too numerous.

NOTES TO THE ABOVE. A letter calls for simple and natural language, yet the language will not bear to be more incorrect, or to be chosen and put together with less care than in other forms of composition.—a. "Perused treatises" is too stiff for a letter; say "read so much."- b. Mention specific things, e. g. "streets and buildings."- -c. Put in a particularizing phrase: "Cheapside and Holborn and Fleet Street and the Strand, Saint Paul's and Westminster Abbey and the Tower," and see how much more force there will be in the account.—d. Do not use abbreviations; write out in full. e. Mention kind of vehicle: "bus."-f. "London" is more natural; and no epithet is needed here.—g. "How" suggests manner; you need merely the word "that" here. h. Your adjectives are becoming -i. Mention a particular way of passing: "surged."j. "Many hundreds.”—k. “Must keep your eyes open."-1. Articles before "cab" and "omnibus" are unnecessary. It would be stronger also to say, "No driver of cab . . . ever thinks."-m. Clause needlessly long; try, “slackening his pace for a pedestrian.” - -n. Use double negative.—o. Replace the clause beginning with "where" by an adjective in the superlative before "parts.”—p. Put in infinitive phrase, and omit and be.” —q. The word "eternal" is a little exaggerated, but descriptive; let it stand.r.- Change to participial phrase. -s. Put the which-clause into an adjective modifying "melodies.”. '-t. For "people with articles to sell" use the single word "hucksters.”—u. The word "folk" is correct; do not say "folks.” - -v. "To pick up here and there a penny."-w. Specify the small articles: "matches or shoe-laces."-x. Describe the songs: "most unmusical songs."-y. Specify "tin whistles." -z. Put in a summarizing phrase: "anything to attract attention and pence.". -aa. What is the demonstrative denoting the nearer antecedent?—bb. The English use the word "nigger" instead of "negro" for such as these. - cc. Make the expression more specific: "as yours or mine." - dd. Mad.". ee. Specify the music: "a band or street-piano."-ff. "Strikes up."gg. The English word is not “saloon" but "public house.” — hh. Give a particular way of proceeding: "stagger.”—ii. Put the clause beginning with "of" into one adjective modifying "lesson." with "of

3. Work out the following problems:

Find simpler and stronger equivalents for the following words: prevaricate; agitate; interpretation; cogitation; vocation; instructor; progenitor; delectable; inquisition; rotundity; ignore the existence of.

Find shorter equivalents for the following connectives:

indubitably; notwithstanding; as a consequence; on the other hand; unquestionably; these things being granted; provided that; at all events.

Reduce the following clauses to single words: that cannot be translated; that does not bend; that has no limit; that possesses all power; the man who rides the bicycle; a proficient in playing a musical instrument; that has no equal; that cannot be heard; that is capable of giving enjoyment.

The term Emphasis is here employed to denote the kind of force that is obtained by putting an element in one or another position in its sentence、.

Every word or other element has a natural position, where, though as a leading element it may be strong, it attracts no special attention. To draw special attention to it we have in some way to put it out of its natural order.

I.

Rules for increasing Emphasis.— The emphatic places of a sentence or clause are the beginning and the end; the problem, then, how to give special distinction to any element generally resolves itself into the problem how to get it into one of these places. The following rules are for the most part merely particular applications of this problem.

50. To add emphasis to a principal element, invert its sentence order.

By principal element is here meant, of course, subject or predicate. The subject, standing naturally first, gains emphasis by being moved from the beginning, though not necessarily to the end. The predicate, standing naturally in the latter part of its sentence or clause, gains emphasis by being placed first.

ILLUSTRATIONS.-I. Emphasis of subject. If, instead of saying, "John gave me this book," we say, "It was John who gave me this book," we have already, by moving the subject only slightly from its natural place, thrown the chief emphasis upon it. -"To effect this purpose stands now the Epilogue." Here the subject, crowded to the last, takes the emphasis.

2. Emphasis of predicate.

"Flashed all their sabres bare."

