B.-Well.

Whether you are right or wrong in your con

jectures concerning Conjunctions, I acknowledge that this is

"All the air a solemn stillness holds;

SAVE that from yonder ivy-mantled bower

The moping owl does to the moon complain."-Gray's Elegy. (1) "I do not like these paper-squibs, good master, they may undo your store-I mean of credit, and fire your arsenall; IF CASE you do not in time make good those outer works, your pockets."-B. Jonson, Staple of News, act 1. scene 3.

Chaucer also uses IF CACE.

(8) "The dignite of king John wold have distroyed al Englande, therfore mokel wisedome and goodnes both, nedeth in a person, the malyce in dignite slyly to bridell, and with a good byt of arest to withdraw, IN CASE it wold praunce otherwise than it shuld."-Chaucer, Testament of Loue, 2d boke, fol. 317. p. 2. col. 1.

(b)" And PUT THE CAIS that I may not optene
From Latyne land thaim to expell all clene,
git at leist thare may fall stop or delay
In sa grete materis for ane gere or tway."

Douglas, 7th booke, p. 217. PUT CASE, though now out of fashion, was frequently used by Chillingworth and other good authors.

"PUT THE CASE the Pope, for a reward of your service done him in writing this book, had given you the honour and means of a cardinal, would you not have professed, that you have not merited such a reward?"-Chillingworth, chap. 4. p. 211. § 36.

()"He is worthy to lose his priuylege, that misuseth the might and power that is giuen hym. And I SETTE CASE ye might enioyne hem that payne by right and lawe, whiche I trowe ye may not do: I saye ye might not put it to execution."-Tale of Chaucer, fol. 82. p. 2. col. 2. Yet SETTE I CASE ye haue lycence for to venge you, I saye that there ben full many thinges that shall restrayne you of vengeaunce takyng."-Ibid. fol. 79. p. 2. col. 1.

(k) "Auauntour and a lyer, al is one,

As thus. I POSE a woman graunt me

Her loue, and sayth that other wol she none,
And I am sworne to holden it secre,

And after I tel it two or thre;

I wys I am auauntour at the leest

And lyer eke, for I breke my beheest."

Chaucer, 3d boke of Troylus, fol. 174. p. 1. col. 2.

"Sone after this, she to him gan rowne,

And asked him if Troylus were there :

He swore her nay, for he was out of towne,

coming to the point: and is fairer than shuffling them over unnoticed, as the greater part of grammarians have done; or than repeating after others, that they are not themselves any parts of language, but only such accessaries as salt is to meat, or water to bread; or that they are the mere edging or sauce of language; or that they are like the handles to cups, or plumes to helmets, or binding to books, or harness for horses; or that they are pegs and nails and nerves and joints, and ligaments and glue, and pitch and lime, and mortar, and so forth'.

And sayd, Nece: I POSE that he were there

You durst neuer haue the more feere."

Chaucer, 3d boke of Troylus, fol. 175. p. 2. col. 1.

In

(1) "It may be ordered that ii or iii of our owne shippes do see the sayde Frenche soldiers wafted to the coast of France; FORSEING that our sayd shippes entre no hauen there."-Queen Elizabeth to Sir W. Cecil and Dr. Wotton, Lodge's Illustrations, vol. 1. p. 339.

(m) "Whan he made any ordinary judges, advocates or proctoures, he caused them to be openly named, requirynge the people and gyvynge them courage, if there were cause to accuse them, to prove the cryme by open wytnesse: FORESENE if they dyd not sufficiently prove it, and that it semed to be maliciouse detraction, the accusour shulde forthwith be beheaded."-Sir T. Elliott, Image of Governaunce, chap. 17.

