RECOMMENDATIONS CONTINUED.

3

A DICTIONARY TO QUEEN VICTORIA.—Messrs. G. & C. Merriam, publishers of the new unabridged edition of Webster's Dictionary, have prepared a very splendid copy of that work, designed as a present to her majesty Queen Victoria. The volume was bound by J. B. Lipincott & Co., of Philadelphia. The following is the letter of presentation:—

"To her Majesty, the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, this copy of Webster's Quarto Dictionary is offered by the American publishers, as a product of Science and the Arts, from the republic which is proud to call England her mother country.

"May your majesty long live to rejoice in the loyal and grateful affection of the millions who inhabit your extended empire, and may the messages and offerings from England to America, and from America to England, be the offerings of peace and of mutual good will.

"May these countries, which are united by a common language, be also one in the common purpose to make this language the bearer and the symbol of the Civilization, the Science, the Freedom, and the Christianity which they shall together diffuse throughout the earth.

"GEORGE & CHARLES MERRIAM.

"SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts, U. S. A.,
December, 1848."

THE QUEEN'S DICTIONARY.—The Messrs. Merriam, some time since, transmitted to Queen Victoria, through the hand of George Bancroft, the American minister, a magnificently bound copy of their unabridged edition of Webster's Dictionary. It was given to the queen, through her husband, Prince Albert, and its receipt has been acknowledged by the secretary of his royal highness. The acknowledgment is, of course, directed to his excellency the American minister, and we have the pleasure of presenting it to our readers. — *Springfield Republican*.

"SIR, — I have the honor to inform your excellency, that her majesty the queen has accepted, with great pleasure, the copy of the last edition of Webster's English Dictionary, which, according to the directions you gave me, was laid by me before his royal highness Prince Albert, and was presented afterwards by the prince to her majesty, on the part of the publishers, Messrs. Merriam; and I have been commanded to express to your excellency, and to beg of you to transmit to Messrs. Merriam, her majesty's gracious thanks for this beautiful present, which her majesty highly values, not only on account of the great merits of the work itself, but still more so as a sign of those feelings towards her royal person on the part of a large portion of the Anglo-American nation, which your excellency informed me it was intended to represent, and which, after the political disunion which has taken place between the United Kingdom and the United States, could not indeed have found a more appropriate way of expressing themselves than the presentation to her majesty of a work on the English language, which directly refers to that powerful and indissoluble bond by which the two cognate nations on the eastern and western side of the Atlantic will forever remain united. Your excellency, as well as Messrs. Merriam, will, no doubt, feel great pleasure in learning that her majesty has placed the work,

presented through your excellency, amongst the few selected volumes which compose her own private library.

"I have the honor to be, sir,

"Your excellency's faithful servant,

"C. MEYER,

"Secretary to H. R. H. PRINCE ALBERT.
“BUCKINGHAM PALACE, June 20, 1849.”

"His excellency the American minister."

Webster's American Dictionary may now be recommended, without reserve or qualification, as the best extant. — President Olmsted, of the Wesleyan University, December, 1847.

WEBSTER'S DICTIONARY.—The publishers of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, in Crown Quarto, received an order for twelve copies of that work lately from Ceylon. Its fullness, precision, and accuracy, render it an indispensable aid, not only to the student at home, but to the missionary abroad, as he opens the treasures of the English language to the dark mind of his heathen scholar, or molds to order and system the ruder elements of his native tongue. The revised edition has already been republished in England. — New York Tribune, August, 1848.

Lord Brougham, in a recent conversation with an intelligent American traveller, remarked of this work, — "It has come to be a necessity to every educated man."

The London *Literary Gazette* ◊ April 1st, speaks of it in the following just terms:—

"The original edition of the American Dictionary is too well known and appreciated in England to require us to dwell at length on its plan and execution. In the present edition, Professor Goodrich has been ably assisted by several eminent men, each distinguished in his own sphere of inquiry; and the result is in the highest degree satisfactory. The work is a noble monument of erudition and indefatigable research; and the style and accuracy of its typography would do honor to the press of any country in Europe. This volume must find its way into all our public and good private libraries, for it provides the English student with a mass of the most valuable information, which he would in vain seek for elsewhere."

Extract of a letter from Wm. H. Prescott, Esq., author of "Ferdinand and Isabella," "Conquest of Mexico," &c., dated Boston, December 10, 1848.

Every scholar knows the value of a work, which, in addition to its etymological learning, has done so much to enlarge our acquaintance with the English vocabulary, both by the number of its words, and the accuracy and extent of its definitions. These merits have been still further enhanced by the editorial labors of Professor Goodrich, and you have completed the whole by publishing the work in so beautiful a style, and by bringing it at the same time within the convenient dimensions of a single quarto. I doubt not that your liberal enterprise will receive the patronage from the public, to which it is well entitled. That it may do so is the sincere wish of

Your obliged friend and servant,

WM. H. PRESCOTT.

My judgment and feelings are most heartily and permanently engaged in doing all that I can to make Webster the standard wherever the English is spoken, as it deserves to be, must be, is, and will be. — Professor Stowe.

