Turn neither to the right [hand], nor to the left [hand]." Henry the Eighth [king of that name] was then reigning." 2. If there is an adjective before the noun, the article must cede the adjective; as, "a virtuous man," not "virtuous a n." If the adjective before the noun is all, such, many, what, both, or if the adjective is preceded by too, so, as, or how, the icle must come after the adjective; as, "all the men," uch a sight," "too serious an undertaking," &c. 3. When two or more adjectives connected belong to the me subject, the article is used only before the first; as," a red d white flag," i. e., one flag, partly red and partly white. t, when the adjectives belong to different subjects, the article repeated before each; as, "a red, and a white flag," i. e., two gs, one red, and one white. 4. In using the comparative with than, if the nouns before 5. A or an is joined to nouns in the singular number only; "a man." The exceptions to this are apparent rather than al. Thus, "a few things," means a certain number of things, d not more; 66 a thousand men" means one thousand of men, d not two thousand, &c. The a should be parsed as belongto the words "few," ". thousand," &c., used as nouns in the ngular, and the word following governed by of understood. 6. A marked difference of meaning is produced by the use or e omission of a before few and little. "He has a little decency," ans he has at least some. 'He has little decency," intimates doubt whether he has any. 7. A or an has sometimes the meaning of every; as, "twice day." Such sentences are always elliptical, in or some other eposition being understood; as, "Twice [in] a day."cent 8. A is often an abbreviation for some other short word, at, on, &c. (p. 79, art. 283); as, "His greatness is a ripening." such cases it is not an article but a preposition, and is to ho rsed accordingl 66 E that H deat A The thei 9. The is used before comparatives and superlatives. Where the comparative or the superlative is an adjective, the noun to which the article belongs can easily be supplied. An estate, the largest in the city." But in the case of an adverb there does not seem to be any ellipsis of the noun; as, “The more carefully you examine the book, the better you will like it." article seems to qualify the adverb and belong to it. 10. The is used before the antecedent of a restrictive clause ; as, "The men, who were absent, neglected their duty." MODEL FOR PARSING. “James writes a letter." "A" is the ind. art., and belongs to the noun "letter," according to Rule VIII. (Quote.) EXERCISES. Parse the Articles in the following sentences, supplying omissions, and correcting where necessary: At first the enemy gave way, but afterward he repulsed the left of our line. Time destroys both the great and the small. Glory to God in the highest. A too severe discipline is tyranny. The banner of the United States is a red, a white, and a blue flag. Fire is a better servant than a master. the PR om: cas the 2 pa gu: sho He is a better poet than a historian. A rosy faced and pale girl were seen on the right of the ра He had a few pupils, who came twice a week to receive his lessons. They preferred this to going a hunting. The louder he spoke, the less he was heard, and the noise made by the audience became the greater. He who uses filthy language has a little decency. th "6 р He who merely is ashamed of soiled clothes, shows thereby at he has little decency. He was such a tyrant that a few persons mourned at his ath. As everybody knew him to be a thief, a few persons intrusted eir goods to him. Parse all the Nouns, Pronouns, Verbs, and Prepositions in Le foregoing sentences. 1. The noun to which the adjective belongs is sometimes mitted; as, "Of two evils, choose the least. . . ." In that ase, supply the omission, and parse the adjective according to he Rule, as belonging to the noun thus supplied. 2. An adjective sometimes qualifies an infinitive mood, or a part of a sentence, used as a noun; as, "To use profane lanquage is both foolish and wicked." In such cases the adjective hould be parsed as belonging to the infinitive mood, or the part of a sentence. 3. The infinitive mood or the participle is sometimes found with an adjective after it not qualifying any particular noun, hat is, used indefinitely; as, "To be good is the surest way of being happy." "Good," here, is to be parsed by saying that t is an adjective used indefinitely after the infinitive. In like manner, "happy" is used indefinitely after the participle. 4. When an adjective expresses any number (more than one), the noun or pronoun to which it belongs must be plural; as, "ten pounds," not "ten pound." Some nouns, however, have a plural meaning with a singular form; as, "Ten sail of the line." form of the non 5. When two adjectives precede a noun, both expressing number, one of them may express the idea of unity, the other that of plurality; as, "one hundred men," "the first hundred lines," &c. In these instances, the several things are considered in their aggregate capacity, as forming one whole. The rule of construction is, to make the noun plural, and put the singular adjective before the plural one; as, "the first hundred lines," not "the hundred first lines." 6. By an idiom of the English language, many is sometimes used before the singular with a prefixed; as, "many a flower." 7. The comparative degree generally refers to two objects, the superlative to two or more; as, "John is the taller of the two," "John is the tallest of the whole six." 8. The comparative considers the objects compared as belonging to different classes; as, "Eve was fairer than any of her daughters." The superlative considers the objects as belonging to one class; as, "Eve was the fairest of women." 9. Double comparatives and superlatives are improper. Thus, "A worser man," should be, "A worse man;" "The most politest boy," should be, "The politest boy." 10. Some adjectives (p. 34, art. 153) express a quality incapable of increase or diminution; as, chief, extreme, universal, &c. In such cases, the comparative and superlative terminations should not be used. 11. Adjectives should not be used for adverbs, that is, to qualify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. "He speaks correct," should be, "He speaks correctly;" "A sufficient long time," should be, "A sufficiently long time;" "He came remarkable soon," should be, "He came remarkably soon." 12. Sometimes the adjective seems to qualify a verb; as, "The egg is boiled hard," "The apple tastes sweet," "The board looks smooth, but it is rough." In these cases, as the verb connects the quality with the preceding noun or pronoun, the word is an adjective, and it should be so parsed. 13. In poetry, an adjective is sometimes used in the sense of an adverb; as, "Slow rises merit when by poverty oppressed." In these cases, the word is an adverb, and should be so parsed. arse the Adjectives in the following sentences, supplying ssions, and correcting where necessary: I great reward has been offered for the detection of the ninal. he best men are liable to occasional infirmities of temper. o repine at the prosperity of others is despicable. o be ever active in laudable pursuits is highly meritorious. here are six foot of water in the hold. himborazo is the highest mountain of Europe. pain at one time possessed a greater commerce than any on in Europe. 'he tongue is like a race-horse, which runs the faster, the er weight it carries. -ing the three first and the last stanzas of the hymn. Chere is no more universal sentiment than this. Virtue confers the supremest dignity on man. He writes elegant. She sings sweet. To drink wine to excess is destructive of health. Co practise virtue is more acceptable to God than the sacri = of bullocks or rams. To be wise to-day is the way to commence to be wise. To remain ignorant in a land like ours is inexcusable. The evil that men do lives after them; the good is often ried with them. The vain, the wealthy, and the proud, are not the proper sons to be imitated. 'Then give Humility a coach and six." That style of dress is more admired by some than this. Let ch lady indulge their own taste. |