I was invited to tea at Mr. Dearsley's house, who keeps a species of museum for his own amusement.

He is as proud at least as my cousin.

Although a Jew from the desire of gain he pursued a calling which was peculiarly odious in the eyes of Jews.

"The Spirit of Laws" was only completed when the author was sixty years of age.

This ball seems to be rounder than the other.

I shall be disappointed if he does not fulfil his appointment with me and will endeavor to make other arrangements.

I am quite prepared to tell him what I think of him publicly.

There were two father-in-laws in the case, whom they said, have been old schoolfellows when they were young.

There are as good opportunities for study in this university at all events as in the University of the West.

The death occurred on Wednesday at a very advanced age of the Rev. Dr. Milner.

They attacked Northumberland's house, whom they put to death.

A wealthy philanthropist has just died, bequeathing to each officer on his death-bed the sum of fifty dollars.

He strongly maintained that the measure was unjust and was opposed to the organization of labor.

The poor are the first to feel the evils which result from such a state of things acutely.

Lost, a valuable silk umbrella belonging to a gentleman with a curiously carved head.

I am often ready to vow I shall never undertake such a task again, though I daresay I will sometime.

The traveller saw that these foreigners at all events were as intelligent as his own countrymen.

They affect an interest in some particular class of art which they are neither prepared to justify nor to transfer in any other direction.

Rapid Hose Company will go to C. to-morrow and take part in the county's firemanic parade.

It is not for me to give reasons for what men do to gentlemen of your learning.

I have only received this morning the first installment of the proofs.

Immediately after his resolution was communicated to Mr. Brown without the sanction or knowledge of the board he closed the school.

It is important for me to first of all tell you how I came to be so early.

2. Rewrite the following, correcting according to the notes and references, and pointing out ambiguities:

IT is a [general, common, customary, prevalent, 2] notion that a man's character mainly (24) a is determined by his environment (13). Make his environment (13) good, they claim (2), and the man will be good; he is all right within if you will make what is without right (24). It would be nearer (4) [correct, truthful, true, exact, 2] to directly (26) turn this claim (2) around. Make him right interiorly (5) and you need have no [solicitude, fear, care, concern, 2] for the exterior (2). It is a man's attitude and direction toward his environment, his habitual thought's (15) bias and tendency, that [settles, makes, determines, decides, 2] his character.

From his attitude toward the world about him of influences (24) you can tell (2) his life's (15) direction. Standing on the seashore (19) two vessels are witnessed (2) moving in opposite directions, yet [driven, guided, impelled, urged forward, 2] by the same wind. The surroundings are identical, worked upon (19) by the same power; but the two vessels have their sails sat (4) at different angles, and so either (2) is helped in its [appointed, destined, prescribed, allotted, 2] course onward (24), because either (2) receives the pressure not directly of the

g

wind (24), but through the bias or slant of its sails. So in the moral world; the influence upon a person of the truth (24) depends not (1) 8 upon the power of its appeal or the direction of its pressure, but & upon the angle that he presents toward it, that is, upon his soul's h attitude.

From the direction in which his thoughts are habitually turned you can [tell, estimate, deduce, 2] the tendency of the character of a man (15), whether [it is, it be, 20] upward to greater [worth, excellence, eminence, nobility, 2] or downward toward [shame, disgrace, degradation, dishonor, 2]. Look at a canal-boat passing through a lock. You know what will be

m

the level, whether higher or lower, of its future course (24) k by the direction in which it is headed. The boat rises if the upper gate is opened and floats off on higher waters (28); it sinks (3) if the lower are opened (28) and passes away (3) on a lower level. X Character, too, has such gates, leading to more exalted or more degraded levels. You are opening the higher gates if you direct yourself toward principles of truth, right, unselfishness, and you are uplifted, exalted to a higher plane of living (28)." Turn your nature on the other hand toward selfishness, greed, dishonesty, and the lower gates are opening o; you are dragging yourself down, demeaning (2) yourself.

