I find the Subject has been little confidered: Indeed fo very little, that what I have said in order to explain the most abstruse Parts of the Subject, has been looked upon as unnecessary, and even little better than trifling with my Readers. But those who have spoke and thought in this Manner, have confidered the Work too fuperficially: For in it I have attempted to refolve all the above-mentioned Questions, and feveral others equally difficult; but which relate chiefly to the Latin and Greek Languages: And the Refolution of thefe Questions is no trifling Work: For if they can be anf-wered fo as to give Satisfaction to an inquifitive and attentive Reader, the old Reproach will be removed, Nihil eft infelicius Definitore Grammatico: i. e. Nothing is lefs fuccefsful than a Grammarian when he defines: Seeing the Refolution of the Questions must lead to clear and accurate Definitions of every Part of Speech.

It was for the Sake of gaining fuch Definitions that I firft engaged in this Work: For my Profeffion as a SchoolMafter obliged me to explain the Principles of Grammar to my Scholars; and I found that the Grammars commonly made ufe of in our Schools gave but a very imperfect Account of them. But as these are intended only for the Purpofes of meer Practice, I had Recourse to the Minerva of Sanctius, to Voffius, the Grammaire Raisonnée, Buffier's Grammar, and several other very ingenions Performances on the Subject of rational Grammar; but was forry to find that the Principles made use of in them, were not fufficient to account for many of the Effects which appear in connected Speech. This determined me, many Years ago, to attempt a Difcovery of the Reason of every Part of Construction. The Writers above-mentioned had not given me Satisfaction; yet they are of fo great Reputation, that the Syftem of one or other of them has been followed with little Alteration by

every

every fucceeding Writer on Grammar: Nay the Grammaire Raisonnée, has lately been reprefented by the Learned Monfieur Fromant, as a Mafter-Piece of Human Sagacity. Monfieur Reftaut has formed a practical Grammar of the French Language on the Principles of the Grammaire Raifonnée and this Piece (as I am told) is confidered in France as excellent. On these Accounts I thought it incumbent upon me to proceed with Care and Caution in my Inquiries.

I had been accustomed to the old geometric Analyfis, and had obferved, in many Instances, its peculiar Use in difcovering Miftakes. This Analyfis confifts in affuming fome Definition or Description of what you would investigate, and in pursuing the Confequences which follow from the Affumption. If the Confequences lead to, and terminate in Truth, the Affumption is concluded to be likewife true. If they terminate in Falsehood or Abfurdity, the Affumption from which they follow is concluded to be falfe or abfurd. When it is perceived from what Part of the Affumption, Falsebood, or Abfurdity follows, that Part must be rectified as exactly as may be, and the Analyfis begun anew from the new Assumption, and again pursued through its Confequences. It is clear that, by proceeding continually in this Manner, we may at length discover the most fimple Principles, which will account for any Inftance of known Practice; and this not only in Grammar, but in any other Art. I have tried by this Analyfis most of the Accounts which have been given by other Writers of the principal Parts of Speech, and of feveral other capital Points in Grammar; and have found that where they disfagree with thofe given in this Treatife, Falsehood or Abfurdity may be deduced from them.

The exceeding Abftrufenefs of many Parts of Speculative Grammar creates a Neceffity of being fomewhat explicit in

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the

the Investigation of them: But Truths, when once inveftigated, and fecured by clear Proofs, may be communicated by a much shorter Method than that by which they were firft feparated from Error, or disentangled from Reprefentations, partly right, and partly wrong.