4 WEBSTER'S DICTIONARY UNABRIDGED.

Once possessed of a work so able, copious, and scientifically constructed as WEBSTER'S QUARTO DICTIONARY, one discovers a hundred benefits previously unthought of. Old uses and new uses, and disuses and abuses,—old terms and new terms, and the history of the rise and progress of terms, together with apt citations, pointed and sparkling, with other benefits I need not attempt to enumerate, combine to make him feel the work a desideratum—to lay it as a corner stone in his library. Or rather, since corner stones are not often disturbed, as a janitor, a librarian, ever at his post, ready to converse on whatever topic is at hand. —Rev. Charles Beecher. July, 1849.

WEBSTER'S QUARTO DICTIONARY UNABRIDGED.—In the unanimous judgment of the leading literary press of Great Britain and the United States, Webster's Dictionary is the most learned, the most comprehensive, and the most complete work of the kind in the English language; containing all that is excellent in Dr. Johnson's great work, with numerous philological corrections, more concise and accurate definitions, in many instances, and the addition of some sixteen thousand words—these additions consisting for the most part of terms used in the various departments of science and the arts, in commerce, manufactures, merchandise, and the liberal professions.—*Journal of Education for Upper Canada, Toronto, January, 1849.*

Our purpose is simply to recommend the present edition of it, (Webster's Quarto Dictionary,) with its copious additions to the text, as a highly valuable publication. Great labor has been bestowed upon it, and all the alterations and articles that have been added, so far as we have noticed them, are great improvements. We hope that it will obtain a wide and profitable circulation. —*North American Review, January, 1848.*

I regard this book as the most successful effort—the best published American book up to this time.—James Brown, Esq., *firm of Little & Brown, Boston, February, 1848.*

All young persons should have a standard Dictionary at their elbows; and while you are about it, *get the best:* that Dictionary is Noah Webster's, the great work *unabridged.* If you are too poor, save the amount from off your back, to put it into your head. —*Phrenological Journal.*

While this Dictionary is the most complete work of the kind that any nation can boast of, it is also one of the cheapest books ever printed in this country. —*New York State District School Journal.*

There is no Dictionary but this of Webster's that can be adopted as a standard. We cannot refrain from expressing a hope that our brethren of the type—the printers and editors of newspapers especially—will adopt the orthography of Dr. Webster. In this respect, the printers of the present day have no standard. It is time they had. —*Boston Courier, December 30, 1847.*

This is the complete Webster; and perhaps the only complete Dictionary of the English language. —*Philadelphia United States Gazette.*

The publishers have received an order from the city authorities of New York, for forty-seven copies of the work, to be placed in forty-seven of the public schools of the city, for the use of teachers and pupils. —*Springfield Republican.*

Dr. Webster's great work is the best Dictionary of the English language. —*London Morning Chronicle.*

The principles of orthography adopted are such, on the whole, as are either allowed by good use, or are fast working their way into favor. The objections which have been felt and expressed against Webster's Dictionary we think have been fairly removed by the corrections of Professor Goodrich.

In all other respects, it has never had a rival. In the completeness of the vocabulary, the fullness and precision of its definitions, its learned solution of the true source of words, and its apt and copious authorities, it is a work of amazing labor and scholarship, which has made English lexicography an entirely new thing. * * * * By far the cheapest, most beautiful, and most useful lexicon of our language that can be obtained. —Biblical Repository, January, 1848.*

The publishers of this work would call the attention of School Committees, Teachers, and others interested in the subject of education, to the following suggestions from William Russell, Esq., author of "Lessons in Elocution," "The American Elocutionist," and also of a series of School Readers, etc. It is believed that no volume can be placed in a District School Library, that will be of so great service to teacher and pupils, as a copy of the new edition of Webster's Quarto Dictionary.

*Extract from a Lecture addressed to a Teachers' Institute by William Russell.*

"The edition of Dr. Webster's Dictionary, revised by Professor Goodrich, I would earnestly recommend to the attention of all teachers who are desirous of becoming fully qualified to give instruction in the English language. The copious information which that work embodies on all topics connected with etymology,—the extreme exactness, as well as the number, extent, and fullness of the definitions which it furnishes to every important word, render it a mine of philological wealth to instructors. The volume is, in fact, the teacher's encyclopædia, as well as lexicon, for daily reference. Could a copy of it be provided, as the permanent property of every district school, the effect, as regards the improvement of instruction, would be deeply and extensively felt, in the increased skill of the teacher, and the higher attainments of his pupils, in the most important part of education—the acquisition of an adequate knowledge and proper use of our own language."

At a meeting of the Board of Public Instruction of St. Louis, March 13, 1849, —

"Resolved, That a copy of Webster's Unabridged Quarto Dictionary be placed upon the desk of each teacher in the grammar department of the St. Louis public schools, as a book of reference for teachers and pupils."

As an American, I am proud of the work. It is gratifying to see that it gives such universal satisfaction. I shall recommend it as the standard in the public schools of this state.

THOMAS H. BENTON, JR.,
Superintendent of Public Instruction in Iowa.

The etymological part surpasses any thing that has been done for the English language by any earlier laborers in the same field. —*George Bancroft.*

WEBSTER'S PICTORIAL DICTIONARY
IN BOSTON.

