PAGE.

Miss Williams to a a friend, describing several

cruel executions by decrees of the Revolutionary Tribunal in France

117 Miss Williams to a friend, relating the unhappy

catastrophe of a family in the South of France

134 Wm. Cowper, Esq. to S. Rose, Esq.

148 The same to the same

149 Wm. Cowper, Esq. to Lady Hesketh

151 Wm. Cowper, Esq. to Mrs. Bodham

152 Wm. Cowper, Esq. to Lady Throckmorton 154 Mr. Robert Burns to Mr. Wm. Smellie '156 Dr. Johnson on Letter Writing

158 Tables of the modes of address and superscrip

tion of letters, to persons in all situations in life

163

A SHORT

INTRODUCTION

TO

ENGLISH GRAMMAR.

GRAMMAR.

G with

RAMMAR is the art of speaking and writing And treats of letters, syllables, words, and sen

So that It is very properly divided into the four following parts :

tences.

ORTHOGRAPHY,
ETYMOLOGY,

SYNTAX, and
PROSODY.

ORTHOGRAPIIY,

OR THE

FIRST PART OF GRAVIMAR.

O
RTHOGRAPHY treats of letters and sylla-

bles, the method of spelling, the use of stops, and other characters necessary to exact writing.

SECTION

SECTION I.

OF THE LET

TERS.

Inglish are the following twenty-six letters:

b, c, d, g, mn, q, r, s, t, u, V, W, X, Y, Z.

Five of these are called vowels: a, e, i, o, u, and have a distinct sound of themselves. I is sometimes a vowel, and sounds like i.

The other letters are called consonants, and cannot be sounded without the help of a vowel.

The consonants are usually divided into mutes and semi-vowels, or half-vowels.

The mutes have no sound at all, without the assistance of a vowel; and are b, c, d, g, j, k, p,

The semi-vowels have a kind of imperfect sound, without the help of a vowel ; and are, g, h, l, m, n, r, s, x; four of which, l, m, n, ?, are called liquids.

The x and = are called double letters.

A has three sounds; as in face, glass, wall. It is sometimes short, as in grass ; sometimes long, as in graze.

E has three sounds; as in stem, the, be. It is sometiincs short, as in men ; sometimes long, as in scene.

I has three sounds; as in rind, third, hill.--It is sometiines long, as in shine : and sometimes short, as in sin.

o has three sounds; as in form, come, tomb.-It is sometimes long, as in bone ; and sometimes short, as in block.

U is sometimes long, as in use; and sometimes short, as in us.

Y when it is a vowel sounds like i; as in by, physic.

B is sometimes mute; as in debt, subtle, lažnb.

C is sounded liké k, before u,.0, u; as calm, copper, cut: and like s, before e, i, y; as, centrie, city, cypher.

G has two sounds; one hard, before a, o, u; as in gape, goat, gun; and the other solt, és in gem, giant. It is mutė in gnash, &c.

H is a note of aspiration, or breathing. It is sometimes mute; as in hour, honesty.

L is sometimes mute; as in calf, coulil, woul?, should, psalm, falcon, &c.

N is sometimes mute after ; as in dann, hymn.

P is sometimes mute; as in psalm, tempt.

2 is always followed by u; as in quart, quantity, quibble, question.

R has a rough sharp sound.-Re at the end of words, is sometimes sounded like er; as, thcatre, sepulchre.

S has a hissing sound.-It sometimes sounds like z; as in eyes, intrusion, delusion, bosom.

S is sometimes mute; as in isle, island, demesne, viscount.

V sounds very much like f; as vain, vanity.
X begins no English word.—It sounds like ks;

as axis.

2 sounds like hard s; and is therefore sometimes called izzard, or s hard.

Ch has one hard, and two soft sounds; as, character (karacter) chance, chamois (shamois).

Ti sounds like shi, very frequently; as relation, satiate.

a 2

SECTION

SECTION II.

.

OF SYLLABLES.

A

SYLLABLE is a letter, or a number of letters

which give a distinct articulate sound. Spelling consists in rightly dividing words into syllables; and writing words with proper letters.

Two vowels, joined together in one syllable, make a diphthong; as ai, in paint.

Three vowels, joined together in one syllable, make a triphthong; as eau, in beauty.

A consonant betwixt two vowels goes to the latter ; as pa-per, mo-ney ; except x, which goes to the first, as, ex-ult.

When two consonants, of the same kind, come tygether in the middle of a word, they must be diided; as, bar-row, mid-dle.

When two consonants come together in the middle of a word, that are not used to begin a word, they are divided , as dan-ger, mur-der.

Two vowels coming together, and not making a diphthong, must be divided ; as, li.on.

The primitive parts of compound words must be divided; as, under-stand, ward-robe.

The most natural and easy way of dividing words into syllables is to follow the sound, that

is