: , 



sentence, MI Doet not Alfred road t We put those four form* of 



;i proposition toK' 



FOKMS or A Paoroin 



1. AJlrmutiv*. Alfred read*. 



2. Nttfutttu. Alfrod doi not read. 



3. JnUrroyattw. l>oes Alfred read P 



4. Intrrogativ Ntgttfivi. Doe* not Alfred read P 



Yon thuH see an example of the ease and extent with which 

 the original form may be changed and multiplied. 'Hi.- pr .- 

 ]>->mtiun, .-!'//..{ n '-. in a simple prupoMiinn. Propositions are 

 i-ithi-r simple or compound. Com).ni,.l propositions arc made 

 up of *.wo or HUTU Minplo pn>p--. " c()iii]M)uinl propo- 



HitiniM I Khali Hpriik in (li-tiiil liiTi-ut't-T. Hero only a few wordn 

 may bo ullmvt >!. iv. .T.I.T to illu.strato what in meant by a simple 

 :'. inn. If I wero to Ray, When Alfred reads, he is listened 

 in >tilil employ a compound proposition. In these worda 

 there are two statements, and consequently two sentences. 

 These two statement* an 1 . .1 /;/<.( reads, and Alfred ia listened to. 

 The two statements, united by the term when, constitute a com- 

 pounil sentence. In one form, at least, a compound proposition 

 may easily be mistaken for a simple proposition ; namely, in 

 this Alfred reads and unites. Here, in reality, wo have a com- 

 pound sentence, for, when analysed, these words are equivalent 

 to these two statements Alfred reads, and Alfred writes. There 

 being in the sentence these two statements, the proposition ia 

 compound. 



Let us now consider the two words in their own individual 

 character Alfred reads. The first obviously represents a person, 

 the second as clearly represents an act. Now, in grammar, 

 words which represent persons and things are called nouns; 

 and words which represent acts are called verts. Noun is a 

 Latin term, and signifies name ; hence you see the noun is the 

 name of any person or thing ; and wero we as wise as were the 

 Latins, we should not employ a foreign word, but call nouns 

 simply names. Thus Alfred is the name of a person. Book, 

 also, is a name ; so is house ; so is pen, so is paper ; these are 

 u-'h the name or vocal sign by which Englishmen distinguish 

 and agree to call these objects severally. Nor is there any 

 mystery in the term verb. Here, too, we have a Latin term 

 which signifies simply ward. With the Latins the verb was the 

 word ; that is, the chief word in a sentence. By us the verb 

 might be termed the word. Had English grammarians employed 

 as their scientific terms words of Saxon origin, the study of 

 English grammar would have been very easy. We shall en- 

 deavour to simplify it by translating the Latin terms, unhappily 

 now become indispensable, into their English equivalents. That 

 the verb is the word, the chief word of a sentence, you may 

 learn by reflecting on the proposition, Alfred reads. It is reads, 

 you see, that forms the very essence of the statement. Reads, 

 too, distinguishes this statement from other statements, as Alfred 

 runs, Alfred sings. 



Now let the reader look back on the several instances of pro- 

 positions I have given, and endeavour to ascertain what is the 

 quality in which they all agree. They have a common quality. 

 That quality is averment. They all aver or declare something. 

 This they do by means of their verbs. Accordingly, averment 

 is the essential quality of the verb. Every verb is a word which 

 makes an averment. Here, then, we learn that the noun names, 

 and the verb avers. By these tokens may all no^s and all 

 verbs be known. Whatever names is a noun ; whatever avers is 

 a verb. Chair is a noun, because it is the name of an object ; 

 stands is a verb, because it avers or declares something of chair ; 

 and the union of the noun and the verb, as chair stands, forms a 

 proposition. 



Sentences, then, in their simplest form consist of a noun and 

 a verb. A noun and a verb are indispensable. Whatever more 

 yon may have, you cannot have anything less than a noun and 

 a verb in a sentence or proposition. As a substitute for the 

 noun you may have a pronoun. Pronoun, again, is a word of 

 Latin origin, signifying a word which stands instead of a noun. 