From the Boston Transcript.

WEBSTER'S UNABRIDGED DICTIONARY—ENLARGED EDITION.—
We have received from the publishers, Messrs. G. & C. Merriam of Springfield, a copy of their new enlarged edition of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language. The new additional matter consists of the Pictorial Illustrations, Table of Synonyms, Peculiar Use of Words and Terms in the Bible, Appendix of New Words, Pronouncing Table of Names of Distinguished Persons, Abbreviations, Latin, French, Italian and Spanish Phrases, &c.; all forming a superb volume of 1750 quarto pages.

There are many advantages in the plan of presenting the wood cuts all by themselves among the introductory matter. In the first place, our dictionary associations are not too rudely broken in upon by the pictures; and in the next place, by the classification of these under distinct heads, as architecture, geology, music, &c., we are enabled to refresh the memory with meanings, addressed at once to the eye and the understanding, of a series of cognate terms, instead of having to hunt for them through a large dictionary, where the words *Corinthian* and *Tuscan*, for example, might be separated by five hundred pages or more. A star attached to the word in the body of the work tells the reader where he may look for an illustration; so that whenever the searcher for the meaning of some technical word wishes the added light of a pictorial representation, he can find it with ease and dispatch.

Too high praise can not be bestowed on the execution of these wood cuts. Some of them have appeared in the "Imperial Dictionary," an English compilation from Webster's Dictionary; but a large proportion have been expressly drawn and executed for this work. In neatness of finish, scientific accuracy, and beauty of design, they have never been surpassed. There are some fifteen hundred of these in all.

A capital quotation from Locke on the Human Understanding is quoted in justification of the use of pictorial illustrations. "It is not unreasonable to propose," says Locke, "that words standing for things which are known and distinguished by their outward shapes, should be expressed by little draughts, and prints made of them. Naturalists that treat of plants and animals have found the benefit of this way, and he that has had occasion to consult them, will have reason to confess, that he has a clearer idea of apium or ibex, from a little print of that herb or beast, than he could have from a long definition of the names of either of them." All this is irresistibly true; and these pictorial illustrations have added largely to the value of Dr. Webster's masterly work.

The Messrs. Merriam have evidently spared no labor or expense in the effort to maintain the superiority of their dictionary. Some of the foremost scholars of the age, both in Europe and this country, have been occupied for years in the task of revision and addition. The table of Synonyms, prepared by Dr. Goodrich, includes some seven hundred distinct articles, being a greater number than is contained in any similar work. It is most skillfully executed, as any scholar will see from the examination of a few pages. By his careful discriminations Dr. G. has avoided the error which so many compilers of synonyms have run into—we mean that of placing words as synonyms which have very important differences of significations.

The Appendix, immediately following the general vocabulary, embraces more than *nine thousand* new words and meanings,

which have been collected by the editor during the period that has elapsed since the issue of the revised edition of 1847. In this collection he has wisely rejected unimportant and arbitrary compounds, which might have been multiplied to any extent; and which some of our dictionaries give, much to their discredit.

A table showing the proper pronunciation of some *eight thousand* names of distinguished persons, is one of the novel features of this edition. The utility of this is very obvious, and it will no doubt be imitated both in England and this country. So much the better.

Of the etymological merits of this unrivaled Dictionary we need not speak. The acknowledgment of them has been world wide. The orthography, it can not be denied, is very generally adopted in the United States. But the orthographical peculiarities are now so few that the most punctilious stickler for old forms can find little to object to. Great care has been taken in the matter of pronunciation. By frequent consultation with the best orthopists of the day, both in this country and in England, the editor has faithfully represented the pronunciation of the English language in its present most advanced state. On the whole we can not doubt that this edition will serve to maintain the pre-eminence which "Webster's Unabridged" has enjoyed the last fifteen years. Good as it was before, its value is now greatly augmented.

From the Boston Atlas and Bee.

WEBSTER'S DICTIONARY. *Unabridged*. Pictorial edition. G. & C. Merriam, Springfield, publishers.

Here we have the last great achievement of the enterprising publishers of Webster's Dictionaries—a pictorial, illustrated, unabridged edition of the great work of the great American lexicographer. This edition is adorned and enriched by 1500 cuts illustrative of the various subjects included in the Dictionary. The idea is a novel as well as a good one, and we predict for the great Pictorial a popularity equal to that which the Unabridged has already attained on both sides of the Atlantic, and wherever the English language is made the medium of thought. It is of no use for the opponents of Webster's orthography and orthoepy to decry this work. It is a fixed fact, a living entity, and will maintain its place as the most complete and accurate Dictionary of the language extant. It is now the recognized standard, constantly cited and relied on in our courts of justice, in our legislative bodies, and in public discussions, as entirely conclusive.

