i. e. the youth she loved." They smote the city;" i. e. citizens.- "My son, give me thy heart;" i. e. affection." The sceptre shall not depart from Judah;" i. e. kingly power.

V. Synecdoche is the naming of the whole for a part, or of a part for the whole; as, "This roof [i. e. house] protects you." "Now the year [i. e. summer] is beautiful."

VI. Hyperbole is extravagant exaggeration, in which the imagination is indulged beyond the sobriety of truth; as, "The sky shrunk upward with unusual dread,

And trembling Tiber div'd beneath his bed.”—Dryden. VII. Vision, or Imagery, is a figure by which the speaker represents the objects of his imagination, as actually before his and present to his senses; as,

eyes

"I see the dagger-crest of Mar!
I see the Moray's silver star

Wave o'er the cloud of Saxon war,

That up the lake comes winding far !"—Scott.

VIII. Apostrophe is a turning from the regular course of the subject, into an animated address; as, "Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death! where is thy sting? O Grave! where is thy victory ?"--1 Cor. xv. 54, 55.

IX. Personification is a figure by which, in imagination, we ascribe intelligence and personality to unintelligent beings or abstract qualities; as,

1. "The Worm, aware of his intent,

2. ❝

Harangued him thus, right eloquent."—Cowper.

Lo, steel-clad War his gorgeous standard rears!"'—Rog 3. "Hark! Truth proclaims, thy triumph cease."-Id.

X. Erotesis is a figure in which the speaker adopts the form of interrogation, not to express a doubt, but, in general, confidently to assert the reverse of what is asked; as, "Hast thou an arm like God? or canst thou thunder with a voice like hini ?"-Job, xl. 9. "He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he tnat formed the eye, shall he not see ?"-Ps. xciv. 9.

XI. Ecphonesis is a pathetic exclamation, denoting some violent emotion of the mind; as, "O liberty!-O sound once delightful to every Roman ear!-O sacred privilege of Roman citizenship!-once sacred-now trampled upon !"--Cicero. "O that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away be at rest!"-Ps. lv. 6.

and

XII. Antithesis is a placing of things in opposition, to heighten their effect by contrast; as,

"Contrasted faults through all his manners reign;

Though poor, luxurious; though submissive, vain

Though grave, yet trifling; zealous, yet untrue;
And e'en in penance, planning sins anew."-Goldsmith.

XIII. Climax is a figure in which the sense is made to advance by successive steps, to rise gradually to what is more and more important and interesting, or to descend to what is more and more minute and particular; as, " And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith, virtue; and to virtue, knowl edge; and to knowledge, temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to patience, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, charity."-2 Pet. i 5.

XIV. Irony is a figure in which the speaker sneeringly ut ters the direct reverse of what he intends shall be understood; as, "We have, to be sure, great reason to believe the modest man would not ask him for a debt, when he pursues his life." -Cicero.

VERSIFICATION.

Versification is the art of arranging words into lines of correspondent length, so as to produce harmony by the regular alternation of syllables differing in quantity.

The Quantity of a syllable, is the relative portion of time occupied in uttering it. In poetry, every syllable is considered to be either long or short. A long syllable is reckoned to be equal to two short ones.

OBS. 1.-The quantity of a syllable does not depend on the sound of the vowel or diphthong, but principally on the degree of accentual force with which the syliable is uttered, whereby a greater or less portion of time is employed. The open vowel sounds are those which are the most easily protracted, yet they often occur in the shortest and feeblest syllables.

OBS. 2. Most monosyllables are variable, and may be made either long or short, as suits the rhythm. In words of greater length, the accented syllable is always long; and a syllable immediately before or after that which is accented, is always short.

Rhyme is a similarity of sound, between the last svllables of different lines. Blank verse is verse without rhyme.

OBS.-The principal rhyming syllables are almost always long. Double rhyme adds one short syllable; triple rhyme, two. Such syllables are redundant in iambic and anapæstic verses.

POETIC FEET.

A line of poetry consists of successive combinations of syllables, called feet. A poetic foot consists either of two or of three syllables.

The principal English feet are the Iambus, the Trochee, the Anapest, and the Dactyl.

1. The Iambus is a poetic foot consisting of a short syllable and a long one; as betray, confess.

2. The Trochee is a poetic foot consisting of a long syllable and a short one; as, hateful, pettish.

3. The Anapest is a poetic foot consisting of two short syllables and one long one; as, contravēne, acquiesce.

4. The Dactyl is a poetic foot consisting of one long syllable and two short ones; as, labourer, pōssiblě.

We have, accordingly, four kinds of verse, or poetic measure; Iambic, Trochaic, Anapestic, and Dactylic.

