in the outer world or in the mind. Every real object, and some that are unreal; every thing known, conceived of, felt, or beheld is called a noun; for everything must, for grammatical purposes, have a name. If an idea or a material object has no name, it has, so far as grammar is concerned, no existence."

"You know, also, what a pronoun is ?"-"Yes, a pronoun is a for-name, a word that stands in the place, or performs the work of a noun; thus, instead of saying 'he like reading" "-"No, go no farther, please to correct yourself."-"Thank you, I am glad you stopped me."-"Learn to stop yourself when wrong."-"I will try."-"Aye, that's the word; as the children in the infant school sing, try, try, try again.' Now proceed."-" Well, then, instead of saying he likes reading' I might have said Thomas likes reading."""Precisely; then, you see, Thomas is the noun, and he the pronoun. So far, well."

"You know, also, what a 'person' means ?"-"Yes, I am a person."-" Well, that is pretty near the mark. Are there any other persons besides you in the world?"-"Yes, certainly, you for instance, and father and mother."-" Very good; now when you speak of yourself you say I, do you not?"-"Yes."-" And when you speak to me you say you?""Certainly."-"And when you speak of father and mother you say they ?"-"I do."-"Well then, you see there are three ways of speaking of persons, as for instance, I, you, they."-"Exactly so."-"Now of these, which think you is 'number one?' "-"Well, I hope I am not selfish."-"I meant no imputation; I dare say you are no more selfish than other people; however, is not 'the great I' in all cases' number one?' At any rate, we may, in grammar, call I the first person; do you allow that ?"-"I suppose I must not object."-"Let us then call you the second person. Next to two stands three, and, consequently, he and they may be termed the third person. Mark, I represent the speaker, you the person spoken to, he the person spoken of? Do you understand? Here you have the same facts set forth in instances:

The Three Persons.

1. I love. 2. You love. 3. They love.

Where I is the first person, you the second, they the third.""Thank you, so far all is plain."-" Observe, then, that as there are (you know) two numbers, the singular and the plural, so each number has pronouns of its own. Here they are in full, the figures denoting the persons.

PERSONAL PRONOUNS. SINGULAR AND PLURAL.

"What do you mean by personal pronouns?"-" Pronouns that indicate or relate to persons. They are called personal to distinguish them from other pronouns; but with those other pronouns do not trouble your head just now. Turn back to the form. In that form you see the model of good English, or the pattern which you are to imitate. Mark then, that he, the third person, is the only person that has its verb ending in s. It was, then, rather curious that you should have struck off the s there, instead of

dropping it in the first person singular, and in all the persons of the plural. In Hampshire, they are so fond of the s, that they put it to all the persons, except the second person singular; or if they make an exception, they do so where of all places they ought not, namely, in the third person singular. However, study what I have said, study and imitate the example I have given. One word more. I have used and not explained the word verb."-" O, you need not explain that; the verb, I know, is the doer, the verb represents action; for instance, love is a verb."-"Yes, give me some others."-"Well, write is a verb, so is strike, and think, and run, and stop, and shout."-" Enough, enough. Now study and strive to apply these instructions."-"Cannot you give me some instances to correct ?"-"I do not think the proper way to teach you good English is to put before you instances of bad English; as, however, you are accustomed to these blunders, you can hardly be misled by them; probably you may, in my instances of bad English, recognise some old friends, from whose company I advise you to separate yourself now and for ever. Here, however, are some examples of first bad, and secondly good English; correct the former, and parse the latter."-" Parse, what is that?"—"Give the person and number of each instance."

Bad English to be corrected and avoided.

I gives; they gives; you gives; thou gives; he give; we gives; they runs; he run; William cough; William and Mary coughs; why does they laugh? They does not laugh; I does very well; they does badly; Henry ride well; do Henry ride well? Sarah sing sweetly; the Sunday scholars goes to church; the curate read (present) the lessons impressively? do the clerk pronounce distinctly; you eats like a sloven; they drinks too much.

Good English to be parsed and imitated.

The girl sings charmingly; the dogs bark; the hen clucks; the wind whistles; the storm rages; the tempest hurries on; you love reading; my father and mother go to church every Sabbath; how will the choristers sing? do the boys sing well? the girls have a beautiful voice; thou singest out of tune; he keeps time very well; I praise diligent scholars; I entreat you to remain here; do you wish me to learn Latin? good boys love learning; here, father is coming; he runs after the hare; hares have swift feet; does he love money? he who loves money is not wise; he learns English; does he learn Latin? they learn German, and you, I hear, learn Italian.

GREEK STEMS.

Languages have their distinctive peculiarities which fit them for some special service in the great workshop of humanity. The numerous broad and open vowels of the Italian makes it specially suitable as the language of song. The strength and dignity of the Latin render it a good organ of civil government. The French, as being light and graceful, is unequalled as a medium of conversation. The swell and pomp of the Spanish both represent and symbolise the people by whom it is spoken. Two or three languages possess almost every variety of excellence. Of those, the lowest in the scale is the English, which is distinguished alike for power, expressiveness, delicacy, and music; yet it must, in these high qualities,

yield to the German, which, in its turn, is surpassed by the Greek, the nearest approach to perfection to which human language ever attained, except probably the Sanscrit, or sacred language of the Brahmins.

