come a man to―.

used: as, il sieds mal à un homme de-; it does not beThis verb, in the sense of to sit down, is obsolete; however, in Chancery or Law, we still make use of the participle of the present, séant, and the participle of the past sis: the former is applied to a person or persons who are sitting or residing: as, le Roi séant en son lit de justice, the King sitting on his throne; le Parlement est séant, the Parliament is sitting; the latter signifies situated; as, un héritage sis à―, an estate situated at-; une maison sise rue St. Paul, a house situated in St. Paul street.

SORTIR when this verb is used in law, and signifies to get, to obtain, it is regular, and conjugated like punir, but it is used in a few tenses; as, cette sentence sortira son plein et entier effet; this sentence will take effect: j'entends que cette clause sortisse son plein et entier effet, I expect this clause should take effect.

SOUDRE (une question) to solve or resolve (a question.) This verb is used only in the infinitive mood, but it is obsolete, and we make use of résoudre.

PART III.

THEORY JOINED TO PRACTICE:

THE FORMER CONTAINING THE

RULES OF THE FRENCH SYNTAX,

WITH MANY

NEW OBSERVATIONS,

THE LATTER, THE

RULES AND OBSERVATIONS,

EXEMPLIFIED SEPARATELY,

FOR THE

SCHOLAR'S PRACTICE,

AFTER EACH PART OF SPEECH.

CHAPTER I.

Rules and Observations upon Articles.

1. THE definite article is used before the common nouns, denoting an individual distinction, or a totality of objects: as, the spring is an agreeable season, le printemps est une saison agréable; men are mortal, les hommes sont mortels.

2. The indefinite article is used before nouns taken in an indefinite and indeterminate sense, or in a sense which does not denote either an individual distinction, or a specific totality: as, learned people have approved his work, des savans ont approuvé son ouvrage. See Rule 18. 3. All common nouns or substantives take the definite article; also names of kingdoms, rivers, provinces, mountains, &c. unless in the sense of remaining in, going to, or coming from; in this case we make use of the prepositions en and de: as, I am going to France; je vais en France: he is arrived from Flanders, il est arrivé de Flandre. They live in Italy, ils demeurent en Italie.

4. Obs. Proper names in the plural take the definite article, though they have none in the singular, as, les Homeres, les Virgiles, &c.

c'est

5. When a superlative follows immediately its substantive, the definite article is always put before the superlative in the first case, and agrees with the substantive in gender and number; as, he is the most learned man, l'homme, le plus savant: you speak of the most learned man, vous parlez de l'homme le plus savant.

Except when un or une are followed by a substantive; in this case the definite article is commonly used in the second case plural, as, he is one of the most learned men, c'est un homme des plus savans, or, c'est un des hommes les plus savans, or, c'est un des plus savans hommes.

6. Adjectives used substantively take the article : as, idle people are despised, les paresseux sont meprisés.

Nouns of measure, weight, &c. of things bought or sold, take the definite article, rendered in English by a or an; as, ten crowns a bushel, à dix écus le boisseau.

7. When a substantive having the definite article before it, is preceded by tout, the article is kept, in the first case, through all the cases of tout: as, all the world, tout le monde; of all the world, de tout le monde; to all the world, à tout le monde.

8. Some adverbs or prepositions, used substantively, require the article: as, the inside, le dedans; the outside, le déhors; the upper part, le dessus; the under part, le dessous.

9. Obs. The definite article is put before the names of the Italian authors according to their syntax, as, Tasso, le Tasse; except Raphaël, MichelAnge, Pétrarque, Bocace, Sannazar, &c. and those who have written in Latin, as Sadolet, Manuce, Baronius, &c.

10. Obs. After the verb jouer, to play, we make use of the definite article in the second case, speaking of musical instruments, as, jouer du violon, de la guitarre; and speaking of games at cards, or some bodily exercises, we make use of the same article as in the third case, as, jouer aux cartes, à la paume; and after joueur, a player, we make use of the preposition de in both instances, as, un joueur de violon, de guitarre, de cartes, de paume.

11. Obs. The adverb bien, taken for beaucoup, much, takes after it the definite article in the second case, as, he has much money, il a bien de l'argent, whereas beaucoup, takes the preposition de, as, il a beaucoup d'argent, unless it be determined and specified by a relative pronoun that follows it, as, il a dépensé beaucoup, de l'argent que vous lui aviez donné, he has spent a great deal of the money that you gave him: but beaucoup being the proper word, it is better never to make use of bien.

