William S. Balch - Lectures on Language
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William S. Balch >> Lectures on Language
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"We see nowe bi a mirror in darcnesse: thanne forsathe, face to face.
Nowe I know of partye; _thanne_ forsathe schal know as I am knowen."--1.
Cor. 13: 12. _Translation in 1350._
I have a translation of the same passage in 1586, which stands thus:
"For nowe we see through a glasse darkley: but _thene_ face to face: now
I know in part: but _then_ shal I know even as I am knowen." Here
several words are spelled differently in the same verse.
=Then=, _the anne_, that time. =When=, _wha anne_, "_wha-icht-anne_,"
which, or what _anne_, period of time.
_Area_ means an open space, a plat of ground, a spot or place. Arena is
from the same etymon, altered in application. =There=, _the area_, the
_place_ or _spot_. "If we go _there_," to that place. =Where=, which, or
what ("wha-icht area") place. =Here=, _his_ (latin word for _this_,)
_area_, this place. These words refer to _place_, _state_, or
_condition_.
_While_ is another spelling for _wheel_. "To while away our time," is to
_pass_, spend, or _wheel_ it away. _While_ applies to the _period_, or
space of time, in which something _wheels_, _whirls_, _turns_ round, or
transpires; as, "You had better remain here _while_ (during the time) he
examines whether it is prudent for you to go."
=Till= is _to while_, to the _period_ at which something is expected to
follow. "If I will that he tarry _till_ (to the time) I come what is
that to thee?"
The idea of _time_ and _place_ are often blended together. It is not
uncommon to hear lads and professed scholars, in some parts of our
country say "down _till_ the bottom, over _till_ the woods." etc. Altho
we do not regard such expressions correct, yet they serve to explain the
meaning of the word. The only mistake is in applying it to _place_
instead of _time_.
=Whether= is _which either_. "Shew _whether_ of these _two_ thou hast
chosen."--_Acts 1: 24._ It is more frequently applied in modern times to
circumstance and events _than to_ persons and things. "I will let you
know _whether_ I _will_ or _will not_ adopt it," one or the other.
=Together= signifies two or more united. _Gethered_ is the past
participle of _gather_.
"As Mailie, an' her lambs _thegither_,
Were ae day nibbling on the tether."
_Burns._
=Ever= means _time_, _age_, _period_. It originally and essentially
signified _life_. _For ever_ is for the age or period. _For ever_ and
_ever_, to the ages of ages. _Ever-lasting_ is _age-lasting_.
Ever-lasting hills, snows, landmarks, etc.
=Never=, _ne-ever_, _not ever_, at no time, age or period.
=When-ever.=--At what point or space of _time_ or _age_.
=What-ever.=--What thing, fact, circumstance, or event.
=Where-ever.=--To, at, or in what place, period, age, or time.
=Whither-so-ever=, which-way-so-ever, where-so-ever, never-the-less,
etc. need only be analyzed, and their meaning will appear obvious to
all.
=Oft=, _often_, _oft-times_, often-_times_, can be understood by all,
because the noun to which they belong is _oft-en_ retained in practice.
=Once=, twice, at one time, two times.
=Hence=, _thence_, _whence_, from _this_, _that_, or _what_, place,
spot, circumstance, post, or starting place.
=Hence-for-ward=, _hence-forth_, in time _to come_, after this period.
=Here-after=, after this _era_, or present time.
=Hither=, to this spot or place. _Thither_, to that place. _Hither-to_,
_hither-ward_, etc. the same as _to you ward_, or to God ward, still
retained in our bibles.
=Per-haps=, it may hap. _Perchance_, _peradventure_, by chance, by
adventure. The latin _per_ means _by_.
=Not=, no ought, not any, nothing. It is a compound of _ne_ and _ought_
or _a_ught.
=Or= is a contraction from other, and _nor_ from _ne-or_, no-or, no
other.
=No-wise=, no ways. I will go, or, other-wise, in another way or manner,
you must go.
=Than=, _the ane_, the one, that one, alluding to a particular object
with which a comparison is made; as, This book is larger _than_ that
bible. That _one_ bible, this book is larger. It is always used with the
comparative degree, to define particularly the object with which the
comparison is made. Talent is better than flattery. Than flattery, often
bestowed regardless of merit, talent is better.
=As= is an adjective, in extensive use. It means the, this, that, these,
the same, etc. It is a defining word of the first kind. You practice
_as_ you have been taught--_the same duties_ or _principles_ understood.
