Part 4
346. "Please the pigs."--(_Old Proverb._) This is a corruption from "Please the _pyx_." The _pyx_ is the receptacle which contains the consecrated wafer on Romish altars; and the exclamation is equal to "Please God." This corruption is as curious a one as that of "tawdry" from "'t Audrey," or "at St. Audrey's Fair," famous for the sale of frippery--showy, cheap, and worthless.
347. "The _partridge_ is a delightful bird:" do not say _patridge_. Also, do not say _pasley_ for _parsley_.
348. "After this, let him hide his _diminished head_:" this common phrase is a poetical quotation from Milton, and is therefore proper to be used even when it does not _literally_ express the idea:--
"At whose sight all the stars Hide their _diminished heads_."
349. "That bourne from whence no traveler returns." How often are precisely these words spoken? They are improperly quoted from Shakespeare, in Hamlet, and correctly read as follows:--
"That undiscovered country, from whose bourne No traveler returns."
350. "Bring me my _waistcoat_:" pronounce as if written _waste-coat_, and not _weskut_. It should rhyme, as it did in an old ballad, with "_laced coat_."
351. "Your _bonnet_ to its right use."--(_Shakespeare:_) never say _bunnet_.
352. "It is not cold enough to wear my _gloves_:" pronounce as if written _gluvs_, and to rhyme with _loves_. In "Fair Rosamond" the following illustrative stanza occurs:--
"He said he had his _gloves_ from France: The Queen said, 'That can't be: If you go there for _glove-making_, It is without the _g_.'"
353. "_Egad!_ what great good luck!" This word is now inelegantly used, except in certain species of poetry, where it is introduced with much effect, as in the following distich:--
"All tragedies, _egad!_ to me sound oddly; I can no more be serious, than you godly."
354. "The frigate is now in the Yellow Sea, or _thereabouts_:" say, _thereabout_. This term is a transposed combination of _about there_; there is no such word as _thereabouts_. The same may be said of _hereabouts_, and _whereabouts_.
355. "Whether he will or _no_:" say, _not_. The reason of this correction is clearly seen by supplying what is needed to complete the sense: Whether he will or _will not_.
356. "He looked at it first _lengthways_, then _sideways_:" say, _lengthwise_ and _sidewise_. Also, say _otherwise_ instead of _otherways_. A nobleman said to his fool, "I am _wise_, and you are _otherwise_." "Yes," replied his jester, "you are _wise_, and I am _another wise_."
357. If you are a landlord, beware of incorrectly using such an expression as in the following: A landed proprietor went to a tenant with a view of increasing his rent, and said to him, "Neighbor, I am going to _raise your rent_." "Thank you, sir," was the reply, "for I am utterly unable to _raise it myself_."
358. "Will you _accept_ of this slight testimonial?" Omit _of_, which is superfluous, and weakens the sentence.
359. "He convinced his opponent by _dint_ of good reasoning:" _dint_, meaning _force_ or strength, is an obsolete word, and should not now be employed.
360. "The Danube _empties_ into the Black Sea:" say, _flows_; to _empty_ means _to make vacant_; no river can properly be called _empty_, until it is entirely dried up.
361. Such words as _bamboozle_, _topsyturvy_, _helterskelter_, _hurlyburly_, and _pellmell_ are generally to be avoided. They answer, however, for familiar conversation.
362. Never say _seraphims_, for the plural of _seraph_, but _seraphim_; the same rule holds with _cherubims_. _Cherubs_ and _seraphs_ are proper plurals, suiting a familiar style of speaking or writing, while _cherubim_ and _seraphim_ are to be used only in more dignified and solemn discourse.
363. "_There's_ the books you wanted:" say, _there are_: avoid all abbreviations when they lead to a grammatical error, as in the present instance.
364. "This prisoner has, of all the gang, committed _fewer_ misdemeanors:" say, _fewest_. We may say _fewer than_ all, but we must say _fewest of_ all.
365. "I esteem you more than _the others_:" this sentence is equivocal. Does it mean, "I esteem you more than _I esteem the others_," or, "I esteem you more than _the others esteem you_?"
366. "The most eminent scholars will, on some points, differ _among one another_:" say, _among themselves_.
367. "He, from that moment, doubled his _kindness and caresses of me_:" say, "kindness _for_ and caresses of me;" by omitting _caresses_ we have, "He doubled his _kindness of_ me," which is not good English.
368. _To differ from_ and _to differ with_: to _differ from_ a man means to have an opinion different from his; to _differ with_ a person signifies a _quarrel_ or _rupture_.
