Slips of tongue and pen

Do not say, “The truth of that is apparent.” [Use obvious or evident. Apparent or seeming is opposed to real; obvious or evident, to obscure.]

Do not use anticipate for expect. [Anticipate means to reach before, to take before, to forestall, as: “I anticipated all his wishes.”]

Do not say, all of them, both of them, for they [or them] all, both, respectively.

Do not spell with z analyse, paralyse, and other words derived from the Greek luo, lusis.

Do not use ale, tea, sugar, &c., in the plural. [Instead of saying, “I have excellent teas, ales and sugars,” say, “I have excellent tea, ale and sugar, of various qualities] [or, at various prices, &c.]”

Do not use accord for grant or give. [Accord, intransitive, means to agree or harmonize; transitive, it means to give or grant; but it carries with it the idea of great condescension, e.g.: “Pallas accords their vow.” In ordinary prose it should be employed but rarely.]

Do not use accident for wound or hurt. [Accident means misfortune or calamity, e.g.: “In the railway accident the man was badly injured.”]

Do not use aggravate for irritate or vex. [Aggravate means to render heavy or more difficult, e.g.: “The guilt was aggravated by the circumstances of the crime.”]

Do not use alternation for series or succession. [Alternation is reciprocal succession, e.g.: “The alternation of red and white balls on the string produced a very pretty effect.”]

Do not use alternative [in the plural] as equivalent to things to be chosen from or among. [Alternative is the choice itself, and should, properly speaking, be restricted to a choice between two things, e.g.: “My alternative was escape or death.”]

Do not use antiquarian [as a noun] for antiquary. [Antiquarian is an adjective.]

Do not use abortive of acts. [It may be used of plans or attempts; but it is, at the best, an inelegant word.]

Do not say, “The measures adopted by Congress for the quelling of the rebellion &c.” Say, “The measures decided upon or taken &c.” [Adopted is correctly employed in such a sentence as, “The report upon ways and means was adopted.”]

Do not say, “His antecedents are bad.” Say, “His past history [or, his reputation] is bad.”

Do not use appreciate for value highly. [Appreciate is to value correctly or justly.] Say, therefore, “I prize [or value] that horse highly;” not, “I appreciate &c.”

Do not say, “The wind was accompanied [or attended] by rain &c.” Use with of things [unless personified]; by, of persons.

Do not use anniversary of celebrations that are not yearly. Thus, not, a centennial anniversary; but, a centennial celebration, festival, &c.

Do not use affable as an exact synonym for kindly or good-natured. [Affable is properly applied to the bearing of superiors towards inferiors, not to the bearing of equals towards equals.]

Do not say, “Both are alike;” say, “They [or they two] are alike.” Both denotes union; alike, separation.

Do not say, “He alludes [or refers] to Mr. Smith,” when you mean that he merely names Mr. Smith. Say, “He means Mr. Smith.” [The real meaning of allude or refer to is to touch lightly upon, to call attention to, delicately or indirectly.]

Do not say, “He went around the world.” It should be, “He went round &c.” [Around denotes rest—“The shelves are around the room;” round denotes motion.]

Do not say, “He remained there no longer than could be avoided.” [Logically, it ought to be, than could not be avoided; but, as this is a very inelegant expression, use some other form, e.g.: “He remained there no longer than was unavoidable,” or, “than was necessary.”]

Do not say, “I went all over the town,” for “I went over all the town.”

Do not use above as an attributive adjective. Say, “the foregoing [or preceding] paragraph,” not “the above paragraph.”

Do not say, “He is as rich, or richer, than my brother.” [It should be, “He is as rich as, or &c.” If preferred, the form of the sentence may be changed, “He is as rich as my brother, or richer.”]

Do not say, “John and James both are here.” It should be, “Both John and James are here.”

Do not use balance for remainder. [Balance is the excess of one thing over another, i.e., what will make them balance.]

Do not use to beat for to defeat. E.g.: “The army was beaten,” is incorrect. [Beat means to strike or hit.]

Do not say, at best, at most, at least [the last two in reference to quantity.] Use the article—at the best &c.

Do not say, “He is bound to go,” for, “He intends to go,” or, “He is determined to go.”

Do not spell bye in by-the-bye without the e. [Bye is an old word meaning place. So by-the-bye is by the place, i.e., passing by the place, or digressing from the main subject. Still, it is customary to write by-law, although bye-law is sometimes seen. In good-bye bye is, of course, a contraction for be with ye, i.e., “God be with ye.”]

Do not say, “He was killed by a bullet.” Use with. [By denotes conscious agency; with, unconscious instrumentality. By expresses indirect; with, direct agency.] So, a man is killed with an axe, by a man. When the unconscious instrument is personified, by may be used, e.g., “The man was struck by lightning.”

Do not say, “He has a bad cold, a bad wound, &c.” Use some other adjective—severe, dangerous, &c.

Do not say, “I wish very badly to do so.” Use very much, greatly, or some other adverbial expression.

Do not use between of more than two objects. Use among. “I live between Mr. Smith and Mr. Brown.” “I live among friends.” [Between is often incorrectly employed in such expressions as, “The distance between each post was twenty feet.” There can be no distance between one thing. A different turn must be given to such a sentence; e.g.: “The distance from each post to the next one was &c.;” or,[Pg 6] “The distance between any two consecutive posts was &c.”]

Do not speak of collecting a bill. The items or the various moneys or amounts constituting a bill may be collected. [It is impossible to collect one thing only.]

Do not use an infinitive as the object of commence or essay. [There is no necessity for using commence at all. Begin is a much better word.]

Do not use condone for atone for or palliate. [Condone is simply to forgive, as applied to things.]

Do not use climax for acme or highest point. [Climax is a ladder or gradual ascent, not the top of the ladder.]

Do not use constantly for often or continually. [Constantly means firmly or steadfastly; as, “He kept his eyes fixed constantly on the goal.”]

Do not use celebrity for celebrated person. [Celebrity means renown; e.g.: “A man of celebrity in Science.”]

Do not use consequence for importance or moment. [Consequence means result.]

Do not say, “He is of a capricious mind.” Say simply, “He is capricious.”

Do not use upon for on, after to call. E.g.: “He called on [not upon] me.”

Do not say, “I cannot catch the train,” for “I cannot catch up to [or, with] the train.”

Do not use circumstance for event or occurrence. [A Circumstance is “something pertaining to a fact, but not essential thereto.”]

Do not use may, can, must, shall, will, and other auxiliary verbs alone, unless the form of the preceding principal verb may be repeated without change after the auxiliary. E.g.: “He did as well as he could,” is incorrect. “He will do as well as he can,” is correct.

Do not use couple for two, unless the persons or things spoken of are joined, either literally or figuratively. Thus, speak of a happy couple [a man and wife], or of a couple of handcuffs, but not of a couple of dollars.

Do not use calibre [figuratively] of things. It is applicable to persons only.

Do not use contention of an individual act: a contest, struggle, combat. [Contention implies habit or custom; e.g.: “He displayed a spirit of contention through all the negotiations.”]

Do not say, “He was on the horns of a dilemma.” [Dilemma means “two enclosing positions terminating[Pg 8] in what may be called horns.” Say, therefore, “He was between the horns of a dilemma;” or, “He was in a dilemma.”]

Do not say, “It would be desirable [or advisable] to go away.” Say, “It is desirable [or advisable] to go away.”

Do not use demean for bemean. To demean oneself is to behave oneself; to bemean oneself is to lower or disgrace oneself.

Do not say, “Goods of that description,” for “goods of that kind or sort.” [Confine description to the meaning of explanation or recital.]

Do not use detect for distinguish, see, make out. [Detect means to bring to light, to reveal, to expose.] Thus, “The criminals were detected in their crime,” is correct. “The peasants could be detected at once,” is incorrect.

Do not use denuded as an exact equivalent of bare. [A thing cannot be denuded of that which it has never had.]

Do not use deprecate for condemn or censure. [Deprecate means to beg off or pray exemption from. E.g.: “I deprecate the infliction of the death penalty upon the prisoner.”]

Do not use directly for as soon as. [Say, “As soon as he came in, he went out again;” not, “Directly he &c., &c.”]

Do not use donate for give, unless the gift is princely in amount or made with great ceremony.

Do not say, “That property has depreciated in value.” Depreciate alone means to fall in value. In value is therefore pleonastic. [Depreciate is either transitive (to bring down the value of) or intransitive (to fall in value). The former is said to be the preferable use, but the latter is the more common use.]

Do not say, “I differ with you upon that point.” Say, “I differ from you &c.” [Differ with is sometimes used for quarrel with, or have a misunderstanding with. This use is, however, rather rare.]

Do not say, “He lives some distance from here.” Say, “He lives at some distance &c.”

Do not use differentiate for distinguish. [Differentiate should be confined to mathematical and other scientific expressions.]

Do not employ expect for think or believe. [Expect means to look forward to, and should be used only of the future.]

Do not say, “He has lost ever so many horses.” If used at all, the expression should be, “never so many.”

Do not say equanimity of mind, anxiety of mind, unanimity of mind. That is, do not use compounds of animus or anima along with mind, temper, spirit, affection, &c.; as such expressions are pleonastic. [So, unity or agreement of mind is a better expression than equanimity of mind.]

Do not say, “I have every confidence in him,” for, “I have the greatest [or entire] confidence in him.”

Do not use executed for put to death. [Laws or sentences are executed (i.e., carried out), and the criminal is hanged or shot or otherwise killed.]

Do not use enact for act. To enact is to establish by law, to decree, to perform. [So say, “A law was passed”—not enacted; but, “It was enacted by law that all murderers should be put to death.”]

Do not use endorse for approve of, applaud, sanction. Confine the employment of endorse to its ordinary commercial meaning.

Do not say, “He tried an experiment.” [This is tautological, as an experiment is a trial. The expression should be, “He made, or performed, an experiment.”]

Do not use either, neither and whether of more than two persons or things.

Do not use exemplary as an exact synonym for excellent. [Exemplary means giving an example, as in: “He inflicted exemplary punishment.”]

Do not say, “I experience great pleasure [or pain”]. Say, “I feel &c.”

Do not confuse few and a few. There is a great distinction in meaning between the two. E.g.: “Few persons like Mr. Smith,” means that but few like him, i.e., that he is generally disliked. “A few persons like Mr. Smith,” means that some persons [perhaps all who know him] like him. Therefore, few should be followed by and; a few by but; e.g.: “Few persons like Mr. Smith, and these persons would not like him did they know him well.” “A[Pg 12] few persons like Mr. Smith, but more persons like Mr. Brown.”

Do not confuse at fault with in fault. [At fault is a hunting phrase meaning “off the scent” (equivalent to at sea); in fault is in error.]

Do not say, “He faithfully promised to do it.” [One may do a thing faithfully, or may promise to do it faithfully; but one cannot faithfully promise to do it.]

Do not use future for next or subsequent [of the past]. Thus, “The future career of Milton was &c.,” should be, “The after [or subsequent] career of Milton was &c.” Again, “For the future the course of Columbus was &c.,” should be, “Thenceforward [or after this, or thereafter, or subsequently] the course of Columbus was &c.”

Do not say, “Go and fetch it.” [Fetch alone means to go and bring. The expression is, therefore, pleonastic.]

Do not say, “I forbid you from going.” Say, “I forbid you to go,” or, “I forbid your going.” [With prevent or hinder, however, use from.]

Do not compare adjectives ending in ful. Say, “He showed more grace,” or use some other expression in preference to “He was more graceful.” [Of course, the adjective full ought never to be compared. Instead of saying “That jug is fuller than the other,” say, “That jug is more nearly full than &c.” A similar remark will apply to many other adjectives (entire, perfect, &c.), the meaning of which admits of no degrees or gradations.]

Do not say fall down, sink down, rise up, ascend up, &c., as the adverbs are implied in the verbs. Say fall, sink, rise, ascend, &c.

Do not use fix for repair, arrange, set up. [Fix properly means to fasten firmly, as, “He fixed a nail into the wall.”]

Do not spell the plural of fly, a carriage, flies. The correct form is flys.

Do not use incorrect forms of foreign adjectives. Say, naïfs men, naïves women, naïfs features, i.e., make the adjectives agree in gender and number with its noun taken as a foreign word. [This rule applies especially to French adjectives.]

Do not use the word graphic of sound, or of anything but written or pictured representation.

Do not use grow as a transitive verb. Say, “He cultivates [produces, raises crops of, &c.] corn.”

Do not say, “He grows small;” for this involves a contradiction. Use decrease, diminish, become smaller.

Do not say, “The thing is no good [or no use].” Say, “The thing is of no good [of no use].”

Do not say, “That is one of the great, if not the greatest man I have ever seen.” This construction involves a grammatical contradiction, as will be seen by supplying the ellipsis: “That is one of the greatest [men], if not the greatest [man], I have ever seen.”

Do not say, “He gives no more than he can help.” [Logically, it ought to be, “He gives no more than he cannot help;” but as this expression is very awkward, use some other, e.g.: “He gives no more than is absolutely necessary,” “He gives only what he must give (or, is forced to give, or, cannot avoid giving).”]

Do not use humanitarian for humane. [The original and correct meaning of humanitarian is denying the divinity of Christ.]

Do not use, as an adverb, hardly for hard. Say, “He struck the man hard,” “He felt the blow hard” [not hardly]. Hardly means scarcely.

Do not use the word help-meet [one word]. Say, “He has a help meet [fit] for him,” “He has a help-mate,” but not, “He has a help-meet.”

Do not use high with calibre, when the latter has a figurative meaning. Say, “A man of large [or great] calibre.”

Do not use have pleonastically, e.g.: “I do not like to have you go,” for, “I do not like your going,” or, “I do not like you to go.”

Do not say, “He reached a higher stage of perfection than most men.” [There can be no grades or stages in perfection. The sentence should therefore be, “He came nearer perfection &c.” A similar remark applies to all these other words (entirety, totality, fulness, &c.), the meaning of which, from their very nature, admits of no gradations.]