The same series of locks that conducts from the lowest to the highest levels conducts just as truly from highest to lowest. The same surroundings are there, for every man to [use, employ, utilize, 2]. It is the man's thought that makes or mars his character, its attitude and direction (24). Thoughts are more potent than deeds, to both (26) work good and evil.

NOTES TO THE ABOVE. —a. It is not always that a misplaced modifier causes positive ambiguity; yet the question is always open, what is the best place for it? Does mainly belong with "is determined" or "by his environment?"—b. "All right" is a simple idiom; does not sound formal, and perhaps is all the better for that, if it expresses your idea closely enough. - -c. "Exterior," besides being a somewhat pretentious word here, is inexact; the exterior of a man is not the same as what is without or around him. d. choose a word more specific than "tell;" this does not

say enough, and has a somewhat provincial sense. -e. You have used the word "direction" in the previous sentence, and it does not sound well to use it again so soon; vary this expression some way. -f. The insertion of the phrase "of the wind" here not only transgresses Rule 24, but disturbs the balance of the two phrases that it separates. -g. Is not this stated too strongly and absolutely? Does the influence depend not at all on these first two, or not so much as upon the third?-h. The word "soul" is so nearly a personal word (Rule 15) that the possessive is quite admissible. — i. Here the possessive of the person is preferable, because it breaks up a lumbering row of of-phrases. —j. Determine which mood you would use if any, but query—is a verb needed here at all?—k. No real ambiguity here, but is the of-phrase rightly placed?-1. The word "head" as verb is well enough established in the language not to transgress Rule 4.— m. Putting the word "levels" last makes this and the preceding sentence end alike. Sometimes pairs of adjectives are better placed after their noun; would it not be better here? -n. Suppose you turn the sentence so as to put the if-clause first, then change it to an imperative as in next sentence. .—o. Would it not be better to make the subject of this clause and of the next the same?

III. CONCORD.

One of the most imperative requirements of grammar is concord, that is, the requirement that a verb shall agree with its subject in person and number. The same law holds good whether the subject is definitely expressed or represented by a pronoun; hence the principle of concord is also involved when we say a pronoun must agree in person and number with its antecedent.

The requirement of concord is generally easy enough to observe; but some special cases need here to be pointed out.

I.

Rules of Concord wherein Rhetoric is especially involved. Directions for managing concord may be summed up in the general injunction to watch your

subject; do not allow your attention to let go of it until the verb, wherever it occurs, is adjusted to it.

29. Do not let intervening words disturb agreement of verb and subject.

It is this violation of concord, per

haps, to which the writer is most liable. Some word of different number, or perhaps a row of details, will get in between the subject and the verb, and the number of the verb is carelessly conformed to what is nearest.

EXAMPLES. "The dropping of cumbrous words are a real gain.” The verb ought to be is, to agree with dropping, the real subject, instead of with words, which comes 1 between to obscure the view of it.

"The notion that a crisis in the Roman question had arrived, and that the French garrison would be promptly withdrawn from the Roman capital of Italy, were the foolish dreams of an impulsive people." This ought to read either "notions . . . were," or better, .. dream.” The details after the subject caused the writer to lose sight of its number.

" was

30. Make pronoun and antecedent agree in number and kind,

It is a poverty of the English language that it has no singular pronoun of common gender to represent different genders in the antecedent, or to stand for such words as anybody, any one, everybody, every one, each, either. The word they, being plural, is not in concord with them. Where the words do not suggest different sexes, the pronoun he may represent them; and in many cases it is better to make the antecedent plural and represent it by they, their or them.

EXAMPLES. 66 Every one was busy getting the camp ready for removal, or disposing of the numerous things they had accumulated during their stay." Here if we say "all were busy," the pronouns

1 For the number of this verb "comes," see remark under Rule 31.