A great majority of the popular school books in use are based upon Webster's rules, and he is more generally reported as the standard authority than any other. This may be truthfully stated without in the least disparaging the claims of others in some particulars, or denying the validity of some of the unfriendly criticisms of Webster. The present edition, the Pictorial one, is a splendid specimen of art, typographical and otherwise, and fairly entitles the Messrs. Merriam to a first class premium as book publishers. The table of synonyms, which is included in this new and pictorial edition, is a most valuable and interesting feature. Taken as a whole, the publishers of Webster's Unabridged Pictorial have good reason to be proud of their achievement, and the country ought to thank them for it by patronizing them liberally.

From the Boston Journal.

PICTORIAL EDITION. AN AMERICAN DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH
LANGUAGE, by Noah Webster, LL. D. Revised and enlarged
by Chauncey A. Goodrich, Professor in Yale College. To
which are now added Pictorial Illustrations; Table of Syn-
onyms; Peculiar Use of Words and Terms in the Bible;
Appendix of New Words; Pronouncing Table of Names of
distinguished Persons; Abbreviations; Latin, French, Ital-
ian and Spanish Phrases, etc. Springfield: G. & C. Mer-
riam, 1859.

The publications of Noah Webster have been more success-
ful than those of any American author. His name has
probably appeared on the title page of a larger number of books
than that of any writer, ancient or modern. Over forty million
copies of his Elementary Spelling Book alone have been sold;
and it is still published at the rate of 1,250,000 copies a year.
The paltry premium of half a cent on each copy supported his
family during the long years he was at work upon his great
dictionary. He died before the pecuniary value of his labors
was realized. His Unabridged Dictionary, revised and enlarged
by his son-in-law, Prof. Goodrich, has been the most successful
publication that has ever been issued in this country, and its
success has been richly deserved. As a monument of herc-
lean labor, original research, and profound scholarship, it has
stood alone among other works of English lexicography like
the majestic oak amid the shrubbery of the thicket. It has
been republished in England, and has the same reputation there
and on the continent as in this country. It has been the sub-
stratum of all subsequent English dictionaries; and in the case
of the great Imperial Dictionary, edited by Dr. Ogilvie, it is
announced on the title page that the work is based on Web-
ster.

Whether Webster is to maintain its present relative position
with reference to other similar publications, remains to be seen.
The glory of the past at least is secure. Fortune indeed will
be this generation of scholars, if we are to have an independ-
ent work that can maintain the claim of superiority, or even
of equality. In that event, even, the glory of the great Ameri-
can lexicographer would remain, for no one can presume to
success in this department, without using the materials of Noah
Webster's research and scholarship. Science could not have
boasted of Kepler and Tycho Brahe, if they had not stood
upon the broad shoulders of Galileo. Laplace and Leverrier
could not have demonstrated their sublime propositions, if they
had not used the labors of Newton and Copernicus. We shall
most cordially welcome any new work, and shall candidly ex-
amine it, and acknowledge whatever of merit it may possess;
but from long and constant use of Webster's Unabridged, we
can not speak of it in less complimentary terms than we have.
Other dictionaries, general and special, we have always at hand;
but we never feel strong on an abstruse subject of inquiry,
until we have examined our well-worn copy of the Unabridged.
So exhaustive and satisfactory we have uniformly found it to
be, that enlargement and improvement seemed hardly desir-
able.

A new edition, however, appears upon our table, embellished
with illustrations, and containing much new matter, consisting
of—1. Fifteen hundred very finely executed pictorial illustra-
tions of objects in architecture, heraldry, mechanics, natural
history, mythology, archæology, costume, etc., prepared ex-
pressly for the work, and engraved by John Andrews of this
city. In the edition before us, the illustrations are placed to-
gether, as in the encyclopedias, and are arranged alphabetically
in classes by subjects, reference being made from the illustra-
tion to the text, and in the text to the illustration.

2. Table of Synonyms by Prof. Goodrich. This table we
have examined with much care, and believe it to be the most
valuable compilation on this subject ever published. There

are, in a strict sense, but few synonyms in our language; what
are usually classed as such are only so in a very general sense;
hence the use of the so-called synonyms without reference to
the exact specific meaning of each, is a very common but a
very inelegant misuse of language. Good writing and good
conversation are characterized as much as anything by a selec-
tion of words with reference to their nice shades of meaning.
We have had Crabbe, Roget, and other compilations of syn-
onyms, which show general resemblances. What was needed,
and what we have before us, is information as to the exact
shade of differences, like the following:

"AMPLE, COPIOUS, ABUNDANT, PLENTEOUS. These words agree
in representing a thing as large, but under different relations
according to the image which is used. Ample implies large-
ness producing a sufficiency or fullness of supply for every
want; as ample stores or resources, ample provision. Copious
carries with it the idea of flow or collection at a single point;
as a copious fountain, a copious supply of materials, 'copious
matter for song.'—MILTON. Abundant and plenteous refer to
largeness of quantity, as abundant stores, plenteous harvests."

3. Peculiar use of words and terms in the Bible.

4. Appendix of 10,000 new words. These words, we may
bless our stars, have not all been invented during the past
twelve years. Many of them are scientific and technical words,
that have now been incorporated in a general vocabulary for
the first time. It is fearful to see how the English vocabulary
is increasing, and the ambition of lexicographers should not be
so much to increase it, but to keep it within the smallest possi-
ble limits. We see a tendency in the editor of the volume be-
fore us to insert to a needless extent compound words, and
occasionally words of doubtful reputation, that had better be
kept outside a while longer on probation. If enlargement goes
on as it has of late years, the smallest vocabulary will soon be
a matter of boast.

