"True philofophy, which is the ornament of our nature, confifts more in the love of our duty, and the practice of virtue, than in great talents and extenfive knowledge."

A few inftances of erroneous conftruction, will illustrate both the branches of the fixth rule. The three following refer to the first part. "How can we avoid being grateful to those whom, by repeated kind offices, have proved themselves our real friends?""These are the men whom, you might fuppofe, were the authors of the work :" "If you were here, you would find three or four, whom you would fay paffed their time agreeably :" in all these places it fhould be who inftead of whom. The two latter fentences contain a nominative between the relative and the verb; and, therefore, seem to contravene the rule: but the student will reflect, that it is not the nominative of the verb with which the relative is connected. The remaining examples refer to the fecond part of the rule. "Men of fine talents are not always the perfons who we should efteem." "The perfons who you difpute with, are precisely of your opinion." "Our tutors are our benefactors, who we owe obedience to, and who we ought to love." In these fentences, whom should be used instead of who.

1. When the relative pronoun is of the interrogative kind, the noun or pronoun containing the answer, must be in the fame cafe as that which contains the question: as,

Whofe books are these? They are John's." "Who gave them to him? We." "Of whom did you buy them? Of a bookfeller; him who lives at the Bible and Crown." "Whom did you fee there? Both him and the fhopman." The learner will readily comprehend this rule, by fupplying the words which are understood in the answers. Thus, to exprefs the answers at large, we should fay, "They are John's books." "We gave them to him." "We bought them of him who lives," &c. "We faw both him and the fhopman."-As the relative pronoun, when ufed interrogatively, refers to the fubfequent word or phrafe containing

the answer to the queftion, that word or phrafe may properly be termed the subsequent to the interrogative.

RULE VII.*

WHEN the relative is preceded by two nominatives of different perfons, the relative and verb may agree in perfon with either, according to the fense: as, "I am the man who command you ;" or, "I am the man who commands you.”

دو

The form of the first of the two preceding fentences, expreffes the meaning rather obfcurely. It would be more perfpicuous to fay; "I, who command you, am the man." Perhaps the difference of meaning, produced by referring the relative to different antecedents, will be more evident to the learner, in the following fentences. "I am the general who gives the orders to-day ;" "I am the general who give the orders to-day;" that is, "I, who give the orders to-day, am the general."

When the relative and the verb have been determined to agree with either of the preceding nominatives, that agreement must be preferved throughout the fentence; as in the following inftance: "I am the Lord that maketh all things; that fretcheth forth the heavens alone." Ifa. xliv. 24. Thus far is confiftent: The Lord, in the third perfon, is the antecedent, and the verb agrees with the relative in the third perfon: "I am the Lord, which Lord, or he that maketh all things." If I were made the antecedent, the relative and verb fhould agree with it in the first perfon as, "I am the Lord, that make all things, that ftretch forth the heavens alone." But fhould it follow; "That Spreadeth abroad the earth by myfelf;" there would arise a confusion of persons, and a manifest folecism.

For the improvement of the seventh rule of Syntax, the author is indebted to the criticisms of Dr. Crombie.

RULE VIII.

EVERY adjective belongs to a substantive, expreffed or understood: as, "He is a good, as well as a wife man ;” "Few are happy;" that is "perfons."

The adjective pronouns, this and that, &c. muft agree, in number, with their fubftantive: as, "This book, thefe books; that fort, thofe forts; another road, other roads."

A few inftances of the breach of this rule are here exhibited. "I have not travelled this twenty years;" "these twenty." "I am not recommending thefe kind of fufferings;" "this kind." "Thofe fort of people fear nothing;" "that fort."

1. The word means in the fingular number, and the phrafes, "By this means," "By that means," are used by our best and most correct writers; namely, Bacon, Tillotfon, Atterbury, Addifon, Steele, Pope, &c.* They are, indeed, in fuch general and approved ufe, that it would appear awkward, if not affected, to apply the old fingular form, and fay, "By this mean; by that mean; it was by

"By this means, he had them the more at vantage, being tired and haraffed with a long march."

