ;; r~1·1]

li ];i1< .,f ,\(·:ti\

••\·er .

·,t1ill , th(' lli d rl c :1
k t__.t'\lifl•._:- tih · le :t '--l f(H>tt11:t:--k ( •Tl

hc l' ll ( · ;t~t i11

i r •in

tlic

j11 il·\· :, !en1111t·d

cn·t·pcr :-> fl· l l : 1w: t\· fr1) 11 1 t i1c tn ·t· . ., tl1t· \ · c l 11 n g- t• ) and died at their

l'(•ll Si ;; te11(l\· .

feet
the.: !) :u11l11\11~ ,,·1t h 1. ·n ·d. 1..· i .·111h111 .'..~ \\.liL·n t llc lt•)t \\·inds tih·w,
and tl1e nidss pcckd u!l th e n1c\..::-:. dL"cjl i n the J:11H..:k , till they
"·en· :1s h:tn· :ind a ~ il<d :1~ tlic qui,·1..:rin:~ l.Jt1t· !1( •1ildcr:-; in the
he1l (J: t !ic· ~irearn. - k11·J . ! :'\.,,
lJ1 t" S 1·1 , )!/1! J1111_1..:t't ·-/>'/1 ( I.·

159. The Force of Descriptive Writing.- \Vh c n th e
wr iter has d o ne his best, it rem a ins true that e \·e n th e
tiniest photog-raph ~ i1·es a m o r e exac t id e :t of an 11hjed
Uwn pa g-cs of well-c h ose n and w c ll -a rran ).'."ed d e tail s .
Fu r til1s r eason , modern m e th ods nf rcproduein i;·
phutugraphs ha1·e multiplied, :u 1d 111 the m:q,.:-azin c
articl e we arc rarely ldt to th e tex t al one to ~ain an
id e a o( a sce ne ur an obiect. llln s tration has become
an art by itself. it mn s t n o t be forg-o tt e n , h o w ever,

160. The Nature of Narration. - \\"hcn :ll'ti•>11 is hrought
to hl':tr up on a n ohjc ct (J r a series 1 ,f (\lijcch . \1·c ha 1·c
m :ttL·rial f1Jr narr:1ti1J11 . :-\:\;T:1tit>11 dc:11s 11·1 t h 0L1 j ccts
in acti1Jn, just a~; 1ksc:ripti1Jn rk:ils \\·i th thl'lll in repose.
\Ve may dcs c rihc :t cnmp:tny "f ""ltlil'rs as thL·1· stand
rcacly for th e 11· ord ot comrnarnl. c\s si •nn as tlte cnmpany ch:lll).!"t'S its pllsitiun or h1 c·a k,.;
i11t" a march,
action h q.; in s, and l\T rcL\tc t he chan;..:c,.; th:tl arc
bro u ght abuut. / \ nc11· element, it \1·il1 he seen, entt:rs

1

1

!
l

C<Xll P0SIT TO;( :\:\'fl "!TETO]\ re .

cuhere ncc . En o u g- h must be recorded to preserve the
tiire:td "i the narr:it i1·c . J n re:il life, eve nts are con·
nected. " ;; c :tt' tHilJ ticpcncl1n:_:· ll]JtJll :tll<!fht·r tll an cnd -

action 111 close succession . <_lnl y signitic:tnt C\'C n ts \\'lli
be dwell U jl• •11 ; muc:li 11·ill tlt' J>:tsscd <>\Tr \1·1t li J,rid
11H: 11tio11.
\'l'l the 1« 11 111cctl<•ll nf c \·cnh 1\·11] lw 111:1<1<\

1e ~~ ch:t1n.

l'Ltill

'f'hc llllpor~ :t::t iir1k;--; in t l1i~ ch:1i11 ~·:u1i1(it he

( 1n11i tt_·d. 11 tli 1,_· rt ·:t(k r 1 ~ i•) (, 1];n\,- 1 IH.: ii:trr:tti\·c .

~1(Jrt'·

0
n .:r, 1l is tl1t· 11T1ll'1"s iJus1 11css (!) set: th:1t the relation
bct11·ccn the actions ii e n: t1Talcs is mad e quit e cle:tr.

tii t'

'~

- -f
~7t._ ___

":,-:____

a s11n;)lL· s~1li _:L·.___·L ~t:-;
incrc;tsin~

passa~e

and r:I] )idity:

163. Propo rtion, Climax, :md Un ity in Narration.-'l'he
u~hcr 1itcr;tr y Lt \VS appl_\· Jil narration ; ts in C\yc r y f~ )nn
of writm ~-, hut they ai·c le ss e sse n t ial th an the two
pn1:c1;>1cs "f •;t·it-c~i";1 and ccihcrcnce . J\ narratur
mt1sl llll l spc·rHi 1111due t illH: "r sp:it·c upun any ep isode
i11 hi,.; Ltit.: 1, , t lw <lic;:tci1·:;;1ta~c ,,~ <itlier p:trts.
\\" hatever his sc:tie i.s, he sh<ltild fullu \\' it. Otherwise he

'l'i1c ~; t;1 rt i11 ~:. r 1\jll.:

1111 :--. li ijJp in:< hi:--.;

The

1:!1\·

164. Qualities of Excellent Narrative Writing.-A good
narrative, then, will move rapidly; action will follow

\\

:tl1

c..,b\_-Lt·n c, 1:1 \l1i'.t_' l 0'..... lv: t ILLJ1(\, ;l~11l tiJt·
ti 1L' '; te rn :...:,-c11: ly • 1 ut : t.~ ;1i n

-., tr11 ~l ·

<1~L r, p11-..,:1c _~,

'l' ilcre ~:n e :--; tlic ~c1.._.1 J1-;d .'•..':1 ;11 ~

arc off .

~h1irt rni nu tl',

i11 tJe1...·d

1 inc :--;J1qrt n1iu utc
1

\'(1l\

\\' ~111ldn't

!Jl11rc,

:tnd \\·c

:->.Ly ~.;, 1, if you

\\'f'fe i11 the !iti:tt . \ \"i!i: \"(it;r lic:trl in y1Jur iu 111Jth, ;u 1d t r crnl 1 l; n ~~

a ll o\·c r lil..:c a
the ,-,t.1rt in,~

I11an

.' ...:lill

111

with

ti ll'

\ ' oi\;r

p : Ll-..,>··

rir:--i~

Ti1us1.._· :-..ix t v StTqn!]-..,

. h ... ' c· ~- \\' i l\',

l~ef1•;\_·

tllt~\ ' ~tre :t little life --

Li Ill l.' .

c1·cnts, nr sli ;.:ht

,,f ciimax :1pp lit·s t·spccially
1lf the r eader in th e
ope ning of a s tury is n ecessarily slight. ·when he
becomes i1wolve<l in the plot o f th e t a le , his interest
wi li eithe r gT nw ur disappear. As narrati1·c becomes
complex, as o ne event leads to a numbe r of results,
t he reader's attention should be cng-age<l more firml y.
A weak e nding is nc\' LT so disappointing as in narrati o n. Finall y , every narrative sh o uld have a s a center
s o m e o ne definite t opic. For example, a hi story of the
discove ry o f Am e rica, containing- many hundreds of
pages, and relating num ernns eve nts, \\'ill have but
o n e principal subject - th e earl y explo rati ons upo n this
h e misphere,- to whi c h all the charnct e rs, actio ns, and
events will be made subordinate.
i:n ; J<<:·t:<llt <lllL'S .

:\ "
lL1\·t·

The f.,11<>1\'l <l :_:· 11ar1·;t t1\·•;
illustrates especially the qualities of clcarncs~

a~ St·lccl 1i i n 1~"" i 11 1lc ·:-;1_'r1; iti' 1: 1 .

111 1L t1T~ttic111, 1H..' 1...':1u~c ti1e i11 t..crc~l

tile· tlll'l':<<I.

t1H_· 11:trr:it1i>11 lll: t_'1i:11~·s, it. \\·i:
the cc11tl·r . ~i11 t l \\ ·111 i lLl: -i.._·] 1 11ll

11ll.crc::>t to the cml.

Coherence, then, is o f the first importance in narrati on,

w i ii

lH'\.tT " ]" ~'·

r<:;1<i<.T \\·iii

n i~ tl tl·r h(1\\' (_',)1 1i]Jlc:-:

~

:j
~·
~o

'' lh· .f tJ \ T, \\'t.: ~ tH..: drifti : i~ ill ~t~~ti11 ! '' :;:t id :'\lilkr, in l ~r , rr• >l'
'l 'l1l· 1»:qJ::1i:1 i (\ (1;.:cd .:. . ·: ri ;11 , Li 1.:t s;t :d !\qtiJ! rH . ~: it \\"t~; tu • > l.t ~t.· r:~1 \\.
for llln1 tn he 11n....;ilippi1H( ;v.._( aiJI.
·· Jl ere , c atc h li()l d <) f the !rJ n .<
lJo~t !_- )Hlllk, a n r] ft.•!1 r J Jit.·r 11!l.''

!lard y, to wh om 111ls was addressed , st:<zed the ii«"t -h«ok,
a nd. stanrlilll.'. with one fou l i 11 the waler, pressed \Ile end o f the
1Ju;tt-h(1ok .:.q.::a i11s t the: g·un walc, at tlie ftill st rc tl·h uf hi~ ~ trn1,
ui:till fur 1..:c , kcpt th e :~t ern 1.1ut.
There w;1s just r() O ill
fur stroke o"rs t<> dip, and that was :t! I. The starting rupe was
as tan l as a h:trp s t r inl_'. . \\'ill :l l ilk r' s kfl hand lt<ild «L<t I
lt is a n awful 111un1 c1H . Hut the cox s w;.ti11, tlulU;..!h alinu:--.t
dragged ba c kward s o ff his seat, is equal l" th e occasiun . l le
h o ld s hi s wat c h iu his ri g ht hand with th e till e r ro p e .
"Eight secon ds more only. L ook o ut fo r th " Jl ash. J<.emc m·
b e r , al l eyes in the IJoa t . "
Th e re it co m e s at last-the fla s h o f the starting gu n. L o ng
b efo re the smrnd o f the re port ca n r o ll up th e river , the whole
pent-up life and energy whi c h has been h e ld in leash, as it we re,
for the last s ix minutes, is let loose and breaks away with a
The starting rope s dro p from the
b o und am! a d ash.
c o xswain's liands, the oars fla s h into the wate r aml gleam on

and su, l1y

"
'·
~.-

430

CO~!

POSITIO:\ A:\D RHETORIC.

the feather, the spray tli es from them. and the boats leap forwarLl.- H u i;11Es: li1111 Rrv<u11 at Uxl ord.

Exercise XXIV.
//. \Vh:tt arc the two classes of material with which
the writer deals? Give examples o f both, and illustrate how o ne may be trnnsformed into the other.
\Vith what c]ass of material are description and narration cunc<.erneJ ?
fl. \ Vhat literarv law :1pplies <''-'peeially t o description?
\Vhy ? Di s tin~·11ish li tera r y dcscriplion from
iJcntific:1tion. rind t\\"O examples vf each from your
r eading.
C. Why does this description fail ?

'l'hc vi e w fn.>111 the \\"ashing·ton 111onun1ent in \ Vashington ,
D. C., is most beautiful and most interesting. On one side the
Potoma c River is see n. \"on can iollow its course as it goes
winding through ti1e Lou11try, until it appears as a men: silver
tiin.:ad, and th e n d:s;lppc:trs.

I ! <.; re and th('re a :--hip 1nay IJe seen

llualing "ni t~ ~urL1<.:c . \i11 l';l Lii s iJe of the ri\·c r the green fields
sl ope down t o th e wat<'r. It loo ks \'cry pleasant o n the water
with the s11n s hining w:1rml y.
From th e next winrl1>1\· the ri\"cr ag-ain catches yn11r eye, but
you l.:an alsu Sl'L' part ui the cit\·.

It

is a

n·:--.idt·i11·e

431

DESCIUl'TIVE Al'D N.-\ l<RAT !\"E \\"R!Tl'.\r;.

pnrtion.

\"011 sec th e houses p eepi ng- ai>n n· the nu111cru11s tn.: cs s11rrouuc1lllf.: 1: . \uu sce :tn occ·a s 1nnal ilu1ld1ng t:tlkr than th e rest;
that is a h otel.
On the thi r d s irl e yo11 sec the principal part pf t he city. Here
the "\\' hitc Hou se" is see n , lic:u1tifu l in its simp li c it y•, and
characterist ic of the nation. The cxtcns i1·e grounds fo rm an
ex celle nt background of i:;recn fo r ib pure whiteness . On the
rig ht o f this is tile i>ui l d i n~; of th e Trea s11ry l >c-pnr t11 1ent, which

Turning n o w to the right o[ the scene. yu11 Sl·c· tile s1•knJid new
post-othcc building. and bey o nd that the l':lt cnt < >t: Ke is cas11\·
perceived !,eC'~lUSe t1f its brit-::l1t red bricks, ,,·l1il·h sliu\\. clc:Lr~\
a g ain st th e green backgroun<.l of t he numerous trees all t hr0ug-h
th e city . Tall cll 11rL·ll 'Pi res r aise their state!\· h(' :; <i s h e re :1nfi
there

a111 0 11g

the cru\\·d

uf 11 .Jtcb and
1

11..:~st-·1·

lJ uil ding s ,

~l11d

p ;u·t;-;. tL1l ili ,_,: {·i! y \ .·i!h green.
Now let us turn lo the last picture, which is the must ueauti ful. Th e central fi g ure u( t.he scene, anrl, in fad, of the city, is
the Capitol B 1 1iidi11~. lt _...;,tand .-.; 1111 a srn:lll h i ll a n d is ~h t h e:1.-.., :l y
d iininuti\· i_'.