"Pour quoy est-ce que Platon dit, que l'oraison est tempérée de noms et de verbes ?-Mais advisons que nous ne prenions autrement les paroles de Platon que comme il les a dittes: car il a dit que l'oraison estoit tempérée De ces deux parties, non Par ces deux parties; que nous ne façions la faulte que feroit celuy qui calomnieroit un autre pour avoir dit, que un oignement seroit composé de cire et de galbanum, alléguant qu'il auroit obmis à dire le feu et le vase, şans lesquels on ne sçauroit mesler lesdites drogues: aussi semblablement si nous le reprenions pour autant qu'il auroit obmis à dire les conjonctions, les prépositions, et autres telles parties. Car le parler et l'oraison n'est composé De ces parties là, mais Par icelles, et non sans elles. Car comme celuy qui prononceroit battre, ou estre battu; ou d'ailleurs Socrates et Pythagoras, encore donneroit-il aucunement à entendre et à penser quelque chose: mais celuy qui profereroit Car ou De simplement et seulement, on ne pourroit imaginer qu'il entendist aucune chose ny aucun corps, ains s'il n'y a quelques autres paroles qui soient proferées quant et quant, elles ressembleront à des sons et des bruits vains sans aucune signification; d'autant que ny à par elles ny avec d'autres semblables, elles ne peuvent rien signifier. Mais à fin que nous conjoignons ou meslions et assemblions tout en un, nous y adjoustons des prépositions, conjonctions, et articles, voulans en faire un corps de tout.Comment donc pourra dire quelqu'un, ces parties-là ne servent-elles de rien à l'oraison? Quant à moy, je tiens qu'elles y servent autant comme le Sel à la viande, et l'eau à faire le Pain. Evenus souloit dire que le

which kind of pretty similies Philosophers and Grammarians seem to have vied with one another; and have often endeavoured to amuse their readers and cover their own ignorance, by very learnedly disputing the propriety of the similie, instead of explaining the nature of the Conjunction.

But, pray, have you any authority for the derivation of these words? Are not all former etymologists against you?

H.-Except in 1F, and BUT (in one of its meanings), I believe they are all against me. But I am persuaded that all future etymologists, and perhaps some philosophers, will acFeu estoit la meilleure Saulse du Monde; aussi sont ces Parties l'assaisonnement de nostre langage, ne plus ne moins que le feu et le Sel des breuvages et viandes, dont nous ne nous sçaurions passer; excepté que nostre parler n'en a pas toujours nécessairement à faire: comme l'on peut dire du langage des Romains, duquel aujourd'huy tout le monde presque use; car il a osté presque toutes les prépositions excepté bien peu; et quant aux articles que l'on appelle, il n'en reçoit pas un tout seul, ains use de noms sans bordure, par manière de dire; et ne s'en fault pas esmerveiller, attendu qu'Homère à peu de noms prépose des articles, comme si c'étoient anses à des vases qui en eussent besoign, ou des pennaches sur des morions.-Or que les Dialecticiens aient plus besoign de conjonctions, que nuls autres hommes de lettres, pour la liaison et tissure de leurs propositions, ou les disjonctions d'icelles, ne plus ne moins que les cochers ont besoign d'attelages pour atteler de front leur chevaux ; ou comme Ulysses avoit besoign d'ozier en la caverne de Cyclops pour lier ses moutons; cela n'argue ni ne preuve pas que la conjonction soit autrement partie d'oraison, mais bien un outil propre à conjoindre selon qu'elle en porte nom, et a contenir et assembler non pas toutes choses, ains seulement celles qui ne sont pas simplement dites: si l'on ne vouloit dire que la Chorde ou courroye dont une balle seroit liée fust partie de la balle: ou la colle d'un papier ou d'un livre qui est collé; et les données et distributions des deniers partie du gouvernement: comme Demades disoit que les deniers que l'on distribuoit manuellement par teste à chasque citoyen d'Athènes, pour veoir les jeux, estoient la colle du gouvernement de l'estat populaire. Et quelle est la conjonction qui face de plusieurs propositions une, en les cousant et liant ensemble, comme le marbre fait le fer quand on le fond avec lui par le feu; mais pour cela le marbre n'est pas pourtant, ny ne l'appelle lon pas partie de fer; combien que ces choses-là qui entrent en une composition et qui sont fondues avec les drogues que l'on mesle, ont accoustumé de faire et de souffrir ne sçay quoi de commun, composé de tous les ingrédiens.-Quant aux prépositions on les peult accomparer aux pennaches ou autres Ornemens que lon met au dessus les habillemens de Testes, ou bien aux bases et soubassement que lon met au dessoubs des Statues; pour ce qu'elles ne sont pas tant parties d'oraison, comme alentour des parties."-Plutarch, Platonic Questions.—9th. Amyot.

knowledge their obligation to me. For these troublesome conjunctions, which have hitherto caused them so much mistaken and unsatisfactory labour, shall save them many an error and many a weary step in future. They shall no more expose themselves by unnatural forced conceits to derive the English and all other languages from the Greek, or the Hebrew; or some imaginary primæval tongue. The Particles of every language shall teach them whither to direct and where to stop their inquiries: for wherever the evident meaning and origin of the Particles of any language can be found, there is the certain source of the whole.

