English Grammar in Familiar Lectures Part 19

FALSE SYNTAX.

He speaks fluent, and reasons coherent.

She reads proper, and writes very neat.

They once lived tolerable well, but now they are miserable poor.

The lowering clouds are moving slow.

He behaved himself submissive, and was exceeding careful not to give offence.

NOTE 4, TO RULE 29. Adverbs are sometimes improperly used instead of adjectives; as, "The tutor addressed him in terms rather warm, but _suitably_ to his offence."

The adverb _suitably_ is incorrect. It does not express the manner of the action of the verb "addressed," but it denotes the _quality_ of the noun _terms_ understood; for which reason it should be an adjective, _suitable_.

FALSE SYNTAX.

The man was slowly wandering about, _solitarily_ and distressed.

He lived in a manner _agreeably_ to his condition.

The study of Syntax should be _previously_ to that of Punctuation.

He introduced himself in a manner very _abruptly_.

_Conformably_ to their vehemence of thought, was their vehemence of gesture.

I saw him _previously_ to his arrival.

LECTURE VII

OF PREPOSITIONS.

A PREPOSITION is a word which serves to connect words, and show the relation between them.

The term _preposition_ is derived from the two Latin words, _pre_, which signifies _before_, and _pono, to place_. Prepositions are so called, because they are mostly placed before the nouns and p.r.o.nouns which they govern in the objective case.

The princ.i.p.al prepositions are presented in the following list, which you may now commit to memory, and thus you will be enabled to distinguish them from other parts of speech whenever you see them in composition.

A LIST OF THE PREPOSITIONS.

of, over, at, after, betwixt, to, under, near, about, beside, for, through, up, against, athwart, by, above, down, unto, towards, with, below, before, across, notwithstanding, in, between, behind, around, out of, into, beneath, off, amidst, instead of, within, from, on upon, throughout, over against, without, beyond, among, underneath, according to.

This list contains many words that are sometimes used as conjunctions, and sometimes as adverbs; but when you shall have become acquainted with the _nature_ of the preposition, and of the conjunction and adverb too, you will find no difficulty in ascertaining to which of these cla.s.ses any word belongs.

By looking at the definition of a preposition, you will notice, that it performs a _double_ office in a sentence, namely, it _connects_ words, and also shows a _relation_ between them. I will first show you the use and importance of this part of speech as a connective. When corn is ripe--October, it is gathered--the field--men--who go--hill--hill--baskets,--which they put the ears. You perceive, that in this sentence there is a total want of connexion and meaning; but let us fill up each vacancy with a preposition, and the sense will be clear.

"When corn is ripe, _in_ October, it is gathered _in_ the field _by_ men, who go _from_ hill _to_ hill _with_ baskets, _into_ which they put the ears."

From this ill.u.s.tration you are convinced, no doubt, that our language would be very deficient without prepositions to connect the various words of which it is composed. It would, in fact, amount to nothing but nonsense. There is, however, another part of speech that performs this office, namely, the conjunction. This will be explained in Lecture IX.; in which lecture you will learn, that the nature of a preposition, as a connective particle, is nearly allied to that of a conjunction. In the next place I will show you how prepositions express a _relation_ between words.

The boy's hat is _under_ his arm. In this expression, what relation does the preposition _under_ show? You know that _hat_ and _arm_ are words used as signs of two objects, or ideas; but _under_ is _not_ the sign of a thing you can think of: it is merely the sign of the _relation_ existing between the two objects. Hence you may perceive, that since the word _under_ is the sign of the _relation_ existing between particular _ideas_, it also expresses a relation existing between the words _hat_ and _arm_, which words are the representatives of those ideas.

The boy holds his hat _in_ his hand. In this sentence the preposition _in_ shows the relation existing between _hat_ and _hand_, or the situation, or relative position, each has in regard to the other. And, if I say, The boy's hat is _on_ his head, you perceive that _on_ shows the relation between _hat_ and _head_. Again, in the expressions, The boy threw his hat _up stairs_--_under_ the bed--_behind_ the table--_through_ the window--_over_ the house--_across_ the street--_into_ the water--and so on, you perceive that the several prepositions express the different relations existing between the _hat_ and the other nouns, _stairs, bed, table, window, house, street_, and _water_.

