1807.] 
educations Ii your 4ccount of deceafed 
pertons, a lony time ago, the Appendix 
to the Eton Latin Grammer was athri- 
buted, I think, to the late mafter of the 
fch Al of Athby de la Zouch, but, in a 
fublequent number, reftored to its real 
editor, Dr. Mavor. Without at all de- 
trac ting trom the merits of Dr. Mavor, 
I think, it fhould have Leen added that 
confiderahle part of that appendix was 
taken from the Latin Grammar, publih- 
ed by the Rev. E. Gwen, reétor of War- 
rington, entitled Lilly’s Accidence im- 
proved ; the beft practical grammar, per- 
haps, at this day extant, if we anil 
ra overcome our Be enmient to that ab- 
furd method of teaching the Latin Jan- 
guage by ‘rules written in Latin, which 
{till prev rails in our largett and moft cele- 
brated places of elaffical education, and 
on which I may poflibly, at fome fature 
time, trouble you with fome {trictures. 
Some time ago, I fawa querulous adver- 
tiiement from the editors of the Eton 
Books, concerning pirated editions. I 
believe, moft of thofe who are engaged 
an the laborious othce of infiruétion will 
agree with me, that that office has often 
been rendered more laborious and un- 
pleafant by the thamefully incorreét man- 
ner in which the fchool books, bearing 
the name of the Eton publither, and 
which therefore I fuppote to be the Eton 
editions, are fent into places of educa- | 
tion. INo pirated editions can poilibly 
be worfe, and tome of them are often 
much more correct. Were not this the 
cate, [am of opinion that every refpect- 
able tutor woald make it a matter of 
conicience to give his fupport ro thofe 
who are connected with fo celebrated a 
place of education, in preference to thofe 
who are not connetied with any. I 
think it not im proper to conclude thefe 
defultory obtervations with remarking, 
that the moit correct edition of the I ton 
Latin Grammar with which I am ae- 
quainted is that pubhthed at this place ; 
a book which, a tew years ago, was 2s 
inaccurate even as that which came frorm 
the Eton prets, but may how be a ulduc- 
ed in proof af my affertions concerning 
the Eton editions, when compared with 
fome others. 
Lam, Sir, your's, &c. 
Gainfborough, Autvs Mavritivs. 
Feb. 7, 1807. 
— FS 
To the Editor of the Monthly Mugazine. 
SIR, 
FPRUE author of the “Stemmata La- 
tinitatis” has kitely favoured the 
On the Origin of English Prepofitions. = Oy 
public with a learned work, under the 
title of “ Apyai, or the Evenings of 
Southill,” in which he has difplayed con- 
fiderable acutencis in tracing the origips 
of certain Enghth prepofitions y and in 
fyme inttances he has invettigated the 
etymologies of correfponding prepoli tons 
in the French language, 1m order to prove 
the correéinels of his deductions. In 
the firft book (the only one yet publith- 
ed) he has fhown fingular indufiry 1d 
tracing the true etymology and honitica- 
tion of the word by; and on this fubjece 
he differs trom the celcbrated author of 
Divertions of Purley. 
Ilaving been favoured by the author 
with a few obfervations (istended to ex- 
plain a certain part of his work) which 
point out the grand principle that was 
his chief cuide i in his refearches into the 
origins of the Eneglith prepoutions; and 
as it is improbable, on account of the 
author’s age, as well as of his engage- 
ments, that he will have itin his power 
to publith a fecond book of the Even- 
ings of Southuill, it may not be unaccep- 
table to fome of the readers of the 
Monthly Magazine, to be informed of 
the peculiar “mode of reafonine which 
the author has adopted in Iis laborious 
inquiries; but it will be neceflary to pre- 
mife, that 
Horne Tooke fays, By is the impera- 
tive byih of the Anglo-Saxon verb beon, 
to be; and that it was written in An- 
elo-Saxon, bi, be, or big. _ Diyerfions of 
Purley, p. 402, quarto ed. N. Salmon, 
on the contrary, has endeavoured to 
prove that, in many circumtiances, by 
derives its mame trom words that do nox 
merely denote exift ence, but which aétu- 
ally ficnify operaéing, creating, making, 
forming 2, influencing, or the like; and 
that gt appears as a forerunner to who- 
ever or whatever is caufing, has been 
cauiing, or will be cauling, any thing to 
happen; for example: Darius was van- 
quifhed by Alexander: 1.e. Danus was 
vangquilhed: (the) oprraror (cx this 
ftate of Darius wa is) ALEXANDER. Ju 
page 72 (Evenings of Southill), this pre- 
polition is faid to mean way, contidercal 
as equal to performer of the aét, a{jo- 
crate, afjociating, (which words are iyi. v- 
nymous with operator); and when it is 
uled before any of the reflective pro- 
yee mufelf, thufelf, &e. it excludes 
ery other individual not included in 
fis reflective reprefentatives introduccd 
into the fentence. The author, antici- 
pating objections to this meaning of Ly, 
a3 explaincd in the page ref ferred to, has 
entered 
