by how many degrees? How much bigger is the carth than a grain of sand? By how many degrees was Socrates wiser than Alcibiades? or by how many is snow whiter than this paper? It is plain, that to these and the like questions, no definite answers can be returned.

In quantities, however, that may be exactly measured, the degrees of excess may be exactly ascertained. A foot is just twelve times as long as an inch; and an hour is sixty times the length of a minute. But, in regard to qualities, and to those qualities which cannot be measured exactly, it is impossible to say how many degress may be comprehended in the comparative excess.

But though these degrees are infinite or indefinite in fact, they cannot be so in language; nor would it be convenient, if language were to express many of them. In regard to unmeasured quanties and qualities, the degrees of more and less, (beside those marked above,) may be expressed intelligibly, at least, if not accurately, by certain adverbs,, or words of like import: as, "Socrates was much wiser than Alcibiades ;"" Snow is a great deal whiter than this paper;" "Epaminondas was by far the most ac2 complished of the Thebans ;" "The evening star is a very splendid object, but the sun is incomparably more splendid;" "The Deity is infinitely greater than the greatest of his creatures." The inaccurrcy of these, and the like expressions, is not a material inconvenience; and, if it were, it is unavoidable: for human speech can only express human thought; and where thought is necessarily inaccurate, language must be so too.

When the word very, exceedingly, or any other of similar import, is put before the positive, it is called by some writers the superlative of eminence, to distinguish it from the other superlative, which has been already mentioned, and is called the superlative of comparison. Thus very eloquent, is termed the superlative of eminence; most clo quent, the superlative of comparison. In the superlative of eminence, something of comparison is, however, remotely or indirectly intimated; for we cannot reasonably call a man very eloquent, without comparing his eloquence with the eloquence of other men.

The comparative may be so employed, as to express the same pre-eminence or inferiority as the superlative. Thus,

the sentence, "Of all acquirements, virtuc is the most valuable," conveys the same sentiment as the following; "Virtue is more valuable than every other acquirement."

CHAPTER V.

Of PRONOUNS.

A PRONOUN is a word used instead of a noun, to avoid the too frequent repetition of the same word: as, The man is happy; he is benevolent; he is useful." There are three kinds of pronouns, viz. the PERSONAL, the RELATIVE, and the ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS.

SECT. 1. Of the Personal Pronouns.

THERE are five Personal Pronouns, viz. I, thou, he, she, it; with their plurals, we, ye or you, they.

Personal pronouns admit of person, number, gender, and case.

The persons of pronouns are three in each number, viz.

I, is the first person

Thou, is the second person

He, she, or it, is the third person

We, is the first person

Ye, or you, is the second person
They, is the third person

Singular.

Plural.

This account of persons will be very intelligible, when we reflect, that there are three persons who may be the subject of any discourse: first, the person who speaks, may speak of himself; secondly, he may speak of the person to whom he addresses himself; thirdly, he may speak of some other person: and as the speakers, the persons spoken to, and the other persons spoken of, may be many, so each of these persons must have the plural number. The numbers of pronouns, like those of substantives,

are two, the singular and the plural: as, I, thou, he; we, ye, or you, they.

Gender has respect only to the third person singular of the pronouns, he, she, it. He is masculine; she is feminine: it is neuter.

The persons speaking and spoken to, being at the same time the subjects of the discourse, are supposed to be present; from which, and other circumstances, their sex is commonly known, and needs not to be marked by a distinction of gender in the pronouns but the third person or thing spoken of, being absent, and in many respects unknown, it is necessary that it should be marked by a distinction of gender; at least when some particular person or thing is spoken of, that ought to be more distinctly marked accordingly the pronoun singular of the third person has the three genders, he, she, it.

Pronouns have three cases; the nominative, the possessive, and the objective.

The objective case of a pronoun has, in general, a form different from that of the nominative, or the possessive

SECT. 2. Of the Relative Pronouns.

RELATIVE Pronouns are such as relate, in general, to some word or phrase going before, which is thence called the antecedent: they are, who, which, and that ; as, "The man is happy, who lives virtuously."

What is a kind of compound relative, including both the antecedent and the relative, and is equivalent to that which as, "This is what I wanted ;" that is to say, "the thing which I wanted.”

Who is applied to persons, which to animals, and inanimate things: as, "He is a friend, who is faithful in adversity ;” “The bird, which sung so sweetly, is flown ;” “This is the tree, which produces no fruit.”

That, as a relative, is often used to prevent the too frequent repetion of who and which. It is applied to both persons and things: as, “ He that acts wisely deserves praise ;""Modesty is a quality that highly adorns a woman.

Who is of both numbers, and is thus declined:

Which, that, and what, are likewise of both numbers, but they do not vary their termination: except that whose is sometimes used as the possessive case of which; as, "Is there any other doctrine whose followers are punished ?”

The relative pronoun, when used interrogatively, relates to a word or phrase which is not antecedent, but subsequent to the relative. See note under the vi. rule of Syntax.

"And the fruit

Of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste

Brought death."

"Pure the joy without allay,

Whose very rapture is tranquility."

"The lights and shades, whose well accorded strife Gives all the strength and colour of our life."

MILTON.

YOUNG.

POPE.

"This is one of the clearest characteristics of its being a religion whose origin is divine."

BLAIR.

By the use of this license, one word is substituted for three: as, "Philosophy, whose end is to instruct us in the knowledge of nature," for, "Philosophy, the end of which is to instruct us," &c.

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Who, which, and what, have sometimes the words 'a ever and ever annexed to them; as, "whosoever, or whoever, whichsoever, or whichever, whatsoever, or whatever :” but they are seldom used in modern style.

The word that is sometimes a relative, sometimes a demonstrative pronoun, and sometimes a conjunction. It is a relative, when it may be turned into who or which without destroying the sense: as, "They that (who) reprove us, may be our best friends;" "From every thing that (which) you see, derive instruction." It is a demonstrative pronoun when it is followed immediately by a substantive, to which it is either joined, or refers, and which it limits or qualifies; as, "That boy is industrious;" "That belongs to me ;" meaning that book, that desk, &c. It is a conjunction, when it joins sentences together, and cannot be turned into who or which, without destroying the sense: as, "Take care that every day be well employed.” "I hope he will believe that I have not acted improperly."

Who, which, and what, are called Interrogatives, when they are used, in asking questions; as, "Who is he?" "Which is the book?" "What art thou doing?"

Whether was formerly made use of to signify interrogation: as," Whether of these shall I choose?" but it is now seldom used, the interrogative which being substituted for it. Some Grammarians think that the use of it should be revived; as, like either and neither it points to the dual number; and would contribute to render our expressions concise and definite.