Gums.SeeRubbers.
Had have.Nothing could be more incorrect than the bringing together of these two auxiliary verbs in this manner; and yet we occasionally find it in writers of repute. Instead of "Had I known it," "Had you seen it," "Had we been there," we hear, "Had Ihaveknown it," "Had youhaveseen it," "Had wehavebeen there."
Had ought.This is a vulgarism of the worst description, yet we hear people, who would be highly indignant if any one should intimate that they were not ladies and gentlemen, say, "Hehadought to go." A fitting reply would be, "Yes, I think he better had."Oughtsays all thathad oughtsays.
Had rather.This expression andhad betterare much used, but, in the opinion of many, are indefensible. We hear them in such sentences as, "Ihadrather not do it," "Youhadbetter go home." "Now, what tense," it is asked, "ishad doandhad go?" If we transpose the words thus, "Youhad dobetter (to) go home," it becomes at once apparent, it is asserted, that the proper word to use in connection withratherandbetteris nothad, butwould; thus, "Iwouldrather not do it," "Youwouldbetter go home." Examples of this use ofhadcan be found in the writings of our best authors. For what Professor Bain has to say on this subject in his "Composition Grammar," seeSubjunctive Mood.
Half."It might have been expressed inonehalf the space." We see at a glance thatonehere is superfluous.
Hanged—Hung.The irregular form,hung, of the past participle of the verbto hangis most used; but, when the word denotes suspension by the neck for the purpose ofdestroying life, the regular form,hanged, is always used by careful writers and speakers.
Haste.SeeHurry.
Heading.SeeCaption.
Healthy—Wholesome.The first of these two words is often improperly used for the second; as, "Onions are ahealthyvegetable." A man, if he is in good health, ishealthy; the food he eats, if it is not deleterious, iswholesome. Ahealthyox makeswholesomefood. We speak ofhealthysurroundings, ahealthyclimate, situation, employment, and ofwholesomefood, advice, examples.Healthfulis generally used in the sense of conducive to health, virtue, morality; as,healthfulexercise, thehealthfulspirit of the community—meaning that the spirit that prevails in the community is conducive to virtue and good morals.
Helpmate.The dictionaries suggest that this word is a corruption ofhelpandmeet, as we find these words used in Gen. ii, 18, "I will make him a help meet for him," and that the proper word ishelpmeet. If, as is possible, the words in Genesis mean, "I will make him a help, meet [suitable] for him," then neitherhelpmatenorhelpmeethas anyraison d'être.
Highfalutin.This is a style of writing often called the freshman style. It is much indulged in by very young men, and by a class of older men who instinctively try to make up in clatter for what they lack in matter. Examples of this kind of writing are abundant in Professor L. T. Townsend's "Art of Speech," which, as examples, are all the better for not being of that exaggerated description sometimes met within the newspapers. Vol. i, p. 131: "Very often adverbs, prepositions, and relatives drift so far from their moorings as to lose themselves, or make attachments where they do not belong." Again, p. 135: "Every law of speech enforcesthe statement that there is no excuse for such inflated and defective style. [Such style!] To speak thus is treason in the realms and under the laws of language." Again, p. 175: "Cultivate figure-making habitudes. This is done by asking the spiritual import of every physical object seen; also by forming the habit of constantly metaphorizing. Knock at the door of anything met which interests, and ask, 'Who lives here?' The process is to look, then close the eyes, then look within." The blundering inanity of this kind of writing is equaled only by its bumptious grandiloquence. On p. 137 Dr. Townsend quotes this wholesome admonition from Coleridge: "If men would only say what they have to say in plain terms, how much more eloquent they would be!" As an example of reportorial highfalutin, I submit the following: "The spirit of departed day had joined communion with the myriad ghosts of centuries, and four full hours fled into eternity before the citizens of many parts of the town found out there was a freshet here at all."
Hints."Never write about any matter that you do not well understand. If you clearly understand all about your matter, you will never want thoughts, and thoughts instantly become words.
"One of the greatest of all faults in writing and in speaking is this: the using of many words tosay little. In order to guard yourself against this fault, inquire what is thesubstance, oramount, of what you have said. Take a long speech of some talking Lord and put down upon paper what the amount of it is. You will most likely find that theamountis very small; but at any rate, when you get it, you will then be able to examine it and to tell what it is worth. A very few examinations of the sort will so frighten you that you will be for ever after uponyour guard againsttalking a great dealandsaying little."—Cobbett.
"Be simple, be unaffected, be honest in your speaking and writing. Never use a long word where a short one will do. Call a spadea spade, not awell-known oblong instrument of manual husbandry; let home behome, not aresidence; a place aplace, not alocality; and so of the rest. Where a short word will do, you always lose by using a long one. You lose in clearness; you lose in honest expression of your meaning; and, in the estimation of all men who are qualified to judge, you lose in reputation for ability. The only true way to shine, even in this false world, is to be modest and unassuming. Falsehood may be a very thick crust, but, in the course of time, truth will find a place to break through. Elegance of language may not be in the power of all of us; but simplicity and straightforwardness are. Write much as you would speak; speak as you think. If with your inferiors, speak no coarser than usual; if with your superiors, no finer. Be what you say; and, within the rules of prudence, say what you are."—Dean Alford.
"Go critically over what you have written, and strike out every word, phrase, and clause which it is found will leave the sentence neither less clear nor less forcible than it is without them."—Swinton.
"With all watchfulness, it is astonishing what slips are made, even by good writers, in the employment of an inappropriate word. In Gibbon's 'Rise and Fall,' the following instance occurs: 'Of nineteen tyrants who started up after the reign of Gallienus, there was not one whoenjoyeda life of peace or a naturaldeath.' Alison, in his 'History of Europe,' writes: 'Two great sins—one ofomissionand one of commission—have beencommittedby the states of Europe in modern times.' And not long since a worthyScotch minister, at the close of the services, intimated his intention of visiting some of his people as follows: 'I intend, during this week, to visit in Mr. M——'s district, and will on this occasion take the opportunity ofembracingall the servants in the district.' When worthies such as these offend, who shall call the bellman in question as he cries, 'Lost, a silver-handled silk lady's parasol'?
"The proper arrangement of words into sentences and paragraphs gives clearness and strength. To attain a clear and pithy style, it may be necessary to cut down, to rearrange, and to rewrite whole passages of an essay. Gibbon wrote his 'Memoirs' six times, and the first chapter of his 'History' three times. Beginners are always slow to prune or cast away any thought or expression which may have cost labor. They forget that brevity is no sign of thoughtlessness. Much consideration is needed to compress the details of any subject into small compass. Essences are more difficult to prepare, and therefore more valuable, than weak solutions. Pliny wrote to one of his friends, 'I have not time to write you a short letter, therefore I have written you a long one.' Apparent elaborateness is always distasteful and weak. Vividness and strength are the product of an easy command of those small trenchant Saxon monosyllables which abound in the English language."—"Leisure Hour."
