ENGLISH GRAMMAR AND COMPOSITION BY LARKIN DUNTON, LL.D. AND AUGUSTUS H. KELLEY, A.M. THOMPSON BROWN COMPANY NEW YORK (JOHNSON, BLAGDEN & MCTURNAN) CHICAGO BOSTON 179-314 Harvard University MAY 13 1911 TRANSFERRED TO COPYRIGHT, 1911 BY AUGUSTUS H. KELLEY PREFACE IT has long been apparent to many teachers and students of language that progress in learning to use good English has been seriously retarded by the lack of a text book on English grammar, simple enough to be easily understood by pupils in the upper grades of grammar schools, and at the same time sufficiently comprehensive to embrace all the essentials of the structure of the English sentence. Appreciating the serious loss that has come to the children who have been compelled to struggle in vain to understand the intricacies of their mother tongue, when presented in the hard logic of the common text book, and knowing from long experience how interesting and inspiring to children is the study of grammar when pursued along right lines, the authors have given this book to the public. It is not a formal treatise on English grammar intended. for the adult, but rather a view of the subject from the standpoint of the child. The plan of the book is progressive, and the sentence is recognized from the first as the unit of thought; so that the child is led by easy steps from the study of the simple and readily understood sentence to the mastery of the iii more difficult and complex forms of the language, as they are naturally used in sentences that express the growing and enlarging thought. The essentials of the best educational philosophy as applied to the study of English, are embodied in the plan of the Graded Course in English; and in no part of the course is this philosophy more clearly shown than in the graded work of the grammar. No discovery of new technical terms has been made by the authors, nor have new names been invented to take the places of the familiar terms that have heretofore satisfied English scholars. Although the underlying principles of grammar are the same in all languages studied in our schools, it has been considered unnecessary, as well as unwise, to introduce terms from other languages, since the English language is capable of expressing every phase of thought; nor has it been deemed wise to put into this book much frequently found in text books on grammar, properly belonging to the reader, the speller, and the dictionary. To illustrate still further the principles of grammar, as studied in their appropriate places in this book, and to show their value as an aid to the clear understanding and enjoyment of literature, an abundance of material from the best sources is given in the sentences and selections to be found on pages 208 to 260. The composition of this book is the natural extension of the work of the other books of the series. The three important sources of English composition are experience, imagination, and literature. From these sources we have attempted to bring to the student the best that can be had for arousing a desire to gain in power, to think, and to express. Life as we find it in the upper grades of elementary schools and in the first years of high schools furnishes experiences, imaginations, and interests that can be employed for the cultivation of good English, both oral and written. The literature that appeals to the strongest and best in the minds of this age must add its thought and form as an inspiration to higher thinking and an ever increasing power of expression. These essentials for the growth of thought and expression are made prominent in this book. For steady and consistent increase in oral composition, daily well-planned practice must be had for forming right habits of speech, and provision has been made for this kind of work. An attempt has been made to concentrate the attention upon the essentials of composition as found in the narration, description, explanation, and argument with which textbooks and good literature abound. The petty directions and confusing details that fail to awaken thought have been purposely omitted from this book; and only those elements that belong to all kinds of composition in common, that tend to awaken thought, and to inspire a longing for adequate expression have been emphasized. The thanks of the authors are due to the wise counselors and able teachers who have given valuable suggestions in the preparation of this book. |