The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1906-07-15
A MISCHIEvOUS GUIDE

A Deslc-Book OF ErTors In EnEllch, If
cludinR Notes on Collooulalisms ana
Slang to be Corrected In Composition
BY Frank H Nizetelly, F. S, Al Asso-
olate Editor OF the standard ID piotion. s m,
ary Published by Funk Sc Wagnalls
Company. New York
In general. works OF this kind are
apt TO be untrustworthy. IL not ebso-
lutely misleading. This one is rather
worse than tho usual run of its like
The author OF 1t does not seem to be
we'll grounded in English. whatever
may be his mastery of other tongues
In his preface he quarrels with Shakes
peare and mocks at the Bible. that
we'll of pure and undehled English.
Ono would therefore naturally expect
his guidance to BIO blind; and IT Is
We note few instances or thls, among
many that might be cited.
Discussing "any" and "either," this
books says: "Any is used OF moro thau
two: either OF two only. Do not say
the United States or either of them,
say, rather any OF them. But 'tne
United States or either Of them" has
not tho Same meaning as "the United
States OF any OF them;" the first con-
fines the alternative to q single Statoi
The second may mean a dozen or any
number Of States The alleged rule
would require the speaker or tho writer
to be ambiguous and uncertain In his
sentence.
A distinction Is sought to be made
between eternal" and Everlasting
the author saying: distinguish care.
fully between these words That
which Is eternal IS without be-
ginning or end; that which IS
everlasting Is without end only"
Here the writer becomes con-
fused: he Is misled by the sense OF
lasting in the compound word. There
Is In fact no difference between "eter-
nal" and Everlasting" Both INCLUDE
the past as well as the future; Tor
there can be no imagination OF time
In the past when that which Is ever
lasting did not exist.
Take also the word dock" which
the author gays "is not g. synonym for
wharf, that "the dock is water.' and
that 1t is absurd to say that man
could fall off dock; he might fall
into q dock, but TO say that he fell OH
q dock is no better than to say that
he fell off a hole"-quoting approv-
insly Richard Grant White. And yet
the use of the word dock" in the
sense of wharf is very old In the eng.
llsh language; that great master Oh
style and OF words. Defoe. in his de-
scrlption of the burning OF London IN |
1866 wrote Of the burning or inc
docks And the noun has been used In |
this sense constantly. by the best writ
ers. No one would say that Dry
dock" Ia "dry water" The Standard
Dictionary, which the author VIII GER
tainly recognize as an authority on
words, gives this dennition of tho
noun: H2 The space between two ad.
4o,nine piers or wharves, often rooted
over and used as g place of temporary |
storage; sometimes extended to the
piers themselves; hence wharf, as,
we walked down Oh tho dock.
curious lapse in the faculty OF
recognizing the sense OF q phrase is
the authors treatment OF the phrases
.Yn the street and ION the street.
The author treats them as synonymous. |
saving that the phrase His home Is
in Eighty-seventh street" Is preferable
10 the phrase His home is on Eighty
seventh street" end (perhaps illustra-
tively) "one should not say his home |
rs on Bermuda but In Bermuda
The author, we imagine, Will have few
followers in his preference for saying
'his home is In Ia given) street" In
stead OF ION "a given) street. Aside
from any other question, however, the
phrases do not mean the Same thing.
AS a matter OF fact, houses are not
built In the street. AS to whether one
should say "his home IS on Bermuda"
or in Bermuda" the correct form to
use would depend on the connection;
II one were speaking OF those who 1.-Two
on the different islands Of any group, 1t
might easily be tho correct form to say
that his homo is on Bermuda" and |
in the center Of Il"
The author teaches that to say "I
never mean to- is a common slip of the
tongue; that the one SO saying really |
intends to say II mean never to-" Here,
again, confusion reigna The two ex
presslons do not necessarily mean the
same. One Is an explanatory phrase,
negative In form, and may refer to past |
or present; the second IS a positive
form, a declaration of intent, and can
properly refer only to future conduct. |
Treating Of tho word prevail" the |
author says: I'm the sense OF tri- /
umph,' this word should be followed by |
the proposition over or against; as We |
have prevailed over our enemles;"
None can prevail against US. In the |
sense OF TO have effectual influence |
follow 1t with on, upon, or with, as He |
prevailed on me to CO. In the sense
OF 'to have general vogue. currency, or |
acceptance 1t should be followed by |
or throughout: as "Mohamme- /
danism prevails throughout Northern |
Africa And yet, in spite of these
careful inculcations. no proposition at |
all is necessary, as witness the Bible |
Genesis XxXii., 2s), for as q prince |
hast thou power with God and with |
men, and hast prevailed" But the au-
thor doesn't think much OF tho Bible
In connection with United States"
the author says: Under this designa-
tion the several States comprising the |
American Union arc known collectively !
as one great Nation. AS such the ex-
preston Is singular. and accordingly Is |
correctly followed by a verb In the SIN
gular." This Is mere dictum; and though |
in many cases 1t Is a form that is COM |
ing much into use, 1T departs from the |
usage in the Constitution itself which |
ought to be the decisive authority It |
cannot be said that either the singular |
or the plural form Is definitely estab-
1ished, and no one has any authority to /
lay down an absolute rule on the ques-
ton, which in fact IS much debated. |
Any one is at perfect liberty to uso |
whichever form he prefers. without be-
Ing called to account by any one.
These are but a few examples OF |
misleading, confusing. erroneous. and |
unauthorized rules or intunctions laid |
down In this book. The one who look, |