Except the adjectives all, such, many, what, both, and those which are preceded by the adverbs too, so, as, or how; as, "All the materials were bought at too dear a rate."—"Like many an other poor wretch, I now suffer all the ill consequences of so foolish an indulgence."

OBS. 5.-When the adjective is placed after the noun, the article generally retains its place before the noun, and is not repeated before the adjective; as, "A man ignorant of astronomy,"-" The primrose pale." In Greek, when an adjective is placed after its noun, if the article is prefixed to the noun, it is repeated before the adjective; as, 'II nódis » peɣán, The city the great; i. e., The great city.

OBS. 6.-Articles, according to their own definition, belong before their nouns; but the definite article and an adjective seem sometimes to be placed after the noun to which they both relate: as, "Section the Fourth," "_"Henry the Eighth." Such examples, however, may be supposed elliptical; and, if they are so, the article, in English, can never be placed after its noun, nor can two articles ever properly relate to one noun, in any particular construction of it.

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OBS. 7.-The definite article is often prefixed to comparatives and superlatives; and its effect is, as Murray observes, (in the words of Lowth,) to mark the degree the more strongly, and to define it the more precisely:" as, "The oftener I see him, the more I respect him."-" A constitution the most fit."-"A claim, the strongest, and the most easily comprehended."-" The men the most difficult to be replaced." In these instances, the article seems to be used adverbially, and to relate only to the adjective or adverb following it; but after the adjective, the noun may be supplied.

OBS. 8.-The article the is applied to nouns of both numbers; as, The man, the men;-The good boy, the good boys.

OBS. 9.-The article the is generally prefixed to adjectives that are used, by ellipsis, as nouns; as,

"The great, the gay, shall they partake

The heav'n that thou alone canst make ?"-Cowper.

OBS. 10. The article the is sometimes elegantly used in stead of a possessive pronoun; as, "Men who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal"--Rom., xi, 4.

OBS. 11.-An or a implies one, and belongs to nouns of the singular number only; as, A man, a good boy.

OBS. 12.-An or a is sometimes put before an adjective of number, when the noun following is plural; as, "A few days,""A hundred sheep," "There are a great many adjectives."-Dr. Adam. In these cases, the article seems to relate only to the adjective. Some grammarians however call these words of number nouns, and suppose an ellipsis of the preposition of Murray and many others call them adjectives, and suppose a peculiarity of

construction in the article.

OBS. 13.-An or a has sometimes the import of each or every; as, "He came twice a year." The article in this sense with a preposition understood, is preferable to the mercantile per, so frequently used; as, "Fifty cents [for] a bushel," rather than, "per bushel."

OBS. 14.-A, as prefixed to participles in ing, or used in composition, is a preposition; being, probably, the French a, signifying to, at, on, in, or of; as, "They burst out a laughing."-M. Edgeworth. He is gone a hunting.". "She lies a-bed all day.""He stays out a-nights."-"They ride out aSundays." Shakspeare often uses the prefix a, and sometimes in a manner peculiar to himself; as, "Tom's a cold," "a weary."

OBS. 15.-An is sometimes a conjunction, signifying if; as,

"Nay, an thou'lt mouthe, I'll rant as well as thou."-Shak.

NOTES TO RULE I.

NOTE I. When the indefinite article is required; a should always be used before the sound of a consonant, and an, before

that of a vowel; as, "With the talents of an angel, a man may be a fool."-Young.

OBS.-An was formerly used before all words beginning with h, and before several other words which are now pronounced in such a manner as to require a thus, we read in the Bible, "An house,"-", an hundred," one, ,"—"an ewer,"-" an usurer."

NOTE II.-When nouns are joined in construction, without a close connexion and common dependence, the article must be repeated. The following sentence is therefore inaccurate : "She never considered the quality, but merit of her visitors.” -Wm. Penn. The should be inserted before merit.

NOTE III.-When adjectives are connected, and the qualities belong to things individually different, though of the same name, the article should be repeated: as, "A black and a white horse;"-i. c., two horses, one black and the other white.

NOTE IV.-When adjectives are connected, and the qualities all belong to the same thing or things, the article should not be repeated: as, “A black and white horse ;”—i. e., one horse, piebald.

OBS. 1.-The reason of the two preceding notes is this: by a repetition of the article before several adjectives in the same construction, a repetition of the noun is implied; but without a repetition of the article, the adjectives are confined to one and the same noun.

OBS. 2.-To avoid repetition, we sometimes, with one article, join inconsistent qualities to a plural noun; as, "The Old and New Testaments," for," Theld and the New Testament." But the phrases, "The Old and New Testament," and, "The Old and the New Testaments," are both obviously incorrect.

NOTE V. The article should not be used before the names of virtues, vices, passions, arts, or sciences; before simple proper names; or before any noun whose signification is sufficiently definite without it: as, "Falsehood is odious.”—“Iron is useful."-"Beauty is vain."

NOTE VI.-When titles are mentioned merely as titles, or names of things merely as names or words, the article should not be used; as, “He is styled Marquis."—"Ought a teacher to call his pupil Master?"

NOTE VII. In expressing a comparison, if both nouns refer to the same subject, the article should not be inserted; if to different subjects, it should not be omitted: thus, if we say, "Ile is a better teacher than poet," we compare different qualifications of the same man; but if we say, "IIe is a better teacher than a poet," we refer to different men.

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NOTE VIII. The definite article, or some other definitive, is generally required before the antecedent to the pronoun who or which in a restrictive clause; as, "The men who were pres ent, consented."

NOTE IX. The article is generally required in that construction which converts a participle into a verbal noun; as, "The completing of this, by the working-out of sin, inherent, must be by the power and spirit of Christ, in the heart."They shall be an abhorring unto all flesh."

