60. Conjunctions are of two sorts, Copulative and Disjunctive. The Copulative not only join the words, but indicate that the things are to be united; while it is the office of the Disjunctive to unite the words but keep separate the things. The youngest child cannot fail to perceive the difference between these two sentences: "Will you have an apple and an orange?" and "Will you have an apple or an orange?" In the first case, he is to get both things-we therefore use a copulative conjunction; in the second, he is to have one only-we therefore use a disjunctive conjunction.

61. In one respect, the conjunction and preposition are like each other—they both connect words, but in a some-. what different way.

62. If I say, "Give me a knife and the book," you may present the objects named separately or together the knife being under the book, in the book, or on it, and in each case my request will have been complied with; but if I say, "Give me a knife in the book," the relative position of the objects is fixed, and there is only one way of complying with my demand.

63. We have asserted that the conjunction couples individual words as well as propositions; but, as in this we go against authorities so respectable as Ruddiman, Harris, Mill, and Latham, we must take some pains to make good our position. Ruddiman says, "A conjunction is an indeclinable word, that joins sentences together, and thereby shows their dependence upon one another ;" and, in a note to his rule of syntax-" Conjunctions couple like cases and moods "he tells us, that "the reason of this construction is, because the words so coupled depend all upon the same word, which is expressed to one of them and understood to the other." To much the same purpose Mr Mill says, "The conjunctions are distinguished from the prepositions by connecting predications, while the prepositions connect only words. There are seeming exceptions, however, to this description, the nature of which ought to be understood. They are all of one kind; they all belong to those cases of predication in which either the subject or predicate consists of enumerated particulars, and in which the conjunction is employed to

mark the enumeration. Thus, we say, 'Four and four, and two, are ten.' Here the subject of the predication consists of three enumerated particulars, and the conjunction seems to connect words and not predications." We do not think that Mr Mill's argument is conclusive. There is no seeming about the matter. We wish it, however, to be distinctly understood, that we do not charge his doctrine with being altogether erroneous; it is only not complete. It is right, so far as it goes; what we maintain is, that it is too limited.

Ruddiman is correct in maintaining, that in the example, "Honour thy father and thy mother," the word "honour" is again understood before mother; but this will not do in every case. The sentence, "Charles and John rode to town," may certainly be resolved into two clauses, "Charles rode to town," and "John rode to town." But can the sentence, "Charles and John carried fifty pounds," be resolved into the two, " Charles carried fifty pounds," and "John carried fifty pounds?" Obviously not. The conjunction and, in that case, connects the two words "Charles" and "John," and shows that conjointly they are the subject of the predicate "carried." In like manner, in the sentence, "The man of piety and virtue secures the favour of God," it is not implied that "the man of piety" secures the favour of God, and that "the man of virtue" secures the same; but that the man uniting the two qualities, the marks of which are united by the conjunction and, secures it. Mr Mill himself, indeed, would appear not to have felt quite satisfied as to the conclusiveness of the mode of reasoning which we have been animadverting on, for he immediately shifts his ground, and argues that, because in such a sentence as, "His bag was full of hares and pheasants and partridges," we may substitute the preposition with, and read, "His bag was full of hares, with pheasants, with partridges," the word and is properly to be considered a preposition. To this extraordinary specimen of reasoning it is sufficient to say, that by a similar process we might conclude, to use a homely illustration brought forward by Dugald Stewart on a like occasion, that because people can 66 supply the want of forks by their fingers, that therefore a

finger and a fork are the same thing." On the whole, we cannot help concluding that these great grammarians have for once taken up a wrong position; but perhaps we have said as much already as the importance of the subject

warrants.

64. The conjunctions in most common use are these::

65. For logical purposes, and as far as reasoning is concerned, no part of speech is of more consequence than the one under consideration. Conjunctions have been subdivided into various classes, thus,-Copulative, as and; Disjunctive, as but; Concessive, as though; Causal, as for; Conditional, as if, &c.

EXERCISE VIII.

1. What is a Conjunction? Into what two great classes have conjunctions been divided? Illustrate the difference by appropriate examples. In what respect are prepositions and conjunctions alike ? Wherein do they differ? Prove that conjunctions couple individual words as well as sentences.