Do not use if for whether. Say, “I cannot tell whether [not if] he will come or not.”

Do not use invest for buy, without an object. Say, “He bought,” not, “He invested in that.” Invest is correctly used as follows: “He invested a large sum of money in wheat.”

Do not use incorrect, or wrong, or bad, with orthography, orthoepy, calligraphy, &c. [The reason is obvious: orthos means correct, kalos means beautiful. So say, wrong spelling, incorrect pronunciation, bad writing, &c.]

Do not use individual for person, unless you wish to emphasize the idea of individuality, as is the case in the following sentence: “We may condemn the association as a whole, whilst honoring the individuals that compose it.”

Do not use infallible for inevitable. Say, “The inevitable [not, the infallible] result was so and so.”

Do not use inaugurate for begin. [To inaugurate is to install in office with certain ceremonies. Inaugurate should seldom be used of things, unless personified. It is the proper word in the following phrase: “To inaugurate a good and jovial year.”]

Do not use implicit for unbounded or unlimited, as it is used in, “I have implicit confidence in him.” [Implicit properly means woven into, expressed by implication, as opposed to explicit.]

Do not say, “I have not seen him in six months, in a year, &c.” [Use for.]

Do not say an illy equipped force, for an ill [or badly] equipped force. There is no such word as illy: ill being both adverb and adjective. [In England, ill (as adjective) is preferred to sick: sick having the meaning of nauseated. In America sick and ill are almost interchangeable. Authority shows that sick, in the sense of ill, is perfectly correct.]

Do not use identified with for prominent in or closely connected with, as it is used in the following sentence: “He was identified with that movement.” Prominently identified with, is worse still. [To identify is, to prove to be the same, or to ascertain or certify to the identity of. E.g.: “The body was identified as that of Mr. H.”]

Do not use if when there is no supposition or doubt. Do not say, “If, in the main, I have so acted, my reason is &c.” [Say, “My reason for having so acted is &c.”]

Do not employ interested in for concerned in or taking part in. It is correct to say, “I am interested in [i.e., I take an interest in] works of art;” but it is not correct to say, “I am interested in wheat” [for, “I deal in wheat,” or, “I am engaged in wheat-buying”].

Do not say, in so far as, for so far as, or as far as. [The in is clearly superfluous. Of the two expressions, so far as and as far as, the first is greatly preferable.]

Do not speak of a monthly or a quarterly magazine as a journal. [Etymologically, a journal is a daily newspaper. The term journal may, however, be applied to a weekly, a semi-weekly or a tri-weekly publication.]

Do not use jewelry of individual gems or other ornaments. Say, “His stock of jewelry was large;” but, “She wore magnificent jewels.” [Jewelry is a collective noun.]

Do not spell the plural of Knight Templar, Knights Templar or Knight Templars; it is Knights Templars. [Templar is a noun in opposition to Knight.]

Do not say, “The lowest and the highest house on the cliff,” when referring to the position of the houses. Use lowermost and uppermost. Lowest and highest should be applied to dimensions only.

Do not say, “He lit a fire.” Use lighted. [Lit is sometimes vulgarly employed as the past tense of light (alight), to come down upon, rest upon. Instead of[Pg 18] saying, “The bird lit upon the fence,” say, “The bird alighted upon the fence.”]

Do not use leave (to quit) without an object, as it is used in “When did you leave?” [Say, “When did you go away?” “When did you leave home, town, &c.?”]

Do not say, “The lay of the land is good,” for, “The lie &c.” [The use of lie in this sense should be avoided for the same reason that makes us avoid the use of certain, any, &c., viz., it is an ambiguous word.]

Do not use limited as exactly synonymous with small or short, but confine it to its strictly literal and original meaning of shortened, abbreviated, compressed within limits; e.g.: “He was granted strictly limited hours of recreation.”

Do not employ loan as a verb. Loan is properly used as a noun, the corresponding verb being lend. Say, “He lent me money, and afterwards I effected [or made] a loan for him.”

Do not say, “I speak loud,” for, “I speak loudly.” [Shakespeare uses loud for loudly, but loudly is the correct prose form of the adverb.]

Do not use at length for at last, finally. [At length means fully, lengthily, as, “He reported the speech at length.”]

Do not use myself and the other reflexive pronouns as nominatives, except for emphasis. Do not say, “When the soldiers and myself had gone.” [Use I instead of myself.]

Do not say, “He is more of a man than I am.” Use some other expression: more manly, better, &c.

Do not say, “I am mistaken,” for, “I mistake, I make a mistake, I am incorrect, &c.” [“I am mistaken” really means, “I am misunderstood,” or “taken wrongly.”]

Do not use make for gain or earn. [Say, “Does he earn much?” “Will he gain much?” not, “Does he make much?” “Will he make much?”]

Do not use novitiate for novice. [The novitiate is the period during which one is a novice.]

Do not say, “He merely named the incident or occurrence.” [A person or place may be named, but not an occurrence or event. The latter is mentioned, alluded to, described.]

Do not say, “No one was there,” for, “not one was there.” [The adjective no was originally no one. Therefore, no one is pleonastic. The adverb no is etymologically not or never. Therefore, such expressions as no sooner, no more may be considered correct, although not sooner, not more are preferable. Nobody, no person, &c., may often be advantageously used in place of no one. To the employment of these there is no objection, as there is to that of no one.]

Do not say, “No gold or silver.” Say, “No gold nor silver.” [“No gold or silver” would mean that gold[Pg 20] and silver are the same thing. If this meaning were intended, there ought to be a comma after gold, or else “or silver” ought to be in parentheses; e.g.: “No ancient Mexicans, or Aztecs, or (or Aztecs) were to be seen.”]

Do not say, “He came near dying,” for “He almost died,” “He narrowly escaped death,” &c.

Do not say, “No gold and no silver are here.” Use the singular verb. [The principle in this case is the same as in the case of each and every.]

Do not say, “I never remember to have seen,” for, “I do not remember ever to have seen.” [“I never remember to have seen,” really means, “I always forget &c.”]

Do not use “next Sunday,” “next Monday,” &c., for the Sunday, Monday, &c., after next. [Next Sunday is the nearest Sunday.]

Do not say, “I never committed the crime,” for, “I did not commit the crime;” i.e., do not use never for not.

Do not say, “I do not think it is true,” for, “I think [or better, believe] it is not true.”

Do not say, “He was nothing like so good as his brother,” “He wrote nothing like so well as his brother.” [Use “not nearly.”]

Do not use near for nearly. [Say, “He is not nearly so rich as &c.,” not, “He is not near &c.”]

Do not say on the street for in the street. [A street is properly a passage or space, not a roadway.]

Do not use he, him and his, or she, her and hers, for one and one’s. Say, “When one learns one’s lesson, one &c.;” not, “When one learns his lesson, he &c.” [Of course, they, their and them ought never to have one as antecedent.]

Do not use over his signature for under his signature. [The latter, which is the only correct form, means under the sanction of his signature.]

Do not use ovation as an exact synonym for shouting and cheering. Ovation is applied correctly to great occasions, festivals, triumphs.

Do not say, “I have no other purpose than this.” Say, “I have no purpose other than this,” i.e., keep other and than together. [A similar rule applies to comparatives in general and to many words (e.g., rather) like other, which have a comparative form and force. Therefore say, “Your house is larger than your cousin’s,” in preference to, “That is a larger house of yours than your cousin’s.”]

Do not say old veterans, as the word veterans implies length of service. If “length of days,” as well as[Pg 22] length of service, is to be expressed, use aged or some other word or phrase instead of old.

Do not, unless unavoidable, pluralize the indefinite pronoun one. Prefer, “You have three good horses and I have two bad horses,” or, “You have three good, and I have two bad horses,” to “You have three good horses and I have two bad ones.”

Do not say, among the others, among others, among the rest. [A person or thing cannot be among other persons or things. Say, along with the others, or others, or the rest.]

Do not use proposition for proposal or offer. Say: “I made the proposal to him; and he, in return, demonstrated the proposition for me.” [Proposal, in the sense of offer, is preferable to proposition, because it is shorter and unambiguous.]

Do not use pocket-hand-kerchief and neck-hand-kerchief for hand-kerchief or neck-kerchief respectively.

Do not use pretend for claim or assert. Say, “He claimed [or asserted] that he was correct.”

Do not use preposterous for absurd. [Preposterous properly means, putting the first last and the last first. Besides, it is a longer word than absurd.]

Do not use previous and subsequent as adverbs. Say: “He came previously [or subsequently] to your arrival.”

Do not use partially for partly. [Partially should be confined to its meaning of with partiality, but is seldom employed.]

Do not use people for persons individually. Say, “There were three persons [not, people] present.” [People means a race or nation, or else persons collectively—the old word folk.]

Do not use a plural verb or pronoun with each or every. Say: “Each day and each hour [or, every day and every hour] brings its cares.”

Do not use the plural form of the noun in such cases as, “Men’s healths have suffered;” “The children’s illnesses have increased.” [The rule is, that a noun governing the possessive plural, should not itself be in the plural, unless the sense requires it. This rule will apply chiefly to abstract nouns: virtue, sin, &c. The sense will, of course, require the plural in such an instance as, “The children’s hands were injured.”]

Do not use the plural form in such compound adjectival expressions as, calves’-foot jelly, ten-foot pole, twenty-dollar watch.

Do not say, “All have rights and privileges.” [Privilege (literally, private law) is some favor or advantage enjoyed by an individual. So, all have rights; but all have not privileges.]

Do not use the present participle for the past participle or the perfect participle. So, instead of saying, “After seeing him, I went away;” say, “After having seen him,” &c.

Do not use plastic of the person or hand that fashions, but of the material fashioned. Say, “His plastic mind was easily impressed;” not, “He moulded with his plastic touch the mind of his brother.”

Do not use presume for think or believe. Do not say, “I presume that is correct.”

Do not use period for point of time. Period means series of years or duration. E.g.: “The period between 1862 and 1882 was” &c.

Do not use persuaded for convinced. One is convinced by argument; one is persuaded by entreaty. One is persuaded; one’s reason, convinced.

Do not use quite before a noun. Do not say, “That is quite a house.” [Quite may properly be used before an adjective (“He is quite ill”): it then means entirely, completely; not tolerably, pretty.]

Do not use partake for eat or drink. Say, “He ate some food and drank some water,” not, “He partook of food and water.” [Partake means to share or share with; e.g.: “Sit down, and partake of dinner with me.”]

Do not use per before English nouns: use a. Per is correct before Latin nouns. [Thus: “So much per-annum;” “so much a year;” “per capita,” or “a head.”]

Do not use the past tense for the perfect tense. Say, “He is the best man I have ever seen” [not, “I ever saw”].

Do not use replace for displace. To replace is to place again, i.e., to restore [the same thing] to its former place. Displace is to put out of place, and therefore [often], to put one thing into the place of another.

Do not say, “You have no right to pay him so large a price;” meaning, “You are not called upon [or, in duty bound]” &c.

Do not say, “It is rarely that I see him.” [Rarely, adverb, should be rare, adjective, after the verb to be.]

Do not use recommend for advise or counsel. “I recommend you to go away,” should be, “I advise you” &c.

Do not use rendition for performance or rendering [of a reading, piece of music, &c.]. Rendition means surrender.

Do not say, “This road takes you to Paris.” Say, “This road leads [or, leads one] to Paris.”

Do not use remit for send. Remit means to send back, to relax, to surrender, to forgive. “To send a remittance,” is still worse than, “to remit money.”

Do not use the adjective scarce for the adverb scarcely. Say, “Scarcely a bushel” [not, scarce].

Do not say, “I shall have pleasure in accepting your invitation.” Use the present tense [“I have—or take—pleasure” &c.].

Do not use spare for give. Spare means to save. So: “I cannot spare you any more”, should be, “I cannot give you any more.”

Do not use since for ago. Say, “About a year ago;” not, “About a year since.”

Do not say, “The business was very large, so much so as to require” &c. [Repeat the adjective: “so large as to” &c.]

Do not use summons, as a verb, for summon. Say, “He was summoned [not summonsed] to court.”

Do not say, “He is such another man as his brother.” [Another should precede such: “another such.”]

Do not use superior for able. Say, “He is an able [not a superior] man.”

Do not use supposititious for supposed or hypothetical. Supposititious means spurious; and there is no necessity for using it at all.

Do not use settle for pay. Say, “He paid the account;” not, “He settled the account.”

Do not say, “It storms,” when it only rains or snows. [A storm is a violent movement in the atmosphere, with or without hail, snow, sleet or rain.]

Do not use splendid for merely great or good. Splendid should be used of that only which is literally or metaphorically brilliant. E.g.: “A splendid endurance of hardships on the march,” is incorrect. “A splendid charge upon the enemy, when the march was over;” is correct.

Do not say, a summer’s morning, a winter’s morning; for, a summer morning, a winter morning. [We should never think of saying, a spring’s morning, a fall’s morning.]

Do not use strata as a singular noun. Stratum is singular; strata is plural.

Do not speak of a wider [or more extended] point of view [or stand-point]; as a point cannot be anything but a point. [Point of view is preferable to stand-point; as the latter expression is logically absurd: one cannot stand on a point. If stand-point is used, do not say, “He approached from the stand-point;” as approach denotes motion, stand-point rest.]

Do not use sincere without its completing words. E.g.: “He is sincere in his aims, in his means;” is correct. [This necessity arises from the two-fold or ambiguous meaning of sincere. One may be sincere in one’s aims, but not sincere in one’s means of reaching those aims.] Honest, on the other hand, may be used alone; as it means straight-forward and sincere in every thing.

Do not use scorn and disdain, as verbs, with the name of a person as object. Do not say, “He scorns [or[Pg 28] disdains] Mr. S.” Use despise, look down upon, or some other expression.