OBS.-The more pure these several kinds are preserved, the more complete is the chime of the verse. But poets generally indulge some variety; not so much, however, as to confound the drift of the rhythmical pul

sations.

SCANNING.

Scanning is the dividing of verses into the feet which compose them.

OBS.-When a syllable is wanting, the verse is said to be catalectic; when the measure is exact, the line is acatalectic; when there is a redundant syllable, it forms hypermeter.

I. OF IAMBIC VERSE.

In Iambic verse, the stress is laid on the even syllables. It consists of the following measures :

1. Iambic of Seven feet, or Heptameter.

descended from | above, | ănd bōw'd | thẻ

The Lord heavens high.

.

Modern poets have divided this kind of verse, into alternate lines of four and of three feet: thus,

O blind to each | indul|gent aim

Of pow'r supremely wise,
Who fancy happiness | in aught
The hand of heav'n denies!

2. Iambic of Six feet, or Hexameter.

Thy realm | förev ĕr lāsts, | thỹ ōwn | Měssi|ăh reigns.

This is the Alexandrine; it is seldom used except to complete a stanza in an ode, or occasionally to close a period in heroic rhyme. French heroics are similar to this.

3. Iambic of Five feet, or Pentameter.

For praise too dearly lov'd or warmly sought,
Enfeebles all internal strength of thought.

With solemn adoration down | they cast

Their crowns | inwove | with amarant | and gold.

This is the regular English heroic. It is, perhaps, the only measure suitable for blank verse.

The Elegiac Stanza consists of four heroics rhyming alter nately; as,

Enough has Heav'n | indulg'd of joy | below,
To tempt our tar|riance in this lov'd' | retreat;
|
Enough has Heav'n | ordain'd | of useful wo,
To make us languish for | a happier seat.

4. Iambic of Four feet, or Tetrameter.
The joys ǎbōve | ǎre understood
And relish'd only by the good.

5. Iambic of Three feet.

Blue light|nings tinge | the wāve,
And thun der rends the rock.
I

6. Iambic of Two feet.

Lines of fewer than seven syllables are seldom found, except in connection with longer verses.

In iambic verse, the first foot is often varied, by introducing a trochee; as,

Plānēts | ǎnd sūns | run law|less through | thẻ ský.

By a synæresis of the two short syllables, an anapæst may sometimes be employed for an iambus; or a dactyl, for a tro chee: as,

Oe'r many a frozen, many a fi'ry alp.

II. OF TROCHAIC VERSE.

In Trochaic verse, the stress is laid on the odd syllables. Single-rhymed trochaic omits the final short syllable, that it may end with a long one. This kind of verse is the same as iambic without the initial short syllable. Iambics and trochaics often occur in the same poem.

1. Trochaic of Six feet.

On ǎ | mõuntǎin | stretch'd beneath ǎ | hōary | willow, Lay a shepherd swain, and | view'd the | rolling | billow.

Alas! alas! how impotently true

Th' aërial pencil forms the scene anew.-Cawthorne.
Here a deformed monster joy'd to won,

Which on fell rancour ever was ybent.—Lloyd.

Withouten trump was proclamation made.-Thomson.

The gentle knight, who saw their rueful case,
Let fall adown his silver beard some tears.
'Certes,' quoth he, 'it is not e'en in grace,
Tundo the past and eke your broken years.'-Id.

Vain tamp'ring has but foster'd his disease;

'Tis desp'rate, and he sleeps the sleep of death.-Cowper.

I have a pain upon my forehead here

Why that's with watching; 'twill away again.-Shakspeare.

I'll to the woods, among the happier brutes;
Come, let's away; hark! the shrill horn resounds.-Smith.
What prayer and supplication soever be made.-Bible.

By the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world, and more abundantly to you ward.—Ib.

LESSON II.-FIGURES OF SYNTAX.

FIGURE 1.-ELLIPSIS.

And now he faintly kens the bounding fawn,
And [-] villager [-] abroad at early toil.-Beattie.

The cottage curs at [-] early pilgrim bark.-Id.

'Tis granted, and no plainer truth appears,

Our most important [-] are our earliest years.—Cowper.
To earn her aid, with fix'd and anxious eye,

He looks on nature's [-] and on fortune's course;
Too much in vain.-Akenside.

True dignity is his, whose tranquil mind

Virtue has rais'd above the things [-] below;

Who, ev'ry hope and [-] fear to Heav'n resign'd,

Shrinks not, though Fortune aim her deadliest blow.-Beattie

For longer in that paradise to dwell,

The law [-] I gave to nature, him forbids.-Milton.

So little mercy shows [-] who needs so much.-Cowper.
Bliss is the same [-] in subject, as [-] in king;
In [-] who obtain defence, and [-] who defend.-Pope.