1

st·en tro111 ail parts of tile l·ity.

'I'ilis J,uilding· ,

li\~e the: \\"!i1te

I [ousc 1 has tht~ clLLr<tctcri ~ ti(.__.s iif tli1..· 11ati!1t1 J,y \\·h i1._·]1 it \\· ; 1s
(·onstructed. Jt r: tise s its :-;pkndid do111e in 111: 1_i t:stic l1ca 11t\· :llld
dig-nity. It spreads uul tu 111ak <! H)Olll for this gTt..:at nation, and
yet is in pcrfc:. :t IH(Jp11rllt ill.
'l'lic lH. ':1u ti f ul g-r1n11H]..., ],,. \\·lJi,·li it
is surr1H11ldt;d tnlL 1t11.._·e and ~1dd t() it:-:. g-rc;tt J;1. _ ·:L uty . T l11.._· ..\l:dl
a nd the Hnt;tnical f;:tnl ens fonn a great gn_·en p:ltllw;i~· friJtll the
base of tll'-.! 111 unu111c nt, in which \\·e are , to tllt.: tntraIH.:e of tile
c~p ito l .
J ust lJ:tck o( the c~tp it1)l, :tnd unf 1rtun: Lt el:: aln1 1...:t
1

1

hidden from ,·icw. is the magnificent lrn ildinl.( of thL· Congre,;sional Lihr."lrv . J\11 tl1at can be seen of it is the splenrl;cl gr .Jr kn
' l 'i 1is shines \\'itll g-r1.._·at splv11dor in c"11t_r:1-..t w ith
pure \\·hi t1.· ·d tl11.._· l':q1 it 1d. }-; . ._ ·hin d :t11d 1)11 c:1(·li ~ ,id c t~1c

d o rne.

tiw

cxtcnds 1 f,n-n1i11g a bac kground fr1r thi s ce11tr:d 1ig11re.

n. Comment Oil the follu\\·in g- t.lcscriptiu11, poi11ti11t,;
out the rc :i.s011s for its success :
'I'!l c sun h;t s jq ·~ t ~,t'l ,
tli e \\.c ...:.t ,

~l'.!,· ;ti 1; :.~ wi1()',\'

;111rl

t h< ·

<·1

1

1d hri;.~ lit l i<lit '-li l l li1~ ;..::i r...,

r;1diailcl' l '\'t·n·tlii 11 :..:;

'!'here i s one solitary l itt le

fr~uni.:

~ ta: 11l~~ iit1t

ill

d: . . . t i11· ·t

hut 1111 the L'Orner of the ~trl'l't

unp n ite ctL' d frf1 11 1 the g·Jan.: nf t he li! eak . cold s unset, ~uid fr1i1n

the stee ly \\·ts tern \\·ind .

'J'lle e1npty l<it"' <tn111nd ar1.._· :-.tn•\\-n wit)i

rubbish and p:.iper. I t is cuuntry , for tilerl' arc: no lwu'"'· It i,;
n<it c1,untr~·. f·ir there i~ 1H1 ~;r; 1 ...;,s.
i\l'itli1...·r :lrl· tlH: r.. __. ;i:l\ lrl·l·..:..
'l 'h..._· w in d st~l':n;.; t(1n ~t r nn:._;.' for :lllY li\·i:1~· t l1i11g . Yl·t 1l;t·:·c J...,.

ren1i11d:-; tJ nc pf ~l (;reek tet1ipk· , \':ith ii:~ nunh:rt>tl:-; beautiful

t1Ltt qne :;:n.tll

columns. On th e ld t is the h ands" me h11t more h11sin cssl ike
building of the !Jcpart111 c nts o i Stale. \\'ar, and the Navy. A
littl e rlistan cc from tlw l:ttter struc tu re is th e ma g nil1cent lrnildin l! .,f t he Corcoran i\rt \ ;:tilery. It is lrnilt uf while marble.

L'<lll\L'~

h<ithe, s•111H_· (J JJ1.._·'s li11111c.
Fr11ni it:-, t·l1i1 111H ·\·
faint..._· st su-;~.(c -.; 1ic1n (1f a .:..~r:tyi~,i 1 \\·rc:t th c1f ~;111 1 •J..e
SonH'\\·la~ rc a d<>g- is haying- lon g-, 111ournful l1owls.
Jn -..idL' tht·
tliL·

Jrnt a child i,; cn·ing, n .. t nngrily. hut 1111111.',rih·
,\nr! the \\ind
v·l1i :-.t le;-; atld c 11L...: rl;t..' air like. il...' l~. l L C~ltcliv-.. up the du ....:t ~tnd

432

-UJ

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

DES CRIPTIVE .'\l'\IJ l'\..\ RRATl\'E \V!UTING.

dirty papers and whirls them against th e littl e house, wrapping
it in a blanket of icy air and filth.

lookin g out across the sanely yard to th e !Jlue ri\·er a fe w rods
away.
2. It had rained an<l snowetl alternately a ll day. Toward
evening it had ceased. The stars came out anti shone brightly
in the clear, dark-blue sky. The moon loo ked clown on a fairy
landscape, for the hou ses , the roads, anti the trees were co \·ered
w ith diamond dust. Pike's Peak was b lack in the distance.
Not a sound could be heard , except now and then the fall of a
b ranch encrusted with ice . A side doo r in "The Antlers"
opened , and a little g irl stepped ou t on the white carpet. She
was about nine years of age, tall, dark, and pale, and dresse<l
in a very short black frock. She looked around in s ilen ce for a
few minutes, with h er lips partetl and her nostrils dilated . Then
a shadow passed over her face, and the light went ou t of her
eyes. L ifting her face to war<l the heavens, with h er hantls
clasped in front of her, she whispere<l, "Oh! Ma111ma, dear."
She turn ed and was soon swa llowed up by t h e little door in the
gray stone pile.

E . What are the two methods of description used in
this th eme?
In the Gat.cttecr it reads, " F ort Gates , a post-hamlet of
Putnam Co., Fla ., on the W . bank of the St. John's river, 140
miles fro m ih mouth." Sc much for maps and statistics! I
would addA great white ho use standing with generous doors and windows ope n; the ho t suns hin e po urin g down marks the broad
piazzas with gleaming bands of light and shatters its rays
against the windo ws. There beside the steps is a heavy jessamine vine, here a red blurr o f roses. On the hill slope fro m the
hou se to the river arc first a bed o f o leanders, then orange trees;
further down are oa ks and cypresses, and reed s swaying and
clicking to ge ther at the wate r edge . And there, lying face
downwanl, hanging over the coqnina rocks that rise but a foot
above the water, two c hildren hold lo ng reeds and push out into
the slow cur rent innumerable paper-saile l boats freighted with
pomegranate fl owers.

F. In what sense does the law of proportion apply
to descriptive writing? The law of coh erence ? Examine th e following descriptions and poi1;t out the plan
of each:
l. The raftered rooms of the unpaintetl frame buil<ling are
i:lrg-e and airy, with little sta ircases here and there, which lead
from Jloor to floor. The sunshine streams in at the windows;
all the woo dwork is whiteued as if from flour dust. The walls
shake with the dull c lank and rattle of machinery. Here are
great vats, which churn up a seething, steaming mass of brine;
there, in one corner, is a h o t, whirling iron mec h a ni s m, the
"drie r." The sa lt co mes flying down thro ugh pipes into a little room full of " sifte rs ," and then pours into the tro ug hs,
where the packers are at work. Men anti girls sit h e re together,
seizing and fillin g box after box, bag after bag, from the piles
th a t li e at th e ir side. Out in a shed one secs heaps of staves
ready for barrel building , aud hears the workme n hamm e ring at
the hoop s . A few rosy -cheeked girls, box makers, packers, and
lab~l-pa s ters, si t on the factory steps , eating their lunch and

G. What is the point of view m this description ?
Come o n , sir; here's the p lace . Stand still. How fearfu l
And dizzy 'tis to cast one's eyes so lo w !
The crows and choughs that wing the midway a ir
Show scarce so gross as beetles. Halfway down
llanKs one that gathers samp hire, dreadful tra<le !
l\fothin ks h e see111s no bigger than his h ead .
The fishermen that walk upon th e beach
App ea r like mi ce; an<l yon<l tall :1nclwrinK hark
ll iminish "d to her cock; her t:oc k, a liuuy
Alm ost too small for sight. T he murmurin g surge,
That on t h e unnumbere d itll c pebb les cha fes,
Canno t be heard so high. 1 ' 11 look no more,
Lest my brain turn and the deficient s ight
Topple down headl o ng.- SHAKSPERE: A"ing f...rnr.

H. Compare description and n arration, showin g in
what respects they arc alike, in what respects they
differ. Can you tell a sto ry b y means of pictnrcs ?
What is the difficulty with this m ethod ? f s clescription
ever u sed in narration ? Narration in des1,:ription?
28

---.·-- ~;<;hl';zt:- 't

'

.

'

·-'

--

434

CO~IPOSITION

AND RHETORIC.

Separate the descriptive from the narrative elements in
th e lHtssag·e from Tom flro 1nt at Odvrd (section 164).
/. \Vhat literary law is most important in narration?
\Vhy ? Bring to class an example of what yon consider
effecti\' e narrati\-c and p oint out its qualities.
J . What is the chief defect of this short narrative?
J:-; TllE DARK.

l s anything more startling than to wake suddenly in the night
with your heart in your mouth an(l a sense that so mething has
happened? Your breath comes quick and fast and your heart
beats like a trip-hamm er-yet all is still. A nameless fear is so
mu c h worse than a known one . Last night I woke suddenly
"in the c.le acl vas t ancl middle of the ni g ht." All was quiet at
tirst - a dc:aclly lJtiiet. Then, o h, h o rror! the bed rocked!
"An earthquake ," my leaping hear t to lcl me. "No, it can't
b e, •' reason answered. Our teacher tole] us just yesterday that
this part of the world wa s neyer Yi s itetl by earthquakes. This
th o u g ht ran li !-:e lightning through my mincl. But just then the
wind o ws began again to rattle ancl the bed to rock so hard that
I held my breath, expecting c\·ery minute to be swallowed up by
the earth o r to feel the bricks come falling down on top of
me. l im agine d that 1 was slowly moving downward. By this
tim e my nen·e s were so highly stn111g- that when my sister, who
slept \l'ith me, stirrecl . .I th oug ht the bed was rocked by the
trembli ng of the earth; but as the windows did not rattle, l
decitlcd all m y troub le was cause<! by h er restlessness .

/{'. ll ow is climax uhs<.:tT<.:d in this narrative?
SI'. El

~G

Tl! E SICllTS.

One afternoon la s t sun 1rner, just between "h ay in' an' harves tin'," a farmer :tn<l his family, who hacl wearied of the
\Vo rld's Fair, bustled aboard a Cottage Grove avenue car at
Fifty -fifth street, bonncl to see the sights of the city. They were
a typical group. "Pa" \\'as stoop-sh o uldere d, careworn and
silent; "J\la," o n the cont rary, buxom and talkative, while Bill
and Abe wc·re very tall, Yery re el, and Ycry fidge ty. The old
people took the front seat, hut the b oys race<l tlown the sides bf
th e car tn th e re:tr. "~[:i" was th e spokesma n. She paid the
condu cto r and que.,t io nc tl hilll, particularly in reganl tu Libby

DESCRIPTIVE AND NARRATIVE WRITING.

435

Prison. He was a good-natured fellow and assured h e r that nut
only wouhl she pass by the priso n, but that he would be sure ancl
not for ge t to stop the car. " 1\Ia " thanked II im, and a cl o ncl of
anxiety passed fro m her face. In due time the conductor ran g
the bell and called out "LiblJy Prison." The car stopped.
'' J\[a ' ' became excited and shouted to the boys. They were on
th e al e rt. The whole family leaned forward and gazed a long
moment at the war reli c . Then "Pa" slowly turned antl wav ing his arm said, with a satisfied drawl, "All right, conductor,
go ahead.''

L. Lists of subjects for description and narration are
given below . Point out any subjects in the first li st
that could be treated by narration; any subjects in the
seco nd list that could b e treated by description .
( 1) Subjects for d escription:
An o ld-fashio ned garden .
Puritans g·oing to church.
A t;alt, co al, or other mine.
l\fy uncle 's farm.
A disastrous fire.
The Van Tassel homestead.
A New England kitchen.
A mo o nlight sail.
Coasting at - - - .
My birthplace.
The bst football or baseball game.
An old ::,:-arn;t.
Climbing - - - mountain.
Description of a favorite picture.
A vi e w from my \\'indow.
" Do\\'n town" at six o 'dock on a winter evening.
A wate rfall.
The local library.
A prairie fire .
The day before Christmas.
A cornfield in August and in November.
The village street.

436

COillPOSITION AND RHETORIC .

( 2) Subjects fo r na r ratio n:
A child's e scapad e.
H o w I got los t.
My own g host story.
An exci tin g sail.
The day we m oved .
The exploit o f Phei<lippidcs.
Horatius a t the bridge.
How the sacred geese saved Rome.
The death of Nelson.
The battle of l\l :mi la.
Macl Anthony ' s explo it.
The sinking of the Merrimac.
The fall of the Bastile.
The battle o f L oo kout l\1uuntain.
How \Vashingto n crossed th e .De laware.
The early years of De Quincey.
\Valter Scott and l\Iarjorie Fleming.
Grant at \Ves t Po int.
The assassinati<>n of Lincoln.
Crossing the ocean.
The story of the rings in T!t1· !lfcrrluml of Venirc.
A track mee t.
A visit to Mamm oth Cave (or some other point of
inte rest ).
A visit to a new spaper oflice.
Snowed in.
A visit to a facto ry.
A visit to a mining camp.
On th e plains in a hliz.zarcl.
A railway accid e nt.
How we camped ont.
A debate between two school societies.