Do not use small of quantity. [Small is applicable only to dimensions. Thus, do not say, “The smallest assistance will be thankfully received.” It should be, “The least assistance” &c.]

Do not use statu quo or bona fide for status quo or bona fides. Say, “The status quo remained unchanged, each party having preserved bona fides.” A similar remark will apply to many other foreign expressions. Of course, wherever there is a satisfactory English equivalent, a foreign word or phrase should not be used.

Do not say, “Will you take some meat?” Say, “Will you have veal [or beef, or whatever it is]?”

Do not say, “The taxes are levied on persons, and collected from land.” The reverse is the case: taxes are levied on land and collected from persons.

Do not employ thereabouts, hereabouts, whereabouts (with final s) as adverbs. Say, “It was in 1859 or thereabout.” As nouns these words take the s; e.g.: “Do you know his whereabouts?”

Do not say, that far, that much, that many, &c., for so far, so much, so many, &c.

Do not use the word tea for broth, medicine, solution, unless absolutely unavoidable. [Tea is the plant itself or the beverage made from its leaves.]

Do not say, “I prefer to walk to ride.” Say, “I prefer walking to riding.”

Do not say, “I have been to Paris.” [Use at. One can go to, but not be to, a place].

Do not use underhanded for underhand. Say, “He made money by underhand [not underhanded] dealings.”

Do not use utter as an exact equivalent of say or express. [Utter is to speak, give forth, or pronounce, generally in a loud voice.] Say therefore, “He uttered a sharp cry;” but, “He expressed a noble sentiment.”

Do not use ultimate of the past. Confine it to the future. Do not say: “The ultimate issue of the Thirty Years’ war was” &c. Say, “The result [or, the issue, the end, the conclusion, the subsequent course of the Thirty Years’ War was” &c.]

Do not use the adjective utter indiscriminately for entire or complete. E.g.: One may say, utter nonsense; but not, utter sense. [A similar remark will apply to the adverb utterly.]

Do not use valuable for valued. Say: “One of our most valued [or, most highly valued—not valuable] contributors has sent us a most valuable [not valued] article.”

Do not say, “I am very pleased,” “too pleased,” “so pleased;” for, “I am very much pleased,” “too much pleased,” “so much pleased.” That is, with past participles used as adjectives or along with auxiliaries, insert much after very, too and so. We say, “He is very little [too little, so little] loved.” We ought, therefore, to say, “He is very much [too much, so much] loved.” Strictly speaking, so hated means hated, not to a certain degree, but in a certain manner.

Do not say Toronto and vicinity; but, Toronto and its vicinity. [Neighbourhood is generally a better word to employ than vicinity.]

Do not repeat unnecessarily the word whether. Do not say, “Whether he was rich, or whether he was poor.” [Omit the second whether.] As has been said before, whether, either and neither ought properly to be employed only of two persons or things. Therefore, where several are mentioned, they should be grouped in couples: e.g.: “Whether he has gold or silver, whether he has stocks or bonds;” [or: “Whether he has gold or silver, stocks or bonds” (the second whether being unexpressed).] This is better than: “Whether he has gold, silver, stocks or bonds.”

Do not say: “Whether he be right or wrong.” [Use with whether the indicative is, not the subjunctive be, unless the rules given for the subjunctive apply to the sentence.]

Do not say: “Give it to whomsoever asks for it.” Say: “Give it to whosoever [or whoever] asks for it.” [The[Pg 31] object of to is not whomsoever, but some noun or pronoun unexpressed: the person, him.]

Do not use the verb witness for see or behold. Say: “That is the most beautiful scenery I have ever beheld [or seen; not witnessed].” To witness means to see or be present at the performance of some act or at the occurrence of some event. So a man witnesses a fight, but does not witness scenery. Witness, moreover, generally carries with it the idea of giving testimony. Where such idea is lacking, it is better to use see or behold.

Do not use what for? for why? Say: “Why do you act so?” not: “What do you act so for?”

Do not confuse the “editorial we” with the ordinary we, as is done in the following: “As a public journalist, we must say that when other men act in that way, we all [i.e., all persons] feel aggrieved.”

Do not say whether or no, for, whether or not, unless no is an adjective qualifying some noun unexpressed. Thus: “Whether he comes or not [not no];” but, “Whether he is a merchant or no.” In the latter instance, however, not would be quite correct. [“Whether he is a merchant or is not a merchant.”]

Do not use “the whole of” [before a plural noun] for all. Say: “All the deputies were present;” not, “The whole of” &c.

Do not use winsome for winning. Winsome means joyous, light-hearted. “His daughter was a winsome lass; she had a winning smile.”

Do not use worse for more. Say: “He disliked vinegar more [not worse] than pepper.” [A similar remark will apply to better.]

Do not use want for need [verb]. To avoid ambiguity, want should be restricted to its meaning of wish or desire; need, to that of lack or be under the necessity of. Say, therefore, “I want to go for a drive;” but not, “The man was so poor that he actually wanted [lacked, needed] bread;” or worse, “You want [need to, or must] go away.”

Do not say, “Yesterday’s Times has come.” Say, “The Times of yesterday has come.”

Do not end a letter with Yours &c., for Yours truly, Respectfully yours, or some other expression.

Avoid such constructions as, “The object of your brother’s writing the letter was” &c. [Prefer, “The object your brother had in writing the letter was” &c.; or, “Your brother’s object in writing the letter was” &c.] The gerundial infinite ought to be used—if at all—but very sparingly with a possessive case, especially when the possessive is preceded by of. A similar remark applies still more strongly to the noun form in ing; e.g.: “His killing of the man was” &c.

Be careful about the position of also, even, only—in fact, of all adverbs, prepositions and conjunctions. As[Pg 33] a general rule, adverbs precede the words they modify. Thus: “He only writes,” is correct; but, say, “He does nothing but write;” or use some other expression.

Prefer: “In the works of even great men;” to, “In the works even of great men.” So: “Of both ancient and modern times,” is better than, “Both of ancient and of modern times.” [Both would properly come before of in such a construction as: “Both of and from him.”] “Both of ancient and modern times” [without the second of] is entirely incorrect.

“Nobody’s else book,” is said to be preferable to, “Nobody else’s book.” Custom has, however, firmly established the latter form. But it is better to employ some other expression; e.g.: “The book of no one else;” “No other person’s book.”

“Thou canst not tell whence it cometh or whither it goeth.” Or should be used here, as the not modifies (in meaning) all the subsequent part of the sentence. We should never think of saying: “Whence it cometh nor whither it goeth, thou canst not tell.” In, “We will not serve thy gods nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up;” nor is correct; as serve does not govern the rest of the sentence. [Some grammarians, however, contend that or would be equally good: the effect of the not extending over both subsequent verbs. The soundness of this contention is questionable.] The most elegant form to give the sentence is; “We will not serve thy gods, nor will we worship the golden image” &c.

In such an expression as, “I do not want butter or honey;” the strict meaning is, “I do not want merely one of the two.” “I want neither butter nor honey,” means, “I do not want either.”

When two nouns in the possessive case are in apposition, the apostrophe and s may be added to either noun. Thus: “This book is Virgil, the Roman poet’s;” or: “This book is Virgil’s, the Roman poet.” [If, however, the appositive enlargement is complex, or if it consists of several terms, the apostrophe and s should be added to the first noun. E.g.: “This book is Virgil’s, the great and renowned Roman poet.”] Again, if each appositive noun is very emphatic, the apostrophe and s may be added to each. When any doubt arises as to the proper form, employ another expression; e.g.: “This book is one of the works of Virgil, the great and renowned Roman poet.”

Avoid the use of such forms as, “John, William and James’s father.” Prefer, “The father of John, William and James;” or, “The father of John, of William and of James.”

Such expressions as, “While playing, the boy was killed,” are quite correct. That is, the auxiliary may be left out, although the phrase is introduced by a subordinate conjunction.

When the auxiliary verb used with a past participle consists of two words (i.e., is compound), the adverb generally comes after the compound auxiliary, not[Pg 35] between its two parts. E.g.: “Why he should have suddenly renounced his faith,” &c.; is better than, “Why he should suddenly have renounced” &c. The best form, perhaps, is, “Why he should have renounced his faith suddenly” &c.

It is correct to say, “This seven years has passed;” “This hundred dollars is there:” the seven years being taken as forming one period of time; and the hundred dollars, one sum of money. To avoid the seeming want of agreement between the singular and the plural, use some collective noun after this; e.g.: space, period, in the first case; sum, amount, in the second. [The forms, these seven years, these hundred dollars, would draw attention to the individual years and the individual dollars.]

As a general rule, collective nouns (that is, those nouns as which have both the singular and the plural form, number, crowd) require a singular verb with their singular form, and a plural verb with their plural form. [However, the plural verb may be used with the singular form when the idea of plurality is to be very prominent.] Nouns of multitude, on the other hand, (that is, those which have no plural form, as clergy, nobility) generally require a plural verb. E.g.: “The clergy were assembled; there was a large number present.”

Do not use such words as mathematics, statics, physics, metaphysics (i.e., words originally plural, but now used in the singular), as subjects. So, say: “The study [or science, or practice] of mathematics is useful;” rather than, “Mathematics is [or are] useful.”

Dare, meaning to venture, and used with another verb, requires no to before this latter verb, and has in its past tense durst and in its third person singular present indicative dare (not dares). [The form dared may, however, be used for durst, in the past tense. Dared will then take no to before the infinitive.] Durst is often employed for the present dare, although the latter is preferable; e.g.: “He durst not do so.”

Dare, as a principal verb, meaning to challenge, has dares in the third person singular present indicative, and dared in the past. E.g.: “He dares me to-day, and he dared me yesterday to fight.”

Need has, in the third person singular present indicative, the same peculiarity as dare. Meaning to lack and used as a principal verb, it takes s; meaning to be necessary, and used as an auxiliary (without to), it does not; e.g.: “He needs money; still he need not beg.”

The participle and the infinitive may be used absolutely, as: “Speaking [or, to speak] generally, it is advisable to go.” This absolute form should be but sparingly employed.

If, although, and other conditional conjunctions do not necessarily require the subjunctive mood. They do require it, (1) When the conception is contrary to facts; e.g.: “If the world were round.” (2) When the supposition is a mere mental conception, without reference to how the matter will really be decided, or to what the result will be; e.g.: “If he went away [or, were to go away], I should be[Pg 37] happy.” [In such expressions as, “If it rains, I shall not go out;” the indicative is to be preferred to the subjunctive.]

As a principal verb, do may be employed for active transitive verbs only. For these verbs, moreover, do ought not be used—except to avoid excessive repetition—when they are of but one syllable, unless they are followed by other words forming a phrase, for which phrase do may stand. E.g.: “He carves marble better I do;” but, “He writes better than I write.” [In this last sentence it would, of course, be incorrect to omit the verb after I; as the first form of the verb (writes) can not be used with I.] Many good writers employ do for active intransitive verbs such as fly, run, act; but this use should be avoided. As an auxiliary, do may not be used without its principal verb unless the form of the principal verb already employed permits such use; i.e., unless this preceding verb may be repeated without change after the do. E.g.: “He has not looked well lately, nor does he to-day;” should be “He * * * ; nor does he look well to-day.” [A similar remark applies to other auxiliaries when employed without their principal verbs.]

“The verses are as follows;” [or, “as follow.”] Both expressions are sanctioned by good usage.

Some may be correctly used in such expressions as, “some fifty men,” “some ten miles;” i.e., “about fifty men,” &c. This employment of some is becoming obsolete.

You may properly occur in the same sentence with, and as an equivalent of, Your Majesty, Your Excellency, &c. E.g.: “Your Majesty says your Majesty has” &c.; or: “Your Majesty says you have” &c. [The first is, of course, much more formal than the second, and should be preferred when addressing persons of high station.]

“It is I, your brother, who begs you.” “It is I, your brother, who beg you.” In the first, the emphasis is on the word brother; in the second, on the I. [In the latter, it is better to enclose your brother in parentheses, the comma being omitted.]

In “not only—but also,” the also may be omitted. E.g.: “He not only killed the man, but he mutilated the corpse.” [It is generally better to use the complete form, “not only—but also.”]

Do not use like for as. Say: “As did Nero of old, so Thebaw put countless numbers of victims to death;” not, “Like Nero of old, Thebaw” &c. The use of like for as is defended on the ground that the sentence may be expanded into: “Being like Nero, Thebaw” &c. Still, it is the actions of the men that are compared, not the men themselves.

Avoid such awkward collocations as, “This is a far [or much] richer man than his brother.” Say, “This man is far [much] richer [or, richer by far] than” &c. A like remark applies to such, similar, and many other words. Say, “A horse such as that is worth one hundred dollars;” rather than, “Such a horse as that is” &c.

The or in whether—or may be left out; but it is generally better to express it. So: “I do not know whether he will come or not,” is better than, “I do not know whether he will come.”

The adjective is often used for the adverb before a present participle employed as an adjective to qualify a noun. E.g.: “a plain-speaking man,” “a good-looking man,” “a right-living man.” [In such expressions, it is better to unite the adjective and the participle with a hyphen.] With a past participle, the adjective is very rarely used. E.g.: “a plainly furnished house,” “a well dressed man.” Occasionally the adjective occurs with the past participle; e.g.: “a plain-spoken man.”

When the construction is changed from the negative to the affirmative, repeat the subject pronoun; or, if a noun is the subject, insert the personal pronoun before the second verb. Thus: “He does not walk, but he rides.” With whosoever, whoever, &c., as subjects, it is not necessary to use the pronoun before the affirmative verb. E.g.: “That whosoever believeth on Him might not perish, but have everlasting life.” When a change of tense, mood or voice occurs, it is generally advisable to insert the pronoun before the second verb, although—as is elsewhere explained—it is necessary to do so only when the verbs are emphatically distinguished or contrasted. [When the change is from the affirmative to the negative, the repetition of the subject or the insertion of the pronoun is not necessary. Indeed, the the repetition of the subject depends largely on the[Pg 40] emphasis desired or on the “sound” of the sentence.]