5. Pronouncing table of names of 8000 distinguished per-
sons. This table not only gives the correct pronunciation of
the names of eminent persons living and dead, but gives also
their nationality, and the departments of literature or science
in which they distinguished themselves.

6. Abbreviations and arbitrary signs.

7. Latin, French, Italian and Spanish quotations, phrases,
mottoes, etc., that are common in English literature, with their
translation—the whole forming a huge quarto of 1748 pages.

The only criticism that has ever been urged against Webster,
is his mode of spelling a few words and classes of words, num-
bering less than a hundred in all. So far as analogy and argu-
ment goes, Webster and his advocates have the advantage. His
mode of spelling these words is reasonable, and has come into
general use. Our readers are already aware that this paper
follows, in general, the orthography of Webster. On some
half-dozen words—theater, center, etc.—we hesitate, while our
judgment approves the er. It is amusing to see, also, how
many of our cotemporaries spell according to Webster, who
would be shocked if they knew the fact. No paper is, perhaps,
more sensitive on this point than the Courier. On the 3d in-
stant our neighbor had an editorial article of a column and a
half, in the form of a judicial opinion, against Webster, and in
favor of another dictionary. In this the editor charged against
Webster's mode of spelling; and yet he could not print his
charge in other than Websterian fashion. The article contained
twenty-nine hundred words, in which only three different words
were used, in the spelling of which Webster differs from Wor-
cester. These words were used in the article ten times; in
nine instances the spelling was Websterian, in one instance it
was according to Worcester. The orthographical argument,
heretofore used against Webster, has nearly spent its force.
Usage is gradually but surely settling upon it, and it embodies
better than any other system the actual spelling of to-day.

From the Boston Ledger.

WEBSTER'S UNABRIDGED.—To attempt to manufacture public opinion for or against a work on lexicography, is idle; such productions can not stand except on their own intrinsic merits. We hear a great deal, on this side and that, about the battle of the Dictionaries; but nothing is plainer than the fact that there can be no such battle, and that the common law of the English tongue is founded on something more permanent and substantial than the mere pecuniary interest of a publishing house. Hence, to decry one Dictionary, already a standard throughout the land, if not throughout the world, because of local pride and prejudices, or the interests of certain publishers concerned in an opposing project, or from a fastidious affectation of scholarship that is really too finely bolted for "human nature's daily food,"—is to enter upon a war whose first, high-sounding manifestoes can not be, in any true sense, carried out.

Webster's Quarto Dictionary was first published as a stereotyped work in the year 1847; since which time it has made its way steadily, and held its ground tenaciously, wherever the English language is a vernacular. It has just been published in an unabridged form, in a new edition; and this present edition is so thorough and complete an one, and leaves so little either for the strict scholar, the man of general culture, or the limited employer of common words to desire, that it may with truth be said that nothing in the lexicographical line is left to be desired.

The critics of Webster are, as a general thing, mousers and mole hunters. They can, most of them, divide "a hair 'twixt north and northwest side," and have a wonderful faculty of talking stores of philological learning and science; but when all comes to be reduced to practice, it amounts only to this,—that Webster, in spite of the objections made to his modes of spelling and pronunciation in this quarter and that, and from this motive and that, still holds the field as the standard Dictionary of the English language.

In this new edition of Webster's Unabridged,—certainly one of the grandest works published in our day,—there are several features to be noticed that entitle it to the especial attention of the intelligent public. In the first place, and it is of prime importance in a work of this character, we have some 1500 *illustrations*; a decidedly novel feature in the making of a Dictionary, and calculated to extend its usefulness a great many fold. These illustrations are done in the very best style, by John Andrew, Esq., that whom no more skillful designer in wood holds a graver in the country.

These numerous illustrations are grouped according to subject, as, for example, Architecture, Fish, &c., &c., and a careful examination of them compels us to say that they are most elegantly and thoroughly done. Nothing is left in this matter to be desired. References are made in each illustration to the corresponding definition, to be found in the body of the book, and similar references are made in the body of the volume to such illustrations as are pertinent to the definition. Thus all inconvenience is avoided in the matter of referring backward and forward, and, at the same time, the objects illustrated are grouped naturally and most properly in the order of families and species. This feature forms a preface to the work, and yet is, to all intents, a part of it at every turn.

Then there is a fine table of Synonyms; and here the capable and scholarly editor—Prof. Chauncey A. Goodrich—has labored with all possible assiduity and skill, availing himself of some of the best talent and learning, both at home and abroad, to make this most necessary department of a Dictionary full, accurate, and complete. We have had occasion, several times since the issue of the new edition, to refer to this list of synonyms, and for clearness of description and accuracy in giving the divers shades of meaning for words used in almost similar relations, we have been delighted and surprised to find that nothing more seemed to be wanted. He must be a carping critic, rather than a genuine scholar, who can sit down and deliberately pen a page or two of fault-finding with a piece of

work so admirably done. This one feature of Webster adds to its former value ten fold.