CHAPTER XXV.
EXPOSITORY AND ARCUMENTATIVE \\"R ITIN f ; .

165. Terms.- We turn n o w to the s ecu ncl kind of
material for writing. Every idea that we have which
cannot be r e ferr ed to some specific object, but which
stands for a class o f objects o r for a quality, b e longs
to this divi s io n. "Cloud," we saw, could be t a ken as
be longing to either divisi on, our treatm e nt of it dep e nding upon whe the r it was considered as an object
( o ne of a class), o r the class itself. In th e same way,
the s ubject "island" may be considered, as in Stevenson's d e scription, as one special is land, or it may be
tre ated as an idea repre se nting a certain kind o f geographical divisi o n. Qualiti e s, such as tnith, patri o tism,
loya lty, etc., cannot be treated as objects; we cannot
d escribe th e m. Qualities remain always ideas. It will
be convenie nt t o distinguish the names of qualities
and general ideas from the nam e s o f objects b y calling
the first two " te rms . " In e xpos ito ry and a rgumentative writing, we treat t erms, no t objects.
166. Distinction between Description and Exposition.- We
found in the preceding chapter th a t in tre ating objects,
w e could either describe them, or narrate what happ e ned to them. Terms cannot be treate d in the same
manner. "Island," as a te rm, has no body, n othing t o
make a picture of in the mind. The wo rd " island "
calls up in our mem o ry, perhaps, the picture of a body
of land, either a print se e n in some book, or an island
we have known. But this image belongs to one special object, and not to all the objects inc luded in the
437

l'

438

CO:\!POSTT!O:\" A ;\"D JUIETOJHC.

term "island." If, then, \l' C ca nn ot d esc ribe the term
"island," what can we say about it? \Ve can define
it, teil \\'hat ideas arc contained in the worcl, what it
m e :ins tn :-i ll pe o p le \\· ho use the English lang-ua gc .
The c1 ic ti o n:tr y , fur cx;u11 p lc , says that an islancl is" a
trac t ot. land surrn1111dcci by \l'atcr." That explanalinn
is not a tlcscription of the thing- call e d "islancl,"
because it does n o t h e lp us to see it as an object; but
it helps us to 11n <lc r-.; ta11 d wh a t it m c:-in s . \\'c kn o w
\\'hat "a tr;t cl o f iand · · is, \\"hat · •water " is, and what
'· surr u und c d .. is ; h e nce w e kn0w in a ~e ncrnl way
what " island" is. When a term is tre atcfl in this
111annl"r - 1s define d . th a t is- the lit e rar y process is
calieci c xpositi (!ll. This rathe r formidable wo n ! m c :l!1s
nuthing- m u re t han " cx pianati o n " o r "de finition."
Exposition is a ,·c ry co mm o n form of writing-, perhaps
the m o st co mm o n fo rm. Essa v s, su ch a..; Emerson's
c-.;say nn " Histo n· , " Larlvle's cssa\' cn1 " Hn r ns,'' or
Linco ln'..; .. C c tt \·s buri.!" A d dress. " c1n1sist hrg·c] y nf
expos iti on, that is, explanation. They may a ls o cont a in desc ripti o n a nd narrati o n, but t h e prin c ipal aim of
the essay is to explain so me te rm . All te xt-books are
exposi t ory in n a ture . Thi s J\hcto ri c , ior e xample, is an
attempt to tlcfinc \\"hat is co ntained in th e terms" English comp o siti o n and rh e toric." A yol11m e like Mr.
Bryce ' s .'/111crim 11 Co1111J10ll ii ', ·a///i is alm o st pure expositi o n. In sh o rt, whcrc 1·c r a 1nitc r aims to e xplain id eas,
he is d e aling with e xpo sit io n. The a lg-ebrai c formu la
is a compl e te illustration of the process: .t· (th e te rm
under disc u ssion) =a + b + r, etc . (the id e as contain ed
in x) .

167. Hints for Writing Exposition.- If e xpo s ition consists simpl y of d e finiti o n , \1·hy is it n ot e nough merely
to consult the dictionary ? In many cases the first

.EXPOSITOR\' AKn ARGl; :\(E ;\.' T .·\TlVE WR!Tle\1 ; .

4,)9

step, surely , is to consult the <lictionary. h11L th e
abriclg·cd explanation there found will nu t adLl mtH.J1 tu
our kn o wledge of the term. illvrcover, as the dctiniti o n in the di c ti o nar y co n s is ts of i.; c n er: tl ideas , \1·c 11uy
Le forc e d to ck fi11(' t11 c s e in tu rn . \f d1 1y kr 111 s , i 11rl li c· rmnr c, ca1111 nt he t'<>t11Hl in a diui o 11;try, c. g- . , "c1 •11l· ti i:t tion with America." "arhitrati n n treaties, " "11111 111c·tp :tl
ownersh ip ," etc. Even the s im 1)l e st terms, s 11 i:l1 as
' ' isbrnl ," l'(>\·c r a pret t y w irlc ficl cl C> f inl11rnnti 1•11 :
there arc \· u lcauic and c o ral ant1 m v unl,tin v us i::.Lu1 J s,
there ;i re q ue s ti o ns uf clinu tc , ,,f () \\ 11 cr,., hi 1,, , ,f li.-.. li c· r 1es. All these topics arc properly incl11ded in th e te rm .
The di:li11itio11 of rhetoric in the 1lict:.111;u·y \111t1l 1I !ll •t
take us \'Cry far in nur c ncle:t\·or t" 11lllkrst:t11d :11 1 t h:tt
the lL'.rm imp lt cs. Exp u s1 ti" 11, lh c r1·f1J1·c , 1k111:1lllis 1111>rc·
than a mere sta tem e nt in oth e r terms of the· su 1,Jcl't .
' Vh c r e shall ,,.e s( q p in our pr., ccs s ,, f <kli11 i11:,: . a11d
how shall we pron· c d? ( lb \·inusly. a \"<>lt1 11 Jc · c<.itld i>c:
writ ten •'ll al n wst :tl l\" term . Th e fi r.s t s tc1 1 is I <> l1m tt
the subject of exposition so that it will c• •1-er <>Illy
those i<leas which we wi sh to di s cu s s. To redu ce the
work of exp o siti o n o f the term "island," f1Jr example ,
we sho uld do we! l to c o n tine the term t o \·o k:rn ic o r
coral islands, or to some oth e r p:irt of th e tnpi e.
"l\£unicipal O\\·ncr ship o f stree t railwa y s " c;rn l>c n w rc
eas il y treated than "municipal 0 11·ncrs hip "; '' 111un1 ci pal ow ne rship nf stre et rail\\'ays in l'hic:th:"o " is y e t
more precise and easi ly h a n dled. The next step is to
m:-ike a cli\'ision of the icle:-is th:-it arc eo1·cre d by the
term as finally statecl. An excell e nt example of how
this may he cl o ne is found in the 01k·ning- c hap te r", .i the
A111t'rira11 Com111011 w t'a!Llt. Th e t e rm for CX [Jvsition is th e
Ame rican syst e m o f government, whid1 h e s e parates
into three natural div isio n s - the Executive part, the

440

COlllPOSITION A ND RHETORIC.

Legislative part, the Judicial part. When he considers
the Executive he divides again into the origin of the
presidential office and provisions for election, for reelection, for succession in case of death, etc. Every clear
exposition must be planned in this m e th od ical manner.
One caution must be obsen·cd: the division (}f the
ideas contained in a term shou Id be made according to
some consistent and simple plan. If Mr. Bryce had
made his divisions, the Executive, the Revenue, 'the
State L eg islature s, and the Civil Service Commission,
he would have hacl two difficulties: first, the divisions
taken as a whole \vould not equal the term, and, secondly, the divisions would not be related to each other.
A th oro ugh divisi o n must be complete; that is, the
parts take n as a \\'hole must include all pertinent
t op ics contained in the subject. A third device in
expository writing is the use of illustrntion. To make
almost any term clear it is necessary to show what it is
like . Illustratio n may take a number of forms: compariso n , as when .l\'lr. Bryce, in explaining the position
of th e President, compares him with the Prime Minister of Engfand; or example, as when .l\Ir. Bryce, in
explaining that the American people do not favor a
third term for the presidential office, cites General
Grant's failure to obtain the nomination for the third
time . A common form o f illustration by example is
to describe a special object representative of the whole
term. To explain volcanic m o untains, for instance,
Mount Vesuvius may be described as an example of
the class . A !most every term can be treated successfully in the mann er described above. The most difficult part of the \\'Ork is the division. A consistent
scheme of division that will include all the facts of the
term should be settled up on in the outline.

EXPOSITORY AND ARGUMENTATIVE WRITIN G .

4+1

168. The Laws of Composition in Exposition.- Unity in
exposition is obtained by limiting the term and by confining the discussion strictly to the term as modified.
Selection is observed by choosing the best illu s trative
mate rial. Coherence governs the arrangement of the
ideas brought out by di vision o f the term ; success in
the process of division depends on a close observance
of this principle. No one law is of special importance
in ex position.
169. Argument.- That "there must be two sides to
an argument" is a commonplace. An arg·umcnt cannot, like exposition, deal with a single term or idea.
There must be at least two terms before we have
any ground for an argument. If this simpl e truth
were always remembered, much useless wrangling
would be a voided.
" Sixteen to one " h as been a
battle-cry of late, but so far as that phrase goes there
is no thing to argue about. " Prohibition" is a similar
instance of a term about which we cannot argue. If ,
however, we add another term to each of th ese examples, we shall have th e basis for an argument.
"The United States should coin silver dollars at the
ratio of sixteen to one" ( i. e., sixtee n ounces of silver
to one ounce of g o ld), and" Prohibition is the best
way to deal with the liquor question," arc both statements open to argum e nt. From this we may see that
argument implies at least two ideas; further, it implies
that the two ideas are related in one sentence (for this
purpose usually called a proposition).
Moreover, a ,
proposition to be worth arguing upon must assert
something which is open to reasonable doubt. That
" Islands are bodies of land surrounded by water," is
not open to doubt by anyone in his senses . That
"The United States should coin silver dollars at the

442

CO;\! POSITION A:\' 0 RHETORIC.

ratio of sixteen to one" is certain ly an open question.
That" :\Iunicipaliti cs arc self-governing bodies, usually
contain in g O\·cr 10,000 inhabitants," is an undisputed
fact; that" :\[unicipalitics should own street railways ,"
is not a settl ed fad- it is a matte r of opinion. A
mattc1· of fact is not open to arg n ment. An argument, then, rcqnires two terms stated in the form of a
proposition abo nt \Yhich there is a reasonable ground
for differe nce of opinion . The object of argument is
to show the truth or falsity of a propositi o n: for examp le, " M nnicipalities should ( o r sho uld not) own street
railways."
170. Cautions.- N c\·cr :lttcmpt to write an argument,
or to speak in a debate, without stating clearly the
proposition yon p n rposc to cliscnss. N c \·er state the
subj ect as a term. "Imperialism," for example, is
not an arg-umcntative subject , alth o ugh it may easily
be made one . Fnrther, never lcayc your r eader or
hearer in cloubt as to which side of the controversy
yon purpo se to take. For this reason it is well to
state yon r propo s iti o n affirmative ly rather than interrogatively. Tn d e hate, the propositi o n is usu ally stated
in the followin g set form: "Resolved, that municipalities should own street rail\\"ays." Nc,·er begin your
argument withont first explaining all the terms contained in the propo sition. A good exposition of the
terms \Vill rende r it comparatively easy to argue the
real question at issue. Never mistake assertion for
argument. To say that free co ina ge of silver ·would
enable the poor man to pay his d e bts is an assertion,
n o t ::m argument to convince us that the United States
should authorize the free co ina ge of silver. This last
caution is of such importance that it will be developed
in a separate section.

EXPOSITORY AND ARGU,,_!ENTATIVE WRITI::-;G.

443

171. Proof.- Proof is the name for every kind of
statement advanced in a n argument, tending to create
a belief in the main propositi o n. Proof differs fro m
assertion in that it is based finally upo n some wellrecognizcd Let, \vhik assertion is merely the writer's
opinion on the matter. The illustrati o n in the preceding section may easi ly be ma<le into pro o f, if o ne can
show that the asse rtion is based upon fact; that is,
that the country ncclls more money for circulation,
that th e re is not sufficient gold to provide for this
increased circulation, and that increase d circulati o n
means m o re money for every poor man. Proof, the refore, usually has a number of steps in it, each one of
which must be clearly m ade. A good argument is
much like ~: flight of stairs : the first step rests upon
the ground - that is, some well-known fact; the secoml step upo n the first; and so o n, until we reach the
platform at the top, which is the main propos iti o n.
Assertion may be compared to one step hanging in the
air.
172. Parts of an Argument.- Every ar~· ument may be
divided int o three parts: the introduction, th e proof,
and the conclusion. The introduction contains the
explanation of the terms of the proposition - wh:it is
meant hy the question at issue. Both sides in an
argument should agree upon this preliminary definition.
The proof consists of a number of prop os itions, \\"hich,
if shown to be true, will establi sh the truth of the
subject for debate. For example, in the question, '
"Should municipalities own street railways?" we may
have the followini:;- three propositions, each one of
which must be discussed and proved: ( 1) municipal
ownership would in crease th e efficiency of the sen·ice;
(2) municipal ownership wou lcl r educe fares; (3) mu-

444

CO:l!POSTTIO:"J .'\)'.;D RHETORIC.

nicipal ow nership would reduce taxes . All three, if
proved, would go far t o wards con v incing us that the
main propos1t1on is trne. Fin a ll y, th e conclusi o n contains u s u a ll y a sum mary of the int rod uctio n and the
proof.
173. The Outline or Brief.- Thc uutlinc in argument
is usually call e d th e bri ef. The hricf should contain
complete sentences, i. c., propositions, o n e proposition
for each m ain subdi\"isi o n, and as man y subonlinate
propositi o n s as arc necessary to prove the propositions
immediately aho \·e them . Th e best ex planation of a
brief ca n be found in studying some short example, e.g.:
TllE CITY O F

Cl!JC.~GO

SllOllLD 0 \\':'-1 AND OPERATE ITS STREET
ltA !LWAVS.