Say, “Solomon, son of David,” rather than, “Solomon, the son of David.” [The rule is that the article ought not to be used before those appositive nouns which are strictly limited by other definite words.] The insertion of the article before David is not absolutely incorrect; but the omission of it produces a good effect and sometimes prevents ambiguity, as in, “John, [the] son of Smith, and Jones, are here.” Where a second addition occurs, the article must be omitted even although it has been used before the first addition. Thus: “The Apostle James, son (or, the son) of Zebedee, and brother (not, the brother) of St John”.

Say, “The eldest son of a duke is called Marquis [not a Marquis].” The article is not to be used before titles as titles, or names as names. [E.g.: “Derive Thames.”] With two or more nouns, the article need not be repeated when there is no ambiguity. When there is, it should be repeated. Thus: “The Queen and King are here,” is correct. [The repetition of the article would, of course, add emphasis to the expression, i.e., it would draw attention to each individual person or thing. E.g.: “A cool temper, a sound judgment, a kindly disposition.”]

“The European and the African race;” or, “The European race and the African race.” Here two races are meant: the one European, and the other African. “The European and African races,” has the same meaning. “The European and the African races,”[Pg 41] means there are two or more European and two or more African races. This latter meaning would be more clearly expressed by inserting the word races after the word European.

“The conductor and the driver,” implies two men. “The conductor and driver,” implies one man. Say, therefore: “Solomon, the historian and builder;” not, “Solomon, the historian and the builder.”

“The bay or lame horse,” refers to one horse. “The bay or the lame horse,” refers to two horses. [In the former sentence, it would be better to put a comma after bay.] The rule in all these cases is, that the article must be repeated when there are two or more persons or things. With but one person or thing, the article may be repeated, as in poetry or for the sake of emphasis. E.g.: “A sadder and a wiser man.” It follows from the foregoing rule, that there should be no repetition of the article in such a phrase as, “He is a better poet than musician.” “He is a better poet than a musician,” would mean, “He is a better poet than a musician is.”

“The logical and grammatical analysis of a language is [are]” &c. If but one analysis is meant—i.e., if there is but one subject—the verb should be in the singular, is. If two analyses are meant—i.e., if there are two subjects—the verb may be in the plural, are. In the latter case, however, it is better to supply the article before grammatical. [“The logical and the grammatical analysis are,” &c.] It is still better to supply the first subject [“The logical analysis and”[Pg 42] &c.]: the verb being made plural. The supplying of this ellipsis [analysis] avoids the clash between a singular subject alone and a plural verb. Upon the same principle, “The position of the materialist and that of the idealist are reconcilable,” is to be preferred to, “The position of the materialist and of the idealist are reconcilable.” [The determining principle in all these cases is not whether the adjectives have the same meaning, but whether they qualify the same subject.]

Do not say, “No greater or wiser a man ever lived.” Say, “No greater or wiser man” &c.

The gerundial noun with the is generally to be preferred to the simple gerund. E.g.: “The eating of meat is forbidden,” is better than, “Eating meat” &c. [In some instances the latter form would cause confusion of meaning.]

An excellent, but rather loosely worded, rule for the use of shall and will is as follows: “If the speaker is nominative to the verb, and also determines the accomplishment of the idea expressed by the verb; or if the speaker neither is nominative to the verb nor determines the accomplishment of the idea expressed by the verb, use will. In all other cases, use shall.”

Say, “It should seem that he has done so.” [Not, “It would seem” &c.]

In impersonal assertions, such as: “It is hoped [desired, &c.] that all should sit down,” shall and should ought to be used. In direct and personal assertions, such as: “I desired that my conductor would explain,”[Pg 43] will and would are to be preferred. [Shall and should are, in such constructions, not incorrect; but will and would are preferable. Perhaps the best rule, in sentences such as the foregoing, is, that when a command is intended, shall and should must be used; when a hope or wish is intended, will and would may be used.]

In a subordinate clause, to express simple futurity, use shall and should when the subject of the subordinate clause is the subject of the principal clause also; will and would when it is not. Thus: “I believe I shall live;” “I believe he will live;” “He believes he shall live.”

Again, in an independent clause use shall and should when the event spoken of is under our control; will and would when it is not. E.g.: “You said it should be done;” “You said it would rain.”

Do not say, “I would be happy to go, if” &c.; or, “I will be happy to go.” Use should and shall. [The idea of willingness, or volition, is sufficiently expressed in the word happy. Hence, would and will are tautological.]

After nouns and adjectives following intransitive and passive verbs the infinitive with to is generally preferable to the gerund in -ing, to express purpose, end, design. E.g.: “He has power to act;” “It is fitted to produce that result.”

“Solomon, son of David, who slew Goliath;” is correct. “Solomon, son of David, who built the Temple;” is incorrect. [The relative should refer to the nearest[Pg 44] antecedent. So, change the second phrase into, “The son of David, Solomon, who” &c.; or, “Solomon, who was the son of David, and who” &c.; or employ some other form.]

Say, “He who was, and who is, and who is to come;” or, “He who was, who is and who is to come.” That is, repeat the relative, especially when a conjunction occurs. [If the sentence were to read, “He who was, is and is to come;” He might seem to be the subject of the first and the second is, and not of some verb unexpressed.] The possessives also should be repeated before nouns that are to be distinguished. E.g.: “Their form and their use give us great trouble.”

Do not use that for who or which, when the antecedent is explicit. Say: “My father, who [not, that] is dead.”

Who or which is to be preferred to that when the relative is separated from its verb or its antecedent, and is emphasized by isolation. E.g.: “There are many persons who, had they opportunities, would succeed in life.”

Who or which is to be preferred to that when the relative is governed in the objective by a preposition that has the appearance of an adverb (beyond, over, under, &c.). E.g.: “The limit beyond which no one has gone,” is better than, “The limit that no one has gone beyond.”

Avoid the use of than whom when whom is not really in the objective case. Instead of than whom [which[Pg 45] is grammatically incorrect] and than who [which, although grammatically correct, has a very strange sound] employ some other form. E.g.: In place of “Nero, than whom no crueller man has ever lived, was” &c.; say, “Nero—and no crueller man has ever lived—was” &c.; or, “No crueller man than Nero has ever lived. He was” &c. [Of course, when the relative is in the objective case, whom is correct after than; e.g.: “My brother, than whom I love no one more dearly, is ill.”]

Who or which may sometimes [e.g., to avoid undue repetition] be used for that; but that ought never to be used for who or which.

After indefinite pronouns or indefinite pronominal adjectives (others, several, many, some, none, one, &c.), who or which is to be preferred to that.

After personal pronouns prefer who or which. E.g.: “He who is wise,” &c.

After the conjunction that, prefer who or which. E.g.: “He said that the man who saw him” &c.

It is not improper to follow the demonstrative this by the relative that. E.g.: “It was this that caused his death.”

When who or which is used restrictively for that, it is well to place the or that before the antecedent, e.g.: “The States [or, those States] which border on Canada,” &c.

The objective relative may be omitted whenever the antecedent and the subject of the relative sentence[Pg 46] come into juxtaposition; e.g.: “Give me the book you have.”

The personal pronoun it and the relative pronoun which may have as antecedents a short, clear clause; but this usage is not desirable. So, although, “He gave me his word of honour: which I had not expected,” is not incorrect; yet it is better to say, “He gave me his word of honour: a thing I had” &c.; or, “He gave me his word of honour. I had never expected this.”

Avoid such a relative construction as: “That was the man who, the witness said, had broken into the store.” Say: “That man, the witness said, had” &c.; or: “That was the man, the witness said, who” &c.; or: “That was the man whom the witness accused of having broken” &c. [The fault of the first construction is that, for an instant, the mind is in doubt whether who or whom ought to be used.]

Distinguish, according to the sense you wish to convey, between the use of the adjective and that of the adverb, after intransitive verbs expressing action [go, come, arrive, depart, &c.] E.g.: “He arrived safe.” “He arrived safely.” The former denotes his condition upon arrival, without reference to his condition upon the way. The latter denotes his condition upon the way, without reference to his condition upon arrival. So say: “He came safely through numberless perils, but dropped dead upon the threshold of his own home.”

Lesser may be used of dimensions, but not of quantity. Thus: “He is lesser than his brother,” is not incorrect;[Pg 47] but, “He is smaller than [or, shorter than, or not so large as],” &c., is better. “There is lesser wheat than corn,” is incorrect.

Try to avoid the use of words that have two or more meanings: any, certain, left, lie, &c. [Any is sometimes used incorrectly for indefinitely large; e.g.: “He gave me any number of books.”]

Avoid using a word that leaves us for a moment doubtful what part of speech it is. E.g.: “The good remains, he said,” &c. [Until something further is given, we are in doubt whether remains is a noun, the subject of some unexpressed verb; or a verb, agreeing with its subject, good, used as a noun.]

Avoid the excessive use of such expressions as, of this sort, of this kind, in this way, in this manner. It is better to repeat the words to which the reference is made.

Avoid what is called the prospective use of it. Say, “To give is good;” not, “It is good to give.”

It is often said that a sentence ought not to end with a preposition. There is no objection, however, to such an ending, provided the preposition governs a relative pronoun and is not likely to be mistaken for[Pg 48] some other part of speech. Thus: “The rule that I always adhere to,” is quite correct. [If preferred, “The rule to which I always adhere,” may, of course, be used.] It is hardly necessary to say that the clause or sentence should not end with the to of the infinitive; i.e., to, the sign of the infinitive, ought never to be used alone.

To relieve the monotony and to give force to the expression, change such constructions as, “He replied that he deemed it best that his example should not be followed;” into, “He deemed it best, he replied, that his example should not be followed.”

Force may often be gained by the use of particular, in place of general, terms. E.g.: gold for great riches, a crust of bread for poverty. On the same principle, a particular proper name may be used effectively for a common, or class, name. E.g.: “Solomon,” is more forcible than “the wisest man;” “Nero,” than “the most cruel man.”

The great rule, however, for force, or effect, is that the reader shall be kept in suspense; that is, that he shall be made to feel the incompleteness of the sentence, until the end is reached. To attain this object the following directions have been given: (1) Put a conditional clause first, not last. E.g.: “If he wishes, I will go away.” [When the conditional clause is very emphatic, it may be placed last.] (2) Let participial phrases come before the words[Pg 49] qualified by them. E.g.: “Wasted by disease, worn out with toil, he was fast sinking into the grave.” [This remark will often apply to adjectives and adverbs, as well as to participles. E.g.: “Weary of life, glad to depart, he quietly passed away.”] (3) Use suspensive words: not only, but also; either, or; partly, partly; on the one hand, on the other; in the first, second, &c., place. Of course, this “principle of suspense” is not to be too frequently employed.

Emphatic words must be in emphatic positions; i.e., at the beginning or at the end of the proposition. “Coward though he was, he was forced to fight;” is much more striking than, “He was forced to fight, although he was a coward.”

The most emphatic place for the subject is at the end, its ordinary place being at the beginning of the proposition.

On a similar principle, the object is made emphatic by putting it before its verb.

Again, emphasis may be given by the use, before the emphatic noun, of such an expression as, as for the, as to the, concerning, &c.

Avoid putting a minimizing expression, such as, at least, at all events, at any rate, between two emphatic expressions.

Avoid the placing of an unemphatic word at the end of the proposition. The following sentence is weak, because this rule has not been observed. “The documents proved how just in all his dealings he was.”

What have been called “short, chippy endings” should be avoided, as such endings spoil the rythm which should exist even in prose. E.g.: “The man, pierced with balls, died;” is bad.

Prepositions and pronouns attached to emphatic words need not, however, be removed from the end. So: “Bear witness how he loved him,” is correct. [In such instances the emphatic and the unemphatic word form, as it were, a compound expression.]

Frequently an idea may be expressed more forcibly in the form of a question than in that of an assertion.

Brevity may often be obtained by the use of a word for a phrase. E.g.: unintelligible, indelible.

Brevity may be obtained, also, by the use of metaphors, in place of literal words or phrases.

The omission of the present participle often gives brevity and force to the sentence. E.g.: “The Indians [being] on the war-path, what dared we do?”

Brevity may be gained by using the imperative for other moods. E.g.: “Do this, and you will suffer;” for, “If you do this” &c. [This use of the imperative should be indulged in but sparingly.]

Repeat the nominative when the verbs of the various clauses are of diverse moods, tenses or voices and are emphatically distinguished. E.g.: “He is, and he always has been, rich.”

Repeat the preposition after an intervening conjunction, especially if a verb and a pronoun also intervene. E.g.: “The man does not remember the respect he ought to have for those persons who have helped him, and for his old friend C. in particular.” [If the preposition for were not repeated after and, the sentence might mean that the man does not remember his old friend C. in particular.]

Do not repeat the sign to of the infinitive unless attention is called to each individual verb.

When otherwise there would be doubt as to whether an infinitive expresses a purpose or not, and it is intended that it shall express a purpose, use in order that, for the purpose of [followed by the form in -ing], or some such phrase. [Purpose may be clearly shewn, of course, by the use of that with an auxiliary verb. E.g.: “He died that we might live;” which is equivalent to: “He died in order to give us life.”]

To avoid ambiguity, or to add emphasis, repeat the subordinate conjunction. E.g.: “When the hunter had returned to the far-off camp, and when he had recounted his adventures” &c.

Be careful in the use of participial constructions. E.g.: “They will be shunned on their return, accompanied by the oppressors of their country;” may mean, “on account of their being accompanied” &c.; or, “when they are accompanied” &c. So: “Children, playing on the ice, often fall;” may mean: “Children that play” &c.; or “Children,[Pg 52] when they play” &c. It is best to confine the use of the participial phrase to the adverbial meaning [“Children, when they play” &c.]; and with other meanings to employ the relative pronoun [“Children that play” &c.]. When the participial phrase precedes the main proposition, the former usually implies cause; when it follows, time. E.g.: “Seeing this, he withdrew” [i.e. “He withdrew because he saw this.”] “He withdrew, seeing this” [i.e., “He withdrew when he saw this.”] If there is doubt as to which meaning is intended, use an introductory phrase, such as, while seeing, upon seeing.

