LESSONS IN GEOLOGY. 



71 



A* added words, adjective* oomo into existence after nouns 



to wliirii, in tli.-ir very nature, they are adjuncts. Adjectives, 



i ho history of language of hvte origin. This is 



soon ul i .tot that they imply a greater degree of dis> 



crimination in regard to the qualities of things than is involved 



in the existence of nouns. A noun, in giving a name to an 



, describes its qualities. Thus the word man characterises 



;.(,'. But under the general term man stand 



many individual num. These individual men vary from each 



some are tall, some short ; some weak, some strong ; 



young, some old ; some black, some white. The one class 



is Mil-divided into many classes, and thb signs of those classes 



are severally given by adjective*. The adjoctive, in oonse- 



qnonoe, implies an advanced state of mental culture, since it in 



the expression of somewhat minute mental discriminat 



The adjective, I have intimated, has no meaning by itself. 

 "A red" are senseless words, but "a rod orange" convoys 

 an idea. The widest signification is given to an adjective by 

 ling to it tho word thing, as " a good thing, a bad thing." 

 Hence, you see how near the adjective stands in sense to the 

 noun, for thing is a very indefinite term. Indeed, tho adjcctivo 

 and tho noun alike denote qualities. Thus, a swift stream, is 

 "a swift or rapid flow" (of water). Tho noun stream de- 

 tho flow of tho water, as you may BOO in tho fact that 

 you cannot with propriety speak of a flatting stream, inasmuch 

 as it is in the very nature of a stream to flow, and flowing or to 

 flow is involved in the term stream itself. But you can say a 

 - ' ream, because swift adds a description to the description 

 already given, tolling you how the stream flows. Thus the 

 noun stream sets forth the quality of flowing, and tho adjective 

 swift sets forth tho quality of swiftness. The noun and tho 

 adjective indeed describe qualities in different ways ; tho noun 

 describes a quality in tho abstract ; the adjcctivo describes a 

 quality in tho concrete. Abstract and concrete are logical terms. 

 Abstract (from tho Latin, abs,/rom, and traho, I draw) represents 

 a quality as drawn away or standing apart from any particular 

 object; whiteness is an abstract word, as it describes the 

 quality white considered alone, that is, apart from any subject. 

 Concrete [Latin con (cum), with, and cresco, I grow"] is a term 

 which speaks of qualities in union with subjects : e.g., an octavo, 

 what ? Volume ; an, octavo volume ; octavo describes a certain 

 quality as belonging or attached (concrete) to a book here called 

 a volume. Abstract and concrete terms then are nearly related. 

 In truth, a concrete term passes into an abstract term merely 

 by taking tho termination ness ; as good, good-ness. So nearly 

 are concrete and abstract terms related that they are sometimes 

 used for ono another. In the Hebrew, a very early and a 

 primitive language, concrete terms or adjectives are compara- 

 tively few, their office being frequently discharged by abstract 

 terms or nouns. In English, adjectives are occasionally used as 

 nouns; thus " elder " in the singular becomes in tho plural " the 

 elders." The ease with which adjectives become nouns is 

 exemplified in such proper names as Mr. Brown, Mr. White, Mr. 

 Short, Mr. Long, etc. Nouns also perform the part of adjec- 

 tives, as "afish slice," " a silver spoon," " a gold pin." 



Adjectives in English undergo no change from gender, 

 number, or case. We use the term good, for instance, in- 

 differently with a masculine and a feminine noun, a singular and 

 a plural, tho subject and the object. For example : 



Object. I saw a good man and a good woman, good boys and good girls. 

 Subject. A good man and a good woman, good boys and good girls were 

 seen by me. 



The only inflection which adjectives undergo is one by which 

 degrees of quality aro expressed. In thought, take any quality, 

 say long, and consider of what modifications it is capable. An 

 object may bo long as opposed to an object that is slwrt. This 

 we may call its positive condition. Or ono object may bo 

 longer than another. Here, as a comparison is mado or implied, 

 we may call this the comparative condition. Or, again, an 

 object may be longer than many other objects, that is, it may 

 be longest. Longest may be termed tho superlative condition, 

 inasmuch as the object that is longest surpasses, that is, 

 becomes superlative to all ethers. Here, then, aro three con- 

 ditions the positive, long; the comparative, longer; and the 

 superlative, longest. These throe conditions are ordinarily 

 termed degrees: hence wo have the positive degree, the com- 

 parative degree, and tlw superlative degree. These aro the 



three degree* of companion, to use the common phraeeology, 

 though there i* littlu propriety in calling the positive condition 

 ik degree of companion. 



Now observe how these degree* of comparison are indicated. 



Long, the positive, becomes long-cr in the comparative, and 

 long-eft in the superlative. You thun too that the addition of 

 or to the positive form* the comparative ; and the addition of 

 ett to the punitive form* the superlative. 



White, however, we say long, longer, longed, we do not *ay 

 eventful, cvftntfuler, eventfulet; but instead, we say eventful, 

 more eventful, rnott eventful. Accordingly, we have a second 

 way of describing the degree* of comparison, namely, by pre- 

 fixing to tho positive the adverbs more and most. Becpeeting 

 the employment of these two method* the following rule* may 

 be given. 



Monosyllables take at the end er to form the comparative, 

 and est to form tho superlative ; or, when the word end* in a 

 vowol, r and at, to form tho comparative and superlative. For 

 example : 



Pot. Wiso Comp. wittr Sup. wiwt. 



Great greater greatest. 



Monosyllables and dissyllables ending in y change the y into i 

 before they aro inflected ; as 



I'o. Sly Comjj. slier Sup. iliect. 



Lovely lovelier loveliest. 



Happy happier happiest. 



Dissyllables which terminate in Ic or re, take in the com* 

 parativo r, and in tho superlative st ; as 



Pos. Able ' Comp. abler Sup. ablest. 



Siucere incerr tiucercit. 



Dissyllables of which tho accent is on the last syllable, may 

 have er and est ; as 



Poa. Discreet Comp. discreeUr Sup. discreet?*!. 



Genteel gcntaeler genteeUrf. 



All these classes of words may, however, bo compared by 

 more and most, and with tho last class tho use of more and 

 most seem 3 preferable. 



Generally in words of more than one syllable, the employ- 

 ment of more and most is correct, if not obligatory ; as 

 Pot. Careful Comp. more careful Sup. most careful. 



Learned more learned most learned. 



Charitable more charitable most charitable. 



Adjectives formed by the suffix some, except handsome (hand- 

 somer, handsomest), require more and most ; as 

 Pos. Fulsome Comp. more fulsome Sup. most fulsome. 



Blithesome more blithesome mott blithesome. 



Exclusively by more and most are formed the adjective* 

 which have the ensuing terminations ; as 



LESSONS IN GEOLOGY. XVII. 



THE CARBONIFEROUS SYSTEM. 



No geological era has bequeathed to us a more valuable deposit 

 than that age which we term the carboniferous period. Inter- 

 stratified with the various depositions of this age, we find 

 those vast bands of vegetable matter which are the greatest 

 wealth of a country, and without which all manufactures would 

 be crippled. 



Although other systems have occasional beda of coal, yet 

 they are insignificant in comparison to those which the car- 

 boniferous system contains ; and so characteristic are the coal 

 seams of this period, that the name carboniferous has been 

 applied to the whole system. We meet with no exception to 

 the general rule ; here the calcareous, the arenaceous, and the 

 argillaceous deposits all find repr ; but the moun- 



tain limestone of the carboniferous period stands pre-eminent 

 among the limestones of all ages for the sharpness of it* 



