atone.

PERSPICUITY

IS the fundamental quality of style: a quality fo effential in every kind of writing, that for the want of it nothing can It is not to be confidered as merely a fort of negative virtue, or freedom from defect. It has higher merit: it is a degree of pofitive beauty. We are pleafed with an author, and confider him as deferving praife, who frees us from all fatigue of searching for his meaning; who carries us through his fubject without any embarraffment or confufion; whofe ftyle flows always like a limpid ftream, through which we fee to the very bottom.

The ftudy of perfpicuity and accuracy of expreffion confifts of two parts and requires attention, firft, to Single Words and Phrafes; and then, to the Conftruction of Sentences.

PART I.

Of PERSPICUITT and ACCURACY of EXPRESSION, with respect to single Words and Phrases.

THESE qualities of style, confidered with regard to words and phrafes, require the following properties: PURITY, PROPRIETY, and PRECISION.

CHAPTER I.

Of PURITY.

PURITY of ftyle confists in the use of such words, and fuch conftructions, as belong to the idiom of the language

which we speak; in oppofition to words and phrafes that are taken from other languages, or that are ungrammatical, obfolete, new-coined, or ufed without proper authority. All fuch words and phrases as the following, fhould be avoided: Quoth he; I wift not; erewhile; beheft; felfsame; delicateffe, for delicacy; politeffe, for politenefs; hauteur, for haughtiness; incumberment, connexity, martyrised, for encumbrance, connexion, martyred.

The introduction of foreign and learned words, unless where neceffity requires them, should never be admitted into our compofition. Barren languages may need fuch affiftance, but ours is not one of thefe. A multitude of Latin words, in particular, have, of late, been poured in upon our language. On fome occafions, they give an appearance of elevation and dignity to ftyle; but they often render it stiff and apparently forced. In general, a plain, native style, is not only more intelligible to all readers, but by a proper management of words, it can be made equally ftrong and expreffive with this Latinifed English, or any foreign idioms.

CHAPTER II.

Of PROPRIETY.

PROPRIETY of language is the selection of fuch words as the best usage has appropriated to thofe ideas, which we intend to exprefs by them; in oppofition to low expreffions, and to words and phrafes which would be less fignificant of the ideas that we mean to convey. Style may be pure, that is, it may be strictly English, without Scotticifms or Gallicifms, or ungrammatical, irregular expreffions of any kind, and may, nevertheless, be deficient in propriety: for the words may be ill chofen, not adapted to the subject, nor fully expreffive of the author's fenfe.

To preferve propriety, therefore, in our words and phrafes, we muf avoid low expressions; supply words that are wanting; be careful not to use the fame word in different fenfes; avoid the injudicious ufe of technical phrafes,

(Propriety. equivocal or ambiguous words, unintelligible expreffions, and all fuch words and phrafes as are not adapted to our meaning.

1. Avoid low expreffions: fuch as, "Topfy turvy, hurly burly, pellmell; having a month's mind for a thing; currying favour with a perfon; dancing attendance on the great," &c.

"Meantime the Britons, left to fhift for themselves, were forced to call in the Saxons for their defence." The phrafe "left to fhift for themselves," is rather a low phrase, and too much in the familiar ftyle to be proper in a grave, treatise.

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2. Supply words that are wanting. " Arbitrary power I look upon as a greater evil than anarchy itself, as much as a favage is a happier state of life than a flave at the oar: it fhould have been, as much as the state of a favage is happier than that of a flave at the oar." "He has not treated this fubje&t liberally, by the views of others as well as his own;""By adverting to the views of others," would have been better. "This generous action greatly increased his former services ;" it fhould have been, "greatly increased the merit of his former services." "By the pleafures of the imagination or fancy (which I fhall use promifcuously) I here mean," &c. This paffage ought to have had the word "terms" fupplied, which, would have made it correct: "terms which I fhall use promifcuously."

