New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1866-03-08

The expressions Of "a superior man," very
inferior person." seem to be creeping into gen
eral use, but they cannot be justified in grammar
and if followed ont precedent, cannot fail, in
the opinion of the author, "to vulgarze and dete.
riorate our language" Nor has he any mercy fol
the term talented as q designation for men OF
ability. This is as bad as bad can be. 1t is per.
feet nondescript. 1t looks like particple, but
what verb is it froml Fancy such verb as "to
talent" ColeTidge exclaims against it, and asks
us TO imagine other partciples formed in the same
way, and men being said to be pennied, shliinged
and pounded" But by an equal abuse, remarks
the Dean, men are said TO be I'm neyed men, OF
as we sometimes see it spelt las if the word itself
were not bad enough without making it worse by
false photography I'm nied." The author also
condemns the of gifted, anotherformation of
the same kind which at present is very much in
vogue. Every man whose parts are TO be praised
is gifted author, or speaker or preacher. Neither
of these words however, is so bad as dcuitied, an
abomination which prevails in some parts Of New
England. "My second boy" we once heard d
doting father say, is an uncOmmoly facu!tied
child" As TO talented, We promptly give it up
useless innovation of recent origin. But we have
a word to say in behalf of gyted, which is not a
neologiSm at all, but of excellent use in classical
English literature, and its sanction by johnson may
set at ease the conscience Of the most fastdous
purist II, moreover, is in accordance with the
analogy of good English usage for nothing is moro
common than TO form an adjective in participial
form from q noun, such as oGic-bodsed, strong
minded, pHdred, lttered I'm the sense of learned
tanged, (ated, and many others. Even the use Of
70 gitt as an active verb is not without excellent
English authority, although not common.
We agree better with Dean Afford in his CON-
ments on the application Of the auxiliary verbs
shaH or cV which except in the practice Of En-
glishmcn pure and simple, and educated persons
IN New-Ensland, presents an example of hopeless
confusion. The author remarks that he never knew
an Englishman who misplaced those words; and
has hardly ever known an Irishman OF Scotchman
ii be had been acquainted with this heaven-for-
saken country, as he deems it, lie might have
added SOuihe,ner a Wes;erner, or born New
Yorker who did not misplace them sometimes.
% And il Is strange to observe how incuIablo the
propensity is IL was but the other day that
,sked person sprung of Irish blood, whether he
would be at certain house TO which was going
hat evening". The answer was, Pm AFRAID
remit Yet my friend is sound and accurate
English scholar ana had never before, during all
he years had known him, discovered any trace of
he sister island
His explanation OF the correct use ~ those
erms is sufficiently clear although instinct, rather
han rule appears for the most part determine the
selection Of the proper term by good speakers. The
simplest example that can be given 81 VIII"
Now this means only the determination of the per-
son speaking. "Wilt thou have this woman TO be
by welded wife % as in the church service The
answer is. will implying yolition, consent, de-
termination. We cannot use Il will" Of any
hing uncertain, anything about which We hope or
fear. " Help Inc, or rW drown is an unmcan-
ng combination Of terms. 81 shall, on the con-
rary is used only in those cases where the things
spoken Of are independent of our own will. Next
Tuesday / shall be one-and-twenty," an event quite
,ut Of my own power. This is tho use in the first
person. But the form changes when we come
10 the second and third persons, and this is proba-
bly the reason Of the confusion which exists. "You
will, for example, is used when speaking 20 an
other person of matter out Of tho speakers power
and jurisdiction. "If you climb that ladder, you
will fall" "Ifyou slip on that ice, You will be
drowned" But "yOu shall " is said TO another
when the will Of the speaker compels that which is
spoken Of. eff you do not do as bid you, you
hall be punished The same principle holds in
Ease Of the third person. For all announcements
= 81. f.,.,x. IA
the word to be used. "Shall" is employed only in
eases where our own will, or choice, power, ey-
.rcises an influence over the events spoken of.
Setting aside certain occasional complications, we
nay give the following compact formula as gcner-
lily valid:
will go, ron shall 20, be shall go determination,
compulson expressed in the first person
BY ,ciH, IN the second and third person by shail.
shall go, you will go, he will go Simple event
lality expressed in the first person by shaH in the
second and third persons by ud0.
In intenogatve phrases, shall you ? wW heR
express simple eventually, uW y0ui shah he eI-
presses determination, or choice,-the term chang
ing with the person as indirect sentences. ShaHIi
both meanings of evcntuality and yotion.
IpiHI7 which is in very common use is always
incorrect.
Dean Afford is justly severe on the tendency Of
the lower kind OF writers of modern English
to corrupt the language by vicious and
inflated style. The newspapers do not escape
their share of the castigation. "The writers
in our journals seem TO think that q
fact must never DO related IN print in the same
terms in which it would be told by word of mouth
The creates, offenders in this point are the country