Conversation: Its Faults and Its Graces Part 10

196. No _less_ than fifty persons were there; say, No _fewer_, &c.

197. _Such another_ mistake, and we shall be ruined; say, _Another such_ mistake, &c.

198. It is _some distance_ from our house; say, _at some distance_, &c.

199. I shall call _upon_ him; say, _on_ him.

200. He is a Doctor of _Medicine_; p.r.o.nounce _medicine_ in _three_ syllables, NEVER in _two_.

201. They told me to enter _in_; leave out _in_, as it is implied in _enter_.

202. His _strength_ is amazing; never say, _strenth_.

203. "_Mistaken_ souls, who dream of heaven,"--this is the beginning of a popular hymn; it should be, "_Mistaking_ souls," &c. _Mistaken wretch_, for _mistaking wretch_, is an apostrophe that occurs everywhere among our poets, particularly those of the stage; the most incorrigible of all, and the most likely to fix and disseminate an error of this kind.

204. Give me both _of_ those books; leave out _of_.

205. Whenever I try to write well, I _always_ find I can do it; leave out _always_, which is unnecessary.

206. He plunged _down_ into the stream; leave out _down_.

207. She is the _matron_; say _may-tron_, and not _mat-ron_.

208. Give me _leave_ to tell you; NEVER say _leaf_ for _leave_.

209. The _height_ is considerable; p.r.o.nounce _height_ so as to rhyme with _tight_. Never _hate_ nor _heighth_.

210. Who has my _scissors_? _never_ call _scissors_, _sithers_.

211. First _of all_ I shall give you a lesson in French, and last _of all_ in music; leave out _of all_ in both instances, as unnecessary.

212. I shall have finished by the _latter_ end of the week; leave out _latter_, which is unnecessary.

213. They sought him _throughout_ the _whole_ country; leave out _whole_, which is implied in _throughout_.

214. Iron sinks _down_ in water; leave out _down_.

215. I own that I did not come soon enough; but _because why_? I was detained; leave out _because_.

216. Have you seen the new _pantomime_? never say _pantomine_, as there is no such word.

217. I _cannot by no means_ allow it; say, I _can by no means_, &c., or, I _cannot by any means_, &c.

218. He _covered it over_; leave out _over_.

219. I bought _a new pair of shoes_; say, _a pair of new shoes_.

220. He _combined together_ these facts; leave out _together_.

221. My brother called on me, and we _both_ took a walk; leave out _both_, which is unnecessary.

222. The _duke_ discharged his _duty_; sound the _u_ in _duke_ and _duty_ like the word _you_, and carefully avoid saying, _dook_ and _dooty_, or _doo_ for _dew_.

223. _Genealogy_, _geography_, and _geometry_ are words of Greek derivation; beware of saying, _geneology_, _jography_, and _jometry_, a very common practice.

224. He made out the _inventory_; place the accent in _inventory_ on the syllable _in_, and NEVER on _ven_.

225. He deserves _chastis.e.m.e.nt_; say, _chas-tiz-ment_, with the accent on _chas_, and NEVER on _tise_.

226. He threw the _rind_ away; never call _rind_, _rine_.

227. They contributed to his _maintenance_; p.r.o.nounce _maintenance_ with the accent on _main_, and _never_ say, _maintainance_.

228. She wears a silk _gown_; never say, _gownd_.

229. Suss.e.x is a _maritime_ county; p.r.o.nounce the _last_ syllable of _maritime_ so as to rhyme with _rim_.

230. He _hovered_ about the enemy; p.r.o.nounce _hovered_ so as to rhyme with _covered_.

231. He is a powerful _ally_; _never_ place the accent on _al_ in _ally_, as many do.

232. She bought a _diamond_ necklace; p.r.o.nounce _diamond_ in _three_ syllables, NEVER in _two_, which is a very common practice.

233. He reads the "Weekly _Despatch_;" NEVER spell the word _despatch_, _dispatch_.

234. He said _as how_ you _was_ to do it; say, he said _that you were to do it_.

235. Never say, "_I acquiesce with you_;" but, "_I acquiesce in your proposal, in your opinion_," &c.

236. He is a distinguished _antiquarian_; say, _antiquary_.

_Antiquarian_ is an adjective; _antiquary_, a noun.

237. In Goldsmith's "History of England" we find the following extraordinary sentence in one of the chapters on the reign of Queen Elizabeth:--"This" [a communication to Mary, Queen of Scots] "they effected by conveying their letters to her by means of a brewer _that supplied the family with ale through a c.h.i.n.k in the wall of her apartment_." A queer brewer that,--to supply his ale through a c.h.i.n.k in the wall! How easy the alteration to make the pa.s.sage clear! "This they effected by conveying their letters to her _through a c.h.i.n.k in the wall of her apartment, by means of a brewer that supplied the family with ale_."

238. Lavater wrote on _Physiognomy_; in the last word sound the _g_ distinctly, as _g_ is always p.r.o.nounced before _n_ when it is not in the same syllable; as, _indignity_, &c.

239. She is a very clever _girl_; p.r.o.nounce _girl_ as if written _gerl_; never say _gal_, which is very vulgar.

240. He built a large _granary_; p.r.o.nounce _granary_ so as to rhyme with _tannery_, never call the word _grainary_.

241. Beware of using _Oh!_ and _O_ indiscriminately; _Oh!_ is used to express the emotion of _pain_, _sorrow_, or _surprise_; as, "Oh! the exceeding grace of G.o.d, who loves his creatures so." _O_ is used to express _wis.h.i.+ng_, _exclamation_, or a direct _address_ to a person; as,

"O mother, will the G.o.d above, Forgive my faults like thee?"

242. Some writers make a distinction between _farther_ and _further_; they are, in fact, the very same word. _Further_, however, is less used than _farther_, though it is the genuine form.

243. He did it _unbeknown_ to us; say, _unknown_, &c.

244. If I say "They retreated _back_," I use a word that is _superfluous_, as _back_ is implied in the syllable _re_ in _retreated_.