Next we find added to the old stock of words in the language as many as 9000 more; bringing down the list to the very latest needs, universally and properly recognized, of the present day. All these words seem to have earned a title to permanent existence since the year 1847. Then a table giving the pronunciation of over 8000 names of distinguished persons of modern times,—an invaluable feature to every man who either reads or writes. Also, a table containing words and phrases of the Latin, of the French, of the Italian, and of the Spanish, rendered into English. Others might be mentioned, but we have not the space at our command to go more into detail.

Webster's Dictionary is the great American Dictionary, and is long likely to be. It now sells, edition after edition, not merely in the United States but in England also. The leading authors recognize it as authority, and it has accordingly stamped itself upon the literature of the age. Our leading men acknowledge it as a *sine qua non* with themselves, and continually recommend it to others for persistent and studious use. It has succeeded, against much idle opposition, in doing away with the obsolete modes of spelling certain words with a needless *u*, and of appending to others a clumsy *k*. Its definitions are both accurate in their out-lines, clean-cut, and sufficient,—while they likewise never leave anything in the way of explanation to be desired by the consulter. They manage to exhaust the subject.

This present edition of Webster's Unabridged, illustrated, is a royal volume, and as has been happily said, forms "one of the Washington-sized glories of our Country."

From Ballou's Pictorial Drawing Room Companion.

WEBSTER'S DICTIONARY UNABRIDGED.—This splendid work has been issued in the form of a large 4to volume of 1750 pages by George and Charles Merriam, corner of Main and State streets, Springfield. It is strongly and elegantly bound, and contains no fewer than fifteen hundred engraved illustrations of natural history, heraldry, antiquities, fine arts, numismatics, mechanics, marine architecture, etc. The style in which this massive work is issued is a monument of the enterprise and liberality of the publishers. But the subject matter is worthy of the splendid and substantial dress in which it has been clothed. It is a *resumé* of the life-long labors of Noah Webster, the *magnum opus* of a protracted life devoted to philological studies. It has been carefully edited, revised and enlarged by Chauncey A. Goodrich, of Yale College, who furnished a most pleasing and satisfactory memoir of the great American lexicographer. The essay on language which is among the prefatory matter is brilliant and profound. This complete dictionary of the English language must remain a standard of Etymology, Pronunciation and Definition.

From the Boston Christian Register, July 23d, 1859.

We would call attention to the well classified list of pictorial illustrations, which are finely engraved on wood, and printed with admirable distinctness, and after the manner of the Encyclopedia, by themselves. For instance, under the head of *Architecture* we have over seventy cuts, presenting to the eye so many parts of architecture, thus making intelligible at a glance, what no mere word-definition could impart a clear idea of. So of Botany, in which department there are over one hundred cuts. Each cut is accompanied with its name as it occurs in the dictionary, with a reference to the page on which it occurs, at which place there is also a reference to the cut. This feature of the new edition is really a great convenience.

Professor Goodrich's table of synonyms, is exactly what it claims to be; not a closely discriminating treatise on English synonyms, but a grouping and comparing of words of nearly the same import, not only for the purpose of showing their resemblance, but also of tracing the shades of their difference.

TESTIMONIALS CONTINUED.

WEBSTER'S QUARTO DICTIONARY UNABRIDGED. — In the unanimous judgment of the leading literary press of Great Britain and the United States, Webster's Dictionary is the most learned, the most comprehensive, and the most complete work of the kind in the English language; containing all that is excellent in Dr. Johnson's great work, with numerous philological corrections, more concise and accurate definitions, in many instances, and the addition of some sixteen thousand words — these additions consisting for the most part of terms used in the various departments of science and the arts, in commerce, manufactures, merchandize, and the liberal professions. — *Journal of Education for Upper Canada, Toronto, January, 1849.*

I regard this book as the most successful effort — the best published American book up to this time. — James Brown, Esq., firm of Little & Brown, of Boston, February, 1848.

All young persons should have a standard Dictionary at their elbows; and while you are about it, *get the best*: that Dictionary is Noah Webster's, the *great work* unbridged. If you are too poor, save the amount from off your back, to put it into your head. —*Phrenological Journal.*

There is no Dictionary but this of Webster's that can be adopted as a standard. We cannot refrain from expressing a hope that our brethren of the type — the printers and editors of newspapers especially — will adopt the orthography of Dr. Webster. In this respect, the printers of the present day have no standard. It is time they had. —*Boston Courier, December 30, 1847.*

My judgment and feelings are most heartily and permanently engaged in doing all that I can to make Webster the standard wherever the English is spoken, as it deserves to be, must be, is, and will be. —*Professor Stowe.*

The principles of orthography adopted are such, on the whole, as are either allowed by good use, or are fast working their way into favor. The objections which have been felt and expressed against Webster's Dictionary, we think, have been fairly removed by the corrections of Professor Goodrich.