Wm. Penn.

Isaiah, lxvi, 24

NOTE X.-The article should not be prefixed to a participle that is not taken in all respects as a noun; as, "He made a mistake in the giving out the text." Expunge the.

FALSE SYNTAX UNDER RULE I.-ARTICLES.

[The Examples of False Syntax placed under the rules, are to be corrected orally by the pupil, according to the formules given, or according to others framed in like manner, and adapted to the several notes.]

Examples under Note 1.-AN or A.

He went into an house.

[FORMULE.-Not proper, because the article an is used before house, which beginn with the sound of the consonant h. But, according to Note 1st under Rule 1st, "When the indefinite article is required, a should always be used before the sound of a consonant, and an before that of a vowel." Therefore, an should be a; thus, Ho went into a house.]

This is an hard saying.

A humble heart shall find favour.

Passing from an earthly to an heavenly diadem.
Few have the happiness of living with such an one

She evinced an uniform adherence to the truth.

A hospital is an asylum for the sick.

This is truly an wonderful invention.
He is an younger man than we supposed.

An humorsome child is never long pleased.
A careless man is unfit for a hostler.

Under Note 2.-Nouns Connected.

Avoid rude sports: an eye is soon lost, or bone broken.
As the drop of the bucket and dust of the balance.

Not a word was uttered, nor sign given.

I despise not the doer, but deed.

Under Note 3.-Adjectives Connected.

What is the difference between the old and new method?
The sixth and tenth have a close resemblance.

Is Paris on the right hand or left?

Does Peru join the Atlantic or Pacific ocean?

He was influenced both by a just and generous principle.
The book was read by the old-and young.
I have both the large and small grammar.
Are both the north and south line measured?

Are the north line and south both measured?
Are both the north and south lines measured?
Are both the north lines and south measured?

Under Note 4.-Adjectives Connected.

Is the north and the south line measured?

Are the two north and the south lines both measured?
A great and a good man looks beyond time.

They made but a weak and an ineffectual resistance.
The Allegany and the Monongahela rivers form the Ohio.
I rejoice that there is an other and a better world.
Were God to raise up an other such a man as Moses,
The light and the worthless kernels will float.

Under Note 5.-Articles not Requisite.

Cleon was an other sort of a man.

There is a species of an animal called a seal.
Let us wait in the patience and the quietness.
The contemplative mind delights in the silence.
Arithmetic is a branch of the mathematics.
You will never have an other such a chance.
I expected some such an answer.

And I persecuted this way unto the death.

Under Note 6.-Titles and Names.

He is entitled to the appellation of a gentleman.
Cromwell assumed the title of a Protector.

Her father is honoured with the title of an Earl.

The chief magistrate is styled a President.

The highest title in the state is that of the Governor.

"For the oak, the pine, and the ash, were names of whole classes of objects."-Blair's Rhetoric, p. 73.

Under Note 7.-Comparisons.

He is a better writer than a reader.

He was an abler mathematician than a linguist.
I should rather have an orange than apple.

Under Note 8.-Nouns with Who or Which.

Words which are signs of complex ideas, are liable to be mis understood.

Carriages which were formerly in use, were very clumsy. The place is not mentioned by geographers who wrote at that time.

Under Note 9.-Participial Nouns.

Means are always necessary to accomplishing of ends.
By seeing of the eye, and hearing of the ear, learn wisdom.
In keeping of his commandments, there is great reward.
For revealing of a secret, there is no remedy.

Have you no repugnance to torturing of animals?

Under Note 10.-Participles, not Nouns.

By the breaking the law, you dishonour the lawgiver.
An argument so weak is not worth the mentioning.
In the letting go our hope, we let all go.

Avoid the talking too much of your ancestors.
The cuckoo keeps the repeating her unvaried notes.
Forbear the boasting of what you can do.

RULE II.--NOMINATIVES.

A Noun or a Pronoun which is the subject of a finite verb, must be in the nominative case: as,

"I know thou say st it: says thy life the same?"-Young.

OBSERVATIONS ON RULE II.

OBS. 1.-To this rule there are no exceptions. And in connected language, every nominative stands as the subject of some verb expressed or understood; except such as are put in apposition with other nominatives, according to Rule 3d-after a verb, according to Rule 21st-or absolute, according

to Rule 25th.

OBS. 2.-The subject, or nominative, is generally placed before the verb; as, "Peace dawned upon his mind."-Johnson. "What is written in the

law?"-Bible.

OBS. 3.-But, in the following nine cases, the subject is usually placed after the verb, or after the first auxiliary:

1. When a question is asked, without an interrogative pronoun in the nominative case; as, "Shall mortals be implacable?"-"What art thou doing?"-Hooke.

2. When the verb is in the imperative mood; as, "Go thou."

3. When an earnest wish, or other strong feeling is expressed; as, "May she be happy!"—"How were we struck!"-Young.

4. When a supposition is made without a conjunction; as, " Were it true, it would not injure us."

5. When neither or nor, signifying and not, precedes the verb; as, “This was his fear; nor was his apprehension groundless."

6. When, for the sake of emphasis, some word or words are placed before the verb, which more naturally come after it; as, "Here am I."-" Narrow is the way.""Silver and gold have Inone; but such as I have, give I thee." -Bible.

7. When the verb has no regimen, and is itself emphatical; as, "Ecke the

mountains round."- -Thomson.

8. When the verbs say, think, reply, and the like, introduce the parts of a dialogue; as, "Son of affliction,' said Omar, 'who art thou? My name,' replied the stranger, 'is Hassan.'"-Johnson.

9. When the adverb there precedes the verb; as, "There lived a man.' Montg. "In all worldly joys, there is a secret wound."-Owen.