suing, or he is on a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awakened. See 1 Kings, chapter xviii., verse 27. Example 2d. And Job answered and said, No doubt ye are the people, and wisdom shall die with you. Example of Sarcasm. In the name of common sense, why should the Duke of Bedford think that none but of the House of Russell are entitled to the favor of the crown? Why should he imagine, that no king of England has been capable of judging of merit but King Henry the Eighth? Indeed, he will pardon me; he is a little mistaken: all virtue did not end in the first Earl of Bedford; all discernment did not lose its vision when his Creator closed his eyes. Let him remit his rigor on the disproportion between merit and reward in others, and they will make no inquiry into the origin of his fortune. They will regard with much more satisfaction, as he will contemplate with infinitely more advantage, whatever his pedigree has been dulcified, by an exposure to the influence of heaven in a long flow of generations, from the hard, acidulous, metallic tincture of the spring. It is little to be doubted, that several of his forefathers, in that long series, have degenerated into honor and virtue. LVIII. ALLITERATION. Alliteration is the repetition of the same letter at the begin ning of two or more words immediately succeeding each other, or at short intervals; as, bug-bear, sea-sick, and the ƒ and g in the following line: Fields ever fresh, and groves for ever green. And the 7 in the following: Love laughs at locksmiths. The return of such sounds, if not too frequent, is agreeable to the ear because the succeeding impression is made with less effort than that which precedes. Alliteration, as well as rhyme, is useful as an aid to the memory. Hence proverbs have generally one or the other and sometimes both of these auxiliaries. Birds of a feather Flock together. Fast bind, Fast find. Thus: The following are remarkable instances of alliteration: Begot by butchers, but by Dishops bred, How sweetly slow the liquid lay Let lords and ladies laugh and sing We beggars, too, can dance and fling Approach, thou, like the rugged Russian bear, Lean liquid lays, like lightly lulling lakes, &c. These instances are not presented as models for imitation, but rather as exemplifications of the meaning of the term alliteration. It will be suffi cient to observe, that alliterations at the present day have fallen into disrepute; and with good reason, lest the writer in pursuit of them should be tempted to sacrifice sense to sound. Occasionally introduced, and sparingly used, they are not perhaps obnoxious to strong objections. Kames, in his "Elements of Criticism," says: "Where two ideas are so connected as to require only a copulative, it is pleasant to find a connexion in the words that express these ideas, were it even so slight as where both begin with the same letter. Thus: The peacock, in all his pride, does not display half the color that appears in the garments of a British lady when she is dressed either for a ball, or a birth-day.'-Spectator, No. 265. Again: 'Had not my log of a steward run away as he did, without making up his accounts, 1 had still been immersed in sin and seacoal.'-Ibid, No. 530. 666 'My life's companion, and my bosom friend, The following is presented as a literary curiosity: ALPHABETICAL ALLITERATION. THE BUNKER HILL MONUMENT CELEBRATION. Americans arrayed and armed attend; Exercises. The student may change the terms in the following expressions, so as to present instances of alliteration. A word of similar meaning may, in each phrase or sentence, be substituted, so as to exemplify the figure. The royal lion. The songs of love. The pride of the sons of kings. One belief, one fame, one destiny shall attend both. The flowing lays. How the brilliant lake shines. His proud head shall bow. The deceitful tiger. He forsakes his solitary lair. By royal prelates commended. In sacred hallelujahs listened to. Let noblemen and high-born ladies laugh and sing. The falling towers with curling ivy bound. Yet would the village commend my wondrous power. LVIII. PARAPHRASE OR EXPLANATION. A paraphrase is an explanation of some maxim or passage in a book in a more clear and ample manner than is ex Chiefs, clergy, citizens conglomerate,-- Guards greeting guards grown grey,- guest greeting uest Ingenuous juniors join in jubilee, Kith kenning kin, -kind knowing kindred key. Mixed masses marshalled, Monumentward move. These thrilling themes, to thousands truly told, Victorious vassals, vauntings vainly veiled. Where, whilsince, Webster, warlike Warren, wailed. Xcuse 'xpletives 'xtraqueer 'xpressed, pressed in the words of the author. It is in fact a translation of the author's meaning into simpler language, accompanied with such explanations as will serve to render the passage easily intelligible. The author's words, therefore, are not so strictly followed as his sense. Maxims, proverbs, and texts of Scripture often contain much mean ing in few words. To present them in a clear light, and to explain them in all their bearings, is the province of the preacher and the didactic writer; who thus calls in the paraphrase to their aid for the benefit of illustration. Example 1st. "Ne sutor ultra crepidam." "Let not the shoemaker go beyond his last." These were the words of Apelles to a Crispin, (a shoemaker) who properly found fault with an ill-painted slipper in one of the pictures of Apelles; but, ascending to other parts, betrayed the grossest ignorance. The proverb implies that no man should pass his opinion in a province of art, where he is without a qualification. Example 2d. Dionysius, the tyrant of Sicily, stripped the statue of Jupiter of a robe of massy gold, and substituted a cloak of wool, saying, Gold is too cold in winter, and too heavy in summer, · It behoves us to take care of Jupiter. From this incident we see that the first consideration with a knave, is how to help himself, and the second, how to do it with an appearance of helping others. Example 3d. A Scottish proverb says, "Cocks are free of horse-corn." This saying implies that people are liberal or profuse of what belongs to another. Example 4th. Use a cat to the churn, and she will call it custom. This * A proverb is a short sentence, expressing a well-known truth or com mon fact, ascertained by experience or observation. A maxim is a principle generally received or admitted as true. It may here be remarked that proverbs, parables and fables are easily converted the one into the other.See Booth's Principles, p. 161.] It will be a useful exercise for the student to attempt to convert examples 3d and 4th below, into a comparison and a fable. proverb implies that if you accustom your servants or other folks, to make too frequent use of what is yours, they will think, at last, that they have acquired a right to it. LIX. OUTLINES IN NARRATIVE. A simple story is here related, with outlines of the same story in different language, which the student may fill out so as to present the same story, with all the circumstances. Examples. When the city of Troy was taken by the Greeks, after the first fury of plunder was over, the conquerors, pitying the misfortunes of their captives caused it to be proclaimed, that every free citizen had the liberty of taking away any one thing which he valued most: upon which Æneas, neglecting every thing else, only carried away with him his household gods. The Greeks, delighted with his piety, gave him permission to carry away with him any other thing he had the greatest regard for; and imme diately he took upon his shoulders his aged father, who had grown decrepit, and was carrying him out of the town. The Greeks, struck with his filial duty, gave him leave to take every thing that belonged to him; declaring that Nature itself would not suffer them to be enemies to such as shewed so great piety to the gods, and so great reverence to their parents. The Outline. thirst for plunder was that every free-born citizen prized the most, Eneas disregarding The city of Troy made proclamation any other his aged and venerable father. The every thing that he ungenerous The outline filled out. respect The city of Troy having been captured by the Greeks, when their thirst for plunder was partly satiated, commiserating the misfortunes of their captives |