369. "He barely escaped having _one or two broken heads_:" a man has but _one_ head, let it be broken or whole. Say, "He _once or twice barely escaped_ having a broken head."
370. "Whenever _I fall into that man's conversation_ I am entertained and profited:" say, _fall into conversation with that man_.
371. "The lecturer _spoke to several points_:" say, "spoke _on_ several points." He spoke _to_ his audience.
372. "I shall regard your _strictures_ only so far as _concerns_ my own errors:" say, _concern_; the phrase when filled out should read, "only so far as _they concern_ my own errors."
373. "I found him better than I expected _to have found him_:" say, _to find him_.
374. "I perceived that he was totally blind _with half an eye_:" say, "I perceived, with half an eye, that he was totally blind." Otherwise, to a man _totally blind_ you allot _half an eye_!
375. The word _only_ is often wrongly placed in the sentence, and made to express an idea which is not designed to be conveyed. "Not _only_ Chinese are superstitious," implies that others besides the Chinese are superstitious. "Chinese are not _only_ superstitious," implies that in addition to being superstitious, they have some other characteristics. "Chinese not _only_ are superstitious," leaves room for something still further to be implied of the Chinese than superstition, and which is not necessarily the predicate of _are_; as, "Chinese not only are superstitious, but they persecute those who do not put faith in Confucius."
376. _Not the least_ and _nothing less than_, sometimes literally convey just the opposite of what is intended. "He has _not the least_ excuse for going," may mean that he has _a great excuse_, or _none at all_. "He seeks _nothing less than_ worldly honor," may signify that nothing inferior to worldly honor will satisfy his desire; or, on the other hand, it may mean that nothing is less sought by him than worldly honor. Such expressions, therefore, are to be used with caution, else they will mislead.
377. Care should be taken in the use of epithets. For instance, in the sentence, "_A wise and good man_ should be respected," the words _wise_ and _good_ may properly be applied to the same man; but if the sentence should be altered to read, "An _old and young man_," it is obvious that both epithets could not relate to the same person.
378. Never say _turkle soup_, for _turtle soup_.
379. The word _long_ should not now be employed to signify _many_. An example of this early usage is found in the Fifth Commandment, "that thy days may be _long_ upon the land." The following lines furnish an instance of the verb _to lengthen_, meaning to _make many_:--
"The best of all ways To _lengthen_ our days, Is to take a few hours from the night, my lad."
380. "They returned _back again_ to the _same_ city _from_ whence they came _forth_:" omit the italicized words, which are redundant and inelegant.
381. "Have you any leisure _upon your hands_?" omit _upon your hands_,--not so much because anything after "leisure" is superfluous, in such a sentence, as because the idea of _having leisure upon your hands_ is absurd.
382. "Seven lads were present, and he gave them _all_ a book:" say, _gave them each_ a book. _All_ refers to a number of persons or things taken _collectively_, as _one body_; _each_ refers to _every individual_, separately considered.
383. "Lend me your _umberell_:" say, _umbrella_. The former pronunciation, however, is allowed by _poetic license_, as in the following, adapted from Thomas Moore:--
"Oh, ever thus from childhood's hour, Has chilling fate upon me fell! There always comes a soakin' shower When I hain't got an _umbrell_."
384. We lately met a grammarian, who had just made a tour through the mines, conjugating, or, rather, cogitating thus: "Positive, _mine_; comparative _miner_; superlative, _minus_!"
385. "Put not thy secret into the mouth of the _Bosphorus_, for it will betray it to the ears of the Black Sea."--(_Oriental Proverb._) Pronounce _Bosphorus_ as if written _Bosforus_, and not _Bos-porous_.
386. Be careful to use the hyphen (-) correctly: it joins compound words, and words broken by the ending of a line. The use of the hyphen will appear more clearly from the following example: "_many colored_ wings" means _many_ wings which are _colored_; but "_many-colored_ wings" means "wings of _many colors_."
387. "I am _afraid_ it will rain:" say, _I fear_. _Afraid_ expresses terror; _fear_ may mean only _anxiety_.
388. Never say _o-fences_ for _offences_; _pison_ for _poison_; _co-lection_ for _collection_; _voiolent_ for _violent_; _kivver_ for _cover_; _afeard_ for _afraid_; _debbuty_ for _deputy_. The last three examples are very common.
389. "It is a mere _cipher_:" never spell _cipher_ with a _y_.
