Much care and labor have been devoted to the orthoëpical department. The pronunciation of all words liable to be mispronounced is indicated once in each paragraph, or at the bottom of the page where they occur. With respect to the words about the pronunciation of which orthoëpists differ, we have adopted the most recent and reliable authority. Classical and historical allusions, so common among the best writers, have in all cases been explained; and if the authors have not been deceived, every aid has been given in the notes, that the reader may readily comprehend the meaning of the writer. This has been done in a manner more full and satisfactory than they have seen in any other collection, and in every instance at the bottom of the page where the difficulty occurs, so that the reader may not be subjected to the trouble of turning to an index, or consulting a dictionary,-a work which, in general, if done at all, is done with extreme reluctance, even by advanced pupils. In order that the student may still more thoroughly understand what he reads, and for the convenience of that large class of readers who have not leisure to peruse voluminous memoirs of distinguished men, and yet would be unwilling to forego all knowledge of them, we have introduced concise Biographical Sketches of authors from whose works extracts have been selected, and of persons whose names occur in the Reading Exercises. These sketches, presenting a clear and distinct outline of the life, and producing a clear and distinct impression of the character, furnish an amount of useful and available information rarely surpassed by memoirs of greater extent and pretension. Lists of the names of authors, both alphabetical and chronological, have also been introduced, thus rendering this a convenient text-book for students in English and American Literature. II. W. Beecher. 304 I. A True Man-Scott. II. A True Woman-Scott. III. The I. The Stream of Life-Heber. II. Life compared to a River -Davy. III. Ideal Character of Life-R. II. Dana. IV. Man's Glory passeth away-Watson. V. Evidence of a Creator in the Structure of the World-Tillotson. I. Our Common Schools-Everett. II. What Youth shoub Learn-Hare. III. What Youth should be Taught- Landor. IV. Education of the Heart-Scott. V. Duty -Dickens. VI. Air and Exercise-London Quarterly Re- view. VII. Pampering the Body at the Soul's Expense I. Succession of Human Beings. II. Death of the Young and Fair. III. A Lady Drowned-Procter. IV. The I. The Beauties of Nature-Beattie. II. Beauty-Gay. |