196 



THE POPULAR EDUCATOR. 



deprimero navem is to sink a vessel: here deprimo governs its 

 case navem, as if it were a simple word ; it is in reality a com- 

 pound word, made up of the preposition de, down, used as a prefix, 

 and premo, I press, so that the compound means I press down. 

 But take the English press down separately, and neither of the 

 parts expresses the idea of sinking; it is only the combination 

 of the two that is equivalent to the simple verb to sink. 



These observations may suffice to explain the general character 

 and office of prepositions. A preposition, then, expresses, or aids 

 to express, the relation which exists between a verb and a noun. 

 Tinder the guidance of this definition we should expect to find a 

 verb wherever a preposition is used. The expectation is just. 

 Wherever you have a preposition you must have a verb either 

 expressed or understood. The term verb is here used in its widest 

 acceptation. The term verb includes what may be called verbal 

 phrases, such as adjectives and parts of the verb to be ; as, " he is 

 fit for nothing," "they are ready to die,"the words "is fit for" 

 and " are ready to" are verbal phrases or forms, and include 

 each a preposition. Verbal nouns, or nouns in which action is 

 implied, may also have prepositions after them ; as 



" The going down to the town was more difficult than the going tip to 

 the citadel." 



Going down (better written going-down) and going up denote 

 motion, and are verbal nouns ; consequently they have after them 

 the preposition to. In some instances the verbal action is con- 

 cealed ; as 



" The way to London is long and difficult." 



But here the action of a verb is implied ; in full the phrase would 

 be, " the way which conducts to London," etc. At the least some 

 part of the verb to be exists or is implied in the preposition ; as 



" Where is the book ?" " Ou the floor," "in the cupboard ;" that 

 is, " the book is or lies on the floor," " the book is in the cupboard." 



It ensues from the preceding remarks that some prepositions 

 are united with verbs of motion, and that others are united with 

 verbs of rest. Accordingly, prepositions in general may bo 

 divided into the two great classes of Prepositions of Motion and 

 Prepositions of Rest; a third class ensues from combination, and 

 these are called Prepositions of Motion and Rest, being applicable 

 to both. There thus arises this classification : 



PREPOSITIONS OF BEST. 



Amid. 



At. 



Beside. 



By. 



Concerning. 



During. 



About. 



Above. 



Across. 



Against. 



Along. 



Among. 



Except. 



For. 



From. 



In. 



Near. 



Of. 



On. 



Regarding. 



Respecting. 



Save. 



Since. 



Touching. 



PREPOSITIONS OF MOTION. 



Athwart. 



Before. 



Below. 



Beneath. 



Between. 



Beyond. 



Down. 



Into. 



Out of. 



Over. 



Round. 



Through. 



Upon. 

 With. 

 Within. 

 Without. 



Till. 



To, unto. 

 Toward. 

 Under. 

 Up. 



PREPOSITIONS OF BEST AND MOTION. 



About. 



Above. 



Across. 



Against. 



Along. 



Among. 

 Athwart. 

 Before. 

 Below. 



Beneath. 

 Between. 

 Beyond. 

 Over. 



Round. 

 Through. 

 Toward. 

 Under. 



The prepositions thus arranged may be put into other classes. 

 There are the monosyllabic, namely, at, by, for, from, in, near, of, 

 on, save, since, through, till, to, up, with. Of these, all except 

 near, save, since, and till are original and proper prepositions ; 

 that is, prepositions properly so called, and nothing but prepo- 

 sitions. Of the excepted words, near is an adjective, save is a 

 verb, since and till adverbs of time or conjunctions. From the 

 monosyllabic or primitive prepositions, compound or derivative 

 prepositions are formed ; as, from in and to, into ; from on and 

 up, upon. Other prepositions are compounds ; as, about, above, 

 across, against, alang, etc. Several of the compound prepositions 

 are used as adverbs that is, they are taken with the verb rather 

 than with the noun; as, "he ran-about," "he went-above," 

 " the ship sailed-along swiftly." Five words given in the lists 

 as prepositions are strictly present participles namely, con* 

 ceming, during, regarding, respecting, touching. Two are verbs 

 n the imperative mood that is, save and except (sometimes the 

 narticipial form excepting is preferred). Of the compounds, the 



derivation of some is very clear; as, within is with and int 

 without, with and out; beyond, be (by), and yon (yonder) ; across 

 is a. and cross ; along is a and long. 



