THE POPULAR EDUCATOK. 



LESSONS IN ENGLISH. ITT. 



SIMPLE PEOPOSITIONS. THE PARTS OF SPEECH. 



I. s, in English nouns, there are at the most only two cases, so 

 are we without an objective or accusative case. Yet sentences 

 in English, as in Latin, have their object. That object must be 

 recognised. Let it be called the object of the proposition, for so 

 it is ; in any given instance let it be termed the object of the 

 verb, for it is the object of the verb. 



Here you must carefully distinguish between a case and a 

 relation. A case denotes a change in a noun corresponding to 

 the change in its relation. This you will see in these two pro- 

 positions : - 



(1) Dens fecit mundum 

 God made the world. 



(2) Munchis factus est a Deo 

 The world was made by God. 



Now, without knowing Latin you may clearly understand what 

 case means, and learn that in English we have no objective case. 

 The Dews of number 1 becomes Deo in number 2 ; but in both, 

 the English word God remains the same, though in the former, 

 is in what is commonly called the nominative, and in the latter 

 in what is commonly called the ablative case. Look also at 

 mundus and mund^^m ; you see that the nominative mundws is, 

 in the objective or accusative case, changed into mundwro. Here 

 you clearly have two cases, but the English word world, repre- 

 sents both. Consequently, if world is in the nominative it is 

 not also in the objective case, for there is no alteration of form 

 whatever. Yet in the latter case there is a change of relation ; 

 for while in number 1 world is the object, in number 2 it is the 

 subject of the proposition. The English, then, does not conform 

 to the Latin custom of expressing diversity of relations in nouns 

 by diversity of form, or does so only in a limited degree. In 

 fact, the tendency of the English language has long been to 

 drop the terminations and inflexions which it borrowed from its 

 Anglo-Saxon parent. The tendency has for ages continued to 

 become more and more strong. It is a tendency which deserves 

 encouragement, for in proportion as it is effectual, it gives 

 freedom and power to the language, and makes the acquisition 

 of it easy, and the diffusion of it rapid. 



I have intimated that propositions have each an object as well 

 as a subject. Such is generally the case, and such is the case 

 more widely than may at first appear. In our standard phrase 

 Alfred reads, no object is expressed. And the statement may be 

 made without any clear reference to an object. Verbs in which 

 there is no reference, or no clear and obvious reference to an 

 object, are called intransitive verbs that is, verbs the acHon of 

 which does not (intransitive -in, not ; trans, across ; eo, I go) 

 pass over to an object. Alfred sleeps, Alfred rims, Alfred rides, 

 supply other instances of intransitive verbs ; because in each 

 case the action remains with the subject. But these and most 

 other intransitive verbs may become transitive by having an 

 object placed after them ; e.g. 



Object. Object. 



INTRANSITIVE. Alfred sleeps. Alfred runs. 



TRANSITIVE. Alfred sleeps a deep sleep. Alfred runs a long way. 

 INTRANSITIVE. Alfred rides Alfred sings. 



TRANSITIVE. Alfred rides a fine horse. Alfred sings a fine song. 

 If, however, propositions in general have an object, then we must 

 add an object to our grammatical formula ; thus : 



SUBJECT. PREDICATE. 



Verb. Object. 



Alfred reads writing. 



The grammatical formula is thus made complete. The verb 

 reads is, as we have seen, equivalent in grammar (or logic) to 

 the form is good ; where the former is the copula, and the latter 

 the attribute ; so that an attribute with its copula is equiva- 

 lent to the verb and its object, in forming the predicate of a 

 proposition. 



The proposition which, as it stands, has all the essential parts 

 of a proposition, may receive additions in order to express modi- 

 fications of the meaning. Introduce and, then it runs, 



Alfred reads writing and manuscript. 



This particle and is termed a conjunction. Conjunctions (Latin, 

 cum, with, and jungo, I join) join together words and sentences. 

