Introductory Observations. syllable; and, where the use of the double accent would better explain the intention, it has been invariably adopted. [See also "Concise Directions" at the end of Part I.] For a considerable time past I have been collecting and arranging materials for a philological work, in which more than ordinary attention will be paid to rhetorical accuracy, and, consequently, to the powers of letters in their various combinations; but I found it much too diffuse for my present purpose, and being unwilling to mutilate that which at some future period may appear in a complete form, I was glad to avail myself of the Compendium herein printed, which, under the title of "The Miniature English Grammar," has already received the approvation of discerning critics. The "English Verbal Distinctions," which follow, are, I trust, not less appropriate: the mode of classing them is both novel and discriminative and I feel satisfied they will be well received by all who take the trouble to examine them. In order to insure correctness, I have adopted a very expensive, but the only certain method. Aware that omissions must occur, and that occasional errors would creep into a first edition, in spite of the most careful attention, every line of this Dictionary is kept standing in type, so that, while new errors of the press will not occur in reprinting its present contents, additions and alterations may be made with the greatest facility, and thus, with ordinary care, progressive improvement must take place in the work, so long as it is in existence. Part II. commences with a New Universal Gazetteer; in which, I believe, all the information really necessary in a work of geographical reference will be found condensed. It cannot be expected that very copious descriptions of places could be given, but no important features have been omitted, nor has anything that could add to its usefulness been overlooked. Appended to the Gazet eer, is a General Population Table, which, together with The List of Cities, Market-Towns, Boroughs, &c. of the United Kingdom, have been derived from the best sources for accuracy, and cannot fail to be serviceable. The Compendious Classical Dictionary, it will be seen, is far more comprehensive than the usual abridged accounts of the Heathen Deities; and, though it may not contain all that the classical reader might desire, will greatly assist those who have not larger works on the subject. Subjoined to this is a List of Scripture Proper Names, accented, which, particularly for youth, will also be found useful. An Analysis of General History comes next. Instead of the usual method of recording the leading events of History, in chronological order, from the Creation downwards, I have arranged them alphabetically; thereby adapting it to the general character of the work, as one principally intended for reference; and condensing a vast quantity of matter uto a small compass. It is worthy of remark, too, that although its confined lim.ts precluded the possibility of making it complete as a work of reference to Universal History, yet it will materially serve that end, and be a perfect index to the principal occurrences in the history of our own country in particular. The Dictionary of Law Terms was written by me for a former publication. I have now, however, made many additions to it; and I trust that unprofessional readers will become better acquainted with the meaning of legal terms and phrases by a perusal of this epitome, divested as it is of all technicalities, than if they even took the trouble to consult professional books. With respect to the various Tabular Addenda with which the Work is concluded, I have only to hope that such have been selected as are most useful for general purposes, and that their accuracy is unimpeachable. And now, the body of the Work having passed, as it were, in brief review before me, I come to speak, though last not least, of the novel, and, as it may be thought, whimsical manner in which each page is garnished. If I had no other plea for its adoption than that of novelty, I should not, great as the attractions of novelty are, have felt myself justified in travelling out of the beaten path. But I make no scruple in owning, that I am so impressed with the value of those gems of wisdom which have been handed down to us in the form of apothegms, that I gladly seized an opportunity of enriching the pages of a book with them, which, unless I greatly overrate its qualities, will find its way into numerous schools and families, and, consequently, meet the eye of youthful readers. To Introductory Observations. them I would say, that I sincerely hope many of these brief lessons of experience may be engraven on the tablet of the memory, never to be erased. What are they but the golden remains of antiquity, or the treasures of modern wisdom?-copious in meaning, yet marked by elegant terseness; inculcating the precepts of worldly prudence, yet having a tendency to check vice, strengthen virtue, and lead the mind to a reliance on the Divine Will. We are, perhaps, not duly sensible, how much of whatever good may have marked our career is to be attributed to the influence of some moral, pious, or prudential maxim with which our youthful minds were imbued. Parents and teachers who appreciate this remark, will hail with satisfaction the opportunity presented by the following pages, of planting the seeds of wisdom in the minds of youth, hereafter to be expanded to a goodly harvest; for Proverbs, however quaintly expressed, contain the essence of some moral truth or practical lesson; they are drawn from real life, and are generally the fruit of philosophy grafted on the stem of experience. Indeed, although of late years neglected by most writers, they were formerly so greatly held in reverence, that scarcely a book appeared in which its author did not bear testimony to their value by the free use he made of them. Nay, we are told by Mr. D'Israeli, that "much later even than the reign of Elizabeth, our ancestors had proverbs always before them, on every thing which had room for a piece of advice on it. They had them painted on their tapestries, stamped on the most ordinary utensils, the blades of their knives, the borders of their plates, and' conned them out of goldsmiths' rings." I know it may be objected, that proverbial sayings frequently contain gross allusions, and inculcate sentiments not always favourable to virtue: That is undeniable; and if I have not shown a due regard to the exclusion of such from this collection, I grant that I must be very ill qualified for the compilation of a work that is intended for all classes and all ages. I trust, however, that, though numerous, they