In all other respects, it has never had a rival. In the completeness of the vocabulary, the fullness and precision of its definitions, its learned solution of the true source of words, and its apt and copious authorities, it is a work of amazing labor and scholarship, which has made *English lexicography an entirely new thing.*

By far the cheapest, most beautiful, and most useful lexicon of our language that can be obtained. —*Biblical Repository, January, 1848.*

"The edition of Dr. Webster's Dictionary, revised by Professor Goodrich, I would earnestly recommend to the attention of all teachers who are desirous of becoming fully qualified to give instruction in the English language. The copious information which that work embodies on all topics connected with etymology, — the extreme exactness, as well as the number, extent, and fullness of the definitions which it furnishes to every important word, render it a mine of philological wealth to instructors. The volume is, in fact, the teacher's encyclopaedia, as well as lexicon, for daily reference. Could a copy of it be provided, as the permanent property of every district school, the effect, as regards the improvement of instruction, would be deeply and extensively felt, in the increased skill of the teacher, and the higher attainments of his pupils, in the most important part of education — the acquisition of an adequate knowledge and proper use of our own language."

The publishers have received an order, from the city authorities of New York, for forty-seven copies of the work, to be placed in forty-seven of the public schools of the city, for the use of teachers and pupils. —*Springfield Republican.*

"*Resolved, That a copy of Webster's Unabridged Quarto Dictionary be placed upon the desk of each teacher in the grammar department of the St. Louis public schools, as a book of reference for teachers and pupils.*"

As such American, I am proud of the work. It is gratifying to see that it gives such universal satisfaction. I shall recommend it as the standard in the public schools of this state.

THOMAS H. BENTON, Jr.,
Superintendent of Public Instruction in Iowa.

"The etymological part surpasses any thing that has been done for the English language by any earlier laborers in the same field. —*George Bancroft.*

The American who cherishes the honor of the literature of his country, may with good reason be proud of this Dictionary, and regard with ardent enthusiasm every effort to give it additional value and a more extended circulation. The fact that such a work has been produced in this country, a work which can be sent to the mother country as a Thesaurus in that common language which unites the mother and as a language of the lighter land, more valuable than any which England has produced, with all her leisure, her libraries, and her means of research, is fitted to give us a just pride in the past, and an ardent hope for the future. The author of the original now sleeps with the dead; but it was his rare fortune to hear, while living, from the lips of the excellent Chancellor Kent, the following words of eulogy. —*Literary World, December 11, 1847.*

The following beautiful eulogy on Noah Webster, Esq., is from the Anniversary Address delivered before the Connecticut Alpha of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, by the late Chancellor Kent, of New York : —

"For nearly half a century, 'amidst obstacles and toils, disappointments and infirmities,' he has nobly sustained his courage; and by means of his extraordinary skill and industry in the investigation of languages, he will transmit his name to the latest posterity. It will dwell on the tongues of infants, as soon as they have learned to lip their earliest lessons. It will be stamped on our American literature, and be carried with it over every part of this mighty continent. It will be honored by three hundred millions of people; for that is the number which, it is computed, will, in some future age, occupy the wide space of territory stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, and from the torrid to the arctic regions. *The American Dictionary of the English Language* is a work of profound investigation, and does infinite honor to the philological learning and general literature of this country. Happy the man who can thus honorably identify his name with the existence of our vernacular tongue. There is no other way in which the mortal man could more effectually secure immortality beneath the skies. Obelisks, arches, and triumphal monuments seem to be as transient as the bubble of military reputation. No work of art can withstand the incessant strokes of Time. The unrivaled Parthenon, glowing in polished marble, and which, for more than two thousand years, continued from the summit of the citadel of Athens to cast its broad splendours across the plains below, and along the coasts and land-heads of Attica, is now crumbling to ruins, after being despoiled of its most exquisite materials by savage war and heartless man. Even the Pyramids of Egypt, whose origin is hidden in the deepest recesses of antiquity, and which have always stood in awe-inspiring solitude and grandeur, are now annoyed by the depredations of curiosity, and greatly corroded by the elements, and gradually sinking under the encroaching sands of the desert. This Dictionary, and the language which it embodies, will also perish; but it will not be with *the gorgeous palaces, and the great globe itself!*

One of the most important contributions ever made to a sound American literature — the most complete work of the kind that any nation can boast of. * * * What distinguishes this Dictionary above all others is the thoroughness and accuracy of its definitions; and this is the leading feature of such a work. This is a department of learning which is singularly difficult; and very few excel in it. It requires uncommon clearness and comprehensiveness of intellect. Definitions often lose their point by being overburdened with words. Dr. Webster was wonderfully happy in the use of language. And his definitions are models of condensation and purity; and the careful study of them, as an intellectual exercise, may safely be recommended to the young, especially, as an important means of advancement in knowledge. There is great fullness, too, in this work, in the defining of words; and in this respect it might be called an *Encyclopædia, presenting substantially the circle of the sciences.*

In regard to *Pronunciation*, we feel perfectly satisfied that this revision places that subject on a truer ground than any other work of the kind. The system of pronouncing conforms to a pure and manly taste, adapted to the character of the language, and is far removed from all affectation and mere fashion. * * * It is now, as we fully believe, in this revision, brought down to the true circumstances of the community in all respects. And we hope it will find its way rapidly, not only to the schools and the study, but to the parlors, the counting-room, and to the every-day purposes of life. —*Hon. William B. Calhoun, December, 1847.*

WEBSTER'S
SCHOOL
DICTIONARIES

NEW EDITIONS

The publication of that great thesaurus of the English language— Webster's International Dictionary—led to another great undertaking,— the thorough revision of Webster's School Dictionaries. These School Dictionaries constitute a progressive series, carefully graded and adapted for Primary Schools, Common Schools, High Schools, Academies, etc. They include the following books:

Webster's Primary School Dictionary

Webster's Common School Dictionary

Webster's High School Dictionary

Webster's Academic Dictionary

These books have all been thoroughly revised and made to conform in all essential features to the International Dictionary, now recognized throughout the English-speaking world as the highest and best authority for the use of the English language.