/11 /rvd11diu11.
1. By street railways we mean su rface lines, not t!evated roads.
2 . \ \"c clo not purpose t o cli scu,;s the m ea n s of acquiring the
railw ays, whether l>y purchase of stock, IJy forfeiture of
c harter, de.
a. F o r this cl<>es not bel o ng strictly to th e subject.
3 . The qu es tion under discussio n is o f p1·ese nt interest, because,a. The principal compa nies have a sked for a fifty-year
extension of c harters.
lJ. New compan ies are being fo1·med.
c. R oads coul<l be acquire<! now more cheaply than
hter.
4 . If we can pnl\·e t hat municipal ownership would be (a) practi cable, ( h ) economica l for ci ty and for peop le , and (c)
would g ive be tte r se rvi ce, we shall prove our prop os itio n.
F'roof.

The c it y of Chicago shoulll own and uperate its street rail·
wa ys, for
,\. Public o wnership is p ract icable, since
l. Other cities h: l\·e trie d the plan su ccessfully, as
a. In th e ease o f Glasgow.

EXPOSITOl<Y AND Ah'.GU~lENTi\TI\ ' E \\°}{IT!:-> G.

445

2 . Publi c owne rship of similar industries ha s proved
successful, su c h as
a. F e d e ral ownership of postal service .
lJ. Federal ownersh ip of dock yards.
c . ~Juni c ip a l ownership o f gas and e le ctri c light
ant! wa terwor ks.
B. Muni c ipal ownership of street railways would prove eco nomical:
1. For the c ity, as
a. E,·en with reduce<l cha rges it cou ld m ake
money, for
x. Th e prese nt companies pay large sums
in interest on excessive stock valuation, and
y. Th ey are willing to gi,·e some compensation to the city.
b. Th e c ity coulcl save op<-rating expen ses by
unitin g the roads under one head.
x. This is s h uwn by comb inati on in other
industries .
2. For the people, as
a. Fares co ull1 he reduced to four cents, possibly
lowtr .

x.

This is shown 1.Jy the inco me of the
roa ds .
b. Tran s fers co uld be iss ued to all parts o f the
city.
C. MuniL·i pal ownersl1ip woul<l give patrons a better se rvice
than at prese nt, for
l. The present sen·ice is dcfcc ti\·e , for
a. Cars a re o ,·ercrowLle<l , an<l
1.J. Transfers are inadequate.
2. No influ ence can be 1.Jrought to IJear on priva te companies .
3. The c ity could be compellecl to furni sh more cars
<luring the busy part of day .

Co11,·/11siv11.
lf, th en , a s \\·e h ~l\·e attempted to prove, our contentions in
A , H, ;rn<l C are correct, a system of municipal ownership of
~treet railways in Chi cago is preferable to the present plan.

446

·H7

CO:ll POSITIO'.'I AND RHETORIC.

EXPOSITORY AND ,\RGU:l!Fl\'T.\Tl\'E \\'l<ITI.''\(;.

In stating the subject, the argum e nt has been limited to th e city of Chicago; in the introduction, it has
been further limitcd tu the consideration o f surface
lines. The intruducti o n Llefincs the t erms that are not
s e lf-explan atory; in ( .1 ) it shows why the subject is
worth treatin g; in ( ·t) it shows what must be proyccl
to win the case. The \\'ork to b e performed is thus
outlined. Th e pro o f is divided into thre e main divisions. Each prupusitiun in each of these divisions
leads up to the proposition at the head of the division,
ancl thence t o the propositi o n which is the snbject of
debate . l 11 each di,·ision th e numbe ring of the propos1t1ons is mad e consistent; propos itio ns numbered
according- tu o ne system (as numeral:; o r small letters )
arc always l)arallcl. Further, propositions are related
by causal conjuncti()ns, c. g- .. "])ccau se." "for," "as,"
"since," \\'hich sen·e tu make the co1mcclion Letween
them clear.
lt is eYidcnt t'.1at this short brief is incomp le te. The
chief o miss io n is the abse nce of any refutation; that
is, an att e mpt tu meet arg-111nents that might be
advanced un the other side of the que stion. There
are strong arguments for the other side, s uch as " J'ublie 011·11ership h::tds tu corruption"; "It is not a
saving in expense "; " ..'\ municipality is n o t as enterprising as a pri \·ate corpo ration," etc. R easons must
he prc p:t red to meet th ese ar:..:·umcnts. Tn this example
the brief h:t s been made as simple as possible for purpos es of illu stratio n.
A good brief is m ore than half the battle in argumentative writing ancl in Llcbating. A brief shonlcl
always precede an arg·nmcnt.
174. Laws of Composition in Argument. - The two important litera ry laws in argumeutative writing are

coherence ancl climax. 'J'hc read e r or hc :m.:r must I.ic
able tu follow" th e line of argurnc11L" fr<;m the intrutluction to the conc1usio1i without u11cc lusi 11g L11c c•i11nectio11 Let\\"CCll th e parts. !\ <11sonlcrly :1rgt1111ent
leads surely to crrnfnsion on th e part ,,f th e 1·c:t•k;· "r
hc :u·er. l;urthcrmore, the 11u111 prnpns1ti•J11s shuuld Ji,.
so arranged that the stronger arguments are pLtcul
near the end. The ascending scale o f climax is esp~­
ci:t!ly ck::;ir:tLle in spuLcn :trg umcnt.
The law of unity is maintai11ct1 hy c:trefully limitingand defining the principal propositio11, ;111d l> v carcfull1·
n.:l::tting each sub-proposition to th e prin~ipal 011~.
Proportion and selection in argument arc 4ucstions of
judgm e nt in the choice of material. Obviuush-, all
tri,·ial or subordinate arg·urnents must h e ncglect~d for
the sake of the stro11g· uncs.

17 5. The Use of Exposition and Argument in Learning
How to Write.- In exp(Jsitury ;t1Hl <tr;.:·t1me11tati\·c cri 111 •
positiun the writer is compellcl1 to think, and t()
think connectedly. Structure is all-important in these
forms of composition.
A successful narrativ e uf
description may be \\'ritt e n \\'ith ou t a strict pl:u 1 ur
organization, for mu ch clcpcncls upu11 1·i,·id \\'ords :Hid
happy phrasing, well -turned sc11te1Ices , ;l!ld ;qit d ct:til.s .
In exposition and arg-ument, h o wever, a glib use uf
languag-e, rounded sentences, and goocl illustration \\'ill
n o t sa1·c the \\'riter from failure, i f his thought is not
exact and carefully developed. These m ore dlfhcult
forms ha1·e b ee n treate d here as briefly and simply as '
possible; experience will teach the thoughtful writ er
many new facts about both forms . But the m ore
important principles that und e rlie good thinking and
g·ooc1 \\Titing have been defin e d and illustrated.

448

CO~IPOSITION

AND RHETORI C.

EXPOSITORY AND ARGUl\IENTATJVE WHITING.

Exercise :XXV.

surrounded with ga lle ries for spectators- wt: 1·e gay with IJ ann.ers and ta pe.;t n es , and the heraldic emblems of the contentlin r
h. n 1g hts. The ric h trappings of th e stee ds , and the m agnifi ce~~
app.1rel. o f the assembled princes and nob les with their attend~'.1t trams, _m a de up a spectacle of rare gaiety and splendor.
l h e c xpend1tures of all con ce rned in the fes tival we re en o rm ous
antl ofte n rum ous. An ol tl writer asserts that •' g ol <l and s ilve 1\\ e re no more spared than though th ey had ra ined out of th e
clo11ds , or bee n skimmed fro m th e sea. "
\Vhen th e 1~ oment arrived for the opening of the ceremony
herald s prn cla1111cd the r ules o f th e contes t , wl 1e· re u pun ti 1e co m-'
batants .'.uh-ancetl into the li s ts, each young Knight displaying
up o n . hrs helmet o r breast the de vice of th e mi s tress of his
affoct10ns . At the gi,·en signa l the opposing p a rties o f !':ni ghts,
:".1_th cot'.~hed lances, rode fiercely a t each o th er, amidst such
e..r ies
·
. as.. ,, L oya
·.,.. lty to the ladi es. , " " Faire·
"
yes· b e I10 11
c you, valiant
h.n l"h
ts· ·.
v 1ctory- W'ts
,. c
l J to I11111
·
"
• ·
d co re ec
who unh o rsetl hi s
antago ni~t. or broke in a prop er manner the greatest number of
~an ccs. The rewa rds to the victo r consistetl of jewels, gifts o f
.trmor, o r horses dec ked with knightly trappings, and, more
esteemed than all ebe , th e pra ises and fa\' o r of hi s latly-love. Mv E 1<s : !1/rdia:;•a l and .1fodrr11 ffislori•.

A. G ive five examples of terms that may be considered also as nam es for obj ect s. Give fiv e examples of
terms that ne,-e r r eprese nt objects . Illustrate with the
first set of tc,·ni:-; t he diffe rence in treatment between
d escripti on and ex po siti on . Does a te rm ever contain
m ore th a n one \\'Orel? ',Vhat is a proposition ? Give
two propositions constructed fro m the five terms called
for aboYe.
B. D efi ne expos1t1on. Why is the dictionary definition of a term n ot enou!,!"h for purpo ses o f exposition ?
State in your O \\'ll language the necessary ste ps in constructing an exposi ti on. Show how this passag·e illustrates exposition:
Tll E

TO\.'RNA~!E:->T.

The tuuruamt:ut w as the f:n-orite amuse ment of the age of
Chivalry. Jt was a mimic battle between two co mpauies o f
noble Kni g ht s, armed 11s11ally with pointless swo rds o r blunte d
lances. Jn the universal es tee m in which the p a rti c ipan ts were
held, it reruin(ls us of the Sacred Games of the Creeks; while in
the fien;c and sanguinary character it so m et imes assumed,
especially before it wa s IJrought fully untl er th e spirit of Chivalry,
it reca ll s the gladiatorial combats of th e Roman amphitheater.
Th e p1·in ce "r baron giving the fcsti ,·al mad e pro clamation of
tht: e ve nt thr cn1 :~h all th e co untn-, brave an<! <li~ting-uished
Knights being in\·itcd e ve n from <listant lands to grace the occasion with the ir prese nce and an exhibition of th e ir skill and
prowess .
As a rule, on l:,· !':nig hts known to Came and of appro,-ed va lor
were allowed to tak e pa rt in the c ontest, alth o u g h suli1etimes a
stranger Knight was p e rmitted to enter the lists without h a ,·ing
tirst divulged his nam e . Like the contestant in th e Olympic
games, the aspirant for the h o no r s o f the tourn a ment must be
unstained by c rim e; he must n ever have olfentlcd a lady, never
have vi o lated h is word, or ne,·er have taken unfair advantage of
an enemy in b attl e.
The lists-a le,·el space marked u ff l>y a rope or railing, and

449

C. \Vhich one of thes e two passag-es 1s exposition ?
\ Vhat form o f· writing- is th e ot her?
1.

l
I

i

j

J

A FOOTl!Al.l. Fll!J.D.

1'hc dim e nsions o f a fonthall field •·ire 0 11 e )11111 c1re< l nnrl sixty
·
li y three
hundred and t h irty fee t · Th e fi e ld 1·".-. t·ros·se·'
· lC
.
. . u fr 0111 SI<
tn stde by parallel lin es fi\·e ya rd s apart - a fact fr om whi c h it
takes _its nam e of'' the gridiron . '' 1\t each end o f the field in
th e 1111<ldle of the boundary line , are two uprights, e igh teen ~; nd
a half fee t apart, c rossed at a clistance of twe nt y fee t from the
groun~~ hy a bar pa int ed whitt: . The uprights arc called•· ;;oalpo~ts , the l'r<>ss- p1c cc "the lia r," the lines the" fivc -,·ard line "
" t e r ~-yan l I tn e, " a_nd so forth, numlJe ring fro m the g1Jal·post
s 'to
the tenter of th e field . Th e boundaries at th e s idt:s are ca lle<l
~h e_ " side-lines." Th~ best f"Cllhall field is of tough turf, whi c h
·:bsorlis moisture rearl1h·, lessens dange r from fall s, and :dT.. rds
hrm footrng and o pp o rtunity for speedy running .
29

FXPOSITOXY Ai\"D /\RGl"'.l!Ei\"L\T[\"E \\' RlTI:\'C;.