We use language _as_ we have learned it; in _the same_ way or manner. It
is often associated with other words to particularly specify the way,
manner, or degree, in which something is done or compared. I can go _as
well as_ you. In _the same well_, easy, convenient way or manner you can
go, I can go in _the same_ way. He was _as_ learned, _as_ pious, _as_
benevolent, _as_ brave, _as_ faithful, _as_ ardent. These are purely
adjectives, used to denote the degree of the likeness or similarity
between the things compared. Secondary words are often added to this, to
aid the distinction or definition; as, (_the same_ illustrated,) He is
_just as willing_. I am _quite as well_ pleased without it. _As_, like
many other adjectives, often occurs without a noun expressed, in which
case it was formerly parsed by Murray himself _as_ (like, or the same) a
relative pronoun; as, "And indeed it seldom at any period extends to the
tip, _as happens_ in acute diseases."--_Dr. Sweetster._ "The ground I
have assumed is tenable, _as will appear_."--_Webster._ "Bonaparte had
a special motive in decorating Paris, for 'Paris is France, _as has_
often been observed."--_Channing._ "The words are such _as
seem_."--_Murray's Reader! p. 16, intro._
=So= has nearly the same signification as the word last noticed, and is
frequently used along with it, to define the other member of the
comparison. _As_ far _as_ I can understand, _so_ far I approve. _As_ he
directed, _so_ I obeyed. It very often occurs as a secondary adjective;
as, "In pious and benevolent offices _so_ simple, _so_ minute, _so_
steady, _so_ habitual, that they will carry," etc. "He pursued a course
_so_ unvarying."--_Channing._
These words are the most important of any small ones in our vocabulary,
because (_for this cause_, be this the cause, this is the cause) they
are the most frequently used; and yet there are no words _so_ little
understood, or _so_ much abused by grammarians, _as_ these are.
We have barely time to notice the remaining parts of speech.
"Conjunctions" are defined to be a "part of speech void of
signification, but so formed as to help signification, by making two or
more significant sentences to be one significant sentence." Mr. Harris
gives about forty "species." Murray admits of only the _dis_-junctive
and copulative, and reduces the whole list of words to twenty-four. But
what is meant by a _dis_-junctive _con_-junctive word, is left for you
to determine. It must be in keeping with _in_definite _defining_
articles, and _post_-positive _pre_-positions. He says, "it joins words,
but disjoins the sense."[22] And what is a _word_ with out _sense_,"
pray tell us? If "words are the signs of ideas," how, in the name of
reason, can you give the sign and separate the sense? You can as well
separate the shadow from the substance, or a quality from matter.
We have already noticed Rule 18, which teaches the use of
conjunctions. Under that rule, you may examine these examples. "As it
_was_ in the beginning, _is_ now, _and_ ever _shall be_."--_Common
Prayer._ "What I _do_, _have done,_ or _may_ hereafter _do_, _has
been_, and _will_ always _be_ matter of inclination, the gratifying of
which _pays_ itself: and I _have_ no more merit in employing my time
and money in the way I _am known_ to do, than another has in other
occupations."--_Howard._
The following examples must suffice.
=If.= This word is derived from the saxon _gifan_, and was formerly
written _giff_, _gyff_, _gif_, _geve_, _give_, _yiff_, _yef_, _yeve_. It
signifies _give_, _grant_, _allow_, _suppose_, _admit_, and is always a
verb in the imperative mood, having the following sentence or idea for
its object. "_If_ a pound of sugar cost ten cents, what will ten pounds
cost?" _Give_, grant, allow, suppose, (the fact,) _one pound cost_, etc.
In this case the supposition which stands as a predicate--_one pound of
sugar cost ten cents_, is the object of _if_--the thing to be allowed,
supposed, or granted, and from which the conclusion as to the cost of
_ten_ pounds is to be drawn.
"He will assist us if he has the means." Allow, admit, (the fact,) he
has the means, he will assist us.
"_Gif_ luf be vertew, than is it leful thing;
_Gif_ it be vice, it is your undoing."
_Douglas_ p. 95.
"Ne I ne wol non reherce, _yef_ that I may."
_Chaucer._
"She was so charitable and so pytous
She wolde wepe _yf that_ she sawe a mous
Caught in a trappe, _if_ it were deed or bledde."
_Prioresse._
"O haste and come to my master dear."
"_Gin_ ye be Barbara Allen."
_Burns._
=But.= This word has two opposite significations. It is derived from two
different radicals. _But_, from the saxon _be_ and _utan_, _out_, means
_be out_, _leave out_, _save_, _except_, _omit_, as, "all _but_ one are
here." _Leave out_, _except_, _one_, all are here.
