1. Substantives are derived from verbs.

2. Verbs are derived from substantives, adjectives, and sometimes from adverbs.

3. Adjectives are derived from substantives. 4. Substantives are derived from adjectives.

5. Adverbs are derived from adjectives.

1. Substantives are derived from verbs: as, from "to love," contes "lover;" from "to visit, visiter;" from "to survive, surviver;" &c.

In the following instances, and in many others, it is difficult to determine whether the verb was deduced from the noun, or the noun from the verb, viz. "Love, to love; hate, to hate; fear, to fear; sleep, to sleep; walk, to walk; ride, to ride act, to act," &c.

2. Verbs are derived from substantives, adjectives, and sometimes from adverbs: as, from the substantive salt, comes "to salt;" from the adjective warm, "to warm ;" and from the adverb forward, "to forward." Sometimes they are formed by lengthening the vowel, or softening the consonant; as, from " grass, to graze:" sometimes by adding en; as, from "length, to lengthen;" especially to adjectives: as, from "short, to shorten; bright, to brighten.”

3. Adjectives are derived from substantives, in the following manner: Adjectives denoting plenty are derived from substantives by adding y: as, from " Health, healthy; wealth, wealthy; might, mighty," &c.

Adjectives denoting matter out of which any thing is made, are derived from substantives, by adding en: as, from “Oak, oaken; wood, wooden; wool, woolen," &c.

Adjectives denoting abundance are derived from substantives, by adding ful: as, from " Joy, joyful; sin, sinful; fruit, fruitful," &c.

Adjectives denoting plenty, but with some kind of diminution, are derived from substantives, by adding some: as, from "Light, lightsome; trouble, troublesome; toil, toilsome," &c. Adjectives denoting want are derived from substantives, by adding less: as, from "Worth, worthless ;" from "care, careless; joy, joyless," &c.

Adjectives denoting likeness are derived from substantives, by adding ly: as, from " Man, manly; earth, earthly; court, courtly," &c.

Some adjectives are derived from other adjectives, or from substantives, by adding ish to them; which termination, when added to adjectives, imports diminution, or lessening the quality: as, "White, whitish ;" i. e. somewhat white. When

added to substantives, it signifies similitude or tendency to a character: as, " Child, childish; thief, thievish."

Some adjectives are formed from substantives or verbs, by adding the termination able; and those adjectives signify capacity: as, "Answer, answerable; to change, changeable."

4. Substantives are derived from adjectives, sometimes by adding the termination ness: as, "White, whiteness; swift, swiftness:" sometimes by adding th or t, and making a small change in some of the letters: as, "Long, length; high, height."

5. Adverbs of quality are derived from adjectives, by adding ly, or changing le into ly; and denote the same quality as the adjectives from which they are derived: as, from base," comes" basely;" from "slow, slowly;" from "able, ably."

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There are so many other ways of deriving words from one another, that it would be extremely difficult, and nearly impossible, to enumerate them. The primitive words of any language are very few; the derivatives form much the greater number. A few more instances only can be given here.

Some substantives are derived from other substantives, by adding the terminations hood or head, ship, ery, wick, rick, dom, ian, ment, and age.

Substantives ending in hood or head, are such as signify character or qualities: as, "Manhood, knighthood, falsehood," &c.

Substantives ending in ship, are those that signify office, employment, state, or condition: as, "Lordship, stewardship, partnership," &c. Some substantives in ship, are derived from adjectives: as, "Hard, hardship," &c.

Substantives which end in ery, signify action or habit: as, "Slavery, foolery, prudery," &c. Some substantives of this sort come from adjectives; as, “Brave, bravery," &c.

Substantives ending in wick, rick, and dom, denote dominion, jurisdiction or condition: as, "Bailiwick, bishoprick, kingdom, dukedom, freedom," &c.

Substantives which end in ian, are those that signify profession; as, "Physician, musician," &c. Those that end in ment and age, come generally from the French, and commonly signify the act or habit: as, " Commandment, usage."

Some substantives ending in ard, are derived from verbs or adjectives, and denote character or habit: as, "Drunk, drunkard; dote, dotard."

Some substantives have the form of diminutives; but these are not many. They are formed by adding the termin

ations, kin, ling, ing, ock, el, and the like: as, “Lamb, lamb kin; goose, gosling : duck, duckling; hill, hillock; cock, cock erel," &c.

That part of derivation which consists in tracing English words to the Saxon, Greek, Latin, French, and other languages, must be omitted, as the English scholar is not supposed to be acquainted with these languages. The best English dictionaries will, however, furnish some information on this head, to those who are desirous of obtaining it. The learned Horne Tooke, in his "Diversions of Purley," has given an ingenious account of the derivation and meaning of many of the adverbs, conjunctions, and prepositions.