390. "I was _necessitated_ to do it:" a poor expression, and often made worse by _necessiated_ being used: say, I was _obliged_, or _compelled_, to do it.
391. "Gibbon wrote the _Rise_ and Fall of the Roman Empire:" pronounce _Rise_, the noun, so as to rhyme with _price_; _Rise_, the verb, rhymes with _prize_.
392. "He joined his _regiment_ last week:" never say, _ridgiment_ for _regiment_.
393. "He bought a _gimlet_:" never spell the last word _gimblet_, as many do.
394. "He is a supporter of the _Government_:" beware of omitting the _n_ in the second syllable of _Government_--a very common practice.
395. "Received this day _of_ Mr. Brown ten dollars:" say, "Received this day _from_," &c.
396. "Of whatever you _get_, endeavor to save something; and with all your _getting, get_ wisdom:" carefully avoid saying _git_ for _get_, and _gitting_ for _getting_.
397. "So intent was he on the song he was _singing_, while he stood by the fire, that he did not perceive that his clothes were _singeing_." Verbs ending with a _single e_, omit the _e_ when the termination _ing_ is added, as, _give_, _giving_; in _singeing_, however, the _e_ must be retained, to prevent its being confounded with _singing_. The _e_ must also be retained in _dyeing_, to distinguish it from _dying_.
398. The following sentences may be studied: "The _dyer dyes_ daily, yet he _dies_ not." "The _miner minds_ the _minor mines_." "It is not _meet_ to _mete_ out such _meat_." "He performed a great _feat_ with his _feet_ at the _fête_." (_Fête_ is pronounced _fate_.)
399. "_Lower_ the sails, as the sky begins to _lower_:" pronounce _low_ in the _former_ so as to rhyme with _mow_, and _low_ in the _latter_ so as to rhyme with _cow_.
400. "There was a great _row_ on Monday, in Tryon _Row_:" pronounce the former _row_ so as to rhyme with _cow_--the latter _row_, so as to rhyme with _mo_.
401. "His _surname_ is Clifford:" never spell the _sur_ in "surname" _sir_, which shows an ignorance of its true derivation, which is from the Latin.
402. "The buildings are so old that they pay _almost no rent_ now:" _scarcely any rent_, is better.
403. "His _mamma_ sent him to a preparatory school:" _mamma_ is often written with one _m_ only, which is not, as may at first be supposed, in imitation of the French _maman_, but in sheer ignorance.
404. Active verbs often take a neuter sense; as, "_The house is building_:" here, _is building_ is used in a neuter signification, because it has no object after it. By this rule are explained such sentences as, "_Application is wanting_;" "_The Grammar is printing_," &c.
405. "He _attackted_ me without the slightest provocation:" say, _attacked_.
406. "I called on him every day in the week _successfully_:" very common, but incorrect; say, _successively_.
407. "I fear I shall _discommode_ you:" it is better to say, _incommode_.
408. "I can do it _equally as well as_ he:" leave out _equally_, which is superfluous.
409. "We could not forbear _from_ doing it:" leave out _from_, which is unnecessary; or say, _refrain from_.
410. "He was totally dependent _of_ his father:" say, dependent _on_ his father.
411. "They accused him _for_ neglecting his duty:" say, _of_ neglecting, &c.
412. "They have a great resemblance _with_ each other:" say, _to_ each other.
413. "I entirely dissent _with_ him:" say, _from_ him.
414. "He was made much _on_ at the Springs:" say, made much _of_, &c.
415. "He is a man _on_ whom you can confide:" say, _in_ whom, &c.
416. "He was obliged to _fly_ the country:" say, _flee_ the country. A very common mistake.
417. "The snuffers _wants_ mending:" say, _want_ mending. No one would say, "My _pantaloons is_ ripped."
418. "His conduct admits _of_ no apology:" omit _of_, which is quite unnecessary.
419. "A _gent_ has been here inquiring for you:" a detestable, but very common expression; say, a _gentleman_ has been, &c. Oliver Wendell Holmes hits off this liberty with language, in the following happy couplet:--
"The things called _pants_, in certain documents, Were never made for _gentlemen_, but _gents_."
420. "That was _all along of_ you:" say, "That was _all your fault_."
421. "You have no _call_ to be angry with me:" say, no _occasion_, &c.
422. "Too free an _indulgence_ in luxuries _enervate_ and _injure_ the system:" say, _enervates_ and _injures_, &c. The plural, _luxuries_, standing directly before the verb, (which should be _enervates_, in the singular,) deceives the ear. Errors of this kind are very common, though a moment's thought would correct them. The verb must agree with its subject in person and in number; if the _noun_ is in the singular, the _verb_ that belongs to it must also be in the singular.