As one result of its excellence, the Greek has adapted itself with equal care and precision to the constantly growing demands of science. On its native soil, and while yet spoken in its purity, the Greek tongue had gained the power of expressing the widest generalisations, and the nicest distinctions of thought. Its resources for setting forth the truths of physical science were, in classical times, but very partially put to the test. In the pages of Cicero, however, we learn how much indebted Rome was to the Greek for terms of art and of moral and intellectual disquisition. At the true birth of science, after the revival of letters, the Greek, being cultivated anew, afforded a most appropriate vehicle for the communication and interchange of the new truths which continued to break upon the world in great profusion; and now, by the creation of several sciences wholly unknown of old, such as chemistry, botany, physiology, conchology, magnetism, &c., our scientific vocabulary, with all its multiplicity, its precision, and conciseness, is found to consist, for the most part, of elements supplied by the Greek language. You have an instance in the first word of the ensuing list, akouo, which is the parent of acoustics, or the science of hearing. The corresponding science of sight has also in optics taken a Greek term. Hence you may infer how important is an exact study of these Greek stems. In some sense, indeed, the learning of a science is the learning of the signification of its vocabulary, or list of words; assuredly he that is familiar with the elementary roots of the Greek, will, in proceeding to study science, find himself in possession of a most powerful auxiliary.

The word logos plays a very important part in the world of ancient Greek thought. It is the term by which the word of John's Gospel is expressed in the original. Logos denotes either intelligence, the unuttered thought; or speech, the uttered thought. From these radical meanings flow the numerous applications of the term. In science, the service which logos renders is very great. In the preceding list, two out of the five examples contain the term. Used in a somewhat remote sense indeed, logos, as signifying science, enters into the very designation of many of the sciences. Thus we say theology, philology, astrology, demonology, pneumatology, anemology, ouranology, nosology, phrenology, &c.

In naus, you have a word common to the Teutonic and the Celtic

elements of language, for the naus of the Greeks is the navis of the Latins. Meaning ship, it appears not only in nautical (nauta, Lat. a sailor), but in navigate (ago, Lat. I drive, guide), navigation, &c. The student, by combining naus, a ship, with mache (make), fight, learns that naumachy denotes a sea-fight.

"Anthology signifies properly a collection of flowers, and in particular a collection of flowers or gems of poetry. There is in the Greek anthology a remarkable mention here of sneezing in an epigram upon one Proclus."-Brown, " Vulgar Errors."

"The contentions of the Eastern and Western churches about this subject, are but a mere logomachy, or strife about words."--Bishop Bramhall.

GREEK STEMS.

Bi (bis) signifies twice, so that bigamy is the state of being twice married.

No bigami, that is, none that had been twice married, or such as married widows, were capable of the benefit of clergy, because such could not receive orders."-Burnet, "History of the Reformation."

Bigamy, according to the canonists (the doctors of the ancient ecclesiastical law), consisted in marrying two virgins successively, one after another, or once marrying a widow."--Blackstone, "Commentaries." Bigamy, as punished by the English law, is the crime of having two wives at the same time.

Graphé, in its modern application, means printing as well as what is strictly writing; it signifies, indeed, a description or representation in general, and so may mean a representation by strokes of the pen, or a representation by means of the press. Hence you see the application of the term to lithography.

Observe now an instance of the use of the Greek. I had, I remember, when I was young, some difficulty in ascertaining, and when ascertained in remembering, the exact difference between the barometer and the thermometer. My little Greek came to my aid, and showing me that the former was a measure of weight, and the latter a measure of heat, gave me definite and clear ideas which I have never forgotten.

Biblion enters into combination with several words. With graphe, biblion, forming bibliography, originates a term which signifies the science of books. With the aid of latría (Gr. worship) we have bibliolatry, a word sanctioned by Coleridge, which may be Englished by book-worship or word worship. Bibliomania, or book-madness, is made up of biblion, a book, and mania, the Greek for madness. United to poleo, I sell, it forms bibliopolist, a bookseller; and with theca, the Greek for a repository, it gives rise to the French bibliotheque, a repository for books; that is, a library. Let it also be distinctly mentioned that the Greek biblion is the source whence we get the name of the book of books, namely, the Bible.

Language is in one view a record of human errors. The fact is illustrated in the names of some of what are still, by courtesy, called sciences, such as astrology, phrenology, &c. It is also exemplified in particular words, as, e. g., choleric, coming from cholé, bile. The term choleric shows that of old, men regarded the bile as the source of anger and passion.

"When choler overflows, then dreams are bred
Of flames, and all the family of red;

Red dragons and red beasts in sleep we view,
For humours are distinguish'd by their hue."

Dryden.

Accordingly, dejection or habitual sadness was termed melancholy, of bluck-bile.

EXERCISES FOR PARSING.

The sphere of my brother's influence is larger than my own. Autopsy, signifying self-inspection, is made up of autos, self, and opsis, sight. The kaleidoscope is an optical toy exhibiting a variety of beautiful forms and colours. The kaleidoscope is said to have