"As a rule, the student will do well to banish for the present all thought of ornament or elegance, and to aim only at expressing himself plainly and clearly. The best ornament is always that which comes unsought. Let him not beat about the bush, but go straight to the point. Let him remember that what is written is meant to be read; that time is short; and that—other things being equal—the fewer words the better.... Repetition is a farless serious fault than obscurity. Young writers are often unduly afraid of repeating the same word, and require to be reminded that it is always better to use the right word over again than to replace it by a wrong one—and a word which is liable to be misunderstood is a wrong one. A frank repetition of a word has even sometimes a kind of charm—as bearing the stamp oftruth, the foundation of all excellence of style."—Hall.
"A young writer is afraid to be simple; he has no faith in beauty unadorned, hence he crowds his sentences with superlatives. In his estimation, turgidity passes for eloquence, and simplicity is but another name for that which is weak and unmeaning."—George Washington Moon.
Honorable.SeeReverend.
How."I have heardhowin Italy one is beset on all sides by beggars": read, "heardthat." "I have heardhowsome critics have been pacified with claret and a supper, and others laid asleep with soft notes of flattery."—Dr. Johnson. Thehowin this sentence also should bethat.Howmeans themanner in which. We may, therefore, say, "I have heardhowhe went about it to circumvent you."
"And it is good judgment alone can dictatehow farto proceed in it andwhento stop." Cobbett comments on this sentence in this wise: "Dr. Watts is speaking here of writing. In such a case, an adverb, likehow far, expressive of longitudinal space, introduces arhetorical figure; for the plain meaning is, that judgment will dictatehow much to write on itand nothow far to proceed in it. The figure, however, is very proper and much better than the literal words. But when a figure isbegunit should be carried on throughout, which is not the case here; for theDoctor begins with a figure of longitudinal space and ends with a figure oftime. It should have been,whereto stop. Or, howlongto proceed in it andwhento stop. To tell a manhow farhe is to go into the Western countries of America, andwhenhe is to stop, is a very different thing from telling himhow farhe is to go andwherehe is to stop. I have dwelt thus on this distinction for the purpose of putting you on the watch and guarding you against confounding figures. The less you use them the better, till you understand more about them."
Humanitarianism.This word, in its original, theological sense, means the doctrine that denies the godhead of Jesus Christ, and avers that he was possessed of a human nature only; ahumanitarian, therefore, in the theological sense, is one who believes this doctrine. The word and its derivatives are, however, nowadays, both in this country and in England, most used in a humane, philanthropic sense; thus, "The audience enthusiastically endorsed thehumanitarianismof his eloquent discourse."—Hatton.
Hung.SeeHanged.
Hurry.Though widely different in meaning, both the verb and the nounhurryare continually used forhasteandhasten.Hurryimplies not onlyhaste, but haste with confusion, flurry; whilehasteimplies only rapidity of action, an eager desire to make progress, and, unlikehurry, is not incompatible with deliberation and dignity. It is often wise tohastenin the affairs of life; but, as it is never wise to proceed without forethought and method, it is never wise tohurry. Sensible people, then, may be often inhaste, but are never in ahurry; and we tell others tomake haste, and not tohurry up.
Hyperbole.The magnifying of things beyond theirnatural limits is calledhyperbole. Language that signifies, literally, more than the exact truth, more than is really intended to be represented, by which a thing is represented greater or less, better or worse than it really is, is said to behyperbolical. Hyperbole is exaggeration.
"Our common forms of compliment are almost all of them extravaganthyperboles."—Blair.
Some examples are the following:
"Rivers of blood and hills of slain."
"They were swifter than eagles; they were stronger than lions."
"The sky shrunk upward with unusual dread,And trembling Tiber div'd beneath his bed.""So frowned the mighty combatants, that hellGrew darker at their frown."
"The sky shrunk upward with unusual dread,And trembling Tiber div'd beneath his bed."
"So frowned the mighty combatants, that hellGrew darker at their frown."
"I saw their chief tall as a rock of ice; his spear the blasted fir; his shield the rising moon; he sat on the shore like a cloud of mist on a hill."
Ice-cream—Ice-water.As for ice-cream, there is no such thing, as ice-cream would be the product of frozen cream, i. e., cream made from ice by melting. What is called ice-cream is creamiced; hence, properly,icedcream and notice-cream. The product of melted ice isice-water, whether it be cold or warm; but water made cold with ice isicedwater, and notice-water.
If."I doubtifthis will ever reach you": say, "I doubtwhetherthis will ever reach you."
Ill.SeeSick.
Illy.It will astonish not a few to learn that there is no such word asilly. The form of the adverb, as well as of the adjective and the noun, isill. A thing isillformed, orilldone, orillmade, orillconstructed, orillput together.
"Illfares the land, to hastening ills a prey,Where wealth accumulates and men decay."—Goldsmith.
"Illfares the land, to hastening ills a prey,Where wealth accumulates and men decay."—Goldsmith.
Immodest.This adjective and its synonyms,indecentandindelicate, are often used without proper discrimination being made in their respective meanings.Indecencyandimmodestyare opposed to morality: the former in externals, as dress, words, and looks; the latter in conduct and disposition. "Indecency," says Crabb, "may be a partial,immodestyis a positive and entire breach of the moral law.Indecencyis less thanimmodesty, but more thanindelicacy." It isindecentfor a man to marry again very soon after the death of his wife. It isindelicatefor any one to obtrude himself upon another's retirement. It isindecentfor women to expose their persons as do some whom we can not callimmodest.
"Immodest words admit of no defense,For want of decency is want of sense."—Earl of Roscommon.
"Immodest words admit of no defense,For want of decency is want of sense."—Earl of Roscommon.
Impropriety.As a rhetorical term, defined as an error in using words in a sense different from their recognized signification.
Impute.Non-painstaking writers not unfrequently useimputeinstead ofascribe. "The numbers [of blunders] that have beenimputedto him are endless."—"Appletons' Journal." The use ofimputein this connection is by no means indefensible; still it would have been better to useascribe.
In our midst.The phrasesin our midstandin their midstare generally supposed to be of recent introduction; and, though they have been used by some respectable writers, they nevertheless find no favor with those who study propriety in the use of language. To the phrasein the midstno one objects. "Jesus came and stoodin the midst." "There was a hutin the midstof the forest."
In respect of."The deliberate introduction of incorrect forms, whether by the coinage of new or the revival of obsolete and inexpressive syntactical combinations, ought to be resisted even in trifles, especially where it leads to the confusion of distinct ideas. An example of this is the recent use of the adverbial phrasesin respect of,in regard of, forinorwithrespectto, or regardto. This innovation is without any syntactical ground, and ought to be condemned and avoided as a mere grammatical crotchet."—George P. Marsh, "Lectures on the English Language," p. 660.
