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words Cicero puts into his mouth) upon the ftrict union which fubfifted between Scipio and him. "As for me," fays Lælius, "of all the gifts of nature or fortune, "there are none, I think, comparable to "the happiness of having Scipio for my "friend. I found in our friendship a per"fect conformity of fentiments in refpect "to public affairs; an inexhaustible fund "of counfels and fupports in private life; "with a tranquillity and delight not to be "expreffed. I never gave Scipio the "leaft offence, to my knowledge, nor ever heard a word efcape him that did "not please me. We had but one house, "and one table at our common expence, "the frugality of which was equally the "talte of both. In war, in travelling, in "the country, we were always together. "I do not mention our ftudies, and the "attention of us both always to learn fomething; this was the employment of "all our leisure hours, removed from the fight and commerce of the world."

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Is there any thing comparable to a friendship like that which Lælius has just described? What a confolation is it to have a fecond felf, to whom we have nothing fecret, and in whofe heart we may pour out our own with perfect effufion! Could we tafte profperity fo fenfibly, if we had no one to share in our joy with us? And what a relief is it in adverfity, and the accidents of life, to have a friend ftill more affected with them than ourselves! What highly exalts the value of the friendhip we speak of, was its not being founded at all upon intereft, but folely upon efteem for each other's virtues. "What occafion," fays Lælius, "could Scipio "have of me? Undoubtedly none; nor I "of him. But my attachment to him was "the effect of my high esteem and admira"tion of his virtues; and his to me arofe " from the favourable idea of my character " and manners. This friendship increafed afterwards upon both fides, by habit and commerce. We both, indeed, derived great advantages from it; but thofe "were not our view, when we began to "love each other."

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I cannot place the famous embaffy of Scipio Africanus into the Eaft and Egypt, better than here; we fhall fee the fame taite of fimplicity and modefty, as we have juft been reprefenting in his private life, Thine out in it. It was a maxim with the Romans, frequently to fend ambaffadors to their allies, to take cognizance of their

affairs, and to accommodate their differ. ences. It was with this view that three illuftrious perfons, P. Scipio Africanus, Sp. Mummius, and L. Metellus, were fent into Egypt, where Ptolemy Phyfcon then reigned, the most cruel tyrant mentioned in hiftory. They had orders to go from thence to Syria, which the indolence, and afterwards the captivity of Demetrius Nicanor amongst the Parthians, made a prey to troubles, factions, and revolts. They were next to vifit Afia Minor, and Greece; to infpect into the affairs of thofe countries; to inquire in what manner the treaties made with the Romans were obferved; and to remedy, as far as poffible, all the diforders that should come to their knowledge. They acquitted themselves with fo much equity, wifdom, and ability, and did fuch great fervices to thofe to whom they were fent, in re-establishing order amongst them, and in accommodating their differences, that, when they returned to Rome, ambaffadors arrived there from all the parts in which they had been, to thank the fenate for having fent perfons of fuch great merit to them, whose wifdom and goodness they could not fufficiently commend.

The first place to which they went, according to their inftructions, was Alexandria. The king received them with great magnificence. As for them, they affected it fo little, that at their entry, Scipio, who was the richest and most powerful perfon of Rome, had only one friend, the philofopher Panatius, with him, and five domef tics. His victories, fays an ancient writer, and not his attendants, were confidered; and his perfonal virtues and qualities were efteemed in him, and not the glitter of gold and filver.

Though, during their whole ftay in Egypt, the king caufed their table to be covered with the most exquifite provifions of every kind, they never touched any but the moit fimple and common, defpifing all the reft, which only ferve to foften the mind and enervate the body.-But, on fuch occafions, ought not the ambassadors of fo powerful a ftate as Rome to have fuftained its reputation of majesty in a foreign nation, by appearing in public with a numerous train and magnificent equipages? This was not the taste of the Romaus, that is, of the people that, among all the nations of the earth, thought the moft juftly of true greatnefs and folid glory.

Rollin

§ 263.

§ 263. On Punctuation. Punctuation is the art of marking in writing the feveral pauses, or refts, between fentences and the parts of sentences, according to their proper quantity or proportion, as they are expreffed in a juft and accurate prounciation.

As the feveral articulate founds, the fyllables and words, of which fentences confift, are marked by letters; fo the refts and pauses, between fentences and their parts, are marked by Points.

But, though the several articulate founds are pretty fully and exactly marked by letters of known and determinate power; yet the feveral pauses, which are used in a juft pronunciation of difcourfe, are very imperfectly expreffed by Points.

For the different degrees of connexion between the feveral parts of fentences, and the different paufes in a juft pronunciation, which exprefs thofe degrees of connexion according to their proper value, admit of great variety; but the whole number of Points, which we have to exprefs this variety, amounts only to four.