4.'iO
.\

l-~Hl!lL'.J.L

I JLL1J.

i\ lung, dun, qu1c.;t sp;ice, 1v;th patches 11! ilare earth he re an<l
there , and a few cl yin g wee ds - this is the football field in
the o ff -season. There is nothing abo ut it n ow to proclaim its
co ming pride. But some day there will be two gallows-like
affairs o f timbers, twe nt y feet high and more than a dozen
broad, one at each e nd; th e field will be filled up with innumerable cross-lines, furth e r apart in the middle th a n an active man
conk! jump, but apparently growing c loser and c loser toge th e r,
toward the ends , ancl the wh ole will look like an imrnense piece
of UlH.lerdone toast with a c<>uple of toothpicks stuck up at each
edge. So it will lie in October, in the days of its glory, waiting,
with its stiff, broacl whitewash lines , tec hni ca lly ca lled "fiveyard lines ," for tw e nt y-two ugl y d emo n s in dirty armor to come
out and frolic ove r it.

D . Criticise th e following expository themes:
1.

MO);SQO);S .

Monsoon s are pec uliar to certain regions. Owing to their
peculiar nature th ey can take place only in reg io ns near the sea .
Since in s ummer the land is warmer th an the ocea n, the air over
the land is h otter and hence lighte r than the air over t h e ocean.
In the winter ju s t the reverse is true. Therefo re in the summer
the wind blows from the ocea n t o the land. Th e ocean in winter is warmer , and hence it is the other way. Mo untains a long
the coast and arid desert reg ions in the interi or increase the
effect.
2.
1:-;nooR !JASEBALL TKAl); l !"C.
The training of baseball teams is probabl y n o t so violent and
trying on the players as that o f football, yet it requires fully as
much care a nd a great cleal morn time.
At the beginnin g of the winter term, the coach has the names
of a ll the men who des ire to play. A co nferen ce is arranged,
and he has a private talk with each of the ca ndidates. H ow·
ever, the p o sitions the n ew m e n h:l\·e played and the number ot
years they have b ee n on teams counts for littl e in the coach's
mind, as h e immediatel y st arts to l.iatting grounders to them and
finds out for himself the ability of the men. The candidates are
drawn up in two lines at one end of the gymnasium, and the
coach from the other eml keeps the ball b o uncing along the
floor.

4;1

This practice in catcllinR ~rounders is c1)nt l lllH~ <l d11r111 :.:. tl1 t·
entire indoor practice. But this is unly one 11f tl1e cxcr1.·;-x ·

After the men h:t1·e h:td se1«cr:tl weeks' pr:ic·tive 111 c:atc i1111.c: t l 1u
grounders, the
cag-c
is Jet do\vn. ' ' 'l'he cage'' is a net.
whi ch is let clo11·n irnm the ceil ing. \\"bil e some men w " rk lwn-,
vthers lea rn to bat.
A short tim e after the hatting practil·e has begun, an1>thcr kind
of training is intro(l ucecl; the m e n are taught. lH,w (,. sli de
bases. Two long m ats covered with a slack c:rnvas are plac-e<l
o n the fl oor. These the men use in pra ctic ing basc-~ , litlinr.;
I lavin g slit! several times the: candidalt:s gu on the t r:t< k an d
run five o r six laps .
The hatting pra c ti ce is one: of th e most import:t11l parts uf the
training, and the coach th in ks that if a team ca n bat there: is
some h ope of making runs. Accordingly h e giH·s this phase of
the w o rk much atten ti o n. Now h e allows the captain to take
his place in batting grounde rs, and he goes intu the cage t"
tea ch the new m e n h ow t o s wing on the ball anLl wh ere t"
place it.
Thus, much o f the trainin g o f a baseball team is ll onc indoors.
11

3.

1 1

C01'STR\JCTIVE WORK IN THE Cl! ICAGU ELE:ll E:-;TA H Y

SCHOOLS.

Recently th e re ha s bee n much discussion in Chi cago as to the
meaning of the te rm ''constructive work.'' No l wo persons seem
to agree as to its exact m ea ning. Some p eople say that manual
training and constructive work are synonymous; whil e others
believe that all manna! training is co nstructi\·c work, but th at
not all co nstru c tive wo rk is m a nual trainin g . This brin g s forth
the ques ti o n: What is manual training? Th e Chicago Manual
Training Assoc iation says that "Manual training is any form
of constructive work which serves to deve lo p th e child through
intelli ge nt self-activity ." If we a ccept this d efi niti o n of manu:il
training, we shall have to agree that constructi1·e work is
hroader th an manu a l training, that it concerns itse lf with th~
fine arts as well as with the m ec hani cal arts. However that may
be, constructive w ork as taught in most of the elementary
schools to day has a much n a rrower scope - it is simply that
form of manual training that is clo ne in the schoolro<Hn under
the direction of th e grade teacher. It is the making of things
whi ch serve to educak the eye and the h:·.nll. It- L·onsists of

452

.

COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC.

knittin g, se wing, weavin g , braiding, embroidering, crocheting,
cutt111g, fo ld ing , pas ting, and mo ldin g. It is makin g c hains,
balls , box es , furniture , windmill s , washboa rd s , !amp -posts, and
lette r -b oxes ou t o f card board a nd paper; it is making swings,
so fa-p ill o ws, pin- c ushio ns, Jog h o uses, cork h ou ses , Eskimo
h o u ses , <l o ll s ' clo th es, sc rap-book s , and th e Ame ri ca n flag of
red white and blue fbnnc l wit h gi lt pape r sta rs; it is the dressing of d o ll s to repre se nt th e C uban \Var soldi e r b oy, the Red
C ross nurse , the eo ll ege g irl in cap a nd go wn, Quee n Elizabeth ,
or Quee n Vi c toria. It is the making - th e m ak in g by the hand
in th e schoo lroom - o f anything that th e teacher o r the child
ca n think of.

E. \.Vrite expo sitory themes o n two of the following
topic s:
1. The cause of yariati o n m the length of day and
ni g ht.
2. H o w th e Preside nt o f the United States is elected.
3. "Slid in g bases."
4 . Th e princ iple o f the camera .
5. Th e office of Augu r amon g- the Romans.
6. Th e divin g -be ll.
7. T h e o ri gi n and functi ons o f CO, in th e atmosphe1·e .
F \\' rite expository themes of fro m three t o five
pages in le ngth o n one o f the following t opit:s . Deve lop by d e finiti o n, division , and illustratio n:
1. The civi l s e rvice .
2. S ome th eo ri es about the cause of volcanoes.
.1 . Th e orig in of Thanksgiving.
4. Life in a college t o \\'n.
.'i. The swarming of bee s .
6 . Co lor ph otograph y.
7. " Student h o nor" in examinations.
8. The chainlcs s bicycle.
9 . The cause o f ho t springs.
10. The t ypese t t in g machine .
11. A printing- office.
12. How bank no t e s arc made.
13. The advantage s of a school debating society.

EXPOSITORY AND ARG UJIIEN TATIVE WH.ITI NG .

'i 53

1-L Wha le fishing.
15. The o ri gi n of the Am e rit:a n Hag. _
D . l n what respect s doe s a r g um e nt differ fr o m e xpo -

sitio n? Frame a good d efi niti o n for argum e nt. \ Vhat
is a brie f? H ow does a bri e f differ from an o utlin e
sut:h as h as be e n discuss ed in secti o n 141 ?
JI. \Vhat arc the three parts o f an argum e nt? \Vha t
do e s e at:h part co ntain? Wh a t is the n at ure o f th e
introduction?
!. Ca n every proposition be arg-ued? Find three
vru positions su itable for argument. \!\'hat is opinio n?
\Vhat is assertion? \Vh a t is proof? Illustrate each
o ne .
J. Supply sub-propo sitio ns for the three proposi ti o ns
required in the pre ce ding· sectio n. If net:es sa ry, supply
proposit io n s supp o rting these sub-pro po sitions, m11nber ing th t:m ca r e full y.
A". S e lec t from the fo llo wing li st t\\· u p ropositions
that yo u could argue upon, and limit th e m in sut:h a
m an ne r th at yuu cuultl treat the m in th e m e s:
1. The C ubans are no t fit for self-governm e nt.
2. Inte mperance is one of the chief causes of po ve rty.
.1. The Swiss Referendum sho uld b e adopted in the
United States.
-1- . A rt:tic expeditio ns sho uld be di scourage d .
5. Part y po litic s should have n o thing t o do with
munic ipa l elections .
6. Home mi s si o n s are more important than foreign
missi o ns .
7. A co llege education is advantageous in a busin e rfs
caree r.
~ . Tennis is g ood exerc ise.
9. A third t e rm o f o ffit:e for the President of the
U nite d Stale s shnuld be made permissible.
10. Th e plan of nut paying members o f Parliament
sucLTeds in England.

454

CO~IPOSITION

l\XD RHETORIC.

11. Immigrati o n shou ld be restricted .
12. \Ve ha v~ no national song .
13 . S ix-day bicycle races arc barbarous.

L. Wh at is the defect
sage of an argument ?

Ill

the following ope ning pas-

DRE\"FL"S OUGHT NOT TO HA \'E BEE:" CO:-IVICTED .

I maintain th at llreyfus ought n ot to have been convicted.
In the tirst place, he did not write th e bord("rr1111. TolJrove this,
let tts fir st look a t the man himself. There is al>so lute ly nothing
in th e circnm stan1:es snrrounding h im to !cat\ anyone tu suspec t
this officer gui lt y of treason. Il e was an ab le man, a studen t,
and possesse rl of a large fortune . I l e was parti cu larl y happy
in his domestic relations. E\·en now, in hi s <.:ell, hi s courageous
spirit and manly reso lution are proo fs of his inn oce nce o f such
a cr im e.
Again, since he was an Alsatian Jew, acqnainte<l with the
German language :\nd writing, anti, if g uilt y, was writing to a
German, th e most natural thing in th e world for him to have
done was lo ttse (;erman script; but th e bordt'l"t'<1 11 was written
in Fre nc h . And, furth e rm ore, it was writte n on a very peculiar
an<\ rare kind o f tracing pape r o f German manufacture, none
of which co11lc\ be found in Dreyfus's possession or at hi s h ou se.
The ha n dwriti ng of the burrkrc1111, m o reover, was not that o f
Dreyfus. Experts ha\"e prove d this. They say that a lth ough
the writing bears a remarkable resemblance to that of Dreyfus
it is not h is. AtH\ this comb inati on o f close lik eness with s li g ht
yd esse nti a l, diffe rence is just what o ne would expect in a
forgery .

!If. \\That arc the defects in these proofs?
1. The small salaries whkh department stores pay, easily
enable them to lo wer the pri ce of their goods and so steal patronage away from cou ntry prop rietors. Th e manufacturers,
too , who supply these stores, forcetl to sel l their arti cles c heap,
must use every means in their power, whether right or wrong,
that th ei r own incomes may not l;e reduc!!d. Thus c heat ing is
induced and encou ragetl , and goods are n o t m atle so well; they
are less genuine. Again, the salar ies of emp loyes are low·
ered or their hours prolo ngc<l with the same pay as before.

EXPOSITORY A ND ARGUl'llEXT.<\TI\' E \\' RlTI>:<;.

4.'i.'i

2. Persons who in <lisc riminately give alm s alm(l s t a lwa\·s
give to th e und ese rvin g. Thus they disco11rage thrift nn<l p11 t a
premium on sh iftlessness. Furthern1ore, they create a sense of
injustice on the side of th e tleserving.

N. ·writ e a brief for th e negative o n th e s ubject of
municipal ownership of railways, foll o wing in th e gen eral plan the brief in section 173.
0. Prepare o ne brief from the propositi o ns selected
in A', and aft e r co rrecti o n of the brief by the in structor,
comp lete th e arg um ent. Prepare another brief for a
debate.

INDEX.

References are to pages.
Allow, assert, lie li eve,

A.
A, o mitt e<l, 223.
Abbreviation s . Sec Eai·barisms.
J\bhorre11ce o f, 209.

A bon 111arc!te, 17 1.

.,
·~ '

Above, precedin g , beyond, 196.
Absolve from, 209.
Accede, cede, 182.
Accep t , ex cept, 18 1.
Acceptance , acceptation, 189.
Access, accessio11 , I 89.
Accord with, 209.
Acco rd , grant, gi\"l", 18 1.
Accusative of specificatiou, 2JO.
Accredit, c redit, 182.
Acquit of, 209.
Act, action, 188.
Action-cc11tcr, 156.
Ad, adverti sem ent, 170.
Aclaptcd to, or for, 209.
ADDISON, So, 103, 104, 290.
Adjectives for adverbs, 230.
Administer, deal, 181 .
A<lmire, lik e, 182.
Adverbs for adjec tives, 230.

A./Jaire d 'amour,

171 .

:\!Tee t, e!TL"ct, 18o.

:\flinity hdween, t o, or with,
209.

Affreu.r,

think

1132.

Allude, elude, 181 .
Alone, on ly , 17.J.
Alternative, choice, 189.
Ambiguity. See 1l1e .Sentence.
Americanisms a nd Anglici s ms.
,See Good Use.
A tllerveil!e, l 71 .
Arnl, mi suse of, 225, 3oS.
Anticipate', expect, suppose,
182.
Antim acassa r , tidy, 159 .
Any, at all, 196.
Appreciate, r ise , like , 183.
Approach, a ddress, appeal to,
182.
Apt, lik ely, liable, 196.
Argument defined, 4.J I; mu st
be about a propos itioD, 44 1;
mu st lie about a debatable
proposition, 44 1 ; propositio u
mu st be d e finitel y stated, 442;
t erm s must he defiued, 442;
th e nature a!Hl the n ccc% itv
o f proof, 443; a rgu111 c1Jt'.~
di,·isihlc into introduct ion,
proof, a ud co nc lusion , ·l ·Ll ;
neces~ity of au o utliu e o r
brief, .J.i-1; n ature of a brief,
4.J4 ; the important l:tll"\ i11
a rg um e nt are co he re nce !111<1
clir11ax, 4-16; unit y in argument, 447; v:du e o f argu rn c ut in ll:aruing to writ e,
447.
ARNOl.D, MATTHEW, 136 .
Arti st , actor, siDger, writer, 189.