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In my larger Treatife I have given the Investigation at large, for the Satisfaction of fuch Readers as may be very curious or fcrupulous: But for the Sake of those who may be lefs fo, I have made use of the shorter Method in the following Treatife: If any Point does not appear to be fufficiently enlarged on in this Piece, the larger Work may be confulted for the Analyfis at large. If it should be faid that this will require more Time and Pains than the Theory of Grammar is worth; I anfwer, that the Theory of Grammar is the Theory of those Abstractions on which, and on their converfe Operations, all our Reasoning depends. Mr. Locke obferved long ago, "That the ordinary Words of Language, and our common Use of them, "would have given us Light into the Nature of our Ideas, if they had been confidered with Attention." Effay, Book III. Chap. viii. He has likewife obferved how very imperfectly the Particles have been treated of by the Grammarians; and takes Notice, that to render them, as is usual in Dictionaries, by Words of another Tongue, which come nearest to their Signification, is not fufficient to explain them; becaufe what is meant by them is commonly as hard to be understood in one Tongue as another: For faith be," They are all Marks of fome Action, or Intimation of the "Mind; and therefore to understand them rightly, the feve ́“ral Views, Poftures, Stands, Turns, Limitations, and Exceptions, and feveral other Thoughts of the Mind, for which 66 we have either none, or very deficient Names, are to be dili"gently ftudied." Effay, Book III. Chap. vii. Mr. Locke

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bas

has proved the Truth of this Obfervation, by examining the Import of the Particle But, and fome others. The Particles which he has thus examined are Conjunctions, and the Import of them is much more easily explained than that of the Prepofitions: For the Prepofitions are Notices to perform connective Operations, which are the Converses of those by which feparate Conceptions are first formed in the Mind, and annexed to Subftantives and Infinitive Verbs; and for thefe connective Operations we have no Names. The ReaJon of this is as follows, viz. The Conceptions annexed to Words are fo abfolutely under our Command, the Operations by which the Conceptions are united, are fo eafily performed; the Faculty of performing thefe Operations in our Native Language, is fo eafily acquired; and the Acquifition of this Faculty, is so much the Refult of meer Example and Trial, that the Reasons of the Proceeding are overlooked; and the different Manners in which we exert our difcurfive Faculties in this Procefs, are not attended to. Hence Ufe and Custom are confidered as the only Rules by which to judge of what is right or wrong in the Procefs. But is the Custom which is obferved in the Application of any Language the Effect of Chance? Is not fuch Custom a confiftent Plan of communicating the Conceptions and rational discursive Operations of one Man to another? And who will maintain, that this is, or can be, the Effect of meer unmeaning Accident? If then it be not so, it must be the Effect of the REASON OF MAN, adjusting certain Means to a certain End: And it is the Bufinefs of Specu lative or Rational Grammar to explain the Nature of the Means, and to fhew how they are applied to accomplish the End propofed. If this can be done with fufficient Evidence, the moft fimple of the Elements of Logic will become familiar to thofe who engage in a Course of Grammar, and Reafon will Hand in Hand with Practice. This is faid of

go

thefe

those who are somewhat advanced in the Knowledge of Grammar: For Children cannot be thus taught at the first, any more than they can be taught Arithmetic at the firft by Demonftration: Yet Arithmetic is a Science capable of being demonftrated; and Grammar is a Science capable of clear and convincing Proofs, if they be cautiously and diligently fought after.

I have used my utmost Endeavours, in my larger Treatife, to accomplish this moft difficult Undertaking; and have the Satisfaction to find that I have so far fucceeded as to gain the Approbation of several Persons of acknowledged Abilities, in this and every other Part of Learning: For they have done me the great Honour to fignify by their Letters to me, or by Declarations to my Friends, their favourable Sentiments of my Work. This bas encouraged me to reduce it to its prefent Form, for the more immediate Purposes of thofe who would teach the English Language by Rule and Method, and perceive the Reafon of every Step which they take: And I heartily wish that those who are engaged in fo ufeful an Undertaking, may find the Work fuited to their Purposes, as I hope they will, if they pleafe to confider it with due Care. Not that I pretend, in a Work on so abftrufe a Subject, to have kept quite clear from Overfights and Omiffions (though I have used my utmoft Care to avoid them): But if any one shall discover such, and will do me the Favour to acquaint me with them, I will rectify them moft willingly.