There are various constructions that may take the place of the relative pronoun or of the relative clause. The infinitive may often be used with effect. E.g.: “He was the last that died,” may be expressed as: “He was the last to die.” Again, if or some other conditional word may be used to introduce a dependent clause. E.g.: “If a man sins, he will be punished” [i.e., “The man that sins” &c.] Again, the conjunction and the demonstrative pronoun may be used. E.g.: “He wasted his time at X., which was very foolish;” may be changed into: “He wasted his time at X., and this was” &c. Again, pronominal adverbs (whereby, wherein, &c.) may take the place of the relative and a preposition.

Very often, after a negative, the antecedent to the relative should be repeated, or a summing-up noun introduced. E.g.: “He said he would not hear me—a refusal that I expected.” When otherwise there[Pg 53] would be ambiguity, the same construction should be used with an affirmative.

Prefer verbal clauses to verbal nouns. “That he had betrayed his country was not so plainly shown,” is better than: “His having betrayed” &c.

Avoid what is called “mistake of subject.” E.g.: “The late arrival of the train caused” &c., should be: “The lateness of the arrival” &c. So: “Excuse a letter to-day,” should be: “Excuse my not having written a letter to-day.”

In prose be careful to avoid zeugma, i.e., the application of a word to two or more ideas, to only one of which it is really suitable. E.g.: “The landscape and the shoutings formed a strange sight.”

The great rule for figures of speech, especially for metaphors and similes, is to use strictly appropriate language. Therefore, do not say, “Convey an impression.” Say, “Make [or leave] an impression.” Do not say, “The car of progress rolls onward, gnashing its teeth in its course.”

In metaphorical language the pronouns usually agree with the noun used metaphorically, as if it were taken in its literal sense. E.g.: “The stone which the builders rejected,” &c. Afterwards, however, the pronouns may agree with the noun in its figurative sense. E.g.: “Behold I lay in Zion a chief corner-stone; and he that believeth on Him,” &c.

Do not employ different forms and expressions for the same person or thing, unless there is a peculiar[Pg 54] appropriateness in each term or expression. Only confusion results from speaking, within narrow limits, of Columbus as “the Genoese navigator,” “the discoverer of America,” &c.

It is a bad fault, therefore, to repeat the meaning in terms but slightly differing one from another. Thus, do not, in close connection, use such synonyms as all, universal, total.

A new construction ought not to be introduced without sufficient cause. E.g.: “On horseback and on foot,” is preferable to, “On horseback and walking;” “The dead and the living,” to, “The dead and those still on the earth.”

Let each sentence have one, and only one, subject of thought. That is, avoid mixed or confused sentences.

It is often a good thing to introduce each sentence of a paragraph by a short connecting expression: accordingly, therefore, so, then. [Such words as but, and, and other conjunctions generally used to join clauses, may, for the sake of clearness, introduce a new sentence.]

Sometimes two important sentences may very effectively be united by a short connective sentence, such as: “This was as follows,” “The result was as expected.”

Often a good effect is produced by making a statement or by giving an explanation twice: first, briefly, and then fully; or vice versâ.

The guiding principle in descriptive writing is to imagine we see, actually before us, the thing to be described.

Except in scientific or other very precise writing, avoid the frequent use of technical terms. It savors of pedantry, as the meaning of these terms is often unknown to the general reader. This “technical slang” is commonly seen in newspaper accounts of sporting and musical events. Why should bowling be called “trundling the leather,” or a lacrosse ball the “rubber”? Why should the report of a concert fairly bristle with “technique” and “timbre” and “genre” and “morceau”? Perhaps it is to display the writer’s intimate knowledge of the subject.

Advantage is “a state of forwardness or advance;” and the word is applied rightly, therefore, to one person or thing in relation to other persons or things. Benefit is simply gain or profit, without comparison of one person or thing with another. [Thus: “He possesses an advantage over me,” is correct. “All derived advantage from it,” is incorrect.]

Also is applied to things and qualities, and denotes mere addition. Likewise is applied to states of being or of action; and denotes some agreement or connection between the ideas expressed in the words it joins. [Thus: “He is a prince and also a musician;” but: “He is a poet and likewise a musician.”]

Ability is the power of doing something. Capacity is the faculty of receiving something [e.g.: new ideas, great thoughts.] [So: “That statesman has great ability;” “That pupil had wonderful capacity.”]

An answer is given to questions; a reply, to attacks and accusations. [An answer to an answer may, however, be called a reply.]

Amid or amidst is used generally when the surroundings are of a different nature from the person or thing surrounded. Among, when they are of the same nature. Again, amid or amidst is generally applied to quantity; among, to number. [So: “among friends;” “amidst enemies;” “among thousands;” “amid the snow.”]

Abandon and desert generally imply something blame-worthy in the one who abandons or deserts; forsake does not. Again: abandon and forsake are used of persons and things, desert is used of causes or of persons, but not of things. [Thus: “The soldier deserted his post of duty.” “The man abandoned his early friends.” “We forsook the dear old homestead.”]

Assist implies mutuality of help; aid, not necessarily so. [“The sufferers assisted one another.” “I aided him in his distress.”]

Anger is inward feeling. Wrath is inward feeling accompanied by outward manifestations. [“The wrath of the elements.” “The anger of the inmost soul.”]

Accurate is aiming at, and therefore attaining to, correctness. Exact has not necessarily this implication of intention, and may be used of accidental correctness. [“He was very honest and accurate in his accounts.” “He was exact in that financial statement, but it was by chance.”]

Authentic is that which gives a true account of the matters in question. Genuine is that which has been written or composed by the person whose signature the book or paper bears. [“This is a genuine letter of the great Captain’s; but it does not give an authentic account of the voyage.”]

Admittance is the right of entry; admission is the actual entry. [“The admittance fee was twenty-five cents.” “The burglar gained admission to the house by a window.”]

Allow is the stronger of the two. [“I begged to to be allowed to go; but I was refused.” “Permit me to show you to a seat.”]

Seem is confined to the mind; appear, to the senses. [“It seems to me that you have made a mistake.” “That house appears white to me.”]

Bountiful is used of persons; plentiful, of things. [“The game was plentiful.” “A bountiful giver.”]

Bravery is a natural quality; courage and valor are acquired qualities; courage, in particular, being the result of reason. Bravery and valor are confined to contests with living beings; courage is not. Again, valor is not used of single combat, but of war; bravery and courage may be used of single combat. [“The natives showed great bravery.” “He bore his sufferings with undaunted courage.” “His military career was one long record of valor.”]

Beneficent is used chiefly—if not entirely—of actions. Benevolent is used of both actions and feelings, chiefly of feelings. The same thing may be said of most adjectives and nouns having the endings -ficent and -ficence [facio, I do] respectively, and -volent and -volence [volo, I will] respectively; e.g.: munificent, malevolent. [“He was naturally very benevolent; but, owing to the circumstances of his life, he could not shew any very great beneficence.” “He was a very munificent man, continually giving away his money to the poor.”] The use of these words should be confined to persons or personified things. It is incorrect, therefore, to speak of a munificent gift.

Brevity is mere shortness. Conciseness is shortness along with condensation. [“His speech was very brief; for really there was nothing to be said.” “Mr. H. is very concise in his speeches: they are short, but full of matter.”]

Motion is continuous when there are no interruptions. It is continual when there are interruptions. [“Life itself is continuous.” “The demands upon ones purse are imperative and continual.”]

Character is our real inner worth; reputation is the world’s opinion of our character. [“His reputation is bad; but, could we see his real character, we should find him not so bad, after all.”]

Conscious applies to the heart, the soul, the conscience: i.e., to the moral and spiritual part of man. Aware applies to the mind. [“He was conscious of his sin.” “He was not aware that you saw him.”]

A crime is an infraction of the law of a particular land or people. Sin is the violation of a religious law. This law may be common to many lands or peoples. Vice is a continual course of wrong-doing, and is unaffected by country, religious belief, or state of life: being a line of conduct harmful to the vicious man or to others. [Smuggling is a crime; idleness is a sin, and, if long-continued, it becomes a vice.]

Courteous has reference chiefly to others; polite or polished, to ourselves. The former is “objective;” the latter, “subjective.” [Thus: “We met an old fisherman, who took us home and treated us with great courtesy and kindness. Of course, he was not polished: in fact, he had very little idea of politeness.”]

A catalogue is a list accompanied by short explanations or notes. “The list of the paintings was only a page and a half long; but the complete catalogue—compiled later—occupied four pages.”

That is casual which is unpremeditated. That is fortuitous which is “opposed to systematic design.” [Fortuitous generally implies a combination of events.] That is accidental which interrupts (generally unpleasantly) the ordinary course of events. [“Walking carelessly along, I took a casual look at the prison window; and there I beheld my friend.” “The accidental stopping of the coach saved him a further explanation.” “The meeting was quite fortuitous: it would not have taken place once in a thousand times.”]

Compel and compulsion generally imply the employment of physical force. Coerce and coercion do not, their meaning being almost always confined to moral or mental pressure.

Confess, confession, imply that what is told was before unknown to the person to whom the confession is made. Acknowledge, acknowledgment, have no such implication. [“But what was their surprise when the captain confessed that he himself was the murderer!” “The monster, being accused of the crime, acknowledged his guilt.”]

A surmise is founded on evidence; a conjecture, not necessarily so. A conjecture, therefore, is generally of something visionary; a surmise of something practical. [“His conjecture, that the moon is inhabited, is now discredited.” “After taking observations, he surmised that the Indians contemplated an attack.”]

Con- is used before a consonant; co-, before a vowel. When, however, the two parts are very distinct, co- is preferred, before even a consonant. A hyphen will, in such cases, generally be used. [Contemporary, coeval, co-partner.]

Complete means lacking nothing. Finished means done as far as was intended. [“The house is finished for the winter; but still, much more labor will be required to make it complete.”]

Custom and usage apply to society; habit applies to an individual. Again, usage implies long standing; custom, not necessarily so. [“My habit in[Pg 62] Africa was to rise early. Early rising is a custom of the country, sanctioned by immemorial usage.”]

Discriminate is used of small differences; distinguish, of great differences. Again: discriminate applies to several objects; distinguish, to two. Further: discriminate is generally used of the mind; distinguish, of the senses. [“By the light of the lantern he distinguished the bodies.” “He discriminated among the specimens, which, to an unpractised eye, appeared all the same.”]

Despotism exists by law or of right. A tyranny exists in the face of law and right. A despotism may, therefore, be mild, as has often been the case in history.

Resolve is stronger than determine. [“I am resolved to die rather than give up my Church.” “I am determined to get the book, if possible.”]

One is directed by a person at a greater or less distance. One is guided by a person close at hand. [“Taking our hand, he guided us through the forest.” “Standing on an eminence, he directed the pilgrims to their various quarters, by a movement of the hand.”]

In reasoning, deduction is proceeding from generals to particulars; induction, from particulars to generals.

A letter is directed to him who is to receive it; addressed, to him who is to read it. A parcel, therefore, is directed, not addressed.

Drive is to urge along; ride, to be borne along. This is the distinction in America. [“Mr. Vanderbilt drove a beautiful span of bays; his wife rode beside him.”] In Great Britain and Ireland, drive generally refers to vehicles (except busses, cabs, and other public conveyances, with which its use is confined to the driver); whilst ride means to be carried upon the back of a horse, donkey, &c. Thus: “I went out for a drive,” would not necessarily mean that I myself held the reins. The American use of drive and ride is, however, more agreeable to reason and authority.

Evidence is that which produces proof. Testimony is that which is intended to produce proof, i.e., the giving of what may be evidence. [“Much testimony was taken, but really there was little evidence of even the commission of the crime.”]

Epidemic is a disease brought upon or into a community from some outside quarter. It is therefore unnatural to the locality. Endemic is a disease natural to the community or locality. [“Yellow-fever, which is epidemic at New York, is endemic in Cuba.”]

Expense and expensive refer to the purchaser; cost and costly, to the thing purchased. [“That vase is not too costly—for it is very valuable; but it is too expensive for my limited means.”]

The effect is that which immediately follows the cause. Then comes the consequence, and after that the result. [“The effect of wearing clothes is warmth; the consequence is the wearing out of the clothes; the result is the purchase of new clothes.”]

Eternal: having neither beginning nor end; everlasting: having beginning, but no end. [“Eternal Father, strong to save.” “The everlasting hills.”]

Etc. means, “and others of a different kind.” And so forth means, “and others of the same kind,” “in the same strain,” “and the like.” [“He has sold his horses, cows, sheep, &c.” “The result is a train of coughs, colds, consumption, and so forth.”] In dignified composition the use of these expressions is to be avoided as much as possible. It is incorrect to use etc., &c., and so forth, in instances like the following: “Employ some such word as mountain, hill,” &c. [Some such renders &c. superfluous.]

Ferment is to produce alcohol by fermentation. Hence ferment is sometimes used figuratively with the intransitive force of “to be in an excited state.”[Pg 65] Foment is to apply lotions to; hence, figuratively, to animate or stir up. [“The revolutionary ingredients seemed to be fermenting; the leaven of socialism seemed to be working.” “He fomented the disturbance by appeals to the people.”]

Faultless is, free from defects as well as from evil or wickedness. Blameless is, free from evil or wickedness alone. [“His course of life was blameless, although he made many errors in business matters.” “His playing was faultless.”]

A falsehood is a false or incorrect proposition. Falsity is the falseness or incorrectness of the proposition, apart from the proposition itself. [“That statement is a falsehood. The falsity of the assertions contained therein is obvious.”]