A preposition tells _where_ a thing is: thus, "The pear is on the ground, _under_ the tree."

Prepositions govern the objective case, but they do _not_ express an action done to some object, as an active-transitive verb or participle does. When a noun or p.r.o.noun follows a preposition, it is in the objective case, because it is the object of the _relation_ expressed by the preposition, and _not_ the object of an _action_.

I can now give you a more extensive explanation of the _objective case_, than that which was given in a former lecture. I have already informed you, that the objective case expresses the object of an action _or_ of a relation; and, also, that there are _three_ parts of speech which govern nouns and p.r.o.nouns in the objective case, namely, _active-transitive verbs, participles derived from transitive verbs_, and _prepositions_. A noun or p.r.o.noun in the objective case, cannot be, at the same time, the object of an action _and_ of a relation. It must be either the object of an action _or_ of a relation. And I wish you particularly to remember, that whenever a noun or p.r.o.noun is governed by a transitive verb or participle, it is the object of an _action_; as, The tutor _instructs_ his _pupils_; or, The tutor is _instructing_ his _pupils_; but whenever a noun or p.r.o.noun is governed by a preposition, it is the object of a _relation_; as, The tutor gives good instruction _to_ his _pupils_.

Before you proceed to pa.r.s.e the following examples, please to review this lecture, and then the whole seven in the manner previously recommended, namely, read one or two sentences, and then look off your book and repeat them two or three times over in your mind. This course will enable you to retain the most important ideas advanced. If you wish to proceed with ease and advantage, you must have the subject-matter of the preceding lectures stored in your mind. Do not consider it an unpleasant task to comply with my requisitions, for when you shall have learned thus far, you will understand _seven_ parts of speech; and only _three_ more will remain to be learned.

If you have complied with the foregoing request, you may commit the following _order_, and then proceed in parsing.

SYSTEMATIC ORDER OF PARSING.

_The order of parsing a_ PREPOSITION, is--a preposition, and why?--what does it connect?--what relation does it show?

"He saw an antelope _in_ the _wilderness."_

_In_ is a preposition, a word which serves to connect words, and show the relation between them--it connects the words "antelope" and "wilderness"--and shows the relation between them.

_Wilderness_ is a noun, the name of a place--com. the name of a sort or species--neut. gend. it denotes a thing without s.e.x--third pers. spoken of--sing. num. it implies but one--and in the objective case, it is the object of a _relation_ expressed by the preposition "in," and governed by it, according to

RULE 31. _Prepositions govern the objective case_.

The genius of our language will not allow us to say, Stand before _he_; Hand the paper to _they_. Prepositions _require_ the p.r.o.noun following them to be in the objective form, position, or case; and this requisition amounts to _government_. Hence we say, "Stand before _him_;"

"Hand the paper to _them_." Every preposition expresses a relation, and every relation must have an _object_: consequently, every preposition must be followed by a noun or p.r.o.noun in the objective case.

EXERCISES IN PARSING.

The all-wise Creator bestowed the power of speech upon man, for the most excellent uses. Augustus heard the orator pleading the client's cause, in a flow of most powerful eloquence. Fair Cynthia smiles serenely over nature's soft repose. Life's varying schemes no more distract the laboring mind of man. Septimius stabbed Pompey standing on the sh.o.r.e of Egypt.

A beam of tranquillity often plays round the heart of the truly pious man. The thoughts of former years glide over my soul, like swift-shooting meteors over Ardven's gloomy vales.

At the approach of day, night's swift dragons cut the clouds full fast; and ghosts, wandering here and there, troop home to church-yards.

Love still pursues an ever devious race, True to the winding lineaments of grace.

NOTE.--The words _my_ and _and_ you need not pa.r.s.e. The noun "meteors,"

following the adverb "like," is in the objective case, and governed by _unto_ understood, according to NOTE 2, under Rule 32. The noun "home"

is governed by _to_ understood, according to Rule 32.

REMARKS ON PREPOSITIONS AND VERBS.