423. "A father divided a portion of his property _among_ his two children, and the remainder he distributed _between_ the poor:" say, _between_ his two children, and _among_ the poor. _Between_ is applicable to two only, _among_ to three or more.
424. "_Every_ child should obey _their_ parents:" say, _his_ parents. The pronoun must agree with the noun in number, &c.
425. "He is a person _who_ I respect greatly:" say, _whom_. "Be careful _who_ you trust:" _whom_ you trust.
426. "Let me consider _of_ this matter." "The culprit dreaded to enter _in_ the prison." "The laborers were not allowed to want _for_ anything." Leave out the _italicized_ words--the sense being complete without them.
427. _Cupola_ is often pronounced _cupalo_; _foliage_, _foilage_; _future_, _futur_; _nature_, _natur_: all of which errors should be carefully avoided.
428. "'Ow 'appens it that _H_englishmen so _h_often misplace their _h_aitches?" It is a cockneyism; and if you have fallen into the habit, it will require perhaps more perseverance than you imagine, to correct it.
429. Do you say _w_agabond or _v_agabond, _w_inegar or _v_inegar, _w_ery or _v_ery, _v_alking or _w_alking, _v_atchman or _w_atchman? It is a local custom, but if you have any taint of it, don't sing "_V_illikins and his Dinah."
430. Provid_ence_, confid_ence_, and similar words, are often pronounced Provid_unce_, confid_unce_, &c., substituting _unce_ for _ence_. So also, words ending in _ance_, as mainte_nance_, suste_nance_, SURVEIL_lance_, are pronounced falsely mainten_unce_, susten_unce_, &c.
431. _Coming_, _going_, _according_, &c., are often pronounced without the final _g_: speak them distinctly, and pronounce difficult words with de-lib-er-a-tion.
432. If you are a Yankee, you should (though, as a general thing, you _will not_) take special pains with your vowel sounds, that they be not formed through the nasal cavities. Don't say _heow_, _ceow_, _confeound_, for _how_, _cow_, &c.
433. If you are a Western man, you are liable to give your vowel sounds too great breadth. You should not say _bar_ for _bear_, _hum_ for _home_, _dawlar_ for _dollar_; and it is better to avoid using such expressions as _I reckon_, _I guess_, _I calculate_, too frequently.
434. "I am going _a fishing_:" be bold enough to be one among the foremost to break away from the bad habit of saying _a fishing_, _a talking_, _a courting_, &c. This custom, however, should be retained in quoting proverbs and wise sayings; these are better in proportion as they are older; for example: "_Who goes a-borrowing, goes a-sorrowing._" The quaintness would be destroyed by saying simply _borrowing_ and _sorrowing_.
435. Some people add a superfluous preposition at the end of a sentence--"More than you think _for_." This is awkward.
436. "Then think _on_ the friend who once welcomed it too," &c. &c.: say, _of_.
437. _Thou_ and _thee_ are no longer used in spelling or writing, except by some of The Friends; but proverbial citations, originally expressed in that form, lose much of their beauty and force by alteration; as, "If thou seest thy house in flames, approach and warm thyself by it." How greatly would a change of person tame the spirit of this fine proverb!
438. "By the street of '_By-and-By_,' one arrives at the house of 'Never.'" Do not say, _By'mby_.
439. Be careful to observe the _two plurals_ of the following nouns:
Singular. First Plural. Second Plural.
_Brother,_ _Brothers_ (of the same _Brethren_ (of the same parents), society).
_Die,_ _Dies_ (for coining), _Dice_ (for gaming).
_Index,_ _Indexes_ (tables of contents), _Indices_ (signs in algebra).
_Pea,_ _Peas_ (referring to a _Pease_ (referring to the limited number), whole species).
_Penny,_ _Pennies_ (coins), _Pence_ (the value).
_Cow,_ _Cows_ (a herd of cattle), _Kine_ (the species).
_Sow,_ _Sows_ (a litter), _Swine_ (the species).
_Genius,_ _Geniuses_ (men of genius), _Genii_ (imaginary spirits).
440. Different shades of meaning may be expressed by slight variations in the position of the important words in a sentence. For example, "_The Paradise Lost of Milton_," is not exactly the same in import as, "_Milton's Paradise Lost_;" in the former, attention is called to the author--in the latter, to the poem.