In so far as.A phrase often met with, and in which theinis superfluous. "A want of proper opportunity would suffice,inso far as the want could be shown." "We are to act up to the extent of our knowledge; but,inso far as our knowledge falls short," etc.
Inaugurate.This word, which means to install in office with certain ceremonies, is made, by many lovers of big words, to do service forbegin; but the sooner these rhetorical high-fliers stopinauguratingand content themselves with simplybeginningthe things they are called upon to do in the ordinary routine of daily life, the sooner they will cease to set a very bad example.
Indecent.SeeImmodest.
Index expurgatorius.William Cullen Bryant, who was a careful student of English, while he was editor of the "New York Evening Post," sought to prevent the writers for that paper from using "over and above (for 'more than'); artiste (for 'artist'); aspirant; authoress; beat (for 'defeat'); bagging (for 'capturing'); balance (for 'remainder'); banquet (for 'dinner' or 'supper'); bogus; casket(for 'coffin'); claimed (for 'asserted'); collided; commence (for 'begin'); compete; cortége (for 'procession'); cotemporary (for 'contemporary'); couple (for 'two'); darky (for 'negro'); day before yesterday (for 'the day before yesterday'); début; decrease (as a verb); democracy (applied to a political party); develop (for 'expose'); devouring element (for 'fire'); donate; employé; enacted (for 'acted'); indorse (for 'approve'); en route; esq.; graduate (for 'is graduated'); gents (for 'gentlemen'); 'Hon.'; House (for 'House of Representatives'); humbug; inaugurate (for 'begin'); in our midst; item (for 'particle, extract, or paragraph'); is being done, and all passives of this form; jeopardize; jubilant (for 'rejoicing'); juvenile (for 'boy'); lady (for 'wife'); last (for 'latest'); lengthy (for 'long'); leniency (for 'lenity'); loafer; loan or loaned (for 'lend' or 'lent'); located; majority (relating to places or circumstances, for 'most'); Mrs. President, Mrs. Governor, Mrs. General, and all similar titles; mutual (for 'common'); official (for 'officer'); ovation; on yesterday; over his signature; pants (for 'pantaloons'); parties (for 'persons'); partially (for 'partly'); past two weeks (for 'last two weeks,' and all similar expressions relating to a definite time); poetess; portion (for 'part'); posted (for 'informed'); progress (for 'advance'); reliable (for 'trustworthy'); rendition (for 'performance'); repudiate (for 'reject' or 'disown'); retire (as an active verb); Rev. (for 'the Rev.'); rôle (for 'part'); roughs; rowdies; secesh; sensation (for 'noteworthy event'); standpoint (for 'point of view'); start, in the sense of setting out; state (for 'say'); taboo; talent (for 'talents' or 'ability'); talented; tapis; the deceased; war (for 'dispute' or 'disagreement')."
This index is offered here as a curiosity rather than as a guide, though in the main it might safely be used assuch. No valid reason, however, can be urged for discouraging the use of several words in the list; the words aspirant, banquet, casket, compete, decrease, progress, start, talented, and deceased, for example.
Indicative and Subjunctive."'Iseethe signal,' is unconditional; 'ifIseethe signal,' is the same fact expressed in the form of a condition. The one form is said to be in theindicativemood, the mood that simplystates or indicatesthe action; the other form is in thesubjunctive, conditional, or conjunctive mood. There is sometimes a slight variation made in English, to show that an affirmation is made as a condition. The mood is called 'subjunctive,' because the affirmationis subjoined toanother affirmation: 'If I see the signal, I will call out.'
"Such forms as 'I may see,' 'I can see,' have sometimes been considered as a variety of mood, to which the name 'Potential' is given. But this can not properly be maintained. There is no trace of any inflection corresponding to this meaning, as we find with the subjunctive. Moreover, such a mood would have itself to be subdivided into indicative and subjunctive forms: 'I may go,' 'if I may go.' And further, we might proceed to constitute other moods on the same analogy, as, for example, an obligatory mood—'I must go,' or 'I ought to go'; a mood of resolution—'I will go, you shall go'; a mood of gratification—'I am delighted to go'; of deprecation—'I am grieved to go.' The only difference in the two last instances is the use of the sign of the infinitive 'to,' which does not occur after 'may,' 'can,' 'must,' 'ought,' etc.; but that is not an essential difference. Some grammarians consider the form 'I do go' a separate mood, and term it the emphatic mood. But all the above objections apply to it likewise, as well as many others."—Bain. SeeSubjunctive Mood.
Individual.This word is often most improperly used forperson; as, "TheindividualI saw was not over forty"; "There were severalindividualson board that I had never seen before."Individualmeans, etymologically, that which can not be divided, and is used, in speaking of things as well as of persons, to express unity. It is opposed to the whole, or that which is divisible into parts.
Indorse.Careful writers generally discountenance the use ofindorsein the sense ofsanction,approve,applaud. In this signification it is on the list of prohibited words in some of our newspaper offices. "The following rules areindorsedby nearly all writers upon this subject."—Dr. Townsend. It is plain that the right word to use here isapproved. "The public will heartilyindorsethe sentiments uttered by the court."—New York "Evening Telegram." "The public will heartilyapprovethe sentimentsexpressedby the court," is what the sentence should be.
Infinitive Mood.When we can choose, it is generally better to use the verb in the infinitive than in the participial form. "Ability being in general the powerof doing," etc. Say,to do. "I desire to reply ... to the proposalof substitutinga tax upon land values ... andmakingthis tax, as near [nearly] as may be, equal to rent," etc. Say,to substituteandto make. "This quality is of prime importance when the chief object isthe imparting ofknowledge." Say,to impart.
Initiate.This is a pretentious word, which, with its derivatives, many persons—especially those who like to be grandiloquent—use, when homely English would serve their turn much better.
Innumerable Number.A repetitional expression to be avoided. We may sayinnumerabletimes, ornumberlesstimes, but we should not say aninnumerable numberof times.
Interrogation.The rhetorical figure that asks a question in order to emphasize the reverse of what is asked is calledinterrogation; as, "Do we mean to submit to this measure? Do we mean to submit, and consent that we ourselves, our country and its rights, shall be trampled on?"
"Doth God pervert judgment? or doth the Almighty pervert justice?"
Introduce.SeePresent.
Irony.That mode of speech in which what is meant is contrary to the literal meaning of the words—in which praise is bestowed when censure is intended—is calledirony. Irony is a kind of delicate sarcasm or satire—raillery, mockery.
"In writings of humor, figures are sometimes used of so delicate a nature that it shall often happen that some people will see things in a direct contrary sense to what the author and the majority of the readers understand them: to such the most innocentironymay appear irreligion."—Cambridge.
Irritate.SeeAggravate.