"Heaven from all creation hides the book of fate
All _but_ (_save_, _except_) the page prescribed our present state."
"When nought _but_ (_leave out_) the _torrent_ is heard on the hill,
And nought _but_ (_save_) the nightingale's _song_ in the grove."
"Nothing _but fear_ restrains him." In these cases the direct _objects_
of the verb, the things to be omitted are expressed.
_But_ is also derived from _botan_, which signifies _to add_,
_superadd_, _join_ or _unite_; as, in the old form of a deed, "it is
_butted_ and bounded as follows." Two animals _butt_ their heads
together. The _butt_ of a log is that end which was _joined_ to the
stump. A _butt_, _butment_ or _a-butment_ is the joined end, where there
is a connexion with something else. A _butt_ of ridicule is an object to
which ridicule is attached.
"Not only saw he all that was,
_But (add) much_ that never came to pass."
_M'Fingal._
_To button_, _butt-on_, is derived from the same word, to join one side
to the other, to fasten together. It was formerly spelled _botan_,
_boote_, _bote_, _bot_, _butte_, _bute_, _but_. It is still spelled
_boot_ in certain cases as a verb; as,
"What _boots it_ thee to fly from pole to pole,
Hang o'er the earth, and with the planets roll?
What boots ( ) thro space's fartherest bourns to roam,
_If_ thou, O man, a stranger art at home?"
_Grainger._
"If love had _booted_ care or cost."
A man exchanged his house in the city for a farm, and received fifty
dollars to _boot_; _to add_ to his property, and make the exchange
equal.
_Let_ presents the same construction in form and meaning as _but_, for
it is derived from two radicals of opposite significations. It means
sometimes to _permit_ or _allow_; as, _let_ me go; _let_ me have it; and
to _hinder_ or _prevent_; as, "I proposed to come unto you, _but_ (add
this fact) I was _let_ hitherto."--_Rom. 1: 13._ "He who now _letteth_,
will _let_ until he be taken out of the way."--_2 Thess. 2: 7._
=And= is a past participle signifying _added_, _one-ed_, _joined_. It
was formerly placed after the words; as, "James, John, David, _and_,
(_united to-_gether_-ed_,) go to school." We now place it _before_ the
last word.
=Tho=, _altho_, _yet_. "Tho (_admit_, _allow_, _the fact_) he slay me,
yet (_get_, _have_, _know_, _the fact_) I will trust in him." _Yes_ is
from the same word as _yet_. It means _get_ or _have_ my consent to the
question asked. _Nay_ is the opposite of _yes_, _ne_-aye, nay, no. The
_ayes_ and _noes_ were called for.
I can pursue this matter no farther. The limits assigned me have been
overrun already. What light may have been afforded you in relation to
these words, will enable you to discover that they have _meaning_ which
must be learned before they can be explained correctly; that done, all
difficulty is removed.
Interjections deserve no attention. They form no part of language, but
may be used by beasts and birds as well as by men. They are indistinct
utterances of emotions, which come not within the range of human speech.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] The reader is referred to "The Red Book," by William Bearcroft,
revised by Daniel H. Barnes, late of the New-York High School, as a
correct system of teaching practical orthography.
[2] Gall, Spurzheim, and Combe, have reflected a light upon the science
of the mind, which cannot fail of beneficial results. Tho the
doctrines of phrenology, as now taught, may prove false--which is
quite doubtful--or receive extensive modifications, yet the
consequences to the philosophy of the mind will be vastly useful.
The very terms employed to express the faculties and affections of
the mind, are so definite and clear, that phrenology will long
deserve peculiar regard, if for no other reason than for the
introduction of a vocabulary, from which may be selected words for
the communication of ideas upon intellectual subjects.
[3] Metaphysics originally signified the science of the causes and
principles of all things. Afterwards it was confined to the
philosophy of the mind. In our times it has obtained still another
meaning. Metaphysicians became so abstruse, bewildered, and lost,
that nobody could understand them; and hence, _metaphysical_ is now
applied to whatever is abstruse, doubtful, and unintelligible. If a
speaker is not understood, it is because he is too metaphysical.
"How did you like the sermon, yesterday?" "Tolerably well; but he
was too metaphysical for common hearers." They could not understand
him.