It is highly probable that the system of this acute grammarian, is founded in truth; and that adverbs, prepositions, and conjunctions, are corruptions or abbreviations of other parts of speech. But as many of them are derived from obsolete words in our own language, or from words in kindred languages, the radical meaning of which is, therefore, either obscure, or generally unknown; as the system of this very able etymologist is not universally admitted; and as, by long prescription, whatever may have been their origin, the words in question appear to have acquired a title to the rank of distinct species; it seems proper to consider them as such, in an elementary treatise of grammar: especially as this plan coincides with that, by which other languages must be taught; and will render the study of them less intricate. It is of small moment, by what names and classification we distinguish these words, provided their meaning and use are well understood. A philosophical consideration of the subject, may, with great propriety, be entered upon by the grammatical student, when his knowledge and judgment become more improved.

SECTION 2. A sketch of the steps, by which the English Language has risen to its present state of refinement.

BEFORE We conclude the subject of derivation, it will probably be gratifying to the curious scholar, to be informed of some particulars respecting the origin of the English language, and the various nations to which it is indebted for the copiousness, elegance, and refinement, which it has now attained.

"When the ancient Britons were so harrassed and oppressed by the invasions of their northern neighbours, the Scots and Picts, that their situation was truly miserable, they sent an embassy (about the middle of the fifth century) to the Saxons, a warlike people inhabiting the north of Germany,

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with solicitations for speedy relief. The Saxons accordingly came over to Britain, and were successful in repelling the incursions of the Scots and Picts; but seeing the weak and defenceless state of the Britons, they resolved to take advantage of it; and at length established themselves in the greater part of South-Britain, after having dispossessed the original inhabitants.

"From these barbarians, who founded several petty kingdoms in this island, and introduced their own laws, language, and manners, is derived the groundwork of the English language; which, even in its present state of cultivation, and notwithstanding the successive augmentations and improvements, which it has received through various channels, displays very conspicuous traces of its Saxon original.

The Saxons did not long remain in quiet possession of the kingdom; for before the middle of the ninth century, the Danes, a hardy and adventurous nation, who had long infested the northern seas with their piracies, began to ravage the English coasts. Their first attempts were, in general, attended with such success, that they were encouraged to a renewal of their ravages; till, at length, in the beginning of the eleventh century, they made themselves masters of the greater part of England.

"Though the period, during which these invaders occupi ed the English throne, was very short, not greatly exceeding half a century, it is highly probable that some change was introduced by them into the language spoken by those, whom they had subdued: but this change cannot be supposed to have been very considerable, as the Danish and Saxon languages arose from one common source, the Gothic being the parent of both.

"The next conquerors of this kingdom, after the Danes, were the Normans, who, in the year 1066, introduced their leader William to the possession of the English throne. This prince, soon after his accession, endeavoured to bring his own language (the Norman-French) into use among his new subjects; but his efforts were not very successful, as the Saxons entertained a great antipathy to these haughty foreigners. In process of time, however, many Norman words and phrases were incorporated into the Saxon language: but its general form and construction still remained the same.

"From the Conquest to the Reformation, the language continued to receive occasional accessions of foreign words, till it acquired such a degree of copiousness and strength, as to render it susceptible of that polish, which it has received from writers of taste and genius, in the last and present com

turies. During this period, the learned have enriched it with many significant expressions, drawn from the treasures of Greek and Roman literature; the ingenious and the fashionable have imported occasional supplies of French, Spanish, Italian, and German words, gleaned during their foreign excursions; and the connexions which we maintain, thr ugh the medium of government and commerce, with many remote nations, have made some additions to our native vocabulary. "In this manner did the ancient language of the AngloSaxons proceed, through the various stages of innovation, and the several gradations of refinement, to the formation of the present English tongue."

See the Twelfth chapter of the OCTAVO Grammar.

PART III.

SYNTAX.

THE third part of grammar is SYNTAX, which treats of the agreement and construction of words in a sentence. A sentence is an assemblage of words, forming a complete sense.

Sentences are of two kinds, simple and compound.

A simple sentence has in it but one subject, and one finite* verb: as, "Life is short.",

A compound sentence consists of two or more simple sentences connected together: as, "Life is short, and art is long." ." "Idleness produces want, vice, and misery."

As sentences themselves are divided into simple and compound, so the members of sentences may be divided likewise into simple and compound members: for whole sentences, whether simple or compounded, may become members of other sentences, by means of some additional connexion; as, in the following example: "The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib; but Israel doth not know, my people do not consider." This sentence consists of two compounded members, each of which is subdivided into two simple members, which are properly called clauses.

There are three sorts of simple sentences; the explicative, or explaining; the interrogative, or asking; the imperative, or commanding.

* Finite verbs are those to which number and person appertain. Verbs in the infinitive mood have no respect to number or person.