Bacon.

"By this means one great reftraint from doing evil, would be taken away." "-" And this is an admirable means to improve men in virtue." -"By that means they have rendered their duty more diffiTillot fan.

cult."

"It renders us careless of approving ourselves to God, and by that means fecuring the continuance of his goodness."—" A good character, when established, fhould not be rested in as an end, but employed as a means of doing ftill further good."

Atterbury.

"By this means they are happy in each other."- "He by that means preferves his fuperiority."

Addifon.

Steele.

"Your vanity by this means will want its food." "By this means alone, their greateft obftacles will vanish." Pope. "Which custom has proved the most effectual means to ruin the nobles."

Dean Swift.

a mean ;" although it is more agreeable to the general analogy of the language. "The word means (fays Priestley) belongs to the clafs of words, which do not change their termination on account of number; for it is used alike in both numbers."

The word amends is used in this manner, in the following fentences: "Though he did not fucceed, he gained the approbation of his country; and with this amends he was content." "Peace of mind is an honourable amends for the facrifices of intereft." "In return, he received the thanks of his employers, and the prefent of a large eftate; these were ample amends for all his labours." "We have defcribed the rewards of vice: the good man's amends are of a different nature."

It can fcarcely be doubted, that this word amends (like the word means) had formerly its correfpondent form in the fingular number, as it is derived from the French amende, though now it is exclufively established in the plural form. If, therefore, it be alleged that mean fhould be applied in the fingular, because it is derived from the French moyen, the fame kind of argument may be advanced in favour of the fingular amende; and the general analogy of the language may also be pleaded in fupport of it.

"There is no means of escaping the perfecution."" Faith is not only a means of obeying, but a principal act of obedience." Dr. Young. "He looked on money as a neceffary means of maintaining and increasing power." Lord Lyttelton's Henry II. "John was too much intimidated not to embrace every means afforded for his fafety." Goldsmith.

"Left this means fhould fail."-" By means of ship-money, the late king," &c.-"The only means of fecuring a durable peace.' Hume. By this means there was nothing left to the parliament of Ireland," &c.

"By this means fo many flaves efcaped out of the mafters."

"By this means they bear witness to each other." By this means the wrath of man was made to turn

"A magazine, which has, by this means, contained," in general, procure their food by means of their beak."

Blackflone. hands of their Dr. Robertfon. Burke.

against itself."

Dr. Blair. &c.—“ Birds, Dr. Paley.

(Rule 8. Campbell, in his "Philofophy of Rhetoric," has the following remark on the subject before us: "No perfons of tafte will, I prefume, venture fo far to violate the prefent ufage, and confequently to fhock the ears of the generality of readers, as to fay, "By this mean, by that

Lowth and Johnson seem to be against the use of means in the fingular number. They do not, however, fpeak decifively on the point; but rather dubiously, and as if they knew that they were questioning eminent authorities, as well as general practice. That they were not decidedly against the application of this word to the fingular number, appears from their own language: "Whole sentences, whether fimple or compound, may become members of other fentences by means of fome additional connexion.”, Dr. LowTH's Introduction to English Grammar.

"There is no other method of teaching that of which any one is ignorant, but by means of fomething already known."Dr. JOHNSON. Idler.

It is remarkable that our prefent verfion of the Scriptures makes no ufe, as far as the Compiler can difcover, of the word mean; though there are feveral inftances to be found in it of the use of means in the fenfe and connexion contended for. "By this means thou fhalt have no portion on this fide the river." Ezra iv. 16. "That by means of death," &c. Heb. ix. 15. It will fcarcely be pretended, that the translators of the facred volumes did not accurately understand the English language; or that they would have admitted one form of this word, and rejected the other, had not their determination been conformable to the best ufage. An attempt therefore to recover an old word, fo long fince difused by the most correct writers, feems not likely to be fuccefsful; efpecially as the rejection of it is not attended with any inconvenience.

The practice of the best and most correct writers, or a great majority of them, corroborated by general ufage, forms, during its continuance, the standard of language;