[4] In this respect, many foreign languages possess a great advantage
over ours. They can augment or diminish the same word to increase
or lessen the meaning. For instance; in the Spanish, we can say
_Hombre_, a man; _Hombron_, a _large_ man; _Hombrecito_, a _young_
man, or youth; _Hombrecillo_, a _miserable little_ man; _Pagaro_, a
bird; _Pagarito_, a _pretty little_ bird; _Perro_, a dog;
_Perrillo_, an _ugly little_ dog; _Perrazo_, a _large_ dog.
The Indian languages admit of diminutives in a similar way. In the
Delaware dialect, they are formed by the suffix _tit_, in the class
of animate nouns; but by _es_, to the inanimate; as, _Senno_, a
man; _Sennotit_, a _little_ man; _Wikwam_, a house; _Wikwames_, a
_small_ house.--_Enc. Amer. Art. Indian Languages, vol. 6, p. 586._
[5] Mr. Harris, in his "Hermes," says, "A preposition is a part of
speech, _devoid itself of signification_; but so formed as to unite
two words that are significant, and that refuse to coalesce or
unite themselves."
Mr. Murray says, "Prepositions serve to _connect_ words with one
another, and show the relation between them."
[6] "Me thou shalt use in what thou wilt, and doe that with a slender
_twist_, that none can doe with a tough _with_."
_Euphues and his England, p. 136._
"They had arms under the straw in the boats, and had cut the
_withes_ that held the oars of the town boats, to prevent any
pursuit."
_Ludlow's Memoirs, p. 435._
"The only furniture belonging to the houses, appears to be an
oblong vessel made of bark, by tying up the ends with a _withe_."
_Cooke's Description of Botany Bay._
[7] See Galatians, chap. 1, verse 15. "When it pleased God, who
_separated_ me," &c.
[8] Acts, xvii, 28.
[9] St. Pierre's Studies of Nature.--Dr. Hunter's translation, pp.
172-176.
[10] It is reported on very good authority that the same olive trees
are now standing in the garden of Gethsemane under which the
Saviour wept and near which he was betrayed. This is rendered more
probable from the fact, that a tax is laid, by the Ottoman Porte,
on all olive trees planted since Palestine passed into the
possession of the Turks, and that several trees standing in
Gethsemane do not pay such tribute, while all others do.
[11] We do not assent to the notions of ancient philosophers and poets,
who believed the doctrine that the world is animated by a soul,
like the human body, which is the spirit of Deity himself; but that
by the operation of wise and perfect laws, he exerts a supervision
in the creation and preservation of all things animate and
inanimate. Virgil stated the opinions of his times, in his AEneid,
B. VI. l. 724.
"Principio coelum, ac terras, camposque liquentes,
Lucentemque globum, Lunae, Titaniaque astra
Spiritus intus alit, totamque infusa per artus
Mens agitat molem, et magno se corpore miscet."
"Know, first, that heaven, and earth's compacted frame,
And flowing waters, and the starry flame,
And both the radiant lights, _one common soul_
Inspires and feeds--and _animates the whole_.
This active mind, infused thro all the space,
Unites and mingles with the mighty mass."
_Dryden_, b. VI. l. 980.
This sentiment, he probably borrowed from Pythagoras and Plato, who
argue the same sentiment, and divide this spirit into
"_intellectus_, _intelligentia_, et _natura_"--intellectual,
intelligent, and natural. Whence, "_Ex hoc Deo, qui est mundi
anima: quasi decerptae particulae sunt vitae hominum et pecudum._" Or,
"Omnia animalia ex quatuor elementis et _divino spiritu_ constare
manifestum est. Trahunt enim a terra carnem, ab aqua humorem, ab
aere anhelitum, ab igne fervorem, _a divino spiritu
ingenium_."--_Timeus, chap. 24, and Virgil's Geor. b. 4, l. 220,
Dryden's trans. l. 322._
Pope alludes to the same opinion in these lines:
"All are but parts of one stupendous whole.
Whose body nature is, and God the soul."
[12] Page 41.
[13] Exodus, iii. 2, 3.
[14] Cardell's grammar.
[15] The Jews long preserved this name in Samaritan letters to keep it
from being known to strangers. The modern Jews affirm that by this
mysterious name, engraven on his rod, Moses performed the wonders
recorded of him; that Jesus stole the name from the temple and put
it into his thigh between the flesh and skin, and by its power
accomplished the miracles attributed to him. They think if they
could pronounce the word correctly, the very heavens and earth
would tremble, and angels be filled with terror.