Is being built.A tolerable idea of the state of the discussion regarding the propriety of using the locutionis being built, and all like expressions, will, it is hoped, be obtained from the following extracts. The Rev. Peter Bullions, in his "Grammar of the English Language," says:
"There is properlyno passiveform, in English,corresponding to the progressiveform in theactivevoice, except where it is made by the participleing, in a passive sense; thus, 'The house is building'; 'The garments are making'; 'Wheat is selling,' etc. An attempt has been made by some grammarians, of late, to banish such expressions from the language, though they have been used in all time past by the best writers, and to justify and defend a clumsy solecism,which has been recently introduced chiefly through the newspaper press, but which has gained such currency, and is becoming so familiar to the ear, that it seems likely to prevail, with all its uncouthness and deformity. I refer to such expressions as 'The house is being built'; 'The letter is being written'; 'The mine is being worked'; 'The news is being telegraphed,' etc., etc.
"This mode of expressionhad no existencein the language tillwithin the last fifty years.[7]This, indeed, would not make the expression wrong, were it otherwise unexceptionable; but its recent origin shows that it is not, as is pretended, anecessaryform.
"This form of expression, when analyzed, is found not to express what it is intended to express, and would be used only by such as are either ignorant of its import or are careless and loose in their use of language. To make this manifest, let it be considered, first, that there isno progressive formof the verbto be, and no need of it; hence, there is no such expression in English asis being. Of course the expression 'is beingbuilt,' for example, is not a compound ofis beingandbuilt, but ofisandbeing built; that is, of the verbto beand thepresent participle passive. Now, let it be observed that the only verbs in which the present participle passive expresses a continued action are those mentioned above as the first class, in which the regular passive form expresses acontinuanceof the action; as,is loved,is desired, etc., and in which, of course, the form in question (is being built) is not required. Nobody would think of saying, 'He is being loved'; 'This result is being desired.'
"The use of this form is justified only bycondemning an established usageof the language; namely, the passivesense in some verbs of the participle ining. In reference to this it is flippantly asked, 'What does the house build?' 'What does the letter write?' etc.—taking for granted, without attempting to prove, that the participle iningcan not have a passive sense in any verb. The following are a few examples from writers of the best reputation, which this novelty would condemn: 'While the ceremony was performing.'—Tom. Brown. 'The court was then holding.'—Sir G. McKenzie. 'And still be doing, never done.'—Butler. 'The books are selling.'—Allen's 'Grammar.' 'To know nothing of what is transacting in the regions above us.'—Dr. Blair. 'The spot where this new and strange tragedy was acting.'—E. Everett. 'The fortress was building.'—Irving. 'An attempt is making in the English parliament.'—D. Webster. 'The church now erecting in the city of New York.'—'N. A. Review.' 'These things were transacting in England.'—Bancroft.
"This new doctrine is inoppositionto the almostunanimous judgmentof themost distinguished grammariansand critics, who have considered the subject, and expressed their views concerning it. The following are a specimen: 'Expressions of this kind are condemned by some critics; but the usage is unquestionably of far better authority, and (according to my apprehension) in far better taste, than the more complex phraseology which some late writers adopt in its stead; as, "The books are now being sold."'—Goold Brown. 'As to the notion of introducing a new and more complex passive form of conjugation, as, "The bridgeis being built," "The bridgewas being built," and so forth, it is one of the most absurd and monstrous innovations ever thought of. "The workis now being published," is certainly no better English than, "The workwas being published,has been being published,had been being published,shall or will be being published,shall or will have been being published," and so on through all the moods and tenses. What a language shall we have when our verbs are thus conjugated!'—Brown's 'Gr. of Eng. Gr.,' p. 361. De War observes: 'The participle iningis also passive in many instances; as, "The house is building," "I heard of a plan forming,"' etc.—Quoted in 'Frazee's Grammar,' p. 49. 'It would be an absurdity, indeed, to give up the only way we have of denoting the incomplete state of action by a passive form (viz., by the participle iningin the passive sense).'—Arnold's 'English Grammar,' p. 46. 'The present participle is often used passively; as, "The ship is building." The form of expression,is being built,is being committed, etc., is almost universally condemned by grammarians, but it is sometimes met with in respectable writers; it occurs most frequently in newspaper paragraphs and in hasty compositions. See Worcester's "Universal and Critical Dictionary."'—Weld's 'Grammar,' pp. 118 and 180. 'When we say, "The house is building," the advocates of the new theory ask, "Building what?" We might ask, in turn, when you say, "The field ploughs well,"—"Ploughs what?" "Wheat sells well,"—"Sells what?" If usage allows us to say, "Wheat sells at a dollar," in a sense that is not active, why may we not say, "Wheat is selling at a dollar," in a sense that is not active?'—Hart's 'Grammar,' p. 76. 'The prevailing practice of the best authors is in favor of the simple form; as, "The house is building."'—Wells' 'School Grammar,' p. 148. 'Several other expressions of this sort now and then occur, such as the newfangled and most uncouth solecism "is being done," for the good old English idiom "is doing"—an absurd periphrasis driving out a pointed and pithy turn of the English language.'—'N. A. Review,' quoted by Mr. Wells, p. 148.'The phrase, "is being built," and others of a similar kind, have been for a few years insinuating themselves into our language; still they are not English.'—Harrison's 'Rise, Progress, and Present Structure of the English Language.' 'This mode of expression [the house is being built] is becoming quite common. It is liable, however, to several important objections. It appears formal and pedantic. It has not, as far as I know, the support of any respectable grammarian. The easy and natural expression is, "The house is building."'—Prof. J. W. Gibbs."
Mr. Richard Grant White, in his "Words and Their Uses," expresses his opinion of the locutionis beingin this wise: "In bad eminence, at the head of those intruders in language which to many persons seem to be of established respectability, but the right of which to be at all is not fully admitted, stands out the form of speechis being done, or rather,is being, which, about seventy or eighty years ago, began to affront the eye, torment the ear, and assault the common sense of the speaker of plain and idiomatic English." Mr. White devotes thirty pages of his book to the discussion of the subject, and adduces evidence that is more than sufficient to convince those who are content with anex parteexamination that "it can hardly be that such an incongruous and ridiculous form of speech asis being donewas contrived by a man who, by any stretch of the name, should be included among grammarians."
Mr. George P. Marsh, in his "Lectures on the English Language," says that the deviser of the locution in question was "some grammatical pretender," and that it is "an awkward neologism, which neither convenience, intelligibility, nor syntactical congruity demands."
To these gentlemen, and to those who are of their way of thinking with regard tois being, Dr. Fitzedward Hallreplies at some length, in an article published in "Scribner's Monthly" for April, 1872. Dr. Hall writes:
"'All really well educated in the English tongue lament the many innovations introduced into our language from America; and I doubt if more than one of these novelties deserve acceptation. That one is, substituting a compound participle for an active verb used in a neuter signification: for instance, "The house isbeing built," instead of, "The house isbuilding."' Such is the assertion and such is the opinion of some anonymous luminary,[8]who, for his liberality in welcoming a supposed Americanism, is somewhat in advance of the herd of his countrymen. Almost any popular expression which is considered as a novelty, a Briton is pretty certain to assume, off-hand, to have originated on our side of the Atlantic. Of the assertion I have quoted, no proof is offered; and there is little probability that its author had any to offer. 'Are being,' in the phrase 'are being thrown up,'[9]is spoken of in 'The North American Review'[10]as 'an outrage upon English idiom, "to be detested, abhorred, execrated, and given over to six thousand" penny-paper editors'; and the fact is, that phrases of the form here pointed at have hitherto enjoyed very much less favor with us than with the English.