Farther is used of rest; further, of motion. In a secondary sense further is generally preferred. [“Montreal is farther away than Toronto.” “I throw the ball further than you.” “To speak further is superfluous.”]

Goodness is innate; virtue, acquired. [“His goodness of heart prompted the savage to give us food.” “His virtue was of slow growth: at first he was a most degraded man.”]

However, but, yet, still, notwithstanding, nevertheless, in spite of. These words are in their proper gradation from weak to strong.

Hidden and concealed imply intention; secret does not. [“Hidden here, concealed there, the officers found the stolen goods.” “Deep in the earth he found the secret ore.”]

Haste is quickness. Hurry is quickness accompanied with confusion or flurry. [“We are often in haste; we ought never to be in a hurry.”]

A hindrance stops us at the beginning; an obstacle, in the middle; an inpediment retards us all the time. [“Our journey was very unfortunate. The entrance of a visitor was a hindrance to our departure; about a mile from the house we found in the road an obstacle in the shape of a fallen tree; whilst the mass of baggage we carried was a serious inpediment to our progress.”]

One who is informed knows something new; one who is instructed understands something new; one who is taught can do something new. [“He was informed of the death of his father.” “He was instructed in matters of trade.” “He was taught how to make sword-blades.”]

To take issue is to object to the right of denial. To join issue is to admit the right of denial, but to disagree as to facts. Join issue should, of course, never be used for agree. [“He wanted to argue with me; but I at once took issue with him, alleging that his[Pg 67] position in the matter precluded any argument.” “He said yes; I said no. Upon this we joined issue.”]

Indecent is used of the person; immodest, of the conduct or disposition. [“The wearing of such clothes was simply indecent.” “His general behaviour was quite immodest.”]

An instant is shorter than a moment. [“In a few moments—nay, in a single instant—we may be ushered into eternity.”]

Diligent and diligence express the idea of thoroughly doing whatever is at hand. Industrious and industry express the same idea, and, in addition, imply a readiness or watchfulness for work. [“He performed his task with diligence—just as a well-trained horse does. He lacked, however, those habits of industry and thrift which raised his brother to wealth.”]

Import is the idea most readily conveyed. Meaning is the idea intended to be conveyed. Sense is the way in which the expression may be taken, or its general substance or spirit. [“He says the meaning is so and so. His words may have that sense, but it is not their obvious import.”]

Illusion is the imagining to be existent of something non-existent. Delusion is an incorrect idea about[Pg 68] something really existent. [“His chief illusion was that there were wild beasts in the room.” “The delusion under which he labored was that paper currency is real money, instead of its representative.”]

In- is the ordinary negative prefix to be used with nouns and adjectives of Latin origin. Un- is the negative prefix to be used: (1) with words of Anglo-Saxon origin; (2) with verbs of Latin origin. [Thus: inhospitable, ingratitude; unclean, unauthorize.] There are, however, many exceptions; e.g.: uncomfortable, incapacitate.

Inexorable is, not to be prevailed upon by entreaty; inflexible, not to be bent at all. Inflexible is therefore the stronger of the two. [“We tried entreaties, but he was inexorable. Afterwards, we tried money and threats; but he was still inflexible.”]

A jar is a wide-mouthed vessel without a handle [“A jar of jam”]. A pitcher is a wide-mouthed vessel with a protruding lip and a large ear or handle. [“Please pass the milk-pitcher.”] A jug is a small-mouthed vessel with a swelling body and a small ear or handle near the mouth. [“He brought a large jug of beer.”]

Low-priced is that for which little has been paid. The thing may however, really be dear. Cheap is that the price of which is low, its intrinsic[Pg 69] worth being considered. [“The watch was by no means low-priced; it cost, in fact, one hundred pounds; still, it was cheap at that sum, for its action was perfect.”]

Lazy describes the general disposition, and is the opposite to alert or industrious. Idle refers to a particular time, place or matter, and is the opposite to busy or occupied. Slothful or indolent implies a hatred of exertion and a general slowness or languor. The opposite to slothfulness or indolence is activity. [“The boy was thoroughly lazy: he would neither work nor play.” “After a hard day’s work, he was now enjoying a few minutes of idle repose.” “Be not slothful in business.”]

Laudable is used of things; praiseworthy, of persons. [“It is a most laudable endeavour.” “He is a praiseworthy man.”]

Last is used of place or order; latest, of time. [“His name was last on the list.” “He was the latest to arrive.”] Late is often employed incorrectly for last. E.g.: “The late [last] speaker.”

Leave generally implies a return. Quit generally implies no return. [“He left me for a moment.” “He quitted me for ever.”]

Malice is used of conduct in general; spite, of individual acts. [“He followed him for years with[Pg 70] untiring malice.” “On this occasion he certainly shewed spite towards his opponent.”]

Marital means, pertaining to a husband; matrimonial, pertaining to marriage. [“His marital rights were disregarded.” “Matrimonial alliances between crowned heads are often matters of policy.”]

A mistake is not necessarily blameworthy. An error is blameworthy. [“That was a fortunate mistake.” “It was a downright error on his part; for he had been warned again and again.”]

Mute is used of one who can speak, but who, through compulsion or otherwise, will not. Dumb is used of one who cannot speak. So, the expression, a deaf-mute, should be, a deaf and dumb person. [“He was mute, in spite of all their threats: he would not betray his friends.” “He was dumb, having uttered no articulate sound in his whole life.”]

Merely implies no addition; simply, no admixture. [“They were there merely to prevent bloodshed.” “It was simply incredible that he should have so acted.”]

Nearly, entirely, scarcely, are applied to quantity, time or space; almost, completely, hardly, generally to degree. [“It is nearly a mile from here.” “The apple is hardly ripe.” “He is almost dead.”]

Neglectful refers to an individual act. Negligent, to a series of acts that have produced a habit. [“To forget that book was very neglectful.” “He was all his life a most negligent man.”]

Due is used of debts. Owing calls attention to the source or origin whence something springs. The present participle [owing] of the intransitive verb to owe has taken the place of the past participle [owed] of the transitive verb to owe. [“A large sum was due him.” “It was owing to the Crusades that many oriental ideas and inventions were introduced into the West.”]

Upon is stronger than on, and should be employed when particular attention is to be drawn to the support, whether literal or figurative. With verbs of motion, also, upon is generally preferable. [“The book is on the table.” “He lifted the large box, and put it upon the table.” “Upon truth and righteousness, upon honour and justice, must rest the foundations of every state.”]

Perspicacity and perspicacious express the power of of seeing clearly. Perspicuity and perspicuous express the quality of clearness. The former two are active in their meaning, the latter two passive. The ending -city, here as elsewhere, denotes the power or ability to do something; e.g.: veracity is the quality of speaking the truth, not truth itself. [“I[Pg 72] admire the perspicuity of his explanations.” “He is a most perspicacious man: nothing escapes his eye.”] In many cases, clear-sightedness, clear-sighted, clearness, clear, are greatly preferable to perspicacity and the rest.

Perpetually is an exact synonym of continuously, and means, therefore, never-ceasing. Continual implies interruptions, and is equivalent to constantly renewed. [“The perpetual flow of the river.” “The continual roar of the mill, ceasing only for a short time at night.”]

One proclaims opinions, sentiments, and so forth. One announces news, tidings, and so on. [“He proclaimed to the vast throng the revolutionary doctrines of socialism.” “The messenger announced that the battle was lost.”]

Purpose generally implies the employment of means to accomplish the end. Intent and intention may exist without the employment of means. [“His intention was to do wonders; but he never did anything at all.” “His practical purpose soon found ways and means to accomplish what he wished.”]

Poverty means straitened circumstances, one’s position in life being considered. Indigence is absolute destitution. Pauperism implies the receiving of public relief. [“The duke was in poverty, although he[Pg 73] had £1,000 a year. But what is that for the expenses of a duke?” “I found them in the greatest indigence—without any fuel, and with but a mouthful of bread.” “Legalized pauperism kills individual effort.”]

Reticence and reticent are confined to habitual quiet or caution. Reserve and reserved may refer to temporary quiet or caution. [“He a very reticent man: during our whole acquaintance with him I have never heard him make a speech.” “I questioned him upon that point, but he kept a careful reserve.”]

Reverse is the opposite or antithesis. Converse is “an opposite reciprocal proposition.” In the converse, therefore, the cause becomes the effect, the condition becomes the result. [“Minus is the reverse of plus.” “If the sides of two triangles are respectively equal, the angles will be equal. But the converse is not true; for the angles may be equal, and the sides unequal.”]

Recompense is a fair compensation. Reward is any present or gift. Meed is something earned by one’s own toil. [“The recompense for the loss of his arm at the Alma was not too great.” “He rewarded me munificently—indeed, far above my deserts.” “He alone who fights and labours, wins the glorious meed.”]

Robbery is stealing with violence; theft, generally without. [“After a hard struggle, he robbed the traveller of his watch.” “I had not noticed the theft, it was committed so quietly.”]

Remember is to gather materials ready at hand; recollect, to gather materials not ready at hand. [“I do not remember, but I will try to recollect.”]

Religion is a form of belief or worship. Piety is reverence for what is good, and the desire to do good. It includes, therefore, love, charity and such like. [“There are many religions; there is but one piety.”]

Relieve is to remove pain entirely. Alleviate or mitigate is to remove it but partially. Alleviate is used generally of others, mitigate of ourselves. [“At his touch the pain was instantly relieved.” “I alleviated his sufferings through the application of a lotion.” “My anguish was somewhat mitigated.”]

Recant generally implies the use of force; abjure generally does not. [“Unable to bear the torture, he recanted.” “I freely abjure all part in the plot.”]

Rend implies purpose; tear may or may not do so. Rend generally carries with it the idea of splitting[Pg 75] or dividing. Such idea is not necessarily implied in tear. [“He unfortunately tore his coat.” “He tore his hair.” “He rent his garment.”]

Sewerage: a system of drainage or the science of drainage. It is but rarely used for sewage. Sewage: sometimes the same as sewerage, but generally the matter flowing through the drains. [“How many books have been written on sewerage!” “The sewage from the city pollutes the river.”]

Spontaneous should be confined to things; voluntary, to persons. [“It was an instance of spontaneous combustion.” “The action was voluntary on his part.”]

Sociable expresses a readiness for companionship. Social refers to the relations that men in an organized society bear, one to another. [“He is a very sociable man.” “Have you read the great works on social science and social progress?”] Sociable is, therefore, the correct form of the noun. [“The sociable was successful.”]

Satisfied is stronger than contented, and means that all our desires are gratified. Satisfaction is positive pleasure, and comes from the outside. Contentment is the absence of pain, and lies in ourselves. Satisfaction is less lasting than contentment. [“The industrious and intelligent artisan may, for a[Pg 76] time, remain contented; but he is certainly far from satisfied with his lot.”]

One has enough when one’s desires are satisfied; sufficient, when one’s needs are satisfied. [“Do not let the horse eat as much as he will. Give him just sufficient.” “He was rich; but, like all other misers, he never had enough.”]

Strong: of sound constitution, able to stand hard work. Powerful: able to lift heavy weights, to strike heavy blows, &c. [“He made a gallant fight against disease; for he was a very strong man.” “Strange to say, he was a very powerful man, able to give tremendous blows; and yet, his constitution was undermined through dissipation.”] Muscular is a very effective word.

Stubborn: opposed to the way of others; obstinate: set in one’s own way. [“I tried to induce him to approve my scheme; but, although he had none of his own to offer, yet he was stubborn and refused.” “He wished to go his own way, and was very obstinate about the matter.”]

Safety: freedom from danger. Security: freedom from care. Security may, therefore, be real or fancied. [“He relied with the greatest security upon his followers; but, really, he was far from being in a position of safety.”]

Subdue is to conquer so thoroughly that resistance ceases. Subjugate is to conquer and then to impose restraints, generally repeated and severe. Subjugate, moreover, is used chiefly in a literal sense, i.e., with reference to nations; subdue is frequently used in a figurative sense, i.e., with reference to the mind or the moral nature. [“England subdued, but did not subjugate Russia.” “The Poles have been subjugated; but their spirits are yet unsubdued.”]

Source implies that the supply is continuous; origin, that it has ceased. [“This was the origin of the friendship, which was a source of such joy.”]

Tongue is generally an original form of speech; language, a derived form. [“The Latin is one of the tongues from which so many languages have sprung.”] Language may, of course, be used of inarticulate speech [“The language of birds”], where tongue would be incorrect.

Transitory is liable to pass away. Transient or fleeting is actually passing away. Transitory is abstract; transient and fleeting are concrete, as well as abstract. Fleeting is preferable to transient. [“Earth’s joys are transitory: in a moment they may pass away.” “Life is fleeting as a shadow: the transient moments can never be recalled.”]

Trivial generally has a tinge of contempt; trifling, generally not. [“That is the most absurd and trivial matter in the world.” “The greater part of our time ought to be occupied with serious matters; the rest may be occupied with amusements and other rather trifling matters.”]

Talkative implies a desire to speak, accompanied or not with readiness of speech. Loquacious implies a desire to speak, accompanied with a readiness of speech. [“The little child was very talkative.” “Unlike most loquacious men, he was very instructive in his long harangues.”]

Voluntary is with seeming readiness or acquiescence; willing, with real readiness or acquiescence. [“He went voluntarily: no compulsion was used; but still, he looked as if he did not like to go.” “He was ready—yes, more than ready—willing, to die.”]

Only what is metaphorically low is vulgar. Vulgarity, moreover, generally implies pretension to refinement along with lowness of disposition. [“That was a most immodest act.” “His general bearing was very vulgar.” “The old-fashioned English squire—coarse as he was—was not vulgar, was not given to cheap display and pretence.”]

Whole: that from which nothing has been taken. The whole and all the are usually interchangeable. Entire: that which is undivided. [“The whole town was burned: not a single house escaped.”[Pg 79] “That congregation, at any rate, was entire in its vote: there were no divisions among its members.”]