441. In uniting the plural of _one_, _two_, _three,_ do not use the apostrophe ['] as _one's_, _two's_, _three's._ Good writers never conform to the latter mode. Wordsworth, who was remarkably particular, not only in the choice of his words but in their orthography, wrote:
"The sun has long been set, The stars are out by _twos and threes_; The little birds are piping yet Among the bushes and the trees."
442. "_How's yourself_, this morning?" an exceedingly common, but very objectionable expression: say, "_How are you_;" &c.
443. "Wanted, two apprentices, who will be treated as _one_ of the family:" great practical difficulty would be found in realizing such treatment! Say, "as _members_ of the family."
444. The following lines afford an instance of the ingenious uses to which the English language may be put:
"You _sigh for_ a _cipher_, but _I sigh for you;_ Oh, _sigh for no cipher_, but oh, _sigh for me;_ Oh, let not my _sigh for_ a _cipher_ go, But give _sigh for sigh, for I sigh_ for you so!"
The above is more briefly expressed in the following manner:
"U O a O, but I O u, Oh, O no O, but oh, O me; Oh, let not my O a O go, But give O O I O u so!"
445. Sometimes _but_ is incorrectly substituted for _that_: as, "I have no doubt _but_ he will be here to-night." Sometimes for the conjunction _if_, as, "I shouldn't wonder _but_ that was the case." And sometimes _two_ conjunctions are used instead of one, as, "_If that_ I have offended him," "_After that_ he had seen the parties," &c. All this is very awkward and should be avoided.
446. "My hands are _chopped_:" say, _chapped_.
447. "This will serve as a _preventative_:" say, _preventive_.
448. "A _nishe_ young man," "What _makesh_ you laugh?" "If he _offendsh_ you, don't speak to him," "_Ash_ you please," "Not _jush_ yet," "We always _passh_ your house in going to call on _Missh Yatesh_." This is decided, unmitigated _cockneyism_, having its parallel in nothing except the broken English of the sons of Abraham, and to adopt it in conversation is certainly "not speaking like a Christian."
449. Never say, "Cut it in _half_," for this you cannot do unless you could _annihilate one_ half. You may "cut it in two," or "cut it in halves," or "cut it through," or "divide it," but no human ability will enable you _to cut it in half_.
451. _To lay and to lie._--_To lay_ is an active or transitive verb, and must always have an object, expressed or understood. _To lie_ (not meaning _to tell a falsehood_) is a neuter or intransitive, and therefore does not admit of an object. The only real difficulty arises from the fact, that the past tense of "lie," when used without an auxiliary, is the same as the present of "lay." But a little attention will obviate this. Nothing can be more erroneous than to say, "I shall go and lay down." The question which naturally arises in the mind of the discriminating hearer is, "_What_ are you going to lay down--money, carpets, plans, or what?" for, as a transitive verb is used, an object is wanted to complete the sense. The speaker means, that he himself is going to _lie down_. "My brother _lays_ ill of a fever," should be, "My brother _lies_," &c.
VERB ACTIVE. VERB NEUTER.
_To lay._ _To lie._
Present Tense. Present Tense.
I lay } I lie } Thou layest } money, Thou liest } down, He lays } carpets, He lies } too long, We lay } plans, We lie } on a sofa, You lay } --any _thing_. You lie } --any _where_. They lay } They lie }
Imperfect Tense. Imperfect Tense.
I laid } I lay } Thou laidest } money, Thou layest } down, He laid } carpets, He lays } too long, We laid } plans, We lay } on a sofa, You laid } --any _thing_. You lay } --any _where_. They laid } They lay }
Present Participle, Laying. Present Participle, Lying. Perfect Participle, Laid. Perfect Participle, Lain.
452. Many people have an odd way of saying, "I expect," when they mean only "I think," or "I conclude;" as, "I expect my brother went to Richmond to-day," "I expect those books were sent to Paris last year." _Expect_ can relate only to _future_ time, and must be followed by a future tense, or a verb in the infinitive mood; as, "I expect my brother _will go_ to Richmond to-day," "I expect _to find_ those books were sent to Paris last year."
453. "A _summer's_ morning," should be, A _summer_ morning.
454. The vulgar speaker uses adjectives instead of adverbs, and says, "This letter is written _shocking_;" the genteel speaker uses adverbs instead of adjectives, and says, "This writing looks _shockingly_."
455. "_Nobody else_ but him," should be, _Nobody_ but him.
456. "That _ain't_ just," should be, That _is not_ just.