"As lately as 1860, Dr. Worcester, referring tois being built, etc., while acknowledging that 'this new form hasbeen used by some respectable writers,' speaks of it as having 'been introduced' 'within a few years.' Mr. Richard Grant White, by a most peculiar process of ratiocination, endeavors to prove that what Dr. Worcester calls 'this new form' came into existence just fifty-six years ago. He premises that in Jarvis's translation of 'Don Quixote,' published in 1742, there occurs 'were carrying,' and that this, in the edition of 1818, is sophisticated into 'were being carried.' 'This change,' continues our logician, 'and the appearance ofis beingwith a perfect participle in a very few books published betweena. d.1815 and 1820, indicate the former period as that of the origin of this phraseology, which, although more than half a century old, is still pronounced a novelty as well as a nuisance.'
"Who, in the next place, devised our modern imperfects passive? The question is not, originally, of my asking; but, as the learned are at open feud on the subject, it should not be passed by in silence. Its deviser is, more than likely, as undiscoverable as the name of the valiant antediluvian who first tasted an oyster. But the deductive character of the miscreant is another thing; and hereon there is a war between the philosophers. Mr. G. P. Marsh, as if he had actually spotted the wretched creature, passionately and categorically denounces him as 'some grammatical pretender.' 'But,' replies Mr. White, 'that it is the work of any grammarian is more than doubtful. Grammarians, with all their faults, do not deform language with fantastic solecisms, or even seek to enrich it with new and startling verbal combinations. They rather resist novelty, and devote themselves to formulating that which use has already established.' In the same page with this, Mr. White compliments the great unknown as 'some preciseand feeble-minded soul,' and elsewhere calls him 'some pedantic writer of the last generation.' To add even one word toward a solution of the knotty point here indicated transcends, I confess, my utmost competence. It is painful to picture to one's self the agonizing emotions with which certain philologists would contemplate an authentic effigy of the Attila of speech who, by hisis being builtoris being done, first offered violence to the whole circle of the proprieties. So far as I have observed, the first grammar that exhibits them is that of Mr. R. S. Skillern, M. A., the first edition of which was published at Gloucester in 1802. Robert Southey had not, on the 9th of October, 1795, been out of his minority quite two months when, evidently delivering himself in a way that had already become familiar enough, he wrote of 'a fellow whose uttermost upper grinderis being torn outby the roots by a mutton-fisted barber.'[11]This is in a letter. But repeated instances of the same kind of expression are seen in Southey's graver writings. Thus, in his 'Colloquies,' etc.,[12]we read of 'such [nunneries] as at this timeare being reëstablished.'
"'While my handwas being drestby Mr. Young, I spoke for the first time,' wrote Coleridge, in March, 1797.
"Charles Lamb speaks of realities which 'are being actedbefore us,' and of 'a man whois being strangled.'
"Walter Savage Landor, in an imaginary conversation, represents Pitt as saying: 'The man who possesses them may read Swedenborg and Kant while heis being tossedin a blanket.' Again: 'I have seen nobles, men and women,kneeling in the street before these bishops, when no ceremony of the Catholic Churchwas being performed.' Also, in a translation from Catullus: 'Some criminalis being triedfor murder.'
"Nor does Mr. De Quincey scruple at such English as 'made andbeing made,' 'the bride thatwas being marriedto him,' and 'the shafts of Heavenwereeven nowbeing forged.' On one occasion he writes, 'Not done, not even (according to modern purism)being done'; as if 'purism' meant exactness, rather than the avoidance of neoterism.
"I need, surely, name no more, among the dead, who foundis being built, or the like, acceptable. 'Simple-minded common people and those of culture were alike protected against it by their attachment to the idiom of their mother tongue, with which they felt it to be directly at variance.' So Mr. White informs us. But the writers whom I have quoted are formidable exceptions. Even Mr. White will scarcely deny to them the title of 'people of culture.'
"So much for offenders past repentance; and we all know that the sort of phraseology under consideration is daily becoming more and more common. The best written of the English reviews, magazines, and journals are perpetually marked by it; and some of the choicest of living English writers employ it freely. Among these, it is enough if I specify Bishop Wilberforce and Mr. Charles Reade.[13]
"Extracts from Bishop Jewel downward being also given, Lord Macaulay, Mr. Dickens, 'The Atlantic Monthly,' and 'The Brooklyn Eagle' are alleged by Mr. White in proofthat people still use such phrases as 'Chelsea Hospitalwas building,' and 'the trainwas preparing.' 'Hence we see,' he adds,[14]'that the formis being done,is being made,is being built, lacks the support of authoritative usage from the period of the earliest classical English to the present day.' I fully concur with Mr. White in regarding 'neither "The Brooklyn Eagle" nor Mr. Dickens as a very high authority in the use of language'; yet, when he has renounced the aid of these contemned straws, what has he to rest his inference on, as to the present day, but the practice of Lord Macaulay and 'The Atlantic Monthly'? Those who think fit will bow to the dictatorship here prescribed to them; but there may be those with whom the classic sanction of Southey, Coleridge, and Landor will not be wholly void of weight. All scholars are aware that, to convey the sense of the imperfects passive, our ancestors, centuries ago, prefixed, withis, etc.,in, afterward corrupted intoa, to a verbal substantive. 'The houseis in building' could be taken to mean nothing butædes ædificantur; and, when theingave place toa,[15]it was still manifest enough, from the context, thatbuildingwas governed by a preposition. The second stage of change, however, namely, when theawas omitted, entailed, in many cases, great danger of confusion. In the early part of the last century, when English was undergoing what was then thought to be purification, the polite world substantially resignedis a-buildingto the vulgar. Toward the close of the same century, when, under the influence of free thought, it began to be felt that even ideas had a right to faithful and unequivocalrepresentation, a just resentment of ambiguity was evidenced in the creation ofis being built. The lament is too late that the instinct of reformation did not restore the old form. It has gone forever; and we are now to make the best of its successors. '"The brassis forging,"' in the opinion of Dr. Johnson, is 'a vicious expression, probably corrupted from a phrase more pure, but now somewhat obsolete, ... "the brassis a-forging."' Yet, with a true Tory's timidity and aversion to change, it is not surprising that he went on preferring what he found established, vicious as it confessedly was, to the end. But was the expression 'vicious' solely because it was a corruption? In 1787 William Beckford wrote as follows of the fortune-tellers of Lisbon: 'I saw one dragging into light, as I passed by the ruins of a palace thrown down by the earthquake. Whether a familiar of the Inquisition was griping her in his clutches, orwhether she was taking to account by some disappointed votary, I will not pretend to answer.' Are the expressions here italicized either perspicuous or graceful? Whatever we are to have in their place, we should be thankful to get quit of them.