171 .

After, afte rw ards, 196.
Aggravate , provoke, 174, 181.
Agree to, with, 209.
Aggrcgatiou, team, carriage,
189.
Ai11't, 144, 16o, 169.
All, as a pronoun, number of,

Artiste,

229.

457

171.

-tSS

As, that, 196.
Assist, he present, 182.
A verse from, or to, 209.
Avocation, vocation, 189.
ll.
Dabe, baby, 152 .
llauy carriage, perambulator,
159.
H~g,

to, 170.

Bag gage ca r, luggage-va n. 159.
llatne, 151.
Balance, re mainder, 190.
Balanced sentences, 337.
Banquette , halcony, 153.
Bar~arisms tldim:d, 168; sla ng ,
169; n ew spa pe r words, 169 ;
improper abbreviat io ns, 1i O;
obvious vulgarisms, 169; vulgarisms hard to recognize,
170 ; foreig n words, 17 1.
BAR RIE, <)O, 267, 316.
Beau 111011de, 17 I.
Begin, inau g urate, com111euce,
s ta rt , 1 ~ 5.
Bt:lieve, thiuk,a sse rt,allow, 182.
Den c h, form , 159.
Be you, arc you, 146.
Bien d'accord, 171.
R1G1•:LO\\', 98.
Hilliardist , 170.
Br.ACKMORF., 108.
Blucksmith, farrier, 159·
llookiug clerk, tickl'l agent
159.
Body of a gown, wai st, 159.
Bogus, 171.
Boodle, 16 1.
Book kt. I jO.
llound, <ldcnuiued, 196.
Boycott, 16 1.
Brainy, clever, 16o.
Bric k, goo<l fellow, 169.
Bright, iutelli gc nt, r .'i 7.
Bring, fetch, carry, 1 ~3 .
llROWNINC, MR S., 219 .
ilR YCE, ]AlllES, 52, 55, Sr , 89,
rr5,122, 29(>, 305, 314, 348, 376.
llUNYAN, 34, 397.
Bureau, chest o f drawers, 159.
Burglarize, 170.

IlURK1', 85, 87, !OJ, IO.j, 105,
327, 358, 370, 382.

Comma, the. :See P1md11alio11.
Comma blunder, 00, 225. St:c
also Grammar.

CalJlcman. Sec Gripmati.
C.1·:SAR, 213, 21.j.
Calcul a te , think , 16o.
Calil1er , o rd er, 190.

Con1p:lrative, ~u pt·-rl :1t i\T, 2J2.

J j~J.

Can, 111av, 160 , 186.
Cap, c:qitain , 170.
Capacious, large, r97.
Car, carriage, 159.
Can:ful-hopcful, r61.
CARI.Vf,J£, 277, 329.
Carriage. Sec Car.
Carve u, 168.
CAR!'ENTHR, G. R., 221.
CARROLL, L1rn•1s, 68.
Case, faults in ; nouns, 226;
pronouns, 227.
Casuali ty, 171.
Cede. .sec Accede.
Celebrity, 191 >.
Charac!t.:r, rqrntation, 190.
Chemist, drug g ist, 159.
Chest of drawers. Sec Bureau.
Chic, 1 71.
Choice of Subjects. See Sub-

jects.
Chump, 14.J, 168.
C1n·: Ho , 213, 217.
Cinemat ograph, 168.
Clai111, 188 .

Clcaniue, 144.
Clearness in sentences.

See

Sentences.
Clerk, t o , 170.
Clc,·cr, kind, 153, 197.
Climax. Sec Literary I aws,

Narration, Description , Exposition, Arg ument.
Co-e<l, wo 111a11 stu<lent, 170.
Coele nterata, 168
Coherence in sentences, 301-315;
111 paragraphs, 356-36o; in
wh ole co111positio11, 375- 382.
Sec Literary Laws, Narra-

tion, D escriptio11,
tion, Argument.
COLERIDGE, q8, 256,

Collective nouns, nu111 Lt·r '•i', 22S.
Colon, the. S ec Pu11dttalio11.
Cou1hi11c, a, 1 jO .

c.

Ca111 c ri s t,

459

!!':DEX.

COC.IPOSITIO:--: ,\ :\ D JUIETOIHC.

Exposi258.

Complect ed, 169.
Complementary infinitives, tense
o f, 3 12.
Composition clt-ftnc<l, 9; o lijl'ct
of studying, 9; iilea:-,t1rc in, 1_-, .
Cn 111prc l1 c 11si \"l" 1

lih.: , 197.

Conclusions.

S n:

cu 111 pn:hc11si -

/fllio!e Cvm-

posilio11 .
Concordan ces, v:d li e of, 11 7.
Co ndign, g rea t, 196.
Condon e , co111pc11 sak, aton e
for, 183.
Con <luctor, guard, 1~9Confiic.:tio n, 162, I i i .
Connectives. See 7!1t• Se11/c11(l' ;
The Paragraph, ancl 'l he

Whole Compositio11.
Constautly, o ftl·n, 19.J.
Contemptil.Jle, contc111ptuous,
197 .
Continual, co ntinuou s , i97.
Co11ti11uously , continually, 19.j.
Conjun ct ion s , fal se correla tion
of, 230.
Contrac tions, when proper, 12.
Corau to , I 50.
Co rporal, co rporea l, 197.
Corlt'ge, 171.
Co 1111c il, counsel, 190.
Co uple, pair, 190.
Crackerjack, J4.J.
Crayonizt·, t o, 1 jO.
Cross-gartered , 151.
Credil1lc, c rc<lulous, l97Crit1 cis111, 27.
Culture, to , 170.
Curios, c uri o sity, 170.
Cut, be alisent, 153.
Cute, acute, 170.

D.
Dangerous, in danger, 197.
Damsel, girl, 152.

Dash,

t11f•.

Set· /'u1ulua ho11.

Deadly, deathl y , 197.
D <'but, 171 .
lkciu1ak, 1Ic~tro,·, 18"1 .
lkLtlcak, 170 . ·
·
De finite, dt:tiuitivc, 197 .
DJo;FOE, 75, ,, .s.
llcfr . "· J.1 7 , 170.

de grade, clel1; 1~ l" , 1t-;,, .
Dl'pot, n1ilwa y st a ti ' '" • I ~ · ·
])r' QUINCE\' , \;S.
Descriptive
writing, .~:.i ! -.p:-; ;
<kals with o!•ic·c ts, .pr; it s
a i1n , 422; s~l~·ctiun u1 1 -l22;
uuit\" a11d cullcrc11ce in, ~11 -l;
])e1i1cdU,

peettliar force of, .J2-I.
193 .
Diction. See /Vord111 css and
DICKENS,

Right Choice in Words.
D irectly, as soon as, 19.J.
Dis remember, 169.
Disappoint, a , 170.
Discover, inn:nt, 13.j.
Distinct, distinctive, 198.
Distingue , 171.
Doc, d oc tor, 170.
Do nate, 171.
D ouble en!endre, 171.
Double subject and ol1j<:ct, 225 .
D ouht less ly, l7I.
Drugg ist. S ee Chemist.
DRYDEN, 95 ·
DUMAS, 17, 215.
Du MA UR IER , roS, 276, 277.

E.
Each, as a pron o un, nu111b('r of,
229.
Educationalist, 170.
Either-or, 11either-11ur, pos ition
of, 303 ; with two subjcch
different i11 lll1t11hcr, 229;
as distributive co njunctio11 s ,
229; th e proper comhi•atious, 231 .
Either, as a pro11ouu, 1111mht:r
of, 229.
E ither, auy, 229.
E lec trocut io n, 152.
Elegant, excl'llc11t, pleasing,

198.

460

CO!l!POSITION AND RHETORIC.

EIC'Yator, lift , l.'i9 ·
' FISKE, JOI!N, 105 .
Eliu1in:1tc, ,·li ci t, 18. J.
Fix, re pair, n11.: I11l, establish,
1-:I. IOT, GEORGE, 285, .j26.
16o, 17.J, 185.
E111igration, 191.
FCAliBER1', 334.
Ellli in:nt, pro111inc11t, 198.
Fluuk, 15.\ .
Emphasis in se nl L'llCl's . .32.\-332;
Fh-, Ike, fl ow, 1 8~ .
in th e paragraph. J6u-,;6.>; in
Folks, familY, folk, l 6o, 169.
the whok co111pos itio11 , .>SS ,
Footless, incompetent, 153.
415.
Force. S ec Tl'ordi11ess. Right
F.nclo rsc, apprOY(', " :co11tl, 18.1.
Choice
i11
/Vords a nti
Eng in e-dr iver, e ngin l'c r . 1:;9.
E mp hasis.
Enormity, enon11ousu ess , 191.
Forei g n word s. See Cood Use
Entllllsc , to, 170.
and B11 r ba risms.
E11tre 11011s, 1 71.
Foreign nouns, plurals and sinEven tuatc, 170.
gulars o f, 229.
Exa m, cxa 111iu a t io n , 170.
Foreha11<kcl, 1:;3, 168.
Except, unless, 196.
For111. Sl"L" /Jc11ch.
Excep ti o n :ti, L'xc cpt iona lil c , 198.
For to, 169.
Exc"ssi Yely, cxcecdiugly, 198.
FREE~IA:-.- , 1:;9.
Exclamation, marks of.
Sec
Fun ctio n , soc ial cntertaiumcnt,
Pu11c!ualio11.
154 .
Excu rsio n :ite , 170.
.fit rore, 1i1.
Excursionize , 170.
G.
Expect, suppt> sc, anticipat<",
182 .
Gallian], 150.
Expos(>, a n, 170.
Ga ll ery, Yeranda, 153.
Expository writing, 437 -~.J 1 ;
GI:;IK ll·:, 165.
subject m atter of, 437; di sGe uth:man, m a n, 191.
tin gu is h ed from descript io n,
Ge nt s, gen tlem en, 170.
437; met h ods in, .i 38; laws
Gesture, to, 170.
of composition in, 4.JI; va lu e
Ge t, have, 185.
of exposi ti ou in learning to
G i\"c o n , loo k o n, 185.
write, 4-17·
Go lf!bu g , 151.
Exteml, give, 184.
GOLDS MITll, 63 , 85, 236.
Good Use, two kin ds o f Jaws in
F.
writing, 143; good use deFaddist, 170.
fine<!, q4 ; reaso ns for it,
Fake, 170.
q4; its origin, 145; !listiocFalseness, falsity, 191.
ti o n hl'twccn u se a nd good
Farri e r. Sec Blacksmith .
u se, q6; three requirements
Fa1tx pas, l7r.
of good use, 150; present
Female, woman, 191.
use, 150 ; uati o nal u se, 152;
Fig ures of s peech, value of, 264;
loca lisn1 s , 152; te c hni c al
faults of figurative diction,
word~. 15.1; foreign words,
265.
I 56 ; American isms vs. AngliFinance, to , 170.
cisms, 157; n•putahlc use,
Fine, excellent, 198.
16o; h o w to get a rep utable
"Fine writing" a fault, 256.
voca bula ry , 162; barbarisn1s,
Fireman, stoker, 159.
168-1 71; improprieties, 174.
Fire, throw, 185.
201; 1111idion1atica nd trauslaFirstly, 171.
207-216 (see
. tion- E ngli sh ,

461

INDEX.

Idiom ); grammar, o r good
u se in tl1c sc 11tl·11 ce, 22 1·23.\;

so lec isms defined, 222; li st
of so h:c ism s, 222-233.
Gorgeous , grand, pleasant, 198.
GRA HAM I:;, K!! :-iNrnH, 68, 121,
122, 279.
Gramma r, eq uals good use in
the seu te 11L:c:, 22 1 ; Yiolatioos
of, or soh.:c isms, 222 ; t est o f
th e gram mar or the sentence ,
222 ; tw o general rul es, 22 2;
li st o f solt:cisms, 222-233.
Gra nt, giYc. See Accord.
C1U,NT, u. S., 259, 32 1.
GREEN, J. R., 338.
Gripma n, cablcma o, driver, 153.
Guard. Sec Co11d11clor.
G uess, think, 160.
Gums, oversh oes , I 53.
I-I.
IIabcrJasb er, men 's furni sh e r,
1::,9.
lladn't o ught, 169.
H :iuged , hun g, 185.
l!ardly , with a n ega ti ve, 232.
J!A WTllORNE, I :\, 86, 103, JO.j.
J kalthy, h ealt hful , wholt:some,
1</I.
l!e don't, h e doesn't, 144.
1111.1., A. S ., 159, 209.
Historical presen t, 3 12.
II ODCSO:-\, I 92, 193.
H orri d, unp lc.:asa u t, 198.
J!OI ,~ II·:S, 0. \V., 24 7.
llott 5l', h ollle, reside nce , 191.
JI O\\"J·:I,l., j ,DJES, 164.
l l UG 11 I·:S, 'fl·IO~IAS, 429 .
HUGO, V ICT OR , 21 8 .
Il uu 1a1is, I 7 1.
I-I UX I. EY, 155.
L
I diom c1cfiul'd, 207; unidiolllatic
phrasing, 209 ; urndiomatic
co n stru ct io11s, 2 tu ; nou1iua-

t ive alisolutc, 21 0 ; accusat ive of spec ifi cati o n, 210 ;
unid iomat ic onle r of wo rcls,
211 ; miscellaneous faults of

idi om in tran slatio n (punctuati o n, paragraphing, etc. ),
212; t ra nslati u n-E ngli sh , 214.
lf, u u t that, 196.
In, int o , l 98.
lil y, 17 1.
lmpracticahlc, impassab le, 199.
Improprieties
dd:iued,
174;
(ea ch im p rop ri e ty is t o be
lookecl up un cler it s ow n
initial ). S ee also Cood Use.
Inaugurate, begin, commence,
sta rt, 185 .
Io course, 169.
lorkcided, 171.
Indicative, for s ubjunctive, 231.
Indivi d ual, m a n, 19 2.
Individuality in ch oice o fwonl s ,
266.
Inside of (within), 171.
Interroga tion, marks of. See
Punctuation.
Introdnctions, 4 l ; see also Whole
Co111positio11.
Invention, discovery, 191.
IuYit c, a n, 170.
IRVING , 57, 88 , Ill.
Italics . See Pu11ct11ation.