12. Obs. Some names of countries, contrary to the exceptions of the third rule, retain their article even in the sense of remaining in, coming to, or going from. These nouns are particularly those of remote countries, viz. of America, Asia, or Africa, to which we may join la Marche, le Perche, le

Maine, &c. provinces in France; le Mans, le Catelet, la Fère, la Ferté, le Havre de Grâce, la Rochelle, le Quesnoy, &c. cities in France, le Mantouan, le Milanais, le Parmesan, &c. divisions of Italy: to which add, la Haye, the Hague.

13. Obs. No article is used before cardinal numbers, except first, when the nouns to which they are joined have a fixed number, either by themselves, as les quartre saisons, the four seasons; or by a relation to something else expressed by the circumstances of the discourse, as, les deux lettres que je vous ai écrites; the two letters which I wrote to you. Secondly, speaking of cards or the day of the month, as, ledix, le neuf-de Janvier, de Fevrier-de cœur, de pique, &c.

14. No article is used before proper names, particular places, towns or villages, &c.

Except some nouns, when they denote an individual distinction, or a particular appellation: as, l'Athalie de RACINE, la Mérope de VOLTAIRE, speaking of two plays of these two authors.

15. No article is used before nouns immediately following certain verbs, or prepositions, with which they form a kind of adverb: as, avec amitié, with friendship; sans dedain, without disdain; par dépit, through spite; avoir envie, to have a mind to.

Except, first, when these nouns are followed by the relative pronouns, qui, que, lequel, &c. Secondly, by a superlative. Thirdly, by a noun in the second case.

16. No article is used after the preposition en, except in a very few cases, which will be taken notice of in the observations about prepositions; whereas dans always requires an article after it, unless it be followed by a conjunctive possessive pronoun: as, dans ma chambre; in my room.

17. No article is used before a noun which follows immediately the name of a particular place, to which it belongs: as, I was born in London, the capital city of England: Je suis né à Londres, ville capitale d'Angleterre. Neither is the article used after the verb être : as, il est médecin, he is a physician, and not il est un medecin : unless in the exception of the 15th observation, and unless the verb be preceded by ce: as, c'est un medecin.

18. The indefinite and partitive articles des, de, du, de

la, à des, à de, à de la, are used according to the second observation, and answer to some, either expressed or understood before a substantive.

19. Obs. When the adjective goes before its substantive, instead of the foregoing indefinite articles, we make use of de for the first case, à de for the third case, as, voilà de bon pain, there is good bread; voilà de belles dames, there are fine ladies; and not du bon pain, des belles dames.

N. B. There are some substantives in the plural, though preceded by their adjectives, where we make use of des, and not de: it happens when the adjective and substantive make but one idea, and the adjective is only used to render the signification of the substantive complete; such are belleslettres, beaux-esprits, grands-seigneurs, which signify belles-lettres, men of learning, people of great quality.

20. The articles un, une, are used when they signify only a kind of indeterminate individuality, or an individuality in an indeterminate manner: as, a king ought to be the father of his people, un roi doit être le père de son peuple. However, these articles may sometimes be resolved into the definite article: as, a wise man rules his passions, un homme sage règle ses passions, or l'homme sage, &c. The articles un and une are expressed in English by a or an.

21. Articles are repeated before each substantive, though synonymous: as, les faveurs et les grâces que nous recevons du ciel, the favours and kindnesses which we receive from heaven.

22. Obs. When two adjectives, positively used, are joined together by conjunction, and have the same substantive, the article is only put before the first of them, if they are synonymous, or very near alike, as, les riches e magnifiques présens, the rich and magnificent presents. If they are not sy nonymous, the article must be repeated, as, les riches et les pauvres; the rich and the poor.

Rules and Observations upon Articles, exemplified for the Scholar's Practice.

[1.] There are nine parts of Il y a neuf parties d'orasion;

speech the article, the noun, the pronoun, the verb, the participle, the

1* article, le nom, le pronom, le verbe, le participe, l'adverbe, la prépo

* The words which are the objects of the rules are printed in Italic, both in French and English examples, if there be any expressed in the last, throughout the rules and observations exemplified, to the end of the FRENCH SYNTAX.