"Inasmuch as, concurrently withbuildingfor the active participle, andbeing builtfor the corresponding passive participle, we possessed the former, withisprefixed, as the active present imperfect, it is in rigid accordance with the symmetry of our verb that, to construct the passive present-imperfect, we prefixisto the latter, producing the formis being built. Such, in its greatest simplicity, is the procedure which, as will be seen, has provoked a very levanter of ire and vilification. But anything that is new will be excepted to by minds of a certain order. Their tremulous and impatient dread of removing ancient landmarks even disqualifies them for thoroughly investigating its characterand pretensions. Inhas builtandwill build, we find the active participle perfect and the active infinitive subjoined to auxiliaries; and so, inhas been builtandwill be built, the passive participle perfect and the passive infinitive are subjoined to auxiliaries. Inis buildingandis being built, we have, in strict harmony with the constitution of the perfect and future tenses, an auxiliary followed by the active participle present and the passive participle present.Builtis determined as active or passive by the verbs which qualify it,haveandbe; and the grammarians are right in considering it, when embodied inhas built, as active, since its analogue, embodied inhas been built, is the exclusively passivebeen built. Besides this,has been+builtwould signify something likehas existed, built,[16]which is plainly neuter. We are debarred, therefore, from such an analysis; and, by parity of reasoning, we may not resolveis being builtintois being+built. It must have been an inspiration of analogy, felt or unfelt, that suggested the form I am discussing.Is being+built, as it can mean, pretty nearly, onlyexists, built, would never have been proposed as adequate to convey any but a neuter sense; whereas it was perfectly natural for a person aiming to express a passive sense to prefixisto the passive concretionbeing built.[17]
"The analogical justification ofis being builtwhich I have brought forward is so obvious that, as it occurred tomyself more than twenty years ago, so it must have occurred spontaneously to hundreds besides. It is very singular that those who, like Mr. Marsh and Mr. White, have pondered long and painfully over locutions typified byis being built, should have missed the real ground of their grammatical defensibleness, and should have warmed themselves, in their opposition to them, into uttering opinions which no calm judgment can accept.
"'One whois being beaten' is, to Archbishop Whately, 'uncouth English.' '"The bridgeis being built," and other phrases of the like kind, have pained the eye' of Mr. David Booth. Such phrases, according to Mr. M. Harrison, 'are not English.' To Professor J. W. Gibbs 'this mode of expression ... appears formal and pedantic'; and 'the easy and natural expression is, "The houseis building."'[18]In all this, little or nothing is discernible beyond sheer prejudice, the prejudice of those who resolve to take their stand against an innovation, regardless of its utility, and who are ready to find an argument against it in any random epithet of disparagement provoked by unreasoning aversion. And the more recent denouncers in the same line have no more reason on their side than their elder brethren.
"In Mr. Marsh's estimation,is being builtillustrates 'corruption of language'; it is 'clumsy and unidiomatic'; it is 'at best but a philological coxcombry'; it 'is an awkward neologism, which neither convenience, intelligibility, nor syntactical congruity demands, and the use of which ought, therefore, to be discountenanced, as an attempt at the artificial improvement of the language in a point which needed no amendment.' Again, 'To reject'is buildingin favor of the modern phrase 'is to violate the laws of languageby an arbitrary change; and, in this particular case, the proposed substitute is at war with the genius of the English tongue.' Mr. Marsh seems to have fancied that, wherever he points out a beauty inis building, he points out, inclusively, a blemish inis being built.
"The fervor and feeling with which Mr. White advances to the charge are altogether tropical. 'The full absurdity of this phrase, the essence of its nonsense, seems not to have been hitherto pointed out.' It is not 'consistent with reason'; and it is not 'conformed to the normal development of the language.' It is 'a monstrosity, the illogical, confusing, inaccurate, unidiomatic character of which I have at some length, but yet imperfectly, set forth.' Finally, 'In fact, it means nothing, and is the most incongruous combination of words and ideas that ever attained respectable usage in any civilized language.' These be 'prave 'ords'; and it seems a pity that so much sterling vituperative ammunition should be expended in vain. And that it is so expended thinks Mr. White himself; for, though passing sentence in the spirit of a Jeffreys, he is not really on the judgment-seat, but on the lowest hassock of despair. As concerns the mode of expression exemplified byis being built, he owns that 'to check its diffusion would be a hopeless undertaking.' If so, why not reserve himself for service against some evil not avowedly beyond remedy?
"Again we read, 'Some precise and feeble-minded soul, having been taught that there is a passive voice in English, and that, for instance,buildingis an active participle, andbuildedorbuilta passive, felt conscientious scruples at saying "the houseis building." For what could the house build?' As children say at play, Mr. White burns here. If it had occurred to him that the 'conscientious scruples' of his hypothetical, 'precise, and feeble-mindedsoul' were roused bybeen built, not bybuilt, I suspect his chapter onis being builtwould have been much shorter than it is at present, and very different. 'The fatal absurdity in this phrase consists,' he tells us, 'in the combination ofiswithbeing; in the making of the verbto bea supplement, or, in grammarians' phrase, an auxiliary to itself—an absurdity so palpable, so monstrous, so ridiculous, that it should need only to be pointed out to be scouted.'[19]Lastly, 'The question is thus narrowed simply to this, Doesto be being(esse ens) mean anything more or other thanto be?'
"Having convicted Mr. White of a mistaken analysis, I am not concerned with the observations which he founds on his mistake. However, even if his analysis had been correct, some of his arguments would avail him nothing. For instance,is being built, on his understanding of it, that is to say,is being+built, he represents byens ædificatus est, as 'the supposed corresponding Latin phrase.'[20]The Latin is illegitimate; and he infers that, therefore, the English is the same. Butædificans est, a translation, on the model which he offers, of the activeis building, is quite as illegitimate asens æedificatus est. By parity ofnon-sequitur, we are, therefore, to surrender the activeis building. Assume that a phrase in a given language is indefensible unless ithas its counterpart in some other language; from the very conception and definition of an idiom every idiom is illegitimate.