J.
J a il, t o , 170.
JAMES, WILLIAM , 105.
JOHN SON , 135 , 334, 339·
Jug, pitche r, 159.
Ju g , t o , 170 .
Just as lea ves, 169 .

K.
KING SLEY, CHARLES, 18.
KIPLING, 89, <)O , 9 1, 105, rp,
173, 223 , 238, 263 , 269, 276,
277, 278, 2i9, 320, 425.

L.

'

Lally, wo m an, 191.
LAMB, 138, 140.
Last, latest, preceding, 199 .
LAUGlll.IN, J. LAWR I:;NCE, 55.
Lay . Sec Lie .
Learn, t eac h, 186 .
Lease, hire , 186.

fl~.

'

-j

cn~Il'<>.'-'ITH1 ' :

J , 1_ · ;1~1tlg, J \"lllf.: ,

l

,l";l \ l'

!I l l' ;_:•

i,t.-lllOll-:-><jlL!....,Jl,

l ,t·'--...:, It'\\

tT'

kll!Oll.t(k,

l.~\/.

\-~l1LIC

I 2 ( );

(if

]1.._·l\t · 1·-

\\.r it1 ! 1;'...'.1
12y 1
n .i; 1 ~ Lty
~d
f'11rJJl:-> , ! .\1 I; i1tt:--iJ]l ';-. :-- i1 ·t l t']" ·, ,
! \•i

,

f"(

\ w1 ·- •·ll,

'1 l l LI

f11n11 . . . lit·r.

Ill 1 r,

.\rii:---;·r .-\ 1 t.~ L .

:"I J ( •'...t,

;1l11 ic

'.\T u 'l'1 .!: Y,

:--:itT

}/,r/1(r~

I /1

1

:IT\1:1;-;,

1,

dl';td,

.1;. ;ti.
r99.

\\T!lte11

c1)J Jl j1\ ):-.\ \ H!JJ,

l\\I) tll l ·

:-..Li ll\."

Ori;;-tnal

1 ;, ~ .

111C11r111.ti

to

l1c

( )11t

composition

i

1f

'l '\ 1 L: ' . ~(JI

' ,,

. 1~6:

:-- tn·11;..:-tli,

7,) .
425;

svlcct1011

it0
in,

of, 427; proportion, c1inwx,
llllii\ i11 ILIJT;din.·, 4 28; qut1lil1l·:-.·or r.,:·uud u :1rr;.1ti\'L", 428.

1.i111it, li1uitatiu11 1 191.
I.iu1 itcd , !:>llr;di , 199 .

National

LI1'C0 1,N, 86, 260,
a, 17u.

Li tera1y laws, re\ iew vf, -PJ416; St'lccti o n, 414; llt iit y ,
4 '-I; cohe rence, .p 5; propor ti on , 415; clirnax, 4 16,
L oa n, h: nd , 192,
Localis m s. Sec Good U1e,
Locate , set tle , 186.
L o t, 11 u111bcr, 192,
I .o ti o n, t o, I 70,
Luve, like, 16 1, 1))6,
Lovel y , pre tt y, 199.
LOWEl.l., 124, 276, 277, 3K4,
Luggage-\·a 11, h :.iggagt: car, 1_c;9.

L y nc h , 161,

uo,e,

Se c C ouJ Us,-,

!'cg<_1ti:tte , 1nak e :.1 sa le, i H6.
1\'e pills ultra, l/J.
~t:it11cr, lluIH.:, 229, as u lJJ"unoun, lllttnher nf, 2~9.

NEW)! AN , 358.
N ewspaper words , Sec Barbar£s ms,
Nice, pre tt y, pl easan t , all racli \' e, 16 1, 199,
No n e, as a pro nou n , nurnht· r of,
22 9,

Nonparicl,

l ]L

No tor iou s, n o ted , fam o us, 199,
Nouveau rid1e, 171_
Nom de p l ume, 171.
Nominative absolute ,
St:e
f rffO llL

M.

86, 94, l• >j,
299, 305 , 33 7, 383.
1\1ad , ang ry, 199,
Magn ifice nt, g ood, 199.
J\ l aide n , girl, 15 2,
M aj or it y, plurality, 192,
Ma na ge ress, 17 I,
Managerial , l 70,
Ma ni\·. mannis h, 201.
Ma te i·ia lize, 17U J\Lty. See Can,
Megrimine, 147, 162,
Jll(:!a11g e, i 71.
MACAULAY,

122,

No t, p ositi o n of, 303.
N umb er, faults in a dj ec tives,
227; 11 o un s and pron o un s,
228 ; co nfu s in g fo reig n nouns,
229,

0,
() 1,se rv a ti o n , obst: rvance , 193,
Odd, funu y, 2 00.
Off-h<Hllle<l , 171,
Omiss ion of words uccessary to
SC'tlSt.', 223.

On dit, 171_
Onl y, position of, 303,

"l',111

tl1e
1--;.

l'lioto, pliut()gr:qd1, I/ « ~
Plna~es and clauses ll :-'1.:d :t" s1.·nl vlll'L'S, 222 .

C.11ct1<-," til l', 1.\S.

P:\l.'.\1 t-:.K, l;.

1 I.,

I I. I flJ.

I

/1 I.
Paragraph ~, arc ll:ttur;il di,·i_.. ,_
iiH1 c~ 11f a ~t1lljt·ct . ,l(>;
w;1\·~
.. r 111ilicat lllg, :l'J , knc;tlt, ..11J;
l '.111 l >,

!( 14

J,

I (J .'-\, I

11aragra1d1s

in

co11\·t·r..;,;1t11111

1

5u ; t opic !')L' l llcilCL"S , Si; dt..:n .: lup tll l"11t t1f tl11111glit frn111
t<Jpic :-ll'lllC ll Cl'~ . S.;: 1k\"t.: lop
n1 e nt l1 y
i i l u s t 1-at ion, S·I;
dl.'\·1.:lop1nent of

11 :1

r r

:1

t 1 \" l'

t uptc , _<;6; den:loprncnl <•f
<kscripti,·e topics , S7; <lt:fi11ition o f thl' si ngk paragraph, 34 7; uat nre of law s iu
s ingle paragraph, 348 ; unit y
dl'fined , 3y>; paragraphs t oo
lo ug for unity, 35 1 ; paragra ph s too s h or t fo r unit y ,
35,"I; coh e rc n ee tldi ned , 356;
cohe re nce
depcndcn t
0 11
log ical ar ra11gem e n t, a ll<l use
of connt:ct i ves, 356 ; in co h ere nce from fa ult y arran ge m e nt , _-;56; u se o f con nec tives, 357; emphas is d<::tiued,
360; fa u lts in e mpha sis, 36 1.
Para llel sentences, 33 7,
Pan!, partner, 170,
Par excel!enre , 171 ,
Partak e, share , 186.
Participles, ambiguous,
See

'The Sen ten ce ,
l'arty, p e rson,

19 2 .

l'ATl-; R, 28o.

Pe r:ul vent ure , perhaps, 152 .
l'c-ra m lJUlat or . Sec Baby ciir-

riag e.

1 ~ ;.

} ' ] HJllU_:_:f".tj ill, 1.);

dcli n~·tl,

:-.1,'.._'.lit) 1h<).

~!:i i i

/'"nd!ii!litJ'l
'Fl: (· .\t'tt!r 'fl 1t' .

l ' l1 i z, 1,J1y:-.1( '.~ 11• 1111 _,-, 17' 1.
l'ltu!H..", H11, I 7<J.

l'

427; cuhcn: uce the c hief law

Lie, la y , 160, 186,
Lift, ek,-ator, 1S7. 1_')9,
Like, ~l'.4, 1 9 tj _

Lit~rariau,

'' :\ . l l ll I 11' ''

Narration, d\.'.iiucd,

11.

Ji(1 t \Ulll,

~

1

J.12 .

.1 ,:~

l ].. t t ~ · ! ·-. l 1 \ f) f" '"- I
1"1 1r1n .tl kt r. 1· r . ._ 11:
fu1111~

at

St ' l'

~tT

l\·r111it, a, 1/1.
l' t: r:-iu ,1d v, a•h·i·~t

11yJ .

•.! \.

c0Inposit 1u11, ,·,1lt:t..· ,,f, 11;
il1!rt·rt ·1l\t":-. l1t.: t \,·l·l11 i•r.11 , t 11 1 !

l :,1 ,

third pt·r-.0 11 ,
11 utc:-> 1
1J l ;
:i \" Oidcd, l )_':,,

Per iod , tltt· .
l-'enod1city .

Jf 1i).

I; I

Ora l

f-...t , ( 1_).~.

1

l Jl t(

( Jr;ll, \ -t.:rl

i.

1~11.

l..'.u1111no11

(Ill titL'
<

)T(1t1111Jt·t·r , 111oti1r11ia11, 1,:-.,.2 , 1(i2 .

.'\lut u.d

F,

1 :-;1,i-::-;,

d 1is!10
>Ii·;h:.J·.1,ITll , ( 1EUH.1 .!·, .' •Jh .

!\lid .._,t, i It

[ {/(/.

Lette r -\'·:riting, t.·111n111.,11t ·-- t 11 •:-1 11
() f \_'I )Jl lj l! I '- it i I l 11, f -~\) : d \ "- t l l lt'l J 11 JI iwtwt:t'!I
lt.· tt t:r "
; 111, \
llt>lc~.

lUIFTlllUL',

:\ J c 11 · ~

I ,C) I .

1 ( 1( 1

i ,

. \~ll

~· ~':'r:; ·~

'- . ~

l 'it.:, t .1rt, l "i 'J·
i ' i ti...:h1.·r.
ScT /11_,: .
l ' 1ti:iJ.lt-, }'it i f11 I, } 1 "1
Pk11t _\· , 1·k11t1ft1l. :--l1 i°!it' ll"l l l 1\·.
I 'J!.
Plural verb \\ i:l1

i1 ·ct, 22.'>.

Plan or ot1tlinl',

Sn-

11'/i.i!c'

((n11posilz.1>1J, .\111nn1 11r1.f'S :tnil

Ar,;11111c-11I.
l 'ort io11, l 1;1rt,
P1 , .._tl' ~l ,

!

lJ_).

it i \T,
it1fi1n11t_·d , 2oq.

Possessive for
l'oultn·i~t. I

;..:1.·11

2 2(1.

;«1 .

l'ractiCalJk, pr.1ctil· ,1l,

2c"J.

'!:-.;./;,.,

i;,;-·'
"...;.:)··.·;

ii'

~~
~i;J~
"l•'"''l

~l
~'::J

•'!}~
~\
WJ

"!;\

Preliu1, pn:li1ui1w.ry, 17u .
Prepos itio ns. propL"r cou1 lJ iua-

ti o n s of, with other words,
20<).

P rese nt , int rodu ce, 187 ,
Present use. See Good UJe,
Pn~ \'l'ntativ C',

170.

Principal parts of Yerbs, u1 istak es in , 2,\3Pro bate, to, l 70,
l'ruf, l .)_) .
Pro fessor, in s tru c tor, tea c her,
193 ,
Proli xity. Sec IVordin cSJ,
Promise, assure, 187 .
Prono uncetl , strikin g. 200,
Pronouns, used hc:fore their
a nt ecctle nt. 30,\; t oo m a n y.
304; \\' ithout a ckar anlt.'~­
de11t, 305 ,
Pro po rtion , Sec Literary Laws,
Na rratio n, DeJcription, Expo5f/io11 , .')·u 111111 arif's, JV/Joie

Comp0Jitio11s ,
l'ros<:c ute , pt:rsec ut e, 186.
J'rOSllcC tiYe , l)t"fSt)eCtive, 2<)().
,;;

CU >l l'C>:;IT!U:\

l'ro...:.crihl', pn·st·ril ·l· 1S 1·r, 1Yl· 11. r; r.
'
'
Punc tuat1011,
j !t

"t '· \'

\j '-., ;

l( JI J;
1 11

t

t~ )

jt ~i

'.'-~' l !J)

JH · rJ()d ,

t

101 ,

I~
; ,1 /

, 1 111 I

: lil·

l ' ( ; 1l ; 1l I ; i ,

:
,

(1 11](,

l' ! . ]

;if

! ' .i , \

11
:.'

l '· \

I

1 '1,

l )f "'!'1Tt ' )l <I ll ;1

t t:i ; -. 11!
J.I•_::_, ,

.: 1-l'll r, I (' \

;1] I l \

111

H_
!\

i:--J._

;ii : "

j,

;( ! Ji\

\ -.;._
[!

l ! li\j

r;1tl;1·r,

\ '1.. T_\ · ,

i7 J.