2. Point out conjunctions, and state to what class each belongs in the following sentences :

John and James run. John walks, but James rides on horseback. We shall go if it be fair. I was late, though I ran all the way. England is more than twice as large as Scotland. Unless you study, you will not become learned. We read that we may learn. The ship was well manned, yet it was lost. Virgil was as great a poet as Cicero was an orator.

If a government be overthrown by a foreign enemy, the nation shares in the evils of the conquest and in the shame of the defeat; if it be victorious, the nation, even if not enriched with the spoils, is yet proud to claim its portion of the glory.-Arnold.

As God is incomprehensible, it follows that we can have no conception or image of the deity; and, consequently, all his attributes signify our inability or defect of power to conceive any thing

B

concerning his nature, and not any conception of the same, excepting only this, that there is a God.-Hallam.

3. Quote or compose sentences, each containing one or more of the conjunctions, till the list is exhausted.

4. Supply the following blanks with appropriate prepositions

and conjunctions.

An extensive contemplation

this conclusion,

men, the balance

that the high

human affairs will lead us

among the different conditions and ranks happiness is preserved a great measure equal; the low, the rich the poor, approach, point real enjoyment, much nearer each other is commonly imagined. In the lot man, mutual compensations,

of

pleasure of pain, universally take place. Providence never intended, that any state here should be completely happy, entirely miserable. If the feelings pleasure are more numerous, more lively, the higher departments life, such are those pain. greatness flatters our vanity, it multiplies our dangers. opulence increases our gratifications, it increases, the same proportion, our desires and demands. the poor are confined more narrow circle, within that circle lie most those natural satisfactions which, after all the refinements art, are found to be the most genuine and true.

a state,

where

a

is

so much to be coveted the one hand, to be dreaded the other, at first appears, how submissive ought we to be the disposal of Providence! How temperate our desires and pursuits! How much more attentive to preserve our virtue, and to improve our minds, to gain the doubtful and equivocal advantages worldly prosperity!-Blair.

THE INTERJECTION.

66. An INTERJECTION is a word used to express emotion or excitement of mind. Interjections never affect the grammatical structure of a sentence, but appear to occupy quite an isolated position-hence the name, inter, between, and jectus, thrown.

67. Pure interjections are mere instinctive emissions of the voice, few in number and unimportant in character; and as to other parts of speech used interjectively, the expression is, we apprehend, elliptical; but this circumstance cannot properly change the nature and character of a word. Horne Tooke considers that Interjections have no more claim to be called parts of speech than the neighing of a

horse or the lowing of a cow; but as there are words in the language which express mental emotion and nothing else, we must have a name for them, and it would be difficult to find a better than the one in universal use.

68. The interjections proper are such as these: Ah! aha! alas! eh! oh! ho! lo! &c. The words adieu, strange, welcome, and many others liable to be used like interjections, properly belong to other parts of speech.

EXERCISE IX.

Define the Interjection. Whence is the name derived? To what words ought the name to be restricted? What is Horne Tooke's opinion about interjections? Mention a few interjections, and show their use by putting them into sentences.

GENERAL EXERCISE IN PARSING OR ANALYSIS. "To resolve any complex whole into the elements of which it is compounded, is the meaning of analysis.”—Mill's Logic.

69. The student should now be able to analyze or parse, as it is generally called by English grammarians, any sentence submitted to him, as far as referring words to the parts of speech to which they belong is concerned. Various artificial rules have been devised to enable one to know what part of speech any word belongs to; but these we mean not to mention, being fully persuaded that such helps are altogether" from the purpose " of grammar, inasmuch as they render thought first unnecessary and then impossible. No person can parse a sentence which he does not understand, and when he does so understand it, he can have no difficulty in referring each individual word to the class to which it belongs. All he has to do is to compare the idea suggested in his mind by the word to be parsed, with the definitions of the various classes with which he must be familiar; and by this mental effort it will soon be ascertained to what class the word belongs. The idea suggested by any word, and the characteristic idea of a class, being brought before the mind at the same time, their identity or