Wit is the effect of unexpected fitness or congruity. Humor is the effect of unexpected unfitness or incongruity. Again, humor is not, as wit is, sudden and short-lived; it extends very often through a whole book or speech. [“Humor is all. Wit should be brought only to turn agreeably some proper thought.” “He made a very witty pun, and wrote more than one humorous chapter.”]

World is our planet viewed from the “moral or abstract point of view.” The world refers, therefore, almost always to its inhabitants. Earth is our planet with reference to its external or material formation or aspect. Globe is our planet in a geological sense chiefly. Globe is often used in poetry for world or earth. [“The bodies revolving round the sun are the following: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars,” &c. “When we look abroad upon the world and see its wickedness, we are lost in wonder at man’s depravity.” “Who can say how many ages have been required for the formation of the crust of the globe!”]

Wholly lays stress upon the condition of the person deprived; totally, upon the thing of which he has been deprived. [“He is wholly blind.” “His sight is totally gone.”]

PREFER.

Aside to apart. [“He took me aside.”] Apart means to pieces, as, “He took the clock apart.”

Arise to rise, in a figurative or secondary sense. [“Greece arose from her ashes.”]

Advance to progress [as verb]. Progress is not properly formed from the Latin root.

Acquaintanceship to acquaintance, as an abstract noun. Reserve acquaintance for persons or things one is acquainted with.

Begin to initiate. Initiate may very properly be used in the sense of, to induct into a position or introduce to a society.

Become to grow, denoting a change of condition. [“He becomes rich and wise.”]

Cannot but to can but. [“I cannot but tell what I know.”] There is an ellipsis in all such expressions: “I cannot do anything but (i.e., except) tell what” &c.

Correct or in the right to right, when correctness, and not uprightness, is meant, E.g.: “I am correct in my statistics.”

Earthen, golden, &c., to earth, gold, &c. [as adjectives]. E.g.: “An earthen jar.”

Foregoing to above, as an adjective. [“The foregoing statement is correct.”]

Incorrect, or in the wrong, to wrong, when incorrectness, and not unrighteousness, is meant.

Inform to advise [in letters &c.] Advise has a double meaning; inform has not.

Muscular to stout. [Stout is somewhat ambiguous, meaning both strong and corpulent.]

One to [or, with] another to among themselves. E.g.: “They divided the money one with another.”

Ordinal numbers to cardinal numbers in the heading of letters. Write March 24th, or March the 24th, rather than March 24.

Various, or diverse, to different. [Different should be confined to the meaning of differing from.]

Wast to wert, in the second person singular, past indicative. [Wert is the subjunctive, but it is not incorrect in the indicative.]

Would rather, or should rather, to had rather. [Had rather is not incorrect, but would rather or should rather is preferable. All these forms ought to be used as little as possible. Choose some other expression.]

With reference to to in reference to. [We never say, out of reference to, but always, without reference to.]

In general, prefer short words and phrases to long words and phrases, and words of Anglo-Saxon, to those of non-Anglo-Saxon, origin.

OBJECTIONABLE WORDS AND PHRASES.

A day or two, a man or two, &c. [Say, two or three days, a few days; two or three men, a few men; &c. There is lack of agreement in a day or two, a man or two. A somewhat similar error occurs in, “With this, as with many other matters.” The expression should be: “With this, as with many another matter.”]

Authoress, poetess, &c. [Such words may be used if the gender is to be pointed out. Otherwise, the ordinary forms—author, poet, &c.—are sufficient]

A bit [at all, a little; as: “I am a bit tired”], not a bit [not at all].

Down East, down South. [Say: “I am going to the South.” “I live in the East.” “He practised at the South.”]

Defalcate and defalcation [in the sense of making default]. Defalcate, correctly used, is to cut off or lop off.

Deceased [for the late, the dead one, &c.], except in legal and other formal expressions.

Enjoy oneself. [Say, “I enjoyed the concert;” not, “I enjoyed myself at the concert.”]

Help [in the sense of to avoid]. Say: “I cannot avoid doing so;” not, “I cannot help doing so.”

Have got [for have]. Get is generally superfluous, and should be used as little as possible.

Lose oneself. [Say, “He was lost—or became lost—or lost his way—in the wood.”]

Malaprop. [Use mal-à-propos; unsuitable, unseasonable, or the corresponding adverbs.]

More guilty, most guilty; less guilty, least guilty. [One is either guilty or not guilty, of a crime; although one may be guilty of a greater or a less crime. A similar remark applies to guiltless and innocent. These adjectives should properly be used of individual acts only.]

Out West. [Say: “He goes West (or, to the West).” “I live in the West (or, at the West).”]

Out of [for of, with names of materials]. Say: “The box is made of [not, out of] wood.”

Presidential. [The adjective—if formed at all—ought to be presidental. Presidential campaign is a very inelegant and ill-constructed expression.]

Proven [for proved]. Gotten maybe used for got; but not proven for proved.

Rostrum [for platform, pulpit]. If any form of this word is to be used, it should be the plural, rostra.

Scientist. [Use scientific man, savant, &c. If a noun with this meaning is to be formed from science, it ought to be sciencist, not scientist.]

Seeming paradox. [A paradox is a seeming contradiction. Seeming paradox is, therefore, tautological.]

Tiresome. [Use wearisome or tedious. Tiresome is incorrectly formed, tire not being a noun.]

That much, that little, [for so much, so little, or as much as that, as little as that].

Voice [as a verb]. Say: “He expressed—or gave expression to—the sentiments of his followers;” not, “He voiced,” &c.

Yours, ours, mine, &c., [for your, our, my, &c., letter]. Say: “I have received your letter of yesterday;” not, “I have received yours of yesterday.”

Use a comma before or when the expressions between which it occurs, refer to the same person or thing. Thus: “Jones or Smith was here” [no comma]; but: “Saul, or Paul” [comma].

Put a comma after a proposition forming the subject of a verb. So: “That he did so, is not clear.”

When an infinitive is the subject of a verb, and follows the verb, a comma is generally inserted before the infinitive. This is especially the case if the infinitive or the verb has other words depending upon it. So write: “It ill becomes great and good men, to smile at sin.”

Use no commas after short and closely-connected adjectives qualifying the same noun. Thus: “A good old sound dry wine.”

Use a comma before a quotation closely dependent upon such introductory words as say, tell, cry. E.g.: “The man said, I will return.” [With such quotations—especially if short—the quotation marks are generally omitted.] Before a direct quotation, i.e., one not closely dependent upon introductory words (say, will, cry, &c.), insert the colon. [When the quotation is poetry, a dash often follows the colon, especially if a space is left at the end of the line.]

As a general rule, the subject of a verb must be expressed in every clause preceded by a semi-colon. If, however, there are several clauses or phrases marked off by semi-colons, to avoid repetition the subjects may be omitted. [The subject of a verb may, of course, be understood before a comma.]

A short and serviceable rule for the use of the comma in relative clauses, and in participial, adjectival and adverbial phrases, is, to insert it when the clauses and phrases are coördinate, but not when they are restrictive. E.g.: “The things which are seen are temporal.” “He was a man known in three continents.” [No commas.] “The king, who was now old, declared for war.” “His brother, known far and wide, was present.” [Commas.] Where the subject of the verb is a phrase greatly lengthened by adjuncts, a comma will be required before the verb. E.g.: “The fact of his having acted in so strange a way, warranted his detention.”

(1). Before reasons. E.g.: “Economy is no disgrace; for it” &c.

(2). Between two opposing clauses, when an adversative conjunction introduces the second clause. E.g.: “Straws swim at the surface; but pearls sink to the bottom.”

A colon, not a semi-colon, should be used when the clause or phrase that follows the mark expresses a result or effect, or when it is in the form of an analogy, or is a parallel to what precedes. “He lived a virtuous life: he died a happy death.” “The flowers bloom and wither: so is it with the life of man.” The use of the colon before a quotation or a list is an application of this principle. As a general thing, therefore, the voice should be kept up before colons, and let fall before semi-colons.

A long compound or complex sentence, the various parts of which are divided by colons or semi-colons, may be separated into two or more parts by periods. The second part will begin with for, therefore, and, as, or some other introductory word. [This dividing up of long sentences must be sparingly practised.]

Use brackets, and not parentheses, when, in a quotation, you wish to insert words improperly omitted by the author, or when you wish to explain something, or to correct an error in your own writing. [In the last two cases parentheses may be employed, but brackets are preferable.] So: “The man [Mr. Jones] was very rich.” [When brackets are thus used in[Pg 91] a quotation, additional quotation marks are not required after the word preceding, and before the word following, the brackets.]

When both brackets and parentheses are employed, the brackets enclose the parentheses: [(—)].

Parentheses, brackets and dashes do not affect the ordinary punctuation of the sentence; i.e., the points which would be required in the rest of the sentence if the parentheses, brackets, or dashes, were omitted, are still used.

Mark with an interrogation point a question expressed in the form of an assertion: e.g.; “I suppose, Sir, you are his physician?”

The plurals of two, three, &c., are written without the apostrophe: twos, threes, &c. [Written as figures, these words will have the apostrophe: 2’s, 3’s, &c.]

A hyphen is used between two substantives expressing a compound idea, when the second substantive has lost or changed its accent. Thus: ship-builder, iron-worker; but master builder, lord chancellor. The omission of the hyphen may cause confusion when the compound expression is qualified by an adjective or an adjectival phrase. E.g.: “A large mill owner,” may be taken to mean, the owner of a large mill, instead of, an extensive owner of mills, some of which may be small. If the former sense is intended, say, “An owner of a large mill [or, of large mills].” If the latter, say, “An extensive [or, important][Pg 92] owner of mills;” or else use a hyphen: “A large mill-owner.”

A hyphen is used between an adjective and its noun when the two, taken together, form a compound adjective. E.g.: “High-church principles.” [A similar remark may be made of adjectives, one qualifying the other, as: a red-hot poker; also of an adjective (or an adverb) qualifying a participle used as an adjective, when the compound expression precedes the noun, as: a slow-sailing vessel. When it follows the noun, the hyphen is not required; as in: “A vessel slow (or, slowly) sailing o’er the sea.” In the latter case, the participle cannot be said to be used as an adjective.]

In writing, it is better to divide syllables according to sound than according to derivation. E.g.: Epiph-any, pref-ace.

When a quotation contains several paragraphs, inverted commas should be used at the beginning of each paragraph, but the apostrophes should be omitted after all the paragraphs except the last one. The same rule will apply to several stanzas of poetry in one quotation. When the poetical quotation consists of verses not separated into stanzas, some writers use inverted commas before each line. This is unnecessary: inverted commas before the first line, and apostrophes after the last, being sufficient.

Do not write the plural of proper names with an apostrophe. Write: “I have seen the Smiths” [not, Smith’s]. “I know the three Marys” [not, Mary’s].

ERRORS IN THE USE OF ENGLISH. By the late William B. Hodgson, LL. D., Professor of Political Economy in the University of Edinburgh. American revised edition. 12mo, cloth, $1.50.

“This posthumous work of Dr. Hodgson deserves a hearty welcome, for it is sure to do good service for the object it has in view—improved accuracy in the use of the English language.... Perhaps its chief use will be in very distinctly proving with what wonderful carelessness or incompetency the English language is generally written. For the examples of error here brought together are not picked from obscure or inferior writings. Among the grammatical sinners whose trespasses are here recorded appear many of our best-known authors and publications.”—The Academy.

THE ENGLISH GRAMMAR OF WILLIAM COBBETT. Carefully revised and annotated by Alfred Ayres. With Index. 18mo, cloth, extra, $1.00.

“I know it well, and have read it with great admiration.”—Richard Grant White.

“Cobbett’s Grammar is probably the most readable grammar ever written. For the purposes of self-education it is unrivaled. Persons that studied grammar when at school and failed to comprehend its principles—and there are many such—as well as those that never have studied grammar at all, will find the book specially suited to their needs. Any one of average intelligence that will give it a careful reading will be rewarded with at least a tolerable knowledge of the subject, as nothing could be more simple or more lucid than its expositions.”—From the Preface.

THE ORTHOEPIST: A Pronouncing Manual, containing about Three Thousand Five Hundred Words, including a Considerable Number of the Names of Foreign Authors, Artists, etc., that are often mispronounced. By Alfred Ayres. 18mo, cloth, extra, $1.00.

“It gives us pleasure to say that we think the author, in the treatment of this very difficult and intricate subject, English pronunciation, gives proof of not only an unusual degree of orthoepical knowledge, but also, for the most part, of rare judgment and taste.”—Joseph Thomas, LL. D., in Literary World.

THE VERBALIST: A Manual devoted to Brief Discussions of the Right and the Wrong Use of Words, and to some other matters of Interest to those who would Speak and Write with Propriety, including a Treatise on Punctuation. By Alfred Ayres. 18mo, cloth, extra, $1.00.

“This is the best kind of an English grammar. It teaches the right use of our mother-tongue by giving instances of the wrong use of it, and showing why they are wrong.”—The Churchman.

“Every one can learn something from this volume, and most of us a great deal.”—Springfield Republican.

A JOURNAL OF THE REIGNS OF KING GEORGE IV AND KING WILLIAM IV. By the late Charles C. F. Greville, Esq., Clerk of the Council to those Sovereigns. Edited by Henry Reeve, Registrar of the Privy Council. Two vols. 12mo. Cloth, $4.00.

“Since the publication of Horace Walpole’s Letters, no book of greater historical interest has seen the light than the Greville Memoirs. It throws a curious, and, we may almost say, a terrible light on the conduct and character of the public men in England under the reigns of George IV and William IV. Its descriptions of those kings and the kinfolk are never likely to be forgotten.”—New York Times.

A JOURNAL OF THE REIGN OF QUEEN VICTORIA, FROM 1837 TO 1852. The “Greville Memoirs,” Second Part. By the late Charles Greville, Clerk of the Council. Uniform with Part First. Two vols. 12mo. Cloth, $4.00.