Quotation marks .

\•I i•till l'l''-,

r. 1i I

.~:.• : l l t · l i '. -.. ,

I ' 1 I ) 1)

;

l

' l ( '-,

;

:tlll l

[i(l\ ] -.:

1 . i1 1.... 1

!\ ( ~
!!'
H.t1Ll1cr ...: .
I -, '

CU; l_ ,

l '

If"

l

r::nn s.
_)]9 , 330.

:--:it't'

i<P~KI'.\", l~S. 7,)) ,

R.

Rcc k o u , t hiu k, 160.
Recollect, rc·me111l1e r, 187_
RecommetHI, co un se l (o r acl vise), 187 .
Reco11ce11/rado, 151 .
Redundancy. See /Vordi11css.
R ed und a nt "an<l, " 22s.
R ee l of cot t o 11, spoo l o f t hrea d,
159.
Rel:ilion, relativ e, 19_\.
R L·ndi ti o n, f L' Jt1l eri 11 g, r·L·atliug,

playi11g, 19 ,\.
Rq>l ac.:, di s place, 187.
R.:portorial, I 70.
Reµutab le u se. See Good Use.
R .... st itute, t o, l iL
Resume, s um u p, 187.
Revi s ion, u1 ea ui11g of, 15.
Re w rit111 g, rnc·a niu g and ,-a lu e
of, 15.
Rh etoric, defined , 10; fa be use
of t!Je word . 10.
Ri gh t ch o ice in word s , 25 6-270;
11 eed for d iscri mi nati o n in ot1r
c hoice of word s, 256 ; .. Ii IJl:

~; L[<..._' [ j 1_ l Jj

l 1l I

1111 ~;1 1 ~. e

,) < 1 7,

(,

r

_-::_1 .;-.,
I_

'_i :

( l \.. ' \ l\._"l ', l <_ 'J"

'1 j t._' :- <. ; : ' l ' ,
(1 I;\ . l_"
I, · !l t Oil t._·1 1I J
:'> - .1 ,
c11il 1l1 :1 '.'>i:->
~ !l . r i 1l l · • l , _
-: , ~ _:. . t · 11 1piLh 1:-1 prudtt ct·~i J,_,. <1rr:ill,L'.; cJlll'lll, ,;2:); \ ·ioLt1 i<i11 pf 11or111:d (1nlt: r fur L'llljiil.l -..,i-.: , .):' .~:
:11 ! \- : t11tagv~
uf
11,·r i ~><licity,
_i,211 ;
dt·\'iccs f11r
g . 1111111.l'.
, 1]--'." (__'(

I

it-J l•

I l \ :

i · '\ l '

i :l

C• Ill lll 'C i; ·~·1_ · _-.. ,

T'"-i/
;!-.n

I- l

r' .

1 ) \

l... • ] 1 t

, I

=-:

~.

:""\":tnTi~:, \'."lti1 :! !!;·;-!" .lli\-· e, 132.

~, ·i it •1.ir . ..,\ 111 l ,·111. 1'lt\'1 !. ft_
J.l.
~ L· l1n1)i, 1·~~ l!i__ · ;.~v. lll!\\L·r:--ity, 19.i.
>;'OOj'. J7fi .
~\_-I 1'!''!' 1 '! _) f\ :~J7, :; ! h,

SecondhatH lL'd, 171.

Se lec tion.

Sn- I ilf'rn1y !..rrn•s,

N.1rn1 lio11, / )es,-r iplio11, Ex-

posiliu11.
Semicolon, th e .

See /'1111d11a-

t io11.
Sc 11 sililt: <.•f. st: 11 s iti\'v t o , 2uu.

Sentence , the, d,·fi 11 cd, 79; inco 111pl <:te, 79 ; l h e co mulli
blnndl'r, SJ;. co 11t c 11t Of sc1~ ­
h.: t1 t..:l'S , 82 ; si 111plc cou1p lcx ,
a nd co 111po 111 tc l seu t e uces JeJi11cd, 82; ad\'a 11 tagcs of co1n1

po u11d a11d co11 1p kx

forms,

S,;; ,· ;1rict_,. 11 e"-' d c d , x_i; vari<1t 1s fur111s ilil b trat n l, 85-~S;

clc; inu.·ss i11 the :-:.L· 11tl'J1Ce dt'pe11<k11t o n 1111ity , 2K.\; unity
•k·fi11,·d , 28.l; consis t s of unit y
of th o u g ht a11d unit y of for111,
28.; ; sente n ces t o o long for
u111ty of thou g ht , 285 ; se11tc-11<:es t oo short fo r un it ,- of
l l1<111 ght, :>88; n· l:itio11 o(thc
se nknce t o th e p aragraph,

p e ri c)di 1..·ity,

379

: tli11~--~.

1

(!r

pvri udi1..'it y, 3.)U; 1urt i. il ]1 '-·1 i u1 I il' i \ _\ · I :\, ~ ! ;
j} j( 1J
l\ 11) \
\ i\·structi\·1..· (\f lurC(: , ; .-;~; ~-.tri 1li (1il fro 111 1011_~- t1), :--,]11lrl :---t · 11tc1H.'c~, 3.53; :1d\·;111t:1,:._:L·:--> uf
e:ll·h ty pl', .1.).l; p:1r;1ll c l :11 Hi
lial a li ced strucllt rc, 337- See
also (;nvu111,_
1 r.
St=ttlt-, pay, 1b0.
J (

i

S 11 AKSPF.RE, 1so, 15r, 4 .n.
Shall an<l wi ll, should a11<l
would, ltistory of, 17s; s h :i ll
and will in direct futur.:s,
176; in qu estions, I 77 ; in
subordinate
clauses,
177;
shouhl a1ul \\'0111<1, s p eci al
ll Sl:S of, 178; iJl lllaltl c laH~l·S,
I 78; iu '/uestio11s, 179; in
indi rect ( isco urs«, 179 ; i n
cou1litio11 a l clauses, 100.
Shifts of cons truct ion . See The

Sen tence.
S h o uld . See Sita//.
S h1mt , swi t c h, 158.
S ig htlier, 171.
S igni ficance, s ig n ifica t ion,
194.

Sil ve rite, 151.
S i11 g is t , 170 .

2 ..? .-..; •

~j

~lT f./tZ1} u' J !'./,"/

11 1,L'.

c· \

1

:-,, • . 1 I l< [ :-> l lt.__' ) J,

..? .!

\ ,

·\ · l ·l - . l(" -l .
l't

1;

]1

i1

j \i

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l:,

1

,f,

l

11 1. t l l '.

l

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,_:~

!• 1.::;

•! Hlt I 11 ..:,

! ,').".; _

;; r -

~. •

1•1.::...

R:t _i lrn:i 1\, r:lilw :1y , ! _'t(J.
lLu I road , tt-, , J ; ~-, _
A'"-1.sun ,f.ti1r. 1 7 1.
keal, Yl·ry, 2 t X),
R/,J11>ni1 f , 1 7 1 .
Ket_·i 11l·, rccc111t, 19J.

<lllllil -

jl\ C1 iJ h · 1 1·11 t

-"I

'.\"C>rd:-,, 2Lh.

J : r<

~: l , ~('!'
:-.:11 • I : 1,

~:

P11 n rl1111-

'1J\ l "(

,-\,

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tio11 .

l l·Jj t

Si n~;· u br ante c edent::-.;. \\ it i 1 I\ i ll r .1l

~ : l. -

l t t. i 1

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dr i ·-.-\",

I

it ·1 11

( ~

u 11: ty ,

]'J"(ll HH lil'~ ,

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S('('

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t i)

p:tr\Jt'l)lk S ,

cl1<)1 ~· t· of

~-~ ~;·];~ ); ; ;:

Clltir \_· J y ,

~l · 11 t l' I! l '\. ~

i;

l ·•:l,
\ -i i] \l-

1.! \L tlll lt \· , 1; t 1:1 11.t· r , 1 · 1 ~

l._!l!l!l..

I

st r1\\ · t 1\' t ·

! " •~ · ._,

,:(,

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2t/\ , llllit _\" o f f(lrtll, '!<)I; ('P!ll111 '\ 11) I

t . ·l ·.1t \ , 1(; i .

j(

~; .

>r

:; ,._·:1 1.1 ! : \'(

K"•

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i.,

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I! ll • 1l . 1 t i (l [l 1 !l.l/"

l'urpn ...-c , llr(11111 :-;l·.

\\TJ tl TJ.f.."'." ,

l

l-1) q!l

l · \: i · l ; t r 1 ~ . : _

.L1 -...l 1,

l

ti i • ' ! 11 1! l \! '...! !:t 11\- . ._ i ! I Ji 1]t·" -2,:-, ,'-; ,
: I J: t:1 l t· ~.-,
;1
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~j1k111 \ i1J, 1d1 ·;1:--:1 11 t , :.'Uu.
Siilit intinitive, 2~..' .
Si11)( )1 ti f tll r t:11l. ~\_"l" /1'1 ·(·/
f

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s·n:H :-.: 1·:, _;01.
STJ;; \ 'ENSUN,

R . L., 55 , l_q, 104 ,

12J. I'Ji, TJ/ , 21>2,
26~, 27.~ . 2 77, zKo, _;1.1. 317,
3.~2 , 3,)J , _:;2/ 1 • 4T(), .t2J .
IC)(j,

JI . I,

Stoker, !ire111a11, 159.
Stop, stay, 1 KS .
Stor m, sho\\Tr, 19-t Su bje ct , choice of; 1kpe11dc-11t
( 1) 0 11 i11 1l'rest, ~<> ; (2)011 pro:viuus i 11 fon 11 a t io11 2 1 ; (J) 0 11
1

s ize o f t o p ic, a11d :-. p :..u.:e, 22;

large a 11d genera l ~11 hj.:cls
liad, 23. See abo Sources of

IJ!alerial.
Subjunctive Mood.

Sl'l: /11.fir, c-

t ive.
Subordinate verbs, k11sc of. 3 1 2 _
S u c h, co llo quial u se of. See .Su.
S ui cide, to, 170.
Summaries, defined, J9S; wrong
met h o d s uf s u 111 111a ri zing , 3q8 ;
th e right m ethod, :;99 ; sty!,-,
40 1 ; proportiou, 402; suru -

rr.

p
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<d

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~\l jlfl'l!Jt•.

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f,,rc<• 1111 1. 1r 1tl\·t. ::i.~ 2

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~y:1ony1ns.

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!/c'J1.

rn6,

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\\ v tl '-' t· , I 1.i ; ll."i t' () !" 11otelJu uk
lt) \I H.:: n·:i~ l' \ "() l':tlJt11:1ry, 11,S;

31), 316 , 320,

,)22.

,._r he, 0111itte{1 22 3 _
1

Th e mes, d e fi11 e <i, 14 ; directio ns
for, 14: preli111i11 a n· w ork.
36; first draft, 3S : fii1;1l C'Ji'Y·
40. Sl'.c ;:ilso Su/;jafs .
Th ese , th ose, thi s, that , 227.
T~1onght-contcnt, 156.
Ticke t agent.
S1.:e Booking

Clerk .
Ti dy. See Antimacassar.
'T is , it is, 152.
Titles, 15, 3.\.
Tough , a, 170.
T ra n sla tion-En glish, 21 4. Sec
ulso Idiom .
Tr:rnslatio11, t ra 11sfnl' t! Cc\ 151 .
Trauslatiou, value of, 11 7.
Transpire, h appl'n, 174. l 8S.
Triteness. Sec Right 0 1nit"c i11

IVord.L
Try, a , 170.

u.
Uul1cknow11, 169.
U11tlc rh amled , 16o, 171.
Uni ty in sentences, 283-294; in
paragrnp h s, 350-355 : in t he
wh o le corupos it iou, 382. Sec
also LitermJ' L mus, J\'arra-

:-; t ~ 11 ! I,
\· :iJ 1tt ·

if
pf
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~: ·11 I '11 \ I 11.-..: l
l'Olll'O!'!hlll't ' S ,

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~1w\·i;il \ ·oc<tLnL1ri1._·-.:, 11S.

Vulg:irisms.

I

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I I

II
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111

\Vc1nl, uuearthly, 201.

\ Vh ich, wroug use of, 224 , 233.
\ V1-1 1TE, Grurnwr, 226, 286.
Whole composition, re lation o f
paragraph to, 375; o rder of
p aragraphs in, 375; u seful n ess of pla11, 377 ; u seful ness
of con nect ives, 380 ; unity
and propo rti o n, 382; beginuings, 383; c udin gs, 385.
\Viii. S1.:e Shall.
Without, unless, r 96.
\\"omanh· , womani s h 201.
\\"ould. , S ee Shat/ '
Wordi ness, 241-249; a com m o n
cau se of weakn ess , 241 ; two
kinds of, 24 1; tautology, 243;
redundancy, 243, 244; verbosity, 243, 245; prolixity,
247.

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f ne 0 1• • •
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t AODI S ON - The S ir Roger de Coverley Paper<, .
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VV 11.u AM VA VG ll N i\·t ooov , A . 1\L, a nd
~)ARY 1\. . \\Ill.LA R D.

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ALHERT

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*For Study and Pra cti ce . I College Entrance Requirements in
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X-r.1ys, Roentgen rays, 162.

Y.
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:Sec Barbaris111s.

WF._RSTl,: R, 86 , 88, 108.

I< \" \ '.• '', ' , l

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11

117;

Wai st. Sec Body of a Gown.
\\"alki st, 171.

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