[ 47 ] 



" eredion," — " too much temerity of conclufion," — " Phillips's 

 " addidion to tobacco," are expreiTions of afFeded and ungrace- 

 ful harfhnefs. This, however, is not the worft fault fuch con- 

 ftrudions may have, for they often become unneceffarily obfcure ; 

 as " he will continue the road by annual elongation ■" that is, 

 by compleating fomr additional part of it each year : — " Swift 

 " now loft diftiridion ;" that is, he could not now diftinguilh his 

 acquaintances. Many of the fubftantives too which are thus in- 

 troduced, are words abfolutely foreign to the language : as 

 " ebriety of amufement," — " perpetual perflation," — " to obtain 

 " an obftrudion of the profits, though not an inhibition of the 

 " performance," — " Community of pofTeirion muft always in:r 

 " elude fpontaneity of produdion." One of our moft ufual forms 

 of fubftantives, the participle of the verb ufed fubftantively, to 

 give room for fuch introduced words he has on all occafions 

 ftudioufly avoided : Yet Dr. Louth would fcarcely have given the 

 rule for a conftrudion repugnant to the genius of our language ; 

 and fome arguments will be neceffary to prove that the words, 

 " renewing, vanifhing, ftiadowing and recalling," fhould give place 

 to " renovation, evanefcence, adumbration and revocation," when 

 it is confidered, that all who underftand Englifh know the 

 meaning of the former, while the latter are inteUigible to fuch 

 only of them as underftand Latin ; but of this I have elfewhere 

 treated fully. 



Johnson's licentious conftrudions however are not to be con- 

 ceived as flowing entirely from his paflion for fubftantives. His 

 endeavours to attain magnificence, by removing his ftile from 

 the vulgarity, removed it alfo from the fimplicity of common 



didion, 