"I now pass to another point. 'To beandto existare,' to Mr. White's apprehension, 'perfect synonyms, or more nearly perfect, perhaps, than any two verbs in the language. In some of their meanings there is a shade of difference, but in others there is none whatever; and the latter are those which serve our present purpose. When we say, "He,beingforewarned of danger, fled," we say, "He,existingforewarned of danger, fled." When we say that a thingisdone, we say that itexistsdone....Is being doneis simplyexists existing done.' But, sinceisandexistsare equipollent, and sobeingandexisting, is beingis the same as the unimpeachableis existing. Q.nonE. D.Is existingought, of course, to be no less objectionable to Mr. White thanis being. Just as absurd, too, should he reckon the Italiansono stato,era stato,sia stato,fossi stato,saro stato,sarei stato,essere stato, andessendo stato. For in Italian bothessereandstareare required to make up the verb substantive, as in Latin bothesseand the offspring offuereare required; andstare, primarily 'to stand,' is modified into a true auxiliary. The alleged 'full absurdity of this phrase,' to wit,is being built, 'the essence of its nonsense,' vanishes thus into thin air. So I was about to comment bluntly, not forgetting to regret that any gentleman's cultivation of logic should fructify in the shape of irrepressible tendencies to suicide. But this would be precipitate. Agreeably to one of Mr. White's judicial placita, which I make no apology for citing twice, 'no man who has preserved all his senses will doubt for a moment that "to exist a mastiff or a mule" is absolutely the same as "to be a mastiff or a mule."' Declining to admit their identity, I have not preserved allmy senses; and, accordingly—though it may be in me the very superfetation of lunacy—I would caution the reader to keep a sharp eye on my arguments, hereabouts particularly. The Cretan, who, in declaring all Cretans to be liars, left the question of his veracity doubtful to all eternity, fell into a pit of his own digging. Not unlike the unfortunate Cretan, Mr. White has tumbled headlong into his own snare. It was, for the rest, entirely unavailing that he insisted on the insanity of those who should gainsay his fundamental postulate. Sanity, of a crude sort, may accept it; and sanity may put it to a use other than its propounder's.
"Mr. Marsh, after setting forth the all-sufficiency ofis building, in the passive sense, goes on to say: 'The reformers who object to the phrase I am defending must, in consistency, employ the proposed substitute with all passive participles, and in other tenses as well as the present. They must say, therefore, "The subscription-paperis being missed, but I know that a considerable sumis being wantedto make up the amount"; "the great Victoria Bridgehas been being builtmore than two years"; "when I reach London, the ship Leviathanwill be being built"; "if my orders had been followed, the coatwould have been being made yesterday"; "if the househadthenbeen being built, the mortarwould have been being mixed."' We may reply that, while awkward instances of the old form are most abundant in our literature, there is no fear that the repulsive elaborations which have been worked out in ridicule of the new forms will prove to have been anticipations of future usage. There was a time when, as to their adverbs, people compared them, to a large extent, with-erand-est, or withmoreandmost, just as their ear or pleasure dictated. They wroteplainlierandplainliest, ormore plainlyandmost plainly; and some adverbs, asearly,late,often,seldom, andsoon, we still compare in a way now become anomalous. And as our forefathers treated their adverbs we still treat many adjectives.Furthermore,obligingness,preparedness, anddesignedlyseem quite natural; yet we do not feel that they authorize us to talk of 'theseeingnessof the eye,' 'theunderstoodnessof a sentence,' or of 'a statementacknowledgedlycorrect.' 'The now too notorious fact' is tolerable; but 'the never to be sufficiently execrated monster Bonaparte' is intolerable. The sun may beshornof his splendor; but we do not allow cloudy weather toshearhim of it. How, then, can any one claim that a man who prefers to sayis being builtshould sayhas been being built? Are not awkward instances of the old form, typified byis building, as easily to be picked out of extant literature as such instances of the new form, likely ever to be used, are to be invented? And 'the reformers' have not forsworn their ears. Mr. Marsh, at p. 135 of his admirable 'Lectures,' lays down that 'the adjectivereliable, in the sense ofworthy of confidence, is altogether unidiomatic'; and yet, at p. 112, he writes 'reliableevidence.' Again, at p. 396 of the same work, he rules thatwhose, in 'I passed a housewhosewindows were open,' is 'by no means yet fully established'; and at p. 145 of his very learned 'Man and Nature' he writes 'a quadrangular pyramid, the perpendicular ofwhosesides,' etc. Really, if his own judgments sit so very loose on his practical conscience, we may, without being chargeable with exaction, ask of him to relax a little the rigor of his requirements at the hands of his neighbors.
"Beckford's Lisbon fortune-teller, before had into court, was 'dragginginto light,' and, perchance, 'was takingto account.' Many moderns would say and write 'being draggedinto light,' and 'was being takento account.' But, if weare to trust the conservative critics, in comparison with expressions of the former pattern, those of the latter are 'uncouth,' 'clumsy,' 'awkward neologisms,' 'philological coxcombries,' 'formal and pedantic,' 'incongruous and ridiculous forms of speech,' 'illogical, confusing, inaccurate monstrosities.' Moreover, they are neither 'consistent with reason' nor 'conformed to the normal development of the language'; they are 'at war with the genius of the English tongue'; they are 'unidiomatic'; they are 'not English.' In passing, if Mr. Marsh will so define the termunidiomaticas to evince that it has any applicability to the case in hand, or if he will arrest and photograph 'the genius of the English tongue,' so that we may know the original when we meet with it, he will confer a public favor. And now I submit for consideration whether the sole strength of those who decryis being builtand its congeners does not consist in their talent for calling hard names. If they have not an uneasy subconsciousness that their cause is weak, they would, at least, do well in eschewing the violence to which, for want of something better, the advocates of weak causes proverbially resort.
"I once had a friend who, for some microscopic penumbra of heresy, was charged, in the words of his accuser, with 'as near an approach to the sin against the Holy Ghost as is practicable to human infirmity.' Similarly, on one view, the feeble potencies of philological turpitude seem to have exhibited their most consummate realization in engenderingis being built. The supposed enormity perpetrated in its production, provided it had fallen within the sphere of ethics, would, at the least, have ranked, with its denunciators, as a brand-new exemplification of total depravity. But, after all, what incontestable defect in it has any one succeeded in demonstrating? Mr. White, in opposingto the expression objections based on an erroneous analysis, simply lays a phantom of his own evoking; and, so far as I am informed, other impugners ofis being builthave, absolutely, no argument whatever against it over and beyond their repugnance to novelty. Subjected to a little untroubled contemplation, it would, I am confident, have ceased long ago to be matter of controversy; but the dust of prejudice and passion, which so distempers the intellectual vision of theologians and politicians, is seen to make, with ruthless impartiality, no exception of the perspicacity of philologists.
