The following are familiar,-as in styling Death the king of terrors. Our bodies, houses of clay, or earthly tabernacles. To die, "to go the way of all the earth;" and deep distress or the grave, "the valley of the shadow of death."

Circumlocution, in its best sense, being synonymous with Periphrasis, will be treated more at length among the Figures of Rhetoric.

QUALIFIED OR SOFTENED EXPRESSION.

This serves to mitigate the severity of rude and harshsounding words, by avoiding all such as are highly offensive. Thus, instead of branding the individual with the odious epithet of liar, we may accuse him of misrepresentation. Instead of the stigma, sot, sluggard, or idler, we say, deficient in energy-the reverse of diligent-prone to inaction. Insufferable pride will be-exaggerated self-esteem; for madnessalienation of mind; and instead of brutal folly-a lamentable want of prudence.

The following are submitted for amendment :

Unprincipled conduct. A worthless spendthrift. A detestable hypocrite. He is foolhardy. He acts like a madman. A bad husband. A hard drinker. An unfeeling brute. A beggarly action. A stingy fellow. He works very hard for his living. She has turned everything topsy-turvy. He has cheated his best friends. A specimen of vulgar manners.

SYNONYMES.

These are words having a like signification, so that one may be substituted for another, at the writer's option, without impairing the meaning. Thus, of the human heart we say, indifferently, that it is deceitful, corrupt, inconstant, fickle, uncertain, changeable, mutable, variable, fluctuating, irresolute. To sustain is, to support, to uphold, prop, bear, help, maintain, nourish, assist, protect, strengthen, &c.

Phrases, also, may be termed synonymous that qualify, in a

high degree of estimation, praise, &c., and their contraries. Thus,

Of virtue, we may say,-it is the universal charm, the chief good, altogether lovely, the strength and beauty of the soul, the unfailing spring of joy and peace, the crown of a happy life; or, more poetically, as-angelic, and the Queen of Graces.

Of knowledge, we say,-it is power, intellectual light, the mind's treasure, the wealth we cannot lose; and we say it is,needful, helpful, profitable, honourable, desirable, estimable, a noble acquisition, a godlike attribute.

The student will be at no loss for words and phrases for practice; he may, however, make trial by variously defining the following:

Truth, wisdom, honesty, fortitude, humility, temperance, and their contraries,-falsehood, folly, &c.

DESCRIPTION AND NARRATION.

A DESCRIPTION, in the clearest and most concise form of words, is a definition; and when the object is merely to describe, all superfluous and florid diction is in bad taste. It should be limited to such explanatory details and circumstances as are requisite to be known, and, as a matter of course, laying the chief stress on things of greatest interest. In this species of composition, perfect accuracy is all that is needed.

Narration takes a far wider range than mere description, embracing every variety of character and incident, and of all that is most interesting in human affairs; and is, in fact, but a shorter history, having the same freedom and scope for its delineations. Let the student, in trying his hand at this, select, as a model, some standard writer, and having fixed on some spiritedly graphic and well-penned portion, note well the style, and think over it a little; then make an attempt, and

not be discouraged by partial failure, but think and compare again, and perseverance will succeed.

DEFINITION.

This is a clear and concise description, comprised in the fewest words; and as, in order to define accurately, we must distinguish clearly, this will oblige us to weigh and consider; and as it enjoins the utmost brevity in words that the sense admits of, it yields a healthful exercise for the thoughts, and tends in no small degree to sharpen the wit.

A definition is in no wise arbitrary, and ofttimes the subject of it may be defined in a variety of ways, and equally well in each; but the judicious will incline to prefer the plain and simple to the more elaborate, as being more readily appreciated. Thus, to define temperance as "moderation in all pleasures," is a direct appeal to common sense, which all can realize, and therefore preferable to a more studied form of expression. If we say, that wisdom consists in "pursuing the best ends by the best means," our reason at once acquiesces in its truth. If we define justice to be "the faithful discharge of our duty to God and man;" or health as the fullest enjoyment of all our faculties, viz., the " mens sana in corpore sano" of the ancient Roman in all these the definition is satisfactory, as involving no doubt or question.

The student will easily supply himself with materials for practice in this salutary exercise. Lengthened and elaborate definitions abound, some of which may be reduced to half their dimensions. To do this well will require a nice and discriminating wit; but the effort will at least be improving.

THEMES, ESSAYS, AND LECTURES.

THESE may well be taken together, and treated of as one; for a theme being a shorter essay, it is plain that the same talent which can excel in the one will be able, also, to master the other.

A theme should present a clear and brief exposition of the subject it treats. By taking a few strong points as leading heads, the process is satisfactory, and its conclusions convincing.

An essay is freely and familiarly discursive, and the writer is at perfect liberty to introduce at will, and discuss in his own way, the matter he treats of, with his own views and opinions, as it may seem good to him. An essay may be indefinitely extended, as, for instance, Beattie's "Essay on Truth," which fills a good sized volume.

The lecture. This is didactic, and more precise and logical in its statements and deductions, assuming to be well informed, and to have mastered the subject. As it professes to communicate truth, it is necessarily more formal and stately, as, also, more emphatic in its conclusions. Such discourses have need to be enlivened with apt and pleasing illustrations, and interesting anecdotes, narrated in a sprightly manner.

As we dissent, however, in a few particulars from some popular theories in our treatment of themes, it is but fair to state in what and how far we differ. And, first, we object to any set form as an arbitrary model for such efforts; for it is obvious, that strictly to adhere to such an arrangement would, in many cases, be absurd, if not impracticable. Ought, for instance, a plain practical question, of scientific utility or public benefit, to be treated under seven heads or divisions, or in the same manner as a subject that is purely intellectual, literary,

or of philosophic or historical significance? The attempt would but perplex the student, and, if fully carried out, the exceptions to the form would be endless.

The ancient Masters of Rhetoric did not think it needful thus to restrict and classify by artificial divisions; and in this, we think, they showed a wise discretion. Their leading aim was to make their disciples thoroughly versed in the principles of Oratory, and skilful to wield its influences; and when thus proficient in the elements of success, they left them free and unshackled by formal rules, to the bold and unconstrained exercise of their powers, and at liberty to adapt their eloquence to any emergency.

Aristotle and Cicero, the great Masters of the Art, kept three things in view; viz., a full and lucid statement of the proposition; to conciliate by all the powers of persuasion; and, finally, to corroborate and confirm the proposition. "We must first prove," says Cicero, "the truth of what we assert; then conciliate and produce in the minds of others the feelings requisite to success."

Whether the scholastic structure of themes, with their artificial subdivisions, be an improvement on the more simple treatment of the Ancients, and whether modern ingenuity is preferable to their plainness, in their orations and written. discourses they paid little attention to rules and forms.

In contending for a principle we would not, however, be understood to censure the school practice of theme-writing, which, under proper supervision, is always an improving exercise; and for the youth who has many years before him, there can be no objection to such exercises in composition; but our treatise being designed rather for the advanced student, we prefer the shorter and more direct route; and we think, moreover, that it is a too common mistake to underrate the innate powers of the mind, of which error the tendency may be to impair its native vigour. We advocate no needless trammels, nor would we keep the earnest student too long in leading-strings.