Webster's Dictionaries have at different times from the earliest days of the Republic, been repeatedly indorsed by

THE U. S. EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS

THE U. S. SUPREME COURT

THE STATE SUPREME COURTS

THE U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

THE U. S. BUREAU OF EDUCATION

THE STATE EDUCATIONAL AUTHORITIES

COLLEGE PRESIDENTS AND FACULTIES

AUTHORS, JOURNALISTS, ETC.

As a text-book in schools, Webster's School Dictionaries have ever stood unapproachable and without a rival; the one universal, acknowledged standard, in American education, American Literature and American Civil Life.

A few sample pages and a brief description of the several books of Webster's School Dictionaries are given on the following pages.

Copies of Webster's School Dictionaries will be sent, prepaid, to any address on receipt of the price by the Publishers:

AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY

NEW YORK

CINCINNATI

CHICAGO

BOSTON

ATLANTA

PORTLAND, ORE.

(135)

SOME SELECTED INDORSEMENTS
OF
WEBSTER'S SCHOOL DICTIONARIES

NEW YORK

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION, ALBANY, N. Y.

"It would be a happy day for the pupils of the country if every student could have a
Webster's School Dictionary at his elbow for convenient reference."

CHARLES R. SKINNER, State Superintendent.

CONNECTICUT

STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION, HARTFORD, CONN.

"Every scholar in the public school should have a dictionary and should be taught to use it. Not only every academic student, but every child who knows how to read should have a dictionary."

CHARLES D. HINE, Secretary.

SOUTH CAROLINA

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, COLUMBIA, S. C.

"All schools should use Webster's School Dictionaries."

W. D. MAYFIELD, State Superintendent of Education.

WASHINGTON

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION, OLYMPIA, WASH.

"Webster has been the standard for this State for some time, and there has never been a complaint made in regard to it. The Academic, containing as it does the maximum of usable matter in the minimum of space, has certainly no superior for the use of academic students."

C. W. BÉAN, Superintendent of Public Instruction.

NEW JERSEY

STATE NORMAL AND MODEL SCHOOLS, TRENTON, N. J.

"I am very much pleased with the Academic Dictionary. I wish each one of our pupils could have a copy."

J. M. GREEN, Principal.

GEORGIA

OFFICE OF STATE SCHOOL COMMISSIONER, ATLANTA, GA.

"It seems to me from an examination of the Academic Dictionary that it will be a very valuable part of the equipment of every academic student."

G. R. GLENN, State School Commissioner.

WISCONSIN

OFFICE OF STATE SUPERINTENDENT, MADISON, WIS.

"I have arisen from an hour spent in the examination of Webster's New Academic Dictionary, with the conviction that we have at last a reliable dictionary for handy reference, adapted alike for the use of teachers, students, professional men and business men, so comprehensive and authoritative, yet concise, as to satisfy all classes who have occasion to use a dictionary so frequently, and in conditions where an unabridged edition is impracticable."

W. H. CHANDLER, State Inspector of High Schools, Wisconsin.

NORTH DAKOTA

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION, BISMARCK, N. D.

"After careful examination of Webster's New Academic Dictionary I am pleased to express my unbounded admiration of the work. Webster's is recognized as the standard the English-speaking world over, and the 'New Academic' comprises the leading features of the larger work, in concise, compact form, available for convenient use in the school, the home and the office. As a handbook for teachers and high school pupils it is unrivaled."

EMMA F. BATES, Superintendent of Public Instruction, North Dakota.

MISSOURI

OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, KANSAS CITY, MO.

"Webster's Academic Dictionary is the ideal book for High Schools, Academies, Normal Schools, Colleges, and general readers. It was a happy thought to show the pronunciation of each word. So many do not know the sounds of the letters as indicated by the diacritical marks, but in taking the marks and the pronunciation together, one can hardly miss getting the proper pronunciation.

"I recommended the High School Dictionary for all our upper grades in the Ward Schools, and now I will recommend the Academic for all our High School pupils."

I. M. GREENWOOD, Superintendent of Schools.

Copies of Webster's School Dictionaries will be sent prepaid, to any address, on receipt of the price by the Publishers. Supplies for introduction and use in schools will be furnished on favorable terms. Correspondence and orders for this purpose cordially invited.

AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY

NEW YORK

CINCINNATI

CHICAGO

BOSTON

ATLANTA

PORTLAND, ORE.