are unexceptionable; and I will conclude my observations on aphoristic precepts in the quaint, but apposite, language of a writer of the seventeenth century: "They walk upon men's tongues, dance in their fancies, are carried about in their memories, and are reserved for graces of their discourses, when they desire to appear in their festival habits and holyday behaviour." I have now only to say a few words respecting the different descriptions of Mottoes, and to suggest a method or two relative to the manner in which they may be advantageously used in schools. Instead of the Aphorisms and Proverbs which elsewhere throughout the volume environ the subject matter, the "English Grammar," "Verbal Distinctions," and "Phrases," are surrounded by short sentences, intended as Exercises on Syntax and Style; each of which is repeated in a corrected form, and placed opposite, as a "Key" to the Exercise. The marginal spaces of the "English Dictionary" are occupied by Moral Maxims, alphabetically arranged throughout; from which vast stock, an almost inexhaustible supply of new Lines for Writing Copies are furnished, and some of the trite and oft-repeated sentences now in use may be discontinued. But it is not in this way only that they may be found useful: the judicious Teacher may form them into Lessons to be committed to memory; select from among them many which will serve as Themes; or use them in a variety of other ways, which his own experience will point out.-Selections from the Proverbs of all Nations decorate the pages of the Gazetteer. They are in colloquial phraseology, and, of course, less formal and didactic, but not less apposite (if we regard their application to the every-day occurrences of life) than the mora sentences which garnish the pages of the "English Dictionary."-With the "Classical Dictionary" is commenced a series of Latin Mottoes, with free translations; and these, which I hope will not be less acceptable than the others, are continued till the " Dictionary of Law Ternis" is begun; when a collection of Latin Sentences, recognized as tundamental maxims of British Law, are given, with English translations, and carried on to the end of the Volume. Thus it will be seen, that I have attended to something like method in the arrangement of this rather heterogeneous and formidable phalanx; but how they will be received, of what use they may be found, and whether the novelty will be regarded like many other novelties-as more adapted for ornament than use-I leave to the Public, at whose tribunal they will be judged, and to whose decision I shall bow with deference; hoping, ere long, again to appear before them with Part III. of "The Treasury of Knowledge," &c., forming a NEW UNIVERSAL BIOGRAPHY. SAMUEL MAUNDER. A NEW AND ENLARGED DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, WITH MORALS AND MAXIMS, ALPHABETICALLY ARRANGED; WITH 55 POPULATION OF THE PRINCIPAL PLACES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD, TAKEN FROM THE LATEST SURVEYS: WITH PROVERBS ...... 197 A LIST OF THE CITIES, BOROUGHS, AND MARKET-TOWNS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM; THE NUMBER OF MEMBERS RETURNED TO PAR- EX.-MY FATHER SENT HIM AND I TO SCHOOL. A COMPENDIOUS ENGLISH GRAMMAR; TO WHICH ARE ADDED, Verbal Distinctions, partially illustrated: The whole garnished with BRIEF EXAMPLES, AS MISCELLANEOUS EXERCISES ON SYNTAX AND STYLE. EX. IT IS NO USE ATTEMPTING TO LEARN GRAMMAR, WITHOUT WE ATTEND TO ITS RULES. The words, or parts of speech, which constitute the English language are, the Article, the Noun or Substantive, the Adjective, the Pronoun, the Verb, the Participle, the Adverb, the Preposition, the Conjunction, and the Interjection. The Article is prefixed to nouns, to limit or determine their meaning; as, "a scholar, an assistant, the master." The Noun is the name of any thing that exists, or of which we have, or can form, an idea; as, "woman, beauty, London." The Adjective is a word added to nouns to describe them; as, "a merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance." The Pronoun is a word used instead of a noun, to prevent a too frequent repetition of it; as, "Take fast hold of Instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life." The Verb is the principal word in a sentence, and expresses our thoughts and actions, and how we "live, move, and have our being;" as, Loveliness needs not the foreign aid of ornament." The Participle is an inflexion of the verb, and is divided into two kinds, the present and past; the former ending in ing, called the active, and the latter ending i ed, called the passive participle. Participles which have no relation to time are used either as adjectives, as, "a loving father, a beloved son;" or as substantives, as," Having a good ear for music, she is taught singing." The Adverb is a word joined to adjectives, verbs, participles, or other adverbs, to express their quality, or some circumstance attending them; as, "My love, inviolably true, no diminution ever knew." The Preposition is used to connect words, to show the relation between them; as, "Go to bed with the lamb, and rise with the lark." The Conjunction is used to connect words and sentences; as, "Bear and forbear' is good philosophy: man purposes, but God disposes." The Interjection is used to express some sudden passion or emotion of the mind; as, "Throw empires away, and be blameless; but, oh husband thy precious hours." OF THE ARTICLE. The article is prefixed to nouns to limit or determine their meaning; as, "a bay, an island, the sea." There are three articles: a, an, and the. A and an are named indefinite, because they denote some one thing of a kind; as, "a bee, an ant." The is named definite, because it points out some particular thing; as, "the elephant." OF THE NOUN, A noun is the name of any thing in existence, or of which we can form an idea; as, "man, virtue, York." Nouns are of two kinds: proper and common. Proper nouns are the names of persons and places; as, John, Howard, England. Common nouns are all other names; as, animal, vegetable, mineral, woman, tree, diamond, life, love, justice, mercy; and may be subdivided into substantive and abstract: substantive, or names of things substantial, as man, horse, &c.; abstract, or names characterized by some quality, as whiteness, motion, temperance. A noun is known by its either admitting an article before it, as "a ship, the sea;) gation; or with the phrase I think of; as, or making sense either alone, as in nari think of justice, liberty, and love." Nouns have the properties of gender, number, and case. KEY. MY FATHER SENT HIM AND ME TO SCHOOL. B KEY.-TO ATTEMPT TO LEARN GRAMMAR IS OF NO USE, UNLESS WE ATTEND TO ITS RULES. |