thirdly, fourthly, much, little, enough, more, moft, lefs, leaft, fomewhat, yea, yes, verily, truly, certainly, affuredly, undoubtedly, nay, no, not, how, why, wherefore, whether, haply, perhaps, poffibly, probably, peradventure, as, fo, very, exceeding, almoft, alike, otherwise, wifely, foolishly, quietly, openly, hardly, fcarcely, happily.

PREPOSITION.

A Prepofition is a word which always requires another part of fpeech after it, with which it expreffes a circumftance of fome word or words preceding it t; as, The rifing of the fun, Thomas went to town, John came from France, He is fupported by his friends.

Lift of PREPOSITIONS.

For, from, in, into, of, at, by, with, on, upon, to, unto, above, below, over, under, beneath, about, around, before, behind, after, against, among, amongst, befide, befides, between, betwixt, beyond, through, throughout, toward, towards, within, without.

INTERJECTION..

An Interjection is a ward which expreffes fome fudden. or violent emotion or paffion; Oh! alas ! fy!

Lift of INTERJECTIONS..

O, oh, ah, alas, alack, lo, behold, fy, foh, pfhaw, pugh, avaunt, tufh, ho, folio, huzza,, heyday, ha, heigh-ho, hift, hush, mum.

CONJUNCTION.

A Conjunction is a word which connects fentences; as, I left the town on Monday, and returned on Satur day: The poft is come, but has brought no news.

Lift

Moft adnouns may be turned into adverbs by adding the fyllable ly; as, from just comes juftly.

+ This definition is given rather than the common one, bes fully as juft, and more easily understood..

Lift of CONJUNCTIONS.

And, alfo, likewife, either, or, neither, nor, but, yet, though, although, except, unlefs, nevertheless, notwith ftanding, becaufe, whereas, left, fince.

Adverbs, prepofitions, interjections, and conjunctions, are invariable; excepting thefe adverbs, Soon, fooner,' fooneft; eft or often, oftener, oftenest.

II. Of CONSTRUCTION.

1. A verb fhould agree with its agent * in number and perfon; as, The boys are diligent.

Common Errours.

The fhips is arrived. Is your relations in town? Is the horfes watered? The stockings is mended. The streets is dirty. My father and mother is gone abroad. The bellows is broken. The tongs is lost. Where is the fnuffers? We was in the country. You was in bed. They was at the play. Was you awake? Was your fifters at home? There was twenty. Who was all

there? His friends has forfaken him. My brother and sister has feen it. Has the fervants been there? Has the goods been fold? The children has fupped. The men has fought. The boys has been at fchool. Good and bad comes to all. Time and tide waits for no man.

2. The agent of a verb, when a pronoun, fhould be in the foregoing ftate; the object in the following: as, He loves her .

Common Erreurs.

There was him and her and me. Him and her was married. Who opened the door? Me. What put up the window? Him. Who blew out the candle? Her. Who gained the prize? Us. Who tore the book? Them. No man is fo brave as him, nor any

The agent of a verb will easily be known, by afking a que ftion with the verb, thus-The boys are diligent. Who are diligent? The boys. Boys is the agent.

Every noun is of the fecond or third perfon; the fecond, when the object is spoken to; the third, when spoken of.

The object of a verb will be easily known, by asking a queftion with the verb and its agent, thus-He loves her. Whom does he love? Her. Her is the object. The agent of a verb commonly precedes it, the object follows it. Some verbs, properly speaking, have no object; as, I ftand, he feeps, she walks..

woman fo handfome as her. You are wiser than them. He is more foolish than her. She fings better than him. Who do you love?

3. A prepofition requires the following state of a pronoun after it; as, He gave it to me.

Common Errours.

Between you and I. Who did you give it to? Who did you get it from? Who do you deal with?

4. The verb Am admits of the foregoing ftate of a pronoun, both before and after it; as, I am he who wrote the letter: except in the infinitive mode; as, T● be him, To be her.

Common Errours.

It was him who spoke fo well. That is charmingly. I am him who came to town. dreffed fo gay. This is them.

her who sung so It was her whe

5. A pronoun fhould agree with its antecedent (that is, the noun or nouns for which it is ufed) in number, gender, and perfon; as, When my father died, he bequeathed to me his whole fortune.

6. If the agent of a verb, or antecedent of a pronoun, denote a collection or affemblage of individuals in one body, it may be confidered either as of the fingular or plural number; as, The company is or are come.

7. If the agent of a verb, or antecedent of a pronoun, confift of two or more nouns or pronouns, connected by the conjunction and, it must be confidered as of the plu ral number, and highest person mentioned: as, Wealth and fame, though defireable, are not effential to happînefs; My brother and I went to church, where we heard an excellent fermon.

8. The pronoun it, though ftrictly of the neuter gen der, is frequently used with refpect to children or animals: as, It is a good child; It is a noble animal.The fame pronoun is alfo applied to perfons or animals thus: It is I; It was thou; It is fhe.

9. The pronouns who, whom, and whofe, fhould be ufed with refpect to perfons only: as, The man who is truly wife; She whom I love; The man whose breast is

pure.

10. The pronoun which, as an interrogative, is used with refpect to objects of every kind; as, Which person, animal, or thing, is it? In any other cafe, to apply it to perfons is improper.

11. The poffeffive pronouns my, thy, her, our, your, and their, are used before the noun with which they denote poffeffion; mine, thine*, hers, ours, yours, and theirs, after it: as, Thefe are my books; or, Thefe books are mine.

In

12. The pronoun own is added to my, mine, thy, thine, his, her, our, your, their, and the poffeffive one's only for the fake of emphasis; as, This is my own book. like manner, to render an expreffion more emphatical, fome pronouns take the terminations felf, felves: Thus, myfelf, thyself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, one's felf, surfelves, yourselves, themfelves.

13. An adnoun must agree in number with the noun to which it is added: as, This man, these men; That man, thofe men.

14. Double comparatives and fuperlatives are improper; fuch as, mere wiser, moft wifeft.

15. The adnouns or articles a and an are used with nouns of the fingular number only t; the, with nouns of either number: as, A man, an angel; The man, the

16. A is put before words beginning with a confonant;

an

Mine and thine are fometimes used instead of my and thy, when the fucceeding word begins with a vowel or b mute; as, mine arm, thine heir.

+ It is customary indeed to fay a thousand men, a hundred horfes, &c.; but, in fuch expreffions, a is substituted for the numeral adnoun one.

an before words beginning with a vowel or h mute: as, A boy; an arm, an hour*.

17. A or an is used to express a single object indefinitely; the to exprefs one or more objects definitely: as, A man or an angel, fignifies any man or angel; the man or the men, fignifies fome particular man or men. Hence or an has been termed the indefinite, and the the definite article.

Univerfally. That conftruction is beft which is moft agreeable to the nature of the composition, expreffive of the fenfe, and pleafing to the ear.

In fome cafes, for found's fake, it is better to write as than a before words beginning with h, even when the his founded; as, an hyperbole.

FINI S.

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