Hence it is, that we are under a neceffity of expreffing paufes of the fame quantity, on different occafions, by different Points; and more frequently, of expreffing paufes of different quantity by the fame Points.

So that the doctrine of Punctuation muft needs be very imperfect: few precife rules can be given which will hold without exception in all cafes; but much muft be left to the judgment and taste of the

writer.

On the other hand, if a greater number of marks were invented to exprefs all the poffible different paufes of pronunciation; the doctrine of them would be very perplexed and difficult, and the ufe of them would rather embarrass than affift the reader.

It remains therefore, that we be content with the rules of Punctuation, laid down with as much exactnefs as the nature of the fubject will admit: fuch as may ferve for a general direction, to be accommodated to different occafions; and to be fupplied, where deficient, by the writer's judgment.

as the most obvious and remarkable: the Period, Colon, Semicolon, and Comma.

The Period is the whole fentence, complete in itself, wanting nothing to make a full and perfect fenfe, and not connected in conftruction with a fubfequent fentence.

The Colon, or Member, is a chief conftructive part, or greater divifion, of a sen

tence.

The Semicolon, or Half-member, is a lefs conftructive part, or subdivision, of a fentence or member.

A fentence or member is again fubdivided into Commas, or Segments; which are the least constructive parts of a sentence or member, in this way of confidering it; for the next fubdivifion would be the refolution of it into phrafes and words.

The Grammarians have followed this divifion of the Rhetoricians, and have appropriated to each of thefe diftinctions its mark, or point; which takes its name from the part of the fentence which it is employed to diftinguifh; as follows:

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The proportional quantity, or time, of the points, with refpect to one another, is determined by the following general rule: The Period is a paufe in quantity or duration double of the Colon: the Colon is double of the Semicolon; and the Semicolon is double of the Commna. So that they are in the fame proportion to one another, as the Semibref, the Minim, the Crotchet, and the Quaver, in mufic. The precife quantity, or duration, of each paufe or note cannot be defined; for that varies with the time: and both in difcourfe and mufic the fame compofition may be rehearfed in a quicker or a flower time: but in mufic the proportion between the notes remains ever the fame; and in discourse, if the doctrine of Punctuation were exact, the proportion between the paufes would be ever invariable.

The Points then being defigned to exprefs the paufes, which depend on the different degrees of connexion between fentences, and between their principal conftruc. tive parts; in order to understand the meanThe feveral degrees of connexion being of the Points, and to know how to apply tween fentences, and between their prin- them properly, we must confider the nature cipal conftructive parts, Rhetoricians have of a sentence, as divided into its principal confidered under the following diftinctions, conftructive parts, and the degrees of con

nexion between those parts upon which fuch divifion of it depends.

To begin with the least of these principal conftructive parts, the Comma. In order the more clearly to determine the proper application of the Point which marks it, we must diftinguish between an imperfect phrase, a simple sentence, and a compounded fentence,

An imperfect phrase contains no affertion, or does not amount to a propofition or fentence.

A fimple fentence has but one fubject, and one finite verb.

A compounded fentence has more than one fubject, or one finite verb, either expreffed or understood: or it confifts of two or more fimple fentences connected together.

In a fentence, the subject and the verb may be each of them accompanied with feveral adjuncts; as the object, the end, the circumstances of time, place, manner, and the like; and the subject or verb may be either immediately connected with them, or mediately; that is, by being connected with fome thing, which is connected with fome other; and fo on.

If the feveral adjuncts affect the fubject or the verb in a different manner, they are only fo many imperfect phrafes; and the fentence is fimple.

A fimple fentence admits of no point, by which it may be divided, or diftinguifh ed into parts.

If the feveral adjuncts affect the subject or the verb in the fame manner, they may be refolved into fo many fimple fentences; the fentence then becomes compounded, and it must be divided into its parts by Points.

For, if there are feveral subjects belonging in the fame manner to one verb, or several verbs belonging in the fame manner to one fubject, the fubjects and verbs are ftill to be accounted equal in number: for every verb must have its fubject, and every fubject its verb; and every one of the fub jects, or verbs, fhould or may have its point of diftinction.

Examples:

"The paffion for praife produces excellent effects in women of fenfe." Addifon, Spect. N° 73. In this fentence palion is the fubject, and produces the verb: each of which is accompanied and connected with its adjuncts. The fubject is not paffion in general, but a particular paffion deter

mined by its adjunct of specification, as we may call it; the paffion for praife. So likewife the verb is immediately connected with its object, excellent effects; and mediately, that is, by the intervention of the word effects, with women, the fubject in which thefe effects are produced; which again is connected with its adjunct of specification; for it is not meaned of women in general, but of women of fenfe only Laftly, it is to be obferved, that the verb

is connected with each of these several adjuncts in a different manner; namely, with effects, as the object; with women, as the fubject of them; with fenfe, as the quality or characteristic of thofe women. The adjuncts therefore are only fo many imperfect phrases; the fentence is a fimple fentence, and admits of no point, by which it may be diftinguished into parts.