The origin of those prepositions which we can trace, sug- 

 gests to us some hints as to the origin of others. In the lists 

 there are, we have seen, prepositions which were at first" parts 

 of verbs, such as touching and save. Probably, therefore, all 

 prepositions may at one time have been parts of verbs ; at, for 

 instance, seems connected with a Hebrew word similar in form, 

 which signifies to go ; and through with a Gaelic word similar 

 in form, which signifies to pierce. If prepositions have a verbal 

 origin, their verbal connection and force receive illustration. 



At first, prepositions had reference to place, their application 

 being exclusively to physical objects : only by degrees did they 

 come to be turned away from the physical to intellectual or 

 moral objects. In the following sentence are comprised the 

 primitive prepositions, so as to show their application to physical 

 objects : 



'The new settler at the river, in tho fear of an enemy's coming in 

 arms from their camp through, the forest, with fugitive slaves, to carry 

 fire and sword up and down the land, has at length prudently rebuilt 

 for a fort the house lately destroyed by fire." 



Tho prepositions that are in italics apply to physical objects. 

 Among physical objects, place was that of which prepositions 

 were originally employed. Thus we say, " the man is at homo;" 

 " fish are in the sea ;" " the possessor o/the castle ;" " the barn 

 goes with tho farm ;" " tho cows went to the milk-pail ;" " the 

 nurse took the sick child up stairs at night, and brought it down 

 in the morning;" " he intended the shed for a granary;" "he 

 camo by the railway to Brighton." 



From denoting place, however, prepositions easily passed to 

 denote time. In the instances just given, at (in " at night") 

 and in (" in the morning") relate to time. 



Such is the original service rendered by prepositions. At 

 present, prepositions express the nicest distinctions of thought, 

 the most delicate shades of feeling, and tho highest flights of 

 imagination ; to so great an extent has language, considered as 

 the handmaid to the human mind, made progress in adaptation 

 and refinement. 



Besides prepositions, properly so called, there are what may 

 be termed prepositional phrases, or forms of words which in 

 their combined effect have the force of prepositions. Take, for 

 instance, the set of words "with respect to;" you may cither 

 parse these words separately, or you may consider them as a 

 whole. If you take them as a whole, you may call them a pre- 

 positional phrase. So with the phrase "in consequence of." 

 The prepositional force of these forms or words depends mainly 

 on the preposition to or of, which stands at tho end. We givo a 

 number of 



PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES. 



According to. 

 Contrary to. 

 In opposition to. 

 With respect to. 

 With regard to. 



Let it, then, be observed, that a noun may bo dependent on a 

 preposition ; for example 



" He died by hia own hands." 



Here the word hands depends on the preposition by. In parsing 

 such a sentence, you may simply say that the noun hands is 

 dependent on the preposition by; or you may declare the same 

 fact by saying that the noun hands is governed by the preposition 

 by ; or, again, you may state that the noun hands is the object 

 to the preposition by. Hence ensues the general rule that 

 Nouns are dependent on, or governed by, prepositions ; or 

 Prepositions take after tliem nouns as tfair object. 



LESSONS IN GEOLOGY. XIX. 



COAL. 



SEEING that coal is the most valuable of all the treasures the 

 earth has preserved for us, we do not apologise for assigning 

 more space to its consideration. We have seen that it is 

 matter which owes its existence to vegetable growth, and that, 

 buried beneath vast accumulations of stratified deposits, this 

 vegetable matter has undergone, in the lapse of ages, a process 

 now called bitumenisation, a spocies of metamorphism 