"Prior to the evolution ofis being builtandwas being built, we possessed no discriminate equivalents toædificaturandædificabatur;is builtandwas built, by which they were rendered, corresponding exactly toædificatus estandædificatus erat.Cum ædificareturwas to us the same asædificabatur. On the wealth of the Greek in expressions of imperfect passive I need not dwell. With rare exceptions, the Romans were satisfied with the present-imperfect and the past-imperfect; and we, on the comparatively few occasions which present themselves for expressing other imperfects, shall be sure to have recourse to the old forms rather than to the new, or else to use periphrases.[21]The purists may, accordingly, dismiss their apprehensions, especially as the neoterists have, clearly, a keener horror of phraseological ungainliness than themselves. One mayhave no hesitation about saying 'the houseis being built,' and may yet recoil from saying that 'itshould have been being builtlast Christmas'; and the same person—just as, provided he did not feel a harshness, inadequacy, and ambiguity in the passive 'the houseis building,' he would use the expression—will, more likely than not, electis in preparationpreferentially tois being prepared. If there are any who, in their zealotry for the congruous, choose to adhere to the new form in its entire range of exchangeability for the old, let it be hoped that they will find, in Mr. Marsh's speculative approbation of consistency, full amends for the discomfort of encountering smiles or frowns. At the same time, let them be mindful of the career of Mr. White, with his black flag and no quarter. The dead Polonius was, in Hamlet's phrase, at supper, 'not where he eats, but where heis eaten.' Shakespeare, to Mr. White's thinking, in this wise expressed himself at the best, and deserves not only admiration therefor, but to be imitated. 'While the arkwas built,' 'while the arkwas prepared,' writes Mr. White himself.[22]Shakespeare is commended for his ambiguousis eaten, thoughin eatingoran eatingwould have been not only correct in his day, but, where they would have come in his sentence, univocal. With equal reason a man would be entitled to commendation for tearing his mutton-chops with his fingers, when he might cut them up with a knife and fork. 'Is eaten,' says Mr. White, 'does not meanhas been eaten.' Very true; but a continuous unfinished passion—Polonius's still undergoing manducation, to speak Johnsonese—was in Shakespeare's mind; and his words describe a passion no longer in generation. The King of Denmark's lord chamberlain had no precedent in Herod, when 'hewas eatenof worms'; the original,γενόμενος σκωληκόβÏωτος, yielding, but for its participle, 'he became worm-eaten.'
"Having now done with Mr. White, I am anxious, before taking leave of him, to record, with all emphasis, that it would be the grossest injustice to write of his elegant 'Life and Genius of Shakespeare,' a book which does credit to American literature, in the tone which I have found unavoidable in dealing with his 'Words and their Uses.'"
The student of English who has honestly weighed the arguments on both sides of the question, must, I believe, be of opinion that our language is the richer for having two forms for expressing the Progressive Passive. Further, he must, I believe, be of opinion that in very many cases he conforms to the most approved usage of our time by employing the old form; that, however, if he were to employ the old form in all cases, his meaning would sometimes be uncertain.
It.Cobbett discourses of this little neuter pronoun in this wise: "The worditis the greatest troubler that I know of in language. It is so small and so convenient that few are careful enough in using it. Writers seldom spare this word. Whenever they are at a loss for either a nominative or an objective to their sentence, they, without any kind of ceremony, clap in anit. A very remarkable instance of this pressing of pooritinto actual service, contrary to the laws of grammar and of sense, occurs in a piece of composition, where we might, with justice, insist on correctness. This piece is on the subject of grammar; it is a piece written by aDoctor of Divinityand read by him to students in grammar and language in an academy; and the very sentence that I am now about to quote is selected by the author of a grammar as testimony of highauthority in favor of the excellence of his work. Surely, if correctness be ever to be expected, it must be in a case like this. I allude to two sentences in the 'Charge of the Reverend Doctor Abercrombie to the Senior Class of the Philadelphia Academy,' published in 1806; which sentences have been selected and published by Mr. Lindley Murray as a testimonial of themeritsof his grammar; and which sentences are by Mr. Murray given to us in the following words: 'The unwearied exertions of this gentlemanhavedone more toward elucidating the obscurities and embellishing the structure of our language than anyother writeron the subject.Such a workhas long been wanted, and from the success with whichitis executed, can not be too highly appreciated.'
"As in the learned Doctor's opinion obscurities can be elucidated, and as in the same opinion Mr. Murray is an able hand at this kind of work, it would not be amiss were the grammarian to try his skill upon this article from the hand of his dignified eulogist; for here is, if one may use the expression, a constellation of obscurities. Our poor oppressedit, which we find forced into the Doctor's service in the second sentence, relates to 'such a work,' though this work is nothing that has an existence, notwithstanding it is said to be 'executed.' In the first sentence, the 'exertions' become, all of a sudden, a 'writer': theexertionshave done more than 'anyotherwriter'; for, mind you, it is not thegentlemanthat has done anything; it is 'theexertions' thathavedone what is said to be done. The wordgentlemanis in the possessive case, and has nothing to do with the action of the sentence. Let us give the sentence a turn, and the Doctor and the grammarian will hear how it will sound. 'This gentleman'sexertionshave done more than anyother writer.' This is on a level with 'Thisgentleman'sdoghas killed more hares than anyother sportsman.' No doubt Doctor Abercrombiemeantto say, 'The exertions of this gentleman have done morethan thoseof any other writer. Such a work as this gentleman's has long been wanted; his work, seeing the successful manner of its execution, can not be too highly commended.'Meant!No doubt at all of that! And when we hear a Hampshire ploughboy say, 'Poll Cherrycheek have giv'd a thick handkecher,' we know very well that hemeansto say, 'Poll Cherrycheek has given me this handkerchief'; and yet we are too apt tolaugh at himand to call himignorant; which is wrong, because he has no pretensions to a knowledge of grammar, and he may be very skillful as a ploughboy. However, we will not laugh at Doctor Abercrombie, whom I knew, many years ago, for a very kind and worthy man. But, if we may, in any case, be allowed to laugh at the ignorance of our fellow-creatures, that case certainly does arise when we see a professed grammarian, the author of voluminous precepts and examples on the subject of grammar, producing, in imitation of the possessors of valuable medical secrets, testimonials vouching for the efficacy of his literary panacea, and when, in those testimonials, we find most flagrant instances of bad grammar.
"However, my dear James, let this strong and striking instance of the misuse of the worditserve you in the way of caution. Never put anitupon paper without thinking well of what you are about. When I see manyitsin a page, I always tremble for the writer."
Jeopardize.This is a modern word which we could easily do without, as it means neither more nor less than its venerable progenitorto jeopard, which is greatly preferred by all careful writers.
Just going to.Instead of "I amjust going togo," it is better to say, "I am justaboutto go."
Kids."This is another vile contraction. Habit blinds people to the unseemliness of a term like this. How would it sound if one should speak of silk gloves assilks?"
Kind.SeePolite.
Knights Templars.The name of this ancient body has been adopted by a branch of the Masonic fraternity, but in a perverted form—Knights Templar; and this form is commonly seen in print, whether referring to the old knights or to their modern imitators. This doubtless is due to the erroneous impression thatTemplaris an adjective, and so can not take the plural form; while in fact it is a case of two nouns in apposition—a double designation—meaning Knights of the order of Templars. Hence the plural should beKnights Templars, and notKnights Templar. Members of the contemporaneous order of St. John of Jerusalem were commonly called Knights Hospitallers.