4. " Gradually the pall of evening descended deeper and deeper on lake and garden. The bats flew whirring past the open doors, through which the perfume of the flowers and shrubs entered with everincreasing strength. From the water rose the croaking of the frogs; and while the moon shed a calm radiance over the whole scene, a nightingale under the window commenced her song, soon answered by another from a thicket in the garden." 5. "She was dead. No sleep so beautiful and calm, so free from trace of pain, so fair to look upon. Her couch was dressed here and there with some winter berries and green leaves gathered in a spot she had been used to favor. 'When I die, put near me something that has loved the light and had the sky above it always.' Those were her words. She was dead. Dear, gentle, patient, noble Nell was dead. Her little bird - a poor, slight thing, the pressure of a finger would have crushed was stirring nimbly in its cage; and the strong heart of its child mistress was mute and motionless forever." 6. "A Saranac boat is one of the finest things that the skill of man has ever produced under the inspiration of the wilderness. It is a frail shell, so light that a guide can carry it on his shoulders with ease, but so dexterously fashioned that it rides the heaviest waves like a duck, and slips through the water as if by magic. You can travel in it along the shallowest rivers and across the broadest lakes, and make forty or fifty miles a day, if you have a good guide." We wish to write a short description in a few sentences, using well-chosen words, to give a vivid and beautiful description of some of these subjects: A rainy day. The steady downpour of rain had made the day dark and disagreeable. The streets were filled with water, the sidewalks were covered with mud. We were all wet, dirty, and miserable, and glad when night settled down, and we could shut out the dreary weather and forget its gloom by the light of a cheerful fireside. In the same way write a short description of: 1. A dark cloud that threatens lightning and rain. 2. A placid lake on which you are rowing a boat. 3. A red sunset, and how it looked to you. 4. A field of grain that was ready to be cut. 5. A dark night, and how you felt coming home. 6. A great crowd, and how excited the people were. 7. A wild animal, how fierce and bloodthirsty it looked. 8. A runaway horse, and how it dashed down the street. LESSON 72. — EXERCISES IN DESCRIPTION (continued) Sometimes we wish to tell what happened on a particular occasion without explaining what kind of an occasion it was. Everybody knows what a wedding ceremony is, but one wants to know what occurred on a particular occasion. Let us write a short, vivid account, in a few words, of what happened on some of those occasions. A wedding ceremony. - The church was beautifully decorated with palms, vines, and flowers, the organ gave forth soft strains of sweet music, while the beautiful young bride walked up to the altar by the side of her father. 1. Recess.-Describe the games you played, the lunch you ate, the things you saw. 2. A house on fire. -Describe the building, the alarm, the engines running, the fighting of the fire, the destruction. 3. An automobile ride. Describe the car, the ride, the speed, the things seen on the ride, the return. 4. A street fight. - Describe the boys, the cause of the quarrel, the fight, the separation, the result. A poem to study and memorize : (A language lesson only) THE TIDE RISING IN THE MARSHES (From "The Marshes of Glynn") And the sea lends large, as the marsh: lo, out of his plenty, the sea Pours fast full soon the time of the flood tide must be : Look how the grace of the sea doth go About and about through the intricate channels that flow Till his waters have flooded the uttermost creeks and the low-lying lanes, And the marsh is meshed with a million veins, That like as with rosy and silvery essences flow Farewell, my lord Sun! The creeks overflow: a thousand rivulets run 'Twixt the roots of the sod: the blades of the marsh grass stir; Passeth a hurrying sound of wings that westward whir; Passeth, and all is still; and the currents cease to run; And the sea and the marsh are one. How still the plains of the waters be! The tide is in his ecstasy. The tide is at his highest height: And it is night. And now from the Vast of the Lord will the waters of sleep Roll in on the souls of men, But who will reveal to our waking ken The forms that swim and the shapes that creep Under the waters of sleep? And I would I could know what swimmeth below when the tide comes in On the length and the breadth of the marvelous marshes of Glynn. -SIDNEY LANIER.1 1 From Poems of Sidney Lanier. Copyright, 1884, 1891, by Mary D. Lanier. Published by Charles Scribner's Sons. LESSON 73.-VERBS, TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE Cows eat grass. In the above sentences name the have objects? Which have not? object to complete the sense. transitive verbs. Bees make honey. The dogs bark. verbs. Which of them Some verbs require an These verbs are called A transitive verb is a verb that requires an object to complete the sense. Some verbs do not require an object to complete the These verbs are called intransitive verbs. sense. An intransitive verb is a verb that does not require an object to complete the sense. The word transitive means passing over. In a transitive verb the thought of the action passes over to another word which is called the object. In an intransitive verb the thought does not pass over to any other word, but rests complete with the verb. We can generally decide whether a verb is transitive by trying it. Let us take the verb build and ask, "Can we build anything?" The answer is, "Yes, a house." Therefore the thought passes on to a possible object and the verb is transitive. Let us take the verb sleep and ask, "Can we sleep anything?" and the answer is "No." Therefore the thought does not pass on to a possible object, and the verb is intransitive. The rule does not apply to such words as be, seem, become, etc., because no action is expressed in their case. It is only to be considered in verbs that imply some action done by the subject upon some possible object. Exercise 1. In the following list of verbs, which are transitive and which are intransitive? Some verbs can be used in both ways and are transitive or intransitive according to their use in a particular sentence. The birds fly. The horses run. The sun shines. The boys fly their kites He ran the horse up the hill. The boy shines shoes. Exercise 2. In the following sentences name the transitive and intransitive verbs: 1. The beaver built a dam. 2. The industrious farmer rises early. 3. The cats caught all the mice. 4. Men may come and men may go. 5. Money can buy comforts, but cannot buy happiness. 6. The lecturer spoke for two hours. 7. Consult your purse before you consult your fancy. 8. Coming events cast their shadows before. 9. He died in defense of his country. 10. He sleeps beneath a wilderness of flowers. 11. We must walk slowly and speak quietly in the graveyard. 12. The lightning struck the tree. 13. Onward through life he goes. 14. The leaves fell and covered the ground. 15. We awoke when the sun rose and cooked our food. 16. The camel travels for many days without water. 17. I ordered dinner to be ready when the clock struck. |