B.—Without a moment's reflection, every one must perceive that this assertion is too general and comprehensive. The mixture which is found in all cultivated languages; the perpetual accession of new words from affectation as well as from improvement, and the introduction of new Arts and Habits, especially in learned nations; and from other circumstances; forbid the deduction of the whole of a language from any one single source.

H.-Most certainly. And therefore when I say the whole, I must beg to be understood with those exceptions. And, that I may not seem to contradict myself when we shall hereafter come to treat of them, I beg you likewise to remember, that I by no means include in my assertion, the Abbreviations of language: for they are always improvements superadded by language in its progress; and are often borrowed from some other more cultivated languages. Whereas the original Mother-tongue is always rude and tedious, without those advantages of Abbreviation. And were he once more in being, I should not at all doubt of being able to convince even Junius himself (who with many others could so far mistake the course and progress of speech, as to derive an uncultivated from a cultivated language) that, instead of referring the Anglo-Saxon to his favourite Greek as its original, he must seek out (and I suppose he would easily find) a Parent for the latter.

But, I beg pardon, this is rather digressing from my purpose. I have nothing to do with the learning of mere curiosity nor am any further concerned with Etymology, than

:

Il y a un point, passé lequel les recherches ne sont plus que pour

as it may serve to get rid of the false philosophy received concerning language and the human understanding. If you please, therefore, I will return to the Conjunctions I have derived; and, if you think it worth the while, we will examine the conjectures of other persons concerning them; and see whether I have not something better than the authorities you ask after in my favour.

B.-I should be glad you would do so.

CHAPTER VIII.

ETYMOLOGY OF THE ENGLISH CONJUNCTIONS.

IF.

H.-IF and AN may be used mutually and indifferently to supply each other's place.

Besides having Skinner's authority for IF, I suppose that the meaning and derivation of this principal supporter of the Tripod of Truth', are so very clear, simple, and universally allowed, as to need no further discourse about them.

Skinner says "Ir (in agro Linc. Gif) ab A. S. Lif, si. Hoc a verbo Lipan, dare, q. d. Dato."

Lye, in his edition of Junius, says-" Haud inscite Skinnerus, qui deduxit ab A. S. Lipan, dare q. d. Dato."

GIF is to be found not only, as Skinner says, in Lincolnshire, but in all our old writers. G. Douglas almost always uses Gif: once or twice only he has used If; once he uses

la curiosité. Ces vérités ingénieuses et inutiles ressemblent à des étoiles, qui, placées trop loin de nous, ne nous donnent point de clarté." -Voltaire, Sur la Société Royale et sur les Académies.

1 See Plutarch Περι του ΕΙ του εν Δελφοις.

Εν δε Διαλεκτικῇ δη που μεγιστην έχει δυναμιν ὁ συναπτικος ούτοσι συνδεσμος, άτε δη το λογικώτατον σχηματίζων αξιωμα.-Το γαρ τεκνικών και λογικόν, ώσπερ είρηται, γνωσις ακολουθίας, την δε προσληψιν ἡ αισθησις τῳ λόγῳ διδωσιν. όθεν ει και αισχρον ειπειν, ουκ αποτρέψομαι τουτο ειναι τον της αληθείας τριποδα τον λογον, ὃν την του λεγοντος προς το προηγουμενον ακολουθίαν θέμενος, ειτα προσλάβων την ύπαρξιν, επαγει το συμπέρασμα της αποδείξεως. Τον ουν Πυθιον ει δη μουσικη τε ήδεται, και κυκνων φωναις και κιθαρας ψόφοις, τι θαυμαστον εστι Διαλεκτικής