Plain English Part 6

2. The _man_ has a boat.

3. The women _pa.s.s_ this way.

4. They held the _pa.s.s_ for hours.

5. Little children _work_ in the mines.

6. The _work_ of the world is done by machinery today.

7. The armies will _cross_ the bridge.

8. He built a _cross_ of rude stones.

9. The leopard cannot _change_ its spots.

10. We will force a _change_ in the law.

Exercise 5

In the following poem, mark every noun and every verb and verb phrase.

You will find the verb phrases in several places divided by the word _not_, as in _I do not obey_. _Do obey_ is the verb phrase. We will learn to what part of speech _not_ belongs a little later.

I DO NOT OBEY, I THINK.

"Captain, what do you think," I asked, "Of the part your soldiers play?"

The Captain answered, "I do not think-- I do not think, I obey."

"Do you think your conscience was meant to die, And your brains to rot away?"

The Captain answered, "I do not think-- I do not think, I obey."

"Do you think you should shoot a patriot down, And help a tyrant slay?"

The Captain answered, "I do not think-- I do not think, I obey."

"Then if this is your soldier's code," I cried, "You're a mean, unmanly crew; And with all your feathers and gilt and braid, I am more of a man than you;

"For whatever my lot on earth may be And whether I swim or sink, I can say with pride, 'I do not obey-- I do not obey, I think.'"

--_Ernest Crosby_.

SPELLING

LESSON 2

The twenty-six letters in the English alphabet are divided into vowels and consonants. A vowel is a letter which represents a sound of the human voice but slightly interrupted by the vocal organs. The vowels are _a_, _e_, _i_, _o_ and _u_. All of the remaining letters of the alphabet are consonants. A consonant is a letter which represents a sound of the human voice greatly obstructed by the vocal organs. Consonant is from the Latin _con_, meaning _with_, and _sono_--_I sound_. So it means literally _I sound with_.

The consonants are produced by union of the breath with the vocal organs. The consonant sounds are so called because they are always "sounded with" a vowel; they are used only in combination with vowels in forming words or syllables.

In English a consonant alone never forms a word or a syllable. Sound the different consonants _b_, _c_, _d_, _f_, _g_, _h_, _j_, _k_, _l_, _m_, _n_, _p_, _q_, _r_, _s_, _t_, _v_, _x_ and _z_, by themselves and you will see how the sound of the breath is obstructed or changed by the use of the vocal organs--the lips, the tongue, the teeth, etc.--in making these various sounds.

_W_ and _y_ are sometimes vowels and sometimes consonants. _W_ and _y_ are vowels when they are used with another vowel representing a vowel sound as in _awe_, _new_, _joy_, _eye_, etc. _Y_ is sometimes used as a vowel by itself as in _by_, _cry_, etc. _W_ and _y_ are consonants when they are used at the beginning of a syllable or before a vowel in the same syllable as in _wine_, _twine_, _yield_ and _year_.

Look up the meaning of the words in this week's lesson. Master the spelling and use them in sentences of your own construction.

+Monday+

Reason Evolution Justice Thorough Beauty

+Tuesday+

a.s.sertive Review Surprise Basis Separate

+Wednesday+

Interrogative Period Capital Capitol Function

+Thursday+

Example Contain Imperative Question Speech

+Friday+

Method Various Familiar Industry Alphabet

+Sat.u.r.day+

Travel Sense Cents Sail Sale

PLAIN ENGLISH

LESSON 3

Dear Comrade:

In this lesson we are taking up a short study of the different parts of speech. In later lessons we will study each part of speech more thoroughly but this lesson covers the ground quickly and briefly. It is sufficient, however, to form a basis for our understanding of the evolution of language.

You will see, as you study this lesson, how each part of speech has been added to meet a growing need. There are many, many thousand words in the English language, but they can all be grouped under these eight parts of speech, for they all answer in some way to one of these great needs.

The object in studying grammar, as in studying any other science, is not to fill one's mind with a great many unrelated facts--facts which may or may not prove useful to one hereafter. The object of all study is to develop one's power of observation and one's ability to think. Added to this must be the practical ability to make use of this knowledge. Here the study of grammar has an advantage over the study of every other science. It deals with words, something which we use every day.

You do not need any laboratory or expensive apparatus in order to study grammar. All that you need lies ready to your hand. And in addition to this the knowledge which you gain is something which is of practical use to every man and woman no matter what their work, no matter what their place or position in life may be.

Remember that dogmatism has no place in the study of grammar.

"Grammarians are the guardians, not the authors, of language." We do not say, "You should say this or that, or you violate a rule of grammar,"

but we say "The common usage among those who use good English is thus and so." If we do not believe that the common usage is the best usage, then we follow the democratic method of seeking to change the common usage into that which we consider the more sensible way. Thus, those who advocate simplified spelling have not sought to pa.s.s a law whereby every one should be compelled to spell words exactly as they sound, but they have striven to influence our writers and people in general to use this more sensible way of spelling words.

So _think_ while you study. Do not try to learn rules and formulas. See _why_ the rules and formulas exist. Once having seen this you do not need to learn them--you know them already. The study of any language is an intellectual discipline of the highest order.

So apply yourself diligently to this most interesting study and you will see that the result of this application will affect your daily life in every particular.