"The paffion for praife, which is fo very vehement in the fair fex, produces excellent effects in women of fenfe." Here a new verb is introduced, accompanied with adjuncts of its own; and the fubject is repeated by the relative pronoun which. It now becomes a compounded sentence, made up of two fimple fentences, one of which is inferted in the middle of the other; it must therefore be diftinguished into its component parts by a point placed on each fide of the additional fentence.

"How many inftances have we [in the fair fex] of chastity, fidelity, devotion! How many ladies diftinguish themfelves by the education of their children, care of their families, and love of their husbands; which are the great qualities and atchievements of woman-kind: as the making of war, the carrying on of traffic, the adminiftration of justice, are those by which men grow famous, and get themselves a name!" Ibid.

In the first of these two sentences, the adjuncts chastity, fidelity, devotion, are connected with the verb by the word inftances in the fame manner, and in effect make fo many diftinct fentences: "how many inftances have we of chastity! how many inftances have we of fidelity! how many inftances have we of devotion!" They must therefore be feparated from one another by a point. The fame may be said of the adjuncts," education of their children, &c." in the former part of the next fentence: as likewife of the feveral fubjects, "the making of war, &c." in the latter part; which have in effect each their verb;

for

for each of these " is an atchievement by which men grow famous."

As fentences themselves are divided into fimple and compounded, fo the members. of fentences may be divided likewife into fimple and compounded members: for whole fentences, whether fimple or compounded, may become members of other fentences by means of fome additional connexion.

Simple members of fentences clofely connected together in one compounded member, or fentence, are diftinguished or feparated by a Comma: as in the foregoing examples.

So likewife, the cafe abfolute; nouns in oppofition, when confifting of many terms; the participle with fomething depending on it; are to be diftinguished by the Comma: for they may be refolved into fimple mem

bers.

When an addrefs is made to a perfon, the noun, anfwering to the vocative cafe in Latin, is diftinguished by a Comma.

Examples:

"This faid, He form'd thee, Adam; thee, O man, Duft of the ground."

"Now morn, her rofy steps in th' eaftern clime Advancing, fow'd the earth with orient pearl." Milton.

Two nouns, or two adjectives, connected by a fingle Copulative or Difjunctive, are not separated by a point: but when there are more than two, or where

the conjunction is understood, they must be diftinguished by a Comma.

Simple members connected by relatives, and comparatives, are for the most part diftinguished by a Comma: but when the members are fhort in comparative fentences; and when two members are closely connected by a relative, reftraining the general notion of the antecedent to a particular fenfe; the paufe becomes almost infenfible, and the Comma is better omitted.

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"But as this paflion for admiration, when it works according to reafon, improves the beautiful part of our fpecies in every thing that is laudable; fo nothing is more destructive to them, when it is governed by vanity and folly."

Addifon, ibid. Here the whole fentence is divided into two parts by the Semicolon; each of which parts is a compounded member, divided into its fimple members by the Comma.

A member of a fentence, whether fimple or compounded, which of itfelf would make a complete fentence, and fo requires a greater paufe than a Semicolon, yet is followed by an additional part making a more full and perfect sense, may be distinguished by a Colon.

Example:

"Were all books reduced to their quinteffence, many a bulky author would make his appearance in a penny paper: there would be fcarce any fuch thing in nature as a folio: the works of an age would be contained on a few fhelves: not to mention millions of volumes that would N 124. be utterly annihilated." Addison, Spec.

Here the whole fentence is divided into four parts by Colons: the first and last of which are compounded members, each divided by a Comma; the second and third are fimple members.

When a Semicolon has preceded, and a greater pause is still neceffary; a Colon

may

may be employed, though the fentence be incomplete.

The Colon is alfo commonly used, when an example, or a speech, is introduced. When a sentence is fo far perfectly finished, as not to be connected in construction with the following fentence, it is marked with a Period.

In all cafes, the proportion of the feve ral points in refpect to one another is rather to be regarded, than their fuppofed precife quantity, or proper office, when taken Separately.

Befides the points which mark the paufes in discourse, there are others which denote a different modulation of the voice in correfpondence with the fenfe. These are

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The Interrogation and Exclamation Points are fufficiently explained by their names: they are indeterminate as to their quantity or time, and may be equivalent in that respect to a Semicolon, a Colon, or a Period, as the fenfe requires. They mark an elevation of the voice.

The Parenthesis inclofes in the body of a fentence a member inferted into it, which is neither necessary to the sense, nor at all affects the construction. It marks a moderate depreffion of the voice, with a pause greater than a Comma.

Lowth.

END OF THE

SECOND BOOK.

LEGANT

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