 And, in this case, unites manuscript with ivritiny. Before 

 writing insert a ; then the proposition stands thus : 



Alfred reads a writing. 

 A is called an article (properly in Latin a little joint). A is 



called the indefinite article, inasmuch as it leaves it indefinite 

 what object is meant, merely intimating that it is not many 

 objects but only one object that is intended. A, indeed, is only 

 a variety of our word one, ane. Being so, its original form was 

 an. The n is now dropped before a consonant for the sake of', 

 euphony (Greek, eu, well, and phone, a sound; meaning agreeable 

 sound). 



Contrasted with the indefinite article a, is another form, which 

 bears the name of the definite article; that is, tlie. The is a 

 reduced form of these. Consequently tlie refers to an object 

 previously mentioned or known ; as 



Alfred reads THE writing; 



he reads, that is, some writing known to the speaker. 



We have already found a form of speech which qualifier 

 nouns namely, the adjective. We may therefore insert a 

 suitable adjective in this lengthening form ; thus : 



SUBJECT. 



PREDICATE. 



Alfred reads the obscure writing and manuscript. 



We have hitherto modified the predicate. Still more may it be 

 modified. The verb reads may undergo a modification of import. 

 Introduce the word soon : 



SUBJECT. PREDICATE. 



Alfred SOON reads the obscure writing and manuscript. 



Two other parts of speech may be introduced by inserting the 

 words to me, as 



SUBJECT. PREDICATE. 



Alfred soon reads TO ME the obscure writing and manuscript. 

 Me is a pronoun, as we found he to be. Me, you see, holds the 

 place of a noun. Me is the objective case corresponding to the 

 nominative case I. Our pronouns, as you here see, have some 

 diversities of case, for in them you find varying forms corre- 

 sponding to varieties of meaning. The other word just added 

 namely, to, is called a preposition. The word preposition 

 signifies, according to its Latin element, that which is put before ; 

 a preposition, then, is a word put before a noun ; and it is put 

 before a noun in order to modify its signification, or mark the 

 relation in which the noun stands to another word, or to other 

 words ; e.g. 



He gave the book to me. He took the book from me. 



He read the book with me. | He bought the book of me. 



where to, from, with, and of are prepositions. 



In the ordinary list of the parts of speech stands the participle. 

 This word, of Latin origin, denotes the partake)' (from pars, a 

 part, and capio, I take). The participle is so denominated 

 because it partakes of the qualities of the verb and the adjective. 

 Thus shining is a participle from the verb to shine. It may also 

 be employed as an adjective. Thus, 



PARTICIPLE. The sun shining disperses the clouds. 

 ADJECTIVE. The shining sun dazzles the eyes. 



The right of the participle to be accounted a separate part of 

 speech has been contested not without reason. Perhaps less 

 valid is the claim of the interjection. An interjection (inter, 

 betiveen, and jacio, I cast) is a sound of surprise, or sorrow, 

 thrown out under the impulse of strong and sudden emotion, as 

 0! Oh! Ah! and is with little propriety placed among the 

 forms of articulate speech. Let us introduce a participle into 

 our model 



SUBJECT. PREDICATE. 



(1) (2) (3) (4) (5)(G) (7) (8) (9) 



Alfred studying soon reads to me the obscure writing and manuscript. 



1. Noun. 2. Participle. 3. Adverb. 4. Verb. 5. Preposition. 6. 

 Pronoun. 7. Article. 8. Adjective. 9. Conjunction. 



The form is thus seen to comprise nine parts of speech. If the 

 interjection, or exclamation, is to be reckoned a part of speech, it 

 may be prefixed in the shape of Yes ! Here, then, we find a con- 

 densed view of all the parts of speech, and in the remarks by 

 which the view has been prefaced and prepared, lies the kernel 

 of the entire English Grammar. If you have gone with me 

 understandingly thus far, yon will have no difficulty in following 

 me to the end, for having developed these general facts and 

 principles, I have now onlv to take up each part of speech in 