Here the verb gains emphasis by being placed first. Such direct inversion, however, is more natural to poetry than to prose."Do we look for honor among hypocrites? There is not, and there never can be honor in hypocrisy." Here the inversion is effected by the word there standing provisionally in the place of the subject.

51. To add emphasis

to a modifier, place it after its principal.

A modifying word naturally precedes its principal; hence if we wish to throw the emphasis on the modification instead

of on the principal idea, we place the modifier — adjective or adverb after its principal.

ILLUSTRATIONS.

1. The placing of the simple adjective after its noun is unusual, but often is graceful and pleasing; as, "For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth (as there be gods many and lords many), yet to us there is but one God, the Father.” — When, however, there is a group of adjectives, or the adjective is itself modified by adverbs, it is very common, almost the rule, to place the modifier after the noun; as, "There was a little glen, green and secluded and charming." "The man, exhausted by hunger and exposure, was scarcely able to speak."

2. Note how the emphasis goes to an adverb when the latter is placed after its verb: "He writes passionately, because he feels keenly; forcibly, because he feels vividly; he sees too clearly to be vague; he is too serious to be otiose," etc.

52. To push expectation toward the end, put preliminaries first.

This is the principle of suspense, or, in sentences, of periodic structure, It consists in fostering the reader's expectation by making the sense incom

plete until the end. There are various ways of effecting this. The following are the main ones.

By placing conditional clauses (if-clauses, when-clauses, and the like) first.

EXAMPLES. Note how the if-clause at the beginning makes us expect something to come :

"Ghost. If thou didst ever thy dear father love –

Hamlet. O, God!

Ghost.

Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder."

Put the if-clause after the other, and note how flat the effect is. "When he had seen carefully to the comfort of his patient, the doctor deemed that he had earned a much-needed rest."

By placing adverbial modifiers, phrases or clauses, before the verb. This has also the effect of emphasizing

the modifier as well.

EXAMPLES.

"With a great sum obtained I this freedom." From morning till night, from week's end to week's end, his tireless brain was never inactive."

By placing participial or adjective phrases at the beginning.

EXAMPLES.

"Deserted by his friends, he was forced to have recourse to those who had hitherto been his enemies."-Utterly unable to contain his joy, and yet unwilling to exhibit it before the eyes of a gallant rival, [Tom] turns away towards the shore, and begins telegraphing to Hardy."

By placing the predicate, or more broadly the predicative and descriptive matter of a sentence, before the subject.

EXAMPLE.

"The most versatile and myriad-minded man of his age, and one of the greatest geniuses of all time, was William Shakespeare."

53. To add emphasis to a conditional clause, place it last.

According to the foregoing principle of suspense a conditional clause, beginning with such words as if, provided, though, unless, as also a when- or while-clause, when it stands at the beginning, only directs attention and expectation to what is to come after. If then the clause itself is to have the emphasis, place it last.

EXAMPLES. "I still doubt your conclusion, though granting your premises." "Your message will not be heeded, if it is not under"This measure will command universal approval, when it is once fully explained.”

stood.".

54. Make successive terms advance from weaker to stronger.

This is the principle of climax, which demands that the sentence, both in the intensity of the words chosen (see under Rule 1) and in the length of words and phrases, should have an upward progress, growing in interest and vigor. The same principle extends through all the parts and stages of a composition.

EXAMPLE. Note how greater meaning and intensity are imparted to the successive stages of the following: "This decency, this grace, this propriety of manners to character, is so essential to princes in particular, that, whenever it is neglected, their virtues lose a great degree of lustre, and their defects acquire much aggravation. Nay, more; by neglecting this decency and this grace, and for want of a sufficient regard to appearances, even their virtues may betray them into failings, their failings into vices, and their vices into habits unworthy of princes, and unworthy of men."

The peculiarly flat effect called bathos is produced when the weaker term is put after the stronger, so that the interest descends instead of rising.

EXAMPLE. "For forty centuries the thunders of Sinai have echoed through the world Thou shalt not steal.' This is also a principle of the common law and a rule of equity.”1

1 Examples of climax and bathos taken from Longman's School Compo sition.