It may be proper in this place to obferve, that articles and prepofitions are fometimes improperly omitted; as in the following inftances; "How immenfe the difference between the pious and profane !"" Death is the common lot of all; of good men and bad." They fhould have had the article and prepofition repeated: "How immenfe the difference between the pious and the profane !" "Death is the common lot of all; of good men and of bad."

The repetition of articles and prepofitions is proper, when we intend to point out the objects of which we speak, as diftinguished from each other, or in contraft; and when we wish that the reader's attention fhould reft on that diftinction: as, "Our fight is at once the most delightful, and the most useful of all our fenfes."

3. In the fame fentence, be careful not to use the fame word too frequently, nor in different fenfes. "One may have an air which proceeds from a juft fufficiency and knowledge of the matter before him, which may naturally produce fome motions of his head and body, which might become the bench better than the bar."

The pronoun which is here thrice used, in fuch a manner as to throw obscurity over the fentence.

"Gregory favoured the undertaking, for no other reason than this, that the manager, in countenance, favoured his friend." It should have been, " resembled his friend.”

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"Charity expands our hearts in love to God and man : it is by the virtue of charity that the rich are blessed, and the poor fupplied." In this fentence, the word "charity" is improperly used in two different fenfes ; for the higheft benevolence, and for almsgiving.

4. Avoid the injudicious ufe of technical terms. To inform those who do not understand fea-phrafes, that "We tacked to the larboard, and flood off to fea," would be expreffing ourselves very obfcurely. Technical phrafes not being in current ufe, but only the peculiar dialect of a particular clafs, we should never ufe them but when we know they will be understood.

5. Avoid equivocal or ambiguous words. The following fentences are exceptionable in this refpect. "As for fuch animals as are mortal or noxious, we have a right to deftroy them." "I long fince learned to like nothing but what you do." ." "He aimed at nothing less than the crown," may denote either, "Nothing was lefs aimed at by him than the crown," or "Nothing inferior to the crown could fatisfy his ambition." "I will have mercy, and not facrifice." The first part of this sentence denotes, "I will exercise mercy;" whereas it is in this place employed to fignify, "I require others to exercise it." The tranflation fhould therefore have been accommodated to thefe different meanings. "They were both much more ancient among the Perfians, than Zoroafter or Zerdufht," The

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er in this fentence is equivocal. It ferves either as a copulative to fynonymous words, or as a disjunctive of different things. If, therefore, the ftudent fhould not know that Zoroafter and Zerdusht mean the fame person, he will mistake the fenfe. "The rifing tomb a lofty coJumn bore:"" And thus the fon the fervent fire addrest." Did the tomb bear the column, or the column the tomb ? Did the fon addrefs the fire, or the fire the fon ?

6. Avoid unintelligible and inconfiftent words or phrafes. "I have obferved," fays Steele," that the fuperiority among these coffeehouse politicians, proceeds from an opinion of gallantry and fashion." This fentence, confidered in itself, evidently conveys no meaning. First, it is not faid whofe opinion, their own, or that of others : Secondly, it is not faid what opinion, or of what fort, favourable or unfavourable, true or falfe, but in general, "an opinion of gallantry and fafhion," which contains no definite expreffion of any meaning. With the joint affistancę of the context, reflection, and conjecture, we shall perhaps conclude that the author intended to fay ; "That the rank among these politicians was determined by the opinion generally entertained of the rank, in point of gallantry and fashion, that each of them had attained."

"This temper of mind," fays an author, speaking of humility, "keeps our understanding tight about us." Whether the author had any meaning in this expreffion, or what it was, is not eafy to determine.

Sometimes a writer runs on in a fpecious verbofity, amufing his reader with fynonymous terms and identical propofitions, well-turned periods, and high founding words; but at the fame time, ufing those words fo indefinitely, that the reader can either affix no meaning at all to them, or may affix to them almost any meaning he pleafes.

"If it is afked," fays a late writer, "whence arifes the harmony, or beauty of language? what are the rules for obtaining it? the anfwer is obvious. Whatever renders a period fweet and pleafant, makes it alfo graceful. A good