Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-06-07
The Dictionary as an Instructor.

We notice as matter well worth mention,
ing, that at the recent great publishers trade
sale in New York, the books that were most
in demand and brought the best prices were
Websters Dictionaries, from the famous
Quarto to the neat and handy pocket edition.
This fact is good indication of the almost
universal popularity of these books, and OF
the growing demand for them. 1t indicates
| also fact of far greater Importance, and that
is the interest people are taking in the study
of their own language. This is encouraging, as
there is no branch of education that is now
and has been so much neglected as the COM
mon branches of spelling and defining. Ii is
often astonishing and grievous to see how
grossly ignorant are children and youth, and
even men and women, of the autobiography,
pronunciation and meaning of ordinary words
and phrases. They cannot express their
thoughts for the want of words and often
they express thoughts very different from
what they intend, because they do not under
stand the words they employ. And very FREE
quently, from the same cause, they take no
idea or wrong ideas, from what they read or
hear.
The remedy for these evils is the proper
training in the study of words, by the use of
the dictionary, and this training should begin
from another, and continue indefinitely. The
apparatus for this study should, of course, be
the most complete and thorough to be had,
and this is abundantly supplied in Webster's
Dictionaries, which are justly recognized,
wherever our language is spoken, as the stand
ard authority in English. Parents and teach
ers can in no other way so effectually or so
cheaply promote the educational interests of
their children, when of suitable age, as by
putting in their hands one of Webster's
School Dictionaries, for daily use in connec-
tion with the study of their lessons, and by
placing on the family center table, or the
teachers desk as the authoritative guide and
standard, copy of the Unabridged.
The unabridged contains 5000 illustrations,
over ia, 900 in its vocabularies, and 10000
words and meanings not in any other Dicton
airy; the abridged editions comprise The
Primary" which has the largest sale, and
which has some capital rules for spelling. 'The
Common School" is ismiar, but larger, with
tables of synonyms, ETC. "The High School,
still fuller, with many useful tables; "The
Academic" and Counting -house" for advanced
schools and for general home and business
use. The latter has some specially valuable
commercial and financial tables. The little
POCKET" edition. with It's bright gilt edges
and morocco binding, is truly an invaluable
pocket companion 1t contains more than
$4,000 words, rules for spelling, many abbre-
viations, words and phrases, proverbs, etc,
ordinarily met with in the Greek, Latin and
Modern languages Whether it is convenient
or not to have copies of any of the other books
of the series, we certainly recommend that all
should possess copy of the Pocket, which,
when not otherwise obtainable, may be had
by mail, by inclosing Sl00 to the publishers,
Messrs Ivison, Brakeman, Taylor & Co., 1873
and l40 Grand Street, New York.