 Thus we may put the pronoun he instead of Alfred ; e.g. (these 

 are the initials of two Latin words, meaning exempli gratia, for 

 example) : 



Alfred reads, 

 He reads, 



where he holds the place of Alfred. We must accordingly 

 qmalify our statement, and say that sentences, in their simplest 

 form, consist of a verb and a noun or pronoun. One or two 



reads. 



other qualifications might be stated ; bat here, at lead, instaad 

 of entering into them, it will be better to put the rrtetminn 

 in its most general form, a form in which it will embrace all 

 particular oases, and render qualification nnnnnnanrj I say, 

 tli- n. that in every sentence there most be a subject and a Terb. 

 I have thus set before 700 a new term. That term I mart 

 explain. Subject is a Latin word, and denote* tKst which 

 reooiv- >i li,-t under, is liable or exposed to ; from 



sub, under, and jacio, / throw, I place ; in the paMiT< 

 Accordingly, the subject of a proposition is that to which the 

 action declared in the Terb is ascribed. Hence, the subject of a 

 proposition is the agent, the actor, the doer. The subject of a 

 proposition answers to the question who ? or what ? as, who 

 reads ? Answer : Alfred reads. The term subject in need with 

 special reference to the corresponding term, predicate. The 

 predicate of a proposition is that which w attriliuted to the 

 subject What is attributed in our model sentence ? This, 

 namely, that Alfred reads. " Beads," then, is here the predi- 

 cate, or that which is ascribed to, or asseAed of Alfred. Henoe 

 you see the propriety of the term subject, since Alfred is subject 

 to the averment that he reads. Now, in the grammatical con- 

 struction of the sentence, it matters not whether yon say Alfred 

 reads, or he reads. In both cases 700 haTe a subject and Terb, 

 or predicate ; and conseqvently you have a complete enunciation 

 of thought, or a perfect sentence. 



The sentence thus analysed and explained may be set forth 

 in thia form : 



Subject. 



Alfred 



He 



As the subject undergoes a change by passing, when 

 sary, into he, so may the predicate be modified. Instead of a 

 predicate in one word, you may have a predicate in two words, 

 by substituting a verb and an adjective ; as 

 Alfred u good. 



Another new term demands another explanation. What ia 

 the meaning of adjective ? Adjective in Latin signifies that 

 which is added to, or thrown to (ad, to ; and jacio, / throw). To 

 what are adjectives thrown or added ? To nouns, as in this 

 instance. Adjectives, therefore, in their very nature, cannot 

 stand alone. They perform their office in being added to or 

 connected with nouns. They are connected with nouns in order 

 to qualify the meaning of those nouns, and to answer to the 

 question of what kind. What kind of a boy is Alfred ? Answer, 

 " he is a good boy." An adjective, then, is an epithet (a Greek 

 word, which denotes that which is attributed to a noon or a 

 person); e.g., green fields, tall men, hard rocks, where green, tall, 

 and hard are epithets, or adjectives, inasmuch as they assign the 

 quality of their several subjects. Now, what we call qualities 

 we call also attributes. The attributes of a body are its qualities, 

 Attribute is a word from the Latin, denoting that which is 

 attributed or ascribed to an object. Adjectives, therefore, 

 describe the qualities or attributes of the persons or things they 

 are connected with. In the instance given above, gocd is the 

 attribute of the proposition ; thus, 



Subject. Attnkub. 



Alfred is good. 



But thia explanation leaves is unexplained. The word is on 

 reflection you will recognise aa a verb, seeing that it avers ; 

 for it avers or declares that Alfred is good. By comparing 

 together the two forms- 

 Subject. Predicate. 

 Alfred reads, 

 Alfred is good, 



you observe that reads and is good hold the same place and 

 perform the same function in the two propositions. They ia 

 each case form the predicate of the sentence. The predicate in 

 that which is predicated, declared, or averred of the subject of 

 a proposition. In the former instance, reads is that which ia 

 averred ; in the latter, is good is that which is averred. Mark 

 that neither is nor good alone forms the predicate, for what w 

 asserted is not that Alfred u that is, exists but that he u good, 

 Accordingly, the predicate here consists of two words namely, 

 is good ; but in the former example it consists of merely one 

 word that is, reads. Of these two words, good, we have seen, is 

 the attribute. It remains to state that the word is forms what 

 is called the copula, a Latin term which mar here be rendered 