“Mr. Greville’s Diary is one of the most important contributions which have ever been made to the political history of the middle of the nineteenth century. He is a graphic and powerful writer; and his usual habit of making the record while the impression of the events was fresh upon his mind, gives his sketches of persons and places, and his accounts of conversations, great vividness. The volumes will be read with as much interest for their sketches of social life as for their political value.”—London Daily News.

A JOURNAL OF THE REIGN OF QUEEN VICTORIA, FROM 1852 TO 1860. By the late Charles Greville, Esq., Clerk of the Council. Being third and concluding part of the “Greville Memoirs.” One vol. 12mo. Cloth, $2.00.

The preceding volumes of the “Greville Memoirs” consist of “A Journal of the Reign of King George IV and King William IV” in two vols.; and “A Journal of the Reign of Queen Victoria from 1837 to 1852,” in two vols. Price in each case, per vol., $2.00.

This volume, in addition to personal anecdotes, deals with many important events, such, for instance, as the re-establishment of the French Empire, the Crimean War, the Indian Mutiny, and the Italian War.

THE HISTORICAL REFERENCE-BOOK, COMPRISING A CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF UNIVERSAL HISTORY, A CHRONOLOGICAL DICTIONARY OF UNIVERSAL HISTORY, A BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY. With Geographical Notes. For the Use of Students, Teachers, and Readers. Second edition. By Louis Heilprin. Crown 8vo, 579 pages. Half leather, $3.00.

“A second, revised edition of Mr. Louis Heilprin’s ‘Historical Reference-Book’ has just appeared, marking the well-earned success of this admirable work—a dictionary of dates, a dictionary of events (with a special gazetteer for all the places mentioned), and a concise biographical dictionary, all in one, and all in the highest degree trustworthy. Mr. Heilprin’s revision is as thorough as his original work. Any one can test it by running ever the list of persons deceased since this manual first appeared.”—Evening Post.

CHINA. TRAVELS AND INVESTIGATIONS IN THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. A Study of Its Civilization and Possibilities. With A Glance at Japan. By James Harrison Wilson, late Major-General United States Volunteers, and Brevet Major-General United States Army. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.

ROUNDABOUT TO MOSCOW. AN EPICUREAN JOURNEY. By John Bell Bouton, author of “Round the Block.” 12mo. Cloth, ornamented cover, Russian title-page, 421 pages, $1.50.

“This genial book gives the first truly American view of the land of Nihilists and Novelists. The author exposes and playfully ridicules the current English misrepresentations of Russia. His epicurean circuit for getting into and out of the empire includes nearly every country of Europe. He keeps on the track of all the comforts and luxuries required by American travelers. Tourists will find the volume a boon companion. But it is no less designed to please those who stay at home and travel only by book.”

BRAZIL: ITS CONDITION AND PROSPECTS. By C. C. Andrews, ex-Consul-General to Brazil; formerly U. S. Minister to Norway and Sweden. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.

CONTENTS: Prefatory. Voyage to Brazil. Getting to Housekeeping. Rio and its People. Life and Manners. The Emperor of Brazil. Tijuca—Pedra Bonita. Situation, Resources, and Climate. American-Brazilian Relations. A Trip into the Interior. Visit to a Coffee-Plantation. Public Instruction. Local Administration. Parliamentary Government. Brazilian Literature. Agriculture and Stock-raising. The Amazon Valley. Beasts of Prey. Slavery and Emancipation. The Religious Orders. Public Lands and Immigration.

“I hope I may be able to present some facts in respect to the present situation of Brazil which will be both instructive and entertaining to general readers. My means of acquaintance with that empire are principally derived from a residence of three years at Rio de Janeiro, its capital, while employed in the service of the United States Government, during which period I made a few journeys into the interior.”—From the Preface.

A STUDY OF MEXICO. By David A. Wells, LL.D., D.C.L. 12mo. Cloth, $1.00; paper cover, 50 cents.

“Mr. Wells’s showing is extremely interesting, and its value is great. Nothing like it has been published in many years.”—New York Times.

“Mr. Wells sketches broadly but in firm lines Mexico’s physical geography, her race inheritance, political history, social condition, and present government.”—New York Evening Post.

“Several efforts have been made to satisfy the growing desire for information relating to Mexico since that country has become connected by railways with the United States. But we have seen no book upon this subject by an American writer which is so satisfactory on the score of knowledge and trustworthiness as ‘A Study of Mexico,’ by David A. Wells.”—New York Sun.

IN THE BRUSH; OR, OLD-TIME SOCIAL AND POLITICAL LIFE IN THE SOUTHWEST. By H. W. Pierson, D. D. With Illustrations by W. L. Sheppard. 16mo. Cloth, $1.50. New cheap edition, paper, 50 cents.

“It has peculiar attractions in its literary methods, its rich and quiet humor, and the genial spirit of its author.”—The Critic.

PROVERBS FROM PLYMOUTH PULPIT. SELECTED FROM THE WRITINGS AND SAYINGS OF HENRY WARD BEECHER. Revised in part by Mr. Beecher, and under revision by him at the time of his death. 12mo. Cloth, gilt top, $1.00.

“Pithy, piquant, and picturesque sentences from the writings of the late Henry Ward Beecher. They are admirably selected to show the author’s characteristics. In the main they enhance one’s appreciation of his excellences.”—New York Home Journal.

“The wisdom and the world-knowledge of the great preacher have a brilliant exemplification in this book, which, wherever it may be opened, presents with the terseness and point of an epigram impressive thoughts in abundance and of a nature that stimulates reflection and edifies the understanding.”—Boston Gazette.

“In these wise and witty utterances may be found the quintessence of Mr. Beecher’s ideas about religion, morals, nature, art, and man in all his relations to life and eternity. Mr. Beecher looked for himself and did his own thinking. The result is an actual contribution to the proverbial philosophy of the world which will compare favorably with the most brilliant dicta of any other modern man.”—New York Journal of Commerce.

“If not always original, these selections are generally quaint and forcible. We append a specimen or two: ‘The piety of impossible boys is monstrous. A man’s experience stuffed into a little boy is simply monstrous. The world is soundly skeptical of the whole school of juvenile paté-de-foie-gras piety.’ ‘There are many men who would not blaspheme—oh no! but they will use cowards’ oaths. They will not say “By Jehovah!” but they will say “By Jupiter!”’”—New York Sun.

TWELVE LECTURES TO YOUNG MEN, ON VARIOUS IMPORTANT SUBJECTS. By Rev. Henry Ward Beecher. Revised edition. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.

CONTENTS.—Industry and Idleness; Twelve Causes of Dishonesty; Six Warnings; Portrait Gallery; Gamblers and Gambling; The Strange Woman; Popular Amusements; Practical Hints; Profane Swearing; Vulgarity; Happiness; Temperance.

HISTORY OF THE OPINIONS ON THE SCRIPTURAL DOCTRINE OF RETRIBUTION. By Edward Beecher, D. D., author of “The Conflict of Ages.” 12mo. Cloth, $1.25.

The momentous question of future retribution is here historically discussed with an earnestness and deliberation due to its transcendent importance. The main interest of the inquiry naturally centers in the doom of the wicked. Will it be annihilation? ultimate restoration to holiness and happiness? endless punishment? or is it out of power to decide which of these views is the truth? The discussion is intensified by being narrowed to the meaning of a single word, aionios. The opinions of those to whom Christ spoke, and how they understood him, are vital questions in the argument; and, to solve them, the opinions and modes of speech of preceding ages must be attentively weighed, for each age is known to have molded the opinions and use of words of its successor. Hence, Dr. Beecher has found himself compelled to “trace the development of thought and language from the outset to the days of Christ, then to inquire into the import of his words, in the light of all preceding ages; and, lastly, to trace the development of opinion downward through the Christian ages.”

“This story is told with vigor and intelligence, and throughout the book is well imagined and well written. It is a novel of sterling merit, being fresh and original in conception, thoroughly healthy in tone, interesting in detail, and sincere and capable in execution.”—Academy.

“Well written and full of interest. The story abounds with a good many light touches, and is certainly far from lacking in incident.”—Times.

“We recommend all novel-readers to read this novel with the care which such a strong, uncommon, and thoughtful book demands and deserves.”—Spectator.

“The Dean’s daughters are perfectly real characters—the learned Cornelia especially; the little impulsive French heroine, who endures their cold hospitality and at last wins their affection, is thoroughly charming; while throughout the book there runs a golden thread of pure brotherly and sisterly love, which pleasantly reminds us that the making and marring of marriage is not, after all, the sum total of real life.”—Academy.

“‘Knight-Errant’ is marked by the author’s best qualities as a writer of fiction, and displays on every page the grace and quiet power of the former works.”—Athenæum.

“Among all the stories, real or fictitious, of Italian brigandage which we have read, there is none more striking, picturesque, and terrible than this.”—Spectator.

“Miss Lyall has given us a vigorous study of such life and character as are really worth reading about. The central figure of her story is Algernon Sydney; and this figure she invests with a singular dignity and power. He always appears with effect but no liberties are taken with the facts of his life. The plot is adapted with great felicity to them. His part in it, absolutely consistent as it is with historical truth, gives it reality as well as dignity. Some of the scenes are remarkably vivid. The escape is an admirable narrative, which almost makes one hold one’s breath as one reads.”—Spectator.

“‘In the Golden Days’ is an excellent novel of a kind we are always particularly glad to recommend. It has a good foundation of plot and incident, a thoroughly noble and wholesome motive, a hero who really acts and suffers heroically, and two very nice heroines. The historical background is very carefully indicated, but is never allowed to become more than background.”—Guardian.

THE GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOLOGICAL DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS. By Angelo Heilprin, Professor of Invertebrate Paleontology at the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, etc. 12mo. $2.00.

“An important contribution to physical science is Angelo Heilprin’s ‘Geographical and Geological Distribution of Animals.’ The author has aimed to present to his readers such of the more significant facts connected with the past and present distribution of animal life as might lead to a proper conception of the relations of existing fauna, and also to furnish the student with a work of general reference, wherein the more salient features of the geography and geology of animal forms could be readily ascertained. While this book is addressed chiefly to the naturalist, it contains much information, particularly on the subject of the geographical distribution of animals, the rapidly increasing growth of some species and the gradual extinction of others, which will interest and instruct the general reader. Mr. Heilprin is no believer in the doctrine of independent creation, but holds that animate nature must be looked upon as a concrete whole.”—New York Sun.

MICROBES, FERMENTS, AND MOULDS. By E. L. Trouessart. With 107 Illustrations. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.

“Microbes are everywhere; every species of plant has its special parasites, the vine having more than one hundred foes of this kind. Fungi of a microscopic size, they have their uses in nature, since they clear the surface of the earth from dead bodies and fecal matter, from all dead and useless substances which are the refuse of life, and return to the soil the soluble mineral substances from which plants are derived. All fermented liquors, wine, beer, vinegar, etc., are artificially produced by the species of microbes called ferments; they also cause bread to rise. Others are injurious to us, for in the shape of spores and seeds they enter our bodies with air and water and cause a large number of the diseases to which the flesh is heir. Many physicians do not accept the microbian theory, considering that when microbes are found in the blood they are neither the cause of the disease, nor the contagious element, nor the vehicle of contagion. In France the opponents of the microbian theory are Robin, Bechamp, and Jousset de Bellesme; in England, Lewis and Lionel Beale. The writer comes to the conclusion that Pasteur’s microbian theory is the only one that explains all facts.”—New York Times.

EARTHQUAKES AND OTHER EARTH MOVEMENTS. By John Milne, Professor of Mining and Geology in the Imperial College of Engineering, Tokio, Japan. With 38 Illustrations. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.

“In this little book Professor Milne has endeavored to bring together all that is known concerning the nature and causes of earthquake movements. His task was one of much difficulty. Professor Milne’s excellent work in the science of seismology has been done in Japan, in a region of incessant shocks of sufficient energy to make observation possible, yet, with rare exceptions, of no disastrous effects. He has had the good fortune to be aided by Mr. Thomas Gray, a gentleman of great constructive skill, as well as by Professors J. A. Ewing, W. S. Chaplin, and his other colleagues in the scientific colony which has gathered about the Imperial University of Japan. To these gentlemen we owe the best of our science of seismology, for before their achievements we had nothing of value concerning the physical conditions of earthquakes except the great works of Robert Mallet; and Mallet, with all his genius and devotion to the subject, had but few chances to observe the actual shocks, and so failed to understand many of their important features.”—The Nation.

Transcriber’s Notes:

In many areas the author has paid scant attention to alphabetical
order. This is retained.

Variations in spelling and hyphenation are retained.

Perceived typographical errors have been changed.

	Page.
COMMON ERRORS	1
GRAMMATICAL POINTS	32
GENERAL SUGGESTIONS UPON COMPOSITION	47
WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED, SYNONYMS, OPPOSITES	55
PREFER	80
OBJECTIONABLE WORDS AND PHRASES	84
NOTES ON PUNCTUATION	88
INDEX	93

The Project Gutenberg eBook of Slips of tongue and pen

SLIPS OF
TONGUE AND PEN

COMMON ERRORS

GRAMMATICAL POINTS.

GENERAL SUGGESTIONS UPON COMPOSITION.

WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED, SYNONYMS,
OPPOSITES.

PREFER.

OBJECTIONABLE WORDS AND PHRASES.

NOTES ON PUNCTUATION.

INDEX

SLIPS OF TONGUE AND PEN

COMMON ERRORS

GRAMMATICAL POINTS.

GENERAL SUGGESTIONS UPON COMPOSITION.

WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED, SYNONYMS, OPPOSITES.

PREFER.

OBJECTIONABLE WORDS AND PHRASES.

NOTES ON PUNCTUATION.

INDEX

SLIPS OF
TONGUE AND PEN

WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED, SYNONYMS,
OPPOSITES.