472 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



It does not explain the value of-words, nor their proper use, and adds 

 little to our vocahulary, though an abundance of words is indispen- 

 sable to correct speaking and writing. It teaches neither pronuncia- 

 tion nor accent, nor the orthography of the variable parts of words, 

 nor their diverse meanings, nor the difference of signification between 

 words improperly called synonyms, nor the propriety of figurative 

 language, nor any of those delicacies of expression which constitute 

 the genius of a language, and characterize a clear, elegant, and correct 

 style. So grammarians, who devote their lives to the rules of lan- 

 guage, are scarcely famous for their style. I do not know of one who 

 has ever distinguished himself as an orator or writer. On the con- 

 trary, the greatest writers, such as Corneille, Pascal, Moliere, La Fon- 

 taine, and others, owe nothing to grammar ; it did not exist in their 

 time. The same is true of Homer, Thucydides, Virgil, Cicero, Dante, 

 Petrarch, Milton, and Shakespeare. Grammar, then, is not the art of 

 speaking and writing correctly, and still less is it the art of reading, 

 by which we ought to commence the study of language. " I should be 

 glad," said Locke, " if I could be shown the language that could be 

 learned by the rules of grammar." " A century of theory," said Le- 

 mare, "will not advance us a step in the knowledge of language." "It 

 is the grossest mistake," said Condillac, " to commence with rules." 



M. Jules Simon, in suppressing the mnemonic lessons of grammar, 

 has rendered a true service to linguistic teaching. Rules, no matter 

 what, or how many, confided to the memory, will never instruct a 

 man, nor will they give habits of patient observation. A man might 

 learn by heart all the laws that govern the sciences, and hold them as 

 certainties, without at all developing his intelligence. If we could 

 introduce into a man's head, without effort on his part, a knowledge 

 of all the facts and results of scientific research, he would be in reality 

 less capable than he w T ho had learned, by a rational method, to work 

 out a sum in the rule of three. 



As a corollary of the grammar, children make grammatical analy- 

 ses which draw their attention to the classification and function of 

 words, but do not in any way enable them to understand an author, 

 or express their own ideas, or exercise the judgment. These analyses 

 teach grammar, not language. The man without the least ability for 

 making them understands what he says, or what is said to him, as 

 well as the most profound grammarian. 



II. Of Themes. The theme, auxiliary to the grammar, and the 

 favorite exercise of the university, is no better than the grammar to 

 teach reading. The understanding of a written text does not imply the 

 power to write. Reason requires that the learner read before writing, 

 and so secure the means of knowing good usage and imitating the 

 style of great writers. The particular figurative words of a language 

 that have no French equivalents, and the idioms of frequent use in 

 conversation, are quite outside of themes which simply exemplify the 