[16] Plutarch says, "This title is not only _proper_ but _peculiar to
God_, because =He= alone is _being_; for mortals have no
participation of _true being_, because that which _begins_ and
_ends_, and is constantly _changing_, is never _one_ nor the
_same_, nor in the same state. The deity on whose temple this word
was inscribed was called =Apollo=, Apollon, from _a_ negative and
_pollus_, _many_, because God is =one=, his nature simple, and
_uncompounded_."--_Vide, Clark's Com._
[17] The same fact may be observed in other languages, for all people
form language alike, in a way to correspond with their ideas. The
following hasty examples will illustrate this point.
_Agent._ _Verb._ _Object._
_English_ Singers Sing Songs
_French_ Les chanteurs Chantent Les chansons
_Spanish_ Los cantores Cantan Las cantinelas
_Italian_ I cantori Cantano I canti
_Latin_ Cantores Canunt Cantus
_English_ Givers Give Gifts
_French_ Les donneurs Donnent Les dons
_Spanish_ Los donadores Dan o donan Los dones
_Italian_ I danatori Dano o danano I doni
_Latin_ Datores Donant Dona
_English_ Fishers Fish Fishes
_French_ Les pecheurs Pechent Les poissons
_Spanish_ Los pescadores Pescan Los peces
_Italian_ I pescatori Pescan I pesci
_Latin_ Piscatores Piscantur Pisces
_English_ Students Study Studies
_French_ Les etudiens Etudient Les etudes
_Spanish_ Los estudiantes Estudian Los estudios
_Italian_ I studienti Studiano I studii
_Latin_ Studiosi Student Studia
[18] Mr. Murray says, "These compounds," _have_, _shall_, _will_,
_may_, _can_, _must_, _had_, _might_, _could_, _would_, and
_should_, which he uses as auxiliaries to _help_ conjugate _other_
verbs, "are, however, to be considered as _different forms_ of the
_same_ verb." I should like to know, if these words have any thing
to do with the _principal_ verbs; if they only alter the _form_ of
the verb which follows them. I _may_, _can_, _must_, _shall_,
_will_, or _do love_. Are these only different forms of _love_? or
rather, are they not distinct, important, and original verbs, pure
and perfect _in_ and _of_ themselves? Ask for their etymons and
meaning, and then decide.
[19] Diversions of Purley, vol. 1, p. 77.
[20] Dr. Edwards observes, in a communication to the Connecticut Society
of Arts and Sciences, from personal knowledge, that "the Mohegans
(Indians) have _no adjectives_ in all their language. Altho it may
at first seem not only singular and curious, but impossible, that a
language should exist without adjectives, yet it is an indubitable
fact." But it is proved that in later times the Indians employ
adjectives, derived from nouns or verbs, as well as other nations.
Altho many of their dialects are copious and harmonious, yet they
suffered no inconvenience from a want of contracted words and
phrases. They added the ideas of definition and description to the
things themselves, and expressed them in the _same_ word, in a
modified form.
[21] Matthew, chap. 24, v. 48.
[22] Examples of a _dis_-junctive conjunction. "They came with her,
_but_ they went without her."--_Murray._
Murray is _wrong_, _and_ Cardell is _right_. The simplifiers are
wrong, _but_ their standard is so likewise.
"Me he restored to my office, _and_ him he hanged."--_Pharaoh's
Letter._
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
The following printer's errors have been corrected in this etext.
Changes are indicated in brackets.
Contents ON NOUNS AMD [AND] PRONOUNS
Lecture I process of time as ingle [a single]
will not unfrequenly [unfrequently] represent
Lecture III German, Danish, Dutch, Sweedish [Swedish]
Lecture V _David_ killed Goliah [Goliath]
Lecture VI and cosinder [consider] them in this place
Lecture VII We are told there are are [are] two articles
the mother is _mascu.line_ [masculine]
dress handkerchief.["] The resolution
Lecture VIII object will be to ascertion [ascertain]
["]But wherefore _sits he_ there?
act _transitively_, acording [according] to
Lecture IX the pocket of Guy Fawks [Fawkes]
For we should rember [remember]
_looks_ like or _resembles_ his brother,["]
Lecture X A philosophical axiom[.]--Manner
And our languge [language] should
["]I have addressed this volume
Lecture XI Be not surprized [surprised] when I tell you
Lecture XII the qualifification [qualification] of an _adverb_,
--"express neither actionn [action] or passion."
Lecture XIV trace back to their orignal [original] form
["]He stept _a_-side"
["]As Mailie, an' her lambs
["]Not only saw he all that was,
Footnote 22 Murray is _wroug_ [wrong]
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